No, it’s not a spelling mistake. See, I was trying to be a bit punny with my title there. I’m thinking brake, as in stop, but typing break, as in March Break, because that’s what it is for me (and thousands of other educators) this week.
Depending on your plans/life situation, March Break can mean one of many things to you.
- Absolutely nothing, I still have to work, and why do you keep rubbing it in? (Sorry
![Embarrassed smile]()
) - A wonderful vacation to a southern sunny destination (hmmm…must be nice)
- A somewhat local getaway for a few days (that’s me!) and/or day trips
- Hanging around the house, with more time to relax, watch TV, and cook and eat delicious meals (catching up on housework is allowed, but please, if you are off this week, don’t clean for the entire time!!!)
)I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, I love it when I’m home and can make whatever I want for lunch, without the parameters of whether I have time to heat it up, can it I wolf it down in 20 minutes if I have yard duty staring me in the face. I think it’d be worth working from home just to have a wonderful hot and hearty lunch whenever the heck I felt like it.
But, I suppose that not being able to do so on a daily basis only makes me appreciate it all the more. On one of those rare days recently, I created the absolutely wonderfully fantastic sandwich you see above: an avocado and roasted red pepper grilled cheese! Did you hear the angelic chorus there? Or was that just me?
Avocado was, for years, one of those foods that the hidden diet mentality inside of me made me fear. I knew it was good for me, but because of its relatively high fat/calorie content, I would only eat it on rare occasions. I won’t say that I have fully embraced avocado, and I still think it should be eaten with some moderation, but I’m happy to say it’s making more appearances in my diet (meaning what I am eating, not a specific diet I am on) these days.
Avocado ROCKS as a sandwich spread, let me tell you. I’ve never been a mayo on sandwich girl, but if you are, and you are wanting to incorporate more healthy fats in your diet, might I suggest swapping out your mayo for smashed avocado? You’ll never go back. The buttery richness and avocado flavour to your sandwich to a whole other dimension.
Speaking of things that take sandwiches to a whole other dimension, may I present exhibit A: a roasted mini red bell pepper. All you have to do to get this beauty is to put your oven on broil, and roast the pepper under the broiler, turning once so both sides get nice and black (watch it carefully, as things happen pretty fast under the bright lights of the broiler). After letting it cool slightly, I cut the pepper open on one side and removed the stem and seeds, then put the whole, flattened pepper in my sandwich. If you don’t have mini peppers, don’t worry, just use a piece of a larger bell pepper. You think red peppers are good? Smoky charred roasted red peppers? Yeah, even better. Your sandwich will never be the same.
While all this sandwich goodness was being made, meanwhile, I had a mountain of kale chips baking in the oven with garlic salt, nutritional yeast, olive oil and cumin (best flavour combo EVER). After the pepper was ready, it was time to make the sandwich magic happen.
First things first, bread. I used 2 slices light oatmeal bread and spritzed them with butter spray. For my cheese, I used 1/3 cup light shredded double cheddar. I mashed on about 1/4 avocado, seasoned with salt, pepper and nutritional yeast, then added about 1/2 the cheese. Then came a thin slice of red onion, the pepper, and the rest of the cheese.
In a non-stick pan pre-heated to medium-high heat, cook the sandwich until golden-brown on one side, about 2-3 minutes. Flip and brown the other side. If the bread is browning too quickly, turn the heat down a bit, and cover the pan to help melt the cheese quicker.
Serve it up with a mountain of kale chips and a side of salsa for dipping. Total points plus = 7.
And for a tropical treat, I made some coconut dip to enjoy with grapes, mandarin and mango for dessert. All I did was mix a tablespoon of coconut flour with 11/2 tablespoons light ricotta and enough water to thin it out. The flour really soaks up a lot of water, so it really bumps up the volume of the dip. No sweetener is necessary for this tropical treasure, and the whole plate is just 1 point plus (yes, I did say I quit WW, but my membership hasn’t quite run out, so I’m just putting the points plus value while I’m counting, in case there are any WW-ers out there reading who can use the info).
The umbrella is optional, but highly recommended, especially if you are not part of the lucky group I mentioned above that is heading to a tropical locale. Any little thing to trick you into feeling some small luxury, right? Fun fact: as a kid, I saved any and all drink umbrellas that came my way to use with my Barbies. My mango green tea was the perfect compliment to my fruity fun.
If you are on March Break this week…enjoy! I may or may not send a few updates your way from my little getaway…we shall see. And if you are working this week, you have my permission to read this and be a bit annoyed at me for rubbing it in your face…sorry!
