I definitely see more stir-fries in my future...

I've been away for awhile!  I started tracking calories and weight and other such measurements over on the SparkPeople page, and I've honestly had my hands full trying to enter my recipes there and trying to figure out how to make healthier foods.  I guess I haven't had the energy to keep up with my foodie fantasies. :(  But I'm working on getting back here as well as keeping up on SparkPeople. :)  So...let's get this thing moving again.


In all of my cooking experiments, I haven't often forayed into the world of stir-fries.  I'm not sure why, really; I guess maybe they intimidate me a little, thinking I can't possibly compare to what you might get at a Chinese restaurant.  But tonight, I was brave, and I did a little searching on the Internet, and I found a great base recipe that I think will serve me extremely well!  This dish is absolutely loaded with fresh veggies and tender chicken, and not only is it gorgeous to behold, it is really, really, REALLY yummy. :)


This is the recipe as I made it, but really any combination of veggies would work well.

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Garlic-Ginger Chicken Stir Fry with Brown Rice


2 Tbsp. peanut oil
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. grated fresh ginger
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 large onion, diced
1 orange bell pepper, diced
1 head of broccoli, chopped (stems too!)
1/4 head of cauliflower, chopped
1 can water chestnuts, drained
1/4 c. sliced mushrooms
1-1/2 c. bean sprouts (1 bag, rinsed and drained)
1 c. reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. corn starch
1-1/2 c. brown rice
3-4 c. water (to cook rice in) 


Prepare rice according to package directions. (It takes about 40 minutes for brown rice, so that gives plenty of time to prep your veggies!)

Heat peanut oil in a wok or large skillet. When the oil begins to smoke, add 2 cloves minced garlic and ginger root and stir for about a minute. Add the chicken and stir until opaque, about 3 minutes. Add the rest of the garlic and stir well, then add all the veggies, 1/2 c. of broth, stir well, and cover.

In a small bowl, mix the remaining broth, soy sauce, sugar and corn starch. Add sauce mixture to the wok/skillet and stir until chicken and veggies are coated and sauce thickens. Serve immediately over hot rice.

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I fully intend to make this recipe again...and again...and again... :)  I will definitely try sugar snap peas, maybe some bok choy.... Oh, the possibilities are endless!!!

Ooh la la!

I was wandering around the produce section tonight at the store, getting a few things for dinner.  I passed by the berries........and came back to them.  Now, I know in about a month, we will be eating all the strawberries we can handle, so I ignored the big red berries and went for the gorgeous plump raspberries and blackberries on the next shelf.  I had no idea what I would do with them, but I had to do something!  So I got them home and started digging through cookbooks and I emerged with a recipe for clafoutis.  I know, I had to look up how to say it too.  It's cla-FOO-tee.  A French dessert, typically made with cherries.  But I just had to try it with these little gems.  I've never had a clafoutis; I couldn't even imagine how it would taste!  But I had the necessary ingredients on hand and it was very quick and easy to whip up!  According to Wikipedia, my version is probably actually called a flaugnarde, but I'm sticking with clafoutis. :)




Raspberry & Blackberry Clafoutis
6 to 8 servings


Preheat oven to 375F.  Butter a 10-inch deep-dish pie pan.  Beat in a medium bowl until frothy, about 2 minutes:
     4 large eggs
     3/4 c. sugar
Add and beat until smooth:
     1 c. milk
     1 Tbsp. rum (optional)
     1-1/2 tsp. vanilla
Stir in:
     3/4 c. all-purpose flour
     Pinch of salt
Distribute evenly over the bottom of the pie pan:
     6 oz. each fresh raspberries and blackberries
Pour the batter over the berries and place the pie pan on a baking sheet.  Bake the clafoutis for 10 minutes, reduce the oven temperature to 350F, and bake until the top has puffed (it will sink as it cools), and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 35 more minutes.  Cool for about 20 minutes before serving.

I am so glad I made this!  A complete experiment, but it turned out sooo tasty.  The berries are still a bit on the tart side, so you'll definitely want the freshest, ripest berries you can get your hands on.  The rest of it is smooth and sweet, kind of creamy and so delicious!

Sorrentino is a beautiful word...

Wednesday is pasta night.  Best night of the week, if you ask me!  I <3 pasta!  Especially when it comes paired with garlic bread...  Ok, my knees just went weak. Good thing I'm sitting down!  LOL


So, I ask Ron today what he wants for dinner, and he thinks about it for a minute or two and then says, "How about baked ziti?" I quickly agree, because it's one of my most favorite dishes.  But, not just baked ziti.  Baked Ziti Sorrentino.  Why is it called that, you ask.. Because of the ricotta cheese.  Baked ziti without ricotta is just that, baked ziti.  But with the ricotta... It becomes... Sorrentino.  Say it.  Let it roll off your tongue.. close your eyes and whisper it... Beautiful, right?  And so very delicious. :)




Baked Ziti Sorrentino
Feeds 6-8 (depending on how big your portion sizes are!)


1 pound tubular pasta: mostaccioli, penne, etc.
1 28oz. can petite diced tomatoes
1 6oz. can tomato paste
1 pound ground beef (can use less if you like - a little goes a long way in this dish!)
1 medium onion, chopped
4 fresh mushrooms, stems removed, wiped clean and sliced
2-3 garlic cloves, sliced thin or minced
dried basil
dried oregano
salt & pepper to taste
splash of wine (optional)
dash of sugar (optional)
ricotta cheese
2-3 cups shredded mozzarella


Bring a pot of water to a boil and just before you add your pasta, salt the water liberally. Then add your pasta and cook according to package directions. I used Barilla Whole Wheat Penne - I'm in love with whole wheat pastas right now. They have such a nice flavor and they're healthier for you. :)


Pour a drizzle of olive oil into a large pot. (I used my new enameled cast iron Dutch oven, and it worked beautifully, especially since it can go right from stovetop into the oven.)  Add ground beef and cook until no longer pink.  If there is more than a couple of tablespoons of fat in the pan, spoon it out.  Add your chopped onions, mushrooms and garlic and cook about 5 minutes more, until the onions have started to soften.  Add a generous amount of basil and oregano (sorry, I don't measure these!).  Stir in the tomato paste and diced tomatoes and heat through. At this point, taste it!  If the tomatoes are too acidic for you, add a bit of sugar to balance the acidity. To add another element to the sauce, pour in a splash of wine.  Completely optional, though.  Add salt and pepper to taste.


Once the pasta is done (definitely don't overcook it, as this is going into the oven to bake a little more and will continue to soften in the sauce), drain it and add to the sauce, along with the ricotta and about half of your shredded mozzarella. Mix well.  If you're using a pot like mine, top it with the rest of the mozzarella and pop it in the oven at 425 for about 20 minutes.  If not, transfer the mixture to a baking dish, then continue from there.  Once the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling, it's ready.

So, as usual...I ate too much.  But can you blame me? LOL  I usually feel a little less guilty if I make a salad with this meal. :)








Within minutes after eating, Ron then informed me that he wants cookies.  Nothing surprising here, lol.  So I spoiled him just a little bit and made him peanut butter cookies.  These little lovelies are so yummy! They absolutely melt in your mouth. They're small, but the recipe makes about 50 of them, so you can have 4 or 5 and not feel too awful about it... :)  Plus, if you have them with a glass of milk, you not only get the awesome benefits of protein from the peanut butter, but you get a good dose of calcium too!  Win/win! =P




Peanut Butter Cookies


Whisk together in a bowl:
1-1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda


Beat in a large bowl until well-blended:
1/3 c. (5-1/3 Tbsp.) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. packed brown sugar


Beat in:
1 large egg
1 c. peanut butter (smooth or chunky)
1/2 tsp. vanilla


Stir in the flour mixture until just blended. Shape into 1-inch balls and arrange about 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet.  Press flat with a fork.  Bake, 1 tray at a time, for 10-12 minutes in a preheated 375 degree oven. Let stand briefly then remove to a rack to cool.

Chicken Fricassee & Dumplings... Serious comfort food!

It's been so rainy and dreary here, I decided we were in need of some comfort food... Of course, it figures today would end up sunshiney and very pleasant.  I'm definitely not complaining, though!! =P  Besides, I had to christen my new enameled cast iron Dutch oven.  I've been looking for one for a while now, but they can be pretty pricey!  And no job = no expensive new gadgets. :)  But I found this 6.5 quart Tramontina Dutch oven in hunter green (my favorite!) at Wal-Mart for $39.00, and used their Site-To-Store shipping to get it to our local store.

So anyway, Tuesday is chicken night, and I chose Chicken Fricassee and Dumplings from my trusty Joy of Cooking book and adapted it for my preferences.  For example, I like to use boneless skinless chicken breasts instead of whole chicken parts.  I'm more than happy to share the recipe here, because this is something EVERYONE should try!! So, so, so yummy. :)


Chicken Fricassee & Dumplings
4 to 5 servings


Have ready enough chicken breasts or chicken tenderloins to feed your family (2-3 tenderloins per person is usually what I go for).  Sprinkle each piece with salt and black or white pepper to taste.


Melt 1/4 c. (1/2 stick) butter in a heavy large skillet over medium heat.  Add only as many chicken pieces as will fit without crowding and cook, turning once, until pale golden, about 3 to 5 minutes on each side.  Remove the chicken to a plate and brown the remaining chicken in the same way.


Add to the pan 1-1/2 c. chopped onions.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender but not browned, about 5 minutes.  Stir in 1/3 c. all-purpose flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute, then reduce heat to medium-low and whisk in 1-3/4 c. chicken stock or broth or water.  Whisking constantly, bring to a boil over high heat.


Add 8-oz. mushrooms - sliced, 3 medium carrots - diced, 2 large ribs of celery - diced, 1/2 tsp. dried thyme, 1 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. white or black pepper.  Return the chicken to the pan along with any accumulated juices and bring to a simmer.  Reduce heat so that the liquid barely bubbles.  Stir in 1/4 to 1/2 c. heavy cream and season with any additional salt and pepper to taste, and several drops of fresh lemon juice (which I actually forgot! But it was fine anyway.)


Now, for the dumplings!  Whisk together 1 c. cake flour, 2 tsp. baking powder and 1/2 tsp. salt.  Break 1 egg into a 1-cup measuring cup and fill to the 1/2 cup mark with milk.  Beat well and stir slowly into the dry ingredients.  Add more milk if necessary, but keep the batter as stiff as possible.  Drop by spoonful into the Chicken Fricassee; be careful not to crowd them!  Cover the pan with a lid and do not lift that lid for 10 minutes!!  After 10 minutes, remove the lid and check the dumplings with a toothpick, like you would a cake.  If it comes out clean, they're done.

The dumplings should be super light and moist, the chicken tender, the vegetables soft but not mushy.  There was plenty to feed the four of us, with another serving left over for lunch tomorrow.  I think the chicken fricassee would be delicious over noodles, rice or mashed potatoes, or served with cornbread or hot rolls instead of the dumplings.  My father-in-law informed me that I can make this whenever I want...which means he loved it. :)  Enjoy!

No walnuts?? It's okay, really!

What's for breakfast today? Cereal? Nah... Toast? Meh... Scrambled eggs?  Hmm...no, thanks.  I want muffins.  Warm, filling, satisfying, yummy muffins.  Banana oat muffins, to be exact.  So off to the kitchen I go........

.....and now they're done. And oh.em.gee, I am so happy I made these!!  I found this recipe a couple of years ago in a Weight Watchers cookbook I got from my good friend Deanna.  I'll even share the recipe here!

Banana Oat Muffins

Points value: 4

prep: 10 minutes; cook: 21 minutes

1 c. all-purpose flour

1 c. regular oats

1/2 c. sugar

1/4 c. wheat germ

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

2/3 c. mashed very ripe banana (about 2 small)

1/3 c. reduce-fat sour cream

1 large egg

1/4 c. canola oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375. Combine flour, oats, sugar, wheat germ, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.  Combine banana, sour cream, egg, oil and extract in a small bowl,then add to the dry ingredients and mix until just moist.  Spoon evenly into 12 muffin cups coated with the cooking spray.  Bake at 375 for about 21, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Remove from pan immediately to a wire rack. Serve warm. Makes 1 dozen; serving size: 1 muffin.

Where are the nuts?? You might ask... I know, walnuts go great with bananas... but I promise, with all the texture the oats add, you won't even miss the nuts.  The wheat germ adds more fiber and helps to fill you up just a little bit more, and it's good for you!  If you've never bought wheat germ before, I found it in the cereal aisle at the grocery store, and you'll need to refrigerate it after you open it.

The outside of these beauties gets nice and crisp but not hard, and the inside is so soft and delicious!  They're as good cold as they are hot, and they store well in a sealed container or ziploc bag.  Maybe I shouldn't tell you this, especially if you're a strict Weight Watchers follower, but you can't eat just one. It just isn't possible.  But two is just about right... :)

Meatless again? Not even on purpose this time!

After being without power much of the day, I decided tonight's dinner would be simple.  No last minute trips to the store, nothing too strenuous; just easy and light, and yummy.  Wednesday is pasta day around here, and I have a tendency to get wrapped up in tomato-based sauces - they're my favorite.  But this recipe (from Joy of Cooking, of course) is light and healthy and has loads of great flavor. The recipe calls for linguine or tagliatelle, but I had angel hair pasta on hand, and it was just fine.  As my pasta was cooking, I ran hot water into a large serving dish, to heat it just a little, then rubbed the inside of it with a cut garlic clove to add just a hint of garlicky goodness.  A few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, a generous amount of basil and oregano and a palmful of grated Parmesan, and it was ready to receive the angel hair pasta, plus a little of the cooking water.  Toss it all together, season to taste with salt and pepper, and voila! Main dish is done.  A simple side salad and crusty garlic bread, and we stuffed ourselves once again. :)

Oh my Ganache...

I'm not a huge ice cream fan.  But I like to eat it now and again, and when I do, I want it to be the good stuff... Häagen-Dazs, Ben & Jerry's, Dove...  I saw Dove ice cream on sale a couple weeks ago at the grocery store, and I wasn't able to resist the temptation.  The only reason they've lasted so long in the freezer, though, is because I hid them. =P


So last night, about 8:30, we lost power in the big storm that swept through the area.  It got so stuffy and humid in the house, we were all miserable!  Around 10, we decided we needed a little snack before bed and I got the ice cream from the freezer and we ate it in the dark, lol.  It was going to melt anyway!  Ron's flavor was Toffee Caramel Moment and it was tasty - the toffee caramel was salty and combined so nicely with the smooth vanilla ice cream and sweet chocolate chunks.  Mine was Unconditional Chocolate.  So simple, yet superbly smooth and delicious chocolate ice cream.


And the ganache... Oh. Em. Gee.  All of Dove's ice creams come with a layer of ganache on the top, a kind of amazing chocolate shell that hides the goodies within, yet it's pretty much the best part of the ice cream!!  I like to eat only part of the ganache in a sitting, digging down into the ice cream below and clearing only the areas I need to have exposed. That way I savor it more...  Ron calls it ice cream excavation.  LOL


I'm glad we did enjoy it, sitting in the dark together, because the power was out for 18 hours and it completely melted before it came back on, and ice cream is never quite the same after it's melted and refrozen.  I have no doubts that it will still be really yummy, but not as good as the first foray into the depths of the pint...

Arroz con Pollo, or Chicken & Rice...

....no matter what you call it, it's pretty tasty.  Another new recipe from my Joy of Cooking cookbook.  I swear, this book has never steered me wrong!  Easily the best money I've ever spent on a cookbook.  It really seems like no matter what I try from its pages, it is guaranteed to be delicious.


The chicken was not as tender as I would have liked it, and I'm not sure if it was just a tough piece of chicken to begin with or if I overcooked it.  Chances are, it's because I overcooked it.  I tend to do that... probably because, quite frankly, chicken scares the crap out of me!  All the reports I read about salmonella - not just regular-make-you-sick-for-a-couple-of-days salmonella, but antibiotic-resistant salmonella that will absolutely tear you inside out and wring out your guts for you... Too graphic?  Maybe. But that's what I think about when I consider eating undercooked chicken.  So I guess I can gladly deal with tough meat now and again...

I've never cooked much with paprika, but I'm really developing a fondness for the smoky spice.  It really goes well with rice, infusing it with a lot of flavor and a really gorgeous orange-red color.  The frozen peas, thrown in right at the end, add a great splash of color and a nice fresh taste to it as well.


The garlic bread, toasted on a griddle, probably added more starch than what is good for me...but I couldn't help myself. I have a severe weakness for breads and pastas, and I just couldn't let my loaf of bread get stale, could I?  Nope, definitely not. :)

Meatless Monday....with Japanese flair!

We very recently had the incredible pleasure of having house guests from Japan.  My husband's cousin Jake, his wife Chie and their daughter Hana came to stay with us for a few weeks to get a much-needed reprieve from the disastrous events in Japan.  While the circumstances of their visit were terrible, we were so happy to have them here and to have the opportunity to get to know and fall in love with the three of them.  And, just as importantly, learn from them - especially Chie! :)  I discovered in our Japanese cousins kindred spirits.  I don't know how many times I looked at Ron and then at Jake and said, "You two are just alike!"  And the same for Chie and I - we found much in common, especially a love for good food!


For tonight's dinner, I took a lesson from Chie and made korokke, which is the Japanese term for a French dish, the croquette.  We decided Mondays from now on would be meatless, or very close to, as often as possible.  So I made mashed potatoes, then sauteed carrots, onion and garlic in a drizzle of olive oil and mixed it all together, along with a handful of frozen peas.  I made patties of the potato mixture, coated each patty in flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs, and fried them in canola oil.  I tried to copy Chie's sauce, and I know that I didn't get it quite right, but it was good anyway - it is somewhat similar in taste to A1 sauce: ketchup, soy sauce, worcestershire sauce and a little sugar.  The korokke and a salad made for a really nice, super tasty, light meatless dinner.

Not all of the korokke were quite so well done, but I was nice and let my hubby have the more golden ones. =P


The amazing thing about this dish is that a little goes a long way.  I only had six smallish potatoes to make, and I used a small onion and a handful of baby carrots, and we had plenty - PLENTY - of korokke to fill us up!  I used about a half cup of flour, two eggs, and only about five slices of bread for the breadcrumbs.


I can't claim that my korokke were as good as Chie's.......but I think they were close :)  So thanks again, Chie, for the knowledge and the experience!

"Why do you do track, again?" I ask...

..."because I can" is the response I get.  My stepson Cameron is on the track team, and I am normally a big supporter of his sports and anything that keeps him active.  But today, track fell to the very bottom of my list of favorite activities.  Oh yeah, it dropped well below basketball, which was previously my least favorite. =P  Aside from having to drive more than an hour to get to our destination by 8:30am, it was just barely above 40 degrees, and worse, it was raining.  It rained the entire morning we were there...  Fortunately for all of us involved, Cameron only had 3 events, and they went quickly, so we were only there for a few hours.  But we were so cold...and wet....and miserable.  Our Starbucks treat was not just much desired, but well deserved for our suffering! lol



I had trouble getting warm the rest of the day, though, so I decided soup was on the menu for dinner.  Just the thing to get us toasty and full and happy again.  And, of course, chicken noodle is the old standby, one of my favorites!  Very basic, just carrots, celery, onion and orzo pasta in chicken broth with a sprinkling of thyme and basil.  I like orzo better for chicken soup because then you don't have noodles flopping off your spoon as you're trying to take a bite. :)  A grilled ham & muenster sandwich rounded it out nicely.





And for dessert... strawberry shortcake.  It's still a bit early for fresh strawberries around here, but I happened to stop by the display at the grocery store the other day and I couldn't resist sniffing the big red berries...and they smelled so sweet... I think they may have even called my name...lol.  The shortcakes are just a tad overdone, but they had a really nice flavor, and the bit of crispness actually complimented the fluffy-creamy-heaven-that-is-real-whipped-cream and the sweet-tart strawberry slices.




All in all, even though it was a miserable day for a track meet, it turned out to be a decent day!  I think the sun even tried to peep out from behind the clouds a few times... :)

No meat on Fridays during Lent? Not a hardship...

I get into terrible food ruts.  Sometimes, no matter how hard I think about it, I just cannot come up with any decent meal ideas.  So I decided I needed to assign particular types of meals to each day of the week: Monday is ethnic, Tuesday is chicken, Wednesday is pasta, Thursday is soup when it's cold and salad when it's hot and some combination of the two when the weather is in between the extremes.  And Friday? Friday....is Pizza.  I love pizza.  I have always loved pizza, for as long as I can remember.  I've had really good pizza and I've had really bad pizza, and I'm pleased that my homemade pizza falls quite solidly on the really good end... :)


Tonight, I cooked for 5 of us.  My husband Ron and I live with his parents, and his sister joined us for dinner.  Ron and I are Catholic, so we have been following the Lenten rule of no meat on Fridays.  I made 2 pizzas - one with meat, and one without.

I've been using Fleischmann's pizza yeast for my crust.  It doesn't need time to rise before putting it into the pan.  I've been really happy with the results every time I've used it.  I even made my own sauce this time!  I started with a drizzle of olive oil in a skillet, garlic, basil, oregano and a little crushed red pepper, then added a 28oz. can of diced tomatoes, salt to taste and a dash of sugar to balance the acidity, and let it simmer away until much of the juice was gone.  Pepperoni and sausage with onions and mushrooms on just one half of this big pizza.  I didn't have any of it, but I'm told it was tasty. =P

The other pizza was topped generously with mozzarella, onions, mushrooms and orange bell pepper strips, and a sprinkle of oregano and grated Parmesan over the top.  The crust was chewy and delicious and the veggies were hot but still had a bit of crispness to them.  Sooo yummy!!  Despite the lightness of the toppings, two slices was just enough to fill me up. :)

Enjoying yogurt again...

For some time now, I've been worried about yogurt.  I love the health benefits of yogurt and what it does for a body in terms of digestion.  However, I have texture issues with some brands...  If it's too grainy, I simply can't eat it.  Yoplait Original has a wonderful texture and a wide variety of flavors, which I love.  But the amount of sugar....  {sigh}  I am trying to avoid high fructose corn syrup wherever possible, and trying to cut back on my sugar intake in general.  And I can't stand artificial sweeteners, so going Light was just not an option (besides, they contain HFCS as well).  So I stopped eating yogurt altogether for awhile, because I just wasn't sure the calcium and digestive benefits outweighed the heavy sugar content.


But I missed it... a lot.  So I started looking again, and I discovered that Yoplait Original no longer has HFCS in it!!  This makes me so happy!  It still contains 33g of total carbohydrates, 26 of which are from sugars... but it's just sugar, and not HFCS.  So maybe I can live with that...


Welcome back to my diet, Yoplait Original yogurt... You, a cup of coffee and a piece of toast with peanut butter are a good way to start my day. :)