Spicy Quinoa Salad

16.46 in 5, free, go, healthy, mess, on, Paid, quinoa, salad, snacks, spicy, the

These past few weeks, I can proudly say I havent yet fully conformed to student stereotypes - aka living off pasta and beans on toast (ok, I have had meals along the sorts but oh well). Back home, I never really ate salad. It just wasnt a thing that we ever bought, plus I find that it just didnt fill me up for long.

But, two of my flatmates often have a bit of salad and you know that thing that happens when you get kind of envious of someone who is eating something you dont have, even if you arent the biggest lover of it, it just seems like an appetising thing to have at that moment in time?

Well, when the guys at Florette Salad got in touch and asked for me to share a salad recipe, it was the perfect opportunity to get creative and beat the boringness of a stereotypical salad!

Sweet potato is just a fave of mine, so of course I had to include it into this dish somehow! But the main part of this dish is the spicy quinoa salad mix using Florettes salad mix. It may look like its hard to make, but the hardest thing about it is pronouncing quinoa without sounding quite odd. Its super simple, just cook, add spices, chop and mix! Plus, it can be eaten cold the next day for lunch too.

If you are interested in some more salad recipes, Florette have some delicious looking ones over on their website. The vegetable ribbon salad with baby kale and wild rice sounds amazing!

Ingredients

Serves 1

• 1/3 cup dry quinoa
• 1 medium/ large sweet potato
• 1tsp smoked paprika
• 1tsp garlic powder
• 1tsp onion powder
• 1/4tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2tsp brown sugar
• Florette salad mix

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 220°c and line a baking tray with baking paper.

2. Peel and chop the sweet potato into wedges, place on the baking tray and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until cooked.

3. Cook quinoa to packet instructions.

4. Add in the spices.

5. Roughly chop salad mix and combine with cooked quinoa.

6. Serve and enjoy.

Print your own recipe card?

?

Also Id really appreciate if you filled in my reader survey, it will only take a minute or 2, please click on the button below or here, it will only take a few minutes! 

This was a compensated collaboration but all opinions are my own and are not influenced by brands or companies. Please see my full disclaimer on my contact page for more.

Read more

5 Mess Free Healthy On The Go Snacks Snacks

15.54 in 5, best, free, go, healthy, is, mess, on, online, Paid, site, snacks, survey, the, which

Im a huge snacker - whether it be on the go or with a cup of tea mid afternoon. Sometimes, I find myself snacking my way through the day (Im a poet) and it will get to tea time and I wont want a proper meal, oops. 

But, it is so easy to grab a chocolate bar, a packet of crisps or some other unhealthy snack, that although may be delicious now, it wont keep you full for longer and the cycle will be repeated. However, recently, Ive seen a huge increase in the range of healthy snacks that are available in supermarkets etc.

So, as it is the month of back to school, I thought Id compile a list of some of my favourite go-to snacks. Also, they are mess free which is always a bonus especially if you are taking them on the go. Whos got time to open that tub of hummus and start dipping those carrots?!

Energy Bars/Ball

These homemade goodies are everywhere on pinterest! There are so many recipes and flavours to choose from. They are perfect for making at the weekend to be stored in the fridge for the week and grabbed whenever you feel peckish or packed in some tupperware for on the go. Here are some recipes which look delicious:

• Peanut butter date bites
• Blueberry muffin energy balls
• Coconut date energy bites
• Apricot chia energy bars
• Oatmeal superfood breakfast bars

Trek Protein Bars

If you dont have time to make your own, or youre just too lazy to (Im guilty of that more often than not), then these protein bars* from trek are perfect! With them being a packed with vegan protein, up to 10g (Im no expert on that kind of stuff, but I know thats very good), they are super filling. Seriously, whenever Im hungry and tuck into one of these, I find Im not hungry for a good 3 hours at least. Plus, because they are packaged, it means even less mess.

These bars of deliciousness are also:
• Wheat free
• Gluten free
• Transfats free
• GM free
• Vegan friendly

The guys over at Nature Balance Foods very kindly sent a mixed box of the flapjacks to try - Ive got to say that my favourite would probably have to be the cocoa coconut, simply because it tastes like a bounty. But they are all delicious! Also, I love the idea of buying a large mixed box as it is, not only convenient, but also works out cheaper.

One last thing, I found the best before thing quite funny.

Rice Cakes

Not just any rice cakes, baby rice cakes. Yes, you heard me. You need to head to the baby food isle in the supermarket and pick up a bag or two of their flavoured rice cakes. My favourite are the berry ones! Plus, because they are made for toddlers, they dont have anything bad or harmful in them.

Fruit

This is an obvious one but its a great one to add to the list. Personally, I always opt for bananas - not only because they are my favourite fruit, but because they dont really cause much mess. Well, I say they dont cause much mess but if you dont put them in a tupperware box then you run the risk of having it become squished all over the other items in your bag; trust me, Ive had that happen to me on multiple occasions. 

Another reason I go for bananas is that they are the most filling, have one or two and youre good to go for a good while. Whereas with things like apples, youd have to eat quite a lot as I tend to get hungry 15 minutes later after eating one.

Dried Fruit

Having dried fruit to hand is brilliant! Because its like eating a healthy sweet (that actually tastes good). Dried figs are probably my favourite option and sometimes dates - plus, if you eat a good handful, they are quite filling.

What are some of your favourite snacks? 

Also Id really appreciate if you filled in my reader survey, it will only take a minute or 2, please click on the button below or here, it will only take a few minutes! 

Products in this post have been kindly gifted and are marked with a *. All opinions are my own and are not influenced by brands or companies. Please see my full disclaimer on my contact page for more.

Read more