Written and illustrated by: Niambi White
About the author and illustrator: Niambi (“Nene”) is a high school senior at Theodore Roosevelt High School. With the support of Urban Alliance, an organization that works to train and prepare high school students for college, work and beyond, Niambi started an internship with Grassroots in the fall. It wasn’t until Niambi’s first day, that we learned that she previously received Grassroots programming in middle school (6 years ago!) and our very own Program Manager, Mackenzie (“Mac N Cheese”) was the head coach of her program!
Niambi is a self taught artist and her dream is to be a children’s book illustrator or a tattoo artist one day. You will see her accompanying her writing with her illustrations in the upcoming blogs. The next three blogs will focus on healthy habits and things to do while staying inside during this time of social distancing and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Please read, comment and show your support. You can follow @artgalneeto to see more of Niambi’s work! We hope you enjoy it!
Cooking a healthy meal for yourself might sound boring and exhausting to put your energy into. You might be thinking to yourself “Do I even have all the ingredients to make this meal?” Yes, in fact, you do! Since we’re all at home with our loved ones, it is important that we continue to eat healthy and stay fit during this pandemic. In this post, we’re going to teach you some of the easiest and most delightful recipes that anyone in your family could make and you can find almost all the ingredients in your kitchen. This blog post could maybe even bring out that Top Chef that you’ve been hiding all this time!
ONE. Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato, and Egg Sandwich:
- This delicious sandwich is 100% guaranteed to satisfy your hunger. It is the perfect combination of crispy bacon, perfectly cut lettuce, juicy tomatoes, and a nice well done scrambled or upside-down egg to pull it all together!
- 2 slices of Toasted Bread (white, whole wheat, gluten-free, or whatever bread you have in your pantry.)
- 3 slices of Bacon (regular or turkey bacon)
- 2 leaves of Lettuce
- 2 slices of Tomatoes
- 1 Egg
- Mayo (avocado, pesto, mustard)
Directions:
- In a skillet or pan, fry your 3 pieces of bacon on medium heat. Flip them every 2 minutes until you have your desired bacon crisp.*another option to cook bacon if you are underage is to bake it in the oven at 400 degrees F for 15-20 minutes. You don’t even have to flip the bacon! Just lay the bacon down on the baking sheet, and set a timer, the bacon strips will become crispy on their own by gradually sizzling and bubbling.*
- Once your bacon is done and cooked, place your egg on the pan and begin to fry it however you like. *You can also microwave cook your upside-down egg by first pre-heating up a microwave safe plate for 2 minutes on high, oil or butter your plate, then crack your egg on top of the oiled plate. Pierce the yolk with a knife and cook on high for 45 seconds. Check the egg to see if the white is set, if the white if not fully set continue to cook in 15 second intervals
- Get your toasted bread and spread some mayo or another healthy substitute you would like.
- Remove your cooked egg and place it on your two slices of toast.
- Start to assemble your sandwich by adding your bacon on top of your upside-down egg, add the slices of lettuce, and finish off your sandwich by adding the tomatoes.
And voila! You have your own homemade, quick and easy BLTE Sandwich. This sandwich is super simple for anyone to make and perfect for any time of the day, breakfast, lunch, or dinner!
TWO. Grilled Chicken and Strawberry Cobb Salad
After you make this beautiful super quick and easy recipe, you will never eat another plain salad again! This salad goes great with just about any meal, pairing it with sweet and refreshing strawberries, crispy chicken bites, crunchy red onions, and to top it off with some delicious strawberry vinaigrette dressing.
Here’s what you’ll need for ingredients:
- Bag of salad
- 2 slices of chicken breast grilled/baked and sliced
- 1 cup of strawberries sliced (or any other berry or citrus fruit you have in your kitchen.)
- 1 cup cooked peas
- ½ cup sliced red onions
- 4 oz. crumbled feta cheese
- Strawberry vinaigrette dressing (italian, buttermilk ranch, blue cheese, or any other salad dressing you have in your pantry.)
- ½ cup sliced cucumbers
- 1 sliced avocado
- Salt and Pepper
Directions:
- Place your desired amount of salad in a bowl and start by adding in your crispy grilled chicken, sliced cucumbers, strawberries or any other sliced fruit you have, red onions, feta cheese, and peas.
- To add a bit more flavor, season your salad with some salt and pepper and drizzle on some strawberry vinaigrette or your favorite dressing.
- Toss around your salad and begin serving.
And bon appetit! That’s how you make a super tasty grilled chicken strawberry cobb salad. This mouthwatering dish is perfect for any occasion like relaxing and watching some classic movies with the fam!
THREE. Effortless French Toast Recipe:
This tasty french toast recipe will definitely make your morning breakfast so much sweeter. Nothing is better than enjoying some old-fashioned fluffy french toast covered in delicious maple syrup!
Here’s what you’ll need for the ingredients:
- ⅔ cup of Milk
- 2 eggs
- Slices of bread (gluten-free, white, whole wheat)
- ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon
- Olive oil (coconut oil, vegetable oil, extra-virgin olive oil)
- ¼ teaspoon of Nutmeg
- Maple syrup (honey or molasses)
Directions:
- Crack the two eggs into a bowl and begin beating and stirring them. Then add in the milk, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Once everything is stirred, heat your frying pan up on medium-high heat and oil your pan with some olive oil.
- Get one slice of bread and soak both sides into egg mixture. Cook on both sides for 1:30 seconds until both sides are golden brown.
- Repeat step 3 for all of your slices of bread.
- Once all slices of bread are cooked and ready to serve, spread a little bit of butter of french toast slices and drizzle maple syrup on top.
Well, that’s it! That’s how you make quick and easy french toast. The best thing about this savory recipe is that it works well with any type of bread: Whole wheat, white, sandwich bread, and french or Italian loaf bread. This has to be my number one favorite breakfast dish ever, it’s just so delicious with the perfect blend of flavors that complement each other so well.
FOUR. Easy Four Ingredient Pizza Bagels:
This four ingredient pizza recipe doesn’t get any better than this. This recipe is not only super quick and yummy but is very easy to make and perfect for everyone to eat!
Here’s what you’ll need for the ingredients:
- 2 bagels split
- *You can substitute english muffins or pita bread if you don’t have bagels in your pantry!*
- ¼ cup of pizza sauce (tomato or alfredo)
- ⅓ cup shredded cheese of your choice (healthy cheese options you can choose from: feta, mozzarella, swiss cheese, cheddar, cottage.)
- Optional pizza toppings: pepperoni, mushrooms, black olives, onions, green peppers.)
- *If you want some more healthier pizza toppings you can add some ham, spinach, red peppers, pineapples, or garlic to your pizza bagel!*
Directions:
- Prepare your baking pan with aluminum foil or baking sheet to put bagels on.
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F.
- Spread a layer of pizza sauce of your choice across your bagel halves, sprinkle your shredded cheese and add your desired toppings on top of the sprinkled cheese.
- Place pizza bagels on your pan and bake bagels in the oven for 6 minutes until the cheese and pepperoni have melted and formed a light golden brown color.
- Take out of the oven and let it cool off for 2 ½ minutes. Once cooled, take mini pizza bagels off of the pan and serve.
And there you have it, quick and easy pizza bagels for everyone to enjoy!
FIVE. Mexican Quinoa-Stuffed Peppers
This scrumptious vegetarian stuffed bell pepper recipe is full of mouthwatering flavors. It’s very simple to make and only requires 6 ingredients.
- 6 medium bell peppers (any color)
- Black beans cooked
- 3 cups of cooked quinoa (or cooked rice)
- 2 cups of shredded pepper jack cheese
- 1 cup of salsa of your choice
- Fresh cilantro, extra cheese, and/or diced avocados
Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. And arrange your peppers facing up on a wide baking pan/dish
- In a large bowl, start mixing your cooked black bean crumbles, quinoa, ½ cup shredded cheese, and salsa together. Insert the mixture evenly into the cavities of the 6 bell peppers.
- Sprinkle the tops of the bell peppers with the remaining shredded cheese you have.
- Bake the peppers uncovered for 25-30 minutes, or until the peppers are cooked and the cheese is melted.
- Take bell peppers out of the oven and let it cool for 2-3 minutes. Once cooled, begin serving and add extra toppings if desired.
And that is how you make some flavorsome Mexican Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers! This fulfilling recipe will have you feeling great and your taste buds feeling even better. This dish will certainly have your loved ones calling you the best cook in the family! The stuffed bell pepper shines bright like a diamond with its beautiful bold, bright colors!
I hope you loved all of these fabulous recipe suggestions mentioned in this blog post and even try some of them out during this quarantine!