Coach Kirstin

I love vinegar coleslaw.  Probably more than creamy coleslaw, maybe because it’s not as common.  I had thought on several occasions that I would make my own, but I never got around to it.  Well two weeks ago in my Green Grocer delivery, I had two heads of cabbage.  I also had a ton of zucchini so I made a lasagna that week and still had the cabbage, so my first attempt at coleslaw.  I modified a few recipes I read through based on what I had on hand.  What I used: <![if !supportLists]> ·          <![endif]>Splash of red wine vinegar <![if !supportLists]> ·          <![endif]>1 ½ cups of regular vinegar <![if !supportLists]> ·          <![endif]>¾ cup sugar <![if !supportLists]> ·          <![endif]>½ cup of vegetable oil <![if !supp...

So I like kale.   But I can only eat so many kale chips.  I received a bunch of kale in my veggie box this week and was at my limit for kale chips.  So I goggled recipes and found a couple but needed something quick.  There was a recipe for braised kale, that I decided to modify.  I took 6 pieces of bacon, chopped them up and cooked them in a big frying pan .  Then I took the bacon out, leaving the grease.  I tossed in the kale and added a few splashes of red wine vinegar.  Tossed it around a few times to get the kale to soften a bit and then added the bacon back in.  Rather simple.  And probably the tast iest kale I have ever had.    

I love salty foods.  But for some reason Im not that into potato chips.  As I picked out the veggies for our box, I initially removed the Kale.  I had it stripped down to mostly mushrooms, heirloom tomatoes, zucchini and green beans.  I usually leave the creativity up to Jenn.  But she is in Cali with Dave.  So I had to be brave and I added it to the box.  Its not that interesting but is pretty good for you . Google away and pretty much everyone says add a little olive oil, garlic and salt.  Then bake until crispy.  It was pretty simple.  I might have got a little carried away with tearing it into small pieces but there are worse things.  The most annoying part was spreading it out evenly on the baking sheet.  I had three batches so it should last us most of the week.  Despite being super tasty, Kale is very full of fiber and should be spread out over the course of the week.  Lesson learned.

So lasagna is like that rare homemade treat that I just love but no one ever makes me, I now know why...they are a pain in the ass.  Fantastic none the less.  Since I began researching Paleo recipes I had noticed the use of zucchini in place of pasta, notably in lasagna.  I actually love zucchini, probably my fav veggie other tomatoes.  So I had been dying to make one.  Low and behold, guess what arrives in our veggie box.  4 zucchini.  Opportunity.  Minor problem.  Ive never made a lasagna in my life.  Thank goodness for Google.  I knew the things I liked in my lasagna, some things I wanted to try.  So I searched away and the best recipe I found was this one by The Pioneer Woman .  I had found much fancier ones but thats not really what I was looking for.  And all the paleo ones take out cheese.  Lets be honest, your waisting your time with a lasagna that doesn't have cheese.  Life just isn't worth living w...

About three years ago I was in NM visiting for a friends wedding and my dad convinced me to eat tomatoes.  I had protested prior to this for texture reasons.  But these were from his garden.  And honestly, Ill do pretty much anything my dad asks me to.  They were pretty fantastic but that spoiled me, there are few things as good as tomatoes picked when they are ripe from a garden in your back yard.  Though I still eat them almost every day.  They are a staple to my diet, even in winter when they don't taste that good, I just put more salt on.  Or in this case, add a little balsamic vinegar, olive oil, garlic and mozzarella and put it on top of chicken for a little grilled chicken bruschetta .  Im always looking for ways to make chicken because lets be honest, it gets really quite boring.  There is only so much that spices can do.  The hard part is keeping it within the diet.  This is a pretty good combo and has now been added to the...

I have had a cold pretty much since I came back from Vegas.  I thought I had turned the corner but this weekend it got worse.  I spent most of the weekend coughing and because of that not sleeping so much.  I always find it ironic that the thing you need most when you are sick is the hardest thing to do.  Being a little more than fed up with this, I went to the dr this morning.  Sinus infection.  And a chest x-ray just for fun because Im now a sinus infection regular.  So wanting something a little easy and warm today, I decided to make my first soup...how hard can it be right.  I love soups with veggies but every soup has corn in it.  And I have a mild allergy to corn.  Trying not to agitate my sore (sore really doesn't describe, its more like raw) throat anymore I wanted to make my own soup.  So into the crockpot went chicken broth, 2 cans of diced tomatoes and 3 chicken breasts.  I found potatoes, a red pepper and broccoli i...