Eliminating the Processed and Getting Back to Basics

I cannot believe how quickly this year has gone by. I feel like we were just watching the last of the ice melt away and, within a blink of the eye, we are awaiting the first winter flakes to fall. One of my cold weather preparations is to keep my eating habits in check, which is hard with the upcoming holidays.

My "bat family" all dolled up for Halloween

As you may have noticed in my earlier posts, I was making it my goal to eat fresh and unprocessed foods. However, we got busy this summer with moving, unpacking, meetings and summer fun. As a result, more of our meals were from restaurants or prepackaged foods; the consequence was the 20 lbs that I quickly lost came back even faster and I went from feeling bright and "fluid" to bulky and
 slow.

So, I made a resolution that, after Halloween, we were going back to eating nutrient rich, fresh foods. Our biggest problem is not liking these foods, because my three year old daughter will wolf-down broccoli and other veggies without a second thought, but more the foods' shelf life and the time to transform the food. I don't have the time to make several trips to the farmers market and salads get old quick. The way I get around this is by creating my own dressings and eating the salads in wraps- nothing amazing but it manages to trick my brain into thinking that I am getting variety.

The other night we had fresh kale with apples, tofu, cucumbers, and a quick cilantro-lime dressing and it was a big hit. The best part was it was FAST. I literally squeezed a lime into a bowl with a couple tablespoons of olive oil and chopped cilantro and let my kale marinate in it while I chopped up the other vegetables. We eat have our own preference of nuts... I like flax and pinenuts; my husband likes raw sunnies; and my daughter likes hers with all other above and sliced almonds.

 

The hardest meal for me to eat, although very important, is breakfast. I am an early riser, and I am usually a get-up-and-get-out-of-the-house sort of person or I lounge around until it is lunch time. I always make sure that my daughter is eating the appropriate number of meals, but have always missed the mark with myself, which is one of the primary reasons that I struggle with my weight. The way I get around this is by making foods that last several days or taste a bit more fulfilling than traditional breakfast foods, such as cereal. One of my favorites is quiche because I can eat it anytime of the day, they are filling and taste delicious. 

The below recipe is a goat cheese quiche with sauted vegetables, homemade pesto, and fresh eggs. It takes about an hour, start to finish, to make but it can be refrigerated and eaten over a week (if it makes it that long). 

Sauted Veggie Quiche with Pesto and Goat Cheese

1c basil leaves, loosely packed

1/4c EVOO

1 clove of garlic

9" Crust (keep refrigerated in pie pan until needed)

1/4c goat cheese

1Tb Coconut Oil

1 zucchini, chopped

1 carrot, diced

1/2 medium onion, diced

6 eggs

1c veggie cheese shreds

1/2 cup almonds, sliced

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. In a blender, place the first 3 ingredients in order, liquify and set aside.
3. Break up goat cheese and place along the bottom of pie crust and keep cold while preparing remaining ingredients.
4. Saute veggies in coconut oil (feel free to add salt and pepper to taste) until soft. Coat with pesto and add to pie pan over the goat cheese.
5. Whisk eggs until they are uniform and pour over the veggies and cheese. 
6. Bake on the bottom rack for 15 minutes to cook the crust then add the cheese and almonds and move to the top rack and continue cooking for another 20-25 minutes until no longer "giggly." 
7. Let sit for 5-10 minutes to continue setting and serve warm. 

Can be eaten with salad, cottage cheese or toast. You can also switch up the vegetables (such as broccoli, asparagus...etc) or even add salsa for an extra kick!
Enjoy!