So, Whats up with this whole blog?

A while back, I really began to think about the food I was feeding my family.  All the additives and perservatives... they made me a little nervous.  I see so many people getting sick so young... and I look at my maternal grandparents who only ever ate what they themselves made, and then my paternal grandparents who not only made everything from scratch,.... they also GREW most of their own food.  Of course own acres of land with orchards and huge veggie patches and even growing cattle in their early years helped all that. (That and living in a perpetually warm climate where they could grow freshies year round.)  They all lived into their 80s.  My moms dad in his 90's, and my her mom is still alive and kicking at 89.
They had it right.  They didnt buy boxed mac & cheese... they bought noodles and cheese and milk and made it.  They used real butter in moderation instead of chemically made butter substitues.  They made homemade bread instead of bleached flour bricks that have no nutrional value.

I have spend over a year finding recipes, and making up my own.  I have a very picky kid... she doesnt like anything that has any vitamins in it. Not even fruits.  So, I have gotten sneaky.  Very very very sneaky!
I put pureed carrots and sweet potatos in tons of dishes.  I chop mushrooms up into miniscule peices and put them into dishes like mac and cheese.  I make smoothies with carrot juice as my secret ingredient.  I try to take our families favorite resturant dishes and recreate them at home.  I use the PA Dutch style food I grew up with (after I figure out how to make them a little more heart friendly).  We make homemade pizzas and stromboli.  We bake our own bread and grow our own veggies.

Organic?  Sometimes.  Organic is expensive.  I try to buy what I can... but I have also found some local farms that are, for all intents and purposes organic, but one little thing or another is keeping them from being certified.  Or the certs are just so expensive, they cant afford them.

So, I am hoping to post my recipes.  This is hard for me becuase I dont use recipes.  I do everything to taste.  I expirament and try new things... but I want to share.  I have been blessed with knowing people who can cook how have taught me things.  I am a homeschooling momma, so I can watch those awesome cooking channels.  I am hoping this blog can be a resourse for people trying to get veggies in those picky kids.  For moms who dont have time to figure out whats for dinner.  Even for moms with little time.  I have a couple tried and true crock pot recipes that I definitly want you to try!

So follow the blog... try some of them out... and leave me some feedback!! LEt me see pics of you attempts and tell me what worked, what didnt, and what you did differently!

Carrot Puree

Ew... I know.  Carrot Puree, sounds like baby food.  But really, this is one seriously awesome and versatile way to add MAJOR Vitamins and serious nutrion to many many dishes!

When I make it, I make it in big batches and freeze it in small containers to add to sauces or even to use as baby food!

There are 2 ways to make this...

Boil method:
As many carrots as you want to use, cleaned, peeled, and cut into peices of the same size.
Put into a pot with salted water and boil until soft.
Put in a blender with a dash of black pepper and blend until smooth.
Cool and freeze!

ORRRR...

Roasted (my fav!)
Again, as many carrots as you want to use, cleaned, peeled, and cut into same size peices.
Put in a bowl with some EVOO, salt, and pepper and pop them into the oven @400 until carrots are soft.  Then put in blender and bled until smooth... if the mixture is a little tight you can add some chicken stock, just make sure its low sodium, especially if you use it as baby food!
Cool and freeze.


BABY FOOD TRICK!
Spoon cooled puree into ice cube trays, freeze and put into baggies.  When its time for babies feast... simply grab a cube and microwave it!  EASY PEASY!

Other cool trick.... do the EXACT same thing with sweet potatoes for some UBER Vitamins in your kids bellies!  :o)

Veggie Tomato Sauce

1 finely diced medium sized onion
2 medium cloves of garlic, finely diced
1 32 ozcan of crushed tomatoes
1 small can of tomato paste
1 cup of cooked spinach
1 8oz can of finely diced tomatoes
1/2 cup of carrot puree or sweet potato puree
Small pinch of crushed red pepper

Turn pot on medium add Extra Virgin Olive Oil and onion and garlic.
Stir occsionally
When onions turned translucent add the rest of the ingredients then seasonsing to taste.  Let simmer for at least 15 mins.  If sauce is too thick, simply add some chicken stock.

Seasonings to add:
Salt
Black Pepper
Oregano
Basil

Tips:  You can always add more seasonings, but you cant really take them out, so start small and keep tasting until you like it!!

FUN ADD-
Dice up some peppers... red yellow green... taste the rainbow, they all taste great in this recipe!  Add them in after the onion and garlic start to soften, but give the peppers a few extra mins to get happy and soft before adding the rest of the ingredients!

Sneaky Cheesy Potato Soup

Savory Potato Cheese Soup
(an adapted recipe)

2.5 pounds of potatoes diced

1/2 red pepper diced

1/2 onion diced

2 24oz containers of chicken broth

1/2 stick butter

(My Veggie Additions)
1 sweet potato diced
1 head of cauliflower (or half a bag of frozen)
1 package of mushrooms (if I am blending it i dont cut them small, but if I blend it i will just chunk them up)

Simmer that all together until the potatoes are soft. (Sometimes I have to add a bit more water or chicken stock.)

Add 1/2 package cream cheese

Add 8 oz shredded other cheese (if i use sharp i dont use all 8 ozs to save myself some fat)

Stir until melted.

In a bowl, add 1/3 cup flour and 1/3 cup warm water. Whisk until in lumps are gone then stir into soup to thicken.
Serve as is, or blend to make a creamy soup that hides those veggies perfectly!!!