Squash and Zucchini "noodles" with Meat Sauce

My mom used to make delicious spaghetti and meat sauce - on a day when I crave comfort foods, this is a good one - but not so good for me since I stopped eating grains. I decided that I had lots of squash and zucchini so I would make my "noodles" from these veggies.   Turned out to be SOOo delicious!

 

I used a medium size squash and zucchini, 1 tbsp of coconut oil, salt and pepper, about 1/3 pound of ground beef (grass-fed) and a jar of tomato basil simmer sauce that I canned last summer.  I canned my own tomato basil simmer sauce (from this recipe) because the sauce that is pre-made and available in the grocery almost always has added sugar and chemicals to preserve it.  This is all natural and tastes like fresh tomatoes in the summer!  When you make it yourself you can control the ingredients (no sugar!)

First, cut the zucchini and squash into  long narrow strips.  Remove the seeds before you cut them into strips to make it easier.  Drizzle with a TBSP of coconut oil and sprinkle with crushed salt and pepper. Bake on a cookie sheet (lined with foil for easy clean up) at 400 for 15 minutes, stir/flip the strips and bake for another 10 minutes. 

 While the veggies are baking, start your sauce.   In a non-stick pan, crumble up 1/3 lb ground beef.  Check out the color of this beef - fresh from the market!

 

 Brown the beef gently - cooking it through and making sure it's all broken into little bits.   Then stir in the jar of sauce - I had about 2/3 of a pint of sauce that was open...so that's how much I used!  Cover and let it simmer and thicken a bit while you finish baking your veggies.

 

Now it is time to assemble the delicious meal!  Start with the strips of squash and zucchini, top with the sauce!     Enjoy!!   It is so delicious....and very "noodle-ish" without putting grains into  your diet.

When I do this again, I need to figure out a better method for cutting my squash and zucchini - I'd like to make the strips more uniform....
Anyone have suggestions how I can make them smaller and the same size?  A tool to recommend?

Zucchini Boats

I've been seeing these zucchini boats/mini zucchini pizzas all over Pinterest lately....AND we found great summer squash and zucchini at the Farmer's Market the last two Fridays, so I decided to give it a try!

Deliciousness, right??

So this all started with these cherry tomatoes I found... Look at the choices this farmer had!  I chose a mixed quart of all these different kinds.   My favorites are the Sun Sweet (orange on the end) and the Sprite Grape Tomatoes (second from the left) and the Black Cherry tomatoes (center).   YUmmo!

Here's what you need - I can't wait to try this with some meat as a topping:

1 zucchini

tomatoes - a handful of these cherry tomatoes sliced in half and fourths.

cheese - I used Raw Milk Sharp Cheddar from an Amish Farmer that I got at the market as well.

tomato basil simmer sauce that we canned last year.  Yum!

Slice the zucchini in half and scoop out the seeds - I used a spoon to scoop it out. 

Place on a baking sheet of some sort - I used my stone bar pan from Pampered Chef that fits perfectly in my toaster oven.   If they rock a little, cut the bottom of the zucchini so it has a flat surface to sit on.  Be careful to not cut all the way through to the center that is scooped out.

Fill the scooped out centers with tomato basil sauce.

 

Cover with thinly sliced cheese (I used a peeler to slice it thinly)

 Top with your toppings - meat would be delicious!  I used the cherry tomatoes.

Bake at 400 for about 12-15 minutes.   Then top with a bit more cheese and switch to broil for about 5 minutes till it is bubbly and browned on the edges.  

Enjoy!!

Almond Butter

So last week I made a small batch of cinnamon almond butter.  It is absolutely delicious!

This almond butter is great to add to a breakfast smoothie (like this one from Farm Fresh & Active), to eat with celery or just to spread on something delicious!  I've even stirred a bit into my oatmeal.

And it is super easy to make!  All you need is a food processor (or a pretty tough blender) and some almonds.  I've made this in both my GE Personal Blender (like a magic bullet) and my food processor, depending on the size of the batch - the larger batch is too large for the personal blender.  You could also add cinnamon (yum!) or dark cocoa powder (double yum!).   

 Here is my personal blender - this was too big a batch for the personal blender.   I used 1 cup of oven roasted almonds in the small batch - and it was perfect.   For today's large batch I used 1.5 cups.  I like the Oven Roasted almonds - these have sea salt, but I would probably get unsalted the next time.  Your homemade almond butter is less sweet than store bought butters because it has no added sugar - it also has no preservatives or chemicals!  

I transferred these to the food processor because the blades kept getting hung up - there just wasn't enough room for the almonds to move around in the smaller blender.   If you want to add cinnamon - add it with the almonds - I used 1/2 tsp of cinnamon for 1 cup of almonds.  

 Whirl all the almonds (and cinnamon or cocoa powder).  It will seem like forever.  First it chops up the almonds, then it gets a bit powdery.  You might find it sticking to the blade.   It doesn't hurt to stop and scrape down the sides/clean off the blade.

The next stage is that it will start to get crumbly - like a crumb topping with some sticking together.  Again, scrape down the sides and the blade.

 Be patient.  It will start to stick together but it takes time - several minutes for a pretty good processor.  My little one takes about 6 minutes total.   Scrape down your sides and blend a little more after it starts to look like butter.

 Delicious!     My 1.5 cups of almonds made a half-pint jar of almond butter.  I store it in the fridge and use it about a tablespoon at a time. 

This plan of making the nut butters works with almonds, peanuts and other nuts!  I want to make it with cashews next. 

Homemade Salsa Verde with Grilled Chicken and Roma Tomatoes

So in the CSA share I was lucky enough to get this week, I received 5 tomatillos. 

I have NEVER done anything with tomatillos, other than enjoy them in green salsa (salsa verde).   However, I normally don't like the garlic and onions in the store versions....and when I go to a restaurant I have no control over the heat and you know I like to be in control!

So... I googled!

And all the recipes I found had sugar added - really??!! Again!!! AND they were for some crazy amount of tomatillos (like 1.5 pounds!!) - I only have 5.

So I took what I found and decided to make it without sugar.   And without garlic, onions or hot peppers.

So basically it was roasted tomatillos, lime juice and cilantro.   I will tell you that this is more sour than the store bought and the restaurant - whether it was because I added more lime juice than I should have or if it was because I left out the sugar.  

First, peel the husks from your tomatillos.  Rinse them well under water and slice the fruit in half.  Place them cut sides down on aluminum foil.  Broil for about 8 minutes.  I did this in my toaster oven so I didn't have to heat up the house with the oven.

*did you know that the best tasting tomatillos are the smaller ones - about ping pong ball size?   The larger ones are harder, tougher and not as sweet.

Add the roasted tomatillos (skin and all) to your food processor.

Next is the lime juice and the cilantro.   I used a whole lime and a small bunch of cilantro leaves.  I pulled them off the stems.

Whirl all this green goodness in the food processor.  You don't need a mighty food processor - this is the cheap-o Black Friday special from WalMart.  It cost a whopping $3.88 and has been amazing for the last three years!  

Grill your chicken and tomatoes - I used my George Foreman Grill - and basted both with the salsa verde while it was grilling.  

Yum!!

Summer in a glass: Peach & Thai Basil Iced Tea

Yum!

Yesterday I picked up the CSA (community supported agriculture) share that my friend gets each month - she is on vacation and offered the share to me!  Of course I jumped at the opportunity!

Wowser!  I got 10 peaches, 5 radishes, 5 potatoes, 5 tomatillos, 6 eggs, a squash, handfuls of ground cherries, thai basil and italian basil and a basil plant!  

I knew that I needed to get started quickly while all this was still fresh.   I quickly started looking recipes to use up the basil before the leaves wilted too much.  

My first thoughts:

• pesto
• frozen basil (either the pesto, or leaves frozen in olive oil)
• a thai basil drink - when my sister and I were on a girl's weekend in Raleigh one year we had the most amazing Thai Basil and Blueberry gin drink.  AMAAAZiNG!  Spicy and sweet all together.   I wanted to make something non-alcoholic that was similar..

Thai Basil and Peach Iced Tea!  PERFECT!!  But all the recipes  I found have sugar and boil the peaches/basil with the sugar to make simple syrup.  I need a no-sugar-added recipe.  :)   So here is what I came up with!

First, brew 2 Qts of Orange Pekoe tea.  I used Salada tea bags.  I usually like my tea pretty weak but the two flavors here are strong so I brewed 5 tea bags in 4 cups of water till it was strong.

Next, peel and roughly chop up 3 peaches into a large bowl.  This works best if your bowl has a flat bottom.  Wash and tear a good sized handful of thai basil leaves (not stems or blossoms)

I wish I had a muddler - but I love the MixNChop from Pampered Chef. 

Smoosh up those peaches and basil to release the juice and flavors.

Next, add ice to a pitcher and pour in the smooshed peaches.

Pour in your tea (make sure to take out the teabags!)

It seemed a little strong for me, so fill it up to the top with water to make the tea match your taste!

Garnish with the blossom of the thai basil - it is this beautiful purple flower!   Sit on the deck on a beautiful sunny day and enjoy sipping on this delicious, slightly sweet and fruity and spicy tea.   

Enjoy!

 

A different kind of inspiration...

Sorry, this is not crafty, not one bit.  But this was such a great weekend for me that I had to share. 

Back in December I did the first 5k on my way to being healthy (walking) and it was a miserable experience.  My goal was to finish..however hard it was, and I did, but in the course of the day  I walked for what seemed like forever (including a pretty good size hill) to the start line from the parking, the course was run backwards which meant all the big hills were up AND no mile markers, and then up another hill to the "party" and then hiked forever to get back to parking.   UGH!   It was a terrible race for all of the 15,000 involved in the 5k and 15k and not a good time for my first race back.

So for 2012 my goal was to do 12 races in 12 months.   Then my dad had a heart attack and surgery and I was going home just about every weekend for the first 6 weeks so no races in Jan or Feb for me..

Soo, fast forward to March and I'm making up for the missed months and I did two this weekend!

First was a race at Fairfax Corner - Rev 3 Run Rogue 5K for two charities:  Life with Cancer and the National Brain Tumor Foundation.  Saturday was perfect - a little chilly, rain held off till we were done and I set my goal to not feel like I would die at the end.  I know I am stronger.  I am doing much more every day and my endurance is better.   I decreased my time from the Dec 3 race by over EIGHT minutes!! and I felt so good that I went walking around and shopping afterwards.   It was amazing.   I feel so strong.

And then today was the original race I signed up for in March, Ronald McDonald House Red Shoe 5k - and it rained all night and was pouring the rain when I got up at 6.  Luckily by 8 it was just misting but was downright cold!   I kind of wanted to sleep in... especially since I picked up my shirt and bib yesterday.   But I knew that wouldn't be right! And another friend was meeting me there...and I couldn't leave her hanging! So I went and I made the goal to finish strong and feel good - since this is the first 5k back-to-back on two days I've ever done.

Well, I not only finished strong, but I decreased my time again!  By 5 minutes and a few seconds!!  Unbelievable!   I knew when I got to mile marker 1 and looked at my split I was much faster than my pace yesterday....second mile was slower than the first, but still better than yesterday and the third mile and the last .1 was the fastest yet!   

I am a little sore, but not in pain.  Sore muscles are building strength, right!?  And I feel so incredibly strong.  I have the bibs hanging inside my door - last thing I see before I leave the house and first thing I see when I come in (my keys go in the little pocket below them).   I knew I could do it but also had that little voice creeping in with doubt.   I showed that little voice!!

All week I have been active.   I'm beginning to run a bit again (I've had surgery on both ankles and have pins and screws in both) and have a long way to go, but I feel so happy and wanted to share!  I've been wearing my FitBit (a nifty little gadget that tracks miles, steps, monitors sleep and calories burned and stairs climbed) and it's like a little competition with myself to do more and more each day.   Can I beat the previous days record?   The FitBit syncs with a website and tracks data historically.  Since I got it on March 15 I have logged 46.95 miles.  I can do this!   I will keep moving! 

I'm looking for some more races - I have a list I think I will do.  But I'm open to suggestions. I've already signed up for a few.

June - Susan G Komen Race for the Cure
September - Color Run

Sassy water

Yet another Pinterest inspired post- Sassy Water is a naturally flavored water, supposedly it is anti-bloat but I'm tempted to believe this is because the water tastes yummy and I drink more.

In a large (and pretty) pitcher combine 2 sliced lemons, a sliced mini cucumber and several mint leaves, torn to release flavor. Top with cold water and refrigerate.

This is so yummy! Pack it in your water bottle and carry it with you all day. Remember that drinking lots of water promotes all kinds of health.

Here is the original post from Pinterest.
http://www.asweetsimplelife.com/home/2012/1/16/sassy-water.html/