MOAR PINTEREST RECIPES.

i haven't been cooking as many new recipes lately - actually, i have to look back to even see what i made. hmmm.

do you meal plan? i do.

i try to come up with a meal plan every friday for the upcoming week, so i can make a list and do my shopping on saturday. it's super helpful because then i'm not buying a bunch of crap at the store that doesn't really make up a meal.

so the last few meals plans have had: baja fish tacos (didn't happen), creamy quinoa primavera, turkey burgers, lazy crockpot sunday casserole (didn't happen), and bruschetta chicken bake (didn't happen).

so...what did we eat? well. i know we ate turkey burgers, regular burgers, quinoa (twice, two recipes), homemade pizza, SONIC, bbq pulled chicken, turkey parmesan meatballs, calzones and more.

so, i do have some new recipes to share, i guess. i just deviated a bit.

oh! and i tried to "new" things - one was a cookie pie made with BEANS and the other was to make my own almond butter! both were awesome and EASY!!!!!!!!!!!!

(that was so much rambling for a few recipes. sorry.)

Creamy Quinoa Primavera:

recipe and picture from here.

Ingredients1 1/2 cups uncooked quinoa
3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
4 ounces cream cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil or 1 teaspoon dried
1 tablespoon butter
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
5 cups thinly sliced or bite sized pieces assorted uncooked vegetables
3 tablespoons grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

Directions
Rinse quinoa thoroughly; drain. Bring quinoa and broth to boil in a 2-quart saucepan; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 20-25  minutes or until broth is absorbed. While quinoa is cooking, melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook garlic in butter for about one minute, stirring frequently, until golden. Stir in vegetables. Cook about 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently, until vegetables are crisp-tender. Stir cream cheese and basil into cooked quinoa.  Toss vegetables with quinoa mixture and sprinkle with cheese.

***KERI's NOTES: have you ever tried quinoa? it is awesome. it's like a rice/pasta and it is sooo good. and good for you! it's the ONLY grain that is considered a complete protein too! so you can get your protein while feeling like you're eating pasta! YUM.

Quinoa with Veggies

 recipe from here.

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa
• 3 cups water (I used two cups chicken broth instead)
• 1 pinch salt (omitted)
•  
• 3 tablespoons olive oil (i only used two)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 cup corn kernels
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin ( increased this to 1 tsp)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 green onions, chopped

***Keri's Notes: this was great! i made the whole batch to put over lettuce for lunches this week. sooo good.

Garlic Turkey Parmesan Meatballs

recipe and picture from here.

Ingredients
1 1/2 lb. lean ground turkey
10 cloves garlic, chopped fine
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

Directions

Step 1 – In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients and form in to meatballs, approximately the size of a golf ball (maybe just a tad smaller).

Step 2 – Place them on a parchment lined cookie sheet.

Step 3 – Bake at 350 F. for approximately 30-45 minutes, or until the meatballs reach a minimum of 165 F. on a thermometer.

Step 4 – Remove from oven, allow to cool slightly and serve.

Eat and Enjoy!

***KERI's NOTES: these were dry as a bone. my fault. i only used one poud of turkey and didn't adjust the amount of parmesan cheese. whoops. the flavor was great though! i would make them again. i served these with egg noodles for dave and hallie with a side of carrot sticks and fresh fruit. i ate mine plain with fruit and they were good.

Deep Dish Cookie Pie

recipe and picture here.

Ingredients

• 2 cans white beans or garbanzos (drained and rinsed) (500g total, once drained)
• 1 cup quick oats 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 3 T canola oil
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 and 1/2 cups brown sugar (You can sub evaporated cane juice or white sugar.
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Blend everything (except the chips) very well in a good food processor (not a blender). Mix in chips, and pour into an oiled pan. Cook at 350F for around 35-40 minutes. Let stand at least 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

***KERI's NOTES: don't be a hater. you can't even taste the freaking beans. and it cuts out eggs, most oil and it is delicious!!! i used brown sugar splenda and it was delicious. a great alternative from the regular cookie pie/bars.

Almond Butter

i got a hankering last night to try to make my own almond butter. i eat peanut butter every morning in my green moster and i've heard great things about almond butter as a healthier substitute. but holy toledo - it's like $9 for a jar of that business. so, i hve heard you can make your own and i did. because i am awesome.

easy as pie: roast two cups of raw almonds in the oven at 350 degrees for 5-10 minutes. add to food processor with half-1 tsp of salt (i used kosher). process. for what seems like a million years but is really like...eight. you might have to scrape down the sides a few times, but yeah. that's it. process until it's the consistency of regular pb and then i put it in a jar!

i tried it in my greenie this morning and it was delish. i still prefer pb, but that's because i love pb. but i will be doing almond butter from now on!

*****

so now do you think i'm weird? i know a lot of these recipes aren't "normal" ones, but if you try them i bet you will like them!