November 15, 2016

As many of you know, I frequent Trader Joe’s weekly, without fail.  I love that place.  Some of you have literally asked me if I am a rep, or if I get paid by them!  (By the way, I am not and do not!)

So when I find new discoveries it is my biggest pleasure to share them with you.  This past weekend I went on my weekly shopping trip and discovered 3 new foods that get the thumbs up from me AND my family!

Prepared Organic Split Pea Soup

I went for my usual Sunday morning food shop to Trader Joe’s and I knew that by the time  I got home I would have 2 kids and a husband ready for lunch.  I noticed an organic split pea soup in the prepared food section and decided to give it a shot.  I knew it was a risk.   I’ve bought premade soups in the past at various places and have been disappointed.  But I looked at the ingredients and they were minimal and healthy so I decided to take the chance.

I’m so glad I did as it was a hit!  Everyone loved it!  It’s thick and creamy and has a delicious smoky flavor to it.  I highly recommend!

Prepared Super Spinach Salad

The second food I noticed in the prepared foods section was a salad called Super Spinach Salad. I absolutely love the combination of ingredients:  spinach, quinoa, carrots, cranberries, chickpeas, edamame, and pumpkin seeds.  They also provide a packet of ginger miso dressing.

So here is my deal with salads.  I HATE making them.  Just the thought of taking out all of the veggies and cutting and peeling and chopping is overwhelming.  So when I found this salad, I was excited to give it a try and have this be the second part of my family’s lunch.

When I got home, I emptied the contents of the salads (I bought 2) into a big bowl. I love my salads chopped so I got a sharp knife and fork and started chopping away.  A minute later I had a beautiful chopped super spinach salad!  

I got so excited that I decided to throw in some extra cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and a lonely red pepper I had sitting in my fridge.  For some reason, chopping up vegetables to ADD to a premade salad in an effort to enhance it does not overwhelm me. Thank goodness for small things!

Well, I’ll bet you know the outcome.  Yes – it was devoured by all!  My ONLY disappointment was that the vegetables were not organic, but I’d still rather my family eat non organic vegetables than none at all!

Healthy lunch.  Barely any work.  Trader Joe’s, you’ve done it again!

Cut Sweet Potatoes

Yes, yesterday I ALSO saw these – cut up sweet potatoes.  The key word here being ‘cut.’  Pre cut vegetables are just so dang easy to prepare, so I figured, why not?  I got home, spread the potatoes out on a parchment lined cookie sheet, and brushed a concoction of grass fed butter, maple syrup, and ceylon cinnamon on top.*  I roasted them for about 45 to 50 minutes and removed them from the oven to cool.

I didn’t tell anyone I made them.  I didn’t offer them to anyone.  But they smelled SO GOOD that I got a few wanderers (husband and daughter) asking what I had prepared.  I told them and they both wanted some.

Verdict?  What do you think??  Of course!  Delicious!!

So what COULD have ended up as a typical pirate booty afternoon snack ended up being a healthy sweet potato snack.

Oh – and another bonus?  Leftovers got mixed in with whole wheat pasta for Ava’s lunch yesterday!

But what I REALLY want you to take from this last one is that if you prepare it, good chance they (random family members) will eat it. And if you can prepare it EASILY, why the heck not?!  

I’m not saying I cook healthy vegetable snacks daily, but you can bet that I will be buying these sweet potatoes every Sunday and roasting them up for a delicious and nutritious snack.

*I microwaved 2 tablespoons of grass fed butter and mixed in one tablespoon of maple syrup with 1/2 teaspoon of ceylon cinnamon.  I then used this thingy to spread the glaze on the potatoes.

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