Miraculously Stuffed Eggplant

I’ve been living life on the fly a lot recently. For the past decade (or longer) I’ve planned every moment down to the second. Planning certainly has a lot of perks, but it makes our brain think in binary, rigid ways sometimes. In an effort to break out of this more, I’ve been actively trying to seek out spontaneity and go with the flow. I found eggplants on sale the other day, so I bought a few and just decided I would let an idea come–and if not, just chop and freeze them! I think living life without a guide, without a plan, without a recipe can be a great asset when you find yourself getting bogged down in and stressed by the arbitrary details.

Ingredients:

-1 eggplant

-1 bag prepared @miraclenoodle rice

-1 bunch fresh parsley, finely chopped

-2 tsp olive oil

-1 cup cherry tomatoes

-1 tsp minced garlic

Directions:

1. Combine tomatoes, parsley, olive oil, & garlic in a skillet and let simmer on medium-low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

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2. Cut eggplant in half length wise and roast at 350 for 10 minutes.

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3. Scrape out inside of eggplant and mix the pieces of eggplant “insides” into your skillet of veggies. .

4. Add prepared @miraclenoodle rice to veggie mix and continue stirring.

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5. Stuff both halves of the eggplant with veggie/rice mixture.

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6. Return stuffed eggplants to oven and roast for 7-10 minutes at 375.

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7. Enjoy! Feel free to freeze or use the leftover veggie rice in another dish or as a side dish.

This month use code HANNAHFEB18 for a discount when you order from miracle noodle 🍜

Brownie Review (+ GIVEAWAY 01/03)

I received some products from Silver Fern Brand to try out and I am so pleasantly surprised! I am always suspicious of health conscious baked good mixes…they are either too dry, have a funky flavor, or include questionable ingredients.

NOT these, my friends! I went with the German Chocolate Brownie Mix in celebration of New Year’s Eve. The mix looked dry at first, but as soon as I tasted the batter…lovestruck. It is full of coconut pieces, pecans, and chocolate.

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Oftentimes gluten free treats taste a little off or different, but you could not tell at all–the texture was exactly like a regular brownie. The batter is definitely a bit thicker, but it only took twelve minutes to bake!

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The finished product:

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Now I don’t often rely on boxed mixes, but with only forty minutes until my New Year’s Eve guests arrived, this came in handy 😉 I would highly recommend this brownie mix, and I’m happy to share that you have your own chance to win a box to try for yourself! In addition to the baking mix or your choosing, you will also win a meal replacement shake mix. Click the Instagram link below for details!

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Click here to enter

Good luck! Do you rely on baking mixes? Or, do you prefer to go the homemade route?

Starting Out

At the end of a long week, full of midterms, meetings, and the strange events that cluster-bomb life on occasion, I crave moments of quiet time with myself.

I often consider myself an extroverted introvert; I love meeting new people, having conversations, and spending time with those I love and value, but I recharge in the moments of calm. I am not a huge TV fan so cooking, writing, or reading have always been some of my favorite recharging rituals.

These recharging rituals enable my mind to run free. It usually travels to new, often outlandish, ideas. I am not creative in the typical way, but everyone expresses different forms of creativity within the realm of their passions. I don’t paint beautiful landscapes, immerse myself in math equations, or sing, but my creativity comes through my rebellious desire to always change recipes, write down my thoughts, and think about books and countless alternate endings.

This blog is a chance for me to share my creativity in the kitchen; there is always room for mistakes, strange flavors, and bizarre textures. You can always try again and the worst that can happen is one bad batch. I hope you enjoy trying some of my creations (I promise I won’t post the mistakes 😉 ) and letting yourself try something new and different!IMG955935_01