Vegetarian

Roasted Mushrooms with Thyme | Make Ahead Mondays

February 18, 2013 by Rebecca 14 Comments

Last week, I posted a picture on Instagram of fifty two ounces of sliced mushrooms and asked, “Does this make anyone else weak in the knees?” Aside from one or two folks who replied that it made them weak in the stomach, most of you appear to be as devoted to mushrooms as I am.

If I see a bowl full of perfectly cooked mushrooms I am quite likely to make a very embarrassing and purposeful face plant into it. I cannot resist them. They’re so savoury, so meaty, so earthy, so nutty, so… so… mushroomy.

I feel no need to curb my enthusiasm for mushrooms since they’re wonderful for your health. Pound for pound, you can hardly find something low-calorie that is more packed with Vitamin D, B vitamins, selenium, ergothioneine (an anti-oxidant that helps protect your cells), potassium, copper, beta-glucans, magnesium and phosphorous. To cap it off (mushroom pun alert), these little fungi help you feel fuller longer. In other words, they can help you control your weight, too!

As if the umami and nutrition power packing of mushrooms wasn’t enough to recommend them, they are so easy to cook that it feels like cheating. They don’t require much in the way of fuss or technique; a knife that’s sharp enough to lob them into a couple of thick slices is all it takes. Since they’re so easy to prepare at the last minute, you might wonder why they’d be a good candidate for Make Ahead Mondays. The reason is twofold:

When they go on sale, you can stock up, roast your mushrooms and freeze them for times they’re more expensive.
It eliminates one step in dishes where you’d like to use a smaller amount of roasted mushrooms. (i.e. Soup, Pizza, Sandwiches, etc…)

Yes, I have shared a recipe here for preparing a large amount of mushrooms before, but this one is different and a gal can’t have too many ways to prepare mushrooms! What distinguishes this recipe from the other one is both that this one is far easier and that it requires fewer ingredients but still delivers massive mushroom goodness. In fact, I’d go so far as to say this is my preferred method of mushroom cookery now. Don’t get me wrong, seared mushrooms are fabulous, but you have to watch them and cook them in batches. With Roasted Mushrooms, you toss everything together, whack the tray in the oven and stir once -halfway through- before they reach perfection.

Why is it so great? Just look at them. These are perfectly roasted mushrooms -just a kiss of browning around the edges- substantial, meaty, and juicy, with a hint of thyme and nutmeg to amplify the natural flavour of the mushrooms. This is a lesson I learned from my bonus mom, Valerie, many years ago. Thyme goes with meat therefore it goes with mushrooms. Nutmeg goes with, well, EVERYTHING. No really, nutmeg is described as being aromatic, earthy, and nutty which makes it the perfect companion for mushrooms. I do highly recommend using freshly grated nutmeg from whole nutmegs in this dish. It’s worth seeking them out. I also recommend getting a decent amount of them when you do buy them. Whole nutmegs will last almost indefinitely -unlike purchased ground nutmeg- when stored in an airtight container in a dark cupboard. (See this affiliate link for an example:)

While cute nutmeg graters are available, please remember that you don’t REALLY need a special tool to grate them. The same side on a box grater that you would use for hard cheeses like Parmesan or Romano will do just fine. I use my fine Microplane for the job and it works perfectly.

When I have a stockpile of Roasted Mushrooms in the freezer, I toss them in beef and barley soup and risottos, on pizzas, stuff them in grilled cheese sandwiches, and pile them on top of steaks, chicken, and burgers. On busy, busy, busy nights, I simply serve the mushrooms over polenta or rice with a shower of grated Parmesan or Romano cheese on top. It keeps the crew full and Mama happy. So very happy. Where would you use wealth of Roasted Mushrooms with Thyme?

Roasted Mushrooms with Thyme | Make Ahead Mondays

These are perfectly roasted mushrooms -just a kiss of browning around the edges- substantial, meaty, and juicy, with a hint of thyme and nutmeg to amplify the natural flavour of the mushrooms.

Ingredients

52 ounces of assorted fresh mushrooms (*See Notes)
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
ground black pepper to taste (preferably freshly ground or crushed)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Thickly slice or quarter the mushrooms. Arrange them on 2 11-inch by 17-inch rimmed baking sheets in a single layer. Drizzle half of the olive oil over each pan, followed by roughly half of the thyme, salt, and nutmeg over each pan. Generously sprinkle the black pepper over the mushrooms. Stir with a spoon to evenly distribute everything.

Roast the mushrooms, stirring halfway through, for 20 to 25 minutes, or until they are hot through and beginning to brown around the edges. Eat immediately or divide into meal sized portions and freeze for up to 3 months.

Notes

*I prefer to use mostly baby bella mushrooms with a few white button mushrooms thrown in for variety. You can use whichever mushrooms you like best, but I do recommend using baby bellas or white button mushrooms for the bulk of the mushrooms.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2013/02/18/roasted-mushrooms-with-thyme-make-ahead-mondays/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

P.S. As crazy as it is, the response to my Crunchy Beauty Tip was so positive that I’m planning another one. I can’t even believe I’m saying it, but I’ll be posting the next one later this week so stay tuned for more natural or low-fuss beauty tips! xo Rebecca

Filed Under: Make Ahead Mondays, Rebecca, Recipes, Vegetarian Tagged With: budget friendly, Food Preservation, freezer pleaser, Make Ahead Mondays, quick and easy, quick meal, Vegetarian

Black Bean and Corn Tacos | 10 Minute Meal

January 29, 2013 by Rebecca 7 Comments

This is Day 2 of our three day Taco series leading up to the Super Bowl. Today’s selection is a lightning fast, super fresh and divinely delicious vegetarian taco that cooks up in under ten minutes. HELLO LOVELY! Tomorrow’s taco will be most decidedly decadent, so they balance each other out. One thing is certain, though, and that is that they are both one hundred percent wonderful.

I hope that by now, you all know me well enough to trust that I’m not going to give you a healthy and/or inexpensive meal that feels like you’re wearing a culinary hair shirt, right? I don’t do healthy or cheap recipes just to behave. I do healthy and inexpensive recipes that taste like you just made a REALLY good decision for dinner and you’re going to be just fine watching that cooking competition on television because you’re full and happy. (Can someone please tell me they identify with that line of thinking?)

This recipe fits the bill in more ways than one. Let’s cover the health bases first.

Black beans, corn and carrots are in this recipe. All three on their own are good for you, but put them together and you have a powerhouse of fiber, protein, vitamin A, carotenoids, antioxidants, alpha- and beta-carotene, phytonutrients, calcium, magnesium and potassium. Phew. I feel better just typing that. In short, it’s heart, eye, digestive, immune and circulatory system approved. Beat that.

Now let’s talk about WHY you need a recipe like this in your regular rotation. BECAUSE IT’S GOOD AND FAST AND CHEAP. I’m sorry to yell, but honestly… I’m serious here. Raise your hand if you feel tired/overwhelmed/uninspired/overextended in any way and wish you didn’t have to cook from time to time. (For the record, my hand is in the air.) We all get the kitchen funk every now and again. It’s recipes like these that save our budget and lift our spirits and make everyone happy. Even with my big family, we can all eat our fill from a double batch of this and it costs us less than $10.00 for the whole meal. Let’s break that double batch cost down for proof, shall we?

$1.98 for two ten-count packages of flour tortillas from Aldi.
$1.25 (estimate) for three cups of homemade black beans (this would be about the same for canned beans from Aldi.)
$0.25 for one medium sized carrot (generous estimate)
$0.10 for two teaspoons of chili powder
$1.00 for one cup of salsa (generous estimate for both homemade and commercial)
$0.99 for three cups of frozen corn (Based on a ninety-nine cent one-pound bag from a local grocery store)
$3.00 for one pound of Monterey Jack cheese (Based on the price per pound from a local grocery store.)
$1.00 for half of a bunch of fresh cilantro (Based on a $1.99 per bunch cost from a local grocery store.)
This takes my estimate for the meal to a whopping total of $9.57 for a double batch WITH leftovers from a family of seven.

If you have a smaller family, or are cooking for yourself or a couple, you could cut that in half right away and be looking at an under-five-dollar meal!

I used home cooked, frozen beans but you could just as easily use canned beans (as was specified in the original recipe on CampbellsKitchen.com). Either way, the entire thing is done in less than ten minutes. That makes this last-minute snack worthy. I say this because you WILL crave it. And you WILL want these for game day or Super Sunday or late night snacks. And you want to know something? You don’t even need to think twice about whipping up a batch of these because they’re so good for you!

Good golly. We are looking at a meal that taste incredible for a price that is so low it’s barely believable AND it comes together in under ten minutes to boot. That puts this meal squarely in Unicorn Meal* territory along with this and that other favourite but *GASP* it’s even faster to make!

*Unicorn Meal: That elusive meal that is made at unbelievably fast speeds, pleases everyone, and is budget friendly. Hard to find, impossible to forget.

What do you all think? Will you give it a try? Share your favourite unicorn meal. We’re all in this together!

Black Bean and Corn Tacos | 10 Minute Meal

Rating: 51

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Black Bean and Corn Tacos | 10 Minute Meal

Fast, delicious, fresh, healthy and budget friendly, it just doesn't get any better than these Black Bean and Corn Tacos. Salsa and chili powder provide massive flavour in this 10 minute meal will fill you up, make you happy, and keep you healthy all at the same time! This is a perfect addition to Super Bowl parties and any game day festivities.

Gently adapted from and with thanks to Campbell's Kitchen

Ingredients

Vegetable or olive oil cooking spray
1 medium carrot, scrubbed and shredded (about 1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon chili powder (or more to taste)
1/2 cup Pace® Picante Sauce or homemade salsa
1 1/2 cups homemade black beans or 1 can (15 ounces), rinsed and drained
1 1/2 cups frozen whole kernel corn
6 flour tortillas (8-inch), charred over a flame or warmed
6 ounces (about 1 1/2 cups) shredded Monterey Jack or Cheddar cheese
fresh cilantro leaves (or parsley leaves or shredded lettuce. See Notes.)

Instructions

Spray a stainless steel (or other not non-stick) saucepan or small frying pan lightly with the vegetable or olive oil cooking spray. Set the pan over medium heat and let it get hot for a minute before adding the carrots and chili powder. Stir well and often and cook until the carrots are tender, about 2 minutes, depending on how coarsely shredded the carrots are.

Add the picante sauce or salsa, black beans, and frozen corn. Stir, reduce the heat to low, and cook until the beans and corn are both hot all the way through and the corn reaches desired tenderness, about 5 minutes.

Divide the bean and corn filling evenly between the tortillas, then do the same with the cheese. Scatter fresh cilantro (or parsley or shredded lettuce) leaves over the top. Fold in half, then in half again to form a triangle. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes

The original recipe calls for shredded lettuce and sour cream. While you can certainly substitute the lettuce for the herb, I prefer the burst of freshness that cilantro or parsley provides.

By all means, add sour cream if you want. I like it just as well without (or with Greek yogurt) and it keeps the price down. If you have it on hand and want to use it, though, it will taste wonderful!

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2013/01/29/black-bean-and-corn-tacos-10-minute-meal/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

Please take a minute or two to hop on over to Campbell’s Kitchen. It really, truly does have a recipe for everyone over there. I pinned a couple more simple, fast weeknight meals we’re going to try.

Presented by Campbell’s Kitchen. All opinions are, as always, my own.

Filed Under: Happy Healthy and Wise, Healthy Foods, Rebecca, Recipes, Vegetarian Tagged With: budget friendly, family-friendly, Frugal Food, kid friendly, quick and easy, quick meal, Vegetarian

Lemon Dill Spreadable Cream Cheese and the FwF Ultimate Breakfast Sandwich | {GIVEAWAY CLOSED}

January 11, 2013 by Rebecca 36 Comments

Update: The winner of the Sam’s Club giveaway is Barbara N. Nice start to a Monday, eh, Barb? Check your email for details.

I have to tell you that I have a list of kryptonite foods -foods against which I have absolutely zero self control- and today’s post contains seven of them in one form or another. In other words, this is pretty darned close to perfection in my book.

My current (current because it changes from time to time) kryptonite foods list is:

Cream Cheese
Dill
Lemon
Smoked fish (in general)
Smoked Salmon (specifically)
Bagels (in general)
Everything Bagels (specifically)
Pumpernickel
Pumpernickel Everything Bagels (Black Russian bagels) Fuggedaboudit. That’s as good as it gets.
Biscuits
Gravy
Feta
Garlic-stuffed kalamata olives

Living as far out as I do, it’s not often I can lay my hands on some of those ingredients, so when I do, I go a bit nutso. For example, that lady who was frantically stuffing all the Black Russian bagels in the bin into her bakery bag at Wegman’s? That was me. And the gal at Sam’s Club who was desperately clutching the packages of smoked salmon, cream cheese, capers, fresh dill, lemons and a boneless leg of lam? Yours truly. I can’t help myself. The lamb just sounded goooooooooood.

Bless Sam’s Club for carrying everything but the bagels. (And they DO have bagels… just not the Black Russian variety.)

Do you like flavoured cream cheese? I am insanely devoted to it. I love the creamy, rich cheese when it’s completely infused with herbs and citrus, garden vegetables and garlic, chives, or -for something completely different- a little maple syrup and cinnamon. Here’s where I twitch with desire a bit… My all-time favourite version of this concoction is a light lemony cream cheese studded with chopped fresh dill, parsley and green onion. HOLLA!

I’m sorry. Sometimes I lose my head over cream cheese. It’s a sickness. I’m working on it.

Here’s the beautiful thing of it; although I could probably easily eat an entire batch of it myself in one sitting, (Hangs head in shame.) I cover it tightly and pop it into the refrigerator where it will last (improving daily) for about one week. I can’t promise that I am above walking past the fridge, throwing the door open and scooping my finger through the bowl from time to time. Remember, cream cheese=kryptonite.

I have good news, though! This is the time of year that many folks are resolved to eat better than they did in the previous year. If you’re in that camp, you can easily substitute Neufchâtel Cheese (commonly sold by major brands as Low-Fat Cream Cheese or 1/3 Less Fat Cream Cheese) for the regular full-fat cream cheese without sacrificing any of the quality, flavour, or smooth creamy texture you want. Big old win!

It goes without saying (but I’ll say it anyway) that the Lemon Dill Spreadable Cream Cheese goes beautifully on my beloved toasted Black Russian bagels topped with flaked smoked salmon, capers, and a pinch of fresh dill, natch.

But that’s not all it’s great on; it is the be-all-and-end-all on a roasted turkey or chicken breast sandwich with baby spinach and black olives, or as a dip for vegetable sticks, or spread on toast all by its lovely self. Get creative! Spread it on a bun for a grilled turkey burger or on a flat bread for a lamb wrap. The fresh, light, creamy, dilly cheese goes just about anywhere!

Lemon Dill Spreadable Cream Cheese and the FwF Ultimate Breakfast Sandwich | {GIVEAWAY!}

Lemony, light, studded with fresh dill and other herbs, this refreshing spreadable cream cheese is fantastic on the FwF Ultimate Breakfast Sandwich or smeared on a chicken sandwich, bagel, turkey burger, or used as a dip for fresh vegetables.

It can easily be made with 1/3-less fat cream cheese (Neufchatel cheese) lightening up the fat content in the recipe for those with dietary restrictions.

Ingredients

For the Lemon Dill Spreadable Cream Cheese:

8 ounces of cream cheese, softened to room temperature
zest of one lemon
juice of 1/2 to 1 whole lemon, to taste
1/3 cup minced fresh dill weed, lightly packed
1/4 cup minced fresh flat leaf or curly parsley, loosely packed
2 tablespoons minced green onions, green part only
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the FwF Ultimate Breakfast Sandwich:

1 pumpernickel everything bagel (Black Russian bagel) or your preferred savoury bagel
1 teaspoon softened butter
2 to 3 tablespoons Lemon Dill Spreadable Cream Cheese
1/4 cup flaked or 2 thin slices smoked salmon
5 to 10 pickled capers, drained
fresh dill, to taste

Instructions

To Make the Lemon Dill Spreadable Cream Cheese:

Add the cream cheese, lemon zest, juice of 1/2 a lemon (to start with), dill weed, parsley and green onions to a mixing bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.) Mix with a hand mixer on high (or on high on the stand mixer) until the cream cheese is fluffy, about 1 1/2 minutes. Taste the cream cheese and add more lemon juice, if desired, along with salt and black pepper to taste. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix on high an additional 30 seconds, or until everything is fully incorporated. Scrape the contents into a container with a tight fitting lid and refrigerate for at least an hour before using and up to a week.

To Make the FwF Ultimate Breakfast Sandwich:

Slice open the bagel and spread 1/2 a teaspoon of softened butter on each cut surface. Broil under a hot broiler just until the butter is bubbly and the bagel is toasted on top. Remove the bagel from the oven and let cool until it is comfortable to handle.

Spread about 2 tablespoons of the Lemon Dill Spreadable Cream Cheese on the bottom half of the bagel. Layer on the flaked or sliced smoked salmon, as many capers as you'd like and fresh fronds of dill, if desired. Top with the top half of the bagel and enjoy!

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2013/01/11/lemon-dill-spreadable-cream-cheese-and-the-fwf-ultimate-breakfast-sandwich-giveaway/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

Now a giveaway!

Sam’s Club contacted me before the holidays offering a giveaway to one of my readers. With all that went on around here, the post didn’t happen. Sam’s Club has graciously offered to let me do the giveaway in spite of the fact that I didn’t get the post up in time. I am grateful, because I’m a big fan of Sam’s Club. With such a big family to manage, Sam’s Club is the go-to place for paper products (paper towels, toilet paper, etc..) and mega packs of juice boxes. I love the selection of fresh meats (and the price is always competitive), produce and dairy products. Thank you Sam’s Club! So what are we giving away today? A Modern Cocktail Holiday Mixer Party Pack! Sam’s Club says, “This fun, non-alcoholic drink mixer pack will turn the average consumer into a modern day mixologist. The Modern Cocktail Holiday Mixer Variety Pack contains our top selling holiday mixers to include 4 Margarita Mixers, 4 Martini Mixers, 4 Berrytini Mixers and 3 Champagne Toppers. The pack also contains salt and sugar crystals to finish off any premium cocktail.” All you have to do is add liquor!

To enter, just leave a comment below telling me how your holidays were. Did you get to see family? Did you stay home hunkered in? Talk to me!

The winner will be chosen at random and notified by next Monday, January 14th, 2013.

Disclosure: This contest is open only to US Residents due to shipping restraints. Sam’s Club provided a membership and covered my food costs for the recipe, and is providing the prize to the winner, but all opinions are my own.

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Breakfast Foods, Component Foods, Condiments, Rebecca, Recipes, Vegetarian Tagged With: Breakfast, family-friendly, kid friendly, quick and easy, Snacks, Vegetarian

Cheesy Spinach Puffs

October 12, 2012 by Rebecca 17 Comments

Today has been a Monday kind of Friday. I overslept, didn’t get to my tea until ten this morning, then dropped and broke a plate. I started writing this post earlier, got about two-thirds of the way through it and then somehow or another, the internet pixies deleted it. I know I didn’t hit that delete button! So, after standing up, hiding in the bathroom and eating a very large chocolate bar, I’m making another attempt at finishing it because this recipe is just too good not to share. Maybe Popeye snuck in and botched my post while I was cleaning up the broken plate, the greedy Spinach hoarding twerp…

Or maybe I was overcomplicating things -as I am wont to do and this was divine intervention. It was a rather long-winded draft and a rather convoluted morning. Either way, here I am and here you are and here is one of our favourite snacks. Obviously it’s heavy on the spinach (read: Popeye reference above) which TOTALLY cancels out the insane amount of cheese (three different kinds!) and butter in it, right?

Of course it does! Besides, cheese does a body good and it makes spinach an easier sell to my anti-green-veg-contingent. In fact, the first time I made these, my most anti-green-veg of the bunch said, “What’s da green stuff, Mama?” I responded, “Try it and tell me how you like it.” He took a tentative nibble, smiled, and ate the rest while bouncing away from me. “Wait!” I called, “Didn’t you want to know what the green stuff is?” “Don’t care anymore! Dese are tasty!” he called from the other room.

All things considered, at least it is Friday. Around here, that means movie night. At this point in the day, I can’t think of anything I’d like to do better than fire up the wood stove to eleven, pop in a movie, cuddle with my kiddos and eat my weight in these Cheesy Spinach Puffs. The beauty of this is that my kids munch right alongside me, eating scads of spinach without even thinking about it. I call that a win.

Oh, I know I’ve shared more than one cheese plus spinach plus egg combo before… Yes, I clearly have a thing for it. Obviously. Today’s recipe, however, is just about the best thing you can do with that wonderful combination, and that is saying something. It’s just plain crave-able. Moist, spinach-studded, cheese and egg puffs get toasty, crispy bits around the edges and taste great alone, but they really sing when dunked in warm marinara or pizza sauce. It’s enough to turn a Monday-feeling-Friday into a Friday-all-the-way.

I can’t even wait for tonight. Cheesy Spinach Puffs, here I come!

Two important notes:

I emphasize generously greasing the muffin pans for a reason. Eggs like to stick. Melted cheese likes to stick. Put the two together and you’ll be weeping a thousand salty tears unless you have massive amounts of non-stick cooking spray and/or non-stick mini-muffin liners. Trust me. That’ll totally mess up the Friday-all-the-way vibe!
Make extras! These freeze well, reheat beautifully and are great to have on hand for last minute snacks.

Cheesy Spinach Puffs

Rating: 51

Cheesy Spinach Puffs

Moist, spinach-studded, cheese and egg puffs get toasty, crispy bits around the edges and taste great alone, but really sing when dunked in warm marinara or pizza sauce. This is a favourite movie-night snack at our house and has won over even the most ardent anti-green vegetable protesters in our family. The smaller you chop the spinach after squeezing it dry, the easier it is to get it past picky eaters.

Ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped or grated on a cheese grater
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced or pressed
3 eggs
1 cup ricotta cheese
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan, Romano or Asiago cheese
½ cup Italian style breadcrumbs
1 pound frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed hard repeatedly to remove as much liquid as possible (*See Note Below Instructions)
½ teaspoon salt
Optional: warm marinara or pizza sauce or Ranch dressing for dipping

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously -and I DO MEAN GENEROUSLY- spray 48 mini-muffin wells with non-stick cooking spray. Eggs are culinary glue. If you don't grease the tar out of those mini-muffin wells, they will stick!

Melt the butter over low heat in a small saucepan or frying pan. Stir in the grated or finely chopped onion and cook on low, stirring frequently, until the onions are very tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for an additional minute. Remove the pan from the burner and set aside.

Put the squeezed-dry spinach on a cutting board and chop a few times with a knife to separate the spinach and make the pieces smaller.

In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs with a whisk. Whisk in the ricotta cheese until smooth. Switch to a wooden spoon, add the remaining ingredients –including the cooked onion mixture and the chopped spinach- and mix until evenly combined.

Divide the mixture between the mini-muffin cups. Bake the puffs until set in the center and lightly browned around the outside edge (begin checking at 20 minutes.)

Let them rest in the pans for about 3 minutes before trying to remove. If any of them stick, run a butterknife around the edge to loosen them.

Serve warm or room temperature with marinara or pizza sauce.

*Note: To get the most liquid squeezed from the spinach, put the spinach in a colander over the sink. Grab only as much as you can comfortably fit between your hands, cup your hands around the spinach and squeeze flat repeatedly until almost no more liquid can be squeezed out. Put that handful of spinach on the cutting board and repeat until you've finished squeezing all of it.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/10/12/cheesy-spinach-puffs/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

This post is my contribution to the efforts by Hidden Valley Ranch and the Chef & Child Foundation. According to their website: “The Chef & Child Foundation (CCF) and the makers of Hidden Valley® Original Ranch® dressings & dips are partnering to host the Lunch Break for Kids fundraiser to showcase how simple, good food can make healthier bodies and stronger family connections, as well as support CCF’s national Childhood Nutrition Day in its mission to promote healthier eating to kids and their families through community-based initiatives.” Please take a moment to visit their website and look for opportunities to help in your area!

The Hidden Valley® Original Ranch®, dressings & dips has provided me with free product to help with my review, but anything I receive from Hidden Valley does not affect my thoughts on its company or their product.

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Breakfast Foods, Comfort Food, Happy Healthy and Wise, kid food, Party Food, Rebecca, Recipes, Snacks, Vegetarian Tagged With: budget friendly, family-friendly, Frugal Food, kid friendly, party food, quick and easy, Snacks, Vegetarian

Grandma’s Buttermilk Cornbread

September 28, 2012 by Rebecca 19 Comments

A couple nights ago I had a sudden and overwhelming desire to stuff my face full of my Grandma’s cornbread. It’s hard to explain if you didn’t grow up on cornbread, but the drive to consume it can be a powerful force. So powerful, in fact, that I actually made two pans full at ten thirty at night just so I could eat a huge wedge warm from the oven and have an untouched pan to take to a friend’s house the next day.

The smell of toasty corn bread baking up in a coal-black cast-iron pan is pretty close to one of the best things on earth. I have a Pavlovian response to the aroma of cornbread. By that, I don’t mean I bark and run around in circles, but I may have been caught panting and drooling and maybe even wagging my tail a time or two.

I’ll get it out o the way right now and say that cornbread is not sweet. That’s cake. Corn cake, if you want, but it’s cake. And I’m not saying that’s nasty, I’m just saying it’s not cornbread.

The cornbread I’m sharing with you today is the be all and end all of cornbreads to me.

My Arkansan grandma made this cornbread for me probably less often than I have in my memory, but often enough for it to define Grandma’s cooking in my mind. I know it was always at our Thanksgiving table, often in the stuffing, but just as often in a bread basket in gloriously big yellow squares. I remember getting a wedge from the cast-iron pan right after it was pulled from the stove; a sinfully large pat of cold butter melting and sliding right off of the top of the steaming bread.

When I was first married, I quizzed Grandma on why this was her favourite cornbread recipe of all. She grew up on a very plain cornbread; one that was almost pure cornmeal and water and a smidge of egg. No leavening, no nothing. It was a corn-lover’s dream, but very crumbly. She told me, “That bread crumbled if you looked at it.” As an adult, she got all that great corn-y flavour of the cornbread she knew and loved in a package that held together when she discovered the Buttermilk Cornbread recipe that she wrote out by hand for me.

I still have that recipe card, laminated and caked with flour over the years, written in Grandma’s own hand. Although I have it memorized, I still look at the card every time I prepare it. It’s like a sweet hug from Grandma.

Now, if you want to get really stratospherically happy, there really isn’t anything better than a pan full of Grandma’s Buttermilk Cornbread with a potful of bubbling hot beans. Oh mercy. Seriously. Just typing that sentence made me start drooling like a baby. That’s a complete meal in and of itself, but you can up the vegetable content by adding a BIG GREEN SALAD alongside it if you want.

The cornbread is equally at home accompanying chili or soup. More than once, I’ve used the cornbread batter to coat corndogs or top a casserole dish or chili for tamale pie. Most often, though, it’s a cast-iron skillet, a stick of cold butter, a fistful of napkins and me flying solo. Butter dripping down the sides of a steaming hot wedge of golden, fragrant cornbread and my fingers digging in to pull off piece after piece.Grandma said I could.

Thank you, Grandma!

Grandma’s Buttermilk Cornbread

As long as I live, there will not be anything that tempts me as powerfully as a hot-from-the-oven wedge of golden cornbread freshly taken from the cast-iron pan with a pat of cold butter melting and sliding right off of it.

Ingredients

1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal (not self-rising)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, beaten
3 tablespoons melted butter
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
bacon grease or butter for the pan

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425°F.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and use a whisk to gently combine them, ensuring there are no dry pockets of cornmeal.

Pour into a generously greased 8-inch or 10-inch cast iron skillet, preferably, or an 8-inch by 8-inch square cake pan, or 8-inch round cake pan. Pour the cornbread batter into the greased pan and bake for about 30 minutes, or until a skewer or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Serve warm for best flavour. Leftovers can be stored -wrapped in a towel or plastic wrap- at room temperature for up to 48 hours, but will taste best if reheated slightly before serving. If your cornbread gets a little old and stale, crumble it and use for the best Cornbread stuffing that you will ever eat in your lifetime. Guaranteed.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/09/28/grandmas-buttermilk-cornbread/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

Filed Under: Accessible Ethnic, Appetizers & Snacks, Bread, Comfort Food, Holiday Food, Recipes, Snacks, Vegetarian

Three In One Pears: Canning Ginger Pears, Dark Ginger Pear Syrup, and Pear Juice | Make Ahead Mondays

September 24, 2012 by Rebecca 5 Comments

It is officially harvest time and officially fall and I am officially so excited about it that I’m about to explode. This is high gear food preservation season for me. I have an ant-and-grasshopper parable complex and I start flying around stuffing things maniacally into jars. My benchmark -and you may have heard me mention it before- is “Would I love to eat this in the middle of winter?” If the answer is yes, I figure out a way to preserve it. Since freezer space is at a premium (I’m saving room for the venison that I’m hoping will fill it), I rely on canning to hang onto that harvest freshness year ’round.

I’ve had to scale back my canning efforts this year due to a busy summer schedule, but this has been a good thing. I’ve had to focus on what we really want to eat, what we want to give as gifts, and what makes me weepy-happy to have on the shelves. Among those are home canned pears. Not just any pears, mind you, but my favourite ginger pears in dark syrup.

Home canned pears are -on their own- some of the best things on earth: tender, sweet, and full of pear-y goodness. When you add just a smidge of the warming power of ginger to those pears, they absolutely sing. Hang on. I need to channel my best internal infomercial hawker.

But wait… There’s MORE. Not only is this one of my favourite things to eat, it’s one of my favourite kinds of recipes; it’s a three-fer! Three recipes for the price of one!

How is this even possible? Oh gosh. It’s so easy, it’s almost criminal. You know how light fleshed fruits brown when cut unless they’re treated with lemon juice, fruit fresh, citric acid solution or somesuch? That little lemony bath that prevents your pears from becoming ugly and brown does double duty. After all the pears soak in it, you leave just a couple in the drink and boil it, then strain. Ta da! A delicate, mild pear juice with a bit of body. And the pears you soaked? You warm them and then pack them in a dark ginger syrup (courtesy of raw or brown sugar) that has been steeping some finely sliced ginger. You pack the extra syrup -because there WILL be some- into other jars and Vi-Oh-Lee! You have pear juice, ginger pears in dark syrup, and ginger pear syrup.

Let’s examine the possibilities, because they’re numerous! Aside from eating the pears straight from the jar, you can bake them in a crisp, eat them on vanilla or pumpkin ice cream, serve with roasted pork, toss into smoothies or winter fruit salad. Yes, you can drink the pear juice as is, but it’s wonderful in party punch or hot toddies, and since it is sweet enough without added sugar, it’s wonderful for the kiddies. “Dark ginger pear syrup?” you say. “What do I do with THAT?” Oh people. Oh my. You drizzle that on ice cream, over apple pie, add a tablespoon or two in apple or pear crisp, use it in mixed drinks, or pour a little over ice then top off with seltzer for -wait for it- GINGER PEAR SODA. Holy moly.

Is there work involved? Yes, but it is worth every second of effort. I even have a tip to share with you on how to get through the pears more easily (although it’s playing it a little Thomas Keller)… After hours upon hours of pear processing over the years, I’m happy to say that I have the method. Here’s how it’s done:

Cut the pear in half. Seriously. Start here before you peel it.
Use a vegetable peeler -not a paring knife- to peel the pear. That way you only pull away the skin and don’t lose any precious pear flesh.
Use the small end of a melon baller to remove the tough core at the base of the pear.
Use the larger end of the melon baller to remove the seed area from the pear.
Repeat.

I can’t wait to hear how you use your Three-In-One Pears. I’ll just wait here slurping them right out of a jar.

Three In One Pears: Canning Ginger Pears, Dark Ginger Pear Syrup and Pear Juice | Make Ahead Monday

This recipe requires a little time commitment, but you get three different products for your efforts. You'll find it was more than worth it when you crack open a jar of delicately ginger flavoured tender pears in a dark, caramel-scented ginger syrup, or drizzle some of the extra syrup over a bowl of vanilla ice cream or into a pear crisp, or sip on a glass of chilled pear juice.

Ingredients

For the Dark Ginger Syrup:

4 1/2 cups raw sugar (Can substitute light brown sugar if raw is unavailable.)
6 cups water
2-inch piece of ginger, peeled and cut into very thin matchstick like pieces

For the Ginger Pears:

8 to 12 pounds fresh pears, ripe but firm, plus 6 extra pears (for the juice)

For the Pear Juice:

12 cups fresh, cool water
3/4 cup lemon juice

Instructions

To Make the Dark Ginger Syrup and Ginger Pears:

Prepare canner, jars and lids. Follow this link for more detailed instructions on how to do this. You will want 6-8 quart jars and 2-4 pint jars or 4-8 half pint jars and the lids/rings for them.

Combine the raw sugar, sliced ginger and water in a large stainless steel saucepan. Stirring constantly to dissolve the sugar, bring the mixture to a boil over medium high heat. Add a lid to the pot, turn off the heat and leave on the burner to keep warm and infuse with the ginger flavour. This is the dark ginger syrup.

Combine the juice ingredients in a stainless steel, plastic or glass bowl. Set this near a cutting board on the counter top. It is going to do double duty by preventing discoloration of the pears and then becoming juice.

Working with one pear at a time to prevent browning, cut the pear in half, peel with a vegetable peeler and use a melon baller to remove the tough core and seeds from the pear. Ease it into the lemon water. Repeat until all of your pears are peeled and cored and in the water (including the 6 extra pears.)

Remove the lid from the syrup and place it over medium low heat until steam is coming from it. Gently warm all but 12 of the pear halves in a single layer until heated all the way through. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the pears, cored side down in overlapped layers, leaving between 1/2-inch and 3/4-inch of head space (err on the side of more rather than less head space if necessary.) Be sure you've left 12 pear halves in the lemon water.

Use a ladle to pour the hot syrup over the pears (allowing the ginger shreds to pour into the jars, too.) Remove air bubbles from the jars (using a thin, flexible knife or a chopstick and adjust syrup levels if necessary. Wipe rims, center lids on jars, and screw rings into place until fingertip tight.

Pour additional syrup into pint or half pint jars leaving 1/4-inch of head space, wipe the rims, center the lids on the jars, and screw the rings in place until fingertip tight.

Place those jars in the canner, cover with water, bring to a boil and process the jars for 25 minutes. When the time is up, turn the heat off, remove the lid from the canner and let the jars sit in the water for 5 minutes. Transfer the jars to a cooling rack and let them cool undisturbed overnight, then remove the rings, wipe down, label and store.

To Make the Pear Juice:

Transfer the liquid and 12 remaining pear halves to a large stainless steel pot. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and let simmer uncovered until the pears are falling apart.

Line a colander that is positioned over a large stockpot with at least two layers of cheese cloth and and use a large measuring cup or ladle to scoop the pear/water mixture into the colander. Let it slowly filter -without pressing it down- until it stops dripping through the cheese cloth. This may take up to two hours.

Place the stockpot over medium high heat and bring it up just to the point where steam is rising from the top- 190°F. Ladle the hot juice into prepared jars, leaving 1/4-inch of head space in the jar.

Wipe the rims, center the lids, and screw the rings in place until fingertip tight.

Place the jars in the canner, cover with water, add the lid to the canner and bring to a boil. Process for 10 minutes, turn off the heat, remove the lid from the canner and let the jars rest in the water for 5 minutes. Transfer the jars to a cooling rack and let cool undisturbed overnight. Remove the rings, wipe down and label and store.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/09/24/two-in-one-pears-canning-ginger-pears-dark-ginger-pear-syrup-and-ginger-pear-juice-make-ahead-monday/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Canning, Condiments, Happy Healthy and Wise, Healthy Foods, kid food, Make Ahead Mondays, Rebecca, Recipes, Stretching your dollars, Vegetarian

Chunky Monkey Chewy No-Bake Granola Bars

September 21, 2012 by Rebecca 14 Comments

Happy Friday, everyone! I have such a treat for you today!

We are a granola family. I’ve been making homemade granola for years upon years. My second born son has a real thing for it; he doesn’t like breakfast cereal, but he adores granola. I try to keep it on hand for him at all times. This is something of a task since I’m feeding a small regiment who likes to squirrel away fistfuls of granola in their jeans/shorts/shirt/jacket pockets and nibble on the stuff constantly.

I used to buy chewy granola bars to supplement their snacking but stopped when a.) I realized how much money I was spending in granola bars alone to keep up with five boys’ stomachs and b.) I looked at the ingredients list. You know that sound on Popeye? The aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhOOOOOOOOOgah! sound? Yeah. That’s what happened when I read that list and saw three of the ingredients I try very hard to avoid feeding my family in a granola bar -A GRANOLA BAR, PEOPLE! What?!? I put my eyeballs back in my head and the box of granola bars back on the shelf and vowed to learn to make it myself.

A couple years passed (I was busy, what can I say?) and I saw these chewy granola bars from my friends Maria and Josh. “Oooooh, yeah,” said I to myself. I thought I might change it up a bit, amp up the nutritional value and toss a little dried fruit in there. As the mother of the honyaks I have, I knew my choices were limited. One child ONLY likes dried bananas while another just doesn’t like any dried fruit at all unless it’s minced to the point of disappearing in something. Since it was bananas or nuthin’, I decided to go the Chunky Monkey route: banana, toasted walnut and chocolate. You know, because if there are nuts and fruit in it it’s healthy even if you cover it in chocolate, right? It’s dark chocolate. That’s practically health food by itself. Ahem.

I whipped up a batch. As soon as I transferred them to my cutting board there was a SWOOOOOSH and five boys materialized behind me: “What are you doing?” “What are those?” “Can I have one?” “Is dere fwoot in dose?” “Are those GRANOLA bars?” Then came the silence when five hands conveyed five granola bars to five mouths.

Then five hands reached back toward the cutting board for more. I call that a win. A big win. Big bonuses: the granola bars are simple to make AND they end up cheaper than the ones you purchase. Easy, cheaper AND better for you? Sign me up. These will be a regular at our home. Thanks for the inspiration, Maria and Josh!

Chunky Monkey Chewy No-Bake Granola Bars

These banana, toasted walnut and chocolate granola bars are fabulous. They're chewy, sweet, crunchy, and satisfying. They're everything a purchased granola bar SHOULD be but isn't. Besides, I dare you to find Chunky Monkey granola bars on the shelf. Can't be done! Not even in Vermont!

Inspired by Maria and Josh from Two Peas and Their Pod

Ingredients

1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter or sunflower seed butter
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups quick oats
1/2 cup crispy rice cereal
3/4 cup chopped toasted walnuts
3/4 cup chopped dried banana chips (Store bought or homemade chips can be used.)
3/4 cup cup dark chocolate chunks or chocolate chips

Instructions

Place an 8-inch by 8-inch square of parchment paper into the bottom of a pan of the same size.

Stir together the oats, crispy rice cereal, walnuts, and banana chunks in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter then stir in the brown sugar, honey, and peanut or sunflower seed butter. Bring to a boil. Once it's bubbling hard, let it boil for 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Be careful, it will bubble up crazily when you add the vanilla!

Immediately pour over the dry ingredients and gently but quickly stir it in thoroughly. Turn it into the parchment lined pan right away and press into the pan evenly. Sprinkle the chocolate chunks or chocolate chips over the pan and let stand, undisturbed, until the chocolate looks shiny, about 5 minutes. When the chocolate looks very shiny it should all be melted and can be spread evenly with an offset or silicone/rubber spatula. Let stand until the chocolate has firmed back up.

Run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen any chocolate that stuck to it, then turn the large block of granola bar onto a cutting board. Flip it chocolate side up and cut into bars of your desired size. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week... not that they'll ever last that long!

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/09/21/chunky-monkey-chewy-no-bake-granola-bars/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

Filed Under: Breakfast Foods, Healthy Foods, kid food, Rebecca, Recipes, Stretching your dollars, Vegetarian Tagged With: budget friendly, family-friendly, kid friendly, quick and easy, Vegetarian

Pumpkin Cake with Maple Frosting and Apple Cider Caramel

September 18, 2012 by Rebecca 23 Comments

Fall.

Autumn.

It’s just around the corner. As in, it’s four days away. Could you pardon me for a moment?

(FALLFALLFALLFALLFALLFALLFALL YAY! WAHOO! WHOOPWHOOPWHOOP! Zippity hippity hoppity doo dah! YEEHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!AU-TUMN! Uh huh, uh huh, uh huhuhhuhuhhuh. Happy DANCE! )

Um, thank you. I kind of needed to get that out of my system. I wait from February fifteenth (there’s something so romantic about snow on Valentine’s Day) to -oh, say- September twenty first of every year to get to fall. I love pumpkins and apples and squash and brightly coloured leaves and crisp air and apple crisps and oh my gosh… I just love everything about it.

I love drizzly, cold days and grey skies. I love driving down the road and seeing all the pumpkins for sale. I am passionately insane over winter squash. Butternut squash makes me swoon. Pumpkin. Pumpkin makes me flip my lid. Pumpkin pie, pumpkin custard, little bitty pumpkins stuffed with rice and sausage, pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin ravioli, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin soup. I’m like the Benjamin Buford Blue (a.k.a.the Bubba in Bubba Gump) of pumpkin.

I could eat pumpkin in just about any form, but my favourite is dessert. There’s something about pumpkin desserts that bridge that savoury/sweet line with such ease. It’s a vegetable so it almost feels like desserts made from it are health food. Hoo-yeah.And this cake I’m about to show you today… It has a vegetable and a fruit. That’s so healthy it’s almost disgusting.

It’s everything autumn; super moist pumpkin spice cake with a maple sugar glaze and apple cider caramel. Rawrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Just look at this.

Can you guess how long that cake lasted at our house? I can’t give you an exact time, but I can tell you it was less than twelve hours and probably less than eight. Time is a little fuzzy. We were kind of on a bit of a pumpkin high…

There’s a bonus -as if the cake wasn’t good enough by itself- the apple cider caramel portion of the recipe makes more than enough for the cake. In other words, you have some apple cider caramel leftover. In other other words, EXTRA CARAMEL for more cakes later or for drizzling on oatmeal or stirring into coffee or tea or hot cider or over ice cream or just plain on a spoon.

Oh gosh, I so love fall.

Pumpkin Cake with Maple Frosting and Apple Cider Caramel

Super moist pumpkin spice cake -redolent with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves- topped with a silky smooth maple sugar frosting and drizzled with tangy, sweet apple cider caramel. This is pure fall!

Ingredients

For the Cake:

1/2 cup butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix) or homemade pureed pumpkin
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature

For the Maple Frosting:

*Note: If maple sugar is not available, substitute dark brown sugar for a brown sugar frosting.)
1/2 cup maple sugar
1/4 cup butter
3 tablespoons milk (preferably whole milk)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar

For the Apple Cider Caramel:

1/2 cup Boiled Cider Syrup also available through Amazon.com or King Arthur Flour
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
4 tablespoons of butter, cut into four pats

Instructions

To Make the Cake:

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Grease a bundt pan with oil or non-stick cooking spray then flour the pan. Tap out the excess and set the pan aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the batter blade (or in a bowl with an electric mixer) cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides and add the eggs, one at a time, blending and scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. When the eggs are fully incorporated, blend in the pumpkin and vanilla. It may look curdly and horrid, but that's okay! Keep going!

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour with the rest of the dry ingredients. Add about 1/3 of the flour to the butter mixture and blend until incorporated. Add 1/2 of the buttermilk and blend in completely. Repeat with another 1/3 of the flour and blend. Finish mixing the batter by adding the final 1/2 of buttermilk, mixing, then adding the final 1/3 of flour.

Spoon the cake batter into the prepared bundt pan, gently smooth the top and bake the cake for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick or skewer inserted in the thickest part of the cake comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly with your finger.

Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let rest for 5 minutes before carefully turning out onto the rack to cool completely. While the cake cools, make the caramel...

To Make the Apple Cider Caramel:

Bring the boiled cider syrup and brown sugar to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 3 minutes. Whisk in the heavy cream and return to a boil. Boil for 2 more minutes then drop the heat to low. Add the butter one pat at a time, whisking it in until it's fully incorporated. When all of the pats of butter have been added and incorporated, pour the hot caramel into a clean pint jar, reserving any excess for drizzling over the cake. Let cool completely before drizzling on the cake.

To Make the Maple Frosting and Assemble the Cake:

Bring the maple sugar, butter, and milk to a boil, whisking constantly. Boil for 1 minute, still whisking constantly. Remove the pan from the heat and add the vanilla extract. Be careful, it will boil up!

Gradually whisk in the powdered sugar. Continue whisking it gently until smooth, cooled slightly and thick, about 3-5 minutes.

Place the cooled cake on a cake plate or serving platter and immediately pour warm maple frosting over the cake. Let the frosting rest for 5 minutes, then drizzle with the apple cider caramel.

Store leftovers, well covered, at room temperature for up to 3 days.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/09/18/pumpkin-cake-with-maple-frosting-and-apple-cider-caramel/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com