The salad kick is still on.

Trying to represent summer despite the cool temperatures.

Fresh raspberries, soft smooth goat cheese, crunchy toasted almond slivers and a mint vinaigrette.

Do you wish you had a fork? It was pretty yummy.

Ingredients

• 4 Cups Baby Romaine
• 1 1/2 Cups Raspberries
• 1/4 Cup Natural, unsalted sunflower seeds
• 1/2 Cup Sliver almonds, toasted
• Handful of fresh mint leaves
• 2 Tbsp. Goat cheese, crumbled
• 1/3 Cup Raisins

Dressing

• 3 Tbsp. Olive oil
• 1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp.  Dijon Mustard
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• Salt and pepper
• 6 Mint leaves, finely chopped

Method

1. Combine all salad ingredients in a bowl
2. For the dressing, get a jar with a lid and add the ingredients in order as listed above.
3. Place the lid on and give it a good shake.
4. Pour over salad just before serving.
5. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: Keep salads interesting by switching out the greens from baby romaine, arugula, spinach, iceberg lettuce, etc.  It will keep your taste buds guess and avoid those pitfalls of the same old salad.

The sun is shining, birds are chirping but it is still cool out.  I am trying to be optimistic but I am really looking forward to working out on the deck.  Not there yet… but did fire up the barbecue last night.  Will share more with you on that for Friday.

Have a great day.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

What do you get for being lazy?

What do you get for having nothing prepared for dinner?

What do you get when you have frozen Eggo waffles in the freezer and some fresh strawberries?

You get a little concoction I call – Dessert waffles for dinner!

A waffle topped with a smear of nutella, a dollop of Greek yogurt, sliced strawberries, slivered almonds and maple syrup.   Was it good?  I would have to say it was delicious.  Was it a great dinner?  Umm No

But that is life.

What are some of the crazy things you eat for dinner that are definitely out of the ordinary?  Let me know.

I love hearing them

I will talk to you on Friday.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

Good morning, afternoon or night! It’s Friday morning and the frost is lining the trees.  A gorgeous start to the day. What a better way to start off your day than a balanced nutritious breakfast. Wow – that sounds like something from a parenting report or a TV commercial – but you know better.

I am really just making a glorious transition into today’s post. This dish is really not in need of a recipe but I thought I would share it with you as just a different option in the morning. Some folks have cereal, others do eggs and toast, maybe some oatmeal, yogurt and fruit, pancakes or waffles – which are all great choices.

Today, I wanted to share a quinoa breakfast as an alternative to oatmeal.  Before doing so, here are some quick facts on QUINOA

Quinoa Nutrition: The most protein of any grain, great source of vitamins & minerals – iron, magnesium, Vit E, potassium, amino acids, fiber – ideal for vegetarian or vegan diets.

Cooking Quinoa: Simple to cook, like rice. Cooked quinoa looks a bit like couscous, but is more substantial and slightly crunchy.

Prep & Cook Time: 5 minutes prep, 15 minutes cook time

For the dish below, I followed the instructions on the bag/box and topped it with some fresh fruit, a few almonds and a drizzle of maple syrup.  It was actually quite tasty.  I never realized the nutritional value in Quinoa until recently.  We bought a huge bag at Costco on the weekend so it is experimental time for me.

Question of the Day:

What s your favorite way to prepare Quinoa?

A couple of Frosty shots

I hope you have a great Friday, leave a comment or hit me up on twitter or even post it on my facebook.  Looking forward to hearing all the ways to prepare quinoa.  Have a fun filled weekend and I will see you on Monday.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty