Maquinoa & Cheese

Love mac & cheese but hate the guilt that goes with it? Why not try this guilt-free, baked quinoa alternative?! It's full of the cheesy-goodness that you love, without all the carbs and processed junk. And, once again, it's gluten-free! Move over Kraft, there's a new dinner in town!

This clever little dish was also found on my beloved Pinterest, and can be viewed here (under its original name). My own version consisted of...
- quinoa
- chicken broth
- cream cheese
- shredded cheddar cheese (I used double cheddar)
- cup grated parmesan cheese
- salt
- pepper
- ground flax seeds

How to make it:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a pot, combine 1/2 cup of quinoa and 1 cup chicken broth. Bring to a boil and then let simmer until all the liquid is absorbed.
2. Mix in 2 oz/ 1/4 cup of cream cheese, 1/4 cup shredded cheddar, 1/4 grated parmesan cheese, 1/2 tbsp of ground flax seeds and a little salt and pepper.
3. Transfer into a baking dish (or 2 separate smaller baking dishes, I used my ramekins and they were the perfect size!) and top with 1/2 cup of more shredded cheddar cheese.
4. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes, or until cheese starts to bubble.

Suggestions to make it even healthier:
Try adding in some carmelized onions to the mixture!

Broccoli and Cheddar Soup

So you've got some leftover broccoli, cheddar and potatoes, but you don't want to make more broccoli salad twice baked potatoes because you just had those! What do you do?! Well, you could try making some broccoli and cheddar soup!

This is another recipe that I found on Pinterest. The only revision I made to it was reducing the amount of cheese, because as much as I do LOVE cheese, I still found that it called for a somewhat excessive amount (if you would like to see the original recipe, go here). This nice, hearty soup makes a great side for any lunch or dinner! It consists of...
- broccoli
- a medium-sized potato, peeled and chopped
- chicken broth
- milk
- salt
- shredded cheddar cheese

How to make it:
1. In a large pot, bring 1 3/4 cups of chicken broth, potato chunks, and a dash of salt to a boil.
2. Finely chop up your broccoli, add half of it to the pot and set the rest aside for later. Cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes or until potato is soft.
3. Transfer pot contents to a blender, puree, and return to pot.
4. Add the remaining broccoli, 1 cup of milk and 1 and a half cups of shredded cheddar to the pot. Continuously stir and cook on medium for about 5 minutes or until cheese is melted in. For the final touch, garnish with a small piece of broccoli.

Avocado and Brie Grilled Cheese

This delightful little sandwich is one of my favourite things that my wonderful boyfriend Jon makes for me on occasion. Avocado and brie cheese is truly a heavenly combo. This sandwich is as yummy as it is easy to make, and makes a perfect lunch or light dinner!

This sandwich consists of...
- 2 slices of whole wheat bread
- butter or margerine
- spring mix
- avocado
- red onion
- cucumber
- brie cheese

How to make it:
1. Lightly butter your bread slices. Toast on both sides in a frying pan over low heat.
2. While bread slices are still in the frying pan, add a thin slice of brie to each slice of bread. Leave in pan until slightly melted.
3. Slice up avocado, cucumber and red onion. When bread is toasted and cheese is melted, arrange on bread with some spring mix. Close sandwich and cut in half.

Creamy, Cheesy and Very Veggie Pan-Pasta

I haven't been too good with making anything overly creative, healthy or interesting over the past week or so but I really wanted to make sure I used my veggies before they went bad! While it may not be the healthiest meal in the world, this pasta is a great way of using up whatever you have in your fridge and jazzing up plain old pasta, which has become my main go-to meal. The ingredients can be easily changed depending on your preference but the basic instructions will remain the same. And it tastes just as good the next day!

My version contains...
- pasta
- extra-virgin olive oil
- green pepper
- orange pepper
- yellow pepper
- yellow onion
- alfredo sauce
- Philadelphia cooking cream
- shredded parmesan with romano and asiago cheese
- (and of course) goat cheese

How to make this:
1. Fill up a pot with water and bring to a boil.
2. Put desired amount of pasta in the boiling water and let cook for 11 minutes. I like Catelli Bistro tri-colour vegetable pasta- it's low in sodium, a good source of fibre, iron, vitamin A and potassium with the goodness of vegetables, plus it looks pretty! Today I used rotini noodles.
3. While pasta is cooking, chop up the peppers and onions (or whatever add-ins you like).
4. Put some extra-virgin olive oil in a frying pan and saute the vegetables to your liking (not only does the oil help saute the veggies, but it will keep your pasta from getting dried out too!)
5. Strain pasta and add to pan.
6. Add your sauce. Today I have combined alfredo sauce and Philadelphia cooking cream (I LOVE cream cheese!) for an extra-creamy sauce.
7. Mix everything up in the pan and distribute sauce evenly.
8. Top with shredded parmesan, romano and asiago mixture and a little goat cheese. Mmmm!

Suggestion to make this even healthier: For some protein try adding some chicken, tofu, or even some egg! Also try using some homemade sauce.