Hello August!!!! This week I'm trying out a newer recipe, the Lettuce wraps and I really can't wait to see how they turn out. I wish I had something fun and witty to say this evening but I'm having one of those days where all my thoughts seem to be few seconds behind and I have to really use a lot of energy to think of simple answers to questions. Gotta love it.
Monday 08/01
Thai Curry
So this is an all time fav in our house. Seriously, my husband would eat it every night if he could. So simple too. Start with two cans coconut milk (we prefer the full fat kind) and heat it in a large sauce pan or wok. Add 3-4 tbsp red curry paste, you can buy this in the international section of your grocery store or make it from scratch... what ever time allows. Mix the paste into the coconut milk using a wire whisk until it is thoroughly mixed with no red chucks. Once it begins to simmer add about 3 tbsp fish oil (or to taste) as well as 2 tbsp agave. Once everything is hot and blended feel free to add what ever veggies you have on hand or a bag of frozen stir fry veggies. My fav additions are sliced bamboo shoots, sliced red bell pepper, onion, small broccoli florets, zucchini and spinach or kale. I usually let the veggies cook in the sauce on super low for about 30 minutes or in a crock pot for a few hours. If you want to add chicken, add some chopped or shredded, cooked chicken breast at the same time that you add the veggies. Serve over rice.
Tuesday 08/02
Meatloaf, squash with onions and green beans
I got this recipe from a health book called "Maximized Living Cooking Plans". It has some amazing recipes in it. Ok, preheat your oven to 375. In a bowl combine a chopped up yellow onion, a clove of minced garlic, a 1/2 cup fresh, finely chopped parsley, one lightly beaten egg and 1/3 cup sugar free ketchup or tomato paste. Add 2 slices toasted Ezekiel bread, crumpled, as well as about a pound of ground beef. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Mix it up until it is mixed through. I find that using my hands works best but it does feel pretty special. I place the meat and shape it in a glass loaf pan. My shaping it, I mean I pat it to make the top rounded. Bake the meat loaf for a bout 50 minutes, remove and spread another 1/3 cup ketchup on top and cook for about another 10-20 minutes. You might want to let it cool for a bit before slicing in. We don't always.
With the squash and onions I just pour about 2 tbsp coconut oil into a skillet and add 2 sliced squash as well as half of a sliced medium sized onion. Saute it until you like the consistency. Salt and Pepper it to taste.
Green beans: I cook a huge pot of these and we'll eat off of them all week. After snapping these guys I simply put them in a pot and cover them with water, and maybe a bit more. Add lots of salt and pepper and a sprinkle of crushed red pepper. I used to put fatback or salted pork in it but I have changed my ways :)
Wednesday 08/03
Salmon Croquettes with tomato/cilantro sauce, sliced tomatoes and green beans
This is also from the book mentioned above!
Salmon Croquettes: mix together 2 cans wild caught Alaskan salmon, 2 chopped green onions, about 2 tablespoon chopped cilantro, a couple tablespoons chopped red pepper, 4 tbsp coconut oil, 2/3 cup almond flour, a couple teaspoons lemon juice and 2 eggs. Once well combined, make the mixture into round patties about 2" across. Coat the patties in almond flour and fry in a skillet of hot oil. I use coconut oil. Heat them for about 3-4 minutes each side.
Tomato Sauce: Pull out your food processor and throw in 2 cups chopped red pepper, 2 chopped tomatoes, 2 green onions, 2 tablespoons cilantro, 1 tsp sesame oil, 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar and 1 teaspoon chili powder. After pureeing it for a bit, pour it into a sauce pan and warm it. Pour it over the salmon... yum.
Thursday 08/04
Rosemary Roasted Chicken, green beans, caprese salad
Ok, I love cooking a whole chicken. Here's how I do it: Pull out the giblets and neck from inside your defrosted chicken. Take a stick of softened butter and mix it with 3 cloves of minced garlic. Now lets get our hands dirty! Slide your hand between the skin and the meat of the chicken and rub the butter and garlic into every nook and cranny. Place
Friday 08/05
Asian Lettuce Wraps, sauteed carrot sticks
In a skillet, cook ground turkey through. Once cooked, add 1 tbsp rice vinegar, 1 can chopped water chestnuts, a few cloves of minced garlic and 2 tbsp fresh minced ginger. Stir over high heat for about 4 minutes. Add 1/3 cup tamari and 1/2 cup chopped green onions. Serve wrapped in lettuce.
Slice some carrots into toothpick type sticks and saute briefly in coconut oil until it reaches desired tenderness. Serve on top of lettuce wrap or as a side.
Have a great week!!
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Meal Plan for 7/25-7/31
DANG JULY IS ALMOST OVER! WHAT THE HECK?! Summer, where did you go? I do long for the cooler days of fall, living here in the south bends most hearts toward cool relief. I do however love summer, juicy peach chins, swimming, lazy days, no schedule, farmers markets. These are the things that we lose when fall creeps in. BUT we get football, birthday season (in our house), beautiful foliage, not sweating in the kitchen, soups! Ok, so I love every season.
My pal Janie Poo told me I should do weekly blog with my menu for each week just to make life easy for peeps who just need a little help. I fall into that category! Let me tell you a bit about me, our eating habits and just how this may or may not work :) We eat as naturally as possible with as little sugar and gluten as possible. If anyone who ventures to try these and has a gluten intolerance, please look into the recipes to make sure it truly suits your needs. We eat a lot of vegetarian meals as well, so if you have meat lovers in your home you can add a meat to most anything! Also, I make 5 meals week (most weeks), one night we'll have leftovers (the hubs fav- totally sarcastic) and then we'll eat out or with family at least one night a week. I have 3 kids, ages 4 to a year and a half and these are recipes that they all love. I' hoping this blog will inspire me to try new recipes and I'll pass them on to you with a verdict from the 3 bambinos!
Here we go!
Monday July 25th
Curry Lentils (snagged this one a few years back from this site. I tweaked it a bit.)
In a crock pot combine 1 32oz box organic chicken stock, 3 cups water, one package dried lentils, one can diced green chilies, 4 celery ribs (sliced) one medium onion (diced), about 2 tsp cumin, 1tsp coriander, 1 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp dried mustard, 1tsp turmeric, and 3 minced garlic cloves. Cook it on high for about 4-5 hours or on low for 8-10 hours. If you want meat just throw a couple chicken breasts on top and let them cook and by the time you're ready to serve it the chicken will just fall apart or you can shred it. I serve it over jasmine rice and we eat it with Indian naan or corn tortillas (gluten free option).
*vegetarian, gluten free, dairy free
Tuesday
Fish Tacos
Grill tilapia on the grill or bake it in the oven for about 15 minutes at 350 after covering it in a little coconut oil, cumin and salt. It will flake easily when it is ready. Slice up the tilapia and place in a corn tortilla and top with toppings of your choice. Mine include: sour cream, cilantro, sliced onions, tomatoes, yellow corn and avocados. I like to have black beans on the side.
*vegetarian, gluten free
Wednesday
Salmon, fresh veggies, quinoa
I get wild caught Alaskan salmon, for the best nutrients possible. I pour and spread about 2 tbsp coconut oil on the bottom of 9 by 13 glass baking dish (you can also grill this!) place the salmon in the dish skin side down. Then I pour a little bit more oil on the fish and sprinkle it with sea salt and fresh minced garlic (you can use garlic salt) and squeeze a lemon over the top. I pop this in the oven on 350 for a bout 30 minutes. It flakes easily when done.
With our salmon we re having sauteed squash and onions. Slice both and place them in a skillet with a little bit of coconut oil. Salt and pepper it and keep it moving around over medium heat.
Fried okra: Slice your okra in about 1/2" slices and then pour okra and 2 cups corn meal into a storage bag with salt and pepper. Shake it up good. In a deeper skillet or large sauce pan, spread the cornmeal okra in one even level into 1/2" deep hot oil. Let it cook until it gets nice and brown. Scoop it out with a slotted spoon and let it cool on a paper towel.
Quinoa: prepare according to package. I buy it in bulk at costco. I add green onions and diced tomatoes to mine to make it nice and tasty!
*vegetarian, gluten-free
Thursday
Stir-fry
This is an easy, "I don't have time to cook" recipe. I always have a bag of organic stir-fry veggies in my freezer. In a wok or large sauce pan pour few tablespoons coconut oil. Once it begins to heat, pour in your frozen veggies as well as 1/4 c. liquid aminos (non-soy version of soy sauce- I think it tastes better!) Stir until it is heated through... about 20 minutes. Pour veggies into a large bowl and mix in enough cooked jasmine rice to feed your fam. In the same pan scramble a few eggs and then stir them into the stir-fry in the bowl. Add more liquid aminos to taste. The end :)
*gluten-free
Friday
Taco soup
You can use dried beans or cans... totally up to you.
If using cans: In a large stock pot pour 2 cans black beans, 2 cans pinto beans and 2 cans garbanzo beans, 1 large can diced green chilies, 2 diced organic uncooked chicken breasts, one medium diced onion, one box organic chicken stock, 2 cups water, one package taco seasoning (ok, so i don't use packaged taco seasoning because of the MSG, I make my own mix from my kitchen spices... recipes are easy to find online). Bring to a boil over high heat, then cover it, turn it to low and let it simmer for an hour or two. This can also be done in crock pot! If I have a busy day, I'll pour it all the crock on low and when I get home in the evening, my dinner is ready. Top with tortilla chips (or quinoa chips for a gluten-free option), cheese, green onions, cilantro, avocados, black olives, or whatever you would put on your taco!
If you care to comment, let me know what you like, or don't like and how you tweaked the recipes to suit you! Have a great week!!!
My pal Janie Poo told me I should do weekly blog with my menu for each week just to make life easy for peeps who just need a little help. I fall into that category! Let me tell you a bit about me, our eating habits and just how this may or may not work :) We eat as naturally as possible with as little sugar and gluten as possible. If anyone who ventures to try these and has a gluten intolerance, please look into the recipes to make sure it truly suits your needs. We eat a lot of vegetarian meals as well, so if you have meat lovers in your home you can add a meat to most anything! Also, I make 5 meals week (most weeks), one night we'll have leftovers (the hubs fav- totally sarcastic) and then we'll eat out or with family at least one night a week. I have 3 kids, ages 4 to a year and a half and these are recipes that they all love. I' hoping this blog will inspire me to try new recipes and I'll pass them on to you with a verdict from the 3 bambinos!
Here we go!
Monday July 25th
Curry Lentils (snagged this one a few years back from this site. I tweaked it a bit.)
In a crock pot combine 1 32oz box organic chicken stock, 3 cups water, one package dried lentils, one can diced green chilies, 4 celery ribs (sliced) one medium onion (diced), about 2 tsp cumin, 1tsp coriander, 1 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp dried mustard, 1tsp turmeric, and 3 minced garlic cloves. Cook it on high for about 4-5 hours or on low for 8-10 hours. If you want meat just throw a couple chicken breasts on top and let them cook and by the time you're ready to serve it the chicken will just fall apart or you can shred it. I serve it over jasmine rice and we eat it with Indian naan or corn tortillas (gluten free option).
*vegetarian, gluten free, dairy free
 | |
| Fish tacos from last week! |
Fish Tacos
Grill tilapia on the grill or bake it in the oven for about 15 minutes at 350 after covering it in a little coconut oil, cumin and salt. It will flake easily when it is ready. Slice up the tilapia and place in a corn tortilla and top with toppings of your choice. Mine include: sour cream, cilantro, sliced onions, tomatoes, yellow corn and avocados. I like to have black beans on the side.
*vegetarian, gluten free
Wednesday
Salmon, fresh veggies, quinoa
I get wild caught Alaskan salmon, for the best nutrients possible. I pour and spread about 2 tbsp coconut oil on the bottom of 9 by 13 glass baking dish (you can also grill this!) place the salmon in the dish skin side down. Then I pour a little bit more oil on the fish and sprinkle it with sea salt and fresh minced garlic (you can use garlic salt) and squeeze a lemon over the top. I pop this in the oven on 350 for a bout 30 minutes. It flakes easily when done.
With our salmon we re having sauteed squash and onions. Slice both and place them in a skillet with a little bit of coconut oil. Salt and pepper it and keep it moving around over medium heat.
Fried okra: Slice your okra in about 1/2" slices and then pour okra and 2 cups corn meal into a storage bag with salt and pepper. Shake it up good. In a deeper skillet or large sauce pan, spread the cornmeal okra in one even level into 1/2" deep hot oil. Let it cook until it gets nice and brown. Scoop it out with a slotted spoon and let it cool on a paper towel.
Quinoa: prepare according to package. I buy it in bulk at costco. I add green onions and diced tomatoes to mine to make it nice and tasty!
*vegetarian, gluten-free
Thursday
Stir-fry
This is an easy, "I don't have time to cook" recipe. I always have a bag of organic stir-fry veggies in my freezer. In a wok or large sauce pan pour few tablespoons coconut oil. Once it begins to heat, pour in your frozen veggies as well as 1/4 c. liquid aminos (non-soy version of soy sauce- I think it tastes better!) Stir until it is heated through... about 20 minutes. Pour veggies into a large bowl and mix in enough cooked jasmine rice to feed your fam. In the same pan scramble a few eggs and then stir them into the stir-fry in the bowl. Add more liquid aminos to taste. The end :)
*gluten-free
Friday
Taco soup
You can use dried beans or cans... totally up to you.
If using cans: In a large stock pot pour 2 cans black beans, 2 cans pinto beans and 2 cans garbanzo beans, 1 large can diced green chilies, 2 diced organic uncooked chicken breasts, one medium diced onion, one box organic chicken stock, 2 cups water, one package taco seasoning (ok, so i don't use packaged taco seasoning because of the MSG, I make my own mix from my kitchen spices... recipes are easy to find online). Bring to a boil over high heat, then cover it, turn it to low and let it simmer for an hour or two. This can also be done in crock pot! If I have a busy day, I'll pour it all the crock on low and when I get home in the evening, my dinner is ready. Top with tortilla chips (or quinoa chips for a gluten-free option), cheese, green onions, cilantro, avocados, black olives, or whatever you would put on your taco!
If you care to comment, let me know what you like, or don't like and how you tweaked the recipes to suit you! Have a great week!!!
Adventures in Baking
So today we made chocolate chip cookies using the toll house recipe except we substituted quinoa flour for regular flour and 1 cup of agave nectar for the 3/4 cup white sugar and 3/4 cup brown sugar. Meaning, I used 1 c. agave total.
The results:
The cookies were super fluffy and because it was quinoa instead of flour, it did have a bit of a different smell and after taste.
The verdict:
We were 3 out of 4 this afternoon. I didn't love the dough... too quinoa-y :) The cookies, however were yummy. Zaya was not a fan. One bite and she passed it along to the Bean, who scarfed them down while telling me how amazing they are. (Everyone needs a kid like that!) Lulie ate them up but because of their fluffy-ness she made a bit more than a typical mess. So my grade on this one is 75%, that's a C, not awesome. Maybe I'll get the hubs to give it a go when he gets home and that will either bump me up to a more acceptable B or plummet me downward to a 60%, thus failing miserably!
Next time I think I'm going to use almond flour. The nutty flavor would make for a de-lish cookie.
Anyway, using agave instead of sugar allows for the cookie to have a very low glycemic index (nice for diabetics or those on a sugar free diet) and without the flour it is a gluten free treat! Eat up if you dare!
The results:
The cookies were super fluffy and because it was quinoa instead of flour, it did have a bit of a different smell and after taste.
The verdict:
We were 3 out of 4 this afternoon. I didn't love the dough... too quinoa-y :) The cookies, however were yummy. Zaya was not a fan. One bite and she passed it along to the Bean, who scarfed them down while telling me how amazing they are. (Everyone needs a kid like that!) Lulie ate them up but because of their fluffy-ness she made a bit more than a typical mess. So my grade on this one is 75%, that's a C, not awesome. Maybe I'll get the hubs to give it a go when he gets home and that will either bump me up to a more acceptable B or plummet me downward to a 60%, thus failing miserably!
Next time I think I'm going to use almond flour. The nutty flavor would make for a de-lish cookie.
Anyway, using agave instead of sugar allows for the cookie to have a very low glycemic index (nice for diabetics or those on a sugar free diet) and without the flour it is a gluten free treat! Eat up if you dare!
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