Serves 8   (Cut recipe in half to serve 4 or freeze half for a later meal.)

You’ll need:

2 lbs Ground Beef or Buffalo
2.5 lbs Green Chile (pick the level of spice you prefer)
*Use Fresh Roasted Green Chile, or Flash Frozen Roasted Green Chile (Bueno Green Chile is one example of a brand you can purchase at the grocery store that is already roasted, chopped and ready to go)
One 14.5 ounce can Diced Tomatoes
4 Cloves Garlic – minced or chopped
1 Large Onion Chopped
1 Cup Cold Water mixed with 2 to 3 table spoons of Tapioca Flour, Arrow Root or Flour (thickening agent)
Salt and Pepper to Taste
Cilantro Chopped for garnish
Chips and/or Flour Tortillas

Footnote: If roasted chilies are not available you will need to roast them yourself. A grill works best. Roast Anaheim or New Mexico Chiles on a grill till they are black on all sides. Place in a plastic bad in the freezer for ten minutes. This will make it easier to peel them. Rub the blackened skin off and rinse clean. Then cut in half lengthwise, seed and chop.

Method:

1. Brown the beef on med heat, then drain the fat
2. Add onion to the meat and let it cook for a few minutes,  then add the garlic and let it cook for another min.
3. Add the water with thickening agent to the cooked beef (1 cup cold water mixed in 2 to 3 table spoons of tapioca flour). Wait for it to thicken. If its not thick enough for your liking, then you do it one more time but add less water and more of the thickening agent.
4. In a large pot add tomato, chile, salt and pepper. Stir and bring to a boil.
5. Once the mixture is boiling then add the meat mixture and mix all together.
5. Lower heat, cover and simmer for approximately 20 min
6. Top with Chopped Cilantro for Garnish
7. Serve with chips and/or flour tortillas

Green Chile & Rice Casserole

For a variation of the Green Chile Stew (or if it’s too hot for your taste — especially if you used hot chiles):

With half of  the above recipe add:
1 cup sour cream
2 cups grated cheddar cheese
2 to 3 cups of cooked brown rice

Heat through and serve with organic corn chips and a green salad.

Gently Toss Together:
3 cooked beets, cubed
1 Romaine Heart or Endive lettuce, shredded
1 apple, cored, peeled and chopped
1 tablespoon chopped red onion

Dressing:
Whisk together and pour over salad:
Juice of 1 lemon
3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon mustard
Salt & Pepper

Top With:
4 ounces whole, pitted black olives and crumbled feta cheese

Ingredients:

2 tomatoes, chopped
2 small cucumbers, peeled and chopped
1 red pepper, seeded and chopped
¼ cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
Juice from 1 lemon
¼ cup olive oil
Salt & pepper

Method:

1. In a serving bowl, combine chopped vegetables. Toss gently.
2. In a small bowl, combine lemon juice, olive oil, and salt and pepper (to taste). Drizzle over vegetables and toss.
3. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Optional: Top with thinned tahini sauce.

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These easy Rice Crispy Squares
require NO cooking!

You’ll Need:
1 6-ounce bag organic rice puffs cereal
1 pound 5-ounce organic brown rice syrup jar
½ teaspoon sea salt
¾ cup peanut or almond butter

Method:
1. Mix all ingredients with a wooden spoon.
(Optional: It’s not necessary, but you can heat the rice syrup and almond or peanut butter for easier combining.)
2. Grease a 9”x13” baking pan with coconut oil.
3. Pour and the  press the mixture into the pan. Let set.
4. Cut into squares and serve.

Nicole can’t wait to eat a Rice Crispy Square!

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This recipe is in Baby Bites: Transforming a Picky Eater into a Healthy Eater. The taste and texture is slightly different from the boxed version of Macaroni and Cheese.

Most picky eaters don’t like “different.” If your child is used to eating processed macaroni and cheese, then call this recipe “Cheese Casserole,” so it won’t be compared to the lifeless boxed stuff. Once taste buds have experienced Nonna’s World Famous Mac & Cheese,  they’ll never want to eat the boxed variety, again.

You’ll need:
2 cups macaroni shells
1 stick butter
¾ cup chopped onions
¾ cup chopped carrots
¾ cup chopped celery
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1/3 cup pastry wheat flour or arrowroot powder
2½ cups whole milk
8 ounces grated cheddar cheese

Method:
1. Finely chop all vegetables. For a very fine texture, use a food processor.
2. In a medium saucepan cook elbow macaroni according to directions.
3. Melt butter in saucepan.
4. Saute vegetables in melted butter for about 10 minutes.
5. Whisk in salt, pepper and flour to mixture.
6. Pour in milk and mix until all lumps disappear.
7. Turn heat to low and add cheddar cheese.
8. While cheese is melting, drain the water from the macaroni noodles and then add to sauce.
9. Stir and heat through.

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Process in a Blender:
1 cup whole milk (options: goats milk, coconut or grain milk)
1 small banana
2-3 tablespoons fresh or frozen berries
Options:
For a chocolate smoothie, omit the berries & add 1 tablespoon of organic cocoa powder without sugar.
For a frozen shake use a frozen banana and 2-3 tablespoons frozen berries.

Super-Charge Your Smoothie Add:
1 scoop of Sambazon organic acqi powder
1 tablespoon of Barlean’s flax oil (you can use flax seeds instead of the oil–they will keep on a shelf)
Probiotics (You want a probiotic with as many cells as possible. Mega Food has 20 billion.)
1 drop of Carslon’s Vitamine D Drops
1 tablespoon of almond butter

Nicole’s mom, super-charged her smoothie.

Smoothies in a Dorm
Smoothies can be made in a dorm without the aid of a refrigerator. Purchase milk in individual cartons, use flax seed instead of the oil which requires refrigeration. The fruit, cocoa, acqi powder and probiotics all may be stored at room temperature.

A can of soda pop has about a ¼ cup of sugar. You might be surprised to learn how much sugar is in that that soda purchased at a gas station or a chain convenience store like 7-Eleven: a 64 ounces soda (Double Big Gulp) has 1 cup of sugar; 44 ounces of pop has ¾ cup of sugar, and 32 ounces (7 -11 Big Gulp) ½ cup.

Beat the heat with water. Your body loses over two quarts of water a day, in the heat, more. Nothing hydrates like water. Water is the best thirst quencher on the planet. For flavor, squirt a little lemon, lime or orange into the glass. Make it special with a wedge of citrus placed on the rim.

Homemade lemonade is always a hit with kids. You can eliminate sugar when you use Stevia or honey when you make it yourself.

Jan is sipping a frosty watermelon drink.

Process in a blender: 1 cup lemon juice (approximately 6 lemons), 1 cup water, ½ teaspoon Stevia extract (add more if you like it sweeter). Then pour the mixture into a 2 quart pitcher and fill it up with water and ice cubes. (If you don’t like Stevia, use a little honey. That’s a healthier alternative than sugar.)

Peppermint ice tea sweetened with Stevia is my favorite iced tea.

Coconut water mixed with a splash of fruit juice will not only quench your thirst, you will replace electrolytes.

Frosty Watermelon Drink: Process in a blender until liquefied: 2 cups watermelon chunks (discard rinds) and 1 teaspoon chopped mint leaves. Then add 1 cup ice cubes (more for a slushy).  Optional: dash cinnamon or a splash of lemon juice. For more about watermelon, Click Here.

Fruit Spritzers are yummy and easy: combine equal parts carbonated water and one hundred percent fruit juice.

Fruit Smoothies are always refreshing. Process a cup of milk, one banana, and ½ cup of berries in a blender. For a shake, use a frozen banana. For a chocolate shake (one of my favorites) add 1 tablespoon unsweetened organic cocoa to 1 cup milk and a frozen banana.

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Left-Over Rice Salad will bring out your hidden chef, because you’re creating a new recipe each time you make it. It’s also a good choice for a picnic, because there’s no mayonnaise, which can easily spoil in the heat. Kids love to help. Let them add ingredients and toss the salad.

For Left-Over Rice Salad,
Zach adds some parsley
from his garden on the deck.

Begin by opening up the refrigerator to see what’s there.

1. For the base you’ll need:
4 cups of already cooked brown or wild rice (1 cup per person)
Add: 3 sliced green onions (or ¼ cup other onions, chopped)
½ chopped pepper (green, red, yellow or orange)
½ cup chopped celery

2. Then add any of the following:
1 to 2 cups cup of chopped left-over chicken or turkey
1 small can of sliced black olives (or ¼ cup chopped green olives)
1 small jar of drained artichoke hearts
1 chopped carrot
1 or 2 crumbled hard-boiled eggs
Grated cheese, any kind
Handful of raisins or currents
Handful of chopped nuts

3. Toss with a vinegar and oil dressing.
Serve at once or chill for later.

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In the heat of summer, cool food sounds especially yummy.  Fortunately, the very season that brings on the heat is also responsible for providing us with an abundant supply of fruits and vegetables.

Salads can be prepared, often with little or no cooking, to satisfy the summertime craving for something light and cool. The salads requiring a little cooking can be prepared in the cool of the morning, before it heats up. Another benefit of summertime salad is that you’ve done all the work early, so when you return exhausted from the beach or pool, dinner is ready to serve!

Lentil and 3-Grain Mexican Salad salads are a nice refreshing change from a tossed salad.

If you have a picky eater, be sure to have him/her help you prepare these dishes. Teach older children how to cut veggies. Younger ones can help incorporate ingredients.

Lentil Salad
Ingredients
1 cup green lentils
Salt & pepper
½ onion, chopped
1 rib celery chopped
1 bay leaf
1 small carrot chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
¼ cup chopped parsley
16 ounces vegetable broth
Luke Xavier is having summer fun.

Add in after the salad has cooled:
1 chopped tomato
¼ cup chopped parsley
1 rib celery chopped
Juice from ½ lemon

Method
1. Sauté the onion, carrot, and celery in 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the garlic and parsley.
2. Sort and rinse the lentils. Add the lentils and the rest of the vegetable broth to the pot and bring to a boil. Turn down to a simmer and cook until tender all the way through (Add more water if necessary.), about 45 minutes.
3. Cool the lentil salad. Just before serving, toss the lentils with the lemon juice, salt, and fresh-ground black pepper. Add in chopped tomato, celery and parsley. Stir to combine. If the lentils stick together, add a bit more vegetable broth.

Super-Duper Fast Method for Lentil Salad
Enjoy Lentil Soup One night and Lentil Salad Another

1. Make Lentil Soup. Click Here for the recipe.
2. Scoop out half the lentils with a slotted spoon.
3. Toss the lentils with the lemon juice, salt, and fresh-ground black pepper.
4. Add chopped tomato, celery and parsley. Stir to combine. If the lentils stick together, add a bit more vegetable broth.

3-Grain Mexican Salad
Ingredients
½ cup brown rice
½ cup barley
½ can each red kidney and black beans (or one can of mixed beans), drained
1 cup frozen or canned corn
2½ ounces sliced black olives
1 red or green Bell pepper
½ cup chopped cilantro
½ cup chopped green onions
1 clove finely minced garlic
½ cup red wine vinegar
½ cup olive oil
1 teaspoon chili powder
½  teaspoon each  salt and pepper
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Optional: 2 ounces diced green chilies for a little heat. Garnish with tomato and avocado wedges.

Method
1. Cook the barley and rice in 2 cups of water for about 40 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed.
2. Rinse and drain the beans (and corn if using canned)
3. In a large bowl combine the cooked barley, rice with the corn and beans, chopped onions and Bell pepper.
4. In a small bowl or glass measuring cup, whisk together the vinegar, olive oil garlic, minced garlic, chili powder, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Pour over salad, toss, and refrigerate.

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Sweet Potato Tots

I first had these wonderfully tasty tater tots at my dear friends, Debbie and Leon’s, home. I couldn’t wait to try them myself. They’re so easy…you don’t even peel the potatoes.

This recipe is enough for a crowd! (I forgot to take a photo before we devoured them. Pictured are the left-overs.)

You’ll Need:
5 pounds scrubbed sweet potatoes: leave the skins on and cut into 1 inch pieces
½ cup olive oil
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons pine nuts or chopped pecans

Method:

Heat oven to 350 degrees

1. Whisk together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, minced garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper to make a marinade.
2. Toss the potato pieces in the marinade. Let the potato pieces rest in the marinade for about 40 minutes.
3. Spread the potato pieces on baking (cookie) sheets.
4. Bake for about 45 or 50 minutes
5. Toss the potatoes and sprinkle the nuts on top. Bake for another 15 minutes and serve.

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