Browsing Category

Sides

RECIPES/ Sides

Oatmeal Whole Wheat Quick Bread

I posted this Oatmeal Whole Wheat Quick Bread recipe about a year ago.  It is still a favorite and I’m making it tonight, so I thought I would repost. I needed some easy, hearty bread to go along with our easy, hearty roast & vegetable meal.

 I threw Trader Joes Tri Tip Roast in the oven, dumped a bag of Trader Joes Fresh Roasting Vegetables on top (it is a bag of red potatoes, carrots, garlic cloves, onion, sprig of fresh thyme, sprig of fresh rosemary). Way too convenient!! I added a bit of red wine and Worcestershire sauce to the roast.

Of Course, salt and pepper to taste.

I am trying to get back into the swing of making dinner again!  I have been so spoiled with my church providing meals for us the last 4 months!!  I do enjoy cooking– very much– but I have found I need to stick with meals that are EASY until my energy level is back to normal.

Got any easy recipes for me?

Oatmeal Whole Wheat Quick Bread

 

1 cup rolled oats
11/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
11/2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (I used coconut oil)
1 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees
2. Grind oatmeal in a food processor or blender.  In a large bowl, combine oatmeal, flour, baking powder and salt.  In a separate bowl, dissolve honey in oil, then stir in the milk.  (I mixed the milk, coconut oil and honey in a one-cup glass measure and microwaved it until the coconut oil melted (the cold milk made it into a solid-state, so I needed to liquefy it).  Combine both mixtures and stir until a soft dough is formed.  Form the dough into a ball (I had to add a bit more flour) and place it on a lightly oiled baking sheet.
3. Bake in preheated oven for about 20 minutes, or until the bottom of the loaf sounds hollow when tapped

13
RECIPES/ Sides

My Favorite Salad

I had a friend bring this salad over to my house and both Todd and I just loved it!  We agreed it is a favorite, we both took a bite and just looked at each other with wide eyes and a smile–yes, it is that good!

 The dressing is tangy, the apples are tart and crisp, the grapes are sweet and the candied pecans are like a crunchy dessert topping!

 I had to have the recipe so I could make it myself and share it with all of you.

Ingredients:

 

~Salad-greens ( I love to use Butter/boston lettuce and red leaf in the mix)

~Red grapes

~Granny smith apples

~Candied pecans (recipe below)

~Dressing (recipe below)

 

Toss and Serve.

Candied pecans-

3/4 c brown sugar (If you are looking for low sugar, I think this could be reduced)

1/2 t cinnamon

1/4 c margarine

1 c chopped pecans

In small pan melt margarine, stir in brown sugar and cinnamon. After that mix in the pecans, coating them with the mixtutre. Pour into pan in single layer and bake at 200 for about 10 minutes. Pour onto wax paper. Cool and separate.

Dressing-

1 c oil

1/4 c sugar

1/4 c vinegar

3 T Dijon

1 T Worcestershire

1/2 t salt

Blend together.

3
RECIPES/ Sides

Bean & Corn Salsa With Rice, Cheese & Chips To Dip

My friend, Traci, came to visit a few weeks ago.  She didn’t want me to have to make lunch, so she brought along an awesome lunch of brown rice, homemade bean and corn salsa, some cheese and tortilla dipping chips.  It was the most delicious, filling and simple lunch!  I loved it.  I knew after my first bite that I would want to share it with you all, so I grabbed my camera and took the picture above.
The salsa has amazing flavor.  I am not a cilantro fan, so I was excited to see that this recipe used parsley instead.  The lime juice and sweet onion were key ingredients for me.  
We have been trying to eat less red meat around here, adding at least one non-meat meal a week.  This recipe is the perfect way to get some fiber, veggies, and protein from the cheese and beans.  If you wanted more protein, a side of grilled chicken would be perfect, you could serve it on a bed of rice with the salsa on top–pretty! I’ve been thinking about this recipe ever since I tried it and can’t wait to make it for my family!
Bean & Corn Salsa
3c. chopped seeded tomato  (4-5 Roma)
1/2c. chopped Vidalia or other sweet onion
1/2c. chopped tomatillos (about 2 med.)
1/4c. canned black beans, rinsed and drained (I like 1/2c.)
1/4c. fresh corn kernels (I just throw frozen kernels straight in – I like 1/2c.)
2T. finely chopped fresh parsley
2T. fresh lime juice (1 med. lime)
1/2t. salt
1/2t. pepper
1/2t. hot sauce

Combine; cover and chill for at least 2 hours. I usually make the night before. Of course, I like mine put over Rice with a little cheese heated up in the microwave and then served with tortilla chips! 


If you have never cooked with a tomatillo, what you need to look for at the store are tomatillos with green (not brown) papery skin, and firm flesh–no soft spots.  The paper skin peels right off,(lil’ cutie shows you how in the first video below) and you can eat them raw or you can roast them, then blend them up into a green salsa (second video below).  When eaten raw, they are firm and have a bit of a tart taste, which is perfect for the Bean & Corn Salsa recipe above.  Roasting makes them smokey and soft.


5
Healthy Eating/ RECIPES/ Sides

Balsamic Vinegar + Pomegranate Mist For Salads! Yum!

I have been eating soup and salad almost daily since my diagnosis.  It is a great way to get most of my vegetable servings in.  I have loved experimenting with my salads, the goal always to have lots of different colors going on for maximum health benefits.

I have been on the lookout for the perfect salad dressing, and have not been too happy.  There are so many in the grocery store that have high fructose corn syrup in them, or bad oils that I do not want cloggin’ up my body.  The non-fat versions crank up the sugar, in an effort to add the taste back in that is missing, once fat is removed.  The few that I did find that were healthy enough, lacked in the taste department.

Because of all this…I AM SUPER EXCITED ABOUT MY NEW FIND!!

Hello

I was at my local health food store and a cool- looking mist bottle among their salad dressings caught me eye.  It said “Balsamic Vinegar + Pomegranate.“  I love both flavors.  I looked at the ingredient list and guess what is in it??

~100% Barrel Aged Balsamic Vinegar from Medena, Italy
~Pomegranate Juice

Just 2 ingredients! Isn’t that a beautiful thing??  Another beautiful thing is that each bottle contains 384 servings!  They are super fun to use–pump 5 times and then spray.

The mist bottle is very cool. So very convenient.  I looked it up on Amazon.com to see if I could get it any cheaper, and if it comes in any other flavors.  It does.  They have just plain Balsamic, Balsamic and Raspberry, Olive Oil Mists, ect.  I noticed they also come in a half size, which would be perfect to throw in your purse to use on the go.

I cut some pepper strips and broccoli florets for a snack, and had a whole bunch of fun spraying them.  It is really, really tasty– so much flavor!  I plan on drizzling my salads with some olive oil, then giving them a mist.  Simple and healthy.

It is a bit pricey- I paid 7.99 for it- but the amount of servings in a bottle helps justify that, plus I plan on re-using the bottle by filling it up with olive oil or my own balsamic vinegar.  I’ll make up for the pomegranate part by sprinkling my salads with pomegranate seeds.

If you wanted to save money, you could skip the Gourme’ Mist all together and just purchase  a spray mist bottle like this one, then fill it with your own Balsamic Vinegar.

1
RECIPES/ Sides

Crunchy Roasted Chickpeas!!

**This is a guest post from my girl Erin @ A Bird And A Bean
I just made her recipe tonight and I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS!!  My Todd is too, they are so crunchy and awesome, we loved them. 

From Erin @ A Bird & A Bean


I found this recipe in the January issue of All You. I seriously love these little things. I’m eating them right now! They are so easy and you can flavor them with ANYTHING you want. We’re on New Year’s Resolution diets around here and so these are GREAT for me. I crave ‘crunchy and salty’ way more than ‘sweet’, so these are perfect!

They’re really good for you, too. Garbanzo beans (chickpeas) are a great source of folic acid, fiber, and protein. Plus they provide an excellent source of molybdenum, which is a trace mineral that’s needed for the body to detoxify sulfites! (I need this since sulfites are in red wine!)


I made them for our football party last night and it really kept me from eating junk. You can flavor them with any spices you like. I am posting the recipe just as it is in All You, but I’ve seen lots of different versions online.
I used Curry powder and Chinese Five Spice (a spice blend with star anise, cinnamon, cloves, cassia and ginger…it has all five flavors that we can taste in it) in my batch last night and I LOVE ’em. I used Garam Masala (an Indian spice blend that has yummy cumin, coriander, cardamom, pepper and cinnamon) last week and that was super tasty too. I figure using these fun spices makes this little snack even healthier since things like turmeric, ginger, cinnamon etc…. are so good for helping to prevent cancer, diabetes, arthritis and even Alzheimer’s.
I might try using a packet of chili seasoning to make a more “normal” version for the hubby next time. 🙂 I think a sweet and salty ‘kettle corn’ version would be good too. All you would need to add is a little sugar and a little salt.


Prep Time: 2 minutesBake: 50 minutesYield: 2 cups (serving size: 1/4 cup)Cost per Serving: $.36

What you need:
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon allspice
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper
  • 2 15 1/2-oz. cans chickpeas, rinsed, drained, thoroughly patted dry

What you do:

Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil. In a large bowl, combine olive oil, cinnamon, cumin, allspice, salt and pepper. Add chickpeas and toss to coat thoroughly. Turn chickpeas out onto baking sheet and roast, stirring or shaking baking sheet often, until chickpeas are browned and crunchy, 45 to 50 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and let cool before serving, stirring occasionally.



7
RECIPES/ Seasonal/ Sides

Too Much Pumpkin?!?

***this post is from last fall.  I’ve been busy having fun with my girls on their fall break, too busy to write new posts!!  
If you love pumpkin, this post is for you!  I am planning on going crazy during the remainder of this fall with the whole pumpkin food theme.  I have collected a few recipes that have caught my eye, and now that it is pumpkin eatin’ season, its time to try a few!

Every year when it comes time to carve pumpkins and scoop out all those pumpkin guts, I have great intentions of saving the seeds and making them into some kind of roasted goodness.  And every year, my good intentions go right out the window after a long night of carving, and even longer time of cleaning up all those pumpkin guts. This year I am FOR SURE going to do it.  I have Old Bay Seasoning sitting in my cupboard, which is what I need to make Maryland Pumpkin Seeds.
*I made these and they were yummy!

This Creamy Pumpkin Pasta recipe is one I am very excited about. Doesn’t that sound so very comforting?
*This pasta is one we will have at least once every fall.  I made it and it was creamy goodness..

We are all about pancakes in this house, so Fluffy Light Pumpkin Pancakes are a must try!
*These are everything their name says they are.  So good!

The picture of these Soft Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies has not left my brain since I first got a glimpse of it, I really hope they taste as good as they look! (I am going to use applesauce in place of the oil and maybe some maple syrup instead of all that sugar!)
*I replaced 1/2 the oil with applesauce and used pure cane sugar (sucanat) instead of sugar.  I made them last fall and I am hoping to get the energy to make them again, seeing the picture again makes me remember how wonderful they were!

This Black Bean Pumpkin Soup I have made, and it is to die for.  It got two thumbs up from my husband, and it is very healthy.  (I used a small amount of bacon instead of the ham)

 I have yet to find a chili made with turkey that I like, maybe this one, Pumpkin Turkey Chili, will be THE one?

As you know, I am a smoothie lover. Not so sure about a Pumpkin Smoothie, but if it can make a vegetable taste like dessert, I’m all for trying it!

Thank goodness I have until the end of November to make some of these!  I have a feeling my family will have had their fill of pumpkin by then!

4
How-Tos/ RECIPES/ Sides

Crockpot Homemade Applesauce

Guest Post by: Katie at The Cutting Back Kitchen

By the time September hits, I have had more than my fill of summer, and I am ushering in the fall season.  The fall decorations come out, pumpkin lattes become all too often indulgence, I anxiously await the changing leaves, and the fall recipes make their yearly appearance.
I love fall recipes, and this applesauce is no exception!  If you have never made homemade applesauce, it is a must this year.  The taste exceeds the store bought variety by a mile.
The great thing about homemade applesauce is that you can enjoy it all year long; it doesn’t have to be just a “fall recipe”.  Every fall I buy about 20-30 pounds of apples and feed the freezer.  I take one day to peel, cook, and package up the yummy stuff in freezer bags, and we enjoy it all year!
Ingredients
3 pound bag of apples (peeled, cored, and sliced)
2-3 tablespoons brown sugar (or other sweetener)
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ cup water
Instructions
Place your apple slices in the bottom of a Crockpot.  (If you don’t have a Crockpot, you can make it on the stove.) Top with brown sugar and cinnamon.  Add the water. (I always just make sure to add enough water to cover the bottom of the Crockpot.)    Cook the applesauce on low for 4-6 hours or until apples are tender.  Once the apples are tender, mash them with a potato masher for a chunkier consistency.  For a smoother consistency, mix in blender.
This is more an idea, than an exact recipe you need to stick to.  I try to keep mine pretty low in sugar, but if you like yours sweeter add some more.  Sometimes I add a handful of frozen berries to add some color and lend a slightly different flavor.  Get creative!
Freezing Instructions
I just package mine in quart sized freezer bags.   Thaw and enjoy!

Katie blogs at The Cutting Back Kitchen.  Her passion is helping women serve up big flavors on a bland budget.  There you will read all about her newest recipes, couponing adventures, freezer cooking frenzies, and really…everything that is kitchen related!

5
Top