Asian-Style Green Beans

March 18, 2016March 17, 2016 / ktbuchs87 / 2 Comments

Are Chinese buffets still a big thing? I haven’t been to one in many years, but for a while when I was younger my family and I would go often. It was just easier because everyone could get what they wanted and it was good for my notoriously picky sister because there were always a few things like pizza and chicken nuggets. Which of course are Chinese. Asian-Style Green Beans | Life Healthfully Lived

One of my favorite things at the buffet were the green beans. They were crispy, crunchy, green, sweet, and salty. They had those huge granules of salt and garlic and they balanced so well with the other flavors. I would always get numerous helpings and could have easily made a meal of them.

Of course, they were probably SUPER high in sodium and flavorings that might not have been the best but when compared to the other offerings at the buffet (I’m looking at you General Tso’s chicken and crab rangoon) they were a pretty good choice. The other day I had a hankering for those green beans and decided to make my own healthier version and I’m pleased to say I think I got pretty close! Asian-Style Green Beans | Life Healthfully Lived

Fresh green beans are making their way back into grocery stores so you should be able to find them pretty easily. But if you can’t don’t worry, you can use frozen green beans too. Give these green beans a try at your next meal and I guarantee your family will polish them off. At least, my husband did….

Asian-Style Green Beans

2 cups fresh green beans, ends trimmed (if using frozen make sure to thaw them first)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp dried onion flakes
1 tsp powdered ginger
1 to 2 tsp coarse sea salt (if you don’t have coarse that’s fine just adjust the amount so it’s not too salty)
2 tbsp coconut aminos (you can use soy sauce or liquid aminos too)

Heat a little oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the minced garlic and swirl everything around the pan a few times.
Add the green beans to the pan and then add the onion flakes, ginger, and salt. Stir so everything is mixed together. Saute for 5 minutes.
Pour the coconut aminos over the green beans, stir everything together, and cover. Lower the heat to low and cook for another 2 minutes.

Slow Cooker Cauliflower Pesto Mac N’ Cheese

March 11, 2016March 10, 2016 / ktbuchs87

I’m having a bit of a thing with cauliflower right now. I buy at least three big heads of it per week and have been experimenting putting it into different dishes. I pretty much look at any recipe and wonder, “Could I do this with cauliflower instead?” Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t, but that’s kind of how life goes right?

Look, life lessons while making yummy food. Can’t get any better than that. Slow Cooker Cauliflower Pesto Mac N' Cheese | Life Healthfully Lived

Last week I had delicious taquitos (which you should definitely make immediately… after today’s recipe) that had a cauliflower filling and this week I’m doing a little bit of a twist on macaroni and cheese. Spoiler alert: there is no macaroni. Or cheese. There is, however, cauliflower, a delicious cheese-esque sauce, and a slow cooker.

Now, before you Mac N’ Cheese purists come at me with pitchforks and torches this recipe isn’t meant to taste exactly like Mc N’ Cheese it just uses a similar process. And if we’re on the subject of tasting like Mac N’ Cheese, apparently Kraft rolled out it’s new less artificial Mac N’ Cheese and told NO ONE and there were literally no complaints about it. So if we want to get technical, no one really knows what Mac N’ Cheese tastes like so who’s to say my version isn’t right?

Ok, that took a weird little turn but back to this recipe. I love the pesto-cheesy sauce on this and I like that I made it in my slow-cooker so there was minimal effort. You could easily prepare the sauce stuff before hand and then throw everything together in the slow cooker when it’s time to make dinner. It all tastes rich, creamy, and decadent yet you’re still getting a lot of nutrients and a big dose of vegetables. Talk about a win!

Cauliflower Pesto Mac N’ Cheese

1 large head of cauliflower, about 5 to 6 cups, cut into florets
1 batch of No Mozzarella Mozzarella
1 batch of Spinach Pesto
3/4 cup of full-fat coconut milk or any other non-dairy milk you like
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 to 1 tsp smoked paprika

Cut up your cauliflower and set aside. Make the No Mozzarella Mozzarella and the Spinach Pesto. You can do this the night before if you want or right before.
Lightly oil your slow cooker with a little olive oil and place cauliflower florets into your slow cooker. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper.
Meanwhile, in a large saucepan over medium-low heat, whisk together the mozzarella and pesto. It will be really thick but don’t worry.
Add the coconut milk slowly and keep whisking until you have a smooth and pourable sauce. You might not use all the milk and you might need a little more just adjust until you have the right consistency.
Pour the pesto sauce over the cauliflower, making sure to coat everything. Sprinkle the top with smoked paprika, cover, and cook on high for 3 hours or a little longer if you want super soft cauliflower.

Serve up and enjoy the goodness! Slow Cooker Cauliflower Pesto Mac N' Cheese | Life Healthfully Lived

Buffalo Cauliflower Taquitos

March 4, 2016March 4, 2016 / ktbuchs87 / 1 Comment

Buffalo Cauliflower Taquitos | Life Healthfully Lived Fun fact: I’ve never had taquitos. Ok, that isn’t really a fun fact but it is a fact. I’ve never had fresh taquitos, I’ve never had them from the frozen food section, and I’ve never thought, “Man, I could really go for a nice taquito right now.” Then as I was roaming around the internet I saw a few recipes for taquitos and they looked really good and simple to make.

And they are good and simple to make. Really good. Like so good I seriously thought about eating leftover taquitos for breakfast the next day. And if the taquitos were delicious, the dip I used was heaven. I could have stuck a straw in it and had that alone. Not even exaggerating. Buffalo Cauliflower Taquitos | Life Healthfully Lived

You busy people out there are going to like these too because you can make a big batch and then freeze them. Now you have a quick dinner ready to go on a busy night. Just take them out of the freezer and heat them up in the oven. Boom! Healthy dinner.

If you have time, you can make the filling beforehand and then when you’re ready to make the taquitos all you have to do is fill, roll, and bake. That sounds like a new dance craze that all the younguns will be into next week. Just remember, I started it here first.

Buffalo Cauliflower Taquitos

1 large head of cauliflower
1/4 cup of my buffalo sauce or your favorite brand
1 cup butternut squash puree, you can also use sweet potato or canned pumpkin
1 package of small tortillas, I used corn but you can use flour shells or a paleo version
1 batch of my dairy-free ranch with a few changes, recipe below
optional: guacamole, salsa, regular ranch or bleu cheese dressing

Preheat the oven to 325. Remove the leaves from the cauliflower and cut into florets removing as much of the stem from each floret as possible.
Place the cut cauliflower into a food processor or blender and pulse a few times until the cauliflower looks like rice. Scoop it out and place it into a bowl
Add the butternut squash to the cauliflower rice and stir so everything is coated. Heat a little (like about 1 tsp) olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Put the cauliflower into the skillet and saute for about 10 minutes. Add the 1/4 cup of buffalo sauce and stir to combine everything. You can add a little more buffalo sauce if the cauliflower doesn’t look like it’s coated enough.
Cook this for another five minutes and then turn the heat to low and cover the skillet. Let this sit for 5 minutes and then move to a large bowl.
Put a little skillet (about the size of your tortilla shells) over low heat. Don’t add any oil, you’re just using this to heat up the tortilla shells so the roll easily.
Heat the shells about 15 to 20 seconds on each side then add a large spoonful of filling and roll the tortilla up. Place it seam side down on a large baking sheet. Do this until you’ve used up all the filling.
Bake for 20 minutes, checking towards the end to make sure the tortilla edges aren’t burning. Remove from the oven and let cool then serve with fancy ranch (that’s what I’m calling it), salsa, and guacamole!

Fancy Ranch

1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk
1/4 cup cashews, soaked overnight or in boiling water for 15 minutes
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp roasted garlic
2 tsp ranch seasoning
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp cumin

Blend everything together and taste to see if you need to add salt or pepper. This will thicken up even more in the fridge so don’t worry if it’s a little soupy.

DIY Wednesday: Butter-Free Buffalo Sauce

March 2, 2016February 29, 2016 / ktbuchs87 / 1 Comment

I’m going to be honest with you, I’m not a huge fan of buffalo sauce. I don’t hate it, it’s just not really on my radar. I’ve gone most of my life without and I would say I’ve lived a good life.

But that has changed.

I had an idea for a recipe and I was going to need to rely heavily on buffalo sauce so I started looking around. Store-bought was out of the question because I couldn’t find any that any redeemable qualities. That left making my own, which I’m all about anyway. Well, there were a few good ones out there but a lot of them relied heavily on butter and Worchester sauce (which I will NEVER be able to pronounce properly) and I didn’t want to use those.

Long story short, I created a buffalo sauce that’s made with real ingredients and doesn’t include butter. It is really easy to make and you can put it on anything that you would use buffalo sauce. Wings, cauliflower bites, celery, fingers…. Also heads up, you’re going to want to make a batch of this for Friday’s recipe!

Buffalo Sauce:

1/4 cup hot sauce, I used this one, but use your favorite or make your own!
1 tsp tomato paste
1/2 tsp coconut aminos (or soy sauce)
1 tbsp white vinegar
1/2 tsp molasses
3 tbsp coconut oil, melted
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp smoked paprika

Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Transfer to an airtight container, like a mason jar, and store in your fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Simple and tasty, just the way I like it! You can easily double or triple this recipe to make enough for all your buffalo needs! DIY Wednesday: Butter-Free Buffalo Sauce | Life Healthfully Lived

Creamy Broccoli Spinach Soup

February 26, 2016February 25, 2016 / ktbuchs87

Creamy Broccoli Spinach Soup | Life Healthfully Lived I have been living off of this soup for the past few weeks, it’s that good. It’s hearty enough to make a good meal but not so heavy that you feel like taking a nap after you’re done. I feel like that’s a good judge of a meal. Do you feel like laying in bed for six hours when you’re done? Nope? Then you should eat this meal again or try harder next time.

This winter we haven’t had many days where you just want to wrap your body around a bowl of soup and swim in a giant mug of hot chocolate. I’m not complaining, but I do enjoy those super cold nights where a warm meal is the only way to feel comfortable. I’m probably the only weirdo like that.

On the nights that it is frigid out, try this super simple soup. It’s stuffed full of vegetables and then blended to make it creamy and delicious. No dairy, no cheese, and yet it’s still smooth and wonderful. That’s my kind of soup. Creamy Broccoli Spinach Soup | Life Healthfully Lived

What do you guys have planned for your weekend? I’m on my own this Saturday and I’ll probably end up running a few errands and catching up on some work. I know, wild and crazy over here. But that also means that I’ll spend a good portion of my day in the kitchen coming up with yummy things for you. Any suggestions?

My suggestion to you? Make a big batch of this soup on Sunday night and have lunches or dinners set for the rest of the week. Your future self will thank me!

Creamy Broccoli Spinach Soup

1 cup carrots, peeled and sliced
1 cup celery, sliced
2/3 cup onion, diced
3 cups broccoli, cut into florets (you can also use frozen, just make sure it’s completely thawed)
1 cup roasted red or orange bell peppers
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 to 4 cups spinach, tightly packed (I used a whole 8 oz bag for reference)
4 to 5 cups vegetable broth or water
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp oregano
salt and pepper to taste

To roast your bell peppers: Preheat the oven to 400 and cut the tops off of the peppers. Remove all seeds and place the whole peppers on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Roast for about 30 minutes, turning the peppers over half-way through. Take the peppers out of the oven and place them on a cutting board and place a large glass bowl over them so the steam will loosen the skins. After 15 minutes, remove the bowl, slip off the skins, and dice the peppers. FYI: you can do this a few days ahead of time so you don’t have to do it right before you make your soup.
For the soup: Heat a large dutch oven or stockpot over medium-high heat. Add a little olive oil and add in the carrots, celery, and onion. Saute them for about 8 minutes until the onion is soft and translucent.
Add the minced garlic, roasted bell peppers, and broccoli florets. Stir everything together and sprinkle with a little salt. Saute for a few minutes.
Pour in the vegetable broth or water. You want the broth to cover all the vegetables and about 1/2 inch above. Turn your heat to high and bring the soup to a boil. Add all of the seasonings and stir to combine.
Once the soup is boiling, add the spinach and cover the pot. Turn the heat to low and simmer the soup for 15 minutes, stirring once.
After 15 minutes, remove the lid and using an immersion blender, blend everything until it is smooth and creamy. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can work in batches with your regular blender. Just return everything to the pot when you’re done.