Happy Easter and a Pot Roast Recipe

Happy Easter!

I just spent an amazing weekend with my husband up in Santa Barbara, enjoying some much needed R&R. Wine tasting, sunshine, good food, a beautiful run, shopping, and time spent with my husband. I feel that both of us have been going non stop for such a long time, that it has been a while since we have been able to spend time together alone.

In celebration of Easter we decorated eggs, which we do every year, and I cooked my very first pot roast. I was pretty pleased with the results, and now have tons left over to enjoy over the week. Here is the recipe that I threw together:

Ingredients:

• 5 lb grass-fed beef roast
• 1 small bag of baby carrots
• 1 bundle of celery, diced
• 6 dutch potatoes, sliced
• 4 shallots
• 2 yellow onion, diced
• Sea salt
• fresh ground pepper
• Trader Joe's five-spice seasoning
• Oregano
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup dry sherry

The Finished Dish! 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees
2. Rub the roast with the sea salt, pepper, oregano, and the five-spice seasoning. Making sure to cover all sides.
3. Add oil to a pan and put the roast in the pan
4. Brown each side of the roast, cooking each side only for a few minutes
5. Chop up the vegetables and place in the bottom of an oven safe dish that has a lid
6. Place the browned roast on top of the vegetables
7. Add the chicken stock and sherry
8. Cook at 300 for 15 minutes
9. Reduce the temperature to 260 degrees
10. Cook for about 3 hours, flipping the roast over half way through.
11. Make sure the roast does not look dry, if so add more liquid to the top of the roast. The lid and low temperature should keep the meat moist during cooking. 

Hope your day was full of peace and love! 

Our Easter Eggs

Love Machine in Santa Barbara

Pura Vida!
Alica Ryan, NTP

Day 356- Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 package of uncooked wild rice
• 1 carton of organic chicken stock
• 4 cups water
• 3 chicken breasts, cut into small pieces
• 2 cups carrots, chopped
• 1 bundle of celery, chopped
• 1 cup mushrooms, chopped
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 tablespoon oregano
• 1 tablespoon basil
• Sea salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Place chicken in a pan and cook slightly, no longer than 5 minutes
2. Place all ingredients in crock pot and cook on low for about 5-6 hours

Pura Vida!

Alica Ryan, NTP

Day 353- Beef Vegetable Soup

Isn't funny how certain tastes and smells can bring back strong memories? There aren't very many dishes that remind me of my grandma, but her vegetable soup was one of them; well that and the rock hard brownies she always made that everyone for some reason always seemed to love.

Her soup is probably something that no one will ever be able to recreate in it's entirety, but I have a feeling that many of us will continue to try. The soup outside from the warm and cozy house that it was originally served in is irreplaceable, hence so is the most important ingredient in her soup.

I do have to commend myself on my first attempt. It may not be exactly as I remember, but it was close enough for me.

Ingredients:

• 2 potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 bag of shredded cabbage, or 1 head of cabbage diced
• 2 cups of diced carrots
• 1 onion sliced
• 1 carton of organic free-range chicken stock or vegetable stock
• 1 pound of 100% grass-fed ground beef
• 1 can of diced tomatoes, or about 2 cups of fresh diced tomatoes
• 1 bunch of celery, chopped
• 1 tablespoon of dried oregano
• 1 clove of garlic, crushed
• 1 tablespoon of dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt

Directions:

1. In a crock pot add the ground beef, chicken stock, carrots, celery, onion, and potatoes.
2. Cook for for about 8 hours on medium heat
3. Add the cabbage, tomatoes, herbs, garlic, salt and pepper
4. Cook for an additional 1-2 hours or until all vegetables are tender

Pura Vida!

Alica Ryan, NTP

Day 331- Citrus Cilantro Chicken

Citrus Cilantro Chicken

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken breasts
• 4 Limes
• 2 oranges
• 1/2 cup olive oile
• 1 medium onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Squeeze the juice from the limes and lemons
2. Dice the onion and garlic
3. Place all ingredients, except chicken, in a blender and puree
4. Place chicken and sauce in a large ziplock bag and refrigerate at least overnight if not longer.
5. Preheat oven to 325 degrees
6. Place chicken on a baking dish, spoon extra sauce over the top of the chicken and bake for about 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

Pura Vida!

Alica Ryan, NTP

Day 329- Caprese Salad

Caprese Salad

Ingredients for one salad:

• 1 tomato
• 4 slices of fresh whole milk mozzarella cheese
• 3 large leaves of basil
• Ground fresh peppers
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Directions:

1. Slice the tomatoes and the cheese
2. Place two slices of tomatoes between each piece of cheese
3. Ground fresh pepper over the top
4. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar
5. Tear fresh basil over the top
6. Enjoy

Pura Vida!

Alica Ryan, NTP

Day 248- Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 butternut squash
• 1 cartoon organic chicken or vegetable stock
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions:

1. Cut squash in half, place in baking dish with about 1/4 cup of water
2. Place the squash in the 375 degree oven
3. Cook until squash has softened, about 20 minutes
4. Cut off the skin, and scoop out the seeds
5. In Sauce pan sauté garlic and onions
6. Place garlic, onion, and squash in blender or food processor and blend until a thick puree
7. Put mixture into a pot, add chicken stock, and coconut milk
8. Cook for about 15 minutes or until it starts to bubble
9. Add salt, pepper, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper

Pura Vida!

Alica Ryan, NTP

Day 199- Interested in Seeing What's In Season in Your Area?

A friend shared a great link with me today; an interactive map that lets you select a month and a state to see what foods are in season in that area.
To view the Seasonal Ingredient map, visit Epicurious.com

Wait it gets better! Once you have selected the month and the state the map will give you a list of foods that are in season. Each food item let's you click on it to see suggested recipes that you can create with the selected food. It will also give you cooking advice for the food, a buying guide, and just general information about it as well.

What a great resource! Thanks, Epicurious.

Pura Vida!
Alica Ryan, NTP

Day 174- Recipe: Shrimp Salad with Avocado Cilantro Dressing

I got the idea of the Avocado Cilantro dressing from my good friend Sheila Hernandez, visit her blog, Cooking for a Healthier Lifestyle, more information.

Ingredients:

Shrimp Salad:

• About 4 cups spinach
• 2 Corn on the Cobs
• 1 cup arugula
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 small bell pepper
• 1/2 avocado sliced
• 10 large Shrimp
• Olive oil
• Cayenne pepper
• Sea salt

Dressing:

• 1 Avocado
• 1 cup Cilantro
• Juice from 1 Lime
• 1 Cucumber- skin off
• 2 Cloves of Garlic
• 3 Green Onions
• 1/2 Teaspoon Fresh Ground Pepper
• 1 Teaspoon Sea salt
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Directions:

Salad:

1. Brush shrimp with olive oil and sprinkle with cayenne pepper and sea salt
2. Brush corn with olive oil and a little bit of sea salt, wrap in tin foil and place on the grill
3. Grill shrimp and corn until cooked through
4. Cut the corn kernels off the cob
5. Place shrimp onto of a bed of spinach and arugula
6. Add tomatoes, bell pepper, corn and diced avocado

Dressing:

1. Put all ingredients in food processor until made into a creamy sauce
2. If you would like it to be more of a liquid you can add 1/4 cup of water at a time to achieve the desired consistently.

Pura Vida!

Alica Ryan, NTP

Day 138- Recipe: Antipasto salad

Here is a recipe that I made for my friend's birthday celebration:

• 3 cups baby spinach
• 2 cans black olives, rinsed
• 1/2 cup green olives
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes
• 1 red onion, diced
• 1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed
• 1 1/2 cup artichoke hearts
• 1 log of salami, sliced
• 1/2 cup feta cheese chunks
• 1 green bell peppers, diced
• 2 sticks of celery, diced
• 1/2 tablespoon of fresh ground pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• fresh basil leaves, torn into small pieces
• fresh oregano
• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil

Directions:

1. Cut up vegetables, meat, and cheese and add in one bowl
2. Add the fresh herbs, salt, and pepper
3. Add the olive oil and balsamic vinegar
4. Mix everything together

Happy Robotic 29th birthday to my close friend, Dez!

Pura Vida!

Alica Ryan, NTP