I know that for many busy families, dinner time is often thought of way after it should be and or totally forgotten. Both of which in many times leads to ordering in, or the "your on your own" method which can turn into cereal for dinner. I have experienced both and the ordering in becomes expensive and often times not healthy and the cereal for dinner is just plain boring to me. With all this in mind and as my last post specifically made for my dancers, I have come up with a dinner that only takes about 20 minutes to make. It is so easy that I think a 12 year old can make this dish with confidence. All that it requires is a bit of chopping up some vegetables, mixing a sauce and cooking some rice, which a rice cooker can do for you.
Note: If you don't have a rice cooker, I highly recommend investing in one. I promise it makes many more things than rice. However, that may have to be another post.
I have also found while I prefer the Asian version of this dish you could also go super simple and use whatever vegetables are in your refrigerator and garnish with a little salt, pepper and a squeeze of a lemon wedge. I'm also in love with this dinner because it is easily made for on the go and is lovely eaten cold or at room temperature.
Lastly, I wanted to say happy healthy eating to all my readers especially my dancers. I hope that the last few post have inspired you all to cook and eat a little bit healthier. With that said, next week you should look forward to indulging in some Super Bowl appetizers with my husband, Greg. And then back to the healthy eating!
Raw Veggie Brown Rice Bowls
Ingredients
4-6 cups brown rice, cooked
2 whole carrots, shredded
1 cup red bell pepper, chopped
1 cup sugar snap peas, trimmed and cut in half
1 cup edamame
1 cup red cabbage chopped
Sesame hoisin sauce (see recipe below)
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
Sesame Hoisin Sauce
Ingredients
1/4 cup toasted sesame oil
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1/2 lime, juice
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 large shallot, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds
1/4 teaspoon crushed red peppers or Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce (optional)
Combine all ingredients into a small bowl and set aside. Makes about a 1/2 cup.
Making the Rice bowl:
In a large mixing bowl combine the rice, carrots, bell pepper, sugar snap peas, edamame and red cabbage. Pour the sesame hoisin sauce over top. Stir to combine. Distribute the rice and vegetable mix evenly between bowls and garnish with the cilantro. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container with the sauce separately for on the go. Makes 4-6 servings.
Other vegetable add-ons or substitutes: green beans, cucumbers, bean sprouts, or zucchini.
Protein add-ons: Chicken, shrimp, beef or pork.
I admit I have never been a smoothie fan, but upon the request of my lovely dance students I have found a new love for them...sorta. After perusing Pinterest and getting feed back and suggestions from my dancers, sister and husband I have come up with these two smoothies to share.
The first is my antioxidant berry mint smoothie which not only contains fresh berries but also coconut water and tart cherry juice. Coconut water is amazing for hydration and the tart cherry juice contains benefits that many of us can use. Tart cherry juice contains properties to help with inflammation in joints and muscles and may also help you sleep better, making this smoothie the perfect snack for after a long day of dance classes (or a late night work out). After the first week back to teaching dance after a long winter break, my body was feeling sore and this smoothie definitely helped.
My second smoothie contains two of my favorite things together, bananas and peanut butter. At first I started thinking it would be more like a plain old milkshake but then my sister suggested to me to add some spinach for some extra nutrition. I have to say I was a bit skeptical since I would much rather prefer to eat my veggies and not drink them. However, the spinach didn't seem to alter the taste at all that much, although, I am still getting over staring at the green color as I taste bananas and peanut butter. I also added rolled oats to my "green" smoothie making this a breakfast meal on the go. So I guess we're all covered here on this smoothie, veggies, protein, potassium, fiber and whole grains. Looks like drinking my breakfast won't be so bad after all and I might actually start liking smoothies.
Antioxidant Berry Mint Smoothie
Ingredients
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
6-8 mint leaves
1/4 cup pomegranate seeds (optional)
1 cup frozen strawberries
1/2 cup tart cherry juice
1/2 cup coconut water
Place all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Serve immediately.
Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie
Ingredients
1 cup fresh spinach
2 tablespoons rolled oats
1/4 cup peanut butter
1 large frozen banana, sliced into small pieces
1-1/4 cup almond milk
Place all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Serve immediately.
Note: Place the ingredients into the blender in the order that they are listed in the recipes. This will ensure that your ingredients will blend together better.
