Before I start in on soups, I thought I'd revisit my sausage experiment for a moment. My husband tasted the sausage last night. He thought the meat was fine, but thought the seasonings could use some tweaking. I think I might be getting sick, because even opening the bowl makes my stomach turn and dinner last night tasted icky-even though the kids all had seconds. I'm going to wait and get back to the sausage when I'm over my "bug."
OK, on to soups. For years upon years, I considered myself a healthy cook, making some things from scratch while taking advantage of the conveniences that the grocery store offered-Pillsbury cresenct rolls and Campbell's condensed soup being my favorites. I would throw together a casserole of ground beef, pasta, cream of mushroom soup, and Velveeta. Then I would make green beans (from a can) and crescent rolls for sides. Really that's a fine meal, but once I began paying attention to what the ingredients were in the meals I was making, I wanted to change. I got rid of the Velveeta, switched to whole grain noodles and fresh or frozen veggies. I even started to make my own dinner rolls, but I still hung on to that can of cream soup.
Last summer though I found a recipe for Cream of Something soup on Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen site. Essentially the recipe is a roux with a few added ingredients. A roux (pronounced "roo") is flour combined with a fat-usually butter. To make a cream soup, I melt butter in a saucepan, whisk in flour and cook it until it starts to turn a nutty-brown. Then I add a little salt and a liquid (either milk or broth). Whisk it until thickened. If I want cream of mushroom, then I would sautee sliced or chopped mushrooms in the butter before adding the flour. The same goes with celery, onion, etc. I can turn it into a cheese soup by adding shredded cheese after the soup has thickened. I could turn it into a gravy by exchanging the milk for chicken or beef broth. I've done a really great mushroom gravy that used chicken broth and then poured it over thick sliced pork tenderloin in the crock pot. 7-8 hours on low and the pork was fork tender and the gravy was rich. I usually serve it with mashed potatoes and a green veggie on the side.
A couple days ago we had baked potato bar for dinner. I fried up a few pieces of bacon and crumbled them, strained some homemade yogurt to use for sour cream, and made an awesome broccoli cheese sauce to go over the potatoes.
Broccoli Cheese Sauce
2 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. whole white wheat flour
1 cup milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar)
1 cup or more chopped, cooked broccoli
Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and whisk until combined. Let cook a few minutes until the mixture turns a golden brown. Add milk and salt and continue whisking until mixture thickens. Add broccoli and mix. Serve when heated through.
I served this over a baked potato, but it would also work well over rice or noodles. You could change it up by using parmesan or another sharp tasting cheese, or using broth instead of milk.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Make your own sausage
I told a friend that I made my own sausage this morning and she asked if I had started butchering my own meat now! Is it that obvious I'm a little off the beaten path? The answer is no, not yet, but I still have 46 weeks left of this year. Who knows what might transpire? :)
I did however find a seasoning recipe for turkey sausage that I wanted to try. Breakfast meat/deli meat is full of ingredients that can mean different things, I decided that if I could make my own, that would take the guesswork out of it. I found a recipe from Laura at Heavenly Homemakers. It received great reviews, so I thought I would give it a try.
It was my plan to mix the sausage up yesterday afternoon and then fry it up before bed. That way I could just reheat it for the girls before school and not have to worry about an extra thing to do in the morning rush. Of course, life happened. Plan B was to mix it up last night before going to bed and then cook it fresh for the girls. Then, the three year old had different plans for me and I went to lay down with him at 9:30 pm. At 2:47 am this morning, I woke up and realized that my kitchen was in a shambles (dinner dishes that wouldn't fit in the dishwasher, plus I made granola and granola bars last night too), and the sausage hadn't been made. So, like any hard working mom, who has people in her house at 7 am, I got up, emptied and reloaded the dishwasher and put together some sausage.
In my half-rested stupor, I mixed the sausage and immediately threw it in to cook. Well it was supposed to sit for an hour. There was that, and my ground pork expired yesterday. I usually don't have any kind of problems with meat being bad. I buy it on the "sell by" date and use it all the time. This smelled fine, looked fine, but felt a little slimey. I went ahead and finished cooking it, but now I think it tastes funny. My problem is that I can't tell if the seasonings are off, or the meat is questionable. Like any good wife, I'll let my husband taste it and give his opinion. If I have time tonight, I might run out and get another pound of pork, and see what happens. Granted, this is a costly experiment, but if I can find a good recipe that I can control the quality of, then it is money well spent.
Here's the recipe
Homemade Turkey Sausage
1 lb ground turkey
3 Tablespoon minced onion 2 Tablespoons onion powder
¼ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon marjoram
¼ teaspoon ground pepper
¼ teaspoon oregano
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon thyme
½ teaspoon sage 3/4 teaspoon sage
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Mix all ingredients. Chill for about an hour. (If you forget to chill this ahead of time…it cooks up okay anyway!) Form into patties. Saute in butter.
I didn't add the egg because I wasn't making patties, I was crumbling it up to use as a pizza topping or in scrambled eggs, so I didn't think I needed the binder. Second, I guessed pork to be a little fattier than the ground turkey from the recipe, so I thought that would hold everything together well enough.
One thing I know that I'll change is the minced onion. I will switch it to onion powder as I personally don't care for the small onion chunks that I can taste and feel in my mouth.
I'll update with hubby's take on the sausage and what happened with the redo. Maybe I'll take pictures this time. I wasn't dragging the camera out at 3 am to get a shot of the first batch.
UPDATE: 2/16/11
I made the sausage for the second time last night. I made the following changes: switched the minced onion to onion powder, upped the cayenne to 1/4 teaspoon and used the sage, which I realized that I had left out in my "middle of the night" stupor. It's considerably better. I mixed it in the food processor instead of by hand and I think that helped incorporate everything better. My husband and oldest daughter like it. The rest of us aren't too sure. I bought 3 pounds of ground pork last night, so I still have 2 more chances to get it right. Next time I will decrease the amount of onion to 2 tablespoons, increase the sage to 3/4 teaspoon and add more heat. I can't decide if I want more cayenne or maybe 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes.
Oh, and I made patties this time and I definitely didn't need the egg even though the sausages weren't too greasy. That's another thing I didn't even think of when trying to make my own. I can really control the quality of the meat.
I did however find a seasoning recipe for turkey sausage that I wanted to try. Breakfast meat/deli meat is full of ingredients that can mean different things, I decided that if I could make my own, that would take the guesswork out of it. I found a recipe from Laura at Heavenly Homemakers. It received great reviews, so I thought I would give it a try.
It was my plan to mix the sausage up yesterday afternoon and then fry it up before bed. That way I could just reheat it for the girls before school and not have to worry about an extra thing to do in the morning rush. Of course, life happened. Plan B was to mix it up last night before going to bed and then cook it fresh for the girls. Then, the three year old had different plans for me and I went to lay down with him at 9:30 pm. At 2:47 am this morning, I woke up and realized that my kitchen was in a shambles (dinner dishes that wouldn't fit in the dishwasher, plus I made granola and granola bars last night too), and the sausage hadn't been made. So, like any hard working mom, who has people in her house at 7 am, I got up, emptied and reloaded the dishwasher and put together some sausage.
In my half-rested stupor, I mixed the sausage and immediately threw it in to cook. Well it was supposed to sit for an hour. There was that, and my ground pork expired yesterday. I usually don't have any kind of problems with meat being bad. I buy it on the "sell by" date and use it all the time. This smelled fine, looked fine, but felt a little slimey. I went ahead and finished cooking it, but now I think it tastes funny. My problem is that I can't tell if the seasonings are off, or the meat is questionable. Like any good wife, I'll let my husband taste it and give his opinion. If I have time tonight, I might run out and get another pound of pork, and see what happens. Granted, this is a costly experiment, but if I can find a good recipe that I can control the quality of, then it is money well spent.
Here's the recipe
Homemade Turkey Sausage
1 lb ground turkey
¼ teaspoon cumin
¼ teaspoon marjoram
¼ teaspoon ground pepper
¼ teaspoon oregano
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon dried basil
½ teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Mix all ingredients. Chill for about an hour. (If you forget to chill this ahead of time…it cooks up okay anyway!) Form into patties. Saute in butter.
I didn't add the egg because I wasn't making patties, I was crumbling it up to use as a pizza topping or in scrambled eggs, so I didn't think I needed the binder. Second, I guessed pork to be a little fattier than the ground turkey from the recipe, so I thought that would hold everything together well enough.
One thing I know that I'll change is the minced onion. I will switch it to onion powder as I personally don't care for the small onion chunks that I can taste and feel in my mouth.
I'll update with hubby's take on the sausage and what happened with the redo. Maybe I'll take pictures this time. I wasn't dragging the camera out at 3 am to get a shot of the first batch.
UPDATE: 2/16/11
I made the sausage for the second time last night. I made the following changes: switched the minced onion to onion powder, upped the cayenne to 1/4 teaspoon and used the sage, which I realized that I had left out in my "middle of the night" stupor. It's considerably better. I mixed it in the food processor instead of by hand and I think that helped incorporate everything better. My husband and oldest daughter like it. The rest of us aren't too sure. I bought 3 pounds of ground pork last night, so I still have 2 more chances to get it right. Next time I will decrease the amount of onion to 2 tablespoons, increase the sage to 3/4 teaspoon and add more heat. I can't decide if I want more cayenne or maybe 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes.
Oh, and I made patties this time and I definitely didn't need the egg even though the sausages weren't too greasy. That's another thing I didn't even think of when trying to make my own. I can really control the quality of the meat.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Week 6: Additive and preservative free meats
A couple years ago, one of my friends was reworking her family's diet due to food allergies/intolerances. One of the things she was really concerned about was sodium nitrite and nitrate added to their foods-particularly processed meats. For a while when our income was larger, I went ahead and specifically purchased additive free meat. But, as we had to tighten our belts, I started doing some reading as to why nitrites and nitrates might be harmful. I needed to make an educated decision as to whether or not I wanted to prioritize my grocery dollar for this change.
Through articles found on Six Wise and LiveStrong, I've found that sodium nitrite/nitrate has been linked to cancer, respiratory and digestive issues. Anecdotally, I have learned, from a couple of people on forums that I read, that removing the additives (along with MSG) from their diet has also eliminated their migraines. Given that my husband suffers from asthma, acid reflux and migraines, I decided that we would eliminate this for the most part.
I don't often buy lunchmeat, but for the times that I do, I will buy Hormel Natural Choice. They also have a bacon and pepperoni option (pizza, anyone?). I have already purchased bacon for this month, but for my next big grocery trip, I will price this and see how it compares in cost to what I already buy. My big hurdle is bone-in ham. I buy one ham per month and use it for probably 5-6 meals (baked ham when I first cook it, then ham and beans, and then chopped up pieces to use in chef salad or in ham and cheese omelets, etc.). I saw on Hormel's website that they do offer a boneless ham option, but I really like the bone-in, so I'll have to do some researching on that to see if there is nitrite/ate free option and how costly that is.
Another friend is avoiding monosodium glutamate (MSG). Since I'm getting rid of senseless additives, I thought I would include this one too. MSG is a common ingredient in many processed foods including breakfast sausage. I'm a sausage kind of girl. I love sausage, egg and cheese breakfast sandwiches, sausage crumbles in my scrambled eggs or with onions and mushrooms on a pizza. I found what I hope to be a great turkey sausage recipe that I will review tomorrow-only I will use pork instead of turkey (because, I'm not a ground turkey kind of girl!).
Through articles found on Six Wise and LiveStrong, I've found that sodium nitrite/nitrate has been linked to cancer, respiratory and digestive issues. Anecdotally, I have learned, from a couple of people on forums that I read, that removing the additives (along with MSG) from their diet has also eliminated their migraines. Given that my husband suffers from asthma, acid reflux and migraines, I decided that we would eliminate this for the most part.
I don't often buy lunchmeat, but for the times that I do, I will buy Hormel Natural Choice. They also have a bacon and pepperoni option (pizza, anyone?). I have already purchased bacon for this month, but for my next big grocery trip, I will price this and see how it compares in cost to what I already buy. My big hurdle is bone-in ham. I buy one ham per month and use it for probably 5-6 meals (baked ham when I first cook it, then ham and beans, and then chopped up pieces to use in chef salad or in ham and cheese omelets, etc.). I saw on Hormel's website that they do offer a boneless ham option, but I really like the bone-in, so I'll have to do some researching on that to see if there is nitrite/ate free option and how costly that is.
Another friend is avoiding monosodium glutamate (MSG). Since I'm getting rid of senseless additives, I thought I would include this one too. MSG is a common ingredient in many processed foods including breakfast sausage. I'm a sausage kind of girl. I love sausage, egg and cheese breakfast sandwiches, sausage crumbles in my scrambled eggs or with onions and mushrooms on a pizza. I found what I hope to be a great turkey sausage recipe that I will review tomorrow-only I will use pork instead of turkey (because, I'm not a ground turkey kind of girl!).
Sunday, February 6, 2011
A Green Cycle
I went shopping this weekend. Not grocery shopping, which is what shopping for me usually entails, but the kind of walk around Target, Wal-Mart and the mall type shopping. I don't like shopping because I find it depressing. I usually find things I like, but then have to talk myself out of them because I'm not making those "things" a priority with my money. Then I'm depressed. Ick, who wants to feel that way? So, I typically don't shop.
This weekend was sort of a rarity for me though. The kids were with their grandparents and I was on a mission. I was looking for some clearance snow clothes for the kids next year. Both my oldest and youngest will need new snow pants and the middle one will need a new winter coat. Please note, that I struck out on all accounts. But, there is a point to this I assure you. When walking around all these stores, I found myself doing a little cart spying. Please tell me that you do this too-when you peek at what others are buying. I'm not doing this to judge anyone on their purchases, but looking at what everyone else was buying gave me a real sense of satisfaction that I'm not spending my (and my husband's) hard earned money on disposable items.
Over the past 18 months or so, our house has rid itself of most disposable paper products. We have no tissues, no paper towels, no baby wipes and no feminine products. That last one is what I noticed most this weekend. Cart after cart I saw had pads and tampons in them and all I saw were dollar signs ($$$)!. For over a year now, I have used cloth menstrual pads and this past summer I purchased a Diva Cup. Before I lose you with the "OMG that's gross!" and you click out of the screen, please hear me out.
My inital purchase was for 8 pads. I paid about $25 for them (that was roughly the cost of 3 months worth of tampons and pantyliners for me). I used them in conjunction with my regular tampons and if they got anything on them, I just rinsed them out in the sink with cold water and washed them with my diaper laundry. No big deal. Not disgusting or gross. No sticky tape on the underside of pantyliners sticking to my more sensitive parts. After a couple months, I started using them for overnights as wearing tampons for my whole period kind of made me skiddish about Toxic Shock Syndrome. I actually don't know anyone that has had that, but during the 5th grade "learn about your body" lecture the nurse frightened me for life, so it's still a concern. Again, I rinsed the pads out in the morning and tossed in the laundry.
As I continued to read anecdotal stories of women who had made the switch to all cloth, I learned a few things. Many reported less or no cramping, shorter periods, lighter flow, fewer pre-menstrual symptoms, etc. Also, many related the chemicals in tampons/pads were what was causing the problems and once they stopped using them, their health improved, or at least that "time of month" was easier. I needed a tampon alternative, because I just wasn't keen on wearing pads the whole time. Enter the Diva Cup.
Changes I have noticed are a shortened period, less cramping and more comfort. My period used to be 5 days and now it is 4 (with only very light flow on the 4th day). I used to have cramps 2 days before the start of my period and then 2 days once it started-not terrible debilitating cramps, but enough that I didn't feel good for most of those 4 days. Now, I have light cramping on the day I start, which lasts about 6-8 hours, kind of a nauseous, icky feeling. As far as comfort, I don't think it can be beat. No more scratchy pads or smelly ick. No more irritation/dryness by day 5 like I had when using tampons. I won't ever be able to say that I love having my period (really, who does that?), but it's much nicer now than it was a few years ago. And, I'm saving $8-$10 a month by not buying disposable products. Good for me, my wallet and the Earth. That's a win-win-win!
Sources to find cloth menstrual pads. There are hundreds I'm sure, but these are Diaperswappers mamas who work work at home, and I'm always for helping someone be able to stay at home.
Tree Hugger
GEM Cloth
Mother Moon Pads
As for the Diva Cup, I bought mine from Amazon using gift cards I earned through Swagbucks, so it was free.
This weekend was sort of a rarity for me though. The kids were with their grandparents and I was on a mission. I was looking for some clearance snow clothes for the kids next year. Both my oldest and youngest will need new snow pants and the middle one will need a new winter coat. Please note, that I struck out on all accounts. But, there is a point to this I assure you. When walking around all these stores, I found myself doing a little cart spying. Please tell me that you do this too-when you peek at what others are buying. I'm not doing this to judge anyone on their purchases, but looking at what everyone else was buying gave me a real sense of satisfaction that I'm not spending my (and my husband's) hard earned money on disposable items.
Over the past 18 months or so, our house has rid itself of most disposable paper products. We have no tissues, no paper towels, no baby wipes and no feminine products. That last one is what I noticed most this weekend. Cart after cart I saw had pads and tampons in them and all I saw were dollar signs ($$$)!. For over a year now, I have used cloth menstrual pads and this past summer I purchased a Diva Cup. Before I lose you with the "OMG that's gross!" and you click out of the screen, please hear me out.
My inital purchase was for 8 pads. I paid about $25 for them (that was roughly the cost of 3 months worth of tampons and pantyliners for me). I used them in conjunction with my regular tampons and if they got anything on them, I just rinsed them out in the sink with cold water and washed them with my diaper laundry. No big deal. Not disgusting or gross. No sticky tape on the underside of pantyliners sticking to my more sensitive parts. After a couple months, I started using them for overnights as wearing tampons for my whole period kind of made me skiddish about Toxic Shock Syndrome. I actually don't know anyone that has had that, but during the 5th grade "learn about your body" lecture the nurse frightened me for life, so it's still a concern. Again, I rinsed the pads out in the morning and tossed in the laundry.
 |
| http://lunapads.com/divacup/diva-cup.html |
I purchased one in May of 2010, and while there was a learning curve (I didn't give up my tampons completely for another 3-4 months), I now love it. The Diva Cup is a silicone cup that collects your menstrual flow similar to what a tampon would and at least once every 12 hours (more often if needed), you remove it, dump and rinse. Easy peasy.
Sources to find cloth menstrual pads. There are hundreds I'm sure, but these are Diaperswappers mamas who work work at home, and I'm always for helping someone be able to stay at home.
Tree Hugger
GEM Cloth
Mother Moon Pads
As for the Diva Cup, I bought mine from Amazon using gift cards I earned through Swagbucks, so it was free.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal
Oatmeal is one of my favorite foods. Granola bars, oatmeal cookies, or just a plain bowl of comforting warmth on a frosty morning-I love them all. This morning as my daycare kids were all back after a few days off here and there because of snow, I welcomed them with apple cinnamon oatmeal. As with most dishes I fix for the kids, there were mixed reviews. One kid wouldn't touch it, one kid said he liked it but only ate two bites and a third had a blueberry Nutra-grain bar on the way to my house, so she wasn't hungry. The other three kids had two bowls each and would've had a third, but I ran out. Keeping in mind kids finickey natures, I'll call it a success, and besides, I liked it.
Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal
Grate one or two apples into a small saucepan, add 1/4 cup water and a teaspoon of cinnamon. I used one apple for 2.5 servings of oatmeal and adding another wouldn't have hurt. Simmer apple mixture until the apples are soft. I cooked mine for about 30 minutes, although 15 would've been plenty. I just really like the apple cinnamon smell! :)
Remove from heat and dump the apples into a small bowl. Fix the oatmeal, according to the package directions. Mine were boil water, add oatmeal, cook 5 minutes or until thickened. Add the apples back to the oatmeal and stir thoroughly. Add 2-3 tablespoons maple syrup to the oatmeal and about 1/2 cup milk. Stir and heat through.
Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal
Grate one or two apples into a small saucepan, add 1/4 cup water and a teaspoon of cinnamon. I used one apple for 2.5 servings of oatmeal and adding another wouldn't have hurt. Simmer apple mixture until the apples are soft. I cooked mine for about 30 minutes, although 15 would've been plenty. I just really like the apple cinnamon smell! :)
Remove from heat and dump the apples into a small bowl. Fix the oatmeal, according to the package directions. Mine were boil water, add oatmeal, cook 5 minutes or until thickened. Add the apples back to the oatmeal and stir thoroughly. Add 2-3 tablespoons maple syrup to the oatmeal and about 1/2 cup milk. Stir and heat through.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Apple streusel muffins
Do you ever have days where those simple day-to-day tasks sneak up on you? That certainly happened today when I went to check and see what was for snack. At 2:30 pm, I discovered that we were supposed to have cheese quesadillas-yet I had not made tortillas yet. Snack was not going to be served at 3:00 if I had to roll out 10+ tortillas. It just wasn't happening. Plan B, anyone?
Apple muffins were supposed to be Friday's snack, so switcheroo and now today is muffins and tomorrow will be cheese quesadillas. Let just hope that I don't forget the tortillas again. :)
My favorite apple muffin recipe comes from Baking Bites. It is for a streusel muffin that is to die for. Who doesn't love a good streusel topping on warm, soft muffin? Yum! However this recipe needed to be healthified (my new made up word for the day) in order to fit in with our move towards a better diet.
Bake 10-12 minutes.
Apple muffins were supposed to be Friday's snack, so switcheroo and now today is muffins and tomorrow will be cheese quesadillas. Let just hope that I don't forget the tortillas again. :)
My favorite apple muffin recipe comes from Baking Bites. It is for a streusel muffin that is to die for. Who doesn't love a good streusel topping on warm, soft muffin? Yum! However this recipe needed to be healthified (my new made up word for the day) in order to fit in with our move towards a better diet.
These are my changes to the recipe.
Apple Streusel Muffins
Topping:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp butter
1/2 cup walnuts
Topping:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp butter
1/2 cup walnuts
I pulsed the ingredients in my mini food chopper. It worked splendidly. I will definitely be doing that more often.
Batter:
1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup coconut oil
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup coconut oil
1 egg
1/3 cup plain yogurt
1/3 cup plain yogurt
2 T. honey
1 tsp vanilla
1 apple (grated, but NOT peeled) The original recipe called for 2 and I would probably use 2 if our apple consumption wasn't crazy this week. We've eaten 15 or so apples since Sunday night. I'm running out.
1 apple (grated, but NOT peeled) The original recipe called for 2 and I would probably use 2 if our apple consumption wasn't crazy this week. We've eaten 15 or so apples since Sunday night. I'm running out.
Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 24 cup mini muffin tin. Mix together all dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
Whisk together all wet ingredients in a large bowl, including grated apples. Fold flour mixture into wet ingredients until just combined.
Divide batter evenly into tins and top with streusel mixture. To do this with the mini muffins, I used an infant feeding spoon. It was just the right amount.
Whisk together all wet ingredients in a large bowl, including grated apples. Fold flour mixture into wet ingredients until just combined.
Divide batter evenly into tins and top with streusel mixture. To do this with the mini muffins, I used an infant feeding spoon. It was just the right amount.
Bake 10-12 minutes.
Cool on a wire rack before serving.
My batch made 34 mini muffins.
Remember to fill the empty muffin cups with water before placing in the oven. Also remember to dump the water before you upend the muffins on the cooling rack. Yes, I've done this on numerous occasions!
At some point, I will get rid of brown sugar altogether, but for right now I'm still working on a 7 pound bag that I got before Christmas. When that is gone, I'll find a decent brown sugar alternative. I'll probably end up making my own for a topping such as this or using maple syrup or honey in baked goods.
Lastly, I would've taken a picture, but my little 1 year old day care baby was screaming for one from the high chair as they came out of the oven. By the time one cooled enough for her to each, the rest of the kids flocked like vultures to the cooling rack. 6 kids, 32 muffins, 10 minutes. Luckily I ate a couple that got stuck in the muffin pan, or I wouldn't have even got a taste. :)
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Week 5: Apples (and a zucchini cookie recipe)
It's snowing here... a lot! Last time I looked we had about 18". The kids are out of school and they are bored. In our house, bored translates into hungry. So, every five minutes the kids have been in the fridge and wanting something to eat. How about an apple? This week I made the permanant switch to organic apples. Apples have made the EWG's Dirty Dozen list for years. The dirty dozen are the top twelve fruits and vegetables that are exposed to the most pesticides and other chemicals, therefore being the most dangerous to eat. Organic food practices prohibit the use of chemicals on plants, so this makes certain organic fruit/veggies a better choice.
At many of our local grocery stores, apples cost around $1/pound. One store has organic apples for $1.18/pound. We use about 6 pounds of apples per week, so this increases our cost by only $1.08. This is a small increase that I think is worthwhile. Of course, apples are in season right now, so the cost is lower. My plan is buy them as long as they are reasonably priced and as spring comes into full swing, berries will start ripening and I can get those instead of apples.
This week look for a couple apple recipes. But, since I had zucchini thawed in the fridge, today I will post a recipe suggested to me by Tara after I posted my zucchini muffin recipe. She was getting ready to make some zucchini chocolate chip cookies she saw on Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. Thanks so much! These are tasty!
Here is the recipe (I tend to paraphrase directions, so if you want the exact directions, check out the link.)
1 egg, beaten1/2 C. butter, softened
1/2 C. brown sugar
1/3 C. honey
1 Tbsp. vanilla
1 C. white flour
1 C. whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 C. shredded zucchini
12 oz. chocolate chipsMy changes: I ran myself out of whole wheat flour, so I used 1/2 C. ww flour and 1 1/2 cups bread flour. 12 oz. chocolate chips is way too much for me, so I used abou 6 oz.
I used the Pampered Chef small scoop (1 tablespoon) and was sort of disappointed that the cookies didn't flatten out much, but they taste awesome. They have a nice crunch on the outside and are cake-like on the inside. They are sweet, but not overwhelmingly so. I could've seven cut the brown sugar to maybe 1/3 cup. This recipe is definitely a keeper, but I think I'll play around with the amount of butter (maybe up it to 3/4 cup) to see if I can get the cookies to flatten out a bit. It's completely personal preference, but I like a thinner cookie.
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