Health kick

There’s something about the summer months that simply inspires to eat better and live a healthier lifestyle. It’s not just the ever present possibility of baring (almost) all in a bikini, but it’s the opportunity to grow your own veggies, peruse local markets and partake in numerous outdoor activities.

So, for the last few weeks, despite cheating a little on some excellent meals out, I’ve found myself on a serious health kick and feeling great about it.

We nuts know what it means to be busy, however, and cooking up delicious grub in the kitchen can often be a time consuming activity. Below are three recipes that vary in length to accommodate a hectic schedule.

Happy eating.

 

Girl-on-the-go smoothie (5 minutes)

Ingredients

–       1 portion of vanilla protein

–       1 tbsp milled flaxseed

–       1 tbsp chia seeds

–       2 tbsp vanilla greek yogurt

–       1 cup frozen fruit

–       1 cup vanilla or chocolate almond milk

 

It doesn’t get much easier than this. Since Kate & I have acquired the life-changing Magic Bullet, we’ve been sipping smoothies on the daily. But the above recipe could be just as easily made using a blender. Just combine all the above ingredients and bam! You have a meal replacement that can be enjoyed on the move.

If you are using a Magic Bullet, shake the container a few times so that the protein and flaxseed can mix with the milk first. It’ll make it easier to blend.

My favourite fruit blend is President’s Choice 4-Fruit Blend (strawberries, peaches, mango and pineapple) but I sneak a few blueberries in there to make it a more appealing purple colour.

TIP: I find it hard to drink a shake in place of a whole meal, so I’ll make a shake in the morning and drink half at lunch, accompanied by a small salad, and the other half for a snack or the next day.

 

Quinoa Greek Salad with Avocado (15 minutes)

 

Ingredients

–       1 cup quinoa

–       2 cups water

–       1 english cucumber

–       1 quart cherry tomatoes

–       1/2 Avocado

–       3 shallots

–       feta cheese

–       1 tbsp olive oil

–       1 tbsp lemon juice

 

 

Bring the water to a boil and pour in quinoa. Reduce to medium heat and cook the quinoa for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally so the quinoa doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot. Take off heat and set aside. Meanwhile, cut cucumber, tomatoes into quarters and dice the shallots. Combine all ingredients, including the olive oil and lemon juice and toss. Pepper to taste.

I used shallots in this recipe rather than red onion, not only because I needed some for the below recipe, but because they have a less harsh taste to them and won’t leave you with stinky breath if you’re bringing your salad to someplace like work!

TIP: Did you know there’s such a thing as a “master bite”?  It means building a bite that has each component of the dish. Obviously Kate, our foodie, recently taught me this and now ever meal has been turned into a game of building master bites.

 

 

Life’s a BEETch Salad (1.5 hours) 

 

Ingredients

–       4 large beets or 10 small beets

–       1 cup spring mix

–       1/3 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

–       2 tbsp olive oil

–       2 tbsp white vinegar

–       2 tbsp Dijon

–       1 diced shallot

–       goat cheese

–       pepper to taste

I renamed this adapted NY Times recipe the above because working with beets is tricky business. Not only will they dye everything in sight a nice shade of fuschia, but they take FOREVER to cook. The good thing is you can usually accomplish some other tasks while you leave the beets to roast or boil.

BAKE: heat oven to 400°F. Wash beets and wrap them individually in foil. Put on baking sheet and cook for 60-90 minutes. Once beets have cooled, peel under running water.

BOIL: bring water to a boil and put beets whole in boiling water. Boil for approximately 60 minutes, drain and peel. It is important not to cut into the skin of the beet because then all the colour and nutrients will drain into the water.

TIP: Use gloves of some sort when peeling the beets if you don’t want to have red fingertips for the rest of the day.

To make the dressing, combine oil, vinegar, minced shallot & Dijon. Pepper to taste and mix well.

Cut beets into cubes and place over greens. Drizzle the dressing and finish by crumbling chopped nuts and as much goat cheese as you like.