Boozy Meatloaf

Getting my family to be excited about eating meatloaf is usually a terrible task. "What are you making for dinner?" is the usual question around 5 o'clock and the only safe answer is "Something delicious". This is my usual answer so as to avoid pre-dinner groans and complaints about food that is not yet made.

I had some ground beef that I needed to cook and I decided to make an "everything but the kitchen sink" style meatloaf. I thought about other meatloaves I have tortured my family with in the past and I concluded that the main problem was a lack of flavor and the meat always became dry and boring. So with a dash of this and a splash of that, including some beer from my special "mommy is cooking" drink I came up with the Boozy Meatloaf - a flavorful and moist dish that had my family begging for more. REALLY, they were. Here's the recipe.

Boozy Meatloaf

1 medium onion, diced
1 lb extra lean ground beef
2 eggs
1/4 cup tomato paste
1/4 cup beer (light or medium)
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 red pepper, diced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, coursely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

Pre-heat oven to 375F. Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and mix well with your fingers. Pour the mixture into a bread pan and bake for 45-60 minutes until bubbling and browned on top. Remove from oven and let stand 10 minutes before serving.

This recipe is really easy - it's a one bowl masterpiece that serves about 4 hungry adults and maybe even a bit left over for a lunch or two. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Creamy Curry Pumpkin Kale Soup

Every day it is part of my duties as a mother and wife to dream up healthy and tasty foods for my family to eat. I love to cook from cookbooks, but I find that the best creations come from just throwing a bunch of ingredients together that my gut tells me will taste great. I call this style of cooking "Everything but the kitchen sink" cooking and it's how I whip up meals for the family almost every day.

Last night was no exception. With some this and some that I created a delicious soup that I have called Creamy Curry Pumpkin Kale Soup. It may sound like these things wouldn't go together, but they do wonderfully. Not only do you get to enjoy a low-calorie pumpkin soup, but it is also packed full of nutrients from the kale. This soup was loved by my husband and baby of 9 months. Give it a try and let me know what you think.


Creamy Curry Pumpkin Kale Soup

1 tsp olive oil
2 onions, diced
2 cups cauliflower florets
2 apples (sweet ones like Ambrosia or Gala), diced
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tablespoon curry powder
1/4 tsp hot pepper flakes
4 cups chicken stock
1-14oz (397g) can pureed pumpkin
1 bunch of kale, coarsely chopped (approx. 2 cups)
salt to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cauliflower and saute untill onions are soft. Add the apples, cumin, corriander, curry powder and hot pepper flakes. Saute for about 5 minutes, giving the apples and cauliflower a chance to absorb the delicious curry flavors. Add the chicken stock, pumpkin and kale and stir well. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

Blend the soup in a blender until smooth and creamy (you'll have to do a few batches). Add the blended soup back to the pot and heat to desired temperature. Season with salt and serve.

The result is a greenish looking soup that is really tasty and healthy. It makes lots too - about 4 large servings. I hope you like it.

Low-Calorie Uses for Bad Bananas

We’re all guilty of buying a bunch of bananas and then having to toss out the last couple because they weren’t eaten before they turned that ugly color. This happens to me all the time so over the years I have come up with a number of creative ways to use up my bad bananas.

 As soon as a banana gets to the point when I know it won’t be eaten I throw it in my freezer. Most recipes that use bananas need them to be really soft for mashing and a frozen banana that has been thawed is mushy indeed. I usually have 2-3 frozen bananas in my freezer at any one time and it’s really handy for when I have an urge to make banana bread, banana porridge or banana popsicles.

If you are like me and have the occasional banana gone bad in your kitchen try using it in one of these excellent, low-calorie ways:

Easy Banana Pudding - Mash up a mushy banana and add to a low-calorie vanilla pudding mix. This makes a super easy desert for the family.

Banana Bread – There are sooo many different banana bread recipes that call for one or two mashed bananas and over-ripe bananas are perfect for this. Of course, not all banana bread recipes are low-calorie. I have a favorite one that I use – see Diet Mama’s Banana Bread recipe below.

Banana Smoothie or Shake – One of my favorite breakfast foods is a delicious smoothie and mushy, over-ripe bananas are perfect for this. Add a mushy banana to a blender along with some skim milk, low-fat yogurt, other fruit, wheat germ or whatever else you like and give it a whirl. It’s really delicious and nutritious – a very easy breakfast item.

Banana Porridge – If you like oatmeal in the morning then try adding a mashed banana to your cereal. The banana adds sweetness so there is no need for added sugar, honey or syrup.

Banana Popsicle – Banana popsicles were one of my mother’s tricks for getting us to eat bananas past their prime. Just remove the skin, shove a popsicle stick in one end and, if you like, roll the banana in some chopped peanuts. Lay the banana on a tray covered with wax paper and cover with saran wrap. Freeze and enjoy.

Egg Substitute - Mashed banana can be used as an egg substitute in some baking (1/2 mashed banana replaces one egg). I learned about this from one of my favorite vegan cookbooks and since it never seems like I have eggs in the house when I need them I often try this substitution. It doesn't work for everything, and sometimes you need to add a bit more liquid to the recipe, but it's always worth a try. Baked goods done this way also turn out with a yummy banana flavor to them.

Diet Mamma’s Low-Calorie Banana Bread Recipe
This is a variation of a banana bread recipe by Weight Watchers. The bread turns out really dense so it’s rather filling, but also very delicious. One loaf lasts a good few days for breakfast for me and my husband.

Makes 1 loaf

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
2 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup chopped walnuts
8 dried dates, chopped
6 dried apricots, chopped
2 very ripe bananas, mashed
½ cup skim milk

Directions: Pre-heat oven to 350F. Lightly grease an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan. In a medium bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients, nuts and dried fruit. In a small bowl, combine the milk and mashed bananas well. Pour milk and bananas into the dry ingredients and stir until just blended (do not over mix). Pour the mixture into the loaf pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean – approximately 1 hour. Allow the bread to cool before digging in.

Who Is Diet Mamma?

Hi Everyone, I am Diet Mamma and this is my blog. I am a mid-thirties woman going through my first pregnancy. For the past few years now I have been focused on eating a healthier diet and I spend much of my time learning about nutrition for me and my family. I also love to exercise and up until I found out I was pregnant, I was training to run in my first marathon. This is a goal that I have now had to put on the back-burner for a while, but I still plan to do it once I have my baby.

I decided to start the Diet Mamma blog because everyday I am learning something more about what it takes to eat right and stay in shape as a woman. I am also looking forward to documenting my post-pregnancy weight loss, diet plan, exercise routines and how I will manage to juggle all of these with a brand new baby and as a mother.

More about me ... I love to cook wholesome food and change my favorite recipes around so that they are low-fat and lower in calories. I can't wait to share some of my creations here on Diet Mamma.

I am so excited to get started and meet some new people through this blogging experience. I am a novice big-time when it comes to pregnancy and being a parent and I love learning more about eating well and exercising so I hope lots of people will share their own advice and experiences with me.

Welcome to Diet Mamma!