Creamy Roasted Tomato Soup & Grilled Cheese...Yes, I said Grilled Cheese.

                                      

Today is a great day! Its just cold enough to light the fire, I am done with school for the rest of the week, and the final pieces of our garage gym are set to be delivered today. Oh, and yesterday marked the completion of a month long paleo challenge for me, in which I ended up 12 pounds lighter, and 5 inches smaller. I definitely needed that to get myself back in gear, and that challenge definitely did the trick. I have to say that it has fueled my desire to keep blogging about my food. It keeps me honest. I wish I had started blogging again when I first started the challenge, but it is what it is. 

One of the main reasons I started this blog was to show that eating healthy does not have to be ridiculously expensive. I am truly disappointed when I open a page online for a recipe, and discover a ton of expensive ingredients. Especially if it is something that I have not made before, and don't really know if I would like it. What a waste of resources it is when you make something that you spent a ton of cash and time on and then you wouldn't even feed it to your dog. I don't like to waste money, and I certainly would not want you to either. I do keep on hand however, a stock of items that I use a lot, and they can be pricey, so I suggest that you shop around for the best deals. Since my husband is in the military, we can shop on the base, and luckily, they have begun stocking certain items like almond flour, coconut flour, enjoy life chips, and coconut oil! It is there where I try to stock up on those things, so if you are also a military family, hit your Commissary! If not, Trader Joe's is an excellent place to purchase pricey things for not a lot of money as well as shopping online. Also, I keep a ton of eggs on hand (I have four kids!), and a lot of paleo recipes call for a lot of eggs. If you have shopped in the grocery store you know that good eggs are not cheap. $4 a dozen to eat organic, free-range eggs is simply not feasible when you are using 1/2 a dozen to make a loaf of banana bread! It's ridiculous! Do yourself and a local farmer a favor and go on Craigslist, and type eggs in the search box. I found a local farmer, who raises free-range chickens with organic feed. If I return the egg crates, he charges me $2.50 a dozen. That's cheaper than conventional eggs, and these are seriously the best eggs I've ever eaten! Trust me, there is a HUGE difference! 

As I was saying initially in this post, it is a little chilly here today. Its nice and dreary outside; very reminiscent of Washington state. It's the kind of day where you want to eat something that feels like you are wrapping yourself in a warm, cozy blanket. Insert possibly the most comforting meal ever here: Creamy Roasted Tomato Soup and a Grilled Cheese Sandwich. Seriously, it is like snuggling in a cashmere throw...well, not really, but it is still very comforting. You will never, ever guess in a million years how I got it to be creamy... 

Creamy Roasted Tomato Soup

Step one can be done a day or so ahead of time.

12 Roma tomatoes

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Sea Salt & Pepper

Raw, Organic honey (again...buy local)

1 large carrot, grated

1 yellow onion, chopped

1 clove of garlic, chopped

1/4 cup plus 2 TBS of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided

2 Large Basil Leaves, chopped (roll the leaves up like a cigar and run a knife through them)

3 cups of chicken stock (homemade is best, otherwise try to get a good low sodium, preferably organic)

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp Spanish Paprika

Step 1. 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a lipped cookie sheet with foil. Wash tomatoes, and halve. Lay them out on the sheet, drizzle with olive oil, and season with s & p. Lightly drizzle a tiny bit of honey over top. Place in the oven and roast for about 45 minutes, until they are all shriveled. They will look like this.

2. Heat 2 TBS of olive oil in skillet over med-high heat. Sauté the shredded carrots, onion and garlic until soft and translucent. 

3. Place the roasted tomatoes, carrots, onion, and garlic into a high power blender with the basil, chicken stock, 1/4 cup of olive oil, salt and paprika. You may have to do this in batches. 

4. Blend the soup until well blended, and that's it. 

I made my soup on Monday, and when I reheated it today, the flavors had time to marry, and it was perfect. The sweetness of the carrots balanced out the tomatoes, and added the creamy consistency. 

As I said above, I hate making expensive recipes, and this one was definitely easy on the wallet! The bread however was not so cheap, but well worth it if you have been missing bread, or like me and cannot eat bread. This is my favorite "bread" recipe, and it can be found here: Living Healthy With Chocolate-Paleo Sandwich Bread

I used one slice cut in half to make my grilled cheese. It sounds like it was tiny, but this bread is very dense and filling. I placed a slice of uncured, minimally processed ham between two paper thin slices of Kerry Gold Dubliner cheese, and "grilled" it in a pan. No oil required. If you are dairy free, I am fairly certain this would be awesome with an almond cheese or something along those lines. Enjoy!

Prep Day & Italian Chicken Stew

If you know me...like REALLY know me, you know that I strive to be an organized person...I would absolutely LOVE to be an organized person. I am definitely someone who is bothered by not having a plan and following through, but staying organized?? Not quite my strong suit. I think that may be why I am so steadfast in the fact that I have to have a plan--I'm making up for the lack of organization, lol! Sigh, I am a work in progress.

At any rate, with four kids, I have a large family by today's standards, and they are ALL very healthy eaters--large appetites. Thus, I have been feeling as of late that I am constantly cooking, and I don't like feeling that way. I put out some feelers to my friends, and got some very good ideas about pre-prepping meals, and decided that I would make Monday a prep day, because 1. Everyone is at school, and once Dave goes back to work I will have a quiet house to myself. 2. If I could at least get the foundations of meals started, then cooking for the rest of the week should be super easy and effortless. That remains to be seen. I do believe that I am off to a good start because the second meal of this week is currently in the oven, and I have time to blog about the recipe I made in the crockpot yesterday! 

By the way, crockpot meals were the number one recommendation from my friends! On a side note, I have been seriously coveting an Al Clad crockpot due to the fact that the insert is cast aluminum so that you brown the meat and slow cook the meal all in one dish! Yesterday's meal, and the idea of making a lot of slow cooked meals is giving that purchase more and more justification. 

Anyhow, I started the day by making a list of things I wanted to accomplish. There were three recipes that I wanted to create, and then I needed to bake banana bread for the kiddos, make paleo cereal, prep and pre-bag the veggies for my green lemonade, and make salsa and mayo (another helpful hint from my friend Liz who also has a bunch of kids like me...make condiments on Mondays!) I also wanted to make some grain-free, gluten-free bread for the kiddos too. Unfortunately, my list may have been a little lofty. I forgot to mention that I am a huge overachiever. So, I will think something is feasible when it probably isn't to the average person. I did make good headway though. The only things I did not get to was making the bread, cereal, mayo, and veggie prep. I did however (and this is where my ADD comes in) make roasted tomato soup!

Truly, once I got the chicken going in the crock pot, it was very easy to do everything else. The Chicken began as an idea for Chicken Cacciatore. What it turned into was Italian Chicken Stew, and it was an explosion of flavors in my mouth. And as the universal indicator of a good recipe, Lil 'T cleaned his plate, so I will take that as this recipe rocked, because 1. He is picky, and 2. He hates chicken!

                                  

Italian Chicken Stew

1 large pack of skinless, bone-in chicken thighs

sea salt & pepper

2 TBS extra virgin olive oil

1 large red onion, large chop

3 bell peppers, large chop (I used red, yellow, and orange...I have an aversion to cooked green bell peppers)

1 8oz package of mushrooms, sliced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 cup of Kalamata olives

1 cup of large, stuffed, Spanish Queen olives, sliced into halves

1 28oz can of crushed tomatoes. (I use San Marzano tomatoes.)

1 tsp sea salt

2 tsp italian seasoning

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

1. place the onions in the bottom of the crock pot, then layer the bell peppers, and mushrooms on top.

2. Heat olive oil in large skillet over med-high heat. Season both sides of chicken with s & p, and sear in the oil until slightly golden on each side. As chicken finishes browning, remove from pan and place in crockpot on top of the onions, peppers, and mushrooms.

3. Next, add in order, the olives, garlic, crushed tomatoes, sea salt, italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes. Cover, and cook on low for 6-8 hours depending on your crock pot. Mine was finished in 7 hours. 

4. Give a good stir to the ingredients about halfway through the cooking to incorporate the sauce into everything. 

While dinner was cooking in the crockpot, I had time to work on other meals. This was a great time saver for me, and my fridge is now stocked with meals that I can throw together, reheat or finish within a short amount of time, as well as leftovers for lunches which is also a real money saver! It also gave me a ton of blogging material as I ended up with about 5 recipes to share! So, while I did not finish everything that I set out to make, I must say that week one of food prep was a win!

Sunday BBQ

We are almost at the 2 month mark of living in our new home, and we still are not finished unpacking, and still have yet to finish any one single project. We are getting closer though. This Sunday marks the end of my 7th week in my current course term for school, and of course I completely lost track of time with my final project that was due at midnight. I submitted it 10 minutes late, and have been sweating it ever since. I digress. I had meant to talk about a quick BBQ meal, and somehow got lost getting there. So, back on track Tommie. 

I had intended on telling you how I scored an amazing deal on this lovely angus tenderloin, and was so excited to prepare it! Because it was an end cut, instead of $60 we paid $30--Super excited about this, and I knew I wanted it grilled. 

I make a marinade rub that I use universally on every red meat, and it is amazingly simple. 

Marinade Rub

4 cloves of garlic, minced

2 tsp of fresh rosemary, minced

1/2 tsp of oregano

1/2 tsp of parsley

the zest of 1/2 a lemon

1 1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp pepper

2 TBS extra virgin olive oil

the juice of the lemon you zested

1. Combine the herbs, zest, salt & pepper.

2. Drizzle the olive oil over the meat and rub it in, then rub the rub into the meat making sure to coat it evenly and massage it into the tissue.

3. Squeeze the lemon juice over the meat, place the meat into a ziploc bag, seal, and place in the fridge for a few hours. 

4. Remove from fridge, and let come to room temperature before grilling or roasting. We grilled ours.

*This marinade rub goes REALLY well with lamb. I use it every year for Easter, and I marinate it over night.

                                         

Salad pairs wonderfully with steak, and my Dad has always made this amazing salad which is something that I look forward to in the summer when we grill. It is called Wilted Salad. The name sounds odd, but trust me, it is amazingly addicting! 

The Bradley Wilted Salad 

2 -3 heads of green leaf lettuce, washed, and chopped...enough to fill an 8qt pot

2 bunches of green onions, sliced

1 package of grape tomatoes

1 package of mushrooms, sliced

6 slices of uncured bacon, cooked crisp, and crumbled

The reserved bacon grease from the bacon, plus 2 heaping TBS of additional bacon grease. **You CANNOT skimp here. It MUST be bacon grease!

3 TBS of white balsamic vinegar

Sea Salt and Pepper to Taste

Let me start by saying that you need to prepare this salad in a large metal pot or bowl...I used an 8 qt. stock pot. 

1. Place your washed, chopped lettuce into the pot with the green onions.

2. Heat the bacon grease until hot, but not smoking.

3. Carefully drizzle the hot grease over the lettuce and green onions while carefully tossing with metal tongs to evenly coat. You will hear the salad hiss and pop, and this is normal.

3. Once the grease has been incorporated into the salad, add the mushrooms, tomatoes, and crumbled bacon. Toss to combine. 

4. Add the vinegar, and season with salt and pepper, and toss to combine. That's it.

                                   

Serve the salad along side your grilled meat of choice. I have to say that the Hubs did an outstanding job grilling the meat, it was perfect. Enjoy the recipes, and I am going to go check my class to see if I am in trouble for submitting my paper a few minutes late. Wish me luck! 

This was dinner...and other stuff

I have so much to say tonight, I apologize in advance for my verbal vomit! And sorry for saying "vomit" in a food blog ;) First, I would like to say that my pre-roasted chicken was worth it's weight in gold tonight--SERIOUSLY! We have been so off schedule with my hubby's marathon vacation. Everyday we are out doing something, and I am sure that is part of why I am feeling so stressed about cooking lately. Add in the fact that we just bought a house, we have been out buying landscaping supplies, garden supplies, towel bars, and in general, just buying shit we think we need but probably don't. At any rate, even if you don't buy a fixer upper, I'm convinced that any home is a money pit, and it never ends! Second, going out to procure everything, is a time vortex, and it sucks your life away. Okay, that rant is done. 

As you know, we have four children, and I will talk about them often. Part of the reason I decided to write this blog was to dispel the ideas that eating healthy will break your bank. It just takes commitment and planning, and I want you to know that if I can do this with a family of six, anyone can do it! There is a great program, that we participate in called Bountiful Baskets. It is a produce co-op, and they operate in 23 of the 50 states. When we were in Washington we could participate weekly, however now that we are in Texas, our site only offers baskets every other week, so check to see what your state offers. This is such a great way to get fresh produce for minimal investment, and you can interact with some of the people in your community while you are at it. They even offer organic baskets as well. A standard contribution is $15, and you have the option of purchasing additional add-ons for an additional contribution, like a gallon jar of organic, virgin, coconut oil for $20, which is a great price! Here is our last basket. (Not pictured is a 25 pound bag of carrots that I purchased as an add on...HUGE freaking bag. Dave told me that we needed to buy more carrots because we go through so many in the kids' lunches every day, so I thought, problem solved, not realizing exactly how many carrots go into 25 pounds! Dave says we will be eating carrots for the rest of our lives, lol.)

Anyhow, tonight's meal, "Creamy Chicken Casserole" was prepared using ingredients from our last basket as well as some of the chicken breasts that I pre-roasted a couple of days ago.  I do have to admit that I sent Dave to the store for more broccoli, because I failed to check, and it turns out I had enough--OOPS! Sorry Hun. Having the pre-cooked chicken was a huge time saver, and the meal literally could feed an army! I can freeze the rest for another meal or lunches for my daughter, Dave and I. Think both time and monetary budget friendly! This recipe is not my creation, but you can find it at PaleOMG Creamy Chicken Casserole . As always, I took some liberty with this recipe, but even if I had not, I know it would have been amazing, because I honestly have not gotten a bad recipe from her site. Plus, her blog is just great reading because she has a wicked sense of humor, and great writing style. Here are the changes I made:

1. I used pre-roasted chicken breasts as opposed to thighs. I warmed the cubed chicken in the bacon fat and then added it to the broccoli/cauliflower.

2. I added bacon to the recipe. 

*It was also about the same time I was getting ready to make dinner I checked my Facebook and saw a recipe posted by Just Eat Real Food for Bacon Chocolate Cookies from Urban Poser and decided because I have ADD and can't not think of multiple things at one time that I would make extra bacon and make the cookies too!

Alyssa cooking the bacon!                                              

3. Instead of a yellow onion, I used leeks because I had them and needed to use them. 

4. Because hard cheese does not phase myself or my brood, I topped the casserole with some shredded Kerry Gold Dubliner cheese. Go with what you can handle.

This was the finished product, and it was soooo good! However, I am sad to admit that the boys did not find this to be their favorite dish. In all fairness, they are not cauliflower or mushroom people, but they still cleaned their plates.

                                 

We then took the extra bacon and made cookies for dessert and lunch snacks.

You HAVE to make these cookies! Seriously. David said that they were "a party in my mouth!" They are ridiculously delicious. I used the almond flour that I had on hand, but the recipe calls for fine milled almond flour. I will be ordering some to make more of these little devils, but I have to say that even with regular almond flour, they are still amazing. Definitely going into the regular rotation.

So sorry to cut sling load. Go forth and make good choices! Check out Bountiful Baskets, and make these recipes!

Go Greek!

Today did not end up the way I had hoped. Let me begin by saying that my home has been under siege for the better part of the last month by the Epstein Barre virus...in the form of Mono. My best guess is that we were exposed at some point during our trek from Washington State to Texas as its devastation was so swift and complete with our four kiddos. It started with Alyssa and within days our two youngest boys fell victim to the headaches, high fevers, sore throat, and exhaustion. They recovered within days, while Alyssa missed 3 weeks of school. I thought we were home free until my oldest, Jay began to fall victim. Annnd that brings me to last night where we spent a few hours at the ER because his tonsils were so nasty, swollen, and just nasty that he was having trouble swallowing, talking, and breathing. Needless to say I was tired today, and behind on things I needed to accomplish...like taking the boys (I tend to refer to my two youngest boys as the boys) for new shoes. 

Anthony was in desperate need, as he's been complaining that his feet hurt. Keep in mind we just bought him new shoes in a size 5 1/2 before we left Washington in January. After much emotional distress over why basketball shoes are not good for running (he's 10 and turning into a brooding tween), we left the store mentally exhausted, and much poorer with a pair of Nike running shoes in a men's size 7 1/2...YIKES! Why do my kids do this to me? I feel like the worst parent in the world even though I continuously buy them shoes and clothes, they have these sudden, massive growth spurts and I end up feeling like I am lacking in some way in the mommy department. 

Anyhoo, after the shoe shopping excursion from Hell, being all around tired from the night prior, and a horrible workout from this morning which left me sore everywhere, my planned meal flew out the window and was sacrificed for something much easier which was grilled sausages (our local grocery has an awesome selection of minimally processed, sugar free, grass fed, and organic sausages and even hot dogs!), roasted sweet potatoes, and a Greek Salad. Quick, and easy peasy.

I came across the recipe for this salad in a cookbook that I had bought years ago by a man named George Stella. He is a HUGE inspiration as he went from being extremely overweight, wheel chair ridden, and suffering from heart failure to this wonderfully healthy man by changing the way he and his family ate. In the end, he, his wife, and their two sons lost 560 pounds! I find that amazing, and even more so they appear to be such a close knit family, and I really enjoyed reading about their journey. It was super inspiring. At any rate, I cannot take credit for the actual salad recipe, but I have taken my own liberties with his dressing, and therefore I will give you my take on it, and the link for the recipe which inspired it here: George Stella's Greek Salad

I was drawn to this dressing because it was quick and easy as it is made in the blender. Tonight, I made it in my single serve, bullet blender, so I didn't even have to break out the big guns (Blendtec) for it, which means easier cleanup! 

Greek Dressing, Inspired from George Stella's recipe

1 tsp Dijon Mustard

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

the juice of half of a lemon (about 2 TBS)

1 TBS of the juice from the jar pepperoncini peppers used in the salad (see above link)

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and roughly chopped

3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

sea salt & pepper to taste

1/2 tsp of oregano

1/4 tsp of basil

1. Throw everything except for the olive oil and oregano into the blender and blend well. Open the lid, dump in the oil, and blend until it comes together. Season with S & P to taste, blend again, add the oregano, and pulse 2-3 times. That is it. You're done, and you don't have a gargantuan mess to clean up! It should look like this:

George's recipe calls for the addition of red pepper flakes, and while I LOVE them, it ends up being a little spicy for my kiddos, so I leave them out. Additionally, if you find 2 cloves of garlic too hot, then knock it back to 1 or half of 1, but do not omit it. Enjoy! I will now commence to decontaminating my house. 

Something Has Got to Give

I'm struggling a bit with my food. It's not a struggle with my actual eating, because that is on point. I feel at the moment like I am chained to my kitchen. I know of some who can prep everything for every meal, but man I just do not seem to have time for that. But then again, I really don't have time to be cooking every day for hours either so something has to give. Therefore I am going to make an effort to pre-prep things. I already plan our menu so I think I may be half way there! Maybe not. I am going to try...it can't hurt.

I started this afternoon by roasting some bone-in chicken breasts to use in two separate meals this week. (Thanks to my friend Melinda for that fabulous idea!) Unfortunately, in my excitement of pre-roasting my breasts, I neglected to think about the fact that I had planned to make chicken fingers for dinner tonight from:

allergyfreealaska

I then realized that I needed my rimmed baking sheet which was in the oven with my chicken breasts. Sadness...and my ADD had reared its ugly head yet again.

So, I improvised and made chicken fingers inspired by the above recipe, AND I recreated a broccoli salad reminiscent of one that I had eaten once at an Army function/pot luck that I am pretty sure actually came from a deli, because I've seen it at a couple on different occasions, lol. I digress. Our meal came out amazing, my kiddos loved it, and I think you should make it too.

Chicken Fingers

2 pounds of chicken breast tenderloins. You can sub chicken breasts cut into strips, or chunks if you want nuggets.

For the breading:

1 cup almond meal (I used Trader Joe's)

2TBS of coconut flour

1tsp of smoked paprika

1/4tsp chipotle powder

1tsp granulated garlic

1tsp dried parsley

1tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

2 eggs

1/2tsp of gluten free Dijon mustard**

Olive oil or Coconut Oil (I used coconut oil)

Equipment: you will need a large skillet. (I used cast iron)

Crack the eggs into a dish, add the Dijon mustard and scramble together.

**You could also use hot sauce in place of the Dijon for an extra kick!

In a separate dish (pie plates work awesome for this!) combine the almond meal, coconut flour, and spices, s & p. 

Starting with about 2 TBS of oil, heat in your skillet over medium heat. (You may need med-high if not using cast iron.) You will need to add more oil as you go along as the nut flours soak up the oil.

Coat the chicken tenderloins in the egg mixture, then hold over the bowl to let the excess drip, and then lightly dredge on all sides in the flour mixture. Immediately transfer to the hot pan, and fry for a few minutes on each side until golden brown and cooked through. This should not take too long because the tenderloins cook quickly. Place the cooked tenders on a plate lined with paper towels. 

NOW, at this point, if you want them to be crispy when you eat them, you need to eat them while they are hot. You can place them on a baking sheet in a warm oven to keep them crispier. Otherwise, they will lose their crispness as they cool, but they are still good. I'm not that nice, I waited too long so I could take photos, so my kids got them less than crispy, and they still ate them up! I served them with a paleo friendly BBQ sauce.

Now for the salad....

2 heads of fresh broccoli

1 large carrot, shredded

1 scallion, chopped

1/2 cup raisins

3 slices of uncured bacon, cooked crisp, and crumbled or chopped.

Dressing:

2TBS Cashew Butter

2tsp Raw, Organic Honey (try to use local for health benefits!)

1TBS extra virgin olive oil

2TBS white balsamic vinegar (I got this at Trader Joe's)

Sea salt to taste

Wash and cut broccoli into very small florets...tiny florets. Place into large bowl with carrot, scallion, and raisins. 

In a small bowl combine the dressing ingredients. Don't fear, it will look like a giant blob, but it will be okay once you add it to the salad. Plop the blob of dressing onto the salad and mix well. Don't do this gingerly, broccoli is sturdy. Really mix it in well, and as it mixes with the veggies they begin to release water and it thins out the dressing, and it will eventually be evenly coated, and delicious! Toss in the bacon, mix again, and it will look like this:

It was a perfect, healthy alternative to the deli salad that I had at that potluck. I will in fact be adding it to my potluck repertoire. So, if you end up in my husband's unit, expect to eat this at some point. 

OH, I forgot to say that this meal was a quickie, coming in at around 35 minutes from start to finish!