Healthy Broccoli Salad

My kids love broccoli. I know. That's pretty weird. But it's true. And we like to be weird.

If you've been to very many pot-luck dinners, you've probably had some form of a traditional broccoli salad. Lots of Mayonnaise. Lots of sugar. Sometimes bacon. Yummy.

I wanted to find a healthier version for my broccoli-loving kiddos. This is what I came up with.

This version doesn't have any sugar or Mayo. The dressing is made using avocados (Yum!) and lemon juice.

Next time, I won't pulverize the broccoli in the food processor. The kids almost didn't believe me that it was broccoli. It just looked like "green stuff". I think that just chopping it into bite-sized paces would be good enough. Other than that, I thought it was great!

Healthy Broccoli Salad
Ingredients:

• 1 pound broccoli (2 small heads)
• 3 small carrots
• 1 apple
• 1/2 cup craisins (or raisins, or chopped up grapes)
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• Dressing:
• 3 avocados
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons salt

Instructions:

Chop up broccoli into small bite-size pieces and place in bowl. In food processor, grate carrots and apple. Add to broccoli. Add craisins and sunflower seeds. Toss to mix. Seed and peel avocados and place in food processor. Add lemon juice and salt. Process until mostly smooth. Toss dressing with salad and serve.

This was really good stuffed into a pita! The leftovers kept well for a few days.

Enjoy!

Multigrain bread

One thing I have noticed about this new diet is that we've been eating a LOT of bread. And it's not cheap. The good stuff is pricey! And my kids can go through a loaf a day! So, I've decided that I need to get back to basics and start making my own!

I used to make homemade bread all the time. In fact, when I was a teenager, one of my weekly chores was to bake bread for my family for the week. I've gotten out the habit as an adult because it is pretty time consuming, but if I can make large batches, I think it will save us quite a bit. And I will know exactly what is going in to it, so I will have a lot more control over what we are eating.

I made my old recipe a few weeks ago and froze a few loafs. We went through those pretty quick, but I noticed that it was pretty crumbly and a little tough to make sandwiches out of. Plus, the stuff we've been getting at the store is multi-grain, and that's probably better for us, right?

So, I looked for recipes for multigrain bread and came across this one.

The idea of making my own multigrain flour blend was really intriguing, so I decided to try it. 

I used: 

• chia seeds
• flax seeds
• brown rice
• quinoa
• steel cut oats

(You could really use as many different grains as you want!)

I put them in my blender (new!) and put it on the highest setting. It didn't take long before I had about two cups of multigrain "flour". I was impressed. 

I do have a wheat grinder, and I think it would have worked, but it's kind of a pain to get out, and clean, so I just used the blender. It worked.

One of the things we are supposed to avoid is white flour. So, I decided to use whole wheat flour instead. It turned out pretty dense, and didn't rise as much as I thought it would, but I still think it was pretty good. And, I didn't have any vital wheat gluten, so I left that out.

Here's the recipe that I did (I'm not sure about the amounts of each grain I used. I pretty much just put a little of each into the blender):

Homemade Multigrain Bread (makes 2 loaves)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of your multigrain mix
• 2 3/4 cups boiling water
• 4 Tablespoons coconut oil
• 1/3 cup honey
• 4 1/2 teaspoons yeast
• 4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon salt

In a large bowl (I used by Bosch mixer) mix together multigrain mix and boiling water. Wait for it to cool - about 20 minutes. Mix in coconut oil and honey. Mix in yeast.  (I think next time I will try proofing the yeast ahead of time. It would probably make the bread rise better). Add flour, a 1 cup at a time until not quite sticky. Add salt. Mix (knead) for 5-10 minutes or until smooth. Allow to rise until double. (About 45 minutes) Punch down. Form into loaves and put into greased pans (I used coconut oil). Sprinkle with oats if desired. (I forgot to do this. oops.) Allow to rise until double again. (About 30 minutes). Bake at 375° for 40 minutes.

The taste was actually really good! I had a piece right after it came out of the oven because I couldn't give it to the kids without making sure it was good, right?? And I made a sandwich with it for lunch with a little hummus, some spinach leaves, bell peppers, and tomato slices. Yummy!

And the kids liked it too!

My two loaves - one almost gone!

Close up of the good stuff!

Black Bean Burgers & Sweet Potato Fries

This is actually take two of attempting to make black bean burgers and I'm still not sure that I have perfected it.

Here is the recipe that I used.

Against my better instincts, I included the egg (I think they would be fine without), and I didn't have enough bread crumbs so I put in some cracker crumbs. Both of those are no-nos on Miss May's diet, and I think I could have found suitable substitutes. I think next time I will use oats instead of bread crumbs. I also included a few carrots and used less chili powder and hot sauce (because, kids).

Here's what I would modify it too:

Black Bean Burgers
Ingredients:

• 1 16oz can black beans, drained
• 1/2 green bell pepper
• 1/2 onion
• 3 cloves garlic
• 3 small carrots
• 1/2 Tablespoon chili powder
• 1 Tablespoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon hot sauce
• 1/2 cup quick oats

In a bowl, use a potato masher to smash the black beans until a thick paste is formed. In a food processor, finely chop bell pepper, onion, garlic and carrots. Mix into beans. Add seasonings and oats and blend until the mixture is sticky and holds together. Form into patties. Cook in pan on medium high heat. Flip to cook both sides. Serve on a whole wheat bun.

This is what the mixture looked like before it was cooked. I used my Pampered Chef scooper to get all the patties the same size.

The trickiest part was trying to get the patties flat. I cooked them on the stove in a frying pan and used the back of a spatula to smoosh them but it kept getting stuck. Eventually, I got the hang of it. I thought they were really good, and the kids ate them pretty well.

I served them with some homemade sweet potato fries. This is something I have yet to perfect, but I'm going to keep trying because I love them!

Most of the "healthy" sweet potato fry recipes I've found basically say: cut up a sweet potato, put it on a pan with some oil and a little salt (Line the pan with aluminum foil. Trust me.), and cook for a long time. I cooked this batch at 400° for 50 minutes.

The result - delicious but mushy sweet potatoes. I'm not sure they would count as fries because fries should be crispy.

So I'll keep working on that.

Being goofy

My kids love their condiments. I need to find some without sugar/dairy. Working on that.

We had some spinach with the burgers. These kids were being silly with it. But at least they will eat it!

And I can't forget - I love recipes that can easily be turned into leftovers. I had a few bean patties left over the next day. They didn't hold together very well, so I mashed them up, added a little tomato sauce, and called it sloppy joes. Made a great lunch!

Birthday Treats

Miss May had a birthday this month. Trying to decide what to serve was a bit of a challenge because I did NOT want to destroy the diet we had just started. (I know! I'm the meanest mother ever!)
I tried to come up with treats that the kids would enjoy, but were still healthy. At the actual party, some were hits, some were... not.

The husband and I went out of town on the birthday weekend (again, I'm a terrible mother!) We returned just two hours before the party, so I tried to plan ahead and make things before we left. In some ways, that kind of backfired on me.

Date Nut Balls (I thought these were really sweet and yummy. Not all of the kids agreed)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups walnuts (or other nut/seed of choice)
• 1 cup unsweetened shredded dried coconut
• 2 cups medjool date (soft, pitted)
• 2 tbsps coconut oil
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

In food processor, blend walnuts, coconut and dates until crumbly. Add coconut oil, salt and vanilla. Roll into balls. Place on cookie sheet and freeze for at least 1 hour.

I left them in the freezer for nearly 2 days which was way too long. I actually preferred them the day after the party when they were nice and soft. Yum!

Banana "Ice Cream" (This one was a pretty big hit, and it is really simple!)

Ingredients:

• 6 frozen bananas (3 of mine had been in the freezer for weeks, the other three were only in for about 2 hours, and it was actually perfect!)
• almond milk as needed (I actually didn't need any because of the softer bananas)
• mix-in (we used cocoa powder, but you could try frozen berries or other fruit, nuts, peanut butter... the possibilities are endless!)

Blend the bananas in the food processor until creamy. Add almond milk if need to get a creamy texture. Add mix-ins as desired. Enjoy!

It's really amazing how much the frozen bananas become just like "real" ice cream!

Healthy Cupcakes - this recipe I almost totally made up. Truly an experiment. When I first made them on Thursday night, the kids thought they were great, so I thought they would work. I wanted them to last until Saturday, so I put them in the freezer. I think that was where I went wrong. We pulled them out two hours before the party, but I don't think it was enough time for them to defrost. Most of the kids didn't finish them. But they looked pretty....

Ingredients: (Amounts are kind of a guess. I really made things up as I went)

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1 apple, grated
• 3 carrots, grated
• 1 Tablespoon coconut oil
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 1/2 cup raisins

Mix together flour, baking powder, and salt in large bowl. Stir in applesauce, apple, carrots, and coconut oil. Add enough almond milk to make a creamy batter. Fold in raisins. Spoon into lined muffin tin. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until done.

All cupcakes need frosting, so I tried this one: (It wasn't my kid's favorite, but it looked pretty!)

Coconut Whipped Cream 

Ingredients: 

• 2 cans coconut milk, refrigerated (I left them in the fridge for 2 days)
• 1 Tablespoon honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Open the cans of coconut milk and scoop out the cream that has risen to the top. Save the rest of the milk for another day. Using a hand mixer, blend the cream until it is creamy. Add honey and vanilla and whip some more. Spread on cupcakes.

I also put some unsweetened coconut in a baggie with a little food coloring and shook it up to make some colorful sprinkles to go on top.

Butternut Squash Mac n Cheeze

I happened to catch a little of the Today show last weekend - something that NEVER happens - and they were interviewing a chef. Her "thing" was healthy foods, so my interest was piqued. One of the dishes she had brought was Vegan Mac & Cheese made with butternut squash. "Very interesting..." I thought. So, I looked up recipes and decided to try it. The only problem was, one of the ingredients I had never heard of: nutritional yeast.

After a brief consultation with Google and Wikipedia, I learned that "nutritional yeast has a strong flavor that is described as nutty, cheesy, or creamy, which makes it popular as an ingredient in cheese substitutes. It is often used by vegans in place of cheese. It can be used in many recipes in place of cheese, such as in mashed and fried potatoes, and atop scrambled tofu. Another popular use is as a topping for popcorn."

Very interesting. However, it was not to be found at my local Wal-mart. So I thought I'd find a substitute. Some websites suggested cashews. So, that's what I tried. However, it did not make the dish taste very cheesy. The butternut squash taste was still a bit too strong. It wasn't unpleasant, just not much like the mac&cheese taste I was looking for.

I think we will revisit this recipe after I have nutritional yeast in my hands.

Here's the copied recipe with a few of my adjustments. I had some roasted squash on hand from a previous meal, so I skipped that part.

Butternut Squash Mac ‘n Cheeze

Ingredients:

• 1 fresh butternut squash* (peeled and chopped) OR 1 cup canned butternut squash OR canned pumpkin
• Extra virgin olive oil, S & P
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 3/4 cup unsweetened & unflavoured almond milk (revised from 1 cup)
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 6 tbsp nutritional yeast, or more to taste (this is where I tried cashews)
• 2 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1/4-3/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1/2-1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2-1 tsp kosher salt (to taste) & ground black pepper, to taste
• 4 servings brown rice macaroni (8oz or half a 16oz package) makes 3 1/4 cup cooked
• Mix-ins of choice (e.g., kale, spinach, broccoli, peas, pumpkin seeds, etc)

1. Preheat oven to 425F. Line a casserole dish with tin foil. Mix chopped squash with EVOO, S & P. Roast for about 40 minutes, uncovered, or until tender.
2. Meanwhile, prepare the cheeze sauce in a pot on the stove top. Add coconut oil over low-medium heat. In a bowl, whisk together milk and cornstarch until clumps are gone. Add into pot and whisk. Stir in remaining ingredients (nutritional yeast, Dijon, garlic, lemon, S & P) and whisk over low heat until thickened (about 5-7 minutes or so).
3. Cook your pasta according to package directions. The sauce makes enough to cover 4 servings of pasta.
4. In a blender, blend the sauce with 1 cup of roasted squash (or if using canned, simply stir 1 cup into the pot).
5. Add cooked, drained, and rinsed macaroni into pot, along with cheeze sauce & mix-ins. Heat and serve.

Read more: http://ohsheglows.com/2011/10/03/butternut-squash-mac-n-cheeze/#ixzz3y02I2yKQ

Fiesta Rice

One of the recipes that we tried this week I have dubbed "Fiesta Rice". I thought it turned out really good, and made for some yummy leftovers.
I used this recipe as a starting point, and made my own changes.

Fiesta Rice:

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup chopped bell pepper
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1 can corn, drained
• 1 cup rice
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 can black beans, drained

Instructions:

In sauce pan, saute onions, peppers, and garlic in a little water until peppers are soft and onions are translucent. Add tomatoes, corn, rice, seasoning, and water. Bring to a boil. Cover and boil 15-20 minutes or until water is absorbed and rice is done. Stir in black beans and serve.

Crockpot Steel Cut Oats

This has become a breakfast staple in our house. Because I am exceptionally lazy in the morning, we used to eat a lot of cold cereal. Too processed and too much sugar for our new diet. Dr. Oskin suggested steal cut oats because they are not processed like rolled oats, and have more nutrients. They take much longer to cook than quick oatmeal, so I've started putting them in the crockpot to cook overnight. And I make batches large enough to feed our family for a few days.

Recipe:

Crockpot Steel Cut Oats

Ingredients:

2 cups steel cut oats
7 cups liquid -- (I use about 3 cups of apple juice as a sweetener and 4 cups of water)
2 Tablespoons chia seeds
1 Tablespoon flax seeds

Instructions:

Mix all ingredients in a crockpot. Cook on low heat 4-6 hours or overnight.

Optional mixins -- When I first started this, I thought the kids would like having extras mixed in. We tried different things including chopped apples, pears, dates, walnuts and raisins with mixed results. Finally, the kids told me they would just rather mix in whatever they choose when they are ready to eat it in the morning and that seems to make everyone happier. Dried fruit works really well. A little almond milk can be added to make a creamier texture.

What am I doing here??

My daughter (7) has been struggling with digestive issues for nearly a year. We've had countless tests done trying to find the cause and a solution, and so far, nothing.

Last month, we went to a new doctor, and he suggested a complete overhaul of her diet. I knew the changes wouldn't stick during the month of December, so we are starting the New Year with the WHOLE family eating this way. It won't work to have her eat something different from the rest of us, and it's healthier for all of us.

Here's the plan:

• NO Sugar

• NO Processed foods

• NO Dairy

• Very little animal products

• Only 2-3 times per week, and one of those should be fish, if possible

• LOTS of fruits and veggies, especially leafy greens

• LOTS of nuts

• LOTS of beans (the goal is at least 1 serving per day)

• LOTS of whole grains

I am NOT calling this a Resolution because those never work. This is a lifestyle change that just happens to be happening at the beginning of the year.

This isn't an easy change for any of us - but especially the kids (including the biggest - the hubby). But, I know it will be for the best! 

I have always loved experimenting in the kitchen, and this new diet gives me lots of reason to try new things. I'm going to be posting the different recipes that we try. This is mostly for me to keep track of what we liked and what we didn't, and then remember the changes that I made to the original recipes. And, I thought that it might help someone else.