Bacon, Rice and Peas

Last night I borrowed a recipe from the blog gluten free frugal. Here's the link:
http://glutenfreefrugal.blogspot.com/2008/11/bacon-black-eyed-peas-rice.html

I wasn't able to follow the recipe to the "T", because these I rarely get to plan my meals ahead of schedule and very rarely do I have all the items in a necessary recipe. Which is something I'm seriously gonna need to change with this new upcoming year of 2012.  Dawn and I are content to eat whatever, whenever, but with 3 boys and a husband they go from happy to starving in a blink of an eye. lol.

Last night I was I getting this recipe ready, I realized that ALL of the chick peas, and black-eyed peas I had on hand were dry, they wouldn't be ready in time. (Needed it ready to served within 90 minutes, before hungry little Gordon woke up.), and that I'd have to enlarge the recipe to fit my growing family of 6 people.  This recipe as is will feed 3-4 people. So I looked around and realized that I had canned and frozen peas on hand which we hadn't had in quite a while....so I subbed with frozen peas. Verdict? YUMMY!!!! Even little Gordon couldn't wait to devour all of it. He had two servings (which is rarely in the world of toddlers), no to mention when Cyril chose to pull a "I'm not Hungry" stike, Gordon finished off Cyril's as well.  Spencer ate it without complain which is a first and Dawn, said "DO NOT CHANGE A THING" hehe.  So I think this is a quick meal, which is also a definite keeper in my book these days.  Enjoy!!!

4 slices bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (I used the whole package of bacon to feed the 6 of us)
2 cups instant rice (I used 3 cups)
1 can chicken broth (ensure GF -Swanson's is a good one to use)
1 can black-eyed peas, drained (veggie kind, not Fergie kind)(I used 1.5 cups of frozen green peas)
2 ounces shredded cheddar (Did not use because we didn't have any CF Dyia Cheese on hand)

Fry bacon until crispy, then drain. (I normally prefer to bake bacon, but what's left on the pan after draining adds flavor here. I'm sure there's a real word for that.)

Add rice and broth to pan, cover and cook until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Stir in peas.
Cook until heated through. Season with salt & pepper, top with cheese. Serve.

Time for Comfort food.

Lately we've been having a lot of comfort type foods...I guess it's that time of year...my favorite time of year. When the leaves are changing, the crispness in the air, my wedding anniversary, and several birthdays occur during the fall and early month of December, including my own. :)

Tonight my daughter asked for Meat Loaf...since it's been awhile I thought it sounded like a good idea.  The last few times instead of GF bread crumbs or Quinoa flakes, I've been using baby rice flakes. Yup the same kind that you use to make baby cereal. lol.  I had some that needed to get used up before it expired. It's actually turned out really good.  Tonight I'm making some different changes. We are using a table spoon of Van Hansen's special seasoning, 1 tablespoon of Oregno, intead of Djion Mustard we used 2 tablespoons of spicy Hot mustard, it's still egg free here, but if you would like to try this recipe. The orginial was posted this past spring in April.

off the Reboot website

Here's a great list of the benefits for some fruits and veggies out there. I got it from the Reboot website.

Nutritional Benefits


Before you can truly embrace a diet rich in fruit and vegetables, it is important to understand the benefits these foods are literally bringing to the table. Here are some quick facts you didn’t know about everything – from Apples to Turmeric.


Apples contain antioxidants that help protect “good” HDL cholesterol levels in the blood.

Avocados are densely packed with anti-inflammatory, healthy fats. Well-known for its vitamin E content, an important antioxidant.

Beets are potent antioxidants with liver-protective properties.

Blueberries and blackberries are rich in anthocyanins—these phytonutrients have power. They can reduce inflammation, increase detoxifying enzymes in the liver, and stop cancers from creating their own lifeline-blood supply.

Cabbage is a cruciferous vegetable that promotes natural detoxification in the liver. It is high in sulfur and iodine.

Carrots are the richest plant source of vitamin A, good source of potassium.

Celery is high in organic sodium, magnesium, and iron. Magnesium is important for the breakdown of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats into energy; for muscle relaxation and the prevention of cramps; and for nerve conduction and preventing tooth decay.

Cilantro provides a rich source of carotenoids.

Cinnamon has been shown to help keep blood sugar in check.

Cucumbers contain potassium and phytosterols, which help lower blood cholesterol levels.

Fennel’s active ingredient, anethole, blocks inflammation in the body and can stop cancer cells from multiplying.

Ginger root reduces nausea, pain and inflammation, and provides heartburn relief. It also aids digestion.

Grapefruits provide a rich source of vitamin C, and are a good source of lycopene (a carotene with prostate cancer-protective properties).

Kale is an especially nutrient-dense vegetable with many potent micronutrients. Rich and abundant in calcium, lutein, iron, and vitamins A, C, and K, kale has seven times the beta-carotene of broccoli and ten times more lutein, another potent carotene. Kale is part of the cruciferous vegetable family, making it a good source of the phytonutrient indole-3-carbinol. Research shows I3C has many anti-cancer actions, such as promoting estrogen ratios in the blood that are weak, but needed to discourage breast cancer tumor growth. Crucifers are also potent detoxifiers.

Kiwis offer twice the vitamin C of an orange per serving. They are a good source of vitamin E (a potent antioxidant) and potassium.

Lemons contain natural anti-nausea and overall digestive-aid properties.

Mint is rich in plant-based omega-3 fats – an important nutrient for healthy hair, skin, and nails that has powerful anti-inflammatory activity. Omega-3s may also protect against the development of heart disease and certain types of cancers.

Parsley is a good source of folic acid, which may help lower the risk of heart disease and certain types of cancers. It also promotes fresh breath.

Pineapples are high in the enzyme bromelain, an anti-inflammatory.

Spinach is high in iron, vitamin C, and beta-carotene. The vitamin C and beta-carotene in spinach are antioxidants, and may help to protect cells from the damaging effects of free radicals. Most dark green leafy veggies are rich in lutein – a phytonutrient shown to help delay age-related macular degeneration of the eyes.

Sweet potatoes (and carrots for that matter) are rich in – a phytonutrient responsible for giving these veggies their rich orange color. Zeaxanthin has anti-cancer activity: it helps encourage cancer cells to commit suicide (apoptosis), and helps prevent tumors from being able to create their own blood supply (anti-angiogenesis).

Swiss chard tastes sweeter in juices than spinach. It is rich in vitamin C, potassium, and magnesium. Foods rich in potassium have been shown to lower blood pressure and heart disease risk.

Tomatoes are rich in lycopene – a member of the carotene family famous for its potential to prevent prostate cancer.

Turmeric has been shown to have multiple forms of anti-cancer activity in prostate, ovarian, colon, uterine, and breast cancer cells. The active ingredient responsible, curcumin, is approximately 1,000 times more bioavailable (absorbable) when combined with black pepper.

Juicing

The other day Jessie and I watched a documentary on Netflicks called "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead".  It was very eye-opening, and I'm excited to say it made Jessie want to get healthy and lose some weight.  In his line of work it's really hard for him to eat right. They were insane hours, and he gets to eat mainly 1 meal a day which is usually at the end of the work day anywhere from 5-9pm at night.  And when he puts in 12-16 hour days, that's not really a lot to keep you going. Plus when they start the majority of the time before the normal breakfast hour, and he's the type of guy that wants to sleep till the last possible second...again it doesn't leave room for healthy eating.

Plus my darling husband loves his meat, potatoes, and very little fruits/veggies. AKA the typical guy.  So after he watched this documentary, he did some research and then approached me about doing this.  I of course was really nervous about this.  If you haven't seen this movie, it's where a guy goes 60days rebooting his system and consuming only pure juices of fruits and veggies that he made himself. That's it! Wait no that's not it, he also consumed the daily amount of water that he needed. So we sat down and watched the show together, after we talked about it, I was put at ease and I'm all for it. 

I wanted to do it as well, but since I'm still nursing Gordon, that puts me out automatically since it's basically a detox.  And who wants to be drinks a cocktail of toxins through breastmilk?  I know the jury is still out on it, but I'm gonna wait on detoxin till I'm done nursing.  Gordon and I have had a rocky road as far as nursing and what I get to eat due to his allergies, why the hec do I want to chance that?  Plus knowing our luck he WOULD get something.  But there's no reason why we can't enjoy the benefits of the extra fruits and veggies that I wouldn't normally eat, and/or don't have time to add all of these extras to our diet.

Today marks Day 4 for Jessie of the total reboot. He's been struggling.  He's been really hungry and tired, but I'm hoping that will turn around. It's nice knowing that he's getting some extra nutrients that he wasn't getting before though.

If you all want to take a look at this, here's the link:
http://jointhereboot.com/

Grandpa's Stew

Tonight I'm making a family favorite. It's pretty bland tasting for my husband, but I'm starting to experiment with the spices to see if how we like it. Tonight I also slipped in a jar of purred squash into the meat. We'll see how things turn out tonight.  I also doubled the batch, this way there'll be enough leftovers for about 4-6 meals.

1 pound of lean ground beef, or turkey
1 can of potatoes (or cut fresh potatoes to equal about 2 cups)
1 can of mixed veggies (drain 1/2 the can)
1 can of cream of chicken soup (or the GF recipe from http://thehappytummy.wordpress.com/2010/03/11/cream-of-chicken-soup-gluten-free/
Season to taste of the following (Sea salt, pepper, garlic powder, oregano, rosemary, basil, and thyme) OR any other seasonings you want to the meat. Mix up the meat really well.

(Note: Ground Turkey comes out tender...may need to cook a little longer so it's not so mushy. Not entirely sure.)


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a 2 1/2 quart casserole dish, put the meat mixture on the bottom, then layer the potatoes, then can of mixed veggies with 1/2 of juice and then pour the cream of soup over all.  Cover

Cook for 1 hour. 1/2 through take cover,  remove cover, stir thoroughly and leave cover off for last 30 minutes.  Make sure to chop on the meat.

Hamburgers

Well tonight, I had  craving for burgers....BIG mistake!  Talk about a flop.  I thought because we had more fatty meat, which is perfect for burgers and Cyril was craving corn on the cob (which we had frozen from last Summer.) it would be a perfect dinner.  But I discovered that I should have mixed the burgers with GF bread crumbs, or flakes...they fell apart.  So I'll try it again another time.

I guess last night was a night for flops. I made bread again, the 2nd time that I used my "new" Kitchen Aid mixer (Which I got for free of freecycle.), it's an older model, but it works AWESOME!  My oven choose last night to be hormonal and not cook the bread all the way through. Good thing Dawn had to stay home from school, otherwise she wouldn't have had bread for lunch.

The corn on the cob tasted great though!

Meat loaf n potatoes

Today I was craving meatloaf.  Who knew that as an adult I would develop a craving for meatloaf!? The recipe is by Carol Fenster. I added some purred veggies to it though, was pleasantly surprised you couldn't tell that I had added them.  I discovered tonight that, it's better to use a leaner ground beef, then what we had on hand tonight. It's better suited for hamburgers, which I'm starting to lean towards having tomorrow night.

Meat Loaf:
1 pound raw lean ground beef (85% or leaner)
1/2 cup of gluten free bread crumbs, homemade or I personally use Quinoa flakes
2TBS of dried minced onion
1TBS of Dijon mustard (KOOPS)
1TBS of GF Worcestershire sauce (Heinz)
1 large egg, beaten or 1TBS of  ground flax seed, 3TBS of water
1/2 teaspoon of dried basil
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
1/4 teaspoon of black pepper
1 jar of baby food squash (Beech-nut, or Earth's Best) - optional
1 jar of baby food peas (Beech-nut or Earth's Best) - optional
half of the glaze mixture

Glaze Mixture:
1 can of tomatoes sauce (Hunts)
1TBS of packed light brown sugar
1TBS of Worcestershire sauce
1/8 teaspoon of ground allspice (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Generously grease the 5X9 inch pan
2. Using your hands or a potato masher, combine all the meat loaf ingredients in a large bowl.  Or place the ingredients in a plastic freezer bad, seal and knead with your hands until the mixture is well blended.
3. Combine all the glaze ingredients in a bowl.  adding half to the meat loaf mixture.  Press the ground beef mixture into the pan.  Brush the remaining half on top of the meat loaf.
4. Bake the loaf pan 45 minutes to 1hour. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. Bake muffin-size meat loaves for 30 minutes or until done. Let stand 5 minutes.

Potatoes:
1. I cut up 8-9 medium size potatoes after washing them.
2. Lay foil in a large pan.  Lay potatoes on the foil, sprinkle garlic powder, sea salt, and use  3-4 TBS of butter (Earth Balance). Seal up the foil. OR wrap solid potatoes in the foil.
3. Cook the same length of time as the meat loaf.

Spaghetti and Meatballs

I think that for almost most people this is a child or childhood favorite dish.  It becomes hard for people with food allergies due to the pasta, and the different things that are put in most commercial spaghetti sauces.  For a long time now, Jessie and I have always made our own. I like being able to pronounce and know exactly everything that's listed, don't you?

Tomorrow will kick off our daughter Dawn's 90 GF challenge. She's exhibited a lot of signs of being gluten sensitive, included a delayed puberty, so Nana and I put a challenge to her. She eat ALL meals and snacks gluten free for 90 days, if she doesn't see a difference, then she doesn't have to stick to it outside of our home, if she does, then she will stay gluten free. She accepted the challenge.  SO I thought it would be fitting to make a favorite dish of mine that the kids like, so they can have the leftovers.

For the Meatballs:
1-1.5lbs of ground beef (or ground turkey)
1Tbs of dried minced onion\
1/2 cup of gluten-free bread crumbs (like Ener-G or Glutino), homemade bread crumbs or I personally like to use Quinoa flakes
1 large egg beaten (OR 1TBS of ground flax seed, 3 TBS of water)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder.
1 1/2 teaspoon of dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1. Preheat the oven to 350F.  Line a 9X13 inch baking sheet with foil
2. Using  your hands, combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.
  Shape the mixture into 12 meatballs, and place on the prepared baking sheet.
3. Bake 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on the sheet for 15minutes. (or place in sauce)

For the Spaghetti sauce:
 2-3 cans of tomato sauce
1-2 cans of diced tomatoes (Hunt's )
1 of each baby food: Sweet Potatoes and Carrots(giving everyone some extra vitamin A)
1/4 to 1/2 a can of pumpkin (helps to thicken the sauce naturally) or 1 can of tomato paste( Hunt's)
Season to taste with the following: garlic powder, oregano, parsley, and basil. Feel free to add any other seasonings you would like.
1/4 of black pepper
1/2 TBS of sea salt.

1. In a large sauce pan, add all ingredients BUT the diced tomatoes.  Whisk all ingredients, taste with a spoon, once you like the amount of seasonings in, then add the can of diced tomatoes.  Simmer to low till the meatballs are ready, then add meatballs if desired, continue on simmer-low till your spaghetti noodles are ready.

For the Spaghetti noodles - cook according to directions.

Pork Chops

Earlier this week, I got a great deal on Pork Chops at Walmart.  I discovered from one of the workers that, once they put the meat out, it's discounted on the 4th and 5th day it's out for consumers to purchase. After the 5th day they pull the meat, send it to dog food manufacturers to grind up and put in dog food.  So for a little over 3lbs of Center cut Pork chops, normally 14.68, I got it for 9.68. Pretty great deal huh?  Normally I'm not a huge fan of purchasing meat at Wally world, when you are on a budget you gotta do what you gotta do.

So here's the recipe that we are using tonight for dinner:

5 pork chops
15 oz of cream of chicken soup (homemade)
7-8 small red potatoes
garlic powder
sea salt
black pepper

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. While that is preheating, wash and cut up your red potatoes. Put them in the bottom of a casserole dish. Then take your pork chops, season them with garlic powder, sea salt, and black pepper (season them to taste), and then I tenderized them on both sides.  Place on top of the potatoes. Take the cream on chicken soup and pour over them.  Cover and cook for 45 minutes or till pork chops are cooked. We served them with green beans, and GF biscuits from Bisquick mix.

For the biscuits just follow the directions on the back of the Bisquick box. We substitute the milk with coconut milk. Also due to 99.9% of cream soups having wheat flour in them, therefore a no-no to us. I've been very heart broken because I haven't been able to make my grandfather's stew up till now due to the fact it asks for cream of chicken soup. Then I thought I'd take a chance and google on the internet to see if anyone had a recipe for it...lo and behold someone did!!!  It's super super easy, that a novice like myself can accomplish it.  So earlier this week, we were finally able to have grandpa's stew (2yrs since the last time I had it.). Yummy!

Here's the link to cream of chicken soup. It's another GF blog with great recipes.
http://thehappytummy.wordpress.com/2010/03/11/cream-of-chicken-soup-gluten-free/

Did again.

Well here it is April 2nd, and I've done it again. I've neglected you all. I'm so sorry.  Here's one of our new quick dinner favorites. Jessie, my husband, threw it together. LOVE it when he cooks, since he cooks more like his mom.  A little bit of this, and a little bit of that...it always tastes yummy.  Did I mention my mother in law cook all the food at my wedding reception?

The other night we had something going on and had to be out of the house, mighty quick. So Jessie cooked up some ground hamburger (We season our meat with garlic powder/salt (TONES), black pepper, sea salt, no paprika due to that being stg 2 on the Feingold diet), then he took some barbecue sauce(It was a Heinz sauce); mixed it all together.  We served at over white rice and with green beans.  It was very good even to me when I usually hate barbecue sauce. I know it's unamerican.

Meat n Potatoes

Ugh the last couple days in our house have been pretty eventful as far as sickness goes.  Cyril came down with the Rotavirus(Rotovirus).  Which is frustrating is that he was vaccinated for that. So things haven't been as spicy, have been more bland, much to the disappointment of my husband. lol.  Plus with us being on the Feingold (FG Diet), it's hard to know what spices are approved for stage 1....when the ones you are used to cooking with are on stage 2. (My chili powder and paprika).

So last night, I made potatoes, ground hamburger, GF/CF gravy mix (NOT FG yet....), and green beans. Nothing special, but it's Dawn's FAVORITE dinner to eat. I swear she would eat potatoes and gravy everyday if she could. lol.

It's a great beginner's meal, when learning how to cook.

1. Wash ( I take a green scrub pad and wash/scrub the potatoes), pork with fork all of the potato
2. Season with butter and garlic, wrap in foil
3.I place them in a pan, so that any butter that leaks is in the pan, not the bottom of the oven, place in the oven @ 350 degrees for 1 hour.
4. When the potatoes have about 20-30minutes left to cook, that's when I start to fry up the hamburger. I chop the ground beef (or ground turkey), use minced onion
5. Cook the GF gravy like you would normal gravy, I used Brown Gravy by  Mayacamas
6. Microwave or cook on low a can of green beans.
7. Serve

New Favorite for Lunch

I think I have a new favorite for Lunch at least, if not a quick dinner meal. Cyril wanted corn dogs, and I must confess I wanted one too, since I only had the unapproved, non-gluten free corn dogs, he got 1 and I got none. lol.  So I was a good girl and cooked up a chicken breast, which is Feingold Approved, Gluten Free AND Weight Watchers friendly. Can't get any better then that now can I?

The chicken is thru Schwan's called Live Smart Chicken Breast.  It's about 13.99 a bag BUT before you have a heart attack about the price, it's the only chicken breast that I know of that uses water instead of broth AND when you cook it up, it doesn't shrink to 1/2 it's size. You most certainly get what you pay for.  I also cooked up the last of the Oreda Tater Tots.  They are gluten free, but alas are NOT Feingold Approved so after today, we must bid good-bye to our family favorite tater tot. Now I'm on the hunt for a good tater tot, that's both GF and Feingold Approved.

Great new blog!!

Last week, on one of the online support groups I'm a part of, sent a link to a great new blog.  The reason why it's so great is for several reasons. 1. She uses her crockpot all the time, I'm starting to become in love again with mine. lol.  2. She wrote a WHOLE year of GF recipes using her crockpot, and now has quite a bit more recipes to add.  It's been great looking over her blog. 3. There are pretty easy for novice cooks.

Here's the link.  You'll start to see more of her recipes on this blog.
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/

Here's one from her blog that we used the other night. It got mixed reviews at my house, but that's not really surprising. lol.

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/09/crockpot-applesauce-chicken-recipe.html
Applesauce Chicken
by Stephanie O'Dea
The Ingredients.

--4 frozen chicken breast halves or thighs (I used 2 of each)
--1 1/2 cups of applesauce(use your own, or already made. I used my own)(Stage 2)
--1 T dried onion flakes, or 1 yellow onion, chopped finely
--1 T apple cider vinegar (Stage 2)
--1/4 tsp cinnamon
--1/2 tsp black pepper
--2 cloves garlic, minced
--1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (optional, I used them, and added more to the adult servings)



The Directions.



A 3 or 4 quart crockpot is the best size for this, but I did use a 6 quart. If your pot cooks fast, err on the lower end of cooking time.


I used my own applesauce, which for those of you on the FG (Feignold Diet -Stage 2).


Put the frozen chicken pieces into your crockpot. Add the onion (if you are using the dried onion, wait and add it to the applesauce). In a bowl, mix the applesauce, vinegar, garlic, and spices together. Pour on top of the chicken.


Cover and cook on low for 5-7 hours, or on high for 3-4.
Serve with rice or quinoa

Behind!

Oh my word, am I seriously behind on updating this blog. I know that I have mentioned it before, but I'll apologize again.  Being a mother of 4 is a lot harder at times then I thought it was going to be, especially when you have a fussy baby. Speaking of little Gordon, it looks like he's not the only one not being able to tolerate/handle dairy products.  Increasingly I have noticed that the more and more I've had dairy products, the more and more I get a fuzzy head...think hangover. So I'm slowly coming to the acceptance that I will not be able to go back to dairy products, once Gordon is done nursing.

I'm not sure if many of you know this or not...can't remember if I mentioned this in this blog or our family blog.  Anyways, I suffer from ADHD, and it's been interesting managing a business, a family - while I was pregnant (so of course, off my meds) and now while nursing little Gordon.  I honestly do not want to go back on my medication when I'm done nursing Gordon, if I have too, then I will, but I figure we are going to try some alternative things. Side note- we are going more alternative lifestyle if you didn't know (No Vaccinations, Semi-attachment parenting, and Eating healthier - who knew that was considered alternative?) Since my oldest two children are also both ADHD (Spencer will be tough to get a firm diagnosis, cause of his special needs) and I suspect the 3rd child has it as well, we are adding the Feingold Diet. Never heard of it well here's a link to their website: www.feingold.org .  It's not really a diet, more like a lifestyle change similar to when a family goes gluten free/casein free/or whatever food allergy. We've slowly been doing the 1st stage and seeing improvements. It's been great.

I'll try to make a point of adding more of the recipes from the last couple of meals.