Lala – Pure Love Cooking

Baked Apples… is Comfort Food

Being home is a way to rediscover some things that I had forgotten about… like Baked Apples!

A cold dreary rainy day just calls for baking in my house!

I wanted something sweet, fresh, so Pure Love got my attention to look in the refrigerator.

There was a bag of beautiful organic green apples. Further back on another shelf was a bag of walnuts! Yum! The answer to my prayer.

This was easy to prepare,

Bakes quickly, fragrant, reminiscent of my childhood days. After the first bite, it transported me back to the kitchen with my Mom!

5 medium green apples sliced thick
1/2 black walnuts chopped
6 Tbsp sugar
4-5 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp water
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
A squeeze of fresh lemon

At 350 degrees.

On a sheet pan, toast walnuts for 3minutes, then remove them. Set aside.

Wash and peel apples. Place in baking dish. Combine butter, sugar, nutmeg and toasted walnuts. Sprinkle mixture evenly among the apples. Pour the water in bottom of baking dish squeeze a little fresh lemon over apples. Bake apples at 375 for 30 minutes. Serve warm.

You can make it more rich by adding whipped cream,or Carmel on top!Use your creativity!

Try it! Put Pure Love into your recipes, ideas! I would love to hear them!

In the Kitchen,

April 16, 2020 by Lala Categories: Uncategorized 3 Comments

My Go to Family Meals

Chicken, Broccoli,Rice in a Pot

Over the years I had to be quite resourceful and inventive while working a split shift, having children at home. So dinner had to be creative quick tasty and budget friendly. So this is my go to recipe. Please leave me your your thoughts and your ideas

Here we go…

Directions

Using a heavy cast iron skillet with lid or any oven temperature proof pot with lid.

Add 2 c water to pot, then put 1 Tbsp chicken bouillon , mix together well. Add 1 cup rice of your choice to water. Stir. Add well seasoned chicken breasts to pot. Add 1 cup broccoli on top. Take 2 Tbsp of butter pieces on top of whole mixture.Cover. Place in oven at 400 degree for 40-50 min. Serve to plate. Add sour cream,salsa on top! Yum. Serve with salad. This is my go to and still is!

Let me know your thoughts, ideas. I would love to hear from you!

In the Kitchen,

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February 27, 2020February 27, 2020 by Lala Categories: UncategorizedTags: budget meals, chicken, chicken with rice and broccoli dinners, easy meals, Family Tradition, Food, kid friendly meals, oven dinners, quick meals, single parent cooking

Thanksgiving in Casserole Dish

A friend of mine remark that she still have turkey wrapped in the freezer,and longed for Thanksgiving again! So, I got a inspirational idea from Pure Love to create some of the food from Thanksgiving into a casserole dish!

1 1/2 c diced frozen turkey or chicken

1c leftover frozen green bean casserole( minus any frozen onion rings please!) They get soggy!

2 c stuffing/ dressing

3/4 c chopped onion

3/4 c chopped celery

1c chopped sweet potatoes

1tsp fresh thyme,sage

1 cup prepared turkey gravy

2 Tbsp olive oil

4 Tbsp butter

Salt/pepper

In a pan sauté diced turkey or chicken in 1 Tbsp butter till slight brown. Put aside.

Sauté celery, onion in pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon of butte. Add stuffing/ dressing. Add 1cup chicken broth to mixture.

In same pan, add sweet potatoes, leftover green bean casserole or can green beans. Lastly, put in green bean casserole to mixture. Stir. If there’s not enough sauce from green bean casserole add prepared turkey gravy to mixture. Add rest of olive oil , butter, herbs salt&pepper to mixture.

Adjust seasonings to taste.

Place this mixture in a oven proof dish. At this point place onion rings on top.Bake for 45 min or until bubbly!There you go!

A thanksgiving in a casserole dish! It was so good! Try it!

In the Kitchen,

January 23, 2020January 23, 2020 by Lala Categories: Baking, Chicken / Beef /Veggies Dinner, Cooking, Easy Family Recipes, Kitchen, Spirituality, Uncategorized

Tired of Turkey yet?Eat Polenta!

I am! Oh gosh! It takes a full day of cooking all those savory, delectable dishes!

Tasting, adjusting spices, inhaling all that goodness all day leads to… well… me really not eating the turkey dinner!

I always wondered why some of the cooks in my family only ate a small portion of food after cooking the turkey, etc .

So, I made… are you ready?… a cup of broth and a organic beef hot dog!

So, I’m republishing my last recipe: Perfect Polenta

Organic Polenta( Italian spice)

1Tbsp butter/ oil (Fat of your choice)

1/4 tsp of each: Oregano, thyme, basil

Salt& pepper to taste

1/4 c shredded cheese( your choice)

1/2 c chopped onion * optional

Fry polenta in butter, add desired seasonings if you want for 2-3 min over a med heat. Keep aside.

Add Pasta sauce ( your choosing), add your desired seasonings, herbs

Add onion, garlic. Cook till soft. Med heat

Add your favorite cheese to sauce until cheese is stirred in.

Place polenta in pasta sauce or plate polenta and pour sauce over.

Add your favorite veggies, use what you have! Try some green bean casserole!

It’s so easy to cook with! Try it!

In the kitchen,

December 5, 2019December 5, 2019 by Lala Categories: UncategorizedTags: 30 minute meals, after thanksgiving dinner, budget meals, cheese, easy meals, Food, kid friendly meals, no guilt, polenta, quick meals

Perfect Polenta Dinner Dish

Quick, nutritious dinner in 30 minutes?… who wouldn’t want that?

Sometimes we’re just running behind, get in the door late, the kids want to snack but it’s too close to dinner time! What to do?

Keep polenta in your pantry! It’s a attitude saver!(Lol!)

Polenta is mild, can be mixed, paired with just about anything.

Here goes:

Organic polenta (Italian style)

Organic pasta sauce (just add your own “Pure Love” creativity to it! Add your own spices, herbs! You can do it!

1 Tbsp Butter or olive oil ( fat of your choice)

Garlic, thyme,oregano, salt& pepper

1/4 c Cheese( your choice)

1/2 cup chopped onion

Fry polenta in butter, add desired seasonings if you want for 2-3 min on med heat. Keep aside.

Pasta sauce (your choosing)add your desired spices, herbs. Add onion, garlic, cook till soft. Medium heat. Add favorite cheese to sauce until cheese is stirred in.

Place polenta in your pasta sauce or plate polenta and pour sauce over!

Add your favorite veggies. Use what you have! I would have used broccoli! I didn’t have any! Oh, well.

This dish can be used with eggs, fish, meat, it’s so easy to cook with!

Dinner in approx 30 min!

Try it! Let me know how you prepared yours!

In the kitchen

November 21, 2019November 21, 2019 by Lala Categories: Chicken / Beef /Veggies Dinner, Cooking, Easy Family Recipes, Fitness/exercise, Kitchen, Spirituality, Uncategorized, vegetarian dishTags: 30 minute meals, budget meals, cheese, easy meals, Food, kid friendly meals, no guilt, polenta, quick meals, veggie Leave a comment

Glorious Golden Beet & Orange Salad

I really never liked beets until recently! My friend gave me a beautiful bunch of organic golden beets!

So, I was hesitant to do anything with them-but, I wanted to make a salad just in case I really didn’t like them.

So, Pure Love has all creativity, inspiration so I was impressed to make salad!

I liked it so much, I had a second plate!

Try it! I think you’ll like it too!

2 organic golden beets, roasted,chopped

1 Valencia orange, circular slices

1 medium size Romaine lettuce, chopped

1 red Pepper, chopped, small pieces

1 yellow Pepper, chopped small

1/4 c candied pecans, chopped

1/4 c feta cheese, crumbled

Recipe for salad dressing:

Juice of 1 orange

3 oz white balsamic vinegar

4 Tbsp honey

Put all ingredients in blender. Adjust to taste. Pour over salad. Toss.

Enjoy!

November 7, 2019November 7, 2019 by Lala Categories: Baking, Chicken / Beef /Veggies Dinner, Cooking, Easy Family Recipes, Kitchen, Spirituality, Uncategorized, vegetarian dishTags: budget meals, Food, no guilt, veggie Leave a comment

Easy Vegetable Dinner

Have you ever wanted to eat more veggies but couldn’t make yourself do it? Or have you ever tried a veggie recipe only to throw it in the trash?

Well, I am with you on that!

I made a vegetable casserole! It was so good, I will make it again!

It’s called Ratatouille, but I made it to please me. I always encourage that you open your heart to Pure Love to give inspiration, creativity to everything you do!

You can create your own veggie favorite casserole by tapping into your heart!

I think next time I make this, I will use sweet potato,mushrooms,broccoli ( of course!)

This dish has amazing flavor. Can be served hot or cold. The flavors develop overnight. It even gets better the next day!

Ratatouille can be a filling for omelets, crepes, mixed with eggs.

Here’s my version of ratatouille:

2 med eggplant, chopped

1 large onion , chopped

1 red & 1 yellow pepper sliced

3 med zucchini, cubed 1/2 inch thick

7 sun dried tomatoes, chopped

2 -3 Tbsp tomato paste

1 bay leaf

2tsp fresh thyme leaves,or 2 tsp dried

1tsp dried oregano or 2 tsp fresh, chopped

Coriander powder 1/2 tsp

4-5 fresh basil chopped

*Garlic 4 cloves optional

Salt& Pepper

Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil and skillet over medium heat add the onions cook until soften, add garlic cloves. Put into casserole dish for oven use. Put aside.

Heat 1Tbsp olive oil in skillet. Add peppers, zucchini until translucent. Put this into same casserole dish with onion& garlic.

Now add sun-dried tomatoes with tomato paste, all your herbs,add salt and pepper. Stir everything together. Cover, and put in oven for 1 1/2 hr.

After 30 minutes, stir veggie casserole. At this point you can add more garlic or olive oil, adjust your seasoning or drain the liquids off if too soupy if you like. Bake for 1 more hour. Let it set for 15 min or so before serving.

Serves 4.

Let me know if you tried this or created your own casserole dish! I like ideas!

In the kitchen,

October 17, 2019October 13, 2019 by Lala Categories: Baking, Chicken / Beef /Veggies Dinner, Cooking, Easy Family Recipes, Spirituality, Uncategorized, vegetarian dishTags: budget meals, casserole, easy meals, Food, oven dinners, veggie Leave a comment

Easy Chicken Dinner

Hi Everyone!

The weather has been so hot and humid! Up to 103 degrees at 5 pm! That is unbearable!

I had to stop going to the nearest chicken place,hamburger drive-up because it was too hot too cook! Plus, I’m spending too much money on a lot of empty calories!

Then, I got a little nudging in my heart! I felt as if Pure Love was telling me to use wisdom in my food choices because of the intense heat, and to take care of my body better under the circumstances.

I had to use what I had on hand in the pantry, and fridge! Too hot to go to market!

Here goes! Chicken Asian/Mex Dish! Yummy!Ingredients:

1/2 container of salsa (your choice)

6-7 Grilled Paquillo peppers (or your favorite ones!)

1/2 c chopped onion

1 c fresh brocoli florets

3 boneless chicken thighs or boneless breasts, cut into bite size cubes

1 clove garlic, minced

2 tsp soy sauce (add a little at a time for your taste)

1/2- 1 tsp cornstarch

1 Tbsp olive oil ( oil of your choice)

Get Started:

In a skillet, melt oil. Saute chicken till slightly brown. Add salsa, peppers, garlic, brocoli, soy sauce. Cover with lid for 2-3 min. Add cornstarch, then add water. Cover again. Cook 5 min or until chicken is cooked inside.

On a plate, place your rice first, then put chicken mixture on top of the rice.

Serve with salad! Dinner is ready!!

In the Kitchen,

Lala Signature

August 16, 2019August 11, 2019 by Lala Categories: Chicken / Beef /Veggies Dinner, Cooking, Easy Family Recipes, Fitness/exercise, Spirituality, UncategorizedTags: budget meals, cheese, Food, no guilt, quick meals Leave a comment

How to get Rid of Leftovers!

Hey! Just wanted to share a quick post with you!

Have you ever wondered what to do with the veggie,meat,etc in the fridge? You know, all those items that you scoured meticulously over at the market that somehow were overlooked in your fridge? Now, those items are almost unseemly! Or, maybe,there’s a little leftover in a ziplock bag or container. Ugh, I know, it happens to me too!

I just couldn’t take it anymore! So, I decided to gather everything that was still able to be eaten,into a cast iron skillet! (make sure you engage the spirit of Pure Love! Pure Love is resident in your spirit to help us!)

In the skillet, I added kale,onion,sweet potatoes, carrots, taco meat,corn,salsa,cauliflower, black beans, uncured beef hotdog slices, cheese, spinach with olive oil. Added a 1/4 th cup water to my leftovers. Added 1 organic egg on top of leftover mixture.Cover skillet with lid. Cook for 5-7minutes until egg is cooked, mixture warmed through!

That’s it! A great way to use veggies that need to be cooked, and leftovers that are still good! It’s quick, easy, flavorful, and money-saving!

Be creative, your spirit knows what it likes! Trust in Pure Love to show you the way!

In the Kitchen,

Lala Signature

June 21, 2019June 21, 2019 by Lala Categories: Chicken / Beef /Veggies Dinner, Cooking, Easy Family Recipes, Fitness/exercise, Spirituality, UncategorizedTags: 7 minute meals, Leftovers skillet dinners 4 Comments

Fish Tonight! It’s Not Friday!

Growing up certain foods would be for different days! Every Saturday, all leftovers were eaten! Yuck! On Sunday you could be sure it was fried chicken,green beans,mashed potatoes! Yum! Monday, it’s meatloaf. Tuesday was spaghetti day! Wednesdays dinner was liver& onions.Ugh! Thursday was pork chops,vegetable with baked potatoe! Here it comes! Wait for it!!…Fish Fridays! Oh boy! I loved the different types of seafood or fish fry dinners!

Decades forward…I thank God I don’t have planned meals that way! But, I eat fish whenever it strikes my spirit to do so!

Tonight, pan poached salmon, with veggies on the menu! It’s quick,easy, guiltless!

Ok here’s the recipe:

Salmon- in a medium skillet, one half way from top of skillet; add 1/2 fresh lemon juice, pinch of sea salt, 3 pats of butter. Place salmon in skillet/ pan. Simmer with lid on till almost done. Remove fish gently with slotted spatula so that excess liquid is not captured.Place on plate.

Vegetables: Sauté green beans, zucchini, onion, punch of salt/pepper, splash of olive oil until tender, sauté 5 min. with lid on.

That’s it! Dinner is done! No fuss!

In the kitchen!

May 17, 2019 by Lala Categories: Uncategorized Leave a comment