Recipes (Keep comments in a separate thread!)

Turkey and Butternut Squash Patties

Makes about 6 patties:

7 oz ground turkey
about 7 oz roasted and mashed butternut squash (Pro tip: I roast mine ahead of time and keep them in the freezer just to save myself some effort later.😉)
1 clove garlic
1 egg
oregano
basil
salt
pepper
a couple tablespoons of oats

Just mix everything together and shape them into patties on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush them with a little olive oil. Bake at 400°F until both sides are cooked through. (I usually flip them halfway through to make sure they get even.🙂)

The squash gives them a slightly sweet vibe, but honestly, I’m kind of digging it.🙂

Homemade Rye Lasagna with Turkey and Sweet Potato

The BB crowd is going to love these lasagna bites! 😁
It’s about 460 kcal per serving, and I managed to stretch it into 4 really hearty portions.

Honestly? You're better off making the pasta from scratch. But hey, if you're running on empty and don't have the time, you can just grab some whole grain sheets at Walmart. Just a heads up though—those specialty ones are pricey as hell.

Pasta Ingredients
200 g rye flour
3 eggs
A pinch of salt and a teaspoon of olive oil

Filling
500 g ground turkey meat
3 carrots
400 g sweet potato
2 onions
3 cloves of garlic
500 g tomato puree (the boxed kind works great)
Seasoning: salt, pepper, oregano, paprika, curry powder...

I've laid out the full step-by-step process here.

For the last couple of months, I’ve been playing around with different ways to do dairy-free meals. Since I’m on this super strict program right now, even my "meatless" options are starting to feel a little repetitive, so I’m trying to get creative to keep things interesting.🤦

So, I tried mixing about 9 ounces of dairy-free yogurt, 2 eggs, a tiny bit of stevia, and 2 tablespoons of shredded coconut.😁 I baked the whole thing in the oven. 😬 It actually turns out pretty decent, though it might not be for everyone if you aren't a big fan of coconut.😳 😁

When I'm just not feeling like eating plain leftovers, I usually take whatever roasted meat and veggies I have left and pour a mixture of dairy-free yogurt and eggs over them before popping them back in the oven. I’ve done something similar with kale, but lately, I’ve been stuffing veggies with a ground filling mixed with a bit of dairy-free yogurt and egg. Honestly, I’m just trying to trick myself because I’m seriously craving cheese.🤣

I also make all sorts of soups from different vegetables, blend them up with an immersion blender to make creamy versions, and they go great with some L'Oréal light cottage cheese.👍

With fish or cutlets, I’ve been making various veggie rolls and sauces based on dairy-free yogurt, but I’ll wait until I get some photos taken before I post those so I can present them properly.😁

Found some stuff on CNN that actually looks pretty decent 🙂

Turkey salad

Turkey and avocado salad

Sage turkey roll—not a fan of the potatoes here, though—I’d probably swap those out for some tomatoes instead 🙂

Oatmeal Cake

Ingredients

* 160 g egg whites (about 4 eggs)
* 50 g maraschino cherries
* 50 g raisins
* 1 large apple
* 200 g cottage cheese
* 350 g oats

INSTRUCTIONS

Whip those egg whites until they're super fluffy!

Fold in the fruit and the cottage cheese, then give it one more quick mix.

Throw in the apples. You can grate them, but I usually just chop them up—I put half in the batter and slice the rest on top.

Stir in the oats.

Pour everything into a baking pan, arrange the apple slices on top, and bake at about 350-400 °F for 30-40 mins. You want it golden brown and for the extra moisture from the apples to cook off.

You can pop this in the fridge and just zap it in the microwave for like 30 seconds in the morning. Since the fruit is the main sweetener, feel free to toss in extra apples or a bit of honey if you need it sweeter!

Gotta give a quick shoutout to quietpilot87 for basically saving my breakfast, though this probably won't stay relevant in the thread for long...

Throw one egg, maybe 5-6 tablespoons of oats, and a splash of milk into the blender—just enough to make it pourable onto a non-stick pan. Oh, and hit it with some salt.
Blend that mess, pour it into the pan, and let it cook over low heat for a few minutes on each side.
Pull it out and spread some dairy-free cream cheese on it. You can throw whatever you want in there.

Turkey ham, eggs, whatever—treat it like a wrap. It’s a killer breakfast for me. Plus, zero effort, takes maybe 10 minutes tops.

quietpilot87 said:I know, totally pointless nonsense,

reading this thread from the jump, really zoning in, and then I remembered this killer pea recipe for a side dish...

saute some onions, once they’re translucent throw in a bit of garlic, let that smell hit, then toss in the peas (cooked or canned) and top it with blended crushed tomatoes (thicker, so let it simmer longer) or tomato sauce (runnier, cooks faster).
Obviously, salt and pepper.

Used to love eating this just with mashed potatoes, but lately, it's been more of a grilled chicken thing for me...

Mock Claypita
(Serves 4 hungry people)

1.1 lbs chicken breast
3 medium carrots
2 onions
6 medium potatoes
1/4 root of celery
7 oz mushrooms (cremini work great, though I’ve used porcini before)
About 20 olives
Salt
Black pepper
Oregano
Sage
Rosemary
2 tablespoons olive oil
Bay leaf
A bit of parsley

First, dice the chicken breast into roughly 1.5cm cubes and season them well. Then, clean and slice the onion, celery, carrots, potatoes, olives (you can leave them whole if you like), and mushrooms into thin slices.

Layer everything in a ceramic or oven-safe dish. Start with a little bit of each vegetable, then add a layer of meat, and just keep alternating layers until you reach the top—make sure the very last layer is vegetables. Toss in a bay leaf and drizzle about half a tablespoon of olive oil over the top.
Cover the dish tightly with parchment paper and tie it shut with kitchen twine or some thick string.
Pop it into a preheated oven at 425°F for about 45 minutes.

Oh, and if you don't happen to have any ceramic or oven-safe dishes lying around, don't worry! You can just use parchment paper instead. Lay all the ingredients out on a large sheet of paper just like I described above, then gather up the edges and tie them together with twine to create a little parcel, and bake that.

Feel free to swap out the veggies! For instance, you could use sweet potatoes instead of regular potatoes without losing any of that lovely quality. You can also mix and match with whatever you have on hand, like broccoli, parsnips, sweet potatoes, spinach, or Swiss chard.
And honestly, just season everything to your own taste. Personally, I tend to lean toward Mediterranean spices🙂 since that was my main inspiration for this dish.😉

Here are a few photos showing the process from start to finish!🙂

http://img716.imageshack.us/g/dscf5210k.jpg/

Jamie Ramos48 said:Shoutout to quietpilot87 for saving my breakfast. This might get buried in this thread, whatever...

Throw an egg, 5-6 spoons of oats, and a splash of milk into a blender just so it pours easily onto a non-stick pan. Add salt, obviously.
Blend it, pour it into the pan, and cook it on low heat for a few minutes per side.
Pull it out, spread some dairy-free cream on it—throw whatever you want in there.

You could go with Turkey ham, eggs, or hell, anything. Like a wrap. It’s a killer breakfast. Takes maybe 10 minutes tops.

Used these pancakes instead of tortillas for enchiladas. Filled them with sautéed chicken, tomatoes, three-color bell peppers, beans, and chili.
Topped it off with a Yogurt and L'Oréal dairy-free mix plus garlic and chives.

Total perfection, tasted legit. Plus, it's all basically just ingredients for a solid, healthy lunch.

Vegetable Whole Wheat Pasta

1 large red bell pepper
1 large yellow or green bell pepper
2 small Pumpkin squash
1 eggplant
1/2 lb cherry tomatoes or 2 standard tomatoes
A handful of olives (feel free to go overboard here)

Start by boiling your whole wheat pasta; personally, I find spaghetti works best.
Next, dice all the vegetables into small cubes, though you should just halve the cherry tomatoes—if you're using regular ones, larger chunks are fine.
Toss all the veggies together in a bowl and drizzle them with olive oil. Season with Mediterranean herbs: rosemary, thyme, oregano, and basil. Add a pinch of salt or some McCormick seasoning. You don't need much, as the olives provide plenty of saltiness once they release their juices. Mix everything well and let it marinate for about 10 minutes.
Then, toss the mixture into a hot pan and sauté until the vegetables soften and start releasing their flavor.
Finally, add the spaghetti to the pan and stir over low heat until the pasta is thoroughly coated in the vegetable juices. Let it sit for a few minutes to cool slightly, and you're done. It’s a delicious, reliable staple that makes a regular appearance on my weekly meal plan.😍

Tried making a healthier spin on one of my favorite sides today—apple quinoa. Swapped out the rice for quinoa, so we're looking at apple quinoa here.

Just sauté some diced onion in butter or olive oil, splash in a little water, then toss in two small apples that I chopped up. Season it however you want—salt and pepper or just throw in some McCormick. Then, toss in half a 0.3 cup of rinsed quinoa plus another half cup of water and let it simmer for about 20 minutes.

Honestly? It’s actually delicious, even if it doesn't look like much at first glance.😁

I’ve been following this thread for a little while now, and I figured I’d jump in and share a recipe I make quite frequently. It’s always a hit at our house! I hope I’m not repeating anything already mentioned—though, knowing how much we love food, I probably am—but this is my own little twist on the concept, so here goes:
Oatmeal Veggie Patties>
First, take whatever greens you have on hand—broccoli, Swiss chard, kale, cauliflower, or spinach—give them a quick boil, drain them well, and chop them into fine pieces. Toss those into a bowl along with some oats and a handful of seasonings: a pinch of salt, some parsley, thyme, a bit of McCormick, and a dash of pepper. To bind everything together, I add a splash of plant milk and either one or two egg whites, depending on how big a batch I'm making. Mix it all thoroughly by hand; you want the texture to be supple, not stiff. Then, drop spoonfuls onto a preheated non-stick skillet without any oil and shape them into patties. Cook them until they get just a little bit golden-brown.🙂
Personally, I think these are absolutely fantastic, and the flavor combinations are endless.
Sometimes I’ll stir in some diced cooked ham, or mix up the veggie varieties, or even add a few drops of olive oil or truffle oil directly into the batter to deepen the flavor.
A quick tip: when you're frying them, grab a flat spatula. Since I don't use a ton of egg to bind the mixture, they can be a bit delicate and prone to breaking apart if you aren't careful.

Here’s another super healthy twist on hummus—just whipped this up and it actually hits the spot.

Throw this in the blender:
200g chickpeas in water (grabbed the Alnaturin brand because the seasoning is spot on and they aren't swimming in excess water)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp ground flaxseed
1 clove garlic

Blitz it for maybe 2-3 minutes, then toss it into a glass container with a lid. It’s killer on rye bread, and honestly, the flax adds this nice little bitter edge.

Here’s a decent raw salad recipe, just winging it since I have some flaxseeds lying around

I grate some carrots, toss in some raw zucchini, mix it all up, and throw in a spoonful of ground flax plus a spoonful of olive oil. Whatever you do, don't add salt—it totally ruins the vibe.
If you're feeling fancy, throw in some shredded celery, some finely chopped onions, or any kind of sprouts (I usually go with radish)

Since I was all out of couscous—which is usually my go-to for a quick meal—I decided to whip up some millet with veggies instead.
I tossed some onions and sliced bell peppers into a wok with a bit of olive oil, then followed that up with eggplant and zucchini. After boiling the millet in salted water, I folded it right into the veggie mix and finished everything off with a handful of minced garlic and fresh parsley. The whole thing takes barely 20 minutes from start to finish.

Here is another quick, budget-friendly, and healthy lunch idea.
An egg salad.
For the dressing, I just used a splash of olive oil and a dollop of mustard with just a tiny pinch of salt.
While you have two eggs boiling on the stove, go ahead and chop up some lettuce leaves and grate one large carrot.
Once the eggs are cooled, slice them into rounds and toss everything together with that dressing.
Oh, I almost forgot—I actually swapped out the vinegar for a few squeezes of fresh lemon juice.

Chicken salad with peas, potatoes, and dried mint.
To whip up the dressing, you'll need
- about 3 tablespoons of olive oil
- a spoonful of honey
- a spoonful of dried mint (though if you can grab some fresh mint from the grocery store, even better!)
- a pinch of salt
First, toss your sliced potatoes into a pot of cold water and bring them to a boil. Once they start bubbling, throw in the peas and let everything simmer for about 15 minutes. While that's going, dice up your chicken into small cubes and sauté them in a bit of olive oil until they're just right.
Once everything is cooked, just fold all those ingredients straight into your dressing.

Fried zucchini in pancake batter.

Grab a large zucchini, slice it up, and hit it with plenty of salt. That should be enough for two.
Pancake batter: eggs, milk, flour, salt, pepper. I threw in a splash of beer.

Dip the rolls in the batter and drop them straight into the hot oil. I’d say about a minute per side should do it—just enough until they hit that perfect golden brown.

Look, I’m not usually one to preach about freezing food, but I had this leftover bag from my grandmother's garden sitting around, and today was just one of those days where I couldn't make it out to the farmer's market.
So, I ended up with a bag of frozen green beans and an even smaller amount of fava beans mixed with some barley.
First, boil the barley in salted water until it's tender, then drain it off.
Sauté a small head of onion in olive oil, toss in some sliced carrots, and let them cook down a bit. Throw in the green beans and fava beans, then add a splash of water and let everything simmer for about ten minutes until it's soft. To finish it off, stir in some fresh dill, two cloves of garlic, salt, and pepper.
Once the veggies are ready, fold in the cooked barley and give it all a gentle mix so the flavors really marry together.

Apple and Oat Cake
Grate up 3 large apples
3 cups of oats
2/3 cup of yogurt
2/3 cup of oil or melted butter
3 eggs
Stevia or whatever sweetener you prefer
Baking powder
Feel free to toss in some raisins, cocoa, cinnamon... whatever you're feeling
Dump everything into a parchment-lined pan and bake for about 20 minutes until it turns golden brown

This works perfectly as a snack, or if you need something easy to grab and head to the office with
If you want a savory variant 2, just salt it and swap out those apples for shredded zucchini instead