Showing posts with label THM. Show all posts
Showing posts with label THM. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Mama Kolz's Summer Breakfast Scramble

The zucchini in the garden are loving our weather. And I'm loving the zucchini. Here's what our children had for breakfast this morning. Feel free to substitute things you may have in your pantry, garden or refrigerator for what I listed. This is your scramble! I can make it Trim, Healthy, Mama friendly, and add bread and jam for my children who are not eating on a diet plan. This would be an S meal on the Trim Healthy Mama plan.

My favorite chickens lay colored eggs. If you don't live near farms -- check your farmers market for the healthiest eggs you can find. Our farmer friend has silly, cheerful chickens who are let out of their pen each morning (where they are safe from Mama Foxes feeding their young kits) to peck at grass and weed seeds and bugs and fruit and watermelon rinds and all the trimmings from the farm wife's vegetables. They look a lot like bowl of eggs.

I use a huge skillet, probably 14 inches across. I add some butter or coconut oil, about a tablespoon, and let it melt on low while I'm chopping a large zucchini into very small dices. I pretend I'm a chef on TV, and I use my bright orange handled Rachael Ray knives that Farmboy bought me for my birthday a few years ago. It's great fun to be me sometimes! In fact, I had so much fun with the basic set, that my husband then bought me this for Christmas - Cool but affordable Japanese Santoku chef knife.



But I digress. After I toss the zucchini into the hot oil or butter, I finely dice a red or white super sweet onion. We grow the candy sweet variety, but do the best you can with the local sweet onions -- the sweeter they are -- the better breakfast tastes. Put 1/2 of the onion into a zipper bag or a storage container an keep it in the refrigerator for another day or the freezer if you're not cooking again soon and toss the second half into the zucchini. Soften and allow the veggies to turn a little golden, and then add in 1/2 cup of diced ham, or a chopped tin of SPAM, TREET, or other canned brand of luncheon meat. I've also used leftover meat from dinner, chopped sausage, or even bologna, salami, etc.  You want about 1/2 cup for flavor. If your meat isn't very flavorful, then a teaspoon of mince garlic is very nice to add. Sprinkle the veggies with some garlic salt or sea salt, and toss it about in the pan, then put the lid on for a moment while you crack open 8 large eggs into a bowl, whisk until smooth, and then pour over your cooked meat and veggies. Stir gently, turn the heat to low, and gently fold inward until the scrambled eggs are done to your likeness. I put the lid on before I think they're finished cooking, and turn off the heat, and get the breakfast plates ready. When I return the eggs are perfect. Scoop into 4-6 portions and serve your family with a smile. I love to top our Summer Scramble with a hearty shredding of Romano cheese made from our goat milk, but a bit of a parmesan cheese wedge, cut off with a fruit peeler into a few curls, makes this very special!

1 T butter or coconut oil
1 large zucchini, small dice
1/2 sweet onion, small dice
8 large free range eggs, whisked
1/2 cup cooked meat of your choice:  sausage, salami, Treet, Spam, Ham, or leftover meats
3 good shakes of Real Salt
Garlic salt to taste

Optional: Curls of Parmesan or Romano cheese for garnish

Melt oil of your choice in a large skillet 10-14 inches diameter. On medium high add zucchini and onion and soften the veggies, then add cooked meat and heat through. Pour in whisked eggs, turn the heat to low,  stir to the center gently when curds form, and right before they look finished and dry enough, turn off the heat and put the lid on. Serves 4-6 depending on how large your zucchini may be.  Excellent served with toast with Dutch Apple Pie Jam. That recipe will follow.


Today the children ate theirs with 3 cherry tomatoes from the garden on the side, and their scramble made with Spam, zucchini, red candy sweet onion, alongside a slice of bread with butter and homemade Dutch Apple Pie Jam. It's a good meal, any time of the day! Enjoy summer while you can.


Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Trim Healthy Mama! Cabrini Greenie Casserole

I revisited this recipe - Cabrini Greenie Casserole, after starting the Trim, Healthy, Mama Plan -- because it took just a little adaptation to be trimming and slimming and still delicious. I hope you give it a try. If you prefer, you can skip the pasta and make a side of Zucchini ribbon noodles and pour the sauce over the top rather than bake it, or you can use a Gluten Free option if your family is Gluten Intolerant, rather than following the THM plan. However you make it, I'm sure it's going to be a favorite. <3 KelliSue

I made this Greenie dinner tonight, after adapting it to my pantry and provisioning.  It is so delicious.  I'm posting the original Cabrini Spinach recipe, and then the alterations I made so you can make one or both or even your own version. I reduced the fat in this dish by cutting out one cup of cheese, switched up the frying fat to coconut oil which raises your body's ability to burn your energy, and used low fat sour cream.  Extra sharp cheese has reduced or no lactose, which gives us here a little dietary wiggle room here in using sour cream in a dish. You can substitute Greek Yogurt for 1 cup of the sour cream without affecting the flavor and you'll increase the protein. THIS is a One-Pot wonder!

KelliSue's Cabrini Greenie Casserole - with my apologies to the Junior League
1 16oz. or so box of rotini - I use Dreamfields brand rotini, (with 5 grams available carbs) cooked in well-salted water until barely tender, drained
1/2 cup butter or coconut oil
3 cups of chopped cooked swiss chard, stems finely chopped, or spinach, drained
2.5 to 3 cups of shredded extra sharp cheese or your favorite
1 diced onion
1 cup of diced mushrooms (I used foraged wild mushrooms)
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed - sprinkled with season salt
2 cups of sour cream (low fat works perfect here) or Greek Yogurt for even less fat
6 grinds of freshly ground black pepper
For those following the THM plan please grind up some On Plan bread crumbs from Joseph's lavash bread or pitas, etc.,
For those not on this plan Panko style bread crumbs work well.


In a large bowl, stir together cheese, sour cream, pepper.  Pour the not fully cooked, hot drained pasta over the top, and gently combine. Meanwhile, saute  the onion, mushrooms, and chicken in 1/2 cup of coconut oil or  When the chicken is cooked through and the onions are softened, combine with the pasta mixture and place in a 9x13" casserole dish. Top with a layer of Panko style bread crumbs, and spray with butter flavored or coconut oil spray.   Bake uncovered at 400*F for 30 minutes.  The breadcrumbs get nice and crunchy and the casserole becomes one delicious pan of cheesey melty goodness.  Makes 8-10 servings.  The original calorie count is below. I'm sure my version was improved! You can keep this vegetarian by omitting the meat. 

My family's reaction to this casserole, which goes nicely with homemade bread by the way, was "make this one again Mom".  My husband liked how delicious it was, and was happy that the chard came from the garden.  As for me - I like one dish meals.  You might want to put in 1 lb. kielbasa, cut into coins, instead of the chicken breast, or use some leftover ham cubes another time.  This wasn't an expensive dish, using garden produce, 1 box of pasta, 1 lb. leftover or planned over meat, 3 cups of shredded cheese, and a .99 pint of low fat sour cream.  I'll be blanching swiss chard and putting it in the freezer so we can enjoy this one again in the deep freeze of the winter months in Upstate New York.

KelliSue Kolz


Cabrini Spinach
Recipe From: Creme de Colorado by The Junior League of Denver


9 oz spaghetti, broken into pieces, cooked al dente and drained
1/2 cup butter, melted
20 oz frozen spinach, cooked and drained (2 boxes cut-leaf spinach)
4 cups shredded Monterey jack cheese
1/4 lb mushrooms, sliced
2 cups sour cream
1/4 cup diced onion
1 dash dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
1/4tsp freshly ground black pepper

In a large bowl, stir together all ingredients. Place in a 9x13" casserole dish. Bake uncovered at 350oF for 45 minutes. Makes 8-10 servings.
Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 461 Calories; 33g Fat (63.8% calories from fat); 18g Protein; 24g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 85mg Cholesterol; 458mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1-1/2 Grain(Starch); 1-1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 5-1/2 Fat.