Day 5: Green Smoothie, Quick Soup and Stuffed Bell Peppers

Yes, it is the weekend! This is my last post in this series, and we ended with a bang. Friday night in our house is lamb/beef night, this week it was stuffed bell peppers. It is also treat night, which could be almost anything, but this week it is chocolate chip ice cream sandwich.

I'm sure by now you can see a bit of a pattern. For breakfast we either eat Muesli or a Smoothie and for lunch it is either a soup or salad. Dinner is usually based on a weekly pattern: Sunday is grain-free vegan, Monday is chicken, Tuesday is grain based vegetarian, Wednesday is fish, Thursday is gluten-free pasta, Friday is meat and Saturday is fish. These patterns make the meal planning easy, while still allowing for variety. Dessert is also a staple in our house, even if it is just a date and a piece of very dark chocolate. (Though this time of year it is usually more than that :)).

On to the recipes... lunch was a "Quick" Soup. This recipe comes from our months on the GAPS diet. It is a big bowl of whatever vegetables are in the house. It's quick because I don't have to think about or plan it (it also cooks up rather quickly with no meat or starches to worry about).

Quick Soup
Serves 2

1 onion
1 carrot
1 stalk celery
3 mushrooms
1 zucchini
1 bell pepper
1 leek
1 tomato
1 small head broccoli
1 small head cauliflower
1/2 cup green peas
1 tsp salt
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp Italian seasoning
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 quart broth

Chop up all the vegetables and saute them in a big pot with a little oil until tender. Add in broth and tomato paste and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. 

For dinner, I was planning on making stuffed squash... at first zucchini and then a winter squash. I couldn't find what I wanted at the store, so I decided on bell peppers instead, and I'm glad I did.

Stuffed Bell Peppers
Serves 2

3 bell peppers

Filling:
200g ground lamb
1 onion
3 mushrooms
1 zucchini
3 green onions
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp fiesta seasoning
pinch of salt

Salsa:
1 tomato
a little of the onion from the filling
1 clove garlic
1 tbsp fresh cilantro
1/2 lime, juiced
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp fiesta seasoning
pinch of salt
1 avocado

Pre-heat the oven to 400°. Wash and seed the bell peppers then place them on a backing sheet. In a skillet, saute the chopped onion, mushrooms and zucchini until golden brown. Add in the lamb and cook trough. Season the mixture and then fill it into the bell peppers. Bake for 20 minutes. While you wait, dice the tomato, onion and garlic. Place into a bowl and season with cilantro, lime juice and spices. Chop the avocado and stir into the tomato mixture. Serve over the top of the bell peppers.

Time for dessert! I've been trying to recreate my favorite cookie recipe without gluten, dairy or eggs and with only natural sugars. This has been no easy task, and I'm still not there yet. These cookies were from the last attempt. I paired them with some ice cream. It was pretty good. I can't post the recipe yet, but when I nail it, I promise I will post the results.

Well, this concludes the series "So, what do you eat?". I hope you had fun taking a look at what we eat every day and getting into my mind about how I plan and prepare. Stay tuned for a post about our Thanksgiving here abroad, and about my upcoming trip to Oregon. Until then...

En Guete!