Mini Mexican Chocolate Soufflés

Well hello, gorgeous. The instant I saw this recipe in my VegNews magazine a few weeks ago I knew I had to make it!

I saw the recipe on the plane ride back home for spring break. Let’s just say I was pleasantly surprised when I arrived home and my Mom asked me if I wanted anything from the grocery store…because I was prepared with an ingredient list!

Here are the mini soufflés in the oven. Rising their little hearts out.

This one was fresh out of the oven…And stayed nice and puffy for all of five seconds before it sank down into the dish. Oh well, it still tasted delicious!

These glorious, sun-basking lovelies are easy to make, smell heavenly, and are the perfect balance of spicy and sweet. Make these for you family or friends today!

Mini Mexican Chocolate Soufflés

Makes 6 individual soufflés

Recipe adapted from VegNews Magazine March/April 2013 edition

3 tablespoons of applesauce

1 and 1/2 cups of sugar

1 and 1/2 cups of dark chocolate chips, melted

1 and 1/2 cups of almond milk

9 tbsp of flour

1 and 1/2 tsp vanilla

1/8 tsp cloves

3/4 tsp cayenne pepper

3/4 tsp chili powder

1 and 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp ground vanilla bean

2 flax eggs (2 tbsp of flax seeds in 6 tbsp of water, sitting for about 5-7 minutes until it thickens)

4 and 1/2 tsp of cocoa powder

A pinch of salt

6 tsp of cream of tartar

To make the soufflés start by preheating the oven to 375 degrees and spraying 6 ramekins with non-stick spray.

While the oven is preheating, combine all of the ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Then thoroughly mix the batter by hand. Your hand may be a bit sore by the end, but it is worth it. Nothing like a nice hand-blended, light and fluffy batter!

When the batter is well mixed, pour the mixture into the ramekins until about 3/4 full.

Place in the oven and bake for about 30 minutes. Let cool slightly and enjoy!

Chocolate and chili are a match made in heaven,

Sydney

Mediterranean Chickpea Pasta

So I featured this dish on my WIAW post about 3 weeks ago and said I would post the recipe soon…well here it is! Better late than never right? This Mediterranean Chickpea Pasta was delicious. And a super quick recipe to whip-up!

I ended up making it two weeks in a row because it was a great lunch option for me to take to work. Sometimes I ate it by itself, and sometimes I served it over a big bed of greens. Either way is very tasty!

This pasta is light and fresh. No heavy sauce to weigh things down, just simple and lovely on its own! A little balsamic vinegar and olive oil is all it needs.

Go gather your ingredients and make this pasta! I’m telling you it’s worth it :)

Mediterranean Chickpea Pasta Salad

Serves 4

Inspired by Jenna’s recipe on PBS Food

1 cup whole wheat macaroni noodles

1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 6-oz. jar of quartered artichoke hearts (and its juices)

1/2 cup of kalamata olives, chopped

1 tsp of oregano

1/3 cup of sun dried tomatoes, chopped

1/8 tsp red pepper flakes

A pinch of sea salt

A splash of balsamic vinegar

To make this dish, begin by cooking the pasta according to package directions. While the pasta is cooking, chop the ingredients that need chopping and prep the rest of the ingredients (aka, take them out of the fridge or cupboard and have them ready to go on your counter)!

Once the pasta is done, drain it, then add the pasta to a large bowl.

Then add the rest of the ingredients to the bowl (including the oil from the artichoke jar) and stir to combine. Serve hot or cold and enjoy!

Looking forward to another Wire party tonight,

Sydney

What I Ate Wednesday #11

Hope you all have a glorious WIAW! Yesterday was filled with scrumptious eats and treats! And considering this is the last week of the Going Green edition of WIAW for March, I thought I’d go all out. Breakfast was the only meal that didn’t have any greens in sight, but lunch and dinner were packed with tasty powerhouses like spinach, kale, basil and capers.

As I studied for my last midterm I enjoyed a fabulously sweet and comforting bowl of peanut butter and jelly banana flax oats.

 It was a simple combo of 1/2 a cup of instant oats, a very ripe banana (sliced), 1 tbsp of flax seed, about 3/4 a cup of water and peanut butter and golden plum preserves drizzled on top.

Today I took the pictures of my lunch before I left for work, so since I had prepped and photographed my food already I could eat it immediately when I got to work. It was a good decision. I was starving!

I made a salad of mixed greens (go greens!), capers (great color!), sweet potato, almond pulp, balsamic vinegar, some chopped pecans and hummus. Great flavors in this salad.

Here you can see the pecans and hummus, and the apple I had on the side! I also ate a whole wheat english muffin, but forgot to capture that in the pictures.

After work I headed to my biostatistics midterm, which I think went pretty well, and then made dinner at home. I love making dinner. It is such a nice way to relax!

Here was the dynamic duo of the evening!

This was my fun serving dish of Macaroni with Basil and Ricotta and Crunchy Pecan Topping. So delicious! I’ll post the recipe soon.

And along with my pasta I made a green smoothie. So perfect. This was made of two handfuls of a spinach and kale mix, 1 frozen banana (sliced), 1/2 a cup of vanilla soy milk, and 1/4 a cup of plain greek yogurt.

Check out how bright and beautiful the green color is. Love it.

After I had finished dinner my brother got home from work, and he brought in with him a surprise package..which we opened up and found this card inside.

Along with the card we received an amazing spread of chocolate! Tonight we decided to try the Gingerbread Toffee Bar and oh my goodness was it ever delicious.

A few pieces of this dark chocolate was a great way to end the night. That and watching an episode of The West Wing with my brother!

Thanks to Jenn for hosting!

TGIW,

Sydney

Cannellini Bean and Sweet Potato Salad with Maple Apple Cider Dressing

So it’s Thursday. It’s been a busy week, and you are looking for a quick and easy recipe that will satisfy your hunger and your taste buds. Well you’re in luck my friend, because I’ve got the perfect recipe for you. Cannellini Bean and Sweet Potato Salad with Maple Apple Cider Dressing.

Now this is what I call a salad! Chock full of veggies and a variety of nutrients and flavors. Your stomach will thank you, I promise.

Up close and personal. This salad is a beauty! Crisp spinach leaves, smooth and creamy goat’s cheese, ripe tomatoes that burst in your mouth. The textures in this salad are wonderful.

So what are you waiting for? Get into your kitchen and whip up this salad!

Cannellini Bean and Sweet Potato Salad with Maple Apple Cider Dressing

Serves 1

For the Salad:

A generous portion of spinach (however much you want for the base of your salad)

1/3 cup of cannellini beans

1/2 a sweet potato (roasted prior to making the salad)

A pinch of chives, dried lemon peel and cinnamon

Grape tomatoes, halved

Goat’s cheese

For the Dressing:

1 tbsp BBQ Sauce

1/2 tbsp olive oil

1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp maple syrup

Having the sweet potatoes baked beforehand is what allows this recipe to be whipped up in a jiff. The night before, the morning of, whatever trips your trigger, cut a sweet potato into 4 wedges and sprinkle with chives, dried lemon peel and some cinnamon. Then bake in the oven on a tin foil lined baking sheet for 40 minutes at 400 degrees. Remove from oven and the sweet potatoes are set and ready to be used later for the salad!

When you are ready to make the salad, simply fill a good sized salad bowl with the spinach, and layer on top the beans, sweet potato, tomatoes and goat’s cheese.

In a small bowl whisk together the dressing ingredients and then drizzle over the salad. This dressing is the perfect combo of sweet and tangy. Enjoy!

Salad, it’s what’s for dinner,

Sydney

What I Ate Wednesday #10 and Bailey’s Irish Cream Milkshakes

What I ate Wednesday: Wisconsin style. The past few days I have been home for spring break and have been eating all sorts of heavenly food. My first night back my sister and I went to the newly opened Smart Cow frozen yogurt bar by our house. You know I love my frozen yogurt. This time I went for a sampler platter of sorts, I think I tried triple chocolate, espresso, vanilla, cheesecake, cookies and cream and peanut butter. A little shredded coconut and cookie dough to top it off. Yes.

In honor of St. Patrick’s  Day we made homemade Bailey’s Irish Cream Milkshakes!

Unbelievable. So simple and tasty.

Bailey’s Irish Cream Milkshake

Serves 1

1 cup of natural vanilla bean ice cream

~1/8 cup of Bailey’s Irish Cream

~1/8 cup of almond milk

1 tbsp dark chocolate chips, melted

Just place the first three ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Melt the chocolate in the microwave and drizzle over top. In about 10 seconds the chocolate hardens into a luscious shell. Enjoy!

One of the last days in Green Bay my Mom and I went to Kavarna. My one true love. It is a phenomenal vegetarian restaurant and this time was the first time I had ever been for breakfast. Let’s just say I was not disappointed! For drinks, my Mom ordered a Mexican Mocha and I ordered a soy Chai Tea Latte. Delish.

For breakfast I ended up ordering their homemade Oatnola, an oatmeal granola combination with steamed milk, cranberries and maple syrup. Perfectly sweet!

I had some of my Mom’s homemade raisins for a snack.

And lunch was leftover pasta my Mom had made on top of spinach and with a side of carrots.

My daily banana made its appearance with lunch. Better late than never!

An afternoon snack was a bit of leftover Mini Mexican Chocolate Soufflés. I cannot wait to share this recipe with you all!

For dinner we had a lovely African inspired Peanut and Vegetable Stew. There was sweet potato, kale, kidney beans, carrots, onion, bell pepper and more. Lovely seasonings and all was placed atop a bed of quinoa. Loved it!

A little pineapple and shaved coconut on the side. Yum!

Dessert for the night was a brownie. Nothing like warm brownies straight from the oven!

Thanks to Jenn for hosting! Have a great Wednesday!

TGIW,

Sydney

Savory Sides

Today I have two savory side dishes to share with you! One is a veggie side dish and the other is grain-based. They are both easy, delicious and nutritious!

First, Lemon Dill Roasted Cauliflower and Carrots with Basil.

A few spices are used to make these vegetables really shine! All I did was drizzle some olive oil over the veggies and then sprinkle dill, dried lemon peel and basil on top. Simply roast them in the oven and you’ve got yourself a wonderful side dish!

Lemon Dill Roasted Cauliflower and Carrots with Basil

Serves 2

4 carrots, chopped into bite size chunks

1/2 a head of cauliflower, chopped into bite size pieces

1/2 tbsp olive oil

A generous pinch of lemon peel, dill and basil

To make this dish, start by preheating your oven to 375 degrees. Wash and chop the veggies and place in a ziplock bag. Drizzle the olive oil over the veggies, seal bag, and shake until oil coats the veggies. Then add in the seasonings to the bag, seal, and shake again. Once the spices evenly cover the veggies, pour veggies on a tinfoil lined baking sheet and place in the oven for about 20 minutes. Check about halfway through and stir the veggies. Finish cooking until desired tenderness and you are set. Enjoy!

The second dish is a Bulgur Salad with Corn, Parsley and Cilantro.

Again, very quick and full of flavor! I loved this dish on its own, but it was also good as leftovers in a burrito with sweet potatoes. So delicious, and you can easily adapt this recipe with whatever veggies or spices you have on hand.

Bulgur Salad with Corn, Parsley and Cilantro

Serves 2-3 

1/2 cup of dry bulgur

1/2 cup of frozen corn (thawed)

fresh parsley, chopped

fresh cilantro, chopped

1/2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp citrus citrus ginger seasoning

To make this dish, start by preparing the bulgur according to the packaged directions. While the bulgur is cooking, chop the herbs and get the rest of your ingredients together! Once the bulgur is done, simply stir in the corn, parsley, cilantro and seasonings. Serve warm and enjoy!

Sleep is a wonderful thing,

Sydney

What I Ate Wednesday!

I survived midterms! Hallelujah. It’s been a long couple of weeks but I put in the effort, did the best I could, and now have a glorious week of Spring Break ahead of me. I hope all of you had wonderful Wednesdays this week and are enjoying everyone’s WIAW posts over at Peas and Crayons!

This week’s eats come from Tuesday, which started out with a breakfast of peanut butter toast and a passion fruit greek yogurt, blueberry, and chia seed parfait. It was delicious. But I can’t say I didn’t miss my usual banana!

Midmorning snacks was a handful of zals.

Lunch at work was a similar version of  last week’s Mediterranean Pasta Salad atop a bed of spinach. This time I didn’t use kalamata olives and added in white balsamic capers instead. I also added in some kale. This dish definitely fits with the Go Green theme of this month’s WIAW. With the kale, spinach, capers and artichokes I think I have got plenty of green veggies covered in this dish :)

On the side I had a whole wheat tortilla, an apple and a carrot.

A lovely sweet and salty snack of pretzels and dark chocolate chips.

And dinner was a quick sandwich I picked up on the way home from class. It was a veggie sandwich, and probably one of the best and most filling I’ve ever had! It was chock full of spinach, pickles, carrots, tomatoes, avocados, cabbage and cucumbers and a delicious honey mustard sauce. Hit the spot!

As I finished up calculating morbidity and mortality rates in preparation for my epidemiology midterm, I ate this wonderful dessert. Trader Joe’s O’s, almond milk, sunflower butter and dark chocolate chips. Yes.

TGIW,

Sydney

Cauliflower Green Lentil Curry

What a great weekend it has been! With two midterms coming up this week I didn’t think it was going to be anything more than a stressful, study until your eyes go dry kind of weekend. But luckily I had some fun plans spaced throughout and used them as an incentive to power through my studying.

On Friday night after a day of work and studying I got together with some friends for dinner at Subia’s, an organic vegan restaurant that has some pretty amazing food. All day saturday, and I mean all day saturday was spent studying. By the evening I was ready for a break, and my brother and I decided to try a new gelateria and cafe that opened up near us. So glad we did!

I had this Bananas Foster gelato. Oh my word. Heaven.

Sunday was wonderful as well. I got up early to study, took a break to go check out Chelsea Market and the High Line in Manhattan, came back home and studied some more. Chelsea Market was amazing, basically it’s an indoor food market with a number of vendors each catering to their own niche within the food market. There are little shops throughout as well, and the Food Network’s production facility is in the same building!

I had some delicious pastries from Sarabeth’s Bakery.

Including this Ginger Pecan Tart. Yum!

I also had a Wicked Hot Chocolate from Jacques Torres Chocolates. It was rich, velvety perfection. With a hint of cinnamon and some spice from ground ancho chili peppers. Absolutely delicious.

And pretty much the best study break ever!

In case you are also a student in need of a study break (but don’t live in NYC so you can’t make it to Chelsea Market), I’d recommend making a trip to the grocery store and gathering the ingredients to make this Cauliflower Green Lentil Curry dish. It is absolutely delectable, and makes your home smell wonderful as well!

With a little garlic naan and maple roasted brussels sprouts on the side, this dish is a winner!

Top it with freshly chopped cilantro and call it a day.

Cauliflower Green Lentil Curry

Serves 4-6

Inspired by Pinch Of Yum

1 yellow onion, finely chopped

8 cloves of minced garlic

2 tbsp of freshly grated ginger

2 tbsp olive oil

1/4 cup of curry paste (I used Trader Joe’s red thai curry paste)

1 tsp curry powder

3 cups of vegetable broth

1 cup of green lentils

1 cup of brown rice

1/2 a head of cauliflower, chopped into bite sized pieces

Fresh cilantro for garnish

Start by heating the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. When ready, add the onion, garlic and ginger and sauté for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Then add the curry paste, the curry powder and the vegetable broth and whisk together.

Bring to a boil and then add the lentils and brown rice and let the pot simmer for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.

After about 20 minutes of simmering, add the cauliflower and let simmer for the rest of the 20 minutes.

By the end most of the liquid should have been absorbed by the lentil/rice mixture. Take off the stove and serve topped with fresh cilantro. Enjoy!

Sunshine makes everything better,

Sydney

What I ate Wednesday!

Oh Wednesdays, how I love you and the fact that you are devoted to chronicling food. While I am glad another week has gone by and I can share all my recent snacks and meals with you…I can’t believe another week has gone by! It’s March. I have midterms in less than a week. Where did this semester go?

My life has been a bit busy lately, I seem to spend most of my time surrounded by immense amounts of paper trying to get organized.

This is my attempt at identifying themes within the literature regarding obesity rates in the American immigrant population. I spread out all my articles, organized them by key findings, and color-coded them like there was no tomorrow. Then I cranked out a literature review, and am now on to studying for midterms!

Luckily I need food to stay fueled and to get me through late night studying, so here is what I’ve eaten recently to power me through the day!

Breakfast was a delicious piece of peanut butter toast, banana and pineapple Chobani greek yogurt with blueberries and chia seeds. This yogurt combo was pretty much heaven.

For lunch I had leftover Cauliflower Green Lentil Curry (recipe to come!), with fresh cilantro, garlic naan and a side of tomatoes. Taste.

I had a Braeburn apple mid afternoon for a snack, sweet and crisp perfection.

I also enjoyed some bran flakes cereal and raisins while I was waiting for my Biostatistics lecture to start!

By the time I got back from class I was famished, and helped myself to some Mediterranean Pasta Salad served over a bed of greens (another recipe to come)! I also had half an avocado with balsamic vinegar on the side. Deliciousness.

And some blueberries afterwards, they always hit the spot.

My late night studying snack consisted of a mug of Trader Joe’s O’s cereal, almond milk, peanut butter and a sprinkle of coconut. Another good day of eats!

Thanks to Jenn for hosting us. Have a glorious Wednesday!

 

TGIW,

Sydney

Cornbread and Pinto Bean Shepherd’s Pie (Vegetarian)

My Mom bought me a subscription to Vegetarian Times Magazine for Christmas, and I’ve recently started receiving the issues. Yay! They have been great so far and I have already made a bunch of recipes from them. One of my favorites has been this Cornbread and Pinto Bean Shepherd’s Pie.

It was quite scrumptious! My brother made the cornbread and I whipped together the bean mixture for the filling.

We know how to tag-team things in the kitchen like the best of them!

Our final result was this lovely take on shepherd’s pie.

Maybe we didn’t get the cornbread to filling ratio quite right…but I didn’t care! I love cornbread and I was glad there was plenty of it. I’d recommend this dish in a heartbeat.

Cornbread and Pinto Bean Shepherd’s Pie

Serves 6

Inspired by the recipe in Vegetarian Times Jan/Feb 2013 issue

Filling ingredients:

2  14.5 oz. cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed (but reserve the liquid from the can)

3 tbsp. tomato paste

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 large yellow onion, diced

2 and 1/2 tbsp chili powder

2 small, vine-ripened tomatoes, chopped

A handful of chopped kale

Cornbread ingredients:

Recipe adapted from Vegetarian Epicure Cornbread

1 and 1/4 cups of all purpose flour

3/4 cup of cornmeal

2 tbsp sugar

5 tsp baking powder

A pinch of salt

One egg

1 cup almond milk

2 tbsp apple sauce

To make this dish, start by preheating the oven to 425 degrees and coating a 9-inch cake pan with cooking spray. Then, mix the reserved bean liquid and tomato paste in a bowl, set aside.

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. When ready, add the onions and cook about 5 minutes or until softened. Make sure to stir the onions occasionally so they do not stick to the bottom of the pan and burn.

After the onions have softened, add in the chili powder, tomato paste mixture, tomatoes, kale and beans and then give it a good stir. Bring the filling mixture to a simmer and stir, then reduce heat to low and cook for about 7 more minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the filling mixture is simmering, combine all the dry ingredients for the cornbread in a large mixing bowl. Then add in the wet ingredients to the mixture one by one and stir to combine.

When the bean mixture has finished simmering add it to the cake pan and spread evenly throughout the dish.

Then add the cornbread mixture on top and spread evenly over the beans.

Bake in the oven about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cornbread comes out clean. Enjoy!

I love grocery shopping,

Sydney