If I’m honest, once I figured out how to cook frozen ground turkey in the Instant Pot, it was quickly my favorite way to make it. The pressure the Instant Pot creates infuses the seasoning right into the cooked meat. Less mess, less time, less planning, and more flavor.

What kind of meat can I use?

Any ground meat you prefer, but I prefer frozen ground turkey in most recipes. I love cooking frozen turkey in the Instant Pot because you can put everything in and walk away until it’s finished. I prefer to use ground poultry when I can because of the lower saturated fat.

Got beef? You can find tips for cooking frozen ground beef here.

Ingredients:

• Ground meat: Frozen ground turkey or chicken both cook the same in the Instant Pot. I’ve used both 1 pound packages as well as the larger 1.75-2 pound packs from Sam’s and Costco. See notes below for the different cooking times.
• Water: Sometimes I add stock for additional flavor.
• Seasoning: You can simply add salt and pepper, or season your meat for the meal you’re making–tacos, chili, or spaghetti. Scroll down for some of my favorite seasonings to add to this recipe.

Instant Pot Taco Meat

Whether you’re making traditional tacos recipes or my favorite low carb ground turkey tacos, you’re going to love this homemade taco seasoning!

• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp oregano, dried
• 1 tsp cilantro, dried

Instant Pot Turkey Chili Seasoning

• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 2 tbsp garlic powder
• 2 tbsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder

Instant Pot Turkey with Italian Seasonings (for spaghetti or other pasta)

• 1 tbsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning

How to cook frozen ground turkey in the Instant Pot:

You’ll need about 40 minutes for this recipe. These directions work for an Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi, or any other brand of electric pressure cooker.

1. Add the frozen ground turkey to the bottom of the Instant Pot insert. Pour 1/2 cup of cold water (or stock) into the bottom of the pot and top the meat with any seasonings you’d like. You’re using a bit less liquid than usual for this recipe because the frozen turkey will also produce a bit of liquid.
2. Close the lid and turn the pressure valve to the sealed position. Set the cook time for 15 minutes for 1 pound of meat or 20 minutes for 2 pounds of meat and cook on high pressure.
3. Once the cook time is up, quick release the pressure and remove the lid. Quick release means that you’ll manually move the valve on the top of your pot from Sealing to Venting. Steam will come out.
4. Your ground meat will be thawed at this point but not all the way cooked. Be careful when pressing your cooking utensil into the meat for the first time, as some water will release. Pressing your utensil into the meat slowly will help with this.
5. Turn your pot to Sauté (high). Use a spatula to gently break apart your meat into crumbles while the meat continues to cook. Stir well to incorporate all of the seasonings and continue to sauté until most of the liquid has cooked out.

Recipe Tips:

• If making a dish that requires tomato sauce, such as chili, you can add that to the top of your ground turkey when it’s frozen. Don’t put tomato sauce on the bottom of your pot under the meat–you’ll get the burn warning. When adding tomato sauce, don’t leave the liquid out–you need that too.
• Sometimes I think the seasonings are absorbed into the meat a bit more when cooking this way, so you might want to add extra seasonings to your meat after it’s sautéed.
• This method isn’t necessarily faster than thawing the meat in the sink, but I love that pressure cooking is something I can walk away from for a bit and allow to cook on its own.
• While this is a quick way to defrost and cook the ground turkey, it’s not the same as defrosting in the fridge. For example, you won’t be able to make turkey burgers or meatballs with this meat after defrosting because it cooks the turkey at the same time.
• Don’t have enough in the freezer? These tips for how to stretch ground beef work with ground turkey as well!

Healthy Eating Plans

Did you know that the recipes here at My Crazy Good Life are all perfect for the 21 Day Fix/Ultimate Portion Fix and Weight Watchers?

• Weight Watchers: When using extra lean ground turkey each 4 ounce serving counts as 0 Blue Plan Points | 1 Green Plan Point | 0 Purple Plan Points | 2023 Points: 0
• 21 Day Fix/Ultimate Portion Fix: Each 3/4 cup serving counts as 1 Red Container.
• 2B Mindset: In addition to this meat, fill your plate with 75% FFC for a complete breakfast. Fill your plate with 50% veggies and 25% FFC for a complete lunch, or add 75% veggies for a complete dinner.

Healthy recipes you can use frozen ground turkey with:

• Stuffed Pepper Soup
• Turkey Chorizo and Eggs
• Homemade Hamburger Helper
• Instant Pot Spaghetti
• Instant Pot Turkey Goulash
• Baked Beans with Ground Turkey (this recipe is delicious–it uses black beans and red kidney beans!)
• Spicy Instant Pot Chili (my favorite chili recipe!)

Print

How to Cook Frozen Ground Turkey in the Instant Pot

Cooking ground turkey from frozen is my favorite way to cook meat in a pressure cooker. The pressure the Instant Pot creates infuses the seasoning into the meat. Less mess, less time, more flavor.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword frozen ground turkey

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Saute time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 170kcal

Author Becca Ludlum

Equipment

• Instant Pot 6 qt
• Instant Pot Trivet

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground turkey extra lean
• seasonings optional, can be found in post
• 1/2 cup water

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

• Place frozen meat in the bottom of the Instant Pot. Add seasonings to the top of the meat now. 1 lb ground turkey seasonings
• Pour water over the top of the turkey. 1/2 cup water
• Close and lock the Instant Pot and turn the pressure valve to sealing.
• Pressure cook High for 15 minutes.
• Once your cook time is complete quick release the pressure and remove the lid.
• Set your pot to saute and use a spatula to crumble your meat.
• Add any (optional) extra seasonings now and saute until all the liquid is absorbed.
• Serve immediately or store in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Notes

• If making a dish that requires tomato sauce, such as chili, you can add that to the top of your ground turkey when it’s frozen. Don’t put tomato sauce on the bottom of your pot under the meat–you’ll get the burn warning. When adding tomato sauce, don’t leave the liquid out–you need that too.
• Sometimes I think the seasonings are absorbed into the meat a bit more when cooking this way, so you might want to add extra seasonings to your meat after it’s sautéed.
• This method isn’t necessarily faster than thawing the meat in the sink, but I love that pressure cooking is something I can walk away from for a bit and allow to cook on its own.
• While this is a quick way to defrost and cook the ground turkey, it’s not the same as defrosting in the fridge. For example, you won’t be able to make turkey burgers or meatballs with this meat after defrosting because it cooks the turkey at the same time.

Healthy Eating Plans

Did you know that the recipes here at My Crazy Good Life are all perfect for the 21 Day Fix/Ultimate Portion Fix and Weight Watchers?

• Weight Watchers: When using extra lean ground turkey each 4 ounce serving counts as 0 Blue Plan Points | 1 Green Plan Point | 0 Purple Plan Points | 2023 Points: 0
• 21 Day Fix/Ultimate Portion Fix: Each 3/4 cup serving counts as 1 Red Container.
• 2B Mindset: In addition to this meat, fill your plate with 75% FFC for a complete breakfast. Fill your plate with 50% veggies and 25% FFC for a complete lunch, or add 75% veggies for a complete dinner.

Nutrition

Calories: 170kcal | Protein: 21g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 84mg | Sodium: 80mg | Potassium: 242mg | Vitamin A: 83IU | Calcium: 25mg | Iron: 1mg

The post How to Cook Frozen Ground Turkey in the Instant Pot appeared first on My Crazy Good Life.

The cooking time changes a bit when using frozen vegetables vs fresh vegetables, and based on the type of vegetable, but these instructions should help a bit if this is your first time using your air fryer to cook frozen vegetables.

I live about 25 minutes from a grocery store and I love being able to use frozen veggies for everything I can–they’re picked at the peak of freshness, so rest assured you’re not compromising your health when using frozen vegetables.

Your Ultimate Guide to the Best Air Fryer Frozen Vegetables

• Broccoli florets: Definitely a favorite because it tastes just like roasted broccoli, but it’s faster!
• Okra: Not one of my favorite vegetables, typically, but I love that the air fryer crisps it up a bit.
• Green Beans: These are so easy and they’re perfect for snacking!
• Cauliflower: All around, my favorite vegetable to cook any way–in the last year I’ve developed a love affair with cauliflower.
• Sweet Potatoes: Roasted sweet potato chunks sprinkled with cinnamon are a delicious treat.
• Brussel Sprouts: Mixed with some onions and mushrooms, this is a meal in itself, or the perfect healthy side dish! 

What is an air fryer?

An air fryer is like a countertop convection oven. It is different than deep frying because it cooks food by blowing hot air around it. It technically doesn’t need any oil, but by not using oil your food might come out a bit dry (with all of that air blowing, it’s easy to dry food out if it’s overcooked in the air fryer). 

Most people use an air fryer for things that are typically deep fried like a frozen bag of sweet potato fries, french fries, or onion rings. I think it’s a great option to make vegetables as an easy side dish for a meal.

I lightly spray olive oil or avocado oil on the foods that I put in my air fryer. They cook evenly and don’t dry out. Also, spray oil can help your seasonings stick to the vegetables.

Can you put frozen vegetables in the air fryer? 

Yes! Don’t worry about thawing or pre-cooking. You can easily cook fresh or frozen vegetables in the air fryer. Air frying vegetables takes a little more time to cook–about 20 minutes total–because you’re defrosting the veggies as they go through the cooking process.

How to Air Fry Frozen Vegetables

1. Depending on the size of your air fryer, pour about 6 ounces of your frozen vegetables into a large bowl. Try to get your vegetables into as much of a single layer as you can.
2. Spray a light coating of olive oil onto the vegetables.
3. Add your toppings now, depending on your recipe. I add nutritional yeast to all of my frozen vegetables because it makes for a great bread-like coating, has a buttery-nutty flavor, and adds a little protein.
4. Toss your veggies and the seasonings well.
5. Cook in the preheated air fryer at 400º for about 20 minutes, opening the fryer to toss and mix the veggies every few minutes.

Recipe Tips

• Cook at a higher heat so that the vegetables don’t have a chance to get soggy as they cook. 
• Use spray olive oil to lightly coat your veggies before seasoning instead of drizzling olive oil on them–drizzling oil on frozen veggies causes the oil to freeze right away, and the vegetables don’t often cook evenly. 
• If you’d rather not spray oil on the vegetables, that’s fine, but watch for them to become dry.
• Remember that you might lose some seasoning at the bottom of the air fryer. Plan for that and add a little extra at the end of your cook time if you’d like. 
• Always try to place your vegetables in a single layer when air frying–it allows the heat to circulate better and cook more evenly.
• Think outside the box! Frozen vegetables in the air fryer can be the best way to get those veggies in in a low carb way.
• This recipe is always part of my healthy Thanksgiving menu. It’s a favorite with my guests.

Optional seasonings for Air Fryer Vegetables

• Salt & Black Pepper
• Italian seasoning
• Garlic Powder and Onion powder
• Montreal Seasoning
• Balsamic vinegar
• Parmesan cheese
• Nutritional yeast
• Frank’s hot sauce
• Garlic salt
• Rosemary and Garlic

My favorite air fryer vegetable recipes

I can’t give you a list of my favorite Air Fry Vegetables without adding my absolute favorite– Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower.

Broccoli with Balsamic & Parmesan

Ingredients

• One half of a 12 ounce bag of frozen broccoli
• Olive or Avocado oil spray
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast, panko breadcrumbs, or homemade breadcrumbs
• 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• Parmesan cheese, as an optional garnish

How to make Air Fryer Broccoli:

1. Pour half the bag (about 6 ounces) of broccoli into a bowl.
2. Spray olive oil on top of broccoli. If using frozen broccoli, do this quickly because it’ll freeze and clump up. 
3. Add nutritional yeast (optional, but it makes a great bread-like coating) and balsamic on top of it. Toss and mix well in the bowl. 
4. Cook frozen broccoli in the air fryer at 400º for 20 minutes, opening to toss every few minutes. 

Okra or Green Beans

Ingredients

• One half of a 12 ounce bag of frozen cut okra or green beans
• Quick spray of olive oil
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• Salt and pepper to taste

How to make Air Fryer Okra or Green Beans

1. Pour half the bag (about 6 ounces) of okra or green beans into a bowl. 
2. Lightly spray olive oil on top of the veggies. Do this quickly because it’ll freeze and clump up. 
3. Add nutritional yeast and salt and pepper. Toss. 
4. Cook at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, opening to toss in the air fryer basket every few minutes. 

Looking for the Best Air Fryer?

While I prefer the Ninja Foodi to use as my air fryer, you can easily use an Instant Pot with an air fryer lid or a Mealthy CrispLid. If you have a convection oven, simply use that–it’s the original air fryer :)

It doesn’t matter which air fryer model you have, as long as you learn to cook with it.

Healthy Eating Plans

21 Day Fix/Ultimate Portion Fix

Nutritional yeast is free if you’re using one serving, but 1/2 cup will count for about 1/2 red container (this is an educated guess on my part, as nutritional yeast is not on the food list).

If you’d rather not use nutritional yeast, you can use whole wheat panko and count 1 yellow container for 1/2 cup, or use 6 Triscuts, crunched up, for 1 yellow container. 

Weight Watchers

Most vegetables are free on Weight Watchers, depending on the myWW plan you’re on. The breading and fats are where your points will come in.

These points are the same on Purple, Green, and Blue Plans:

• 1/2 cup of Nutritional Yeast is 2 points
• 1 tbsp of butter is 5 points
• Olive oil cooking spray is zero points
• 1/2 cup of panko whole wheat breadcrumbs is 5 points
• 1/4 cup of Frank’s Original Red Hot is zero points
• 1 tbsp of balsamic vinegar is 1 point

More healthy air fryer recipes

• Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower Bites are so popular!
• Air Fryer Apple Slices 
• Air Fryer Eggplant
• Buffalo Chicken Roll Ups
• Roasted Artichokes

The post How to Air Fry Frozen Vegetables appeared first on My Crazy Good Life.

Whether you’re looking for a comforting soup to eat on cold nights or something healthy for a casserole base, this delicious creamy mushroom soup recipe will hit the spot.

For those of you who are looking for clean eating options, this recipe is gluten free, dairy free, and made using fresh ingredients.

You can make this recipe at home for a tasty alternative to the canned stuff. Bonus? You can customize this to any cream of vegetable you’d like–asparagus, celery, broccoli, anything! 

Where’s the recipe?

My community consists of seasoned in home chefs as well as brand new cooks. To better serve all of you, I’ve decided to add a lot of information about ingredients, freezing tips, and even healthy eating plans in the post below.

If you’re needing a little extra guidance, you’ll want to read the post before heading to the recipe.

To see just the recipe, simply scroll down to the bottom of the post where you’ll find the printable recipe with ingredient amounts and instructions for this Healthy Cream of Mushroom Soup recipe.

Ingredients

• White or baby bella mushrooms You can’t really go wrong here. Use your favorite variety!
• Low-Sodium Chicken broth or Vegetable broth if you prefer
• Olive oil I prefer to use olive oil instead of highly processed oils like vegetable oil.
• Flour I prefer whole wheat flour or brown rice flour, but you can also use corn starch or all-purpose flour to thicken this soup.
• Balsamic vinegar
• Almond milk Unsweetened and unflavored is best for this recipe.

How to make this Healthy Cream of Mushroom Soup

1. Sauté mushrooms over medium heat with oil until tender. 
2. Add balsamic vinegar and flour (or flour substitute). Allow a few minutes to cook, stirring as it thickens to avoid sticking or clumping. 
3. Add the mushroom mixture to a large pot over medium-high heat, then pour the vegetable or chicken stock in. 
4. Add the almond milk and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and continue to cook at a simmer or low boil over medium-low heat for 8-10 minutes. 
5. If you don’t love mushrooms, you may want to use an immersion blender or food processor to blend this soup after it cools a bit. This will remove the large chunks of mushrooms. If you’re a mushroom lover like I am, you’ll like it as is!

Instant Pot Instructions

1. Spray oil into the bottom of the pot and then press the Sauté button. Cook the mushrooms and oil for 2-3 minutes, until mushrooms are tender.
2. Add balsamic vinegar and flour to the pot, stirring as the soup base thickens.
3. Turn off the sauté feature and add the chicken or vegetable stock and almond milk to the pot.
4. Pressure Cook (high) for 2 minutes.
5. When cook time is finished, quick release the pressure by quickly moving the Sealing Valve from Sealing to Venting (steam will come out fast) and divide soup into zipper freezer bags.

Recipe Tips and Common Questions

• You’re welcome to add onions to flavor this recipe. If you choose to do this, sauté mushrooms and onions in step one.
• If you’d like to use white wine instead of balsamic vinegar, you may do so.
• In a pinch, you can use canned mushrooms in this cream soup recipe.
• When releasing the steam from the Instant Pot, sometimes soups will spray out of the valve. Be on standby with a kitchen towel in case that happens.
• Any type of mushrooms work in this recipe, though white button mushrooms or baby bella mushrooms work best.
• This homemade version isn’t as thick as the canned soup. You can add extra thickener to it if you’d like, but I prefer to just use the thinner soup.
• As mentioned above, you can easily swap the mushrooms in this recipe for any type of vegetable or meat you have on hand. Some options for you:
  • Broccoli
  • Chicken
  • Celery
  • Asparagus
  • Onion
  • Potato
  • Cauliflower
• If you’d like to add fresh herbs and spices to this soup, I recommend one or two of the following:
  • 1/4 tsp rosemary
  • 1/4 tsp parsley
  • 1-2 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • salt and black pepper, to taste

Healthy Eating Plans

Print

Homemade and Healthy Cream Of Mushroom Soup

This easy and healthy homemade Cream of Mushroom soup recipe can be made vegan or vegetarian. Better than store bought condensed soups, and this recipe can be frozen for use in casseroles or eaten by themselves. Substitute for Campbell's cream of mushroom soup.

Course Soup

Cuisine American

Keyword cream of mushroom soup, healthy, Healthy Cream Of Mushroom Soup, homemade

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 6 servings

Calories 103kcal

Author Becca Ludlum

Equipment

• Kitchen Knife
• Stock Pot
• Immersion Blender

Ingredients

• 1 cup white mushrooms sliced
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar or white wine
• ¼ cup flour or any substitute you like
• 3 cups chicken stock low sodium, or vegetable stock
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 cups almond milk

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

Stovetop:

• Sauté mushrooms over medium heat with oil until tender. 1 cup white mushrooms , 2 tsp olive oil
• Add balsamic vinegar and flour (or flour substitute). Allow a few minutes to cook, stirring as it thickens to avoid sticking or clumping. 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar, ¼ cup flour
• Add the mushroom mixture to a large pot over medium-high heat, then pour the vegetable or chicken stock in. 3 cups chicken stock
• Add the almond milk and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and continue to cook at a simmer or low boil over medium-low heat for 8-10 minutes. 2 cups almond milk
• Optional: If you don't love mushrooms, you may want to use an immersion blender to blend this soup after it cools a bit. This will remove the large chunks of mushrooms. 

Instant Pot:

• Spray oil into the bottom of the pot and then press the Sauté button. Cook the mushrooms and oil for 2-3 minutes, until mushrooms are tender. 2 tsp olive oil, 1 cup white mushrooms
• Add balsamic vinegar and flour to the pot, stirring as the soup base thickens. 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar, ¼ cup flour
• Turn off the sauté feature and add the chicken or vegetable stock and almond milk to the pot. 3 cups chicken stock, 2 cups almond milk
• Pressure Cook (high) for 2 minutes.
• When cook time is finished, quick release and allow to cool before serving.
• Optional: If you don't love mushrooms, you may want to use an immersion blender to blend this soup after it cools a bit. This will remove the large chunks of mushrooms. 

Notes

Weight Watchers

This recipe as written is 2 Blue Plan Points | 2 Green Plan Points | 2 Purple Plan Points | 2023 Points: 1 when using fat free broth

21 Day Fix/Portion Fix

This recipe counts as 1 green container and four teaspoons per batch. Per 1 cup serving, that’s 3/4 tsp and 1/6 of a green container per serving. I do not count this recipe into my daily containers on the Fix because the numbers are so small.

Trim Healthy Mama

This is a crossover recipe for THM and here is what you need to change:

• use almond flour, coconut flour, or oat fiber
• add some Xanthum Gum if you need to thicken it more
• the olive oil will need replaced by MCT or coconut oil

Nutrition

Calories: 103kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 218mg | Potassium: 229mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 157mg | Iron: 1mg

The post Healthy Cream Of Mushroom Soup appeared first on My Crazy Good Life.

One of my favorite ways to use herb butter is on salmon, but it really is good on almost any dish. You can make compound butter for steak, or on top of a roasted chicken recipe. You can even make compound butter for bread and really impress your dinner guests!

Where’s the recipe?

Here at My Crazy Good Life we want to make sure anyone can follow our recipes! Whether you’re a new cook or have been in the kitchen for years, we want you to feel comfortable. To achieve that, we write our posts with a lot of information. In this article you’ll find detailed instructions, recipe tips, and healthy eating plan and nutritional calculations.

If you’re a confidant cook you can skip past all the tips and tricks by scrolling to the bottom of the page where you’ll find the easy to print Chive and Dill Compound Butter recipe card!

Ingredients in this Chive & Dill Compound Butter

• Butter: unsalted, softened butter is what you’ll want to make this recipe. Using unsalted butter helps you to be able to control the sodium levels.
• Fresh herbs: This recipe calls for dill and chives. Using fresh herbs is key to getting the perfect flavor!

Equipment Needed

• Cookie scoop: a 1 tablespoon scoop makes portioning out the butter much easier!
• Mini muffin tin: If you don’t have a mini muffin tin you can use a metal cookie sheet to freeze your butter on.

How to make Chive & Dill Compound Butter

1. Pull out the unsalted butter and allow it to soften on the counter for about 30 minutes.
2. Dice your herbs (making sure they are finely chopped) and add them to the soft butter. Use a fork to stir the butter well.
3. Using a spoon or scoop, roll into 1 tablespoon balls and place into mini muffin tins or onto a plate that will fit into your freezer.
4. Freeze for 15 to 20 minutes and transfer to a plastic freezer bag. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until all of your butter is frozen.

Notes

• This recipe makes 16 tablespoons of herb butter balls per pound of butter.

Recipe tips

• I always freeze my butter balls in labeled zipper freezer bags. They are good for several months in the freezer (as long as regular butter would be good for!)
• Herb compound butter will keep in the fridge for about 5 days. After that, you’ll want to make sure you store it in the freezer.
• I don’t thaw these before using–just place them on top of the food that you’re cooking and enjoy! 
• I love making garlic herb compound butter for homemade garlic butter bread, or adding it to cooked pasta for a creamy pop of flavor.
• Some people like using their food processor to chop the herbs and mix the butter. To do this, I would first add the herbs to your food processor and, using the small chopping blade, pulse to chop. Once your herbs are finely chopped you can add the softened unsalted butter to your mixing bowl. Then mix the herbs and butter until they are combined. I haven’t used the food processor myself because I find I can control the cut of my herbs more easily with a knife.
• When adding this recipe to salmon, I place the salmon – skin side down – on a roasting pan and top with a ball or two of the frozen compound butter. If you want more detailed instructions you can read this post on Grilled Salmon with Lemon Rosemary Butter.
• Compound butter for chicken is a great way to add flavor! Garlic herb butter on roasted chicken creates a savory and crispy skin that you will love!
• I prefer making butter balls but you can also make this into a butter log shape, if you would like. To make this recipe in to an herbed butter log, just transfer the mixed butter onto a piece of parchment paper or plastic wrap, roll it into a log and wrap and then refrigerate until firm. If you plan to keep it for more than 5 days, you’ll want to store it in the freezer. Then slice it whenever you are ready to add it to a dish.
• There are SO many flavor variations that you can make with compound butter. You typically see savory herb butters, but you can also make a sweet butter to top fresh bread. The combinations are endless and add so much to any meal!

Healthy Eating Plans

21 Day Fix

Each portion of herb butter is about 1 tablespoon, so reduce those as you need to to account for your teaspoons.

Weight Watchers

Each teaspoon of this recipe made with light butter is 8 Points on the 2023 Plan.

Looking for more fresh and healthy recipes to use with your herb butter?

• Simple Whole Roasted Chicken Recipe
• Perfect Instant Pot Turkey Breast
• Vegetarian Portobello Mushroom Fajitas with Homemade Seasoning
• Roasted Smashed Potatoes with Garlic
• Healthy Oven Roasted Sweet Potatoes
• What is Compound Butter?

Print

Chive and Dill Compound Butter

This Chive & Dill Compound Butter recipe is an easy way to add flavor to a main dish! This herb butter uses fresh herbs like chives and dill, and is so delicious on steak, chicken, fish and veggies!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword compound butter

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 0 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 16 servings

Calories 204kcal

Author Becca Ludlum

Equipment

• Mini Muffin Pan
• Cookie Scoop
• Parchment Paper

Ingredients

• 1 lb unsalted butter room temp
• 3/4 cup fresh dill
• 3/4 cup fresh chives

Instructions

• Pull out the butter and allow it to soften on the counter for about 30 minutes. 1 lb unsalted butter
• Dice your herbs (making sure they are finely chopped) and add them to the soft butter. Use a fork to stir the butter well. 3/4 cup fresh dill 3/4 cup fresh chives
• Using a spoon or scoop, roll into 1 tablespoon balls and place into mini muffin tins or onto a plate that will fit into your freezer.
• Freeze for 15 minutes and transfer to a plastic freezer bag. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until all of your butter is frozen.

Notes

Recipe Tips:

• I always freeze my butter balls in labeled zipper freezer bags. They are good for several months in the freezer (as long as regular butter would be good for!)
• Herb compound butter will keep in the fridge for about 5 days. After that, you’ll want to make sure you store it in the freezer.
• I don’t thaw these before using–just place them on top of the food that you’re cooking and enjoy! 
• I love making garlic herb compound butter for homemade garlic butter bread, or adding it to cooked pasta for a creamy pop of flavor.
• Some people like using their food processor to chop the herbs and mix the butter. To do this, I would first add the herbs to your food processor and, using the small chopping blade, pulse to chop. Once your herbs are finely chopped you can add the softened unsalted butter to your mixing bowl. Then mix the herbs and butter until they are combined. I haven’t used the food processor myself because I find I can control the cut of my herbs more easily with a knife.
• When adding this recipe to salmon, I place the salmon – skin side down – on a roasting pan and top with a ball or two of the frozen compound butter. If you want more detailed instructions you can read this post on Grilled Salmon with Lemon Rosemary Butter.
• Compound butter for chicken is a great way to add flavor! Garlic herb butter on roasted chicken creates a savory and crispy skin that you will love!
• I prefer making butter balls but you can also make this into a butter log shape, if you would like. To make this recipe in to an herbed butter log, just transfer the mixed butter onto a piece of parchment paper or plastic wrap, roll it into a log and wrap and then refrigerate until firm. If you plan to keep it for more than 5 days, you’ll want to store it in the freezer. Then slice it whenever you are ready to add it to a dish.
• There are SO many flavor variations that you can make with compound butter. You typically see savory herb butters, but you can also make a sweet butter to top fresh bread. The combinations are endless and add so much to any meal!

21 Day Fix

Each portion of herb butter is about 1 tablespoon, so reduce those as you need to to account for your teaspoons.

Weight Watchers

Each teaspoon of this recipe made with light butter is 8 Points on the 2023 Plan.

Nutrition

Serving: 1tbsp | Calories: 204kcal | Carbohydrates: 0.3g | Protein: 0.1g | Fat: 22.4g | Saturated Fat: 14.2g | Cholesterol: 61mg | Sodium: 1mg | Potassium: 12mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 0g | Calcium: 5mg | Iron: 0mg

The post Chive and Dill Compound Butter appeared first on My Crazy Good Life.

Polenta is a delicious side dish that pairs well with almost anything–I love serving soft polenta with crispy roasted vegetables, green beans, and even eating it by itself sometimes. It’s naturally gluten free as long as the fields where it’s grown haven’t been used for wheat.

Where’s the recipe?

I receive so many messages and emails asking for more details about my recipes that I’ve decided to give a ton of helpful information and tips in every post. I want you to be successful when making my recipes!

If you’d prefer to skip past the tips and special diet information for this recipe, simply scroll down to the bottom of this article for the printable Creamy Polenta recipe.

Ingredients in Polenta

• Dry Polenta: As fancy as it sounds, polenta is really just cornmeal–cooked it until it’s soft and has a velvety texture. There are both instant and regular, you can use either with this recipe.
• Parmesan: Be sure and grab a good quality cheese and grate it yourself for the best flavor. Dairy free? Use Nutritional Yeast for the cheesy flavor!
• Butter: Be sure and use real butter if you can, not margarine. This helps keep it on the healthier side, as margarine often contains extra ingredients.

How to buy Polenta

There are a few ways to buy Polenta, and a few things to look for when buying. First thing to look for is the type:

• Instant, Pre-cooked, or Quick Cook Polenta: This often looks like a roll of yellow cornmeal and is typically found in the produce department. There is also instant polenta that is dry, and is often just finely ground “regular” polenta. If you’re following the recipe below, you’ll want to use the dry.
• Cornmeal: Looks like a bag of yellow sugar or flour, and is usually located by the pasta, boxed rice, or in the ethnic foods section (depending on where you live).

The next thing to consider when buying polenta is the grind. Fine ground will cook fast, but doesn’t have as much flavor as coarser ground polenta. Also, the texture in fine ground polenta will be a bit sand-like. Looking for a coarse grind that looks like the size of quinoa or couscous will taste the best, in my opinion.

How to make Polenta

This recipe takes about 30 minutes for most types.

I’ve always been a little intimidated by polenta, and I was so excited to finally make polenta from scratch (some people say ‘making polenta from cornmeal’). It’s easy to make, but also so easy to add to and create your own delicious side dish recipes.

1. Add 3 cups of water to a large saucepan and bring to boil.
2. Reduce the heat to medium-high heat and slowly add your dry cornmeal into the boiling water, whisking constantly until there are no lumps.
3. Reduce heat to medium, stirring often. Cook times will vary depending on the kind of polenta you use. Instant will cook in 3-5 minutes, more coarse cornmeal will take 25-30 minutes.
4. Once your polenta is cooked, remove it from the heat and stir in butter and parmesan cheese.
5. Serve immediately. It is delicious on its own or as a side dish.
6. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for 2 days.

Recipe Tips

• Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Be sure and buy a quality Parmesan cheese and grate it yourself. Cheese that is already grated is coated to prevent it from sticking. This coating will prevent your polenta from having a smooth texture.
• To save time, use instant.
• For extra flavor, replace the water with vegetable or chicken stock.
• For creamier polenta, replace the water with milk.
• You’ll know your dish is done cooking when the grains are tender and it is easy to pour. If there is a lot of liquid it needs to cook longer. If your polenta is thick and cannot be poured, stir in 1/2 cup of water.
• Reheat on the stove. If it’s too thick, stir in 1/4 cup of water.
• If you’re concerned about the polenta sticking to your pot, go ahead and add 1 or 2 teaspoons of olive oil to the boiling water.

Healthy Eating Plans

Weight Watchers: Points were figured using the WW website.

• Weight Watchers: 7 2023 Points | 8 Blue Plan Points | 8 Green Plan Points | 8 Purple Plan Points with reduced fat parmesan and light butter. 

21 Day Fix: For the entire recipe: 4 Yellow Containers, 2 Blue Containers, 6 Teaspoons.

• Per serving (recipe makes 4): 1 Yellow Container, 1/2 Blue Container, 1 1/2 Teaspoons.

This healthy Polenta recipe is delicious when paired with:

• Baked Sweet Potato Slices
• Roasted Teriyaki Brussels Sprouts
• Crispy Roasted Veggie Tray
• Spicy Teriyaki Salmon

Print

How to Make Polenta

This Cheesy Parmesan polenta is a creamy and hearty healthy side dish made from coarsely ground cornmeal and freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Instructions for instant quick cook polenta or regular, right on the stove.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword Polenta

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 8 hours hours 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 8 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 247kcal

Author Becca Ludlum

Equipment

• Le Creuset Cast Iron Pot
• Measuring Cups

Ingredients

• 3 cups water
• 1 cup polenta dry, regular or instant
• 1/2 cup Parmesan grated
• 2 tbsp butter

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

• Bring 3 cups of water to a boil. 3 cups water
• Reduce the heat the medium-high and whisk in polenta. 1 cup polenta
• Allow the polenta to simmer, stirring occasionally. Allow polenta to cook 3-5 minutes for instant and 25-30 minutes for cornmeal.
• Once the grains are tender and the liquid has been absorbed, remove your pan from heat and stir in Parmesan cheese and butter. 1/2 cup Parmesan 2 tbsp butter
• Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Notes

• Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Be sure and buy a quality Parmesan cheese and grate it yourself. Cheese that is already grated is coated to prevent it from sticking. This coating will prevent your polenta from having a smooth texture.
• To save time use instant polenta.
• For extra flavor replace the water with chicken stock.
• For creamier polenta replace the water with milk.
• You’ll know your polenta is done cooking when the grains are tender and it is easy to pour. If there is a lot of liquid it needs to cook longer. If your polenta is thick and cannot be poured stir in 1/2 cup of water.

Weight Watchers: 7 2023 Points | 8 Blue Plan Points | 8 Green Plan Points | 8 Purple Plan Points with reduced fat parmesan and light butter. 

21 Day Fix: For the entire recipe: 4 Yellow Containers, 2 Blue Containers, 6 Teaspoons. Per serving (recipe makes 4): 1 Yellow Container, 1/2 Blue Container, 1 1/2 Teaspoons.

Nutrition

Calories: 247kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 24mg | Sodium: 210mg | Potassium: 68mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 358IU | Calcium: 156mg | Iron: 1mg

The post How to Make Polenta | An Easy and Healthy Side Dish appeared first on My Crazy Good Life.

I’m not here to tell you which burger is right for you. There are so many definitions of the word healthy, and so many reasons that someone might (or might not) want to eat a specific type of burger. I’m not here to tell you which type of burger is healthiest–that’s something for your doctor to help you with. I’d like to bring awareness to the different types of burgers and exactly what they are, as I’m learning that this is a confusing topic for many.

Plant Based vs Veggie Burgers

Plant based burgers (typically made from pea proteins and lots of science-y ingredients that I can’t pronounce) are meat alternative burgers–like the Impossible Burger and Beyond Burger. They’re products that were created to be a replacement for traditional animal burgers. They have similar protein content, texture, smell, and even taste. Some of the meatless burgers taste very similar to real burgers (the Impossible Burger is the best in our opinion) and some aren’t the tastiest.

Veggie burgers are burgers made with vegetables–typically mushrooms, beans, peas, and carrots. These burgers don’t have the same protein content as traditional burgers, but they are filled with real vegetables. Veggie burgers aren’t competing with regular beef patties–nobody is going to be “tricked” into thinking that a veggie burger is a beef burger.

We invited several meat eating friends over and grilled up several types of plant based and veggie burgers–here is what we thought!

Plant Based Meat Alternatives

If you’re vegan, WFPB, vegetarian, concerned about the environment or animal consumption, this is something you might be interested in. These burgers are the ones you’re looking for if you don’t eat meat (for whatever reason) but want a traditional “burger.”

In order of preference, these are the plant based burgers that we tried:

The Impossible Burger was the clear winner–for taste, smell, texture, and ease of cooking. It tasted most like a traditional ground beef hamburger and didn’t have any smells that were off putting. If this burger sounds familiar, it’s because fast food giant Burger King uses this brand for their Impossible Whopper sandwich.

dr. Praeger’s was a good burger. We couldn’t pinpoint what the difference was between that and real meat products, but there was something small.

The Beyond Burger is another popular option, but we think these smelled a little strange when uncooked and needed to be seasoned before putting them on the grill. When we have made chili with the Beyond meat, we could taste the difference in the end product. These are the most widely available meat substitutes, we have found–Costco even has them. The texture is pretty close to regular meat, but the smell was not great.

The O Organics brand (from Albertsons stores) was our least favorite, but we all agreed that if it was the only option it wouldn’t necessarily be a bad burger. But since we had others to compare side by side, one had to come in last.

Veggie Burgers

These burgers are made with vegetables. Like I mentioned above, there is no “tricking” someone into thinking that these are meat burgers–they’re not. But they have a place, for sure, and can be delicious.

We tended to like the burgers with actual chunky vegetables in them best–some are pretty blended up and had a mushy texture when cooked.

In order of preference:

We loved the Quinoa & Kale burgers from O Organics. This company has several great veggie burger options: Sweet potato and Mushroom are the other two that we liked. They’re full of chunky vegetables and feel satisfying to eat.

dr. Praeger’s Veggie burgers were delicious too! We really liked these, though they were a little mushier than the O Organics ones. They had chunks of vegetables in addition to blended vegetables to help hold them together. We really liked that they were thicker and hearty. They have a lot of different varieties in the stores too–definitely a bonus.

O Organics Black Bean & Veggie were good, but there is a definitely texture difference between a veggie burger and a black bean burger–it’s more of a blended burger with a few chunks. There had to be a last place, but honestly I would eat these again for sure.

Let’s answer all of the Frequently Asked Questions I get about these burgers:

Again, the best veggie burger or the best plant based burger for you really has to do with why you’re choosing to eat them instead of a real burger. I believe that eating minimally processed foods is the healthiest thing for any body, but sometimes this isn’t possible. I recently cut meat and eggs out of my diet for health reasons and have found that when I’m craving a hamburger, using a plant based burger as a substitute works for me. I only do this every few months, and feel good about eating them that often. I often make veggie burgers when my family has hamburgers for dinner, but since I like veggie burgers I don’t feel deprived when I do this.

Looking for some delicious vegetarian recipes?

• Vegetarian Mexican Casserole
• Black Bean and Corn Salad
• Instant Pot Pineapple Fried Rice
• Calabacitas Tacos
• Mushroom Fajitas

The post Plant Based Burgers vs Veggie Burgers: Which is Best? appeared first on My Crazy Good Life.

Learning how to cook frozen ground beef in the Instant Pot saves you the stress of remembering to thaw ingredients for dinner. It also eliminates extra dishes and the greasy mess that cooking fresh ground beef on the stove-top creates.

If you’re looking to cook or defrost ground beef in the Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi, or any other electric pressure cooker, I’ve got tips for you.

Where’s the recipe?

Here at My Crazy Good Life, we write our recipes so that anyone can easily make them. Lots of tips, details, and even special diet information are included. If you don’t need all of the extra information, simply scroll down to the bottom of the post to view the basic ingredient list and instructions for Instant Pot frozen ground beef.

Ingredients:

• Ground Meat: You can use this method with any ground beef. I prefer 96% lean.
• Spices: Spices are completely optional and really depend on what you are preparing. You can keep it simple with salt and pepper, add Italian flavors with garlic and basil, or add taco seasoning for an easy dinner. At the bottom of this article in the printable recipe area, you’ll find ingredient lists for making homemade Italian seasoning, taco seasoning, BBQ seasoning, and chili seasoning.

How to thaw ground beef in an electric pressure cooker:

1. Add your frozen meat to the bottom of the pot, and add the spices on top of the meat now. Add water (1/2 cup) or broth to the pot now. You won’t need the full 1-2 cups of water (depending on how many quarts your Instant Pot is) because the frozen beef will release a bit of liquid while cooking.
2. Place the lid on your Instant Pot, lock it, and then turn the pressure valve to the sealing position. For one pound of beef, set your cooking time for 15 minutes at high pressure. For two pounds set the cooking time for 20 minutes at high pressure.
3. Once your cook time is complete, Quick Release the pressure by gently turning the pressure valve from Sealing to Venting. Steam will come out of the valve. Once pressure has released and the float drops, remove the lid and set it to the side.
4. Set your pot to Sauté. Use a spatula to slowly break your meat into small crumbles. Be careful when first putting your utensil into the meat, as the very inside will be less cooked and contain liquid that could shoot out if you poke it too fast. Your meat is cooked and ready when most of the liquid has evaporated and the beef is brown and no pink remains.
5. You can use this meat to make another recipe (for suggestions, scroll down to the bottom of this post!), serve by itself, or transfer the cooked ground beef to an air tight storage container. Store in the fridge up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

Recipe Tips:

• You can easily double this recipe and cook 2 pounds of meat. Be sure and set your cooking time for 20 minutes.
• For meat with a higher fat content, you may need to drain the excess liquid before sautéing.
• If you’d rather use spice blends (Italian, taco, chili) instead of single spices found in the recipe card, use 2 tablespoons per pound of meat.
• Pressure cooking frozen meat with water can sometimes cause the seasonings to seem bland. Don’t be afraid to add extra seasoning as you’re sautéing if you feel it needs more flavor.
• Since the Instant Pot is cooking and thawing at the same time, you won’t be able to use this meat for things like burgers or meatballs. If you want to make those, go ahead and defrost it the old fashioned way.

How to add veggies to ground beef:

• Looking to add more veggies to your diet? Riced cauliflower blends in perfectly with ground beef, especially when it’s seasoned! Add in one bag of cooked cauliflower rice to each pound of ground beef. If you’re feeding it to a picky crowd, start with 1/2 cup of cauliflower per pound of beef and slowly work your way up.
• If you’re trying to “hide” cauliflower rice in your ground beef, add 1/2 cup of diced onions–they’ll camouflage the veggie taste, and the rice won’t be as easily identifiable because it kind of looks like diced onions.
• My article about how to stretch ground beef is also helpful if you don’t have enough meat in your freezer or are looking to cut back on the amount of meat you use.

Healthy Eating Plans:

• 21 Day Fix/Ultimate Portion Fix: Lean ground beef counts as a red container (protein) on the 21 Day fix. Measure and count 1 red container for each 3/4 cup serving.
• 2B Mindset: Ground beef is a complete protein on 2B mindset and can be consumed at any meal.
• Weight Watchers: Points were figured using the WW recipe creator with the base recipe being 1 pound of 96% lean ground beef separated into 4 equal servings. 3 Blue Plan Points | 3 Green Plan Points | 3 Purple Plan Points
  • I use ingredients to calculate points for Weight Watchers, not nutrition information. I find that it’s more accurate that way, and it’s also what WW has recommended.

More Instant Pot ground beef recipes to use with this meat:

You can easily swap ground beef, ground turkey, and ground chicken in recipes! The fat content of each of these meats will impact your cooking just a bit–typically, you’ll have to drain the grease from ground beef after cooking.

• Healthy Goulash
• Spicy Mexican Meatloaf
• Tacos in Bell Peppers
• Lasagna Bites

More Instant Pot recipes you might love:

• Instant Pot BBQ Meatloaf Dinner
• Healthy Sweet Potato Chili
• Instant Pot Stuffed Pepper Soup
• Instant Pot Chorizo and Eggs
• Healthy Instant Pot Lasagna

Print

How to Cook Frozen Ground Beef in the Instant Pot

Learn how to cook frozen ground beef in the Instant Pot and save time in the kitchen. Use this meat for tacos, chili, and more!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword ground beef

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Saute 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 200kcal

Author Becca Ludlum

Equipment

• Instant Pot 6 qt
• Sealing Rings
• Olive Oil Spray

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground beef extra lean
• 1/2 cup water

Italian Seasoning:

• 1 tbsp dried basil
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 1 tsp dried thyme

Chili Seasoning:

• ½ tsp black pepper
• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp onion powder
• ½ tsp salt

BBQ Seasoning:

• ½ tsp black pepper
• 1½ tsp celery seed
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp dry mustard
• 2 tbsp smoked paprika
• ½ tsp salt

Taco Seasoning:

• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• ½ tsp oregano I love Mexican oregano
• ½ tsp onion powder
• ¼ tsp crushed red pepper
• ¼ tsp salt

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

• Place frozen ground beef in the bottom of your Instant Pot. 1 lb ground beef
• Pour water into the pot. 1/2 cup water
• Close and lock the lid and set the cooking time for 15 minutes.
• Once the cooking time is complete, quick release the pressure and remove the lid.
• Set your pot to saute and add any option seasonings.
• Use a spatula to break your meat into crumbles and stir until your liquid has evaporated.
• Serve immediately or transfer to an air tight container and store in the fridge up to 5 days.

Notes

• You can easily double this recipe and cook 2 pounds of meat. Be sure and set your cooking time for 20 minutes.
• For meat with a higher fat content, you may need to drain the excess liquid before sautéing.
• If you’d rather use spice blends (Italian, taco, chili) instead of single spices found in the recipe card, use 2 tablespoons per pound of meat.
• Pressure cooking frozen meat with water can sometimes cause the seasonings to seem bland. Don’t be afraid to add extra seasoning as you’re sautéing if you feel it needs more flavor.
• Since the Instant Pot is cooking and thawing at the same time, you won’t be able to use this meat for things like burgers or meatballs. If you want to make those, go ahead and defrost it the old fashioned way.

Healthy Eating Plans:

• 21 Day Fix/Ultimate Portion Fix: Lean ground beef counts as a red container (protein) on the 21 Day fix. Measure and count 1 red container for each 3/4 cup serving.
• 2B Mindset: Ground beef is a complete protein on 2B mindset and can be consumed at any meal.
• Weight Watchers: Points were figured using the WW recipe creator with the base recipe being 1 pound of 96% lean ground beef separated into 4 equal servings. 3 Blue Plan Points | 3 Green Plan Points | 3 Purple Plan Points
  • I use ingredients to calculate points for Weight Watchers, not nutrition information. I find that it’s more accurate that way, and it’s also what WW has recommended.

Nutrition

Calories: 200kcal | Protein: 23g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 74mg | Sodium: 76mg | Potassium: 364mg | Calcium: 14mg | Iron: 3mg

The post How to Cook Frozen Ground Beef in the Instant Pot appeared first on My Crazy Good Life.

I’ve been busy this year writing a book! Meal Prep in an Instant (Pot) is the first and last book for meal prep Instant Pot recipes that you’ll need. In it, you’ll find:

• 56 Instant Pot recipes–healthy ones that use no artificial sweeteners or highly processed ingredients–clean eating at its best, friends.
• 7 weekly meal plans that include four primary recipes as well as for alternate recipes (including dessert!). This makes for an easy meal prep day!
• Each weekly meal plan includes grocery lists, supply lists, and detailed prep plans–I walk you through exactly what to do on prep day, from the first thing you put in the pot to the last item you add to a prep container.
• A wide variety of recipes including lean beef, chicken breast and thighs, turkey, pork, and vegetarian options. Most are dairy and gluten free or can easily be made dairy or gluten free.

Instant Pot Meal Prep, Made Easy

What makes this book different than other meal prep cookbooks is that there are informative chapters about cooking with your Instant Pot as well as explaining what meal prep is and how to find the level of meal prep that works right for you and your home.

In addition to the 56 breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert recipes you’ll find inside the book, there are specific sections for meal prep as well as using an Instant Pot. These sections will be beneficial to you if you’re new to your Instant Pot and meal prep or if you’re someone who has been doing this for a while.

Some of my favorite recipes in the book are:

• Breakfast Sweet Potatoes (sweet and savory options!)
• Apple Oat Crumble
• Kung Pao Chicken
• Vegetarian Chili

Special Diet Information

If you’ve been here before you know that I give 21 Day Fix container counts as well as Weight Watchers points for all of my recipes. While these counts aren’t in the book, I’ve created a document where you can download them for all of the recipes in the book.

You’ll find WW points for myWW Purple, Blue, and Green plans (there are no freestyle points, as that is an outdated plan) in the document. This book is perfect for Weight Watchers Instant Pot meal prep!

Get to know your Instant Pot

In Meal Prep in an Instant, I’ve given you several ways to prepare recipes in your pot:

• using a few accessories (like this cake pan and these egg bite molds)
• Pressure cooking right in the pot
• using the pot as a one pot saute pan
• cooking an entire meal in the pot–main dish and side dishes!

Can I use this book if I don’t have an Instant Pot?

You can use this book with any electric pressure cooker–it doesn’t have to be the Instant Pot brand. If you don’t have an electric pressure cooker, unfortunately, this book will not work for you.

The post Meal Prep in an Instant | 56 Instant Pot Meal Prep Recipes appeared first on My Crazy Good Life.

A common misconception is that healthy eating is expensive. That’s not entirely true. Getting started can be, but you don’t have to fill your pantry all at once. Add a few items every week until you cleaned out the bad and replaced it with the good.

Like anyone, there are certain brands I prefer more than others. I’ve come to know the ingredients of the staple foods that I buy, so I’m more inclined to stick with certain brands when I shop.

Sometimes the food industry can be sneaky, so it’s important to always read the labels on products you buy. Some of my tips for buying truly healthy food are:

• Look for the least amount of ingredients
• Say no to salt, sugar, or artificial sweeteners as an ingredient
• Watch where your oils are coming from–some oils are better than others
• Look closely at products that are labeled low fat or fat free. Many replace those fats with unnecessary ingredients
• Look closely at products that are labeled healthy or come in “healthy looking packaging.” More often than not, those are food items that are disguised as healthy.
• Just because a brand has one flavor of a product that is healthy, doesn’t mean they all are. The newest “veggie rice” on the market, Right Rice, is a great example. Some flavors have minimal ingredients, and others contain maltodextrin (an artificial sweetener) and highly processed oils. As a side note, none of them actually contain vegetables as their first ingredient.

How to stock a pantry:

I keep a rolling stock in my pantry, which means that as I use items, I replace them. When grocery shopping, I always buy staples when they’re on sale. When I come home, I put the newer items in the back and use the items in the front so nothing expires and I’m not wasting money.

Click here if you’re looking for pantry organizing tips!

Dry goods, Pasta, and Grains

Most of these items can be seen in my Amazon store.

• Flour: I love the Bob’s Red Mill whole wheat flour, but you can also find flour for a fraction of the price in the bulk bins (if your store has those).
• Almond and Coconut flour: Almond and coconut flours do NOT work in place of all purpose flour. They work as a gluten free alternative to traditional flours.
• Unsweetened coconut flakes: I like using these in baked goods, like these Protein Balls.
• Rolled Oats and Steel Cut Oats: I always have these on hand for baked goods, breads, breakfasts, and homemade granola bars.
• Egg Replacer: I keep this on hand because I can’t eat eggs, but it’s also great to have in case eggs aren’t available.
• Pasta: I keep a variety of types of wheat and chickpea pasta on hand at all times.
• Brown rice: Dry brown rice is always in my pantry. Sometimes I prep my brown rice by cooking a large batch in my Instant Pot and freezing it.
• Quinoa: I keep this on hand at all times, and same as the brown rice–I make it in batches and freeze it for easy weeknight meals.
• Brown rice ramen: Especially as someone not eating meat and eggs, I rely on this for extra protein. It’s great to have on hand.
• Dehydrated Hash Browns: Easy to keep on hand for meals!
• Yeast: Left in the pantry, it goes pretty fast–3-4 months. Store yeast in the freezer and it will last up to six months.

Canned Goods

• Unsweetened coconut milk: Canned coconut milk that is great for thickening some foods and baking.
• Canned beans: Black beans, kidney beans, and cannellini beans are our “go to” types. I always look for low sodium.
• Canned soups: Low sodium is a must for us, canned soups are great in a pinch.
• Diced tomatoes: Again, low sodium is always my pick. You can blend this to make tomato sauce so I keep plenty on hand.
• Chicken Broth/Stock
• Vegetable Broth/Stock

Sweeteners

• Honey: I recommend finding a local beekeeper because local honey has amazing benefits. If you can’t locate one, look for the raw honey in the grocery store.
• Maple syrup: Check the label to ensure the label only lists “100% pure maple syrup. Sam’s Club and Costco are the best value for maple syrup in my area.
• Coconut sugar: It doesn’t spike your blood sugar like traditional sugar, so this is one of our favorite items to use.
• Stevia: SweetLeaf is hands down my favorite Stevia because there are no extra ingredients.

Oils & Butters

• Extra virgin olive oil, Avocado oil, or Coconut oil: We use this a lot. Whether you prefer refined or unrefined oils, stock up on any healthy oil you like.
• Nut butter: Peanut butter, almond butter, whatever you like. This is an easy way to get some extra protein in if you’re running low on other staples.

Spices

It’s important to remember that you will have to add more along the way, but the ones below are the ones I personally use the most and always have on hand.

• Garlic powder
• Onion powder
• Chili powder
• Paprika
• Cumin
• Oregano
• Italian seasoning
• Black pepper
• Vanilla extract: Look for extract, not imitation vanilla.
• Salt: Himalayan pink, kosher, or sea salt.
• Cocoa powder: Pure unsweetened, no sugar.
• Cinnamon

Vinegars

• Apple cider vinegar: I use this for cooking
• Rice vinegar: I use this for many Asian-style recipes
• Red wine vinegar: Good for making salad dressings
• Balsamic vinegar: Good for cooking and making salad dressings

You can download the Pantry Inventory here.

It comes in 2 pages, with a blank page so you can add your own staples.

The post Healthy Pantry Staples + Shopping List appeared first on My Crazy Good Life.

There are a lot of ways to stretch ground meat so that you can make it go further and potentially use it for multiple meals. When you are on a budget or are just feeding a big family and can’t run out to the store to grab more ingredients, knowing which meals stretch meat the furthest is so helpful.

Why stretch ground meat?

• save money
• reduce the amount of meat you have to use
• add nutrients with veggies

What to add to ground beef:

One of the easiest ways to make ground meat go further in your recipes is by adding things to the ground beef to bulk it up. Bulking is just hiding things in the meat that allow you to keep the flavor while bulking up the total volume of the meat.

Some great ideas that you can use to bulk up your ground beef and other ground meats are:

• rolled oats
• breadcrumbs
• cream of wheat
• textured vegetable protein
• vegetables: grated, chopped, or processed in the food processor
• cooked beans
• cooked rice
• cooked lentils

Don’t worry, adding canned beans and other items won’t make your recipes taste funny. The taste of the beans, vegetables, rice, and more will be disguised by the meat flavors and the seasonings you add.

How to use vegetables in meals that stretch meat:

One of my favorite things to do with ground meat is add grated or finely processed vegetables to the mix before I cook up the ground beef or even ground chicken or turkey.

Cauliflower is an excellent choice. When cooked with the meat, it takes on the flavors really well, and it can be put in a food processor to chop it up very fine. It also helps to add some vegetables to your meals without picky family members complaining about it :)

When to add fillers to the ground meat:

When you are adding fillers to your ground meat you’ll want to make sure to add them in while you’re browning the ground beef. During the cooking process a lot of those juices that come out of the meat will help to flavor the fillers and “hide” them in the meat mixture.

For vegetables, they can be cooked right along side the meat without much alteration.

For dry ingredients like oats, you will need to add liquid to the mixture, depending on how much you are adding, to help them cook properly.

You can cook dry ingredients before adding, like quinoa and rice. Just be sure they’re included when you start cooking the meat so they are flavored by the cooking liquid.

How much should I add to my ground beef?

No matter what kind of ground meat you are using a good rule of thumb is to use about a cup of filler per pound of meat. If you need your meat to go really far because of budget constraints or access to the meat itself, just bulk it up as far as you’d like.

For recipes that have a lot of sauce I would think even doubling that to 2 cups per pound would be possible. Making goulash? You can increase the vegetables in that recipe to 4-5 cups and presto, you have a budget friendly meal that is healthier and serves more people! I’ve added extra veggies to the tomato sauce in this recipe multiple times, and I use a food processor to “hide” this extra vegetables.

How much more “meat” will this process give me?

After you cook your ground meat you will have about 50% more meat if you are using the 1 cup per 1 pound ratio. If you are using rice or quinoa to bulk up your meat you might have a bit more than that since they’re a bit more bulky when cooked.

How do I know which filler to use to help me stretch my pound of ground beef?

Choose your filler based on preference, what you have in your pantry or freezer, or match up your filler to the recipe you are going to use. If you are making tacos for example, use beans, rice, or finely chopped veggies since they’ll hide well and compliment the flavors of the spices.

For meatloaf or meatball recipes, try and use eggs, oatmeal, or bread crumbs since they’ll also help to act as a binder. If you want to make hamburger patties you can use breadcrumbs, oatmeal, or cream of wheat to really help them keep their form and be bulkier.

Can I use this process to transition to meatless meals?

If you are looking for ways to use a small amount of meat or if you are transitioning to a meatless diet I would definitely recommend you learn how to stretch ground beef. You’ll notice that your meat dishes are more flavorful with these meat mixtures while also being more eco-friendly and budget friendly!

Can I use this process with other kinds of meats?

Ground beef is the most common type of ground meat that people are using so I used that for an example. You can also use these filler ideas for ground turkey, chicken breasts that are ground, and even ground pork for your breakfast recipes like homemade sausage!

Recipes and meals that stretch meat:

Most of these ground meat recipes are traditional comfort foods that are perfect for busy weeknights and work in the Instant Pot, slow cooker, or right on the stove.

I use ground meat in a lot of my recipes. A few of my favorites are healthy Swedish meatballs, and a more traditional BBQ meatloaf, and spicy sweet potato chili.

Stuffed pepper soup is a great recipe for stretching your meat. You can bulk this up with veggies, rice, and even pasta to make it go as far as you need it to!

My healthy homemade hamburger helper is also delicious, kid approved, and perfect for making your ground meat go as far as possible. Instant Pot spaghetti is a classic recipe that the whole family loves, I like that I can use a little bit of meat and a lot of veggies to make it go further when feeding a crowd.

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