My Foodie Call

Author Archives: myfoodiecall

• 

  Easy swordfish kabobs with a super easy marinade

  Posted at 9:37 pm by myfoodiecall

  Aug 8th

  So I decided to switch things up on the old grill. So glad I did. Check out this easy recipe. It was great. For any of you meat lovers out there, try this. You will not miss the meat. Swordfish is hearty. Try it. Promise.

  • First soak your wooden kabob sticks. This is a necessary step because your  kabobs will burn and become a big old mess on your grill. Not that this has ever happened to me….
  • Cut 1-2 pounds swordfish into 1 1/2″ cubes
  • Chop various vegetables and fruits to about the same size so that they cook evenly. I used mushrooms, peppers, onions, and pineapple chunks that I had left over from an earlier snack.
  • Grab a large ziplock bag. Marinade time!
  • In your large ziplock combine 2-3 tablespoons olive oil, 2-3 tablespoons honey mustard, and the juice of 1-2 lemons (this all depends on how much fish you chose to use).
  • Place all cut fish in your plastic bag for 30 minutes to a few hours. Let those babies soak!

  When you are ready to grill, thread your soaked sticks by alternating fish and veggies. When your kabobs are full, use remaining marinade to coat the vegetables.

  

  Before you grill…

  Perfection.

  Posted in Meatless mealtime | Tagged grill, kabobs, swordfish, vegetables

• Broccoli wraps that actually ROCK.

  Posted at 7:21 pm by myfoodiecall

  Aug 5th

  So these wraps were a whipped brainstorm that actually worked out fantastic. Love when that happens, and trust me, many times my brainstorms are a bust. I was in a rush, had been traveling and had to come up with a lunch idea for 9 people. We had relatives visiting that were vegetarian and this fit the bill nicely because this recipe was light, sans meat, and oh so tasty.

   Whole Wheat Broccoli Slaw Wraps

  • 1 package broccoli slaw
  • 1 green apple, chopped
  • 1/4 cup raisins
  • 1/4 cup gogi berries (or more raisins, don’t panic if you don’t have gogi berries)
  • 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
  • 1/4-1/2 cup Trader Joe’s Red Wine and Olive Oil vinaigrette dressing (or any kind of oil based dressing. No ranch!)
  • hummus (garlic, red pepper, plain jane will work too!)
  • 12 Whole Wheat tortillas

  Lets get started…

  Mix 1 package of broccoli slaw…

  

  Broccoli slaw. Doesn’t have to be Trader Joe’s brand. Walmart sells bags of these. No excuses.

   With one chopped green apple…

  

  For that flavor kick.

  Add your raisins…

  

  For a touch of sweetness.

  Add your gogi berries…

  

  That’s the stuff right here. So good for you. (or skip this and add more raisins)

  Add the sunflower seeds…

  

  For extra crunch.

  Add your oil-based dressing and stir well….

  

  Looks like this. You really could have a party for one and just devour this on your own. Rockin salad.

  Now spread a layer of hummus on your tortilla…

  

  This is roasted red pepper hummus. You pic your fave and run with it.

  Add your filling…

  

  Now you are in business.

  Fold ends in, roll, and tuck your filling as you go. Stack and serve.

  

  Don’t forget to bow after

  What is your favorite “on the fly” lunch?
  Posted in Meatless mealtime | Tagged broccoli slaw, gogi berries, vegetarian, wrap

• Brussel Sprouts even a kid would eat.

  Posted at 9:21 am by myfoodiecall

  Aug 3rd

  

  Brussels sprouts. Either you love them or hate them.

  I am convinced usually people have an aversion to them based on one traumatic taste. Like I did.

  I remember I was in the third grade and went to a friends’ house and they had Brussel sprouts. I had no idea what these were, because I grew up in a frozen-peas-and-carrots kind of family. Nothing ventured in my household. Although to be fair, we didn’t have a lot of money and my parents worked a lot, so I was lucky enough to get those frozen staples. Although that being said, I didn’t have an adventurous palate until later in life.

  Anyhow, back to my friends’ house.  I tried these Brussel sprouts because that’s what you do. You are a guest at someones’ house and you eat what they serve. Well, these mushy, cabbage-heads scarred me for life.  Looking back, I am pretty certain that the mother in this household must have boiled them to death. Bleck. I never looked at a Brussel sprout again.

  Until a few years ago…

  

  Become a believer.

  I was in a NYC eatery with my sister and she ordered brussels sprouts. After re-telling my horror story she convinced me to give them a try again. Being the self-proclaimed veggie queen that I am, I pretty much had to in order to maintain my status.

  Well? Nothing short of amazing.

  All in how it’s cooked. 

  Maple-Glazed Brussels Sprouts
  Ingredients:

  1 pound Brussels sprouts, ends trimmed, and sliced in quarters
  2-3 tablespoons pure maple syrup (depending on how sweet you would like them)
  2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted down (if you are in a colder climate and yours is solid, just pop a little bit in the microwave for a bit and your back in business!)
  salt and pepper, to taste

  Directions:

  Preheat your oven to 375F.  Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with non-stick spray.

  Place sliced Brussels sprouts in a large bowl. Drizzle maple syrup over the sprouts and stir well to coat. Add the melted coconut oil, and mixing well again. Arrange the Brussels into a single layer on your baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for 10 minutes. Stir up the goods and pop back in the oven for another 5 minutes.

  

  Trimmed and quartered.

  

  Drizzle your syrup

  

  Stir in your coconut oil and lay out on your pan. Add salt and pepper. A little. A lot. Your call….

  

  Crunchy outer leaves. Slightly cooked. Sweetened to perfection.

  Give them one more chance. These baby cabbages need lovin.

  Posted in Salads, Soups, and Sides | Tagged Brussel sprouts, kids

• Two Salad Mistakes

  Posted at 1:04 pm by myfoodiecall

  Jul 29th

  The biggest mistake people make when eating a salad is thinking they are going to lose weight.  Disagree? Well, of course there are many healthy salads, frankly I live on salads, but here is the big problem and misconception.

  Dressing. Dressing. Dressing. Sigh.

  Here are a couple of mistakes that truly kill me.

  Mistake number 1: Eating/ordering caesar salads and thinking this is a healthy choice

  Caesar dressing is LOADED with calories and heart clogging saturated fats. Some chicken caesar salads clock in at 600-1000 calories a pop. Yikes! There is not even close to enough nutritional content in the romaine lettuce to off set the damage from this dressing. Don’t even get me started on the croutons… 

  The fix? I say stay away from caesar salads, but if you must:

  • Ask your server to hold the croutons. 
  • Dressing on the side

  Mistake number 2:  Choosing Fat Free Dressings.

  Here is the problem. We need fat in our salads. Many of the vegetables like carrots, with beta-carotene (vitamin A) are considered fat soluble. What does this mean?  Put simply:  In order for our bodies to retain the necessary vitamins from the vegetables that we eat, we must have some fat. All you need is a tiny bit. You could swap out your fat-free italian dressing for light. Or use your fat-free and add a bit of heart healthy avocado slices. Stop being afraid of these healthy fats. Seriously… your heart, blood pressure and skin will love you for it.      

  Best choice?

  • Clear dressings. Anything you can see through. No Ranch (bleck), 1000 Island (bleck), or Blue Cheese (can you say heart attack??)
  • Oil and Vinegar (Don’t under-estimate these flavors!)

  Not ready to give up your favorite dressing?

  Use less of that ranch and add some squeezed lemon or salsa to your salad. Try that for a few months and slowly increase the amount as you get use to the flavors.

  Your heart and waistline will thank you for it.

  Oh and stay away from that Caesar Salad!

                           

  Posted in Small changes | Tagged healthy salads

• Guilt-free Flour-less Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

  Posted at 2:18 pm by myfoodiecall

  Jul 28th

  Here is a great recipe that is healthy and does not require a billion ingredients (always a big deterrent for me) This recipe is pretty much all over Google and Facebook for that matter so I thought I would give it a try.  Turned out great. Healthy and most people have these ingredients right there in the pantry. Assuming you have…

  Garbanzo beans. Or Chick peas. Why are there two names? Always wondered that. Anyhow garbanzo beans…Doesn’t everyone have these?

  Back to the cookies…

  Garbanzo beans and peanut butter? Protein packed. The only mistake I made in this recipe was to not double it. 😦

  

  Eat me.

  You have this in your pantry, right?

  1 1/4 Cup Canned Chickpeas, rinsed and patted dry
  2 tsp Vanilla Extract
  1/2 Cup + 2 Tbs Natural Peanut Butter
  1/4 Cup Honey
  1 tsp. Baking Powder
  1/2 Cup Chocolate Chips (I used 60% Ghiradellhi chips. Why? The best. Promise.)

  What to do:

  Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper

  

  Non-stick spray. Bleck. Parchment. Even cooking, easy clean up.

  Rinse and towel blot garbanzo beans so that most moisture is gone.

  

  See how wet the paper towel is underneath? Blot it even more!

   

  Combine all ingredients in a food processor (except the chocolate chips) Process until smooth, scraping down sides as needed.
  
  
  

  Add your chips and pulse a few more times.

  

  

  
  

  Now we are in business.

  With wet hands (because it is DANG sticky) form into 1-2 inch balls (depending on how big you want them) and place on parchment paper.
  
  
  

  1. Bake for 10 minutes.
  2. Press down slightly with a fork.
  3. Bake for another 3-5 minutes or until solid

  

  Again. Should have doubled. Hate to ration cookies.

  Posted in Desserts | Tagged cookies, garbanzo beans, healthy, peanut butter, vegan

• You missed a call?

  • Make friends with…Bean Pasta.
  • Whole Wheat Flax ‘N Apple Muffins
  • Small changes…Eat what’s in season.
  • Whole Wheat Broccoli Mac N Cheese
  • What I pack my kid.

• Categories

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  • Desserts
  • Make friends with…
  • Meatless mealtime
  • Pancake Day
  • Random stuff
  • Salads, Soups, and Sides
  • Small changes
  • Snacks
  • What I pack my kid.

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