This week's menu

Dresden posted her menu last week, this week I'll do mine (and hopefully she'll post hers this week too so you all have double the ideas!)

This week I'm making:

Homemade pasta with meat sauce, salad + whole wheat garlic bread

Breakfast for dinner: blueberry pancakes, nitrate free bacon + fruit smoothies

Pork won tons + white rice

Nitrate free hot dogs + homemade hot dog buns + raw veggies with ranch

Something with chicken... maybe crock-pot tacos? maybe marinated? I need to do some more searching.


If you're wondering what my nitrate-free obsession is... I've been trying to eat more naturally by going the organic route whenever possible, so I've decided to avoid nitrates as well.

I have some yummy recipes to post and I'll get to it soon :)

Menu for the Week

Hello everyone! Natalie and I decided we should start posting our menu for the week to give you all ideas for your meals. If you want a recipe that isn't already linked to the recipe feel free to contact me and I'll get it to you! Please be aware...my meals are usually full of calories, my husband has an insanely fast metabolism and I gotta keep him full!!

Monday: Valentine's Day
Tuesday: BBQ Chicken Pizza
Wednesday: Spaghetti
Thursday: Italian Crock Pot Chicken
Friday: Chicken Enchiladas
Saturday: Carne Asada Tacos
Sunday: Garlic Chicken with Mashed Potatoes

I hope everyone had a lovely Valentine's Day <3

Chocolate banana blueberry smoothie

I get on smoothie kicks every so often and I'm always looking for something new to try. A friend had mentioned how good dark chocolate almond milk is, so I decided to pick up a carton and I'm so glad I did! I love chocolate and any way to get it into a smoothie is ok with me! Here's what I put in it:



Frozen blueberries
a banana
a big glug of dark chocolate almond milk
sometimes I put some normal milk in it too, if i want it to be thinner

It makes a great breakfast or snack and really fills you up.

Zucchini Cookies

Actually, Dresden gave me this recipe from one of her old roommates a while back. Here's the blog. They are sooo good and everyone is surprised when you tell them that they're pretty good for you. Just mix everything together (don't ever overmix cookies or they'll get tough). My trick is underbaking cookies so they stay fresh longer. I'll probably be making these tonight because it's been way too long since I've had them!

1 c. sugar
1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. applesauce
1 egg
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. oatmeal
1 c. grated zucchini
1 c. chocolate chip

Directly from her blog:
Nutrition Facts: per 1 cookie
Calories: 86
Fat: 3 grams
(2 grams saturated, 1 mono-unsaturated)
Carbs: 14 grams
Fiber: 1 gram
Protein: 1 gram


Cream together sugar, butter, applesauce and egg. When well blended
add dry ingredients, add zucchini and chocolate chips. When well
blended spoon out onto greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 10-12
mins. Makes about 3 dozen.

Cajun Chicken Pasta

Hey everyone, this is Dresden, hopefully I'll be posting a recipe every week or so to add to Natalie's delicious recipes! Want to know more about me? Visit my blog and feel free to visit often. Today I'm sharing a recipe that happens to be one of my very favorite. I cook this as often as my husband will let me, especially because it's really easy and quick. I hope you enjoy!


Ingredients:
3 cups Rotini, cooked & drained (or any other pasta works, I use penne a lot)
2 Tbl. butter
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts sliced in strips about 1/2" thick
3 glove of garlic (minced)
1 bunch green onion chopped
2 Tbl. Cajun seasoning
1 tsp. ground pepper
1 tsp. ground red pepper (cayenne pepper)
8 ounce heavy cream
1 green bell pepper (cut up)
1 red bell pepper (cut up)
8 oz. fresh mushrooms quartered (optional)
½ cup parmesan cheese grated (fresh really makes a huge difference)


Directions:

Cook rotini (or similar pasta) according to the package directions. Drain and set aside. Melt butter in a large skillet or wok over medium heat. Add chicken. Cook stirring frequently done (10-15 mins). Add garlic, onions, Cajun seasoning, ground black and red pepper. Add bell peppers and mushrooms. Stir to combine. Cover for 5 minutes.

Uncover stir in cream and let it simmer another 2 minutes. Stir in parmesan cheese. Stir in cooked pasta and serve immediately.

Side notes: Cajun seasoning can be a little spicy,
I would start with a little less if you do not like spice.
This makes quite a bit, for two people I usually only do 1 large chicken breast and 2 cups of pasta. This recipe can be stretched really far by adding more pasta and whipping cream.



garnish with more parmesan cheese

Stuff that looks good

These two little goodies have been waiting for me to make them for a while.

Danish croissants. With orange marmalade or jam inside?? YUM



Pumpkin steel cut oatmeal. It looks soooo comforting.

BBQ Onion Rings

I've never made onion rings before but I've always liked them. I never order them but I'd eat them if someone made them for me... Well now I think I'm going to be eating a lot of them. I found a recipe for BBQ onion rings here the other day and showed them to my cousin Blake. He's in love with onion rings. He made us make them that night. He couldn't wait. They were AMAZING.

I took the general idea of the recipe and made it a little simpler. I even put some of the rings on my pulled pork sandwich. YUM.
We also didn't dip them in anything- they were good by themselves. Here's what you need, and what i did:

Serves 4 as a side dish.

1 BIG yellow onion
Buttermilk
BBQ sauce
Hot sauce (optional)
Flour
Salt + Pepper
Vegetable oil for frying

Cut the onion into thick rings. I like mine a little thinner so I did probably 1/4 inch slices. It's really up to you and how thick of an onion ring you like. Separate all the rings in a bowl. Add 1/4 of bbq sauce and a few dashes of hot sauce on top of the rings and oll them around in it. Cover the onion rings with the buttermilk. The longer you let them set the better they get. Mine sat for only about 15 minutes because we were starving, but up to an hour would be good.



Heat your oil in a pan (I like to use a deep pot so there's less splattering all over my counter) and meanwhile, start dipping your buttermilk covered rings into the flour (season the flour with a little salt and pepper). Shake off the excess flour and fry a few at a time.


Don't crowd the pot too much, otherwise they won't cook well. I cooked mine on medium heat and they took a minute on each side. They should be golden brown when you take them out. Here they are again!