Easy Acorn Squash Soup

Acorn squash soup

I picked up a couple acorn squash at Trader Joes (the price was great) to make baby food for Jacob. I love these squash they look so cool - they are not that big which makes handling easier - and they have a creamy rich flesh when roasted. I roasted and pureed the squash and I ended up with quite a lot. I wanted to make a appetizer soup for dinner... I looked at the squash and thought perfect. So I heated chicken broth added the pureed squash and herbs and it was great. So easy. Tonight for dinner I was dining alone so I made this soup again and paired it with leftover bread sticks and it was satisfying as a main course too. This soup is pretty thin so it's a nice change. Soup can be SO thick at times almost a porage consistency - well this one is not. It's soup weather today... you really never know around here - one day its 60 degrees the next its 80.

Soup:
1 C roasted and pureed acorn squash (roast at 350 degrees about 1hr - use water to puree)
3/4 C water
1 packet Trader Joes Chicken broth (hopefully it's not too bad for you - if you have chicken broth on hand by all means use that and substitute for the water)
fresh herbs - any kind you like - I used chives and oregano

Boil water in a small pot - add chicken broth - add squash - heat just until simmering - pour into a bowl and top with fresh herbs.

Pumpkin Smoothie

Well fall is here but in So. Cal we still have very warm days... so how do combine fall with a hot day - a pumpkin smoothie. If you have been following my blog you will know that I love banana smoothies and we are constantly freezing banana's so we have them on hand. I used my basic banana recipe and added pumpkin and spices and it turned out great. Like cold pumpkin pie in a glass. The baby loved it too.

Pumpkin Smoothie

3 frozen bananas sliced

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

3/4 tsp fresh ground nutmeg

1 tsp fresh grated ginger

dash of sea salt

1/2 tsp stevia - you can leave this out and use more honey if you like

2 TBS raw honey

1 1/2 C almond milk - or more

Put ingredients in blender in order listed and blend until smooth add more almond milk if necessary pour into glasses and top with cinnamon. Makes 2 glasses and a tiny glass for baby ;)

Lasagna time!

Cool weather is here and it's time to turn on the oven. There is something about waking up to a cool morning that says boil a cup of hot tea and plan a yummy warm dinner. I had not made lasagna in so long and it sounded great so I decided to take a swing at making a heathy cheese free version. I took some pics during the process in case it turned out good and it was! It didn't leave me wanting the "real" version at all.

Lasagna

1 package whole wheat noodles boiled and cooled

1 Jar Organic marinara sauce

1 lb ground turkey cooked and browned

handful or more of fresh basil chopped

dairy free bechamel sauce:

4 TBS coconut oil

4 TBS flour

2 1/2 C cashew milk

sea salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet heat coconut oil over med/high heat add flour and stir with a whisk about 1 min. quickly add cashew milk while stirring with a whisk to prevent lumps. Cook until thickened about 3 min. -I think. If too thick add more cashew milk. Add salt and pepper to taste - (1/2 tsp. salt or so). Remove from heat.

Mix marinara sauce with basil and turkey. Cover the bottom of a large glass 9x13 pan with a small amount of bech. sauce then a layer of noodles then a layer of meat sauce etc. until you end with bech. sauce. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 40min - remove foil the last 5-10min.

The actual plan - 40 days

-40 Day Health Challenge -

sorry I forgot to post this until now... let us know if you decide to start!

During all phases drink pure water and herbal and green teas - drink 8oz of water 10-20min before meals

PHASE ONE:
Every morning upon rising drink one of the following: 1 glass warm water w/ 1TBS lemon juice, 1 glass water w/ 1oz cranberry juice, 1 glass water w/
TBS apple cider vinegar, 1 glass water w/ 1oz cherry juice (trader joe's has unsweetend cran and cherry juice)

DAY (salad dressing:apple cider vinegar or lemon juice w/olive oil,sea salt & pepper

One
fruit, fresh fruit juice
Two
fruit, fresh fruit juice, raw vegetables, fresh vegetable juice *
Three
fruit, fresh fruit juice, raw vegetables, fresh vegetable juice, cooked vegetables *
coconut oil for stir fry
Four
fruit, fresh fruit juice, raw vegetables, fresh vegetable juice, cooked vegetables *
Five
fruit, fresh fruit juice, raw vegetables, fresh vegetable juice, cooked vegetables, raw nuts, seeds
Six
fruit, fresh fruit juice, raw vegetables, fresh vegetable juice, cooked vegetables, raw nuts, seeds, beans, lentils
Seven
fruit, fresh fruit juice, raw vegetables, fresh vegetable juice, cooked vegetables, raw nuts, seeds, beans, lentils, eggs
Eight
fruit, fresh fruit juice, raw vegetables, fresh vegetable juice, cooked vegetables, raw nuts, seeds, beans, lentils, eggs

* add raw nuts for breastfeeding or other health reasons
(add lots of fresh herbs, garlic and ginger)

PHASE TWO: phase one plus…
(add nut butters and humus for dip and stevia for sweetener)

DAY

Nine
brown rice, wild caught fish
Ten
brown rice, wild caught fish
Eleven
brown rice, wild caught fish
Twelve
brown rice, wild caught fish
Thirteen
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk
Fourteen
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk
Fifteen
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk

Sixteen
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk
Seventeen
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk, free range organic chicken
Eighteen
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk, free range organic chicken
Nineteen
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk, free range organic chicken
Twenty
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk, free range organic chicken
21
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk, free range organic chicken, free range bison
22
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk, free range organic chicken, free range bison
23
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk, free range organic chicken, free range bison
24
brown rice, wild caught fish, oatmeal, rice milk, free range organic chicken, free range bison

PHASE THREE: phases one and two plus...

DAY (dried fruit and low sugar dark chocolate)
25
yogurt, kefir (preferably raw)
26
yogurt, kefir
27
yogurt, kefir
28
yogurt, kefir
29
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread
30
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread
31
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread
32
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread

33
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread, honey, maple syrup

34
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread, honey, maple syrup

35
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread, honey, maple syrup
36
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread, honey, maple syrup
37
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread, honey, maple syrup, butter (preferably grass-fed)
38
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread, honey, maple syrup, butter (preferably grass-fed)
39
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread, honey, maple syrup, butter (preferably grass-fed)
40
yogurt, kefir, whole grain bread, honey, maple syrup, butter (preferably grass-fed)

Tamale Pie

Tamale Pie - so easy one dish a side salad and you are done. I don't really have the exact recipe for this one but you just mix up the bottom ingredients top it with cornbread throw it in the oven and there you have it. It's nice to have a meal that is an all in one dish. This is how I made it.

Tamale Pie:

base ingredients:

ground turkey

onions

bell peppers

corn

tomatoes

tomato sauce

kidney beans

chili powder

garlic

cumen

sea salt & pepper

corn bread topper:

1 C whole wheat flour

1 C corn meal

2 TBS honey

1 TBS baking powder

1/2 tsp sea salt

2 eggs

1 C water

1/4 C coconut oil (i used the non flavored one)

preheat oven to 425 degrees

Brown the turkey in a skillet mix in onions and peppers and cook some, put in all other ingredients - cook until heated through and bubbly. Pour into a cast iron skillet or glass pan. Mix corn bread ingredients together and spoon over the cooked ingredients & smooth the top - throw it in the oven and bake at 425 degrees umm... maybe 20 min - I really have no idea just check to see if the corn bread is done if it is then it's ready.

Instead of topping it with sour cream I made a mock sour cream out of soaked cashews and coconut milk and a pinch of salt. (kinda like the creamy pasta sauce) It was great on it. I'm going to make this again wihout meat and with more veggies like zuchini etc.

Dairy - Free Creamy Pasta

Jason and I enjoy the idea of eating dairy-free and I make many of our meals dairy-free. I made a creamy spinach brown rice pasta and it tasted great. I started playing around with cashews and coconut milk in place of cream and butter. This recipe is something I threw together without much thought and it turned out - so here is the recipe - give it a try. Jason really loves healthy food and I feel so lucky to have a husband who raves about my healthy cooking it's great. Well he had 2nds and maybe even 3rds of this dish... yup I remember he finished off the dish completely!

Creamy Pasta - dairy free - wheat/gluten free - great without the meat too for vegetarians

1 C raw cashews

1/4 C coconut cream - I'm sure you can use coconut milk too - coconut cream has a higher fat %

1/2 package brown rice pasta - Trader Joe's has the best price

1/2 lb ground turkey and 1 TBS coconut oil

1 C cooked chopped spinach

handful of basil leaves

Place cashews in a small bowl pour boiling water over and let set 1/2 hr or longer. (or soak over night) Brown turkey in a small pan with coconut oil and add basil and sea salt at the end - remove from heat and set aside.

Cook fresh chopped or frozen chopped spinach in a pot until done - season with sea salt. Set aside.

Boil water and a 1/2 TBS sea salt in a large pot and cook pasta until done. Meanwhile strain cashews and place in a blender add a 1/4 C water, 1/4 C coconut cream, 1/2 TBS rosemary and sea salt & pepper to taste. Blend well until smooth and creamy. Drain pasta well and dump into a large serving bowl pour cashew sauce over and stir well top with turkey and spinach and stir a little - serve right away.

Comfort food

When someone says "comfort food" what comes to mind? Rich, unhealthy, lasagna, fattening... However sometimes you just want to eat a basic hot meal. Well I'm here to say "comfort food" CAN be healthy. I wanted crispy chicken even though I don't like fried chicken and never have. I was bored with BBQ'd and broiled chicken. So I decided to make oven "fried" baked chicken, mashed potatoes and peas. We never eat a meal like this so it was fun - it almost looked like one of those pictures on a T.V. dinner box looking at you behind the glass in the frozen food aisle.


It was simple and good and different... especially for someone like me who thrives off of eating different unusually super healthy ingredients and heirloom vegetables. I also had to restrain myself from making a green salad to go with dinner... growing up we ALWAYS had green salad - I honestly can't remember a dinner without one and I seem to be carrying the tradition on.

Dinner for two:

2 small organic chicken breasts - skinless boneless
crushed organic corn flakes - couple handfuls - (Trader Joe's)
1 egg - beaten
2 tsp coconut oil - plus some to oil pan
sea salt and pepper

Potatoes:
4 organic potatoes
almond milk 3/4 - 1 C
sea salt and pepper

1 1/2 C frozen organic peas
1 tsp butter
sea salt and pepper

Oven 350 degrees - Oil a small baking dish. Mix corn flakes with salt and pepper in a small dish - dip chicken in egg and then in corn flakes to coat both sides. Place chicken in pan and drizzle with one tsp coconut oil. Bake 20 min or until done I use a meat thermometer. Then peel and cut potatoes into large chunks and steam or boil until very soft. Use a potato masher or blender and blend with almond milk and seasonings. (I was going to add a bit of butter but they didn't need it.)
Steam peas stir in butter and salt. That's it - easy!