Widsom Wednesday!!

Nutmeg

I love ground nutmeg. I love the smell of it. I love the taste of it. Right now while I'm typing this I can almost taste my Banana Bread French Toast. Oh delightful!! Because nutmeg is one of the spices on my love list I was really excited when I came across this article. It states that there are 5 health benefits you can use nutmeg for besides making your food taste scrumptious. For example they say that you can use nutmeg for zits! Yep zits. Make a paste with nutmeg and milk and it can help your zits. For the rest of the list click here, and here's to a happy healthier you!

Roasted Tomato Pasta

I've made the roasted tomato soup so many times over the last few weeks that one night I wondered out loud if there was anything else we could use it for. My oldest son suggested that it would taste really good with noodles in it. He was right! It was an instant hit! Here you have the deliciousness of the roasted tomato soup combined with the heartiness of the noodles. It is a perfect pasta dish and great if you don't want to make grilled cheese to go with it. :]

Roasted Tomato Pasta

Ingredients

8-10 ripe tomatoes, courted and seeded

1 1/2 teaspoon butter or extra-virgin olive oil

2 onions, chopped

1 tablespoon garlic, minced

1 heaping tablespoon, dried basil deaves

4 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon celery salt

1 14oz can chicken broth (reduced sodium and fat free)

1 package of noodles, rice or whole wheat, cooked according to package directions

Parmesan cheese

Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat broiler. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place tomatoes on the prepared baking sheet; cut side down, and sprinkle with salt. Broil until skins are blistered, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool, then slip off the skins.

Meanwhile, heat butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, until onions are very soft. Stir in tomatoes and cook for about 1 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a food processor or blender and process until smooth; return to the sauce pan. Stir in broth, celery salt, honey, and basil. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add noodles and stir. Top with Parmesan cheese and enjoy!

Peach-Mango Smoothie

My husband loves drinks, non alcoholic drinks. When we first started dating he would always mix us up some concoction. Anywhere from a virgin lime margarita to drinks I wasn't sure what was in them, I just knew they were good. So for his birthday this year I wanted to find a drink or smoothie that he liked. One of his favorite fruits are mangos, so when I saw this recipe I was excited to try it. I made it for him for to go with his breakfast, and it was a hit! Pretty easy to do too, which is always nice.

Mango-Peach Smoothie

Ingredients

1 small peach, peeled and sliced

1 mango, peeled and diced

1/2 cup rice milk

1/2 cup orange juice, or as needed

Directions

Place the peach, mango, rice milk, and orange juice into a blender. Cover and puree until smooth. Pour into glasses to serve.

Fun Food Find Friday!!

Our Fun Find For Today is Gus Grown-up Soda. If you like sparkling juices you'll like these. On the label it says, "not too sweet" and they're right. They don't have a lot of sugar in them and it is cane, not refined. I love that they contain juice too. My kids like these and so do I.

I bought these at the Health Food Stores.

Roasted Tomato Soup

The tomatoes in my garden are going crazy! And by that I mean, I have a ton of tomatoes. When I found this recipe I was so excited to experiment with it. My kids love the final result. I do have to say that it is A-mazing! I love the taste of the basil combined with the sweet after taste of the honey. I do have to be honest, this recipe is extremely easy, but it is a little labor intensive. A few days ago I picked almost 20 big tomatoes from my garden so I made a double batch. It turned out just as delicious as the other few times I've made it. I gave some to my neighbors, we ate some, and I froze the rest. I'll let you know later how it freezes for a quick meal. Enjoy!

Roasted Tomato Soup

Ingredients

8-10 ripe tomatoes, courted and seeded

1 1/2 teaspoons butter or extra-virgin olive oil

2 onions, chopped

1 tablespoons garlic, minced

1 heaping tablespoon, dried basil leaves

4 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon celery salt

1 14oz can chicken broth (reduced sodium and fat free)

Parmesan cheese

Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions

Preheat broiler. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place tomatoes on the prepared baking sheet, cut side down, and sprinkle with salt. Broil until skins are blistered, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool, then slip off the skins.

Meanwhile, heat butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring often, until onions are very soft. Stir in tomatoes and cook for about 1 minute. Transfer the mixture to a food processor or blender and process until smooth; return to the saucepan. Stir in broth, celery salt, honey, and basil. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with Parmesan cheese and enjoy!

Wisdom Wednesday!!

Spelt

Today I wanted to go over another flour that I like to use, Spelt Flour. I use it in the Low Gluten mix I showed you here. Spelt is in the wheat family. It actually looks a lot like wheat but a little longer. It does have gluten in it, but it is not as tough as the gluten in wheat so it is easier for our bodies to break down. Most people who are gluten intolerant can digest this flour but not those who have celiacs disease. You can easily grind spelt in your own grinder or mill at home. I really like the flavor of spelt. It has a nice nutty taste and is much lighter than wheat. When I have put it in recipes, especially quick breads and desserts, I get more complements than when I use wheat in the same recipe.

Spelt has some benefits that wheat doesn't have. For one it has 10 to 20 percent more protein that wheat does. It has more thiamine, vitamin B1 and B6, and more vitamin E. Spelt is higher in unsaturated fatty acids, which are important for regeneration of nerve cells. It supports good blood circulation. It is more water soluble which makes it easier to digest.

So if you're wanting to try a new type of flour, give spelt a try. It has great health benefits and tastes good too. Happy Healthier eating!

Sources:

http://nutrition.about.com/od/grainsandcereals/p/spelt.htm

http://wwwlehow.com/about_5453894_spelt-flour-vs-whole-wheat.html

Sweet and Sour Crock Pot Chicken

I love sweet and sour chicken. So when I came across a slow cooker/crock pot version I just had to try it! The thing I liked about this recipe is that I really didn't have to change that much to it at all. It turned out just like a sweet and sour chicken does, without the breaded chicken of course. It is simply delicious!

Sweet and Sour Crock Pot Chicken

Ingredients

1 20oz can pineapple chunks in juice

1 cup baby-cut carrots, cut in half

1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

3-4 boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 2 inch pieces

1/2 cup bragg liquid aminos

1/4 cup organic brown evaporated cane juice

1 medium red bell pepper, but into 1 inch pieces

1 medium green bell pepper, cut into 1 inch pieces

1/2 cup corn starch

1/4 cup water

Cooked quinoa, or rice

Directions

Drain pineapple, reserving juice. Place pineapple chunks in small bowl; cover and refrigerate. Place carrots, onion, and garlic in crock pot. Top with chicken. Mix soy sauce, ginger, brown evaporated cane juice and reserved pineapple juice; pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low heat for 7 to 9 hours or until juice of chicken is no longer pink. During the last 30 minutes, add pineapple and bell peppers. Increase to high heat setting. Mix cornstarch and water; stir into chicken mixture during last 10 minutes for cooking. Serve on quinoa or rice and enjoy!