It sounded sooo good!

Creamy White Chili. I was so excited.

Chicken
Onion
Chili peppers
White Beans
Oregano
Cumin
Garlic powder
S+P
Chicken Broth
Sour Cream
Heavy Cream

But I was sooo disappointed, hence no instructions or details. Maddy ate nearly half a can of beans, but once added to the soup, she wasn't interested. No one ate it.

Beef Brisket

I hate red meat and steaks. Gross! I like ground beef, but even the smell of a steak makes me want to hurl. However, I LOVE beef brisket! I've been craving it so I just finished it.

Beef Brisket
Olive Oil, enough to coat pan, add as needed.
5 large cloves of garlic
salt, pepper, oregano


Heat oil in a frying pan, add garlic. Generously sprinkle the meat with salt, pepper, and oregano. Get it nice and brown on both sides, cover and simmer for about 2 hours so it's nice a tender. Mmm, mmm, good!

New Blog

I found a new blog! A year of slow cooker recipes! The slow cooker is one of my best friends, so I'm excited to check out her archives. She even has a blog on how to make YOGURT in your crockpot! So good to know especially as we set out on our B&B adventures!!

Pumpkin Bread

I love Autumn! This is my favorite time of year. The slight chill in the air, lovely scenery, the excitement and anticipation of all the upcoming holidays, and the seasonal foods/fruits/veggies all make me happy.

I thought I'd try a scone recipe, pumpkin scones! Don't those sound good? However, after reading so many different variations and finally picking one, I noticed the surprising lack of pumpkin...only 1/2 a cup! So I looked at the others...same thing! What's the point? I'm sure they're tasty, but after dividing up the ingredients, you're basically just eating flour. So I went to a tried a true family favorite out of the Betty Crocker Cookbook...Pumpkin Bread! I omit the raisins and nuts and use butter rather than oil. It was so good! It always is!

Breakfast Bars and Flax crusted Cutlets

The kids are tired of Muffins so today, I made Raspberry Breakfast Bars for tomorrow's breakfast.

Raspberry Breakfast Bars

1 cup almond meal
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup ground flax seed
1 1/4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
12T butter, melted, plus more for greasing the pan
1 cup organic raspberry preserves

Preheat the oven to 350°. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan.

In a large bowl, mix everything but jam

Press two-thirds of the oat mixture in an even layer on the bottom of the prepared baking pan and top with the raspberry preserves. Sprinkle the preserves with the remaining oat mixture.

Bake for about 45 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking, until the top is golden brown. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let the granola bars cool completely, about 3 hours. Cut into squares and serve.

They're good, but I probably won't make them again.

Flax crusted Turkey Tenders

1lb Turkey breasts cut into strips
Extra Virgin Olive Oil for frying
2 eggs
Seasonings, divided (I found an Indian Tikka spice mix)
1 Cup Flax meal
1 heaping T whole wheat flour

Heat oil.

In a shallow bowl, mix flax, flour, and seasonings.

Dip strips in eggs, then coat with flax mixture.

Fry! Between 5-10 minutes on each side depending on thickness.

I wasn't sure how this would turn out. I didn't use a recipe, I just hoped they would work like breadcrumbs! Gladly, they were really good! I loved the texture the flaxseed gave the cutlets. It browned nicely and didn't stick to the pan...I have that problem with breadcrumbs.

I served them with Whole Wheat Pasta and Spinach with Broccoli sauteed in Garlic and Olive Oil. It was a hit with Abby and Maddy. Kaity is sick so she stuck with applesauce and watermelon. We'll see if El likes it.

Cherry Almond Muffins

UPDATE* I should mention that I ran out of almond extract and only put in 1 tsp. and 2 vanilla. Today I made the muffins again (they were gone before Friday evening.) To appease my mother, I tried them with the sour cherries. This time, I also used the called for amount of almond. It may be a little strong. I'll know better tomorrow. I like the sweeter cherries better, mom however, prefers the sour :) *

The Blueberry muffins were a bomb, not the bomb, a bomb...as in FAILURE! The girls did not like them. I did, but we won't be making them again.

At Trader Joe's on Monday, I saw a sign for a featured item, Almond Meal. I love almonds and said, "Oooooo, but what would I do with Almond Meal?" Maddy just blankly stared into my eyes. I bet she had a few ideas, none of which, I would be thrilled about. I went over to check it out and saw that the sign had a description. Wonderful! Almond meal can be used in recipes to replace 1/2 your amount of flour! Of course, because of this baking kick I've been on, without hesitating, I grabbed a bag. I'm sure it may ruin some recipes, but adding a nutty flavor to muffins couldn't hurt. And what better recipe to try it out in, than Cherry Almond muffins?

Here's the recipe, I can post the original if anyone is curious. But for now, I'll post mine:


3T Butter
3T Cinnamon Applesauce
2/3C Sugar
2T ground Flaxseed with 6T water
1C Whole wheat flour
1/2C Almond meal
1C Oats
2t Baking Powder
1/2t Salt
1/4C Milk
1/3C Sour Cream
1 1/2t Almond Extract
1 1/2t Vanilla Extract
1 1/2C frozen cherries, quartered

Topping
2T Almond meal
2T Sugar
1/4t Cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375. Grease pan or use muffin cups.

Cream Butter and Sugar. Add Applesauce and Flax/water mixture.

In separate bowl, mix Flour, Almond meal, Oats, Powder, and Salt. Add to Butter mixture.

Add Milk, Sour cream, Vanilla, and Almond extract. Mix thoroughly. Fold in cherries. Spoon into muffin cups.

Combine Almond meal, Sugar, Cinnamon. Sprinkle over muffins.

Bake 25-30 minutes. They were delicious!!!! Soo good!

Meatloaf Muffins

I hate meatloaf. But I love MY meatloaf!

1 - 1 1/2 lb ground beef
1 1/2 cups oatmeal
4 tbsp ground flaxseed mixed with 9 tbsp water
1 jar of Chili Sauce (I like Heinz)
Large Onion
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp Oregano
goldfish crackers (for the kiddies)

mix all ingredients, put in muffin tin, Top with goldfish cracker in center of each muffin, bake for 60 minutes at 375 degrees.

I like to serve it with:
stir fry broccoli or green beans (garlic and olive oil)
and mashed potatoes

Oh, and grease the pan! I neglected to so I didn't get the desired muffin result I was hoping for, but it tasted good!

Muffins!

The summer mornings were spent on TJ's granola bars and fresh fruit or cereal. Granola bars, while better than some things, really aren't the brain fuel I'm looking for.

With Kaitlyn now in school full time, I have to give the kids a heartier breakfast. Ughh! I don't have time for breakfast. My mornings are beyond stressful, the last thing I need to do is add more to my morning to do list. I already wake up giving myself an hour and 20 minutes before we have to leave, just in case.

Whatever I can do before hand, I do. Like getting lunches and backpacks packed. Outfits for the three of us picked and layed out. Maddy is dressed before bed so all she needs is a clean diaper. And Sundays, I bake muffins. Last week we did my Banana Oat Muffins. Today I made Blueberry Bran Muffins.

I'm trying to make these as healthy as possible. Always, whole wheat flour, flax instead of eggs, and applesauce instead off butter.

I'm scouring the internet trying to find good recipes and found this Muffins. It's so not the kind of recipe I want, but sooo the recipe I want to try! While I could do all the healthy substituting, I just don't think that would work with this one.

In the next few weeks I plan on zucchini, carrot, and pumpkin muffins. I really want some that I would never have thought of so please, share some recipes!!

Tortellini with Sausage and Fennel

This one is super easy!

Delish tips for fellow Brooklynites:
Go to 15th Ave Papa Pasquale. He makes the BEST ravioli. Yup, Zagat rated. Trust me, it's worth the trip. Tortellini really is just ravioli shaped differently, right? So after you pick up your $1.99 bag of tortellini and whatever other goodies you find in there (may I recommend the sauce? Also made in BK but not there AND $2 cheaper than at Fairway!), you want to walk a few shops down to the butcher on the corner who sells chicken breast cutlets for $1.99 a lb, EVERY day. Nothing beats that price and it's fresh! But this trip, we're not there for the chicken. We want some basil sausage. Really any sausage will do, but for this recipe, I really like the flavor of the basil. And if you didn't already know, sausage and fennel compliment each other very well. (Fennel also tastes good with mandarin oranges...recipe coming soon!)

Finally, the recipe: Let me apologize in advance, this is MY recipe. I don't measure anything unless following a recipe.
Sausage
Fennel
Broccoli
Sugar
Balsamic Vinegar
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Tortellini

Start the sausage. Boil so it gets nice and tender about an hour.

Meanwhile, chop in fennel and broccoli.

Heat equal parts Sugar and Vinegar (about 1/4 cup per lb of tortellini)til sugar dissolves and bring to a boil. Throw in fennel and broccoli. Remove from heat.

Cut the sausage then throw in the pan with some Olive Oil and brown (Just a few minutes)

Cook tortellini. (It's done when they begin to float.)
Drain and toss with veggies. Add sausage. Drain excess vinegar.

Add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle with dill.

I like to serve it with homemade Garlic Bread. Mmmmmm!

Avocado Splits

Doesn't that just make your mouth water? I love Avocados! And they are sooo good for you!

It's tacos without the shell. I set up all the mix-ins and fill to my heart's desire.
meat
cheese
tomatoes
olives
baby spinach (lettuce)
sour cream
dark red kidney or pink beans
and salsa

For the kids, I mix the meat in refried beans, and hide avocado in it and make a dip. They eat it with the tri-color flaxseed tortilla chips from Trader Joes. Sooo good. That's what's for dinner tonight!

$10 dollar meals

Melissa d'Arabian won "The Next Food Network Star" or whatever the show was called. I tuned in mid Season and was rooting for her. She's just your average stay at home mom and she seemed so down to earth. Plus, her food always looked and sounded so good. Her new show has only aired a few weeks, so her recipe collection is limited, but there's a few I want to try. So far, so good.

What was on the menu:
Chicken a l'Orange I tried this with skinless breast and it was delish! My kids thought otherwise.

Perfect Crispy Potatoes LOVED, LOVED, Loved the potatoes. I mixed red and yukon gold. Maddy and Kaity gobbled them up.

Fennel and Cabbage Slaw I'm a HUGE fan of fennel and put it in everything...kinda. However, I wasn't impressed with this recipe.

Sometime this week, I'll be trying this Braised Pork. Sounds good, huh?

Defeated

That's how I feel. Most nights I end up alone at the table. Maddy pulling on my arm as she cries, pleading to be picked up while I pick at my plate.

I was feeling sorry for myself today. It really must be a pathetic site. Maddy crying, I'm literally poking at my food with my head down, fighting the tears. I don't know why it got to me so hard today, but it's just not at all fun to cook for myself.

Dinner was good though. It was one of our favorites, even El loves this one. Maybe that's why I was down, if I can't get them to eat something they love, why should I bother?

I cooked a pork but. Just sliced it and in some butter, browned it on both sides. Then in the fat and butter I threw some string beans. My girls LOVE string beans. We served it with mashed potatoes ... Yukon gold cooked with shredded carrots an onion and mashed with butter and cream cheese. Sooo good. But their lack of desire to eat made me lose my appetite.

I just felt sick to my stomach. With the upcoming move, I've been so stressed and depressed, I guess it's just building up.

So I suppose no leftovers tomorrow. I think I'm gonna try a recipe from a new chef on the food network. She serves it with a fennel salad and we just love fennel so let's hope for a more successful evening.

Banana Muffins

I'm in a baking mood.

I make the best banana muffins. Seriously...there's blogs about them.

Disco Mom's VGP

My Cousin's take

If you didn't check the sites, here's my Recipe:
1 c. whole wheat flour
1 1/2 c. oats
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. butter
1 tsp. almond extract
2 eggs beaten
4 over ripe bananas, mashed

Preheat oven to 350

Mix flour, oats, salt, and soda.

In separate bowl, cream butter and sugar.

Stir in bananas, eggs, and almond until well blended. Add flour mixture.

Bake for 25-30 minutes.

I'm making them without eggs, but rather flax seed. I'm a little nervous considering I wasn't thrilled about the texture of those cookies, BUT I haven't had them the traditional way, so maybe the texture is because of the ricotta. I'll know for sure about the flax after this family favorite. And talk about a fiber explosion!

I'll make these when the kids are in bed, we made quite the mess with those cookies. Can't wait for breakfast! :)

Lemon Ricotta Cookies

I bought 2 tubs of Ricotta thinking I was going to make lasagna. But in this never ending heat, I never found the energy. That's an all day project that I'm just not in the mood for. SO I have to do something with this ricotta before it spoils. I scoured the internet trying to find a recipe and I think I found one.

This will be my first time baking with ricotta. They sound good, if they are, a recipe will follow tonight. I'm also tweeking the recipee with ground flax. This will also be a first. I hope I don't screw these up!!

Well, here's the recipe, LOVED the taste, but I'm not sure about the texture...I wonder if it's the flax??

Ingredients
Cookies:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 eggs (1Tbsp flax seed meal + 3Tbsp water [whisked and let sit for 2 min] = 1 egg)
1 (15-ounce) container whole milk ricotta cheese
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 lemon, zested
Glaze:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons lime juice
1 lime, zested
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Cookies:

In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In the large bowl combine the butter and the sugar. Using an electric mixer beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs (or flax), 1 at a time, beating until incorporated. Add the ricotta cheese, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Beat to combine. Stir in the dry ingredients.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Spoon the dough (about 2 tablespoons for each cookie) onto the baking sheets. Bake for 15 minutes, until slightly golden at the edges. Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 20 minutes.

Glaze:

Combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Spoon about 1/2-teaspoon onto each cookie and use the back of the spoon to gently spread. Let the glaze harden for about 2 hours.

Trader Joe's "Pizza"

All TJ items

Garlic Naan
Fresh Mozarella
Marinara
Meatballs...they have Italian style, Turkey and Veggies

toast naan on both sides
add marinara and cheese, bake til cheese melts

meatballs quartered on top.


~~~
Yesterday, I gave Kaitlyn her plate of couscous and chicken.
In a very whiny voice, "Couscous? I didn't want couscous, I don't like couscous."
Me very matter of factly, "Sorry, that's what you're eating. Don't worry, it's just a little bit."

She ate it and asked for seconds!

Curry Chicken

I love this recipe. It's so easy and super delish! I used to serve it with rice, but recently found this whole wheat couscous at Trader Joes that has wonderful flavor, so I opt for the healthier grain. Besides, it cooks in 5 minutes, can't beat that!

oil for frying
bone in chicken, the bones add flavor...so buy the bones!
large onion
garlic...lots
water
2 rounded tbsp curry
tomato, divided

flour and cold water
yogurt
parmesan cheese


brown both sides of chicken in oil.

add onions, garlic, half of tomatoes, cover with water.

add curry. cook til tender and meat falls off bone.

remove chicken and set aside. bring sauce to a boil. mix flour and cold water (think, gravy.) slowly add to sauce stirring constantly to make sauce thick. Bring to desired consistency. keep in mind, sauce will thicken as standing.

add rest of tomato, some yogurt. give a quick stir and your chicken is ready.


For the couscous or rice, I add a chicken bouillon cube. If I'm serving from the hot pans, I add the peas, frozen. They'll cook from the heat off the chicken and couscous, but also cool it down for the kids.

Sprinkle with Parmesan and Enjoy!


TIP #1 Try to find some imported Indian curry. McCormick spices just aren't the same, you'll have two completely different meals depending on what you use. Lucky for me, living here in Brooklyn, I just have to walk a few blocks this way or that to find myself in another part of the world. These spices are spicier, thus we add yogurt.


TIP #2 My kids don't normally eat couscous, so I puree spinach and mix it to their servings. Let's hope today they at least try it.

Keeping it simple

What? No smoothies? Not tonight! Well maybe after dinner.

It was chicken cutlets and juicy nectarines tonight. I wish I could say I conquered my hatred of cooking in the heat but no. Trader Joe's yet again came to my rescue. All I had to do was throw those panko breaded cutlets in the toaster.

Have I ever expressed how much I LOVE TJs?

Confused

I thought I just made the best smoothie. By far, MY favorite. The girls, barely got through a few sips before they gave up.

Dare to indulge:

12 ounces of chocolate milk (I used Blue Diamond Chocolate Almond Milk)
1 ripe banana
1/2C shredded carrots
1/2C oatmeal
3 tbsp Peanut Butter

Tip #1
I freeze some bananas for recipes like this, that lack frozen fruit, thus I can keep the drink cold.

Tip #2
The oatmeal gets thick, so this one shouldn't sit for too long. I realized this when I finally put their cups in the sink to be washed. I turned them to pour it out, but that stuff did not want to move!

Spinach Smoothies

1C Apple Juice
1C grapes
1C strawberries
1 banana
1 1/2C spinach
6oz yogurt
a few black raspberries (for color)

the kids liked 'em....I didn't.

Cooking ...

I miss it.
I'm tired of smoothies.
I want food.
I really want some curried chicken, but thoughts of heating up the stove are making me sweat.

Maybe we'll do take out tonight.

Avocado Smoothie

I wasn't sure if it would be too good, so I didn't vary the recipe too much. I didn't want to waste perfectly good veggies. But it was delish! Even the kids liked it! It was soo thick and creamy. I gave it to Maddy with a spoon.

1 ripe banana
1 cup orange juice
Half a bag of frozen strawberries
1 cup of strawberry yogurt
1 avocado, peeled and pitted

I think next time I'll add some flaxseed.

Smoothies...they're what's for dinner.

This heat is killing me! I have the energy for nothing. So I kept it simple tonight.

At Trader Joes this weekend, I picked up some shredded cabbage, shredded carrots, and shredded broccoli. I mixed them together in a large container, setting some aside for a quick slaw. Surprisingly, Apani liked it! I just added some sugar, cider vinegar, salt, and pepper.

Dinner tonight was a hit. That is, 'til they spilled it! Kaity thought it was a good idea to run with her cup. Of course, Apani did also But they both got two cups out of it and Maddy drank what was left.

Looks like a warm, humid week, so watch out for more smoothie recipes!

Smoothie
Ripe Banana
3 large handfuls of shredded veggies
a small handful of cherry tomatoes
Approx 1 1/2 Cups of TJs frozen Mixed Berries
Apple Juice

Veal Meatballs and Fettuccine Alfredo with Sauteed Broccoli and Spinach

Success ... sort of.

They loved the veal, all three of them. Kaity liked the pasta. Apani needed some encouragement, or dare should I say, bribery. If she ate her pasta, there were popsicles waiting for them. But blended in those home-made smoothies was fresh broccoli, tomatoes, and radicchio. They were sooo good...seriously!

Setting Up

High chair purchased...Maddy LOVES it!

Introduce Table
It is more than just a place for hide and seek,
more than Apani's favorite place to pout.

It is not a decoration,
nor is it a resting place for my folded laundry,
it is supposed to be a utilized piece of furniture.

We are supposed to eat there!

We're getting used to the table. It hasn't been too hard. Turning the tv off was a littler upsetting, but we got over it. Now, will they eat?

Dinner one...utter failure. Mexican hamburgers were not very good.