This new recipe from 100 Days of Real Food took me just about 40 minutes from start to finish and was absolutely delicious!

It is part of the brand new cookbook “Fast and Fabulous” from Lisa Leake that  was released on Tuesday, Oct. 24. The cookbook is full of great recipes that I can’t wait to make for my family. 

This White Chicken Chili is easy to make, yet tastes like something you’d order from a restaurant. She achieves great flavors without using tons of ingredients. It’s a complete meal in a bowl.  

I gathered everything I needed to make the recipe easy to prepare. 

I always recommend using the best tasting ingredients you can find. And for me, that includes using Publix Greenwise chicken. 

Personally I love making soup in my Dutch oven. I included a few photos of it cooking as I added the ingredients. 

Here was my bowl topped with fresh, chopped cilantro, avocado, shredded cheese, sour cream and sliced jalapeños (not pictured). 

And the best part… my son loved it!

Don’t take my word for it. Order your copy of this gorgeous hardcover cookbook for yourself directly from Amazon for only $16.48 – click here. 

Today was a great day for me, and one big reason was that I received my brand new, pre-release cookbook from the writer and creator of the website “100 Days of Real Food” in the mail.

It’s called “Fast and Fabulous” and is the second cookbook from author Lisa Leake. Her first cookbook made it to #1 on the New York Times Bestsellers List. 

I have a passion for cooking ‘real food’ for my family, and the website “100 Days of Real Food” was one the first big inspiration for me on this path. 
I can’t wait to share some recipes from the new cookbook with you soon!

You can pre-order it now from Amazon here (ships Oct. 25). 
You can order the first cookbook from “100 Days of Real Food” on Amazon here also. 

Happy cooking!

John 

This dressing is quick and easy to make with a few handy ingredients. It can easily be altered to match different flavors for your meal. The avocado provides the main oil ingredient of the dressing so no mayonnaise or olive oil is needed.

Ingredients:
– 1 Haas avocado
– 1 Tbl. Plain Yogurt (I prefer whole-milk. I did not use Greek)
– 2 Tbl. Sour Cream (I prefer whole-milk.)
– 2 Garlic Cloves minced or smashed and chopped
– 1 Tsp. Lemon Juice (more to taste if needed))
– 1/4 Tsp. Black Pepper
– 1/2 Tsp. Salt (more to taste if needed)
– 1 Tsp. Dried Herbs (Dill, Basil or a combination of both)

Directions:
– Slice avocado in half. Scoop the fruit out into a bowl and mash.
– Scrape mashed avocado into jar or keep in bowl for serving.
– Add rest of ingredients.
– Shake vigorously with lid on jar or wisk if in bowl until well mixed.

Serve on your favorite salad and enjoy!
– another option would be to use a Tbl. of fresh chopped cilantro for a Mexican flare instead of using dried herbs.

I have always loved cereal and have especially loved granola. In the last two months I’ve started making my own. It made great Christmas gifts for some friends and family poured into mason jars.

Some of you have asked for the recipe, so here goes.
The first one is baked low and slow and is well worth the wait.
I got the recipe from one of my favorite food blogs, 100 Days of Real Food. You can find it here. Below are the things I chose to add in it:

• Oats – I prefer Bob’s Red Mill Thick Cut or Trader Joe’s Rolled Oats.
• Almonds, walnuts, pecans and pumpkin seeds. I left out the sunflower seeds.
• Get the unsweetened coconut from Whole Foods (or other similar store). It’s worth it. Much better than the other.
• Add in some raisins, cranberries, cherries or any other dried fruit you like after it’s cooled a bit.

Then there are those mornings where you’d really like granola, but haven’t made it yet. That’s where this one comes in. You make it on the stove top and let it cool for a few minutes. Voila! Fast granola from scratch.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups oats
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds
• 2 tablespoons raisins or cranberries
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut

Directions:

1. In a large skillet, toast oats over medium heat until golden brown. Careful not to burn. Remove and set aside.
2. In the same skillet, cook and stir the honey and butter over medium-low heat until bubbly, about 1-2 minutes.
3. Stir in the almonds, raisins, coconut and oats until coated.
4. Pour into a large bowl or tray to cool.
5. Enjoy with milk or yogurt!

I brought home some fresh “salad” turnips from a local market today that the lady working the stand described as “slightly sweet.” My three year-old son actually picked out this specific bunch because they were the “biggest” ones. She suggested we slice them in a salad. Two things came to mind: 1. I bet my boys will eat them sliced and 2. I can’t wait to make a salad with them tonight.

If you’d like to try it, here are the ingredients:

• 1 Turnip (small to medium) sliced as thin as you can, then cut in half
• Turnip greens attached to the turnip you sliced, Chopped in half
• 1 Tomato chopped
• 2 Red onion slices (thin)
• 1/4 Cucumber sliced and cut in half
• 1/4 cup Pecans toasted for a few minutes
• 1 TB Maple syrup (the real stuff)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cracked pepper
• 1 tsp Orange zest (before you cut up the orange) – more orange flavor with less liquid
• 1 Navel orange cut into pieces
• 1 TB fresh squeezed orange (from the rest of the orange along the rind)
• 1 TB Olive oil

Finishing directions:

• Put all vegetables into a bowl
• Drizzle with maple syrup
• Drizzle with olive oil
• Sprinkle with salt and pepper
• Toss well with tongs
• Sprinkle toasted pecans on top
• Let sit for 5-10 minutes
• Toss once more and serve
• Optional: top with Parmesan, Manchego, Goat or Feta cheese (my wife and I both commented that the salad was great, but a little cheese would have been nice too)

I would love to hear if you try and how yours comes out!

Happy cooking,
John

When you need a quick pasta dish that the whole family will like, try out this recipe. It’s a one dish meal. You can serve a green salad on the side also if you want more veggies (3 out of 4 of us at that too). My boys both loved it, but who can blame them with bacon, bacon fat and spaghetti?

I used this recipe from Tasty Kitchen as a base, but tweaked it a bit. I cut the recipe in half, which was perfect for my family (2 adults and 2 small kids), but adjust it to your needs.

Ingredients:

• Six strips of bacon
• 2 oz. cream cheese
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese shredded
• 1/4 cup of whole milk (or cream)
• 1 cup of frozen cut green beans
• 1/2 yellow or sweet onion diced
• 3 garlic cloves minced
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 egg
• 8 oz. spaghetti (or other pasta)
• 6 sun-dried tomatoes chopped (optional topping)

Directions:

1. In a skillet with lid (contains splatters), fry the bacon. When done, remove bacon onto paper towel. Leave bacon fat in pan (this is the good stuff).
2. Sautee onion and garlic in bacon fat for three minutes, and then add in green beans. Cover and cook for about 8 minutes. Stir periodically, and cook until beans are done to your liking.
   
3. Cook the pasta in boiling salted water until done (according to package instructions).
4. Place milk (or cream) and cream cheese in a small saucepan. Heat over low heat until cream cheese is melted, and whisk until smooth. Remove from heat. Add the parmesan cheese, egg, and pepper. Whisk until blended.
5. Drain pasta (reserving 1/4 cup of hot water) and return to pot. Immediately add the white sauce and toss to coat. The hot pasta will cook the egg. Dump pasta mixture and crumbled bacon into the pan with the veggies.  Add the reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce.
6. Serve!
   (This is an easy dish for your kids to use tongs and serve themselves getting some protein, pasta and veggies in one grab)