Recipe of the Week: Broccoli & Garlic White Pizza

I often hear people say, "Oh, you guys are healthy you probably don't eat pizza." Wrong. We love pizza at our house! But we never order pizza and rarely eat it out because we love rolling our own dough and making up creative toppings.

I've found that pizza is one of the best meals to get kids involved in the cooking as well as the eating. If you haven't got the time to mix up your own dough, there are some great ready-made doughs available at Trader Joe's and Fresh & Easy in whole wheat varieties. If there's pizza, there's always a party at our house. I can hear my little girls scraping chairs across the kitchen floor and pulling up to the counter to help mama. Meilani loves rolling out the dough. Giada loves adding toppings - or rather, eating toppings - while we prepare our pies.

Pizza is also an opportunity to get kids involved in selecting and trying new veggies. If they get to "decorate" their own personal pizzas with colorful toppings, they just might try eating them. We discovered a new fave pizza by using what we had in the pantry: milk, garlic, broccoli and canned black olives. The result was this Broccoli & Garlic White Pizza.

My friend Amy also just made us a fun "Mexican Pizza" by cooking black beans until they were mushy, then spreading them on pizza dough and melting cheddar cheese on top. Then she chopped up lettuce and tomatoes and onions and threw them on top when the pizza came out of the oven. Yummilicious!

Honey-Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

Ingredients:

-1 package yeast or 2 tablespoons yeast (Make sure your yeast is fresh.)

-1 cup warm water

-1 tablespoon organic sugar or honey

-1 tablespoon salt

-2 tablespoons olive oil

-3 cups whole wheat flour

-2 1/4 cups unbromated, unbleached white flour (I like Trader Joe's brand.)

-1 cup cold water (filtered is best)
 
1. Proof the yeast: Add yeast to 1 cup warm water. Be careful not to get the water too hot. (Temperature should be 110-115 degrees if you want to be precise.) Wait about five minutes until yeast begins to bubble up in water.
2. Use KitchenAid or other high-powered mixer with dough hook attachment. Add yeast/water mixture, honey, salt, olive oil, flours and cold water. Mix together on low speed.
3. Increase spead and knead dough in mixer for 8-10 minutes. Dough will pull away from the sides of the bowl and look smooth.
4. Divide into 3 balls of dough. Store in Ziplock bags in the refrigerator (for up to 1 week) or in freezer.

Simple Garlic White Sauce

Ingredients:

-1/4 cup butter

-2 garlic cloves, minced
-1/4 cup flour

-1 1/2 cups milk

-1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated or shredded

1. Melt butter in small saucepan. Saute garlic.
2. Add flour and whisk together.
3. Allow to bubble and cook 3-4 minutes.
4. Add milk and whisk over medium heat until sauce thickens.
5. Stir in parmesan cheese and cook 3-4 more minutes.
6. Spoon over pizza.


Broccoli & Garlic White Pizza

Ingredients:

-1 recipe pizza dough (see above)
-1 recipe white sauce (see above)
-2 cups mozarella cheese, shredded
-1 head of broccoli, chopped
-1 can black olives, sliced
-whole garlic cloves (if desired)
-1 teaspoon fennel seed

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. If you have a pizza stone, put it in the oven to heat up.
2. Roll out pizza dough on to pizza pan or transfer to the pizza stone.
3. Top with white sauce.
4. Sprinkle with shredded mozarella cheese.
5. Top with broccoli and black olives. (You may add extra garlic cloves here if you really want that garlic flavor.)
6. Sprinkle with fennel seed.
7. Bake approximately 15 minutes until cheese bubbles and crust in golden brown.

Celebrate St. Patty's Day with a Twist: Shamrock shake gets a new whirl

Happy St. Patrick's Day, friends! At the Gilmore house, a new holiday means a new challenge to find healthy ways to celebrate and have fun. With the help of my little shamrocks, I just created a Minty Shamrock Shake (Move over, McD's) and tried out Irish Soda Bread with healthy twists. Yummy! You could always go digging in your refrigerator or browsing at your farmer's market for green fruits and veggies. Try sliced kiwi, limes, green peppers, asparagus, cucumbers - even apples!





We know it may sound weird but spring is the time for sweet peas so why not utilize their natural color? They have a light flavor but do not dominate a smoothie so your kids probably won't even notice. And the good news is, you don't have to use those yucky dyes to make your food green. If you're gun shy, try a tablespoon first just to get a little color. Just be a sneaky chef and leave a comment so we can hear if your little leprachauns liked it.

Minty Shamrock Shake

-3 cups raw whole milk (or your fave type of milk)

-1 tray of ice cubes

-1/2 teaspoon organic peppermint extract (depends on how minty you like it!)

-3 tablespoons honey (or organic sugar, if you prefer)

-1/4 cup frozen organic sweet peas



1. Whirl these ingredients in your blender until smooth.

2. Serve with a straw.




I found several recipes for Irish Soda Bread and decided to create my own. A special thanks to Maura Marmo and Peggy O'Brien-Bremer from my elementary school on the South Side of Chicago, who inspired me with their bread recipes. I've never used caraway seeds before but they are a fun addition that give this bread a distinct flavor. I would serve this up for breakfast, lunch or a dinner appetizer.

Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread

Ingredients:

-3 cups whole wheat flour

-2/3 cup organic evaporated cane juice (sugar)

-1 tablespoon baking powder

-1 teaspoon baking soda

-2 beaten eggs

-1 1/2 cups buttermilk

-2 tablespoons organic butter, melted

-1 cup raisins

-1 teaspoon caraway seeds



1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x5 loaf pan or mini loaves.

2. Sift flour into bowl. Add sugar, baking powder and baking soda.

2. Beat eggs. Add milk and butter. Blend into dry ingredients until batter is incorporated and moist.

3. Add raisins.

5. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 1 hour or until golden brown on top.

6. Cool, slice and serve with butter.


Here are more St. Patty's Day healthy recipes from one of my fave online sources, Eating Well Magazine.

*This post was pulled from the Health-full archives.

Recipe of the Week: Creamy Wild Rice Soup with Rosemary Focaccia Bread

A few weekends ago we went to visit our friends the VanderMeulens. In addition to taking us to a fabulous Gouda Cheese Farm, Jen also made us a memorable Sunday supper with this hearty wild rice soup. My hubby who is always spewing health and nutrition tidbits started rattling off some of the benefits of wild rice. If you've been reading our blog for any length of time we are crazy about celebrating food created by God that helps our bodies better than any medicine.

Did you know wild rice really isn't rice at all?  Sounds weird but it's actually long-grain marsh grass seed. Wild rice is packed with nutrients and protein. It's especially high in zinc, which is vital for healthy skin, cell growth, sexual and reproductive function, a strong immune system, and blood sugar regulation.

Truth be told, I've been searching out ways to incorporate "wild rice." So far I've only been able to use it in a Thanksgiving Stuffing recipe by Bobby Flay that  has become tradition at our house. I was grateful for Jen's recipe, which I tweaked a little bit to make it my own. The inspiring part about this soup is that it is thick, stick-to-your-insides hearty. It's perfect for those cold winter months but could be served up anytime of the year. I added sausage to my version because I happened to have a package of my favorite Trader Joe's Mango Chicken Sausage in the fridge. (Also, my dad, Mr. Carnivore himself, was coming to dinner so I thought this was an even better way to lure him to love wild rice.) You could choose to make it vegetarian or add the meat.

I am my Italian mother's daughter and I do believe every great meal needs to be accompanied by really amazing bread. I've been tweaking this focaccia bread recipe over the last several months - trying out different flours, playing with yeast and herbs. Let's be real: yeast is finicky and bread making can be tough. I've discovered that if my yeast/warm water/flour mixture doesn't literally bubble over the glass cup within 10 minutes than the yeast is not in good condition. It's worth throwing it out and starting over. Slowly but surely I'm starting to get the hang of it. There is something truly magical about watching the yeast bubble, adding the ingredients, kneading it (or putting my Kitchenaid to the hard work), letting it rise and bake. The rich smell of bread just permeates the house.

My hubby's secret dream is that we would buy a bread mill and grind our own flour and bake our sandwich bread every week. However, we don't have the moolah for a mill or a bread machine and I'm not quite there. I tell him to make a Trader Joe's run. In the meantime though, I will make an occasional loaf and this is my go-to recipe for company or family.

Creamy Wild Rice & Sausage Soup

Ingredients:
-2 tablespoons olive oil
-1 yellow pepper, chopped
-1 red or orange pepper, chopped
-1 large onion, chopped
-1 1/2 cups carrots, chopped
-1 cup celery (about 3 stalks), chopped
-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1 teaspoon dried thyme
-1 teaspoon chili powder
-2 teaspoons sea salt
-1 bay leaf
-8 cups chicken broth or water
-1 cup wild rice
-1/4 cup organic butter
-1/4 cup flour
-2 cups whole milk
-1 package Trader Joe's Mango Chicken Sausage (or other pre-cooked sausage of your choice)
-1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional if you want to kick it up a notch)

1. In a large soup pot, heat oil. Chop vegetables.
2. Sweat peppers, onions, carrots, celery and garlic in the pot for about 10 minutes.
3. Add spices: thyme, chili powder, sea salt, bay leaf. 
4. Add chicken broth or water and simmer for 15 minutes.
5. Add rice and simmer on low, covered for 45 minutes.
6. In a separate sauce pan, melt butter and stir in flour. Whisk together 3-4 minutes until a paste forms. Add milk. Allow to bubble cooking until it thickens.
7. Add roux or flour mixture to large soup pot. Cook additional 10 minutes until soup is thick and creamy.
8. Cut up sausage into bite-sized chunks. Stir into soup.
9. Add red pepper flakes to taste.

Makes 10 servings.



Rosemary Focaccia Bread

Ingredients:
-1 package or 2 tablespoons yeast
-4 cups flour, divided (I prefer all purpose, unbleached, unbromated like Bob's Red Mill or Trader Joe's brand; could use 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour if you want to do a mix)
-1/2 cup lukewarm water

-1 cup water
-3 1/2 teaspoons sea salt, divided
-2 tablespoons organic sugar or honey
-1 tablespoon rosemary sprigs

-1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil + 2 tablespoons extra for brushing

1. Mix together yeast, 1/2 cup flour and 1/2 cup lukewarm water in a bowl or glass measuring cup. Be careful not to get water to hot or it will kill the yeast. Set aside for 10 minutes until the mixture begins to bubble up.

2. Meanwhile, measure 3 1/2 cups flour, sea salt and sugar into a large bowl. (If using a Kitchenaid mixture, attach dough hook.)

3. Pour olive oil and yeast mixture into the flour mixture. Add additional cup of water. Stir together. 

4. Knead for approximately 10 minutes or until dough is smooth. Add flour if it appears sticky.

5. Cover in an oiled bowl and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

6. Position a rack on the bottom third of your oven and place a pizza stone on the rack. Heat oven to 400 degrees.

7. Punch down the dough and turn out onto a floured surface. Roll out into a large circle about 1-inch thick. Place on top of pizza stone. Brush with olive oil. Sprinkle rosemary on top along with 1/2 teaspoon sea salt.

8. Bake on the stone until golden and crisp approximately 15-20 minutes.

Recipe of the Week: Cauliflower Potato Cheese Soup

This past weekend we piled our girls in the car and headed north to visit three different families of friends. One of our excursions included the Oakdale Gouda Cheese Farm with the VanderMeulens. This place is the real deal with delectable cheeses handmade by Dutch immigrants. We came home with a 2-pound glorious wheel of basil gouda cheese.

My kids are cheese monsters. They would eat cheese all day long if I let them. I'm not sure if it's their Italian blood or if mama has modeled that one for them. That said, we are careful about too much cheese intake. We regard it as a special treat at our house for cost and health reasons.

I learned a good lesson during The New Year's Pantry Challenge that sometimes making the cheese a garnish is a great way to save money and show off the "special" ingredient. My Potato-Corn Chowder employs the same technique. I love easy soups when the weather is cold and you need something hearty to warm your insides.

This cauliflower soup was inspired by the beautiful heads of cauliflower at our local market, and, of course, the wheel of gouda cheese. Bon Appetit!

Cauliflower Potato Cheese Soup

Ingredients:
-2 tablespoons olive oil
-4 cloves garlic, minced
-1 small head of cauliflower, chopped
-6 small potatoes
-2 carrots, chopped
-4 cups water or chicken stock
-1 tablespoon dried or fresh parsley, chopped
-1/2 teaspoon sea salt
-1/2 teaspoon black pepper
-1/2 teaspoon celery seed
-1/8 teaspoon pepper flakes, optional
-2 tablespoons flour
-2 cups milk or cream
-1 cup gouda cheese, shredded (You might use another hard cheese like parmesan.)
-4-5 stalks green onions, chopped for garnish

1. Add oil to a large stock pot. When oil is heated add, garlic and stir until fragrant.
2. Saute or sweat the cauliflower, potatoes and carrots in the oil until they are slightly brown and tender.
3. Add the water or chicken stock.
4. Add spices: parsley, sea salt, black pepper, celery seed, red pepper flakes.
5. Allow to simmer about 20 minutes until vegetables are very soft. Meanwhile, mix flour and milk in a separate measuring cup or bowl.
6. Add milk and flour mixture to soup. Continue cooking for about 10 more minutes until soup begins to thicken.
7. Serve in bowls with cheese grated on top as garnish. Another colorful garnish would be chopped green onions.

Thoughts on Fitness: Time to up the intensity

By Ericlee Gilmore

The longer I am in the fitness industry, the more I realize that we have been doing fitness all wrong. I was raised with an attitude to work hard always. For me that included fitness too. If my heart was not racing, and if everything in my body was not screaming "stop" then I knew I could work harder. CrossFit has helped me realize that true fitness is not just strength or endurance.

I have been doing CrossFit since 2009 and I have been coaching it for one year. True fitness is the ability to do more work over a broad domain in the shortest amount of time. True fitness is not debateable because there is always a winner. It could be just body weight exercises like push-ups, squats, and pull-ups. Or it could be lifting weights like cleans or a medicine ball. Or it could be combination of body weight exercises, lifting weights, and metabolic conditioning. That is when you put it all together. Those are the workouts that hurt the most.

I think the problem we have is that we are not intense when it comes to exercise. Working hard means intensity. We are intense in our jobs, in the education of our children, in our personal rights and freedoms, even in our driving, but when it comes to fitness and exercise we aim for the lowest standard. Walking is a great start if you have never exercised in your life. You must move on from there.

Running is great too but running for a long period of time is not intense. Try sprinting 100-meters ten times in a row with a two-minute rest between each one. The key word here is sprint. That is an all out effort. So make fitness an all out effort. Make it intense! It might be just 5 minutes and that is okay. Whatever you do work at it with all your heart and I guarantee you will see results.

One last thing. Please remember that fitness does not stand alone. In the kingdom of wellness there is a king which is fitness and a queen which is nutrition. If you forget either one then your "kingdom" will fall apart. I just heard from a well-known strength and conditioning specialist that the best advice to give someone in America is called the "table push-away." Eat less and exercise more. I will leave you with that.

Recipe of the Week: Carrot Tea Party Muffins

My girls (and the little boy I babysit) are into the "tea party phase." Today I decided to make up a new mini-muffin recipe using what we had on hand. Meilani had her friend Mia over and all four of the little ones put on aprons. Don't get me wrong: flour was flyin' and grubby hands were reaching in the batter but the result was this yummy (and healthy) new muffin recipe. Don't forget the flaxseed to give them some good omega-3s! We made these in our mini-muffin tins and they were perfect tea party fare. You could even frost them with cream cheese and honey blended for an extra special flair.

Ingredients:
1 large egg
2 tablespoons organic butter, softened
1 cup milk
1/2 cup plain yogurt
2 cups oats, uncooked
1 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons flaxseed, ground
1/2 cup honey (or organic raw sugar)
2 cups carrots, shredded (could substitute zucchini or apples)
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Blend together egg, butter, milk and yogurt.
3. Add dry ingredients: oats, flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and flaxseed.
4. Mix in honey/sugar, carrots, raisins and chocolate chips.
5. Grease muffin tins with olive oil spray. Use an ice cream scoop to scoop batter into tins. Bake 15-20 minutes or until muffins are golden brown on top and springy to the touch.

Makes 2 dozen mini-muffins or 1 dozen large muffins.

New Year's Pantry Challenge: A Conclusion or a New Beginning?

I survived. Actually, I knew I would survive because I've done this before. It's kind of like attempting a 10k or a half marathon when I know I've completed them before. I continue to run those races because I know it's good for my body. I love the challenge and the discipline of training for a race. I treasure the comradery of running with friends or my husband. I feel inspired with a goal in mind. There was no doubt I would survive the pantry challenge this time around but I wanted to press myself toward thankfulness. I wanted to reject the temptation to get lazy about food, to complain about living off less. My spirit needed to be buoyed up by the bounty of community and creativity.

These few weeks have bonded me together with old friends and new friends. I'm blessed by so many who have shared meals with us. We have pooled our resources and learned from each other. I'm thankful for our Life Group that shares a meal every other week. Right now I'm taking the fococcia bread out of the oven and putting in the Butternut Squash Lasagna to serve to them tonight. I'm celebrating this bit of abundance. I'm grateful for times of sharing in community.

I've thought a lot about this guy Leo from our church who just moved into his first apartment after being homeless for 3 years. He's a veteran who has been on the streets. Our abundance, a meager bag of leftovers, graced his cupboards this week. My dad delivered it to Leo after our Pantry Party early in this challenge. I felt blessed that we could share with someone else in need. I like the idea of donating money or goods to a food pantry our soup kitchen but it doesn't get personal until you get involved with a real person. Really, couldn't we all do a little more? Some of our friends are raising money to feed babies in Ethiopia through Samaritan's Purse. That cause is personal to them since their son is adopted from Ethiopia. I know I need to get brave and actually invite Leo to dinner. What would happen if he joined hands around the table with my kids, my husband, my parents? What about you? Maybe you need to get brave and search out a cause, offer a meal to a friend who needs a break, serve up soup to a neighbor you've never met.

This week I've also been reminded why I love cooking. There's a quiet, creative space in cooking for me. As a busy mama of two and auntie for one or two more children who are frequently at my side, I seldom find solitude at my house. I choose quieting tasks like knitting or cooking to find space to breathe. I know that cooking brings me closer to praying. I was reading Ann Voskamp's "A Holy Experience" blog today and she pressed that part of my soul that needed reminding that "Housework is really being about the work of God — praying, serving, praising. And in these domestic chapels, God, The Very Person of Peace, offers Himself to the congregants." When I'm methodically peeling and chopping a butternut squash or adding spices to a sauce or kneading dough and watching it rise and bubble, I ponder the day. I pour out my failures, my worries, my struggles. A little elbow grease, a little flour on the hands, helps me wade through the dirtiness of a day to the other side where God whispers peace that passes understanding to my soul.

I have to admit I was giddy this weekend, knowing that I had a trip to the farmer's market and grocery store ahead of me. I started making my list in my head and scratching meal plans on paper. I believe there is a kind of worship in feeding my family healthy and delicious foods. Don't hear what I'm not saying. I didn't say I worship food. I worship God by honoring this temple he gave me. I fill up the temple with whole, healing foods.

When we got to the farmer's market in Ontario near my brother's house, my girls and I gravitated toward the berries. These morsels were pricey in the dead of winter but spending money on berries is worth it to me. I'd rather spend my weight in organic berries than fork out cash on medicine. We build berries into our budget especially during these winter cold and flu months. We lovingly call berries the superheroes of the food world. They are ripe with antioxidants for fighting off the bad guys. There's nothing that pleases a foodie mama's soul more than to see my two little girls with berry-stained lips and fingers.

I feel grateful that I have the choice to fill up my pantry. These next few weeks I still have a limited budget but I know I am choosing to line the cupboards and refrigerator shelves with good food. I am thankful for my husband's hours coaching at the gym this month. I am thankful for this season of waiting as our family prepares to move to Haiti and reach out to many there who are hungry.

I want this New Year's Pantry Challenge to truly be a new beginning as we learn more about what it means to live simply, to eat whole foods and to share our abundance. When I'm tempted to whine, I will whisper prayers on behalf of the hungry here in Fresno and in Haiti and around the world.

"For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness." - Psalm 107:9

What did you learn these last two weeks?

New Year's Pantry Challenge, Small Bites offer Big Flavor, Day 12

Today's Menu:

Breakfast:
Meyer Lemon & Cranberry Scones with Lemon whipped cream
Fruit Smoothie

Lunch:
Leftover Chicken Curry Masala
Leftover Wheat Berry Salad
Kids: Grilled cheese sandwiches
Hard-boiled eggs
Sliced apples

Snacks:
Tangerines
Raisins
Spiced Popcorn

Dinner:
Red Lentil & Squash Soup
Sourdough Toast with Salmon Salad

Today I surveyed my cupboards and refrigerator hunting for something unique. Now that we're nearing the end of the second week without grocery shopping for wants or cravings I find myself digging deep for that spirit of creativity and challenge. Why do a Pantry Challenge if I'm not willing to press in when the shelves look bare?

Ok, I should clarify, nothing around here looks bare. Who am I kidding? Isn't that the lesson of this kind of "grocery shopping fast." We in America live in complete abundance every day. And even when I deprive myself a little. Even when I discipline myself not to give in to convenience and excess I'm still really sitting right here in the middle of it. I've got grocery stores and restaurants and fast food havens practically in my backyard. The farmer's markets in California's Central Valley are pregnant with ripe fruits and vegetables and it's January for crying out loud. We truly live in the land of plenty.

My lesson for today's Pantry Challenge is remembering the beauty of small bites. The Spanish have it down; they serve up delectable small bites aka "tapas" all the time. I *love* tapas. I love the idea of a small, artful plate before me. I adore the idea of eating slowly, contemplating each bite. When I was a swinging single girl I had room for small bites. I could afford the time. Now I'm a busy mama constantly fighting the clock, the incessant requests, the turned-up noses, the thrown-down food, the dietary needs of others. I seldom get a chance to breathe between bites. Today I'm reminded that if we stop to savor, we can find beauty in quality over quantity.

I found this Lemon-Cranberry Scone recipe and tweaked it with my kids in mind. I found a bag of cranberries from Thanksgiving. (Seriously, they were still good!) I dug out some lemons shared from a neighbor's tree. Meilani and I got out a small flower cookie cutter and had fun making something simple look sweet and fancy. The babies devoured them. (Ok, they licked the lemon whipped cream off and asked for more.) We all were surprised at the beauty in simple ingredients - butter, organic sugar, whole wheat flour, meyer lemons.

Cranberry-Lemon Scones with Lemon Whipped Cream

Ingredients:
-2 tablespoons freshly grated lemon zest (from about 3 lemons; preferably Meyer)
-1 teaspoon lemon juice
-2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
-1/3 cup organic raw sugar plus 3 tablespoons additional if using fresh cranberries
-1 tablespoon baking powder
-1/2 teaspoon sea salt
-1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
-1 cup fresh cranberries, chopped coarse
-1 large egg
-1 large egg yolk
-1 cup organic heavy cream

Lemon Whipped Cream:
-1 tablespoon lemon juice
-1 cup organic heavy cream
-1 tablespoon honey or agave syrup or organic sugar

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Chop cranberries and zest lemons. Reserve zested lemon for juice later.
3. In a large bowl add flour, baking powder, and salt.
4. Add eggs and lemon juice.
5. Cut butter into cubes and add to mixture. Stir in cranberres and lemon zest.
6. Use a pastry blender or fork to mix until dough comes together.  Gather in a ball.
7. Dust a cutting board with flour. Press the ball into a 9" round. Use a small cookie cutter or glass to cut out mini scones.
8. Place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or foil.
9. Bake approximately 15 minutes or until lightly browned on top.
10. Meanwhile, beat cream, adding agave syrup and lemon juice. When soft peaks form, stop beating.
11. Remove scones from oven. Cool on a plate and serve with a small bowl of the lemon cream for dipping.

New Year's Pantry Challenge, A Spicy Adventure, Day 10

Today's Menu:

Breakfast:
Smoothie
Free Chik-Fil-A Egg & Cheese Biscuit

Lunch:
Potato-corn Chowder
Sliced apples & kiwis
Hard-boiled eggs

Snack:
Tangerine
Raisins

Dinner:
Curry Chicken Masala with Cauliflower
Basmati Rice
Yogurt-covered raisins

As I've been digging through my "pantry" this week, I discovered I have a mountain of spices. Since it's a challenge to use what's in my pantry, I had to reach back into my memory and cookbooks to try some recipes from long ago. More than five years ago, my friend Anjali was visiting. She took me to a local Indian grocery store and introduced me to the world of Indian spices. Anjali also showed me that buying these spices in bulk from these little markets is much cheaper than hunting them down at the traditional grocery store. They also have "spice mixes" for traditional dishes like Tandoori Chicken or Curry Masala. This saves time in mixing a bunch of spices and their mix often tastes more authentic.

My all-time fave Indian dish is Chicken Masala, which has a creamy tomato sauce and tastes divine served over basmati rice. I wanted to try to find a way to simplify this dish, make it child-friendly (not too spicy) and use what I found in my pantry. We also wanted to use up some fresh cauliflower we scored at the farmer's market. I recognize you all might not have these specific spices in your pantry but the lesson for today was rediscovering spices and recipes from my past. My 2-year-old was signing and saying, "More, more" for this chicken. I had to keep filling up her plate.

Easy Curry Chicken Masala with Cauliflower

Ingredients:
-1 cup plain yogurt
-1 tablespoons curry masala spice mix (*available and many Indian grocery stores)

-3 boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces

-1 large yellow onion, chopped
-2 tablespoons butter
-1 large head of cauliflower, chopped into large florets
-1 teaspoon turmeric
-1 small 6-oz. can of organic tomato paste
-1 pint whipping cream

1. Stir together yogurt and spice mix in a bowl. Add chicken pieces and lemon juice. Set in refrigerator to marinate for 30 minutes.
2. Saute onions in butter in a large skillet.
3. Add chicken and marinade to skillet.
4. Add cauliflower and saute additional 10 minutes.
5. When chicken and cauliflower are cooked, stir in turmeric, tomato paste and whipping cream. Bring to boil.
6.  Reduce heat to simmer. Stir occasionally until sauce thickens.

Serve over basmati rice or with Indian naan (flatbread).

*This mix includes coriander, cumin, chilies, turmeric, black pepper, salt, dry ginger, fenugreek, nutmeg, cloves, cardamom, caraway, garlic powder, onion powder. (I have a lot - so come borrow mine if you want to try this out!)

Serves 6.

New Year's Pantry Challenge, Beef Strogonoff Made Simple: Fancy doesn't have to be extravagant, Day 9

Today's Menu:

Breakfast:
Smoothie
Granola and milk
Tangerine
Trader Joe's Peanut Butter and Crackers

Lunch:
Potato-Corn Chowder
Cornbread Muffins
Kiwi slices
Cupcakes (made by Amy)

Snack:
Raisins
Hard-boiled eggs

Dinner:
Butter Lettuce Salad with raisins, pumpkin seeds and feta cheese
Beef Strogonoff
Brown Rice
Chocolate Truffle Peppermint Cookies


People have the misconception that a "fancy" meal has to be expensive to make. I would like to argue today that a special meal doesn't have to cost the big bucks. I learned this from my friend Brandy who makes Beef Strogonoff with ground beef. According to my "Children's World Cookbook," Beef Strogonoff originates in Russia. This delicious recipe was created in the 1700s for Count Alexander Strogonoff. The recipe uses expensive steak like fillet or rump steak. But it doesn't have to be expensive.

A good meal doesn't have to take all day to make either. Don't get me wrong; I love intense cooking. I savor our Christmas Day tradition of rolling homemade raviolis or the occasional inspiration I get to make homemade Wonton Soup. These meals are fancy and time intensive. We all know that just isn't a reality every day of the week. I like to look for meals with an ethnic flair that are different, healthy and take a reasonable amount of time to make on a busy weeknight. Beef Strogonoff can be one of those quick meals. This Russian inspiration great for a quick comfort food for your family or decadent enough for company. I used what I had in the pantry for this version.


Beef Strogonoff

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 pound white mushrooms, sliced
1 teaspoon dijon mustard

1 pound grass-fed organic ground beef
2 tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour
2 tablespoons sherry (or some other sweet wine)
2 cups milk
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon salt

1. Saute onions in butter until translucent. Add the mushrooms to the pan.
2. Stir in dijon mustard.
3. Add ground beef and cook until brown.
4. Sprinkle flour on top of beef. Do not stir but let cook for 2-3 minutes.Then stir in with beef-onion mixture.
5. Add milk and sherry to skillet and gently stir. Lower heat when sauce begins to bubble and thicken.
6. Add black pepper, paprika and salt. (I didn't have it but you can add 1/2 cup sour cream at this point to make the sauce more creamy. You can also add milk or cream back into the sauce to adjust if it seems to thick.)

Serve over rice or egg noodle pasta.

New Year's Pantry Challenge, The name of the game is flexibility, Day 8

Today's Menu:

Breakfast:
Fruit Smoothie (Persimmon, Orange Juice, Raw Milk, Kiwi, Flaxseed)
Leftover french toast
Scrambled eggs

Lunch:
Wheat Berry Salad
Sliced Apple
Sourdough Toast
Hard-boiled Eggs

Snacks:
Raisins

Dinner:
Sweet Potato Fries
Sourdough Toast with Marinara & Ricotta Cheese
Sliced Oranges
Chocolate Truffle Peppermint Cookies

It's kind of funny that I wrote about my Meal Plan yesterday because today I already rearranged my plan. I guess that's why it's important to have wiggle room; life happens. Tonight I had my Writer's Group, which meets once a month. Our family was invited to a Monday Night Football party as well. I sent Ericlee and the girls to the football fiesta with Sweet Potato Fries (since they were to bring finger foods to share). Meanwhile, I ditched my plan to make Potato-Cheese Soup and opted for a simple sandwich with leftover marinara sauce and ricotta cheese I had in the fridge. This afforded me some extra time to work on my writing and bake some cookies for the ladies in my group. (Yeah, I know Christmas is over but my tree is still up and I needed one last hurrah.)

I decided to work on the Potato-Cheese Soup tonight before bed so it would be ready for lunch tomorrow when our friends the Toslands are coming over. The winter months are a perfect time for experimenting with soups and chilis; they also make great leftover for lunches throughout the week. I scored a bag of potatoes at Fresh & Easy a few weeks ago for 33 cents. Yep, you read that right. I'm all about the deal.

I have a fabulous recipe for Potato Cheese Soup that my friend gave me years ago. It's something like what they serve at Marie Callender's restaurant. As I looked over the recipe, I realized I didn't have the chicken broth it called for, and I didn't want to use the 16 oz. of cheese it required. (My girls are little mice and I have to ration out my cheese this week.) I decided it was time to make my own Potato Soup Recipe with the ingredients in the pantry. A creamy, chowder-like soup sounded like the perfect comfort food for a cold winter's afternoon.

If you're the type who likes to follow a recipe line by line, here you go. Otherwise, you can review the basic idea and use what's in your pantry or winter garden. I can imagine leeks or chopped kale or even sweet potatoes adding something interesting to this recipe. Unfortunately, I didn't have any of those. I chose to make the cheese my soup's garnish so I didn't have to use up expensive cheese but still got that comfort-food-melty-goodness on top. (My girls were fooled.) Enjoy the journey.

Potato-Corn Chowder

Ingredients:
-2 tablespoons olive oil
-1 large yellow onion, sliced
-6 cups or about 3 lbs. russet potatoes, cubed
-1 purple carrot, chopped
-1 orange carrot, chopped
-1 teaspoon paprika
-2 teaspoons salt
-1 teaspoon black pepper
-1 teaspoon celery seed
-2 tablespoons dried parsley
-3 cups water
-4 cups milk
-4 tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour
-1 15-oz. can corn or 2 cups fresh or frozen corn

Garnish:
1/2 cup green onions, chopped
1/2 cup Monterey Jack cheese, grated

1. Saute onions in 2 tablespoons olive oil.
2. Add potatoes and carrots. Sweat in pot about 15 minutes.
3. When vegetables are tender, add water and spices (paprika, salt, pepper, celery seed, parsley).
4. Bring to a boil.
5. Meanwhile, stir together flour and milk. Add to soup pot and boil 5 minutes.
6. Lower heat and simmer until liquid thickens. Add corn.
7. Serve with garnishes sprinkled on top.

New Year's Pantry Challenge, Meal Planning for the new week, Day 7

This week's dinner plans:

Sunday
Pad Thai Noodles with Broccoli, Carrot and Green peppers
Sliced oranges

Monday
Wheat Berry Salad
Potato-Cheese Soup
Cornbread Muffins
Persimmon Cookies

Tuesday
Salad
Beef Strogonoff
Brown Rice

Wednesday
Indian-spiced Chicken with Apricot Chutney
Cauliflower
Basmati Rice

Thursday
Veggie Pizza
Salad
Popcorn

Friday
Salmon Salad
Rosemary Biscuits
Lemon Bars


Meal Planning is an important part of my week. My philosophy is if you plan ahead then you are less likely to get in a pinch or get lazy and opt for takeout food. I'm flexible. I know things come up throughout our week. That's why I make dinner plans with wiggle room if I need to change my mind partway through the week.

I try to plan on the weekends for the week to come so I can go to our Saturday farmer's market, which always promises fresh food and great deals. Since we're doing the New Year's Pantry Challenge, I'm going to forego my usual trip the grocery store on Sunday evening. My hubby and I decided we wanted to save by eating out of the pantry but we were not going to sacrifice on our organic fruits and veggies or our weekly supply of raw milk. We know these are critical to good health and fighting off all the winter cold and flu germs. If it were summer time, I might be braver to live out of the garden but my garden has zilch right now so we headed for the market. (Sadly, I didn't get any lettuce or other winter veggies planted this year since we are selling our house.)

I started this week's meal plan by checking out the fridge, freezer and pantry. Then I got out my go-to recipe binder and a few cookbooks that have special sections for winter vegetable entrees. I also starting perusing this blog and others like Eatingwell.com and the Epicurious iPhone app for winter-inspired meals. AllRecipes.com is also a great resource for figuring out how to use random ingredients. You can use their search tool to add ingredients or put in ingredients you don't have/like.

After I had compiled the grocery list, we prepared for the market. My hubby and oldest daughter volunteered to go on the treasure hunt this week. First stop: Organic Farmer's Market on Barstow and First in Fresno in front of Kristina's Market grocery store. Second stop: Vineyard Farmer's Market on Shaw and Blackstone Avenues at the NW corner.

Here's what they got:
-2 half gallons raw whole milk
-1 bunch purple and orange carrots
-1 head cabbage
-1 head butter lettuce
-1 large bunch green onions
-10 apples
-broccoli
-cauliflower
-1 quart fresh-squeezed raw orange juice

They ended up spending $35 total and that will be our "food spending" for this week. Total score! I will add that we have a $20 certificate (LivingSocial coupon that we paid $10 for last month) in our arsenal for more fresh fruits, veggies and eggs. Technically, we're spending $45 this week until Friday. We'll see how it goes!

What are your tricks for getting fresh fruits and veggies into your diet during winter months? We would love to hear your ideas.