DIY Wednesday: Sun-Dried Tomatoes

April 20, 2016April 19, 2016 / ktbuchs87

The other day, I wanted to recreate one of my favorite breakfast dishes from a restaurant back in Sycamore, Eggsclusive Cafe. It’s an omelette that has fresh basil, sun-dried tomatoes, and avocado slices on top. So simple but so good.

To the store I went to grab the things I needed that I didn’t already have, one of which was the sun-dried tomatoes. I didn’t want to get the ones packed in olive oil because they tend to make everything else oily and the ones at my store always have some other flavoring like jalapeno added. So I picked up one of the packages, despite the $5 price tag, and flipped it over to read the ingredient list. That’s where I was met with sulfates and sulfites and other preservatives to keep “freshness and color retention”. DIY Wednesday: Sun-Dried Tomatoes | Life Healthfully Lived

No brand at my store had sun dried tomatoes without some kind of chemical or preservative and I didn’t want to spend $5 or more on something that I didn’t want in my body. I almost resigned myself to the oil packed tomatoes when I thought to myself, “Self, can’t you just make your own sun dried tomatoes? I mean obviously not in the sun, that would take too long and you don’t have a sunny spot in the apartment, but in the oven? And wouldn’t it be like way less expensive?”

Yes, my self was correct. I can make sun dried tomatoes in my oven and have fresh, preservative free toppings for my omelettes and whatever else my heart desires. If you have a food dehydrator you probably already know that you can make your own sun-dried tomatoes and it’s fairly simple. If you don’t, you can do like me and make them in your oven!

Sun Dried Tomatoes

One 8 oz. package of grape or cherry tomatoes
olive oil, optional
salt, optional

* I made mine without oil or salt but you can, it just may take a little longer to dry out.

Preheat your oven to the lowest setting. If it’s 150-170 lucky you, the rest of us will have to make due with 200.
Wash and dry the tomatoes and then slice in half. Arrange the tomatoes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a Silpat. If you want to add olive oil and salt, toss the tomatoes in a bowl and make sure they’re covered then arrange on your baking sheet.
Place the sheet in the oven to dry out. Now, if your oven only goes to 200 you’re going to have to keep an eye on things to make sure the tomatoes don’t burn. I opened my oven every 10 minutes or so to let out some of the heat.
Turn over the tomatoes every so often. Remember you’re just trying to dry them out, not roast them. They’re done when they look shriveled like red raisins. Take them out of the oven and let them cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

* Make sure the tomatoes are completely cool and dry before you store them because any moisture in the container will make them mushy and spoil sooner. DIY Wednesday: Sun-Dried Tomatoes | Life Healthfully Lived

My Thoughts on Being a Health Hypocrite

April 18, 2016April 18, 2016 / ktbuchs87

So yesterday I did something I rarely if ever do.

I spoke up.

If you know me at all, I tend to be a background type person. I don’t like confrontation and it’s really hard for me to be the center of attention. Like impossible. But there are times that I have some sass in me that I make known and yesterday was one of those times.

I had to go to the grocery store to pick up a few things that I had forgotten. I was in the baking aisle looking for some almond flour and two ladies walked up behind me and were looking at the oil.

My Thoughts on Being a Health Hypocrite | Life Healthfully Lived

The offending coconut oil

“Oh my gosh. Look! Crisco is trying to get into the healthy fats game by selling “organic” coconut oil.”

“Like anyone would buy coconut oil from Crisco. Don’t they sell vegetable shortening and all that other bad fat?” My Thoughts on Being a Health Hypocrite | Life Healthfully Lived

As I was listening to this conversation, I almost started to agree with them but then I stopped. We all complain that we want more affordable healthy options. We push big food companies to listen to us, to give us the good food we deserve without charging and arm and a leg. Then when companies, like Crisco, try to give us what we’re asking for we disregard them. Does selling organic coconut oil instantly make Crisco the best and newest healthy company? No, but it shows they’re listening to us. And what do you think happens if we all ignore them because they’re Crisco and “sell vegetable shortening and all that other bad fat?” They pull that affordable organic coconut from their line and someone who maybe couldn’t afford the other brands suddenly can’t buy coconut oil anymore. My Thoughts on Being a Health Hypocrite | Life Healthfully Lived

I don’t know what made me do it, but I had to respond to this whole incident. So I politely said excuse me and reached for the Crisco organic coconut oil between these two ladies.

“Thanks. You know it’s really great that there are some affordable coconut oil options now. Those little $13 jars never seem to last!”

I smiled and then just walked away. Was it a little snarky? Yeah, but I did my best to not make it about shaming these women because that wasn’t my goal. We have to do a better job of working with what food industries are giving us. It’s going to take a lot of time and it isn’t going to be perfect. We need to work on not being snobs about our healthy products and realize if someone is choosing the Crisco coconut oil over things like vegetable oil or canola oil or corn oil then that’s a small victory. My Thoughts on Being a Health Hypocrite | Life Healthfully Lived

Please, don’t be a health hypocrite. If you can afford to buy high-end all organic food and products, that’s great but not everyone can do that and the fact that there are more and more options for those on a budget is awesome. Let’s support those people and those companies that are making an effort and maybe one day EVERYONE can afford the high-end all organic food we deserve.

Oil-Free Cilantro Lime Pesto

April 15, 2016April 15, 2016 / ktbuchs87 / 2 Comments

One of the things I hope this blog proves is just because you have a certain dietary restriction/need/preference doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice flavor or some of your favorite things. There is usually always a way to meet your cravings based on your food needs. Now, that being said, that doesn’t mean I’m magic and can fix all your dietary woes with a healthy substitution. Some things just cannot be recreated and more often than not it’s better that we can’t turn all junk food into healthy food. Who wants to eat a healthy Twinkie anyway? Or a real one for that matter….

I digress. Today’s recipe was created because of two things. 1. While I love fat, it’s super easy to go overboard with it especially when it comes to liquid oil like olive oil, avocado oil, or coconut oil. Unless you’re measuring everything out, oil can add up pretty quick. I started to realize I was buying big jugs of olive oil more and more frequently and running out of them fast. Which leads me to my second reason… 2. I was out of olive oil and I wanted pesto. Oil-Free Cilantro Lime Pesto | Life Healthfully Lived

I want to stress I don’t think good fats are bad. In fact, they’re awesome and I try to get them in at every meal. But too much of a good thing can be bad and when you use an entire 1.5-liter bottle of olive oil in less than a week and a half, you might need to evaluate your food situation. I’ll still use olive oil to make my spinach pesto, broccoli rabe pesto, and all other delicious things that require olive oil but it’s nice to have an option that is oil-free and just as delicious.

I used this last night on Adam’s fish and he deemed it “pretty tasty”, which is husband speak for good. It has a nice light flavor from the cilantro and even though there is no oil, it’s still creamy. You can use any green herb or vegetable you would like, I just happened to have a bunch of cilantro I needed to use so that’s what I went with. This would also be great on pasta or zoodles or panini’s or chicken/pork or crackers or your finger….

Oil-Free Cilantro Lime Pesto

1 bunch of fresh cilantro, rinsed and dried and ends trimmed
1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted
juice of 1 to 2 limes, depending on how lime-y you want it
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp roasted garlic
1/4 tsp salt
2-3 tbsp nutritional yeast (or freshly grated parmesan if you do cheese)

To toast almonds: Add almonds to a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Shake the pan back and forth every so often and dry toast the almonds until golden brown. Let them cool while you get everything else together.
Place the rest of the ingredients into a blender or food processor, starting with the garlic, then cilantro, then seasonings, and finally lime juice. Pulse a few times then add the cooled slivered almonds.
Blend until you have a relatively smooth and creamy sauce. If it’s a little too thick you can add more lime juice or water 1 tablespoon at a time to thin it out. Taste and adjust the salt then store in your fridge in an airtight container for about a week.

DIY Wednesday: Pizza Kale Chips

April 13, 2016April 12, 2016 / ktbuchs87

Ok, before you go running from this post because kale was mentioned, calm yourself. Yes, kale is a leafy green vegetable. Yes, it might not be the most appetizing thing IF it isn’t prepared properly. Yes, kale is a trendy superfood and in everything including lotion and maybe you have tried kale chips before and weren’t impressed. Hopefully, I can fix all of these things today, I’m just asking that you give it a shot. DIY Wednesday: Pizza Kale Chips | Life Healthfully Lived

You can find kale chips pretty much everywhere these days and while there are plenty of brands that do a good job and use minimal ingredients in their products, they’re expensive. Like, way expensive for such a little amount of food. I like to eat and I want my money to get me as much food as possible without having to take out a small loan. Which is why when I can, I make my own versions of store-bought stuff. Including these kale chips.

My sister was actually the first one to give me a homemade kale chip and while I thought it was going to be dry and crumbly and generally taste like ash, it had a nice crunch and taste to it. I made my own a few times and recently decided to play with the seasoning and see what I could come up with. I wasn’t going for pizza-flavored when I tried this, but that’s what it tasted like so I ran with it. DIY Wednesday: Pizza Kale Chips | Life Healthfully Lived

Now, I will tell you one of the keys to getting a good chip and not a soggy mess is making sure that you dry the leaves SUPER well. I used a salad spinner and then set them out on a towel for a few minutes to really let them dry off. Whatever you do, make sure you dry the leaves as much as possible. Other than that, make a really big batch because if you’re like me, you’ll eat the entire thing in one sitting. Good thing these are vegetables and good for me….

Pizza Kale Chips

1 bunch of kale leaves
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp sea salt
2-3 tablespoons nutritional yeast (more if you want extra cheesy flavor)

Remove the thick stem from the kale leaves and tear the leaves into bite-size, or chip-size, pieces. Rinse them really well under cool water and then dry them. You can use a salad spinner (works best) or paper towels but make sure they are really dry.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat. Don’t use aluminum foil or you’ll end up with a mess. Once your kale chips are dry put them in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Not too much but enough to coat the chips. Massage the leaves a little to make sure they are really coated but don’t mash them up too much.
Spread them in an even layer on the baking sheet making sure there aren’t any spots that are too crowded. Mix all the seasonings together and sprinkle them over the chips. You can coat them really well to have super flavorful chips.
Bake the kale chips for about 10 minutes and pull them out to check on them. If the are getting brown on the edges and feel crisp they’re done. If not cook for another 2 to 5 minutes.
Remove them from the oven and let them cool. Keep them in an airtight container for 2 to 3 days.

Attitude of Gratitude

April 11, 2016April 10, 2016 / ktbuchs87

Anyone else feel like there is A LOT of negativity floating around lately? No matter where you look, something is making someone upset or someone is doing something horrible or the world is just falling apart.

Attitude of Gratitude | Life Healthfully Lived

How I feel if I pay attention too much to what’s going on in the world.

Yeah, me too.

So while the internet can be a dark whole of anger, madness, and craziness, I’m turning my tiny corner into one of happiness, rainbows, and sunshine. There might even be a unicorn or two and there will definitely be cats.

Cats riding unicorns? Definitely part of my happy world

Without further ado, here are things that made me happy this weekend:

Spending some much needed time with this guy. I was in Sycamore for the past week or so and finally got home Tuesday afternoon so this weekend was all about being together.

Back off ladies… This one is mine!

We got him new glasses, which won’t be in for two weeks but I can tell you they’re pretty spiffy. Then on our way to get him some donuts because he did such a good job at the eye place (yes, he is like a small child in that sense) I found $20 on the street. Like no joke, 20 bucks on the street. We asked the people standing near us if it was their’s and they said no, which side note gives me hope for the human race because they could have easily lied and said yes and gotten a free $20, so there we were with an extra $20. I don’t know what to do with it because I feel like it’s not mine but how do you return it when you have no clue how long it was on the street or where it came from? Maybe I’ll donate it or give it to a charity or something.

Banana bread and hamburger buns thanks to avocados. Recipes soon!

Anyway’s, I also had some nice successes in the kitchen this weekend and it was all thanks to avocados. I k know you can bake with avocados, and I’ve tried it a few times but I decided to go all out and try hamburger buns. While they still need some tweaking they came out really well and they’re gluten-free, egg-free, and dairy-free so be looking for those in the near future. I also tried out some banana bread with avocado and while I haven’t eaten it yet, it smells amazing.

Adam’s pretty sourdough loaf

Adam even got in on the kitchen action and turned out some awesome loaves of sourdough. He has been telling me for years that he wanted to start making his own sourdough bread with his own starter and everything. Well after we watched the Cooked documentary on Netflix (HIGHLY recommend) he made his starter and gave it a go. The first two had some…. troubles, but this batch is pretty good and I’m excited he is making his own stuff!

Meet Inara, our newest kitty addition!

And of course, my cats always make me happy. Inara, our newest addition, is starting to feel more at home and actually plays with Olaf our still very kittenish cat. This is a good thing because Dot our oldest wants nothing to do with play time and Olaf has a lot of energy to burn. So thanks Inara for playing with your new brother!