Quinoa Pluot Bowls {gf}

I started grad school year two of five last week. It felt like I was going into battle with not enough time to prepare.

In an effort to hold onto some semblance of control in my life I started running 2-3 days a week. I've had a love hate relationship with running since childhood. My family is runners, I'm a runner, and I've turned to running in an addictive way many times throughout my life. I've started again after a couple years of hiatus and it feels SO GOOD. Something about working at a hospital all day, sitting with people through their pain and suffering, holding it together to offer them some bit of understanding and support leaves me feeling cooped up and emotionally drained. And when I run I let it all out, I sweat, I race to Kelly Clarkson and all the other female-power artists in my spotify library and it feels so good. Yes, the idea of burning some calories and loosing some of the first-year-of-grad-school weight sounds appealing but even if I don't loose a pound I know that running makes me feel good on the inside. Mentally it feels so therapeutic.

I always remember learning in teacher training years ago that after animals experience a stressful events they run and shake and move their bodies as a way of releasing that tension. Humans just hold it. For me running seems to release it all in a way nothing else does. This morning I listened to an episode of NPR's "On Being" called Running as a Spiritual Practice and it resonated so strongly with me. I've been listening to this song that repeats the lyrics "slow down" as I run, and even though my body is going fast I find that my mind is able to let go, slow down, and connect to all of the sensations of the present moment in a way that feels so healing.

I made this quinoa salad a couple weeks ago. It's my nod to the end of summer. Hearty whole grain salads have always filled me up and made me feel nourished in a way lettuce never quite could. This quinoa salad is no exception. The juicy sweet pluots offer the perfect nod to summer while the warm toasted hazelnuts seem to welcome fall. The basil keeps it fresh and the balsamic vinaigrette adds a zingy bite. It's really so good.

Feel free to skip on the goat cheese for a dairy free option, or substitute regular plums if you can't find pluots. This salad is intended to be simple and fuss-free.

Quinoa Pluot Bowls {gf}
Serves 2 as a main, generously
Adapted from: The Year in Food

3/4 cup uncooked quinoa
1 1/2 cups water
1 small shallot, diced
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon honey (or agave/maply syrup if vegan)
pinch of salt & pepper
1/2 cup hazelnuts
1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese (optional)
3/4 cup cooked chickpeas (about half a can)
small handful basil
1-2 small pluots (or plums)
salt + pepper to taste

Place the water in a small saucepan over high heat, rinse the quinoa then add it to the water. Bring to a boil, cover, then reduce to a simmer. Cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat but keep covered for 5 minutes. Remove the lid and fluff with a fork then toss with a generous amount of salt. Set aside to cool.

Make the dressing. Combine shallot, olive oil, balsamic, honey, salt and pepper in a small jar (I use a mason) and shake to combine.

In a small saucepan toast the hazelnuts over medium low heat for 3-5 minutes, tossing & watching regularly to ensure they don't burn. Once slightly browned and fragrant remove from heat. Thinly slice the pluots and the basil.

In a medium bowl combine the quinoa, hazelnuts, goat cheese, chickpeas, basil and dressing and toss. Gently stir in the pluots and serve.

Info

Comment

Spiced Apple & Oat Pancakes

Breakfast has always been my favorite meal of the day. Unfortunately it's also the most neglected and the least thought about for most people, myself sadly included. So on weekend mornings, after sleeping in the for the first time all week, I almost always wake up craving a warm home-cooked breakfast. This is no more true than when the seasons change in the Fall.

These pancakes represent all that is good and cozy in the world. I've made some version of them nearly a dozen times. They are chock full of so much freshly grated apple, we endearingly refer to them as apple latkes. They are spiked with fresh apple cider (bonus points if you get it from a local farmer's market!) and sweetened with real maple syrup. They have just enough oats to make them filling and hardy. Perfect for lazy Sunday fall mornings.

Spiced Apple & Oat Pancakes
Makes about 12 pancakes
adapted from: Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients:
3/4 cup milk, any kind (I used almond)
1/2 cup apple cider (or sub more milk)
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 tablespoons real maple syrup
2 cups freshly grated peeled apple (~ 2 medium apples)
1 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 cup old-fashioned oats
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon all spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
unsalted butter for cooking

In a large bowl combine the milk, cider, eggs, vanilla, and maple syrup. Peel and core the apples then grate them using either the grating attachment of a food processor or a box grater. Measure out exactly 2 cups. (More and they had trouble cooking through). Set aside.

In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and salt. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Add in the apples and stir until integrated.

Warm a fry pan over medium heat. Once hot, add a thick slice of butter to the skillet and top with 1/4 cup dollops of batter. Flip once brown and crispy on the bottom. Continue with remaining batter, adding butter each time. Serve hot!

Info

Comment

Meat-Free Thanksgiving Inspiration

I'll admit being vegetarian on Thanksgiving poses extra challenges. Nate was initially supposed to be away for Thanksgiving this year, and I stressed for weeks about how I was going to find a place to go for the holiday, only to show up as possibly the most difficult guest ever, a vegetarian!

So how does being a vegetarian on Thanksgiving work? If we have enough people Nate barbecues a turkey, one year we had two meat-eaters so we cooked a chicken, and if it's just us we go completely untraditional and eat meat-free.

I have to say my first vegetarian thanksgiving made me a little sad. Not because I wanted turkey, but because I felt a bit isolated from the tradition. I wanted to big statement piece on the table, I wanted it to feel like the Thanksgivings I had growing up. And although I'm not sure I've quite found the answer, I figured I'd share a handful of my favorite meat-free, fall inspired meals.