My Favorite "Dessert" or Snack

Now doesn't that just look delish!  

This is very similar to the Acorn squash recipe, can you tell it's my favorite right now?

I bought the pre-cut butternut squash from Costco which is 2 pounds, used 2 apples, a couple Tablespoons of coconut oil, chopped pecans and shredded unsweetened coconut.

Grease a jelly roll pan very generously with coconut oil, almost like a layer of it on the bottom of the pan.  I use my silicone brush for this to really get it glopped on there good.  Then add the squash and apples, sprinkle heavily with cinnamon and nutmeg and stir will to mix.  Top with the pecans and some coconut, then bake at 400 for about 20 minutes.  Give it a stir a couple of times, probably about every 5-10 minutes.  

It's done when the apples and squash are to your desired softness.  

Remove, let cool just a bit and enjoy!

Chicken Dinner

Due to the death of my Uncle I will be gone for the week and won't be posting so I am posting 2 ideas tonight.

Dinner Tonight

An example of how simple and easy dinner can be!  

And yes I ate all of that!  Okay maybe not, I didn't eat the Broccoli, but instead ate 2 helpings of green beans.  I love green beans! 

Baked some Organic chicken breast with just salt, pepper, paprika and some lime.  I had limes in the fridge so I just threw them in with the chicken and baked them right along with it. While the chicken was cooking, I also baked the acorn squash for  "dessert".  

To make the squash, I just cut them in half, hollowed out the seeds and flesh, filled each half with chopped apple.  Then topped it with some chopped pecans, a sprinkle of coconut, and  filled it with some heavy coconut milk, added a sprinkling of cinnamon and nutmeg. Then into the oven it went, baking in a covered pan with a tiny bit of water for the first 20-30 mintus and then uncovered to finish baking and brown them (took about an  40 minutes to an hour total).  Yummy!  

Then I steamed the green beans while the chicken was baking and "fried" the broccoli in a skillet with olive oil and sesame oil, a little sea salt, pepper and some chopped red onion over high heat.  The kids loved the broccoli, in fact they were fighting over who got the last of it!

The great thing about a meal like this is if you make more chicken than you need, it makes the next day easy.  Just grab a piece of chicken for breakfast, and a leftover filled acorn squash and you are good to go, or use it for lunch. Utilizing your time when you cook to do larger amounts helps, because when the extreme hunger hits all you have to do is grab it!  

This is just  a jumping off point, the possibilities are endless!

My Thoughts

My kids have a 4 day weekend, so since I have a little extra time on my hands I thougtht I would try to come up with a homemade version of the Larabar. I just bought 3 flavors to try and at $1.50 a bar there has got to be another way!  On one of the blogs I follow she uses Larabars in her kids lunches, which is what gave me the thought of trying them.  Not so much for myself or my husband, but for those hungry little kiddos who are always looking for a snack.  I'll let you know if I come up with anything.

To Buy Organic or Not?

That is the question for me, since I am on a small food budget I want my dollar to stretch.  And to be used on the produce that bares more importance and benefit from being Organic.  So I have been doing some research via the internet and nearly every list I find has the same results.  I have decided to pass it along, in case there are some of you out there that can't afford to buy everything Organic.  This is just a suggestion and not a concrete list.  Growing your own would be your best option, but since most of us can't do that here is the list:

ITEMS WORTH BUYING ORGANIC:
FRUIT:                                                 VEGETABLES:                         OTHERS:
Apples                                                    Celery                                           Eggs  (preferably +Omega-3)    cherries                                                   Bell Peppers                                  Meat (preferably grass fed)
Grapes                                                    Spinach                                         Poultry (preferably grass fed)
Nectarines
Peaches
Pears
Red Raspberries
Strawberries





ITEMS NOT NECESSARY TO BUY ORGANIC:
FRUIT:                                                VEGETABLES:                                 OTHERS: Bananas                                                 Asparagus                                            Oils
Kiwi                                                       Avocado
Mangoes                                                Broccoli
Papaya                                                   Cauliflower
Pineapples                                              Onions
                                                           




Check out the Farmers Market in season for some great fresh produce.

Taco Salad

Here is a real quick dinner idea, Taco Salad or Taco Lettuce Wraps.  I combined them both last night, making a Taco Salad for each of us.   I used butter Lettuce underneath which we used to scoop up and eat the salad, along with the traditional fork method.  
We LOVE Tacos in our house so it is one meal we had to make Paleo for sure!

 Make extra meat and you have several meals in one.  Use the extra for Breakfast burritos, scrambles, omelets, etc., or for lunch leftovers, the options are endless.  
Have fun!

I browned the ground beef, drained it, threw some El Pato Sauce on the meat with a couple extra seasonings and simmered for about fifteen minutes.  Or try substituting chicken or ground turkey for the meat.
While that was simmering I washed my lettuce and prepared each plate.  Layered butter lettuce, spinach,and romaine lettuce, topped it with the meat, olives, tomatoes, onions, and avocado.  
I just simply used ingredients I  had on hand but the possibilities are endless. 

Quick, easy and delicious!