For Michelle...or anyone else who needs a way to sneak in veggies

Creamy Cauliflower & Cheese Soup...it is REALLY yummy!


Heat in a pot, on medium low, until butter melts:
1/4 cup broth
1 Tbspoon butter

Then add and simmer covered for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally:

1 roughly chopped onion
2 sliced cloves of garlic
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

Next add the following, bring to a boil and simmer for 20 minutes or until tender:
4 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 medium head of cauliflower, coarsely chopped

Turn off heat and allow to cool a bit. Then puree the mixture until smooth. Return to the pot and stir in:

1/4-1/2 cup cream, half-and-half, or milk
2 cups of cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Simmer until cheese is melted. Don't let it boil! Enjoy!

Brrr... it's cold outside!

So, for lunch we are having Kale and Bean Soup.


* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 2 garlic cloves, chopped
* 1 pound escarole, chopped
* Salt
* 4 cups low-salt chicken broth
* 1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
* 1 (1-ounce) piece Parmesan
* Freshly ground black pepper
* 6 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy large pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Add the escarole and saute until wilted, about 2 minutes. Add a pinch of salt. Add the chicken broth, beans, and Parmesan cheese. Cover and simmer until the beans are heated through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Ladle the soup into 6 bowls. Drizzle 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil over each (Courtesy of the Food Network).

Although the recipe calls for escarole I've only made it with kale and we really like the taste! You can use as much or as little kale or escarole as you'd like. A pound is too much for us. Sometimes we add an extra can of cannellini beans. And it doesn't hurt to add some french bread (with butter, of course!)

This should warm you right up!

The best Caramel Corn recipe ever*.

2 cups brown sugar
2 sticks of butter
1/2 cup molasses
1/4 tsp salt

Boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly.

Add:
1 tsp Baking soda (It will bubble and expand the caramel, so use a big sauce pan)
1 tsp vanilla
Mix over heat another minute or so.

Stir caramel into popcorn. (I used 1/2 cup of kernels in an air popper). Spread popcorn evenly on a baking sheet, and bake at 200 degrees for an hour, turning every 15 minutes.

Munch on with your family as you sip frozen hot chocolate in front of your tree.

* Disclaimer: This is also the only caramel corn recipe I've ever tried.

Frozen Hot Chocolate

HERE

Banana Bread

I've always loved banana bread.  It reminds me of my childhood.  My mom always made her mom's recipe.  I always make that same recipe.  Well, not always.  I try other recipes, but come back to Mary Deane's banana bread.  That was until I tasted this one.  I've been converted.   Emily made this at the Relief Society cooking class, and I think you (all 3 of you) ought to give it a whirl.  Or a whisk.  Or whatever.

10 oz unsalted butter

1 lb, 2 oz granulated sugar

3 eggs, at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 lb, 5 oz pureed bananas, somewhat overripe

1 lb, 2 oz bread flour

2 tsp salt

2 tsp baking soda

9 oz coarsely chopped walnuts

coconut (optional)

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease 3 large loaf pans with a generous amount of butter and coat with sugar.

Melt butter and add the sugar.  Beat together for a few minutes.  Stir in the eggs, vanilla, and pureed bananas.  Mix together the flour, salt baking soda, and walnuts.  Stir into the butter mixture.  Spoon the batter into the prepared forms.  If you are using small forms, fill them only three-quarters full.  Sprinkle with coconut, if using (which I highly recommend you do!) Bake 45 minutes or until baked through.  You may need to use a second pan underneath to ensure that the cakes do not get too dark on the bottom while baking.  Unmold the cake as soon as possible and let cool on a cake rack.

Contact Emily for measurements instead of weights for ingredients if you don't have a scale.

Easiest Fondue

Directions:

Steam your favorite veggies

(Put them in the pot according to the time they take to cook: i.e. put in potatoes first, asparagus last)

Cut an artisan loaf of bread in cubes

Melt Fondue straight from package

You know what comes next

You can get this really great fondue by the pepperoni, laughing cow cheese (usually on the end of the aisle at Publix)

Easy as 1, 2, 3...

Here are the easiest cookies you will ever make and they're great for the holidays. All you need are these three ingredients:


1. Can of pumpkin
2. Spice Cake Mix
3. Chocolate Chips

Mix these all together and bake at 375 for 15 minutes and here's what you get:



(You should also try this, a new holiday cookie favorite of mine)

Pumpkin Bread

This AMAZING pumpkin bread recipe was given to me by Nicole Edwards. (She ok'd me to put it on the blog for her.) It is very likely the best pumpkin bread I've ever tasted. If you like pumpkin, you must try!!!



INGREDIENTS

3 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
2/3 cup water
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves (I always substitute nutmeg--I think cloves
are too strong)
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease
two 9x5 inch loaf pans.
2. In a large mixing, combine sugar, oil and eggs; beat until
smooth. Add water and beat until well blended. Stir in pumpkin,
ginger, allspice and cinnamon.
3. In medium bowl, combine flour, soda, salt, and baking powder.
Add dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture and blend just until all
ingredients are mixed. Divide batter between prepared pans.
4. Bake in preheated oven until toothpick comes out clean, about 1 hour.

Mango Chicken

When Mason and I were living in Utah, his cousins had us over for dinner. They made this dish and we were hooked. We make it all of the time. It is healthy and DELICIOUS!! Enjoy!



Marinade:

3-4 chicken breasts
1/3 c. teriyaki sauce
1/3 c. pineapple juice
1/3 c. honey
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 T. olive oil
black pepper to taste

(Keep 1/3 c. for basting)

Salsa:

1 avocado, diced
1 mango, diced
1 tomato, diced (squish out seeds)
5 green onions, chopped
½ c. cilantro leaves, cut with kitchen shears
1-2 jalapeno peppers, finely diced (put sandwich bag over hand to take seeds out)
juice of 1 lime

Marinate meat for approximately 6 hours. Grill meat, while basting with extra sauce. Make salsa right before serving. Serve meat with salsa on top.

Note: Leftovers are excellent on salad with Brianna’s Poppyseed salad dressing.

Coconut Avocado Ice Cream

• 3 ripe medium avocados
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 3/4 cups coconut milk (or the whole can)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup heavy cream
• pinch of cloves for garnish

Your avocados need to be ripe, soft like when you'd be making guacamole with them. Pit them, add to blender with lemon juice, coconut milk, and sugar, blending until smooth. Stir in cream and refrigerate for a few hours until mixture is cool all the way through. If you want to add cloves to taste, you can do that, but I didn't want to mess with the beautiful green color of the ice cream, so I added it at the end for garnish along with some almond butter cookies. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. If you want it harder than soft serve (and to make ahead of time), put a 9 X 13 pan in the freezer lined with wax paper and bring it out when the ice cream has solidified, making individual scoops in the pan, and return to the freezer until ready to serve.

Etiquette

Last night was our Young Men/Young Women Etiquette Dinner. The Young Women leaders cooked for days creating Mexican dishes that would please the palate (while also providing opportunities for learning proper dinner etiquette). :o) Hope you enjoy these side dishes!

Spanish Rice

½ lb. bacon, diced
1 c. rice
1 onion, diced
2 c. water
1 c. tomato sauce
½ tsp. cumin
½ tsp. thyme
½ tsp. chili powder
½ tsp. garlic
cheddar cheese, grated

Chop bacon and fry. Set aside. (Side note: Bacon is MUCH easier to chop when it is slightly frozen than when it is fully thawed.) In bacon drippings, brown rice and onion. Add water and tomato sauce. Season with spices. Simmer until liquid is absorbed. Top with cheese and bacon.


Refried Beans

2 lbs. dried pinto beans
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 beef bouillon cubes (or 3 tsp. bouillon granules)
1 T. salt
2 c. grated cheddar cheese
1/2 c. mild Taco Bell sauce

Rinse beans well before using. In a crockpot, cover beans with water well above the level of the beans and let soak overnight. In the morning, add garlic, beef boullion cubes, and salt. Cook on high about 6 hours or until beans are soft enough to mash. Drain off water about 2 inches below beans. Mix the beans with an electric mixer. Add cheese and Taco Bell sauce.

Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce

I use this site quite often for ideas and this recipe certainly did not disappoint. I love cooking with coconut milk! The only things I changed: left out the peppers and used a sweet onion instead of the red onion. And this was my first time ever cooking with ginger (outside of baked goods). So, I quite a bit of it left over. Any good recipes using ginger?

Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce

3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 teaspoons curry powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ teaspoon chili powder
1 medium red onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and finely chopped (by seeding the jalapeno you lose most of the spice/heat but retain great flavor)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 14-ounce can light coconut milk
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
3 cups hot cooked rice

Cut chicken into 1-inch pieces. Place in medium bowl. Stir together curry, salt, pepper and chili powder. Sprinkle over chicken, tossing to coat evenly. Cover and chill for 1 to 2 hours.

In a large nonstick frying pan, stir onion, basil, garlic and peppers in hot oil over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes, until onion is translucent. Add chicken and cook for 5-6 minutes until no longer pink.

Combine coconut milk and cornstarch and whisk well to combine. Carefully add to skillet, whisking vigorously. Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly. Stir in ginger. Cook and stir for another minute. Serve over hot rice.

Recipe Source: adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

Pasta Chicken Salad with Spinach...

Mmm Mmm. I got this recipe from my friend and it is sooo good! I could eat the whole thing by myself, and still feel great afterwards!


8-10 oz bow tie pasta
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/2 cup salad oil
1/3 cup teriyaki sauce (I didn't have any on hand so I made some following this recipe ... minus the ginger, but it turned out fine)
1/3 cup rice vinegar (I actually just used regular white vinegar)
2-3 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1/4 tsp seasoned pepper
3-4 cups cooked chicken
1/2 cup fresh parsley (or dried parsley... but definitely less than 1/2 cup of the dried)
1/2 cup green onions
7 cups lightly packed trim baby spinach

-Cook and drain pasta.
-In a little oil, saute sesame seeds. Stir in remaining oil, teriyaki sauce, vinegar, salt, sugar and pepper.
-Pour over pasta and chicken after dressing has chilled. Add onion, parsley and just before serving add spinach.

Tell me your secrets...

I'm not the biggest fan of vegetables, but I eat them because I know they're good for you. However, I wish there was a way I could LOVE vegetables (and get my family to love them too). I feel it could be possible if only I could find the secrets that make vegetables special. I've discovered one secret so far. I LOVE cucumbers, especially when jazzed up with a dash of lemon pepper. It works great as a snack, or as a side dish at dinner time. Please let me in on some of your secrets and tell me how you make vegetables interesting!

Fried Egg Sandwich

Sometimes this quick and easy sandwich hits the spot.

Toast, letuce, lunch meat, a fried egg (with a runny yoke), cheese, and sliced tomatoes, plus salt and pepper to taist. This is a messy sandwich, but it's finger licking good.

Beet Ravioli

Filling:

2 large red beets

1/4 c Ricotta fresh whole milk cheese

1/4 c Goat cheese

2 T dried breadcrumbs

1/4 c toasted Walnuts finely chopped

1 tsp lemon zest

salt/pepper to taste

Wonton Skins

Sauce:

1 stick butter

1 T poppy seeds

Goat (or Parmesan) cheese for top

400ø oven.  Roast beets wrapped in foil about 1 hour on baking sheet until tender when poked with knife.  Let cool, peel, and grate finely in bowl.  Add cheeses and season to taste with salt, pepper, lemon zest and toasted walnuts.  Stir in breadcrumbs.  Use wonton wrappers, brush edges with water and seal.  Boil in salted water for 3-4 minutes.

Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat and stir in poppy seeds, keep warm. Toss with ravioli and sprinkle with cheese.

Watermelon Slushy

Nathan made the yummiest watermelon slushy for us yesterday. Normally it takes a lot of work to cut up a watermelon into bite size pieces. For slushies it's easy. Cut a seedless watermelon in half, (remove any random black seeds you see) and with a big spoon, scoop out the insides and blend them in a blender. To two cups of blended watermelon add half a tray of ice cubes, 1/4 cup sugar and two hand fulls of (frozen) strawberries. (Sorry the measurements are not very precise .)

Blend and presto! It's a fabulous way to eat watermelon, and a very refreshing summer treat!

Want some...

b l u e b e r r y   s o u p ?

Mango Lassi

In the mood for something different?  This is so refreshing, you'll wish you had an Indian Grocery Store around the corner to buy Mango Pulp to make this every night.

3 Cups plain yogurt

1 Cup Mango pulp

Lemon juice to taste

20 Ice cubes

1/4 C sugar

Blend.  Enjoy {with a water/sugar dipped rim if you'd like.  My kids did.}

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies

oven 350 degrees

cream:

1 c butter

1c brown sugar

1 c granulated sugar

mix in:

1 egg

1 t vanilla

1 t cinnamon

1/2 t salt

1 t baking soda

add and mix lightly:

2 c whole wheat flour

1 c flour

2 c oats

1 c chocolate chips

bake 13-15 min

*take them out just before you think they're done

enjoy with giant glass of milk

Maybe it's the cream cheese...

..or maybe it's the butter.Maybe it's just nice spending more time eating than baking. Or maybe it's the wonderful sugar-y smell they leave in your kitchen? I don't know.... but these "kind of cheating, only half real baking cookies," were the best I've ever made.

1/4 cup butter
8 oz. cream cheese
1 egg yolk
1/4 tsp vanilla
1 box cake mix (white/butter/chocolate/whatever floats your boat)

375 degrees for 10 minutes.

Yum-o. Serious gooey, indulgent, yum-o.

Milton dinner favorites

Sorry to be answering your call for help so late, Katy! This first recipe is one of my favorites! I tend to make it a few times every month. Sometimes we eat it with tortilla chips, most of the time we eat it just as it is. I love this recipe for its nutrition, simplicity (that always wins me over!), color, and fragrance. And, of course, it tastes so yummy! Have fun with this Black Bean and Couscous Salad

A typical dinner around the our home is a roasted vegetable with rice and/or green salad. There are lots of vegetables that can be roasted and it's so easy and healthy! This recipe for Roasted Brussels Sprouts is a good one.

I also roast butternut squash. Joshua loves it! I chop it up into big bite-size bits, toss it in olive oil and sprinkle a little bit of salt and a tablespoon or so of brown sugar. I roast it at 400, I think. I'm not totally sure on the temperature, just keep an eye on it and move the squash around once or twice. It should only take about 10-15 minutes. Sometimes I broil it for a minute at the end, just to darken it up and make it a little crispy. The brown sugar will slightly carmelize from broiling. Sorry this recipe isn't the clearest. I make it all the time and it's probably a little different each time. Another good one is roasted broccoli with rice on the side. Hope these help! :)

Gazpacho Pasta Salad

Hey, Christy, I think this just might go well with your bread!  Recipe here.

Bread Recipe

Here are two recipes - one from me and one from Kathryn (I am assuming she doesn't mind sharing). Kathryn says hers is a no-fail. I believe the key to mine is you can never knead long enough. I let it knead on high for good 5-7 minutes.

Christy's
1 1/2 c. hot tap water
1 T. yeast
1/4 c. sugar

-Mix together and let it sit for approx. 5 minutes or until bubbles.

Then add,
2 T. oil (I use olive)
1/2 T. salt
3-4 c. flour (I do half white and half wheat, but you can do whatever) - add one cup at a time.
*I have been mixing vital wheat gluten to the flour before I put it in, but if you don't have it - don't worry, my mom never made it with it and it turned out fine.

Mix until smooth and just barely sticky to the touch (so you might have to add more flour) and knead well.

Let rise until double.

Make into loaves and put in 2 greased loaf pans. Let rise until double. Bake in oven @ 350 for 20-25 mins. To check doneness, thump and listen for hollow sound. Let cool and dig in!

Kathryn's:

Mix wet ingredients first

1/3 C oil

1/3 C Honey

1/3 C molasses

5 C Hot tap water

1 Tbl salt

3 Tbl yeast

½ C gluten Flour

10 cups of Flour (stop and mix)

Add flour until tacky consistency (wheat less, white up to 14 cups) But average is 12 cups total.

Let rise until double in size

Oil hands to roll and put in pans let rise to lip of pan

Should make 4 loafs

325 degrees for 35 mins

I Need a Recipe for Bread...

Okay, all you Mormon gals...I want to make some breadsticks with a roasted garlic spread, but can't decide on a dough recipe. I have tried bread recipes in the past and I am a big fat failure. The only way I can ever successfully make bread is with a machine, but I just got a Kitchenaid mixer and want to try it out. Christy--I thought you had posted an easy bread recipe on here, but I couldn't find it.

Any help? Anyone??

Lentil Casserole

I posted a lentil casserole recipe here. It was so good. I just can't say enough good things about it--and I can't wait to make it again! Who knew you could get so excited about lentils?!

Stromboli

Super easy and super good. I used my own bread dough. It was delish! It was stuffed with veggies and the kids still gobbled it up!

Stromboli

Ingredients:

1 lb frozen bread dough, thawed or your own dough

mustard (I used mustard and honey mustard)

salami

ham

bell pepper

olives

cheese

*you can add whatever other deli meats or toppings you would like

First roll out the dough into a rectangle. Brush with mustard. Layer meats, and toppings. Bring sides and ends together and pinch closed. Lay seam side down on baking sheet and bake for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown at 350 degrees. Another filling idea would be to use alfredo or other cheese sauce and layer with shredded chicken and broccoli.

Lentil Bolognese Sauce

To go along with our bean/lentil class last week, I am posting this recipe:

We don't eat much meat at the Dill household, but Ryan sometimes craves something "meaty". He made us both happy with this recipe.  Sorry, no pic.  We just ate it up too quickly!

1 onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 carrots, coarsely grated

3 T olive oil

2/3 C red lentils

1 can (14 oz) tomatoes, chopped

2 T tomato paste

2 C vegetable stock

1 tsp oregano

salt/pepper to taste

1/2 C cream

1/2 C milk

1. In a large saucepan, gently fry the onion, garlic, and carrots in oil until they are soft and "brown goodness" starts to stick to the bottom of the pan.  This may take a while depending on your cookery.

2. Add the lentils, tomatoes, tomato paste, stock, oregano, salt and pepper.  The liquid will "deglaze" your pan, giving a richer flavor to your sauce.

3.  Bring the mixture to a boil, then partially cover with a lid and simmer for 20 minutes until thick and soft.  Add milk and cream, but DO NOT ALLOW TO BOIL AGAIN, or curdling may occur.  Serve over whole wheat pasta (making it a complete protein, wink, wink) and add a bit of freshly grated parm on top!

Note:  If you like your sauce a bit smoother, just use an immersion blender or cool and blend in a blender on pulse until desired consistency is reached.  Also, make sure you add enough salt to bring out flavors.  This is no good without salt!

Super Easy Peanut Butter Cookies

I wanted to make PB cookies. I found a scrumptious recipe, but remembered I had no eggs. I was bummed. An hour later, I just so happened to look through a cookbook and found a PB cookie recipe that required NO EGGS! (when I finally decide to go vegan, I will be rejoicing!) Anyways, here is the recipe:

3/4 cup Peanut Butter
1 14 oz. can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 c. Bisquick (I use the heart healthy kind in the white box)
1 t. Vanilla
Granulated Sugar (optional)

Beat PB and SCM in mixing bowl until smooth. Add Bisquick and beat. Add Vanilla. Form into balls and roll in sugar if you like it that way. I know I do...Bake at 375 8-10 minutes!