OhYaGood

Whole Food Lover + Recipe Hacker

Tuscan Tuna Salad

by 7 Comments

Did I mention I’m doing Whole30? Probably not since it’s more like the Whole26. Don’t judge. I haven’t had the will power to stick with it because of a family Christmas celebration, Leo’s birthday and a little happy hour. I know. I’m weak but I’m glad to have still do it partially. My joints feel better, I’m not as tired and huge bonus, my clothes fit better. Who knows, maybe I’ll just stick with this way of eating giving myself a break here and there.

I’ve noticed these COLD winter months can be really hard to get excited about salads or just fresh produce in general. I have a natural desire for carbs and heavy, warm foods. Maybe that’s why I gravitate towards a salad that’s mostly protein and room temperature, like this tuna salad. This one is packed with lots of flavor and keeps me full all afternoon with 27 grams of protein. AND it’s Whole30 approved.

Tuscan Tuna Salad
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Salad
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 1-2
Ingredients
  • 1 4oz can of tuna in water
  • a handful of cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
  • 2 tablespoons olive tapenade, I like Trader Joes
  • 2 tablespoons capers
  • ¼ cup diced cucumber
  • ¼ cup diced sweet pepper
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • a squeeze of lemon juice
  • a dash of red wine vinegar
  • salt and pepper
  • fresh basil
Instructions
  1. Mix all ingredients together and serve
  2. Garnish with fresh basil

 

Autumn Quinoa Salad

by Leave a Comment

My husband and I were just in NYC where the food was of course outstanding. I only “cheated” with one dinner indulging in some fantastic gluten and soy filled ramen at Ivan Ramen. It was heavenly but I certainly paid for it with an instant headache and all swollen the next day. Nothing a little hike on the Brooklyn bridge couldn’t fix.

One of my favorite meals was at a place called Tiny’s near our hotel in Tribeca. It was an egg dish with crispy quinoa served with greens and poached eggs. Similar to a hash. Definitely something I’ll have to try in the kitchen. For now though, I need to detox which means salads every damn day, including this little gem.

Autumn Quinoa Salad
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Salad
Cuisine: American
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • ½ cup roasted sweet potatoes or butternut squash, 1-1½ inch cubes
  • 1 Tablespoon oil, I used avocado
  • 2 cups arugula
  • ½ cup quinoa
  • 4 slices of bacon, chopped
  • 10 dried figs, halved
  • 1/ 4 cup pumpkin seeds
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400° F
  2. Toss potatoes with oil and spread onto a baking sheet to roast for 40 minutes or slightly browned
  3. Meanwhile prepare quinoa and render bacon on the stove for 10 minutes
  4. Let potatoes and bacon cool for five minutes before tossing with arugula, figs and pumpkin seeds
  5. Dress with your favorite vinaigrette or make one with 3 Tablespoons olive oil, 1 Tablespoon of your favorite vinegar, cracked pepper and salt to taste
  6. Best at room temperature

 

Mexican Corn

by 2 Comments

Well it’s about time. Thank you to everyone who encouraged me to keep posting. I was feeling a bit defeated and focused more attention on community driven projects. I’m still doing those things but with summer, I’ve got a teeny bit more time to do my stuff. Think tv shows, sprinklers and some mandatory quiet time so I can do what I need to do.

This recipe comes from my favorite cookbook, Food Lab with some alterations to make it not only dairy-free but with short cuts. I first had Mexican Street Corn aka Elote in Sedona, Arizone this spring at a wonderful restaurant of the same name. I think I ate an entire pound of it. It’s a fairly simple dish and according to my family, the cheese wasn’t necessary. Hope you like it as much as I do.

Mexican Corn
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Side Dish
Cuisine: Mexican
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 bag of trader joes, frozen roasted sweet corn (about 3 cups)
  • 2 tablespoons of oil, i used avocado
  • 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise
  • ½ cup of green onions, thinly sliced
  • ½ cup of cilantro, finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced or grated
  • 2 tablespoons of trader joes diced jarred sweet and spicy jalapenos
  • salt
  • chili powder
Instructions
  1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the frozen corn and spread evenly. Let simmer for a few minutes before stirring. Cook for another two minutes or until evenly heated through.
  2. Mix the mayo, green onions, cilantro, lime juice, garlic and jalapeno together with the cooked corn. Add salt and chili powder to taste. Serve room temperature or hot.

 

Sesame Carrot Noodles

by Leave a Comment

If you shop at Costco, you are no stranger to the ginormous 10lb bag of carrots that are available in their produce section. So often I would reach for them then think “there’s NO way we could get thru all of these” and put them back. Well, on Monday, I gave into the challenge and to my surprise, we’ve actually eaten a good portion of them. However, it was time for a new variation besides raw sticks. So I came up with this delicious “noodle” dish using my spiralizer. It tastes so much like a Japanese seaweed salad with out the jelly like texture. I’ll be honest, my kids weren’t sold but my husband and I slurped them up.

 

Sesame Carrot Noodles
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Side
Cuisine: Asian
Serves: 4-5
Ingredients
  • 7-8 large carrots or 4 cups of spiraled carrot noodles
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • 1 T sesame oil
  • 1 tsp garlic, minced
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ⅛ tsp pepper
  • ¼ cup rice vinegar
  • ⅛ cup + 1 T light oil like avocado, olive or vegetable, divided
  • ⅛ cup coconut aminos
  • ½ T red onion, finely diced
  • black or white sesame seeds
Instructions
  1. Spiralize the large part (about 1½ in in circumference) of the carrots to make into noodles
  2. Toss the noodles into a large skillet over medium heat with the Tablespoon of oil for about 5 minutes or until carrots are slightly softened
  3. Whisk together remaining ingredients except for onions and seeds for the dressing and pour over noodles
  4. Garnish with red onion and sesame seeds

Celery and Grapefruit Salad

by Leave a Comment

Celery_Grapefruit_Salad_loHappy 2017! Naturally, my first post of the year is a salad. Even though I’m not a big new years resolution kind of gal, I certainly can appreciate the need to eat better after too many cookies. Seriously, I made my peppermint cookies at least a half dozen times over the course of a month. Could. Not. Stop.

This time of year is tricky when it comes to seasonal produce or lack there of but one thing I seem to always have on hand is celery, my soup staple and dip boat. This salad is chalk full of the refreshing and crunchy vegetable and even includes the greens so don’t pitch ’em. You could easily use some fancy oils like hazelnut or walnut for more complex flavors but the salad is good as is and who wants to go buy an $8 bottle of oil that will likely go rancid before using it all. Practicality wins in my book!

Celery and Grapefruit Salad
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Salad
Cuisine: American
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 3 celery sticks
  • ½ chopped fennel bulb
  • 1 grapefruit, peeled and sliced to your liking
  • 2 T roughly chopped celery leaves
  • 1 scallion, thinly sliced crosswise
  • 3 T hazelnuts or walnuts, roasted and chopped
  • ½ teaspoon minced garlic
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • ⅛ cup lemon juice
  • salt and pepper
Instructions
  1. Roast hazelnuts or walnut at 350 F until brown (about 5 minutes) cool completely before roughly chopping
  2. Mix together grapefruit, celery, fennel, celery leaves and green onion into a medium sized bowl
  3. Whisk together minced garlic, oil and lemon juice and drizzle into the salad
  4. Toss and garnish with chopped hazelnuts and salt and pepper

 

Kale Beet Salad

by Leave a Comment

kale_beet_salad_loGeez. The holidays aren’t even upon us and I’m already throwing kale onto the site. I can’t apologize. This recipe was pretty much by accident and turned out delicious so I must share it. I’ve been wanting to post a kale recipe but I’ve ESPECIALLY been wanting to make a recipe with toasted walnuts because they are the BEST complement to any salad.

Now since I can’t add two recipes with my software, below is the hemp dressing I whipped up that paired well:
HEMP VINAIGRETTE
3 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
4 Tablespoons olive or avocado oil
1 teaspoon maple syrup (omit for Whole30)
1 teaspoon hemp seeds

Kale Beet Salad
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Salad
Cuisine: American
Serves: 4-6
Ingredients
  • 3-4 beets, cooked, peeled and quartered (I used the packaged kind all ready to go)
  • ½ bunch (or about 6 leaves) of dino kale, stems removed and roughly chopped
  • 2 slices of red onion, quartered
  • ½ cup of dried apple slices, cut up
  • ½ cup of toasted walnuts, chopped, (to toast place on a baking sheet into the 400° oven for 5 minutes or slightly darkened)
Instructions
  1. Toss all the ingredients together
  2. Drizzle with the dressing and toss again with your hands, paying special attention to coat the kale

 

Watermelon Salad

by Leave a Comment

watermelon_salad

It’s summer in full swing which means loads of fresh produce with little effort, right?! That’s been my motto anyways. I feel way more like a prep cook just slicing and dicing. I also have a wedding I’m bridesmaiding in a matter of days so all baking and sweet dishes are going to have to wait till after. Let’s just say I’ve been scheming an ice cream dessert for quite a while I hope to attack. Oh and that breakfast cookie I teased everyone with on instagram.

Watermelon has been so incredible these last few weeks and my family has already eaten three whole ones. The girls devour it. I’m an overachiever myself. This salad has made it especially wonderful. It’s a play on an appetizer a friend of mine introduced me to years ago that included buffalo mozzarella. That would also make a great addition to the salad if you can eat cheese. That or feta or ricotta salata.

Watermelon Salad
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Salad
Cuisine: American
Serves: 2
Ingredients
  • 1 cup cubed watermelon
  • 1 cup halved tomatoes, cherry or grape
  • ¾ cup diced seedless cucumber
  • small bunch of mint, finely diced
  • small bunch of basil, finely diced
  • (optional) balsamic vinegar
  • (optional) honey
Instructions
  1. Prep first 5 ingredients and mix into a bowl
  2. Whisk balsamic and honey together or use a already prepared glaze to drizzle over the salad

 

Egg Salad with Beets

by Leave a Comment

EggSaladwithBeets

Growing up, my Dad owned a a chain of sub shops called Pickle Barrel. One of his pride and joy recipes was his egg salad. His secret ingredient was Miracle Whip but I don’t eat the stuff anymore. I’m not even sure what it’s made of but egg salad is still a favorite of mine I just make it with mayo. This one is made with beets for some extra nutritional value and tartness. I ate it on some celery sticks but it tastes just as good on a crusty roll or cracker, according to my husband.

Egg Salad with Beets
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Salad
Cuisine: American
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 5 hard boiled eggs
  • 2 Tablespoons mayo
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
  • ½ cup roasted beets (I used the jarred trader joes variation)
  • 1 Tablespoon diced red onion
  • salt and pepper
  • (optional) 1 teaspoon fresh dill
  • bread, celery sticks, cucumber, field greens or whatever vehicle you prefer
Instructions
  1. Mix eggs, mayo, dijon, beets, red onion, dill, salt and pepper in a bowl.
  2. Serve with your preferred vehicle

 

Taco Salad

by Leave a Comment

 

Taco_SaladRemember when Taco Salads were considered the Big Mac of salads. Loaded with unhealthy ingredients fooling you into thinking you were eating something healthy because it was a salad. Yeah, I’m all for that. Why not really? You’re still eating vegetables whilst consuming the fats. It’s better than eating a burrito or sandwich in my opinion. So this version is my indulgent vegan salad. I can’t do cheese or sour cream obviously so why not load it up with stuff I can eat that’s not necessarily good for me. Insert- corn chips. A very under appreciated chip. They are so good and crunchy and really only three ingredients. Corn, oil and salt. I still haven’t reintroduced beans into my diet but if I could I’d add them to this bowl too. Or whatever meat you might like. I just wanted to keep this one vegan. To your health!

Taco Salad
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Salad
Cuisine: Mexican
Serves: 1 serving
Ingredients
  • 2½ cups romaine, chopped
  • ½ bell pepper, julienne
  • ½ cup plantain chips (I used the trader joes brand)
  • 4 cherry tomatoes, sliced
  • ½ Tablespoon red onion, finely diced
  • ½ avocado, diced
  • 1 Tablespoon salsa verde (I used a packaged guacamole mix from Fonterra)
  • ⅓ cup corn chips
  • Dash of hot sauce (optional)
Instructions
  1. Mix avocado with salsa verde
  2. Place romaine, peppers, tomatoes, and chips into bowl
  3. Top with the avocado mixture and onion
  4. Sprinkle salad with hot sauce

 

BLT Cups

by Leave a Comment

blt_cupsAppetizers have always been hard for me. My go-to for parties usually consist of veggie and fruit trays, guacomole and the occasional meatball. When you don’t eat bread or cheese …and now beans (sad face), most dips are out of the question as are many vehicles. However, I’ve discovered endive to be very satisfying and have made this amazing Food and Wine recipe numerous times if you like shrimp. It inspired me to try a lettuce cup app since it is easier to find year round and has a lighter flavor. And because the super bowl is this weekend, why not an indulgent appetizer with plenty of bacon.

BLT Cups
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Recipe type: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 6 medium sized leafy green lettuce leaves
  • 4 slices of bacon, cooked and sliced into ½ in strips
  • 1 cup halved grape tomatoes
  • ½ an avocado, diced
  • ½ Tablespoon red onion, finely diced
  • 1 Tablespoons mayo (homemade for whole30 compliant)
  • ½ Tablespoon lemon juice
  • cracked pepper
Instructions
  1. Render bacon to your liking, I bake mine for 10 minutes at 375°F
  2. Mix bacon, tomatoes, avocado, red onion, mayo and lemon juice in a bowl
  3. Scoop about ¼ cup of the mixture into the lettuce leaves
  4. Serve with cracked peppercorn
  5. Contents will keep for two hours