grub.grub.chow

Easy Vegan Red Beans and Rice

2010-03-09T17:56:00.000-08:00

Dan is going to be so proud of me! I'm actually updating with a recipe!

ingredients:
(2) 15 oz cans of red kidney beans, drained
15 oz can of diced tomatoes
green pepper, diced
medium onion, diced
1 c. white rice
teaspoon minced garlic
franks red hot sauce (to taste)
Cajun seasoning (to taste)

prep time: 10 min
cook time: 20 min

directions:
boil 2 cups of water and add rice to cook.
in a large skillet, saute the diced pepper, garlic, and onion until tender and browned. add drained beans and diced tomatoes in juice to the sauteed vegetables. cover and simmer on medium heat, stirring occasionally for about 4-5 minutes. add franks red hot and Cajun seasoning to desired taste while simmering. when cooked, add rice and stir mixture together. serve and enjoy!

the directions for this recipe are left somewhat vague intentionally. there is a lot of room for experimentation. i found the combination of franks and the Cajun seasoning in my cupboard to work very well, but you may substitute any hot sauce or other seasoning for a similar outcome. I'm not from Louisiana, so I'm not sure that this recipe would satisfy the traditional southern beans and rice protocol, but i found it to be delicious. the recipe makes a ton so make sure you have plenty of mouths to feed! I'd estimate at least 6-8 servings.

Mini Italian Pub Burgers

2010-01-31T20:14:00.000-08:00

So, normally, we do a lot of cooking and stuff and we either make up recipes, or combine different recipes and pray it works out. But I have to say, we have found a recipe that we love and we want to share it with you. It's from Food Network's Giada De Laurentiis. The recipe is call Mini Italian Pub Burgers and is delicious :). Really, I just want to post it so that way the next time I want to make it, I'll know where it is :).

Prep Time:: 8 min
Inactive Prep Time:: --
Cook Time:: 12 min

Level:: Easy

Serves:: 9 servings

Ingredients

2 cloves garlic, peeled
1/2 cup packed fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 1/4 pounds ground chuck
3/4 cup (1 1/2 ounces) grated Parmesan
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
9 small ciabatta rolls, sliced in 1/2
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
9 slices (4 1/2 ounces) Taleggio cheese
9 large basil leaves

Directions

Place a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill.

Place the garlic and parsley in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped. Add the ground chuck, Parmesan cheese, tomato paste, salt, and pepper. Pulse until ingredients are combined. Form the mixture into 9 patties. Place the burgers on the grill and cook for 4 to 5 minutes each side.

Brush the cut side of each roll with the olive oil and toast on the grill for 1 to 2 minutes until slightly golden.

To serve, place 1 mini burger on the bottom half of each of the rolls. Place 1 slice of Taleggio cheese on top of the burgers. Place the basil leaf on top of the cheese and cover with the top half. Serve.

Peppermint and Spice Sugar Cookies

2009-12-12T21:06:00.000-08:00

Peppermint & Spice Sugar Cookies
Makes 24 cookies

2 3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 Tbsp milk
24 Peppermint Hersey's Kisses, unwrapped

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a medium bowl, sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix with hand mixer, shortening (make sure it's softened), sugar, egg, vanilla, and milk. Mix for about 1.50 minutes, or until combined well.

Add the flour mixture to the wet mixture in 3 batches, mixing with hand mixer well in after each addition.

Take about 1.5 Tbsp, flatten in hand, add unwrapped peppermint kiss. Fold up rest of dough around, roll in hand to form a ball. Dough should completely cover kiss, adjust dough if necessary. Continue doing so until you have filled up your cookie sheet (about 8-10 on a sheet).

Bake at 375 degrees F, for 8-10 minutes. Allow to cool*, then enjoy.

*Note: Remember there is a kiss in the middle, it may need more time to cool than the cookie, don't burn yourself on hot candies!

Cranberry Almond Bread

2009-12-12T19:44:00.000-08:00

Cranberry Almond Bread
Makes 2 loafs

3 1/2 C all purpose flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 Tbsp flax seed
1/2 cup almond slices, unsalted
3 Tbsp ground almond
1 1/2 C white sugar
¾ C shortening
1/2 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
3/4 C milk
1/2 tsp lemon
2 cups chopped Cranberries
zest of 1 orange

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

Grease (with shortening and flour) two 9x5 bread pans.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Add the flax seeds, almond slices and ground almond* to this bowl as well, mix up.

(To grind almond, take about 1 cup of almond slices, or whole whatever you have, and put into food processor. Process until ground fine.)

In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, vanilla and shortening. Mix with mixer until all incorporated. Add the 3 eggs and beat for about 1.5 minutes. Add the milk, cranberries, orange zest, and lemon. Mix again with mixer for about 1.5 minutes.

In the flour bowl, create a hollowed out center in the middle of the flour. Pour the wet mixture into the center. Combine using a rubber spatula. DO NOT use a mixer after this point, you will over mix it and cause the flour to become elastic and your bread will be dense. Fold everything together until no dry flour is left, about 15-20 folds. Pour half into one greased pan, and the other half into the other greased pan.

Bake at 350 degrees F, for 50-60 minutes. Bread is done when a raw spaghetti noddle inserted in middle comes out clean.

Banana Oat Bread

2009-12-12T18:32:00.000-08:00

So it's been a while. I've been busy and not quite eating healthy. I have been doing some cooking and baking, and I take pictures, but forget to put the recipes up and by the time I remember to do so, the recipe is out of my head (most of my recipes I create) But I do love to bake for the holidays. And so far, I'm loving what I'm baking so I thought I'd go ahead and put the recipes up so that way next year I can remember what I made, and also to share with you
all!

*Note: When one is baking for the holidays, one should always listen to Christmas music, it makes everything taste better and puts one into a better baking mood!

Banana Oat Bread
Makes 2 loafs

3 1/2 C all purpose flour
3 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 Tbsp flax seed
1 cup quick oats
3/4 C white sugar
3/4 C light brown sugar
¾ C shortening
1/2 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
3/4 C milk
1/2 tsp lemon
2 1/2 cups very ripe banana, mashed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease (with shortening and flour) two 9x5 bread pans.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Add the flax seeds and quick oats to this bowl as well, mix up.

In a separate bowl, combine the sugars, vanilla and shortening. Mix with mixer until all incorporated. Add the 3 eggs and beat for about 1.5 minutes. Add the milk, banana (mashed), and lemon. Mix again with mixer for about 1.5 minutes.

In the flour bowl, create a hollowed out center in the middle of the flour. Pour the wet mixture into the center. Combine using a rubber spatula. DO NOT use a mixer after this point, you will over mix it and cause the flour to become elastic and your bread will be dense. Fold everything together until no dry flour is left, about 15-20 folds. Pour half into one greased pan, and the other half into the other greased pan.

Bake at 350 degrees F, for 50-60 minutes. Bread is done when a raw spaghetti noddle inserted in middle comes out clean.

Been a While...

2009-09-16T12:41:00.000-07:00

So I know it's been a while since we posted last, but between work, school, homework, and all of our extra activities it's hard to cook a meal, let alone one worthy of being published on here. So, our goal is to cook on every Tuesday night and sometimes Mondays. So at least look for weekly updates. We will try to remember to get pictures up as well, but usually we forget to take the pictures.

Since it is fall time, get ready for soups, stews, baked goods and all kinds of fun stuff!

Chicken Noodle Soup and Dumplings

2009-09-16T12:18:00.000-07:00

So Julie is sick and needed some chicken noodle soup. So instead of buying her some canned crap, I made a big batch of the homemade stuff! Once again, I made a big batch of this stuff, just so I could send some home with everyone and freeze some for later use this fall/winter. I think I'll leave the recipe big, so you can do the same. The only problem we ran into, was we did not have a pot big enough, so we had to do it in two pots. if you have a big stock pot, then use it, if not, just do two big sauce pans (the biggest two you got!) Just remember, if you are using the two sauce pans, cut the recipe in half and do half in each pan!

Chicken Noodle Soup

2 Rotisserie Chickens
2 48 oz Swanson's Chicken Broth (or the equivalent of 94 oz)
1 bag of homestyle noodles, thin ones (I don't remember the size of the bag, but they were in a bag and say homestyle noodles, one size bag, two different sized noodles)
1 Red Onion, chopped
1 pack of the fresh chives in the herb section of the grocery store (these are the smaller, thinner ones with no bulbs, cut about 4 inches in length, in a plastic container)
2 tsp dried chopped tarragon leaves
3 cups water
Salt
Pepper
Garlic

Dumplings
2 Cups All purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp soft butter
3/4 cup milk
1 Tbsp tarragon leaves

In a pan bring some salt & water to boil to cook the noodles. While the water is heating up and the noodles are cooking, you'll need to de-bone the chicken. If you have never done this, just basically throw away skin, fat, and bones, keep the meat. This takes some time.

In your big (or two smaller) sauce pan, add your broth and water. Turn onto Medium heat. Saute your chopped onion for a few minutes just to help cook it and make it clearer. Dice up some of the chives as well. Add the onion, the chives, and the tarragon to the broth and water.

Add the chicken and the noodles once they are done. Season to taste with Salt, Pepper, and Garlic. I think I put about 2-3 Tablespoons of each into the soup.

While your soup is heating up, mix together all the ingredients for the dumplings. If seems to dry, add 1 Tbsp of milk at a time until moist enough. Try not to over mix.

Now for the tricky part. Turn your burners down to med-low. Scoop the desired size of dumpling batter into the soup. Once all batter is in, cover and don't touch for 15 minutes. Don't take the lid off, don't stir, don't move it. The steam the builds up is what you want to cook the dumplings and if you take the lid off, they don't cook all the way through and will be very dense.

After 15 minutes, your soup should be thoroughly heated. Serve with oyster crackers and grilled cheese. Enjoy!

Yummy Chocolate Tofu Pie

2009-09-16T12:04:00.000-07:00

This recipe is one that we did in a class of mine, but I tweaked it some to fit my liking. Hope you enjoy!

1 extra large graham cracker pie crust (Wal-mart now sells them, they have 2 extra servings in)
2 14 oz firm Tofu
22 oz bag of Milk Chocolate
1 tsp salt

In a microwave combine the chocolate and salt in a bowl. Melt in microwave by cooking for 30 secs, stirring, cooking 30 secs, stirring: repeating this until chocolate is melted.

In a food processor prepare the tofu by processing it until smooth. I had to do this in two batches because my food processor isn't big enough. Unless you have a RoboCoup, you'll need to do the same.

Once chocolate is melted and tofu is processed, pour the chocolate into the food processor (through the feed tube) while the food processor is on. If you are doing this in two batches, only use 1/2 the melted chocolate. once thoroughly mixed (the color should all be consistent, and no chunks of tofu), pour mixture into empty graham cracker crust. If doing two batches, finish the 2nd batch and pour on top of previous batch.

Cover with pie lid, refrigerate for approximately 1.5-3 hours to set. Cut and enjoy! This will be very rich and chocolaty, just so you know.

Baked Vegetable Pasta

2009-09-16T11:50:00.000-07:00

So when I made this, I made it large purposely because I wanted left overs for the week. So this recipe is going to be a normal version of it, but I just have to half everything mentally (which hopefully I can do :) ).

8 oz Noodle Pasta (your choice, I did spiral noodles 'cause they are fun)
1 jar spaghetti sauce (I used a garden vegetable)
7.5 oz Ricotta cheese
1 small yellow squash, chopped
1 small zucchini, chopped
4 button mushrooms, chopped
1 small orange bell pepper, chopped
1/2 white onion, chopped
2-3 Roma Tomatoes, quartered; or handful of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup cheese (I used Colby/jack because that is all I had)
1/2 cup cheese
1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil (from my garden still)
1 Tbsp oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a pan, bring water and dash of salt to a boil. Add in pasta and 1 Tbsp oil (vegetable, olive). You had the oil to prevent the water from boiling over, so if you don't have any, just keep an eye on them.

While the pasta is cooking, chop all the veggies and basil. Combine in a bowl with the spaghetti sauce, the ricotta, the garlic, and the 1st 1/2 cup cheese.

Once pasta is done, drain and pour in with the above mixture. Mix together well to ensure proper distribution of veggies and pasta.

Pour into greased (pan spray is fine) 9x13 cake or casserole pan. Cover with remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake at 375 degrees F for approximately 30-35 minutes.

Serve with rolls and salad. Serve 5-6

Yummy Zucchini Bread...or bundt cake

2009-08-10T16:35:00.000-07:00

So we have a bunch of zucchini's we've inherited. You can only have steamed zucchini, or deep fried zucchini (not healthy, I know) so many times before you need it in some other form. Growing up, my mom would make all kinds of zucchini delights. Although, I didn't feel like calling her to get a recipe, I still called her to tell her I was making some. This is suppose to be a zucchini bread, but I found out I'm lacking in the bread pan department, but I did find a bundt pan in the cupboard so I decided to do that. Oh, and I finally got some Organic Pure Vanilla Extract. A little expensive, but it's worth it in the end.

Zucchini Bread/Bundt Cake

2 1/2 cups grated zucchini (leave skin on)
3 eggs
1 3/4 cup sugar
3 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup oil (Canola/Vegetable)
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg
3 tbsp flax seed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, mix the eggs, sugar, oil, and vanilla. Once thoroughly mixed add in zucchini. In a separate medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and flax seed. Utilizing the the 3 part approach, mix the flour mixture into the wet mixture in 3 parts. Thoroughly mix in between parts.

If using a bundt pan, grease (using a Crisco) and flour. (Same way if using cake pans, you'll just need 2 pans). Pour into bundt pan or bread pans. Bake for 55 minutes in bundt pan, or 40 minutes in bread pans. Cool for about 20 minutes before trying to flip out of pan. You can also do this in cupcake pans. Be sure to line each cupcake with a liner, and bake for 25 minutes.

A Much Needed Dinner

2009-08-04T21:06:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since this has been updated, and it's been even longer since a good meal was cooked at this home. I made a dish that I've made before and to my surprise was not already on this site. So I made it, took some pictures (but am having difficulties so the pictures will be up later this week) and now am ready to post it. Both of these recipes were made so there were plenty of leftovers for the week, so please, if need be cut in half, I tried to keep the ingredients as such they could be divided. There is actually many parts of this so stay tuned to more recipes and hints to follow. So without further ado...

Southwest Quinoa

2 cups dry Quinoa
2 1/2 cups cooked Black Beans
1 cup frozen Corn
1 White Onion, chopped
1/2 cup Roasted Red Pepper, chopped
1 can Vegetable Broth
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Tbsp minced Garlic
2 Tbsp Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle Seasoning
1 Tbsp Seasoned Salt
2 tsp Onion Powder
2 tsp Garlic Powder
1 tsp Black Pepper

To prepare the Quinoa, first you should measure out the two cups of dry Quinoa and place into a sieve. If you do not have one, this becomes a little more difficult, as the grains as small enough to slip though most household strainers/colanders. If you have a sieve, just rinse for about a minute being sure to rinse all the Quinoa. If you don't have a sieve, place the Quinoa in a pan (probably the one you will use to cook them in) and fill with water. Using your hand stir up the Quinoa as to get all the dust and dirt off. Carefully pour off most of water being sure to not lose too much Quinoa, you will probably need to leave some water in the bottom of the pan. Which ever way you do it, your Quinoa should now be in a pan to cook. Add 4 cups of water, cover, and put on medium heat for 20 minutes, or until most of water is absorbed.

While the Quinoa is cooking, put your oil along with the onion and roasted red pepper in a saute pan, I actually used a wok, because of the amount I was cooking, so if you have one use that, if not a large skillet will suffice. Saute, on high heat, until the onions begin to become transparent. Turn down to medium heat. Add the minced garlic and toss. Add the can of the vegetable broth to this mixture. Add the black beans and the corn. By this time the Quinoa should be done cooking, if not wait until it is to continue. Rinse the Quinoa in a colander/strainer/sieve. The grains should be large enough to keep from falling through the holes, but try to choose one based on the size of the holes. Add the rinsed Quinoa to the wok/skillet. Add in the seasoning and heat through. Serve warm.

Baked Vegetable Medley

5 Medium Potatoes
1 Large (or 3 small/medium) Yellow Squash
1 White Onion
1 Red Pepper
1 Green Pepper
A bunch of cherry Tomatoes
2 Tbsp Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle Seasoning
2 Tbsp Mrs. Dash Lemon and Pepper Seasoning
2 Tbsp Seasoned Salt
1 tsp Black Pepper
1/4 cup Olive Oil or Canola Oil (I ran out of Olive Oil and had to combine with Canola Oil)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Wash and cut all the veggies into bite size pieces. Each piece should be no bigger than a quarter. Slice the cherry tomatoes (from my garden, just as a side note) in half. You can use as many or as few as you like here, we used a few, because one roommate doesn't enjoy their flavor. Place all the cut veggies into a bowl and pour on the oil and seasoning. Pour onto cookie sheet, or two like I did to hurry the cooking.

Bake at 450 degrees for about 20-30 minutes depending on how well done you like your veggies. I enjoy mine a little on the undone side, so I only did mine for about 20 minutes. Eat immediately.

Oatmeal Carrot Raisin Cookies

2009-07-25T10:14:00.000-07:00

So I got up this morning and I felt like baking. But I wanted to bake something that was healthier than normal. I debated pies, cakes, breads, cookies. So I decided on cookies. I have a crap ton of carrots right now, and I just bought some organic whole rolled oats. So I decided to take an oatmeal cookie recipe, modify it a bit, then make these.

Oatmeal Carrot Raisin Cookies

2 cups All-Purpose Flour

1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Sea Salt
2 Tbsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice
2 Tbsp Flax Seed
1 cup Butter
1 cup Light Brown Sugar
2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
2 Large Eggs
2 Cups Organic Whole Rolled Oats
1 3/4 cup Shredded Carrots
3/4 cup Raisins (can be golden or regular)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Stir so everything is evenly separated

In a large bowl, combine the butter, brown sugar and white sugar. Mix with mixer until smooth. Add in the two eggs and the vanilla. Mix well. Mix in the flax seed. Add the flour mixture to this in 1/2 cup increments. It will get a little thick. Add in oats 1 cup at a time. After the oats, I had to switch to just mixing with a wooden spoon. If you have a kitchen aid, you should be okay. Add in the carrots and raisins. Mix well to ensure that the oats, carrots and raisins are equally distributed.

Spoon onto greased cookie sheet. I did about 1 1/2 Tbsp sized dollops.

Bake at 350 degrees F for about 10-12 minutes. Cool and enjoy.

*End of experience notes. I wanted to use applesauce instead of butter, but didn't have any, and really didn't feel like making any from scratch. I may try this again with the applesauce. Also, these can very easily be made more organic by using organic carrots, raisins, and eggs. I haven't really searched for organic flour and such, because we have a lot still, but as they run out, I will be replacing. I also considered using whole wheat flour instead of all purpose, but didn't have any of that. I need to go shopping, I know. I'm also out of vanilla, so hopefully I can find some organic stuff. I'll keep you updated.

Corn and Bean Salsa

2009-07-21T19:10:00.000-07:00

So my mother has been bugging me for a good salsa recipe, so I made one the other night. We took pictures, but they are on a camera not with me, so when they will get posted. I actually made this salsa and Tostadas for dinner along with some gooey butter cake for dessert. All was really good. The Corn and Bean Salsa is fairly easy, fresh, and tastes amazing. There were three of us eating this, and it was pretty much gone that night.

Corn and Bean Salsa

4 Roma Tomatoes, diced up; about 1 1/2 cups (a 1/2x1/2x1/2 dice is good, but bigger is good as well)
3/4 cup Red Onion, diced
1/4 cup Fresh Cilantro, diced
1/4 cup Jalapeno, diced*
3/4 cup Frozen Corn, thawed right before adding in
3/4 cup black beans, drained
1 lime
1 Tbsp salt

Dice the tomatoes, red onion, cilantro, and jalapeno. Put in a bowl. Add in corn (you can thaw in about 1 min, just soak in warm water), and black beans. Roll your lime around on the counter with the palm of your hand to loosen up the pulp. Cut in half, squeeze the juice into the salsa, add salt. Mix well, enjoy with chips. The longer you let it sit, the more the flavors will mingle, my recommendation is to make this about 2 hours before you need it. There will be juice in the bottom, you can either drain or let it be, the juice is good on the chips as well.

*A note about Jalapenos. Whenever cooking with Jalapenos, it's always best to wear gloves. The oil in the Jalapeno will actually burn your skin, and some reactions are worse than others; I didn't wear gloves and my fingers had a tingling sensation for about 2 days.

The Truth about Chocolate

2009-07-12T20:29:00.000-07:00

So years ago, I was like many of you. Buying that impulse chocolate bar while standing in line at Wal-mart, or on Halloween going and buying several bags of mini bite chocolates to hand out to the kiddies, in the end only handing them into my mouth. It was Spring of 2006, that all that changed. I was in speech class and we needed to do a speech on something to convince someone of something. I had no idea what I wanted to do my speech on. My professor gave me several ideas, but kept pushing me to do my report on Fair Trade Chocolate. I had never heard of this or had any idea what it was about.

I started doing some research on the subject and found out a lot of interesting things, as well as appalling things. So back when I did the research I found out that America's leading chocolate manufacturers, Mars and Hershey's, did not use Fair Trade. Okay, let me back up a little bit. Fair Trade by definition according to http://www.fairtrade-advocacy.org, Fair Trade is a trading partnership, based on dialogue, transparency and respect, that seeks greater equity in international trade. It contributes to sustainable development by offering better trading conditions to, and securing the rights of, marginalized producers and workers – especially in the South. So basically, Fair Trade ensures that the farmers, workers, villages that supply the cocoa beans are educated and taught about proper crop rotation, paid a fair wage (based on local averages and such) and that they are treated properly and trained on safety. It also makes sure the slavery, both for adults and kids, is prohibited.

So, anyway, knowingly or not, most of America's top chocolate produces did not use Fair Trade chocolate. I love chocolate and loved paying $.35 a bar, or $.50 a bar, but always wondered how they kept their prices low. Learning that the reason why they could keep their prices so low was because of the use of child slaves, and underpaid farmers and basically keeping them dumb just so they can get cheap chocolate, completely turned me off to eating that type of chocolate. I learned that the companies that take part in Fair Trade used a label on their packaging to show that they treated, paid and educated their farmers and workers.

I started buying this chocolate. One cannot even describe the difference. You would have to just sample it for your self. The taste is amazing, the smoothness is strange and welcome. I never realized just how waxy other chocolates were compared to these ones. You will pay a little more for a bar of Fair Trade chocolate, but I believe it's worth it. Not only in the taste, which you will notice right away, but also in the knowing that you are supporting Human Rights in something that not many people even know is going on.

In more recent news though, Mars has announced that have set up a partnership with Rainforest Alliance to change all their chocolate certified by 2020. Yes, that's a long ways off, but for a huge company like that to even consider making changes like that and think of everything they have to change. The recipes will have to change, the packaging, the public image, everything. That stuff takes time. So kudos to them for trying to make a difference. Also, Cadburry also announced a similar plan. Here's a good article to read and learn about the changes coming: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/05/mars-bars-background.php.

A Not So Healthy Night of Eating

2009-07-12T20:01:00.000-07:00

Ok, so Julie and I were watching the Food Network HD the other day, which by the way, if you have never watched the Food Network in HD, either don't start, or only do so on a full stomach. So anyways, we were watching some sort of Paula Deen show. She has so many, it's hard to keep track of them. She made a Cheeseburger Bacon Meatloaf and a Chocolate cake. They looked so good, we decided to make them for dinner. Honestly, the meatloaf wasn't very good, so I'm not going to put that recipe up. It was very rich and full of grease. I can see lots of potential with it, so when I redo it and make it a bit healthier, I will post my new recipe on here. The chocolate cake on the other hand, was/is amazing. I know it's not very healthy, but we all need some chocolate once in a while. It has some very interesting affects on the mind and should never be cut out of any diet. I'll probably post later on what kind of chocolate you should eat. But on to the chocolate cake. Remember, this is from Paula Dean, and I'm not taking any credit for this, just thought I'd pass this amazing heaven in a pan off to you!

Chocolate Sybil Cake

Cake:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1-cup sugar
4 eggs
1-cup all-purpose flour
1-teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 (16 ounce) can Hershey’s chocolate syrup

Frosting:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1-cup sugar
1/3-cup evaporated milk
1-teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 13x9x2 inch pan.

Using an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together in another bowl. Add to creamed mixture, continuing to beat. Add vanilla and chocolate syrup to batter and mix well. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 25 to 30 minutes. Just before cake is done, prepare frosting. Put butter, chocolate chips, sugar and evaporated milk in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Stirring ingredients together, boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and nuts. Pour over warm cake. Delicious!!

Serves 16 to 20
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Ease of Preparation: easy

L&S JD, pg. 41

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

We opted to not add the nuts to this, and it was still delicious. And we also didn't have any pure vanilla handy, so we used imitation. This 'frosting' recipe could also be used for many different things. I say 'frosting' because it's more of a glaze or ganache.

Fresh Peach Pie

2009-07-06T18:42:00.000-07:00

I bought a 1/3 bushel of peaches and decided to make some Pies for my friends to take home over the 4th of July. I'm a better cook than I am a baker, and this pie actually surprised me. It got me thinking about how much I could bake for all my friends! Hopefully more delicious recipes to follow!

Fresh Peach Pie

2 9inch pie crust (either home made or store bought)

4 cups fresh sliced peaches (see below for easy way to skin the little guys)
1/2 cup fresh raspberries
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon lemon juice (either fresh squeezed or out of the bottle)
2 tablespoons butter.

To get the skins off the peaches, simply boil each peach in water for approximately 30 seconds if really ripe and up to a minute if not so ripe. My peaches varied in ripeness, and I didn't want to be picky and both worked well. Remove the peaches from the boiling water and throw immediately into an ice water bath to cool. The skin should just slip off. I had a problem with some of the skins staying on, so I had to cut a few off.

Bake the pie crust for about 15 minutes on 350 degrees F, prior to baking with fruit in. I did not do this and the crust was somewhat soggy. But if you bake it first it should come out crispier in the end.

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl (minus the pie crust :) ). I put all the dry ingredients in first then the fruits, but you can put the fruits in first then dry. I don't know if it matters. Don't forget to throw the lemon juice in with the fruits.

Pour mixture into pie crust. Cut the butter into 4 pieces and place around the cake. You can do the next step in any fashion you wish. I chose to take the 2nd pie crust and but into strips and put on top as a lattice. You could however just place the whole crust on top. Just be sure to cut slits somewhere on the top to allow steam to escape, either in the middle or in some other artistic way.

Bake the pie at 350 for 45-60 minutes. Allow to cool for 4-6 hours. You can serve this warm, or cold. Be sure to keep any leftovers in the fridge. This will help solidify some of the juices.

Mom's Mexican Corn Bread

2009-07-06T18:28:00.000-07:00

This is a recipe that my mother always made when ever it was enchilada night. Always was delicious and reminds me of home whenever I make it.

1 cup Corn Meal
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
3/4 teaspoon Salt
1 can (12oz) Creamed Corn
2 Beaten Eggs
1/4 cup Bacon Drippings (optional if you are not a Carnivore)
1 cup Milk
1 white onion Chopped
1/2 cup Grated American Cheese (or fiesta blend or any other favorite)
1 Green Bell Pepper, Chopped
1 Red Bell Pepper, Chopped

In a bowl mix the Corn Meal, Baking Soda, and Salt. Add Creamed Corn, the beaten eggs, milk, drippings (once again optional). Mix well. Pour half the batter in a 9x13 cake pan or glass pan. Put the chopped onion, peppers, and cheese. Pour rest of batter on top of this concoction. Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes.

Like I said the bacon drippings are an option, last time I made it, I made it with out the drippings for Jess, and it was just as good.

Delicious Pasta Salad

2009-07-06T18:19:00.000-07:00

I don't have a name for this one, but it came from a friend. It's delicious and very simple to make. Great summer time Pasta Salad as it is served cold and is light (and healthier than a mayo based).

Pasta Mix
1 box noodles (Spirals, Mostaccoli, or Penne), cooked
1/2 Green Pepper, chopped
1/2 Red Pepper, chopped
1/2 Red Onion, chopped

Dressing
1 cup Vinegar
1 cup Sugar
1/2 cup oil

Toss all the Pasta Mix together. Pour all the dressing ingredients into separate bowl. Because of the ingredients they will separate. Quickly whisk together or use a mixer or blender and mix them up. Pour over the pasta mix. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Leftovers are delicious as well!

As a side note, you could use regular pasta or make this a little more healthy by replacing the regular pasta with wheat, spinach, tomato or any other type pasta.

Dinner after 7.5 mile walk

2009-06-13T16:42:00.000-07:00

So today I went on a 7.5 mile walk with Rylee, one of our dogs. Got home swam, and got hungry. I wanted something semi-healthy and had some Risotto packs. So I made some Risotto and some potatoes. They were delicious. Jess came home and had some as well. This will be my first post (Daniel) and I usually don't follow recipes or even use them, and I guess on amounts when I add ingredients, so writing recipes will be a little harder for me, but I'll try to do my best.

Spicy Risotto

1 Tbsp oil
1 small white onion
1 package Uncle Ben's Ready Risotto (or you could make your own if you want to)
1 cup vegetable broth (or chicken of you carnivores)
1 Tbsp fresh cilantro (right out of my garden, very easy to grow btw, you should try)
1 cup corn (frozen, canned or fresh off the cob (cook if off cob first))
16 oz Aduki beans (or black beans will work as well)
1/4 cup chopped roasted red pepper
2 Tbsp Mrs. Dash Southwest Chipotle seasoning (or any type Chipotle spice)
1 tsp Ground Mustard
1 tsp Seasoned salt
1 tsp Lemon and Pepper Seasoning
1/4 Cup chopped green onion

Saute the onion in the oil. Add broth and Risotto package. Add remaining ingredients and heat until warm. I added too much broth, so I had to add some flour to make it a little thicker. Also, garlic would be great in here as well, but I'm actually allergic to garlic, so I didn't add any. Makes 6-8 servings, about 1 cup a piece.

Sauteed Potatoes

3 Medium russet potatoes
2 Tbsp Oil
2 Tbsp Lemon and Pepper Seasoning
1 tsp Seasoned salt
1/4 Cup chopped green onion
2 Tbsp fresh chopped basil (also from my garden)

Cut the potatoes in half length wise, then in have width wise. Cut each section into about 4 sections. I didn't peel my potatoes, and you don't have to, but if you'd like you can, just one more step you have to do. Throw them into the skillet with the oil. Add the Lemon and Pepper seasoning, and the seasoned salt. Saute until about half way done, be sure to stir them occasionally to avoid burning one side, about 10 minutes or so. Add the fresh basil and chopped green onion, continue to saute about 5 more minutes. I personally don't like my potatoes all the way done when doing them this way, so when the little ones are done, and the big ones are about halfway through, that's good enough for me. Serve. Makes about 4 servings at 1/2 cup each.

Sorry no pictures, I ate it all before I remembered. And I don't really like taking pictures anyway, but I'll work on that for you.

simple fruit smoothie

2009-06-09T10:34:00.000-07:00

1 cup frozen fruit

--i used strawberries, pineapple, and blackberries

4-5 ice cubes

3/4 cup vanilla rice milk or soymilk

1 tsp honey or agave nectar

2 tbsp vanilla yogurt

combine all ingredients and blend until smooth. add more milk if too thick or more ice if too runny.

we buy fruit frozen and often freeze fruit that is about to spoil for later use. fresh fruit is fine to use, you'll just need to substitute more ice and use less milk to get the frozen blended consistency. to make this recipe vegan, just use more soymilk instead of yogurt, or try soy yogurt; and use the agave nectar to sweeten it instead of honey.

veg-egg scramble

2009-06-09T09:51:00.000-07:00

i'm gonna get the ball rolling here and make a couple of posts. this was my dinner last night, and it was loaded with veggies and protein.

ingredients:

2 eggs

1 tbsp olive oil

1 cup chopped vegetables

--you can use any assortment you like. i used broccoli, cauliflower, baby carrots, cucumber, and tomato. anything you have handy in your fridge will do; just chop enough to make one cup total.

1/4 chopped avocado

1/4 cup frozen soybeans

1 tbsp shredded parmesan cheese

1 tsp feta cheese

2 tbsp salsa

--i prefer sams choice black bean and corn salsa, but use your favorite salsa

directions:

1. stir eggs lightly with a fork and set aside.

2. microwave soybeans as directed on bag, or for about one minute.

3. heat oil in skillet on medium high. add cup of chopped vegetables and soybeans, and saute for 2 or 3 minutes until beginning to brown.

4. stir eggs into vegetable mix and scramble to cook until beginning to brown.

5. sprinkle feta, parmesan, and avocado in with the scramble. serve in a bowl topped with salsa. enjoy!

makes 1 serving

i threw this together last night for dinner and could probably eat it every night. it's very versatile and there is a lot of room for creativity. you can mix up your vegetable and cheese choices to get a completely different flavor. i also sprinkled a bit of chopped onion in with mine so feel free to get experimental with seasonings as well.

this recipe is loaded with protein (eggs, soybeans, cheese, and black beans if you use the corn and bean salsa) and a serving of vegetables. delicious and nutritious!