Yellow Curry

 Olive Oil

1 onion

1 cup carrots

2 cups sweet potatoes

2 cups potatoes

1 cup peas

1/2 cup water

2-3 tsp yellow curry powder

3 cans (44oz) coconut milk

2 tsp corn starch

-Mix 1 can coconut milk with cornstarch and set aside.

-Sauté onion in olive oil for 3-5 mins minutes, stirring regularly.

-Add water and vegetables, and let simmer for 10 mins, again stirring every few minutes.

-Add 2 leftover cans of coconut milk and let summer until vegetables are soft.

-Whisk in coconut and corn starch mixture. Let simmer for a couple minutes, stirring.

-Serve over rice

Beef Barley Soup--Slow Cooker

 Original recipe found here

•   2 pounds stew meat (nicely marbled beef chunks) 
•   salt and pepper 
•   2 tablespoons oil 
•   8 cups water 
•   2 cups beef broth  
•   2 cups celery, chopped 
•   2 onions, chopped 
•   5 cloves garlic, minced 
•   1 large potato, peeled and shredded, about 2 cups 
•   3-4 large carrots, peeled and shredded, about 2 cups 
•   1 cup pearl barley, rinsed

1. Generously salt and pepper the beef. In frying pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
2. When it is very hot, add about 1/3 of the meat. Brown for about 1-2 minutes, then turn to brown the other side. Remove the browned meat to a large slow cooker.
3. Repeat with remaining meat in 2 more batches (if you add it all at once it will steam the meat instead of browning it--not what you want).
4. Add 2 cups of beef broth to the pan and bring to a boil. Stir up all the browned bits. Add this and the remaining 8 cups of water to the crock pot.
5. Add celery, onions, and garlic to the slow cooker and stir.
6. Cook on low for about 6 hours, or 3 hours on high. Add the potatoes and carrots and cook for another hour.
7. 
   
   Add the barley and simmer for another hour or so.

Creamy Maple Dijon Chicken with Bacon

Original recipes found here

•  
• 4 slices of thick bacon
• 1.5 lbs chicken breast cut into cite size pieces
• 1 TBSP olive oil
• 1 cup sliced leeks
• 12 oz sliced mushrooms
• 14 oz can coconut milk
• 1 TBSP maple syrup
• 3 TBSP dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp salt

1. Begin by heating a large skillet to medium high heat. Add bacon once hot, and cook to desired crispiness. I do about 4-5 mins per side. Remove bacon from heat and reserve 1 tbsp of bacon grease.
2. Bring skillet back to your burner, add chicken to the pan. Cook until no longer pink. Remove chicken from pan, but keep pan hot.
3. Add olive oil to the pan if it's dry, and then toss in mushrooms and leeks. Saute for 5-6 minutes, or until mushrooms are fragrant and leeks are softened.
4. Crumble bacon into small pieces and return to the pan with mushrooms. Add chicken and coconut milk, stir to combine.
5. In a small bowl, whisk together dijon and maple syrup. Pour mixture into the pan and continue to whisk until well combined.
6. Simmer for 8-10 minutes. Serve over zoodles, spaghetti squash, or brown rice.

Apple Crisp

Apple filling:
3 cups of chopped apple
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Topping:
1 cup oat flour
1/2-3/4 cup chopped toasted pecans
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup melted butter (or butter substitute; we use Earth Balance)

-Mix apple filling ingredients in a bowl, then dump into a sprayed 8x8 pan
-Combine topping ingredients into the same bowl the apple filling was in (it gets all the leftover yumminess that may have been left!), and mix until well combined.
-Bake at 400* for 35-40 minutes (or more if the topping hasn't browned)
-Cool for 10 minutes before eating

Raspberry and Almond Shortbread Thumbprints

Cookie:
1 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 cups flour
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam

Glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
3/4 tsp almond extract
1-2 tablespoon milk

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2) Cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Mix in almond extract and flour until dough comes together. Roll into 1 1/2 inch balls and placed on ungreased cookie sheet.
3) Use thumb to create a  shallow hole in each ball. Fill with jam.
4) Bake for 14-18 minutes, or until lightly browned. Let cook on cookie sheet for 1 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.
5) Mix together glaze ingredients and mix until smooth. Drizzle lightly over warm cookies.

Best Whole Wheat Bread

5 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup white flour
2 TBSP yeast
2 tsp salt
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cups warm water

1) Knead all ingredients in stand mixer for about 7 minutes.
2) Put dough in a greased bowl, and cover with a towel. Let rise for 1 hour in a warm place (I set my oven to the lowest setting, let it preheat, then turn it off).
3) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
4) Punch dough down, and form into 2 loaves. Place each loaf in a non-stick bread pan (or you can braid the dough, or form it any way you'd like!).
5) Cover loaves with towel and let rise for 15 minutes.
6) Bake for 30 minutes. Remove bread and place on cooling racks.

Black Bean and Mango Salsa--Our Best Bites

15.5 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 medium mango, peeled and diced (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup red onion
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 TBSP fresh lime juice
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp black pepper (I always leave this out)
1 medium avocado, diced

1. In a large bowl, combine the black beans, mango, red onion and cilantro.

2. In a small bowl, combine lime juice, vinegar, sugar, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Stir to dissolve sugar, then pour over black bean mixture. Cover and chill in the fridge for at least an hour.

3) When ready to serve, gently fold in the diced avocado. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve with tortilla chips.

Megan's Granola Recipe--Allrecipes.com

*adapted from allrecipes.com*

4 cups rolled oats
1 cup oat bran
1 cup flax seed meal
2 cups dried cranberries (or raisins, or dried blueberries, or a mixture of all 3)
2 cups finely chopped pecans
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup real maple syrup
3/4 cup honey
1 cup vegetable oil
1 TBSP ground cinnamon
1 TBSP vanilla extract


1) Preheat oven to 325°. Line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper or foil.

2) Combine rolled oats, oat bran, flax seed, dried cranberries, and pecans in a large bowl, and set aside.

3) Combine salt, brown sugar, Maple syrup, honey, oil, cinnamon, and vanilla in a saucepan and bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Let the mixture boil for a minute or two, until it is mixed well.

4) Pour the liquid over the dry ingredients and mix well to coat.

5) Pour granola onto lined cookie sheets, spreading as evenly and thinly as possible.

6) Bake in the preheated oven for 20-30 minutes, until crispy and toasted. Cool completely. Break into pieces and store in an airtight container.