Avocado Salsa

This is a great appetizer my mother-in-law makes. It's so addictive and delicious!

Avocado Salsa

• 1 small onion, chopped
• 15 oz canned corn, drained
• 8 oz canned sliced olives
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1/2 C salad oil
• 1/3 C lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp vinegar
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 5 avocados, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and serve with chips. 

So simple, right? And yet, so delicious. 

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 209 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories  332 Calories from Fat  258

% Daily Value*

Total Fat  28.6g 44%

Saturated Fat  4.2g 21%

Trans Fat  0.0g

Cholesterol  0mg 0%

Sodium  329mg 14%

Total Carbohydrates  20.8g 7%

Dietary Fiber  9.1g 37%

Sugars  3.1g

Protein  3.9g

Vitamin A 14% • Vitamin C 55% Calcium 4% • Iron 10%

Nutrition Grade B

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Nutritional Analysis

Good points

• No cholesterol
• High in dietary fiber
• High in vitamin C

(The nutrition facts are for the salsa only and is based on 10 servings ... it does not include the chips)

Thank you

Today I bought a package of thank you cards and it got me thinking.

I thought about the many things I'm thankful for. I thought about the many people who have touched my life in a positive way; who have lifted and supported me when I was weak; who have seen my unspoken needs and met them; who have set examples I'll never forget.

I decided to read President Thomas S. Monson's October 2010 General Conference address entitled, "The Divine Gift of Gratitude."

President Monson said:

"This is a wonderful time to be on earth. While there is much that is wrong in the world today, there are many things that are right and good. There are marriages that make it, parents who love their children and sacrifice for them, friends who care about us and help us, teachers who teach. Our lives are blessed in countless ways.
We can lift ourselves and others as well when we refuse to remain in the realm of negative thought and cultivate within our hearts an attitude of gratitude. If ingratitude be numbered among the serious sins, then gratitude takes its place among the noblest of virtues. Someone has said that “gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others."

Sometimes, I become hung-up on the things that are going wrong in my life. I dwell on the negative, despite the many wonderful blessings and people I'm surrounded by.

As I was reading, I began thinking of ways I could better express my gratitude. Even more than six months after the fact, the Spirit has a way of teaching me through the words of God's prophets.

"Joseph F. Smith, sixth President of the Church, provided an answer. Said he: “The grateful man sees so much in the world to be thankful for, and with him the good outweighs the evil. Love overpowers jealousy, and light drives darkness out of his life.” He continued: “Pride destroys our gratitude and sets up selfishness in its place. How much happier we are in the presence of a grateful and loving soul, and how careful we should be to cultivate, through the medium of a prayerful life, a thankful attitude toward God and man!”

President Smith is telling us that a prayerful life is the key to possessing gratitude."

Prayer is the answer. 

"My brothers and sisters, to express gratitude is gracious and honorable, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live with gratitude ever in our hearts is to touch heaven."

I could use a touch of heaven.

I am so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who has given me so much. For a Savior who died that I might live again ... and not just alone, but with my family; with the people I love and hold dearest.

I highly recommend reading, re-reading or listening to President Monson's remarks.

Suzie's Chile Verde

Another reason I love the Jorgensen Family Cookbook is because my Aunt Pam submitted many of my Aunt Suzie's recipes. When I was in high school, we lived really close to Aunt Suzie's, and so I had the privilege of trying a lot of her amazing meals. This is one of those -- and one of my favorites (I believe the stuffed bell peppers recipe was also hers).

Suzie's Chile Verde

• 2.5 lb pork shoulder roast (anywhere between two and three pounds is great)
• 15 oz can great northern beans, rinsed and drained (I like more beans in mine, so I used a 28 oz can of pinto)
• 14 oz chicken broth
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 can diced green chilies
• 1 can green Chile Verde sauce (THIS is what I use)
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 16 tortillas
• Cilantro
• Sour cream
• Cheddar cheese
• 1-2 limes

Spray large skillet with nonstick cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Add pork; cook until browned on all sides to sear in juices. 

Combine pork, beans,chicken broth, onion, green chilies, Chile Verde sauce, garlic, cumin, salt and pepper in a slow cooker.

Cover and cook on high 6-8 hours. Gently shred meat inside slow cooker using two forks. 

Serve on tortillas and garnish with cilantro, cheese, sour cream and lime. 

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 238 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories 379 Calories from Fat 178

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 19.8g 30%

Saturated Fat 7.7g 38%

Cholesterol 61mg 20%

Sodium 524mg 22%

Total Carbohydrates 30.1g 10%

Dietary Fiber 8.3g 33%

Sugars 5.9g

Protein 20.2g

Vitamin A 59% • Vitamin C 12% Calcium 11% • Iron 18%

Nutrition Grade C+

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Nutritional Analysis

Good points

• High in vitamin A

(The calories are based on a serving size of one tortilla and 1/16 of the meat mixture. I usually eat two of this size "serving," I just forgot to input it that way in the calorie calculator. Just multiply by two).

It doesn't achieve the highest nutrition grade (I'm not entirely sold on the nutrition grades anyway, but I think they're a good indicator of whether or not you should eat something often), but it sure is tasty and easy to make for guests. 

I could eat this all day long. In fact, I ate some of last nights leftovers about 10 minutes ago. Yes, it was indeed before 10 a.m. (In my defense, I did get up at 5:30 a.m. this morning. It's lunch time in my head). 

Baby on the move

If you're a toy -- or anything that captures Peyton's attention, for that matter -- you'd better watch out. Peyton's a mover now (Yikes!), and a pretty quick one, at that.

Since Monday, he's been scooting all over the apartment ... getting into things, discovering the TV has buttons ... it's clear we haven't baby-proofed well enough.

So here's the proof:

There are others where you can see him moving really well across the floor, but they're a little too long. Maybe I'll post more if I can get the movie editing software to work =)

Stuffed Bell Peppers

Last night we had some friends over and this is what I made. Dan and I loved it ... hopefully they did too =)

I was actually a little surprised at how healthy this was ... and oh, was it good! I thought this dish was great for entertaining because it looks so pretty and summery.

The recipe came from the Jorgensen Family Cookbook I mentioned HERE. The cookbook says it belongs to my Aunt Pam, but I'm pretty sure she got it from my Aunt Suzie =)

This was prior to baking, but I was cutting it close on time. The only difference is that the cheese would be melted  =)

Stuffed Bell Peppers

• 6 green bell peppers (I used 4 green, one yellow and one orange since that's what we had)
• 1 lb ground beef or turkey (The nutrition facts below are for beef)
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 2/3 C brown rice (The recipe calls for white rice, I used brown ... just make sure you cook it extra long if you use the brown)
• 15 oz can tomato sauce
• 15 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 C Colby-jack cheese, grated (I think cheddar would also be great ... the recipe calls for Parmesan, but I thought the Colby would taste better)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Cut the tops off peppers and remove seeds. Parboil for 3 minutes in boiling water (For those of you who would need to look up what "parboil" means [yeah, that was me], it means to partially cook in boiling water. Basically, just submerge the peppers in boiling water for 3 minutes and then pull them out and let them cool). Cool. 

In a large skillet, brown meant and onion. Season with salt and pepper. Add rice and tomato sauce. As rice cooks and absorbs liquid, add water as needed and cook 20 minutes or until rice is tender. 

Spoon meat mixture into pepper halves and place in baking dish. Pour diced tomatoes over top and top the whole thing with sprinkled cheese. 

Bake at 350 F for 20-25 minutes. 

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 376 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories 324 Calories from Fat 80

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 8.9g 14%

Saturated Fat 4.0g 20%

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 76mg 25%

Sodium 491mg 20%

Total Carbohydrates 31.0g 10%

Dietary Fiber 5.3g 21%

Sugars 10.3g

Protein 29.4g

Vitamin A 93% • Vitamin C 278% Calcium 11% • Iron 24%

Nutrition Grade A

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Nutritional Analysis

Good points

• High in manganese
• High in selenium
• Very high in vitamin A
• High in vitamin B6
• High in vitamin B12
• Very high in vitamin C
• High in zinc

Homemade Spaghetti Sauce & Meatballs

This was my first attempt at making spaghetti sauce from scratch ... and, if I do say so myself, it was amazing. I pulled the meatball and sauce recipe from HERE, but I tweaked it a little bit. Mostly, I just substituted fresh herbs and tomatoes for dried/canned. I'll give you my recipe below.



Homemade Spaghetti and Meatballs

Meatballs

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 cup Italian bread crumbs
• 3 Tbsp fresh parsley
• 1 Tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/8 tsp garlic powder
• 1 egg, beaten

Sauce

• 3/4 C chopped onion
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 C olive oil
• 5 tomatoes, diced
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp granulated sugar
• 1 bay leaf
• 6 oz tomato paste (1 can)
• 1 1/2 Tbsp fresh basil, shredded
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper

In a large bowl, combine ground beef, bread crumbs, parsley, Parmesan, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, garlic powder and beaten egg. Mix well and form into approximately 20 balls. Store, covered, in refrigerator until needed.


In a large saucepan over medium heat, saute onion and garlic in olive oil until onion is translucent. Stir in tomatoes, salt, sugar and bay leaf. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 90 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, basil, 1/2 teaspoon pepper and meatballs and simmer 30 minutes more. Serve over 1 lb cooked whole wheat spaghetti noodles.


We were having company the night I made this ... and I didn't quite have time to let it simmer the full 90 minutes. I let it simmer about 30, then I added the meatballs and let it simmer another 30. It still turned out great! 

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 341 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories 642 Calories from Fat 162

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 18.0g 28%

Saturated Fat 3.8g 19%

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 99mg 33%

Sodium 1210mg 50%

Total Carbohydrates 81.8g 27%

Dietary Fiber 10.2g 41%

Sugars 11.6g

Protein 38.7g

Vitamin A 30% • Vitamin C 40% Calcium 11% • Iron 42%

Nutrition Grade B

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Taco Salad Bowl

This is my own version of a taco salad ... and it's surprisingly healthy and delicious! This is our go-to meal when we're short on time. It's also very filling.

• 2 whole wheat tortillas
• 3 C romaine lettuce, shredded
• 15 oz black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 C salsa
• 2 tsp Ranch dressing
• 1/4 C cheddar cheese, grated
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1 tomato, diced
• 1/8 tsp chicken bouillon

Heat olive oil over medium heat. Saute garlic and onion until they begin to brown. Stir in black beans and chicken bouillon and cook until thoroughly heated.

Press each tortilla into a large cereal or soup bowl. Add 1 1/2 C lettuce to each bowl. Split the beans, onion and garlic between the two bowls. Top with cheese, avocado, tomato, salsa and ranch.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 570 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories 635 Calories from Fat 278

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 30.9g 48%

Saturated Fat 6.5g 32%

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 16mg 5%

Sodium 1212mg 50%

Total Carbohydrates 80.0g 27%

Dietary Fiber 22.5g 90%

Sugars 7.6g

Protein 23.6g

Vitamin A 21% • Vitamin C 34% Calcium 30% • Iron 40%

Nutrition Grade B

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

Nutritional Analysis

Good points

• Low in cholesterol
• High in dietary fiber