A GREAT bit of encouragement!

One of my favorite clean eating blogs, The Gracious Panty, is written by an amazing woman, Tiffany. I love reading her blog/site, and I want to meet her! I have commented on a couple of her posts, both on the website and on Facebook, and she personally responds to each one!

I have been facing a bit of a struggle recently, and was so encouraged when I read this entry. It not only speaks to the food journey/adventure I am on, but it speaks on a broader level too. Here is an excerpt ... be encouraged by Tiffany.

The Secret of Healthy Success

I’m convinced that there is one thing that the winners know, that most others do not. One thing that separates those who succeed, from those who do not. One thing.

That one thing is the knowledge that, while the support of those around you is an important component to success, it is not what matters most.

What matters most is the level of belief you have in yourself. Because the truth is, no amount of support will ever help you until you know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you can and will do something. That knowledge that is as basic as the fact that you took a breath today. That knowledge that knows no doubts, no fears and no worries simply because it is such a basic understanding you have with yourself. That understanding that you have everything you need already to succeed. You have you.

And in that moment, you realize that all those people who don’t support you, or who have something negative to say about you, simply don’t matter.

In that moment, you find your true power. In that moment, whatever your goal is, you realize that there is truly NOTHING standing in the way of you and what you can achieve.

Sure, stuff happens. But when you are this focused, you sway with the tide instead of working against it or allowing it to knock you backwards. When you are this focused, you achieve your goals, leaving negativity behind you while you reach for the stars.

And you do reach them.

BTW, I think I may make these pumpkin spice mini muffins tomorrow!

Chalupa

The story goes that when we were kids mom made Chalupa "all the time!" However, none of the three of us girls ever remember having it until our adult years, and I would even venture to say, probably not until the last 5-8 years or so. Either way, Chalupa has become part of our regular menu. I haven't made it in quite some time, but it was a delicious dinner tonight!

Chalupa

1 (4 pound) pork shoulder roast (I buy the pork roasts that come 4 in a package at Costco)

1 pound dried pinto beans (I rinsed and soaked mine overnight)

2 (4 ounce) cans diced green chile peppers

2 tablespoons ground cumin

1 tablespoons dried oregano

1 tsp minced garlic

1 tsp onion powder

Salt and pepper, to taste (I don't usually measure the salt and pepper)

Place the roast inside a slow cooker coated with cooking spray. In a separate bowl, stir together the beans, chile peppers, and seasonings. Pour the whole mixture over the roast, and add enough water so that the roast is mostly covered. Jiggle the roast a little to get some of the liquid underneath.

Cover, and cook on Low for 8 to 9 hours. Check after about 5 hours to make sure the beans have not absorbed all of the liquid. Add more water if necessary 1 cup at a time. Use just enough to keep the beans from drying out.

When the roast is fork-tender, remove it from the slow cooker, and place on a cutting board. Remove any bone and fat, then shred with forks. Return to the slow cooker.

Our family builds this up on a bed of Fritos. You could add cheese, lettuce, tomato, salsa, sour cream, olives, etc. Some people use it as a taco or burrito filling. I also think it would be good over a bed of rice - which will likely be my lunch tomorrow!

THIS RECIPE MAKES A LOT! It is great for when you have company. I usually freeze half of it for use at a later time and still have plenty to feed us for at least two dinners.

Fresh Bread

I have tried a number of bread recipes with varying levels of success. Why? Why make my own bread? Well, a bit of research has revealed that there are just too many ingredients in store bought bread. How many ingredients does it take to make bread? FIVE!

1. Fresh-ground whole wheat flour
2. Water
3. Fresh yeast
4. Salt
5. Something sweet (honey)

When I made the switch from white (actually Oroweat Potato Bread) to wheat, I was buying bread that contained these ingredients: WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR, WATER, SUGAR, WHEAT GLUTEN, YEAST, EXTRACT OF RAISINS, SALT, WHEAT BRAN, CRACKED WHEAT, MOLASSES, SOYBEAN OIL, CALCIUM PROPIONATE (PRESERVATIVE), SODIUM STEAROYL LACTYLATE, MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES, CALCIUM SULFATE, HONEY, SOY LECITHIN, AZODICARBONAMIDE.

Huh?! I thought this bread was supposed to be healthy. But what in the world are those last ingredients, the ones with names I can't pronounce? I urge to to google a few of these. I looked up Azodicarbonamide and found that it is a flour bleaching agent. However, the principal use of azodicarbonamide is in the production of foamed plastics (plastics?) as an additive. It is a respiratory sensitizer (a possible cause of asthma). Most of the world does not look upon the chemical additive very favorably (gosh, I wonder why?). It is banned as a food additive and in food packaging in the United Kingdom. It is banned in most European countries as well as Australia. And its use in Singapore has some pretty severe penalties (up to 15 years in prison and $450,000 fine).

That is not the case in the U.S. The United States allows azodicarbonamide to be added to flour at levels up to 45 ppm. The FDA’s official database on food additives is called EAFUS, which stands for Everything Added to Food in the United States. EAFUS contains more than 3000 additives, including nearly 700 which have not been tested for toxicology. Nice!

So far, none of my attempts have yielded bread suitable for sandwich making. (I will keep trying). But after this research, I decided I am willing to spend good money on fresh bread with simple ingredients! I discovered Great Harvest Bread Company! Their whole wheat bread contains FIVE ingredients:

1. Fresh-ground whole wheat flour
2. Water
3. Fresh yeast
4. Salt
5. Something sweet (usually a local honey)

Each loaf is made from grains milled on site and baked fresh each day! The cost of a whole wheat loaf is $5. They will slice it for you or leave it unsliced. Today I asked them to slice it thicker for French Toast! Yum! The bread stays fresh for 7-10 days on the counter (do not refrigerate bread with honey in it – it will dry it out!). My kids love it – and because it is truly healthy I am willing to go out of my way to get it and spend the extra money too!

All my efforts earned me a BONUS!

One advantage to all the time I spend in the kitchen is that my hubby notices! So when I asked him if I could get some new pots and pans, he said YES!

A well-timed sale along with my 30% off Kohl's coupon, means I got a great deal too!

I love my new pots and pans! It is the Cooking with Calphalon® 12-pc. Hard-Anodized Cookware Set.

• Hard-anodized aluminum construction provides even heating and lasting use.
• Nonstick interior prevents food from adhering to the pan.
• Clear lids let you monitor food without releasing heat.
• Stay-cool silicone handles offer a safe, secure grip.
• Details:
  • Exclusively at Kohl's!
  • 12 piece set includes: 10-in. omelet pan, 12-in. omelet pan, 1-qt. saucepan, 2-qt. covered saucepan, 4-qt. covered saucepan with strainer, 3-qt. covered saute pan & 6-qt. covered stockpot
  • Hand wash

Cookies for Breakfast - Yep!

Admitted, I taught my kids some bad habits with food. Their favorite breakfast foods used to be "kid" cereals, Costco muffins, and PopTarts - not the fruit ones either - S'mores or Cinnamon Brown Sugar.

Zachary has made the switch much more easily than Natalie has. He is happy with Kashi cereal (Go Lean Crunch) or any of the breakfast muffins that I make. Natalie on the other hand has refused any type of "good" cereal that I buy and insists on toast with honey most mornings. While I realize toast with honey is fine, I want to find other things that she will eat.

A couple weeks ago, I made applesauce bread (muffins - baked at 325 for 18 minutes, makes 11). When she asked what kind they were I told her (I'm not about to lie to my kids about food). I was surprised when she turned up her nose at them - she loves applesauce. It was Zachary I expected not to eat those. Zach and I loved them! Last week, I asked Natalie if she wanted to help me make muffins - she said yes without hesitating and helped me make APPLESAUCE MUFFINS! She asked if we could add chocolate chips to them, so I tossed in a handful of mini chocolate chips. She LOVED them! Silly girl.

Tonight I made some YUMMY cookies for breakfast. I'm not sure Natalie will eat them, but I threw in a few mini chocolate chips for good measure. I stumbled across this recipe as a pop-up on my sidebar, so of course, it is not "clean." But I cleaned it up - almost!

Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies
Makes 16 large cookies

1/2 cup organic peanut butter
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
3/4 cup dark brown sugar (see - almost clean)
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla (as I type I realize I misread the recipe and added 1 Tablespoon!)
2 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup toasted wheat germ
2 cups quick cooking oats
1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

With an electric mixer, beat the peanut butter and applesauce until combined. Beat in the brown sugar. Add egg and vanilla, beating until mixed. Stir in the bananas, baking soda, and salt.

Add the flour and wheat germ, mixing until combined. Stir in the oatmeal and chocolate chips.

Drop 1/4 cup dollops of batter four inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Press down slightly with the palm of your hand to flatten into 3 inch rounds. (I used wet hands to avoid sticking.)

Bake for 14 minutes or until the edges are browned. Let stand 1 minute on the cookie sheet, then remove to a wire rack.

Homemade Tater Tots

We had homemade chicken nuggets again, but this time we had homemade tater tots. Frozen tater tots are one of my favorite "guilty pleasures." I love them! In all my recipe "research," I came across a recipe to make my own. But, would they be as good?!

My tots recipe, was inspired by this one. But of course, I adapted it to fit our family preferences.

3 1/2 cups shredded potato - I used baked then grated potatoes. (see this)
1/2 – 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (depends on how ‘cheesy’ you want your tater tots)
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil + a little extra for greasing the pan

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

1. Coat your muffin tin with olive oil or cooking spray and set aside. You can use a 12 count muffin tin or for mini tater tots use a 24 count muffin tin.
   
2. In large bowl combine shredded potato, cheese, salt and pepper. Gently mix with a fork.
3. Drizzle the mixture with olive oil and toss lightly with a fork again until the mixture is well combined.
4. Spoon the mixture evenly into the muffin tin. With the back of the spoon gently press down to pack mixture into each cup.
5. Bake for 50-60 minutes ( mini tater tots bake for 30-40 minutes).
6. Let the tater tots rest for 5 minutes, run a small knife or spatula around the edge of each cup to loosen the edges. Remove each tater tot and turn upside down (bottom side up) onto a plate to serve.

Outcome: The family loved them - Natalie called them "scrumptious!" They were a bit salty, so I will only use 1/2 teaspoon next time. I am going to try to make "mini" tots next time. I didn't watch the clock, I just pulled them out when they were golden brown and crispy. (I increased my oven temperature after about 30 minutes to bake the rest of our meal.) I am also going to try to make them with cheddar cheese or a Mexican cheese blend.

Note:
The recipe recommended using a silicone muffin tin. I have individual silicone muffin liners. I used these, and the tots did come easily out of the silicone. HOWEVER, I turned my oven to broil in the last minute or so to make them extra crispy, and my silicone muffin liners are discolored now. :(

Turkey Burgers

Sometimes I come across a recipe that I want to try, so I tear it out of a magazine or print it out for future reference. Tonight's dinner was one such recipe.

Turkey Burgers even your husband will love is brought to you by Jenn Corbett at RN for Wellness.

I did make 1 minor change to the original recipe - I used 1/2 the amount of salt. When I read it, I was concerned it was going to be too salty.

The verdict: Yummy! My hubby did love them - we all did! :) Natalie ate more than 1/2 of her burger before telling me she didn't like it, but I suspect that she was just full. Silly girl - you don't eat most of something and then declare you don't like it!

Mexican Pizzas

Years ago, I got a recipe from Jenn Corbett, back when her blog was called Crumbs in the Carseat. I make Mexican Pizzas periodically, when we need something "different."

I made them tonight with homemade refried beans and homemade enchilada sauce. I tried to find the original Mexican Pizzas post to link to, but I couldn't find it. Here's what I did.

Mexican Pizzas:
tortillas
refried beans
enchilada sauce
taco meat
cheese

For each pizza, spread a layer of refried beans on a tortilla. Spread enchilada sauce on top. Top with taco meat. Place another tortilla on top, spread enchilada sauce, sprinkle with grated cheese.

Bake on a cookie sheet at 375 for 10-15 minutes, until cheese is melted and golden. Can be topped with green onion, tomato, sour cream.

(Sorry no pictures today.)

Baked Potato Soup

Well, the last week or so have been very busy around our house, thus my little bloggy absence.

Panera's Cream Cheese Potato Soup
Yesterday afternoon the temperature dropped and the clouds rolled in. This morning I woke to the sound of rain pounding on the roof. And right now, as I type, snow is falling!

The cold weather calls for a tasty soup. I found this one, some time ago and we made it as a take-at-bake at MOPS. It can also be made stove-top, like this recipe; that's how I made it tonight. I subbed white pepper for red, because that's what I have. Natalie doesn't really like this soup, so I don't make it very often, but I it sure is delicious!

Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls
I made this recipe. (The easiest way to read the directions is to click on recipe card and print it.) Instead of white sugar, I used honey. After the dough rose the first time, I made half into dinner rolls (8 rolls that were much too large!), and the other half into cinnamon rolls. I used organic cane sugar and cinnamon as a filling.

The dinner rolls were SUPER good! I haven't had a cinnamon roll yet, but I know they will be good too! The dough was light and fluffy like you would expect a yeast roll to be - not dense like some of the wheat recipes I have tried!

I will be making this roll recipe over and over and over. While I admit there is a bit of disappointment that comes with making a recipe and not liking it, past disappointments are quickly forgotten when you find a GREAT recipe! This is a victory for sure!