Food & Recipes

Pasta and White Beans

2011-12-19T18:40:00.000-05:00

Someone on a message board awhile back mentioned this as a quick, cheap meal, so we tried it tonight. Yummy, healthy, and cheap, what more can one ask for?!?!

Cook 6-8 oz whole wheat pasta of your choice (we used the corkscrews)
Meanwhile, saute some chopped onion and chopped celery (I used one small onion and 3 stalks (is a stalk the whole thing or one "spear"? 3 spears is what I used . . .) of celery) in some butter or olive oil. Add 2 cans great northern beans, drained (make it cheaper, and healthier, by cooking dry beans), and heat through. While it's all heating, go through your spice cabinet and add whatever herbs & spices sound good. I used some adobe seasoning, another seasoning blend that someone gave me, not sure what all is in it, some sage, and some sea salt. When the pasta's done, stir it into the bean mixture and serve, topped with parmesan if you like.

Kids are chowing down on it, so I call it a success :)

Jam Surprise Muffins

2011-12-14T19:39:00.000-05:00

I adapted this recipe from this site.

(Makes 12 muffins)

1 egg
3/4 c milk
1/2 c butter or coconut oil, melted
2 c ww flour
1/3 c sucanat
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
Juice sweetened preserves for filling

Preheat oven to 400F and grease muffin pans. Combine flour, sucanat, baking powder and salt.
In a separate bowl beat egg slightly and add milk and melted butter/oil. Add to dry ingredients. Stir until just moist (do NOT overmix).

Spoon batter into muffin pan, filling each cup about 1/2 full. Add a spoonful of preserves to each muffin, then top with additional muffin mix.

Bake until golden, about 15-20 min.

Garam Masala Lentil Soup

2011-12-13T10:53:00.002-05:00

Adapted from this site:

1 lg onion, chopped

2 Tbsp coconut oil

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1/2 tsp turmeric

1 c lentils, rinsed

1 c brown rice

8 c water

1 can of coconut milk (14oz)

Salt to taste

In lg pot cook onions an turmeric in oil for about 5 min. Add garlic. Cook about 5 min more. Add water, lentils and rice and bring to a simmer.Turn heat to low and cook until lentils and rice are soft, about 45 min.

Use immersion blender to blend to desired consistency.

Make Tadka:

1/4 c coconut oil

3/4 tsp cardamom

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp cloves

1/8 tsp nutmeg

Melt coconut oil in small saucepan. Add spices and stir until you can smell the spices. Don't burn!

Whisk Tadka into the soup. Add coconut milk, bring back to a simmer, add salt to taste, and serve.

Quick Black Bean Soup

2011-05-20T19:46:00.000-04:00

Tonight I needed a soup recipe that I could make in, oh . . . 10 minutes! A google for "quick soup recipes" brought lots of recipes from people who have a very different definition of "quick" (80 minutes is NOT quick in my book, thankyouverymuch, much less crockpot recipes! but I digress . . .). One thing that jumped out at me was black bean soup recipes. With canned beans (which I had) they could be quick. But all the recipes I read (2 or 3) had ingredients that someone in my family wouldn't eat. So I used those recipes as a rough guide for proportions and "winged it". . . here's what I came up with:
2-3 Tbsp butter (or olive oil)
1 onion
2 cloves garlic (should have done 3-4, I ended up adding some garlic powder since there wasn't enough garlic, but real garlic is better)
2 c water or chicken stock
3 Tbsp McKay's Chicken Seasoning (eliminate if using chicken stock)
3 cans black beans, drained & rinsed
a "shake" of cumin
a tiny pinch of red pepper
salt to taste
a couple large spoonfuls your favorite salsa

Saute onion and garlic in butter. Add water, chicken seasoning, 2 cans black beans, and seasonings. Heat through. Use immersion blender to mostly blend the soup. Add last can of beans & salsa, adjust seasonings as needed, heat through. Serve. I would guess sour cream would make a nice garnish on this (I'm not a fan of sour cream on soup, and didn't think to suggest it to dh until he was done).

Sassy & MiniMe both declared it DELICIOUS! If time isn't a factor, cooking dry beans would make it cheaper. Hubby's review was "I can eat it" but he tends to not be a big soup person OR bean person, so that's about all I can ask for from him LOL.

Sauteed Chard

2011-05-09T12:35:00.000-04:00

My whole family likes spinach, which is great, but greens tend to be high in pesticides, and organic spinach can be expensive, and I've been a complete failure at growing spinach. I've heard that Chard is easier to grow, so I decided to see what we think of chard. I combined 2 or 3 recipes, and came up with a winner! But in typical LaRee fashion, it's not a real exact recipe . . .

2-4 Tbsp butter

1 onion, chopped

1 bunch chard

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

juice from 1/2 lemon

salt to taste

Melt 2-4 Tbsp butter in large cast iron skillet. Add onion, and cook till soft. While onion cooks, cut the stems out of the chard, and chop. Add to skillet. Saute until soft. Meanwhile, chop chard leaves. Once stems & onions are cooked, add chard and cook till wilted (if needed add a little water). Remove from heat, add garlic, lemon juice, and salt.

Mock Orange Julius

2011-05-03T11:00:00.000-04:00

I've had this recipe on my "to try" list for quite awhile now, but I had alot of excuses . . . it seems like a summer thing to me, but oranges aren't in season in the summer and lots of other yummy fruits are. I don't have an ice maker and am HOPELESS at keeping ice cubes filled. . . I don't generally have buttermilk in the house, and don't use it enough to be worth making . .

So finally, today, I put my thinking cap on and adapted the recipe to how things are in our house!

about half a can frozen orange juice concentrate
several spoonfuls plain yogurt
a little more than one can (from the OJ) milk
a little maple syrup (actually this time, I had some powdered sucanat still in the blender from last time I made it, so just used that for sweetener, but if it wasn't already there, it would be easier to sweeten with maple syrup, it doesn't need much sweetening though)
1-2 tsp vanilla extract

Dump it all in the blender & blend it up. Adjust ingredients as needed for taste. Enjoy a yummy, nutritious version of an orange julius for breakfast, or a snack or whenever!! I'm thinking this will make a quick, not-too-messy breakfast or lunch if we need to eat in the car. I also want to try making this ahead & freezing it, to take in lunches, it can keep the rest of our food cold, and then be an icy drink (or possibly still frozen enough to eat w/ a spoon) at the end of our meal.

Since I know that fresh squeezed orange juice is healthier than OJ concentrate (or store-bought, pasturized orange juice), I'm thinking next winter, when we can get, if not local, at least in-season oranges, I'll squeeze some of them and freeze the juice, then it will be frozen and ready to use in this, and other smoothies, etc.

Overnight Granola

2011-05-02T12:32:00.000-04:00

I love granola. And I love the convenience of dumping some in a bowl with milk and calling it breakfast. BUT I don't love the price or ingredients of most store-bought granola. And I found with most "normal" granola recipes, I would get busy and forget to stir it, and it would burn. Or I would never get around to making it because it requires a day when I'm home all day to actually be there TO stir it as needed . . . then I came across this recipe. Finally, a recipe that doesn't require babysitting! I can throw this together at bedtime if need-be, though I typically try to have the older girls make it after supper.

Here's the recipe with my changes.
1/2 c Sucanat
1/4 c coconut oil
1/4 c butter (you can use all coconut oil, I found we prefer the flavor if we use some butter)
1/2 c honey (can substitute maple syrup for some, or probably all, of this if you prefer)
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla extract
7 c oats (or replace some of the oats with seeds, nuts, etc. . . whatever you like in your granola)

Combine sucanat, oils and honey in a small saucepan. Bring to a low boil. Remove from heat and stir in cinnamon and vanilla. Pour over oats in a large bowl, stir until well coated. Spread into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 375 for 10 min. Stir. Return to oven, TURN OVEN OFF! Leave in oven overnight. Yum!

Warm Chocolate Breakfast Pudding

2011-05-02T11:45:00.001-04:00

This is my adaptation of this recipe. But for some reason, when I make it, it turns out to be a soft pudding, not a drink. We all like it just fine that way!

3 c whole milk
4 egg yolks
1/4 c maple syrup
3 T Sucanat
4 Tbsp cocoa powder
1 T arrowroot powder
1 tsp vanilla extract

Combine all but the butter and vanilla in a saucepan and heat over med. heat, stirring, until it begins to thicken. Once thick, remove from heat, stir in vanilla extract and pour into mugs. This recipe fills 3 mugs with a little leftover, so it works well for the 3 girls and I for breakfast. Sassy & MiniMe each gets a full mug and I start Little Bit out with whatever won't fit in the 3 full mugs, but often give her some of mine as well.

I also scramble the leftover egg whites with browned butter, and sometimes some onion, and give some of that to Little Bit. MiniMe often eats some of it as well, and if there's any left, I get it LOL.

This makes a quick, filling breakfast that make my children think they're getting "dessert" for breakfast!

Spinach Ricotta Pasta

2011-03-16T22:14:00.000-04:00

A week or two ago I read a blog post that mentioned making a dish that was penne pasta, spinach, and ricotta cheese, but didn't actually give the recipe. So tonight I decided to try to re-create it . . .

1 lb whole wheat pasta (choose whatever shape you want, spirals worked well)
chopped fresh spinach (not sure how much I had, needed more . . . as much as you have, remember fresh spinach cooks down a LOT)
15 oz ricotta cheese
1-2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
salt to taste
shredded parmesan cheese

Cook pasta in salted water. During the last minute or two of cooking, add chopped spinach to cook it. Drain the pasta and spinach and stir in ricotta cheese, garlic and salt. Garnish each serving with shredded parmesan cheese.

Lentil Cups

2011-03-16T13:32:00.000-04:00

I've been meaning to try this recipe for awhile now, finally got around to it today . . . here's my version:

2 c cooked lentils (I added a bunch of random herbs & spices while they cooked, should have added more, or some after cooking, or both . . . )
2 eggs
1 Tbsp whole wheat flour
a few chopped carrots (didn't have bell pepper, wasn't fond of the carrots, will probably try other veggies in the future)
1 sm onion, chopped
handful of spinach, chopped
4 oz feta cheese crumbled (I was going to use shredded cheddar but saw the feta in the fridge from yesterday and figured I'd use it instead)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin pan. Stir all ingredients together. Spoon mixture into muffin pan (mine made 10, but since all ingredients were pretty approximate, my guess is it will vary). Bake for 20-25 minutes, let cool some in muffin pan before removing (ask me how I know LOL).

Verdict: Little Bit & L were only so-so on it. Though I think Little Bit's biggest problem was she saw a muffin pan coming out of the oven and was expecting cupcakes or muffins LOL. A wasn't feeling good today so only took a bite of mine, thought it was good though. I had meant to salt the lentils after cooking (one site suggested that salting prior to cooking would make the lentils tough), and forgot. These definitely needed salt, and as mentioned above, more herbs/flavor to the lentils. But definitely have promise! They're infinitely adaptable too. Whatever veggies, cheeses, etc need using up, here's a way to use them AND they're portable!

Greek Salad

2011-03-15T13:49:00.000-04:00

I decided to try this recipe for lunch today. But I was kind of lazy about it all, here's what I did:

1 large English cucumber, diced
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
4 oz feta cheese, crumbled
juice from one lemon
1 clove garlic, minced
a "glurg" of olive oil
a couple "shakes" of dried oregano, dried thyme and dried dulse

Stir it all together. I'm sure it would be better if we'd let it chill and the flavor meld for awhile, but we were hungry, the big girls & I scarfed down the whole thing. Yum!!

Bean Dip

2011-02-09T13:17:00.000-05:00

I was planning to have guacamole & chips for lunch, but when I went to make it, the avocados had gone bad (grumble, grumble), so . . . i decided to do bean dip instead. Couldn't be bothered with a recipe, so here's what I did . . .

1 can black beans, drained
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 large spoonfuls plain yogurt (used a tablespoon (the silverware kind, not the measuring kind) and plopped 2 big spoonfuls in)
2 large spoonfuls mild salsa (see above)
a shake of adobo seasoning
a shake of chili powder
a sprinkle of salt
a small handful of chopped fresh cilantro

Whiz it all up in the food processor. Taste and adjust as desired. Gobble it up with chips!

About half-way through her serving, L said "this is good! It tastes better than it looks" when I laughed & said "yeah, it's not very pretty is it?" she said "no, I was kinda scared to try it . .. " hee hee. A said she'd prefer it without the chili powder (or less), but both girls are happily eating it, so we'll call it a win :)

Creamy Potato Soup

2011-01-06T08:44:00.000-05:00

Last week, A wanted to make supper, and after looking at what we had in the house and some recipes, we decided on this one. We didn't notice much cheddar flavor to it, even using our favorite SHARP raw cheddar, so we'll just call it creamy potato soup.

2 onions
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp olive oil
6 lg potatoes, chopped
6 c water with vegetarian chicken seasoning as per the package (mine is 1 Tbsp seasoning per cup water)
1 tsp thyme
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c plain yogurt
1 c shredded cheddar cheese
salt & pepper to taste
baco-bits to garnish

Melt butter and olive oil in sopu pot. Saute onions. Add potatoes, water and chicken seasoning. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and add thyme. Simmer 15-20 min. Remove from heat and add garlic, yogurt, cheese, salt and pepper. Puree with an immersion blender to desired consistency. Garnish each serving with baco bits if desired.

Ranch Dressing Dry Mix (Heavenly Homemaker's)

2010-12-27T15:12:00.000-05:00

I've been on a quest off & on for years to find a healthy version of ranch dressing, but while *I* really like this recipe, the kids didn't (though in retrospect, I think the garlic was too strong for them. Next summer when fresh herbs are readily available, I'll try it again with less garlic and see if they'll go for it). But in the meantime . . . as I was writing up my menu for Christmas dinner, I decided to try Heavenly Homemaker's recipe for ranch dressing and see how it went over. I figured in a big group dinner like that, if the kids didn't like it, there would be other people to help me eat it, so that I didn't have as much left over, and they were less likely to think it might be something "healthy" than if it was just us. So, I mixed this up the day before, but made it with plain full fat yogurt instead of sour cream or creme fresh (I've been wanting to make creme fresh forEVER but haven't gotten around to it yet, so figured organic yogurt was a healthier option than conventional sour cream, and the grocery didn't have organic sour cream as I was madly doing my grocery shopping the day before). I have no idea if the girls ate any of it on Christmas day, but they just polished off a half-bag of baby carrots with a bowl of the dip for lunch today, and no comment was made about it tasting "weird", much less "gross", so apparently I've accomplished my healthy alternative :)

So, in case the above site ever deletes the recipe, here's Laura's awesome ranch dressing mix recipe:

5 Tbsp dried minced onions
7 tsp parsely flakes
4 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder

Combine and store in an airtight container.

For dip: combine 1 Tbsp dry mix with 1 c sour cream, kreme fesh, or plain yogurt

For dressing: Combine 1 Tbsp dry mix with 1/2 c mayonnaise and 1/2 c buttermilk or sour cream.

Mix at least a few hours in advance to let flavors blend together.

Broiled Grapefruit - 2 ways

2010-12-27T11:53:00.000-05:00

Several years ago we went to a bed & breakfast for our anniversary & as part of breakfast they served Broiled Grapefruit (or perhaps they called it baked grapefruit, I don't remember). It was delicious & I always meant to find a recipe and try it at home, but for some reason, I never did. A recent conversation with the girls, reminded me (don't ask me how it came up, I don't remember LOL) and I decided to try it. So I went online, read various recipes and kind of combined the parts that sounded good . . .

The way *I* like it:

Cut grapefruit in half, use a knife to cut around each section (I found it hard to get the sections out with a grapefruit spoon after it was hot, the "walls" weren't as stiff, so I prefer to pre-cut it). Dot approximately 1 tsp (I don't measure, just cut off a small slice of butter and break it into "dot"-size pcs) on each half. Combine approx 1 Tbsp sucanat (natural sugar, or brown sugar, but sucanat is WORLDS healthier than commercial brown sugar, which is about the stupidest product idea I've found yet) and 1 tsp cinnamon. Sprinkle this mixture to lightly cover the top of the grapefruit halves. Broil for 6-8 min until the top is all "poofy".

The way dd likes it:

She doesn't like the sugar and cinnamon but she likes the "hot grapefruit", and she likes to "dig it myself", so for her I just cut the grapefruit in half, dot a little butter on top (not sure if that's really necessary, but seems like it should make it brown abit better?) & broil for 6-8 min.

(and just to be different, my other dd likes her grapefruit un-broiled. The toddler steals bites from all of us LOL).

Mediterranean (I think) Flatbread Sandwiches (or salad)

2010-12-21T16:04:00.000-05:00

This was a total dump recipe, and the girls liked it, so I figured I'd better write down the "recipe" such as it is. It's a great, quick lunch:

I had some flatbread (think pita bread w/o the "pocket") I needed to use and was in a hurry. I threw together the following:

feta cheese (I THINK it was roughly 4oz, I think I'd used "half" of an 8oz package and this is what was left)
1 can chick peas, drained
1/2 a can sliced water chestnuts
some chopped tomatoes
Some fresh spinach (sliced into strips)
Dried herbs (I don't remember which ones)
salt
lemon juice & olive oil

Stirred it all together, put some in a bowl for Little Bit to eat as a salad. The rest of us put some in whole wheat flatbread and ate it like a sandwich, YUM!!

Sabbath Roast

2010-12-05T10:13:00.000-05:00

My aunt makes a vegetarian roast called Sabbath Roast, that my dd, A2 really likes, here's the recipe (with a couple adaptations I've made):

SABBATH ROAST

1 cup dry burger granules (TVP) reconstituted with 1 cup hot water (next time I'm going to try replacing some of the TVP with cooked lentils)

½-1 cup shredded cheese

1 medium onion, chopped fine in food processor

1 cup crushed cracker crumbs

¾ cup cream

1/8 cup oil

¼ tsp sage

½ tsp salt

1/8 tsp mace (I couldn't find this in our grocery store, so left it out)

½ tsp poultry seasoning

2 eggs

Mix all ingredients well; spray baking dish with Pam and bake 45-60 minutes at 350.

(My aunt said she uses a 7x11 pan for 1 recipe and a 9x13 pan if doubled or tripled, I used an 8x8 pan for a single recipe)

Chocolate Coconut Ice Cream

2010-11-21T12:34:00.000-05:00

I adapted this from Nourishing Gourmet's recipe.

1 can full fat coconut milk + enough raw milk to equal a total of 3 cups (I want a non-coconut chocolate ice cream for Thanksgiving this year, so will just use 3 cups of milk, I'm thinking it should work fine)
2/3 c cocoa powder
6 Tbsp maple syrup (still playing with the sweetener, but for now this is what I'm going to try)
1 tsp vanilla

Whisk together, pour into ice cream maker & follow the directions for your ice cream maker.

Mac & Cheese

2010-10-19T20:18:00.000-04:00

I happened upon this mac & cheese recipe awhile back, and decided to try it today. I have to admit, I didn't quite get past the "stringy" stage before I got impatient, but the girls both liked the cheesiness, so it worked for us:

In a nutshell the recipe (in case the other site goes down) is this:

You will need:
Equal parts dry pasta & shredded cheese (sharp cheddar &/or parmesan)
a small amount of milk, yogurt, buttermilk or milk

Cook pasta, drain & return to the pot. Add shredded cheese & milk (or whatever) and cook on low heat, stirring constantly until cheese melts. Wait till it goes past the stringy globby stage and gets creamy (though we ate it once it was past hte globby stage but still stringy, it was good that way too).

Easy, and cheesy enough to please my chees-a-holic family. Though one reason I wanted to use this over the recipe I usually use was to avoid the constant stirring, and the cheese took so long to melt and get un-globby, that I don't think I accomplished that, still, it WAS good. . . .

Lentils & Rice

2010-09-23T11:55:00.000-04:00

Rodney wasn't going to be here for supper tonight so I went searching for recipes I wanted to try that were things Rodney wouldn't like LOL. I actually was planning to make zucchini "crab" cakes, but thought that wouldn't be enough all on it's own, so noticed this crock pot recipe and thought, hey, I can put this in this morning and we can eat it for supper with the zucchini. But then I got lazy and when supper time rolled around I skipped the zucchini and we just ate this. But the girls LOVED it! We ate ALL of it! It's easy, cheap & healthy, what more could you want!!! (but I don't know what makes them "tacos" they're not all all mexican-like)

3 cups chicken broth (or water and chicken seasoning)
3/4 c uncooked lentils
1/2 c uncooked brown rice
3/4 c chopped onion (I didn't measure, just used 1 onion)
1/2 tsp sweet basil (I used fresh, and didn't measure)
1/4 tsp oregano (I used fresh, and didn't measure)
1/4 tsp thyme (I used fresh, and didn't measure)
1/4 tsp garlic powder (I used a spoon full of minced garlic)

Stir together in crockpot and cook on low for 6 hours. Can be baked at 300F for 1 1/2 hours.

Serve as is, or with tortillas, sour cream, shredded cheese, etc. YUM!!!

It also occurs to me that if you used dried herbs, this could be premixed and you could just dump it in the crockpot with 3 cups of water and some chopped onions from the freezer. How easy would THAT be?!?!?

Whole Wheat Vanilla Wafers

2010-09-12T11:32:00.000-04:00

Another yummy recipe from Heavenly Homemakers.

1/2 c butter, softened
3/4 c sucanat
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 c ww flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder

Cream butter and sucanat. Bean in egg and vanilla. Stir in dry ingredients. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper (I didn't do this since I was using a baking stone, I should have). Place very small spoonfuls on paper. Bake at 325 for 5-15 min (I baked 15 min). Turn off oven and leave in oven to crisp for about 1/2 hr.

YUMMY!

Perpetual Pancakes

2010-09-05T23:10:00.000-04:00

This is my adaptation of this recipe. I love that I can mix it up the night before & just fry however many we want in the morning!

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 cup plain yogurt

1 cup milk

2 Tbsp oil

2 eggs

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

Combine all ingredients, refrigerate overnight. May be stored in the refrigerator up to 2 weeks. Can also be used for waffles.

Minted Sweet Pea Soup

2010-09-02T20:04:00.000-04:00

Daddy wasn't home for supper tonight, so the girls & I went hunting for a recipe to try that WE would like and HE wouldn't. The girls decided they wanted soup (because, you know, 90+ degree weather in September is perfect soup weather LOL, but we have A/C so whatever . . .) so we started browsing the myriad of recipes I bookmark and never get around to trying. And we found this one. I was SURE we had a huge bag of frozen peas in the freezer, so said yes, we could definitely make it. Only to realize, as we started to cook, that we apparently finished the huge bag and ate half of a smaller bag, so all I had was 1/2 lb of peas. However, I DID have several bags of baby lima beans in the freezer (they're one of the few veggies hubby likes, so we eat them often), so we decided to use half peas & half lima beans. It was still a yummy soup, but we all felt that it would be BETTER with straight peas, so we'll be re-making this soon with all peas. Here's the recipe, with my modifications:

1/3 c butter
1 lb peas
1/2 c water
some chopped onions (I didn't measure)
2 1/2 c milk or half-and-half (we use raw milk, I was opening a new gallon anyway & it's hard to mix teh cream in w/o pouring some off the top to give it more room, so I poured some cream into the measuring cup & then shook the rest in & finished measuring with the whole milk, so slightly creamier than whole milk not quite half & half, would be my guess)
1-2 tsp fresh mint, snipped (didn't measure, but I'd guess we used at least 3-4 tsp and could have used more)
salt to taste
chives for garnish

In a med saucepan melt the butter on low heat, then add peas, water & onions . Cook 15-20 min for fresh peas, 5-10 minutes for frozen peas. Don't over-cook, you want the peas tender, not mushy.

Remove from burner, let cool slightly. Add milk, mint and salt. Puree with immersion blender. Return to burner and heat till heated through, do not boil. Garnish with snipped chives &/or snipped mint.

For the 3 of us (plus sharing numerous bites with Little Bit), one recipe wasn't enough for a main dish, we'll be doubling this recipe in the future.

Hummus Platter

2010-08-25T18:18:00.000-04:00

I recently noticed this post, for a quick simple meal idea. So we tried it for supper tonight. I made hummus using this recipe (a couple notes on it, I couldn't tell if it was supposed to have 1 clove of garlic or 2 (it lists "1 clove garlic" twice in the ingredients list, so I used one, the girls aren't huge fans of garlic anyway, it needed abit more garlic. It also was WAY too salty, though to be fair, the girls were helping me & one of them measured the salt & I didn't check it before they dumped it in, so it might have been abit more than it should have been). And then served it along with raw feta cheese, sliced cherry tomatoes, black olives, and baby carrots (not to put on the bread, but to dip in the hummus if anyone wanted). I didn't have pita bread, so served it with tortillas. Pita bread or flat bread would be better. I also think, next time I'll also include lettuce leaves, I wanted more "fresh & crunchy" than I had. Anyway, it was a quick, easy, healthy meal, gotta love that!

Fried Oatmeal

2010-08-06T11:03:00.000-04:00

This morning I'd promised the girls a cooked breakfast, then realized we are out of baking powder (no pancakes or muffins) and honey (no breakfast cookies). And only had 4 eggs (no eggs & fake bacon or sausage) . . . so I started hunting through recipes I'd saved, and found this one for oatmeal pancakes. The girls agreed to try it. We didn't have leftover oatmeal, so I cooked oatmeal first, then let it cool long enough to not "cook" the eggs when I stirred them in, that makes for a LONG "prep" time, but oh well . . . I don't know if I'm just incompetent or if I had too low an egg to oatmeal ratio or what, but they didn't stick together into "pancakes" or patties for me.

This "recipe" is still a work in progress for us, BUT both girls (& I) preferred it to regular oatmeal (I have texture issues with regular oatmeal, the girls will eat it, but it's not their favorite), so we'll keep playing with it.

4-5 cups cold oatmeal
4-5 eggs
a couple pinches of salt
a little melted coconut oil (even with plenty of oil in the pan, these seemed to want to stick, once I stirred some oil into the batter, it seemed to work better)

Stir all the above together. Melt coconut oil in pan, drop small spoonfuls of batter into pan and fry. Serve with maple syrup.

Picnic Pocket Roll

2010-06-23T21:47:00.000-04:00

This is adapted from this recipe.

1 lb pizza or bread dough (I used the pizza dough recipe posted on this site)

1 Tbs olive oil

4-5 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, chopped

1/2 T each oregano, rosemary & basil, minced (I used fresh, and didn't measure)

1 lb (approx) reconstituted TVP

1 tsp salt (to taste)

3/4 c tomato sauce

1/2 lb grated mozzarella

Brown TVP with olive oil, garlic, onion, salt & herbs. Stir in tomato sauce. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. On cookie sheet greased with olive oil roll out dough into rectangle. spread cheese and meat mixture over dough. starting with long side of dough facing you, roll dough, crimping edges. Bake 10 min. reduce heat to 350 and continue baking 25 min or tilll golden. Remove from oven and allow to cool 15 min on rack before slicing. Serve immediately OR slice and store in airtight container to serve later at room temp. Or freeze for later use.

Corndog Muffins

2010-06-23T21:25:00.000-04:00

I saw this recipe on Heavenly Homemakers's site awhile ago, but just recently got around to trying it. It was a hit with the whole family! It's quick and easy to make AND they freeze well so I can make a big batch and freeze the extras for "grab and go" meals another day.

We're vegetarian so I use vegetarian hotdogs and hubby doesn't like anything at all sweet so I adapted the cornbread recipe to eliminate the honey. Here's how we make it:

1 c cornmeal

1 c whole wheat flour

1 t baking powder

1 t salt

2 eggs

1/4 c melted butter (generous because the honey added some moisture & I skipped it)

1 c buttermilk or milk (generous, see above)

hotdogs (4-6)

Preheat oven to 400. Grease or add paper liners to 12 muffin pans. Stir together dry ingredients. Add wet. Stir till blended. Fill each muffin pan almost full (these don't rise alot). Cut hotdogs in half or thirds so that a piece will lay in each muffin (depends on the size of your muffin pans and the size of your hotdogs). You can just lay the hotdog pieces on top of the batter in each muffin cup, which is what I did. Or, if you want the hotdog to be "hidden" inside the muffin, push it down or partially fill each muffin cup, add hotdogs, then finish filling the muffin cups. Bake about 20 min, till golden.

Scrambled French Toast

2010-02-07T11:08:00.000-05:00

I found this in an emergency preparedness book, Just In Case. It's a great way to use up ends of loaves of bread, and the girls love it.

2-3 eggs
1/2 c milk
nutmeg
cinnamon
bread, torn into small pieces/crumbled

Beat eggs in lg bowl. Add milk and generous sprinkles of nutmeg and cinnamon. Stir in pieces of torn bread, crumbled biscuits, etc until liquid is all absorbed. Fry on a hot, greased skillet.

We eat it with maple syrup, YUM!! Last time we had some leftover Challah bread and that was especially delicious!

Ramen Noodle Salad

2009-08-08T23:25:00.000-04:00

One of my mom's friends gave me this recipe.

Salad:
1 sm head of cabbage, shredded
1 c celery (finely chopped)
1 bunch, including tops, of green onion (I used chives instead)
1 c toasted, slivered almonds
1 T sesame seeds, toasted lightly
1 bag ramen noodles, crushed, not cooked

Dressing:
5 T fresh lemon juice
3 T sugar
1/2 c grapeseed oil (I didn't have enough, so I used I mix of grapeseed and olive oil)
2 t Braggs Liquid Aminos (like soy sauce)

Mix the dressing the night before, put in jar and refrigerate.

When ready to serve, put dressing on vegetables. Add noodles, almonds and sesame seeds. Mix well.

Next time I think I'll use a little less oil and less sugar, but overall this was really good! Kids both ate it and asked for more!

Blueberry Oat Muffins

2009-08-07T10:14:00.000-04:00

These are adapted from this recipe (because we didn't have oat bran).

2 1/2 c whole wheat flour
1 c oatmeal ground into coarse flour (in blender)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 c Sucanat
1/2 c butter, melted
1 1/2 c milk, yogurt, kefir or buttermilk
2 eggs
2 Tbsp molasses
3 c blueberries

Preheat oven to 350. Combine dry ingredients, add wet ingredients, mix well. Fold in blueberries. Bake for 20-25 min.

Makes 24 muffins

Ranch Dressing

2009-07-27T16:07:00.000-04:00

I adapted this from Pioneer Woman's recipe but made it more of a dip rather than a dressing. The girls declared it "too herb-y, but I think it's yummy!

I didn't measure the herbs, so will include the amounts in the original recipe, I just picked some that I thought were about right.

1 clove garlic, chopped
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 c mayo (approx)
1 c sour cream (approx)
1/4 c chopped flat leaf parsley
1 to 2 Tbsp chopped chives
1 to 2 tsp chopped dill
2 sprigs oregano, chopped

mash galrlic and salt together with fork. Stir everything together, adjust to taste as needed.

It occured to me as I was finished chopping everything and stirring it together, that the mini bowl of my food processor would probably work great for this. So next time I think I'll just put all the herbs, including the garlic & salt, in the minibowl of the food processor and chop everything up, then add the sour cream & mayo and let it stir everything together.

I really like the flavor of this & it's easy and healthier too! (and cheap when all the herbs but the parsley grow in my garden LOL).

Blueberry Clafoutis

2009-06-05T22:32:00.000-04:00

I found this recipe on the Nourished Kitchen website:

This can be served as a dessert or for breakfast/brunch.

1 to 1 1/2 c blueberries
3 eggs
1 c cream
2 heaping teaspoons flour
3 heaping teaspoons sucanat (or sugar)

Rinse & drain blueberries and layer on bottom of a pie plate. Whik together rest of ingredients & pour over blueberries, making sure to completely cover blueberries. Bake at 375 for 40 min or until clafoutis is brown on top & knife in center comes out clean. This is an easy, tasty, not too sweet dessert. My girls each ate a serving but didn't ask for seconds, so I'll be saving this recipe to serve when we have company to help me eat it.

Five Minute Bread

2009-05-12T14:02:00.000-04:00

There are various versions of this floating around right now (and I have my name on the waiting list for the book at the library) but this one came through one a yahoo group I'm on & it seemed easiest and worth a try. I made a half recipe, baked one yesterday and the other today, and each day the girls & I polished off the whole loaf warm from the oven, YUM! When I asked hte girls if I was supposed to make more they gave a resounding YES!!!

3 c lukewarm water
1 1/2 Tbsp yeast
1 1/2 Tbsp salt
6 1/2 c flour (I used whole wheat, it was pretty dense bread, good flavor though, and worked fine since we were eating it all fresh, but for sandwiches or to keep longer, might do better w/ at least a blend, or adding gluten flour or something . . . )
Cornmeal (to sprinkle on baking stone)

Stir all but cornmeal together in a large bowl. Cover w/ plastic wrap (I used a towel instead) and let rise at room temperature for 2-5 hrs.

At this point you can bake some/all of it or put it in the fridge to use later (most recipes say to put it in a plastic bowl w/ a lid, this one didn't specify, I'm not a fan of plastic for food storage, so I put it in a glass bowl & set a plate over top as a lid).

When you want to bake some, take one grapefruit size bundle of dough and form into a ball, using extra flour if needed. Place on a baking stone sprinkled with cornmeal. Allow to rise about 45 min (mine didn't rise much, but our house is pretty cool right now, and I would guess using at least some white flour would mean it would rise more? Or maybe I should've let it sit longer?). Form an X slash on the top of the loaf. Bake for 20 min at 450 degrees.

This recipe makes 4 (1 lb) loaves (so rather than trying to figure out how big a grapefruit is, I'd just divide the dough in 4ths LOL)

Crockpot Spinach Lasagna

2009-03-25T13:30:00.000-04:00

This recipe was posted on Menus 4 Moms a couple weeks ago & today was a good day to try it since dh wasn't coming home for lunch (he doesn't eat tomato sauce):

cooking spray
1 box lasagna noodles
1 jar spaghetti sauce
4 c mozzarella cheese
8 oz ricotta cheese
4 c fresh spinach
1/2 c water

Spray bottom & sides of crockpot. Place a few spoonfuls of sauce in crockpot to keep noodles from sticking. Break uncooked lasagna noodles into pieces & place 1/3 in a layer in crockpot. Pour 1/3 sauce evenly over noodles. Layer 1/2 the ricotta, 1/3 the mozarella, 1/2 of the spinach. Place a few spoonfuls of sauce lightly over spinach. Repeat layers: broken noodles, sauce, cheeses, spinach, a little more sauce. Layer rest of noodle pieces. Cover with rest of sauce, sprinkle rest of mozarella on top. Pour water around edges. Cover & cook on low for about 3 hours, until noodles are soft.

I don't know if it was because I was using lasagna noodles that had been in the cupboard forever, or just my crockpot, but I should've let it cook longer, will probably try 3 1/2 hrs next time. The recipe didn't say what size jar of speghetti sauce to use. I use Aldi's spaghetti sauce (read the ingredients, their chunky marinara doesn't have sugar/corn syrup, most of their others do), which may be a smaller jar than some brands? Anyway I felt like I needed more sauce, so used probably closer to 1 1/2 jars (had an open jar in the fridge so just used more out of it as needed). And it could've used a little salt (again, probably varies depending on the spaghetti sauce?). But all in all, it was super easy & all 3 of us liked it. The girls declared it "the best lasagna ever" so I have a feeling this will be a regular "treat" on days that we know in advance that Daddy's not coming home for lunch (or supper).

Garden Chowder

2009-01-30T12:13:00.000-05:00

This is my adaptation of this recipe.

1 med to lg onion, chopped
1/4 c butter
1 c ea diced potatoes, celery, cauliflower, carrot & broccoli (or adapt to what you have/like, I skippe the carrots & cauliflower & doubled the potatoes & broccoli)
3 c water
3 tsp McKay's chicken seasoning
1 tsp salt
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 c flour
2 c milk
1 Tbsp minced fresh parsley
1/8 - 1/4 tsp ea paprika & coriander
2-3 c shredded cheddar cheese

In lg stockpot saute onion in butter (will probably add the garlic at that point next time too) until tender. Add vegetables, water, chicken seasoning & salt. Reduce heat, cover, simmer 20 min. Combine flour & milk till smooth, add to soup. Allow to thicken at low temperature. Add parsley & spices. Just before serving, stir in cheese till melted.

Lindsey says this freezes well, we only have one kid-size serving left (I made it for lunch yesterday) so I won't find out this time around LOL.

Sourdough Blackberry Muffins

2009-01-27T17:32:00.000-05:00

I got this recipe from the Nourishing Gourmet.

2 c sourdough starter (I had a "scant" 2 cups once I took on cup out to feed for future use)
3 c whole wheat flour
1 c water

Combine these the night before, cover & leave on counter overnight.

In the morning, preheat oven to 400 F. Add the following to your flour mixture:

1 t salt
1/2 c melted coconut oil
1/2 c maple syrup
1 egg
1 t vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 to 1/2 t (I used a 1/2 t measure but didn't fill it full) ground nutmeg
1 t baking soda

Stir till thoroughly combined. Fold in 1 1/2 c fresh or frozen blackberries (I had a pint jar in the freezer, I used the whole thing, didn't bother to measure it). Fill greased muffin tins (I use stoneware) about 2/3 full. Bake 25 min, until slightly browned & toothpick comes out clean. Let cool in pan 5 min, then remove.

I got 12 regular muffins (pampered chef stoneware muffin pan) & I think 6 slightly smaller (I have an enamel covered heart shaped muffin pan that I used for the "overflow") muffins out of this. Girls ate 3 each, I'm congested so not tasting very well, but they seemed good. I would guess this recipe could be used with pretty much any fruit :)

Sourdough!!!!!

2009-01-20T14:54:00.000-05:00

I'm so excited, I currently have 4 loaves of sourdough baking in my oven, fingers crossed that they come out ok, I'm hopeful, they raised like they were supposed to & LOOK like bread should look . . . And so, while they bake, I will post how I did this (and if they come out of the oven & are a flop I shall never publish this post LOL).

I kind of used a combination of information from this site & Laura's blog. I love the concept of catching wild yeast from the air (and suspect there's some great old strains floating around in my old, old house), but I just wasn't confident that it would work in my rather cold house, I might try Laura's method of starting the starter next summer just to see how it turns out . . . but for now, I "cheated" and used yeast to start my starter:

Starting the Starter:

In a half gallon mason jar (or a glass bowl, but don't use metal or plastic!) combine 2 c flour (I used white, partially because I was out of whole wheat at the moment & partially because some stuff I've read in the past (don't remember where) has indicated that it's easier to start starer w/ white flour), 2 t sucanet (or sugar), 2 1/4 t active dry yeast, 2 c warm water. Cover with a dish towel & let sit in a warm, draft-free place. This was where I had a dilemma, we keep our heat set around 64, there's not really any "warm" spot in this house. I finally opted to set the jar on the counter right next to the stove. There's a wall that protects it from drafts when the door is opened & I figured that way at least when we use the stove or oven it'll get a little extra warmth, but I don't know how warm it really got/stayed.

Stir once per day
Let sit 2-5 days, it's ready when it has a sour smell & loks bubbly (if it turns pnk/orange, throw it out!) I think mine took the full 5 days, which I was kind of expecting because of the cool temperatures in the house.
Once it's done, stir, cover loosely w/ platic wrap & refrigerate.

After it had been in the fridge a day or so (I don't know if this is vital or not, it worked well for me because I declared it "done" on Friday and since Saturday is our Sabbath (day of rest) I wasn't going to be making bread on Sabbath anyway).

Two nights before I made bread, I took the starter out of the fridge & set it on the counter overnight, the next morning I fed it w/ 1 c flour (whole wheat this time, since that's what was handy), and 1 c water. I then went ahead & let it sit a full 24 hours (next time I use it I plan to try feeding straight from the fridge, then let sit overnight, then proceed as usual (so cut a day out of the process), I hadn't read through Laura's whole recipe until mid day yesterday & by that time starting to make the bread would've likely had it ready to bake about 3am LOL.

Making the bread:

This morning I stirred up my starter, put 1 cup in a clean quart jar, added 1 c flour & 1 c water to that & stirred it, and put it in the fridge for future use. I poured the rest (which was probably between 1 & 2 cups) into a glass bowl, added 2 t salt and 1 1/2 c water & stirred it all up. Then I began adding flour 2 cups at a time until it was the right consistency to knead. I added 6 cups flour & then probably another cup a little at a time once it was dough but still pretty sticky. The amount of flour will depend on how runny (& how much) your starter is, and the humidity in the air & who knows what else. Knead bread for 8-10 minutes (pausing a few times to check on kids playing outside which gives your arms a nice little break). Form dough into a ball. At this point Laura says to cut it w/ a knife into 3 sections BUT she has different bread pans than I do. I have relatively small (pyrex) glass bread pans, she also says that making balls of dough works better than one loaf. So . . . I started out by cutting my big ball of dough into 4 smaller balls, figuring 2 per bread pan. Then I got the pans out, looked at them, considered that the dough is to double in size prior to baking & then presumably will rise more while baking & promptly cut each of those 4 balls in half. So, I ended up w/ enough for 4 loaves of bread, each loaf consisting of 2 small balls of dough. Laura doesn't say to grease her pans, but she uses stoneware, since I was using glass, I greased my pans w/ coconut oil just in case. Put the dough in the pans put the pans in the oven w/ the light on but the oven off (and it hadn't been used this morning so it was cool) covered the loaves w/ a dishtowel & left them to rise. I think it only took 4 hours or so for them to rise, I was expecting longer, but the warmer temp of the oven, even with just the light on, may have sped things up (we also DID use the stove at lunch time which may have added some extra heat to the oven). And now I'm baking for 1 hr at 350, or until they sound hollow when thumped.

And the bread is done! It didn't rise as much as I thought it would while baking, so not the greatest for sandwiches, but the consistency & flavor is good (I just need to start with bigger balls of dough &/or let it rise more in the pans before baking), very mild on the sourdough flavor, but I've found that's generally true of whole wheat sourdough. The girls even ate a slice w/ butter & declared it good (though L has decided, over the last few months while I've been lazy about making bread, that storebought (white) bread is better than homemade). I will probably add abit more salt next time as well.

Chocolate Cranberry Muffins

2009-01-15T17:09:00.000-05:00

This is adapted from here (but I've learned the hard way to actually WRITE OUT recipes I find online because blogs get deleted or set to members only w/o warning and suddenly I can't access my favorite recipes, so I'm also re-typing here).

6 T unsalted butter
4 oz bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (couldn't find bittersweet, got unsweetened, will use a mix of unsweetened & semi-sweet next time (unless I can find bittersweet).
1/2 c dried cranberries
2 c whole wheat flour
2/3 c sucanet
1/2 c cocoa powder
1 T baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 c plus 2 T (divided) buttermilk (or mix plain yogurt & milk)
1 lg egg
1 tsp vanilla

12-24 hours ahead combine flour in mixing bowl w/ 1 1/4 c buttermilk. Mix well, form into a ball, cover w/ plastic wrap, leave on counter for 12-24 hrs.

When ready to bake, make sure oven rack is in center, preheat oven to 375, grease muffin pan.

Melt butter & 2 oz chocolate in microwave or double boiler, set aside.
Place cranberries in bowl & cover w/ hot water, set aside to soak.
To bowl with soaked flour add dry ingredients, stir to combine (I found this too dry to combine to any real degree). In separate bowl or measuring cup combine 2 Tbsp buttermilk, egg & vanilla. Add to dry ingredients, along w/ melted butter & chocolate. Stir to blend. Stir in remaining chopped chocolate & drained cranberries. do not overmix. Spoon into muffin pan. Bake 20 min. Let cool 5 min before removing from pan.

These are very rich/dark chocolate (especially w/ unsweetened chocolate)! I rarely drink milk (just not a fan of drinking it) but definitely wanted milk with this LOL. Next time, assuming I still can't find bittersweet chocolate, I'm thinking I'll use chocolate chips for the final stir-in (& the unsweetened for the melted). The girls each ate 3 of these, so obviously they liked them LOL.

Hot Chocolate

2008-11-20T16:23:00.000-05:00

This winter I saw a hot chocolate recipe that sounded good, and then couldn't find it again when I went looking, so while searching, I stumbled upon another one that sounded easy enough & healthy enough to at least try. And I LOVE it!! This is a very strong chocolate, which I love, it makes me realize that it's the strong, dark chocolate flavor of starbucks mocha that is what I love about it, because even though there's no coffee in this, it reminds me of starbucks mocha, and generally satisfies my craving for starbucks :) It's also really quite healthy, so I don't mind having it as a frequent "treat" for the kids when they come in out of the cold.

For one serving (multiply as needed):

1 c milk
1 Tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp sugar (I use sucanet)

Heat milk in a saucepan, while it's heating stir in the cocoa & sugar until no lumps. Continue stirring constantly until hot chocolate is desired temperature. Pour into mugs & serve.

For the girls I fill their mugs 1/2 full (or a little more) w/ the hot chocolate and then add additional milk. Which makes it less strong AND not so hot. For me, I drink it "straight" :)

It occurred to me today that maple syrup or honey might work well as the sweetner in this as well, so I may play with that in the future :)

Spinach Artichoke Dip

2008-11-20T15:58:00.000-05:00

I don't remember where we first found this recipe, or if mom or I made it first, but it's a favorite at family gatherings & so easy to make!

1 can Artichoke Hearts (drained & chopped)
1 10 oz pkg Spinach, frozen chopped (thawed&drained)
1 cup Mayo or sour cream (I use some of each)
1 cup Parmesan Cheese
1 clove Garlic, minced (I probably use more like 2)

Mix it all together, put it in a pie pan, sprinkle additional parmesan cheese on top, and bake for 1/2 hr at 350.

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

2008-11-11T23:01:00.000-05:00

Last week we wanted to make a pumpkin recipe for school. I found this recipe & thought it sounded better than most (I'm not a fan of most fruit/vegetable breads or even cakes, but chocolate makes everything better LOL). Anyway, while L wouldn't even help us make it (it stinks, per her), both girls were more than happy to EAT it, and I ate my share too.

Here's the recipe with my modifications:

3 c whole wheat flour
2 t ground cinnamon
1 t salt
1 t baking soda
4 eggs
2 c Sucanet
2 c cooked or canned pumpkin
1 1/4 c coconut oil
1 1/2 c chocolate chips

In large bowl, combine all dry ingredients. In separate bowl combine all wet ingredients, stir into dry ingredients and mix until just moistened. Fold in chocolate chips. Pour into 2 greased loaf pans or lined muffin tins.

Bake at350 for 50-60 min (less for muffins) or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Honey Lemonade

2008-11-11T22:49:00.001-05:00

I saw Jocelyn's post about honey lemonade months ago! I don't know WHY it took me so long to actually TRY this!!! I love lemonade, I've always loved lemonade. But I make it very rarely since it is, essentially sugar water w/ some lemon juice added. A step up from kool aid, but that's about all that can be said for it. BUT . . . honey, while still sugar, is a much healthier sugar than refined white sugar. And added bonus as we go into cold & flu season, honey is good for the immune system and is a great option to fight colds, etc. but my dd L, doesn't "like" honey. And while A used to eat peanut butter & honey sandwiches, she balked at eating honey anyway I offered it to her last time she had a cough. But, I suspect they'll drink this lemonade w/ NO PROBLEM!!!

Now, here's the recipe, with my modifications:

Combine equal parts lemon juice & honey (adjust honey as needed to taste if you want sweeter or tarter lemonade), add 6 times as much water, or slightly less if you'll be adding ice. Stir and stir and stir and stir . . . until honey dissolves. Seriously, KEEP STIRRING! I was "this close" to putting it in the microwave to dissolve the honey when it FINALLY started dissolving. I combined the honey, lemon juice & water, then poured it over ice rather than adding the ice to the pitcher.

Apple Smoothie

2008-09-26T23:39:00.000-04:00

We have lots of apples right now. The girls are loving being able to just eat them raw as snacks, but I'm also looking for recipes to use them in. This one comes from the Urban Homemaker:

Apple Smoothie

1 ripe frozen banana, broken in pieces
1 Cup coconut milk, or kefir, or plain yogurt
1 Cup orange juice
small handful of pecans, if desired
1 small apple, cored, and peeled
1-2 TB honey or maple syrup, optional - taste first before adding sweetener
2-3 cubes ice, optional - for thicker smoothie

Using chilled ingredients, blend ingredients in a blender until smooth.

Tomato Soup

2008-09-24T14:40:00.000-04:00

I got some tomatoes from a friend (and still had some from Grandma from before) and dh didn't come home for lunch today (he doesn't like tomatoes) so I decided it was the perfect time to try this recipe. I'm re-typing it here in case it ever disappears off the other site (yes, I've learned this the hard way LOL):

5 lbs fresh tomatoes, chopped
1 c chopped onion
3 Tbsp butter
1 1/2 tsp sea salt

Put it all in a big pot and cook 3 hrs (I stirred every so often, not sure how necessary that was?). Blend and serve (or freeze or can it for later).

I thought it was very good (& love that there's no sugar or anything in it!) the girls weren't too impressed (but generally aren't huge fans of tomato soup). This will be a good thing to keep on hand for me when they eat mushroom soup w/ Daddy (since I don't like mushrooms) :)

Portable Lunches

2008-08-31T15:09:00.001-04:00

I thought this post gave a lot of great ideas for portable lunches, thought I'd just link to it here so I can find it again when I need it LOL.

Lettuce Wraps

2008-07-28T08:10:00.000-04:00

I got this off the Nick Jr site.

1 head iceberg lettuce (we used romaine)
1 pkg firm tofu cut into 1/2" cubes (I think mine were smaller cubes, but IME tofu needs to be in small amounts so it absorbs more flavor)
1 can (8oz) drained chopped water chestnuts
2 Tbsp canola oil (I used olive oil)
2 scallions, sliced (I used onion & probably more then they called for)
1 garlic clove, minced (I use the refrigerated minced garlic & was "generous" in my measuring of 1 clove LOL)
1 16 oz bag shredded broccoli, carrots & red cabbage (ok, this was silly to me, if you read the recipe, it tells you to only use half the bag, so why not just say so here! As it was, the bag I found at my grocery store was 10oz, so I used the whole 10oz bag)
1 tsp fresh grated ginger (I used powder)
Lettuce Wrap Cooking Sauce - you can see the recipe they used here. I used 2 Tbsp Braggs (like soy sauce only healthier), 4 Tbsp water & 2 tsp arrowroot powder (like cornstarch only healthier)

Saute garlic, onions, tofu, and ginger in oil for 1-2 minutes. Add water chestnuts & veggies & toss w/ cooking sauce. Cook 1-2 minutes, stirring. Remove from heat & let cool (I think next time I'll do this as a make ahead recipe & let it sit in the fridge for awhile, rather then just letting it cool for a few minutes while I prep the lettuce).

Wash lettuce leaves. Serve filling in a bowl with a platter of whole lettuce leaves, let each person wrap their own. Serve with purchased dipping sauces if desired. (I didn't get any dipping sauces, but I think dh would've liked this better w/ the spicy mustard like they have at chinese restaurants, so I'm hoping to find that to have for him next time we eat it).

My girls LOVED this! DH only tolerated it, so it's likely to be something we have on days he's not around though as mentioned above, he may be more accepting of it if I have the hot mustard sauce. He also suggested serving it with rice either as a side or mixed in. I think I may just mix brown rice into the vegetable mixture next time.

Cream Soup Substitute

2008-07-14T15:14:00.001-04:00

Here's a recipe I found online to use instead of cream of whatever soup in recipes (not sure if it's any cheaper, but it's healthier):

4 T butter
4 T whole wheat flour
1 c broth
1/3 c milk
In small saucepan melt butter over med heat. Add flour and stir till bubbly. Slowly add broth and milk, stirring constantly. Cook till thickened.

This is the equivalent of one can of cream of xxxx soup.

I don't know how this would work as a soup, but this was easy to do, and worked well to replace a can of cream of chicken soup in a recipe I made this weekend.

Maidrites

2008-07-14T15:08:00.000-04:00

I'm not sure if DH will like this, but my parents, the girls & I all did. I had generic V-8 so used it instead of tomato juice & used dry TVP, so just guessed at how much to make. I only baked it for an hour, covered w/ foil for the first half hour & didn't stir it while it was baking (because I didn't read it closely enough, but I don't think it mattered). I also added some garlic powder. This tastes alot like the vegeburgers my mom makes but throwing it in the oven is much easier than forming into patties & frying :) I'll definitely be making this again. The original recipe said it freezes well, so if dh decides he doesn't like it, I'll make it & freeze it in smaller portions for when the girls & I are eating a meal w/o him.

Adapted from the Living on a Dime newsletter:

1 1/2 lb hamburger (or TVP)
2 slices bread
3/4 c milk
3/8 c tomato juice
1 egg
1/4 c chopped onion (or onion powder to taste)
salt to taste
Mix together & pour into 9x13 pan. Bake at 300 for 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hrs, till done. Stir frequently. Serve on buns w/ pickles & mustard, like sloppy joes.

Granny's Apple Cake

2008-06-24T15:43:00.000-04:00

Last fall one of the books we read for "school" was The Apple Cake I don't remember why we never ended up making the apple cake recipe in the book at that point, but we didn't. Recently L has re-claimed this book as one of her favorite bedtime stories (she "reads" it herself) so today we made the cake recipe on the back of the book. Warning, this is an ALL DAY process. My perceptive children pointed out that if the cake takes this long, how did the woman in the story get home from being gone all day & then make the cake & eat it for supper. Perhaps we should write the publisher LOL. Anyway . . . the cake is currently cooling (SO isn't going to "cool completely before we dig into it LOL) but it seems to have turned out well.

ETA: The whole wheat flour makes it taste "healthy" but the girls enjoyed it. I think I'll do the "optional topping" next time but overall it was good. The girls each ate 2 pieces so I'd say it was a hit :)

Granny's Apple Cake
4 c flour (we used whole wheat)
1 c + 1 Tbsp lukewarm milk (about 105F)
2 tsp dried yeast
1/2 c butter, softened
2 eggs
1/2 c sugar (we used sucanet)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon or grated lemon peel (we used cinnamon)
2/3 c raisins (the girls opted to skip this, which was fine w/ me)
3 tart apples, cut into little pieces (we used Macintosh apples, and it seemed like a LOT of apples for the amount of batter)
powdered sugar (skipped)

Optional topping: (skipped)
1/4 c sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 c melted butter

Sift flour into mixing bowl, make small well in center & pour yeast into it. Add half the milk & stir yeast to a crumbly dough. Let stand 10 min. Add rest of milk, butter, eggs, sugar, salt & cinnamon or lemon peel, and stir well. Cover loosely with clean cloth & let rise about 2 hours until doubled in size (I didn't notice much change in size, shrug). Carefully stir in apples & raisins.Turn into greased & floured cake pan. Allow to rise again (about 1/2 hr).
Optional topping: Combine ingredients in a small bowl. Sprinkle over cake.
Bake in the bottom of the oven at 350 for 50-60 minutes. Allow to cool 10 minutes before turning the cake out. Shake powdered sugar over the cake. Let cool completely for several hours before serving (NOT gonna happen LOL).

Greek Macaroni Salad

2008-06-09T09:15:00.000-04:00

From the Taste of Home website:

1 cup uncooked elbow macaroni
4 medium plum tomatoes, chopped
1 can (15 ounces) garbanzo beans or chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can (6 ounces) pitted ripe olives
1 package (4 ounces) crumbled feta cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice

Cook macaroni according to package directions; drain and rinse in cold water. In a large bowl, combine the macaroni, tomatoes, beans, onion, olives, feta cheese, salt, pepper and garlic.
In a small bowl, whisk oil and lemon juice. Pour over salad and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate until chilled. Stir before serving. Yield: 8 servings.

This was YUMMY! And easy!! We ALL liked it, woo-hoo!

Ranch Pasta Salad

2008-06-09T09:11:00.000-04:00

I'm not sure where I got this recipe. May have been from the "Menus for Moms" e-mails I get weekly. I don't use them to "plan" my menus per se, but I do find a few good recipes mixed in & save them for when I want to try something new.

ETA: We had this today. I had some multi-color spiral pasta so used that along w/ some ww penne. Used a little bit of chopped vidalia onion instead of the green onion, and one med sized cucumber instead of the celery (it's what I had). We all liked it enough to go back for seconds (though dh picked out the peas (if I'd known he'd be home I'd have saved some out before stirring in the peas), so I think it will be a nice summer addition to our menu.

1 lb. whole wheat pasta shells
2 handfuls baby carrots, chopped
1/2 bunch green onions, chopped (will probably skip this, if I had chives, I might add a few of them)
3 stalks celery, chopped
1/2 package frozen baby peas, thawed
1 cup real mayonnaise, more if it seems dry
1 package ranch dressing mix

Mix all ingredients. Chill for 1 hour or more.

Tomato, Basil, Mozzarella Salad

2008-06-05T16:13:00.000-04:00

I don't really have a "recipe" for this, it's more of just a "dump" thing, but figured I'd write it down anyway :)

Mozzarella cheese, cubed ("fresh" mozarella is best but the normal grocery store variety will work if you're on a budget)
tomatoes, chopped into biggish chunks (think similar size to the cheese cubes)
Fresh basil, cut into strips
Mix all together, pour a little olive oil and some salt, stir it gently together. Chill.

Taco Salad

2008-06-05T16:04:00.000-04:00

This is one of my mom's recipes that I've loved since I was a kid.

Dressing: 1 1/4 c burger, browned
Add: 3 T mayo
3/4 c sour cream
Taco sauce to taste (3-4 T)
Mix well; refrigerate several hours or overnight.

Salad:
1 med head lettuce, torn in small pieces
2 med tomatoes, cut in small chunks
1 15oz can kidney beans, drained
1/2 to 1 c black olives, sliced
Just before serving, add dressing and 8- 12 oz bag corn chips (fritos type), slightly crushed. Mix gently. Serves 10-12

Squash Casserole

2008-04-07T10:58:00.000-04:00

This started out as a stuffed onion recipe I found years ago, we tried it for Thanksgiving that year & decided we liked the "filling" but stuffing it into onions was more trouble than it was worth, so we turned it into a squash casserole instead. Here's our final version:

6 c 3/4" chunks peeled pumpkin or butternut squash
chopped onion (original recipe used the "flesh" from 6 of the onions for stuffing, so maybe 3 good sized onions?)
3 T butter
1/4 tsp salt
3 T finely chopped fresh sage leaves (about 12 lg) or 2 tsp dried
6 oz (1 1/2 c) shredded cheese (swiss, mozarella or a mix, or really whatever you have, the original recipe called for Gruyere but I'm too cheap to buy it for something where the flavors all blend together anyway.
Garnish: fresh sage leaves
Put squash cubes in med saucepan; add water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover & simmer 15-20 min. till tender. Drain well, then mash. Meanwhile, melt butter in lg skillet over med heat. Add chopped onions, salt. Sauté 9-10 min. stirring often, till browned & tender. Stir in sage. Stir onion mixture, 1/4 c cheese into squash. Spoon mixture into casserole. Bake uncovered 20 min. at 375. Top w/ remaining 1/4 c cheese & bake 5 min. or till cheese melts. Garnish w/
sage leaves.

Garden Supper Casserole

2008-03-31T12:07:00.001-04:00

I found this recipe in the More with Less Cookbook.

My review. Everyone ate it & seemed to like it. This just barely serves 4. And that's with 2 of the 4 being five yr olds (but then, they're big eaters). And I used more than a cup of the vegetables (had the tail end of a Sam's size bag of green beans so just dumped them all in (didn't bother to cook them either, just added them frozen) probably closer to 2 cups) and more than a cup of the meat (I use "fri chik" (a canned fake chicken type stuff) & I just used a whole can, which again is more in the 2 cup range I think). Doubling the whole recipe in a larger casserole would probably leave enough to send w/ dh for lunch the next day & mean we didn't run out (& even then, I'd probably add some extra veggies, just cuz I prefer a higher ratio of veggies in our meals). This is one I would definitely recommend butter (as opposed to margarine or some other fat) for, I could taste the butter in it, so it's adding flavor, not just texture.

Serves 4

Mix:
2 c cubed soft bread
1/2 c shredded sharp cheese
2 T butter melted (the cookbook uses margarine throughout, I feel that butter is enough healthier to be worth the extra cost)
Spread half the bread mixture in a greased 1qt casserole and top with 1 c cooked vegetables of your choice.
Saute till tender:
3 T butter
2 T chopped onion
Blend in:
3 T flour
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
Cook over low heat, stirring till bubbly. Stir in:
1 1/2 c milk
Cook, stirring constantly till thick. Stir in:
1 c cooked meat, diced
Pour over vegetables.
Arrange on top:
1 lg tomato, sliced (optional - we'll skip this when making it for meals dh is joining us for)
Sprinkle with remaining bread mixture.
Bake uncovered 30-35 min.

Millet Squares

2008-03-24T11:55:00.000-04:00

From the Waldorf Kindergarten Snack Book. We're going through their "Grain a Day" this week for homeschool, and this was the recipe I decided to try for Millet (since I've never really used millet).

Incidentally, regardless of your school choices, this book is AWESOME! For little kids, it's a whole book of recipes that are whole grain, low (or no) sugar (mostly sweetened with honey & syrup), and just generally nice, healthy snacks for kids :)

Ok, so the recipe:

3 c millet
6 c water
1/4 or 1/3 c maple syrup

Over med heat, toast millet in bottom of a large pot until you start to smell the millet (optional). Add water & syrup and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and cook at a slow boil for about 20 minutes. Do NOT stir the pot. When all the water is absorbed, pour into a glass 9x13 inch baking dish and allow to cool and harden. Cut into small squares.

Turkey Barley Stir-Fry

2008-03-24T11:47:00.001-04:00

I went looking for barley recipes for our "grain a day" this week in homeschool & found this one online, adapted it for things we like/eat, and we'll try it & see what we think:

2 tsp olive oil
2 c cooked pearl barley
1 1/2 c cooked cubed turkey (we'll use fri chik (fake chicken) or soy curls)
1/2 c chopped green beans or celery (recipe calls for red pepper, but we don't like it)
1/2 c chopped onions
3 eggs
1 tsp garlic salt (I think I'll just use garlic powder, maybe not quite so much, the soy sauce should make it plenty salty for me)
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 Tbsp soy sauce (we use Braggs Amino Acids for soy sauce)
1/4 c slivered almonds, toasted

To cook barley: In a med. saucepan bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Add 1 c barley and return to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook 45 minutes until tender and liquid is absorbed. Makes 3 to 3 1/2 cups (extra can be frozen).

For Stir-fry: Heat oil in skillet, add barley, turkey & veggies. Stir-fry 4-5 min. In a small bowl beat together eggs, garlic salt & ginger. Add to skillet, stir-fry until eggs are cooked. Sprinkle with soy sauce and almonds to serve.

ETA we had this for supper tonight. The girls liked it, dh & I both voted it "ok" but not great. I think it has potential but I'll do some things different next time. increase the vegetable (green beans is what I used this time) to at least a cup, current proportions it's much more like fried rice than the way I normally make stir fry, which is fine, but extra veggies make it healthier & wouldn't hurt any. If you use garlic powder instead of garlic salt, definitely add salt too. And the big thing, I wondered how it would work adding the egg mixture right into the stir fry to cook, but figured I'd try it. The eggs just disappear, which maybe that's the point, but I think actually tasting the eggs would be a good thing, so next time I'll scramble the eggs (not sure if I'll use add the seasonings to the eggs or the veggies, will probably depend on my mood that day LOL) separately & then add them in at the end like I do for fried rice. But it's a nice mix-up from our normal fried rice, and dh is willing to eat it, so we'll probably eat it at least once in awhile.

Spinach Spaghetti

2008-03-24T11:40:00.000-04:00

This is one of dh's favorites, I got it from his mom (and made a few changes, like whole wheat pasta)

1 lb whole wheat spaghetti, cooked & drained
2 10 oz packages frozen spinach, thawed & drained
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup sour cream
1/2 c milk
1/4 c Parmesan cheese
1/4 c chopped onion
1 tsp salt
4 c shredded jack cheese
1/4 c Parmesan cheese

Combine all but 1/4 c Parmesan. Put in 9x13 casserole. Sprinkle 1/4 c Parmesan on top. Bake 45 minutes, covered. at 350.

This freezes wonderfully and is so easy & yummy!!!

Green Shake

2008-03-17T19:24:00.000-04:00

I found this on a blog, and jotted it down (& promptly lost track of which blog it was on). And adapted it to reflect what I had on hand & such . . .

Some frozen spinach (probably about 1/3 of a 10oz box), fresh would work too
a pint of frozen peaches
Juice off a can of chunked pinapple, and some of the pineapple
1 apple, peeled & cubed
a handful of dried bananas

Blend it all together & enjoy! Original recipe used fresh spinach, frozen bananas, and included ice cubes, but the blender seemed full enough to not bother w/ the ice cubes (probably could do less peaches). I really don't think you can go wrong here, just stay with the green/yellow/white color scheme if you want to keep it green.

Crockpot Potato Soup

2008-03-17T13:58:00.000-04:00

I got this off a message board awhile back and never tried it, will try it this week.

2-3 lbs potatoes, peeled & cubed
1/2 onion, chopped
chicken broth (about 4 cups)
salt & pepper to taste
1-2 c milk
2 c cheddar cheese, grated

Cube potatoes, place in crockpot with onion, salt & pepper. Add broth to cover. Cook on high 4 hrs till potatoes are cooked through. Blend 1/2 potatoes till smooth. Return to crockpot. Leave on low until dinner time (if needed) Right before serving, stir in milk & cheese. The potatoes should be hot enough to heat the milk & cheese right away. Serve.

Crockpot Pinto Beans

2008-03-14T19:19:00.000-04:00

One of the meals I decided to try this week was "Pintos & Cornbread", but I was planning to be gone most of the day Thurs (the night I had this meal scheduled), so I went hunting for a crockpot version of pinto beans, and then tweaked it (because it called for lard or bacon fat & we're vegetarian), here's what I came up with:

16 oz pinto beans, picked over, soaked overnight & drained
2 T butter (not sure if we really needed this, I might leave it out, or at least cut it back next time)
1 or 2 (I don't remember) T baco bits
1 sm onion, chopped
1 Tbs fresh or 1 tsp dried oregano

Combine all with 3 c water in crockpot. Cook on high 3 hrs, turn to low & cook the rest of the day. Season with salt to taste.

Now, my day didn't go exactly as planned. I put it in the crockpot, turned it on high, set the kitchen timer for 3 hrs, and left for the day, leaving dh with the instruction to turn it to low when the timer went off. I was planning to be home by 6:00 or so, to check on it, turn it back to high if needed, or off if needed, make the corn bread & serve dinner, but we got to my friend Angie's house & she invited us to stay for supper, so I called dh, told him to see if the beans seemed done & if so, turn off the crockpot (and have some if he wanted) and the girls & I stayed at Angie's till bedtime. I got home around 10pm & found the beans STILL on low, so they were well cooked (though you can't really over-cook pintos, I don't think). I let them cool & put them in the fridge, then made the corn bread & re-heated the pintos in the microwave (just put each person's plate in the microwave) for supper tonight. I made a point of calling these "pintos" not "beans" since the girls claim to not like beans & served up each plate, by putting a big serving of pintos on their plate (heating them in the microwave, then topping the beans with some shredded cheese & sour cream, and put a piece of corn bread on the plate as well. Everyone declared it a keeper, L said it was "even better than Shepherd's Pie" which is high praise from her at the moment. DH really liked the added flavor the baco bits gave it. The girls each ate 2 platefuls.

Shepherd Pie

2008-03-10T15:35:00.000-04:00

This is my friend, Jenni's recipe, adapted for us being vegetarian LOL.

ETA: I made this last night substituting lentils for half the TVP and it was fine. Lentils are a healthier, cheaper alternative to the TVP :)

DH didn't like this (he informed me that he prefers things "separate") but the girls each had 2 platefuls! It's not something I'd make just for myself, but given how much I've been struggling to figure out stuff to feed my kids lately, we'll be making it for lunch occasionally :)

1 lb rehydrated TVP (1 c dry)
3/4 c diced onion
2 tsp garlic
2 Tbsp flour
1/2 c beef flavored broth
1/2 c milk
some frozen green beans
2 c mashed potatoes

Brown meat, onions & garlic. Add flour & incorporate thoroughly then add liquid & bring to a boil. Transfer meat to casserole, add a layer of green beans, top w/ mashed potatoes & bake 20-30 min at 400.

Breakfast Cookies

2008-03-07T20:24:00.000-05:00

Another one from Heavenly Homemakers

1 c butter, melted
3/4 c honey
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 c buttermilk
2 c whole wheat flour
2 c rolled oats
1 c raisins or chocolate chips

Combine first 8 ingredients. Add oats & flour. Fold in raisins or chocolate chips. Place heaped spoonfuls on cookie sheet (leave space between them, they spread) Bake at 350F for 15-20 min. Cool 3-4 min on cookie sheet before removing to wire racks.

I use regular milk instead of buttermilk (because I'm lazy) & chocolate chips. I'm going to let the girls try them in the morning (made them tonight), but the little piece I broke off tasted good, so hopefully these will be a hit for days when we're needing to eat breakfast (or other meals) on the go :)

Whole Wheat Crackers

2008-03-07T19:49:00.000-05:00

From heavenly homemakers

2 c whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 c oil
1/2 c water

Mix. Roll thin (recipe recommends using parchment paper but the dough was easy enough to work with that I probably won't bother w/ it next time). Cut out with small cookie cutters. Bake at 350F for 12 minutes. Turn off oven but let the crackers cool in the oven so they come out nice and crisp.

These were easy to make, the dough was easy to work with. Dough tasted good. We'll try the crackers when they finish cooling.

Granola

2008-03-07T19:36:00.000-05:00

I found this recipe somewhere online but didn't keep track of where.

2 c oats
1/2 c coconut
1/2 c chopped almonds
1/2 c sunflower seeds
1/4 c sesame seeds
1/2 c honey or molasses
1/3 c cooking oil
1 tsp cinnamon
Preheat oven to 300F. Combine dry ingredients. Combine wet ingredients. Stir together. Spread out on greased cookie sheet (I used a "bar pan" style baking stone) Bake 20 min, stir. Bake 10-15 min longer. Remove from oven & immediately turn onto aluminum foil to cool (I used a big wood cutting board) When cool break into clumps & store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. Or freeze for longer storage.

I used a mix of oats & rye flakes, and I didn't have sunflower seeds so I increased the oats/rye by 1/2 c as a substitution. I also used 50/50 molasses and honey and it's more molasses-y than I like it, I'll probably use all honey next time. But it was easy, and other than molasses being too strong to be my first choice, I like the flavor.

Recipe also says that you can make granola bars by adding 1 beaten egg per cup of cooked granola & bake in a 300 degree oven until firm, I haven't tried that yet.

Egg in a Basket

2008-03-03T11:15:00.000-05:00

A couple weeks ago I was making a meal where I'd normally have included grilled cheese sandwiches but we were low on cheese, but had plenty of eggs. So I thought of one of my favorite meals from Cracker Barrel. It's very simple, just take a piece of bread, use a cookie cutter to cut a round (or we use heart shaped ones, the girls think it's special & it was the first cookie cutters I happened upon in the cupboard that were the right size LOL) hole in the middle. Butter both sides of the bread, put it in the frying pan & break an egg into the hole. Fry on both sides until the bread is grilled & the egg is fried. That's all there is to it. It's become one of our favorite quick lunches (especially with soup of some sort).

Healthy Strawberry Milkshake

2008-02-28T10:54:00.000-05:00

I found this recipe (& accidentally modified it) on heavenlyhomemakers my kids think they're getting dessert, but it's really healthy enough to count as breakfast. And easy too!

1 cup milk
1 cup frozen strawberries
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp maple syrup

(the original recipe also called for 1 cup cream, but I missed adding that & it was still good, though that would explain why we ate it w/ a spoon, not a straw LOL).

Put it all in a blender & blend it up, pour into a cup & enjoy!

Broccoli Bacon Quiche - Crustless

2008-02-04T14:07:00.000-05:00

4 slices cooked bacon (or baco bits)
4 eggs
1 c half & half
1 c grated swiss cheese
2 c broccoli florets
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp lemon pepper
Preheat oven to 350. Beat eggs with cream and cheese. Stir in salt, garlic, lemon pepper & broccoli. Crumble bacon. Stir half into egg mixture. Pour into 9" pie pan. Bake at 350 for 30-35 min till knife inserted halfway between center and edge comes out clean (I had to cook longer using frozen broccoli & cheese). Top with remaining bacon.

Southwest Roll-ups

2008-02-04T14:02:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure where I found this recipe, it was printed out (from Word) in a stack of papers I was going through this weekend, so we're going to try it tonight & see what we think:

Update: The girls loved it!! (Mommy, can we have this EVERY night?) And dh agreed that it could be added to the regular rotation (which is about as much "praise" as I can get from him unless it's super unhealthy LOL). I got 5 or 6 tortillas, filled moderately full, in a 9x13 pan. Once I use up my canned beans & start making the beans from scratch I'll add more beans & salsa and make a 9x13 and a 9x9 pan. These would freeze easily as well.

Mix 2 Tbsp salsa, 1 can refried beans, and 1 c chicken - cooked & cubed (will use vegetarian equivalent).
Spoon onto tortillas, place seam side down in 9x13 pan. Baket at 350 for 20-30 minutes. Sprinkle with 1 c cheese.

Biscuits

2008-01-23T12:43:00.000-05:00

I've been working on clearing out the freezer (or at least using up stuff that's been in there for eons) and the other night I found a bag with a few frozen biscuits left in it, so I threw them in the oven for supper. L fell in love (& they'd been in the freezer too long, they weren't awesome biscuits by any means). So, today for lunch I figured I'd whip up a batch of biscuits. I adapted a recipe from hillbillyhousewife.com

Quick Biscuits

2 c flour (I used half ww, will probably add a little more ww next time, since they weren't too "wheaty" at 50/50)
1 Tbs baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/4 c oil
a generous 3/4 c milk (or buttermilk, or yogurt)

Mix everything together into a stick dough, drop by spoonfuls onto a baking stone (recipe says greased baking sheet for those who don't use baking stones) Bake 10-15 min at 425. If you want non-drop biscuits you can use the original recipe I chose the drop biscuits for a number of reasons. 1) I'm lazy & dropping is easier than rolling & cutting (though the kids would've enjoyed the rolling & cutting) 2) the original recipe calls for shortening instead of oil and I don't have any, nor do I like to use it. I've substituted coconut oil (solid @ room temp) for shortening in other recipes with good results but I'm running low on it at the moment and order it online so trying tomake it last till my next order. 3) the board game we were playing took longer than anticipated and I didn't want to push lunch back longer while we let the dough rise. I think L's eaten 4 or 5 of these and A's had at least 3 . . . so they're a hit! In fact, when L asked for "another one" for the umpteenth time, A's worry was "we need to save some for breakfast!" I assured her we can make more for breakfast LOL. I've been trying various muffin recipes for breakfast use, especially on Sabbath morning when a "grab & go" breakfast would be much easier, but haven't managed to make any that the girls like, so perhaps biscuits is what I need to be doing instead, dh will like that idea better anyway LOL.

Hot Chocolate Mix

2008-01-17T16:38:00.000-05:00

Not especially note worthy, more for my own information . . . here's the hot chocolate mix that I made today (since we were out & the girls think we must have hot chocolate when we come in from playing in the snow, and we're essentially out of (real) milk since today was also the day I was going to go get milk, but didn't because of the snow). If I use this recipe again I will reduce the salt. . . It has the advantage of using all ingredients that I had on hand & the most "processed" thing in it is the powdered milk (or perhaps the powdered sugar, both are pretty far from their natural form, but still not as totally processed as the coffee creamer that was called for in most of the recipes I saw):

From food network:

Hot Cocoa - courtesy of Alton Brown
2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup cocoa (Dutch-process preferred)
2 1/2 cups powdered milk
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 pinch cayenne pepper, or more to taste
Hot water

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and incorporate evenly. In a small pot, heat 4 to 6 cups of water.

Fill your mug half full with the mixture and pour in hot water. Stir to combine. Seal the rest in an airtight container, keeps indefinitely in the pantry. This also works great with warm milk.

I made 1/4 a recipe & left out the cayenne pepper.

Laundry Soap - Powder

2008-01-07T14:18:00.001-05:00

This is the recipe I use for making laundry soap:

Grate 1 bar of Dr. Bronners bar soap (I've also seen the recommendations to use Ivory soap or Fels Naptha soap, but I like Dr. Bronners, and as a bonus, it smells yummy when you use the peppermint LOL. Ivory would be the cheapest & easiest to find though). Now just mix equal parts of the grated soap, washing soda (this is not baking soda, but it's in a box that looks like a big baking soda box, the typical arm & hammer box, on the laundry aisle), and borax (also in the laundry aisle). Mix them all together, put them in a container w/ a lid, and use about 1/8 c per load of laundry.

Chicken style seasoning

2007-12-25T23:17:00.000-05:00

I was searching for a recipe to make something similar to McKay's chicken flavored seasoning. And found this. Not sure I'd say it's much like McKay's, but it's not bad.

1 1/2 c nutritional yeast
2 1/2 tsp sweet pepper flakes
3 tsp onion powder
2 1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp rubbed sage
2 1/2 tsp celery seed
2 1/2 tsp garlic
2 1/2 tsp thyme, ground
1 1/4 tsp marjoram
1 1/4 tsp tarragon
1 1/4 tsp paprika
1 1/4 tsp rosemary, ground
Blenderize fine (I was lazy and just mixed it all up, but yeah a blender or coffee grinder would probably be good). Use 1 T seasoning per 1 c liquid to make broth.

Whole Wheat Snickerdoodles

2007-12-25T23:13:00.000-05:00

From hillbillyhousewife.com

1/2 c butter/margarine
3/4 c brown sugar (I use sucanet)
1 lg egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 c whole wheat flour
2 T white sugar mixed with 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
Cream first 4 ingredients. Add dry ingredients (except cinnamon sugar). Stir to form thick dough. Roll balls in cinnamon sugar. Place on greased cookie sheet. Flatten slightly. Bake at 400 for 10 min.

These were more "gingerbready" than regular snickerdoodles, but still yummy.

Chocolate Snowflakes

2007-12-25T23:09:00.000-05:00

These didn't look like snowflakes to me, but they're yummy anyway.

2 c sugar
1/2 c veg oil
4 1oz squares unsweetened chocolate, melted
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 c powdered sugar
Combine 1st 3 ingredients in lg mixing bowl; beat on med until blended. Add eggs & vanilla, mix well. Combine flour, baking powder & salt. Add about 1/4 of the dry at a time to the wet, mix well after each addition. Cover and chill at least 2 hrs. Shape into 1" balls, roll in powdered sugar. Place at least 2" apart on greased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 for 10-12 min. Cool on wire racks.

Make Ahead Monkey Bread

2007-12-25T23:00:00.000-05:00

I wanted something special for Christmas breakfast that didn't require much, if any, time/effort on Christmas morning, so when frozen bread rolls were on sale last week, I decided on monkey bread. Here's the recipe I ended up using (from recipesource):

1/2 c sugar
1 T cinnamon
24 frozen bread rolls
1 stick butter, melted
1 T cinnamon
1/2 c sugar

At least 8 hrs before serving, or the night before, combine first 2 ingredients. Wet dough balls slightly & roll in cinnamon sugar. Place in greased bundt pan. Melt butter & add to additional cinnamon sugar. Pour over dough. Cover with a towel & let rise 8 hrs or overnight.

Bake at 350 for about 30 min. Invert onto a plate.

Hot Spiced Cider

2007-12-25T22:54:00.000-05:00

I looked online yesterday afternoon for a cider recipe (why yes, I do tend to procrastinate). Found one, realized this morning that it called for allspice, which I don't have . . . Anyway, here's what I ended up doing:

1/2 gallon apple juice (or cider)
1 cinnamon stick, broken
20 whole cloves (give or take)
approx 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg (this wasn't in the original recipe)
(original recipe called for 8 whole allspice, which I didn't have)
1 lemon, sliced
1 orange sliced

Put cloves & nutmeg in a muslin bag, put everything in the crockpot, turn it on high for a little while to make sure it gets hot, then leave it on low until ready to serve.

It was yummy, and apparently everyone liked it, since it's essentially gone LOL.

To Try: Spinach/Cream Cheese Enchiladas

2007-12-15T14:37:00.000-05:00

Spinach/Cream Cheese Enchiladas

Filling:

2 boxes frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1 med onion, diced
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 Tbsp butter
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese

I skillet, saute onion, salt, cumin, nutmeg, and butter. Add spinach and cream cheese. Cook over medium heat until cream cheese is melted. Set aside (I usually add some diced chicken or turkey to this mixture)

Assembly:

10 corn tortillas (use a couple more if adding chicken to the above mixture)
butter each side of tortilla, and microwave on high 30 seconds. Remove from microwave and spoon about 1/4 cup filling down middle of each tortilla. Roll and place in baking dish. When dish is full, cover with enchilada sauce and top with grated cheese (Jack or cheddar or a mexican blend is what we usually do) Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Serve with rice and beans.

To try: Enchilada Sauce

2007-12-15T14:00:00.000-05:00

Enchilada Sauce
(from Jester on PrairieHomemaker)
8 cups water
1 t. salt
3 T. chili powder (I use hot Mexican chili powder for part of it)
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. onion powder
1/2 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. black pepper
1/4 c. masa

Brng water to a boil and whisk in remaining ingredients. Simmer a few minutes to thicken slightly.

This makes about 6 cups of enchilada sauce. It will keep just about forever in the refrigerator.

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust - Bread Machine

2007-12-02T18:51:00.000-05:00

I'd been wanting to start making ww pizza, using the bread machine, so when I couldn't make the supper I'd been planning to make because we're rationing milk (having to plan our milk a week at a time has it's disadvantages LOL), I decided this would be a good time to do it. I googled for a recipe and found this one, and dh has declared it a keeper LOL.

2 2/3 cups whole wheat flour
1/3 cup gluten flour
1 1/2 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt (it seemed salty to me, I'll cut this back some next time)
1 1/4 cup water
3 tbsp. olive oil
4 tsp. active dry yeast
cornmeal

Use the dough cycle (or stop the machine after the rising step, but I'd forget for sure, so good thing mine has a dough cycle LOL). Then turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. (I just went ahead & sprinkled the cornmeal & turned it out straight onto the pizza stone).

Lightly oil a 15-inch pizza pan (I used a baking stone, so no need to oil) and sprinkle with cornmeal. With floured hands, gently stretch the dough to fit the pan. Continue stretching until the dough covers the entire surface of the pan. Then top the dough with your choice of pizza fillings. We did pasta sauce, on 3/4 or so (for the girls & me) and just brushed the dough w/ olive oil for dh's part. Then black olives & cheese on all of it.

Bake the pizza on the bottom rack of a preheated 400 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until the crust is golden and the filling is melted and bubbly. Serve hot.

Easy, Cheap, Healthy & YUMMY!!! Fried Rice

2007-11-30T12:17:00.000-05:00

I suspect this will become a regular lunch around here. Awhile back when I was at Trader Joe's, they had frozen vegetarian fried rice so I got some to try & the girls (& I) gobbled it up! Soon after that L started her "yuck!" phase where she proclaims "yuck" to whatever I say I'm fixing for a meal. So, the next time I made it, when I said I was making fried rice, she proclaimed yuck! And asked for a peanut butter sandwich, shrug, ok, more for me . . . but then once she saw me eating it, she said "I didn't know it was THAT!! I want some!" and proceeded to gobble it down again. So, the frozen fried rice from Trader Joe's has been a quick, easy lunch we've had every so often, but it's not exactly bargain food. So, I kept thinking I should try making fried rice from scratch, but from what I'd read, it works best with leftover rice, and I never thought about it when I had sufficient leftover rice in the fridge. Last night we had black beans & rice, and I made a point of making plenty so there'd be some leftover. So today for lunch I made fried rice. I kind of read a couple recipes online & then went & did my own thing:

Heat oil (I used olive oil) in a skillet (all my skillets are cast iron to avoid the carcinogen concerns of teflon). Saute some onion (I had a really small one that was in the bag of onions I'm currently using from, otherwise, for the quantity I was making I probably would've used half an onion, but it's really how much you want). Once it's sauteed a little, add cold brown rice to fill the skillet and throw in some frozen peas. This would be a great way to use up bits of leftover veggies like corn, green beans, etc too. I had an open bag of frozen peas, plus the girls like peas & dh doesn't so peas are a good lunch veggie for us. Meanwhile scramble some eggs in a separate pan. Once the eggs are scrambled and the rice is heated through, mix the eggs in with the rice & veggies and serve.

The girls didn't appear to notice a difference from the Trader Joe's version, and the 3 of us ate a medium skillet FULL, and A asked for more, so it gets their vote of approval.

Ketchup

2007-11-24T20:13:00.000-05:00

This is adapted from The Optimal Diet, cookbook. I noticed it when flipping through the cookbook and thought it sounded simple enough, and certainly healthier than store bought ketchup, which is great since my kids are typical kids in their love of ketchup on anything & everything. So I figured, why not try it. Last minute, as I was dumping stuff in the bowl, I hesitated to use the honey that the recipe calls for, more because I didn't see how in a room temperature concoction the honey would truly blend together, so I decided in the grand scheme of things, the sugar in this recipe isn't that much, and I'd just use sugar, which wouldn't add the flavor that honey has, and also would for sure mix in evenly (a clump of honey while eating ketchup just grossed me out LOL). So, here's what I did.

1 c tomato sauce (from a can)
1 can (5.5oz) tomato paste
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp basil, crushed
3/4 tsp garlic powder (I used granulated roasted garlic, would assume regular wouldn't change the taste noticably)
1 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp salt

Combine all, stir well. Store in refrigerator up to one week, or freeze.

And the "test", I just served it to the girls w/ fried potatoes, they ate it up, licked the plate clean, and asked for more, just like they do regular ketchup, so it gets their stamp of approval. I won't say it tastes exactly like ketchup, but I think it tastes as good or better, then again, I'm selective in what I like ketchup on.

ETA: Bummer, when I got the jar out of the fridge yesterday to put ketchup on the girls' plates at lunch, it was much too "chunky" to pass for ketchup. The recipe indicated that it froze well, and I froze about half the batch, so I'll see how that is when it thaws, if it works ok that way I'll freeze it in small containers from now on and use them that way or something . . . but I'm so bummed that this didn't keep in the fridge at the right consistency. :( I'm going to throw the rest in the freezer and I think I can at least use it mixed into pasta sauce so I don't have to throw it out, but still . . .

To Try: Cheap Easy Mayo

2007-11-23T11:41:00.000-05:00

From budget101.com

2 eggs
2 Tbsp vinegar
2 Tbs veg oil
1 tsp salt
2 Tbs prepared mustard
2 1/2 c vegetable oil

In blender, combine eggs, vinegar, 2 Tbsp oil, salt & mustard. Whip 1 min. Continue whipping while slowly adding remaining oil, stop when oil is throughly blended and slightly firm.

To Try: Chewy Granola Bars

2007-11-23T11:39:00.000-05:00

From budget101.c0m

1 1/2 c Bisquick like mix
1 1/2 c quick oats
1 c brown sugar
1/2 c butter or margarine - softened
1 egg
1/3 c chocolate chips

heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all until well blended. Press evenly into un-greased 9x13 pan. Bake 15-17 min. Cut while still warm. Variations: add 1/3 c chopped dried fruit.

Whole Wheat Bread - Bread Machine

2007-11-21T09:44:00.001-05:00

I've been using a bread machine recipe for ww bread (for those days when I'm just lazy & in a hurry, when we have time to "play" the girls enjoy making ww rolls from scratch using a recipe from the Waldorf Kindergarten Snack Book) and while the bread tastes fine, I've been annoyed by the fact that the top always looks funny (bumpy) and it makes a small loaf, but when I tried doubling it, it overflowed my bread machine pan. So, then I noticed there was an all whole wheat, simple (not alot of ingredients) recipe on www.hillbillyhousewife.com so I tried it last week. The bread tasted good, but there was a huge air bubble in the top half of the loaf that collapsed at the end, so it looked really funny (caved in) and the top half of the loaf wasn't useable for sandwiches and such (I meant to toast them to use as bread crumbs and such, but forgot to do it before they got moldy). So, I tried the recipe again today, figuring the air bubble was a fluke. And it made a BEAUTIFUL load that completely filled my bread machine pan (so about twice the size of the loaves I was getting with the old recipe!) The girls each ate 2-3 slices for breakfast, so it has their stamp of approval, apparently. Here's the recipe:

1 2/3 c warm water
2 Tbsp oil (I used olive oil)
1/3 c sugar (I used honey, and it was a scant 1/3 c)
2 tsp salt
4 2/3 c whole wheat flour
2 tsp active dry yeast

Put in bread machine in the order listed for your machine. Bake using the whole wheat cycle. This makes a 2lb loaf.

Mom's Potato Noodle Soup

2007-11-20T23:15:00.000-05:00

This is my mom's recipe, she's made it since I was a kid. I made this last winter when all 4 of us were sick, and the kids & dh ate through it in no time flat.

2 c potatoes, diced
6 c water
1 onion, chopped
3 Tbsp chicken seasoning
3 oz egg noodles (I use whole grain ones, and you can't tell the difference)
2 scrambled eggs

Combine all but eggs in stockpot. Boil long enough to cook noodles and potatoes. Add eggs just before serving.

Five Can Soup

2007-11-20T23:12:00.001-05:00

This was a recipe I found when I was doing the South Beach Diet. I modified it to make it vegetarian. I haven't tried it for awhile, will probably try it with soy curls instead of fri chik.

1 can refried beans
1 can rotel tomatoes (I find these too spicy, I generally use the garlic & italian flavored ones, or plain)
1 can kidney beans, drained (or whatever kind of beans I have on hand)
1 can black beans, drained
1 can fri chik, chopped

Mix all ingredients, including broth from fri chik in stockot. Heat and add herbs to taste.

Lentil Garlic & Rosemary Soup

2007-11-20T23:07:00.000-05:00

I found this recipe awhile ago when a friend who's dd was allergic to dairy & soy was coming over for lunch. It's easy, yummy & healthy!

2 c lentils
9-10 c water
1 bulb garlic, peeled & chopped (I always have minced garlic in the fridge, so I just dump a couple spoonfuls in)
lg sprig fresh rosemary, finely chopped or 2 tsp dried
4 med carrots, diced (I usually use potatoes instead, since none of us are fond of cooked carrots)
sea salt to taste

Place lentils in lg saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer & add garlic, rosemary and carrots. Cook 20 min & add salt.

Angie's Macaroni & Cheese

2007-11-20T23:01:00.000-05:00

This is one of the recipes my friend Angie stocked our freezer with when our twins were born. It's yummy, and easy, so I got the recipe from her once the girls were old enough for me to think about cooking and such LOL.

For an 8x8 pan: (double for 9x13)

2 c macaroni, cooked (whole wheat works fine)
2 Tbsp butter
sm onion, chopped
2 Tbsp flour (whole wheat works fine)
salt & pepper
2 c milk
2 c cheese, plus extra for top

In saucepan, saute onion in butter. Add (on med-low) flour, salt, pepper, slowly add milk. Let thicke, add cheese (on low) and melt. Pour over macaroni. Mix and put into casserole dish. Top with shredded cheese. Bake uncovered 1/2 hr at 350.

Tabouli

2007-11-20T22:55:00.000-05:00

I love this (don't remember where I got it), though I didn't make it as much this past summer because my kids decided they didn't like it, and I tend to be lazy about making things that only I will eat.

1 c bulgar wheat
1 c boiling water
1 sm onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced (opt)
1 cucumber, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 c fresh chopped mint
2 c fresh chopped parsley

Dressing:
1/4 c lemon juice
1/3 c olive oil
1/2 tsp salt

Pour boiling water over bulgar wheat, let sit 1/2 hr. combine all ingredients. Mix dressing & pour over tabouli, mix together, chill.

Note: all the measurements in this (except the bulgar/boiling water ratio) are very approximate, just use however much of each ingredient you have/looks good :)

Homemade Butter

2007-11-18T15:10:00.000-05:00

Since we buy raw milk and the farm we buy it from doesn't offer other products made from the raw milk (other than hard cheeses), we make our own butter when needed, from the raw milk. Here is the recipe I use, adapted from the directions provided by the farm where I buy our milk:

Allow milk to sit undisturbed for at least 12 hrs so that cream rises to the top. Skim cream off with a spoon (or I often just pour it off and make sure to only get cream, this leaves some cream in the milk, but that's ok too). Let cream sit out (in a covered container) until it is room temperature. Put room temp cream in food processor (or a blender would work too) and "whiz" it until the butter forms. Pour the butter & buttermilk through a cheesecloth lined sieve (catching the buttermilk to use in recipes). Drop the clump of butter into a bowl of ice water and squish it out 3-4 times to remove excess buttermilk.

Place butter in a clean, dry bowl & use a spatula or clean hands to work the water out of the butter, tipping the bowl to the side to drain the water out. Once the water is worked out, add a little salt, work it in & you're done. We don't use alot of butter here (really only on bread, for cooking we generally use coconut oil for solid fats (butter, shortening), and olive oil for liquid fats) so I generally make this in small batches that I can put the butter in a small jelly jar and store in the fridge. If you make it in larger quantities, you can form it into "logs" and freeze until needed.

Banana Oatmeal Cookies

2007-11-18T15:07:00.001-05:00

These came from my friend Mary, several years ago, they're yummy & relatively healthy too!

3/4 c butter
1 1/2 c flour (ww works fine)
1/2 c sugar (can be reduced, esp if bananas are very ripe)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
1 egg (or 1 T ground flax + 3 T water)
1 c mashed banana
1 3/4 c rolled oats
1/2 c chocolate chips, dried fruit, &/or nuts

Cream butter & sugar. Add egg & banana. Mix dry ingredients (flour thru cinnamon) together & add to wet. Add oats slowly. Mix in optional. Bake at 375 for 12-15 minutes.

Cornmeal Mush

2007-11-18T15:04:00.000-05:00

From www.hillbillyhousewife.com

1 c cornmeal
1 c water + 3 c water
1 tsp salt

In a small bowl, combine cornmeal & 1 c water. Meanwhile in 2 qt saucepan combine salt & 3 c water. Bring water to a boil over high heat. While water is heating, add cornmeal mixed with water. Reduce heat to low. Simmer about 10 min. until thick. Serve with maple syrup or honey and milk if desired.

Mexican Pasta

2007-11-18T09:45:00.001-05:00

I got this from my friend Angie (who found it in one of the little books of recipes (this one was vegetarian recipes) you often find with the magazines at checkout at grocery stores). It started out as stuffed shells, but I'm lazy so we progressed from stuffed shells, to lasagna, and now more of a "baked ziti" type thing (it can also be made into enchiladas, using flour toritillas).
8 oz cooked & drained pasta (shapes like penne or rototini work well)
2 tsp veg oil (I use olive oil)
1 med onion, chopped (1/2 c)
1 can pinto beans or black beans (or one of each if doing a double recipe). For those who make beans from scratch a can is generally about 2 c cooked beans.
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 pkg cream cheese, softened
3/4 c taco sauce
1 c shredded colby-jack cheese (or taco cheese) . . . or now that we use raw dairy, I'll probably try it with cheddar since that's what I can get raw.
1/2 c crushed corn chips
Sour cream to garnish

Heat oil in 2 qt saucepan over med heat. Cook onion in oil about 5 min, stirring frequently. Stir in beans, chili powder, cream cheese & 1/4 c taco sauce. Heat over med-low 2-3 min. stirring occasionally until cheese is melted. Heat oven to 350. Spray 8x8 pan with cooking spray. Stir mixture and pasta together and place in pan. Pour remaining taco sauce over top. Cover and bake 20 min. Sprinkle with cheese and corn chips. Bake uncovered 10 min. Garnish with sour cream.

Alpine Casserole

2007-11-18T09:39:00.000-05:00

This is one of MIL's recipes that dh really likes, we often use it for Christmas or Thanksgiving since it is similar to stuffing.

1 Tbsp butter
2 c diced celery
1/4 c minced onion
3 c diced (vegetarian) chicken (we generally use "Fri Chik", might try it with soy curls next time)
2 c herb stuffing
1 c shredded cheese
1 c swiss cheese
3/4 c mayonnaise
1/2 c milk
1/2 c water

Melt butter in skillet, saute celery & onions. Combine all remaining ingredients and place in a 9x13 casserole dish. Bake covered at 350 for 45 minutes.

Flour Tortillas

2007-11-18T09:33:00.001-05:00

From www.hillbillyhousewife.com

4 c flour (last time I used 3 c ww, 1 c white, next time I may try all ww)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/3 c coconut oil (recipe calls for shortening)
1 to 1 1/4 c water

In lg bowl combine dry ingredients. Cut in coconut oil w/ a fork. Add water a little at a time until dough forms a cohesive ball. Knead about 20 times. Let rest in bowl about 10 min. From into 10-12 equal balls. roll ball in flour, then on a clean well floured surface, roll into a 6-7" circle (mine are never round, but close enough). Try to get it as thin as you can. Fry, 1 at a time in a dry, hot skilllet (since we use cast iron, "dry" is a relative term, but I don't add oil to it when I make these). Cook 30-45 seconds until under side is dry w/ a few brown spots. Flip & cook on the other side. Repeat with remaining tortillas.

DH was very skeptical about these, but after trying them, he conceded that they are better than store bought ones LOL.

Skillet Corn Bread

2007-11-18T09:11:00.000-05:00

I got this recipe off a TLC show (I don't remember which one). In our house, we start this recipe by making butter, so that we have butter to put on the cornbread & buttermilk to use in the recipe.

2 c buttermilk
1 c cornmeal
1 c flour (ideally whole wheat)
1 T baking powder
2 eggs
2 T butter

Melt butter in cast iron skillet (or other oven safe skillet). Mix all ingredients together. Pour into skillet. Bake 1/2 hr at 425.

"Chicken" with Basil Cream Sauce over Pasta

2007-11-18T09:02:00.000-05:00

A couple handfuls of Soy Curls, reconstituted in chicken seasoning.

3 T Butter (or coconut oil)
1 T olive oil
1/2 c broth from reconstituting soy curls (add water if needed to make 1/2 c)
1 c heavy whipping cream (that's what the recipe says, since we use raw milk, I poured cream off the top of the milk)
1/2 c grated parmesan cheese
1/4 c minced fresh basil (or 1 t dried)
1 t cornstarch

8 oz cooked pasta (we use ww spaghetti)

In lg skillet (I use all cast iron skillets) brown soy curls in butter and olive oil. Remove soy curls from skillet & set aside. Add broth to skillet, bring to a boil over med heat and stir to loosen browned bits from pan bottom. Stir in cream, boil and stir 1 min. Reduce heat. Stir in parmesan & basil and cook till heated through. Mix corn starch with extra chicken broth and stir into skillet if needed to thicken.

The recipe calls for layering everything together, because my children don't like the soy curls, I keep everything seperate and let each person layer things the way they want at the table.