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Thought ya’ll would enjoy a post of my most recent experiments! I’ve been able to do a lot of dreaming lately, and a lot of leftovers to be used up in our house! Here are a few of my favorite “latelies…”

“Crunchy Pumpkin Parfait” with crumbled Quaker Oat Squares, raisins, almonds, coconut flakes, and chocolate chips!

“Chickpea Burger Salad” with roasted veggies, sweet potatoes, and kale. Topped with goat cheese and leftover apple and pear skins (from my Apple & Pear Crumble!) and served over quinoa.

“Spiced Chai Latte” with frothed vanilla almond milk from my new Ikea milk frother! Sprinkled with cinnamon and honey.

Apple & Pear Harvest Crumble with juicy raisins and chopped walnuts, served with a scoop of Stonyfield frozen vanilla yogurt 🙂

Last night my mother-in-law and brother-in-law were visiting, so I decided to make something special (note- “college-guy-friendly”) for supper. I made this veggie pizza and revisited one of Ben’s favorites: BBQ Chicken Pizza. They were a hit! I used a bit of a different whole wheat crust recipe this time around, which turned out pretty well. You can find the recipe here!

Happy Mother’s Day!

 

Perfect on its own or with my BBQ Pulled Pork! Ben and I can’t stand mayo-based salads, so this recipe is a crunchy, tangy, slightly sweet alternative to traditional coleslaw. Make ahead of time and stick it in the fridge to allow the juices to meld together. It makes a big batch, and the leftovers are even better the next day!

Ingredients:

1 bag coleslaw mix (cabbage, carrots, etc.)

1 1/2 cups frozen corn, thawed

1/4 cup slivered almonds

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

2 tsp dijon mustard

1 tbsp honey

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp minced garlic

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine coleslaw mix and corn. In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, mustard, honey, olive oil, and garlic until well combined. Toss with salad, mixing well. Chill until ready to serve. Top with slivered almonds before serving.

Last night I was craving something hearty, healthy, and “different.” I thought back to our honeymoon in the San Juan Islands, where we’d gone out to a waterfront restaurant called Cask and Schooner. After about a full week of eating heavy meals at the Bed & Breakfast we were staying at, going on the Seattle Gourmet Food Tour, and having chocolate and wine ‘spontaneously’ delivered to our hotel room, I went for the lightest looking thing on the menu. I chose the “Chic Pea & Kale Saute” (how does it get any lighter than that, right?) and it was to die for. Okay, okay, I know I’m super lame for not ordering something like salmon (so fresh it’d practically be swimming on my plate) while vacationing in the Holylandofseafood, but hey- at least I ended up not going to bed feeling like a whale myself that night. I even got to have leftovers the next day, which were just as good as the original!

Ever since then, I’ve been trying to replicate their recipe. While I don’t think I’ve done the real deal complete justice, I’ve come pretty close. Serve over a fluffy bed of rice or pita, with a dollop of plain yogurt! This time I also added in some tomato sauce and chicken sausage to make it a bit more filling (I’m training for a half marathon, alright already?).

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, thinly sliced

2 whole carrots, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/8 tsp red pepper flakes (or to taste, depending on how spicy you like it!)

1 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar

1/2 cup water

2 cans chickpeas (or “garbanzo beans” if you want to go all fancy-schmancy on me)

12 oz frozen spinach

2 links chicken sausage, fully cooked

1 can (15 oz.) tomato sauce

1 tomato, diced

Lemon juice, to taste

Brown rice, cooked

Smoked paprika, to taste

Parmesan cheese, to taste

Plain yogurt, to taste

Directions:

Heat a large skillet on medium-high. Swirl in oil and add onions, garlic, and carrots. Cook until onions are caramelized and tender- about 3-5 minutes (carrots will continue to cook). Add cumin, coriander, garlic powder, and red pepper and stir continuously for 1 minute.

Add chopped chicken sausage and cook until browned. Reduce heat to medium and pour in red wine vinegar and water to deglaze pan. Make sure to scrape up all those delicious bits from the bottom of the pan!

Add spinach and tomatoes to skillet and cook until heated through. Add chickpeas and tomato sauce. Stir to combine. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes, or until carrots are tender to your liking. Meanwhile, cook rice (I used 10 minute boil-in-bag rice for perfect timing!).

Just before serving, add lemon juice to skillet. I used a good 2 tablespoons.

Portion each bowl with 1 cup rice. Spoon espinacas over rice and top with parmesan, paprika, and yogurt.

 

 

INGREDIENTS:

2 packages refrigerated Crescent rolls

1 can pineapple tidbits in pineapple juice, drained

1 package diced, cooked ham

3 green onions, chopped

4 eggs, beaten

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 1/2 cups lowfat milk (half and half, if you’re feeling more indulgent)

salt and pepper, to taste

cooking spray

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 12 muffin tin and separate Crescent rolls. Place one roll in each muffin cup, pressing down firmly and up onto the sides. In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients. Fill each muffin cup about 3/4 of the way full.

Bake until eggs are set and cheese and crust are golden-brown, about 18 minutes. Cool before scooping out of muffin tin.

Welcome to my new site! Claire Tastes has officially moved to its own page at http://www.clairetastes.com! I hope you enjoy 🙂