Grandma's Kitchen Table

Whole30: Food Freedom - Crispy Angry Chicken Drummies

     
       The 64th recipe I’ve made for this group is Crispy Angry Chicken Drummies and can be the Whole30 Cookbook on page 268.

       Ingredients: chicken wings, hot sauce, clarified butter, coconut aminos, garlic, salt, black pepper, and compliant ranch dressing.

       One would think that with all the cooking and baking I’ve done in groups, that I would have had occasion to make chicken wings at some point, but it has not been so, this is my first attempt at making homemade chicken wings. I’m not that fond of chicken wings (my guys like them very spicy and messy), they are usually something they score at the local wing places on ballgame days and enjoy out of my sight, so when Margaret suggested them, I figured it was time that I give them a try.  Mark was delighted, he loved them and was excited to think I might make them again…they are pretty easy to do actually, which is probably why they have such a following. They were a very nice addition to Super Bowl Sunday. Follow the recipe, the only thing I changed was that I put them back in the oven for five additional minutes after I doused them in the spicy sauce because they looked a little wet to me, and in hardly any time, you have a pound of chicken wings and one very happy husband. Definitely worthy of a repeat.

       As usual here on this blog, I do not publish recipes that belong to others, respecting their rights as authors. Many times the recipe creators are generous and publish them online, or you can buy the book I that I have cited and have all the recipes at hand. 

Whole30 Food Freedom: Sweet Potato Breakfast Stacks

      The 63rd recipe I’ve made for this group is Sweet Potato Breakfast Stacks and can be the Whole30 Cookbook on page 26.

       Ingredients: olive oil, sweet potato, salt, black pepper, white vinegar, eggs, garlic, baby spinach, bacon, and hot sauce.

       We had two new breakfast recipes this week, both winners. I usually eat a savory breakfast, with an egg and some kind of green and often leftover vegetables thrown in the mix, so this recipe appealed to me straight off. It’s very easy if you have the sweet potatoes and the bacon precooked, which I did, so it was just making the egg and assembling it all on a little plate in the morning, quick and easy. Delicious, every single bite, and lucky me, I can make one again soon as I still have precooked sweet potatoes and slices of bacon.  

       As usual here on this blog, I do not publish recipes that belong to others, respecting their rights as authors. Many times the recipe creators are generous and publish them online, or you can buy the book I that I have cited and have all the recipes at hand. 

Wednesday with Donna Hay: Breakfast - Tahini Banana Pancakes

        My 177th recipe with the Wednesday with Donna Hay group is Tahini Banana Pancakes. The recipe can be found in Too Easy by Donna Hay, on page 226.

        Ingredients: whole wheat flour, baking powder, mashed banana, milk, egg, tahini, and honey. 

        First week of the month is Breakfast Week so I made the pancake recipe in the book…never having had tahini in pancakes before, I wasn’t sure, but they were delicious. The banana and nutty-tahini flavors work so well together, not quite peanut butter and banana, but close. No sugar, just a touch of honey, and that was plenty sweet enough. No butter on or in the pancakes, and just a little honey drizzle at the end. Not too sweet, big on flavor, a nutty-banana mix with a bit of the honey coming through. Definitely worthy of repeating. I made a fourth of a recipe which gave me 6 little pancakes the size in the photo above (for reference, they are on a bread and butter size plate). Two was plenty, the rest can be shared or put in the freezer for a later date. 

        NOTE: In our posts, we do not publish the recipes from Donna Hay's books as those belong to her, we like to honor that and encourage you to buy her books to get the recipes.  You can also do a search by the recipe name to find some of these recipes on her site.  

 

 

Whole30 Food Freedom: Thai Coconut Chicken Soup

      The 62nd recipe I’ve made for this group is Thai Coconut Chicken Soup and can be the Whole30 Cookbook on page 171. Margaret's post is here.

       Ingredients: coconut oil, green onions, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, Thai red chili, chicken broth, mushrooms, coconut milk, fish sauce, lime juice, salt, chicken, cilantro, and lime wedges.

       It’s definitely soup season here, a warm bowl of soup during the evening meal is always much appreciated. While this recipe has a long list of ingredients, most of them are common enough to have on hand making assembly easy and quick. I did not use the Thai red chili as I’m not a fan of the spiciness of those, and I also left out the cilantro as I’m one of those people who can’t eat cilantro (it tastes like soap). While the recipe suggested a can of straw mushrooms, I’m not a fan of canned mushrooms of any kind, so I used fresh cremini mushrooms instead. This was delicious, light, and creamy with the chicken/mushroom combo I love in Thai food and that wonderful lime taste from the fresh juice and zest. Definitely making this one again soon. 

       As usual here on this blog, I do not publish recipes that belong to others, respecting their rights as authors. Many times the recipe creators are generous and publish them online, or you can buy the book I that I have cited and have all the recipes at hand. 

Whole30: Ginger-Coconut Chicken Noodle Bowl

       The 61st recipe I’ve made for this group is Ginger-Coconut Chicken Noodle Bowl and can be the Whole30 Cookbook on page 136. Margaret's post is here.

       Ingredients: ginger, olive oil, garlic, salt, red pepper flakes, chicken breast, sweet potato, onion, black pepper, coconut oil, zucchini, coconut milk, chicken broth, spinach leaves, (cilantro and mint which I did not add in).

       This recipe had a long list of ingredients, most of which I used, not the cilantro as it tastes like soap to me, and not mint because I’m not a fan in mint in savory dishes. I also didn’t have a spiralizer to make the zucchini look like noodles, so I just diced the zucchini and used it in that manner. All in all, the soup is easy and uses common ingredients, isn't too spicy, and is really nice on a cold snowy January day. I did enjoy it and I would make it again…nothing really stands out in this recipe but it is a nice healthy bowl of delicious soup.

       As usual here on this blog, I do not publish recipes that belong to others, respecting their rights as authors. Many times the recipe creators are generous and publish them online, or you can buy the book I that I have cited and have all the recipes at hand. 

Whole30: Slow-Cooker Italian Beef Roast

      The 60th recipe I’ve made for this group is Slow-Cooker Italian Beef Roast and can be the Whole30 Cookbook on page 43. (This is a salad-size plate for reference.)

       Ingredients: Yukon gold potatoes, carrots, fennel bulb, onion, dried parsley, Italian seasoning, fennel seeds, garlic salt, black pepper, chuck roast, olive oil, and beef broth.

       While we have made Italian Beef Roast before, the ingredients are different between that recipe and this one, so I was happy to try a new take on one of Mark’s favorite meals, a pot roast dinner. The Italian flavors (spices and fennel) give this a nice change-up in flavor.  I love fennel both raw and cooked, each has its own flavor, the raw version being more of a licorice flavor and the cooked being a mild taste not quite identifiable as licorice. It's been cold and snowy here so this meal was a welcome hug on a day after we had six inches of snow.  Definitely a recipe worth repeating. 

       As usual here on this blog, I do not publish recipes that belong to others, respecting their rights as authors. Many times the recipe creators are generous and publish them online, or you can buy the book I that I have cited and have all the recipes at hand. 

Whole30: Beef and Sweet Potato Chili

       The 59th recipe I’ve made for this group is Beef and Sweet Potato Chili and can be the Whole30 Cookbook on page 33.

       Ingredients: olive oil, ground beef, onion, Chile, garlic, fire-roasted diced tomatoes, beef bone broth, sweet potato, red bell pepper, chili powder, and salt.

       Always on the lookout for new chili recipes, this one looked different but appealing, adding sweet potatoes seemed interesting. Although interesting, I wasn’t exactly certain it would be a good choice as we like chili spicy, not at all sweet, so this addition had me skeptical. In the end, there might be a very slight sweet flavor, but nothing that is prominent or offensive, maybe because the sweet potatoes cooked with all the savory ingredients and spices, and those flavors stood out making this a very nice bowl of chili and one I would happily make/eat again.  And it’s pretty, I’m all about pretty in food.

       As usual here on this blog, I do not publish recipes that belong to others, respecting their rights as authors. Many times the recipe creators are generous and publish them online, or you can buy the book I that I have cited and have all the recipes at hand. 

Wednesdays with Donna Hay: Breakfast - Apple and Blueberry Crumble Muffins

         My 176th recipe with the Wednesday with Donna Hay group is Apple and Blueberry Crumble Muffins. The recipe can be found in Too Easy by Donna Hay, on page 236.

        Ingredients: whole wheat flour, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, yogurt, canola oil, eggs, apples, blueberries, flour, oats, sugar, and butter. 

        Over Christmas, I was gifted a new Donna Hay cookbook, Too Easy. I love her recipes/cookbooks and have cooked/baked from them for years. Margaret and Gaye are also big fans so they may dust off their Wednesdays with Donna Hay blog group categories and jump in now and again. My plan is to chose recipes in this monthly pattern: 1st Week: Breakfast; 2nd Week: Lunch; 3rd Week: Snack; 4th Week: Dinner; 5th Week: Dessert (only four 5th weeks in 2025, but we have desserts covered with Tuesdays with Dorie so chose it accordingly). If you’d like to join in, you may use any Donna Hay recipe from any Donna Hay source and post with any frequency that fits your desire, just leave your link in the comments and I will link your posts. Since the 1st Week was New Year’s Day, I’m getting a bit of later start, so hope to do two this week, Week 1: Breakfast and Week 2: Lunch. 

        Never before combining apples and blueberries in a muffin, I was happy to make a familiar breakfast item with a new-to-me combination of ingredients. The recipe goes together quickly and easily with ingredients we usually have in frig/pantry. I will say that I made half a recipe expecting to get 6-8 muffins, but ended up with 13, so either the portions are generous or her muffin tins are much larger than mine. The muffins are flavorful (always appreciate cinnamon in baked goods) and very moist from the addition of the fruit, not dry and crumbly at all. Definitely a repeat for east, cost, and flavor. 

        NOTE: In our posts, we do not publish the recipes from Donna Hay's books as those belong to her, we like to honor that and encourage you to buy her books to get the recipes.  You can also do a search by the recipe name to find some of these recipes on her site.  

 

 

Whole30: One Pan Herb-Crusted Roasted Salmon with Roasted Broccoli Steaks

      The 58th recipe I’ve made for this group is One Pan Herb-Crusted Roasted Salmon with Roasted Broccoli Steaks and can be the Whole30 Cookbook on page 201. (This photo is two portions on a serving plate going to the table.)

       Ingredients: basil leaves, parsley leaves, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, black pepper, lemon zest, almond flour, salmon fillets, and broccoli.

       Fridays are meatless here at our place, long traditions tend to continue on. When I saw this recipe in the book, I knew it would be good, and it was delicious.  More often than not, I just roast the salmon on a sheet pan with some asparagus and little tiny (pre-cooked by me) potatoes. It was a good change to have the pesto-like topping for the salmon and the roasted broccoli turned out nicely as well. I had never made the broccoli like this before, nice to find a new technique.  Definitely a keeper of a recipe and definitely worth repeating often.

       As usual here on this blog, I do not publish recipes that belong to others, respecting their rights as authors. Many times the recipe creators are generous and publish them online, or you can buy the book I that I have cited and have all the recipes at hand. 

Whole30: Whole30 Beef Stew

      The 57th recipe I’ve made for this group is Whole30 Beef Stew and can be found online, click here. Margaret's post is here.

       Ingredients: olive oil, beef (I cut up a small chuck roast), salt, pepper, potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, beef broth, coconut aminos, tomato paste, bay leaf, dried parsley, dried thyme, and peas.

       Margaret picked this recipe for us this week as we are both having some cold wintery nights and stews are always such a welcome greeting at mealtime during this type of weather. This recipe is definitely a keeper, easy to assemble with ingredients usually kept on hand.  We made our stews in the slow cooker, and it was delicious, hands down a winner for all of us. 

       As usual here on this blog, I do not publish recipes that belong to others, respecting their rights as authors. Many times the recipe creators are generous and publish them online, or you can buy the book I that I have cited and have all the recipes at hand.