BKD Cookbook Club.....Inspiring Healthy Eating

I'm so excited to have found Jo Tracey's BKD (Brookford Kitchen Diaries) Cookbook Club. I've followed Jo for awhile and have read several of her books, including one of her most recent which features a group of ladies who have a cookbook club. They get together monthly to cook together out of a chosen book. LOVE this idea. Her books are such fun reads!

This month we're looking at cookbooks that inspire healthy eating. I will admit, I tend to use the internet to find recipes. Unless I get a cookbook as a gift or win one, I rarely purchase one...they can be expensive and I never know how many recipes I'll make. I was thinking I'd look at a few that Jo had mentioned, but I was having a hard time finding them through my library...I'm also trying not to buy too many books right now. With all that said, I'm going to refer to a book I "won" last year and really like. 

Let's talk about "healthy eating". In my opinion this looks different to everyone. What one person considers healthy another may not. Then there are the various eating "types" (do we want to call it that?)...vegan, vegetarian, carnivore, pescatarian, etc..it is daunting. For me personally, healthy eating isn't necessarily restricting things, but eating things in moderation, and more often than not eating whole foods, avoiding processed when possible, and if using processed ingredients and foods, make the best choices you can (fewest ingredients, organic, etc). I try to buy things organic as often as possible. I do have a sweet tooth and every crave "crap food" which I jokingly refer to things like Oreos, peanut butter cups, etc. My goal is to do the best I can, but not make my life or anyone else's miserable. 

I am trying to rein things in a bit and get a handle on exercise and eating...aren't we all. 

The book I'm sharing a recipe from is called The Real Food Dieticians: The Real Food Table by Jessica Beacom, RDN & Stacie Hassing, RDN, LD. You can find it here. Their mantra is to prove that food can be delicious and healthy too. It has something for everyone..including GF, Grain free and dairy free recipes. Some keys features:

*It starts with their food philosophy: They share a quote "Everyone is welcome at our table. We believe that food is the ingredient that binds us together, so we seek to create meals that everyone can enjoy-no matter your budget, your dietary restrictions or your tastebuds". 

* Pantry staples and kitchen staples

*Four-week dinner plan

*Breakfast & Brunch, Salads & Sides, Poultry Entrees, Beef & Pork Entrees, Fish & Seafood Entrees, Meatless Entrees & More, Appetizers, Snacks & Drinks, Desserts & Sweet Snacks, Condiments & Sauces.

They cover it all. Each recipe has detailed info, tips from the dieticians and what dietary categories if works for..as I was skimming through it to find the recipe, I realized, I really need to pull it out more. It's one of those books that I could really use almost every day. 

I have made their dairy-free nacho cheese which was really good. Just last week I made their Greek chicken (I used turkey) meatball bowls with Tzatziki. Let's get on to the recipe I'm sharing. 

Rainbow Quinoa Bowls with Peanut Dressing

I made this salad at a time when we were trying to cut back on the amount of meat we were eating. It was easy to put together and full of flavor. We were not left feeling hungry. 

For the salad: (4 servings)

1/2 uncooked quiona 

1 c. water

2 c. sherdded cabbage (I actually buy a coleslaw mix)

1 c. sliced sugar snap peas (I just cut them in half)

1 c. shelled Edamame

1 red bell pepper (thinly sliced) (1 c)

1/2 c. loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped

1/2 c. salted dry-roasted peanuts roughly chopped

6 green onions, trimmed and thinly sliced (1/3 c)

2 tsp. sesame seeds

Peanut Dressing:

1/2 c. natural creamy peanut butter (or crunchy)

1/4 c. coconut aminos

3 Tbs. fresh lime juice

2 tsp. rice vinegar

1 1/2 tsp. toasted sesame oil

1 tsp grated ginger (or use 1/4 tsp. ground ginger)

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp. fine salt

warm water as needed.

Rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer under cool water, then transfer to a pan adding the water. Bring to a boil and then decrease heat to simmer until water is absorbed. Remove from heat, cover and let stand 5 to 10 minutes. Uncover and fluff.

In a large bowl combine all other ingredients, except dressing. Once in the bowl, pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Serve it topped with chopped peanuts, more cilantro, and a squeeze of lime juice. 

Annnnd....friends, I can't find my own photos of this even though I KNOW I probably took some. The photo that I thought was it, was another quinoa salad recipe from another book..so I will just share the above photo (because I just don't have time to re-make it) and some other pics from the book below. 

I made this last week. It was really good. 

I haven't made this, but it looks really good!

With Joy Unquenchable,

Kirstin