spiced watermelon wedges

i love good ideas. i love innovative solutions to problems i see in the world, big and small.

i love watching shows like shark tank, where people come up with the craziest concepts 

and make them become a reality. i also love finding, seeing and experiencing new things - 

and then wondering - why didn't i think of this??? am i the only one?

when i saw a recipe for a savory slice of watermelon, i stopped in my tracks.

either it was the worst idea ever, or one of those 'wait, why didn't i think of that???'

before you read any further - let me just tell you. it's definitely the latter. 

these were incredible. definitely different than biting into your classic slice of watermelon - 

 but so incredible refreshing - and savory!!! honestly, i thought these were genius.

so simple. such a crowd-pleaser. and immediately upgrades a super simple snack 

to be side-dish worthy. you have to try these. there are probably endless ways 

to vary this recipe, but i was pretty obsessed with this Mexican flavor profile. 

recipe via cooking light

serves 4

be sure to adjust this recipe to the size of your watermelon. i bought a smaller, 

personal size watermelon and had plenty of spice mix based on the below recipe.

ingredients

1 1/2 tablespoon grated lime rind

1/2 teaspoon chile powder

1/2 teaspoon ground coupon

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

4 watermelon wedges

or however many your heart desires

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

directions

1. preheat oven to 200 degrees

2. spread lime rind on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes until slightly dried.

3. combine dried rind, chile powder, cumin, salt, and pepper in a small bowl.

4. arrange watermelon wedges on a platter, drizzle with oil 

and sprinkle evenly with spice mixture and cilantro (if using).

note - the drizzle of olive oil was delicious but not necessary. 

i ate my first plate of wedges with olive oil, and then finished the rest of my watermelon 

(don't judge me) sans olive oil - just sprinkling the spice mix strait on. 

also - i skipped the cilantro, but kept it in the recipe above for those of you who love it!

baked cinnamon sweet potatoes

there is something about carbs to me that really is the definition of comfort food.
and yet for years i've steered clear of pasta and the like, just for health reasons.
so when i want to eat something that i feel almost as guilty about - i turn to potatoes!
they give you that same comfort food satisfaction and at least you're avoiding all the grain.

this recipe was simple yet deeply satisfying.
i ate this as a side dish one night when i was still on a soft foods diet,
and again for lunch the next day. confession: it almost tastes like dessert!

recipe from simply real health

serves 4

ingredients

2 sweet potatoes or yams

2 tablespoons coconut oil or butter, melted

2 teaspoons cinnamon

sea salt

directions

1. preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. slice sweet potato in half lengthwise and rub with butter or melted coconut oil. 

place face down on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes, or until easily poked with a fork. 

3. remove from oven, flip potatoes, flesh side up, and mash the insides
with more melted coconut oil, cinnamon. sprinkle with sea salt.

i found it was easier to scoop the insides of the potato out, mash them
together with the extra ingredients, then place back inside the skin.

3. serve warm and enjoy!

cauliflower pizza crust

most people know that i like to cook. they also maybe have the misconception 

that i'm trying a new recipe almost every night of the week. the truth is that 

roughly half of the week i'm trying at least one new thing in the kitchen... 

be it an appetizer, main course, cocktail or dessert. while the other days 

we're either grabbing take-out or making one of our favorite go-to recipes. 

take out for us really only consists of pizza from PCC or thai food. 

while the pizza we buy isn't super unhealthy (it's thin-crust, etc),

i wanted to try my hand a home-made 'dough' that could cut the carbs.

voila, cauliflower pizza crust to the rescue!

trust me, this isn't as weird as it sounds. 

in fact, i'm thinking you'll love it as much as we did!

the only caveat i have on this is it took me a few times to perfect the recipe a bit, so don't 

give up if you have a bad first experience! i've also added some notes and tips below :)

recipe via simply real health cookbook

ingredients

1 large head of cauliflower, florets only, approximately 3 cups

3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons almond flour

2 eggs

1 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

desired toppings for your pizza

directions

1. preheat oven to 450 degrees. line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 

add cauliflower florets to the powerful blender or food processor and blend until smooth. 

don't over-process, blend just until there are no big visible pieces.

2. place the pulsed cauliflower in the middle of a clean dish towel. 

wrap it up and squeeze as much moisture out of it as you can. 

there will be a lot! open the towel and place the cauliflower in mixing bowl.

squeezing the moisture out of the cauliflower in a towel was a bit cumbersome and messy for me.

the second time i made the recipe, i actually went ahead and spread the ground up cauliflower 

on the baking sheet and baked it in the oven for roughly 15 minutes, stirring frequently, 

to get the moisture out. just a tip that worked well for me!

3. add cheese, flour, egg and spices, and mid together. combine mixture into a ball.

4. with your hands, flatten dough into an even crust on the baking sheet. 

bake for 20-25 minutes until it starts to brown.

be sure you are using parchment paper and nothing else. 

neither foil OR a greased pan worked for me!

5. remove from heat, add your sauce, toppings and place back in the oven until done 

(usually when cheese is melty and starts to brown)

we added store bought pizza sauce, mozzarella, pepperoni, mushrooms, 

sun-dried tomatoes, and then topped with basil once it came out of the oven.

chickpea, avocado, feta salad

easy salads are totally my jam. 

avocados are also my jam.

ben makes fun of me because i have a lot of favorites,

but why not have a lot of favorites? 

i have a new favorite thing almost every week.

i mean sometimes they last for a while, and sometimes they fade away.

recent favorite things:

easy salads (see above)

avocados (see above)

marco polo beechers cheese

marcona almonds

gin and tonics

graham crackers

damages (the tv show)

this salad is seriously so simple. 

you might even have every single ingredient in your pantry as i type this.

ready in 5 minutes. HELLO!

recipe via two peas and their pod

modifications by me

makes 2 large salads or 4 small salads

ingredients

1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

2 avocados, pitted and chopped

always lean towards an avocado that is still a tad firm to the touch if 

you're going to mix it into a salad. don't use one that's too soft! just trust me!

1/3 cup chopped basil

2 tablespoons chopped green onion

1/3 cup feta

juice of 2 limes

salt and pepper

directions

1. in a medium bowl, combine all ingredients except the avocado. mix until combined.

2. add avocado and mix gently.

3. serve chilled or at room temp.  try not to eat the whole bowl.

zucchini salad

i absolutely love kitchen gadgets and have
more than i can realistically fit in my kitchen.
things like ice cream makers, popsicle molds, my industrial sized
food processor, popcorn maker, salad spinner, garlic press and the like
line my shelves and make my cupboards jam packed.
we honestly barely have room for tupperware!

my new favorite gadget was a gift from a dear family
member for our wedding (you know who you are)

it's a SPIRALIZER!

a spiralizer is a little gadget that takes any sort of vegetable
and twists and cuts it into spaghetti-like strings.

and let me just say... i'm OBSESSED!
i've been using it with zucchini every couple of days to make the base
of a salad and then change up the toppings depending on the day.
best and easiest way to eat healthy! hello!

for more inspiration click here and here

here is my current fave recipe
dreamed up by moi!

makes about 4 large salads or 6 small salads
keeps well for leftovers!

ingredients

3 medium zucchini, spiralized

1 large pinch red chili flakes

1/2 cup fresh mint, chopped
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped

1 tablespoon minced shallots

1 large lemon, zested and juiced

1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 grated parmesan
1/2 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted

salt and pepper

directions

1. place zucchini, chili flakes, mint, basil, shallot,
lemon juice and olive oil in a large bowl.

toss to combine and season with salt and pepper to taste.
top with desired amount of parmesan and pine nuts.

easy cucumber feta appetizer

because i love to cook

AND i'm slow in the kitchen

B and I often eat dinner post 8pm.

the problem is that both of us are hungry at 6pm.

coming up with easy appetizers has been a lifesaver for those days 

i want to cook for hours before putting dinner on the table.

these are my new faves, and SUCH a versatile little snack.

(we actually ate so many of these we weren't hungry until 10pm. LOL!)

recipe inspiration via bitedelite

ingredients

2 cucumbers

3 oz fresh feta

2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped

salt and pepper

directions

there are two ways to make this delicious snack,

either in a boat style, where you scoop out the middle of the cucumber and fill it with goodies 

OR slice the cucumber like a little cracker and place the goodies on top (pictured above). 

i've made this snack both ways and thoroughly enjoy both. you pick your poison :)

for the boat style...

1. cut cucumber legnthwise and remove the seeds.

cut a small strip off the bottom of the cucumber half so it will sit level.

2. use the other half of the cucumber and dice into 1/4 peices.

combine diced cucumber with feta cheese, basil and salt and pepper to taste.

fill cucumber boats with the mixtures and sprinkle with more pepper.

for the cracker style...

1. slice 3/4 of one full cucumber into thin slices

(not too thin - you want them to be easy to pick up!)

2. continue with step #2 from above...

placing the mixture on top of your cucumber slices to serve.

3. enjoy!