Meatless Meals Your Husband Won't Mind

I married a true meat and potatoes kind of man. And to be honest, I am a meat and potatoes loving kind of gal... so it pretty much works. Yet every once in awhile, for both health and budgeting purposes, I try to serve meatless dinners.

I love baked Mediterranean veggie dishes, don't mind beans or lentils, and could survive on crunchy peanut butter indefinitely. My husband has a harder time stomaching such kitchen ventures.

Trying to strike a compromise in the kitchen, here are a few dinners that he is {mostly} happy with {on occasion}, no meat required.

Breakfast for Dinner. Pancakes or French Toast {especially when served with fresh berries} are big family favorites around here. While we'd all prefer them with a little bacon, no one complains when I serve them cheesy scrambled eggs for protein instead.

Pizza. I make this homemade crust recipe often, mostly because it is so quick and easy. Then I just toss on whatever toppings we might have on hand- bell peppers, sweet corn {new to me when I married Niall, but apparently totally normal in Ireland}, fried onions, etc.

Homemade Refried Beans. This recipe is so very delicious- I've served it to friends who didn't think they liked refried beans, and made converts out of them. I either wrap them up into burritos, or serve them with veggies and tortilla chips for dipping. That is more of a snacky dinner, which makes it more fun. And simple for this mama to prepare.

Also, hot tip: pick up the large bag of pinto beans at Aldi, and make them all up into refried beans at one time. I freeze them in old peanut butter and pickle jars so that I always have some on hand to pull out in a pinch.

Soup and Bread. A simple vegetable soup or vegetarian chili may not be too thrilling on it's own, but paired with a loaf of fresh homemade bread {each slice coated heavily in butter} and now we are talking :). Some of my favorite loafs to make are this honey whole wheat. failproof french bread, and artisan bread in 5 minutes a day.

Chickpea Curry. We love a good Indian dish around here. While I would much rather eat it out then make it myself, chickpea curry with coconut milk {most recently, this recipe at our house} is one meatless meal that I can count on my husband enjoying. I like to serve it with a side of garlic naan.

Are you able to get away with meatless cooking in your kitchen? What recipes does your whole family enjoy?

A Beginner's Map for Soaking Grains

For ages I've read people raving about the health benefits of soaking grains... and for whatever reason I haven't bothered. Food and lifestyle changes take time and effort, and I suppose I just hadn't gotten that far. My one small baby step towards soaking was a huge failure: I soaked oats in yogurt overnight and in the morning when I cooked them they were just sour and gross. That kind of squelched my enthusiasm. {To regular grain soakers: what did I do wrong? Can you trouble shoot this for me?}

At any rate, I'm getting older and having indigestion issues and feeling concerned about instilling better eating habits into my children. I've been hearing that grains in any form, even soaked, are terribly harmful, and that people should quit them all together. I, for one, can't just quit them. While life without bread may be healthier, I can't see myself being happier. I just love carbs way too much ;). So if I'm going to keep eating them, I feel I ought to try my best to make them easier on my family's digestive tracts.

Enter my map. To get myself started on this grain-soaking journey, I've culled recipes from several bloggers whom I enjoy and trust. I plan to take one recipe every week or two and give it a test spin. If you've ever considered soaking grains, I'd love for you to bake along with me. Here's my disclaimer: if after trying three or four recipes I haven't had success, I probably won't continue. Hopefully it will go great, and my family will be that much the healthier for it. I'm nothing if not optimistic folks.

First, I intend to start by replacing recipes of baked goods I prepare on a regular basis.

Bagels. I adore homemade bagels, and haven't been able to enjoy a store-bought one since I started making them three years ago. Bagels are so great- you make a big batch and can enjoy them as a quick and easy breakfast for days. Lindsay shares her soaked version on Passionate Homemaking here.

Pancakes. Another regular staple in our breakfast menu. Quick and easy to whip up, loved by all. I'll be trying Lindsay's Blender Pancakes.

French Bread. The perfect completer to stuffed peppers, soup, and a host of other meals. I'm hoping that this recipe matches it's name- EASY French Bread ;).

Muffins. By far my favorite baked good to make and to eat. I'd like to make the Pineapple Muffins from Trina Holden's debut ebook Real Fast Food (as well as the apple cinnamon variation), these raspberry ones from Passionate Homemaking, and Kitchen Stewardship's Soaked Famous Pumpkin Muffins (this will be the first recipe I try, because hello, fall= pumpkin!!!).

Then I'll move on to treats my family enjoys on occasion.

Crepes. My favorite excuse for having chocolate at breakfast. Blender breakfast crepes.

Oven-Baked Pancake. The dutch baby, or puff pancake, has become a recent favorite in my kitchen. How did I go 28 years without ever having one of these glorious creations?!? Using another recipe from Trina's book (see muffins).

Lastly, I'll attempt recipes that I have thus far only aspired to making from scratch.

Biscuits. I really enjoy eating biscuits, but haven't tried making them since a childhood fiasco. At this point I can't even remember what went wrong, but something definitely did. I'm giving another of Lindsay's recipes a whirl.

Granola. Another food I love to eat yet have never made. A dear IRL friend made this recipe from The Elliot Homestead, and when I tried it I couldn't believe how delicious it was. Definitely worth the effort!

If you'd like to keep track of my progress, I will be updating my Grain Soaking pin board as I complete each recipe. Knowing that you are checking in on me will force me to follow through ;).

Do you soak grains? Why or why not? And do you have any fantastic recipes to share with us? I am definitely up for checking them out!

What to do with that Leftover Holiday Turkey

The dirty work

 This week has been Turkey week in my house. As in, I picked clean the entire bird, made a giant pot of turkey stock, and cooked turkey meals like a wild woman. It was well worth the effort! Today I will be throwing several containers of soup and pot pie filling mixture into my freezer for later days in which I am un-inspired to cook. Success! Also, there is this empowering pioneer woman feeling that comes from making your own from scratch broth and picking clean an entire giant animal :).

Simmering the bones and other remains for stock

Lately I have been reading Trina Holden's e-book Real Fast Food. The timing was perfect, because in her book she explains the best way to make stock with the maximum nutritional benefit. Although I'd made my own stock before, I had no idea that you needed to boil it for a minimum of 12 hours to get all the good stuff out of the bones! I also learned a "secret" ingredient for drawing the good nutrients out. But it won't be a secret if you read her book :).

My soup

Finally, here is a very basic soup recipe that we enjoy. Bonus: it is very quick and easy to make! For four servings all you need is: 3-4 cups of broth, 1 cup of turkey (or chicken), 1 chopped carrot, 1 chopped stalk of celery (my husband doesn't like this, so I just add another carrot), 1/2 cup of noodles, and salt and pepper to taste. Simply bring the stock and carrots to a boil, add pasta, and cook until the pasta is done (about ten minutes). Add the meat, salt and pepper. Sometimes I use brown rice instead of pasta (it does take longer that way), and add frozen corn for a little bit of natural sweetness. Yesterday I made a quadrupile batch so that I had extras to freeze. We still have more meat, so I think we might be eating turkey quesadillas tonight :). Yum!

What things do you like to make with your leftover turkey meat?