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Sausage and Bean Ragout

I made this “soup” the other night and was very impressed, especially by how my children gobbled it up even with the “green” stuff (spinach) in it. Sam totally embraces new foods and he really likes knowing when a food is good for him. Luke on the other hand, is a tougher nut to crack. If it is not chocolate, he is immediately suspicious and will try to throw his food on the floor for our dogs.

I have taken on this challenge because I am very much like my youngest son, give or take 34 years. I know that I need to eat better, with more vegetables and less meat. I just get stuck on the vegetables sometimes. I have my staples: green beans, peas, asparagus, beans, spinach, cabbage, carrots, potatoes, corn, okra, winter squashes, zucchini and sweet potatoes but then I get stuck. My palette strictly boycotts the more bitter/earthy vegetables like Brussels sprouts, cauiliflower, rutabaga, kale, chard, turnips …you get my point. What is so sad about that is the fact that these are nutritional powerhouses and my 36 year old brain knows I should eat them but my 2 year old palette wants to throw them on the floor for the dogs too.

I blame this on a couple of things. One being how my mom used to cook vegetables when I was growing up: she boiled the heck out of them which left an extremely undesirable texture and effectively removed all the nutritional value anyway so I suffered for nothing!

I also blame my lack of acceptance for these veggies on a former steady diet of processed convenience foods that are loaded with super sweet high-fructose corn syrup, and all sorts of flavor enhancers, texture enhancers, shelf stabilizers, etc. I am 36 years old and have never known food “the way it used to be,” like in my parents and grandparents generation (and beyond). Heck, I did not know until a few weeks ago that cattle are not supposed to eat corn!

My point is, I can tell myself all day long what I “should” be eating but that does not change the fact that if I do not like something, I am not going to keep eating it much beyond the week I have “decided” that I am going to make a “big change.” For me, true change is slow and I have to take baby steps in order to keep from getting overwhelmed and quitting altogether. One bite is better than none. Taste buds can and do change, just not overnight.

I have also come to realize that if you start your children eating healthy when they are young, before their taste buds become biased, you will give them a true gift that will last a lifetime. Think about it. What are some really unusual foods that other cultures relish and would send most Americans running for the hills (myself included)? Foods like Balut, Soup No. 5, and Maguey Worms (sensitive tummies beware before clicking on the links. Soup No. 5 gets a strong PG-13 rating… and men, you may want to avoid clicking on Soup No.5 all together if you catch my drift. ) OYE! These are foods that the people of those cultures love as much as some people love McDonald’s in American culture. They grew up eating that way so that is what they like (can you tell I used to love watching the shows No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain and Bizzare Foods with Andrew Zimmerman). If our children are raised on a lot of convenience foods, chances are they will have a devil of a time undoing that later. Trust me, I could be a case study of this in more ways than one.

Anyhoo, enough rambling for tonight.

If your kids are green veggie adverse, trust me on this recipe. The garlic, herbs, and Romano/Parmesan cheese in this soup recipe by Campbell’s Kitchen wipe out any hint of spinach flavor. Once I coaxed the first bite down Luke (albeit with the bribe of dark chocolate for dessert), he ate 2 bowls! Sam ate leftovers all weekend. Next time, I am going to step it up and try either escarole, chard or kale to see if they are as successful as spinach!

Sausage and Bean Ragoût

2 Tbs. Olive Oil

1 Lb. Ground Beef (I used Ground Buffalo)

1 Lb. Hot Italian Pork Sausage, casings removed (I used Hot Turkey Italian Sausage)

1 large Onion, chopped

4 cloves Garlic, minced

3 1/2 cups Swanson Chicken Broth* (I used Kitchen Basics Chicken Stock, * click here for a list of Campbell’s current GF list of products)

1/4 cup Fresh Basil, chopped (I used 2 Tbs. Dried Basil)

2 (14 1/2-oz.) cans Diced Tomatoes Seasoned with Garlic, Oregano and Basil

1 (15-oz.) can Cannellini Beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup uncooked Elbow Macaroni (I used 1 cup uncooked Tinkayada Brown Rice Elbows with Rice Bran, if you are new to the GF diet, there just isn’t a better GF pasta in my opinion. The taste and texture is spot on with gluten pasta)

1 (6-oz.) bag Baby Spinach Leaves, washed (I used Organic Baby Spinach from Costco)

1/3 cup grated Romano Cheese (I used Parmesan Cheese since I had it on hand)

• Heat the oil in a 6-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat.

• Add the beef, sausage and onion and cook until the meats are well browned, stirring frequently to break up the meat.

• Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, pour off any excess fat.

• Stir the broth, basil, tomatoes and beans into the saucepot. Heat to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

• Add the macaroni and cook until the macaroni is tender, but still firm, stirring occasionally (I cooked the Tinkyada pasta for 16 minutes).

• Add the spinach and cook just until the spinach wilts, stirring occasionally.

• Remove from heat, and stir in the cheese.

Here are some new ingredients, if you are curious:

BHA and BHT. Is it just me or are you feeling a bit overwhelmed too?

Tomato-Free “Marinara” Sauce

This is such a cool recipe! I have not made it in a few years, in fact I forgot about until I made a post and referenced a disease called Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EE). Sam used to have a playmate with EE and I got the opportunity to play around with different combinations of foods that never would have occurred to me in a million years! Several recipes would have made my stomach churn just by reading the ingredients and this is one of them!

It was trick-or-treat night in 2005 and Sam and his little buddy we’re going out for the first “real” time to beg for goodies (I say “real” time because I took him out the first time when he was 18 days old, but I don’t think that counts! ). We wanted to make a little party of it and pizza sounded like a great idea, never mind the fact that this little boy could not have tomatoes, dairy, beef, pork, mushrooms… you name it. If it was a “classic” pizza topping, it was pretty much off limits. Of course, I was too stubborn to just give up there! I made the following sauce and we made pizza with just the sauce and added chopped black olives, no cheese or anything else and it was really good! Think Bruschetta on a pizza crust.

Nothing warms my heart more than to see little sets of eyes light up, especially when those eyes belong to little ones that battle such serious medical issues. Children such as these, who have been through more in one short lifetime than most adults ever go through in 40+ years, remind me of the pure and true joy in life. To make a child a pizza that consists of the following ingredients and to get a reaction greater than if you had bought them the latest “it” toy, is priceless.

I don’t remember where I originally found this recipe but Living Without Magazine has it on their website here. One of the reasons I am making it again is not because I need to stay away from nightshades, but it is a really great way to “sneak” some very powerful vegetables in my family’s diet. While I love pumpkin, beets are another thing altogether! When I see a beet, especially those from a can, all I can think of is going to MCL Cafeteria (Ohio), as a kid with my parents and seeing all the “mature” patrons eating pickled beets with eggs. UFTA!

Please forgive me if you love pickled beets, I am not picking on anyone. It’s funny to me how an experience from childhood can still have such a powerful impact on your acceptance of a food! Or even how our food memories of childhood can make a later-in-life celiac diagnosis all the harder to accept (especially if you are “asymptomatic,” like I was, and are not motivated by pain to make the necessary dietary change). I have even tried roasting fresh beets and they still make me think of pickled beets… they (pickled beets) smell like sour dirt to me, plain and simple. Regular beets just smell like regular dirt though. Never one to give up, and trying to practice what I preach to my kids, “eat them, they are good for you!” I am now applying the same rule to myself. Before, when they would ask why I didn’t eat certain foods that I made them eat, I would just say, “I am done growing so I don’t need (“insert yucky vegetable here“). But now that Sam is 6, he is on to me. I think I actually use the Deceptively Delicious cookbook more for me than my kids! I need to hide certain flavors and smells in order to get them down. This is one of those types of recipes, if you can get past opening the can of beets (think clothespin on your nose).

Tomato-Free Marinara Sauce

1 Onion, finely chopped

1 Clove Garlic, finely chopped, (optional) (I used 2 cloves of garlic)

1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

3 Tbs. Fresh Lemon Juice

1 Tbs. Balsamic Vinegar (in the end, I ended up adding a little more, maybe a tsp.)

1 (8-ounce) can Beets*, drained (reserve the liquid) (Get your clothespin or hold your breath! )

1 (14-15 ounce) can Pumpkin Puree (make sure it is not pumpkin pie filling)

1/2-3/4 cups gluten-free Chicken or Vegetable broth (I used Kitchen Basics Chicken Stock)

1 tsp. Coarse Salt

24 grinds Fresh Black Pepper

1/3-1/2 cup Chopped Fresh Basil (I used 1/4 cup dried Basil, plus I added a couple of Tbs. dried Oregano)

1 ½ tsp. Cornstarch or Arrowroot, moistened with 2 Tbs. reserved beet juice

• Sautee onion and garlic in oil until onion is translucent and slightly brown.

• Add lemon juice and vinegar. Simmer for 5 minutes.

• Puree beets until very smooth. (I did this in my food processor, but a blender would be fine too. You will a little liquid to help the pureeing process: use some beet juice or water, maybe 1/4 cup or so)

• Add pureed beets, pumpkin puree, salt, pepper and basil to pan. Stir until combined.

• Whisk in the broth. Simmer over low heat for 5 minutes. Do not over-cook; beets discolor with prolonged cooking. If sauce is too thick, add a little more broth to thin.

• Whisk in the moistened cornstarch (or arrowroot). Cook for 1 more minute. Taste and adjust seasoning.

*TIP: If you prefer, you can use fresh beets. Roast them in the oven until soft and puree them in a food blender before adding to recipe.

TIP: If the sauce seems too acidic, add a teaspoon or two of sugar. (I added about a tsp. of Agave Nectar instead of sugar)

This is really good, all my guys liked it too, and could not guess what was actually in it! WOO-HOO! I am going to use this sauce for a couple of things this weekend and will hopefully get the recipes up next week!

I found some really interesting stuff on Nightshade allergies, so if you are interested, check out this.

Green Chile Chicken Posole

One of the soups I made for Sam’s birthday party was Green Chile Chicken Posole. I had it at a party once and I probably ate 20 bowls of it, well, not really but it was that good! I didn’t have a recipe to follow so I just tried to wing it on my own and it turned out perfectly. This posole is a nice variation to the traditional red chile and pork posole.

This is not a recipe per se…I do not have exact measurements to give you but you really cannot go wrong, there are only 5 ingredients.

Green Chile Chicken Posole

1 Whole Chicken (you could use a store bought rotisserie chicken too, just make sure it is GF. I used to use these but every store where I used to buy them started putting wheat in them for some reason)

3 (32-ounce) cartons of Chicken Broth/Stock (I use Kitchen Basics)

Green Chile…the heat level and how much you use is all based on taste. When I moved to NM 12 years ago, I pretty much fried my taste buds that detect heat, so I can take it pretty hot!

Posole  (I use frozen Posole but if you cannot find it, canned Hominy would be fine…just drain and rinse before adding to the soup)

Salt, to taste

• When preparing the whole chicken to roast, I brush a little olive oil over the skin, then season with salt and pepper. I roast my chicken at 450° F for about 25 – 30 minutes to get a nice even browning, then reduce the heat to 350° F for about another 30 – 40 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken. Once the chicken is done cooking (internal temperature of 180° F.), I like to tent it in foil for about 20 minutes to let it rest and therefore retain all the juices (if you have never tried this technique, you simply must, the chicken is very juicy and not dry at all!).

• Shred the chicken and put aside (discard the skin).

• In a Crock-Pot (or in a soup pot on the stove), add shredded chicken, chicken stock/broth and green chile, season with salt to taste. Cover and cook on low for about 4 or so hours. Add Posole (you will need to cook it longer if you use frozen posole) and turn the Crock-Pot to low for another hour or two, or until the posole is tender.

That is it!

I use frozen chopped green chile, but you could also use canned or fresh roasted green chile (I always use fresh in the fall during the NM chile harvest).

I use frozen posole, which takes longer to cook and absorbs a lot of the chicken stock as it is cooking, you may need to add additional chicken stock if you use frozen posole. Canned posole/hominy is precooked to it does not absorb much if any of the chicken stock.

Several people at the party asked for the recipe so I think it was well received!