Coming Soon

I am here but I have had no time to sit down and post recipes. I do have a few that I am excited about but I will have to post them on Sunday because it is now 11:16pm and I need to go to my bed.

Emily

Herbal Remedies?

Do any of you lovely ladies have some herbal remedies you would like to share? We are sick at our house this week. And have been for a week. I HATE taking my kids to the doctor and paying the "urgent care" copay and hearing, "it's just a virus" but after a week with no improvement I took my princess in today. And guess what? This time they assume it's "just a virus" but they want to treat it with antibiotics. Can they make it any more obvious they don't know what the heck they're talking about? Good doctors here in our little town are hard to come by. I'm not sure what I was expecting today, but it made me angry.

Anyway, here's our symptoms.....don't read if you plan on reading the recipes later. I'm going to speak plainly here. Runny/stuffy noses, boogers everywhere including the eyes, coughing that brings up more boogers, sore throats, and boys throwing up boogers in the night because they refuse to and/or don't know how to blow their noses, etc., boogers, etc. We've been using saline flushes in the noses, lemon juice in the ears, and today tried a honey/onion cough syrup that worked somewhat. Any other tips?

Sick of Soup?

I'm totally not.

I know I have posted nothing but soup, soup and more soup but it's just so dang good! Soup and dangerously hot showers are pretty much the only thing I miss about winter when it's gone.

I liked this one for lots of reasons:

A- Totally new flavors. The boys totally loved the okra (as did I). And I had never tried anything with Creole seasoning before... but BEWARE: Creole Seasoning is no joke! Whew! Plus there was pepper and paprika to boot! I had to put sour cream in the boys so they could eat it, and my boys have Burton tastes- they can handle hot.

B- SO easy. Frozen, pre-chopped veggies? Awesome. And they actually tasted good! Click THIS which is where I stole the recipe. You can read all about why frozen veggies aren't so bad nutritionally- in fact they may even be better.

C- I have always hated lima beans and yet I liked them in this. Totally didn't see that one coming.

Southern Succotash Stew

1 medium onion, chopped
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
12 ounces baby lima beans, fresh or frozen
12 ounces frozen soup vegetables (mixture of carrots, corn, peas, green beans, etc.)
6 ounces okra, sliced, fresh or frozen (I got mine frozen)
6 ounces green beans, fresh or frozen, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 14-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 large turnip, peeled and diced (may substitute potato)
1 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon hot smoked paprika
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon Creole seasoning (or more to taste)
7-9 cups hot water or vegetable broth

In a large soup pot, sauté onion until soft. Add remaining ingredients along with 7 cups of the water or broth. Cook until turnips and other vegetables are tender, about 1 hour, adding more liquid as needed. Check seasoning, adding more Creole seasoning and salt to taste.

Serving Suggestion: Stir in a squeeze of fresh lemon juice to each bowl just before serving.

Ashlee Notes: I get the feeling this is a recipe with a lot of wiggle room. I didn't have thyme or extra green beans in addition to the bag of mixed veggies, and I used tomato sauce instead of crushed tomatoes. Worked out great! To cut down on costs I used one box veggie broth and the rest water. I didn't find that I needed to add more liquid. It needed to cook down quite a bit I thought... of course I didn't have those extra grean beans. And like I said earlier sour cream can take this down a notch. I didn't use the lime juice but I bet that wouldn't be bad. We ate this with my biscuit recipe below. It was yummo!

Whole Grain Buttermilk Biscuits

You may already have a recipe like this, but if not I thought I would share. This is a family favorite. I make 'em for breakfast or to go with dinner like I did tonight. If you make it go ahead and compare it to a standard recipe for normal biscuits. You'll be pleased with this much lighter, higher-fiber version I promise.

Whole Grain Buttermilk Biscuits

1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 tablespoons chilled butter or trans fat free margarine-for you vegan types ;) - it works too I tried it.
1 cup lowfat buttermilk or sour milk (ya'll know how to make sour milk I presume)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine dry ingredients. Cut in butter with pastry cutter or knife.

(Kate did you ever get a pastry cutter? Everytime I use mine I hope that you got one at some point)

Stir in milk until moist dough forms, and don't worry-it should be pretty wet. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes so that it's workable. Turn dough out on floured surface and pat out to 1/2 inch thick. Using floured cup or biscuit cutter cut out your biscuits. Place on to baking mat and bake 8-10 minutes until golden.

I did something

I added a place on our side bar for the food sites we like and then put up the links for some I enjoy. Feel free to add if you wish :)

PS- I must tell you that I am considering hiring Corey for a blog makeover here at veggie lovin' friends. I love what he did for our Relief Society blog.

--Peace Out

Ashlee

Not Just Chick Food

This week we tried Rookie Cookie's Thai Veggie Wraps. She suggested they would make for an excellent lunch with the girlfriends, (and they would) but my husband loved them. We made a few alterations and really liked them so I thought I'd share.

Sauce:
1/4 c. peanut butter
2 Tbsp. seasoned rice vinegar
2 Tbsp. honey
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil, (I used evoo)
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. water
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 1/2 t. salt.......(Note: I actually completely omitted this. We don't eat very much salt, and I thought that it looked like a bit much when there was already soy sauce in the recipe that contains 1160 mg sodium in 1 Tbsp.)
1/2 t. cayenne pepper
pinch crushed red pepper

Combine the above and whisk until smooth. Set aside.

Veggies:
Combine the following:
1 can garbanzos, (I heated mine a bit)
1 bag coleslaw mix
1 bunch cilantro, chopped, (I only did maybe 1/4 c. And that's a generous estimate. My man don't like cilantro.)
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 cucumber, peeled and diced
1 c. unsalted peanuts

Combine the veggies and the sauce. Wrap, and viola! A lovely light spring-time dinner. Now, my husband thought the sauce was so good that he said he would drink it with a straw, but I thought it was a might spicy for the kiddos, (and the leftovers seemed to get even spicier) so I wrapped theirs prior to adding the sauce. Also, I didn't add the peanuts to the mix, I just put them on each wrap, cause they'll get soggy leftover.

Another note....if you check out Rookie's original recipe, you'll notice that she used edamame instead of garbanzo beans, but I have issues with all products soy since watching The World According to Monsanto. Just google that title and you can watch it for free online if you wish....Ash, this was the one that really freaked me out. Although be prepared for a bit of a snoozer! I thought my beloved garbanzos were a nice substitute. Do what you will!

This Was a Crowd Pleaser

This recipe was one I got from Super Healthy Kids, and modified a bit. It didn't look like anything special, but my husband asked me to add it to the rotation, (a very good sign) and it was the first dinner that Drew has voluntarily eaten in a week. Parker also gave it a thumbs up. Paige will eat anything, so take that for what it's worth. To see the original recipe, click here.


Pasta and Veggies with Sauce:
For the sauce:
Melt 3 Tbsp. butter and whisk in 3 Tbsp. flour to make a roux. Let simmer for 1 minute, then add 1 c. broth, 1/2 tsp. oregano, and 1/2 tsp. pepper. At this point, I thought it looked more like gravy than a pasta sauce so I added some milk, (maybe 3/4 c.?) and a couple handfuls of cheese. I used a mix of cheddar and parmesan, probably totalling about a cup, (I'm pretty heavy-handed with cheese). Am I fired from the blog? I know that probably totally "unhealthified" that recipe.....but it sure made it tasty.

For the veggies:
Saute 1/2 onion in olive oil until tender. Add 2 cloves of garlic, 2 c. cauliflower, 2 c. broccoli, and 1 pkg. peas. Sir in 1/2 c. broth, bring to a boil, cover and simmer until veggies are tender.

Toss all of the above together with 1 box of cooked whole wheat linguine. Serve with a sprinkling of parmesan on top.

Here's where I have a question....I noticed at the grocery store that there are all sorts of different labels for the "brown" pasta. What's the best? I bought some that said "whole grain" but is that as good for you as whole wheat? Is that like buying "wheat bread" instead of "100% whole wheat?"

King Corn

Well it's official. I'm never eating again :)

We watched King Corn last night.

Thanks for the recommendation Kate. I can see why you felt a little crazy after you watched it. I'm feeling it too.

I do have to say though that I really appreciated the explanation that they gave as to HOW it got to be as bad as it is. I had only the idea in my head of power-money-hungry people who took things over. It was all pure evil! While I know that there certainly is corruption happening I appreciated them pointing out that the changes in American agriculture also started in an effort to make food more affordable to American families, and I believed that to be sincere.

It's sad the consequences those changes have had though. I for one am more committed to eating whole, unprocessed foods. I did a search too for local organic farms but unfortunately they are still very much out of our price range. Someday though.... In the mean time we'll do the best we can with what we have :)

Love you all!

Ashlee

Eat to Live up date

I have now lost 19lbs = I weigh 147lbs. I feel so good. Just over a week ago I ate a little bit of chicken and it took about three days for me to feel better. I felt so heavy and bloated. Weird! My body just does it want it any more.

Whitney,

Ahslee told me you are doing the Eat to Live program? How do you like it? You and I need to talk over the phone some time. I will email you my number. I would love to hear how you are enjoying it.

Love,

Emily

Pasta Fagiole

This looks incredibly similar to the Savory Bean and Spinach Soup that I already posted but we think it has it's own unique taste and place in the world. This is a recipe that I made as an adaptation of others that I have seen. Strictly speaking authentic Italian Pasta Fagiole does not have chopped spinach in it, but I think the flavor works so well with it that I couldn't resist tossing some in. This is the soup I run to when I have been eating crappy and just want to eat something that will make me feel good again. This would make an excellent home-from-a-long car-trip meal.


Pasta Fagiole

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 cup onion, chopped finely

2-3 cloves minced garlic

1 seeded and minced jalepeno (if in a pinch you can substitute 1 can diced green chilies but it's doesn't pack quite the same punch)

2 cans stewed tomatoes

1 can great northern (white) beans, drained and rinsed

3 1/2 cups vegetable stock

4-6 oz whole wheat macaroni, uncooked

A few handfuls of fresh spinach, chopped

kosher salt

ground black pepper

chopped fresh or dried parsley

shredded parmesan cheese (optional)

Saute onions in oil over med heat 3-4 min. Add garlic and jalepeno and cook 4-5 min. Stir in tomato, beans and broth. Break up tomatoes with your spoon while cooking to be more 'bite size'. Bring to boil. Add pasta, reduce heat and simmer, covered stirring periodically. When pasta is nearly through cooking add spinach and spices and cook until wilted and pasta is cooked. Serve immediately with parmesan if using.

Emmy's Chocolate Joys

Two months ago I drastically changed my diet. I have always eaten pretty healthy but I needed to make further changes for a few reasons. Many of you know that I am a huge chocolate lover and cannot live without it. I came up with this recipe by looking at others similar to it but not quite what I wanted. Trial and error.

This treat is 100% healthily for your body. It doesn't matter if you are vegetarian, vegan, eat raw or just eating a well balanced diet because you too can it this.

You need a food processor to make this or a really really good blender.

The Glue

3/4 cup coconut milk (comes in a can, usually found by the Asian food).
1/2 cup cocoa powder or carob powder (I use cocoa)
1/2 cup honey or Agave (I use both, 1/4 c honey and 1/4 c agave)
1 tsp pure vanilla
3 cups coconut
2 dates
1/4 cup raisins (if you don't want dates just use more raisins)

Nuts and Seed

You can use whatever nuts and seed that you want. Just make sure that the measurements stay about the same as mine. You may need to add more or even a little less depending on what nuts and seeds you choose to use. You do not want this runny.

1 cup Almonds
1/4 cup Pecans
1/4 cup Cashews
1/2 cup Sunflower seeds
1/4 cup Pumpkin seeds

Throw all of the ingredients in your food processor and let it rip. Make sure it is nice and blended.

Get your cookie sheet and cookie scoop out. Plop the batter on the cookies sheet and refrigerator for at least one hour. You can even freeze these.

Again, these are so yummy and good for you. Feel free to mix things up to your own preference's.

Agave is at any grocery store. You can get twice as much (literally) for $1 less at costco. Unlike honey, maple syrup and sugar Agave is gluten friendly. It does not mess with your blood sugars. When eating it they will stay the same. You can also use Agave in place of honey when eating a sandwdich, on waffles or in yogurt etc. (I am not diabetic.These are just some fun the facts).

Ha ha!

I have been a bit bored at work today... can you tell?!?

As you may have noticed I went through all my old e-mails to find the recipes that we sent each other prior to creating the blog. I just copied and pasted the recipes and anything that you said in the e-mail surrounding your recipe. I hope I did an okay job, and that you don't mind that I did it for you.

Also, I changed my color to orange. My blue was too similar to Katies purple don't you think?

Hope you are all having a happy Wednesday.

Much Love-

Ashlee

PS- Do you think we have TOO many labels on the side bar? Should we try and condense somehow or is it okay with you how it is currently?

Raw Chocolate Shake

This recipe is perfect for one person.

Raw Chocolate Shake

1 1/2 cups of water
1 ripe banana
1/2 teaspoon raw cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon agave nectar

Blend! Adjust measurements to suit your taste. I like to go easy on the cocoa powder and then add more if necessary. Enjoy this raw chocolate shake recipe!

--Emily

Lettuce Wraps

Lettuce Wraps

INGREDIENTS:

2 very ripe avocados
3 tomatoes, diced
1/2 jalapeno pepper, diced
2 tbsp yellow onion, diced
3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
kernels from one ear raw organic corn
2 tsp fresh lime juice
6-8 large romaine lettuce leaves
PREPARATION:

In a medium sized bowl, mash the avocado.

Add remaining ingredients and stir until well mixed.

Spread 2-3 tablespoons of this mixture onto lettuce leaves and wrap. Enjoy!

--Emily

Teriyaki Bowls

This is really an idea more than a recipe... One of those things that is quick, easy, and doesn't require any before-hand thinking. It's a standard at our house and the thing that I cook when I don't know what to cook :)

Teriyaki Bowls:

Cooked brown rice
topped with:
Cooked black beans
Steamed broccoli florrets, sliced carrots, and sliced bell peppers.
(steam the broccoli and carrots together then add the peppers when almost done so they don't over-cook)
Then we just top with whatever teriyaki or asian sauce we have on hand. I should probably make my own but I haven't yet.

PS- Did you know that I once met a man named "Terry Yaki." Not a joke. Completely true story.

Fiesta Rotini

Great as a meal with a couple veggie sides or as a more substantial snack to keep in the fridge. My boys really like it.

Fiesta Rotini

1 box whole wheat rotini (did you know Walmart makes a brand now? $1.00/box)
2 tbsp. olive oil
4 cloves minced garlic
1 med onion chopped finely (more or less depending on your tastes)
2 small-med zucchini chopped into cubes
1/3 cup pepperocini peppers, chopped (if you didn't want to have that added expense it would be fine without)
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 14oz can diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained
1 can olives, sliced in half (the olives not the can... hehe)
Grated Parmesan (if you want it vegan I'm sure it would taste good without... you could maybe add some nutritional yeast for a cheesy flavor... haven't tried it but I bet it would work)

Cook Rotini according to package directions. In large pan cook garlic and onion in oil until soft. Add zucchini and peppers. Cook 2 min stirring occasionally. Add chili powder, tomatoes and olives. Bring to boil and reduce heat and simmer until zucchini cooked to desired state (don't over cook them!). Put drained rotini in large bowl, pour sauce over and toss. Serve with grated parm.

This one is good hot or cold. If you wanted to add cooked black beans to this I bet it would taste nice too.

Stuffed Acorn Squash

Stuffed Acorn squash (this is just something we did, and loved, there is no real recipe)

2 acorn squash
tomato sauce (I most always use the same pomodoro sauce recipe that is with the eggplant recipe above.)
zucchini
summer squash
mushrooms
green, red, yellow, orange peppers (It is good with any or a bit of all of them)
onion
garbanzo beans

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put acorn squash in the microwave for one minute just to get warm enough that it is easy to cut. Cut in half. remove seeds and membranes. Microwave just to get tender. Cut, dice and slice the veggies. However you like them, just small enough that you can have a bit of everything in the squash. I sauteed mine with olive oil, garlic and bit of little red pepper flakes. Arrange your acorn squash on a cookie sheet. fill with sauteed veggies, pomodoro sauce and garbanzo beans. (I also put cheese on top of ours.) and bake about 25 mins.

[Cal is not a huge fan of garbanzo beans so I do his with some whole wheat pasta, I can't remember if it was a spinny kind or just a tubular kind, but that tasted really good too. I have also seen stuffed squash recipes with brown rice or orzo]

--Whitney

Eggplant Pomodoro

We love eggplant. Also, it felt like one eggplant went a long way (but then again it is just Cal and I, but we would have it for dinner and then we both take it for lunch the next day) but I think it makes a large pan full of these, so that is pretty good for one eggplant.

I got this recipe from rookie cookie and then switched it up to lower some calories since one cup mayonnaise seems a bit much to me.

Egg Plant Pomodoro
1 Egg plant sliced into 1/2 inch thick rounds ( I do mine a bit thinner)
Olive Oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 onion ( I just use whatever kind I have on hand), chopped
5 roma tomatos, diced ( I have also used canned tomatos, works great too. I just like to shy away from those if they have any high fructose corn syrup in them. Some canned tomato stuff does, and some doesn't)
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp oregano
1/4-1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (depending on how hot you like)
fat free or light sour cream
croutons (pulsed in a food processor) or panko, or stuffing (pulsed in a food processor) or whole wheat bread, seasoned, (pulsed in a food processor)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees
In a skillet over medium heat, heat a small amount of olive oil. Add onions and garlic and saute. Add tomatos, basil, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tomatos ar broken down, about 10 mins.

Place sour cream in a bowl (I just use however much I need) and in a seperate bowl pour your 'crumbs'.

Dip the sliced eggplant in the sour cream and then into bread crumbs. (I don't dip. I just brush on with a...baking brush...is that what they are called? I have no idea. But I like to use as little sour cream as possible so I like to just brush enough on for the crumbs to stick.

[She says to drizzle olive oil on the eggplant rounds, I don't do this step either. I have done it and maybe i just don't know how to drizzle, but it was just too much.]

Bake for 45 mins, flipping half way through.

Serve the eggplant with the tomato sauce over the top.

--Whitney

I am so excited to share this new healthy recipe with you. I am sure that not only will your taste buds love you but your husbands and children’s as well. I have wanted a raw “granola” recipe for a while or something close to that. I did not want nuts; only seeds and I found it just a few days ago.

I am going to give you the original recipe and then I will tell you the way I did it.

Pecan Bars

1 ½ cup sesame seeds
3/4 cup honey
1c coconut
¼ cup powdered milk
½ c sunflower seeds
½ tsp vanilla
½ cup pecans

Place seeds and coconut in 11x8 pan, toast in oven 400 for 15 minutes. Put honey and powdered milk in sauce pan and bring to boil; remove from heat and add vanilla. When seed mixture is done toasting pour honey mixture over the seed mixture; stir well and press together. Allow to cool; cut into bars and wrap individually in plastic wrap. Make about 16-18


MY WAY

No pecans. I used ½ cup pumpkin seeds (green, in bulk at health food stores or health food isle), ¼ cup flax seed (omega 3), ¼ cup honey and ½ cup AGAVE (my new favorite thing), 1 tsp vanilla (I love VANILLA a little too much). Those are the only changes I made. You can do whatever the heck you want. You could add dried fruit, almonds or chocolate. The sky is the limit!

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do.

Love,

Emily

Baked Oatmeal

Baked Oatmeal

1/2 C. Applesauce
1/2 C. Sugar
2 Eggs
1 C. Milk
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 T. Baking Powder
3 C. Quick Oats (I used regular not quick and it turned out fine)
1/2 C. Raisins (optional) I didn't add raisins. But craisins might be really nice?!
2 T. Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

Mix applesauce and sugar together. Add eggs, milk, salt, baking powder and oatmeal. Pour into a greased 8x8 pan or similar sized casserole dish. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes. You can either make this in the morning and bake it right away or make it the night before and refrigerate it overnight. Serves 6-8.

I forgot the brown sugar/cinnamon topping and it still tasted really good. Not too sweet at all. I just wanted to try something new for breakfast, and break into a grain other than wheat. I HATE to eat a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast, but I liked this. We put some apple pie filling that I had canned on top and it was yummy. I know that adds sugar, but I feel less guilty when it's something homemade like that.

Ash opted for apples cooked on top, and I think that really any sort of fruit, dried or otherwise would taste nice in this.

Thanks Everyone!

Katie

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

So, here is the recipe we use for whole wheat pizza dough Katie, and we love it. I just got the recipe from Nie Nie on cuisinenie (which I use ALL THE TIME) and it makes quite a bit. Also, it is a pretty cheap recipe to throw together, depending on how much you put on top.

Whole What Pizza Dough - NieNie

1 C. Warm water (I normally use a tad more, after it is all mixed to make it more moist)
1 envelope active dry yeast
2 3/4 C. Whole wheat flour
1 t. salt
1/4 t sugar
2 T olive oil

Add yeast to one cup warm water. Let sit. Mix dry ingredients together, then add olive oil and mix. Add yeast mixture and combine kneading for about 5 minutes. Let rise for 30-45 minutes, roll out, add toppings and cook at 450 degrees for 15-18 minutes.

Ok, some things that I have learned we really like with the recipe. First I'll start with the yeast. You guys probably already know about this yeast, but I just discovered it this summer and it totally has made the difference in my yeasty adventures! ha! So, it is called saf-instant yeast. It is really not touchy at all, and that is why I love it! Instead of adding it to the warm water with the sugar and letting it proof, you just add it to your dry ingredients and mix with them and then add the warm water. No need to let it sit, no need to worry about the temp of the water, nothing. It really is awesome. So, if you already knew that, well now you just know how great I think it is!
Also, second thing, we love to add avocados and lime on the pizza after it is baked.

I actually just sprinkle corn meal on the bottom of a cookie sheet and roll out the dough right on the cookie sheet, poke holes with a fork, add the toppings (we like pesto sauce the best for the sauce) and then bake. It usually takes more than 18 minutes in my oven though, probably becuase I load enough veggies on it to count for our veggie servings for all week!

So, there is the whole wheat dough recipe that we use!

Thanks for the recipes guys!
Whit

Lentils are so much better than Ground Beef

Mock Taco Meat

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 cloves minced garlic
1 cup dried lentils, picked through for rocks, and rinsed
a lot of taco seasoning (I have a large container and would guestimate that we use...1/4-1/3 cup?)
2 and 1/2 cups veggie broth + more if necessary

Saute onions and garlic in oil till soft. Add lentils and seasoning and cook 1 minute more. Add veggie broth and deglaze the pan. Bring to boil. Cover and reduce heat. Simmer until lentils are tender 25-30 min. (Whit has told me that hers always take longer than that to cook- and I always end up using more broth than the recipe calls for)

These babies can be used as a substitute anywhere that you would normally use ground beef taco meat. For instance: taco salad or just plain old crisp tacos.

In the Burton family's opinion you cannot eat these taco lentils without sliced olives... just wouldn't be as good. Other than that we just do whatever. No recipe necessary to tell you how to make typical taco salad or tacos I'm pretty sure.

This is one of my only recipes that Corey requests on a regular basis. He told me that he genuinely prefers the taste of it to ground beef taco meat. Glory Hallelujah!