Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Skinny Monkey Cookies recipe

Since going gluten and largely dairy free for my son, we are always on the hunt for a new cookie recipe! I found this on Once a Month Mom a while back and forgot to share it. Super easy and yum.

Skinny Monkey Cookies

You literally mash/mix all the stuff and let it set. I used gluten free oats.

I rolled it in coconut for something extra.

Bake, enjoy, freeze extra!

Baked Falafel recipe

My friend Heather told me about her Baked Falafel recipe post when I was looking for a new version to try. So we put it to the test a couple of weeks ago. It was really delicious and so easy! Stuff a couple in a pita pocket with whatever extras you enjoy and you've got a healthy meal. My kids all did great with them, too.

Check out her post: Baked Falafel for the recipe.

And I used this Cucumber-Yogurt Dressing recipe to go with. Yum!

Of course now I'm having a bad case of Mommy Brain, but I really don't think I strayed too far from the original recipes. Might have added a lightly beaten egg white or two to help it all stick together! Man, now I'm hungry after looking at these pictures. Yum yum!

Brazilian Feijoada recipe

While searching for recipes to use a hamhock, came across this gem on myrecipes.com. My husband lived in Brazil for a while so I thought I'd give it a try and surprise him!

Brazilian Feijoada

Ingredients

• 2  cups  dried black beans
• 4  slices applewood-smoked bacon
• 1  pound  boneless pork shoulder (Boston butt), trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 3/4  teaspoon  salt, divided
• 1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper, divided
• 3  bone-in beef short ribs, trimmed (about 2 pounds)
• 3  cups  finely chopped onion (about 2 medium)
• 1 1/4  cups  fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
• 4  garlic cloves, minced
• 1  (9-ounce) smoked ham hock
• 1  tablespoon  white vinegar
• 8  orange wedges

For the rest of the recipe, go HERE

I'll be honest, not a huge meat gal and this was a lot of meat. A little pricier dish than what I usually do, too! But the hubs loved it and said it was pretty close to perfect. Well, he really said it was perfect but I know it was a little off. For all of my culinary practice, I am not a good crockpot cook. Which may be in part due to the crappy crockpot we have(now had, thanks to my mom buying us a new one for our anniversary!). It always ran hot, even on low. Which makes for a lot of overcooked meat if you aren't super on the ball. Who is with kids?! Anyways, my only 'error' was upping the liquid to 2 1/2 cups. A straight 2 would have been better. And the meat counter was out of bone-in beef ribs so had to fudge with regular boneless ribs. Make sure those beans are in the liquid, too. They stay firm if not!

All in all, it's a good meal for the carnivorous sort. Won't be doing it often, but it's a nice treat for the hubs once in a while. Served with rice fried Brazilian style. Would be awesome with mango and avocado!

Sweet Potato Chicken Curry recipe

Not sure how I found this one amidst all of the recipes out there, but so glad I did! It is such a unique mix of ingredients(in my opinion) and you just can't go wrong with curry!

Sweet Potato Chicken Curry

Ingredients

• 2  teaspoons  curry powder
• 1  teaspoon  ground coriander
• 1  teaspoon  ground turmeric
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/2  teaspoon  black pepper
• 1/4  teaspoon  ground red pepper
• 1  bay leaf
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  olive oil
• 1 1/2  pounds  skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 1/2  cups  vertically sliced onion
• 1 1/2  teaspoons  minced peeled fresh ginger
• 2  garlic cloves, minced
• 1  (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1  (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 2  cups  (1/2-inch) cubed peeled sweet potato
• 3/4  cup  canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1/2  cup  frozen green peas
• 1  tablespoon  fresh lemon juice

For the rest go HERE

The big change I made due to reviewers' recommendations was to switch out the chicken stock for a can of light coconut milk. Yum! Didn't have coriander on hand so used a teaspoon of Rogan Josh from Penzey's Spices instead. Also no fresh ginger, just used a little ground. Then in the end I forgot the peas and lemon juice due to the chaos of unexpected guests(ha!). Still was pretty tasty. Might up some of the spices next time as I really, really love Indian spices. But for the kids' sakes I kept to the recipe this time until I knew how they'd come through. In another curry recipe it calls for a rotisserie chicken, bet that would be delicious in this one, too! (Served with basmati rice, wished we had naan and a mango!)

Happy eating!

Spinach Black Bean Lasagna recipe

Apologies as I took no pictures(of any dish this week!) but still want to share the wonderful recipes we tried. The first up is this Spinach Black Bean Lasagna found on myrecipes.com.

Spinach Black Bean Lasagna

Ingredients:

• 2  large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1  (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
• 1  (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
• 1/4  cup  chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 4  cups  (16 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese with peppers, divided
• 2  (16-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1  (2-pound, 13-ounce) jar pasta sauce
• 1/2  teaspoon  ground cumin
• 9  precooked lasagna noodles
• Garnish: chopped fresh cilantro

Go HERE for the rest!

I used a slightly larger pan and had 4 noodles across, but then only ended up with two layers of noodles needed. There were only a couple of things I did a little different. One, didn't mix in the monterey jack cheese into the ricotta mixture. I just put it on top of the ricotta/spinach mixture and then on top of the whole thing(so two layers of the shredded cheese). Two, added a little garlic now. We sort of put garlic on everything! Three, had some mushrooms on hand so chopped those up and mixed into the pasta sauce This is a really easy dish that you can easily customize to your taste preferences!

Chicken Corn Chowder recipe

My first foray into the world of cream soups... thanks to Our Family Treat! It. was. amazing.

Chicken Corn Chowder

Serves 6-8
Ingredients:

1 rotisserie chicken, shredded
1 onion, chopped
6 potatoes, peeled and diced
3 cans chicken broth
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
4 ounces cream cheese
2 cups frozen corn
1 garlic clove, minced
salt and pepper to taste


For the rest, go HERE.


I actually came across this recipe because I was looking for something to do with the frozen corn we have in the freezer. We canned it 2 falls ago and there is some remaining that needs eaten. Even better that I also happened to have copious amounts of chicken leftover from that oven-roasted whole chicken made last week. Going all out, we got a bag of organic red potatoes, heavy cream and cream cheese. In my experience, organic dairy makes a huge  difference you can taste. And the soup did not disappoint! It was amazing. I sprinkled a little cheese on top and then realized I really wanted something green, so chopped up some cilantro and piled that on. Served with apple slices(we eat a lot of apples!) and French bread. The only way this could have been any better is if I had made the bread fresh that same day! 

Grilled Veggie Quesadilla recipe

I *heart* me some EcoKaren and her lovely recipes! This week I tried the Grilled Veggie Quesadillas and another sandwich(I'll write about that one in a bit).

Grilled Veggie Quesadilla

Ingredients


1 green zucchini – sliced lengthwise
1 yellow zucchini – sliced lengthwise
1 yellow pepper – quartered
1 red pepper – quartered
1 bundle asparagus – ends chopped
8 flour tortilla
1/4 C chopped cilantro
2 avocados – pitted and sliced
1 C of shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 olive oil
1/4 C balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp coarsely ground peppercorn
1 Tbsp coarsely ground sea salt or mineral salt


For the rest, go HERE.

Before you go saying, 'But I don't like asparagus!' keep in mind these are customizable. We followed the recipe pretty much to a T- even got fancy with homemade tortillas- and while they were delicious, I'd still change them up a bit next time. I loved the asparagus. Loved loved it. The balsamic vinegar is a must. I think a red onion or mushrooms would also be a yummy addition or substitution for something else. Of course, you can easily add a refried bean spread, hummus, chicken or shrimp to these and that would also be tasty. One thing I realized after making these is that I prefer an open-faced sandwich. So next time I'll be skipping the top and eating it more like a pizza! (Maybe that takes the 'dilla' out of the Quesadilla?!)

Either way, it was fantastic to open up the grill and throw some veggies on. I forgot how much I missed them!

Half-way created, minus the zukes as they were still on the grill!

Creamy Pesto Pasta recipe

This was a super yummy and easy dish to make- the kids loved it!

Creamy Pesto Pasta

Ingredients

Pesto Sauce 1 cup fresh basil 1/2 cup pine nuts 4 cloves garlic (I cheat and use the stuff in a jar) 1/2 cup shredded asiago cheese (non-processed parmesan is fine too) 1 t coarse ground black pepper to taste salt 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Alfredo Sauce

1/4 stick	butter
1/2 cup	milk
1 T	flour
1/2 cup	shredded asiago cheese (or freshly shredded parmesan)

Pasta of choice (our favorites: ribbed penne or capellini)

Click HERE for the rest!

I used the honeycomb type pasta because the kids love the shape. Then toasted walnuts to put on top. Sliced pink lady apples on the side and some homemade crostini with a sun-dried tomato bruschetta. All in all it was pretty good. The sauce I had doubled and it was a pretty fair amount for the half a box of pasta I made. The color to me isn't that appealing so next time i might do the pesto with the pasta and then keep the sauce pure and drizzle on top. Would also be yum with maybe spinach, or mushrooms, or sun-dried tomatoes. Almost forgot! I think the cheese could be reduced. Maybe add some garlic? Can't put my finger on it but something was missing... Still a great dish to play around with!

Cheddar Biscuit Cups recipe

Sunday night we threw together a dinner of grilled pork chops, sweet corn, grilled potatoes and applesauce. I knew I wanted a quick biscuit to go with and came across this delicious recipe that took no time at all.

Now in the comments people suggested some flavor additions, so I tossed in a teaspoon of dried parsley and a half teaspoon of poultry seasoning. Might have added a little garlic powder, too. We were pleased with the results! You can really play around with this basic recipe and adjust according to your tastes.

Cheddar Biscuit Cups

yields 5-6 servings

Ingredients

• 1 cup self-rising flour*
• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise

*As a substitute for 1 cup of self-rising flour, place 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a measuring cup. Add all-purpose flour to measure 1 cup.

For the rest of the recipe please go HERE.

Now in the comments people suggested some flavor additions, so I tossed in a teaspoon of dried parsley and a half teaspoon of poultry seasoning. Might have added a little garlic powder, too. We were pleased with the results! You can really play around with this basic recipe and adjust according to your tastes. Also, we found the mix filed 6 cups well enough and cut the bake time by a few minutes. 

Happy Eating!

French Bread recipe

With all of the organic, toxic, gmo type material I've been reading lately, I found myself a little angry in the grocery store at 7am Monday morning. Upon picking up a healthy(er) sounding loaf of bread, I read the label to discover not only was it made with enriched flour but it also had high fructose corn syrup in it.

I was mad.

So I decided I'd get serious again about making my own breads. No longer will I consider it something I do when I feel like it, it will be something I do every week. If we want bread. Haha. I'll be testing out some recipes to share with in the event you'd like to join me on this journey to 'stick it to the man' (aka, cut out more processed food).

Roast Sticky Chicken- Rotisserie Style recipe

I have a couple recipes to share today that I made this week and enjoyed. First up is the amazing Roast Sticky Chicken. As almost always, I get many recipes from allrecipes.com and tweak them a bit. Trust me- you want to try this. You won't feel the need to buy an expensive grocery store rotisserie chicken after you see how easy it is to do at home!

Squash and Chickpea Fritters recipe

This was one of my out-of-the-box recipes I gave a try the other week. I'm still trying to decide what I think about them...

Turkey Garbanzo Bean and Kale Soup with Pasta recipe

This is a favorite around our house and is customizable to taste! We love rosemary and a lot of kale. Thanks to Liana for posting it on allrecipes.com!

North Indian-Style Spinach Chicken recipe

This. Is. Delicious. Read on for the slight adjustments I made that rendered it very easy!
And yes, I like a little rice with my cilantro.

Milk-Free, Egg-Free Pancakes recipe

Last week I went to make pancakes and... had no milk. So I googled(we google a lot for cooking!) and found this great recipe for milk and egg free pancakes. Now, we had plenty of eggs thanks to our farm trip and I did use one. To spice them up I used our ebelskiver pan and added blueberries. Yum!

Saffron Risotto with Butternut Squash recipe

This past week I tried a new dish for us- a risotto. Although I'm sure it wasn't a 'true' risotto due to the manner in which I made it(with leftovers) the dish still turned out tasty and even earned a 'It's yummy!' from one of my daughter's 3yr old friends. 

Citrus Garlic Shrimp recipe

Last week we tried a new shrimp dish that I wanted to share. I mostly followed the recipe and feel it's fair to call it a pretty good base made better with some extras. But first, the recipe!

Cowboy Hot Pot recipe

Earlier this week on Menu Monday I posted that I'd be trying a new recipe- the 'Cowboy Hot Pot' from my Vegetarian and Vegetable Cooking book by Christine Ingram. After giving it a test run I've decided it's worth sharing! If you are looking for ways to reduce meat consumption in your home, this has been a really worthwhile cookbook. 

Middle Eastern Rice with Black Beans and Chickpeas recipe

I had to go back in my posts and confirm I haven't already shared this one! It's one of our favorites. You can decrease the spices for your family if they aren't into so much flavor and a little (tiny) heat.

Good Reads: Toxic Flame Retardants, Avoiding Phthalates, Avoiding High Fructose Corn Syrup, Recipe for Cough Syrup

Here are a few things I've been reading this week and last:

Toxic Flame Retardants (series to come)

How to Avoid Phthalates in 3 Steps

Four Reasons to Avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup

And a cool sounding recipe for homemade cough syrup!

Read anything interesting lately? Link me to it! I love reading anything and everything!