Beet Protein Pancakes [Recipe]

December 19, 2014 By Laura

The (Christmas) beet goes on.

I’m so festive-feeling that even I want to slap me.

But how awesome are red pancakes in the winter?! Especially with they’re delicious and trimmed in white.

Oh… and they have a not-so-hidden healthy ingredient. Beets lend their color to these festive ‘cakes. It’s strange, yes. But I’m telling you… it’s good!

I use the new Quest vanilla milkshake protein powder in my pancakes. It’s flavor really is fantastic, and it bakes like a champ. These tasted like a beet milkshake pancake. In a good way. Really….

Strange But Good: I’m Seeing Red

February 14, 2014 By Laura

Red is an extreme color.

And I love extremes.

Red is typically used as either a color of danger or a color of love. Obviously, this season is of love.

I happen to love food. Desserts especially. Even better if it’s strange (but good). My contribution to the #strangebutgood linkup today is a round-up of red-themed healthy treats. Many are even one-serving for Singles Awareness Day. 😉

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Mocha Beet Frappuccino

I make this 4-5 times a week. Usually without the coffee – I rarely drink it so I don’t keep it around.

Red Velvet Chia Cheesecake

It’s been too long since I’ve made this. Happening again next week. For breakfast.

Red Velvet Protein Mugcake

You guys know I’m a mugcake addict. I married this with my Marshmallow cake this week… there are no words.

Red Velvet Protein Bars

I didn’t come up with these, but I wish I had. These were a guest post by Kammie. They taste as good as they look. I keep a batch in my freezer for a quick snack when I need a chocolate fix. ~~Which is quite often.~~

Vegan Goat Cheese Stuffed Oven-Roasted Tomatoes

No, I’m not going to try to tell you a tomato is dessert. Just in case you already have dessert plans I wanted to include a savory item for you. This is a complicated-looking, gorgeous dish. And it’s extremely easy.

♥ Happy Valentine’s Day! ♥

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How have you enjoyed making co-workers, friends, or family stare with strange but good creations this week? The link up rules can be found here or by clicking on “Strange But Good” in the menu bar above. In short, I want to see what concoctions have earned you weird looks from co-workers, family and friends! Post your Strange But Good creations, grab the logo below for your blog, and link up here.

Remember to use #strangebutgood in any Tweets and Instagrams of your creations. 🙂

An InLinkz Link-up

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Curious about the Fitmark giveaway? Click here to check to see the winner! Now, I must go get ready for my hot date.

What are you doing to celebrate VD? *snicker*

What’s your favorite red recipe? Link it up!

WIAW: The Rockies Edition

August 31, 2011 By Laura

Starting the week 3 hours behind is weird.

I woke up Monday morning in Denver, CO.

The Good: I woke up super early because I was on East Coast time
The Bad: By the end of the day I was pooped
The Weird, cont.: Now I’m in Chicago… in another time zone

Have you guys ever been in the Denver airport? Having a massive airplane inside the airport gives it extra cool points.

I checked into the Hampton Inn (which was surprisingly well-kept/updated) and discovered that they had little pictures outside each guest room. Pretty cool – they were all different!

However… don’t you think mine was a little risque?!

I swear I’m not running a prostitution business out of my hotel room.

Waking up super early meant I got in a couple of good workouts. Hooray for hotel gyms! Note the motivational sign across the mirror.

The WIAW part of my week is… weak…

Don’t kick me out, Jenn!

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Breakfast:

Luke-warm hotel instant oatmeal. Made with water. Eaten out of a styro-foam bowl with a plastic spoon. Thank god for peanut butter.

Instead, let’s pretend I ate some of this:

Zucchini Bread Oatmeal with homemade quick blueberry “jam” was one of my better ideas.

I may stop for zucchini on my way back from the airport Friday…

Lunch:

How one conference could offer SO MUCH bad food is beyond me.

This was some sort of attempt at enchiladas. I picked out the chicken and made a salad with the shredded lettuce. Maybe one of those tortilla chips was eaten – they were ridiculously salty (even for a generic brand).

Snacks:

Not pictured, but these items were key to my survival:

Apple taken from the hotel breakfast bar
Peanuts I saved from my flight
Chocolate-Toffee Think Thin bar from home

Plus copious amount of tea to keep warm in the very well-air conditioned room and remain ~~heavily~~ caffeinated.

Dinner:

Again, not worthy of a picture. It was an airport salad with 2 cucumbers and 2 tomatoes (not kidding). I did manage to convince them to give me some hummus then regretted it.

This would have been much more delicious:

A big salad with hummus dressing (basil hummus mixed with a bit of apple cider vinaigrette) and a side of roasted brussel sprouts (coated with herbed dijon mustard and olive oil).

Served with 1/2 a Food for Life Sprouted Grain and Seed English muffin and a big ‘ol scoop of my new favorite oil-free, vegan condiment:

Beet Sunflower Pesto.

You should try the pesto. No need to like beets. Guaranteed.

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For a whole slew of eats MUCH better than mine, please hop over to Peas and Crayons.

Do you prefer East Coast time? West? Somewhere in between or far away?

Let me live vicariously through you – what deliciousness are you eating this week?

Beet Sunflower Pesto

August 26, 2011 By Laura

The beat goes on…

Ok, this post isn’t about Sonny & Cher. You can thank you later when you’re humming this song.

I made pesto! Oil-free, vegan, purple pesto.

With beets. Don’t be scared – it really is good. I don’t even like beets and I loved it.

Why buy beets if I don’t even like them? Because they are really good for you!

Among their long list of benefits:

Beets are high in nitrates, which can increase exercise endurance
are rich in dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals such as: Vitamin C, Niacin (B-3), Pantothenic acid (B-5), Pyridoxine (B-6), carotenoids, iron, manganese, magnesium, potassium, and folates
They are a source of betalains, which provide antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and detoxification support
They contain two carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin, which are unique good for eye health
Betanin pigments from beets have been shown to lessen tumor cell growth and may have other anti-cancer benefits

The secret to making beets taste good is to add distinct flavors to them. The citrus from the lemon and the sweet nuttiness from the toasted sunflower seeds did a lot to help. Basil and garlic are, of course, is a great flavors to use in pesto. The balsamic gave the flavor a last little push over the edge.

You could also add some goat cheese or nutritional yeast to the mix to further amp up the flavor. Mine would have included goat cheese… but I planned poorly and used it all in my morning eggs.

For the “pasta” I improvised spiralized zucchini. Using a cheese slicer. Who says I don’t use all my kitchen gadgets?!

Topped with more sunflower seeds, red pepper flakes, and a tasty new French raw milk cheese: Raclette.

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Beet Sunflower Pesto (Oil-Free and Vegan)

2 medium beets (I ~~cheated~~ used packaged, pre-cooked)
~15 large basil leaves
1/4 C toasted sunflower seeds
1 large garlic clove
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
Juice of 1/2 fresh lemon
S+P, to taste

Toast sunflower seeds on stove top (~4-5 mins). Watch them closely and still as needed for an even toast.

Place all ingredients in food processor and blend until smooth.

Makes about 1/2 cup.

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I went back for ~~seconds~~ thirds. It’s also good atop brussels, FYI.

Do you have a favorite non-traditional pesto?

Do you ever eat things just because you know they are beneficial? Were you successful in making it taste good?