ground beef & sweet potato hash.

i promise i all my future recipes won't be sweet potatoes.

and this isn't fancy. but it's quick, easy, and healthy. and honestly, it was another win with these sweet potato skeptics and i don't want to forget how i made it. :)

ground beef & sweet potato hash
serves 4
adapted from here.

ingredients
1 pound ground beef
3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed (in small bite-sized pieces)
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced (i use the frozen trays from trader joe's)
two big handfuls of fresh spinach and arugula (or any leafy green such as kale, chard, etc.)
salt & pepper, to taste
2 tbsp butter, divided (either vegan, grassfed or ghee are fine)

directions
heat olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. add ground beef, one clove of garlic, and salt and pepper and cook until meat is browned. transfer to a bowl and set aside.

in the same skillet, melt 1 tbsp. of the butter and add onions and another clove of garlic. sauté until onions are mostly transparent. transfer to a small bowl and set aside.

and again, in the same skillet, melt remaining butter and add the sweet potatoes, tossing to coat. cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until sweet potatoes become soft (about 10 minutes). remove cover, add ground beef and onions and mix. then add the greens and the remaining clove of garlic. stir, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes, until the greens are wilted and the garlic is cooked.

serve and enjoy!

love.

meals: vol. 20

menu for 3/17-3/23
monday: garlic chicken sausages, french fries, steamed broccoli
tuesday: italian wedding soup (paleo)
wednesday: turkey & fried egg burgers, roasted brussels sprouts, green beans
thursday: slow cooker korean beef bowls (with zucchini, carrots, spinach, rice noodles)
friday: loaded sweet potatoes, leftovers
saturday: tilapia & veggie oven pouches
sunday: lazy chicken marsala, garlic green beans

breakfasts: smoothies, breakfast sausage & bacon, larabars, wheat-free waffles, sun butter and bananas

lunches: leftovers, asian avocado tuna salad, salads, lunchmeat roll ups, carrots, bacon, snacks

snacks: paleo muffins or sweet bread, beef jerky, dried fruit, nuts, cheese sticks & yogurt (c), larabars

meals: vol. 18

i hope everyone had a merry, happy christmas! these last few weeks have been full and a little crazy, so my menus have been a little more of a winging it and a little less planned. but i am looking forward to this fresh new year!

menu for 12/30-1/5
monday: steak taco salads, guacamole
tuesday: bacon burgers with rosemary-garlic mushrooms, sweet potato fries, asparagus
wednesday: happy new year!
thursday: leftovers
friday: anniversary dinner (yay!) 
saturday: eggs and sautéed spinach, turkey sausage and cashew flour pancakes
sunday: soup?

breakfasts: larabars, wheat-free waffles (for coen), bacon, sun butter and bananas, smoothies

lunches: leftovers, salads, lunchmeat roll ups, carrots, bacon, snacks

snacks: beef jerky, dried fruit, seaweed, fruit, nuts, cheese sticks & yogurt (c), larabars, spiced candied walnuts, grain-free honey graham crackers

happy new year!

love.

meals: vol. 15

my first homemade dressing--recipe below!

it's that time again!

today is officially one week since we went paleo. and honestly, while it's hard in some regards, i'm really enjoying it.

my almond and coconut flours are coming in this week, and i'm excited to get to try out some muffins and quick breads. last night i made drop biscuits with what i had on hand (a few different nut meals and a little this and that) and they weren't terrible! :)

have any good recipes you'd like to share? i'd love to hear them!

menu for 11/25-12/1
monday: sausage spaghetti squash "pasta"bake (with spinach & arugula instead of kale, i think)
tuesday: leftovers
wednesday: slow cooker chuck roast with mushrooms, carrots and turnips (and thanksgiving prep)
thursday: tons of yummy paleo things (happy thanksgiving!)
friday: salmon, sweet potatoes, asparagus 
saturday: scrambled eggs with veggies, bacon, cashew flour waffles
sunday: thanksgiving in a pot soup (with all the leftovers)

breakfasts: egg & bacon muffin cups, larabars, wheat-free waffles (for coen), fruit, sun butter and bananas, smoothies
lunches: salads, lunchmeat roll ups, carrots and cucumbers with goddess dressing, hot dogs, leftovers, snacks
snacks: beef jerky, dried fruit, seaweed, dried pea snacks (c), fruit, nuts, cheese sticks (c), larabars

and here's the salad dressing recipe:

maple mustard salad dressing (paleo)
serves one
ingredients
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. dijon mustard
1 tbsp. maple syrup
a dash of pepper

directions
mix all ingredients together in a small bowl, and pour over salad. easy peasy!

happy planning, and a very happy thanksgiving!

love.

cranberry turkey, butternut squash & caramelized onion soup (orthanksgiving in a pot, for short).

this recipe is a big deal to me, friends. 

the thing about me is, I love to cook, but I've never been one of those people that just find inspiration to create a whole new something out of a bunch of random something's in their kitchen. I will look at a bunch of recipes and combine and tweak until it's mine, but that's usually the extent of it.

but this one was one of those inspired moments. I'm really excited to share it. 

remember this cranberry orange turkey? well, this is a recipe that is for what to do with the leftovers. and we all need more ideas for our leftover turkey, right? and this one pretty much tastes likethanksgiving in a pot. I mean that in a good way.

note: I used homemade stock (from the bone-in turkey breast I use for this recipe). see how I do that at the bottom of this post.

cranberry turkey, butternut squash & caramelized onion soup 

serves six // prep time: 30 minutes, cook time: 30 minutes

ingredients

2 cups leftover cooked cranberry turkey, chopped up

2 cups homemade stock (see directions below)

3 cups water

1 onion, chopped

2 tbsp olive oil, coconut oil, or butter

2 cups butternut squash, diced (I use a bag of frozen)

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp garlic powder

three large handfuls of fresh spinach

directions

in a large stock pot, heat oil or butter on medium heat and add onions. stir occasionally until the start to caramelize (about 10-15 minutes). add chopped turkey to the mix and stir around to brown just a bit. then, add stock and deglaze the bottom of the pot, scraping up the good bits. add water, spices, and butternut squash, bring to a boil, then cover and let simmer for 20 minutes.

add fresh spinach the last few minutes, stir, and simmer until wilted. 

serve and season with salt and pepper.

homemade cranberry turkey stock

prep time: 5 minutes, cook time: 12-24 hours

directions

return bones, skin, and any unwanted meat and juices to the crockpot that you cooked the turkey in. add 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar and 4-5 cups of water. cover and cook on low overnight (all the way up to 24+ hours). ladle and strain broth into a storage container. you can keep it in the fridge for a week, or freeze it for a few months. also, this is such a rich stock, it's pretty concentrated (and so good).

happy (early) thanksgiving.

love.

meals for the week: vol. 10

it's late, but it's here! 

my love for my crockpot has been revived with the arrival of this (semi) fall weather. have any killer slow cooker recipes sans tomatoes? please share!

meals :: 9/16-9/22

monday: nope.

tuesday: slow cooker turkey sausages, peppers, onions & potatoes (and maybe a recipe to follow?)

wednesday: slow cooker beef & broccoli and rice

thursday: roast beef, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, garlic green beans

friday: leftovers

saturday: out for the evening

sunday: Thai-inspired chicken & rice soup (adapted for slow cooker)

breakfasts: protein shakes, fruit, cliff & luna bars, berry crisp, egg muffins, yogurt

lunches: smoothies, leftovers, salads, tuna salads, veggies & homemade ranch, leftovers, baked potatoes (loaded/leftovers)

snacks: seaweed, veggies & ranch, cheese sticks, trail mix, fruit, popcorn

what's on your menu?

love. 

meals for the week: vol. 7

oh, hey tuesday. better late than never, right?

i hope your meal planning is going well these days--if you have any great recipes to share, please do!

meals :: 8/26-9/1

monday: chicken & veggie stir fry

tuesday: fish something (any ideas?) 

wednesday: chicken &rice bake, green beans

thursday: shepherd's pie (i mean it this time)

friday: tbd

saturday: out to dinner!

sunday: chicken, bacon & green beans (modified for slow cooker), easy baked potatoes

breakfasts: protein shakes, fruit, cliff & luna bars, berry crisp, egg muffins

lunches: smoothies, leftovers, tuna salads, veggies & homemade ranch, lunchmeat & sandwiches, baked potatoes (loaded/leftovers)

snacks: seaweed, veggies, cheese sticks, cinnamon almonds, trail mix, fruit, popcorn

happy planning!

love.

chicken salad (with a slow cooker).

hurray for a recipe post!

something about actually getting to share a recipe with you, makes me feel like maybe I'm getting a hang of this mother-of-two thing after all.

once the weather starts to warm, chicken salad quickly becomes a staple--for both lunch and dinner. and don't mind my odd title of this post, I just didn't want to call it a "slow cooler recipe" because sometimes I don't use it. but really, I mostly do. haha. 

also, this recipe makes a lot. but it's perfect to make the beginning of the week for a fresh, summer dinner, then having a whole week's worth of lunches. 

slow cooker chicken salad

serves a bunch

1 2.5lb bag of frozen chicken tenderloins, rinsed

1 1/2 tsp garlic powder, divided

1 tsp onion powder, divided

splash of olive oil, or other non-stick spray (such as coconut)

1/3 cup water

2-3 handfuls of red grapes, halved

3/4 cup mayonnaise, plus a bit more

2 tsp lemon juice

salt & pepper generously, to taste

directions

spray crockpot with non-stick spray (or swirl some olive oil around the bottom and sides). dump frozen chicken in, and season with about half of the garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. pour water on top, and cook on medium/high for 5 hours.

once chicken is cooked, remove from liquid. chop/shred chicken and place in large mixing bowl. add grapes, remaining spices and lemon juice. then, add mayonnaise and mix well. at this point, you might need to add additional mayo and mix it again, just to make sure all the chicken is wet and sticking together well.

serve chilled on toasted bread, a bed of spinach, salad or just eat it. :)

love.