Sweet & Spicy Slaw w/ Stove Top BBQ Beans

What's better on a hot 95 degree day than some cool slaw and some spicy beans?

 This past weekend, my husband and I went to a BBQ that was serving Tennessee Tacos.

I had one and promised myself I'd make a healthy version with less sugar and more spice.

The soft tortilla is a great way to combine these two flavors. 

You get a little of this and some of that in each bite.

When I went to the store to get the basics for this meal, I thought about how many types of beans there are available, but not many healthier brands.  I did get organic black and kidney beans but this meal could have a lot of extra sugar.

So I decided to make the beans and slaw myself and control the sugar with Stevia.

I have never made homemade baked beans before but in looking at a few of the cans, they didn't seem that hard to cook up on my own.

These definitely look a little different than store bought.  I thought that they were going to taste

like pasta sauce when I first saw them cooking.  But they don't at all.

They have a sweet background with a pinch of spice that can easily increase with more red pepper.

Stove Top BBQ Baked Beans:

Mix all ingredients in a 3 Quart Sauce Pan -

3 Cups Water
3 Cans of Black Beans, rinsed and drained
1 Can Kidney Beans, rinsed and drained
1 15 oz. can Tomato Paste
2 Vegetable Bullion Cubes
1 tsp. Sea Salt
1/2 tsp. Black Pepper
1 Tbs. Chili Powder
1 tsp. Garlic Powder
4 Tbs. Brown Sugar
1/8 Cup Honey
1/2 Cup Spicy Brown Mustard


I used my homemade brown sugar in this
and it really was nice to have fresh soft sugar to work with.

1-3 tsp. Red Pepper Flakes
1/8 Cup Ground Flax Seed (optional)

Heat on low at least 1 hour, stirring to prevent burning.
Serve with Spicy Slaw inside a wrap or soft tortilla.

*Optional:  Chop one cooked Pork Chop and add that in.

I used my homemade Whole Grain Spicy Brown Mustard
in the beans, so good and easy to make.

Sweet & Spicy Slaw:

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl.
Keep refrigerated.  Flavors are best next day when they've had time to meld.

3 Cups chopped Cabbage/Carrot Slaw mixture
3/4 - 1 Cup of Miracle Whip Mayo or Vegan Mayo
(start with 3/4 cup and then add more if you'd like it creamier)
1 tsp. Powdered Stevia
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. Black Pepper
1/4 Cup Spicy Brown Mustard
1 Tbs. Celery Salt
1 Tbs. Honey *optional

An easy Summer meal with lots of fiber, a little sugar and a whole lot of flavor.

Enjoy!

Peach Apple Salsa

 Sometimes recipes come from strange places in our imaginations...........           Other times, we just need to clean out the fridge.

Dice up your ingredients

Apple Peach Salsa

(Makes about 4 Cups)
4 Jalapeno Peppers, diced
1 Red Onion, diced
3 Celery Stalks, diced small
1 Small Can of Peaches, drained and diced
1 Granny Smith Apple, diced, toss in lemon juice to prevent browning
1 Can Black Beans, rinsed well
Small bunch of Cilantro, leaves only, chopped
1 Cup of Enchilada Red Sauce
2 Tbs. Honey
2 tsp. Garlic Powder
Salt and Pepper to taste (about 1/2 tsp. each)

Mix all ingredients and allow to sit in the fridge
for a few hours to meld the flavors.

This can be also be 'canned' to preserve.
15 minutes processing time - water bath.

Find a good Gluten free chip or make your own!

This one would work as a topping for fish or chicken too.  It's light with a good punch of flavor.

If you'd like it spicier, just leave in the seeds when you dice the jalapenos. 

Used up a lot of good fresh ingredients for this one.
Enjoy!

Be sure you're entered in the NuNaturals giveaway.  Contest ends Saturday.

Sugar Free Sunflower Seed Butter

This is the Sunflower Seed Butter mixed with a Mocha powder.  Lot's of variety options for this.

Blend the nuts, scraping down sides until
the smooth texture you want is made.
You can add in a variety of flavors to this
base or just enjoy the Sunflower flavor.

 

I'm storing the Sunflower Seed Butter in a canning jar.
Don't think that this one can be preserved by canning method but stores in the freezer well for at least 1 year.

This nut butter has so many variations:

Use Cashews, Almonds, Walnuts, Hazelnuts or Brazil nuts instead of Sunflowers.

I used Sunflower Seeds today because I found 1 pound for just $2.50

so

it's definitely an economical option to store bought nut butters.

After I made up this first batch of Sunflower Seed Butter, I poured half in another container.

Then I stirred in 1 Tbs. of Cocoa Powder and 1 Tbs. of Caffix Coffee Substitute to

make a Mocha version of this dipping sauce. 

It can be flavored many different ways to suit your own tastes.  Vanilla, Raspberry, or mix in your favorite jam to create an even richer sauce.  It can be heated to pour over desserts as well.

This Sunflower Seed Butter makes a great gift too.  Make up a few batches, pour into jars and store them in the freezer for last minute gifts.  They will keep for at least a year if kept sealed and frozen.

Enjoy!

Spiced Up Pears

I had some help from Mr. Floydy this afternoon canning up some spiced pears. 

I canned some pears 2 years ago to give as gifts (ate 2 jars myself though)  and everyone loved them.

This batch, I decided to use a little more spice and to leave the skins on too.

They turned out really nicely sweetened and with a tender but not mushy texture.

I think leaving the skins on helped the slices to not break apart so much as my first batch did.  The first batch tasted fine but this one was more like fresh fruit.  Here's the link for my first batch:

http://cannedtime.blogspot.com/2010/12/spiced-pears.html

Spiced Up Canned Pears                                   

5 - 6  Pears Cored and Sliced (any type or a mix)

1 Cup of filtered warm water

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1/2 tsp. Ground Cloves

1/2 tsp. Nutmeg

1/2 tsp. Allspice

3 Tbs. Coconut Palm Sugar (or other sweetener)

2 droppers full of lemon flavored liquid Stevia (or 1 tsp. of lemon juice + 1 tsp. Stevia Powder)

Add in additional Stevia to taste and ripeness of the pears. 

Heat water to a boil, add in pear slices and all other ingredients.
Reduce heat to simmer and cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes
then remove from heat while you fill the jars.

Spoon Pear slices into 2 - 3 Pint Size Canning jars. 
Fill pear filled jars with cooking water to 1/2 inch head space in each jar.
(see Water bath canning process)

20 minutes processing time. 
Remove from water and cool in a non drafty area for at least 12 hours.

Remove outer rings and rinse jars before storing for up to 2 years in a cool dark area.

Of course if you don't want to go through the canning process, these would be fine just stored in the fridge for a couple weeks.  Not sure about how the texture would be if frozen though.

The Water Bath process is easy once you learn it and makes having homemade goodies so nice in your storage for years!

Enjoy!

Vegan Southern Style Banana Pudding

This is a pretty good substitute for the real thing and much healthier than the average banana pudding.

                                                                                                                                                       

I picked up these gorgeous little bowls this weekend at a little Antique shop and had to come up with a special dessert to show them off.  The bananas (and the chocolate cookies) really brought out the golden glass.

I did spice it up some today with the chocolate dipped cookies I used but other than that it's awefully good for you, body and soul..........

I placed the extra bananas and cookies into bowls and then poured the cooked pudding right on top.

I think this dairy and processed sugar free version will make anyone crave a big spoonful!

It's a childhood favorite and my Mom always made it so good........... 

It was tempting to just make it the old fashioned way. 
                          But this one will definitely do for flavor and texture                             

Make sure that your bananas are ripe to past ripe so they are sweet enough.

Enjoy!

Thanks for the Holiday LEDS Giveaway entries.  Winner will be announced Tuesday.

Almond Meal Crackers

My Sister made this wonderfully nutritious Almond Meal Crackers and one thing she mentioned that caught my ear..."They're crispy!" 

I so miss having lots of crunchy snacks these days so I will definitely be trying out

her recipe this weekend! 

She also said she's had to hide them from the hubby which is always a

 good sign that something is tasty!  

The recipe shows baking in the oven but she did them in her dehydrator on 135

for 20 hours and they were fine.

Thanks for all the NuNaturals Lemon and Orange Stevia Giveaway entries!

Dandelion Greens Strawberry Salad

A quick dinner tonight.  Really hectic work week but I have to get some good greens in me.
Nothing better than freshly picked Dandelion greens with big beautiful Strawberries and a light vinaigrette.http://cannedtime.blogspot.com/2012/04/nunaturals-liquid-stevia-orange-lemon.html

Dandelion greens are wonderful for their


anti-inflammatory

qualities as well as diuretic and a


host of


good nutrition to boot. 

I tried like crazy last year to grow my own...........never thought it would be so hard since they're  a weed right?  But I never did succeed at getting any to get bigger than a couple inches in any confined soil.  So I get them at the health food store or forage away for fresh uncontaminated ones.  The tiny little new leaves that are growing right now here are the best for salad.

Mustard Dill Cucumber & Orange Relish

I used the last of the vinaigrette I made up for

Averie's Mustard Dill Cucumber & Orange Relish from Averie Cooks and it worked perfectly with the strawberries sweetness and the spicy mustard seed.

Make sure you gather your fresh dandelion leaves from an area you are Certain hasn't had any chemical spray for at least the last 2 years.  And wash your leaves thoroughly.

Definitely will be making this one again.

Be sure to get your entries in for the NuNatural's Orange and Lemon Stevia giveaway soon, contest ends Sunday!