Banana Walnut Grain-Free Granola

Ok, I'm just going to come right out and say it. I mean, there's no point in pretending that we're not all thinking about the elephant in the post here! Grain-free granola is FREAKING expensive. I mean seriously, "Can I get a witness"!?! Yet in spite of the cost, I find myself making it again and again and again. WHY? Because I like it. No let's be honest here....I LOVE it.



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Chorizo Sausage & Mushroom Rigatoni

Chorizo Sausage & Mushroom Rigatoni

This pasta dish is delicious because the sausages are full of flavour, making the sauce rich and comforting.

Serves 4

Prep time:  10 minutes

Cooking time:  35 minutes

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

1 small red onion, peeled & finely chopped

1 large garlic clove, peeled & finely chopped

300g chorizo sausages, skins removed & chopped

100g Portobello mushrooms, sliced

400g can of chopped plum tomatoes

50ml double cream

Freshly ground salt & pepper

400g rigatoni or penne

Pecorino or parmesan cheese, grated to serve

Preparation method

1.  In a large frying pan or wok heat the olive oil and add the onion and garlic.  Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring until the onions have softened.

2.  Now add the sausage meat, stir and cook over a medium heat for 5-7 minutes.  Add the mushrooms and cook for a further 3 minutes.

3.  Add the tomatoes and cook for 20 minutes, finish by adding the double cream, keep the sauce at a simmer.  If the liquid reduces too much add some of the pasta water.  Season to taste.

4.  Meanwhile cook the pasta as per packet instructions and drain.  Place the pasta in the hot sauce and mix well over a low heat.  Serve the pasta in 4 pasta bowls and sprinkle with the cheese.  Enjoy!

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Giveaway & Cool Stuff: How to store Victoria's Gourmet Seasonings

A few months ago when I received sample seasoning blends from Victoria's Gourmet, I was overwhelmed! There were so many of them! The seasoning blends came in super cute little tins, but I couldn't figure out where in the world I was going to store them. 

I have a TINY kitchen and my spice/seasoning shelf space is minimal and completely full at the moment! I also knew if I didn't keep the spices in sight, I probably wouldn't use them. So where in the world to put them... 

And then it dawned on me... I remembered seeing stores sell little tins with a magnet on the back of them for spices that could be stored on the fridge. Despite being cramped already, I could certainly put these little tins on the fridge... 

Now let me tell you something... I'm NOT a crafter... Pinterest usually bores me... and any hobby that needs more "stuff" than I already have just isn't my cup of tea... so just the thought of doing a "craft" was amusing... BUT... 

I soldiered on and bought some some small round magnets and some super bonder glue stuff that supposedly sticks anything to anything. One evening after work I took all the little tins and glued the magnets to the back of them. These were smaller magnets and if I did this project again, I would have found ones that were a little stronger and maybe a little larger... but regardless... the end result was pretty cute: 

These small magnets weren't strong enough to hold the tins up without support on the fridge alone, but when the tins were stacked up against each other they had support and didn't move! Voila... magnetized storage!

My favorite part? I LOVED the colors! It really added some pop to my kitchen and I now I actually use these spices all the time because I can see them. The cool thing about having them in this arrangement is that if you pull out a spice somewhere in the "magnetized seasoning tower" they just scoot down as if you were playing spices "Tetris!" My husband thinks it awesome and he was so surprised by my creativity!

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Please see my previous two posts reviewing Victoria's Gourmet Seasonings: 

- Ground Beef, Kale, and Caramelized Onions with Victoria's Gourmet Seasonings

- DIY Quinoa Mixes with Victoria's Gourmet Seasonings

The Giveaway is now over! 

Congrats to PJ! 

I hope you enjoy your new set of Victoria Gourmet Seasonings! 

The Giveaway:

• I am giving away a Tin Trio of Victoria's Gourmet gourmet seasonings (3 seasoning blends) and a brand new Victoria's Gourmet Cookbook. 
• This giveaway is limited to residents of the 48 contiguous United States aged 18 and older.
• One entry per person.
• Enter by leaving a comment below on this post AND please include a way for me to contact you -- your email address preferably.
• The giveaway begins January 14, 2013 and ends on January 18, 2013  at 11:00 pm eastern time.
• No purchase is necessary.  Odds of winning are based on the number of entries.  
• The winners will be randomly chosen and will be contacted by email.  The winners will have 24 hours to respond.  If the winner does not respond, a new winner will be randomly chosen.

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GLG Disclosure: 

Victoria's Gourmet Seasonings provided me with free samples of their seasoning blends and their cookbook for the purpose of sharing an online review, if I chose to do so -- ALONG with 1 brand new copy to giveaway. This is not a sponsored post and I did not receive compensation. The opinions in this post are completely my own.

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Orange and White Chocolate Cake

Orange & White Chocolate Cake

A fantastic light orange and almond sponge covered in a delicious white chocolate topping

Serves 10

Prep time 30 minutes

Cooking time 40 minutes

Ingredients

175g butter, softened, plus extra for greasing

175g golden caster sugar

4 oranges, zest of 4, juice of 1

4 eggs, separated

100g self-raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

100g ground almonds

For the topping

200g white chocolate

200ml creme fraiche

100g white chocolate, to decorate

Preparation method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas Mark 4.  Grease two 20cm sandwich tins and line the bases with baking parchment.

2. Place the sugar into a large bowl and add the butter and orange zest, beat until the mixture is pale and fluffy then add the egg yolks.  Sift the flour and baking powder over the mixture and fold through lightly.  Then fold through the almonds and orange juice.  

3. In a separate bowl whisk the egg whites until they can hols their shape.  Now fold through a third of the egg whites into the cake mixture.  Repeat with another third and then the final third.  Try not to over mix the mixture otherwise you will lose the lightness.

4. Divide the cake mix between the 2 cake tins and bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes.  Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes and then remove and leave to cool on a wire rack.

5. For the topping, place the chocolate in a bowl and melt over a slightly simmering pan of water and leave to cool.  In a separate bowl whip the crème fraiche until it is thick then fold through the white chocolate.  Place one cake on a serving plate and spoon half the icing onto the cake and top with the other layer of cake.  Spread the rest of the icing on top then allow to set in the fridge for at least one hour.

6. To decorate the cake, melt the remaining chocolate and spread thinly over a baking tray.  Leave to set in the fridge then use an angled knife blade to scrape chocolate curls.  Pile the curls in the middle of the cake.  Cut into slices and enjoy!

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Spicy Baked Tex-Mex Meatballs (Paleo, Grain Free, Gluten Free)

I tried to think of something funny and witty, or even romantic (yes....food romance, I like to call it "fromance") to write before I posted this recipe. THAT was 3 weeks ago. After numerous emails asking..."Hey where's that Texas meat ball recipe that you promised?", I realized that I should set aside the aspirations of brilliant witty writing this go around and just post the recipe..

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DIY - Instant Quinoa Meal Mixes with Victoria's Gourmet Seasonings

When I first started using the different spice mixes of Victoria's Gourmet I truly had no idea how versatile they could be.

When my Dad was sick a few months ago, we had many meals with my step-mom Betty and one night she made an "instant" quinoa mix. I had no idea they made instant quinoa meals... and what a great idea! It's such a healthy "carb" with tons of protein and fiber and it cooks so quickly, it's perfect for weeknight meals. I looked for some of the instant meals when I got back home and couldn't find any at our local grocery store.

Then it dawned on me last night... I could make my own! With all of the different seasoning mixes that Victoria's Gourmet offers, it would be super easy to make my own quinoa mixes. Quinoa cooks in about 15 minutes, so all I would have to do is mix up 1 cup of dry (pre-rinsed variety) quinoa with 1-2 tablespoons of my favorite Victoria's Gourmet seasonings. Add quinoa and seasoning to a baggie or glass jar, seal and voila... an instant side dish or starter for a meal! How cute would that be as a Christmas gift? And so darn easy!

Here are just a few of the seasoning mixes from Victoria's Gourmet that I think would make a really delicious instant quinoa meal mix.

• Want a French inspired meal? Use 1-2 tablespoons of Herbs de Provence with a unique blend of 7 different herbs including lemon, lavender, and rosemary. 
• Use 1-2 tablespoons of the Holiday seasoning mix if you want a traditional "stuffing" flavor! 
• For a quick kid-friendly side dish try adding 1 tablespoons Pizza seasoning blend + 2-3 tablespoons parmesan cheese.  
• For a quick instant breakfast use 1 tablespoon of Pie Spices seasoning blend along with 1-2 tablespoons of brown sugar per 1 cup of quinoa! 
• Enjoy middle eastern dishes? Try 1-2 tablespoons of the Moroccan seasoning blend with 1 cup of quinoa. 
• For an Asian flair try the Ginger Citrus seasoning blend. Still need more ideas? Check out all 22 seasoning blend varieties from Victoria's Gourmet. 

Last night I served a deli roast chicken with a side dish of green beans with almonds, baked sweet potatoes, and this instant quinoa with 1 tablespoon of Victoria's Gourmet Tuscan seasoning blend. It was delicious. Not overly powerful with just a hint of Italian flavors.

How to cook quinoa (pronounced keen-wah): 
Shared by Carrie of Gingerlemongirl.com
(This is the brand of quinoa I have been using, I love how easy it is to use since it is already pre-rinsed.) 

1. Add 1 tablespoon of the seasoning mix of choice + 1 cup of dry pre-rinsed quinoa to a medium-sized pot. If desired, add 1 tablespoon of butter or olive oil. 
2. Add 2 cups of water to the quinoa & seasoning. Mix thoroughly and bring to a boil for 5 minutes. Turn down to medium heat and simmer, covered for 15-18 minutes until the small spirals of the grain separate from the germ (little squiggles) and the grain is fluffy and light. 
3. Allow to cool for several minutes and serve. 
4. (You could also totally (yep... totally! lol) MAKE quinoa in a rice cooker! Easy Peasy! Just follow the instructions for rice!) 

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Please see my first review of Victoria's Gourmet seasoning sharing how I often make quick & easy weeknight meals using different VG seasoning blends! For my final review next week there will be a Victoria's Gourmet seasoning giveaway to one lucky winner! I'll share those details later, so stay tuned for how you can win a trio of spice/seasoning mixes from VG!

GLG Disclosure: Victoria Gourmet provided me with free samples of all their seasoning blends, in order to do an online review if I chose to do so. This is not a sponsored post and I did not receive compensation. The opinions in this post are completely my own. 

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new year, new you, canned beef stew...

Because today started out with a migraine... day two (no headache remedy tips necessary, trust me, I've tried them all).

Because it wasn't gluten. Really, it wasn't. It was just a migraine.

Means I didn't pack lunch for my first day back at work. But I had these little Hormel Beef Stew containers in my desk drawer at lunch.

And they are gluten-free. Yes. They really are. I called the company. Ignore the sodium content, you don't want to know.

You're Welcome Tip: Make sure to heat the stew up in A LARGER container in the microwave, like my favorite multi-use pottery bowl/mug and cover with a paper towel.

Otherwise the small container will explode (my guess as to why they sold it at the dollar store) and you'll have to clean that up. At work. And it WILL smell up your office ALL day long.

But really, it's a pretty decent lunch for 150 gluten-free calories.

Thanks Dinty Moore beef stew (in a different container)... I don't get it either... just go with it.

I KNOW... I'll have a green smoothie when I get home to make up for it... but really gluten-free convenience, especially when you have a migraine is pretty awesome stuff.

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