McSteamy

This is a sponsored post from Green Giant about how to make things healthy but not boring. Healthy but not boring? Yeah, I think I can tackle that one. Winking smile

 

baby eating carrot
One of the obstacles I hear clients struggling with is finding the time to eat a healthy diet. I’m not going to sugar-coat it {ha}- it’s not always easy or quick, but it is possible. It takes a little practice to get in the swing of things, but once you do, it can be even be fun. 95% of what we eat I’ve cooked at home even though time {or energy} is not exactly something I’m basking in right now. Here’s how we’ve been doing things. You’ve probably heard the tip to prep all your fresh produce ahead of time.
fresh produce grocery haul
It’s time consuming, but once it’s done, it’s done! It saves you all the prep time you would normally need every time you go to make a meal. get kids involved in the kitchen
Sometimes it takes me a full day {or more} to get through my grocery haul since I do a little here and there as I can fit it in. It doesn’t hurt to have little ones help. {Or perhaps “help” is a better way to write that…}
baby eats veggies
{He may look like his daddy but he takes after his momma. Loves his veggies!}
Once everything’s sliced, diced, and chopped, I take them one step further. This week I roasted just about everything: red potatoes, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, rutabaga, broccoli, poblano peppers, red bell peppers, parsnips, and carrots. I only have to turn on the oven once and I have veggies for a few meals ready. {Plus I pull out some for the babe and there’s no extra prep needed for his meals either!} preroasted veggies
Though we eat a home cooked meal every night, the “cooking” part usually only happens once a week or so. This week I made a big batch of Jenna’s roasted root vegetable soup, but I used butternut squash instead of sweet potatoes.
butternut squash soup
First we eat it as is. Leftovers are usually good for lunch the next day, but after that things get boorrrring. So instead of eating it the same way over and over, we mix it up. One night I added roasted red peppers and a served it with a side of black bean lettuce wraps. Another night I tossed in some of the roasted broccoli. {Have you tried roasted broccoli? Amazing.} Last night I took a short cut with some frozen Brussels Sprouts. These are from Green Giant’s Seasoned Steamers line- lightly seasoned frozen veggies that steam in the bag so there is literally no work for you to do.
green giant seasoned steamers
I popped these in the microwave while getting dinner ready for the babe, then chopped them up and tossed them in the last of my soup leftovers. microwave brussels sprouts
I always, always, always have frozen veggies on hand. Unlike canned, they are just as nutritious {sometimes more so} than fresh veggies. easy brussels sprouts
These Brussels were only seasoned with sea salt and cracked pepper- no dairy or butter based sauce- yay. {You’d be surprised how many frozen veggies have dairy in them- read labels!} squash soup with brussels
Spicy butternut squash soup with Brussels! Mmmm. butternut squash soup
So that’s how I’ve been keeping things healthy –and homemade- without letting things get boring and stagnant.
spoonful of soupfall soup
How do you keep your diet healthy but not boring?

Green Giant Logo Seasoned Steamers™, a new line of Green Giant®  vegetables, gives you unexpectedly delicious taste in every vegetable bite.  These chef-inspired, seasoned vegetables come in six new varieties ranging from smoky roasted cues to ethnic inspired flavors.  By roasting, seasoning and freezing individual pieces, our vegetables lock in flavor so delicious, your family will ask for more.  In less than 8 minutes, your family can enjoy new Seasoned to Delicious™ Seasoned Steamers™. Disclosure: Compensation was provided by General Mills via Glam Media.  The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of General Mills.

No Butternut for You!

Lasagna’s one of my favorite meals. Not just because it tastes so good, but because of my favorite secret: you don’t have to measure.

It may be a surprise how much lasagna you end up with, but any time I don’t have to be bothered to pull out (and wash) the measuring cups, I’m game.

Tonight: butternut squash lasagna.

noodles, squash, and basil

1. Peel & cube a butternut squash.

It can be kind of hard to cut, so if you can, enlist help for the hard work and move on. Winking smile

When it’s cut, put it in a covered bowl and microwave for 5-10 minutes (depending how much you have) to give it a jump start on softening up.

chopping butternut squash

2. Whip up (or open) your favorite tomato sauce.

The sauce of the night: 1 huge can of crushed tomatoes + 1 can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, with fresh chopped basil & other spices.

easy basil tomato sauce

3. Lightly sauté any other vegetables you want to use. I like to use onions, spinach, and garlic. I planned on using mushrooms but they got moldy. No moldy fungus in my dinner, please.

4. Start layering! It really doesn’t matter what order you go in. I like to start with sauce on the bottom, then noodles, then whatever I pick up next. Winking smile

layering lasagna noodles

The twist of the night: butternut squash.

butternut squash cubes

5. Add in the cheesy goodness. It’s the part that makes the lasagna so darn good.

Since it’s so easy to do with lasagna, I made two versions. Version one: regular. Version two: vegan.

The basic combo is: ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, pepper, and basil. For the vegan version, I just sub in cashew ricotta (soaked cashews, lemon juice, & nutritional yeast) and Daiya mozz.

vegan version of lasagna

On second thought, it might be easier to spread the cheese mixture on the noodle layer.

(And no, it doesn’t matter whether you cook the noodles or not, no matter what kind you have. I do it both ways, but unless the top layer’s smothered in sauce & cheese, I prefer to boil them first. I didn’t this time.)

ricotta cheese

I ran out of cheese…..oops. [Bake at 375: 30 minutes covered in foil, 20 minutes uncovered.]

baked lasagna

Still yummy!

butternut squash lasagna

While this was a fun change to traditional lasagna, I think I prefer my butternut in soup. Smile