Slow Cooker Black Bean and Chicken Casserole

I hate college alumni magazines. My least favorite part is the looks at me section also known as notables, people of note etc. I went to a very large undergraduate school and people seem to jump at the chance to laud on themselves in the alumni magazine. The worst is the magazine I receive from one of my undergraduate majors (I'll be nice and not name which one). It turns into an almost pompous one upmanship contest. I was published in such in such magazine, oh wait I won an award, and so on and so forth. I think that I am going to write my own write-up. It will focus on the fact that my kids actually helped me to move the trashcan back from the curb and picked up their toys from the floor in their bedroom. That has to be as exciting as reading another blurb about some former graduate who has become much more successful than I am, no thanks.

My kids have been in moods (not in a good way) due to the end of the school year. Tomorrow is the last day and I am so ready! Due to my kids attitudes I have trying to make meals that are quick and easy to put together. This week I tried a new recipe for Black Bean and Chicken Casserole from the May issue of All You Magazine.

This recipe has 11 ingredients. It takes 4 and a half hours of total time, 12 minutes of which is active,  and makes 6 servings.  I only made a few changes to the original recipe. I used leftover chicken from a roasted chicken recipe I had made the previous night. It was a nice way to save money and use leftovers. Pre-shredded cheese is always more, so I buy big blocks and shred it myself. It saves a lot of money over the course of a year. Finally, I make my own chili powder. I prefer the taste to store bought and I can make a big batch at once. As I normally do I also make beans from scratch using dried beans and my slow cooker.

If you're looking for something quick and easy this is the recipe for you. It goes together very quickly and made enough for two meals for my family of four. The taste is mild enough that even my kids liked the dish and the slow cooker made the cooking work beyond simple. The flavors are simple, which during a busy week is fine with me.

For the recipe go to Black Bean and Chicken Casserole. 

Oatmeal Raisin Bars

Oatmeal Raisin Bars

The stress of the holidays is almost over. As much as I love watching my kids faces during Christmas morning and spending time with my family I am always relieved when all the chaos is over. For what seems like 3 months all everyone talks and think about is Christmas. This year stores had their Christmas decorations out before Halloween, making the holiday seem even longer than normal. I personally love the day after Christmas. My kids have new toys to distract them and I can sit and relax with a cup of coffee. No more shopping, wrapping, or cooking. Things can go back to the way they are the other 9 months of the year. Plus the New Year brings new things to look forward to and the ability to leave the stress of the last year behind us. So as Christmas comes tomorrow, I will be happy. My kids will be ecstatic with all the gifts, while I will be happy that I can relax, I survived another Christmas.

Since we have been eating lots of fattening foods the last couple of weeks, I have been trying to have snacks that are healthier. Today I tried a new recipe for Oatmeal Raisin Bars from the January issue of All You Magazine.

Spring Hill Cemetery Huntington, WV

This recipe has 10 ingredients. It takes 40 minutes of total time, 5 minutes of which is active and makes 9 bars. I only made a few changes to the original recipe. First, I substituted pepitas for the sunflower seeds called for in the recipe. My family loves pumpkin seeds and I use them in snacks frequently. Second, I found that I had to allow the bars to cook an additional 5 minutes in order for them to fully brown and set.

Spring Hill Cemetery Huntington, WV

These bars taste more like baked oatmeal than they do raisin bars. I chose to pour maple syrup over two of the bars as a breakfast. I would suggest making a few changes to the original recipe. First, I would replace the raisins with fresh fruit. Fresh blueberries would be much lower in sugar and higher in vitamins than raisins. Second, I would add maple syrup to the bars in order to make them sweeter. As originally written the bars are a little on the not sweet side of things. I would suggest either adding maple syrup to the batter or eating the bars in a bowl with maple syrup drizzled over them. With a few modifications, these could be a great snack!

For the recipe go to Oatmeal Raisin Bars. 

Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew From All You Magazine

Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew

My husband and I rarely agree on what to watch. We haven't been to a movie in the theater for 8 years. Partly because we are both too cheap and mostly due to the fact that we hate most movies and can't agree on the few that either of us would see. Last month my husband set up separate Netflix user accounts so that what I watch wasn't in his recently viewed section. I was fine with that since he watches nothing but horrible television shows and movies by people that I never thought where funny when they were on Saturday Night Live. He also watches non-funny 80's and 90's comedies that I avoided like the plague when they were originally in theaters. My husband complains that I watch nothing except Sci-Fi and 80's/90's cult classics. He would be mostly right, I to this day claim "Heathers" as my all time favorite movie. So for the most part we watch separate movies and television. However, every year we pick a few new shows that both of us can agree upon. Normally they aren't something that we love, but that we agree we love each other enough to sit through. This normally lasts for a season or two before both of us give up on the show and we have to move on to another show that we both deem semi-adequate. Regardless of our faults we seem made for each other since we continue to try to find common movie/TV ground. It's the constant commitment to finding common ground that reminds me that our marriage is important to both of us. In 10 years we have only found a few shows/movies that we both love, but we have enjoyed the journey of trying to find something together. Tonight's dinner recipe is another example of compromise. My husband loves the Indian restaurant in our city, I pretty much hate it. To compromise I make a lot of Indian dishes at home. Some recipes I pick are traditional (to appease my husband and I) and some are more Americanized (for my kids). Tonight I tried a new recipe for Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew from the September issue of All You magazine.

Harris Riverfront Park Huntington, WV

This recipe has 17 ingredients. It takes an hour and ten minutes of total time, 45 minutes of which is active and makes 6 servings. I made a  few changes to the original recipe. My family loves the taste of ginger so I used 2 tablespoons of minced ginger instead of 1. I was out of turmeric so I left it out and added a small amount of crushed red pepper for flavor. I found that the dish needed a lot more salt than stated in the original recipe, I ended up adding an additional 1 1/2 teaspoons. Finally, I added a cup of coconut milk. I found that it helped with the flavor and made for a more 'stew' like consistency.

Downtown Huntington, WV from Harris Riverfront Park

My two boys were in love with this recipe. The spices were mild enough to be kid friendly while having enough flavor for adults. This is definitely a more 'Americanized' Indian recipe, which is nice for kids or adults that aren't fans of the strong flavors many traditional Indian dishes can have. If you want to increase the heat you can always add 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper. This will add a little bit of heat without overpowering the flavors of the dish.

For the recipe go to Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew.

Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew

Recipe Type: Main

Summary:

A kid friendly recipe for Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew from the September issue of All You magazine. Only $1.63 per serving.

Preparation Time: 0h, 25m

Cooking Time: 0h, 45m

Total Time: 1h, 10m

Yield: Serves 6

Tired of Boring Pork Dishes? Try Ginger Orange Pork Tenderloin with Ramps

Ginger Orange Pork Tenderloin with Ramps

Today was free museum Tuesday at the Huntington Museum of Art. Since my husband and I are trying to expose my youngest son to a wide variety of cultural experiences we thought this would be a great day to take him. Plus it was free which is always a bonus since I am basically pretty cheap. Given the fact that he is 4 he did very well. Most of the paintings and sculptures lost his interest quickly, but he did enjoy the Eastern weapon room and the antique firearms. The piece of art that grabbed his attention the most was outside. It had metallic arms that moved around, basically a modern art version of a whirligig. He was fascinated. There was also a lizard running around the outside walls of the museum that he was determined he should take home (don't worry that was a no go). One of my favorite parts about the museum is that they have a large section of land with nature walks. Since I have a lively 4-year-old it was a great way to wind him down. Given that today was a busy day, I utilized leftovers from a meal I made earlier in the week. It is hard to have fresh meals every night, so I make a point of eating leftovers at least once a week. This way no food is wasted and I save money from my food budget. Tonight my family enjoyed leftovers of the Ginger Orange Pork Tenderloin recipe from the April 2013 issue of All You magazine.

This recipe has 8 ingredients. It takes 45 minutes of total time, 15 minutes of which is active and makes 4 servings. I did make a few changes to the original recipe. First, I found clearance blood orange juice, so I utilized it for the recipe. Second, my shallots had gone bad, so I used the ramps that I had in the freezer. I used one whole ramp (leaves and stem), minced. Instead of vegetable oil I used canola oil, I prefer olive oil and canola in my baked goods and recipes. I am happy to say that my herb garden is doing great, so I was able to use fresh thyme.

The ramps added a nice flavor to the sauce in this dish. The pork was pretty plain, so I would suggest a few changes. I would either rub the pork with a spice rub (cayenne would work well if you like a bit of a kick, or a combination of cumin, coriander or cinnamon). Another option would be to marinade the pork in a citrus marinade. Not only would this make the taste delicious it would help to keep the pork moist while cooking. Most importantly I would double the sauce amount since it was the best part of the recipe,  you will want plenty of it to enjoy!

For the recipe go to Ginger Orange Pork Tenderloin.

Coming Out From Behind the Camera: My Review is in the June Issue of All You Magazine

Slow Cooker Pork Loin with Cherries

Ever since I started this blog there has been one question that I get asked the most. It's not about food. I get emails, tweets, facebook posts about why I don't include a photo of myself on my blog. With my kids it's a matter of privacy, I am very protective of their online identity. With myself it's more of wanting a focus on the recipes and food. However, the longer that I have been blogging the more I realize that eventually I will have to come out from behind the camera. So with that in mind, you can find a picture of me in the current June issue of All You magazine.

As you all know I review magazine, cookbook and online recipes. All You has started a section high-lighting readers that have tried their recipes and a few question and answers about the results. I was flattered to be approached to be the first person for this section. If you look on page 9 you will see my review of All You's Slow-Cooker Pork Loin with Cherries (you can read my original review here). It really is a great recipe and one that I loved making. The section also includes a photo of me and a photo I took of the dish. No more hiding behind the camera.

My husband's only comment about the mention was that everyone is going to think that I'm 42 since my age states that I am 35. I promise I really am 35, but I guess I should start telling everyone that I'm 27. Only problem is that I don't think anyone would believe me!

Recipe for Chicken Burgers with Mozzarella and Homemade Hamburger Buns

Chicken Burgers with Mozzarella and Homemade Hamburger Buns

Next week is a freezer week for my household. Once a month we eat out of our freezer. Many of the meals that I make during the week make more leftovers than we can eat for lunches the next day so I freeze them for meals later in the month. I normally wait at least three weeks in between leftover meals. That way my kids have forgotten the first meal and it doesn't feel like we are always eating the same recipes. My taste buds get bored easily according to my husband. I literally make a meal once and then rarely make it every again. Without leftovers we would have very few repeat meals. I know some of my boredom with repeat meals comes from being very poor growing up and literally eating the same meal every week. My mother was a great cook, but there were only so many things that can be done with food bank items. Luckily my kids have never had to have the experience of bare shelves and if anything they have my bored taste buds. However, I also have my mother's frugal ways so we clear out our pantry and freezer once a month to ensure that food isn't wasted. Last week I had a number of packages of frozen meat to utilize. Since I had a bunch of frozen ground chicken I tried a new recipe for Chicken Burgers from the March issue of All You magazine.

Gluten Free Chicken Burgers with Mozzarella

This recipe has 8 ingredients. It takes 40 minutes of total time, 20 minutes of which is active and makes 6 servings. I only made a few modifications to this recipe. I made two versions as I normally do, one gluten free and one regular. For the regular version of the recipe I made homemade hamburger buns. My onion and pepper mixture only took 5 minutes to fully soften, any longer and they would have gotten overly browned. For the gluten free version I used gluten free bread instead of a bun. I made my own BBQ sauce since many BBQ sauces have wheat, plus homemade tastes better.

My two boys really enjoyed these chicken burgers. I would suggest a few changes. I found that the burgers were a little greasy being cooked in the oven. Instead of cooking them in the oven I would grill them on an indoor or outdoor grill. Additionally, I would just use BBQ sauce instead of the mayo BBQ sauce combination. Finally, the cheese on the inside made the burgers too greasy, I would suggest using real mozzarella sliced on top of the burger. This would cut down on the grease and still retain the flavors.

For the recipe go to Chicken Burgers.

Easy Homemade Tomato Soup

Homemade Tomato Soup

I love comfort food. There is something so great about a home cooked meal that can completely turn my mood around or make me feel better after I have been sick. Everyone has their favorite comfort food. My two boys prefer macaroni and cheese, while my husband loves pinto beans and cornbread. I love a number of different comfort foods, but my favorite combination is grilled cheese and tomato soup. There is something so delicious about a great bowl of tomato soup and a perfectly cooked grilled cheese sandwich. Canned soup just doesn't do it for me, for tasty tomato soup I must have homemade. Fresh tomatoes made into a simple tomato soup are easy and perfect. The taste of the tomatoes shines through and just makes me feel great. Last week I tried a new recipe for Tomato Soup from the February issue of All You magazine.

This recipe has 9 ingredients. It takes 60 minutes of total time, 30 minutes of which is active. I did make a number of changes to this recipe. First I just made the soup and not the cheddar croutons. Second I pureed the some while it was still warm. Just make sure that the lid is firmly attached and place a rag over the top to ensure that you do not get burned. I did allow the soup to cook for an additional 10 minutes after it was pureed to ensure it was the proper thickness.

If you want to make the soup a cream of tomato soup you can add half and half or heavy cream instead of the water. You could also add the half and half or heavy cream at the end of the recipe before serving and allow it to cook for an additional five minutes. I like that this soup is simple and lets the flavor of the tomatoes shine through. Make sure to adequately salt the soup, it will need it. Overall, a great recipe that worked well as a side for grilled cheese sandwiches and I would definitely make again.

For the recipe go to Tomato Soup. 

Slow Cooker Beef Stew and Easy Homemade Cornbread Recipe

The winter weather seems to be back in my area. It has been spitting snow all day, which just makes me want to curl up with a good book and a cup of tea. I love winter weather for about a month, then I get increasing sick of it. I am one of those people that loves when the seasons change and then quickly get tired of the new season. Now there are some seasons that I like more than others, winter being pretty far down the list. One of the things that saves winter for me is the food. I am a huge fan of soups and stews and fall and winter are the perfect time of the year to prepare them. Approximately once a week (at least) during the winter I pull out my slow cooker and try a new stew recipe. I find stew in the winter comforting and makes the cold weather more bearable. Last week I tried a new recipe for Slow Cooker Beef Stew and Homemade Cornbread from the February 2013 issue of All You magazine.

The beef stew recipe has 17 ingredients and the cornbread has 8 ingredients. The cornbread takes a total of 25 minutes, 10 minutes of which is active and makes 9 servings. The beef stew recipe takes a total of 8 1/2 hours, 30 minutes of which is active and makes 6 servings. I did make a few changes to the recipes. For the beef stew instead of all-purpose flour I used brown rice flour. I made my own beef broth from scratch. If you have never made beef broth before it is very easy. Roast 2 onions, 2 carrots and 1 pound of beef bones in the oven at 425 for 40 minutes. When they are done roasting add them to a large stock pot, add 12 peppercorns, 2 bay leaves, 2 sprigs of parsley and cover with water. Bring to boil and then turn down to a low simmer for 4-6 hours. The longer you cook the stock the stronger the flavor. I chose not to top my stew with cilantro since my kids have decided that they currently won't eat it. For the cornbread I only made a few changes. First I used low-fat buttermilk instead of full fat. I try to limit my dairy fats and low-fat buttermilk is a great way to do it. Since I was not eating the cornbread I did not make it gluten-free, but instead made the recipe as written.

This beef stew has a little bit of a kick from the chilies and chipotle pepper. I topped my boys servings with a little bit of sour cream to cut down on the spiciness, My husband and I didn't find that the dish was that spicy, but my boys noticed immediately. I like that the beef turned out very tender and the parsnips gave the beef a delicious sweet root vegetable undertone.

For the recipes go to Beef Stew and Homemade Cornbread.

35 Minute Rigatoni in Creamy Tomato Sauce

Growing-up we ate pasta at least twice a week. Pasta was inexpensive and my mother could stretch it to make enough for multiple meals. In college my cooking skills became a little lazy and I was guilty of eating a large amount of jarred pasta and spaghetti. This was partly due to the fact that I had to work at least 20 hours a week and take full time classes in order to continue to have my company pay my tuition. I had little time left after school, working and commuting to cook. Pasta was a quick way to fill me up and save money. After getting married I began to try to cook marinara and other pasta sauces from scratch. Now I make pasta at least once a week and pasta is one of my family's favorite meals. This weekend I tried a new recipe for Rigatoni in Creamy Tomato Sauce from the September 2011 issue of All You magazine.

This recipe has 11 ingredients. It takes 35 minutes of total time, all of which is active and makes 6 servings. I only made a few modifications to this recipe. First since I eat gluten free I used gluten free ziti. Secondly, instead of butter I used olive oil and agave instead of granulated sugar. Finally, I let the pasta cook until al dente and then cooked it the rest of the way in the sauce and then added the basil. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

The pepperoni in this recipe is surprising. It creates a great taste that even my two picky children loved. I like that the taste was good for both adults and kids. Dinner time can oftentimes be a struggle, but this was a recipe that my whole family could agree upon. This is definitely a recipe I would make again.

For the recipe go to Rigatoni in Creamy Tomato Sauce.

Turkey, Squash and Black Bean Chili

There were very few foods that my dad could cook growing-up. He would make great fried potatoes, bacon and best of all chili. Everything else he burned or didn't even try to make. There was one time that my dad managed to completely burn boxed macaroni. He forgot that the macaroni was cooking and the water went dry. It was not delicious. However, he could make great chili. I never understood how everything else he made was so bad, when his chili was so great. Since my dad made chili so well I never really made chili when I was younger. I did have a great recipe for vegetarian chili, but since I married a big meat eater I haven't made it in years. After a couple years of marriage I decided that I needed to start cooking more chili since it is so hearty and can make multiple meals. Fast forward to ten years of marriage and I cook chili once or twice a month in the winter. It is one of my favorite winter time meals, it is warm and filling. Yesterday I made a new recipe for Turkey, Squash and Black Bean Chili from the January issue of All You magazine.

This recipe has 10 ingredients. It takes 34 minutes of total time, all of which is active and makes 4 servings. I did make a few modifications to the recipe. First, I have been making an effort to make everything I can from scratch. For this reason I made my black beans from scratch in the Crock-pot. I also grind my own turkey. It is cheaper and the texture is so much better. I saved the leftover butternut squash to make squash bread and it was delicious. The recipe cooks the chili on low for 10 minutes. I chose to cook the chili on medium for 10 minutes in order for it to fully thicken. Finally, I was out of regular chili powder so I used ancho chili powder instead. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

My whole family was really happy with this recipe. Normally I make beef chili since it tends to come out more tender and flavorful. This turkey chili was delicious and my husband even commented about how good it was since he normally doesn't like turkey chili. Do not use low-fat ground turkey. Very low-fat turkey will dry out and not have the same flavor as turkey with higher fat content.

For the recipe go to Turkey, Squash and Black Bean Chili.

Slow-Cooker Pork Loin with Cherries

There are certain foods that I associate with events or periods of my life. My mother made the best peanut noodles and every year on my birthday I would request them. She had made-up the recipe herself and to this day it is one of my favorite foods. Since she has been gone for almost 7 years now I am sad to say that I haven't made the recipe in years. Every year on my birthday I tell myself that I am going to make them, and then I don't. I think it's a combination of things. Cooking her dish without her just isn't the same and I now associate the food so much with my birthday that I savor the memory as much as the food. I do this a lot with foods. The memory associated with the food is oftentimes as strong if not stronger than the food itself. Now that I have my own kids I hope that I am making memories with my two boys that they will associate with me. We cook frequently together. I find the memories of cooking with my mother some of the best food memories I have. My food memories aren't just isolated to my mother however. I always associate eating oysters on the half shell with my father. I took him on a number of trips and we always ate at seafood restaurants. He would never order anything that he thought was too much money (I paid for everything on the trips). However, one time I insisted he order oysters and he loved them. He still talks about the oysters and the trip as if they are intertwined in his collective memory. I also smile since they are a vivid part of my memory as well. Hopefully my kids will have similar shared food memories with me. Now that I have remembered why I love food so much, on to the recipe. Yesterday I tried a new recipe for Pork Loin with Cherries from the January issue of All You magazine.

This recipe has 8 ingredients. It takes 4 hours and 25 minutes of total time, 15 minutes of which is active and makes 8 servings. I did make a few modifications to the recipe. Since it is the time of the year when Christmas foods go on clearance, instead of cherry juice I used the sparkling cherry juice I found on closeout. The sparkling juice in addition to cherry juice also had pear and apple juice which made a nice fruity taste to the sauce. I have never been able to find a 3 1/2 pound pork loin in my area so I bought a 6 pound roast and cut it to the right size. The recipe states not to use sour cherry preserves. However, the only preserves I was able to find used tart cherries so I used it and it worked very well. Make sure to adequately brown the pork before placing it in the crock-pot. I really does keep in the juices and creates a tender roast. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

When the pork loin came out of the crock-pot I was worried. It looked almost like boiled pork loin and I was worried that the taste would be mediocre. I was very pleasantly surprised by what a difference the cherry sauce made. The cherry sauce was delicious and made the entire dish.  It was so good that my four-year-old thought that I should make him a peanut butter sandwich with the cherry sauce. I didn't make the sandwich, but I did have seconds of the sauce over mashed potatoes. The sauce really is the star of the recipe.

For the recipe go to Pork Loin with Cherries.

Chocolate Pudding

Last night for New Year's Eve I didn't even make it to midnight. I fell asleep at 10:30. I did attempt to make it to the New Year by drinking coffee, but even that couldn't keep me awake. My kids fell asleep at 9, so I did slightly better for them. Today I made black-eyed peas for good luck and my husband and I enjoyed the champagne that we never drank last night. I tried a new way of preparing my black-eyed peas and they were delicious. While I might not of stayed up to ring in the New Year, I do have traditions that I try to keep. One of them is to make a delicious dessert for New Year's Eve. There is something comforting about saying goodbye to another year with something comforting and sweet. Earlier in the day I made a new Chocolate Pudding recipe from the January 2013 issue of All You magazine to help celebrate the New Year.

This recipe has 6 ingredients. It takes 20 minutes of total time, all of which is active and makes 8 servings. I had no problems finding any of the ingredients at my local grocery store. I allowed the pudding to fully chill before serving and I served the pudding in canning jars. The look of drinks and desserts in small canning jars is great and looks unique. I did find that the recipe only made three servings, instead of the 8 suggested by the recipe and magazine photo. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

I thought this pudding was delicious. It wasn't overly sweet, but instead was rich and full of chocolate flavor. My two boys loved the pudding and the homemade whipped cream I served on top. I think if I made the recipe again I would double it, since my family eats large servings and it only made three. This is definitely a recipe I would make again in the future.

For the recipe go to Chocolate Pudding.

Black Bean Soup

Today was the last day of school for my oldest before winter break. My younger son spent the day unhappy that his brother was having a party at school and believing that our new puppy was getting more attention than him. I have a feeling it is going to be a long break. Due to last minute changes I will be hosting Christmas this year so tomorrow is going to be spent cleaning and prepping. I am planning on keeping things low key, so it should be an easy holiday. I hope. As I seem always be since having kids I will be spending the weekend getting last minute gifts that I fully intended to buy weeks ago and time just got away from me. And wrapping. My mother was a beautiful gift wrapper. She would buy fabric and make handmade bows. They really were works of art. I seem to have inherited none of this gift. When I was younger I worked in the executive office of a dept store and had to fill in at the gift wrapping counter during the holiday rush. I was horrible at it and was told to help costumers, not to wrap. That was when I decided that I was destined to be someone that is great at picking out the perfect bag, no wrapping involved. So wish me luck with my gift wrapping this weekend. This week's meal have been mostly stews and soups, since it has been cold and rainy. I have really not been in the mood for much else with the end of my cold still sticking around. Last night I tried a new recipe for Black Bean Soup from the December issue of All You magazine, which with 3 grams of fat and 12 grams of protein looked like a great pre-holiday meal.

This recipe has 8 ingredients. It takes 1 hour 45 minutes of cooking time, 10 minutes of prep and makes 4 servings. I had no problems finding any of the ingredients at my local grocery store. Instead of quick cooking the beans, I soaked the black beans overnight. I find this method much easier and requires less effort. I let the beans cook for longer than the hour and a half suggested, probably closer to two full hours. Adding the citrus juice at the end of the cooking time really does add to the dish and I definitely suggest adding the step. I did not add sour cream to my serving, but I did to my boys. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

With only 217 calories and 3 grams of fat per serving this recipe is a great healthy meal option. It is especially great given that next week is Christmas and I will inevitably be overeating, so something light and filling this week is essential. My two boys were skeptical until they ate their servings and then loved it. My husband's only complaint was that he would have preferred not to have the tomato chunks, but he never likes chunks of tomatoes in recipes.

For the recipe go to Black Bean Soup.

Gluten Free Confetti Cornbread

Baking is one of my favorite past times. Even when everything else in my life is in chaos, baking is my outlet. I have talked before about how I deal with my stress by going into the kitchen and baking or cooking something for my family. It seems the older that I get the more that this trait seems to be appearing. My kids are both at stages where they fight all the time. Literally today it really did seem that the entire day they were fighting. I would love to say that I am one of those perfect mothers that never seems to be phased by their children's behavior. I'm not. When my kids get into these moods, I deal with the situation, give time-outs etc. and then turn to the kitchen and I bake. My kids have even begun to realize how mad I am based on the type of thing that I'm baking. Cookies means that I will only be angry for a little while. However, if mommy starts making a complicated pie or new recipe than they had better let me breath for a while. The hardest thing since going gluten free has been to re-adjust all my baking to no longer using wheat flour as a base. I have had a number of misses, but slowly I have become more confident in my gluten free baking skills. Recently, I tried a new recipe for Confetti Cornbread from All You magazine, which looked like a perfect baking recipe to make gluten free.

This recipe has 12 ingredients. It takes 35 minutes of baking, 25 minutes of prep and makes 24 pieces. I had no problems finding any of the ingredients at my local grocery store. Obviously since I made this recipe gluten free I made some significant changes. First instead of using all-purpose wheat flour I used a combination of brown rice and sorghum flours. I am happy to report that my local super store now has a large selection of gluten free flours and I am very thankful that even in my city I am able to find everything without having to pay a ton. I decided to keep part of the seeds from the jalapeno and add them to the cornbread. The extra bit of spice helped to enhance the flavor. In order to prevent my cornbread from burning I tented the pan the last 10 minutes of cooking. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

I have tried a lot of gluten free recipes in the last couple of months. Some have turned out spectacular. Other recipes have had to literally be thrown in the trash. This recipe modified well to being gluten free. Since there was fat from the butter and 3 eggs the cornbread didn't end up dry. I would recommend adding a small amount of milk to the batter if it is too dry due to the gluten free flour. A lot of recipes require additional liquid when being converted to gluten free.

For the recipe go to Gluten Free Confetti Cornbread.

Asian Ginger Beef

I spend most of my early twenties drinking lots of coffee and not eating all that healthy. I blame the combination of running, working and taking a full course load at University of Washington. Add to that I had the brilliant (not) idea of double majoring and a commute that took at least 1 1/2 half and food always seemed to take a back seat. I literally had very little time to prepare pretty much anything so I relied on large amounts of caffeine and the occasional meal out. Luckily for me Seattle is full of great restaurants that when planned well can be reasonable on a limited budget. One dish that I loved throughout college was stir-fry. Whether made at home or restaurant bought it was always full of flavor and delicious. Most importantly it contained a large amount of vegetables, which with my food habits was probably the largest amount of vegetables I consumed every month. Luckily after I moved and met my husband I also discovered that vegetables are delicious and should be eaten daily. My two boys have grown-up with a very different relationship with food and eat more fruits and vegetables that I think I ever did. Last week I tried a new recipe for Asian Ginger Beef from All You magazine, which looked very simple and full of vegetables.

This recipe has 13 ingredients. It takes 14 minutes of cooking time, 10 minutes of prep, and makes 4 servings. I had no problems finding any of the ingredients at my local grocery store. Since I can no longer eat gluten I use gluten-free soy sauce. I also make my own beef broth, since I believe that it tastes better than store bought. Instead of serving this recipe over white rice, I used brown rice. I stopped serving white rice approximately 6 months ago and after an adjustment period my two boys prefer it over white rice. The recipe suggests to allow the mixture to cook for 1 minute after adding the sauce. I did things a little bit differently. My veggie mixture was a little watery from the frozen veggies so I increased the cornstarch to a full tablespoon and let the mixture cook until almost all the liquid was absorbed. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

My two kids really enjoyed the beef in this recipe and ate all the beef out of their serving. My husband and I thought that the dish was a decent beef stir-fry recipe, but neither of us thought the title ginger beef was accurate. The flavor of the ginger was not overly noticeable. In order for this recipe to be ginger beef I would suggest increasing the amount of ginger to suit your taste. As written, the dish was a nice beef stir-fry, but was light on the ginger. With an increase in the amount of ginger I think that it could be a quick and child friendly ginger beef recipe.

For the recipe go to Asian Ginger Beef.

Slow Cooker Corn Chowder with Shrimp

My family enjoyed the last of our Thanksgiving leftovers tonight. Right now I am eating the remainder of the sweet potato pie with a big helping of whipped cream. I survived all the chaos of the Thanksgiving cooking and was able to get a few great deals shopping this weekend. Now the craziness of December starts with my youngest son's birthday next weekend. I can't believe that my youngest is turning four! Since the holidays always mean crazy schedules and a press for time, I love using my slow-cooker to make dinner just a little bit easier. Eventually I will also learn to use the pressure cooker that I have in my pantry. So far I have used it to can veggies and soups, but I seem to never use it as an actual pressure cooker. Maybe that will be my New Year's resolution this year. Then again I am horrible at keeping resolutions, so maybe not. Either way I fall back on my crock-pot extensively during the holidays. Last week before the massive cooking endeavor of Thanksgiving I tried a new recipe for Slow Cooker Corn Chowder with Shrimp from All You magazine, which looked perfect for the full house of company I had for the week.

This recipe has 12 ingredients. It takes a total time of 6 hours and 15 minutes, 15 minutes of which is active and makes six servings. I always have to go to multiple stores in my area when making seafood recipes. For whatever reason my local superstore insists on only carrying farm raised fish and shrimp. Having grown-up in the Northwest I shudder at the idea of eating farm raised seafood. I had too many friends that worked in the fisheries dept. and instilled in my head never to eat anything farm raised. So in order to find wild caught U.S. shrimp I have to drive to the grocery store in the suburbs. I had no problem finding any of the ingredients. I made my own chicken stock and as I always do I bought Italian flat leaf parsley. I am not a fan of curly parsley, the texture isn't something that either my husband or I enjoy. Make sure to fully salt this dish. I had to add a decent amount of salt after this recipe was done since the potatoes had soaked up any of the salt added to the soup in the slow-cooker. Finally I did add the heavy cream, without this step it is more of a soup than a chowder. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

I served this recipe while my in-laws were at my house and everyone enjoyed it. My oldest son thought the shrimp was the best part, but he always eats more shrimp than anyone else in the house. Make sure that your potatoes are diced small or they won't fully cook in the slow-cooker. My potatoes were a little larger than I would prefer so I would change it if I made this recipe again. For an extra flavor I would suggest adding crushed red pepper. It really would make this dish better since the spices weren't noticeable the way that the recipe is written.

For the recipe go to Slow Cooker Corn Chowder with Shrimp.

Slow Cooker Apricot Chicken

Being a food blogger is a unique online task. When I first started this blog I had no idea what I was doing. I knew that I loved cooking and hated trying lots of recipes that didn't turn out as I expected. I'll admit the first year was rough. It took me over six months to get a rhythm and blogging style. My pictures the first year were hit or miss as well. Some photos turned out great, others not so much. Then over the summer I decided that I needed to up my blogging game. I started spending more time on my photos and making a commitment that I would post regularly. I also accepted that food blogging can be very trying. Not only do I have to prepare the meal plans, cook the recipes, and take the food photos, but I also have to find a way to relate everything back in a blog post that I hope someone will want to read. A food blog can definitely lead to burnout. It can also be a lot of fun and I love it. I think the one thing that readers often are confused by is why I don't have photos of myself online. I never have even on my private Facebook page. I prefer to keep my online and offline lives separate. The rise of television cooking shows has made foodies overly personal image driven, which to me defeats the purpose of the food. At the end of the day I am the food that I cook and the words that I write. Hopefully that is enough to make a few people keep coming back. Now back to the point, the food! Last week I tried a new recipe for Apricot Chicken from All You magazine, which with only 7 ingredients looked simple and delicious.

This recipe has 7 ingredients. It takes 4 hours and 10 minutes of cooking time, 15 minutes of prep and makes 4 servings. I had no problems finding any of the ingredients at my local grocery store. As I have talked about numerous times before I used homemade chicken stock. It took me longer to brown my chicken than the suggest 3-5 minutes per side by the recipe. I prefer my chicken to be decently browned to prevent sogginess in the crock-pot. My total time for browning was approximately 15 minutes. I also allowed the onions to fully brown before placing them in the slow cooker. My husband has a thing against non-caramelized onions in the crock-pot and won't eat them. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

My family really enjoyed this recipe. The taste is simple and great for picky eaters since there aren't any spices. If you are looking for a dish with a lot of spices and undertones this recipe isn't for you. However, if you are looking for a recipe that is simple enough for a weekday meal and pleases even young picky children this dish is perfect. I also like that it has 32 grams of protein per serving, which is great for my two growing boys.

For the recipe go to Slow Cooker Apricot Chicken.

Honey Cashew Chicken

Living far away from your family can be hard. When I first moved to West Virginia from Washington I was in graduate school and I was able to fly home every break. However, the summer after I moved I got married and the number of times I was able to fly home diminished. Then I graduated and my mom got sick with cancer. I flew home when I found out she was sick and then I got pregnant with my son. Regrettably I wasn't able to fly home before she passed away. Another kid later my father and the majority of my closest friends still live in Seattle. Most days everything is fine, until home sickness hits me. This has been one of those weeks where it seems home is very far away. It probably has something to do with the fact that the holidays are coming up and that was always my mom's favorite time of the year. She came from a large family and the holidays were something she reveled in. The parties, the gifts, the wrapping, she loved it all. While I love the holidays, I have never been as good at all the prep as my mother was. However, I carry on all the traditions from my mom for my two boys. I am a big believer of carrying on family traditions and work hard to maintain these connections. As I've stated before one of the main ways that I remember my mother is through cooking and baking with my two kids. Last month we tried a new recipe for Honey Cashew Chicken from All You magazine which 38 grams of protein looked like a great high-protein option for my family.

This recipe has 14 ingredients. It takes 25 minutes of prep and 10 minutes of cooking time and makes 4 servings. I had no problems finding any of the ingredients at my local grocery store. Since I don't eat gluten I used gluten-free soy sauce. A lot of brands of cheap soy sauce use wheat as a main ingredient, so I always check labels. I used homemade chicken broth so I had to add more salt for this recipe than if I had used store bought. Make sure to take the strings out of the snow peas. The one time I forgot to string my snow peas I quickly learned that they must be completely trimmed or they are almost uneatable. My family likes our food on the spicy side so I added more crushed red pepper than the recipe suggested. I would estimate around 1 teaspoon. Finally, I allowed the dish to cook for approximately 3 minutes after adding the sauce to ensure all ingredients were fully cooked. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

My two boys loved this recipe. Snow peas are always a hit in my house and this recipe was no exception. They literally picked all the snow peas out and ate them first. The chicken had a great flavor and the dish was perfect over brown rice. Definitely a recipe I would make again.

For the recipe go to Honey Cashew Chicken.

Slow Cooker Chicken Posole

This has been one of those days where it seems everything is going wrong. I'm like King Midas in reverse, everything I touch seems to be turning bad. It started this morning with my coffee, which I managed to spill all over myself. Great start to the day. Next I made a great new apple oatmeal recipe. However, when I tried to take photos, the light was horrible and my photos just wouldn't work. So I moved on to making what looked like a delicious recipe for almond cherry granola bars. They were a disaster, they didn't stick together and tasted way too salty. The kitchen was not my forte today. So I gave up this evening and we had leftovers. I decided that making dinner was asking for disaster. All the kitchen disasters today reminded me of my mother. I always thought she was such a creative cook and I loved all the inventive recipes she seemed to come up with. When I was a teenager I finally learned the truth. My mom made a lot of kitchen oppsies. Things would go terribly wrong on a recipe and she would re-invent it into something new. I was so impressed after learning this fact and to this day I wish that I had half her kitchen genius. Along this line today when my granola bars went south I turned them into twice baked granola. My kids loved it and had no idea that mommy was having a bad day. Luckily, I only have this type of day every once in a while. Most magazine recipes I try turn out great with various modifications. Last month I tried a new recipe for Slow Cooker Chicken Posole from All You magazine, which looked easy and full of protein.

This recipe has 9 ingredients. It takes 7 hours of cooking time and 15 minutes of prep and makes 4 servings. I had no problems finding any of the ingredients at my local grocery store and I made no ingredient modifications. As I normally do I made my own chicken stock and didn't add salt until I made the recipe. I chose to use white hominy because for whatever reason it was 10 cents cheaper. I allowed the dish to cook for 8 1/2 hours for the flavors to fully develop. Make sure to salt at the end, even with store bought stock this recipe will need it. I served the soup with gluten free corn chips, lime wedges and cilantro and served sour cream on top. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

With 29 grams of protein and only 9 grams of fat per serving this recipe is a great weeknight meal. I love any type of crock-pot recipe, they are a great time saver and this recipe is low on prep time which I like. My two boys fell in love with this soup. The chicken was tender and perfectly cooked and the broth was delicious.

For the recipe go to Slow Cooker Chicken Posole.

Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

I have a small obsession with peanut butter. Since this would be my second post in which I have disclosed this information you can be pretty sure that I am serious. I love it. Growing-up I was always the very skinny kid that loved to dance and swim and that everyone was determined that didn't eat. They were very wrong on the not eating. I ate, and ate, and ate some more. One of my favorite snacks was to mix peanut butter and brown sugar, and eat it from a bowl. I still have the bad habit of eating peanut butter straight from the jar, which drives my husband nuts. We have separate peanut butter jars so that I don't contaminate his portion. Since I love peanut butter so much it is one of my favorite ingredients to use in recipes. It is very versatile and is great in both main dishes and desserts. Last week I tried a new recipe for Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce from All You magazine, which looked very easy and perfect for my peanut butter obsession.

This recipe has 8 ingredients in the chicken and 8 in the sauce. It takes 15 minutes of prep, 3 hours of chilling time and 10 minutes of cooking and makes 8 servings. I had to go to multiple stores to find fish sauce, but that is normal in my area for any ethnic food items. I had no problems finding any of the other ingredients and I made no ingredient modifications. As I always do I used my indoor grill to make this recipe. My indoor grill takes longer than a regular outdoor gas or charcoal grill, so my total time was closer to 18 minutes to fully cook the chicken skewers. Instead of a plastic bag for chilling the chicken in the marinade, I chose to use a square plastic container. For me it was easier to fully coat the chicken with this method. In addition to eliminating gluten I have stopped using white sugar, so I left the sugar out of this recipe. It would taste just as good with the sugar or you could use brown rice syrup or honey instead. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

My two kids loved this recipe. We ate all 8 servings in one night, most of which was eaten by my two sons. I loved the peanut sauce and it was the perfect accompaniment to the chicken satay. The only downside to this recipe was putting all the chicken on the skewers. I must have two left hands or something due to how hard it was for me to skewer the chicken. After a while of doing it though I finally got the hang of the process. Overall, this was a delicious and easy recipe that I would definitely make again in the future.

For the recipe go to Chicken Satay.