Greek Salad

I was at the grocery store today and saw some pre-made Greek Salad at the deli counter. It looked great but was, of course, overpriced. I already had over half of the needed ingredients at home, so I grabbed what I still needed and tonight I made our own Greek Salad (and for a lot cheaper). It was ahhhh-maz-ing. Hit the spot for an evening snack and is healthy to boot!! :)

Cucumbers, Roma Tomatoes, Red Onions, Kamalta Olives -- cut them all up (however much you want of each) and mix together with salt and pepper. Squeeze over some lemon juice and red wine vinegar. Top with feta cheese.

yum yum yum! :)

Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Chili

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2009/05/sweet-potato-chili-vegan-crockpot.html

This is actually a Vegan dish, but I un-veganized it (and added more calories) by adding chopped bacon in the crockpot, then cheese and sour cream to top it off. I also added a can of black beans. It didn't taste of a chili as much as a thick stew. But put it in a sourdough breadbowl and it's a GREAT meal on a cold night. It's a pretty cheap meal too! :)

The Ingredients:

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and in 2-inch chunks
1 yellow onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (15-ounce) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed (or 2/3 cup dried beans, soaked overnight and boiled briskly for 10 minutes because of the freaky red bean toxin thing)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 (14.5-ounce) can tomatoes (whatever's on sale, mine had oregano and roasted garlic)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup water
1/2 cup orange juice (If you don't have any in the house, use water)


The Directions:

Use a 5-6 quart slow cooker. This is enough food to feed a family of 4 regular-sized, or 6 smallish people. Peel and chunk the sweet potato and add to the pot. Add diced onion. Follow with the red bell pepper, can of tomatoes, the beans, garlic, and seasonings. Pour in OJ and water. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or until the onion is translucent and the sweet potato is fork-tender (if you want the sweet potato to get really squishy and disappear when stirred, cook longer).