52 in 52: Week 21

It feels like it has a been so long since I have blogged. My laptop has not been working well so it is really annoying to be on it for more than a couple of minutes. I have been using it as an excuse to stay off of electronics and enjoy the nice weather. It has been so hot outside (for Wisconsin in May) that I have not really wanted to cook anything. Instead I have making snack plates with fruit, hard boiled eggs, veggies and hummus for a lot of my lunches. That being said, I have still managed to make some tasty meals. 

This week I made crispy tofu. I have wanted to find a way to enjoy tofu since it is a cheap protein source that would be nice to have as an option next year. I used this recipe from the blog From My Bowl. The outside was just nutritional yeast and coconut aminos. I was not sure if it would work well, but it made for the crispiest tofu I have ever had. 

This recipe is great because you can easily add a lot of seasonings to change up the flavor profile. I made this without anything added, but next time I want to try it with garlic powder or something similar. The tofu worked well in a bowl as shown above, but I think it would also be great as a fun snack or appetizer with a dip. I highly recommend this recipe for anyone who wants to find new ways to enjoy plant based proteins. 

until next time, 

Maddie

52 in 52: Week 20

Toast has always been one of my favorite foods. It does not take too much looking on my Instagram (@classyandcleverblog)  to see that I love avocado toast with a sunny side up egg. But recently my family has been flying through the avocado. Four of the five of us really love them, so avocados do not last long in my house. I was having a craving for a sunny side up egg and toast, but I wanted another toast topping as well. I won't lie, I think what I came up with this week is so good that even avocado toast now has real competition. 

I made toast and topped it with natural peanut butter, arugula. bagel seasoning and then a sunny side up egg. I have also made it with red pepper flakes and micro greens, both combinations are out of this world.  The savory flavor of natural peanut butter (ie no added sugars) goes perfect with the eggs. The arugula add a nice peppery flavor, but different micro greens can add that as well. I really like to top my eggs with bagel seasoning if I am in the mood for a crunch, but adding just sesame seeds does the same thing. If you prefer spicy foods, that is where I would recommend the red pepper flakes.

I HIGHLY recommend you try out this toast combination. I know that I will be eating this all of the time, especially when I go back to school and my mom no longer buys me tons of avocados. Making this with peanut butter cuts down the price of the toast, while also adding some protein that will help keep you full longer. I am not saying this is an avocado toast substitute but it is an amazing alternative. 

Let me know if you try this!

xoxo, 

Maddie

52 in 52: Week 19

It doesn't take much looking around the blog to tell I like pancakes a lot. It is pretty much once a week that I try out a new pancake recipe, but I have yet to find the perfect one for me. For the longest time I have had a bag of  Birch Benders Keto Pancake Mix sitting around in my cupboard. I got it as a gift, tried it once according to the packaging directions and thought it was okay. The almond flour taste was really strong, and the pancake was grainy. I had tucked the mix away a forgot about it. 

I rediscovered the mix a couple of weeks ago, and had been thinking of how I could mess around with it so that I would actually like eating it. I hate throwing away good food, so I knew I was going to eat it one way or another. I added 1/3 c. mix, 1 egg and then almond milk until it made a thick pancake batter. I then let it sit as I heated up an 8" skillet. I poured in all of the batter to make one large pancake, and covered the pan with a lid. I find that this helps the pancake fluff up a little more and it also helps it cook through completely. 

This makes an amazing pancake. It was fully cooked through, something I find that is a problem with grain-free pancakes, and it was really thick and fluffy. I think the egg helped tone down the taste of the almond flour as well. This pancake was also really filling, between the protein in the egg and the mix, I was completely full until lunch time. If you have the keto pancake mix, I would highly recommend trying to make it with this method. I think this would also work well with any other pancake mix, so I'd be interest to hear how it works. 

Until next time, 

Maddie

52 in 52: Week 18

By the time this is posted, finals are officially over! It's been a long week (+) of studying, dealing with unhelpful professors and trying to keep life together without going crazy. Normally finals is made better by studying with friends, taking coffee/lunch breaks together and just having someone to complain to. This year that was obviously wasn't that. Snapchat/texting/whatever just isn't the same, so finals felt much longer than normal. By Thursday this week, I finally only had one exam left which left me time to play in the kitchen and spend some time outside preparing the garden for the summer. It was a much need rest from going over flashcards and more flashcards. 

This week I made Rachael DeVaux's Healthy Twix Bars. I have seen these bars all over Instagram, but never seemed to have the time or enough almond butter around. I try to make smaller batch treats since it gives me an excuse to bake more. I loved that this recipe used a 6x6 pan (I used a random dish) so I knew it would not make too much. These were so easy to make. The only downside is that they require a lot of time to make. You aren't in the kitchen for most of it, but there is a lot of cooling and freezing involved so this is not a last minute process. 

These were a hit with everyone who tried them, so I will definitely be keeping the recipe around. They do not taste like a Twix bar, sorry, but they taste so much better. It is a softer shortbread, and the "caramel" has an almond butter/maple flavor. I just used your classic semi-sweet chocolate chips on top, but I think they would be great with dark chocolate. If you have all of the ingredients around your house, I highly recommend that you try out these bars. 

Until next time, 

Maddie

52 in 52: Week 17

Last week of "real" online classes and finals are next week so that meant that I did not spend a lot of time in the kitchen. I ended up making most of my lunches on a whim, so they were nothing special. I have made some fun breakfasts this week including a zucchini bread smoothie (recipe coming later) and these zucchini bread pancakes (recipe). I had leftover zucchini from the previous week, where I had zoodles with dinner. It was a perfect excuse to make these pancakes.

These pancakes tasted exactly how I remember my mom's zucchini bread tasting. I haven't actually had it in years since it isn't gluten free, so I had to double check with her that it was a similar taste. There is almond butter in the pancakes that gave a great yummy taste, but since the flour used was coconut flour, it wasn't too nutty. I topped my pancakes with defrosted blueberries and maple syrup, which made for a great way to start the day. 

Another thing that I loved about this recipe was that it is  a recipe for one, but without a crazy portion size. It was so easy to make, that I see myself making it all summer long once zucchinis are in season. If you ever find yourself with even the smallest zucchini, I highly recommend making these pancakes. 

Until next time, 

Maddie

52 in 52: Week 16

I am starting to feel the stress of finals building. I have had less time to make fun meals, which is okay, but it means that there are less fun things to report on. I know that all I have to do is get through the next two weeks, and then it is finally summer. Not that summer matters that much in terms of working or spending time with friends, but I am so excited to finally have free time and (maybe) warm weather. I started to bring the idea of summer with a cool dessert this week, something would be perfect going into the summer. 

This weeks new recipe was a chocolate chia pudding from Feel Good Foodie. I was in the mood for a different kind of dessert than I usually have. Typically I have dark chocolate or coffee ice cream but I saw this recipe and decided out of the blue to make it. The first time I made it, I added coffee ice cream, coconut flakes and a chocolate covered banana. The second time, I had the chia pudding with bananas. The chia pudding with ice cream was something I hadn't thought of before, and it made a great texture combination. 

This chia pudding tasted so good. I think that what really made this so good what that I used a high quality cocoa powder. I used Equal Exchange's cocoa powder and it is a game changer. The cocoa powder is rich and full of flavor.  It is nothing like other brands I have used in the past. I will definitely be making this again. I loved the easy of being able to just grab it out of the fridge and still have a fancy dessert. I am already planning all of the different flavors I want to make... almond, chai and coffee... yum. 

What is your favorite kind of chia pudding?

Until next time, 

Maddie

52 in 52: Week 15

My big thing that I tried this week was chickpea flour. I have been seeing some recipes recently that I have been interested in, so I decided to get it from the grocery store and have fun experimenting. I guess that is one of the perks of being grain free... my flour is easy to find. One of the things that shocked me about the chickpea flour was how cheap it was. Compared to almond and cassava flour, chickpea flour is substantially cheaper. Once I picked up the flour, the cooking began. 

The first thing I tried to make was Socca. I have heard about it before, and after looking through some of my mom's French cookbooks I decided to try it out. I was also making shakshuka that morning, which involved using my cast iron skillet and I think this made a big difference. My Socca turned out soft, and I am 99% sure that it is supposed to be crispy. This was probably because I just made it on the stove top, and it in a standard pan. I did really love the taste though, so I am planning on trying it out again. If I can figure out how to make it crispy, I know that this will be a staple in my diet. 

I then tried to make chocolate chip cookies with chickpea flour. To start, I did not really like these cookies but I also think I might have messed up the recipe. I know other people who have made these and said they were some of the best gluten free cookies they've had so I will be trying these, or something similar again. I also will flatten out the cookies more before I bake them next time. I think that the centers were a little undercooked, which lead to it still having a bean-y taste. I will make sure to report back if I find a cookie recipe that I like, but as of now, maybe chickpea flour isn't meant for cookies. 

If there are any chickpea flour recipes that you like, let me know! 

Until next time, 

Maddie 

52 in 52: Week 14

This week I tried Fishermans eggs. It is a sardine mix that is topped with an egg. I used this recipe from Sophisticated Caveman, but instead of using tomatoes (which I didn't have) for red peppers. I served this for breakfast on top of spinach (instead of arugula) along side a piece of toast and a blood orange. 

I have several thoughts on this recipe. First, the recipe way over shot how long the egg should be cooked for in the oven. My whites got really rubbery and the yoke was starting to get too cooked once I pulled it out at 7 minutes. Second, tomatoes would be much better than red peppers because the dish could have used the added liquid. It was a little dry without tomatoes or the runny egg yoke. 

One thing I did add after taking the pictures was capers. Any bites without olives seemed to be missing something. Adding the capers gave a much needed acidity to the dish while keeping true to the Mediterranean flavors. 

All of this being said, I still liked this meal. I would not put this recipe as one of my favorites, but I definitely want to try it again with all of the proper ingredients. I am also going to make it as a lunch not a breakfast. Not that it is a big deal, it just felt like I was eating a lunch... probably because I don't think of fish as my typical breakfast food. 

Would you try something like this for breakfast? 

xoxo, 

Maddie

52 in 52: Week 13

This week was a dull one. I was stressed with school, tired with nothing to do and unmotivated with everything. My half marathon that I was training for was also officially cancelled this week which is a bummer. It's not like I did not know it was going to happen, but it is still sad that it did. Regardless, I have still kept up with cooking. It is what I look forward to the most!

This week I made cauliflower fried rice. I can't remember where I found the recipe (sorry) but it is pretty similar to any other recipe for fried rice except I used cauliflower rice and coconut amnios. I served it with "bagels" with peanut butter. If you haven't tried adding everything seasoning to peanut butter toast, you are missing out. 

Overall I liked how easy this dish was. It was nothing complex, but that was exactly what I needed this day. I cannot compare this to your typical fried rice, because I have never tried it. This is the kind of recipe I know I will be making again next year when I am back at school. It was a great way to add a lot of veggies into meal and it was a nice warm recipe for a cool day. 

Until next time, 

Maddie

52 in 52: Week 13

I have finally settled into a routine with classes back up for school and everyone in my house is working. I have found that I am working best with a set schedule for my day. I get my run in right away, then make breakfast and am sitting at my desk working by 9am. I give myself study breaks during the day to make breakfast, a nice lunch for my mom and I, and then to go on a walk in the afternoon. I have made sure to try a lot of new recipes this week. On my instagram (here), I shared my salmon cakes, frittata and lentil/beef sloppy joes. Making all of these new recipe gives me something to look forward to and I am so thankful for that. 

This week I made a cranberry ginger crumble fruit bake from Jar of Lemons.  The fruits I used are apple, cranberries, clementines and blueberries. The recipe initially called for mandarine oranges and blackberries but since I did not have those, I made use with what I had. For the granola topping, I used a grain free granola from Purely Elizabeth. This fruit bake was really interesting, especially with the addition of citrus. I would have never thought of adding it myself, which is part of why I wanted to try out the recipe. 

This fruit bake was really easy to make and tasted great which makes it a win in my book. The recipe says that it is a two serving dessert, but my mom and I had this for breakfast for two days. This first day I ate it with scrambled eggs on the side. Day two did not have as much of the fruit bake left, so I added leftover sweet potato, more granola and then added yogurt on the side for protein. I already have plans to make this again. I want to make sure to save some for dessert so I can try it out with ice cream! 

COVID-19 may be causing problems all around, but I find it important to focus on the good in life too. For me, I am so thankful for being able to cook in a real kitchen and experiment with fun recipes. 

Until next week, 

Maddie

52 in 52: Week 12

This social distancing/being on spring break with nothing to do has given me tons of time to try new recipe. I have made a new lunch or treat almost everyday but today I am sharing my favorite... bagels! I found a grain free bagel recipe on @lashsandlemons, and seeing as I had all of the ingredients, I whipped it up one night for breakfast the next day.

These bagels were really easy and quick to make which was appreciated. For the recipe all I had to do was mix coconut flour, flaxseeds, psyllium husk, egg whites and coconut oil, then add it to a doughnut pan and bake. I just happened to have psyllium husk for a recipe I tried about a year ago, but never found a use for it sense. Now I finally have a use!

What are my thoughts? I am so happy I found this recipe. They aren't dense at all like real bagel, honestly the only resemblance to a bagel they have is the shape. Instead they are light and airy. I used the bagels for avocado toast, and it was sturdy enough to hold a lot of avocado. I think these bagels are going to be a stable in my baking routine... I have already made them twice.

Until next time,

Maddie 

52 in 52: Week Nine, Ten and Eleven

Life has been very busy recently. First we started off with a lot of mid-terms and papers and now we have the whole coronavirus situation. I am not longer at school, and have online classes until at least mid-April. Hopefully this means I have more time to blog and actually stay on track, but I really don't know what to expect coming up.

For next set of 52 in 52, I started writing each of these posts in their respective weeks, but by the time the week ended, I completely ran out of time.

Week Eight

I put myself on a mission this week. After being tired of eating microwaved scrambled eggs over and over, I decided to try to make eggs with a runny yoke in the microwave. So this week my "new" food isn't anything I bought at the grocery store, instead it is a new method of making eggs. 

This was quite the process to figure out. The first couple of times I ended up with overcooked egg whites and yolks at the were perfect... if you wanted them to be fully cooked. I went through several eggs in this attempt. Don't worry, I didn't throw them out, instead I ate a lot of weirdly cooked eggs. I tried a lot of variations such as two eggs v. one egg, the timing, covering the egg, 

The Method 

- Preheat bowl for 60 seconds on high. 

- Crack one egg into the bowl and stab yolk once
- Cover with paper towel (whites will pop a lot)
- Microwave on high for 30 secs (I think the microwave I was using is really weak, so be willing to test out your power level)

Nothing beats eggs made on the stove, believe me, it is always one of the first things I eat when I am home, but this runny egg yolk works. It can get you through time rough times of having only a microwave. 

Week Nine

Keeping on the runny egg trend, I  tired have sweet oats with an egg on top. I wanted to have protein in my oatmeal, but didn't feel like adding collagen or protein powder. I had tried eggs with savory oatmeal over winter break, but one of the Youtubers I watch, Lexi DeYoung, has always talked about runny eggs on sweet oats so I figured I'd give it a shot.

This oatmeal bowl had oats (obviously), cinnamon, flaxseeds, defrosted strawberries, peanut butter and an egg. This surprised me, but I loved it! I didn't really taste the egg but it added a nice texture change. I also appreciated that this breakfast kept me full and satisfied until lunch time. I would highly recommend trying this, especially if you want more protein for your oatmeal. I think next time I want to try it with bananas and chopped nuts with the egg!

Week Ten

This was my last week of relative normalcy ie being at school. No matter what I would have been starting my spring break this weekend so I already had a list of foods I wanted to make. I was able to check my first thing off of my list: Carrot Cake from Ambitious Kitchen. I have been able to eat oats more often, so this cake based on almond and oat flour was perfect for me. I was excited to try it too as it used maple syrup as a sweetener...I love almost anything with maple syrup.

This cake was a hit with my family. You wouldn't guess it was made with alternative flours other than how it was a little denser than your typical carrot cake. The spice level was perfect, and I loved the addition of cinnamon to the cream cheese frosting. This isn't a very sweet cake. but seeing as I don't love super sweet cakes, I found this to be just right. If you are looking for a yummy, everyday this is one you should check out!

I am not sure what new foods I will be trying with this coronavirus situation, but I am betting I will be able to keep coming up with fun ideas so stay tuned.

Stay Safe! 

xoxo,

Maddie

52 in 52: Week Eight

Four midterms in seven days can make for some hectic days. I wanted to do a big post Monday about a fun challenge I did last week but I have not had the time. I've had to focus on studying instead of writing blog posts, but it definitely paid off. I am writing this later on Thursday night than I would like to be awake, but I really at least want to have one post a week. This kind of a post is pretty easy for me since I love to try and eat different foods so hopefully we can get through all 52 weeks. 

On to this week, what did I try? Nutritional Yeast!

One of the girls who is lives in the sorority house is vegan and she was telling me all about nutritional yeast. She let me try a little of hers and I thought it was so interesting. The first day I had it, I used the nutritional yeast to top scrambled eggs with broccoli and spinach. I really loved the different taste it added to the eggs. For this dinner I used it as "cheese" on top of my taco salad. The rest of the taco salad had seasoned chicken, tomato, carrots, salsa, lettuce and guacamole. 

Here are my overall thoughts:

The first thing I have to say is that in no way does nutritional yeast pass as cheese. First of all, it isn't creamy like cheesy and really doesn't have the same taste either. For me it tastes just like a different savory seasoning not cheese. Also a heads up, the smell is super weird. It is impossible to explain but it grew on me. Overall, I really liked nutritional yeast. I can't stress how much it isn't like cheese but it was really good on top of eggs, veggies and on this taco salad. I liked it enough to buy myself my own bag on it and I am excited to keep experimenting with it over the semester. 

Until next time (when midterms are finally over),

Maddie 

52 in 52: Weeks Six and Seven

The school year is starting to really pick up hence the lack of blog posts again. I really want to make it a goal to stay consistent with blogging, but I have no idea how it will go. I (sadly) found out that I have an exam every week for the rest of the semester. I am hoping I will be able to make a routine out of studying and balancing the rest of life.

I have been able to try a bunch of new things recently which has been enjoyable. I combined last weeks post with this weeks. In addition to what I mentioned in this post, I have also tried Siggi's plant based yogurt, Healthade's Grapefruit Kombucha and Nada Moo's Cookies and Cream ice cream. I thought that the Siggi's was really interested and by far and away the best dairy free yogurt I have ever had. The kombucha was your classic grapefruit kombucha which is always a good thing. The only disappointment was the Nada Moo ice cream. I was hoping for real "cookies" but it wasn't like that. I can't explain it too well, but it wasn't for me.

Week Six: Mandarinquats

 Holy Heck these are sour. The packaging says these are good sliced on salads or pickled, but since I am not pickling anything and don't have a knife sharp enough to cut them so I just tried them whole. Unless you are really in the mood for a shock of sourness, I wouldn't recommend doing that. I could the that these would be good picked or eaten in smaller portions. The overall opinion is that I would not buy these again without a specific purpose. They would be a great garnish but not as your fruit in your lunch box. 

Week Seven: Freeze Dried Edamame

I picked up freeze dried edamame at Target because I wanted to try some different protein sources with lunches. I really really loved these. They were crunchy and salty, which is always a good combination. I used the edamame to make "snack" lunches. It was fun it to pick at them with the rest of my lunch. I am also going to look into different forms of edamame to bring with me. Frozen edamame would be a cheaper option, but it would lose the fun crunch.  I will definitely be buying these again. Target, you will be seeing me soon. 

I have a post I am so excited about coming next week so stay tuned! 

Maddie

52 in 52: Week Five

You all know how much I love my yogurt, especially skyr. So there is no surprise that I was so excited to be able to find two (!) new flavors to try.  I picked up the seasonal spiced pear, which you can see on instagram here. The more exciting find was the apple cinnamon skyr with almond butter. I have been wanting to try it the moment I saw it was released. 

I loved this yogurt. The almond butter had the perfect consistency, not too thick or thin. I only like runny nut butter in my yogurts so I was worried about this at first but of course Siggi's got it right. What really made this yogurt special was the apple chunks. I thought the apple would be pureed but nope, there were small chunks throughout which made a great texture.

I really loved the convince of this yogurt. Yes, of course you could make a bowl of plain yogurt, and top it with almond butter, cinnamon and cut up apples but you don't always have the time.  I had this yogurt while studying last weekend and it was perfect. I was filled up until I wanted to eat dinner.

Overall I would recommend this to anyone, it a real 10/10. The flavor and texture is perfect. It makes a great snack and could easily be a good breakfast if you added granola and maybe some more fruit. the only problem is that I can't find this yogurt everywhere but hopefully that will be changing soon1

Have you tried this yogurt yet? 

Until next time, 

Maddie 

52 in 52: Week Four

This week at Whole Foods I found Forager Grain Free Cereal  and since I love cereal so much, I knew I needed to try it. The only other grain free cereal brands I have heard of are Magic Spoon and a couple other brands, but none of them are available in store. This cereal was $6 when the comparative brands are around $10. I am a big fan of cereal bowls for breakfast or as a late night snack so I was excited to try it. 

I tried the cereal dry, and then tried it for breakfast as part of a more balanced meal. My cereal bowl included more cinnamon, flax seeds, peanut butter, banana and almond milk. Won't lie, the dry cereal tastes like styrofoam (or at least what I like it would taste like). Thankfully it gets substantially better when milk is added. Overall I like it as an option for my cereal craving but if you aren't grain free I would stick with something else. 

For being grain free I would give it a 7/10 (with milk). I will probably end up buying it again because it does give me the option for cereal again which makes me so happy but it won't be a regular purchase.

UPDATE (1/28): This cereal grew on me a lot. It still isn't great dry but it does so well with almond milk once soaked a little. I still won't buy it weekly because of the price but I guarantee it will show up again on this blog. I love have cereal back. 

Until next time, 

Maddie 

52 in 52: Week Three

Since going grain free I have been really missing my oatmeal. Oats are probably one of my favorite foods. Over this winter break I have been testing different grains to see what I can tolerate. Oats seem to be okay for me now!

This brings me to what I tried this week... savory oatmeal. I have never had savory oats before, and it has also been years since I have had a sunny side up egg. I made a bowl of oatmeal topped with a sunny side up egg, tomato, sautéed spinach, avocado and bagel seasoning.

I absolutely loved this breakfast. I have always been skeptical but somehow it all worked out really well. I ended up eating a sunny side up egg almost every day this week and have been loving them. It wasn't until about a year or two ago that I really started to love eating eggs. Now I typically have eggs 5-6 days a week for breakfast when I am home; I like them that much.

Next week I go back to school which will make trying new things a little harder,  but I am excited to see what I can come up with this semester.

until next time, 

Maddie 

52 in 52: Week One and Two

I wasn't going to do anything in terms of "New Years resolutions" this year, but the other day I heard on the radio the idea of 52 in 52. Every week for a year you try something new. The new thing can be anything you want it to be. I loved this idea so I am going to do 52 in 52 with the goal of trying a new food or recipe each week. I am excited to see where this takes me while I am in school. I have had a pretty easy start since I am home for winter break, but the real challenge lies ahead.

  

Seeing as almost two weeks have already passed this month, I am combining this post. The goal is to do a short post each week about what I tried. I am making my weeks Sunday through Monday for the sake of ease instead of trying to go by the dates. So here we go! 

Week One

If you follow me on instagram (@classyandcleverblog) you would have seen my post about these new grain free English muffins I tried. I had been really wanting avocado toast, I don't like to have avocado with most grain free breads because it doesn't make for a balanced breakfast ie no carbs. So many people are afraid of carb but I find that I don't function well if I am not eating enough carbs. 

These english muffins were so easy to make that I know I will make them again and again. They were the perfect base for avocado and will make for a great peanut butter and jelly.  I made a lot of these and put them in the freezer so I can just pull one out whenever I want. 

Week Two

I tried a papaya this week! As much as I love to eat locally, I am really interested in trying tropical fruits as well. Of course I am never going to find a papaya growing in Wisconsin so I got this from the grocery store.  

I first tried the papaya by scooping it out of its skin and thought it was just okay. BUT, once I added lime juice on top of the fruit it was amazing. I loved the fresh citrus burst that the lime gives. It completely changes how the fruit tastes. I will definitely have papaya again if I see it at the store. 

When I was reading about papaya I found that the seeds are edible. My mom found a great salad dressing using the papaya seeds and a bit of fresh papaya. The seeds have a peppery taste that make for a great salad dressing. Some people dry the seeds to use like peppercorns but that was more work than I was willing to put in. 

So there is week one and two! Let me know if you have ideas of any foods or recipes I should try. My mom is also doing this on her blog, so you can follow along here! She made a new cinnamon roll repine for New Years Day, and then an instant pot recipe that everyone in my family loved.

I am excited to see where this takes me!

xoxo,

Maddie