Vegetarian BBQ Loaf with Baked Beans

   We are getting ready to go out of town for a week, so this was my let's-try-to-use-up-all-of-the-food-in-the-house meal.  When I looked in the fridge and saw we had carrots and celery for vegetables (and not much else) I immediately thought of making a veggie "meatloaf".  Then I realized that's sort of a winterish dish, so I thought I'd put a summer spin on it by using BBQ sauce and accompanying it with baked beans.  It's hard to find a good BBQ sauce that doesn't have high fructose corn syrup.  Most have that ugly ingredient number one on the list.  It's worth it to take the time to find a good one that doesn't have HFCS and isn't too high in sugar.  (Finding one without sugar is nearly impossible--let me know if you know of a brand that makes doesn't have it!)
   I've made a lot of variations of veggie loaves/patties/balls and I love that you can vary your ingredients based your mood or what you've got on hand.  This version turned out really well and I'll definitely make it again.
Gather your ingredients:

Vegetarian BBQ Loaf

3 carrots

2 celery stalks

1/2 onion (I used 1/2 'cause Tim isn't a big fan of onions--feel free to use the whole thing)

1 cup walnuts

2 eggs

1/3 cup BBQ sauce + more for topping

2 tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari (or regular soy sauce)

1 teaspoons stone ground mustard

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 1/2 cups whole grain bread crumbs (not pictured) 

Step 1:  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Oil spray a loaf pan and set aside.  

Step 2:  Peel your carrots and cut them into large chunks.  Cut your celery and onion into large chunks.  Put them in your food processor and process until they are chopped.  Add the walnuts and process until you have a mushy-textured mixture. Set aside.

Step 3:  In a medium bowl, beat the eggs.  Add the BBQ sauce, tamari, and mustard and stir to combine.  Add the cheese and breadcrumbs and knead the mixture with your hands until it is well mixed and holds together.    

Step 4: Transfer mixture to loaf pan and press it down.  Spread the top with BBQ sauce.  Bake for 45 minutes.  Allow to stand for 15 minutes before serving (this gives the loaf a chance to set).  Slice and serve.  

Yield:  8 servings 

                                 

I'm not sure how I could make this loaf look pretty, but trust me, it tasted good.  Tim gobbled up 3 helpings and Meghan, who is being Miss Picky these last few days, ate some as well. 

The baked beans were from 1,000 Vegan Recipes and were delicious, too.  They were sweetened with maple syrup and extremely tasty.  I'd call this clean-out-your-pantry dinner a big success.  

Toddler Tuesday: Thank Goodness for Smoothies

    If there is one thing I've learned about toddlers, it's that you always have to be on your toes.  Once you get comfortable and think you have things figured out, everything changes.  Meghan goes through stages where she eats a lot and then stages where she hardly eats at all.  Despite how much she is eating, I have always been able to count on her eating some sort of vegetable and fruit throughout any given day.  It may not always be as much as I would like, but I stay relaxed as long as she gets some of the good stuff in her.  She really tested my ability to stay relaxed about her eating, however,  during the end of last week.  Suddenly, without warning, Meghan started refusing just about anything plant-based.  She didn't want fruit, vegetables, or beans.  The second day after this started, this is what she ate:

breakfast:  plain yogurt (I tried to sprinkle it with a little granola and blueberries and she was NOT happy)
lunch:  cheese
dinner: butter

   I'm not kidding.  There is no exaggeration here.  For dinner, all she wanted was the butter.   She had a plate of delicious food in front of her, but she just pointed to the butter that was on the table and would not relent until that's what she got.  I tried to put it on bread for her.  Oh, no, Mommy, that is not what I meant.  I just want to stick clumps of butter in my mouth plain.  GROSS!  I will admit, at this point, I was starting to stress out.  What if this becomes a constant trend and all she wants is dairy products?
    There is one thing that she usually will not refuse: smoothies.  The next day after her all-dairy day I turned to the smoothie to help rectify the no fruit or veggie situation.  The great thing about smoothies is that you can make it super healthy and it still seems like a treat.  They are great for breakfast and Meghan also regularly eats them for snack.  They are especially nice if you need breakfast on-the-go.  When we need to get somewhere early in the morning, I make a smoothie the night before, put it in her straw sippy cup and refrigerate it, and then in the morning she gets her breakfast in the car.
    For Meghan's smoothies, I start with plain yogurt (the flavored kind has way too much sugar!), milk, and then add whatever fresh ingredients I have on hand.  Here are a few recipes if you need help getting started:

                                    ^^^Notice Meghan's empty cup in the background. :)

Mom's Emergency Super Smoothie
For when your little one isn't eating her fruits or veggies!


1/4 cup plain yogurt
1/4 milk
1 small handful fresh blueberries
3-4 strawberries
1/4 cup cubed cantaloupe
1 small handful fresh baby spinach
1 Tablespoon ground flaxseed meal
1 Tablespoon honey (preferably raw)
3-5 ice cubes

Place all ingredients in blender (I use my Magic Bullet) and blend until smooth.
This makes enough for 1 large or 2 small smoothies.  I usually fill Meghan's cup and then drink whatever is leftover.
Tip:  When using spinach in a smoothie, it's best to not put the spinach in first.  

      

Meghan's Favorite Smoothie 
This is Oh. So. Good.  

1/4 cup plain yogurt

        1/4-1/2 cup milk (depending on how thick you like it)

1 banana

2 heaping Tablespoons peanut butter

1 Tablespoon ground flaxseed meal 

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Makes 1 large or 2 small smoothies.  Meghan likes to hog this one--she loves it!

     I am happy to report that Meghan seems to be getting back on track this week with her eating.  Today for lunch I pulled out an avocado that I knew was going to go bad if we didn't eat it up soon.  Eating avocados before they go bad is never a problem in this house, but with Meghan's fruit and veggie strike there are a few they are on the brink.  I was nervous as I cut it into chunks and served it to her, but knew my girl was back when she exclaimed, "Mmmmmm, 'cado!"  Here she is gobbling it up:

                                                  

   

   I know the last closed-eye picture isn't great, but I wanted to show the empty tray.  She ended up eating an entire half of the avocado, and I was a happy mama.  I'm glad that I have learned that refusing a food one day doesn't mean she is never going to like it.  There are many vegetables that she refused multiple times before deciding she likes them (cauliflower and asparagus included) and it isn't uncommon for her to change her mind multiple times about liking a certain food.  The best thing you can do is continue to offer a variety of healthy foods--eventually your little one will eat (and enjoy!) the good stuff.  In the mean time, sneak it in a smoothie!  

Toddler Tuesday: Broccoli Bites

   If your toddler or even older child is reluctant to eat her veggies, I encourage you to try these delicious nuggets.  Even though Meghan will eat plain broccoli, she eats much more when it is in this form.  I first started making these for her when she was around 10 months old; I would just cut them into small pieces.   The best thing about these yummy broccoli bites is that they are so versatile.  Your whole family will enjoy them and they are great for both meals or snacks.

Broccoli Bites
Adapted from www.homemadebabyfood.com 


1-10 ounce package organic frozen broccoli (fresh steamed broccoli may work, I have just not tried it)
1/2 cup whole grain bread crumbs*
2 whole organic eggs (if your little one is not eating egg whites yet, use 3 yolks)
1 cup shredded organic mild cheddar cheese
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon kelp (optional)
1 tablespoon ground flax seed meal (optional)

Step 1:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Coat a baking sheet with olive oil or spray with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

Step 2:
Cook broccoli according to package directions and chop into small pieces.

Step 3:
In a medium bowl, whisk eggs.

Step 4:
Add remaining ingredients to bowl and mix until well incorporated.  (You may have to use your hands)

Step 5:
Shape the mixture into 1 1/2 inch nuggets and place on the baking sheet.  Cook for 20-25 minutes, flipping the nuggets over half way through the cooking time.

Serve warm.

Vegetable Croquettes and Quinoa-Watermelon Salad with Citrus-Basil Vinaigrette

    How's that for a mouthful of a title?  Last night's dinner was just a vague idea in my mind that I kind of made up as I was going along.  I started with a basic kid-friendly dish that I wanted to use--a slight variation of a vegetable croquette recipe from Super Foods for Babies and Children and expanded my meal idea from there.  While visiting with my sister-in-law last weekend she told me about a watermelon salad with fresh basil she'd sampled at Whole Foods.  I thought I'd like to try to make something similar so at first that was my plan.  Then I realized we wouldn't have a protein in the meal, so thought I'd try to make the watermelon salad with quinoa and beans. It sounds like a weird combination, but it worked.  I actually had the leftover salad, cold, for lunch today, and liked it even better than I did last night.  The flavors really developed overnight and it was delicious.  It would be a great cold salad to bring on a picnic or to a potluck.
   If I ever have a meal with a lot of busy-work type prep, like chopping vegetables and such, I try to start it early so I don't have to do it all at once.  I started the croquettes while Meghan was napping so all I needed to do at dinner time was bread and saute them.
 
 Vegetable Croquettes
2 potatoes
1 small head broccoli florets
1 vidalia onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T. butter
1/2 cup grated carrot
1 cup shredded mild cheddar cheese
salt and freshly ground pepper
~3/4 cup Whole wheat flour, seasoned with salt and pepper, plus 3 T. wheat germ (optional)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups breadcrumbs, plus 2 T. ground flaxseed meal (optional)
coconut oil for sauteing

I love the idea of these vegetables being the basis for our main course!

Step 1:  Scrub the potatoes and cook them in a large pot of salted boiling water for 20+ minutes, until tender and ready to mash.  The original recipe calls for the potatoes to be peeled. If you feel compelled to peel your potatoes, go for it, but I see no reason to peel off the nutrients!
~Meanwhile~
Steam the broccoli for approximately 4-5 minutes, until it turns bright green.  (Don't overdo it)  Chop the steamed broccoli into small pieces.   Saute the onion and garlic in the butter for about 2 minutes. Add the carrot and continue for another minute or so.

Step 2:  Drain the potatoes, mash them, and then mix in the cheese.  Add the broccoli and onion-carrot mixture and combine.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Step 3:  Form into burgers.  You should have 12.  At this point, my burgers went in the fridge for later and I began making the vinaigrette.  I will continue with the croquette recipe, though, for continuity's sake.

Step 4:  Put your flour mixture, beaten eggs, and breadcrumb mixture in three separate bowls and create an assembly line.  

                                 

Step 5:  Coat each croquette with seasoned flour, dip in the egg, then the bread crumbs, back in the egg, and then a final coating of bread crumbs.  Saute in the coconut oil until golden brown.  

                                 

I knew we wouldn't eat all 12 of the croquettes, so I froze some of them before sauteing.  

                               

Citrus-Basil Vinaigrette

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

3 T. apple cider vinegar 

juice from 1 large orange

1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh basil 

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 

In a small bowl, mix together oil, vinegar, and orange juice.  Whisk until oil and vinegar emulsify.  Add basil and salt and pepper to taste.  

                                   

Set aside--you will use half for the quinoa salad and half to drizzle over the croquettes.  

Quinoa-Watermelon Salad

1 cup rinsed quinoa

1 3/4 cup water

2 cups cubed watermelon

1 1/2 cups cooked navy beans, or 1 15 oz. can, drained and rinsed

1/2 recipe of Citrus-Basil Vinaigrette dressing (see above)  

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Bring quinoa and water to a boil. Stir once, and reduce heat to low.  Cover and cook for 20 minutes.  Remove from heat and allow quinoa to steam for an additional 10 minutes (do not remove lid).  Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, mix together watermelon and beans.  When quinoa is ready, allow to cool for a few minutes and then add it to the bowl and stir to combine.  Add 1/2 of the Citrus-Basil Vinaigrette dressing and stir to coat evenly.  Add sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.  May be served warm or cold.  

I started each plate with a bed of romaine dressing, then added the croquettes and drizzled them with the remaining dressing.  I also placed the salad on top of the romaine.  Add extra dressing as desired.  

I loved all the summertime flavors in this meal.  It's a keeper!  

  

Margherita Pizza on the Grill

   The grilled pizza last night was almost a complete disaster.  Thinking back, I'm not sure how I was able to salvage it at all.  Luckily, Tim had an errand to run while I was preparing dinner.  He doesn't do well with the craziness that ensued when I was attempting the pizza.
   I've been wanting to try pizza on the grill for a while now, but was inspired to do it this week when I picked up a copy of Food Network Magazine at a gas station on our drive home from vacation.   There was a recipe for pizza on the grill, but I didn't follow it 100%.  Since I had success with the recipe from 1,000 Vegan Recipes for homemade pizza crust before, I decided to use that one as my base. It was a simpler recipe than the one in the magazine anyway.  From there I followed the directions from the magazine, so I guess it was sort of a hybrid of the two that I used.  The recipe in 1,000 Vegan recipes calls for all-purpose flour, but last time I used half all-purpose and half whole wheat.  This time I decided to use all spelt flour.  This may have been my first mistake, but I can't be sure.   Let me just describe to you what happened step-by-step, and maybe some of you can help me figure out what my mistake was.

Here's the recipe I used for the basic pizza dough, adapted from 1,000 Vegan Recipes

Olive oil
1 cup warm water
1 (1/4 ounce) packet active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
pinch sugar
2 1/2 cups spelt flour

Step 1:

  Lightly oil a bowl.  Set it aside.

Step 2:

In another bowl, combine the water and yeast and stir until the yeast dissolves.

Step 3:

Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until you get a soft dough.  At this point the dough was really sticky.  I knew it wasn't right, but wasn't sure if I measured the flour wrong or if it was because of the spelt or what.  I added a little more flour, carefully, but it didn't make a big difference.  I was worried, but still hoping for the best.   I decided to proceed.

Step 4:

Flour your hands and transfer the dough to the oiled bowl.  Turn the dough to coat with oil.  Cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let it rise until it doubles in bulk, about an hour.

Here is my dough after about an hour.  It was doubled in size, but I was very concerned about its sticky appearance.

Step 5:   Flatten the dough a little, and recover it.  Allow it to relax for 10 minutes.
After I let the dough relax, it still looked too sticky.  My fears were confirmed when I tried to remove it from the bowl to my floured work surface.  Check out what was left in the bowl and you can see just how sticky it was:

Step 6:  Transfer the dough to a floured surface.  (Make sure your hands are floured, especially if your dough is as sticky as mine was!) Flatten the dough with your hands, turn it and flour it and work it into a rectangular shape.  This was extremely difficult for me because my dough was so sticky and ripped easily.   I kept adding more and more flour to my hands and the top of the dough and that did help.  I was nervous that I was going to overwork the dough; I had to keep reshaping it because I couldn't just lift it and turn it over.    I finally ended up with this:

Step 7:  Brush the dough with olive oil.  

                                      

Step 8:  Brush an inverted baking sheet with oil.  Lift the dough onto the baking sheet.  Ummmm....this was tough.  At this point I was seriously thinking of dinner alternatives.  I knew that just transferring the dough shouldn't be that difficult.  This dough was not normal. 

Step 9:  Prepare your toppings.  I used Mejier brand all-natural pizza sauce.  It only has a few ingredients, no crap ingredients like high fructose corn syrup, and is great for a pre-made sauce.  My other toppings were one tomato, thinly sliced, 6 slices fresh mozzarella cheese (My local grocery store makes fresh mozzarella and its so delicious), and some fresh basil.  Have your toppings on a tray or plate, ready to go.  

Step 10:  Heat the grill to medium low.  Lift the dough by its corners and lay on the grill, oiled side down.  This was so tricky.  Having Tim there to hold the pan while I transfer it would have been helpful, but with the dough I was working with it still would have been hard.  The dough immediately started slipping through the grill grates.  I had to try to lift it and reshape it as it totally lost its shape when I lifted it. 

                                                 

Once the dough was on the grill, I was thinking about what else I had in the house that I could quickly make for dinner.  Part of me wanted to just take it off and give up, by my stubborn side told me to see it through.
Step 11:  Cook the dough until it puffs up and the underside is stiff and marked.  This should take about 5 minutes.  Flip the dough with tongs and add your toppings. Allow to cook a few more minutes. This part didn't go well.  A part of the dough that had slipped into the grill grates was burned and stuck to the grill.  When I tried to turn the dough, it broke off.  I was still undeterred and didn't give up, although many would have thrown in the towel at this point.  Here are my broken off pieces of dough: :-(

I tried a few pieces of the dough and thought it tasted a bit weird.  My guess it was just the different taste of the spelt flour that I'm not used to.  It wasn't terrible, but I couldn't help but think my picky husband wasn't going to like it.  Nonetheless, I moved forward.  Here is what the final pizza looked like, with part of the crust broken off:

                                       

  The rest of the meal included a spinach salad with sliced strawberries and sliced almonds.  This is my go-to salad.  I love fresh spinach and strawberries are the perfect match.  Not only do they taste great but because they are a vitamin C source they help our bodies to absorb the iron in the spinach.  I used a store-bought balsamic vinaigrette because I was in a hurry.  I try to make my own dressing more than not, but when necessary I use a good store-bought variety.

I also had extra tomato, cheese, and basil so I made a caprese salad as well.  I layered the tomato, mozzarella cheese slice, and fresh basil, sprinkled with sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, and drizzled it with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

By the time Tim got home, the food was already on the table.  I was so nervous that the pizza was going to be horrible, but it wasn't.  The dough tasted much better with the sauce and toppings on it, and Tim had nothing bad to say.  He will definitely tell me if he doesn't like something, so after such a fiasco cooking I was relieved he actually liked the pizza.  Next time I will probably go back to a regular whole wheat and all-purpose flour combo as that seemed to work much better.  If I mess it up again I'll know its me and not the flour! :-)

Carefree lunches

   As I mentioned yesterday, we just got back from a two-week vacation.  We are barely going to get unpacked before we will be back on the road again as we are heading to Chicago for the weekend.  With such a short time between trips, I'm keeping lunches simple this week.  Meghan started out with a bowl of organic peas with a some butter.  (I used frozen so I just had to heat them up in the microwave for 30 seconds)  She ate the entire bowl--she really likes peas.  Here she is enjoying her first course:

   While she was eating her peas, I prepared her a classic grilled cheese sandwich, with a little sprinkle of kelp.  Kelp, or seaweed, contains nearly 30 minerals so I sprinkle it on certain foods whenever I can.  Just a healthy little add-on to boost the nutrition of a regular old grilled cheese.  Here's my kelp container:

I bought an empty spice container with a sprinkle top and buy the kelp from the bulk section of the health food store.  Here's the sandwich before I put it in the panini press.  (Using the panini press is so much easier than a pan!)  The swiss cheese I used was so holy I needed to use two pieces.  

And here's the grilled cheese:

Meghan only ate half of her sandwich, so I helped her out and finished the second half.  Last, she had three handfuls of organic grapes.  She was eating them faster than I could slice them in half!  

My easy lunch was the leftover quinoa salad from last night. 

 So yummy and very satisfying!

I have a confession to make:  I love Starbucks.  Love it.  I crave their yummy coffee drinks a lot, but try to only get them occasionally.  It's that darn sugar.  Grrr.  Anyway,  I was craving one after putting Meghan down for her nap.  Since my daughter was sleeping and slipping out to Starbucks was not an option, I decide to make my own, somewhat healthier version.  I wanted to make a Frappicino (sp?) style drink of blended coffee, but once I got all of my ingredients in the magic bullet, I didn't have room for 

ice! 

So instead, I just had an iced coffee drink.  I am sipping it now and it is yummy.  Here's what went into it:  1 cup coffee, 1 cup soy milk, 1/2 T. unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 T. agave nectar.  It turned out not too sweet with a subtle chocolate flavor.  And no refined sugar like the kind I would have gotten at Starbucks!  I made more than I needed, so the extra was put into the fridge.  

Well I am off to get the less fun things accomplished during the rest of Meghan's nap.  Tonight I am going to make my first attempt at grilled pizza.  I'll keep you updated on how it turns out.  

Toddler Tuesday: Cheesy Broccoli, Rice, and Beans

  I thought I would dedicate my Tuesday blogs to toddler food.  Feeding a toddler is a challenging task as their taste memories are so short.  One day Meghan will LOVE, LOVE, LOVE a certain food, and the next day act like she has never tasted something so disgusting.  Since I am always looking for new ideas, I thought I would put out there some of the healthy meal or snack options that have worked for us.
    I only cook meat once a week (at the most) so that is how often Meghan is offered meat.  She often refuses it when I offer, so it is not unusual for her to go weeks without any meat.  Because of this I am careful to prepare foods for her that provide the nutrients she would normally get from meat, such as protein and iron.  I try to include a variety of whole grains, vegetables, beans, legumes, and fruit in her diet.  For dinner she typically eats what we are eating.
                                                        This was her lunch yesterday.

In typical toddler style, she ate each part separately, picking out the beans and eating those first, then the broccoli, and finally the rice. This is a well-rounded meal that is packed with nutrients. The rice and beans together provide a complete protein, the beans are a good source of iron and fiber, and the broccoli is, well, a super food. Oh, right, the cheese.  That makes it taste better.  Here's the basic "recipe",  but you can't really call it that. ;-)

Cheesy Broccoli, Beans, and Rice

1/2 cup cooked brown rice

1/4 cup steamed broccoli florets, chopped to toddler size bites

2 tablespoons cooked white beans (I used canned organic navy beans. If you use canned, organic usually has less salt)

2 tablespoons shredded mild cheddar cheese

Place rice, broccoli, and beans in a small microwavable bowl.  Top with cheddar cheese.  Microwave for 10-30 seconds, until cheese is lightly melted.  

Yield:  1-4 toddler servings, depending on your little one's appetite