Burger Rice Bowls

A burger in a quick & packable form! I made these rice bowls as an easy meal and froze another portion to grab for lunch or to eat quickly on a busy night on the baseball sidelines.

Think of a burger on a bed of bacon rice topped with cheese, pickles, greens, tomatoes, and a final drizzle of special sauce and ketchup. It is perfectly scoop-able, filling, and nutritious.

The Three Bite Rule - Burger Bowl

Burger Rice Bowls
Ingredients: (for 2 servings)

1 1/2 cup brown rice prepared
2 tablespoons bacon bits
2 veggie burgers (or any patty)
2 slices white cheddar cheese
1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes
1-2 cups baby arugula
2 teaspoons mayo
4 teaspoons ketchup
dash of garlic powder
pepper

Directions:
Cook the rice and stir in the bacon bits.
Pan fry (or grill) the burgers and top with cheese.
While the burgers are cooking, chop the tomatoes, arugula, and pickles.

The Three Bite Rule - Burger Bowl

Let the rice and burgers cool a few minutes.
Mix up the special sauce: 2 teaspoons ketchup with the mayo, garlic powder, and pepper.
Assemble with rice on the bottom, topped with burgers, cheese, greens, tomatoes, and pickles.

The Three Bite Rule - Burger Bowl

Drizzle with special sauce and ketchup and sesame seeds.
Enjoy!

I loved these! It gives you all the flavors you want from a burger – just with a fork. I love a bun but serving this on rice is actually easier to pack and eat in a hurry than as a burger. It wouldn’t replace a traditional burger for me, but I also wouldn’t pack a burger to be a work lunch.

The Three Bite Rule - Burger Bowl

The bacon brown rice is delicious. I used a veggie burger topped with white cheddar (but could be any burger or portabella cap) and the bowl gets all the burger toppings I had on hand. It was great. For me it is much more filling than as a salad, but you-do-you!

I scooped another serving of rice and chopped another veggie burger and froze it for a later date. One morning I’ll be so grateful to pull it out of the freezer, throw on some greens, veggies, pickles and some ketchup/mustard/mayo dressing on the side. When it is time to eat, I flip the non-cooked parts onto the lid, then I warm the rice & burger and pile on the raw veggies and a drizzle. It is just what I need mid-day – something delicious, nutritious, and appealing.

April 2022 Recap

April is going out with a bang – this last stretch of the month is so busy and full. The little guy just had a fun school vacation with a visit from the teen nephews, playing with the grandparents, and also some time home while we worked. Double duty is tiring. He’s starting baseball too. Work has so many things coming up – virtual and in-person events and then the timing of hitting deadlines and a lot to happen in prep for May & June ending Q4.

My favorite favorite food from the kitchen this month was these better-than-average Eggplant Parm Subs with fresh mozz and dressed arugula. So good.

The Three Bite Rule - Eggplant Parm Subs

I started an occasional apps for dinner theme, kicked off with cranberry & brie phyllo cups They couldn’t be easier and I included a whole bunch of alternatives and uses for leftovers. We did apps-as-dinner again on Easter after hosting brunch. It is also a great excuse to have lots of great cheese around.

The Three Bite Rule - Cranberry Brie Cups

Lastly I “made” some Mocha Cinnamon Rolls for a fun but ohh so easy breakfast.

The Three Bite Rule - Mocha Cinnamon Rolls

May will definitely have some quick meals between baseball practices and nights we’d rather have after-work-playground time. Early spring flavors make me think of lemon and warm-and-cool.

The Little Girl:
She is happy for bike rides and is looking forward to baseball spectating. Daily she envisions the beach trip. She’s definitely having her 3-year-old moments of resisting and digging her heels in. She never wants to take a bathroom break. She was a bit scarred from an Easter Egg event when it rained, then hailed, then was sunny, then rain, then hail. We raced to the car for the second round and she was not impressed. Meals have been a bit smoother.

The Big Guy:
He was thrilled to play nerf with the teen cousins. His fav home lunch is always always always peanut butter and nutella. He still loves hardboiled eggs. I love seeing him being so strong and confident on his bike. He had chosen his scooter over the bike for awhile but he’s got his confidence and I’m proud to see it.

Goals:
Year of nail polish! I got a few Olive & June ones at once but opened up a purpley one for April (this one)
More international food inspiration: Umm. Maybe not.
More soups/salads: not really
More apps: Yes! Brie & Cranberry Cups!
More fun drinks: I’m obsessed with this lemon loaf tea
Updating photos: Nope, not this month
What I’m reading: I read Taste: My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci, and Greenwich Park which was a little mystery, then I listened to An Ugly Truth: Inside Facebook’s Battle for Domination, and I read The Maid which seemed like a caricature for neurodivergence and was a bit obvious.
What I’m watching: I’m months behind but catching up on a Million Little Things.
What I’m listening to: 

Mocha Cinnamon Rolls

Breakfast upgrade with very minimal effort. I don’t mess with dough – especially first thing in the morning and a few touches made for a fun breakfast.

The Three Bite Rule - Mocha Cinnamon Rolls

Mocha Cinnamon Rolls:
Ingredients:

1 roll cinnamon rolls (with frosting)
1/4 cup chocolate chips
1 espresso shot (or 1-2 oz very strong instant coffee) cooled

Directions:
Separate out the cinnamon rolls into a baking pan sprayed with non-stick spray. Push the chocolate chips into the cinnamon coiled parts.

The Three Bite Rule - Mocha Cinnamon Rolls

Bake according to the package.
While the rolls are baking, Mix the espresso into the frosting.
Spread the frosting onto the baked rolls.

The Three Bite Rule - Mocha Cinnamon Rolls

Enjoy!

These were fun. I mixed up a double-y strong few tablespoons of instant coffee. It worked so well. Also, next time I’d go for full frosting- instead of the glaze that comes with it. That would be even better!

Better Eggplant Parm Subs

These eggplant parm subs are show-stoppers. They’re better than average – not because I made my own breaded eggplant, ohh no, but because there’s so much flavor and texture here. Arugula adds the freshness and crunch this needs and fresh mozzarella gives some bite and some melty pull you will just love.

The Three Bite Rule - Eggplant Parm Subs

Breading eggplant is tough to get right – I find it frozen at Trader Joe’s and Aldi, sometimes it is prepped in refrigerated areas at Wegman’s, and Costco has had it, but not regularly.

Eggplant Parm Subs
Ingredients:
(for 2 subs)
~4-6 small slices per sub breaded eggplant
2 small sub rolls
~1/2 cup tomato sauce
~4 oz fresh mozzarella
2 cups baby arugula
2 tablespoons Italian dressing

The Three Bite Rule - Eggplant Parm Subs

Directions:
Preheat the oven, toaster oven, or air fryer to 400-degrees. Bake/air fry the eggplant until golden brown and well crisped – about 10 minutes.
Warm the sauce, slice the cheese, and toss the arugula in dressing.
Slice the roll and spread some tomato sauce onto it then layer on the eggplant and fresh mozzarella.
Return to the oven/toaster/air fryer to melt the cheese.

The Three Bite Rule - Eggplant Parm Subs

Then top with greens and enjoy!

I loved this. As takeout, it is always so soggy. The sauce, crispy eggplant and the cheese make it comforting but the fresh crunchy greens with bright dressing bring life to it! Don’t skip the fresh mozzarella – it elevates this really nicely.

The Three Bite Rule - Eggplant Parm Subs

Subs are great to make one or two – all in the toaster oven or air fryer! I wouldn’t make them in advance, but everything but the greens could be frozen.

Brie & Cranberry Cups

Apps for dinner might be a new tradition here! I didn’t have an occasion so I just made these delicious bites for dinner with a few other snacks and it was so fun! Phyllo cups get filled with brie and whole berry cranberry sauce and just a bit of rosemary – just a little assembly required.

The Three Bite Rule - Cranberry Brie Cups

Cranberry not your jam – lots of alternative ideas below!

Brie & Cranberry Cups
Ingredients: (app for ~6)

1 package phyllo cups (15 mini cups)
1/2 wheel of brie
1/4 cup whole berry cranberry sauce
1 sprig of rosemary
2 tablespoons butter

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350-degrees.
Slice the brie into small pieces. Open and stir the cranberry sauce.

The Three Bite Rule - Cranberry Brie Cups

Chop the rosemary while the butter is melting then stir together.
On a baking sheet, lay out the phyllo cups and fill each with 2 small pieces of brie (to mostly fill the cups but not over the top edge).
Spoon a tiny dollop of cranberry on top, then spoon butter/rosemary into the cups.
Bake for 5-8 minutes as the package indicates and until the brie melts.
Enjoy!

The Three Bite Rule - Cranberry Brie Cups

I had whole berry cranberry sauce and used it for these Thanksgiving Hot Wraps so I froze the remainder and here it is! These brie cups would be great with some raspberries or blackberries, out of the oven they could get a dab of jam (don’t bake that), or some pieces of bacon or caramelized onions.

We had these little cups as well as some crackers and dip, some caesar salad, and some ranch popcorn chicken. Everyone liked something and it was a fun meal.