Tomato Toast

I love tomatoes. I was so happy at the farmer's market yesterday when I saw those big, plump, red tomatoes everywhere. Those are the just the best, the homegrown, organic, in-season tomatoes. Yummmm!

Anyway, sometimes when it comes to delicious ingredients straight from nature, less is more. This is my Sunday morning spring breakfast (Today is MY Sunday). 

Toast 2 pieces of hearty whole wheat bread (I used Dave's Killer Bread, for this toast you want a hearty bread preferably full of grains and seeds)

Cover the toast with a thin layer of veganaise. Or even hummus. You can use mayo, I suppose.

Slice up 1/2 of one of those huge tomatoes and layer on the slices

Sprinkle on some black pepper and maybe a teensy little bit of salt

Make some coffee or tea and enjoy :)

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Black Bean Salad

This only has a few ingredients! 

Black Beans (I used 2 cans, fresh is definitely better if you can)

Handful of chopped cilantro

Juice of 2 limes

1 yellow pepper

1 orange pepper

(You can add red onion if you'd like, but I don't care much for onions)

Add a pinch of salt and black pepper
You can also add corn. I just didn't have any.

Honestly, I will probably mix this with some mixed greens for lunch tomorrow. It will be delicious. 

Yum!

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Oven-Roasted Veggies

I don't know why I was always intimidated by roasting veggies! It's so easy! I had some veggies in the fridge that were going a little soft and I needed something portable to eat, just got a new job y'know ;)

Anyway! Just take any veggies you have, I had yellow squash, green bell peppers and eggplant.

Toss with some extra virgin olive oil, plenty of black pepper and salt. I also chopped up some garlic and roasted that alongside the vegetables. 

 Roast at 425 degrees for 35-45 minutes.

Now what to do with it? You could toss it with some pasta, add some balsamic and cherry tomatoes, black olives, and fresh chopped basil..

And even better! If you plan to eat it cold, toss with some mixed greens (This is a blend of baby spinach, chard, and kale)

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If you have another idea, let me know! Enjoy :)

Cilantro-Lemon Hummus

I know there are toooooons of store bought hummus(es?). I know that most of them are delicious. But there is just something I find so cool, and ultimately delicious, about making my own! It cost way less too, trust me on that. Especially if you find the dried Garbanzo beans in bulk and just buy like 1 lb. This recipe can be used with canned beans as well. This makes 1 serving, as always you can double it, or even triple it if you have a large food processor. Ok! Enough of my blabbing, here goes!

Ingredients:

1 cup cooked garbanzo beans (note: I bought them dry and boiled them in water with some chopped onions and garlic for about 35 minutes, or until they were soft.)

1 handful cilantro. No need to chop.

1/2 cup liquid (water or veggie broth)

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tsp Salt

1 (or more) tsp black pepper

Put all the ingredients in a blender or food processor.

Blend!This takes awhile, be patient. 

And enjoy. Simple and delicious. Enjoy with veggies, pita chips, or as a spread on a sandwich. I was actually eating it with a spoon, but I love hummus more than the average person. 

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Another Green Smoothie

Delicious, nutritious, and awesome in the morning (especially if the night before consisted of a couple glasses of wine and not enough sleep).

I make green smoothies in one form or another a few times a week, but this one came out so well that I decided to share. Very simple, and easy if you are new to "green" things. ;)

Ingredients: 

(This is for 1 person, just double it if you want more)

1/2 cup frozen pineapple

1/2 cup frozen mango

1/2 banana (or 1 small banana)

1 1/2 cup mixed greens (I had organic spinach, chard and kale, but you can just use 1 if that's what you have)

1 cup water

3 ice cubes

1/2 TBS ground flax (optional)

1/2 TBS chia seeds (optional)

And that's it!No dairy, no added sugar. I am wary of the green smoothies that add apple juice because it's just a ton of sugar, with the fruit and the banana, you can use water because it will be sweet enough. This is a VERY good way to sneak greens in your diet. It doesn't taste like drinking a salad, trust me!

I can imagine that if I had kids I might call it a "Shrek Smoothie" or "Hulk Smoothie" to get them to drink it, ha! 

Enjoy!

  

Lime and Black Pepper Potato Wedges

Lime and Black Pepper Potato Wedges

I loooooooove black pepper. I put it on everything! Well, almost ;) And I had an extra lime. And potatoes. And an extra hour. All of these put together and Ta-da! 

These are ridiculously easy. Slice up a couple of potatoes (I used 2 medium gold potatoes, but you could have 1 russet or 3-4 small red potatoes, whatever)

Toss with some extra virgin olive oil and a few pinches of salt and black pepper, until coated fully. Bake at 400 degrees for 35 minutes. When you take it out of the oven, sprinkle with the zest, the juice of the lime, and another big pinch of black pepper.

That's it. 

The lime just adds something different to these, something delicious! I could see eating these in summer as a sidedish to a big salad. Yum :)