Strawberry Smoothie

Try drinking this delicious smoothie for dessert instead of reaching for the ice cream after dinner.  Or make it for a quick and healthy breakfast (as Dr. Agatston suggests).  The original recipe doesn’t list liquid of any sort among the ingredients and I thought it turned out a little too thick, so I thinned the smoothie with a little water.  Do that at your own discretion.  It was quick, healthy and delicious.  Enjoy!

Strawberry Smoothie

recipe adapted from “The Southbeach Diet Cookbook,” page 28

2 ½ cups strawberries

1 cup fat-free plain yogurt

1 tablespoon sugar (more or less depending on how sweet the strawberries are)

¼ cup nonfat dry milk

¼ cup chopped walnuts

3 tablespoons wheat germ (optional)

2 tablespoons maple syrup

1 handful ice cubes

2-4 tablespoons water to thin to desired consistency

Combine strawberries, yogurt, sugar, dry milk, walnuts, wheat germ, maple syrup, and ice in a food processor or blender.  Puree until smooth.  Add water (if using) and blend well.  

Curtis Stone's Chicken Cacciatore

Curtis Stone, you little dream, you.  This is one of his Biggest Loser recipes, which I adapted because let's be honest.  Fire roasted tomatoes are disgusting.  I prefer my mother's home canned tomatoes so I used them instead.  I also left out the kalamata olives and used spinach instead of broccoli.  The meal was tasty, satisfying, and easy on fat/calorie content.  He serves this with brown rice instead of pasta that's traditionally paired with cacciatore.  All in all this delicious meal is loaded with veggies, lean protein and whole grain rice. 

Curtis Stone's Chicken Cacciatore

recipe from Curtis Stone

printable version of this recipe

2 teaspoons olive oil

Four 4-ounce pieces boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 cup chopped onion
1 clove minced garlic
1 red bell pepper chopped
2 cups cremini mushrooms, washed and chopped
¼ cup red wine (or apple juice)
1 quart home canned tomatoes
1 sprig thyme
1 bay leaf
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 cup broccoli, cut into bite-size pieces (or spinach)
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
5 kalamata olives, pitted and roughly chopped (optional)
1 cup steamed brown rice

Heat a large pan over medium high heat and add 1 tablespoon oil to the pan.

Season chicken with pepper and sear for several minutes on each side, until golden brown. Remove chicken to a plate, tent with foil and add 1 tablespoon oil to pan.

Sauté onions for 2-3 minutes, then add the garlic and bell pepper; cook 2 minutes more then add mushrooms. Cook mushrooms for 4 minutes, stirring often. Add juice and allow to reduce until almost dry. Add tomatoes and broccoli to the pot, stirring well. Add thyme, bay leaf, and oregano. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat to low.

Add chicken to tomato mixture and simmer on low for 10-15 minutes, until chicken is fully cooked and sauce is slightly thickened. Stir in all but one pinch of parsley.

To serve, spoon ¼ cup brown rice into the center of a serving plate. Place one portion of chicken on top of the rice and spoon some sauce and vegetables over chicken, repeat with remaining plates. Sprinkle with chopped olives and parsley.

Mushroom Patties

I know the picture isn't all that great, but trust me. This little mushroom patty is delicious alone without a bun. I've been trying to make more economical meals and have returned to one of my favorite cookbooks, “Managing Your Meals,” by Winnifred Jardine. I adapted the recipe slightly and my family of three loved them.


Mushroom Patties
Adapted from Winnifred Jardine’s “Managing Your Meals”
printable version of this recipe

1 pound cremini mushrooms
2 cups soft French bread crumbs (do not use dry crumbs)
½ cup slivered almonds, toasted
½ cup chopped onion
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
4 eggs, slightly beaten
¾ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
¼ cup olive oil

Wash mushrooms and allow them to dry 5-10 minutes before chopping. Chop mushrooms to make about 4 cups. Combine mushrooms with bread crumbs, almonds, onion, parsley, eggs, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Shape mixture into patties about 4 inches in diameter, set aside. Heat oil in a large skillet; add patties and fry over medium low heat until golden and set, 5-8 minutes on each side.

I served them with steamed broccoli topped with grated cheddar cheese and brown sugar dipped strawberries.

Lemon Bundt Cake

I’m finished with the South Beach Diet. Finished. While that’s not a celebratory statement, it’s something I can live with. It’s an “I quit two days in” statement, which taught me (again) that phase 1 just isn’t something I can live with. Phase 2 and 3 are alright, but I can’t survive with the limitations of phase 1. I need more variety including fruit and occasional simple carbohydrates.

This cake was so good, especially after sacrificing carbohydrates for a few days. I waited and made it a week after adding complex carbohydrates back into my diet. It was worth the wait. The ribbon of sweet cream cheese along with the moist lemon cake was delicious. Add berries and sweetened whipped cream for a heavenly dessert.

Lemon Bundt Cake
recipe from Carolyn Hurst
printable version of this recipe

Cake:
1 lemon cake mix
1 8-ounce package low fat cream cheese, softened
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 egg

Glaze:
1 ½ cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350.

Prepare cake mix according to package instructions. Grease and flour a bundt pan. Pour half of the cake batter into prepared bundt pan.

Combine softened cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and egg; mix until smooth. Pour or spread cream cheese mixture on top of cake batter, then pour or spread the remaining half of the cake batter on top of the cream cheese mixture. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes.

For the glaze, mix powdered sugar and milk together until smooth. Drizzle glaze over top of the cooled cake. Serve with berries and sweetened whipped cream if desired. Store left over caked covered in the refrigerator.

Tasty Broccoli

I’ve been South Beach dieting and just about every day I think, “I should post something,” but either the food is too terrible (some of it really is), or I’m afraid I’ll meander over to cookie pie, which will just tempt me to bake up some sweet, floury goodness, which, regrettably, is prohibited. Instead, I’ve been making foods like South Beach “Surprise Mashed Potatoes,” which aren’t mashed potatoes at all. Surprise! They’re steamed and mashed cauliflower flowerets. When I offered my two year old a taste she started crying and promptly threw up.

I steamed broccoli and seasoned it with a dot of Smart Balance butter and some soy sauce, and it actually was quite tasty. If you’re looking for a quick, tasty vegetable to serve along with dinner one night I recommend it (and not mashed cauliflower). There was no throw up at the dinner table the night I served it.

Tasty Broccoli
recipe from Jardine Winnefred’s “Managing Your Meals”
printable version of this recipe

2 bunches broccoli, washed and cut into bite sized pieces
1 tablespoon butter
2-3 tablespoons soy sauce
Pepper to taste

Steam broccoli until tender but still firm. Add butter, soy sauce and pepper to taste; stir until butter is melted. Serve immediately.

Strawberry Muffins

We really enjoyed ourselves over the weekend in Boise. We visited friends and family and I got to participate in my first Race for the Cure. My mother-in-law, who was diagnosed with breast cancer 10 years ago, along with her daughter, granddaughter, and I, walked in Saturday’s event. It was a sight to behold. Not our walking, but the masses of people who congregated to support the fight against breast cancer. We were over fifteen thousand strong. It was really neat. As you can imagine, I spent most of today unpacking, folding clothes, and cleaning out the car (and the house). It’s late, so I’ll keep the post brief. 

I really needed to use up some strawberries before a chemical reaction transformed them into something else in my refrigerator. I had plain yogurt and wheat flour (thanks to my handy grain mill) on hand, so I made these quick, low fat muffins.

Strawberry Muffins
recipe from Stonyfield yogurt
printable version of this recipe
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup wheat flour
½ cup sugar
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
2 eggs
1 cup Stonyfield low fat plain yogurt
¼ cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped strawberries
Cinnamon sugar (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375°. Grease or line 12 muffin tins.

In a large bowl, sift together flours, sugar, and baking soda. In a separate bowl, stir eggs, yogurt, butter, and vanilla until smooth. Toss strawberries into flour mixture. Using a spoon, make a well in the center of the mixing bowl (the one containing the flour and strawberries). Pour the yogurt mixture into the flour mixture and stir just until moistened. The batter will be lumpy.

Spoon the batter into muffin cups and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until tops are golden brown. Remove muffins from oven and dust with cinnamon sugar, if desired.

Banana Pancakes

I’m heading north with my family to participate in Boise’s 2010 Race for the Cure with my mother-in-law, a breast cancer survivor. She has been in remission (for the second time) almost eight years now—a blessing from heaven. We all feel so fortunate that she stayed around, especially to welcome grandchildren to her family.

I made these pancakes for the kids this morning. I should say I made them for myself and shared them with the kids. They reminded me of hot banana bread (in a pancake sort of way) slathered with butter and doused in warm maple syrup. They were delicious! It was a good way to use up over-ripe bananas and whole wheat flour, too.

Banana Pancakes
recipe from For the Love of Cooking
recipe slightly adapted by Homemade Deliciousness
printable version of this recipe

½ cup wheat flour
½ cup white flour (I used all wheat flour)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
¾ cup vanilla fat free yogurt
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, beaten
1 large banana, mashed

Whisk flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. In a separate bowl, combine yogurt, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, eggs, and banana. Add flour mixture to yogurt mixture and stir until smooth.

Pour ¼ cup pancake batter per pancake on a hot non-stick griddle or skillet. Cook until lightly browned on both sides. Serve with butter, warm maple syrup, and sliced bananas.

Magic in the Middle Cookies (Chocolate Cookies with Peanut Butter Filling)

I saw this cookie recipe last night and convinced my husband to lighten up about the extra pounds we promised we’d to loose and let me make (and share) them. It’s true; I've gained 15 pounds since I stopped breast feeding last June. It’s sad, really. My daily calorie requirements decreased substantially, but I continued to eat as much as I did before. I know; it’s the perfect formula for weight gain. So I made and shared the cookies with neighbors, eating two myself.

Magic in the Middle Cookies
recipe from MelsKitchenCafe.com

Chocolate Dough:
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup white granulated sugar
½ cup packed light brown sugar
½ cup butter, softened
¼ cup smooth peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk

Peanut Butter Filling:
¾ cup peanut butter
¾ cup powdered sugar

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375° F. Lightly grease two baking sheets.

To make the chocolate dough, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a medium mixing bowl. Combine sugars, butter, and peanut butter in a separate mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk to sugar mixture and stir to combine. Add dry ingredients to sugar mixture and mix well.

For the peanut butter filling, stir the peanut butter and powdered sugar together until smooth. Roll peanut butter filling into 26 one-inch balls using a teaspoon scoop or floured hands.

Scoop 1 tablespoon of chocolate cookie dough (a lump the size of an unshelled walnut) onto a baking sheet. Press your finger into the center of the dough to make an indentation. Put one peanut butter ball into the indentation. Bring cookie dough up over the filling, pressing edges together to cover filling. Roll the cookie dough in the palm of your hand to smooth it. Roll in granulated sugar, place on baking sheet, and flatten to ½ inch thickness with the bottom of a drinking glass. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling, leaving 2 inches between cookies on the baking sheet. Bake 7-9 minutes, or until they’re set. Remove from oven and cool them on a wire rack. Enjoy!

Apricot Glazed Cornish Game Hens

Ever since I roasted my first chicken a few weeks ago, I’ve wanted to roast everything I eat. My husband loves Cornish game hens, so I agreed to purchase two and prepare them for dinner. I decided to use a South Beach Diet recipe and the hens turned out really, really good. There were only three ingredients to make the sweet fruity glaze, along with salt and pepper to season the hens before glazing. The recipe couldn’t be simpler and the meat sweeter. For a truly heart healthy meal, serve the hens with baked sweet potatoes and steamed broccoli.

Apricot Glazed Cornish Game Hens
recipe from The South Beach Diet
printable version of this recipe

1 cup Smuckers low sugar apricot preserves
¼ cup I Can’t Believe it’s not Butter Spray
1/3 cup fresh orange juice
2 Cornish game hens, thawed
1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
1 pinch salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cover the bottom of a roasting pan with foil to catch drippings.

Combine the preserves, butter and orange juice to make the glaze. Rinse hens and pat dry; rub the cavities with salt and pepper. Place the hens breast sides up on a rack in the roasting pan—make sure they do not touch. Pour glaze over hens and roast for 1-2 hours, basting every 15-20 minutes.

Test thickest part of hen with a meat thermometer, making sure it doesn’t touch any bones. When the thermometer reads 170 degrees and the outside of the hens are dark brown they’re done. Remove them from the oven and let them stand for 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Turkey Ranch & Swiss Sandwiches on Ciabatta Bread

My husband and I owned and operated a sandwich shop a few years ago and one of my favorite sandwiches was the Turkey Ranch and Swiss. I made one at home the other day for lunch and really liked the homemade version. Keep three things in mind when making deli-style sandwiches at home:

1. Use fresh deli style rolls. I love ciabatta bread and found a bag of pre-sliced rolls in the bakery at my local supermarket.
2. Buy good quality meats and cheeses that are sliced fresh from the deli counter at the supermarket. It makes a big difference in how the sandwich tastes.
3. Use fresh produce. I like to use bags of shredded iceberg lettuce, spinach, sliced roma (because they’re less juicy) tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, and banana peppers.

Sandwiches like these are really easy to put together and pack up for a picnic, but if you’re planning on eating them at home, they taste even better toasted under the broiler, just add vegetables after toasting.

Turkey Ranch &Swiss Sandwiches on Ciabatta Bread

printable version of this recipe

1 ciabatta roll

1 tablespoon ranch dressing

Deli sliced turkey

Deli sliced Swiss cheese

Vegetables*

Spread ranch dressing evenly over both surfaces of the ciabatta roll. Fold slices of turkey and place them neatly on the top and bottom of each roll half. Put one slice of cheese on the top of the ciabatta roll. If desired, toast sandwich directly under broiler until cheese is melted, meat is heated, and edges of roll are dark brown. Add any or all of the vegetables listed below. Enjoy!

*shredded lettuce, spinach, bell peppers, onion, cucumbers, olives, mushrooms, banana peppers. 

Whole Wheat Waffles-Soooo Good!

My mom and dad gave me a grain mill for my birthday last year and I have to say that I am in love it! It’s wonderful! I really like that I can adjust the coarseness of the grinder so the grain being milled is course enough for cracked wheat cereal or fine enough for bread flour. It means I can have freshly ground grains whenever I want. It also enables me to rotate through food storage when I need to.

My parents also compiled a spiral bound book for each of their children teaching emergency preparedness basics—like how to use food storage, how to plant a garden, etc. The book contains a really, really good whole wheat waffle recipe that they received in an emergency preparedness manual in Rexburg, Idaho shortly after the Teton Dam broke.

Whole Wheat Waffles
recipe from the Rexburg Flood Manual
printable version of this recipe

1 cup sifted whole wheat flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
2 eggs, separated
1 ¼ cups milk
¼ cup oil

Sift dry ingredients together. Add egg yolks and milk gradually, beating on low speed. Add oil. Batter will be very thin. Beat hard for 2 minutes. Fold in beaten egg whites. Bake in preheated waffle iron.

Orzo with Peas and Parmesan

What it the world is orzo? It’s the word for “barley” In Italian, a language that is foreign to me, but delightsome and fascinating nevertheless. Grains of orzo resemble grains of rice but they are in fact pasta, making this quick side dish Italian in only one way: orzo is the main ingredient.  It's tasty nevertheless.

Orzo with Peas and Parmesan
recipe from For the Love of Cooking
printable version of this recipe

1 teaspoon olive oil
1 green onion, diced
8 button mushrooms, chopped
1 clove crushed garlic
Salt and pepper to taste
½ cup frozen peas, heated
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan (fresh Parmesan melts and tastes so much better)
Scant handful chopped parsley
1 cup orzo

Cook according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, heat olive oil in a medium skillet. When the oil is hot, add green onion and mushrooms and cook through. Add garlic and cook for about one minute, stirring frequently. Remove pan from heat and add salt and pepper.

When pasta is cooked, drain and return it to the pan. Stir in the mushroom mixture, peas, Parmesan and parsley; taste and season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!

Cookie Dough Brownies

At Christmas a few years ago my sister-in-law, Heather, received a data CD of family recipes from her mother. Heather was kind enough to install the files on my hard drive so I could also have a copy of their beloved recipes.

These decadent brownies are from their family collection, and they are every bit as good as their title sounds—delicious chewy brownies topped with creamy cookie dough and decadent chocolate glaze.  They are really, really good.  I didn't have walnuts when I made them this time, hence the brownies sans walnuts in the rather blurry photo above. 

Cookie Dough Brownies
recipe from Heather
printable version of this recipe

Brownies:
2 cups sugar
1 ½ cups flour
½ cup cocoa
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup oil
4 eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts, divided

Cookie Dough Filling:
½ cup butter
½ cup packed brown sugar
¼ cup sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour

Glaze:
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon shortening

Directions:
Coat a 9x13 pan with cooking spray and preheat the oven to 350.

In a mixing bowl, combine sugar, flour, cocoa, and salt. Add oil, eggs, and vanilla. Beat at medium speed for 3 minutes. Stir in ½ cup walnuts. Spread mixture into prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes; cool completely.

For cookie dough filling, blend butter and sugars in mixing bowl until creamy. Add milk, vanilla and flour; mix well. Spread over cooled brownies; refrigerate until firm.

For glaze, melt 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips and 1 tablespoon shortening in a saucepan, stirring until smooth. Spread over filling. Immediately sprinkle with remaining ½ cup of walnuts; press down on them lightly. Return brownies to refrigerator and allow glaze to set up completely. Cut into 2 inch squares and serve. Enjoy!

Strawberry Salad Dressing

Strawberry Salad Dressing
½ pound strawberries
½ cup sugar
½ cup red wine vinegar
½ cup canola oil

Puree the remaining ½ pound of strawberries with the sugar, red wine vinegar and canola oil in a blender. Keep left over dressing in a container fitted with a tight lid for up to 2 weeks.

Salad with Pecans, Apples, Strawberries and Strawberry Dressing

One of my dear friends introduced me to this salad last summer. It’s something she and her mother came up with and it is really tasty. I made it all summer long and have made it a few times already this year. You can adjust all the ingredients to your liking. For the dressing, if you like more strawberries and less sugar, start without sugar and taste and add sugar as you go. Same goes for vinegar. It’s really easy to experiment and make it to your liking. The salad is easy, pretty, and really good. Add grilled chicken breasts to make it a meal.


Salad with Pecans, Apples, Strawberries and Strawberry Dressing
printable version of this recipe

Salad
½ cup pecans, toasted and chopped
½ pound strawberries, chopped (I had raspberries on hand so I used them instead)
1 head red leaf lettuce
1 apple, chopped

Dressing
½ pound strawberries
½ cup sugar
½ cup red wine vinegar
½ cup canola oil

Toast pecans in a 350 degree oven for 7-8 minutes. Allow pecans to cool, then chop them roughly on a cutting board; set aside. Wash strawberries, remove stems and chop half of them, reserving the rest for the dressing. Toss the chopped strawberries and torn lettuce together in a salad bowl.

Puree the remaining ½ pound of strawberries with the sugar, red wine vinegar and canola oil in a blender. Chop apple and coat all surfaces a few tablespoons of dressing to prevent it from browning. Add apples to salad bowl.

Add pecans to salad and drizzle with dressing just before serving. Keep left over dressing in a container fitted with a tight lid for up to 2 weeks.

Baked Oatmeal

My sister told me about a delicious way to serve oatmeal a few months back and I've made it at least once a week since.  While the recipe below is not the same my sister first told me about, it is similar and I'm convinced now that I cannot go back to the traditional stove top method of preparing oatmeal; something magic happens when it's baked.  My daughter and I loved this.  Regrettably, my husband did not, but he's not a huge fan of oatmeal.  I found the recipe on allrecipes.  Enjoy!

Baked Oatmeal
printable version of this recipe

3 cups oatmeal
1 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
2 eggs
½ cup melted butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¾ cup dried cranberries

Coat a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Preheat oven to 350.

In a large bowl, combine oatmeal, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking powder and salt. Stir in milk, egger, melted butter and vanilla extract. Add dried cranberries and stir. Spread mixture into baking dish and bake for 40 minutes. Serve with milk.

Lemon and Thyme Roasted Chicken

I made my first roasted chicken ever and for the most part I really liked it, but there was one thing I didn't like at all.  Touching a raw bird was gross, but then I had to reach into its wet chicken cavity to remove a bag of innards.  GROSS.  Next time I'll use gloves.  Once the chicken was in the oven, the bleach was out and I was scrubbing the kitchen. 

I’ll do it again. No, not because I am anxious to feel around a dead bird's insides, but because it turned out really tasty.  Once I was passed the giblet part it wasn't too bad.  Besides, I paid $1.47 per pound for a free-range organic chicken, which turned out to be $0.53 less per pound than I normally pay for chicken.  It made a big difference on my food budget. It also allowed me to make several meals with the left over meat.

Lemon and Thyme Roasted Chicken
printable version of this recipe

One 4-5 pound free-range organic chicken
2 lemons
Fresh thyme
2-3 cloves garlic
¼ cup chopped onion
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 300. Line the bottom of a roasting pan with foil to catch drippings; put the vented roasting tray on top of the foil lined pan. Remove chicken from packaging and remove giblets from chicken cavity. Rinse the chicken with cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Put the chicken on the roasting tray and squeeze fresh lemon juice over entire bird; put peels inside the cavity of the chicken. Remove thyme leaves from stems with a sharp paring knife and sprinkle them generously on top. Put left over stems inside the cavity of the chicken along with the garlic and onion. Sprinkle salt and pepper over top.

Roast uncovered for 3 ½ to 4 hours, or until meat thermometer registers at least 170. Baste with pan drippings every ½ hour after the first 2 hours of roasting. Stop basting 1 hour before removing from oven for crispy skin. Keep in mind slow and low cooking will make the meat moist and tender. Enjoy!

Fried Rice

What should I do with left over steamed rice? My mom freezes and uses it later meals, something I do as well. It’s a great way to avoid food waste and allows for quick rice preparation for a future dinner. Just reheat, fluff with a fork, and serve.  But I stumbled across a recipe that uses steamed rice that has to be prepared 24 hours before hand.  Wow.  A recipe for me and my frozen rice.  This couldn't be more perfect for me and my rice loving husband.

Okay, I was supposed to use steamed rice that had been cooked and refrigerated 24 hours before using it as an ingredient in fried rice, but I used my frozen variety instead.  No mushy rice.  In fact, it couldn't have turned out more perfectly.  It was delicious.

Fried Rice
recipe from “Blue Ginger,” by Ming Tsai
printable version of this recipe

3-4 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
1-2 tablespoons canola oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons ginger, grated
1-2 green onions chopped—divide white from green
4 cups cold rice—made at least 24 hours ahead of time and chilled
2-3 eggs
2-3 tablespoons soy sauce, to taste
½ teaspoon white pepper

Cook bacon until crisp in a large skillet; drain on paper towels and crumble.

Remove all but 1-2 teaspoons bacon grease from skillet; add canola oil to the skillet. Return skillet to medium heat and sauté garlic, ginger, and white pieces of onion. Add rice, bacon, green pieces of onion, soy sauce and pepper; mix well.

Coat a separate skillet with non-stick cooking spray and cook scrambled eggs. Add cooked egg to rice. Taste and re-season with pepper or soy sauce as needed. Garnish with chopped green onion stems.

Sour Cream and Brown Sugar Dipped Strawberries

I bought my first container of strawberries last week and ate most of them myself. I guess I was making up for lost time during the long wintry months of fresh strawberry bareness. I'm so happy they are back in season and within reasonable purchase price.

Strawberries dipped in sour cream and brown sugar may sound a bit strange, but trust me; they're really easy and really good.

Sour Cream & Brown Sugar Strawberries

strawberries, wash and pat dry
sour cream
brown sugar

Wash strawberries and pat dry. Do not remove stems—they look pretty and it makes dipping easier.  Roll strawberries in sour cream, making a thin sour cream coating on each berry then roll in brown sugar.

Crème Brule French Toast

In my mind, this melt-in-your-mouth French toast is the perfect bready dish for large or small Easter brunches. It’s perfect for several reasons—reasons I could discuss at length, but I won’t. I’ll be short and snappy listing only the top three reasons this is the perfect French toast:

1.) These little toasts are prepped the night before so they absorb as much cream as possible before they are cooked. It is so nice having at least one dish prepped the night before, making one less thing to worry about when cooking and assembling other foods.

2.) They’re baked in the very dish they are prepped in, which again, is wonderful. The less clean-up the better. Each toast turns out golden and toasted on one side, with the other side coated in thick, decadent caramel.

3.) It’s easy to cut the recipe in half for a small family celebration, or double for a large crowd. Everyone will think you worked so hard to get these little toasts made, but really they are easy and the prep time is minimal.

Crème Brule French Toast

"The Essential Mormon Cookbook," page 6
printable version of this recipe

½ cup butter

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 tablespoons corn syrup

1 loaf Texas toast Wonder bread (extra-thick white bread)

5 eggs

1 ½ cups half-and-half (I use fat-free)

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

Coat a jelly roll pan (18x13x1) with cooking spray and set it aside.

Melt butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup in a small saucepan, stirring occasionally. When mixture is smooth, pour it into prepared jelly roll pan, spreading to coat the bottom of the pan. Place 12 slices of bread on top in a single layer to cover the pan, making sure one surface on each slice of bread is touching the brown sugar mixture.

Mix eggs, half-and-half, salt and vanilla together; pour and cover each piece of bread. Cover and refrigerate over night. Bake uncovered at 350 for 30-40 minutes, until golden. If not serving immediately, turn each slice of bread over to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pan. It can be served with maple syrup. Enjoy!

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

I’m not a huge fan of raisins, but after watching Ina Garten whip up some oatmeal raisin cookies I couldn’t help but try them again. The cookies looked so good my husband sent me to the store to buy ingredients so I could come right back home and make cookies. I thought the idea was brilliant.

I wanted to do everything exactly the way she did, even if it meant adding raisins instead of chocolate chips to the cookie dough. The cookies would be delicious with chocolate chips, but I actually like the sweet juicy raisins. Toasted pecans and dark brown sugar add bold flavor and a really nice texture to the classic oatmeal cookie. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. And yes, it’s fine if you use chocolate chips instead of raisins.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

recipe by Ina Garten from Barefoot Contessa
printable version of Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups oats
1 ½ cups raisins (or chocolate chips)
1 ½ cups toasted pecan halves, chopped

Preheat oven to 350. Bake pecan halves in 350 degree oven for 5-10 minutes, or until toasted. Allow pecans to cool slightly and chop them roughly; set aside.

Mix butter and sugar together until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; mix well. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt together. Slowly add dry ingredients to butter mixture and mix well. Add oats one cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add raisins and pecans.

Bake on ungreased cookie sheets for 12-15 minutes. Enjoy!

Enchiladas Verdes

Nothing disgusts me more than canned enchilada sauce. Alright, there are myriads of things that disgust me more, but red enchilada sauce is offensive. Possibly it’s the spice concoction that disgusts me; maybe it’s because I’ve never cooked enchiladas successfully and canned red sauce has been an ingredient in all my attempts. In any case, I almost gave up on enchiladas, but then Gema came into my life. Rather, I found her recipe on all recipes, but I felt like she walked right into my kitchen and waived a magic wand over my dinner table. The enchiladas were that good.

Her spicy green sauce made from charred Serrano peppers and tomatillos was delicious, resulting in my first-ever successful enchilada dinner. I used some left over filling I made and froze a few weeks earlier from a stuffed Pasilla pepper dinner, but Gema recommends using meat from a store bought rotisserie chicken. She also recommended using Mexican crema fresca instead of sour cream, but sour cream was on sale at Smith’s and that’s what I used. Here’s to you, Gema!

Enchiladas Verdes
recipe from Gema
printable version of this recipe

2 cloves garlic, skin removed
3 Serrano peppers
1 pound small tomatillos, husks removed
½ store-bought rotisserie chicken, shredded
½ cup oil
9 corn tortillas
3 cups water
4 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
Iceberg lettuce, shredded
Cilantro leaves
Mexican crema fresca (found by cheeses at Smith’s)
Cotija cheese, grated (I used cheddar)

Place a large skillet over medium heat. When skillet is hot, add garlic, peppers and tomatillos. Cook until charred and blackened on all sides, turning occasionally. The garlic cooks quickest, taking about 5 minutes, and the tomatillos take the longest, about 15 minutes. When garlic, peppers and tomatillos are blackened, remove from skillet and allow them to cool.

Prepare chicken by removing bones and shredding or chopping finely; keep warm in a warm oven.
Heat ½ cup oil in a deep skillet to 350 degrees. Fry tortillas individually turning once with kitchen tongs. They shouldn’t be in the oil for more than 15 seconds per side. Remove excess oil with paper towels and keep them warm in an oven. The hotter the oil, the less the tortillas will absorb.

Puree the garlic, peppers and tomatillos in a blender with water and bouillon granules. Blend until smooth. Pour mixture into a skillet over medium heat and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes.

Soak tortillas, one at a time, in sauce until pliable, fill them with shredded chicken, a spoonful of sauce and shredded cheese. Roll and place seam side down on a serving plate. Spoon a generous amount of sauce over rolls and top with cilantro, crema and cheese. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

Fruit Crepes

It wasn't my intention to make such a patriotic dessert, but that's how it turned out.  It looks like this might be a good dessert to serve in July.

We always make a few sweet dessert crepes after eating savory dinner crepes.  My husband really likes cherries so we usually make cherry crepes, but we've also made peach and blueberry crepes, too.  The directions are below.  Enjoy!

printable version of fruit crepes

Crepes:
4 eggs
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 ¼ cups milk
¼ melted butter
2 tablespoons sugar

Mix all ingredients together and stir for 1 minute. Scrape down sides of bowl and stir 15 more seconds. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before cooking. To cook crepes, spoon 2 tablespoons batter into a hot, lightly greased 6-7 inch skillet. Rotate pan until batter covers the bottom. Cook on medium heat until bubbles appear; turn and cook the other side.

Other ingredients:
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
½ cup sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla
¼ cup sugar
Cherry pie filling, sliced peaches, sliced strawberries, or fresh blueberries
Sweetened whipped cream
Powdered sugar, sifted

Mix cream cheese, sour cream, vanilla and sugar together until smooth. Spread cream cheese mixture on warm crepes; top with fruit. Roll up and top with sweetened whipped cream sifted powdered sugar.

Chicken Crepes Versailles

The crepes were wonderful. The filling had sautéed mushrooms, peppers and white sauce ingredients, which made it saucy and really tasty. The crepe sauce could have had more seasonings—like salt and pepper—not anything to wild. The ingredients were simple and mostly things I had on hand, which was nice. I like to try new things, but I don’t like buying spices and things I’ve never heard of. We were all happy with the way they turned out—even my daughter liked them.

One thing that could be better is making crispier crepes, something that might be achieved with a crepe maker. While the crepes and were delicious I wished they were a little crispier on their golden surfaces. It is a tiny problem, but something I think a crepe maker would solve. Possibly?

Chicken Crepes Versailles

Printable version of this recipe

recipe adapted from cooks.com

Crepes:
4 eggs
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 ¼ cups milk
¼ melted butter
2 tablespoons sugar

Mix all ingredients together and stir for 1 minute. Scrape down sides of bowl and stir 15 more seconds. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before cooking. To cook crepes, spoon 2 tablespoons batter into a hot, lightly greased 6-7 inch skillet. Rotate pan until batter covers the bottom. Cook on medium heat until bubbles appear; turn and cook the other side.

Crepe Sauce:
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups fat free half and half, or evaporated milk
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper

Melt butter in a small sauce pan; add flour and stir until bubbly. Remove pan for heat and stir in half and half, salt and pepper. Return pan to heat. Cook and stir until boiling; boil 1 minute more. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm until serving.

Crepe Filling:
5 tablespoons butter
5 button mushrooms, chopped
½ red bell pepper, chopped
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup chicken broth
2 cups fat free half and half, or evaporated milk
2 chicken breasts, boiled and diced

Melt butter in large skillet. Sautee mushrooms and peppers until tender. Blend in flour, salt and pepper. Cook over low heat until mixture is bubbly. Remove from heat and add broth and half and half. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Cook and stir until mixture thickens. Stir in chicken and heat through.

Putting it all together:
Spoon ¼ cup chicken filling down the center of a cooked crepe, sprinkle with shredded cheese and roll burrito-style. Place filled crepe onto a plate, spoon sauce over top. Enjoy!

I'm not sure what I was thinking . . .

Who potty trains a kid in three days? It's an incredibly foolish idea. With the worst of it behind me I still ask myself, "what in the world were you thinking?" Apparently I wasn’t. If I were to do it again I would wait until my child was a little older. My nearly 24 month-old is potty trained and that’s great, but the process wasn’t a pleasant undertaking for either of us. That’s all I’m going to say about it.

In other news, I’ll make Chicken Crepes Versailles for dinner tonight and I’ll post pictures and the recipe tomorrow morning.

3 Day Potty Training

We're trying our luck with 3-day potty training.  Posting will continue in a few days.

Spaghetti

I tried a new spaghetti sauce recipe recently from My Kitchen Cafe, and we really liked it. I’ve never made sauce with bell peppers in it, but I really liked the sweet peppery taste they added to it; I also liked the trace of balsamic vinegar. My husband, who is not a big fan of spaghetti, really liked it and requested the left over food for his lunch. While I still love my mom’s recipe, it was nice to try a different sauce. Thanks for the great recipe, Melanie.

Spaghetti Sauce

recipe from My Kitchen Cafe

printable version of this recipe

1 ½ tablespoons olive oil

½ yellow onion, chopped and divided
½ red or green bell pepper, chopped
1 pound ground beef
2 cloves minced garlic
1 6 ounce can tomato paste
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano
1 ½ teaspoons dried basil
¾ teaspoons dried thyme
1 14-oz. can Italian-style diced tomatoes (I used 1 quart+1 pint home canned tomatoes)
1 28-oz. can crushed tomatoes
¾ cups beef stock or beef broth
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add 1/2 of the onions and sauté until slightly browned; add garlic and stir. Add beef and cook until browned; drain.

Puree the remaining onions and bell pepper in a blender; add mixture to the meat and stir. Add tomato paste and spices, stirring until combined. Add tomatoes, beef broth and sugar; stir. Add the bay leaf; bring sauce to a boil and then reduce to low and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Stir in the balsamic vinegar before serving.

Oil Free Poppy Seed Salad Dressing

I thought it might be helpful to post this dressing recipe by itself, because it's currently embedded in the Mandarin Orange and Spinach Salad post.

Oil Free Poppy Seed Dressing
¼ cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon dry mustard
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon pectin
2 tablespoons vinegar
½ cup water
½ teaspoon poppy seeds
Put all ingredients in a pint jar that has a screw top lid (a Mason jar, for example). Mix with a wire whisk until sugar and pectin are dissolved. It takes some time to get all the pectin dissolved. Cover with screw top lid and refrigerate 2 hours before serving. Shake dressing before pouring it on top of the salad.

Coffee Cake Muffins

I couldn’t resist trying another muffin recipe. While these have plenty more calories than the yogurt blueberry muffins they are definitely worth making—and probably sharing—although I didn’t do the latter. They are so good! Just reading the recipe makes my mouth water.

They’re made with sour cream batter, a cinnamon sugar center and streusel topping. I decided to use vanilla yogurt instead of sour cream, because I thought somehow it would make these little babies a tiny bit less fattening. It probably did, but they still have butter and pecans and plenty of sugar in them, ingredients that make food taste good. The recipe is from the food editor of All You magazine.  Enjoy!

Coffee Cake Muffins
Streusel:
8 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cinnamon
4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces and chilled
½ cup chopped pecans

Muffins:
2 large eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces and softened.

For the streusel: Pulse 5 tablespoons sugar, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, butter in a food processor until just combined. Remove ¾ cup of the mixture and set it aside for the cinnamon sugar center. Add pecans and remaining sugar to the food processor; pulse until nuts are coarsely ground. Transfer to a bowl and set aside for streusel topping. Do not wash food processor.

For the muffins: Preheat oven to 375. Prepare a muffin tin with paper liners or coat with cooking spray. Whisk eggs, sour cream and vanilla in a bowl. Pulse flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and butter in food processor until mixture resembles small peas. Transfer to a large bowl. Using a rubber scraper, gradually fold egg mixture into flour mixture until just moistened. Place 1 tablespoon batter in each muffin cup and top with 1 tablespoon cinnamon filling. Using the back of a spoon, press filling lightly into batter; spoon remaining batter over filling and sprinkle streusel evenly on top.

Bake for 22-25 minutes, or until muffins are light golden brown. Cool for about 30 minutes in muffin pan; carefully remove muffins from pan and place on wire racks.

Cilantro Lime Rice

I served this with the stuffed peppers last night; it was the perfect side dish to go along with them.

Cilantro Lime Rice

printable version of Cilantro Lime Rice

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves minced garlic
1 cup rice
1 ½ cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
Zest from one lime
½ cup chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon salt

Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat; add onions and sauté until golden. Add garlic and rice; stir constantly for 1 minute. Continue cooking and stirring occasionally until rice browns a little. Pour chicken broth over rice and cover; cook for 20-25 minutes. When rice is tender, add lime juice, zest, cilantro and salt. Mix gently; serve hot.

Stuffed Pasilla Peppers

I’ve been trying new recipes a lot lately, and over all I’ve been really happy with all of them.  I found this one from Pam at For the Love of Cooking.  She's always cooking up really good things and I’ve never been disappointed with any of the recipes I’ve tried from her blog.

Well, the stuffed peppers are the best stuffed peppers I have ever tasted, and are definitely post-worthy. I absolutely loved the flavor from the Pasilla peppers. They were super spicy and so delicious.

It took about an hour* to get the peppers and the side dishes prepared and on the table, so it seemed like a pretty normal amount of time to spent cooking dinner. My husband especially loved them and took the last one in his lunch. He's usually my gauge on how good a meal is. If he requests leftovers for lunch I know I’ll make the meal again.

*Not including chicken preparation. I boiled the chicken for about three hours before getting the meal together. It took one hour from the time the chicken was cooked and shredded until dinner was on the table.

Stuffed Pasilla Peppers
recipe and photos from Homemade Deliciousness
original recipe from For the Love of Cooking
printable version of Stuffed Pasilla Peppers

3 Pasilla peppers
1 large chicken breast
½ cup black beans, drained and rinsed
½ cup grated cheddar cheese, divided
2 tablespoons diced bell pepper
2 tablespoons diced onion
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon diced jalapeno
1 clove minced garlic
Salt and pepper to taste
Dash of oregano

Turn the broiler on, place an oven rack to the top position. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray. Wash and dry peppers; place them on the baking sheet and broil until they are blackened on all sides. Remove from oven, immediately place peppers in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. After 10-15 minutes, remove one pepper from bowl, and gently peel the skin off. Cut the pepper in half lengthwise, remove seeds. Continue with the remaining peppers. Coat a baking dish with cooking spray and lay all the peeled and seeded peppers in the dish; set aside.

Put chicken breast in boiling water; cover and cook on low for 2-3 hours. When chicken is fork-tender remove it from water, cool a few minutes and then dice or shred. Put chicken in a medium mixing bowl. Drain and rinse the beans; add ½ cup beans to chicken, refrigerate. Add half of the cheese, bell pepper, onion, cilantro, jalapeño, garlic, salt, pepper and oregano; gently mix together.

Fill the peppers with chicken mixture; sprinkle with remaining cheese and cook at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Serve with guacamole.

Blueberry Muffins

 

I found a recipe from “The Complete Cooking Light Cookbook” for blueberry muffins that I really couldn’t resist trying. The muffins have vanilla yogurt in them instead of melted butter or lots of oil, making them a little more calorie friendly.

They also have whole wheat flour and freshly squeezed orange juice, which I replaced with fresh lemon juice. My grandmother lives in Arizona and has lemon, orange and grapefruit trees. She recently sent my parents home with loads of citrus to share with us. Sadly, the oranges are gone, but I still had a few lemons so I used one and added a little more sugar.

The muffins turned out soft and delicious. This will be a recipe I will use again and again.

Blueberry Muffins

recipe from "The Complete Cooking Light Cookbook"

printable version of Blueberry Muffins

2 cups flour

1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup of vanilla low fat yogurt

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (divided)

1 tbsp sugar

Preheat the oven to 400.  Coat a muffin tin with cooking spray.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl; set aside. In a separate bowl, combine orange juice, oil, vanilla, yogurt and egg; add to dry ingredients, stirring just until moist. Gently fold in 1 cup of blueberries

Spoon batter into muffin tin. Divide the remaining ½ cup of blueberries between the muffins; sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sugar evenly over the muffins.  Bake 17-19 minutes Remove muffins from the pan immediately and place on a wire rack to cool.

Calzones

I love calzones and recently found a recipe for pizza dough that I really, really like using to make them. I haven’t used the dough to make pizza yet, so I'm not sure how it much I would love it for pizza, but it's excellent for calzones. So excellent, in fact, that I'm posting the recipe. I found it here.

I've made calzones in the past with Rhode’s bread dough, but it’s not nearly as good. If you’ve got the time to throw the dough ingredients in a bread machine, I recommend making pizza dough rather than using frozen bread dough. It really made a big difference in how tasty the calzone ended up. It was also really easy to toss everything in the bread machine, put it on dough cycle, and wait for 90 minutes for the dough to form. When the dough is done, roll it out, fill it with your favorite pizza toppings and bake. It really couldn’t be easier.

Calzones
recipe and photos from Homemade Deliciousness
original recipe from Kevin K. on allrecipes.com
printable version of Calzones

1 ¼ cups water
2 teaspoons dry active yeast
1 ½ tablespoons sugar
3 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon powdered milk
¾ cup marinara
1 cups grated Mozzarella cheese
Fillings (pineapple, Canadian bacon, pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, Italian sausage, etc)
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Put water, yeast, sugar, flour, salt, and powdered milk in a bread machine; select dough cycle.
When dough is finished, roll it on a lightly floured surface. Preheat oven to 375. Shape dough into two 8x12 inch rectangles. Transfer to a greased cookie sheet; spoon marinara down center of dough and top it with fillings of your choice. Make diagonal cuts 1 ½ inches apart and braid over filling. (I folded the top down and sealed the edges instead.) Seal edges with water; brush top with melted butter. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning and Parmesan.  Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until golden. Cool 5 minutes, slice and serve. Makes 2 large calzones.

No Bake Cookies

I'm still painting, and by my calculations I'll be painting for 11 more weeks.  Curses.  It's not like the house is 12 million square feet, it's just that painting and toddlerhood don't coincide nicely.  It takes a lot longer to get things done.  I'm complaining.  I'm sorry.  I love my little girl.  I love that my dear husband has agreed to let me paint.  And blessedly, in May the painting will be finished.

I'm still cooking, and although last night's dinner was a huge failure dessert was not.  These cookies were one of my childhood favorites and welcome morsels of sweet cookie bliss after dinner's failure.  The enchilada recipe is now in the garbage will furthermore remain unmentioned.

No Bake Cookies
½ cup butter
2 cups sugar
½ cup milk
¼ cup cocoa
½ cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups oatmeal

Position a sheet of waxed paper in a baking sheet; set aside.

Put butter, sugar, milk and cocoa in a large sauce pan; cook and stir over medium heat. Allow mixture to come to boil, continue cooking for 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add peanut butter and vanilla; mix until peanut butter is blended. Stir in oatmeal. Drop by heaping spoonfuls into waxed paper. Refrigerate until firm.