Ground Sausage  and Spinach Bake

I had some smoked salsa to use up so put this casserole together. This takes a little extra time to prep but it makes 6 generous adult portions and keeps for up to 3 days. Turn this into something of your own, vary the ingredients and have fun! You can’t mess it up!

Ingredients

  • 1 lb ground beef and pork mix (plain beef would work too)
  • 2 large onions
  • Large bunch spinach, washed well
  • 1 jar smoky salsa or tin of cooked tomato onion mix, add 1 tsp each smoked paprika and taco seasoning if you are using plain canned tomato mix
  • 6 large eggs
  • ½ cup cream or half and half
  • Fresh cilantro, green onions, 3 large garlic cloves, diced
  • 2 cups grated sharp cheddar
  • Salt and pepper

Method

  1. Fry diced onion until translucent
  2. Turn on oven to 350⁰F (180⁰C)
  3. Add ground beef mix to fried onion crumbling the mince well, and cook for about 5 minutes or until cooked through
  4. Grease a large flat casserole dish well and pour the meat and onion mix into the casserole dish and spread out out evenly
  5. Chop up washed spinach, drain well and re-use the pot you cooked the ground beef/onion mix
  6. When wilted, spread the spinach over the meat and onion in the casserole dish
  7. Sprinkle over a little onion powder
  8. Beat 6 eggs with a pinch of salt and ground pepper to taste
  9. Beat a ½ cup of cream into the eggs
  10. Pour the egg custard over the meat and spinach mix
  11. Spoon over the salsa or canned tomato mix evenly
  12. Bake at 350⁰F or 180⁰ C for 20 to 25 minutes until bubbling
  13. Top with the grated cheese, cilantro, chopped green onions, diced garlic and any other herbs or cheese you enjoy.
  14. Grill until cheese is melted and bubbling.
  15. Serve hot or room temperature and keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.

The cheese didn’t bubble and melt as expected. It was a delicious smoked organic WI cheddar but it refused to grill and had such a low fat content did not melt. It was actually deliciously crispy, cheesy and smoky. This was a first time non-melty experience for me. Weird. 

I do hope you are well. It feels as if my efforts are focused on self care these days. Writing a blog post takes such discipline and effort. I think with all the events happening in our world drains the hours in the day and what I used to accomplish.

Be kind to yourself, nurture the light in your heart and the people that light up your life. This is the flicker and then the flame that builds the bonfire of love and endurance that unites us.

With love and stay well until next time.

💜

We have our dining nook back! My partners office is gone and we’re loving this sunny spot to spend time in and invite friends to share a meal again.

Lastly … Quick carrot and radish pickles.

Dressing: mirin, rice vinegar, light soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, sesame seeds and seaweed flakes.

Fruit Popsicles

Fruit Popsicles

(I used fresh strawberries for this recipe)

Makes 6

  • 1 cup full fat Greek yogurt
  • ½ cup coconut condensed milk (keto)
  • 2 tblspns heavy cream
  • 1 cup fresh fruit or berries
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  1. Clean fruit well and cut into smallish pieces
  2. Drop a few pieces into the popsicle mold to add a colourful fruity pop top
  3. Measure out the yoghurt, condensed milk, cream and vanilla essence into the container you will be blending in
  4. Add the rest of the fresh fruit to the dairy mix (I’ve made blueberry, strawberry and a mix of berries varieties)
  5. In a blender or a mason jar using a stick blender blend it very well. Taste to see if you want it sweeter, I don’t like it too sweet.
  6. Pour into your popsicle molds, leaving space at the top for expansion when it freezes, so take care not to over fill
  7. Make sure to get the trapped air out where your berries are at the bottom, I use a steel skewer
  8. Seal and place in freezer for at least 12 hours
  9. Dip in a mug of very hot water for 5 seconds and they should pull out of the mold easily
  10. Hope you try these. BTW, this mold is wonderful, it has a little stand and the popsicle molds seal well

I’m going to try peach and lemon next, maybe plum too. Apricots might be yummy. For autumn, coffee, chocolate or banana? You could get really creative, that’s for sure! They are super quick to throw together, it’s the waiting for them to freeze though!

Thanks for being here!

We’ve had a very hot two weeks here in the PNW but shouldn’t complain as the rest of summer has been absolutely lovely. Here are a few photos of summer treats, dishes and places.

Wishing you peace in your heart and home.

Garlic Scape Pesto

Ingredients

  • 1 large bunch garlic scapes (or green onions)
  • 1 bunch parsley
  • 1 bunch cilantro
  • 6 leaves fresh basil and mint
  • ½ cup olive oil
  • ½ cup avocado, almond or grapeseed oil
  • 2 tblspn mirin (optional)
  • ¼ cup good wine vinegar, or a type you love and prefer
  • 1 lemon, topped and tailed, halved and quartered
  • 1 whole bulb garlic, peeled into cloves
  • ½ cup almonds
  • Salt and pepper
  • Pinch chili flakes
  • 1 large deep mason jar

Quick Asian Slaw

This is a two person portion and this salad is best eaten freshly made on the same day.

Asian Slaw

In a large mixing bowl:

Ingredients

  • ¼ tsp fish sauce (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
  • ¼ tsp soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon mirin
  • 2 garlic cloves, grated
  • 1 tablespoon chopped up pickled ginger
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
  • ¼ tsp ground black pepper
  • 1 tsp white (keto) sugar
  • ¼ of a soft variety green cabbage (100 grams) about 6 oz

Method

Asparagus Tart

Almond flour crust, mozzarella, cream and shallot egg custard topped with asparagus, spring onions, feta and a few tomato slices.

Ingredients

Pastry:

¼ cup melted butter

2 ½ cups almond flour

1 large egg, beaten

Onion powder,  Salt,  Pepper

Bob’s Muffins: In Honour of a Wonderful Man

I adapted this recipe from the Bob’s Red Mill site to a more low-carb friendly version. I’m sad to hear they are closing the restaurant and on-site store very soon. We heard the line was 2 hours long to get in this weekend. Bob Moore was an amazing man, a legend in his own time, and passed not too long ago. I remembered being delighted to see his products in a grocery store as far away as Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, some years ago.

This is not represented by photos of a step by step recipe. It’s just too good not to share after baking them and I never took a photo journal of the prep.  Enjoy!

And… thank you Bob! ❤️

Oat Bran Blueberry Muffins

Ingredients:

  1. 1 cup Almond Flour
  2. ⅓ cup Ground Flaxseed  

Low Carb Rocky Road Treat

Do you have sugar-free baking chocolate, odds and ends of  nuts, low carb/keto cookies, and shredded coconut around to use up? I did, and this was my first attempt at making this LCHF treat.

ROCKY ROAD CHOCOLATE SQUARES

Ingredients

1. 2 chocolate bars, dark unsweetened

2. 1 cup chocolate chips

3. 1 stick salted butter (½ cup)

4. ¾ cup keto cookies, broken up

Tamagoyaki Omelette

My first attempt at making these as my new pan arrived. It is quite a lovely little kit! I don’t think there should be holes in the rolled egg, but I’ll get there!

Here’s my throw together recipe.

Ingredients

4 eggs, beaten

Trip to Japan: Delicious Food

First off, a little copycat recipe from a Katsu restaurant in Ginza, Tokyo. I ordered Pork Katsu, and before they served dinner, we had this salad.

Shredded Napa Cabbage with Sesame Ginger Dressing

Ingredients

½ small Napa Cabbage, very finely chopped

¼ cup toasted sesame seeds