Here is a great recipe I tried out at my sister's house for Mother's Day. It was super easy to make and everyone LOVED it!
Servings: Serves 8
Ingredients:
Cheesy, Oozy Guacamole Bean Dip
1 can (16 ounces) refried beans
3 large avocados
3 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
2 containers (8 ounces) nondairy sour cream
1 packet taco seasoning
1/2 cup diced mild green chiles , drained
1/2 cup sliced black olives , or more if you like
5 tomatoes , chopped
2 cups shredded vegan cheddar cheese
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Spread a layer of refried beans in the bottom of an 8x8 quart glass baking dish. Pit and peel the avocados, and place in a bowl. Mash the avocados together with the lime juice, and spread on top of the refried beans. Stir together the sour cream and taco seasoning, and spread over the avocado.
Sprinkle the chiles over the sour cream, and top with a layer of black olives. Add the tomatoes and sprinkle with the cheese. Heat the dip for 15 to 30 minutes or until heated through and the cheese is a bit melted.
Serve warm or at room temperature.
Note: We use Bearitos organic taco seasoning, but it does contain a touch of cane sugar. If you're avoiding all white sugar, make your own by combining chili powder, ground cumin, onion powder, hot paprika or cayenne, and salt.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Chicken taco pizza
I'm going to try to post some of the recipes we have been trying. This is one of them that we have made a few times. Once I bought the ingredients to make it once, I had enough to make it two more times with only having to buy another pizza crust. It is really good and super easy to make.
Serves 4
You can't go wrong with the best of family favorites, pizza and Mexican food, in one meal! For a vegetarian version, simply substitute sauteed zucchini or bell peppers and onions for the chicken. If you only have two mouths to feed, serve half of the pizza for dinner and pack the leftovers for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
1 frozen whole wheat pizza crust, thawed
1/2 cup tomatillo salsa, plus more for serving
1/4 pound part-skim mozzarella, shredded, divided
1 cup no-salt-added black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup frozen yellow corn, thawed
1 frozen boneless, skinless grilled chicken breast (such as Nature's Rancher brand), thawed and chopped
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Method
Preheat oven to 425°F. Arrange crust on a pizza stone or large baking sheet. Spread salsa over crust and sprinkle with half of the cheese. Top with beans, corn, chicken and remaining cheese and bake until crust is crisp and cheese is bubbly, about 25 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro, cut into 8 pieces and serve with more salsa on the side.
Nutrition
Per serving (about 8oz/250g-wt.): 410 calories (90 from fat), 10g total fat, 3g saturated fat, 30mg cholesterol, 730mg sodium, 56g total carbohydrate (9g dietary fiber, 6g sugar), 22g protein
Serves 4
You can't go wrong with the best of family favorites, pizza and Mexican food, in one meal! For a vegetarian version, simply substitute sauteed zucchini or bell peppers and onions for the chicken. If you only have two mouths to feed, serve half of the pizza for dinner and pack the leftovers for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
1 frozen whole wheat pizza crust, thawed
1/2 cup tomatillo salsa, plus more for serving
1/4 pound part-skim mozzarella, shredded, divided
1 cup no-salt-added black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup frozen yellow corn, thawed
1 frozen boneless, skinless grilled chicken breast (such as Nature's Rancher brand), thawed and chopped
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Method
Preheat oven to 425°F. Arrange crust on a pizza stone or large baking sheet. Spread salsa over crust and sprinkle with half of the cheese. Top with beans, corn, chicken and remaining cheese and bake until crust is crisp and cheese is bubbly, about 25 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro, cut into 8 pieces and serve with more salsa on the side.
Nutrition
Per serving (about 8oz/250g-wt.): 410 calories (90 from fat), 10g total fat, 3g saturated fat, 30mg cholesterol, 730mg sodium, 56g total carbohydrate (9g dietary fiber, 6g sugar), 22g protein
Friday, May 7, 2010
Lettuce recall!
Another good reason to support your local farmers market or grow your own veggies. Here is a lettuce recall because of E. coli I found in the news today. It was also sold in MO. Very scary stuff!
WASHINGTON (AP) - A food company is recalling lettuce sold in 23 states and the District of Columbia because of an E. coli outbreak that has sickened at least 19 people, three of them with life-threatening symptoms.
The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday that 12 people had been hospitalized and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it was looking at 10 other cases probably linked to the outbreak.
Freshway Foods of Sidney, Ohio, said it was recalling romaine lettuce sold under the Freshway and Imperial Sysco brands because of a possible link to the E. coli outbreak.
College students at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Ohio State in Columbus and Daemen College in Amherst, N.Y., are among those affected, according to local health departments in those states.
The FDA is focusing its investigation on lettuce grown in Arizona as a possible source for the outbreak, according to two people who have been briefed by the agency. Donna Rosenbaum, director of the food safety advocacy group Safe Tables Our Priority and one of those briefed, said the agency held a phone call with public health advocates Thursday.
Rosenbaum and other public health advocates have long been pushing for stronger food safety laws. The House passed a bill last year that would give the agency much more authority to police food production, but the Senate has not acted on it.
The New York state Public Health Laboratory in Albany discovered the contamination in a bag of Freshway Foods shredded romaine lettuce on Wednesday after local authorities had been investigating the outbreak for several weeks. The bag of lettuce came from a processing facility that was also linked to the illnesses, the FDA said. The agency would not disclose the name of that facility or its location but said an investigation was under way.
E. coli infection can cause mild diarrhea or more severe complications, including kidney damage. The three patients with life-threatening symptoms were diagnosed with hemolytic uremic syndrome, which can cause bleeding in the brain or kidneys.
were sickened. Freshway Foods said the lettuce was sold to wholesalers, food service outlets, in-store salad bars and delis.
Susan Cerniglia, spokeswoman for the public health department in Washtenaw County, where the University of Michigan is located, said it doesn't appear that students who were sickened ate the contaminated food on campus. It is believed they may have been sickened at local restaurants, she said.
The Erie County, N.Y., health department issued an alert late last month, however, that linked at least one diagnosis of E. coli to a student who ate at a Daemen College dining facility.
The most common strain of E. coli found in U.S. patients is E. coli O157. The CDC said the strain linked to the lettuce, E. coli 0145, is more difficult to identify and may go unreported.
Freshway Foods said in a statement Thursday that the FDA informed the company about the positive test in New York on Wednesday afternoon. The statement said "an extensive FDA investigation" of Freshway Foods' facility in Sidney has not uncovered any contamination at the plant.
The recalled lettuce has a "best if used by" date of May 12 or earlier. The recall also affects "grab and go" salads sold at Kroger, Giant Eagle, Ingles Markets and Marsh grocery stores.
The lettuce was sold in Alabama, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
WASHINGTON (AP) - A food company is recalling lettuce sold in 23 states and the District of Columbia because of an E. coli outbreak that has sickened at least 19 people, three of them with life-threatening symptoms.
The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday that 12 people had been hospitalized and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it was looking at 10 other cases probably linked to the outbreak.
Freshway Foods of Sidney, Ohio, said it was recalling romaine lettuce sold under the Freshway and Imperial Sysco brands because of a possible link to the E. coli outbreak.
College students at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Ohio State in Columbus and Daemen College in Amherst, N.Y., are among those affected, according to local health departments in those states.
The FDA is focusing its investigation on lettuce grown in Arizona as a possible source for the outbreak, according to two people who have been briefed by the agency. Donna Rosenbaum, director of the food safety advocacy group Safe Tables Our Priority and one of those briefed, said the agency held a phone call with public health advocates Thursday.
Rosenbaum and other public health advocates have long been pushing for stronger food safety laws. The House passed a bill last year that would give the agency much more authority to police food production, but the Senate has not acted on it.
The New York state Public Health Laboratory in Albany discovered the contamination in a bag of Freshway Foods shredded romaine lettuce on Wednesday after local authorities had been investigating the outbreak for several weeks. The bag of lettuce came from a processing facility that was also linked to the illnesses, the FDA said. The agency would not disclose the name of that facility or its location but said an investigation was under way.
E. coli infection can cause mild diarrhea or more severe complications, including kidney damage. The three patients with life-threatening symptoms were diagnosed with hemolytic uremic syndrome, which can cause bleeding in the brain or kidneys.
were sickened. Freshway Foods said the lettuce was sold to wholesalers, food service outlets, in-store salad bars and delis.
Susan Cerniglia, spokeswoman for the public health department in Washtenaw County, where the University of Michigan is located, said it doesn't appear that students who were sickened ate the contaminated food on campus. It is believed they may have been sickened at local restaurants, she said.
The Erie County, N.Y., health department issued an alert late last month, however, that linked at least one diagnosis of E. coli to a student who ate at a Daemen College dining facility.
The most common strain of E. coli found in U.S. patients is E. coli O157. The CDC said the strain linked to the lettuce, E. coli 0145, is more difficult to identify and may go unreported.
Freshway Foods said in a statement Thursday that the FDA informed the company about the positive test in New York on Wednesday afternoon. The statement said "an extensive FDA investigation" of Freshway Foods' facility in Sidney has not uncovered any contamination at the plant.
The recalled lettuce has a "best if used by" date of May 12 or earlier. The recall also affects "grab and go" salads sold at Kroger, Giant Eagle, Ingles Markets and Marsh grocery stores.
The lettuce was sold in Alabama, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Keeping away buffalo knats!
I know buffalo knats have been a problem in a lot of areas lately. We have experienced them in the past camping. My father-in-law put to use the idea of using vanilla exteract. He is a carpenter and was working outside with another buddy last week. He had also heard that vanilla extract would keep them away. He decided to try it. His buddy declined and said he didn't want to smell like cookies. Well my father in law left without getting bit once. His buddy however walked away with several welts after getting bit. So there you go......vanilla extract does work!
Our Composter!
Not long after starting our garden, I saw some articles about how good compost is for you garden. So I began looking more into it. I was completely amazed with how many things you can recycle into a compost pile. I looked into different ways to make your own compost and I liked the containers because I was afraid my neighbors would have an issue with us if we had an open compost pile in our backyard. Well my wonderful in-laws told us they had a compost tumbler at their house that they don't use and we were welcome to borrow it! This was great news to me as the cheapest one I have found so far was around $75. So we immediately went to work on making our compost. I read that it can take anywhere from 6 months to a year to get some good compost to use so this will be perfect for our garden next year.
Of course I got the kids involved with our new recycling program and they love it! I told them all the things we can put into it and they love helping us out with recyling. So here is a picture of them with a few of the things we can put into the compost: Joey holding up some grass representing our yard clippings. Andrew holding up a bag with shredded paper and a shredded paper bag. Adriana holding a container I use to collect all our extra fruit and veggie clippings I have after cooking.
And here is a picture of our compost tumbler. I know not too exciting but I am really excited to see what great compost I can make out of it!
I will keep you updated on how it is coming along!
(Oh and if you are wondering what the red spots are on my kids faces, Adriana got a stamp at school that day from the carnival and they thought it was great fun to stamp their faces.....ugh!)
Of course I got the kids involved with our new recycling program and they love it! I told them all the things we can put into it and they love helping us out with recyling. So here is a picture of them with a few of the things we can put into the compost: Joey holding up some grass representing our yard clippings. Andrew holding up a bag with shredded paper and a shredded paper bag. Adriana holding a container I use to collect all our extra fruit and veggie clippings I have after cooking.
And here is a picture of our compost tumbler. I know not too exciting but I am really excited to see what great compost I can make out of it!
I will keep you updated on how it is coming along!
(Oh and if you are wondering what the red spots are on my kids faces, Adriana got a stamp at school that day from the carnival and they thought it was great fun to stamp their faces.....ugh!)
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Garden update!
Our garden is finally starting to take off. I'm hoping we will have some fresh veggies soon!
Chris got the fence put up around the garden to keep the dogs out and I have been trying the hot sauce mix to keep all the animals away without needing to use any harmful chemicals. We shall see how it goes.
Here is an updated picture of the garden.
A few pictures of some of the veggies starting to pop up!
Chris got the fence put up around the garden to keep the dogs out and I have been trying the hot sauce mix to keep all the animals away without needing to use any harmful chemicals. We shall see how it goes.
Here is an updated picture of the garden.
A few pictures of some of the veggies starting to pop up!
Monday, May 3, 2010
Listerine works!
We had our first campout this weekend and gave the listerine spray a try to keep the mosquitos away. It seemed to really work! We came home without one single mosquito bite! This is a record for us especially without using any of the chemical sprays. Although, we still had several nats and other irritating bugs around us, at least they weren't biting us. We will give it a try again in a couple of months when the mosquitos get worse and see how it is. I will keep you updated!
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