Month: September 2015

Crockpot Beef Tacos for Toddlers (or Adults)

WhyILoveFoodLeave a comment

I really think older babies (when ready for solid food) and toddlers should eat just like adults. My husband and I LOVED our beef tacos so why not share with Grady?!?!

What you need to put in the crockpot:

  • 1 lb flank steak
  • 1 small jar salsa
  • 1/2 cup beef broth
  • 4 cloves garlic

Toppings and shell:

  • Avocado
  • Greek Yogurt
  • Sharp Cheddar Cheese
  • Deathwish hot sauce (for the adults)
  • Whole wheat soft taco shells 

What to do:

  1. Add the ingredients to the crockpot and cook on low for 6 hours. 
  2. Shread the beef and cook another 1/2 hour – 1 hour. 
  3. Put it all on a shell with as much or as little of the toppings. I recommend that you drain some of the juice from the crockpot beforehand. 

At the very end I wanted to make sure Grady had enough vegetables so I added some raw carrots. He loved it all!

Enjoy!

      Vegan Wrap w/ Quinoa Bean Avocado & MORE!

      WhyILoveFood5 Comments

      You want a vegan friendly, vegetarian and/or a plain healthy meal? Here it is! Recently, I’ve been making a lot of vegan food; I love it!!  This is so simple and with just 7 ingredients. 

      Here’s what you’ll need:

      • Whole wheat fajita size wraps
      • 1/2 cup Quinoa 
      • Avocado
      • Black Beans
      • Feta “cheese”
      • Swiss chard leaves (or your choice of greenery)
      • 1 cup Vegetable broth 

      What to do:

      1. Heat  small sauce pan on high adding the broth and bring to a boil. 
      2. Rinse the quinoa in a sieve, add to the boiling broth and reduce to medium low heat stirring frequently for about 5 minutes. 
      3. Remove the pan from heat and put the lid on until the rings appear. 
      4. Rinse the beans in a strainer. 
      5. Lay out the wrap, add all ingredients and wrap it up.      

      Enjoy!

        Vegan Tofu Breakfast Scramble | Start The Day Off Right

        WhyILoveFoodLeave a comment

        This recipe is certainly a keeper. I will definitely be making this again. My husband even asked me to and that’s coming from someone who doesn’t typically like tofu. With tofu, it’s all about the spices and the amount of them you use. It’s also about the quality. I used Nasoya Extra Firm Tofu which is organic and non GMO. 

        Here’s what you’ll need:

        • 1 package (14 oz) extra firm tofu
        • 3 large leaves Swiss chard
        • 1 cup mushrooms, sliced
        • 1 red pepper, chopped
        • 1 can black beans
        • 1 tsp garlic powder
        • 1 tsp chili powder
        • 1 tsp turmeric
        • 1/2 tsp season all salt
        • 1/4 tsp black pepper
        • Cheddar “cheese”, shredded 
        • 1 tsp olive oil

        Optional (shown in my pic):

        • Avocado
        • Blackberries
        • Sprouted Grain Bread

        What to do:

        1. Heat a large sauté pan on medium and add the olive oil. 
        2. Add the mushrooms, pepper and Swiss chard and sauté about five minutes starring every minute.  
        3. While you wait, remove the liquid from the tofu. Place 2 paper towels under and 2 above and press lightly. Repeat as necessary. You’ll need several paper towels to absorb it all. 
        4. Mix the spices in a bowl.    
        5. Add the beans to the sauté pan and the whole block of tofu in the middle. 
        6. Break the tofu into small pieces while mixing everything together.  
        7. Add the spices and mix. Sauté another 5 minutes. 
        8. Add the “cheese” on top and melt. (Check out Daiya)  

        Enjoy!

          Awards: Blogger Recognition Award

          WhyILoveFoodLeave a comment

          I have been nominated by Kat from KAT BLOGS for this award and it really means a lot! Thank you again Kat! This is my first nomination and is a great surprise since I’ve only been blogging for a few months. The reason I started this blog in the first place is fairly simple; I love food! I talked about starting a blog for years and, finally, I just did it. The time was right, I wanted a new hobby and WordPress gave me the tools to easily kick start all the years of talk into reality. I have to give my husband some credit; he referred me to the site. I was instantly sold 😉

          If you’re just starting out, so am I! I have been reading up on how to be most effective and one article I recently read (and I can’t remember where from) stated that blog posts are more effective when they are short, to the point, and with few tags. Who knew!?!? That’s what I’ve done the past couple weeks which held true and successful. 

          I nominate Vegan Needs, Cook Up Story, TAKING A BITE OUT OF BROOKLYN, FEED YOUR PRETTY SOUL, Love Yourself – Love Your Food, FINDING MY INNER CHEF, Cooking with a Wallflower, FOODIE THAILAND, A GIRL WITH AN ADVENTUROUS FORK, vegandra, foodbycamilla, Cooking without Limits, Clash of Pans, Domestic Urbanite, and fuelledbyoats. 

          Here are the rules for this award:

          • Select 15 other blogs you want to give the award to
          • You cannot nominate yourself or the person who has nominated you
          • Write a post to show your award
          • Give a brief story of how your blog started
          • Give a piece of advice or two to new bloggers
          • Thank whoever nominated you and provide a link to their blog
          • Attach the award to the post (right click and save, then upload)
          • Comment on each blog and let them know you have nominated them
          • Provide a link to the award post you created

          Crockpot Spicy Pork Tacos

          WhyILoveFood2 Comments

          So yummy and so easy!! I told myself this past weekend that I need to start making it easier on myself and start using the crockpot more often. This delicious masterpiece was the result!  

          Here’s what you need to combine in the crockpot:

          • 1 lb pork tenderloin
          • 1 15 oz jar of medium salsa (my personal favorite is Wegmans organic)
          • 2 jalapeño peppers, diced
          • 4 cloves of garlic
          • 2 Tbls brown sugar
          • 1 tsp cumin
          • 1 tsp coriander
          • 1 tsp chili pepper
          • 1 tsp cayenne pepper
          • S&P

          Mix everything together in the crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Shred the pork and cook another 1/2 hour – 1 hour. 

          Toppings and accessories: Use all or just a few. The * are what I used. 

          • Whole wheat soft taco shells *
          • Avocado *
          • Red onion, diced small *
          • Cheddar cheese, shredded *
          • Hot sauce, if desired (Deathwish is my FAVORITE!) *
          • Lettuce, shredded
          • Cilantro
          • Sour Cream

          Place the shredded pork on a shell, put the toppings on and enjoy!

          Here’s a peak at what it looks like after shredding: 

           

          Veggie and Quinoa Stuffed Zucchini

          WhyILoveFood4 Comments

          Do you have an abundance of vegetables from your garden and not sure what to do with them?? Well, find the biggest zucchini or yellow squash you have and stuff it with a mix of vegetables, quinoa and little cheese and call it a day!  This will take about 1/2 hour to prep and 1/2 to cook. 

          I can’t take credit for this coming from my own garden; it actually came from my sisters. Great job Em! I was unsuccessful this year, however, I did benefit from others 🙂

          In my version, I used a number of vegetables and white quinoa. You can honestly use whatever you have available if you don’t have exactly what’s in this ingredient list. 

          What you need:

          • 1 large zucchini
          • 1 orange pepper 
          • 1/4 sweet onion
          • 4 cloves of garlic, minced 
          • 1 tomato
          • 3 carrots
          • 5 collard green leaves
          • 1 cup quinoa
          • 1 cup vegetable broth
          • 1 cup water
          • 2-3 Tbls olive oil
          • Grated Parmesan cheese
          • Sea Salt and Black Pepper
          1. Chop the carrots, onion, pepper, collard greens and tomato. 
          2. Heat the olive oil in a large sautee pan on medium high heat. Preheat the oven to 375. 
          3. First add the carrots and let simmer for 3 minutes. Then add the onion, garlic, pepper, and collard greens and simmer another 5 minutes (or until veggies are soft) stirring every minute. Add the S&P also. Lastly, add the tomato.
          4. Add the broth, water, and quinoa. Mix well and reduce to medium heat. Simmer with the lid on for 10 minutes. 
          5. While that’s cooking prepare the zucchini. Slice in half lengthwise, remove the skin and scoop out the center. 
          6. Remove the lid, stir and simmer another 2 minutes or until the liquid has been dissolved and the rings show on the quinoa.
          7. Stuff the mixture into the zucchini, top with parm and bake for 20-30 minutes. It really depends on how big your zucchini is. It will look and feel soft.   

          Enjoy!