It’s National Peach Month!

That means there are tons of recipes out there using peaches, so why one more?

Easy.

This one is different. Why? Because as you may have noticed from the title, it’s a savory dish. And it’s super easy to make, doesn’t heat up the house, and it’s healthy!

Perfect for an easy weekday meal or serving to company, it’s one of my favorite summer dishes!

The peaches give it a slight sweetness, but balanced with the pork chops and onions, it’s a truly satisfying meal.

It’s also naturally gluten-free and paleo. And if you watch how many of the peaches you eat, fits well into a keto meal plan as well.

I like to make this when I have friends over for a quick, easy BBQ because total prep and cooking time is about half an hour. I usually serve it with a light salad.

Ingredients

• Bone-in thin-cut pork chops (you really want the thin, fattier cuts for this so they’ll cook quickly and avoid drying out!) I use rib chops.
• Peaches (They should still be firm, not quite ripe is best!)
• Red onion
• Other vegetables as desired for grilling (I like summer squash with this recipe)
• Olive Oil
• Salt
• Pepper
• Garlic powder
• Onion powder

Directions

• Season the pork chops with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder to taste then drizzle with olive oil and let sit to marinade.
• Slice peaches and onions (and other vegetables) in ¼ inch thick slices (same way you would cut onion or tomato for a hamburger!)
• Spread peaches and veggies out in a single layer on a tray or sheet pan, then season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.
• Make sure your grill is nice and hot (I prefer a hot grill 450–500 degrees)
• Grill pork chops until desired temp (I prefer medium for pork)
• Grill peaches and onions (and any other veggies) until tender and caramelized
• Serve immediately!

Modifications

You can always substitute nectarines if you don’t have peaches. White onions or green onions work just as well as the red! You can also leave out the garlic and/or onion powder if you don’t eat those foods, really the pork is tasty enough without it!

Tips

Don’t overcook the pork! These cuts can dry out quickly, so be sure to keep a close eye on them.

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Texas Caviar

Summer is here, and it’s a HOT one!

Record temperatures across many parts of the country have made cooking difficult. And eating out regularly can make it hard to maintain healthy habits.

So we decided this month’s recipe should be a cold one!

This “caviar” is naturally vegan, gluten-free, and packed with protein. So it fits well into many diet plans, and it can be easily modified.

And the best part, no cooking!

This is a quick, easy, healthy dish. Great as a salad or side dish. Paired with some grilled meat or fish (or more veggies if you’re vegan or vegetarian!), you can have a complete meal and avoid heating up the house.

The Story:

This recipe (and story!) comes from another Evidation team member!

“This is a recipe passed to me from my mom and is very common in the Southeastern United States. We often tailgate for football games and this is always a dish that’s on the table and a crowd favorite. It’s fresh and healthy, but also filling because of all of the protein in the beans. Served best cold and with tortilla chips and shared with friends (it makes a lot!).” — Jen L., Evidation

Ingredients:

SALAD:

1 15 ounce can black-eyed peas rinsed and drained

1 15 ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 15 ounce can sweet corn rinsed and drained

1/2 red bell pepper, finely diced

1/2 green bell pepper, finely diced

1/2 a red onion, diced

2 cups grape tomatoes, halved (or cherry tomatoes or 2 Roma tomatoes)

2 ripe avocados, diced

⅓ cup Cilantro (or parsley), finely chopped

DRESSING:

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup fresh-squeezed lime juice

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 teaspoon brown sugar

3/4 teaspoon red chili flakes, adjust to your preference of spice

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

TO SERVE:

Veggie sticks, Tortilla chips, etc.

Directions:

1. Combine salad ingredients in a large bowl. Mix together to combine. Set aside.
2. Whisk dressing ingredients together in a smaller bowl, until well combined.
3. Pour dressing over salad, stir through, and serve with chips or veggie sticks.
   

Modifications/Tips:

“I add red wine vinegar to this as well for a bit more acid. You can also substitute pre-made Italian dressing in a pinch (recommend a zesty Italian). Letting it soak overnight (without avocado and tomatoes) and adding the avocado and tomatoes right before you’re ready to serve it helps the beans really soak up the flavors. If you don’t like or have one of the ingredients (for example, I often skip the bell peppers), it’s a very forgiving recipe! The black-eyed peas, black beans, corn, tomatoes (can also use canned!), and acidic dressing are the core ingredients. All others are to taste!”

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Did you know that June is National Soul Food Month?

You’re probably familiar with the term “Soul Food,” after all it has become a common culinary term in recent decades. But it’s important we take the time to recognize what, exactly, soul food is and acknowledge why it holds a special place in the lives of so many people.

What is “Soul Food”?

The cuisine recognized today as soul food originated in the southern United States.

Infused with the flavors of numerous African cultures and made with the few, “unwanted” ingredients available to enslaved peoples, soul food became a part of the traditions and culture of generations of Americans.

The term “soul food” was first seen in print during the Black Pride movement of the 1960s. Some of the earliest references are in Malcolm X’s 1965 autobiography and the essay, “Soul Food” by author and activist Amiri Baraka.

It’s critical that we recognize the distinction between soul food and other southern cuisine.

Soul food specifically refers to the distinct culinary traditions of African Americans in the southern United States.

The cuisine is unique because of its complicated origins and its significance to the cultural traditions of Black and African Americans.

In an article on the history of soul food on Blackfoodie.co Vanessa Hayford says,

“Soul food has a rich and important history that ties Black culture to its African roots, and that history is deeply reflected in the staple recipes and techniques.”

Recipe

In honor of National Soul Food Month, this recipe and its story come from Solomon, one of our Evidation team members.

Solomon, thank you for sharing your story and your recipe!

Solomon’s Oxtails with Gravy!

“My family Oxtails with gravy recipe was handed down to me for 3 generations starting with my great great grandmother. This oxtail recipe is a hybrid of Caribbean oxtails made with southern comfort spin. Growing up, oxtails were the ultimate comfort food that my grandmother would make whenever we had a hard day and could use a feel-good boost. It was a tradition that one Sunday out of every month, my younger brothers and I would help my grandmother make oxtails, and it became a family bonding meal. Even today, when my daughters and I could use a little boost of feel-good energy and comfort, we head to the kitchen and make oxtails as it is my goal to keep the family recipe and intention strong for many generations to come!” — Solomon Howard, Evidation

Ingredients:

For the Oxtails:

2 lbs of Oxtails

1 clove of garlic

1 chopped onion

1 ½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground pepper

1 tablespoon greek seasoning

1 teaspoon season salt

1 can of Campbell’s mushroom gravy

1 teaspoon Garlic Powder to taste

For the Gravy:

3 tablespoons flour (more as needed)

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

• Plug in a slow cooker (any slow cooker will do)
• Place the temperature to “low”
• Mix all of the ingredients into a bowl ensuring that all ingredients are mixed thoroughly and the oxtails are evenly covered
• Pour the thoroughly mixed oxtails and ingredients into the slow cooker
• Cover the slow cooker with its lid
• Set a timer or the cooking time to 12 hours
• And let the goodness begin to cook :)

Gravy Recipe:

After the oxtails have cooked for 12 hours:

• Grab a large frying pan and place it on medium heat
• Transfer 2 smaller pieces of oxtails into the pan with a half cup of the juices from the slow cooker
• Add 3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour into the pan and stir until flour mixes and turns into a gravy
• Add more flour to thicken the gravy to the desired thickness.
• Add salt and pepper to taste
• Once the gravy is at the desired thickness, transfer the remaining oxtails from the slow cooker to the gravy (be sure to strain to not add too much of the broth from the slow cooker)

Modifications:

Any gravy recipe or premade gravy can work in place of the gravy recipe listed above.

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This rich, creamy asparagus soup is one of those go-to comfort meals. It will easily satisfy your want for flavor, and the best part…it’s super healthy. So you get all of the glut with none of the guilt!

It’s naturally gluten free, vegetarian, and keto — and with one simple swap it can be vegan and paleo too!

Food is such an integral part of our daily lives, and while we know that eating healthy is important to our overall well being, it can sometimes seem difficult to find delicious meals that are good for you.

So we’ve decided to create a place to share these gems.

This is just the first of many healthy, tasty recipes we’ll be sharing with our Achievement community. Each of these recipes will come from Achievement team members or Achievement users like you!

We’ll also tell you a little about the recipe author and the dish. Because sharing a meal is about so much more than the food. It’s about coming together.

The Story

I love asparagus! And it just so happens, that May is National Asparagus Month! And since it’s also Celiac Awareness Month, I knew I had to share this recipe.

I’m a sucker for cream soups, but I have celiac disease which can make it almost impossible for me to find safe soup in a restaurant or out of a package. Most cream soups start with a roux to ensure that rich, creamy texture.

Now, I could get that with a gluten-free flour, but I try to keep things as simple and healthy as possible.

So creating a thick creamy soup without the need for thickeners was top priority for me!

Luckily, I love to cook.

This soup gets it’s texture by using the parts of the asparagus stalk that you would normally toss out. Which also means it helps reduce food waste — which is a big win!

And the best part…it’s full of good-for-you nutrients and easily aligns with many dietary needs and preferences.

Ingredients:

2 pounds fresh asparagus

1 small onion

2 cloves garlic

4 cups vegetable broth (or chicken broth)

1 cup heavy cream

Pinch of fresh ground nutmeg (pre ground will work too!)

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Trim woody ends of asparagus and place in a large pot — reserve the rest for later! ***If there are very thick, hard parts at the bottom, remove and discard.
2. Cover with broth and heat to boiling.
3. When the broth reaches a full boil, reduce to simmer, cover, and cook until stalks are tender. 20–40 minutes, depending on the toughness of the asparagus stalks.
4. Remove any stalks that have remained too hard or woody (that won’t puree nicely).
5. Chop onion and garlic and remaining asparagus. Add to the pot. These can be rough chopped as it will all be pureed later.
6. Return to a boil. Add a pinch of salt and a pinch of freshly ground nutmeg. ***You can leave the nutmeg out if you don’t like it or are unsure. The idea is not to taste it, just to add a depth of flavor to the soup.
7. Cook until veggies are tender.
8. Remove from heat and puree using an immersion blender, or allow to cool and transfer to a standing blender in batches and then return to the pan.
9. Reheat until warmed through and add in cream. Allow to heat through, but do not boil.
10. Salt and pepper to taste.

Modifications:

This dish is already gluten free, vegetarian, and keto-friendly (trust me, you won’t know it — it’s so rich and delicious!). But you can easily make it Vegan and Paleo as well by substituting the heavy cream with full-fat coconut cream.

If you’re not familiar with coconut cream, it’s the solid part of a can of coconut milk (before you mix it up). So, if you can’t find canned coconut cream, you can use the solid cream part of a can of coconut milk.

It does change the flavor a bit, but I’ve done it plenty of times and it is still very tasty!

Tips:

• I save the woody ends of asparagus throughout the year and freeze them. Then, when I want to make this soup, I pull them out of the freezer and cook them down with the rest. This gives the soup a much deeper flavor. And it means less food waste!
• Use chicken bone broth instead of vegetable broth for added nutrition and a dose of gut-healing collagen!
  

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Coronavirus has changed our usual cooking routine! We hope that turning to the kitchen to try a new recipe has helped create some calm during an otherwise crazy time. We had so many great community submissions last week that we wanted to round up a few more to share in our second recipe digest.

Chicken Centered Recipes:

• Chicken Bread Recipe
• Spicy Basil Thai Chicken
• Baked Lemon Garlic Chicken
• Chicken Salad
• One Pot Creamy Chicken Tortellini

Veggie Friendly Meals:

• Cauliflower Mac and Cheese
• Socca Pizza with Sun-dried Tomatoes and Pesto
• Easy Hummus
• Chickpea and Spinach Curry
• Paleo Sweet Potato Toast
• BBQ Jackfruit Sandwiches with Avocado Slaw
• Black Bean Sweet Potato Enchiladas

Baking Goodness:

• 3 Ingredient Flatbread
• 30 minute dinner rolls
• Banana Bread and an oatmeal banana bread variety (for an extra twist banana coffee cake!)
• Creamy 1 ingredient banana ice cream
• Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Breakfast Squares
• Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bakes

As a reminder, we’ve pinned all of these to our Creative Coronavirus Meals board on Pinterest.

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We recently polled our community to ask if they had become more creative with their meals since the coronavirus. We heard back and 55% of members who responded said yes. We then followed up to see what types of recipes and food hacks are keeping them happy and healthy during this time.

We were overwhelmed by the number of recipes shared, so we decided that we’ll reveal a series of recipes over the next few weeks. We’ll curate all of our top community picks on our Creative Coronavirus Meals Pinterest board.

For our first edition of crowdsourced favorites, check out these go-to easy bites and soothing soups.

Go-To Easy Bites:

1. Deviled Eggs
2. 15 Pantry Recipes for Emergency Preparedness
3. Self-Quarantine Recipes from the New York Times
4. 5 ingredients or less high protein smoothies! (+a green smoothie)
5. Easy Overnight Oats

Soothing Soups:

Vegetarian:

1. Rosemary Garlic White Bean Soup
2. Mexican Lentil Soup
3. Alison Roman’s Chickpea Stew
4. Spicy Instant Pot Taco Soup
5. Cabbage Soup

Non-Vegetarian:

1. Thai Red Curry Noodle Soup
2. Quick and Easy Chinese Noodle Soup
3. Zuppa Toscana Soup
4. Cabbage Roll Soup Recipe
5. Buffalo Black Bean Chilli

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