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Triple Berry Protein Smoothie

5/31/2020

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I have been experimenting and doing lots of research with protein powders and vitamins this past week. As a vegetarian I am often searching for creative ways to add protein to my diet. I came across the brand Nuzest and I ordered a small pack of their vanilla pea protein powder with the intent on adding a couple of scoops to my smoothies. I really liked the idea of pea protein vs. soy!  It was expensive vs. other brands that I have seen, but I was fun to try something new. If you are making this smoothie, feel free to use ANY brand of protein powder. Please share in the comments section below and let me know what your favorites are so I can try them too! If you don’t have protein powder, just eliminate it from this smoothie and add raw hemp seed instead.  I also discovered some amazing peanut butter from Trader Joes, “Organic Creamy Peanut butter with Valencia peanuts.” It only has one ingredient, organic peanuts!! My trick with one ingredient peanut butter is to turn it upside down in your pantry so that the oils incorporate. Your peanut butter will be super creamy without all the oil on top and no need to stir!! I combined these new found ingredients with three kinds of berries and some oat milk and the results were fantastic!! I Hope you enjoy this Make ahead of Monday treat as much as I do and I hope it makes for a yummy start to your Monday morning! 

Ingredients
1.5 cups unsweetened oat milk
½ tsp vanilla extract 
2 tsp vanilla protein powder (optional)
1 frozen banana
½ cup frozen strawberries
¼ cup of fresh or frozen raspberries
1T creamy peanut butter
1 acai packet (can be found at Trader Joes in the frozen aisle) 

Directions
  1. Combine all of the ingredients into a high speed blender and blend on high until smooth and creamy.


Directions to Make Ahead

  1. In a freezer safe bag, combine the frozen banana, broken up acai packet, frozen strawberries, raspberries and peanut butter and place in the freezer overnight. 
  2. In the morning combine the contents of the bag along with the oat milk,  vanilla and protein powder extract in a high speed blender and blend on high until smooth and creamy. 
  3. Enjoy on the go in a reusable to-go cup!
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Vegan Sloppy Joes

5/15/2020

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I have a fond memory of going to my Great Aunt Rosemary and Uncle Mickey’s house in Arizona when I was a kid. They had a large pool in their backyard and we would swim and have lunch with them each time we visited Arizona. My Aunt always served good food, and I especially remember loving her sloppy joes!  My sister and I would add chips to our sandwich for an extra crunch and scoop up the extra filling on our plates with more chips. There is something special about a sloppy joe sandwich that makes me think of those sunny days by their pool in AZ.  Today this Vegan version is dedicated to my Great Aunt and Uncle who have since passed away. I hope you enjoy this flavorful sandwich and that it is accompanied by sunny days and happy moments. 

Ingredients

½ cup diced yellow onion
1 small green pepper diced
1T olive oil
16oz tempeh 
¾ cup of tomato sauce
½ cup ketchup 
1T yellow mustard
1T apple cider vinegar
2 tsp brown sugar
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp garlic powder
1tsp smoked paprika 
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper

Directions
  1. Heat olive oil in a saucepan on medium heat
  2. Add the diced onions and saute for 2 minutes or until fragrant
  3. Add the diced green peppers and saute for 1 minute
  4. Crumble the tempeh with your hands, it should resemble the texture of ground meat, and add it to the onion and peppers saute for 2 minutes
  5. Reduce heat to low and add the remaining ingredients, stir to incorporate.
  6. Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes on low or until the tempeh is tender. 
  7. Serve on toasted whole wheat buns with a side of potato chips! 
  8. Store leftovers in the fridge for up to one week.
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Portland Smoothie

5/9/2020

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This past fall I had the privilege of taking a 10 year college reunion vacation with my college roommates/best friends. We decided on Portland because it was a new place for all of us and one that we have heard great things about in the past.  For the first time in my life, my high expectations were truly exceeded, Portland was MAGICAL. If you know me well, you know that I am quite shy and that I don’t often talk to strangers, well not Portland Danielle, I was having full on conversations with uber drivers, feeding the homeless, asking baristas what their favorite drink was on the menu, actively looking for an opportunity to meet the members of my favorite band, Ages and Ages, and smiling while walking in the rain … Portland. Was. PERFECT! We stayed in the cutest AirBNB along a street packed with culture, unique shops, vegan and vegetarian restaurants, a kombucha bar and a double decker bus that was actually a tea place! We stayed up late doing nails, sipping tea, chatting and acting like we did when we all lived together. One of my roommates Traci is an incredible artist and she documented the joy of that trip perfectly in one of her daily drawings. She creates a Daily “Quipple” which is an inspirational drawing or quote and if you sign up, it gets delivered to your inbox every single day! In college she would literally document every single day with drawings of “us” that we housed in “the book.”  This was one of her inspirations for creating the Daily Quipple!  Please check it out, she’s AMAZING!  Click on the picture to see  more of her amazing work and to learn more of her story!!
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Anyway, back to food.  My other roommate/best friend, Olivia, found this great smoothie place for us to have breakfast at and we went every day while we were there. I ordered the same smoothie each day and have been dreaming about that smoothie since our trip to Portland. It has been my mission to recreate it as best as I could... so, today, I decided to and.. WOW, I did it! This is my dedication to Portland, my soul city, and one that showed me one of the best vacations of my life!!! Cheers to soul friends, soul cities, health and happiness!
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Ingredients (makes one large or two small smoothies)
1 frozen banana
½ cup frozen strawberries
1.5 cups unsweetened almond milk
1-1.5 T creamy peanut butter
​1
 tsp vanilla extract 
1 acai packet (can be found at Trader Joes in the frozen aisle) 
Sprinkle of raw hemp seeds

Directions to enjoy right NOW!
  1. Combine all of the ingredients minus the hemp seeds into a high speed blender and blend on high until smooth and creamy.
  2. Top smoothie with raw hemp seeds and ENJOY! 

Directions to Make Ahead

  1. In a freezer safe bag, combine the frozen banana, broken up acai packet, frozen strawberries and peanut butter and place in the freezer overnight. 
  2. In the morning combine the contents of the bag along with the almond milk and vanilla extract in a high speed blender and blend on high until smooth and creamy. 
  3. Top with raw hemp seeds and enjoy on the go in a reusable to-go cup!
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VEGAN & GLUTEN FREE  Sweet Potato Cacao Brownies with Almond Butter

5/2/2020

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I always love a good recipe that sneaks in vegetables and other nutritious ingredients without sacrificing any of what we all crave. These brownies are inspired by the leftover sweet potato that has been sitting on my counter since last weekend + a strong craving for chocolate! My friend Dave got me interested in Cacao powder and I decided to give it a try in these brownies as well and they turned out GREAT! The best part of these brownies is that they are AMAZING as leftovers straight from the fridge. They take on a fudge like quality and can be enjoyed all week!   


Ingredients
1 cup almond flour 
½ cup of Cacao Powder (or cocoa powder)
¾ cup of coconut sugar or white sugar
1tsp baking powder

2 flax eggs (2T ground flax + 6T water) 
¼ cup unsweetened almond milk
¾ cups of chocolate chips (make sure they are vegan)
½ cup coconut oil 
½ tsp vanilla extract
⅓ cup creamy almond butter
1 cup cooked and mashed sweet potato **see notes

Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line 8x8 inch pan with parchment paper 
  2. Combine dry ingredients (almond flour, cacao powder, sugar and baking powder) into a large bowl and whisk to combine. 
  3. In a medium sized bowl make your flask egg and let it sit until it resembles the consistency of an egg.
  4. Meanwhile, add the almond milk and chocolate chips to a small saucepan and heat until all of the chocolate chips have melted. Make sure you are stirring the entire time and that the heat is not set too high or the mixture will burn. Remove from heat and let cool.
  5. Add the coconut oil, vanilla, almond butter and cooked mashed sweet potato to the flax egg and stir to combine. 
  6. Add the cooled almond-milk chocolate mixture to the wet ingredients and stir to combine.
  7. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
  8. Smooth the batter into the prepared 8x8 pan and bake for 45-50 minutes***. 
  9. Let cool completely, slice and enjoy! Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container 


NOTES
*** These brownies are moist and fudgy, they may look like they are not done, but they are! Make sure you let them cool completely before cutting, eating and enjoying. 

** SUPER EASY Sweet Potato Mash 
  1. Rinse 1 medium sized unpeeled sweet potato 
  2. Pierce the potato 6-8 times with a fork 
  3. Wrap in a damp paper towel and place in a glass bowl
  4. Microwave in high for 5 minutes
  5. Carefully turn the sweet potato over in the bowl and microwave for another 3-4 minutes until sweet potato is fork tender. 
  6. Carefully remove the paper towel, cut the sweet potato in half and let cool for 5 minutes.
  7. Remove the flesh and mash with a fork.
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    Author

    I am a music teacher, professional musician and a vegetarian. I created this site with the mission to share recipes that make life a little more organized, and enjoyable!  ​

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