Quick And Easy | Eat Your Heart Out

Fruit and Berry Cobbler

March 4, 2013 by Stephie 9 Comments

Guys, it’s March. I don’t know what the climate is like where you live, but around here (Chicago), things are still pretty gray. And cold. And snowy.

Why do I still live in the Midwest?

I find myself in need of summer fruit.

But until the weather warms up and the first strawberry plants start to green up, frozen fruit will have to do. And frozen fruit is exactly what makes this fruit and berry cobbler – “baked” in your slow cooker, no less – a perfect dessert this time of year. I can start getting my fruit fix in even while there is still the potential for another blizzard at any moment. I wish I was kidding.

Head on over to Food Fanatic for the recipe! And while you’re there, be sure to follow them on Facebook or Twitter – that way you’ll never miss any posts from all of the other amazing regular contributors!

Filed Under: Desserts Tagged With: Baked goods, cobbler, Dessert, Food Fanatic, Fruit, Quick and easy, slow cooker

Easy Meaty Spaghetti Sauce

February 20, 2013 by Stephie 4 Comments

Remember earlier this week when I told you to hang on to your sloppy joe leftovers? Now you find out why!

Growing up, my mom would often make sloppy joes for dinner one night, and then the next night would turn the leftovers into spaghetti sauce. This is a great way to re-purpose leftovers – it is quick, easy, can be done ahead of time if needed, freezes well, and keeps you from eating exactly the same thing multiple nights in a row!
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Filed Under: Main dish, Pasta Tagged With: Gluten-free, Main dish, Pasta, Quick and easy, sauce, tomatoes

Sloppy Joes

February 18, 2013 by Stephie 12 Comments

I feel like sloppy joes are one of those overlooked comfort foods. I mean, they certainly don’t upstage foods like mashed potatoes or mac and cheese or chicken pot pie (read: carb overload foods), but they do deserve a comfort food mention. Your mom probably made them on weeknights while you were growing up, maybe accompanied by some homemade french fries or corn-on-the-cob (depending on the season). Sloppy joes just take me back to my childhood.

And do you know why your mom made sloppy joes on weeknights? Because they are so dang quick and easy. The most time consuming part of this whole process is browning your ground beef (or feel free to lighten things up with some ground turkey). Once you do that, you throw in the other ingredients and let everything simmer for just a bit until the sauce thickens up to your liking.

Once you make these, hang on to the leftovers, because later this week I will be giving you my mom’s favorite quick-and-easy way to re-purpose those sloppy joes!

Adapted from Better Homes and Garden

Sloppy Joes

Yield: About 6 servings

Ingredients

1 pound ground beef
1 small onion
2 large carrots
1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons rolled oats
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
½ cup water
1 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Peel the carrots and onions. Cut each into several large pieces, then pulse in a food processor until finely diced. You don’t want a puree situation on your hands – just a very fine dice.
Place the onion and carrot mixture in a large pan with the ground beef. Cook over high heat until the beef is cooked through. Remove from heat and drain the fat. Return the meat and vegetable mixture to the pan. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer over medium-low heat, uncovered, for about 30 minutes or until desired consistency.

Filed Under: Main dish, Sandwiches Tagged With: beef, Gluten-free, Main dish, Quick and easy, Sandwich

Spinach and Kale Pesto

January 7, 2013 by Stephie 13 Comments

I’m trying to watch The Bachelor while I write this.

Scratch that. I’m trying to write this while I watch The Bachelor.

I’m sorry if images of Sean with his shirt off cause me to not be quite as articulate as normal.

In fact, you know what? Let’s just get to the recipe.

What we’ve got here is a gorgeous, down-to-earth guy…oh wait. That’s Sean again. Crap.

Ok, seriously. This pesto is delicious, but packed with healthy, nutrient-packed spinach and kale. Use it as you would any other pesto! In fact, my friend Stef has a great way for you to use it on some roasted potatoes. (And no, we did not confer about our kale pesto-making ahead of time.)

Have some pesto left over? Store it in an airtight container and store it in the freezer. When you’re ready to use it again, just thaw it out and you’ll be ready to go.

Spinach and Kale Pesto

Yield: Over 1 cup of pesto

Ingredients

2 cups chopped kale, stems removed
2 cups spinach
1-2 cloves garlic
¼ cup Parmesan cheese
¼ cup toasted, slivered almonds
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the kale and cook for 1 minute. Immediately drain and dunk into ice-cold water to halt the cooking. Drain and wring out any excess water.
In a food processor, combine the kale, spinach, garlic, cheese and almonds. Pulse to combine. While the machine is running, stream in the olive oil, adding a little more until you reach your desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste, and pulse to combine again.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: Almonds, Gluten-free, Healthy, kale, Pesto, Quick and easy, spinach, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Chicken and Smoked Sausage Stew

November 29, 2012 by Stephie 9 Comments

I have a confession: I am really weirdly picky about soup.

Cheese had better be involved. Also, if there is cream in that situation, that’s even better. Bean-based soups are pretty good, too. But broth-based soups? Not exactly a fan. In fact, I tend to avoid them if possible. Sure, I’ll eat them…they just aren’t my favorite.

So when I found a broth-based stew recipe in Midwest Living magazine, I was surprised to find that it was calling to me, begging me to make it happen in my kitchen. I mean, of course I had to alter it quite a bit…but the general structure is still there. And there isn’t a drop of cream or speck of cheese in sight. And you know what? I really liked it. WEIRD, I know.

In fact, my father has declared this to be his new favorite soup of all time. Big statement, right there. I think he would eat an entire pot of this soup by himself if he could. But if you’re going to eat a giant pot of soup, this might be the one to choose. It’s hearty and will warm you up from the inside out, but is full of all sorts of winter veggies to keep you healthy during these long, cold months. Plus, it freezes extremely well, making it a great option for making ahead and reheating later. Consider serving it on top of some brown rice for some extra hearty goodness.

Maybe this is all a sign that I’m starting to grow up and appreciate soups that are actually good for me…Yikes!

Adapted from December 2012 Midwest Living Magazine.

Chicken and Smoked Sausage Stew

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

½ cup chopped onion
½ cup chopped carrot
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 quart low-sodium chicken stock
2 cups cubed sweet potato
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 teaspoon each dried parsley and dried oregano
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 cup cooked chicken
1 13-ounce package smoked turkey sausage, sliced
½ bunch kale, stems removed and cut into manageable pieces

Instructions

In a dutch oven, saute onion, carrot and garlic in the oil until onion is soft. Add stock, potato, undrained tomatoes, tomato sauce, dried herbs and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and simmer 20-25 minutes, until potato is tender. Stir in chicken, sausage, and kale. Simmer until heated through and kale is wilted.
Will last for about 4-5 days in the refrigerator and 3 months in the freezer.

Notes

The longer this sits, the more the flavor of the smoked turkey sausage mingles with the rest of the soup. You might consider making this the night before, then reheating and adding the kale just before serving.