Nutty Greek Quinoa Toss

It's amazing how easily one can gain a few pounds when your metabolism takes a nose dive in your late thirties. I mean honestly, can't a girl go on a nice relaxing cruise and sit around all day long on the back of a ship's deck looking out at the cold, serene Alaskan waters with her feet up on a wicker chair and be surrounded constantly with pastries, cheeses and berry filled crepes at all hours of the day without gaining 8 stupid pounds?

Apparently not. *Sigh.






Well, if that weren't a bad enough set back on my never ending fight against belly bulge then the 12 hour road trip we took this last weekend to Utah with 4 kids certainly put the nail on the diet coffin. While we did bring along apples and healthy trail mix, they went so well with Twizzlers and chocolate covered raisins that we decided to buy some cookies to top it off. Perfectly reasonable right?


Now, how to lose those 10 pounds gained in 2 short weeks after I've been fighting to lose 20 since who the hell knows when?    *Double sigh, big fat pout.

Here's the back of the ship where my sweetie and I  loved to sit and relax..... and snack.... a lot.

Can you blame us? I mean really. Look at the view. And the weather was just so unbelievably cool and perfect compared to the miserable heat we are used to here in Phoenix.

We didn't spend  ALL  of our time on our butts stuffing our mouths.
We had some pretty amazing adventures too.
Here we are zip lining through the 200 foot tall trees in Ketchikan, AK.  

Me and my baby sister Rachel.

Did I mention that due to the glaciers that swept over the land many years ago, the soil is only 4-6" deep?
Did you catch that? That's INCHES, not feet.


We were swinging from super tall trees that are hanging on for their dear lives in soil that is too shallow to plant carrots in!


Smart.

And we took one frieking amazing, hold onto your hats fast bike ride 32 mies from Canada back to Skagway, AK. This was by far the highlight of my trip! The scenery was breath taking. 

So, how to fit back into my pants?




It's a good thing I discovered quinoa some time ago and shortly after figured out how to make it unbelievable delicious.

It's the feta. No, it's the toasted pine nuts. NO! It's the white balsamic vinaigrette.

O.K., all of these things plus the squeeze of lemon, freshness of the parsley and zip of the sweet peppers make this quinoa toss very addictive and satisfyng. My tummy thanks me.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
1 big handful grape or cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1 big handful sweet peppers minced
1 big handful parsley, minced
1 clove garlic
1/2 cup feta, crumbled
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon white balsamic vinaigrette
freshly cracked white pepper
squeeze fresh lemon juice



Put quinoa into a fine sieve and rinse thoroughly to remove natural 'soapy' film.  Cook according to package directions, usually 1:1 parts quinoa-water, bring to a gentle boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.
If you please, toast pine nuts on a dry cast iron skillet until golden brown to bring out flavor.
Using a small food processor or knife, finely dice sweet peppers, garlic and parsley.
In a large bowl, toss together still warm quinoa, feta, peppers, parsley, pine nuts and tomatoes.
Drizzle in oil and vinaigrette. Toss to combine. Add lemon and pepper to taste.

Serve warm or chilled.

For dinner, we prefer the warm version where the feta is just slightly creamy and the flavors melt together.

Summer Broccoli-Citrus Salad with Prosciutto and Almonds

I was lucky enough to be invited to do a guest post on one of my absolute favorite blogs, Perry's Plate. What an honor. Natalie and I share a common interest in healthy and wonderful food so I had to come up with something not only healthy but delicious and fun as well. In sticking with the Simply Healthy Family standard, I also wanted to keep the dish simple and fuss free. Real Food for Real People. This is a dish anyone  can make and yet be proud to serve at a picnic or party. Please do stop by Natalie's beautiful site for this recipe and for your dinner, breakfast and dessert inspiration.

My dad was kind enough to invite all of us over to his gorgeous home for a big family BBQ last week. The weather was absolutely divine here in the suburbs of Phoenix and the huge trees in his backyard and constant cool breeze blowing through them made for a perfect backyard BBQ.

My dad is extremely serious about his landscape. It's a crazy passion that all of us 9 kids tease him about. He is very aware if even one single small plant or shrub 'burns out' or is looking sickly and is on top of it immediately. His front and back yards are huge and the variety and beauty of the artfully arranged desert vegetation far surpasses the Botanical Gardens in my opinion. Just ask him the name of a newly planted specimen and he will gladly tell you all about it's origin and why it is planted exactly where it is. Funny guy. It does create a very serene setting to sit and relax  next to the pool with friends and family. We are lucky ducks.

Oh, my point and I do have one....

The BBQ. Typically, BBQ's are not the healthiest of events. You have your hamburgers, hot dogs or other hunks of meat. Then there are the sides which usually include one or more of the following unhealthy foods: Potato Salad, Cole Slaw, 7 Layer Bean Dip, Macaroni Salad, Ambrosia Fruit Salad,

 Baked {sugary} Beans, Potato Chips and Soda or Lemon Aid.

I have been given the stink eye when ever I've mentioned that I am not in love with any of these foods (o.k., maybe the bean dip). Nope, not even hamburgers. And it's not just because they are unhealthy or because I have anything against meat per say, well that's not entirely true, but that's a whooooole other story. I simply just don't care for those types of foods. They are heavy, greasy,  mayonnaise-e and leave me feeling Yucky.

I'd much rather have a salad that's a real salad. Which in my view isn't covered up in mayo or smothered with cheese or Ranch Dressing. I honestly prefer to taste my veggies and to brighten their natural flavors with, well, natural flavors. What a concept huh? Take this Summer Broccoli Salad for instance.

Typically, in my experience at least, when you see a broccoli type salad at a picnic, BBQ, or get together it is tossed in some sort of creamy dressing and that's if there's a broccoli salad at all, usually it's 3 different varieties of potato salad.

I made this salad very light and healthy yet still sweet, salty and tangy, perfect for an outdoor summer supper. By very quickly blanching the broccoli, then tossing it with lemon and mandarin juices whisked with a drizzle of Organic honey it becomes a treat for the tastebuds. To make it worthy of a party side dish, I added oh-so-wonderful Prosciutto and tossed it all together with Mandarin orange segments and thinly sliced almonds which gently stuck to the broccoli giving the salad a bit of a toasty crunch.

Roll up 2 pieces of thinly sliced prosciutto and cut into thin strips.

Remember to visit Perry's Plate for the entire recipe and say hi! 

Baked Golden Delicious Apples with Raisin Crisp Filling

This is one of those recipes that you kick yourself for not discovering sooner. These stuffed apples were absolutely wonderful. Simple. Healthy. Deliciousness! We were eating them hot, right out of the oven with the cool, winter Arizona air blowing through our open windows. We had a light picnic lunch of grilled salmon over crisp lettuce with orange bell peppers and home made garlic-Dijon dressing. These apples were the perfect light and savory dessert for our backyard picnic. We had one leftover and I packed it for Jack as a nice surprise for his school lunch the following day, he was so happy.

Eat them hot, right out of the oven. Just pick them up and take a big bite.

Let the warm apple juices drip down your chin

and savour the crisp, sweet filling.

Golden Delicious apples work best, but any variety will do.

Wash apples thoroughly under cool, running water.

Cut 1 inch off the tops of the apple, rubbing a halved lemon over the exposed apple as you go.

Using a pairing knife or apple corer, core the apple. Make sure to not go to close to the bottom.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine a handful of chopped walnuts, a handful of golden raisins, a pinch of brown sugar and smaller pinch of cinnamon.

Pulse just 2 or 3 times till chopped. Don't emulsify. You could just use a knife too.

Using your fingers, stuff the filling into the cored apples.

Place filled apples into a baking dish with 1/2 inch of water on the bottom.

Bake at 350F degrees for 25-30 minutes until apples are soft when pierced with a fork.

Pack up for a warm picnic treat on a cold day. Or a special dessert any time!



This post is linked to
Bella Vita's Fresh Clean and Pure Friday's