Experimenting with Pumpkin Bread

How has it been so long since my last post? Oh yeah, I joined Pinterest. That's how. I have thought to myself, 'I should really post this recipe on the the blog' more times than I can count in the last 6 months so I have a lot of catching up to do. We'll start with the fun stuff first...

Close to the beginning of the year Travis and I committed ourselves to eliminating High Fructose Corn Syrup from our diets and lowering our sugar intake. Admittedly, he is much more disciplined than I am. He doesn't have quite the sweet tooth I do. I can't be a happy person and NOT have desserts here and there. So, I started experimenting with Agave Nectar as a way to have reduced sugar desserts. Apparently it is 14 times as sweet as white sugar and comes from Blue Agave plants. Bonus- it's organic. I have been so happy with the results so far. The only downside is it's so much more expensive than sugar. As in 16 oz is around $5.50 at Wal-Mart. Ouch. I have to remind myself that our health is worth it.

The back of the bottle says 2/3 cup of nectar = 1 cup of brown sugar. All other liquids should then be reduced by 1/4 cup. I have substituted light Agave Nectar for white sugar using the same ratio.

For my first experiment I made pumpkin bread using no granulated sugar whatsoever. That was a big mistake. Reducing the oil so much dried it out and it lacked sweetness. It took us forever to eat those loaves up. I pawned them off on the kids. Very disappointing. So then I tried reducing the granulated sugar by half and that was so much better. The time after that, (I know- that's a lot of pumpkin bread, but I love it!) I tried the half sugar recipe with my own pumpkin puree. Oh-my-goodness. DIVINE! So pumpkin-y and moist! The recipe makes two loaves and they were both gone in a little less than 4 days. We oinked 'em. And we barely shared with the kids because it was that good. And they make a complete mess whenever they eat bread.

The base recipe I use is really not all that special. I think it may even be identical to the one on the cans of puree. But  following the directions of the almighty Pioneer Woman for making homemade puree and half-ing the sugar intake makes my idea of the perfect reduced sugar pumpkin bread. Consequently, it is also reduced fat because there is less oil. Just make sure your puree is mixed really well because once I unknowingly made it with some lumps and then it didn't mix well into the batter and the center turned out very mushy. While the outside burned. Which brings me to the next point...I am a little frustrated that the sides and bottom of the loaves are a little brown-er than I'd like. I may try reducing the cook temp one of the days.

Melissa's Perfect Reduced Sugar and Fat Homemade Pumpkin Bread with Flax Seed
2c homemade pumpkin puree
1 c sugar
1-1/4 c oil
2/3 c agave nectar
3 c flour
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1-1/2 tsp allspice
1-1/2 tsp ground cloves
1-1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 tbsp flax seed (optional, I just happened to have some)

Directions:
Cream oil, sugar, nectar, and eggs. Add pumpkin.
In another bowl mix all dry ingredients. Add to egg mixture. Mix very well, scraping bottom and sides. Fill greased loaf pans about half full. Bake 45- 50 minutes.

Basic Cheese Sauce for Macaroni and Veggies

This post has been a long time comin'. Nothin' better than cheese. It makes everything better. I found this basic recipe on the internet, but can't remember where. (Sorry.) I have found that the key to success is precise measuring of the flour and butter. Use measuring spoons and butter (not whipped margarine.) I know, I know, I know. "But butter is soooooo fattening." Trust me. Whenever I use a regular spoon for the flour or guess with the margarine, the consistency is wrong. It's just not worth it.

So, I have made this with many cheeses and cheese combinations. My favorite is half and half of sharp cheddar and white cheddar. Yum! You can make it with a bowtie pasta and throw in some chicken and broccoli for a (semi-) balanced meal. (If you just want to make it with noodles, cook between 3/4 and 7/8 of a pound of past. Not the whole pound or it will be macaroni and cheese soup.) Or you can take the recipe down to 1/3 of all measurements and it makes a good amount for around a pound of steamed veggies. The only drawback to this sauce is when it cools it gets pretty thick and it's not nearly as good left over.

Ingredients:
3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
1 1/2 c milk
pepper to taste ( I always skip this)
8 oz cheese of your choice, shredded

Directions:
Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat until just melted. Stir in flour very well. Let cook for a minute. take off of the heat source and slowly whisk in the milk. (If you like pepper, now is the time to add a dash.) Return to stove top and stir constantly until thick and bubbly. (If you don't stir, it takes forever to heat up and you run the risk of it burning on you before you know it.) Let it cook just a minute more. Add grated cheese and stir until melted. Immediately pour over noodles and/or veggies and serve.

Super easy. Very tasty.

Ethan's 1st Birthday Cake

After a full day of baking and kneading and coloring and decorating...

I was pretty pleased with the finished product.

Of course it wasn't perfect. But it sure tasted good. A big thanks to my hubby for his input on the track.

Ethan's Oreo Cookie Race Car Cake


Cake Ingredients:
3/4 cup butter, softened
4 egg whites
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/4 cups milk
15 coarsely chopped Double Stuff Oreos

Cake Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350. (Better Homes and Gardens suggests 375, but I find my edges dry out at that temp. Could be that I have a cheap oven, though.) Allow butter and eggs to stand at room temp for 30 min. Meanwhile grease pan. (I used the number 1 mold, but a rectangular 13x9 or two 9 in rounds would work.) In medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.

2. In mixing bowl beat butter with electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. Gradually add sugar, about 1/4 cup at a time, while scraping sides and beating on medium speed until well combined. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes more. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Add vanilla. Alternately add in flour mixture and and milk to butter mixture, beating on low speed until just combined. Fold in Oreos. Spread batter into prepared pan(s).

3. Bake for 25-35 minutes (20-25 if using round pans) or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean. Cool on wire racks for 10 minutes then remove from pan(s) and allow to completely cool on racks.


Creamy White Frosting Ingredients:
1 cup butter flavored shortening
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar
4 1/2 tablespoons milk

Directions:
In a medium mixing bowl beat room temp shortening and vanilla on medium speed for 30 seconds. Slowly add half of the powdered sugar, beating well. Add 2 tablespoons of milk. Gradually beat in remaining sugar and milk to reach spreading consistency. (Frosts middle, sides, and top of two 9 in rounds. Even though Better Homes and Gardens says to half the recipe for a 13x9, I knew I'd need extra for applying the M&M's and I didn't want to run out. So, I made the full amount and had probably about 1/2 cup leftover. And I tinted mine blue.)

Melissa's Homemade Spaghetti Sauce and Meatballs

These recipes are a variation of my mom's. When I moved into my own apartment, I wrote down her recipe and used that for the four years I lived there. Somehow, when I moved into the rental house from there, I misplaced the recipe. You'd think after making it every time I ate spaghetti I would have it committed to memory, but I guess being an 'overtime' student with a full-time job takes a toll on your brainpower and you don't really remember things you don't have to. Anyway. I remembered all of the ingredients, just not the exact amounts of each, so I began estimating and seeing how it turned out. (I refuse to buy a jarred sauce because I have tried to save time this way and just end up disappointed in the meal.) Here's what I came up with.

For the record: Any and all generic brands can be used for all ingredients except the Great Value brand peeled, crushed tomatoes in puree. The texture is just not right.



Melissa's Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

Ingredients:

• 1 large can (I'll check the amount) tomato juice
• 1 medium, short and fat sized can (" ") peeled, crushed tomatoes in puree
• 2 small (or 1 regular size) cans tomato paste
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tbsp oregano leaves
• 2 -3 (depending on the size) cloves minced garlic (it must be fresh or it will not be even half as good!)
• 3 -4 tbsp parsley
• 1 tsp salt
• (Sometimes I also add a pinch of sugar to cut the acidity of the tomatoes. If the mood strikes me. I'm not sure how much of a difference that even makes because I've made it without more times than with and can't seem to tell the difference. It just makes me feel chef-like, I guess.)

Directions:
[*If you don't want to piss off the person who cleans up after dinner, I recommend two things. First, clear anything on your counter tops about a foot and a half away from the pot on the stove and use the deepest pot you've got. It's a pain in the neck to clean up the carnage (as Trav calls it) off of things like the tea kettle and baking canisters, but the extra deep pot helps. I don't know how many quarts mine is, but it's literally at least 12 inches deep. I would check but I'm on a roll here and don't feel like getting up.]
Combine all ingredients in a deep pot on the stove over medium heat. (I do not, under any circumstances, recommend a heat higher than that to save time. The one time I turned it to high, I burned the sauce on the bottom of the pot so badly that it took me (LITERALLY) 2 weeks of scrubbing with a steel wool pad and soaking in extremely hot water and soap to get it clean. Not worth it.) Bring to a bubble (it's not quite a boil) and stir very often for around 20 minutes. The goal here is to cook out a lot of the water to thicken the sauce. Turn down to low for 3 hours. Stir every 30 minutes or so. Makes enough for a pound of pasta one night, a pound of raviolis another night, enough to top 1 1/2 pounds of Chicken Parmesan, and even a little that I never quite use up. It freezes well, too. Definitely budget friendly!

Melissa's Meatballs

Ingredients:

• 1lb ground beef
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 -1 c bread crumbs
• 1/2 - 3/4 c grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 clove minced garlic (again, it must be fresh garlic!)
• 1/4 c parsley
• 1 tsp ground oregano, if you so desire (Sometimes I add it, sometimes I don't. Again, just depends on my mood.)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground pepper

Directions:
Mix all ingredients together by hand. Roll into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Cook over medium heat in a nonstick pan until cooked through. (I don't add any oil...they render their own fat.) Honestly, I still don't know how long I cook them. I think around 20-25 minutes? I usually keep turning them and cooking them until all sides look a little too done. Then, I cut one open to see that they are a consistent gray color all the way through, and not any lighter in the center. Then I let them hang out in between paper towels to get the excess fat off. (Same as you would with your breakfast bacon.) Last, I put 'em in that sauce and scoop out a giant helpingt to top my pasta. Yum-my. Now I'm hungry.

My Christmas Chicken Cutlets

The first Christmas in our house, I wanted to make dinner and have the family over. I wanted something non- traditional that my mom and grandma had never made for me before. I made this chicken (along with some long grain and wild rice and asparagus topped with a goat cheese sauce that I whipped up off the top of my head and haven't been able to recreate since. (I hate that!) Anyway. I'm getting side tracked here. This is adapted from yet another Rachael Ray recipe. She titled it Spanish Chicken Cutlets. Everything is exactly the same except for the type of nuts used. She used peeled almonds, I used walnuts. It's just what I had in the pantry at the time. Can it still be classified as Spanish? I dunno. That's why I re-titled it. I'm not going to take any credit away from the master, though. She's my hero!

(Sorry there's no photo. I can't seem to copy and paste the one from foodnetwork.com.)

Ingredients:
* 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
* 4 (6-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
* Salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* 1 cup all-purpose flour
* 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
* 2 eggs
* 1 1/2 cups walnuts
* 1/2 cup bread crumbs
* Generous handful flat-leaf parsley
* 1/3 cup dry sherry, eyeball it
* 2 tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Heat about 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil over low heat in a large skillet.

From the rounder, thicker side of the breast, cut into and across but not through the breast meat and butterfly the breast open. Season the chicken with salt and pepper on both sides. Pour flour, smoked paprika and salt and pepper onto a dish; beat eggs in a second dish with a splash of water. Grind nuts, bread crumbs and parsley in food processor to combine. The nuts should have the same consistency as the bread crumbs. Start the processor in pulses then turn on to combine. Pour nut mixture onto plate. Coat the chicken in flour, egg then nuts. Wash your hands.

Raise heat under the skillet to medium-medium high. When oil ripples, add the chicken and brown on both sides, and finish in the oven until deeply golden and cooked through.

Remove chicken to a platter and add sherry to the pan then stir in butter. Spoon pan sauce over chicken and serve with rice alongside.

(On a side note... as I was reading through the recipe just now, I was reminiscing and remembered that I was pregnant with Katie that Christmas and didn't know it yet. Seems like a long time ago.)

Spring Chicken Roll-Ups with Lemon Dijon Pan Sauce

Another Rachael Ray hit!

Prep Time:10 min
Cook Time:20 min
Serves:4 servings

These bundles are a healthy twist to a Cordon Bleu chicken - ham and cheese stuffed breast meat breaded and sauteed.

Ingredients:
* 2 (6-ounce) pieces boneless, skinless chicken breast
* Salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 4 thin slices provolone cheese
* 4 thin slices prosciutto cotto
* 12 thin spears asparagus, trimmed of tough stems and blanched in salted water
2 minutes, drained
* 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
* 2 tablespoons butter
* 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
* 1 cup chicken stock or vegetable stock
* 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
* 1/2 lemon, zested and juiced
* 1/4 cup chopped, flat-leaf parsley, a handful

Directions:
Halve the chicken breasts horizontally separating each into 2 cutlets.

Place each halved cutlet in an individual freezer plastic storage bag (with slider tab). Add a tablespoon of water to each bag and pound into1/8-inch thick cutlets.

Arrange the 4 cutlets on work surface. Season cutlets with salt and pepper on the side facing up. Cover each piece of chicken with 1 slice cheese and 1 slice ham. Starting on 1 side of the breast, place a small bundle of 3 asparagus spears. Wrap and roll the chicken around the asparagus. Wash hands.

Heat about 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, a turn of the pan, in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. When hot, using tongs, add the chicken roll-ups to skillet with seam side down. Season the roll-ups with salt and pepper. Cover the pan loosely with tin foil and cook 4 to 5 minutes, turn roll-ups over and cook and other 4 to 5 minutes. Remove cooked roll ups to a serving plate. Add 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons flour Stir in the chicken stock and Dijon mustard, scraping up any drippings from the bottom of the pan, and simmer 1 minute. Remove from the heat, add the lemon zest, lemon juice and parsley and spoon over chicken.

*I know it's weird, but I didn't like the idea of my asparagus inside a raw piece of chicken (yuck!), so I just broiled it separately in the oven. This was such a yummy dinner. The pan sauce was TO-DIE-FOR! If you've been reading other posts, you probably figured out that I doubled the sauce; it's what I do. (And I'm not really a huge fan of dijon, so that's saying a lot!)Oh- I almost forgot... I substituted ham slices for the prosciutto cotto because I'm cheap. It was still excellent.)

Rule of Two Sausage Dish

This is a dinner that Trav's mom made once and I have sorta turned into my own. She makes it with just the pots and sausage. I wanted an easy way to add a vegetable that offered more than just carbs, so that's where the green beans come in. And I don't think it actually has a name, so I named it 'Rule of Two Sausage Dish' just this very moment. You'll see why as you read on...although I bet you can guess why...

Ingredients:
2 packages beef smoked sausage (I use Hillshire Farm because it's cheap @ Wal-Mart)
2 cans cut green beans
2 large russet potatoes
2 cans cream of mushroom soup (10.75 oz each, or 1 big 26oz can, if you like... I'll explain more in the directions)

Directions:
Chop sausage and potatoes into bite sized pieces. Drain green beans and mix everything together in a greased 9 x 13 baking dish. (If you have one with extra deep sides, that would be easiest for you to mix it in.) Mix all the ingredients together and bake at 350 degrees for around 2 - 2 1/2 hours. Basically until the potatoes are done. As far as using two 10.75 oz cans of soup versus the big 26 oz can, it depends on the consistency you prefer and how you're cooking it. When I cook it in the oven, I use the big can because I like my food to be plenty moist and have lots of whatever the "sauce" is. But, the big can is too much if you're cooking in the crock pot, so that's when I use the small cans. And for those who like a low-fat alternative... you can substitute the beef sausage for a turkey blend option and you can substitute the regular Cream of Mushroom Soup with the Healthy Request Cream of Mushroom Soup. I do not recommend both substitutions in the same dish, however, because the flavor will be a bit bland. If I had to pick the substitution that tastes the best it's the regular beef sausage with the Healthy request soup; hands down. The texture and flavor of the regular sausage is SOOOO much better. And even though the crock pot is obviously the more comfortable choice during the summer months, the oven baked version is extra yummy because the top of the dish gets a bit of a crispy texture as it cooks that it doesn't have the chance to develop in the crock pot.

I made this for my sister tonight, but forgot to take a picture. I'm making it for us on Monday (in the crock pot) so hopefully I'll remember to snap a shot then.

Italian Mini Meat Loaves

This is a great twist on meatloaf. (I don't like meatloaf all that much, but it's cheap and easy, so it does appeal to me in those aspects.) It's a Rachael Ray recipe that I've modified a bit. It reminds me a lot of my meatballs, so maybe that's why I like it so much. The key to the excellent flavor is the tomato paste instead of ketchup, like a traditional meatloaf has. And I love that she suggests to make mini loaves instead of one big loaf, because the edges are the best part of a meat loaf. This way everyone gets lots of edges and it cooks a lot faster! It can be halved, but I like to have leftovers, so the following is the amount I make most of the time. This time when I made it I decided to have some fun and shape the meat loaves using a heart shaped cookie cutter. Some turned out better than others. Oh well. It keeps it interesting, I guess.

Ingredients:
2lb lean ground sirloin
2 eggs, beaten
2/3 c bread crumbs
1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese (Racheal uses Parmigiano Reggiano, but I always forget to buy a package and just end up using the Kraft brand cheese in my fridge)
4 cloves garlic, chopped finely
6 tbsp tomato paste
sprinkle of salt and freshly ground pepper

Ingredients listed in her recipe that I don't include because I/we don't like them:
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 small green bell pepper, chopped

Sometimes I do add about 2 tbsp parsley if I think about it, even though Rachael's recipe doesn't call for it.


Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix everything together and form mini loaves 1 inch thick. Arrange on a baking sheet lined with tin foil. (Why spend time cleaning when you don't have to?!) Rachael's recipe says to drizzle with EVOO, but I think that's just unnecessary because they brown up just fine without it and the extra fat just makes it too greasy for my taste. Cook for about 18-20 minutes. I like to serve it with a pasta dish or yellow beans and garlic bread. Maybe I'll post a homemade mac 'n cheese recipe next...

Yellow Beans

These are a staple in my house. And super easy to make. Whenever I go grocery shopping I pick up at least two cans of beans for this recipe, regardless of how many cans are in my pantry. I first tasted them at a Sunday dinner at my Grandma's house when I was in college. At least I think that's when it was. Anyhow- may grandmother is a great cook and has always seemed to find a way to make veggies taste way better than my mother or I can. (Sorry, Mom.) I've come to realize she cheats, though. As an adult I began asking her about her recipes and watched her cook before our meals...and that's when I realized the veggies were so good because she uses a plentiful amount of butter/ margarine. In an attempt make this dish a little bit lighter I substituted the butter for EVOO (that's extra virgin olive oil for those of you who have never followed a Rachael Ray recipe.) It was good, but I had already been ruined having eaten it the great way, so I gave in and only substituted half the butter/ margarine. That seems to be the happy medium. I also let them get a little bit more color than Grandma does. This happened on accident once when I walked away from the stove for too long. Trav raved about how much better they tasted, so that's the way I cook them every time now. I love it when a flub turns out to be fabulous! Oh and the can in the store will say "wax beans," but that just grosses me out. I don't want to eat anything waxy. Yuck! I affectionately refer to them as yellow beans so that I can continue to love them. And love them we do. There is never any leftovers of this, no matter how many cans I make. It's one of those side dishes that I have served to adults and children and all of them loved it.


Yellow Beans
2 cans yellow beans
1 1/2 Tbsp EVOO
1 1/2 Tbsp margarine
1 1/2 tsp Mrs. Dash seasoning (table blend)

Melt the margarine in the EVOO, then add beans. Toss to coat. Cook for around 5-7 minutes on [just over] medium heat and add the Mrs. Dash. Stir and cook and stir and cook until there's enough carmelization for your liking. For me that's when the bottom of the pan looks like it will be a total pain in the rear to clean. But the cook doesn't clean in my house, so I don't worry about it. (Note: Medium isn't high enough, but medium-high is too high. At least on my crappy range. Be sure to use a stainless steel pan because you can't get the same affect with a non-stick surface. Believe me- I've tried.)

As I was typing this out I realized that I have never actually measured all the ingredients, so it's a bit of an approximation. One of those recipes I just make by sight. Sorry. I guess that's not very helpful. But it leaves room for your own interpretation, so your family can enjoy it whatever way they like.