Yesterday, as I was about to make breakfast, I had a thought, “What if I try to feature the avocado in all of my meals and snacks today?”
I think I’ve been watching way too much Food Network Star, Chopped and Cupcake Wars, but I decided to run with my avocado inspiration anyway. So, this edition of What I Ate Wednesday (WIAW) will star a delicious food that most of us know and love: the avocado.
The possibilities are endless, my little green friend!
As we all know, avocados are extremely nutritious. But, whenever I think of avocados, I can’t help but think of the show, Weeds. I haven’t watched it in years, but one of the most memorable lines for me came from the character U-Turn, who was supposed to be a scary drug dealer. Though he was clearly a formidable force, the first time one of the characters met him, he rattled off a bunch of frightening threats and then stated, “You want a piece of avocado. Got that goood fat.”
Get you some of that good fat!
For some reason, it cracked me up! Now, whenever I eat an avocado, I think to myself, “Mmmm, gotta get some of that goood fat.” Here’s a link to the clip, in case you’re interested (if you don’t like curse words…don’t watch this clip)
So, let’s dive right into the meals that feature some of that “goood fat.”
Breakfast: Avocado Quinoa Pancakes
Sunday, on my daily Pinterest Peruse (best.site.ever), I stumbled upon a recipe for quinoa pancakes. Since quinoa is already on of my favorite foods, and I love pancakes, I decided to make them Monday for breakfast.
And then I saw the avocado sitting on my kitchen counter. I decided I just had to incorporate that lean, grean, good fat machine.
I simply followed the basic recipe, adding in avocado at the end and substituting honey for maple syrup.
A little twist to the recipe…
I threw some of the batter on the skillet, and the result was a dense, moist savory pancake. If you’re looking for a sweet pancake, this breakfast probably isn’t for you, but if you want a filling breakfast and like the flavor of avocado, this pancake will be a homerun!
Green protein-packed machines.
I took a couple of quick pictures of the pancakes but had to run out the door to get to a kickboxing class. I left them on the table, instructing the BF NOT to eat my avocado quinoa pancakes, as I wanted to experiment with toppings and take more pictures when I got home. He seemed to want no part of my creative breakfast, so I thought I was set…
I came home to an empty plate.
My first reaction was to text the BF accusingly and say “Did you eat my avocado quinoa pancakes?!!” Then, it hit me. Mr. Angel over there decided to jump up to the table (which he never does) and grab himself a little snack during the day. (Not that I blame him…they were pretty delicious!)
I may look sweet and innocent, but when it comes to food, all bets are off!
#dogownerproblems.
Lunch: SBux, Again
I enjoyed the kickboxing class, although it gets a bit boring, because they recycle the same workouts for 1 month at a time. On the plus side, I become really good at that workout after doing it four times in a month! I also completed two arms/legs workouts that I found on Pinterest.
Both were challenging, and I could really “feel the burn.” If you’re looking for a new arm or legs workout, give these a try!
The rest of my day was spent on a writing project, and, as per usual, I took my mid-day Starbucks lunch break. Today, I decided to order the protein plate (was really craving protein for some reason!) and my favorite, the Passion Iced Tea.
Just another Starbucks lunch break!
Doesn’t look like much, but the protein plate is very filling, between the cheese, bread and peanut butter.
After a while, it was too hot to work outside, so I stationed myself inside to finish writing, fueling myself with Swedish Fish.
There must be some sort of nutritional value…right?
Can someone please tell me if there is any nutritional value in these puppies? It would make me feel so much better about eating them every day!
Before dinner, after reprimanding the pup for eating my pancakes, I whipped up an avocado smoothie. I first tried the smoothie when I was sick a couple of weeks ago, and I’m definitely hooked.
Blend me baby!!
Frozen banana + half avocado + almond milk + cinnamon/honey
The perfect smoothie for a hot hot day.
Creamy and deliciously satisfying.
Dinner: Baked Avocados
The BF had a work dinner, so I was free to make whatever crazy combination I could dream up. Ever since I saw a baked avocado on, you guessed it, Pinterest, I have been itching to try it myself. I didn’t feel like following a recipe, though, so I just used what I found in my kitchen.
Veggie time!
I sauteed some mushrooms, peppers and onions and then mixed them with leftover quinoa from the pancakes.
Lookin good…
Then, I scooped out a little bit of the avocado and added it to the mixture.
Not an exact science.
Finally, I stuffed the avocado with the mixture, topping with cilantro, lime juice, salt and feta cheese.
Ready for some oven action!
Baked at 400 for 30 minutes, while I cooked up some spinach.
Check out these babies! Definitely a success and the perfect way to wrap up my avocado day.
Now, that’s a green plate!
And, yes, I ate all that spinach.
While I chowed down on dinner, I watched one of my favorite shows, Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition. Do any of you watch this show? Every single time I watch, I cry like a little baby, prompting Cole to stare at me, as if I am crazy. To me, it’s incredibly moving to watch a hopeless person turn his or her life around, lose ridiculous amounts of weight and also gain lifelong confidence. It just proves how powerful healthy living can be! I also have a slight crush on Chris Powell.
What a smile!
If I ever had the chance to interview a celebrity on this blog, Chris Powell would be at the top! His approach to fitness and healthy living is definitely inspiring, and I’d love to hear more.
Dessert: Holy Pinterest!
Clearly, the other theme in this post is Pinterest. I also found a simple snack idea for frozen yogurt cupcakes with four ingredients: strawberries, bananas, vanilla greek yogurt and chocolate chips.
Simple snack. Simple ingredients.
They looked tasty, refreshing and the perfect Sometimes Healthy Snack for a hot summer’s day. I simply filled silicone cupcake baking cups halfway with greek yogurt.
Then, I added pureed strawberries and bananas. (1 banana and 10 strawberries, with just a pinch of almond milk to move the mixture)
Must use spoon. Or else you will spill.
Finally, I topped with a dollop of yogurt and chocolate chips. Oh, and a few sprinkles, because everything’s better with sprinkles!
Oh my, these look good!
After a couple of hours in the freezer, I was rewarded with some very light and refreshing treats. (I’m actually eating one for breakfast right now too!)
Almost to pretty to eat!
And, that concludes my Avocado WIAW!
Wacky Idea Time
Before I take off for the day, I thought I’d share some randomness with all of you. Because, clearly, at 1100 words, you haven’t had enough.
I have found that most people who blog are trying to fulfill a passion that they may or may not get to fulfill in their day job. Most of us are dreamers, and I certainly am no different. One of my favorite things to do is dream up business ideas that encompass all of my passions. I know I’ll never get around to implementing these ideas, but it’s fun to dream. I often rattle them off to the BF before bed, so I decided to share them with you lucky readers today, as well.
Wacky Business Idea #1: Jamie’s Cupcake Bar
Picture this…now put it on a cupake!
Picture your favorite fro-yo joint (16 Handles!), and then replace the frozen yogurt with cupcake flavors. You’d walk in and be able to choose from 10 different cupcake flavors (everything from vanilla to pumpkin and cherry chocolate). Next would be the filling station. You’d have the option to fill your cupcake with a variety of fillings (lemon curd, cream, pudding etc.) using a simple cupcake corer. Then, you’d move to the frosting station, which would contain 15 frosting flavors. And, you’d be able to frost the cupcake yourself to put as little or as much frosting as you wanted. Finally, you would end at a toppings bar (similar to the one at 16 Handles), where you could top your little cupcake off with as many crazy toppings as your heart desires. We can only dream, my friends.
Picture this. on a much.larger.scale.
Wacky Business Idea #2: Sweet n’ Sweaty Gym
Imagine if these healthy treats were served at YOUR gym!
Have you ever been to a gym with a bakery attached? I have not! This gym would be jam-packed with all of the latest and greatest equipment and classes. But, the kicker would be the bakery. The “healthy” bakery would serve up protein-packed, healthified treats to reward gym-goers for their hard work. Genius!
Well, that was fun! As much as I enjoy dreaming and writing about these concepts, I can’t imagine actually implementing the ideas. Dreaming is so much more fun anyway.
YOUR TURN:
Ever had any crazy business ideas? Share! Let’s put our crazy brains together and have some fun.
Any other avocado recipes? (I feel as if I covered many of them in this post haha)
Frozen yogurt sounds delicious in this weather… What a clever idea. One question, did they melt quickly?
No, not at all! In fact, I’d recommend letting them sit for about 5 minutes after you pull them out of the freezer before eating.
I LOVE avocado, so naturally I am loving this post!! I really want to try those pancakes! I love a savory breakfast :).
Let me know what you think of them!
That dessert is such a great idea! I may have to give that a shot 🙂
Definitely! It’s sort of along the lines of that watermelon sherbert with dark chocolate chips but just with strawberries and greek yogurt 😉
That dessert looks amazing!
Thanks! Definitely give them a try. They’re very popular in this household 🙂
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