Minestrone - Darla McCraken Serves 6

Saute for 5 min until tender

    2 Tab virgin olive oil

    1 small yellow onion chopped

    2 med carrots, peeled & diced

    2 celery stalks , diced

Add & cook for 1 minute

    1 medium zucchini, diced

    1 cup 1" pieces of green beans (fresh or frozen)

    4 garlic cloves, minced

    2 dried bay leaves

Stir in 

    2 TAB tomato paste

Add & bring to boil

    6 cups chicken broth

    1 28oz can diced tomatoes with juices

    1 14 oz can cannelloni beans , drained & rinsed

    1 cup elbow macaroni

    1 teas dried basil

    1 teas dried thyme

    1/2 teas dried oregano

    Pinch red pepper flakes

    Salt & Pepper to taste

Simmer on low 25-30 min. 

Thai Chicken Coconut Red Curry (with lots of Carrots!)

 This is a hit at my house. It's a pretty quick meal. Everyone at my house loves it!

It comes from www.averiecooks.com

Ingredients 

2 to 3 tablespoons coconut oil, olive oil may be substituted

1 medium/large sweet Vidalia or yellow onion, diced small

1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, diced into bite-sized pieces

3 cloves garlic, finely minced or pressed

2 to 3 teaspoons ground ginger or 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely chopped

2 teaspoons ground coriander

one 13-ounce can coconut milk, I used lite; full-fat will deliver a richer/thicker result

1 to 1 ½ cups shredded carrots

1 to 3 tablespoons Thai red curry paste, or to taste (curry powder may be substituted, to taste)

1 teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

about 3 cups fresh spinach leaves

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 to 2 tablespoons brown sugar, optional and to taste

¼ cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped for garnishing (basil may be substituted)

rice, quinoa, or naan, optional for serving, We like it with broil-toasted naan

Instructions 

To a large skillet, add the oil, soften onion about 5 minutes.

Add the chicken and cook about 5 minutes, or until chicken is done; flip and stir often to ensure even cooking.

Add the garlic, ginger, coriander, and cook for about 1 minute, or until fragrant; stir frequently.

Add the coconut milk, carrots, Thai curry paste, salt, pepper, and stir to combine. 

Reduce the heat to medium, and allow mixture to gently boil for about 5 minutes, or until liquid volume has reduced as much as desired and thickens slightly.

Add the spinach, lime juice, and stir to combine. Cook until spinach has wilted and is tender, about 1 to 2 minutes. Taste and optionally add brown sugar, additional curry paste, salt, pepper, etc. to taste.

Evenly sprinkle with the cilantro and serve immediately.

Tacos Ahogados (Drowned Taquitos)

 Ingredients:

3 chicken breasts
3 Bone-in Chicken legs or wings to give flavor
1/2 onion
2 cloves garlic
Salt

1 cup Green Tomatoes
2 Chiles Serrano
1/4 onion
1 clove garlic
4 sprigs cilantro
Salt

Sour cream
Shredded cabbage
Thinly sliced tomatoes
Thinly sliced onions
Shredded cheese
avocado
Sliced radishes

Instructions

1. Bring the Chicken to a boil with 1/2 an onion, 1-2 cloves garlic, salt, then lower heat and let simmer 40 minutes until cooked through.  Cool and shred the chicken, add more salt.

2. In a small pot: boil green tomatoes, chiles serranos until they lose their color (5-10 minutes)
Blend them with onion, garlic, cilantro and salt. 

If everyone has the same spice tolerance, add this salsa to the chicken soup. If not, serve the chicken soup first and stir in the preferred amount of salsa to each bowl. 

Roll and fry the tacos

Serve in a bowl. First cover the tacos with crema, shredded cabbage, tomatoes thinly sliced, onions thinly sliced, shredded cheese, avocado, radishes. Pour soup over them.

Protein Cottage Cheese Waffles

 I learned today that the nutribullet I relegated to my rental can actually do my small batch blending (facepalm). I've only been cursing out my giant blendtech jar for about 3 years...

These were unfortunately not very crispy - a little floppy, but they were yummy and didn't taste like weird protein waffles ;)

Ingredients

2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp fine sea salt
2 cups whole milk 4% cottage cheese*
6 large eggs
3 tbsp pure maple syrup
1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
optional but recommended: 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Instructions

Heat waffle iron over medium heat.

Blend oats into fine powder using a blender or Nutribullet. Dump into a large mixing bowl. Whisk in baking powder, cinnamon and salt.

Place cottage cheese, eggs, maple syrup, and vanilla in blender

Pour wet mixture into bowl with dry ingredients. Mix with a wooden spoon just until combined. Fold in blueberries is using. (For frozen blueberries, add directly on top of batter versus mixing in so it doesn't turn blue.)

Spray hot waffle iron very well with cooking spray. Pour a little less than 1 cup batter onto belgian waffle iron. Cook for 6 minutes, until golden. Be sure to spray cooking spray well between each batch so waffles don't stick. Place waffles on a wire rack to cool. Serve with fruit, butter, almond butter, and maple syrup!

Taken from https://www.hummusapien.com/high-protein-waffles/

Italian Chicken Pastina Soup -This is amazing!!!

 

Italian Chicken Pastina Soup (aka Italian Nonna's Penicillin Soup)

This cozy, comforting Chicken Pastina Soup is also called Italian Nonna's Penicillin soup because it's known to cure just about anything that ails you! It hits the spot on a chilly day, for sure!

Prep Time20minutes mins

Cook Time35minutes mins

Total Time55minutes mins

Course: Main, Soup

Cuisine: Italian, Italian-American

Keyword: Chicken Pastina Soup, Italian Chicken Pastina Soup, Italian Nonna's Penicillin Soup, Italian Penicillin Soup

 

Servings: 10 servings

 

Calories: 142kcal

 

Author: Chris Scheuer

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 large onion diced small
• 1 large shallot finely chopped
• 4 stalks celery diced small
• 1 large yellow bell pepper diced small
• 4 medium cloves garlic minced
• 8 cups low-sodium chicken broth maybe more
• 1 pound carrots diced small
• 1 parmesan rind (optional)
• 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt more to taste
• ⅓ cup uncooked pastina tiny pasta, double if you like a lot of pasta
• 2½ -3 cups rotisserie or leftover chicken
• grated Parmesan for serving
• finely chopped fresh rosemary and/or fresh thyme leaves

Instructions

• Heat a large Dutch oven or soup pot or medium heat. Add the oil, butter, onion, shallot, celery and bell pepper and stir to combine. Cook for 4-5 minutes or until the onions are translucent, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic, stir well and cook for another 2 minutes.
• Add the broth, carrots, parmesan rind (if using) and salt. Bring the mixture to a boil then reduce to a steady simmer and cook for 20-25 minutes (uncovered) or until the veggies are nice and tender.
• Remove the parmesan rind, if you used one. With a slotted spoon, remove 2 cups of the diced veggies and set aside.
• With an immersion blender (or a regular blender) puree the broth/veggie mixture in the pot until smooth.
• ****NOTE: If you use a regular blender, be sure to let the mixture cool down a bit before blending. Also, remove the center cap on the blender top and cover it with a clean kitchen towel or several thicknesses of paper towels. This will allow the heat to vent and prevent it from building up.
• Add the pasta, bring the mixture to a boil then reduce to a steady simmer. Cook, uncovered for whatever the time on your bag or box of pastina instructs. (Acini de pepe takes 9 minutes.)
• Add the rotisserie (or leftover) chicken and the reserved veggies. Stir to combine. Cover and allow the soup to rest for 20 minutes.
• Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning, adding more salt if needed.
• Serve with grated parmesan, a scatter of finely chopped fresh rosemary or fresh thyme leaves (or both) and fresh ground black pepper. Enjoy!
  
  

Calories: 142kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.05g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 471mg | Potassium: 471mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 7725IU | Vitamin C: 39mg | Calcium: 41mg | Iron: 1mg

https://thecafesucrefarine.com/italian-chicken-pastina-soup-aka-italian-nonnas-penicilin-soup/

Hot Milk Sponge Cake with Broiled Macadamia Coconut Topping

 

Protein PB Cottage Choc Chip Muffins

Ingredients:

1/2 cup melted coconut oil or butter

1/3 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup cottage cheese

1/4 cup greek yogurt

2 eggs

1.5 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

2/3-3/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven 375*, line muffin tins with liners

2. Combine melted coconut oil, maple syrup, peanut butter, vanilla extract, eggs. Whisk until blended. 

3. Whisk in the cottage cheese and yogurt

4. In a separate small bowl, mix flour, soda, salt. Add choc chips.

5. Mix dry into wet until just combined.

6. Scoop batter into liners, filling completely. 

7. Bake 23-25 mins until toothpick comes out clean.