Cranberry Apricot and Pecan Wild Rice Pilaf

Yet another delicious recipe from THIS great blog.  I LOVED this!  So delicious.  I was a little hesitant to add all of the cranberries that it called for.  I thought it would be too tart.  But I went for it and was so glad!  The sweetness from the other dried fruits totally balances it all out and you get the perfect blend of flavors.  Plus it's so pretty with all of the colors.  I was going to make this for our Thanksgiving feast but decided I had plenty of other grains and starches going on so I saved it.  This would make a great dish for any lunch or dinner.  It's easy to make and the leftovers are great!  If you want the pecans to stay crunchy then don't add them until you are ready to eat.

Cranberry Apricot and Pecan Wild Rice Pilaf

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1.5 cups chopped celery + 1/2 cup, divided

1 heaping cup chopped sweet onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 & 1/2 cups uncooked wild rice

2 cups vegetable broth

1 & 1/2 cup water

1 bay leaf

3/4-1 tsp kosher salt (or to taste) + black pepper as desired

3/4 cup pecans, chopped

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/3 cup dried apricots, chopped

1/4 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup fresh cranberries, thinly sliced

1. Preheat oven to 325F and toast the pecans for about 7-8 minutes. Remove and set aside.

2. Sautee onion, oil, and garlic in a skillet over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes, stirring often. Add 1.5 cups chopped celery and cook for another 5-7 minutes.

3. Add wild rice, broth, bay leaf, and water. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low-medium and then cover with lid. Simmer for 30 minutes, stirring once half way through.

4. After 30 minutes, uncover, stir, and continue cooking for 20-30 minutes until the liquid is absorbed and rice is tender. Note that wild rice cooking times can vary a lot so keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn.

5. Remove bay leaf and stir in the dried fruit. Season to taste and stir in the sliced fresh cranberries and 1/2 cup chopped raw celery. Stir in toasted pecans.

Yield:  4.5-5 cups

Note: Dish can be made 1 day in advance. Do not add pecans until just before serving. Allow to cool then place in an air tight container in the fridge. Reheat in a skillet just before serving and stir in pecans.

Breakfast in a Muffin

My friend Melanie passed this recipe on to me.  They are really good!  I did change them up a bit to meet the needs of our family but it's all basically the same.  I used "flax eggs" instead of eggs, halved the sugar amount (and will use even less next time because they were still very sweet--the original recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups), and used whole wheat flour.  A single recipe makes 24 muffins.  I doubled it and it made 48.  What is so nice about these is you can change them up and use any combination of fruits/veggies. Just make sure you have 2 cups worth.  You can use applesauce, bananas, zucchini, peaches, carrots, pineapple, or any combination.  In these pictures I used a large can of canned peaches, drained, and lightly pulsed in my blender.  Melanie used all applesauce in her batch I tried.  Another friend said she used strawberries and yellow squash the last time she made them.  Mmmm...I'm sure you could also add chopped nuts, raisins, or coconut, too.  Enjoy!

Update: I made these this morning and half way through the recipe I discovered I didn't have any oats!  I ALWAYS have oats!  So I decided to use ground millet like THIS recipe does.  It was sooo good!  Everything else was exactly the same as below.  I think I will always make them like this.  I just love the crunchiness that the millet gives the muffins plus they seemed to be more moist.

Breakfast in a Muffin

2 c. applesauce (or blended fruit, bananas, peaches, etc.)
2 eggs ( flax eggs=2 Tbsp. ground flax and 6 Tbsp. hot water )
1/3 c. oil 

1/3 c. apple sauce
1/2 c. brown sugar or sweetener of choice
Whisk flax and water first and set aside for 5-10 min. while mixing other ingredients so it can gel up.  Stir in flax eggs.  Mix well.

In a separate bowl mix the following:
2 c. flour
2 c. oats (Or use 2/3 c. millet whirled through blender until fine-you get 1 cup)
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon

Mix well and then add to the wet ingredients. Stir just until moist (don't over-mix!) and spoon 2/3 full into 24 muffin cups. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes.

Simply Minestrone Soup

I threw this together tonight and it was so good and very simple.  All 5 of my kids gobbled it up and declared that "it is the best soup EVER!"  Maybe they were just really hungry? :)  But really, it was very delicious and satisfying.  It's made from ingredients I always have on hand.  I put some fun little alphabet pasta in and my kids loved that!  The pasta comes in little 7 oz. sacks that are perfect for one recipe of soup.  I threw in some yummy kale because I have so much and everything's better with kale, right?  Kroger has had huge bunches of kale on sale for 56 cents lately.  Heaven!

Simply Minestrone Soup

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 carrots, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 can green beans, drained
2 (14 oz.) cans diced tomatoes (I used Italian seasoned)
4 cups vegetable broth
2 cups water
1 (14 oz.) can white cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
1 cup dry pasta
2 cups chopped kale, packed
salt & pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in large soup pot.  Saute onion, garlic, carrots, and celery.  Cook for about 5 minutes or until golden.  Add zucchini, green beans, and diced tomatoes.  Stir in vegetable broth and water.  Add beans, oregano, and basil.  Simmer about 15 minutes.  Add pasta and kale and simmer for about 10 minutes more or until pasta is soft.  Season to taste with salt & pepper.  Enjoy!

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Poor Brussels sprouts. They tend to have a bad rap. But who wants to eat a mushy, boiled sprout anyway? I have to admit, I've always liked Brussels sprouts, and not just because I served a mission for my church in the Belgium Brussels mission! I even liked them as a kid. They were just so cute and fun and unusual! But these roasted Brussels sprouts are my favorite way to have them. Slightly crunchy and caramelized...perfect! If you've been hesitant to try Brussels sprouts, try them again this way. So good! And they're so good for you. Like broccoli, and other members of the cruciferous family, Brussels sprouts contains sulforaphane, a chemical with potent anticancer properties. So eat up!

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

2 cups Fresh Brussels Sprouts
Salt & Pepper
2-3 Tbsp. Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash and trim ends off Brussels sprouts. Cut into halves or quarters depending on size. (I like them cut into smaller pieces.). Place cut sprouts into a bowl and toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread onto a foil lined baking sheet and bake for 15 min. Stir and continue to cook for 10-15 min. more or until they start to get some caramelization on them. Serve!