Golden Beet Salad, by Diane

 

I found this recipe from Violet Witchel on IG, she just makes super good salads. This was so fast and easy to whip up and I loved the flavors! I used the Air Fryer Chicken Breast recipe here, and it worked great. These were awesome lunches this week!

Ingredients:

4 small golden beets, diced

1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

2 tbsp EVOO

1 tsp each curry powder, turmeric, garlic powder, salt

cracked black pepper

10 brussels sprouts, thinly sliced

1 bunch rainbow chard, leaves thinly sliced

EVOO

Dried cranberries, nuts, goat cheese (I omitted the goat cheese)

Grilled chicken breast

Honey mustard dressing: 2 tbsp creamy dijon, 2 tbsp honey, pinch red pepper flakes, 1/2 tsp salt, 2 tbsp champagne vinegar, 3 tbsp EVOO and blend until smooth

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 and roast beets, chickpeas, seasonings, EVOO on one sheet and cook for 30 min or until beets are tender. On the other tray, roast sprouts and chard with EVOO for 5-10 min until warmed and wilted slightly.

2. Combine beets/chickpeas and greens with chicken, cranberries, nuts, cheese and dressing. Enjoy!

Fall Chopped Salad, By Diane

 

I came up with this recipe the other week before traveling as I needed something quick and healthy, and the weather was just starting to turn to feel like fall. This has been an amazing meal to have prepped in the fridge ready to go! I also made it when I got home from traveling and it has been really nourishing. The ingredients are easy to swap out, and sometimes I can reduce cook time by heading to Whole Foods bar and grabbing a few of the roasted veggies- they always have roasted butternut squash with herbs and roasted brussels with apples on their bar! That combined with pre-made chicken strips makes this super easy to chop up and prep. YUM.

This recipe makes 3 servings (b/c I work 3 days a week and need quick lunches!)

Ingredients:

2 breasts grilled chicken (I just buy one pack of grilled chicken strips)

One head red butter lettuce

12 Dates

1 small butternut squash, cubed and roasted with evoo/poultry seasoning/salt until browned

1 large golden beet, cubed roasted w evoo and salt until browned 

1 large red apple, roasted until softened

2 cups brussels sprouts, roasted w evoo and salt

6 tbsp blue cheese, crumbled

6 tbsp chopped pecans

Drizzle blackberry balsamic vinegar

Champagne vinaigrette to taste

Directions:

1. Roast all the veggies together with noted seasonings and allow to cool- the squash, beets, apples, brussels.

2. Combine lettuce, roasted veggies, chicken, dates, and cheese on a large cutting board and chop finely all together.

3. Divide into 3 bowls and store until ready to serve. This makes great meal prep!!

4. When ready to serve, add in chopped pecans, balsamic vinegar, and vinaigrette and combine well. 

Heirloom and Beet Whipped Goat Cheese Salad, by Diane

 

I saw this whipped goat cheese bottom on a veggie platter I ordered in Denver and I was so inspired to come home and figure out what I could do with it. Enter this- my afternoon snack alllll last week. It is so good with fresh summer tomatoes and basil, yum!

Ingredients:

4 tbsp goat cheese

1 tbsp EVOO

fresh herbs (I used oregano and basil)

1 cup baby heirloom tomatoes, cut into bite size pieces

1/2 cup marinated beets, cut into bite size pieces

Balsamic vinegar (I have a blackberry ginger one that goes great on this!)

Optional- fresh basil for garnish

Directions:

1. Make the whipped feta either in a food processor or by hand by whipping together feta, oil, and herbs. Spread on the bottom of the bowl.

2. Top with tomatoes and beets and a drizzle of balsamic!

Goddess Bowl, by Diane

 

I created this bowl specifically because of my Flower Child Sweet Potatoes, and I added the remaining ingredients from there. I called it a Goddess Bowl because I felt so damn healthy and glowing when I ate it for dinner tonight! I always see these creative bowls on instagram but avoid them because of all the prep of the ingredients, and this one did require a bit of prep. But now I have healthy easy bowls for the week and I'm pretty pumped about that! I used roasted mushrooms and beets along with my Burnt Broccoli and grilled chicken here, and for the rest of the week I have some greens I want to serve it over along with a dressing I want to create (I just ran out of time tonight!).

Ingredients:

Red and golden beets, cubed and roasted

Flower Child Sweet Potatoes

Burnt Broccoli

2 cups baby bella mushrooms, sliced

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced into rings

1 chicken breast, cooked and sliced

Salt

Coconut oil

Directions:

1. Saute onions in a large pan with a sprinkle of salt and coconut oil over medium heat until browned, then add in mushrooms with another sprinkle of salt and cook until done.

2. Assemble your bowl with the mushroom mixture, sweet potatoes, broccoli, beets, and chicken.

Roasted Beet, Orange, and Avocado Salad, by Cheryl

This is a great start to any meal! I actually roasted the beets the first time I made it, but used canned beets for other times and it was still great. I put it on a bed of arugula to get some greens in. The recipe is from the Whole 30 cookbook. Yum!

Ingredients:

2 medium beets
2 tbsp EVOO
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 orange, halved, one half zested and juiced, the other peeled and cut into segments
salt and pepper
1 avocado, diced
Extra greens (optional)


Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 425. Rinse the beets thoroughly and stab all sides with a fork. Oil the beets and place in tin foil pinching the top to create a seal. Roast for 35 minutes, or until tender.

2) Remove the skins from the beets. Dice the beets into one inch pieces and place in serving bowl.

3) In a small bowl, combine the 1 tbsp EVOO, 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar, orange juice, salt, and pepper, and whisk until combined.

4) Add the orange segments and avocado to the beets. Drizzle with dressing, sprinkle in orange zest, toss to coat, and serve.

Roasted Golden Beet and Rosemary Chips, by Diane

I recently went to this awesome farmers market and bought a bunch of produce, including these golden beets. I love golden beets because they are slightly sweeter and less earthy than the red ones. I thought I'd make them into chips for snacking, but I was leery that they would actually turn into chips because every other time I've tried to make veggie chips they've just been soft instead of hard and crunchy like chips. I found several recipes and used the highest rated one, which said to roast them at 375 for 15-20 minutes. But they were still soft by 20 minutes, so I flipped them and kept them in another 10 minutes. At this point, not only were they still soft but some were completely burned. So, I'm not sure here what the answer to making veggie chips is other than using a mandolin with a thinner setting (mine was about 1/4 inch thick which I thought should be thin enough!). They were still good to eat, but not the same....

Ingredients:

Beets
Olive oil
Salt/Pepper
Rosemary


Directions:

1. Slice beets thinly and evenly using a mandolin if possible.

2. Place in a bowl with remaining ingredients and toss.

3. Roast at 375 for 25 minutes.

Flourless Beet Brownie Cupcakes, by Diane

This was my dessert addition to our mystery ingredient bookclub. We have a couple gluten-free peeps in the club, and since I never seem to get good result with gluten-free flour, I looked for a flourless dessert. This recipe caught my eye since these cupcakes were moist and I thought no one would guess the ingredient. They were a big hit, and we all liked them as much or better than actual cupcakes! They did have more of a cake consistency than a brownie consistency, so next time I'll just advertise them as chocolate cupcakes. I added a homemade sour cream icing on top (recipe below), and they were even more amazing! I'll definitely make these again!

Ingredients:


Cupcakes:
⅔ cup red beets, cooked and pureed (I used canned beets and rinsed them off first before pureeing them)
1 stick butter
½ cup brown sugar
4 tablespoons dark cocoa powder
3 eggs
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
⅓ cup dark chocolate chips, melted
48 milk chocolate chips

Icing:

2 tbsp butter, softened
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp lemon juice
1 1/3 cups confectioners sugar


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Using an electric mixer, mix all ingredients except dark and milk chocolate chips on medium until smooth.
3. Add in the melted dark chocolate chips and blend again. 
4. Pour into cupcake lined muffin tray and bake for 30-35 minutes.
5. Take out of the oven ans add 4 milk chocolate chips into the middle of each cupcake.
6. Remove the foil lined cupcakes from tray and let cool on a baking rack.
7. Once the cupcakes cool completely, frost with the icing.