Healthy 5-Ingredient Spaghettios!

Do you ever happen upon something amazing, totally by accident?  Serendipity!  (The movie by the same name is also awesome, by the way ;)). 

Well, that happened to me the other day.  I was making a pasta dish I make at least once a month.  But I realized I had forgotten to purchase store-bought Alfredo sauce.  At first I was despairing, because I knew I wasn't making a special trip to the grocery store for that one ingredient.  Which would mean I'd have to have a straight red sauce for the pasta, or I'd have to pick something else... 

...Until I remembered my home store and my amazing THRIVE Life Bechamel Sauce!  Dinner -- as I wanted it -- was saved!  I would just add a little Bechamel Sauce and extra water, and we'd have something akin to what I usually make. So that's just what I did.  And get this:  it was even better than before!  And as I tasted the sauce to make sure it would "work," I thought, "Huh...  This tastes a lot like Spaghettios sauce!"  I knew I had to replicate it and make it for lunch the next day. 

So to all you mamas out there who loved Spaghettios as children, but are hesitant to feed it to your own kids because you really don't like the high fructose corn syrup in said Spaghettios...  I have your solution!  It's easy, it's fast, and you can even pre-prep it and have it stored in a jar to just add water to when ready to cook!

Let me introduce you to Spaghettios -- THRIVEalized!

3/4 cup Ditalini pasta (you can add up to 1 cup, it will just be thicker than traditional Spaghettios)
1/4 cup THRIVE Bechamel Sauce
1/4 cup THRIVE Tomato Powder
1 teaspoon THRIVE Classic Tomato Sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)

Place ingredients in a pot with 2 1/4 cups water.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer (stirring occasionally) 20 minutes or until pasta is tender, but not mushy.

This will serve 2 to 3 people, depending how much you put in a serving (and I mean adults here...  Because let's face it:  sometimes we want to re-live our childhood too ;)).

And because our THRIVE Life foods are non-GMO, and include no hydrogenated oils, no artificial flavors and no artificial colors, I can take comfort in knowing I am offering my children (and eating) a healthier option of a childhood favorite!  (You can check out any of our labels online; here is an example.)  Plus you control what kind of pasta you (organic, gluten-free, etc)! 

My 3 year old ate her whole bowl (and she, oddly enough, did not like the canned Spaghettios I bought her to try a few months ago!).  I call it a win.

So to all of my fellow nostalgics out there....  you're welcome!

And Happy THRIVEing!

*This post contains affiliate links.  I earn a small commission on any purchases made through these links.*

Q-Pon Cooking: September 2015: Sweet Corn -- Chicken Taco Soup

To wrap up September's Q-Pon Cooking with the popular and delicious THRIVE Sweet Corn, I made some Chicken Taco Soup!  Fall is really starting to be in the air around here and the leaves are turning the beautiful reds, oranges, and browns.  So why not make some soup!?!  I actually developed this recipe on my own, based on a crock pot recipe I used to always make.  The problem with that crock pot recipe is that it used almost all canned ingredients, and my husband always told me that it was too salty.  So after he ate this one and I asked him his opinion, he said it was a lot less salty than usual!  I told him it was because I used all my THRIVE ingredients and made up the recipe myself :)!  I was kind of excited about that!  Truth is, THRIVE has helped me become more adventurous in the kitchen, and I love it!

So here's my chicken taco soup (which I threw in the crock pot at about noon, and it was ready at 1!)  The beauty of this is that you don't even have to use the crock pot!  I simply did, because both kids were down for a nap, so that meant I could get everything in the crock pot and heating and didn't have to worry about it when the kids were both awake!  But it can easily be thrown into a saucepan on the stove and brought to a boil, then reduced to simmer for 20 minutes and it'd be done!

CHICKEN TACO SOUP
1/2 cup THRIVE Instant Pinto Beans
1/4 cup THRIVE Sliced Onion
3/4 cup THRIVE Sweet Corn
1/2 cup THRIVE Instant Black Beans
2 tablespoons THRIVE Green Chilis
3/4 cup THRIVE Chopped Chicken
3 teaspoons THRIVE Chicken Boullion
1 teaspoon taco seasoning
1 10-ounce can Rotel
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
5 cups water

Add all ingredients to crock pot and cook on low 4 to 5 hours.  Serve with your favorite toppings and tortilla chips! 

*Alternately, you can add all ingredients to a saucepan, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer 20 minutes.

This was awesome, and I will make it again!  It can even be a jar meal!

There are only a couple days left to get the THRIVE Sweet Corn at Q-Pon price!  Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com if you're interested in learning more!!

Happy THRIVEing!

Q-Pon Cooking: September 2015: Sweet Corn -- Southwestern Egg Rolls

I had Southwestern Egg Rolls on our 2-week menu list for about a month (we just didn't get to it last pay period), so today, I decided I needed to use those egg roll wrappers!  As I looked over the recipe today, I realized I could completely THRIVEalize this meal!!!  And so I did :).  The original recipe can be found here.  The recipe below is my THRIVEalized version!

1 1/2 cup THRIVE Sweet Corn
1 cup THRIVE Spinach
3/4 cup THRIVE Instant Black Beans
1/4 cup THRIVE Green Chilis
3 tablespoons THRIVE Green Onions
1 cup THRIVE Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
1 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese*
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 package egg roll wrappers
2 1/2 cups water, divided

*Denotes other ingredients available through THRIVE Life.

In a small saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups water and black beans to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.

While the beans are cooking, put all remaining THRIVE ingredients into a large bowl and mix well.  Add 1 cup water and mix.  Allow to sit while beans finish cooking.  When beans are finished, drain the water and add to bowl along with cheddar cheese and seasonings.  Mix again until well combined.

Place an egg roll wrapper on a flat surface, with one corner pointing towards you.  Place about 1/4 cup mixture in the middle of the wrapper.

Fold corner closest to you over the mixture and roll a little bit.  Then fold in side corner and continue rolling.  Dip your finger in water and moisten the last corner and press to seal as you roll the rest of the way.

Continue with remaining wrappers.  (I ended up with about 17 egg rolls, but you could get more or less depending on how much filling you add.)  Place them on a lightly greased baking sheet.  Spray lightly with cooking spray.

Bake at 425 for 15 minutes, turning once during cooking.

And here's what they look like when done baking!

Serve warm with salsa!

Delicious!  We ate these for a meatless dinner, but they can also be a heavy appetizer!

Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com if you'd like to have these ingredients on hand!

Q-Pon Cooking: September 2015: Sweet Corn -- Easy Spanish Rice

I wanted to make some Chubby Cream Cheese Chicken Taquitos for my family's dinner the pay period, and pondered a recipe I could serve with those.  I generally try to stay within a similar "theme" for dinners, so if I make something that sounds sort of Mexican...  Well, I work on having something else Hispanic.  I'm maybe a bit crazy ;).

So I remembered a recipe on the #10 can of THRIVE Mixed Bell Peppers for Easy Spanish Rice that sounded -- well -- easy!  And then it turned out that this recipe called for THRIVE Sweet Corn, the Q-Pon item for September!  So that was a bonus!

The recipe is super easy, and I was able to throw it all together while having 5 kids ages 8 and under in my house (one of them 2 1/2 months old and 2 of them 2 year olds!).  I call that a winner if I can be successful with a dish under those circumstances :).

I used the recipe to start, but added many more THRIVE ingredients than the original recipe called for, ergo I had to play with the water a little bit and didn't keep an accurate measurement.  But I'd say I added around 3 cups of water total.

EASY SPANISH RICE
1/4 cup THRIVE Mixed Bell Peppers
2 tablespoons THRIVE Chopped Onions
1 teaspoon THRIVE Chicken Bouillon
3 cups water
1 cup THRIVE Sweet Corn (Q-Pon item this month -- contact me!)
1/2 cup Salsa
1 1/2 cup THRIVE Instant White Rice

Add all ingredients except rice to medium saucepan and cook 10 minutes, finally bringing to a boil.  Add rice and cover.  Remove from heat and let stand 10 minutes.  *Optional, add shredded cheddar cheese and stir.  (I didn't do this initially, but when I had leftovers, I added some cheese and thought it was wonderful with the cheese!)

This was super easy to throw together, as I said.  A great side dish!  The THRIVE Sweet Corn will be the Q-Pon item for all of September.  If you have a Q, simply add the corn to your next Q shipment!  If not, contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com and I'll help you get the great price on this very popular -- and delicious -- THRIVE Life product!

Happy THRIVEing!

A Meal By Mail

I have a dear friend in Alabama who recently had a sweet baby girl.  With all my heart, I wish I was closer so I could go over and take dinner for her family.  I know how fun it can be to have a newborn and still have to prepare dinners for a hungry family!  I know it takes a while for the whole family to adjust to the newest little member.  And so, when dinners were brought to our home just a couple months ago, we were so very grateful.  I wanted so very much to offer my sweet friend the same thing.  But I live in Washington -- and it's not super convenient to drive to Alabama to deliver a meal ;). 

But once again, THRIVE Life came to the rescue!  It occurred to me that I do have a way to offer my friend a meal for her family that would be very quick and easy to prepare.  Literally just add water!!!  So this morning, I prepped a whole meal for her family and shipped it off in the mail -- all using THRIVE!  I posted some pictures of it to my Facebook business page ("THRIVEing with Hila," if you're interested in following me!) and had a request that I share the recipes.  So here they are, the recipes I used for a meal by mail for my dear friend!

VEGETARIAN TACO SOUP  (original recipe posted here, but I changed some measurements)
 1/2 cup THRIVE Instant Black Beans
1/4 cup THRIVE Taco TVP
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons THRIVE Sweet Corn
3 tablespoons THRIVE Chili Peppers
1/4 cup THRIVE Tomato Powder
2 tablespoons THRIVE Chopped Onions
1 tablespoon Taco Seasoning
3/4 teaspoon ranch dressing mix

Bring 4 cups water to boil.  Add contents of bag and simmer 15 minutes.  Add additional water to your preference.


GOLDEN CORNBREAD (this is a THRIVE Life recipe)
1 cup THRIVE Cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour*
2/3 cup white sugar*
1/2 cup THRIVE Butter Powder
2 tablespoons THRIVE Whole Egg Powder
2 tablespoons THRIVE Nonfat Powdered Milk
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Put contents of bag into a medium mixing bowl.  Add 1 1/2 cups water and stir (or whisk) until well blended and lumps are gone.  Pour into a greased 8x8 pan.  Bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Allow to set 15 to 20 minutes before serving.


SUMMER (BERRY) LEMONADE (recipe from the can of Summer Lemonade)
1 cup sugar*
2 tablespoons THRIVE Summer Lemonade
berries of your choice (I included THRIVE Strawberry Slices and THRIVE Raspberries)

Mix contents of larger bag with 2 quarts (8 cups) water.  Chill.  Add berries of your choice to individual servings.

*Denotes other ingredients available through THRIVE Life.

All of these things can be done in jars as well.  In fact, we will be making the Golden Cornbread at our upcoming jar meal event in September!  So if you're interested in attending, let me know so I can get you the details!  The cornbread is awesome, by the way...  My family had it with chili on Friday (the chili recipe will also be available at the jar meal event in September!).

I noted in the instructions to them that I recommend these be used within a month, since they are not vacuum sealed.  At the jar meal events, we do vacuum seal the jars and that means they are good for 5 years!

I am truly excited I found a way to get a meal to my friend.  She is an amazing woman and we have a friendship I treasure beyond words.  And I hope this dinner makes at least one of these days with a new little miracle just a little bit easier -- and yummy to boot!

If you'd like to know more about this and how you can get all these great ingredients, contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com or visit my website:  www.thriveingNilla.thrivelife.com/THRIVEingNilla.

Happy THRIVEing!

Farfalle Basil Marinara

This is now one of my go-to dinners!  Especially in the summer!  It's stove-top.  It's fast.  And it's delicious!  My whole family loves it!  It was served at a Power Up Seattle, and I knew I wanted to have it again at home!  And now we have it again and again :).

FARFALLE BASIL MARINARA
2 cups farfalle (bowtie) pasta*
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 tablespoon garlic
1 1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons THRIVE Chopped Onions
1/2 cup THRIVE Tomato Dices
1/4 cup THRIVE Classic Tomato Sauce, dry
1/4 teaspoon THRIVE Chef's Choice Seasoning Blend
1/2 tablespoon Basil*
1/4 cup THRIVE Shredded Parmesan Cheese

Cook pasta in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes until done.  Drain and set aside.

Sweat oil and garlic together in saucepan.  Add all remaining ingredients except Parmesan and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes.

Toss pasta with sauce and Parmesan and bring back to a simmer.  Simmer another minute or so and then enjoy!

*Denotes other ingredients available through THRIVE Life.

As written, this recipe makes about 3 servings.  But it would be very easy to double it for a larger family!  Seriously, our dinner was done in about 30 minutes from start to finish that night!  We served this dish alongside sauteed spinach, fresh strawberries, and French bread!  Yum!

And let me just say that I love the Classic Tomato Sauce!  I never would have considered buying it had it now been for trying this recipe at the Power Up.  Now I consider it a home store staple!

Happy THRIVEing!

Q-Pon Cooking: July 2015: Sausage Crumbles -- Pizza Pasta

It's nearly the end of July, which means time is running out to snag the great deal on THRIVE Sausage!  It's the Q-Pon item for just a few more days, so let me know if you want to get some before the opportunity passes you by!

THRIVE Sausage Crumbles is easily one of my favorite THRIVE Life products!  I have used it in so many recipes.  Here is a small sampling of those recipes:

Mountain Man Mix
Italian Bowtie Pasta (which can also be a jar meal!)
Sausage and Pepper Brunch Pizza
Sasuage Zuppa Toscana (which can also be a jar meal!)

Truth is, before I was introduced to THRIVE Sausage Crumbles, I maybe bought sausage 2 or 3 times a year.  Now that they are a part of my home store -- and so easy to use! -- I use sausage so much more!  It's awesome.

So here is one more recipe for you to try out with the awesome THRIVE Sausage Crumbles!  And remember, if you want to grab some at this great price, contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com or you can order through my website at www.thriveingnilla.thrivelife.com/thriveingnilla.

PIZZA PASTA
1 cup THRIVE Sausage Crumbles (I cut this back to about 3/4 cup for my family's meat preferences)
1/4 cup THRIVE Chopped Onion
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1/2 cup THRIVE Tomato Sauce (also on special this month!)
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon basil
2 cups rotini pasta (or pasta of your choice)
1/2 cup THRIVE Mozzarella Cheese (also on special this month!)
1/4 cup THRIVE Parmesan Cheese
Sliced Pepperoni
2 cups water

Add all ingredients except peperoni and both cheeses to a saucepan and add 2 cups water.  Bring to a boil.  Boil about 15 minutes or until pasta is done.  While there is still thick juicy sauce, add the pepperoni on top and then sprinkle the cheeses on top.  Broil 3 to 5 minutes until cheese is melted.  (You can choose to re-hydrate the cheeses first and they will melt better).

This can also be prepared as a jar meal!  I will be doing it one of these days to hopefully use at a future jar meal event!

I didn't invent this recipe, but got it from a consultant who shared it in a facebook group.  I think it's quite tasty!  And totally kid-pleasing!  We rounded our meal out with grapes and salad ;).

Happy THRIVEing!

Throw & Go Vegetable Beef Soup

I've said it before, and I'll say it again:  one of my favorite things about THRIVE Life is how it helps me save time -- or have a good, healthy meal easily when I don't have any time.  Or when I have very little motivation to make dinner :).  (And I accept that as the way it is when I could deliver a baby any day!)

Well, Tuesday was one of those days.  I'd had a doctor's appointment, hit up Costco, the bank and Target, washed some laundry, took care of a toddler, took the toddler to the library to get new books...  And by dinner-time, I didn't have any meat thawed, and I really didn't feel like doing anything much.  It was quite tempting to go through a drive-thru while out at the library!

But I knew that wasn't the best option for us.  And so I convinced myself to come home and figure out something fast and easy with all my delicious THRIVE!

And I came up with this "Throw & Go Vegetable Beef Soup!"  And I liked it!  The THRIVE Ground Beef may be my new favorite item!!!

Seriously, I just threw a bunch of stuff in a pot, brought it to a boil, reduced to simmer and let it simmer 15 minutes.  I thawed out some french bread I'd made and frozen earlier.  And dinner was done!  Here's how I did it (but just realize you can adapt to your likes and preferences with THRIVE Life!)

THROW AND GO VEGETABLE BEEF SOUP
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons THRIVE Chopped Onion
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons THRIVE Celery
3 tablespoons THRIVE Carrot Dices
1/4 cup THRIVE Green Peas
1/4 cup THRIVE Mushrooms
1/4 cup THRIVE Asparagus
1 teaspoon THRIVE Chicken Bouillon
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce*
1 14-ounce can chicken broth*
2 cups water
1/2 cup THRIVE Ground Beef

Heat oil in a saucepan/pot over medium heat.  Add onion and saute 30 seconds.  Pour in tomato sauce, broth, water.  Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to simmer and allow to cook 15 minutes. 

*Denotes other ingredients available through THRIVE Life.

I enjoyed the flavor in this soup and I could really taste the beef flavor, even after only 15 minutes!  I thought this was awesome for a no-plan meal :).  And I loved that I got all my veggies in and in such variety!  The only thing I'll do differently in the future is add either some macaroni or potato chunks.  But that'll be just as simple with THRIVE Life :)!

I love my home store!

Hiking Snacks!

Summer is coming in!  We have enjoyed several beautiful days here in Western Washington.

True, they've also been warm days -- and I'm not entirely fond of those ;).  But they have still been beautiful blue-sky days.  Great for soaking up the Vitamin D!

With this time of year come many opportunities to go hiking, back-packing, and camping!  And guess what!?!  THRIVE Life is awesome for those activities!  The foods are light-weight and so convenient!  So today I thought I'd share a couple of great hiking snack recipes using lots of THRIVE Life goodies!  These are especially great, because in addition to being light-weight, they are packed with great nutrients and protein -- the stuff to keep you going on those hikes!

MOUNTAIN MAN MIX

Mix equal parts:
THRIVE Sausage Crumbles
THRIVE Green Peas
THRIVE Sweet Corn
THRIVE Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Optional:  Sprinkle with THRIVE Chef's Choice Seasoning Blend to taste. (We opted out of the seasoning blend and it was still delicious!)

It's recommended you put all this in a bowl or container with a lid and shake, shake, shake (especially if you choose to use the seasoning blend).  

The other recipe is one I made up.  I call it Tropical Trail Mix.  Full of tropical fruits along with granola and nuts (and, of course, some chocolate!), it's a yummy little trail treat!

TROPICAL TRAIL MIX

2 cups Granola of your choice
¼ cup white chocolate chips

¼ cup milk chocolate chips

1/3 cup shredded coconut

2 ¼ cups THRIVE Mango

1 cup THRIVE Pineapple Chunks

1 cup THRIVE Banana Slices, broken

1 cup roasted salted cashews

½ cup THRIVE Passionfruit Yogurt Bites

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients until well-mixed.  Enjoy!

I'm pretty excited about these hiking snacks!  They aren't just for hiking, of course :).  They are great for snacking anytime!  A great way to get some fruits and veggies.  I just think they are phenomenal for back-packing and hiking, because they do have the ingredients to really boost energy levels and provide great nutrition while doing so!

Are you a hiker or back-packer?  Would you love having great home-made and healthy trail snacks?  I can help you with that!  Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com or visit my website www.thrivelife.com/THRIVEingNilla!

Happy THRIVEing!

Q-Pon Cooking: Ground Beef (May 2015): Sloppy Joes

It's nearing the end of May and time is running out to take advantage of the great deal on THRIVE Ground Beef!  I have loved having this ground beef on hand, because it has made coming up with dinner in a pinch a cinch ;).  I didn't have to thaw any meat!  Or brown it, for that matter :).

In addition to the meatballs we made a few nights ago, we also tried out the ground beef in sloppy joes!  Love this recipe, which I found here.  And I love even more that it can be a jar meal!  Look for a great picture of that soon -- and a date to come make a jar of your own to take home at our next Jar Meal Event! 

We halved this recipe at my house and it still made plenty for my family!  The recipe as we made it (and as is shared below) would easily make 8 sloppy joes.  (For my family, that means it would feed 4; since my husband ate 3 of them!!!).  The recipe below is the way I made it with a few adaptations (for example, I didn't have tomato powder on hand, so I used a can of tomato sauce).

SLOPPY JOES
1 cup THRIVE Ground Beef (it's the Q-Pon item this month!!)
1/4 cup THRIVE Diced Tomatoes
3 tablespoons THRIVE Mixed Bell Peppers
2 tablespoons THRIVE Celery
2 tablespoons THRIVE Chopped Onion
1 tablespoon THRIVE Green Chilies
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce*
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon mustard powder
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon salt*
1/4 teaspoon pepper*
1/2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 tablespoon red wine vinegar

In a skillet, bring 2 cups water to a boil.  Turn off heat and add dry ingredients to skillet.  Stir to combine.  Let rest 15 minutes.

Mix Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, tomato sauce and red wine vinegar in a small bowl until combined.  Add sauce to ingredients in skillet.

Turn stove to medium and bring to simmer.  Simmer for 15 minutes or until sauce is desired thickness, stirring occasionally.  Serve on hamburger buns.

*Denotes other ingredients available through THRIVE Life.

This recipe was awesome-sauce!  In fact, I'm jar-mealing it to have on hand for when baby comes (which could be any day now!!!).  It's a great recipe for summer, so now's the time to stock up on the THRIVE Ground Beef so you can have some :)!  It's great served with home-fries and veggies!

Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com or visit my website www.thrivelife.com/THRIVEingNilla to place your order!  Remember, if you're a Q member, you have access to the Q-Pon item by simply logging in.  If you're not a Q member, you can still get the great deal by contacting me!

Happy THRIVEing!

Chef Todd's Salsa... Sort Of

I had a get-together the other evening when I hosted a doTERRA Class for my sister-in-law.  (If you're interested in Essential Oils, you should totally check out her website here.)  Being the foodie that I am, I can't not serve food at an event!

So I made salsa.  One of the reasons for this was because I could "showcase" the edible uses of a couple of the Essential Oils (cilantro and lime).

The other reason was because I knew my THRIVE foods would come through for me and I could throw together a salsa in a snap!  Which was particularly awesome when that day turned out to be a harder one that I'd originally anticipated.  I needed easy like you can't imagine that day...

This salsa knocked my socks off for a couple reasons.  1.  It tasted great.  2.  My husband really liked it.  3. It was literally done in 5 minutes and was in the fridge mingling flavors.  No chopping or washing of anything (except the dishes later one).  It was amazing.  I may never make any other fresh salsa again, now that I know I can be spoiled with my THRIVE!

I halved the recipe (which can be found in its original form here) and made it as follows:

CHEF TODD'S SALSA... SORT OF
2 cups THRIVE Tomato Dices
2 tablespoons THRIVE Green Chilies
1 tablespoon THRIVE Chopped Onions
1 tablespoon THRIVE Cilantro
1/8 teaspoon THRIVE Chef's Choice seasoning blend
1 drop doTERRA Lime Essential Oil
a smidge (try not to use a full drop -- it's potent!) doTERRA Cilantro Essential Oil
3/4 cup water

Mix all dry ingredients in a medium bowl.  Add the lime and cilantro oils to the water and stir.  Pour the oil-infused water into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir to combine.  Cover and chill at least 2 hours.  Serve with chips.

See?  I told you this was easy.

Would you love to enjoy fresh salsa made in minutes?  Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com or visit my website at www.thrivelife.com/THRIVEingNilla to place an order for these awesome ingredients!

Happy THRIVEing!

Sausage and Pepper Brunch Pizza

Earlier this year, I had a Pampered Chef party at my house.  As a result, I was able to score one of their new items for free!  It's this huge round baking stone that has handles and a little lip so that you can make things like quiches in it.  And I love it!

As part of the party, we made a recipe for Sausage and Pepper Brunch Pizza using the stone.  And I realized I could totally THRIVE-alize that recipe!  So I did!  And we had it for dinner the other night :).  (It was a brinner kind of evening that day...).

It was awesome having many of the ingredients on-hand, thanks to THRIVE Life!  And even more awesome that I could avoid handling raw sausage and raw eggs and the time (and mess) it would otherwise take to brown the sausage!!!  There is a reason THRIVE Sausage Crumbles are one of the most popular items THRIVE Life has to offer!!!

Below is the recipe as I made it.  But it is originally a Pampered Chef recipe and can be found here.

SAUSAGE AND PEPPER BRUNCH PIZZA

1 cup THRIVE Sausage Crumbles
3/4 cup THRIVE Red Bell Peppers (broken in smaller pieces)
1 tablespoon basil*
4 ounces Neufachtel cheese (1/3 of the fat of cream cheese option), softened
6 THRIVE Whole Eggs (6 tablespoons egg powder + 3/4 cup water)
1 16-ounce package refrigerated flaky biscuits (grands size)
4 ounces provolone cheese, shredded
black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place sausage crumbles and red bell pepper in a bowl.  Cover with boiling water and allow to sit and reconstitute.  Drain off excess water (after 5 to 10 minutes).

Separate the flaky biscuits in half so that you have 16 biscuits.  Lay overlapping on round dish and roll or press to cover entire dish (I used a Pampered Chef round baking stone).  Make sure all seems are sealed.  Press some up the sides a bit. 

In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave cream cheese 10 to 15 seconds until very soft and stir-able.  Whisk until smooth.  Add eggs, alternating powder and water, whisking to blend well after each addition. 

Sprinkle half the cheese over the biscuits.  Then sprinkle with the sausage/pepper mixture.  Sprinkle with basil.  Carefully pour egg and cheese mixture over all.  Sprinkle black pepper on top to taste.  Bake in preheated oven 15 to 17 minutes.  Serve immediately.

Definitely delicious!  Definitely easy!  Love having THRIVE on hand to help me with my meals :)!! 

Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com or visit my website www.thrivelife.com/THRIVEingNilla if you want to know more!

Happy THRIVEing!

Q-Pon Cooking May 2015: Ground Beef: Sweet & Sour Meatballs

This month, THRIVE Ground Beef is the Q-Pon item!  Which means it is a phenomenal deal and the perfect time to stock up!  A #10 can of the ground beef usually retails for $62.49, but in May, you can get it for $43.79!  That's an amazing savings!

Plus you get all the benefits of THRIVE Ground Beef:  no handling raw meat, no need to wait for meat to thaw, and no need to have grease splatter during the browning process!  And the flavor is great, by the way ;).

So here's the recipe for some delicious Sweet & Sour Meatballs using THRIVE Ground Beef (I halved the below recipe for my smaller family ;))!

SWEET & SOUR MEATBALLS
2 cups THRIVE Ground Beef
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
1/4 cup THRIVE Powdered Milk, rehydrated
2 tablespoons THRIVE Chopped Onions
1 teaspoon salt*
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 THRIVE Whole Egg, rehydrated (1 tablespoons powder + 2 tablespoons water)
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed*
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 can pineapple tidbits with juice (I used crushed, because it's what I had :))
1/3 cup vinegar
1/8 cup THRIVE Mixed Bell Peppers
5 cups white rice, prepared*

Rehydrate freeze-dried ground beef by bringing 4 cups water to a boil.  Add beef and boil for 5 minutes.  Drain excess water.  Mix meat, dry bread crumbs, milk, onions, salt, Worcestershire sauce, and egg together; shape into twenty 1 1/2 inch sized balls

Place in skillet and cook over medium heat, turning occasionally until brown (about 20 minutes).

Mix brown sugar and cornstarch in a skillet.  Stir in pineapple, juice, vinegar, and soy sauce.  Heat to boiling, stirring occasionally.  Reduce heat to medium, then add meatballs and peppers.

Cover and let simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 15 minutes.  Serve over cooked rice.

*Denotes other ingredients available through THRIVE Life.

We served stir fry veggies alongside these meatballs.  Due to the fact that I forgot to halve the egg portion of the recipe (oops!), my meatballs didn't stick together as nicely as they should have.  However, they still tasted amazing!  My husband really liked the dish and the flavor of the ground beef!

One thing I really loved about the THRIVE Ground Beef is that it allowed me to not have a plan until later in the day!  By the time I decided on dinner, I wouldn't have had time to thaw the meat the way I prefer to thaw it (I don't like defrosting meat in the microwave, because it never comes out well!).  I love the convenience of having ground beef on-hand and ready to use at a moment's notice!!

Would you like to take advantage of the great deal on ground beef this month at THRIVE Life and enjoy the convenience of having it on-hand and the presence of it in your home store?  Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com or visit my website at www.thrivelife.com/THRIVEingNilla to place your order!  And contact me with any questions you may have!

Happy THRIVEing!

Jar Meal: Vegetarian Taco Soup

This past Tuesday was our Cinco de Mayo Jar Meal Event!  It was another get-together full of fun and good food!  So I figured I'd share the recipe for the Vegetarian Taco Soup!  We found the original recipe here, for anyone interested.  I have to say I'm grateful for the THRIVE Life Consultant community!  All the consultants help each other and are so willing to share recipes and ideas.  It's a wonderful group of which to be a part :)!  I tweaked it a little bit because we did the vegetarian option and used the THRIVE Taco TVP, which is already seasoned with taco seasoning.  But you can also use THRIVE Ground Beef in this recipe as well.

VEGETARIAN TACO SOUP

1 cup THRIVE Instant Black Beans

¾ cup THRIVE Sweet Corn

1/3 cup THRIVE Green Chilies

½  cup THRIVE TomatoPowder

3/4 cup THRIVE Taco TVP

1/3 cup THRIVE Chopped Onions

1/8 cup Taco Seasoning

1 ½ teaspoons Ranch Dressing Mix

Soup Preparation:

Bring 8 cups water to a boil in a soup pot.  Pour in contents of jar and stir; reduce heat to low and simmer 15 to 20 minutes or until veggies are tender.  Optional:  Serve with your favorite taco toppings.

This recipe is incredibly flavorful!  We had lots of compliments from event attendees who tasted the samples -- and then made themselves jars to take home!  It is just a nice, quick-fix meal for those super-busy days!  

Contact me at THRIVEingNilla@gmail.com or visit my website:  www.thrivelife.com/THRIVEingNilla if you want to get the ingredients to be able to make these at home!  And if you want Ground Beef in yours, now is a great time to get it at a great price, since the THRIVE Ground Beef is this month's Q-Pon item!  For the month of May, you can get a #10 Can of Ground Beef for $43.79!  You can check it out and the other May specials here!

Happy THRIVEing!