What's for Meat?

Spanish Rice in the Crockpot

2012-01-29T11:49:00.000-08:00

My cousin has a cooking blog and I always look forward to reading what she's made on Tuesday nights. She's a great cook, way more daring than I am (check out her mad bread making skills). In one post, she reminded me of the spanish rice in the crockpot that my grandma and mom used to make. I have my own homemade (that is, not from a box with a seasoning package) version of this, but the crockpot is really convenient sometimes.

This past weekend I made a crockpot of Chipotle Carne Asada and a crockpot of the rice. However, I made a bit of a mistake . . . I used Thai Jasmine rice instead of a regular long grain rice and it got sort of mushy. But, I added some spices to the family recipe and really liked the overall flavor. I used 2.5 cups of rice and 5 cups of liquid and it made a crockpot full . . . we had 20 guests and I had tons of leftovers (maybe because it was so mushy??)

Spanish Rice (6 side dish servings)

1.5 c. raw long grain rice

1/4 c. olive oil

1.5 c. tomato juice (I used low-sodium V8)

1.5 c. water

1 small onion, chopped

1 small green bell pepper, finely diced

2 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. ground chipotle pepper (or paprika or for a kick, 1/4 tsp. cayenne)

1/2 tsp. salt

Saute the rice, onion, and bell pepper in the olive oil until the rice is golden brown and the onion & pepper are soft. Put it in a crockpot with the rest of the ingredients. Stir well. Cover and cook on low. My cousin's instructions say low for 4-6 hours or high for 2-3 hours. My crockpot is notoriously hot / fast and I checked it when the liquid was absorbed at about 2 hours on low and it was done.

Southwest Stuffed Peppers

2012-01-24T13:54:00.000-08:00

Ok, sorry . . . these cell phone photos aren't the best but you get the idea :)

I love stuffed peppers. My usual recipe is this one, a vegetarian version with Israeli cous cous. I'm also a fan of the traditional ground beef, rice, tomato sauce kind but those aren't my husband's favorite. This week I tried a new version. The lean ground turkey and brown rice make for a filling and low-calorie option and the southwest flavors were great. I think they're my new favorites and will go into regular rotation around here.

Recipe notes: By using pepper halves and the technique of hot water / foil tenting, you avoid having to boil or roast the peppers first. To make these vegetarian, substitute pinto beans, black beans or chick peas for the ground turkey. The cilantro is great and if you like spicier, add some diced jalapeno or other green chile when you add the onion & garlic. Remember that the recipe uses cooked brown rice, so plan ahead.

Southwest Stuffed Peppers (serves 4)
Original recipe here

1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, as needed
1 lb ground turkey
3-4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 medium red onion, diced
1 cup cooked corn kernels (I used canned but you can thaw frozen corn or use fresh as well)
1 cup or so cooked brown rice
Chipotle powder, to taste [or other favorite chile spice]
1/2 teaspoon cumin, or to taste
1 teaspoon paprika or smoked paprika
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
2-3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro
4 medium bell peppers, halved and seeded (I used red & yellow)
some jarred salsa
some shredded cheese (or goat cheese)
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Heat a little olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and cook the ground turkey till browned; drain off any liquid, if you need to.

Add a dash more olive oil; heat; add the chopped garlic, onion, and corn; stir and heat through.

Add a cup of cooked brown rice, stir and lightly mix. Add a dash more olive oil, if needed, to moisten. Add chipotle, cumin and paprike. Season with sea salt and pepper. Stir well to combine the flavors. Remove from heat. Add in the chopped cilantro. If you need a little more rice to fill large peppers- add some in and toss.

Choose a shallow baking dish that will fit the halved peppers. Stuff the halved peppers with the brown rice mixture, pressing in firmly; use as much stuffing as you can. Place the stuffed peppers in the baking dish.

Top each pepper with a spoonful of salsa, and some cheese, if using.

Pour about an inch of hot boiled water into the bottom of the baking pan, around the peppers, and loosely cover the pan with a foil tent. This helps to cook the peppers. Bake in a 375 degree oven for about 25-35 minutes, until the peppers are fork tender.

Around the dinner table

2012-01-20T15:18:00.000-08:00

Do you eat dinner at the table, with the TV off, as a family? Did you do that growing up? Most of my life, we sat down to the table as a family, ate a homemade meal, talked, laughed, and we all stayed at the table until dinnertime was over. I remember at one point there was a star chart where we got a star for all staying at the table and not getting up for anything . . . I think after weeks and weeks, the reward was our pet bunnies.

As a parent, I have a new appreciation for what my mom did to make all those meals and the effort it takes to get a family to all sit at the table. I know I've written before that planning is half the battle, but it's also the little things like buckling squirmy Little into a booster seat (which she's not a fan of) to help her get into the habit of family dinner and not giving in to the temptation to feed the kids at the counter and then eat our own quiet dinner at 8pm when they're in bed. We do this sometimes, but I don't like it to be our norm that the kids and adults eat separately.

This quarter I get home from work at about 7pm on Mondays and Wednesdays. We've mostly been eating soup & salad or leftovers on those nights but I got the bright idea of putting Big & Daddy up to the task of cooking together. Their first endeavor was homemade pizzas; dinner was delicious and I loved coming home and not having to cook! One thing that recently reinforced my commitment to the family dinner table was an article by Mark Hyman on the Huffington Post. It's common sense that you'll save money and gain less weight if you cook your own food at home but there are other advantages that are pretty cool.

For you parents out there, here's an inspiring excerpt: "Research shows that children who have regular meals with their parents do better in every way, from better grades, to healthier relationships, to staying out of trouble. They are 42 percent less likely to drink, 50 percent less likely to smoke and 66 percent less like to smoke marijuana. Regular family dinners protect girls from bulimia, anorexia, and diet pills. Family dinners also reduce the incidence of childhood obesity. In a study on household routines and obesity in U.S. preschool-aged children, it was shown that kids as young as four have a lower risk of obesity if they eat regular family dinners, have enough sleep, and don't watch TV on weekdays."

Lamb & Zucchini Casserole

2012-01-16T15:00:00.000-08:00

Ok, Martha Stewart calls this recipe a lasagna and although I guess lasagnas are technically casseroles, without cheese between the layers (or any pasta), I had a hard time selling this to my family as lasagna. It was delicious and I'll be enjoying the leftovers and making it again soon. I liked how the zucchini was roasted first and it still held it's shape and texture by the time the whole casserole was baked.

I made it ahead of time (naptime) and baked it at dinner time. If you want to make it more lasagna-like, I might add feta (or ricotta) between the layers. If you are like my mom and consider lambs to be friends, not food, substitute lean ground beef or ground turkey. The fresh oregano made the recipe (in my opinion) and the nutrition information is pretty decent for a hearty dish like this - about 500 cal/serving.

Here's a photo of the first two layers:

Lamb & Zucchini Casserole (serves 6)
from Martha Stewart's Everyday Food

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for baking sheets

5 medium zucchini, cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch slices

Coarse salt and ground pepper

1 yellow onion, diced small

2 garlic cloves

1 1/4 pounds ground lamb or beef

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 large tomatoes, diced large

1/4 cup fresh oregano leaves

10 ounces part-skim ricotta (1 cup)

1/2 ounce Parmesan, grated (2 tablespoons)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Brush two rimmed baking sheets with oil. Divide zucchini between sheets; arrange in a single layer, turning once to coat. Season with salt and pepper; roast until softened, 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Add onion and cook until softened, 8 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add lamb and cook, breaking up meat with a spoon, until browned, 6 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer lamb to paper towels to drain and pour off fat from skillet. Return lamb to skillet; add tomato paste, tomatoes, and oregano. Stir to combine. Cook until tomato liquid is almost evaporated, 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Reduce oven to 400 degrees. Spoon half the lamb mixture into an 8-inch square baking dish. Top with half the zucchini slices, overlapping to fit. Repeat layering with remaining lamb mixture and zucchini. Spread ricotta over top; sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake until sauce is bubbling and cheese is browned in spots, 20 to 30 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.

Chicken, Mushroom & Brown Rice Casserole

2012-01-13T11:26:00.000-08:00

People can be divided into two camps: those who enjoy a good casserole and those who are skeptical of anything resembling a casserole. My girls are the suspicious type (they like all the parts of their meal separated) and my husband and I are the first type (even though we have a relatively high bar). Casseroles remind me of church suppers and bringing (or being brought) meals when a baby is born or someone is sick.

It seems like casserole recipes of this sort usually rely on condensed soup to hold it all together. I liked how this was just sour cream, cheese and broth. For a casserole, the lean protein, brown rice, and vegetables make it a relatively light option. You could probably add zucchini, celery or other vegetables to the beginning of the recipe and I bet wild rice would work as well as brown rice if you had that handy. Also, if you wanted to lighten it even further, you could omit the last cup of cheese on top (but that part was especially yummy!). Bonus: It's gluten free, you can make it ahead of time (see note at end) and I used a rotisserie chicken which made this super quick to put together. Just take into consideration the cooking time of the brown rice (or you could use the already cooked brown rice from Trader Joe's).

For those of you who like casseroles, here are a couple of other options on the blog:
Chicken and wild rice casserole
Sherry lamb casserole
Chile relleno casserole
Sue's egg casserole
Puffy egg casserole

Chicken, Mushroom, and Brown Rice Casserole (serves 6)

2 c. cooked long grain brown rice
16 oz mushrooms, washed, thickly sliced, slices cut in half
1 onion, diced
1/2 cup diced carrot
2 tsp. ground thyme
1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning (I used a lemon herb one from Williams Sonoma)
1.5 - 2 c. diced cooked chicken (or turkey)
1/2 c. chicken broth
1/2 c. low fat sour cream
1/2 c. coarsely grated parmesan cheese
2 c. grated low-fat cheese (I used a cheddar jack blend) - divided
salt, pepper and olive oil

Cook brown rice according to package directions and let it cool. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat 2 teaspoons of olive oil in a large non-stick pan and sauté the mushrooms until they're starting to brown and all the liquid has evaporated. Remove them to a dish.

Add the onions and carrot to the same pan. Add a little more olive oil and sauté 4-5 minutes or until the onion has softened. Add the thyme, poultry seasoning, some salt and pepper, and sauté about 2 minutes more. Turn off the heat and add the chicken, mushrooms, and rice (if your pan isn't large enough, combine the vegetables, chicken and rice in a large bowl). Gently stir until all the meat and vegetables are evenly distributed in the rice.

In a small bowl, whisk together sour cream and broth. Then stir in the parmesan cheese and 1 cup of the grated low-fat cheese. Gently stir the sour cream mixture into the rice mixture. Spray a 2 quart casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray (or brush with olive oil). Spoon the rice mixture into the dish and press down to evenly distribute. Bake for 25 minutes or until casserole is slightly bubbling and barely starting to brown. Sprinkle with the second cup of cheese and bake about 15 minutes more. Serve hot.

Make ahead: I made it up to the point of putting it in the oven and refrigerated it. Then, I added 5-10 extra minutes to the baking time.

Young Chef's Academy

2012-01-10T13:18:00.000-08:00

About 6 months ago, I bought a Groupon for the Young Chef's Academy in Claremont. We had walked by several times and big sister loved the idea of taking a class. The class times aren't very convenient for us so it took the Groupon almost expiring to get us in the door (finally).

Chef Tony was awesome and even put on a chef's hat when he saw that my daughter was disappointed that he wasn't wearing one (in the photo, you can see he also let her wear one too). The kids made Chicken Noodle Soup and a Four Cheese and Tomato Panini. Here's my honest review of the experience:

Pros
Fun . . . Big loved it
Friendly, personable staff
Recipes for students to take home - Big is excited to make this menu again for Daddy and little sister
Got my daughter to eat some stuff she usually doesn't eat (tomatoes, soup)

Cons
Most of the cooking that the kids did was just chopping. Not sure if that's because of this menu in particular or if that's characteristic of the classes for her age.
No stove in the kitchen - made me think I'll steer clear of their adult classes
The class is "parent participation" but the parents didn't participate. I loved doing something new with Big and watching her but I think it should either be optional to drop them off or encourage more actual participation from parents.

They do birthday parties which I think sounds like a lot of fun. Check them out here or at 514 W. First Street, Claremont (in the Packing House).

Quinoa Salad

2012-01-05T06:42:00.000-08:00

In the summertime I made a quinoa salad with mango and black bean and this sort of reminded me of that. About 6 months ago, someone at church made this for potluck and I walked around to the tables to find out who made it so I could get the recipe. Turns out, it's from the back of the box of Trader Joe's organic red quinoa.

One of my New Year's resolutions is to feed my family better and to make meals we can all eat (instead of an adult meal and a kid's meal). I served this quinoa salad with baked turkey taquitos (idea from here if you want a recipe). The girls liked parts of the quinoa salad not mixed together (a little avocado, some black beans, some corn) but I still only made one dinner for all 4 of us!

The dressing is the bottled cilantro dressing from Trader Joe's but if you don't live near a TJ's, you can try the homemade version after the salad recipe.

Black Bean, Roasted Corn and Avocado Quinoa Salad (6 side dish servings)

1 cup quinoa

2 cups broth (chicken or vegetable)

1 15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

2 cups roasted corn kernels (I used thawed frozen corn)

1 avocado, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 pint grape tomatoes, halved

1/2 c. red onion, finely diced

3/4 cup cilantro salad dressing

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

zest of one lime

salt and pepper

Place quinoa and broth in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until all water is absorbed, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Combine quinoa, black beans, corn, avocado, tomatoes, onion, half of the cilantro and the salad dressing in a bowl. Stir in lime zest and salt and pepper to taste. Add more dressing if you want to. Garnish with the remaining cilantro.

Cilantro Dressing (or marinade)

Combine the following ingredients in a blender, mini chopper, or food processor:

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 garlic clove
Salt and pepper

And, back to real life . . .

2012-01-03T16:24:00.000-08:00

I love the holidays - everything about them and this year, it went by way too fast for my taste. Even though the decorations and holiday food are gone (well, I still have half a box of peppermint Joe Joes), I still can't believe it's over. Before I move on in 2012, I want to share a few of our holiday photos.

17 month old little sister = Christmas tree outside this year. Big sister was the chief Tree Trimmer and Star Placer.

Even though I'm super challenged when it comes to rolled out cut out cookies, we did our best.

Big took some cookies to her favorite neighbors along with a picture that says "God and Jesus Love You."

Sants's little elf

A new bike so Big can be just like Daddy!

Little got a "beep beep." I think she'd sleep in it if I let her!

Many attempts at a picture of the two of them together and this is about as good as it gets.

I'll save any unposted holiday recipes for next year and instead give you a review. You know I love games and I have to tell you about two that I got for Christmas: Rory's story cubes and Spot It.

I've seen both around, and even given them for gifts but and I finally have them for our family and have had a chance to play them. What's fun is that they work great for groups of adults but I also spent about an hour playing both with big sister while little sister napped yesterday. Great game concepts and I know we'll spend a lot of time with both of them. Bonus: they are small enough to tuck in your purse.

I also got a Kindle which I'm super excited about . . . I'd love to hear any suggestions for favorite books!

Happy 2012 to you all . . . may the upcoming year be blessed for you and your loved ones!

Balsamic Chicken & Oven Baked Risotto

2011-12-27T10:46:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas to all of you! This week between the holidays is a little weird - Claremont is empty and I'm wondering where everyone went. Big sister had preschool today and there were only 5 kids there in the whole preschool. Maybe everyone is vacationing somewhere tropical? I might normally be jealous of that idea, but right now I'm happy to be home (not having to go on an airplane anywhere) and enjoying some time with family. We're hosting family dinner tonight and headed back to my mom's on Thursday night - fun!

So, did you know that you can make risotto in the oven? It actually turned out awesome with a lot less hands on time. I'll be making it again soon! I only made a very basic version with parmesan cheese but I bet a lot of risotto flavors / variations would work with this technique. I made it to go with a favorite chicken recipe that's never made it on the blog so both recipes are below. Usually I do the pan sauce for the chicken like the recipe below, but this time, I skipped it and just sliced and served the chicken over the risotto. I put a little caprese salad garnish on top . . . would have been better on the side because the chicken and risotto made it warm and it wasn't great that way.

Balsamic Roasted Chicken (serves 4)

from Giada de Laurentis

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup low-salt chicken broth
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves

Whisk the vinegar, mustard, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper in small bowl to blend. Combine the vinaigrette and chicken pieces in a large resealable plastic bag; seal the bag and toss to coat. Refrigerate, turning the chicken pieces occasionally, for at least 2 hours and up to 1 day.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Remove chicken from the bag and arrange the chicken pieces on a large greased baking dish. Roast until the chicken is just cooked through, about 30-40 minutes. If your chicken browns too quickly, cover it with foil for the remaining cooking time. Transfer the chicken to a serving platter. Place the baking dish on a burner over medium-low heat. Whisk the chicken broth into the pan drippings, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the baking sheet with a wooden spoon and mixing them into the broth and pan drippings. Drizzle the pan drippings over the chicken. Sprinkle the lemon zest and parsley over the chicken, and serve.

Oven baked Risotto (serves 4-6()

1 1/2 c. arborio rice

4 1/2 c. chicken or vegetable broth

3/4 c. finely grated parmesan cheese

2 T butter, cut into small pieces

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour rice and broth into a large baking dish (or Dutch oven) and stir to combine. Cover and place in the oven for 45 minutes, or until most of the liquid is absorbed and the rice is al dente.

With a wooden spoon or spatula, beat in the parmesan, butter, salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Homemade Turkey (or chicken) Noodle Soup

2011-12-19T12:56:00.000-08:00

So far we've had a really fun Advent season. The days are flying by and I can't believe Christmas is in 6 days! We took our annual family trip to the desert last week and in our hotel was this giant Christmas tree. There is a circular staircase around it and the girls had fun walking up and down and around the tree. We also had a couple chilly trips to the park and a fun day at the Children's Discovery Museum in Rancho Mirage (highly recommended!).

I told my husband the other night that I've felt cold for 3 days . . . this warm soup was just the remedy. I've never made homemade chicken noodle before and I know it's sort of cheater because I didn't make it with a whole chicken or even homemade broth, but it was so yummy (so so much better than a can). I thawed some frozen (cooked) turkey from Thanksgiving but cooked chicken (even rotisserie) would work fine as the meat in this soup. I bet wild rice would be a nice substitute for the noodles for our GF friends out there. Since I sort of threw it together, the amounts are approximate - use your own judgment :)

Homemade Turkey (or Chicken) Noodle Soup (serves 4)

About 1 cup each: chopped carrot, chopped celery, chopped onion (Trader Joe's sells their Mirepoix in the vegetable section which I used).

2 minced garlic cloves

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

1 tsp. fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp. dried or you can skip it)

6 c. chicken broth

1-2 c. uncooked egg noodles (I used pappardelle pasta noodles from TJs and broke them into small pieces)

1 T. white wine (or 1/2 T white wine vinegar or lemon juice for a little acid)

1 bay leaf

2 c. shredded cooked chicken (or turkey) - about 8oz

Heat a large saucepan over medium high heat and add a litle olive oil. Add carrot, onion, celery and garlic, and saute about 5 minutes or until onion is soft and lightly browned. Add salt, pepper, thyme, bay leaf, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil. Add the noodles, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the turkey or chicken and cook for a few more minutes (until noodles are soft and chicken is hot). Discard bay leaf and serve immediately.

My 300th post

2011-12-13T13:29:00.000-08:00

Today marks 300 posts on my blog! Thanks for reading and commenting . . . I'm still really enjoying writing this blog and I hope it's inspired you to cook something new.

For the past few years, I've hosted the Christmas party for 4 of my girlfriends and their guys. Like last year, we did cocktails and dessert (without any kids) and I had a great time. Things are changing with our group (bff is moving, twins are being born, busy schedules) so we're not getting together weekly like we used to, but the party this past weekend was a fun reminder of how special it is to have a group of close girl friends who know each other well. Thanks for a fun evening girls!

Whether or not you're hosting a party this Christmas season, here are a few new ideas to try out:

First up, a holiday cocktail: Cranberry Ginger Rum Martinis

I made a mason jar of this and it was decided that next time, it should be a pitcher (there were 10 of us so it didn't go very far).

1) In a jar (or pitcher), thinly slice some fresh ginger (I did about 4 long peels). Add 1.25 cups of rum. Use the handle of a wooden spoon to crush the ginger and release juices.

2) Stir in 4 cups of cold cranberry juice.

3) Refrigerate overnight so that the ginger has time to flavor the mixture. Shake in a martini shaker with ice to make it really cold. Serve in martini glasses with a sugar rim (dip rims of martini glasses in water and then in sugar). Yields 8 drinks

Next, a new cookie: Mexican Hot Chocolate Snickerdoodles (recipe from sugar, eggs and love)

This recipe yields about 2 dozen but I made a double batch. At first, I wasn't as excited about them as I thought I would be but they really grew on me and I liked them even better the next day. They are reminiscent of chocolate crinkles, a Christmas cookie staple in my family, but with cinnamon and a little kick from the cayenne. Be careful when adding the cayenne . . . for some reason, the bottle I have is super hot (even for our tastes) and I know better than to add the full amount to anything. 1/8 tsp was perfect for me. I burned the first batch so pull them out a little earlier than you think you should.

For the cookies:
1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
3 T half and half (or almond milk for vegan cookies)
1.5 tsp. vanilla extract
1 2/3 c. flour
1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8-1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (my jar is super hot so I only used 1/8 tsp)

For the topping:
1/3 c. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with silpat or parchment paper. Mix the topping ingredients together in a shallow bowl. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, use a whisk to vigorously mix together the oil, sugar, syrup, half and half, and vanilla extract. Use a mixer to mix as you sift in the remaining ingredients. Once all ingredients are incorporated, mix until you have a pliable dough.

Roll dough into walnut-sized balls. Roll them in the cinnamon sugar topping mixture. Transfer to baking sheet and flatten slightly. Place them on baking sheet at least two inches apart. Bake 9-11 minutes until the top is a little crackly but not 100% dry. Remove and let cool on pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Finally, a dessert that will accommodate a lot of dietary restrictions: Pumpkin Custards

My mom made these for us a little while ago and I was hooked. They are gluten free, vegan, and contain no refined sugar. But, they're really tasty and satisfying as a dessert.

The white spots are from the coconut milk and it has a good pumpkin pie flavor - neither the maple syrup or coconut milk are very noticeable flavors in the final product so don't be put off by those ingredients. I served it with whipped cream.

Pumpkin Custards (from Living Without magazine) - serves 6

1 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut milk (not lite)

1 cup pure pumpkin puree

3 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 c. maple syrup

1 T arrowroot (powder - can buy it in bulk in the spice section of Sprouts)

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground ginger

1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

1/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly oil 6 ramekins. In a large bowl, whisk together coconut milk, pumpkin, eggs, vanilla and maple syrup. In a small bowl, whisk together the rest of the ingredients. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients a little at a time, stirring constantly.

Pour batter into prepared ramekins, about 3/4 cup per serving. Place ramekins in a 9x13 pan and add enough warm water until it reaches half way up the outsides of the ramekins. Carefully place baking dish in preheated oven and bake about 45 minutes, until custard is no longer jiggly and has lightly browned tops. Cool on wire racks. You can make them ahead and refrigerate until you want to serve them (probably for a couple days if you tightly cover them) or serve them warm. (230 cal/ramekin)

Gingerbread Pumpkin Guinness Bundt

2011-12-11T11:13:00.000-08:00

The Sunday after Thanksgiving was a memorable one for our family. In the morning, my nephew was dedicated. In the afternoon, my sister (who lives out of town) came over for the day. We watched a movie and then she played with the girls while I baked - have I said how much I miss my sisters living close by?? Anyways, it was nice to have a little peace while she played with her nieces so I could make this bundt cake. It was for our evening plans - my brother's 30th birthday celebration. If it seemed weird to turn 30 myself, it's been really strange watching my two younger siblings (so far) hit that milestone.

You know I'm a fan of bundt cake and this recipe combined things I love: pumpkin, gingerbread, and a good stout beer. The original recipe was made with an oatmeal stout but I used Guinness. It's a nice holiday dessert and I should have made much more icing . . . it looked a little skimpy and I didn't have time to make another batch.

Pumpkin Gingerbread Stout Bundt (10-12 servings)

from Bake Me Away

1 cup dark stout

1/2 cup molasses

1 tsp. baking soda

3 large eggs

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup canola oil

1 cup canned pumpkin puree

1 T grated fresh ginger

2 c. all purpose flour

1 T ground ginger

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. allspice

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray bundt pan with nonstick spray. In a medium saucepan (you need room because the mixture will foam way up), combine the stout and molasses over medium heat. Bring to a boil then remove from heat. Stir in the baking soda. It will foam up a lot - set it aside until the foam subsides and the mixture slightly cools.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugars, oil, pumpkin and ginger. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour and the rest of the ingredients. Add a third of the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and whisk until just combined. Add half of the stout mixture and whisk to combine. Continue alternating flour and stout until the batter comes together. Pour into prepared pan.

Bake about 45 minutes or until top feels springy and a tester comes out clean. Cool for about 5 minutes and then turn the bundt out on a wire rack to continue cooling.

To make the brown butter icing:

Melt 4 T butter in a small sauce pan over medium high heat until it browns (about 8-10 minutes). Remove from heat. Stir in 1 cup sifted powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Add milk, about a tablespooon at a time, until it's the consistency you want . . . I like it pourable but still really thick. Pour over the bundt cake in wide ribbons.

Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding

2011-12-05T20:59:00.000-08:00

I know the photo isn't the best, but I forgot to photograph the pan before we all dug into it. I was originally going to make a cake for my bff's birthday party but with lots and lots of rolls and bread left over from Thanksgiving, I thought I'd use the leftovers to make a bread pudding.

For me, bread pudding is like risotto (bear with me here) . . . it always sounds great on a menu but usually after about 3 bites, I've had enough: it's tasty, but rich and heavy. This last time that I made it, I managed to eat a whole serving. Sure, I felt it the next day but it was worth it!

What's especially good about this recipe is the cinnamon rum sauce. I bet it would be great on just about anything (ice cream, pound cake, fruit). Also, don't skip the chocolate chips. That little bit of bittersweet chocolate interspersed between the bread is just perfect.

Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding serves 12-14

(Bon Appetit 1/03)

1pound loaf of bread with crust, cut into 1-inch cubes (original recipe calls for Brioche or egg-bread but I used approximately 1 pound of french rolls)
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

2 1/2 cups half and half
1 cup sugar
6 large eggs
4 large egg yolks
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons (packed) dark brown sugar

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Place bread in large bowl; pour 8 tablespoons melted butter over bread and toss to coat. Add chocolate chips and toss to combine. Transfer mixture to prepared dish.

Whisk half and half, 1 cup sugar, eggs, egg yolks, vanilla extract, and salt in large bowl to blend. Pour over bread cubes in dish. Let stand 30 minutes, occasionally pressing bread cubes into custard. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.) Drizzle remaining 2 tablespoons melted butter over pudding; sprinkle with brown sugar. Bake bread pudding until puffed, brown, and set in center, about 1 hour. Serve warm with Cinnamon-Rum Sauce.

Cinnamon-Rum Sauce (yield 1.5 cups)

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 cup (packed) dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup dark rum

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Melt unsalted butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add dark brown sugar, ground cinnamon, and salt and whisk until sugar is dissolved and mixture is bubbling and smooth, about 6 minutes. Remove from heat. Whisk in dark rum and vanilla extract. Serve warm.

(Cinnamon-Rum Sauce can be prepared 2 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Rewarm over low heat, whisking occasionally, before serving.)

Thanksgiving Memories

2011-12-02T20:53:00.000-08:00

I know that it's a little late for a Thanksgiving recap and I'm super delinquent in posting this but it was such a special holiday that I can't move on to Christmas posting yet without sharing a little bit here on the blog. This Thanksgiving was memorable for a few reasons: it was my first time hosting Thanksgiving, my cousins came from Connecticut for the holiday, and filling our new home with family from near and far really felt like a true housewarming for me. Instead of a bunch of stories or any recipes (most of what I made is on last year's Thanksgiving post), here are some photos!

Baby girl trying to "help" as we started cooking in our pjs on Thanksgiving morning

My cousin, a veteran at hosting Thanksgiving, giving me some help stuffing the cavity of the turkeys with herbs

Baby girl getting some cuddles from big cousin - the two blue-eyed brown-haired girls :)

Hard at work making place cards for the tables

The final product

Getting to use some of my Grandma Vi's dishes was really special for me on Thanksgiving. Although we didn't celebrate too many Thanksgivings together because we lived far apart, I thought of her a lot this holiday.

What's Thanksgiving in Southern California without swimming in a heated pool?

My dad and his brother intently carving turkey with some supervision from my cousin's son.

My nephew's first Thanksgiving!

The turkey!

The spread (yes, there are 3 kinds of stuffing . . . )

Playing games after supper - one of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving.

The Cheese Cave in Claremont

2011-11-28T18:31:00.000-08:00

One of my best foodie discoveries in Claremont has been the Cheese Cave. The staff helped me put together a dessert cheese course on two occasions and it turned out great! I also stop in there for lunch sometimes. If you come visit me, I'll take you there!

Here are some of the reasons I like it (in no particular order):

a) Samples. lots of samples.

b) Knowledgable staff & great suggestions

c) Free temporary tattoos by the register

d) They keep a record of what you've bought so if you forget what it was called and want to buy it again, you can.

e) Delicious artisanal cheese and a fantastic selection

f) Crazy good french baguettes

g) Samples.

h) Fresh sandwiches to go (different selection every day)

325 Yale Avenue / Closed Mondays

Bec's Turkey & Chile Chili

2011-11-18T13:31:00.000-08:00

First, a few photos of the girls. It's been really fun to watch their relationship develop. Little is always in Big's shadows (literally like the first picture shows) but she manages to squeeze out a space for herself. She can't wait for Big to come home from Pre-K and whenever she sees Big for the first time in the morning, she's just tall enough to give her a huge hug around the neck. Big, to her credit, is doing pretty great with sharing, watching out for Little, interpreting her babbling, and constantly telling us that Little is "the cutest baby EVER. And I mean it. Have you ever seen a cuter baby?"

Trying so hard to help out

Finally manages to squeeze next to big and add a spoonful of something by herself. By herself is a very important concept these days, much to my frustration at times.

Best buddies

Okay. Now, onto the food: after playing around with a few different recipes I've made in the past and wanting to turn up the heat a bit, this chili was the result. We all liked it and you can make it more spicy by increasing the amount of pasilla chile, adding diced jalapenos, or adding red pepper flakes (which we did at the table). You can make it less spicy by using regular diced tomatoes without the green chiles.

I've got a busy but fun week leading up to Thanksgiving so I'm not sure if I'll be posting. If not, may your turkey be juicy, your half of the wishbone be longer, and your heart be thankful. If you're reading this, I'm thankful for you!

Turkey & Chile Chili (4 servings)

3/4 lb ground turkey
1/2 c. diced onion
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 pasilla chile (or poblano), diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 (15oz) can cannellini beans (or pinto)
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 T chile powder
1 T tomato paste
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano
1 T freshly squeezed lime juice
cilantro

Put the turkey, onion, bell pepper, pasilla chile and garlic into a pot and saute until the turkey is no longer pink and the onion is soft. Add the beans, tomatoes, broth, tomato paste and seasonings. Let it come to a boil. Reduce heat to and simmer for 15-20 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in the lime juice and sprinkle with cilantro before serving.

National Bundt Cake Day

2011-11-15T09:26:00.000-08:00

I love this blog The Food Librarian and she makes a bundt cake every day for 30 days leading up to National Bundt Cake Day (11-15 . . . today!). Crazy, right? I'm very impressed by a commitment to do anything for 30 days straight. She inspired me to make a new bundt recipe for some company we had this past weekend. I served it with pumpkin ice cream (unfortunately not homemade) and I thought the cake was perfect! Nice crumb and not too dense, moist, great flavor . . . I'll be making this one again.

I didn't change the recipe (from Fine Cooking) except to check the cake sooner than the baking time listed because my oven seems to cook faster than most and to omit the crystallized ginger because Trader Joe's was out of it (of course!!).

Buttermilk Cake with Vanilla Icing (serves 10-12)
from Fine Cooking

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
1.5 cups granulated sugar
1/2 c. canola oil
2 large eggs
1 T white vinegar
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. table salt
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. grated nutmeg
3/4 c. butttermilk
2 1/4 c. peeled and grated butternut squash

Icing:
2 c. confectioners' sugar
3 T buttermilk (more as needed)
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 c. finely chopped crystallized ginger

Preheat oven to 325 and prepare your Bundt pan (grease and flour or use the Baking Pam like I do). In a large bowl with a hand mixer or a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until well combined, about 1 minute. Add the oil and beat until combined, about 15 seconds. Add the eggs one at a time in low speed. Add the vinegar and vanilla and mix again until just combined.

Add one half of the flour, the baking soda, the ginger, the nutmeg, the salt and mix on low speed until just combined. Add half the buttermilk and mix until just combined. Repeat with the other half of the flour and buttermilk. Stir the squash into the batter and pour batter into bundt pan. Smooth with a spatula. Bake until a tester comes out clean, about 1 hour (mine took 50 minutes). Cool for 30 minutes on a wire rack then carefully remove the pan and cool the cake on a wire rack before transferring to a serving dish.

To make the icing: In a medium bowl, whisk everything except the chopped crystallized ginger. Add more buttermilk, a few drops at a time, as needed, until pourable but still quite thick. Pour it in thick ribbons over the cake. Sprinkle the ginger on top. Let the icing set at room temperature (about 45 mins) before serving.

Rules

2011-11-13T10:21:00.000-08:00

You know those Yahoo headlines? I'm not much of a sucker for them. I know that the corresponding story is going to be a) something I already know or b) different from what the headline promises or c) a waste of time. But, now and then the nutrition / health ones do draw me in. I liked the one I read recently - it's about how people who are lean abide by certain "rules" to stay that way.

None of these things were news to me . . . I've dieted, exercised, and read enough health, diet & exercise magazines and books over the years to have found out about these "rules." But, it was a good reality check about whether or not I follow these on a regular basis.

A certain number on a scale isn't my goal and I believe that being healthy requires a lifestyle commitment to eating nutritious food and exercising regularly. Even though I know that intellectually, I still struggle with my serious sweet tooth (next post: cake) and have recently had to cut down on the number of workouts I'm able to do per week. One of the areas I've noticed that I do poorly in (not in the article) is the amount of liquid calories that I consume. So, I'll be honest and give you the rules from the article with my personal evaluation of how I'm doing:

#1 - Lean people don't diet - Truthfully, I probably would diet if I thought it would work or if I had more self discipline. But, I don't. Now and then, I do a fast from all sugar and white flour and it makes a huge difference but other than that, I eat what I think is healthy, fresh, and try to choose proteins over carbs (more on #5).

#2 - Lean people don't go fat-free - I buy non-fat dairy products for myself and my husband (whole for the kiddos) and watch my saturated fat, but I don't buy "fat-free" things because of that label. I'm more interested in finding foods with no added sugar than I am snacks with no fat (example: KIND bars, trail mix, etc. - high in "good" fats but no added sugar).

#3 - Lean people sit down to eat - Does eating in the car count? I usually stand to eat breakfast while I'm making my kids' breakfasts, feeding them, and on school days, making my daughter's lunch. My biggest downfall is lunch and sometimes I drive through fast food if I'm out and in a hurry (usually BRC burritos at El Pollo Loco or coffee and a bistro box at Starbucks). We always sit at the table for dinner.

#4 - Lean people know what they're going to eat next - I think about food all day. Honestly. I'll lay in bed at night thinking about what I'm going to eat for breakfast in the morning. I'll be working out and thinking about what snack I'm going to have afterward. I plan our dinners and know what I'm eating for dinner for a week. But, I do snack on things that I don't intend to eat. Like the open box of cookies or my daughter's candy or the pb&j crust I cut off her sandwich or random leftovers.

#5 - Lean people eat protein - Learning the effect of high protein diet in achieving a low-risk, healthy pregnancy drastically changed how I ate. I learned approximately how many grams of protein certain foods have and take that into consideration at meals. I've also noticed how my hunger, moods, and fatigue are affected when I don't eat enough protein. I'm not doing as well on this as I have in the past and need to actively increase my protein intake.

#6 - Lean people move around - Does chasing your kids count? Does moving around in your SUV count? No, really, I do exercise. Right now, it's gone from 5-6 days/week to 3-4 days/week but it's a commitment I've made to myself to stay active and I really work on being as consistent as I can.

#7 - Lean people watch less TV - I record probably 3 or 4 shows a week on our DVR that I like to watch. Now that Project Runway is over and since 30 Rock hasn't been back this fall, it's more like 2 o4 3. I don't have a lot of time to just sit on the couch and watch TV, and I don't like background noise from the TV, but if I had more time, I probably would watch more.

Overnight Baked Chicken

2011-11-10T09:42:00.000-08:00

Ok, so you don't bake it overnight but you make it the night before, let it marinate until dinner time the next day, and toss it in the oven. Perfect! The curry isn't overpowering, the chicken ended up tender and moist, and it was the easiest thing ever.

And yes, that's rice-a-roni . . . don't judge me . . . you know you like it!

Overnight Baked Chicken (4 servings)
Original recipe from Baked Bree

1/2 c. honey
1/3 c. Dijon mustard
4 T soy sauce
1 T curry powder
4 chicken breasts

Mix together the honey, mustard, soy sauce and curry powder. Place in a ziplock bag or a glass baking dish with the chicken breasts. Marinate in the refrigerator over night. The next night, dump the chicken and the marinade into a glass baking dish. Cover with foil and bake in a 350 degree oven for about an hour. Uncover and baste; bake another 15 minutes. Slice and serve!

Fall Pies

2011-11-07T07:15:00.000-08:00

Two pies in three weeks . . . I'm on a roll! I usually don't make pies but I've felt like it lately and I thought I'd share these with you as we head into the holiday season. What's your favorite pie or pie memory?

First up, sour cream apple pie: Two apple pie lovers had birthdays in October - my uncle Joe and my husband. I made my first apple pie in a long, long time for the two of them. I have this thing where I don't like making pies with a top crust so this recipe with the streusel topping was perfect. My streusel topping didn't turn out too pretty but I thought the sour cream apple filling was delicious.

Sour Cream Apple Pie

Click for recipe from Simply Recipes

Next, a free form (galette?) persimmon apple pear pie: I was on my way back from a Sunday run and had to stop at farmer's market when I saw beautiful Fuyu persimmons. I looked at a bunch of recipes and couldn't decide what to make, so I made up my own with some fall fruit, spices, and ended up with a rustic pie / tart of sorts. No photo, sadly, but it turned out pretty good. I think it would be even better with the homemade cinnamon ice cream my mom made yesterday. And, some toasted nuts or dried fruit (currants or raisins or cranberries?) would be a nice addition to the filling. My husband suggested a caramel drizzle on top.

Persimmon Pear Apple Pie (6 servings)

1 pie crust, unbaked

3 fuyu persimmons, cut into 1/2 in chunks

1 pear, cut into 1/2 in chunks

1/2 Granny Smith apple, diced

1 tsp flour

1 T orange zest

scant 1/4 c. sugar

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/8 tsp. cloves

Optional: Beaten egg and sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Roll out your pie crust and place on parchment paper or silpat on a baking sheet. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a bowl. Heap in the center of the pie crust. Spread it out a little bit, leaving an edge of pie crust about two inches all around. Fold the pie crust up over the filling, pleating as necessary, leaving the filling exposed in the middle (does this make sense? I wish I had taken a photo . . . check out this - looks similar to the shape etc. of my pie )

If you want to, brush the crust with your egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for about a hour - until crust is nicely browned and fruit is soft and bubbly. Let the pie sit for at least 15-20 minutes before serving.

Butter Lettuce Salad with Haricots Verts and Feta

2011-11-03T09:48:00.000-07:00

I don't often follow recipes or post recipes for salad . . . I throw together whatever vegetables, lettuce, and dressing I have on hand. But, I made this one from a recent issue of Food & Wine and it was fantastic. I used the extra dressing on a bunch of different types of salad for the next week or so. Great salad course option and I'll be using this salad dressing often.

Goddess Salad with Haricots Verts and Feta (serves 6)

from Food & Wine

1/2 pound haricots verts

1 T minced shallot

1 small garlic clove, minced

1 tsp. Dijon mustard

3 T cider vinegar

3 T fresh lemon juice

3/4 c. canola oil

1 1/2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves (I used about 3/4 tsp dried)

freshly ground pepper

2 heads of Bibb or butter lettuce, torn into pieces

1/2 lb feta cheese, crumbled

1 large seedless cucumber, thinly sliced

3 large hard cooked eggs, quartered.

In a medium saucepan of salted boiling water, cook the haricots verts until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Drain and cool under running water and pat dry. Set aside.

In a blender or mini processor, combined the shallot, garlic, mustard, vinegar, and lemon juice until smooth. Add the canola oil and thyme. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

In a large bowl, combine the torn lettuce, half of the feta, the cucumber and haricots verts. Add about half to 3/4 of the dressing. Plate the salads, garnish with the hard cooked eggs, more of the feta, drizzle with a little more dressing, and grind some fresh pepper over the top. Serve.

Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T07:15:00.000-07:00

She is SO excited to be Rapunzel and just loves "the hair."

Little sister hated putting on the dinosaur costume. I have stuff to make her a little black cat as a back up. We'll see what happens when it comes time for the Halloween party we're going to this morning.

Scarecrow big sister . . . buying our pumpkins at Trader Joe's. I'm a little bummed we didn't make it to a pumpkin patch this year, but I'm sure there will be plenty of years to do that.

Both girls were really into carving pumpkins . . . for about 3 minutes. Big sister picked the pumpkins, drew the faces, pulled one handful of goop out of the inside, and waited for it to get dark so we could light the candles inside. It's still weird to me how little kids' memories work. She remembers what she was for Halloween last year and trick-or-treating, but she doesn't ever remember carving a pumpkin (and we've done it every year). Here's what my kids looked like a year ago

I'm surprised that I haven't posted pumpkin pancakes ever - you know how we love pancakes around here. I've made a few versions of these (and there are a few mixes out there like the TJs one that are quite good) but this recipe is probably my best. I started with half cup of milk and added about a quarter cup more. Play with the liquid until it pours the way you like it. The recipe is easily doubled. This batch fed 2 of us on 2 mornings (putting the batter in the refrigerator overnight actually made it taste even better the next morning).

Pumpkin Pancakes (makes about 12 medium sized pancakes)
Source: I think from All Recipes? Not sure

3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 egg
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon and 1-1/2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt

Combine milk, pumpkin, egg, oil, and vinegar. In another bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients. Make a well and add the wet ingredients. Stir until just combined. Let set about 5 minutes. If the batter is too thick, add a little more milk. Cook on a buttered skillet until bubbles appear. Flip. Eat warm with maple syrup.

Pumpkin Banana Bread

2011-10-26T13:45:00.000-07:00

After that birthday interlude, we return to our regularly scheduled programming of pumpkin recipes:

I know pumpkin banana bread sounds weird . . . I was conflicted about making banana bread with my 2 ripe bananas or making pumpkin bread because, well, it sounded good. I googled "pumpkin banana bread" and got tons of hits. I guess it's a thing and I didn't know it really existed. It turned out really good. I think it needs something mixed in (a half cup of nuts or cranberries or chocolate chips?) but I'm sure I'll be making it again soon. Try it. It's weird but you'll like it.

Pumpkin Banana Bread (1 large loaf or 3 small loaves)
Original recipe here

2 ripe bananas
1 c. pumpkin puree
1/4 c. canola oil
2 eggs
2/3 c. sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Put the bananas, pumpkin, oil, eggs, and sugar in a bowl and beat with a mixer until well combined. In a separate bowl, whisk together the rest of the ingredients. Stir into the pumpkin banana mixture until just combined. Pour into greased loaf pans. Bake 25-30 minutes for small loaf pans or about a hour for a large loaf pan.

My niece's birthday cake

2011-10-24T08:07:00.000-07:00

How precious is my niece?!? Being an aunt is the best and I feel blessed that my niece and nephew live nearby and I can see them often. On Thursday nights, we have dinner at my parent's with my brother, sister-in-law, niece & nephew, and my grandmother. I look forward to it all week and it's extra fun when we have a birthday to celebrate. My niece turned 3 this past week and my sister in law brought this dessert. I wanted to share the recipe because the tart was so delicious, and gluten free (it was much better than the grocery store cake big sister begged for . . . shhhh . . . don't tell).

The dessert is rich so you'll be able to get more servings out of this than something lighter of this size. We had it with vanilla ice cream but whipped cream would be good too. The jam part at the end is optional. I left in the ingredient notes from my sister-in-law's friend Abby (thanks for the recipe!) in case you have dairy sensitivities.

Chocolate Raspbery Tart with Pecan Crust (8-12 servings)

2 cups pecans, toasted

6 tbsp brown sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup butter, melted (or ghee)

3/4 heavy cream - if using goats milk use 1/2 cup since it's thinner

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

1 pint raspberries (or strawberries, blueberries or combo)

1/4 cup seedless jam (optional)

whipped cream (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Process pecans, brown sugar, and cinnamon until finely ground then add melted butter until just moist

2. Press crust into 9 -inch removable bottom tart pan (or spring form or a regular pan if you don't have one)

3. Bake until golden brown - about 25 mins and cool on rack

4. Bring cream to a simmer, remove from heat and add chocolate - stir until smooth

5. Pour chocolate over cooled crust and refrigerate until chocolate has hardened

6. Arrange berries on chocolate.

7. If using jam, heat if over low heat in saucepan to make it easy to spread

8. Using pastry brush, brush jam over berries

9. Serve with whipped cream - optional

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

2011-10-21T21:31:00.000-07:00

I tried out this recipe on some friends when we had brunch and watched football a few weeks ago. It truly felt like fall. My friend S told me that she had N.E.V.E.R. had a cinnamon roll. Seriously. And, she grew up in a normal family in the midwest and not in Tanzania or somewhere. Seriously. So, you know I had to remedy that problem! I think she liked them - at least she pretended to :)

Things I learned from making these cinnamon rolls:

a. I need a new rolling pin

b. I'm not that good at rolling out dough (clearly the rolling pin's fault)

c. I'm more patient with food than I sometimes am with my kids

d. Pumpkin flavored baked goods are amazing and a total portal into the land of dietary backsliding

e. Cream cheese frosting makes everything taste better, but not necessarily look better

f. If you say you're making pumpkin cinnamon rolls, friends who haven't been over in awhile will come over for brunch

g. Make more than you think your group will eat

h. The pictures on someone else's blog are way prettier than the ones on my own.

i. Yeast dough isn't as bad as I make it out to be in my head.

Ok, life lessons aside, here's the nitty gritty on this recipe. I followed it exactly in terms of ingredients and amounts. After I formed the rolls, I put the pans in the refrigerator overnight. The next morning, it took a good 2 hours or so for the dough to reach room temperature and rise. I had to turn the oven on low, turn it off, and put the pans on the open oven door. The pumpkin flavor was a little more subtle than I thought it would be but the spices were good and these were amazing, even without frosting. Next time, I think I might do the brown sugar, butter, pecan on the bottom of the pan thing (or maybe try them in muffin tins?).

You can find the full recipe with gorgeous photos here on Bree's food blog. Enjoy!

Pumpkin time!

2011-10-18T08:52:00.000-07:00

Fall baking is one of my favorite things. I've been eating too much sugary sweet baked stuff lately, so I've been trying to hold myself back from doing too much baking because in our house, I inevitably eat most of whatever I bake. I did make pumpkin cinnamon rolls and the recipe & photos are coming soon. But, I wanted to give you this list of pumpkin recipes already on the blog to inspire you to try something new this season.

Baked Goods:
Iced Pumpkin Biscuits (no white flour or sugar)
Pumpkin shaped cake (fun food craft project)
Pumpkin Cookies (2 versions - the best!)
Pumpkin Crumb Cake (super popular every time I make it)
Pumpkin Bundt Cake (easy fall dessert or brunch item)
Pumpkin Cupcakes (not going to lie - from a cake mix)
Pumpkin Zucchini Carrot Bread (a little healthier but still yum)
Pumpkin Banana Bread (another pumpkin quick bread)

Savory:
Lamb Chops with Apricot Pumpkin Glaze
Penne with Pumpkin & Sage
Pumpkin with cheese fondue (if you only make one recipe on this list, try this)

Other (both are gf):
Sweet & Spicy Pumpkin Seeds (amazing)
Pumpkin Ice Cream

What are your kids going to be for Halloween? I think big sister is going to be Rapunzel and little sister is going to be a black cat (kitten).

World Food Day

2011-10-16T11:45:00.000-07:00

Today is World Food Day - a day dedicated to raising awareness about world wide hunger.

Did you know that one child dies every five seconds from hunger or malnourishment? That there are over 1 billion people in the world without enough to eat? That nearly one in four children in the US live in families who struggle to put food on the table?

I encourage you to make a difference by donating to your local food bank. Non-perishable sources of protein (canned meat or fish, beans, etc.) are most needed. Click here for locations where you can donate food for the Los Angeles Regional Foodbank.

Check out these sites for more information about hunger:
http://www.worldfooddayusa.org
http://www.bread.org/hunger/

Some fall sights around our house

2011-10-14T11:19:00.000-07:00

Big sister doing some rock climbing

Little sister typically carries around and wears a bunch of accessories

Bike rides down the driveway

Crockpot meals

For the last year or so, big transitions have taken me awhile and with each one, I'm sure my blog isn't going to survive. But, the dust settles, we get into a routine, and I'm back writing and posting. I started back to work with fall quarter a couple of weeks ago and the new schedule has taken awhile for us all to get used to. I'm blessed that my husband watches the girls while I work and that I have work in this economy so I can't complain but we're still adjusting.

One of the rough things are our dinners from Sunday - Wednesday. On Sundays, we get home from church around 6:30, on Mondays and Wednesdays, my husband starts dinner and I get home from work around 7pm and on Tuesdays, we go to the gym until about 6:30. The crockpot has been really coming in handy and this is a new dish I made up a few weeks ago. Perfect for fall, gluten free, and easy to add / change the veggies to what your family will eat. Hope it helps you out during this busy time of the year!

Chicken and Butternut Squash Stew (6 servings)

1.25 pounds boneless skinless chicken pieces (I used thighs)

1.5 cups butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1 in. pieces

1 small onion, diced

3 ribs celery, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 14 oz can chicken broth

3/4 c. tomatoes (I put these in the blender so it was more like juice - you could use V8 or leave them chunky)

1 T Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp. paprika

1/4 tsp. pepper

1/8 tsp. allspice

1 c. frozen peas

Put the butternut squash, onions, and celery in the crock pot. Put the chicken pieces on top. Cover with the garlic, broth, tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce and spices. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4-5 hours. Cooking time will vary depending on your slow cooker but you want the squash to be soft and the chicken to start to shred. Stir in the frozen peas, stir, and cook for another 15 minutes or so. If you want the stew to be more soupy, add a little water (or more broth) when you add the peas.

Tortellini & Veggies

2011-10-08T12:52:00.000-07:00

Tortellini and ravioli are sort of a cop out homemade meal in our house. Usually, it's just boiling a big pot of water and heating up some sauce from a jar. A little better than take out or frozen pizza, but not much. However, I'm pretty proud of this tortellini recipe. It's been a favorite around here for a long time but I hadn't made it in quite awhile.

Ingredient note: I used a natural refrigerated pasta brand I hadn't used before (whatever that Natural Vons brand is . . . not the "O" organics but the other one) and the actual tortellini was sort of lousy (the cheese filling was really chewy not creamy) so go with Buitoni or something you know you like.

Tortellini & Veggies (4 servings)

1 c. chopped onion
1 8oz package of sliced mushrooms
3/4 c. red pepper cut in chunks
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 T olive oil
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
9oz package of refrigerated cheese tortellini
1/2 c. water
1/4 c. red wine
2 tsp italian seasoning
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 small zucchini
1/2 c. shredded Asiago or Parmesan cheese

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil and cook onions, mushrooms, red pepper and garlic over medium high heat for about 5 minutes or until the onion is tender. Stir in undrained tomatoes, tortellini, water, wine, and seasonings.

Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer covered for 10 minutes. While tortellini is simmering, cut your zucchini in half lengthwise and then in slices. Stir the zucchini in and cook for 5 minutes more uncovered (until zucchini is crisp tender). Sprinkle with cheese before serving.

Greek Lamb Pilaf

2011-10-04T20:59:00.000-07:00

I wasn't expecting this meal to be as awesome as it turned out. For me, this is comfort food at it's finest and a perfect fall dish. It only takes about a half hour to cook if you chop up stuff ahead of time and you can make it in one pan. The leftovers didn't last long in our house!

If you're not a big fan of lamb or haven't tried it before, lean ground lamb is a good introduction to the flavor without it being overbearing. If you're particularly averse, you could use lean ground beef in its place. The dish is gluten free (as long as you use GF broth) and the nutrition information from Cooking Light says this is about 440 calories/serving and 26 grams of protein.

Greek Lamb Pilaf (4 servings)

(from Cooking Light 6/08)

2 c. chopped onion (about 1 large)

3/4 c. chopped carrot (about 1 large)

3 garlic cloves, minced

3/4 pound lean ground lamb

1 c. uncooked long-grain rice

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 (14 oz) can chicken broth (low-sodium)

1 c. chopped plum tomato (about 1)

1/4 c. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

2 T chopped fresh mint

3 T fresh lemon juice

3/4 tsp. salt

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add first 4 ingredients to pan; cook 5 minutes, stirring to crumble lamb. Stir in rice and cinnamon and saute for 2 minutes. Stir in chicken broth; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.

Remove from heat; stir in chopped tomato, parsley, mint, lemon juice and salt. Cover and let stand 5 minutes before serving.

An Accidental GF Meal

2011-09-28T14:44:00.000-07:00

Please enjoy this guest post from my sister Paula . . . she is one of the most faithful readers of this blog and I'm excited to try these recipes! There's no photo of her recipe so instead, I offer you this picture of the cook cycling in Oregon in JULY.

"I have recently made a commitment to myself to make interesting food and, in general, cook at home more. I sort of got out of the habit of buying groceries this summer but fall is here and I am ready to begin. Today, I thought I would use polenta that has been in my cupboard for months and due to expire in October. So, as always, I accessed my go to resource....this blog. But alas! my sister has no recipes that use polenta as a main ingredient. I went to my back the drawing board (or the internet) where I found the following recipe.

I am happy to present a wonderful meal of that not only uses polenta but, as it turns out, is GF too. Something for the whole family! (well, my family these days). In addition to the main dish, I made a sweet potato salad that I recently ripped out of "Cooking Light" as motivation to enact my new school year resolution. I think it will be a good potluck item in the future...grad students have a lot of potlucks...another good reason to stay in school for 22+ years

I hope you enjoy!"

Parmesan Crusted Polenta with Sausage-Mushroom Ragout (Gourmet 12/07)

2 pounds precooked polenta (in a tube), cut into 4 (1/2-inch-thick) rounds
1/3 cup grated parmesan
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casing removed
1/2 pound mixed sliced fresh wild mushrooms (I used plain old cremini mushrooms)
1/2 cup dry red wine
1 1/2 cups bottled marinara sauce (I used a can of diced tomatoes and added some basil, oregano, and garlic salt

Broil polenta rounds on a lightly oiled large heavy baking sheet 3 to 4 inches from heat until lightly browned in spots, about 7 minutes. Turn rounds over and sprinkle with cheese, then broil until polenta is golden in spots and cheese is melted, about 7 minutes more.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over high heat until it shimmers, then cook sausage, breaking up lumps, until just cooked through, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.

Heat remaining tablespoon oil in skillet over medium heat until it shimmers, then cook mushrooms, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add wine and boil, scraping up any brown bits, until reduced by about half, about 2 minutes. Stir in sausage and tomato sauce and simmer, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes. Season with salt. Serve ragout spooned over polenta.

Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Cranberry-Chipotle Dressing

2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces (I don't bother with the peeling)

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3/4 cup fresh or frozen cranberries (I used dried cranberries)

1/4 cup water

2 teaspoons honey

1 (7-ounce) can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce

1/2 cup pepitas (pumpkinseeds)

3/4 cup chopped green onions

1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves

Preheat oven to 450°. Place sweet potatoes on a large jelly roll pan. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper; toss to coat. Bake at 450° for 30 minutes or until tender, turning after 15 minutes.

Place remaining 1 tablespoon oil, cranberries, water, and honey in a saucepan. Remove 1 or 2 chiles from can; finely chop to equal 1 tablespoon. Add chopped chipotle and 1 teaspoon adobo sauce to pan (reserve remaining chiles and sauce for another use). Place pan over medium-low heat; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and cook 10 minutes or until cranberries pop, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Mash with a potato masher or fork until chunky.

Place pepitas in a medium skillet; cook over medium heat 4 minutes or until lightly browned, shaking pan frequently. Combine potatoes, pepitas, onions, and cilantro in a bowl. Add cranberry mixture to bowl; toss gently to coat.

Sloppy Joes from Scratch

2011-09-26T10:41:00.000-07:00

Ok - it's taking a great deal of restraint not to put up a video of Adam Sandler singing the Lunch Lady Song since I"m writing about sloppy joes. But, I'm not in high school and you're probably not either so we can move on to an adult discussion of this sandwich.

I really like Sloppy Joes and I usually make them with that seasoning packet and ground turkey. I know that all sorts of weird stuff (or, if not weird stuff, lots of sugar) can be in those packets and I've had an interest in making mine from scratch. What appealed to me about this recipe is that it wasn't very time consuming. I used my mini chopper and chopped the mushrooms pretty fine so big sister couldn't pick them out. It didn't take much longer than my usual way of making Sloppy Joes and we liked the flavor.

Recipe notes: The next time, I might add a little less molasses and a little more hot sauce. If you use salted tomato paste, taste the mixture before you add the rest of the salt in the recipe. Also, Cooking Light said "cremini offer deeper, richer flavor but you can also use regular button mushrooms."

And, my from 7th post ever, another ground meat sandwich

Beef & Mushroom Sloppy Joes (4 servings)

from Cooking Light June 2011

12 oz ground sirloin (or good quality ground beef)

2 (8oz) packages sliced cremini mushrooms

1 c. chopped onion

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 c. tomato paste (no-salt or low sodium if possible)

1 T minced fresh oregano (or 2 tsp. dried oregano)

2 T red wine vinegar

2 T Worcestershire sauce

1 T molasses

1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

1/2 tsp. hot sauce

4 Kaiser rolls or hamburger buns

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add beef and cook for 4 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. While beef cooks, place mushrooms in a food processor. Pulse 10 times or until finely chopped. Add mushrooms, onion, and garlic to pan. Cook for 3 minutes or until onion is tender. Add tomato paste and next 5 ingredients (through salt) to pan. Cook 5 minutes or until mushrooms are tender and liquid evaporates. Stir in pepper and hot sauce. Serve about 1 cup beef mixture on each bun.

*filling is gluten free

Carrot Cake Oatmeal

2011-09-21T16:35:00.000-07:00

Baby girl LOVES oatmeal and will eat almost a whole batch by herself. Big sister is sort of off and on as to whether she'll eat oatmeal in the morning and likes to pick the raisins or cranberries out of it. This recipe was a winner . . . both girls ate it and Daddy & Mommy also gave it two thumbs up! Bonus: quick hot breakfast that includes veggies is perfect for school mornings.

Carrot Cake Oatmeal (about 2 cups prepared)

2 cups water
1 cup oats
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup shredded carrots

Bring water, carrots, and raisins to a boil. Simmer for 3-4 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients. Stir, bring to a boil again, and reduce heat to a low simmer. Cook until liquid is absorbed and oats are soft.

Avocado Gazpacho

2011-09-18T14:29:00.000-07:00

Gazpacho is a little rough . . . you have to make it seem like you're not serving salsa in a big bowl or soup that would taste better warm. I followed this recipe exactly and although I was worried it would seem like guacamole, it didn't and we really liked it. I know you may not be making gazpacho until next summer, but we're trying to hang onto summer over here. I go back to work in one week (yikes!) so I've been trying to fit in some last outings with the girls before our fall schedule gets crazy.

We went to the Natural History Museum with some friends to see the Hall of Dinosaurs (highly recommend it & they let me in free as a teacher with my ID).

I also took the girls to Disneyland by myself. Daddy ended up meeting us in the afternoon so we could ride the new Star Tours - awesome! Little sister's enjoyment of Disneyland has really increased since she can sit by herself and she LOVED the carousel and Small World.

And, at home, we've been playing "neighbors" with big sister's new tent / play house, we planted some winter squash in the garden, and for some reason, I've been doing a crazy amount of little girl laundry. Not sure why it's so much more than normal . . .

So, if you need one last summer fix before you embrace fall, try this:

Avocado-Corn Chowder with Chicken (4 servings)

(from Cooking Light 8/11)

2 ripe avocados, divided

1 1/2 c. water

1/2 c. fresh orange juice

1 tsp. honey

3/4 tsp. salt, divided

1/4 tsp. pepper, divided

1/4 tsp. ground red pepper

12 oz. grilled or cooked chicken breast (I used a rotisserie)

1 tsp. olive oil

1 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels (about 3 ears)

1 c. chopped red bell pepper

1/3 cup chopped green onions

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

4 lime wedges

Peel and coarsely chop 1 avocado. Place in blender with water, orange juice, honey, salt, pepper, and red pepper. Blend until smooth. Place in the refrigerator or freezer to cool it down a little bit (15-30 minutes).

Peel and dice remaining avocado. Stir diced avocado, corn, bell pepper, and onions into chilled avocado puree. Spoon chowder into bowls. Top with chicken and cilantro. Serve with lime wedges.

Mango Black Bean Quinoa Salad

2011-09-12T16:23:00.000-07:00

Maybe it's because I teach on the quarter system and haven't yet gone "back to school" or maybe it's the 90 degree weather, but I'm having a hard time getting it in my head that it's fall next week. *Quick promotion - look for a fun blog event HERE on the Autumnal Equinox next Friday* When I took a walk around the Village this past weekend, there were signs for pumpkin ice cream and pumpkin bagels. Halloween decorations and costumes are everywhere. So, in defiance, I offer this summery dish. It's especially for you gluten-free friends out there. It's vegetarian too and I made it for a main dish for a lunch I had with friends a couple of weeks ago.

But, since I can't deny that it's back to school season, here is a little video. Consider this an instruction on how to pack your backpack. A few weeks ago, we were playing "school" before her actual preschool started so big sister showed me what a student should bring to class. I'm not sure her actual supplies for pre-K last week met her expectations as I made her leave the pet cow home (there also were no wild animals in pre-K . . . at least, not last week).

Mango Black Bean Quinoa Salad (4 servings)
(from Beantown Baker)

1/2 c. dry quinoa
1/2 c. ripe but firm mango, peeled, pitted & diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1 cup black beans, rinsed and drained
3 scallions, chopped
1/4 c. cilantro, chopped
1 T freshly squeezed lime juice
1 T extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp cumin (or more to taste)
salt and pepper (to taste)

Cook quinoa according to package directions. In a medium bowl, combine the warm cooked quinoa, mango, red bell pepper, black beans, scallions and cilantro. In a small bowl, whisk together the lime juice, oil, cumin and salt. Pour dressing over the salad and stir to combine. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Refrigerate salad for at least 4 hours before serving for best flavor. Serve cold or at room temperature.

Peanut Butter Cup Brownies

2011-09-09T11:41:00.000-07:00

When the little girls go to bed early, naughty things happen in our house. Like raspberry souffles and peanut butter cup brownies. I've made different versions of brownies from scratch but don't have one recipe that's my favorite or go-to. This recipe was chosen because I recently bought the unsweetened baking chocolate discs from Trader Joe's and I wanted to use those. I found it on Joy of Baking and it's called "Katharine Hepburn's Brownies Recipe" . . . ooh la la. Maybe I was also a little attracted to this recipe because I recently watched about a half hour of African Queen and about half of On Golden Pond. I can't watch a whole movie these days without falling asleep!

Bonus: You only use one bowl. I left out the nuts and added 6 dark chocolate peanut butter cups (also from TJ's) chopped up. Heavenly!

Peanut Butter Cup Brownies (9 or 12 depending on how you slice them)
from Joy of Baking

2 oz (60g) unsweetened baking chocolate
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup chopped peanut butter cups

Coarsely chop the baking chocolate and butter. Melt in a medium bowl placed over a saucepan of boiling water. Stir in the sugar. Then, stir in the vanilla and eggs. Finally, stir in the flour and salt. Fold in the peanut butter cups. Spread in a greased 8x8 baking pan and bake at 325 for 30 minutes. Cool before slicing.

4 Years

2011-09-06T13:44:00.000-07:00

September 5, 2007

One year old in 2008

Enchanted Tiki Room Birthday Party for a 2 year old

Rock Climbing Party in 2010 - three years old!

And, yesterday, my girl turned FOUR

I know it's such a cliche to say that time goes so quickly, it seems like just yesterday, the years fly by . . . but I really have a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that I have been a mother for four years and that my little girl has changed so much in that time. In some ways, when I fill in the years between these photos, it seems long. There were so many days of playing pretend, new adventures, pushing a stroller, long nights, reading books, answering"why?", cuddling and singing, going on vacation, worrying, teaching new skills and new words, changing diapers, and thinking of fun activities to do. This little girl has taught me so much about life, myself, God, and seeing things through her eyes is always a delight.

The night before her birthday, she wanted to sleep in her sleeping bag in a new playhouse tent she got for her birthday. I tucked her in and peeked through the window.

Me: Sleep tight! In the morning, you'll be four!
Her: I really will be four tomorrow?
Me: Yes, you will.
Her: What will happen when I wake up and I don't fit in my sleeping bag or this house because I'm four?
Me: You won't grow that much in the night . . . your body will stay the same but you will be four years old
Her: I'll really be four?
Me: Yes!

In the morning . . . .

Her: Look at my arms! They are so much longer today because I'm four.

I love you baby girl!

Grilled Chicken with Peach BBQ Sauce

2011-09-02T14:26:00.000-07:00

First, let me say that I can't believe it's September! How is that possible?? And, big sister is turning FOUR. She wants a grocery store cake with Rapunzel's long hair made from yellow icing and hot dogs for her party so I'm not sure I'll have any homemade birthday treats to post, but I'll at least share some pictures soon.

Next topic: chicken breasts. I don't have the best track record with my husband for making tasty boneless skinless chicken breasts. He often complains that I've overcooked them and they're dried out. Which is probably true. Which is why I have been having him grill chicken when we've had it this summer. My usual easy method for grilled chicken is to buy prepared pesto and marinate whole pieces or small pieces for kabobs in the pesto for a few hours before grilling. However, this new grilled chicken is going to become a favorite around here - good blend of sweet and spicy, kid-friendly, and moist.

Some ingredient notes: You can substitute the fresh peaches with 9-10 oz frozen sliced peaches thawed and chopped and you can substitute the adobo sauce with soy sauce (but it won't have the spicy kick). If you like things spicier, play with increasing the adobo sauce or add a little red pepper flakes to the sauce.

I guess Gwyneth Paltrow published a cookbook recently because on blogs and in food magazines, I've been seeing a bunch of her recipes. This one is attributed to her from Bon Appetit June 2011. I also made some fish tacos that were heavenly and one blogger attributed them to her . . . but that's for another post.

Grilled Chicken with Peach BBQ Sauce (4 servings)
from Bon Appetit 6/11

1 c. chopped peeled fresh peaches
1/2 c. ketchup
2 T fresh lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 tsp. adobo sauce from canned chipotle chiles
salt and pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Combine the first five ingredients in a small saucepan. Season lightly with salt and pepper and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer until peaches are very soft and flavors meld, about 10 minutes. Remove pan from heat; let cool. Pour peach mixture into a blender and puree until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Place half the sauce in a medium bowl (or large ziplock bag). Add chicken and turn to coat. Let marinate at room temperature for 20 minutes or in a refrigerator for up to 8 hours, turning occasionally. Cover and refrigerate remaining sauce.

Prepare a grill to med-high heat. Brush the grill rack with oil. Grill chicken until browned and almost cooked through, 4-5 minutes per side. Brush on all sides with reserved sauce. Grill until glazed and cooked through, 1-2 minutes more per side. Serve remaining sauce with the chicken.

Healthier Pancakes

2011-08-31T14:32:00.000-07:00

Big sister loves pancakes. About two weeks ago, I made them three mornings in a row. I usually make this recipe but I wanted to try something a little healthier by the third morning and the recipe below was the result. No white flour or refined sugar and they weren't bad . . . a little dense because of the whole wheat flour and oats. Play with the amount of milk (and you could easily use soy milk or almond milk) to get the consistency you like - I should have added a little more. Also, after talking to my Aunt Kathy about thin vs cake-like pancakes, I think I'd reduce the baking powder (or leave it out) next time around.

Healthy(ier) Pancakes (makes about 8-10 pancakes)

1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup oats
1 T baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 egg
1 T honey
3 T plain yogurt
~1 cup (or more) milk
1 banana, diced

Whisk together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon. Then, add the egg, honey, yogurt and milk and stir until it's mixed. Don't overmix - a few lumps are okay. Fold in the banana.

Another way to do this is to put everything but the banana and oats in a blender and briefly blend until it's all mixed. Then, stir in the oats and banana.

Cook them in a hot pan or skillet however you like to make pancakes.

Raspberry Souffles

2011-08-28T12:08:00.000-07:00

Two recent indulgences: raspberry souffles (for no reason or special occasion) and the New Yorker Fiction podcast. Wow, that last sentence came out sounding way more, umm . . . pretentious than I meant it to. Really, I'm not a snob. But I am a bit of a nerd. I can explain. Let's start with the podcast. I don't have as much time to read as I'd like to now that I have kids and when I do get a chance to run, I need to be distracted or I'll stop. The New Yorker Fiction podcast is fun because famous writers read something that was written by one of their favorite writers. It's usually about 20-30 minutes - perfect for a run (or a sit or a drive). I'll put a link below to a favorite that I recently re-listened to. It's hilarious and you can just listen to it on the internet without having to download / use an ipod.

The souffles . . . around my birthday, a friend and I took a cooking class at Chez Cherie. Remember Cherie? A class I took there originally inspired me to start this blog. Well, the class we took this past year was on souffles and since then, I've made souffles exactly twice. I remember her saying that you barely need any ingredients or time to pull together these raspberry ones and for once we got the girls to bed early, the dishes done and sort of wanted some dessert. So, I literally whipped these up :) Try them - they're not that hard and they're even gf.

My one tip for beating egg whites is to use the whisk attachment of the hand blender if you have one. I did this for the souffles and also for the flourless chocolate cupcakes I recently posted and it's super fast and easy to control how stiff or dry your egg whites get.

Here's the link for the podcast and it's especially for you, my friends who love language (Mom, Margaret, Lee, Karen, Lisa - too many to name, but you know who you are!)

Click Here

And, Cherie Twohy's recipe for Raspberry Souffles (2 servings)
*Used by permission

2 egg whites
2 T good quality raspberry jam
1 T water
2 tsp Chambord or other raspberry liquer (optional - left it out this time)
1 T sugar (plus more for preparing the ramekins)
softened butter and sugar for preparing the ramekins

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Prepare two individual souffle dishes by buttering them well and shaking some sugar around the inside to coat the sides. In a small saute pan, heat the raspberry jam with the water until the jam melts and most of the water evaporates, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Add the Chambord (the mixture will thicken a bit more as it cools).

When the raspberry mixture is cooled sufficiently, whisk the egg whites, adding sugar, a teaspoonful of or so at a time, until the whites are glossy and hold nearly stiff peaks. Add about 1/3 of the whites to the base mixture, stirring to lighten the texture. Add another 1/3, folding more carefully, turning the bowl as you scoop and turn the mixture from the bottom of the bowl. When these whites are combined, add the final 1/3 of the whites, folding very gently to preserve their lightness. A streak or two of white is preferable to overmixing at this point, as the whites will deflate if they are stirred with great vigor.

Gently pour the souffle batter into the prepared dishes, and place in the preheated oven. Bake 12-15 minutes, until the souffles are puffed and glorious. As a result of the higher sugar content, these souffles will brown significantly on top as they cook.

Cookies for our new friends

2011-08-19T14:33:00.000-07:00

Big sister has made some new Claremont friends. A couple of months ago, she was invited to a birthday party by a girl in her ballet class. She went running into the house after class and told her dad, "I got invited! I got invited!" - she was so excited. The birthday girl has become her new bff. The two of them have some similarities in their love of life and swimming. They lots of happy noise & laughter when they play together. Bff also has an older sister P who is a lot of fun and the three of them seem to get along really well.

When our two new friends gave big sister a handmade doll, big sister really wanted to sew something for them in return. I looked through our craft cupboard and made some alternative suggestions (which I thought were really good) and big sister vetoed all of them ("Nooooo - I want to SEW a DOLL like they did). So, I had a little talk with her. Some families can sew. Some kids know how to sew and have actual needles and thread and fabric and stuff. But, we're not one of those families. What we do is bake for people we love. The next time we saw the friends, we brought them some cookies!

Getting ready to bake (notice how she took the lids off everything - her preferred first step)

Making sure the chocolate chips are "fresh"

My lovely surprise from baby girl while we were baking - no injuries, thankfully

Eating her first chocolate chip cookie!

And, the end product. We hope they'll be our friends for our winning personalities, our pool, and, of course, the treats.

Chocolate Chip & Heath bar Oatmeal Cookies (makes 3 dozen)

3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour (can use all regular flour if you want)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks butter, softened
2/3 cup sucanat (or packed brown sugar)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 large egg
2 tablespoons milk
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped heath bar (can use all chocolate or peanut butter chips if you want)
1 cup quick or old-fashioned oats

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flours, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a small bowl. In a mixing bowl cream the butter. Add the sugars and cream until fluffy. Add the vanilla and egg. Alternately add the milk and flour mixture at a lower speed. Stir in the chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, and oats.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the center is still soft and the edges are crisp and the cookies are lightly browned. Cool on the baking sheet for a couple of minutes and then transfer to a wire rack.

And another summer salad

2011-08-12T17:17:00.000-07:00

This was sooo good. I wish I had more squash from our garden!

Shaved Summer Squash Salad (4 servings)
from Bon Appetit, June 2011

1 lb summer squash (mix of green and yellow)
2 1/2 T extra-virgin olive oil
2 T fresh lemon juice
1 minced garlic clove
1-2 cups of baby arugula
3 T whole almonds, toasted and coarsely crushed
or 3 T pine nuts, toasted
salt and pepper to taste
freshly shaved pecorino or parmasean cheese

Trim the ends off of the squash and use a vegetable peeler to thinly slice the squash lengthwise into strips. Transfer to a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic clove, and salt (to taste). Pour dressing over squash and let stand for a few minutes. Then, add some baby arugula, shave some cheese over the top and toss. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with the nuts.
(134 cal/serving)

Wild Rice Salad

2011-08-09T15:26:00.000-07:00

As you can see from the posts in the last month or two, we've been eating a lot of salads this summer. The other morning before he left for work, my husband asked what was for dinner. I said that I had no idea and asked what he'd like to have (aren't I nice??) He answered, "some sort of salad with wild rice" and he got what he wanted!

I saw this awhile back on Simply Recipes and made the recipe exactly like it was posted on Elise's blog. I bought some roasted turkey to add and forgot to add it . . . maybe next time. Shredded rotisserie chicken would also probably work well in this salad if you wanted more protein. I didn't think it would be as spectacular as it was but the combination of flavors and textures and the sesame oil made it sort of addicting. We polished off a half recipe between the two of us!

Wild Rice Salad (8-10 side dish servings)

1 cup long grain rice

1 cup wild rice

4 cups chicken broth (or water or veg broth)

4 stalks celery, sliced

8 green onions, sliced

2 cups thawed frozen peas

1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted

3/4 cup dried cranberries

salt and pepper

1/4 c. olive oil

2 T red wine vinegar

1 tsp sugar (ok, I lied - I left the sugar out)

2 T dark sesame oil

Put the broth (or water) in a medium saucepan. Add the rice and wild rice, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover. Let cook for 40 minutes. Remove from heat and cool completely.

Whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, sugar and sesame oil.

In a large bowl, gently mixed together the cooled cooked rice, dressing, and other ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste. Chill completely before serving.

First Birthday Treats

2011-08-06T07:53:00.000-07:00

Baby girl had a great first birthday and her big sister, daddy & I also enjoyed the day! If you've never checked it out (especially if you have kids under about 8 or so), Under the Sea Indoor Playground in Altadena is a really fun place. The birthday girl liked riding the little cars and the short slides and practiced her walking quite a bit on the carpeted floor (easier than the hardwoods at home). In the evening, we had cake with family to celebrate.

Of course, the most fun part of a one year old party is when the baby gets to dig in to the cake! At first she kept looking at us like, "you're really giving this to me?!?" but then she just leaned over and stuck her face in it!

While I made the birthday girl her own carrot cake with cream cheese frosting (no sugar added), the bigger people enjoyed some better desserts. I always forget how much flourless cakes fall and shrink after they cool. I had cute cupcake liners but took the cakes out of them before serving since they totally pulled away from the sides. These small, rich chocolate cakes were perfect with a little whipped cream and ice cream.

Thank you all for your birthday wishes! It was a milestone for us all to celebrate.

Flourless Chocolate Cupcakes (from Martha Stewart)
makes about 20

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
8 oz bittersweet chocolate chips
6 large eggs, separated, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar

Preheat the oven to 275 degrees and line muffin tins with paper liners. Melt butter and chocolate over low heat (or use a double boiler). Stir to combine and remove from heat and let cool slightly. Carefully whisk in egg yolks.

With an electric mixer on medium speed, whisk egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, beating until peaks are stiff and glossy but not dry (don't overbeat). Whisk one quarter of the beaten egg whites into chocolate mixture to lighten. Gently fold mixture into remaining whites. Fill your prepared muffin cups about 3/4 full. Bake until cupcakes are just set in the centers, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes (the centers will sink).

Best eaten the same day they're made; keep at room temperature until ready to serve. Top with whipped cream, if desired.

One year ago today

2011-08-04T06:17:00.000-07:00

How can my baby be one year old today? The year has flown by but has been filled with wonderfully sweet moments with my two girls. I'm so glad that I didn't spend today in labor and that I'm on the other side of the first baby year of her life. I can't wait to hear what her next words will be and see her become more competent at her walking . . . . knowing our family, running isn't too far off! A year ago, I still didn't know that my baby girl would have blue eyes, crinkle her nose when she smiled, be super cuddly, or so even tempered. I did know that her big sister would love her dearly and that she would fit right in to our family. Happy Birthday little sweetheart!

First birthday highlights coming soon!

Strawberry Cake

2011-07-31T07:47:00.000-07:00

Strawberries used to be a spring and summer treat but now we eat them all year. Still, this tasted summery to me and fresh berries from farmer's market can't be beat! My little helper liked slicing the strawberries, measuring and mixing, and then placing the strawberries on the batter. No little fingers were harmed in the making of this cake!

It took a lot longer to bake than I thought it would and by the time the center was cooked, the cake seemed a little dry. The whipped cream definitely helped but I think next time, I'd just make this version of strawberry cake. I substituted whole wheat flour for half of the white flour and used about 1/2 cup sucanat and 1/4 cup white sugar.

Martha Stewart's Strawberry Cake

6 T softened butter

1.5 cups all-purpose flour

1.5 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup sugar (+ 2 T for sprinkling on top)

1 large egg

1/2 c. milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1 pound strawberries, hulled and halved

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 10 inch pie plate. Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Cream butter and 1 cup sugar until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. At a lower mixing speed, mix in egg, milk and vanilla. On low speed, gradually mix in flour mixture and spread the batter in the buttered pie plate. Arrange strawberries on batter, cut sides down and close together. Sprinkle the 2 T sugar over the top of the berries.

Bake the cake for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Bake until cake is golden brown and firm to the touch (took me about 1 hour). Let cool in pie plate on a wire rack before cutting into wedges.

Adventures of the Chef and Sous Chef

2011-07-23T06:16:00.000-07:00

On a rainy afternoon of our vacation, big sister wanted to make a video of her cooking. We're off on another family adventure, so this is to hold you over until our return!

Adventures of the Chef and the Sous Chef

Part I: "Making tea for the audience"

Coleslaw

2011-07-20T15:14:00.000-07:00

I like coleslaw an awful lot and it's usually a somewhat healthy choice of a side dish (as opposed to deep fried things). I have opinions about it and don't like it to be too heavy on the mayo. But, until last week, I don't think I've ever made my own from scratch. This recipe is super easy, I loved all the bell peppers, and I cut (way) down on the mayo. Next time, I might just use plain greek yogurt in place of the yogurt. If you're gf, just check the ingredients on your mustard & mayonnaise.

Bell Pepper Slaw (from Food Network Magazine)

6-8 side dish servings

1/2 c. apple cider vinegar

1.5 tsp celery seeds

1.5 tsp mustard seeds

freshly ground pepper & salt

1-2 T sugar (optional)

6 bell peppers (2 yellow, 2 orange, 2 red) finely sliced

2 stalks celery, finely chopped

4 scallions, chopped

1/2 head green cabbage thinly sliced and roughly chopped

3 T whole grain dijon mustard

1/3 c. mayonnaise (I probably used 2 tablespoons to start with and slowly added a little more just until the coleslaw stuck together)

In a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, celery seeds, ground pepper, salt, and sugar (if using). Add all the vegetables and refrigerate for at least an hour. Before serving, stir in the mustard and mayonnaise.

Two easy summer menus

2011-07-17T14:25:00.000-07:00

How has your summer been? This past week, I took my girls to Claremont's Family Festival that takes place in the summer on Wednesday nights. It's not a big street fair but they had a blast at the petting zoo and big sister loved her pony ride. After she said, "Run like the wind!' to the slowly walking pony PeeWee, the cowboy cracked up and let her trot for awhile. I think the picture speaks for itself!

I'm having some trouble with being motivated to plan menus . . . all I want to eat when it's hot is salad and ice cream. But, last week was an improvement and I made two awesome meals with some favorite recipes from the blog. So, if you need some inspiration for making dinner, here are two menu ideas.

Teriyaki marinated flank steak on the grill with Soba Noodle Salad and cantaloupe

Chicken Enchiladas with Cilantro Lime Rice and chips & salsa (My mom made these enchiladas recently and used half salsa verde and half enchilada sauce for the sauce and added cooked artichoke hearts from a frozen package to the filling - delicioso!)

Vegetable Quiche with Potato Crust

2011-07-13T15:14:00.000-07:00

So, I'm kicking myself for not taking a photo of this because it turned out so pretty! We had brunch with some friends last weekend and I made this recipe I saw on "Cook Yourself Thin." Back in the day when I first had cable, I watched a lot of food TV but lately, not so much. Awhile back, I caught this show on Lifetime and really liked the premise - you can lose weight by cooking your own food and making easy substitutions to recipes. And, the substitutions aren't things like Splenda or weird stuff, but more veggies and protein and less sugar and fat.

This quiche has a potato crust and loads of veggies. I changed the original recipe from the show to add the red bell pepper, zucchini and one more egg. It's not super egg-y because the eggs basically bind together all those vegetables. I doused my piece (okay, pieces) with hot sauce so next time I'd add some red pepper flakes or diced jalapenos but it was really good.

Vegetable Quiche with Potato Crust serves 8
From "Cook Yourself Thin" (appx 210 cal/serving)

1/2 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, shredded
1/2 onion, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1 cup white mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup diced zucchini
3 oz baby spinach
4 large eggs
1 cup skim milk
1/2 cup shredded Gruyere or cheddar cheese
olive oil
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a glass or ceramic pie pan with 1/4 tsp. oil. Toss potatoes with 1 tsp. olive oil and a little salt and pepper. Press into an even layer in the pie dish, up the sides like a crust. Bake until golden brown at the edges and dry, about 20 minutes. Let cool.

Lower the oven to 325 degrees. Heat 1 tsp. oil in a skillet and add the onion and red bell pepper and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add a little more oil, the mushrooms and zucchini and cook, stirring, until the mushrooms release their liquid and the liquid evaporates (about 8 minutes). Add spinach and some more salt and pepper (about 1/4 tsp. each) and cook, stirring, just until the spinach wilts (about 30 seconds). Let cool slightly.

Whisk together the eggs and milk. Spread the vegetable mixture in an even layer in the pie dish. Top with an even layer of the cheese. Pour the egg mixture over it all. Bake until it's firm around the edges but a little wobbly in the middle, about 20 minutes.

Pineapple & Coconut

2011-07-09T08:45:00.000-07:00

There are lots of flavor combinations that I love . . . chocolate & raspberry, chocolate & salt, mango & chile, pineapple & coconut . . . my early pineapple & coconut food memory comes from flat tops with two holes. If you don't know what I'm talking about, you maybe never had a Thrifty Ice Cream cone. We loved those as kids and if my dad offered flat tops with two holes, we were there! I loved the "Coconut Pineapple" flavor. Smooth, creamy & tasted like Hawaiian Tropic Suntan Lotion smelled.

So, when I decided to make a pineapple upside down cake after our trip to Hawaii, I knew that I needed to make coconut ice cream to go with it. Both of these desserts were fantastic individually but together, they were amazing. If I do say so myself :)

I was worried about how the cake would turn out after the brown sugar / butter part spilled all over the bottom of my oven and I flooded the house with smoke, but it was good (and didn't taste like smoke). I used fresh pineapple pieces but you could use canned.

When you make the ice cream, make sure you use cream of coconut (has sugar in it and is typically used to make pina coladas so you can find it with other mixers), not coconut milk. I decreased the sugar from the original recipe and found that it probably could be decreased even more.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake Recipe

Coconut Ice Cream (makes 1.5 qt)

3 large eggs
scant 1 cup sugar
2 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup whole milk
20 oz coconut cream

Whisk the eggs together in a light bowl until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Slowly whisk in the sugar until completely incorporated. Whisk one minute more and then whisk in the cream and milk. Stir in the coconut cream. Immediately pour into your ice cream maker and freeze according to your maker's instructions.
*Can be GF - check your coconut cream ingredients.

Ratatouille

2011-07-05T14:12:00.000-07:00

When I saw this movie in the theater, I went into labor (on Labor Day) with my first baby girl. I don't think that's why she loves cooking and food like me, but it demonstrates how even 9 months pregnant, my mind was on food. I had a great time watching this movie with her recently. She liked it a lot and had lots of questions about everything (as usual), one not surprising question being, "When can we make ratatouille?" It worked out perfectly that one typical ingredient is summer squash, so after harvesting, we made ratatouille for the first time.

Ratatouille is a vegetable dish with a tomato sauce and the main vegetables are zucchini and eggplant. Originally made in Provence, it was introduced to American cooks by Julia Child (how else?) If you want to read it or try it, here's Julia Child's recipe. I was going to make this recipe, but limited by time and not wanting that much oil/fat, I landed upon and used the recipe on Smitten Kitchen. This recipe was inspired by the movie and was a departure from the traditional preparation of sauteing each vegetable before combining and baking the dish. I followed it except for using fresh thyme (forgot). The mandolin slicer works awesome here!

As for the result, let's just say that this is a work in progress. It wasn't a crowd pleaser in my family but I really loved it. Lots of vegetables, good sauce . . . I'll make it again for sure but next time I'll add more fresh herbs and possibly cook the sauce before putting it in the pan underneath the veggies to give it more depth of flavor. We ate it as a main dish with crusty french bread and goat cheese but my husband said he would like it more as a side dish with some meat. I think next time, I might use it as a filling for crepes. Big sister liked making it (she loves patterns and was chanting "eggplant, squash, zucchini, pepper, eggplant, squash . . ." )

Ratatouille Recipe from Smitten Kitchen

How it looked coming out of the oven:

The Harvest

2011-07-02T07:38:00.000-07:00

Carrots from the garden - toddler hand for scale

She counted 29 squash . . . pretty tough and overripe but she was so proud

Beautiful cherry tomatoes

My daughter was disappointed about leaving Hawaii but her silver lining was the garden waiting for her at home. Almost every day on vacation, she talked about her garden (expressing concern that our friend who housesat would remember to water, wondering if the turtle was eating her plants) and when we were finally at the airport on the way home, she kept telling strangers, "I have to get home to take care of my garden." When we got back home, she went running to see her plants. And, they were huge. The carrots were all ready, the squash was past its prime, and there were the first ripe tomatoes. The turtle did eat the strawberry plants and the new sunflower seedlings but the rest of the garden overshadowed that disappointment.

That evening before bed, we all worked in the garden harvesting. Every carrot I pulled up and handed to my daughter was lovingly brushed off and put into a sack as she complimented herself, "What a beautiful carrot!" "Look at this one - biggest one ever." It made me think of my grandfather's garden in Connecticut. He too loved his plants and fretted over them and enjoyed bountiful yields from the sweat of his labor. His tomatoes were beautiful and tasted better than any I've had since. How he would have loved to have heard about big sister's first vegetable garden! I can just hear his voice in my mind, "Would you look at those carrots?"

We talked about what to make with the harvest and her big idea was a "carrot applesauce cake." Not sure where she came up with that one, but the first thing she said when she woke up the next morning was, "Mom, since I had a good night's sleep, can we make my cake for breakfast?" The recipe is below. She measured and mixed and poured and the cake was moist and healthy, and delicious.

She also has big plans for making ratatouille with the squash, so stay tuned! Any ideas for what to plant now, in the middle of summer?

Jenna's Carrot Applesauce Cake (9 servings)

1 cup flour (I used 1/2 whole wheat, half regular)
1/4 c. sugar (I used Sucanat)
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
6 T unsweetened applesauce
2 T olive oil
1 large egg
1 egg white
1.5 c. carrots, shredded

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. In a small bowl, combine applesauce, olive oil, egg, egg white. Stir wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix in the carrots until well incorporated. Spread into a greased 8x8 pan or 9 inch cake pan or a loaf pan. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.

We iced it with a powdered sugar icing (powdered sugar, a little milk, and a little vanilla) and ate it warm!

A great thing about living in Claremont

2011-06-30T13:24:00.000-07:00

There are TWO 21 Choices here!

If you don't know this about me already, I have always loved frozen yogurt and the comeback it's making the past few years has made me really happy. I have such fond Penguins memories of my childhood and then for years it was tough to find good frozen yogurt. My current leanings are towards tart flavors. If you don't already share my love of 21 Choices, give it a try (there's one in Old Town Pasadena too).

Here are a few "insider" tips:

You can check out that day's yogurt choices on their website. For instance, you can see if your fav (mine is snickerdoodle cookie) is available that day.

You can skip to the front of the line (particularly useful in Old Town) if you just want one of those daily choices and no mix-ins. They also have a nice little size if you want to indulge just a little bit.

Oat & Whole Wheat Muffins

2011-06-25T11:57:00.000-07:00

Oat & Whole Wheat Muffins

Thanks to everyone for your comments on the last post - it was fun to share something other than food and to hear that I'm not alone. We've had an incredible vacation with many family memories and it's been a really special time. I'll try to put some more photos up at some point, but for now, back to regularly scheduled programming :)

While I was staying away from sugar, I made these muffins. At the time, I didn't realize that sucanat is really sugar . . . just in a more natural form. This is the least processed form of sugar cane that you can easily bake with and is lower on the glycemic index than refined sugar. Thanks, Nicole for the jar of sucanat you gave me! I'm definitely going to use it regularly. The easiest way to begin using sucanat is by doing a straight substitution for brown sugar. I thought these muffins might turn out like hockey pucks or something but they were surprisingly light and moist. The raisins were terrific and other dried fruits (or nuts) would be good too.

Oat & Whole Wheat Muffins (makes 1 dozen)

1 cup rolled oats
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup sucanat
1/2 cup applesauce
1 egg
1/2 cup raisins

Soak oats in buttermilk for 2 hours. Add the applesauce, sucanat, and egg. Stir the rest of the ingredients together and add to the oat mixture. Stir in raisins. Bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes or until a tester comes out clean and the tops are browned.

Abandoned to Joy

2011-06-16T18:04:00.000-07:00

As I watch my children play on our vacation in Hawaii, I'm so touched by their sheer abandonment to the joy of new experiences. They give their whole attention to just enjoying the moment. Baby sister tries to scoop handfuls of pebbly, gritty sand into her mouth just to see how it feels on her gums. She splashes the same toy over and over in a bucket of water to hear the sound and feel the cold water. Big sister swims, actually swims, not wades, in the ocean for the first time. She convinces dad to rent a kayak (which she calls "my row boat") and spends a couple of hours laughing on the bow and saying "yo ho ho" pretending she's a pirate in Neverland. And, she tells her new bff, a server at our first hotel who was really kind to her several days in a row, "I love you" and gives her a huge hug. Really meaning it with her little heart.

As their mother, I'm happy they have this ability to just live in the moment, lavishly love others, and relish their surroundings. At the same time, I can't help but contrast it with my adult view of the same situations. I've been thinking recently of how my mind is always racing. I know some people who experience this have trouble sleeping and lay there at night thinking. I've been blessed with the ability to fall asleep quickly most of the time. For me, the mind racing thing happens when I wish I was able to just be. Like my kids. I tell myself that I'm going to just sit on a chair and look at the ocean for ten minutes and then I start wondering if I forgot my cousin's birthday, trying to decide whether I should bring a meal to a friend at church the day after we get home, thinking about how I'm going to sleep train baby girl (again!) when we get home, what we need from the grocery store, if spf 30 is enough for baby girl, mulling over the secret plans I'm making for our 10th anniversary.

This kind of thinking isn't contemplative or reflective; it's the ordinary junk that I turn over and over in my mind. Time to just be and just think isn't in great abundance with two little kids. This morning I stopped in the middle of my run, borrowed a pen from a stranger, and jotted down this:

Contemplation
Why isn't there more in my life? What do I not want to think about or face in myself? Why on vacation do I still look at my watch and hurry to the next thing? Why do I feel like I don't deserve an hour do to nothing by myself?

Maybe because even though it's a vacation version, my mental to do list is on a looped track: reapply sunscreen, change the baby's diaper, refill the sippy cups, do a load of laundry, clean up the toys, reapply sunscreen, give the kids a bath, make sure they have snacks, make sure they drink enough water, put them down for a nap, take them to the pool so they're tired enough to go to sleep tonight after those naps, reapply sunscreen, fish something out of the baby's mouth, remind big sister to stop putting things in her mouth, remind big sister to go to the potty, make dinner, do the dishes, make sure everyone has clean pjs and baths and sippy cups of water and their favorite stuffed animal and white noise and a dark room and that the sheets don't smell funny and that there aren't monsters in the closets or under the beds . . . no wonder I fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow. But only until I have to get up in 2 hours with my teething 10 month old who won't sleep.

It's a work in progress, but I'm trying to learn from my kids and add "let it go, enjoy yourself more, be abandoned to joy" to that list of things to do. I think I'm going to send myself a postcard with those words so I can remember to take my vacation lesson and apply it to regular life when we get home.

No Sugar Added

2011-06-12T11:18:00.000-07:00

For almost 3 weeks, I cut all refined, added sugar and white flour out of my diet. It wasn't as hard this time around as previous times when I've done it and I really felt good - more energy despite my 10 month old turning into a lousy sleeper again. Even though now that I'm on vacation I've stopped being strict, I find myself reaching for healthier snacks and choices. And, I wanted to share with you a few of my favorite items without sugar:

From left to right

Ak-mak crackers - no white flour, no sugar, from Trader Joe's or regular grocery stores

Brown rice rice cakes - I put almond butter and fruit spread on them for breakfast or cottage cheese on them for a snack

Kashi 7 whole grain Puffs - one of the only sugar free cereals I've found

Bars: KIND and Think Thin Crunch - delicious. My favorite Kind is the apricot almond one. Check the packaging - not all are sugar free.

Almond milk - vanilla flavored without sugar or any sugar free sweeteners

Tazo Tea - Green Tea with Ginger . . . . long time favorite. Good for those afternoon cravings.

A morning with my girls

2011-06-08T07:46:00.000-07:00

My morning started with big sister at the side of the bed, handing me my glasses and telling me it was morning. At 5:45. So, even though it's barely 8:00am, it's time for little sister's morning nap and a post about our morning so far (can you tell I'm done grading essays?? Woohoo!!).

It's too early!! Little sister is like her mommy - not so much a morning person

Big sister picked the first squash from her garden the other day and this morning, announced that she would be eating it for breakfast. This was her assessment:

Looks like: round with yellow edges

Smells like: eggs

Tastes like: not too good

Then, she ate some yogurt instead.

And, after breakfast, she tried to get her little sister to watch Curious George with her.

Little sister prefers to be on the move and was not interested in sitting on the couch.

Quinoa two ways

2011-06-06T21:26:00.000-07:00

My goal of no sugar / white flour until our vacation is going pretty well . . . I cheated at the Hollywood Bowl this weekend and ate a macaroon (come on, it's the Hollywood Bowl) and had to research sucanat a bit to find out that I had inadvertently cheated (new post about sucanat coming soon) but so far, so good and 3 days to go!

I've made a few batches of quinoa in the past few weeks and if you're not already eating quinoa like us (my mom's side of the family particularly), it's delicious. Well, it can be made delicious. Quinoa itself is nutty, grainy, and very versatile depending on how you prepare it. It's also way quicker to prepare than brown rice. I have been calling it a grain, but learned that it's "actually a chenopod, related to species like beets and spinach."

You can read other quinoa recipes here and here. I was a bit saddened to read this article in the New York times about how Bolivians, who have been eating quinoa for centuries, are becoming unable to afford it because of exportation. Not trying to make you guilty (and I just bought another box), but I think it's important to be aware of how our consumption in the US affects people globally.

The new recipe below is for a pilaf that's easy and flavorful. I had lots of leftovers so I just mixed up the leftover with some cucumber and feta cheese to serve with chicken kebobs - doesn't this meal just look like summer?? The day after that, I still had leftovers (now with cucumber and feta in it) so I chopped up the leftover grilled chicken and ate that for lunch. The dish that keeps on giving!

Quinoa Pilaf with Lemon and Thyme (6 servings)

1 onion, minced
1 tsp. olive oil
salt and pepper
1.5 cups quinoa
3 cups low-sodium broth (chicken or vegetable)
1 tsp. grated lemon zest
1 tsp. minced fresh thyme (or 1/4 tsp. dried)
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
2 T. minced fresh parsley (or basil or cilantro or scallions).

Combine the onion, oil, and 1/4 tsp. salt in a large saucepan. Saute until onion is soft, about 5-8 minutes. Stir in the quinoa and cook over medium heat, stirring often, until quinoa is lightly toasted and aromatic, about 5 minutes. Stir in the broth, zest, salt and pepper and thyme and bring to a simmer.

Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the quinoa is transparent and tender (about 10-15 minutes). Remove the pot from the heat, lay a clean folded kitchen towel across the top of the pot and replace the lid. Let sit for 10 minutes then fluff the quinoa with a fork. Stir in the lemon juice and fresh parsley or herbs. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

What to make with the leftovers:

Greek Quinoa Salad

Stir chopped cucumber, pepper, and feta cheese into cold, leftover quinoa pilaf. Add a little olive oil if it seems dry and serve. You can also add chopped cooked chicken, pine nuts, olives, more fresh herbs . . .

If 3 year olds taught college

2011-06-01T10:51:00.000-07:00

J: So mom, were your students still fussing today?

Me: Yes.

J: Why?

Me: Because they don't want to do their work or follow the rules and obey.

J: So did you put them in time out?

Me: No.

J: Why not?

Me: You can't really do that in college.

Then the very difficult task of trying to explain grades to a 3 year old . . . not sure I did very well.

Is it summer yet??

2011-05-31T14:35:00.000-07:00

I know that Memorial Day marks the informal start of the summer season, but I have a week and a half left of work before summer vacation and it can't come quickly enough. Although I don't like to be one of those people who is always complaining about work (I know I have it good and I appreciate my job), here goes: My students are whining, slacking off and plagiarizing. I'm tired of sitting at the cafe at our fitness club grading papers instead of working out. This weekend, big sister asked me, "Mom, if you're the teacher, how come you're doing homework?" Believe me, June 8th can't come fast enough. Oh, wait, I guess it better not come before I get all this crap amazing student writing graded.

So, let's talk about summer. I've been talking to anyone who will listen about all the things I want to do this summer:

have lots of friends over

eat vegetables from big sister's garden

swim every day

run another half marathon (or maybe do a triathlon?) by the end of the summer

cook good food

take a road trip to Oregon

enroll little sister in swim lessons

go to the beach

invite family visiting from out of town (and cousins who live in So Cal) over

get back on a bicycle for the first time in almost 2 years

read books that have nothing to do with grammar or my classes

New Granola

2011-05-26T14:58:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since I've made dramatically different granola. I make this version every other week or so but I was wanting a change. One of the reasons I first started making my own was to avoid the oil & refined sugar in store bought stuff so making a recipe with oil is a bit of a departure. But, on my quest to cut out sugar (again) for a few weeks before vacation, I was reading some stuff for motivation and was reminded of how our bodies need "good" fats and sometimes a lack of those can be perceived as a sugar craving. So, this recipe has olive oil & maple syrup as the wet stuff.

Verdict: Great texture and flavor. I'd like to use some different nuts to change it up a little more. Don't skip the teaspoon of salt - it balances the other flavors in the granola.

New Granola with Olive Oil
makes about 5-6 cups

1/2 c. pure maple syrup
1/3 c. extra virgin olive oil
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cardamom

2.5 c. old fashioned rolled oats
1 c. raw sliced almonds
1/2 c. raw pine nuts
1/2 c. unsweetened coconut (flaked or shredded)
1/4 c. ground flax seed

Mix the syrup, oil, and spices together. In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts, coconut, and flax. Add the wet to the dry and stir. If it seems too wet, add more oats. If it seems too dry, add a little more syrup (or some agave). Spread on a rimmed baking sheet and bake at 300 for about 40 minutes, checking and stirring every 10-15 minutes.

Apple Cranberry Muffins

2011-05-20T07:24:00.000-07:00

So, the other morning big sister took a picture of her oatmeal before eating it. I was so proud. I'll have to get her a shirt to match the one I have that says "I take pictures of my food" (thanks, Steph!).

The garden, which I can't take any credit for, is growing every day. There might not be any carrots or radishes left when they're actually ready to eat because big sister "checks" their progress by pulling up a few very often.

The little one isn't so little! She's standing up and very proud of herself for doing so. She can't get back down (yet) but I'm sure she'll be walking before her first birthday!

I've been in a baking mood again . . . maybe the running I've been doing, maybe the rainy weather in May but this was the latest new recipe.

Apple Cranberry Muffins (1 dozen)

1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 T baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar
1.5 cups old fashioned oats
1/4 cup melted butter
1 egg
1 egg white
1 cup milk
1/4 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
1 cup peeled, chopped apples
1/2 cup cranberries (fresh or frozen)

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, sugar, cinnamon and oats. In a separate bowl, mix the melted butter, eggs, milk, and sour cream or yogurt. Mix. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Then add the apples and cranberries. Scoop into muffin liners and sprinkle the tops with a little brown sugar. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Flip Flop Party 2011

2011-05-18T14:34:00.000-07:00

How to Host a Flip Flop Exchange:

1. Invite lots of friends and their little girls over for brunch and the exchange. I usually do it in the spring, before summertime

2. Tell guests to rsvp with their shoe size and how many pairs of flip flops they want to exchange

3. Check rsvps and hope people actually want to come. Get a pedicure while you're waiting for the big day.

4. Set a price limit per pair of flip flops (we did $15) and a week or two before, assign a size for everyone to bring. Make it work out so that there will be a pair for each participant in their shoe size. For the little girls, we did a direct exchange (like drawing names at Christmas time)

5. Buy cheesy flip flop decorations and paper goods at Party City.

6. Make brunch and have plenty of coffee (and mimosas!)

7. Eat, talk, laugh, repeat.

8. After brunch, have guests pick numbers randomly. Start with #1 and let each person pick the pair of flip flops they like best to take home.

9. Post on your blog about your party or comment here and let me know.

Thanks to everyone who came - I had a really fun morning and was so happy to see each of you. I'll think of what fun we had when I wear my flip flops this summer!

Baby sister wishing she was old enough to wear flip flops

Here are two of the recipes I made for the brunch. Both were great and I'm making the frittata again tonight for dinner. I didn't realize until I was part way through the bundt recipe that it had a LOT of caffeine . . . and I had several pregnant friends and some little kids who might not have appreciated that fact! But, it was delicious and I polished off the leftovers after the race I ran on Sunday.

Potato Frittata

I found the recipe on Gluten Free Goddess but I used Gruyere & added cooked chopped bacon

Recipe here

Cappuccino Bundt Cake

I found the recipe on the Food Librarian and followed it but I made a regular vanilla icing

Recipe here

Italian Crockpot Chicken

2011-05-14T14:30:00.000-07:00

I was trying to come up with a creative way to make potatoes and chicken for dinner. Then, I realized that it was ballet night for big sister and roasting them would take too long so I put everything in the crockpot. This is what I used:

Instead of using white wine and olive oil like I might have done, I used a prepared vinaigrette that was in the refrigerator and added some other seasonings. Baby sister loved the cooked carrots and although this wasn't fanciest meal ever, it was tasty and filling.

It might not seem like much liquid, but the chicken will render more as it cooks and you don't want it all floating in a lot of broth. You can adjust the seasonings according to your taste (and according to how much herbs are in the dressing you use). If you don't have a dressing you want to use, sprinkle a little olive oil, add a little red or white wine, and use more seasonings.

Italian Crockpot Chicken (4 servings)

2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts (appx 3 large)

1/2 c. broth

1/4 c. italian dressing or vinaigrette

8-10 small red or yellow potatoes

1 large shallot, chopped (or 1/4 c. chopped onion)

1 cup baby carrots

oregano, basil, bay leaf, salt pepper

Mozzarella or parmesan cheese (optional).

Put the potatoes and carrots in the bottom of your slow cooker. Pour the broth on top of the vegetables. Put the chicken breasts on top of the vegetables. Sprinkle with the shallot (or onion). Drizzle with the dressing or vinaigrette. Sprinkle with the seasonings. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or until the potatoes are soft and the chicken is cooked through. When you plate the chicken, sprinkle with mozzarella or Parmesan cheese.

Kalamata Artichoke Dip

2011-05-07T13:59:00.000-07:00

I did it again . . . I invited friends over for dinner, planned the meal, went grocery shopping, and about an hour before they were going to arrive, I realized it might be nice to have an appetizer to snack on before dinner. Up until then, I hadn't thought at all about making an appetizer so it was off to the pantry . . . I usually have chips and salsa but it wasn't a great choice with the Thai main course. What I ended up making was not very Thai either but it was easy and super tasty. I like salty olive dips and tapenades and I was pretty proud with how this turned out. I served it with carrots, celery, and crackers (what I had on hand - more raw veggies would be good).

A couple of notes: The more finely you chop the olives, artichokes and herbs, the smoother consistency you'll get. You could also put the olives & artichokes in a chopper or food processor. Taste before adding any more salt. Other kinds of olives would probably work just fine. You could easily substitute plain yogurt for the sour cream or maybe plain hummus. Add more sour cream if the dip is too chunky or too salty for your taste.

Kalamata Artichoke Dip (makes about 1.5 cups of dip)

1/2 c. chopped kalamata olives
1/2 c. chopped artichoke hearts (canned or jarred, drained)
2T chopped cilantro
1T chopped green onions
1T chopped italian parsley
1/4 c. sour cream
salt and pepper to taste

Add all ingredients to a bowl, mix well and refrigerate for a half hour or so before serving.

Easter recap

2011-05-03T07:42:00.000-07:00

I know this is a little late but I still wanted to share some of our Easter 2011 memories. Easter this year was marked with a significant amount of understanding of the true meaning of the holiday, thanks in part to big sister's bible teacher at preschool. She came home with a "wordless book" and the words to a song explaining the gospel. I wish you could hear her little voice sing this (usually quite loudly):

My heart was sad with sin

Until the Savior came in

His precious blood I know

Has washed me pure as snow

And in God's word, I'm told,

We'll walk the streets of gold

What a wonderful, wonderful day,

He took my sins away.

They're also learning about the second coming and big sister got it all a little mixed up - she kept thinking that on Easter Sunday when we celebrate the resurrection, Jesus was going to "rise again from heaven" and told me she would "probably feel a little shy" when she was Jesus on Easter. Then, at our sunrise service, there was a cross behind the pastor and big sister turned to me with a loud whisper and asked, "Is that the cross where Jesus really died?" and then "but were you there when he died?" So cute.

We dyed Easter eggs with Grammy Judy:

The girls had some pretty cute Easter outfits (no hats or gloves like when I was little):

An Easter egg hunt at Grammy Heidi's house with my niece:

And, of course, some Easter treats:

Empty Tomb cookies

Macaroons

I had heard about these Easter story / Empty tomb cookies for awhile and this year, I made them with big sister and my niece the night before Easter. My photos of that cooking experience aren't great but it was complete with smashing nuts (almost to the detriment of my new countertops . . . two toddlers + meat mallet = not my brightest idea), whipping egg whites (almost injuring little fingers in my stand mixer), and reading bible verses together.

I used this recipe: Easter Story Cookies

I also made coconut macaroons for the first time. I have to admit, I ate way, way too much sugar and am still paying for it, but they were delicious. I followed the recipe from Baked Bree except for using part unsweetened coconut and was pleased with the results. (As usual, she has beautiful photos of all the recipe's steps).

Both cookie recipes are gluten free!

Beet & Chickpea Salad

2011-04-25T16:05:00.000-07:00

When I'm planning menus for the week, I sometimes ask my husband and daughter for ideas. My husband almost always says "green soup" and big sister says "spaghetti." So, green soup it was last week. I'm getting a little sick of having it so often but it's super nutritious and easy to make. I was looking for a side dish to go with the green soup and since that soup has leafy greens and rice, I didn't really want a starch or a salad. I remembered a black bean and beet salad from one of Mark Bittman's cookbooks and since I had chickpeas on hand, I came up with this variation. It was delicious!

There are a few foods I used to not like that I've acquired a taste for. Mushrooms are one of them and beets are another. I've realized it's because I associated mushrooms with cream of mushroom soup and beets with pickled beets from a can. Now that I've discovered the real flavors, I really like both mushrooms and beets. The other day I found already steamed, peeled beets at the grocery store and bought a package. Trader Joes used to carry them, but like everything else good there, I can't find them anymore.

This salad would be good over shredded red cabbage or spinach. It could make a heartier vegetarian dish if you added some wild rice or barley.

And, try the green soup - you'll like it!

Beet & Chickpea Salad (4 side dish servings)

1/2 red bell pepper, diced
2 T diced onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T olive oil
1/3 c. red wine
1 15oz can garbanzo beans, drained & rinsed
8 oz beets, steamed or roasted and peeled (5-6 small)
1 T orange juice (fresh squeezed if possible)
1/4 c. goat cheese or feta cheese
salt and pepper

In a medium skillet, saute the bell pepper and onion in olive oil until soft. Add the garlic and saute one minute more. Transfer to a serving bowl. In the same skillet (now empty), add the red wine and bring to a low boil. Let it reduce by half (around 4 minutes) - it will be syrupy. Add to the bowl with the vegetables. Stir in the beans and orange juice. Chop the beets in small chunks and add to the bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. You can serve it immediately or refrigerate it up to 24 hours. Top with the goat cheese or feta before serving.

Cinnamon Apple Oatmeal

2011-04-19T20:37:00.000-07:00

I'm working on eliminating the sugar from our mornings. I love pastries and the two amazing bakeries in Claremont are super tempting. Add to this my daughter's love of cereal (I don't even buy very sugary cereal but she loves anything remotely sweet - even the Barbara's Puffins), pancakes and waffles and you get the picture. Right now, my daughter isn't wanting any eggs so we're back to oatmeal as a healthful alternative to the sugary carbs.

If your family likes sweet stuff too, try this oatmeal recipe. There's no added sugar but it tastes delicious. Boiling the raisins, apple, juice and cinnamon with the oats is key to good flavor. I didn't grow up eating oatmeal so I'm not used to the instant packets and they don't appeal to me. And, let's face it: old fashioned oats really don't take that long. If you want less of the natural sugar (or don't care if it's as sweet), use all water and no apple juice. You can also top with nuts to increase the protein.

What less sugary breakfast foods will your kids eat??

Cinnamon Apple Oatmeal (3 servings)

3/4 cup rolled oats
1 small apple, diced
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 c. raisins
3/4 c. apple juice (optional)
1 T ground flax seed (optional)

In a small sauce pan, combine the apple, cinnamon, and raisins with 3/4 c. water and the apple juice and bring to a boil. Stir in the oats. Reduce heat to medium and cook until most of the water is absorbed and the oats are soft. Stir in the flax seed (if you want to). Serve immediately.
*GF if you have gluten-free oats

Chicken & Wild Rice Casserole

2011-04-15T12:25:00.000-07:00

We're having some technical difficulties at our house these days - laptop is on the fritz (where did that expression come from??) and we haven't replaced our stolen desk top computer. So, no photos on the blog today. Instead, let me tell you about this casserole. It's adapted from a recipe in the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook that I've had since college and it was really tasty. Hearty with a decent amount of vegetables and lean protein. Since this uses a grain and no flour, if you use gluten free condensed soup, it's a good gf casserole option.

I love wild rice and recently found those pouches of already cooked wild rice at Trader Joe's which eliminates one step from the preparation. Have you ever used bacon that you buy already cooked? It's a little limp and not as good for eating on it's own (you know, with eggs for breakfast), but it's good in recipes like this and takes out another step of the prep. I made a double batch (one pan for us, one for a friend) in the morning and refrigerated it until dinner time and it was great. I almost forgot the mozzarella cheese but it helped to make it all stick together in the end so I think it's definitely better with it.

Blog note: My mom has been doing me the favor of pointing out how my serving sizes are off by quite a bit on some recipes. I'm going back and fixing them. If you ever make something here and notice that part of the recipe isn't quite right, please let me know! I'd love to hear that you're making something and would like to keep improving upon the recipes.

Chicken & Wild Rice Casserole (serves 6)

1/2 c. chopped carrot
1/2 c. chopped red bell pepper
1/4 c. sliced green onions (2-3 onions)
1 T butter
1 10 3/4 ounce can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 9 oz jar or can of artichoke hearts, cut up
1 1/2 c. chopped, cooked chicken (I used a rotisserie chicken)
1 c. cooked wild rice
1/2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 c. milk
2 T sherry or dry white wine (or substitute extra milk)
2 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
3 T grated parmesan cheese

Saute the carrot, bell pepper and onions in the butter until crisp-tender. In a large bowl, combine those vegetables with the rest of the ingredients except the parmesan cheese. Stir well to combine. Transfer to a 2 quart baking dish. Sprinkle with the cheese. At this point, you can cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours or you can bake it. If you're baking it right away, bake 20 minutes covered with foil, 20 minutes uncovered and let it stand for 10 minutes before serving. If you're baking it from the refrigerator, add an extra 10 minutes to the baking time while it's covered.

Coconut muffins

2011-04-12T11:33:00.000-07:00

I was wanting some sweet chewy baked good the other day and decided to make these muffins. You know I love coconut and I'd never made muffins with coconut milk before. The recipe is vegan so if you have any egg or dairy allergies, this is a good option.

I think next time I might try the regular (not "light") coconut milk, substitute some of the white flour for whole wheat, and decrease the sugar by 1/4 cup. I used unsweetened coconut flakes and they weren't overwhelmingly sweet but I think the sugar cut back might not make a big difference. I haven't tried it, but I bet a gf flour would substitute pretty well here.

The one problem was I tried to eat one while it was warm and it stuck to the muffin liner a lot - wait until they're completely cool or grease a muffin tin without a paper liner.

Coconut Muffins (1 dozen)

Ingredients:

2 c. flour

1 c. sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 14oz can of coconut milk

1/3 c. unsweetened applesauce

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 c. shredded coconut (plus more for sprinkling on top)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, bakign powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine coconut milk, applesauce and vanilla. Add wet to dry, stirring just to combine, then fold in the shredded coconut. Spoon into mufin cups and sprinkle additional shredded coconut on top. Bake for about 18 minutes.

Things we love

2011-04-06T13:53:00.000-07:00

For as rough as February and March were, April is shaping up to be a wonderful month. On the first day of April, we had no tricks but a special visit from some Indiana friends and our inaugural swim in the pool (well, first swim since moving in). In addition to that, here are some things we've been enjoying lately . . .

George the turtle woke up from hibernating all winter

And so did lots of lizards . . . we look for them on walks around our neighborhood and big sister has an insanely good eye for spotting these quick little guys.

We love pancakes (still), especially when they have funny faces.

Checking out shadows in the morning sun

Swinging together at the park around the corner from our house

Swinging, sunshine, and no shoes - does it get any better? I wish I could bottle her pure pleasure in the ordinary things and save it (for when she hits puberty??)

More Food Coloring

2011-04-01T21:20:00.000-07:00

Make sure your volume is up and listen to this song - it's the closing song from every episode of big sister's new favorite TV show. And, what's not to like? When these kids have a problem, they "look in a book" for the answer and their super powers are spelling power, alphabet power, word power, and the power to read.

The Red Riding Hood character (she's "Wonder Red" when she transforms into a super hero) made red velvet cake with her grandma in a recent episode and after that, big sister was filled questions about red velvet cake. Is it real? Is it really red? What does it taste like? And, of course, Can WE make it?

So, you guessed it, more food coloring and baking. I know recipes abound and everyone has their favorite but I made the Hershey's recipe with cream cheese frosting for potluck last Sunday. I should have taken it out of the oven about 5 minutes earlier but it was pretty good. When I tasted the batter before washing the bowl, it made my mouth tingle - was it too much food coloring or the vinegar?

I was reading a little bit about the history of the cake and it cracked me up when I read that in the '70s, the popularity of red velvet cake "faded when red food dye was linked to cancer." I should hope so! Has anybody used beetroot juice to color a red velvet cake? Honestly, I'm not a big enough fan to make this (or ingest this much food coloring) on a regular basis but, like the rainbow cupcakes, we had a fun experience trying it out. I think big sister has had enough food coloring to last her until 2012!

The batter:

What big sister does while I do the dishes and we wait for the cake to bake. On this particular day, we took turns saying nursery rhymes.

Hershey's Red Velvet Cake Click for recipe

Recipe notes:
*Instead of 2 T, I only used about 2 tsp. red food coloring (what was left in the little vial I bought for the cupcakes)
*I made my own cream cheese frosting
*Check your cake between 25 and 30 minutes
*Other than that, I followed the recipe

Baked Cheesy Rice

2011-03-29T15:15:00.000-07:00

How about a super easy side dish that everyone loves? I first had this cheesy rice at a friend's house for dinner and didn't think it would be such common ingredients. Once I got her recipe, I've made a bunch of variations. The other night, I just made 2 portions in a small ramekin with gruyere cheese and thyme (no chiles) to go with some steaks my husband grilled - yummy. My daughter is like her daddy and doesn't really like potatoes so those cheesy potato casseroles are wasted on her but she'll eat this! You can also easily make large quantities (Easter dinner? Potluck?). Sometimes I decrease the sour cream and leave the cheese off the top to make it a little healthier (not much, but a little).

Chile Cheese Rice

1 cup long grain white rice
1 4oz can diced green chiles
1 1/3 c. sour cream
2 c. shredded jack cheese
Lawry's seasoned salt

Cook rice according to package directions. Combine cooked rice, chiles, sour cream, 1 1/2 c. of the cheese, and seasoned salt. Scrape into a greased 1 1/2 quart baking dish. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Don't overcook or it'll dry out!

Rainbow Cupcakes

2011-03-26T14:37:00.000-07:00

Gotta love the bedhead and PJs for our Saturday morning baking project!

For our friend's annual St. Patrick's Day party, I wanted to bring something that would be fun for big sister to help me make. I found a recipe for rainbow cupcakes (get it? leprechauns and gold at the end of the rainbow?) on the same blog as the lasagna stacks. The process was fun, colorful, and big sister had a good time mixing the colors.

A couple of downsides: I only got 1 dozen regular sized cupcakes and 5 mini cupcakes and the layering part was tedious (too hard for big sister to help and she didn't like that). When I layered the colors, I'm not sure what I did wrong but mine looked more like they were tie dyed and the red sank down through the middle. Look at her photos for perfect ones!

I also feel like I should give a disclaimer: I am not endorsing consuming this much food coloring on a regular basis and it will make for interesting, um, okay . . . what's a delicate way to say this? Poop. There, I said it on a food blog. Sorry.

Before the recipe, just for fun, a picture of the bluest eyed baby ever . . .

Rainbow Cupcakes (makes about 1 dozen)

1 box of white cake mix, batter prepared as per the box
food coloring
frosting of your choosing

After you prepare the batter, divide it into 6 bowls. Add food coloring to make one bowl each of red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple. I did it like this:

red: 18 drops
orange: 12 yellow drops and 4 red
yellow: 12 drops
green: 12 drops
blue: 12 drops
purple: 9 red drops and 6 blue drops

Then, layer the colors in muffin liners in a muffin tin in reverse order (start with purple on the bottom and end with red on the top). Bake as per the box, frost, and enjoy!

Lasagna Stacks

2011-03-22T15:20:00.000-07:00

Have I mentioned that I'm loving my new kitchen? It's inspiring me to make some new recipes and we haven't eaten out much since we've moved. A couple nights a week if my husband works late, we've been having sandwiches, soup, or frozen pizza but I've been trying to be creative on the nights that we all eat together.

When I was browsing some cooking blogs, I came across this great riff on lasagna. You don't make it in a big pan, it's a vegetarian recipe, and doesn't have a red sauce. I really liked the technique, it came together quickly, and I will be making it again soon. You can read the original recipe here (she has lots of photos).

Since I don't have a microwave, I made a couple of changes to the arugula part and I added mushrooms and onions to the recipe to make it a little heartier. I also made some changes for my daughter's portion by mixing some browned ground turkey, ricotta, and red sauce instead of the pesto/arugula filling. I think that baby spinach would work just fine in place of the arugula and I'd add some red pepper flakes to the filling next time. Other sauteed green vegetables would probably be just fine in the filling (zucchini or broccoli?).

Here's what it looked like before going into the oven:

And my daughter's piece:

Lasagna Stacks (adapted from Baked Bree) 4 servings

12 no boil lasagna noodles

cooking spray or vegetable oil

6 oz baby arugula

2 c. sliced mushrooms

1/2 onion, diced

15 oz container ricotta cheese

3/4 cup parmesan cheese, divided

1 tsp lemon zest

1 egg

7 oz container of prepared pesto

2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Cover a cookie sheet (or jelly roll pan) with cooking spray or brush with vegetable oil and set aside. Put the lasagna noodles in a 9x13 pan and pour boiling water over them to cover them. Let them soak for 10 minutes.

While the noodles are soaking, saute the onion and mushrooms in a little olive oil until soft. Coarsely chop the arugula, add it to the pan with the onion and mushroom, and put a lid on the pan. Let it steam until the arugula is wilted, about 3-5 minutes.

Mix together the ricotta cheese, 1/2 cup of the parmesan cheese, pesto, egg, and lemon zest. Add a little salt and pepper (not too much salt - the pesto & cheese make it salty already). Add the vegetables (arugula, mushroom, onion mixture).

Take the noodles out of the water and drain on a kitchen towel. Lay 4 sheets of pasta on the baking sheet. Spread 1/4 c. of the ricotta cheese mixture on each piece of pasta and top with a bit of the mozzarella cheese. Add another layer of pasta and repeat. Top with the rest of the parmesan cheese and a little fresh pepper.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the edges are beginning to brown and the cheese is bubbly. Slice the stacks in half and serve on top of each other.

Green Stuff

2011-03-16T16:24:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Today is the birthday of my dear sister-in-law. She and my brother have only been married 6 years but it feels like she's been part of our family forever. In addition to being a great mom to my adorable niece and nephew, a very giving and supportive friend, she's a fantastic cook. She has thrown herself some birthday parties where the invitation was a menu for a crepe party . . . and the year after her first baby was born and she was battling candida, she made an amazing Irish feast (that she couldn't even eat) for about 30 people. Happy birthday to you, Sonia!

Let's talk green . . . some exciting green stuff is poking up out of big sister's garden. She went out there this morning to take pictures. Hers are a little blurry but here's one I took of a squash plant:

Spring has sprung . . .

And, although these aren't green, we made a St. Patrick's Day treat called "Irish Potatoes." They're really homemade candies (think truffles or Mounds) rolled in cinnamon to look like little potatoes. Big sister was a great help making these but she and I have ingested WAY too much sugar. I'm already planning to try rolling them around a whole almond and dipping them in dark chocolate to make my own Almond Joys.

Here's the recipe.

And, the green stuff that's healthy for you. I found a sad looking fennel bulb all by itself on a table at farmer's market last week and came up with this soup idea. The end result was a little brownish (from the brown vegetable stock I used) but the green vegetables were beautiful while I was sauteing them. I liked the end result - hope you do too!

Fennel & Zucchini Soup (about 4 cups)

1/2 fennel bulb, chopped
1 zucchini, sliced
1 leek, sliced (white parts and some of the green)
1 tsp. fennel seeds
1 T olive oil
4 c. vegetable broth
salt and pepper

Make sure you wash the leek well and separate the slices into rings. Heat the olive oil in a large pot and add the fennel, zucchini, leek, and fennel seeds. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Saute for about 5 minutes. Add the vegetable broth, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until everything is really soft (about 15 minutes).

Blend up the soup (you can just puree the soft vegetables with a little broth and return to the pot or use a hand blender). Taste, season with salt and pepper, and add a little lemon juice, sherry, or vinegar if you'd like.