Beet Pesto Sauce

I can honestly say this was ONE of the most delicious pasta dishes I’ve ever had. There is nothing I love more than creating a dish that looks AND tastes this good…

Believe it or not, this recipe was super easy. I’ve always loved trying different versions of pasta sauces. I can’t deny my love for classic marinara but it can often be so acidic…beets are a great alternative!

This beet pesto sauce is packed with vitamins and minerals from the beets and healthy fats from the walnuts and EVOO. Plus the texture was so smooth, creamy, and nutty!

Ingredients:

4 beets (roasted or steamed)

4 cloves of garlic

3-4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons of red chili pepper flakes

1 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup of walnuts (almond or pine nuts would work too!)

Feta cheese

Fresh Dill

1 lb of your pasta of choice

Pasta water

Prep:

1. Cook your beets. I cut and trimmed the leaves and ends and drizzled with a little Olive Oil. Then, individually wrap them in tin foil, and roast on 400 degrees for about 50 minutes. Once they’re done, I cut them in thirds to process easily in the blender.

2. Cook 1 pound of your favorite pasta al dente. Save a little bit of the pasta water while it’s cooking, this will help to thin the beet pesto. Set pasta aside and drizzle with a little olive oil. I used a white linguine because I really wanted to taste the flavor of the beets!

3. In a blender (I used my NutriBullet) pulse the walnuts and garlic. Then add your beets, red wine vinegar, olive oil, salt, and red chili pepper flakes. Blend until smooth and creamy.

4. Mix the pesto with the linguine. Use a little bit of the pasta water you reserved to break up the sauce if need be.

5. Mix together fresh chopped dill, feta cheese, and olive oil to crumble on top of the pasta and serve.

That color though…enjoy!

Broccoli Kale Pesto

This was a delicious blend of nutritious vegetables that came together to make this “creamy” pesto sauce. There is nothing better than packing nutrients, superfoods, and leafy green vegetables into a pasta dish. If you agree, this recipe was super easy and fun to make.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of broccoli

• 1 cup of kale

• 1 cup of fresh basil

• 1/3 cup of parmesan cheese

• 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil

• 3/4 cup of almonds, walnuts, or pine nuts

• 4 cloves of garlic

• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice or juice from 1/2 a lemon

• Salt and pepper to taste

• 1/2 - 3/4 cups of pasta water

• 1 lb. of pasta

The consistency of the pesto sauce was creamy, smooth, and tasted incredible.

Preparation:

• Wash and stem the broccoli and kale. Steam, and then set aside.

• Cook the pasta al dente and set aside. Reserve a filled coffee mug with pasta water while it’s boiling.

• In a blender, pulse the garlic and nuts until smooth. Then add the kale, broccoli, basil, parmesan cheese, olive oil, a little pasta water, and blend until smooth. If your blender is small, you can always add little bits at a time! Add more pasta water if need be, and salt to taste.

• Pour the pesto over the pasta. You may need to add a little hot pasta water to loosen it up.

Vegetable Wild Rice with Orange Zest (Copy)

This was an absolutely delicious grain bowl packed with flavor, protein, and beautiful colors. I used the zest of an orange which gave this bowl a punch of flavor like no other. #eattherainbow

This dish makes for a great side paired with your protein of choice, or for your main over a bed of greens topped with an avocado. Either way, this grain bowl was incredibly delicious and nourishing.

The wild rice gives this dish a great structure, texture, and full bodied flavor. Plus it holds a higher amount of protein and fiber than that of your typical brown or white rice.

If you don’t have all the ingredients, you can easily improvise as shown below! Make this bowl your own :)

Ingredients:

2 cups of Long Grain Wild Rice (I use Lundberg)

3 tablespoons of olive oil

1 cup of golden raisins (sub: raisins, craisins, or dried apricots)

1 1/2 cup of chopped carrots

1 1/2 cup of chopped celery

1 small yellow onion

1 cup of fresh parsley (sub: cilantro would also be delicious)

1 cup of chopped almonds (sub: chopped pecans, walnuts, or hazelnuts)

Zest from an orange

Prep:

1. In a cast iron skillet (totally worth the investment especially if you are working with grains often!) or a medium saucepan, cook your long grain brown rice. I make it with vegetable stock! This rice typically takes about 45-50 minutes to cook fully.

2. In a medium skillet, sauté the onions with olive oil, carrots, and celery with a sprinkle of salt. Add a cover and turn the heat to low until the carrots cook through. Add golden raisins and orange zest and let the flavors cook and merge together for one minute. Remove from heat and set the sautéed mixture aside.

3. When the rice is fully cooked, stir in the sautéed mixture followed by parsley and chopped almonds. Salt to taste and serve!

Chickpea Quinoa bowl with Cilantro Lime Dressing (Copy)

If you haven’t noticed colorful nutritious bowls have been getting me through this quarantine…they’re easy, healthy, and always turn out beautiful.

This quinoa salad reminded me of summer. We had it this weekend while enjoying the sunshine.

I was originally going to use black beans, but realized I didn’t have any when I went to make the salad. Chickpeas came to the rescue! As a vegetarian I always have cans of beans ready to go…chickpeas are one of my favorite legume. They’re rich in protein and fiber which will help keep you full. They serve as one of the main sources of protein in this bowl. Not to mention they have give this salad a delicious buttery and nutty flavor!

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Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups of cooked quinoa

1 can of chickpeas

1 corn on the cob (boiled)

Pumpkin Seeds

For the cilantro lime vinaigrette

1/2 cup of fresh cilantro

1/2 teaspoon of cumin

1/2 chopped red onion

1/4 cup of olive oil

Lime juice from 1 lime (or 3 teaspoons of lime juice)

1 chopped jalapeño

Salt and Pepper

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Prep

Much of why I love this grain salad is because the prep is super easy. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Cook your quinoa with vegetable stock. I made 1 1/2 cups and used about 3 cups of vegetable stock. Bring the stock and quinoa to a boil, then cover and simmer on the lowest heat for about 25 minutes. Do not mix so the quinoa holds its shape!

2. In a small saucepan, boil water with salt. Add corn on the cob and cook in boiling water for 7 minutes. Cut the corn off of the cob and set aside.

3. Make the vinagrette: in a medium size bowl stir together olive oil, red onion, cilantro, finely chopped jalapeño (I only kept a few of the seeds), lime juice, cumin, salt, and pepper until all ingredients are mixed together.

4. Once the vegetable stock evaporates, add chickpeas, and corn. Mix well and then add your vinaigrette!

5. This quinoa salad goes great with sour cream on top, in a wrap, over chopped romaine lettuce for a By Chloe vibe, in a wrap, or in a lettuce cup.

   You can sprinkle pumpkin seeds on before serving. I tried all of the above variations as this made about 5 servings! Have fun eating this salad in many different forms :)

Vegan Ceasar Salad

I have always loved a good ceasar salad. This is my healthy version that is also vegan. I make it for lunch about once a week and it’s super filling! You get a nice serving of plant-based protein from the chickpeas, healthy fats from the avocado and almonds, and vitamins and nutrients from the avocado. Put it in a wrap, or eat it as it is. Either way the flavors in this salad are an automatic crowd pleaser…

Prep and Ingredients

1. In a large bowl, add your dressing contents and mix well. Then add chopped raw kale and romaine and massage into the dressing for about a minute. This process is key to breaking down the toughness of the raw kale…

2. Roast chickpeas with olive oil, salt, and pepper on a parchment paper lined baking sheet in the oven for 400 degrees. Chop 1 avocado, and chop 1/2 cup of raw almonds.

3. Top the kale and romaine with chickpeas, avocado, almonds, a squeeze of lemon, and red pepper flakes for a little extra heat.

For the dressing

3 tablespoons of tahini, or plain hummus (I can’t tell which one I like more…)

1 tablespoon of dijon mustard 

3 tablespoons of olive oil 

2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar 

Red chili flakes 

Lemon juice and zest 

1 tablespoon of nutritional yeast

1/2 teaspoon of Garlic powder 

For the salad base

Chopped raw kale and romaine lettuce

1 can of chickpeas

Crushed raw almonds

Avocado

2 tablespoons of capers