Beet, Arugula & Goat Cheese Grilled Cheese

• 1-2 Beets
• Olive Oil
• Arugula
• Goat Cheese
• Butter
• French Bread
• 1/2 ounce sherry (optional)
• Salt

Start off by roasting the beets by your preferred method. I skinned them with a paring knife, sliced them evenly, tossed them in some olive oil and salt, then baked on 375°F for 20-30 minutes, flipping halfway through.

Once the beets have cooked to your desired tenderness (poke them with a fork or taste a few slices), take them out of the oven and in a pan on medium-high heat, quickly fry them with about a ½ ounce of sherry wine, cooking until evaporated. After thinking about it, you could also try cooking them in some red/white wine or some balsamic vinegar, as I think they would add some nice flavours to the beets. (Next time I may try tossing the arugula in some balsamic vinegar, could be tasty!).

Once you have finished frying the beets, slice up your bread, butter each side, lay down some arugula, a little bit of goat cheese, then your beets and some more goat cheese, and slap it together!

Fry the sandwich in a pan on medium heat until each side is golden brown, then sliced it in half and enjoy!

Kale Salad with Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette
Perfect as a light lunch or even a meatless Monday dinner option!

Ingredients

• 4 cups chopped kale
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1/2 cup cooked quinoa
• 1/2 cup pomegranate arils
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese

For the Meyer lemon vinaigrette
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• Zest of 1 Meyer lemon
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed Meyer lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon agave

Instructions

• To make the vinaigrette, whisk together olive oil, apple cider vinegar, Meyer lemon zest and juice, and agave in a small bowl; set aside.
• To assemble the salad, place kale in a large bowl; top with avocado, quinoa, pomegranate arils, pecans and goat cheese. Pour the dressing on top of the salad and gently toss to combine.
• Serve immediately.

Carrot Cake Protein Bars
Gluten Free...Vegan...Oil Free

Ingredients: 

2 Tbsp Ener-G Egg Replacer
½ cup warm water
2 ripe bananas, peeled and mashed
¼ cup maple syrup
2 Tbsp non-dairy milk
1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
½ cup coconut flour
½ cup unflavored, vegan, gluten-free protein powder*
¼ cup ground or milled flaxseed
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp gluten-free baking soda
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp sea salt
pinch of ground cloves
¾ cup shredded carrots
¼ cup raisins (optional)
2 Tbsp coconut butter, melted*

STEP 1:
Preheat oven to 375°F and line a baking sheet with a silicon baking mat or parchment paper. Set aside.

STEP 2:
Mix egg replacer and warm water together thoroughly (until it starts to get kind of foamy). Combine “egg” mixture, mashed bananas, maple syrup, non-dairy milk and vanilla extract in a large bowl with a hand or stand mixer.

STEP 3:
Whisk together dry ingredients in a small bowl. Once incorporated, add to the wet mixture and mix until smooth.

STEP 4:
Add shredded carrots and raisins and mix until just incorporated. Allow mixture to sit for 1-2 minutes to thicken up.

STEP 5:
Leanne says to use about ⅓ cup of mixture per bar, which is what I did. However, next time I would prefer smaller, narrower bars, so I would only use a ¼ cup or less. Form the mixture into a ball, then roll it between your palms so it begins to lengthen a bit. Press the form onto prepared pan and shape into a bar, about ¼” to ½” thick.

STEP 6:
Bake bars for 22-25 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. The bottoms of the bars should be golden and the tops should be cracking slightly. My oven seems to run cool, so I baked mine the full 25 minutes and I think they could have used about an extra 5 minutes or so.

STEP 7:
Remove from oven and allow to cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring bars to a cooling rack.

STEP 8:
Once cooled completely, top with a drizzle of coconut butter or icing.

Guacamole Parfaits--

For the guacamole:
2 ripe avocados
1/2 red onion, minced (about 1/2 cup)
2 tablespoons cilantro (leaves and tender stems), finely chopped
1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
A dash of freshly grated black pepper

For the garnish:
1 cup diced tomatoes
1 cup diced yellow peppers
1 bag frozen corn
tortilla chip strips
12 votive glasses

To begin, cut the avocados in half and remove the seed, scoop out avocado from the peel and into a mixing bowl. Add the red onion, cilantro and fresh lime juice and mash until all ingredients are mixed evenly. Add salt and pepper to taste. Dice up the tomato and yellow peppers, and prepare frozen corn.

In the 12 votive glasses, layer the Guacamole, Tomatoes, Peppers and Corn evenly and garnish with tortilla strips for dipping!