Better Than Lasagna Soup - Featuring Buffalo (Gluten-Free & Low-Carb option)

Better than Lasagna Soup

Who doesn't like lasagna? But who likes to take the time to make the lasagna? Not I (usually). Lasagna soup is a good idea. It's fast and yummy if you season it right. It is a leaner dish than calorie-laden lasagna and you can easily make it gluten-free and low carb.

There are a few key ingredients that make the difference in this delicious soup. Balsamic vinegar adds some brightness and depth. The Brown sugar substitute curbs the acidity of the tomatoes, balancing out the flavors. A touch of hot pepper flakes adds a little warmth, and the whole fennel seeds give a nice exotic sweetness.

A trick is to salt the soup after it has cooked. The ingredients absorb a lot of the salt if it's added at the beginning of cooking time, leading to increased salt usage. Add the sweetener at the end too.

This hearty soup makes a nice family friendly meal and the leftovers taste great. You can serve this lasagna soup with a nice salad for a low-carb meal.


BETTER THAN LASAGNA SOUP Recipe:

1 pound ground buffalo meat (and/or organic ground beef chuck, or Italian sausage, or ground turkey)
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, smashed in a mortar & pestle (or more garlic, to taste)
1 large yellow sweet bell pepper, diced
2 t. Italian herb seasoning
1 t. dried basil
1 t. fennel seeds (omit if using Italian sausage)
1/8 to 1/4 t. hot red pepper flakes, optional
50 grinds freshly ground black pepper
1 large bay leaf
2 (8-ounce) cans tomato sauce
2 (14.5-ounce) cans fire roasted diced tomatoes
1 (32-ounce) box organic chicken stock or broth
1 c. purified water
2 c. (6 ounces) broken lasagna noodles (gluten-free), about 8 noodles
2 t. balsamic vinegar
1 T. Brown Just Like Sugar (brown sugar replacement), up to 2 T., to taste (or Golden Lakanto)
1 T. BioSalt or sea salt (recipe on this blog), to taste
6 ounces organic raw spinach leaves, roughly chopped

Garnish: mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese, and possibly a drizzle of high quality olive oil.


Method:

In a large soup pot, brown the meat of choice with the onions, garlic, and yellow bell pepper, over medium-high heat, until the meat is browned and crumbly.

Drain the fat if needed. Buffalo is so lean that you won't need to. I use lean organic beef, so I don't drain that either.Turkey is extra lean too. The only meat that may need to be drained is high-fat sausage. B-T-W, turkey Italian sausage is good too!

Add the spices and saute with the meat for a minute (to bloom the flavors of the spices).

Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and chicken broth, and the 1 cup water. I use the water to first rinse out all the cans, which easily removes all the stuck-in-the-can tomato sauce.

Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Turn down the heat and let simmer, covered for 15 minutes.

Add the pasta of choice, and cook until the pasta is tender, but not mushy.

Add  2 t. balsamic vinegar.

Season with salt and sugar substitute, to taste.

Right before serving, add the chopped spinach. Stir in to wilt the spinach and serve.

Garnish with cheeses if desired.



Tips: 

You may substitute the broken lasagna noodles for campanelle, bow tie pasta, or medium shells.

To make paleo or low-carb: Omit pasta and serve over barely steamed zucchini "noodles" (thinly sliced zucchini).


 

Note: 

Just Like Sugar is a sugar-free substitute for brown sugar. It is all-natural, gluten-free, 0 carbs, 0 calories, no aftertaste, diabetic and celiac safe.

It's ingredient list:

Chicory root dietary fiber
Calcium
Vitamin C
Natural flavors from the peel of an orange
Natural molasses type flavor

Looks pretty good right?


Photos of the lasagna soup in progress:

Saute the onion, garlic and bell pepper with the buffalo meat.

Broken lasagna noodles in bite-sized pieces.

The chicken broth and fire roasted tomatoes have been added to the soup pot.

The soup has simmered 15 minutes.

The pasta has finished simmering in the soup and the seasonings have been adjusted.

The raw chopped spinach has been stirred into the finished soup.

A garnished bowl of Better Than Lasagna Soup!

Dig in!

Leila

Zesty Artichoke Pasta Salad (Gluten-Free) - This salad tastes great left over too!

Leila's Zesty Artichoke Pasta Salad

I get tired of blah-tasting pasta salads. Most of them are boring, have you noticed that too? I wanted a pasta salad that tasted good leftover, not just on the day it is made. I do not want an over abundance of pasta either - too many empty carbs for my taste. If I want empty carbs, let's make it worth it - give me a fudgey, chewy brownie!

A secret to great pasta salad is to marinate the hot pasta in the zesty, well-seasoned, homemade dressing first. Let the flavors infuse for a while. Then add all the other ingredients. Adjust the seasonings and serve.

I do not add cheese to pasta salad unless it will all be eaten immediately - or the cheese gets slimy :(

You can use gluten free pasta or an ancient grain-style pasta, do what works for you.

Add cheese if desired at serving time, as a garnish.

This is a versatile recipe, vary your veggies to to taste, and have fun with it.

P.S. this salad IS good left over.



Zesty Artichoke Pasta Salad Recipe:

1 lb Gluten-free bow tie pasta (or other desired shape)

Dressing:

1 1/2 Lemons, juiced (or 1 large lemon)
Zest of 1 lemon
2 to 3 Large garlic cloves
1 t. BioSalt or sea salt (recipe on blog), to taste
1 t. Fine Herbs or Herbs de Provence
1 t. Dried rosemary
1/2 t. Onion salt
1/2 t. Garlic powder, to taste
1 t. Fresh ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 c. Olive oil, or more to taste (use a high quality oil)

Salad Ingredients:

1/4 c. Finely minced onion (sweet onion or red onion)
4 Scallions, minced
1/4 c. Fresh minced parsley, optional
3 Roma tomatoes, diced
1 Red bell pepper, diced
2 c. Minced raw broccoli
2 Cans black olives, drained and halved
1 Can garbanzo beans, drained
1 to 1 1/2 c. Marinated artichoke hearts
1/4 c. Marinated sweet peppers and olives blend (from an olive bar), optional
1 c. fresh chopped basil leaves, optional

Garnish:

1/4 c. Shredded Parmesan cheese
1 c. Cubed mozzarella cheese


Method:

Cook the pasta al dente. While pasta is cooking, mix up the dressing.

Mash the garlic cloves with the BioSalt in a mortar & pestle and scrape into a large mixing bowl.

Add the rest of the salad dressing ingredients to the bowl and mix. Taste and adjust as desired.

Add the freshly cooked and drained hot pasta. Mix with the dressing and let marinate 30-60 minutes.

Mix in the rest of the salad ingredients. taste and adjust seasoning.

Chill.

Garnish with cheese if desired at serving time.


Enjoy,

Leila

Sugar-Free Clean-Eating Rich Chocolate Frosting Recipe

Easy Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting (SUGAR-FREE)

Use this yummy and original frosting recipe on our low-carb mug cakes or anywhere else you choose. This is a healthy, sugar-free option that is much lower in carbs than regular frosting.

This easy to make frosting is a great choice for low-sugar, low-carb desserts. You can even make this dairy-free if you use a vegan cream cheese.You get healthy fats from the coconut oil too.

We hope you enjoy adding this rich frosting recipe to your go-to healthy recipe collection.

Easy Sugar-Free Cream Cheese Chocolate Frosting

EASY CHOCOLATE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING Recipe:

2 c. FINELY powdered erythritol or white Lakanto zero-cal sweetener (can use part xylitol)

1/2 c. room temperature coconut oil (not melted)

Cream together several minutes. then cream in:

1 package chilled LIGHT cream cheese (or vegan cream cheese)

Cream in. Then add:

6 to 8 T. Dutch cocoa powder (sifted and free of lumps) (Natural cocoa doe not taste as good)

Cream in. Then add alternately:

4 to 6 T. "FROSTING THICKENER" (see recipe below)

1/4 c. vegetable glycerine (or raw honey, or agave, or maple syrup - NOT SUGAR-FREE)

Cream together well. then add:

Real vanilla extract, to taste

Homemade stevia glycerite, to taste (recipe on this blog)

Cream together to blend in very well. Taste for flavor and sweetness. 

Use immediately or chill.

FROSTING THICKENER FORMULA:

1/4 c. arrowroot or tapioca starch

2 T. coconut flour

METHOD:

Grind the starch and coconut flour together 2 to 3 times (letting it cool down between grindings) in a Krups seed mill until it is as fine as possible. 

Store in an air-tight container in your pantry. Use to thicken healthy frostings.

Enjoy, 

Leila & Nancy

BEST NEW HEALTHY CHOCOLATE in the World - Now being sold!

This is THE CHOCOLATE BAR we all have been waiting for!!!

My mom did it!!!

My mother, +Nancy Glazier, is the creator of this new healthy chocolate bar.

She LOVES chocolate and has been frustrated by the lack of tasty AND healthy chocolate choices in the market. Chocolate should not make you sick. My mom wanted to create a chocolate that everyone could enjoy, even those who have blood sugar issues or other health issues.  Chocolate by itself is healthy, it's all the other stuff that is typically added (sugar) that makes chocolate problematic.

Check out the CLEAN ingredient label at the bottom of this post. It's amazing.

She has been perfecting this amazing chocolate formula for a few years now, and it is FINALLY available for you, thanks to a company called Lakanto.

We are so excited to introduce this amazing chocolate to you here at Kitchen Cheetahs.

In many taste tests, this has been voted as the best tasting chocolate, hands down. People do not believe it is sugar free when they eat it. This chocolate is also easy on the digestive system, unlike other sugar free chocolates.

Try this gourmet healthy chocolate and We think you will agree that this is the best tasting chocolate ever, even better than the Belgian sugar-bomb chocolates. This chocolate is definitely worlds above the rest when comparing to all of the other sugar-free chocolates found on the market.

This gourmet bean-to-bar chocolate is sugar-free, chemical-free, low-carb, dairy-free, vegan, paleo... And GUILT-FREE! 

You can enjoy eating chocolate again! 

P-A-R-T-Y 

I just received this picture of the newly packaged gourmet chocolate last night. I hear it has sold out already.

More is being made of course and I have to find out where it is being sold in the market. I would like to have a link here on the Kitchen Cheetahs blog, to be able to directly purchase this chocolate. I'm working on it, so stay tuned. I just had to tell you the good news as soon as I received it! I can't wait to start posting recipes using this new chocolate!

We are working on healthy sugar-free caramels in the Cheetah Test Kitchens too. Can you imagine how much fun we are going to have together with all this chocolate and caramel action going on?

The back of the +LAKANTO - Zero Calorie Natural Sweetener chocolate bar

Do you see that this chocolate has about half the calories compared to regular chocolate?

Have a great day!

Leila

A healthy raw chocolate milk recipe - you can even make this sugar-free!

Quick & Raw Chocolate milk 


This delicious & healthy milk can easily be made dairy free, nut-free, sugar-free, low-carb, vegan, paleo, whatever you want. Nice, right?

This is one of my mother's healthy raw food recipes. It is very versatile, and quick to make. Prepare it ahead of time and store it in a quart jar in the fridge, just shake a bit before serving.

You can make this in larger batches once you know how much cocoa and sweetener you like to add.

This is easy to make sugar free, just use erythritol and/or xylitol, then enhance the sweetness with a coupe drops of stevia glycerite. A recipe to make your own stevia glycerite may be found on this blog. It will save you a lot of money to make your own, or use Now brand stevia glycerite.

Our chocolate milk is a much better post-workout option than sugar-laden, commercial chocolate milk! Maybe you heard that the Dairy council made a recommendation last year about chocolate milk as being the ultimate post workout beverage. It was then put on the worst nutritional advice for the year list. Well, fortunately, you get to decide for yourself. I say, have the best of both worlds, and drink this chocolate milk instead...

"Chocolate Milk As A Sports Drink Has To Be The Worst Health (But Admittedly Delicious) Suggestion Of The Year" http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/

http://www.dairyreporter.com/

Kitchen Cheetahs Quick & Raw Chocolate Milk Recipe:

2 c. raw milk or a 50/50 blend of coconut milk & almond milk (or Brazil nut or cashew milk)
2 to 4 T. raw cacao powder (2 T. of this can be raw carob powder), to taste
2 T. (1-oz) baby Thai coconut puree or 1/8th to 1/4th t. guar gum, if more thickness is desired
Golden Lakanto, raw agave or sweetener of choice, to taste
1/2 t. real vanilla extract (or a small piece of vanilla bean)
Raw rice protein powder, to taste (like Sun Warrior brand)


Method:

Blend together in a blender (like a Vitamix). If using a piece of vanilla bean, make sure it is pureed well. Taste for flavor and sweetness and adjust as desired. Serve cold.


Tips:


We like to add protein powder to enhance the nutrition of this beverage.

Recipes for nut milks may be found on this blog. Any combination of nut milks may be used.

You can make up a large batch of nut milk and and freeze part of the batch for later use.

For convenience, you can prepare a large batch of baby coconut puree and freeze it in 1-ounce portions in ice cube trays. Store frozen cubes in freezer-safe containers or freezer storage bags.





Enjoy,

Leila & Nancy.

Copy-Cat Bragg's Ginger Spice Apple Cider Vinegar Drink Recipe (Sugar-Free)

My Copy-Cat version of Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar All Natural Drink 

- Ginger Spice flavor

This drink is for those of you who are health conscious. Because this drink is not like a diet Coke...I'm just sayin'.

A dear friend of mine came over to my house drinking this bottled beverage. Of course I was curious. She likes it and says it is a definite pick-me-up. I  tasted it, and when I heard how much a bottle of it cost, I looked at the ingredient list and then I told her I thought I could duplicate it. It costs pennies to make yourself. She left me the bottle with a bit of the drink left in it. I figured out how to make the drink at home the next day and sent her the recipe.

This drink is not for everyone, but it is strangely good. You may have already heard about the health benefits of drinking a little apple cider vinegar daily. We know that ginger is amazingly good for us too. The 2 together are an improvement for the vinegar, I must say. I like not having any sugar added and the stevia does a nice job of sweetening this beverage without calories.

When I set out to duplicate a recipe, I always look at the product's ingredient list. I write down the ingredients like you see below. I leave space for me to write in the recipe amounts. I do a sensory test of the product and take notes. I source my ingredients and then get to formulating. Just in case you were curious. Personally, I think it's fun to formulate.

This is the ingredient list on the Bragg Ginger Spice bottle:

Pure distilled water
Bragg organic apple cider vinegar
organic ginger
organic stevia extract

Here is my formula...

Ginger Spice Apple Cider Vinegar Drink Recipe:

Yield: 1 quart
Difficulty level: Easy Peasy

Ginger Water Concentrate:

2-inch piece of raw ginger root
2 c. distilled or purified water

Ginger Drink:

Ginger concentrate, to taste
1/4 c. raw apple cider vinegar (like Bragg's) (plus 1 T. more for a tarter version)
1/4 t. stevia glycerite (recipe on this blog, or use Now brand)
Water to make up a total of 1 quart


Method:

Grate or finely mince the ginger into a medium-sized pot.
Add 2 cups water and place on the stove.
Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer.
Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes.
Take off heat and allow to steep. Let cool to room temperature.
Strain, pressing the pulp dry.
I like to add a bit more water to the spent ginger pulp and puree a bit in the blender and strain again.
Pour the desired amount of ginger concentrate into a 1-quart glass jar. (I pour in all of it!)
Add the vinegar and stevia glycerite. swirl to mix well.
Top off with water.
Taste and add more ginger or vinegar as desired.
Chill or serve over ice.


Variations:

Add 2 T. chia seeds
Add a pinch of tumeric powder
Add some real maple syrup, to taste (not sugar-free)


Some benefits of drinking apple cider vinegar: 

Contains antioxidants
Improves blood sugar levels
Antibacterial, so helpful for a sore throat

http://www.doctoroz.com/ says,
"Drinking apple cider vinegar before a high-carbohydrate meal improves insulin sensitivity—slowing the rate of blood sugar levels rising—in people who are insulin resistant (a prediabetes condition) or have type 2 diabetes, according to a 2004 study. The researchers note that vinegar may possess physiological effects similar to the anti-diabetes medications acarbose and metformin."
http://www.doctoroz.com/article/people-are-drinking-vinegar-should-you 

Enjoy,

Leila

Photos of the process (making a double batch):

I freeze my ginger and then grate the amount I want for my recipes.

Grate the ginger while it's still frozen. Here I have about 4 inches worth for a double batch.

Put the pot on the stove with 2 cups of water. Simmer covered, and then let steep.

The ginger has brewed and cooled somewhat and is ready for straining.

I use a fine mesh bag draped over a mason jar strainer to easily strain and then squeeze the ginger dry.

Pour ginger brew into fine mesh bag to strain.

Tightly squeeze the ginger dry.

Put the ginger root in a blender with 2 c. more water (for a double batch) and blend.

Yield: 4 cups ginger concentrate.

Now I am making my Ginger Spice Apple Cider Vinegar Drink. For my double batch I used the full 4 cups ginger concentrate.

Best served cold, over ice! Are you fighting off a cold? Add a pinch of cayenne and drink hot or cold. I like to add a little bit more ACV to make it more therapeutic. A touch more stevia added is fine too.

Author, Leila Wood.

An easy, delicious, and healthier Copy-Cat version of Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana Soup

Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana Soup 

Copy-Cat Recipe

Zuppa Toscana Soup

This soup is delicious. It has just a touch of heat, and a touch of sweet from the fennel in the Italian sausage. I made my version more robust and filling. It is comforting on cold nights, yet with a salad, it is great for warm weather too. It is very easy to make, and good for when I am pressed for time. Serve it with a nice hearty salad and you are good to go. Yes, bread sticks are good with it too, but I'm not posting my wheat flour garlic Parmesan bread stick recipe on this healthy eating blog. When we develop a fabulous gluten-free bread stick, then I will post it here.

I like knowing and having control over everything that goes into this recipe, unlike eating it at a restaurant. The BioSalt really helps with water retention issues in the body.

I add quite a bit more kale and potatoes than the restaurant version, frequently their's is a little skimpy on the goods. Kale is so beneficial for your body and this is a delicious way to eat it!


Zuppa Toscana Soup Recipe:

1 pound mild sweet Italian sausage
1 medium to large yellow onion, diced small
4 large garlic cloves, smashed
1 32-ounce carton organic chicken stock
10 ounces purified water (add more water to maintain the liquid level as needed)
3 to 4 organic russet potatoes, scrubbed, quartered, and sliced thin (do not peel)
1/2 to 3/4 t. dried hot red pepper flakes
4 to 6 c. chopped organic kale, woody stems removed (6 cups is about 7 ounces)
40 grinds black pepper, to taste
2 t. BioSalt or sea salt (recipe on this blog)
2 t. onion salt (recipe on this blog)
1 c. organic whole milk
1 c. organic heavy cream


Method:

Saute the sausage and onions in a soup pot until the sausage is crumbly and browned.
Add the garlic and saute in minute.
Add the chicken stock, potatoes, red pepper flakes, and water. Bring to a gentle simmer.
Let simmer until the potatoes are barely tender, but not mushy (about 30 minutes).
Add the chopped kale and simmer a few more minutes, until kale is tender.
Add the milk and cream and warm through with out boiling.
Add the BioSalt and onion salt.
Dilute further with water if it has evaporated.


Tips:

I like the bulk sausage from Sprouts Farmer's Market. It has no MSG or Nitrates, and is gluten-free.This is the ingredient list: Pork, water, sweet Italian seasoning, evaporated cane juice, salt, spices, dehydrated garlic, oil of fennel.

You can remove the sausage casings if you can't find bulk sausage.

You can use 2 cups rich coconut milk in place of the dairy if a Low-Carb or PALEO soup is desired.

I find that salting the soup at the end uses less salt.

If the soup gets too salty, just add a touch more water. The BioSalt is a balanced salt for the body.

You may put all of the ingredients in a large crock pot and cook on high heat 3 to 4 hours.


Enjoy!

Leila

Start by browning the sausage and onions in a large soup pot

Getting the rest of the  ingredients together

The sausage, onions, and garlic are browned

Chop the kale and potatoes

The soup before the milk and cream were added

The finished soup


Author, Leila Wood.