Find the Silver Lining

I don't know what's been going on the last couple of weeks. I feel like it's been a permanent full moon or something. I have gotten so much bad news lately, and it just doesn't seem to stop. If the only bad news I had gotten were about myself or something bad happening to me, I'd be ok. But I really don't take kindly to things happening to people that I love when so much distance separates most of us. I think one of the worst pieces of news I got was that my cousin Becky has thyroid cancer. (You can read her blog on that HERE if you like.) I was really nervous about going in for some important testing but once I found out about Becky I didn't really care anymore. I really, really don't like to see my family & friends hurting and feeling powerless to DO anything because I'm so far away.

I suppose I do have a really sarcastic, jaded, side that is "firmly grounded in realism." :-) However, I do try to look for the silver lining in every bad situation. I am definitely not going to share people's private business on my blog (I know, you're so disappointed!) But out of the things I CAN tell you, in the last two weeks, I have gotten 2 phone calls from loved ones telling me that they have cancer, a few other tidbits of bad news (details might be too identifying!) :) and I have also been juggling a multitude of Dr.'s appts (which is not typical for me!). These things may sound simple, but they can be really overwhelming. Especially since most of the things that have happened aren't "bloggable." :)

I was determined to find the silver linings and I have! I was talking to my brother last night and I told him not to worry, I always land on my feet. He said, "Yes, you do, and you're hissing and scratching when you land." I cracked up laughing!

The thing that I am the happiest about is this:

Becky came through her cancer surgery well! She has her voice, which is amazing, and at this point it looks like she does NOT have lymphoma (in addition to the thyroid cancer). This is a huge praise! 

I have some more testing tomorrow and I also will be finding out the results of some tests that I had done last week. I am also headed over to my GP's office in the morning to get cleared for my foot surgery, which will be on the 30th. The good news is, I get to take a week off work!! :)

When bad things happen, I think it's important to take some time to "feel it." Pent up emotions don't do anyone any good and neither does denial. But then, just get up and get back to it. Life is not going to live itself! There is always a silver lining. If you want a funny read on Positivity, check out THIS POST. By the way I am the cousin that thought she misunderstood the diagnosis. (You'll have to read it to get it!)

Cheers to a wonderful 2013. I've just about gotten all the bad stuff over with, so the rest of the year can be FABULOUS!

Flourless Black Bean Brownies

Finally, "brownies" that I can have! I found this recipe on the Our Family Eats blog but I modified it to make it a little more "Daniel Plan" friendly. It's not the amazing brownies that we all know and love, but let me put it like this--it will do in a pinch. Use an 8x8 pan or the closest thing you have and cut it into 18 squares, and each will have 108 calories, 3 grams of protein, and 3 grams of fiber. It's a chocolate fix I can live with.

I have made it twice. The first time was without chocolate chips, coconut oil instead of butter, and all Truvia for sweetener. The original recipe had called for coconut sugar. The second time I used 1/2 coconut sugar and 1/2 Truvia. I didn't  notice a real difference so I will be going back to the Truvia next time. The second time I also used chocolate chips and earth balance "butter" instead of coconut oil. If I had it to do over again I would use the following recipe. If you are interested in trying the coconut sugar, substitute 1/2 cup of coconut sugar for the Truvia.

1, 15-oz can black beans, rinsed well and drained

3 eggs, beaten

1/3 cup melted coconut oil

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3 tbsp Truvia 

2-1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup chocolate chips (I used THESE) 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Process all ingredients EXCEPT THE CHOCOLATE CHIPS in a food processor (at least 4-cup capacity) until well blended. The batter will be fairly "liquidy." Once the batter is mixed, move it to a small bowl and incorporate the chocolate chips. Spray an 8x8 (or closest size you have!) baking pan with non-stick cooking spray and pour in batter. Bake for 30 minutes. I have found that these taste better when they are cool. They don't seem to taste as chocolatey when they are warm. Strange, I know, but true. ;-) 

Finished brownies. 

Homemade Peanut Butter

I finally made my first nut butter! It's long overdue but I have finally done it. I made a small batch just in case I did not like it. I am going to make almond butter next. It just so happened that I had a container of roasted, salted peanuts left from the holidays, and I wanted to use them somehow because we don't eat peanuts. They made delicious peanut butter!

1 cup roasted, salted peanuts
1 tsp coconut oil
2/3 packet Truvia

Pulse the peanuts in a food processor until they become "crumbly." Then, add the oil, a few drops at a time. Next add the Truvia and continue to pulse until the PB is fairly smooth and creamy. When it is done it will be very shiny! You will need to stir/scrape the sides of the food processor every minute or so. It will take about 10 minutes to get the right consistency.

I have a feeling if I had used raw peanuts, there would have been enough natural oil in them that I wouldn't have needed the coconut oil. Just my thoughts, anyway. I'll be posting about almond butter soon, too!

After a couple minutes your butter will look like this and you will think it's done. Not so! It will be waaaay too gritty. Keep going! 

See how pretty and shiny it is when it's all done? 

Go green and store your peanut butter in a recycled glass jar. :) 

When it feels like I've had all the bad news I can take, I especially love to incorporate lots of Kari Jobe songs into my worship time. I love her music. There's lots of heavy stuff in this world. Things that are so far beyond our control, it's not even funny. The more we expand our circle of who we love and care about, and the older we get, the heavier the burdens that we are handed. God is good all the time! Spend some quiet moments in broken worship, and then resolve to be thankful for something. It helps, I promise.

You lift me up, You never leave me thirsty! 

Eating Clean & a Brunch Recipe

This is one of those recipes that I categorize as "brunch" because I truly mean it. Although it is an extremely low carb dish (11 grams), it still has 400 calories. So, it's the dish you make on your "day off," when you get up early to take the hubby to work, run errands, race to your Dr.'s appt, run more errands, and finally get home at 12:30. Too late for breakfast, but loathe to call this meal lunch, I opted for a brunch tag here.

This year we are eating 100% clean. I have made huge strides towards this in 2012 but with Rich on board, I very recently started buying 100% clean foods only. This means local, organic produce, pastured eggs, organic, hormone & antibiotic free meats, no processed/packaged foods (Yes, I've got a pot of black beans cooking right now that came from a bag. Dry beans!), no refined sugar, etc. Just to make it extra fun we are also eating primarily gluten free. ;-) After losing 50 pounds in the last 18 months I have to do it again and get the next 50 off. I've been in that holiday plateau phase for a couple months so it's time to get serious again. This year, aside from continuing to lose weight and get healthier, my goal is to learn as much as I can about how to best use food as fuel & medicine for our bodies. I'm using the resources from the Daniel Plan. If you don't know about that, you can read about it HERE.

Ok. Enough about me.

Eggs, Chicken Sausage & Veggie Brunch Bowl

2 organic, pastured eggs
1 link Aidell's organic chicken sausage, halved and chopped
1/4 each red and orange bell peppers
1/4 cup chopped zucchini
1 large leaf fresh kale
1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp butter substitute (I use earth balance)

Prep: whisk 2 eggs in a medium bowl. Add a dash of salt & pepper. Chop the veggies into small pieces.  Preheat wok on medium heat.

In a frying pan or wok (wok is best!) swirl the olive oil over medium heat. Add the sausage, peppers, & zucchini and stir fry just until the sausage begins to turn light golden brown.

Move to the edges and melt the tsp of butter or butter substitute in the middle. 

Next, pour the eggs into the middle and then begin to "scramble" them after they have cooked about 45 seconds. (Don't burn them!) 

Once the eggs begin to solidify, you can toss in the kale. 

Once the kale is cooked for about 3 minutes, you'll be ready to eat.

And there you have it. Brunch bowl & green tea. 

Enchilada-Style Stuffed Peppers

Let's talk about stuffed peppers. I have tried several kids but they always have ground meat and rice in the recipe which makes them kind of....dry and sad. They are supposed to oozing with goodness, tender, and tasty. These met all the criteria. I got the idea for these enchilada-style peppers from Pinterest, but I just did not like all of the ingredients in the Pinterest recipe. After doing a little online reading, I came up with a recipe that combined elements of four different ones. Rich, aka "the anti-veggie" did like the filling but of course does not like bell peppers. ;-) This recipe easily makes 8 peppers so I highly recommend you consider making only half the recipe, or freezing half of the filling. Or, at least invite some guests over :-) I wanted leftovers so I made 5 peppers and put the rest of the filling away.

To start, you've gotta make some roasted chicken. Drizzle four chicken breasts with olive oil, then sprinkle liberally with salt, pepper, garlic salt, chili powder, cumin, paprika, and cayenne pepper. Wrap them in foil and bake at 400 for 45-55 minutes. Cool & shred.

Now, let's make stuffed peppers!

5 large, even-shaped bell peppers in assorted colors (green, red, orange, yellow!)
1 can black beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
1 can Rotel, drained
1 cup finely shredded cheese, plus 1/2 cup for garnish
1 large can mild red enchilada sauce, any brand
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder

Cut the tops off the bell peppers and remove the "white stuff" and the seeds.

Spray a deep covered baking dish with non-stick cooking spray, then place the peppers inside. In a large bowl, combine the chicken, beans, corn, cheese, Rotel, 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce, and the cumin and chili powder. 

Next. generously fill the peppers and pour the remaining enchilada sauce into the bottom of the baking dish.

Bake, covered, at 350 for about 50 minutes, then garnish with cheese and allow about 2-3 minutes for it to melt. 

I served ours with sweet corn tomalito. It's soooooo yummy! One pepper has approximately 325 calories, 8 grams of fat, 33 carbs and 34 grams of protein.

Until you serve with Mexican crema and Wholly Guacamole! Mmmmmmm. So good. 

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Why am I taking the time to write a post about chocolate chip cookies? Because this recipe is baking soda free, and I'm taking it for granted I'm not the only person who flips over the bag of Tollhouse chocolate morsels and then frowns because I don't have baking soda. Also, the Tollhouse recipe makes about a million cookies. This recipe makes about 2.5 dozen yummy, basic chocolate chip cookies. Enjoy.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1-2/3 cup all-purpose flour, sifted (you can also shake it through a mesh strainer into a  large bowl if you don't have a sifter)
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 bag Tollhouse milk chocolate morsels

Preheat the oven to 375. Cream the butter and sugars on medium speed. Beat in the egg and vanilla until well-mixed and fluffy. Next, add the flour, baking powder, and salt, and mix on low speed until well incorporated. Stir in the milk chocolate morsels. Drop by generous, rounded teaspoon-fulls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake 9-11 minutes. 10 minutes is the perfect cookie as far as I'm concerned. You will see the edges turning light golden but the top of the cookie should not be. That way once they cool you will still have a soft, chewy cookie instead of a golden rock. Enjoy!