Meatless Monday!

Lately, I have been embracing all of the seasonal goodies this time of year brings around. I will add spoonfuls of pumpkin to nearly any dish, and most things are topped with cinnamon to enhance their flavor. One fall staple I have always enjoyed is acorn squash. Trader Joe's sells them for a good price, $1.49 each I believe, but you can purchase them everywhere. They're chock full of good for you nutrition, too. Half an acorn squash is less than 120 calories (about 116) and they add potassium, fiber, magnesium, iron, and other vitamins (A, C, B6) to your meal. The labels on the squash suggest using brown sugar after baking, but I have a better way. 

Vegetarian Acorn Squash:
- 1/2 acorn squash, cleaned
- 1 meatless sausage patty (I like Trader Joe's Meatless Breakfast Patties)
- 2 tablespoons prepared quinoa
- 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
- Cinnamon

Bake acorn squash face down on a baking sheet at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes. Let cool. While your squash is cooling, either microwave or pan fry sausage patty. Mix sausage patty, quinoa, and pumpkin in a bowl. Spoon inside of the squash and sprinkle cinnamon on top.

Calories: 290

This will really fill you up and it is delicious, add a side salad or sauteed veggies for a well rounded plate. Whether you are vegetarian or not, it doesn't hurt to go meat free every once in a while to give your body, and wallet, a break. Honestly, this dish does not taste meatless. Enjoy!

Fall Weather and A Change of Pace

This week has had its moments where I have realized I need to slow down for a bit and enjoy the moment. I always arrive at work early to avoid rush hour traffic and today I decided to enjoy a walk around the park. Chicago is such a gorgeous city, and the early morning tends to capture it best.

Everything is quiet and still, the sun rising over the lake captures the changing leaves, and the crisp fall air is ideal for being able to have a moment to yourself to think and breathe. I've long believed you shouldn't do something if you don't want to, this is both a good and bad thing. It can be good because if there is something I must do, I am going to make sure it as enjoyable as possible. The down side is, if I don't have a desire to do something, it makes it much harder to accomplish. Lately, I have been hitting a brick wall with my routines and need something new. This is something very shocking to me because I am very routine oriented. I love my lists and when a task needs completed it should be done now. Then it should be written on said list and crossed off, with color coordinated pens and markers. You get the point, I don't like people to mess with my process. Well tomorrow is Friday. We all know how I feel about Friday. This weekend my fiance and I will be traveling home until Sunday morning to visit my family in Indiana, however I am fortunate to have Columbus Day off work. This means a long weekend for me to relax, refocus, and restrategize. I look forward to enjoying a long walk or run, cleaning and restocking our place with fresh groceries, and spending some time in the kitchen! Check back Monday, I will have a great Meatless Monday recipe to check out, until then have a safe holiday weekend and enjoy a gorgeous wall in this fall weather!

Oh, and enjoy this perfect afternoon picture of the city, breath taking, isn't it?

Simple Pumpkin Tomato Soup

The temperatures in the city have taken a major nose dive on this glorious Monday. All I could think of was having delicious, warm soup for dinner when I got home. There is a cafe back in Indiana that offers a delicious pumpkin tomato soup. It is so good and served as my inspiration for this dish. Let's be honest, I don't have time, especially during the week, to make soup from scratch. I had purchased pumpkin soup from Trader Joe's this weekend and used that as my base for my recipe. It is good on it's own. Pumpkin puree and carrots are included in the ingredients, which are great and healthy fall foods. However, it is sweet and I was craving something a bit more savory and creamy.
 Here are the details (makes one serving):
-1 cup Trader Joe's pumpkin soup
-2/3 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
-Handful (about 5) cherry tomatoes
-Cinnamon to taste

Calories: 130

First, blend the tomatoes and milk in a blender. I left mine chunky to add texture to the soup. 

Combine the tomatoes and milk with 1 cup pumpkin soup in a small pot. I added a few dashes of cinnamon and left it on medium heat for five minutes and this is what I got:

The whole process took less than ten minutes, perfect for a weeknight meal. This soup is filling and very satisfying, you could even top it with plain greek yogurt and some pumpkin pie spice for a special treat! I had a side of quinoa and a cup tea with mine, the perfect fall meal.

Weekend Finds and a New Pumpkin Drink Idea

This morning began like so many other weekend mornings. I am a creature of habit and often find early morning grocery shopping relaxing. I planned to go to Target and Trader Joe's to get items for the week before heading home to make brunch and watch the Bears game. Today, I headed out to Target, got a coffee from the in store Starbucks, and went about getting the items on my shopping list. Here are a couple of items I came across on my adventure.

I have had a pair of pajama pants since high school, possibly even late middle school. They finally met their demise earlier this week and I was looking to replace them. I believe you should sleep in what makes you comfortable, but I also enjoy cute pajamas for a decent price! Their pajamas, they don't need to cost an insane amount. Around Christmas time, I discovered a great brand sold at Target. They had pj sets on sale for the holiday season so I purchased a couple and liked them.  I bought this pair of Gilligan & O'Malley pants today, they feel very soft without being too heavy. They will be perfect for the cooler temperatures of fall and winter.

Pajama Pants: Gilligan & O'Malley $12

I have been on the lookout for cute Halloween/fall decor in the past few weeks and discovered this adorable candy bowl in the dollar bin section. It was three dollars, in great condition (no chips or damage), and I love to have candy bowls throughout our home. It's always a huge hit with our friends! This was a great purchase and has the perfect home on top of a bookshelf we bought with some engagement gift cards about a month ago.

Growing up, I was always crazy about the Pumpkin Spice Latte from Starbucks. It captured fall in a cup. This past year however, I've found their drink to be too sweet for my taste, plus 300 calories for a tall is very bad for the waistline! Luckily, I came across Tazo's pumpkins spice chai latte a few weeks ago. The concentrate costs $4.04 at Target, less than a single latte at a coffee shop and half a cup is 80 calories. The first time I made this I followed their directions of half milk, half concentrate. I found it drab and lacking something. I like a good deal of spice and flavor in my drinks, so I modified it next time by adding a little more concentrate as well as seasoning and was thrilled with the results.

I have never been a huge fan of milk, so for months I've been substituting unsweetened vanilla almond milk in all recipes. It has only 30 calories a cup, and especially in recipes like this it makes a difference. A little bit of that vanilla taste gets added, but it is still creamy like milk.

Recipe (makes one serving):

-3/4 cup Tazo pumpkin spice chai latte concentrate

-1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
-1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Heat milk and concentrate on the stove top for about five minutes, stir in pumpkin pie spice and serve.

Calories: 135

I will be working on some new delicious and healthy recipes for you guys this week! Have a great rest of your Sunday and don't forget to make a healthy lunch to take to work or school tomorrow!