Cheer Up

Sometimes, we feel down and uninspired, yes? Well, I know I feel that way sometimes. In an attempt to turn my mood around, I made a simple chickpea salad. I went outside and breathed in the fresh, crisp autumn air and took lots of pictures. Working with my hands usually lifts my spirits. Sure to work, right? Of course. Though I wasn't very hungry for what I'd just created, a spur-of-the-moment recipe success and some great (for me, at least) photos made me smile.

Chickpea Salad

Like a classic American chicken salad, except vegan and more modern than the version you're probably used to. Makes 2-4 servings.

• one 15 oz. can of chickpeas
• 3-4 radishes, sliced
• ½ onion, coursely chopped
• ½ cup of parsley, finely chopped
• ¼ cup of frozen edamame
• 1T (vegan) mayonnaise
• 1T fresh-squeezed lemon juice
• salt & pepper, to taste

Boil the edamame for a couple of minutes and shock with cold water. Mix together the first five ingredients. Then add the mayonnaise, lemon juice and seasonings. Stir gently and thoroughly. Store in the refrigerator and enjoy on sandwiches, crackers or lettuce.

A "Gnu" Find

A big thanks to Gnu Foods for an abundance of delicious samples...

Orange Cranberry: Somewhat tart and very fruity, this flavor was my favorite. Go figure - I have a thing for cranberries and oranges.

Cinnamon Raisin: Like a healthy cinnamon roll! It was not too sweet, but it was still very decadent. The raisins really added to the flavor and texture.

Chocolate Brownie: This flavor was decadent yet not overly sweet. It tasted healthy, but it a good way. I really enjoyed it.

Banana Walnut: Like a high-fiber slice of banana bread. Moist and flavorful.

Peanut Butter: This is a strange flavor at a first bight, but it gets immediately better. It could've used a little bit more PB taste, but it had a great texture and was filling.

Rustic Spelt Toaster Pops

I promised you toaster pops over a month ago. They are simple, they are rustic, and they are extremely customizable. The top one is made with Croatian fig spread and pistachios; the bottom is made with my mom's peach jam.

Rustic Spelt Toaster Pops
These toaster pops are a delicious, healthy alternative to Poptarts.

• 1 cup spelt flour
• 3T cold water
• 2T (heaping!) of applesauce
• 1T hazelnut oil
• dash of salt
• jelly or jam of your choice

In a large bowl, sift together the spelt flour and salt. With a fork, stir in the applesauce and hazelnut oil until the mixture is course. Add the water slowly, mixing well until the dough forms a ball. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and roll it into a rectangle, 1/8 inch thick. Cut out rectangles that are 2x3 inches in size. Use all the of the dough. Gently spread your jelly or jam of half of the pieces of crust. Put the other pieces on top of them and crimp the edges. If you want to add designs on top of the pops, be sure to do so before placing them on top of the pieces with jelly. Bake on parchment paper for 6-8 minutes.

ProBars

• Superfood Slam: I was surprised about two things when I opened this bar; (1) it was green & (2) it had chocolate in it. I was not surprised, however, that it was absolutely delicious!


• Nutty Banana Blast: I thought I was eating a piece of banana bread. Amazing!


• Maple Pecan: Like a healthy pecan pie - I really liked this flavor.


• Koka Moka: A semi-sweet balance of chocolate and coffee with a deep brown color and solid taste.


• Cocoa Pistachio: This variety is a nice balance of chocolate and nuts.


• Cherry Pretzel: This bar needs less pretzels and a lot more cherries! It was my least favorite.

Overall, I really enjoyed the ProBars that I tried. A big thanks goes to Mr. Kendall Card over at ProBar for sending me these free samples! I really appreciate it. Trying to follow their concept of enjoying them as a meal replace, I had some for breakfast (Nutty Banana Boom, Mape Pecan) with fresh fruit and some for lunch (Superfood Slam) with a few lettuce leaves. They also work great as snacks. When I had 2.5 hours of volleyball practice after school, I knew I could count of a ProBar at lunch to keep me going.

Speaking of volleball....our City Tournament was on Friday. We played for 8 hours! We won every single match (2 games = 1 match) until our very last game. With a point differential of only two, we lost and took 2nd place. We had fun though, and it was a great season.

A Raw Lunch to Repeat

The salad has a base of romaine lettuce and is topped with a fresh local peach, slices of red bell pepper, celery, fresh cilantro and a tomatillo. Beside it is my first Larabar...

...which I loved! It was as delicious as Jenn said it was. It was tangy and not to sweet. I really liked the smooth texture combined with chunks of nuts. I would definitely buy this bar again!

What is your favorite Larabar flavor?