Woman in Real Life: What I Ate Wednesday

Summer is almost upon us - and with it comes picnics, parties on the deck and lunches at the beach. We had a taste of things to come two Saturdays ago when we attended a family barbecue and potluck. I wanted to share a look at what I brought along, particularly the Composed Bean Salad with Basil Vinaigrette from a recipe in EatingWell magazine. It makes a great big dish to share with others on a warm day and there is not much prep work to it at all. Who wants to turn the oven on in summer after all.

I also made a simple fruit salad with fresh strawberries and blueberries. For dessert, I whipped up a pan of these no-bake chocolate nut butter cereal bars. They are simple to make and boast one of my favourite combinations - chocolate and peanut butter (or whatever nut butter you favour). The dishes I brought to the party are all vegan and also gluten free without trying to be (as long as you use gluten-free cereals in the dessert bars). With so many different dietary requirements nowadays, it is always nice to bring dishes everybody can enjoy.

I made these vegan Oatmeal Everything Cookies this week. I had forgotten how delicious they are - chewy and lovely, with chocolate chips, dried fruits, ground flax, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds and, of course, plenty of oats. They are a much healthier alternative to store-bought cookies, and the kids enjoy them too, so that is a plus in my book.

It was a week for noodles and rice, pasta and...well carbs in general I guess. But that is every darn week around here. I could not live without carbs. I had these delicious Chinese noodles with tofu and mixed veggies for lunch one day.

My Monday meals started with a breakfast of leftovers from our Sunday brunch - scrambled tofu and hash brown potatoes. There were no biscuits left over unfortunately. I also had a smoothie with banana, mango, peaches, strawberries, grapes, chia seeds, orange juice and soymilk.

I used leftover cooked penne to make myself a quick lunch - I sautéed minced garlic, peas and chickpeas, stirred in the pasta and topped it all with Bragg Liquid Aminos for flavour.

Dinner was baked tofu, this Mexican Rice and a simple green salad. Easy to make yet still satisfying.

I also had an evening snack of Yonanas frozen dessert - my usual combo of bananas, strawberries, cherries and a few (sometimes it is more than a few) chocolate chips stirred in.

Has outdoor party season started for you?

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