Snow Cream

Last week when it was SO. COLD. and snowed a ton, I thought it would be fun to mix up some snow cream. 

I set a bowl out when it started to snow, again, to catch some new, clean snow. When it was nearing nap time, I check the bowl and it was about half full, so I scooped off the top layer of the 748" or so of snow in our front yard and got some from the middle of the pile to fill the bowl.

I came inside and whipped it up, and fed it to some excited little people. I tasted some too. It was good- surprisingly similar to homemade vanilla ice cream!

Kennison and Colton were over because their mommy and daddy were busy finding out whether they are getting a little brother or sister.

 

Kennison stirred hers all up and made ice cream soup- so I got her a straw!

 

Snow Cream

1/2 gallon of (clean!) snow

1/2 c sugar

1/2 T vanilla extract

approx. 1 c milk (I used evaporated)

 

Add sugar and vanilla to snow, and stir. Stir in milk until it's the desired consistency. Eat right away!

In which I continue my love affair with the Magic Bullet

Green Smoothies that aren't really (green, that is):

1/2 a banana (I buy them when they're cheap and freeze them peeled and halved)

Handful of berries

Handful of spinach or kale, briefly steamed (you can't taste it, I promise!)

1/2 cup or so of plain/vanilla yogurt (you can make your own!)

Anything else you think would be yummy or nutritious

 

Ah yes, an easy way to get green veggies into my kiddo... and he thinks it's ice cream! You can freeze them, too! So much easier with the magic bullet than using my old blender.

Eat From the Pantry Challenge

This month two blogs that I frequent (in the button above) are hosting an eat from the pantry challenge for the month of January. Our pantry and freezer are overflowing, and since my inlaws gave us a deep freeze for Christmas, (wahoo!) I thought I'd take stock, eat everything, and start fresh. As a matter of fact, after seeing just how much we have, I'm wondering if we'll be able to extend the challenge in our house into February! In any case, our usual grocery budget is $50 per week, or roughly $200 a month. I'm going to attempt to spend just $50 total in January, mostly on produce and dairy. So far, we've bought 2 gallons of milk, a dozen eggs, and a head of romaine lettuce. Seriously, we have so much food that I actually think this will be doable.

I'm late getting my post up this week (sigh), but here's how we're doing...

 

What we've eaten this week:

Blue Cheese Stuffed Pork Loin

Veggie Beef Stew with Homemade Artisan Bread

PF Chang's Knock-Off Chicken Lettuce Wraps with Healthy "Fried" Rice and Glazed Carrots

Italian Pear Pork with Mac n' Cheese and Apple/Pear Sauce

Overnight French Toast from leftover homemade bread

Pumpkin Pancakes

Banana Bread

Strawberry Nutrigrain Bars

 

I'll admit to not being a strict meal planner. I usually just make a list and pick and choose depending on what I feel like that morning. So I just made a list of meals we have the ingredients for/ have in the freezer and then we'll get creative when we run out!

 

Future Meal Choices:

Mexican Chicken

Asian Lemon Chicken

Sweet Potato Manicotti (loosely based on this recipe)

Chicken Enchiladas

BBQ Pork Sandwiches

Chicken Parmesan

Chicken and Dumplings

Lasagna

Taco Soup

Top-Your-Own Flatbread Pizza

BBQ Feta Flatbreads

Cheesy Potatoes

Mashed Potatoes

Coconut Sweet Potatoes

White Chili with Corn Bread

 

Breakfasts and Snacks (mostly from the freezer):

Sour Cream Banana Bread

Pumpkin Pancakes

Mini Quiches

Chocolate Banana Muffins

Chocolate Oatmeal Muffins

Breakfast Cake

Sweet Potato, Zucchini and/or Pumpkin Bread

(Panera/Atlanta Bread-esque) Crockpot Baked Potato Soup

We had this the other night for dinner and it was yummy. Then we had it again today for lunch, and it was still yummy. Except, I'm pretty sure I accidentally added 1 t of chili powder instead of paprika, 'cause it was pretty spicy. So, you might not want to do that!

 

1 quart chicken stock

About 4 lbs potatoes, peeled and diced (I used 2 cans from my pantry and about half of a 5 lb bag)

1/2 an onion, diced into tiny pieces

3 cloves minced garlic

1 t seasoned salt

1 t pepper

1 t paprika

8 oz cream cheese brick

shredded cheddar cheese

bacon, for topping

 

Place potatoes, onions, and garlic in the crockpot. Sprinkle over the spices, then add stock. Cook on low for 8 hours. Remove the cover and mash or blend to desired consistence (I like mine still fairly chunky). Crumble in cream cheese and a handful of shredded cheddar, and cook on high (covered) for an additional 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Garnish with bacon and a bit of cheddar. I can only imagine that serving it in a bread bowl would be nothing short of amazing.

Close your eyes so you can't see the toddler dropping bits of soup on your clean floor, and pretend you're at Panera. :-)

We served it with (I know, weird combination) Adobo Chicken with pickled cabbage and carrots, but only because Mike doesn't think soup is a main course. :-)

Pumpkin Pancakes

Oh, wow. I'm known for my love of pumpkin, but this recipe takes the cake. Or the pancake if you will. :-)

2 c flour

4 T brown sugar

2 t baking powder

1 t baking soda

4 t pumpkin pie spice

1 t vanilla

1/2 t salt

1 1/2 c milk (I used evaporated milk in order to save Jack's "drinking" milk)

1 c pumpkin puree

2 eggs

2 T oil

2 T vinegar (or you can use buttermilk instead of regular milk, and skip the vinegar)

Mix the milk, pumpkin, vanilla, eggs, oil and vinegar in one bowl. In a second bowl combine the dry ingredients. Stir the dry mixture into the wet mixture to just combine. Pour onto hot skillet 1/4 c at a time.

For added pumpkin-ness heat 1 c syrup and 3/4 c of pumpkin puree in a saucepan. Add a little cinnamon and pour over pancakes. Make the syrup... it's worth it!

Thanksgiving, much?

So it all started when the boys and I were in Walmart a few days before Halloween and we passed by Christmas trees in the garden section. IN OCTOBER!

Then, on November 1st, a local radio station began playing all Christmas music, all the time.

Now don't get me wrong, I love Christmas. But today it's 76 degrees outside, so pardon me if I just can't get in the Christmas spirit quite yet! Plus, I'd like my kids to grow up knowing that there's an important holiday between the mass marketing celebrations that Halloween and Christmas seem to be these days!

That's why I was so glad to see that the blog carnival at Kelly's Korner has a theme today of favorite Thanksgiving recipes!

My recipe is one my mom's friend Carol made for us one time, and now we can't stop making it! Warning, it is NOT diet food! :-)

Coconut Sweet Potatoes

3 cups cooked and mashed sweet potatoes

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1/4 cup melted butter

1/3 cup sweetened condensed milk

1 t vanilla

1 cup shredded coconut

small marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350. Spray casserole dish with cooking spray.

Combine the sweet potatoes, sugar, butter, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla and coconut. Pour into casserole dish. Bake for 20 minutes. Take out of the oven and sprinkle marshmallows evenly on top, bake until marshmallows are melted.

Of course, I may be able to get into the holiday spirit a little more today since I've realize that Starbuck's is now serving this...

Ah, yes. The peppermint mocha. Suddenly I'm feeling very... jolly!

Oh, yum

I've devised the most amazing recipe for my very favorite granola bar. I have some in the oven right now. Mmmmmm. I got the idea from this blog and tweaked it to my taste a bit. I have two versions. A healthy version, that tastes terrific, and a I'm-nursing-and-HUNGRY slightly less healthy one, that tastes ah-maz-ing. I'll share both, and it's your call which you try.

Healthy Pumpkin Granola Bars

2 C Rolled Oats

1 C Whole Wheat Flour

3/4 C Pumpkin Puree

1 Egg

1/2 C Ground Flax Seed

1/4 C Honey

2 T Brown Sugar

1 t Pumpkin Pie Spice

1/2 t Cinnamon

1 T grated orange rind

2 t Vanilla

Mix it all together and pat down in a jelly-roll pan. I use my pampered chef stoneware, which is smaller, but makes thick and chewy bars. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes. Let cool, and cut into bars. Eat a bunch.

 

Melt in Your Mouth Coconut Pumpkin Granola Bars

2 C Rolled Oats

3/4 C Pumpkin Puree

1 Egg

3/4 C shredded coconut

1/4 C butter (room temp)

1/4 C Ground Flax Seed

2 T Brown Sugar

1 t Pumpkin Pie Spice

1/2 t Cinnamon

1 T grated orange rind

2 t Vanilla

1/4 C Honey

Same directions as above. Hide from kids and husband so you can eat them all!

Getting ready for baby... cooking edition- Part 2

*Updated* Welcome URS Readers! This post and the one below it feature recipes I made this summer in preparation for my second baby! Be sure to check out Part One for a bunch more recipes! And check out URS for even more great ideas!

*Original Post* The other day I shared Part 1 of my freezer cooking extravaganza, which was mostly baked goods. This past weekend I got a TON of cooking done to stock the freezer with meals. I think I have enough for about a month of eating after Charlie gets here! All I'll have to do is pull something out in the morning and make a veggie as a side in the evening.

So here's what's waiting in our freezer for Charlie's arrival:

Chicken Enchiladas

Stuffed Shells with Pumpkin- Except I made manicotti, not shells, and used sweet potatoes instead of pumpkin

Chicken Parmesan

Pizza Pockets/ Calzones- I made two batches, one with meats for Mike, and one with tons of veggies for me and Jack

Tomato Sauce (from our tomato plants!)

Stuffed Red Bell Peppers - I added sausage. Yummy!

Taco Soup

The following recipes I made from the Homemade Gourmet website. Where it calls for a Homemade Gourmet seasoning, I make up my own since I've never bought Homemade Gourmet products.

Italian Pear Pork

Garlic Basil Pork

Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings

Asian Pork and Chicken (I made both- Mikey loves Asian food!)

And then there are the dishes I made for which I have no recipe... I just make it up!

Crockpot Lasagna (I freeze lasagna in a foil lined dish that fits inside my crock. When the lasagna freezes, I take it out of the dish, still in the foil, and pop it in a freezer bag. Then I just stick it in the crockpot, frozen, whatever morning we'll be eating it for dinner and it fits perfectly!)

Squash Casserole

Potato Soup

Chili

Cheesy Chicken Casserole

Chicken Broth (from veggie scraps, and bones from the chicken I cooked)

That said, I think I'm done! That is, unless I find an amazing recipe that I can't help but try out!

How to Make Popsicles

Kennison and I get lots of fun things done during the boys' morning naps. Not too long ago we made popsicles. I figured I should get these pictures up since it's not longer popsicle weather. Here's a lesson in making them with a toddler.

 

Pour apple juice into popsicle mold.

Add one drop of food coloring to make them pretty.

Stir with a citrus peeler.

Replace sticks. Smile behind the finished, liquid-y product. Place in the freezer.

Chill while waiting for the popsicles to chill... well, freeze.

 

Enjoy popsicle outside in swimwear and a diaper.

Clean up by playing with water toys in old duck pool.

If you're too young to eat a popsicle, enjoy a bottle instead.

I also found cool new recipes... including DRIPLESS popsicles at this website so I'm sure we'll be trying these soon. The molds were a pain, though. I'm going to use Dixie Cups and wooden sticks next time.

Yummy Crockpot Tomato Soup

Boy. You'd think this was turning into a cooking blog. I guess I'm having more fun cooking lately, now that Jack can amuse himself for more than 19 seconds at a time. Granted, most of my cooking still happens after Mike gets home, but I'm doing it more and more. Don't worry, I'll include a couple of completely unrelated pics of Jack at the bottom, too!

So by now you know I love my crockpot. There are so many perks. First, you can get everything ready the night before, and store it in the fridge. Next, if you're home all day like I am, you get to smell yummy dinner getting-ready smells all day long. And, if you happen to be away, you can literally walk in the door and sit down to the table- it's all ready!

So my new favorite blog had a crockpot tomato soup recipe that I wanted to try. I made Mike go to the produce guy on the corner and buy A LOT of tomatoes. I used the recipe from the aforementioned blog, and being myself, I made some tweaks. This is what I did.

Throw the following into the crockpot:

3 lbs of tomatoes, cubed (my favorite part of this recipe- you don't have to peel!)

2 c tomato juice

1 c dry white wine

2 tbsp chopped fresh basil

1/2 an onion, chopped

2 tbsp splenda

1 chicken boullion cube

Cook on low for 8-10 hrs. I don't like my soup chunky, so I blended the soup smooth in batches after it was cooked. Be careful- it's HOT! Next add salt and pepper and 2 c half and half or milk (next time I would add a little more milk). Top with a slice of cheese (we had provolone) and garnish with basil. We ate it with toasted homemade rolls brought over by Mike's mom!

This was thick and yummy, and all-around great! It made so much that we refrigerated some for later in the week, and froze a huge glass jar for a rainy day!

And now for the feature presentation:

Easy Crockpot Baby Vegetable Medley

I was staring at the left over potatoes in our fruit bowl on the counter yesterday, and had a brainstorm. Jack is almost done with baby food, but in the meantime, I thought I'd spice up his life a little. I mean, how often do you eat a vegetable by itself, plain, all at once? So, I made him a little vegetable medley. I've been mildly obsessed with my crockpot lately, and got the idea for trying out Jack's food in the crockpot from this blog.

Basically, I took all the vegetable I could find leftover in our house, added some frozen ones, a little water, and cooked on low for about 8 hours- it basically turns to mush. Mike came home and thought it was what we were having for dinner... and was very relieved that it wasn't! Then I used a slotted spoon to spoon the veggies into the blender in batches. DON'T drain the water away- it has all the nutrients! Use it to think out the texture of the puree. I left Jack's pretty thick, because he's past the smooth phase. Then I poured into single serving containers and froze.

Here's what I used:

4 small red potatoes, peeled

1 large sweet potato, peeled

1 squash

1/2 a bag of frozen peas

1/4 a bag of frozen lima beans

1/4 a bag of frozen spinach

1/2 a bag of baby carrots

1/4 a bag of frozen broccoli

Jack ate one container that I left in the fridge for lunch today, and loved it. I tasted it, and it has a nice creamy texture (from the potatoes) and was mildly sweet (from the sweet potato and carrots). It made a ton, so I'm also planning to thin individual servings out a little and use as a pasta sauce for Jack.

Jack really enjoyed it!

Cooking with Kennison

The other day when I was watching K&C the boys were taking their morning naps and Kennison and I got busy making lunch in the kitchen. I've been wanting to make crustless mini quiche (mmm... I love it!) and decided it would be a good recipe for little hands.

Here's what we used:

1/2 dozen eggs (we actually used Egg Beaters because I had them)

1 1/2 c milk

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

pinch of nutmeg

4 oz mozzarella cheese

2 oz shredded smoky swiss cheese

3 slices cooked turkey bacon

1/4 c cooked broccoli

1/4 of a small onion

parsley for garnish

standard muffin tin

Here's what we did:

Steam broccoli until tender, then drained. Chop broccoli using Pampered Chef Cutting Edge: Food Chopper, perfect for little fingers! I got the chopper long before I ever thought about children, but it's going to be a perfect tool for when Jack (hopefully) starts learning to help me in the kitchen!

Chop onion the same way, and saute with a tiny bit of butter until transparent.

Pour eggs into a large measuring cup. (Beat the eggs if you're using real ones.) Add in the milk, salt, pepper, nutmeg, broccoli and onions. Then, cut the bacon into tiny pieces with kitchen shears and add to the measuring cup.

Next, shred the cheese (unless you bought it shredded, obviously) and add to the mixture.  Stir everything together well  with a whisk- another excellent kid activity.

Finally, grease your muffin tin. Now, at this point you can use phyllo dough or even canned biscuits to make a crust, but we were opting for the low-carb version, so we made them crustless. Just fill each muffin cup about 3/4 of the way full. Our mixture made 10 muffin cups full. We garnished with parsley to make them pretty!  Bake on 425 for 30-40 minutes. You'll get a yummy finished product! We each ate one for lunch, I put two in the fridge to eat for breakfast or lunch this week, and the rest I froze. They can be thawed individually as needed. Much better for you, fresher, and WAY cheaper than the kind you buy in the freezer section.

What's for dinner tonight? (times three)

Several of the blogs I regularly (religiously) read include little segments on recipes, etc. Since I am a frustrated chef (I love to cook) I thought it'd be fun to do a post on what we're eating this week. When I cook I have several criteria I try to meet:

* I try to use inexpensive ingredients

* I buy ingredients that can be used for multiple recipes

* I try to make healthy substitutions for recipes we love

* One new goal is to make things that can easily be transformed into meals for Jack, now that he is beginning to eat some "real people food"

So, yesterday I was cooking dinner for Mike to take to his brother's house so they could hang out. I made Cheesy Chicken Casserole, which is a favorite in our house, and simply split it into two separate small casserole dishes so that Mike could take one and I could eat from one/ we'd have leftovers here. Our chicken was frozen, so I decided to give a go at making my own chicken stock since we were in a hurry and I knew I'd need to boil the chicken. Usually I'd cook it in the crock pot. Here are my "recipes" for the casserole and the stock. Note: I use the word recipe loosely, as I rarely do the same thing twice.

Homemade Chicken Stock

You'll need:

4 lbs frozen chicken

1 bag frozen mixed veggies (fresh veggies are better, but we were on a schedule)

1/2 an onion, chopped

1 tbsp minced garlic

1 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

water

In a large stock pot, saute the onion and garlic in olive oil. Add frozen chicken and veggies, and cover with water. Cover the stockpot, bringing to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for however long you have. The longer it sits, the better! Strain in to a pitcher- mine made about a gallon. Set aside veggies and chicken for later use. Taste stock, adding salt and pepper if needed. If the taste isn't strong enough for you (especially if you're taking the quick route like me) place it back in the stock pot and boil it down to concentrate the flavor. Pour into individual containers and freeze for later use!

Cheesy Chicken Casserole

You'll need:

2 lbs cooked chicken from above, cubed and seasoned

1/2 the frozen veggies from above

1 can cream of mushroom, celery or chicken soup

1 can cheese soup

1/2 bag Baked Nacho Cheese Doritos

shredded cheese

In the bottom of a 9x13 dish place a layer of crushed Doritos. Place cubed chicken and cooked veggies on top. Pour cream of mushroom (or whatever) and cheese soups on top, spreading evenly. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Put another layer of crushed Doritos on top and top with a handful of shredded cheese. Bake for 5 more minutes, until cheese is melted. And to quote Rachel Ray... "yum-o!"

So, while I was in a cooking mood, I decided to make a greek pasta dish I've been wanting to make. I had it at Zio's not too long ago, and I loved it! I didn't love paying almost $9 for it, though, so I wanted to give it a go at home. I found a recipe to duplicate it here and I made a few changes.

(Imitation) Zio's Greek Pasta

You'll need:

1-2 lbs cooked chicken from above, cubed

1/2 of the remaining mixed veggies from above

1 lb whole wheat penne pasta (whole wheat pasta is awesome for you and tastes the same at "white" pasta- try it!)

6 oz feta cheese

1 tomato, diced

1/4 c olive oil

2 tbsp minced garlic

6 oz kalamata olives, pitted and sliced

3 strips turkey bacon

seasoning mix:

2 parts: oregano, salt, onion powder, garlic powder

1 part: cornstarch, black pepper, parsley, paprika

1/2 part: cinnamon, nutmeg, thyme

A note about the ingredients...

* The veggies have nothing to do with greek pasta, and might seem a little weird. I use them as a filler and it gives the bonus of extra vitamins and good stuff.

* Kalamata olives break my rule of buying cheap- but in my opinion are worth it. They are also kind of a pain in that they usually have pits. For a cheaper, easier alternative you can buy sliced black olives.

* Originally my thought was to use pancetta instead of bacon (again, neither having to do with greek food, but yummy sounding to me). But pancetta is more expensive and turkey bacon is better for you...

Cook pasta and drain. Saute garlic, olives, mixed veggies, and tomatoes in a little the olive oil. Cut bacon in small strips and saute with veggies. Toss in the chicken and season with half of the seasoning mix. Mix chicken/veggie mixture with pasta in a large bowl then add in the feta cheese. Serve hot or cold (like a greek pasta salad).

The remaining veggies and tiny pieces of chicken I saved to refrigerate for Jack. Here he is enjoying it- along with a messy, messy biter biscuit.

All clean!