Spicy!!!!

Oh man I had such a spicy craving tonight...and I DON'T EVEN LIKE SPICY FOOD! Weird! I told Derek I was having Pregnant Lady cravings...and no I'm not Pregnant I just really wanted food with a kick! 

I take back what I said...I do enjoy a spicy flavor I love southwest salads! So I decided as one of my sides tonight I would have a southwest Quinoa salad, I will admit I was not a fan of the dressing on the salad, I was alone in that...my husband loved it he said it was very flavorful. I think I would enjoy having just lime juice sprinkled over the top! But try it out and see what you think!

My husband was thrilled, he is such a spicy food fan, he actually says I'm bland in my tastes. Which may be true! He couldn't stop himself! That is the goal in my mind! 

Probably the most exciting moment tonight was when my two year old tried the roasted asparagus and said "Mom, this tastes good!" He munched that stuff down! I was so happy. 

If you are ready for some food with a kick that is clean and healthy then this is the meal for you!

Sweet and Spicy Chicken

 1 pound Chicken Breast

2 T cajun seasoning

3 T honey

1/2 T coconut sugar (or brown sugar)

1/2 C salsa

Add chicken to the crock pot. Add remaining ingredients over the top of chicken. Cook on high for 2 hours. Stir after 2 hours to make sure it is all coated. Reduce heat to low and cook for another 4 hours. Enjoy!

South West Quinoa Salad

1/2 red onion

1/2 red bell pepper

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 C corn

1 can black beans

1 C uncooked quinoa

Add uncooked quinoa to 2 cups of water. Cook until water is absorbed. Meanwhile, add 1 T olive oil to a skillet. Add red pepper, onion, and garlic. Saute until slightly tender. Add corn and black beans. Cook over low for 3 minutes. Add quinoa and cook another 3 minutes. Add dressing to skillet and absorb flavors together for about 2 minutes! Enjoy

Southwest Dressing

Juice from 2 limes

2 T olive oil

2 T chili powder

1 T cumin

2 T red wine vinegar

1 1/2 tsp onion powder (optional)

Combine all ingredients well.

*Tomorrow I'm going to be doing a post on healthy snacks that are sure to help you in workout recovery as well as helping you stay on track this holiday season! *

Chicken Lentil Soup

Fall is here and soups comfort my soul! I had a friend who asked for a soup that used lentils. I love lentils, and I love lentil soup...some though find lentils an acquired taste. I admit if you don't season things good when using lentils they can be quite bland.

This soup is chuck full of stuff! It's hearty, healthy and perfect for a chilly day. I felt mine had a good flavor, a good consistency. However my basil kind of spilled into the soup so I had a little too much basil. I'll put the correct amount though- hopefully you don't have the same problem! Also, this soup is so easily turned vegan/vegetarian...just leave out the chicken. What other soups do you like? Do you prefer really hearty soups with lots of textures, or do you prefer a really smooth soup texture?

Chicken Lentil Soup

6 cups vegetable broth

4 small potatoes, cubed

1 1/4 C lentils

1 cup cooked quinoa

2 T basil

1 T garlic, minced

 salt and pepper to taste

dash of red pepper flakes

1 1/2 cup cubed cooked chicken

Add broth to a large pot. Add cubed potatoes with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and simmer for 5 minutes covered. Add lentils, quinoa, basil, and garlic. Simmer for 10 minutes until potatoes are tender. 

This is optional- I put half of the soup into the blender and blended it. Then poured it back into the pot. You don't have to do that if you don't like that consistency. 

Add cubed chicken and cover and simmer together for another 5 minutes!

Remove from heat and serve! Enjoy

Apple Cinnamon Pancakes w/ Apple Cider syrup

First off I need to apologize straight out for the wonderful picture quality-bleh. Unfortunately I think my phone is crapping out :(

Anyways, today has been a lazy day, low energy. My little babe has been only giving me 3 hours of sleep a night ALL WEEK! We're actually going to a foot zoner tomorrow...people swear by foot zoning. I've never done it, but a friend of mine told me it really helped her baby with tummy issues. I kind of feel like we're going to witch doctor...but I'm curious to see how it works? Has anyone been or does anyone do foot zoning? It has peaked my interest.

So for Sundays I like to try and to the traditional larger meals, but not today. Today we did pancakes! And they had such a fun fall taste that I had to share them. We decided on Apple Cinnamon Pancakes tonight and they are keepers. Awhile ago we decided that to save money, but also to eat less processed we would make our own pancake mix. I'm so glad we did, we have so much more variety and they turn out perfect almost every time...there are those times of course when perfection can't be reached :) The syrup is fast and easy and almost homemade :) You'll see the cheat in the recipe!

These are fast, easy, and clean! The kids devour them and I don't spend two hours in the kitchen! I have to say I'm not a good flipper when it comes to pancakes, but luckily they still taste good :)

Apple Cinnamon Pancakes

1 1/2 C whole wheat flour

3 1/2 tsp Baking Powder

1 tsp sugar (optional)

1 tsp salt

2 T cinnamon

1/4 C apple juice

1 C almond milk

1 egg

5-6 T applesauce

Heat skillet over medium. Whisk together dry ingredients. Add apple juice, mix, add milk and mix well. Add egg and mix well. Add Applesauce. Mix all ingredients well. Pour 1/4 cup batter into the skillet at a time. When batter begins to bubble flip pancake! When both sides are golden brown they are done!

Apple Cider Syrup

1 C apple Juice

1 C Agave

1 tsp lemon juice

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 c brown sugar (optional)

In a small saucepan combine all ingredients. Bring to a low boil. Reduce heat and simmer until all ingredients have combined and liquified together about 5 minutes. Stir constantly! Serve warm!

Easy syrup when you use agave right! :)

*BOOK UPDATE*


Okay since I have a few new visitors since our KSL segment, I wanted to do a little post about the book and what our plans are. We are currently working on getting a hard copy published through Amazon's publishing company. Right now we are in a contract with Amazon that for 90 days it needs to be exclusively and Amazon product, however they will let us do a hard copy through them. I know not everyone owns a Kindle so we feel this will be a great option for those looking for a different way to get the book. Thank you again to ALL OF YOU for your support we feel so very blessed and love that so many people are looking for a way to feed themselves and their families better! You can do it!