Best Scrambled Eggs Ever

So, since I can't have much dairy now, I had to figure out a way to make healthy but yummy eggs for breakfast.  It's not that I hate eggs...I just really don't like them!  I can add onions, peppers, etc and make them swallowable, but I can't eat that every day.
So, I decided to play in my kitchen one morning and created what we all think is THE BEST tasting scrambled eggs ever!
You don't taste the coconut AT ALL, but it gives them this light fluffy texture and a deep, rich flavor!  SO GOOD!!!!

Ingredients:
8 eggs
1/4 cup coconut milk - we made our own....no more cans for us!  :(
2 Tbsp coconut oil

Directions:
1.  Break eggs into large bowl and add coconut milk.  Whisk together.
2.  In large skillet, heat coconut oil over medium high heat.  Add eggs and cook until finished, about 5 minutes, stirring constantly.

So THAT'S What's Been Wrong with Me?

So, I started this Whole30 diet which isn't meant for losing weight, it's meant for figuring out what's making your body sick or inflamed.
I have been struggling with a long list of symptoms really since I turned 18, and could NEVER figure out what was causing it.  My doctors had told me "Oh, you just have high levels of estrogen" and blew it off like it was no big deal...but I had TONS of pain and it was almost ALL the time.  Last fall, I ended up with a 2 inch ovarian cyst, and started changing our diet, getting rid of all added hormones in our food.  So, all of our milk (raw) and beef/chicken was bought straight at the farm, from cows that were pastured on grass.  No more canned food.  Only organic fruits, veggies, and grains.  I tried everything and nothing was helping.
I finally decided to find a specialist in the area to go see, and of course it was going to be VERY expensive and the insurance company won't pay for it.  So, I looked into it some more and found the doctor's blog.  She highly recommends Whole30 as the first phase of treatment, as many times, it is actually the food that you are eating that is causing illness and chronic pain.
I started the diet, which consists of nothing but high quality pastured meats and seafood of any kind, any kind of fruits and vegetables (except for potatoes for some people), and nuts and certain seeds and oils.  No dairy, no grains of any kind, and no legumes, and no sugar.  These things are known to cause systemic inflamation and hormone imbalance.  So I figured it was worth a shot.
By day FOUR, all of my symptoms were GONE!  Every last one!  I woke up pain-free for the first time since I don't remember when.  And they stayed gone! 
On day 9, I went out to eat with some friends and I ordered a steak, spinach, mashed potatoes, and it had a tomato-wine sauce on top.  I was full of symptoms from about an hour after I ate, all through the next day.  Then I was better.
Two days later, I ate at my moms.  We had crabs and chicken and broccoli salad.  I was totally fine.  Then, I decided to go ahead and eat a piece of pineapple cake...I can't resist it...and by the time I took my last bite of cake, my stomach was in knots and I felt terrible.  EVERY symptom was back that night and part of the next morning.  Has now been 3 more days and I have felt perfect!  No grains means no symptoms!  I have even started eating a bit of dairy...a little cheese on a bunless burger, or a small slice of ice cream cake to celebrate a dear friend's birthday.  My stomach gets a little upset when I eat dairy, but not too big of a deal...not a dealbreaker at this point...but even a tiny bit of wheat causes everything to flare up!  :(
I didn't stick with the diet perfectly for the 30 days because we're going to the beach after 3 weeks.  I plan on doing a perfect whole30 when we get back.  But honestly, if you are like me and have lots of unexplained symptoms, even doing it for a week or two may be immensely helpful!  I was shocked!  I even finally started to lose a bit more weight!  I leveled out back in the spring, even though I was counting every calorie and doing about 70 miles on the elliptical every week...just couldn't lose another pound.  And now I'm down about 5 more!  So that's an extra added bonus!  I don't even care about my weight...I just want to feel good!  And I'm amazed to say that it was actually WHEAT that was causing me pain for the last 15 years!  I will NEVER go back!

Bacon Blue Cheese Burger

We went to this little pub in Gettysburg called Appalachian Brew Pub the other night and I had the most fabulous burger I've ever tasted!  And of course, I couldn't resist making our own homemade version!  The results were SPECTACULAR!  The kids wanted 5 more burgers!  LOL!

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 large vidalia onion, halved and sliced
4 oz precooked bacon
1/4 cup brown sugar
1.25 pounds ground beef
salt to taste
lettuce for wraps (or hamburger rolls if desired)
1 container blue cheese crumbles
1 large gala apple, cored and sliced in rings
2 large jalapeno peppers, diced

Directions:
1.  Form patties out of ground beef and cook to taste on the grill.  Sprinkle salt on burgers as they cook, if desired.
2.  While burgers are cooking, in a large skillet, saute onion, and brown sugar in olive oil.  After about 5 minutes when the onions are starting to get soft, add bacon and continue to cook until onions are completely soft.
3.  When onions are soft and burgers are cooked to your liking, assemble burgers.  Place blue cheese on bottom half of roll.  Top with burger, then onions/bacon, then apple slice or two, and then top roll.  Top with jalapeno peppers, if desired.

Homemade Goldfish Crackers

OK, so I've decided to attempt this one today!  :)  My kids LOVE goldfish crackers, but I won't buy them anymore because of all the extra stuff that are in them.  So, since I stumbled upon this recipe last night, we're going to try them today!

Ingredients

• 8 ounces, weight Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Shredded
• 4 Tablespoons Butter, Cut Into Cubes
• 1 cup Flour
• ¾ teaspoons Salt
• 2 Tablespoons Cold Water

Preparation Instructions

Pulse everything (except water) together in the food processor until the dough resembles coarse sand.
Pulse in water, 1 tablespoon at a time.
Remove dough from the processor, wrap in plastic, and chill for 20 minutes.
Roll out the dough and cut into desired shapes. You can use a toothpick to make the eyes and smile if desired. Place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
Bake at 350 degrees F for about 15 minutes, or until crispy.
Makes approximately 7 dozen crackers.

Tomato Basil Bread - like Panera Bread

• No more store bought bread...that is one of the new things I decided to start doing for my family.  I don't want to be ingesting 30+ ingredients every time I put a piece of bread in my mouth, no matter how tasty it is!  There just is no good reason for it!
• And homemade, nutritious bread is cool and all, but I do not want to just eat boring whole wheat bread all the time either.
• So today I decided to try to make Panera Bread's Tomato Basil bread.  You know the one...it has the crunchy brown sugar topping that is just SO amazingly paired with the tomato and basil flavors!  (I know, sounds totally gross, but it's super good!).  I couldn't find their actual recipe online, or an exact "copycat" recipe, but I did find a recipe for Tomato Basil Bread here that I used.
• I added the topping, omitted crushed red pepper flakes, and swapped canned san marzano diced tomatoes for the tomato paste.  Result?!  Probably the best bread I've ever made...and I have made bread many times! :)  This is definitely going to be a new staple in our family! 
• I used unbleached bread flour this time, but next time I will do half all purpose and half white whole wheat to see if we like it with the whole grain.  I figure even if I don't switch to all whole grain flour, every little bit helps...and of course, the fact that I only used 11 ingredients for this gourmet, several flavor bread is a huge plus in my book, even if it was regular old flour!
• Two notes - I didn't put brown sugar on the whole thing...just wanted to try it without too, since I hadn't made this before...AND, I served this with a vegan chili recipe that I came up with and it was such an awesome pairing - the sweetness of the brown sugar and the smokey chipotle flavor in the chili.  DEFINITELY a great combination!
• Ingredients:
• 1 (1/4 ounce) package active dry yeast
  3/4 cup warm water (110 to 115 degrees)1/4 cup fresh basil , minced (can substitute with 2 tablespoons dried)
  1/4 cup parmesan cheese , grated4 heaping Tbsp canned diced san marzano tomatoes1 tablespoon sugar1 tablespoon olive oil1 teaspoon salt2 1/2-2 3/4 cups bread flour
• Ingredients for Brown Sugar Struesel Topping
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
  1/4 cup flour (I probably used a little less than that)
  3 Tbsp cold butter
• 
  

Directions:

1. 1
   In a large mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Stir in basil, Parmesan cheese, tomato paste, sugar, oil, salt, pepper flakes and 2 cups flour. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a stiff dough.
2. 2
   Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 3-5 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
3. 3
   Punch dough down; knead for 1 minute. Shape into a round loaf. Place on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
   Make Brown Sugar Struesel - In medium bowl, mix together brown sugar and flour.  Add butter and cut with pastry blender until it's the size of small peas.
4. 4
   Top dough with brown sugar mixture and bake at 375° for about 30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan to a wire rack to cooling rack.

Steel Cut Oatmeal Bread

Here's another whole grain bread recipe!

We have made a LOT of very significant changes in our diet, one of them being no store-bought bread.  And trying to add lots of whole grains into our diet.  So, I stumbled upon this recipe and tried it out, and it was a big success!  It made great peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and great toast with a little apple butter!  We will be making this a few times a month for sure!  It's so good!  Very filling too!

(this makes 2 loaves of bread)

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups boiling water
• 1 3/4 cups steel-cut oats
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
• Dash of granulated sugar
• 2 packages dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons each)
• 1/2 cup warm water (100° to 110°)
• 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 3 cups whole wheat flour
  

  Preparation

  1.  Combine the first 5 ingredients in the bowl of a stand-up mixer, and let stand 25 minutes.
  
  2.  Dissolve granulated sugar and yeast in warm water; let stand 5 minutes or until foamy. Add to oat mixture. Lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Gradually add 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour and 3 cups whole wheat flour to oat mixture. Beat at medium speed until well blended. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 8 minutes); add enough of the remaining all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will feel sticky).
  
  3.  Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 1 hour or until doubled in size. (Gently press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, dough has risen enough.) Punch dough down; cover and let rest 5 minutes. Divide in half. Working with one portion at a time (cover remaining dough to prevent drying), roll each portion into a 14 x 8-inch rectangle on a floured surface. Roll up each rectangle tightly, starting with a short edge, pressing firmly to eliminate air pockets; pinch seam and ends to seal. Place each loaf, seam sides down, in a 9-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Cover and let rise 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
  
  4.  Preheat oven to 350º.
  
  5.  Uncover dough, and brush egg evenly over loaves. Bake at 350º for 45 minutes or until loaves are browned on bottom and sound hollow when tapped. Remove from pan, and cool on wire racks.

Crockpot Blueberry Peach Oatmeal

Ingredients:

1 cup steel ground oats
1 cup Arborio Rice
4-5 cups water
seeds from 1 vanilla bean
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
About 1 1/2 cups frozen blueberries
About 1 cup frozen peaches, chopped


Directions:
1.  Pour blueberries and peaches into bottom of crockpot.
2.  Add remaining ingredients and stir together.
3.  Cook on low for 8-10 hours, overnight.
4.  When serving, if you want a little creaminess, add a drizzle of raw milk.

Roastes Brussels Sprouts

It still cracks me up after about 6 years...that both of our daughters LOVE brussels sprouts!  They have been one of their all time favorite vegetables since they were old enough to eat them!  And I've only ever bought the frozen ones that are in a steam bag that you toss in the microwave, and top them with a tiny bit of butter, salt, and pepper...So easy!
But today I decided to try something new with them, and we all loved them!

Ingredients:
Brussels Sprouts
Olive Oil
Kosher Salt
Fresh ground black pepper

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2.  Cut stems off of brussels sprouts.  Toss the sprouts in an oven-safe dish with some olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Roast in oven for about 20 minutes or until they just start getting brown.

40 Minute Hamburger Rolls

Another very quick, simple recipe that we can make in our kitchens from scratch with very little effort! 

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons active dry yeast
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons warm water (110° to 115°)
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 white whole wheat flour

 Directions:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add oil and sugar; let stand for 5 minutes. Add the egg, salt and enough flour to form a soft dough.
• Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 3-5 minutes. Do not let rise. Divide into 12 pieces; shape each into a ball. Place 3 in. apart on greased baking sheets.
• Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Bake at 425° for 8-12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. Yield: 1 dozen.

Cherry Vanilla Applesauce

This couldn't be easier!  And no corn syrup, crushed up bugs (google "cochineal"), and definitely no beaver anal glands (goodle "castoreum"), or any other "natural ingredients"!  Just full of goodness, vitamins, and yumminess! 

Ingredients:
6-8 apples, cored and sliced (skins on)
2 handfuls fresh sweet cherries, pitted
about 3 cups water
juice from one lemon
1-2 Tbsp agave nectar, optional
1 tsp pure vanilla extract


Directions
1.  Put apples, cherries, water, lemon juice, and agave nectar in large pot.  Bring to a boil, and then lower heat and simmer for about 25 minutes until very soft.
2.  Add vanilla.  Remove from heat and allow to cool to mostly room temperature (or else you may break your blender if too hot!).
3.  Blend in a blender until it's the consistency you like!

Apparently this should store for at least a few weeks in the fridge, but I'm sure it won't last that long in our house!  :)

No Knead Artisan Bread

If you want to wow your family with almost no effort, make this bread!  It's so good, especially warm from the oven, and yet it takes literally 5 minutes of your time...with no kneading or large mixer...just a bowl and a spoon!!!  And since it's this easy, who can say they don't have time to make bread for their family?!  So simple!  And NO chemicals, preservatives, dyes, or anything that I can't pronounce or don't know what it is!  :)

You do need to plan a little ahead though, as it needs to rise for 12-24 hours...although I'm pretty sure you could let it rise for just 2 hours and it would work...but if you let it rise longer it gets a lovely slightly sourdough flavor to it!  If you do a shorter rise, I would probably use quick-rise yeast.

The directions call for a cast iron dutch oven, which I do not have...so I used a different technique...see both below.

Also (sorry for all the notes!), you can add different things to this dough to add flavors!  I haven't tried them yet, but I saw online that you can add herbs, cheese, berries, lemon/orange zest, jalapenos, etc.  I think I will try jalapenos and cheddar soon!  Not sure about leaving it out for 24 hours with cheese in it though, even though people say you can with no problems.  Will probably try that with a quick rise (and quick rise yeast of course!)...

No Knead Artisan Bread

3 cups flour (I use half all-purpose, half white whole wheat)
1 3/4 tsp salt
1 teaspoon yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water

Directions:
1.  In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flours, salt, and yeast.  Add water and mix until it fully comes together.  Add a tiny bit of extra water if needed to get all the ingredients damp.  Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 12-24 hours.

2.  If using a dutch oven, please see #2 below.  Otherwise, heat a stone dish in the oven to 450 degrees (I used a pie dish, but could really use any shape of stone).  Below the stone dish, place an aluminum baking pan of any size.  

3.  Meanwhile, as it's preheating, pour dough onto a heavily floured surface, a pizza peel is ideal (you can use flour or cornmeal) and shape into a ball.  Cover with plastic wrap and let set while the pot is heating. 


4.  When the stone is preheated, push the dough onto the hot stone and return to the oven.  Place about 2 cups of hot water into the aluminum pan and shut oven door immediately.  Cook for about 30 minutes until golden brown.


Dutch Oven Directions:
2.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  When it has reached temperature, place a cast iron pot with a lid in the oven and heat the pot for 30 minutes.  Meanwhile, pour dough onto a heavily floured surface (use flour or cornmeal) and shape into a ball.  Cover with plastic wrap and let set while the pot is heating. 

3.  Remove hot pot from the oven and drop in the dough.  Cover and return to oven for 20 minutes.  After 20 minutes, remove the lid and bake an additional 5-10 minutes.  Remove bread from oven and place on a cooling rack to cool.

White Chocolate Martini

This is my all-time favorite adult beverage!  :)  Just wish it was totally calorie free!  But, I must say it's worth every single calorie!

Ingredients:
2 shots white chocolate liqueur
1 shot vanilla vodka (could use cake, whipped, really anything that's got a vanilla-y flavor!)
chocolate syrup

Directions:
1.  In shaker glass, combine white chocolate liqueur and vanilla vodka, and some ice.  Shake for several seconds to combine and chill.
2.  Pour a little chocolate syrup onto a round plate.  Dip rim in chocolate, and then swirl a little extra around the inside of the glass.  Pour the drink inside!

Crock Pot Apple Cherry Crisp

This was pretty tasty!

Ingredients:
3-4 apples, cored and chopped
1/2 lb fresh sweet cherries, pitted
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup quick -cooking oats
1/3 cup butter, melted
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Directions:
1.  Place apples and cherries in bottom of small crock pot.  In bowl, mix together remaining ingredients.  Pour over fruit.
2.  Cook on low for 2-3 hours.

Steel Cut Oatmeal Bread

Here's another whole grain bread recipe!

We have made a LOT of very significant changes in our diet, one of them being no store-bought bread.  And trying to add lots of whole grains into our diet.  So, I stumbled upon this recipe and tried it out, and it was a big success!  It made great peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and great toast with a little apple butter!  We will be making this a few times a month for sure!  It's so good!  Very filling too!

(this makes 2 loaves of bread)

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups boiling water
• 1 3/4 cups steel-cut oats
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
• Dash of granulated sugar
• 2 packages dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons each)
• 1/2 cup warm water (100° to 110°)
• 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 3 cups whole wheat flour
  

  Preparation

  1.  Combine the first 5 ingredients in the bowl of a stand-up mixer, and let stand 25 minutes.
  
  2.  Dissolve granulated sugar and yeast in warm water; let stand 5 minutes or until foamy. Add to oat mixture. Lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Gradually add 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour and 3 cups whole wheat flour to oat mixture. Beat at medium speed until well blended. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 8 minutes); add enough of the remaining all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will feel sticky).
  
  3.  Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 1 hour or until doubled in size. (Gently press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, dough has risen enough.) Punch dough down; cover and let rest 5 minutes. Divide in half. Working with one portion at a time (cover remaining dough to prevent drying), roll each portion into a 14 x 8-inch rectangle on a floured surface. Roll up each rectangle tightly, starting with a short edge, pressing firmly to eliminate air pockets; pinch seam and ends to seal. Place each loaf, seam sides down, in a 9-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Cover and let rise 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
  
  4.  Preheat oven to 350º.
  
  5.  Uncover dough, and brush egg evenly over loaves. Bake at 350º for 45 minutes or until loaves are browned on bottom and sound hollow when tapped. Remove from pan, and cool on wire racks.

Whole Grain Waffles

I just can't believe how AWESOME these turned out!  Who would ever even believe that they are good for you?!  The kids devoured them!  And they have whole wheat flour, flaxseed and chia seeds :)
Gonna put these in the freezer so we have a quick healthy breakfast to pull out of the oven on school days...can't wait to top them with some fresh strawberries!

Whole Grain Waffles

Ingredients:
4 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour or whole wheat flour
3/4 cup wheat germ (I didn't have this, so I used wheat gluten?)
6 Tbsp ground flaxseed meal
3 Tbsp chia seeds
6 teaspoons baking powder
3 Tbsp raw sugar, white sugar, or agave (I used raw sugar)
1 1/2 tsp salt
3 cups milk (we use raw milk)
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup canola oil
3 large eggs
3 tsp vanilla

Directions:
1.  Whisk together flour, wheat germ, flaxseed meal, chia seeds, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
2.  In separate bowl, whisk together milk, water, oil, eggs, and vanilla.  Add to the flour mixture and whisk together until smooth.
3.  Plug in (and pre-heat) electric waffle iron.  When hot, spray non-stick spray into an iron.  Laddle into waffle iron and cook according to your iron's instructions until golden brown.

(made about 20 square waffles for me, but each waffle iron will hold a different amount of batter...)

Soft Pretzel Rolls

Oh. My. Goodness!  These were SO good!  And so easy and pretty fast too!
Will definitely make these a lot more!  And with only a handful of ingredients they are so much better for you than any store-bought bread!  I'm gonna try them with whole wheat flour and see how they do...but GREAT!

I served these alongside cream of spinach and tomato soup and it was perfect!  But I can't wait to try these as a sandwich bread!  I was at a local Amish market this week and had a hot, soft pretzel ham and cheese sandwich and it was one of the yummiest things I think I've ever had!  So I will definitely be trying that soon!

Note - We cooked these at 425 as the recipe called for but by about 15 minutes in, they were already very dark brown.  And our oven is usually on the cool side...so next time I would probably lower the temp to 400 and start watching at 10 minutes.  But even with them being dark brown on top, they were wonderful, soft, and fluffy!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/3 c warm water
• 2 tbsp warm milk
• 2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
• 1/3 c light brown sugar
• 2 tbsp melted butter
• 4 c flour
• Pretzel salt, kosher salt, or sea salt. (I used sea salt.)
• 2 quarts cold water
• 1/2 c baking soda

Directions:
You will want to use a bread machine or stand mixer with a dough hook for this recipe.
Heat 1/3 c. water to 110°, add yeast and let stand until foamy.
Add remaining 1 c. warm water, milk, sugar and melted butter. Mix slightly to dissolve the sugar. Add flour and mix on medium-low speed.
Remove dough from mixer, or bread machine, once it forms a nice firm dough ball as shown above.
Knead dough for two minutes, roll into a 12″ log and cut into 12 equal balls.
Cover dough and let sit for 10 minutes.
Pat dough into rolls and set on a lightly floured surface (don’t skip the flouring part even if you have a nonstick pan), cover and let sit for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 425°.
In a saucepan bring 2 quarts of water to a rolling boil and add baking soda.
Drop two rolls into boiling water, turning once, for 30 seconds. Remove from water and let drain.
Set rolls an inch apart. To get that x mark, use a sharp knife and barely break the surface of the roll in an x shape.
Sprinkle with salt.
Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Creamy Avocado Dressing

I love avocado so much!  Especially on a nice big fresh salad!  But once I add that plus my favorite salad dressing (Pizza Hut's Romano Cheese dressing), that really adds a Lot of calories...about 300 to be exact.
So, I kept thinking would it be great if I could use an avocado to create a creamy dressing?!  So that I can get both the avocado flavor and the creamy dressing without all the calories?!  And so I finally tried one today from my favorite cooking blog and it was awesome!  It had a little heat, and a little southwestern kick, so I loaded up my plate with lots of salad mix and spinach, thawed frozen corn, salsa, and a few southwestern flavored Artisan Tortilla Chips, topped it with about 3 spoonfuls of the avocado dressing and that's it!  And it was AMAZING! 

I don't ever buy buttermilk anymore...I just take my measuring cup and add about 1 Tbsp lemon juice and then fill to whatever line I need with my 1% milk and just let it sit for about 5 minutes.  No need to stir or anything.

And I did add the spinach at the end.  It wasn't in the original recipe and I just figured it was a good way to sneak a little extra greens in!  :)  You'd never even notice it...so I'm sure you wouldn't notice if it wasn't in there. 

And I only added about 1/8 cup of olive oil mayo to this instead of the 1/4 cup...and it was divine!  Might try substituting low fat sour cream too, to see how that tastes and of course to lower the calories even more!  But, according to My Fitness Pal (the app I use for counting calories) as I wrote it below, there is only about 65 calories per 3 Tbsp...and that sounds great to me!!!!  :)

Servings: makes 2 cups

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 medium avocado
• 1 small jalapeno*
• 1/4 cup cilantro
• 1 lime, juice
• 1 green onion
• 1 clove garlic
• 3/4 cup buttermilk**
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise (completely optional)
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and ground
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup fresh spinach

Directions

1. Puree everything in a blender until smooth. Store in fridge and finish within a few days.

* Leave the seeds in for more heat or remove them for less.
** Use more buttermilk to make it thinner or less to make it thicker.

Red Lentil, Kale, and Bean Chili

I wanted to make a vegetarian meal tonight because we started fasting from meat on Wednesdays and Fridays like they do in Ethiopia, in preparation of bringing our son home...and so this is what I came up with and it was awesome!

Ingredients:
1 onion
1/2 tsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
1 large can petite diced tomatoes
2 soft chicken boullion cubes
2 - 15 oz cans white cannelli beans
1 - 15 oz can dark red kidney beans
2/3 cup dried red lentils
2 tsp Berbere (Ethiopian spice mixture)
4-6 cups chopped kale
light sour cream and cheddar cheese, if desired

Directions:
1.  In large pot, heat onion and olive oil over medium high heat until onion is soft.  Add garlic and stir for about a minute.
 2.  Add tomatoes, chicken bullion cubes, and 2 cans full of water (use the can from the tomatoes).  Stir.
3.  Add white beans, kidney beans, lentils and berbere and stir together.  Bring to a boil.  Watch the amount of water, and add as needed (the lentils will absorb a good bit of the water).  Keep the soup as brothy as you like it, as it cooks.  Boil for about 20 minutes.
4.   Add kale and stir.  Cook until kale is wilted.
5.  Serve with about a tsp of sour cream and just a little sprinkle of cheddar cheese if desired.

This was awesome with a piece of cornbread!

Lentil Wat (Ethiopian lentil stew)

I really wasn't sure what to expect with this dish either.  When we went to the two Ethiopian restaurants we've gone to so far, they both had some vegetarian lentils and yellow split pea stews that I wasn't a huge fan of.  They weren't disgusting or anything, I just didn't want to waste my belly-space on them when I could have such amazing chicken and beef stews!  :)
But this turned out really good!  I'm not ready to make a meal out of it, but I enjoyed it a LOT as a side!



Ingredients:
1 onion, chopped
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp Berbere
1 cup red lentils
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 tsp salt
1 tsp Mekelesha powder (I didn't have this so I looked up what was in Mekelesha and ended up
        sprinkling in a little cinnamon, cardemom, pepper, cloves, and nutmeg.  Not sure how accurate
        that is, but again, it was really good!)
water

Directions:
1.  In medium size sauce pan over medium-high heat, cook onion in oil until onions are soft.
2.  Add Berbere spice and 1/4 - 1/2 cup water.  Bring to a boil, adding water about 1/4 cup at a time to keep the mixture soupy.
3.  Once up to a boil, add 2 cups water and red lentils.  Bring to a boil with the lid on, stirring occasionally.
4.  Add about 1 cup water when the lentils start cooking and getting puffy, if needed.
5.  Add salt, garlic, and spices.  Turn heat to very low and simmer until lentils are soft (about 15 minutes maybe), adding small amounts of water as needed to keep them from drying out.  Remove from heat when lentils are cooked and dissolving.

Serve with Injera!

Shurro Wat (Ethiopian Bean Stew)

I have a confession to make.  When we met with our social worker a while back at an Ethiopian restaurant I bought this little container called Shirro, and thought it was going to end up in the garbage.  The owner is from Ethiopia and he was explaining how to use it and it sounded utterly disgusting when he told me how to use it.  All shirro is, is a powder made from dried and ground up beans.   But you then mix it with onions, oil, and water and turn it into stew.  It just sounds terrible.  But I decided that we need to get used to Ethiopian food (and all kinds of Ethiopian food!) because I won't know what Josiah's favorite comfort foods are until we meet him, and I better know how to fix his favorites when he comes home!
So, we tried it tonight, and I actually made a mistake and added spices that were supposed to go in the lentil stew...but not only did it work, it was really tasty!  I'm actually looking forward to making this on Sunday afternoons now!  And it's so simple!  It's probably supposed to be thicker than mine, but I wasn't sure...it was still yummy!

Little fact for the day - Ethiopians fast from meat on Wednesdays and Fridays, so their main source of fat comes from cooking oil.  So, in typical recipes (this one included), Ethiopians would put about 1/2 CUP of oil in it...but since we get our fat from, well, EVERYWHERE here in the states, I'm omitting most of the oil!

Shurro Wat (Ethiopian Bean Stew)

Ingredients:
2 onions, chopped
2 tsp olive oil
4-5 Tbsp Shirro (bean flour)
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cardemom
1/8 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp Berbere
 water
3 tsp crushed garlic

Directions:
 1.  Heat onions and oil in sauce pan over medium heat until onions are soft.
2.  Add 3 cups water and bring to a boil with the lid on.
3.  Whisk in shirro until fully incorporated.  If needed, add another 1/2 to 1 cup of water to thin the consistency (I didn't have to do this!).  Cover and cook.
4.  Add salt and other spices and garlic; mix well.
5.  Cover and cook again.  When thick, turn off burner, remove from heat, and cover.  Let sit for about 15 minutes before eating.

Doro Wat (Ethiopian Chicken Stew)

This was awesome!  I used the original recipe that I had found and switched out all the spices for Berbere seasoning (it's like the National Spice of Ethiopia, a blend of LOTS of other spices that are toasted together).  It's very spicy but it's got a ton of flavors in it and so it really adds a LOT of flavor to the stew!
Oh, and I'm sure the wine isn't really Ethiopian, so we should probably omit that, but it is really good!

Doro Wat (Ethiopian Chicken Stew)

Ingredients:
15 oz tomato sauce
1/2 - 2 Tbsp Berbere seasoning, depending on how much heat you can stand
1/2 cup dry red wine
2 onions, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp olive oil
1/4 tsp ground tumeric
3 pounds chicken (I used a mix of boneless/skinless thighs and breasts), CUT INTO Bitesize pieces
1 tsp salt, optional

Directions:
1.  Make the sauce first by combining tomato sauce, red wine, and Berbere.  Set aside.

2.  In a large skillet, cook onion and garlic in oil until tender but not brown.  Stir in sauce, tumeric, salt (if desired), and chicken.  Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer about 40-45 minutes, stirring frequently.

Serve with Injera!

Injera - Ethiopian Flatbread

I don't really know how exactly to describe this.  It's like a spongy sourdough crepe.  I guess that's the best way to explain it.  It's the national bread/carb of Ethiopia, which is the only country that eats that as their staple food, and it's awesome!
We've been to two Ethiopian restaurants so far in our adoption process, so that we can start to get to know the food that our little Josiah is accustomed to, and if you've never had Ethiopian food before, RUN and get some!  It's simple but the flavors are so complex!  It's absolutely delightful!
Of course I can't just limit our Ethiopian food to restaurants because, well, there are none locally, but also because I'm gonna be his Mama, and I need to be able to cook his comfort foods!  So of course I've begun trying to master Ethiopian food at home!  This year, while we're waiting for our newest little guy, we're going to be having a traditional Ethiopian dinner every Sunday...and I'm so excited about that!
Tonight we had some friends over (who had no idea what was on the menu) and they LOVED it!  :)  I wasn't sure I was going to like the injera this time around, but with the rest of the meal it was FABULOUS!  So worth the time and effort!
I wouldn't change a thing about any of the meal tonight!  We had Injera, Doro Wat (chicken stew), Lentil Wat (lentil stew), and Shirro Wat (a stew made out of dried bean powder, which sounds dreadful but was really really good!).

Injera

4 cups warm water (not too hot or it will kill the yeast!)
2 cups teff flour
1 3/4 cups whole wheat or all purpose flour
2 tsp yeast

***Injera takes a few days to prepare as it needs to ferment!!!***
      You can do it overnight and it's ok, but it's best if it can sit for 3 nights

Directions:
1.  Whisk all of the ingredients into a large glass or plastic bowl (NOT METAL!) until fully combined.  This will be a thin batter, not a thick dough!

2.  Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and sit on the counter for 3 full nights (don't move the bowl around!).  You want to make sure that there is lots of space between the injera mix and the plastic wrap so that it can work it's magic!

3.  After the third night, about a half hour before you are going to cook, place the fermented mixture into a blender and add about 1/4 cup warm water and blend for a minute or so.  Let rest for about 30 minutes.

4.  When ready to cook, heat a 12" skillet over medium high heat until good and hot.  Add about 1/3 cup of the injera batter to the pan and while holding the pan, turn your wrist so that it spreads out evenly over the bottom of the pan (it will be pretty thin like a crepe, not thick like a pancake!).  Put the lid on and cook for about 2-3 minutes until the edges start to curl upwards.  Remove the injera from the heat and allow to cool.

5.  Continue with the remaining injera batter.  When they are cool to the touch, roll them up and serve alongside the veggies and meat stews!

Now, I know...typically in Ethiopia they would take a very large platter and cover it with a large 20" around size piece of injera and then place the different stews all around it and everyone would share it...but we don't have a giant skillet, and so I just serve it this way :)  But, the rule is, NO FORKS!  Ethiopians don't use silverware, they use the injera as both a carb to fill their bellies and as their silverware.  You break off bite-size pieces of injera and use it to scoop up or grab little handfuls of stew.  It's SO good! 

Healthier Cheddar Onion Cornbread

So I wanted to try cheddar jalapeno cornbread, but for one, I didn't have jalapenos!  For two, I wanted to try to make it a bit healthier.
Last night I made my typical cornbread recipe but I used all whole-wheat flour and lowered the sugar from 1/3 cup to 1/4 cup.  It was still awesome!
So, I decided this time to try to substitute out the shortening.  I used natural, unsweetened applesauce in it's place.  I lowered the sugar to about 1/5 of a cup but would have probably tried even less than that if I had decided on the applesauce BEFORE I added the sugar in!  :)
I didn't want to take any chances of tasting the apple in there, so I added a small handful of chopped green onions in too.  Then, I compared the cheese label to the shortening label and saw that even regular cheddar is still so much less fat and calories than shortening, that I didn't feel guilty adding in a big handful of cheddar (I actually used a blend of cheddar and low-fat cheddar).