Honey Garlic Barbecue Sauce

3 days into the Whole 30 Challenge and I feel okay. Not great, not bad…just okay. I’m regretting my timing on this challenge because it coincided with the first day of school. I have forgotten how exhausting this routine is… get up early, shower, enjoy a quick moment of silence before waking up the clan, making breakfast, packing up lunches, rushing out the door, … The only difference is that, this year, the 3 boys are in school full time. 

I admit that dropping off my 3rd child for his first day of Grade 1 was tough. I cried. I asked if he would prefer to just stay home with me forever. I offered him chocolates if he would…and he said “No way..chocolate would make me sick!”. It was a very lonely day without him.

Their going back to school just solidifies the fact that summer is over. I know plenty of people who barbecue in the winter but it just doesn’t feel right to me. Having to shovel a path through 3 feet of snow… *blah* We’re enjoying the last couple of weeks with our barbecue and now that I’ve figured out how to make my own barbecue sauce, I can enjoy it even more! Dry ribs are fine, but saucy ribs are superb! 

Honey Garlic Barbecue Sauce

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

3 tablespoons minced garlic

3 tablespoons honey

5 1/2 oz can tomato paste

1 cup beef broth

1/2 teaspoon mustard powder

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

salt and pepper, to taste

1/4 teaspoon worcestershire sauce

pinch cayenne pepper

Directions

In a medium sized pot, over medium-high heat, heat olive oil. Saute the onions and garlic for 5-7 minutes, until the onions are softened and opaque. Reduce heat to medium and stir in honey and tomato paste until the honey is runny. Stir in beef broth, mustard powder, cider vinegar, salt, pepper, worcestershire sauce, and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low.

Simmer over low for 20-30 minutes, until the sauce thickens (to your liking). Use immediately or refrigerate for up to 1 week. 

Coleslaw

There is at least one person in your life whose life appears absolutely perfect. Perfect house, perfect family, perfect life… They manage to juggle it all flawlessly and you can’t imagine them EVER having a bad day.

I’m here to tell you… that is not me. I’ve been called Super Mom enough times that I considered having it embroidered on a shirt but it isn’t my reality. My house has a lot of clutter, my laundry can go days without being put away, my kids can be unruly brats, and I yell FAR too much to be considered a super mom.

From the outside, it appears that I juggle a lot flawlessly but the stress and guilt I feel over not being able to do more eats at me. I push deadlines to the very bitter end and then rush to get things finished. I’m an ideas person, not a ‘getting $h*t done’ person. The reason I appear to be super is because I married someone who truly IS super. My husband works full time, has no problem taking all 5 kids to Costco by himself, does a tremendous amount of housework (yes, I am THAT lucky!), and he helps cook a lot of our suppers. 

There you have it..this Super Mom is married to a Super Dad and I could never make it through my crazy days without him. 

Coleslaw


Ingredients


4 cups shredded green cabbage
2 cups shredded purple cabbage
2 large carrots, shredded
1 apple, shredded (we used Gala)

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2/3 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon celery seed

Directions


In a large bowl, mix together green cabbage, purple cabbage, carrots, and apple. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together apple cider vinegar and coconut milk. While whisking, pouring in olive oil in a steady stream and continue whisking until it’s combined well. Season with salt and pepper. Pour dressing over the cabbage and mix well. Top the coleslaw with the celery seed and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Caesar Salad

This post has been brewing in my brain for a while now and I am finally taking the time to type it all out. I am in my 4th month of this new lifestyle/diet and looking back at my first 2 months, I realize how little I actually knew back then. When I first cut out grains and sugars, I felt a little isolated and alone. I had trouble figuring out what to eat and I didn’t know anyone who ate this way. As I have mentioned before, the transition from grain/sugar-free to Primal came when I saw a month long Primal challenge.

Suddenly I had people. I had support. I had information to help me. What I also had was a label. A funny thing happens as soon as you put a label on something…you get guidelines and rules. With guidelines and rules come the people who you will never be as good as (at least in their minds). You know what I’m talking about…the know it alls, the ones who speak down to you when you don’t do exactly the same thing as they do, the ones who don’t think you even belong to their ‘group’.

The same type of thing happened after I had my oldest son. I was breastfeeding, co-sleeping, and believed in parenting naturally. When I found out that I fell under the ‘attachment parenting‘ label, I was thrilled to have support! But, there were hardcore AP’ers that followed every single rule and anyone who didn’t might as well have their child taken away from them because they were not good enough parents. 

Then it hit me…my kids were happy and healthy with the way I was parenting them. I didn’t need a label to decide that. It’s the same as the way I eat…I am happy and healthy eating the way I am and I don’t need someone else’s rules. You shouldn’t follow someone else’s rules just because it worked for them..you should be doing what works for you. Don’t let someone chastise you for eating a bit of honey or having dairy if that’s what you feel is best for you. 

Of course, I’m a bit of a non-conformist so take this post as you will. *innocent smile* I have tried a few different caesar salad dressings and I find they either have a really strong anchovy taste or a really strong raw egg taste. Using the sour cream in the dressing balances out the anchovies and not using egg took care of the raw egg taste. The sour cream might be an issue for some but it’s not for me and that, my friends, is the way I like it. 

Caesar Salad

Ingredients

2 romaine lettuce hearts

juice from 1 lemon

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

1 can whole anchovies

dash of worcestershire sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup olive oil

1/4 cup sour cream

salt and pepper, to taste

3 tablespoons hemp seeds (I found some garlic flavoured seeds)

Directions

In a food processor, puree lemon juice, dijon mustard, anchovies, worcestershire sauce, and garlic until smooth. With the food processor running, pour in olive oil slowly and combine completely. Stir in the sour cream and salt and pepper. Refrigerate while you prepare the salad.

Tear up 2 heads of romaine lettuce into a large bowl. Pour some dressing over the salad, toss to combine, and top with hemp seeds. 

Recipe adapted from Mark’s Daily Apple. 

Caramelized Beets

With the older boys away, we’ve been doing a lot of things with the younger kids. We all fit into the truck so we picked up dirt bikes for the boys, went to the corn maze, and have plans to go to the mountains this weekend. Part of me feels guilty because we are having a lot of fun without them but when I talk to them, they are also have a lot of fun without us.

The kids have been to a couple of big family parties since arriving at their grandparents’ and I have been seeing pictures pop up on Facebook of them. I am very happy to see them having fun but at the same time, I miss them like mad! I find myself wondering if they are making sure to brush their teeth or eating enough vegetables or getting to bed at a decent time. The job of Mom is never done, right?

Tonight we had beets and the older boys aren’t big fans but they’ll eat them. Gavin is the beet eater and tonight he surprised me by asking for seconds and then thirds! Oh..he’s going to be very colourful tomorrow! 

Caramelized Beets


Ingredients


8 medium beets
1 tablespoon butter (or olive oil)
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon cider vinegar

Directions


Preheat oven to 400°. Wash the beets and oil them with a bit of olive oil. Bake on a baking sheet for 30 minutes, until tender. Cool until you can handle them and then rub the peels off. Cut each beet into 8 pieces.

In a medium frying pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Allow it to boil until it begins to brown (about 2-3 minutes) and then toss in the beets. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Turn occasionally until the beets are brown and crisp on the outside (7-8 minutes). Pour the cider vinegar into the pan along the side and be sure to keep back in case it spatters. Swirl around in the pan until it evaporates, another minute or two.

Cumin Roasted Sweet Potatoes

We are 2 kids short of a full house for the next couple of weeks because my oldest 2 decided to spend a couple of weeks with their grandparents. It’s a little bit lonely. Maybe lonely isn’t the right word… it’s different. I am cooking half as much and there aren’t nearly as many kids saying “I’m hungry!” every 15 minutes. There isn’t nearly as much bickering between kids. And I can get away with running the dishwasher once a day!

The oldest 2 are the most resistant to change and tend to influence the younger ones when it comes to food…without them the little ones will eat anything. It’s kind of funny planning our meals and saying “All 3 of the kids will eat that!”. We do try to have sweet potatoes a couple of times a week because they are so good and good for you. Yay fibre!! The best way to get the kids to eat them is to roast them with a sprinkle of cumin. 

Cumin Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients

4 large sweet potatoes

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 teaspoons ground cumin

Directions

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Cut sweet potatoes into 1/2″ cubes and lay on a baking sheet in a single layer. Pour olive oil over sweet potatoes and toss to coat. Sprinkle evenly with salt, pepper, and cumin. Toss to coat.

Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, flipping halfway, until the sweet potatoes are tender inside.

Arroz ala Mexicana

I’ve been so lost in thought before that I have no clue where my thoughts began. Then I have to backtrack my thoughts all the way to the beginning so I don’t forget what I was originally thinking about. Example… If I am making a mental note about needing to do laundry the next day, I will remember Logan’s gym suit needs to be washed as well, and then I think about an upcoming competition, and it reminds me of going on a trip…. suddenly, I am thinking about a totally random thing….like cars.

That’s not really the strange thing. Sometimes when I get lost in thought, I will blurt out something related to the last thought I had even though it doesn’t pertain to the conversation in ANY way. Fortunately for me, this happens when I’m talking to my husband so I am not really socially awkward…it just sounds like I am.

Getting lost in thought happens to me when I am in a routine or doing something mundane. Since I am a stay at home mom, most of my day is routine or mundane. One of the ways I feel like I challenge my mind is by cooking something different. An unfamiliar recipe or technique forces me to be in the moment. Instead of plain rice, like we usually have, we tried out a new recipe for Mexican rice.

Arroz ala Mexicana

Ingredients

1 cup basmati rice (uncooked)

1 small onion, finely diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 large tomato, roughly chopped

1/2 teaspoon salt

pinch of freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1 1/2 cups chicken broth, divided

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup frozen peas

Directions

Place 1/2 cup of chicken broth, tomato, salt, pepper, oregano, and 1/4 of the finely diced onion inside a food processor and pulse until completely broken down. Set aside.

Heat the olive oil over medium heat and saute the remaining 3/4 of the onion for 5 minutes, then add the garlic and saute another 2 minutes. Add the rice to the pan and fry until it starts to turn golden; stirring frequently to prevent burning. Pour the sauce that you set aside into the pan and stir. Pour in the remaining 1 cup of chicken broth and the frozen peas. Cover and simmer on low until the rice is soft and cooked through. 

Recipe adapted from Spicie Foodie.

Mujadarra

When I was 12 years old, I met a girl at summer camp who was a vegetarian. By the time I went home, I had decided to become a vegetarian as well. Except, I grew up in a rural area where vegetables were limited and I knew nothing about replacing meat with other foods. I started eating meat again just before I got pregnant the first time but as the years have gone on, I have realized that I could stop eating meat. My family, on the other hand, could not.

I expected that the kids would enjoy mujadarra…they eat rice and they eat lentils…but apparently they don’t eat them together. Or with caramelized onions. For me, it was a big bowl of happy. Like a great book, a warm blanket, and a bowl full of mujadarra…Obviously I have 5 kids because that does NOT seem fun when you are childless.

Mujadarra

Ingredients

3/4 cup basmati rice

1 cup green lentils, rinsed

3 cups yellow onions, chopped

1/3 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Cook rice according to package directions. Cover and keep warm when it’s finished.

Rinse lentils and place in a heavy pot. Add 1 quart of water and simmer over low heat, uncovered, until they are soft (20-30 minutes). When lentils are cooked, cover and let them sit to absorb any leftover water.

Heat olive oil in a heavy frying pan, add onions, reduce heat to medium-low and start browning onions (stirring every few minutes). Cook onions, stirring frequently, until they are deep brown and caramelized (about 20-25 minutes). 

When onions are browned, remove half of them to drain on paper towel. Sprinkle in the cumin to the remaining onions in the pan and saute 1-2 minutes. 

Drain remaining water from lentils and transfer to the pan of onions. Season the lentil/onion mixture with salt and pepper. Cook for 1-2 minutes to blend flavours. Gently mix in cooked rice and heat from 1-2 minutes until rice is hot. Serve in a large bowl, topping with remaining caramelized onions. 

Recipe adapted from Kalyn’s Kitchen.

Pico de Gallo

While we were in Puerto Vallarta, the 10 of us stopped at this little restaurant for drinks. 7-up for the ladies (and child) and Coronas for the men. The waitress brought out 2 bowls of pico de gallo and a plate full of tortilla chips. At the time, none of us knew what pico de gallo was and we referred to it as ‘Mexican salsa’ for a couple of years. 

All we knew was that it was delicious! We gobbled down 4 bowls of it…therefore requiring an extra drink for each of us because it was ‘muy picante’. From then on, regular salsa didn’t taste as good and I was thrilled the day we found a recipe for pico de gallo! 

Pico de Gallo

2-3 large tomatoes

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

1 jalapeno (add more if you want it spicy)

juice from 1 lime

1/4 chopped fresh cilantro

salt

Seed and dice tomatoes. Finely dice onions to match the tomatoes. Mince the jalapeno and combine with tomatoes and onion in a medium bowl. Add the cilantro and squeeze the lime juice over it all. Season to taste with salt and stir gently to combine. Best eaten the same day!

Recipe adapted from Inspired Taste.

Dilly Stuffed Potatoes

In 2005, my Mom had a recipe published in Country Woman magazine. I had no idea she was entering a contest but it was absolutely no surprise that she would win with a potato recipe. Everyone has one food that they could not live without…Mom’s is potatoes. I wanted to make some stuffed potatoes and Mom was away so I searched on the Taste of Home website. Lo and behold..there was my Mom’s recipe!! 

It’s kind of odd..my Mom, who can eat just toast for supper, has an award winning recipe that’s been published in the Taste of Home cookbook. But these potatoes are awesome. And in an effort to get the kids to eat them, we made sure they were well aware that these were “Nana’s Potatoes”. I wonder if that will work with other foods… Hmmm….

Dilly Stuffed Potatoes

Makes 4

Ingredients

4 large baking potatoes

1/4 cup finely chopped onion

1/4 cup butter, cubed

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

4 ounces cream cheese, cubed

1 teaspoon dill weed

4 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled

Directions

Scrub and pierce potatoes. Bake at 400° for 1 hour or until tender. In a small skillet, saute onion in butter until tender; set aside.

When potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut a thin slice off the top of each and discard. Scoop out pulp into a large bowl, leaving a thin shell. Mash the pulp with cheddar cheese, cream cheese, and dill. Stir in bacon and onion mixture. Spoon back into potato shells.

Place on a baking sheet. Bake at 400° for 30-35 minutes or until heated through.

Balsamic Kind of Supper

I have a confession…I am addicted to balsamic vinegar. In January 2003 we went to Mexico and ate at this Italian restaurant (weird, I know) that served foccacia bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Since then I cannot get enough balsamic. I found these 2 recipes separately and decided that it wouldn’t be too much balsamic…unless you happen to dislike the stuff in which case be grateful you don’t live here.

Balsamic Steak au Poivre was perhaps the most delicious way of serving steak. Ever. Billy had planned to barbecue the steak but a thunderstorm forced us to cook them in our electric skillet. Don’t tell Billy but I prefer them being cooked on the skillet. I can control how cooked they are without the charred outside. Not that I’m letting my balsamic vinegar take over my opinions of this recipe, I feel like the best part is the sauce. I added some minced shallots into the sauce and I think it could have handled some sauteed mushrooms in there as well. We had mashed potatoes on the side so the end result of our meal was a pool of leftover sauce.

Bacon and Balsamic Glazed Snap Peas has completely changed my opinion of sugar snap peas. We buy large bags of sugar snap peas weekly and have only ever eaten them fresh in the shell. I was drawn to both the balsamic AND bacon in this recipe. So far I have not found a recipe with bacon that hasn’t been delicious…not that I want to find one but it’s interesting. The final result doesn’t look all that appetizing but the flavours really work together! I took all of the bacon drippings out of the pan and added it back in while sauteeing the snap peas on an ‘as needed’ basis.

I do enjoy meals that everyone eats but I love meals that everyone eats 2 servings of! My balsamic vinegar addiction is still raging on…and I will bring the rest of the family to the dark side. I can see it.