Changes...

So, here are some pictures explaining why I haven't blogged in THREE YEARS... (yikes!) 

I graduated college and entered the great big grown up working world. 

I got pregnant and had the most adorable baby girl ever.  She's almost 17 months now, and has more Evil Kneival spirit in her than most boys.  No fear. & endless energy. 

But I miss writing, so, hi again! I thought I'd share a list of quick, easy ways I get vegetables into our crazy busy schedule, AND make them likable. ;-P

Purée 1/2 to a whole cup each raw carrots, onions, bell pepper, and frozen or fresh spinach. Add to rice when you cook it, along with a 1/2 cup extra water or chicken broth. (Making rice with chicken broth is... Just yum! ) I usually use these amounts when cooking up a whole pound of brown rice.  I then freeze family-sized portions in ziplock bags with with the air squeezed out.  Microwave 2 minutes at a time to thaw. 

When making macaroni and cheese (I like Annie's organic boxes... Good for tummies and wallets!) add 1 cup frozen peas and carrots or Lima beans to the cold water before it boils. Leave them in and prepare the macaroni and cheese as normal.  Add some garlic powder, white pepper, and Parmesan to taste, along with the cheese powder.  

Buy spaghetti sauce that has a serving of veggies in it. Kroger store brand has a variety of red sauces with 1 cup of vegetables in them, and they are waaaay too good for a store brand. Red pepper and garlic and mushroom and onion are my faves. 

Buy pasta made with a serving of vegetables.  They really don't taste any different.  Just get used to having green or orange noodles.  Your body will thank you. 

Buy frozen sweet potato fries.  It's that easy. We like them sprinkled with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and a locally bought mild Cajun seasoning.  And LOTS OF KETCHUP.  Ketchup's a vegetable, right? 

Use frozen veggies.  When I first got married, I made a gourmet meal every night for six months. Then I plunked down on the kitchen floor and cried over ruined bread, and some stuff changed.  Unless it's in season and on sale, I pretty much always buy my vegetables frozen now.  They're pre-washed and cut and ready to go, so it's much easier to throw them into meals.  And since Kroger sells a great selection of them on a perpetual 10 for $10 "sale," I can get the veggies I need at a good price year round. They sell pretty much every veggie/combo that you need for most normal (read- not exotic) recipe.  It's a choice I had to make for my family- we don't eat as much organic produce as we used to when I went to the farmers market every other week and froze my own veggies.  But this is what I have time for now, and it's still a lot better than not eating vegetables. 

Add a handful of vegetables to your regular recipes.  This might require a little research to see what goes well with what cuisine, but I always just think about what they pair with the entrees in restaurants.  Zucchini, tomatoes, onions, and eggplant with Italian dishes.  Zucchini, bell peppers, cabbage, onions, carrots, peas, corn, mushrooms ( and a lot more!) are the most popular with Asian cuisine.  Lima beans, black beans, corn, tomatoes, and sweet or hot peppers with Latin dishes.  Tomatoes and bell peppers with some African dishes.  Cucumbers, purple onions, and tomatoes with Mediterranean food.  Just start with chopping up a small amount and tossing it in with your dish.  

Get more creative with salads, sandwiches, and omelettes.  Add some thinly sliced fresh bell pepper.  Include tomato and carrots.  Peel strips of skin off a raw zucchini or yellow squash, then slice thinly and toss it in. Spice it up with some hot peppers. Dollop on salsa instead of tomatoes for zing, or replace dressing/dip with a salsa.  Experiment with salsas.  

And those, ladies and gents, are my humble, not-so-tricky tricks for sneaking veggies into my family's tummies.  Hope you found something useful! 

Dinner of the week! and overdue Double Green tip + Dessert recipe is on the way!

Happy Sunday! I hope everyone else is enjoying beautiful change-of-season weather like we are in MS! Just getting a hint of fall is so exciting- I've been cooking squash, grilling out, burning spice candles and listening to flocks of geese through wide open windows... just typing these things puts a contented smile on my face.  I hope everyone else loves fall weather (or at least fall food) because I guarantee you'll be seeing a fall-ish trend on this blog for a bit (until I get sick of it and turn to Christmas!).

So... how about a SUPER easy Dinner of the Week with a side of Roasted Butternut Squash?

 FANTASTIC Marinated Grilled Chicken
(from the kitchen of one of my best friend's mothers)

Ingredients

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts (you can also buy skin-on bone-in for cheaper and do it yourself- I'll give you tips!)
1 large bottle of basic Italian dressing (brand really doesn't matter- we went totally cheap-o when we did this)

Method

Tips to de-bone and skin chicken breasts yourself: 

Skinning it-

1. TOTALLY thaw the chicken if it's frozen
2. Put a large bowl/container, a large trash can, and a big paper towel roll by the sink BEFORE you start. A strainer is also useful for rinsing the chicken, but not completely necessary.
3. Turn the water on- you want very warm (but not hot) water.  A gushing stream is not necessary, however.
4. One piece at a time, hold the chicken breasts under the water.  There will be a slit somewhere in the skin- try to get the flow to go between the skin and meat there.  This helps separate them.  Place your thumb in the pocket between the skin and meat, and pull.  Discard skin in the trash as you pull.  Once you get the skin mostly off/mostly loose, you can use a paper towel to grasp it better and pull it completely off. 
5. I find it useful to place skinned chicken in a bowl as I finish it, then rinse them all in a strainer and pat them dry with paper towels.  It's easier to cut chicken that's not slippery wet.

Deboning it-

1. Use a slender, serrated knife.  Find the flat bone that runs along one side of the breast.  Slice into the breast as close to it as possible, and try to slide/scrape the knife between the meat and bone across the width of the chicken.  This gets you the majority of the breast.
2. Using a similar scraping technique, cut off the smaller pieces of meat remaining.  Discard the bone in the trash.

Cooking Method:

Fill a tupperware-type container with chicken breasts and pour the entire bottle of dressing over them.  Refrigerate/marinate overnight (you can even do it for two days- YUM!)
When your grill is ready, shake the excess marinade off the chicken, and grill for about 5-8 minutes a side, until no longer pink in the center. 

Roasted Butternut Squash

Ingredients:
1 butternut squash
2-4 cloves fresh garlic, chopped coarsely
1 T fresh chopped or dried rosemary
1 T fresh chopped or dried parsley
1 t fresh chopped or dried thyme
1 t salt
1 t pepper
2 T olive oil
Parmesan cheese

Method:

Microwave the whole squash for about 3 minutes on 70-80% power.  This makes it easier to cut.  Using a large butcher knife, cut it in half lengthwise.  Use a vegetable peeler to skin it.  Peel it until the orange flesh shows and the green veins are gone.  Use a tablespoon to scrape out the seeds.  Slice into appx. 1 inch cubes. 
Toss squash and all other ingredients except cheese in a large bowl.  Line a roasting pan or casserole dish with foil or parchment paper.  Put squash mixture in the dish and back at 450 degrees for about 35-45 minutes.  Ever 10 minutes or so, gently flip and stir the squash.  When it begin to get darker and a little golden, Sprinkle heavily with Parmesan cheese and broil for about 5 minutes.  Squash and garlic should be lightly browned. 

Enjoy!!

Pasta and a Sweet Tooth Treat :)

Sorry for neglecting you for a while! School started not long after my last post, which means my time is much more precious.  I do, however, intend to squeeze a few minutes for this. :)

For the record, I'm quite excited to share this Dinner of the Week with you.  It was SUPER easy, healthy, cheap, and the hubby loved it! Can't get much better than that.  

Pasta Alla Norma (aka eggplant spaghetti) 
from Spicy Food

Ingredients:

1 eggplant
3 cans diced tomatoes
2-4 cloves garlic, chopped
5-6 T olive oil
salt alternative
salt
crushed red pepper
pasta of your choice
Parmesan Cheese

Method:

Slice the eggplant into 1/4 inch thick rounds.  Layer in a strainer, sprinkling each layer with salt, and place a heavy plate on top.  This helps some of the bitter juices to drain out.

In a large cast iron skillet, saute garlic in olive oil.  When it begins to color (it should turn more yellow), drain the tomatoes and add them to the skillet.  Sprinkle with salt alternative and red pepper to taste.  I do about 1-2 tsps salt and 2-3 tsps red pepper.  Allow the tomatoes to simmer, stirring occasionally, for a FULL 15 minutes.  While the tomatoes cook, boil your pasta with a tsp of olive oil until it is "al dente," i.e., done but still a little stiff, not soft. 

Drain pasta,and toss in an oven-safe dish with tomato sauce.  Cover with an oven safe lid or foil and place in the oven on warm. 

Using a paper towel, press and blot eggplant slices.  Saute in the same skillet you used for the sauce, adding olive oil as needed to keep slices from sticking.  Cook them until they are browned on both sides. Place finished slices on a plate while you cook the rest. 

Pull pasta dish out of the oven and lay eggplant slices on top.  GENTLY toss until mixed.  When you serve it, top each plate/bowl with Parmesan. 

Enjoy!! this makes about 4 servings. 

And now for.... Dessert!!!

Easy Lemon Icebox Pie

Ingredients

6 lemons

4 eggs, yolks and whites separated

2 cans sweetened condensed milk
graham cracker crumb crust (bought or made)
cool whip or meringue topping (I'll share how I made my meringue)
1/2 t cream of tartar (for meringue)
1/4 c sugar (for meringue)
Method:

If making your own crust:

place about 8-10 whole graham cracker squares in a large ziplock bag and crush with a rolling pin.  In a bowl, mix with 1/4 cup white sugar and 1/2 c melted butter (add only a little more melted butter if it's too dry.  However, it should be crumbly).  Carefully press into a pie pan, and bake at 300 for about 10-15 minutes, until the edges are golden and it's very fragrant.  Place on countertop and allow to cool.

Zest and juice all 6 lemons in a large bowl. Whisk in sweetened condensed milk.  In a separate bowl, beat egg yolks until the color changes (this may take up to 10 minutes, but the improved texture and richness is worth it.)  Whisk in egg yolks.  Pour into crust.  If making meringue, follow below directions.  If not, bake 15 minutes at 350.

For Meringue topping:

Using about 3/4 of the egg whites, and cream of tartar, beat egg whites on high until they form soft peaks.  add sugar one Tbsp at a time, continuing to beat egg whites until stiff peaks form.  Spread over pie filling, sealing the edges to the crust.  Bake at 350 10-15 minutes, until tips are lightly golden.

Allow pie to cool at room temperature, then store in the fridge.  If using cool whip topping, top AFTER it's cooled. 

What's your favorite pie?  or favorite pasta?  Please share via email or comment, I'd love to hear what you have to say!


till next week, 

Jess

TRIPLE (yes, triple!) Green Tip ;-)

I'm really excited about this month's Double Green Tip!! This one is not only good for your earth and your wallet, but your health. :) (thus, the "triple" green part- it's good for life!)  Today I wanna talk about lunchmeat.  First off, "brownbagging" your lunches for school or work are such a no-brainer money+earth saver that it's hardly worth mentioning.  We've all heard it a thousand times.  But, as I look through the lunchmeat options at the store, I find myself disappointed.  They're all more or less high-sodium (except the rare low-salt honey-ham, which the hubby hates... figures.).  The pre-packaged kind wastes $$ and kills freshness with the plastic packaging, and the fresh sliced deli kind is more expensive and still highly processed.  And the price, regardless of sales, really isn't that great.  Unless you like bologna. (ugh!- I ate WAY too many fried bologna sandwiches as a kid!)
So, I decided to do something different.I bought a whole turkey- a 6 lb Butterball.  The average sodium content for an uncooked whole turkey is usually around 250 mg a serving (source: Butterball.com).  Compared to the average packaged turkey that has about 775, that's fantastic (source: Livestrong.com)! WAY better for your heart and arteries!  And here's my personal favorite part- a small frozen turkey averages about $1-$1.50 a lb, while lunch meat averages $3 a lb!! and if you cook it at home and store it in re-usable containers, you are cutting down on packaging that hurts Mother Earth.
I'll admit, it seems a bit overwhelming to cook a whole turkey (especially when you're a new housewife like me!).  However, by simply following the thawing and cooking times on the package, seasoning it (inside and out) with "No-Salt" and sodium-free cajun seasoning, and "tenting" it with foil once it was out of the oven (to increase moisture), it turned out perfect! After it was cooked, I let it cool down for a good bit (30-45 minutes), then peeled the skin off and carved it.  Freeze portions of the meat in containers, and you've got delicious, healthy, cheap lunchmeat for a month!  And heck, if you want to save even more money, you could do this with a whole frozen chicken, which averages at or below $1 a pound!
How do you save money on your lunches? Let me know!

I hope you all have a fantastic weekend!

Jess

Eggplant Craze!

So, if I haven't mentioned it before, my husband has very slight pre-hypertension (runs in the fam), which fuels a lot of my motivation to cook healthier.  Turns out eggplant is a very heart-healthy veggie- which means I'm trying it out.  I've had it cooked for me by my Ukrainian aunt before, and it was delicious, so I went in expecting good things.  I have no idea why this veggie is feared by children! It's soft, mild, and smooth going down.  and much less intimidating to cook than one would think.  I got this (super easy!) recipe from Spicy Foods by Stendhal, which is a great resource for flavorful ethnic cuisine.  This is a Middle Eastern dish. I adapted the recipe only slightly, to streamline preparation.

Dinner of the Week

Iman Junior

Ingredients:

1 eggplant, with skin on, chopped into 1/2 inch cubes
2 can diced no-salt tomatoes
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 c fresh cilantro (or substitute 3-4 T dried cilantro and fresh spinach)
Salt
Pepper (fresh-ground adds a good kick to this dish, buts it's not completely necessary.  A mix of white and black pepper is also a yummy rendition.)
crushed red pepper
several Tbsps olive oil
1/4 c boiling water

Method:

In a very large cast-iron skillet, layer the eggplant, tomatoes, and onions, sprinkling a little salt, generous pepper, and some of the herbs/greens between layers.  Top with red pepper and garlic.  Pour boiling water and a good drizzle of oil over top.  Bring to a simmer with a tight lid or foil seal on skillet, and let simmer for 30-40 minutes, until oil forms a kind of gravy.  Serve over rice as a main dish, or with crackers as a spread for an appetizer.

I hope you enjoy my venture into Mediterranean Cuisine! What's your favorite cuisine?  Do you have any good eggplant recipes to share? Please feel free to comment or email me with answers! And keep checking back for this month's Double Green Tip, I intend to post it later this week. :)

of new jobs and processed peas

I'm so sorry for having abandoned you for the past few weeks.  You see, I just started a new job as the afterschool coordinator at a daycare.  I love it, but it's tiring, and while working there, I've been eating the same processed lunches the kids get and thinking a lot less about food.  But luckily, when the kids start school, my presence won't be required when they serve processed peas and "steak nuggets" (what?!) for lunch.  yay!
But while I've neglected writing, I have thought about you a lot! and I promise to catch you up on the fantastic homemade granola and crockpot chicken soup that happened last week.  :)

Soup first.

In an effort to save money, I decided to buy a whole baking hen rather than boneless skinless breasts, and cook and separate it myself.  Doing so really does save a lot of money.  Rather than spend $8ish on a few pounds of chicken breasts that would last about 1 1/2 to 2 weeks (if I'm lucky), I spent $5ish on slightly more poundage, and got free healthy chicken broth to boot! I got the idea from blog I recently started stalking, The Cheapskate Cook. 

Ingredients:
1 baking hen, thawed, gizzards removed
1/2 an onion, chopped
1-2 c raw/fresh frozen veggies like carrots, celery, turnips, potatoes, etc. (chopped)
1 bay leaf (optional- I didn't use one because I didn't have it on hand, and it was still great.)
2  cloves fresh garlic, chopped
1-2 T each of your favorite herbs/spices.  I used rosemary, basil, oregano, and black pepper.
a sprinkling of salt (added at the end)
water

After removing the gizzards (not difficult at all once the chicken is thawed) and rinsing it, place 1/2 of the onion, herbs, and spices inside the chest cavity.  Place the chicken in the crockpot.  Surround with the rest of the ingredients.  Pour water slowly into the crockpot until an inch or two below the edge. 
Turn it on low for about 6-8 hours, or high for 3-4 hours. Add salt.

You're done!

Once the chicken's cooked, turn off the crockpot and allow it to cool. If you want, you can pull out some of the veggies and meat for a quick and easy dinner (I did!). You get the most out of your chicken if you debone it (save the bones for more broth if you want- they can be used twice); put the meat, bones, and broth each in their own freezer bag and you have makings for lots of healthy chicken-based meals on hand!

and to make soup:

1 1/2 c chicken broth

1 1/2 c water

1 c shredded chicken

1/2 c fresh frozen carrots and peas

1/2 t rosemary

1/2 t ginger

1/2 t salt

1/2 t pepper

1/2 c orzo

Method:

Toss everything but the chicken in a pot and bring it to a slow boil. Add the chicken and boil for just a few minutes so it gets hot, but not flavorless. Enjoy!!

See now, wasn't that easy?  The granola was too :)  I got the base recipe from a blog called Smitten Kitchen.  The best part? It's truly healthy granola, so you can eat dessert for breakfast and not feel guilty. :)

So now for the first .... (imagine me tapping out a drumroll on my keyboard...) Dessert of the Month!!!

Homemade Granola Bars

Ingredients

1 2/3 c rolled oats (NOT the quick-cook kind)
1/2 to 3/4 sugar (granulated, artificial, or brown, it's up to you.  So far, I've used granulated and it's good.)
1/3 c oat flour (easily made by placing rolled oats in a food processor or blender till they're in very small bits)
1/2 t salt alternative (optional)
1/4 t ground cinnamon (optional)
1/4 c Dried fruit, nuts, candy, or cereal.  (So far, I've experimented with chocolate chips, sunflower seeds, Rice Krispies, and dried blueberries, and they're all fantastic.)
1/3 c peanut or other nut butter (I recommend crunchy!)
1 t vanilla (optional)
7 t melted butter or oil (use olive oil or canola butter if you want to be healthier)
1/3 c sweet syrup (i.e. honey, maple, corn, or agave syrup)
1 T water
2 T ground or whole flax seeds (optional)

Method

Line a baking pan longways with parchment paper so that it covers only the center (not the sides), but come up over the edges at the ends. Grease or butter the paper and pan.  Stir together dry ingredients.  Place all liquid ingredients in a microwaveable container and zap them for a couple of minutes on medium power.  Stir the liquids until the peanut butter melts into the rest.  Slowly drizzle into the dry mixture while gently stirring and tossing.  Press the mixture into the pan.  Pack it as densely as you can.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes (until golden brown all over top).  Allow the granola to cool COMPLETELY, and for best results chill overnight in the fridge.  Don't get impatient and cut them warm like I did with my first batch.  Unless you want yummy granola in a non-bar form in your cereal for the next week. ;)  Once they're cool,  use the parchment paper to carefully lift the granola out of the pan onto a large cutting board.  Cut it into squares with a long carving knife or butcher knife.  For ultimate freshness, wrap them individually in saran wrap and store them in a ziplock or tupperware container in the fridge. 

SOOOO GOOD!!

I hope that tides you over till next time.  And if that takes a little over a week, I apologize... My hubby's laptop has to get sent away and fixed, and I don't have one of my own right now 'cause I drowned the last one, so internet access is gonna be a little scarce at our house. :( 

Dinner of the Week- Chicken Burritos

Hello again!

So, this week's recipe is fairly simple, but if you love Mexican food (as I do) I don't think it'll disappoint.  I personally could eat Mexican/Hispanic food nearly every day of the week, and found this to be a nice little twist on regular burritos. 

Chicken Burritos

1 lb ground chicken
1 can diced tomatoes with green chiles
2 T cumin
2 T cilantro
2 t low-sodium cajun seasoning
1 t salt alternative
a few dashes of Tobasco
2 t garlic (fresh or powder, I prefer fresh)
dash black pepper
dash red pepper


Method:

Brown the meat in a large frying pan.  Ground chicken is softer than other ground meats, so it needs to be cooked on a slightly lower temperature (that way it doesn't burn).  Once the meat is browned, add the rest of the ingredients, cover, and simmer for 30-45 minutes. 

Something I really like on my burritos is homemade Mexican rice.

Mexican Rice

1 c rice (white or brown)
2 c water
1 small can tomato paste
2 T cumin
1 t salt alternative
dash low-sodium cajun seasoning
2-3 T of your favorite salsa
1 t cilantro
1 T oil

Cook rice as directed, but add stir in tomato paste with the water.  Once cooked, heat the oil in a large frying pan or skillet, and toss rice gently with oil and rest of ingredients.  Allow to simmer and lightly brown, then remove from heat.

I recommend topping your burritos with fresh grated mozzarella cheese. It balances the often spicy flavors of Mexican food perfectly, and the creaminess of freshly grated cheese can't be beat.  You can find hunks of part-skim mozzarella next to the queso cheeses in most grocery stores, and it's usually one of the better priced low-fat cheeses available. I like to grate this myself and freeze it in bags for easy use. 

Serve the burrito fixings with large tortillas and toppings of your choice.

Hope you enjoy! See you next week!