Coconut Curry With Chicken

Yesterday I came up with this recipe. It was SO yummy, it will be a new staple meal around here.

1 can organic coconut milk (I like Thai brand because it is so creamy)
1 package organic chicken breasts (cut up) or tenders (about 3-4 breasts, 8 or so tenders)
1 red bell pepper, 1 green bell pepper, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1/2 a bag of frozen peas and carrots
3 Tbsps Coconut Oil
2 Tbsps San J Tamari
3-6 Tbsps Curry powder- depending on how you like it
Sea Salt
Garlic Powder
Curry Powder
Quinoa or Brown Rice

In a large skillet, melt coconut oil. Add veggies and saute for a few minutes. Add chicken pieces. Sprinkle chicken with sea salt, curry powder and garlic powder. Cook for about 2-3 minutes then flip. Season again with spices and cook 2-3 minutes.
Pour coconut milk over chicken and veggies. Mix in Tamari and Curry powder and another teaspoon of sea salt. Simmer for a about 10 minutes and serve hot over Quinoa or Brown Rice.

Loose Leaf Tea- My New Love!

My mother in law has gotten me hooked on making iced teas using loose leaf tea. Ever try it? It is super easy. I love fruity teas, such as a passion fruit blend or blueberry rooibos. Steep your tea, add some raw honey, stevia or xylitol (or a mix!) add your water and chill.

What a perfect refreshing summer drink!

Homemade Popsicles

This summer we've made some yummy homemade popsicles, as they are a favorite of any child! Most recently, we made Strawberry Coconut Popsicles. Great dairy free option.

My daughter also loves this creation:

Makes 4 small popsicles

Mix together in a cup:
About 2-3 Tbsps organic lemon juice
About 2-3 Tbsps organic lime juice
1 tsp stevia
2 cups water

Mix together; taste and adjust to your preference... this recipe is just a guide for you.
Pour in your molds and freeze until solid.

We have recently found popsicle molds with straws attached and are super excited!

Dairy & Egg Free Fudgy Cookies (No Bake)

"Fudgy" No Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies (Vegan, Soy-Free, Wheat-Free)

Try mixing the flavor up by substituting carob powder for the cocoa or almond butter for the peanut butter!

Serves: 12

Ingredients:

2/3 cup raw honey or real maple syrup or a combo of both
1/4 cup coconut oil
5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup organic peanut butter
1 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

In a saucepan over medium heat combine the honey or maple syrup, oil, cocoa and cinnamon. Boil for three minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in the peanut butter, rolled oats and vanilla until well blended. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto waxed paper and chill to set, about 30 minutes.

Are You Awake?

http://awakeupstory.healthychild.org/index.html

Homemade Tortillas

It is sometimes hard to find good-quality tortillas without the added bad oils. Generally, I buy Ezekiel brand, but they can be expensive. So when my mother in law started making these tortillas, I decided to give it a try. They were super easy and very tasty.

Flour Tortillas (Makes 8)

2 cups flour; my MIL uses a white/wheat, we used whole wheat (soft white milled at home). Both work great, but the whole wheat were a little more hearty, naturally.
1/4 cup organic butter, melted
1/4 cup grapeseed oil
3/4 cup warm water
1 tsp sea salt

Mix all the ingredients and knead dough for about a minute. Divide dough into 8 balls. Heat up a heavy frying pan, cast iron is best, over medium heat. No need to oil the pan. Sprinkle some flour on a clean counter top and roll each ball into a flat circle about 6 inches in diameter. Place one at a time in the frying pan, cooking only on one side until you see bubbles popping up all over the top of the tortilla. Take it off the heat and wrap in a clean dishtowel as you cook the rest.

Pair it up with some taco meat and don't forget your avocado! ;)

Delicious Iced "Coffee" Beverages!

Ok- this is my newest favorite find. Dandy Blend. It is a coffee substitute, made from the totally water-soluble extracts of three roasted herb roots: dandelion, chicory and sugar beet- and two roasted grains – barley and rye. It is super yummy! And a body cleanser! We tried it recently in this latte style drink (recipe thanks to our friend Amber W!):

Dandy Blend Lattes

3/4 cup boiling water
3 tsp Dandy Blend
1/2 cup organic heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp Global Sweet Xylitol
1/4 tsp Stevia
Ice cubes

Makes one serving. Pair it with Double Tree Inn cookies and you are in heaven.

Restoration Wellness Chiropractic

We are very excited to announce the 'birth' of Restoration Wellness, LLC!!!!

Restoration Wellness
Dr. Matthew J Boheen

1130 Crosspointe Lane Suite 7
Webster, NY 14580

Offering services in:

• Chiropractic
• Nutrition
• Weight Loss
• Detoxification
• Lab testing/diagnostics
• Pediatric Chiropractic
• Allergies

www.restorationwellness.com
Find us on Facebook!

770-570-2673

Opening October 1st 2010
Scheduling appointments NOW!

Super Light But Filling Lunch

Guacamole + pinto beans + tomatoes scooped up with raw veggies or corn chips = yummy!

Not your typical lunch, but still great and healthy.

Guacamole:

2 avocados
1 garlic clove
sea salt
pepper
lime juice

Mix together.... and just throw some pinto or black beans on top with fresh organic tomatoes (add some cheese too if you want) and eat with good quality corn chips (watch for MSG!) or raw veggies, or Mary's Gone Crackers (these are gluten free) and enjoy!

Sauteed Chicken, Salad and Homemade Ranch Dressing!

Make a salad with whatever you have on hand/is in season (lots of veggies and good greens!)

Saute some free range chicken breast or cutlets in grapeseed oil, sea salt, pepper, dill, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder and parsley, cooking several minutes on each side. Serve cooled chicken over your fresh salad and top with this homemade dressing:

Homemade Ranch Dressing:

1 1/2 Cup Grapeseed Oil Veganaise
3 Tablespoons organic almond milk
1/2 Teaspoon Parsley
1/4 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Onion Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Dill
1/4 Teaspoon Sea Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Chives
1/4 Teaspoon Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 Teaspoon San-J Tamari Sauce (wheat free, organic)
1/4 Teaspoon of lemon juice
About an 1/8 tsp stevia

Wisk together and refrigerate for a while before serving.

Pecan Crusted Cod

4-6 wild caught cod fillets (Alaskan is great)
1 cup or so of ground pecans (walnuts would probably work ok too)
1 cup coconut flour
raw honey
grapeseed oil

pour some raw honey in a dish and add a small amount of water. In a separate dish, mix nuts and flour. Place cod fillets in honey, then in nut mixture and cover as best you can using your fingers to "smoosh" the nuts on the fish.
Heat a skillet over medium heat with grapeseed oil covering the bottom. Place cod fillets in heated oil and fry on each side for a few minutes.

Once served, drizzle your piece of fish with raw honey and enjoy!

Sauteed Zucchini:

Enjoy your in season zucchini with this super easy recipe. Chop zucchini, and saute in grapeseed oil, sea salt, pepper and turmeric. Yum!

Salmon Marinade

This marinade was so good, I plan to try it with chicken drumsticks!

4 wild caught Alaskan salmon fillets
4 tbsps sucanat
4 tbsps balsamic vinegar
2 tbsps grapeseed oil
2 garlic cloves, minced or 2 tsps garlic powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp sea salt

Mix ingredients together and pour over salmon. Marinade in fridge for 30 minutes. Bake at 450 degrees for about 10 minutes, using a turkey baster to keep the sauce on the fish. :)

Farmer's Market Soup

A detox my hubby is on plus a trip to the farmer's market equals this soup :)

3-4 cups navy beans soaked overnight in water
2 zucchini, chopped
1 onion, sliced
2 organic tomatoes, chopped
one bunch green onions, chopped
3 organic celery stalks, chopped
1/2 kohlrabi, skinned and chopped
4 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup organic tomato puree
sea salt
basil
garlic powder
onion powder

Mix everything together in your stock pot or crock pot and cook for several hours until the beans are cooked. :)

These are a few of my favorite things.....

Changing ingredients in recipes to make them healthier can be tricky. Here are some of my favorite healthier alternatives:

White sugar- My favorite thing to use in place of it is Xylitol (same amount as the sugar & make sure you get a brand that is not chemically processed! Xylitol made from birch tree is super great! We like the brand Globalsweet) or raw honey (slightly less than the sugar)

Canola oil- grapeseed oil or coconut oil

Shortening- coconut oil

Margarine or vegetable spread- real butter

Brown sugar- sucanat

Soy sauce- San-J wheat free Tamari

Mayo- grapeseed oil veganaise

Enriched white flour- whole wheat flour or coconut flour

White rice- brown rice or quinoa

Chocolate for eating or baking- 60% cocoa dark chocolate

Soda- Zevia stevia sweetened soda

We've made a lot of changes in the last year. What changes are you making?

Chicken Soup For Your Soul!

10 free range organic chicken drumsticks
1 bag organic carrots, chopped
6 celery stalks, chopped
1 onion, chopped
frozen peas and corn
4 cups organic free range chicken broth
3-4 cups water
sea salt
pepper
garlic and onion powder

Place everything in your crock pot and cook on low all day. Once cooked, remove chicken and remove meat. Place meat back into crock pot. Season and serve. :)
My husband requests this soup every time he is sick. :)

Organic or Not Organic?

Ever wonder what you should buy organic and what you can get away with not buying organic? Read this article:

http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2010/06/01/dirty-dozen-produce-carries-more-pesticide-residue-group-says/?iref=allsearch

Break Time

Taking a break from posts... busy with my babies :)

They'll come here and there but not often. But only for a little while. :)

Bummed Over Braggs

I have recently read some valuable information about Braggs Liquid Aminos. My hubby read it as well, and we've agreed to try something else. We still use other Braggs products, however.
Read the article for yourself, and be sure to read the links too. Make an informed decision for yourself, although I will be removing it from my recipes and my fridge! I'll keep you posted as I find a similar product I like which does NOT contain any hidden MSG's!

Read here:
http://www.passionatehomemaking.com/2009/09/choosing-a-natural-soy-sauce-why-braggs-liquid-aminos-is-not-it.html

A New Favorite Treat of Ours

We had this for the first time yesterday. It was amazing. Need a treat once in a while? Try Coconut Bliss 'Ice Cream'!!! It's made with coconut milk and is all organic. Try it! YUM!

http://www.coconutbliss.com/

:)

More on Agave Syrup...

OK, so I am hearing more and more about this controversial sweetener. My understand is, that when this was first introduced, it was in fact a good alternative to table sugar. However, it became popular so fast that a lot of companies make it highly processed now- why not more and faster is best right? BUT I have heard that there still are some makers of agave with integrity. So- here's my suggestion if you love your agave: call the companies. Ask them if it's truly raw organic agave syrup or if it's processed. Not that hard right? The brand I used to use, Wholesome, is to my knowledge one of the companies that makes it highly processed.

I liked this article too:
http://www.elanaspantry.com/is-agave-good-or-bad/

And this goes for any product. If you buy Kashi crackers and you're questioning the canola oil... call them and ask about it! Better to know for sure what is in our food then to ignore or even deny ourselves of it if it's fine in the long run.

Just a journey... I learn something new every day. :)

Smothered Chicken

Kind of like a fajita, but without the tortilla!

4 free range organic chicken breasts

1 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 red cayenne pepper

1 tbsp organic butter

1-2 colored pepper, sliced

1-2 onion, sliced

sliced fresh organic mushrooms

1/2 cup shredded organic raw mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup shredded organic raw cheddar cheese

Drizzle some grapeseed oil in your pan, add chicken. Sprinkle with spices, cook on medium heat 8-10 minutes, turning once. Remove chicken from skillet, keep warm.

Melt butter in same skillet over medium heat. Cook pepper and onion in butter for about 5 minutes. Stir in mushrooms. Cook 3-5 minutes. Place chicken in skillet, and cover with veggies. Sprinkle cheeses on top, cover, and let stand until cheese is melted.

Oatmeal Cookies

Delicious and soft oatmeal cookies! Our favorite combo is with cinnamon and raisins. :)

3 sticks softened organic butter

1 cup xylitol plus 2 tsps molasses, mixed

1/2 cup xylitol

2 organic free range eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups whole wheat flour

4 1/2 cups organic rolled oats (I didn't have enough and used half rolled and half steel cut oats and it was fine)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

Add ins: 60% cocoa baking chips, organic raisins, dried fruits (check for added sugar and icky oils), chopped nuts, cinnamon, etc.

Preheat oven to 325-350 degrees (my oven here is like super oven so you decide)

Beat butter until fluffy, add sucanat and honey. Then eggs and vanilla. Add flour, salt and baking soda. Stir in rolled oats and extra mix ins. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet (grapeseed oil) and press down gently. Bake for about 8-12 minutes and you may want to switch the baking sheets half way through. Enjoy!

Healthy Baked Ziti

Everyone loves Italian!

1 box whole wheat ziti (or whatever really)

1 lb free range beef

1 onion, minced

4+ cloves of fresh garlic

Tomato sauce, homemade or bought (Muir Glen is a great brand)

1 small tub of organic ricotta or cottage cheese

About 3 cups shredded raw mozzarella cheese

Italian seasonings

pepper

sea salt

Basil

Garlic powder

Boil pasta according to package. Drizzle some grapeseed oil in a pan and saute chopped onions and garlic. Add beef and season with spices (don't be shy!). Cook until done and remove from heat. In a baking dish, add cooked meat and pasta, ricotta or cottage cheese, tomato sauce and mix well. Spread mozz on top and bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes. Mmm!

Amazing Avocado

If you don't eat avocado, you should! Avocados are so full of nutrition and healthy fats that we all need. Avocado was one of my daughter's first meals! And, if money is tight for you, avocado is one of those food items that can be bought non-organic because of it's thick shell.

So I am trying to eat more of it. For myself and for the baby. I can handle eating it with just some sea salt on it, but love to try different things for variety. So here are a few creative ways to get in your avocado. If you have any ideas, I'd love to hear them! Comment!

1. Sliced with sea salt (add some salsa too if you want)

2. Guacamole, everyone loves that right?

3. On a sandwhich with turkey breast and tomato or turkey bacon, lettuce and tomato on wheat bread

4. Mixed with homemade refried beans (basically just smashed pinto beans and water) with brown rice and salt

5. Mashed and added to egg salad (see above picture)

Do you have any ideas?

Baked Chicken

Don't have a lot of time to prep or make a meal? Try this chicken. It takes 5 minutes to prep.

Organic free range chicken leg quarters (I prefer to remove the skin)
drizzle with grapeseed oil
season generously with pepper, sea salt, paprika, garlic salt or powder and parsley.
Bake for about 30-45 minutes on 375 degrees. Easy and delish. My favorite combination. :)

Ditch The Taco Seasoning

No need for packaged seasonings. Next time you make some tacos, try using these spices instead!

cumin
chili powder
sea salt
black pepper
coriander
paprika
turmeric
garlic powder
red cayenne pepper

Just add what you like (don't be shy) and add some water or grapeseed oil to your uncooked meat. Brown meat like normal. Now you are MSG free! Tastes even better with diced peppers and onion!!

Homemade Frozen Yogurt

Try making your own frozen yogurt for a special dessert treat! Super easy.

All you need is:

one small bag of frozen fruit such as strawberries, raspberries, peaches, etc. (organic)
and one tub of organic cream top (whole milk) vanilla yogurt (I used Stoneyfield Farms)

Blend the two until mixed in your blender then put back into the yogurt tub. Needs to freeze for several hours. And once frozen solid, you may need to take it out and let sit on the counter for a few minutes in order to scoop some out! Yum :)

*You could also use plain yogurt and sweeten it yourself with honey or stevia, etc.

Vegetarian Soup

Threw this together the other night with a few things I had on hand. Liked it. :)

1 cup raw organic kidney beans, soaked 24 hours in advance

2 cups vegetable broth

1 small can of organic tomato paste

Tomato paste can filled with water 4x

1 organic tomato, chopped

1 onion chopped

1 zucchini chopped

3-4 celery stalks chopped

crushed garlic (as much as you want)

one bunch organic kale, washed well and torn into pieces

sea salt

pepper

basil

garlic powder

(about a tsp or two of each)

Just throw everything in your pot except kale. Cover and simmer on a low boil for at least an hour so the beans will cook through. Add kale towards the end so it doesn't get soggy.

Great with some crusty bread or rolls. (Whole wheat bread recipe here)

Dana and Matt's Breakfast Delight!

Matt and I used to make this breakfast all the time when we were dating. Really, it could be a quick lunch or dinner too! It's super yummy and just fun to make. Bake it a little more and you have a breakfast pizza, bake it a little less and you can roll it up as a breakfast burrito.

Makes 2:

2 whole grain tortillas, such as Ezekiel brand

About 4 free range organic eggs scrambled

4 slices of uncured turkey bacon cooked

1 organic potato washed and sliced thin

1 onion chopped

raw cheddar cheese shredded (about 1/2 cup or so)

sea salt and pepper

Cook onions and potatoes in a pan, covered, over medium high heat. Stir often. Add salt and pepper and some grapeseed or coconut oil so it doesn't stick.

Meanwhile, scramble eggs in another pan and cook the bacon when the eggs are done.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place in this order on your tortilla: eggs, chopped cooked bacon, potatoes and onions, cheese. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake in oven for about 15 minutes, give or take depending on how crispy you want it and if you want a pizza or a burrito. :)

Yum.

Turkey Meatloaf

Super fast, you just need to do it ahead of time so it can bake for 1 1/2 hours.

1lb organic free range ground turkey (beef is fine too)
1 cup milk
1 tbsp MSG free soy sauce such as San-J Tamari
1 tsp sage
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp ground mustard
1/4 tsp pepper
1 clove garlic minced or 1/8 tsp garlic powder
1 free range egg
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup whole grain bread crumbs or 3/4 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup organic ketchup

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients except ketchup. Spread in an ungreased loaf pan. Bake for one hour. Remove, drain any liquid, and spread ketchup on top. Bake for an additional 15-30 minutes.
I love to serve this with mashed potatoes (organic potatoes with skins, milk, organic butter, sea salt, pepper, garlic powder) and a green vegetable.

9 Food Label Lies

9 Food Label Lies

Super Easy Hamburger Stroganoff

So easy, so yummy. Next time you're tempted to reach for hamburger helper, try this instead!!! The picture is of the leftovers...not a great shot but we were too busy gobbling this up to take one!

1/2-1 lb free range ground beef
1 onion, finely chopped
1 container of fresh organic mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsps organic butter
2 tbsps whole wheat flour
2 cups low sodium organic free range beef or chicken broth
2 tbsps MSG free soy sauce such as San-J Tamari
1 cup organic sour cream
sea salt and pepper
1 bag whole wheat egg noodles or elbow pasta cooked

Boil pasta according to directions. Brown meat, onions and mushrooms (may need a drizzle of grapeseed oil). Remove from pan, set aside. In same pan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and mix, cooking for a few minutes. Add broth and stir until thickened. Stir in Braggs and sour cream, season to your taste with salt and pepper. Add meat/onion/mushrooms & cooked pasta to sauce, stir well. Simmer for a few minutes and serve with your favorite veggie.

Pulled Chicken and Sauteed Kale

Yummy! Serves about 4.

Pulled Chicken:

about 2-3 lbs organic free range chicken drumsticks

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 cup organic ketchup

1 cup organic bbq sauce

Place all ingredients in your crock pot. Cook on low for about 4 hours (my crock pot CRANKS so maybe you'll need more?) Once done, remove meat from bones using a fork. Mix in a bowl with additional sauce left in crock, and any extra bbq sauce to your taste. Serve on yummy whole grain rolls or bread, or just alone if you choose.

Sauteed Kale:

(Bobby Flay- with a few changes)

2 bunches organic kale, stemmed and cut into pieces and washed well

3 tablespoons grapeseed oil

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/2 cup organic free range chicken broth

sea salt and pepper

Heat oil on medium heat and saute the garlic. Add chicken broth and kale and toss to combine. Cook covered for about 5 minutes, stirring until all the liquid is absorbed. Season with the salt and pepper and enjoy! Warning: you may get addicted!

This also works well with mustard greens, and I am assuming collard greens would be amazing as well!

High Fructose Corn Syrup

My friend Lauren has this article on her blog from naturalnews.com on high fructose corn syrup. I think it is worth reading. Absolutely worth reading!

http://caramelaurenj.blogspot.com/2010/02/hfcs-high-fructose-corn-syrup-no-no.html

Blueberry Muffins Revised

Check out some changes I have made to my blueberry muffin recipe. Even more healthy and delicious! MMMMMM....

http://cleanoutyourpantry.blogspot.com/2009/07/blueberry-muffins.html

Come to think of it, I've revised a lot of my recipes and I have added several sweeter options to the recipes, that way you can choose which one you like best :) I personally like the raw honey and sucanat currently. Have fun experimenting!

Popcorn For Dummies

Like my title? Well that was me a year ago. If you had asked me to make you homemade popcorn I would have replied, "Isn't that what microwaves are for?". A healthy living journey is all about the little changes, so homemade popcorn was it. My husband graciously showed me how easy and simple it was. :) So I am now blogging about this 'duh' kind of recipe, because I am sure there are others out there like me who didn't even think to give it a try. ;)

Cover the bottom of your pot with grapeseed oil (he likes coconut oil, but I think it then tastes like coconut. Coconut popcorn? One coconut item I don't prefer!)
Heat on high with one kernel in pot.
When the kernel pops, cover the bottom with more kernels, reduce heat to med-low and cover. Shake the pot to keep it mixed up.
When the popping slows down or stops, remove from heat and mix in organic butter and sea salt to your taste. Now enjoy. The only thing that makes microwave popcorn better is not having to wash the dish! But hey, if washing an extra dish means a healthier life, I think I can handle the extra dish. ;)

Arrowroot Cookies

My daughter and husband loved these. Scarlotte had fun rolling out the dough with me. :)

1/4 cup softened organic butter

1/4 cup raw honey

1 egg

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup whole wheat flour ( soft or hard white if milling your own)

1/2 arrowroot

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp sea salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease cookie sheets with grapeseed oil spray. Cream butter and honey in mixing bowl. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add remaining dry ingredients and mix well. Flour your countertop and roll dough to 1/8 inch thick or so. Cut into 2 1/2 inch rounds or squares and carefully place on baking sheet. Poke a few times with a fork. Bake until golden, about 8-10 minutes. Should make about 3 1/2 dozen mini cookies. I doubled the recipe and froze half of them for later.

Just A Journey....

I always say that healthy living is a journey. It is just so true. You learn as you go, making necessary changes to meet the current needs of your family. Every day is another step! Recently, I have been learning about sweeteners- as you know. Sucanat has come up several times in the last few weeks and today I finally sat down to research it online. It looks like a great alternative to brown sugar, which for us is great because my Hubby is not a huge fan of brown sugar. Enter- sucanat! So here is just one more journey in our life of healthy living. Trying it out. Stay tuned.

Enchiladas Spicy Spicy (as my daughter would say)!

All I have to say is...YUM.

2 cups raw pinto beans, soaked overnight then cooked

2 cups cooked brown rice

6-8 whole grain tortillas (Ezekiel brand is good)

1-2 cups shredded white cheddar or monterrey jack cheese

organic sour cream

Enchilada Sauce:

www.cooking-mexican-recipes.com/enchilada-sauce-recipe.html

super easy and good. of course I used whole wheat flour, sea salt and organic free range chicken broth.

Place cooked beans and rice into a mixing bowl and add 1/4-1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce, mix well. Spread some of the sauce in the bottom of your baking dish. Take each tortilla, and spread the bean/rice mixture inside (about a 1/2 cup in each?), then roll up and place in dish seam side down. Poor remaining sauce over all of the rolled tortillas and sprinkle cheese on top. Bake at 375 degrees for about 20-25 minutes. Serve with your favorite veggie! You could also add cooked chicken to the enchiladas. Drop a dallop of the sour cream on top and enjoy!

Split Pea Soup

Want to know the easiest meal in the world? Split pea soup!

Take one bag of organic split peas, sorted and rinsed, and pour into crock pot.

Cover with organic free range

chicken broth (or vegetable).

Cook for 4-6 hours. Done! And very delicious.

Make it a stew:

Just add everything but the kitchen

sink. No, really. Anything you have, carrots, potatoes, onions, celery, scallions, whatever! Here's a couple photos of some I made recently- when it is done, of course it looks more like mush, so these pics are prettier. :) It's really healthy, easy, and delicious. Great with a crusty whole grain bread.

Zuppa Toscana Soup

Kale is in season! Zuppa Toscana is it! We love this soup and pile in the kale... yum! My friend Ashley inspired me to make my own version of this well loved soup from the Olive Garden.

Enjoy!





1 package antibiotic free turkey or chicken sausage (mild, med or hot)
2 onions
5 garlic cloves minced or use garlic powder
2 Tbsp grapeseed oil
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp sea salt (you can always add more later)
4-5 organic white potatoes with skins, chopped
6 cups free range chicken broth (learn to make your own here)
3 cups raw milk
1/2-1 bunch kale (organic if you can find it- kale is one of the 'dirty dozen')

In your stock pot cook onions, garlic and sausage in grapeseed oil (squeeze the sausage meat out of the casing). Add spices. Add broth and potatoes, cook until potatoes are tender. Add kale and cover, cooking for a few minutes until kale is soft. Mix in milk and serve hot.

From Scratch Brownies

6 months pregnant = LOTS of cravings. All the time. Anything and everything. Tonight, I wanted brownies, reeeeal bad. I knew I couldn't shake the craving! So I made some....and so far I have eaten four. Don't judge me, you know you could do it too! :) So these are more cake-like, but really yummy! Perfect when you need an occasional sweet treat like pregnant me.

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. sea salt

1 cup organic cane sugar (the recipe called for 2 cups but 1 was plenty! I'd even cut it down to 3/4 cup next time!) or Xylitol

1/2 cup cocoa

1 cup grapeseed or coconut oil

2 tsp. vanilla extract or peppermint extract for minty brownies

4 free range eggs

Mix dry ingredients together. Add oil, eggs, and vanilla. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Best when on the chewy side.

(Almost) From Scratch Chili!

Friday I ventured to make chili completely from scratch. I almost met my goal, except for that one small stinky can of organic tomato paste I had to put in to thicken it. Oh well. Almost there!
I also had to season this as I went, tasting it to decide what it needed. Here is a recollection of what (I think) I did after it was done. The result was good so I will do it again!

3/4 cup each: (raw) garbanzo beans, black beans, red kidney beans and pinto beans, rinsed and soaked 24 hours in advance.
4-5 large organic tomatoes, diced
2-4 organic bell peppers of any color, diced
1-2 medium onions, white or red, diced
3 stalks celery chopped small
10 cloves fresh garlic, pressed
1 small can of organic tomato paste
About 4-6 cups of water
3 tbsps raw honey and organic cane sugar
3 tbsps sea salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp black and red pepper*
2 tbsp cumin

1 tbsp chili powder*
1 tsp turmeric, coriander and paprika
*If you do not like spicy chili, use less ground red pepper and chili powder. I will next time until this pregnancy is over! :)

Place all ingredients in crock pot and cook on high for eight hours. If done on stove, cook on medium-high for eight hours? Stir and taste occasionally to test! (Remember I said "I think" this is what I did!!) I'll proof it again soon just to be sure. Serve with whole wheat corn muffins (blog under muffins)! Enjoy!

Easy Tuna Melts

Need a quick meal? Try this. My Hubby would say it's not so healthy if you use mayo, considering the hydrogenated oils, but I say at least it's not McDonald's! As healthy as you can get on those kind of nights....I save it for the weekend or nights when I am just exhausted!

Organic wild caught tuna in water (in a pouch if you can find it, to avoid the BPA in cans) you'll need 2

Mayo- learn to make homemade mayo here
or Grapeseed oil Veganaise (they sell this is Green Bay but I never found it in Atlanta or in NY but I do think you can buy it online)

Dill

Pepper and sea salt

Shredded white cheddar cheese

Whole grain english muffins (I recommend Ezekiel brand)

Make tuna to your liking with the mayo/veganaise, dill, salt, and pepper.

Toast english muffins. Spread tuna on muffins and cover with cheese.

Broil for about 5 minutes. Works great with a nice salad or even just some plain ol' frozen peas!

Homemade Tomato Soup (from scratch!)

I made this homemade soup last weekend and it was scrumptious! Serve it with grilled cheese on a hearty whole grain bread (we used Ezekiel Bread) and oh so amazing. Was such fun to watch our daughter dip her sandwich in her soup for the first time! We all loved it!



4 cups tomatoes, diced or pureed in the blender (approximately 8 small tomatoes) – I used part of my canned tomatoes and it worked great!
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced or a combination of cloves and garlic powder
1 cup organic chicken broth
1 tsp sea salt
1 Tbsp dry basil (or fresh if you have it!)
dash of pepper
2-3 tsp xylitol
Saute onion and garlic in a little coconut oil till tender and translucent. Add tomatoes and chicken broth and cook over medium heat for approximately 15 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly before transferring carefully to a blender. Puree until smooth. Return to pot and add the remaining ingredients to your taste. Delightful with a dalop of sour cream on the top!

Change Can Be Sweet....

Ok, so I have gone through my recipe collection and made necessary changes in hopes to mostly discontinue the use of agave nectar. Not 100%, but mostly. So I am now experimenting with raw honey, sucanat and stevia, and of course there is the easy way out- cane sugar! So, I obviously have not made all of these recipes in the last 2 weeks, just figured out the conversion. So I am asking that if you try anything using the new stevia, honey or cane sugar suggestions, please comment and let us all know how it worked for you! I have had much success with honey- however, for some reason, not with my banana muffin recipe! And I tried a new recipe today trying to come up with an accurate conversion for honey into stevia.....did not turn out sweet enough....I will continue experimenting and keep all of you posted on good and bad results. I appreciate your patience, as the Boheens can only eat so many muffins! My freezer is stocked! :) I am also learning that Sucanat is a good subsitute for brown sugar.

I am very excited for this push to try out stevia. I had wanted to a long time ago, knowing it was one of the best natural sweeteners there was! Agave was just easier....so here's to the push! And may all our muffins be delish.
:)

Thai Chicken Wraps

Light and healthy. Easy to make. Gluten free. Love it.

I got this recipe from elanaspantry.com and we really liked it. I will make it again. I may try an alternative to the peanut sauce, as it was not my favorite. Maybe a sweeter asian sauce. Either way, it still is super yummy and just different from what we usually have for dinner. It was fun.

Try it out:

www.elanaspantry.com/thai-chicken-wraps/

Learning About Stevia...

Found this conversion chart so now I can start my experimenting!

Sugar Amount........................................1 cup/1 Tbsp/1 Tsp

Equivilent Stevia powdered extract..1 Tsp/1/4 Tsp/a pinch to 1/16 Tsp

Equivilent Stevia liquid concentrate..1 Tsp/6-9 drops/2-4 drops


Honey works great too, just cut it down a bit (about 1/2 cup to every cup sugar). Also learning about Sucanat... seems like a good substitution for brown sugar (use the same amount).

Agave Nectar Highly Processed???

So recently we have been doing some deeper research on agave nectar. What we found is not what we were hoping for. This product has seemed to represent itself in a deceiving way, seeing that it is raw agave right? Wrong. The process in making this sweet syrup is very involved, making it not very raw at all! It is so processed and hydrolyzed, it becomes high in fructose, which is one of the worst ways you can get sugar! Ugh!

So where to go from here... well, we will be experiementing with Stevia and also using plain ol' good raw honey for sweetening. As far as agave goes, I am going to try to discontinue using it. I will say, however, that if you are diabetic, I would probably still recommend agave over Splenda or Nutrasweet. And if this news makes you want to go back to white refined sugar- don't! Use raw cane sugar instead.

More details to come. Bear with me as I make this transition!

Quinoa Crusted Cod and Collard Greens- Just Scrumptious!

This collard greens recipe is from my friend Lauren, and it is so delicious I can't believe it took me so long to try it!!! I mean, seriously delicious. Who would have thought? Collard greens? Oh yes. Amazing. Check it out here:

http://caramelaurenj.blogspot.com/2009/08/collard-greens-what.html

Honey Balsamic Collard Greens!

1 bunch of collard greens
Pinch of salt ( I use sea salt-has more nutrients than table salt-make the switch today)
Olive oil
Red onion
garlic cloves
garlic scapes (optional)
Sweet Peppers (green, red, orange and or yellow)

Fill Sink with cool water. Separate leaves from stalks and immerse in water. Rub dirt off and dry ( I shake the water off and cut them, then throw them in a salad spinner to get the water off)
Roll several leaves together and slice the roll in 1-inch strips ( I believe this is called chiffonade-style)
Put leaves into a large pot, add enough water to cover the leaves. Add a pinch of sea salt and minced or chopped garlic cloves. Bring water to a boil and cook leaves until bright green. Reduce heat to med.low heat. Simmer for at least 30 minutes, until tender. (taste to see if you like the texture-Don't cook too long, you do not want mushy greens!)
When greens are cooked to your liking, drain them and return to the pot and put on the lid.
Saute 1/2 cup chopped red onion, chopped garlic scape and peppers in olive oil. add to leaves. Drizzle honey and balsamic vinegar over mixture and toss leaves.

I only used grapeseed oil in place of olive oil and added maybe a little more than a drizzle of the balsamic vinegar and especially the honey. :)

Quinoa Crusted Cod

This one was just an idea I got one day from something else, and decided to create it and give it a try! The results were better than I expected!

Wild Cod or any fish filet really, just be sure you buy wild fish and not farm raised fish and try to stay away from high mercury fish such as tilapia (I know- a mild favorite of mine too..)
Organic quinoa (pronounced keen-wa, it's a grain)
Spices ( I used) Black pepper, sea salt, paprika, garlic powder, dill and parsley.
Egg
Grapeseed oil

Fill your pan with about 1/2 an inch of grapeseed oil and heat to medium high.
Beat the egg (s) in a small bowl and set aside.
On a plate, mix together quinoa and spices.
When oil is ready (sizzles when you drip the egg in it), dunk your fish into the egg and roll into the quinoa mixture until fully covered. Fry in grapeseed oil about 5 minutes on each side (more or less depending on how think your filet is). Place on a plate covered in paper towel immediately when done to remove extra oil, and serve right away.

I served both these dishes together along with brown rice.
Enjoy! (We did!)

Choco Berry Bars

The aroma these bars put in the air when baking is almost as good as eating them...

Choco Berry Bars

5 cups organic old fashioned oats
1 cup chopped walnuts
2 Tbsp coconut oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup organic sucanat
1/2 cup raw honey
2 Tbsp vanilla

1/4 cup whole flaxseed
1/2 cup dried cranberries*
1/2 cup dried cherries*
1/2 cup dark chocolate chunks

1) Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix oats, nuts, oil and salt together (may need to use your hands if your coconut oil is solid) and spread in 9 by 13 pan and bake for 18 minutes stirring occasionally.

2)Combine brown sugar, honey and agave in a small saucepan and cook over medium heat until sugar is melted. Add vanilla extract. Keep stirring.

3) Remove oat mixture from oven and transfer back to mixing bowl Turn oven down to 300. Stir in flaxseed, berries and chocolate, then pour in sugar mixture and mix well. Spread back into pan and bake for another 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

***Note: when choosing dried fruits, be very careful to check ingredients. Organic or not, many of them contain added sugars and hydrogenated oils, such as canola, sunflower or safflower. Do your best and be picky when choosing any dried fruit with as little of the 'extras' as possible!

Hummus With a Kick!

Found this recipe online- has a kick to it for sure! I love the cumin in it, may not use the red pepper next time...

Hummus With Tahini

2 1/2 cups cooked chick peas (I highly recommend cooking them yourself to avoid those from a can! It's so easy!)
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup tahini
2 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon ceyenne pepper
pinch of black pepper
1 tsp sea salt
1/3 cup water

Put all ingredients in your blender/food processor and mix until smooth. Refridgerate for one hour so flavors soak in and enjoy! Great with pita bread, raw carrots, whole wheat bread, etc.