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raisins

Blanched Green Bean Salad

August 31, 2014 by Dana

greenbeansalad1

Once upon a time I went to the Farmer’s Market and came home with a grocery bag FILLED with green and wax beans. I came home, washed those babies, blanched those babies, and made a delicious vinaigrette to toss them in to make them super happy. I thought that was enough, but no, the beans wanted more. They were already perfect but they insisted they were just too beautiful to leave with ONLY a vinaigrette. I just wanted to make the beans happy, so I gave them some feta cheese and raisins and they were elated. The beans lived happily ever after for only a few minutes until they were gobbled up by the evil witch.


Ok that was true until the evil witch part because we all know I’m no witch! 😉 And well, beans don’t talk so I guess the rest isn’t true either. Ok, I totally made the whole thing up but hey, it sounded like a good story, right? Of course it was a good story, because we all love a cute fairy tale! Maybe I should have come up with something clever about Jack and the Bean Stalk but that seemed way to obvious and these beans are far too tasty for a giant who merely stuffs food in his mouth and swallows without even chewing. At least I think that’s how giants eat but who knows, I’m only 5 feet tall so clearly I know nothing about them.

Now that we have all of that fairy tale crap I just made up out of the way let’s just talk about how delicious blanched green beans are. When I was younger I thought I hated green beans because the only green beans I had ever seen were canned. I have vivid memories of seeing ugly canned green beans being served in the school cafeteria, and thinking who would eat those? YUCK! Canned green beans are all puffy and water logged and well… I hate them. I prefer my veggies on the crunchier side so generally if I’m making green beans I blanch them. Blanching is just a fancy word for submerging into boiling water for just a few minutes, then quickly submerging into cold water to stop the cooking process. No soggy beans here!

blanchedgreenbean2

Please excuse the vinaigrette dripping off the side of my bowl. You see, I thought it would be a good idea to pick green beans out and eat them while I was taking pictures. Obviously it wasn’t. Photography fail! Just an FYI, yes this is a cold salad. The feta and raisins are optional but I highly recommend them!

 

Filed Under: Recipes, Sides

100 Days of Real Food Cookbook Review

August 28, 2014 by Dana

realfoodreview1

I’ve been a huge fan of Lisa Leake of 100 Days of Real Food for quite some time. Lisa’s blog was actually the first real blog that I followed, so I am honored to be reviewing her book today!


First, I’m going to have to bring out the warm fuzzies for a minute because like I said, Lisa is awesome! Not only is she super classy (because she doesn’t even bat an eye at the drama people bring to her peanut butter posts), she is what I would call a Real Food Pioneer. Before Lisa, I’m not sure that people were really throwing around the term “Real Food” as much as they are today. That speaks volumes about how much she has accomplished through her blog, and is super inspiring.

Now I’m going to fan-girl out a little because Lisa SIGNED my book. *insert teenage-girl-pitched scream here* Yes, I’m officially cool! Ok I’m not but please don’t burst my bubble while I’m fan-girling (and don’t get a restraining order either) 😉

realfoodreview2

So what makes Lisa’s book so awesome you ask? Everything! The book is broken up into two parts so I’m going to discuss my thoughts on both parts because… well I like to pretend like I’m organized sometimes. Just go with it. I promise I know what I’m doing, I’m a food blogger with a signed booked. That means I’ve got it together, right? Right.

Part One: The Plan

Although I love the recipes in Lisa’s cookbook, I find Part One to be the MOST important part of this book. Lisa goes through everything from how to read ingredient labels, to understanding the sugar content of packaged foods, to going through ingredient lists from popular products. The stuff she packed into part one is so valuable because it is a great tool for helping other people understand where you are coming from if you’d like to start changing the way you look at food. The information is also a great tool for beginners. One of the biggest questions I get is “Where do I Start” and Lisa’s cookbook goes over ALL of that. It even includes a 14 Week Mini-Pledge for those on the fence about Real Food in their life, and a tracking chart for progress. Lisa also talks about portion sizes, how to shop at Farmer’s Markets, and all of the tricky labeling companies use to confuse people about the ingredients in packaged foods. If you can think of a Real Food question, Lisa probably covers it in Part One.

I can’t tell you how many times I would have loved to have a “handbook” to show people what is actually in processed foods and why the ingredients aren’t what I want my family to consume. When people you know just don’t get it, this book is the perfect solution. Here are a few other highlights from Part One:

  • Identifying Artificial Sweeteners
  • Why Low-Fat Products are Not Real Food
  • How to Find “Real” Eggs
  • More Tips on Reading Labels
  • And MUCH, MUCH, more!

Even for someone like myself who is a food blogger already living an unprocessed life, I learned a lot from Part One and was reminded just how awesome it is to be eating real food. Believe me, when I looked at the pages that contained the ingredients in all the processed foods that a lot of people are still consuming on a daily basis, I was reminded of why I choose a Real Food, Unprocessed life.

Part Two: The Recipes

What I love most about the recipes in Lisa’s book is that they are all relatable to the everyday family. This isn’t the GOOP, or a super fancy and out of your league lifestyle book. It is a down to earth approach to making meals that your family will love. There wasn’t one recipe that I looked at and thought “What the heck is that ingredient?” There were a ton of recipes that I thought my kids would just gobble up (especially the Macaroni Casserole), and every recipe was accompanied by a beautiful picture. I mean seriously, there isn’t anything NOT to like about these recipes because… well… just take a look at a few of the recipes I will be adding to my Real Food Bucket list:

  • The Best Pulled Pork in the Slow Cooker
  • Veggie Pancakes
  • Teriyaki Flank Steak Salad
  • Cinnamon Apple Chips
  • Southwest Chicken Wraps

I have already tried one of the recipes, which far exceeded my expectations. The recipe I went straight to was the Cinnamon-Raisin Quick Bread, which was pictured in one of the lunchbox idea pictures. Lisa spreads cream cheese in the middle of the bread and serves it as a sandwich, which goes perfectly with the bread. She also suggests using it to make French Toast which I might just have to try tomorrow morning!

I should admit, this recipe calls for applesauce and I have NEVER tried baking with applesauce. Boy, I must have missed the “Knowers That Applesauce Makes the Best Quick Bread” club because the bread was so light, fluffy, and texture-ific. I made the bread in both a loaf pan and muffin tins and of course I took pictures of the muffins because their tops were bangin’. You know how I feel about those muffin tops! Overall, I loved the recipe and am sending a muffin in my son’s lunchbox tomorrow. My husband also highly recommends the muffins slathered with sunflower butter (had to throw that in there just incase the peanut butter haters are upon us). 😉 😉 But really, he did slather it with sunflower butter immediately and proceeded to eat half of the loaf.

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Of course you can also throw some raisins around and put two liners on your muffins. I did, and it was really fun. Not to mention, it made for a great picture to show off those muffin tops!

Everything Else You Need to Know About The 100 Days of Real Food Cookbook (From 100 Days of Real Food)

  • No white flour or any refined grains are used
  • No sugar or any refined (or artificial) sweeteners are used
  • No recipes call for packaged foods containing more than 5 ingredients
  • Familiar and easy-to-find ingredients are used (you probably already have most of them on hand!)
  • 71 recipes are (or can easily be) Gluten-Free
  • 79 recipes are (or can easily be) Vegetarian
  • 49 recipes are (or can easily be) Dairy-Free
  • 42 recipes are Freezer Friendly (my secret weapon when it comes to packing wholesome school lunches!)
  • A beautiful color photo is included with each and every recipe
  • 70% new recipes – not previously published on the blog

 

If you are not familiar with who Lisa Leake is, this video describes her family’s journey and gives you a look into their life. Her book is also ON SALE NOW in stores and on Amazon.com. I’ve attached a link for your linking pleasure. Be sure to get one for yourself and gift one to a friend in need of some Real Food inspiration!

Thank you so much Lisa for inspiring all of us to change the way we think about the food we are eating, and a big congrats on your book dreams coming true! Make sure you check out the recipe for Lisa’s Cinnamon-Raisin Quick Bread as well!


Filed Under: Uncategorized

Fruity Nutty Oat Squares

May 19, 2014 by Dana

 

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The Ninja

Not to brag but I have a pretty awesome husband who is completely on board with eating unprocessed foods and supports everything I do. He knew I wanted a food processor because the small one I had a while back broke and I never replaced it. We went to Target for sponges last week and came home with a Ninja Masterprep Professional blender, chopper, and ice crusher.! My husband picked it out and brought it to the counter so it was a spur of the moment purchase but I’m very happy with it. The machine is a processor, chopper, and bullet all in one and it is AWESOME!!!! It  was relatively inexpensive for everything it does and it could crush just about anything. If you are in the market for a cool kitchen gadget here is a link to this machine:

The Squares


I had been looking a recipes for date and nut bars (LaraBars) and realized a lot of them looked super sticky. We always have rolled oats on hand so I decided to try my own version with some oats to help with the stickiness of the dates. These came together like a charm and with no trial and error I had created exactly what I was thinking of. These squares are versatile and could easily be modified using different types of dried fruit and nuts. My toddler was curious to try them right away and approved! These would be a great breakfast, snack, or lunchbox treat! With no added sugars, whole oats, and raw almonds these squares are something I feel good about feeding my children.

Filed Under: Breakfast, Recipes, Snacks

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I'm Dana! Foodie + Photographer. Momma of 5. Baby lover. Coffee addict. Cooking through the chaos one recipe at a time! I've built this food blog out of a desire to create and share. My time spend around the table with my family and friends means the world to me. My hope is that you get to feel that too!

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Foodie + Photographer. Momma of 5. I've built this food blog out of a desire to create and share. I feel most alive when I'm talking with family and friends around the table. My hope is that you get to feel that too!

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