Friday, March 22, 2013

Homemade Peanut Butter

There are tons of recipes and sites for homemade peanut butter online ...... why not add another one?!

It really is easy.  It really is tasty.  And yes, we will be doing it again.  And again.  And again. 

All you need is peanuts!  Our bag yielded 3 cups cleaned peanuts.  I did add a little honey ... 1 tbsp. for moisture.  Some recipes called for oil but I didn't want to add any.  And I threw in a dash of sea salt!  We started by cleaning our peanuts.  Yes, you can use the already cleaned peanuts.  I just found 1 lb 4 oz bags at the flea market today for $1.00.  Thought that was a great price. 

It was a family affair! 


Throw the peanuts in the food processor!  Pulverized for a little bit.   



Then I threw in the honey and sea salt.  Pulverize a little longer! 



The finished product!  Ours isn't as smooth and creamy as store bought because of the no oil.  That is fine with us.  It tastes great.  Honestly, that is what matters.

 
Next ......Almond butter! 
 
Give it a shot!  Let me know what you think! 

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Breretons "Clean" Taco Soup

 
 


All day the family was talking about how good this smelled.  I was a tiny bit worried that they may not like it.  It always makes me happy when a meal comes out of my "own melon" and tastes great.  I'm not always a fan of recipes.  My thought is all recipes started somewhere.  Normally as a thought some chef had!  Remember if you give this a shot that all ingredients are different depending on the brand and that you should always "play around" with recipes and make it your own! 

Here are the ingredients.......

Benita Pinto Beans              1 2lb bag dried beans
Ground lean chicken            2 pounds
Green peppers                      2 large diced
Red Onion                            1 large
Diced tomatoes                     1 28 oz can not drained
Tomato sauce                       1 28 oz can
Ground cumin                      4 tsp
Ground cinnamon                4 tsp
Fresh ground pepper            to my liking
Water                                   16 cups
Parsley
Chives

I cooked the bean for about an hour to get them softened.  Placed in strainer and sprayed off.  I used the pan that they were cooked in and sauteed the onions and peppers.  Really it is steaming as I only use water.  Just until softened.  At the same time, I browned the ground chicken with the cinnamon, cumin, and ground pepper.  When it was done, I added it to the pot with the peppers and onions.  I put the pinto beans back in the pan.  Mixed it up dry.  Then added 16 cups of water.  Put the lid on and let it cook for a few hours on low.  I then added the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, parsley, and chives.  I never measured the parsley or chives just what ever struck my fancy!  LOL And I used dry because that is what I had on hand.  Placed the lid on it and let simmer for about 1 1/2 hours on low. 

We served it up just as you see it in the picture.  No one added salt or pepper to my knowledge.  A first!  The kids topped it with shredded cheese.  Hubby and kids paired it with cornbread crackers.  I have gotten rave reviews all night for it.  Honestly, about 15 minutes ago, my hubby just told me again how wonderful dinner was!  Give it a try and let me know what you think.  Make it your own!