Tips & Tricks

A common question I get "what is the quickest & easiest way to get the meals made?"
Keep your pantry full of the things that you can grab and make something, so your don't have to run to the store.
I always have a fresh lemon and lime on hand. If I don't use it before the weeks end I will freeze the juice in small tupperware type containers. One lemon = approx. 1/4 cup juice. Next I freeze the zest and use the rind to clean out my garbage disposal. I also have canned and dried beans on hand.  Garbanzo beans for hummus, roasted red peppers in a jar (from the Dollar Store), canned tomatoes, fresh herbs like basil, rosemary & thyme. If I don't use all of them, fresh herbs are one of the simplest things to preserve in the freezer. I have found 2 different ways to preserve them.  I chop them up and put them in an ice cube tray:
1. with a small amount of water. After they are frozen I place them in a freezer bag, now I have 2 tbs.  herbs cubes to add to any recipe.
2. in Olive Oil! I had read a post this summer in The Gardeners Eden.

Steps for Freezing Herbs in Oil

1. Choose firm, fresh herbs, ideally from the market or your own garden.
2. If you wish, you can chop them fine. Or leave them in larger sprigs and leaves. Here I froze a combination of finely-chopped and whole herbs such as rosemary, fennel stalk, sage, and oregano.
3. Pack the wells of ice cube trays about 2/3 full of herbs.
4. You can mix up the herbs, too; think about freezing a bouquet of sage, thyme, and rosemary to add to winter roast chickens and potatoes!
5. Pour extra-virgin olive oil or melted, unsalted butter over the herbs.
6. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and freeze overnight.
7. Remove the frozen cubes and store in freezer containers or small bags.
8. Don't forget to label each container or bag with the type of herb (and oil) inside!

I use a lot of beans in our diet.  This is one of our regular recipes:

Refried Beans Without The Refry

Ingredients:

1 onion, peeled and halved 3 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed 1/2-1 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped 2 tablespoons minced garlic

5 teaspoons salt 1 3/4 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin, optional 9 cups water = I like to use chicken broth

Directions:

1.	Place the onion, rinsed beans, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin into a slow cooker. Pour in the water and stir to combine. Cook on High for 8 hours, adding more water as needed. Note: if more than 1 cup of water has evaporated during cooking, then the temperature is too high.
2.	Once the beans have cooked, strain them, and reserve the liquid. Mash the beans with a potato masher, adding the reserved water as needed to attain desired consistency.

  *** You can also eat them without mashing or draining. 

 

Southwest Bean Soup

 A couple of weeks ago, I realized that I didn't have anything made for dinner and I had to work 12 hours.  I looked in the freezer and found a 1 pound package of ground turkey. In the cupboard I took out a can of black beans, kidney beans and great northern beans.

I chopped up 4 stalks of celery and a sweet onion. I browned the ground turkey in a stock pot, added 1 tsp. each, salt and black pepper, the celery and onion. Continued to cook it until the ground turkey was no longer pink. I opened and drained & rinsed the beans, added them to the browned turkey along with a can of diced tomatoes with chilies and a 32 oz. box of chicken broth. I added added 2 cubes of frozen basil.

Next I just started seasoning it. I used Tony's Creole Seasoning and Wildtree Cajun Seasoning. I started with a tablespoon and work on it from there.

I took the soup to work and that's how I had to figure out what a recipe should be. Several people wanted to make..........so, here it is.

Southwest Bean Soup

I have done a variation of this recipe. Brown the ground turkey, onions, celery, sweet peppers together until the ground turkey is no longer pink. Add a can of sauerkraut, a can of black beans (drained & rinsed) and a can of diced tomatoes with chilies. Season and simmer for 20 min. This recipe reminds me of cabbage roll-ups. 

Enjoy! Let me know what you think :)

Here are a few recipes that we have had lately. This week was a detox though, so it was veggie soup and roasted carrots and squash and salads. Can't wait for Friday :) I miss the cooking more then the eating. 

Enjoy!

Romano Bean Salad

Allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

1 pound fresh romano or green beans, trimmed

2 cloves garlic, sliced

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 fresh mint leaves, torn

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

2 mint leaves, for garnish

Directions

1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add beans and cook uncovered until nearly tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well, and set aside in a large bowl.
2. Smash garlic, olive oil, mint, and salt using mortar and pestle.
3. Pour vinegar and half of olive oil mixture over beans and toss well.
4. Transfer beans to a resealable freezer bag. Pour remaining olive oil mixture into bag, squeeze out all air, seal and refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours.
5. Remove beans from refrigerator, top with fresh mint and serve

** You can serve the beans right away also. If you refrigerate it gives the beans more of a marinated/pickled flavor.

Cinnamon Sugar Pillow Cookies
 

Yes!!! A cookie that is healthy. These are heaven.

(makes 11-13 stuffed cookies)

• 3/4 cup (not packed) whole-wheat pastry flour (or spelt flour, or all-purpose. Readers say you can use a gf all-purpose mix if you add extra liquid so it’s not crumbly.)
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp plus 1/8 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 cup xylitol or sugar
• 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 tsp milk of choice
• 3 tbsp coconut or vegetable oil
• a bowl of equal parts cinnamon and xylitol or sugar for rolling (Omit if desired.)
• filling ingredients listed below

For the filling (which you can omit completely if you want regular, non-stuffed cookies): combine 2 tsp powdered sugar or Sugar-Free Powdered Sugar with 2 tablespoons cream cheese-style spread (I used Tofutti non-hydrogenated, but I’m sure other full-fat brands such as Follow Your Heart or Trader Joes would be fine.) Beat well, then set aside.
In a mixing bowl, combine first five ingredients and stir very well. In a separate bowl, combine all liquid ingredients and stir. Pour wet into dry and stir to form a cookie dough. Smush into a giant ball with your hands (or, as an easier trick: transfer dough to a plastic bag and smush into a ball once the dough is inside the bag).
Now roll into 22-26 mini cookie dough balls, then flatten each and divide the filling among only half of the flat discs. Place the other discs on top, cinch the sides, then roll into balls. Roll the balls in the bowl of cinnamon-sugar, place on a baking tray, and chill for at least 30 minutes. (If you desire crispy cookies, you can skip this chilling step.)
Preheat oven to 325, and cook 11 minutes- they’ll still look a little underdone, but that’s okay. Important: allow cookies to cool at least 10 minutes before trying to remove from tray. For step-by-step photos, substitution notes, and troubleshooting, see the nutrition link below:

Crazy-Good Ranch Dressing

From chocolatecoveredKatie.com

• 12 oz (1 package) silken-firm or lite silken-firm tofu (such as Mori-Nu)
• 3/4 tsp each garlic powder and onion powder
• 1 tsp dry dill
• 1/3 cup water, or more or less depending on desired thickness (I use 100g)
• scant 2 tbsp apple-cider vinegar
• 1 and 1/2 vegetable broth cubes (I use Rapunzel brand. You can use more or less, depending on desired saltiness.)
• 2 tbsp low-fat Veganaise (or regular) (If you leave this out, you’ll still have a nice dressing, but it won’t be nearly as yummy!)

Combine all ingredients, and blend until creamy. (I use a Magic Bullet.)

Cauliflower Bites with Cheddar Mustard Dipping Sauce

From Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice

I am not a fan of mustard, but this was good. I love using cauliflower for so many substitutes.

Ingredients

non-stick cooking spray

5 cups fresh cauliflower florets with an inch of stalk

1/2 cup panko crumbs

1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs

2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, grated

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

sea salt and fresh black pepper

4 egg whites

2 tablespoons Saucy Mama Dijon mustard

3 tablespoons water

5 cups fresh cauliflower florets

Sauce:

1/2 cup skim milk

3 tablespoons Saucy Mama Smoky Garlic mustard or Chipotle mustard

1 teaspoon whole wheat flour

4 ounces 50% reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

1 teaspoon fresh parsley, chopped

From Shape

 

Red Pepper Bisque

Crunchy, sweet bell peppers and crisp yellow onions are liquefied into a brilliantly colored puree. Love this soup. Great with a nice green salad.

Ingredients:
1 c. yellow onions
2 tbsp. garlic, chopped
24 oz. vegetable stock
3 c. red bell peppers
1/4 c. basil, chopped
2 tbsp. fresh thyme
1 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper

Directions:
In a pot, saute sliced onions and chopped garlic until soft. Add vegetable stock and roasted bell peppers. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Season soup with salt and pepper. Fill a blender half full, and blend until smooth. Repeat blending until all soup is blended. Reheat soup and serve hot.
You can garnish with sprigs of thyme and good olive oil.
Makes 6 servings.


 

TLS Challenge Almost Over

Well, the 2nd TLS Challenge is just about over. Bruce is down over 150lbs total. He is working out with his trainer about 5 days a week and I still have not found anything good about sweating, so I pass. Maybe tomorrow :) I like the cooking part of losing weight. It's funny how this new healthy way of eating has changed our lives. When we have the family over for dinner I used to make pasta or fried foods or something oooey gooey. Now, we all eat good, healthy food. And love it!
My 5 y/o Granddaughter came over yesterday to have a sleep over. The first thing out of her mouth was, "Grandma, I not eating. I only eat healthy food now." For the next 24 hours all you heard was "is this healthy food?" :)

Keep your pantry filled with all the staples and you will always have a recipe available to make.

We love soups. They and can warm you up and are very satisfying. 

Roasted Carrot Soup

Courtesy Food52

This recipe serves 4

·         6 to 8 large carrots (about 1 3/4 pounds)

·         1/4 cup olive oil

·         Salt

·         6 cups vegetable stock (good quality, not too high in sodium)

·         1 piece ginger, an inch long, peeled

·         1 sprig thyme, plus more for garnish

·         1/2 large sweet onion

·         2 large garlic cloves, chopped

·         Freshly ground black pepper

1.      Peel and cut the carrots into 1/2-inch rounds. On a rimmed baking sheet, toss the carrots with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and sprinkle generously with salt. Set an oven rack 6 to 8 inches from the heat source and turn on the broiler. Broil the carrots until they brown and soften, turning them over with a spatula every 5 minutes or so; this should take 15 to 20 minutes.

2.      Meanwhile, bring the stock to a boil, add the ginger and the sprig of thyme and simmer gently for 15 minutes.

3.      Put the onion in a medium stock pot with the remaining olive oil. Brown the onion over medium heat, stirring frequently. Add the garlic, and then add the carrots.

4.      Remove the ginger and thyme from the stock and add the stock to the pot with the onions and carrots. Bring to boil and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes, until the carrots are soft enough to puree.

5.      Use an immersion or a standard blender to puree the mixture until smooth. If the soup seems too thick, add more stock or water and reheat gently. Add salt and pepper to taste. To serve, garnish with chopped fresh thyme.

 **Tip: you can keep ginger in the freezer and you will have it on hand. 

             If you would like this to be a "cream" soup, add 3 oz. of soft tofu.

Butternut Squash Soup

Courtesy Food52

 Ingredients

• 1 (2 to 3 pound) butternut squash, peeled and seeded
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 6 cups chicken stock
• Nutmeg
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Cut squash into 1-inch chunks. In large pot melt butter. Add onion and cook until translucent, about 8 minutes. Add squash and stock. Bring to a simmer and cook until squash is tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove squash chunks with slotted spoon and place in a blender and puree. Return blended squash to pot. Stir and season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Serve.
Serves 6


If you want something crunchy, like a cracker, try these Kale Chips.

Smoky Kale Chips

Courtesy of Bobby Flay

 

Directions

Remove the center ribs and stems from 1 bunch kale; tear the leaves into 3-to-4-inch pieces. Toss with 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon smoked paprika and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Spread on 2 baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees F until browned around the edges and crisp, 12 to 15 minutes.