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Autumn Bourbon Brown Rice Recipe

Happy October! I can’t believe the month of cooler weather, pumpkins, vibrant fall leaves, and marathon taper is finally here. Like many of my friends, I’ve been craving anything and everything apple, spice or pumpkin. Therefore, when the folks at DailyBuzz and RiceSelect gave me the opportunity to try RiceSelect Texmati Brown Rice blend in a recipe, my mind went to Fall flavors.

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Brown rice is great staple for healthy dinners, with only 170 calories per serving and 2 grams of whole grain fiber. The nuttiness of brown rice was a perfect base for a Fall inspired side dish that is simple, healthy, filling, and tasty enough that your whole family will enjoy it. After Bo tasted it, he immediately suggested it for a Thanksgiving dinner side.

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Autumn Bourbon Brown Rice

Ingredients (makes 4 servings)

1 cup RiceSelect Texmati Brown Rice

2 1/4 cup water or stock

1/2 teaspoon of salt (if you used water above)

1/2 sweet onion, finely diced

1 apple, finely diced

1/4 medium butternut squash, finely diced

olive oil

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon Vermont Maple Syrup

1/4 cup walnuts, toasted

1/8 cup Bourbon

black pepper, to taste

teaspoon salt, to taste

Vermont Maple Syrup, to taste

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1. Preheat oven to 375 degree

2. Finely dice apple, butternut squash and sweet onion. Toss the diced fruits and vegetables in olive oil, cinnamon, salt, pepper, and maple syrup before spreading on a non-stick jelly roll pan.

3. Roast mixture in oven for 25-30 minutes until tender.

4. While mixture roasts, cook brown rice following directions on box.

5. While rice and mixture cools, toast 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, just into lightly aromatic.

5. Once both rice, walnuts and vegetable and fruit mixture have cooled, combine mixture and walnuts into the rice pot on the stove, stirring to mix. Add bourbon, black pepper, salt, and a dash of Vermont Maple Syrup just to taste.

6. Enjoy as a side dish, salad topper, savory breakfast item, or as an easy afternoon snack.

Full disclosure: This post is part of the DailyBuzz Food Tastemaker program with RiceSelect. All opinions are my own.

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This post is brought to you by Rice Select.

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ashleyd /

A Driscoll’s Berry Dinner

Today’s post is from Meg, my awesome sister-in-law. Since I’m in Vermont, she was able to attend this great event in my place! Every now and then you’ll see guest posts from Meg as she explores NYC and shares her stories here!

When Ashley asked me to take her place at the Whole Foods Tribeca Wellness Club Dinner I was more than willing to check it out. Free food? I’m there. Free food made with my favorite fruits? Definitely there.

Each Wednesday, The Whole Foods Wellness Club hosts Supper Club where members, and others, have the opportunity to learn healthy recipes and try new foods based on a particular theme. Here is a snippet of information from their website: (picture source)


Eat your way to wellness – we’ll do the cooking! When you enjoy a dine-in or take-out meal from one of our supper clubs, you’ll taste some familiar favorites that are delicious and convenient, and some new fare that’s sure to become a favorite. Supper clubs are perfect for those who want to make healthier meal choices without having to cook. Plus, Wellness Club members get a discount on meals.  And, at our table, you’re always welcome to help yourself to as many delicious helpings as you’d like.

This week’s theme was berries! Driscoll’s Berries provided the super fresh berries for the meal.
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The menu included:

  • Mixed Greens Salad, Toasted Farro & Blueberry Vinaigrette
  • Sweet Potato Hash with Onions, Corn & Peppers
  • Chipotle Raspberry Salsa with Corn Tortillas
  • Strawberry Basil Sorbet with Fresh Mixed Berries

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I talked to Chef Juan Pablo after the meal to compliment him on the delicious food. We chatted about the various dishes and I could not believe when he told me that none of them include salt or oil! I don’t know about you, but that’s not how I normally cook.

My favorite part of the meal was, of course, the dessert. Chef Pablo made fresh strawberry sorbet with a hint of basil. The sorbet was delicious and the basil was a nice twist but the assortment of berries served on the side were my favorite part of the meal. They were so fresh and sweet, I could have eaten an entire plate.

How about you? Have you ever been to one of Whole Foods’s Wellness Club events? If not, what’s your favorite way to include berries in a meal?

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Barilla Microwaveable Meals

After a ten days on the West Coast my body needed a recovery day. I can’t believe that I’ve been up and down the West Coast for the past ten days! While Los Angeles was a great work trip, I’m so happy to be back on East coast, aka #thebestcoast in my opinion!

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I slept until 11:30, ran 3.5 miles without music or my Garmin, deep cleaned and organized my closet, enjoyed Fall scented candles, relaxed on the couch with Bo watching Notre Dame and Georgia football, and finally enjoyed an easy pre-long run dinner. Though, I have to admit, the highlight of my day was watching Bo enjoy his first post long run ice bath!

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Neither of us were in the mood to cook tonight. Bo was heading out for a birthday party and I didn’t feel like peeling myself off the couch for more than a water refill. Luckily, while I was traveling the gang at Barilla sent me their new Barilla Microwaveable Meals to test.

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I have never been a fan of microwave meals as they are normally filled with preservatives, almost a day’s worth of sodium, and lack flavor. Therefore, the first thing I did when Bo grabbed two of these from the pantry was to check out the nutrition facts.

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I was pretty impressed by the nutrition facts especially the protein and fiber.

Nutritional Info in The Mezze Penne with Traditional Marinara Sauce: 320 calories; 11 grams of protein; 58 carbs;5 grams of fat (0 trans fat); 6 grams of fiber.

While the sodium is almost 1/3 daily value, this is far less than some other microwave meal options and is actually perfect for me since I’m running 18 miles outside tomorrow and know that I’ll be sweating A LOT! A little extra sodium is actually good for me!

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I thought the ready in 60 seconds advertisement had to be too good to be true. But, much to my surprise in just 60 seconds the pasta was steaming and the sauce was bubbling hot. The sauce container easily lifts out so you can combine the sauce with the pasta in the provided dish. To make this feel a bit more like a Saturday night dinner, I used a pasta bowl and added some grilled chicken, steamed cauliflower and goat cheese before mixing everything together.

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Bo and I both enjoyed these for dinner and were really impressed. While I had the traditional marinara sauce flavor he tried the spicy marinara sauce which was a perfect dinner before hitting the town with friends for birthday celebrations. He added some thinly sliced prosciutto to the mix for a perfect, flavorful bowl of pasta goodness.

 

There are five flavors available for around $3.29 per package in major grocery stores.

  • Mezze Penne with Tomato & Basil Sauce
  • Mezze Penne with Traditional Marinara Sauce
  • Mezze Penne with Spicy Marinara Sauce
  • Whole Grain Fusilli with Vegetable Marinara Sauce
  • Whole Grain Mezze Penne with Tomato & Basil Sauce

These are great options for nights when I don’t get home until late or as easy lunch options. I think I’ll always add some protein and vegetables to the pasta and sauce for a more filling and nutritionally well rounded meal. But, for the price and flavor it can’t be beat! How often do you have half used jars of sauce or boxes of pasta sitting around in the house? This package will stay fresh for a year in the pantry!

I hope y’all have a great rest of your weekend. I’m heading to the bedroom to enjoy the rest of this UGA football game before running 18 miles tomorrow morning! I’m doing 6 miles solo before heading up to the Bronx with Gia for the NYRR Bronx 10 miler and then 2 miles solo after the race. Afterwards Meg and I are going to take my mother-in-law to the Wanderlust Yoga Festival on Pier 63!

Question: Do you ever eat microwave meals? If so, what is your favorite? 

FitFluential LLC compensated me for this Campaign.All opinions are my own

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