Avocado Mango Black Bean Salad

Above is a picture of a salad that Esther and I enjoyed for lunch a few weeks ago.

It had never crossed my mind to put mango in a salad, but we went over to a friends house a few weeks ago, and they had put mango in a salad with avocado as well.

We both loved it, and decided we needed to make that salad again at home with those two ingredients!

To add some protein, I added black beans, and for extra flavor, I topped it off with a Cumin/Lemon Olive Oil dressing. Yum!

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Here is a salad were the base is not lettuce! It was a nice change of pace at lunch for Hannah and I last week. We both love tahini so that's why we dolloped a little on top, if you prefer to leave it out I would recommend a good olive oil and garlic dressing for a little more moisture! It was a really quick lunch to put together once the quinoa was cooked, we left it warm but you could make it ahead of time and use it cold. Also one last side note, the tomatoes and kale were freshly picked from our garden!!!!Our Mom has a amazing green thumb:-) It's such a blessing to have fresh produce right in our back yard.

^{Genesis 1:11-12}

And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.

And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

Serves:1

1/4c. dry quinoa, cooked

3 leaves of fresh kale, de-ribbed chopped and steamed till al dente

1/4 c. cooked garbanzo beans

4 cherry tomatoes, sliced in half

5 kalamata olives, sliced in half

1 1/2 tsp. tahini paste ( Made from Sesame seeds)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Place cooked quinoa in a pile on plate, top with kale and garbanzo beans. Scatter tomatoes nicely over the top. Drop tahini in a nice looking 'drop' on top!

No lettuce for lunch? Oh, what to do!?!

As 12pm. was swiftly on its way today, I scurried into the kitchen to make lunch for Esther and I, and for my siblings as well.
After making a good old Texas meal of Quesadilla's for our ever hungry and appreciative brother's and sister, I scrounged around in the fridge for a few minutes trying to see what I could find to make Esther and I something to eat.
What, no lettuce? How could that be! I was thinking a salad sounded really good especially since the high was 75 degrees today:-) ( I just love Texas!)
Anway, since I was obviously not going to get my salad, I decided to get a bit creative with our delectible fridge ingredients; tuna, red peppers, and zucchini..........what an interesting combination.

I was really excited though, as I thought I could make something really good and different with these ingredients. Plus, I was really needing a break from practicing my harp anyway, and having to create a new and exotic lunch was just the perfect "harp practice" intermission!

I sliced the zucchini with a vegetable peeler, and then sprinkled it with a bit of chopped red pepper for flavor and color. What to do with the tuna? I love asian food, so I mixed it with a bit of soy sauce and tahini. After that was all done, I topped the zucchini with the tuna mixture.
After a drizzle or two of flax oil, it was set!
Now for a side, that was easy. We had some hummus that Esther made a few days ago so I put that on the side with a few slices of red pepper. A little more color was needed, and there was also an empty spot on the plate that looked lonely;-) So a few orange slices and 3 blackberries would do the trick of filling in that bare spot.......and tada, presto, we have lunch! Of course I told Esther she had to let me take a picture of it before she could devour it:-)

Italian "Pasta" Lunch

Quick and easy Italian "pasta" salad

1/2 zucchini peeled with a veggie peeler ( makeing what lookes like pasta strips)
5 chopped olives
1/2 tomato
1T. balsamic dressing

Top zucchini pasta with remaining ingredients, and eat!

Serves 1

A nice quick lunch for a spring cleaning day!

After posting so many not so healthy recipes in a row we have decided to give you all a break and post some good healthful ones:) We had this for lunch and thought it was worthy of a blog post. If you don't like raw fish in your sushi give this combo a try, I really liked the radishes Hannah shredded and put in it as well as the idea of putting the red pepper dip on the kelp noodles! Hannah and I like to make hand held sushi because its way easier then the real stuff and quick to make when you don't have much time, like we had today:) We have been are on spring cleaning frenzy, I think it's all the warm weather we are having. In the next couple days we will try to post some more recipes, and this time they will be healthier then the last couple we've done:)

Hand Held Sushi

Serves:2

2 sheets of nori, soy or seaweed

1/2 cup shredded radishes

1/2 cup shredded carrots

2 small green onions,sliced

1-2 lettuce leaves, chopped

1 1/2 teaspoons tahini (ground up sesame seeds)

1 teaspoon soy sauce

Kelp noodle salad

Serves:2

1 cup raw kelp noodles

2-4 Tablespoons of raw red pepper dip

tahini

raw seasame seeds

In a small bowl mix radishes,carrots,green onions,tahini and soy sauce. Mix till blended. Drop onto nori and sprinkle lettuce on top. Wrap up. For the Kelp noodle salad put noodles on plate and top with red pepper dip, tahini and seasame seeds. Serve the sushi and salad together. You might also want a little soy sauce for the salad as well as the sushi!

Baba Ganoush

Ingredients:

• 2 medium sized eggplants
  
• 1 lemon, juiced
  
• 3 Tbsp. tahini
  
• 1 tsp. salt (add more to taste)
  
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
  
• 3 Tbsp. olive oil
  
• 3 cloves of garlic, crushed
  
• parsley for garnish
  

*Serve with pita bread, sliced baguette, veggies for dipping

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

2) Using a fork, prick the eggplants (like 5 or 6 pricks all around). Place eggplants on baking sheet. Bake for 40-45 minutes. Take out of oven, let rest for 10 minutes. Cut in half and scoop out eggplant flesh with a spoon.

3) In a food processor, or mixing bowl, add eggplant, lemon, tahini, salt, pepper, olive oil and crushed garlic. Mix until well blended. Chill for at least one hour before serving. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with parsley and serve with bread or veggies.

Asian Lettuce Wrap

1 leaf of romaine lettuce

5 asparagus spears cooked

1/4c. kelp noodles

1T. crumbles goat cheese

1t. tahini

Pile the asparagus and kelp noodles onto lettuce leaf. Top with goat cheese, and tahini...............served with soy sauce for dipping.

Barbecued and sunny-side up

1 T. oil

2 cups peeled and 1/2 inch diced potato

1/2 c. thinly sliced yellow onion

kosher salt if using table decrease the amount by 1/2

pepper

1.2 c. BBQ sauce

1/4 c. thinly sliced green onion, green part only

1 tsp. oregano

4 eggs

4 10 or 11 in. flour tortillas

Heat oil over me. heat add potatoes in single layer and yellow onion. Season with 1/2 tsp. of kosher salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper. Cook till crispy on all sides 8-10min. strain frequently. Reduce hat and cook till tender when priced with fork 5-10min. Remove from heat. Transfer the potato to a small mixing bowl add the BBQ sauce, green onions, and oregano. Stir to coat. Return the skillet to the stove, add 2 tsp. of oil to the pan, heat over med. heat. Crack the eggs 2 at one time, season with 1/4 tsp. of salt and pepper cook over high heat 1-2 min. remove from heat. Divide the potato's evenly in the tortillas gently place one egg in each. Wrap up and enjoy!

Thai Food Wrap

!c. coconut milk

1t. dried lemon grass

1T. red curry paste

1T. brown sugar

salt to taste

1T. lime juice

2T. olive oil

2c. diced zucchini

1c. diced onion

1 1/4lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1in. cubes

2c. cooked rice warm

1/4c. chopped fresh basil

1/4c. chopped fresh mint

8-10in. flour tortillas

In a large saucepan, combine the 5 ingredients. Bring to a simmer and cook until mixture thickens. 10-15min.

Remove from the heat and add lime juice and set aside. heat 1T. of olive oil over med. heat in skillet. Add the zucchini and onion, and salt. Cook till veggies are tender about 5-7min. Transfer to a large bowl, add the remaining 1T. of olive oil to skillet; add chicken. Cook till done. About 5min. Add veggies, rice and basil/mint. Mix well; then add coconut sauce. Serve wrapped in a tortilla!

Wrap number 3!

This wrap is a burrito. Filled with savory black beans, crunchy peppers, rice, and Mexican seasonings. It is the most conventional mixture. For a more authentic treat, substitute the Monterrey jack cheese, with a mild flavored Mexican or Spanish cheese, such as Manchego.

Definition of hot Adobo marinade; A blend of dried red Chilies water sugar and salt. It is used as a marinade, or sauce that can be added to sauces, poured over prepared dishes, or used as a grilling sauce. It has a smoky Chile taste, you may substitute enchilada sauce.

Wrap Classico

1-15 1/2oz. drained black beans

1/2c. chopped red pepper

1/2c. chopped yellow bell pepper

3/4c. white rice warm

1/4c. chopped fresh cilantro

1/4c. picante sauce

1T. hot adobo marinade

1/2t. cumin

1/2c. shredded Monterrey jack cheese

sour cream

(4) 10 or 11 in. flour tortillas

Heat the bean in a saucepan over med. heat. Stir in the rest of the ingredients, cook until warm. 2-3min. divide the bean mixture on tortillas, top with cheese and sour cream. Roll up, and eat!

Sweet Potato Cherve Wanut Salad with Creamy Balsalmic Dressing

Yummy! This Salad was so scrumptious! On Tuesday of last week we had sweet potatoes for lunch, so on Wednesday we decided to use up the leftover baked sweet potatoes on a salad. Esther and I thought of some changes that we would make if we were to have more time to prepare it; Grill the baked Sweet Potatoe slices, ( they would need to be a little al dente to do this so they wouldn't fall apart) Toast the Walnuts, and use cranberry Cherve cheese, and maybe sprinkle with a few dries cranberries.

What do you normally do with sweet potatoes?


Here is the recipe: serves 1-2 depending on how hungry you are!

21/2c. of baby spinach
1 sweet potato cooked then cut into 1/4in. slices
1/4c. crumbled cherve cheese
2T. walnuts

Top spinach with remaining ingredients, and drizzle with dressing.

The dressing
2T. balsamic vinegar
2t. sour cream
2t. olive oil
pepper

Mix and store in refridgerator

Figgy Nutmeg Smoothie

A few weeks ago our whole family trekked out to a local apple and fig orchard.............and picked to our hearts content! We've had so much fun experimenting with the figs, it was our very first time picking these yummy little treats! Coming soon, a new faze in the Del sisters kitchen!

1/2c. milk

2 figs

1/4t. -1/2t. nutmeg

1/2. ice cubes

1 banana

Blend and enjoy

Rasapple Pb Crunch Muffin

1 Homemade Sour Dough English Muffin (or what ever kind you prefer!)( Recipe to be posted soon)
1 1/2t.-1T. Organic Peanut butter
1T. Homemade Granola
1/2 an apple peeled and thinly sliced
1t. cinnamon
1 1/2t.-1T. honey ( how sweet are you?)
5 big fat juicy raspberries
1T. Chopped walnuts



Put your sliced apple in a saucepan with the cinnamon and honey.
Cook till el dente. Toast you muffin. Then spread with the Pb. Top with the apples, and sprinkle with nuts and granola.................don't forget the raspberries:-)
Serve with a steaming cup of tea..........................