Category: Cooking

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Carrot Ginger Soup

I was given a pdf copy of My Pinewood Kitchen in exchange for my review. I love cooking and I’ve been doing a LOT of it with being home so much. So, needless to say, I’m getting bored with my recipes and dying for something new.

This cook book looked healthy, hearty, and delicious. And I’ve not been disappointed!

I’ve been attempting to make a carrot soup that I like – and my last one was a major bust (as in, sorry kids, you don’t have to eat it) – so I decided to give this one a try. I definitely haven’t tried one with an apple in it before, so I was quite curious as to how the added sweetness would taste.

Short On Inspiration While Dining In? My Pinewood Kitchen Dishes Out Some Quarantine Cuisine Tips

With COVID-19 keeping us at home more and shopping less, home chefs need to get creative while cooking tasty, healthy meals for their entire family. Chef and author Mee McCormick is an expert: she healed herself of Crohn’s disease, gut issues, and other immune system challenges with whole food recipes when doctors couldn’t help her.

The mom/rancher/restaurateur can share tips for “quarantine cuisine” when you’re hankering for variety in your meals but you’re short on ingredients and inspiration. Perfect for social distancing, many of her recipes are made with items you probably already have in your pantry (for example, her Black Bean Chicken Chili and Immune-Boosting Chicken & Quinoa Soup); she can teach home cooks how to repurpose items to reduce food waste (cilantro pickles, anyone?), and reveal the healthiest foods you need in your pandemic pantry.

My Pinewood Kitchen: A Southern Culinary Cure offers more than 100 gluten-free, whole foods recipes that can be customized for Keto, Paleo, or vegans, making it a truly “all-inclusive” eating plan for the entire family. From smoothies, soups and salads, to dinners and desserts, every recipe is gluten-free and gut-friendly.

•    Curb Your COVID Anxiety with healthy chocolate with Mee’s Chocolate Avocado Mousse & Five-Ingredient Fudge Cups
•    Soups for Social Distancing – Black Bean Chicken Chili and Immune-Boosting Chicken & Quinoa Soup (nutritious, delicious, and they use what you likely have in your home already!)
•    Plenty of plant-based offerings
•    Reduce Waste: Learn how to make cilantro pickles from cucumbers, sweet potato chips from sweet potatoes, a falafel burger from canned chickpeas, and how to make your own healthier ketchup and mayonnaise if you run out
•    10 Gut-Friendly Foods for your Pandemic Pantry

Mee McCormick is a rising Southern culinary and wellness innovator, restaurateur, author, TV cooking personality, farmer, rancher, wife and mother. She splits her time between Nashville and nearby Nunnelly, Tennessee; a tiny, unincorporated community in Hickman County, which is also home to her biodynamic farm and restaurant Pinewood Kitchen & Mercantile.

Mee authored her first cookbook My Kitchen Cure, which led to wild success and a book deal with HCI for her second cookbook My Pinewood Kitchen, published on April 14, 2020. She frequently appears on Today in Nashville, and she participates in nationally-recognized food festivals and events, spreading the same level of care and hospitality to audiences everywhere that she has become known for throughout the state of Tennessee. Visit: www.meemccormick.com or www.pinewoodkitchenandmercantile.com.

My Pinewood Kitchen: A Southern Culinary Cure/130+ Crazy Delicious, Gluten-Free Recipes to Reduce Inflammation and Make Your Gut Happy
By Mee McCormick
HCI BOOKS
Released: April 2020/ $26.95
ISBN: 9780757323522
Available wherever books are sold

There are some absolutely amazing recipes in this book! Think terrific and tasty family meals, and the Carrot Ginger Soup did not disappoint!

Carrot Ginger Soup

Ingredients: 

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil or ghee

1 large white onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger

1. pounds carrots

1 apple, chopped and skin on

4 cups Chicken Bone Broth (page 120) or Vegetable Broth (page 121) – directions in the cookbook

2 cups water

1/4 cup raw cashews

3/4 cup full-fat coconut milk

1 tablespoon miso

Sea salt (to taste)

Freshly ground black pepper (to taste)

Directions:

1) In a large saucepan over medium heat, heat the oil or ghee. Add the onion and sweat until soft. Add the garlic and ginger, and cook for about 3 minutes.

2) Add the carrots, apple, broth, water, and cashews. Bring to a boil and then simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Allow to cool.

3) Transfer to a blender or food processor. Add the coconut milk and miso paste. Blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Serve warm.

Incredibly easy and delicious! I paired this with some leftover ribs and steamed broccoli for an absolutely amazing dinner with the family!

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Tasty, Healthy, Snacks

*I received these products free for purposes of my review*

Pure Crumb

Pure Crumb sent me 4 different kids of bark. Brownie Bark, Crumb Cake Bark, and 2 kids of Cookie Bark.

These products are all gluten free and dairy free, so will work for a lot of different dietary restrictions!

While I liked all 4 flavors, I do have my favorite! But, before I get to that, more about the products in general.

You can purchase 12 individual packages, you know, for if you’re counting calories. But, seriously, just buy the big bags! With the simple ingredients these products have, it won’t hurt to splurge a little on the calories!

For example, check out the ingredient list on the Brownie Bark:

Ingredients:  Pure Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips*, Organic Evaporated Cane Juice, Gluten Free Flour Blend*, Eggs, Almond Flour, Coconut Oil, Cocoa Powder, Cinnamon.

*Pure Semi Sweet Chocolate:   sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, soya lecithin, vanillin.

*Gluten Free Flour Blend:  garbanzo bean flour, potato starch, tapioca flour, whole grain sweet white sorghum flour, fava bean flour

I mean, I actually know what these things are! How awesome is that?

While there are some “bark” pieces, these honestly are a bit more like “crumbs” so Pure Crumb is a great name for them. I enjoyed these straight from the bag, and as a crumb topping on my yogurt – which is seriously amazing and why you should just get the big bags!

Brownie Bark – My favorite! It’s so chocolaty and you may actually want to get the snack bags for this one, because it’s really hard to not just eat the entire bag.

Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookie Bark – My favorite one for a yogurt topping. I just love the coconut and chocolate cookie crumbles on yogurt. Delicious, a little crunchy, and not too sweet.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Bark – Also tasty, but it’s hard to compete with coconut, so… you know, I’ll eat it if the Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookie Bark is gone.

Crumb Cake – Delicious flavor, think cinnamon sugar cookie, but it’s competing against 3 barks with chocolate, so it didn’t stand a chance!

Check out PureCrumb.com for more information and/or to order some for yourself!

Plant Junkie

Check out this line of plant based spreads, dressings, and vinaigrettes. I was intrigued by the variety of flavors available, and just a bit curious. How do you you make a ranch dressing without dairy?

I tried the chai ranch dressing first. And, I’ll be honest. It does not taste like ranch. I’m not saying that it tastes bad. But if you’re expecting traditional ranch dressing, this is not it. I’m actually pretty sure that it’s impossible to make a basic ranch dressing without some sort of dairy product.

Anyways, I would describe the flavor as kind of hummusy (is that a word?), with some coconut and oats making it more mild, and of course chai seeds. I was originally going to sub it for mayonnaise on a sandwich but changed my mind. It’s got a LOT of flavor – way more than mayonnaise. So, I tried it as a veggie dip instead and that was perfect!

The Turmeric and Pepper Ranch dressing was terrific on a salad, just start light because these dressings have a lot of flavor! Which is amazing, because I’m the kind of person who prefers a little dressing with my salad and not the other way around. So, with these, I get lots of flavor without having to drown my lettuce.

And with no eggs, no soy, and no gluten, these are great products for a variety of diets.

I used the Chili Pomegranate Vinaigrette as a steak marinade. It was very flavorful, and quite delicious! I realize these are plant based products, but I do love a good marinaded steak! And since they’re gluten free, and keto friendly that just makes it a lot easier for me to use as a marinade when I have guests!

You can purchase their products on amazon or at plantjunkie.com.

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Easy Peanut Butter Snack

I received this product free for purposes of my review.

These delicious bnutty Gourmet Peanut Butters arrived just in time for everyone to be stuck at home. So, I made one of our favorite snacks.

Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Crackers

Ingredients:

  1. Ritz Crackers
  2. Chocolate Chips (or other meltable chocolate)
  3. bnutty Peanut Butter

Directions:

  1. Spread peanut butter thinly on 1 cracker and top with 2nd cracker
  2. Prepare about a dozen of these
  3. Melt chocolate at 15 second intervals in the microwave, stirring each time
  4. Once the chocolate is melted and smooth, dip 1/2 of each peanut butter cracker sandwich into the chocolate
  5. Set on a pan lined with wax paper to cool and harden
  6. Share some with your family!

These are so easy to make, so tasty, and are loved by adults and kids! And the bnutty gourmet peanut butters make these especially delicious!

bnutty Review

I’m just loving bnutty Gourmet Peanut Butters! These delicious peanut butters are available for purchase on their Website. I was sent 6 different bnutty peanut butters to test and they’re all delicious.

And the Totally Toffee is definitely my favorite! It’s crunchy and not too sweet!

Blissful Blueberry is a close second though. I could just sit down and eat this one with a spoon – LOL.

Irresistible Pretzel is crunchy and salty. So delicious! Especially if you’re wanting something more salty than sweet.

Cinnamon Sugar Cookie is like a dessert peanut butter. In fact, I could probably just eat it for dessert!

Simply Salted Caramel is like a caramel peanut butter.

And skinny dip is like peanut butter with granola in it. Probably the most filling of the 6 peanut butters.

Basically, they’re all delicious and especially since we’re stuck at home, it’s nice to have a special treat that everyone can enjoy!

 

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Beyond the Equator Seed Butter Recipes

* This is a sponsored post *

With 4 kids, the probability is really high that more than one of them is in a classroom, group, or event with another child who has a peanut allergy. Because we love peanut butter, and my kids really don’t want to give up their favorite peanut butter foods, I’ve tried a LOT of other nut butters and seed butters. Most of these butters have been quickly rejected by my kids. They just don’t taste like what they’re used to. And while I personally love cashew butter, it’s still a nut. And I can have it some places and not others.

So…I was excited and not excited to try a new brand of seed butters. One thing that made me optimistic about Beyond the Equator was that they’re a 5 seed butter. Because, let me tell you, I cannot stand the taste of sunflower seed butter! And I’ve tried at least 10 of them. So, I promise you, it’s not the fault of the person making the butter, it’s the sunflower.

Beyond the Equator sent me their 3 5 Seed Butter Butters. (Say that 5 times fast!). These butters have Chai, Flax, Pumpkin, Sunflower, and Hemp seeds. No nuts. And they come in 3 varieties, Crunchy, Creamy, and Unsweetened.

If you’re eating the butters straight out of the jar, they all have the texture of a natural peanut butter. The unsweetened, I can definitely taste the sunflower seeds in, so I don’t really like it plain. But on a sandwich or in a recipe, it’s perfect.

The Creamy really is the closest to my kid’s favorite peanut butter that I’ve found in a nut butter. And best of all, my kids don’t mind eating it!

The crunchy isn’t quite as sweet as the creamy but still sweeter than the unsweetened. This jar is mine, because my kids don’t like crunchy. Which is fine by me. It tastes great and makes a terrific PB&J – all for me.

Muddy Buddies

One snack my kids are constantly sad they can’t take to events is Muddy Buddies. Because, if you have anyone allergic to nuts, these are basically terrible. So, we took the unsweetened Beyond the Equator 5 Seed Butter and gave it a try.

My kids devoured these just like they do our usual recipe, and we even shared them with guests and no one knew they were made with “special butter” until we told them! My kids are definitely planning to make these again AND take them to share with friends!

Ingredients

8 Cups chex cereal – I prefer the rice chex because they have very little flavor

1 cup chocolate chips – I like milk chocolate

1/2 cup Beyond the Equator 5 Seed Butter – I like the unsweetened

1/4 cup Butter – melted

2 Cups powdered sugar

Directions

  1. Put chocolate, butter, and 5 seed butter in a bowl. Microwave at 15 second increments, stirring between, until everything is melted and mixed together.
  2. Pour 8 cups chex in a bowl. Pour chocolate mixture over chex and stir until all chex are covered in chocolate
  3. Pour 2 cups of powdered sugar over chocolate covered chex and stir until everything is white.
  4. Dump mixture onto a cookie sheet to cool
  5. Try not to eat it all yourself!

Nut Butter Protein Balls

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups oats

3/4 cup Beyond the Equator 5 Seed Butter – if this isn’t enough add a few tablespoons at a time until the mixture is the right consistency

3 Tbst honey or molasses

1/4 cup m&ms

Directions

  1. Pulse oats in a food processor until coarsely ground
  2. Mix oats, seed butter, and honey until well mixed and you can form balls with them. If they aren’t sticky enough, add a little more seed butter. Especially if you’re using the crunchy seed butter, you’ll probably need a little more.
  3. Mix in m&ms or other desired mixin
  4. Form into balls and set out to dry.
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Zoku Stackable Containers – Review and Giveaway

Thanks to Zoku for sending these awesome containers for me to review! AND, I get to give away a full set as well. So, keep reading, and don’t forget to enter the giveaway at the bottom.

I’m loving these Zoku 11-pc Neat Stack stackable containers. They all stack together to fit well in my cupboard. They come in 4 different sizes and there’s even a freezer pack that clips inside one of the large lids – perfect for those days that I pack a salad! You almost can’t tell that the freezer pack is there. It looks like part of the lid.

I love that the lids clip on on 4 sides. They’re easy to clip down and the clips are large enough that it’s easy to grab them and open them when I want to open the container. They also have a nice seal on the inside edge so when the container is closed, it’s sealed. Perfect for packing lunches that I’m worried about spilling everywhere.

I can put soup in these, lock down the lid, and shake them up, and nothing spills. How awesome is that!

My Favorite Features:

  • Locking Lids – they snap open and shut and stay shut when I shut them. It’s basically impossible not to love a container with a good lid.
  • Inner Seal – there’s a seal in the lid. So, when it’s shut, it’s shut tight. Perfect for soup, salad with dressing, pasta with sauce, etc.
  • Fun Colors – I do love the different colored containers, because colors are just so much fun!
  • Ice Pack – I really hate eating warm salad for lunch. I mean, I stick it in an insulated lunch box but it’s just not that cold by lunch time. The ice pack is absolutely amazing!
  • Stackable – They all stack neatly together, lids on the bottom, bowls on top. And it all fits in my cupboard without taking up a lot of room.

Pretty much everyone needs new plastic containers. Honestly, I probably need to throw out all my old ones and just restock with a bunch of these. And you can buy your own Zoku 11-pc Neat Stack Set on Amazon. You can also enter the giveaway for a chance to win your own!

Follow Zoku on social media:
Pinterest
Facebook
Instagram
Twitter

Now for the fun part! Enter below for your chance to win your very own Zoku Stackable Containers!

Win Zoku’s 11-pc Neat Stack #6

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Mesh Produce Bags – Review and Giveaway

I received this product free for purposes of my review. All opinions are my own.

I am finding these Mesh Bags by SGM to be super handy.

I cook a lot, and especially this time of year, I’m transporting lots of veggies. From picking up my CSA to all the veggies I’m purchasing for fall cooking.

Even if I don’t use them for vegetables, I can always use a couple more drawstring bags around my house. And mesh means they’re breathable and can be used for just about anything!

This package of 12 bags is an Amazon Prime item (so free shipping for Prime members) and at $1 a bag is a great deal. There’s 3 different bag sizes, and while I grabbed a couple for my veggies, my kids snagged a few for their toys.

The different colors are the different sizes, so I never have to guess which bag I have. The drawstring is secure and simple to use. These bags are washable (though I would recommend hang dry) and so versatile!

And, just for reviewing these, I get to share with you! So, enter below for your chance to win a package of these super handy mesh bags!

Win SGM Reusable Produce Bags #19

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Kitchfix Grain Free Granola Review and Giveaway

I received this product free for purposes of my review. All opinions are my own. This post does contain affiliate links.

I was excited to try out these two varieties of Kitchfix Grain Free Granola. Original Mix and Honey Pecan.

I like to take granola and trail mix along with me when I’m out and about with the kids and to our coop every week. The catch is, I can’t bring peanuts. I’m not allergic but over half of the places I go with my children are “peanut free” so I try to follow the rules.

Trail mix is hard to find without peanuts or peanut butter so I’ve been trying out different granolas. I like both varieties of the Kitchfix granola that I tried. As an added bonus they’re grain free – certified paleo. I can eat grains just fine, so what that really means for me is that this granola has lots of awesome things in it. Like nuts, raisins, seeds, and coconut flakes. It’s sweetened with maple syrup and the Honey Pecan is sweetened with maple syrup and honey. And it’s nut just filled out with oats or other grains.

The original mix is very lightly sweetened. Which I love. I try to limit my sugar intake so a hearty granola that’s barely sweetened is perfect.

For something a little sweeter. The Honey Pecan is delicious. My 9 yr old loves this one even though she won’t eat the original mix because she says it isn’t sweet enough.

My younger kids won’t eat it because they don’t like nuts – which for some reason seems normal for my young kids, my 9 yr old just started liking them. The nuts in these granolas are nice and crunchy but not too hard.

The top of the bag is resealable and it’s perfect for bringing along in the car, baby’s diaper bag, lunch box, etc.

Because there’s so many nuts in this granola I find that it’s rather filling and I don’t have to eat a lot of it at one time.

I’m really enjoying these granolas and will be purchasing more when my free packages run out. They are exactly the kind of granola/snack that I want to have on hand for when I need a little something – or if I forget to pack myself a lunch.

They’re delicious and nutritious! Enter below for a chance to win a Kitchfix Grain-Free Granola Bundle and try these for yourself.

Win a Kitchfix Grain-Free Granola Bundle #3

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Bang Cookies – Review

This is a sponsored post.

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Bang Cookies sent me a box of 6 different cookies to try out for my review. Bang Cookies uses all organic and natural ingredients in their cookies. They make them when you order them and then ship them out right away. They also have a cookie subscription, so if you love them, you never have to remember to order them.

These cookies aren’t pre-made just waiting around for you to order them. They’re made to order and shipped out fresh to your door.

These cookies are huge! They’re also perfectly soft, delicious, and honestly taste homemade.

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Walnut Chocolate Chunk

They have:

Sea Salt Chocolate Chunk
Macadamia White Chocolate Chunk
Triple Chocolate Chunk
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk
Walnut Chocolate Chunk
Oatmeal Raisin
S’mores

You can purchase them in boxes of 6, 8, or 12. For 20% off your order use code JFCOOKIE2 (good until 4/26/17). Choose any combination that you want. I received an assortment with one of every cookie except for the S’mores.

Every one of them was delicious. I don’t usually like oatmeal raisin cookies but I tried Bang Cookie’s oatmeal raisin and I actually liked it. Their cookies are so good!

My favorite was the Macadamia White Chocolate Chunk but the Sea Salt Chocolate Chunk was a close second. My kids preferred the Triple Chocolate Chunk. Basically, you can’t go wrong!

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I love how moist these cookies are in the center. The cookies are large enough that my 3 kids share one together and that’s just right for them.

Want to try them for yourself? You can get 20% off your first order with code JFCOOKIE2 (good until 4/26/17)! Order Here. Though I’ll warn you, once you order, you’ll be hooked. And you’ll want to order more.

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Lemon Tart

I’ve been trying out new recipes for Easter Dinner Desserts and I’m just loving this Lemon Tart. It’s the perfect blend of sweet and sour and everyone in my family loves it!

Plus it’s a make ahead and refrigerate overnight kind of recipe, which is perfect so it’s one less thing I have to worry about the day of my dinner.

This is one recipe I’m definitely making this Easter!

LemonTart

 

Crust:

12 Graham Crackers
2 TBSP sugar
5 Tablespoons butter – melted

  1. Crumble the graham crackers and sugar in a food processor until you have fine crumbs.
  2. Add the butter and pulse until well combined.
  3. Press onto bottom and sides of an 8 or 9 in springform pan.
  4. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes
  5. Set aside to cool

Filling:

1 Cup Sugar
1 TBSP grated lemon zest
1/2 Cup lemon juice
3 whole eggs
3 egg yolks (yes, you need eggs plus extra yolks)
4 TBSP butter

  1. Combine the sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice and eggs in a sauce pan. Whisk until well combined.
  2. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly (very important), until the mixture is nice and thick. About 6 minutes.
  3. Remove from heat and stir in butter until fully combined.
  4. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into your graham cracker crust. Smooth. Place plastic wrap on top to prevent a skin forming and refrigerate overnight.

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Whipped Cream:

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 TBSP sugar

  1. Beat whipping cream and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer (you can do this by hand, but it will take forever) until the the whipped cream is nice and thick.
  2. Spoon dollops of whipped cream on your tart when serving.