Sometimes when things are good you just have to brag.  I try to stay humble 99.9% of the time, but today I just can’t.  Last night I made the most magnificent portobello mushroom burger ever!  I heard yums, and smacking with every bite from my entire family (yep kids included).  When I make something as good as this I’ve got to share. The best part was this meal was completely meatless.  If you’ve been wanting to try a “Meatless Monday” this is one recipe you’ve got to try!  The portobello mushroom is so yummy and “meaty” that you won’t even miss the beef!

Annett’s Magnificent Portobello Mushroom Burger

2 packages of pre-sliced portobello mushrooms caps

(or 4 large portobello mushroom caps cleaned with stems removed)

1 tablespoon Grapeseed Oil (or oil of your choice)

4-6 cloves of garlic chopped

1 red onion sliced

1 avocado

2 medium tomatoes sliced

1 tbs non or low fat mayo

4 whole wheat buns

slices of mozzarella cheese

Balsamic Vinegar

sea salt or other seasonings (optional)

In a plastic bag place the cleaned sliced mushrooms and garlic.  Generously shake balsamic vinegar into bag until mushrooms are well coated, but not soaked! Just add enough to coat. Shake bag around to ensure both sides of mushrooms are coated with the balsamic vinegar.  Let bag sit for 15 minutes to let mushrooms marinate.  While mushrooms marinate prepare your toppings.  Heat oil in a frying pan on medium high heat (I used a griddle to make more at once).  Cook red onions until they are softened, about 3 minutes and then remove from heat.

In a bowl take the avocado insides (minus the seed) and put it in a bowl.  Add the mayo to the bowl and stir until well combined.  This is your spread for the bread.  You can season it with cajun seasonings if you like spice.

After mushrooms have marinated for 15 minutes, pour out contents of plastic bag in frying pan and cook until mushrooms have softened (about 5-7 minutes).  Make sure you turn them a few times to cook both sides thoroughly.  Sprinkle with salt or other seasonings of your choice (optional).   After the mushrooms have cooked add slices of mozzarella cheese on top and let melt.

Now it’s time to build your burger!  If you like you can toast your buns.  Spread the avocado spread on the top and bottom bun on the inside.  Load up your bun with mushrooms, and top with the onions and tomatoes.  Enjoy!

***You can also make this delicious meal on the grill!  Instead of using sliced mushrooms, use a cleaned out mushroom cap and follow the rest of the directions (grilling the onions and mushrooms).  It makes a great healthy camping meal!  You can take your mushrooms pre-packed in the garlic/balsamic vinegar plastic bag in your cooler.

Enjoy!

*This post was also shared at:

www.goodcheapeats.com.

Cooking Thursday at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

Recipe Swap Thursday at Prairie Story

Ultimate Recipe Swap at Life as a Mom

Thrilling Thursday’s Party Link at Paisley Passions

What’s Cooking Wednesday at Tales From the Fairy Blogmother

Frugal Food Thursday at Frugal Follies

Tuesdays at the Table at All the Small Stuff

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

This week I am in beautiful Baltimore, Maryland.  Wow I LOVE this place!  I’m staying in a super cool part of the city called Fell’s Point.  It’s very hip and yet quaint at the same time.  The road is made out of old cobblestones and it’s right on the water.  Just beautiful!  I’m here for the inaugral NVL (National Volleyball League) tournament.  I was extremely blessed to get to stay with a wonderful woman by the name of Stefanie.  She was generous enough to offer my partner for the weekend Lisa and I a place to stay for the week.  Not only did she give us an incredibly cute place to stay, she also cooked for us!  One quick, easy, and healthy meal that Stefanie made for us was an amazing Shrimp Spinach Bowl.  Since she made it up I decided to name it after Stef.  Here’s to you Stepfanie!  I hope you Fit Moms love this as much as I did!

Stefanie’s Super Shrimp Spinach Bowl

(serves 4)

8 cups of spinach

20-30  medium shrimp (peeled, cleaned, deveined)

5 cloves of garlic diced (yes we LOVE garlic)

2 cups of cooked brown rice

1/2 to 1 tbsp Chinese black bean sauce

In a large pot saute garlic for 1 minute on medium heat. Add shrimp until almost cooked.   Stir in black bean sauce.  Add spinach and a little water.  Saute until spinach is wilted.

Place 1/2 cup of cooked brown rice in each serving bowl and top with the shrimp and spinach mix.  Stir to mix the ingredients.  Enjoy!

*Chinese black bean sauce is extremely HIGH in sodium.  Drink a ton of water if you are going to eat this.  Also, if you are on a low sodium diet this is NOT for you!  If you are on a low sodium diet you can still enjoy a shrimp and spinach bowl, just add other things like ginger or cajun seasonings for a different twist with less sodium.

Creamy Broccoli Soup

Ingredients

• 3 cups chopped broccoli
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1 1/2 cups of organic chicken broth
• 2 tbs cornstarch
• 12 oz fat free evaporated milk (or 1% milk if you like)
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a large sauce pan combine broccoli, onion, and broth.  Simmer until tender, about 10-15 minutes.  Take 1/2 of the mixture and carefully put into a blender.  Puree the mixture.  Return to original sauce pan with the other veggies.  Stir.  Mix cornstarch into milk until no lumps can be seen, and it is smooth.  Pour into pot and stir until well combined.  Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for another 5 minutes.

We do not add any cheese to our soup.  This recipe is so good and creamy you don’t need any!

Variations:  If you don’t drink milk you can try a creamy substitute.  I’ve heard you can use unsweetened almond, rice, or soy milk.  You can also use lite silken tofu.  If you are a vegetarian you can use veggie broth instead of chicken.  Instead of cornstarch you can use flour or for a GF option you can use Chickpea or besan flour.  A bit of ground nutmeg may taste good, and I’ve seen some people use paprika, and cajun seasoning on their broccoli soup.  Since broccoli is in season right now it’s been really cheap!  I’ve been eating this once to twice a week!

Enjoy!

Annett Davis, Olympian & Founder of Fit Moms Fit Kids

Last week I posted a web cooking show done by two fabulous hosts Nia (age 6) and Haile (age 9).  They have a new blog called Kids Can Cook and they’ve been starting a buzz. As soon as I saw this site I was in love.  First of all the site’s “stars” are two of the cutest little girls around. The duo star in their own webshow that teaches kids how to cook!  These girls don’t just cook anything, their goal is to teach other kids how to make healthy recipes. Haile was interviewed by my son and talked about how parents don’t have to drive thru McDonald’, but how they can just pack a healthy lunch or snack for their kids!  I was floored, and totally impressed by this nine year old!  What kid doesn’t like to go to McDonald’s.  Amazing! They are on the right track from the start.  I hope  Haile and Nia can be an inspiration to all of our kids (and us parents)!  FYI the girls were just featured on Tucson Morning Blend (their local morning show).  On today’s Kids Can Cook episode (which is not made by our site, this is a www.Kids-Cancook.org production) my children, Mya (age 9) and Victoria (age 5) join Haile and Nia as their guests on the Kids Can Cook wevbshow!  Let your kids watch to find out how to make these easy energy bars.