All posts by Lauren Bolanos

Trader Joes Shakshuka Review

trader joes shakshuka review

This Shakshuka Starter Kit from freezer section of Trader Joes was surprising easy and delicious. The tomato and pepper sauce comes frozen and I was able to easily remove the packaging and reheat it on low in the pan. I set aside the sauce on a dish when it was hot and used the same pan to fry up two eggs in oil. I kept the lid on the pan until the whites were cooked and the insides were still runny, then added the eggs over the sauce and garnished with some chopped parsley, ground pepper and a side of toast.

For a semi-frozen meal, I was pretty impressed with the flavor and it took very little effort. It made a big portion too. You could easily share the sauce between two people and fry up four eggs. While I normally try to make recipes from scratch, especially for the blog, semi-homemade meals are a huge help when meal planning. Please let me know if you enjoy this post and I will post some more meal hacks.

Massaman Beef and Potato Curry

Massaman-potato-beef-curry

This massaman beef and potato curry was really easy to make and will save you time and money on delivery when you are craving Thai food. I had to omit or substitute a few ingredients since we are trying to limit our trips to the grocery store during lockdown. Despite that, I was really happy with the flavors of the curry sauce even though I was missing tamarind paste. Instead, I substituted one tsp of fresh lime zest and squeezed a small amount of fresh lime juice over the dish before serving. I also didn’t have peanuts in my pantry so I just omitted it altogether.

Finally, the beef at the grocery store was slim pickings so I went with precut stir fry beef, which I found tough but tasty. In the future, when all this craziness dies down, I would like to try this recipe with stew meat or boneless short ribs that will be better cooked on low for a long time on the stove or in the instant pot. Since I used my instant pot for jasmine rice, I opted for the stove for the curry. The used Maesri Thai Massaman Curry from Amazon and would definitely repurchase.

To make this recipe more paleo friendly, you could serve this over spaghetti squash or cauliflower rice. Also, palmini noodles would turn this into a delicious paleo curry noodle dish.

Massaman Beef and Potato Curry
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 lb stir fry beef
  • 1 cup of beef stock
  • 1 can of coconut milk unsweetened
  • 1 large red potato peeled & chopped
  • 1 can of massaman curry paste (4 oz)
  • 2 tbsp palm sugar
  • 1 tsp ginger paste
  • 2 tsp fish sauce
  • 1 tsp freshly grated lime zest
  • a pinch of cinnamon
Instructions
  1. Simmer all ingredients in a large pot until potato is cooked through. Cut small cubes of potato for shorter cooking time.
  2. Serve over rice with a squeeze of fresh lime juice.

Everything Bagel Avocado Toast

avocado-toast

I love avocado toast and I love everything bagels so Everything Bagel Avocado Toast is to me the best of both worlds. It’s an easy vegan breakfast that still feels luxurious and tastes delicious. Before discovering this spice blend, I used to sprinkle my toast with ground cumin, sea salt and lemon juice. I recommend you still add a pinch of sea salt and a squeeze of lemon juice to make your avocado taste extra delicious. The acid cuts through the fat and the salt is a necessary flavor enhancer.

Everything Bagel Avocado Toast
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 1
Ingredients
  • 2 slices of bread
  • 1 avocado
  • 2 tsp Everything but the Bagel Seasoning
  • 2 tsp of fresh lemon juice
  • a pinch of sea salt or to taste
Instructions
  1. Dice and mash avocado in a bowl and add sea salt to taste. Usually just a pinch.
  2. Spread mashed avocado over bread slices.
  3. Sprinkle Everything but the Bagel Seasoning over toasts. Feel free to use more or less to taste.
  4. Add a small squeeze of fresh lemon juice over the toast and serve.
Notes
(optional) Put toasts in the oven to brown them before adding avocado.

Salmon Dill Cucumber Bites

salmon-dill-salad

If you love salmon like I do, then you will love these salmon dill cucumber bites. I added lemon, dill, and dijon mustard to enhance the flavor of the fish. I used canned salmon since I’m buying and experimenting with pantry staples during this epidemic, but when all this craziness dies down I would love to use fresh salmon instead.

I use canned tuna all the time for my tuna salad recipe, but this was my first time working with canned salmon. Even though it said it was boneless,  I did see some bones, that I did my best to pick out. I really love lemon and dill with fish so I might see how with tastes with tuna next time.

Salmon Dill Cucumber Bites
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 2 cans of salmon
  • 2 tbsp of chopped fresh dill
  • ⅓ cup of diced red onion
  • ⅓ cup of avocado oil mayo
  • 1 tsp dijon mustard
  • 1 tbsp of fresh lemon juice
  • ½ tsp of fresh lemon zest
  • 1 cucumber sliced
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, combine the salmon, dill, red onion, mayo, dijon mustard, lemon juice and lemon zest and mix.
  2. Slice cucumber and spoon salmon dill salad over each cucumber slice.

Freezable Chili Recipes

These are my favorite chili recipes that can also be frozen and defrosted for an easy dinner. You can also serve chili over rice, eggs, quinoa, nachos, baked potatoes or even spaghetti squash. Feel free to make your chili paleo or vegan, and you can skip or include beans. The Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili is a personal favorite of mine and my husband and I usually put it over rice, although traditionally it’s put over pasta.

Pumpkin Spice Chili

pumpkin-spice-chili-webv03

Slow Cooker Cincinnati Chili

cincinnati-chili-v002

Vegan Butternut Squash Chili

Slow Cooker Turkey Chili

Slow Cooker Turkey Chili - Healing and Eating

Chorizo Chili

Chorizo Chili

Classic Hummus

Garlic-hummus-v02

Hummus with vegetables is a healthy and easy snack you can make with canned chickpeas. I boiled my canned chickpeas with a little baking soda, to make it easy to peel the chickpea skins and get extra creamy hummus. America’s Test Kitchen recommends 1.5 tsp of baking soda per can. Although I’ve made hummus before, I was particularly happy with how creamy it turned out this time. So I will be repeating this technique.

This classic recipe would also make a great base if you wanted to add other flavors. Roasted red peppers would be delicious, so would some jalapeno, cilantro, and avocado for a spicy dip. Let me know in the comments your favorite hummus flavors!

Classic Hummus
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 6
Ingredients
  • 2 cans of chickpeas
  • 3 tsp of baking soda
  • 6 tbsp of ice cold water
  • 5 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 3 large cloves of garlic, pressed
  • 1 cup of tahini paste
  • 1 tsp of sea salt
Instructions
  1. Boil chickpea in a pot with baking soda for 3-5 minutes.
  2. Drain and rinse with cold water vigorously to help remove skins.
  3. Peel the rest of the chickpea skins off and add peeled chickpeas to food processor.
  4. Then add water, lemon juice, pressed garlic, tahini paste and sea salt to food processor.
  5. Blend food processor until hummus is smooth.
  6. Serve with chopped vegetables.