Barbecue "Chicken" Salad

Use your fresh produce to make this family favorite!

It's a copy-cat of a salad that Applebee's used to serve!

There is my original recipe, with animal-free and sugar-free options!

Here is what you'll need!

Barbecue "Chicken" Salad

Or use meatless chicken pieces (Beyond Chicken is great!)

2 small heads leaf lettuce, such as Romaine, chopped

2 cucumbers, sliced, quartered

2 avocados, chopped

3-4 stalks green onion, sliced

2-3 c frozen corn

1 can black beans, drained

1/3 c chopped dates

1/3 c vinegar, any kind, we use red wine or rice wine or apple cider, and I bet plain would work too!

1/3 c barbecue sauce, omit for sugar-free dish, or find a nice WFPB recipe like My Whole Food Life Melissa's

Chop and combine ingredients, and enjoy!

We make this salad without chicken or cheese, and it's super yummy!  You could too! WHY bother?  READ HERE!

Dates and vinegar are a healthy alternative to barbecue sauce but it's not the same taste. It DOES give the salad a nice sweet taste, and allows you to avoid refined sugar :)

Read about where we got all but the corn and avocados from HERE! (CSA rules!)

Also try Copy-Cat California Pizza Kitchen Barbecue Pizza!

Awesome Avocado Quesadillas

These quesadillas are AWESOME!

I bought these tortillas a while ago (they seem to stay good forever!) and I couldn't decide how to use them, until I was PLEASANTLY SURPRISED with this combo!

You know AVOCADOS are awesome -- read why here!

Plus, Sprouted Corn Tortillas only have a very few ingredients! A SHORT ingredient list and HIGH fiber are often key to a good product! Sprouted Corn Tortilla Ingredients: organic sprouted whole kernel corn, water, salt, lime.

This is all you need:

Awesome Avocado Quesadillas

2 sprouted corn tortillas
1/2 an avocado

Heat a pan to medium-high heat. I use a non-stick ceramic pan. Place the tortilla on the hot pan.  Add avocado to center of tortilla. Mash second tortilla over avocado. After 1-2 minutes, flip quesadilla. Cut in pieces and enjoy!

These have a very AUTHENTIC Mexican taste! Dip in salsa. Great with a side of fresh tomato or red bell pepper slices! YUM!

BONUS TIP: red bell peppers have much more vitamin C than other colored peppers, such as orange, yellow, and green!

Sprouted corn tortillas, as well as other sprouted grain products, should be cooked this way, or toasted. Whole Foods Market, Trader Joe's, Heinen's, Giant Eagle (some), and even Marc's carry them. Here is a store locator: FIND SOME SPROUTED GRAINS NEAR YOU!

Here are some other ideas for sprouted grain bread snacks:a TOMATO SANDWICH or CINNAMON TOAST!

COMMENTS: Have you ever done a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program/plan? Have a particular farm that you recommend? What is your favorite part about participating?

Chocolate Cherry Torte Mousse

Hope your valentine treated you sweetly!  If you are still wanting MORE, try this!

Lick your lips, super-SAVORY!!

This is the Chocolate Cherry Torte Laraball version of Power Pudding!

Chocolate Cherry Torte Mousse

1 avocado
1/2 c almond milk
1/2 c walnuts
1/2 c dried cherries (unsweetened is ideal!)
1/4 c unsweetened cocoa
1/8 tsp salt

Blend all ingredients in food processor until smooth!

Makes about 4 1/2 c servings of thick and creamy, tart, sweet, and savory mousse!

Best eaten right away!

Plus, check out these super-cute, easy, heartsy crafts we did today!  Happy Valentine's Day!

SHARE IF YOU DARE!  Do you find crafts online?  What is your favorite, easy, craft that you have found?  I like to search in google under "images" to see what I want fast -- often that's all I need!

Power Pudding!

LOVE pudding? Now you can make pudding in minutes, and eat it GUILT-FREE! This idea was inspired by a lovely treat I saw on Dr Oz called Decadent Chocolate Fix! AND by a great recipe one awesome reader tried simply called Avocado Chocolate Pudding :) Thank you, LISA!!

And thank you JESS at www.forgivingmartha.com for the lovely photo above!

When you try POWER PUDDING, you'll be even be healthier after eating the recipe! Read more about the healthiness! Learn about HEALTHY fat and specifically AVOCADOS and NUTS (in the Brownie Bites) and COCOA!

Try any LARABALL flavor! to make this yummy pudding, mousse, custard!

1 avocado
1/2 c non-dairy milk of choice
1 recipe of Laraballs

Simply blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Some like to chill pudding for a few minutes, but after that, it's best eaten right away -- enjoy!

Recipe serves 4 (about 1/2 c each).

SO far, I have made it with CHOCOLATE flavors since the unsweetened cocoa disguises the green color of the avocado.

So far, we've enjoyed these PUDDING FLAVORS: choco-peanut crunch, skinny mint, and chocolate cherry torte!

I'm sure Brownie Bites will also be delicious!

I'm not sure about non-chocolate-ie flavors...if you dare to try one, please SHARE YOUR RESULTS!

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Do you like pudding? Custard? Mousse? Do you like different flavors?

Super-Easy Guacamole for Superbowl Sunday!

Super-Easy Guacamole! 
1 avocado 
1/4 c salsa (or 1/3 can Rotel diced tomato and chilis) 
1 Tbsp lime juice (or 1 packet True Lime and + 1 Tbsp water)

 

For a chunkier salsa, simply combine ingredients in a bowl and mash avocado with a fork to desired consistency and stir in other ingredients!

For super-smooth guacamole, quickly blend all ingredients in a food processor.

Simply follow above ratio for larger quantity!

Costco carries fabulous Kirkland Organic Salsa! They also sometimes sell a yummy black bean salsa by another brand. Salsa is a nutritious addition to any meal! See why HERE!

ALTERNATIVELY, with a bit of work, you can combine 1-2 avocados with a fresh tomato, small onion, garlic clove, a few sprigs of cilantro, and Tbsp lime juice, and some pepper and cumin, to taste! Chop, mince, mix, mash, and enjoy!

You may also want to try Heavenly Hummus!

Or BLISSFUL Baked Bean Dip!

Another great snack is Spicy Lime Popcorn!

For dessert, try a new LARABALL recipe, rolled in coconut!

Thank you for the great idea, Mara!

TELL ME? Are you going to a Superbowl party? Do you have any party tips for not going too wild with your eating at a party?

Easy Sandwich Snack!

Hungry?

Try this quick snack!

Simply chop half an avocado and spread it on your bread of choice -- whole grain!

Add generously good old-fashioned regular mustard!

Great with the roll-up (above is a piece of Multi-Grain Flatout!) heated 10-15 sec for a warm treat,

or by toasting a Whole Wheat Bagel Thin!

Multi-Grain Flatout bread is awesome!  Just 100 calories, 8 g fiber, 9 g protein, omega-3 fats, no saturated or trans fat, a huge variety of grains from bulgar to millet to rye to oats and more!

Enlisting help from the little ones increases the chance they'll eat it all up!

Toddler EATING TIP: Read them a book, reading another page with each eaten bite.

If there is a challenging food on the plate, a page is earned with a bite of that food.

For more Picky Eater Tips click HERE.

You likely know by now that AVOCADO is a HEALTHY FAT

full of FIBER (~10g per whole fruit - yes it's a fruit!) and 

They are among the HIGHEST fruit sources of vitamin E (an ANTIOXIDANT), folate (this is key for potential MOMMYS), potassium (higher levels in diet correlate with lower blood pressure), and magnesium.

Let's discuss MAGNESIUM tonight: it's important for having a healthy blood pressure, overall cardiovascular function, blood sugar control, bone health, and may be helpful with migraines!

Check out this comparison to butter and cheddar (UNhealthy fats).

This chart is from www.avocado.org/nutrition

For MORE avocado BENEFITS click HERE!

One more thing: MUSTARD!

Did you know it is healthy for you?  Did you know why?

Mustard is a RICH source of TURMERIC!

Top 3 Reasons TURMERIC (which contains CURCUMIN) is good for your health!

1. Powerful anti-inflammatory: this can help about every part/system of our bodies -- we're all inflamed :~

(this is a link to a nice summary of the research on Tumeric from University of Maryland Medical Center)

2. Powerful antioxidant ~ helpful in many ways,
including preventing a variety of cancers, aging, and more!

3. Makes platelets less likely to clump and clot (like CHOCOLATE and ASPIRIN!)

Ok, that's it for now, go enjoy a nice avocado and mustard roll-up now!

WHAT DO YOU THINK?  Can you replace other fats with avocado?  What creative ways can you think of to do this?

Trick Yourself into Eating Less!

Try a small handful of nuts or a slice of whole wheat bread or topped with avocado slices before dinner. You’ll stimulate cholecystokinin (CCK) production. CCK tells your brain you are full and slows down stomach emptying, keeping you full longer.

You will feel satisfied while eating less! As a bonus, these healthy fats clean and unclog your arteries by lowering your bad LDL cholesterol and raising your good HDL cholesterol!  Click here to see why else healthy fats are so cool!

WHAT DO YOU THINK?  Do you cook more or less on the weekend?  We go both ways, sometimes the work week gets so busy we don't get to cook as much as we like, other times, we take a break from cooking on the weekend, going for leftovers, out, or frozen options!

Tasty 2 Ingredient Snack!

Try plain avocado slices on Low-Fat Triscuits. This is a very SATISFYING snack. We often have it while waiting on dinner to be ready in the evening.  Try this HEALTHY FAT today!  Ever wonder why and which fat is healthy?

My kids even love the avocado in scoops without any crackers! They'll each eat half an avocado in a few quick minutes. It's awesome brain-food and it's easy and delicious too!

When you're BUYING an avocado, be sure that it's nice and firm. Let it sit out in your kitchen for a few days, so it softens and gives slightly to gentle pressure.

Once it is ripe, you can EAT IT or put it in the REFRIGERATOR until you are ready to eat it -- this is a trick to prevent further ripening. They'll stay perfect for up to two weeks! Avocados are too expensive to be throwing away!

Also, you'll want to prepare it just before you eat it, as it does quickly become oxidized upon being cut. Enjoy!

Here is another snack to enjoy: hummus and cucumber on toast!

COMING SOON! Guacamole pizza, tasty sandwiches, and even a chocolatey dessert!

To get fresh-you updates, you can sign up to the right of this post, below "Popular Posts", to "Follow by Email" and/or you can "like" my Facebook page here. THANKS!

WHAT DO YOU THINK? TELL ME IN A COMMENT: Do you like avocado? What is your favorite way to eat it? If you ever didn't like it, what was it that changed your mind? Did you have it as a kid? I never tried it until I was out of college! Boy, was I missing out!

2-Minute Friday Night Dinner*

Celebrate the end of the week with a quick dinner Friday night! Tonight, while you are surfing Facebook, cook some brown rice. When you prepare the rice ahead of time, dinner can be ready in just a few minutes!*

Prepare dinner in a flash!

Mexican Fiesta Bowl

Combine in a large glass bowl:
1 can black beans, drained (or 1 cup of cooked beans from dried beans ~ directions here)
1 cup salsa or diced tomatoes and chilis
1 avocado, cut in chunks
1 cup frozen corn
2-3 cups cooked brown rice (Click here for benefits!) 
Fresh cilantro chopped and lime juice, for extra awesomeness!

Stir it all up, pop in the microwave for a few minutes, and viola! Dinner is done!

For a slow cooker variation, you can put everything except the avocado in a slow cooker, along with lots of water, in the morning. End up with a lovely "tortilla soup" at the end of the day! Top with avocado slices, adding tastiness and nutrition!

The unlikely event of leftovers!

If you would like to see more recipes and tips, "like" my Facebook page!

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Tell me in a comment below: do you ever "cook" in the microwave? Besides just warming things up, what do you make?