Quinoa Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients

• 4 red bell peppers (any color will do, or a mix)
• 1 cup quinoa
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1 pound fresh asparagus, tough ends trimmed and cut into 1/4 inch pieces
• 1 5-ounce log goat cheese
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 425F.
2. Slice bell peppers in half, remove stem, seeds and membranes. Place pepper halves, cut side down, onto a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast peppers for 15-20 minutes until just starting to char and soften. Remove from oven, flip pepper halves over and set aside.
3. Meanwhile, place quinoa in a dry saucepan over medium heat. Toast quinoa, stirring or shaking pan often, about 8-10 minutes or until just turning a light brown. Add 2 cups water, bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer. Cook quinoa for 10-15 minutes or until all water is absorbed. Fluff with a fork.
4. Mix together garlic, lemon zest and juice, olive oil and black pepper, whisk until combined.
5. Place quinoa, cherry tomatoes and asparagus in a medium-sized bowl. Add dressing and mix thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Fill pepper halves with quinoa mixture. Divide goat cheese into 8 portions and crumble over the top.
7. Place stuffed peppers back in oven for 5 minutes until asparagus is crisp-tender and tomatoes and goat cheese are softened.
8. Can serve immediately or at room temperature.

** I added ground turkey and it was delicious! 

Cinnamon Banana Pancakes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup old-fashioned oats
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 ripe medium bananas, cut into chunks
• 3/4 cup milk (almond milk, skim milk, etc)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (or more if you prefer)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

In a blender, add chunks of banana and milk. Puree for 30 seconds or until throughly blended and smooth. Next add oats, baking powder, and salt into the blender; blend again until batter is well-combined; about 1 minute. Set aside to thicken up. After a few minutes check the consistency of the pancake batter; it should be somewhat thick. If it appears too thick, add a tablespoon or two of milk and blend again.

Lightly coat a large nonstick skillet or griddle with vegan cooking spray or olive oil and heat over medium. Drop batter by 1/4 cupfuls onto skillet and gently spread out a bit with a spoon. Cook until bubbles appear on top, about 1-2 minutes. Gently flip cakes and cook until golden brown on underside, 1-2 minutes. Wipe skillet clean and repeat with more oil or cooking spray. Top with peanut butter, maple syrup, fruit, or chocolate chips.

Ranch Roasted Chickpeas

so easy and delicious! 

INGREDIENTS

• 2 (15 ounce) cans chick peas, drained, rinsed, and patted dry
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 package ranch seasoning

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 425
2. After you make sure your chick peas are very dry place them in a large plastic bag with olive oil and seasoning toss to coat.
3. Spread peas out on a large foil lined baking sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray.
4. Bake 25 minutes, turning once, then 20 minutes more.
5. **Though I only actually turn these once, I do open the oven and give them a little shake a few times while cooking. This isn't totally necessary but it helps to keep them uniformly crisp.

All Green Smoothie

1/4 cup water
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1 1/2 cups green grapes
1/4 Barlett pear (I use green apple if I don't have pear)
1/2 avocado (I throw the whole thing in since you can't save it)
1/4 cup chopped fresh broccoli
1/2 cup fresh spinach, lightly packed
1 1/4 cups ice cubes

- place them in Vitamix in that order
- select Frozen Desserts program and press start
- allow machine to finish

if you don't have a Vitamix just blend until it looks good!

This still tastes good if you make it the night before

Sinless cookies

YUM

I baked a few minutes more than it says

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

Mix together and cook at 350 for 14 minutes or so:

1 can pumpkin
2 cups oats (or more for consistency)
1 egg
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup choc chips (or to taste)