You can mix up the vegetables, herbs and aromatics to match your preferences. Cook time will vary based on that as well. Root vegetables (like carrots, potatoes, etc.) require a longer cook time).
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Vegetables in Parchment - Lots of Flavor, No Dirty Dishes
You can mix up the vegetables, herbs and aromatics to match your preferences. Cook time will vary based on that as well. Root vegetables (like carrots, potatoes, etc.) require a longer cook time).
Thursday, February 16, 2012
DYI Baby Food
With recent reports about arsenic in formula and baby food snacks, I decided to do a post on making baby food instead of grown up food.
Not only does it save money, but it allows parents to control what their baby eats, and it really is not time consuming like many people think, especially if you have a food processor or even a blender (you don't need a special baby food maker, though I'm sure those are nice).
All this baby food, which will take awhile for him
to get through, was just recipe #3 below -
1 squash and 1 very small apple.
The great reference site I use for making baby food (or getting ideas) and for checking when to introduce certain foods is http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/.
Here's 4 recipes and 4 tips:
1. Mashed banana -- so easy and quick. I usually break it up with my hands first, into a bowl, and then mash it up with a fork. If you have pumped breast milk, it's nice to add that in a bit, but you don't have to. (Often grocery stores have really ripe bananas on sale for 29 cents/pound - great for baby food and muffins for mom and dad). You can also add in baby cereal, which takes me to #2.
2. Baby oat cereal -- with my first son, I bought a box of rice cereal, but it didn't really work for him, so I bought a box of oat cereal, which he ate a bit more of. Basically, though, I spent about $8 on organic baby cereal and ended up with two almost full boxes. Even if your baby likes the stuff, a little goes a long way. For baby #2, I make it myself by taking 1 cup of rolled oats (I get 3 pounds for $3, organic) and grinding them up in a food processor.
To turn the ground oats into baby oat "cereal" or oatmeal, put 1/4 cup ground oats in 1-1 1/4 cup boiling water and simmer until it reaches the correct consistency (or cook it in a rice cooker with the same water/oat ratio). Super simple, super cost-effective.
Oatmeal on the left, apple-squash puree on the right.
3. Squash/Apple Puree -- Cut your squash in half (I used acorn squash) and scoop out the seeds, fill the inside with diced (peeled) apple (organic is best). Place in a roasting pan filled with about 1/2 inch of water and roast in the oven for about 40-60 minutes (at 400 degrees), basically until the squash is soft and the skin will come off easily. (You can also just roast the squash, no apple). Peel the squash and puree the squash and apple together. You can add a dash of cinnamon if you like (and can also add a little breast milk or water to make it thinner, if you need to).
4. Applesauce -- This is more work, but I like making homemade applesauce, and this is a food item that everyone in the family can enjoy. I recommend getting (or borrowing an apple peeler). I also recommend pink lady apples. (A smart way to get organic apples for applesauce at a great price is to talk to the apple vendor at your local farmer's market and ask for apples that are typically considered "ugly" and thus don't do as well in the marketplace. I recently got 10 pounds of organic apples for $3 from my farmshare because the apples looked ugly. They tasted great and just needed to be peeled and produced wonderful applesauce).
Peel, core, and slice the apples (you'll need 5-8 if they are big apples, 12-15 if they are small -- this will make you about 4-6 adult servings of applesauce). Put the apples in a big pot filled with about 1 cup of water (almost covering the apples, but not quite) and simmer for 30-45 minutes (until apples are really soft). I recommend adding lemon juice and cinnamon to the pot. (Some people like to add nutmeg.) Mash with a potato masher or puree if for baby. I like to mix some oatmeal and applesauce together in the food processor for my little guy.
Tips:
1. Since even one squash can make a large batch of baby food, I like to sometimes double the recipe - using two squash and then use about 1/4-1/3 of the pureed vegetable for the baby and then spice up the rest for an adult vegetable side dish or soup (sometimes adding vegetable stock, herbs, etc.)
2. If you are worried about the big portions of baby food you make and the small amount the baby eats, simply freeze the baby food (in muffin tins makes it easy for later).
3. I know there are differing opinions about eggs and babies, but my first son was very underweight even though he breastfed often. I did not want to supplement with formula, and he was developmentally doing well, so our pediatrician recommended giving my son a hard boiled egg yolk. I had to mix it in with his mashed bananas to get him to eat it, but I appreciated this protein alternative. My son never had any reactions or problems with the egg and has grown and developed quite well. (He's now 2). I would ut se the hard-boiled egg white to make myself a healthier egg salad.
4. The ground oats you use for the baby's oat cereal also provide you with oat flour, which I like to use in a lot of recipes (pancakes, cookies, etc.) because it is gluten-free and has more nutrients than traditional flour. So much more affordable to make it yourself then to spend more $$ on fancy glutem-free flour.
Not only does it save money, but it allows parents to control what their baby eats, and it really is not time consuming like many people think, especially if you have a food processor or even a blender (you don't need a special baby food maker, though I'm sure those are nice).
All this baby food, which will take awhile for himto get through, was just recipe #3 below -
1 squash and 1 very small apple.
The great reference site I use for making baby food (or getting ideas) and for checking when to introduce certain foods is http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/.
Here's 4 recipes and 4 tips:
1. Mashed banana -- so easy and quick. I usually break it up with my hands first, into a bowl, and then mash it up with a fork. If you have pumped breast milk, it's nice to add that in a bit, but you don't have to. (Often grocery stores have really ripe bananas on sale for 29 cents/pound - great for baby food and muffins for mom and dad). You can also add in baby cereal, which takes me to #2.
2. Baby oat cereal -- with my first son, I bought a box of rice cereal, but it didn't really work for him, so I bought a box of oat cereal, which he ate a bit more of. Basically, though, I spent about $8 on organic baby cereal and ended up with two almost full boxes. Even if your baby likes the stuff, a little goes a long way. For baby #2, I make it myself by taking 1 cup of rolled oats (I get 3 pounds for $3, organic) and grinding them up in a food processor.
To turn the ground oats into baby oat "cereal" or oatmeal, put 1/4 cup ground oats in 1-1 1/4 cup boiling water and simmer until it reaches the correct consistency (or cook it in a rice cooker with the same water/oat ratio). Super simple, super cost-effective.
Oatmeal on the left, apple-squash puree on the right.3. Squash/Apple Puree -- Cut your squash in half (I used acorn squash) and scoop out the seeds, fill the inside with diced (peeled) apple (organic is best). Place in a roasting pan filled with about 1/2 inch of water and roast in the oven for about 40-60 minutes (at 400 degrees), basically until the squash is soft and the skin will come off easily. (You can also just roast the squash, no apple). Peel the squash and puree the squash and apple together. You can add a dash of cinnamon if you like (and can also add a little breast milk or water to make it thinner, if you need to).
4. Applesauce -- This is more work, but I like making homemade applesauce, and this is a food item that everyone in the family can enjoy. I recommend getting (or borrowing an apple peeler). I also recommend pink lady apples. (A smart way to get organic apples for applesauce at a great price is to talk to the apple vendor at your local farmer's market and ask for apples that are typically considered "ugly" and thus don't do as well in the marketplace. I recently got 10 pounds of organic apples for $3 from my farmshare because the apples looked ugly. They tasted great and just needed to be peeled and produced wonderful applesauce).
Peel, core, and slice the apples (you'll need 5-8 if they are big apples, 12-15 if they are small -- this will make you about 4-6 adult servings of applesauce). Put the apples in a big pot filled with about 1 cup of water (almost covering the apples, but not quite) and simmer for 30-45 minutes (until apples are really soft). I recommend adding lemon juice and cinnamon to the pot. (Some people like to add nutmeg.) Mash with a potato masher or puree if for baby. I like to mix some oatmeal and applesauce together in the food processor for my little guy.
Tips:
1. Since even one squash can make a large batch of baby food, I like to sometimes double the recipe - using two squash and then use about 1/4-1/3 of the pureed vegetable for the baby and then spice up the rest for an adult vegetable side dish or soup (sometimes adding vegetable stock, herbs, etc.)
2. If you are worried about the big portions of baby food you make and the small amount the baby eats, simply freeze the baby food (in muffin tins makes it easy for later).
3. I know there are differing opinions about eggs and babies, but my first son was very underweight even though he breastfed often. I did not want to supplement with formula, and he was developmentally doing well, so our pediatrician recommended giving my son a hard boiled egg yolk. I had to mix it in with his mashed bananas to get him to eat it, but I appreciated this protein alternative. My son never had any reactions or problems with the egg and has grown and developed quite well. (He's now 2). I would ut se the hard-boiled egg white to make myself a healthier egg salad.
4. The ground oats you use for the baby's oat cereal also provide you with oat flour, which I like to use in a lot of recipes (pancakes, cookies, etc.) because it is gluten-free and has more nutrients than traditional flour. So much more affordable to make it yourself then to spend more $$ on fancy glutem-free flour.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Seasonal Produce Menu Planning (Chard, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Potatoes, Leeks, Rutabaga, Oranges, Bay Leaves, Parsley, Baby Bok Choy.)
I love Community Supported Agriculture. I get great organic produce for my family at an affordable price and increases the variety of produce that I eat. This week's box includes: Chard, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Potatoes, Leeks, Rutabaga, Oranges, Bay Leaves, Parsley, Baby Bok Choy. Plus, I added 10 pounds of apples for $3.Here's the menu items I'm planning.
1. Stir-fried Bok Choy & Chard (half of the chard) - I stir fry it with a little bit of ginger, garlic and a dash of soy sauce. It's so yummy (one of the few green things the toddler eats with me). 
2. Lemon-marinated brussel sprouts (probably to pair with a roasted chicken which I will roast with herbs, lemon, garlic and bay leaf stuffed inside). This is the biggest question mark for me, but I'm excited to try this recipe. I will be using red onion instead of shallots and will be adding some pancetta. (Here's another brussel sprout recipe that looks good.)
3. Mayo-free slaw. I usually do this with shredded carrots, cabbage and cilantro using lemon juice and vinegar for the dressing. This will be served alongside the popular grilled turkey burgers with mushrooms that are such a hit at our house.
4. Swiss chard frittata - I made this last time we had chard and it was yummy. I referenced this recipe, but did not have any mushrooms, so I made it without and didn't miss them at all.
5. Potato Leek Soup - I've featured my potato leek soup in a past blog. It's really good. I think I'll be adding the rutabaga to it this time.
6. Carrot & Squash Soup - I love trying out different carrot soups. With this one, I'm going to use an acorn squash that I have instead of the summer squash.
7. With the carrots, I also plan on making carrot muffins or bread and carrot-oatmeal cookies. (Recipes will be posted soon).
8. White bean dip with parley and quinoa tabbouleh. (Will serve both with pita bread or pita chips and quinoa burgers, in place of falafel). I love making white bean dip using dried white beans. After simmering them in veggie broth until they are soft, I puree them in the food processor with olive oil and add the herb of choice, in this case the chopped parsley. It's simple, but really yummy. (Here's a good quinoa tabbouleh recipe - given that really good tomatoes can be hard to find this time of year, I might just not include tomatoes or might use sun-dried tomatoes instead.)
9. Finally, with my 10 pounds of apples, I shall try my hand at applesauce, apple butter and different apple baby food items. (Plus, my toddler will eat several of them as well as the oranges, so no menu planning needed for those).
So, as I make different items on the list, I'll post updates on the recipes and how they went, but thought I would share these plans in the spirit of posting ideas for seasonal produce.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Gluten-Free Sausage Mushroom Quiche with Hashbrown Crust
I've decided to stop doing ingredient lists and to just cut to the chase with instructions, putting ingredients in bold. This recipe does not use many ingredients (though, of course, you can add as much meat or veggies as you want to the egg mixture).
Here's the How-To:
1. Preheat oven to 450.
2. Shred/grate potatoes, enough to line a pie pan. I had small red potatoes, so I needed about 10. If you had big Idaho or Russet potatoes, you probably just need 2, maybe 3. I don't like to peel my potatoes, so I didn't but you certainly could.
3. Mix potatoes with 2-3 tablespoons melted better and line pie-pan with hashbrowns. (You could also use frozen hashbrowns, just make sure you thaw them first).
4. Put in oven and crisp the hashbrown crust (probably about 25 minutes).
5. While hashbrown crust is in the oven, cook breakfast sausage (I cooked one roll of sausage and probably put 1/2-3/4 of it in with my egg mixture later). In a separate pan, cook sliced mushrooms (1 package).
6. Beat 6 eggs. Add freshly ground pepper (a few twists), a dash of milk (if you prefer, probably 1/4 cup) and cheese (I put in shredded parmesan, probably 1/4 cup - I just finished off what I had left in the fridge). I recommend using a decent parmesan, not the grated Kraft stuff that does not need to be refrigerated.
7. Mix eggs, sausage and mushrooms together and pour over hashbrown crust (once crust is crisp, but not overdone).
8. Reduce oven to 350 and cook for 30-45 minutes (use a toothpick to check for the eggs to be done).
Of course, you can use whatever veggies or meats (or no meat) or cheeses (or no cheese) with your egg filling. Sausage and mushroom just happens to be one of my favorite combos for omelettes, so I thought they would be good in the quiche, and they were. I think this would be a great recipe for using up veggies you have in the fridge.
My husband and I both really loved this quiche.
1. Preheat oven to 450.
2. Shred/grate potatoes, enough to line a pie pan. I had small red potatoes, so I needed about 10. If you had big Idaho or Russet potatoes, you probably just need 2, maybe 3. I don't like to peel my potatoes, so I didn't but you certainly could.
3. Mix potatoes with 2-3 tablespoons melted better and line pie-pan with hashbrowns. (You could also use frozen hashbrowns, just make sure you thaw them first).
4. Put in oven and crisp the hashbrown crust (probably about 25 minutes).
5. While hashbrown crust is in the oven, cook breakfast sausage (I cooked one roll of sausage and probably put 1/2-3/4 of it in with my egg mixture later). In a separate pan, cook sliced mushrooms (1 package).
6. Beat 6 eggs. Add freshly ground pepper (a few twists), a dash of milk (if you prefer, probably 1/4 cup) and cheese (I put in shredded parmesan, probably 1/4 cup - I just finished off what I had left in the fridge). I recommend using a decent parmesan, not the grated Kraft stuff that does not need to be refrigerated.
7. Mix eggs, sausage and mushrooms together and pour over hashbrown crust (once crust is crisp, but not overdone).
8. Reduce oven to 350 and cook for 30-45 minutes (use a toothpick to check for the eggs to be done).
Of course, you can use whatever veggies or meats (or no meat) or cheeses (or no cheese) with your egg filling. Sausage and mushroom just happens to be one of my favorite combos for omelettes, so I thought they would be good in the quiche, and they were. I think this would be a great recipe for using up veggies you have in the fridge.
My husband and I both really loved this quiche.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Baked Onion Rings - All the Goodness, None of the Guilt
I made Baked Onion Rings last night, and they were really yummy!! Much better than I expected. I got the recipe from Everyday Food Light and made a few adjustments.
With a new year, many of us are trying to eat better. These are a great item to feel like you are indulging without frying and grease.
1. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
2. In a food processor (or blender) combine 1 1/2 cups cornflakes and 1/2 cup dried breadcrumbs (plain or Italian). Transfer to a bowl.
3. Mix the wet ingredients in another bowl: 1 egg, 1/2 cup buttermilk (I used milk with a dash of vinegar in it, since I didn't have buttermilk. I never buy buttermilk. I just add the vinegar to regular milk), 1/4 flour and seasonings (salt, pepper and then whatever you like: cayenne, grill spice, creole seasoning. I used grill spice to compliment the grilled chicken sausages I was making).
4. Slice 1 medium onion (preferably Vidalia or brown) - discard inner small rings (I put them in my freezer bag that I put veggie scraps in to make veggie broth).
5. Dredge onion slices in egg mixture first (letting excess drip off), then dredge in cornflake mixture.
6. Put on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Once all of the rings are on the cookie sheet - spray them with cooking spray, both sides. This helps them stay crispy.
7. Cook for about 15 minutes (eyeball it), flipping them in the middle.
Enjoy!!
The book said they have 241 cals per serving, 9 g of fat, 7 g of protein, 33 carbs, and 2.4 fiber --
The recipe I posted should have less fat and calories because I used cooking spray rather than the 2 tablespoons of olive oil that was suggested.
By using the cooking spray, I estimate it drops to about: 180 cals per serving and 3-4 g of fat, a big improvement.
Also, if you used an egg substitute and fat-free milk, you could make them even lower in calories and fat without missing much.
Wish I had a picture, but we ate them way too fast to get a photo.
Most onion rings are around 300 g per serving (at least) with 16 g of fat. Same with a small order of fries typically - and how many of us ever eats a small order of fries? So, skip the fries and make onion rings at home.
With a new year, many of us are trying to eat better. These are a great item to feel like you are indulging without frying and grease.
1. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
2. In a food processor (or blender) combine 1 1/2 cups cornflakes and 1/2 cup dried breadcrumbs (plain or Italian). Transfer to a bowl.
3. Mix the wet ingredients in another bowl: 1 egg, 1/2 cup buttermilk (I used milk with a dash of vinegar in it, since I didn't have buttermilk. I never buy buttermilk. I just add the vinegar to regular milk), 1/4 flour and seasonings (salt, pepper and then whatever you like: cayenne, grill spice, creole seasoning. I used grill spice to compliment the grilled chicken sausages I was making).
4. Slice 1 medium onion (preferably Vidalia or brown) - discard inner small rings (I put them in my freezer bag that I put veggie scraps in to make veggie broth).
5. Dredge onion slices in egg mixture first (letting excess drip off), then dredge in cornflake mixture.
6. Put on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Once all of the rings are on the cookie sheet - spray them with cooking spray, both sides. This helps them stay crispy.
7. Cook for about 15 minutes (eyeball it), flipping them in the middle.
Enjoy!!
The book said they have 241 cals per serving, 9 g of fat, 7 g of protein, 33 carbs, and 2.4 fiber --
The recipe I posted should have less fat and calories because I used cooking spray rather than the 2 tablespoons of olive oil that was suggested.
By using the cooking spray, I estimate it drops to about: 180 cals per serving and 3-4 g of fat, a big improvement.
Also, if you used an egg substitute and fat-free milk, you could make them even lower in calories and fat without missing much.
Wish I had a picture, but we ate them way too fast to get a photo.
Most onion rings are around 300 g per serving (at least) with 16 g of fat. Same with a small order of fries typically - and how many of us ever eats a small order of fries? So, skip the fries and make onion rings at home.
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