Cucumber & Avocado Sandwich with a Cream Cheese & Dill Spread

Many non-vegetarian people people that we veggie people don’t like food. Or sometimes they think that we don’t eat yummy & fantastic things, so wrong…..

Spread the cream cheese/dill spread.

Add thinly sliced fresh, crisp cucumber slices. A sprinkle of black pepper and salt, to taste.

Layer on top the slightly firm avo’s. It can be a bit messy, so I don’t cut the sandwich.

EAT!

Cream Cheese Spread:
1 tub of whipped cream cheese
1/2 tsp dill

Put both in a bowl and mix well. Then it’s ready to spread!

You could also add sprouts or lettuce 🙂

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Cold Pasta Salad

I don’t eat pasta too often, but this is well worth the calories!
Boil 12oz of your favorite pasta, as directed. Put pasta in refrigerator to cool down. Once cold, pull it out of refrigerator, and add all ingredients. Easy!!
Here’s what I put this time….
1 can of small olives
A hand full of salami (chopped)
1/2-3/4 cup of your favorite Italian (oil based) dressing
1 bag of shredded Swiss cheese
2 firm avocado’s diced
A couple of small home-grown bell peppers
1/3 cup diced cucumber
A small handful of cherry tomatoes (from my garden)
1 small red onion-diced

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Open Face (no meat) Sandwich

What you will need to make a single sandwich:

Whole grain slice of bread-mine was quite long, about 7″
Balsamic vinegar
4 Tablespoons (more or less depending on the size of your bread) bean paste-Take a can of any white bean, drain, smash with fork. Can use at room temp, cold or warmed. Save the rest for more sandwiches.
Fresh, crisp, cucumber-peeled, sliced thinly. I cut my cucumber the length of my bread.
1 slice of provolone cheese
Small clump of alfalfa sprouts
1/2 half of a firm avocado
salt and pepper to taste

Sprinkle a little balsamic vinegar on your bread. Next, spread the bean paste to your liking (light or heavy). Lay down the cheese, thinly sliced cucumber, and sprouts. Now scoop out small bits of avocado and place on top of sprouts. Dust with salt and pepper to taste.

This is a nice serving of protein, veggie and grain! If my calculations are near accurate, I counted just about 425 calories for this meal. My bread and cheese were each 100 calories, half an avo is 140. Beans-about 60 calories, cucumber and sprouts about 25 calories together.

There you have it! Enjoy!

Eating “Clean”

1/2 cup of cooked (boiled) pinto beans, 1/2 cup of low fat cottage cheese and 1/2 of an avocado. Dash of salt and pepper to taste.

This meal breaks down as follows; 90 calories for the cheese, 120 calories for the avocado and 120 calories for the beans. That’s a good and healthy meal under 400 calories, and it’s filling! Men would need a bit more volume and calories.

If your stomach can handle hot sauce, I would put some salsa verde to this! Or maybe some pico de’gallo 🙂

In California I am lucky to have so many fresh foods at my finger tips! As a vegetarian avocado’s are a big part of my life. In the past 6 years I have cut out soda, fast food and processed foods to the best of my ability. The change of my eating habits have caused me to feel a lot less bloated (yes, even eating the beans, lol!), fewer headaches, and an over all “healthy” feeling.

Spinach Salad

I was inspired to post this recipe because I had a similar salad at Disneyland, hahaha. Minus the chicken for me, the flavors of the avo, pine nuts, spinach, and feta cheese, are AMAZING! You can make this in bulk, without adding the dressing. Simply add the dressing as you serve each plate. If you use the proper firm avocado, you shouldn’t have any issues with being squishy or darkened over the course of a couple days. I might also add some chopped Anjou pear to the mix 🙂

SALAD:
8 cups chopped spinach (1 bag)
1 cup halved cherry or pear tomatoes
1/2 cup corn (frozen, canned, or cut off the cob)
1 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 large avocado, sliced
1/3 cup crumbled goat or feta cheese
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

DRESSING:
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:
1. Place spinach in a large salad bowl. add remaining salad ingredients.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients. Pour over the salad and toss (a little at a time… as much dressing as you desire).

Life is good, eat healthy
Audrey~

http://www.recipegirl.com/2012/04/02/spinach-salad-with-chicken-avocado-and-goat-cheese/

Avocado, Bacon and Fig Sandwich!

http://www.brit.co/fab-sandwich/
Figs are in season and we’re making the most of the crop before summer turns into fall. Earlier this week we rounded up 20 amazing sweet and savory fig recipes, and now we have one of our own to add to the list. Introducing our FAB Sandwich! The combo of fig, avocado, and bacon will make you rethink your old BLT.

Ingredients:
– Figs
– Avocado
– Bacon
– Bread

Instructions:
1. Start cooking your bacon in the microwave or in a large skillet.
2. While the bacon is cooking, start prepping your other ingredients.
3. Slice the figs and avocados, and toast your bread.
4. Once bacon is crispy, assemble your sandwich—bread, bacon, avocado, fig, and bread.

Let’s get started with the recipe.

Start by gathering your ingredients.

Get the bacon frying before you start your other prep.

Slice the figs fairly thin but not so much so that they fall apart.

Slice the avocados in half and then in thin slices. Scoop out with a spoon.

Give your bread a good toast to medium brown.

Once the bacon is crispy and everything is prepped, start to assemble your sandwich. First, add the bacon.

Then add the avocado and finally the figs.

Ta-da! Easy peasy…and delicious! A bit salty and a bit sweet, this one might just become your new favorite sando.

Life is good, eat well
Audrey~

South of the border! (from where I live, LoL)

http://wholeandfree.blogspot.com/2012/05/mexican-haystacks.html?m=1

This is delicious anytime of the year, any season! I substitute extra firm tofu instead of the turkey meat. Don’t forget my tip for finding the perfect avocado. Look it up on my blog if you haven’t seen it.

Mexican Haystacks

RICE
2 cups uncooked brown rice
1 bunch fresh cilantro

MEAT
1 1/2 lbs ground turkey
1 onion, chopped
1 tablespoon garlic powder
salt & pepper to taste
4 cups salsa (I used Kirkland organic salsa from Costco)

TOPPINGS
1-2 avocados, chopped
1-2 red peppers, chopped
1-2 ripe mangoes, chopped
fresh cilantro for garnish

Start your brown rice in a pot on the stove, or in a rice maker. Next, add ground turkey and chopped onion to a large saute pan. Add garlic powder and salt and pepper. When the turkey is browned, add 4 cups of salsa. Bring the salsa to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes. In the meantime, chop the cilantro, pepper, avocado, and mango. When the rice is done, simply stir in almost all of the fresh cilantro, leaving just enough to garnish each dish.

I served each person with the rice and meat already on the plate, and everybody had fun adding their own toppings. Kids always like to feel that they “made” their own dinner!

I’d recommend serving this with a nice big green salad on the side.

*Also, the recipe above made enough for our family of five to have leftovers the next day. If you are cooking for a smaller family, just chop one avocado, pepper, and mango. You can also make less rice and only 1 lb. of turkey. If you do this, reduce the salsa used to only 2-3 cups.

Enjoy, mi amigos! 🙂

This is so freaking fantastic! I bet your mouth is watering! Please make this and let me know how you like it. I eat this on a regular basis. You got my “how to chose an avocado” tip already, so what are you waiting for? 🙂

Pick A Good One

No matter how careful I am at picking out an avocado, I feel like I’m always on the losing end. I ran across this tip from Northwest Edible Life, now I love avocado shopping!

Start with these tips: First, find a good candidate by selecting avocados that are a very dark green without any obvious indents or squishy parts. It should be heavy and firm. Next, take the stem off. If it’s brown, the avocado is too ripe, and probably has bruising and is brown inside. If it’s a yellowish green, that’s the one to take home! For other awesome gardening tips like this, go to Northwest Edible Life.

Life is good, be happy
Audrey~