Namaste Homestyle Coating Mix

This is currently cooking in my oven. It smells like amazing fried chicken. It comes with two bags of coating and two shaker bags. It gives suggestions for the "liquid" to use. I used Newman's Own Ranch Dressing. I think the whole family will like this one. It was okay, not as crispy as I would like, but not too bad either. If you are really wanting a "coated" piece of chicken it would cure that craving.

Roasting Vegetables...YUM

I am fairly new to vegetable roasting. Who knew they tasted so good!? My family has really started to trust me on the veggie end of dinner because I have become a vegetable cooking rock star!!! Our favorites to roast so far are:

Asparagus
Green Beans
Sweet Potatoes
Red Potatoes
Carrots

For the asparagus and green beans I preheat the oven to 425 and place the vegetable on a cooking sprayed foil lined baking pan. I then drizzle olive oil over top add some kosher salt and pepper and bake for about 10 minutes, shake the pan and the bake another 10 minutes. I then take it out and add grated Parmesan cheese to the top and pop it back in for another 5 minutes. It comes out fantastic.

For sweet potatoes I peel them and slice them about 1/4 inch thick and put them in a Ziploc bag with olive oil, garlic salt and pepper.Preheat the oven to 425 and then place them on a sprayed foil lined baking sheet and pop them in the oven and bake them for 15 minutes then flip them and bake 15 more minutes. They are fabulous.

Red Potatoes and Carrots I tend to roast together. I wash the potatoes but leave the skins on. The carrots I peel and chop into smaller pieces unless I use baby carrots..Preheat the oven to 425 and then place them on a sprayed foil lined baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder or 1/2 a pkg of Herb De'Providence Seasonings from McCormick's. Pop them in the oven and bake them for 15 minutes then flip them and bake 15 more minutes. They go great with chicken and steak.

Easiest Broccoli Recipe -- ever!

I made this on a whim one night and my hubby and friends raved about it. I have been making it weekly ever since that day. It is commonly requested!

List of ingredients and Needs:
Fresh Broccoli (I buy the bagged stuff by Dole, since I'm  so lazy busy)
Newman's Own Ranch Dressing (I like this one because it contains no MSG)
Shredded Cheese (I use Colby Jack or Cheddar)
Tin Foil (to make a foil packet)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place foil on a hard surface (make sure its long enough to close up tightly so the broccoli kind of steams). Place broccoli on the foil in a big pile. I usually use one bag for a family of 3 (my 7 year old gobbles this up). Drizzle the ranch dressing over top of the broccoli, I use about 1/4 of a cup to a 1/2 cup.  Top with shredded cheese and close up the foil so it is completely closed. Bake for about 20-30 minutes depending on if you like your broccoli to have a bit of crunch to it or not.

Tip: I find I usually make my foil sheet short, in that case I just use two place another sheet over top and just close the edges. I put it on a baking sheet in case it leaks, but if I'm really lazy busy I put it right on the oven rack too.

Enjoy!!

Protein Powders

This is a low carb, low sugar gluten free protein powder. It has a bit of an aftertaste, but not too bad. I can drink it without making too many faces. I generally mix it with unsweetened almond milk, but it can be mixed with water, milk or any kind of liquid you prefer. I add it to my green smoothies for an extra boost. So far I have tried: vanilla, chocolate, strawberry and tropical -- I'm not particular on which flavor I have when I need it, I just use what I have on hand. I get them at Heritage Foods in Davenport because I can buy the individual packets.

I have also previously tried Syntrax Nectar Protein Powders. They were surprisingly tasty with unique flavors like lemon tea, roadside lemonade and the normal flavors that protein powders come in. I haven't had them in a while, but I'm pretty sure I just mixed it with water. I plan to order some of the grab and go packets on Amazon so I have them on hand after workouts.

Deli Style bread by Schar

I bought this bread to try this week after I heard a girl in the isle say she really liked it. While it doesn't taste like normal glutenous bread, lets face it no gf bread does...but its not bad. I didn't have to toast it which is always a perk. I just had a piece with butter on it and it wasn't too bad. Would I spend $6/loaf on it, occasionally if I really wanted it, but bread is not a daily staple in my diet and won't be anytime soon.

Kind Bars - Dark Chocolate Sea Salt

Oh how I love Kind bars. I love many flavors and they just keep coming out with more that I cannot resist. This one is my new favorite - its the perfect combination of sweet and salty with only 5 grams of Sugar per bar, plus the protein from nuts in it to make it a great snack to get through the afternoon at work. I found my first one at Heritage Foods in Davenport, but found them cheaper at W. Kimberly Hyvee. Highly recommend...as if buying 5 of them at a time wasn't recommendation enough...I'd order them by the case if they wouldn't have so many tasty flavors that I want to buy. My current favorites are the Dark Chocolate Sea Salt, Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew and the Fruit& Nut bar.

Organic Black Bean Noodles

I know they sound like they wouldn't taste good...trust me I was a bit worried when I cooked them and they look like black skinny worms...but man was I shocked - they are fabulous and sugar free.. My 7 year old son and gluten eating hubby both gobbled them up and I got two thumbs way up on a simple spaghetti dinner. I used Hy-Vee Brand Hot/Spicy sausage, Ragu sauce and the black bean noodles...top it with cheese (how can you go wrong there?) and voila, a quick and easy dinner that was filling and tasty. They do currently have the noodles in stock at the W Kimberly HY-Vee in Davenport.