Flexibility is the main ingredient...

While driving home from work today, I decided to make enchiladas with our ground beef from Rocking B Ranch http://www.rocking-b.com/ and some leftover onions from Johnson's Backyard Garden http://johnsonsbackyardgarden.com/

However, my plans were spoiled when I realized that SOMEONE had eaten all but four of our corn tortillas. Sigh...

So in the name of flexibility, I used similar ingredients and came up with something pretty tasty - Enchilada Pie!

My su chef was a master at the layering aspect of this dish and licked the spoon clean after each dip into the dice tomatoes. Germs die in the cooking process, right?

Enchilada Pie

1lb ground beef
2-3 green onions
1 clove garlic
Seasonings to taste - red pepper flakes, cumin, salt, pepper, oregano
4-5 corn tortillas
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup black beans
1/2 cup cheese (cow, rice, soy, whatever)

Cook up the first four ingredients until beef is browned. Set aside. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Rip tortillas to fit along the bottom and up the side of a casserole dish. Layer on the meat mixture, beans, and tomatoes. Top it off with some shredded cheese and tortilla strips. Cover and cook for 30 minutes. Uncover and cook for 15 more minutes. Let cool for a bit and serve in slices - or spoonfuls.

FYI Gluten Free Deals!

For those of you adverse to gluten, you may rejoice! Sprouts is having a sale on all of their gluten free goodies - 25%. Munching on my KToos right now. Yum!

Lookin' for a way to hide those greens?

Our kale and carrots from Saturday's farmers market http://www.bartoncreekfarmersmarket.org/ were getting ready to be eaten, so I came up with a new twist on an old standby. We'll call it Kale & Karrot Kornbread! The creation earned high marks from Layla, the ultimate taste tester! I hope you enjoy!

Kale and Karrot Kornbread

1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour (corn, rice, wheat)
1/3 cup canola oil
1 cup milk (rice, almond, hemp, cow)
2 tbsp sugar (white or turbinado)
2 tsp baking powder
1 bunch kale
1 lg carrot
1/4 sweet onion
1 clove garlic

Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Throw the veggies into your food processor and blend well. Mix all ingredients together and pour into muffin tins. Cook for 25-30 minutes. Yields about 15 muffins.

* Feel free to sub chard or spinach for the kale!

Bloggin' for the first time!

Hello out there! I hope that this finds you all well and good! I am starting this blog in an attempt to challenge our family to eat local, eat well, and encourage others to follow suit. We are interested in living green and doing what we can for the environment. We try to purchase the majority of our produce and meat at the local farmer's markets. Our eggs come from our backyard hens/pets. The recipes I will post will keep in mind the veggies of the season, as well as dietary restrictions. Both my daughter and I are allergic to gluten, dairy, and anything artificial. However, my husband claims that he doesn't even notice the absense of these ingredients in our meals! My goal is to post a few recipes a week... here goes nothing!

*photo by Todd Graves