Healthy Homemade Condiments

Condiments have a LOT of sugar and sodium in them.  And who knows what else?  Honestly, I don't always remember to count condiments when I am logging the food that I eat.  And why would you remember anyway?  It's just something extra that goes along with your meal.  It doesn't count, right?  In a perfect world, that would be true. 

I found a couple of recipes for some of our favorite condiments that are much healthier than the store-bought kind.  Not only are they low in sugar and sodium and preservatives, but you can actually see what you are putting into them.  It helps knowing what you are feeding your family.

Sugar Free Ketchup

I found this recipe in 500 Low-Carb Recipes.  My husband says he likes it much better than regular ketchup.  We went out to eat recently and he got fries (obviously with regular ketchup) and he said the ketchup tasted funny.  What I did was take a bottle of ketchup that was in our fridge, pour it down the drain, and rinse it.  Then I put a label on it that said "Sugar Free Ketchup."  That way I could use it for my new and improved ketchup.

1 6-oz can tomato paste

2/3 cup apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup water

1/3 cup Splenda

2 tbsp minced onion

2 cloves garlic

1 tsp salt

1/8  tsp allspice

1/8 tsp cloves

1/8 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp xanthan gum (optional)

Put all ingredients in a food processor and blend until the mixture is smooth and the bits of onion disappear.  Use a funnel and pour into empty ketchup bottle.  I make a double batch, which fits in my ketchup bottle nicely.

Low-Carb Honey Mustard Sauce

I found this recipe entirely by accident.  I saw a recipe on the back of a French's mustard bottle for "Tangy Ranch Chicken" that sounded interesting.  I decided to try it.  After I mixed up the sauce, I tasted a little bit and immediately recognized it as honey mustard sauce.  I guess whatever French's calls tangy ranch is what I call honey mustard!  Anyway, I just swapped out the brown sugar for Splenda Brown Sugar Blend.  And I did the same thing with the honey mustard bottle as I did with the ketchup - poured out the old and poured in the new.

2/3 cup Ranch dressing

1/3 cup mustard

3 tbsp Splenda Brown Sugar Blend

Place all ingredients in a bowl and whisk together.  Use a funnel to pour into a bottle.

(I still need to make a label for this one!)

Recycled Plastic Bag Bib

Here is another way to reuse those plastic grocery/shopping bags.  I had previously posted instructions for recycled plastic grocery bag washcloths and recycled plastic grocery bag totes, but this project does not require any knitting, only sewing.  So as long as you have minimal sewing skills, you shouldn't have any problems making this.

Start by finding 3 plastic bags.  But here's the catch:  they have to be #4 plastic bags.  To find out if it is #4, look for a recycling symbol somewhere on the bag.  There should be a #4 inside the recycle symbol.  Most plastic grocery bags will be #2.  But look around, not just at grocery bags, but any disposable plastic bag.  I discovered that the bags they put the Door Store in are #4, and the bags the phone book came in are #4.  Anyway, here's a hint:  Target bags are #4.  And they have a cool pattern too, which makes them perfect for this project.

Here's what you will need:

3 #4 plastic bags

parchment paper

iron

scissors

pen or marker

bias tape

coordinating thread

stick-on Velcro

I recommend fusing the bags next to an open window or other open space.  It has been so cold out lately that I just did it in my garage.

Step 1:  Smooth out the first bag.  Then cut off the handles and the bottom.  Repeat with the other 2 bags.  Then smooth them out so there are no folds.

Step 2:  Layer the 3 bags on top of each other.  Tear 2 pieces of parchment paper the same length as the bags and sandwich the bags in between the paper.

Step 3: Set your iron on a low setting.  Iron the bags, making sure that the parchment paper is covering them at all times.  Keep the iron moving and iron all sections of the bags.  Peel the parchment paper back to see if the bags are fused; if not, keep ironing until fused.

Here is what they look like once they are fused.  The picture doesn't really show it very well, but you will see once you are done ironing your bags.

Step 4: Place a bib that you already have on top of the fused bags and trace around it with a pen or marker. Cut out the bib.

Side note:  My "pattern" bib extended past the material, so I used a ruler to make the sides straight instead of rounded.

Step 5: Sew bias tape around the edges of the bib.  Put stick-on Velcro on each side of the neck.

Optional: You can cut out a little pocket to catch crumbs.  Sew bias tape on the top edge and then sew onto the bib as you are sewing the bias tape around the edge.

Easy Peasey!

Now you have a one of a kind bib for your child or to give as a gift. 

Care instructions:  Not machine washable.  Wipe clean with a damp cloth.



Buffalo Chicken Quesadillas

I love, love, love Buffalo chicken dip.  But ever since I started watching my carbs, I haven't been making it since it requires chips for dipping.  This was one of those questions that has been in the back of my mind:  How can I still eat it without going overboard on carbs?  I considered other low-carb dipping options.  Celery?  No.  That's just sad.  Pork rinds?  Don't really like those.

Anyway, as I planned to make chicken quesadillas for dinner this weekend, I had a light bulb turn on above my head.  I was mentally checking off the ingredients that I needed to make chicken quesadillas.  Chicken?  Check.  Cheese?  Check.  Hot sauce?  Check.

HEY!  Wait a minute.

Those are 3 of the ingredients in Buffalo chicken dip.  Why not make it in my little Crock-ette and use it as filling for the quesadillas?

DUH!!!

 I use these low-carb tortillas:

Only 6 net carbs per tortilla... and 12 grams of fiber (whoa!)  And to be honest, they don't have that nasty, grainy, fiber-y taste.  Especially after you cook them.

I'm sure a lot of you are already familiar with Buffalo chicken dip.  If you haven't made it yourself, chances are you have probably tasted it at a party or picnic before.  But just in case you are not familiar with it, here is the recipe.

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked chicken

1 8 oz package of cream cheese

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup Ranch dressing

1/4 cup Frank's Red Hot sauce

I cook the chicken in my little crock-ette (about 5 hours or so) and then shred it with 2 forks.  Then I add the rest of the ingredients, stir, and let it cook for another hour or so.

Mmmmm, yummy!

Then you are ready to cook the quesadillas.  Heat up the Foreman Grill.  Put about 1/3 cup, or 3 big spoonfuls of the Buffalo chicken filling on half of the tortilla.  Fold in half and close the grill.

Cook for about 6 minutes.  Then carefully remove the quesadilla from the grill.  Let it cool for a few minutes, then use a pizza cutter to cut it into quarters.

You can serve them plain, or with salsa or sour cream for dipping.  I think they taste just fine plain.  I did the calculations, and these are about 8 net carbs per tortilla.  Not bad at all!  Of course, if you are not watching your carbs, then you are free to use any old high-carb tortilla.  But you will feel guilty knowing that you could have made it much healthier but just as delicious!



Healthy Tater Tots Made with Cauliflower

This is not one of my quickest recipes, but I think it's a good healthy substitute for something I like to eat that is not so healthy.  My family loves tater tots, French fries, and basically any type of potato.  But ever since I started watching my carbs, I have been looking for substitutes for the high-carb foods that we love.  I have learned that cauliflower makes a pretty good substitute for potatoes in a lot of recipes. 

Here is the ingredient list:

2 12 oz bags of frozen cauliflower

2 eggs

1 1/4 cups almond flour

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

Step 1: Boil the cauliflower in salted water for 10 minutes.  Drain well in a colander.

Step 2: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.  Add the cooked cauliflower to a large food processor along with all of the other ingredients.  Process until well blended.

Side note:  The original recipe that I found for these tots instructed to fry globs of the mixture in EVOO, one at a time.  Not only is that impractical for busy moms like me, but I also found it impossible.  This mixture has the consistency of mashed potatoes.  Just imagine trying to fry globs of mashed potatoes.  Yeah.  I tried it, and it turned out just as one would expect.

Step 3: Spray a mini muffin pan with cooking spray (make sure you spray it really well).

Step 4: Fill the mini muffin cups about 1/2 to 2/3 full with the mixture.

Step 5: Put the pan in the oven and bake for 22 minutes.

And there you have it.  My mini muffin pan makes 24 tots, and I had enough of the cauliflower mixture to make 2 batches.  It makes 4 servings with about 8 net carbs per serving.  These can also be frozen and reheated.  I would definitely recommend freezing any leftovers, because I don't like spending that much time and effort on one recipe, so if I do, you can bet I'll make sure none of it is wasted!



Weekly Menu Planner

I have been seeing a lot of these weekly menu planner ideas lately.  I kept thinking I need to do something like that.  But maybe not exactly like that.  Meaning, I need to put my own twist on it.  If you haven't already started to figure me out, that is the way I do most things.  I can't just follow a recipe/ pattern/ instructions exactly as they are written.  I have to do something to make it better.

Anyway, a lot of the menu planners I have seen included some type of chalkboard or dry erase calendar.  I am not a fan of chalkboard.  Or dry erase for that matter.  And call me lazy, but I am not a fan of writing things down over and over.  So I thought... MAGNETS.  That is what I need.  I need to come up with some kind of magnet that I can write every possible meal on each one, then I can reuse them each week.  That would not only save me from having to write down every meal every week, but it would also make meal planning easier because I would be able to see every possible meal written down on magnets right before my very eyes.  It would also make it easy to swap out days, which I seem to do pretty often. 

So this idea has been in the back of my head for some time now.  I knew I wanted magnets, but I was not sure how or what I would use for them, and I was not sure what to put them on.  I thought, should I try to find a magnetic board to hang in my kitchen?  Nah.  I don't really have a place to hang it.  Besides, what would I do with it?  Write days of the week on it or print a calendar to glue to it?  Nothing quite seemed to work right for me. 

But then, last week I finally got around to buying my 2012 calendars.  I chose the Family Plan-It Calendar, which, unbeknownst to me, included this:

A laminated, weekly planner sheet with magnets on the back.  The perfect thing to stick on my fridge and stick meal magnets to.  So I got started making magnets.

This is what I needed to make the magnets:

Old bottle caps

Magnets

Pencil

Fine-tipped sharpie

Scrapbook paper

Tacky glue

Quarter

Scissors

(I know there is a glue stick in the picture.  I did use it at first but then realized that the tacky glue works much better.)

Start by turning the scrapbook paper over to the plain side and tracing around the quarter with the pencil.  Repeat over and over until you have enough circles for your bottle caps.

Then cut out your circles.  On the pretty side, use the sharpie to write the names of your meals on the circles.  Glue the circles inside the bottle caps with tacky glue.  Then glue the magnets to the bottom of the bottle caps with tacky glue.  This should be easy because the magnets will stick to the bottle caps.  The hard part is making sure you don't put them too close together when they are drying because the magnets will stick together and will be very hard to pull apart while the glue is still drying.  Ask me how I know.

I already had all of the supplies for this project, but I did splurge a little.  I bought this magnetic basket to hold extra magnets and a set of mini dry erase markers.  Just to make it all a little nicer looking.

So, altogether, a pretty simple project.  Don't know why it took me so long to figure out something that would work for me.  Here is my finished product:

The only thing is, I have about 100 more little circles with meals written on them, but I ran out of bottle caps to glue them on.  Guess that means I will have to buy more beer.  Ha!



Tuna Burgers

I love canned tuna.  It is my "go-to guy" for dinner.  It's cheap and it's healthy.  Doesn't have to be refrigerated or cooked or cut up ahead of time.  All you have to do is open the can and add to the recipe (and fend off the cat when she comes hurdling toward you at that same moment).   This is a recipe that I got from my mom and one that I grew up with.  The following recipe makes 2 burgers, so you can double/ triple/ quadruple it as needed.

Ingredients:

1 5 oz can tuna

1 egg

1/4 cup whole grain oats

1tsp dried minced onions (optional)

pepper

Heat a griddle on the stove over medium heat.  Spray with cooking spray.  Put all ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly.  Divide into 2 equal patties.  Place patties on the griddle and cook evenly on both sides.  Serve on buns with lettuce and mayo.

These make a very tasty, easy, healthy and CHEAP meal!



Free Lamp Makeover

I had this tired old floor lamp that I had grown bored with.  I think I got in when I was in college.  I was going to replace it, but then I got an idea to give it a makeover... at $0 cost.

This is a very easy project, but it takes a little time and patience.  The only things you need are yarn and a glue stick.  I already had both, so this cost me nothing.  I know most of you already have both of those items in your house already too, so you should also be able to do this for free.

I chose this wine-colored yarn that coordinates with my living room.  I think multi-colored yarn would be cool too, but I just used what I had.  Anyway, start by giving your lamp a good dusting.  When it's dry, glue the end of the yarn to the bottom of the lamp.  (You could start at the top just as well.)

Using the glue stick, apply glue to the first 4-6 inches of the lamp.  Then wrap the yarn around and around.... and around and around... and around and around (you get the picture).  Keep applying glue as you go, several inches at a time.  It will take a long time, and you probably won't finish it in one sitting/ standing/kneeling.  But when you are done, you will end up with an Extreme Makeover: Lamp Edition!

I imagine this would look even cooler with more shapely lamps.  I just had a plain old pole to decorate, but I'm sure there are much more interestingly-shaped table lamps out there in need of decorating.