Summer Beef Stew

A few weeks ago I saw this Summer Garden Beef Pot Roast recipe.  It looked delicious and I decided to do my own only in the oven instead of the crockpot.  Here is basically what i did.  (There is a reason I probably will never write a cookbook.  I don't really measure.   It is tedious.)

Sear a roast on high heat of an oven proof vessel.  I used my enameled cast iron pot.  It is heavy but I love it.

Toss in some vegetables especially something that is more 'summery' like zucchini or yellow squash.  I used zucchini, onions, red bell pepper and garlic.

Add in a box of tomatoes (I like the POM brand but you can use canned as well) and some beef broth.  I use Herb Ox beef broth.  It is low in sodium and quite tasty.  It is not a 'real' food but I don't eat it every day.  If you have have home made beef broth..it would be better.  Just have the roast mostly covered with liquid.  I use more beef broth than tomatoes because we like that better.  Do what you like!

Stir in spices.  To make my stew lighter I used Hungarian Sweet Paprika that I buy from The Spice House.  

Quarter potatoes and add them to the top.

Put in an oven at 250F for 3 to 6 hours flipping it or poking at it along the way.  This is basically the same as the slow cooker time wise however I find the stew to be less watery when I do it this way.  The meat should fall apart when it is done.  Also if you do it in the slow cooker, searing it first can really add some flavor.

Before serving add chopped basil to the top.

Magic Shell Topping

I actually call this CRACK.  Because it cracks just like Magic Shell... and because it is so awesome it is addictive.  I took some to Bible Study and people were double dipping their ice cream cones after they had crunched off the first layer...and no one cared.

I found the recipe here.  I think it is safe to re print it here as you can find it all over the internet.

Take 1 1/4 cup chocolate chips and 1/2 cup of coconut oil.  Melt for about a minute in the microwave.

Yep..that's it.  Store it in a pretty glass jar, or an old catsup bottle ..if it lasts that long.

Keep it in the fridge and then re-warm it to liquid in the microwave before serving.  I would venture to guess that it is only as good as the ingredients you use.   I use chocolate chips without dairy from Trader Joes and a coconut oil I buy from my doctor's office.  (Brand name is Omega Nutrition.)  Both chocolate and coconut oil are very good for you.  Indulge sparingly however if you do not wish to expand your waistline.  And beware...it is very very very addictive.

Weekly Menu Planning

I have taken to grilling up vegetables and chicken thighs at the beginning of the week.  Then I can make them into salads, sammies or what have you.  This week I will be grilling up the chicken, some asparagus and zucchini.  I am also trying to do one thing new each week that might become a habit.  It will probably actually be more like something new every few weeks.  It all started with the cooking of the chicken and vegetables.  Last week I didn't do that (although I did make a GREAT Banh Mi that we noshed on all week), but i missed being able to grab grilled asparagus when I "NEEDED" to eat.  This week I am going to try and do some sort of grain salad as the start of a new habit.  I found a blog I used to read all the time and she had an interesting Spanish Rice dish.  She has a huge rice maker so I will be downsizing but trying it nonetheless.  (Update:  Yes I tried it.  I think I will need to fine tune the amounts because my rice cooker is smaller.  It was "ok." )


Spanish Rice in Rice Cooker

When menu planning I do try and think what I have going on that week.  There is a Bible study and a mom's meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday.  I want something I can put together quickly and clean up hopefully before I leave.

Nourish MD has a wonderful way to revamp your cooking slowly with baby steps.  That is where I got the idea to cook up the chicken thighs each week.  (They also have very affordable nutrition phone consults.)  I decided to make two of their recipes; Honey glazed Chicken from Real Simple and BBQ Chicken Salad from Real Salad.  Because I never quite follow a recipe, and I didn't have honey, I made a maple syrup and dijon slather for the chicken.  It turned out very well.  Still waiting to make the BBQ Salad.  You can find all of their e-cookbooks here. They often have combo specials on Facebook.  I would link you up but I am taking a vacation from Facebook for awhile.

As I write this I am noshing on some zucchini bread fresh from the oven.  I will post that later this week. Where does that leave us for food for the week?

Honey glazed chicken with vegetables and spanish rice
Grilled chicken on salads for lunches
BBQ Chicken salad
Burritos from chicken and spanish rice..add black beans and the fixins.
Steak and potatoes.

I am a fluid planner.... as you can see.  I think the word for that is flexible!

For fun I just googled Bible verses on food. I think I'll post one each week.  This one is well known.

Give us this day our daily bread,  Matthew 6:11

 

Fun Foody stuff

I do love me my Food Network and now The Cooking Channel.  We were watching the Food(ography) show on Cheap Eats.  Of course there was MD's on there..and the Automats!  That was very cool.  Andrew wondered why fast food won out over Automats...it's all about the customer preference.  Fancy Food Fast was referenced on the show.  He takes fast food and 'remakes' it into something very cool!  AJ said, "That is like Extreme Makeover: Fast Food Edition."  Love how he makes connections!

Here is a picture from his website.  This was made from Taco Bell.  I love how the top of his blog says, "Yea it's still bad for you.  But see how good it can look."

Food shows are a great way to spend time with your kid and even get them to branch out a bit in the food department.  They make them curious!  There is also a ton of math, geography, history, science etc...  Good Eats seems to be mostly off the air so we are going to have to find some new favorites.

What are yours?

REAL Food 101- a Review

I was given the opportunity to review a new product published by the folks at Nourish MD. It is an introductory course in how to make the move to REAL food. It is called, aptly, REAL Food 101. You can read below what this learning module contains:

ONE: A Slide Show

We hold your hand and walk you through
ALL the details about REAL Food, Fake Food, and Bridging Food.
Plus, examples of ways we get more REAL food into our own kids! Yikes!

TWO: Video with Dr. Sue
She explains why REAL food matters for your child's health,
what inflammation can look like in your child, and how food likely plays a role.

THREE: Video with Angelle
She teaches you her secret on how to quickly figure out if a food is REAL or at least close to it,
and how to easily teach your child the same.
Plus, she tells you how she uses Bridging food to help her steer clear of Fake food!

FOUR: Audio
No time to watch us? Than downoad us onto your iPod
and learn while you exercise, clean or do whatever it is that you do
when you listen to your iPod!

FIVE: eBook
Filled with information and charts you can read, and reread
or print for your kitchen!

What I like about this is the multi media approach to the presentation of this material. The folks at Nourish MD have a great website where they give step by step instructions on how to convert your family to REAL food but this gives you the information in a variety of different ways (audio, video and print) so that you can really have it sink in. I did ask regarding captions for the video and they do have a transcript for the hearing impaired but the information is already available in printed forms in many places on their website. This is nice for those that either need or prefer to get their information in an audio format as well.

REAL Food 101 includes the first steps to convert your family. There is a follow up called...REAL Food 202. These courses are VERY affordable considering what you pay if you go to a local community class for this type of information. And you can watch it in the comfort of your home, at any time...even in your PJs! This is an excellent first step to move your family to a healthier level.

Nourish MD has a great Facebook group. And they often have specials on their various e-books and even on the REAL Food courses. You can also sign up for their newsletter on their main page.

I was given a copy of all the components of REAL Food 101 in exchange for my honest review.

Super Charged Smoothies Review

Yea!!! A Smoothie book! I requested Super Charged Smoothies to review from Chronicle Books because, well, I 'heart' smoothies. My dear husband gave me a Vitamix about 6 months ago and we have used it for all sorts of recipes including smoothies. Some of the recipes in the book might benefit from a high powered blender but most can be made with any regular one you might have.

You can peek inside the book on amazon to see the amazing chapters outlined in the book. I routinely make smoothies similar to some of the recipes however they give some interesting twists such as using coconut milk for a liquid, dates for a sweetener or adding nuts for flavor, health and texture. There are many factoids and notes throughout the book that are very interesting and insightful. They do tout soy benefits and I happen to disagree on that point but you can certainly use other types of milk in place of the soy. There is not an abundance of soy milk recipes. They use a variety of ingredients including various types of milks, nuts, fruits and vegetables.

There are lots of ways to find out more about this book. Mary and Sara have a facebook page. In addition, they have a website where they blog and also post some of their recipes from their seven cookbooks. (I just know I NEED another one!) You can buy this book on amazon for $13.07. I wouldn't recommend the Kindle version just because the pictures in the book are mouthwatering.

Below is my very amateurish photo of one of the smoothie we made this morning- a couple of ingredients were changed based on the type of fruit I had in my freezer. It was so delicious and I had only made half the recipe for me and Andrew. I will be repeating later this afternoon. Yum!

I received this book as a complimentary review copy and am not obliged to write a positive review.

And the winner is....

The winner of the free e-book is...number 11. The following screenshot was from random.org. Congratulations 6-kids. I will be contacting you.

True Random Number Generator
Result:11