Just a Mom, HA!

Slow Cooker Mac & Cheese

At my house growing up, Mac and Cheese came from a little blue box.

But at Grandpa’s house it changed into a delicacy of big noodles, glob-y cheese, and secret spices.

This is a recipe to make my Grandpa proud.  It’s full of flavor, full of secrets, and you don’t even have to cook the noodles!  Main dish or side dish, this was a crowd pleaser in our house.

Slow Cooker Macaroni and Cheese
(Adapted from Recipezaar.com)

• 1/4 c. flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/4 of an onion, chopped fine
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 celery heart, cut fine
• parsley
• 3 c. milk
• 2 c. grated cheddar cheese (use less if using a sharp cheese)
• 2 c. uncooked elbow macaroni

In your biggest saucepan saute the onion, salt, pepper, and paprika.  Meanwhile, combine the milk and flour and wisk or shake until no lumps are left.  Pour the milk into the saucepan with the onion and spices.  Heat slowly until the mixture thickens and bubbles.  Add cheese and celery, stirring until melted.  Remove from heat and stir in the macaroni, sprinkle with parsley.  Dump contents of saucepan into your slow cooker and cook on low for about 2 hours.*

Kim’s notes:

1. KNOW YOUR SLOW COOKER!  My slow cooker tends to go faster than recipes indicate,  and after 2 hours my noodles got a little mushy.  If you’re like me, scale the time back and check those noodles.
2. Jay didn’t even notice the celery – HA! Veggie successfully snuck!
3. Even with a crock pot liner, the noodles stuck a little bit. Spraying your crock pot or liner ahead of time can help with that.

Happy Cooking!

Challah Bread (Jewish Braided Loaf)

Challah is a traditional Jewish bread that is famous for its braided texture.  Though the shape is truly unique, the texture and flavor is close to a homemade French bread – white and springing with a browned crust.  I felt up for a challenge, so when I found this recipe from Betty Crocker, I thought I’d give it a whirl.

Only there was one problem – this recipe is a Bread Machine recipe.

Bread Machines are not always found in an Average Pantry, so I took Betty’s recipe and messed with the instructions, until I was able to turn my oven into a bread machine.  Hope you enjoy!

*And in case you’re curious, Challah is pronounced like HA-Lah.  Just drop that ‘C’ to call your bread by it’s true and authentic name.

Challah Bread

• 3/4 c. + 1 Tbs warm water
• 1 egg
• 2 Tbs butter or margarine, softened
• 3 1/4 c. flour
• 2 Tbs sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp yeast (I used bread machine yeast, but any would be fine)
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 Tbs cold water
• poppy seeds, optional

Dissolve yeast in warm water for about 10 minutes or until water becomes milky.  Preheat oven to 200 degrees, once it reaches that temp turn the oven off while you finish combining the bread ingredients.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter, sugar, salt, and egg.  Stir until well mixed, then add the yeast water.  Next add the flour, cup by cup, stirring between each addition.  Knead dough until it has a smooth consistency.  Remove dough from bowl, spray bowl with cooking spray, return dough to the bowl, cover with a towel and put the whole thing into the warmed oven.  Allow to rise for about 1 hour or until doubled.

Spray a large cookie sheet, or line it with parchment paper.  Remove the dough from the oven, sperate it into 3 equal pieces and roll them into long ropes (about 13 inches).  Place the ropes side-by-side, then gently and loosely braid them, pinching the ends and tucking them under to seal the loaf.  Place loaf on the prepared cookie sheet.

Heat oven to 375 degrees.  While the oven heats, combine the egg yolk and the water in a small bowl.  Beat together until well combined. Brush or spoon the egg mixture onto the loaf, covering it entirely (I didn’t need to use all of my egg wash).  Sprinkle with poppy seeds if using them.  Bake loaf for about 20 minutes, or until well browned and cooked through.

Happy Cooking!

Naan (and its many uses)

Jay and I love Indian food.  LOVE IT!  Naan, Indian flat bread, is one dish that we really enjoy, so when I saw what a simple recipe it is I had to give it a go. 

Even though the consistency wasn’t identical to what we’ve had in restaurants, we both loved it and are already planning to make it again (I especially loved that I could make it without oil or butter).

I made Naan to go with Black Bean Chili (that recipe to come soon):

Then for dessert we sprinkled it with cinnamon-sugar and honey, which was outstanding.

Then my friend told me that she makes naan and uses the dough to make little personal pizzas.  I’m crazy about the idea and will be trying it next week!

It would also make a killer base for navajo tacos.

Basically with this recipe I’m giving you a gift with endless possibilities.

No, no need to thank me, I do it cuz I love ya.

Naan
Adapted from Allrecipes.com

• 2 1/4 tsp. (1 package) fast acting active dry yeast (regular would be okay, just watch it while it rises)
• 1 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 3 TB milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 cups bread flour, (plus more for kneading if needed – ha!)

Turn oven on to 200 degrees.  When it clicks, turn the oven off immediately, then proceed with the recipe.

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Meanwhile, add sugar, milk, egg, and salt, to a large mixing bowl.  Add frothy yeast-water to bowl.  Add flour, 1 cup at a time, stirring between each addition.

Knead the dough with your hands in the bowl until smooth. The dough should grip your fingers, but not stick.  Remove dough from bowl, spray bowl well with cooking spray, form dough into a soft ball, then place back in the bowl. Cover bowl with a damp cloth, and place in the warmed oven.  Let dough rise 1 hour, or until the dough has doubled in volume.

Push down dough. Pinch off small handfuls of dough, roll into balls, and place on a tray (tray should be sprayed or have a non-stick surface added to it (I used wax paper, but it still stuck just a little). Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled; about 30 minutes.

After the 2nd rising, preheat pancake griddle to high heat (400+ degrees).  No griddle?  Just us a non-stick frying pan on your stove top.

Roll balls out into a thin circle – the thinner the better. Place dough on grill and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until puffy and light brown, then flip the naan and cook until the opposite side is browned, another 2-4 minutes.

Finish these steps for all of the dough.  Serve the naan warm and plain, with butter, with garlic sauce, with curry, with cinnamon sugar and honey, with marinara dipping sauce, whatever you love. : )

Happy Cooking!

Stuffed Zucchini Side Dish

I’ve got to say that I’m a little relieved to be done with Thanksgiving.  All recipe expectations are done for now and I can start sharing a few gems that I’ve been sitting on.  The first of which are these:

I took these pics the first time that I made these stuffed zucchini and I can honestly tell you that my mouth was watering while I took them.  They smelled THAT good.  Jay was a little skeptical at first, but ended up eating both of his servings.  This one will be repeated in our house.

Stuffed Zucchini Side Dish

• 2 medium zucchini (about a pound)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 slices of bread, crumbed finely (just normal loaf size, adjust amount according to bread size and weight)
• 2 Tbs. grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 egg white
• ½ tsp. poultry seasoning
• ¼ tsp. onion powder
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 1/8 tsp. pepper

Wash zucchini, remove ends. Using a frying pan so that they can lay flat, cover and boil the zucchini whole in a small amount of water for about 8 minutes, turning once. While the zucchini cook, combine all other dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Remove zucchini from water and cut into halves lengthwise. Scoop out pulp, chop, then stir in chopped zucchini to the dry mixture. Add egg white and stir until all is evenly dispersed. Stuff zucchini with breading mixture. Place zucchini on a greased cookie sheet (or use foil or parchment paper like I did) and bake at 350° for 20 minutes.

Happy Cooking!

Curried Chicken and Lentils

When I found this recipe, I knew that I found something special.  It has great flavors, tons of possibilities for add-ins, and best of all it’s SO HEALTHY!

To take the dish from a vegan meal to a one pot supper, I added chicken, extra spice, and vegetables.  No, this isn’t the meal that you’ll dream of on birthdays or Christmas, but Jay, Cee, and I were all pleased with the final (and filling) outcome.

To see the original recipe, click HERE.  For my version, read on…

Curried Chicken and Lentils*

• 4 chicken breast pieces, trimmed of fat
• 1 c. Minute Rice (I used brown Minute Rice which adds an extra element of health)
• 2 Tbs. curry powder
• 3 c. water
• 1 medium onion, quartered and thinly sliced
• 1/4 c. lentils (rinsed and picked over to remove foreign objects)
• 3 bouillon cubes (I used chicken, but you could use vegetable if desired)
• 1 medium red potato, cut to very small cubes
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 1 c. frozen peas and carrots, thawed and drained of excess moisture

Combine all ingredients, except peas and carrots in your slow cooker.  Cook on low for 4 hours, shred chicken if desired, then add the thawed and drained peas and carrots. Cook for an additional half hour.  Serve alone, or possibly over mashed potatoes.

*To serve as a side dish, leave out the chicken and up the amount of veggies.

Slow Cooker Baked (and Twice Baked) Potatoes

It came to my attention this week that you can bake potatoes in your slow cooker!  I was so excited that I did a jig – why?  Slow cookers may take longer, but they’re much more energy efficient than traditional ovens which makes your cooking (and electric bill) a little greener. : )

To bake potatoes in your slow cooker:

1. Rinse potatoes to clean them, allow them to dry, then pierce with a fork.
2. Wrap potatoes in foil.
3. Place just the wrapped potatoes in your slow cooker.
4. Cook on High until softened. (I did three large potatoes and it took about 5 hours, but it may need to be longer if you really fill your slow cooker).

So, with this new info at my disposal I got to thinking – if I can BAKE potatoes in my slow cooker, certainly I can bake them twice in my slow cooker.  I did:

Oh baby these were tasty.  Slow cooking potatoes makes them extra potato-y somehow, but I will also say that doing this method makes for softer twice baked potatoes instead of crisp ones like in the oven.  Here’s what I did:

1. Bake potatoes in slow cooker.
2. Remove potatoes from foil wrappings, cut lengthwise.
3. Remove insides with a spoon into a large bowl, reserve skins.
4. Once all of the potato skins have been emptied, mash the potatoes with non-fat sour cream, skim milk, chopped green onions, and bacon (crumbled or bacon bits).
5. Stuff potato skins with mashed potatoes.
6. Place stuffed potatoes back in the slow cooker (now set to low), and top with shredded cheese.
7. Cook, with the lid slightly cracked, until cheese melts and all is heated through (about 20-30 minutes).

Happy [Slow] Cooking!

Apricot-Teryaki Pork Lo Mein

That’s a long name, but it’s worth it to try this yummy stuff.  I said in my pork post yesterday that I’d have another Swine-Flu-Safe pork recipe for you today, but I also want to send this recipe out in particular to my friend Angela who was wondering about good Apricot preserves/jam recipes.  This is a classic.

Apricot-Teriyaki Pork Lo Mein

• 2/3 cup apricot preserves
• 3 tablespoons favorite teriyaki sauce
• 1 Tbs. Honey-Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1.5 lbs boneless pork chops, cut into thin strips
• 1/2 med onion, thinly sliced
• 2-3 cups fresh, thin veggies (I typically use broccoli slaw, shredded carrots and zucchini, cabbage, bean sprouts, and chopped pea pods, but use whatever your family likes)
• 1/2 pound angel hair pasta(about 4 servings)

Directions

In a medium-size bowl, stir preserves, teriyaki sauce, mustard and ginger. Set aside. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat (use a little cooking spray). Saute pork and onion until browned, drain excess liquid. Spread about a third of the apricot preserve mixture over the pork and cook, covered, over medium-low heat for 6 minutes or until an instant-read thermometer registers 160°F when inserted into thickest part of meat.

Meanwhile cook noodles according to package directions.  Steam veggies until just crisp-tender as you like.  Drain cooked pasta and veggies and place in a large bowl. Mix into pasta and veggies the remaining apricot preserve mixture. Top with pork and onions.

Variations:

1. Leave out the pork for a vegetarian meal or side dish.
2. Not a fan of pasta?  Make the same meal, but serve over rice.

Happy Cooking!

Easy Pea-sy Creamy Pasta

While my hurt foot is restraining me from going forth and conquering new, scrumptious frontiers, I’ve started to go back through my personal archives to find recipes to share.  This one is a great choice for a healthier alternative to boxed pasta sides (Sorry Pasta Roni, but our love affair has ended, I’ve met someone who’s better for me, who loves me back, who never leaves dehydrated veggie bits stuck in my teeth… it’s over.)

So, here’s my archive post, enjoy and Happy Cooking!

I wanted to make some Italian chicken, but needed a side dish to match. I hadn’t been to the store yet this week, so I had to come up with something with what was in the cupboards, and was pleasantly surprised with the results.

Easy Pea-sy Creamy Pasta

• 2 c. pasta (I used corkscrew since that’s what was on hand)
• 1/2 c. frozen sweet peas
• 1 1/3 c. skim milk
• 2 oz. fat-free cream cheese
• 2 Tbs Parmesan cheese
• 3 garlic cloves finely chopped
• 1/2 c. shredded cheese (I used a cheddar/Monterrey blend since that’s what I had – cheddar alone or mozzarella would go well too).
• 3 Tbs crushed fat-free herbed croutons, divided

Cook pasta according to package instructions. While pasta cooks, combine milk, parm cheese, cream cheese,garlic, and shredded cheese in a sauce pan and cook on med heat until cheeses melt together. Add peas, trying not to add too much extra water (no big ice pieces). Drain cooked pasta and add that to the sauce/pea mixture. Stir together and let simmer and few minutes as sauce thickens. Add about half of the crushed croutons and stir into dish. Top dish with remaining crouton crumbs before serving.

If you think that the chicken looks good, well, it was! Bernstein’s Light Cheese Fantastico is a so-so salad dressing, but as a chicken marinade it is amazingly flavorful. Baked or on the grill, it’s great, just marinade the chicken at least an hour before hand.

Peanut Butter Feather Pancakes and Fruit Parfait

I’ve got to hand it to my sidebar ads, sometimes they’ve got some great suggestions.  As the site owner, I’m not allowed to click on my own ads and I stand by that since it would be a horribly dishonest thing to do, but sometimes a few of them grab my interest and I type in the URL myself so that I can see what all of the fuss is about.

These pancakes caught my interest over on the Jiff website.  Jay loves PB, and since breakfast is HIS specialty in our house and not mine, I thought I’d suggest these to him.

We measured, we flipped, we ate.

While Jay did like these served up the traditional way with maple syrup, I preferred going with fruit toppings – bananas, jams, jellies, fruit syrup, honey that kind of thing.  Thanks for the adventure Jiff!

Peanut Butter Feather Pancakes
•    1 cup  All Purpose Flour
•    2 tablespoons sugar
•    1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
•    1 large egg
•    1/3 cup Peanut Butter
•    1 cup milk
•    2 tablespoons  Canola Oil (I used applesauce instead)

STIR together flour, sugar and baking powder in large bowl. BEAT egg with peanut butter in small bowl until blended. Stir in milk and oil. Add all at once to the dry ingredients, beating until blended. HEAT skillet over medium-high heat or griddle to 375ºF. Spray with no-stick cooking spray. Pour 2 tablespoons batter for each pancake onto skillet. Cook until bubbles break the surface. Turn and brown the other side. SERVE with syrup, fresh fruit or powdered sugar. Yield: 16 (3-inch) pancakes.

Pictured with the pancakes is a simple fruit parfait which makes a great breakfast side or snack, and is a healthier alternative to bacon, eggs, ham, etc.

Easy Fruit Parfait

• 2-3 c. fresh fruit, cut into bite sizes (in the picture I used 1 apple, 2 bananas, and 2 kiwis)
• 1 container of low-cal yogurt (berry flavors work best, or you could try a lemon)
• Something for a bit of crunch – cereal pieces, granola (I used a Nature Valley granola bar that I crunched up).

Mix all ingredients together, refrigerate until time to serve.

Broccoli Slaw Salad

Years ago, Jay, my oldest brother and I crashed a wedding.  It’s not that we wanted to be rude, it’s just that my other brother was going to be in the same state as us for this wedding with his girlfriend (who is now my sister in law), and we desperately wanted to see him.  When that family heard that we were on our way, they cleared out some extra table room at the reception and even let us stay with them over night.  The next day before leaving town the mom of the family offered me some of this Broccoli Slaw salad and I instantly fell in love.  It was so sublime, I thought for sure that she must have spent ages working on it, but when I asked for the recipe she laughed and told me it was just 4 ready-to-use ingredients from the store.

Since then I’ve healthified it a touch and made it for lots of potlucks and parties, always with great reviews.

Broccoli Slaw Salad

• 1 bag broccoli slaw (can be found in your grocer’s produce section near the bagged salad mixes)
• dried cranberries
• sliced almonds
• 1/2 c. poppy seed dressing
• 1/2 c. fat free cottage cheese

The amounts of the ingredients really depends on your tastes.  I usually use about a 1/4 c. almonds and 1/3 c. cranberries (well broken apart since they tend to stick together), but as with all salads you can use as much or as little as you like.  Combine the dressing and cottage cheese in a small bowl until evenly mixed, then pour over salad ingredients until coated.  Refrigerate until time to serve, but use promptly.

*Kim’s note:  I’m not one to usually get wrapped up in brands, but the very best poppy seed dressing I have found is Briannas.  It is however very, very fattening which is why I dilute it with the cottage cheese.  The flavor is strong enough to carry through, but the fat and calories are greatly reduced.