Stress Relief

As I turned the lights off in my kitchen yesterday night it was hard to imagine that just hours before it had been a crazy mess of food and dirty dishes.

Now all that was left behind were neatly packed containers and the smell of pumpkin and garlic.

Also left behind was any stress I had been feeling earlier in the day.

Yes, I cooked away my stress with quinoa wraps for the next day’s lunch

I made these by cooking 1/4 cup quinoa, then splitting it in half and mixing one with pesto and the other with tomatoes, basil and hummus.  I then cut an Ezekial wrap in half, spread one half with pesto quinoa and the other with hummus pesto then rolled them both up.

Secure with toothpicks

Wanna know what else relieves my stress?  Knowing I don’t have to take up an extra minute of my already hectic Wednesday morning to peel carrots.

Ever wondered what yellow carrots taste like?  Almost exactly like orange carrots.  Bummer, I was hoping for something more exciting!

Eating a yellow carrot in a yellow shirt is quite fun, however.

Next on the menu for stress relief: making the best mashed potatoes ever (compliments of Angela)

Wash and chop potatoes then throw them in a pot of water and cook on low-medium heat till tender.  I think mine took about 45 minutes.

Meanwhile process 2 cans of navy beans (or 1 can if that’s all you have) + 5 cloves of garlic + 1 tsp each of salt and paprika.

Move over mini there’s a new processor in town!  He may be 30 years old young and technically belong to my mom but nevermind that for now.

OH.MY.GOD. Did this really go from this

to this in a matter of seconds?!

I swear I was this close to crying tears of joy.  My mini processor does NOT work like this bad boy.

Once you’ve recovered from processor shock and the potatoes are done mash them with some milk of choice and butter of choice.  The add in the bean mixture and try not to eat the whole bowl.

These will be making an appearance at dinner tomorrow.

And with the completion of my next few meals my stress vanished, leaving me free to enjoy today’s eats without a care in the world.

Of course there were oats

And peaches

And snacks

And althought it’s not Monday and therefore shouldn’t be Bean O’Clock I ate a big bowl anyways!

What’s less stressful than popping open the freezer and thawing dinner?

Nothing, I say!

How do you relieve stress?