Baby It's Cold Outside...Let's Eat Chili!

It's been raining cats and dogs, err, pigs here in the Bay Area. It's much needed, and I love watching it come down, but it definitely puts you in the mood for warm, hot dinners. I love eating soups; lunch time, dinner time, whenever and all kinds. My fiance? not so much. I really wanted to make a soup last night, but he said "ehhh..how about a chili?" DONE.

I've made chili a few times before from different recipes online, and they never did turn out that tasty. Either too plain, too many tomatoes or beans, not of enough this or that. I went on a hunt to look up all different types of recipes to see if I could find something that would be good. My favorite homemade chili is one my future mother-in-law makes. They always make it and bring it up to Tahoe in the winter time and it's the perfect, warm you up from the inside, tastes exactly like a chili should taste like, chili. I e-mailed her asking for her recipe, but continued on browsing other recipes. Still, nothing looked too exciting. Until... Stefan sends me a chili recipe from Guy Fieri. OMG it had 100 ingredients and probably would've taken 2 hours just to prep everything, but it did look delicious. I laughed and said "yea, right. Maybe another time during a weekend when I have more time." But then, the more and more I looked at the recipe, I realized it had some great bones to it that I could take and make my own in a much more simpler way, but should still taste good! So I started jotting down ingredients and ideas using exactly what I'd want in my chili.

A little while later, Jeri sent me her recipe. It had a lot of the ingredients I already had written down. Plus she gave me a hint I didn't know! Stefan doesn't like chunks of onion in his chili, but he likes the flavor. So she's always grated the onion that goes in; I've never done that but sounds easy enough, right? Sure, it was easy, but it definitely got my eyes to cry more than just chopping. Owww.

So anyway, this chili came together very easily and quickly, didn't take too many ingredients from the store, a lot I had on hand, and I think it's the best homemade chili I've ever had (Stefan agreed), and I can't wait to eat it for lunch today! We've also saved a lot of it to make chili nachos with Frito scoops for football on Sunday. Yum-o!

INGREDIENTS:

Olive oil spray
1 4 oz can hot diced green chilies
1 6 oz can tomato paste
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
1 14 oz can chicken broth
2 lb's ground beef, I used 93% fat
1 green bell pepper, diced small
1 red bell pepper, diced small
1 small white onion, grated or diced
4 cloves garlic, diced
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 can pinto beans, drained
2 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp granulated onion powder
1 tsp granulated garlic powder
1- 2 tsp salt and pepper

OPTIONAL TOPPINGS:

shredded cheese
sour cream
chopped onion
avocado
tortilla chips
Frito scoops
sourdough bread bowl

DIRECTIONS:

1) In a large pot or dutch oven, spray some olive oil spray to coat the bottom. Brown the ground beef on medium high, break it up as it cooks. Season with some salt and pepper. Drain the juices from the beef and set aside.

2) Spray a little more cooking spray on the same pot. Add the chopped bell peppers and onions. Saute over medium for about 5 mins, or until softened. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or so.

3) Add the drained beef back to the vegetables. Add in the beans and diced chilies. Stir to combine. Add in all the seasonings, stir again. Add in the chicken broth. Then check for seasonings. Maybe add some more salt if needed. Bring to a boil, then turn on low and simmer for 1-2 hours. The longer the simmer, the better the flavor. If the chili becomes too thick, add in a splash or two of water or more chicken broth.

4) Serve into bowls, top with whatever toppings you choose and enjoy!


Prep time: 25 mins
Cook Time: 2 hrs 20 mins
Serves: About 8

Chicken and Black Bean Enchilangas

Enchilangas? Chimiladas? I wanted to use some leftover chicken from a rotisserie chicken to make some enchiladas..but I had seen a quick video at Costco on their TV's, which is where we got the rotisserie, about making baked chimichangas. I liked the idea of having that crispy tortilla, but love enchilada sauce, so I decided to make a combination. I don't think it could've turned out any better. My future hubby said it was better than the Mexican taqueria we usually go to on Tuesday nights. That's always nice to hear!

This really did come together pretty quickly and cleanly for a week night meal. I cooked the filling while Stefan was still finishing up with work and getting ready for the gym. Then when we got back from the gym, all I had to do was stuff, roll and bake. I'm not sure I'll make enchiladas without the chimichanga part again.

Since there were beans in the enchilanga's, I didn't bother cooking a side of rice or beans. Just had some chips to dip into guacamole and salsa. By the way, I found the BEST new store bought fresh style salsa: Marcella Valladolid. I got this at Safeway; if you can find it, buy it.  The medium was pretty spicy, which we like. I also used this brand for flour tortillas. They seemed thin, like restaurant style, but puffed and crunched up nicely in the oven.  And when avocados' aren't ripe when you need them, Sabra brand or Wholly Guacamole are always good store bought guacs.

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil, plus a little more for brushing
1/2 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
8 oz shredded chicken breast
1 cup black beans
1/4 cup tomato sauce
1/4 cup chicken broth
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp chile powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/3 cup reduced fat shredded mexican blend cheese
6 taco sized tortillas
Enchilada sauce, I used Hatch brand, which I think is the best canned sauce

Optional toppings:

Guacamole
Sour cream
Salsa

Directions:

1) In a saute pan, heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add chopped onions and cook until soften, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, cook about a minute more.

2) Stir in chicken, beans, broth, and tomato sauce. Add seasonings and stir until heated through. Turn off heat and allow mixture to cool a bit. (This is when I covered the lid and we went to the gym. You could always pour mixture into a bowl and set in fridge for a few minutes) Once cool, stir in cheese.

3) Pre-heat oven to 400F. Split the mixture into 6 part onto the tortillas. Fold in the top and bottom parts, then roll in the sides. Place seam side down onto a greased cooking sheet.

4) Lightly brush on olive oil onto the tortillas.

5) Bake Enchilangas for 20-25 mins, until the tortillas have a light brown crustyness to them.

6) Pour some enchilada sauce onto a plate to lightly cover. Place the enchilangas on the plate, then top them with your choice of toppings. Serve and enjoy!

Prep time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 30 mins
Serves: 6

Stove Top Pork Tenderloin Chile Verde

I know I already did a chilie verde recipe, but that was in the slow cooker. Last week I had a craving for chilie verde while I was at work, and didn't have the 8 hours needed to put it in the crock pot. So I did things a little differently, but it still turned out just as delicious. This meal fed us while watching game 6 of the World Series, so I needed quick and easy. 

I decided to serve these 'restaurant style,' served on a plate with beans and mexican style rice.(I cooked white rice with chicken broth, and added coriander, cumin, cayenne, chile powder and paprika) On the side with tortillas, sour cream, guacamole.

Ingredients: 

1 1/2 lb pork tenderloin, fat trimmed and cubed into 1 inch chunks.

2 cups verde salsa, I used Herdez brand

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp ground coriander 

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chile powder

2 Tbsp olive oil

Directions:

1) Sprinkle the spices over the cubed pork, covering evenly.

2) Heat up the oil in a dutch oven over medium heat. Sautee the pork until all sides are browed, about 5 minutes. 

3) Add the verde salsa, enough to cover the pork, about 2 cups. Bring to a boil, then cover and turn on low to simmer for 1.5 hours.

4) Shed or keep cubed, serve and enjoy!

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 1 hour 40 mins

Serves: 4

Ground Turkey Enchilada Stuffed Zucchini

Boy oh boy was last weekend full of so much fun! And also so much eating... After a good week of clean eating, it all went downhill fast. It all started with Friday..getting off early to watch the Giants play in their first NLDS game (they won, yay!) This whole day and night was spent celebrating. Saturday was a little calmer, but more Giants (they won, yay!) Then Sunday football (Raiders didn't lose, yay! but they didn't even play...) is always full of eating and drinking and watching TV. Then we find out Sunday night that we got tickets to the Giants game on Monday, which was amazing! (Giants lost, boo) but we had such a great day in SF with a lot more of eating and drinking. While we did get to the gym 2 of these 4 days, the amount of food and alcohol we consumed totally outweighed it. But instead of giving up, we turned it around. Starting with an hour at the gym Tuesday night, watching the Giants (They won the NLDS, yay! Onto to the NLCS!), and eating a light and delicious dinner.

Another Tuesday went by where we didn't feel like going to our favorite taqueria. We needed something lighter and healthier, but still delicious and easy to make for a work night.

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp Olive oil
1/2  yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 lb ground turkey breast
4 large zucchini's
1 packet taco seasoning
1 10oz can of enchilada sauce
3/4 cup reduced fat Mexican cheese blend

Optional toppings:

Guacamole
Reduced fat sour cream
Salsa
Hot sauce

Directions:

1) Cut zucchini's in half lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds and some flesh leaving room for filling. Microwave the zucchini's for 2 mins in the microwave. Pour enough enchilada sauce to lightly cover the bottom of a 9 x 12 baking dish. Place the zucchini's in the dish.

2) Heat up the oil on medium-high heat. Saute the garlic and onions until they just start to soften. Add in the turkey, breaking it up as it browns. Once browned, follow the instruction on the taco seasoning packet: add 3/4 cup water and seasoning to the pan, bring to a boil then simmer for 4 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons of enchilada sauce to the meat mixture.

3) Pre-heat oven to 375. Ladle the turkey mixture into the zucchini's filling up as much as you can. Sprinkle the top with cheese, then pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the zucchini's. Cover with foil and bake for 30-40 minutes.

4) Take out and plate, top with desired toppings and enjoy!


Serves: 8
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

Lucky Fried Brown Rice

Day 3 completed! Haven't had any processed foods, no simple carbs or added sugars, and have been feeling great. I roasted up some fresh turkey last night so I'm looking forward to having some more great sandwiches. (And PIG is excited too! He sat in the kitchen and drooled while I was slicing it until I finally gave him some.)

Last night I cooked a recipe from one of my favorite food bloggers, Gina Homolka from Skinnytaste.com  I absolutely love her recipes. Her website helped me lose weight while keeping Stefan happy with the foods I was cooking. She's a major inspiration in how I now cook myself. You can still eat all your favorite foods and still be healthy by cooking things yourself and just making some minor changes here and there.

She just released her first cookbook this week and I was dying to try one of the recipes out. I made Garlic Lemon Shrimp and Broccolini; it was wonderful! I was going to just pair it with plain brown rice on the side, but decided to cook up a simple fried rice. Simple ingredients, not a lot of prep, and very tasty.

I'm calling this fried rice 'lucky' because as soon as we sat down to eat, Brandon Crawford hit a grand slam in the NL Wild Card game vs. the Pirates, which was the spark that led them to a win. Go Giants!

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive oil
3 cups cooked brown rice, cooled.
2 eggs
3 garlic cloves, chopped
3/4 cup mixed frozen chopped vegetables; mine had peas, corn, carrots, beans
2 Tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp sesame oil

Directions:

1) Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add the frozen veggies. Cook for about 5-10 minutes until heated through.

2) Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute. Scoot all the veggies towards the side of the pan. Scramble the 2 eggs on the other side of the pan. Once the eggs are cooked through, combine the veggies and eggs.

3) Add rice into pan and mix all together, cooking for another minute. Add the soy sauce and sesame oil. Stir, serve and enjoy!

Serves: 4
Prep time: 5 mins
Cooking time: 10 mins

Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken

We survived day 2! It's amazing how when you're cutting out processed foods  and sugars they seem to jump out at you at the grocery store! It doesn't help that it's Halloween season and there's candy in every corner of every isle of every store. But day 2 came and went and we're on a roll.

Tuesday are always dedicated to tacos. We usually go to our favorite taqueria and order dinner to-go there. It's cheap and easy and always delicious; but it's easy to go overboard there. Every meal comes with refried beans and rice, which are both superb. They don't offer black beans, and everything is fried and greasy (and wonderful.) Plus, you have to get their home made chips! Not this week though!

I decided on another slow cooker recipe; salsa chicken: 2 ingredients + spices. Nothing easier than that. Pretty similar to my chile verde. You can use this chicken for tacos, enchiladas, salads, burritos, etc. We made taco salad burrito bowls, kind of like a Chipotle burrito bowl and salad mixed into one.

Ingredients:

Chicken:
2 large chicken breasts
2 cups favorite salsa (I used La Victoria)
1 tsp of each: paprika, cumin, coriander, chili powder, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper.

Salad toppings (optional):
Brown rice (cooked in a rice cooker with chicken broth)
Salad greens ( I used butter lettuce and spinach)
Guacamole
Pico de gallo
corn kernels
black beans, rinsed and drained.

Directions:

1) Place chicken breasts in slow cooker. Sprinkle with the spices. Cover with the salsa. Set on LOW for 4-6 hours. If you're using more chicken breasts, the cook time will have to be adjusted.

2) Once the chicken is done, shred the chicken with 2 forks.

3) Serve and enjoy!

Clean Eating Cobb Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing

Stefan and I are going on a cleanse this week. Nothing extreme, but just a clean eating week of no processed foods, only complex carbs, no added simple sugars, limit dairy and extra veggies. (And no alcohol for me) We don't usually eat that poorly during the weeks, especially when I'm cooking, but on the weekends we cheat. Our gym has been under construction for the past couple weeks, and we've been finding other ways to work out, but we just feel a little off and tired. Trying to kick start ourselves back up again.

For dinner on Monday night I made a cleaned up version of a cobb salad. No crumbled blue cheese, used turkey bacon, on a bed of butter lettuce and spinach. I ripped up the spinach because I feel like it's easier to eat raw spinach in smaller chunks than whole leaves. I can't really handle the texture of raw spinach that hasn't been doused in dressing. Cobb salads are usually best eaten with ranch or blue cheese dressing. I wanted something rich and creamy without the all the sugars and cream, so I decided to make a simple honey mustard, which turned out fantastic!

(I learned a new easy method on how to hard boil eggs! Pre-heat oven to 325. Place eggs in muffin pan, cook for 30 mins, then place eggs in cold water to cool down for about 10 minutes before peeling. The eggs came out perfectly. On the egg whites a few tiny brown spots will appear, but they do nothing to affect the flavor of the eggs. )

Ingredients:

Salad:
4 cups salad greens ( I used butter lettuce and spinach)
2 hard boiled eggs, sliced
4 strips turkey bacon, cooked and chopped
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 half avocado, chopped
1/4 jicama, shredded
1 carrot, shredded
2 Tbsp sunflower seed kernels

Dressing:
1 Tbsp yellow mustard
1 Tbsp stone ground dijan mustard
2 tsp honey
2 tsp olive oil

Directions:

1) Divide all the ingredients onto two plates.

2) Mix all the dressing ingredients together. Divide the dressing on both salads and enjoy!

Serves: 2
Prep time: 30 minutes

Pancetta & Garlic Brussles Sprouts

This recipe is a nice and easy side dish that goes great with just about anything. I never liked brussles sprouts until I ate them this way. The pancetta and garlic really add just the right amount of flavor to make you forget your eating the sprouts, and then to make you actually crave them in the future. This is a great light side to go with steaks, or you can stir in some cooked pasta and a little more olive oil and to make it a hearty side or main.

Ingredients: 
1 lb shaved brussles (buy the pre-shaved ones and save a lot of time! Or just use whole ones and slice them up)
1 oz pancetta, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
dash of salt and pepper

Directions:

1) Saute the pancetta on medium heat in a pan until nice and crispy.

2) Add the olive oil, garlic and brussles sprouts. Saute for about 5-10 minutes, until the sprouts are tender but still have a little crisp to them.

3) Season with salt and pepper and enjoy!

Serves: 2
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes

The Best Lasagna I've Ever Made....

...granted, this was the first lasagna I've ever made, but I think it turned out pretty darn great!

I tried lightening it up in just any way I could think of. I was making a lasagna though, which is noodles, cheese, more cheese, and meat, so I figured this was a recipe that would just have to be. I semi-made my own meat sauce, which turned out delicious! I plan on making this sauce again for spaghetti.

Ingredients:

Meat Sauce:
1 lb 93% lean ground beef
1 lb chicken Italian style sausage
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp Italian seasonings
salt & pepper to taste
2 jars of your favorite marinara sauce

Cheese Filling: 
2 lbs part skim ricotta cheese
8 oz part skim mozzarella, shredded
1/4 cup Parmesan, grated
1 package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and moisture squeezed out.
2 eggs

Lasagna:
1 lb lasagna noodles
8 oz part skim mozzarella, shredded
1/4 cup Parmesan

Directions:

1) In a large dutch oven, ground the beef and the chicken, breaking up as it cooks. Season with salt and pepper. Once browned, drain the residual liquid grease and fat. Pour in the jars of marinara sauce. Season with Italian seasonings and red pepper flakes. Stir, bring to a boil, then turn on low to simmer for 2 hours. Add a little bit of water every now and then as the sauce begins to thicken up.

2) Mix together the ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, spinach and eggs.

3) Boil lasagna noodles until cooked but still slightly tough. Drain, rinse in cold water, then let sit in cold water.

4) In a large dish, at least 9 x 13, ladle some sauce to coat the bottom. Lay out noodles to cover the bottom, then spread the cheese mixture evenly over. Ladle more meat sauce over the cheese. Repeat one more time. Add one last layer of noodles, meat sauce, then sprinkle the shredded mozzarella over the top and sprinkle the parmesan on top.

5) Wrap tightly in foil and bake at 375 for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake for another 30 minutes. Take out and let rest for 10-20 minutes before serving.

Prep time: 20 mins
Cook time: 2 hrs for sauce, 1hr 20min for lasagna
Serves: 12 at least

Slow Cooker Brisket Sandwiches

Another yummy and easy slow cooker recipe! There isn't anything better than having something cook on it's own all day to be ready for dinner with minimal effort.

We've smoked brisket three times before; once it came out too tough, once it came out perfect, and once it came out OK. To smoke brisket, it takes 10-12+ hours and in our experience, the effort wasn't always worth it. I figured I'd try a different approach with this brisket I had. I put a rub on the brisket Friday night, threw it in the cooker first thing Saturday morning, and enjoyed the smells all day.

We made a sandwich with these, with lettuce, tomato, BBQ sauce, pepper jack cheese. Served up with some seasoned fries.

Ingredients:

A good BBQ rub.
2-4 lb brisket
Your favorite BBQ sauce

Directions: 

1) Coat the brisket with a BBQ rub of your choice the night before, or at least for an hour.

2) Put the brisket and a cup of BBQ sauce in the slow cooker. Cook on LOW for 8-10 hours.

3) Slice/shred and put on a sandwich, or eat on it's own with some mac n cheese and beans!

This is what happens when you give a Pig roasted turkey breast

Our pig has an unnatural obsession with turkey. As soon as the package is taken out of the fridge, he comes RUNNING from where he was in the house to sit at your feet and drool.

I think he loves this fresh roasted turkey breast even more. Can you tell?

Roasted Turkey Breast

There really is nothing better than a turkey sandwich for lunch. The only problem with today's deli meats is they are full of nitrate/nitrites, preservatives and sodium. Even with Applegate products, who boast on being preservative/nitrite/nitrate/gluten/hormone free, they are still full of sodium, only come in 7oz packages that cost almost $7 per pack, and it doesn't really taste that good. The turkey breast I found here was from Sprouts and cost only $10 for 2 lbs.

The best turkey sandwich really only comes once a year; leftover Thanksgiving sandwiches! They are hands down the BEST turkey sandwich around. Friends even made an episode about it (poor Ross). This inspired me to find a way to get fresh roasted turkey all year round.

This turkey breast could be sliced up and used for traditional deli type sandwiches (with lettuce, tomato, onion, mayo, mustard, etc) or you could whip up some Skinny Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, and have that leftover Thanksgiving turkey sandwich any time!

Ingredients: 

2 lb boneless skinless turkey breast
olive oil
1 tsp each of any spices you like (could just do salt and pepper, add some paprika, oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne for a kick)

Directions:

1) Pre-heat oven to 350. Get a roasting pan out. Roll up some foil balls or a roasting rack and set on the pan.

2) Rub the turkey breast with a little bit of olive oil. Just enough to coat it. Sprinkle on the spices and seasonings of your choice. Place turkey on the foil balls or roasting rack.

3) Roast in the oven for 1 hr 30 mins, or until the center comes out to 165 degrees. Take out and cover with foil and let sit for about 20 mins.

4) Slice up and enjoy!

Prep time: 5 mins
Cooking time: 90 mins
Serves: About 3-6

Skinny Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes

I've been on a slow cooker kick for the last two weeks. It's probably because it's September now and the weather is supposed to be cooling off. (Except here in the East Bay Area it's still in the 90's). We had bought some top sirloins from Costco, because hey! they're leaner! But also meant that they didn't have much flavor and were kind of dry. It inspired me to find a way to cook the last 2 steaks we had in the Crockpot.

Yesterday morning I threw in the steaks with some gravy makings and had them cook all day. What goes best with gravy? Mashed potatoes duh! Since we were having a not so 'light' gravy, I wanted to serve it with 'lighter' mashed potatoes. They turned out wonderful!

Ingredients:

2 lbs russet potatoes (Peeled and chopped into even chunks)
5 garlic cloves (peeled)
olive oil
1/3 cup light sour cream
1/3 cup chicken broth
2 Tbsp light milk
1 Tbsp butter
dash of Lawry's seasoned salt
dash of pepper

Directions:

1)Pre-heat oven to 400. Place the garlic cloves onto a pan and lightly drizzle with some olive oil. Place them in the oven, shaking every now and then to even the cooking. Bake for about 10 mins.

2) While the garlic cooks, bring a large pot of water to boil. When the water starts to boil, dump in the potatoes, take the garlic out of the oven and dump them in the water as well. Cook until potatoes are fork tender.

3) Drain the potatoes and garlic, then place back in the pot. Mash with a potato masher, then mash/stir in the rest of the ingredients. Taste and season more if needed.

Prep time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 20 mins
Servings: 4-6

Slow Cooker Pork Chile Verde

First Post! This recipe isn't anything fancy, but boy was it delicious. Letting the pork sit in a rub overnight, throwing it in the Crockpot before work, and coming home to a house smelling amazing. I figured we were in for a treat just by the smell, but the taste was better than I could have imagined. Definitely will be making this again and again and again.

I served these two ways: with crunchy shells and soft tortillas. Whichever your preference (we actually preferred the crunchy.) Toppings were lettuce, cheese, home made guacamole, pico salsa, light sour cream. Also had a side of rice and beans. I saved all the leftover pork to make some nachos for Sunday Football!

Ingredients: 

Rub: 
Paprika
Garlic Powder
Cumin
Cayenne
Chile Powder
Corriander
Salt
Pepper
Dried oregano

 Pork:
2-4 lbs of pork shoulder, fat trimmed. (or tenderloin would work as well)
Jarred Verde Salsa (I used a 24oz jug of Hernandez)

Directions:

1) The night before, mix up the spice mixture. Depending on the size of your pork and your spice preference, I'd say about 1 tsp - 1 Tbsp each. Rub the pork with the mixture and let it sit in refrigerator overnight.

 2) Next morning, throw the pork into the slow cooker. Cover with the verde salsa. Make sure you have some leftover salsa. Set slow cooker on LOW for 8 hours. After the time is up, shred up pork and drain some of the fat and liquid from the pot. Add some more verde salsa. Stir and serve!

 Prep time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 8 hours