Crockpot Pumpkin Chili

This is a great recipe for a cool Fall day.  Jordan is doing the South Beach diet right now so I have been trying to find recipes that will meet his dietary needs but also fit my need to have comfort food when it's cool outside!  I follow this blog Kayln's Kitchen and she only puts up recipes that will fit one of the three phases for South Beach.  This chili you can eat under any of the three phases.  I thought it was good and Jordan thought it was better than the chili I normally make!  Definitely a keeper and it's healthy for you too!

Here's the recipe with the changes I made.

Ingredients:
2-3 tsp olive oil
1 pound ground beef (10% or less fat for South Beach)
1 medium onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 T minced garlic
1 T ground cumin
1 T chili powder (I used a heaping tablespoon)
1 tsp dried oregano
4 oz diced green chile peppers
2 cups beef broth
15 oz can red kidney beans, rinsed with water
1 can pumpkin puree
2 cans petite diced tomatoes, with juice
grated cheddar cheese & sour cream for serving

Directions:
Heat a small amount of oil in a large heavy frying pan, add ground beef, season with salt and fresh ground black pepper, and cook until the beef is well browned.  Add browned meat to the crockpot.

I had plenty of oil in my pan so I didn't need to add more - add a little more oil if you need it - add diced onion and green pepper and cook 2-3 minutes, until the onion and pepper are starting to soften.



Add minced garlic, ground cumin, chili powder, dried oregano & green chilies and saute a couple minutes more. 















Put the onion mixture into the crockpot, then deglaze the pan with the beef broth and add that to the crockpot.

Drain the beans into a colander in the sink and rinse with cold water.  Add beans to the crockpot along with the canned pumpkin and diced tomatoes.















Stir the mixture to combine and then cook on high for 4-6 hours. 















Mine cooked on high for about 4 1/2 hours and was perfect.

Serve hot topped with grated cheese & sour cream.  I also served this with a salad and biscuits (for me only) Yum!!

Lasagna

I had no boil lasagna sheets in my pantry and decided I wanted to use them up so I made lasagna.  :)  I actually used the recipe on the back of the Barilla lasagna box.  I only added chopped spinach and cottage cheese instead of ricotta but followed everything else exactly.  It was very easy to put together and one of the best lasagnas I've had in a long time!!

Ingredients:
1 box lasagna, uncooked (if you use the uncooked sheets, anyways)
2 eggs
15 oz cottage cheese (the recipe calls for ricotta but I prefer cottage cheese)
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (divided)
Frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and drained
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 pound hot Italian sausage (cook, crumble and drain)
2 jars your choice of spaghetti sauce

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375.  In a medium bowl, beat eggs.  Stir in cottage cheese, 2 cups mozzarella and parmesan cheese.  I also add about 2-3 handfuls of the spinach.  Make sure to squeeze it to get all of the water out.



Now, I make two 8x8 pans of lasagna since we can't eat a huge 9x13 pan of lasagna.  The recipe of course is for a large 9x13 pan so my instructions will be for that size pan.  Just half that amount if you decide to make the two 8x8 instead. 

Spread 1 cup of sauce on the bottom of baking pan.  Layer 4 uncooked sheets, slightly overlapping.  (1/2 cup sauce and two sheets for 8x8)

Add the cottage cheese layer.

Half of the browned meat. (1/4 for 8x8 pan)

1 cup of the sauce (1/2 for 8x8 pan)

1 cup of mozzarella (1/2 cup for 8x8 pan)

Depending on how deep your baking dish will determine how many layers you can do.  My dishes are only 2 inches deep so I can only do three layers.  Repeat this layer again and then the third layer is lasagna sheets, remaining sauce and remaining mozzarella. 

Bake covered with foil until bubbly, 50-60 minutes.  Uncover and continue cooking until cheese is melted, about 5 minutes. 

Let stand 15 minutes before cutting.  This lasagna was by far the easiest to cut and serve.  You can actually see the layers!  Serve with salad and garlic bread.  Enjoy!

Quinoa Salad with Peaches

I made this salad to go with the Spicy Honey Brushed Chicken Thighs that I made a few weeks ago.  Both recipes came from a Cooking Light magazine.  I didn't even know what "quinoa" was but thought it sounded yummy so we gave it a try.  I also looked quinoa up on wikipedia -  "Quinoa has a light, fluffy texture when cooked, and its mild, slightly nutty flavor makes it an alternative to white rice or couscous."

Well there you have it!  If you ever get tired of making plain old rice give this quinoa salad a try!  It's delicious! 

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups water
3/4 cup quinoa
1/4 cup minced red bell pepper
1/4 cup chopped green onions
3 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp honey
1/4 tsp pepper
1 sliced peach (I sliced mine into bite sized pieces so it would be easier to eat)

Directions:

Bring water to boil in a medium saucepan.  Add quinoa.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.  Cool quinoa slightly.  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Enjoy!