My New Obsession

I've recently come across a bunch of Instagram accounts with endless food bowl options. There's smoothies, oatmeal, banana ice-cream, salads, quinoa, kale . . . you see what I mean.



And so I've decided to jump on the trend. It seems a food bowl is the perfect spring board for simple and delicious meals--exactly what I need in this hectic thing I call life these days. Expect to see plenty of posts related to my newest obsession (food bowls-- in case you didn't get it).





Quinoa Tuna Bowl
Makes 2 servings.
Active time: 20 minutes; total time: 25 minutes.

• 3/4 cup quinoa
• 1 cup broccoli florets
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 orange bell pepper, chopped
• 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon red wine
• 2 (3 oz.) cans albacore tuna in water, drained and broken up into small pieces.
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1. Cook quinoa according to the package instructions. While it's cooking, make the vegetables and tuna.
2. Heat a wok over high heat. Add broccoli and 1/4 cup water and cook until water is evaporated. Make sure the wok is very hot so that the broccoli is stir fried. Add balsamic vinegar and 1 teaspoon onion powder; season with salt and pepper. Continue cooking until vinegar is evaporated. If broccoli florets are not soft, add the rest of the water and cook until evaporated. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. In a medium saucepan, heat the coconut oil over medium-high heat. Add the bell peppers and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the red wine and raise heat slightly. Cook until wine is evaporated and peppers are soft. Add onion powder and stir, picking up the browned bits from the pan. 
4. Add the tuna to the pan and continue to cook, stirring. Add remaining red wine and cook until evaporated. Cook for an additional minute, stirring, until tuna is slightly browned. 
5. In two bowls, layer the quinoa, broccoli, and bell pepper–tuna mix. Top with red pepper flakes and season with salt and pepper. 

Cauliflower Risotto

It's a new year. Happy New Year.

Yeah, I know I'm a bit late with the whole "Happy New Year," but I'm still amazed at the fact that it is 2015 and I'm twenty five years old. Woah.

Anyways, I'm happy to be back on the blog and anxious to start cooking/baking again. I'll admit it was hard to get started today--I'm nursing a cold, so the only thing I'm  inspired to do is watch Gilmore Girls--but now that my belly is full I'm grateful I cooked. I apologize for the short post. But not really because, isn't it really just the food that counts?!

A little bit about why I made this dish. The other day, I was talking to someone about the great variety of cauliflower uses. We talked about cauliflower pizza (of course), cauliflower rice, cauliflower mashed "potatoes," and even  plain old oven-roasted cauliflower. Then I realized I couldn't attest to the deliciousness of cauliflower rice, because I hadn't actually tried it. And obviously I needed to remedy that ASAP. So, here it is, cauliflower risotto--yeah I know I still have to make cauliflower (regular) rice and fried rice. Enjoy!

Beet Asparagus Cauliflower Rice (Adapted from Mind Body Green)
Active time: 25 minutes; total time 75 minutes.
Makes about 4 servings.

• 4 small beets, cut into chunks
• 1/2 asparagus bunch, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 cauliflower head
• 1/3 yellow onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup red wine
• 1 3/4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
• 1/4 cup finely grated parmesan cheese (or vegan alternative; I used Go Veggie)
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 400F. 
2. Place beets in a small baking pan and drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Bake beets for 20 minutes. Add asparagus strips to beets and return to oven for another 15-20 minutes, or until beets are tender.
3. Cut cauliflower into 2-inch pieces and transfer to a food processor (I used a Ninja Blender; pulse until rice-sized. Transfer cauliflower to a triple layered cheese cloth (or paper towels) and squeeze any excess moisture out.
4. In a large saucepan, heat remaining olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally for about 7 minutes. Add wine and bring to a boil Aed cauliflower and 1/2 cup broth; cover and cook stirring occasionally. Once liquid is absorbed, add 1/2 more cup and cook until liquid is absorbed again. Repeat with remaining broth. 
5. Remove from heat and add beets and asparagus. Mix to combine. Add parmesan and walnuts, and toss before serving.