Easy Non-dairy Mock Turkey Stroganoff

Of course I forgot to take a picture of the finished product so all I have is words to go off of. So sorry, but you should try this one out anyway! This is an easy recipe (created by me) because my husband and two daughters are all allergic to dairy. When I was younger my dad would make beef stroganoff (the good ol' fashioned kind w/ dairy) all the time and I used to love it. I've improvised and made a yummy turkey pasta that I like to call "Mock Turkey Stroganoff" and my kids and husband love it. So here it is, enjoy!

You will need:

1.) 1 box of your favorite pasta, cooked (i use garden rotini because I like to think it's healthy)

2.) 3 cups water (if you have pre-made beef broth that will work fine)

3.) 3 tsp beef bullion granules/base or 3 beef bullion cubes

4.) 1 lb turkey burger, cooked and seasoned

5.) 1 cup water in a mug or cup for stirring

6.) Cornstarch

Once your pasta and turkey burger are cooked add your turkey burger to the pan with the pasta and stir the two together. Place your water and beef granules/cubes/base in a medium sauce pan over medium heat till mixed well. In your mug or stirring cup add 2-3 heaping tablespoons of cornstarch and stir together till you have a thick milky looking mixture. Slowly add this (1/4 cup at a time) and stir well. You will have to continue stirring this all the while you're mixing it together because it will get thick pretty quickly. *The reason I do it this way is because I always seem to get a clumpy beef gravy instead of a smooth one and this helps to keep out the clumps.

Once you have a nice thick gravy (not pasty thick, but thicker than normal gravy thick) then pour it over your noodles and turkey burger and mix well. You should use the whole mixture to coat the noodles well enough. See how easy that was? You don't have to add anything else. I usually serve this with some sort of veggie on the side and maybe some garlic toast or something like that. I hope you enjoy this non-dairy creation :)

Sausage Substitute

Have you ever had a breakfast or dinner recipe that calls for ground sausage or sausage patties, but you currently have none in the freezer? "Why do I not keep this stuff on hand?" you ask yourself... because it is so ridiculously high in fat that it grosses you out, and has artery clogging properties is why. Which is why I did some research and formulated my own "sausage substitute" that will work in any recipe that calls for sausage, but has less than half the fat and skips on that rubbery texture we all hate. It also tastes wonderful and is quite good for you. It's pretty darn simple too, so here it is.

You will need:

1 lb ground turkey (I like the Jenni-O brand)

2 cloves of garlic (1 clove of garlic is equal to 1 tsp of garlic powder, in case you were wondering)

1/2 tsp paprika (optional)

1/2 tsp dried Oregano

1/4 - 1/2 tsp all natural sea salt

1/4 - 1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/8 tsp thyme (essential)

1/8 tsp fennel (you can substitute Cumin or Dill for this if you don't have any)

1/8 - 1/4 tsp onion powder (i use dried minced onions and double the amount bc my husband loves onions, you don't have to though)

1/8 tsp dried savory (you can substitute rosemary or any ground citrus spice for savory)

1 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil

All you do is put your thawed turkey burger in a bowl and add all the other ingredients and mix it together well. (hands work best, it's gross, but that's what soap and water are for) Divide into four sections and form into patties (or throw it into your frying pan directly after mixing for ground) and fry until cooked through. Enjoy :)

Family Restaurant Recommendation

We got our tax return back a few weeks ago and my husband was allowed $500 for repairs on his car. He didn't spend all of that and wanted to take me out on a date. We went to GoodWood BBQ in Orem for dinner. I know I said "Family" recommendation, but this is a great establishment that the whole family could enjoy, not just a couple on a date. I ordered their double battered chicken fingers (best chicken fingers I've tasted in my 23 years) and for dessert I had this:

Chocolate Fudge Brownie topped with Light Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, whipped cream, Low-fat Chocolate Ganache, and of course a Cherry on top!

Most delicious dessert ever!

Their menu is a wide variety of all classic favorites like the chicken I ordered, some house specialties, and then they have all your basic soups and salads, some awesome appetizers and adult drinks/wines/beer, and more delicious goodness such as desserts like the one above. I've also had their chicken fried steak, and my husband liked their brisket.

I've been doing really well with my New Years Resolution to not eat any candy or drink any soda, and I figured it was time to treat myself. (The only sweets I've had all year are 2 glasses of hot cocoa, 2 sugar cookies the other day, and a few chocolate chip cookies last month.) So I don't feel too guilty about consuming, oh say 2000 calories in one meal. haha The food tastes great, the servers and hostesses are very nice and their service is very fast and professional, and it is a warm inviting environment to enjoy dinner with your family. You should all try GoodWood BBQ in Orem!

The Best Broccoli Stir Fry

I know most of you are going to look at the title of this entry and think, "Broccoli, seriously?" and if I were the outsider (which I usually am) I would say the same thing. I can't stand broccoli; the taste, the texture, the smell... honestly it makes me gag. I never cook it for my husband, who loves it, because I can't stand the smell. I happen to have found a way last week, confirmed last night when I made it for the second time and it turned out "amazing" in the words of my husband, to cook broccoli and not be overcome by the smell. Wanna know my secret way? Keep reading :)

It's a stir fry! Two yummy green vegetables and some onions in a skillet with some other ingredients. Broccoli stir fry, who would have thought? You will need:

-Large non-stick skillet or wok

-1 large stalk of broccoli

-1/2 a small onion

-1/2 a large green bell pepper

-extra virgin olive oil

-liquid aminos (click here if you have no clue what liquid aminos is)

-healthy pinch of garlic powder or 1 small clove of crushed garlic

-ground pepper

-All you have to do is cut your broccoli into pieces as you would if you were going to steam it and throw it in the skillet. *Chop off the stem at the bottom of the largest pieces and begin to chop the individual stalks off. Work your way up the stem until you have nice, small pieces of broccoli.

-Slice your onion in half and pull out the heart and set aside. Slice through the layers of onion so you have half onion circles. Throw those into the skillet.

-Slice your bell pepper top and bottom and pull out the core. Cut the pepper in half from the open top, and slice one half long ways in thin slices. Throw those into the skillet. Turn your stove top on medium heat.

-Pour olive oil (the equivalent of about 4-5 tbsp) on top of your veggies and stir together well.

-Squirt a few tsp worth of liquid aminos onto your veggies and stir again.

-Add your garlic and pepper and stir again.

-Cover your skillet or wok with a large lid and allow to sit and steam for a minute or two. Uncover and stir well the recover for another minute. Uncover and stir around for a minute. It should smell REALLY good. Let it sit uncovered and stir occasionally. Total cook time about 5-7 minutes depending on how many veggies you added to your skillet. In the middle of cooking (it's really cool to watch) the veggies will start to turn a darker and brighter shade of green and then you know you're almost done. It's a beautiful color!

See? Broccoli can smell AND taste really good :)

*the picture has a really small amount in a large skillet. last time this skillet was very full. both nights the veggies turned out yummy, but this stalk of broccoli happened to be quite a bit smaller than the last one i used. just thought i'd let you know incase you were wondering why there was barely anything in there :)

How to Spice Up Frozen Taquitos

When I go grocery Shopping I always buy the 60 pack of frozen chicken taquitos for those nights when I don't feel like going all out on dinner. A couple of weeks ago I was wondering how I could turn these taquitos into a worth while meal that my husband would love, so in this post I'm going to share what I did that my husband did, in fact, love.

For my family of four (well, three and a half) I cooked 30 in the oven. The tops and ends get a little crispy when you bake them instead of cook them in the oven. And DON'T fry them! Ruins the flavor and adds a terrible amount of fat. I mean, if you don't care, you can fry them, but I don't like that :)

You will also need:

1 can of refried beans, some of your favorite salsa or picante sauce, shredded cheese, and sour cream or sour cream dip. (the chive and onion is really good) Want to make your own? See the note at the bottom.

So all you do is cook the taquitos and the beans. Then put 6-7 cooked taquitos on a plate and smear refried beans all over them, top them with plenty of salsa, shredded cheese, and a dollop of sour cream on top. (We used tofu cheese and sour cream, a great alternative) Easy, but can you say tasty? I used to just serve these with salsa for dipping and maybe some cheese shreds, but this is so much better!

*A tip for you if you're not a refried beans fan. Substitute one can of black beans, cook all the contents of the can then drain and blend together well in a food processor. You can stop there, but I like to add a little bit of salt and pepper as well.

Note: To make your own chive and onion cream cheese mix 1-8 oz container of cream cheese with 1 tsp garlic powder and 2 tbsp of dried chives and vwala! Chive and Onion Cream Cheese w/out the hassle of the store not having the flavor you want.

Turkey Meatballs

So I tried my hand at making meatballs tonight to go with our spaghetti and they turned out pretty yummy. So here is the recipe as promised. It's actually pretty simple.

You will need:

2 lbs raw Turkey burger

3/4 cup Fresh soft bread crumbs

1 lg Egg, beaten

3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tsp Italian seasoning

2 tsp Parsley

1 tsp Garlic Powder

1 tsp Salt

Sprinkle of Pepper

3-4 tbsp Fresh Soft Bread crumbs

*It's really easy to make fresh soft bread crumbs in a hurry. All you do is toast the bread till it's ALMOST burnt and crunch & crumble it. Easy, right?

Now, I tweaked the recipe to fit my family size and use what I had so here is what I used.

1 lb raw Turkey Burger

1/2 beaten egg

heavy sprinkle of tofu parmesan

1/2 cup bread crumbs

1 tsp Italian seasoning

Sprinkle of Basil

1/2 tsp Garlic powder

1/2 tsp salt

sprinkle of pepper

2 tbsp bread crumbs

And the directions are very simple. Preheat the oven to 375• and line a baking sheet with tin foil. Mix all the ingredients except the small amount of bread crumbs at the end of the list together in a large bowl with a mixer. (I just used my hands, gross, but fast and effective) Shape them into small balls. (using a cookie dough scoop makes the perfect size and shape, but I found it was faster to just use a small spoon and my hands) Roll each ball in the crumbs you set aside and place on your lined baking sheet. Dust with the remaining bread crumbs and bake 20-25 minutes or until cooked through. If you make bigger meatballs you will have to allow a longer cooking time.

Serve over spaghetti noodles and top with your favorite marinara or pasta sauce. This is also a fun easy appetizer that you can serve with ranch, marinara, and toothpicks. Enjoy!

So I found this DELICIOUS sounding recipe on a blog I follow called The Dye Guys. Stuffed French Toast w/ raspberry Syrup. Doesn't that sound divine? I just had to share it!

Hope Everyone is having a great start to their new year!

click here for the recipe