Breakfast Salad

I had the most delicious salad for lunch the other day.  And even though it's a "breakfast salad" I could happily eat it any time of day.

The recipe can be found here.  I think it would also be lovely to add some avocado, tomatoes, dried cranberries, and matchstick carrots.  Maybe even some kale.  I used mixed baby greens instead of spinach and really, any salad greens would work well.  You could skip the croutons (I did) and make it gluten-free and omit the bacon (but who'd want to?) to make it vegetarian.

So, so yummy.

Fruit Cereal

One of the "raw" recipes we experimented with a few months ago was a huge hit.  We've had it at least once a month for the last little while.  Here's what we do....

I set out a bowl for each person and put whatever fruit we have in the house on the table.  I go around the table asking who wants a banana, or an apple or some strawberries, etc.  I cut up the fruit into smaller-than-bite-sized pieces and put it in the designated bowl for that person.  At the end, everyone has a bowl of their favorite fruits.

I know what you're saying, "Hey, that sounds like fruit salad."  Well, it is, sort of.  But it's different for each person and my kids hate fruit salad.  They love fruit cereal.  (It's all in the sales pitch!)

All of them like it with a drizzle of raw honey.  A part of me cringes at that, but a bowl of fresh fruit with a small amount of raw honey is much better than two big bowls of Cocoa Puffs.  Some of them like to put milk on theirs, others prefer it without.  You could use cow milk or nut/rice milk.  One of my boys loves to eat just bananas for his "cereal".  A bowl with 2 bananas cut up.  Fine by me!!!

Some suggestions for fruit....
Apples
Pears
Bananas
Strawberries
Blueberries
Raspberries
Grapes (green, red or black, just make sure they're seedless)
Cherries
Nectarines
Peaches

I prefer not to put citrusy-type fruits in mine because I think it overpowers the sweet berry flavors, but you could certainly add them to yours.
Oranges
Grapefruit
Kiwi
Pineapple
Mango
Papaya

Any leftover cereal gets recycled into a lunch smoothie!

Vegetarian Korma

Everyone really enjoys this and I love that the kids are eating a ton of vegetables.  It's got a long list of ingredients, but it comes together quickly.

1 1/2 tbsp. vegetable oil

1 onion, diced

1 tsp. minced fresh ginger root

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 potatoes, cubed (you can substitute cauliflower for some or all of the potatoes)

a few handfuls of baby carrots, sliced

1 (4 ounce) can tomato sauce

2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 tbsp. curry powder (you can use garam masala or a mixture of the two)

1 c. frozen green peas

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped - I don't use peppers at my house so I consider this optional

1/2 red bell pepper, chopped - I don't use peppers at my house so I consider this optional

1 c. coconut milk 

1 bunch fresh cilantro for garnish

hot cooked rice

naan if you're feeling adventurous

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion, and cook until tender. Mix in ginger and garlic, and continue cooking 1 minute. Add the potatoes, carrots, tomato sauce, salt and curry powder. Cook and stir 10 minutes, or until potatoes are tender (I add in a bit of water now and then if it's looking too dry or sticking to my pan). Add the remaining ingredients (but not the rice and naan!).  Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 10 minutes. Garnish with cilantro to serve.   

Serve with rice and naan.  You could add spinach, broccoli or garbanzo beans or pretty much whatever you want.

Black Beans and Quinoa

We've recently discovered quinoa and love it.  This is a fast, delicious dish.  My kids love that they're eating "an ancient grain." Quinoa is sometimes hard to find but most big grocery stores have it.  Otherwise, check your local health food store.

1 tsp. vegetable oil or butter
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
3/4 c. uncooked quinoa
1 1/2 c. vegetable broth
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (I don't add this; I sprinkle it on the adult's servings)
salt and pepper to taste
1 c. corn kernels, frozen or canned
2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion and saute until lightly browned; add the garlic the last minute or two.  Throw the quinoa into the saucepan with the onions and add the vegetable broth. Season with cumin, cayenne pepper (or hold till later), salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes.  Stir the corn into the saucepan, and continue to simmer about 5 minutes until heated through. Mix in the black beans.  Sprinkle cilantro on each plate - my kids won't eat cilantro (I don't know what's wrong with them).  The grown-ups at my house like to sprinkle ours with cayenne. 

Chicken Noodle Soup

When the kids get sick they ask for this soup. It heals all and cures all. It does not, however, clean up after itself.

2 lbs. chicken or turkey, cubed and cooked (or less - I only use a few handfuls)
2 medium onions, chopped
3 stalks celery, sliced
3 large carrots, sliced or a few handfuls of baby carrots, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 to 6 chicken bouillon cubes OR several quarts of chicken stock
1 c. or so frozen peas
1/2 tsp. dried sage
1 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. marjoram
1/2 tsp. tarragon
1 tsp. thyme
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. rosemary
pepper to taste
pasta

Fill a 6 quart pot about 3/4 full of water (or chicken stock). Add the onions, carrots, celery and garlic. Add the spices and bouillon cubes (if not using stock). Simmer an hour or so. Bring to a boil and add the chicken and pasta. Cook on a low boil for 20 minutes or until the pasta is done. A few minutes before you turn it off, add the peas.

On the days when I have more time to get this on the table I'll fill a big stock pot with water and add a few pounds of chicken breast and wings, some carrots, onions and celery with a few tablespoons of vinegar (to draw out the calcium) and sea salt. I let it simmer for hours, all day if I can. Then I strain the liquid and pull the meat from the bones. Discard all the mushy veggies unless you love to eat mushy carrots. Then I use the newly made stock for the soup and add all new veggies. I still only use a small amount of the chicken and freeze the rest for later.

Enchiladas verdes

We absolutely love these. The sauce can get a little spicy depending on the amount of serrano peppers you use. I used two tonight and it was pretty tame. I've used up to five and it gets a little fiery then. Our kids are wimps so they usually don't eat the sauce. They have chicken on the tortillas with a bit of queso fresco and maybe some cilantro. It's all good. The sauce freezes really well so I usually double or triple it and throw it in a Ziploc bag for later. Enjoy! Oh, I think I got this recipe from allrecipes, but I'm not sure anymore.

2 or 3 bone-in chicken breasts
2 c. chicken broth (I often use bouillon cubes)
1/4 onion
1 clove garlic
2 tsp. salt
1 lb. tomatillos (remove the husks and wash well)
2 - 5 serrano peppers (or less if you don't want it really hot. We have used jalapenos, too)
1/4 white onion
1 clove garlic
12 tortillas (corn or flour -we like flour better)
Queso fresco
1/2 white onion, chopped
1 bunch cilantro, chopped

In a large pot, add first 5 ingredients. Boil for 20 minutes or until chicken is done. I often let it go for several hours. Reserve broth. Let chicken cool then shred; set aside for later. Place tomatillos and peppers in a pot with water, enough to cover them. Let boil until tomatillos turn a darkish green. Strain and place in a blender with 1/4 of the onion, garlic and salt. Pour in reserved broth until it just covers the vegetables by 1 inch. Blend. Pour in saucepan and bring to a low boil. If using corn tortillas, heat some vegetable oil in a pan and slightly fry, drain, then dip in low boiling green salsa. If using flour tortillas, just dip into the salsa. Place 1 to 3 tortillas on a plate. Top with shredded chicken then green salsa. Top with crumbled queso fresco, chopped onion and cilantro.

This can be adapted to be dairy-free by skipping the queso fresco.  You could just not use the cheese or you could substitute cashew or almond cheese.

The Best Chocolate Cake Ever

or at least that's what my husband thinks. I make it every year for his birthday at his request, and about 10 other times in the year, too. This makes a fairly dense cake and tastes very old-fashioned. It's not the fluffy, airy kind of chocolate cake you get from a box. One great thing about this is that it doesn't use eggs or any type of refrigerated foods - only stuff from your food storage!

3 c. flour
2 c. sugar
6 tbsp. baking cocoa
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 c water
2/3 c vegetable oil
2 tsp white vinegar
2 tsp vanilla extract

In a mixing bowl, combine the first 5 ingredients. Add water, oil, vinegar and vanilla. Beat on low for 1 minute. Beat on medium for 1 minute. Pour into a greased (or sprayed) 13x9 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

We typically don't frost this, just dust with powdered sugar or whipped cream.

Sausage Barley Soup

Here's a flavorful soup for your crockpot. I love my crockpot. If you don't love yours, you can make this on the stovetop. Which I did the other night and it took about 40 minutes.

1/2 to 1 pound Italian sausage - I've used turkey sausage and reduced fat too, it all works
1 onion, diced
3 cloves minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
6 cups chicken broth or 1 48 oz can chicken broth - I use half broth, half water and bouillon
3 to 4 large carrots, sliced
1/2 cup uncooked pearl barley
1 zucchini, sliced or diced
a head or a few handfuls fresh spinach, chopped

Cook the sausage, onion, and garlic until the sausage is done. Toss all the ingredients into your crockpot and give it a hug. Cover and cook 4 hours on high or 6 hours on low.

White Chili

I thought all white chili tasted gross. I was wrong. I found this recipe from the Year of CrockPotting blog. (Seriously, check out her amazing recipes.) This is so easy to make and so delicious. The chili is fairly sweet so we don't like to add cheese.

16-oz. bag of frozen white corn (yellow works too)
2 cans of white beans (any kind will do - DON'T DRAIN)
1 4-oz. can of green chilies
1 small to medium onion, chopped (I like to use sweet onions)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup vegetable broth (you can use bouillon and water)
juice from one lemon (or a shot or two of lemon juice from a jar)
1 1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
salt and pepper to taste

Dump everything into the crockpot. You don't need to drain and rinse the beans or the chilies. Cook on low for 8-9 hours, or high for 4-6.

Baked Oatmeal Squares

We eat this at least once a week, usually more. I can stir this together in minutes and relax while it's baking. If we have any leftovers the kids like to eat them cold like a soft granola bar.

2 eggs
3 c. quick-cooking oats
1/3 c. brown sugar
1/3 c. white sugar
1 c. milk
1/2 c. melted butter or vegetable oil
1/2 c. chopped nuts, optional
1/2 c. raisins, optional
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
milled flax seed - a large spoonful or two

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Pour into a greased 13x9-in. baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Cut into squares. My kids like theirs in a bowl with milk, or not. One kid hates milk on his. I like to put craisins and almond slivers on mine. I typically don't add the raisins and nuts to the baking process as all 4 of my kids hate cooked raisins. They take after their mama.

I've made this with applesauce instead of the oil/butter and the kids didn't like the apple flavor. Yours might. I also have forgotten to add the butter and it's turned out just fine, just a little drier than normal. To add further complications - I have done half butter (1/4 c.) and half applesauce (1/4 c.) and they seem to be okay with that.

This can be adapted to be dairy-free if you:
1.  Substitute half of the butter (1/4 c.) with melted coconut oil and (1/4 c.) applesauce.  Or just use the vegetable oil.
2.  Use 1 c. water instead of 1 c. milk
3.  Serve it cut into squares, and serve like a soft granola bar, instead of with milk.  Unless you like rice or almond milk then you can you that.  My kids won't use it.

Russian Borscht

The funny thing is that one of my kids is Russian by birth and he doesn't like this soup at all. The rest of us love it. I make it several times a year, in hot or cold weather.

1 to 3 lbs. bone-in beef shank (depends on how meaty you want it - I use 1 lb.)
1 onion, chopped
6 c. water
1/2 lb. carrots, cut into bite-size pieces (I use baby carrots)
2-4 stalks celery, cut into bite-size pieces
1/3 medium head cabbage, shredded (I use half a package of shredded cabbage or coleslaw mix)
1 lb. beets, peeled and shredded or julienned
1 c. tomato juice (one of the pop can sizes of juice works perfectly)
1 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. white sugar
2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
sour cream

In a large pot, add beef, onion and water. Simmer, covered, for 2 hours or until meat is tender. Watch this as I've often needed to add additional water. Remove meat and let cool, then cut meat into bite size pieces. If you want to defat the broth, set in fridge overnight then lift the fat off. When ready to cook, stir remaining ingredients into broth; add more water if needed to come just to the top of the veggies. Simmer until vegetables are tender, about 20-30 minutes. Add meat and heat through. Serve with sour cream.

This makes great leftovers and can sit in the fridge for days without getting all mushy. Do wear an apron when you're working with beets as they have a nasty habit of staining clothes, and hands!

To make this dairy-free, don't add the sour cream.

Olive Garden-like Zuppa Tuscana

Or something like that. I like to serve this with breadsticks and salad and pretend we're eating out. Maybe I should tip myself....

1 lb. ground Italian sausage - mild or spicy, your preference. I can only find the links so I remove the casings and chop it up
1 large diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced or about 2 tsp. minced garlic from the jar
1 quart water
2 cans chicken broth (14.5 oz each) OR 3 2/3 c. homemade chicken broth OR the equivalent in bouillon
2 or 3 large Russet potatoes, peeled and sliced (Yukon Gold works too)
1 c. heavy cream (the whipping kind works well as does evaporated milk)
2 cups or so chopped Kale or Swiss Chard
4 tbsp. real bacon bits (or a few strips cooked bacon)
salt and pepper to taste

Brown sausage, breaking into small pieces. Drain and set aside. Meanwhile, place onions, potatoes, chicken broth, water and garlic in a large pot. Cook on medium heat until potatoes are done, about 20 to 30 minutes. Add sausage, bacon bits, salt and pepper to taste and simmer another 10 minutes. Turn to low heat and add kale and cream. Heat through. I've made this with turkey sausage and it tastes just as wonderful.

To make this dairy-free, don't add the heavy cream.  We've eaten it this way many times (in fact, just tonight) and it tastes just as lovely.