NOT YO MOMMA’S SHEPARD’S PIE

Note to Linz: takes about 3 hours to make.......make ahead.....30 mins to bake

Shepard’s Pie

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

4 large red potatoes, 2 peeled/2 with skins cut into 1-inch pieces

2 lbs ground turkey, thawed

4 large carrots, peeled and diced

1 medium sweet onion, diced

1 cup frozen organic sweet baby peas

1 cup frozen fresh sweet corn

1 large zucchini, diced

1 large yellow summer squash, diced

4 large Roma tomatoes, diced

2 tsp fresh minced garlic

1.5 tsp salt (separated)

1 Tbs Italian Seasoning

1/2 tsp pepper

1 Tbs parsley

2 cup shredded Colby Jack cheese

 In a large pot, bring 5 cups of water to boil.  Prepare the sweet and red potatoes.  Once water boiling, add the cut potato pieces into water.  Reduce heat and simmer for about 25 minutes until potatoes are soft.

 Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 and brown ground turkey in a large skillet.  Place browned ground turkey to the side.  In the same large skillet, add onion and carrots.  Cook for 4 to 5 minutes until carrots are slightly tender.  Add peas and corn and cook until warm.  Remove from heat.  Return ground beef to vegetable mixture.  Add zucchini, squash, tomatoes, garlic, 1 tsp salt, and Italian seasoning.  Mix wellSince I’m thinking about YOU and your future dinners, this will actually provide you enough to make 2 casseroles (one for dinner tonight ANDone to freeze for later use).  In two 9x3x13, spread turkey mixture evenly on the bottom.

Your potatoes should be getting soft at this point.  Drain the potatoes well and return them back to the pot and then mash them good.  Add 1/2 tsp salt, pepper, and parsley. Mix wellScoop the potato mixture evenly over the top of the turkey mixture.  Use a spoon to smooth the top.  Wrap one dish tightly with clear wrap or apply airtight lid before freezing.  For the dish you’re enjoying for dinner, bake uncovered for 25 minutes until top slightly brown.  Sprinkle cheese on top and return to oven for another 5 minutes until cheese has melted.  Serve warm.

TORTELLINI, CHICKEN, AND VEGETABLE SOUP

Ingredients

• 3 chicken breasts, thawed and cut in 1 inch pieces
• 1 Tbs Coconut or Olive oil
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 4 medium carrots, peeled and diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 8 cups (64 oz) natural chicken stock or broth, low sodium
• 48 oz fresh or frozen tortellini
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1 jalapeno, finely diced (optional)
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp parsley

Instructions

In large pot, heat oil over medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes. Add garlic, carrots, onion, and celery. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes until onions are slightly translucent.

Add chicken stock/broth and bring to boil.

Add chicken pieces, tortellini, bell pepper, mushroom, jalapeno, black pepper, and thyme. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes until chicken no longer pink and tortellini tender.

Remove from heat and add parsley.

MULTIGRAIN WAFFLES

Ingredients

• 1 and 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 3/4 cup quick whole oats
• 2 Tbs flax seeds or flax seed meal
• 2 Tbs chia seeds (optional)
• 1 and 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 cups vanilla almond milk or vanilla coconut milk
• 2 Tbs pure honey or agave

Instructions

Combine all dry ingredients or first 7 ingredients together well in medium-sized bowl. Mix well.

Add milk and honey into dry ingredients and mix well.

Pre-heat waffle iron. Grease waffle iron with light olive oil cooking spray. Pour 1/2 cup batter in center and bake to preference.

Swig Sugar Cookie

Ingredients:

1 C Butter (room temperature)

3/4 C Vegetable Oil

1 1/4 C Sugar

3/4 C Powdered Sugar

2 T Water

2 Eggs

1/2 t Baking SodaCream together Butter, Vegetable Oil, Sugars, Water, and Eggs.

Combine dry ingredients and slowly add to butter mixture.

Mix until everything is combined.  Your dough should be a little crumbly and not sticky at all.

Roll a golf ball sized ball of dough and place it on your cookie sheet

Now its time to give these babies their signature rough edge.  Put 1/4 c of sugar and a pinch of salt in a dish (this is in addition to the sugar and salt listed above.)  Stick the bottom of a glass in it.  This is going to be your cookie press.

Firmly press it into the center of your dough ball.  You want your dough to spill out over the sides of the glass.  If there is a lip its even better.

Bake at 350 for 8 minutes.  They should just barely be browning on the bottom.    Move cookies to a cooling rack.  Once they are cool put them in the fridge.

Sour Cream Frosting

1/2 cup room temperature butter

3/4 C Sour Cream

Approx 1 2lb Package of Powdered Sugar (I never use the whole thing but love having extra on hand just incase I add to much milk!)

1 t salt

1/4 C Milk

Red Food Coloring

Start by creaming together butter and sour cream and salt.  Slowly add powdered sugar.  When it gets so thick its not frosting like add a splash of milk.  Alternate this process until your frosting is the desired consistency.  Add 1 drop of red food coloring and whip on high for 1 minute.

Keep cookies in a sealed container until they are ready to serve.  The magic of a Swig Sugar Cookie is that the cookies are cold and the frosting is room temperature.  Frost right before serving (if you make them in advance and need to refrigerate the frosting make sure you give it time to warm up before serving)

1/2 t Cream of Tarter

1 t Salt

5 1/2 C Flour

FRESH SWEET CORN SALSA

Ingredients

• 2 cups frozen sweet corn, rinsed with warm water
• 1 (15 oz) can organic black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 bell pepper, finely chopped
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
• 1/2 bunch of cilantro, finely chopped
• 1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and diced
• 1 jalapeno, finely chopped (optional if you like your salsa HOT!)
• 1/3 cup lime juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 packet of dry Italian seasoning dressing (I usually only use half the packet)

Instructions

In large bowl, combine corn, black beans, bell pepper, cherry tomatoes, cilantro, avocado, and jalapeno. Stir gently.

In a small bowl, combine lime juice, olive oil, and dry Italian seasoning. Stir well and pour over top and gently stir until mixed well. Chill for at least 2 hours prior to serving for best results.

Serve with your favorite chips or on top of tacos.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Yield: Serves 8

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 3 1/2 hours-6 1/2 hours

Hearty chicken and wild rice soup that is made in the slow cooker! This simple soup is always a hit!

ingredients:

1 medium onion, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
2 cloved garlic, finely chopped
1 cup uncooked wild rice, rinsed and drained
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and black pepper, to taste
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds)
10 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

directions:

1. In a 6 quart slow cooker, combine onion, carrots, celery, garlic, wild rice, bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper. Top with chicken breast halves. Add the chicken broth.

2. Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low heat setting for 6 to 6 1/2 hours or on high-heat setting about 3 1/2 hours. Carefully remove chicken and shred with two forks. Return to the slow cooker and stir. Remove the bay leaves. Add the parsley and season with additional salt and pepper, to taste.

Sweet Potato Veggie Burgers

makes 7-8 large patties

2 cans cannellini white beans, drained
1 large sweet potato, baked/peeled/mashed (about 2 cups)
2 Tbsp tahini
2 tsp maple or agave syrup
1 tsp lemon pepper seasoning OR Cajun seasoning (or another fave spice!)
1/4 cup wheat flour
optional: additional seasoning (whatever you have on hand - I used a few dashes cayenne, black pepper and a scoop of nutritional yeast)
salt to taste if needed

plentiful Panko crumbs
safflower oil for pan

burgers: avocado, Dijon mustard, grain buns, romaine, onion, olive oil, pepper

Directions:

1. Bake sweet potato. Peel, place in large mixing bowl.
2. Add drained beans to mixing bowl. Mash beans and potato together.
3. Mash in seasoning, flour and any additional seasoning. Your mixture will be quite soft and moist. But you should be able to form a patty. Add more flour or a scoop of breadcrumbs - or dry rice to thicken the mixture if needed.
4. Heat 1 Tbsp safflower oil in a pan over high heat.
5. Form a patty from mixture and coat in Panko crumbs. Thick coating. Then drop the patty in the pan. Repeat until the pan is filled. Cook until browned on both sides. You could also bake. If baking, use less Panko.
6. Transfer cooked patties to paper towel. Cool for a few minutes.
7. Serve on toasted bun with lotsa toppings.

Note: yes this patty does fall kind of apart as you eat it. But that is OK because it tastes yummy. 

Cheesy Grilled Pizza Sandwiches

Recipe by Our Best Bites

There are not specific measurements in this recipe, because you can make them to your liking depending on the size of your bread.

Ingredients
rustic style sandwich bread
butter or olive oil
pizza sauce
garlic bread seasoning
pepperoni or turkey pepperoni
Mozzarella cheese

Instructions
Lightly butter one side of each slice of bread, or brush lightly with olive oil.  Sprinkle garlic bread seasoning on each slice and gently pat on with clean hands.  Turn slices of bread over.  Spread pizza sauce on each slice and sprinkle with cheese.  Place pepperoni slices on one of the sandwich halves and then place the two pieces of bread together.

Grill on a panini press or hot skillet, or place under a broiler in the oven, flipping once, until both sides of bread are toasted and golden brown and cheese is melted.  Cool for 3-5 minutes before slicing in half and serve.

Turkey and Black Bean Baked Burritos

2 lbs ground turkey, thawed and browned

1 small sweet onion, diced

1 (15 oz can) organic diced tomatoes, drained

1 (15 oz can) black beans, drained and rinsed

2 cups frozen sweet corn

2 cups salsa

1 tsp ground cumin

12 raw whole wheat tortillas (my favorite brand is Tortilla Land), heated until golden brown

2 cups shredded Colby Jack cheese (or your favorite cheese)

 Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the ground turkey. Drain any excess liquid. Combine the onion, tomatoes, black beans, corn, salsa, and cumin with the browned ground turkey.

 Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until onions are translucent and liquid evaporates. Approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat tortillas until golden brown.

 Place about 1/2 cup turkey mixture down the center of the tortilla. Top with about 2 Tbs of shredded cheese. Fold sides and then ends over to cover filling. Place seam face down on lightly greased 13x9x2 baking dish. Bake for 15 minutes.

 Try Simple Guacamole, Healthy 7 Layer Dip, or Fresh Sweet Corn Salsa as a side dish or topping for your burritos.

My husband loves to take the leftover burritos for lunch the next day. These are also a great ‘freezer meal’ option! Whenever you decide to have them, I guarantee they will become a quick and healthy family favorite.

chicken noodle soup

 

 

Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

1 hour 30 mins

Total time

1 hour 45 mins

 

Total Cost: $9.10

Cost Per Serving: $1.14

Serves: 8

KEVIN LIKES!

http://www.budgetbytes.com/2012/02/chicken-noodle-soup/

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp olive oil $0.24
• 1 medium yellow onion $0.63
• 3 cloves garlic $0.21
• ½ lb. carrots $0.49
• ½ bunch celery $0.75
• 2 split chicken breast (bone-in) $5.35
• 1 tsp dried basil $0.05
• 1 Tbsp dried parsley $0.15
• ½ tsp dried thyme $0.03
• 1 whole bay leaf $0.15
• 10-15 cranks cracked pepper $0.05
• 1 Tbsp salt $0.10
• 6 oz. egg noodles $0.90

Instructions

1. Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Begin cooking them in a large pot over medium heat with 2 Tbsp of olive oil.
2. While the onion and garlic are sauteing, wash and slice the carrots and celery. Add them to the pot and continue to saute.
3. Pull the skin and any excess fat from the chicken breasts. Add the breasts to the pot along with the bay leaf, basil, parsley, thyme, and black pepper. Add eight cups of water. Cover, bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for one hour. Make sure the pot continues to simmer for the whole hour. If the heat is turned down too low and it is not bubbling away, the chicken will not shred easily.
4. After an hour of simmering, remove the chicken from the pot. Using two forks, pull the meat from the bone and shred it slightly. Season the broth with salt. Begin with one teaspoon and add more to your liking. I used one tablespoon total (or three teaspoons). The flavor of the broth will really pop once the salt is added.
5. Add the noodles to the pot, turn the heat up to high, and boil the noodles until tender (about 7 minutes). Return the shredded chicken to the pot, add two more cups of water (to account for evaporation and absorption from the noodles). Taste and season again with salt if needed (I didn’t need to). Serve hot!

Tuscan Kale & White Bean Soup

Serves 4

Ingredients1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
3 carrots, sliced
Salt & pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced or microplaned
1/2 lb kielbasa, cut into bite-sized pieces
4 cups chicken broth
1 can great northern beans, rinsed and drained
2×2″ Parmesan cheese rind
1 bay leaf
4 cups chopped kale (remove leaves from stems/center vein before chopping)
2 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat. Add carrots and onions then season with salt and pepper and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds then add kielbasa and cook for 3 more minutes.
2. Add chicken broth, scraping the bottom of the pot to loosen brown bits, then add beans, Parmesan cheese rind, and bay leaf. Turn heat to high and bring to a boil. Stir in kale then place a lid on the pot, turn heat down to medium-low, and simmer until kale is tender, about 15 minutes. Stir in Parmesan cheese then taste and adjustment seasonings if necessary.
3. Remove bay leaf (Parmesan cheese rind can stay in – it will continue to flavor leftovers) then serve with additional Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top, if desired.

Whole Wheat Blender Pancakes...present 6.18.04

1 c wheat kernels
1 c buttermilk
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
4 T oil
2 T sugar
2 eggs
1/4 tsp salt

Place in blender the wheat kernels and buttermilk.  Blend for about 4 minutes, if still grainy increase time. Then add the rest of the ingredients to blender and blend for about 1 minute more.  Cook on a hot griddle about 350.