Originally posted by ~Denise~ What's polenta? Pork sausage, right? (I am veg so don't eat meat, but just curious!) (o:
It's not sausage, it's a corn meal mush. You can buy it in bulk at Fred Meyer. I don't really know the specifics, but it is more coarse that regular cornmeal. It is excellent with spagetti sauce or chili on it. HTH's a little, and the name does sound like a sausage!
Oh, wow, really Rachel? Cool! I will check that out....I swear there's a sausage, meat, called polenta too. LOL.
Allison, thank you! That does make me feel better.....I swear, I was about ready to let dh know I'd be gone for a week while I visited some of you healthy cookin' AW Mamas in your home and watched you all make dinners and such. (o:
__________________ "Custom will reconcile people to any atrocity."
George Bernard Shaw
Originally posted by ~Denise~ Oh, wow, really Rachel? Cool! I will check that out....I swear there's a sausage, meat, called polenta too. LOL.
Allison, thank you! That does make me feel better.....I swear, I was about ready to let dh know I'd be gone for a week while I visited some of you healthy cookin' AW Mamas in your home and watched you all make dinners and such. (o:
Eeeewwww! Pork sausage! <gag> I buy ours in the bulk section at the co-op. They have organic for super cheap. The cooking directions are right on the bulk bin. They also sell it ready made in different flavors. I buy the garlic/basil when it is on sale. It is still a little more expensive than the dry stuff, but I can never get mine to taste quite as good as theirs. I just slice it, brush a little olive oil on it and bake it until it is a little crispy on the outside. My family loves it with salsa or spaghetti sauce on it.
You are welcome to come up here and spend time whenever you like, Denise You should come when Bernice is visiting, I think she is a better cook than me.
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Allison
mama to Ara, Simone, and Zarin
Denise, are you a regular veg? Or are you vegan? I have a ton of great recipes either way and most of them can be adjusted depending, kwim? We had veggie chile for dinner tonight that is awesome, we all loved it so much we ate the whole pot
It was really easy to make too, and pretty whole foods. There are certain things that I used canned like stewed tomatoes. Do you use TVP? That's what I used as my "meat" it has that ground beef texture.
tvp (reconstituted to be about 2 cups.
1 cup pinto beans that were soaked over night and simmered for about 1-2 hours, drained
2 cans stewed toms
2 tablespoons spanish olives chopped
1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
1/2 med oinion chopped
1 tblespoon chile powder
1 tsp chile flakes
1 tsp cinnamon (my secret ingedient, lol)
Saute the tvp onion and garlic and olives in a bit of oil til brown then add everything else and simmer a while. Super yummy!
Another fav of mine is curried lentils and I do a lot of variations on this one. It's really easy and fast.
1/2 lb lentils
4 cups water
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
1/4 golden raisens or chopped tart apples or both, lol!
1/2 med onion chopped
1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon curry powder (hot or mild, whatever you like)
Saute onion and garlic in a bit of oil add water and lentils, simmer for a while, til they are nearly cooked. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for about 15 more minutes. Add more water if needed. Serve over a steaming mound of jasmine rice.
Black beans are a staple in this house without a doubt. We eat them at least 4x a week. My recipe is as simple as can be.
1 1/2 cup cooked beans drained
1/4 cup mojo de ajo (look in the ethnic foods section)
nuke for a minute and a half, serve over a steaming mound of jasmine rice
I'll let you know if I think of more. We do pasta with red sauce a lot too, but I use jarred sauces since I can usually get them very cheap on sale and I tend to stock up during sales.
Denise, you can get Polenta in the bulk bins at Whole Foods, and also Bob's Red Mill makes some. They often have the Bob's Red Mill stuff in the regular grocery stores. Unfortunately, my family did NOT like Polenta. LOL
Oatmeal for breakfast is a yummy whole food!
I just recently learned to cook, although I'm not that good yet. Gosh, I really never thought I would learn to cook. I always thought I'd hate it.
Soups are easy, but I don't make them in the summer. I can't believe I used to buy canned soup! Soup is so easy and cheap to make, not to mention healthier and better tasting that way.
I think all the convenience foods in the grocery stores are for people who never learned to cook. I used to buy those mashed potato flakes. You know how easy it is to make mashed potatoes?! I didn't know before!
Here is my fave veggie meatloaf recipe. I use brown rice and I like tomato sauce instead of ketchup on top. I use canned tomato sauce- I'll have to try some of the recipes on this thread.
You are welcome to come up here and spend time whenever you like, Denise You should come when Bernice is visiting, I think she is a better cook than me.
Aw shucks...you are too sweet. I USED to be a REALLY good cook, but I am in SUCH a funk latley. My poor husband has done most of the cooking since I got pregnant since I can't stand to smell the food, and I was sick for so long. We have been eating out way too much because of it and WASTING money. We have agreed that once we move we are going to get inspired again, hopefully having a grocery store that carries more than 30 odd organic items that are all pretty bland and uninspiring will help in this area?!
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My family isn't crazy about polenta either, but they will eat it a couple of ways: Sauteed in a small amount of oil and topped with black beans, cotija cheese, cabbage, and salsa (like a tostada), or sauteed in butter and topped with maple syrup.
I like to cook, and love whole foods, but also like easy prep. I make rice in a rice maker. I make beans in a pressure cooker; I can soak them the night before to reduce their gas causing abilities, or just do them without soaking.
Simple bean meals I make at home are bean tacos with homemade beans, and sometimes with Yves Veggie Ground Round sauteed with onions and potato (diced really fine...it's a Mexican thing). I just steam corn tortillas in the microwave; they aren't any more pocessed than if you make them yourself. We also sauteed spinach and add some beans and bean broth for a simple winter meal. I also make this casserole with leftover beans (and rice...I plan the leftovers to make this):
Pinto-Cheese Casserole
1 1/2 C. cooked brown rice
2 C. cooked beans
1 C. shredded cheese (I use a 4 cheese blend)
3/4 C milk (any)
2 whole eggs or 3 egg whites
1 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. onion powder
1/4 t. salt
Preheat over to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a 1 qt. casserole.
In a large bowl combine rice, beans, and cheese. Mix well.
In another bowl combine remaining ingredients. Beat with a fork or wire whisk until well blended. Add to rice mixture, mixing until thoroughly combined. Place into prepared casserole. Press mixture down gently with the back of a spoon.
THIS is a great thread and last night i took allisons polenta idea w/ the spag sauce and used tvp veggie chili instead and even my dh really liked it! easier and more whole food than making cornbread i think
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Amelia
mama to Olivia (3/98) and Michael (10/99)
*~*~Sell crazy somewhere else, we're all stocked up here~*~*
for dinner tonight. It was really good! And it was really easy - easier than with noodles since there's none of that boiling and trying to lay them down without breaking them.
I used jarred spaghetti sauce though, and I used the premade polenta. Next time I'll try the homemade sauce. YUM!
Thanks for sharing, Allison!
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Chenning <><
Lovin' on Dave
Christian ap mama to the amazing Matthew (6) yummy Nathan (2) and wrinklesquirm Aaron born 6/2/07.
Originally posted by ~Denise~ Oh, wow, really Rachel? Cool! I will check that out....I swear there's a sausage, meat, called polenta too. LOL.
I think you're talking about chorrizo (sp?) -- it's a Spanish spicy sausage.
Here's a couple of no-brainers for ya that are staples at our house...
pasta sauce
1 28oz can whole tomatoes
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
6-10 cloves fresh garlic or 1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp salt
1-2 tablespoon olive oil
throw it all in a pot, bring to a boil and then simmer for 20-30 minutes. then mash up the whole tomatoes so they aren't so chunky. i use a stick blender thing, but a potato masher works too. if you want it thicker, add a can of tomato paste.
we call this one white pasta
prepare a pound of pasta -- shells work best, or penne, rigatoni, long noodles don't work as well for this one.
in a large bowl combine
1/4 cup olive oil (or less if you are watching your fat)
1 /2 tsp salt
black pepper to taste
1-2 tsp dried basil (fresh basil tastes so much better, use 3X more if you're using fresh)
6 or so cloves fresh garlic
when the pasta's done throw it in the bowl and coat the noodles, then add diced fresh tomato. yummy also good w/cubed mozzerella (fresh mozzerella is to die for in this recipe, but hard to come by)
for mexican night we always use this one
2 15 oz cans black beans (liquid too)
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
warm it up and let it simmer for awhile to thicken up the juice
and if you have more time you can saute a cut up onion and fresh garlic in a little oil before you throw the beans and spices in the pot. i always top this w/fresh salsa and we eat it w/corn chips
fresh salsa
1 28 oz can whole tomatoes
2-4 fresh jalepenos
1 large onion
1 tsp salt
6 or more garlic cloves (or you could use garlic salt, probably 1/2-1 tsp)
fresh cilantro
throw all the ingredients (except cilantro) in a food processor and pulse a few times to cut everything up (a blender will chop up hte tomatoes, but probably not the other ingredients). put in a pot and bring to a low boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. let it cool for about 10-20 minutes and then add the fresh cilantro. cooking the cilantro will take away the flavor
that's all i can think of for now
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Kelli
wife to my career Army soldier
mothering 2 girls & 5 boys
"From a biological perspective, the ultimate act of failure is to raise helpless kids." -- Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver
You should come when Bernice is visiting, I think she is a better cook than me.
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