What I am about to say may give away my age! I grew up loving Wonder Woman. I wanted to be Wonder Woman.
Watching the women around me and reflecting on my own life, I’m pretty sure we really are all Wonder Women.
I’ve heard many women share that they feel overwhelmed with a chronic busy-ness that chips away at their health and vitality. Cooking a nutritious meal at the end of the day can feel like a near impossible feat. This overwhelm can steer cars through fast food drive-thru’s at the end of the day for a quick bite or lead to feeding the kiddos cereal for dinner. Not because they don’t care about healthy food, but they are just trying to keep up with it all.
Cooking clean food is something I deeply value and am passionate about with all my heart. To be able to nourish my family with healthy and delicious food at the end of the day puts a smile on my face and leaves us feeling better.
Creating a wholesome, healthy meal on the fly is possible…but, let’s face it…unlikely. What works best for me (and incidentally is easiest on the family pocketbook) is to spend some time over the weekend planning our meals for the coming week, grocery shopping, and prepping as much of our meals as possible. However, I don’t always have the time and it can feel overwhelming at the end of the week.
Fortunately, I’ve got an awesome time-saving resource that I turn to week after week…Michelle Pfennighaus’s Winning at Kitchen Budget-Conscious Cookbook & Meal Plans. I’ve had the honor of collaborating on Winning at Kitchen with Michelle several times now and love what it provides for us busy moms.
Winning at Kitchen makes my own life so much easier. The meals are planned out, shopping lists are included, and prep tips are bountiful. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve quickly pulled a shopping list out of Winning at Kitchen on my way out the door to the market. No hours of planning necessary! I spend about an hour prepping the recipes when I get home, and then I’m set up and ready to roll when my work week begins. Makes me even feel a little bit like Wonder Woman!
Sure, I love perusing cookbooks and internet trolling for fun, new recipes. Most days that is what I call a LUXURY! My current reality is ease and simplicity.
Below is a delicious fall season recipe (warm and comforting) from Winning at Kitchen that is nourishing and easy to make.
Chocolate Chili with Cinnamon Cornbread
Makes 8 servings
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour
For Chili:
- 1 Tbl. coconut oil
- 1 onion, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 large sweet potato, diced
- 3 large Swiss chard leaves, minced
- 15-oz. can diced tomatoes
- 1 quart chicken or vegetable stock
- 2 15-oz cans black beans, rinsed and drained
- 2 15-oz. cans pinto beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 Tbl. cumin
- 1 Tbl. cinnamon
- 1 TBl. chili powder
- 2 TBL. cocoa powder
- ½ tsp. salt (or more, depending how salty your stock is)
- Hot sauce
For cornbread:
- ¼ cup coconut oil, plus more for pan
- 2 cups cornmeal
- 1 ½ cups unsweetened milk of choice
- 1 egg, beaten
- 2 Tbl. raw honey
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp. salt
- In large stock pot, heat coconut oil over medium-low heat. Add onion, garlic and sweet potato. Mix and cook for about 5 minutes. Add Swiss chard, tomatoes, stock, beans, spices, cocoa, and salt. Bring to a boil. Simmer uncovered for 1 hour. Serve with hot sauce.
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400°F. Grease a 12-inch cast iron skillet or an 8-inch pan and set aside.
- Combine all cornbread ingredients in a large bowl. Pour into prepared skillet or pan. Bake 20- 30 minutes or until golden brown.
Do ahead: Wash and mince/dice onion, garlic, sweet potato and Swiss chard ahead of time. They can be refrigerated together in an airtight container.
Budget notes: Creatively using flavor takes the blah out of bean-based meals. And creativity requires zero dollars!
Purchase your copy of Winning at Kitchen: Budget Conscious Cookbook & Meal Plans today! At $24 this is a steal. No thank you note required! I know you are busy. 😉
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