Friday, July 15, 2011

Cheddar Cheese Bread


  • 1oz Parmesan cheese, shredded on large holes of box grater (about 1/3 C; see note)
  • 3/4 C plus 2 Tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • pinch cayenne pepper
  • pinch pepper
  • 2oz extra-sharp cheddar cheese, cut into 1/4-inch cubes (about 1/2 C)
  • 1/4 C whole milk
  • 3 Tbsp sour cream
  • 1 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus extra for greasing pan
  • 1 large egg
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease 5-1/2 by 3 inch loaf pan, then sprinkle 2 Tbsp plus 1 tsp Parmesan cheese evenly over bottom of pan.
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, cayenne, and pepper together in medium bowl. Fold in cheddar, breaking up clumps, until it is coated with flour mixture. In separate bowl, whisk milk, sour cream, melted butter, and egg together until smooth. Gently fold milk mixture into flour mixture with rubber spatula until just combined (do not overmix). Batter will be heavy and thick.
3. Scrape batter into prepared pan and smooth top. Sprinkle remaining 3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese evenly over top of batter. Bake until golden brown and toothpick inserted into center comes out with few crumbs attached, 30 to 40 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking.
4. Let bread cool in pan for 5 minutes, then turn it out onto wire rack and let cool for 1 hour before serving.

Robyn's notes: this is an America's Test Kitchen recipe, which means it's very specific and has several notes. These are theirs: Shredding the Parmesan on the large holes of a box grater and sprinkling it over the top of this bread adds a nice texture and helps prevent the cheese from burning; do not grate it fine or use pre-grated Parmesan. The texture of the bread improves as it cools, so resist the urge to slice the loaf while it is piping hot. The bread can be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days. These notes are mine: I did grate the Parmesan myself, and I measured both cheeses by weight, not cup measurement. Cutting the cheddar into quarter-inch cubes probably took me about as long as the rest of the preparation. The first loaf I made was cooked through (clean toothpick) after 30 minutes, but the top wasn't at all golden. I took it out and let it cool anyway, so that the inside wouldn't get too dry. It was tasty and moist but a bit dense. I'm making two more mini-loaves as gifts, so I will likely let them cook a bit longer to see how they do. The Parmesan top and bottom was a great touch.

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Sugar 'n Spice Fruit Dip


  • 1/2 Tbsp packed brown sugar or honey
  • 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
  • Pinch ground nutmeg
  • 1 container (6 oz) Yoplait® Thick & Creamy vanilla yogurt
  • 1 C red raspberries
  • 1 1/4 C cubed honeydew melon, apple, or pear
1. In small bowl, mix brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir in yogurt.
2. Spoon yogurt mixture into small serving bowl. Sprinkle with additional ground cinnamon. Serve with fruit.

Yield: 5 servings (2 tablespoons dip, 3 pieces cubed fruit and 5 raspberries each)

Robyn's notes: this is half of the original recipe, but still makes quite a bit of dip. It will keep in a covered container in the refrigerator for a couple days if necessary.  Watch me demonstrate this recipe on youtube!

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Nutritional Information: 1 Serving (1 Serving) Calories 70 (Calories from Fat 5); Total Fat 1/2g (Saturated Fat 0g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 30mg; Total Carbohydrate 13g (Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 10g); Protein 2g

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Homestyle Mac n Cheese With a Kick


  • 1 C elbow macaroni (4 oz)
  • 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1/4 C all-purpose flour
  • 1 -1/2 C whole milk
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp ground white or black pepper
  • 1 -1/2 C grated sharp Cheddar, divided (about 4 ounces)
  • 1/2 C crushed Hot 'n Spicy Cheez-It crackers
1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Cook macaroni according to package instructions, drain, set aside.
3. Spray 1-1/2 quart casserole dish with nonstick cooking spray, set aside.
4. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until well combined (up to 90 seconds). Do not allow the flour to brown. Using a whisk, add the milk slowly and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture is smooth, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Add salt, pepper, 1 C of the cheese, and stir well.
5. In a mixing bowl, combine the remaining 1/2 C of cheese with the crushed Cheez-Its.
6. Add the macaroni to the pot with the milk and cheese. Stir to combine well, then pour the mixture into casserole dish. Top with the cheez-it mixture. Bake until golden brown and bubbly at the edges, about 20-25 minutes.
7. Remove the dish from the oven and let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Yield: 3 servings

Tips: Once the flour and butter have been incorporated, spoon some of that mixture into the measuring cup full of milk. This will help the milk start to warm up to the temperature of the flour and butter, so that when the milk is poured into the pan it doesn't curdle. The less fat there is in the milk, the higher the likelihood of curdling, so using whole milk you're unlikely to have this problem, but this is a useful trick to have in your arsenal.
When I had finished whisking in the milk, the sauce seemed quite thin to me, but it thickened up a lot during baking, so don't worry too much if it appears thin to you.
If you have a food processor, you can crush the crackers with it, otherwise use the method I usually use (I don't enjoy cleaning my food processor, so I don't use it often): bag the crackers in a zip-loc bag (double bag if not using heavy-duty freezer bags), then crush with a rolling pin. 1 C of whole crackers will crush to a bit over 1/2 C.

Robyn's notes: I wrote this recipe after my friend Patience Ann mentioned that her mom had used Cheez-Its for her macaroni and cheese topping when cooking for a Scouting event recently. I immediately started thinking about the various Cheez-It varieties and how each of them could be used to make a different kind of mac n cheese. My taste-testers really enjoyed this (as did I), and I'm quite proud of it. I made this in individual casserole dishes, instead of the one large one I've written the recipe for. There was exactly enough for three servings.

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Monday, July 4, 2011

Hard-Boiled Eggs

also known as Hard-Cooked Eggs
  • 6 large eggs
  • Cold water
1. Place eggs in a single layer in a large saucepan (do not stack eggs). Add enough cold water to cover the eggs by 1 inch. Bring to a rapid boil over high heat (water will have large rapidly breaking bubbles). Remove from heat, cover, and let stand for 15 minutes; drain.
2. Run cold water over the eggs or place them in ice water until cool enough to handle; drain.
3. To peel eggs, gently tap each egg on the countertop. Roll the egg between the palms of your hands. Peel off eggshell, starting at the large end.

Yield: 6 hard-boiled eggs

If you have extra-large eggs, let eggs stand in the boiled water for 18 minutes.

Robyn's notes: this is the method I use to hard-boil eggs. It seems basically every household has their own preferred method. My family's one addition to this is to poke a small hole in the base (rounded end) of each egg with a pin. It helps keep the eggs from cracking during cooking.

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Nutrition Facts: Calories 78; Total Fat 5g; Saturated Fat 2g; Monounsaturated Fat 2g; Polyunsaturated Fat 1g; Cholesterol 212mg; Sodium 62mg; Carbohydrate 1g; Total Sugar 0g; Fiber 0g; Protein 6g; Vitamin A 0%DV; Vitamin C 0%DV; Calcium 3%DV; Iron 3%DV; Medium-fat Meat 1(d.e.)

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Oatmeal Scotchies


Check yield, this makes a lot of cookies
Update: I have written a small-batch version of this recipe, found here.
  • 1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or grated peel of 1 orange
  • 3 cups quick or old-fashioned oats
  • 1-2/3 cups (11-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Butterscotch Flavored Morsels
1. Preheat oven to 375° F.
2. Combine flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in oats and morsels. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.
3. Bake for 7 to 8 minutes for chewy cookies or 9 to 10 minutes for crisp cookies. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Yield: 48 cookies

Robyn's notes: I make these in a slightly different order in order to minimize the dishes to be washed. I start by creaming the butter, sugars, and vanilla extract. Then beat in the eggs. I drop the flour on top of the wet mixture, and carefully drop the soda, salt, and cinnamon on top of the flour, stirring the dry ingredients together without incorporating the wet. Once the dry ingredients are fairly well combined, then I stir the whole thing together. Add oats, stir, then morsels, stir. I prefer these chewy, so I cook for the shorter time range.

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Rigatoni and Ham Bake



  • 1 1/2 C Rigatoni or 3/4 C elbow macaroni
  • 1 C diced cooked ham
  • 3oz (3/4 C) shredded cheddar cheese, divided
  • 1 Tbsp butter
  • 2 Tbsp flour
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp dry mustard
  • 1 1/4 C milk
  • 1/3 C crushed potato chips
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain.
2. In large bowl, combine cooked pasta, ham, and 1/2 Cup cheese.
3. In medium saucepan, melt butter. Blend in flour, salt, and mustard. Add milk all at once. Cook until thickened, stirring constantly, about 1 minute. Combine sauce with pasta mixture. Turn into individual 2-cup casserole dishes. Toss remaining 1/4 Cup cheddar cheese with potato chips; sprinkle over top. Bake at 350°F for 20 to 25 minutes.


Robyn's notes: We've been making this recipe in my family since 1981. It's one of those very typical late-70s/early-80s casseroles, but we love it all the same.  My family always uses more cheese than is called for in practically any recipe, so feel free to go a little overboard on cheese.

***** 5 Stars: Excellent. A favourite for both of us, I will make this repeatedly

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Chicken and Citrus Couscous Salad


  • 1 C orange juice
  • 2 tsp olive oil or butter
  • 3/4 C plain couscous
  • 6oz cubed fully cooked chicken breast (approximately 3/4 C)
  • 1/4 C dry roasted peanuts
  • 1/4 C mandarin orange segments, drained (or one "fruit cup" size)
1. In medium saucepan, bring orange juice and olive oil just to a boil. Stir in couscous. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit 5 minutes. Fluff with fork, transfer to a covered dish, and refrigerate.
2. In 10-inch skillet, heat chicken and peanuts for 4-6 minutes, or until chicken is browned.
3. Add chicken and peanuts to cooled couscous, top with mandarin orange segments.

Robyn's notes: the couscous does not need to be cold, just cooled. This is meant to be a quick dish for a warm day, and if the couscous is hot it makes the orange segments seem kind of gummy. I served this on a bed of baby spinach.**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Sunday, May 22, 2011

Frittata

  • 4 C fresh spinach, stemmed and lightly packed
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 2 C coarsely grated zucchini
  • 1/2 C thinly sliced green peppers
  • 1/2 C thinly sliced onions
  • 4 eggs
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • pepper to taste
  • 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1. Wash the spinach in cold water to remove any sand and grit. Shake off the excess water but don't dry the spinach.
2. Place the spinach in a heavy 10" nonstick skillet with just the water left clinging to the leaves. Cook over medium heat until just wilted. Coarsely chop the spinach and set it aside.
3. Dry the skillet with a paper towel and place over medium heat for a minute or two. Add the oil, then stir in the zucchini, green peppers, and onions. Cook the vegetables, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes, or until the liquid released from the zucchini has evaporated and the vegetables have cooked down to about half their original volume. Stir in the spinach and remove the skillet from the heat.
4. In a small mixing bowl, beat the eggs, salt and pepper until foamy. Return the skillet to the heat and pour the eggs evenly over the vegetables. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, or until the eggs are set.
5. Run a knife around the edge of the frittata to loosen it; then carefully invert it onto a plate. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Cut into wedges and serve.

Robyn's notes: this is not something I can eat, but my sweetheart loves when I make frittatas. I like them as a way to use up leftover vegetables before they go bad. My general rule of thumb is about 1/2 cup cooked vegetables for every egg, and I briefly blanch raw veggies (except tomatoes and onions). One that I made that went over particularly well was mostly asparagus pieces, with extra Parmesan. Even though I can't eat them due to my dietary restrictions, I really like frittata nights because they're quick to make and I can make myself a fast omelet at the same time.

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Friday, May 20, 2011

Chocolate Cherry Bars



Check yield, this is a full-size dessert, not scaled down for two
  • 1 pkg Pillsbury Fudge Cake Mix
  • 21-oz can cherry fruit filling (pie filling)
  • 1 tsp almond extract
  • 2 eggs, beaten
Frosting:
  • 1 C sugar
  • 5 Tbsp butter
  • 1/3 C milk
  • 6-oz pkg (1 cup) semi-sweet chocolate morsels
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Using solid shortening or margarine (not oil), grease and flour 13x9inch pan.
2. In large bowl, combine first four ingredients. By hand, stir until well mixed. Pour into prepared pan. Bake 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
3. While bars cool, prepare frosting. In small saucepan, combine sugar, butter, and milk. Boil, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Remove from heat; stir in chocolate pieces until smooth. Pour over partially cooled bars.

Yield: About 3 dozen bars.

Robyn's notes: this has been a family favourite for decades, because it's so easy but comes out so good every time. It's moist and the cherry isn't overpowering. This was a Pillsbury Bake-off recipe winner in 1974, and Pillsbury does sometimes change the name of their boxed mixes. I don't know if they currently use the words "fudge cake mix", but any basic chocolate cake mix works. Just be sure it's a cake mix, not brownies, and that there isn't anything additional (such as chunks of chocolate). When making this last night, we had a Betty Crocker Dark Chocolate Cake Mix in the house, and that's what we used.

***** 5 Stars: Excellent. A favourite for both of us, I will make this repeatedly

Monday, May 16, 2011

Stir-Fried Chicken with Toasted Sesame Seeds

  • 2 Tbsp hot water
  • 3 Tbsp dry mustard
  • 1/2 C soy sauce
  • 2 Tbsp plus 2 tsp sesame seeds
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 2 Tbsp canola or peanut oil
  • 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 1 Tbsp lemon juice
  • pepper to taste
1. Place sesame seeds in a small skillet over medium-high heat and cook briefly until nicely brown and fragrant. Place seeds in a small bowl.
2. Whisk the water, dry mustard, soy sauce, 2 Tbsp sesame seeds and garlic in a small bowl.
3. Heat oil in a 10-inch skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add chicken cubes and stir-fry 5-8 minutes until lightly brown and opaque. Sprinkle with pepper, lemon juice and remaining sesame seeds. Cook for 2-3 more minutes until heated through. Serve with mustard sauce as a dipping sauce.

Robyn's notes: this was seriously painful to eat. It has potential, but would need some changes. For me it was especially difficult because I'm not allowed to eat sesame seeds, but I felt that the toasted flavor they'd impart was probably necessary to make the recipe "go", so I didn't leave them out, which meant lots of scraping my food before I could eat it. For me, if I were to make it again, I'd strain part of the sauce and set it aside for my own use. In addition, I'd definitely reduce the amount of mustard and probably be more sparing with the lemon juice. Every time I put a piece of chicken in my mouth, my tongue seized up. I served this with white rice and glazed carrots.

** 2 Stars: Acceptable. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, if I make changes

I did not take the below picture, forgive the poor angle

Friday, May 6, 2011

Skillet Spaghetti with Hot Dogs


  • 1 1/4 C elbow macaroni
  • 1/2 lb hot dogs, sliced into coins
  • 2 Tbsp chopped onion
  • 1 Tbsp butter
  • 2oz (1/2 C) shredded cheddar cheese
  • 1/4 C water
  • 1/2 C condensed tomato soup (half of a 10.75oz can)
1. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain.
2. In large skillet, fry hot dogs with onion and butter over medium heat. Add cheese, water, and soup. Cook until cheese is melted, stirring constantly. Stir in cooked pasta and cook until heated through.


Robyn's notes: this is purely comfort food, I do not claim this as a healthy recipe. Ever since 1981, my family has used this as a go-to meal when everybody is tired or stressed and needs something quick and filling.  See "Using Up Ingredients" at the top of the page for suggestions for using the other half of the can of soup. Originally this recipe called for "sp-o-ghetti rings™" which I've never seen in stores (like the pasta in spaghetti-o's), we really just use whatever small pasta we have on hand. 

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Lazy Meaty Lasagna



This is based on the recipe for Lazy Lasagna, which was vegetarian. I was cooking this for people who prefer to have meat with every meal, so I added the ground turkey. Follow the above link for the meatless version.
  • 1 1/2 C wide noodles
  • 1/2 lb lean ground turkey
  • 1 C spaghetti sauce
  • 1/2 C cottage cheese
  • 3/4 C shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, crumble turkey into a large skillet. Cook over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in the spaghetti sauce, cottage cheese and mozzarella. Fold in the noodles. Pour into two greased 2-cup casserole dishes. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
2. Bake, uncovered, at 375°F for 20 minutes or until bubbly.

Robyn's notes: very simple recipe. I had shredded Parmesan in the house, so used that instead of the grated and I think it was better. As far as "greasing" the casserole dishes, I sprayed them with Pam cooking spray. I've made the meatless version in the past using lasagna noodles that I broke in half before cooking. Made this again, for my sister, June 14, 2011, using ground beef instead of turkey. Came out very well.

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Processed Dinners For Two

Sometimes, I'm just too ill or too exhausted to cook a full meal. But we do need to eat, and I don't like leftovers or tv dinners, so when I can't cook for whatever reason, I try to stick with items marketed specifically for two servings. Some are pretty good, some are pretty awful, some are fine but a waste of money.

Barilla Three Cheese Tortellini 8oz package



I've walked past this on the shelf a few times and it never grabbed me, so I never grabbed it. But last time I went shopping it was on sale, so I decided to give it a try. The sale price was 2 for $6 (I bought only one) and regular price $3.49.

Pros: definitely enough pasta for two people, possibly even a bit more than we'd normally have. Very few of the tortellinis opened in cooking/draining, so very little filling spilled out. Easy prep. Tasted good. Shelf stable.

Cons: Apparent typo on package instructions. Package advertising not strictly accurate.

Details: the packaging attracted me because it's labelled as "Dinner for 2 in 10 Minutes". It is not, however, a 10 minute prep time. There was very little information on the packaging, and the instructions were nearly on the bottom (it's bag-shaped, so a curved base, which means it was somewhat back, somewhat bottom), but it says "Bring 3-4 quarts of water to a rolling boil". This annoyed me, frankly, because while I do own a pan large enough to boil 3-4 quarts of water, it's my stockpot, which is not often used, and it takes forever to bring that much water to a boil. Since the pasta had to cook for an additional 10-11 minutes after the water came to a boil, obviously it's not "dinner in 10 minutes". The product description on my grocery store's website says "Total Time 20 minutes" but that is not anywhere on the packaging. The same website includes the instructions for the product, which state "bring 2-3 quarts of water to a rolling boil". This sounds much more accurate for the amount of pasta being cooked, so I can only assume that there's an error at the package printing site, and that the instructions for the 12oz size were printed on what is definitely an 8oz bag.

I plated the pasta with two separate toppings, as I didn't have any pasta sauce in the house. I sprinkled a shredded cheese combination over the top on one plate, and it was acceptable. On the other, I tossed the pasta with butter and Parmesan cheese. Better than the other plate but still not exciting, though it's what the packaging suggested.

In the past I've several times served Buitoni refrigerated Three Cheese Tortellini in the 9oz package and liked it. Comparing the two it's basically a draw. The Buitoni fridge pasta tastes a bit better to me, but has to be eaten or frozen within a certain number of days, it's more pasta than we need for two people, and it's $1 more expensive at my grocery store. The Barilla wasn't quite as good, seemed a bit lower quality, but can sit on the shelf for months just like canned foods, and is the less expensive option. Both should be served with a pasta sauce for best results, whether fresh or in a jar, which drops both products down a notch for me because it doubles the price of the meal and means leftover sauce that has to be used or tossed (as pasta sauce is not generally available in sizes serving 2).

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Friday, October 29, 2010

Oven Ranch Chicken


  • 1/3 C bread crumbs
  • 1 (0.4 oz) package buttermilk ranch salad dressing mix
  • 1/3 C light sour cream
  • 2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
1. Heat oven to 375°F. Spray cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In shallow dish or pie pan, combine bread crumbs and salad dressing mix; mix well. Place sour cream in another shallow dish or pie pan.
3. Dip chicken in sour cream, coating well. Roll coated chicken in bread crumb mixture. Place chicken on sprayed cookie sheet. If desired, spray chicken with nonstick cooking spray. Discard any remaining bread crumb mixture and sour cream.
4. Bake at 375°F for 30 to 35 minutes or until chicken is fork-tender and juices run clear.

Robyn's notes: I used Progresso bread crumbs. This recipe keeps the chicken nicely juicy, and it's very quick to make. Not visually exciting, but quite good.

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Mediterranean Vegetable Medley

Mediterranean Chicken, Couscous, Veg

  • 1/2 onion
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1 medium tomato
  • 1/2 eggplant
  • 1/2 zucchini
  • 1/2 yellow pepper
  • 1 C mushrooms
  • black pepper
  • juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 1 Tbsp soy sauce
1. Chop & salt eggplant, let stand 15 minutes.
2. Chop remaining vegetables.
3. Fry onion and garlic until soft.
4. Add yellow pepper and zucchini, fry for 5 minutes.
5. Rinse eggplant and squeeze to remove water and juice, add to frying pan with mushrooms and black pepper, fry for 10 minutes.
6. Add tomatoes to the pan with lemon juice and soy sauce, fry until tomatoes are soft.

Robyn's notes: this was meant to be placed on Foccacia or Ciabatta bread and topped with cheese, but I didn't have any bread in the house, so I simply served it as a side as shown below. Because this called for 1/2 each of several vegetables, I prepped two meals at once so as not to waste the other half.

Friday, October 1, 2010

Mini Cottage Pies

Mini Cottage Pie

  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 pound ground turkey
  • 1/4 C chopped onion
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
  • 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 C beef stock
  • 1/2 C frozen peas and carrots
  • 1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley leaves
  • 1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary leaves
  • 1 C leftover mashed potatoes
  • 1 1/2 tsp granulated garlic powder
  • 1 Tbsp granulated onion powder
  • 1 C shredded Cheddar
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add ground turkey and brown.
3. Stir in the onions, salt, pepper and garlic and allow to cook together for a couple of minutes.
4. Mix flour into the meat mixture and stir until a paste consistency is reached. Add beef stock to pan and stir in vegetables and herbs, the last few minutes, until combined.
5. Reheat mashed potatoes in a microwave for 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in granulated garlic and onion powder.
6. Spoon equal amounts of turkey mixture into two ramekins. Top with equal amounts of warm potatoes. Finally top with equal amounts of cheese. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until cheese is melted and browned. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before serving.

Robyn's notes: I was using four-cheese mashed potatoes, so didn't add the garlic powder or onion powder to them. Because I can't have onions, garlic, peas, or carrots, I made half this recipe twice. First the version I could eat, omitting those steps, then as written above for my sweetheart. The photo below isn't the best, but he was hungry so I had to take it quickly.

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Fudgy Peanut Butter Ice Cream Mini Pies

Ice Cream Pie

  • ½ C chocolate graham cracker crumbs1—abt 3 whole crackers
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 2 tsp egg substitute (OR 2 tsp egg white)
  • 2 tsp butter, melted
  • 1 -1/3 C fat-free vanilla frozen yogurt, softened2
  • 8 miniature chocolate peanut butter cups, coarsely chopped
  • ¼ C hot fudge ice cream topping—at room temperature
1. In a small bowl, combine cracker crumbs and sugar, stir in egg white and butter.
2. Press onto the bottom and up the sides of two oven-safe custard cups or ramekins coated with cooking spray (crumb mix will not reach tops of custard cups).

Ice Cream Pie Crusts

3. Place custard cups or ramekins on a shallow baking pan or cookie sheet and bake at 325F for 6-8 minutes or until set. Cool completely on a wire rack.

4. Spread 1/3C of frozen yogurt into each crust. Sprinkle each with one-fourth of the peanut butter cup bits; drizzle with one-fourth of hot fudge.

Ice Cream Pie Midway

5. Repeat with remaining yogurt, peanut butter cups, and fudge3. Cover and freeze for 6 hours or overnight. Remove from the freezer 10 minutes before serving.

1Don't have a food processor to make your crumbs, or don't want to pull out all the pieces (and later have to clean them) just to crush a few graham crackers into crumbs? Put crackers into a ziploc bag (make sure to seal it!), and crush with a rolling pin. If you don't have a rolling pin, you can use a mallet, or your fingers. Even a double pointed knitting needle will suffice as a roller to crush the crackers down to bits. It is possible to purchase graham crackers that have already been smashed for you, but in my opinion the extra expense is simply not worth it. You'll only save 2 or 3 minutes when you're crushing such a small amount of crackers. While I usually get the name brand graham crackers if I'm using them whole, when I'm buying crackers specifically for crushing I always get the store brand. I cannot tell any taste difference, they crush just as easily, and there is no visible difference in the crumbs.

2Often, when a recipe says “softened”, you can get away without doing so. For this one, if the frozen yogurt hasn't softened for several minutes, it will be nearly impossible to get it to spread into the crust and all that will happen is you'll have a firm blob of frozen yogurt stuck to your spoon, with graham cracker crumb crust clinging to it all over. Just take the frozen yogurt container out of the freezer when you put the crust cups into the oven and it should be softened enough by the time they've baked and cooled.

3Alternate option: do not add fudge to the top. Freeze as directed. Just before serving, heat remaining hot fudge and drizzle over the top of each mini-pie.

Robyn's notes: Approximating how much fudge is being drizzled on is fine, really, it's not like that stuff comes out of the bottle easily. To make it easier on myself, when I chopped the mini peanut butter cups, I chopped two at a time into four separate piles. Then, when it came time to sprinkle one-fourth of the total onto the pie, one of those piles was exactly the amount I needed. This is obviously not a "healthy" recipe, but it is made somewhat better for you in terms of calories through the use of egg substitute and frozen yogurt.

Ice Cream Pie PB Cups

Monday, December 28, 2009

Sharpen Your Knives

This blog has been a long time neglected. First I was too sick to keep it updated. Then I was too sick to cook. Then I was too sick to cook or to bring it at least to the most current. Then it got to be too much of a pain to log in and out of my different gmail addresses all the time. So I've switched it over to this gmail address, where two of my other blogs are, and left my locked up blogs on the other gmail address, since I only post on them for me and therefore it matters less whether I get around to it regularly.

Now that it's here I've switched it from Blogger's Template format (to which I had done a lot of tweaking) to the Layout format. I think I've maintained all the basic and important personalizations, but there may still be some changes and/or additions as I discover I've forgotten something.

There are a handful of recipes from 2008 that still need to be added to the archives, but I did not keep track of my 2009 daily recipes as I did in the time previous, so there will be a huge jump between the old and the new. I am not healthy enough to cook on a regular basis anymore, so there will likely be fewer posts, but hopefully that will be made up for by the fact that I now have a camera (secondhand, but still! gift from my folks) and a pressure canner (gift from my sweetheart), so I intend to include more photos of the meals and to have preserved dishes as well as complete meals. My sweetheart has begun hunting again, which trips I enjoy accompanying him on, so at some point there should be recipes for game animals and birds, also. We'll see what truly happens in the end.

Friday, May 2, 2008

Deviled Tilapia

  • 2 (5oz each) tilapia fillets
  • 2 tsp mayonnaise
  • 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 2 Tbsp dry vermouth or lemon juice
  • paprika to taste
  • salt and pepper to taste
1. Preheat the broiler
2. Line a small baking pan with foil, then lay the tilapia on the foil, skin side down.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, mustard and vermouth or lemon juice. Spread the sauce evenly over the tilapia. Sprinkle with the paprika, salt and pepper.
4. Broil 6" from the heat for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the tilapia is firm and the topping is well-browned.

Robyn's notes: the original recipe called for mackerel. This would go well with new potatoes or coleslaw.

Thursday, May 1, 2008

Mexican Lasagna

  • 1 green onion
  • 1 C canned diced tomatoes (with juice)
  • 1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 6 corn tortillas
  • 3/4 C rinsed and drained canned pinto or kidney beans
  • 1/2 C coarsely shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 1/4 C nonfat plain yogurt
  • 1/4 C coarsely shredded Cheddar cheese
1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. Thinly slice the green onions, including the tender green part. Place the green onions in a small bowl or glass measure. Add the tomatoes (with juice), cilantro (if using), chili powder, cumin and garlic.
3. Spread half the mixture evenly in an 8" pie pan. Top with half the tortillas and all the beans. Sprinkle with the mozzarella. Top with the remaining tortillas and tomato mixture. Whisk the yogurt briefly and spread it over the tomato mixture. Sprinkle the Cheddar over the top.
4. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the casserole is bubbling hot throughout and the cheese is melted. Let stand for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Robyn's notes: the recipe says that the casserole can also be microwaved on high for 2 minutes, but I can't speak to that. It's easily double-able if made in an 11"x7" baking pan instead of pie pan.