Greens, Beans and Turkey Bacon Soup

This recipe is derived from the original which comes from one of my favorite cookbooks and the creators of Cooking Light magazine- Fresh Food Fast-weeknight meals.   I have made a few adjustments from the original version in order to lighten in a little more and use fresh kale and onions.

Ingredients:

3 slices Turkey bacon, cut crosswise into ¼ inch pieces

3 cups of fresh chopped Kale

2 ¼ cups of water

1 (15oz) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

1 (14.5oz) can of 99% fat free chicken broth

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced thin

½ cup of mushrooms

1 ½ tsp. Olive oil, divided

Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

Cook bacon in a large sauce pan or Dutch oven over Med-high heat until crisp.  (Using turkey bacon I add a ½ tsp of olive oil in this.)

Once bacon is crisp, add the remaining olive oil and onions, garlic and mushrooms and cook until softened.  (Appx. 3 minutes)

Add chicken broth, water, beans, and kale along with a little salt and pepper. ( I use a lot of pepper)

Kale is high in beta carotine, vitamin C, and rich with calcium

Rinsing and Draining removes up to 50% sodium

Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to simmer for 30 minutes.

It's quick, it's easy, and it’s even better the second day!  I make it a day in advance and use it for my lunches! 

This healthy and delicious soup is right at 200 calories per 1 2/3 cups servings.

Serve with a slice of toasted crusty bread!

Jamaican Ox-tail Stew

On a mission trip to Jamaica, I learned this recipe from sticking my head in and asking the cook questions about what she was cooking. I was graciously welcomed into her kitchen and given a seat to listen and watch.


Note- this is an all day stew to make the house smell wonderful.

Ingredients:

Ox-tails, raw about 2lbs.
2 cans Diced tomatoes and green chilies (drained)
Tomato Paste 1 small can
2 cans large Lima Beans (drained)
2 medium Onions
Baby Carrots, raw, 20 medium cut into chunks
Garlic, 1 clove sliced thin
Mushrooms, fresh, 1.5 cup slices
Olive Oil, 2.5 Tbsp (divided)
Beef broth, fat free 1 qt.
All Purpose Flour 0.25 cup
Jalapeno Peppers, 1 pepper (seeded and chopped)

Directions:

Lightly flour the ox-tails.
Heat 1.5 Tbsps. oil in a large Dutch oven over med-high heat.
When oil is hot, add oxtails - brown all sides, then add beef broth. (A little water may be added to cover the tails)
Bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer for 4-5 hours.
Check occasionally stirring the mixture.
After simmering, take a pair of forks and remove the remaining meat from the bones. Discard the bones.
 

Rich Broth!

Chop veggies, seed pepper, slice garlic.
In a seperate skillet, heat 1 Tbsp. oil.   When hot add garlic and jalapeno first for one minute stirring, and then add onions, carrots and mushrooms.
Stir frequently to crisp tender (five minutes or so).

Add this to the Ox-Tail mixture and stir.

Drain tomatoes and beans. Add to the Dutch oven and stir.

Allow stew to simmer another 45 minutes to an hour.
Cook rice according to package directions in a separate pot or rice cooker.

Serve stew over 1 cup of cooked rice.

Enjoy!

Tailgate Pasta Salad

I needed a pasta salad that would work for our tailgating needs and be tasty yet not to heavy calorie wise. This version is much lighter than traditional pasta salads, in that most of the calories come from the pasta itself and not the dressing.



Ingredients:



1lb. box of Cavatappi pasta



2 sweet peppers (1 red, 1 green)



1 red onion



1 cucumber



Olive oil (to taste, appx. 1 Tbsp)



1 small bottle of Ken’s Steakhouse Light Creamy Caesar Vinaigrette



1/3  cup banana pepper rings  (hot or mild – your choice)



1/4 cup Fat Free Mayo (optional – I used a little to thicken)



1 small can of drained and rinsed whole kernel corn



1 tsp dried basil



1 tsp dried oregano



Salt & pepper to taste





Directions:



Boil noodles as directed on package.  Immediately drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.



While noodles cook –

Seed the cucumber



Chop the veggies (chop to your liking – I mix small and chunky)





Once the noodles are well drained and cooled add to a large mixing bowl.



Add all ingredients and stir!

This can be made into a meal by adding some cubed cooked ham or grilled chicken too!

Enjoy and GO GAMECOCKS!!

Nana's Chow-Chow

  

A delicious side item for your plate and your palate!  

Take:

10 small cucumbers

(Slice cucumbers & place in bowl, salt and cover.  Soak 2 hours then drain)

Slice 1 ½ large onions.

Make sauce:

1 ½ TBS dry ground mustard

1 tsp turmeric

1 cup vinegar

2 cups sugar    (I use Splenda)

Mix together and Pour over veggies in a large sauce pan.  Boil over medium heat for about ½ hour.  Stir regularly.

Put into hot sterilized jars and place in hot water bath for about 10 minutes.  Allow jars to cool for 12 hours then check seals on jars.

Enjoy!

Chili Sauce canning

I guess it is only natural that I get some of my cooking skills from both my grandmothers, neither one used a recipe – they just cooked.  That is how I usually work in the kitchen too.  Something strikes me to try and I do.  I might use a recipe as a guide, but I can’t tell you if I have EVER followed a recipe to the letter.  (That’s probably why I don’t like baking so much – more specifics needed)

Thankfully, my aunt Faye lived with my Nana.  Aunt Faye wrote down the ingredients and procedure for the family favorites as Nana went about the kitchen in order to preserve the memories.  I use (as a guide of course) my recipe for Nana’s Chili-sauce written in my Aunt Faye’s hand.  It makes it special.

The smells of chili-sauce simmering take me back to a time (a time that slips further and further into the past I might add!) of my childhood summers visiting with my Nana in her home in Levittown, Pa.  Yes, 34 Graystone Lane was a magical place.  It was a place filled with love, hugs, kisses, family, food, smells of the kitchen and laundry day.  This is the place where “there is always room for more” came to be a part of my being.

Other than the weekly smells of Laundry Day (hot water and Clorox will always take me immediately back to 34 Graystone Lane) and Bread Baking Day (Nana did not buy bread in the store – she made it each week), a couple of times each summer was chili-sauce canning time. 

Chili-sauce simmering on the stove for a couple hours will fill the entire house with a fragrant aroma for the entire day.  It is a smell that will cause you to gnaw on the furniture if you don’t get a snack along the way….  Natalie kept coming into the kitchen as I worked asking, “WHAT IS THAT??  It’s making my mouth water!!!”.  She liked it as a dip with chips.

Chili-sauce is served hot, cold, or anywhere in between.  It is used straight out of the jar, on bread, on baked potatoes, on meat such as chicken or roast, it is very good warmed and served as a dip with corn chips too!  It is just good!

Once canned it may be stored in the pantry for 6-8 months (hahahahahha if you think it will stay on the shelf that long) Once opened it needs to be refrigerated (if you don’t eat the entire pint at one sitting).

So here for all to enjoy and possibly use as a part of your own family traditions is my Nana’s recipe.

Chili Sauce

10 lbs. ripe tomatoes

4 celery stalks

4 med. Onions

3 large bell peppers (2 green 1 red)

1 cup distilled white vinegar

1 ½ cups sugar (I now use half sugar half Splenda to reduce sugar)

¼ cup of Sea Salt or Kosher Salt

1 teaspoon of red pepper

1 Tablespoon each of:

          Allspice

          Cloves

          Cinnamon

          Black Pepper

Directions-

Peel tomatoes –  Slice a small “X” on the bottom of the tomatoes. Bring large pot of water to a boil – dip in tomatoes – then peel and cut top out.

Cut all vegetables in fairly equal sizes.  I use a food processor for the tomatoes and a chopper for the other veggies.  (I like mine chopped fine as did Nana.  Others like them chunkier.  Your choice!)

Place veggies, tomatoes, spices, vinegar, and sugar in a large pot and mix.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for two hours and enjoy the aroma. (This gives you time to prepare the jars for canning!)

Follow the rules for hot canning methods for your jars.  (they can vary)  I use Ball brand pint size.  In a separate pot from the sauce, boil to sterilize the jars and lids. (pot should be large enough to cover jar and lid for later)

 When the two hours is up, put the sauce into hot jars (be careful to not get burned or drop a jar) fill to leave one inch of head space. (Ball brand has a line) Place lid on and screw down ring to finger tightness.  Place back in the hot boiling water to cover lid for a few minutes.  Remove setting on a cooling rack for twelve hours.  Check the lids after the 12 hours to be sure they are tight and they don’t “bounce” or “pop” when pressed on the top.  (If they do, you can reseal if it has only been twelve hours.  If it still doesn’t take eat it now!)

Oh and each jar is only 190 calories for the whole jar!!

 

Enjoy!