Meatless Monday - Getting the Most out of those Kitchen Appliances

Juicing is a great way to get additional phytonutrients in your diet as well as use up any uneaten produce. It's also a nice little addition to meatless meals around here. This is a Brevel juice which I got for less than $100 at Amazon and it's great.  I compared it to my friend Jan's Jack LaLanne juicer and even though hers was cheaper, she said mine was much faster, though use and ease of cleaning is the same.

I needed it this morning.  We seriously ate too much yesterday (homemade from scratch biscuits and gravy) and followed it up with some pizza and wine so let's just say I was LESS than chipper this morning.

Your morning person as defined by your astrological sign.

Stretches to the sound of birds chirping, broad smile n their face:

Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Virgo, Aquarius

Will probably kill you.  Violently.  With alarm clock, eyes still closed:

Aries, Leo, Scorpio, Capricorn, Pisces, Libra, Sagittarius

I'm a LEO, I also have red hair.

So, my husband carefully escaping with his life (and a couple extra of the homemade biscuits ) I set out to plan some healthier meals for the start of my week.

I make my juicer juice drinks with various fruits and veggies, though when using beats use the golden beats which have a much milder taste than their red cousin. 

So today on meatless Monday I'm going eating much lighter, breakfast being an Amy's gluten free burrito for breakfast so I could get something quick, leaving me time to get dinner in the crockpot and log on to telework today.

This was my lunch today. I make my blended juice drinks with various fruits and veggies, though when using beats use the golden beats which have a much milder taste than their red cousin.  Also go easy on beet greens as they can have a strong flavor. Today I used the rest of the produce from last week (I usually grocery shop on Monday or Tuesday when the stores are less crowded).

This was a great combo though.
3 oranges
1 large cucumber
a big handful of spinach
a piece of celery and a good handful of carrots

Made 1 large glass.

Usually, I make the pulp into muffins, but as cold as it's been I put it out by one of the trees in our unfenced side yard for the rabbit that lives under our big hedge before going back to work.

Dinner is in the crockpot and whether you make it with Veggie "ham" or the real thing - it's really a tasty and super easy pot of beans.

Creamy White Beans (Crock Pot)

Sort and soak 1 pound white beans in water overnight and drain.
place in crockpot  in the morning and cover with FRESH water (about 2 inches above beans)
add 1/2 onion chopped or a Tablespoon of dried onion (or celery if you don't eat onion)
1/4 teaspoon cloves (yes, cloves)
a small package of YVES veggie "ham" cut into pieces (added at the end of cooking time)

Cook bean on high 2 hours and low for 4-6, adding in the veggie protein the last hour of cooking. When beans are soft when poked with a fork, remove some of the beans, about 3/4 cup (remove any "meat" bits) and throw in the blender with a few tablespoons of the broth  Add back into beans. This is a favorite meat-free meal around here and super cheap to make (sometimes instead of the protein we just add extra veggies such as carrots and celery and season with thyme and a bay leaf instead of the cloves - also very good).

Paired with some stone ground glute free cornbread and a salad this will make a nice dinner.

So take advantage of your kitchen appliances and come up with a healthy meal of your own.