My Top 5 Kitchen Staples

Yesterday I thought I had a fun idea to share my top 5 convenience foods that we keep around like the frozen turkey meatballs from Trader Joe’s. Ever had them? They’re pretty tasty, only 100 cals for 2 meatballs, and were only $2.99 for about 6 servings. It’s nice to have that kind of stuff around the house for an easy protein to throw into a salad or on a sandwich. Unfortunately for my list, I realized that it really stopped there, probably because I do have the time to make extras for leftovers! It’s true, I’d rather have my own homemade turkey meatballs or veggie burgers in the freezer 🙂

Rather than sharing my favorite convenience foods, I thought I’d share the top 5 staples in my kitchen. Not a week goes by that these things aren’t purchased and often not a day goes by that I don’t use them!

1. Eggs
   
   Between Nathan and I, we go through about 3 dozen eggs per week. Not ridiculous at all, right? Sometimes it’s less, but I guess this could also go under convenience. Don’t have another protein for your meal? Throw an egg on it! Or if you’re like me, throw an egg on your other protein anyway 😉
2. Peanut Flour
   
   Protein Plus is my favorite brand of peanut flour and I honestly use it all the time [when I’m not using nut butters]. I mix it with a little water and stevia to make a dip for apples, drizzle on pancakes, and lately drizzle on popcorn too! Yesterday I made a ridiculously tasty peanut butter protein pizza for breakfast and added extra on top! You can get it from iHerb.com and if you use the code ZAF482 at checkout, you can get up to $10 off of your order.
3. Leafy Greens
   These days the leaf of choice is spinach. I go through my phases where all I want is kale but since I’m not in that phase right now and Nathan actually eats spinach, we stock up. Two big containers a week? No problem!
4. Chicken
   

   Beer Glazed Citrus Chicken – How Sweet It Is

   

   Baked Pesto Chicken Parmesan – Iowa Girl Eats

   

   Jamaican Jerk Chicken, Fried Plantain and Coconut Fried Quinoa with Macadamia Nuts – Half Baked Harvest

   

   Nathan’s famous roast chicken

   You can always count on at least 2-3 chicken dinners per week at home. It’s one of the cheapest [meat] protein options out there and it’s so versatile. I’ve been having fun experimenting with all of the different recipes to change it up lately since Nathan is the chicken king. Boy could eat chicken all day, everyday!

5. Hot Sauce
   You realized that when I said hot sauce, I really meant Sriracha, right? I was never a big hot saucer growing up, other than Tiger Sauce, but within the past year, I’ve really grown to love Sriracha and it is often on the table with dinner [and lunch]. Nathan is also a Crystal man for his breakfasts so those are the 2 staples, but he likes to try all different kinds of hot sauces, just like I like to try all kinds of nut butters. To each his own 😉
6. BONUS! Crate & Barrel Glass Nesting Bowl Set
   Ok, so it’s not a super exciting bonus, but I LOVEEEEE these bowls! I got them as an engagement gift and I use at least 2 of the bowls per day. I think yesterday I used 4 or 5 haha. I also use one of the bigger bowls for my monster salads.

There are definitely other things that I use on a daily basis, but if you spend any time at home with me, you’re pretty much guaranteed to see these things pop up.

Food for Thought

What are your top kitchen staples?
Do you stock up on convenience foods too?

Guest Post: The Smart Kitchen Crunchy Spinach Salad with Salty Sweet Tahini Vinaigrette

I’ve recently found a new favorite blogger and I knew when I was looking for guest bloggers that she was one I had to share with you! Sarah of The Smart Kitchen is always sharing delicious recipes and fun tidbits of her life. And she’s clearly a nut butter-lover like me.. she even has her own line of nutty butters! [Note to self: buy some soon!]

The recipe that Sarah is sharing with us today sounds so tasty I almost can’t wait to come home to make it! …..almost. 😉

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Hi y’all! My name is Sarah, but the ladies of the healthy living blog world--or at least the handful who consistently read my blog–know me as Miss Smart. I blog over at The Smart Kitchen, where I spend an absurd amount of time using my food processor, shopping at every grocery store in town on the hunt for manager’s specials, attempting to figure out four thousand ways to use the same ingredient, eating an excessive amount of nut butter straight from the jar…and, literally, licking my plate in restaurants. [No. Seriously.]

I was thrilled to have Brittany ask me to submit a guest post as she is honeymooning this month, and while I would rather be honeymooning myself–heck, y’all, I’d settle for a nice boy taking me out to dinner 😉–I am happy to be able to take a little virtual vacation.

I say “submit” instead of “write” a guest post, because what I often like to do when I go ‘a-visiting’ is find and old post or recipe that deserves to see the light of day Google reader again. Today’s recipe and post is a Glee-style mash-up of a nostalgic family favorite, reinvented not once, but twice, both for my blog, and the blog of a local magazine I was writing for last spring.

My aunt Elizabeth is a master hostess. She is the kind of woman who can decide one afternoon to throw a cocktail party for 50, and by 6 o’clock, have drinks at the ready, appetizers laid out, and be dressed and ready to greet her guests with such nonchalance you’d think she’d been preparing for four weeks, instead of four hours.

So when it comes to recipes for entertaining, I always turn to her tried and true formulas--stored (not very safely) in my binder of family recipes-–of ease, taste, versatility and appeal.

And there right on top, in the section labeled “salads,” is the unnamed, known only as “that salad Aunt Elizabeth makes,” deliciousness that once, at a potluck where I served it, inspired a guest to proclaim, “I don’t even like salad, and I’m going back for seconds!”The original recipe calls for a base of spinach and shredded cabbage.As all great hostesses know, what shortcuts you take are between you and the four walls of your kitchen, so you can buy bags of baby spinach AND bags of shredded cabbage and save yourself time. [The original recipe, in fact, calls for that.] Since cabbage happened to be on sale, and lasts for years in the fridge,* I went ahead and shredded half of a head in my food processor.

*I am not a certified doctor. Do not trust me on this.All that’s left to do now is chop up somegreen onions…. …and sprinkle on some sliced or slivered almonds, sesame seeds, and the dry ramen noodles (sans seasoning packet) stereotypically favored by starving artists, twenty-something bachelors, and Brother Smart when he was 15 years old.

Except I forgot the ramen.

I did, however, have a number of green apples that had accumulated in my lunch bag throughout the week as, whenever I walked through the teacher’s lounge it seemed appropriate to take another one. [They were free. They were there. I obviously subconsciously knew I would need them later.] Since I was already changing things up from the original, I decided I might as well just keep on Smart Kitchen-izing the traditional. Once I had photographed the standard salad and dressing, I added the aforementioned apples, and got to work on a NEW dressing.Instead of adding canola oil to the combination of vinegar, pepper, sugar, and seasoned salt…

Aunt Elizabeth would use Lawry’s. Penzey’s was found in my moving boxes first.

…I took a hint from the sesame seeds in the salad and added tahini (and tahini oil) instead!Now the salad was good before. But this Salty Sweet Tahini Vinaigrette concoction? Well that is the stuff of tastebud tantalizing dreams, I tell you!Before serving—and Aunt Elizabeth says to always serve a salad dressed*–whisk it up quite a bit to make sure the tahini has inflitrated the vinegar.

*Makes sense, really. You wouldn’t show up to the party naked, would you?But since this whole ‘whisking’ of dressing in a bowl concept doesn’t really do it for me, I filled up a jar and shook it out instead.

And yes, I did go back for seconds.*

*And pack thirds for lunch!

Crunchy Spinach Salad w. Salty Sweet Tahini Vinaigrette*

*Note: I’ve cut the recipe down here for a 2-4 serving size.

For the salad:

• One half 10.oz-package baby spinach (or regular spinach, loosely chopped)
• 2-3 cups shredded cabbage (or 1/2 package angel hair cole slaw cabbage)
• 3 green onions, sliced (whites and light greens)
• 3 Tbsp. sliced almonds
• 1 small green apples, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. sesame seeds
  Ramen noodles, dry, crumbled (optional)

For the tahini vinaigrette:

• 4 Tbsp. tahini
• 1 1/3 cup cider or rice vinegar
• 4 Tbsp. sugar
• 2 tsp. seasoning salt
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper

Layer salad ingredients in a large bowl. In a separate bowl (or jar), whisk (or shake) together dressing ingredients. Just before serving, whisk (or shake) dressing again and pour over salad!

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Like I said, I almost can’t wait to come home to try this salad. I have a feeling it’ll be a new go-to. Thanks again, Sarah!

Food for Thought

What is your favorite salad combination?

Foodie Friday: Buddha’s Feast

Often times, Thursday ends up being a dinner of leftovers from the meals we had during the rest of the week. We typically plan on going out to dinner on Friday so we’re happy to use up what’s available in the fridge. This Thursday offered up some delicious choices; homemade turkey meatballs, lemon herb chicken, and roasted spicy orange chicken.

As I was trying to figure out what intrigued me, I came across this tweet. Done! I couldn’t wait to get home for dinner!

Traditionally, a “Buddha’s Feast” bowl is a vegetarian dish, but since I was using what was already cooked, I decided a turkey meatball would be a great addition. Below is the recipe for the specific bowl that I made, but this is so versatile that you could really make it with anything! The end of this post has a bunch of different options you could try!

Buddha’s Feast

Serves 1

Ingredients
– 2 beets; sliced
– 1/2 medium sweet potato; diced
– 1 cup broccoli florets
– 2 oz turkey meatball
– 1 cup baby spinach
– 1 tbsp peanuts; chopped
– 1 – 2 tbsp spicy Thai peanut sauce [recipe below]
– 1/3 – 1/2 tbsp EVOO
– Salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Preheat oven to 375°F. Place beets and sweet potato on a lined baking sheet. Drizzle with EVOO, season with salt and pepper to taste, and roast about 20 minutes.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven, add broccoli florets, and toss with EVOO, salt, and pepper. Return to the oven and roast another 20 minutes until all vegetables are tender.

In a bowl, add your spinach and top with roasted vegetables and turkey meatball. Drizzle with spicy Thai peanut sauce, top with chopped peanuts, and devour!

Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce

Serves 2

Ingredients
– 2 tbsp peanut flour*
– 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
– 1/2 tbsp lite soy sauce
– 1/2 tbsp garlic chili paste
– 1/2 tbsp toasted sesame oil

Directions
Add all ingredients into a small bowl and mix until well combined.

Nutritional Information
Per Buddha’s Feast bowl with 1 serving Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce

371 Calories  /  18g Fat  /  37g Carbs  /  7g Sugar  /  10g Fiber  /  23g Protein

Additional Buddha’s Feast Options

Bases:
– Quinoa
– Brown rice

Greens:
– Spinach
– Kale
– Collard greens
– Swiss chard

Roasted Vegetables:
– Sweet Potato
– Broccoli
– Brussels sprouts
– Asparagus
– Beets

Protein:
– Chicken
– Beef
– Turkey
– Tofu
– Tempeh
– Beans
– Nuts
– Seeds

Dressings:
– Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce
– Creamy Tahini Nooch
– Spinach Basil Walnut Pesto Aioli

Food for Thought

Do others’ posts or tweets ever inspire your meals? How would you customize this bowl?

Foodie Friday: Roasted Squash Stew with Turkey & Baby Kale

Between the cold weather and feeling a bit under the weather this past week, I’ve been jonesing for some soups and stews to warm me up. As always, I head over to Pinterest and browse my most recent 3000 recipes that I’ve pinned (out of control!) and this baby caught my eye.

Squash stew? Done! I was missing a few of the ingredients from the original recipe so I took a stab at my own version and was rather pleased with the end result.

Roasted Squash Stew with Turkey & Baby Kale

Serves 4
Adapted from Cookin’ Canuck

Ingredients
2 tbsp EVOO, divided
2 small delicata squashes, diced [About 3 cups]
1 medium sweet onion, diced
1/4 lb ground turkey or chicken [I used Jennie-O Extra Lean Ground Turkey Breast]
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 14oz can diced tomatoes, not drained [I used Muir Glen Organic Red and Yellow Diced Tomatoes]
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
Salt and pepper to taste
4 cups baby kale or spinach

Directions
Preheat oven to 375°F. Toss your diced squash on a baking sheet with 1 tbsp EVOO and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Put the sheet in the oven and roast for about 30 minutes, tossing a few times.

While your squash is roasting, heat a large pot over medium heat with the remaining 1 tbsp EVOO. Once heated, add your diced onion and saute until translucent. Add the ground turkey to the pot and season with salt, pepper, oregano, chili powder, and smoked paprika. Once the turkey is completely cooked through, add the minced garlic. When the garlic becomes fragrant, add the can of tomatoes and chicken stock.

By this time, your squash should be just about finished roasting. Remove from the oven and add 3/4 of the roasted squash to the pot. Smash the remaining 1/4 squash until smooth and add to the pot. This is used as a thickener in the soup. Make sure everything is well incorporated and finally stir in the baby kale until wilted. Adjust any seasonings to taste and feel free to add more stock or water if you want the soup to be thinner.

This soup is great with a scoop of quinoa mixed in or with some crunchy roasted chick peas on top!

Nutritional Information
Per serving

198 Calories  /  8g Fat  /  26g Carbs  /  15g Fiber  /  7g Sugar  /  11g Protein

Just My Imagination Giveaway Winner!

Congratulations to Joanna Murnan for winning a pair of custom hammered metal earrings from Just My Imagination!

Joanna Murnan said :
The triples are adorable in the mixed metals – very cute!

Please email me at Brittany@BarrAndTable.com within the next 48 hours with your mailing address as well as which pair of hoops you want and in what metal; silver, gold, or mixed! And don’t forget, it may be too late for holiday shopping, but it’s never too late to treat yourself to some new one-of-a-kind jewels 😉

What I Ate Wednesday #5 – My Favorite Sensible Dessert

Another week, another What I Ate Wednesday post! But this one has a recipe.. check it out!

Recently my eats have been looking rather similar on the day-to-day front. And I’m perfectly ok with that! Breakfast is looking something like this..

A Tone It Up pineapple protein pancake (and dare I say, I’ve totally mastered the flip!), topped with a drizzle of maple syrup, a couple diced up strawberries, some blueberries, some unsweetened shredded coconut, and a little extra sprinkling of cinnamon. Along side of that, I have the Bombshell Spell, which is a deliciously wonderful way of getting a little shot of apple cider vinegar into your life. These recipes come directly from the Tone It Up Beach Babe plan that you get when you purchase their membership plan, and are a part of the 5 Day Slim Down that I did last week. Since mastering the pancake, I’ve been craving it like no other. I could seriously eat it everyday.. sometimes twice a day!

Snack #1 is 1/2 grapefruit sprinkled with Stevia or Truvia and some coffee with almond milk.

For lunch, I’m loving some teriyaki marinated tofu with homemade pineapple salsa all wrapped in collard greens. It’s a relatively new-to-me idea to use the collard greens as wraps, but it’s wonderful!

My absolute favorite afternoon snack is my new Peanut Butter Cup Protein Shake, and the past few times I’ve made it, I put 1 cup of spinach in. You don’t even taste it and you get that little bit of extra veggie.

For dinner, I mixed it up a bit. This delicious bulgar wheat salad with asian slaw and chicken really hit the spot! I found a recipe awhile back for Asian Quinoa Salad, but when I found myself at the store looking for quinoa that wasn’t there, I grabbed the bulgar wheat and went to town! Other than being a wheat product as compared to a grain, bulgar wheat has many of the same nutritional aspects as quinoa. It’s high in protein, low in calories, and low in fat as well! It also has a little bite to it that I really enjoy. Please excuse the not-so-lovely picture..

And now onto my favorite sensible dessert. I’ve pretty much made it every night for the past couple weeks.

Apple Pie Parfait

1 serving

Ingredients
1 apple – I prefer fuji
1/4 cup fat free vanilla greek yogurt
Cinnamon
Walden’s Sugar-Free, Calorie-Free Chocolate Syrup

Directions
Chop up apple into bite size pieces and toss with a little cinnamon. Put the apple in a glass and top with half of the yogurt, a little sprinkle of cinnamon, and a drizzle of the chocolate syrup. Repeat for the other half of the apple and yogurt, and devour!

If you really want to get fancy, throw some dark chocolate chips in there or even a little unsweetened shredded coconut.

I really love this as an after workout dessert because the yogurt gives me a little bit of protein, but it’s not too heavy before bed.

Speak Up!

What’s your favorite sensible dessert?