Eating with Ellie

A whole new year as begun. 2022. Fingers crossed it is a good year for everyone.

And it is time to start eating healthy again. I have been neglectful since Thanksgiving. Too long to neglect my health. I am going back to KETO which has been my friend off and on for the last year to so. It is easy to stick to and the food is often delicious. Especially since it is all made at home with fresh ingredients and NO sugar. No processed food. No starch, etc.

So, this week I decided to start the year off right with Ellie’s Autumn Vegetable Curry. Delicious!!

• 1 large onion, coarsely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 1 1/2-inch length fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 1/2 2 tablespoons yellow curry powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, plus more to taste
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 3 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1 cup light coconut milk
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
• 1/2 head cauliflower, broken into 1½-inch-wide florets (about 3 cups)
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 1 pound medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch rounds
• 2 tomatoes, cored and chopped
• Grated zest of 1 lime
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 15-ounce can no-salt-added chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 5 cups fresh baby spinach leaves
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• 3 cups cooked brown rice, for serving, optional

Directions

Place the onion, garlic, ginger, curry powder, and cayenne pepper in a food processor and
process to combine. Add the oil and process until a smooth puree is formed. Transfer the
curry puree to a large pot and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes.
Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture begins to darken,
about 5 minutes more.

Add the vegetable broth, coconut milk, cinnamon stick and ¼ teaspoon black pepper and
bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the cauliflower, sweet
potatoes, carrots, and tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and return to a boil. Reduce
the heat to medium low, cover, and simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 25
minutes. Remove the cinnamon stick. Stir in the lime zest and juice, chickpeas, and spinach
and cook until the spinach is wilted, about 5 minutes. Season with up to ¾ teaspoon salt.

Garnish with cilantro and serve with rice.

Cook time is about 30 minutes.

You can see that I left out some ingredients. Some of them simply because they aren’t keto friendly. I did leave in the sweet potato but decreased the amount. A little of it was needed for the taste of the stew. I also increased the amount of broth to use it more as a soup rather than a stew. It was just spicy enough to warm you up on a winters day.

The recipe is HERE if you want to see it in the original form and in Ellie’s comfort food fix (page 208).

Check with

Kayte, Peggy, and Gaye or their first Eating with Ellie post for 2022.

If you would like to join in, just leave a link to your post in any of the comment sections of the participants and we will come and see what you made.

 

EWE: Chinese Greens

If you have never been here before, EWE is Eating with /Ellie. Several of us starting cooking from Ellie Krieger’s books several years ago. And then, because of lots of things going on, it died down and we just quite. Now, we are back.

Every Thursday we chose a recipe from one of her cookbooks or from online and try it out. While we all used to cook the same recipe now we are a little looser and just find a recipe we like and make it.

This week I chose Sesame Stir-Fried Chinese Greens using joi choy. I have a big pot of choy growing on the back porch and I love using it in different dishes. This particular recipe is from her The Food You Crave. On page 258. And it didn’t take much to convert it to KETO. She uses fresh ingredients and no processed foods in her recipes so in most cases it would just be a matter of substituting one or two ingredients.

I like bok choy but not this dish. I used coconut aminos rather than soy sauce and it was very VERY salty. It just wasn’t very good. Ah, well. On the the next recipe. (You can find the recipe HERE.)

Kayte made Smokey Black Bean and Pork Stew, Peggy has Oven Fried Chicken,

EWE is open to anyone who likes to cook from Ellie’s books. Join us!

If you want to see what we’ve made in the past Visit Tea and Scones, Pantry Revisited, Grandma’s Kitchen Table and Laws of the kitchen

 

Whole 30 Thursday: Chicken Lettuce Wraps

It must be chicken month.  The last two dishes we made from Fast and Easy have been chicken.  Today’s recipe is chicken and next week…you guessed it – chicken.

BBQ-Pulled-Chicken Lettuce Wraps to be exact.  They are on page 15.

They are easy and delicious.

Easy if you have either W30 compliant BBQ sauce or a recipe for one.  Luckily I found one.  From Happy Wife Style and it is very good.

Once you have the BBQ sauce the only other ingredients you need are shredded cooked chicken, some shredded carrots, chopped cilantro (NOPE!), and some lime juice.  Wrap all the ingredients in some lettuce leaves, I used Romaine, and you have a portable lunch.

Definitely a repeat. Just ask Kayte.

Next week – Fruity Chicken Chopped Salad (page 26).

While we will not be posting the actual recipes from the book (we encourage you to honor the author and to buy the book so that you can own the recipes yourselves), we will share our photos and  ingredients and comments on each. If you would like to join in, just leave the link to your post so we can come and read all about it.  Even if you aren’t eating Whole 30ish, the recipes and food are wonderful and fit into any meal plan.

 

 

{EwE} Easter Eats

Easter is almost upon us.  A glorious time of the year.  While it is a time of joy it is also a time of struggle.  Not an important struggle.  Just trying to plan an Easter menu when there are so many likes and dislikes in tastes.  Usually we have ham.  And rolls.  And a veggie.  But this year I’m not planning the meal.  The Daughter is.  No worries here.  This year!!

One of the veggies we usually have is a sweet potato dish.  Sauteed.  Fried.  Baked.  This year something different.  Ellie’s Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Orange Essence. Not very different you say.  It’s not the dish – it’s the orange essence.  NOT a usual flavoring in our sweet ‘taters.

This is the way my Mom used to make them.  But I make them with pecans, brown sugar, and pralines.

Not to say I didn’t like Mom’s.  I just got used to making them differently.  Ellie’s is very close to my Mom’s.

Mashed sweet taters with a touch of brown sugar, nutmeg, orange zest, and orange juice. Just the right amount of everything.

The recipe is simple to make and comes from Ellie’s The Food You Crave  page 267.   It’s also HERE!

Thanks, Kayte, for this week’s theme.

Need more Easter Eats -> Eating with Ellie.

Hope you all have a lovely Easter!

 

{EwE} SPRING IS HERE!

It’s SPRING!  I LOVE Spring!  Flowers!  Planting the Garden.  Cool days and nights.  Fresh Spring Veggies.  Spring Fruits. I know there aren’t many but what is Springy is always fresh and delicious.  Each region of the US has a different growing season and different fruits and veggies available.  The South has a nice long growing season so were are more fortunate than some areas.

Since it has been a busy week I went with something quick and simple for Peggy’s pick this week – Spring Harvest.

Cauliflower “Rice” Pilaf

Since I am still doing the Whole30 program for 90% of my meals this fit in perfectly.  And only four main ingredients:  cauliflower, pine nuts/almonds, onions and parsley.  It was perfect with some leftover Black Pepper Chicken.  

I did make one change.  Ellie called for OO for sauteeing the onions and cauliflower but I decided to use some toasted sesame oil instead.  It added a little Asian flair to the rice and a little bite.  Good!

The recipe is from Ellie Krieger’s You Have it Made.  page 306.

For more Spring Harvest visit Eating with Ellie.

And if you want to cook/bake along with us the weekly themes are listed on the right of the Ellie page.  We don’t publish the recipes.  We would rather you purchase Ellie’s books.

 

{CC#15} Seared Chicken

Last post for March.  Last post for  The Whole30: The 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom.  Not the last day for me to use the program and the recipes though.  I feel good.  I feel healthier than I have in years so I will continue on with this style of eating without any regrets.

I decided to keep it simple this time – Perfect Seared Chicken.

 This pic was borrowed from Cooking for Two because I accidentally deleted my pic.

My chicken looked exactly like this.  It was simple, moist and delicious.  Just salt and pepper are all that you need.

How simple you ask? Season your boneless, skinless chicken beast.  Heat cooking fat until HOT.  Sear chicken round side down until nice and brown.  Throw the skillet in the oven for about 10 – 15 minutes and VOILA! perfect seared chicken.

The recipe is on page 157 of  The Whole30: The 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom.

I’m linking this post with Cookbook Countdown 15 hosted by Kitchen Flavours and Emily’s Cooking (Makan2).

 

 

{CC#15} Shrimp on the plate

The Whole30 is over and now we are reintroducing some of the foods we weren’t able to eat on the program.  Dairy.  Grains. Legumes. Gluten.  But the other days are compliant so we aren’t done with the ‘special’ foods yet.

The Pesto Shrimp with Cherry Tomatoes was on my menu today.

The pesto is made with spinach, basil, walnuts, and garlic.  It was good, but I did miss the Parmesan cheese I usually have in it.  Mixed with the shrimp and some tomatoes {I didn’t have cherry ones so I cut up some regular ones I had canned last summer.}

So very good.  And quick.

It appears that Shrimp has become my go-to meal when I want something quick.  I always have it in the freezer.  It is easy and quick to fix.

The recipe is from  The Whole30: The 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom (pg 359). Want to try it?  I found the recipe on the Whole30 blog.

I’m linking this post with Cookbook Countdown 15 hosted by Kitchen Flavours and Emily’s Cooking (Makan2).

 

{CC#15} Green beans with Onions…

…and mushrooms, and peppers.  All cooked together where the flavors of each blended yet didn’t.  It was quite tasty.  {And more tasty than it looks!}  No fancy hard to find spices just salt and pepper to bring out the flavor.

The recipe says to precook and ‘shock’ the beans but I didn’t do that because I had some beans that we canned last year and they were already cooked. The sliced onions, and mushrooms and strips of bell pepper are cooked in a skillet until tender.  Add the beans back in.  Easy to cook {and easy to over-brown} while you watch over them and shake them  often.  The beans should be crisp and bright green.  Mine – not so much.  But still a great side that would go with anything.

This recipe is from  The Whole30: The 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom the book I have been using for March’s Cookbook Countdown.  You can find it on page 280.

If you want more info about The Whole 30 program just visit Whole30.  The program outline is there along with recipes, tips, and other great info.

I’m linking this post with Cookbook Countdown 15 hosted by Kitchen Flavours and Emily’s Cooking (Makan2).

 

{EwE} March to your own Drummer

That’s the theme for this week.  Kayte decided we needed to just let it go and fulfill our own cravings/desires/needs.

At this time I am following the Whole30 program so finding dishes that are compliant are not that easy.  Lucky for me because all of Ellie’s dishes are healthy just tweaking some of the ingredients is the only necessity.

That being the case I went with Ellie’s…

…Fragrant Chicken and Eggplant Stew

This dish was totally compliant.  YAY!!  And it was delicious!!  Chicken, eggplant, tomatoes, green olives, onions, and garlic flavored with tumeric, paprika, and saffron. 

I only made 1/4 of the recipe and it was plenty for two meals.  And it was only for me….

The recipe is from You Have It Made.   page 179.

Want more of our cravings -> Eating with Ellie.

We ‘d love to have you cook with us.  Themes are always listed.  Just cook, blog, and link up.  Easy Peasy.

We don’t publish recipes .  We would rather you acquire Ellie’s books.

 

{CC#15} seared salmon benedict

I was getting a little tired of eggs for breakfast.  I mean, I love eggs – scrambled, poached, fried – but not EVERY morning.  I miss my cereal and oatmeal and English muffins.  But they will all still be there when I am ready to eat them again.

Now, I know this sounds silly, but just eating an egg for lunch was a nice change.  {I had leftover gumbo for breakfast! It’s a topsy-turvy world!}   I had a nice poached egg over a piece of seared salmon with a touch of  Hollandaise on top.  More commonly known as Salmon Benedict.  It with a nice change.

The recipe for the salmon is on page 210 of The Whole30: The 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom. but you can also find it on the Whole30 site along with the Hollandaise recipe (page 314) {in which I used less lemon and it was perfect}. Perfect poached egg is on page 150.

I have to tell you I think I could eat this every day.  I loved the mix of the soft yolk with the crisped salmon and the luxuriousness of the Hollandaise.  Yep!  Definite repeat.

We are beginning our third week of The Whole30 program and plan to follow it ’til Easter. We can do this!!  I am starting to feel the benefits of the program now.  My eyes are brighter, my coat is shinier… just kidding.  But I am feeling good, not craving anything like I usually do,  and feel like I am doing the right thing on this program.  I started this program to lower my VERY, VERY high triglycerides and see if I could lower my blood pressure. Losing weight was also a consideration but not the most important one.

I’m linking this post with Cookbook Countdown 15 hosted by Kitchen Flavours and Emily’s Cooking (Makan2).