Barley Tomato Risotto

1 cup pearl barley

1 tbsp EVOO

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning

1/2 tsp salt

pepper

1 15oz. can diced tomatoes

2 cups milk (I use unsweetened almond)

Put barley and oil in pot on medium and toast until deep caramel color. Add garlic and let that toast a bit. Add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil. Cook covered on medium/low, stirring every 10 minutes or so, for about  40 minutes. Then, switch to low for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, turn burner off, leave pot covered, and let sit until all moisture is absorbed. Serve slightly warm with Pea & Chive Pesto on top. 

Pea & Chive Pesto

1 lb frozen peas, thawed
1 cup chopped chives
3 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup olive oil

Puree all ingredients but olive oil in food processor until generally combined. Stream in olive oil. Puree until smooth.

Serve on pasta, rice, or on Barley Tomato Risotto.

Freeze leftovers. Keeps really well.

You can also substitute other herbs like basil or parsley instead of chives.

Pizza Dough

Basic Pizza Dough

• 1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon honey/raw sugar
• 1 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 3 cups flour (AP, Whole Wheat, White Whole Wheat, or a combo)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt

Add the water, yeast, & honey/sugar into your mixer bowl. Combine. Add the olive oil. Turn mixer on medium speed. Add the salt to your flour. Gradually add flour/salt mixture to mixer bowl. Combine everything until the dough comes away from the sides of the mixer bowl. Work quickly, and don't be afraid to really turn the mixer up. The whole process should only take about a minute. 

Let the dough rest in the bowl while you prep your other ingredients. It doesn't really NEED to rest, but I'm sure it helps the dough cooperate a little. 

Roll it out and top as you'd like. When baking it, use the highest temperature on your oven- like 550 degrees. It's the most promising way to end up with a "pizza place" type crust. Their ovens are usually at least 600 degrees.

You can also use this dough for calzones, stromboli, focaccia, breadsticks, even for quick cinnamon rolls.

October Unprocessed

My husband and I are participating in Eating Rules, October Unprocessed challenge. I thought it would also be a good opportunity to work on one of my goals this year- meal planning. I decided that I'd keep a list of meals I'd like to make this month and work off of it. I'm picking something that sounds good and checking it off the list each day, instead of deciding which day we'll eat what…like on a calendar…I'm too finicky to stick to that kind of plan. I'm trying and creating a lot of new recipes, too. The zucchini biscuits are one of the winning recipes so far, as was the rice & bean bake.

I'll be updating this list as I try more recipes. Here's what we're planning on eating so far-

Breakfast:
Breakfast Cookies made like granola bars, in an 8x8 pan
Granola
Pancake Apple Rings with Pancake Mix

Lunch:
Leftovers from dinner
Fruit on the bottom yogurt- inspired by this post
This soup- with lots of veggies dumped in for good measure

Snacks:
Hummus, no oil, made with northern beans
Chocolate Pudding
Seedy Crisps
Cheddar Coins

Dinners:
Tried & Yummy!-
Homemade Tomato Soup & Zucchini Cheese Biscuits
Rice & Bean Bake
Tofu & Whole Wheat Pasta with Peanut Coconut Sauce-based off of this
Spicy Tuna Melts on Whole Wheat Baguettes with Oven Fries
Patlajan Gouvej with Brown Rice Pilaf
Vegetable Stir Fry with brown rice
Grilled Pizzas with Whole Wheat Dough & veggies & mozzarella
Baked Sweet Potatoes w/ Organic Salted Butter & a Mixed Green Salad with carrots, celery, green pepper, & red onion with this Apple Cider Vinegar Dressing
Pumpkin Lasagna
Barley Tomato Risotto with Pea & Chive Pesto
Pasta E Fagioli - Bean and Pasta Stew with Greens

On deck-
Fried Egg with Collards & Barley- based on this
Garlicky Bean Enchiladas with homemade Whole Wheat Tortillas
Potato Frittata with mixed green salad
Eggplant Meatballs with Roasted Garlic Orecchiette & basic tomato sauce
Vegetable Pad Thai
Koftas with Veggie Burger instead of turkey & Homemade Pitas
Pumpkin Soup in a pumpkin with Zucchini Cheese Biscuits
Open Face Veggie Burger Sloppy Joes with BBQ Sauce on Whole Wheat Baguette with Oven Fries
Baked Vegetable Omelet with mixed green salad
Pumpkin Pasta
Meatless Meatloaf
Hummus Melts

Lentil Sloppy Joes
Red Gratin
Squash Crostini-Made with "mock" ricotta (cottage cheese drained & pureed)

Some notes-
-I've decided to use baking powder even though it's considered *processed*- I would like to try this, though
-Using only whole wheat & white whole wheat flour
-Not using any sugar- instead date puree, local honey, black strap molasses, or maple syrup
-Using some cow's milk (homogenized) but substituting with unsweetened almond milk whenever I can
-Using only butter as a fat, and a little EVOO

There are a lot of opinions about what's processed or not…I'm following my own path about it and using some semi-processed ingredients based on what I have readily available and some necessary conveniences.

Zucchini Cheese Biscuits

These biscuits are light and delicious!

Makes about 15

3/4 cup shredded zucchini, with excess moisture squeezed from it-(so start with about 1 cup, you'll end up with 3/4)
1/4 cup butter, cubed
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 cup milk, I used almond milk
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup shredded cheese, any kind

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Add zucchini, butter and yogurt to mixer bowl. Cream for about 20 seconds. Stop mixer and add the flour, salt, & baking powder. Combine until the mixture is coarsely combined-like wet sand. Add milk and cheese. Mix just until everything is combined.

Scoop out 2 tbsp. per biscuit onto a parchment lined  baking sheet or onto a stoneware pan. Sprinkle each biscuit with some garlic powder or minced garlic and more black pepper.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until they are golden brown on the edges and springy to the touch.

Rice & Bean Bake

This makes a really flavorful rice & beans dish. I like it a lot better than making a batch on the stove top, and it's a bonus that you just dump it all in the pan and it comes out beautiful! Easy and delicious!

1 1/2 cups raw brown rice
3 1/3 cups cooked black beans (or 2 15oz. cans, drained)
1 can diced tomatoes with chilies
1/2 cup salsa
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (optional)
2 1/2 cups stock, heated to boiling in a saucepan
1 cup shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix rice, beans, tomatoes, salsa, onion, garlic, & pepper flakes in a large bowl. Add hot stock and stir. Add the shredded cheese.

Pour mixture into a greased 13x9 baking pan. Cover tightly with foil. Bake for approximately 70 minutes or until rice is cooked through.

*sometimes I crank the temperature up to 400 to make things cook a little faster, and sometimes it takes up to 90 minutes…it just depends on the day.

Serve with salsa & sour cream.

Ranch Mix

I made this mix as a part of Christmas gifts last year (actually, I've updated the recipe since then with dill & mustard). I gave a seasoning trio wrapped in little clear bags with raffia bows- taco seasoning, seasoned salt, and this. It's so yummy! You can use it to make dressing, dip, or as a seasoning. I've written the recipe in parts. You can make as large a quantity as you'd like. I made it in 1 cup parts to divide up as gifts.

1 part sea salt
1 part dried parsley
1 part dried chives
1 part onion powder
1 part garlic powder
3/4 part paprika
3/4 part dill weed
1/2 part black pepper
1/2 part dried mustard

Combine with a whisk.

Add about 1-2 tablespoons to 1-2 cups sour cream for ranch dip.

Add 1-2 tablespoons to 1 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup mayo, and then add milk until it's your desired consistency for ranch dressing. Use buttermilk for buttermilk ranch.

Add as a seasoning to chicken dishes, veggie stir fries, etc.