The Best White Bean Chili

Vegetarian White Bean Chili

We love chili in our house.  We make your regular run of the mill version of chili (beef, tomato, beans,) and a delicious black-eyed pea chili variation.  We have tried multiple white bean chili recipes over the years and just never found one we liked. 

Until now. 

This is the best one, BY FAR.  Even though the recipe is labeled vegetarian it is 100% vegan with no adaptations needed.  I think the marketing department just knows people flip out when they see the word vegan so they wisely held off on the label. 

We didn't make any changes to the recipe, except to add more spices as the recipe only calls for oregano.  *eye brown raise*  I definitely used cumin and chili powder, as well as some dried cilantro. 

I had a terrible migraine this night, and Two had to finish making it as I could no longer be upright and had to be at work later that night (where I cried because I was in a tremendous amount of pain, super fun times.)  I didn't get to eat any of it the first day, but she reported that both her and her brothers liked it a lot.  I got to have the leftovers the following day for lunch and they weren't wrong.  Yum! 

Lazy Housewife: Italian Meatball Soup

Italian Meatball Soup

This recipe uses frozen ready to use meatballs, and I feel that.  Of course, we used Meatless Meatballs by Gardein (which is our favorite vegan brand.) We also used vegetable broth instead of beef broth, and Two didn't add any parm to hers.  We had it with garlic butter (actually plant-based butter of course) crescent rolls.  We also took one of the suggestions and added pasta.  We used ditalini because that's my favorite for soups because of its small size.  I put in a lot of seasoning:  Italian seasoning, extra rosemary and oregano, and a whole lot of red pepper flakes since the boys aren't home!

Two and I both LOVED this one.  Can't wait to have the boys try it out.  My very carnivorous boyfriend also had a bowl after making this face:

He also thought it was really good, after his initial protest.  So good in fact that he talked about it the following day with his coworkers.  I don't know why everyone is so shocked that vegan food can be delish!

I don't know what day it is...

But I'm not sure if this is a COVID problem or a 3rd shift problem.  Let me check my phone. 

Hey!  Welcome to Monday! 

I'm going to share a recipe with you guys, as I've been cooking more during quarantine because for the first 3 weeks my boys were with me 24/7 so I had to cook literally every day.  I know a lot of you do this all the time...but I normally only have my boys half the time and Two cooks for herself (or both of us) a lot so I really only am required to cook a few times a week.  It has given us the opportunity to try new recipes though, and like the Vegan Stuffed Pepper Soup I shared last, this one is a keeper for us! 

Simple Vegan Taco Pasta

Here's what I changed, per usual. 

Better Than Bullion No Beef Base, Soyrizo and Vegan Cream Cheese are not things I can get in this little town I live in, so I just omitted the cream cheese and soyrizo and just used veggie broth in place of the bullion.  We put in "beefless ground" in place of the soyrizo.  Also, on my plate, I added cheese (because I"m not entirely vegan.)

I'd really like to try this with soyrizo, for the record.  I imagine it would be even better!  But with these changes, we all still REALLY liked this dish.  Highly recommend.  After quarantine, I can find all the necessary ingredients and will try it as recommended and report back! 

Skinny Housewife: Energy Bites

I Should Be Mopping: 4 Ingredient Energy Bites

Awesome, easy snack!

I only changed one thing, I used steel cut oats.  They are smaller and different in texture so I didn't do step one.  The boys both tried them and liked them too.  Win.

Skinny/Lazy Housewife: CutThroat Chicken

Honey Spiced Glazed Chicken Thighs

This recipe falls into BOTH categories of recipes I post.  Hoorah!  It is SO freaking amazingly outstandingly delicious.  EVERYONE in our house loves it!  (Ok, not EVERYONE, One is vegetarian.  But all the carnivores cheer when I announce that we are having it for dinner.)  The link provided is the originator of the recipe, and that is her name for the recipe.  However, in our house, we call it CutThroat Chicken.

It came to this name because after the first time I made it, Two and I said we would cut each other over the last piece!

I found the recipe on Pinterest, and had pinned it because I was looking for crock-pot recipes....the pin is incorrectly labeled.  I got all the stuff out to put it in the crockpot and discovered that it actually is NOT a crock recipe.  BUT it only takes a couple minutes to get it together and throw it in the oven, so I decided it was still do-able on the busy day.  I've made it a handful of times since discovering it.  I've made it with the boneless thighs, and also boneless skinless breasts (and breast tenderloins.)  I feel like I also made them once with bone-in thighs...but I'm not sure that memory is accurate.

The ONLY change I made is that I followed a suggestion she gives to cut the spice (because Three and Four are wimpy about heat...I have promised Two that I will make it soon for JUST SHE AND I and I will put ALL the red pepper flakes in, she and I both love spicy things!)  I add probably between a 1/4 and 1/2 of the red pepper flakes.  It is still spicy, and YUMMY.

Enjoy!

Skinny Housewife...sort of?

I mean...it's a vegetable recipe!  BUT...there's a lot of cheese.  And, I'm just not a fan of "low fat" cheese.  If you are, go for it.  

This post was posted by Courtney Luper on FB, but there isn't a link to a website for the recipe.  So, that's as much credit as I can give for where this recipe originates.  *shrug*

Things I did differently (c'mon...you know I hardly ever make a recipe 'as is':)  

I loathe boiled cauliflower.  If you're a fan, go right ahead, but I can tell you that you're wrong.  To start with, I roasted the head of cauliflower because I think it makes the cauliflower YUM-tastic.  Roasting cauliflower is simple.  Cut it up, drizzle with oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, put in oven.  Done.  I roasted mine at 375 for 30 minutes.  Stirring it around every 10.  

Second, I didn't have "light cream" in fact, I had never heard of it.  But a quick google search told me that I could use milk with melted butter (1/4 cup/1 TBLS.)  That's what I did.  

Third, I rounded the parmesan up to 3 TBLS even.  And I threw in a handful of cheddar (it's what I had) because cheese.  

Lastly,  I didn't use a hand-mixer at all.  So, it's a chunky consistency, BUT I'm not trying to "hide" what it is....I'm making it for my mom and I (who both really like cauliflower.)  If I was making it to try to pass off to my non-cauli loving kids....I might actually mix it.  Instead, I just used my hand-masher and let it be.  

This was amazeballs.  Nothing short of amazeballs.  I LOVED it.  My mom LOVED it.  My non-cauli-loving husband said "that's pretty good."  See?  Amazeballs.

CHEESY MASHED CAULIFLOWER heart emoticon

Ingredients:
1 med/ large head of cauliflower chopped up small
5 oz Cream Cheese
1/4 cup light cream
1/2 tsp Salt
1 1/2 tsp minced garlic 3/4 cup shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
2 and 1/2 Tbs Parmesan Cheese
1 tsp Paprika
Non stick spray ( I used Olive oil spray)

Directions:
Pre heat oven to 350°
Chop Cauliflower and add to a boiling pot of hot water and boil for 10- 12 minutes.
Drain cauliflower well. ( while draining in colander.. I push out any excess water out with paper towels.)
Meanwhile in a bowl combine the cream cheese, light cream, salt, garlic and Parmesan cheese and using hand mixer mix until blended... add cooked cauliflower and mash together with mixture. I then use hand mixed to mix ..leaving some small chunks and place into greased baking dish, top with cheese sprinkle with paprika and bake for 30 minutes or until cheese starts to lightly brown.

Skinny Housewife

http://thenonmarthamomma.com/3-easy-apple-recipes-for-fall-a-guest-post/

OOOOOK.  I'm so excited about the apple bacon chicken salad recipe.  I've been wanting to try it since I found it on Monday afternoon.  Now, I haven't had a chance because I haven't been home at lunch time all week.  Today I was, but my husband cooked all the bacon yesterday so I was short that.  I will rectify this.  Trust me.

I'm thinking this will be lunch for a couple days next week.  I love it because it uses greek yogurt in place of mayo.  I LOATHE mayo.  LOATHE isn't even a strong enough word truly.  I hate the look of it, the smell of it, the feel of it....just IT.  BLERGH.

Now, greek yogurt isn't paleo, but I'm not being super strict about dairy.  I'm not going out of my way to eat it, but I'm not really going out of my way to avoid it either.  And cheese, don't even get me started on my unwillingness to part with the GREATNESS that is cheese.  Not.  Going.  To.  Happen.

My plan for having this as a lunch while out of the house involves cooking up the bacon and chicken and mixing it up with the apples (submerged in a little lemon juice, because I don't want brown apples at lunch) and then packing the yogurt in the ice pack and mixing it in when I'm ready to eat.

One of my BIGGEST issues with being paleo is lunches out.  We are out of the house at lunch time three days a week.  And, I don't like raw veggies of any sort (I know, I know...) so I'm limited in what I can pack.  Especially, now that it's getting cold out and some things I just don't want to eat cold.  I need a portable microwave or a camp stove for the back of my van.

Recipe: Pepperonata with Penne and sausage

OK, this is a homeschooling blog, so you're saying "Why is she posting a recipe?" WELL....for one thing, homeschoolers (or at least the ones I know....) often find themselves at 4 in the afternoon saying "Oh, what am I going to make for dinner?" And this, 4pm thought, is the FIRST time they've thought of it all day. D'oh.

So, this recipe is GREAT for homeschoolers, because it seriously takes 20 minutes.

Seriously.

I have made this recipe a half dozen times in the last year, and I LOVE it. Yesterday, I was excited ALL day knowing that this was what's for dinner. Another bonus? It's got peppers in it. My kids don't like peppers...or so they would tell you, but they eat this up like there is no tomorrow. Another tip? When I make it, I dice up twice as much peppers as a I need, and freeze half. Next time I make it, I won't have to dice peppers at all.

This is from a book, I can't take any credit for the inception of this phenomena. My fabulous mother-in-law gave me a book called "Desperation Dinners: Home Cooked Meals for Frantic Families in 20 Minutes Flat"....she brought this to me when she came just before Four was born. Think she had an idea of what life would be like "after?" She is a mother of 5 after all.

Anyway, on to the recipe:
2 cups penne (I use whole wheat)
1 teaspoon olive oil
4 links Italian sausage (3/4-1lb total)
1 large onion
1 medium green, red, and yellow pepper
1 can diced or whole tomatoes (I've only ever used diced)
2 tbls light or dark brown sugar, lightly packed
1 tbls balsalmic or red wine vinegar (I've only ever used balsalmic)
4 bay leaves (I've made it with and w/out, I would say these are optional)
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
Salt and black pepper to taste
Grated parm cheese (optional)

1. Place the penne in 2 1/2 quarts of already boiling unsalted water, cook until tender (11-13 minutes)
2. Meanwhile, heat the oil over medium heat in an extra-deep 12 inch nonstick skillet that has a lid. Pierce the sausages several times with a fork and add them to the skillet. (I personally cut the links up into large pieces instead of leaving them whole..but that's personal preference.) Let brown, turning the links occasionally while peeling and slicing the onion. Add the onion to the pan as you slice, seperating it into strips. (Again, out of personal preference, I dice the onion, and also the peppers....the smaller the pieces the less likely my kids are to ask questions LOL.)
3. Seed the peppers and cut into long strips about 1/2 inch wide. Add them to the skillet, stir, cover the skillet and raise the heat to high. Keeping the skillet covered as much as possible, add the tomatoes with their juice, the brown sugar, vinegar, bay leaves and basil. Stir well. Bring mixture to a boil.
4. Lower the heat to medium-high and boil until the sausage is no longer pink in the middle and the veges are tender but not mush, about 7 minutes, uncovering to stir occasionally.
5. Drain the penne and place some of each on each serving plate. Season the sausage mixture with salt and black pepper and top each pasta portion with some of the sauce, making sure to discared the bay leaves. (Another variation, I drain the penne and then add it to the skillet with the sauce.)

Enjoy!