rice pilaf.

i made this to go along with chicken pillows, which we usually have with potatoes.  this was a nice change and will be added into our rotation of regular recipes.  i did decide that next time i'm going to decrease the garlic and onion a little, so i have reflected that in my recipe. 

photo from {kelseys' apple a day}.

rice pilaf serves 6.
2 T. butter
1/3 of an onion, diced
2 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. white pepper
1 1/4 C. rice (can use brown)
2 1/2 C. chicken broth
can add in fresh herbs or dried herbs for color if desired.

1) melt butter over medium heat; add onion, garlic, salt and pepper.  stir until onions are soft.  

2) stir in rice until well coated; add broth and bring to a boil. 

3) cover, reduce heat and summer until rice is tender, 15-20 minutes.  fluff with a fork.

i got this recipe from the book The Food Nanny Rescues Dinner, pg. 213.

homemade yogurt in the crockpot. {part 2}. the recipe and fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt.

i got this recipe from{bless this mess}.

homemade yogurt in the crockpot: makes about 2 quarts.
1/2 gallon whole milk (8 cups)
1/2 C. plain yogurt (i like Mountain High)

1) pour milk into large crockpot.  turn it on low for 2 1/2 hours.

2) unplug crockpot and let sit for 3 hours.

3) stir in yogurt.  cover crockpot and wrap with 2 thick towels.  allow to sit out on the counter overnight or for 8-12 hours.

4) place in glass jars or large glass bowl and refrigerate; it will thicken a little more as it cools.

if you want to have the fruit throughout the yogurt, blend or whip it together for a creamy flavored mix.

photo from {the pea-pod}.

homemade fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt cups: makes 6 servings

1 1/2 C. fresh or frozen berries of choice
3 T. honey or maple syrup
homemade yogurt

1) in a small saucepan, add berries and sweetener.

2) heat mixture over medium heat; let the mixture simmer, stirring often, until the liquid reduces by half.  this should take about 10-15 minutes.

tip: if you're using fresh berries, mash them a bit in the beginning so they release their juices and don't burn.

3) divide the berry mixture evenly into 6 half pint wide mouth mason jars.  (these are so cute and handy!)

4) add yogurt on top of the berries (3/4-1 C. per jar). cover and store in fridge.


NOTES:
you can add more or less sweetener and berries according to your taste.

for a healthy boost, stir in chia seeds before eating.

homemade crockpot yogurt. {part 1}. the info.

photo from {live simply}.

did you know you can make homemade yogurt in your crockpot?  this has been on my TO DO list for over a year now.  my kids and i LOVE yogurt and spend quite a bit of money every month on the small walmart yogurt cups, my favorite Zoi honey vanilla greek yogurt and the larger "boring" (as my kids call it) tubs of peach, strawberry or vanilla.

although my kids still prefer the small flavored yogurt cups (and i love my Zoi), i am trying to tighten our grocery budget over here.  living in utah is quite a bit more expensive than idaho. we were really spoiled with cheap, good food in idaho!

a tub of yogurt here costs almost $5!!!

a gallon of whole milk cost around $3.15.  the yogurt recipe calls for a half gallon of milk and a half a cup of plain yogurt (i use Mountain High).  to get started you need to buy plain yogurt, but then you can save out a 1/2 C. from your batch of homemade yogurt to use for your new batch.

by your second batch you'll only be paying around $1.57 + tax for about 8 C. of nourishing yogurt!

photo from {may purr}.

it also helps to know that i know the exact ingredients in the yogurt we are eating.  no sugars, dyes and preservatives!

i know, you may be thinking. eww- plain yogurt is sour and disgusting.  i thought the same thing.  this homemade yogurt is still tangy, but it is much milder than store-bought.  i add some fresh berries and a slight drizzle of honey and it's a delicious snack.  add in some granola and you've got a healthy and filling breakfast!

my kids even ate this with fruit and granola! i was impressed. usually my kids are total yogurt snobs and can detect when i've tried to give them plain yogurt.

benefits of plain yogurt:
1) to quote fitness magazine, yogurt's got power-boosting protein and bone-building calcium.

when you eat yogurt, the calcium in it signals your fat cells to pump out less cortisol, making it easier for you to drop pounds and especially belly fat when you are following a healthy diet.  cortisol is the hormone that triggers your body to store more fat, specifically around the waist.  

2) yogurt has "live and active cultures," which means that it has probiotics, beneficial "bugs" that live in your digestive tract and help crowd out harmful micro-organisms that can cause intestinal infections.  the probiotics also strengthen your immune system

3) yogurt is loaded with vitamins.  one serving is a significant source of potassium, phosphorus, riboflavin, iodine, zinc, and vitamins B5 and B12.  an 8 oz. serving of yogurt contains about 60% of the vitamin B12 that an average adult woman needs daily. B12 is the vitamin which maintains red blood cells and helps keep your nervous system functioning properly.

4) a cup of yogurt a day can help you recover faster after a workout.  with the right ratio of protein to carbohydrates, yogurt makes an excellent post-workout snack.  eat within 1 hour of a work out and the proteins provide the amino acids your muscles need to repair themselves.  the carbohydrates replace your muscles' energy stores, which are depleted after a hard workout.  it's a bonus if you drink a full glass of water along with it; the protein in yogurt may also help increase the amount of water absorbed by the intestines, improving hydration!

5)not all yogurt is equal!!!  fruit yogurts have less calcium than plain because of the sugar content.  yogurt is NOT a healthy snack or meal when it has tons of sugar loaded into it!!! and light or sugar-free are not great options either; the aspartame or other fake sugars added in instead are even worse for your body than sugar itself!

6) yogurt may prevent high blood pressure.  every day, 70% of people consume more than twice the recommended amount of salt; over time that can lead to hypertension and kidney and heart disease.  the potassium in yogurt, almost 600 mg per 8 oz. may help flush out some of the excess sodium from your body!

7)a daily serving of yogurt keeps colds away!  the healthy bacteria in yogurt help to send signals to the immune-boosting cells in your body to power up and fight off harmful bugs. allergy sufferers may also find relief by adding yogurt into their diets.

8) the lactic acid in yogurt appears to give your gums protection and helps build stronger teeth.


in researching yogurt i have found so much information! according to the site {eat local grown}i found preservation of yogurt starter information and different ideas for flavoring yogurt:


how to preserve yogurt starter:
if you don't want to or can't make a new batch of yogurt every week or so, you can reserve your 1/2 cup of yogurt, or more if you cannot eat all of your yogurt before it goes bad and FREEZE it!!!

yogurt freezes well and the active live cultures in yogurt will survive for many months in the freezer.

simply freeze in a clean ice cube tray or small plastic container equal to a half a cup portions.


more ideas for flavoring yogurt:
flavor with the seasons!  flavoring plain yogurt is always to taste.  try adding seasonal fruits, cinnamon, honey, vanilla or other natural flavor extracts.

puree fruit in a blender or add in a bit of jam or even try blending it up with some fruit juice or concentrate.  you can add in chopped nuts, seeds, mini chocolate chips, protein powders, and coconut flakes.

photo from {paleo leap}.

fall/winter: apple, cinnamon/spices, peach, pear, apricot, cranberry, pomegranite
spring/summer: strawberry, pineapple, blueberry, cherry, raspberry, blackberry
year-round: banana

photo from {let the baking begin}.

if you preserve your own fruits you can enjoy them year-round as well!!!


there are tons of resources if you're interested in learning more about yogurt!!!

grilled apricot chicken.

i got this recipe from a trainer i was working with last year.  it's yummy, everyone in our family likes it, flavorful and easy.

oh, and yeah- it's healthy.

apricot chicken: serves 4-8

4 chicken breasts, butterflied

olive oil

dry rub:

1 T. dried thyme

1 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1 tsp. garlic powder

1/4 tsp. cayenne (omit if you don't want a slight kick)

1/8 tsp. salt

apricot glaze:

2/3 C. 100% apricot jam (i make my own)

1-2 T. spicy brown mustard (can add more if you want more spice)

1) brush chicken with olive oil.

2) prepare dry rub by combining all spices together and season both sides of chicken. 

3) cover and refrigerate 15-30 minutes.

4) preheat grill.

5) grill chicken for 6 minutes on one side and 4-6 minutes on the other side, or until cooked through.

6) while grilling chicken, prepare glaze by combining jam and mustard in a small saucepan and bringing to a soft boil; then simmer until ready to spoon over chicken.

NOTES:

this recipe serves 4-8 depending on portion sizes. most people i know would eat a whole chicken breast.  my meal plan during weight loss calls for a 4 oz. portion of chicken, which is also about as much as my children eat.  so if you are eating less and serving children then it will serve 8.

i use the leftovers for chris' lunch and make a healthy salad for the next day with a little bit of sauce, rice and chicken with tomatoes and whatever other veggies i have and romaine lettuce. (salad in a jar...more to come later...)

i like to slice up my chicken and serve over rice with the glaze spooned on top.  we also like steamed broccoli on the side.

197 calories per 4 oz. serving of chicken with 2 T. sauce

homemade crockpot refried beans.

this recipe for homemade refried beans is from {pennies and pancakes}.  she is an LDS girl who blogs about some frugal recipes and ways to get out of debt.  i tried this recipe and it was delicious.  we have eaten it in quesadillas and as a chip dip so far, but you could also eat it in tacos.  it makes a filling meal in a quesadilla and gives you the healthy protein.  no extra lard or fat in this recipe, just flavor.

NOTE:
i did not take the time to soak the beans overnight before i made these; though it would be great to do so and will cut down on overall cooking time.  it took a good 8-10 hours before they were soft enough to mash.

crockpot refried beans: makes 16 cups.

2 lbs. pinto beans (about 4 cups)

1 large onion, chopped

4 T. minced garlic

1 T. salt

1 tsp. black pepper

2 tsp. cumin

10 cups hot water (I boiled mine so it was extra hot and gave the beans a good head-start on cooking)

1) rinse beans in a colander. pick out any bad beans.

2) combine all ingredients in the crockpot. remove any floating beans. cover, and cook on HIGH for 4 hours and on LOW for 2 hours. (i cooked on HIGH 4 hours and then LOW 4-6 hours because i did not soak them first).

3) uncover, and remove extra liquid. leave enough liquid to reach the desired consistency when the beans are mashed. (we like our beans somewhere between the very-liquidy restaurant style beans, and the canned version of refried beans.)

4) mash beans with a potato masher to desired consistency. (i actually ran mine through the blender, reserving some whole to mix in with the pureed beans).

serve warm. store in air-tight containers in the refrigerator and use within 2 weeks, or freeze in ziplock bags for later use. (we used half of ours within a few days and froze the rest, which we have thawed and taste great!)

oatmeal. {2 ways}. maple raisin and apple cinnamon.

i have mentioned before how my kids don't like oatmeal unless it's from a quaker oatmeal packet.  thus frustrates me because oatmeal can be such a healthy and inexpensive breakfast.  i continue to try and introduce them to new homemade oatmeal recipes and these two finally hit the mark with all three of them, although brady {my voracious eater} won't eat more than one {hearty} serving.

pic from {its easy being vegan}.

maple oatmeal: serves 4-5.

2 C. rolled oats

3 1/2 C. water

1/3 C. powdered milk

1/2 C. maple syrup

1/2 C. raisins, optional

1) add oats, water and powdered milk to pot and whisk well to combine; cook until mixture begins to thicken.

2) add maple syrup and raisins and allow to cook 3-4 minutes.

serve plain or with a dollop of yogurt on top.

NOTES:

for a healthy boost- add 1 T. ground flax or 1 T. chia seeds into oatmeal.

this recipe was adapted from {bissful and domestic}.

recipe from {lose those poundz}.

apple cinnamon oatmeal: serves 4-5.

2 C. rolled oats

3 1/2 C. water

1/3 C. powdered milk

1 apple, diced with skin on

1/2 C. maple syrup

1 tsp. cinnamon

1) put water and apple in a pot; bring to a boil.  allow to boil until apple is soft.

2)add oats and remaining ingredients; simmer until oats are soft.

3)remove from heat and serve with a dash of cinnamon on top.

NOTE:

for a healthy boost- add in 1 T. ground flax seed or 1 T. chia seeds into oatmeal.

recipe adapted from {blissful and domestic}.

         

       

ratatouille.

this dish was so flavorful and so simple.  i think it is beautiful as well!  i made it back at the beginning of september when a good family friend, terry from maine came and stayed with us for a few days when she brought her kids, mattie and lee out to byu-idaho.  she is a vegan and i loved the opportunity and challenge to cook for her and try some recipes that i'd been wanting to make.

this is a wonderful chance to use up your garden's bounty as well!

ratatouille: serves 6.

1) sautee eggplant, zucchini and summer squash in olive oil and garlic and italian seasoning blend.  

2) layer with thick tomato slices over a little homemade marinara sauce.  

3) bake at 350 until warmed through and then served over brown rice.  

delish way to use up summer veggies and a great vegetarian dish as well.