Avocado Dip

I’m a sucker for anything avocado.  Guacamole is a must every time I step foot in a Mexican restaurant.  A half of an avocado finds it’s way on my breakfast plate on most days (avocado and eggs!! try it).  They are definitely a staple on my grocery list. 

Admittedly, its because I love the flavor and texture…but the fact that avocadoes are so healthy for you doesn’t hurt. 

   

This recipe from Food and Wine magazine is intriguing because not only does it call for cilantro (one of my FAVORITE herbs), it has basil in it too.  I’ve never thought to put basil with avocado, but believe me, it works!

I doubled the recipe and served with blue corn tortilla chips.  In F&W the dip is actually part of a whole meal…Spiced Shrimp with Tomato Salsa and Avocado Dip…one day I’ll try the entire thing!

Avocado Dip

adapted from Food and Wine magazine

3 - 4 Hass avocados—pitted and peeled
1/2 cup packed cilantro leaves
8 large basil leaves
juice of 1 lime
Kosher salt

In a food processor, combine the avocados, cilantro, basil and lime juice and puree. Season with salt. Taste and adjust flavors to your liking (more lime? herbs?, salt?) Scrape the dip into a bowl, press a piece of plastic wrap directly on the dip, and refrigerate until chilled (if you can wait that long!).

Quinoa Egg Bake with Mushrooms, Tomatoes, and Avocado

October 22nd, 2012…the LAST time I blogged…what is going ON?!?

I guess life!  Football season, holidays, Super Bowl, dance competition season…leaves little time for blogging!

Anyway, I’m back (I’ve still been cooking plenty…if you follow me on insta you know that!).

And lately, I’ve been on a savory breakfast kick…not craving sweet yogurt or overnight oats as much.  At Magpie they serve two things for breakfast that I LOVE LOVE LOVE…different types of quiche and the most amazing breakfast casseroles (ham and cheese is my fave). 

I wanted to find a way to make something similar…with 3 requirements: it needed to be a make-it-for-the-week kind of dish, incorporate vegetables, and contain minimal starch. 

Something like a crustless quiche?  But heartier and more casserole-like?  Bingo.

I made this Quinoa Egg Bake as is…cheese and all…then tried it sans cheese adding the fat back in the form of avocado.  I love it both ways.  Hil not so much (although she’s not much of a breakfast eater)…you be the judge.  It’s completely customizable.  And it reheats pretty well too!  Just note that if any of the vegetables you decide to use have a lot of water, you should first cook them separately. 

Quinoa Egg Bake with Mushrooms, Tomatoes, and Avocado
adapted from Whole Foods

makes 5-6 servings

8 ounces (or more!) mushrooms, sliced…button, cremini, etc.
1/2 teaspoon olive oil
salt and pepper
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 avocado, cubed
1/4 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 cup uncooked quinoa*
8 eggs
1 1/4 cup milk**
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Heat 1/2 teaspoon oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms release liquid, about 5-10 minutes. Season with a little salt and pepper, increase heat to high and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has completely evaporated, about 5 minutes longer.

In the meantime, preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch x 8-inch glass baking dish with 1/4 teaspoon olive oil and set aside.

Put quinoa into a fine mesh strainer and rinse until cold running water until water runs clear; drain well.  Spread rinsed quinoa evenly over the bottom of the greased baking dish.  Spread cooked mushrooms, halved tomatoes, and cubed avocado over the quinoa.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, salt, and pepper; pour mixture over quinoa-vegetable mixture in prepared dish.

Cover tightly with foil and bake 45 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking, until center is set (when it doesn’t move much when the dish is jiggled), 10 to 15 minutes more. Set aside to let cool briefly, then slice and serve.

Per serving (based on 6 servings): 235 calories, 13 g fat (3.7 g saturated), 16 g carbohydrates, 3 g fiber, 14 g protein (2 1/2 fat, 2 protein, 1 veg, 1/2 starch)…FYI…5 servings would make it 282 cals…that’s probably what I end up eating

* Although I haven’t tried it, I imagine you could omit the quinoa…just make sure the egg mixture gets under the vegetables a little so they don’t stick to the bottom.

** I used whole milk because that’s what I buy.  So that’s what I calculated the nutrition info with too.

Vegetarian for a Day

One of my go-to websites for recipes is epicurious.com. SELF magazine is one of the publications the website provides recipes from (others include Bon Appetit and Gourmet). All of the recipes in SELF are supposedly health-conscious and provide the nutritional analysis; however, I had a more difficult time finding good, nutritious recipes than I thought I would (some of them looked gross and had poor ratings). There were lots of other recipes that looked yummy, but needed to be "modified" to make more healthful...I end up doing this when I cook all of the time (by switching from butter to oil and using less of it, adding more veggies, cutting back on high fat ingredients, using whole grain products when appropriate, etc).

All of the recipes this week are vegetarian (not vegan though). They all provide (or give a suggestion for) a non-meat form of protein, such as beans, nuts, cheese, eggs, or seafood. It's not a bad idea to have a vegetarian day/dinner/meal at least once a week. It can help keep your saturated fat and cholesterol intake in check (although not the case with the egg and cheese). It also encourages you to eat more beans...something I feel people avoid because they contain "dreaded" carbohydrates. Beans are full of fiber and contain a good source of lean protein. They are also an excellent source of folate, something all women in child-bearing years need to help prevent birth defects. And canned beans are so easy! Just rinse them and they are ready to go. Definitely not something to avoid!

Eating less meat/poultry is also good for the environment!

Anyway...For a treat, I also included a dessert recipe. Of course it is made with fruit, but it looks really good (and served with vanilla frozen yogurt, even better!)

Asian Spinach Salad with Orange and Avocado -

• Per serving - 152 calories, 11 g fat (1.3 g saturated), 14 g carbohydrates, 6.2 g fiber, 2.5 g protein (exchanges: 2 fats, 2 vegetables)
• Notes - Complete the meal with some lean protein...salmon, tuna, shrimp...your choice; buy fresh ginger and keep what you don’t use in the freezer; save small glass jars to use when making salad dressings...put all of the ingredients in the jar, put the lid on, and shake; you could substitute canned mandarin oranges in packed in juice or light syrup

Eggplant Cannelloni -

• Per serving - 259 calories, 10.7 g fat (4.7 g saturated), 32 g carbohydrates, 10.8 g fiber, 10.5 g protein (exchanges: 2 fats, 1.5 protein, 4.5 vegetables)
• Notes - Complete the meal with roasted asparagus and a side salad; jars of red peppers are usually by the pickles/olives/etc; notice the number of servings (4)...you will probably get to eat more than one roll!; you could substitute store bought tomato sauce instead of making the roasted red pepper sauce, but make sure you choose a brand that has little/no added sugar and only “expected” ingredients...see my previous post on pasta sauce for more info

Black-bean and Tomato Quinoa -

• Per serving - 361 calories, 9.4 g fat (0.9 g saturated), 55 g carbohydrate, 10 g fiber, 14 g protein (exchanges: 2 fats, 1 protein, 1 vegetable, 3 starches); I modified this recipe from the original by replacing the 2 T butter and 1 T vegetable oil with only 2 T olive oil
• Notes - Quinoa is a fast-cooking, protein-packed, whole grain...could it get any better??? you can find it in Whole Foods Market (by the bulk grains and bagged/boxed rice)...in other grocery stores look for it in the natural/health food isle...you should always rise the quinoa first to remove the natural bitter residue; complete the meal by doubling the dressing and using the other 1/2 over a side salad

Roasted Shrimp and Mushrooms with Ginger and Green Onions -

• Per serving - 179 calories, 11.2 g fat (2 g saturated), 7 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 10 g protein (exchanges: 2 fats, 1.5 protein, 1 vegetable); I modified this recipe for the original by replacing the 1/4 cup canola oil with 4 teaspoons...this saves you 156 calories and 18 grams of fat per serving!
• Notes - Complete the meal by roast asparagus alongside and serving with brown rice...toss the trimmed asparagus spears with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and place on a separate rimmed baking sheet; although I haven’t tried this, you may be able to use peeled shrimp with similar results...you may need to reduce the cooking time to prevent the shrimp from becoming tough; the recipe calls for oyster mushrooms, but you could use any other variety you like

Veggie Cassoulet -

• Per serving - 382 calories, 7.8 g fat (1 g saturated), 66 g carbohydrates, 15.5 g fiber, 19.6 g protein (exchanges: 1.5 fats, 2 protein, 3 vegetables, 2 starches)
• Notes - A cassoulet is a rich, slow-cooked bean stew or casserole originating in the southwest of France, containing meat...this vegetarian version is packed full of fiber

Spinach and Sun-dried Tomato Frittata -

• Per serving - 289 calories, 13.4 g fat (5.2 g saturated), 27.7 g carbohydrates, 4.3 g fiber, 17.5 g protein (exchanges: 2.5 fats, 2 protein, 1 starch, 1 vegetable)
• Notes - Breakfast for dinner is always fun...you have more time to spend preparing dishes that take too long in the morning; you can substitute any vegetables that you have in the fridge; if you don’t have small baking dishes you could use a pie plate or an oven-proof 6-inch skillet...the cooking time may be a little longer

Poached Rum Raisin Pears -

• Per serving - 161 calories, 2 g fat (1 g saturated), 35 g carbohydrates, 7 g fiber, 1 g protein (exchanges: 1 fat, 2 fruit)
• Notes - It may be good to add a cinnamon stick (or some ground cinnamon) too; depending on how much alcohol actually cooks out will determine the number of calories and servings of fat...if all of the alcohol cooked out (which it doesn’t, but most will) there would be 143 calories and you would count 0.5 fats...i’ll assume at least two-thirds of it evaporates...that’s how I determined the “per serving” analysis

FYI...Buying juice is getting tricky these days...all sort of new "things" added to help with some health condition (omega-3's, antioxidants, etc.). Here is an article about new juice products and whether or not they are worth the extra money.