Garlic Beef Enchiladas

Belinda Weldon

Enchiladas
1 lb ground beef
1 med onion, chopped
2 TB flour
1 TB chili powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp rubbed sage
1 can (14 1/2 oz) stewed tomatoes

In a saucepan over med. heat cook beef and onion until meat is no longer pink; drain.  Add flour and seasonings; mix well.  Stir in tomatoes; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer 15 minutes.

Sauce
4-6 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 C butter
1/3 C flour
1 C chicken broth
1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp rubbed sage
1/2 tsp salt
10 (7 inch) flour tortillas
2 C shredded Colby Jack cheese

In a different saucepan, saute garlic in butter.  Whisk in flour and cook for a min. or two.  Stir in broth and bring to a boil.  Cook and stir until bubbly.  Add tomato sauce and seasonings; heat through.  Pour 1 1/2 C sauce into an ungreased 9x13 in" baking dish.  Spread 1/4 C beef mixture in the center of a tortilla and top with 2 TB shredded cheese.  Roll up tightly; place seam side down over sauce.  Pour remaining sauce over the top.  Cover tightly and bake at 350 degrees fro 35-40 minutes.  Sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake uncovered until cheese is melted.

These are not hard to make but a little bit time consuming.  This could easily be made in the morning and stored in the refrigerator until it's time to bake it for dinner.  It's always good to look for ways to ease the dinner time prep.  :)  We got this recipe from Mrs. Belinda Weldon in Germany.  We went to church with her at Eifel Baptist Church and she served these at one of our "Dinner 8" gatherings.  "Dinner 8" was 4 couples who got together once a month for dinner hosted by one of the couples.  The host was responsible for the main meal and everyone brought something to go with that.  We would do this about twice a year, changing the groups around.  It was a wonderful way to get to know the folks in our church.  "Dinner 8" was a lot of fun and we have many fond memories of those times.
Love Always,
Mommy

Egg Shell Water

Bulk Herb Store

Tid Bit on Eggshell and Bone Health

1. Studies have shown that taking eggshell with vitamin D3 improves bone mineral density. Egg shells have been used for the pain, and treating, of all kinds of arthritis and joint pain.

2. Pour 2 cups of hot water over 4-5 (free-range or organic is best) crumbled egg shells. Add 1 tsp fresh lemon juice or vinegar. Cover and let sit for 2 hours. Strain the shells out and put liquid in a clean glass jar with a lid. Take a sip of the liquid one or two times a day. Just because it works, does not mean you should take more than you need. So, slowly increase your dosage until pain is the gone. After that do not increase it. Some of us need more calcium than others, but remember our bodies cannot handle too much calcium.

3. Egg shells are high in Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Glycine, Gelatin, Collagen, and Other trace minerals.

Mommy has made this in the past and added 1 tsp to smoothies for 5 people.  Before Joshua could drink milk, this was so very important for him.  I want to made some more to add to our food.  Just be careful to not add too much!

Love Always,

Mommy

Cayenne for warm feet

Bulk Herb Store

Cayenne powder has been used by researchers in Antarctica to help them bear the extremely cold temperatures. The cayenne powder is sprinkled into their boots before putting them on. As the powder slowly comes in contact with the skin through the socks, it will draw blood to the feet, thus bringing much needed warms to the extremities. The one draw back is the red powder stains light colored socks. From our readings, it seems the stained socks were a small price to pay for the great benefit of being able to feel your toes after a little while out in the blistering cold! After trying this on a number of occasions during the winter near Lake Superior, I'm also convinced the stained socks are worth it.

I wish we would have known this when Hannah was little and we went to the 2002 Winter Olympics long jump ski event.  We got up really, really early and headed up into the mountains for the event.  It was still dark when we arrived.  We stood in line for a long time to get through security.  It was so cold!  Hannah just whimpered and cried for a long time.  We put hand warmers inside her boots and she finally feel asleep on a blanket on the packed snow but I think she missed most of the ski jumping.  :)  We had bundled her up so she could barely even move but she was still cold.  I'm still glad we went.
Love Always,
Mommy

Chia Seed Gel

Cooking God's Way

Mix 1 part seed to 9 parts water. Allow to stand 2 to 3 minutes. Whisk again, and allow to stand about 10 minutes more. A gel should have formed. Store in the fridge where it will keep for 2 weeks.

The gel will add nutrients to your food, without changing/diluting the taste of your food. Add a couple teaspoons of the gel to your yogurt in the morning, which makes it tapioca pudding-like. Or make a Power Smoothie by adding a Tablespoon to your favorite Shake/Smoothie recipe.

Mommy will make this and add it to our smoothies.  It is a great way to boost the nutritional value without effecting the taste.  Chia is very high in iron and Mommy consumes a lot of chia seed gel when she is pregnant.  

Love Always,

Mommy 

Blue Ribbon Baby Diet

Dr. Tom Brewer

Every day of the week, you and your baby must have:

1. One quart (4 cups) of milk. Any kind will do: whole milk, low fat, skim, powdered, or buttermilk. If you do not like milk, you can substitute one cup of yogurt for each cup of milk.
2. Two eggs.
3. One or two servings of fish, shellfish, chicken or turkey, lean beef, veal, lamb, pork, liver or kidney. Alternative combinations include:
   • Rice with beans, cheese, sesame, milk
   • Cornmeal with beans, cheese, tofu, milk.
   • Beans with rice, bulgur, cornmeal, wheat noodles sesame seeds, milk.
   • Peanuts with: sunflower seeds, milk.
   • Whole wheat bread or noodles with: beans, cheese, peanut butter, milk, tofu.
   For each serving of meat, you can substitute these quantities of cheese:

   Brick	4 oz.		Longhorn	3 oz.
   Camembert	6 oz.		Muenster	4 oz.
   Cheddar	3 oz.		Monterey Jack	4 oz.
   Cottage	6 oz.		Swiss	3 oz.

4. One or two servings of fresh, green, leafy vegetables: mustard, beet, collard, dandelion or turnip greens, spinach, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, kale, Swiss chard.
5. Five servings of whole grain breads, rolls, cereals or pancakes: wheatena, 100% bran flakes, granola, shredded wheat, wheat germ, oatmeal, buckwheat or whole wheat pancakes, corn bread, corn tortillas, corn or bran or whole wheat muffins, waffles, brown rice.
6. Two choices from: a whole potato (any style), large green pepper, grapefruit, lemon, lime, papaya, tomato (one piece of fruit, or one large glass of juice).
7. Three pats of butter.

Also include in your diet, in addition to the above (i.e., don’t count one food in two categories):

1. A yellow- or orange-colored vegetable or fruit five times a week.
2. Liver once a week, if you like it.
3. Table salt: SALT YOUR FOOD TO TASTE
4. Water: Drink to thirst.

It is not healthy for you and your unborn baby to go even 24 hours without good food!

This diet came across the MOMYS board when I was early in my pregnancy with Joshua.  I have loosely followed this with each pregnancy since then.  I find the recommendations very freeing!  I don't think I ever ate the diet perfectly as it seemed like a lot of food but I used it as a guideline for making choices of what to eat.  I do try to eat milk, cheese, and at least one egg on most days when I am pregnant.  The protein really helped Mommy not feel sick.

Love Always,

Mommy

Lacto-Fermented Dill Pickles

Sheri Graham

3-5 pickling cucumbers (the ones I got from the store were fairly large, and I only used 3 to fill up my quart jar)
1 tablespoon sea salt
4 tablespoons whey (here is a post that explains how to make whey)
1 clove garlic, chopped into a few pieces
1 tablespoon mustard seed
1 tablespoon dill seed
1 cup filtered water
1 quart canning jar

Wash and slice the cucumbers and place them in the quart jar.  Add the salt, whey, garlic, mustard seed, dill seed, and water to the quart jar.  Put a lid on it and shake it up to mix the contents well.  I had to add a bit more water to make sure the cucumber slices were covered with water.  You do want to leave about an inch head space in the jar though.

Tighten the lid on the quart jar and let sit on your kitchen counter for 2 days.

After 2 days, move to your refrigerator for long term storage.

Oh!  We made these and they are so delicious!  Amazing!  Not hard at all to make and so very good for you.  I think I need to make some more!

Love Always,

Mommy

Cheesy Potato Soup

MOMYS and Mommy Modified

4 C cubed potatoes
4-5 C chicken broth
1 C carrots, sliced
1/2 C onion, diced
1 tsp salt
1/3 C butter
1/2 C flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 C milk or raw cream
1 C cheddar cheese, shredded
1 C ham, cooked and diced

Combine potatoes, chicken broth, carrots, onion and salt in a large pan and bring to boil.  Reduce heat and simmer until veggies are tender. Do not drain.  Mash the potatoes and carrots.

In a separate pot, melt the butter.  Whisk in flour and salt.  Gradually stir in milk.  Cook until thickened.  Add cheese and ham.  Pour into the potato mixture and stir well.  Simmer until ready to serve.

Soup in cooler weather is such a wonderful item!  We have made this with half potatoes and half sweet potatoes before and it was really yummy.  Mommy loves potato soup with fresh from the oven homemade bread.  Yum!
Love Always,
Mommy