I loaded this version with mushrooms, broccoli, edamame and greens. This is not your typical take-out.
The infinebalance Food Blog recipes
Nut-Free Granola Bars for the Lunch Box #vegan
The nice thing about making granola bars yourself is you decide what goes in them and so, what your kids eat. In this version, dates, chocolate chips, sunflower and hemp seeds flavoured with orange and cinnamon.
Fava Bean Hummus (Bissara)
A rich and creamy spread made from savoury fava beans flavoured with olive oil, lemon and cumin. Using frozen fava beans this app is easy and quick to make. Served with pitas or crispy flat bread.
Eating Green for St. Patrick's Day: Six Green Salads
Okay... I know. Salad is not the first thing you think of when it comes to St. Patrick's Day eats. But after a week's vacation, Â where I ate far too much of just about everything, salad is the only thing on my mind. I truly enjoy salad. And since we are celebrating green things, and...
Oven Roasted Potato Fries with Dijon Dipping Sauce
Easy potato fries, baked-not-fried, with this yummy vegan dijon dipping sauce to elevate your burger game. We have veggies burgers (store-bought or home-made) with fries almost once per week. Whether it's a busy weeknight or dinner on a Saturday afternoon after a late hockey practice some variation of a sandwich on a bun is in...
Millet and Oat Muffins
I really hate to add to your To-Do list for the weekend, but a batch of these muffins would be a good idea. They stash nicely in the freezer and given that they are fairly low in sugar they make a healthy addition for the kids lunch box. Or better yet, with a piece of fruit and slathered with nut butter they are a quick and compact little breakfast.
Cauliflower Mac & Cheese
So when I want to restore their belief that I am best cook in the world, I often turned to pasta in cheese sauce. I go for the sure thing. Sometimes you just need the kids to say "Mommy this was so good."
Lentil and Sweet Onion Pitas
I'm a decidedly lazy photographer... or more appropriately lazy wanna-be-photographer. I don't like planning ahead. I don't like using props. Really, all I want is to take a picture of my food just before I eat it, fuss with it as little as possible and have it turn out beautiful. Is that too much to ask? I think not.
Blackberry Scones with Walnuts
The trick to tender and flaky scones, even when they are vegan, is to not over mix the dough. Mix the dry ingredients together then add the honey (or your favourite liquid sweetener) and coconut oil. Mix well with your fingers to get a fine crumb. Yes, this is like making pastry.
Blueberry Citrus Loaf {vegan}
This Blueberry Citrus loaf is a new addition to the must.make.all.the.time list. And while, yes there is a bit of sugar, I've seen worse. The bread gets a good amount of sweetness (and flavour) from the orange juice, blueberries and dried cranberries. It is low in fat, no saturated fat, completely vegan and uses whole wheat flour. I say this is a win-win.
Cinnamon Apple Whole Oats
There is something satisfying about cooking a whole grain from scratch. Whole oat groats take an incredibly long time to cook and require some planning ahead. Unlike rolled oats - that you can just add water and microwave for a couple of minutes, whole oat groats feel like a significant undertaking. I don't do this very often.
Feta Mushroom Pasta with Spinach
A quick 30-minute meal with a few simple ingredients, Feta Mushroom Pasta is a no-fuss weeknight meal. Greens, mushrooms, and a little bit of feta, your family will love this quick and easy meal. This pasta dish was on our meal plan this past week. It was truly a 30-minute meal and fit perfectly into...
Easy Dulce De Leche Fudge
A quick and easy fudge recipe. Dulce De Leche condensed milk makes for a rich, caramel and dark chocolate fudget. Pecans are a must.
Chocolate Chip Flax Cookies
Looking for a cookie you can feel good about sending in your kids lunch? A cookie that the kids will be happy to eat even?
This might be it. They are made with whole wheat flour, a bunch of flax seeds (a full cup in total) and oats. I added chocolate chips, because a cookie isn't a cookie without chocolate chips. In my opinion, anyway.
Raw Brussels Sprout Salad with parm and walnuts
Be generous with this salad. Be generous with the olive oil, the Parmesan and the walnuts. Be generous because it really is one of those occasions where more is better.
Curry Spiced Toasted Chickpeas
Toasted chickpeas are crunchy like croutons, but are far less oil drenched and provide a bit of protein too. Plus they are kinda fun to eat out of hand. Just grab a handful and munch. Snack food. Like nuts.
Salad Starter: How I prep greens so we eat healthy all week long
A salad starter gets rid of so many excuses. There are so many health benefits to eating raw foods, I make an effort to eat a raw salad everyday. Sure, prepping in advance may diminish some of those vitamins and enzymes -- but I figure eating some greens that were washed and cut 3 days ago is lightyears ahead of not eating one at all. Those veggies don't do me any good in the garbage can - which where they would eventually end up if I did not prep them in advance.
Miso Glazed Brussels Sprouts
This is a recipe for Miso Glazed Brussels Sprouts, but really the glaze can be used on any vegetable you like to throw into the oven and roast. Try it on carrots, broccoli or sweet potatoes...
Skillet Eggs with Spinach and Tomatoes
I saw this on TV once. How long ago I saw this on TV is probably unimportant since I haven't watched someone cook on television since my son was born. He's almost 7 now, and I'm fairly certain that TV cooking has changed since then. There was a time when I could learn things from cooking shows, but now...
Sweet Potato and Lentil Soup for the Crockpot
So at the very last-minute, as I'm running out the door before the slue of games scheduled for the day, I threw this soup in the slow cooker. I call this a "what do I have on hand?" soup. Sometimes those are the best.
Multi-grain pumpkin muffins with brown sugar streusel topping
When someone says bake something I just naturally go for muffins. And given that it's that time of year where I find myself overstocked with pumpkin puree, these are pumpkin muffins. Vegan. Whole-grain. And I added a little extra brown sugar streusel on top for fun.
Smashed Potato & Broccoli Soup
Our Nanny is leaving soon.
Lets read that one more time to feel the full gravity of the situation.
Arugula and Edamame Salad with Beets and Dates
This salad. This salad was a total surprise. Edamame, seeds, tomatoes, sweet vinaigrette and dried fruit. Dates! Yes, dates. I've never considered adding dates to a salad and I tell you, I have been adding them ever since.
Mashed Rutabaga with Nutmeg and Chives
I'm feeling retro today.
What sounds more old-fashioned than "Rutabaga"?
Greek Salad Pita Pizza
The weekends just are not long enough and there is never enough coffee... but always too much coffee.
You know that feeling of needing and wanting more coffee but feeling like if you had just one more sip you might self-combust? No? Maybe it's just me.
This is how my Sunday went.
Apple Cinnamon Hot Breakfast Cereal
Admittedly, I used a hot cereal mix. But it was Bob's Red Mill and so I feel good about that. This is a pre-sweetened mix so I only added extra sugar on top when serving as it has plenty of flavour on it's own.
Letting the cereal soak overnight in a portion of the liquid allows it to soften and shortens the cooking time in the morning. Which means you can totally do this during the week.
Chili Pepper Salt
So here is the thing. I have chilli peppers, lots of chilli peppers. Which seems incredible considering I bought 2 tiny little plants at the beginning of this summer and stuck them in a pot. And despite the weather - which was ironically a bit cold for summer - I have an abundance of chillies. I cooked with some, but I still have a bunch on the plants and I just hate watching them go to waste. Frost is coming.
Healthy and Creamy Carrot and Sweet Pepper Soup
A light all veggie soup. I'm normally not a fan of dill, but in this soup it really works and adds a nice freshness. I used super sweet mini peppers for this soup. Stick with yellow or orange peppers to complement the colour of the carrots in the final dish. The honey helps bring out the sweetness of the vegetables, only a touch is needed and I don't suggest you skip it. I used water for the base of this soup. Just plain water lets the veggies shine through.
Sweet Potato Lasagna with Portabella Mushrooms
A hearty vegetarian lasagna stuffed full of sweet potatoes and portobellos mushrooms. The answer to your next family get together or pot-luck.
Whole Wheat Couscous with Roasted Pumpkin
I often forget how easy couscous is to cook. It is literally ready in minutes. Which makes it easy to mix with roasted veggies at the last minute and turn them into something really special.
Vanilla Mint Smoothie with #VegaOneStart
So last week I ran my second half marathon. Yeah - really. Â I'm impressed too. Keeping up with my training plan was much harder than I had anticipated. I did better when I was training in the early spring. I like running in cooler weather and my work schedule is less demanding at that...
Lemon Flaxseed Bread
I love this bread. Love. Love. This is one of those recipes I have make over and over and I'm tickled about it each and every time.
Simple Tofu Scramble with Carrots
This simple tofu scramble with carrots might be the easiest vegan dinner recipe ever. Always a favourite dinner in our house, this recipe's easy, simple flavours, is loved by kids. Its salty and savoury and perfect over a bed of rice. I love the short ingredient list and that it is full of healthy plant-based...
Vegan Chocolate Banana Pudding
Taking photos of pudding is hard. Not that I'm an ace - food photographer or anything, but I think generally my pics are ok-ish. Not good enough to win contests but decent enough to not feel embarrassed showing them to the world here on the blog. Pudding is a challenge. I had no idea. I...
Vegan Zucchini Carrot Bread
This vegan zucchini carrot bread is a perfect make-ahead loaf for packing in the kid's lunches. It's packed full of veggies and vegan. Freezes well too. Made with whole grain flour. At the side of the house I remember that my mom grew these ginormous zucchini every summer. She said they liked it there because...
Apricot and Feta Flat Breads
A simple later summer meal of flatbreads topped with feta, fresh apricots and red chilies. For when sharing with a glass of wine when the sun starts setting a bit earlier... Apricot and Feta flatbreads.
Chocolate Chip Hazelnut Cookies
These are my favourite chocolate chip cookies. Sublime and sophisticated, if a chocolate chip cookie can be sophisticated. Chocolate Chip Cookies with Hazelnuts. Get your fancy pants on. How old were you when you baked your first batch of cookies? My mom always baked and I remember helping from a young age. But I don't...
Chocolate Peanut Butter Smoothie
A creamy vegan smoothie full of protein. Using vegan protein powder from North Coast Naturals.
Breakfast Cookies with North Coast Naturals
I like make-ahead breakfasts. These cookies are for breakfast. You say "A Cookie for breakfast?" Yes, a cookie for breakfast. These hearty breakfast cookies full of good foods that fill you up and keep you happy until lunch time. North Coast Naturals recently sent me a boat load of products to try. We've been...
Decadent Mocha Brownies
Rich dark chocolate brownies with a healthy dose of coffee. The most decandant mocha brownies. Coffee is important to me on weekend mornings. Me, my computer and my coffee. Coffee is a touchy subject. People are funny about their coffee. I'm no exception. We all like it a specific way. I'm a bit of a...
Quinoa and Blueberry Salad with Pistachios
A fresh summer salad featuring quinoa, blueberries, pistachios tossed in a honeyed orange and ginger dressing. A bowl of summer. A bowl of awesome.
Kale Salad, a how-to
I don't really have a recipe for you today. But I have a salad. Kale salads are pretty awesome nutritionally, but even more awesome is their shelf-life. A kale salad can be made ahead and will last a day or two if you don't go overboard with the dressing. Â Prefect for toting along for lunch....