Yum!

This last week, I have been a bit of a rebel in my eating. I have still been cooking "good" food, but I have been a bit of a snacker. We still have odds and ends of "bad" food in our house... tempting me.

Today, though, I had a good GOOD snack.I was little nervous after discovering they have walnuts because I am allergic. However, there were just two small pieces right on the top. I removed them and ENJOYED this tasty, healthy treat!

Chicken Nuggets and Fries

YUM! Tonight's dinner was better than last night's by far!

I don't know where I got this recipe - ooops, no credit given there. I made it once before, and it was good, but I knew I could do better. So I made a few modifications, and got rave reviews from the family!

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into even bite-sized pieces
salt and pepper, to taste
2 tsp olive oil
1/3 cup whole wheat Italian bread crumbs
2 tbsp panko
2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp seasoning salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil, and place a baking rack (or cooling rack) on top. Spray with cooking spray. The baking rack allows the heat to circulate all around the chicken it is crispy all the way around!

Mix bread crumbs, panko, parmesan cheese, seasoning salt and pepper in a bowl. Mix well.

Sprinkle chicken with salt, pepper and olive oil. Toss gently to coat.

Put a few chunks of chicken at a time into crumb mixture to coat, then onto the baking rack. Bake for approximately 10 minutes, turn over each nugget and bake another 4-5 minutes.

Chicken should be cripsy on the outside. If necessary, switch oven to broil and bake another few minutes watching carefully so they don't burn.

I also made these fries. I followed a reviewers suggestion and baked them. They were yummy. I did have to add more water to thin my batter out, but that was my only change.

My biggest problem with the meal - my oven isn't big enough to cook everything at once! :)

Whole Wheat Tortillas

Inspired by Rachel, I decided to try this recipe for Whole Wheat Tortillas. After reading comments and reviews I modified it slightly, using 1/3 cup olive oil instead.

{I was a little concerned because the dough was REALLY sticky. When I put it on my cutting board to divide it, I gave it a light dusting of flour and rolled it around a bit. That seemed to help. Until I started rolling it. Um, I must have measured flour wrong or something. I ended up kneading a little more flour into each of the 12 balls as I went.}

The first 5 or so were crazy, but then I think I got the hang of it. My tortillas came out. I was a little concerned because of the stickiness of the dough, but they were DELICIOUS! (I melted a little butter and sprinkled cinnamon on the very last one out of the pan - before the kids could come home and get jealous!) They were sorta crisp after I cooked them, but I stacked them on a plate, covered with plastic wrap, and stuck them in the fridge until dinner time. They still weren't flexible enough to make burritos, but they were perfect for tonight's dinner.

I made the following recipe for dinner with my tortillas. Here are the modifications I made:
1. I used Trader Joes refried black beans.
2. I used a bit of enchilada sauce (from a can because I still had one in my pantry - next week I will try out a recipe for enchilada sauce) instead of salsa, because I know my kiddos wouldn't eat the recipe with salsa.
3. I added corn
4. I used a grated Mexican cheese blend.

The Chicken Tortilla Pie was tasty, but a little dry. I think I could probably fix it next time around. So this will make a repeat appearance on the menu.

And of course some rice: ANOTHER bad attempt at Spanish Rice. This time I took elements from two friends' recipes and combined them (used fresh tomatoes instead of sauce, used chicken stock instead of bouillion, minced garlic instead of garlic salt)... but the result was dreadful. I used 1 1/2 cups brown rice and a total of 8 cups liquid to achieve "not crunchy" rice. Even looking at the bag of rice, I should have only needed 3 3/4 cups water.

I am a little discouraged about Spanish rice. There is a pre-made one that I LOVE that they sell at Costco (in southern California). It is yummy, dry not mushy, and doesn't have chunks of anything in it. I WANT TO MAKE RICE LIKE THAT. I think I have several things going "against" me here - one being elevation and the other using brown rice. Both take more water and time, but I don't know what that perfect combination is.... Oh well - maybe one day I will figure it out!

(Sorry no pics - my camera battery was dead!)

Pizza Night - Great Whole Wheat Dough and Turkey Sausage

Pizza has long been one of my favorite foods. We used to eat pizza once a week. Now because of where we live and my desire to eat more cleanly, we are making pizza at home.

My friend Rhonda, gave me this dough recipe. I simply started using whole wheat flour to make it healthier.

1 cup warm water (105-115 degrees)

2 1/4 teaspoons yeast (or one packet)

1 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon salt

Add yeast to warm water; stir to dissolve. Add sugar. Let sit about 5 minutes, or until foamy. Add olive oil. In a mixing bowl, with dough hook attachment, measure flour and salt; stir together. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Mix until ingredients pull together. Let rest 5 minutes.

Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface. Poke holes in the crust to minimize bubbles when dough cooks. Transfer to a pizza peel or flat cookie sheet. Top with sauce and desired toppings.

**I preheat my oven and my pizza stone to 500 degrees. Then transfer the pizza to the stone and bake for 15-20 minutes.


Our family likes meaty pizzas (except Natalie)! I found a recipe to make pepperoni, but I didn't plan ahead enough to have it ready for tonight's dinner. However, I did whip up a batch of turkey Italian sausage. I found this recipe, but modified it.

Ground Turkey Italian Sausage

• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon Italian-style seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon dried minced onion
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 pounds ground turkey

Mix together spices. Place ground turkey in skillet and sprinkle spices over top. Stir to blend seasonings into turkey. Over medium high heat, saute the seasoned turkey for 10 minutes, or until well browned and crumbly.

I sprinkled oregano over our pizza before I baked it - YUM! Dinner is served.

A Thing of the Past

I just got home from a potluck. Potlucks are a challenge for me, but we will save that for another conversation. As I put food on my plate, I had already noticed something at the end of the line that I knew was going to make it on my plate...

It has been months since I have had a Costco dinner roll. They USED TO be a staple on my menu, often accompanying several meals in a week. I loved them. Tonight, I actually even pondered taking 2 rolls, but decided I shouldn't since I was among the first to go through the line.

Seated, I broke open the roll, spread a little softened butter on it, and took a bite. Hmm... And another... The roll just did not taste so good to me. I ate half of it, but didn't bother with the other half.

I think maybe I am just so accustomed to wheat bread and rolls that this particular one just didn't taste good. And so, I declare Costco dinner rolls a thing of the past.

Inspired

For a VERY long time now, I have been reading the blog of a friend, Jennifer Corbett. Jenn is a nurse and a self-taught real foodie.

When I first started reading about her clean eating adventures, I admit I was not only overwhelmed, but not interested. But still I continued to read.

Over the course of a REALLY LONG time, more of what she was sharing began to appeal to me. The biggest thing that appeals to me is her "rule" to make a conscious decision with EVERY food item I put in my mouth.

Recently I have noticed a movement toward clean eating. I live in a small community in a pretty remote location in the mountains, so the movement I have noticed has been on Facebook. Many of my friends have shared recipes and links. Like most, when I click on a link I read the post, and then spend (way too much) time exploring the blog, often clicking links to other sites or blogs.

I started making better choices; the very first was to stop sweetening my ice tea with Splenda. I tried to sweeten with honey, but found that I like it unsweetened better. As a result, I now drink my tea much weaker so it is less bitter, but the most important thing is that I am not using artificial sweeteners!

I have begun making other changes. Small ones. My family hasn’t seemed to mind too much. The first time I bought whole wheat bread instead of the potato bread I had been buying, my kids gave me a little grief, but only the first sandwich. Since then, I have switched completely to whole wheat flour! (I think chocolate chip cookies even taste better with wheat flour!)

There are so many people that have taken the plunge into clean eating – each with a set of “rules” that varies slightly. The rules that I choose to follow and make for my family are inspired by those that have gone before me. However, this journey is for me and for my family. I choose to take baby steps on my journey, knowing that will be the ONLY WAY for me to stick with it. I also choose to “cheat.” If I want to eat a cheeseburger from In-N-Out, you better believe I am going to – because it is an exception to my normal routine. Maybe one day I will be willing to give up In-N-Out burger, maybe. But for now, I am living bite by bite, conscious of what I am eating.

I decided to start this blog to share my journey, recipes I come across, and my successes and failures as I go – hopefully not too many failures! Walk with me on the journey. Who knows, you too may walk away, INSPIRED!