First Step

{image}

Eating real food is hard.

Really hard.

It takes time

and focus

and planning,

a lot of planning.

After posting yesterday, I got very discouraged.

How is this possible.

It costs money (but hopefully not the way I do it) and time and concentration.

I literally spent all day yesterday researching online,

so now you know I will become an expert.

Despite the little discouragement, I am moving slowly

And you can too.

Here's how:

One step at a time.

It cannot all be done at once.

So take a deep breath.

Here's what I am going to do this week.

1. Dry 3 lbs of pears--they were on sale. (post coming soon)
   
   
2. Made four ingredient tomato sauce. Freeze it in one cup increments because that's all we eat at a time anyway. Look at us, saving money.

Let me comment on this four ingredient tomato sauce. It's amazing! I could drink it. Seriously.

I did things a little differently than the recipe above.

• Puree six 14-oz cans of whole tomatoes (They are 10/10 at Albertson's.)
• Heat 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil in a large pot
• Sautee 5 minced garlic cloves in the hot olive oil, soften for two minutes (do not let them brown--i.e. stir frequently)
• Add 1/2 cup pureed tomatoes, let it warm and become a golden color
• Add the rest of tomatoes
• Bring to a boil and simmer for four hours
• Let it cool, then measure into freezer safe bags or containers and freeze

So despite the little setback yesterday, I'm feeling pretty good about this movement. There's nothing like using a little of that marinara that I made from scratch and feeling accomplished. It's the little things, right?

Try it. You won't want to go back to $3 jars of marinara. I don't.

Real Food

I am changing the way my little family eats. I have heard over and over again about the importance of eating real, unprocessed foods, but recently, I've been discouraged by how much it costs. It is expensive sometimes, especially in a community where organic foods are not well-supported and can be outrageously priced. Even our farmer's market is more of a craft fair than a place to get fresh veggies and fruit. It extremely disappointing.

Well, after watching this video, I am back on the road to eating healthy, unprocessed foods. Watch it. You will be inspired too. I had no idea that the food industry had changed so much since the 90s and that there is a reason some people are focusing on returning to the way our grandmothers cooked. I plan to do that and soon.

The problem still is the budget. I just found this amazing e-book called Real Food on a Real Budget. I am about 45 pages in and drinking it up. Eating well on a budget does seem possible and I'm going to try some things out and let you know how it goes. So stay posted.

I'm interested in your thoughts. What do you think about the video?

A new way to eat an apple.

{image}

Speaking of healthy, quick snacks, I was just in the mood for one of the huge Granny Smith apples I found at the store yesterday (I literally just made this). This sounds different, but it's actually really good.

• Chop up the apple
• Drizzle extra virgin olive oil on it
• Sprinkle salt* all over it

I know, sounds weird, right? But so delish. Yum.

*I used kosher salt which supposedly has half the amount of sodium as table salt.

Quick, Healthy Snack

I've decided to update this blog more often, so stay posted because I've already got at least five recipes ready to post after this one.

This healthy little snack is perfect for days when I just need something fresh and tasty. You get your protein and vitamins and a little crunch. Enjoy.

• 2 parts cottage cheese
• 1 part your favorite salsa
• Add some salt and pepper
• Scoop up with celery sticks
  
  

See how easy? This is also delicious with corn chips. Here's another variation:

• 1/2 cup cottage cheese
• 1-2 tsp lemon pepper (garlic salt is also delish, but has a ton of sodium)
• Scoop up with celery sticks

Do you have any go-to snacks that are quick and easy?

Savory Sundae of Garlic Potatoes, Peas, Chicken, and Lemon-Butter Cream Sauce

Missed me?

I'll try to update more often, but I really only want to update when I developed a new recipe because there are so many recipes out there, I'd like to create some that are unique. If you want to see which recipes I'm trying, just follow me on Pinterest.

Since before my mission, I've been creating a simple dish. Garlic potatoes and peas.

I made it for Jeff a while back and realized it's missing a few elements--namely, some freshness, a bite, something to make the flavors more interesting. After a couple weeks of mulling it over, this is what I came up with.

The best compliment I've received on my cooking came after this recipe:

"It looks and tastes like it came from a nice restaurant." ---The husband

Can't ask for anything better than that!

Lemon Chicken

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 6 chicken tenders (I actually found organic at a local store, which isn't common here)
• 1/4 flour
• 2 Tbsp lemon pepper
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• salt and pepper

Mix flour, lemon pepper, and salt and pepper together on a plate. Dredge the chicken tenders in the flour.

Confession Time: I have never been comfortable cooking chicken. Not to mention, it always turns out much too dry. Perhaps this is why I was relieved when my husband turned out to be a vegetarian. Well, now he's not, and I'm "eating for two"--one of which makes me crave protein quite often, so chicken was a must.

Now that you understand my feelings about chicken, let me say my mind has changed thanks to these wonderful directions to get perfect, tender, moist chicken. It really works. Try it. You'll be so happy you did. Just add the lemon juice, olive oil, and butter to the pan to add some citrus.

Garlic Potatoes

• 2 large potatoes, peeled and diced
• 3 or 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup milk
• salt and pepper
• garlic salt, to taste

Place the diced potatoes in a pot of cold water with the cloves of garlic. Bring the potatoes to a boil and cook until tender. Drain. Remove the cloves, mince in a garlic press, add to the butter and milk. Melt over a stove or in a microwave. *I've learned that the best mashed potatoes come when the ingredients you add to it are not cold.

Place the cooked potatoes in a bowl. Mix with handmixers or potato masher. Sparingly add the buttery, milky garlic mixture until the consistency is right for you.

Lemon-Butter Cream Sauce

• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• zest of one lemon
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 cup cream (or skim milk)
• 3 tbsp parmesan or romano cheese, grated

Melt butter in a pan. Add lemon juice and zest. Bring to a boil and let it reduce. I let it reduce until it was very thin. Slowly whisk in cream and let it thicken. Add cheese at the end.

Peas

• 1/2 bag of frozen peas

Bring small pot of water to a boil. Add peas, but only for a few minutes. Overcooked peas are the worst!

Pile them beautifully on top of each other and enjoy!

just freeze it

Life has been a bit hectic lately, which explains the lack of posts. I'm not planning to stop this blog any time, but I am just going to update at my own pace for a while. Anyway, I discovered something awesome today that I had to share.

Because life has been a little hectic, I've been looking for ways to simplify meals. The last month has consisted of either eating out or eating a (gasp!) frozen dinner. Those little throw-on-the-skillet meals are great for busy life styles.

Anyway, I'm learning how to utilize the freezer to make my meals quick and easy when I just don't feel like spending a half an hour to an hour in front of a hot stove. I'll update as I think of new meals. I've seen a few blogs say you can freeze meals, but they rarely give details. Even Martha skimps on the details of how to freeze something well, so I'm going to try to help you out as I learn.

Tonight I froze my stuffed shells recipe. Here's how:

• Cook the shells
• Stuff the shells with cottage cheese mixture
• Place each one on a cookie sheet lined with freezer paper
• Flash freeze (place in the freezer, uncovered for at least thirty minutes)
• Once frozen, place in a freezer bag, label and date (it will last for two months)
• The day before cooking, remove from freezer and let it thaw in the fridge

For the sauce, you may either:

• Just open a new jar when it comes time to cook it
  {or}
• (if you already opened a jar) Spoon the marinara sauce into ice cube trays and freeze. When sufficiently frozen, place in a freezer bag, label and date

Pretty easy, huh? Who knew? I think this will be one of my answers when I'm preparing for a particularly difficult week.

Meal Planning

My first attempt at smart food shopping and budgeting... It's very, very difficult for me. I like quality ingredients and will usually pay for them, but when I start noticing the decline in my bank account, I realize something must change. Well, I did it tonight. I have planned and shopped for four meals for $24. Some of the ingredients are already on-hand, but here you go:

Meals

Carrot soup and salad

Baked Lemon Pasta

Cucumber sandwiches

Balsamic Brown Butter Veggies with Spaghetti Squash
(recipe to come this week--my own delicious creation)

Totals

carrot soup and salad ... $3.21 (many ingredients already on-hand)

1 lb carrots ... 1.69

3 red potatoes ... 1.00

1 onion ... .77

arugula ... 1.75 (halved the cost because we won't eat all of it in one sitting)

1 roma tomato ... .82

baked lemon pasta ... $2.64

sour cream ... 1.79

lemon ... .50

parsley ... .35 (halved the cost because half will be used for cucumber sandwiches)

cucumber sandwiches ... $3.66

english cucumber ... 2.49

parsley ... .35 (other half)

1 roma tomato ... .82

balsamic brown butter veggies with spaghetti squash ... $7.62

orange bell pepper ... 2.49

1 roma tomato ... .82

red onion ... .52

spaghetti squash ... 3.79

I don't know about you, but I've enjoyed this quick little exercise. It's kind of liberating to see how much I can save when I actually think about the meals I am preparing.

Try it; I dare you. Let me know how it works out for you.