Category: Meal Prep

Roasted Cauliflower Wraps with Red Pepper Sauce

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I’m back! I went on a little vacation and wasn’t super active on my blog or social media, but I’m coming back with a BANG, aka these Roasted Cauliflower Wraps with Red Pepper Sauce. Portable lunches are going to have to start becoming a thing again soon, so these beauties are going to help you get one step ahead. Simply roast, wrap, press, and then boom, you’ve got yourself an amazing, nutritious lunch.

The cauliflower, red onions, and red peppers all get roasted up on the same pan, then the peppers are tossed in the blender with garlic, oil, and lots of cilantro to make a bea-u-tiful sauce. I spread it on a wrap, then added the cauliflower, onions, some avocado, and some spinach. YUM. After rolling, my wrap got the VIP treatment in my panini press. Once you start pressing your wraps and getting those perfect grill marks on there, you’re not going back. It also helps the wrap stay together- perfect for lunchbags.

These would be great prepared the night before, or if you prep all of the ingredients and then just roll and press as needed. This recipe makes 1 wrap but lots of extra sauce, which is awesome in bowls, more wraps, salads, more wraps, for dipping things in, and in more wraps. I hope you enjoy this recipe and keep an eye out for more meal prep ideas coming soon!!

Roasted Cauliflower Wraps with Red Pepper Sauce

Serves: 1 (with extra sauce)

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

For the Red Pepper Sauce:

  • 2 small red bell peppers, chopped
  • 2 tbs + 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1/2 cup cilantro, loosely packed
  • 1 clove of garlic, minced
  • Salt and Pepper to taste

For the Wraps:

  • 1 Whole Wheat Wrap
  • 1/2 cup cauliflower florets, cut into small pieces
  • 1/4 of a red onion, sliced
  • 1/2 an avocado, thinly sliced
  • a small handful of spinach leaves
  • 1 tbsp Red Pepper Sauce
  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Place the cauliflower, red peppers, and red onion on a parchment lined baking sheet. Toss each with 1 tsp of olive oil and some salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for about 20 minutes, until soft and slightly charred.
  3. Remove the pan from the oven and add the red peppers, along with the rest of the Red Pepper Sauce ingredients, into a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside.
  4. Preheat a panini press and begin assembling your wrap. Spread 1 tbs of sauce onto a whole wheat wrap, then add the cauliflower, onions, spinach, and avocado, and fold tightly, tucking the two vertical edges in, then rolling away from you.
  5. Place the wrap on the press and bring the lid down on it. Let gravity do its work and leave your wrap in the press for about a minute.
  6. Carefully remove your wrap from the press and enjoy!!

Happy munching and I’ll see you Wednesday!:)

Yours Truly,

Olivia:))

Veggie Fried Quinoa

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I ate the whole pan of this fried quinoa. It’s seriously so good because of all of the flavour and all of the veggies. I don’t know, there’s just something about a big plate of sauteed veggies, beans and quinoa that’s just so comforting and simple and homey. And it’s true that it doesn’t get much simpler than this- basically all you need to do is toss some stuff around in a pan, add a bit of other stuff, and you get delicious stuff.

In the ingredients list, I’m going to put down all the veg as “roughly chopped”, because I didn’t put a whole lot of effort into making it look nice. It’s all about flavour and ease here, people. This dish is also a great fridge cleaner. You know, when you have those week old carrots, that half an onion in a ziploc bag, and some tomatoes that are looking just the teeniest bit questionable. In my case, I also had some black beans in a tupperware container. Usually I have some leftover quinoa lying around, but I didn’t so I made some right before. But yeah, just toss all of these forgotten but beautiful things into a pan with some olive oil, then add your flavour boosters. Namely soy sauce, garlic, pepper, and maple syrup. Yes, I put maple syrup in a take on fried rice. Trust me, it works.

Since, if you’re a speedy chef, you could whip this up in about 7.5 minutes, this Veggie Fried Quinoa could be made in the morning before school, or as a really quick dinner. I would say a more accurate timeline for making this quinoa would be about 10-15 minutes, which is still pretty fast. Just make sure you have your quinoa cooked before hand, cause that’s really a game changer. If you don’t need it to be vegan, you could add some egg or chicken for some extra protein. However or whenever you make it, this Veggie Fried Quinoa is definitely a winner because of it’s quick, easy, and really tasty. Hope you enjoy!!

Veggie Fried Quinoa

Serves: 2 (or 1 really hungry person aka me;)

Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 cup cooked quinoa
  • 1/2 a tomato, roughly chopped
  • 1/2 a red onion, roughly diced
  • 1 large carrot, roughly chopped
  • about 1/4 cup of sliced mushrooms
  • 2/3 cup black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 tsp maple syrup
  • 1 clove of garlic, minced
  • Pepper, to taste

Directions:

  1. Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add in the tomatoes, onions, carrots, black beans and mushrooms and cook for about 3 minutes, until starting to get soft.
  2. Add the quinoa to the pan and stir, continuing to cook for another 5 minutes, until most of the water from the veggies has evaporated.
  3. Next, add the soy sauce, garlic, pepper, and maple syrup, and stir to combine. Cook for a few more minutes, allowing the carrots to become tender.
  4. Remove from the heat and enjoy!

One of my favourite quick and easy recipes:) I’ll see you guys on Friday!!

Yours Truly,

Olivia:))

Soy-Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes

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By now you probably know that I have a weakness for sweet potatoes. They’re one of my favourite things ever and I’m always looking for new delicious ways that I can eat them. Usually they taste the best when they’re super caramelized and soft- and this recipe DEFINITELY gives you that. These potatoes have so much good flavour and colour, and go great in bowls or salads, or as a side for your dinner.

Usually I peel my sweet potatoes, but today I left the skin on for some extra textural action. All I did was cut my potato into little medallions, then tossed them with some olive oil and threw them in the oven. While they were becoming golden brown and amazing, I just mixed up the THREE INGREDIENT sauce that gets brushed on to the medallions, infusing them with deliciousness and also helping with the caramelization process. Just keep an eye on these because they can burn pretty quickly.

These Soy maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes were the PERFECT addition to my lunch bowl today. I then proceeded to eat the rest of them right off the pan. Be sure to try out this recipe and let me know what you think!!

Soy Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Serves: 1

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 small sweet potato
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp maple syrup

Directions:

  1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Wash the sweet potato well, then proceed to cut it width-wise into small medallions, a little less than a centimetre thick.
  3. Place the medallions onto a parchment lined baking sheet and toss them with the olive oil, making sure that they’re evenly coated. Put the pan in the oven and roast for 10 minutes.
  4. Remove the pan, flip over the sweet potatoes, and roast for an additional 15 minutes.
  5. While the sweet potatoes are in the oven, mix together the soy sauce, garlic powder and maple syrup in a small bowl. Set aside.
  6. Take the pan out of the oven, flip the medallions over again, and use a pastry brush to brush on a layer of the soy sauce mixture onto each one. Put back into the oven for 5 minutes.
  7. Remove the pan, flip over the sweet potatoes (there’s lots of flipping going on), brush on some sauce, and then roast for another 5 minutes.
  8. For a last final crisp, flip the sweet potatoes once more and bake for 5 minutes again.
  9. Take the sweet potatoes out of the oven, let cool and enjoy!

I can’t wait for you to try this recipe! So simple and delish:)) Have a great weekend and I’ll see you Monday!!

Yours Truly,

Olivia:))

3 Flavours of Crispy Chickpeas

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Chickpeas are just the best. They have to be one of the most versatile ingredients out there. You can make hummus, falafel, edible cookie dough, cookies, or blondies from them, and you can even make meringues if you whip up the water or aquafaba from the can. But today we are celebrating the humble chickpea by just crisping them up in the oven- one of my favourite methods of preparing them.

These crispy chickpeas are the PERFECT addition to your salads, bowls, and wraps, plus they make a great snack on their own. Also, have you ever tried a chickpea salad sandwich?!!? Mix up your roasted chickpeas with some mashed avo and green onion, throw it in between two pieces of bread, and you’ve got yourself a LUNCH!

While just roasting chickpeas with salt and pepper is pretty delish, I’ve come up with three spice combos that take them to the next level. We’ve got taco-spiced chickpeas, curry-spiced chickpeas, and some soy-maple chickpeas. I think the soy-maple ones have to be my favourite, but the other two are pretty darn good as well. You could use the taco-spiced ones as a replacement for beef in tacos, and the curry-spiced chickpeas are a great snack by themselves. Make sure you try all three and let me know which one is your fave!!

3 Flavours of Crispy Chickpeas

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

Taco-Spiced Chickpeas:

  • 1/2 a can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp chilli powder
  • 1/2 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp oregano
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne powder
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • Sprinkle of salt and pepper

Curry-Spiced Chickpeas:

  • 1/2 a can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 tsp olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp curry powder
  • 1/2 tsp coriander
  • Sprinkle of salt and pepper

Soy-Maple Chickpeas:

  • 1/2 a can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp soy sauce
  • 1/2 tsp maple syrup
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • Sprinkle of chilli flakes
  • Sprinkle of salt and pepper

Directions:

  1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. In three separate bowls, mix together the chickpeas with the spices and oil for each flavour. Dump the chickpeas onto a parchment lined baking sheet.
  3. Bake the chickpeas for about 30 minutes, until they’re nice and crispy. Remove from the oven and enjoy!!

Have fun with this simple snack recipe!!

Yours Truly,

Olivia:))

Lentil and Quinoa Salad

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I haven’t had lentils in a looooooong time, mainly because I usually reach for chickpeas or other beans. Lentils take a little bit longer to cook, so that’s probably why. I guess I could buy the canned variety, but they’re just not the same. Yesterday I was kind of craving them, which is something I thought I’d never say. Honestly though, I wanted a good lentil salad where the lentils still had a bit of bite and there was a good freaking dressing! So I got in the kitchen because when I’m craving something, I get to work.

We didn’t have a lot of veg in our fridge, but we had everything you need for a good lentil salad. Quinoa, red onion, parsley, hummus, balsamic, olive oil, and of course, lentils. Yes, I included hummus in the dressing. Hummus makes EVERYTHING better, and in this case it adds flavour and some volume to the dressing. The parsley and red onion add some great colour to this salad. Oh, and I used red quinoa, which is fun! As far as I can tell it tastes the same as regular quinoa, it just has a nice colour. Try it out!

The lentils only took about 25 minutes to get tender. I took them off as soon as they were soft, because I didn’t want them to get too mushy. Then I mixed them up with the quinoa, parsley, onion, and that awesome hummus and balsamic dressing! So simple and so yum and so fresh. On the side of my salad I had some more hummus (duh) and sweet potato, which went really well. If you want your salad a bit heartier you could try tossing the sweet potato right in there.

Hope you enjoy this light salad that’s perfect for a quick lunch or side dish!!

Lentil and Quinoa Salad

Serves: 2 as a main, 4 as a side dish

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup cooked quinoa
  • 1/2 cup dry green lentils
  • 1/4 of a red onion, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup fresh parsley
  • 1 tbsp hummus
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Give your lentils a little rinse, then toss them in a small pot with 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down a bit and let the lentils simmer for about 25-30 minutes, until they’re tender but still have some bite, and most of the water has been absorbed.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk together the hummus, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and some salt and pepper.
  3. Toss together the quinoa, cooked lentils, parsley, and red onion with the dressing. Serve with more hummus, and some roasted sweet potatoes.
  4. Enjoy!

This is one of my favourite simple salads to make, and I’ll definitely be making it again sometime soon. See ya later!

Yours Truly,

Olivia:))