Birthdays, Burgers & Beans

Do you know what today is??

It's Groundhog's Day.

But even better than that it's my Dad AND my Uncle Joe's Birthday!!!

That's right, born exactly 4 years apart, today is their birthday. 

P. A. R. T. Y.

And where did my dad want to eat on his birthday?  The Rathskeller in downtown Indy. 

Have you heard there's a little football game going on there this weekend?  Yeah, so I think his official birthday meal will be delayed until next week.  In the mean time I guess we'll just have to eat cake!

But all that will be reported on tomorrow.  Today I'm sharing yesterday's meals. :)

Breakfast:  Kai had a bowl of Multi Grain Cheerio's topped with flax seed, chia seeds and banana, a hard boiled egg and an orange.  I had some of the orange and banana and then rounded things out with the Blood Orange Chobani.  This was the one I was most hesitant about.  The idea of oranges and yogurt mixed together seems a little sketchy but it was actually very good.  My favorite is probably still the Passion Fruit though. :)

Before picking Kai up from school and heading out to the library to pick up some books (Room by Emma Donoghue & The Alloy of Law, which is a sequel to the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Snaderson) I enjoyed a pear.  On our way to the library Kai informed me she was "STARVING" so I dug an apple out of my purse (I'm a mom, of course there's an apple in my purse).  She finished everything but the core.  I guess she really was hungry. 

Lunch was inspired by Snack Girl's Black Bean & Oat Burger.  I didn't have the recipe in front of me and I completely forgot about adding the oats. lol!

Into the bowl went pre-cooked Black Beans, the last of the Hummus and some Flax Seed.

Then, with Kai's help, we mashed it all together.

I added a LITTLE bit of water to get it stickier.

Then I formed patties and cooked them in some Hot Olive Oil.

Flipped and finished cooking.

While they were cooking I foolishly asked Kai if she wanted cheese on hers.  The second I said cheese she exclaimed that she wanted the cheese now.  I saw no point in arguing it, so she ate the cheese before the burgers were ready. :)

The burgers were topped with lettuce, spinach, mushrooms, sweet pepper and mustard.

I tried to get fancy with a lettuce wrap instead of a bun but it turns out that creating a lettuce wrap is harder than it looks.  It all turned out ok since we weren't in public. :)

I also had sprouts on mine.

For my side I added some of the left over beets.  I liked the beets yesterday.  I LOVED them today.  It turns out that this is a dish that's best when cold.  Who knew?!?

The results of the burgers...They were really crumbly.  They tasted great but may have needed more water or maybe an egg to help hold them together better.

Dinner was going to be BBQ Lentils but it turns out I'm just about out of them.  :(


The new plan became a Bean Dished based on Baked Beans.  Dare I say it was fate?  Because the new bean dish totally topped the BBQ Lentils I had planned.  :)


Into a pan went 1 chopped onion.  Once it was sauteed for a while I added 1 can of diced tomatoes, drained & rinsed, and a large handful of chopped spinach.  I let that cook for a minute or so - until the spinach was wilted.

Then I added pre-cooked white beans (Navy).

And for the sauce I stirred in a drizzle of Maple Syrup, a drizzle of Molasses, a splash of Apple Cider Vinegar and a large glob of Dijon Mustard.

Then I added the lid and let it simmer for about 20 minutes.

Ta-da! All done and ready to get in my belly!

Our final dinner shots...

The Hubs had store bought BBQ on buns with American Cheese ,
with a side of Cool Ranch Doritos

My beans with the last of the beets and some orange

Kai had a bit of BBQ, a bit of the beans, orange & a few chips
and a BIG bowl of no-sugar-added apple sauce topped with cinnamon.

So to finish things up...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!!  and  HAPPY BIRTHDAY UNCLE JOE!!