Mango Smoothie

I've been meaning to do a mango smoothie post for ages now. This one is based off of the blood orange smoothie post but with mango instead!! These saved me when I was in Vietnam. I love mangoes. I would eat them daily there. Here, I just settle for frozen mango smoothies. Still delicious!

This recipe makes 2 servings 

1 ripe mango (or equivalent amount frozen mango)

1 large ripe banana, frozen

6 clementines, peeled

1 can light coconut milk 

1 tbsp hemp seeds

5 ice cubes

Coconut flakes for topping 

Peel and cube the mango. Slice the banana. Place all ingredients in blender except ice and blend on high for awhile. Since we're adding whole clementines it takes longer to blend the pith. Add the ice and blend for a bit. Then pour into glasses and top with coconut flakes and additional hemp seeds. Also you can throw in a handful of spinach but it'll change the color.

Cauliflower Rice + Roasted Mango

This is all I want to eat right now. Can I just say that cauliflower is the coolest? You can make steak, couscous, or even purée out of one vegetable. I also like to eat the leaves. I used purple cauliflower because SPRING! Also the mango "chutney" goes really well with the curried cauliflower. I decided to just roast the fruit since the oven was on anyways. This recipe is from Comfy Belly. Next time I make it, I'll probably make the dal too. I just didn't have red lentils on hand.

We spent Easter at the beach. It's off season which means all the dogs are allowed on the boardwalk and beach. Though the water was freezing, Rex still went for a swim. This was probably the happiest I've seen him since summer. Lots of boardwalk fries were definitely consumed. We also found this amazing donut place called the Fractured Prune that makes each batch fresh and allow you to choose your own toppings. Our favorites were blueberry, lemonade, and Rolo! Everyone come visit and we can have all the donuts!!

Cauliflower Rice:
1 head cauliflower
spices- turmeric, cumin, cayenne, cardamom
sea salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Roughly chop cauliflower into large pieces. Drizzle with some olive oil and sprinkle any amount of the spices you want. I did equal parts turmeric, cumin, and cardamom. Then just a bit of cayenne and sea salt.

Roast for 15 minutes, let cool a bit. Then put cauliflower a bit at a time into a food processor or vitamix on setting 3. The cauliflower will turn into rice like granules! Since I included the leaves, some parts were stringy but I didn't mind. Place the rice into a large bowl to serve. I warmed mine in the oven right before serving.
Another good addition would be some sautéed onion which I forgot.

Roasted Mango:
2 mangoes, peeled and cubed
1 red pepper, diced

Line another baking pan with parchment paper and add the prepared fruits. Drizzle with olive oil, some salt, and a drizzle of honey. Roast for 25 minutes until pepper is cooked through. Let cool and place in a separate bowl from rice.

Roasted Kale and Brussels Sprouts:

I just used TJ's shredded kale and greens mix, drizzled olive oil, and roasted for 15 minutes at 350 degrees until crispy.

Yogurt Dressing (original recipe did a cucumber mint raita)
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 tsp dried dill

Mix and let sit for as long as you can before serving.

Combine rice and mango into individual serving bowls to serve and top with the yogurt drizzle.

Chicken Mango Fajitas

In the past month or so, a lot has happened.  I quit my job of 4+ years, moved away from Pittsburgh (my home of 8 years), and moved with my boyfriend to Takoma Park, MD.  Being in a new area, looking for a job, and living with a significant other for the first time have offered a lot of challenges along with lots of excitement.  Overwhelmingly cliche, I know.  I pretty much agreed to move to Takoma Park, a cute tree-filled community bordering DC, before ever visiting it.  So much of enjoying an area is knowing how to do it right and being a part of the community there.  Luckily, a former coworker of mine was able to give me the info of his sister-in-law and Vince (the boyfriend) has coworkers here that have been giving us some insights.  We've been trying to budget well (emphasis on the trying..) so that of course means smart grocery shopping, packing lunches, and making dinners.  As we meal planned for the week, Vince suggested quesadillas, which turned into this meal.  I had a moment of "should I buy the packaged fajita seasonings?" which was immediately followed with "of course not, I have a recipe!" With advice from one of our TP mentors, we checked out a grocery store called Shoppers, which was priced very well.  I'm not sure if we went on a bad day or what, but our cheap bell peppers needed to be used quickly.  What better way to use them but one of my fav recipes - Chicken Mango Fajitas.

During the few weeks we've been living together I've already made this recipe twice, with the second time being our first time having a friend over for dinner at our new place!  It was also a go to for dinner's in Pittsburgh.  Finally, I'm sharing the recipe.

Chicken Mango Fajitas

From Healthy Chic Eats

Marinade:
1 Tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2/3 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (about 2 oranges)
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 jalapeno, chopped (use the other half as garnish)
1 teaspoon lime juice

Mango Curry Chicken Salad

I love egg salad, potato salad and chicken salad. (And dips and pretty much anything you can spread on bread or crackers.) This mango curry chicken salad is a simpler version of the one Linda made a while ago for her Downton Abbey Extravaganza, the “coronation” chicken salad. 

That version was very tasty and we will be making it again someday, but today I just wanted to use fresh mango rather than make it into a chutney. I used a pretty green mango, which I like because I ate millions of them in Costa Rica, but Linda thinks most people would prefer this chicken salad with a riper mango. 

Mango Curry Chicken Salad

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, boiled and shredded

1 cup light mayo

1 heaping tsp (or more) curry powder

1/2 tsp cumin

1 tsp mustard

1 tsp to 1 tbsp honey (esp. if the mango is on the green side)

a few drops to 1 tsp Sriracha (optional, for spiciness)

1/4 cup green onions, sliced

1/4 cup thai basil

1/3 cup golden (or regular) raisins, soaked to restore moisture, drained & patted dry

1 mango, roughly diced

salt & pepper to taste