Aduki Bean Smoothie with Spinach and Strawberries

I read about azuki beans, also spelled adzuki or aduki beans, a few months ago.  They are small red beans typically used in Japanese cooking.  Yesterday I found canned organic aduki beans at the market and decided to make an aduki bean smoothie thanks to this smoothie recipe.  I pinned a few other aduki bean recipes on Pinterest and will be making them soon.  Check back soon!

Aduki Bean Smoothie:
1 banana
1/2 cup canned aduki beans
handful of spinach
1/2 cup frozen mango
5 strawberries
1 cup strawberry kefir
1 cup milk 

Green Monster Juice

Who said you have to drink alcohol on St. Patrick's Day?  I was inspired by this Halloween treat months ago, which I never made, and thought I could transform the monster into an all fruit and veggie Green Monster Juice for St. Patrick's Day; it would also be perfect for Halloween. 

For this juice you'll need:

1 cup frozen mango
1 red apple, chopped
1 banana, split in half
several handfuls of baby spinach
handful of flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cucumber, chopped with the skin on
2-3 tablespoons of chia seeds
1-2 cups of water (depending on desired consistency)
optional - few teaspoons of honey - if your banana is not ripe or extra ripe

4 clear plastic disposable cups and Sharpie to design your monster cups

Directions:
1. Create monster faces on your clear plastic disposable cups with a Sharpie.  Set aside.

2. In a blender, add frozen mango, apple, banana, spinach, cucumber, parsley, chia seeds, and honey (optional).  Start by adding about 1 cup of water and liquify all ingredients.

3. Depending on the consistency, you may want to add more water. 

4. Pour Green Monster juice into your monster cups. 

Happy St. Patty's Day!  Cheers!

Spinach, Red Pepper, and Bacon Quiche

Tonight for dinner I made a spinach, red pepper, and bacon quiche.  I used the base recipe that I usually use for quiche, with a few minor changes.  

Spinach, Red Pepper, and Bacon Quiche Ingredients:

10 ounces baby spinach

1 medium onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 eggs

6 slices of bacon
1 red pepper diced, plus 10 slices for the top 
handful of fresh basil, chopped 

1/2 teaspoon thyme 

1/2 teaspoon oregano 

1 tablespoon olive oil

salt and pepper to taste 

3/4 cup milk

8 ounces cottage cheese

1 pie crust

baking spray 

quiche dish, or pie pan 

Method:

1. Heat oil in saucepan.  Sauté onions, chopped red pepper, basil, and garlic. Add thyme, oregano, salt and pepper. Next add the baby spinach and cook until spinach is wilted. Set aside to cool.

2. While the vegetables are cooking, fry the bacon in a separate pan.  Or if you're like me, microwave your bacon on a microwave-safe dish in between paper towels.  Four minutes was the perfect time for six slices of crispy bacon, but that may depend on your microwave. Years ago, with a lesser-powered microwave, the rule in our house was one minute per slice.  

3. Beat the eggs in a large bowl.  Add milk, cottage cheese, and spinach mixture to the eggs. Stir until blended. Set aside. I add a bit more thyme, oregano, salt and pepper here too. 

4. Spray the bottom and sides of a quiche dish/pie pan and unfold the pie crust into the pan.  You may have to stretch it, depending on the size of the dish. Poke bottom of pastry crust with a fork.  

5. Pour the spinach mixture into pie crust and arrange the 10 slices of red pepper you saved for the top, like flower petals.

6. Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes or until golden brown.  Enjoy!

NOTE - Do not forget to spray your dish before you put down the pie crust.  

Spinach Oatmeal Smoothie

M and I have been on a daily smoothie/juice kick for the last few weeks.  Our drinks are healthy and delicious - not sure why it has taken me so long to blog about them.  Therefore, you'll be seeing our favorite drink recipes in the upcoming posts. 

Today we had a spinach oatmeal smoothie, which was sweet, satisfying for breakfast, and such a pretty green. I never thought to add oatmeal to our smoothies until I saw some posts on Pinterest, like this one, or spinach for that matter.  Oh the power of Pinterest! 

For this recipe, you'll need:

1 cup cooked instant oatmeal with milk or water
1 banana
about 1/2 cup strawberry Kefir
about 1/2 cup orange juice 
a few tablespoons of chia seeds
handfuls of  fresh spinach

Directions:
1. Add all ingredients to the blender and liquify.

Na zdrowie! (Polish for drink to your health.) 

Spinach and Mushroom Quiche

Quiche recipes usually call for a TON of eggs, which are high in cholesterol.  However, this quiche recipe is different.  You only use 4 eggs and it serves 8 people, which is less than 1 egg per person.  You could also substitute Egg Beaters, if you are watching your cholesterol. 

This is a delicious dish for an Easter or Mother's Day brunch.  Baci had two servings of it one Easter, which speaks volumes.  

Yesterday I made it with bacon and substituted the cottage cheese for an individual serving of  non-fat PLAIN Greek yogurt.  Make sure it's plain, not vanilla.   Also, check out MealsandMoves Blog, for all the uses of Greek Yogurt in your cooking. 

Spinach and Mushroom Quiche Ingredients:

12 ounces baby spinach

1 medium onion, diced

1 10-ounce container of mushrooms, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 eggs

4 - 6 slices of bacon (optional)

1/2 teaspoon thyme 

1/2 teaspoon oregano 

1 tablespoon olive oil

salt and pepper to taste 

3/4 cup milk

8 ounces cottage cheese OR individual serving (about 4 or 5 oz.) of non-fat plain Greek yogurt 

1/2 cup shredded cheese (like mozzarella cheese)

1 pie crust

baking spray 

quiche dish, or pie pan 

Method:

1. Heat oil in saucepan.  Sauté onions, mushrooms and garlic. Add thyme, oregano, salt and pepper. Next add the baby spinach and cook until spinach is wilted. Set aside to cool.

2. While the vegetables are cooking, fry the bacon in a separate pan.  Or if you're like me, microwave your bacon on a microwave-safe dish in between paper towels.  Four minutes was the perfect time for six slices of crispy bacon, but that may depend on your microwave. Years ago, with a lesser-powered microwave, the rule in our house was one minute per slice.  

3. Beat the eggs in a large bowl.  Add milk, plain Greek yogurt, and spinach mixture to the eggs. Stir until blended. Set aside. I add a bit more thyme, oregano, salt and pepper here too. 

4. Spray the bottom and sides of a quiche dish/pie pan and unfold the pie crust into the pan.  You may have to stretch it, depending on the size of the dish. Poke bottom of pastry crust with a fork.  

5. Pour spinach mixture into pie crust. 

6. Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes or until golden brown.  Enjoy!

NOTE - Do not forget to spray your dish before you put down the pie crust.