February In Review

How is February over already? Time is kind of zooming past me. Normally I only feel like time-flies when I’m super busy and over-scheduled. February wasn’t exactly like that but work is busy and I love it. I’m ready for Mother Nature to see the other side, but that might mostly have to do with Mr. J being a one-armed bandit after a hockey injury resulting in a dislocated shoulder. #notfun

The Olympics have taken over the last few weeks of February. Sis had a very themed party. I took a terrible assortment of pics resulting in either an awkward portrayal of a great theme or no blog post…I went with the latter. At least from here you can check out the Jenner Juice (throwback Pepsi), some Olympic torches int he background and Olympic rings in the foreground. I got snowboarding and Austria for a medal pool and was a winner! I was pretty close on the USA medal count though! IMG_3910
I snuck in a few spring-inspired dinners to look past the snow:
like caprese stuffed chicken
The Three Bite Rule - Caprese Chicken
and mojito shrimp which might be my fav photo this year
The Three Bite Rule - Mojito Shrimp
I used some leftover fondue to make some pretty rock-star Kale Mac & Cheese
The Three Bite Rule - Kale Mac & Cheese
My last favorite meal of February has to be Prosciutto, Fontina, and Fig Panini

The Three Bite Rule - Fig & Prosciutto Panini
So, what’s next for March? I’ll have a birthday getaway that I’m sure will be filled with delicious goodies.

Goals update:
#yearoftheflower is going strong, thanks to Mr. J for Valentine’s Day
self-imposed cooking challenge: I made a quickie Curry Carrot Soup that was pretty good, and definitely something different for me.
foodie excursion: the best chicken burger I’ve ever had at Grass Fed & a spur of the moment dinner at Sky for a flatbread that totally needs to be recreated at home.

With February coming to a close do you know what that means? On Monday I will feel like the camel from the commercial GUESS WHAT DAY IT IS!? My birthday is riiiight around the corner, and it’s a biggie!

Kale & Portobello Breakfast Strata

Again, I’m on the quest for not-sweet breakfast ideas. I wanted to try to make something that wasn’t all that egg-y. I love eggs but breakfast seems to be either sweet or eggs or fruit. That’s it. I figured I’d try to make something not heavy on the eggs, just for a challenge.

This veggie strata isn’t all that authentic – I went light on the eggs and light on the bread. It is really heavy on the kale and mushrooms to make it filling. I liked it, but wouldn’t eat it weekly. I made a ton and froze a few slices once I got tired of it.

Google helped me come up with a name for this. There’s a fine line between quiche (traditionally has crust, more egg than other ingredients) versus frittata (crustless, often has potatoes)  versus strata (crustless, with bread in it).

The Three Bite Rule - Kale & Portobello Strata

Ingredients:

3 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 small onion, chopped
3 cups kale, deveined and chopped
1 pt portobello mushrooms, chopped
1/2 cup swiss cheese
3 slices of light wheat bread, cubed
salt & pepper
2 tbs grated Parmesan

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375-degrees.
In a large bowl, add kale and mushrooms.
The Three Bite Rule - Kale & Portobello Strata
Add in the onions, cheese, and bread.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, garlic powder. Add in salt & pepper to taste.
The Three Bite Rule - Breakfast Strata with Kale & Portobello
Add the egg mixture into the veggie mixture, stir well until evenly coated.
Pour the mixture into a large baking dish, sprayed with non-stick spray in a thin even layer. (mine didn’t all fit so I put the remainder into a smaller ramekin.)
Sprinkle with Parmesan.
Bake for 30-minutes.
Let cool and serve a room temperature or slightly warmed.
The Three Bite Rule - Breakfast Strata with Kale & Portobello
This made about 8 very sizable servings for me. It seemed like a ton. There’s only 3 eggs and 3 slices of bread in the 8 servings. It would be an easy way to use whatever veggies you have around. I’m lucky that work not only provides lunch daily but there’s a salad everyday, but who doesn’t need more veggies daily? I liked that it definitely seems different than quiche or eggs. It was good to start the day with a serious serving of veggies for a savory breakfast.

Mushrooms are a great way to bulk up the quantity of food, without adding anything bad. They’re great fillers to meatballs or to make salad more filling or burritos or anywhere to reduce the meat without feeling hungry afterwards.

What else should I whip up for savory but easy breakfast?

Turkey Meatballs with Garlic Sauce over Faux-Mashed Potatoes

When I meal-planned and started photographing this dinner, I hadn’t thought twice about the cauliflower mashed potatoes. I make these faux-mashed potatoes occasionally but I did realize I hadn’t blogged them in years, since making Balsamic Glazed Chicken. It’s a great way to lighten mashed potatoes or to stretch out the little potato you have. I used the potato as a base topped with turkey meatballs and a super quick sauce.

Cauliflower doesn’t really have all that much flavor so I honestly think people wouldn’t notice anything different about the potatoes. Plus, adding the cauliflower will add a ton more vitamin C, some added calcium, potassium, protein, & other good stuff without affecting the flavor or texture at all. Potatoes really shouldn’t be the enemy but adding some fresh or frozen cauliflower is a no-brainer.

The Three Bite Rule - Garlic Meatballs over Faux Mashed Potatoes
I came up with this idea thinking that frozen turkey meatballs would make for a quick weeknight dinner. The meatballs and garlic sauce were Trader Joe’s ingredients. Trader Joe’s turkey meatballs are hands down, better than any others. I was intrigued by the garlic sauce and ended up adding it to a few different dinners. It doesn’t make/break this dinner though. I included a really easy alternative.

The Three Bite Rule - Garlic Sauce Meatballs

Ingredients:

3 turkey meatballs per person
1/2 cup garlic cooking sauce (or double the broth (below) + 2 tbs diced garlic)
1/2 cup chicken stock
splash of white wine
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp thyme, dried or fresh rosemary
2 potatoes, pealed or unpealed
2 cups cauliflower
2 tsp cream cheese
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp butter
salt & pepper

Directions:

In a large pot of boiling water, cook potatoes and cauliflower florets until fully cooked through.
In a flat pan over medium heat, add garlic,
Defrost meatballs and add to a flat pan with garlic sauce, stock, wine, balsamic vinegar, thyme, salt, and pepper.
Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, then reduce heat to low.
Drain cauliflower and potatoes putting them into a big bowl.
Add cream cheese, milk, butter, salt, and pepper.
The Three Bite Rule - Garlic Meatballs over Faux Mashed Potatoes
Blend until smooth, or until texture of your preference. I leave some lumps.
The Three Bite Rule - Garlic Meatballs over Faux Mashed Potatoes
Top potatoes with meatballs spooning some sauce over the top.
The Three Bite Rule - Garlic Meatballs over Faux Mashed Potatoes
I liked this one a lot. It was a nice change from the usual. I guess it is along the lines of Swedish meatballs just without a creamy base. It was a easy use of already-made meatballs but would work well with chicken or pork medallions or beef.

I always forgot how much more mashed potato it seems like from the potatoes you start with. My faux-mashed potatoes are about half potato half cauliflower.

The Three Bite Rule - Garlic Meatballs over Faux Mashed Potatoes

Cauliflower Mashed potatoes would be great for mashed potato pizza. I also like blue cheese mashed potatoes with some blue cheese dressing for a subtle flavor. I guess I don’t make potatoes all that often. Hmmm.

What I Ate: Curry Carrot Soup

What I Ate’ is a series of posts for so-easy-this-doesn’t-need-a-recipe but I’m sharing with you for the idea or inspiration.

This literally couldn’t be easier. It was a nice change of pace for a quickie dinner. I came home from a class at the gym and either I want something light to not un-do my workout OR I want something filling and rich.

Ingredients:

4 large carrots with the tops cut off
1 cup veggie stock
1 cup water
1 tsp curry powder

Directions:

In a large pot, cook carrots in stock and water over high heat, for 15 minutes.
The Three Bite Rule - Curry Carrot Soup
When carrots are cooked though and soft, blend until smooth, either with an immersion blender or in a stand blender.
Return to the pot and add the curry and some pepper.
The Three Bite Rule - Curry Carrot Soup
Cook another 5 minutes. Add more water if desired.
Enjoy!

The Three Bite Rule - Curry Carrot Soup
I was a little heavy handed with the pepper. hahaha oops. I thought the curry flavor was so good with the sweet carrot flavor.

It freezes well too. Ready. Set. Soup!

Maple Peanut Butter Granola

I cringe every time I see the price of granola at the grocery store. It’s like $4-something per box, and that box is definitely smaller than the Cheerios! I googled around to see if there were any tricks for granola. Turns out, it is just super easy. Wait till you see the price per serving!

I went with peanut butter, maple syrup, salted sunflower seeds, and oats. I was hesitant to use lots of pricey nuts until I figured out cooking times…next time! I loooove all things peanut butter. I got some maple peanut butter for xmas and it wasn’t my favorite brand on it’s own so I thought I’d amp up the maple-ness with it for granola.
The Three Bite Rule - Maple Peanut Butter Granola

I can’t wait to try some other variations. It was the perfect not-too-sweet granola to top coffee greek yogurt!
The Three Bite Rule - Maple Peanut Butter Granola

Ingredients:

1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups oatmeal (not quick cooking)
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/3 cup brown sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325-degrees.
Over medium low heat in a small pot, melt peanut butter and maple syrup together. Stir occasionally.

The Three Bite Rule - Maple Peanut Butter Granola
In a large bowl, mix oats, cinnamon, brown sugar, and sunflower seeds.
The Three Bite Rule - Maple Peanut Butter Granola
Add the vanilla into the maple peanut butter and remove from the heat.

The Three Bite Rule - Maple Peanut Butter Granola
Mix the peanut butter mixture into the dry mixture with a spatula. Combine well.

The Three Bite Rule - Maple Peanut Butter Granola
Spread onto a baking pan lined with a baking mat or lined with parchment paper.
The Three Bite Rule - Maple Peanut Butter Granola
Bake for 15-20 minutes. I did 15 minutes and let it cool. (It wasn’t the crunchiest it could be so, I’d bake for 20 minutes next time.)

The Three Bite Rule - Maple Peanut Butter Granola
Let cool completely and break into crumbled chunks. Store in an airtight container.

I love this. I didn’t make a huge batch because I needed to see how it went. Next time I might double it or increase it a bit. I do like the idea making small batches different each time to test ’em out. The peanut butter with cafe latte Greek yogurt was great. I loved it with coconut and vanilla Greek yogurt too.

The Three Bite Rule - Maple Peanut Butter Granola
It’s pretty good for a sweet treat in addition to breakfast. I’d love some chocolate chunks or mini chips and more nuts next time!

cost breakdown: 
2 cups of old fashioned oats = $0.53
1/2 cup sunflower seeds = $0.42
1/2 cup peanut butter = $0.40
1/2 cup maple syrup (I don’t buy the real stuff) = $0.50
total = $1.85 for about 6 servings or $0.30 per serving.

that’s insane. THIRTY CENTS per serving. annnnd you know what’s in it. It could go up a lot depending on what goes into it. But I’d love walnuts or almonds and a 1/2 cup of those is not going to put this close to a $1 per serving. I think I’m likely to end up with more like 8-10 servings since it’s just a sprinkle onto of my yogurt. Case closed. I’m making my own from now on.