Vegging Out

It was a crazy busy weekend here. Our Saturday trip to King's Island was awesome but exhausting (although those yummy homemade granola bars helped us through the day!) and Sunday found me in a crazy tidying/organizing/cleaning state. I hadn't planned on anything for lunch, but I did have a yummy plan for a snack, which transitioned into lunch along with a cup of soup I found in my cupboard -- a remnant of my last trip to the UK. That wonderful lunch/snack was.... homemade veggie chips with hummus!

Ok, the hummus was store bought so I can't take credit for that, but the veggie chips were 100 percent natural. I peeled a sweet potato and a parsnip, cut the into thin chip-shaped (or crisp-shaped, depending on where you're reading this from) rounds, seasoned them and baked them until they were good and crispy. They were a hit with the hubby, who was a huge fan of the parsnip chips. I'd planned on making more chips with a rutabaga (swede in England) I bought, but I ran out of room!

Chips pre-baking

Chips post-baking

These were a great alternative to store-bought potato chips -- and a lot healthier too, since I could control what went into the chips. The only seasoning I used was salt and pepper since the hummus was so flavorful, but you could add whatever spices you like -- paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, or whatever floats your boat.

Close-up yumminess

Homemade Veggie Chips

1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into thin slices

1 parsnip, peeled and cut into thin slices

1 tbsp olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Throw veggie slices into a lidded container along with the olive oil, salt and pepper. Add lid and shake container to coat chips with oil.

Lay chips on a baking sheet or in a baking dish, taking care not to overlap or lay chips on top of each other, which will prevent them from cooking and crisping. Bake at 350 Fahrenheit for 30 minutes, or until crispy and slightly brown.

Serve chips immediately with your favorite dip. 

Homemade Granola Bars

I love granola. I literally can't have it in the house, or I scarf it down within hours. It's just so yummy and I can't help myself. So when we do have granola, we make it ourselves and I make Ben take most of it with him when he's travelling. We have the most kick ass granola recipe, and I can't even remember where we got it from.

Today we're off out all day, and I hate being out, hungry and surrounded by crappy food. So I decided to attempt to make some granola bars for us to take with us so we don't have to survive on burgers or pizza. It was a total experiment, based on our granola recipe, and it was a huge success!

Giant granola bar, pre-cutting

Once baked and cut, I wrapped each bar in cling film to keep it fresh, then put them all in a Tupperware container. Now all that needs to happen is for me to eat them -- I'm hoping they'll last more than a day!

So very delicious

Homemade Granola Bars

2 cups rolled oats

1 tsp cinnamon 

1 tsp salt

3 tbsp + 1 tsp vegetable oil (I used canola oil)

1/4 cup honey (or agave)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 ripe banana, mashed

A few handfuls of chopped nuts, such as almonds or walnuts

A few handfuls of dried fruit, such as raisins or cranberries

Preheat oven to 325 Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.

Stir oats, cinnamon and salt together in a large bowl.

Mix oil, honey, sugar and vanilla in a medium bowl. Add mashed banana and stir to combine.

Pour oil mixture into oat mixture and mix well, using a wooden spoon or your hands. Toss in nuts and dried fruit and mix well.

Pile mixture onto the baking sheet and form into a square, approximately 1/2 inch thick. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the outer oats start to crisp.

Let granola square cool completely, then cut into 10 pieces with a sharp knife. Enjoy!

Turban Squash Experiment

Today was all about experimenting. We're planning a trip to King's Island tomorrow and I wanted to make something healthy that we could sneak in so we don't have to eat the nasty food they have at the park. So I attempted granola bars... they're still cooling so we'll see if they stay together once cut!

The second food I experimented with today was turban squash. If you're wondering, "what on earth is turban squash?!" then I was right there with you until I saw my first one a few months ago. They look a little something like this:

Weird, no? I was intrigued by this odd-looking squash, so I bought my first one this week. I searched online for recipes to no avail, so I decided to wing it. I started by cutting the squash in half and deseeding it.

Like a little mushroom!

Then, I peeled the skin off using a potato peeler and cut it into small pieces. I laid the pieces in a baking dish and sprayed them with olive oil cooking spray, then sprinkled some garlic powder on top, then I baked the squash until they were just starting to brown.

Meanwhile, I heated some olive oil in a skillet and added some minced garlic, dehydrated chopped onion and sundried tomato oil seasoning, and cooked some whole-wheat linguini in a medium saucepan. Once the pasta was done, I mixed everything together and topped it with feta because, let's face it, feta makes everything better.

The end result was pretty good for an experiment, although next time I'll probably use butternut squash -- the turban squash was such an odd shape that it took about 30 minutes to peel the thing!

Yumminess!

Roasted Squash Pasta

1 winter squash (butternut, acorn, turban etc), deseeded and chopped into small cubes

Cooking spray

1 tsp garlic powder

2 tbsp olive oil, divided

2 tsp minced garlic

2 tsp dehydrated onion

2 tsp sundried tomato seasoning, or any other Italian-style seasoning

3 oz whole wheat linguini

Roast squash in a baking dish at 350 Fahrenheit for 30 minutes.

When squash has 10 minutes left, bring a pot of water to boil and add whole wheat linguini. At the same time, add 1 tbsp olive oil to a skillet on a medium-low heat. Add garlic, onions and seasoning and mix well.

Add roasted squash to the olive oil and stir thoroughly to coat. Drain pasta and mix it in with the squash mixture, adding 1 tbsp olive oil to coat the pasta. Serve immediately and sprinkle with feta. Yum!

Makes 2 servings.

Kale-licious!

 It was a looooooooong day today, one I don't care to repeat. I actually got peed on at work. That's right, a dog lifted his leg and peed right on my boot. Luckily, they were $10 at Walmart about 3 years ago and I hate them, but still. I was happy to get home and take a long, hot shower.

I took out a sockeye salmon fillet from the freezer this morning and I had a bunch of kale in the fridge that needed using. Ben hates kale, but when I bought it I didn't think he would be home this week. So my mission was to make boring kale into something super yummy that both of us would enjoy.

Along with the kale, I decided to break open the bag of millet my mum made me buy when she was visiting. I was a millet virgin, so this was a special moment for me.

I also had some crimini mushrooms left over from last week's veggie box that were starting to look sad, and some fresh garlic cloves.

I heated up some olive oil in a deep skillet and added the minced garlic and mushrooms. Once those were looking almost done, I threw in my kale. I had a little help from a couple of munchkins who thought I was cooking something much more canine-friendly than kale (and they were sadly mistaken!) 

Kale makes Dougal sad

Stumpy's natural pose

The finished product was something tasty, healthy and different, and went really well with the millet and salmon. Now I know how easy it is to make kale more appetizing it might become a more frequent visitor to my kitchen!

Garlicky Sauteed Kale


2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
5 or 6 crimini mushrooms (or any other kind of shroom)
1 bunch kale, destemmed

Heat olive oil in a deep skillet or wok. Once hot, add garlic and mushrooms. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add kale to skillet and stir to coat with olive oil. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes, until kale starts to wilt. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Adventures With Oatmeal

I've always had an aversion to oatmeal. My first job was cleaning up the breakfast plates at an old people's home, and I'd come home covered in caked porridge and feeling truly disgusting. My hubby is a huge oatmeal fan, and I'd tried it in the past purely because it's just so damn good for you! But I couldn't get past the texture and the general ickiness of the whole thing.

This all changed this week when I decided enough was enough. I work outside and it's getting cold, so cereal is no longer going to cut it for me. I wondered if the reason I hated Ben's oatmeal (besides the texture) was because it's prepackaged and pre-flavored. I had a container of regular Quaker old fashioned oats in my cupboard so I decided to put them to good use.

With some yummy seasonings and the addition of a cut up banana and my homemade pumpkin butter, I managed to transform the usual icky oatmeal into something I could stomach. And I have to say, not only was it yummy, it kept me full up until lunch. Post-oatmeal, I ran 3 miles and STILL wasn't hungry. Success!

Yummiest Oatmeal


1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1 cup vanilla flavored almond milk
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 banana, cut up
2 tbsp. pumpkin butter

Pour almond milk into a small saucepan and heat until boiling.

Add oats and cinnamon and cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Take oats off the heat and cover with a lid for an additional 2-3 minutes, allowing the oatmeal to thicken.

Serve in a cereal bowl with cut-up banana pieces and pumpkin butter. Makes 1 serving.

Pumpkins, Pumpkins Everywhere!

Since embracing a healthier lifestyle, I've signed up for a fortnightly fruit and veggie box from Green Bean Delivery. Last week I received my first ever pie pumpkin. I was way more excited than a person should be when faced with a pumpkin, but I'd been wanting to try cooking with fresh pumpkin since summer.

I cut my pumpkin in half, scooped out the insides and laid each half face-down in a 9x13 casserole dish. I added 1/4 inch of water and baked at 350 Fahrenheit for 45 minutes. Once done, I scooped out the yummy, pumpkinny flesh into a bowl and started creating!

Saturday night I made pumpkin risotto with a recipe adapted from my favorite healthy food blog, Skinny Taste. Sunday morning I made pumpkin spices pancakes with pumpkin butter (recipes also from Skinny Taste). Monday night I still had a cup of pumpkin puree left, so I doctored a recipe to make pumpkin and currant muffins. I made 12, but froze most of them by wrapping each one in cling film and putting them in a large Tupperware container. They can either defrost at room temperature, or in a low-temp oven until thawed.

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins with Currants


1 cup pumpkin puree (use canned for quickness if you like)
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups currants, raisins, sultanas, or any other dried fruit
1 egg white
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp melted butter or margarine

Preheat oven to 325 (165 Celcius)

Mix flour, sugar, salt and baking soda together in a large bowl.

Combine pumpkin puree, egg white, butter and vanilla in a medium bowl and mix well.

Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture and stir until blended. Add currants and mix well.

Divide batter between 12 lined muffin tins and make for 25 minutes. You'll know the muffins are ready when a toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean.

(Original recipe from Skinny Taste)