Vegetable Goulash with Sausage Gravy

One of my favorite meals in the world is biscuits and gravy. In my quest for finding healthier versions of the foods I love, I decided it was time to alter this recipe. And gosh golly, I love it!

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:
1 lb breakfast sausage
6 red potatoes
1 yellow pepper, sliced
1 red pepper, sliced
1/2 onion, chopped
1/4 cup flour
2-3 cups milk (2 for a thicker consistency)
Salt and pepper to taste
Olive oil

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Cut up vegetables and place in 9x13 inch pan. Add salt, pepper, and enough olive oil to coat all vegetables. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring halfway.
In another pan, brown sausage. Stir flour until sausage is fully coated. Slowly mix the milk in and bring to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes, or until sauce thickens.
Serve vegetables with sauce ladled over the top.

As always, thanks for checking out my recipes! If you tried this recipe, let me know what you thought of it! If there are any recipes you want me to try and feature in my blog, shoot me an email at alyx.l.johnson@gmail.com. Check out my Instagram @johnson_alyx, or my Twitter @strabryheadache for my daily progress!

'Hobo' Dinners

There are other names for this meal; packet dinners, individual meals, etc. But everyone that I have personally spoken to who ate this growing up all refer to it as 'hobo' dinners.
This is an easy, flexible, and cheap meal that I remember from my childhood. My mom used to make them because very little effort went into making them and we could all personalize our own packet. I make them now for nostalgia sake and because they're an easy meal I can throw together in between trying to exercise and keep up with my busy schedule.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 60-75 minutes

Ingredients: (following amounts serve 2)
4 red potatoes, sliced into equal sizes
2 carrots, sliced
1 onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, sliced
1/2 medium zucchini, sliced
1/2 lb ground beef, formed into patties
2 cloves garlic, diced (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
Sauce (we generally use BBQ sauce)

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
Chop all vegetables. What I love most with this recipe is you can add or change the recipe as you feel. Kale, broccoli, yellow zucchini, and peas are easy additions that add amazing flavor to the meal.
Salt and pepper both sides of the ground beef (this can also be changed to steak, pork chops, lamb, or no meat), and place on large sheets of aluminum foil.
Add equal amounts of vegetables to all packets, salt and pepper everything, and add your choice of sauce.
Tightly seal the packets and place them on a cookie sheet.
Bake for 60-75 minutes.
Vegetables should be soft when tested with a fork.
Add more sauce if desired and serve.

As always, let me know if you tried this recipe and what you thought of it! If you have any recipes you would like me to share here, shoot me an email at alyx.l.johnson@gmail.com. You can follow my daily recipes and progress on my Instagram @johnson_alyx, or my Twitter @strabryheadache.

Thanks for reading!

Light Vegetable Alfredo

Alfredo is my crutch. If I were to die and was given a choice for one final meal, it would be Alfredo. I love the creamy, rich sauce and the carbohydrate goodness of the noodles, but I've been doing my best to be good, so I have to cut much of the fatty, amazing, saucy food-gasm from my life.

Lucky for me (and you!) I've been able to update the recipe to a healthier version of itself, though it still wouldn't count as a 'clean' meal. This sauce uses half the amount of butter than most other recipes I've found, and a lighter cream, meaning less fat going into your body.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20-30 minutes

Ingredients:
1 head broccoli
1 medium zucchini
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
8 oz noodles of your choice
3 tbsp light butter
1 pint light cream
8 oz low or no fat Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Bring 8 cups of water to a boil in a medium pot, add the noodles and cook according to the directions on the box.
Slice the zucchini and broccoli and add to the noodles for the last 3 minutes of cook time.
Drain and set aside.

(I used whole wheat noodles when I made this recipe, but you could alternatively use the zucchini as noodles instead and cut the carbs even more. If you use this method, you would cook the noodles and broccoli at the same time, for 3 minutes in boiling water.)

In another pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add garlic and cream and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and simmer for 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. The sauce should coat the spoon when ready.
Add the Parmesan cheese and stir until the cheese is melted through the sauce.
Mix the noodles and vegetables into the sauce until everything is evenly coated.

Serve and enjoy!

If you tried this recipe, let me know what you thought! I am always up for new recipes, send me one you would like to see featured to my email at alyx.l.johnson@gmail.com or message me at Instagram @johnson_alyx, or Twitter @strabryheadache.

Thanks for reading!

Fajita Sweet Potato Skins

I absolutely love this recipe! It's flexible, delicious, and relatively easy to pull together without much effort. It can be vegan, vegetarian, or chock full of meat, whichever works best for what's in your pantry. You can also use whatever potatoes you like, I regularly choose sweet potatoes because they're healthy and delicious.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 45-75 minutes (larger potatoes take more time to cook through)

Ingredients:
1 medium sweet potato (serves 2)
1 green pepper, sliced
1 red pepper, sliced
1/2 yellow or white onion, sliced
2 tbsp vegetable or olive oil
Taco seasonings, to taste
Salt and pepper, to taste
Ground beef/chicken breast/skirt steak (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Bake potatoes on un-greased pan until skin is crisp and the inside is soft. A medium sweet potato takes an average of an hour to cook thoroughly. My oven tends to run hot, so I generally drop the temperature by 25 degrees, or cut the cook time shorter.
Heat oil in medium pan until lightly smoking. You should be able to feel the heat coming off it if you hold your hand a few inches above the oil.
Add onion and peppers and saute until vegetables are almost soft, then add your desired meat and cook through.
Add the taco seasoning and mix thoroughly, cooking until the vegetables are soft.
Cut the potatoes in half and spoon the vegetables on top. Add cheese, if desired, and bake until the cheese is melted.
Top with pico de gallo, sour cream, or guacamole and serve warm.

Enjoy!

If you tried this recipe, please let me know what you thought! You can share healthy recipes you'd like me to try, and I'll try to feature them here. Shoot me an email at alyx.l.johnson@gmail.com or message me on my Instagram @johnson_alyx or Twitter @strabryheadache.

Thanks for reading!