Make it now, eat it later

One of the many pieces of advice I got while pregnant was to make big batches of food in advance and put them in the freezer for when baby arrived. I understood that I wouldn`t have much time after baby arrived to cook (or eat!) but I also didn`t have much energy before baby arrived to cook. I tried but only managed to make a cake...which is still in our downstairs freezer. Thankfully, when Charlotte came to live with us we had the help of family and friends (and take-out) when it came to meals. During the first week, my partner in parenting made a big batch of vegetarian chili and we did manage to freeze some of it for later use.

This week, after a particularly hectic day, we broke out that chili and re-heated it. It turned into a nice snack-like late dinner. We put the chili over nachos chips with whatever veggies were in our crisper (chopped up), shredded cheese and pickled jalapenos from the condiment shelf in the fridge.

 Before: frozen veggie chili 

 After: Nachos!

I will definitely be making more batches of food for freezing in the coming days and weeks - like pastas, sauces, lasagna, meatloaf and probably more chili because it was such a big hit. I encourage anyone with a child on the way, a young one at home, or a busy schedule to do this too. It does take a little planning and effort to make food but you can cook it once and eat it many times. Just make sure to seal up the food tight and label it if you`re prone to forgetting items in the deep dark corners of your freezer. A little prep now can save you time, money and headaches later on...and it can be quite delicious.  

Here are some quick links to recipes you can make and freeze for your future starving self:

Baby Center`s 10 Frozen Assets

Canadian Living`s Deep Freeze

The Kitchn - Recipes that Freeze Well

Chilly weather chili

In anticipation of a snow day, I decided to make chili to have for supper and keep leftovers for a treat in case I got snowed in. Well, today ended up being a snow day so am I ever glad I had this tasty treat to tide me over! The chili was delish last night and even better today for lunch. Here's what I did (and why it's healthy):

Ingredients:
1 can crushed tomatoes (as low sodium as you can find)
1 can kidney beans (I used a can of Hunts chili style beans which had kidney and pinto beans)
1 can mushrooms
A whole lot of garlic (I mean at least 5 cloves)
.25-.5 lbs of ground meat (I used lean ground beef but you could use turkey, chicken, pork or veggie ground round....or leave it out all together, in which case I'd substitute chickpeas)
5tbs chli powder (ie. a good hand full)
1tbs dried chili flakes
1 tbs dried basil
salt & pepper to taste

What to do:
- Brown you meat in a skillet first until cooked through; add the chili powder and chili flakes to the meat and stir;
- In a large pot on medium, saute garlic until aromatic and browned. you can add chopped onions here if you'd like and/or chili;
- Then add your other ingredients in one at a time starting with the mushrooms, then the beans, and finally the tomatoes. You want to let each ingredient cook for a few minutes before adding the next one so you layer the flavours. Once the mixture is saucy from the tomatoes, you can add in the meat mixture;
- Once everything is simmering together, take a taste of the chili to see if it needs anything like salt, pepper, more chili powder or chili flakes.


I served this chili with very lightly warmed asparagus and some organic corn chips (Que Pasa brand) for dipping. For a treat, I put some shredded mozza on top but it's a President's Choice light cheese so not terrible for my diet.

This whole meal comes in at approximately 650 calories, 27g fat, and 32g protein (made with the lean ground beef) and is a welcomed and filling meal on a stormy day!

Rice, veggies & pork easy weeknight meal

How do you jazz up store bought skewers? Make some rice (easy) and cook up some veggies with a little sauce. I used brown rice cooked in some stock. Then I took some broccoli and cauliflower, added some spinach, and cooked them in a wok with a little soy sauce, toasted sesame oil and chili. Easy peasy and it took no time to make. Fast, great weeknight supper!

Chili surprise

The surprise is that I didn't know I was making chili until it was done! It started out as a spaghetti-like idea. I had ground beef and tomatoes...that's all I knew for sure.

I started with olive oil in a pan, chopped some garlic and added that to slowly saute while I took a look in our fridge and pantry. We had carrots, green peppers, and cremini mushrooms. I chopped all those up and added them to the pan to sizzle. The mixture was starting to look more like a ragu than regular spaghetti sauce. Then in went the meat. More sizzle until it browned. Then I added a couple chopped tomatoes and a can of chickpeas that were hiding in the cupboard. I also added some chili powder, ground cumin, salt and pepper, partly out of instinct and partly out of that's what was within reach of the stove while I stirred. Then all it needed was a good simmer until all the flavours melded together and the veggies were soft. Voila, chili!

All you need with this is a good piece of garlic bread and a spoon!

This is what I'm having for supper tonight...yum!

Chicken chili (slow cooker style)

I experiment with lots of foods but this recipe is a staple. I've made it (and enjoyed it) enough times that I don't need a recipe to read anymore. It's an easy, fool-proof meal that will satisfy.

You'll need:
2 tbsp vegetable oil
8 boneless skinless chicken thighs chopped into bite-sized chunks (or about the same amount chicken breast)
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp ground coriander (or more if you like it, some hate coriander so leave it out if you must. Coriander is also called cilantro)
1-1/2 tsp ground cumin (or more...it's yummy!)
1 tsp chipotle chili powder (I use chipotle hot sauce)
1/4 tsp each salt and pepper
1 can (19 oz/540 mL) white kidney beans, drained and rinsed (also works with 1 can chickpeas)
2 cans (each 4-1/2 oz/127 mL) chopped green chilies
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1/3 cup chopped fresh coriander (see coriander note above. Parsley works too)
2 tbsp lime juice (about one lime)
2 cups water

What to do:
In large skillet, heat half of the oil over medium-high heat; brown chicken all over. Don't miss this step because browning really helps the flavour. Transfer to slow cooker.

Drain any fat from pan; add remaining oil. Fry onion, garlic, coriander, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 6 minutes. Scrape into slow cooker. Stir in beans and chilies; add water and stir through. Cover and cook on low for 5 or six hours.

In small bowl, whisk flour with 3 tbsp water; stir into slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 15 minutes or until thickened (may need to go on stove for this step. The thickening is aided by boiling.)

Stir in coriander (or parsley) and lime juice. Serve with bread for dipping and sour cream or thick yogurt. Add some dried chili flakes or more chipotle or other hot sauce if you want more zing