I modified this Eating Well recipe for Quinoa, Mango and Black Bean Salad using just the main ingredients. I love fruit in my savory salads and mango is such a sweet summer fruit…even if I did use the frozen version (cheaper and already cut!).

Ingredients:

2 cup tri-colored quinoa, prepped in the rice cooker with 4c water

1 bag frozen, pre-cut mango

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 can black beans, rinsed

a few dashes of ground ginger powder

3 Tbsp sesame oil

3 Tbsp rice wine vinegar

1/2 cup orange juice

Salt to taste

Once the quinoa was cooked and cooled, I just tossed in all the rest of the ingredients and mixed to combine. I let the flavors meld all day, and enjoyed it cold for dinner. This is a great grain salad to bring to a summer BBQ!

Apparently for the past several weeks, none of my blog subscribers have been receiving my posts. Whoops! We seem to have the glitch fixed, but now it’s time to bring you up to speed! If you haven’t been receiving my posts, than you missed the biggest, best post of all:

The announcement that we had a baby!!!

Since then, I’ve been slowly getting back into a groove in the kitchen, and managed to make a few blog-worthy things like Buffalo Chickpea Cauliflower Tacos, this Coconut Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Cake and this Easy Crustless Quiche with mushrooms and asparagus.

If you have any insanely easy I-can-make-this-with-one-hand-while-juggling-a-squirmy-newborn recipe ideas, send ‘em my way! I look forward to sharing more with you soon.

I can’t really take credit for making this quiche since my mom did all the legwork. I called out preparation instructions to her while I was feeding baby Funk and she got to work in the kitchen so we could eat a real meal that night. Even though she did all the work, I know it was super simple to throw together and was delicious both nights we had it (even reheated).

Ingredients:

6 eggs

1/2 to a cup of milk

Bunch of asparagus, cut into 1″ pieces

1/2 container of sliced mushrooms

1 cup shredded soy cheese

Salt to taste

A few dashes of Mrs. Dash spice blend

Whisk eggs, milk, salt and Mrs. Dash in a large bowl.

Steam asparagus until they’re tender. We did this quickly in the microwave using a splash of water and microwave safe bowl.

Add asparagus, cheese and mushrooms to the eggs. Pour into lightly greased pie plate and bake for 40 minutes on 350. Let cool slightly before cutting.

I hate to admit this, but since having a baby, breakfast has become nonexistent. I’m still eating, but by the time I feed/diaper/change Zachary, then do it all over again, it’s practically noon by the time I get a chance to sit down and my breakfast has become lunch! I needed to change this habit – stat. I recreated this favorite winter breakfast I made with some ingredients I had on hand and absolutely love the result. And as an added bonus, oats are supposedly great for breastfeeding moms!

Ingredients:

3 cups oats

1 can pumpkin

1 can coconut milk

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 tsp baking powder

Lots of cinnamon

2 eggs

a dash of salt

1/2 cup shredded coconut

1/4 cup coconut oil

2 bananas, sliced

Place all ingredients into the crockpot base except the banana slices and mix well to combine. Place banana slices on top, and cook in your slow cooker for 4 hours on low.

I dug into this for an afternoon snack as soon as it was done – I couldn’t wait! It’s light and fluffy and I love the tropical coconut flavor. The banana slices make it taste like you’re eating banana bread for breakfast. I’m excited I have breakfast for the next week or so already ready for me – I’ll just pop it in the microwave for a minute and it’s ready to eat.

Having a baby has totally turned life upside-down (in the most amazing, best way possible) but one thing that makes me feel sane, grounded, and like myself is cooking. Since we were in the hospital for quite a while before our little one was even born, it’s been quite a while before I’ve created anything in the kitchen. And it was time. Elizabeth, knowing my need for a quick slow cooker meal, sent over this recipe for Buffalo Chickpea Soft Tacos. The only thing that required any amount of work was chopping an onion and opening the cans of chickpeas. I modified the recipe to make it even simpler, and larger so we could get a couple meals out of it.

Ingredients:

2 cans chickpeas, drained

1 bag cauliflower florets

1 onion, diced

1/2 cup Frank’s Hot Sauce, Buffalo style

2 Tbsp Earth Balance

2 Tbsp sesame oil

2 Tbsp minced garlic (I used the pre-minced jarred garlic)

Salt to taste

Crunchy tacos

Shredded soy cheese

Place chickpeas, cauliflower, onion, hot sauce, Earth Balance, sesame oil, garlic and salt in the slow cooker on low for three hours, then on high for the last hour. Once this is cooked, scoop chickpea cauliflower mixture in crunchy taco shells.

We like to sprinkle cheese in the bottom of the taco shell and microwave it until the cheese melts. This helps prevent the taco from crumbling when you bite into it, and then you get some cheesy-ness in every bite! Then add the filling.

This was even better the second day because the flavors had time to meld a little more. I think anything tastes good at this point, since I’m pretty ravenous ’round-the-clock from feeding my 3-week-old, but this super easy recipe is a keeper.

We had a baby!

Funk and I welcomed Zachary David into the world on Tuesday, April 16th at 3:37pm, weighing 7 pounds, 2 ounces and 20.5″ long. He’s our perfect little miracle and by far the best thing we have ever cooked up.

Things will be a little slow on the blog front as I get used to mommhood and enjoy tons of snuggles and smiles with our sweet boy, but I look forward to getting back into the cooking groove soon and sharing it with you. I’m afraid to admit how much my eating habits have changed in the past month and can’t wait to get back into a routine! For now we’re surviving on Trader Joe’s frozen meals (many of which have a dietitian-approved ingredient list, thank goodness), FoMu coconut-based ice cream and vegan take-out meals from Elizabeth, bagels galore, and lots of cold grain salads from my mom. The only thing I’ve cooked in the past three weeks is an egg, so as soon as I make something a little more share-worthy, I’ll be back on the blog again.

Thanks to everyone who has already given us an outpouring of love and support for our family of three.

Love,

Janel

This recipe post doubles as an entry for the Bob’s Red Milla Gluten Free Muesli Recipe Contest. When my pals at Bob’s Red Mill asked if I’d like to enter, I knew I wanted to try making a gluten free snack bar. I work with many clients from students to adults who are following a gluten free diet, and they’re always looking for simple, nutritious, gluten free recipes to make at home, since so many prepared, processed gluten free products can be so expensive, and oftentimes not even that healthy!

I think these bars will be a huge hit with any snack lover, whether or not you follow a gluten free diet:

Ingredients:

3 cups Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Muesli
1 cup crushed gluten free whole grain cereal, like Erewhon Buckwheat & Hemp
1.5 cups creamy peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup Bob’s Red Mill dried tart cherries
1/3 cup Bob’s Red Mill gluten free all purpose flour
3/4 cup honey

I recently had the opportunity to attend A Spoonful of Ginger at the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) in Boston. A Spoonful of Ginger is a glamorous event in one of the most stunning sections of the MFA that brings together some of Boston’s finest chefs for a food tasting to support the Joslin Diabetes Center’s Asian American Diabetes Initiative (AADI). There is a rising number of Asian Americans living with diabetes – I think I read that 1 in 6 Asian Americans in NYC has diabetes!

When I saw that a few of the chefs of the night included Joanne Chang of Flour Bakery, Andy Husbands of Tremont 647, Ming Tsai of Blue Ginger and the new Blue Dragon, and Jasper White from Summer Shack, I knew I was in for a night of amazing eats.

Upon arriving at the event, I immediately saw a trio of gorgeously costumed dancers and music to set the stage for the evening. Then I found two of my favorite fellow RD bloggers Janice and Liz of Meal Makeover Moms before strolling around to grab tastes of some of the most delicious soups, mini tacos, wontons, and desserts. There were many restaurants represented at Ginger, including Myers + Chang, Blue Ginger, Empire, Flour, and Tamarind Bay. I tasted everything from little bite-sized lobster tacos to ginger crème caramel.

Janet Wu, reporter from 7 News, was the mistress of ceremonies, and a highlight of the night was when she introduced Ming Tsai, who is a restaurant owner, television personality and, celebrity chef of fusion cuisine. Funk and I have been a fan of Ming ever since the first time we ate at his Blue Ginger restaurant in Wellesley, MA. We recently tried to get into his new Blue Dragon restaurant but couldn’t manage the 2+ hour wait! He’s a popular guy. Ming was honored for his contributions to the AADI’s mission and the Asian American community and it was sweet to see his wife and two boys there supporting him.

It was encouraging to see so many people supporting the initiative to support AADI and raise awareness in finding new treatments for the diabetes epidemic within the Asian American community. The food and drinks were flowing, the silent auction was bustling, and most importantly, money was raised for an important cause.

Thank you to Regan Communications Group for inviting me to this exciting event – I can now check “wined and dined at the Museum of Fine Arts” off my to-do list!

Sweet potatoes and black beans are a match made in heaven. One of my favorite recipes of all time is this Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili, and over the summer, I became addicted to a basic lunch of a baked sweet potato topped with Trader Joe’s black bean spread. So when I had a hankering for enchiladas, I knew sweet potatoes and black beans would make the perfect filling. I used this recipe from Choosing Raw as my inspiration.

Ingredients:

1 package of 12 small corn tortillas

3 sweet potatoes

1 can drained, rinsed black beans

1 onion, diced

1 tsp cumin

2 tsp chili powder

salt to taste

1 cup soy cheese

1 bottle Trader Joe’s enchilada sauce

grapeseed oil

In a large skillet with grapeseed oil, sauté onions until they begin to brown. Then add in black beans, salt, cumin and chili powder.

Meanwhile cook the sweet potatoes until soft. I did this in the microwave by piercing the potatoes with a fork and wrapping them in water soaked paper towels, then cooking them on high for about 7 minutes. Once the potatoes are cooked, dice and add them to the onions and beans, cooking a few minutes more. Remove bean and potato mixture from the stove and mash with a fork or potato masher until the potatoes are more lumpy than diced.

Scoop about 1/3 cup of the potato mixture into a corn tortilla, roll, and place seam down in a 9×13 glass baking dish. Repeat with all 12 corn tortillas and the remainder of the filling.

Pour a bottle of prepared enchilada sauce over all tortillas, and sprinkle on cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350, covered, then remove the cover for the remaining 15 minutes.

We had my sister-in-law and her fiancé over for dinner on St. Patrick’s day, and even though there wasn’t a single green ingredient in this dish, we all loved it. I especially loved the simplicity of preparing it. I had prepared everything earlier in the day and just needed to pop it in the oven before we sat down to eat. If you’re not a fan of spice, don’t worry, this dish wasn’t really spicy at all, but I think it’d be great with some heat added, so if you agree, try adding in a diced jalapeno or a few shakes of chipotle powder.

Do you assign colors to months? I do. January is white (snow!), February is pink (obviously), April is pastel, and March is green, not just because of St. Patrick’s day, but because SPRING is coming!!! This month’s Recipe ReDux theme is to use any fresh green herb in a nontraditional way. I knew just the recipe! A few years ago at my bridal shower, someone made these unique cookies with cornmeal and sage. Sage is one of my favorite fresh herbs and I couldn’t get enough! I stashed the leftovers in my freezer and would occasionally defrost one or two to enjoy throughout the following months. I got a hold of the recipe and I’m glad this month’s theme gave me the nudge to make these cookies. I had fresh sage in the freezer from my trip to Arizona over a year ago, when I stayed at Nicole’s dad’s place. He grows fresh sage by the bush in the backyard!

The only modification I made was to use dried peaches in place of dried apricots, since that’s what I had on hand and I wasn’t about to go buy a bag of dried apricots for only ¼ cup.

Ingredients:

One stick of soy butter (like Earth Balance) or 8 Tbsp
3/4 cup sugar
One egg
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup chopped apricots – I used dried peaches
2 tbsp chopped fresh sage
1/2 cup polenta (cornmeal)
1/2 tsp salt

Combine the apricots, sage, polenta, and salt. In a separate bowl, beat butter, sugar and egg until creamy. Stir in flour and baking soda. Then add the apricot/sage mixture and combine well. Drop by spoonfuls one inch apart (cookies will spread quite a bit). Bake at 350 until pale golden. Allow to cool for 2 minutes before moving to cooling rack.

The flavor of these cookies is so unique. The sage gives them an earthy flavor and the cornmeal makes them ever-so-slightly taste like cornbread, but not in an overpowering way. But these aren’t savory cookies – the dried fruit and hefty ¾ cup of sugar makes sure of that. I can’t get enough of them dunked into tea.

Looking for more fresh herb inspiration? Check out these other ReDux recipes: