Black Bean Corn Stuffed Mini Peppers

A couple weeks back I discovered the awesomeness that is the mini sweet peppers.  I had first stuffed them with chorizo and goat cheese see recipe here, I have also just stuffed them with Herb Goat Cheese very good as well.  Today I took inspiration from my favorite burrito recipe.  I love it how ever sometimes just sticking it in a taco shell is boring.  Also the pepper punches it up with out extra calories.  I made a small batch today and had them for lunch but you could easily make a large amount for appetizers if you are having a party.


1/2 back beans drained and rinsed
1/4 c sweet corn kernels frozen thawed
1 oz cream cheese 1/3 less fat
1/4 tsp cumin
1/8 tsp chipotle powder (optional)
salt pepper garlic powder
2 tsp olive oil
5 mini sweet peppers

Pre Heat broiler on high Wash your sweet peppers patting dry. Slice peppers in half remove membrane and seeds.  On a small baking sheet place peppers drizzle with olive oil sprinkle with a small amount of salt pepper garlic powder toss well. Place pan in oven broiling peppers about 5 min just until beginning to get soft and releasing their liquid. Meanwhile in a small bowl add cream cheese soften in the microwave about 1 min add cumin chipotle powder dash of salt pepper and garlic powder mix well add beans and corn continue to mix well until cheese coats all the beans and corn.  Taste add salt pepper and garlic powder to liking.  Remove peppers from the oven top each half with a heaping spoonful of bean corn mixture.  Place pan of peppers back in the broiler 5-6 min until heated through.  

Pumpkin and Pumpkin Spice Coffee Creamer

OK before everyone gets their panties in a wad this year the phrase Pumpkin Spice is describes just that spices., typically a mixture of cinnamon nutmeg ginger and allspice so if your beloved coffee creamer doesn't have pumpkin in it that is not lie.  But what is crap is the crap they put in it

INGREDIENTS: WATER, SUGAR, VEGETABLE OIL (HIGH OLEIC SOYBEAN AND/OR HIGH OLEIC CANOLA), AND LESS THAN 2% OF SODIUM CASEINATE (A MILK DERIVATIVE)**, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS, MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES, DIPOTASSIUM PHOSPHATE, CELLULOSE GEL, CELLULOSE GUM, CARRAGEENAN. CONTAINS: A MILK DERIVATIVE.

That is just NASTY!!! My recipe is all ingredients you can identify and relate too.  

1 cup whole milk 
1 cup heavy cream
1-2 tbl maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla 
2 tbl pumpkin puree
1/2 tsp cinnamon *
1/4 tsp ginger and nutmeg*
pinch ground clove *

Whisk together milk, cream, maple syrup, pumpkin and spices in a medium saucepan over medium heat. When the mixture begins to steam, remove from the heat. Stir in extracts. Pour into a glass bottle and store in the refrigerator.. Shake bottle well before adding to coffee. 

** you could use 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Stuffed Mini Sweet Peppers

While pinning away the other night on Pinterest I came across a few recipes for mini sweet peppers.  They all looked good and the one with goat cheese and pesto went to the top of my list of try asap.  I was telling my mom about this she said she had seen a recipe with goat cheese and chorizo stuffed peppers.  HOLD THE PHONE I love the goat cheese and chorizo flavor combination so this became a I NEED to make these yesterday recipe.  I ran not walked to the grocery store this morning and gathered all that I need and whipped these babies up for lunch today.  Yup I had an "appetizer" for lunch  So glad I did these will be in the rotation of lunch and appetizers for long time.  I can also think of a least dozen other stuffing options that I will be playing with soon so keep checking back for more ideas.

5 oz Chorizo 

6 sweet mini peppers

2 oz goat cheese

1 tsp olive oil

salt and pepper

PreHeat oven to 400

In a med fry pan over med heat cook the chorizo approximately 10 min until thoroughly cooked. Remove from the pan and drain over paper towel  Set aside while it drains.  

Cut the peppers open remove the seeds place each half on a cookie sheet.  Drizzle the peppers with olive oil sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place in the oven and bake for 5 minutes.  then remove from oven stuff each pepper with about 1 tsp of chorizo when all have been stuffed return pan to the oven for another 5 minutes. Remove from oven and crumble the goat cheese over the peppers and return to oven for about 2 minutes until the goat cheese just starts to get soft.

Red Potato Bacon Hash topped with Fried Egg

There are  days that I love paleo it allows me to show off my culinary prowlness .By modifying family favorites to be paleo friendly and still retain their familiar flavors, or being able to scan a recipe from one of the blogs I follow and know if it is a flavor we would like and some days just coming up with something new on the fly. There are other days when the thought of making a dish from scratch using fresh whole foods just turns me off. I just want to be lazy and eat a bowl of cereal and call it good.  This recipe is kinda in between super simple not to much prep time or standing over the stove time.  I LOVE hashbrowns extra crispy and when I usually make them they become so unhealthy.  I always use a frozen hashbrown a certain name brand in the red bag which they add so much junk too it is actually stunning.  I then fry them in vegetable oil until dark and crunchy standing near the stove to stir often so they do not burn and it takes anywhere between 30-45 min.  Once they are finally ready I smother them in ketchup. mmmmmmmmmmm. Oh how I loved these little crunchy smothered nuggets of potatoes and ahem chemicals.  Let's face it may have been so very tasty but not for my body.  Obviously this way of making hashbrowns this way was out when I have made the commitment to myself to only eat the best whole fresh food  I can. I also did not to have to commit so much time to making hashbrowns like this anymore.  I was able to whip something up one morning they have truly become my favorite. Now granted they still take 30 min but while they cook in the oven I can do 20 min on the treadmill or get dressed or read emails.  I will hands down take these over the old way I made them any and everyday. The potatoes crisp in the oven, the bacon adds some savory meatiness and the yoke of the egg runs down over the hashbrowns to coat them with a savory delicious texture.  Don't skip the green onions they add a beautiful freshness to the meal.  

3/4 cup diced red potato (1-2 potaotes depending on their size)

2 slices thick cut bacon 

2 eggs 

2 green onions finally diced including the green tops

salt and pepper 

2 tsp olive oil

Pre heat oven to 450 Line a baking pan with foil if you can use non stick foil the better. Lay diced potatoes on the pan drizzle with olive oil and a good amount of salt and pepper toss everything together well spread the potatoes out so they are not touching each other.  Put in oven 25-30 min checking the last 5 min remove them when they are brown and crisp.  When there is 10 min remaining on the baking of the potatoes heat a pan over med high heat dice the bacon add to the pan and saute until brown and crisp.  When bacon is done remove from pan and drain on paper towel.  Pour off the bacon grease leaving a small scant of grease in the pan.  Potatoes should be done remove from oven top with bacon and 3/4 of the green onions toss everything together and put on your plate.  Return pan that you cooked the bacon in to the med high heat add the eggs salt and pepper cook the egg either sunny side up or over easy until just set you want the yoke runny.  Serve the eggs over the potato bacon hash topped with the remaining green onions.