Jewel Roasted Vegetables

Late this morning I pulled two pork roasts out of the freezer. They both fit in my Dutch oven (have I told you how much I adore mine?) perfectly, side by side. I poured a bit of leftover coffee from this morning into the bottom (why not?), added a bunch of garlic cloves and a little s&p, popped them into the heated oven and let the magic happen. Of course, meat is all well and good. For a low-carber, it's really all I need, right? 

However, I am also a new gardener. I've got lots of carrots, beets, a little broccoli and some onions still going on out there. While I was just going to harvest some today and make pickled beets and clean carrots to keep in the fridge for snacking, a picture flashed in my head of a recipe from a cookbook I'd borrowed from the library at one time. It was a cookbook by Ellie Krieger and her beautiful photo of roasted veggies still could be recalled. The link to her recipe on Food Network's site can be brought up by clicking on her name below the recipe title. You'll see that my version is quite different from hers. It was mostly a matter of what I had on hand. I had made her recipe as she originally intended when I'd had her cookbook. It was fantastic... and I am not a brussels sprouts fan. Point being, it's flexible. Because this was fantastic, too. Use what you've got. Use what you want. It's all good.

Jewel Roasted Vegetables

(adapted from Ellie Krieger of Food Network)
6 large beets, boiled until tender and peeled
2 T bacon grease
6 medium carrots, cut into 1" pieces
1-1/2c broccoli florets
8 large garlic cloves

4 small onions, cut into wedges
1/2 teaspoon pink salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1tsp thyme

1 branch/sprig rosemary

Trim then boil beets for 1hr or until tender enough to pierce with fork or knife. Drain and immerse in cold water. When cool enough to handle, slip off skins. Cut into 1" chunks and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Peel and cut the carrots into 1-inch pieces, trim the broccoli and peel the garlic cloves and onion. Put the carrots, garlic cloves and onion wedges onto a large baking sheet (not the broccoli yet) and toss with 2T of melted bacon grease. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper. 

Place the pan of carrots/garlic/onion into the oven and cook everything for1hr, stirring once or twice. 

Stir the thyme and rosemary into the carrot mixture, add the broccoli and beets to the baking sheet. Let continue to cook for another 15 minutes or until broccoli is tender and it is heated throughout. Remove from oven, taste and add additional seasoning if desired.

Now, for an admission of guilt. I ate way too much at supper. It just simply tasted too good. (Oh, did I mention the mashed potatoes?) Although I felt uncomfortable as all heck for hours after eating... I still splurged on a Salted Caramel Pumpkin Spice concrete mixer at Culvers later. Why, oh why can't I remember how an overdose of sugar makes me feel?!? Yuck. I'm blaming this evening's loss of control on DMS (during). But I feel so horrible that it should keep me on the straight and narrow... for awhile anyway.

Square Foot Gardening Experiment

Above is my first effort at the square foot gardening trend that I've been seeing all over the internet. My box is 4'x6'. The boards I used are untreated wood (balsam, I think) and are 8"wide and 1"thick. I stapled on some landscaping material onto the back to retain the topsoil/compost/peat mixture that I filled it with and to keep weeds at bay. The four plants in front are cabbages. The row behind it contains three boxes of golden beets and one box of marigolds to hopefully discourage little rodents. The next row was left empty so that I have room to thin out the other boxes later if needed. The fourth row contains two types of lettuces. You can't tell in the photo but they are just starting to grow - there was no sign of them just two days ago. The fifth row contains two boxes of radishes and two boxes of mini gladiola bulbs, along with some peas that run just along the boarder. The back row consists of two boxes of garlic plants that I transplanted from a pot that they overwintered in. They were pretty much the reason that I finally decided to do the garden box this year as I didn't want to forget where in the garden that I planted them. (They won't be harvested until next year.) The final two boxes in that same row contain more mini gladiolas and peas. I used three branches and some sisal twine that I already had to form a trellis of sorts. Hopefully I'll be able to train the pea vines to climb it. Anyone else do this type of gardening and have tips or ideas?

While I was out taking a photo in the garden this morning I also cut asparagus. It's been four days since we last harvested and we had rain yesterday. Obviously that bit of rain gave it a giant push to grow, since I harvested twice as much as last time. I blanched it and froze it in four quart bags. We now have 9 meals of asparagus put away for winter. Yay! My parents have enjoyed it a couple of times already and I included some (raw) in a giant chunky veggie-filled salad a few days ago. It tastes nearly the same as fresh peas do in a salad.

Also, this morning, I made another batch of low-carb ice cream. This time I used canned coconut milk in place of heavy whipping cream. I also added cocoa. Otherwise it was made the same as the scoopable vanilla recipe that I have posted on this blog. I would like to note that I have noticed something that may or may not be coincidence or a fluke as far as the scoop-ability of homemade ice creams. Of the several times I have made it, the one time that it ended up being harder and more "crystal-like" in texture, was the time that I stored the finished ice cream in a glass Pyrex bowl with a plastic lid. All other times I have stored it in a plastic Tupperware container, which happens to fit it all clear up to the top. While other factors may be contributing to an unwanted consistency, if you have trouble with the texture of your ice creams, try storing it in a different container. Now, if only I'd had some roasted almonds on hand when I made it this morning.... Aside from the almonds missing, it ended up tasting like an Almond Joy. Yummy.

Another week down. Link to wonderful zucchini muffins!

Sunday, Sept.16
B> fried eggs w/diced garden tomato & cheese, leftover strawberries & nectarine bits, coffee w/h&h and stevia
L> 1 bunless hotdog, coffee w/h&h and stevia
S> Taco Toss
Snacks> hot tea, 1 mini sugar-free cheesecake w/low-sugar jam, 1 low-sugar almond coconut chocolate

Taco Toss is just using up the taco leftovers.  But rather than everyone using shells or chips, I made some Dreamfield's pasta and mixed that with the seasoned ground beef.  We then pile on the cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, etc.  This was just as good, maybe even better, than last night's taco supper!  To the right is a link to The Belly Fat Cure...Purple Rosy Style blog and if you do a search for cream cheese muffins you will find the recipe that I started with and altered a little to my tastes.


Mon., Sept.17
B> 1 mini sf cheesecake w/low-sugar jam, 1 egg, chai
L> leftover Taco Toss, cottage cheese, couple strawberries
S> bbq chicken, sweet & sour cabbage, tomato w/mozzarella, basil, olive oil & vinegar
Snacks> chai, 1 mini sugar-free cheesecake w/low-sugar jam, 1 sf raspberry chocolate, part of SoBe


Tues., Sept.18
B> scrambled eggs w/bacon, chai, 1 Ezekial toast w/butter & low-sugar jam
L> 1 mini sf cheesecake, 1 peach slice, small bowl chicken wild rice soup w/cheese
S> Culver's beef roast, small mashed potatoes & gravy
Snacks> chai, last 2 low-sugar almond coconut chocolates , Zero water, few strawberries

Wed., Sept.19
B> eggs w/cheese, 2 strawberries, coffee w/h&h and stevia
L> taco salad w/about 2oz rice, cottage cheese, few bites pineapple
S> pork chops, sauerkraut, few tiny garden potatoes w/butter and s&p, two bites applesauce
Snacks> half a tiny apple w/pb, several mini low-carb chocolate chip cookies, chai, Zero water

Yeah, yeah.  I see it.  Too much snacking going on.  Too much fruit, too.  Oh, and a note regarding the chocolate chip cookies (recipe in previous post or two): Once in the fridge for about a week and poorly covered, they start to get crisp.  Ha ha ha.

Thurs., Sept.20
B> 2 mini sf cheesecakes w/several strawberries, coffee w/h&h and stevia
L> leftover Taco Toss, cottage cheese, pickles, 2 bites watermelon
S> turkey "noodle" soup, coconut "cornbread" biscuit w/butter
Snacks> hot tea, last 4 mini low-carb chocolate chip cookies, Zero water, 1/2 apple w/pb

The turkey "noodle" soup was made using a spaghetti squash from the garden.  I steamed it in the microwave, used a fork to drag out strands and added them to the soup.  Not the same as noodles, but didn't miss the noodles either.  I made a cornbread for everyone else and a coconut biscuit for myself.  I knew I'd really want the cornbread so I replaced a half Tbsp. of the coconut flour with corn meal.  It actually ended up tasting the same as when I make a regular coconut muffin.  What a waste of carbs...

Fri., Sept.21
B> eggs w/cheese, 1 Ezekiel toast w/butter & jam, coffee w/h&h and stevia
L> 1 chicken fillet, tiny crab apple off tree in garden
S> 2 salmon patties, 1/4c hashbrowns, 1/2c beet salad, sliced cheese
Snacks> 2 zucchini banana muffins, 1 cheesecake w/jam, sf mocha shake

Oh my.  But those muffins are delicious.  I had a very brown banana to use up so I squished it into the batter.  The muffins aren't nearly as low-carb as the original recipe, I suppose.  But I did get three more servings than what the original poster did when she'd made them.  So that's good, right?!?  I'll find and link to the recipe... HERE, at Your Lighter Side it is, though I altered it by adding the banana, pecans instead of walnuts, some dark chocolate chips and used xylitol instead of splenda and stevia in place of the xylitol.  Perfect moist texture when you consider it's made with coconut flour.  Not sure if the original would have the same texture or if the banana made that much difference.  The beet salad recipe came from Everyday Paleo.  I altered it by omitting the parsley (actually, I forgot it) and using much less cumin, probably about 1/4-1/2tsp.  We liked it well enough but agreed we like beets better with just butter and s&p.

Sat., Sept.22 
B> eggs w/bacon & hot pepper sauce, coffee w/h&h and stevia
L> 1 chicken fillet, 1 zucchini banana muffin, 1/2 apple w/pb
S> 1/2c roasted baby potatoes/broccoli/red pepper/garlic mix, pork loin slices, 1/2c beets, tomato/mozzarella/basil
Snacks> buttered popcorn, chai

Put the last few cheesecakes in the freezer so I wouldn't keep eating them.  Out of sight, out of mind.  Off to do the same with the zucchini banana muffins.

Day 39 & 40 BFC

Saturday, Oct.15
Breakfast> scrambled egg w/ham (s/c=0/0)
Lunch> bunless Hardee's Thickburger (s/c=5/0)
Snacks> SoBe Lifewater (s/c=0/1)
Supper> 2 weiners, 1/2c beanless chili, brocco-salad, cottage cheese (s/c=9/2)
Total s/c for today - 14/3


















Friday, Oct.14
Breakfast, Lunch and Supper... EPIC FAIL

I began the day with the knowledge that today was going to be a "cheat" day.  Yeah, I had my ice cream bars (you read that right, plural) and Brach's mandarin orange jelly fruit slices.  I also made a cup of coffee with regular creamer.  That, however, I ended up giving to my husband and making a new cup with real cream and stevia/xylitol.  Apparently I have gotten used to my coffee this way.  Thank goodness for that!  I also gave up the rest of my Brach's mandarin orange slices, as well.  Oh, but don't let me forget about the bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios with a bunch of raspberries and milk.  It was good, but by the time I was done I was saying that it was really too sweet and not as satisfying as I'd expected.  Right now the aroma of roasting carrots with onions and garlic is permeating the air.  Soon I'll be adding the last of the beets from the garden and a few sprigs of rosemary.  I can hardly wait for supper for these little jewels...

Pan-Fried Beets (No need to pre-boil!)

(The picture doesn't express how good these were.  I haven't moved on to a bigger and better camera than my silly Kodak Easy Share.)

I really like roasted beets.  The grill, as well as the oven, really brings out the sweetness of beets.  So much so that they sometimes nearly taste like a good ear of sweet corn.  So good.  We grew up eating pickled beets that my mother made, as well as eating those that our grandmother made when we visited.  But boiled beets?  Blech!  Or so my childish taste buds thought.  Now I think those are great, too, with a gob of butter and salt & pepper.  But back to these fried beets...

Somewhere out there, in this great big blogosphere, I came across a recipe someone posted for what she called Caramelized Beets.  You know how you link from one blog to the next, to the next, to the next... (you get the picture)  Well, I didn't bookmark the page.  So whatever the recipe was, well, I figure I was close enough as it was simple, simple, simple.

Here is what I did:  I pulled about 6-8 medium to small fist-sized beets out of the garden, as it was the end of a row that needed to be finished off.  I trimmed the greens off out in the garden and turned them under into the dirt to compost.  Then I brought my beets in and gave them a good rinsing.  Then I peeled them.  Raw.  Just like you would peel a potato.  Gave them just a quick rinse again.  Then sliced them about 1/8"-1/4".  Set them aside.  Take out skillet (I used a #10 cast-iron pan), heat pan and lay out 3 or 4 strips of bacon.  Fry until crispy, remove bacon, but leave grease in pan.  Then lay in the beet slices in all that yummy bacon goodness.  Turn heat to medium-low and cover.  Let cook for about 15 minutes, then, using a spatula, flip them so they can cook evenly.  Crumble in the bacon that has cooled.  Let cook, covered, another 5-10 minutes or until tender.  That's it - they're done!  No need to salt as it's been done already by the bacon, though you may like to add a little black pepper.

Dehydrated Beets

A couple of days ago I picked a bunch of beets from the garden.  (There are still lots to go, but I wanted to just do a small experimental batch of dried beets to see how they'd turn out.)  I cleaned them, trimmed the greens down to just a couple of inches and boiled them for around 20 mns., until tender.  I then submerged them in cold water and slipped their skins off and finished trimming them.  Then I sliced them in somewhat thin slices, not even 1/4" thick, placed them on the dehydrator trays, set the temp to 125 degrees and plugged it in.  I checked them throughout and took off the thinner ones as they reached that "fruit leather" like dryness.  When I began I started with what looked like enough beets for 3-4 meals at our house, so that is how many sandwich sized baggies I divided the finished amount into.

Originally I was going to can all the beets.  But this takes up so much less space.  Also, I won't have to worry about faded, overcooked beets.  This next photo is about an hour after I added just enough water to cover them to rehydrate the beets for dinner.  I've read, from a couple of resources, that it should take about an hour to rehydrate them.  I thought they seemed a little chewy yet, so I let them sit for more like 3-4 hours.

Now, I won't lie to you.  They're not as good as fresh beets.  Nor are they as good as pickled beets, for that matter.  But, they are still very good, and I think a better alternative to canning beets as they retain some texture this way.  It could very well be my lack of pressure canning skills (most certainly is the case) that turned me off to canned beets.  The following photo is a day later where they are fully rehydrated.

Got beets to use up? They're great on the grill.

I planted both purple and golden beets again this year. The golden beets were a little slower growing than the purple, though not by much-maybe a week or so behind them. I had a much better crop of goldens this year than I did last. It either was just a better growing season, or I planted the seeds somewhat thickly, and, even a bit earlier than recommended. This recipe uses the golden beets only (though you can use either, or both).

Rinse desired amount of beets after trimming stems down to a few inches. Leave roots intact or you will lose color (called "bleeding"), as well as leaving the skin without any cuts. Put beets in large kettle of water, covering beets, and bring to boil. Let boil for around 20mns, depending on size of beets and desired tenderness. Drain, then submerge beets in cold water. (While they are boiling, prepare your grill pan. I lined mine with foil for easier clean-up and to prevent flare-ups on the grill.) Once they're cool enough to handle, the stems, roots and skins will slip off easily. Cut beets into wedges or bite size pieces and put in grill pan. Gather onions, peel and rinse. Cut into chunks and add to beets. Gather herbs you wish to season your beets and onions with. I used three stems from a garlic chive plant, snipped into tiny pieces. Add those, along with a bit of sea salt and ground black pepper, to grill pan. Then drizzle over all with olive oil, and a pat of butter, if desired, which will give it a little extra yumminess. Toss so all's coated well. Place on hot grill and cook until veggies are beginning to get browned. That's it. Simple list of ingredients and easy prep. So good with any grilled meat.