Monday Night Packers - Bison Chili

Gotta love Packer Season!! For tonight's game, I'm making a ground bison chili. Something about Fall, Packers and Chili always seems to go together. With my little ladies I have to hold back on the spice, but you can spice it up as much as you like!

Ingredients:

• 1.5lbs Ground Bison
• 2 Cups Dried Beans (Prepared-Soak 1 part beans to 2 parts water 4-6hrs, drain, cover with water, bring to bubble, cover and cook on simmer for 1hr, drain)
• 2-15oz Cans Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes
• 1 Sweet Potato (Chopped)
• 1 Medium Onion (Chopped)
• 3 Cloves Garlic (Chopped)
• 1 Stalk Celery (Chopped)
• 1 Carrot Stick (Chopped)
• 1 Zucchini (Chopped)
• 1 Cup Fresh/Frozen Corn 
• 3.5 Cups Water
• 1 tsp Better Than Bouillon (Organic Chicken)
• 1.5-2 Cups Pureed Tomatoes (Crushed/Homemade Sauce)
• Salt and Pepper
• 2 Tbsp Frontier Brand Mexican Fiesta Seasoning (or whatever seasoning you prefer)
• Tiny Sprinkle Cinnamon

I prepared the beans first, and while cooking, cooked up the bison meat and added the onion and garlic in to cook. Then I started adding my additional vegetables to cook a little longer, then dumped in the cans of tomatoes and frozen corn. Soon my pan was getting too full, so I transferred to my slow cooker, which I set on Low. I added the tomato sauce, water and extra seasoning, then threw in the beans when they were done. To serve I have some Organic Valley sour cream, my favorite cheese as of late - Cedar Grove Marble Colby Jack, and have some whole wheat macaroni noodles that I purchased in bulk at Good Harvest. I'm hoping for a Win...for both the Packers...and the Chili!! 

Beautiful Grilled Vegetable Dinner

I've mentioned in prior posts that we like to  make a simple dinner by grilling vegetables and mixing them into a prepared grain like brown rice, etc. Well, here's some pictures and tips on what we do.

Ingredients:

• Pick an assortment of your favorite Vegetables (Cut in sections/lengths depending on the vegetable)
• Olive Oil
• Seasoning (Salt, Pepper, Greek, etc.)
• Prepared Grain ( Brown Rice, Quinoa, Israeli Couscous)
• Optional (Feta, Shredded Mozz., etc.)

Coat your veggies in olive oil and seasoning. Place on a hot grill and cook till tender. Chop and mix in with your grain of choice, then top with Feta or whateva' you enjoy! You can always add in some prepared beans for added protein.

Homemade Tomato Sauce

Like I've said, the tomatoes in my garden are wild and crazy and ready to attack. We planted 4 different varieties and have had an abundance of them this summer.

Ingredients:

• Tomatoes (Chopped)
• Garlic (About 2 Cloves Chopped)
• Olive Oil
• Salt & Pepper
• Honey
• 2 Frozen Cubes Pesto (if I have on hand)
• Seasoning

Preheat oven to 400. Chop the tomatoes and garlic and lay on a sheet pan. Drizzle everything with olive oil and a about 1 Tbsp of honey then season and toss to coat. Place them in the hot oven for 30 minutes to an hour depending on how fast they cook (my oven doesn't stay hot so it takes longer). Once done puree in your favorite blender, adding in the pesto if you have it on hand. Either pour it into ice cube trays for freezing or bowls for the fridge. Get ready to enjoy a very fresh and tasty sauce! 

Grilled Pizza

Remember several posts back when I said I would comment on making grilled pizza...well here it is! We started making grilled pizza this past summer and absolutely love it! I've found it takes a few extra steps and hands, but is well worth it.

Ingredients:

• Pizza Dough (If not homemade I use Sprouted Wheat Dough found at NuGenesis Farm, Good Harvest Market or Sendik's)
• Tomato Sauce (I have only been using homemade...have you seen my garden?)
• Sauteed Veggies (I like a combo of garlic, onions, greens, zucchini or patty pans and green pepper)
• Cheese (I use part of a block of Mozzarella and some Parmesan)
• Salt & Pepper
• Olive Oil
• Oil to coat grill

I start by preparing my dough and getting it rolled out to the size I want. I place it on a lightly floured baking sheet and rub olive oil on the top side. I sautee my vegetables in a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper...meanwhile I have my grill preheating to 350. While the veggies are cooking, I shred my cheese and get a little dish of oil and a paper towel ready for prepping the grill. Now I'm ready to get out to the grill. I start by rubbing a small amount of oil on the grates using tongs and the paper towel. Next flip your dough onto the hot grates and coat the side of dough now up with olive oil. Close the lid and let it cook for about 5 minutes, checking occasionally to see how the bottom is doing. I usually use a metal spatula to lift a corner up. Once you have grill marks, use 2 spatulas to flip the dough over. Spoon sauce onto dough, add a light layer of shredded cheese, place veggies on top, and cover with another light layer of cheese. Close the lid and again let cook for about 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the bottom of the dough looks done. Again use your 2 spatulas to lift the pizza off the grill, or if you have a flat pan, just slide it under. Get ready to enjoy a super tasty pizza! Obviously you can choose whatever toppings you like, but I prefer an all veggie pizza, especially when you can utilize home grown goodies or those purchased at your local farmer's market or favorite farm. 

Elia's Creamy Corn and Rice Dinner

Today I stopped at my favorite grocery store, Good Harvest, to grab bananas and chamomile tea, and ended up coming home with corn because it looked good. When I got home and showed it to Elia she was very excited and we discussed what we should do with it for dinner. I mentioned maybe using it in a soup, but she said she wanted it cut off the cob and served with rice. When I asked her if she wanted a creamy sauce with it she said yes, and from there I created a really tasty dinner that Elia and Lily loved...and their Mama and Papa too!

Ingredients:

• 2 Corn on the Cob (cut and scraped off the cob)
• 1 Sweet Potato (cut into small pieces) 
• 1/2 Large Onion (diced)
• 1 Broccoli Stalk (finely chopped)
• 2 Carrots (finely chopped)
• 1 Celery Stalk (finely chopped)
• 1/2 Green Pepper (finely chopped)
• 1 Cup Chopped Greens (Kale, Swiss Chard, etc.)
• 1 Cup Water
• 1-1/2 Cups 2% Milk
• 1 Tbsp Whole Wheat Flour
• Olive Oil
• Salt & Pepper
• Seasoning Blend
• Prepared Brown Rice, Quinoa, Israeli Couscous, etc.

Sautee carrots, 1/2 sweet potato, celery, corn from 1 cob and 1/2 of diced onion in olive oil. Season with salt, pepper and your choice of seasoning blend. Once cooked, add 1 Tbsp whole wheat flour and cook for about 2 minutes. Add heated milk and water to the mix and bring to a bubble. Cook for about 5-10 minutes longer, then puree in your favorite blender or food processor. Back in the pan, sautee remaining corn, onion, sweet potato, broccoli, greens and green pepper in olive oil and season to taste. Once soft (check the sweet potato), add pureed creamy sauce and prepared grain. Serve and enjoy! The flavor was really one of creamed corn, and could have been a great creamed corn side dish with an extra cob or 2 of sauteed corn and without the addition of the prepared grain and added sauteed vegetables. With the cooler weather today this was also a very warming dish!