Seasonal Veggie Wrap

I've been eating this crunchy wrap for lunch often. I use whatever we have on hand from our CSA basket, whatever leftovers might be in the fridge, and a good dressing. I've actually become quite obsessed with dressings lately, but that's a topic for another day.

Let's take a look!

And now . . . the closeup!


SEASONAL VEGGIE WRAP

What you'll need . . .

• A wrap -- I buy mine (multigrain) at Aldi
• A green -- I used spinach
• Something(s) crunchy -- I used carrots and bell peppers
• A spread -- I made some Tahini-Free Hummus*
• A bean or grain -- I had some leftover farro
• Cheese -- this is honey goat cheese**
• Dressing -- this is Brianna's Poppy Seed Dressing
• Drizzle -- I like to use hot sauce or even Inglehoffer Sriracha Mustard

* Tahini-Free Hummus is just 1 can of chickpeas -- drained + rinsed -- blended in your food processor with a clove of garlic, a couple tablespoons olive oil, and then 1/4 to 1/2 cup water (until you reach your desired consistency). Season with salt and pepper.

** Omit to make this "recipe" vegan.

Method . . . 

1. Assemble the ingredients as I did above. There are no rules, so feel free to put them on your wrap in whatever order makes the most sense to you. I find it helpful to cut my crunchy veggies into thin strips for easy eating.
2. Hunt in your refrigerator shelves for more leftovers (rogue beans make a good fit) to toss on. Really, this "recipe" is a great way to eliminate food waste.
3. Dress and drizzle for flavor. Then roll into a loose wrap. Everything will be heaping, so you won't have an airtight seal by any means.

What's your favorite seasonal fruit or vegetable?

I'm most excited for TOMATOES to come into full bloom (here's why!). I love Caprese Salads, homemade BBQ Sauce, slow roasted tomatoes, and quick-to-prepare Pasta Sauces.

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Beet + Goat Cheese + Avocado = Salad

We roasted more beets over the weekend. This time, a double batch filled two of our cast-iron dishes. I definitely prefer this method to using foil. An no matter how many times I follow it, I still marvel at the magenta hues they leave behind on my fingertips and in the sink.

Instead of toiling over a chutney, we decided to make a simple beet "salad." Roast, skin, slice, and eat. Beets alone? Doesn't sound like much of a salad at all. So, we rolled a log of goat cheese in some dill.

Added a generous helping of 5-minute naan. Yum.


But something was still missing. Then we found an avocado hiding out in the bottom of the produce bin in our refrigerator. Sliced it. Drizzled it all with some olive oil + salt and pepper. Balsamic would have been another tasty addition.


Ada enjoyed some beets, too!


Don't let that face fool you. She gobbled them all up. Almost as fast as she devoured her tofu the other night. Introducing foods to Ada is fun. Although, for the last couple days, she's been slowing down and refusing to eat solids. I doubt she's being picky just yet -- I think that's saved for toddlerhood.

Anyway, this was a fantastic way to use up our beets. I'm sure we'll get more soon, so I need to think of new uses for them.


What fun ways have you found to use up CSA produce? Our basket has been plentiful. It's a workout finding ways to eat it all.

Today on Writing Chapter Three, we've written up some way that we're moving forward with organics at the grocery store. And stay turned to this blog for a grocery/bulk bag review and giveaway!


PS: In my deals searching this morning I came across a deal for runners! The Garmin Forerunner 110 w/ heart rate monitor for $149.99 -- $80 off (Amazon.com's deal of the day). I often use Stephen's watch, the 210, but am considering getting this one for myself.

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Open-Faced Asparagus and Tofu Sandwich

Those Chevron Peanut Butter Cookie Bars are a tough act to follow. That's for sure. But today's recipe is for a super open-faced sandwich. And it's pretty customizable, which I love. It may seem like a lot of steps for a sandwich -- but well worth it, I promise.

NOM.

OPEN-FACED ASPARAGUS AND TOFU SANDWICH

What you'll need . . .

• 1 cake of extra firm tofu, drained
• Some type of spices to rub in (we used a smoked paprika-chipotle combo)
• 6 to 9 sprigs of asparagus
• Goat cheese (ours was a fig variety)
• Sliced French bread (3 slices)
• 1 small onion, sliced
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon maple syrup

Method . . .

1. Once you've drained the tofu, cut it into three big slabs. Then rub in a generous amount of spice.
2. In a frying pan over medium-high heat, toss in 2 tablespoons oil. Then cook tofu on each side until well browned. Set aside.
3. In the same pan, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Then toss in the onions. Cook for a couple minutes. Then add the maple syrup. Cook until browned. Set aside.
4. Steam asparagus by pouring 1/4 cup of water into a high rimmed pan. Put in your asparagus once the water is boiling. Then cover and let steam for 5 to 7 minutes. Set aside.
5. Toast bread to your liking. Then spread a generous amount of goat cheese on each slice.
6. Place a slab of cooked tofu atop the bread. Then the asparagus. Then the onions.
7. Repeat with all slices.

So, as you see, we're eating more soy. (By the way, we got a ton of great, thoughtful comments on last week's post about the topic. If you haven't weighed in yet, now's your chance!)

If you're following Writing Chapter Three, there are a couple new posts for you to catch up on. First, I wrote about how Ada's 5 months old and we're swaddling again. And today I wrote the second installment of the Zero-Intervention Hospital Birth series: Goals.

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READER SPOTLIGHT: Karina's Goat Cheese Bruschetta

Good morning, everyone. I'm so happy to share with you all our very first Reader Spotlight post. Karina -- who runs her own food blog, Project K -- is a regular here, so we were thrilled when she sent us the recipe for her tasty Goat Cheese Bruschetta.

Karina writes:

Goat cheese bruschetta is always a hit around my place. The goat cheese is a fresh change on bruschetta from mozzarella or parmesan that most restaurants use. My goat cheese bruschetta is always the first thing to get gobbled up at any party and I thought it was time to share the recipe. I hope you give it a chance and get creative with it. If you don’t like goat cheese, I suggest using mozzarella, parmesan or a sharp parmigiano reggiano. 


INGREDIENTS

• 1 beefsteak tomato, chopped
• 6 roma (plum) tomatoes, chopped
• 1 dozen cherry tomatoes, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, stems removed, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 French baguette
• 1 cup goat cheese

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat your oven on the broiler setting.
2. In a large bowl, combine everything but the bread and cheese, and let it sit for at least ten minutes, the longer the better to let the flavours fuse together.
3. Cut the baguette into 3/4 inch slices, cutting on a slight diagonal. Arrange your bread slices on a cookie sheet and place under broiler for 1-2 minutes.
4. Remove bread from oven.
5. Add the tomato mixture on top of the toasted baguettes, and top with goat cheese.
6. Broil for five minutes or until cheese is starting to brown at edges. Serve warm.

If you'd like to read the rest of Karina's post, head over to her blog. We think this recipe would make a great, classy Super Bowl dish -- or even just a wonderful starter for any party or special dinner you might have in the near future (Valentine's Day, anyone?)





Thanks again to Karina for generously offering up her recipe to us for our very first READER SPOTLIGHT! And if you'd like to be featured, just check out yesterday's post with all the details about the spotlight, as well as guest posting opportunities. And keep an eye out for Molly's jetlag cure, kale and white bean soup -- which will be featured in next Friday's post.

Like what you just read? You can subscribe to the feed of these posts or follow us on Twitter or Facebook to be the first to know what the (never home)makers are up to. And we’ll love you forever!

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