Friendly Three Bean Salad

I don't think there's really a way to make bean salad look glamorous in a photo, I'm sure someone has tackled this beast of a task with grace, I have not. I have however preserved and recreated successfully this recipe I learned ages ago while on a cross country adventure with then strangers but now good friends. So when my in-laws (bless their hearts) sent me this amazing package of Cali avocados because I had mentioned I was craving them I knew I had to make this dish, and guacamole too of course!

I always make a double batch, so if you're single or don't think you can tackle this much divine bean power, half everything. 

2 cans organic kidney beans (drained & rinsed)

2 cans organic garbanzo beans (drained & rinsed)

(bonus points if you use dried beans and cook them yourself, you are so much cooler than me!) 

1 bag frozen french green beanslightly steamed

small chunks of mild cheddar, I just chop up whatever I have left in the block you want a good ratio just eyeball it
1 giant avocado cut into bite sized pieces

toss together in a large bowl and make your sauce

Sauce

1C olive oil

1/4 C lemon juice

1/4 C local organic honey, trust me on this it's just the best! 

a little salt & pepper to taste

Mix well then stir gently into the bean bowl, cover and let sit overnight.

Easy as pie and it's a great addition to the lunch box or picnic basket or in my case when I first learned this recipe, in the back of a car driving 70 through Wyoming is how it tastes best.

Meatless Monday Healthy Potato Leek soup

I have to admit vegetarian dinners can be a bit taboo in this house, despite me being a a veg head for over a decade (I'm an omnivore now) I find it hard to please my boys without meat. My husband enjoys a high protein low carb diet and that can be a challenge when working with the plant only kingdom. However I can usually get away with it on Monday nights because we typically don't do an intense workout that day and I usually have something delicious up my sleeve.

This week I made potato leek soup, now technically this dish is not completely vegetarian because I opted to use chicken broth, mainly because I had some in the fridge I needed to use but one could easily substitute veggie broth or even lowfat milk and still keep it healthy and delicious.

Now, I love a good creamy potato leek soup that's cheesy and delicious but I promise you this version is just as good and as a bonus we leave out all the unnecessary fat (which I saved for putting loads of butter on my bread!)

Ok, here's what you'll need

4 potatoes of choice chopped into tiny 1/4 inch squares (I used 2 white sweet potatoes and 2 red skinned potatoes because they cook down into creamy starchy deliciousness)

1 giant leek or a couple small ones ends removed slice down the middle wash and then slice into small strips

1/4 onion diced

5-6 carrots washed and sliced into bite sized pieces

3-4 stalks of celery washed and sliced into bite sized pieces

a couple cloves of garlic

a little bit of butter and olive oil

4 C chicken broth

and about a teaspoon of each dried herb

orageno
red pepper flakes
salt
pepper
thyme
sage
parsley
1-2 bay leaves

Your cutting board should look something like this  (as a side note if you live in a warmer climate most of these veggies should be available to you right now locally!)

In a big pot melt on low-medium a heavy tablespoon of butter, when melted place all veggies in the pot and stir around for a bit. When the bottom of the pan looks dry (butter all soaked up) add a swirl of olive oil and let veggies cook and stir occasionally. This part is important it takes a little while but let the veggies cook slowly after about 10 minutes stir in the garlic and herbs.

When the veggies are softish not crunchy but not mushy yet stir in the chicken broth (or broth of choice), switch the heat to low add a lid and let this pot of deliciouness simmer as long as you can wait! I paired this with whole wheat spinach and red pepper bread with a tad of butter.

Bon Appetit!

Chicken Pot Pie (with shortcuts!)

I have been seriously craving chicken pot pie for at least a month now and with the cooler weather of fall setting in this comfort food down home dish really hits the spot. After reading the ingredients list of the "good pot pie" at Whole Foods, which included enriched flour and questionable gmo ingredients, I knew I was destined to make my own.

 For being a member of the humble casserole  family, when done right this soul nourishing meal has a high maintenance diva side. In order for it to taste right and for the veggies to keep their integrity each component needs to be cooked separately before whisked away into a oven safe dish and left only to do it's thing. I've been making a crock pot half chicken every week so figuring out another thing to do with the bits of dark meat is a blessing, so that took care of the chicken part.

I used a mix of light and dark meat so it wasn't gamey tasting, around 2 cups of chicken. I pulled it off the bone cold, chopped it up and set aside. A chicken breast would work as well, chop it up into bite sized pieces season with pepper, garlic and cook in the oven (bonus points for using the same dish you will be making the casserole in, plus less dishes!) at  375 for about 30 minutes.

Coming up is the hardest part, and I promise it's easy :)

Make a Rue
A rue consists of equal parts flour and fat. For my pot pie in a deep 8x8 baking dish I used 1/2C butter and 1/2 C flour. Let fat melt completely then stir in flour bits at a time. When it's nice and thick and you're terrified it's going to burn start adding bits of chicken broth (or cream if you're a traditionalist) I like to use chicken broth because it's less fatty and I had the best broth on hand from my crock pot chicken. I used about 2 cups total just keep adding as it thickens, also a little Parmesan cheese goes a long way! Once that's done all you have to do is construct using the shortcut methods!

Mix chicken, rue and about a cup of frozen organic mixed veggies (I like the pea, carrot, corn blend) and place evenly in the casserole dish. Then lay a thawed out prepared crust, the Wholsome whole wheat pie crusts from the frozen department from Whole Foods have 6 ingredients and everything's organic. Don't get me wrong I love me some home made lovealicious crust, but it's just not always practical!

Bake at 400 for 25-30 minutes, then dance a jig and eat pot pie!!

Easy Chicken dinner

It's a lovely Sunday here in Raleigh, and by mid-September there's a plethora of family friendly activities going on every weekend. The last couple weekends we've went out and by the time we get home it's almost 6 and we still have to make dinner! So after two weekends of chaotic Sunday evenings I've decided to think ahead a little & have the main part of the cooking finished by the time we get home.

I've been getting organic chicken from whole foods but after seeing a terrifying video of how organic chickens were being "processed" in an industrialized manner, I decided to see what my other options were. Last weekend I had the pleasure of meeting, Jan Campbell of Homestead Harvest Farms in Wake Forest, NC. She assured me that cooking half a chicken in a crock pot was an easy, painless process. Not only was Jan right about it being easy, she also has the best chicken we've been able to find. I also love, love, love the fact that all her chickens are loved, have great lives and are processed as she puts it "the way grandma raised poultry". Everything about this chicken boasts superiority to its grocery store cousins- it looks, smells, feels and tastes better. My husband who swears all dark chicken meat tastes "gamey" will eat every part of this chicken, win!

Here's what to do:

Place whole or half chicken in a crock pot ad 1/2 C of water for half chicken and 1 C for a whole chicken 

Sprinkle with salt & pepper (or spices of choice)

Turn on low and walk away. That's right, walk away!

Its honestly that easy, the meat pretty much falls right of the bone so disassembling it later isn't a huge chore. Oh and did I mention the delicious and I mean delicious chicken broth you get out of this bargain?!! Whatever we don't eat right away I store in the fridge for salads and quick meals.