An experiment in life balance

Discovering Coupons and Making Good Food

2011-01-30T14:48:00.001-05:00

Instead of working on WORK STUFF while my daughter is sleeping, I've been trying to save us some money on food. Food is, by far, the most expensive part of our budget and where lots of "fat" could be trimmed - if you permit me that corny play-on-words!

I've discovered the "coupon matchup" world. Apparently, while I've been finding myself too busy and important to save money, others have been racking up savings at the grocery store using coupons and sales. Why should I be so different? Can I really afford to pay way more for food? The answer is that I'm no different and NO we cannot afford to pay regular price for everything.

Coupon matchups require the following: 1) the Sunday paper, 2) meal planning (which I already do, as evidenced by this blog. I even meal plan when I'm not posting - posting requires extra time and sometimes I just don't have it. 3) the time to comb through the sales ad. Making all three elements work for you can seem tricky and daunting but it's NOT. Here's how I did it this week.

Step 1. Access the Tops (my local grocery store) ad online and examine the front page. This is where are all the big savings is: the loss leaders. With whatever is on the front page that looks appetizing and what's already in your pantry, proceed to step 2:

Step 2. Devise a meal plan for the week that utilizes things on sale and things already in your pantry while buying as little at full price as possible.

Step 3. Go through your coupon collection and coupon websites to find "matchups" or things that are on sale AND have coupons.

I know what you're thinking: Wow - what a colossal waste of my valuable time.
Do you think spending $97 on $165 of groceries is a waste of time? I DON'T.

In addition, you're thinking: I don't eat processed food so coupons don't work for me because most are on processed foods.
It is true that there exist a majority of processed food coups. But I don't eat lots of processed foods either. It still saves money to use the method!

Here's how I did it this week. Based on the Tops Weekly Ad, I saw that pork butt roasts were on sale, Hillshire Farms smoked sausages were Buy 1, Get 1 Free (B1G1F) and I have a really well-stocked pantry from previous sales and shopping. My meal plan became this:

pork barbacoa wraps: http://www.skinnytaste.co...sweet-barbacoa-pork.html

black bean chili with butternut squash: http://www.epicurious.com...h-and-Swiss-Chard-234146

Shrimp and sausage jambalaya: http://www.food.com/recipe/jambalaya-48322

Chicken enchiladas: http://allrecipes.com//Re...enchiladas-i/Detail.aspx

I'm not done. I'm still looking for 3 more recipes for the week, but I have the major ones and a leftover night or pasta night can easily be worked in.

Next, I went searching for coupons to match up with the ingredients I needed on my list. I found a Hillshire Farms sausage coup from a previous weekly newspaper insert. I found coupons for some of the loss leaders on the front page of the sales ad. And then I went to the store and got the savings I mentioned above. $165 of groceries for $97!! This was a particularly big shop - normally I spend about $60 per week. As I learn the best format for sharing the deals, I'll be happy to pass them along!

I stocked up on loss leaders that I had coups for and I bought what I needed for my major recipes. The end!

Next post will be on what I cooked ahead of time to make these recipes easier to handle.

More recipe storage

2010-10-09T11:43:00.002-04:00

Lemon and Almond Rice Pudding

Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

Prep Time:: 8 min
Inactive Prep Time:: 4 hr 0 min
Cook Time:: 45 min

Level:: Easy

Serves:: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

4 cups whole milk
1/2 cup Arborio rice or medium-grain white rice
1/2 cup sugar
1 vanilla bean, seeds removed, pod reserved
1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice, from about 3 large lemons
1/4 cup amaretto liqueur
3 large lemons, zested
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted* see Cook's Note

Directions

In a heavy, medium saucepan, combine the milk, rice, sugar, vanilla seeds, vanilla pod, and salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the rice is tender, about 35 minutes. In a medium bowl, mix together the lemon juice, amaretto, and lemon zest. Slowly stir the lemon mixture into the rice mixture and cook for 10 minutes longer. Remove the vanilla pod and discard. Stir in the whipping cream (mixture will still be runny but will thicken as it cools). Spoon the rice pudding into bowls. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Sprinkle the chilled rice pudding with sliced almonds and serve.

Notes

Cook's Note: To toast the almonds, arrange them in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake in a preheated 350 degrees F oven until lightly toasted, about 6 to 8 minutes. Cool completely before using.

More recipe placeholders

2010-10-05T21:08:00.001-04:00

http://www.bitchincamero.com/2010/10/rustic-spinach-and-cornmeal-soup/
Rustic Spinach and Cornmeal Soup
Adapted from

6 cups (or more) low-salt chicken broth or vegetable broth
3/4 cup polenta (coarse cornmeal)
3 tablespoons all purpose flour
3 tablespoons butter
4 cloves roasted garlic, crushed (or 2 cloves raw garlic, peeled and crushed)
Coarse kosher salt
4 oz. baby spinach leaves
4 oz. baby arugula leaves

1 Toasted Parmesan rind, cut into pieces (optional)

Bring 6 cups broth to simmer in large saucepan; cover to keep warm. Whisk polenta and flour in heavy large pot. Add 1 – 2 cups hot broth; whisk over medium-high heat until smooth. Stir in butter and garlic; sprinkle lightly with coarse salt.

Gradually add 5 cups hot broth by cupfuls. Boil gently over medium heat until polenta is tender and soup is creamy and thickened, whisking frequently and adding more broth to thin, if desired, about 25 minutes. Stir in spinach by handfuls; simmer until wilted, stirring often, 5 to 7 minutes longer. Season with more coarse salt and black pepper.

Ladle soup into 6 bowls, sprinkle with toasted Parmesan rinds and serve.

Makes 6 servings.

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Monday, September 13, 2010

cherry tomato salad with baked ricotta and olive tapenade crostini

i think i've posted about crostini, like, a dozen times. it's such a default for us because if you toss beautiful vegetables and herbs together, you've got a great veg salad. put it on toast, however, and you've got a meal. and since the matt's wild and white currant cherry tomatoes have been cranking out ripe fruit by the daily pint, making a meal from them has become a necessary delight.

this recipe is from my gorgeous book (a gift from my spectacular boyfriend) by amy goldman, the heirloom tomato. it's basically a crostini topped with olive tapenade, baked ricotta, and tomato basil salad. she includes instructions for making the olive tapenade, but i frankly saw that as no more than an opportunity to spend a bunch of money on ingredients i wouldn't otherwise have around. thus, i bought a small amount of kalamata tapenade from the olive bar at the grocery. the baked ricotta looks pretty, but i found it rather dry and an unnecessary step. do with it what you will!

cherry tomato salad with baked ricotta and olive tapenade crostini
adapted from the heirloom tomato by amy goldman

for baked ricotta:
1 1/2 lbs ricotta cheese
1/4 cup olive oil
fresh-cracked pepper

for tomato salad:
2 pints mixed cherry tomatoes, halved, or larger tomatoes, cut into pieces
1/4 cup chopped basil
1 Tbps sherry vinegar
2 tsp red wine vinegar
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp finely diced shallots
1/2 cup olive oil
salt and pepper

for crostini:
1 baguette, cut into 1/2 - 1" slices
olive oil
salt and pepper
olive tapenade, store bought or homemade

preheat oven to 450 degrees. combine the ricotta with 2 Tbps of the olive oil and spread in greased ovenproof dish. drizzle with remaining olive oil and top with fresh cracked pepper. bake until heated through and beginning to brown on top. allow to cool before serving.

mix the vinegars with the shallots and soak for 30 minutes. whisk in the olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper. pour over tomatoes, add basil, and mix gently. adjust seasonings.

reduce heat in oven to 400 degrees. brush the bread slices with olive oil on each side, and season with salt and fresh cracked pepper. toast in oven until golden brown (but not too dried out!), around 5 minutes.

serve warm toasts with a layer of tapenade, then ricotta, and tomato salad. delicious.

My cooking rennaisance

2010-09-26T21:05:00.003-04:00

I'm enjoying cooking SO MUCH lately!

I've made the following things with HUGE success:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/melissa-darabian/roasted-chicken-and-potatoes-recipe/index.html

modifications: I cooked the bird for the requisite 15 mins at over 400deg, but then tuned down to 285 for 2 hrs. PERFECT! MUAH! I forgot to add the wine, don't do this. Butter alone doesn't "do it" for the potatoes :) I also added carrots

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/melissa-darabian/succulent-braised-pork-recipe/index.html

modifications: I added a package of button mushrooms. Yum!

http://noblepig.com/2010/07/11/corn-and-basil-cakes.aspx

modifications: none. YUM. Ridic good. Next time I'll try this with cilantro and potato and some garam masala to make an "almost aloo paratha"

Next weekend I'm going to try to make my own sundried tomatoes - they are not really "SUN" dried anyway, they are just roasted. And since it's the last few weeks of fall harvest of roma tomatoes, they are cheap and easy to find. It's a no brainer! Here's the recipe I'll use:
http://sharemykitchen.com/how-to-make-your-own-sun-dried-tomatoes/

Yes, yes, I know. I'm not a great blogger.

2010-09-21T07:10:00.002-04:00

But at least there are some good classic recipes on this blog, right? :)

I've been watching a TON of FoodTV lately - Aarti Party, 30 Minute Meals, 10 Dollar Dinners, Good Eats, Iron Chef, etc. I wanted to save a few recipes here as place markers to make at a later date.

Once I actually make them, I will update with comments and reviews. I know it's not OAWC but it's still cooking and I will adapt them to OAWC as I try them.

Almost Tandoori Chicken

Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray

Prep Time:: 15 min
Inactive Prep Time:: --
Cook Time:: 15 min

Level:: Easy

Serves:: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 cup Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon turmeric, a palmful
1 tablespoon coriander
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1/2 tablespoon ground cumin, 1/2 a palmful
1 teaspoon ground cardamom, 1/3 palmful
1 lime, zested
2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 green apple, peeled, cored and thinly sliced into matchsticks
2 plum tomatoes, seeded and very thinly sliced lengthwise
4 scallions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
4 pieces naan bread, plain or flavored, store-bought, warmed

Directions

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F.

Combine the yogurt with the spices and zest of lime in a large bowl.

Cut the chicken into large chunks and season liberally with salt and pepper. Add to the yogurt mixture and toss to coat evenly. Put a small wire rack on a baking sheet or a slotted broiler pan. Arrange the chicken on the rack or slotted pan and roast until charred at the edges and juices run clear, about 15 minutes.

Combine the apple, tomatoes and scallions in a serving bowl. Add the lime juice, oil, and salt and pepper, to taste, and toss to combine.

Transfer the chicken to a serving platter and serve with apple-tomato topping and warm bread.

Printed from FoodNetwork.com on Tue Sep 21 2010

Homemade Soft Pretzels

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2007

Prep Time:: 30 min
Inactive Prep Time:: 1 hr 0 min
Cook Time:: 25 min

Level:: Intermediate

Serves:: 8 pretzels

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 package active dry yeast
22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups
2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil, for pan
10 cups water
2/3 cup baking soda
1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Pretzel salt

Directions

Combine the water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl and then oil it well with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with the vegetable oil. Set aside.

Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.

In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet pan.

Place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Return to the half sheet pan, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with the pretzel salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Roasted Edamame Salad

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2008

Prep Time:: 20 min
Inactive Prep Time:: --
Cook Time:: 15 min

Level:: Easy

Serves:: 4 servings

Ingredients

12 ounces fresh or frozen shelled edamame, about 2 cups
1/2 cup fresh corn kernels, about 2 ears of corn
1/4 cup finely diced scallion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup chopped fresh tomato
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the edamame, corn, scallion, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper into a 13 by 9 metal pan and stir to combine. Place on the middle rack of the oven and roast for 10 to 15 minutes, just until the edamame begins to brown. Remove from the oven and place in the refrigerator until completely cool, approximately 30 minutes.

Add the tomato, basil and vinegar to the edamame mixture and toss to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning, as desired. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Succulent Braised Pork

Recipe courtesy Melissa d'Arabian

Prep Time:: 25 min
Inactive Prep Time:: --
Cook Time:: 3 hr 30 min

Level:: Intermediate

Serves:: 4 servings plus leftovers

Ingredients

2 pounds pork shoulder, cut into 6 large chunks
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup red wine
1 1/2 cups beef stock or broth
1 bunch parsley stems, tied with string
2 bay leaves
1 cup water

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Pat the pork dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.

In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, and working in batches brown the meat on all sides until a golden crust forms. Transfer the pork to a plate. To the pan add the onion, celery, and carrot and sweat until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and sweat another 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 3 minutes to cook off the raw flavor and caramelize it. Sprinkle with the flour and cook another 2 minutes to cook off its raw flavor. Whisk in the wine and reduce it by half. Return the pork to the Dutch oven, then stir in the beef stock, parsley stems, and bay leaves. Add the water if liquid does not come up to the top of the pork. Do not cover the pork with liquid. Cover the pan and place it in the oven to braise until the meat is fork tender, about 3 hours. Taste and season with more salt and pepper, if needed. Transfer to a serving platter and serve.

weekly plan - it's May!!

2010-05-02T08:28:00.004-04:00

Where did April go??

Last week I didn't make a meal plan and didn't go grocery shopping. As a result, we ate mostly takeout and junk food and as a result I feel gross. OAWC is the way to go for this family for sure.

I'm working on the following plan this week - days subject to change:

SUN: ground turkey/TVP tacos with guacamole
MON: pork tenderloin in the crock pot with potatoes, onions, carrots, celery and fennel
TUES: pork curry (leftover cubed tenderloin, garbanzo beans, potatoes, tomatoes) with brown rice
WED: spaghetti torta from the Giada DiLaurentis cookbook "Everyday Italian"
THURS: Dinner at Grammie's
FRI: grilled veggies and shrimp

BBL with details!
http://www.recipezaar.com/recipe/Braised-Pork-With-Fennel-Crock-Pot-238161
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/torta-di-pasta-recipe/index.html

2010-04-18T12:34:00.001-04:00

I got my background at ZingerBug.com

We're back - week 2!

2010-04-18T12:05:00.002-04:00

OK my plan last week was a bit too industrious. We ended up putting off the Dal burgers because they are really labor intensive and we're having them today instead. I roasted the eggplant and cooked the lentils in preparation.

First things first: Review of last week's recipes.

Vegetarian taco "meat:" I got 3 lunches out of this, will get another 2-3 this week too. It is filling, yummy and low-cal. next time I will add some salt though, I forgot and it showed.

Chicken Marsala - this was really good! But the only reason I was able to make it was because I was home with a sick toddler. It took a while because of mushroom cleaning/cutting, chicken trimming, dredging and cooking, sauce prep and thickening, noodle cooking, etc. Things that could be adapted to OAWC: cut up all of the mushrooms in advance, trim the chicken (the husband would prefer breasts to thighs in the future) and cook the noodles/pasta or whatever we're serving it with. The dish could easily be adapted to a crock pot as well.

Grilled haddock - we ended up having this with grilled potatoes which were GREAT. We sprinkled some salt and pepper on some medium white potatoes and skewered them with metal skewers. The husband grilled the heck out of them at really high temp until they were all burned and charred on the outside but lovely and yummy inside.

Our takeout night was salads with chicken and a side of yummy breadsticks. For anyone in the Western New York area - try Say Cheese Pizza for takeout!

This week's plan:
Sunday: Vegetarian Dal Burgers with spinach salads
Monday: Pasta with wilted spinach and ricotta sauce
Tuesday: Spinach mozzarella meatloaf, grilled potatoes, steamer veggies
Wednesday: Dinner at Grandma's
Thursday: Ground Turkey Chimichangas - previously on this blog here.

OAWC PREP:
Meatloaf (store in baking pan with press-n-seal in the fridge)
Ground Turkey Chimi filling (can be made in advance and stored in the fridge)

Everything else is easy-peasy day-of prep.

Let's Talk Lunch.

2010-04-11T13:59:00.001-04:00

I just put the following into the crock pot on high for 4 hrs:

1 bag lentils, thoroughly rinsed
24 oz water
1.5 tbl cumin
1.5 tbl onion flakes
1 tsp dried minced garlic
2 tbl Chili 3000
2 tbl Bold Taco Seasoning

This makes "Vegetarian Taco Meat" which I will eat for lunches.

Unfortunately, 24 oz water was not nearly enough! I added a small 4 oz can of salsa verde and another 10 oz water to cook the lentils thoroughly.

To serve, I will combine with salsa and add cheese and sour cream on corn tortillas. YUM!

Balance Schmalance!

2010-04-11T09:05:00.012-04:00

Since I last posted, we have bought a house, moved and gotten settled. We LOVE our new house - we have a big deck with an in-ground pool, an awning for shade and a big side yard for the kiddo(s). With 3 bedrooms plus a finished basement that will eventually be an in-law suite, a family room AND formal living room, we feel like it's a mansion compared to any house we've ever lived in. :) We are finally planting ROOTS and hanging around for a while!

Balance has been difficult - if not impossible - over the last year. Between my Mommy duties, Senior Scientist duties and my duties to myself and my health, it's been a huge challenge. I'm trying to get back to menu planning, cooking most things at home and eating whole foods. If this means I'm not thinking about my job 'enough' or working out 'enough' or that my daughter has to play with Daddy for a few hours a week, that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make to eat healthy and take care of us all!

My plan this week doesn't require much in-advance cooking but it's spring and we are dying to make good use of our grill! As has become the norm, I chose 5 recipes for the week and I will make them on whatever day is most appropriate as our schedules dictate.

Here is the list, followed by recipes were available:

Grilled Haddock, Steamed Broccoli and Boiled New Potatoes (no recipe required!)
Durban-style chicken strips with Hasselback Potatoes and steamer vegetables
Whole Foods-style Dal Burgers with unknown sides?
Chicken Marsala
Ground Turkey/TVP Tacos

Durban-style chicken strips with Hasselback Potatoes

I have already posted the recipe for Durban chicken here. This time, I'm using chicken breast cut into strips and cooking them on the grill. I will baste lightly in teriyaki sauce, then dredge in Durban seasoning and grill. Yum!

Hasselback potatoes are Swedish baked potatoes. They look really fancy because they are sliced width-wise and then sprinkled with a mixture of parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs before baking. They taste lovely too! (image borrowed from the provided link)

The basic recipe is as follows:

4 baking potatoes
2 tbl fresh-grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup breadcrumbs (I use italian-style)
1.5 tbl olive oil
1 tsp paprika
sprinkling of kosher salt

Preheat oven to 450° degrees F. Oil a large shallow glass baking dish (I use a 9x13 Pyrex dish).

Peel the potatoes. Place on a cutting board and cut a narrow slice from the bottom of each potato; discard the slice (this helps the potato lie flat and not roll). Place two long handled wooden chopsticks on each side of the potato lengthwise. Use a sharp knife and slice each potato crosswise, making 1/4-inch apart slices, cutting down vertically. The chopsticks will prevent the knife from cutting entirely through the potato. As you peel the potatoes, drop them into the cold water to prevent discoloring.

NOTE: Potatoes may be prepared in advanced to the above point. Place potatoes in cold water (to prevent discoloring) until ready to bake. To bake, dry potatoes well.

Place the Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, 1 tablespoon olive oil, paprika, and salt in a food processor; process until blended. Brush potatoes with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and pat the bread crumb mixture on top of each potato. Place potatoes in the oiled baking dish; cover with foil and bake 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake an additional 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, and serve.

Makes 4 servings.

Whole Foods-style Vegan Dal Burgers with Indian-style Jasmine Rice

The husband and I have always loved Whole Foods's Dal Burgers on the hot bar. Every time we get there (which is not often since we moved to an area without Whole Foods!!) we buy some and every time he comments on how awesome they are. We found this website which claims to have made a close imitation of the burgers! We were so excited that they went right into the weekly menu.

Incidentally, I'm intruiged by this blog - "The Happy Healthy Long Life." The blogger is a medical librarian (which by the way seems like an awesome job) at a "leading US Medical Center." She posts topics in the media and her research findings for your reading pleasure.

I'm copy/pasting her recipe for Dal Burgers here, and I will let you know when I make them whether the recipe is a winner!

Vegan Lentil Dal Burgers ala Healthy Librarian

1 package of already cooked Trader Joe's French Lentils, 17 oz. (or 2 1/2 cups cooked lentils) [I'm using Goya-brand red lentils]

2 garlic cloves, chopped (I used 5 roasted Christopher Ranch garlic cloves--I was lazy)

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 small eggplant, peeled, quartered, roasted & chopped (I used a Japanese) yielding about a cup of chopped peeled eggplant

1 small potato cooked, then peeled & diced. Yielding about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of small diced potatoes

1/3 cup of chickpea flour (Bob's Red Mill Garbanzo & Fava Flour) to mix + more for lightly dredging patties

1 1/2 tsp. curry powder (more to taste)

2 TBS. Major Grey's Chutney

1 tsp. cumin powder

1 jalapeno pepper chopped, or substitute 1/4 tsp. cayenne (I didn't have a jalapeno, so I subbed cayenne)

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 TBS chopped ginger

1/3 cup thawed frozen peas (I didn't have peas, so I left this out)

1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro (I didn't have cilantro, so I left this out)

salt & pepper to taste (I didn't use any)

Small amount of canola or olive oil for browning the burgers

Directions

1. Peel eggplant, cut it into quarters & roasted it in a 400 degree oven while preparing everything else. Chop it into smaller pieces when it's soft--about 15 minutes. When done, lower the oven to 350 degrees. You'll finish the burgers in the oven.

2. Saute the onion, ginger, jalapeno, & garlic until the onion is soft.

3. Pulse process the lentils in your food processor so they are chopped up, but not mushy. Empty into a large mixing bowl.

4. Pulse process the onions, garlic, ginger, & the eggplant until they are small tiny pieces. Empty into the mixing bowl with the lentils.

5. Add all the other ingredients: the chickpea flour, the cooked diced potatoes, the curry, the lemon juice, the chutney, the peas, the cumin, the cilantro--and mix well. Taste the mixture & add more of any spice you think it needs.

6. Using a large plate or foil, sprinkle some chickpea flour on the surface to keep the "burgers" from being too sticky. Form 7-8 patties, working one at a time, sprinkling a little chickpea flour on the top & bottom so they won't stick to the frying pan.

7. Heat up a little oil in a large frying pan. I quickly browned the burgers, in 2 batches, and then I "finished" them off in a 350 degree oven until they were nice & browned, about 20 minutes--I think. Just watch them!

8. These keep nicely for 5 days, or you can freeze them individually. Serve on whole grained buns or as is.

Chicken Marsala

I needed a recipe to use up my chicken thighs that I bought last week. They are nearing a week in the fridge, which is my limit for fresh meat. I found this recipe at cooks.com. I will post the recipe below and then edit when I make it.

MARSALA BAKED CHICKEN

1/4 c. dry bread crumbs
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp. minced fresh parsley
1/4 tsp. paprika
8 chicken thighs, about 2 1/2 lbs, skinless
olive oil cooking spray
2 tbsp. butter
1/3 c. Marsala wine
1 tablespoon Wondra flour

Combine first 4 ingredients, stirring well; dredge chicken in bread crumb mixture. Arrange chicken in a shallow baking dish coated with olive oil cooking spray.

Dot with butter; cover and bake at 350°F for 30 minutes; uncover and bake 15 minutes.

Remove chicken from baking dish and arrange on serving dishes and keep warm.

Deglaze baking dish with wine, scraping browned bits from bottom of dish (this is where the flavor is). Add butter and flour and heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, to make a gravy. This can be done in the microwave, or if a baking pan was used, the gravy may be made on the stove top.

8 servings, about 160 calories per serving.

We're gonna try this again.

2010-03-22T08:59:00.004-04:00

I know, I know, I've been completely ridiculous about this blog for the last, um, year. You have to understand that I've been adjusting to my new career, living in a new state, moving TWICE.

I have a meal plan this week and I'm going to try this OAWC thing again. Bear with me while I work out the kinks and get back into it!

This week's plan:

Sunday: broccoli rabe with pasta and ricotta sauce
Monday: ground turkey/TVP tacos
Tuesday: whole chicken roasted in the crock pot with vegetables
Wednesday: "durban" style chicken strips with macaroni and cheese
Thursday: Greek turkey burgers with pasta salad
Friday: chicken enchilada soup

Many of these recipes are recycled - I will link to them as appropriate. The only "new" to the blog recipe is Greek burgers. See below.

Greek Turkey Burgers
adapted from Recipe Zaar #13285

1 lb ground turkey [I actually use 1/2lb ground turkey 93% lean and 1/2lb rehydrated TVP (do a search on this blog for TVP for info)]
1 cup crumbled feta cheese [I use low fat, not fat free or else it's chalky]
1/2 cup olives, chopped [I use black and use 1/4 cup because I don't love olives]
1 egg white
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon italian seasoning
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried basil (optional)
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
ground black pepper, to taste

Form into patties and grill! They can be prepped ahead of time and refrigerated overnight but I've never gone longer than overnight.

Broccoli rabe with pasta and ricotta sauce
This tastes rich but it's a nice healthy comfort food option!

Not many people know of the awesomeness which is broccoli rabe. It's a green, like kale or spinach, but it's also broccoli. Which makes it the perfect green, in my opinion! I loooove broccoli!

I buy a big bunch, chop off the ends and wash thoroughly. Then I steam the larger stems for 10 minutes in my vegetable steamer. Right before I serve the dish (pasta is cooked, tomato sauce warmed) I toss the rabe with 1 clove of garlic and some salt and pepper in a hot sautee pan.

Serve by spooning 1 cup of pasta in a pasta bowl and layer on tomato sauce, 4 tablespoon-sized dollops of ricotta cheese and the broccoli rabe.

DELISH!

Grilled haddock, green beans and potatoes

2009-08-10T06:53:00.009-04:00

That's what I'm having for dinner tonight. There's not much OAWC to this meal.

I like my fish a little spicy so I will rinse off the fillet, sprinkle with some cajun seasoning and put skin-down on a piece of aluminum foil. Grill until no longer translucent.

I purchased some thin (haricot vert variety) string beans from the Bidwell Farmer's Market this weekend and I will be preparing them as follows: snip off the ends and boil for 3-4 minutes in a salted pot of water at a rolling boil. Strain and transfer to a sautee pan with a minced clove of garlic and about 3 tsp olive oil. Generously salt and pepper. Sautee for another 4-5 minutes or until the garlic is fragrant and the beans are coated.

Also on the same Farmer's Market trip, I purchased some tiny potatoes. I will boil them and serve with light sour cream and pepper.

Simple, healthy, delicious!!

Here's my meal plan for this week so you can plan which days to read!
Monday: Grilled haddock, green beans and potatoes
Tuesday: Morroccan vegetable soup
Wednesday: at my mom's, sorry no recipes!
Thursday: chicken curry on brown rice
Friday: Willard bean soup

A few words on Life Balance.

2009-08-09T08:11:00.005-04:00

After all, it IS the blog title!

As many of you know, I recently made a major move. Not only did I move 500 miles to a new city/state, but I also took a new more demanding job. All of these things are hopefully bringing me closer to my ultimate life goals. Life balance has been very difficult.

As a graduate student, I was taught that work came before all else. You don't get a PhD by pulling 9-5 shifts and not working weekends. As a matter of a fact, my mentor once told me:
"If you want to see your husband any time soon, bring TWO cots to lab." As you can see, the "culture" was that whomever works longest and hardest is bestest.

This culture was definitely alive and well during my postdoctoral fellowship. Before I got pregnant, I worked 60+ hour weeks as routine. That certainly didn't last while I was nauseous and exhausted through my entire pregnancy!! I started working more like 50 hour weeks with lots of work from home. Of course, once I had my daughter I realized that work is NOT the most important thing in life. Everything had changed. I wanted OUT of this culture that encouraged people to spend as much time as possible AWAY from their families. Don't get me started on how screwed up Academia is for faculty/postdocs/students!!

I switched to a Biotech company where I am definitely expected to get the job done - I have way more responsibility than I ever have before - but in a reasonable amount of time. No one encourages me to work 60+ hrs a week, in fact, they discourage it because you are more apt to make mistakes and waste time and reagents (AMEN!).

I tell you all of this because I'm having a bit of trouble adjusting!! I still wake up worrying about getting things done at work and I have a tendency to stay too long at work "just trying to finish up one more thing." Friends in the field say it will take YEARS to erase the academic brainwashing. Sigh.

This is why I have not been a great OAWCer since I've moved. I am having trouble with Life Balance.

But since that is what this blog is about, it is time to put my LIFE before my JOB and get in the gear once again. I want to be that mom who always has healthy dinners planned for her family, not that mom who breezes in 2 hours late with takeout every night.

Bear with me, faithful readers, the first few weeks may be rocky!! Leave me comments please, that would be encouraging and helpful. If I know you're ready to get recipe ideas, I will be more likely to post!

Thank you!! I really like the idea of this blog and need to keep it going!

Let's try this again.

2009-06-01T19:59:00.004-04:00

I thought I was back last week but things got crazy and I only made a few things. This week will be better! Here's my plan:

Sunday: Dinner at Grammie and Grampa's
Monday: Takeout Chinese (switching takeout night to Mondays!)
Tuesday: Smoked whole chicken, corn on the cob and grilled pineapple
Wednesday: Chinese stir fry over basmati rice
Thursday: Finnan Haddie Gratin (smoked haddock with cheese)
Friday: Ribollita Soup (italian bean soup on a bed of bread and wilted greens)

OK this may sound elaborate but really it's not. The husband is off of work (he is starting his new job soon! YAY!) and he's experimenting.

Truthfully this will not be an OAWC week but since I haven't posted recipes in so long I will post them anyway and give my tips of what could be made ahead, OK?

Tonight is Monday and therefore my night was really easy. I just picked up the phone!

Tomorrow we are having Smoked whole chicken - The husband has a smoker and will be putting the chicken in around 2PM so it is ready by 5PM. Then we will grill up the pineapple and corn. Easy Peasy!

I will update later in the week on the other recipes!

I AM BACK. Sorta. Slowly. Getting there.

2009-05-17T08:08:00.003-04:00

You might wonder why I've been gone for months and months. WELL. I took some advice given to me by a friend: "You can be miserable and just complain, or you can do something about it." For some reason those simple words struck a nerve and I realized that I was allowing a situation that I thought was unavoidable turn me into a negative person.

I am back!

I have a new job and my family and I have moved to Western New York. We are still unpacking, but we have a functional kitchen again and I am so excited to resume my OAWC lifestyle. This week's menu is very simple:

White chicken chili using leftover smoked turkey instead of chicken
Stuffed peppers in the crockpot
Willard bean soup in the crockpot
ground turkey tacos
grilled sausage and oven fries with steamed vegetables

Today is shopping/food prep day but since most of the meals are crockpot meals, I have little to no cook ahead duties - it's like I planned it that way!

Back later to fill in my shopping list.

Blog on hold!

2009-01-22T19:35:00.001-05:00

Some important things have come up in my life - job interviews and whatnot. I will be back online very soon!

Baked Ziti and Willard Bean Soup prep

2009-01-12T11:29:00.004-05:00

Ahhh another Monday. They are tough because I'm always tired from the weekend, and moreso when the baby wakes up at night. Because of plans and visitors I did not do as much pre-prep as I would like.

Baked Ziti
Adapted from All Recipes.com

1 pound dry ziti pasta
1 onion, chopped
1 pound (1 package) hot italian turkey sausage, cut into coins
1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 bag (2 cups) mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 1/2 cups sour cream
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp italian seasoning

Cook the pasta to al dente (almost done), drain and set aside. Cook the sausage and onion together with some italian seasoning if you desire. Add some garlic, the spaghetti sauce and the pasta and stir together.

Spray a 9x13 pan with PAM or nonstick cooking spray and add half of the pasta/meat/sauce mixture. Spread the sour cream and 1/2 of the mozzarella on this layer and top with the rest of the pasta mixture. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese to taste.

Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until the cheeses are melted and browned on top.

_____________________

Tonight I am also prepping the Willard Bean Soup for the crockpot on Tuesday. First, I make what is called a mirepoix. This is fancy term for "soup base." Basically, you just dice up some onion, celery and carrot and sautee them with some salt and pepper and then add them to your soup broth. Into the crock:

mirepoix
8 cups vegetable stock (I use Penzey's)
1 lean ham steak, diced
pepper to taste
1 16oz bag white beans (Northern, canellini, small white, any type will do!) soaked overnight and rinsed

Cook on high for 8 hrs (takes that long that high to cook the beans)

It's delicious!

The week in review, Next week's plan

2009-01-11T07:37:00.005-05:00

The baby and I came down with a virus so I was not great at keeping up with my blog. However, I stuck to my plan and ordered in chinese food for Friday. Here are my reviews of what we ate:

Sunday: Homemade turkey/soy meatballs and whole wheat spaghetti with spinach side salads ***** Easy to make, good to eat. I froze a bunch of meatballs for future meals.
Monday: Hard Times Cafe vegetarian chili. ***** This is so tasty but I totally got heartburn from eating it for dinner AND lunch the next day. :(
Tuesday: Chili lime chicken burgers (Trader Joe's) and leftover macaroni and cheese from the freezer with a side of broccoli. An old standby so I didn't have to cook that night.
Wednesday: Vegetarian chorizo Jambalaya (cheating and using a Zattarain's mix for this but I will post my Jambalaya recipe in case anyone wants to make it themselves) *** VERY good but only gets 3 stars because I subsequently found out that the chorizo has a LOT of sodium in it. Very disappointing.
Thursday: Chicken stir fry over brown rice. A classic.
Friday: takeout night

This week's plan:

Sunday: leftover vegetarian chili with tortilla chips, sour cream and cheddar
Monday: baked ziti with italian turkey sausage, spinach salad
Tuesday: Willard Family Secret Recipe Bean Soup (don't worry, I will share the recipe)
Wednesday: chicken wild rice casserole
Thursday: Crockpot ranch chicken and potatoes
Friday: Takeout

Grocery List:
Ziti, 2lbs
1 package of italian turkey sausage
1 large bag shredded mozzarella or 1 block of part-skim mozz
parmesan cheese
2 sweet onion
carrots
celery
Uncle Ben's slow cooking chicken wild rice flavor, 2 boxes
2 cans sliced water chestnuts
2 cans cream of mushroom soup, low sodium
1 can cream of chicken soup, low sodium
1 bag potatoes
1 box of Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning packets (for making dressing)
1 block neufchatel cheese

Things you may need that are already in my pantry:
chicken
parmesan cheese
1 bag northern beans
1 ham bone or ham steak
vegetable stock
garlic
italian seasoning
tomato sauce

Mmmm Soyrizo.

2009-01-05T20:00:00.005-05:00

Yep, it sounds weird. Chorizo made from soy?? But I promise you it was GOOD. It was actually vegan chorizo from Trader Joe's - and since it was vegan there was no casing on the sausages, it was wrapped in plastic. This made it so easy to use in the Jambalaya I made!

If you haven't had Zatarain's, I feel bad for you. Just kidding. Sorta. I buy their reduced sodium (remember the husband has high blood pressure so we try to eat low sodium whenever possible) Jambalaya mix. It is really good and ALMOST as good as my homemade Jambalaya.

Here's my own homemade recipe in case you didn't want to cop out on the mix like I did. If you have access to a TJ's, please try the soyrizo!

Jambalaya
Adapted from Cooking Light
*****This is just as good, probably better for you and better tasting, as Zatarain's!

1  teaspoon olive oil
1 package of sausages, either smoked turkey sausage, chorizo, andouille, or even spicy italian works!
1/2 diced onion
1 diced green or red pepper
1 cup uncooked brown rice
1 can of stewed, diced tomatoes, undrained
1/8  teaspoon salt
1/8  teaspoon dried thyme
1/8  teaspoon black pepper
1/8  teaspoon ground red pepper
1 tbl cajun seasoning
1  cup water
1  can low-salt chicken broth
a bit of hot sauce

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add sausage, onion, and bell pepper; saute 5 minutes if sausage is precooked, or until vegetables are tender and sausage is cooked. Add rice; sauté 2 minutes. Add spices; sauté 1 minute.

Add water, broth, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 30 minutes or until rice is tender. Alternatively, you can pre-cook the rice in a rice cooker and add it at the end, but it wont be as flavorful.

We are back in business! 2009 Week 1

2009-01-04T09:27:00.003-05:00

Myspace Happy New Year Comments

It's the first full week of 2009 and I loooove the fresh start mentality of the New Year!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday, now let's make some meals and live healthy! My "resolutions" or goals for this year are to live healthier, eat more vegetables, less meat and exercise more. To that end, here's my plan for this week**:

**Disclaimer: you will notice that a lot of my menu this week is pre-prepared. Cut me some slack, I'm getting back into the swing of things after a 3 or 4 week hiatus and the holidays really took it out of me this year. I will be back into making everything homemade and posting shopping lists next week, I promise!

Sunday: Homemade turkey/soy meatballs and whole wheat spaghetti with spinach side salads
Monday: Hard Times Cafe vegetarian chili
Tuesday: Chili lime chicken burgers (Trader Joe's) and leftover macaroni and cheese from the freezer with a side of broccoli
Wednesday: Vegetarian chorizo Jambalaya (cheating and using a Zattarain's mix for this but I will post my Jambalaya recipe in case anyone wants to make it themselves)
Thursday: Chicken stir fry over brown rice
Friday: takeout night

I'm not making any baby food this week since my freezer is still chock full of squash, carrots and sweet potatoes from previous attempts. Also, since my little one is getting her first toof (I can feel a raised bump in her lower gum!), she is being ultra picky and has suddenly stopped eating things she used to eat with gusto. We're keeping it simple.

I make my Turkey Meatballs from scratch using a "recipe" my mom used when I was a kid. It is not exact and you have to be OK with using your hands to mush up the meat. Here is a tried and true (by myself) real recipe if you need things measured out.

My Turkey Meatballs with added TVP
***** If I do say so myself. And I do.

1.25lb (because this is a standard package size) 93% lean ground turkey - you need a bit of fat. Don't use turkey breast.
0.75 lb Re-hydrated TVP (measure after hydration on a food scale or just eyeball it) or Soy crumbles of any kind.
1/2 small onion diced REALLY small. Don't leave big chunks! It ruins the meatball texture!
1 tbl or more if you prefer, italian seasoning. I use the pre-mixed stuff from Penzey's because it's just as good as my own mix.
1 egg (the whole egg, don't skimp here)
A splash of skim milk
1/2 cup-ish bread crumbs - add until the texture is right - they shouldn't be too sticky but they shouldn't be dry either. This is one of those things you just feel.

Put everything in a large bowl and mix up with your hands. Yes, your hands. You have to feel to make sure it's not too sticky or mushy. Add bread crumbs accordingly.

To cook: Form the meat into balls - I make mine small (1 inch diameter) because the husband likes them that way but I truly prefer them big and meaty (cook longer if you do this!). Place on a cookie sheet lined with tin foil and sprayed with a little EVOO or PAM. Cook at 350° for about 4 minutes and then turn them all over with tongs. Cook for 2-3 more minutes until you cut one open and it's not pink. Get them off the sheet immediately or they will overcook and be dry. Eeew.

OPTIONAL: leave the meatballs a bit pink if you plan to simmer them in your sauce, but don't just dump them in the sauce uncooked - they wont get browned at all and I find them mushy that way. Enjoy!

Does it "pay" to make baby food?

2008-12-07T19:44:00.003-05:00

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!

2008-12-07T19:28:00.011-05:00

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!

2008-12-06T08:26:00.007-05:00

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.

2008-11-30T17:41:00.009-05:00

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

2008-11-21T14:37:00.008-05:00

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

2008-11-18T12:19:00.009-05:00

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. .

2008-11-16T19:43:00.004-05:00

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.

2008-11-15T18:20:00.004-05:00

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.

2008-11-15T09:03:00.011-05:00

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!

2008-11-13T07:28:00.008-05:00

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 Un iversity (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?

2008-11-11T14:08:00.005-05:00

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

2008-11-09T11:36:00.009-05:00

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

2008-11-08T07:45:00.004-05:00

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.

2008-11-06T19:48:00.003-05:00

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!

2008-11-06T19:30:00.011-05:00

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!

2008-11-04T11:29:00.008-05:00

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

2008-11-02T19:19:00.006-05:00

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!

2008-11-01T08:45:00.007-04:00

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!

2008-10-29T14:19:00.006-04:00

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!

2008-10-28T09:24:00.004-04:00

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

2008-10-27T19:19:00.005-04:00

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.

2008-10-26T20:32:00.002-04:00

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

2008-10-25T21:30:00.007-04:00

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

2008-10-25T20:44:00.014-04:00

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.