Healthy Thanksgiving Side Dishes: Mushroom Marsala Wild Rice

In honor of Thanksgiving coming up, I have decided to post a side dish a week that is a healthier take on what you might normally have on Thanksgiving!

Why am I doing this? After the holiday season is over, I always here everyone complaining about how they have gained so much weight. How much they have eaten out, all the cookies, candy, glutinous feasts they've partaken in, etc. so instead of setting yourself up for the same cycle of pain that you go through every year, why not try to make it better on yourself and keep it healthier? 

Also, there are a lot of gluten free and dairy free eaters nowadays, so to be respectful to them, it's always nice to incorporate something they can eat into the feast as well. 

So today's feature is Mushroom Marsala Wild Rice. I bought the Marsala wine at Trader Joes, but you can buy it at any grocery store. You can also by presliced mushrooms to cut down the prep time. What is nice about this dish is you can make it ahead of time and reheat it easily. One less thing to cook that day! Alright, so here it goes!

Mushroom Marsala Wild Rice

(Makes 6-8 Servings)

Ingredients:

1 cup wild rice 

3 cups water or stock

1 package sliced mushrooms

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup diced onion 

1 TBLSP minced garlic

2 TBLSP cornstarch 

1/2 cup Marsala

1 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable stock

Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1. In a pot, combine rice and water/stock and bring to a boil. Once it is boiling, turn down the heat, cover, and simmer for 40-45 minutes.

2. Fluff the rice with the fork and continue to simmer for 5 more minutes. Drain any excess water. Cover to keep the rice warm.

3. In a large pan, heat 2 TBLSP of olive oil, and add the onions, garlic, and mushrooms until tender. 

4. Add the 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and stir until it's combined.

5. Deglaze the pan by adding the Marsala wine, and stir, getting everything off the pan.

6. Next add the chicken or vegetable stock, and cook until the mixture thickens to a gravy looking sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste.

7. Stir the sauce into the rice and serve. 

To reheat, put the rice in a covered pot and cook on low, stirring frequently. 

Raspberry Jam Thumbprint Cookies

Tea time anyone?! Remember that amazing raspberry chia seed jam I posted the other day? Well say hello to its best friend; the cookie to its jam, the raspberry jam thumbprint cookie!

With oats, almond extract, coconut, and of course jam, these cookies are the perfect little (okay, they're kind of big) treat! Tea time has never been better!

Raspberry Chia Seed  Jam Thumprint Cookies

(Makes 12 rather large cookies)

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup flour (I used spelt flour)

1 cup quick oats

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup brown sugar

3 TBLSP egg whites or 1 egg

1/4 cup honey or pure maple syrup

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract  

1/2 cup natural applesauce

2 TBLSP coconut oil

Unsweetened shredded coconut for rolling

Raspberry chia seed jam for topping*

Method:

1. In a food processor or blender, pulse the oats a few times.

2. In a large bowl, combine the oats, flour, baking soda, and salt together.

3. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar and eggs together until creamed. Next add in the rest of the wet ingredients besides the jam, and stir well.

4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until they are fully combined. 

5. Cover the bowl with foil or cling wrap, and place in the fridge to harden for 45 minutes to an hour. 

6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

7. In a bowl, pour about 1/3 of coconut shreds into it.

8. Take the dough out of the fridge and roll the dough into balls the size of a ping pong ball.

9. Roll the balls in the coconut shreds and place on an undressed cookie sheet.

10. With your thumb, make an imprint in the middle of the cookie.

11. Using a small spoon, spoon some of the chia jam into the imprint in the cookie.

12. Bake the cookies for 13-15 minutes, or until they become golden brown. 

Store these in the refrigerator in an air tight container as there are no preservatives in the jam! 

Enjoy!

*Note - You can use any jam you want! Strawberry or blackberry would be fantastic as well!

Raspberry Chia Seed Jam

Have you heard of chia seeds before? I am sure you have as they have become a health craze and been classified a superfood. Let me tell you some reasons why chia seeds are superfood and catching so much buzz in the health and fitness world.

Chia seeds (ounce per ounce) have:

• 100% more potassium than bananas
• 200% more iron than spinach
• 100% more fiber than bran flakes 
• 500% more calcium than milk
• 700% more omega 3 than salmon
• 1400% more magnesium than broccoli 
• 500% more protein than kidney beans
• 800% more phosphorus than whole milk
• more folate than asparagus
• more antioxidants than blueberries

If those facts don't scream superfood qualities, I don't know what does! 

The best part of this little seed is everything you can do with it! Some of them include:

• Chia Eggs
• Adding them to smoothies
• Chia pudding (recipe coming later this week!)
• Homemade energy gel
• Use them for a thickener...

...Which leads me to today's recipe, Raspberry Chia Seed Jam! It is refined sugar free, easy to make, and the best part... DELICIOUS! If you aren't fond of raspberries, you can use any berry or grape you would prefer. 

Raspberry Chia Seed Jam

(makes about 1 cup of jam)

Ingredients:

2 cups of frozen or non-frozen raspberries (preferably organic) 

1/4 cup water

2 tbslp honey or maple syrup (3 tblsp if you want a sweeter jam)

2 tbslp chia seeds

Method:

1. If you are using frozen raspberries, allow them to defrost in the refrigerator first.

2. Add raspberries, water, and honey/maple syrup to a pot and bring to a boil.
3. While waiting for it to come to a boil, use a potato masher or fork to mash up the raspberries.

4. Once it is boiling, turn the heat down and simmer uncovered for 5-7 minutes, or until the mixture begins to thicken.

5. Once it starts to thicken, turn off the heat and stir in the chia seeds.

6. Allow the mixture to cool down for 10-15 minutes, pour into a mason or canning jar, and place in the refrigerator overnight.

The jam will last up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator. Will last a shorter amount of time if using organic ingredients!

Enjoy! xo

Ratatouille... Not the Movie

When life gives you homegrown organic heirloom tomatoes, you make ratatouille! 

I was at the Pageant of the Masters in Laguna Beach when I was home last week, and I had an amazing side dish of ratatouille. It is one of my favorite side dishes. So much flavor and depth. 

When I came home from my trip, Tyler had brought home fresh heirloom tomatoes from his coworkers garden. Immediately I knew I was going to make ratatouille! I always thought of the dish as more of a fall or winter dish, but surprisingly, it is a great summer dish since it has zucchini, bell peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, etc. Let's get to how you make this wonderful dish! 

What You Will Need:

(Makes 6-8 Servings)

1 medium eggplant cubed and drained

2 red bell peppers chopped

2 medium zucchinis chopped into crescent moon shapes

3 cloves of garlic minced

2 medium tomatoes diced

1 large yellow onion cut into 1/2 inch strips

1 bunch of basil wrapped with cooking twine + 6 leafs of basil chopped

Pinch of crushed red pepper

Salt to taste

Fresh ground pepper

1 1/2 TBLSP olive oil divided

1. Cut the eggplant into cubes and set it out on paper towel to drain while you prep the rest of the vegetables.

2. Once all the veggies have been prepped, wipe a nonstick pan down with a little olive oil and heat to medium heat. When the pan is heated, cook the eggplant until it is a golden brown, and then take it off the heat and set it to the side.

3. In a large pot, heat one tablespoon of olive oil to medium heat. Add the onions and sauté for about 5-7 minutes until the onions start to become translucent.

4. Next, add in the garlic, basil bunch, crushed red pepper, and a pinch of salt and continue to cook for 2-3 minutes.

5. After 2-3 minutes, add in the peppers and cook for a couple minutes before adding the zucchini. Allow it all to cook together for a couple minutes.

6. Next, add the tomatoes and cook for 8-10 minutes covered.

7. After 8-10 minutes, add the eggplant to the pot, and continue to cook the ratatouille covered for 15-20 minutes on low-medium heat. 

8. Once the veggies are soft, turn off the heat, take out the basil bunch using tongs, and add the remaining 1/2 TBLSP of olive oil, a pinch of salt, and some fresh ground pepper and stir.

 

Serve warm & enjoy! 

Peanut Butter, Chocolate, Protein Bites, Oh My!

I don't know about you, but I love anything that has peanut butter, I love anything that has chocolate, and anything that has both... Well, I REALLY LOVE!!! These peanut butter protein bites can be made in a variety of different ways to meet everyone's food and allergy needs. (Vegan, Gluten Free, Nut Allergies)

Some other things that I enjoy in life are: working out, cooking, music, dancing, singing, laughing, traveling. These bites incorporate a lot of what I love into my day when I make them. Today, I came home from working out, (these bites are an awesome post workout pick me up!) put some music on, and started to cook (assemble really) these amazing treats. Oh, and I definitely danced and sang the whole time!

Peanut Butter Protein Bites - Serving Size 2 Bites

To make these bites you'll need:

1 cup oats

1/2 cup natural peanut butter/almond butter/seed butter 

1/2 cup toasted coconut

1/4 cup ground wheat germ or ground flax seed

1/4 cup protein powder (I used Sunwarrior vanilla brown rice protein)

1/3 cup honey or pure maple syrup 

1/4 cup non dairy chocolate chips/cacao nibs/carob chips

Method:

1. Toast coconut in a nonstick pan. It toasts quickly, so make sure you are continually stirring it to get an even browning. 

2. When the coconut is toasted, pour it in a bowl to cool a bit.

3. If you are using flax seeds or wheat germ that is not already ground, grind flax seeds or wheat germ in a blender until it is like a flour/meal.

4. In a separate mixing bowl (if you have a standing mixer use that bowl), combine oats, ground flax seed or wheat germ, and protein powder and stir.

5. Add in toasted coconut and give it a stir, followed by the butter of choice and honey or maple syrup.

6. Combine all ingredients well. If you have a standing mixer or hand mixer, you can use it on a low to medium setting. 

7. Once it is fully combined, put it to the side to sit for a few minutes, while you prepare the chocolate. 

8. If you are using cacao nibs, you do not need to prepare anything, but if you are using chocolate or carob chips, put 1/4 cup of chocolate/carob chips in a baggy and seal it, making sure all the air is out of it. With a meat pounder, pound the chocolate/carob chips until they resemble nibs.

9. Add the chocolate/carob chips or cacao nibs into the mixture and combine well. 

10. Roll the mixture into 14 - 1 1/2 inch balls, place them in a plastic container, and put in the refrigerator. 

11. Eat cold and keep stored in the refrigerator.

Enjoy!

Vegan

If you are a vegan that does not eat honey, use maple syrup instead of honey. Make sure that if you are using chocolate chips, there is no dairy in them. You can also use carob chips instead. The protein powder used should be plant based protein instead of casein or whey protein.

Gluten Free

If you are gluten free, make sure your oats are certified gluten free. In addition, make sure that you use ground flax seed instead of wheat germ. You will also want to check to make sure your nut/seed butter is gluten free. (I used Skippy's natural peanut butter and it stated it was gluten free!)

Nut Allergies

If you are allergic to nuts, there are seed butters now that you can use instead of nut butters. Make sure you use a seed butter for this recipe if you make it!