Cookies, Cooking, Cooking With Maggie, Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Maggie's Cooking Corner

Maple Syrup Thumbprint Cookies

So here is a version using the “Add Ins” from my cookie post from the other day that is gluten free, dairy free, and sugar free.

Here is the original recipe to get the base:

So today I made these and added in some pumpkin spice, maple syrup and chopped almonds. I really wanted to use pecans but it turned out that I was out of them so I just put in some chopped almonds cause why not? 🙂 Anything goes and that is how I roll. 🙂

After I mixed it all together and formed the cookies I decided to do a little thumb print thingy and add some more maple syrup.

Oh and yes another big change that I did was instead of using the oats as they are, I ground them into a flour. Turned out great but I think you just need to cook them a bit longer.

Okay that is all for now folks and I can’t wait to hear about your add ins and what turns out for you to be amazing. 🙂

Cooking, Cooking With Maggie, Maggie's Cooking Corner, Maggie's Soups, Soups, Vitamins for the Soul

Chicken Noo Noo Soup

When my daughter was little I would always call noodles ‘noo noos’ and I admit I still do it to this day lol!

Today I made some rock star Chicken Noo Noo Soup that is so soothing for the soul.

I used up some leftover turkey soup stock that I had made at Christmas time from the leftover turkey carcass. After making it I froze it in a mason jar for future use and the future is now lol. Actually I got several jars from the batch which is great because this stock can be used in more than just soup.

You could use it in a gravy, a stew, or even as a liquid base for a whole new meal in an Instant Pot, Slow Cooker, or even a Cast Iron pan in the oven. For example throw in some chicken parts, potatoes, carrots, onions, and/or what you like, add some of the stock, salt and pepper and put it in the oven at 325 degrees for about 1.5 hours and voila!

Jars Are Great!

Mason type glass jars are excellent for freezing leftover soup, stock, chilis and more! Just don’t fill them to the top. You need to leave some space for the expansion when it freezes.

Class jar with my turkey stock from my Christmas Turkey

Waste Not

I do not waste anything when it comes to food. I love using these go-to’s for creations like today’s soup that I made.

Check out this video I made of the soup as it was cooking. And note the noo noos are not in here yet… they were boiling on the stove burner behind. I don’t like to add them until just before serving. And they too will go in a mason jar or similar and only be added to the soup as I warm up what I am eating at one sitting.

However, if you are wondering what the things in the soup that look like noodles are, they are cauliflower shreds! They are from one of those bags of slaw type veggies. I love using those for soups and such.

One day I will share with you all my pea soup hack that makes it way more nutrient dense without anyone even knowing… but Shh you will have to promise not to tell though 😉

7 second video of my chicken soup cooking and looking all delicious like 🙂

And these are the noo noos I used. Actually this was my first time using these and I have to say I like them the best for Chicken Noodle Soup. They are La Molisana Semi Di Melone N 61, Trafilata Al Bronzo. I have no idea what all that means but anyhoo here is a picture of the delightful little critters.

The little noodles I add to the chicken soup just before eating so they don’t get all mushy. Aka “Noo Noos” 🙂

In closing I want to remind everyone that you do not need a recipe to cook soup. I never make it the same way twice.

You throw in whatever you have around the kitchen that remotely seems like it will go with the style of soup you are making and presto…soup 🙂

Have fun with soup making and use up those odds and ends in the fridge and freezer. :-))

Cooking, Maggie's Cooking Corner, slow cooker

Slow Cooker Roast Beef

Mmm Mmm cooking just doesn’t get any easier then this! In under 5 minutes I can get these ‘one pot wonders’ ready to cook.

I have been making One Pot Wonders for years. They are the easiest, fastest, and least complicated things to cook. Whether you use a slow cooker, Instant Pot, Cast Iron Pot, or sheet pan, I call em all ‘One Pot Wonders”. They can be very health too.

So Easy!

It doesn’t get much better than this especially if you are busy with life and work and don’t have a lot of time to prep for cooking or for actual hands on cooking.

In today’s one pot wonder, I put into the slow cooker, 2 carrots on the bottom under for the roast…like a little rack :-), the roast seasoned with salt and pepper, some potatoes and onions around the side and then topped with a no name brand tomato and herb sauce and a little water in the bottom. I then put a little seasoning salt on the whole thing.

I will slow cook this all day and it will be delicious! When looking for your tomato sauce I just use the kind you would use for pasta but look for low sodium, low sugar content (under 5 gm) and with no preservatives that are not natural. This makes it healthier for the fam.

Oh and if you are wondering how to cook it in the slow cooker? That my friends you will have to figure out. It’s called ‘getting to know your slow cooker’. 🙂 I personally use the old fashion kind that has High, Low, and Off. lol. My older sister brought over a digital one on Christmas Eve full of meatballs earlier in the day for me to use later that night, and ummm let’s just say the struggle was real 🙂 The good news is you can pick up slow cookers galore at the second hand stores! I have several. Some of them even have a ‘stay warm’ setting which is handy.

I personally am not a meat and potatoes person, but my hubby will gobble this all up and if we are lucky there might even be some beef left… and don’t forget saucy juice left in the bottom of the pan which I can use to make something else like a delicious soup. I waste nothing. Even if there is a potato left, it will be used for breakfast potatoes, to thicken soup, etc. etc. There are hundreds of amazing uses for small amounts of left overs. 🙂

Okay well gotta run and get ready to meet someone for lunch that I met at the Landlord’s meeting last week. I will be sharing some tips on being a landlord… or landperson? 🙂 Either way it’s all good. Time to put my business coaching hat on… have a great day and get those slow cookers working for you. Your time is valuable 🙂

UPDATE: Since writing this post this morning here are the final results:

The finished roast in the slow cooker. Fork Tender. It looks red on top because of the tomatoes sauce but it’s cooked PERF!
What’s leftover…. not much… told you hubs would gobble it all up 🙂 but enough to do some good things with 🙂
Cooking, lemons, Your Amazing Life

A Little Inspiration

I must say I personally have been inspired by the new Canada Food Guide to work more at cooking from scratch. I have written a blog post recently about the new Canada Food Guide and if you like, you can read it here: Link to Previous Canada Food Guide Blog Post about En-JOY-ing our Food

Today I picked up these adorable measuring nesting bowls with lemons on them. Lately I am in love with lemons, especially starting my day with warm lemon water. I find now that I am creating more food and new recipes of my own, I can never have enough measuring cups, especially when it comes to preparing my mise en place.

Mise en place (French pronunciation: ​[mi zɑ̃ ˈplas]) is a French culinary term which means “putting in place” or “everything in its place.” It refers to the set up required before cooking, and is often used in professional kitchens to refer to organizing and arranging the ingredients ex. chopped veggies, sauces, cuts of meat, spices, herbs etc. Basically it’s getting your ingredients and utensils ready before you cook.  

I first learned of mise en place last year while taking my Forks Over Knives plant based cooking school, of which, I am a proud graduate.

fok badge.PNG

I am finding that I am getting more JOY from preparing my food and having things like these bowls that make me smile while I am doing it. 🙂

I also love how these bowls ‘nest’ making for easy storage.

nested lemon bowls.jpg

I would love to hear what inspires you in your kitchen?

And I will be sharing my recipe creations in my monthly newsletter so if you would like to be on that list, you can subscribe over at my home page on my website Maggie’s Website Homepage or pop me a request to be added in the contact form below.

For inspiration on life and musings about life, follow me over at my other Blog too! Link to my Main Blog

Cooking, Family, Healthy Eating, Your Amazing Life

Canada’s Food Guide Says to En-JOY our Food! Yipee!

The new Canada Food Guide was just recently updated and released. It has a lot of great things in it.

Toward the bottom of this post I will share their eating recommendations with links right to the official Government of Canada site, but what I am really en-JOY-ing are these recommendations:

be mindful snp

I love that they are encouraging us to be mindful and present and aware of our food, what we put into our bodies, and to really connect with that. 🙂

cook more often snp

This is also so encouraging. I know that we are all busy but cooking and preparing our food should be of the utmost priority if we want to have a healthy and balanced life. And it can be so much fun. I myself, finally started using my Instant Pot and am eager to dig in and try new things. In fact, I am doing so, while I am writing this blog post…. I take a little break and prep a few ingredients. In this case I am chopping some veggies for a tomato sauce I am going to make.

I have written articles in the past about getting our kids involved and making it fun. In my community they now have programs where they are teaching kids to cook from scratch and I love that.

Happy family in the kitchen cooking dinner together

Let’s commit to doing this in the home more too. It’s a great way to get the kids off of screen and available to share conversation with you so you can find out how they are feeling and what is going on in their life, at the same time as teaching valuable skills.  And if you feel you are lacking in your cooking skills, why not watch a Youtube video or cooking show together with the kids or other family members or friends, and try out a recipe with guidance.  The Canada Food Guide website has great recipes also.  You can sign up here to get recipes too! Sign up for Recipes from Canada Food Guide

eat meals with others snp

Well we’ve talked about cooking together, but even more fun is eating together. Try to make time to have sit down meals with your family, even if it’s just a night or two a week, if your schedule is hectic.  And better yet, why not make it special too. At our house we put out placemats and often I like to use a pretty plate or special serving dish to enhance the whole experience. The more sacred and special we make mealtimes, the more beneficial they are to our health all around.

If you live alone, why not reach out and suggest to another person, who is in your same shoes, to get together and cook a meal or to prep a few meals for your upcoming week? This can be a great way to offset loneliness and foster a sense of community and being connected. Food has been a catalyst, since the beginning of time, to connect people. It is a common thread that is woven into everyday of our lives.

I hope you en-JOY-ed today’s thoughts on the new Canada Food Guide. And please feel share this blog post so that we can inspire others to eat healthier and cook more often and together. 🙂 And as promised here are the links for more detailed information about the new Canada food guide here:

Eat plenty of vegetables and fruits, whole grain foods and protein foods. Choose protein foods that come from plants more often. 

Limit highly processed foods. If you choose these foods, eat them less often and in small amounts.

Make water your drink of choice

Use food labels

Be aware that food marketing can influence your choices

Maggie Holbik.com is  a Board Certified Nutritionist and Certified Life Coach who goes on and off with her spurts of cooking and developing recipes. However, she’s learned not to judge herself so much anymore, because that does not make her feel good, :-), so she just keeps plugging away and always looks for ways to add in more JOY in her life, and food is one of her favorites! 🙂

And if you want to follow Maggie’s personal blog where she shares inspiration and uplifting life’s musings, here is the link: Maggie’s Blog – Follow Along 🙂