No Cheese Avocado Quesadilla

Are you looking for a healthier version of your favorite mexican dish of quesadillas? Or maybe you're lactose intolerant and can't eat the cheesy quesadillas that so many others love? Well, I have found the perfect solution. These No Cheese Avocado Quesadillas are my new favorite go to for lunch and dinner when I'm craving mexican. I like to pair it with some mexican yellow rice, cauliflower rice, or even a super tasty spinach salad. This recipe is Vegan and gluten-free (with gluten free tortillas). Plus you can add all kinds of different extras with the avocado to make it even tastier. 

No Cheese Avocado Quesadilla

Serves: 1

Ingredients

• 1/2 Avocado (more if you prefer)
• 1 large tortilla or 2 small tortillas
• 1 small roma tomato, diced
• Seasonings of choice: Paprika, Cumin, Garlic Powder, etc.
• Optional Toppings: Spinach, Black Beans, Chicken, Green Chiles, etc.

Instructions

1. Smash avocado and spread out on one half of the tortilla. Sprinkle with any seasonings. {I like a pinch of garlic powder and cumin in mine.} 
2. Add diced tomato and any other desired toppings.
3. Fold over the top half of the tortilla and place on a non-stick skillet over medium heat. 
4. Heat for 1-2 minutes per side until warmed through.
5. Enjoy! I like to dip mine in Salsa.

Resolutions, Meal Planning, & Free Printables

This year I didn't exactly make a New Years Resolution since my Resolution started in October when I started P90X3 and a healthier lifestyle. One thing I am working to get better about this year compared to last year however is meal planning. I tend to be a little lazy about my meal planning, which leads to my husband and I going out for Subway or Chipotle runs for dinner. But one great way to keep me on track with my healthy choices is to meal plan for the week and get my groceries early. This week I'm ahead of schedule and have already started the process of meal planning for the upcoming week. As soon as I finished my meal planning I got all the groceries I needed as well. 

I like to use handy meal planning documents on my computer because they allow me to add links to the recipes I'm making along with the ingredients I'll input on the Shopping List side before I print it. This week I'll be making Chipotle Burrito Bowls (Vegetarian and Chicken versions), Balsamic Tofu & Avocado Tacos, Zucchini Pizzas, Sweet & Sour Spicy Tofu Stir Fry, Spinach Burgers, Avocado Quesadillas, and Crockpot Minestrone Soup. The great thing about the Soup I make on Sunday is that I'll have enough leftovers after that to last 1-2 extra days of the next week. As the week goes on I'll post my recipes for any I don't already have on the blog.

I'm pretty happy with the ingredients I bought. For the recipes I've picked I have the majority of the ingredients around my house normally. For the ingredients that I had to pick up it was mostly fresh ingredients or reduced sodium/organic ingredients. Plus for what I had to buy for recipes this week I spent less than $40 total. That makes my Shakeology breakfast shake I budget of $4.00 per day even more reasonable this week. 

Here's the free printable I've made to use. Feel free to download or print for your use as well. 

What are your favorite go to meals while meal planning? Do you use a printable document or an app on your phone to meal plan?

Balsamic Tofu & Pineapple Avocado Tacos

I absolutely love finding new Vegetarian recipes that are actually healthy. I have to say this recipe for Balsamic Tofu & Pineapple Avocado Tacos by Rabbit Food for My Bunny Teeth is one of those recipes. I've been craving this recipe ever since I saw it on Pinterest. The mix of tangy balsamic, sweet pineapple, and creamy avocado just sounds perfectly mouthwatering. Even typing this up right now I'm getting hungry thinking about it. Therefore my husband and I decided we had to make it for dinner this past weekend.

We started by gathering all of our ingredients together. This recipe really doesn't have that many ingredients to it so it makes it SUPER easy to make. I love the recipes that have less than 10 ingredients. I hate when I find a super tasty looking meal then check the recipe and theres like 20 plus ingredients. No thanks!!

If you haven't worked with tofu before there are certain steps you must take to prep the tofu for your meal. If you skip this step your tofu will end up being super watery which doesn't make it taste as great and cook as well. You can do this step either before or after cutting up the tofu. I drain my tofu, chop it, then lay it on a plate on top of a paper towel. I then place another paper towel on top, with a plate on top of that. I used my bowl of bananas to press the water out, but you can use anything that's about 1-2 pounds. It's good to let it stand for 20-30 minutes. 

Next I measured out my ingredients and mixed the sauce to create the glaze for the tofu. At first glance it might seem like these would be a weird mixture on tofu, but it's perfection!! Once the glaze was ready I transferred the tofu to the balsamic mixture and let it marinade for 20 minutes. 

I then laid the tofu out evenly on a baking pan lined with parchment paper. I set it to bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. After the first 20 minutes I flipped the tofu, drizzled with remaining balsamic glaze, and put it back in to bake for another 10 minutes. While this was baking I prepped the pineapple and avocado. I used my OXO 3-in-1 Avocado Slicer. Since I eat a lot of avocados this thing is basically my best friend!! If you eat avocados as much as me I definitely recommend buying one. It slices the avocado in half, de-pits it, and cubes the avocado all with only 1 tool. I seriously love it!

Once everything was ready I laid out my ingredients and was ready to chow down. Seriously guys this recipe is amazing. It's so refreshing and great for a healthy dinner or lunch option for vegetarians and meat eaters alike. This is definitely a beautiful recipe as well. 

Balsamic Tofu & Pineapple Tacos
Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 package extra firm tofu (14oz)
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 Tbsp honey mustard
• 1/2 Tbsp agave
• 8 corn tortillas
• 2 cups pineapple, cubed
• 1 avocado cubed

Instructions

1. Drain tofu and place on a few sheets of paper town on a plate. Cover with another few pieces of paper towel and another plate, and weight the top with an object of about 1-2 pounds. Let the tofu stand 20 to 30 minutes to extract excess liquid. 
2. While the tofu is being pressed, mix together the balsamic, honey mustard, and agave. 
3. After excess liquid has been extracted from the tofu, chop into small 1/2 inch cubes. 
4. Transfer tofu cubes into the bowl of balsamic mixture and let it marinade for 20 minutes. 
5. After tofu has marinated, transfer to a baking pan lined with parchment paper (save excess balsamic for later). 
6. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. 
7. Using a spatula, flip tofu, drizzle with remaining balsamic mixture, and cook for another 10 minutes. 
8. Toss the tofu with pineapple and avocado, and place in corn tortillas. Enjoy!

Copycat Smashburger Avocado Ranch Black Bean Burger

My fiancé is a huge meat eater and loves a burger every now and then. Recently we decided to try Smashburger's because I saw that they had a black bean burger I could eat. I love am obsessed with this veggie burger! The mix of the black bean burger with chipotle mayo, ranch, pepperjack cheese, and avocado slices to top it off is perfection. Due to this obsession I decided it was pertinent that I find out how to make it myself at home. I figured a great veggie burger is absolutely necessary with this upcoming holiday that will consist of family, friends, and outdoor BBQ's. Due to that I got to work researching. I found this recipe through Pinterest. I had to tweak it a little, but in the end I was very pleased. 

After assembling my ingredients I got to work prepping everything. I used my Food Network Chopper to crush the blue corn chips and dice the onion. It seems like with my contacts in I have even more issues with dicing onions than I do with my glasses on. Therefore, to make it easy on myself I'll use the chopper.

After mixing everything up and getting my hands really dirty I then formed the mix into 12 small patties. I made my patties pretty thin so that is why I ended up with so many. If you like your patties thicker you'll probably get about 8 out of this recipe.

I normally like my burgers best on the grill, but I decided to try it on my frying pan. My husband just got a new grill and he doesn't have anything I can use to cook my burgers on it without pieces falling through the slots. I was happily not disappointed. You want to cook them about 3-5 minutes per side on medium heat. I wanted to make them like the ones you get at Smashburgers so I "smashed" mine while they were cooking.

The smell was divine as they were cooking. My stomach kept growling so I was sneaking bites off my cooked patties as I cooked the rest. It was so good!

Now you can try them!

Enjoy! They are a great alternative for non-meat eaters or even for meat eaters. My fiancé loved them. I had to slow him down or he would've eaten 4 whole burgers in one sitting. I think the secret to these delicious patties is the blue corn tortilla chips and the chipotle mayo. If you make these you have got to buy Kraft Chipotle Mayo. I love love love this stuff!