Tag Archives: Dairy Free

Peach + Cranberry Baked Oatmeal

Baked oatmeal, again.

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This is the 63rd post on this little blog and the third time I made baked oatmeal for you. That’s one baked oatmeal every 21 days. Except that my first two baked oatmeal recipes were posted just 10 days apart.

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I was going to take a break from making baked oatmeal until this past weekend. I ate it at a restaurant. And after the first bite, I knew I’d be making it for you soon.

peaches

This combo of peaches + cranberries was inspired by what I ate at Cafe 101. I’ve had the idea of peach baked oatmeal in the back of my mind for a while, but have been waiting for fresh peaches. Cafe 101’s baked oatmeal was so good though, and I’m pretty certain the peaches weren’t fresh, so I decided to go for it. What made my decision even easier was the can of Three Springs Fruit Farm peaches I had in my cupboard. With that, I had no doubt that canned peaches would suffice.

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Even though this is the third time I made you baked oatmeal, this is the first time it doesn’t contain nuts. Or golden raisins. But it does have dried cranberries. Those are close to raisins. I really wanted to use fresh cranberries, but could not find them! I don’t think I realized fresh cranberries were a seasonal purchase. Definitely wrong about that.

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And! I baked this in my cast iron skillet. Yes, I am obsessed. It’s the best.

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This oatmeal is delicious. Not overly sweet, but for me, just the right amount. The cranberries get plump and the juicy peaches break right apart after they are baked. Sweet cinnamon and vanilla compliment the fruit perfectly.

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Ingredients
2 cups oats (I used old fashioned)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup dried cranberries
1  1/2 cups milk (I used almond)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter or coconut oil, melted + cooled
5 canned peach halves, diced

Preheat oven to 350*. Grease a cast iron skillet or a baking pan with butter or coconut oil.

In a bowl, mix together the oats, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and dried cranberries.

In another bowl, mix together the milk, egg, vanilla extract and melted butter or coconut oil. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ones and mix well. Fold in the diced peaches.

Transfer batter to the greased skillet or pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, until oatmeal is set and slightly golden brown.

Enjoy!

Sweet Potato + Black Bean Burgers with Curry Ketchup

I’ve made more burgers for you!

pots

I don’t exactly consider these veggie burgers. The last burgers I made for you were definitely veggie burgers. They were packed with veggies. These burgers are simpler, with much fewer ingredients. They really only have one veggie in them + sweet potatoes and beans.

beans

Are sweet potatoes veggies? Greg and I always do this thing where we count the number of veggies in the meals that we eat. I feel like I always count sweet potatoes.

onion

I loved the black bean + cilantro burgers I made for you, but they are just a bit time consuming. They don’t take that much time, but this time around I wanted something that can really be whipped up any night of the week, easily and quickly.

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The roasted sweet potatoes lend the perfect texture to these burgers. They are soft + binding. Also, delicious + flavorful. The black beans add  great texture as well, and go great with sweet potatoes. I love caramelized red onion, and also think that they + sweet potatoes are a great combination.

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I made these burgers vegan by using Dijon mustard as a “wet” ingredient rather than an egg. I’m not vegan, but I’m vegan-interested. I also thought recently – if people who eat meat try to go meatless once a week (Meatless Monday), what can already-non-meat-eating people do? They can try to go vegan once a week. So, here is my attempt at once-a-week vegan eating. Dijon instead of an egg. I’ll take it. 🙂

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Also, I topped these burgers simply. Some greens and some curry ketchup. Yes, curry ketchup!

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I first heard of curry ketchup from Greg’s mom. She said she made it and I was immediately super interested. I had never heard of it. And then, Greg and I went out to eat with his sister and we had fries with curry ketchup. It did not disappoint at all. I loved it!

ketchup

I followed this recipe. And love it. It will be good on so many things! And, if you don’t want to make your own ketchup, you can undoubtedly just stir some curry powder into ketchup from a bottle.

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You’ve got to try this. Sweet potatoes + black beans + caramelized red onion + curry ketchup = one delicious burger.

Ingredients:
2 medium sweet potatoes
Olive oil
1 medium red onion
Salt
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 – 15 oz. can black beans
1 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup Dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 350*. Peel and cube the sweet potatoes. Combine the sweet potatoes with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Toss well to coat the potatoes. Roast on a baking sheet for about 30 minutes, or until sweet potatoes are very soft.

While the sweet potatoes are roasting, dice the red onion. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a pan on the stove over medium-high heat. Add the onions to the hot oil with a pinch of salt. Stir, and let cook over medium-high heat for about five minutes, or until onions begin to brown. Turn heat down to medium-low and cook for 20-30 minutes, or until onions are caramelized.

When the sweet potatoes are done roasting, add them to a bowl and mash them using a potato masher. I left mine semi-chunky for texture, but they can also be mashed well so there are no chunks left. Add the black beans to the bowl and mash again, to incorporate the beans. Add the red onion, breadcrumbs and Dijon mustard. Stir well to combine everything. The mixture should be thick + gooey.

Add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a pan over medium heat. Form the mixture into patties and cook in the oil for about five minutes on each side, or until the burgers are golden brown, slightly crispy and warmed through.

*Notes:
-You could definitely use an egg here instead of the Dijon, if mustard is not your thing. If using an egg, substitute one egg for all of the mustard. Using the mustard definitely gives the burgers a mustard-y taste.
-To make this gluten free, just use certified gluten free breadcrumbs.
-Click here for the curry ketchup recipe. Seriously so delicious!

Homemade Balsamic + Dijon Dressing

What is your favorite salad dressing?

Do you like something creamy or oil-based?

I would say that for me, a lot of times, my favorite salads are undressed.

The first time I made this roasted beet salad for Greg and I, he wanted to know what kind of dressing we were having. Oops. I just thought that everyone liked undressed salads? That thought was definitely off. He liked the salad anyway. 🙂

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For the past couple of years, I’ve struggled with salad dressings.* I grew up  loving ranch, but now, I can’t really stand the thought of drenching beautiful, clean vegetables in creamy ranch dressing. It just doesn’t seem right. Ranch on french fries, yes. Why not? But ranch on lettuce, I’m not loving lately.

Then I have the problem of buying salad dressing. I feel like there are sooo many options and I just get tired of reading all of the different flavors. So I buy one, use it once and then two years later I find it in the fridge and wonder if it’s still good. Does anyone else have this problem?

And one more. The ingredient list on salad dressings. If I’ve never heard of half of the ingredients, I’m not overly excited about eating it. Or dressing my lettuce with it.

So, I guess that’s why I’ve gravitated toward undressed salads. Load lettuce up with sweet, juicy fruits and you won’t even miss the dressing. But now. Now, I’ve played around with this homemade dressing and I am so excited!

Salad dressing problems, no more!

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I love this dressing. You can’t go wrong with balsamic vinegar. And the Dijon** is just so good. It not only adds flavor but also a touch of creaminess. This is definitely a wet-oil-based dressing but the Dijon adds just the right touch of creaminess to make the dressing sort of stick to the lettuce. I love the flavors of balsamic + Dijon together, and the honey adds just the right amount of sweetness to balance the bite from the vinegar. I added 1.5 tablespoons but add as much as you need according to your taste.

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Delicious, easy and only five ingredients! This is my new favorite dressing. 🙂

*I feel bad calling this a struggle, but you know what I mean. 🙂
**Every time I typed dijon, it was correcting it to Dijon with a capital D. I googled it and the d gets capitalized on Dijon because it is referring to the region in which the dressing originated — Dijon, France. Who knew!

Ingredients
2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1.5 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1.5 Tbsp. honey
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1/3 c. olive oil

Add all ingredients to a jar or bowl. Shake/stir very well to combine. The dressing should be well blended. If separation occurs after sitting in the refrigerator, shake/stir before eating.

Enjoy!

Roasted Mushroom, Potato and Carrot Salad + Homemade Garlic Croutons

I think you are going to love this!

veggies

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A healthy salad! That is delicious!

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I’m telling you, I am in love with this salad.

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I mentioned the other day that I am ready for light summer food and this is just that.

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Roasted mushrooms are unbelievable. If you have never roasted mushrooms, you need to. And if you have, I hope this is a friendly reminder of how to-die-for they are.

bread

I feel like I am kind of at a weird in-between stage with fruits and veggies. I’m sort of done with winter produce and ready for summer foods but it’s just not time yet. But, I feel like it is always a good time for potatoes. And carrots. And I’ve discovered that cubed fingerling potatoes roast up so nicely. And carrots too! Why is everything better roasted?

croutons

And, these croutons. I definitely have a love-hate relationship with croutons. They are yummy and a nice crunchy addition to salad, but have you ever looked at the ingredient list on store-bought croutons? If you haven’t and you have any desire to eat minimally processed foods, don’t look and don’t buy. Make these instead.

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I’ve had problems with homemade croutons in the past. They seemed confusing and have turned out either too soft or hard as rocks. These turned out perfectly. The garlic flavor is subtle but delicious. These were slightly soft but had a nice crunch. And so super simple. They take no time at all. I feel like I will start to make a big batch of these to keep on hand.

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The whole thing together is amazing. Everything works together so perfectly. The veggies, greens and croutons. There is nothing I love better than a plate full of veggies that tastes delicious and is satisfying!

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And, come back tomorrow to see what I dressed my salad with. It. is. amazing!

This is what I used to make probably four servings
Ingredients
8 oz. mushrooms (I used baby portobello)
3 large carrots
10 oz. fingerling potatoes
Fresh ground black pepper
Greens, I used spring mix lettuce, probably about 6 cups
4 pieces of grainy/seedy bread
Olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced

Method

Preheat oven to 375*.

Cube the carrots and the potatoes and cut the mushrooms in half. I left the stems on. All veggies should be about the same size. Add veggies to a bowl and drizzle with olive oil, about 1-2 tablespoons, just enough to coat the veggies. Toss to coat well and season with pepper. Transfer veggies to a baking sheet and roast until soft and nicely browned. I roasted for 25 minutes.

While veggies are roasting, cube the bread slices. Add them to a bowl. Add about 1.5 tablespoons of olive oil to a pan over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes, until the garlic is soft. Pour the oil and garlic over the bread cubes and toss to combine well. You can add the bread cubes to the same pan as the veggies or get a new one, but they will need about 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until just crispy.

Assemble the salad by placing the greens in individual bowls or one big bowl. Top with the roasted veggies and garlic croutons. Drizzle on dressing and toss to combine everything well.

Tomorrow I’ll share my dressing recipe!

Enjoy!

Mango Salsa

I’ve got a little topping for your burgers!

mango

Some mango salsa.

jala

Tomatoes + mangoes + jalapenos + red onions + cilantro + lime. Yum.

lime

This salsa is fresh, juicy and bright.

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It would be good with chips. Or on a veggie burger. Or for meat-lovers, how about on some chicken? This would also go great with fresh fish. On a bed of salad greens. The possibilities are endless. I kept a container of this in my refrigerator last week and it went on everything.

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This is getting me ready for summer. For the fresh + sweet + light food of summertime.

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Summer food, I am ready for you.

Ingredients:
1 mango (I used a champagne mango)
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1 jalapeno (or less, depending on how spicy you want it to be)
1/2 of a red onion
1 large bunch of cilantro
1 lime

Dice mango, tomatoes, jalapeno and onion. Roughly chop the cilantro. Add to a bowl. Squeeze the juice from one lime over the ingredients and then stir to combine everything well.

Enjoy!