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All About Balance Carrot Salad Recipe

January 9, 2015 in Food, recipe by traveleatlove | 2 comments

Detox, sober January, weight loss, gym memberships. . . my blog inbox has been completely inundated with press releases this week, and I have tossed all of them. I’m not one for extremes, especially when they all hit me at once. I am a firm believer that you can eat, drink, and be merry and also maintain a healthy balance.

Our lives haven’t changed much since the holidays, except for the fact that we have tried to work in more movement, more veggies, and a little less wine. Manageable improvements I can fully support.

This carrot salad is the perfect counterpart to a rich roast or some ginger beer pulled pork. It’s bright, tangy, and full of nutrition. It’s also great on its own or with some chickpeas and goat cheese for a little something extra. This salad is a reminder that healthy can be easy to integrate into a lifestyle and it never has to be all or nothing.

Ingredients

2 cups shredded organic carrots

1 cup toasted pumpkin seeds

1 cup dried cranberries

1 large shallot, diced

1/2 cup organic apple cider vinegar

black pepper to taste

Mix it all up and chill.

This salad is as easy as it gets, it lasts for several days, and it’s really yummy.

 

carrot salad

Have you made any diet/exercise changes in 2015?

Tags: delicious, Food, food blog, foodie, healthy, recipe, side dish, vegan, vegetarian recipe

Cranberry, Quinoa, and Butternut Squash Salad

October 24, 2013 in Food by traveleatlove | 5 comments

If you are looking for a wicked easy Thanksgiving side dish, or even just a healthy, seasonal vegetarian lunch. then this little mix of dried cranberries, quinoa, and butternut squash is for you. In an effort to be slightly healthier and order less takeaway (We are failing.), I have been trying to put together a handful of simple ingredients to make dinners that turn into lunch leftovers.

dried cranberries

This very simple dish starts with quinoa, cooked according to the package instructions, while chunks of butternut squash are roasting in the oven.

maple syrup

The dressing is a mix of apple cider, a tiny bit of maple syrup, olive oil,  and hot paprika. It sounds a little weird, but it reminds me of this harvest salad I made many moons ago. For this quinoa recipe, I made just enough dressing so that the quinoa wasn’t dry and there was some nice flavor. I mix everything to taste; it’s the only way to get a recipe just perfect for you!

butternut squash, quinoa, cranberries

Once the quinoa and butternut squash are done, mix in the dried cranberries and dressing. Mixing the cranberries into a warm quinoa softens and plumps them up a bit, making for a nice texture. The final step for this salad, once it’s at room temperature, is to crumble in some goat or feta cheese, depending on your preference. There you have yourself a delicious and nutritious side dish, lunch or light dinner.

butternut squash, quinoa, cranberries

I know it’s not very exciting, and definitely not an exact science, but it’s meals like this that I create on the fly that keep me from giving up on cooking entirely when I would much rather call for a pizza.

What are some of your favorite on-the-fly easy meals?

Tags: butternut squash, recipe, side dish, Thanksgiving, Vegetarian, vegetarian recipes

Classic Potato Salad with a Twist

March 29, 2013 in Food by traveleatlove | 5 comments

I LOVE mayonnaise. I love it on fries, especially, but I also enjoy it in salads, dips, as parts of dressings, and in my hair. Trust me, it’s great for getting knots out. One of my family’s classic Easter dishes, my mom’s potato salad, is pulled together by a mix of mayonnaise and mustard. It just has to be there.

When I received an offer to try Nasoya’s vegan nayonaise for an egg-free alternative, I was definitely intrigued and jumped at the chance to try a new-to-me product. How would it measure up with the creamy condiment I love?

vegan nayonaise

On its own, nayonaise tastes surprisingly like mayo. Pretty much just like it, actually. The texture is a little more gelatinous, to me, but it’s still pleasant. I haven’t tried it on fries yet, but I think it’s going to be a happy marriage.

Since we won’t actually be home for Easter, I made a small batch. This simple recipe only contains a few ingredients, but it is always a crowd pleaser.

Ingredients:

3 cups small fingerling potatoes or chopped red bliss potatoes

1/2 cup chopped white onion

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/3 cup brown mustard (Gulden’s is what my mom uses)

1/3 mayonnaise or nayonaise

fingerling potatoes

Once the potatoes are boiled and chilled, you just need to toss it all together and chill again until serving.

potato salad

I love how simple this is and how it reminds me of nice weather. We had this potato salad as a side to veggie burgers topped with all sorts of fun toppings, beckoning summer and sunshine to visit soon.

potato salad

The nayonaise was great in this dish; it was as delicious as ever and fun that the dish was vegan and egg-free. My husband is not a huge egg fan and even had some sort of allergy as a child, so it’s nice to be able to have the option to leave the eggs out.

My Easter memories are full of great food, and I love visiting the Eastern European stores in Dorchester this time of year. The kielbasa, paska bread, and smell of hyacinths remind me of my childhood. I just love how much smells and tastes can bring you back to a different place and time.

If you celebrate Easter, what will be on your table? If not, what are your go-to foods or smells that remind you of a favorite childhood holiday?

Tags: Easter, Food, recipe, side dish, vegan, Vegetarian, vegetarian recipe

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