Today I was all by myself. No class. No boyfriend working from home. No appointments or anywhere to be. What did I decide to do? I worked out. I cooked a homemade lunch and dinner. I hung pictures. I planted some house plants and worked in my herb garden. I relaxed with my laptop. I also looked up recipes that included chives because with 3 plants growing I have plenty.

These quinoa sliders were a bit of work but well worth it. They are crispy, a very flavorful. Cheesy, garlic-y and onion-y…they didn’t need the buns that the orginal recipe suggested. As I ate them, I imagined making them for family or for a get together with friends. It’s one of those things you would make that would impress people because they wouldn’t expect vegetarian burgers to taste so good!

Here’s a look at the mix before it was fried up:

I placed the sliders on parchment paper to cool after cooking:

Today for lunch I ate two of the quinoa sliders with a baked sweet potato! They were perfect together and gave me the energy I needed to work around the house!

Crispy Quinoa Sliders with Zucchini and Chives

• 2/3 cup quinoa
• 1 1/3 cups vegetable broth (or water)
• Two slices of wheat bread, torn into pieces
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup coarsely grated zucchini
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped chives
• 3 small garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Method

• In a medium saucepan, cook the quinoa in 1 1/3 cup vegetable broth until liquid is absorbed. Fluff with fork and leave uncovered to cool for about 15 minutes.

• In a food processor, pulse the bread until coarse crumbs form; you should have about 1 cup. In a bowl, whisk the eggs. Squeeze the liquid from the zucchini and add the zucchini to the eggs. Stir in the cheese, chives, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix in the quinoa and bread crumbs. Let stand for 10 minutes.

• In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil. Using a 1/4-cup measure, form 1/2-inch-thick patties. Add 6 patties to skillet and cook until golden on the bottom, 3 minutes. Flip and cook for 3 more minutes. Remove first 6 sliders and place on parchment paper. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil to the skillet, and form the 6 remaining patties. Cook for 3 minutes on each side, until crisp. Serve with buns, lettuce, tomatoes, onion and pickles if desired.

Recipe Slightly Adapted from Food and Wine

I used to write down recipes that I made and liked enough to think that I would make them again. I first made this salad back in 2008 and unfortunately when I copied it down I didn’t note where I had gotten it from but I did write down the date and put a smiley face beside it!

The recipe as I copied it called for green onions but I have tons of fresh spring chives so I decided to substitute them. A delicious choice!

“Eat Your Greens” Asian Chicken Salad

• 1 small head napa cabbage, sliced thinly
• 1/2 bag frozen edamame, cooked then rinsed with cold water
• 1/2 cup cilantro leaves
• 1/4 chopped chives
• 1 small english cucumber, cut into julienne
• 6-7 radishes, cut into julienne
• 1 pound chicken (about 2 breasts)
• 5 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup fresh squeezed lime juice

Method

• In a small bowl combine the soy sauce, peanut butter, garlic, ginger, honey and lime juice. Whisk to combine.
• In a medium skillet add a bit of extra virgin olive oil, heat to medium or so and add the cubed chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Right before the chicken is done cooking add about a tablespoon of the dressing. Continue cooking until done, turn the burner off and let come to room temp while you prepare the rest of the salad.
• In a large bowl add sliced napa cabbage, cilantro, chives, cucumber, edamame and radishes. Add dressing and toss to combine. Let the salad sit for about 10 minutes while the chicken is cooling…the dressing will wilt the cabbage a bit making it softer and helping the flavors to combine. Lastly, add the chicken, toss salad again and enjoy!

Fast, easy to make pasta sauce doesn’t have to come in jar! I put this pasta together for a quick Sunday lunch when my sister was visiting last weekend. Check some pics from our weekend together on her blog.

We enjoyed (maybe-too-much) wine on Saturday night and I was craving pasta but I also wanted to eat lots of veggies and have a nice healthy meal. The eikhorn pasta has tons of nutrients and 8 grams of protein per serving. I chose shiitake mushrooms for their meaty-ness. Zucchini because it’s one of my favorite veggies and I wanted to add some “green” to the pasta. Garlic and shallots for flavor and bite. Last but not least…fresh, locally made goat cheese that I bought from the SOTJ Farmer’s Market the day before. If I hadn’t added it to the pasta I would have slowly eaten it throughout the week by sticking my finger in the container whenever I saw it in the fridge…it’s THAT good!

Penne with Zucchini and Shiitakes

• 1 – 12 ounce box Jovial Einkorn Penne pasta, cooked
• 4 zucchini, cubed
• 1 package shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and sliced
• 2 shallots, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 – 8 ounce container Night Sky Farms herbed goat cheese

Method

• Set the goat cheese out to soften. Prepare and chop all the veggies. Add butter and oil to a large skillet and heat to medium heat. Add all the veggies at once and cook until zucchini is just getting soft. (I set a lid on the pot for part of the time to help them steam.)
• Cook the pasta according the package directions and drain, reserving a little of the pasta water to help the pasta and veggies all come together.
• In a large bowl toss together cooked pasta, veggies and goat cheese. Add a little pasta water if needed to help everything come together in a nice sauce.

This morning I made smoothies, drove my son to school and then dropped my brother off at the community college he attends (his car is out of commission). Worked out, showered and was sitting in my spanish class all before 11am.

After spanish class I had a group project meeting from 12:30pm- 4pm in the library and another class from 4-6:40pm.

Busy day!

My favorite way to cook salmon is to simply salt and pepper both sides, get a non stick skillet very hot and add some sprays of an organic extra virgin olive oil spray. Sear both sides of the salmon at the medium-high heat to get a nice crust on the outside and a medium well temp inside. Tonight we ate it with steamed broccoli and cauliflower sprinkled with nutritional yeast and some pine nut cous cous!

P.S. It’s finals time so tomorrow will be just as busy

We studied several recipes and I wrote up one of my own on my Google Docs. That’s what I was checking on here while simultaneously pouring honey:

It’s so great that I had my sister in the kitchen taking pics of me! I wish we had one of her!

I melted the coconut oil for a second by setting the jar in a small saucepan of boiling water. It made pouring it a breeze! (note: coconut oil is usually soild)

The end result was yummy! It was juicy and the “crisp” part was crunchy and just sweet enough due to the honey, almonds and pumpkin seeds. Perfect with the frittata and sausage that we prepared to go with it.

Vegan Apple Crisp

• 6 medium fuji or honey crisp apples
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 1/4 cup buckwheat flour
• 2 pinches kosher salt
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds
• 1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 cup local honey
• 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) coconut oil

Method

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash apples, core them and cut them into chunks. I used organic apples and did not peel them. Squeeze the juice of one lemon over the apples and toss to combine. I used the 13×9 dish that I baked the apples in as my bowl.
• In a separate bowl combine buckwheat flour, salt, spices, almonds and pumpkin seeds and stir. Add coconut oil, vanilla and honey and stir until well combined. Spoon it in chunks over the apples and spread to cover. Cover the top of the dish with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 15 minutes.

Here’s me at the Irish fest on Saturday. We went up to the cemetery at St. Johns Church but we kicked out soon after because we weren’t supposed to take beer up there. Whoops! (pic courtesy of my sis!):

Me and Travis and our friend Brian in the background checking his phone:

On Saturday and Sunday I made the same smoothie combo for pre-workout breakfast…spinach, green grapes and banana. The grapes add a great sweetness!

 Spinach Banana Protein Smoothie

• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 cup baby spinach (packed)
• 1/2 cup green grapes
• 1 small frozen banana
• 1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder
• 1 heaping tablespoon Just Great Stuff peanut butter powder
• 2 teaspoons flax seeds

Place in the blender in the order listed and blend until smooth. Serves 1.

It’s not the best pic but you can see how deep and rich the color is because of the berries and the purple/red colored chard. Swiss chard has never tasted so good!!

I’ve been drinking smoothies just about every morning and I’m gonna try to start featuring a new blend every Sunday here. Come back and check out the blog at least once a week if you want to see my newest favorite smoothie of the week

Swiss Chard, Blueberry Protein Smoothie

• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 4-5 small leaves of organic swiss chard, stem removed and torn into pieces
• 1/2 cup frozen cherries
• 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
• 1 teaspoon flax seeds
• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder (I use Garden of Life)
• a couple of ice cubes

Method

• Place in a high speed blender in the order listed and blend until smooth. Serves 1.

Quinoa is a seed that is very high in protein and low in fat. I used organic quinoa that I purchased from Whole Foods. Also I had some sliced almonds on hand so I didn’t need to chop them.

I enjoyed this granola on a little plate while doing my homework…

…and on top of frozen yogurt from Sweet Frog (I actually resisted getting any toppings at the store so that I could top it with my granola!)

Crispy Quinoa Granola

• 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
• 1/2 cup almonds
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup local organic honey
• 1/2 cup dried golden raisins
• *Note: Can easily be doubled and fit on one baking sheet.

Method

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Chop ½ cup almonds. In a medium bowl, combine ¾ cup quinoa, ½ cup pumpkin seeds, ½ cup chopped almonds, and ½ teaspoon kosher salt. Stir in 2 tablespoons olive oil and ¼ cup honey to thoroughly combine. Spread onto a baking sheet.
• Bake for 20 minutes, stirring a few times during baking. Add ½ cup golden raisins (or any dried fruit) and let cool 15 minutes. Break any large chunks into small pieces and store in an airtight container.

Recipe from A Couple Cooks