Red Enchilada Sauce

I'm not really a red enchilada sauce kind of person. I've always liked the green sauce better, until now. I really liked this recipe, of course I did change some things to it, and it turned out so delicious. Not too sweet. Not too spicy. A perfect taste, just like out of the can but I got to control what went into it. And the best part is, it really didn't take that long to make.

Red Enchilada Sauce

Ingredients

1 tablespoon butter or olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons minced onion

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves

1/4 teaspoons chili powder

1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves

1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried parsley leaves

1/4 cup salsa, blended smooth in food processor

1 6oz can tomato paste

1 1/4 cup water

3 teaspoons better than bullion

Directions

Heat the butter/oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and onion and saute for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the oregano, chili powder, basil, ground pepper, salt, cumin, parsley, salsa and tomato sauce. Mix together well. Add the better than bullion to the water until completely dissolved. Then add bullion mixture to tomato mixture. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until consistency. Enjoy!!

Fun Food Find Friday!!

Our Fun Food Find for today is a drink, Zevia Natural Diet Sodas. They are naturally a diet soda because they are sweetened with stevia. I liked the taste it was nice. My kids loved it! I'm not a huge soda fan, I don't like the carbonation. So I liked it better flat. :] If you are a huge soda drinking person this is a great substitute for the ones that are chuck full of stuff that is not good for you.

I found these at the health food store.

Turkey Casserole

Here is another wonderful recipe you can use with your leftover turkey from the holidays. I froze a ton and as you may have noticed I've been pulling in out of the freezer to use lately. :] This recipe is delicious! I love slightly toasted bread on top. It goes perfect with the sauce. Another reason I like this dish is because it uses chopped celery. For some reason my kids do not like celery, but they didn't even notice it in this casserole! This recipe calls for a lot of cheese. If you want to cut down on the fat and calories only use 1/2 cup in the sauce. It will still taste wonderful! Happy eating.

Turkey Casserole

Ingredients

3 cups cubed cooked turkey breast

1 package (10 oz) frozen peas, thawed

1 cup chopped celery, about 2 stocks

1 8 oz can sliced water chestnuts, drained

2 tablespoon chopped green pepper, about 1/4 of a medium sized pepper

1 tablespoon chopped onion, about one slice from the middle of an onion

1 10 oz can reduced fat condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted

1/4 cup rice milk

1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

2 tablespoons chicken broth

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 slices whole wheat bread, or spelt bread, cubed

Directions

Preheat oven to 375*F. Spray a 2-qt baking dish with non stick cooking spray; set aside. In a large bowl, combine the first six ingredients; set aside. In a small sauce pan, combine the soup, milk, 1 cup of the cheese, chicken broth, lemon juice and salt. Cook and stir over low heat until smooth and heated through. Pour over turkey mixture; toss to coat. Transfer to the 2-qt. baking dish. Top with bread cubes. Bake uncovered for 25 minutes. Then sprinkle with remaining cheese; bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Serve warm and enjoy!

Wisdom Wednesday!!

Supplements

No matter how healthy you are eating there is a good chance you are not getting the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients your body needs. I've talked before about how our soil today is depleted, so our vegetables and food do not contain the amounts of nutrients they used to have. But that is not what I wanted to talk about today. Today I wanted to talk about Supplements.
I came across this article that talks about a new program that Dr. Well has set up. If you go here, to his web site it has a test you can take. Then depending on your answers it tells you what supplements your body needs the most. I've taken the test and though I do like that something is out there to help, I felt that it was missing some key questions. It never asked me my weight or my height. It didn't ask me what I eat on a regular basis beside how many servings of fruits and veggies and dairy I consume a day. For example it didn't ask me about any grains I eat. It did how ever suggest some supplements that I already take and I know that I need to take. It is a great way to start if you have never taken supplements before. It's a free test, and of course they want you to buy their products, which is completely up to you. I am not giving you this information so that you go and buy their products. I'm simply trying to help you be aware of what is out there and what your body needs to be healthy. After you take the test then you can decide on what supplements to take. I do, however, recommend that you do not buy your supplements from the grocery store. The supplements at the Health Food stores, such as Good Earth which is located near me, are better than grocery store supplements. But my suggestion to you is to do some research on other companies and buy from them. I get some of my supplements from a Doctor that I have to buy from him at his office. I buy some of my supplements from another Doctor, Dr. Klassen, that you can buy online. You can find his products here. I also buy some from Dr. Young, here. Again I am not saying to go and buy from them. This is just some information that I thought would be helpful for you and your quest to become more healthy. The rest is up to you. Just remember that it is important to take supplements and when you do remember to tell your Doctor about them and what you are taking when you go visit him or her. Also, if you are taking any medications, ask your pharmacist if there are any herbs that shouldn't be taken with your medication. Then make sure there isn't any of that herb in your supplement. Knowledge is power!

Crock Pot Turkey and Rice Casserole

Here is our first recipe made with the homemade poultry seasoning. To be honest I was a little worried because I don't like the flavor of rosemary that much. The flavor of this dish is very nice. You can taste the turkey and veggies and the seasoning was just perfect, not too much, just enough. I usually don't cook rice in the crock pot/slow cooker. I liked how this turned out. The rice was sticky kind of like Oriental sticky rice, just not as sweet as sticky rice. It's nice to have everything cooked and ready for dinner, just add a salad!

Crock pot Turkey and Rice Casserole

Ingredients

2 cans cream of mushroom soup

3 cups rice

2 to 3 cups cubed cooked turkey

1 teaspoon homemade poultry seasoning

3 cups water

3 cups frozen mixed vegetables

1 tablespoon dried minced onion

1 3/4 cup water

1 1/2 teaspoons 'better than bullion'

Directions

Combine soup and 3 cups water in crock pot/slow cooker. Add rice, turkey, seasoning, onion, and vegetables. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours. Add better than bullion to 1 3/4 cups water, then add to rice in crock pot/slow cooker and stir. Cover and cook for another 2 to 3 hours or until rice is tender. This serves a ton of people! We had so many leftovers I started giving it away. :] Serve warm and enjoy!

original recipe found here.

Poultry Seasoning

I had never even heard of Poultry Seasoning before. So when I wanted to make a recipe that called for it, what did I do? I went to the Internet to see if I could make some of my own. I found tons of recipes, but none of them sounded good, and I didn't have all of the ingredients that some were calling for. So I made up my own version. I like it, and I think it turned out just wonderful! I can't wait to use it in other recipes.

Poultry Seasoning

Ingredients

2 teaspoons dried parsley leaves

1 tablespoon dried sage

1 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil leaves

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves

Directions

Mix all ingredients in a small air tight container, and store.

Fun Food Find Friday!!

A few months ago, while running some arrands, I need to eat some protein. So I started to look around the store. I found this, Mojo Bar by Clif. They are very good and not like some protein bars that are dry.

You can find these at most grocery stores and health food stores. Happy Healthier Snacking!