White Beans & Cabbage

Thanks to my grandma and her wonderful cooking, I absolutely love cabbage and love finding new ways to cook with it! This is a recipe from Heidi Swanson's cookbook Super Natural Every Day. I used chickpeas but you can use whatever favorite white bean you have on hand. For leftovers, add some good quality vegetable broth to this and there you have cabbage soup! I did not use Parmesan cheese as Heidi did, simply because I did not have it available, but all you cheese lovers go right ahead. This can very easily be made as a Daniel Fast dish by not adding the cheese or butter to dish. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil
5 medium size potatoes, scrubbed and cut into small cubes
Sea salt
1 can chickpeas, drained
1 head small green cabbage, finely shredded
2 tbsp butter or spread

Pour the olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium high heat. Add the potatoes and a big pinch of salt. Toss, cover and cook until the potatoes are cooked through, about 5-7 minutes. Be sure to scrape the pan and toss the potatoes once or twice along the way so all sides get color. Stir in the beans and butter and cook for a couple minutes until they brown a bit, then toss again. Stir in the cabbage and cook for another 2 minutes or until the cabbage loses some structure but not too long that it's limp. Serves about 4.

Daniel Fast Granola Bars

I tried to find a way to make granola bars without the sugar and eggs. The first attempt I used just the apple as the mix in, but found that it needed another bite to it. I love dried cranberries in my original granola bar recipe, but knew they had added sugar in them. I tried golden raisins as an added sweet note to the bars and loved it! You can use your favorite dried fruit and do different mix ins of your own.
Make sure the texture of your granola mixture is more of a semi-wet crumble, the perfect balance of wet and dry will make a difference in how it bakes up. This is one of the reasons I mix with my hands so I can know if the mixture feels too wet or too crumbly and dry. Make adjustments by adding small amounts of flour or oil to the mix before adding to your pan to bake.

**Daniel Fast Worthy

Ingredients:
2 cups old fashioned oats, not quick cooking
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup honey or agave nectar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp apple pie spice
1 small granny smith apple, finely chopped (in food processor or with grater)
1/4 cup golden raisins

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9x13 baking dish. In a large bowl combine oats, flour, honey, oil, shredded apple, pie spice and raisins.

Mix with hands until mixture is a crumble. It should stick to your fingers some, but not be too wet and mushy. Each apple can vary in its water content. Add more flour if the mixture is too wet and more oil if it is too dry.

Add mixture to greased baking dish and pat down to cover every inch of baking dish evenly. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until the edges are starting to brown.

Let cool for about 5 minutes. Cut into squares and enjoy!

Morning Message: Faith Loves

Disciple-Making Series: David Platt

Watch Sermon: Click Here

Scripture Reading: James 1:26-27; 2:1-13

"If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless." (James 1:26)

"Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him?" (James 2:5)

"Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!" (James 2:12-13)

Morning Message: Faith Obeys

David Platt: Disciple-Making Series

Watch Sermon: Click Here

Scripture Reading: James 1:19-25

"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at this face in a mirror and after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it- he will be blessed in what he does." (James 1:22-25)

"I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws." (Ezekiel 36:26-27)

Spaghetti Squash

**Daniel Fast Worthy

Ingredients:
1 spaghetti squash
1/2 bag fresh spinach, chopped
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 small onion, chopped
Olive oil
sea salt and pepper
dash of red pepper flakes, optional

To prepare the spaghetti squash: Cut down the middle of the squash and drizzle the flesh side with olive oil. Place flesh side down on baking sheet and bake for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees. If squash seems to large to cut before baking, you can bake it in oven for about 30-40 minutes to soften it and then cut it open. Squash may still need time to bake after being cut open. Next, scoop out seeds and discard. Take a fork and start stringing out the spaghetti-like flesh into a bowl. Scoop until there is no more spaghetti strands inside and when outer shell of squash is limp.
To cook: Heat large skillet to medium heat. Drizzle some olive oil in skillet and add onion, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook until onions are carmelized and translucent, being careful not to burn garlic. Add spinach to the mixture and cook for about 1 minute until slightly wilted. (**See note) Next, add spaghetti squash to the skillet and saute until well incorporated with other ingredients. Sprinkle red pepper flakes if desired. I served a baked sweet potato with cinnamon along side this dish. Hope you enjoy!

**Let the liquid from the squash drain out some after stringing to avoid an overly soupy dish.

Stuffed Tomatoes

**Daniel Fast Worthy

Ingredients:
2 large ripe tomatoes
1 cup cooked whole wheat couscous, plain
Sea Salt to taste
2 tablespoon fresh basil leaves, Or 1 tablespoon dried basil, chopped finely
Olive oil
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1 scallion branch sliced, green onion, for stuffing and garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook couscous according to package directions and save 1 cup for this dish. Cut the top of each tomato and using a spoon, scoop out the tomato chucks and juice into a bowl that will be used in the stuffing. Discard any hard, inedible parts that come from inside the tomato. Place tomato bowls in small baking dish face up, and drizzle with olive oil. In the bowl of tomato chunks and juice, add and combine the cup of couscous, sea salt, basil, garlic and scallion slices. Stuff each tomato carefully and bake for about 15 minutes. Serve with sliced scallions for garnish!

Morning Message: Faith Preserves

 From the first to the last verse of the book of James, God gives us one of the most practical pictures of the Christian faith in all the Bible. Written to a people who were scattered and suffering, James envisions communities of faith caring, providing, and praying for one another as they show what the life of Christ looks like in action. Possibly more than any other New Testament book, this letter from James lifts our lives far above the superficial religious formalities we are so prone to settle for and sets our sights on active, authentic faith that makes a radical difference in the needs of the world around us. Disciple-Making Series

 Watch Sermon: Click here
Scripture Reading: James 1:1-18


"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does." (James 1:2-8)

"Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him." (James 1:12)

Black bean and Corn Tostada

**Daniel Fast Worthy

My hubby and I have been making these tostadas for awhile now. The original recipe is made with cheese melted on top and usually with zucchini instead of spinach. You can use the zucchini or any other vegetable you may like to substitute on the tostada. As you look for these ingredients listed below, make sure they are sugar and yeast free. Even canned items can have sugar added so be aware of what you are buying!
 Thanks for dinner tonight, Hun! It is so nice to have someone cook while you relax!! :)

Ingredients: 
4 Corn Tortillas
1 can corn, drained
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 small onion
1/4 cup salsa verde (green salsa) I used Ortega brand found right next to other salsas on ethnic isle.
1 cup of spinach leaves, chopped
Sea Salt to taste
1/2 tsp minced garlic

Preheat oven 350 degrees. Spray baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Place tortillas on sheet and bake for about 5 minutes. Just enough to get them sturdy for holding all your toppings, do not let it get crispy.  Meanwhile, add corn, black beans, onion, salsa verde, spinach leaves, salt and garlic to bowl. Combine well and add more salsa or seasoning if desired. Spoon mixture evenly onto each tortilla. If you have leftover mixture, make more tortillas or save for next day. Bake loaded tortillas for about 30 minutes or until the edges of tortillas are crisp up. Hope you enjoy!

Fruit Smoothies

**Daniel Fast Worthy
James made me a fruit smoothie this morning. It was delicious! We have found one of the few juices you can use on Daniel Fast with no sugar added and not from concentrate. It's Dole pineapple juice in the aluminum cans. We buy the big one but I believe they have small cans available as well. The strawberries at Publix are so sweet right now, but add any fresh or frozen fruit you like. Later we added some fresh cranberries we had left in fridge and it worked great with the sweetness of the other fruits!

 

Ingredients:
1 cup fresh strawberries
1 banana
1 cup fresh grapes
1 cup pineapple juice

Blend all ingredients until smooth! Add ice if desired for fresh fruit.

Couscous Stuffed Bell Peppers

**Daniel Fast Worthy

I love couscous. Stuffing it in bell peppers is a creative way to enjoy it. I cooked these peppers in the oven, but you can also grill them to bring out a nice smoky flavor. To do so, wrap the stuffed peppers in foil, making sure tops are on to keep the juice inside, and throw on grill for about 20 minutes depending on size of pepper and heat of grill. Feel free to add in seasonings to your tasting!

Ingredients:
2 green bell peppers
1 box whole wheat couscous
Olive oil
Sea Salt
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp cumin, optional

Preheat oven to 350. Cook couscous according to package directions, adding cumin, sea salt, garlic, and drizzle of olive oil to finished couscous pan. For the peppers, cut tops of peppers off and scoop out seed pods creating a bowl. Put tops of peppers aside. Place peppers in small baking dish lined in foil. Drizzle olive oil inside the bell pepper bowls. Stuff each pepper with couscous and drizzle more olive oil on top of couscous, cover with pepper tops. Cook in oven for about 25 minutes or until you see the bell pepper is evenly cooked through. Cut in half to easily enjoy eating the stuffed pepper!

Oven Roasted Butternut Squash and Grean Beans

**Daniel Fast Worthy

I already love the combination of roasted green beans and potatoes. The butternut squash adds an amazing sweetness to the dish. Right now with butternut squash in season, being so rich and creamy, it is the perfect compliment to this dish!
 
Ingredients:
4 medium red potatoes, cubed
1/2 lb fresh green beans, halved
1/2 medium butternut squash, cubed
Sea Salt
Olive oil
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp southwestern seasoning (chili powder, cumin, paprika), optional

Preheat oven 400 degrees. Combine potatoes, green beans, and butternut squash on a sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil, add sea salt, garlic and southwestern seasoning and blend well. Cook for 20 minutes or until the potatoes and squash are fork tender. Enjoy!

Saucy Rotini

**Daniel Fast Worthy

Ingredients:
2 cups 100% whole wheat pasta, rotini
1 jar tomato sauce, sugar free (I used L.E. Roselli's Marinara sauce, found on top shelf in spaghetti sauce isle) but you could certainly use any sauce you find with no added sugar or make your own
1 cup of fresh baby spinach leaves
Olive oil
1/2 tsp minced garlic
salt and pepper

Cook pasta as directed and drain. In sauce pan, heat a drizzle of olive oil and garlic. Add tomato sauce, spinach leaves, salt and pepper to taste. Cook until heated through and spinach leaves are limp in sauce. Serve over warm pasta!     Serves 2-3.

Cornmeal Crunch

**Daniel Fast Worthy

This is a recipe from Heidi's blog 101cookbooks.com that I just loved while doing the Daniel Fast and for regular morning breakfast. Heidi's version includes Parmesan cheese, but I left it out of mine. This is such an great dish for breakfast or to go with any meal. My husband and I ate it tonight with our spaghetti. We finished it all by the end of the night :-o


Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal
fine grain sea salt
4 cups yellow onion, chopped (about 3 medium onions)
1/4 cup olive oil
3 cups water or vegetable broth

Preheat the oven to 400F degrees. Use Pam or Olive oil spray to coat 9 x 12-inch baking dish. In a medium bowl combine the corn meal with 1 1/2 cups water or broth and 1 teaspoon salt. Stir and set aside.
To caramelize the onions, heat a splash of olive oil in a large thick-bottomed skillet with a 1/2 tsp of sea salt. Continue cooking until the onions collapse and turn translucent. Remove skillet from heat and set aside. Bring 1 1/2 cups water (or broth) to a boil in a medium saucepan, add the water and cornmeal mixture, bring back up to a boil and stir in 2 tablespoons of the sauteed onions. Stir until cornmeal is thicker than a heavy frosting - about 3 minutes. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan, spreading it to an even thickness, and drizzle with about 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the rest of onions on top of cornmeal. Bake for about 30-45 minutes, or until the bottom is golden and the cornmeal begins to pull away from the sides of the pan a bit. Let cool for 5 minutes and Enjoy!

Sauteed Zucchini and Onions

**Daniel Fast Worthy

Ingredients:
Olive oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp pepper
4 medium size Zucchini, chopped
1 sweet Onion, chopped
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp parsley

Liberally drizzle bottom of pan with olive oil and add garlic. Heat pan to medium heat, add zucchini and onions. Season with sea salt and pepper to your taste. Saute until onions are translucent and zucchini is tender and still is bright in color. Mix in parsley and serve over cooked brown rice.

The Daniel Fast

James and I have decided to start the Daniel fast for the first of the year. It is a spiritual fast that Daniel in the bible does before a battle where he eats only foods that grow from the ground. No meats, breads, sugars, dairy, and no alcohol. Foods for the fast include vegetables, fruits, whole wheat, beans, etc. You can follow along with me if you like. Here is a link for more information. We got started today and my goal is to try and post as we go with meals my husband and I make for a variety of meals. I will be modifying some as I am pregnant and need lots of protein, but will keep the recipes I post following the fast. May your body be richly blessed and your spirit enlightened through the fast!

Pumpkin Cookies

After baking during the holidays, I always have some pumpkin mix leftover in my fridge. Some recipes call for only half a can of pumpkin, leaving me with either doubling a recipe or being creative. Well, this time, I got creative. This is a two ingredient recipe that really needs nothing else, but addition touches are noted at the bottom if you must! 

Ingredients:

1 box Spice Cake Mix, dry (or any other cake mix you have on hand, i.e. Yellow Cake Mix)

1 can of pumpkin

Skim Ingredients:

1/2 box Cake Mix, dry

1/2 can of pumpkin

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix dry cake mix and pumpkin until combined well. Cover cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking sheet. Drop by tablespoons on the sheet. Cook for about 10-15 minutes or until the edges start to turn golden brown. Let cool on wire rack. Enjoy the cake-like texture of this cookie!

**Note: You can add extra spices such as allspice or cinnamon if desired. I choose to top my cookies with some powdered sugar sifted on top.

Butternut Squash Lasagna Roll Ups

I am crazy about butternut squash. It has a sweet, nutty flavor that I love and I just keep finding more ways to cook with it. The only hard part of this recipe is the daunting task of peeling and cutting of the squash. However, I have found using a potato peeler and a large knife to cut down through the meat of it isn't so bad. Also, I could slice it down the middle, vertically, and roast the squash to make it soft to handle. All you would need to do is drizzle the skin with some olive oil, place on sheet pan skin side up, and bake it on 400 for about 30 minutes or until fork tender. I made this lasagna into lasagna roll ups, but just because I only had a few lasagna noodles left in my pantry. You can put your own creative spin on this recipe.

Ingredients:
3 cups peeled, diced butternut squash
1 bag of baby spinach leaves
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper
1 tsp coriander
1/2 large onion, chopped
1 (15oz) part skim ricotta cheese carton
1 tub of feta cheese, divided (or your favorite cheese)

1 egg, beaten
1/2 jar of tomato sauce ( I used Prego traditional flavor)
8 lasagna noodles

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place butternut squash and onions on baking sheet and coat with olive oil, salt, pepper, and coriander. Bake for about 15-20 minutes, tossing in between, or until the squash is fork tender. Place baby spinach leaves on same baking sheet at last 5 mins, coat with more olive oil if squash is drying out and bake until spinach is slightly wilted. Set the baking sheet aside. In a bowl, combine ricotta cheese, 1/2 of the feta cheese, and the egg, set aside. Boil lasagna noodles is doing lasagna roll ups (If not, use oven ready lasagna noodles and no boil is needed for a regular lasagna. Drain noodles, and drizzle in between each noodles some olive oil to prevent sticking. (If sticking of noodles occur, rinse cold water over them to separate gently.) Spread 1/4 cup of tomato sauce on bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Preheat oven, if not still on, back to 350. Assembly: Take one noodle and lay it on a cutting board or on a nonslip surface and spread it with a tablespoon of ricotta mixture, then add a heaping tablespoon or so of the butternut squash, onion, spinach mixture. Roll the noodle up and place seam down on tomato lined baking dish. Repeat until out of noodles or mixture. Drizzle the roll ups with the rest of the tomato sauce and top with the other half of feta cheese (not the ricotta mixture). Bake at 350 for about 20 mins or until cheese is slightly melting and sauce is bubbling. Enjoy!

Split Pea Pasta Pockets

Ingredients:
2 cups dried split peas, or frozen peas
2/3 cup ricotta cheese, part skim
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
zest of one lemon
1/2 tsp sea salt
drizzle of olive oil
1 cup vegetable broth for boiling pasta
1 package wonton wrappers
red pepper flakes

Cook dried peas according to package directions. If using frozen peas, use water to rinse the peas in a strainer. This will defrost them while keeping their color and you won't have to cook them. Combine cooked peas, ricotta cheese, and olive oil in food processor until smooth. It needs to be thick not runny so it hold up as a filling. Mix in a separate bowl the pea mixture, parmesan cheese, lemon zest and sea salt. In a large pot, bring water and 1 cup broth to a boil. Take only wontons being used out of the package and keep moist with a damp paper towel so the pasta won't dry out. Stuff each wonton with a scant tsp of the pea mixture, wet all sides of wonton pasta, and fold up into a pocket. Gently drop wontons into the boiling water, then stir once to keep them from sticking to pot or each other. The pasta is fresh and will be cooked in about 2 mintues or when they start rising to the top. Gently lift out each pasta pocket. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle crushed red pepper flakes on top. So Yummy! Enjoy!

Orzo Soup

For anyone who loves egg drop soup at Asian restaurants will love this spin on the delicious soup! This is a recipe posting from 101cookbooks.com that has inspired me to try things new and I hope you will try it too. This recipe is so creamy and delicious, light yet satisfying!

Ingredients:

7 cups vegetable broth or water with bouillon cubes
2 cups orzo (small pasta)
2 cups spinach
1 14-ounce can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes, well drained
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
extra virgin olive oil
3 egg whites
fine grain sea salt

Bring the broth to a boil in a large saucepan. Add the orzo and cook as package directions state.Stir in the chopped spinach and pinch of sea salt. In small bowl heat the tomatoes, red pepper flakes and splash of olive oil in microwave. Just before serving, slowly pour the egg whites into the soup and stir quickly with a whisk. Top each serving with spoonful of tomatoes. Enjoy!

Squash Gratin

 Squash Gratin is a healthy spin on potato gratin, which usually includes heavy cream and lots of butter. This is flavored with seasonings and only a pinch of butter is added to make bread crumbs crunchy. I still included cheese in it of course. I prefer feta, but you can use your favorite cheese to make it your own.



Ingredients:

zest of one lemon
3 large zucchini, sliced
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp oregano
1 tbsp parsley
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp minced garlic, or powdered garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 cups fresh bread crumbs **See Note
5-6 small red potatoes, thinly sliced, transparently thin
1/4 cup feta cheese

Heat oven to 400. Drizzle a small amount of olive oil and zest of a lemon on bottom on a baking or casserole dish. Set the sliced zucchini in a colander and sprinkle with salt. Let it sit for about 10 minutes so excess water can drain off of them. Melt butter in pan until browned but not burned, add fresh bread crumbs, and toss together. Set aside off of heat. In small bowl, mix olive oil, oregano, parsley, garlic, sea salt, and red pepper flakes with a whisk. In large bowl, mix the sliced potatoes, feta, and drained zucchini. Add olive oil mixture to the potato and zucchini bowl. Add all the mixture to the prepared pan and sprinkle the bread crumbs on top. Bake for about 20-30 minutes or until the potatoes are tender and cooked through. This will vary greatly with the amount of water in each potato and zucchini as to how long it needs to cook. Enjoy! We ate it too fast to get a finishing picture. It was delicious!

*Note:  I just put whole wheat bread slices on the oven racks while the oven was preheating to make them toasty. It helps to have bread somewhat stale or toasty to absorb the butter.