Every Day is a Good Day for Meatballs!

I love meatballs.  My favorite in the world are the Danish Frikadeller Meatballs, made with a combination of Veal and Pork.  Unfortunately, the ingredients are not clean and the calories are high, so I found myself a substitute recipe. This one is from Tosca Reno in her book, The Eat Clean Diet Cookbook. I like these meatballs cold the next day in my lunch.  Yum!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs. lean ground turkey
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup oat bran or bread crumbs (put day old gluten free or Ezekiel bread in the food processor and pulse-Voila-breadcrumbs!)
2 Tablespoons fresh parsley finely chopped
2 Tablespoons fresh basil finely chopped
2 Tablespoons fresh oregano finely chopped
2 cloves pressed garlic
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400 F.  

In a large bowl place egg and breadcrumbs or oat bran.  Add spices and mix well.  Add remaining ingredients and mix well.  Using an ice cream scoop, make meatballs and place on prepared cookie sheet.  Place in hot oven and bake for 20 minutes or until golden.

Note:  I have made these with dried spices, and cut the amount in half.  Also, I substitute celery salt for the sea salt.  

Makes 6 servings.  Calories 170. Calories from Fat 24. Protein 30 g. Carbs 11 g. Dietary Fiber 2g. Sugars 0.8g. Fat 2 g. Sodium 327mg.

Chicken Stock or Broth for Using for Soup

So, the weather is feeling like fall, football is on, and it is time to get some chicken stock made for freezing.  We use it to saute' veggies in and as a base for many kinds of soup.  My stepdad (Chubs to those of you that know him) makes this regularly, and I carry on the tradition.  

Ingredients:

The bones, skin and any meat left clinging on the carcass of one chicken (I use one of the rotisserie chickens we have picked clean) You can also save up bones and skin in the freezer from several smaller meals and when you have the equivalent of one whole chicken, use that.

4 Quarts cold water
8 peppercorns
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon thyme
6 whole cloves
6 sprigs parsley
1 chopped up whole onion, skin and all
3 ribs celery cut up into chunks, you can use the leaves, too
2 medium carrots, cut up into chunks
Salt and pepper to taste.  I like a lot of salt to give it flavor
1-2 cloves of pressed garlic, skin and all

Preparation:
Simmer everything in a large stock pot for about an hour.  Remove any scum that forms on top and discard.  Turn down to a low simmer and cook for about three hours, until reduced by half.  Strain into a big bowl, keeping just the liquid.  Refrigerate covered overnight.  In the morning, the fat will be floating on top. Skim it off (I use a big spoon) and separate into quart (or a serving size appropriate for your use) containers and freeze.   

Caledon Baked Oatmeal

I got this recipe from my coach, Melanie Mitro.  She made this dish for a recent get together with some family and it was a big hit.  You could even make this dish ahead of time and portion it out for the rest of the week for breakfast. I am going to do this on Sunday for next week, because Jenna is complaining about scrambled eggs every day for breakfast.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups old fashioned oats
• 2 cups low-fat or skim milk or soy milk
• 1/2 tsp best-quality vanilla
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries or other dried fruit of your choice
• 1 large unpeeled MacIntosh apple, grated (apple should be firm)
• 4 tbsp maple syrup
• Eat Clean Cooking spray

Preparation:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Coat a 3 quart casserole dish or baking pan with cooking spray.
• Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.  If you are preparing this the night before don't add the liquid ingredients such as milk and grated apple until the morning.
• Place mixture in casserole dish.  Bake uncovered for 45 minutes.

Tip:  If you have more people to feed, simply double the recipe!

Clean Eating Cooking Spray

Details

A staple for everyone’s kitchen – a healthy cooking spray!

Ingredients

• Extra virgin olive oil.

Preparation

1. Place in food-grade spray bottle to spritz over pans, vegetables, or wherever you need a small amount of oil.