Spicy Pecans

This is the recipe I use for the Pecans I put on my Strawberry salad!
These have a kick but my 11 yr old daughter can't keep her hands off of them!

I most usually double or triple this recipe!


 Spiced Pecans:
1/4 cup Sugar
1 cup warm water
1 cup pecans

soak for 10 minutes

Drain and Discard Syrup

Combine:
2 T Sugar
1 T Chili Powder
1/8 t. ground red pepper

toss with nuts.

Bake 30 minutes at 350- turning very often. ( I tend to turn these every 7 minutes - this insures that I don't overcook them, because no one likes them burnt!)

Spiced Pecan Strawberry Salad

This salad is so major yummy!  I could eat my weight it in I often say!  You may feel like making this up for a side or often times I just have it for lunch! 

Spiced Pecans:
1/4 cup Sugar
1 cup warm water
1 cup pecans

soak for 10 minutes

Drain and Discard Syrup

Combine:
2 T Sugar
1 T Chili Powder
1/8 t. ground red pepper

toss with nuts.
Bake 30 minutes at 350- turning very often.

Serve with Green leaf Lettuce or your choice of baby greens, thinly sliced red onions (optional), sliced strawberries, and balsamic vinaigrette.

Balsamic Vinaigrette:
1 pkg of Good Seasons Italian Dressing Mix
Follow Pkg instructions replacing the regular vinegar for balsamic.
Then add at least 1/4 cup of honey and vigorously shake to combine!

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

When I first discovered Roasted Red Pepper Hummus it was a quick favorite!
I would go to our favorite grocer in Iowa, and splurge.  It was the most expensive hummus on the display.  I wish I would have known then how easy it was to make.  I would drop close to $4 for a tiny little tub of it. No more sister!

 Here's what you need:
2 cans Garbanzo Beans
2 Roasted Red Peppers
*or several little tri-colored peppers roasted
Olive Oil
Juice of 1or 2 lemons (or to taste)
Sea Salt
Black Pepper
Food Processor

 In the food processor, place your rinsed garbanzo beans with the juice of the lemon and about a fourth of a cup of olive oil.

 Add sea salt and the roasted peppers with the skins removed!
*to roast peppers, just place them on a cookie sheet in the oven at 400-425 and watch closely.  They will roast up within about 10-20 minutes depending on their size.  If you are a lucky girl with a gas range, you can totally do them stove top by holding them over the open flame with some tongs.  Some people do them on the grill.

 Next pulse until you have the consistency you want.

Taste it, see what you think.  Mine needed a bit more olive oil.  I added my pepper to taste here.
Pulse again.
Taste it once more to make sure you are loving all the flavors. Add whatever else is needed - more lemon juice, more olive oil, - maybe nothing!
Serve with fresh veggies for a delicious snack or appetizer.  Also great on Pita Chips!

Chicken Marinara with Millet

While trying to clean up my diet and find some alternative's to what I normally would eat, I discovered Millet!
This is a wonderful grain that I encourage you to read up on.  Here is a link for you to see all the benefits!

I love chicken marinara almost better than my normal meat sauce.  There really isn't much to making it, but time.  I love the taste of roasted chicken, falling apart in almost anything.  In this dish, I substituted the normal bed of rice or pasta for millet and was surprised by the result.

I had never prepared millet before so it was all a new experience, but the pasta sauce part is still the same.
Start with about 7 chicken tenderloins and place in the crock pot.  Top with your favorite jar pasta sauces.  Im just not that "from scratch" yet that I don't love a little convenience.
My favorite combo of sauces include a roasted garlic and basil sauce with a cheese blend sauce.  I also like the garden combinations with chunks of veggies.  You could get so creative with this dish.  I think that roasted zucchini would be amazing with this or tossed into the crock pot towards the end of the cooking.  The possibilities are truly endless. But for the sake of time on this particular day - my marinara was simple. 
I cook this in the crock pot on high for 4 hours and then turn it to low, for a couple more.  If you are going to be gone all day at work, you could cook it on  low all day long and it would probably be perfection by the time you got home! 
To prepare Millet, some say its best to soak this overnight or for 8-24 hours before cooking to cut down on cooking time.  I didn't know about this trick the first time preparing it.  I just followed the pkg directions for 2 parts water 1 part millet.  Millet expands 2 times it size.  You cook it just like rice, but for a longer time.  30 - 40 minutes until it has absorbed all the water.
For more Recipes with Millet, you can check out Whole Living Magazine online.  The article in the January issue about all the benefits of Millet and several other grains is what turned me on to trying it.  This is going to become a regular part of my diet!
Its Gluten Free, Hydrates the digestive system, full of awesome minerals, the list goes on and on!  I hope you try it and enjoy!

Leah's Power Breakfast

My girlfriend Leah is studying nutrition.  She has the best recipes ever and cooks amazing!  She called me the other day and told me to jot this recipe down and try it. This morning I did and man was it delicious!

 In a small skillet saute 1/4 cup chopped peppers in 1 tsp bacon grease for flavor or (for me this morning it was Olive Oil).  (Animal fat is actually good for your brain, so if you aren't on a special diet add it in for the health and flavor benefits).
Add in some mushrooms if you like them...
Next add in a large handful of baby spinach and toss.  Cook on medium for 2 minutes.

 Add two Eggs and bust the yolks.  I leave the yolks in because the Choline found in the yolk is good for you - it helps brain function. (If you are an egg white only diet - you will need another egg.)
Next add garlic salt and pepper.
Cook until it is cooked through and flip!
I served this up with Karina's Guacamole and grape tomatoes, but it is also good with toast and my Homemade Apple Butter!

Our Favorite Juice

 This recipe is simple.  It's just our favorite.  I wanted to take a beautiful picture of this so you could see it's pretty color but I couldn't resist just drinking it down. 
My kids were oooooing and awing over the taste and before I knew it - it was gone. 
Juice together:
2 apples
4 large carrots peeled
2 navel oranges

Liver Cleanse Drink

 To be drank first thing in the morning on an empty stomach.  This yummy lemony goodness will help you rid your body of toxins! 
1 Lemon
1 inch of Ginger
1 Garlic Clove

Juice or blend these and then add
about 2 tsp Olive Oil.

 You can see the lemon, garlic, and ginger don't make too much juice.

 Here it is with the olive oil added.

Now fill the glass up with some Apple juice and shake or stir well. 
I drink this down with a straw. This has a great flavor, that I was surprised by the first time I made it.  I even had my 7 year old taste this, and he didn't turn up his nose. If you are trying to cleanse your body this is a great addition to your recipe box!

Roasted Cauliflower with Red Pepper

This week I tried Cauliflower in a new way that has saved this vegetable for me.  I don't cook it much, because I haven't ever truly LOVED it.  After pulling this out of the oven and we were all fighting over the last of it - it will definitely be making it's way back into our diet!
This is so simple and super easy.  It would be good as a side, however we had it for an afternoon snack.
All you need is:
Olive Oil
Sea Salt
1 head of Cauliflower
Red Pepper Flakes
On a rimmed cookie sheet (I lined mine with foil or parchment) lay out your Cauliflower florets evenly. Drizzle them with Olive Oil, and salt well with Sea Salt then stir to coat.
Place them in a 425 degree oven to roast for 25 minutes.  Stir them about every 7 minutes for even browning.
Once they are done, sprinkle them with as much or as little Red Pepper Flakes as you like!  Delicious!
PS - this has been kid and babysitter approved at our house! They all loved it!

Karina's Guacamole

I could seriously forgo a meal for just a sit down of "guac" and chips.  My brother made the best decision of his entire life when he married my now sister - Karina.  Karina comes from a Hispanic family that can throw down on some major delicious food!  At their Wedding her family made Fajitas for the entire lot of us, and her mother, Dora made "the best" tamale I have ever put in my mouth.  I've had tamales everywhere including Mexico - I mean come on - I live in Texas, they are bountiful here - But none have compared to Dora's.  All of that to tell you Karina taught my sweet man Joshua how to make Guacamole! And Yesterday I ate Guac for lunch! It was delicious as always.  Here's the problem.  There isn't a recipe.  Its a "O taste and see that the guac is good" sort of thing... It's simple like most things that are delicious.
 Here's is what you need:
3 ripe avocado's
3 limes start with the juice of one and go from there.
onion
garlic
tomato
salt

 Karina spoon's her avocado's out! Make sure that you save the seeds! Keep them in your finished guacamole to keep it from turning brown!

 My avocado skins never look this good after Im done - Im so excited to get to the guac part that I end up just squeezing the skins together and diving in!

 Also a very fine chop on everything makes every bite super good.  She's got mad chopping skills! :)

 Teeny tiny onions, maybe it ended up being like 3-4 tablespoons - again do it to taste.

Here you can take a look at her proportions and see about how much of everything goes in.  The minced garlic is on the top.  I always think a little more garlic is way better than not enough.  We did at least two cloves in this batch. 

 Yesterday Joshua made it.  They both make it delicious!  Here's his batch. Using the same ingredients - we just taste as we go - EVERY SINGLE TIME!

 Once you have all of the ingredients together, use whatever tool necessary to get it combined and in your mouth!

You can substitute garlic powder - if you HAVE to!

Cucumber Ginger Water infused with Mint

My goal for this year is to drink more water, but I honestly get tired of doing water without some flavor.  This blend of juices will actually tame the tummy and is an anti-bloating combo. Win-Win!

Juice:
1 Cucumber
1 Lemon or Lime
1 Quarter Size Ginger Root
Several Mint Sprigs

Juice or slice these ingredients and add to a gallon of purified water. This is cool, calming, and quite delicious!

Turkey Chili & Brown Rice

In my quest for a cleaner diet while cleansing, I have been (trying) to eat less red meat, and cut out some of those bad carbs.
Today I whipped up a chili, made much like My Grandma Branham's chili. We did do it a smidge different. 
Here is what you need:
2 pounds Ground Turkey
Olive Oil
1 Bel Pepper
1 Onion
3 little sweet peppers (red, orange, yellow) I purchase these at Costco in a huge bag.  My kids eat them like apples.
1pkg of Williams Chili Seasoning - Original
2 cans of petite chopped or stewed tomatoes
2 small cans of tomato sauce
1 can dark red kidney's
1 can of chili beans (pinto's with chili seasoning)
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp Penzey's Spices - Chili 3000
1 jar of Wickles

Here's what we did.

Fry 2 pounds of Turkey in a little olive oil or chicken stock.
Add salt & pepper, and once its frying good, add a chopped green bell pepper, and chopped onion.Once the meat is completely cooked add your spices, and Williams Chili seasoning packet.   Make sure all of the meat has the chili stirred in very well.  Next add your beans,  tomatoes and tomato sauces.  Stir very well, Bring to a boil and then reduce heat.  Let the chili simmer on low.
While the chili is working and all the flavors are getting happy together, in your rice cooker place 2 cups of brown rice, with slivers of garlic and a drizzle of olive oil and 4 cups of water.  Start the rice cooker and lunch should be ready in about 30-40 minutes!

 We always serve Chili with pickles.  If you have been hanging around the Hungry Momma very long you know that by now.  However in July we were introduced to Wickles! OH MY GOODNESS DELICIOUS!
You must pick up a jar of these.  I love their story too.  A family giving away their pickles for Christmas gifts started receiving the empty jars back for refills - they have a whole line now!  I just love that!  Yay Wickles!  I will gladly pay more for these! 

When dishing up my bowl, I replace my usual cornbread with brown rice and my splurge of course was the cheese and the pickle.  If you are not cleansing then eat it and don't let yourself feel one bit bad!  This is a good lunch!

Eat up and enjoy!

Salted Grapefruit Juice

January brings about all sorts of great inspiration for getting healthy or at least losing a few pounds for the New Year.  We all know that when July rolls around we will be firing up that smoker and having a BBQ that will not quit, but for now here's a glass to getting a little bit healthier!

 I juiced this with my Champion Juicer, Use whatever you have.  You could even do this smoothie style in your blender probably.

Juice together:
Texas Ruby Red Grapefruit
Peaches
Lime
Gala Apples
About a Nickle size of Peeled Ginger Root

After juicing add a little bit of Agave Nectar and then Salt the top of the drink.  Garnish with Mint drink it down & feel good about making a healthy choice!

The Sludge Drink (A Cleanse)

This is a recipe of a cleanse that our family has used for many years.  It's specific cleansing attributes are for the colon, liver, and blood.  It should cleanse sludge from the colon within a two week period.  As with anything contact your health professional...yada yada yada!  :) You know the drill.

I cringe at the thought of putting anything disgusting in my mouth so I honestly tell you "this is not that bad." The Chlorophyll gives it a strong mint flavor.  The apple cider vinegar gives it a little bite towards the end. Here's what you need:

2 T Aloe Vera
2 T Chlorophyll
1/4 tsp Liquid Dulse (a Nature's Sunshine product)
1 T Bentonite
2 T Colloidal Minerals
1 T Apple Cider Vinegar
1 tsp Ascorbate Vit. C Powder
1 tsp Psyllium Hulls
Mix with 4 oz. apple juice or Recovery Drink (also a Nature's Sunshine Product).
I always use apple juice, it is one less thing I need to buy since I always have that on hand.

For these issues take along with the sludge drink:
Constipation: Magnesuim 2-4 at night
Cascara Sagrada 2 at night

I still eat while doing this.  I just try to have a clean diet while doing so. Eliminate Sugar, Dairy, Caffeine, and all the other culprits that are obvious.  Emphasis on TRY!
Also drink PLENTY OF WATER