Help for Clutter, Hoarding and Emotional Eating at NurturingHope.com » Cook at Home

Easy Soup Recipes for Cluttered Kitchens

Catherine — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 13:15:38 +0000

I adore soup. There is something so comforting about a big pot of hot soup on the stove, and my family always feels like they have had a “real” homecooked meal when it’s a soup night.

We make soup at least once or twice a week, especially in the winter. I make split pea soup, leek and potato soup, turkey vegetable soup, spicy tomato vegetable soup — the list goes on and on. A good soup has so much going for it:

It’s hot, homemade and delicious.
Packed with nutritious veggies, beans and/or grains.
Only uses one pot and the stove top — easy to prepare and easy cleanup.
Soup is peasant food, so the ingredients are typically economical and easy to find.
Hearty enough to be the centerpiece of the meal, with or without a crusty loaf of bread.
Yummy leftovers. (This is only a plus if you love leftovers, like our family does!)

Looking to start easy? Here is a list of yummy soup recipes that have no more than five ingredients:

If you’re an experienced cook or want to get a little more complex, try these delicious soups:

Soup night is my favorite way to get a healthy, economical meal on the table with almost no effort Enjoy!

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Tunisian Food — A Great Example of the Healthy Mediterranean Diet

Catherine — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 18:12:49 +0000

Ever since we moved to the small North African country of Tunisia last summer, I have been thoroughly enjoying eating Tunisian food, both at restaurants and at home. I’ve also lost about 20 more pounds and I’m smaller than I have ever been since I was 21 years old! I don’t think this is a coincidence. Here’s why.

Tunisia has a long Mediterranean coastline and its cuisine is a fine example of the Mediterranean diet, rich in fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and beans, fish and poultry, nuts and good oils. These foods are high in antioxidants and fiber and nutrient-rich so they are naturally satisfying and healthy.

Tunisians love spicy food, and the national condiment and an ingredient in many dishes is a paste called harissa, made from garlic and smoked hot red peppers.

Some of the highlights of Tunisian food culture help illustrate why the traditional Mediterranean diet is so healthful:

Couscous is one of the most popular meals in North Africa. Couscous appears to be a finely-textured grain but the individual grains are actually made from semolina dough like pasta. I buy wholewheat couscous to increase the fiber and nutrient content. Couscous is frequently served with a stew of vegetables, sometimes with meat, chicken or poultry. Couscous can also be served as a desert steamed with dried fruits, nuts, spices and drizzled with honey.
An abundance of fruits and vegetables are grown in the northern coastal regions of Tunisia, where we live, and they are sold in the vast outdoor and indoor market nearby. Depending on the season, we can buy fresh dates, citrus fruit, apples, pomegranates, nectarines, pears, peaches, plums, strawberries, melons, tomatoes, eggplant, artichokes, green onions, leeks, cabbage (red and green), peppers, fennel, potatoes, sweet potatoes, cauliflower, fresh and cured olives and so much more.
Dried beans, chickpeas, and lentils are sold in bulk. Where we live, the most popular street food is a baguette filled with hot chickpeas, drizzled with olive oil and garnished with olives and tuna, egg or sardines. I had this for breakfast the other day before the gym — my husband and I split one sandwich and I was full for hours.
With such a long Mediterranean coastline, fish is a popular dish. Fresh grilled fish, fresh and canned tuna, octopus and squid all figure prominently.
Delicious Tunisian mint tea is made from green tea, black tea and mint. Full of antioxidants and, when purchased at a cafe, unfortunately sugar. I want to try substituting stevia for sugar.
What do Tunisians eat when they want a snack? Well, along with the deep fried sweets that are popular (we have these for a very occasional treat), a favorite snack option are the freshly roasted nuts and seeds that can be bought in little bags at ubiquitous little Fruits Secs stands.

Want to experiment with cooking Tunisian food? You can check out some yummy Tunisian recipes here.

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Tweak: Cook at Home

Catherine — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 16:09:46 +0000

If you are not already cooking at home most of the time, good news! You have an opportunity to make a single lifestyle change that will have a huge impact on both your health and your financial wellbeing.

It’s counterintuitive, but the fact is that many (if not most) people who suffer from obesity are also malnourished. I firmly believe that the first step on the road to a healthy weight is to add essential nutrients back into our bodies, rather than restricting or dieting. We need to nurture our bodies, and we can do this by cooking easy, healthy foods at home.

So not only can you save a great deal of money cooking at home, but cooking at home is the path to eating healthier foods and feeling better in your body. When you build a habit of cooking regularly at home, you learn to experience food with the joy and respect that it deserves.

Cooking at home does not have to be a lot of work. Even though I am a trained chef (I apprenticed in fine restaurants for three years in my early adulthood), I usually cook from a very simple repertoire at home. I cook using fresh vegetables, meats and grains — real food. Most of the time I don’t bother with fussy recipes. I just stick with the basics that my family enjoys — poultry, soups, pastas, roast vegetables, bean dishes, stews, salads and couscous.

Here are some pointers for building your new cook at home habit:

Cook the food you like. This might sound obvious, but you should think about the types of food you like to eat and start cooking that sort of food at home. You don’t have to cook what your mom cooked — if you like Mexican food, for example, take a look at some Mexican recipes. If you love soups, find some good soup recipes to try.
Buy real “convenience” foods. Real “convenience” food is food that usually comes without an ingredients label. Always keep some real convenience foods on hand because they are easy to cook with and require minimal preparation. Think of foods like: frozen veggies, frozen berries, chopped cabbage and bagged baby carrots, eggs, cheese, canned tuna and salmon, pasta and couscous.
Stock your pantry. Some of us tend to hoard food, so be careful not to go overboard with food storage. But it’s good to have a few basics on hand in the pantry — canned or dried beans, pasta, rice, canned tomatoes, nuts, olive or sunflower oil, powdered or canned chicken stock, spices. Only buy what you know you will use. Consider keeping your grains, flours and nuts in the freezer if you have room — they will keep much longer that way.
Keep it simple. Cooking doesn’t have to be complicated. What about a broiled chicken breast, salad, and microwaved sweet potato? Or scrambled eggs with green onions and red peppers served along with a slice or two of wholegrain toast? Take a look at this list of five-ingredient recipes to see how easy it can be to get a meal on the table.
Do you like leftovers? There are two kinds of people, those who like leftovers and those who hate them. If — and only if — you like eating leftovers, try cooking enough for two or three meals at a time. Then you can warm up extras fast to save on cooking time for subsequent meals. For us, this works with soups and with couscous. I always make enough for two meals, and the kids swear that it tastes better the second day.
Think color. Try to cook meals that contain at least one or two vegetables, the more varied and deep in color the better. I like to make vegetable soups with chicken stock, squash, carrots, chopped chard or kale, green peppers and white beans or chick peas.

Once you start cooking at home, before you know it you will have a short list of favorite meals that you can throw together quickly. You’ll save money and nurture your body with real food!

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16 Nutritious, Easy Crockpot Recipes for Cluttered Kitchens

Catherine — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 12:04:31 +0000

I was reminiscing lately about the old days when my kitchen was a mess, and the lack of homecooked meals as a result. I hardly ever cooked because the counters, table and sink were so cluttered all the time that I couldn’t really begin to think about putting together a meal. So we ate a lot of junky takeout food. Today I was thinking that it would not have been that hard to combine a few ingredients in the crockpot for a hot meal later in the day.

The Tweaks System is all about one little step at a time. You don’t have to start cooking three-course meals at home. Here are some simple, good-for-you homecooked meals that you can just throw together in a crockpot — so much cheaper and healthier than pizza or fast food. The majority of these recipes use no more than five ingredients:

Pot Roast This is a flexible recipe; it uses potatoes and carrots, but you can add chunks of any root veggies you have in the fridge — turnip, rutabaga, parsnips, celeriac.
Italian Pot Roast This is great with Italian bread and a green salad.
Chicken Taco Meat Super easy way to prepare taco meat for now or for the freezer.
Roasted Chicken with Rosemary and Garlic There’s no reason why you couldn’t substitute dried rosemary for the fresh rosemary in this recipe.
Turkey Breast Get turkey breast on sale and use this easy method to cook it for sandwiches and salads.
Green Chili Beef Great on burritos with a little cheese and some quacamole or sour cream. This makes lots of leftovers that you can freeze or use for lunches.
Refried Beans Simple, healthy and very economical.
Mexican Pork Gives pork and beans a whole new spin — spicy black beans with lean pork loin cubes.
Italian Sausage Try this with whole wheat spaghetti or multigrain rolls. It’s safe to skip the boil-in-a-pot step at the beginning of the recipe.
Swiss Steak A nice small recipe for two servings.
Tomato Chicken A whole chicken and a jar of spaghetti sauce. What could be easier? Try throwing in some halved potatoes halfway through and some cubed zucchini in the final hour for a full meal.
Chicken Fajitas So much cheaper than restaurant fajitas, and healthier than Taco Bell!
Oatmeal Porridge Have kids? This is a great way to wake them up with a hot breakfast on hectic mornings. Just put oatmeal, water and a pinch of salt in the crockpot right before bed.
Aztec Black Beans Vegetarian, cheap, healthy and delicious. A real winner.
Curried Chicken Legs I’d throw in some baby carrots or cubed carrots for the final couple of hours and then serve this over rice.
Sloppy Joe Lentils Another non-meat recipe. This makes a big batch so you can freeze half for microwaving later.

This is a Friday Fun post.

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