Balsamic Steak with Roasted Veggies

This is a two-part recipe for one yummy meal.

While the veggies are roasting I make up the steak which has been marinating for about 12 hours or so.

Mix up the marinade. You need balsamic vinegar, a dash of olive oil, some crushed garlic and thyme. Marinate then grill up the steak. I use a Griddler aka a George Forman grill.

For the roasted veggies, I used red potatoes, carrots and a parsnip. Lightly coat the veggies in olive oil and sprinkle thyme over them.

Roasted veggies getting ready

Roast for about 20 minutes at 400 F. Enjoy!

Steak Recipe

• Marinade: 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, dash of olive oil, 1 crushed or minced clove of garlic and about a tablespoon of fresh thyme.
• Marinate the steak for about 12 hours.
• Grill until desired done-ness.

Roasted Vegetable Recipe

• Cut up red potatoes, carrots and a parsnip
• Coat the vegetables in olive oil and sprinkle them with thyme
• Roast at 400F for 20-25 minutes.

Enjoy!

Kale Chips

I have been making kale chips for years. They are easy and yummy. I won’t lie, they taste nothing like regular chips, but still good. First wash and cut up some curly kale. Toss in olive oil with whatever seasoning you like. I generally use salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and garlic.
Before tossing:

After:

Now I bake them for 15 ish minutes ate 350 F… I tend to check on them pretty often so I don’t know the exact cooking time.
Let them cool and enjoy!

Kale Chips Recipe 

Ingredients

• Kale cleaned and chopped
• 1 teaspoon of oil
• 1 teaspoon of minced garlic
• sprinkle of salt, pepper and red pepper flakes

Steps

• Toss the kale in the oil and seasoning
• Bake at 350F for 15 minutes or until it begins to get crispy.

Eat a healthy snack!! The best part is you can eat tons of these and it costs less than 100 calories.  Wooo!

Yellow Curry Soup

Or as I like to call it “melted crayon curry” due to the vibrant yellow color.

I hate midweek cooking, but everything I made over the weekend is almost finished and I still need food for the week. This recipe is easy and requires little prep.
I gathered up all the ingredients and am now ready to assemble.

Cut up half an onion and quickly sautée in the coconut oil. Then add everything else but the coconut milk. Yup, I’m using the left over coconut milk from my squash soup. Let it simmer awhile and that is it. See, it’s easy!

When it is almost done, add the coconut milk and simmer for about ten minutes. Often I add rice noodles or spinach at this point, depending on my mood.

This time I added noodles.

It is all set. This soup even tastes better the next day because all the flavors meld.

Yellow Curry Soup Recipe

Ingredients

• Chickpeas
• Green lentils
• 1/2 an onion
• 1 can of chopped tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon of cardamom
• 1 teaspoon of yellow curry
• 1 teaspoon of cumin
• 1 tablespoon of turmeric (you can add less if you prefer)
• A sprinkle of ginger if you like
• Light coconut milk
• Cup of broth- if you choose vegetable broth this recipe is vegan

Steps

• Sautee the onion with a little bit of oil
• Add everything but the coconut milk, simmer for about 20 minutes
• Add coconut milk and any extras like rice noodles or spinach
• Simmer for 10 more minutes
• Done! Eats! or in my case, pack up for the rest of the week.

Crockpot Apples and Pork

Everyone in my family will tell you: I hate cooked fruit. It is true I do, but I like the flavor of apples with pork. So, if you are lucky enough to come eat this with me, YOU get all the apple goodness!
To start I gather up my honey, cinnamon, apple (fresh from the orchard), rosemary, parsnips and crockpot.
Really, that is it. I will add a splash of water just in case because dry pork is disgusting.

First cut up an apple and put about two slices in slits in the pork. Put the rest on the bottom of the crockpot. Last minute I added a parsnip. I saw them in Trader Joes this weekend and bought them mainly on the premise that it is fun to say “parsnip”.

Next I poured honey over it and cinnamon. I love cinnamon so poured is more accurate than sprinkled.

Now it is ready to cook on low for 8 hours. And because I constantly just throw things into recipes, I added a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar when I splashed in a touch of water.

Now I wait.

A few hours in, it is looking good and smells amazing!

Added a pinch of rosemary. Can’t wait!

It is done!

I love this dish!! Even with not eating the apples, the parsnips and pork are AMAZING. They are flavorful and taste like fall! Yum!

Crockpot Apples and Pork

Ingredients

• 1 lb pork tenderloin
• 2 apples
• 1 parsnip
• 1.5 tablespoons of cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon of rosemary
• 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar
• 1/2-1/4 cup of honey
• splash of water

Steps

• Cut up apples, put slits in the pork about every inch or so
• Put apples into the slits, layer the rest on the bottom of the crockpot with the parsnips (cut them how you prefer)
• Note: I put a teensy bit of coconut oil on the bottom of the crockpot to make cleaning easy

• Pour on honey. Add cinnamon, vinegar, water and rosemary
• cook on low for 6-8 hours.
• EAT!

Butternut squash part 2

The soup is set, now on to the quinoa bowl. I used the left over roasted squash, kale (which I always have on hand), feta and cranberries. Oh! And the left over chicken broth.

I used about a half cup of tricolor quinoa and about a cup of broth. I needed to add a splash of water so I had enough liquid. I also added a pinch of thyme to the liquid because it’s yummy.

I quickly washed up some baby kale I had in the fridge. It will get thrown into the quinoa during the last few minutes of cooking.

Now I just mixed in the squash, feta, and cranberries. It is good to go!

Recipe for Quinoa Bowl with Butternut Squash

Ingredients:

• Roasted butternut squash (2 handfuls)
• Handful of kale ( used baby kale, chopped)
• 1/4 cup of feta
• handful of dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup of quinoa
• 1 cup of chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon of thyme

Steps

• Roast the squash (375-400 for 30-40 minutes with a little olive oil and sea salt)
• Cook the quinoa in the broth and thyme. Cook according to the package directions (mine said for 15 minutes at a simmer)
• Mix in all the yums! (a.k.a. the feta, cranberries, squash, kale)
• Eat!

Butternut squash in bulk

This week I am starting to prepare all my food over the weekend. With the start of the school year, time has been short during the week. I am attempting to eat seasonally and what is better in fall than squash? Roasted squash and soups! I am trying 2 new recipes this week. One is a butternut squash soup and the other is a butternut squash and kale quinoa bowl.
To start I needed to roast all my squash! I was a little lazy and bought precut squash from Trader Joes. I hate cutting and peeling squash so this makes it feasible for me.

It was lightly tossed with olive oil and sea salt. There are also about five baby carrots in the for the soup.

Once it was done roasting, I split it in half for the two recipes.

Then I had to wait for it to cool. While waiting I realized I would likely have half a can of coconut milk left over from the soup. I hate to waste food so I pulled out ingredients for what I call “yellow crayon” curry. This dish turns bright yellow due to the turmeric. Don’t let the color scare you, it is delicious. The recipe will be my next post :).

Once it cooled I threw the soup portion of squash with the carrots in the blender. I then I added some coconut milk and chicken broth until it was a soup consistency.

Now I added in cinnamon and nutmeg. I added a teaspoon of cinnamon and half a teaspoon of nutmeg. Then the teensy pinch of sage, you can omit this if you like.

Now it’s all ready to eat! Yums!

It made about 2 servings which is perfect for me! And it tastes so fall-ish!

Butternut Squash soup

Ingredients:

• butternut squash cut in small cubes
• baby carrots cut in half
• dash of olive oil and sea salt
• 1/2 can of coconut milk
• 1/2 can of chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
• teensy pinch of sage.
• Note: you can vary the amounts pending on how much soup you want or your tastes. I love cinnamon so I probably added close to a tablespoon…

Steps:

• Toss the squash and carrots in the oil and sea salt. Roast at 375-400 degrees for about 40 minutes or until a fork can go through easily.
• Let cool, then blend with coconut milk and broth until your desired consistency
• add is spices for taste
• eat!

See easy peasy lemon squeezy!