Got Chips? Make some orange guacamole!

Yes, orange guac, my friends. Orange is the new lime.

This still contains all the delicious guacamole staples like red onion, cilantro, and garlic but with a little twist.

Now, I’ve never bought a jicama before which means I’ve never peeled a jicama before. They look pretty intimidating but I went for it.

The crunch from the jicama and the juice from the sweet orange was such a fresh combination of flavors.

It’s going to be your new go-to for taco parties. Just imagine…fish tacos with orange jicama guacamole. Simple, fresh, and unique.

Cheers to sunshine and citrus! Grab a margarita, dip your chips, and enjoy some funky guacamole.

Happy Friday!

Jicama & Orange Guacamole

Ingredients

2 avocados

1/4 cup small diced jicama

2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

2 teaspoons orange zest

1/2 teaspoon garlic, minced

2 tablespoons diced red onion

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Directions

Mash avocado with a fork and stir in remaining ingredients. Serve on tacos or with chips.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Lauren

If I ever opened a restaurant, it would only serve breakfast. Mayyybe lunch, if the world demands it.

But honestly, it’s just my favorite meal of the day. I love that it’s something you can get really creative with. There are so many sweet and savory options. Also, you can eat it for any meal without it being weird. You just can’t have dinner for breakfast…pasta in the morning? Gross. You’ll regret that one later.

For this crostini-like breakfast dish, I threw a lemon-dressed arugula salad on top of a fried egg with smashed avocado, turkey, & melted Provolone.

And it was amazing. Pure amazingness.

As I took the first bite, I had immediately wished that I would have made more so I could share them with my neighbors.
If your first inclination is to share the wealth with others, you know it’s gotta be good.

Technically, I didn’t even know what to call this thing. It’s like a breakfast sandwich, with no lid, and a light salad thrown in there for good measure. I think I’ll call it an over-sized breakfast crostini.

I bet they could be made on smaller scale, with a little poached egg, instead of fried, and served up for brunch.

The turkey and provolone just sounded straight up delicious so that ended up in the mix.

The avocado toast is an added bonus. It keeps the avo secure on the bread. I don’t much like biting into a sandwich while slices of avocado go shooting out, and then you have to shove them back inside.

To be honest, I think the fried egg is the only thing that makes this a ”breakfast item". And believe me, the egg and runny yolk are a must with the citrusy arugula and the melty cheese-topped turkey.

So, what are you going to be making for breakfast/brunch this weekend? What’s that you say? This Breakfast Crostini? Yea, get at it. You won’t be sorry.

So good, I practically licked the plate clean. Admittedly, I was debating whether or not I should make another, not because I was still hungry but because it was a dream come true for my taste buds.

Breakfast Crostini

{Lemon-dressed Arugula over Turkey, Egg and Avocado Toast}

Print Recipe!

Serves 2 (easily adapted to serve one or many)

Ingredients:

2 tsps olive oil, plus more for sautéing

1 Tbsp Meyer lemon juice

1 small or 1/2 medium clove garlic minced or grated

4 cups arugula

1 green onion, white part only, sautéed with 1/2 tsp olive oil

2 eggs, fried over easy

4 slices turkey (we use Italian-herb or peppered)

2 slices Provolone cheese

1 small avocado, mashed into toast

2 slices sourdough bread

salt

pepper

Directions:

Make dressing by whisking lemon juice, olive oil, minced garlic, a little salt a pepper. Place arugula in a mixing bowl and toss with dressing; set aside.

Sauté white parts of green onions in about 1/2 tsp of olive oil, for 2-3 minutes over medium heat; throw into the arugula salad and toss to incorporate.

Add another 1/2 tsp into the pan and fry egg(s) over medium-high heat, covered. Remove when whites are set and yolk is still runny.

Lightly toast bread and spread 1/2 avocado on it, sprinkling with a small pinch of salt and pepper. Top with a few slices of turkey, a slice of Provolone cheese, and add the fried egg directly on top to help melt the cheese. (You can also place under the broiler for a minute, before adding the egg, or you can place back in the pan and cover with lid to melt the cheese if you like it really melty).

Top with arugula salad and enjoy!

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy

This is late…I realize Mother’s Day has passed.

I still felt compelled to share about my mom and the activities from mama’s day though.

My mom is one of the most selfless people I know. She’d drop everything for me if I needed her to (and has). And not just me, she’d drop everything to help almost anyone.

She’s a fantastic listener and always up for giving advice. If you need someone to talk at, she’s your gal.

My mom is quite optimistic. If you gave her lemons, she would politely smile and literally make you some lemonade. She might even give it some rosemary or lavender essence, just because she likes you.

While we beg her not to sing, I do beg her to make me dinner. Her cooking skills are out of this world.

My BBLT for example probably would have been even more gourmet if I let her help. But it was Mother’s Day so I told her I was in charge.

She’s as cool as a cucumber, my mom. I love her.

Onward to BLT’s. This is no ordinary BLT. It’s a BBLT. Burrata, Bacon, Arugula, and Heirloom Tomato sandwich on fresh ciabatta.

That salty bacon with creamy burrata is the best. Then the sweet tomato and spicy arugula. Fantastic combination.

These were so easy to wrap up for our picnic. We brought the burrata along and spread it on right before we ate to prevent soggy bread. Perfection.

With a  side of kale salad, watermelon, then homemade coconut macaroons, it was a perfect picnic with the whole family.

Burrata Bacon Lettuce & Tomato Sandwich

Ingredients

Fresh ciabatta sandwich roll

Bacon, cooked

Heirloom tomato (I used mini heirlooms)

Arugula

2 tablespoons burrata, per sandwich

Directions

Pile one half of bread with bacon, tomato, and arugula. Spread the other half with burrata.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Lauren

For a weekend trip, my boyfriend, Rob, and I ventured up the California coast for a surf safari/camping trip.

On the way up we stopped at San Onofre for a little of this action.

We made a few more pit stops along the way, at one of which my car battery decided to die. That wasn’t so fun, but what’s an adventure without a few things going wrong?

Finally, at dusk, we reached our destination at Jalama Beach, which is about an hour North of Santa Barbara.

Let me paint a quick picture for you: we were starving, tired, and we needed to set up our campsite in the dark… and in high speed winds.

Let me tell you, it’s not easy to set up a tent with raging winds blowing everything around. We probably looked like characters in an old slapstick comedy.

Good thing we had such kind neighbors who stepped in to help us out.

Luckily, I had some pre-made chili that I could quickly heat up for that first night. Home-made chili is such a great camping meal and it also serves as an ice pack if you have time to freeze it overnight before packing in the cooler. I learned that trick from my Momma. She’s a smart cookie.

For breakfast we had, banana coconut chia pudding, Baked Oatmeal Bars, and delicious French-pressed coffee, using freshly ground beans that were gifted to me by my little sister, Sarah, from her Guatemala trip.

Sarah came along for a day to hang out, provide some guitar tunes, and help cook some Campfire Hash. I love this little one.

She might kill me for this, but one of my favorite memories of the trip happened when we were exploring tide-pools. We were getting a little deep in the water, balancing on slippery rocks and discovering pretty starfish, and somehow she slipped off a rock and fell face first in the water. Oddly enough, she only got her face wet. To say it was a good catch would be an understatement. Literally, everything else was dry, just her face and hair were drenched. I’m dying just thinking about it.

The second night we made a tasty Campfire Hash, which consisted of peppers, onions, sweet potato, spicy jalapeno chicken sausage, and smoky paprika flavors. It’s a hearty meal and was an easy thing to throw in a skillet over the open fire.

The weekend consisted of the following things: road-tripping, exploring, tide-pooling, surfing, beach-walking, Frisbee-tossing, volleyball-peppering (with added push-ups as punishment for poor play…don’t ask why we did that), S’mores-making, smiling, laughing, and memory-making.

I love S’mores. I think I ate enough of them in a single night to cover a family of four. No shame there at all.

Guacamole is another thing that there can’t be too much of. Rob was on guacamole patrol and did a fabulous job. We threw some lime, tomato, garlic salt and pepper in with mashed avocados and it was a glorious combination.

The morning before we left, we took turns leading an early morning beach yoga session. I’m glad we didn’t have any spectators, because we looked ridiculous. By the end of our self-led class, our towels were buried in sand that the strong winds had carried over, and it was near impossible to do any balancing poses.

Despite the ferocious winds, the patchy sunshine, and the lacking waves, we had such a grand adventure. Three days and three washes later, my hair still smelled like campfire.

Note: you can enjoy this hash, with or without a campfire to cook it upon. But if you need an excuse to go camping in the great outdoors, then just tell yourself that you do indeed need a campfire to cook up this Campfire Hash.

Campfire Hash {with peppers, sweet potato, & spicy chicken sausage}

Print Recipe!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced

1 orange bell pepper, seeded and diced

1 medium yellow onion, diced

1 large sweet potato, diced into small cubes

3 Tbsp olive oil

1 package (4-5 links) of cooked chicken sausage, sliced into rounds (we used Spicy Jalapeno chicken sausage from TJs)

1/2 tsp garlic salt, to taste

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1/4 tsp pepper

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a cast iron skillet (if cooking over an open fire this is recommended, or if cooking on a stove you can use a non-stick pan). Add onions, bell peppers, sweet potato, seasonings and cook for about 10-14 minutes, stirring occasionally. In the last 3-4 minutes of cooking, add the chicken sausage to heat through. The cook time will vary based on grill/stove/campfire, but when sweet potatoes are softened with a slightly crispy outside, they are done.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy

One of my bestest friends and (oh my gosh we’ve been pals for 10 years) bridesmaids, Carolina, makes some awesome food. We’re old.

She is constantly telling me about the amazing things she creates for her friends and I dream of being there eating these things every.single.time. Some of her crostini ideas are beyond my realm of imagination but sound so good. I wish I could be there to enjoy her creative and delicious food, but she lives in Oakland.

Long distance friendships can be challenging but you know it’s meant to be when you still manage to chat every day…and dream about her food.

Not only do we manage to chat but she occasionally sends me a list of ingredients for her creations. This kale slaw being one of them. She provided no measurements so I improvised and wow, I had to share.

It was so good, Chris ate only kale slaw for lunch. No protein, just straight up, raw vegetables and a little dill pickle.

I think this is not only great for lunch but for your first summer BBQ. It’s going to be warm this weekend and I’m up for making this again because it was fab.

I said fab. Sorry…

Kale Slaw

Ingredients

1/2 bunch of kale, thinly chopped

2 carrots, shredded

1 dill pickle, diced

2 ribs celery, diced

1/2 cup plain nonfat yogurt

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

1 tablespoon honey

1 1/2 tablespoons whole grain mustard

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Directions

Whisk together yogurt, mayonnaise, mustard, honey, vinegar, celery seed, salt and pepper. Toss dressing with the kale, pickle, carrot, and celery. Chill and serve.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Lauren

And when we say oatmeal, we mean the real deal– made with rolled-oats, fruit, homemade almond milk, chia seeds, and a dash of cinnamon–not the Quaker oatmeal packets of sugary mush, stuff.

At this point, I don’t even think I could stomach one of those.

It’s a perfectly filling meal and that will gladly coat your belly, sustaining you until lunchtime.

Now, if you simply can’t make a fresh bowl of oatmeal in the morning, the next best thing is to plan ahead and bake oatmeal bars for an on-the-go snack.

This past weekend, my beau and I trekked up through the beautiful California coast to go camping at Jalama beach. It was the perfect opportunity to bake a batch of these oatmeal bars for a quick and easy travel snack and a no hassle breakfast.

See here, this is the breakfast of the champions {while camping}: French press coffee, banana coconut chia seed pudding, and a yummy Baked Oatmeal Bar.

You can wrap these up, individually, and take them on the go. No mess and easy to nibble on .

I didn’t add any extra sweetener in these ones, but if your palate craves a bit of sugar in the morning, then go ahead and add some brown sugar, raw sugar, agave, honey, maple syrup… or one of those alternative natural sweeteners.

These guys are sans nuts, so for all of you nut-allergy people, this one’s for you.

I hope your day will be a little bit fuller now! Enjoy, friends .

Baked Oatmeal Bars with Dried Fruits and Seeds {no nuts}

Print Recipe!

Makes 9-12 bars, depending on desired size

Ingredients:

2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

½ cup raw pepitas

½ cup apricots, chopped

½  cup cranberries

½ cup shredded coconut, unsweetened

¼ cup raw sunflower seeds

1 ½  tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp nutmeg

1 egg, beaten

1 ½ tsp vanilla extract

2 bananas, mashed

1/3 cup milk (non-fat or other preferred type)

*Little Yellow Note: These do not have added sweetener, so if you do desire a lightly sweetened bar, you may add the desired sweetener of choice, to taste (we might use 1/4 cup brown sugar or raw sugar).

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Mix wet ingredients together (mashed bananas, egg, vanilla, milk); set aside.

In a mixing bowl, mix together oats, pepitas, apricots, cranberries, coconut, sunflower seeds, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add the wet to the dry ingredients and mix well to combine.

Transfer mixture to a 9×9 baking dish, either lined with parchment paper or coated with cooking spray. Evenly distribute and level mixture.

Bake for 40 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan before cutting into squares and removing from pan.

Saves for about 1 week in an airtight container.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy

Chris and I saw Billy Elliot on Broadway this weekend and loved it. I couldn’t believe what an amazingly talented dancer this little twelve year old was. Is everyone on Broadway this amazing? Perhaps I’m out of the Broadway loop.

It gave me a whole new outlook on dedication though. This kid has given up a “normal” childhood to follow his dream. What a sacrifice. It sure is paying off though, he was incredible. His dancing and singing were as good as any adult in the show who had been practicing their whole lives.

Who knew a twelve year old could give you such a kick in the pants. A new level of chasing down what you want and diving in head first.

That had nothing to do with cookies, I just wanted to fill you in on some LYK musings of late.

With all the almond milk we’ve been making we have loads of almond meal left over.

I’d been searching for something to use it on and these cookies were the without-a-doubt winner. I’m some what of a chocolate/coconut combo addict.

While this is not an original recipe, I felt compelled to share it with you because it was that good.

After an epic fail with a lemon tart this weekend I didn’t have the guts to try and transform another recipe that requires baking.

Give these a try this week. They are really quick, healthy(ish), delicious, and a great way to put a smile on some family, friends or coworkers faces.

This recipe is by Minimalist Baker and adapted from the Sprouted Kitchen Cookbook.

I just couldn’t resist.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Lauren

Are you guys feeling this heat wave? It hasn’t just hit California, that’s for sure. Friday + hot summer weather = kick your feet up it’s time for a cold cocktail. Or a wine spritzer. Or both? But first start with this luscious libation.

This next sentence might be offensive to the world of the winos out there (especially the FAW crew…aka our neighborly Friday wine and cheese night), but here goes.

Sometimes white wine is just boring.

Red wine is where it’s at. That’s the truth.

However, when you are wanting a beverage on the cool and refreshing side, you gotta go with a crisp white. And then add stuff to it. Like for example, a healthy pour of frosty cold ginger beer and a splash of freshly squeezed blood orange juice.

That’ll do it folks. Instant wine spritzer, perfect enough to enjoy by itself. No meal pairing needed.

You could use a regular old orange or tangerine, but the blood orange has such great flavor, they are usually extremely juicy, have a perfect balance of sweet and tangy, and they have such a sultry deep red color.

I guess anything to make white wine more, well, red.

This fun spritzer will be a great recipe to have on hand during the hot summer months, so be sure to book mark it! And when I mean “book mark it” I really mean make it now. It’s Friday for goodness sake. Time to bring on the weekend with a crisp wine beverage.

Orange Ginger Wine Spritzer

Print Recipe!

Serves 1 or 4-5, respectively

Ingredients:

For a single glass:

5 oz white wine

2 oz ginger beer

1 ½ oz freshly squeezed blood orange juice

Ice

For for a pitcher:

1 bottle of sauvignon blanc

1 (12 oz) bottle ginger beer

8 oz freshly squeezed blood orange juice

Ice

*Little Yellow Note: All of these ingredients are to taste. Feel free to make adjustments to suit your preference!

Directions:

Mix wine, ginger beer and freshly squeeze blood orange juice, together. Pour into a glass, over ice. Enjoy

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy

Some of the best recipes we make are inspired by borrowing the flavors from other foods that we know we love.

This is inspired by my mother-in-law-to-be’s Spiced Pear Skillet Cake. She has made this for a few occasions over the last couple years, and it never ceases to be everyone’s favorite part of the meal.

I decided to use these same flavors in my chia seed pudding this week. I’ve been making a new chia seed pudding every week lately, and it has been such a great 3 p.m. snack at work.

I always have to stop myself from devouring it as a side dish with my oatmeal for breakfast because I just can’t wait to eat it!

Last week we had a mango that was on the verge of death; I saved it with the immersion blender by making a puree then adding almond milk and chia seed. Voila, mango chia seed pudding.

It’s so easy you guys. I realize we might be overloading you with chia seed pudding ideas lately, but we can’t help ourselves.

Jump on the bandwagon, get creative, make chia seed pudding, and share your ideas with us! We’d love to hear what flavor combinations you all are making.

One of you has already suggested a mocha flavored one, and it’s definitely happening next week.

Spiced Ginger Pear Chia Seed Pudding

Print Recipe

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups almond milk

1/4 cup chia seed

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon allspice

2 teaspoons fresh ginger, minced

2 pears, diced

Directions

Place almond milk, cinnamon, allspice, and ginger in a blender and puree for about 30-40 seconds, until ginger is very finely chopped and dispersed throughout liquid. Pour into a jar or other airtight container and add the chia seeds. Shake vigorously then place in the refrigerator for at least 4-6 hours or overnight.

Serve with diced pears and an additional sprinkling of cinnamon. You can also mix the pear in once the pudding has set.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Lauren

In the LYK, we’ve made “rice” with it, mashed it up with goat cheese to sub as a suitable mashed potatoes replacement, and roasted it with a savory lemon-tahini topping.

Point and case, you can get really creative with this mild-flavored vegetable.

Since we have been loaded down with oranges, and had two heads of cauliflower in the fridge, it was time to try out a combo of the two things.

When I casually say, “loaded down with oranges”, I’m being modest. It quite literally means that our kitchen is bursting at the seams with navels, valencia and blood oranges.

Lauren can attest to my orange obsession.

When I go grocery shopping and pick up oranges, it’s not like I can ever grab just a couple. It’s gotta be like at least 10 lbs. Then they don’t fit in the fruit bowl or anywhere really, except for on the kitchen floor. But hey, we’re all caught up on our Vitamin C and calcium. Yea, I just learned that oranges have a good amount of calcium, too. Score.

This is a great recipe to zest up your veggies. Even if you are trying to eat healthy and light, there’s no reason to skimp on the flavor.

This orange juice in this recipe helps to cook and steam the veggies without needing a ton of olive oil, as found in most veggie sautés.

This dish serves as a tasty side-dish to chicken or fish. It’s also a great food item to help keep you fuller longer, so if you are watching your figure before beach season hits, I’d recommend serving this up on the regular.

Orange Ginger Cauliflower {with Carrot Ribbons}

Print Recipe!

Serves 4-5 as a side

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp Olive oil

1 shallot, minced (about 1/4 cup)

1 large clove garlic, minced

1 1/2 Tbsps fresh ginger, minced

1 medium head cauliflower, cut into florets

6 oz fresh orange juice

1 1/2 tsps orange zest

2 tsps low-sodium soy sauce

1/4 tsp salt, or to taste

1/4 tsp pepper

1 large carrot, cut with peeler in thin strips & roughly chopped

Orange wedges, for garnish

Dash of Sriracha, optional

Directions:

Heat olive oil in pan, over medium-high heat, add shallots and cook for 1 minute. Add garlic and ginger and cook for another 30 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the cauliflower florets and cook, stirring occasionally for 2-3 minutes. Add the orange juice, orange zest, soy sauce, salt and pepper, to taste.

Cover with lid and cook until cauliflower has softened, but still has a slight crunch to it, about 6-7 minutes, stirring occasionally. In the last minute or so, add the carrot peels. Garnish with orange wedges and serve.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy