This easy nut and seed snack mix can be made ahead of time for your next party. Serve it during cocktail hour or make it a special addition to the dessert table.
I had my fair share of store-bought, flavored nuts before I realized just how easy they are to make at home. A little of your favorite sweetener, some butter or coconut oil and a few spices, plus some relatively low maintenance time in the oven, and you have a holiday gift for friends or a party snack.
This single serving breakfast recipe combines roasted peppers and arugula for scrambled eggs that are simple, but special. 
I often get asked – how do you find ideas for recipes?
Like most people, I find inspiration just about everywhere. Sometimes I get an idea, make a list and ponder it for a while. Other times, I stand in front of the fridge, trying to figure out what to have for breakfast. I grab a few ingredients, mix them together and it tastes so good that I think maybe someone else who is trying to eat protein-rich breakfasts might enjoy it.
This is one of those recipes.
This recipe uses a gluten-free filling made with olives and almond meal. White button mushroom caps are stuffed with the filling, covered in an easy marinara and baked until tender.
Almond meal is my new bread crumb. I sprinkle it on as a topping, coat fish and chicken with it, and use it to make fillings and stuffings. It doesn’t get quite as crunchy as bread crumbs, but it does add a pleasant sweetness. It also makes a grain-free alternative, so if you want to reduce grains or add some protein, it will do the trick.
I picked up some white button mushrooms last week. Yes, I know. At first glance they seem boring, but they are one of my favorite varieties. They are easy to work with, cook quickly and stay tender. This batch was on the big side, as in about 2 1/2 to 3 inches in diameter for each mushroom. Perfect for stuffing.
I’ve been combining green olives with tomato sauces a lot lately. I love the saltiness of the olives with the sweetness of the tomatoes, so I kept that theme with these mushrooms by adding olives to the stuffing.
The almond meal works so well with these. There is enough moisture in the vegetables to create a stuffing you can mold easily, but if you find yours is a little dry, feel free to add a tablespoon or two of stock to get it to the right consistency.
If you use this as a side dish, it can easily serve 3 and maybe even 4. But if you serve it as a main course like I did, plan on 2, possibly 3. After your first helping you are going to want a few more, so plan accordingly!
We’ve lived in California less than two years and I’ve already started to lose track of the seasons. I grew up around all sorts of berries in Indiana and I visited the orchards in Kentucky so I could tell you exactly when strawberry, blueberry, peach, plum and apple season where in full swing at different points throughout the summer.
But here? Here, most of those fruits last all summer long.
It’s quite the experience for the fruit and vegetable lover. I aim to cherish every moment of it, while still grounding myself with thoughts of those produce-lacking winter seasons spent in Kentucky.
Protein for breakfast.
Of all the improvements we’ve made to our eating habits over the past year or so, this has been the best one by far.
I wasn’t a complete stranger to a high protein morning meal. I’d have eggs on occasion, or a shake with nut meal, but it wasn’t until we started focusing on eating a lot of protein first thing that I realized how much I relied on carbohydrates for breakfast.
Now, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I still work in yogurt with fruit and oatmeal, especially when we are training for a race, but these carb focused breakfasts seemed to be making me crave something sweet every morning.
Once we made the switch, things changed pretty drastically.
Friday is cookbook review day throughout the summer here at Fake Food Free. If you have a love of cookbooks be sure to swing back by for plenty of new ideas and recipes.
I don’t like to call it an addiction. That makes it sound as though it’s a bad thing.
Let’s go with attraction.
Yes. I have a strong attraction to canning and preserving cookbooks.
I have my mom’s old ones, I collect new ones and I never turn down the offer to test one out. Regardless of how simple or complex the recipes in the book may be, I always manage to find something I have never canned before.
This kale and pistachio soup is a year-round favorite. The greens and nuts make it hearty and filling while lemon adds a burst of fresh flavor to lighten it up.
I read something awful the other day.
Someone was pleading on social media that the kale trend come to an end.
No kale? I shudder to think of a week without it.
Well, okay. I get it if you don’t like it. I’m that way with beets (and yes, I’ve tried them every way possible). So if you fall into that category, all of us who are constantly singing kale’s praises can probably get annoying.
Kale is definitely not a trend that is going to pass around here, though. In fact, I’m grateful that it hit such popularity when it did because I rarely used to eat it. Now I’m constantly buying new varieties and I’ve grown my own. I do fall into a rut and get a little tired of it, but then my love returns and it starts making its way back into my shakes and side dishes.
If you’ve grown kale you know that it tends to get a little crazy (if you can keep the bugs off of it). I just overheard a conversation a few weeks ago from someone who was looking for more ideas for using it because it wouldn’t stop growing. I’ve been there.
This recipe to the rescue!
Soup is a year round food for me and at first glance a kale soup may seem too autumn-ish for the season we are about to move into. Don’t be fooled. This soup is perfect for summer! The light and nutty flavor of the pistachios and a little lemon make the flavor completely bright and refreshing.
Thanks for reading! All images and content are the property of Fake Food Free unless otherwise stated. Please do not republish full recipes and images without written permission. What is okay? Feel free to Pin images, share links to my posts or share the photo with the title of this recipe and a link back to the post. Confused about copyright and food blogs? Here is some helpful information on Recipe Attribution. If you want to use a photo or full recipe, just ask. I’m sure we can work something out.
So when it comes to dinner, I am seeking simple.
I tend to master this pretty well, but sometimes things can get too simple. I pick up a few vegetables at the market and then stare at them for a good 15 minutes in the evenings trying to figure out how I can season them to avoid another serving of bland steamed broccoli or kale chips (although I do love a good kale chip).
Ingredients
Heat the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the broccoli and onion. Cook for about 1 minute. Add the zucchini and yellow squash, cook for about 3 more minutes. Add the bell pepper and cook until the vegetables reach your desired doneness (for me, it’s about 3 more minutes).
Every time I make a stuffed mushroom recipe, I have to research the correct spelling – portobello or portabella.
Have you ever Googled this topic? It’s more debated than most health information.
Some say one or the other is translated from Italian. Others say it was a name made up by the U.S. mushroom industry and has no roots in any specific culture. Still others say that our made-up word in the U.S. has replaced what used to be the correct name in other countries. And with all that, there is still no clear answer. Does anyone really know at this point?
The best advice I’ve seen is that it’s up to author and both are correct. This leaves me uneasy, though. When it comes to food names, I really like to be correct, especially if the name has some historic or language-specific meaning.
One thing I have learned is that I may have been meshing the two and creating my own word in the past. I could have sworn that portobella was an option.
Ooops.
For this recipe, I think I’m going to go with portobello. An “o” because, oh my goodness, these portobello mushroom caps I picked up at Trader Joe’s were huge! I’ve never seen such monstrous caps.
They tasted delicious, stuffed with chickpeas, sautéed spinach and shallots with a hint of coriander. They also happen to be vegetarian, vegan and grain-free, if you are in the market for foods that fit those categories. The ratio of mushroom to filling was just a little heavier on the mushroom side. So if you set out to make these hearty portobellos (great, now I’m questioning myself on the correct plural of the word), opt for some small to medium sized mushroom caps.And if you have a reference on the portabella vs. portobello debate, do tell.
Makes 2 servings
1 tbsp + 2 tsp olive oil (or your favorite cooking oil)
2 medium portobello mushroom caps
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small shallot, finely chopped
2 cups loosely packed spinach leaves, chopped
1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas (rinsed and drained if using canned)
1 tbsp almond meal
1 tbsp low sodium vegetable stock
¼ tsp ground coriander
1/8 to ¼ tsp fine ground sea salt
Pinch of ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Wipe the mushrooms with a clean, damp cloth and gently scrape out the gills. Use the 2 teaspoons of olive oil to lightly coat each cap and grease the bottom of a baking dish or sheet pan. Place the mushrooms gill-side up in the pan.
In a small skillet, heat the 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high. Add the shallots and garlic. Cook about 1 minute, until the oil begins to bubble, and then reduce the heat to medium to prevent burning. Cook for about 3 more minutes, until softened.
Stir in the spinach and cook for about 1 more minute, just until the spinach wilts. Remove from the heat. Transfer the vegetables to a large bowl.
Add the chickpeas to the bowl and use a potato masher to combine all ingredients, gently mashing the beans while you work. You will want the beans to be slightly chunky once the ingredients are mixed.
Stir in the almond meal and stock. Add the coriander and the salt according to taste. Start with 1/8 teaspoon and add more if you’d like. Stir in the pinch of black pepper.Divide the chickpea mash in two and divide it between the two mushroom caps. Pack it firmly and mound it slightly to fill the mushroom.Bake for 20 minutes, or until the mushroom is tender and the filling is slightly browned.
Purple vegetables.
Need I say more?
I have no idea why I’m so drawn to purple produce, but the responses to the photos that I share on Instagram tell me I’m not alone.
And it’s not just any purple veggie, either. It’s the new stuff. The poor eggplant and cabbage that I’ve always known to be purple get trampled on my way to see a head of purple cauliflower or these…
Purple Brussels sprouts!
I found them while I was browsing Whole Foods a few days ago. I had no idea they existed, but you better believe I bought some!
When it comes to flavor and texture, I’d say they are exactly the same as their green sisters, which I still love. But these purple bundles can really dress up a salad. Especially when everyone around me seems to need a serious dose of spring.
I used mostly purple sprouts with a few green to add more color. If you can only find green, don’t worry. It will taste the same. If the opportunity arises do pick up some of the purple variety, though. And if you know of more purple veggies that might be new to me, do share. I have this overwhelming desire to try them ALL.
Makes: 4 servings
1 lb. Brussels sprouts, stemmed and thinly sliced
3 green onions, sliced
Juice of two navel oranges
1 clove garlic, grated
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp orange zest
¼ to ½ tsp sea salt (to taste)
Pinch of black pepper
1/3 cup pecan halves, roughly chopped
Place the Brussels sprouts and onions in a large bowl.
In a small bowl, whisk together the orange juice, garlic, olive oil, orange zest, salt and black pepper.
Pour the dressing over the vegetables and stir to coat evenly. Stir in the pecans.
I prefer it served right away at room temperature. It will stay fresh a day or two in the fridge.
