6/20 Weekly Menu

I'm starting my weekly menu plan with my Door to Door box:

1 ea. Avocado
1 ea Local Rhubarb 0.5LB
1 ea. Cucumber
2 ea. Zucchini Squash
1 ea. Local Spinach bunch
1 ea. Local Leaf Lettuce
1 ea. Local Tomatoes 1LB
1 ea. Local Green Kale bunch
1 ea. Local Radishes bunch
1 ea. Local Oyster Mushrooms 0.25LB
2 ea. Local Bok Choy

I'm thinking lots of salads, maybe some kale chips. Got the eggs, shrimp and steaks to couple up. Also picked up a carton of Almond Milk and a box of chex. Sound good?

But what do you make with Rhubarb besides pie? I'm not so crazy about the sugar factor... suggestions?

My favorite black bean chili ala Suzanne

Messy looking, right? But I promise, it is the best and easiest chili in the world.

It is actually just a little different from the recipe I got out of a Suzanne Somers cook book. Maybe the white one...I can't remember.

Anyway, it's super easy:

1 can black beans

1 can diced tomatoes and chilies

1/2 medium onion diced

a clove or 2 of garlic, minced

glug of EVOO

Basically, sautee the onion & garlic in evoo for a minute or so then dump in the cans of beans and tomatoes, get it hot and serve with warm corn tortillas.

This is about enough for 3-4 people, depending on your bean tolerance ;p

It is seriously one of my favorite go-to meals any time of year. It takes about 5 minutes, costs about $1.50 and is super comfort food without the guilt.

6/13 weekly menu

Hey y'all! I'm trying out a new routine - creating a weekly menu!!

This week's menu for one:

Monday:

Lunch: Hormel Beef au jus, mashed potatoes, simple spinach salad

Dinner: Green salad with tuna salad, carrots, tomato, walnuts, craisins etc.

Tuesday:

Lunch -Leftover beef from Monday

Dinner - Peppered Beef sandwich with pickles and carrot sticks

Wednesday:

Lunch- Leftover Tuna Salad on greens

Dinner- Scrambled eggs with spinach, onions, ham and cheese

Thursday:

Lunch- Peppered beef sandwich with pickles and carrot sticks

Dinner - Curried shrimp and veggies

Friday:

Lunch- Chipotle carnitas burrito bowl, guac

Dinner - snacks as needed after huge bowl from chipotle

Weekend:

Grilled steak, sweet corn and baked beans - snacks as needed :)Egg scrambles if I'm up for breakfast

Almost every morning I have a Larabar and a piece of fruit for breakfast. It's my super portable -take to work breakfast- that saves me time and gives me quick energy from the fruit and long lasting hunger control from the nuts.

Shopping list:

eggs

lunch meat

tuna

steak

corn

Getting my organics delivered really helps with the meal planning, part of the reason I don't do it regularly! I usually just wash everything up and it's pretty easy to match them up with some protein.

Cheers!

Review: Barilla pasta sauce - Mushroom & Garlic

Can you see that entire mushroom just sitting there? There were a ton of big mushroom slices and a couple little buttons even. Loved this sauce!! I give it a big fat 10 out of 10...

I, of course, started my adventure by slicing up a couple nice zucchini and sauteed them until soft-ish. Then I dumped the jar of sauce over them and simmered about as long as it takes to boil some Tinkyada rice pasta shells.

I cheated a little on my no dairy lifestyle with some parmesean cheese. I craved it!

And I'm glad I did, so there! This was a great dinner, and great leftovers 2 days later.

Also, TMI coming...I get to re-taste most prepared sauces like all night...and sometimes the next day. No burpage here so you know it was made with good natural ingredients and nothing possibly scary. I heart it.

That's all.

Possibly the best soup ever - Curried Butternut

I absolutely have to share this recipe because it is the best thing I've had in ages!

It was a totally simple recipe too - are you surprised?

Here goes:

Splash of EVOO

1/2 medium onion, diced

1 stalk celery, sliced

1-2 tsp curry powder

2 cups chopped butternut squash

2-3 cups broth or water

S&P to taste

1/2 - 1 cup coconut milk

1 Tbl maple syrup

So you sautee the onion, celery and curry in the EVOO, then you add the broth (I used veg) and squash and simmer about 30 minutes until it's tender.

Then, you take it off the heat and spoon it slowly into the blender so it cools off enough not to explode. Then puree it and serve warm.

I absolutely loved it! And this recipe makes enough for 3-4 people, depending on how much you fill the bowls so no week's worth of leftovers. Yay!

It will be on my fall cooking list for sure.

Stewed Okra - WOW!

Nummy? Check! Vegan? Check! Almost instant? Check!
Ok, Okra is not one of my staples. In fact, I think I had it once - battered and deep fried, smothered with ranch dressing (ala Oklahoma). I didn't like it.

So, don't ask me why but I was at the store looking at the frozen veggies and decided to grab a bag of okra. That was a good 9 months ago and tonight I finally decided to cook it, as recommended by a true okie! The recipe is so simple, so fast and yes - delicious!

1 bag frozen Okra (about 14 ounces)

1-2 cups of pearl onions

1.5 tsp salt

.5 tsp pepper

1 can stewed tomatoes

1 Tbl EVOO

I sauteed the onions in the olive oil a little then added all the rest and simmered it on low for about 15 minutes.

I'm seriously surprised at how good it is and the okra is so plump and juicy and tender - nothing like the last time I had it. I might have liked a little more tomato in this - but I still recommend it with 2 thumbs up ;)

Odd pairings: greens and meat style

Cooking is easy! Dontcha love how I make a salad now days? Tired of ripping up lettuce, I decided to just throw on some tomatoes, sesame seeds, cheese shreds and ham - topped with a little Catalina dressing. Looks weird- tasted great, no mess, no fuss!
Remember those Hormel main dishes I love so much? One night I paired them with...chard chips! It is now officially my favorite meal in the entire world! Luv luv luv.

So, all my food looks weird right? but it was super easy and healthy and that's what I'm all about!

Do you use Probiotics?

I have to admit, I've been miserable and finding very little help to figure it out. I finally got a new diagnosis (I know, how many diseases can one person accumulate?)...and I started doing my research. A friend with a similar disease told me that probiotics saved her and I should try them...

Well, let me say this: I was terrified to try anything new for fear that it would make me worse. Then I realized that the life I was living was the worst. Excruciating stomach pain every single day is the worst. So, I got brave and went to the store.

Side note, I gave up dairy so yogurt - not really an option. I scanned the supplement aisle. There were a million brands to choose from and they all had soy or milk in them. Then I spotted the cheapest one, Kroger Generic Digestion Support. It had 7 kinds of probiotics compared to the others that had 1 or 2 and it listed milk as an allergen, but not an actual ingredient. For $6 I was willing to gamble.

2 days later, I felt much better. 2 weeks later, I feel normal again!
I was able to spend 3 full days of my weekend hanging out with friends and family, working on projects and relaxing without the usual fatigue, pain and other symptoms that I don't want to go in to.

So, what do you think? Did probiotics save me too? Or is it a placebo effect? Either way, I'm happy to have days back and if you're like me and afraid to try them, I'm here to say you have nothing to lose!

I'd also love to hear if you use probiotics and have any advice or favorite brands because I know I'll continue my treatment and need some info!

Greek Slaw!

Once upon a time, I used to get Greek slaw from King Soopers with my rotisserie chicken. Since I gave up the bird so went the deli prepared salads. I forgot what I was missing until the other day I was scanning the fridge and that half head of cabbage winked at me and nodded toward the leftover feta cheese.

I put "grocery store" on my list and stopped on the way home to grab some black olives. Dinner was the best Greek Slaw ever!

Here's the recipe (sorry the picture is so dark):

Take a bowl and thinly slice enough cabbage to fill it about 1/2 full.

Thinly slice some red onion to taste and toss it in.

Then, chop up some cucumber and tomatoes and throw them in. Is the bowl almost full? Good!

Now dump in some feta - how ever much appeals to you. I go for a couple tablespoons per serving.

Add 8 or less black olives per serving

A splash or two of red wine vinegar and EVOO (just enough to coat the slaw nicely)

A shake and shimmy of salt and pepper

Toss, toss, toss till it's all mixed up.

You'll love it and if you want to make a double batch to have leftovers, it gets better over night, I promise!

See how quick and easy cooking can be? you don't have to make enough for 8 either. I made enough for 1 and all I had to wash was a bowl, fork and knife! No week of leftovers either.

Side note, you can also use apple cider vinegar. Enjoy!

Review: Betty Crocker Cookies

See my cookies? I finally found Betty Crocker Chocolate Chip cookie mix and decided to try it. They were surprisingly good! Let me say, I love Pamela's brand baking mix for making cookies - they come out crispy and candyish. Betty's came out soft and warm and chewy. I love them too.

I will definitely stock this mix - it was simple to make, quick and I got 2 pans of big cookies out of it for $5.00. Cheaper than packaged cookies and I like the ingredient list better (nothing scary).

Then...I was totally craving breakfast tacos but didn't have any soft corn tortillas

:(

so I used hard ones! ;0)
As you can see I also lazied out and didn't shred the cheese either - just cut it into little chunks. It works! No grater holes to scrub! So, you're wondering...did the crunchy shells work? Yes! It was different but still really good. Try it sometime when you have a couple shells leftover, before they get stale.