Veggie Fajitas

Wow.  My husband and kids even like these.  I discovered this gem at El Torito Grill on a business trip this summer.  Every time I go on these trips, I order the same dish.  They are light but hearty at the same time.  I took a photo at the restaurant and then made my own version at home. WOW.

Here is my best attempt at a recipe for you:

Vegetable Fajitas via El Torito Grill
5 cloves garlic (minced)
1 onion (sliced)
1/3 cup olive oil
2 T fajita seasoning + water
4 red potatoes cut into wedges (try to be consistent in thickness of chopping for even cooking)
2 cups red pepper (sliced)
2-3 cups carrots (cut into match sticks
Corn (I cut off of 2 ears of corn on the cob that wasn't super fresh)
2-3 cups fresh spinach 
1 1/2 cups broccoli
1/2 head of cauliflower
Zucchini (sliced and halved) *
Yellow squash (sliced and halved) *
Guacamole
Pinto or black beans
Tortillas

*Not pictured here because I didn't have any--they were still amazing
 Combine garlic, onion, and olive oil and cook until translucent.  Add potato, carrot, red pepper, corn, broccoli, and cauliflower. Add fajita seasoning.  I mixed 2 Tbsp with 2 Tbsp water and then poured it in my wok.  Cook until veggies are nearly tender.  Add zucchini and squash and cook for 5-10 minutes until tender.  Add spinach and warm until it wilts (won't take more than 1-2 minutes). 

Serve on tortilla with beans, guacamole, and veggies. The potatoes and spinach make this--don't leave them out until you try it!  My husband was not excited when I wanted to try this experiment because of the potato and spinach.  He agrees they are the best part.

Cupcakes!

Inspired by Chef Chloe, I decided to make some serious cupcakes for my kids 2nd birthday.  I didn't love the frosting the first go-around, so I decided to branch out and mix it up with another favorite of mine.

Chocolate Cupcakes
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (or gluten-free all-purpose flour plus ¾ teaspoon xanthan gum)
1 cup evaporated cane juice or date sugar (health food store or a really great grocery store will have these)
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup coconut milk
½ cup canola oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract


To make the Chocolate Cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Line cupcake pans with 14 cupcake liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sweetener, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together coconut milk, oil, vinegar, and vanilla. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and whisk until just combined. Do not over mix.

Fill the cupcake liners about two-thirds full with batter. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out clean with a few crumbs clinging to it. Cool the cupcakes completely before frosting.


Frosting a.k.a. Chocolate pudding (From Raw Food Real World cookbook--love!)
2 cups young coconut meat (also known as Thai coconuts)*
3/4 cup young coconut water at room temperature (may add more to thin it)
1/2 cup real maple syrup
1/3 cup agave
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 T vanilla
1/4 tsp sea salt

Combine in high-speed blender (I use my Vitamix) and puree all ingredients until completely smooth.  Chill for a firmer pudding.

I sliced the tops off the cooled cupcakes, spread on some pudding and sliced strawberries, replaced the muffin top and then added a dollop of pudding again and a strawberry.  They were heavenly.

*Young coconuts can easily be found at Asian markets and most 'hip' grocery stores.  I grabbed a youtube link on how to open one for those who haven't tried.  They are amazing for you and are an excellent source of hydration.  Here's a photo so you can recognize it.  These are coconuts when they are green and under-ripe by our standards, but 'just right' in other cultures.

Cauliflower Soup

Tiffany and I both get Bountiful Basket (a local produce co-op) and get the occasional veggie that we don't know what to do with.  Cauliflower is one of those for me.  I don't have any recipes that are really good and a whole head is a lot for us to use raw with dip or something.  I got my hands on this recipe and made it tonight...slam dunk.  Husband loved it, kids loved it (minus the chunks--should've creamed it for them), and I loved it.  Wish the photo did it justice.

Cauliflower Soup

1 medium head cauliflower (or other veggie like broccoli or potato)
1/4 cup olive oil
2/3 cup chopped onion
3 Tbsp flour
2 cup vegetable broth
1cup liquid drained from cauliflower (or other boiled veggie)
1 can coconut milk
1/2 tsp. worcestershire sauce
3/4 tsp. salt
Garnish with chopped chves or minced parsley

Cut cauliflower into tiny flouretes.  Cook in boiling salted water.  Drain reserving liquid into container.  Combine olive oil and onion and cook until soft and transparent.  Blend in 3 tbls flour.  Add 2 cups chicken broth, cook, stirring constantly until mixture comes to a boil.  Stir in cup liquid drained from cauliflower, coconut milk, worcestershire sauce, and salt.  Add cauliflower and heat to boiling.  I ended up using corn starch to thicken it a bit as it was too watery for my liking.

You can double the recipe and combine a veggie with potato or different types of veggies together.  I did half potato and half cauliflower and it was delicious.

McDonald's Drops 'Pink Slime' from it's Burgers

I saw this in Time Magazine today and was pretty disgusted.  Everyone knows that fast food isn't the healthy way to eat, but very few people understand what goes into fast food to make it even MORE unhealthy.  Take a read--it's short.

http://moneyland.time.com/2012/02/01/mcdonalds-drops-pink-slime-from-hamburger-meat/?xid=newsletter-weekly

Pumpkin Pancakes

I have 2 kids that are gluten and dairy intolerant. (I don't do very well with dairy either). These pancakes are an awesome alternative and something we can all eat at an affordable price. I grind my own quinoa into flour in my Vitamix. If you have a wheat grinder, you can also use that.

1 1/2 c. quinoa flour
1/4 c. packed brown sugar (I use Sucanat, pure maple syrup, or agave nectar)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground allspice
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. salt
1 3/4 c. buttermilk or sour milk (I make my own buttermilk, using just shy of 1 c. rice, almond milk with 1 TB vinegar or lemon juice mixed in. Since the recipe calls for 1 3/4 c. buttermilk, I adjust my homemade buttermilk to make that much).
1 c. pumpkin puree
2 large eggs (I use chia seeds. 1 TB chia seeds to 3 TB water. Mix and let sit 15 minutes)
2 TB vegetable oil (I use unsweetened apple sauce)
maple syrup
1/2 c. toasted pecans (I haven't used these)
whipped cream (optional. I don't use this either)

Measure the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, allspice, cinnamon, ginger, and salt into a large bowl. Mix well.
Whisk together the milk, pumpkin, eggs, and oil in a medium bowl. Add to the flour mixture and stir until just blended.
Serve with maple syrup, pecans, and whipped cream.

Layered Tex-Mex Lasagna

If you haven't watched "Forks Over Knives," you should. It's on Netflix and SO worth your time! This recipe comes from the "Forks Over Knives" cookbook. My kids loved it and so did I!

Tomato Sauce
2- 8 oz. cans tomato sauce
3 c. water
1/4 c. cornstarch
3 TB chili powder
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. garlic powder

4 c. mashed cooked pinto beans
1 c. chopped green onions
1 1/2 c. frozen corn, thawed
1- 2 1/4 oz. can sliced black olives, drained, optional
1-2 TB chopped green chiles, optional
10-12 corn tortillas
salsa, optional
tofu sour cream, optional

1. To make the sauce: Put all ingredients for the sauce into a saucepan. Mix well with a whisk until well combined. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Taste and add more chili powder if desired. Set aside.

2. To assemble casserole: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put the beans, green onions, corn olives, and green chiles into a large bowl and mix gently until well combined.

3. Spread 1 1/2 c. of the sauce over the bottom of a nonstick baking dish (9x13). Place 3-4 corn tortillas in the bottom. Spread half of the bean mixture evenly over the tortillas. Place another 3 or 4 tortillas over bean mixture, then spread the remaining bean mixture on top. Cover with 3 or 4 more tortillas, and then pour the remaining sauce over the tortillas. Cover the baking dish with parchment paper, then cover with aluminum foil, crimping the edges over the baking dish. Bake for 45 minutes.

Southwestern EggRolls

These are AMAZING! They take A LONG time to prepare. So when we make these, we do a huge batch! That's why the recipe has such large quantities. It makes about 50 burritos. So if you don't want that many, divide everything up and make maybe 5. :) But it's just as much work to make 50 as it is 5. So we just go all out. And then we freeze them for meals for later. They do have chicken and cheese in them. But you can just omit it if you want. My kids are obsessed with these and they are so so nice to pop into the oven from the freezer for 30 minutes for an awesome dinner. This is a recipe from the restaurant "Chili's." They fry them. I like them better baked like I do with this recipe.

10 chicken breasts
10 T. oil
1 1/4 c minced red pepper
1 1/4 c. green onion
3 1/3 c. frozen corn
2 1/2 c. black beans (2 cans)
1 1/4 c. green chiles (1 lg can and 1 sm can)
5 TB minced fresh parsley
1 1/4 c. frozen, drained spinach
5 tsp. cumin
5 tsp. chili powder
2 1/2 tsp. salt
7 1/2 c. monterey jack cheese (I don't use nearly this much if I use the cheese)
50- 7 inch flour tortillas

BBQ chicken, brushed with oil and salted and peppered until cooked.
Saute green onion and red pepper in oil. Dice chicken and add to oil. Add everything except cheese and heat through. Stir in cheese and fill tortillas. Roll up and freeze on baking sheet.

Obviously if you don't use the chicken, you won't need NEARLY that much oil. Just enough to saute the green onions and peppers. I have never made them completely without the chicken AND cheese, but I want to try it soon. I think they would be so so good still! If you do omit the chicken , definitely add more black beans!! You'll have to experiment since there is a ton of chicken in them.

When ready to bake, put into oven frozen for 25-35 minutes on 350 degrees.