healthy takes

Pulled “Pork” Jackfruit Sandwiches

In this edition of my favorite weekly ritual, Pantry Meal of the Week, I dug pretty deep into the depths of my fridge and pantry. I had some leftover cabbage and radish slices from the Classic Pozole Rojo we devoured the other night, so I immediately thought of coleslaw. Because that’s a totally normal train of thought. I found a few remaining cans of jackfruit in the pantry from back when I was stocking up to make BBQ “Chicken” Jackfruit Pizza the other week, and decided to take them out for a swing.

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Grilled Garlic Prawns + Verde Sauce

Until about the time I graduated from college, I was definitely not a shellfish person. I didn’t like the briny flavors or the idea of slurping down a slimy oyster. Fast forward to now and I can’t get enough of the stuff. Maybe the palette change comes with maturity? (hah!) With my new found crustacean proclivities, I hit up my local market for my usual Monday shopping routine and noticed that they had a huge pile of fresh prawns for sale. I couldn’t help myself. I filled an entire bag while my head swam with recipe ideas….

BBQ “Chicken” Jackfruit Pizza

In case you aren’t familiar with the amazingness of the jackfruit, let me introduce you to your new favorite meat substitute. Jackfruit is a giant spiny looking monster fruit that is native to Southeast Asia. It is eaten both during its young stage when it hasn’t developed a sweet taste yet as well as once it’s ripe and has a sticky sweet flavor. It is delicious both young and fully ripe, but for this recipe we don’t want it to be too sweet, so we’re going to use the young version.

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Linguine + Clams with Chickpea Sauce

I’ve been having some serious pasta cravings this week and haven’t had the opportunity to feed the beast until this past Friday night. I finally broke out my super duper special durum flour and made some of my homemade pasta with it. It was life changing. I’m never using the all purpose stuff again… except when I run out of this fancy business of course. Until then, I’m a durum flour addict now. I most certainly need to go into recovery after eating all these leftovers.

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Baked Orange Chicken

Back when I was in college, I had a pretty unhealthy obsession with Panda Express, namely their Orange Chicken. My office was right by the UCLA Panda location and when I was killing time by getting work done in between classes, that was my go to meal to tide me over until dinner time. Horrible, I know. Having looked more into what’s actually in their orange chicken, let’s just say that I no longer crave it nearly as much.
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Citrus Glazed Black Cod with Wild Rice

Sundays have always been family dinner night since I was growing up, and even in my adult years I have refused to give up the tradition. Nowadays this means I take over my Dad’s kitchen on Sundays to whip up something tasty for as many people as he’ll let me have over (hehe). Watching highlights from the Olympics, I set to work figuring how I could make dinner without forcing my super lazy bum to go to the grocery store. I was not about to enter that insanity on this hot Sunday….

Quinoa Protein Bars [GF]

I’ve never been a huge fan of protein bars, mostly because I’m not a big lover of chocolate (weird for a female human being, I know). I figured if I couldn’t find a protein bar that I liked, I might as well try to make one. I had a bunch of random things in my pantry as per usual, so I decided to wing it. Thankfully, these turned out delicious!
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Olive Oil Pumpkin Bread

If you’ve ever tried your hand at a pumpkin pie, you’ve probably purchased canned pumpkin at least once in your life. It essentially a can of orangey soft looking stuff that doesn’t appear to be too appetizing. When I finally got around to making some festive pumpkin bread this week, I decided to ditch the can of orange goo and opt for the real thing.

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Grilled Corn + Cherry Tomato Salad

Let me just say that I LOVE this salad. It’s fresh, easy to make, and tastes absolutely phenomenal. I even got my boyfriend who isn’t the biggest corn lover to get a second helping. I call that a complete success….

Seared Red Snapper + Coconut Clam Broth

If I’m ever looking to make a crowd pleaser that won’t take me hours of work to whip up, this meal is definitely at the very top of my list. It’s a seafood dish that even your non-seafood loving friends will enjoy.

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