Bean Sprout Salad

I always seem to buy bean sprouts, and they tend to go bad in the fridge.  So before they could rot on me, I thought I’d make a salad out of them.

It’s kind of an everything but the kitchen sink kind of salad.  But it worked out pretty well.

 

Ingredients:

1 zucchini, diced

1 bag of bean sprouts

1 can of tuna

4 hard boiled eggs

1/2 cup feta

Dressing:

1/4 cup Greek yogurt

2 Tbsp fish sauce

1 tsp soy sauce

3 Tbsp PB2

1/2 cup rough chopped cilantro

1/4 cup water

Rooster Sauce to taste

Whisk all together

Toss with the remaining ingredients.

Makes for a good power snack!

Enjoy!

Tortilla Soup

I have not been feeling up to snuff lately. Thankfully I got to sleep in today, a lot actually so hopefully that will help kick this sickness’s booty.  Unlike the majority of the world though, I have a really hard time resting, especially when I am sick. My mom can attest to this, I was never a good napper.  I’m not going to go run a marathon or anything, but when I take a day off from work, sick or not, I see so much that needs to be done.  And then the kitchen is always calling my name.

A long, long time ago, I was an artist, one who painted really, really large paintings.  And I still do, just not as obsessively, nor as large as I once did.  Now, my artistic outlet has found its way into the kitchen.

 For what ever reason, when I’m sick, I love a big bowl of tortilla soup.  Its really just the spicier cousin to chicken noodle, but I like it either way.

Here is my version, with a new take on the tortilla chips.

Ingredients:

• 4 tsp Better Than Boullion Chicken Stock
• 3 pounds of chicken breasts, raw or cooked
• 1 yellow onion, roughly chopped
• 1 bell pepper, roughly chopped
• 1 can of diced tomatoes
• 1 small can of green chilies
• 1/2 Tbsp paprika
• 1/2 Tbsp cumin
• 1/2 Tbsp ground garlic
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 lime
• a bunch of cilantro, roughly chopped
• 1 avocado

1. In a large soup pot, bring to a boil 1 quart of water.  Add  the chicken bullion.  If chicken is raw, add into the pot at this time.  The cooking of the chicken will add to the flavor of the broth.  Once chicken is cooked, remove from pot and chop or shred.
2. In a large pan, combine onions, pepper, chilies, tomatoes, spices and oil.  Bring to a boil and simmer while chicken is cooking.
3. Once chicken is cooked and chopped, marry the chicken, and sautéed veggies with the stock.  At this time, add the cilantro and lime slices.  Simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Remove limes.  Serve with a dollop of sour cream or Greek Yogurt, avocado slices and some sweet potato chips.

Sweet Potato Tortilla Chips

Tortilla: tortilla in Spanish means “small torta“, or “small cake”

When I lived in Spain, I was introduced to Spanish Tortilla, which is a quiche-like potato pie.  I had never understood the true meaning of Tortilla until I saw it in other forms.  So with that brief history lesson, think of these thinly sliced pieces of potato as mini cakes.  I’m trying to make a connection here, but if you don’t buy it, you can call them potato chips!

I used about half of one sweet potato.  Slice thinly using a mandolin or your own super power.  Lay out on a parchment lined baking sheet. Using a Misto, spray your chips with a bit of olive oil.  Sprinkle to your taste with paprika, ground cumin and a bit of salt.

Bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees.  Around half way, pull them out and flip over.

I got a little side tracked and cooked mine too long…  whoops!

Meat Pie

I’ve been reading a lot about the Paleo Lifestyle of eating.  It’s intriguing.  I saw a recipe for a quiche that the chef replaced the flaky pie crust with a crust made from meat.  I like meat!  I can do this!  In fact, I have a freezer full of top quality ground beef that my family raised and butchered.  Even better.

The caveman would be proud.  Family raise cow.  Family butcher cow. Family eat cow.

No exchange of hands here.  

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of ground meat (I used beef, but turkey or venison would be great)
• 1/4 cup pesto (I used home made which doesn’t look as pretty as the store bought stuff so I cooked it in with the beef – thats why it’s not pictured)
• 1 pound of cubed butternut squash
• 5 green onions, sliced – divided
• 1Tbsp olive oil
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup egg whites
• 1/2 cup cottage cheese
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cook the beef with the pesto.  I divided it into two pie dishes.  You can use one dish and end up with thicker slices.  Your choice.
3. In the same pan you cooked the meat, put in the squash and the whites of the green onions.  Add a few TBSP of water and bring to medium heat.  Allow steam to soften the squash.  Add olive oil once steam has evaporated.  Stir and sauté.
4. In a mixing bowl, combine eggs, egg whites, chopped chives (the green stems of the onions), and the cottage cheese. Use a stick blender to puree or beat really well with a fork.

5. Once squash is browned, pour on top of meat.

6. Pour egg mixture on top of the pie.

7. Bake in oven for 35 minutes.

8. During the last 5 minutes of cooking, top with cheese.

Enjoy!

 

This is a great breakfast, brunch or even a dinner option. Serve with a big side salad or some green beans and you’ve got yourself a meal.

Feel free to use different veggies if you’re not a big fan of squash. If you try this, share how it turned out for you in the comments.

Empty Box

 

I EMPTIED THE BOX!!!
I rid my house of it’s contents.  

I threw the chocolates away.

Every Christmas, my students bless me with the most thoughtful gifts.  And chocolates tend to take up a bulk of them.  I am so thankful that I work with families who are so giving.  But I struggle with chocolate. I like it. I love it.  I want some more of it.  My biggest problem is that I cannot just stop with one if there is a whole box of it sitting around.  

I tried though.  

I tried to just have one.  And then I even tried to freeze the box.  Thinking that frozen chocolate wouldn’t be appealing because I’d have to pull one piece out at a time.  No, I really just ended up eating it frozen.  Then it lacked flavor.  So my instincts said to try another piece.  Maybe that was just that one piece that lacked flavor.   So I threw that box out.  But within a few days, the same dilemma appeared with another box.  I had 4 boxes of chocolates hiding in the back of the cupboard.  So, I finally had to throw them all away.  

My house is empty of chocolate.  I’m ok. I survived.  I needed to clean house.  

I like chocolate and still will.  But I like to be in control of my life a lot more than I like this vice.  

 

Peanut Butter Yogurt Dip

Wow! It’s been a while since I’ve posted on here.  Life is getting the best of me.  But alas, I haven’t forgotten about you.

I came up with this great dip the other night.  I had a girls night to go to, and had a feeling there would be lots of sweet things that would tempt me, so I decided to bring my own, natural sweets.

Tether this dip with plate full of sliced fruits and you’ll be set!

What you’ll need

• 3/4 cup non fat greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup lowfat or non fat cottage cheese
• 2Tbsp unsweetened almond milk
• 1/3 cup PB2 Chocolate (or regular)
• 1Tbsp honey

In a small mixing bowl, add cottage cheese, yogurt and almond milk.  Of course, you can use cows milk, I just had almond on hand.

Add 1/3 cup PB2, and 1Tbsp of honey.  Using a stick blender, puree until smooth.

The dip makes about 2 cups, and 8 servings.

 

A note on PB2.

PB2 is a ground/powdered peanut butter.  When the peanuts are ground, 90%+ of the fat is removed.  There are no artificial ingredients.  Just peanuts, sugar and cocoa.  Its the real deal, but so much healthier – especially when using in your cooking.  I also feel that the flavor stretches farther in recipes because you have more peanut concentrate than normal peanut butter.

You can purchase PB2 directly from their manufacturers.  I prefer to order off Amazon, it tends to be cheaper.  If you’re in a pinch and need it, I’ve seen it at Fred Meyers.

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Zucchini Rolls

On a whim, I made these for a party we hosted last week.  I wasn’t sure how they would turn out, but  they were a huge hit.

Now, if only I had a fancy camera to take fancy food pictures… then I would be set!

Ingredients:

• • 6 medium zucchinis
• • 1 pound of fresh spinach
• • 1 small package of hard salami
• • 1 package of reduced fat cream cheese
• • 1 tbsp ground garlic
• • salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat a grill, or grill pan. Slice length wise the zucchini in thin strips. Discard the first and last slice that has the most skin. Place on grill and sear until grill marks appear and the zucchini is very soft. Set aside.

2. While grilling, dice up salami. In a medium pan, cook salami at medium heat. Once the fat has liquefied, drain on to a paper towel to remove most of the grease.

3. After removing the grease from the pan, cook down spinach. Cover with lid and stir occasionally. Once spinach is wilted, press in a strainer to remove most of the moisture.

4. In a mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, cooked spinach, cooked salami, and garlic. Stir until well mixed. Do a taste test to see if it needs salt or pepper. Most salamis are very salty, so I leave the salt out.

5. Roll a tablespoon of the spinach and cream cheese mixture in each zucchini slice. Hold with a tooth pick. Best served chilled.

Enjoy!

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