Healthy Eating So Far

A few posts ago I mentioned that we are trying to eat healthier as a family. I talked about my new cook book Whole Foods for the Whole Family, and how I was going to be planning menus out of it to see what I thought. Now it's time to return and report. :) We've had some really great dinners this last week and a half or so. I'm actually really surprised, because healthy food has a reputation of being tasteless and gross, and while there were a few things that I will season a little more next go around, I have been really impressed with most of the items we've tried. So here's the run down.

Pork Chops and Brown Rice- excellent, I definitely recommend this one, we all liked it.

1 cup uncooked brown rice
2 1/2 cups boiling water
4 pork chops
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 tsp thyme
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

Optional:
2 tomatoes, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1/2 green bell pepper, sliced

Soak rice in boiling water for 30 minutes. Brown pork chops on both sides in skillet, set aside. Add remaining ingredients (including rice) to skillet. Simmer 10 minutes. Pour rice mixture into greased 9x9 baking dish. Arrange pork chops and optional vegetables over rice. Bake, covered, at 350 for 1 hour. May bake in skillet if oven proof. Yields 4 servings

Green Spaghetti - excellent, everyone loved it except Ivan, but the next day at lunch when I mixed tomato sauce in with his he ate it just fine.

10 oz. fresh or frozen spinach
1/4 cup warm chicken broth
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup milk (I used coconut milk)
1 lb. spaghetti, cooked, drained
1/4 cup butter

Steam fresh spinach just until wilted or frozen spinach until warm. Combine spinach and cooking liquid with warm broth in blender container; process until smooth. Add cheese (we kept a portion without cheese for Ivan) and milk. Toss spaghetti with butter in serving bowl. Add spinach mixture; toss to mix well. May substitute broccoli for spinach and cream or yogurt for milk. Yields 6 servings.

Mighty Meat Loaf- Pretty good, makes a  meal and a freezer meal, but not as good as the previous recipes. It also took a long time to make/cook. What I did like about this recipe is that it gave me the idea that you could grate up veggies and hide them in meatloaf and the kids would never know it. :)

2 lbs ground beef
2 eggs
1 onion, chopped and sauteed
3 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley or 1 Tbsp dried parsley
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/2 tsp (or less) salt
1/4 cup milk (we used coconut milk)
3 or 4 large carrots, sliced
2 medium zucchini, sliced

Optional:
2 yellow squash, sliced
1 small eggplant, sliced
1 cup chopped green beans
1 cup sliced celery

Sauce:
2 green bell peppers, sliced into thin strips
8 oz mushrooms, sliced
2 Tbsp oil
3 1/2 cup tomato puree

Mix first 7 ingredients in bowl. Press thin layer of mixture into 10x10 inch baking pan or 2 loaf pans. Cover meat with carrots. Add another layer of meat and layer of zucchini. Alternate layers of meat and choice of optional vegetables, using 1 kind of vegetable at a time and ending with meat. Bake at 350 for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until done to taste. Saute green peppers and mushrooms in oil in skillet. Add tomato puree. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with meat loaf. May chop or grate vegetables and mix into meatloaf if preferred. May substitute wheat germ for bread crumbs and water for milk in meat loaf mixture. Yields 12 servings.

Live Longer Casserole- I like casseroles, so this was a hit for me. It wasn't Aaron's favorite though. We made a portion for Ivan without the cheese and he still liked it.

3 small zucchini, sliced
1 cup sliced mushrooms
2 Tbsp butter
3 large tomatoes, chopped
3 cups torn spinach leaves
1/2 tsp (or less) salt
8 oz. whole wheat pasta, cooked, drained (I didn't have any so I used regular pasta)
6 oz. swiss cheese, sliced
6 oz cheddar cheese, sliced (I didn't have either of the cheeses, I used Colby Monterrey Jack, sliced)

Saute zucchini and mushrooms in butter in large skillet until tender. Add tomatoes, spinach, and salt, mix well. Simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in pasta. Spoon into 9x13 casserole; top with cheese slices. Broil for 5 minutes until cheese is bubbly. Yields 6 servings.

Squash Boats- This one was edible, but kind of weird tasting. We aren't beating down the door to have it again real soon, so I'm not going to post the recipe. If your curious you can ask and I'll send it to you. It involves acorn squash, sausage, and bananas. My kids wouldn't even touch it.

Chicken and Rice Casserole- Again casserole, big hit with me. But this time Aaron loved it, and my kids loved it. An excellent dish. Probably one of our favorites so far.

1 stalk celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, chopped
1 medium apple, chopped
2 Tbsp oil
2 cups chopped, cooked chicken
4 cups cooked brown rice (which is equal to 1 cup uncooked if you are interested)
2 tsp curry powder
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup milk (we used coconut milk)
1/2 tsp (or less) salt
dash of pepper

Saute celery, onion, carrots, and apple in oil in skillet for 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients; mix well. Spoon into lightly oiled 9x13 baking pan; sprinkle with additional curry powder. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. try other vegetables or more or less chicken or rice. (We will do more rice next time) May omit apple or substitute yogurt or cream for milk. Yields 8 servings.

And tonight I made my first ever anything from whole wheat flour. Thanks to the Parks for letting us grind some wheat in their wheat grinder. I made a whole wheat pizza crust, and it was pretty good.

1 Tbsp yeast
1 cup warm water
1 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp oil
1/2 tsp (or less) salt
3 to 4 cups whole wheat flour

Dissolve yeast in bowl. Let stand 10 minutes; mix well. Stir in remaining ingredients, adding enough flour to form a stiff dough. Knead on floured surface for 5 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Place in greased bowl, turning to grease all sides. Let rise, covered with towel, in warm place for 1 to 1 1/2  hours or until doubled in bulk. Punch down dough, divide into halves. Press each half onto greased 12x14 pizza pan, forming edge. Spread with desired sauce and toppings. (Tonight we did onions, green bell pepper, tomatoes, avocado, pepperoni, and olives. And cheese, except on Ivan's part.) Bake at 425 for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. May omit honey or substitute unbleached flour for part of the whole wheat flour. Yield 2 crusts.

This turned out really good. I was surprised at how different whole wheat dough handles than white dough. They weren't kidding when they said "stiff dough" and when I got to that point I was worried. But it all came out, and everyone loved their pizza, and we have enough leftovers for lunch tomorrow. Yay!

So all in all, eating healthier has been a great experience so far. And I love knowing that as a family we are getting a lot more of the good things we need in our bodies, especially with the sick season rapidly approaching. I'm hoping all these vitamins and other good things in these foods will help us all stay healthy and strong.

I highly recommend the Whole Foods for the Whole Family cook book. It has so many cool recipes in it.