Salmon Tostadas and Mango Salsa

This was amazing! Both kids asked for more and I was more than happy to help!

 I'll jump right in!

You'll need salmon(I used 4 small fillets), mangos (2-3), red onion, corn, black beans, avocados, lime and/or lemon juice, salt, garlic (powder or fresh), chili powder and butter (or coconut oil ect). I didn't make my own tostadas, so I had a little bag of them ready to go!

Throw some butter in a skillet until melted. Mix in chili powder and garlic, or whatever seasonings you prefer. Place the salmon into the skillet and coat the other side(side facing up) with more seasonings. Wait for it to blacken on the side down, then flip. Then same on the other side. This does NOT take long.

BEFORE you start the salmon, about 45+ minutes ahead of time (if you have time, if not that is okay) cut mango into chunks, dice a small onion and place in a small bowl. Add in corn and beans (add however much you like), then add in a little salt and the lime/lemon juice. Place in the fridge. The longer it is in the fridge, the better it will taste!

Cut or mash an avocado or two.

Place some avocado on the tostada, then your hot salmon, then a LOT of mango salsa! The great thing about this is there are so many options for what to put on the tostada. Refried beans, fresh tomatoes or lettuce. You could even leave out the tostada and put it all on a nice bed of lettuce!!!

It is really so simple and I was surprised how much I loved the mango and salmon together!

BBQ Pulled Pork Soup

I'll keep this blog short and simple. BBQ Pulled Pork Soup. Very experimental. It is so good it doesn't even make sense.

1 pork loin (about a pound or more depending on how much meat you want in the soup)
1-2 C BBQ Sauce, I make homemade-Brown sugar, ketchup, mustard powder ect, but bottled would be great!
1 can/jar stewed tomatoes (12-16oz). I wanted diced, but I was out. DON'T drain.

I used a random variety of beans, all were canned this time, but dry beans prepped and ready to go would also work!
-chili beans(didn't drain)
-northern beans
-kidney beans
^Any beans would taste delicious!

Then seasonings. I have a hard time putting seasonings in my "recipes" because it is all a taste preference. I wanted a little more spice, but with two kiddos I had to keep it mild.
I added:
mustard powder
chili powder
paprika
garlic
onion powder
salt
pepper

I added a smidge of red pepper flakes but would have liked more!



I put everything in a slow cooker for the day. If you'll be gone all day, setting it on low would work great. Setting on high for 4-5 hours would also work well. I wanted mine really soupy so I added a little water, I had no broth on hand... that would have been preferred. Before serving, take out the pork and shred it then place it back in the slow cooker. I topped ours with sharp cheddar. I really think it added flavor and would not recommend leaving it out.

It took me 10 minutes to put everything in and then shred the pork. Too easy?!

Root Beer Short Ribs & A Catch Up

Once I get behind on something I just totally forget to keep up! After my last blog I ended up getting preoccupied with some other things and then we eventually found out baby #3 was on the way and since then I have been nauseous and have not cooked meals like I should have been! Shameful! I plan on doing my meal recipes a little different. I'll sum up what I did to just give more ideas. I recently received an electric pressure cooker for Christmas from my Nana. I have to admit... I am a total slow cooker gal. I could easily do every meal in my crock! But now that I have two toddlers and spontaneous sickness I tend to forget to throw in my meals in the morning. Example time! Yesterday I didn't do anything. I cleaned a little, kept the kids alive and showered. I planned on throwing the ribs in the slow cooker in the morning, making some mashed potatoes, maybe some gravy... you know, because I had all day. Didn't happen. 4pm rolled around and I was sitting on the couch... eating pickles... with no dinner even started. Thank goodness for my pressure cooker!!! Here's how it went down!


Root Beer Short Ribs

I had 2 packs of short ribs, which was about 8 ribs total. I have no clue on the pounds. They were already thawed so I tossed them in a frying pan with some butter and seasonings to crisp the sides. Then I put them in the cooker with about a cup and a half of root beer, garlic, onions, mustard powder... just seasonings that I usually use. They were in the cooker for 30 minutes. Done. Juicy, tender, fall of the bone, DONE. They tasted good as they were but I put them back in the skillet with some root beer and seasonings until they got a nice glaze on them. Yum. Yum. Yum. Please feel free to post a comment or leave me a message on my page with any questions!

Quinoa Pizza Crust

Like usual I am a little behind. Too many leftovers to use ;) A few days ago I made a BBQ chicken pizza on a Quinoa crust! It was good. If you go to Google and type it in, I'm sure you will find a ton of different ideas of how to do it.   Here is how I did it and what I should have done differently! :)

So I made the quinoa according to the package. I used one cup of dry quinoa. When it was close to being done I took it off of the burner and used my immersion blender to blend it all up. I should have blended it up more, that's my first fix. Adding a little extra water would be my second fix. I made it a little too thick. I added salt, basil and garlic to the mixture. I heated up a large round skillet pan and pressed the "dough" into the pan. And my final change would be a thinner crust. Next time I will turn it into 2 pizzas. I cooked it until crispy on both sides and then added BBQ sauce, pulled chicken and mozzarella. I kept mine on the stove but it could easily be thrown in the oven for a few minutes. I really liked the pizza, other than my needed changes. My toddler loved the pizza. My husband, he spit it out. I told you I would be honest. Here are a few reasons why I think he did. He doesn't like quinoa. It was far too thick. And finally, he got home a couple hours after it was made and the sauce had soaked into the crust and it was a horrible texture. My next piece of advice would be to eat it fresh! I will be making this again. My mixture should have been thinner like pancake mix and it was like  bread dough. If you take these changes into account I'm sure it will be a great recipe for you!

Check back later for my 2 week meal plan!!!

Taco Chicken Chili Stuffed Peppers and More!

I haven't posted in a bit, but I've been cooking some delicious meals! I mentioned this blog is more for planning and meal inspiration than it is for full recipes. With that being said, here we go! This weekend I made a roast in the slow cooker, with onions and carrots and a cup of water. I added a little seasoning of choice and that's it! A very simple and filling meal. We also ate roast at my moms and she puts an onion soup packet in with her roast, which is also super good.

Then I had a large ham I needed to use. Guess what I did with that!? Yep, slow cooker. I will never make a ham any other way ever again. I put about a cup of apple juice in with it and that was all. Juicy. Juicy. Juicy. I made some green means and caulimash to go along. I steamed my cauliflower then mashed it up with a little butter, salt and pepper. Awesome meal!

The next day for lunch(was going to be for dinner, but we couldn't wait) I made a huge Cobb Salad with SOME of the leftover ham. Eggs, avocados, pepper jack cheese and tomatoes!

(I posted that picture on my Facebook page, check it out!!)

Last night I planned on making a southwest type of stuffed pepper. As I was throwing black beans into the pan I decided to add more beans and turn it into a chili. After the peppers were stuffed I had chili leftover for the 3 of us for tonight or even for a lunch! They were great!

Taco Chicken Chili Stuffed Peppers
30 min total

28oz can diced tomatoes
15oz can black beans, drained
15oz can chili beans, drained
1 large chicken breast, uncooked
1 cup corn
4+  green or bell peppers (depending on if you want leftover chili)
1 tsp: Chili powder
2 tsp: Cumin
1tsp: Paprika
Salt
Pepper
Shredded cheese if desired.

Preheat oven to 350. Place chicken and tomatoes in a pan. Cook until chicken is done. Shred chicken. Add rest of ingredients (except peppers) and stuff into 4-6 peppers. Place in baking dish for 20 minutes or until peppers are cooked to liking. Top with cheese if desired.

For leftover chili I always top it with cheddar cheese and sour cream!

Chicken&Veggie Pastaless Lasagna

This is a more time consuming recipe. It's really great and filling, it is just a little more "detailed."  I would love to give you my prep time but I typically cut a veggie, pick up my baby, cut another veggie, get my toddler a drink... You get the idea.  It's NOT a hard meal to make. Just allow yourself some time to cut veggies and cook a chicken breast!

So, here it is... !

Chicken&Veggie Pastaless Lasagna

2 medium sized zucchinis, sliced lengthwise, thin
1 small/medium eggplant, sliced into circles
2 cups of sliced mushroom
4 parsnips, pealed and sliced thin
2 cups fresh or frozen spinach
1 chicken breast (uncooked)
1 jar of spaghetti sauce (or homemade)
2 cups shredded mozzarella

Preheat oven to 400. Salt and drain the eggplant and zucchini. Let sit. Put sauce and chicken in a pan and cook over low heat until chicken is cooked. Shred chicken. Place a little bit of sauce into a 9x13 pan and spread it out. Layer parsnips on top of sauce. Next place eggplant on top.

x

Place mushrooms on next, followed by half of the sauce and chicken mixture. Place spinach on top then the zucchini on top of that.

Pour remaining sauce mixture on top. Cover with mozzarella and place in oven for 40 minutes. Take out and let sit for 10-15 minutes.

Will be saucy!!! That's okay!
I have done this with sweet potatoes instead of the eggplant and it is JUST as good. :)

Kielbasa Soup

Mmmm...kielbasa soup! I had 4 venison kielbasa's that I've been wanting to try in a soup and it was AWESOME! And simple. I was really considering beans for this soup but then I realized that not much is better than meat and potatoes.

Kielbasa Soup
  Slow Cooker: 4 hours on high or 6 hours on low

3-4 Kielbasa's, chopped
2 Cups Carrots (I used organic baby carrots and cut them in half)
32oz Chicken Broth (I used organic chicken broth, but veggie broth would be good too!)
2 Celery Stalks, Chopped
4-5 Small/Medium Potatoes, cubed
4 Cups Water
1 Small Onion
1 tsp: Chili powder
Salt and Pepper to taste
Parsley as garnish

Put all of the above in a slow cooker. I know, it's so complicated!! ;)