An Amateur's Kitchen: quick

Photo Roundup

12:23 PM

Hey y'all! Today's post is just going to be pictures. If you follow me on Instagram, I recently said in a post that I prefer to mostly post iPhone pictures on my account because it is the fastest and most convenient option. I will use this blog to post pictures from my Nikon, so if you like seeing those pictures, you can always stop by here. :) Here are some pictures of lunch and dinner I've made recently, which I will also link the recipes to.

This is a healthier version of top ramen, aka the college/amateur student staple. I stopped eating ramen a while ago, except for some days where I really craved it, and decided to just make a better alternative for when I do eat it. The soup is made of vegetable broth, soy sauce, Sriracha, lemon juice, white pepper, and a tiny dash of seasonings from the ramen packet. I know thats a cheat, but I have yet to come up with a seasoning mix that will taste similar. Once I get to it, I will definitely update this with the recipe! You can also use different noodles for this to make it less processed. I just used the same noodles because thats all we had on hand at the time.

This is a Caesar salad wrap. It was a great quick lunch, and the dressing was good! Here is the recipe.

Lastly, this delicious creamy cajun shrimp pasta. It is definitely on the richer side, but it was yummy! I made my own cajun seasoning (without salt! salt free seasonings help you have more control over the salt in your recipes) and first cooked the shrimp with the seasoning, and then added a little more seasoning once I made the sauce. The recipe can be found here.

That is all for this week! I hope you enjoyed, and please be on the look out for some more exciting things coming up!

Love,
Saba

breakfast

Fruit Smoothie Roundup

12:17 PM

Lately, I've been obsessed with fruit smoothies. I used to make green smoothies a while back when I was homeschooled, but quickly stopped because I found them to be a bit bland. I disliked adding bananas or any dairy (including yogurt) so they mostly just tasted like cold water with seeds. Sad, I know. I tried to give smoothies another shot because I realized smoothie bowls were a thing and they might be more filling to eat for breakfast. Breakfast has always been an issue for me, because I usually don't eat much, rather, just snack on little things and end up still being hungry.

Once I made my first smoothie bowl, loosely based off of my favorite smoothie from Jamba Juice, I was hooked. I love drinking smoothies now because they make me feel more full and I can start my day off on the right track. I find that eating healthy foods from the start of the day helps me make better choices throughout the day.

This is not really a recipe post, but rather some ideas for some fruit combinations. I like my smoothies more tart, so a lot of tart fruit is used. The ingredients are listed in order of which one is more predominent. There are no measurements because I usually add however much I feel so add more fruit if you want, or add more liquid to make them thinner. I prefer thick smoothies so I use more frozen ingredients. You can also add dairy or nut milk or yogurt.

Smoothie 1: Strawberry Orange (Jamba Juice copycat)

-frozen strawberries

-peach

-orange juice

-few squeezes of lemon juice

-quarter piece of banana or honey for sweetness

Smoothie 2: Strawberry Mango

-frozen strawberries

-mango

-orange juice

Smoothie 3: Pineapple Mango

-frozen pineapple

-frozen mango

-coconut milk

Smoothie 4: Raspberry Peach

-frozen raspberries

-peach

-frozen strawberries

-orange juice

Smoothie 5: Mango Peach

-peach

-frozen mango

-water

Smoothie 6: Mixed berry

-frozen raspberries

-frozen strawberries

-frozen blueberries

-frozen kiwi

-apple juice

easy

Black Bean Soup

10:36 AM

Hey y'all! The first post of this blog is a recipe that has been tried and tested many times and is so easy and delicious. It also has very few ingredients and is pretty cheap, yet healthy. So, naturally, something that I love and that fits the theme of this blog is the first of my posts :)

This soup can be eaten with rice for a more filling meal, or without.

Lets get started!

Ingredients

1 can of black beans, drained

1 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable broth (I've also just used water many times!)

Olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 white onion, diced

1/2 jalapeño, finely chopped (optional)

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

Salt to taste

Lime juice, cilantro, and crushed tortilla chips to garnish

Directions

1. Sautee onions, garlic, jalapeño, and spices in olive oil until softened on medium heat. Add broth or water, and let simmer for about 15 minutes.

2. Turn the heat off. Using an immersion blender, blend soup for a few seconds until it has reached a more soupy consistency. If you dont have an immersion blender, you can take half of the beans and blend them in a regular blender.

3. Taste and add salt and/or lime juice. Serve over rice or by itself. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from here.

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