Roasted Red Pepper Turkey Meatloaf

Okay, who else misses meat loaf?  Honestly, I was never a huge meatloaf fan, but my husband... it was one of his favorites (and, thanks to this recipe, still is.)  IC demanded the stopping of meat mixed with ketchup, tomato paste, and Worcestershire, and I have long played in the kitchen trying to come up with a yummy substitute.

I chose to use ground turkey in this because I am ever searching for ways to lower the fat intake in my diet.  I don't know about you, but I initially gained weight once getting diagnosed, and I think it was largely because I was searching out anything that would make my taste buds happy.  (And the abundance of meds didn't help either.) I felt deprived in so many ways, but I could eat french fries and milkshakes, so I ate a lot of french fries and drank a lot of milk shakes.  That attitude helped pack on some pounds, and I am now hunting out ways to cut fat and calories without cutting out more taste.  This recipe fits into that category for me.  The turkey actually makes a really juicy and tasty loaf, and the spices and bread crumbs just round things out perfectly.

In my hiatus, I started gluten free and dairy free.  Honestly, I am not pushing that one of you, but I find the changes to really help with my IC, likely because of the inflammation those ingredients often cause.  I used corn chex and rice chex crumbled for my breadcrumbs, you choose whatever bread crumbs work for you.  Hopefully now that my diet is figured out again, I will be sharing yummy things often again.  

Now get together your meatloaf, mashed taters, and green beans.. Southern comfort to the rescue.

Roasted Red Pepper Turkey Meatloaf

Ingredients
1 1/4 lb ground turkey
1 1/3 c. bread crumbs
1 egg
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. ground garlic
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

3 roasted red peppers
1 Tbl. olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 tsp. sugar

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In food processor, mix roasted red peppers, olive oil, salt, Italian seasoning, and sugar until well blended and smooth.  Put 1/3 cup of this mixture aside for topping.
3. Using your hands, squish and combine turkey, bread crumbs, egg, thyme, garlic, salt, pepper, and (all but 1/3c.) roasted red pepper mixture.  When mixed, spread into a loaf pan.  Top with reserved 1/3 cup of roasted red pepper mixture.
4. Bake for 1 hr and 15 mins or until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F... Enjoy!

Chicken Broccoli Cheese Casserole

Some days, I do not know what I am thinking with trying to live a normal live and have IC.  I am in grad school for my masters in counseling, and the stress right now is unbearable.  Throw on some family issues/stress, the upcoming holidays, financial tightness (due to me quitting my job), it's no wonder my IC has been acting up so much.  Yesterday I had one of those solid emotional breakdowns after finding out that I do not, in fact, have a UTI, and that all this unceasing pain, despite my usual remedies, is only my IC.  ugh. So, I'll apologize for the lack of updates, but I know you know what it is like!

So after getting home from an awful day, I started poking around in my fridge and pantry.  There was nothing that was totally "safe" yet yummy and comforting.  I did have some rice, some broccoli, and some cheese on hand, so I decided to meander the internet to find some sort of casserole that I could modify to be totally safe and yummy.  I needed something easy; being in the kitchen for more than 30 minutes was simply not happening, so I decided on a recipe from Kristen from Iowa Girl Eats.  It was one of those recipes that didn't even need a whole lot of modifying- the best kind.  I also love that there are no cream of whatever condensed soups involved.  While I've found some Health Valley Soups are usually okay for me, it is reassuring to know that everything in a recipe is TOTALLY safe and on the green friendly foods list.   

Chicken Broccoli Cheese Casserole

Ingredients:

2 cups brown rice

4 cups chicken broth (I make my own)

4 cups broccoli florets (I used frozen because that was what I had)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 pound chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces

1 teaspoon fresh minced garlic

3 tablespoons flour

2 cups milk, divided

2 cups shredded mild cheddar cheese

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions

1. Cook rice in chicken broth according to package directions.  In my case, I threw it all in the rice cooker and let it cook there.  Trust me or Kristen from Iowa Girl Eats on this- the rice is so much better cooked in chicken broth instead of water!

2. While rice is finishing cooking and broccoli is steaming, begin cooking the chicken.  Heat olive oil in skillet over medium heat.  Add chicken and garlic.  Cook for 5-7 minutes or until chicken is cooked through/no longer pink inside.  Remove from heat and set aside

3. When rice has about 10 minutes left to cook, steam broccoli in microwave for 5-7 minutes (I used frozen broccoli, if you are using fresh, adjust cooking time accordingly) 

4. In a small bowl, whisk together flour and 1/2 cup milk.  When flour is completely dissolved, pour into medium saucepan along with the remaining 1 and 1/2 cups milk.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is thickened, about 5-10 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in 1 and 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, salt, and garlic powder, stirring until melted.  

5. Preheat oven to broil.

6. Butter 9x13 baking dish.  (I do not use Pam or any similar non-stick spray because of the chemicals.  I simply take about a tablespoon of butter and rub it around in the baking dish so that the dish is completely coated) 

7. In a large bowl, stir together the cooked rice, steamed broccoli, chicken, and cheese mixture.  Pour into prepared 9x13 baking dish. Top with remaining 1/2 cup cheese.

8. Broil in oven until cheese on top starts to brown, about 5 minutes. 

Chicken Pesto Pizza

Summer is wrapping up and that means it was time to prune the basil plants for the last time this year.  I was bummed to learn that my basil won't come back next year.  Temps here don't get too cold, so I thought it might have a chance, but no such luck.  After doing some research, I found that basil won't live in temps under 50 degrees F.  Bummer.  We have predicted lows in the mid 40's this week (yay!), so it was time to remove all the leaves and make some pesto.

I've written about my pesto, and, now that I am looking back, I am embarrassed of the picture of the boxed/store-bought basil!  I will be sure to update that next year. Now that my husband and I have grown basil, I realize how much better it tastes and how expensive store-bought is! I am new to the gardening thing, but I was very impressed and pleased with our basil plants.  They were surprisingly easy to grow and produced a ton of basil.  Anyways.... after pruning all the leaves off my 3 plants, I had 40 cups of basil (yep, not a typo, 40 cups.) (And yes, I did prune them throughout the summer!)  I don't know what all to do with basil, but I love pesto, so I just made a TON of pesto and froze it all in little baggies.  I have no idea if we will be able to eat all of that this winter, but I figured we might as well get started.  I made a chicken pesto pizza that turned out to be delicious!  I have blogged about how much I love pizza in the past, and this is definitely a new favorite for us!  

Chicken Pesto Pizza

Ingredients:

Pizza dough (I made mine in the bread machine- do whatever works for you.. a wheat crust is super good!)

2 chicken breasts, chopped into bite-size pieces

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp minced fresh garlic

1/3 c. pesto 

2 c. shredded Mozzarella cheese

1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

2. Roll out/stretch/toss etc. dough onto a pizza pan

2. Spread pesto over dough, leaving a 1/2 inch border for crust

3. Heat skillet, olive oil, and garlic over medium heat.  Add chicken and cook until it is cooked through (no longer pink inside)- about 5 minutes

4. Top pizza with chicken 

5. Spread cheeses over top

6. Bake in preheated oven for 20-22 minutes.

Avocado Egg Salad

I am a sucker for any type of cold salad in the summer.  However, most of these salads in their classic form are a complete no-go because of the mayo.  I found inspiration of this recipe on Pinterest, but the recipe contained mayo and many problematic spices. However, since the main ingredients (eggs and avocado) are completely safe, I figured I would play around with it and see what I could do.  I'm happy to report that the results are fantastic- love this served with some crackers, in a pita, or on some homemade bread.  Happy eating!

Avocado Egg Salad

4 hard-boiled eggs

1 avocado

1/3 cup cottage cheese

*1/4 cup plain greek yogurt

*1/4 tsp garlic

*1/4 tsp salt

*1/8 tsp pepper

Remove shells from the eggs and discard.  Mash eggs with a fork until whites and yolks are in pieces and mixed together.  Remove avocado from skin, discard skin and pit.  Mix the avocado into the eggs using a fork.  Add cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, and spices. Mix with the fork until all ingredients are combined. 

Store in fridge for 1 day.. know that on the second day it might appear slightly brown because of the avocados, but it is still fine to eat.  If that weirds you out, make a sandwich for a friend to enjoy with you day of, or just make half or a forth of the recipe.

Notes: Greek yogurt, and yogurt in general is an ingredient that many with IC can tolerate.  It has been fermented (like buttermilk and sour cream) and so some do report that it causes flares.  I know that Fage and Chobanni plain Greek yogurts are fine for me.  The only ingredients they have listed are: grade A pasturized skim milk, live active yogurt cultures L. Bulgaricus and S. Thermophilus.  I recently tried a store brand Greek yogurt that had other ingredients listed, and it caused a flare... So, all things considered, try a small amount, and see if you tolerate this.  If this is a problem food for you, I would just replace the yogurt with more cottage cheese- I bet it would still taste great!

As always, spices (salt, pepper, and garlic) are triggers for some.  Salt and garlic are among the friendlier, and pepper is a "try it" ingredient.  Know your body and your limits; adjust accordingly!

Recipe inspired by Ashley from neverhomemaker.com

Sausage Hash Brown Quiche

Oh my goodness, they make preservative free sausage.  I don't know why it took me a year to find this and try it out.. but its probably for the better.  I know pork in itself can be a bladder irritant, but I figure if I want some sausage this would be the lesser of two evils.  I was so excited about this that I might have cooked the sausage and then ate some plain... As difficult as it was to stop eating plain sausage, I did restrain myself and made something.  (Goodness, I am glad some of you have IC and will feel the same way, because I am sure I sound crazy right now!) I found Jimmy Dean brand sausage at Kroger in the preservative free meat section- this little section is a new addition to my Kroger, and it is next to all the other meat sections.

I decided to make a hash brown/quiche casserole thing.  Sausage, peppers, eggs, and hash browns. There is not much more I could ask for.  Clearly I am in a food coma and blissed out on sausage, so I am just going to move on to the recipe.

Sausage Hash Brown Quiche

Ingredients:
3 C Shredded hash browns (thawed)
1/3 C Butter (melted)
8 Oz Sausage
1 Tbl Butter
1 C Chopped bell peppers (whatever combination of colors you want)
1 C + 1/4 C Shredded Cheddar cheese
4 eggs
1/2 C Milk
Salt & Pepper
Garlic Powder

Steps:
-Preheat oven to 425 degrees
-Spread hash browns in the bottom of a 9-inch pie dish, season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder as desired (remember, a little bit of garlic powder goes a long way!)
-Pour 1/3 C melted butter over potatoes
-Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until hash browns start to turn golden
-As hash browns are cooking, brown and crumble sausage.
-Melt 1 Tbl butter in small skillet.  Saute peppers until soft.
-Mix sausage, peppers, and 1 C cheddar cheese in a medium size bowl
-In a small bowl, beat eggs and milk until well mixed (add salt and pepper here too if you desire)
-When hash browns are golden, remove from the oven.  Top with sausage mixture and then with egg mixture. Sprinkle with 1/4 C cheddar cheese on top if desired.
-Cook for another 20 minutes in oven at 425.  Remove from the oven when top is golden and delicious looking.  Let cool for about 5 minutes and serve!

Chicken Bacon Alfredo Pizza

My husband and I eat pizza weekly.  It is a sort of family tradition... My Grams and Gramps eat popcorn, pizza, and watch a movie most every Sunday evening.  I've always found this so charming and special about them- that they weekly took time to have a cheap and fun "date night."  I loved this tradition of theirs, and I always wanted to do something similar to set aside and cherish time with my husband. Our version of the tradition is to set aside a night each week to make a pizza and watch a movie.  My first thought of pizza after getting IC was, "boring." But after some time playing around in the kitchen, I've come to find TONS of IC friendly pizza ideas.

Chicken Bacon Alfredo Pizza is just what it sounds like: not healthy in the least, but so so yummy!  This is one of my favorite pizzas to make because it gets both of us in the kitchen and having fun.  My husband is the bacon fryer and crumbler, and I take care of the chicken, sauce, and dough.  Last night, I twirled and tossed the pizza dough around kitchen trying to imitate all those cool pizza chefs you see on TV (note: I am sure I didn't come close to resembling them, especially since I was already in my PJ's) while he carefully and precisely cooked the bacon to the perfect crispy-ness.  Give this pizza a try.  You will LOVE it.  Its worth all the time and steps, trust me.

Quick Pizza Dough:
1 pkg active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
2 cups bread flour
2 Tbl olive oil
1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar

Alfredo Sauce:

2 Tbls Butter

1/2 C. Heavy cream

1/2 tsp Garlic (minced)

3/4 C. Parmesan cheese (shredded)

2 Tbl fresh chopped Parsley

Toppings:

1 C. Mozzarella (shredded)

1/4C. parmesan (shredded)

1 cup chopped chicken, cooked (I like to saute mine in butter and garlic!)

6 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled

Dough:  In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water, let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.  In a large bowl, combine 2 cups bread flour, olive oil, salt, sugar, and the yeast mixture.  Stir well to combine.  Beat well until a stiff dough has formed.  Cover and let rise until dough is doubled, about 30 minutes.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Turn out dough onto a well floured surface.  Roll out dough into a pizza crust shape.
Sauce: In a small sauce pan over medium heat, melt butter.  Add garlic and cook until golden. Reduce heat to medium-low and stir in heavy cream.  While stirring frequently, cook for 5 minutes.  Whisk in cheese, and continue whisking until it is melted and sauce is creamy.  Stir in parsley. 

Pizza: Pour and spread sauce on top of pizza dough, sprinkle cheese, then add the chicken and bacon. 

Bake in preheated oven for about 22 minutes, or until top is golden and amazing looking.  

Roasted Red Pepper "Pimento" Cheese

Summer says vacation, summer says beach, summer says pimento cheese.

  

On my yearly vacation to the beach (before IC) there was always a large container of pimento cheese in the fridge.  You would come in from the beach, take out some bread, snag the pimento cheese, make a sandwich, grab some chips, and head back out to the beach.  Its just what you did, no questions asked.  

Last year's beach trip was right after being diagnosed.  I missed my pimento cheese, but I was in SO much pain that I went without anything that was a risk just to feel better.  This year, I feel like I am journeying through happily living with IC, learning day by day how to make great IC-safe food.  So, here I was at the beach, dying for some pimento cheese.  (Well, not really.  If I would have eaten some of that peppery, seasoned, sharp cheddar, and mayo, I would have been dying.  Thank you, IC. But I digress.)  So, here I was on a beach break at the heat of the day just wanting some of that creamy, cheesy, summery perfection.  And I had it!  The day before I had played in the kitchen for a while and came up with this recipe.  I'm happy to report that it had my screaming, jumping up and down, smiling in excitement and wonder.  It was like seeing a long-lost friend!  (clearly, I am a foodie. Geeze.) Anyways.  I also need to say that my family also loved it.  A winner all around!  

Nothing says southern summer like Pimento Cheese.  Enjoy it on a sandwich, atop a burger, on a cracker, whatever your preference, this version of IC-safe pimento cheese will quench your craving, and, if you are anything like me, it'll make your day.  

4 cups fresh grated mild cheddar cheese

6 oz. cream cheese, softened (make sure to get the blocks, the containers sometimes contain unsafe preservatives)

1/2 cup cottage cheese

*1 roasted red pepper and juice, peeled, seeds removed, chopped 

1/4 tsp garlic powder

**1/4 tsp onion powder

1/4 tsp salt

**1/8 tsp pepper

Combine all ingredients and squish/mix together with your (clean)hands. Refrigerate and enjoy!

* onion powder and pepper are "foods worth trying" on the IC Diet list- they should be fine in this small amount, but know your limits and try a small amount first if you are unsure! 

** Red Peppers are a completely safe food, don't worry the stars are for another reason! This is my method for roasting and preparing them.  I roast my peppers in the oven at 450 for 30 minutes turning them once in the middle of cooking.  Cool them in a paper bag after removing them from the oven- this allows them to steam and the skins to peel off super easily.  Before peeling, poke a little hole in the bottom of the pepper and squeeze it over the bowl to save the juice from the pepper, this keeps the seeds from getting mixed in the juice.  Then peel, remove the seeds, and chop.  This can be a time consuming process but its completely worth it.

Last note, I promise. Pimentos are not listed on the IC-diet list, but being that they are a mild, sweet pepper, they are likely safe.  If you can find fresh pimentos, try them and see how things turn out, I know I will. Unfortunately, my spastic "I want to make pimento cheese" self could not find them at the farmers market at the beach.  However, you might have luck at your local farmers market.  The jarred pimentos that I found all contained citric acid, which my IC cannot handle.  The roasted red peppers make quite an amazing substitute in my opinion, though! 

"Ritz" Cracker Chicken

One of the biggest challenges I've found with cooking with my IC is making mainly-friendly meals that both kids and grown-ups enjoy. For years everyone in my family loved Ritz Cracker Chicken night. The crumbly, buttery crackers coating a moist piece of chicken- just delicious! After getting IC, this was one of the many meals that I resigned to never make again. That box of Ritz crackers has a crazy amount of ingredients.

However, during one of my weekly grocery store trips, I spotted a box of organic/preservative free crackers in the organic section. They looked just like Ritz crackers, so I bought them to see if they tasted just like Ritz crackers. Turns out they did, and they were gone within 24 hours.. waaay before I got around to cooking with them, Oops! But I bought them again and made this chicken for dinner the same night.

This recipe is a family pleaser. I made it for my younger siblings who are 10 and 12 and my cousin who is 5 when they all came over to hang out and sleep over at our house. I love living close to family, but sometimes it's challenging to feed them things I can enjoy too, especially when they are kids! However, this was a hit. There wasn't a bit left in the pan! As you can probably see from the picture, I served mine with homemade focaccia bread and black-eyed peas. The peas were of course not a favorite for the kiddos, but the benefit of being a cousin/sister is that I don't have to promote complete healthiness, and I get to always serve ice cream for dessert.

One warning: these crackers do have soy emulsifier as one of the incidents. Soy can be an irritant for IBS which is commonly an issue for us with IC. Personally, I can tolerate small amounts of soy once or twice a week. Just be aware of this if its a concern for you!

Ingredients:

1 pkg Boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/2 pkg Late July Organic Buttery Crackers (or another imitation ic-friendly Ritz-like cracker

Butter to coat baking dish

1. Heat oven to 350 degrease

2. Coat baking dish with butter

3. Crush Crackers by putting them in a ziplock and mashing them until no large pieces remain- kids LOVE helping with this step!

4. Cut fat off chicken. Dip in butter, then in crushed crackers, and place in baking dish

5. Pour remaining butter evenly over chicken and sprinkle with mailing crackers

6. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through

Green Smoothie

One of my most missed treats are smoothies. Because many fruits are high in acid, smoothies tend to be a caution on the IC diet. I stumbled upon a green smoothie on Pinterest one day, and I was intrigued. Unfortunately the recipe was disappointing, because it included fruits not on the IC-Diet.

Well, the interest was planted, and I decided to give smoothies a try. It took a few times, but this is one of my favorite combinations of ingredients. The banana is definitely the strongest flavor, and I don't even taste the spinach or avocado. The liquid component of the smoothie is water given that pretty much all juices are a no-go. My favorite thing about this particular smoothie is the creamy-ness that it has because of the avocado. This is a very generously sized smoothie; it keeps me full for hours! You could definitely serve it as a snack for 2-3 people if wanted. 

Do be aware that bananas are a caution on the IC-Diet list because of the high potassium content. However, I tolerate them just fine assuming that my diet is good, and I don't go overboard. If you haven't tried them, try a small bit first and see how things go for you!

Ingredients:

1 banana

1 pear

1 avocado

1 cup spinach, packed

1 cup water

1/2 cup ice

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth!

Pesto

You've probably heard it before, but pesto is an IC staple. Some of my favorite ways to enjoy it is on pasta, as pizza sauce, combined with cream cheese for a dip/spread, and simply as a way to add a punch of flavor to any dish.

What I love about pesto is that it has a nice bold punch of flavor, yet is completely IC-safe. This is a rarity, and I love that it is something to safely enjoy in a variety of ways.

The recipe makes quite a bit of pesto- around 1 and a half cups.  I usually make it and use it to top pasta for dinner that evening. I then freeze the remaining pesto in 1/4 - 1/2 cup batches as this is what I usually need for any recipe. 

Ingredients:

3 cups fresh basil leaves, packed

1tsp minced garlic

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese (fresh seems to be safest for me, but I've heard other people say that they prefer the canned)

1/2 cup olive oil

1/4 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup fresh parsley

1. Spread pine nuts on a cookies sheet and place in the oven at 375 degrees until golden, about 5-10 minutes. Make sure to stir them at least once during the cooking process to ensure that they don't get too brown on one side.
2. Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth!

Honey Pork Chops

Today I am sharing one of my most favorite easy, quick, ingredients-always-on-hand dinners.  Let me fist confess my saying that I am typically not a fan of pork chops.  I don't know what it is about them, but this meat was never one I went to for any meal.  Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, my husband LOVES pork chops.  I stumbled across this recipe about a year ago now, and thought I would give it a try.  I think it was the honey and brown sugar along with the desire to make my hubby a IC-approved dinner that he would love that made this one happen.  The original recipe is on allrecipes, but I've changed the amounts of a few things.  Find the original here, and my preferred method is below.  Whether you are a pork chop lover or not, you've got to love a dinner that requires all easy and on-hand ingredients.  I like to serve these with a homemade bread and a vegetable for a well-rounded yummy meal.

Ingredients:

4 boneless pork chops

Salt

Ground black pepper

4 Tbls packed brown sugar

4 Tbls Honey

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Sprinkle pork chops with salt and pepper on both sides.  Heat skillet over medium heat.  Add pork chops and cook until brown, turning once.  Place in 9x13 baking dish.

3. Combine brown sugar and honey in a small bowl.  Microwave for 20 seconds, and stir to combine.

4. Spoon half of honey mixture evenly over-top pork chops
5. Bake for 15 minutes in preheated oven.
6. Remove from oven, flip chops, and spread with remaining honey mixture.
7. Bake for another 15 minutes.
8. Serve making sure to spoon some of the extra drippings over top your chops!

Pesto Grilled Cheese

Pesto is one of my favorite ic-friendly sauces.  I have it on pasta and pizza often, but last night I decided to try it on a grilled cheese.  I'm happy to report that it was delicious.  What is better than gooey melted cheese, a bold punch of pesto, and bread that is soft on the inside and buttery crunchy goodness on the outside? Not much.  The sandwich was enough by itself for my dinner, but the hubs had some canned soup with his.  All-in-all, this is something I will be making again soon!

Recipe makes 2 sandwiches

4 slices white bread 

butter

1/4 cup pesto

3 slices white american cheese

3 slices cheddar cheese

4 Tbl Parmesan cheese 

1. Heat skillet to medium heat

2. Spread butter over one side of bread.  Place butter side down in the pan.  Spread pesto, top with 1/2 of cheeses, spread more pesto, top with another slice of bread, spread top of sandwich with butter.

3. Cook until toasty, flip sandwich and cook until that side is toasty.  

4. Repeat for the other sandwich and enjoy!