This is actually the first official day but last night I made dinner using the normal portion quantities and had a pleasant surprise. Thought I'd share. A little back story first...
I don't waste much, especially food, and I plan things out to use things up. Last week I bought 2 turkey thighs in a package for $5.53, threw them in the crockpot with 1 med-lg size potato and 2 carrots cut into chunks, onion and crushed garlic. Out of that I got 4 dinners, 1 taco and had meat left over that inspired dinner last night.
The left over turkey and the congealed juice left in the bowl with it was miraculously turned into turkey & dressing for one. I sauteed a little onion & 2 skinny hearts of celery in a dash of olive oil and a smidgen of bacon dripping (for added depth of flavor). Reading labels is required and I found out 1 cup of chicken broth and 1/2 cup of dry stuffing mix is a serving of each.
Now, I was dismayed by the 1/2 cup info because I was hungry and this seemed inadequate to my tummy.
Once the veggies were semi-tender (I do not like soggy veggies & prefer a bit of crunch to my food) I made room in the center of the little skillet and put some poultry seasoning and 2 dashes of crushed red chilies in the bottom of the hot pan to 'bloom' the flavors. This literally takes only a couple of seconds! Next went in the chicken stock and the chopped turkey. Once it was heated thru, I added the stuffing mix, stirred it in and turned off the heat. ...If I had not been starving I would have taken a few minutes to bake this in the toaster oven for texture sake and next time I will...
Meanwhile, I heated 1/2 cup of mixed greens in the microwave. This, too, seemed inadequate when reading.
I served the turkey and dressing with greens on my plate. I was wildly surprised by how much food that turned out to be! My tummy was, too. It was far more than adequate, it was very filling. And tasty! YES, if I had made more, I would eaten more because my mouth was begging for it even tho my tummy was saying NO!
So, just sharing the need to keep an open mind and stick with discipline. It was my 'thinking' which said that was not going to be enough and my 'habits' of indulging my mouth that made me want to eat more than I should.
A couple of side notes:
The crushed red chilies served two purposes. Added a tiny dash of heat and interest but the main thing is that it wakes up your taste buds and allows you to more fully enjoy the depth of flavors of your food.
Second, remember to keep your receipts from the grocery store to help build you data base on the cost of food per serving. I have started a log in a spiral notebook and will build on it for future reference.
Food cost per serving....
Stuffing mix..........less than 10 cents
Mixed greens.....................23 cents
Turkey..........................$1.00 appx
Chicken stock...................33 cents
Total meal cost..........$1.66
I'm taking a field trip to HEB today to get the cost of foods I have on hand so I can keep track of what it is each meal costs. Don't you wish your life was this exciting!!!! PLEASE!! LOL
Saturday, July 5, 2014
Friday, July 4, 2014
Let the Frugal Adventure Begin!
So here we are!
When I wrote the last post of Food Tweaked a Bit, life was very different for me. I am now a single-again woman living in the Austin area in a tiny but lovely apartment. Life is neither better nor worse but it is different. Adjustments happen as they come up.
Apparently, I am just weird enough to think outside of the box in advance of needing to live outside the box. While still at Hacienda, I decided to see if I could live in one room, make my footprint smaller, see just how much I could downsize...I moved microwave, counter-top oven, TV and the other necessities (coffee pot!) into the back bedroom. I ate, slept, worked, cooked and was entertained in the one room. It IS do-able. It's amazing just how little you actually NEED rather than that you think you need. I basically was in training for my baby apt! My apt isn't one room but it is small and I love it.
Another past outside the box experiment of mine was to live on a food budget of $5 a day. It, too, is do-able. Takes a lot of creativity, self-discipline and a complete change of mindset but once you get geared to the mentality, it isn't so bad at all. Did I mention self-discipline? Eating habits are just that ...habits. For me, portion control has always been the problem. I eat well, mostly healthy and yet I am about 20 pounds over where I want to be and should be for my height and bone structure. Stinkin' portion control issues!! LOL
This being the case, I must also adjust my mentality to eating normal portion sizes rather than what we consider to be normal. If I am going to be doing the $5 a day food budget, I might as well use the same opportunities to get more healthy by losing the weight I need to shed at the same time!
Today I went to the grocery store to prepare. My past experience in meal planning on $5 a day was most beneficial because I have enough knowledge base to stock my pantry and fridge for this first run. I spent $42.00 today. Now, it isn't as simple as saying you divide the 42 dollars by 5 and say you have 8 days worth of food.
For example, if I'm a good girl and stick to normal portion sizes, the $1.36 I spent on a box of Old Fashioned Oatmeal will produce 13 servings at 11 cents each. The $6.44 for the bag of fish fillets will give me 5 different fish meals @ $1.29 each. You just have to do the math and plan ahead. It's not hard.
Sample Menu.....
Oatmeal....... 11 cents
Toast............12.5 cents
coffee...........72 cents a pot, bye-bye Starbucks!
Fettuccine.........16 cents
Alfredo Sauce ...22 cents
Fish fillet.........$1.29
Roasted Yellow Squash....52 cents
Glass cold water...Free
Apple/Ginger/Carrot Soup....75 cents
Garlic Toast......................12.5 cents
Sliced vine ripened tomato...56 cents
Glass cold water...Free
Raw Almonds snack.....44 cents
Total Food Cost for day....$4.92
All these costs are based on standard servings for one person. This is where the disciple comes in. ONLY eating a single portion size of whatever to maintain the cost and the impact on my weight. Also, for me, I have found that cooking only a single serving size helps. If I cook more, it is tempting to eat more. Fill your plate and walk out of the kitchen. I use my nice dishes, cloth napkins and cut crystal glasses every day. It makes the meal nicer to me. I may eat alone most of the time but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be enjoyable.
That's it, the intro to my $5 a day journey. Stay tuned and let me hear form you!
When I wrote the last post of Food Tweaked a Bit, life was very different for me. I am now a single-again woman living in the Austin area in a tiny but lovely apartment. Life is neither better nor worse but it is different. Adjustments happen as they come up.
Apparently, I am just weird enough to think outside of the box in advance of needing to live outside the box. While still at Hacienda, I decided to see if I could live in one room, make my footprint smaller, see just how much I could downsize...I moved microwave, counter-top oven, TV and the other necessities (coffee pot!) into the back bedroom. I ate, slept, worked, cooked and was entertained in the one room. It IS do-able. It's amazing just how little you actually NEED rather than that you think you need. I basically was in training for my baby apt! My apt isn't one room but it is small and I love it.
Another past outside the box experiment of mine was to live on a food budget of $5 a day. It, too, is do-able. Takes a lot of creativity, self-discipline and a complete change of mindset but once you get geared to the mentality, it isn't so bad at all. Did I mention self-discipline? Eating habits are just that ...habits. For me, portion control has always been the problem. I eat well, mostly healthy and yet I am about 20 pounds over where I want to be and should be for my height and bone structure. Stinkin' portion control issues!! LOL
This being the case, I must also adjust my mentality to eating normal portion sizes rather than what we consider to be normal. If I am going to be doing the $5 a day food budget, I might as well use the same opportunities to get more healthy by losing the weight I need to shed at the same time!
Today I went to the grocery store to prepare. My past experience in meal planning on $5 a day was most beneficial because I have enough knowledge base to stock my pantry and fridge for this first run. I spent $42.00 today. Now, it isn't as simple as saying you divide the 42 dollars by 5 and say you have 8 days worth of food.
For example, if I'm a good girl and stick to normal portion sizes, the $1.36 I spent on a box of Old Fashioned Oatmeal will produce 13 servings at 11 cents each. The $6.44 for the bag of fish fillets will give me 5 different fish meals @ $1.29 each. You just have to do the math and plan ahead. It's not hard.
Sample Menu.....
Oatmeal....... 11 cents
Toast............12.5 cents
coffee...........72 cents a pot, bye-bye Starbucks!
Fettuccine.........16 cents
Alfredo Sauce ...22 cents
Fish fillet.........$1.29
Roasted Yellow Squash....52 cents
Glass cold water...Free
Apple/Ginger/Carrot Soup....75 cents
Garlic Toast......................12.5 cents
Sliced vine ripened tomato...56 cents
Glass cold water...Free
Raw Almonds snack.....44 cents
Total Food Cost for day....$4.92
All these costs are based on standard servings for one person. This is where the disciple comes in. ONLY eating a single portion size of whatever to maintain the cost and the impact on my weight. Also, for me, I have found that cooking only a single serving size helps. If I cook more, it is tempting to eat more. Fill your plate and walk out of the kitchen. I use my nice dishes, cloth napkins and cut crystal glasses every day. It makes the meal nicer to me. I may eat alone most of the time but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be enjoyable.
That's it, the intro to my $5 a day journey. Stay tuned and let me hear form you!
Monday, March 21, 2011
Making Beans Respectable Again
Oh, my goodness!!! March 21st and this is the first post on Food Tweaked a Bit for the year...what's up with that?
While it might look like a slow 'food' year, that is not accurate. Food continues but writing has taken the bulk of my time, so I've been negligent in posting on both, Food tweaked and Simple Life. My goal is to do better in the 2nd quarter of the year.
The subject today, Friends, is beans......
I read about food and was curious about the statement that the more beans and veggies you eat, the better your body gets at digesting them and therefore, the less gas issues you have. I have always wondered how people that eat beans every day dealt with the gas issue. Odd thing to ponder, I know, but it is a human issue after all. My Honey is not so willing to eat beans frequently because of that, thus the curiosity. How DO other people and cultures deal with it?
It took very little research to confirm that, indeed, the more you consume, the more efficient your body becomes at processing the sugars in beans and veggies that produces the gas. There you have it! God's way of making life bearable for all the bean eating cultures, I suppose.
I'm always on the lookout for new ways to use the old standby. As a diabetic, I love that I can get the protein I need from a snack made with no-fat refried beans! I love them and they have virtually no calories or fat but are loaded with protein. You start getting into trouble when you add things like cheese, tortillas, etc to them. On their own, quite healthy.
My Honey grew up eating the standard pinto bean more than any other. I had more variety with both sets of grandparents having gardens. Beans and peas in various colors and shapes. His grandmother, then mother cooked them differently than how I grew up knowing. So, since it can be a comfort food (gas aside), I alternate how I cook them. His way one time, then my way the next. We both get them the way that feels like 'home' for us. I was raised with pintos cooked long and slow so the juice is thick, ham or sausage cooked in them and served with rice and/or cornbread (baked or fried). He was more accustomed to them cooked with some tomatoes(salsa) and served with fideo (vermicelli) with tomato sauce. The juicier the better. Hot tortillas a must. Both ways are good but everyone responds emotionally to their childhood connections, so I alternate. Yesterday, was his way, except we had cornbread instead of tortillas.
I have yet to find a type of bean I do not like. So, today, I'm asking you to share your favorite bean and recipe with us. I'll post them here on Food Tweaked. Lets bring respectability back to healthy beans and make use of this nutritious food source!
While it might look like a slow 'food' year, that is not accurate. Food continues but writing has taken the bulk of my time, so I've been negligent in posting on both, Food tweaked and Simple Life. My goal is to do better in the 2nd quarter of the year.
The subject today, Friends, is beans......
I read about food and was curious about the statement that the more beans and veggies you eat, the better your body gets at digesting them and therefore, the less gas issues you have. I have always wondered how people that eat beans every day dealt with the gas issue. Odd thing to ponder, I know, but it is a human issue after all. My Honey is not so willing to eat beans frequently because of that, thus the curiosity. How DO other people and cultures deal with it?
It took very little research to confirm that, indeed, the more you consume, the more efficient your body becomes at processing the sugars in beans and veggies that produces the gas. There you have it! God's way of making life bearable for all the bean eating cultures, I suppose.
I'm always on the lookout for new ways to use the old standby. As a diabetic, I love that I can get the protein I need from a snack made with no-fat refried beans! I love them and they have virtually no calories or fat but are loaded with protein. You start getting into trouble when you add things like cheese, tortillas, etc to them. On their own, quite healthy.
My Honey grew up eating the standard pinto bean more than any other. I had more variety with both sets of grandparents having gardens. Beans and peas in various colors and shapes. His grandmother, then mother cooked them differently than how I grew up knowing. So, since it can be a comfort food (gas aside), I alternate how I cook them. His way one time, then my way the next. We both get them the way that feels like 'home' for us. I was raised with pintos cooked long and slow so the juice is thick, ham or sausage cooked in them and served with rice and/or cornbread (baked or fried). He was more accustomed to them cooked with some tomatoes(salsa) and served with fideo (vermicelli) with tomato sauce. The juicier the better. Hot tortillas a must. Both ways are good but everyone responds emotionally to their childhood connections, so I alternate. Yesterday, was his way, except we had cornbread instead of tortillas.
I have yet to find a type of bean I do not like. So, today, I'm asking you to share your favorite bean and recipe with us. I'll post them here on Food Tweaked. Lets bring respectability back to healthy beans and make use of this nutritious food source!
Friday, December 24, 2010
Tis' the Season to Eat Quiches..fa la la la la, la la, la la!
WOW, it has been a long time since I've been here with food news! I won't bore you with all that is going on because I know you have your own stuff happening. It IS Christmas after all. Today, is Christmas Eve! Happy Birthday, Jesus!!
New News: I'm excited about a new food blog I've found! The woman writing it is, like myself, diabetic & trying to lose weight. She has some great looking recipes which I will make, then write about. It is obvious, she is much better about portion control than I am! That's my goal (not resolution but G-O-A-L) for 2011...learning to be better on portion control. I normally serve healthy food but eating too much of even healthy food is not a good thing! My tongue and mind stay in a constant battle! Judging by the extra weight I carry around...the tongue wins too often! LOL
So, here's a quickie recipe to try while you're off for the holidays. It's a Tweaked recipe, of course, and very flexible and adaptable for your taste and/or food restrictions. I call them Baby Quiches. They are healthy in both ingredients and portion size. More healthy that regular quiche because they do not have a crust. I make them in a muffin pan, so I get 12 with one batch! Two fit neatly into a snack size baggie for transporting to work. Remember, you can Tweak it any way you like. I like to take the time to caramelize sweet onions first, so worth the time but if you're in a hurry don't bother. It's a low, slow process for just the right sweetness, color and texture - don't short-change yourself or the recipe if you don't have time to do it right. (Yes, that's the perfectionist in me raising her ugly head but she's right about this! LOL). You can use any variety of veggies, meats or cheeses. I like porcini mushrooms for the depth of flavor and complexity they bring. Spinach is always good. Onions...well, we've covered that but you can just saute some with the veggies as an alternative to the caramelized bits of heaven. I DO saute the veggies and meats after chopping them into small pieces. Makes the cooking time shorter and you can more evenly divide them into the individual muffin cups.
Baby Quiche 350 degree oven
5 LARGE eggs, takes more if using smaller ones
2-3 mushrooms
1 1/2 sweet onion sliced about 1/4" across to make rings (if caramelizing)
spinach (frozen or fresh - fresh is quicker - you just throw it in, frozen must be thawed & squeezed)
meat of choice - good place to use left over meat, bacon, sausage, or ham - chopped small pieces
Shredded cheese of choice - measure by the handful - to your taste
milk or half & half - again, add what it takes for the amount of eggs
salt, pepper, nutmeg
Spray muffin pan with cooking or baking spray, set aside. Saute veggies, starting with onions, then add meat (or not), then add mushrooms last. Do not over cook. Divide meat/veggie mixture between muffin cups. Put eggs in bowl, beat, add milk or half&half, salt, pepper, nutmeg. Mix well. Add cheese to egg mixture and divide into muffin cups. Bake till set, only takes a few minutes for them to set and start turning a pretty light golden brown - DO NOT OVERBAKE.
Cool on rack, store in fridge. I put them in the snack baggies when cooled and then just have to grab them and go.
Here's some tips I've learned, often the hard way. You never know exactly how much your 5 eggs will make. Most of the time, if they really are large eggs, 5 is enough but I've had to jump up to 8 when my 'large' eggs weren't as large as the last ones I bought. When I need more, I just beat more eggs and add more milk and pour on top of what is already in cup. Don't overfill, they will rise. Use the regular size muffin pan, not the little ones...you do want to taste them and use them for a meal, after all.
I've made these with broccoli, bell peppers, hot peppers - anything your little heart desires will work as long as the veggies and meat is cut up in small consistent pieces. I've even added some grainy mustard to the egg mixture before and loved it. Get creative! It only takes a minute, come on! All in all, these are a hit around here. I made a batch to send to my Honey's guys at work. They liked them, too.
Okay, this is me, signing off for the last time in 2010. The week after Christmas we are heading out to Costa Rica on a short-term mission trip. I'll see you in 2011. May your Christmas be Jesus-filled and your tummies delight with healthy food! Love you all! Look out 2011, here we come!
New News: I'm excited about a new food blog I've found! The woman writing it is, like myself, diabetic & trying to lose weight. She has some great looking recipes which I will make, then write about. It is obvious, she is much better about portion control than I am! That's my goal (not resolution but G-O-A-L) for 2011...learning to be better on portion control. I normally serve healthy food but eating too much of even healthy food is not a good thing! My tongue and mind stay in a constant battle! Judging by the extra weight I carry around...the tongue wins too often! LOL
So, here's a quickie recipe to try while you're off for the holidays. It's a Tweaked recipe, of course, and very flexible and adaptable for your taste and/or food restrictions. I call them Baby Quiches. They are healthy in both ingredients and portion size. More healthy that regular quiche because they do not have a crust. I make them in a muffin pan, so I get 12 with one batch! Two fit neatly into a snack size baggie for transporting to work. Remember, you can Tweak it any way you like. I like to take the time to caramelize sweet onions first, so worth the time but if you're in a hurry don't bother. It's a low, slow process for just the right sweetness, color and texture - don't short-change yourself or the recipe if you don't have time to do it right. (Yes, that's the perfectionist in me raising her ugly head but she's right about this! LOL). You can use any variety of veggies, meats or cheeses. I like porcini mushrooms for the depth of flavor and complexity they bring. Spinach is always good. Onions...well, we've covered that but you can just saute some with the veggies as an alternative to the caramelized bits of heaven. I DO saute the veggies and meats after chopping them into small pieces. Makes the cooking time shorter and you can more evenly divide them into the individual muffin cups.
Baby Quiche 350 degree oven
5 LARGE eggs, takes more if using smaller ones
2-3 mushrooms
1 1/2 sweet onion sliced about 1/4" across to make rings (if caramelizing)
spinach (frozen or fresh - fresh is quicker - you just throw it in, frozen must be thawed & squeezed)
meat of choice - good place to use left over meat, bacon, sausage, or ham - chopped small pieces
Shredded cheese of choice - measure by the handful - to your taste
milk or half & half - again, add what it takes for the amount of eggs
salt, pepper, nutmeg
Spray muffin pan with cooking or baking spray, set aside. Saute veggies, starting with onions, then add meat (or not), then add mushrooms last. Do not over cook. Divide meat/veggie mixture between muffin cups. Put eggs in bowl, beat, add milk or half&half, salt, pepper, nutmeg. Mix well. Add cheese to egg mixture and divide into muffin cups. Bake till set, only takes a few minutes for them to set and start turning a pretty light golden brown - DO NOT OVERBAKE.
Cool on rack, store in fridge. I put them in the snack baggies when cooled and then just have to grab them and go.
Here's some tips I've learned, often the hard way. You never know exactly how much your 5 eggs will make. Most of the time, if they really are large eggs, 5 is enough but I've had to jump up to 8 when my 'large' eggs weren't as large as the last ones I bought. When I need more, I just beat more eggs and add more milk and pour on top of what is already in cup. Don't overfill, they will rise. Use the regular size muffin pan, not the little ones...you do want to taste them and use them for a meal, after all.
I've made these with broccoli, bell peppers, hot peppers - anything your little heart desires will work as long as the veggies and meat is cut up in small consistent pieces. I've even added some grainy mustard to the egg mixture before and loved it. Get creative! It only takes a minute, come on! All in all, these are a hit around here. I made a batch to send to my Honey's guys at work. They liked them, too.
Okay, this is me, signing off for the last time in 2010. The week after Christmas we are heading out to Costa Rica on a short-term mission trip. I'll see you in 2011. May your Christmas be Jesus-filled and your tummies delight with healthy food! Love you all! Look out 2011, here we come!
Monday, November 29, 2010
Crock-pot...My new Best Friend!
Whoo hoo...I am excited to share my "tweaked" news today! You may be familiar with this already but it was new to me and I'm thankful for stumbling across it. I'm talking about making your holiday dressing in the crock-pot, slow cooker, whatever you call yours. I was taking the dressing to daughter #1, Angela's house for Thanksgiving. We were going early so I had concerns about the dressing getting too cold and having to reheat or worse yet, having it dry out. Over space is always a premium commodity and I went looking for alternatives. I've made it in my electric roaster before, so I knew there were options to be had. I researched online and found many people such as myself were asking if crock-pot dressing was do-able. It is!!!!
You simply mix up your dressing of choice and throw it in the crock-pot for 7 hrs or so. I started cooking mine at 6-ish, turned it on high for the last hour we were home (8-9) so it would stay hot while we made the 45 minute - 1 hour drive to her house and then plugged it back in for the rest of the time. No oven space needed, no dried out dressing and all the convenience of having it stay hot while we ate lunch. We had a buffet, no need to even serve it up! What a deal. We will be doing this in the future, I promise!
I tried a new herb/Italian sausage dressing this year. I made the same recipe minus the Italian sausage for our church Thanksgiving lunch and took an empty pan home. Son Kristopher said he thought our Thanksgiving dressing was too spicy, I'm guessing it was the fennel and maybe rosemary he noted. I made homemade Italian sausage for it so it could be tweaked to taste next time. Daughter-in-love Britney said she thought that's what it was, too. I'd never used rosemary in dressing before but I like to try new things so I went for it. Angela liked it, I liked it, didn't take a poll but no one threw it in the trash, so that's a good thing. The big deal for me was learning to cook it in the crock-pot!
Since I was using fresh Italian pan sausage, I cooked it before adding to the mix. I also cooked the onion, garlic, celery. Don't think I need to cook the veggies next time, they had plenty of time to cook. The meat did, too, actually. I cannot state emphatically enough the difference fresh herbs make! Especially the sage.
My mother loved sage dressing. She always made the dressing for family gatherings. She used canned sage...a lot of canned sage. So much canned sage the dressing turned green. I'm not kidding, it was green dressing ...very sag-gie green dressing. For many years after leaving home I would not use sage, I thought it was nasty based on the green dressing experience. I finally ventured in experimenting with it...in TINY doses. Then I discovered fresh sage and a whole new world opened up for me! I never looked back!
I do use ground sage, a TINY bit, to make chicken and dumplings. When I roll out the dumplings they are dusted with it and/or a little poultry seasoning during the rolling process to infuse the herbs into the dumplings themselves. Even if you make cheater dumplings from canned biscuits you can roll them out and do the same thing or dredge them in a herb/flour mixture before adding to the stock. Every layer of taste adds more complexity and interest. You can add chopped fresh sage to the dumpling mixture for a touch of color interest, too!
Hope you had a great Thanksgiving. If you tried new recipes, share, please! I would love to hear about it. Give that crock-pot dressing a try, I think you'll love the ease of it all.
Eat well, eat healthy, be happy!
You simply mix up your dressing of choice and throw it in the crock-pot for 7 hrs or so. I started cooking mine at 6-ish, turned it on high for the last hour we were home (8-9) so it would stay hot while we made the 45 minute - 1 hour drive to her house and then plugged it back in for the rest of the time. No oven space needed, no dried out dressing and all the convenience of having it stay hot while we ate lunch. We had a buffet, no need to even serve it up! What a deal. We will be doing this in the future, I promise!
I tried a new herb/Italian sausage dressing this year. I made the same recipe minus the Italian sausage for our church Thanksgiving lunch and took an empty pan home. Son Kristopher said he thought our Thanksgiving dressing was too spicy, I'm guessing it was the fennel and maybe rosemary he noted. I made homemade Italian sausage for it so it could be tweaked to taste next time. Daughter-in-love Britney said she thought that's what it was, too. I'd never used rosemary in dressing before but I like to try new things so I went for it. Angela liked it, I liked it, didn't take a poll but no one threw it in the trash, so that's a good thing. The big deal for me was learning to cook it in the crock-pot!
Since I was using fresh Italian pan sausage, I cooked it before adding to the mix. I also cooked the onion, garlic, celery. Don't think I need to cook the veggies next time, they had plenty of time to cook. The meat did, too, actually. I cannot state emphatically enough the difference fresh herbs make! Especially the sage.
My mother loved sage dressing. She always made the dressing for family gatherings. She used canned sage...a lot of canned sage. So much canned sage the dressing turned green. I'm not kidding, it was green dressing ...very sag-gie green dressing. For many years after leaving home I would not use sage, I thought it was nasty based on the green dressing experience. I finally ventured in experimenting with it...in TINY doses. Then I discovered fresh sage and a whole new world opened up for me! I never looked back!
I do use ground sage, a TINY bit, to make chicken and dumplings. When I roll out the dumplings they are dusted with it and/or a little poultry seasoning during the rolling process to infuse the herbs into the dumplings themselves. Even if you make cheater dumplings from canned biscuits you can roll them out and do the same thing or dredge them in a herb/flour mixture before adding to the stock. Every layer of taste adds more complexity and interest. You can add chopped fresh sage to the dumpling mixture for a touch of color interest, too!
Hope you had a great Thanksgiving. If you tried new recipes, share, please! I would love to hear about it. Give that crock-pot dressing a try, I think you'll love the ease of it all.
Eat well, eat healthy, be happy!
Monday, November 8, 2010
Green Chilies & Chicken Polenta Casserole
Got a new recipe for you. This past week I spent time with my friend, Tonia, in New Mexico. We made the trip out there to retrieve her year's worth of roasted Hatch peppers she left behind when they came back earlier this fall. They are worth the trip, believe me! Going to a potluck dinner at her mountain home church found us contemplating our contribution to the meal, aside from the two mouthwatering Rum cakes she made.
Tonia made a casserole from polenta and the beloved Hatch chilies.Yummy! We brought back an empty casserole dish...no leftovers to indulge ourselves on. The recipe today is...what else, but a Tweaked recipe I made last night expanding and exploring the world of uses for Polenta...there are many, this is but one. Polenta, if you are not familiar with it, is made of a course ground corn and used instead of potatoes or rice. There are endless uses for it and I intend to try many of them!
Green Chilies & Chicken Polenta Casserole
(makes 1 Square casserole dish) 425 degree preheated oven
1 1/2 C dry Polenta
4 1/2 C chicken stock
1 medium onion - 1/2 fine dice, 1/2 big chopped
4 large cloves garlic crushed
chicken meat from 4 thighs, cooked to make broth
garlic powder, salt, pepper
3 roasted large green chilies chopped, can use frozen or 3 small cans chopped green chilies
shredded white cheddar cheese - use shredded cheese of choice except Velveeta, real cheese!
Cook chicken in large stock pot with at least 6-7 cups of water. Season with large chopped onion, crushed garlic, salt & pepper to taste. Once chicken is done, remove from stock and de-bone once cool enough to handle. Chop chicken & mix with chopped peppers, 1/2 of small diced onions and 1/2 handful of cheese. Set aside while you cook polenta, it will need your undivided attention. Have your casserole dish prepared by spraying with cooking spray all over bottom and sides.
Put 4 1/2 Cups of the broth in a heavy pot, non-stick is good. Save left over broth. When it comes to rolling boil, slowly add polenta stirring continuously as you pour it in. You must stir a lot! It starts thickening up quickly. Cook according to directions, you may need to add more broth is it gets too thick too quickly. Add salt, garlic powder and pepper to polenta to taste. DO NOT USE GARLIC SALT. When it's done, add 1 1/2 handfuls of shredded cheese to polenta, makes it creamy!
Spread a little over 1/2 cooked polenta to cover bottom of casserole dish. Sprinkle light layer shredded cheese over polenta. Spread chicken-chilies mixture over that. Add another layer of shredded cheese. Spread remaining polenta over meat layer. Top with more shredded cheese and add remaining small diced onions.
Bake @ 425 for 20 minutes. Longer if making larger casserole. It is ready when bubbling all over and starting to brown on top. Let it sit to cool some before cutting into squares and serving.
The dish was hearty, tasty and satisfying. It is very easy and quick to build casserole once chicken & stock are ready. I wanted a very savory polenta, so I added the spices even though I cooked it with the broth. You can use water for the polenta, and it would be more appropriate for a different use, say a sweet polenta. But I was after a more intense savory dish. You can use any chicken parts you want, I just prefer the tastier thigh meat. Use either hot or mild peppers, depending on your family preferences. I like hot. I am eager to experiment with other types of peppers, too.
I used a hot sauce of blended chipotle peppers and adobo sauce on the side of mine. My Honey used a milder version of a sauce made from the bit of the chipotle peppers, tomato sauce and sour cream. You could use a picante sauce or nothing at all. Let me know if you try this.
I plan on making a fall polenta with pumpkin soon, my head is spinning with ideas! Stay in touch and eat well!
Tonia made a casserole from polenta and the beloved Hatch chilies.Yummy! We brought back an empty casserole dish...no leftovers to indulge ourselves on. The recipe today is...what else, but a Tweaked recipe I made last night expanding and exploring the world of uses for Polenta...there are many, this is but one. Polenta, if you are not familiar with it, is made of a course ground corn and used instead of potatoes or rice. There are endless uses for it and I intend to try many of them!
Green Chilies & Chicken Polenta Casserole
(makes 1 Square casserole dish) 425 degree preheated oven
1 1/2 C dry Polenta
4 1/2 C chicken stock
1 medium onion - 1/2 fine dice, 1/2 big chopped
4 large cloves garlic crushed
chicken meat from 4 thighs, cooked to make broth
garlic powder, salt, pepper
3 roasted large green chilies chopped, can use frozen or 3 small cans chopped green chilies
shredded white cheddar cheese - use shredded cheese of choice except Velveeta, real cheese!
Cook chicken in large stock pot with at least 6-7 cups of water. Season with large chopped onion, crushed garlic, salt & pepper to taste. Once chicken is done, remove from stock and de-bone once cool enough to handle. Chop chicken & mix with chopped peppers, 1/2 of small diced onions and 1/2 handful of cheese. Set aside while you cook polenta, it will need your undivided attention. Have your casserole dish prepared by spraying with cooking spray all over bottom and sides.
Put 4 1/2 Cups of the broth in a heavy pot, non-stick is good. Save left over broth. When it comes to rolling boil, slowly add polenta stirring continuously as you pour it in. You must stir a lot! It starts thickening up quickly. Cook according to directions, you may need to add more broth is it gets too thick too quickly. Add salt, garlic powder and pepper to polenta to taste. DO NOT USE GARLIC SALT. When it's done, add 1 1/2 handfuls of shredded cheese to polenta, makes it creamy!
Spread a little over 1/2 cooked polenta to cover bottom of casserole dish. Sprinkle light layer shredded cheese over polenta. Spread chicken-chilies mixture over that. Add another layer of shredded cheese. Spread remaining polenta over meat layer. Top with more shredded cheese and add remaining small diced onions.
Bake @ 425 for 20 minutes. Longer if making larger casserole. It is ready when bubbling all over and starting to brown on top. Let it sit to cool some before cutting into squares and serving.
The dish was hearty, tasty and satisfying. It is very easy and quick to build casserole once chicken & stock are ready. I wanted a very savory polenta, so I added the spices even though I cooked it with the broth. You can use water for the polenta, and it would be more appropriate for a different use, say a sweet polenta. But I was after a more intense savory dish. You can use any chicken parts you want, I just prefer the tastier thigh meat. Use either hot or mild peppers, depending on your family preferences. I like hot. I am eager to experiment with other types of peppers, too.
I used a hot sauce of blended chipotle peppers and adobo sauce on the side of mine. My Honey used a milder version of a sauce made from the bit of the chipotle peppers, tomato sauce and sour cream. You could use a picante sauce or nothing at all. Let me know if you try this.
I plan on making a fall polenta with pumpkin soon, my head is spinning with ideas! Stay in touch and eat well!
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Pumpkin Pancakes
Eating seasonal food, fresh seasonal foods, is one of my favorite things about Fall. I have yet to find a squash I didn't like or a way to fix it.....ok, I'm not terribly fond of overcooked, watery squash. But then again, I'm not fond of anything overcooked. Winter squashes come in a variety of colors and color is good for you when it comes to food...and in my case, sanity. Gotta have color in my world.
Squash's cousin, pumpkin, is another fav. I saw on the news where the pumpkin crop is not going to be as good this year, consequently, less available and more pricey. They suggested you buy canned pumpkin while you can find it because it might get harder to find closer to the holidays. I did just that, bought two can of plain pumpkin puree for the pantry. I'll get more when I go next because my mind keeps thinking of new ways to use it. I wanted to make pumpkin pancakes this morning. SO... I did. I figured there was a recipe out there somewhere for it and sure enough, you can find several. I was on Everyday Foods website to get a turkey meatloaf recipe I saw made on the PBS show, so I just looked to see what Ole' Martha Stewart had to offer.
Squash's cousin, pumpkin, is another fav. I saw on the news where the pumpkin crop is not going to be as good this year, consequently, less available and more pricey. They suggested you buy canned pumpkin while you can find it because it might get harder to find closer to the holidays. I did just that, bought two can of plain pumpkin puree for the pantry. I'll get more when I go next because my mind keeps thinking of new ways to use it. I wanted to make pumpkin pancakes this morning. SO... I did. I figured there was a recipe out there somewhere for it and sure enough, you can find several. I was on Everyday Foods website to get a turkey meatloaf recipe I saw made on the PBS show, so I just looked to see what Ole' Martha Stewart had to offer.
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