This is a fun take on traditional nachos which normally use tortilla chips as a base. You can certainly use chips here with all the fun breakfast toppings, but other options are whole grain waffles, pancakes, or waffle fries. Personally, I like the indentations in waffles to catch all the toppings! Basically, anything that you would put in a breakfast burrito would be amazing on Breakfast Nachos!! See more of my suggestions at the bottom of the recipe. You do not have to follow my measurements for toppings and you can mix and match with the toppings you like. Remember, breakfast needs protein, so make sure you’re adding your preferred protein, either plant-based or animal-based or both.
Slow cooker white bean soup with sausage and collard greens recipe (stovetop version, too)
I know so many of you are fighting cold weather and stuffy noses, so I thought I would share with you a new favorite soup in our house. Â My friend and student Lynette gave me the recipe because it has been popular with her family. Â Nothing beats a warm and hearty bowl of soup when you’re not feeling 100% and this one is particularly fantastic since you place everything into a slow cooker in the morning and it’s ready by dinnertime (also great when you’re not feeling 100%.)
People in my classes have been begging me for more slow cooker recipes, especially the dump-and-start kind. Â If you don’t have a slow cooker, do not fear. Â I will give you directions for a stovetop version. Â Whereas I normally prefer to saute aromatic vegetables before using them in a soup or stew since it adds more flavor, in this recipe the extra step doesn’t make much difference. Â Lucky us! Â Although the original recipe doesn’t call for it, I prefer to soak my beans to neutralize the phytic acid, a hard-to-digest anti-nutritient. Â Soaking is optional though, as the slow cooker will easily cook the beans to a creamy softness without soaking.
This was a perfect entree soup for dinner paired with corn muffins and a green salad. Â More importantly, all my kids, including the picky one, just loved it. Â I know some people can’t get into the idea of “just” soup for dinner. Â But I promise this is a hearty one. Â Beans are loaded with protein and fiber which both help keep you full for longer. Â There is also a small amount of sausage in the soup (I used chicken sausage) which you can omit if you’re vegetarian or vegan or use your favorite vegan sausage to add a little smokiness to the soup. Â For a more affordable dish, you can use a small ham hock for flavor instead of the sausage.
In my opinion everything is better, more alkalizing and more nutritious with dark leafy greens. Â I hope you are finding new and delicious ways to incorporate this food group into your diet. Â Kale seems to be the “it” leafy green of the moment, that it’s nice to see another leafy green in a recipe. Â Collard greens are used in this soup, but I’m sure cabbage or kale would be equally delicious here. Â This recipe is a keeper no matter how you make it!
Slow Cooker White Bean Soup with Sausage and Collard Greens
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried beans such as cannellini or great Northern, picked through for stones or debris, soaked* for at least 6 hours in cold water and drained
- ½ pound andouille sausage links halved lengthwise and sliced crosswise (I used a 12-ounce package of Applegate Farms chicken apple sausage)
- 1 large onion chopped
- 2 stalks celery chopped
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme
- 8 cups low-sodium or unsalted chicken or vegetable broth preferably homemade
- 1 bunch collard greens stems discarded and leaves cut into-bite-size pieces (about 8 cups)
- 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar
- sea salt and black pepper to taste salt will vary based on what stock or sausage you use
- unrefined olive oil for drizzling optional
Instructions
- In a 4-6 quart slow cooker (mine is a 6.5 quart and it turned out great), combine the beans, sausage, onion, celery, and thyme. Add the broth and stir to combine.
- Cover and cook until the beans are tender, on LOW for 7 to 8 hours or HIGH for 4-5 hours.
- minutes before serving, remove and discard the thyme sprigs and add the collard greens. Cover and cook until the greens are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in the vinegar and salt and pepper to taste.
- Drizzle with olive oil, if desired.
Notes
Turkey sausages with cabbage and fennel recipe
People ask me all the time for more recipes that are Fast! No, faster!  And easy! I understand the challenges that people face when pulling together a weeknight meal, whether they are parents or not. However, we need to put some time into our cooking. I haven’t figured out yet how to make something in no time that’s worth eating. But this sausage and vegetable dish is my idea of fast food.
I buy precooked sausages from Applegate Farms, which don’t contain spooky ingredients like nitrates or nitrites (hooray, no carcinogens!).  Slice up some cabbage and fennel and you’ve got yourself a quick and easy dinner. Make extra and toss it with pasta the next day, just save some of the pasta cooking water after you drain it if you need to moisten the sausage dish up. If you have a favorite sausage that is not precooked, I would slice it or remove the meat from the casing and sauté that first. Remove it from the pan, sauté your vegetables and put the sausage back in.
If you haven’t cooked with fennel before, it has a fresh, licorice undertone and perfectly complements the fennel seed that is usually present in most sausages.   I use red cabbage here for color, for the extra phytonutrients that come with it and the higher C profile than green, but you can certainly use green cabbage if that’s what you have handy. Cabbage is part of the cruciferous family of vegetables – a group that I encourage you to incorporate regularly into your diet. These include all the cabbages and kale, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts and bok choy. These vegetables contain some potent anti-cancer compounds called sulphurophanes. Cabbage also contains some cholesterol-lowering benefits as well as loads of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients. It is also relatively inexpensive, to boot. What are you, in love with cabbage or something? Well, maybe I am!
turkey sausages with cabbage and fennel recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons unrefined cold-pressed extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon fennel seeds optional
- 1 large onion halved and sliced thinly
- ½ red or green cabbage sliced thinly
- 2 fennel bulbs tops removed and bulbs sliced thinly
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 8 nitrate-free pre-cooked sausages, sliced on the diagonal as small or large as you prefer. I cut each link into 4 or 5 slices.
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the fennel seeds and stir until fragrant, about 3 minutes.
- Add onion, cabbage and fennel. Season with sea salt and pepper and sauté until just tender.
- Add sausages and cook until heated through.
- Add white wine to deglaze the pan. Cook until wine evaporates. Taste for seasoning and serve immediately.