Eat With Grandpa

Anytime Venison Meatloaf: Meat is the new side dish in our household. Liisa has been trying different ways of cooking fresh venison since it’s so lean… Our toddler likes our too! Hunt the meat yourself — it’s too expensive to buy in NY and illegal to buy in NC.

Anytime Sweet Potato Spice Muffins: No refined sugar and surprisingly addictive. These will not replace the craving for a Krispy Kreme doughnut, but knowing the ingredients, I happily devoured 4 for breakfast this morning! Liisa prepped the ingredients last night, and then set the muffins to bake this morning as we were getting the toddler going.  Share this heart-healthy recipe!

Anytime Greens with side of Chicken:
Chicken was rubbed with dijon mustard, maple syrup, splash of apple cider vinegar, and rosemary. Russian kale also had diced green bell pepper and carrots—with a vignette (olive oil, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, salt, pepper, tsp sugar, and chopped fresh parsley). Beets were organically grown, picked, and canned by friends in update New York. Oh! Not to mention the whole grain sunflower bread and goat cheese spread that were made locally as well. :)

Anytime Sides: A new side dish for my arsenal… my first wild rice attempt came from Tamara Duker — I used cilantro instead of mint, and love it. The glorious beets were grown, picked, and canned by our lovely friends Stefani and Chris. Last but not least, steamed kale, our favorite go-to.

One a Week Bean Stew: Papa’s been a little less strict with his meals, so we’ve added a small touch of Amish sausage to inspire his palette. Otherwise, packed with peppers, cilantro, onion, carrot, celery, garlic, diced green chilies, diced tomatoes, and veg or organic chicken stock, plus spices. We’re proud of Grandpa’s progress—and hoping to slow down the heart disease as much as he’s willing.

Anytime Meal: Experimenting with Rainbow Chard with sweet Spanish Onions, Grilled Organic Chicken, home-canned potatoes, and local heirloom tomatoes.

Anytime Turkey Meatballs: Our first meal in our new home! We just moved to Asheville, NC… and look forward to eating with Grandpa in person!

Anytime Black-Eyed Pea Soup:  Seemingly overlooked in the northern states, black-eyed peas have a new resurgence in our home. I love this soup, but Liisa’s ingredient measurements were a little vague as she just “threw in a bunch of stuff” and swears you can’t go wrong with this recipe as a guide.  Perfect for the chilly mountain air, Grandpa!

Grandpa Approved: We prepared our quinoa lettuce wraps for Grandpa and got an 8 out of 10 from him. His only complaint was regarding the spice level — I could have left out the tabasco considering that homemade salsa and red onions both had heat.  This time instead of bison, we had some very lean venison tenderloin on hand thanks to our hunting cousins. The rub was just as phenomenal on a good cut of deer!  Another success — heart healthy AND tasty. Recipe here.

Anytime Trout: We shared a few meals in person with Grandpa and Grandma while visiting for the holidays.  This luscious Rainbow Trout was gifted from a friend of Grandpa — and only required a sprinkle of salt, pepper, and tiny squeeze of lemon juice before grilling.