Kielbasa, Potato, Green Bean Dinner

At Ruby's Pantry this past month, we were given a 24 serving can of green beans. The can is one of those ones you find in the bulk aisle at Walmart. It's crazy big. We were also given a few purple potatoes and beef broth.

Tonight, I decided to combine 1 pound of kielbasa (not from Ruby's), about 1/4 of the can of beans, a couple handfuls of the purple potatoes, and 2 ish cups of beef broth in a slow cooker. I put it on low for 8 hours and it turned out wonderful, if not a little salty. (The beans were even reduced sodium but that is still a lot of sodium for a dinner!)

We were all surprised that the purple potatoes turned yellow-ish brown, like a regular potato!

I love slow cooker dinners, especially on busy nights. Dinner is already ready for you! There is little prep work to this one so it was even do-able with little kids. When I explained to my two and a half year old at breakfast time that I needed to make dinner, she looked at me like I was nuts and called me silly. But she gladly helped anyway. I don't know that she's actively seen me use the slow cooker before though because she thought it was going to be loud (like a blender) and was really confused when it wasn't! Several times throughout the day, she asked me if it was time to eat yet--probably because slow cookers make the house smell so good!

I will definitely be making this again. I would somehow find a way to reduce the salt and maybe I'd add an onion but it really doesn't need much in terms of seasonings without being bland! This dinner was easy and awesome!

Sweet Potato BBQ Chicken Pizza

I'm behind in my blogging (again) so I actually made this pizza a few weeks ago. We were nervous how it would turn out because it sounded healthy (ha!) and nobody but me really likes sweet potatoes.

I did take the crust out of the oven a couple minutes early because it was browning and I didn't want it to burn.

I also cooked the spinach (when I cooked the onions) because it had previously been frozen and I wasn't sure how it would turn out. I don't know that it matters if it's cooked or uncooked, regardless of being frozen. I will also mention that I didn't measure the sauces. I simply each one out separately on the crust until it looked good. This could've been close to a half cup but it did leave a lot of tomato sauce in the jar so be ready to have spaghetti the next night!

This pizza turned out great! Being cheeseless, I'm not sure I would eat it because I was craving pizza and trying to be healthier but I would eat it again. It's just not a good replacement for the real thing. Even David liked it. My toddler hates sweet potatoes too so she wasn't impressed, but she did like the toppings.  My mom was in town and thought it was really good also!

I would definitely make it again!

Chocolate Tofu Pudding

At Ruby's, we were given 6 blocks of nigari tofu. I asked my vegan, tofu-loving sister what nigari is and she wasn't entirely sure but said that it is really soft and would be best used in desserts or miso soup. When I pinterested for ideas for silken tofu, I was given lots of recipes!

My current recipe refuses to link up but it's from yummyhealthyeasy.com. It's very simple and takes less than 5 minute to make (and that even includes gathering your ingredients!)

Ingredients:
1 block (14 oz) tofu (the site says firm but I used my nigari and it came out just fine. Next time, I would drain it a little first. Ours was frozen so I'm not sure if that made a difference or not)

1 cup chocolate chips, melted

1 tsp Truvia sweetener (I just happened to have this exact amount in a sample packet in my pantry!)

1/4 cup milk

splash of vanilla extract

dash of cinnamon

Put it all in a blender until smooth and you're done! This turns out so creamy and delicious! Be sure to put your leftovers (if they are any!) in the fridge.

You would never guess there's tofu in there. My toddler loved it and didn't even realize it wasn't her regular, from a box pudding!

Eggplant Lasagna Roll Ups

In the past, I have made lasagna roll ups with great results. I do a noodle outside with a ricotta cheese/spinach mixture on the inside. I had seen people do something similar with a zucchini outside (instead of the noodle). I have been intrigued to try this but it's not zucchini season yet so I did it with an eggplant!

I had pinterested about it and found a recipe (that for some reason refuses to open so I am unable to give credit) but I had to make some changes.

Ingredients:

• 1 large eggplant, cut length wise in slices (about 12 slices for 1 eggplant)
• about 1/2 cup sour cream
• about 1 cup ricotta cheese
• basil
• shredded parmesan cheese (I would've used mozzarella if I had it)
• pasta sauce of your choosing

Directions:

They talk about purging the eggplant. This is a process that gets rid of its bitter juices. I will probably not do this next time because I found my sink dry after doing it and even after rinsing, it make the eggplant really salty. If you are interested, you rub salt on your eggplant slices and let sit in a colander in the sink. Then rinse after about an hour. (Maybe I'm missing a step and that's why mine didn't work? I'm not sure).

Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add in as many eggplant slices that fit. Cook a couple minutes on each side, until browned. Repeat until all slices are cooked. 

Mix up the sour cream, ricotta cheese, basil, and some of the cheese in a bowl. Spread on each slice of eggplant and roll up. Put in a baking dish and cover with pasta sauce (I used about half a jar) and the remaining cheese. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes (just enough to heat everything through. The original recipe doesn't call for the oven at all. You wrap your eggplant with the cold cheese mixture and serve. Eww!). This also assures that your eggplant is cooked all the way.

This recipe was a HIT! I think David and I both rate this an 8+ out of 10! He says he would still prefer noodles but I almost don't notice a difference. The eggplant flavor is really mild and it cuts easily with your fork. With 3 roll ups a person, this serves about 4 people. Compared with a regular lasagna noodle and a serving of 3 roll ups, the eggplant saves you over 200 calories! Incredible! 

I love healthy recipes and substitutions that actually taste good! Now, this recipe is definitely not healthy but by swapping the noodles for eggplant, I believe it helps! 

Parmesan Ham Noodle Dinner

I tend to make noodle dishes on Mondays. I'm not entirely sure why that is but seeing as today is Monday, we had noodles! Tonight's was based very loosely on several recipes so I will post what I specifically did.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of cooked ham, cubed
• 1/2 large yellow onion, diced
• 1/2 package (4 oz) of button mushrooms, chopped
• 2 cups frozen peas, thawed
• oregano
• basil
• parsley
• garlic powder
• 2/3 of a 16 oz box of shell noodles, uncooked
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
• 2 cups milk
• 3 cups water
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 cup sour cream

Directions:

1. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add in mushrooms, onions, and ham. Cook until the veggies are cooked. 

2. Add in seasonings and cook another minute.

3. Stir in milk, water, flour, and noodles. (You can use the entire box if it fits in your skillet but mine did not). Cook for 10 minutes, uncovered, stirring occasionally.

4. Add in peas. Cook for another minute or two. 

5. Stir in cheese and sour cream. Continue cooking until heated through.

This came together very quickly, especially after the veggies were chopped (I am very slow at prep work). David rated this an 8 out of 10 but wasn't sure what would make it better. I rate it about an 8.5. There was an unusual flavor to it and I'm not sure if it was the Parmesan cheese or the sour cream. I added in both because mine was still too liquidy with just a couple minutes of cook time left. Plus, I always seem to have sour cream I'm trying to use up. It is a very good dish though and I would definitely make it again (or something similar, depending on what I have on hand). You could easily adapt the veggies, cheese, or even the meat choice. The possibilities of this are endless! I love dishes like that! 

Avocado Chocolate Chip Cookies

My grocery store frequently has deals on produce like "buy 2, get 3 free". If you see a sign like that, you gotta buy it! That's better than 50% off! One of the items this past time was avocados. I do not like avocados but I want to like avocados. Actually, nobody in my family likes them. They're just an odd texture, odd flavor, odd appearance. I bought them anyway. We'd have to eat them if I buy them, right?

So we decide to cut one up to see if my toddler or 8 month old like them. My 2 year old said no without even trying it. Then she tried it but still didn't like it (but points for trying it!). My 8 month old made a face. Now, he makes faces at lots of things but then will gesture that he wants more. Not this time. We tried to give him more and he definitely said no. We left it on his tray (it was a slice) and he didn't touch it. My husband choked down a slice and said no more so that left me. I ate the rest of it mixed with our dinner. It was tolerable.

Then I pinterested about it (because really, where else do I look for recipes?) and I found something amazing. Avocado Chocolate Chip Cookies. They say that you can't taste the avocado in them at all! I decided to make them. Then, life got in the way so I actually convinced my husband to make them for me. He did things a little differently than the recipe so I'll write it out.

• 2 avocados
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg (the only non-vegan ingredient in these and easily replaceable!)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup whole wheat flour (he used as much whole wheat flour we had but it was almost gone so he substituted the rest for regular flour)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• pinch of salt
• 2 T coconut oil
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheet with silicone mat (or parchment paper). Scoop out your avocados and place into the bowl of your stand mixer. Add coconut oil and sugar and mix for about 5 minutes, or until avocados have broken down (chunks are okay.) Add the egg and vanilla. Mix until well combined. Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Stir until just combined. Mix in the chocolate chips. Spoon out dough into cookie-sized balls and put onto baking sheet. Bake for 10-11 minutes and remove from oven. Allow to cool slightly on baking sheet and then move to cooling rack.

And it turned out true! You get the health benefits of the avocado WITHOUT tasting them at all!! I was amazed. My toddler loved these cookies, as well as my husband and I. We stored them in the fridge because avocados go bad so quickly. This made them taste even better. There is nothing better than cold chocolate chip cookies. I would say eat them up in a few days before they can go bad but you probably don't have to try very hard because they're so delicious! I rate this a 10/10. 

I will add that they do turn out green. This can be a little off-putting if you are trying to hide the veggies in there but I liked the original poster's suggestion of making them at Christmas time and everyone assumes it's food dye! 

The Easiest Way to Make Hard Cooked Eggs

We have a lot of hard cooked eggs in this house. My toddler can't get enough of them so last weekend when we dyed some for Easter, she ate them all before Easter even got here! We decided to make some more but we obviously needed to do a big batch.

I usually do the method where you put them in a big pot of cold water, boil, then take off heat and let sit for 10 minutes. Then, dump in ice cold water for 10 minutes. It's not an exact science and if you choose the wrong boiling point to take them off the heat, you either have undercooked or overcooked eggs.

The best way to make them is to preheat your oven to 325 degrees (a lot of places out there say 350 but I feel that that is too high and will automatically overcook your eggs). Then you put your eggs in a muffin tin (to keep them from rolling around too much). Put the muffin tin (with the eggs) in your preheated oven and cook for 25-30 minutes. Then, put them in ice cold water for 10 minutes and you're done!

I don't know how you are supposed to know to leave them in for 25 minutes vs. 30 minutes but I guess you just make a judgment call the first time and adjust appropriately for your specific oven the next time.

This method is so simple, my husband even agreed to do it! We will probably make our hard cooked eggs like this from now on. It takes all the guess work out of it.