Meatless Monday: Orange-Balsamic Roasted Beets and Carrots over Quinoa and Spinach

The storm's-a-comin' as I write this: the winds outside are picking up and the rain is just starting to come down. We are all ready with a stocked kitchen, extra filtered water, and plenty of candles at hand. We don't know just how bad Sandy's going to be, but we will be cozy :)

I was craving fresh vegetables after 3 days in a row of eating a less than stellar intake. Turkey loaf with Rice-a-Roni one night, carnival fare at the pumpkin patch for lunch on Saturday, then lasagna with tiramisu for dessert- I needed vegetarian pronto! And beets were on my mind...I picked up a bunch at my last trip to the supermarket, and roasted them along with some carrots in a sweet and slightly sour marinade...

Orange-Balsamic Roasted Beets and Carrots
(serves 2-4)

Ingredients:

3-4 beets
4-6 carrots
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup orange juice
1 tsp orange zest + extra
Salt and pepper to taste (optional)

Set oven to broil. Slice off tops and bottoms of beets, then peel with a peeler. Wrap in tin foil, and place on baking sheet, then into oven like in picture below. Broil for 45 minutes-1 hour, or until they are easily pierce-able by a fork.

Meanwhile, trim and peel carrots then cut into thirds and quarters, or however you'd like. Reserve them for the last 20 minutes of roasting; at the appropriate time, arrange them on tray beside beets.

Once ready, remove beets and carrots from oven and allow to cool. While they're cooling, heat balsamic vinegar and orange juice over low heat in small saucepan. Heat for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture thickens slightly. Slice beets up like an orange into sections, or however you prefer. Toss veggies in bowl and some salt and pepper to taste if desired.

We ate this served over quinoa and fresh baby spinach, along with some orange slices and extra orange juice squirted right onto it all. It was delicious and refreshing, just what I was craving. Paul and Lily enjoyed it as well. This is a great way to introduce these kinds of healthy foods to your family. The veggies are extra sweet with this marinade, and it all mixes well with the spinach and quinoa. I cooked 1 cup of quinoa according to the package, along with a tsp of olive oil. 

she likes her beets!

Balsamic vinegar is my most often-used salad dressing. I like to mix it with a little olive oil, and salt and pepper. Did you know this low-fat, low-cal condiment also contains some health benefits? It is high in antioxidants, aids the digestive system in breaking down proteins, and also helps to regulate blood sugar, making it especially beneficial for those with diabetes.

If you have little ones under a year old, serve some of the carrots and beets mashed up plain, or with a little orange juice if desired. This is truly a meal the entire family can enjoy, whether you partake in Meatless Mondays or not.   

Now it's your turn to share your Meatless Monday dish below! No rules, other than please only link-up meat-free recipes. No other un-related links or I will remove them. Sorry to sound so harsh, but let's keep it true to what it is, ok? Link up as much as you want, and feel free to spread the word with the button below. Thanks, and have a great week! 

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Sweet Saturday #20: Quinoa Smoothie

I got this idea for a protein-packed, super thick smoothie from the aptly-named, Green Thickies blog. I had heard about it being possible to make a smoothie using cooked quinoa, but after Katherine Natalia linked up her version onto Meatless Monday earlier this week, I decided it was high time I tried it!

I happened to have some recently purchased quinoa in my cupboard, along with other things that could easily be used to make a good-tasting and super healthy smoothie. No green stuff left (I had just made a big batch of kale pesto!), so this was all fruit, protein and omegas! The quinoa gave it a slightly nutty taste, but other than that, it tasted just fine!

Banana-Mango Quinoa Smoothie

1 cup cooked quinoa
1 banana
1 mango
1 cup coconut-almond milk, or milk or your choice
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp shelled hemp seeds
Ice cubes (optional)

Cook the quinoa ahead of time according to package instructions; it is just like cooking rice. Toss all ingredients into blender and hit "Blend" or "Puree", depending on how smooth you want it. Pureeing will make it less "chunky", as the quinoa will create some minor lumps in the smoothie. I kind of liked that! Serve with ice is desired.

The smoothie came out so thick that the ice cubes rested right on top of it! I thought this helped to make it easier to drink, but if you like it extra thick, then this is the recipe for you! You can even blend the ice cubes right into it.

Other ingredients you can add:

• vanilla extract
• ground flax seed (this will give it an extra nutty taste)
• soaked raw almonds and/or cashews
• peanut butter (or other nut butter)
• pineapple
• peach
• melon
• spinach
• just about anything that goes well in a smoothie!

Quinoa is considered a super food, and contains such a high amount of protein, it is called a "complete protein" since it contains all the amino acids needed to meet our nutritional needs. It is also high in other important nutrients, such as iron, calcium, copper, and manganese, to name a few. It is gluten-free and incredibly versatile to cook with, making it a great addition to soups, salads, breads, and even cookies!

This is a great smoothie for the whole family, perfect for enjoying with breakfast. It can easily replace your coffee with the amount of healthy carbs it contains to jump-start your day. Simply add whatever fruit you and your family enjoy most to make it work for you.

OK- now it's time for the hop! No guest-hostess today- sorry! I just didn't have time to organize that aspect this week. Just follow these simple rules:

1. Link up something sweet to really WOW us all- your blog, Etsy store, Pinterest, Facebook, whatever you want! 

2. Link-up as much as you want and please follow me if you are not already. Leave me a comment if you are a new follower so I can follow you back!

3. Hop around and say hi. 

4. Share my button to get more people to join us (not required, but it would be nice!)

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Thanks so much for linking up, I really do love Fridays even more because of this :)

Meatless Monday: Hearty Lentils

Yet another busy, fun-filled weekend has passed, and I still have a lot to do to "recuperate" from it, so this will be a quick post. 


Today's Meatless Monday recipe derived from me just using what I had readily available. I had lentils, olive oil and garlic in the pantry, and onion, carrot, and spinach in the fridge, plus some long grain rice. Here's what I came up with:

Hearty Lentils
(serves 6-8)


Ingredients:


1 cup lentils
4 carrots, chopped
1 onion, diced,
4 cloves garlic, diced
1 cup baby spinach, rinsed
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp dried parsley (you can use fresh)
2 cups rice


Cook the rice according to package and set aside. While it's cooking, sauté onion and garlic in olive oil over medium-low heat in pot for about 3 minutes or until fragrant. Add salt, pepper and parsley and stir together with the onion and garlic, then add the lentils. Cover the lentils with water that is about 1 inch over them, then bring to a boil. Add more water as needed. Once the lentils are about halfway cooked (10-15 minutes), add the carrot. Bring to a boil again, then cover and cook over a high simmer until water is absorbed; add more water as needed. 

Once carrot and lentils are soft yet firm, remove from heat and stir in spinach until wilted. Alternatively, you can add the spinach when the lentils are served so it's still very fresh. Add more seasoning if desired, then serve over rice, or other grain such as quinoa. Quinoa is what I had really wanted to eat with this, but I was fresh out and too lazy to go the store! If you have fresh cilantro, sprinkle that on top. Celery and/or zucchini would make nice additions to this dish as well.


This is an easy, semi-quick meal to make that even meat-eaters will enjoy. Every ingredient is healthy and packed with vitamins and nutrients for your growing child. Most kids like lentils, but if you have a kid who doesn't, make this using only veggies or a different bean they do like. Babies 9 months and up can start eating lentils as long as it is ok by your pediatrician. 


Now, just for fun, I made this little cartoon strip of Lily discovering an ant crawling up her leg. Who says I don't have time for anything fun these days?