Got a new favorite lunchies! It’s quick, easy, nutritious and pretty dang tasty, if I do say so myself.
I can’t take all the credit, though. I liberated a recipe that I saw on eatyourselfskinny.com, which I originally wanted to try because it had kale in it, and I’m still trying to like kale….but I ended up tweaking it, LOL! My version doesn’t have kale in it.
Yeah, the whole me trying to love kale thing? It’s not going well, but that leads me to one of the joys of cooking –substitutions. 🙂
This serves one person, by the way, and cooks up in a flash, so you’ll want to start by gathering your ingredients and having them prepped and ready.
Here’s what you’ll need…
- 1 tbsp olive oil (or you can use an olive oil spray, but I like to add a little healthy fat so that the meal sustains me for longer than 10 minutes)
- 2-3 minced cloves
- 4 cups of fresh spinach
- 1 cup of cooked brown rice (or a 1/2 cup, depending on how hungry you are; I use Trader Joe’s Organic Brown Rice, which is in the frozen section)
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
- 1 tbsp grated Parmesan
- 1 egg
Start by warming the tablespoon of olive oil in a non-stick skillet, then add your garlic. Cook until the garlic turns fragrantly golden… On my electric stove, this takes about three minutes. Watch it carefully, though, because you don’t want to burn the garlic (it’ll get bitter).
In a separate pot, cook the brown rice.
Next, toss in the cooked brown rice, and stir to mix it in with the olive oil and garlic.
Then mix in the spinach, and cook until it’s about halfway wilted.
Next, mix in the grated Parmesan and breadcrumbs, and cook until the cheese gets melty and the spinach fully wilts.
Be careful not to overcook the spinach, because that’s no fun, and place in your serving bowl.
You could can have it right like that, but I like to top it off with an egg over easy that’s been lightly dusted with a pinch of salt. Not too much salt because Parmesan is already pretty salty.
If the egg doesn’t sound like your thing, you could substitute it with tofu, tempeh, chicken, fish, beef, whatever you’re in the mood for.
Last, but certainly not least, dig in! 🙂 It’s nom time.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
P.S. Have you happened upon any healthy new recipes lately? Inquiring/hungry minds want to know.
Sounds delish! I love any excuse to put a runny egg on top of my food – yum!
If you want to eat more kale but haven’t managed to develop a taste for it, do what I do – hide it in a green smoothie. With the right mix of ingredients you can put two good-sized leaves (or 3, if you use lacinato) in and not even know they’re in there. Then you get to feel virtuous while eating something tasty!
Hi Allison,
Yup, I do that too. The only way I can take it is if it’s completely obliterated, LOL!
Poached chicken with green salad and cherry tomatoes. Just drizzle with balsamic vinaigrette.
Yum!
That looks good and lots of protein! I want to start making healthy salads for the week with quinoa, just need some recipes!
You could totally do this with quinoa too. Just sub it for the rice. 🙂
If you find any healthy salad recipes please share them! I’m always looking for new ones.
That looks delish! You can add me to the ‘not-a-kale-fan’ club. I’ve tried it, I don’t like it. I’d much rather have spinach, or Savoy cabbage, or chard (we call chard silverbeet here).
I use the loose baby spinach leave the most because you just need to wash them & they’re good to go. Nice and easy!
What is it about kale?! For me, I think, it’s the texture. It’s SO chewy!
That looks delicious and healthy too, which, is a rare combo 😀
Thanks for sharing the recipe with us 🙂
You’re welcome. I hope you give it a try!
I make something similar to this except I add green onions into the rice and a little red wine vinegar or rice wine vinegar to the rice as well. Then top the fried egg with avocado and siracha. Love eating this as a quick meal and after the gym sometimes with a side of fruit.
Ooh, I’m going to add avocado slices! Thanks for the idea, Metta!
Kale. It’s so hard to like, isn’t it? Spinach is much better. 🙂 I was thinking of, for Lent, eating a fruit or veggie at every meal. That would have been very challenging for me because I’m terrible about it. Instead I gave up red wine (all alcohol, but I really only drink red wine). It feels like a tragic decision. HAHA!
Wow, your fiber would’ve been off the charts amazing if you committed to the fruit/veg thing!
Man, I love me some kale. I was so happy when it became trendy, now I can get it everywhere! But I understand some people’s difficulty with it. It is a cousin of cabbage, after all. Have you tried collard greens? Also super yummy and healthy, but maybe better for your tastebuds? My favorite quick lunch is similar: I keep chopped veggies and cooked quinoa in the fridge at all times, so I just saute some protein, add a handful of veggies, then add 1/4 cup coconut milk and a spoonful of curry paste! Once it’s cooked to my liking I add little bit of quinoa, and it’s done! I love meals like this, though. Thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome! I hope you like it.
Oh, and I’ve had collard greens and enjoy them very much. I also like cabbage. I think with kale my whole issue is with the texture. It’s just too chewy! It’s like eating vegetable gum. LOL!
Sound really good… I will try soon!!! Tks for this recipe!