Turkey Chili

I have posted this recipe before.. I got it from Whole Foods.com and it is a crowd pleaser!

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chili powder ( I have noticed that you need more than this. I do it to taste)
2 teaspoons ground oregano
1 teasapoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 pound lean ground Turkey
1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 can of whole tomatoes ( I crush them by hand before adding... also add juice)

1/2 small can of tomato paste
2 cans cooked kidney beans
2 cans cooked black beans
Sea salt
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
Hot pepper sauce, to taste (optional)
Method
In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and garlic, and cook 5 minutes,
stirring frequently until onions are translucent.
Stir in chili powder, oregano, cumin and crushed red pepper and cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add
ground beef and stir to brown the meat, 3 to 5 minutes.
Add tomato sauce, water and beans. Season with salt to taste, then bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer,
cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring often, until flavors have melded and sauce is thickened and bubbly.
Stir in cilantro and hot pepper sauce, if desired.

Collard Greens... an experiment!

I was very intimidated by Collard Greens. I never had them growing up and when I lived in Alabama I had them once or twice and loved them, but they were cooked for me and cooking them still seemed daunting. When I looked at my food basket this week and saw that they were coming I decided not to substitute and to get them and face my fear.

This is the recipe I am using. These greens are chock full of vitamins and minerals and this recipe seemed like it was pretty healthy also... not your typical bacon infused green recipe.

Ingredients:

2 pounds collard greens, washed thoroughly, tough stems cut out of leaves, cut or torn in bite-size pieces

2 tablespoons Italian seasoning, or combination of basil, oregano, and rosemary

1 can (14.5 oz) tomatoes, chopped and drained, reserve liquid

Preparation:

Rinse torn leaves well; do not dry. Put wet leaves in a large pan and let wilt over medium-low heat, stirring constantly. Add Italian herb seasoning and chopped tomatoes; continue to heat for about 5 minutes longer. Add liquid from the tomatoes. Heat for about 4 to 5 minutes longer, or until hot.

Basil Lemon Chicken with Brown Rice

I got this recipe from Southern Food About. com the only thing I changed was from Chicken Breasts to Chicken cutlets for a better portion size.

6 boneless skinless Chicken cutlets

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons spicy mustard

Juice of 1 lemon

Dash salt

Dash ground black pepper

Preparation:

Wash chicken and pat dry; place between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to an even thickness.

In a plastic food storage bag, combine the chicken, basil, olive oil, mustard, lemon, and salt and pepper. Seal and refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours.

Grill or broil for about 5 to 7 minutes on each side, depending on thickness, or until cooked through.

Serve with Brown Rice

Turkey Polynesian Meatballs

I got this recipe from KRAFT and adapted to be a little more figure and heart healthy.

1 tsp. olive oil

1 large red pepper, chopped

1 onion, chopped

1/4 cup your favorite BBQ Sauce

1 tsp. ground ginger

1 tsp. garlic powder

2 cans (8 oz. each) pineapple chunks, drained, liquid reserved * I use one canned one Fresh for this

12 oz. (3/4 of 1-lb. pkg.) frozen cooked Turkey meatballs

2 cups Brown Rice steamed

Directions

Put olive oil in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add peppers and onions; cook 5 min. or until crisp-tender, stirring frequently.

STIR in barbecue sauce, ginger, garlic powder and reserved pineapple liquid. Add meatballs; mix lightly until evenly coated. Cook 10 min. or until meatballs are heated through, stirring occasionally.

STIR pineapple into meatball mixture. Serve over the rice.

Salmon with Wild Rice

Take a filet of Salmon and cut it into filets. Preheat your oven to 400 F

Take 2 slices of salmon and put them in the middle of a large piece of parchment paper, add 2 tsp of olive oil some dill a slice of lemon and fold parchment paper so that it is sealed (this will steam the salmon) If you click on the fold parchment paper there is a quick video of how to fold the parchment paper, and a few good ideas for future meals.

Cook for 20 minutes and make your Wild Rice while the Salmon is cooking and walla! Dinner in 30 minutes!

Turkey Tacos

Tacos are pretty basic so I will just go over the meat mixture and the salsa I make. I like to serve my tacos on whole wheat tortillas with fresh cilantro, a fresh salsa (it takes about 5 min to make one), lettuce tomatoes, well you get the point

Turkey Taco Meat

1 lb of Ground Turkey (lean)

1 can of Chili beans or pino beans

2 cloves of diced garlic

1 package of low sodium Taco seasoning (you can make your own if you choose)

add 1 TBSP of olive oil and add garlic, cook for one minute then add ground turkey, cook until brown and add in 1 can of chili bean or pinto beans. Cook for 2 minutes and add 1/2 of taco seasoning and 2 TBSP of water... add more taco seasoning to taste.

Fresh Salsa

Dice up 2 tomatoes (large)

3 TBSP of chopped cilantro

juice of half a lime

salt to taste

1/4 of a red onion diced

add all ingredients in a bowl and mix with a spoon and serve

Grilled Chicken with Salad and Mashed Cauliflower

Grill Chicken however you prefer

Make yourself a great Salad

Mashed Cauliflower

1 head medium cauliflower

1/2 cup of skim milk ( you can use half and half if you want)

4 Tbsp of a cholesterol free margarine (or butter if you prefer)

1 tsp of paprika

2 oz of a low fat cheddar

salt and pepper to taste

Directions Preheat oven to 400° F Fill large stock pan with water and salt to taste bring to a boil.

Trim hard stems and leaves from cauliflower.

Cut florets from stem (discard stem) and place in rolling boil of salted water for 15 minutes until tender. Drain well.

Place hot cauliflower in food processor with large blade. ( I use a blender)

Pulse while adding margarine and milk.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Spoon mash into 1-quart oven-proof casserole dish and sprinkle with cheese.

Dash top of casserole with paprika. Place in oven, bake for 15-20 minutes and serve hot.

Farm Fresh Pasta

I was at a Pampered Chef Party and the host made a wonderful dish. I decided to adapt it for those of us who don't have all the fancy tools. I made this for dinner last night and it was a total hit!

1 tub of grape tomatoes (grocery store size or costco size depending on how many people you are serving)

3 cloves of garlic sliced (not diced or grated... do not use the store kind in the jar)

2 TBSP of olive oil

Kosher or sea salt

Pepper

Preheat oven to 375... in a baking dish and mix all of the above ingredients place in oven and cook for 12 minutes

While the tomatoes are cooking boil some whole wheat or gluten free pasta (1lb) Rigatoni, or bowtie would be great for this (you can boil it in chicken broth if you want to add a little more flavor to it. (Heck you could even microwave the pasta in 3 cups of chicken broth for 10 minutes and the pasta will absorb all the chicken broth and flavor)

While Pasta is cooking grill 4-5 (depending on how many you are serving) chicken breast or cutlets..I use one cutlet for each person. When done grilling cut up into bite size pieces.

When tomatoes are done crust them in the baking dish (I use a potato masher to do this) the tomatoes, garlic and olive oil will become a sauce.

Drain pasta.

Mix all the ingredients together in the baking dish and top with fresh basil and grated parmesan cheese to taste and serve immediately

It tastes so fresh you can taste each ingredient and it really just tastes great and is super easy!

Meals for Jan 20-28 2010

Farm Fresh Pasta

Grilled Chicken with Salad and Mashed Cauliflower

Salmon with Wild Rice

Turkey Tacos

Turkey Polynesian Meatball with Brown Rice

Turkey Chili

Basil Lemon Chicken

Turkey Burgers with Baked or Whole Grain Chips or a Yummy Salad!

Lemon Chicken with Collard Greens and baby carrots

Grocery List

Meat

4 lbs of Ground Turkey (lean)

Fresh Salmon (pick the portion size right for your family)

Turkey Meatballs (Costco has some great ones)

Boneless Skinless Chicken Cutlets (we get our frozen at Costco, I choose cutlets because it is more of a correct portion size than the massively large chicken breasts and they go further since they are smaller)

Frozen Turkey Burgers (lean) or you can make your own.

Dry

Whole Wheat Rigatoni or any kind of whole wheat pasta

Whole Wheat Whole Grain skinny buns

Whole Wheat Whole grain Tortilla shells

Brown Rice

Canned (this section should only take you down one (possibly 2) aisles in your grocery store...

Black Beans (2 cans) I get low sodium but you will be rinsing the beans before you use them so you choose

Kidney Beans (2 cans)

1 Can of low sodium Tomato sauce (large can)

1 can (large) whole tomatoes

1 small can Tomato Paste

Chili Powder

Dry Oregano

Ground Cumin

2 cans of pineapple chunks (or you can use fresh) I use one fresh and one canned and save the canned juice for a drink)

1 can of chili or pinto beans

Taco Seasoning (low sodium)

Veggies and Fruits

1 bag of baby carrots

1 bunch of collard greens

Fresh Basil (1 bunch)

Fresh Cilantro (1 bunch)

1 head of Cauliflower

Garlic (fresh not jarred)

5 Lemons

1 tub of Grape Tomatoes ( I needed a large one so I got mine at Costco)

1 red onion

A few Salad kits.. I buy the ones with out dressing and fancy them up myself with veggies and a low fat dressing.

1 bunch of Fresh Dill (I have a jar of freeze dried dill that I keep in my fridge and I can't tell the difference in taste)

Dairy

Heart Smart and Omega 3 Margarine

Skim Milk

Low fat sour cream for tacos if you want it

Now you have your grocery list... go shopping and come back for some great recipes!

Back up and Running

So my sisters requested I start this up again. I got all out of sorts but here we go again!

Edric was recently diagnosed NASH, he has a fatty liver and high triglycerides so our family is on a new and life long food plan. We now do what is called perimeter shopping. We only go inside the aisles for select few canned and boxed goods such as beans and rice (brown only). We started having our fruits and veggies delivered to us every other week, and we only consume lean meats, and have cut out red meats for the next 3-4 months. Don't think the food is not just as delicious though. I think it is more full of flavor than ever before! So here we go!