corn, blackbean, and spinach pita pockets

Since it's dead week and I really don't have all that much time to focus on blogging right now, this will be a short post.  I wanted to share a quick vegetarian snack/light lunch that is incredibly convenient, filling, and CHEAP!

 

CORN, BLACKBEAN, AND SPINACH PITA POCKETS
Makes 2 Pita Pockets, enough for a quick snack or light lunch

Ingredients:
2 Pita Pockets
about 1/2 cup of canned black beans, drained
about 1/4 cup of canned sweet corn, drained
handful of spinach (about 3/4-1 cup)
Cumin
Italian Spices
Salt
Pepper
Balsamic Vinegar (optional)
Olive Oil (optional)

Directions:

1. Toast pita pockets
2. Add black beans, corn, and a generous sprinkle of cumin, italian spices, salt, and pepper. Toss and throw in the microwave for about 45 seconds. 
3. Chop Spinach 
4. Add a layer of spinach to the bottom of the pita pocket, then a scoop about half of the corn-black bean mixture into the pita.  Top it off with a final layer of spinach. 
5. Repeat with second pita pocket.   
6. OPTIONAL: drizzle olive oil and/or balsamic vinegar inside the pita pocket.  Enjoy! 

    

A Beautiful Spring Day

My extremely talented and beautiful roommate, Liaht 

 

Theo the Bunny!



Sundried Tomato Basil Olive Oil Biscuits and my take on a post-workout Green Smoothie

Yesterday was such a beautiful spring day.  It began with a pleasant walk to Feast for some coffee.  I spent most of the afternoon enjoying the weather on my porch and choosing not to study for my two exams today (oops).  Liaht and our neighbor jammed out on the violin and guitar, while I made a that yellow flower headband on Liaht, played with the bunny,  and eventually joined the jam sesh on the tambourine.

A perfect day is not complete without baking.  I drew my inspiration for these olive-oil-based biscuits from Le Petit Cafe's rendition at the Bloomington Farmer's Market.  Adding sundried tomato and fresh basil to the recipe is the perfect way to give the biscuits more flavor without any added fat :).  There is no butter in the recipe, and really no need for any extra.  I also had time for some midday hot yoga, which is another essential part of my perfect day. My post-workout green smoothie features vitamin C rich kiwi, spinach, lime juice, avocado, aloe vera juice, and honey.  I always rolled my eyes when people claimed that "green smoothies can be good!" and "you can't even taste the spinach! "especially after tasting the unpleasant green smoothie from Bolthouse Farms.  Seriously though, this smoothie is probably one of my favorite smoothies EVER.  I tried this recipe for a Kiwi-Avocado-Lime smoothie.  The bold flavor of the kiwi and lime prompted me to realize that this recipe would be amazing for covering up the taste of spinach!  This is seriously the BEST way to get in a dose of raw veggies without even realizing it!

Days like these really make me realize how grateful I am for the wonderful people in my life.  Maybe this warm weather just has me an in exceptional mood, but I am going to miss my Blooomington friends so much next year.

SUN-DRIED TOMATO BASIL OLIVE OIL DROP BISCUITS
Makes 6-8 Biscuits

Ingredients:
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1 tsp of sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp baking powder
handful of sundried tomatoes (about 3-4 chopped into fine pieces)
handful of fresh basil (about 4-5 leaves chopped into fine pieces
1/4 cup of olive oil
1/2 cup of milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450F
2. Sift together dry ingredients 
3. Chop the sundried tomatoes and basil.  Add to the dry mixture.  
4. Add milk and olive oil
5. Mix well until thick, doughy consistency 
6. Spoon onto a baking sheet, using roughly a tablespoon per biscuit 
7. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden
8. Serve warm with iced tea and enjoy 

SO SIMPLE and SO delicious.  My friends loved them so much, I had to make a second batch later that night.  Doubling the recipe is probably a good idea if you have more than 3 people.  

Inspired by THIS recipe 

DELICIOUS GREEN SMOOTHIE

Makes 1 healthy and delicious post-workout smoothie

Ingredients: 

2 Kiwis, skinned and cubed

1/2 avocado, cubed 

1/8 cup + 1 tsp lime juice 

Handful of spinach (about 1 cup lightly packed) 

1-2 tsp honey 

1/4 cup aloe vera juice (available at most Asian markets) 

1-2 ice cubes (optional) 

Directions 

1. Literally just put everything in a blender and blend till smooth.  

Kiwi is excellent for any type of post-workout snack because it has an incredible amount of vitamin C, which helps the muscles recover if they are sore.  Kiwis also contain more vitamin C than an orange, which is part of the reason it is considered a superfood. 

Inspired by THIS recipe 

Crack Pie

So I have this terrible condition where I can't sleep.  Instead of sleeping I stay up all night staring at food; reading menus for places I want to try and recipes for things I want to make.  One night I was up late and drooling over Momofuku  Milk Bar's  incredible dessert menu, when I discovered you can actually order the sweets online to be shipped straight to your front door.  THE INFAMOUS CRACK PIE.  $44.

I can't believe I actually contemplated purchasing that pie.  What about that pie makes it worth $44?? The main ingredients are SO simple.  Butter (lots of butter), cream, , egg yolks, and brown sugar? None of those are extravagant in any way.  Sinful, yes, but expensive?  NO WAY.

After finding a recipe online from Bon Appetit Magazine, I discovered the only thing I actually had to go out and buy was cream.  Everything else was already in my kitchen.  Making the pie takes a little while and the pie has to set overnight, but OH MY GOD.  Words cannot even describe.  I am extremely ashamed to admit this, but I ate half (yes, an entire half, no exaggeration) of the pie in one day, by myself.  You would think using two sticks of butter for the whole pie would keep me from doing so...but this pie is seriously like crack.  (I had a visual image of myself unwrapping an entire stick of butter and eating cubes of it with a fork and knife...YUCK)

A few tips on making this pie: DON'T BE IMPATIENT!  I was SO anxious to try it, I didn't let it set for as long as I should have.  Make sure you let it sit in the fridge at least 9 hours before taking it out.  I finished making the pie around 12 and literally woke up at 7am to try it.  It was a little bit runny as you can see in the first picture.  If you want your pie to completely hold its shape, don't be like me.

I don't have a reference point, so I can't really say whether this pie tastes exactly like the one of at Milkbar.  However, I would have to say that this pie turned out AMAZING.  I will definitely be making this recipe again...although next time for a big group of people so I don't end up eating it practically by myself again.

Recipe from Bon Appetit