OATMEAL RAISIN AND MACADAMIA COOKIES

I adapted this recipe from an ifood.tv recipe.

1/2 cup butter, softened

 1/2 cup organic brown sugar

 1/4 cup granulated sugar

 1 egg, cage free

 1 teaspoon Mexican vanilla

 3/4 cups flour

 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

 1/4 teaspoon salt

 1 1/2 cups organic oatmeal

 1/2 cup organic raisins

 1/4 ground flaxseed

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut

 1/2 cup macadamia nuts

 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Beat together butter and sugars until creamy. 

Add eggs and vanilla. Beat well. 

Add combined flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix well. 

Stir in oats, raisins, coconut and nuts. 

Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. 

Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. 

Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet then remove to wire rack.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP

I adapted this recipe from Emeril Lagasse.

Ingredients

1 Butternut squash, about 2 pounds

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped garlic

1/2 cup thinly sliced carrot

1/2 teaspoons southwest spice mix or ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

2-3 small finely minced jalapeno peppers

2 cups chicken stock

1/4 cup heavy cream

6 slices of bacon , cooked crispy

Directions

Cut the squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Peel the squash and cut into 1 inch pieces. In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat. 

Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, until they begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the carrot, southwest seasoning, salt, and pepper. Cook for 1 minute, and then add squash, jalapeno peppers, and chicken stock.

 Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15- 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Remove from the heat and puree the soup using a food processor. Puree until smooth. Return to the heat, add the cream and adjust the seasonings. Serve with a little crumbled bacon.

Garden Photos January 2012

I have broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, various peppers, swiss chard, green onions and some herbs growing in my garden.
I planted sweet peas but they didn't make it.  And I never got around to planting spinach or lettuce.  Though, I might try plant some this week.

broccoli

swiss chard

cauliflower

cabbage

cilantro

broccoli

Spaghetti Squash

I have always wanted to try making spaghetti squash.  So, I researched a few recipes on the Internet and decided to stay simple with it.  Plus add some Parmesan cheese, you just can't go wrong with Parmesan.

I served this with steak, peas and Swiss chard.  Turned out to be a great meal.

Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash

olive oil

salt and pepper

grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Slice spaghetti squash in half, lengthwise. Drizzle cut side with olive oil, salt and pepper.

Place squash, cut side down on parchment lined baking sheet or a nonstick baking sheet.  Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until squash is tender when pierced with a fork.

Remove squash from oven and cool slightly, to handle. Into a bowl, shred the inside of the squash with fork to resemble spaghetti. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper and top with grated Parmesan cheese. Serve warm.

Crock Pot Texas Chili

In the Fall and Winter time I start craving chili.  Especially, on football Sundays, chili is a go-to meal.  I like chili with or without beans.  In Texas, it ain't chili if it has beans.  So, in this recipe I don't add any beans.  If you must have beans a can or two of pinto or black beans would work well.  I doubled the recipe below when I make chili, that way we have leftovers for a few days.
Chili is great by itself, on a baked potato, a sweet potato, over cornbread and on Frito's corn chips.  Cheddar cheese and sour cream are my favorite toppings to put on it.

Ingredients:

1 Carroll Shelby Chili Kit

2 lbs ground meat or ground turkey

1 medium onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, chopped

1 green or red bell pepper from my garden

2-3 banana peppers from my garden (optional)

1-2 jalapenos, seeds removed

8 ounces tomato sauce

1 jar Rotel tomatoes

Directions:

Saute onions and peppers, season with just a little salt and black pepper.  When onions are translucent add ground meat and cook till no longer pink.  

Add meat mixture to crock pot.  Then add all the seasoning packets except the masa to the crock pot. Add Rotel and tomato sauce.  

Add water as directed by package.

  Cook in crock pot on high for a 3-4 hours.  Enjoy!

Crock Pot White Beans and Sausage

I discovered how to make beans in a crock pot when trying the recipe for white beans on The Happy Housewife blog.  I adapted her recipe to make it more cajun/southern.  I make red beans like this too.

Ingredients:
1 lb dry white beans (Northern Beans)
1 small onion, diced
1 Bell Pepper
2-3 Jalapenos
3 -5 banana peppers (optional)
1 large stalk of fresh Rosemary
3 links of cajun andoille sausage, sliced
1 large piece of  tasso ham or a ham hock
l carton of Chicken Broth, preferably organic
cornbread or rice, for serving

Directions:
Rinse beans, then soak overnight.  I add a capful of apple cider vinegar to my soaking beans, its optional.  I was told it helps prevent gas later.  Not real sure it works though.  :)  

Drain the water, then place beans, sausage, tasso ham onion, peppers, rosemary, salt and pepper  in the crock pot. Add the 32 oz carton of chicken stock to the beans.  Cook on high for 6-8 hours.  Serve with cornbread.

Rosemary Mashed Sweet Potatoes

At Thanksgiving, it seems that the sweet potato casseroles are always loaded with sugar.  It feels more like a dessert than a side dish.  The other day I ran across a recipe in the Nov/Dec 2011 issue of Clean Eating magazine.  I adapted the recipe a little bit and my husband and I loved it, it went great with the baked turkey breast I made.

Ingredients:
4 lbs sweet potatoes, scrubbed well
1 head garlic, cloves separated and unpeeled
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 tsp fresh rosemary leaves, chopped
1/2 tsp sea salt
Fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  I put my sweet potatoes in my potato bag that my friend, Jo Ann  gave me for cat sitting one weekend.  Then place the bag in the microwave and I use the Potato button on my microwave.  I enter how many potatoes I have and it calculates the time for me.  If you don't have a potato bag, you can prick the potatoes and place in the microwave.  I would bake them 5 minutes per potato, flipping potatoes half way through cooking.  They should be very tender when done.  If they aren't soft then microwave them some more.

Meanwhile, loosely wrap garlic in foil, sealing it.  Place on a cookie sheet ( I had my turkey breast in the oven, so I placed it in the roasting pan, the turkey wasn't giving off any liquid for me to be concerned about it getting soggy)  and bake for 35 minutes, until softened but not browned.

Let potatoes and garlic cool.  When cool enough to handle, peel potatoes and place in a large bowl.  Squeeze garlic cloves from their skins and add to the bowl.  Make sure the garlic is well mashed or chop it.  We had large chunks in ours, that were not as appetizing when the pieces are so big.  Add broth and use a potato masher to mash until smooth.  Stir in rosemary, salt and pepper.

Coat a baking dish with cooking spray.  Add potato mixture, using a spatula to smooth top.  Transfer  to oven and bake for 20 minutes.  Serve hot.