Does it "pay" to make baby food?

According to Consumer Reports, certain fruits and vegetables have been found to retain pesticides even after cleaning and washing. These fruits and veggies are important to buy organic.

At the regular grocery, Gerber or Earth's Best Organic fruits and veggies run 1.29-1.79 per 2 4 oz containers.

I made organic sweet potatoes, squash, carrots and portioned out some canned organic pumpkin puree - in total I got 25 4 oz containers.

If you do the math, this results in at least 5 dollars savings over Gerber Organic at the lowest sale price. This savings might be even better if I hadn't bought the vegetables at Whole Foods - they are notoriously expensive!

Sunday - cooking day!

I purposely planned a light pre-prep week for myself and it sure did pay off. After only an hour or two in the kitchen, the husband and I had made 1 and a half Chicken Tamale Casseroles and 1 and a half Canadian Living's Macaroni and Cheese with Ham and Cauliflower (recipes below). I am making the lasagnas tonight, one to freeze and one to cook in a few days. The chili will be put together in the crockpot the morning that we plan to eat it.

Using Sunday as cooking/prep day works out REALLY WELL for our family because the baby crawls around getting into things (this time it was the poor dog who was chased around the kitchen nonstop) and making trouble (I left a bag of cans from the grocery store on the floor, nuff said!). She tires herself out completely and then gets a bath, bottle and bed by 7:00PM. Mommy and Daddy are able to collapse on the couch by 7:30PM. Ahhhh, that relaxation time is so important! We are watching Willy Wonka right now.

Chicken Tamale Casserole
This is a Cooking Light recipe, image borrowed from the linked site. Yields 8 servings, my modifications are in [ ]. We made 1 as the recipe suggests, and another 1/2 recipe in an 8x8 pan.
*****This was excellent. It will go on regular rotation. The sweetness of the corn, the spiciness of the chicken with salsa and taco seasoning, everything about it was good. The only "problem" was that we wanted to eat more of it than we should have.

Ingredients:
1 cup pre-shredded 4 cheese mexican blend
1/3 cup skim milk
1/4 cup egg substitute [I used 1 real egg, didn't have substitute on hand]
1 tsp cumin [we love cumin, I added a tbl]
1/8 tsp ground red pepper [I added a tbl of smoked paprika]
1 can creamed corn
1 (8.5 oz) package corn bread mix [I used JIFFY]

1 (4 oz) can green chilies
1 can red enchilada sauce
2 cups shredded chicken breast
1/2 cup FF sour cream [we omitted this because we forgot and it was still great]
[I added 1/2 cup medium salsa, 2 tbl taco seasoning and 1/2 sauteed onion to the chicken because I've found plain shredded chicken to be bland in the past!]

Instructions:
Preheat Oven to 400 degrees.

Combine 1/4 cup of the cheese and the first 7 ingredients in a medium bowl, whisk to combine. Pour mixture into a 9x13 pan coated with cooking spray.

Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes until set.

Pierce the cake surface with a fork repeatedly and pour over the can of enchilada sauce.

Top with the chicken mixture, sprinkle with the remaining cheese.

Bake for 15-20 mins or until brown and bubbly.


Canadian Living's Macaroni and Cheese with Ham and Cauliflower
Taken from Recipe Zaar (recipe # 92795)
Yields a large casserole dish with 4 big servings and another smaller side-dish portion for freezing.
*****We have made this twice now and both times it was awesome! Freezes and thaws well, too. Freeze without the bread crumbs.

2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
1 cup diced cooked ham
1 head cauliflower, cut into small florets
1/3 cup flour
3 cups milk
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/16 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 1/2 cups shredded old cheddar cheese
3 cups uncooked macaroni
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

• 
  

In a saucepan, melt butter over medium heat; saute onion and ham until onion is soft. Simultaneously, steam the cauliflower until fork tender. Add flour and cook, stirring until well mixed. Slowly add milk, whisking constantly, until mixture starts to thicken. Add mustard, salt, pepper and cayenne. Stir in cheddar cheese until just melted. While making sauce, cook macaroni in a separate pot, until tender but firm. Drain and put back into pot. Combine with sauce, then pour into a 2 litre baking dish or casserole dish. In a small bowl combine parmesan and bread crumbs. Sprinkle over macaroni mixture. Broil for about 3 minutes, until brown.

Planning and Lists Day!

We are all out of homemade baby food. And the fridge and freezer are empty (we ate the last frozen "Deep Dish Pizza Casserole" on Thursday)! MAYDAY! MAYDAY!

This weekend I will make:

Sweet potato and raisin muffins using the nice organic steamed sweet potatoes that I made for the baby - she hated them! They are a special variety of WHITE sweet potatoes and are a bit more starchy than the orange sweet potatoes and I guess that was not acceptable to her!

Orange-colored sweet potato puree (I did 2 large sweet potatoes and got an absolute TON of food!)
Butternut squash and carrot Puree
Carrot puree
Mango puree (already have cubed frozen mangoes, just need to puree)

Traditional Italian Lasagna with spinach (with an extra to freeze)
Ham and Cauliflower Mac and Cheese
Tofu Stir Fry
Hard Times Cincinnati Chili
Chicken Tamale Casserole

I'm back! Let's talk Turkey.

I took last week off from Once A Week Cooking because of Thanksgiving - I had so much preparation to do! I had the in laws over for the holiday meal and now I have a big bowl of leftover turkey in the refrigerator. Since I have a weird thing about poultry - it takes gross to me as a leftover - I have to spice it up good to eat it again. This week we will make the following Turkey dishes:

For Monday and Tuesday:
Rachel Ray's Turkey Corn Chili (I use the crockpot here)
Bombay Turkey Curry with garbanzo beans and potatoes

For Wednesday and Thursday:
Pastitio - this is a recipe I've already used, see it here
Salad with chicken nuggets

Rachel Ray's Turkey Corn Chili
Taken from The Food Network
I make this in the crockpot - basically throw all of the ingredients in! But I've provided the original recipe here.
***This is really nothing special. We are kinda bored with it but it is a good way to use leftover chicken or turkey.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon (1 turn around the pan in a slow stream) extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 large bell pepper, red or green, chopped (use up leftover pepper strips from crudite tray if you have them)
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
• 1 1/2 pounds light and dark meat cooked turkey meat, diced
• 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons (a palm full) chili powder
• 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons (a palm full) ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon to 2 teaspoons (several drops) cayenne pepper sauce
• Coarse salt
• 2 cups frozen corn kernels or leftover prepared corn
• 1 (32-ounce) can chunky style crushed tomatoes
• 2 cups prepared chicken stock or broth, paper container or canned
• 2 scallions, white and greens, chopped

Directions

Heat a deep pot over medium high heat. Work close to the stove for your chopping. Add oil to your pot, 1 turn of the pan, and add vegetables as you chop them.

Add bay leaf and cook vegetables 5 minutes, stirring frequently, reducing heat if veggies start to stick. Stir in diced turkey meat and season with chili powder, cumin, and cayenne sauce. Season with a little salt, to taste. Add corn, tomatoes, and broth. Combine your chili well, adjust seasonings, reduce heat to medium low, and simmer for 7 to 10 minutes. Garnish chili with chopped scallions.

Bombay Turkey Curry

Taken from recipe zaar recipe 123104

*****This marinade is incredible and we have now used it on both chicken breasts and leftover turkey with flawless results. YUM.

* 1/4 cup EVOO
* 2tbl mustard
* 1/4 cup honey
* 1 teaspoon seasoning salt
* 1 teaspoon chili powder
* 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
* 1 tbl curry powder
* 1/4 teaspoon pepper
* 1 tbl garam masala
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* Leftover turkey, 2 cups

Marinate the turkey in all of the above.

Cook with potatoes, chick peas, serve over brown rice.

A great recipe I have rediscovered

Right before my baby was born, we saw this recipe on Giada DiLaurentiis's show "Everyday Italian." We tried it - it is FABULOUS. It's not awful for you and it is such a yummy breakfast. We made it a few times while I was on maternity leave and have made it a few times since. I hope you enjoy it as we do! I stole the photo from the Food Network Website, I hope they don't mind.



Berry Strata
from: The Food Network
Serves 4
*****We make this quite regularly. The tartness of the berries combined with the creamy ricotta and bread is wonderful.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons honey
4 large eggs
1/2 cup whole milk ricotta
3 tablespoons sugar
1 cup whole milk
1/4 cup orange juice
4 slices of bread, torn into 1-inch pieces (about 4 cups)
1 (10-ounce) bag frozen mixed berries, thawed and drained

Directions

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Turn off the heat, add the honey, and stir to combine.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine the eggs, ricotta, and sugar. Using a fork, mix to combine and beat the eggs. Add the milk, orange juice, butter and honey mixture, and bread. Stir to combine. Gently fold in the berries. Place the ingredients in a 10-inch round (2-quart) baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours and up to 12 hours. [I make this the night before we will eat it]

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake the strata until golden on top and baked through, about 40 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving. Spoon into dishes and serve.

Tuesday: Chili and Mac and Cheese

They don't seem to go together, do they? You're right. That's because I had White Chicken Chili for lunch and Mac and Cheese with chicken burgers for dinner.

The white chicken chili was great this time - I used chicken thighs instead of breasts. It adds a flavor that is hard to describe but is yum. I had to cook it for many hours in the crock, because I did not pre-cook the beans at all. I highly recommend using dried beans in this recipe as I think it would be way too wet otherwise. Don't forget to rehydrate overnight before use. I made my changes to the recipe linked above.

Jaime's Grandmother's Mac and Cheese

Taken from and linked to Jaime's Kitchen.
*****This could easily be beefed up with some veggies to make it even better. As is, it is tasty and not as bad for you as you might expect. I got 7 servings out of it. I can honestly say that I will never eat boxed mac n cheese again.

Ingredients: 2 cups elbow macaroni (regular or whole wheat) 2 Tb reduced-fat butter or margarine 1 Tb flour 2 cups skim milk ½ lb (2 cups or 8 oz) shredded Kraft 2% Sharp Cheddar or Sargento Reduced-Fat Mild Cheddar ½ of a small onion, grated or finely chopped 1 tsp salt 1/3 cup breadcrumbs

Directions:
Cook macaroni, drain, and set aside.

Jaime's instructions:
Melt butter or margarine in saucepan. Add onion, flour and then milk. Add salt. (Don't forget the salt!) Heat on medium-high while stirring constantly. When mixture is at a rolling boil, add ¾ of the cheese. (save the other ¼ for the top.) I recommend adding the cheese a little bit at a time so it melts nice and soft. Also be sure to keep mixture at rolling boil while adding cheese or it may not melt correctly.

How I did it:

I basically made a Roux. I cooked the onion in butter until it became soft and translucent. Then added the flour and browned a bit before adding the milk, SLOWLY in about 1/2 cup increments. Bring to a boil between additions of milk. The mixture thickened on it's own while stirring, and then I added the cheese in 1/3 cup increments or so until fully melted.

Jaime's instructions to finish up:
Put macaroni in large bowl or casserole dish. (I use a 2L round glass dish.) Pour cheese sauce over mixture; stir. Top with remaining cheese and breadcrumbs. Bake uncovered in 400º oven for 35-40 minutes.

Sunday - prep day again. .

It's Sunday so you all know what I did today. Grocery shopping and cooking! (and cleaning and playing with my baby, etc, etc)

Today I made the White Chicken Chili (still cooking because the beans take forever to cook when you use dry beans), Southwestern Pinto Beans, Deep Dish Pizza Casserole (see below, this is just a variation on Bubble Up Pizza Casserole which I had planned) and RF Macaroni and Cheese.

I realized I have plans tomorrow night for dinner so I didn't need one of the recipes. The Greek Goulash got the ax, but I still have all of the ingredients so maybe I will make it later in the week for Friday or Saturday.

I'm exhausted.


Deep Dish Pizza Casserole
This recipe is supposed to be made in a 9x13 pan and cut into 6 servings (7 WW pts each). I bought a pizza crust that had "10% more for free" so it was larger than I needed. I decided to make it into two meals. I used two 8x8 pans and froze one, and cut the one we ate tonight into 4 pieces, leaving some for lunch.
**** This was good - the husband gave mad props. ha ha.

For both meals:
3/4lb ground turkey
3/4lb TVP (search this blog for TVP for more info)
2 packages button mushrooms, sliced
32 slices pepperoni (I used regular because I couldn't find turkey), sliced
16oz Classico tomato sauce;
1 (10 oz) can refrigerated pizza crust dough - mine was "10% more free" so a bit larger
1 1/2 cups (6 oz) preshredded part-skim mozzarella cheese;
Cooking Spray
3 cloves garlic
1/2 medium onion, diced
1 tsp basil
1 tsp italian seasoning

1. Preheat over to 425.
2. Cook meat with onion, mushrooms, garlic, spices in nonstick skillet on med-high heat until browned. Stir until crumbled. Drain, return to skillet, add tomato sauce & cook until heated.
3. While meat cooks, coat a 13 x 9 baking dish with cooking spray. unroll pizza dough into it & press halfway up sides. Top bottom of crust with meat mixture. [Since I used two pans, I just cut the crust in half]
4. Stir in the TVP and pepperoni.
5. Bake uncovered at 425 for 12-15 min. Cool 5 min. before serving.

Let's talk about Tofu.

I have two package of Trader Joe's firm tofu in my refrigerator.

Can I freeze it? Anyone have any great tofu recipes?

Leave me a comment if you have any input!

Saturday, Planning Day.

This week I need to get back to basics. Measuring my portions, making more one-dish cook ahead meals, etc. To that end, I'm re-making a few things, so I'm sorry if it feels a bit redundant!

Saturday: Ham, potatoes, egg skillet. Breakfast for dinner - easy, cheap and yummy - see below.

Sunday: White chicken chili with chicken thighs. It's easiest to have a crockpot meal on prep day.

Monday: Greek Goulash: This is a Food Network recipe that Kate raves about, I love the idea of it because it has different vegetables like eggplant, olives and spinach.

Tuesday: Bubble Up Pizza Casserole: This kept really well in the fridge and I plan to make two and freeze one.

Wednesday: Southwest Baked Beans: I have all of these leftover pinto beans from last week because I messed up the rice and beans. What better use? I will try to freeze some and report back. This is recipe zaar recipe #335553. Will serve with frozen Trader Joe's chicken burgers.

Thursday: Turkey Meatloaf with Reduced Fat Mac and Cheese: an old standby comfort food, mac n cheese taken from Jaime's Kitchen.


Smokey Ham, Potato and Egg Skillet
I made this up.
Serves 2
*****We loved this! Easy to make, high in smokey spicy flavor!

4 medium potatoes, cut into small chunks and steamed in the microwave for about 6 minutes or until tender
1/2 of a lean Ham steak - I used Kirkland Brand (Costco) and it was about 4 oz
3 large eggs, 2 egg whites
Black pepper, aleppo pepper, smoked paprika to taste - about 1/2 tsp each.

Cube the ham very small and fry up in about a tsp of EVOO until browned and fragrant. Add the potatoes and cook until browned. Add the various peppers.

Whisk to scramble the eggs and add to the mix, turning over a few times until the eggs are cooked.

Serve! Low fat, low cal, high protein, high flavor!

Hi new readers!

Hi to my new readers that may have stopped by! Leave me a comment, it makes me happy :)

This is not a good week to read about my Once a Week Cooking adventures since I screwed up my rice (I overboiled it and it's all slimy and gross) and didn't make rice and beans, and used bottled dressing for my salad instead of the homemade I had planned. :) I promise in other weeks I'm fabulous at this.

The good news is that I did prepare a bunch of baby food this week that baby C has been LOVING. So this week I'm good at being a "prepared mom," but bad at being a prepared Weight Watcher.

I've sent out applications to two schools, and it's been weighing on my mind. I'm so nervous! But so excited! Can you guys imagine me as Dr. X, PROFESSOR??? I'm especially jazzed about this school: Chatham University (Image stolen from this site)Name this movie quote: "Let me know when your personal life completely falls apart, then you're ready for a promotion!"

Cheddarwurst. Or is it Cheddarworst?

It tasted good while I was eating it.

But alllll dayyyyyy today I've had heartburn, salty bloaty feeling and I feel sluggish.

No more cheddarworst for this family.

Tonight we are making the Durban Chicken with rice and beans. Things have gotten mix up a bit from the original plan but that's OK with me.

Vegetarian Rice and Beans
Recipe zaar recipe # 200138

2 medium onions, chopped small
1 large green pepper, chopped small
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, stems separated from leaves and chopped stems finely, leaves reserved
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon oregano
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 bay leaves
4 large garlic cloves, chopped fine
2-3 tablespoons water
1 (26 ounce) can dark red kidney beans (I'm using pinto beans)
1 cup commercial mild salsa (I'm using medium salsa)
1 lime, juice of
hot sauce
1/3 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups dry rice, cooked to yield 3 cups

In a cast iron or other heavy pot with a cover that can go from stovetop to oven, saute onion, green pepper and cilantro stems on high, stirring constantly, until onion becomes translucent. Add oregano, cumin, chili powder and bay leaves and saute another minute. Add garlic and salt, saute briefly. Add a couple of tablespoons of water to stop garlic from cooking. Immediately add beans and salsa, lime juice and hot sauce, and lower heat to medium, stirring frequently. When mixture begins bubbling, lower heat again, until just simmering. Stir occasionally and simmer for about ½ hour. You may have to add a little water from time to time if mixture begins to dry out. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Chop reserved cilantro leaves. Add ½ of the cilantro leaves, the cooked rice and the sour cream. Stir to mix evenly throughout the beans. Cover and bake for 35 to 45 minutes. Remove from oven and stir in the other ½ of the reserved cilantro leaves.

Sunday - prep day

Maybe some people are wondering what "Durban Chicken" is on my plan for this week. I'm going to try to post a scanned JPG of a newspaper article on it. It's a dish we used to get at our favorite South African restaurant in Charlottesville, VA. It is worth the trouble, trust me. Click on the image and it will blow up enough for you to read. In keeping with my format of reviews along with recipes:
*****Durban Chicken is a hit every time we make it. I line a baking sheet with foil and just lay out the chicken strips on the foil and bake them at 400° for about 5-6 minutes on each side. At the end, turn on the oven's broiler to "dry" it out a bit. We usually make about 4 chicken breasts of strips so we have lunch leftovers.



Prep day means pre-cooking and thawing and making sure everything is ready for the next week. Baby, Parents, etc.

1. soak the beans. I've really found that dry beans are SO MUCH better than canned. They aren't salty (the husband has high blood pressure), they are firmer and less like a pile of mush if you cook them for a long time, and they generally taste better in my opinion. I'm using pinto beans for my beans and rice recipe later in the week, so I rinsed a 1lb bag 3 times, and they are soaking overnight in a bowl with about 3 inches of water covering them.

2. cook the rice. We try to eat brown rice whenever possible, since it is higher in fiber, healthier and tastes more nutty and yummy. But it takes forever to cook on a weeknight when you need to use it in a recipe. So I'm cooking up 2 cups of brown basmati rice for the beans and rice recipe, and with leftovers to puree for the baby and to freeze. I wash my rice well and cook in Penzey's vegetable broth.

3. make some combo dinners for the baby. I'm trying to make sure she gets a wide range of fruits and vegetables. To that end, I am going to puree some frozen corn (ingredients: corn) to combine with green beans (wholesomebabyfood.com recommends this combo, sounds yuck to me). I will also thaw some squash and sweet potato for these combinations: squashy sweet potato, sweet potato pie (apple/cinnamon yogurt with sweet potato) and squashy peas.

Planning for next week

This past week was a bit of a mess. I was supposed to make Carnitas Burritos on Friday morning but I didn't. Baby got up at 4:30AM to eat and I slept in after taking a "nap."

Saturday - pork carnitas burritos
Sunday - out with friends
Monday - spinach salad with chicken, goat cheese, walnuts and homemade dressing
Tuesday - durban chicken and mashed potatoes
Wednesday - cheddarwurst (the husband wants to try this) with rice and beans
Thursday - pasta e fagioli soup with sauteed spinach
Friday - looking for a recipe to use a ham steak that I have, will update later.

If any of my approximately 1 readers has a ham recipe they want to share, leave it in the comments, please. :)

So much for Supermom.

The baby is almost out of food. I am MOTY (Mother of the Year for those non-Moms!) ONE more package of baby fruit left (prunes, no less) and then the applesauce and frozen squash. All of the barley and oatmeal cereal is gone, only the rice that she doesn't like left. I have to go to the store but I cannot find time. Being a mom is hard.

I was supposed to be earth-mother cooking all her own organic baby food. Hello? What was I thinking. Postdocs don't do Supermom.

Still riding the election high!

Isn't this beautiful??? NC was officially called for blue too. Virginia? North Carolina? Pennsylvania? Florida? Ohio? Colorado? All BLUE????????

OK, sorry, this blog is not meant for politics. But it is MY blog so you have to deal. ;)

Tonight we had takeout, because I didn't have an orange to make my pork carnitas burritos. I'm putting it together in the crockpot for Saturday. I will serve it with whole wheat tortillas from Trader Joes, black beans and cheddar cheese.



Pork Carnitas
from Cooking Light
Yield: 4 cups (serving size: 1/2 cup)
*** we liked these burritos, but in the future I would kick them up a notch. I would add some more seasonings and some nice salsa to the burritos.

Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 pounds beef stew meat, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (i'm using a pork tenderloin, cut into 1-inch chunks)
1 cup less-sodium beef broth (I'm using vegetable broth)
1 teaspoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 large unpeeled orange wedge

Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute. Add beef; sauté 5 minutes or until beef is browned on all sides. Stir in broth, sugar, salt, and pepper; nestle orange section into beef mixture. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 1/2 hours or until beef is tender. Remove and discard orange. Continue simmering, uncovered, 8 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates, stirring frequently.

ELECTION DAY!

I will go down in history as an election day scrooge. I am sick of all of the coverage, and I JUST WANT TO KNOW WHO WON! I want it to be over so I can either move to Canada (that was a joke, Jenelle! xoxo) or be excited for CHANGE.

Last night we had Tortellini Soup and grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner. YUM. I lurrrve this tortellini soup recipe and it's so easy and quick. I highly recommend the Trader Joe's ingredients we used, they definitely added something!

Tortellini Soup
Serves 4-6 dep. on serving size
*****this is quick, easy, flavorful and not too bad for you. Love it! I've revised the recipe from what I've made before with my additions/changes.

2 c. vegetable broth
1 bag Trader Joe's dried tortellini, cooked acc. to package instructions
1/2 of 8oz. tub cream cheese with chive and onion (I used TJ's and it had chunks of onion and chive, YUM)
1 carton TJ's low sodium organic cream of tomato soup (I think these are like 20 oz?)

In a medium saucepan, whisk the cream cheese and tomato soup together. Add the broth. Bring to a simmer for about 10 minutes, then add the tortellini. Voila!

Daylight Savings + Weekly Prep Day = zzzzzz

I think I'm getting sick, AND my lovely little one got up at 4:30AM thinking it was partay time. I'm exhausted. BUT, this weekend I made the Pastitio and the Chickpea Casserole with chicken burgers. Reviews and recipes below. In addition, I remembered this week to take the pork tenderloin out of the freezer along with some leftover mac n cheese (side dish with chicken burgers later in the week), sweet potatoes and squash baby food for the week. Don't forget the shopping and 100 loads of laundry. I'm BEAT.

Pastitio
from: WW Takeout Tonight Cookbook
serves 8
****We really enjoyed this. The ONLY mistake I made was that I used Penzey's nutmeg, and it is way higher quality and stronger than your standard spice. So it was a bit too nutmeggy. Is that a word? In the future I would halve the nutmeg.

3 cups reduced fat (2%) milk (I used skim milk because it is all I buy)
1/4 cup cornstarch
3 large eggs lightly beaten
8 TBSP grated parmesan cheese
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 pound spaghetti
1 TBSP EVOO
1 onion chopped
3/4 pound 10% or less ground sirloin (I used ground turkey)
1 pound plum tomatoes, chopped (about 2 cups) (I used a can of reduced-sodium diced tomatoes)
2 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 7x11" baking dish (who has one of these? I used an 8x8) with non-stick spray, set aside.

To make the white sauce, combine the milk, cornstarch, and eggs in a large saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 7-9 minutes. Remove pan from heat and stir in 6 tablespoons of the parmesan, 1/8 tsp of pepper, and the nutmeg; cover and set aside.

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add spaghetti and cook according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

To make the filling, heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Swirl in the oil, then add the onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened, 4-6 minutes. Add the sirloin and cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until browned, 5-6 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, garlic, cinnamon and the remaining 1/2 tspsalt and 1/8 tsp pepper. Cook, stirring often, until liquid from the tomatoes evaporates, 4-5 minutes.

Arrange half of the cooked spaghetti in na even layer on the bottom of the baking pan. Top with the filling, then top with remaining spaghetti. Spread the white sauce evenly over the spaghetti. Sprinkle sauce with the remaining cheese. Bake until top is golden brown. 30-35 minutes. Cool at least 5 minutes before serving.

Chickpea Casserole
from "Vegan with a Vengeance" by Isa Chandra Moskowitz
* This was just plain not good. It was chalky from the bread crumbs, the carrots never cooked all the way through, and it was WAY too oniony. Eeew.

3 (16-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed (or equivalent amount cooked chickpeas)
1 large onion, quartered and thinly sliced (I used a small onion and thank goodness I did)
3 large carrots, grated (about 2 cups) (I used a bag of shredded carrots - which may explain why the casserole was dry)
1 head broccoli, cut into small florets (about 4 cups)
2 tablespoons thinly sliced chives
1/2 cup bread crumbs (preferably whole wheat)
3 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup vegetable broth
1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350.
In a large bowl, mash the chickpeas well, using a potato masher or a firm fork (I used a cuisinart food processor); it takes about 2 minutes to get the right consistency. Add the vegetables and mix well. Add the breadcrumbs and mix, then add the oil and mix again. Finally, add the veg. broth and salt, and mix one last time. Transfer all the ingredients to a 9 X 13-inch (glass or ceramic) casserole dish. Press the mixture firmly into the casserole. Cover with foil, bake for 45 minutes. Unocover and bake for 15 more minutes. Serve it hot the day of, but it tastes good cold as well.

Week in Summary - Happy November!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! I will put a few baby costume pics up soon, I haven't downloaded last night's pics yet. I have to tell you that my baby is almost crawling! Many of you have seen this already but here is a link to a video of her trying to crawl:
Almost!!

Now down to business:

This week got really busy - so much so that I didn't get a chance to make the BBQ pork tenderloin that I had planned, I just pulled a Shepherd's Pie from the freezer, defrosted overnight and cooked. This was SUPER convenient, I highly recommend to anyone to make 2 of whatever casserole-type meals you're making and freeze one.

Review from last week's recipes:

CrockPot Coq au Vin - Good - but use a lighter wine next time: ***
CrockPot White Chicken Chili - Excellent, I really loved this but the husband said it was kinda bland? Just add some hot sauce, turkey! ****
Ground Turkey/TVP chimichangas - We loved these! ****
Ground Turkey/TVP meatloaf with mashed potatoes and corn - always a winner, especially with the homemade mashies! ****
BBQ pork tenderloin in the crock pot on sandwiches - Subbed the Shepherd's Pie for this, which thawed and tasted great. ****

This week's plan:

Pastitio
Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli Soup (crock pot, Top Secret Recipe)
Trader Joe's chicken burgers with chickpea broccoli casserole
Pork carnitas burritos
Tortellini Soup with grilled cheese sammies

As always, I will post recipes as I make them.

Productive Wednesday!

Today I've been efficient at lab AND I remembered to put the white chicken chili on the crockpot and turn it on. Ha ha. Jenelle, I will let you know how it is! How excited was I to get a comment on my lame-O blog? :)

Instead of the chili, we had Turkey/TVP meatloaf, mashed potatoes and corn for dinner. Recipes below.

Ground Turkey Meatloaf
Adapted from Cooking Light Magazine
Serves 4-8 depending on how much meat you use
*****we love meatloaf. Especially with our sriracha glaze. Yum!

1 1/2 pounds ground beef, extra lean (raw) [I use 1/2 ground turkey, 1/2 TVP]
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup barbecue sauce, divided
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper
2 large egg whites

Combine all of the above in a bowl and shape into loaf shape. Eew. Place in either a loaf pan, foil packet, or crock pot (cook on low 8 hrs if you use this method). Cook at 350 degrees for 1 hour, then glaze the top with a 50/50 mix of sriracha and BBQ sauce and allow to absorb and broil another 10 minutes.

Tuesday - OOPS!

GAK! I forgot to put the crock pot on the base and TURN IT ON this morning.

No white chicken chili por moi. :(

REVISED PLAN: we are having meatloaf and mashed potatoes for dinner!!!

Monday 10/27 Chimi's and White Chicken Chili

Despite it being blah Monday (I normally hate Monday's), today wasn't so bad. Prep time on the Chimichangas was about 10 mins and then they were baked for 30 mins. No prob! I prepped while the baby ate a teething biscuit - what a mess! - and then I fed her some prunes and applesauce while they cooked! See below for crock pot prep for Tuesday.

My girl figured out how to actually JUMP in her jumperoo today. So cute!! Previously, she had just kinda dangled and kicked. Now she JUMPS. Maybe I should post a video some other time.

WW Turkey Chimichangas
Taken from WW recipe site
Serves 6-8 depending on portion size and how much filling you put in each shell
***** We loved these. The only change I would make is to add frijoles negros (black beans).

3/4 lb ground turkey
3/4 lb rehydrated TVP
1 cup frozen pepper medley
1/2 cup diced sweet onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 cup frozen corn
a good palmful ground cumin
dash cinnamon
a good palmful chili powder
a good palmful smoked paprika
1 can enchilada sauce
6 tortillas (OK I guess you're supposed to use flour to make them "chimichangas" but I use corn so I guess technically I'm making enchiladas? Haha)
1 cup reduced fat mexican cheese

Grill up turkey, peppers, onions, garlic, spices and corn in a skillet. Add TVP. Cook for about 3 minutes. Add 1/2 can enchilada sauce. Let simmer for another 5 minutes. Warm up tortillas in microwave for about 30 seconds (I steamed them with my steamer because it was already out). Spoon mixture into tortillas and roll up. Put in a baking dish. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over chimis, sprinkle with reduced fat cheese. Bake in the oven at 350 until the cheese is melted and the tortillas are crispy on the ends.


I also prepped this for tomorrow:
Crockpot White Chicken Chili
recipe zaar recipe #28659

**** I loved this - it was flavorful but the best part was the beans: they were great!
11/16: I made this a second time with some modifications, it was even better! Mods in [].

1 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed [11/16: I used 5 boneless skinless thighs and it was GREAT]
1 large onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup dry white wine or chicken broth
2 cans great northern beans, rinsed and drained [I used dry white beans this time]
1 teaspoon mustard powder [1 tbl grey poupon this time - GREAT addition, will do this every time]
1 teaspoon ground cumin [1 tbl]
1 tbl chili powder
1 tbl smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Essentially chuck all of this stuff in the crock pot!! I cut the chicken into strips but you could cube it or even toss it in whole (I've done that before).

Stay tuned for my review tomorrow! I'm off to do some work.

Week 4: Sunday, prep day.

Meal Plan, Week 4:
CrockPot Coq au Vin
CrockPot White Chicken Chili
Ground Turkey/TVP chimichangas
Ground Turkey/TVP meatloaf with mashed potatoes and corn
BBQ pork tenderloin in the crock pot on sandwiches


This week I made three goals: 1. To make the week completely free of processed food. 2. To do all of the prep work on the weekend and 3. To make some more baby food. Since I had family visiting on Saturday, that left everything to be done on Sunday. So far since 12 noon, I have:

• Shopped for supplies at Costco (meat and diapers are cheaper in bulk), Target (baby stuff), Food Lion (groceries) and Whole Foods [I cannot afford to grocery shop at Whole Foods so I just stopped here on my way home from work for some TVP]
• Steamed 2 heads of cauliflower (BOGO!), then roasted it and made mashed cauliflower
• Steamed a butternut squash and some carrots, thn pureed them for baby food
  
• Prepped and ate CrockPot Coq au Vin (recipe below)
• Prepped a turkey/TVP meatloaf, filling for chimichangas and rehydrated some white beans for the white chicken chili
  
• Boiled and mashed 5lbs of potatoes
• Taken the pork tenderloin for the BBQ pork and chicken for the white chicken chili out of the freezer to thaw in the fridge
  

I'm exhausted. Don't forget that I also portioned and froze this stuff as well. Thankfully I have a fabulous husband that helps with everything. In the midst of all of this, I was playing with my baby - who, by the way, is the cutest person on this planet. To show for my time, I have a week of meals prepared, and 9 containers of butternut squash/carrot baby puree, 1 container of mashed cauliflower and 1 container of mashed potatoes in the freezer for the future. Even if I could find the time to exercise, I couldn't physically do it.

As a sidenote, my baby is adorable. She is trying to crawl and it is the funniest thing to watch. She cannot get the arms AND legs together so she ends up leg-crawling with her face planted on the floor, or arm-crawling with her legs dangling behind her.

Today's recipes:

Coq au vin
taken from A Year of CrockPotting
*** With potential for **** using a different red wine. I used old Shiraz that was probably way past it's peak. Don't do that. It was a bit too strong and didn't "go" with the recipe. Also, I would cut the red wine to 1 cup and add no broth. It was way too liquidy. As always, I've posted the original recipe; you decide whether to make my suggested changes.

--6 to 8 chicken thighs (I used boneless, skinless)

--6 slices cooked and crumbled turkey bacon

--8 oz sliced baby bella mushrooms

--some baby carrots, I don't measure these things

--1/2 chopped yellow onion

--3 cloves chopped or minced garlic

--1/2 t black pepper

--1/2 t kosher salt

--1/2 cup chicken broth

--1 1/2 cup cheap red wine

--2 large fresh thyme sprigs

Cook your bacon. Dump the chicken into your crockpot and start layering in the rest of the ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. The flavors meld so nicely when cooked low and slow.

I served this with mashed cauliflower (see below) and a bit of pureed butternut squash. Shut up, I made it for the baby and it tasted good.

Mashed Cauliflower
serves 3 or more depending on portion size

****this is a really good, low cal side dish. Use in place of mashed potatoes but let's be clear, they DO NOT taste like potatoes. It's cauliflower, people.

1 head of cauliflower
1 cup light sour cream

Cut the cauliflower into florets and steam until fork tender
Spread on a cookie sheet and roast at 350 degrees until the florets begin to brown
Add to food processor or stand mixer and blend with the sour cream until chunky but mashed.
Add salt and pepper to taste


Have a great week!

Week 2 - in progress

Crock Pot Stuffed Peppers
6 servings; created by me!
***** These were so good. I ate them for lunch 3 days in a row - they were that good. MAKE THESE.

6 Green or Red peppers, washed, cored
2 cups cooked rice (brown or white)
1lb ground turkey
1/2 onion
italian seasoning
1 clove garlic
parmesan cheese to taste
ground black pepper to taste
1 jar or 16 oz homemade spaghetti sauce - I used mushroom flavor
1 cup lite sour cream

Brown the turkey with the onion, garlic and seasonings. Stir in the rice.
Assemble the sauce in the crock pot: stir the sour cream and spag sauce together.
Add about 1/2 c. of the sauce to the meat/rice mixture and blend.
Spoon the filling into the peppers and put them in the sauce
Cook on low 8-10 hrs or high 6 hours

Week 1

I'm writing this post in retrospect since week 1 happened a month ago. But I wanted to share the recipes I tried and what I thought of them in terms of ease of preparation and taste. Here they are, enjoy!

Cheesy Chicken Enchiladas
Adapted from recipe zaar recipe # 81115

My notes & review: I cooked this filling completely the Sunday before use. I also doubled this recipe and froze a tupperware full of filling for easy enchilada assembly in the future.
**** This recipe was easy and the results were tasty. Will make this again and again. Freeze/thaws great.

35 min | 20 min prep

SERVES 2 -4

cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
1 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken breasts (about 1/2 lb)
1 cup reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese, divided
1 small can green chilles
1 cup picante sauce
3 ounces neufchatel cheese, diced
1 teaspoon cumin
1 1/2 cups bottled green taco sauce or red enchilada sauce
8 corn tortillas

• Coat a large skillet with cooking spray and saute onions until soft.
  

• Meanwhile, mix chicken, 1/2 c. cheddar, picante sauce and cream cheese.

• Add to onions and cook over low heat until cheese begins to melt. Spoon about 1/3 cup filling on each tortilla and roll up. Place enchiladas (seam side down) in a 9x13 baking dish. Drizzle with taco sauce or enchilada sauce and remaining cheese.

Taco Bake
Recipe from: http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/recipes/taco-bake-63779.aspx
** Not impressed. The Mac n cheese got mooshy and was unnecessary, IMO. Also not very good for you at all.

1 pkg. (14 oz.) KRAFT Deluxe Macaroni & Cheese Dinner

1 lb. ground beef

1 pkg. (1-1/4 oz.) TACO BELL® HOME ORIGINALS® Taco Seasoning Mix

3/4 cup BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream

1-1/2 cups KRAFT Shredded Cheddar Cheese, divided

1 cup TACO BELL® HOME ORIGINALS® Thick 'N Chunky Salsa

Make It

Heat oven to 400°F. Prepare Dinner as directed on package. While Macaroni is cooking, cook meat with taco seasoning as directed on package.

STIR sour cream into prepared Dinner; spoon 1/2 into 8-inch square baking dish. Top with layers of meat mixture, 1 cup cheese and remaining Dinner mixture; cover with foil.

BAKE 15 min.; top with salsa and remaining cheese. Bake, uncovered, 5 min. or until cheese is melted.

Bruschetta Chicken Bake
makes 6 servings, taken from WW site, origins unknown.
* We really didn't like this. The chicken had little flavor and the stuffing was soggy. I am willing to accept that this might have been because it sat in the fridge in a pan waiting to be baked for 4 days. Maybe this isn't a great OAWC recipe.

1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained, we buy no salt added
1 pkg. (6 oz.) Stove Top stuffing mix
1/2 c. water
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (3 breast halves)
1 t. dried basil
1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, stuffing mix, water and garlic. Set aside. Cut the raw chicken breasts into bite-sized chunks.
In a greased 9 x 13 pan, place the chicken and then sprinkle it with the cheese and basil. Top the chicken with the stuffing.
Heat your oven to 400 degrees and put the casserole in for 30 minutes.

Bubble Up Pizza Casserole

8 servings; Taken from WW site, credit unknown
**** This was really tasty. Cheesy, good comfort food. VERY similar to the "Deep Dish Pizza Casserole" recipe that circulated a few years ago but no crust.

1 lb lean ground beef or ground turkey
1 onion, chopped
16 oz tomato sauce
1/2 tsp dried basil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp Italian seasoning
Veggie Toppings (mushrooms, peppers, olives, any of your favorites – BE CREATIVE)
17 slices Turkey Pepperoni (optional)
15 oz. refrigerated buttermilk biscuits, uncooked, quartered
1.25 c FF or soy mozzarella, shredded

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. In skillet, brown meat over medium heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Stir in onion, tomato sauce, basil, garlic and Italian seasoning.

2. Add veggies (mushrooms, peppers, black olives, etc…whatever you like) and pepperoni. Add quartered biscuits; stir gently until biscuits are covered with sauce. Spoon mixture into a 9x13 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake for 25 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese, and bake an additional 10 minutes or until biscuits are done. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

I made this last night and it was very tastey. The Husband liked it too. It's very lowfat.