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Healthy Antioxidant Salad Recipe

Vegetarian Antioxidant Salad Salata Healthy Low Calories

It definitely feels like spring here in Houston, and I am so excited to start adding our family favorite Summer Salad back into the dinner rotation. I will definitely miss the Brussels sprouts and root vegetables of fall harvest salads, but having colorful fruit, feta and light dressings on my greens makes me ever happier.

I’m including the ingredients that we use to make our favorite salad below. All of these nutritious items are packed with antioxidants, which are molecules used by your body to fight against disease causing radicals. Studies show that people who eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables have fewer diseases, so they’re on our plates at both lunch and dinner (except Isla’s, because she is currently a carbarian).

I will either buy these ingredients when I’m at the grocery store, or get this salad (typically to-go) from Salata, because it is just so easy. Per the Salata portions, the salad has 345 calories (including feta, excluding a dressing) – and it’s huge! 

6 Helpful Resources for Healthy Eating

healthyI’ve been a vegetarian since 6th grade, and I’ve been cooking my own meals for many of the last 16 years. I would have to use the word ‘cook’ very loosely, as I started off my veggie years by microwaving a couple of black bean burgers for dinner. Over time, I started to look for more exciting recipes to ‘change it up,’ as there are so many meals you can eat, you just need a little inspiration from time to time. I have a number of amazing recipe and cookbooks (some shared below), and have used the internet to find a number of recipes that we use regularly, including The Forest Feast and Oh She Glows.

Not only do I peruse food blogs for main courses, but I also use a number of sites to find healthy vegan desserts. As I’ve mentioned before, my friend Mara of Hook, Thread and Tinker bought me Rawsome Vegan Baking for Christmas, and I’ve tried almost 70% of the recipes so far. It is amazing. McKenzie recently bought me Deliciously Ella‘s new cookbook, which I’m so excited to dig into. Her website is amazing, and I’ve already tried and fallen in love with her Banana, Pumpkin Seed and Almond Granola Bars.

Today I’m sharing my favorite 6 websites for healthy recipes: The Forest Feast, Naturally Ella, Minimal Baker, Oh She Glows, Deliciously Ella and This Rawsome Vegan Life. Do you have other sites that you reference for recipes? Please share!

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The Forest Feast: My good friend, Brittany, recently bought me The Forest Feast cookbook for my birthday, and after oogling over it for ages, I’m so excited to own a copy. I love Erin’s website, filled with delicious recipes with categories like food, drinks, entertaining and traveling. Check out the website and buy a copy of the book!

Favorite recipe: Stuffed Sweet Peppers

Happy Thanksgiving!

thanksgivingphotosHappy Thanksgiving, y’all. It is one of my favorite days of the year. Sasha and I have done a ‘Tofurky Trot’ on Thanksgiving morning for the past two years (in lieu of the more popular and very busy Turkey Trot). We go to Memorial Park and run the trails there with Belle, and this year, Isla. We’re excited to spread this tradition to our newest family member who will one day run with us!  We will head to my parents house around 11am, where we’ll eat with my family, plus Sasha’s sister and her boyfriend. There will be lots of food and tons of games.

Healthy Vegan Banana Nut Bread

I’ve been playing around with vegan recipes for ages now, trying to bake healthy snacks that actually taste good. I’ve attempted to create a healthy version of Sasha’s favorite dessert – banana nut bread. After many failed tries, I baked a delicious loaf that is vegan, gluten-free and refined sugar-free. And yes, it tastes amazing! I have made it successfully three times now – twice with a loaf pan and once with a muffin tray. Sasha and I both agreed that the muffins were the most moist, but both are good.

DSC_0501I highly recommend this banana nut bread if you’re tagged for bringing a dessert to a party or even if you’re hosting one yourself. This dish works for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Sasha loves to top it with his favorite jam – Bonne Maman Raspberry Preserves, and I love it plain.

Sweet Summery Guacamole Recipe

I am an avocado fanatic – I could eat them all day long, so naturally, I love guacamole. The local grocery store in Durango recently had a sale on avocados – 10 for $10, which is a steal. We bought 10 and then realized they would go bad before we managed to eat them all, as we’ve been adventuring to different restaurants for dinner in the evening. I decided to make my signature guacamole dish, which is sweet and salty, given that I use Robert’s Reserve Roasted Red Pepper and Onion Dip and sea salt. This dip is very summery, given it’s slight sweetness. Depending on whom I am making the guacamole for, I’ll add cilantro to the top or jalapeños – enjoy with Stacy’s pita chips (Sasha’s favorite), or celery and carrots if you’re being healthy like I am right now!

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons of Robert’s Reserve Roasted Red Pepper and Onion Dip
  • 3 ripe avocados
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 teaspoon of sea salt
  • 1/8 cup of red onions
  • 1 teaspoon of lemon juice
  • 1 jalapeño pepper (optional garnish)
  • Handful of chopped cilantro (optional garnish)

Steps

  1. Finely chop 2 garlic cloves and 1/8 cup of red onions and add to mixing bowl
  2. Add 2 tablesppons of the roasted pepper and onion dip (in most grocery stores in a stand alone section near the deli)
  3. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice to the bowl and mix
  4. Add 1 teaspoon of sea salt to the bowl – keep out in case you want to add more later
  5. Pit and add three avocados to the bowl – ideal to use a mortar and pestle (I love this Le Creuset one!)
  6. Mix well and add additional salt if desired

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