Easy Enchilada Sauce

I love enchiladas but for years I couldn't eat them because the canned sauces always had MSG in them. MSG and I do not get along. For some reason I don't care for the nasty headache and muscle ache that comes with whatever I eat that has that in it. Call me crazy...but I try to avoid feeling like that. A few years ago my friend Colleen wanted to make them for me but we had to do something different for the sauce and I found this recipe on line. I've played with it a bit over the years and mine is very, very similar but has just a few tweaks.

Just a word of warning. This stuff is GOOD. Not just lick the spoon good. It's more of a 'must resist from eating like a soup' good. Enjoy!

Taco Seasoning

My family loves tacos. It is one meal that I know everyone will eat and I love that it's an easy one to make sure everyone gets lots of veggies!

What I hate is that most of the spice packets/mixes you can buy have lots of additives and extras that I don't want. Especially MSG. I'm one of the lucky ones who happens to be allergic. Not as bad as my allergy to Cilantro...but an allergy all the same.

So I came up with my own spice mix. Easy to make and super easy to use. My family loves it and that had no idea that I made it on my own until I told them. Hope your family loves it too. Enjoy!

Killer Cornbread

This is a simple and sweet cornbread. It works every time I make it and everyone who tries it loves it. Now...keep in mind I live in Minnesota. Someone from south of the Mason-Dixon line might think that this is Cornbread Sacrilege because this is a sweet cornbread. Sorry. I've tried it your way and we hate it. By we I mean my entire family. If I make it using any less honey then I've listed it goes to waste. So Southerners you've been warned. ;) Everyone else should be good to go. Especially if you like the cornbread from Boston Market. This is a very similar recipe.

And it's super easy to make this cornbread into a full meal and not just a side dish. Top pieces of cornbread with any of 'toppings' you can think of and you are good to go. Leftover chili, taco meat, veggies, canned beans, fresh chopped veggies and cheese are all just starting points. Have fun and enjoy!

Overnight Oatmeal (AKA Sweet & Creamy Steel Cut Oats)

A few weeks ago I wanted to attempt this overnight oatmeal I had heard so much about. I couldn't find the recipe my friends had talked about but I found a different one and started working on that...and just as I had dumped a LOT of ingredients in the crock pot someone found the recipe I was supposed to be using. Opps. The recipe I was working on was about 3 times the amount I needed.

It was too late to take out the brown sugar and spices to I decided to try my own version of Overnight Oatmeal. I added to the ingredients I already had to make a base, measured out a more reasonable amount of oats and let the crock pot do the work. The results were super yummy but I needed to try it a few more times just to make sure it wasn't a fluke. Now that it's been taste tested and approved by multiple sources I can now post it here. Enjoy!

Thai Peanut Noodles

When it's too hot to cook and I need something quick, this is the go to meal. Good served hot, great at room temp and almost better served cold the next day. This dish also pairs really well with the cucumber salad I posted yesterday. Enjoy!

Sloppy Joes (For Rebecca)

EDITED 6/12: OH NO! This recipe was supposed to say Chicken Gumbo Soup. It's the secret ingredient and well...Chicken Noodle just ain't the same thing. Sorry folks!

Of all the things I make, this is my husband's favorite. He requests it so often that for a few years I told him he could only have it on his birthday...I was just burned out. LOL

Well...I've been making them a little more lately because they are high in iron and an easy food to get the Sous Chef to eat and she needs lots of calories and iron right now. I made them for my friend Rebecca's family and they liked them too. So much so that she asked for the recipe. One problem. I didn't have one! I'd always just 'winged it' and done it by memory.

So my family has had to suffer through Sloppy Joes once a week until I could actually get the recipe written down the right way. Somehow they have survived. ;)

Here is another cool trick about Sloppy Joes. They are a great vessel to "sneak" other foods into. Oatmeal, baby cearal, pureed veggies or fruits...they all mix in well and unless you have Sloppy Joe Purists (like my husband) no one will be the wiser. Enjoy!

Homemade "Mrs.Butterworth's" Syrup

I used the recipe for Homemade "Maple" Syrup to give me inspiration for a syrup that we like a little more then the pure stuff. OMG was it good! Enjoy!

Homemade "Maple" Syrup

I can't take credit for this recipe. My good friend Robin shared it with me and she got it from TheVeganLunchBox blog. It's so easy and so yummy! It even fooled my family. Well..until I told them I made it because I was so proud of it. And no HFCS either! YEAH!