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| Shh, you can't tell, but there's veggies in this cup, which makes getting an extra cup more of a treat! |
With my first full month of WAIW posts, I’m eager to continue strong into this month. What I Ate Wednesday posts for April will entail “serving up an extra cup” of veggies. This is no problem for me, I have some form of veggie with or in every meal.
Where to begin?? Oh yeah……at the beginning
Breakfast – Small cup of tuna barley and edamame medley using long celery sticks as my utensil (makes the meal last longer!); baby carrots, baked overnight oatmeal crisps; French press coffee
Snack – No snack today, I forgot it at home…..*sigh*
Lunch – I tend to have a puree every Wednesday, so I had another today…..spicy red lentil veggie puree; celery and carrot sticks, organic ambrosia apple, green and red vanilla rooibos tea
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| Not my apple or photo b/c I forgot to take a pic before eating!! |
Beverage – brewed green and peppermint tea after lunch
Dinner – long time between meals equals hungry me! Started things off with a big salad topped with Brussels sprouts and mushrooms; couple slices of Protein Beer Bread with PB; PB chocolate squash puree with banana; leftover Peanut Protein Crepes smeared with PB Vanilla and Brownie Batter Dip
Since the day’s not over, I’m sure I’ll have a nice helping of plain Chobani Greek yogurt and more overnight oatmeal crisps; a perfect end the day!
Adding extra vegetables poses no challenge for me; I love adding them to whatever I blend with frozen fruit for a nighttime treat. The blend usually consists of a winter squash variety, but lately I have used summer squash, carrots, and spinach with great success. Mixed with frozen fruits, protein powder, and stevia make a great alternative to ice cream and a way for extra nutrition.
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| Acorn squash with NuNaturals stevia, peanut flour, and protein powder |
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| My chocolate veggie puree ready to be chilled and consumed; don't tell Kelley! |
Another way to get more veggies is to just throw your favorites in a pot on the stove with broth and any herbs and spices you enjoy; then cook and puree into a creamy dip (less broth) or soup (more broth). I sometimes use the puree as a thick dressing on a cool, crisp salad; good health never tasted so good!
Do have any special ways to incorporate veggies in your life? I’d love to hear some new and interesting ideas, so please leave comments as you….please!
Happy WIAW!
So how does this puree taste like? Can you actually taste the acorn squash? I mean, I don't have one, but I'm wondering if I could use that with carrots... but would they get blended up well with that? hmmm
ReplyDeleteHi Kamila, thanks for checking out my blog!
DeleteAlthough I do love acorn squash on its own, you can't taste it in this puree. The stevia, peanut flour, and cocoa powder make it taste like a creamy chocolate peanut butter pudding. Here's the recipe I use; just swap out the squash and powders for whatever you have - http://justaddcayenne.blogspot.com/2011/10/delicata-fun-to-say-fun-to-eat.html
I actually have used steamed carrots before and they worked just fine. Make sure they are cooked or it will be hard to blend. Also, the carrots and chocolate would be ok, but I usually puree them with cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and vanilla protein powder with peanut flour.
If there's a certain flavor you're going for, please just let me know and I will be happy to create a post with pictures to help!
Interesting use of veggies, especially the breakfast with edamame and barley!
ReplyDeleteHa ha, I get that a lot. When I cook all of our lunches for work over the weekend, I usually have just enough leftover to put in a small cup; I then just have that for breakfast one day.
DeleteI tend to consume most "breakfast foods" at night since they help relax me and are all still healthy anyway. Eating at work can be annoying b/c I like to take my time.
Thanks for stopping by; I like your blogging A-Z challenge and the crock-pot apples sound amazing!
You are so good at getting veggies into every meal! I struggle with getting veggies in at breakfast because I usually like sweet breakfasts- always oatmeal. But you breakfast looks amazing. Sub out the tuna for some chick peals, and it would be a perfect lunch for me. I'm totally "stealing" the combo.
ReplyDeleteHi Rachel, you can "steal" all you want; it's more of a compliment to me. Like I commented to Fran above, I eat most breakfast-type meals at night, and overnight oats with different veggie purees are a big part of that.
DeleteI would even say I'm somewhat addicted to blending different veggies with a little frozen fruit and protein or peanut powders for a healthy "ice cream" or "pudding".
What about getting canned pumpkin puree and mixing into your oatmeal with some cinnamon and PB? Then you'll have your veggies and oatmeal! Enjoy and let me know if you try and like!
celery as the utensil?!? LOVE it! so trying that :)
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you like the idea; it's the perfect utensil you can "recycle" in a way!
DeleteI sometimes use peeled raw carrots I cut in half lengthwise too. Really, any sturdy veggie will work, but celery has the perfect curves for most jobs. Try it and please let me know how you like it.
I do get some strange looks, but who cares?!
Do you have a recipe for the oatmeal crisps? Sounds like a great snack!
ReplyDelete[Fitness, Health and Happiness]
Hi Jill, I do have a recipe I posted on the following link (http://justaddcayenne.blogspot.com/2012/01/mlk-day-off-overnight-oatmeal-crisps.html).
DeleteThe best part is how you can customize the flavors to suit your taste. I usually keep a rotation of vanilla, chocolate peanut butter, pumpkin pie, and ginger snap flavors. I use stevia sweetened whey protein powder for the vanilla and chocolate flavors, and unflavored protein powder with pumpkin or ginger spices for the others.
If you have more questions after checking ou the recipe, please feel free to comment and ask; I'm happy to help share this great snack!
that puree idea sounds awesome. I will have to try that out, I never thought to use acorn squash!
ReplyDeleteI definitely recommend you try it soon! I have a habit about trying new things to add "healthy" volume to purees and smoothies. Using raw summer summer squash seems to add a lot of air and "pump" up the volume pretty well.
DeleteJust add a touch of salt and sweetener (I like stevia) of choice. Let me know how it turns out!
Whoa! Your chocolate veggie puree looks amazing - I can't believe it's veggielicious!
ReplyDelete