Impressive Stuffed Pinwheel

Friday nights are family nights. Typically, we eat something tasty, watch a movie or play a game. Rarely do we go out. We are just too exhausted from running around all week between school, work and activities. We settle into our home and enjoy each other.

Tonight, I’m excited to “wow” them with this ingenious and delectable Italian Pinwheel recipe. Next time you want to impress your family or guests, try this recipe. It is tasty, creative and still maintains healthy options!

And don’t forget to change up the ingredients. Include the things you like, disregard the ones you don’t and feel free to add something that’s not even on the list!

GET THE RECIPE HERE

Use two pieces of wax paper. One on the bottom and one on the top.
Easy clean up. I didn't get my fingers icky.

Mix the oats, onions and herbs together in a food processor.
Have I told you how much I love my BRAUN?

Cut one end off blunt with the back of your knife to make a straight edge. Use what you cut off to fill in any areas that need it. Start rolling at the jagged edge and end on the blunt edge.

Keep a safe edge at the blunt end.

Use the wax or parchment paper to roll it up.

Seal the ends tight by pinching them together. If you don't, you might lose your stuffing :(

GREEK Style Pinwheels

To the meatloaf mix, add:
1 cup crushed tomatoes
1 tsp. cumin
1 Tbls dried oregano
double the amount of salt

Stuff with:
1/2 cup greek olive mix, sliced
1 cup feta, crumbled
1/2 cup green peppers, minced
1 small tomato, chopped fine

Serve Greek style pinwheels with a side of Zesty Yogurt Cucumber sauce (recipe as follows)
1 cup plain greek yogurt
1/2 cup cucumber, grated and patted dry
Salt and papper
squeeze of lemon (about 2 tsp.)


MEXICAN Style Pinwheels

To the meatloaf mix, add:
1 cup crushed tomatoes
1 Tbls chili powder
1 tsp cumin

Stuff with:
1 cup monterey jack cheese, shredded
1 cup black beans (make sure they are not too wet)
1/2 cup corn
1/2 cup red pepper, chopped fine
1 small fresh tomato, diced

Serve with an avocado cream (recipe as follows)
1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
1 avocado
juice of 1 lime
salt

Now, you know how to make an impressive and delicious recipe.

NOW GO COOK

Eat Clean - Roasted Broccoli and Garlic Penne

Dinner in a pinch. A pinch of this and a pinch of that!!!

This is one of those dishes that fills your home with the fragrance of love. There is nothing quite like a kitchen kicking out the smell of home cooking. These types of meals tend to make memories around the table. Some simple ingredients and not a ton of effort or time in the kitchen. 

Here's what I started with:

Almost thawed free-range chicken breast and thigh. 

Broccoli that needed to be used today, or else!

Penne. 

Slicing chicken that is completely thawed can be difficult to keep thin.
Here's a tip:
Don't thaw it all the way, and if it's already thawed, put it in the freezer for 15 minutes before slicing. It's easier, more stable, to cut.

Let's be honest ... broccoli doesn't start out by smelling wonderful. Neither does cauliflower for that matter. But once the 'stinky' part passes, you'll smell nothing but roasted deliciousness.

Use grape seed oil instead of olive oil because of the high temperature of the oven.
Use olive oil for anything 350 degrees and under.

The pasta only takes about 10 minutes in the boiling water to cook. Longer for softer noodles, less for crunchier pasta.

Whole grain pasta is best! There is also quinoa pasta and other vegetable alternatives.
Check them out!

Garlic was used and well documented by all the major civilizations… including the Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks, Romans and the Chinese for it's medicinal purposes - to restore and maintain health.

Garlic is a plant in the onion family, grown for its cooking properties and health effects. It is high in a sulfur compound called Allicin, which is believed to bring most of the health benefits. Allicin is released when chopped or crushed.

Garlic is low in calories and very rich in Vitamin C, Vitamin B6 and Manganese. It also contains trace amounts of various other nutrients.

Garlic supplementation helps to prevent and reduce the severity of common illnesses like the flu and common cold.

High doses of garlic appear to improve blood pressure of those with known high blood pressure (hypertension). In some instances, supplementation can be as effective as regular medications.

Garlic contains antioxidants that protect against cell damage and aging. It may reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

Allicin is not released from garlic until it has been chopped or crushed and left to sit for 5-10 minutes. 

NOTE:  Free-range chicken is raised in stress-free environments where they eat what God intended them to.

Typical chicken farms load up their chickens with grain, antibiotics and shove as many of the birds in a small area as they can.  Make the right choice for you and your family. 

Click here for the recipe

Eat Clean - Black Bean Burgers with Peach Salsa

Make Tuesday thru Sunday jealous of Meatless Monday with this awesome Black Bean Burger!

Start with homemade or canned black beans, add some veggies and binders and you're on your way to a terrific meal that will be a top request on your family menu!

Using dried beans isn't as time consuming or difficult as you might think. There are cost saving and health benefits. This recipe link is for pinto beans (smash them for refried beans), but use the same process for black beans [spices vary:  salt, pepper, red pepper flake and 2 bay leaves].   Here's how I make them.   

Simply combine the beans and veggies together with gluten free oats and eggs, smash them up with a vegetable masher (or fork) then shape into patties. 

Fry them in olive oil over medium heat for 7 minutes on each side. Serve on a bed of lettuce, in a lettuce wrap, whole wheat tortilla shell (that will add gluten) or on hamburger buns.

My kids don't even miss the cheese, but cheese is always a great addition. We serve ours with this delectable peach or nectarine salsa.

To be healthy, you have to live healthy by making
good eating choices and exercise! 

I use my vegetable masher for a lot of different things. From homemade applesauce to guacamole and black bean burgers. I used it on this black bean burger recipe and the peach salsa as well.

INGREDIENTS - Burger

2 cans organic black beans, or make them yourself

3 carrots, peeled and diced

1/2 large yellow onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, mined

Red pepper flake

3 eggs

1 1/2 cup oats, ground in blender

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

salt & pepper

olive oil and grape seed oil for cooking

DIRECTIONS - Burger

Over medium heat, add olive oil, carrot, onion, salt & pepper and red pepper flake. Cook for 5 minutes, then add garlic and continue cooking until onions are transparent and carrots are tender.  Remove from heat and let cool. 

In large bowl, add all cooled ingredients - beans, carrot mixture, egg, oats and cilantro. Smash with a  fork or vegetable masher (my favorite method). Then refrigerate for 1 hour. 

Shape into patties and fry in grape seed oil over medium-high heat. Approximately 5 minutes each side. I like mine a little crispy on the outside. 

INGREDIENTS - Salsa

1 cup of diced peaches, fresh or frozen

3 avocados

1/4 red onion, minced

Jalepeno, minced (to taste)

3 tbls cilantro, chopped

juice of 2 limes

Salt

Pepper

DIRECTIONS - Salsa

Add all ingredients to a bowl. Use the vegetable masher again (or forks) to your chunky or smooth preference. 

Keep refrigerated until time to use. Does not keep well, so eat up! We never have leftovers anyway.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS:  Serve burger in a toasted whole wheat bun with tomato and peach salsa.

Place burger over a bed of greens that were tossed with lime, olive oil and salt and pepper.

Serve in lettuce wraps with peach salsa. 

Serve in soft taco shells with peach salsa and a sour cream drizzle. 

Reach for Better Health, One Meal at a Time
NOW GO COOK

That's a Wrap Chicken - Eat Clean

Take a few simple fresh ingredients, some 1980's rock and roll and in about 30 minutes, 

and you'll roll out an impressive meal that everyone will rave about. 

  

Start with organic chicken breasts and pound them thin. 

Next, wrap the chicken around goat cheese and fresh asparagus. 

Coat with oil and cook in the oven for 15 minutes. 

Serve with a fresh salad or side and you're calling your family in 

before the big hair band is done playing their next ballad. 

INGREDIENTS

4 organic chicken breasts, boneless, skinless and pounded thin

1 pound asparagus, trimmed

4 oz. goat cheese

Salt & Pepper

Olive oil

DIRECTIONS

Place raw chicken into a plastic bag or between two sheets of wax paper. Pound the breasts evenly and thin, careful not to rip the meat. 

Salt and pepper both sides. Then place 4-6 asparagus stalks in the middle. Top with 1 oz. of goat cheese. Wrap the chicken around, then place a bamboo skewer through to hold together. 

If you don't have a bamboo skewer, use toothpicks or metal skewers. 

Brush with olive oil. Bake on a sprayed broiling pan at 350 for 15 minutes. 

Serving suggestion: 

     Onion and garlic sautéed with spinach and white cannelinni beans.

     Fresh garden salad with dijon vinaigrette and herbed quinoa.

     Roasted broccoli and tomatoes.

Now you know how to make a great meal quickly!

NOW GO COOK!

Eat Clean - Sausage Kale Dinner

SAUSAGE KALE

This one pot meal is SIMPLE. Chop and drop the ingredients into a pan on the stove and within 15 minutes (or less), dinner is served.

This tasty meal is WHOLESOME. The health factor is off the charts! Some of the health benefits that are featured in this dish are: Vitamins A & K, minerals, anti-inflammatory properties, fiber, protein, antioxidants, and lowers cholesterol. 

This quick dinner is TASTY! I dare you to try it. All four of my children love this and eat multiple helpings. They ask for it by name and I couldn't be more pleased!

Aidells makes delicious gluten-free chicken sausage with no hormones or nitrates.

They have a whole line of organics sausage as well. 

Click the link here to find out more about AIDELLS

I buy mine at Publix!

Organic kale is always best. 

But if you don't have that available, always always wash your vegetables before using them. 

The can of organic cannelinni beans add texture and protein. 

INGREDIENTS

1 onion, sliced

1 package of chicken sausage (I use AIDELLS)

1 bunch Kale

1 clove garlic

1/2 cup chicken stock

1 lemon (at least 3 Tbls.)

S&P (salt and pepper)

Sautee onions in a skillet of 2 Tbls. grape seed oil over medium-hi heat. 

Slice the chicken sausage and add to the skillet

Toss together

Top with chopped kale

Add stock and cover with a lid

Turn heat down to medium-low

Cook until kale is a bit wilted - about 8 minutes

Add drained beans

Toss and cover again for a few minutes until all ingredients are heated through

Hit it with the lemon and serve

COOKING IDEAS:  

- kick in some spice with Red Pepper Flake

- make it a soup by holding back 1/4 of the beans, puree them and add in with a full box of stock

- keep it vegetarian and leave out the sausage 

- top with parmesan cheese

- this meal makes a terrific lunch at work tomorrow

This recipe is similar to the White Bean and Kale recipe. 

Now you know how to make a great meal quickly!

NOW GO COOK!

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Eat Clean - Tuscan Chicken and Kale Dinner

Ever have one of those days where your list is complete and the plan is in place? Then, everything NOT on your list becomes a priority. Classic. 

Yesterday was one of those days. 

I had a business meeting last night, so I had carefully thought through what needed to happen before I walked out the door. Then, one by one, unexpected things popped up, which made my dinner prep time reduced to less than 30 minutes! 

I'm blogging today, because I DID IT! And it wasn't from the drive thru, take out or frozen food aisle. 

I started with organic, free-range chicken breasts, kale, and a few other fresh ingredients.  I was in the kitchen under 30 minutes.  Here's what I did.... 

Grape tomatoes on a foiled tray and put in the toaster oven for 20 minutes on 400 degrees. I covered them with grape seed oil, salt and pepper. Time to hit the showers and get ready!

The chicken breasts were pounded flat and cut into portions for each person, then each side was salted and peppered. The roasted tomatoes and oil they roasted in, black and green olives along with a few capers were spread across the top of the raw chicken. The last added ingredient with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar, right before I popped it in the preheated oven.

While the chicken was baking, I chopped up the rinsed kale and garlic. 

By the time the chicken was done, the kale was perfect and it all went on plates in perfect time. 

KALE AND WHITE BEAN

1 bunch kale, rinsed and chopped fine

1 can organic cannellini beans (white kidney beans)

2 cloves garlic

olive oil

S&P

veggie stock/broth, as needed

Lemon

Add 2 circles of oil to a medium heated skillet

Add the kale - it should sizzle a little

Add 1/4 cup (or so) of broth and cover for about 5 minutes

Chop garlic and rinse beans, then add both to the skillet

Toss together, season and add more broth if needed

The kale should become bright green

Right before serving, add a big squeeze of lemon

TUSCAN CHICKEN

2 organic, free-range chicken breasts - pounded flat

     then cut into portions

1/2 cup sliced olives, black and green

1 Tbls capers, drained

Roasted tomatoes and roasted oil

Balsamic Vinegar, to taste (I used about 1 Tbls.)

Pound chicken flat

Salt and pepper each side

Lay in glass or stone dish for baking

Top with olives, capers and tomatoes in oil

Bake at 350 for 20 minutes

Remove from heat and top with parmesan cheese.

Now you can feed your family a tasty, whole food dinner. It's simple. It's fast. It's delicious. 

Now Go Cook!

Cooking Notes:  

Use fish instead of chicken. 

Keep it vegetarian and use eggplant or tofu instead of chicken or fish. 

Add roasted asparagus also.

Eat Clean - Make your own Beans!

I love being frugal. But sometimes, not at the cost of valuable time. When I found out how simple and affordable it is to make my own beans, I seriously considered going into the canned bean business!

I started trying all sorts of beans in my mini-crock. Garbanzo beans (chickpeas), black beans, pinto beans for homemade refried beans, and red beans.

So I literally sorted, rinsed and tossed 2 cups of beans into my mini-crock pot, covered the beans in water almost to the top, added some seasonings and set it to HIGH.

Don't add any oil while cooking. Wait until they are all done to see if you want/need olive  oil.

I have been purchasing dried beans in bulk for quite a while. I store them in mason jars in my cupboard specifically so they don't get tucked away and I forget about them. Plus, the cupboard display is lovely. It makes me happy.

My refried bean recipe!

Here is what you'll need to make your own beans. Super Simple!

A crock pot or pot with lid
Water
Salt & Seasoning
Dried beans

Just dump all the ingredients in the pot and cook on high for a few hours.

Every crockpot is different. I have THREE and they are never done at the same time. So ... my nose tells me when beans are done. This pot of pinto beans above cooked on high for 3 hours. DONE!

I spooned off most of the cooking liquid and reserved. Then, I used my immersion blender to make the beans smooth. If they are too dry, I have the seasoned cooking water to add in.

Many dessert recipes call for beans. Have you heard of Black Bean Brownies? Or Garbanzo Pizzookie? If you're making beans for a dessert, use less salt and no other seasonings.

Now you have all the info you need to make a super affordable, super easy beans!
No more cans and unwanted ingredients. 

NOW GO COOK!

And snap a picture of your family enjoying them and share it with me!

Eat Clean - Beef Taquitos Delicioso !!

Finger foods! I'm really into them right now. Which actually doesn't make sense because I've been reading my friends book on etiquette and manners. Maybe she has a section on finger foods!

Chop peppers and onions small.
They cook faster and are easier to stuff into the corn tortillas.

Football season, kids packed in the living room for movie night, or just because it's Tuesday! No need for reasons to have delicious finger food!  But whatever you do, plan to make a LOT of these babies. They'll disappear before you can say "Taquitos"!

Use a potato masher to mash up the beans.
After that, a fork will do great to incorporate the other ingredients into the filling.
Kids LOVE to smash up beans. Great for any age!!

--INGREDIENTS--
20+ Corn Tortilla shells (sprouted are best - Food For Life)
1 lb. grass fed ground beef
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup green pepper, chopped
S&P
2 tsp. Cumin
Red Pepper Flakes to taste - 1 tsp. for me!
2 cups pinto beans (I used my homemade beans)
1 cup whole milk cheese, shredded
1/2 cup sour cream or plain greek yogurt
Cilantro

CILANTRO!
Rinse and dry before using.

STEP ONE:
Brown beef, onion and green pepper over medium heat. Add seasoning. Cool to room temperature.


STEP TWO:
Mash up 2 cups of prepared pinto beans (or black beans), sour cream (or yogurt), cilantro, shredded cheese and cooled beef mix.

Don't skip this step.
Your tortillas will crack and fall apart without
heating them in a bit of olive oil first. 

STEP THREE: 
Flash fry each corn tortilla in a skillet with a drop of olive oil. Only takes about 10 seconds to make them pliable. Do Not Skip This Step. Without it, your tortillas will end up flaking and breaking apart in the rolling process.

This is a great KID project! 

STEP FOUR: 
This is an excellent recipe to use a team approach. One person does Step Three and someone else can fill each tortilla with the beef mixture, roll them, and place seam side down on a baking sheet.

Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

Roll the tortillas around the filling and
place on the baking sheet Seam Side Down.

Thank you Patricia Rossi, for publishing a much needed, simple & understandable guide to proper etiquette, both common and uncommon!  I think this should be required reading for every business and high school!! Imagine what our country would be like.

Get your copy today!

Now you have all the info you need to make a delcioso snack, appetizer, lunch or dinner! 

NOW GO COOK!

And snap a picture of your family enjoying them and share it with me!