Greetings! I haven't been here in such a long time. I even read through my old blog posts and I read about some food I haven't made since I posted about it! Here's a little update on us:
Hubby still works nights, I'm still at home cooking and knitting. When I started this blog, we had celebrated our 2 year anniversary. Now we have celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary! We have two awesome mini schnauzers. Unfortunately we had lost one very suddenly easter weekend last year and without his brother with him, Apollo was very sad so we got him a new brother and also call him Rocky. Well, Rocky Jr is his official name cause getting another dog that looked like the one we just lost, it was hard to not look at him and call him Rocky.
As for food, we eat a mix of fruit, veggies and meat fairly evenly. Sodas are a rare occasion and I hate to admit it but we both still eat junk food from time to time. Usually it's potato chips but I hold back from them more than hubby does.
Last I posted, I said I was moving to a new site. I fell off the blogging wagon after a little while and then when I tried to get back on, I couldn't get into the site so that ended. For some reason, I'm getting back into the mood of blogging again. It seems to come and go every other year! Hopefully, when I get back in the swing of things I can stick to it longer. I was really very surprised that people have still been showing up to my blog, usually through stumble upon. I admit, I put my blog posts in the stumble queue to try and help myself get people directed to my site. I am going to try and make it more appealing and share good recipes. Yes there will be some meat recipes! I'm still going to try and focus on healthy veggie dishes, so don't worry there.
I hope to post something new for you all very soon, and I hope I'll get readers that don't mind commenting! It can be disheartening to a blogger to see that people read but don't comment :( even a nice little note of that sounds good or can you use *blank* to substitute for this certain ingredient? It's nice cause then you feel appreciated. That's the only word I could think of to explain what I felt about it.
Anyway, ta ta! I hope to return soon!
Sunday, August 17, 2014
Friday, March 22, 2013
Officially moving
I know, I know - it's been since October since I've written anything here! I've got some news - I've got another blog on Wordpress that is coming together quite nice. I will be posting vegetarian and meat recipes there, and you will see recipes from here on there if you go and visit! My new blog is I Take It To Go, based on the fact that I take lunch to go so I can picnic with my husband at work in the car. I hope to be posting more with the new blog, and hopefully I'll get some comments too! I've already had 2 comments on a posting of Snickerdoodle cookies I did there at Christmas time. Anyway, I'll post a link here and hopefully you'll continue to read my blog and fix good food.
See you there!
Tracey
See you there!
Tracey
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Super simple salad and an Asian inspired dish of my own
I call this salad my tv salad cause it is T.B.S - tomato, broccoli and spinach. I had promised a salad at dinner the other night and had no lettuce in the fridge even after I gone to the grocery that very day (I guess it slipped my mind while I was there). I just tossed some spinach into a bowl, quickly chopped some broccoli, and threw in the last of my cherry tomatoes. I coated the salad with ranch and grated Parmesan cheese and it was a huge hit with my husband.
Yesterday I wanted to have some Asian cuisine without having to get take out. Here's my outcome!
2 Tbsp butter
1/2 onion, dicd
1 bell pepper, diced
1/2 c sugar snap peas
1/2 c thin sliced cabbage (like for a cabbage salad)
1/2 c bean sprouts
1/2 c chopped broccoli
1 tsp rice wine vinegar
2 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp ground ginger
2 or 3 dashes of sesame seed oil
Melt your butter and start cooking your veggies on medium heat. Once the onions and peppers are soft, add the ginger and the other liquids and mix thoroughly. After all the flavor has been mixed in, dish up or serve mixed into noodles or on top of noodles. Carrot and baby corn would also be good in the dish.
Enjoy everyone! Don't forget to send some feed back!
Yesterday I wanted to have some Asian cuisine without having to get take out. Here's my outcome!
2 Tbsp butter
1/2 onion, dicd
1 bell pepper, diced
1/2 c sugar snap peas
1/2 c thin sliced cabbage (like for a cabbage salad)
1/2 c bean sprouts
1/2 c chopped broccoli
1 tsp rice wine vinegar
2 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp ground ginger
2 or 3 dashes of sesame seed oil
Melt your butter and start cooking your veggies on medium heat. Once the onions and peppers are soft, add the ginger and the other liquids and mix thoroughly. After all the flavor has been mixed in, dish up or serve mixed into noodles or on top of noodles. Carrot and baby corn would also be good in the dish.
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Spinach Alfredo and a creamy warm spinach dip
Fall is almost in full swing here, and the comfort of creamy food is big. Last night our creamy dish was a spinach alfredo and I added some black bean "meatless" balls and it was a big hit!
Mix and bake your meatballs while you boil your pasta in a pot. In a large sauce pan, melt 4 Tbsp of butter. Chop half an onion and add to the pan. Once the onions are starting to become translucent, add 2 cups of fresh spinach. Stir until all the spinach has wilted and then add a half cup of heavy cream and a half cup of milk. When the mixture is scalding hot, add parmaesan cheese and a hand full of shredded mozzarella and mix constantly. Turn your heat down some, the sauce will start to thicken as the cheese combines with the cream. Add pepper and oregano to your liking. Turn your heat source off, drain your finished pasta and add to the sauce. Add your meatballs when they have finished baking, mix to coat. Dish up and enjoy! I'm sure this would be fantastic with some bell pepper and mushrooms in it too.
Chips and dip is a football watching must for some people and they won't believe that you didn't get this from a jar! I got this recipe from my favorite blog - Noble Pig - but I changed it up some mainly cause I didn't really want anchovies in the dip.
Adapted from Gourmet and then adapted from Noble Pig
1/2 onion, chopped
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
10 oz thawed frozen chopped spinach, drained and squeezed dry
8 oz cream cheese, cut int cubes
3/4 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
Cook onions in butter in a heavy medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring, until softened, about three minutes. Add spinach and cook, stirring, until heated through.
Add cream cheese and cook, stirring, until melted and warm, then stir in sour cream, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Serve warm with crackers, tortilla chips or pita chips and enjoy the game!
Mix and bake your meatballs while you boil your pasta in a pot. In a large sauce pan, melt 4 Tbsp of butter. Chop half an onion and add to the pan. Once the onions are starting to become translucent, add 2 cups of fresh spinach. Stir until all the spinach has wilted and then add a half cup of heavy cream and a half cup of milk. When the mixture is scalding hot, add parmaesan cheese and a hand full of shredded mozzarella and mix constantly. Turn your heat down some, the sauce will start to thicken as the cheese combines with the cream. Add pepper and oregano to your liking. Turn your heat source off, drain your finished pasta and add to the sauce. Add your meatballs when they have finished baking, mix to coat. Dish up and enjoy! I'm sure this would be fantastic with some bell pepper and mushrooms in it too.
Adapted from Gourmet and then adapted from Noble Pig
1/2 onion, chopped
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
10 oz thawed frozen chopped spinach, drained and squeezed dry
8 oz cream cheese, cut int cubes
3/4 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
Cook onions in butter in a heavy medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring, until softened, about three minutes. Add spinach and cook, stirring, until heated through.
Add cream cheese and cook, stirring, until melted and warm, then stir in sour cream, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Serve warm with crackers, tortilla chips or pita chips and enjoy the game!
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Pumpkin Juice and Cheese Shell Stuffed Shells
People everywhere are getting into the swing of autumn. Pumpkin spice lattes from Starbucks are back, Halloween costumes are out for buying in stores, the state fair is in full swing here and fall and winter weather clothes are coming out from storage boxes. The pumpkin is such a celebrated food in the fall, I thought I would share my favorite pumpkin recipe and it's actually a drink. This pumpkin juice is from a recipe that was on MuggleNet and I looked at the recipe just the other day and saw that it was changed from how I originally made it so here it is how I remember it.
Half a can of pumpkin puree
1/2 c pineapple juice
1 1/2 c apple juice
1 tbsp honey
water to thin *optional
Add contents to blender, blend till smooth. Taste, add more honey if you want it sweeter or a pinch of cinnamon to spice it a little. If you want to make a treat of it, add a couple scoops of vanilla ice cream.
I'm not going to make any promises on this but when I was younger and I drank this I lost weight with it. I am going to make a pitcher of this and try and drink two glasses of it a day all through October. I hope to be able to lose some weight with it again.
Cheese Shell Stuffed Shells
I was scanning the main page of one of my favorite blogs and I found this recipe and I'm going to make it later today. Any pasta recipe from The Noble Pig has always been a winner in my book which is why I'm so excited to try this recipe!
From Better Homes and Gardens
24 dried jumbo shell macaroni
8 oz. dried tiny shell macaroni (2 cups)
2 cups Gruyere cheese, shredded (8 oz.)
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese (8 oz)
3/4 cup half-and-half
1/8 teaspoon white pepper or pepper
1 24 oz. jar vodka sauce (Emeril is my favorite brand)
4 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded (1 cup)
Fresh basil leaves for garnish
Preheat oven to 350o F. Cook jumbo shells according to package directions. Using a large slotted spoon, transfer shells to a colander. Rinse with cold water; drain well and set aside. In same pan cook tiny shells according to package directions. Drain; set aside.
Meanwhile, in a large saucepan combine Gruyere cheese, cheddar cheese, half-and-half and pepper. Heat over medium-low heat until cheese is melted and smooth, stirring frequently. Stir in tiny shells.
Spread 1/2 cup of the pasta sauce in the bottom of a 3-quart rectangular baking dish. Spoon cheese-shell mixture into drained jumbo shells; place stuffed shells in prepared baking dish. Top with remaining pasta sauce.
Bake, covered, for 30 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake, uncovered, about 15 minutes more or until heated through. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Top with fresh basil and serve.
Hope everyone has a good weekend!
Half a can of pumpkin puree
1/2 c pineapple juice
1 1/2 c apple juice
1 tbsp honey
water to thin *optional
Add contents to blender, blend till smooth. Taste, add more honey if you want it sweeter or a pinch of cinnamon to spice it a little. If you want to make a treat of it, add a couple scoops of vanilla ice cream.
I'm not going to make any promises on this but when I was younger and I drank this I lost weight with it. I am going to make a pitcher of this and try and drink two glasses of it a day all through October. I hope to be able to lose some weight with it again.
Cheese Shell Stuffed Shells
I was scanning the main page of one of my favorite blogs and I found this recipe and I'm going to make it later today. Any pasta recipe from The Noble Pig has always been a winner in my book which is why I'm so excited to try this recipe!
From Better Homes and Gardens
24 dried jumbo shell macaroni
8 oz. dried tiny shell macaroni (2 cups)
2 cups Gruyere cheese, shredded (8 oz.)
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese (8 oz)
3/4 cup half-and-half
1/8 teaspoon white pepper or pepper
1 24 oz. jar vodka sauce (Emeril is my favorite brand)
4 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded (1 cup)
Fresh basil leaves for garnish
Preheat oven to 350o F. Cook jumbo shells according to package directions. Using a large slotted spoon, transfer shells to a colander. Rinse with cold water; drain well and set aside. In same pan cook tiny shells according to package directions. Drain; set aside.
Meanwhile, in a large saucepan combine Gruyere cheese, cheddar cheese, half-and-half and pepper. Heat over medium-low heat until cheese is melted and smooth, stirring frequently. Stir in tiny shells.
Spread 1/2 cup of the pasta sauce in the bottom of a 3-quart rectangular baking dish. Spoon cheese-shell mixture into drained jumbo shells; place stuffed shells in prepared baking dish. Top with remaining pasta sauce.
Bake, covered, for 30 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Bake, uncovered, about 15 minutes more or until heated through. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Top with fresh basil and serve.
Hope everyone has a good weekend!
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Squash Casserole and Tofu Nachos
Ok, it's been pretty busy here, traveling on the weekends and such. I'm back and here are the recipes that I promised in the last post!
Squash casserole is a recipe I got from a lady that is in the local quilters club. I had attended a club meeting last month and the lady passed out papers to everyone with this recipe. The next week I tried the recipe cause i was wanting to try something new and I have never been a big squash person. I probably should have cooked the squash softer the first time. The squash is chunky in it, if you want to you can try and get smaller pieces in it or just smash it. Here it is!
2 lbs yellow squash
1 onion, chopped
1/2 lb velveeta cheese, cubed
3 grated carrots
1 c sour cream
1 can of chicken soup*
1 stick butter, melted
1 package herb stuffing mix**
Bake your squash however you prefer to, I cut mine in half,oil the inside with olive oil and then bake at 400 for 30-40 minutes. While it is baking, grease your baking dish. Melt your butter and pour over the stuffing mix and them mix to coat. Set aside 2/3 of the stuffing as it will go on top. Put your carrots, onion, cheese, sour cream, and soup in the dish with the stuffing. After the squash is cooked, let it cool a little before you start to handle the extraction of the flesh- don't need any burns! Scoop the squash out and then mix everything together and spread evenly in the dish. Top with the remaining stuffing. Bake in the oven at 350F until bubbly and browned.
*you can substitute with cream of mushroom soup
**you can substitute with cornbread stuffing
My husband really enjoyed it, we ate half of it as our dinner that night!
Tofu Nachos
Since we have been trying to eat less meat, tofu has become somewhat of a regular in the fridge. My husband wants nachos frequently and not tortilla chips with cheese and salsa on them - he wants it with meat or rather meat substitute. So my search began on how to make tofu nachos! I don't follow a recipe to the t for these nachos, I just go with whatever feels good and whatever I have. I use firm tofu, drain the water from the container and also squeeze the water out of it otherwise it won't turn out as good. Crumble the tofu into a pan or a skillet with some olive oil, start to cook over medium low heat, stir occasionally while you chop some onion and bell pepper. Add to the pot, make sure the tofu doesn't burn/ stick to the pan. If you have cilantro, chop and add to the pan. If you are cooking in a skillet, leave out chopped tomatoes and salsa for now. Add your spices now, some chili powder and cumin and cayenne pepper to your liking. I add a little paprika for a little smokiness but my husband doesn't notice any flavors like that, he just knows it tastes good. Keep mixing everything in. Add a couple tablespoons of water as it will help the tofu absorb the flavors. Once you have everything mixed in and cooked up, top your chips with the "meat" and whichever toppings you want. I will used shredded cheese and it melts on top some. It's also great with sour cream and guacamole on top. Give me some feed back if you want the recipe!
Squash casserole is a recipe I got from a lady that is in the local quilters club. I had attended a club meeting last month and the lady passed out papers to everyone with this recipe. The next week I tried the recipe cause i was wanting to try something new and I have never been a big squash person. I probably should have cooked the squash softer the first time. The squash is chunky in it, if you want to you can try and get smaller pieces in it or just smash it. Here it is!
2 lbs yellow squash
1 onion, chopped
1/2 lb velveeta cheese, cubed
3 grated carrots
1 c sour cream
1 can of chicken soup*
1 stick butter, melted
1 package herb stuffing mix**
Bake your squash however you prefer to, I cut mine in half,oil the inside with olive oil and then bake at 400 for 30-40 minutes. While it is baking, grease your baking dish. Melt your butter and pour over the stuffing mix and them mix to coat. Set aside 2/3 of the stuffing as it will go on top. Put your carrots, onion, cheese, sour cream, and soup in the dish with the stuffing. After the squash is cooked, let it cool a little before you start to handle the extraction of the flesh- don't need any burns! Scoop the squash out and then mix everything together and spread evenly in the dish. Top with the remaining stuffing. Bake in the oven at 350F until bubbly and browned.
*you can substitute with cream of mushroom soup
**you can substitute with cornbread stuffing
My husband really enjoyed it, we ate half of it as our dinner that night!
Tofu Nachos
Since we have been trying to eat less meat, tofu has become somewhat of a regular in the fridge. My husband wants nachos frequently and not tortilla chips with cheese and salsa on them - he wants it with meat or rather meat substitute. So my search began on how to make tofu nachos! I don't follow a recipe to the t for these nachos, I just go with whatever feels good and whatever I have. I use firm tofu, drain the water from the container and also squeeze the water out of it otherwise it won't turn out as good. Crumble the tofu into a pan or a skillet with some olive oil, start to cook over medium low heat, stir occasionally while you chop some onion and bell pepper. Add to the pot, make sure the tofu doesn't burn/ stick to the pan. If you have cilantro, chop and add to the pan. If you are cooking in a skillet, leave out chopped tomatoes and salsa for now. Add your spices now, some chili powder and cumin and cayenne pepper to your liking. I add a little paprika for a little smokiness but my husband doesn't notice any flavors like that, he just knows it tastes good. Keep mixing everything in. Add a couple tablespoons of water as it will help the tofu absorb the flavors. Once you have everything mixed in and cooked up, top your chips with the "meat" and whichever toppings you want. I will used shredded cheese and it melts on top some. It's also great with sour cream and guacamole on top. Give me some feed back if you want the recipe!
Friday, August 24, 2012
Beans and Greens
Green beans. I absolutely hated eating them when I was growing up. I'm still not that big of a fan, but I willingly eat them now. My all time favorite way is green been casserole! Campbell's Soup provides this recipe:
Stir the soup, milk, soy sauce, black pepper, beans and 2/3 cup onions in a 1 1/2-quart casserole.
Bake
at 350°F. for 25 minutes or until the bean mixture is hot and
bubbling. Stir the bean mixture. Sprinkle with the remaining onions.
Bake for 5 minutes or until the onions are golden brown.
I myself make it really simple by just cooking the pre-cooked beans and the mushroom soup and don't add the milk or soy sauce or even the frech fried onions. It's how I ate it growing up and it's how I will make it for whenever I have kids.
Another way my mom got me to eat my beans was in a 3 bean casserole. Another very easy recipe.
We started eating kale a few months ago and since we started eating it I had been hearing how good kale chips were. Here is the site that has led me to make 4 different kinds of kale chips. The basics to making them is to spread the leaves out on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and rub it in to coat. Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes, you just want the edges to be a tiny bit browned but it still maintain its lovely green color.
That's all for now! Next time- tofu nachos and squash casserole!
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (Regular, 98% Fat Free or Healthy Request®)
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon soy sauce
Dash ground black pepper
4 cups cooked cut green beans
1 1/3 cups French's® French Fried Onions
I myself make it really simple by just cooking the pre-cooked beans and the mushroom soup and don't add the milk or soy sauce or even the frech fried onions. It's how I ate it growing up and it's how I will make it for whenever I have kids.
Another way my mom got me to eat my beans was in a 3 bean casserole. Another very easy recipe.
- one can of Bushes baked beans
- one can of kidney beans
- 2 c pre-cooked green beans
We started eating kale a few months ago and since we started eating it I had been hearing how good kale chips were. Here is the site that has led me to make 4 different kinds of kale chips. The basics to making them is to spread the leaves out on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and rub it in to coat. Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes, you just want the edges to be a tiny bit browned but it still maintain its lovely green color.
That's all for now! Next time- tofu nachos and squash casserole!
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Tomato blog
I am so overdue on writing here! It's been a little crazy here, I've been delving into knitting and have decided I am going to make matching jackets for my mom and her two sisters for their Christmas gift, it's a free pattern and I've always wanted to knit something like this. Another part of why I haven't written is because I got behind on washing dishes (yes I have to hand wash EVERYTHING because a dish washer was never installed) and ALSO we hit a deer and we have been working on getting stuff sorted out with the insurance company and making decisions on which shop to take it to so it can be fixed... a bunch of stuff you're not here to read about. On to the food!
I posted this salad on my other page, recipes I found online. It is so simple and delicious, you would wonder how come you hadn't thought of it yourself!
Creamy Corn Salad
I promised that ketchup recipe for you all, so here it is!
I posted this salad on my other page, recipes I found online. It is so simple and delicious, you would wonder how come you hadn't thought of it yourself!
Creamy Corn Salad
1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1-1 1/2 medium tomato, seeded and diced
2 tablespoons green onions, chopped
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon dried or fresh basil
salt and pepper (optional)
Its sweet and a little crunchy and refreshing.
I promised that ketchup recipe for you all, so here it is!
English Tomato Ketchup
2 lbs ripe tomatoes, cut into quarters 1 teaspoon salt
1 medium onion, cut into chunks 1 cup water
2 cloves garlic, cut into small chunks 1 stick of cinnamon
1/4 c packed brown sugar 5 whole cloves
1/2 c white wine vinegar or distilled white vinegar
5 whole allspice 5 peppercorns
1. Place all the ingredients in a large pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the tomatoes are very soft, about 30 minutes.
2. Remove the pot from the heat. Pour the contents into a large sieve set over a large bowl and push it through with a rubber spatula untill all the juice is extracted. Discard the remaining pulp, skin, seeds and spices.
3. Return the cooked tomato mixture to the pot and boil, uncovered, stirring occasionally until it is reduced and very thick, about 30 minutes.
Makes about 3/4 cup.
And the last one for you is easy and tasty AND it's from the recipe book that we got with our bowflex: Fried Tomatoes
Slice your tomato up, usually 3 slices is enough. Heat your skillet - DO NOT USE CAST IRON FOR THIS as the acid in tomatoes react with the iron and causes bad stuff to happen to your food! Drizzle a little olive oil in your pan and put the tomato in right afterward. If you wait for it to get hot and then put the slices in, the oil will pop up at you and you won't like that. Sprinkle dried basil and oregano over the tomatoes. These will cook up soft really fast so flip once one minute after sticking the tomatoes in the pan. The recipe next calls for the removal of the tomatoes, let it cool and then eat. The way we would eat them is to take a tortilla, lay it flat and put cheese down and then toast the cheese-less side, then put tomatoes over the cheese and have a cheese and tomato quesadilla. Its yummy and its easy to make.
Enjoy
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
I'm back and a couple recipes
Thursday we went to see my parents and some friends so I didn't do any cooking while we were gone and then yesterday was our two year anniversary and the only cooking I did was breakfast.
Now I promised that I would look for a black bean meatball recipe and I found one and tried it. It was GREAT! Didn't even miss the beefiness of regular meatballs. So, here it is AND I took pictures! I got this recipe from Sweeter Salt, you can check out her blog!
1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)
1 egg
1/4 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs
1 tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. sea salt
cooking spray
1.) Preheat the oven 350*F and spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
2.) Pour your beans into a mixing bowl and mash until almost totally smooth with a potato masher.
3.) Mix in all the other ingredients with a fork.
4.) Use a tablespoon measure or spoon to scoop out meatball sized pieces of the mixture. Use your hands to roll them into ball shapes.
5.) Arrange on the cooking sheet and spray with some more cooking spray (this helps them get a little crisp).
6.) Bake for 20 minutes, until slightly golden and crisp on the outside (the inside will be soft).
The breakfast I made for our anniversary was quite simple: fried eggs, bacon and toast and hash browns. Now most people will take the hash browns from the freezer section and warm them up and eat them. Not here. Here's how to make them and make them better than the freezer kind.
Wash your potato and then grate over paper towels or if you're going to do some laundry the same day, grate them into a dish towel. You will want to get as much moisture away from your potato shavings. Pour a couple tablespoons of oil in your skillet and heat it up. Back to the potatoes - once you have squeezed as much moisture away that you can, put the shredded potato into a bowl. Add one egg, fresh ground pepper, onion salt or dried minced onion (or mince a fresh onion if your eyes can stand it) and add a couple dashes of oregano. Mix it all in, add some salt if you wish but it would be better to add salt after cooking cause you don't want to add too much in. Now to cook it! Make a couple cakes in the pan with the shredded potatoes so it is easier to flip and faster to cook as there is less area to cook at a time. After a couple minutes take a peek under the patty and see how browned it is. If it is a nice golden brown color it's time to flip. If you like it real dark let it sit a bit longer. Move the finished hash brown to a paper towel and pat off the excess oil. I made ketchup but I will save that for another post as well as leek tomato soup so get ready for a tomato focused post soon!
Enjoy!
Now I promised that I would look for a black bean meatball recipe and I found one and tried it. It was GREAT! Didn't even miss the beefiness of regular meatballs. So, here it is AND I took pictures! I got this recipe from Sweeter Salt, you can check out her blog!
1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)
1 egg
1/4 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs
1 tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. sea salt
cooking spray
1.) Preheat the oven 350*F and spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
2.) Pour your beans into a mixing bowl and mash until almost totally smooth with a potato masher.
3.) Mix in all the other ingredients with a fork.
4.) Use a tablespoon measure or spoon to scoop out meatball sized pieces of the mixture. Use your hands to roll them into ball shapes.
5.) Arrange on the cooking sheet and spray with some more cooking spray (this helps them get a little crisp).
6.) Bake for 20 minutes, until slightly golden and crisp on the outside (the inside will be soft).
The breakfast I made for our anniversary was quite simple: fried eggs, bacon and toast and hash browns. Now most people will take the hash browns from the freezer section and warm them up and eat them. Not here. Here's how to make them and make them better than the freezer kind.
Wash your potato and then grate over paper towels or if you're going to do some laundry the same day, grate them into a dish towel. You will want to get as much moisture away from your potato shavings. Pour a couple tablespoons of oil in your skillet and heat it up. Back to the potatoes - once you have squeezed as much moisture away that you can, put the shredded potato into a bowl. Add one egg, fresh ground pepper, onion salt or dried minced onion (or mince a fresh onion if your eyes can stand it) and add a couple dashes of oregano. Mix it all in, add some salt if you wish but it would be better to add salt after cooking cause you don't want to add too much in. Now to cook it! Make a couple cakes in the pan with the shredded potatoes so it is easier to flip and faster to cook as there is less area to cook at a time. After a couple minutes take a peek under the patty and see how browned it is. If it is a nice golden brown color it's time to flip. If you like it real dark let it sit a bit longer. Move the finished hash brown to a paper towel and pat off the excess oil. I made ketchup but I will save that for another post as well as leek tomato soup so get ready for a tomato focused post soon!
Enjoy!
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
More eggs, simple salsa, tomato-kale sandwich and leftovers
Breakfast was a little more thought out as I had been laying in bed thinking of what I could do. I had the word bruchetta stuck in my head but was wanting Mexican food. Therefore I came up with our breakfast. Popped 2 pieces of bread in the toaster as the frying pan heated up. Fried my two eggs over easy. Sounds nice and simple, just an egg and it's toast. I took it further. After the toast was done, I sprinkled shredded cheese so it would melt some and then I mixed up a little salsa and topped the cheese with that and then the egg to crown it. Here's the recipe I used for just enough for two slices of bread:
Half a tomato, diced
two slices of onion, diced
small handful of cilantro, chopped roughly
a splash of lime juice
1/2 tsp salt
Mix it all in a bowl, I smashed the tomatoes some to help it be juicier. It's very bright and refreshing to the pallet since it is so fresh.
I wanted a snack between breakfast and lunch and so I fixed a half sandwich. I sliced off a piece of tomato, grabbed a handful of kale and a slice of cheese. Folded the bread and it was such a good sandwich that's what I decided to fix for our lunch. Of course you can't just have a sandwich that nice by itself so I fixed the rest of the green beans like I did before in the oven. I added a little diced onion but there was no difference than if I had just sprinkled onion powder so if you have sensitive-to-onion-eyes like I do, it's ok to use onion powder.
Dinner had us with leftover black bean burger again, I had a crazy idea of trying black bean meatballs. I'll let you know if I figure it out, I'm thinking it would need to be deep fried and cooked fast and then pat the oil off the outside. I'll experiment, I promise! Sorry, no pictures today :(
Enjoy!
Half a tomato, diced
two slices of onion, diced
small handful of cilantro, chopped roughly
a splash of lime juice
1/2 tsp salt
Mix it all in a bowl, I smashed the tomatoes some to help it be juicier. It's very bright and refreshing to the pallet since it is so fresh.
I wanted a snack between breakfast and lunch and so I fixed a half sandwich. I sliced off a piece of tomato, grabbed a handful of kale and a slice of cheese. Folded the bread and it was such a good sandwich that's what I decided to fix for our lunch. Of course you can't just have a sandwich that nice by itself so I fixed the rest of the green beans like I did before in the oven. I added a little diced onion but there was no difference than if I had just sprinkled onion powder so if you have sensitive-to-onion-eyes like I do, it's ok to use onion powder.
Dinner had us with leftover black bean burger again, I had a crazy idea of trying black bean meatballs. I'll let you know if I figure it out, I'm thinking it would need to be deep fried and cooked fast and then pat the oil off the outside. I'll experiment, I promise! Sorry, no pictures today :(
Enjoy!
Monday, July 30, 2012
Eggs, Black Bean Burgers and Roasted Beans and Taters
When I get up, I don't have too long to fix breakfast for us. The easiest and fastest thing is to pour some cereal and milk and eat up. However, it doesn't last too long and there's the issue of being hungry soon afterward. The second easiest thing to make is a fried egg and a piece of toast. Take it a step further and you scramble that egg and add some veggies. That's what I did.
Bell pepper and onion, diced. Fry it up in your pan. Most people do their scrambled eggs with milk but you want a tip on how to get them fluffy? Sour cream. That's right, add sour cream! The milk just adds to the liquid amount which is fine if you need to stretch the amount of egg you have. Pour your scrambled egg over the veggies essentially making an omelet. Add some black pepper if you like, even some shredded cheese and basil if you wish. It's all good.
For lunch, and also for dinner cause I had some left over, I fixed some black bean burgers. I looked it up on allrecipes.com, they have so many recipes! I've made them so many times, varying the recipe because of what items I did and didn't have. I blend everything in the food processor, I substitute oatmeal for the bread crumbs and I usually leave out the garlic and the chili/hot sauce so it's not spicy. Here it is directly from the site:
We have a bowflex and it comes with a little recipe book. Remembering how there's a roasted green bean and bell pepper recipe in it and how we both really like a buttered green bean and potato dish with bacon, I sorta combined the ideas of both and it turned out so good that I snapped the rest of the beans and did them up with the burgers for lunch and dinner. Its OK to have the same foods twice in a day. It truly is.
Rinse and snap your beans, or get them frozen if you so wish. I grew up snapping beans so that's the way I like them! Heat your oven to 400* and line a lipped baking sheet with foil. Spread out your snapped beans. Take your potato of choice, one large one diced should do the trick or if you have some medium small new potatoes 5 or 6 will work fine too. Top your beans with the diced taters. If you want, dice half an onion and add to the pan to roast. Salt and pepper your veggies, add onion powder if you don't care to chop up onions. Drizzle olive oil on top in a big squiggle, just enough to barely coat everything when you work it in with your hands. Once it's all coated make sure it's evenly spread out and then in the oven it goes! I'm not sure how long I roasted them, just long enough for the beans to look wrinkled and the potatoes soft and lightly golden. Don't forget to stir them once while they're in the oven, it will help make it easier to get them off the pan later.
Enjoy!
Bell pepper and onion, diced. Fry it up in your pan. Most people do their scrambled eggs with milk but you want a tip on how to get them fluffy? Sour cream. That's right, add sour cream! The milk just adds to the liquid amount which is fine if you need to stretch the amount of egg you have. Pour your scrambled egg over the veggies essentially making an omelet. Add some black pepper if you like, even some shredded cheese and basil if you wish. It's all good.
For lunch, and also for dinner cause I had some left over, I fixed some black bean burgers. I looked it up on allrecipes.com, they have so many recipes! I've made them so many times, varying the recipe because of what items I did and didn't have. I blend everything in the food processor, I substitute oatmeal for the bread crumbs and I usually leave out the garlic and the chili/hot sauce so it's not spicy. Here it is directly from the site:
- 1 (16 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 green bell pepper, cut into 2 inch pieces
- 1/2 onion, cut into wedges
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon Thai chili sauce or hot sauce
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs
- If grilling, preheat an outdoor grill for high heat, and lightly oil a sheet of aluminum foil. If baking, preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C), and lightly oil a baking sheet.
- In a medium bowl, mash black beans with a fork until thick and pasty.
- In a food processor, finely chop bell pepper, onion, and garlic. Then stir into mashed beans.
- In a small bowl, stir together egg, chili powder, cumin, and chili sauce.
- Stir the egg mixture into the mashed beans. Mix in bread crumbs until the mixture is sticky and holds together. Divide mixture into four patties.
- If grilling, place patties on foil, and grill about 8 minutes on each side. If baking, place patties on baking sheet, and bake about 10 minutes on each side.
We have a bowflex and it comes with a little recipe book. Remembering how there's a roasted green bean and bell pepper recipe in it and how we both really like a buttered green bean and potato dish with bacon, I sorta combined the ideas of both and it turned out so good that I snapped the rest of the beans and did them up with the burgers for lunch and dinner. Its OK to have the same foods twice in a day. It truly is.
Rinse and snap your beans, or get them frozen if you so wish. I grew up snapping beans so that's the way I like them! Heat your oven to 400* and line a lipped baking sheet with foil. Spread out your snapped beans. Take your potato of choice, one large one diced should do the trick or if you have some medium small new potatoes 5 or 6 will work fine too. Top your beans with the diced taters. If you want, dice half an onion and add to the pan to roast. Salt and pepper your veggies, add onion powder if you don't care to chop up onions. Drizzle olive oil on top in a big squiggle, just enough to barely coat everything when you work it in with your hands. Once it's all coated make sure it's evenly spread out and then in the oven it goes! I'm not sure how long I roasted them, just long enough for the beans to look wrinkled and the potatoes soft and lightly golden. Don't forget to stir them once while they're in the oven, it will help make it easier to get them off the pan later.
Enjoy!
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Broccoli Salad, Fruit Salad, Potato Salad and Asparagus
The other day I fixed a few dishes, all lovely and delicious. -
Broccoli salad is a common side dish at my parents house. I don't know how many times I have made it. It's so easy to make. You'll need:
Fruit salad is probably one of the easiest things to fix cause it's fruit, it all goes together and you can mix any fruit together for something yummy. The one I fixed was small, just threw it together on a spur of the moment.
Asparagus has never been my favorite vegetable, in fact corn was my favorite. My mom's parents grew asparagus in their large gardens but there was one way I was ok with eating it. My mom would cut up garlic and cook it with the asparagus in butter. I took the same idea but changed it up a little.
Potato salad is a beloved barbeque night side for some people, some people like eating it with fried catfish. This is a recipe that I combined of two different potato salad recipes. Some people say it isn't potato salad unless you have hard boiled eggs in it! Well, when it's hot outside and hot inside you won't want to boil both potatoes AND eggs. So I left out the eggs and I roasted the potatoes and my kitchen didn't heat up much from using the oven. Here's how I did it:
Enjoy! (I'll try and sneak some pictures in later!)
T
Broccoli salad is a common side dish at my parents house. I don't know how many times I have made it. It's so easy to make. You'll need:
- A head of broccoli
- half an apple, chopped/cubed as best you can
- raisins
- mayonnaise
Fruit salad is probably one of the easiest things to fix cause it's fruit, it all goes together and you can mix any fruit together for something yummy. The one I fixed was small, just threw it together on a spur of the moment.
- One mango
- half an apple
- one navel orange
Asparagus has never been my favorite vegetable, in fact corn was my favorite. My mom's parents grew asparagus in their large gardens but there was one way I was ok with eating it. My mom would cut up garlic and cook it with the asparagus in butter. I took the same idea but changed it up a little.
- l/8th tsp lemon zest
- 1/8 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 clove garlic, smashed with the side of knife twice.
- asparagus
Potato salad is a beloved barbeque night side for some people, some people like eating it with fried catfish. This is a recipe that I combined of two different potato salad recipes. Some people say it isn't potato salad unless you have hard boiled eggs in it! Well, when it's hot outside and hot inside you won't want to boil both potatoes AND eggs. So I left out the eggs and I roasted the potatoes and my kitchen didn't heat up much from using the oven. Here's how I did it:
- 3 potatoes, peeled if desired, cubed
- half of a sweet onion or red onion if desired, diced
- olive oil to coat the potatoes and onion
- dried rosemary to sprinkle on the potatoes and onion before roasting
- 1/2 c thawed frozen peas
- mayonnaise
Enjoy! (I'll try and sneak some pictures in later!)
T
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Hi there!
This isn't my first time to blog, but it is my first dedicated to food. My husband and I both grew up eating fruits and veggies (fresh and canned) and meat and processed foods and fast food just about like everyone else in America. After we married and moved into our house, I would take him to work, watch food network till 5 and then start doing my chores. I'd fix dinner at 7 and we would eat at 8. As he works the night shift and used to get longer breaks at midnight than he does now, I would fix a snack and we would eat it on his break. Then I'd fix dinner at 2 some times or after I had picked him up at 2:30 or 3. These days he just calls me at home and we talk for a little while and he goes back to work, no snack from home.
Now that we are in our mid-20s, we have both lost a set of grandparents and witness illness in other family members and have both silently agreed that we should begin a quest of healthiness. For a couple years now we have been taking Mannatech products as they have the glyconutrients that everyone needs for cells to grow and communicate properly thus helping the body function as it should. We have also watched a couple documentary videos on Netflix about how certain fats from meat help promote cancer growth in our cells. I know I don't want cancer, I can't think of anyone that wants it. So up the veggies and fruit for us and cut back on how much meat we eat. For the past week the only meat I have cooked was bacon. I have a whole chicken in the freezer as well as some chicken breast cutlets. I don't know when I'm going to use them now as if I talk about cooking meat my husband gets this look on his face that I don't know how to describe. I know I get urges to fix a ham sandwich, I don't know if my husband gets cravings for meat like I do but I'm glad these cravings don't come all the time.
I'm not a professional photographer, most of the time pictures will be taken from my cell phone in to go containers that I reuse to take lunch to my husband at work. I'm not an elegant presenter of food on plates, I just put it on cause I'm not out to impress. Anyhow, I hope my recipes I post help you with ideas of what to eat and that you will start your own quest of healthiness and better eating.
God bless,
T
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