A couple months ago I mentioned how I was taking an online e-course on the subject of making good, homemade, nourishing food! I have REALLY enjoyed it and the recipes that come along with it.

GOOD NEWS!! The creator of this course is now opening up the lessons again, and anyone can sign up to access them/start them ANYTIME. You can go at your own pace, download them, etc. I put a new "linky" on the right side of my blog's home page. I do earn a small commission for referring people, but I would never refer people if I didn't think it was worth your time/money. Its been awesome! Just yesterday I made a chicken in the crockpot and am now turning the bones, etc, into a homemade and nourishing broth!!! SUPER healthy! I skipped the lesson on making soft, spreadable cheeses, but I'm going to go back and learn that one too!

It's been SO fun! And the best thing is that even with a busy family and schedule, I can do these lessons at my own pace, when I have time - and she has both VIDEO tutorials for each lesson along with PRINTED instructions.

I HIGHLY recommend it! If you are interested in checking it out, clink on the advertisement on the right side of my blog! THANKS!!!!

Fiesta Dip - BEST DIP EVER!!!!

THIS IS SERIOUSLY THE BEST DIP EVER!!!!!

Fiesta Dip

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can Mexicorn (sometimes called Fiesta Corn?), drained

2 firm avocados, diced

2 firm tomatoes, diced

1 bunch of green onions, thinly sliced

red onion - to taste

Dressing:

1 packet of dry Italian dressing mix (I found an all-natural one)

1/2 cup oil (I used olive oil)

1/4 cup vinegar (I used white)

*Whisk dressing ingredients together and pour over veggies - mix gently. Serve with tortilla chips (the "scoops" work great!)

Easy Cheesy Tortilla Soup

When my mom was here helping after Andrew was born, she took this recipe along and made some for us! It was super yummy! Although its not technically all-natural, whole food-y, its still really yummy and there is really nothing "bad" in it!! You could easily make it more "healthy" by using soaked beans, make your own refried beans, use organic free-range chicken broth, etc. I think the idea of this soup, though, is to be easy and frugal.

Eat it with tortilla scoops or tortilla chips. Our favorite are the Garden of Eatin' organic blue corn tortilla chips shown here:

And here's the recipe:

Easy, Cheesy Tortilla Soup

1 can fat-free refried beans (16oz)

1 can black beans, drained (15oz)

1 can chicken broth, reduced sodium (14.5oz)

1 1/2 cup frozen corn

3/4 cup chunky salsa

3/4 cup cubed, cooked chicken breast

1/2 cup water

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese - divided

"Scoops" or other tortilla chips

1) Combine 1st 7 ingredients, bring to boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover for 10 minutes

2) Add 1 cup of the cheese - cook on low and heat until melted.

Sprinkle with remainder of cheese or mix into soup...ENJOY!!!!

*works well to make a double batch and freeze half!

Melissa's Stir Fry

One of my favorite meals is stir-fry. I always loved Chinese food for that reason. I have been trying to make that perfect-tasting sauce at home, as well as get those veggies perfectly cooked yet still with a bit of crunch to them.

I THINK I have perfected it and wanted to share my "recipe" so you can try it at home too. Feel free to adjust as needed - I am not going to put "measurements" in this recipe as I just sort of eyeball it and add things to taste!!!

Here's what you'll need:

Brown rice (or sometimes, if I don't use meat in my stirfry I will use Quinoa instead of rice - since quinoa is a complete protein)

Veggies of choice: I usually use carrots (sliced), broccoli (small pieces), sugar peas, and mushrooms (sliced)

onion cut in larger chunks, about 1/2 cup

4-6 garlic cloves

chicken, or meat of choice (optional), cut into bite-sized pieces

chicken broth

Tamari sauce (or soy sauce)

water

cornstarch or arrowroot powder (as a thickener)

honey, rapadura, or other natural sweetener

basil

ginger

1. Get the rice cooking since it takes the longest amount of time to cook.

2. Then, in a LARGE wok or saute pain, I saute the chicken in some chicken broth (or you could use olive oil or coconut oil). Once cooked, removed from heat and set aside.

3. Next, saute/steam the veggies in some chicken broth - I put the carrots in first since they take the longest....after a couple minutes I add the garlic, onions and broccoli....adding mushrooms right at the end. Cooking time depends on how crunchy/mushy you like your veggies. Just keep tasting them as they cook.

4. In the meantime, in a small bowl mix the soy sauce (about 1/2 cup) along with about 1/4 cup cold water....and stir in about 2 tablespoons cornstarch.

5. When veggies are ALMOST cooked to your liking, add the chicken in.

6. Next, with heat still at the medium level, stir in the soy sauce mixture and stir until thickened.

7. Stir in basil and ginger to taste - then add more chicken broth if too thick and more soy sauce if more needed.

8. Serve over rice!

Sloppy Joe's in a Bowl

The online e-course I am taking has been great! I am learning new tricks to make our meals more nutritious! The great thing is, even when you prepare and eat natural, whole foods, it can STILL be TASTY!!!

I THINK my family likes it that I enjoy trying new recipes from time to time. The most recent one came from the e-course and is called "Sloppy Joe's in a Bowl" - they were SUPER yummy!!! My kids loved them and Bryan said more than a few times "this is SO good"! So, I think its a hit and will go into the menu planning rotation.

I wanted to share the recipe with you - the original can be found on the GNOWFLINS website, but I have copied and pasted it below for your convenience. Here it is! I only had black olives, shredded raw cheddar cheese and plain whole-milk yogurt (in place of sour cream) on hand, but I will look forward to trying some of her other suggested toppings next time I make them!!!

--->NOTE: she adds the step of soaking the rice overnight the night before to reduce phytic acid - i am learning about this in the online course and you can read more about the benefits of doing so HERE.

SLOPPY JOE'S IN A BOWL

***(she said that for company, she stretches the meat by adding 4 cups of cooked green lentils to the meat mixture, while (just about if not entirely) doubling the sauce ingredients.)****

• 2 cups dry brown basmati rice
• 2 cups water plus 2 T raw apple cider vinegar
• 2 cups stock
• 2 pounds grass-fed ground beef (or ground buffalo)
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, diced
• 3/4 cup filtered water
• 1 can tomato paste
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons raw honey
• garnishes: sliced olives, thinly sliced or diced onions, diced tomatoes, diced avocado, and/or homemade cultured dairy, chopped cilantro, shredded raw cheese

In a 2 to 3 quart pot, soak the rice in the 2 cups of water and raw apple cider vinegar overnight. The next day, add the 2 cups stock. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until all liquid is absorbed and grains are fluffy and tender. This will be about a half hour if the grains have soaked overnight. Remove from heat. Let stand for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

While rice is cooking, put the ground beef in a 4 to 6 quart stock pot. Over medium heat, brown the beef. Add onions and garlic. Saute until soft. In a 4 cup measuring cup, whisk together: water, tomato paste, sea salt, pepper, olive oil, and honey. Add sauce mixture to meat. Cover and let simmer for 20 minutes.

Fill bowls with rice, then meat sauce, then desired garnishes.

Anyone else game???

I am so excited....I just signed up for an online e-course to learn how to cook healthy food. Now, I consider myself a relatively knowledgeable cook, but I would like to learn the details about making some more interesting healthy-eating-type foods. There is an online e-course that I came across while reading some food blogs that I follow - this particular one is from the website called GNOWFGLINS (it stands for God's Natural, Organic, Whole Foods, Grown Locally, In Season).

The course sounds so exciting - each week you receive access to audio/video/print materials covering a certain topic.

The DEADLINE to sign up is MONDAY, Feb. 22nd- I would love to have some of you do this with me!!! It does have a cost of $27 per month, for 5 months, but if after the first month you aren't satisfied, you can get a full refund....and with 15 wks of lessons, it ends up being just under $7 a lesson I believe.

Click the banner above to get more info and sign up!!!!

THIS link also tells you a TON about the class - in a nutshell, here are the class "topics" and if you visit the website you can get a more detailed explanation:

• Overview: eCourse Overview
• Lesson 1: The GNOWFGLINS Foundation
• Lesson 2: How to Soak Whole Grains, Nuts and Seeds
• Lesson 3: How to Make Soaked Whole-Grain Flour Baked Goods I
• Lesson 4: How to Make Soaked Whole-Grain Flour Baked Goods II
• Lesson 5: How to Soak and Cook Dry Beans
• Lesson 6: How to Sprout Beans
• Lesson 7: How to Cook a Chicken and Make Chicken Stock
• Lesson 8: How to Make Skillet Dishes: A Dinner Formula
• Lesson 9: How to Make Water Kefir
• Lesson 10: How to Make Dairy Kefir
• Lesson 11: How to Make Soft, Spreadable Cheese
• Lesson 12: How to Make Sourdough Bread
• Lesson 13: How to Sprout Whole Grains for Sprouted Grain Flour & How to Bake With Sprouted Grain Flour
• Lesson 14: How to Make Natural Pickled Foods

Anyone want to join me on this adventure???? IF you do, sign up at that link today and then let me know so we can cheer each other on!!!!

New Adventures

We have a new addition to our family as of January 6th! Arriving 6 days past his due date, Andrew Campbell made his debut at 515am, roughly 3.5 hrs after my first contraction. He weighed 8lbs 15.4oz (although that was after he pooped all over the floor and the Dr, so the nurses said to just say he was 9lbs!). He's a great baby and super cute, although I'm probably a little biased....

ANYWAY, I've been a little busy with him and my other 2 kids lately. I am starting to get to a point where I am ready to try to start blogging regularly again - new recipes and fun things should be popping up on here very soon!!!! Get ready! ENJOY!