In The Kitchen - Vegetable Beef Soup

How can you go wrong with vegetable beef soup? It's super easy and very satisfying. In my version I'll show you a couple extra steps to help build a bold flavor soup that's really pleasing to your taste buds.

You'll need ....
2 tablespoons olive oil, you can also use butter or bacon fat
1 med. onion, minced
1 head of garlic, minced
1 bag frozen green beans
3 med. carrots, diced
3 med. Yukon gold potatoes, diced
2 tablespoons corn starch, you can also use flour
1 - 3lb chuck roast, cubed
Salt & Pepper to taste
Mrs. Dash to taste
6 -8 cups beef broth

Notes:
-I always use my dutch oven when making soups, stews or chili. I just prefer the way the recipes come out. As you will see in some of the pictures, in the dutch oven you get a crust in the bottom of the pan that adds to the flavor of your dish.
-I prefer to use homemade broths, if I'm out of my homemade broths I use organic store bought broth. In this recipe I used 4 cups of homemade beef bone morrow broth and organic beef broth. I will add info about bone marrow broth at the end of this post.
-A trick I use to get the kids to eat this super healthy soup, puree when finished cooking. The soup will look like a thick creamy broth. They love it.

You'll need to ....
Salt & pepper your vegetables to taste and add about 1 teaspoon Mrs. Dash. Saute the vegetables in 1 tablespoon olive oil or butter, until lightly browned. Remove from pan. You can see in the bottom of the pan the "flavor" the vegetables left behind.

Salt & pepper the meat well. Place meat and cornstarch or flour in a zip lock bag and coat thoroughly. Brown meat in 1 tablespoon olive oil or bacon fat in same pan.

Remove meat from pan. The bottom of the pan should look like this. This is what you call "FLAVOR"!

Add 2 cups of broth to the pan to "deglaze" the bottom of the pan. This will loosen all that wonderful flavor into the broth. And you can see how dark and rich that broth looks when it's all mixed in.

Add all ingredients back into the pot. Add another 4+ cups of broth to just cover the meat and veggies.

Bring soup to a quick boil, reduce heat & simmer about an hour on low & covered. When it's done serve it up and enjoy!! 

Here is a fantastic link that talks about the health benefits and shows you how to make bone marrow broth. It's really easy, but a bit time consuming if made in a stock pot. I prefer to make it in a crock pot. 

/http://wellnessmama.com/5888/how-to-make-bone-broth/

In The Kitchen - French Toast

One of Matt's favorite breakfast dishes is french toast. So over the years I've played around with different recipes until I decided this was the best one. We don't have it often, but when we do it's a real treat.

With french toast the egg mixture you dunk your bread into is essentially a custard. It's that custard and the use of french bread that makes this so yummy. This recipe will use a full loaf, you can cut the recipe in half if needed. We serve it with butter and warmed maple syrup. Enjoy!

You will need .... 

4 cups Unsweetened Almond Milk *

2 large eggs
2 tablespoons sugar 

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice **

1 loaf french bread

Slice bread on a diagonal. 

Mix milk, egg, sugar, vanilla and spice with a whisk until well blended.

After heating large frying pan to medium and coating with butter or cooking spray, dip each slice of bread into egg mixture to coat both sides. 

 

Cook until browned all over then flip and do other side.

 

Repeat until all slices are cooked. 

* I use almond milk, but you can use regular milk or half & half.

** I like pumpkin pie spice, but you can use apple pie spice or just cinnamon.  

In The Kitchen - Caramel Apples

This is by far the best caramel recipe I've every tasted. You can use this caramel for apples or make it into caramel candies. I've done both and it doesn't disappoint!

1 cup (2 sticks) butter 1 lb dark brown sugar 1 cup light corn syrup 1-14 oz can sweetened condensed milk 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

Melt butter over medium heat, add brown sugar until dissolved. Add syrup, milk and salt, stirring constantly so that it won't burn. Heat until caramel reaches 245 degrees. Remove from heat and add vanilla.
You must use a heavy bottom pot that is non-stick and you must stir it constantly or it will burn.
This should cover 8 large apples.

6 Tips for the Perfect Caramel Apple

1. Wash your apples and dry well. Water on the surface will prevent the caramel from sticking! Removing that wax coating on apples is also key to get the caramel to stay put. 

2. Really pay attention to your thermometer. I read many recipes, and some tell you to let the mixture heat up to 230 degrees, while some say 250. I found the 245 degree mark worked better, but it can vary for your recipe, so pay attention.

3. Don’t stop stirring. Scorched caramel is not easy to clean up after, not to mention to smell is not good.

4. Have your toppings ready before you start!  

5. Parchment Paper is handy! Many recipes said to use wax paper, but I couldn't get my caramel to stop sticking to the wax paper! I found cutting individual parchment paper squares or shapes to be much easier. It also adds a little pizzazz and ease to serving your apples.

6. Let your caramel apples set in the fridge and cool. The caramel stiffened really quickly and had a nice shine when they were done!

In the Kitchen - Zucchini Bake

I love zucchini and yellow squash. Most of the time I saute it in a little butter, garlic and S&P, but sometimes it's fun to mix it up. This recipe that I'm sharing is very versatile and super easy. Enjoy!

2 medium zucchini cut into 1/2  moon slices.
2 medium yellow squash cut into 1/2 moon slices.
(you can use all zucchini or all yellow squash or add a different veggie if you want)
2-4 Tablespoons fresh basil (less or more depending on your taste)
2 Tablespoons green onion thinly sliced or any onion of your choice diced
1 or 2 cloves of garlic diced (more or less to your taste)
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 cup grated cheese (I used mozzarella & provolone)
1/2 cup coarsely grated Parmesan
S&P to taste

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray an 8x8 baking dish with olive oil. Combine all ingredients, except half of the grated cheese. Bake for 25-30 minutes uncovered.  Sprinkle remaining cheese on top of mixture and bake 10-15 minutes longer.

In The Kitchen - Cilantro Chicken Skewers

Cilantro Chicken Skewers

2 pounds boneless/skinless chicken breast meat
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 bunch fresh cilantro, minced
salt & pepper to taste
cooking skewers, soaked in water to prevent burning, about 20 min.

Cut chicken into 1" cubes and place into a zip lock back with S&P, oil, garlic and cilantro.  Let sit at least 4 hours or overnight if possible.
Preheat the grill to medium heat. Put chicken on skewers, cook for 4-5 minutes on each side.

For an added kick, you can drizzle with fresh lime juice while cooking or brush the chicken with chili sauce to create a glaze.

I served this with a couscous and added green onion, lime, cilantro S&P to taste.

In The Kitchen - Chipotle Chili

I have a go to chili recipe that I cook all the time for Matt, but I wanted to try something different.  This recipe uses pork (although you can use beef or chicken), chipotle peppers, beer & masa! It's more of a Mexican style chili and very tasty.

Here is the recipe for my other chili if you'd like to take a look at it out too.
http://athomeinjessicascorner.blogspot.com/2011/09/homemade-chili.html

CHIPOTLE CHILI

1 tablespoon bacon fat
1 tablespoon olive oil  (you can use only olive oil or only bacon fat if desired)
4 cloves minced garlic (more or less if desired)
1 onion diced (I used 1/2 of a red onion & 1/2 of a vidalia onion)
2 pounds pork loin, shoulder or butt, cut into a large dice
1 - 12oz bottle of good Mexican beer or you can use chicken broth
1 - 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 - 15 oz can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 - 15 oz can great northern beans, drained and rinsed
1 - 15 oz can of diced tomatoes or you can use fresh diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced (this is what brings the heat so use more or less if desired)
1/4 cup masa harina
1 lime, juiced

Toppings: lime wedges, cilantro, cheddar cheese, sour cream, diced tomatoes.

Heat the bacon fat & oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and onion and cook until the onions soften.

Add the pork and cook until browned.

 

Add three-quarters of the beer or broth, reserving the rest, then cook for a couple of minutes to reduce.

 

Add the beans, tomatoes, chili powder, cumin, salt and chipotles and stir to combine.

 

Bring to a simmer, then cover the pot and cook for 1 hour.
Combine the masa with the rest of the beer or broth and stir to make a paste. Add this into the chili, along with the lime juice. Stir and cook until thick, about 10 minutes.

Serve with all the toppings.  The lime and cilantro really make this chili pop, the cheese and sour cream are pretty good too. ENJOY!


For those that don't know, this is what chipotle peppers in adobo sauce looks like. They are roasted jalapenos and they are spicy. Canned chipotles are easy to find in the Mexican food section at any grocery store.

DIY Of The Week

Do you want to avoid toxins in your home and save money?

72 uses for simple household products.

In The Kitchen - Balsamic Chicken Wings

Balsamic Chicken Wings

INGREDIENTS
18 chicken wings
1 cup honey
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons peeled and grated fresh ginger
4 cloves garlic (more or less if you desire)
Zest and juice of 1 large lemon
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Remove the tops from the wings by cutting between the joints. Salt & pepper wings and put in large ziplock bag.

2. Combine the honey, brown sugar, vinegar, ginger, garlic and lemon zest and juice in a large bowl. Pour half the marinade into the bag with the chicken. Seal the bag getting most of the air out of it, then gently distribute the marinade over all the wings.  Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, over night is better.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

4. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Working in batches sear the chicken wings, flipping once, until golden brown. Transfer all the wings to a large baking sheet and cook in the oven for about 30 minutes, flipping the wings often to prevent them from burning. Add remaining marinade and continue to cook the wings until the sauce thickens and coats the wings evenly, about 10-15 minutes. 

This sauce is amazing.  I wasn't sure if Matt & the kids would like it, and they loved it!!  I made a separate batch for Matt and added some chili paste to the marinade for spice.  You can also do this with boneless chicken tenders.  This recipe can easily be cut in half or doubled for a large crowd.

Book List 2014

Here is the list of books I've read this year.  I will be updating the list as the year goes on.  99% of the books I read are non-fiction, self help or informative type books.  Sorry, there won't be any romance novels on the list. :)

The ADHA and AUTISM Nutritional Supplement Handbook

The Better Brain Book

The ministry of motherhood : following Christ's example in reaching the hearts of our children

The Inflammation Syndrome

Grain Brain

The Survival Guide for Kids with ADD or ADHD

Moving Beyond ADD/ADHD: An effective holistic mind-body approach.

Homeschooling the child with ADD (or other special needs) : your complete guide to successfully homeschooling the child with learning differences.

The year of learning dangerously : adventures in homeschooling.

Homeschooling for dummies

The spark : a mother's story of nurturing a genius.

The everything health guide to adult ADD/ADHD : expert advice to find the right diagnosis, evaluation and treatment.

The circle maker : dream big, pray hard, think long.

The everything homeschooling book : all you need to create the best curriculum and learning environment for your child.

Family Inspiration - 15 July

Every child need not fit the same mold - nor should we force them to do so.

In humility consider others better than yourselves.
Philippians 2:3