Recipes Archives - Page 2 of 3 - Creating Health From Scratch

Lemongrass Chicken

I came across a recipe for Lemongrass Chicken over at Food Renegade recently and decided I wanted to make it. (You can see the original recipe here). I’m a fan of chicken, cilantro, lime and all the other good stuff in the recipe…but then I wondered: What would it taste like if I substituted essential oils for the lemongrass, cilantro, lime and ginger? I’m all about experimenting in the kitchen. And, equally, I’m about cooking with essential oils.

So, I experimented. For each of the items I substituted with oils, I started out with one drop (remember, essential oils are 50-70% more potent than the herb). I ended up using 2 each of lemongrass and ginger, 3 cilantro and 2 lime (plus the juice of one lime for good measure). It tasted great.

Here’s what I did:

Lemongrass Chicken

4 chicken breasts
2 drops lemongrass essential oil
2 drops ginger essential oil
2 drops lime essential oil
3 drops cilantro essential oil (because I’m a huge fan)
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 can coconut milk
A pinch of crushed red pepper

Whiz all the above in a blender or food processor. Take about half of this mixture and coat your chicken, place in a glass pan or bowl, cover tightly and put in fridge overnight. (If you’re using essential oils, please don’t place this in a plastic dish and the oils will leach the toxins from the plastic.)

The next day, cook chicken on a baking sheet (lined with parchment, foil or oil) at 450 for 10-12 minutes. Then broil for 3-5 minutes to brown it.

Spiralize 3-4 zucchini (depending on size) and place in single serving bowls (or plates).

Take the reserved marinade from the day before (the stuff that hasn’t been sitting in raw meat!) and add 2-3 tablespoons of coconut amino acids, Braggs, or soy sauce. Stir well. Add small amounts of this mixture to zucchini noodles, toss. Add to taste.

Once the chicken is done, slice and top zucchini noodles with it. Add diced red bell pepper and chopped fresh cilantro for garnish. And more marinade if you want.

Mmmm.

I came up with the idea of the marinade in the noodles when I started thinking about how some of the therapeutic properties of the oils would be lost in the heating process. Since all the oils I used have wonderful health benefits, I didn’t want substituting herbs for oils to be for nothing (although the taste was still great).

And oh! if you guys haven’t discovered the Vegetti yet, you seriously need one. They’re super cheap–less than $8 on Amazon–and they transform the humble zucchini into pasta without the empty calories). Yes, I love mine. Anyway, after I made the noodles, I added around 2 tablespoons of coconut aminos (you could also use soy sauce or Braggs aminos) to the leftover marinade I’d saved, and tossed it in with the noodles (I didn’t use all the marinate, so start small and add to taste). It was DELICIOUS.

In my books it was a win/win. The cooked chicken tasted wonderful. And the ‘raw’ marinate contained all the healthy benefits of the essential oils (and tasted fantastic). One nice thing about cooking with essential oils is that you don’t have to have all the fresh ingredients around to make something healthy. Plus, just a little goes a long ways and you receive an extra punch of the health giving properties of the oils.

However, a word of caution: Make sure you have PURE essential oils if you’re going to ingest them. Not all oils on the market are suitable for eating. If you are interested in the brand we use, We’d be glad to share them with you.

By Kerrie

Three Healthy Warm Drinks

On the last day of January, as I write this, I’m already moving on to spring…yet the weather report says we’re still in the clutches of WINTER. Sigh. I guess I need to resign myself to the fact that we’ve got a bit more (months more?) cold weather ahead of us….and if that’s the case, we might as well have something warm to drink, right?

Here are three tasty, healthier-than-usual warm winter drinks to give you some tasty varieties on those days between here and warm sunny days. I’ve been drinking all of them this winter and loving them. I can’t even pick a favorite, I don’t think. They’re all three delicious. And they contain real, good for you ingredients. Try them all and let us know your favorite (if you can pick only one!).

Spiced Coconut Milk:

1 cup coconut milk, unsweetened (or any milk you normally use)
Less than one drop of cinnamon essential oil (dip a toothpick in to the bottle of oil and swirl it around in the milk)
Less than one drop ginger essential oil (use the toothpick method above)
Pinch of cayenne
2 teaspoons real maple syrup (adjust to taste)
1 Tablespoon almond butter

Combine in small pan and heat until warm. Stirring to melt and stir in the nut butter.

Real Food Hot Chocolate:

1 cup coconut milk, unsweetened (or milk of your choice)
1 Tablespoon coconut oil
1 Tablespoon raw cacao powder (add more if you like darker chocolate)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon maple syrup (adjust to taste)
Less than one drop of cinnamon oil (see above recipe)
Dash each of cayenne pepper, vanilla extract and salt

Combine in small pan and heat until warm.

Golden Milk:

3 Cups coconut milk, unsweetened
1 teaspoon turmeric
Less than one drop cinnamon oil (see first recipe)
Less than one drop ginger oil (see first recipe)
1 teaspoon honey (adjust to taste)
Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon coconut oil

Combine in medium pan and heat until warm. Let sit for 10 minutes to infuse. (You’ll need to stir this one as you drink it as it wants to separate, but it’s worth the stir.)

Coconut oil, turmeric, honey, cinnamon and ginger all have wonderful health benefits for your body. Drink up!

PS Thank you Muddy Fish Studio for lending me some of your lovely wood kiln fired mugs. If you like them as much as I do, you might want to check her site out.

By Kerrie

Sleepy Time Homemade Bubble Bath

Ready for some sleepy time homemade bubble bath? Next time the kids are begging for a bubble bath, you don’t have to worry about the chemicals and synthetic fragrances and additives in the commercially made bubble bath and bath gel products on the market.(Some of the ingredients are even known to cause birth defects!)

It seems that the FDA doesn’t have anything to say about the cosmetic industry so unlimited amounts of chemicals can be dumped into your baby’s bath and we don’t even have to know about it.

Happily, though, this does not have to be a good bye to the innocent and fun bubble bath. Making your own bubble bath is super easy (3 ingredients plus water) and you can scent it with healthy essential oils to boot.

Here’s all you need:

1 cup non-toxic, unscented dish soap or Castile soap

1/2 cup vegetable glycerin

2 tablespoons water

10-15 drops essential oils of your choice (We used the calming blend because it helps calm and relax kids so they can get a good night’s rest.)

Gently mix all ingredients together and use about 1/2 cup per bath (these bubbles aren’t going to have the staying power as chemical laced counter part, but they are still fun and they smell better!)

By Kerrie

6 (Guilt Free) Holiday Smoothie Recipes

If you’re tired of the same ol’ same ol’ with your morning smoothie, it’s time to switch it up a little. Below are six yummy holiday smoothies sure to please almost anyone. And below that, some tips to make sure you’re off and running in the right direction. Mmmm. Have fun. Try them all. They’re good.

If you’re new to smoothies, or new to smoothie experimentation, here are a few helpful hints:

I pretty much always use coconut or almond milk (unsweetened). You can also use any other liquid (milk, water, juice). If you want to create a smoothie that tastes rich and thick like a milkshake, try CANNED coconut milk (notregular milk replacement, but the kind used for cooking).
Using frozen bananas (or other frozen fruit) also helps give it a thick milkshake-like consistency without having to add ice (although ice is another option if you’re going for thickness).
If you’re new to adding greens to the mix, be prepared the it will almost ALWAYS turn your smoothie green. Also, you can add spinach to just about any smoothie without altering the taste at all, so if you’re new to greens, try spinach. (Baby kale also has less of a punch to it taste-wise than full grown, just an FYI). You’ll eventually come to love greens in your smoothies, even if you’re not currently doing it now.
If you feel like you need a sweeter taste, add more fruit, especially fruit that is naturally sweet (which is why I always add bananas). Other good additives are ripe pears, grapes, and apples.
Experiment and have fun.

Lemongrass Chicken