Lite Tomato Basil Soup

Serves 4

1 TBSP Butter
1 Medium Onion, Chopped
1 C Carrots, Chopped
3 Cloves of Garlic, Minced
4 C Tomatoes, Skinned, Seeded, and Diced
4 C Chicken Broth, Fat Free
1 TBSP Parsley Flakes
10-20 Basil Leaves, Chopped
2 Bay Leaves
2 TBSP Sour Cream, Fat Free

1. While chopping vegetables, boil to large pot of water for tomatoes.Once water starts to boil, drop in tomatoes and let them boil until the skin breaks. Then pull them out of the water and let cool. After they are cool, take out the stems, peel off skin, wash out the seeds, and dice.

2. In same pot, melt butter and add onions, carrots, and garlic and cook until soft which will take about 10 to 15 minutes.

3. Next add the tomatoes, chicken broth, parsley, basil, and bay leaves. Let it simmer for about 30 minutes.

4. Then remove the pot from the heat and the two bay leaves, and blend the soup together until it is a smooth puree. An immersion works best when blending hot soup.

* If you do not have an immersion blender, I suggest you cool the soup down a little before you add it to the blender. The hotter the soup is. The more ask risk you are for the soup to spit out of the blender.

5. Once the soup is a smooth texture, mix in the sour cream and serve. I added another dollop of sour cream to the soup and served it with a toasted cheese sandwich. (Toasting requires no butter, so it reduces the fat to the sandwich.)

Baked Beans

Serves 4
(I made this as a frozen meal, so I do not have end result pictures.)

2 15 Oz Cans of Pork and Beans
1/2 C Packed Brown Sugar
1/2 Medium Yellow Onion, Chopped
1/2 C Ketchup
1 TBSP Stone-Grounded Mustard
1 TSP Worcestershire Sauce
1 TSP Cider Vinegar
Salt and Pepper, for taste

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees fahrenheit.

2. In 13x9 glass pan, mix all ingredients together.

3. Then bake for an hour.

4. Finally enjoy with your BBQ of choice.

Tangy, Shredded BBQ Pork Sandwiches

6-8 Sandwiches
(I made this as a frozen meal to throw it in the crock pot later. Sorry I gave this to a family, so I do not have the end results. I promise it tastes great.)

1 1/2 LBS of Pork Loin Chops
1 1/2 C of BBQ Sauce, of Your Choice
1/2 C of Italian Dressing
1/4 C of Brown Sugar, Packed
2 TBSP of  Worcestershire Sauce
8 Hamburger Buns

1. Mix together pork chops, bbq sauce, Italian dressing, brown sugar, and worcestershire sauce in the crockpot.

(At this point, I froze the meat. If you plan on cooking it now, you can go forward with the cooking instructions.)

2. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours, or on high for 4 hours.

3. Before serving shredded the pork with two forks, and then serve on bun.

4. You can serve your sandwich with sides and or add coleslaw on top of the shredded pork.

5. Then enjoy!

Soft, Irresistible Banana Nut Bread

Makes 1 Loaf

1/2 C Butter, Softened
1 C White Sugar
3 Eggs, Room Temperature
1 TSP Pure Vanilla Extract

1 2/3 C All-Purpose Flour
1 TSP Baking Soda
1/2 TSP Salt

1 C Mashed Bananas, About 2/3 Bananas
1/2 Sour Cream, I used lowfat.
1/2 C Walnuts, Chopped

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees fahrenheit.

2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together, next add eggs one at a time, and then vanilla.

3. In a separate small bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt.

4. Next, the flour mixture slowly into the wet mixture then add the bananas and sour cream and then fold in the walnuts.

5. In bread pan, grease it with the butter wrapper and then pour in bread mixture. Shake pan back and forth until the batter is even.

6. Then bake in oven for 55 minutes to an hour.

7. Finally let it cool, and then you can enjoy with or without butter.

Make Your Own Toasted Tostadas

Serves 4

1 LB of Chicken Breast, I used organic chicken. It seems more tender.
1 Lime, Juiced
1 TSP Cumin
1 TSP Garlic Powder or Fresh Garlic
1/2 TSP Chipotle Pepper
1/2 TSP Cayenne Pepper
1 TSP Oregano

1 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil

4 corn tortillas
2 C Shredded Cheese
1 Can of Black Beans, Mashed
2 C Spinach or Lettuce of Your Choice, Chopped
1 Avocado, Sliced
1 Tomato, Seeded and Diced
1/2 Cilantro, Minced
1 Jalapeno, Minced (Optional)
1/2 Red Onion, Minced (Optional)

1. In a sealed container like a tupperware, marinate chicken for at least an hour with the lime juice, cumin, garlic, chipotle pepper, cayenne pepper, oregano. Let it marinate for at least 30 minutes to an hour.

2. In a large pan, bring it to medium high heat add the olive oil and then the chicken. Cover the chicken and cook for 10 to 12 minutes or until the chicken is cook. Make sure to flip the chicken halfway through the cooking process, so that it browns on both sides. Then once done and it has rested for about 5 minutes, you can cut it into strips.

3. While the chicken is cooking, you can start toasting up your corn tortillas. Set your toaster oven on 375 and let it bake for about 4 to 5 minutes until the tortilla is toasted. Not brown but lightly browned and like a non-pliable taco shell.

** I used a toaster over. If you do not have one, preheat oven at 375 degrees fahrenheit and bake for 4 to 5 minutes on a cookie sheet.

** Note: If you want melted cheese, you can add it to your tortilla before you cook it.

4. Then you are ready to assemble your tostadas: add mashed beans first on top of the cheesy or not cheesy tostada, next the chicken, more cheese if you want, and then whatever toppings you want like avocados, tomatoes, cilantro, jalapenos, onion, and then top with spinach or lettuce and lime juice.

5. Finally enjoy that tostada with a cerveza or margarita!

Quick Weekend Sausage Biscuit Sandwiches

Serves 4

1 Package of Refrigerated Biscuits

1/2 LB Package of Ground Pork
3 Eggs, I used cage-free eggs.
1/4 C Shredded Cheese
1/8 C of Milk, I used almond milk.
Pepper, For Taste

1. Bake biscuits according to package.

2. While those are baking, form 4 pork patties and put pan on the on the burner on medium heat then cook.

** Tip: I use this instead of breakfast sausage because it usually has a lot more preservatives and no monosodium glutamate, MSG.

3. Once the sausage is done cooking, set it aside on top of a plate with a paper towel to drain the fat from the sausage and pan.

4. Next scramble the eggs with milk and cheese, and then cook in the same pan as the sausage for about 3 to 4 minutes until it is cooked all the way. When taking out the eggs, you want to quarter the eggs and take them out like a sheet.

** Tip: Using a fork to scramble the eggs and adding the milk creates a fluffier egg.

5. Then once the biscuits are done, you can then assemble your sandwiches with the egg and sausage.

6. Finally, enjoy the sandwich with some juice or coffee!

Quick and Easy Summer Pasta

Serves 4

1/2 A Box of Angel Hair Pasta, I used whole grain.
6 C Water
2 TBSP Salt

6 OZ of Bacon, I used thick cut, applewood smoked bacon.
1 Small Onion, Sliced
2/3 Cloves of Garlic, Diced
1 LB of Asparagus, Ends Cut and Quartered
1/2 LB Baby Portobello Mushrooms, Sliced
1/2 C White Wine, a drier wine with not much sweetness like a Sauvignon Blanc.
1 TSP Red Pepper Flakes
Parmesan Cheese, Grated

1. In a large, deep pan, turn heat on to medium and add bacon. Cook both sides for about a total of 8-10 minutes. Once done, put on plate with paper towel to drain off fat and then cut into pieces.

** Tip: Cook bacon on medium heat to reduce the risk of splatter and for the fat to cook out, so it will not stick to the pan.

2. Bring salt water to a boil on high heat and then add pasta and cook for about 4 minutes.

3. While you are waiting for the water to boil, drain the bacon fat out of the pan, but leaving the pan coated and on medium heat. In the pan, add the onion and garlic and cook until the onions is opaque which is about 3/4 minutes.

4. Next, add the asparagus and let it cook for 4-5 minutes and then add mushrooms and white wine. Cook for another 5-10 minutes until the alcohol is cooked out.

5. Then add the red pepper flakes, pasta, and bacon to the pan and mix it all into the vegetables.

6. Finally serve up and add the parmesan cheese if you would like and enjoy!

Sour Cherry Crisp

2 C Fresh Sour Cherries, Washed and Pitted
1/2 C White Sugar
2 TBSP All Purpose Flour
1/2 C Quick Steel Cut Oats
1/2 C Brown Sugar, Packed
1/2 C All Purpose Flour
1/8 TSP Baking Soda
1/8 TSP Baking Powder
1/4 C Butter, Softened

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees fahrenheit and spray a 9x9 square pan with oil.

2. In a medium bowl, sour cherries, white sugar, and 2 TBSP of flour. Then pour into pan.

3. In a cleaned medium bowl, mix with our hands or spatula the remaining ingredient: oats, brown sugar, 1/2 C of flour, baking soda and powder, and butter. It should clump and make crumbles.

4. Pour crumbles evenly over the cherry mixture and then bake in oven for 30 to 35 minutes.

5. Once the crisp is done, let it cool and then serve by itself or with vanilla ice cream. Enjoy!

Sour Cherry Muffins

Makes 18 muffins

3/4 C Buttermilk, I used coconut milk and added 1 TBSP of  Lemon Juice.
1/4 C Water
2/3 C Canola Oil
1 Egg
Zest of a Lemon
2 C Flour
1 C Sugar
1 TSP of Baking Powder
2 C Fresh Sour Cherries, Washed and Pitted
2 TBSP of Sugar in the Raw Sugar, Optional

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees fahrenheit and line muffin tins with 18 wrappers.

2. In a medium bowl, first mix buttermilk/milk and lemon mixture, water, oil, and egg.

3. Next mix in one at a time lemon zest, flour, sugar, and baking powder.

4. Once all ingredients and mixed well. Now you can fold in the cherries.

5. Then you will fill the wrappers a 2/3 of the way full of batter and top with raw sugar.

6. Bake for 25 or until the muffin come out toothpick clean.

7. Once done, let it cool on wire rack and finally enjoy once cooled.

Bacon Breakfast Burrito (Freeze and Eat Later)

Serves 6/7

1 Bag (24 oz) of Frozen Roasted Potatoes
1 Package of Bacon
6 Eggs
1/4 C of Milk
1 TBSP of Canola Oil
Salt and Pepper, to taste
6/7 Flour Tortillas
3/4 C Shredded Cheese, I used the Mexican Blend, but you can use any shredded cheese you like.
1 C of Green Chili, I used 505 Green Chilli (Optional).

1. Bake potatoes according to the package.

2. Heat skillet to medium heat and cook bacon on each side for about 8-10 minutes. Drain out fat before you cook next batch. Then place bacon on paper towel to let the excess fat drip off.

3. While the bacon cools, in a bowl scramble the eggs with the milk. Then in a medium high skillet, spray oil in the pan, add egg scramble mixture, and salt and pepper. Scramble eggs until they are almost cooked all the way. Keeping the eggs a little runny is okay if you plan on freezing the burritos.

4. Then you can start filling your burrito with the tortilla, shredded cheese, bacon, potatoes, eggs, and green chili if you want it a little spicy.

5. Then roll and wrap in saran wrap and freeze or enjoy right away. If you freeze the burrito, before you consume remove the saran wrap and microwave for 3 to 4 minutes until the burrito is fully cooked. Then enjoy!