Thursday, January 17, 2013

Something Tastey

Those of you who know me, know I am a produce nut. There is nothing I love more than a dinner that consists of 95% veggies, 5% other things. I love my vegetables! So, last night my husband and I were in the kitchen pondering on what to make for dinner. (This is a regular occurrence for the two of us). And I myself, was craving a hearty stir fry packed full of various veggies, but then realized we didn't have any. I was about ready to run to the store and grab all I needed. That was until, I opened the pantry and realized we had rows upon rows of veggies! Needless to say, I ended up using 100% THRIVE ingredients to make my delicious new Veggie Quinoa Bowl. And I did in fact, make an entire meal in merely 15 minutes. Jackson devoured about 4 bowls of this meal, so I decided it was definitely a  hit for us and want to share it with you!! So, here is my delicious new recipe. There are no particular measurements for this recipe, you get to add however much of whatever you want to  your bowl. You can add mushrooms, peas, chicken, or anything else you would like!

First, you want to grab all of the cans you are going to need. (Not pictured THRIVE freeze-dried green onions, and onions)
Next, bring 1 1/2 cups of water to a boil  then add 1 cup of THRIVE quinoa. Let simmer for about 13 minutes or until light and fluffy. As that is happening, you are going to start bringing those veggies back to life! Do this by combining the freeze-dried bell pepper, zucchini, and broccoli in a bowl, and covering them with water for about 3-5 minutes like so. (Both types of onions reconstitute in the same way.)

At the same time as this step, combine the freeze-dried corn, and carrots in a pot of boiling water for about 3-5 minutes as well.

Now that everything is re-hydrated, we are ready for the final step. Saute THRIVE onion and green onion in a little bit of olive oil until golden brown. Then add the remaining veggies into the pot along with the cooked quinoa. Crack a little bit of salt and pepper on there, add a splash of your favorite teriyaki or soy sauce, and you're ready to eat! I personally added Spicy Miso Teriyaki Sauce and Kikomon's Low-Sodium Soy Sauce.

*For those protein lovers, I recommend adding either THRIVE freeze-dried chicken into your bowl, or cooking a couple of eggs to throw in there.

YUM! I will definitely be making this simple dish again.
You can find all the ingredients needed for this recipe at: www.wewillthrive.shelfreliance.com

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Hello 2013.

Hello 2013! It's a new year. And let me tell you, I have a good feeling about this year! I'm not sure why, but I have just had an amazing feeling about what is to come within the year of 2013. And I am excited to see what that might be!
With any new year comes new goals. In the past, I have been the WORST goal setter. I have been the type of person who gets really excited about starting fresh, making new goals, and reaching them. BUT I am also the type of person who writes the goal down, works on it for about a month or two, then fizzles out. Bad habit I guess. This year however, I've learned how I'm actually going to reach the goals I have set. I've had the wrong idea about goals all along! They aren't something you simply write down on a piece of paper and hope to achieve, they are something you have to install a plan for. Each goal, should have a specific plan on how you intend to reach it. That part right there was my missing link. For example one of my goals this year is to get fit and be active (I know, I know cliche). I am going to reach this goal by first, eating right. However, that's not my entire plan. I then have to break down that part as well. I am going to eat right by cutting out refined sugar, limiting my carb intake, and eating more fruits, veggies and lean proteins. I am also going to reach this goal by exercising. Again, break it down. I am going to do this by doing 30 minutes of cardio and 20 minutes of weight training at least 3 times a week.
I could keep breaking this goal down even more, but you get the idea. And let me tell you, this plan is working! (I will let you know if this is the plan that finally breaks my bad habit of not completing a goal.)
So that being said, this morning I woke up with the intent to work on said goal. I knew I wanted to have something quick, delicious and nutritious for breakfast. So what do I do? I break out my THRIVE! Today I was craving a smoothie. This smoothie was so delicious I wanted to share it with you all! So, here is the recipe and instructions on how to make my Peach-Berry smoothie.

First, I took out 3 cans of THRIVE fruit. Freeze-dried peaches, strawberries, and raspberries.
 
Side note: Freeze drying works by freezing the food with very low temperatures to remove the water and preserve the food. Since you're using cold, almost all of the nutrients are retained in the food. To "bring these foods back to life" you simply add water. Amazing isn't it? So it's quick, easy, and nutritious.

Next: I took a scoop of each fruit, put it in my blender, and poured some coconut water over the top of the fruit to rehydrate it. It looks a little something like this.
Next I added the rest of my ingredients. Organic low-fat plain yogurt, a scoop of vanilla rice protein, (any protein would work I just happen to be allergic to whey) and a little bit of blue agave. Hit "smoothie" on my blender and here is the finished product.

There you have it! My breakfast this morning. Stay tuned for more amazing recipes, and tips on how to incorporate healthy cooking into the new year. You can find ALL the ingredients needed by visiting my website at www.wewillthrive.shelfreliance.com

Peach-Berry Smoothie
(These are approximations because I often measure with my eye)
1/2 c. THRIVE peach slices
1/4 c. THRIVE strawberries
1/4 c. THRIVE raspberries
1 1/2 c. Coconut water
3 tbsp. plain low-fat yogurt
1 tsp. agave

Blend and enjoy!