Squash and Blueberry Scramble

I love the harvest season… the transition from Summer to Fall… ‘cause it means there are just so many of my favorite foods readily available – local and fresh.

Two of them are berries and squashes… pretty much ANY kind of berries and ANY kind of squashes.  And I am alwasy trying to come up with new ways to eat them together.

I made this recently and absolutely loved it.  I know it is kind of strange but I assure you it is delicious.  And simple and quick.

I used leftover acorn squash but you could just as easily use butternut, or kabocha or delicata or even carnival squash… which I am sure I will soon!  I did use blueberries too – they work very well cause they don’t squish down too much when they are cooked, but if you have blackberries, by all means, use them!

I put a sprinkle of cinnamon into my scramble as it was cooking, but you could just as easily go savory with this mixture and sprinkle some crumbled bacon into it.... oh my, I just thought of that, and I am going to do it!

Squash and Blueberry Scramble

Makes 1 serving

• 1/2 cup cooked squash
• 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
• 1/2 cup egg whites (4 egg whites)
• Dash of cinnamon

1. Remove the squash from the shell and mash it a bit.
2. Place a non-stick skillet over MEDIUM heat and add the egg whites, cooked squash and half the blueberries.
3. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
4. Cook till the egg whites are firm, stirring occasionally.
5. Remove to plate and top with the remaining blueberries.

Per serving.

Weight Watchers P+ = 5.

Calories 199; Protein 15g; Carbohydrate 37g; Fat 1g; Fibre 8g.

Scoop the flesh from the cooked squash.  I love these little yellow acorn squashes.

Mash it up a bit.

Put half the blueberries into the pan along with the squash and egg whites.   I love cooked and warm blueberries!

Top the cooked scramble mixture with the rest of the blueberries before serving.

Printable Recipe

What are you loving right now that is in season and local to where you live?

Squash and Sweet Potato Crustless Quiche

I first saw this intriguing dish when my friend Sara pointed it out on Facebook a short while back. The author at paleOMG calls it Spaghetti Squash Breakfast Bake.  I call it Squash and Sweet Potato Crustless Quiche.  Who cares?  It is AWESOME!

I Tweeted the link and highlighted is a favorite so I would be sure to be able to find it again… sometimes this is quicker for me than Pinterest.

The recipe itself is a fun twist on a crustless, cheeseless quiche, and the prose that accompanies it is witty and irreverent.  You may want to read it for the humor alone.  And drool.

I finally got around to making this dish a few days ago.  I admit, there is a fair amount of preparation involved.  I miked the spaghetti squash while shredding the sweet potato and onion in my food processor.  (I had never used the shredder blade before.  Who knew it could be so easy?)  At first I thought I would only need 6 eggs, but at the last minute whisked in 2 more.   And I didn't use a 8X8 pan as apparently I no longer have one!


Before baking, it looked a bit soupy….

And the final cooked result?

P-E-R-F-E-C-T-I-O-N 

Now to be honest, the ingredient list contains some of my very favorite items, so I was pretty darned sure I was going to love this dish.  And I do.  And so did The Captain, which was a huge bonus for me, too, as these are NOT some of his favorite ingredients…. but he did love the outcome.

We ate half for lunch the day I made it… then the other half for dinner a couple of night’s later.  I reheated it on a MEDIUM power in the mike for a couple of minutes… I was afraid that HIGH power might make the eggs rubbery. The Captain also thinks it would be good cold.

And just look at those tomatoes… grown on our balcony in containers!  Red and yellow cherry tomatoes. Mmmmmm.

Next time, I just may bake this quiche in my silicone muffin cups…. they would make handy snacks too!

By the way, it is also paleo, vegetarian, gluten free... all those good things!

The N.I. as I made it, for 1/4th of the whole:

Weight Watchers P+ = 6.

Calories 243; Protein 14g; Carbohydrate 16g; Fat 14g; Fibre 3g.

Give it a try.  Plan to spend some time at it.  Thoroughly enjoy the fruits of your labors.  And then send me a Tweet or come back and leave me a comment here, saying THANK YOU… it’s that good!

Are you a quiche fan?  What is your favorite kind?

Frozen Protein ‘Bites’

Sometimes I need a little something before I do a strength workout in the morning… and it will usually have some protein and a few carbs and perhaps a bit of fat, too.  Not much, just a little something…

Normally I like to work out on an empty stomach.  I get out of bed, have a glass of water with half a lime squeezed and tossed into it, my EpiCor supplement, and then part of a cup of coffee… get into my workout gear and get sweaty!

But I have learned that if the workout involved much lower body work I need to eat a little before I do it. If I don’t, I tend to get too weak to finish my workout.  And I also don’t feel very good and it often lasts well into the morning.  Not a good experience.

I have experimented with protein shakes, but sometimes that is just too much … I don’t like to work hard with food in my belly cause it tends to make me feel sickish. 

These little frozen protein ‘bites’ are just right!  They are a combination of mashed banana, protein powder, and almond butter.  I love them, and could honestly just snack on them, especially when the weather is still so hot, but I am saving them as a pre-workout fuel…. I do have some self-control, although I admit I don’t like to show it off all the time!

The first time I made them, and as shown here, I used GNC Chocolate Rebuilt-Mass protein powder ‘cause we still had some around from the review The Captain did of it a while back… use your favorite protein powder.  And of course, the N.I. will vary with the brand and kind of powder used… but you get the idea.

I have also made them with a vanilla whey powder and added a dash of cinnamon.  They are really good too.  I think I will be experimenting a lot, with different fruits and nut butters and spices…

Frozen Protein ‘Bites’
Makes 8

• 1 medium banana, peeled and mashed
• 1 scoop chocolate protein powder
• 2 Tbs almond butter

1. Add the protein powder and the almond butter to the mashed banana and mix until well-combined.
2. Scoop with a tablespoon measure into a silicone or paper muffin cup.
3. Freeze several hours till solid.
4. Store in the freezer and thaw the ‘bite’ for a a minute or 2 before eating.

Per serving of one ‘bite’.
Weight Watchers P+ = 1.
Calories 51; Protein 2g; Carbohydrate 7g; Fat 2g; Fibre 1g.

The next time I made them I used a regular whey powder and it had more protein so the N.I. was higher in protein and lower in carbs.  I suspect most whey powders would give similar results.

Per serving of one ‘bite’.
Weight Watchers P+ = 1.
Calories 50; Protein 4g; Carbohydrate 4g; Fat 2g; Fibre 1g.

Start by mashing the banana.

I use silicone muffin cups because they peel away so easily… and yes, the bananas are a bit lumpy.  It doesn’t matter!

Printable Recipe

Do you like to eat before you do a strength workout?

What is your favorite thing to have?