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Pasta Salad with Grilled Vegetables and a Maison Le Grand Giveaway

It’s OK to start grilling vegetables, right? I know technically summer isn’t for another month or so, but I feel like I’ve been in the summer mindset forever – I started grilling in April!

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before, but it will come as no surprise that I love, love, love Julia Child. I had a phase where I would watch her cooking DVDs every night, even today, I’ll put on her DVDs if I’m feeling stressed out or just need a break. But did you know that Julia Child hated grilled vegetables? She once said “There’s nothing worse than grilled vegetables!” I’m sorry Julia, but I’ll have to disagree with you on that. The grilled vegetables in this Pasta Salad add a nice smokey touch to the dish.

Along with the smokey flavour from grilling the vegetables, the other flavour element of this dish is an amazing Spicy Rosée Sauce made by Maison Le Grand. Usually pasta salad can be a heavy dish, filled with mayonnaise, but using this healthy sauce to bring the dish together was not only really easy, but also delicious.

I don’t know about all of you, but I find vegan/dairy free cooking to be pretty intimidating (confession, I have never cooked with tofu!) and with all the substitutes out there, it almost feels like cooking with your eyes closed. This Spicy Rosée Sauce literally eliminates the fear because Maison Le Grand does it for you – it’s pretty tough to make a delicious dairy-free rosée sauce but Maison Le Grand has cracked the code.

Since I loved the sauces so much, I’m so excited to give one lucky reader a selection of pesto and rosée sauces valued at $50 courtesy of Maison Le Grand.

To enter, leave a comment letting me know what your favourite Maison Le Grand product or which would you like to try? You can also earn additional entries by filling out the contest widget to increase your chance of winning!

Pasta Salad with Grilled Vegetables (serves 4-6)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients

1 zucchini, sliced 1/4″ thick (roughly 20 rounds)
1 small eggplant, cut into 1/2′ thick rounds
1 red pepper, cut in 8 pieces
1/2 cup Maison Le Grand Spicy Rosée Sauce (or any of their rosée sauces)
1 375g box of whole wheat pasta (you can also use your favourite gluten free pasta)

For dressing:

1/2 cup Maison Le Grand Spicy Rosée Sauce (or any of their rosée sauces)
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil

Directions

In a large bowl, toss vegetables with spicy rosée sauce.Cover and refrigerate for an hour.

Meanwhile, prepare your dressing. Whisk spicy rosée sauce with balsamic vinegar and lemon juice. Slowly add olive oil in a steady stream to emulsify.

Cook pasta according to package directions. Toss with half of the dressing mixture.

Preheat grill to medium-low heat. Cook eggplant and peppers for 5 minutes per side. Slice grilled eggplant into long strips, and grilled peppers into bite sized chunks.

Next, cook zucchini for 2 minutes per side. Remove grilled vegetables and add to pasta. Toss with remaining dressing.

Give this Pasta Salad with Grilled Vegetables a try at your next barbecue, you’re vegan friends will thank you!

- Lou

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Giveaway is open to residents of Ontario and Quebec over the age of 18.
See widget for terms and conditions.

Disclaimer: I was provided with samples of Maison Le Grand’s line of pestos and rosée sauces. I was not compensated in any other way for writing this post – the decision to write about the product was my own and all opinions are 100% mine.

Bacon Avocado Egg Salad Sandwich

Bacon. Avocado. Egg. I’d like to introduce the holy trinity of breakfast to the meal we call lunch.

Sometimes lunch is actually breakfast, sometimes lunch doesn’t even happen until 4pm and we know all to well that most of the time, my lunch happens while driving – but whenever lunch does happen, if this Bacon Avocado Egg Salad Sandwich is involved you know it’ll be a good one.

So, how many people have a dozen of creatively decorated hard boiled eggs in the refrigerator right now? How many of you don’t even like eating hard boiled eggs? For me, it’s a texture thing with the yolks, but that leaves the question – what are you going to do with them? Waste them? No! Egg salad is obviously the answer, but not your regular egg salad, something a little special.

I introduced my dad to my favourite breakfast sandwich the other day – the smashed avocado, bacon and egg open faced sandwich and I had the brainwave to put the flavors into egg salad. I’ve been meaning to make egg salad sandwiches for a while, but like many things I plan on doing (cleaning my room, watching Downton Abbey, going skiing) it didn’t happen…until now.

Bacon Avocado Egg Salad Sandwiches (serves 4-6)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients

6 hard boiled eggs, chopped
6 rashers of bacon, cooked and chopped
2 avocados, mashed
2 green onions, sliced
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp mayonnaise
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

Directions

To hard boil the eggs, cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and simmer for 15 minutes. Once finished cooking, remove from hot water and cover with cold water to stop cooking.

Mix together chopped hard boiled eggs, bacon, avocados, green onions, lemon juice, mayonnaise, black pepper, Dijon mustard and cayenne pepper in a bowl.

Serve on your favourite bread, and store in the fridge in an airtight container.

This Bacon Avocado Egg Salad Sandwich is a revelation and I highly recommend giving it a try this week.

- Lou

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce

This Roasted Red Pepper Sauce is one of the simplest pasta sauces you can make and I’ve definitely been in the mood for simple these days. I’ve been trying to simplify everything whether it be enjoying simple meals or simplifying my routines, I’m a little tired from going 100 miles an hour 24/7. The thing about simplifying is that it can easily come across as just being lazy, but I think this pasta dish is the perfect example of how simplifying can lead to some stellar results and not to mention delicious flavours.

This Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce is perfect if you’re craving pasta (which let’s be honest, who isn’t craving pasta?) but feel like something different from tomato sauce, bolognese sauce or pesto sauce. Other than the addition of a teeny tiny bit of cream at the end, this sauce is extremely healthy and is made with all fresh ingredients. After all of this talk of simplifying things, you might be wondering just how is this sauce simple? Well, if I told you that all the ingredients are roasted in the oven and then pureed (in a bender or with an immersion blender) would you believe me? There is no stirring and there are no tomato splatters all over the kitchen to clean up – you don’t even have to be in the kitchen, you can sit on the couch and watch Oprah reruns…if that’s your thing.

Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce (serves 4-6)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients
3 red peppers, quartered
1 onion, quartered
2 large tomatoes, quartered
3 whole cloves garlic
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp red pepper flakes (if you don’t want it spicy or are making this for kids, use less red pepper flakes)
2 tbsp cream

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place red peppers, onion, tomatoes and garlic in a baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil and vinegar and sprinkle with red pepper flakes.

Roast in the oven for 45 minutes.

Once vegetables are done roasting, remove to a blender or a pot. Add cream and puree in the blender or with an immersion blender.

Serve over whole wheat pasta with parmesan cheese.

This Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce is so simple you’ll be wondering why you hadn’t made it until now.

- Lou

Cookin’ Greens Stuffed Peppers

I’ve mentioned my love for Cookin’ Greens before and my feelings have only grown since I first tried their products in the summer. I’m a big fan of their nutrient-packed, not to mention convenient, frozen vegetables. I love that the veggies can be cooked straight from frozen with no prep! I always have a bag in my freezer, so when I was approached to participate in an exciting project involving Cookin’ Greens and the TV show Dragons’ Den I jumped at the chance.

This week, Cookin’ Greens will be on Dragons’ Den, which is a show where aspiring entrepreneurs pitch their ideas and businesses to five multi-millionaires with the expertise and money to turn great ideas into booming businesses. It’s a favourite show of mine and I can’t wait to watch the episode. Leading up to the episode, Cookin’ Greens has been posting a new recipe each day on their Facebook page developed by myself and other bloggers.

I developed an uber healthy and delicious recipe of Cookin’ Greens Stuffed Peppers using Cookin’ Greens Athlete’s Mix in honour of their appearance on Dragons’ Den. The Athlete’s Mix features collards, spinach, kale, sweet red pepper and white beans – it’s a great combo of fibre, protein, iron and vitamins A and C. This recipe was inspired by my favourite dragon and fellow foodie, Jim Treliving. It was a little intimidating to create a recipe for a fellow foodie, but I knew I wanted to highlight his philanthropic efforts with the Heart and Stroke Foundation and create a heart healthy dinner that everyone would love. Head on over to the Cookin’ Greens Facebook page to get my full recipe for Cookin’ Greens Stuffed Peppers and be sure to watch the episode on March 24th at 8pm EST.

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post on behalf of Cookin’ Greens. I was compensated for my time, but all opinions expressed are my own.

World’s Best Meatballs

I know, calling this recipe World’s Best Meatballs is a huge statement. But guys, these are actually the absolute best. Maybe it’s the addition of a little sausage meat, or the Italian spices or Parmesan cheese, but whatever it is, it just works. To me, spaghetti and meatballs is probably my favourite comfort food, and I could definitely go for a little comfort right now.

I’m in a bit of a rut right now. Maybe it’s because it’s mid March and it. is. still. snowing. Or maybe it’s because I’m less than a month away from my twentieth birthday, which is a scary thought. Maybe it’s because since January I have been burning the candle from both ends. Or maybe it’s because I have five finals and seven assignments due within the next three weeks. If this was a multiple choice question, the answer would be D. All of the above.

So how does one get themselves out of said rut? I’ve been trying to spend more time doing things I love, like watching 2 hours of Dance Moms. I’ve also been trying to get back into the kitchen, my happy place. The past couple of months have been a little slow and my oven is feeling a little lonely. These meatballs are the kind of dish that will get you excited to get into the kitchen because they are so delicious – you’ll never go back to your old meatball recipe again!

World’s Best Meatballs (makes 24 med/large meatballs)
Recipe by Lou

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey
1 lb hot Italian sausage meat
1 egg
1/4 cup flour (can easily substitute a gluten free flour here – I’ve used rice flour before.)
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 tbsp milk
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and lightly grease a baking dish with olive oil.

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. I like to use my hands for this, it’s easier than with a spoon. Shape into 24 meatballs and place on the baking sheet.

Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until fully cooked.

To make a quick, easy and delicious weeknight dinner, I like to serve my World’s Best Meatballs meatballs with my favourite Easy Spaghetti Sauce.

- Lou