oregano – Oven Love

Mini Mexican Zucchini Boats (Grain-Free, GAPS/Paleo/Dairy-Free Option)

Natalie — Wed, 28 Aug 2013 04:54:49 +0000

I made a real dinner, you guys.

I actually semi-meal-planned it and put thought into it and everything (say what??). Mom/wife of the year!

It’s tough for me to get my head on straight and focus on my every day responsibilities at the moment. The new house is just crazy and it’s consuming my thoughts. I sat down to write my market/grocery list and I reeeeally had to focus, but I got it done. And I actually bought the things on my list at the market without buying any extra stuff (except a strawberry popsicle for my little helper, couldn’t resist). Although.. we did go to Trader Joe’s afterwards and we have about 0.0% self control in that place.. so mission only semi-accomplished. Oops.

We will have to do a whole run down of our Trader Joe’s favorites soon.. I could talk about it all day. Love/hate relationship.

Okay, so these are mini taco-stuffed zucchini boats. Cute, right? I made them smaller so they’d work nicely for kid portions. I actually thought about making them even smaller, but I thought the filling might fall out. After cooking them, I can say that they’d be perfect bite-sized appetizers if you cut them into 1-inch portions. I’d love to serve teeny tiny ones with some margs- GIANT margs.

If you are paleo or dairy-free, I still think these would be tasty without the cheese. We had some extra filling and we fried it up like a little taco burger, and it tasted great. Cheese not necessary.

These little boats are a nice way to switch things up if you like tacos, but you’re getting tired of your typical tortilla or lettuce wrap. The zucchini is basically just another vehicle for getting that taco goodness in your mouth. It’s really all about the filling, isn’t it? It takes a little extra time, but it’s not as messy as a taco if you’re feeding them to your child. This is important at my house, since my daughter has crazy-dinner-mess-face every time she eats. Girl is serious about her food.

Hopefully, I can keep up this meal-planning streak for another few days. I think you probably know how that’s going to end..

Mini Mexican Zucchini Boats

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

50 mins

*To make things even quicker, you can substitute about 3-4T taco seasoning for the spices.

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Main Course

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

4 medium zucchinis, ends trimmed
1 pound ground beef (I prefer grass-fed)
½ onion, minced
½ green bell pepper, minced
1-2 garlic cloves, minced/pressed/grated
1 tablespoon tomato paste (optional, not Paleo-approved)
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced (optional)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon oregano
2 teaspoons salt
cracked pepper to taste (probably around 1 teaspoon)
1 cup shredded cheese (optional, I used a mixture of monterey jack and sharp cheddar)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375. Grease the bottom of a large baking dish.
To prepare the zucchinis, cut them in half lengthwise and scoop out the flesh to make a channel. Set aside.
To prepare the filling, mix the ground beef, onion, bell pepper, garlic, jalapeno, tomato paste (if using) and spices in a medium bowl.
To assemble, fill the zucchinis with the ground beef mixture. Then cut each zucchini in half (or smaller sections if you life). Place the mini zucchini boats in the greased dish.
Bake for 20 minutes. Pull out of the oven, top with the shredded cheese and bake for another 5-10 minutes or until the zucchini is soft and the cheese is melted. If you’re not using cheese, bake about 30 minutes until the zucchini is soft and the filling is set.
Serve warm and enjoy.

Creole Rice Skillet with Andouille Sausage

Natalie — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 19:19:26 +0000

I heart quick dinners. Don’t we all?

Some nights there just isn’t time to mess around with the oven and the pots and the pans and the measuring cups and the nonsense.

Some nights I just pull out the cast iron and see what happens.

The night I made this skillet, I was lucky enough to have some cooked rice, some beans and some Aidell’s Cajun-Style Andouille Sausage* hanging around. So creole/cajun/jambalaya-style skillet it was. It came together lightening fast since the rice and sausage were already cooked, but it wouldn’t take more than 20 minutes to get that taken care of, so still a quick dish in my book.

This one was a winner for the adults in our household, but it was a bit spicy for the kids. If you want to make a kid-friendly version, I would go easy on the spices and use a milder variety of sausage. Still a yummy combo, I’m sure.

If you’re not really into the cajun/creole thing, maybe try Italian sausage and cannelini beans or really anything else from the pantry or fridge that sounds good to you. That’s the best part about skillet dinners- you can just throw more stuff in until it looks like a meal. (Spoken like a true food professional, amiright?)

*P.S. This post is not sponsored by Aidell’s, I just like them! They are the best option at my local grocery store for natural link sausages.

2.5 from 2 reviews

Creole Rice Skillet with Andouille Sausage

The prep time includes cooking the rice and sausage.

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Main Dish

Serves: 4

Ingredients

1-2 tablespoons grass-fed butter or lard
1 onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 cups cooked rice, any variety
4 andouille sausage links, cooked and chopped
1½ cups or 1 drained and rinsed can of red kidney beans
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon paprika (I use smoked paprika but any kind will do)
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper (or both)
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon thyme

Instructions

In a cast iron skillet, heat the butter or lard over medium heat. Saute the onion and bell pepper until they begin to soften.
Add the rice, sausage and red beans. Stir and let cook until warmed through.
Add the spices and stir until completely coated. Serve warm in the skillet.

Lamb Meatballs (gluten-free, grain-free, paleo) with Yogurt Dip and Spiced Vegetables

Natalie — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 19:57:00 +0000

This new style of eating has been an adjustment. It’s hard to wrap my head around new rules for meal-planning and eating. So much of my day is spent thinking about food, and planning out when and what we’re going to eat and making grocery lists. I know it’s not permanent (I mean, I hope! Ack!) and I know it’s going to help to heal my stomach, but it is mentally draining.

This meal is one of my first attempts at branching out from the plain-meat-and-veg dinner. I am semi-obsessed with meatballs lately, so when I saw ground lamb at Publix I had to grab it. It was exxxxpensive, but it made delicious meatballs.

When I was combining the meatball mixture, I wasn’t sure they would come together without some kind of binder. I swore by panko or soaked bread in my old meatball recipes and that obviously wasn’t happening, so I grabbed some coconut flour- my new BFF. It’s basically magic, that stuff. It soaked up the extra moisture right away.

To go along with the lamb, I made a quick yogurt dip in the food processor with mint and feta cheese. I hadn’t ever had the mint/feta combo, but it is surprisingly delicious. A little goes a long way for me (as usual when it comes to dips and sauces), but I’m a fan.

I also roasted up some cauliflower and carrots in spices that compliment the lamb- oregano, garlic, parsley.. as well as some cinnamon, cloves, allspice and a touch of cumin. You don’t have to add the “sweeter” spices, but I like the way they taste when paired with the lamb.

I had my meatballs and veggies over a salad; hubs made pita sandwiches. The kids gobbled up the veggies in no time. I feel like I finally had a win in the kitchen after weeks of scraping by.. not really knowing what to eat or serve my family. Huge sigh of relief!

Lamb Meatballs (gluten-free, grain-free, paleo) with Yogurt Dip and Spiced Vegetables

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

30 mins

Total time

50 mins

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Main Dish, Appetizer

Serves: 8

Ingredients

½ onion, peeled
handful of parsley (maybe ¼-1/3 cup packed?)
3 garlic cloves, peeled
1 pound ground lamb
1 egg
2 tablespoons coconut flour
1 tablespoon oregano
½ teaspoon cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon cloves cloves
salt and pepper to taste
Feta Yogurt Dip (below), Spiced Vegetables (below), pita bread, salad greens, etc for serving

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
In the bowl of a food processor, combine onion, parsley and garlic. Process until finely diced.
In a large mixing bowl, combine onion mixture, lamb, egg, coconut flour and spices until well combined. Form into meatballs and line up on a foil or parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake the meatballs at 400 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve with feta yogurt dip, spiced vegetables, pita bread, or whatever you like. (If you’d like the meatballs to be even more brown, turn on the broiler for 5 minutes and them pull them out).

Feta Yogurt Dip

Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

5 mins

Total time

10 mins

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Condiment

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

4 ounces feta cheese
⅓ cup yogurt, plus extra if you like a thinner dip
2 sprigs fresh mint
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar or fresh lemon juice

Instructions

In a food processor, combine feta, yogurt, mint and vinegar/lemon juice. Process until smooth. If the dip isn’t smooth enough for you, add some more yogurt until you reach your desired consistency. Serve with the lamb meatballs.

Spice Roasted Cauliflower and Carrots

Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

45 mins

Total time

55 mins

These can bake in the oven at the same time as the lamb meatballs.

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Side Dishes

Serves: 6

Ingredients

1 head cauliflower, chopped into florets
5-6 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
2-4 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried parsley or a few sprigs freshly chopped parsley
1 teaspoon garlic powder or 2 fresh garlic cloves, minced
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon cinnamon, optional
¼ teaspoon cloves, optional
¼ teaspoon allspice, optional
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, combine the vegetables, olive oil and spices. Spread on a foil or parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 30-45 minutes until beginning to brown. Serve warm.

Slow Cooker (Crockpot) BBQ Ribs

Natalie — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 13:37:00 +0000

Yesterday was an exciting day in the Oven Love house!

I made RIBS. On a MONDAY. With little to no effort.

It was like the Twilight Zone.

Blogger confession: I think I’ve only eaten ribs, like, 2 times in my life before this?

They always seem like they would be tasty.. but when I see people eat ribs, it just looks like more trouble than it’s worth. And a mess. And fatty, low-quality meat. Ugh.

But THESE ribs.. they are something to write about. They came from our grass-fed half-hog, so no worries about low-quality for us. There is usually a little more time between when we eat a meal and when it gets posted, but I had to share these with you ASAP. You need them in your life!

Here’s what to expect: rub the ribs with spices, let cook all day, then reduce your sauce, baste your ribs and broil for less than 10 minutes. Minimal effort for you, big reward for your tummy.

I had to be super careful getting these out of the slow cooker because they were so tender (notice the pile of meat in the background of these pictures- that rack did not make it out without falling apart completely.. YUM). You could probably skip the broiling step if you’re pressed for time, but I wouldn’t if I were you- the natural sugars in the sauce carmelize and make the most amazing crust. You don’t want to miss it.

Needless to say, I am a big fan of this method!

Ribs will probably still be a rarity around here, but the next time I find myself with some.. you better believe they’re headed straight for the slow cooker.

Slow Cooker (Crockpot) BBQ Ribs

Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

7 hours

Total time

7 hours 5 mins

with inspiration from My Life As A Mrs, Mmm is for Mommy, Foodie Crush and Spicy Ice Cream

Author: Oven Love

Ingredients

1 full rack or 2 half racks pork ribs, preferably pastured (or whatever fits in your slow cooker!)
1 tablespoon paprika (I used sweet this time, but you can use a combo of sweet and smoked paprika)
1 tablespoon unrefined sugar (like Sucanat)
½ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon chile powder (I used Ancho chile powder)
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon oregano
1 cup of your favorite barbecue sauce (I used my homemade peach and plum BBQ sauce- I wish I had written down the recipe, it is so good!)

Instructions

Pat your ribs dry with a paper towel. Combine all of the spices (paprika through oregano above) and rub onto the ribs. Place dry ribs (no water needed) in your slow cooker with the meaty side facing the heat.
Cook your ribs on low for 6-7 hours total. About half way through cooking, pour your barbecue sauce over the ribs and continue cooking.
When you’re ready to finish your ribs, preheat your oven’s broiler and place your oven rack about 10 inches below the heating element. Remove the ribs carefully from the slow cooker and place on a baking sheet with aluminum foil and a cooling rack (so any fat will drip off of the ribs and onto the foil). Set aside.
Pour the liquid from the slow cooker into a small pot and bring to a boil. Let the sauce thicken and reduce by about a third- this will take 10-15 minutes. When the sauce has reduced, brush onto the ribs and broil for 3-4 minutes. Baste with sauce and broil another 3-4 minutes. Remove and serve at this point, or continue to baste and broil until you reach your desired carmelization. Serve with any extra sauce.

Smoky Pork Tacos

Natalie — Mon, 16 May 2011 17:44:00 +0000

Friends, we’re all lucky today that I found my way out of bed and stumbled over to the computer to write this post. My house got hit with the stomach bug this weekend and it has been aw–ful. Friday, I got it. Saturday, I attempted to recover. Sunday, baby got it, then husband got it. Today, we are just trying to stay alive. I don’t know about you, but I turn into a real mess when I have tummy troubles. I won’t get into the details, because A) gross! B) seriously, gross. and C) I’m about to tell you about some yummy food, so I don’t want you thinking about anything gross.

I have been meaning to share these yummies for a long time.. they just always get eaten up before I get a chance to take a photo. These smoky pork tacos are one of my go-to entertaining meals- everyone seems to love them, especially the guys! They are simple to prepare, you just have to sit in agony while they smell up your house with all their deliciousness. If you can handle that, you’re in for a treat.

I like to serve them with different toppings every time. In the photos here, I have jicama, tomato, scallions and queso fresco. I’ll often have switch these out with salsa, avocado or guacamole, red onion, cilantro, fresh limes for squeezing, sour cream… you name it, we’ve had it on these tacos. Whatever we have on hand works- they are versatile and tasty every time. You can’t mess these up! Unless you don’t cook them long enough.. that would be your only faux pas. Also- don’t let them get too dry. Don’t be afraid to add some water if things are looking dry.

Oh, how I wish I could have these in my tummy today! They will have to wait for happier tummies here, but please eat some for me, will you? I am drooling on my keyboard.

PS- They work with beef as well, and are just as yummy.

PPS- You can do them in the oven or the slow cooker, I’ve written directions for both methods below.

Smoky Pork Tacos

Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

3 hours

Total time

3 hours 30 mins

adapted from Martha Stewart- http://www.marthastewart.com/281902/smoky-beef-tacos

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Main

Serves: 10

Ingredients

2-3 tablespoons chopped canned chiles in adobo
½ cup ketchup
8 garlic cloves, chopped
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 cup water, or more
coarse salt and ground black pepper
3 lb pork roast, trimmed of excess fat (works with beef as well)
corn tortillas, for serving

Instructions

To prepare in a slow cooker: In the slow cooker, mix chiles, ketchup, garlic, oregano and water with about 2 teaspoons salt and black pepper to taste (a whisk works well for this). Cut the pork roast into 3-4 large pieces and toss with the sauce in the slow cooker. Put the slow cooker on high for 4-6 hours or low for 6-8 hours. Add more water as needed if things start to look dry. Check every once in a while- when the meat flakes easily with a fork, you’re ready to move on to the next step. Remove the meat from the sauce, let cool, and pull apart with two forks, removing any extra fat along the way. Return the meat to the sauce and let the flavors meld over low heat (or on the “Keep Warm” setting), adding water if necessary. Serve hot in corn tortillas.
To prepare in the oven: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a Dutch oven, mix chiles, ketchup, garlic, oregano and water with about 2 teaspoons salt and black pepper to taste (a whisk works well for this). Cut the pork roast into 3-4 large pieces and toss with the sauce. Cover, bring to a boil on the stove, and then transfer to the oven. Bake, covered, until meat is fork-tender, about 2½-3 hours. Remove the meat from the sauce, let cool, and pull apart with two forks, removing any extra fat along the way. Return the meat to the sauce and let the flavors meld over low heat, adding water if necessary. Serve hot in corn tortillas.