Avanti Cafe Musings: protein

Friday, June 17, 2016

Smoothies In Jars :: Chef Mark Cleveland @ Hungry Harvest ::

Difficulty: Easy

Time: 20 mins,

Servings: As Much As You Want

Making pureed fruit & vegetable drinks in mason jars is a great way create ready meals on the go for breakfast or to take to work for lunch or a mid afternoon snack to revive your energy for the rest of the day.

SMOOTHIE ADDITIONS

Ingredient	Prep Method
Favorite Harvest Fruits & Veggies	Plenty of citrus too
Frozen Harvest Fruit & Veggie Cubes
Seeds, spices, nuts, brewed tea, protein powders, coconut water, coconut milk, kefir, yogurt, diary or plant based milks, etc

I build my smoothies right in the jar. I sort of go by color. Get the kids involved w/ this too.

Remember that a bit of citrus in each smoothie creates that craveability we all love. HARVEST HACKS:> If you have a back up of ripe fruits & veggies blend them up and freeze them in ice cube trays. Add a few of those to each smoothie for added flavor & nutrition

Add in any healthful ingredients you’ve heard about and want to get more of in your diet. This is a good place for those things we all see on Dr. Oz. Today I used turmeric & ginger, dark blue algae, beet powder, hemp seeds & matcha green tea, spread out between three separate smoothies.

Blend up the smoothies one at a time for a different flavor in each jar. Add about 3/4 cup of water, brewed tea, coconut water, plant based or dairy milks, etc. Pour into jar, then use about 1/3 cup water on high speed to rinse out the jar. Add that to the smoothie. Chill well & shake when you’re ready to eat.

You’ll find your own fresh creations more tantalizing & much cheaper than juice bar offerings. And using blended whole fruits and veggies retains all the nutritional fiber that keeps our gut healthy. I like high protein versions for breakfast & lighter veggie & fruit juices for afternoons.

Eating Healthy & Delicious is a Win Win Win Situation!

Eat, Live & Party Well

Blog post by Chef Mark Cleveland

Chef Mark Cleveland has joined the team of Hungry Harvest creating recipe & culinary content for success in the kitchen with the amazing produce in each weekly Hungry Harvest box. Visit www.hungryharvest.net/recipes/ for recipes, photos & More! Follow HungryHarvest and ChefMarkCleveland on Instagram

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Sunday, May 15, 2016

Red Lentil Quinoa Burgers :: Chef Mark Cleveland @ Hungry Harvest ::

Difficulty: Easy

Time: 35 mins prep + 30 mins oven

Servings: 18 to 20 burgers

Why not make Harvest Burgers & Harvest CatchUP the same week. Sets us up for weekend & mid week meals & some left over for the freezer too. Freeze on a sheet pan, then bag. Today I used Herbs de Provance as my Favorite Spice Blend.

Amount	Measure	Ingredient	Prep Method
3/4	Cup	red lentils
3/4	Cup	Quinoa	I like rainbow quinoa

Soak red lentils & quinoa in warm water in a strainer set into a deep bowl while you prep out the burgers. They don’t need to soak very long, we want them to absorb the liquid from the veggies for a tight burger.

1	Medium	Eggplant	Rough chop
2	Medium	Parsnips	Peeled, rough chop
1	Large	Onion	Rough chop
2	Tablespoons	Flax meal
2	Tablespoons	Miso
1	Teaspoon	Black pepper
1/2	Cup	Evoo

Grind the eggplant, 2 parsnips, onion w/ flax meal, miso & black pepper in a food processor.

Saute over medium high heat for 7 mins in the evoo. Stir occasionally while you prep the next step. Heat the oven to 325

1	Large head	Broccoli
1	Large	Red peppers
2/3	Cup	Cherry tomatoes
1	Teaspoon	Sea salt
2	Tablespoons	Favorite spice blend	Chile powder, curry, 5 Spice, garam masala, Italian seasoning, Herbs de Provance, Thai seasoning, etc

Grind the broccoli, red pepper, cherry tomatoes and 1 tsp salt. Drain the lentils & add to the cooking eggplant parsnip mix

along w/ the broccoli mix and 2 Tbs favorite spice blend.

Saute for another 7 mins until you begin to scrape up golden brown goodness.

1 1/2	Cups	Instant potato flakes	100% potato, no additives
1/3	Cup	Rolled oats

Remove from heat, stir in potato flakes & rolled oats & cool until you can handle it, about 15 mins. Transfer to a cool bowl if you want to speed the process.

Large

Organic eggs

Opt

If you want to add the eggs do so when cool. Scoop out burgers by the 1/2 cup measure and form into burgers about 3/4” thick & 3 1/2” in diameter. Set onto a well oiled parchment lined baking sheet. Bake at 325 for 10 mins, the roate the pans & turn the oven to 375 for 20 more mins. Serve w/ Harvest CatchUP, toasted buns & lettuce, tomato, onion, avo & more.

I made half batch eggless & the other half w/ one egg. Both taste great & hold together well.

These make wonderful cheese burgers. Grill them to reheat for great BBQ flavor & crispy grill marks. Crumble them on top of salad or veggie sauté for a filling high protein entrée.