Scones and hot tea are one of my favorite autumn breakfasts. I made the first batch of pumpkin scones for the Fit Mama meal plans. They were delicious and just happen to be both gluten free and dairy free. Then I made a second bath with fresh ground whole wheat flour for the rest of the family and they got thumbs up too. I’m pleased to share the recipes for both.
This is my favorite salad. It’s the fancy enough for potlucks or having company over, but it’s easy enough for weeknight dinners. It keeps for several days and the leftovers pack nicely for lunch. Add a grilled chicken breast or salmon filet on the side for a complete meal.
Ingredients
Instructions
I did something crazy yesterday. I called our drywall guy and hired him for Monday, November 16th to do a job I haven’t prepped yet. That’s enough to light a fire under me! I’m hoping to earn enough at this garage sale to pay him. And to carve out 12 hours to prep the job for him.
If you saw it on Facebook over the summer, I’ve been making plans to redo our shared boy’s room. The ceiling has water damage and popcorn texture. I plan to scrape off the popcorn and have it professionally skim coated. Then paint, hang curtains and fluff. This is what I’m hoping it will look like. The opposite side of the room will be an art/lego station with toy storage and display areas. It feels like an overwhelming project, but the boys are anxious for me to get it done. With holiday season coming, I’m not going to stress about doing it in a week or anything crazy like that. We’ll just take it one step at a time.
So that’s a quick update on us. What are you up to?
This delicious salad is great for a main entree lunch. I first tasted it at a baby shower and begged for the recipe. I’ve adapted it for my own tastes and change the vegetables every time I make it to suit what’s affordable at the time. I purchased everything but the rice and chicken at Aldi. (The chicken was from Costco and Wild Rice was from the bulk food store.)
1 scant cup dry wild rice
2 cups chicken broth
3-4 chicken breasts (about a pound)
garlic salt to taste
1 red bell pepper, diced (Green, yellow and orange can be used also.)
4 green onions, diced
1 cup diced carrots (or 1/2 cup shred)
1 cup sugar snap peas, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 cups fresh chopped spinach
1-2 avocados, cubed
1/2 cup toasted sliced or slivered almonds
1/4 cup bacon crumbles
1 fresh lemon, juiced
2 packets Truvia or similar stevia product
salt to taste
In a saucepan or rice cooker, cook the wild rice in chicken broth until tender. Meanwhile sprinkle chicken breasts all over with garlic salt. Grill for 7 minutes each in a personal table top grill (like this one.) Cool until cool enough to handle then cut into bite sized pieces. Set aside.
Meanwhile chop all vegetables into bite sized pieces. Combine all ingredients in a LARG bowl. Drizzle with fresh lemon juice and toss in stevia and salt. Serve right away. Refrigerate leftovers. It will need an extra toss of lemon juice if it sits for very long.
If you limit the amount of avocado, bacon and almonds in your serving, this is a Trim Healthy Mama E.
Seasoned salt gives that little something special to homemade baked fries, vegetable dips, and tacos! We are big fans of Lowry’s seasoned salt, especially since is MSG free, but homemade mixes are my thing too!
1/2 cup salt
2 Tbs sugar (or truvia)
4 tsp paprika
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp ground celery seed
Combine all and put in a shaker jar. (Did you know parmesan jar lids fit on regular mouth mason jars, and spaghetti jars etc…?)
Onion soup mix is rarely used for onion soup around here. It makes a great dip mix, roast potato topping, roast beef seasoning….There are a ton of recipes calling for this stuff. To save money, buy your dried onions in bulk. Read more
I love sausage! Especially when it’s part of biscuits and gravy. That dish was my grandpa’s specialty and his love of it, made me love it too. Read more
I love food with Southwest flair. I could eat it every day of the week and not get tired of it. Enchilada sauce is not just good on enchiladas. It’s also yummy over eggs and in casseroles. Each batch yields about the same as a 20 ounce can of sauce. Read more
This recipe is one you’ll want to tweak to match your own family’s tastes. For example, I don’t like oregano, so I sub more basil and parsley to make up the volume. If you like things hot add crushed red pepper or cayenne to the mix.
Use it when recipes that call for Italian Seasoning, or to sprinkle on ground beef or turkey as you cook it for Spaghetti sauce or Pizza. It adds a nice touch to garlic bread and croutons too. You can even beat it into your bread dough for a pleasant herb loaf.
3 tablespoons dried basil
3 tablespoons dried oregano
3 tablespoons dried parsley
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried rosemary
1⁄4 tsp black pepper
1⁄4 tsp red pepper flakes
Mix well and store in an airtight container. Yield: 11 Tbs plus 1/2 tsp (about 3/4 cup)
3/4 cup basil
3/4 cup oregano
3/4 cup parsley
1/4 cup garlic powder
1/4 cup onion powder
4 tsp dried thyme
4 tsp rosemary
1 tsp black pepper
4 tsp red pepper flakes
Yield: Scant 3 cups
Brownies…..savor the thought for a minute. They are the perfect accent for unexpected company, potluck suppers, afterschool snacks….any time really. Had a baby? Here’s a brownie. Experienced loss? I’ll bring a whole pan. I can’t think of a time a brownie isn’t appropriate.
If you are gluten free, you can substitute all purpose gluten free flour blend for the flour as long as the mix contains xanthan gum. In theory, xylitol will work instead of sugar in the mix and almond flour instead of all-purose flour for those on a fitness kick. (I’d be tempted to try 1/3 almond flour, 1/3 flax meal, and 1/3 oat fiber.) I haven’t tested these variations yet, so try it in a smaller batch the first time and report back how it went.
This mix can also be used for creative Pinterest recipes that call for brownie mix. 4 1/2 cups mix = a box mix that makes a 9×13 family size pan of brownies.
I love buying spinach at Costco in the 40 oz bags. It’s good quality and cheap, and it’s a LOT of spinach. I use it in my eggs, salads, lasagna, smoothies, stir fries, you name it. Sometimes I still can’t get through the whole bag before it spoils.
While the official method for freezing spinach involves blanching it. I’ve had really good luck, just throwing the bag in the freezer. (I just toss it in when I’m tired of eating spinach.) Once it’s frozen I mash the bag to break the leaves into pieces. Then it’s easy to throw into a recipe.
The idea behind blanching Spinach is to kill the enzymes that continue the ripening process. Freezing slows down but doesn’t stop or kill the enzyme process. As long as you use it up within a couple of months and don’t try to store it for years, you’ll be fine.
The benefit besides the ease, is that it PRESERVES the enzymes that aid in the digestion process. Now toss that into your morning smoothie :).
