Favorites – Page 16 – Feed Your Kids

Homemade Granola – two yummy versions

Steff’s Homemade “Cran-crazy” Granola I came across this granola recipe on Canadian Steff’s blog. (WARNING about Steff’s blog: In addition to a few good recipes, it also has some adult themes. If you are easily offended, DO NOT poke around on the blog past the granola recipe.) Her recipe was adapted from this one on … Continue reading “Homemade Granola – two yummy versions”

Steff’s Homemade “Cran-crazy” Granola

I came across this granola recipe on Canadian Steff’s blog. (WARNING about Steff’s blog: In addition to a few good recipes, it also has some adult themes. If you are easily offended, DO NOT poke around on the blog past the granola recipe.) Her recipe was adapted from this one on allrecipes.com.

I’ve adapted the recipe a little bit, too:
I took Steff’s suggestion to up the flax seeds to 3/4 cup.
I used sliced almonds instead of chopped (I think they’re prettier).
I used pecans instead of walnuts (personal preference).
I added 2 scoops of milled flaxseed, in addition to the whole flax seeds.
I used a Cinnamon Spice Blend, instead of just plain cinnamon. The recipe can be found here.

It’s QUITE yummy. This granola can be eaten on its own as a cereal, or sprinkled over the top of other cereals (or ice cream, yogurt, etc.). I had never used safflower oil before, but I will definitely keep it on hand from now on. It’s amazingly light and I think would adapt to lots of different uses.

My friend Kathleen’s Almond-Coconut Granola
(originally from our mutual hairdresser, Monique)

Equal parts of:
Sliced almonds
Coconut “chips” (large shreds of unsweetened coconut)
Old-fashioned oats

Granola ingredients, before being coated with maple syrup and baked.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir in enough maple syrup to just BARELY moisten the ingredients. Spread into a large, flat baking pan.

Bake for about 20 minutes, watching very carefully and turning and stirring about every 5 minutes, until the granola is evenly golden-toasted.

For the batch that I made yesterday, I used 3 cups each of almonds, oats and coconut, with about 3/4 cup maple syrup, plus I added 3 Tbsp wheat germ and 3 scoops of milled flax seed.

Because this granola is pretty sweet, is a better “garnish” granola than it is a “eat a whole bowlful” granola. I like to mix it with Cheerios (2 parts Cheerios to 1 part granola).

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

One of the women in my book club made these chicken lettuce wraps for our last meeting and they were absolutely scrumptious. One bite and I knew that I needed to make them for Hubby, Boy and Girl. They are a bit of a pain to make, for what they are. You need lots of serving dishes for this (even without the dumplings and eggrolls). You have to make 2 different from-scratch dressings. You need to use your blender, your grill and either the stove-top or a rice cooker. There’s a hefty amount of chopping, including ginger, which is a headache for me. They were totally yummy, though, and I would make these again.

Modifications and simplification recommendations:
I forgot to toss the cooked chicken in the additional Lime Vinaigrette (and we didn’t miss it). If you wanted to simplify the recipe, you could marinate the chicken in a bit of bottled Teriyaki sauce instead of preparing the lime vinaigrette.

I sliced the chicken, instead of shredding it. That was probably a mistake – it’s probably worth the trouble to shred (or chop) it, to make the bites of meat in the wrap smaller. I also forgot to wash the rice, but I think it’s worth the extra step to do that – my friend’s rice was much better and less “clumpy” when she made hers.

The green onion/scallions, though they are yummy, could probably be eliminated. I love cilantro, so I would NEVER omit that. The cucumber could also go, if you’re not a big fan.

The mango (I actually used 2 mangoes, instead of just 1 and we ate it ALL) is crucial – don’t omit that!

The soy-ginger dressing is very good, so I think that’s worth the trouble (bump the amount of sesame oil up to at least 1 tsp).

I cooked some dumplings and eggrolls (frozen) to go with these.

When preparing frozen dumplings, I boil them and then fry them (until they’re golden on one side) in a mixture of canola and peanut oil, with just a tiny bit of toasted sesame oil added in. For eggroll/dumpling dipping sauce, use the sweet & sour sauce that comes in the package, but also use this recipe (from Cooking Light) to make a spicy-salty sauce (we like sweet & sour on eggrolls, but the soy sauce-based sauce on the dumplings

Spicy-Sweet Dipping Sauce:
1 tsp. sriracha
1 Tbsp. rice vinegar
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp. duck sauce
1 Tbsp. minced green onion/scallion

Hubby LOVES this sauce and would probably eat a dead dog if it were doused in this sauce.

If I had thought of it, I would have made some edamame, too, but just didn’t get around to it. I couldn’t find Bibb lettuce right now, either. It really would have been better, but iceberg was OK in a pinch.

The lettuce wraps were a big hit with Hubby, Boy and Boy’s friend, A (and me, too!). Girl was away at a birthday party, but will have some of the leftovers tomorrow.

Vinaigrette, a tutorial

Vinaigrettes are simple, versatile, classic and almost universally well-received. There are endless ways to make them. They are limited only by your own creativity. The basic formula that I use is: 1 part vinegar to 2 parts oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper, but that’s just a jumping-off point. A tiny bit of … Continue reading “Vinaigrette, a tutorial”

Vinaigrettes are simple, versatile, classic and almost universally well-received. There are endless ways to make them. They are limited only by your own creativity.

The basic formula that I use is: 1 part vinegar to 2 parts oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper, but that’s just a jumping-off point. A tiny bit of something sweet (honey, maple syrup or even plain sugar) is a good flavor balance. Be sure to whisk together all of the liquid ingredients (except the oil) and then VERY slowly pour in the oil, continuously whisking, to thoroughly combine and emulsify the ingredients.

For example:

Balsamic Vinaigrette

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp. prepared mustard, optional
1 tsp. to 1 Tbsp. honey
(depending on how sweet you want the dressing to be – you can substitute sugar if you prefer)
1/2 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Whisk together the vinegar, mustard and honey. Slowly pour in the olive oil while continuously whisking, until dressing is thoroughly blended. Season with salt and pepper as desired.

(I make at least one batch of that per week – I can practically make it in my sleep now.)

If you happen to have some puree or coulis (of any sort) on hand, you can use that as a flavoring base to make a specific kind of vinaigrette: roasted red pepper, canned pumpkin, raspberry puree, cranberry sauce, etc. You can adjust the vinegar-sweetener combinations accordingly. Apple cider vinegar is great if you want your finished vinaigrette to have a leaning towards the sweet side. Canola or safflower oil is great if your salad will have a lot of fruit in it (olive oil can be overpowering for a not-too-savory salad) and you want a lighter oil. White balsamic vinegar is great if you want the herby flavor of balsamic, but don’t want to discolor the composition of your salad. Feel free to substitute any vinegar (raspberry? champagne?) or any oil (walnut?) to complement the flavors of your salad ingredients.

Other possible additions:
poppy seeds, minced garlic, ginger (with a bit of soy sauce, chopped peanuts or peanut butter, rice vinegar and peanut oil with a small splash of sesame oil mixed in to give an Asian flavor), chopped fresh (or even dried) herbs, a bit of jam or concentrated fruit juice, toasted nuts, citrus zest, or a bit of freshly-grated parmesan cheese.

Don’t be afraid to be generous with the salt – each portion of the dressing only gets a portion of the salt, so it’s really hard to make it taste too salty (taste it to be sure, of course!). Salt can really add the perfect flavor punch and is really pretty crucial.

I like to store prepared vinaigrette in small, lidded glass jars or bottles. I really like the glass bottles that Starbucks Frappuccino comes in. I don’t drink them, but have a wonderful neighbor that does and she saves them for me (I run them through the dishwasher before using them). They’re the PERFECT size to hold about a cup of dressing (with enough head space for shaking before serving, if it’s been sitting a while and has settled or separated a bit).

Here is the recipe for my pumpkin vinaigrette (everyone that I’ve ever served this to has LOVED it):

Pumpkin Vinaigrette

2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 tsp. maple syrup
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper
4 Tbsp. pumpkin puree (or canned pumpkin)
4 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
8 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

Combine all ingredients except the olive oil into a small bowl. Whisk well. Add olive oil and whisk until incorporated. Makes about 1 cup. The full directions for a spectacular fall salad can be found here.

and here is a great recipe for Raspberry Vinaigrette that Girl absolutely LOVES:

1/4 cup raspberry vinegar
1/2 cup canola oil
pinch of salt (I don’t use pepper in this vinaigrette, since it’s meant to be sweeter)
4 Tbsp. raspberry coulis
(the coulis is a bit of a pain to make, but you can use it to garnish desserts also and it will keep nicely in the freezer – ignore the directions about the chocolate sorbet)

I serve this over a salad of baby spinach and apple or mango chunks and girl is in HEAVEN.

Sloppy Joes, Version 2

Homemade (high fructose corn syrup free) Sloppy Joes 1 15-oz can tomato sauce 1 cup ketchup (high fructose corn syrup free) 1/4 cup chopped white onion 1/4 cup chopped bell pepper (red or green, whatever you have on hand) 1/2 tsp Baby Bam seasoning 1 – 2 cloves garlic, chopped 1/2 tsp. celery seed 1 … Continue reading “Sloppy Joes, Version 2”

Homemade (high fructose corn syrup free) Sloppy Joes

1 15-oz can tomato sauce
1 cup ketchup (high fructose corn syrup free)
1/4 cup chopped white onion
1/4 cup chopped bell pepper (red or green, whatever you have on hand)
1/2 tsp Baby Bam seasoning
1 – 2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp. celery seed
1 tsp. prepared mustard
1 tsp. chili powder
1 15-oz can beans (black, kidney, pinto – your choice), drained and rinsed
1 pound ground beef
2 scoops sprouted ground flaxseed (available at Costco)

Brown beef until cooked through. Drain and set aside in a separate bowl or pan. Saute garlic, onion and bell pepper in the pan (using whatever beef fat residue is left in the pan, adding a tiny bit of canola or olive oil, if necessary) until soft. Add beef and all other remaining ingredients back into the pan. Simmer until sauce reaches your desired consistency (10 – 30 minutes), stirring frequently. Stir in flaxseed just before serving and simmer 1 to 2 more minutes, until well combined.

If you’re in a hurry and don’t want to wait for the sauce to thicken, use only half the can of tomato sauce.

French Macaroons

French Almond Macaroons, worthy of being served on my great-aunt Lad’s antique Limoges china. I am feeling like the Goddess of Pastry over here this week. When we were in Europe last summer, we fell in love with Parisian macaroons (macarons). When we got home, I looked all around for a recipe to duplicate them, … Continue reading “French Macaroons”

French Almond Macaroons, worthy of being served on my great-aunt Lad’s antique Limoges china.

I am feeling like the Goddess of Pastry over here this week. When we were in Europe last summer, we fell in love with Parisian macaroons (macarons). When we got home, I looked all around for a recipe to duplicate them, but got scared away by all of the reviews that I read that said things like:

“Okay, I know that at one point in my life, I’ve actually succeeded in making chocolate versions of these little cookies, but recent attempts have resulted in something resembling what a Macaroon should be. They are either cracked, over dried, or so gooey that they fall apart. What’s worse was that they lack the shiney eggshell like sheen.”

“I used the recipe on a la cuisine, referenced in the thread. I think there were too many eggs. Or maybe it was a mixing problem? No smooth, shiny top, no feet. Just a sad, sad sight.”

“Okay, I know when to ask for help. ….I need help. Will any one out there send me any tips or a fool proof recipe for french almond macaroons (vanilla or chocolate). The last 5 days I have been trying to conquer Martha Stewart’s recipe, and have failed miserably. I have baked DOZENS of these ****** cookies to no success. The cookies are cracking on top. I am not able to achieve a beautiful smooth “cookie top”.”

“Tender, picture-perfect macarons are not easy to make. Les Macarons are all about technique, rather than about just following a recipe….I phoned my friend Rob who worked with the chef from Fauchon, and he warned that the batter for perfect macarons needs to be folded just-so.
One extra fold, and it’s all over. Not enough, and you won’t get that little foot.”

I was starting to think that these darned things were the Holy Grail of patisserie!

I don’t know what gave me the courage, but I finally just decided this week that, against all evidence that this was a bad idea, I was going to give making these a try. I guess I figured that cat toilet-training alone wasn’t challenging enough…
(that IS progressing, by the way – slowly, but it is progressing)

Well, I have apparently done something right in a previous life or something, because the macaroons turned out perfectly. On the first try. I was absolutely shocked. I was prepared for failure. I had purchased extra eggs, powdered sugar and almond meal to be sure that I had enough ingredients on hand for the second attempt that I believed was going to be inevitable.

Boy, enthusiastically enjoying a macaroon and what, thanks to my poor photography skills, appears to be (but really isn’t) the World’s Largest Glass of Milk

These were astoundingly delicious and, although I’m afraid that I’m tempting fate with my braggadocio and will be cursed and never able to replicate my feat…..I do think that my macaroons would give the ones that we had in Paris a run for their money. (I’m bracing for the lightning strike being hurled in my direction by the staff of Laduree.)

Seriously, though…they turned out with a shiny, smooth, domed top, a crunchy exterior yet chewy interior, a perfect, ruffly little “foot” and they tasted great (Mexican vanilla, you can’t beat it). My only criticism is that the filling wasn’t quite fluffy enough – it was more like regular buttercream. I think that I may have overcooked the eggs whites a little, so I’ll try to fix that next time.

I used Martha Stewart’s recipe. Here’s another link that has a video clip that you may find helpful.

I followed the recipe fairly closely, but did make a few very minor adjustments:

I decided to make only a half-batch of the buttercream, since that’s all that the macaroons called for and I didn’t want to have a lot left over. As it turned out, even that amount was excessive and I was able to use the remaining buttercream to complete a second batch that I made today (in other words, a half-batch of the buttercream was enough for me to completely fill two batches worth of the cookies).

I used the vanilla extract, but also added about 2 drops of almond extract to the cookie batter, just to “round out” the flavor.

I didn’t do the whole “cookie cutter dipped in flour” thing to mark circles on a Silpat (that just sounded silly and messy to me), but instead used a Sharpie to draw 1.5 inch circles on the BACKSIDE (you don’t want Sharpie ink in your cookies) of a sheet of parchment. The parchment is thin enough that you can see through it to see the circles when you’re piping the batter. I used the screw-top lid of a spice jar as a stencil to make the circles.

I didn’t get the cookie yield that Martha did. My first batch of cookies only made 13 macaroon sandwiches (26 meringues) and my second batch (where I made a concerted effort at uniformity of size) only yielded 20 finished cookies (40 meringues).

I beat the egg whites for the cookie batter a little past medium-soft as I was adding the sugar. Mine were more like medium-stiff.

I didn’t use a tip on my pastry bag, but just used a standard-sized coupler, by itself, instead. I think that a Ziploc bag (with an appropriately-sized hole cut out at one corner) would have worked perfectly fine, too. There is a sizable amount of batter, so if you use a baggie, I would recommend the gallon size.

I will DEFINITELY be making more of these. I’ve got all different kinds of flavor ideas running through my brain:

Cara Cara orange
(I have some delicious ones in my fridge right now)

Gingerbread (I found a recipe online from Spago’s pastry chef)

Chai (I just made a batch of my Chai seasoning mix)

Cinnamon (what’s not to like?)

and

then there’s always the traditional:

Lemon (My mother makes great lemon curd and said she’d make some for me to use as filling)

Chocolate (need I say more?)

Raspberry (ditto)

and Pistachio (although I will probably avoid making them artificially green, as is the practice in Paris)

Stay tuned, for I will definitely be making more of these in the near future…….

Sweet and Sour BBQ Chicken and Hasselback Potatoes

Adult plate. I was at a bit of a loss for inspiration for dinner last night, so I pulled this recipe out of my trusty old file folder. It was easy and was kid-friendly and actually, quite yummy as well. I doubled the recipe, but it wasn’t really necessary – I think that the amount … Continue reading “Sweet and Sour BBQ Chicken and Hasselback Potatoes”

Adult plate.

I was at a bit of a loss for inspiration for dinner last night, so I pulled this recipe out of my trusty old file folder. It was easy and was kid-friendly and actually, quite yummy as well. I doubled the recipe, but it wasn’t really necessary – I think that the amount of marinade/sauce in a single batch would be plenty, even for 4 chicken breasts.

As for the potatoes, I saw Paula Deen and Robert Irvine cooking appealing Hasselback potatoes on a recent Food Network Holiday special, but when I went looking for the recipe, I found that the reviews on their version of the recipe weren’t great and went looking for another version. I found one by Nigella Lawson that looked potentially bland and a few others that looked too complicated, but when I saw this one by Emeril, it looked like a winner. His recipes can usually be relied upon to turn out well. I (of course!) did add a bit of Baby Bam seasoning (it WAS an Emeril recipe, after all!). The potatoes took a little longer than the time stated in the recipe to be cooked through, but they were tasty.

I normally have a hard-and-fast “no TV during dinner” rule, but the kids have both been sick and have had a bit of a tough week, so we watched a bit of the new Harry Potter “Order of the Phoenix” DVD while we were eating last night. I do have these great “snack plates” that we hardly get to use, otherwise. Every once in a while, you have to know when to bend the rules, right?

Kid plate.

I popped an apple pie (recipe right off the box of Pillsbury pie crust) in the oven while the potatoes were cooking, so we had a warm dessert, too. It turned out a little messy (Hubby is a great pie crust “crimper” but he was working on another project last night, so I was in the kitchen alone), but it was yummy and was perfect for the rainy weather we had yesterday.

SUPER FAST Stir-fried Pork Tenderloin and Veggies with Rice

Mmmm….yummy, lightning fast and VERY kid-friendly. Inspired by a recipe that was originally in Good Housekeeping and then adapted by my friend Barb, and then adapted again by me. The original version can be found here. For adults, you may want to doll this up a bit: a little sriracha for a tad more “kick” … Continue reading “SUPER FAST Stir-fried Pork Tenderloin and Veggies with Rice”

Mmmm….yummy, lightning fast and VERY kid-friendly. Inspired by a recipe that was originally in Good Housekeeping and then adapted by my friend Barb, and then adapted again by me. The original version can be found here. For adults, you may want to doll this up a bit: a little sriracha for a tad more “kick” and maybe a handful of cilantro leaves at the very end.

Stir-fried Pork Tenderloin and Veggies with Rice

2 cups basmati rice, uncooked
4 cups chicken stock
1 pound pork tenderloin, trimmed and sliced into 1/2-inch thick rounds
(They come two per pack at Costco, about one pound each)
1 Tbsp. peanut (or canola or vegetable) oil
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp. seasoned rice vinegar
1 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh ginger
1 Tbsp. molasses
1/2 tsp. chile paste with garlic (Asian food section of your supermarket)
1 tsp. cornstarch
2 Tbsp. water
1 16 oz bag of your favorite frozen stir fry veggies
(snow peas? sugar snap peas? broccoli? edamame? I used a bag that was a blend of edamame, sugar snap peas, baby corn, red peppers and water chestnuts.)

Cook rice in the chicken stock, according to the package directions. While rice cooks, heat sesame and peanut oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and pork slices and cook for about 6 minutes, or until pork is browned on the outside and no longer pink in the middle.

While pork cooks, stir together the cornstarch and water in a small bowl until the slurry is smooth. Stir together soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, molasses, chile paste) in another small bowl. When pork is almost done, pour the soy sauce mixture and vegetables into the skillet and continue to cook for about 4 more minutes, or until the veggies are done, stirring frequently. Add cornstarch-water mixture and cook about 1 more minute, or until sauce has thickened.

Remove from heat and serve over the cooked rice.

Hoisin and Bourbon-Glazed Pork Tenderloin

Yum Yum Yum Yum Yum…..this was SO good. I found this recipe in my current favorite cookbook (the All New Complete Cooking Light Cookbook) and had to give it a try. We love pork tenderloins: they cook quickly, there are no bones to mess with and they can soak up whatever marinade you choose to … Continue reading “Hoisin and Bourbon-Glazed Pork Tenderloin”

Yum Yum Yum Yum Yum…..this was SO good.

I found this recipe in my current favorite cookbook (the All New Complete Cooking Light Cookbook) and had to give it a try. We love pork tenderloins: they cook quickly, there are no bones to mess with and they can soak up whatever marinade you choose to season them with. This recipe is particularly flavorful because it’s smoked on the grill. Hubby took over the meat-cooking duties tonight (and is washing the dishes at the moment – what a sweetie!).

To round out the meal, I served a little sauteed spinach (medium heat, a little olive oil, a sprinkle of Baby Bam, just until the spinach is wilted – Boy’s special request for tonight), some beets, and some skin-on mashed potatoes (boil in chicken stock with a little pressed garlic until fork-tender, mash until still slightly lumpy with a couple tablespoons of butter and a little “glug” of half-and-half). A very nice little meal and pretty simple to put together. If you happen to have any Norton Reserve Malbec around to go with it, that’s even better…

Mexican Vanilla Ice Cream (in a Play & Freeze ball)

Each of the kids had a friend (or a cousin, as the case was for Girl) spend the night a couple of weeks ago and we decided to let the kids make ice cream in our Play & Freeze Ice Cream Ball.

We had used this once before, on vacation, and it was a lot of fun. The recipe that comes with the ball should be discarded – it makes a “soft serve” ice cream that is too soft to be worth all of the effort, in my opinion. I would highly recommend making a custard-type recipe, instead (mine can be found here), because it will make your finished product more like “real” ice cream. Yes, it’s more effort, but you’re already going to the trouble of making homemade ice cream, so you might as well go ahead and make it good, right?

The kids enjoyed using the ball-maker, although they do get a little tired/bored toward the end of the 20 minutes or so of rolling the ball around that is required. It also tends to be a little NOISY – so noisy that just about the time that you’re ready to slice off your own ears with a mandoline to escape from all of the salty ice water rattling around, voila, you have ice cream.

Top Chef Ilan Hall’s Fideos with Saffron Cream Sauce Redux

We loved this recipe so much, that I’ve decided to adapt it again. I guess having the chorizo on hand (for the breakfast tacos) had me thinking “Spanish”. It’s not Romanesco cauliflower season yet, so I substituted asparagus (sauteed in a little garlic and olive oil), instead – peas would be good, too. We are not fans of clams, so I used two shredded chicken breasts (leftover from the rotisserie chicken that I used in the tortilla soup – it’s been stowed in the freezer since then) and the remaining half-link of chorizo left over from the breakfast tacos. I also added a little bit of pimenton (Spanish smoked paprika) to the sauce when I added the saffron. I also baked the dish in a large casserole instead of the individual dishes, just for simplicity. This photo was taken before I sprinkled the parsley on top. Believe it or not, this dish came together in all of 10 minutes. The most time-consuming thing was washing and cutting the asparagus. The chicken and chorizo were already cooked; I had pre-toasted the fideos a couple of days ago when I was working in the kitchen and already had the oven going. Yay – forethought! This is going to be lunch for Hubby and me, but I’m sure we’ll have some leftover for the kids for their lunches tomorrow. We haven’t even eaten it yet, but it sure smells good! I already have something else planned for dinner tonight (stay tuned).