Posts Tagged ‘bell pepper’

spicy sweet carrot salad $3.86 recipe / $0.64 serving

July 7th, 2010 The FLHC

Whew, with all of this pizza I’ve been eating, my body is just begging for some veggies. You know your diet is a little out of whack when you’d rather have a salad than a slice of pizza.

I saw this Carrot Salad on Kalyn’s Kitchen a couple of weeks ago and just knew that I had to make it. Of course, I made a few changes based on what I had on hand and what I could find at the market for a decent price. That’s the wonderful thing about the food blogging world… good recipes spread like wild fire and everyone puts their own spin on them. It’s like recipe evolution at warp speeds!

Anyway, red bell peppers are finally at a decent price ($0.79 for a monster sized one as opposed to the $3 ea. that they sell for the rest of the year) and I was determined to make something with them. I added one to the mix and it added beautiful color, extra sweetness and a nice juicy contrast to the fairly dry crunch of the carrots. I didn’t buy any mint because it was just too expensive. If you grow it (it’s a weed so it’s easy to grow) be sure to toss a little in there. I lost my green Tabasco in the move so I wasn’t able to add that either. The dressing probably could have benefitted from a little green Tabasco. Lastly, I added a touch of cumin to the dressing because where lime, jalapeno and cilantro go, cumin should definitely follow (IMHO).

The salad turned out just as good as I had expected; great texture, great flavor and enormous eye appeal!

Spicy Sweet Carrot Salad

Total Recipe cost: $3.86
Servings Per Recipe: 6
Cost per serving: $0.64
Prep time: 20 min. Cook time: 0 min. Total: 20 min.

INGREDIENTS COST
1 (10 oz.) pkg. matchstick carrots $1.89
1 med-lg red bell pepper $0.79
1 med. jalapeno $0.18
1/2 bunch cilantro $0.39
1 med. lime, juiced $0.34
3 Tbsp olive oil $0.15
1 tsp salt $0.05
1/8 tsp ground cumin $0.02
to taste fresh ground pepper $0.05
TOTAL   $3.86

STEP 1: Rinse the red bell pepper and do your best to cut into matchsticks of similar size and shape to the carrots. Rinse and dice the jalapeno. Combine the carrot matchsticks, red bell pepper and jalapeno in a bowl.

STEP 2: Rinse the cilantro and pull the leaves from the stems. Give it a good chop and stir into the carrot mix.

STEP 3: In a small bowl, combine the lime juice (about 3 Tbsp), olive oil, salt, pepper and cumin. Stir well with a fork. Taste and adjust the seasonings as desired. It is okay for the dressing to be strong because it will be spread thin when stirred into the vegetables.

STEP 4: Combine the dressing with the vegetables and stir well. Let sit for at least a half hour to let the flavors blend. Refrigerate the salad if you will be eating it more than 30 minutes later.

Step By Step Photos

carrot matchsticks
These are the carrots I used. You can find them near the packages of baby carrots in the produce section. If I had a good mandolin, I would make them myself but you can’t beat the consistent size and shape of the packaged kind.

add red bell pepper, jalapeno
Cut the red bell pepper into similar size and shaped matchsticks as the carrots. Finely dice the jalapeno. Stir both in with the carrots.

add cilantro
Rinse of the cilantro (it tends to have sand on it) and give it a good chop. Don’t mince it but you don’t want whole leaves either. Stir it into the vegetable mix.

make dressing
Juice your lime and mix it together with the olive oil, salt, pepper and cumin.

finished salad
Pour the dressing over the salad, give it a good stir and let it sit for at least 30 minutes so the flavors can blend.

Spicy Sweet Carrot Salad

Please be sure to check a mirror after eating this salad… the cilantro is sure to get stuck in your teeth.



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How To Cook Quinoa Recipes: Delicious healthy quinoa salsa stew

April 18th, 2010 The FLHC

I used to make a lot of salsa, then bottle them up and keep in the freezer. I’d use them for my salads, sandwiches or even to eat with rice. It has been awhile since I made salsa. Since, I do not want to freeze them this time, I thought of changing the recipe a bit and made a sorta chicken and quinoa salsa stew. Originally, I wanted it to be vegetarian, to leave out the chicken but then, I changed my mind and added the chicken for the two meat-eaters at home.

healthy, wholesome quinoa salsa

The great thing about cooking this salsa style dish is that it is very versatile and can be eaten as it is or with rice, salad, bread, even spaghetti! It is pretty simple to make too. First, you will need…

salsa ingredients

carrots, tomatoes, celery, onions, potatoes, bell pepper (capsicum), ketchup, balsamic vinegar, ready-made pasta sauce and

quinoa

quinoa. I used red quinoa because it’s what I have. You can use pearl quinoa (the white quinoa) or black quinoa, whichever one you like. The cooking method for all types of quinoa is the same. After chopping up all the vegetables into chunks…

simmer in the pot

You will need to heat up a pot with some olive oil. First, you sautè the onions for a short while and then you add the carrots, tomatoes, capsicum, tomatoes.

add water and the rest of the other ingredients

After you stir it around for a minute or so, you add the potatoes, celery, sauces and water. Also add a sprinkle of dried mixed herbs for extra flavours. The quinoa is the last one to go in, after adding all the other stuffs. Then, you just leave it to simmer over low fire for close to two hours. If you don’t have the time, just dump all ingredients into the crock pot or slow cooker and leave it to simmer on low overnight. It will be ready the next day! And that’s it. Easy and so darn good, you may want to make it again and again!

So, here’s the recipe:

Wholesome Healthy Quinoa Salsa Stew

salsa on bread

Ingredients

3 large carrots, cut into chunks

4 large tomatoes, diced

3 large onions, chopped

2 large potatoes, cut into chunks

3 stalks of celery, diced

1 – 2 capsicum (bell peppers), cut into chunks

1/2 cup red quinoa

5 tbsp pasta sauce

4 tbsp ketchup

1 tsp dried mixed herbs

1 – 2 cups of water (depending on how thick / watery you want it to be)

palm-sized chicken breast, skin removed and sliced thinly or minced. (if you want to add chicken or you can leave it out if you want a vegetarian one)

Instructions

1. Heat up a large pot with some olive oil.

2. Sautè the onions and then add the carrots, capsicum and tomatoes. Stir for a minute or so.

3. Add in the rest of the vegetables (potatoes and celery) and then stir in the sauces.

4. Add water and pour in the uncooked quinoa. Stir to mix the ingredients around.

5. Turn the heat up to medium and let it boil. Add the herbs, then add the minced chicken (or sliced chicken, whichever you like).

6. Turn down the heat to low and leave it to simmer for up to 2 hours. Remember to check on it and stir often to make sure it doesn’t burn.

7. If you are using the crock pot / slow cooker, then you can skip the sauteeing part. Instead, just dump everything in, add the sauces and water and leave it to cook on slow.

Special note: Water is important so you must not leave it out and it is important to add more as quinoa absorbs a lot of water and it needs a lot of water to cook. Here’s how to cook quinoa.

This quinoa recipe is great to go with any food. If you are cutting down on calories, you can eat this as it is with salad as I also like to call this recipe an all-in-one meal which contains vegetables, protein (quinoa is very high in protein) and healthy carbs (potatoes).

If you simply must have rice…

quinoa salsa with rice

or if you prefer bread…

quinoa salsa on bread

It is pack full of nutrients from all the vegetables and quinoa so it is not only low in fat (especially if you cook it without the chicken), it is very wholesome and best of all, so good you won’t even feel as if you are eating diet food!

Related posts:

  1. How to cook Quinoa recipes: Black Quinoa Soup Recipe If you’ve read some of my other How To Cook…
  2. How to cook quinoa recipes: Quinoa and sardines This is a continuation of my how to cook quinoa…
  3. How to cook quinoa series – Chicken and Mushrooms Quinoa This is the third post in my how to cook…

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thai peanut rice pilaf $2.86 recipe / $0.48 serving

March 13th, 2010 The FLHC

Today as I was sitting in immunology class I found myself wondering not about lymphocytes and antigens but what I could do with my left over Thai Peanut Sauce. Then the light bulb went off and I raced home to throw together one of the best rice pilafs that I’ve ever tasted. I used jasmine rice for extra aroma and flavor (and because I had exactly enough left over waiting to be used in my cupboard). The little bits of sweet red pepper and sweet peas offer just the right balance to the peanut sauce’s spicy heat. Thanks to the protein packed peanut sauce, the starchy rice and crunchy veggies, this pilaf makes for a very satisfying, stick-to-your-ribs side dish!

Thai Peanut Rice Pilaf

Total Recipe cost: $2.86

Servings Per Recipe: 6

Cost per serving: $0.48

Prep time: 5 min. Cook time: 40 min. Total: 45 min.

INGREDIENTS COST
1 cup long grain jasmine rice $0.87
1/2 cup thai peanut sauce $0.22
1/2 cup frozen sweet peas $0.27
1 medium red bell pepper $1.50
TOTAL   $2.86



STEP 1: In a medium sauce pan bring 1 cup of jasmine rice and two cups of water to a boil over high heat with a lid in place. As soon as it reaches a rolling boil, reduce the heat to warm and let simmer for 30-40 minutes (with the lid in place) or until all of the water has absorbed.

STEP 2: While the rice cooks, finely dice the red bell pepper. When the rice has finished cooking, mix in the peanut sauce, peas and red bell pepper. I would suggest putting all of the ingredients into the pot with the rice and then stirring only once because the more times you stir, the more sticky and glutenous the rice will become.

STEP 3: Serve warm. If desired, you can garnish with fresh cilantro, green onions or a drizzle of sesame oil (as pictured).

NOTE: Be sure when you are buying your jasmine rice that you get long grain jasmine rice because short or medium grain varieties will be too sticky. If you try to stir the peanut sauce and vegetables into a short grain rice you might end up with a starchy ball of rice dough!



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roast beef quesadillas $9.37 recipe / $2.43 serving

February 21st, 2010 The FLHC

As promised, here is a great “second use” for your leftover beef pot roast. I hate to admit it, but I think that I actually like these quesadillas more than I liked the pot roast! The quesadillas came out a little pricey (well, pricier than my usual meals) due to a few expensive ingredients: beef, red bell peppers and cheese. Over all it is still a budget byting recipe because A) it utilizes leftovers and B) it is still half (at least) the cost of what you would pay if you bought this at a restaurant.

If you didn’t make any pot roast this recipe would also be great with some chopped up (and well seasoned) grilled chicken. I would suggest using either a cajun seasoning or fajita seasoning for your chicken. Not only will I be eating the rest of my pot roast this way but I will probably also earmark some of the chicken in my freezer to make these again later!

Special Note: I used about 1/3 of my total cooked pot roast for four of these quesadillas. To calculate the cost of that meat, I added the cost all of the pot roast ingredients MINUS the vegetables (carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, onions) and divided it by three. It’s not the most accurate calculation but it is the closest estimate possible.

Roast Beef Quesadillas

Total Recipe cost: $9.37

Servings Per Recipe: 4

Cost per serving: $2.43

Prep time: 10 min. Cook time: 50 min. Total: 1 hr.

INGREDIENTS COST
1/3 recipe (1 lb. raw weight) cooked pot roast $4.90
4 medium (burrito size) flour tortillas $0.71
8 oz. pepper jack cheese $1.98
1 medium red bell pepper $1.06
1 medium green bell pepper $0.25
1 dried bay leaf $0.05
1/2 medium red onion $0.21
2 Tbsp olive oil $0.21
a pinch each salt & pepper $0.05
TOTAL   $9.37



STEP 1: Adjust your oven rack so that it is 5-6 inches below the broiler coils (that is the second level on mine). Preheat the broiler to 400 degrees. Slice the red onion 1 inch thick and place it on a baking sheet. Cut in half and core the bell peppers and place them on the baking sheet. Drizzle 2 Tbsp of olive oil over the vegetables and spread it over them so they are completely covered in oil. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the vegetables. Broil the vegetables until they are blistered and slightly blackened (20 min).

STEP 2: When the vegetables have cooled, slice them into strips. Begin to build your quesadillas by layer 1 oz. of cheese over half of a tortilla. Next, layer pieces of the roast beef followed by some of the roasted vegetables and lastly, one more ounce of cheese. The cheese is the glue for the quesadilla so you want some on the bottom and some on the top.

STEP 3: Fold the empty half of the tortilla over the fillings and place it in a dry skillet. Turn the burner on to medium heat and cook each side of the quesadilla until it is brown and crispy and the fillings have heated through (3-5 min each side).

STEP 4: Either slice the quesadilla into triangles or leave whole. Sides of salsa or sour cream are optional.

Step By Step Photos

roasted veggetables
Roast the vegetables under a 400 degree broiler until they are blistered and blackened. Slice into strips once cooled enough to handle.

cheese and tortilla
Begin the quesadilla with cheese on the bottom (only cover half of the tortilla so you can fold it over later).

add roast beef
Next comes the roast beef.

add roasted veggies
Then add your sliced roasted vegetables.

add more cheese
Top it with some more cheese to hold it all together. Fold the tortilla over top and transfer the quesadilla to a hot skillet.

cook quesadilla
Cook the quesadilla on each side until it is crispy and brown and the fillings are hot and melty! YUM!

cooked beef quesadilla
It’s big, beefy and DELICIOUS.

cooked beef quesadilla
Whole or sliced, it’s your prerogative.



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mom’s mostaccioli $13.25 recipe / $1.33 serving

October 7th, 2009 Tommy Grobmyer

Spicy Italian sausage, peppers, onions, pasta, red sauce and cheese… you can’t go wrong. This is one of my all-time favorite dishes from when I was growing up. I’m calling this one “Mom’s Mostaccioli” as a tribute to my mother who taught me the value of a nutritious meal. My mother cooked delicious meals for our family of seven almost every night of the week and watching her was an invaluable experience. If it wasn’t for what I learned watching my mother, this blog wouldn’t exist. I love you mom!

Mom's Mostaccioli

Total Recipe cost: $13.25

Servings Per Recipe: 10

Cost per serving: $1.33

Prep time: 10 min. Cook time: 20 min. Total: 30 min.

INGREDIENTS COST
14.5 oz. box penne pasta $2.08
1 lb. spicy italian sausage, casing removed $2.98
1 26 oz. jar pasta sauce $2.14
3 medium anaheim peppers $0.79
1 medium yellow onion $0.58
1 large red bell pepper $1.68
2 Tbsp olive oil $0.31
1 cup italian blend cheese $0.99
2 oz. feta cheese $0.88
2.2 oz. can sliced black olives $0.82
TOTAL   $13.25



STEP 1: In a large pot, cook the entire box of pasta according to the directions on the box. While the pasta cooks, thinly slice the anaheim peppers, bell pepper and onion.

anaheim peppers

STEP 2: When the pasta is finished cooking, pour into a colander to drain. Set the pasta aside. Put 2 Tbsp of olive oil in the large pot and cook the sliced onions until they have softened. Remove the onions from the pot and set aside.

STEP 3: Cook the sausage in the pot until completely browned. Drain off the excess fat. Return the onions to the pot along with the bell peppers. Cook and stir over medium heat until the peppers have softened just slightly.

STEP 4: Add the sauce, italian cheese, feta and black olives to the pot. Stir well and let the mixture heat through.

STEP 5: Enjoy!

NOTE: Anaheim peppers are only just slightly spicy. If you like your food extra spicy (like we do here in the south) feel free to toss in a 1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes. You can also experiment with other peppers like sweet banana peppers. This dish is awesome hot but also surprisingly delicious cold, making it the perfect one-dish lunch!

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