Poor Man's Soup

I love this soup. It doesn't look like much but it's so flavorful and filling. Total comfort food in the winter!

1 c lentils
1 c split peas
1 c brown rice
(or any combo of the above to equal 3 cups)
4 quarts water
1/2 c dried veggie soup mix (I buy mine in bulk from a local store but you could substitute Knorr Vegetable Soup Mix or other types of dry soup mix. Just be sure to adjust for the amount of salt to taste in the recipe.)
2 tbsp dried onion
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp dried parsley
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil

If you are really poor you can lower the 3 cups of grains to just 2 cups. Rinse grains. Boil water in large pot adding all of the remaining ingredients. Simmer on the stove for about 2 hours. Serve with bread and butter.

Honey Baked Lentils and Rice

I know this doesn't look like much but oh. my. goodness. this is SO good. I've tried many lentil and rice recipes and this one is hands down our favorite. My husband and kids don't even like lentils and won't eat them any other way but they love this. I adapted the recipe from Becca's recipe called Honey Baked Lentils. I wanted to make ours a little more substantial since we eat it as a main dish so I added rice and changed up the measurements a bit. It works great as a healthy side dish as well. I prefer it cooked on low for half the day in the crock-pot. You can bake it in the oven but it just didn't come out cooked as even because of the rice added.

Here's my take on it:

1 c lentils
1 c brown rice
4 1/2 c water
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp dried minced onion (fresh onion floats to the top)
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp garlic powder (or 1 minced clove of garlic)
1 tsp salt (or more if needed)
pepper to taste

Place all the ingredients in the crock-pot and cook on low from about noon till dinner. This stuff is addicting. The flavor is SO good!

If baking in the oven: 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hours.

Fried Rice

This is so easy to make and pretty darn healthy. I use brown rice which makes it even better for you. I can see why this is a staple in so many other countries. It's also a great way to use up leftovers.

4 cups leftover refrigerated rice
1 diced onion
oil (olive oil or coconut oil)
2 eggs
2-4 tbsp soy sauce to taste
1 tsp paprika
salt
pepper
garlic (1 minced clove or a dash of powder)
leftover veggies (peas, corn, chopped spinach, bell peppers, green beans, mushrooms, etc.)

Saute the cold rice, onion, and veggies in oil. Add soy sauce, salt, pepper, garlic. Push rice mixture to the side and crack eggs into the skillet, blending them as they cook. Serve.

Notes-
In the pictures I used spinach and green beans. This was not a big hit with the kids. They liked it better the next time I made it with carrots and corn. Use whatever sounds good to you. My husband and I really like this new dish.

Sprouting

I've wanted to try sprouting for several years now ever since I learned of the incredible nutritional value in sprouts. I can tell you that when I'm eating them, I have a huge amount of energy. It's really amazing. So, I researched and researched some more. Then I got brave and decided to try my hand at it. So far my favorite is lentils. I'm eager to try mung beans and broccoli seeds.

My method:
I use wide mouth mason jars and a sprouting screen but you can use cheese cloth if you want to. These pictures were taken before I switched over to the screen. The sprouting screen just makes it so easy to rinse them.

Put about 1/4 cup of beans/legumes or about 1 tbsp seeds of your choice in the mason jar, rinse and then fill about halfway with water and soak over night. In the morning drain the water and rinse.

For the next couple of days rinse several times a day, at least 2 times but preferable more often than that. I tend to rinse mine every time I come into the kitchen and think of it so about 7-10 times a day. The less often the more chance of them tasting bitter.

After you see sprouts that are your desired length then you can rinse them one last time and put the lid on them and store them in the fridge. When you are ready to use them you can steam them first if you want to (advised to do so for beans and legumes even when serving cold on salad). They will keep in the fridge for about 1 week.

I like my sprouts to be at least a 1/4 of an inch long if not longer but the desired length is up to your own preference.

Sprouts can go on about anything. You can puree them to make a spread (recommended for chick peas that you are turning into hummus dip), you can cook them and use them like you would in your established recipes, put them on sandwiches, or you can serve them cold with dressing or even on a salad. I love sprouted lentils on my green salads.

Tips:
Research is coming out that alfalfa isn't the safest seed to sprout due to the canavanine in them. I have not studied this at length but have read this a few places. If you like small sprouted seeds for sandwiches, I would suggest looking for broccoli seeds to sprout. Seeds for sprouting can be found in health food stores.

I also suggest purchasing a book about sprouting if you are wanting to learn more. I'm sure your library has some books on this as well. I like this one.

I would also suggest purchasing a sprouting screen for your mason jar. It's an inexpensive and super useful tool for sprouting. This one would do perfect.

I know a few of you have tried sprouting and I'd be interested to know your favorite sprouts to grow at home. Please share in the comments!

Macaroni Salad

13 oz macaroni pasta (whole wheat or brown rice pasta)

4-5 diced large Clauson kosher dill pickles

3 2 oz cans sliced black olives

1 to 1 1/2 cups mayo

my kiddos love this....as do I.

Amazingly Creamy (and Healthy) Mac N Cheese

I've been searching for a very long time for a healthy mac and cheese recipe that doesn't taste awful. Seems like only the unhealthy ones taste good until now. Thanks to one of my favorite blogs, Heavenly Homemaker, I can now make healthy mac and cheese. Click here for her recipes.

Only difference for me is that I use brown rice pasta and it takes longer to cook, so I cook it in water till it's about half way cooked and then I drain it and finish cooking it in the milk.

Disclaimer- when I say "healthy", some people might be thinking HUH? because of the whole milk and cheese. As I continue to research whole food nutrition and learn more about eating naturally derived foods, I consider organic whole milk healthier than lowfat milk and I use raw organic cheese instead of processed and pasteurized cheese. To learn more, read Nourishing Traditions.

Corn Tortillas

My sister taught me how to make corn tortillas and now we are hooked. They taste incredible compared to store bought tortillas. It's pretty shocking. I don't even make them fully from scratch and yet the taste is so much better. So, come on into my kitchen and I'll teach you how to make them today.

I buy masa dough that is already prepared. You can buy it this way but if you can't find it, you can purchase the corn masa in a box but be sure it's the kind for making corn tortillas. It will either say so on the box or it will have recipe instructions on the back of it for making corn tortillas. You should only need to add water but some tell you to add lime. My dough comes already mixed and in a bag. I freeze it until I'm ready to use it and then I set it out on the counter all day to defrost for making tortillas right before dinner.

You'll need a tortilla press....mine is cast iron which is what I recommend. I got mine on Amazon and it's the largest size which I also recommend.

Roll the dough into golf ball sized balls numbering the amount of tortillas you want to make.



Cut two squares out of a Walmart bag and wash them with soap and water. Trust me the Walmart bag will work the best.





Place one piece of plastic on your press.

Put one dough ball on the plastic and cover it with the second piece of plastic.




Close the press, pull the arm over and press hard. You may need to turn the tortilla around to get it pressed really even.

Peel the top layer of plastic off.










Carefully peel the tortilla off of the bottom layer of plastic. You want to be sure not to tear the tortilla off of the plastic. Do this by laying the tortilla in your hand and pulling the plastic off of it.

Once in your hand you can then lay it on the griddle.

Don't flip the tortilla over onto the griddle because it will possibly stick to your hand and tear a hole. Instead, lay the edge on the griddle and slowly lay it while you sort of roll your hand out from under it.









You will know the tortilla is ready to flip when the edge of the tortilla gets a little dry. You don't want to let the whole top get dry though because it will turn white and be ruined. Flip it while the dough is still sticky. Don't worry about your tortillas being perfectly round, that's what makes them homemade, right!?

Once you have a whole stack made, make yourself some killer tacos. It will be difficult to go back to storebought after this.

You can freeze these easily!

These are super fun to make with kids. In fact, my kids make them themselves now. It takes some time to get the whole technique down but I assure you that with practice you'll get the hang of it.

Garlic Adzuki Beans

My mom introduced me to this new bean. They are so good even though I know they don't look like much in the pot. They are a reddish bean with a white stripe on them but when you cook them they turn this dark purple. They are really good for you and if you want to read a snippet more about them you can here.

I like to soak them overnight and then cook 1 cup in about 3 cups of water for about 45 min. to 1 hour. Then I mix in some butter and sprinkle with salt and garlic powder (but you could use one whole minced garlic clove or more if you like garlic!). They are so good with garlic.

This Japanese and Chinese bean may be hard to find in a regular grocery store. Look in Asian markets, health food stores, or mail order.

Chewy Granola Bars

I've been searching and working to perfect a granola bar recipe that is chewy and healthy all at the same time. I have made so many batches I think my family might be tired of my failed granola bar recipes. But alas, I have finally created one that I'm happy with.

4 c oats
2/3 c brown sugar
1/2 c honey
4 tbsp butter
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt

Toast the oats on a cookie sheet @ 400 degrees (for about 10 min.) while mixing together the remaining ingredients in a sauce pan. Heat over medium heat till bubbly and thin. Butter a 9x13 glass pan. Remove oats from oven and pour into a mixing bowl. Pour honey mixture over the oats and mix well till all the oats are coated. Pour into the 9x13 and cover with wax paper or parchment paper. Use a spatula or the back of a measuring cup to press the mixture down and spread it evenly. Let cool for 2-3 hours until there is no warmth to the pan. Remove the bars carefully by inverting the pan onto a cutting board. Cut the bars with a butcher knife and either wrap individually or store between layers of wax paper in an air tight container.

If you'd like to add some mix-ins you can do so the following way:

Chocolate Chip - add 1/2 cup of mini chips to the above recipe. Add the chips when mixing the oats and honey together.

Peanut - add 1 cup of crushed peanuts and use only 3 cups of oats. Toast the peanuts with the oats.

Oatmeal Raisins - add 1/2 cup of raisins to the above recipe and 1 tsp cinnamon when mixing the oats and honey together.

Health Nut - add 3/4 c wheat germ, 3/4 c sunflower seeds, 1 cup of crushed peanuts, reduce oats to 2 cups and toast with the oats and then add 8oz. dried fruit when mixing the oats and honey together.

Fruity - add 1 cup dried fruit to the above recipe when mixing the oats and honey together.

Instant Pancake Mix

I've struggled for a long time on deciding what I want to do for pancakes...I want them healthy, I want my husband to like them (and not make jokes about them), I want them to be easy, and I don't want them to cost a fortune. Is that asking too much?

I've done the box mix that I love but it's pricey and sometimes the tops flip off....long story but that's where the jokes come in....
I've done the fully from scratch- good, but a lot of work when I'm wanting something quicker....
I've done the whole wheat flour- turns out like a...mmm, how do I describe it???
I've done the whole wheat pastry flour- turns out good but have to make it from scratch
I've done the white flour, but it's not a whole grain...
I've done the healthy blender versions (even gluten free with brown rice)...not so much my thing

So, I've finally decided on making my own dry mix (nice and fast in the morning) that is healthy (uses whole wheat pastry flour) and is cheaper to make (saves me money) and it taste great (made from scratch)!

for the dry mix:
6 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3 tbsp baking powder
1 tbs salt
2 tbs sugar

Mix the dry mix together and store in your pantry up to 3 months. Be sure you are using fresh baking powder. (Baking powder has an open shelf life of 6 months.)

When you are ready to make pancakes, take out your mix from the pantry and add to 1 cup of mix:
1 egg
1 c buttermilk (or milk)

Whisk it well and let it rest for about 5 minutes while you prep the griddle. You can also make a double batch if desired using 2 cups of mix, 2 eggs, and 2 cups buttermilk (or milk).

I'm going to try doing 1 cup of ground oats with 5 cups flour for the mix next time but for now, this turned out wonderful. If you don't have buttermilk on hand, mix 1 part milk to 1 part lemon juice or just use milk.

Homemade Almond Granola

I'm making this today and I updated the recipe a little so I wanted to re-post it for you.

This is really good and my family loves it. It's usually gone in about two days. It's great served as cereal, sprinkled on yogurt, or as a plain snack. You can also mix it into your own trail mix if you'd like to.

4 cups old-fashioned oats

1 1/2 cup sliced almonds

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 cup saffola or olive oil

1/2 cup honey

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

optional 1 1/2 cups total of any dried fruit

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 F. In a bowl mix the oats, almonds, salt and cinnamon. In a saucepan warm the oil and honey. Whisk in vanilla. Carefully pour the liquid over the oat mixture. Stir gently with a wooden spoon; finish mixing by hand. Spread granola cookie sheet. Bake 40 minutes, stirring carefully every 10 minutes. I like ours a to be clumpy so I don't stir it until after it's cooled completely. Let it cool complete. It will have hardened so now you can scrap it with a spoon. Stir in dried fruit. Seal

granola in an airtight container or self-sealing plastic bag. Store at room temperature for 1 week or in the freezer for 3 months.

Variations ~
-try adding 1 tsp almond extract for an extra almond taste
-use different types of nuts
-use raisins, cranberries, blueberries, etc.

Crock-pot Brown Rice Breakfast

4 cups water
1 cup brown rice

Cook on low over night.
Serve with your choice of butter, brown sugar, raisins, maple syrup, milk, etc.