Polenta Snacks

Polenta! I love me some polenta. It's gluten free, it's vegetarian and vegan, it's easy and it's delicious.

I've been playing around with it a bit lately. It's not homemade (stay tuned for that), I've been buying pre-made, organic polenta and slicing it into rounds. Today I'm going to share with you some of my favorite toppings. These are great for a snack and perfect as an h'orderve when you have guests. You can dress up the rounds as sweet or savory to touch on all those lovely parts of your pallet.

Another idea is to get the kids involved. Let them each pick out a topping or two and have them top a few rounds. If you make enough, it can easily be a creative dinner that they took part in making, which typically means they are more likely to eat it. Not always the case at my house but it's worth a try.

I've used polenta I bought at Trader Joe's and today I'm using Freida's, which I found at Albertsons. Both are organic. This is so simple and cheater-like, you will want to make them regularly.

You can plan out what toppings you like. Last time around I topped a few with pesto and a few with some cheese (for the husband). Next time around I'd like to add some mushroom and olive, yum!

Here was today's polenta adventure.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Start by slicing up your polenta roll. My slices are probably a little over 1/4 inch thick, but it really doesn't matter.

You will want to start by coating them with an oil of your choice. I chose olive oil today. I literally poured some olive oil on my hands and gave each round a little rub down. My dry hands could use the olive oil love anyway.

Lay your rounds out on your baking sheet and get ready to top those babies with your yummy additions.

My first tried and true topping was artichoke antipasto with a little black pepper. Some of you may not like artichoke, I feel bad for you.

Next topping, also tried and true was salsa. Salsa and corn seem to take on a natural love affair. What I tried this time that I hadn't before, was green chili salsa. I can't wait to taste it!

Now that we have some savory and some spice, let's move on to the sweet! I really enjoyed these last time around so I'm including them again. I used organic apricot jam with a sprinkle of cinnamon. They come out like an easy going, mellow dessert.

Do you see that little guy there? I just poured some honey on him and called it a day.

Time to bake these little pretties. They take about 15 minutes, but I tend to bake mine longer for two reasons. One is because I refrigerate my polenta to leave more room in my fridge so they start off cold. Second is because I like my polenta rounds a tiny bit crispy on the edges. I'd rather save the soft polenta for a creamy dish.

You can do just about anything with these. I'm dairy free, but if I wasn't, I would be dabbing on the goat cheese with rosemary or ricotta with basil. The combinations are limitless!

If you're a meat eater you can easily add meat the the show. How about some seasoned beef or ground turkey with cheese and lettuce? Little polenta tacos!

Let me know if you try your own polenta round snacks and which one's were your favorite.

Tons of love,

Caffeine and Freckles

Quick and Easy Lemon-Ginger Turkey Quesadillas

Hello!

I'm trying to change up the seasoning on dinner meats. We LOVE Mexican food so I often season everything with cumin and chili powder. Over the weekend I made a fabulous pork roast that I will have to share with you next week, it was perfect for nachos, quesadillas, tacos, whatever.

Anyway, since it turned out so great with the crushed ginger I used, which I will be raving about in a future paragraph, I tried changing up my seasoning for tonight's ground turkey that I made quesadillas with.

I had found this frozen ground ginger on sale at Walmart for $1.00 a while back. 

On Sunday I thought, what the heck, let's throw it in the crock pot with the pork shoulder I planned on shredding. OMG! It was the perfect addition to the flavor!

Again, I'll share that with you next week as I plan on making another one.

This time I ditched the beloved cumin and chili powder and I browned the ground turkey with a zesty lemon seasoning (not the best health-wise, it has the can't be trusted "natural flavor" as an ingredient, but I have it and I used it), 2 ginger cubes, and half a lemon squeezed onto the browning meat.

These raw tortillas are a big hit in our home. They brown in just minutes and taste much more homemade than any store bought tortilla. They are also delicious with coconut oil and cinnamon-sugar! 😍)

Just a few ingredients and dinner is served. You can serve with a side dish but we were keeping it simple tonight and just had the quesadillas. Except for the girl, she isn't down with cheese so I made her a bean burrito. 

I heat one side just enough, turn it, and add the meat and cheese, fold, and flip.

Done!

The lemon flavor had just the right tang and change to be delicious. The ginger acted like a best friend and complimented the lemon just right.

Let me know if you try it!

Enjoy!

Recipe Share - Spiffed Up Protein Packed Oatmeal

I hated oatmeal as a kid. When I got a little older I was ok with the flavored oatmeal packet, apple cinnamon being a favorite. As an adult, the more I learned about food and ingredients it became apparent that those little oatmeal packets were often filled with unnecessary, unhealthy ingredients.

A few years back my friend Missy turned me on to Irish Steel Cut Oatmeal. I was in love at first bite. You could keep it simple or add a complexity of nutrient packed goodies to it. (Also true for regular oats, but there's something about the texture of Irish oatmeal I love).

I thought I would share this morning's Irish oatmeal concoction.

I was making a double serving so I boiled 1 1/2 cups water and added 1/2 cup of Irish Oats. I threw in whatever delicious power foods I had in the house. This included:

A spoonful of chia seeds

A spoonful of ground flax seed

A dash of organic honey

A pinch of cinnamon

And a half a handful of shredded coconut.

After stirring and low-boiling for about 5 minutes I added a splash or two of almond milk and let it simmer just a minute or two longer (any milk will do although I stay away from dairy. Coconut milk and almond milk are my favorites).

Viola! Dish into a bowl and throw some blueberries on top to add that little bit of tang that makes oatmeal more exciting!

The chia seeds add fiber, unsaturated fats, and high quality protein. 

The flax seeds add fiber and Omega-3's.

Not to mention all the fiber you get from oatmeal along with it being a low calorie food.

My youngest loves this oatmeal. He was feeling creative and wanted to mix his with Greek yogurt. Unfortunately it was a fail :-(

He settled on plain vanilla Greek yogurt with blueberries.

Let me know if you try it and what other tasty ingredients you decide to toss in!

Happy, healthy eats!