Craving the taste of spring

As I look out the window right now I am amazed by the most gorgeous blue sky and glorious sunshine that graces my world…. spring is quickly approaching!!  And for that I am greatly relieved!  If you live in much of the lower 48 I am sure you are feeling pretty much the same way, as this has truly been a doozy of a winter. As the days get longer and the skies brighter I find myself craving lighter foods as well… gone is the deep-seated desire for thick hearty soups.  Instead I currently desire the fresh tastes of spring… salads, citrus, light soups, and yes maybe a bit of crusty bread to soak up each and every delectable morsel.  So today I am going to share a favorite of mine with you.  It is quick, easy, and all the ingredients are readily available this time of year.

I have to be honest here… this is more of a formula rather than a recipe because once the desire for clean eating hits I do not want to spend long hours in preparation. So a simple spring salad is our answer… one that varies with what we have on hand.

Our go to is quite simple…

Romaine

Spinach

Sliced cucumber

Thinly sliced carrots (I use the vegetable peeler to make them paper thin.)

Honeyed nuts (we switch back and forth between almonds & pecans currently)

Optionals: pears, oranges, fresh berries such as blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, or avocado. (but we always have one of these on the salad)

Vinaigrette:

3:1 ratio

3 parts olive oil to 1 part vinegar/acid (white wine vinegar or fresh squeezed orange juice)

a dash of salt

a pinch of pepper

a pinch of garlic powder (a very small pinch so as not to overwhelm)

fresh herbs such as lemon thyme, parsley, tarragon, finely diced

Honeyed nuts:

½ cup roughly chopped nuts of choice

1 Tbsp local honey

Place nuts and honey in a small pan over high heat.  Stir until honey is melted and coats nuts.  Take off heat, spread on parchment paper to cool.  Break apart and sprinkle on salad.  Can be added while still warm but it does make the salad wilt.

Roasted chicken can be added to make this more filling.   My personal favorite is to make a vinaigrette and add 1 Tbsp of grapefruit marmalade and serve over a salad of spinach, romaine, cucumbers, supremed blood oranges/grapefruit, and avocado with a sprinkling of honeyed almonds.  I am also a bit of a pepper and cheese freak so it is not all that uncommon to discover freshly grated pepper and a sprinkling of of parmesan slivers or crumbles of feta on my salad.

I hope you enjoy!

Baking....

Recently our days have been filled with a lot of this 

(the makings for homemade French toast)

and this 

and this

which means the grain mill has been dusted off, the wheat berries dug out, and there are some very happy young men in our household! 

I forgot how much I enjoy baking our own bread.... its good to take a step back and re-evaluate. 

Have a wonderful weekend!

My Panera souffle substitute.... pantry challenge

 My Panera souffle substitute aka what I eat when I am really craving Panera's baked souffles.  Recently I have been hankering ANYTHING and EVERYTHING from Panera but we all know I am working hard to use what is in our "pantry" and freezer.  If I were completely honest I would have to admit that in a moment of weakness over the weekend we ordered Papa John's pizza.  Could I have made it better?  The pepperoni?  Yes!  The bbq chicken?  NOT on your life!  OH my it is like crack pizza!  That is definitely going to have to be one of those on special occasions type deals!!  Did the whole family like it?  NO but then very rarely does my whole family like the same pizza.  Okay to be fair they ALL like pepperoni but it is something I only tolerate.  I used to ADORE pepperoni pizza but that was back when I made it myself from pepperoni that was made by a local farmer.  That was the BEST pepperoni EVER!!  But we moved....

Sorry I digressed.  Yes it has been one of those days.  Or maybe I should say one of those weeks/months.  March is being kinda wonky, not just the weather but everything that is going on as well.  But that is another post for another day... or maybe for not at all.  Nothing serious, just busyness that is starting to wear but will soon be over! Thank you Lord for the strength to go on from day to day!! (and for carrying me along when I don't have the strength!)

Now back to my Panera substitute.  You all know I've been working on using what we have as well as adding more whole foods too.  So earlier this week I had the opportunity to pick up some organic kale for a really good price.  Rather than head out to Panera (even though it is a gorgeous day out and a drive would be nice) for one of their lovely souffles I decided to whip up this little beauty.

This little dream is chock full of lightly sauteed, finely chopped kale, crumbled bacon (freezer), a stale croissant broken into bits (freezer) (whole grain bread works nicely as well), salt & pepper to taste, crumbled cheese (freezer)(I used some Gouda we had on hand) and one egg lightly beaten with a 1 tbsp of heavy cream (it was leftover from another recipe/freezer.)  Then I popped this treat into the microwave for 1 & a half minutes at 30 second intervals.  (It may take you less time but ours is a small, low wattage microwave.)

And this is what I was greeted with moments later!  It's great with a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice!

  

Next time I will add a bit of sauteed onion and maybe a touch of garlic.  Or maybe substitute the kale for some roasted asparagus which I make up in batches to keep on hand in the spring.... I am the only one who likes asparagus so I enjoy it when it comes into season each spring. 

This week so far:

1 whole chicken cooked... fauxtisserie style, 1 whole chicken... cut apart, and bones from both as well as bones in freezer= 3 quarts homemade chicken stock, dinner, sandwiches, and shredded chicken for enchiladas

1 family pack pork chops (freezer), bacon (freezer), dried cranberries (pantry), dried mushrooms (pantry), rice (pantry... last of 50 lb bag)= pork chops, rice, and salad with warm vinaigrette for dinner plus enough for a batch of New Mexico green chile.

peaches, mixed fruit, old jam (freezer, old but good)= individual peach crisps and more fruit roll-ups

stale bread/croissants (freezer)= breakfast "souffle" and individual peach crisps (crumbled with butter/cinnamon/sugar for topping)

Hope you are enjoying the beautiful weather!!  Thank you for following along and I hope you enjoy all the different ideas for using up what is in the pantry and making the most of what might be on hand. :)

Cooking from the Pantry Challenge update...

A friend asked me yesterday how my cooking from the pantry challenge was coming along and I had to be honest with her. NOT SO GOOD! But then later in the day I went back and reviewed. You know it is wasn't as bad as I thought considering what we discovered when we did a thorough clean out of the cabinets, refrigerator, and freezers.... such as there were only 2 lbs of frozen vegetables left.  However there is definitely room for improvement. :)

What exactly have I accomplished?
-1 pork roast (from freezer)=2 meals of BBQ pork, 20 shredded pork taquitos (frozen)
-1 whole chicken=(from freezer) eaten with rice (pantry staple), as an after sports snack, and in sandwiches

-bags of tomatoes, spinach, and pesto + miscellaneous bits of fried hamburger & sausage=5 2c bags of enchilada sauce & pasta sauce (5 last minute meals!)

-leftover granola, miscellaneous instant oatmeal, plus bits of nuts/seeds,fruits=1 sheet pan full of chewy granola bars

-2 1 gallon zip lock bags whole peaches (frozen)=fruit roll-ups

"party mix" from left over cereals (plus what remains of the peach/strawberry fruit leather, and the granola bars.)

"Found" 

in the freezer: 5 containers of apple sauce

                      1 gallon bag of jalapenos

                      1/2 loaf of rye bread

in the cabinets: numerous bulk containers of assorted "jello"

2 days worth of jello for packed lunches and our streusel topping (made from cereal crumbs, butter & spices) (and yes one of the jobs for this weekend is emptying 'fridge in order to wash shelves!)

Did we buy groceries?  Yes because A.) there were exactly 2 lbs of frozen veggies left and 2.) there were days I did not plan ahead and discovered we were out of things like bread or fresh fruit.  I am not even counting the milk as it is a necessary staple in our household.  

Where could I have done better? What changes can I implement?

-planning ahead.  Since we have kids in sports and Chris teaches one night a week we do not always eat together but I can still plan for this by having things prepared and portioned out.

-have some make ahead meals in the freezer for nights I am plum tuckered out and don't want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen.... i.e. the frozen sauces for pasta and taquitos.

-make a comprehensive list of what we have on hand (working on this one)

-take an hour one evening and plan meals for the week... plan those meals according to what we have  on hand!

Its a beginning.... :)

The ULTIMATE chocolate birthday cake!

This time of year is a pretty busy one for our family aside from the normal swimming meets, indoor track practice, and valentine's day we also have birthdays.  40% of our family have February birthdays, within 5 days.... okay so it sounds more impressive when you break it down into percentages, ha ha! :)  In all reality 2 out of our family of 5 have February birthdays. Our eldest and myself, yep 5 days apart.... his, then mine.  But this year was a special year... an 18th birthday!  And what did we do to celebrate?  He spent the night at a friend's after the basketball game and then spent the day after lazing about.  We had DiGiorno pizza (per his request), breadsticks, Vanilla Coke, and the most divinely, decadent chocolate cake.  Remember these vegan cupcakes? Well I made the cake version. and it is simply stunning!

 (it was cloudy and grey the day I baked it... so we waited..... to photograph it.  now it is sunny buy windy!  you should have seen the cloth flying... so this was taken on the run!)

Now about baking this cake... 

-mix just like you would for cupcakes

-pour batter into 2 9" round cake pans that have been well greased & lined with parchment paper

-bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes.

-prick center of cake with toothpick to check for doneness.. toothpick should come out clean.

-allow to sit for 5 minutes before removing from pan. (run knife around edge to loosen edges.)

-center filling is a portion of the frosting lightening with real whipping cream.  (I did it to preference)

We topped the cake with raspberries and a drizzle of (canned) "whipped" cream around the edges.  The "whipped" cream ran but made a lovely design.

This cake is rich and delicious (and our 18 year old ate some for breakfast this morning with a glass of milk and a banana! it is that good!!) 

New recipes in the works.... taking stock and a challenge

 I've been working up a storm in the kitchen recently.  Cleaning, organizing, taking inventory of our "stock", and just doing a little overhauling.  This will give you an general idea of what I've been dealing with.

These are my spice drawers.  The right hand one does contain a single packaged spice mix and our boxed jello (however I also have "bulk" jello in mason jars in the cabinets above as well.)  But the rest is herbs and spices!  There are two thin green boxes stacked on top of each other which contain small quantities of of "potent" spices, things where you only need a pinch or two.
  
This will give you a better idea of the contents of the left drawer.  The tin box is what I pull out and use on an almost daily basis.
                       

And here is the overflow on the top shelf of the cabinet above my spice drawers and I have one of those plastic lazy susan's in my cabinet next to the stove filled with extracts, small jars of powdered mushrooms and veggies, finishing salts, and "ethnic" salts/flavorings.

I also have various sized jars filled with dried mushrooms, candied citrus peels, various dried peppers, dried veggies,  grains, a minimum of 4 types of vinegars, cooking "spirits",  and numerous oils (some out and some in the fridge.)

What "normal" person has all these ingredients?  (and has NO oregano!  how did that happen??)  Did I mention that I use this stuff?  Not ALL on a daily basis but often enough.  And that I also grow my own herbs?  We only had a couple of "staples" in our garden last year but since it is a work in progress more will be added this year.

Because of all the craziness in the kitchen everything else if being neglected, not that my it matters to the rest of my family.  They are loving the cooking frenzy going on! :)  So today a new recipe in is the works... if it comes out as planned it will be the backbone for many a dish to include but not limited to: green chile, BBQ pork, pork "taquitos", and pork fried rice.

I thought you might get a kick out of this shot!  Yes I have to stand a "stool" in order to take photos from above.  You can say I am a bit "elevationally" challenged!  ha ha!  Don't you love my winter Crocs?  I know I do!  I think I will be heartbroken when the liners wear out in them as I wear them ALL winter long!

Have a great day!  Keep checking back and I'll keep you updated on the cooking "challenge" around here.  Oh did I not mention that?  Sorry!! I have challenged myself to use what we have on hand and use "real" ingredients.  NO purchases except for the following: milk, eggs, cheese, fresh and frozen produce (we are running low on veggies.. AGAIN!)  No meat, no baked goods, no cereal, no pasta, nothing!  Peanut butter is also part of the exception as we go through it.  How long will this "challenge" last?  I have no idea.... until we (I) am in the habit of using what we have and not buying needlessly.  The purpose?  To get back in the habit of using whole foods and to eliminate most processed foods from our diet.  To improve our overall eating habits. Yes I say most as there are some things that my husband has requested I do not make from scratch, peanut butter, Nutella,  and certain crackers.  So I will honor his wishes and will continue to purchase these items.  I will say aside from the peanut butter, the Nutella and crackers are items we do NOT eat on a regular basis.  So if you would like to join me, drop me a line.  If I can figure out how to do it I may even turn this into a Linky party with week or biweekly updates.

Have a wonderful week!

Searching for the perfect chocolate cake.... success!

  These past couple of weeks have been filled with the search for the perfect chocolate cake and chocolate frosting with the approach of birthdays.  You see my "baby", my first born will be turning 18 and I want to make an extra special cake.  Lo and behold but what should appear in my e-mail one day but this article... Deep, Dark Chocolate Cookies, Cakes, & Favorite Recipes Recipe Roundup from The Kitchn.  The rootbeer chocolate bundt cake was a big hit (sorry no pictures as they devoured it before I even got the camera out) but it just wasn't what I wanted.  In fact what I really want is a slice of the most divine chocolate truffle cake from The French Street Bakery and Cafe, but alas they have gone out of business.  Oh be still my breaking heart, as I never could get them to part with the recipe... even when I explained we were living in Alaska.  (the poor girl was so confused when I called and asked about the recipe.  she even told me all i had to do was call in a day before i came in so that they would have one made for me... she never did truly understand that we lived 4000 miles away at the time... hmm i wonder if that may have had something to do with it...) 

Well the Vegan Chocolate Ginger Orange Cupcakes by Sarah Rae sounded delicious (and they are! and you should them with lime zest/juice...)  but if you know me at all you know I just can't leave things alone.  So here is my adaptation inspired by Sarah Rae's Vegan Chocolate Ginger Orange Cupcakes as I know my family does NOT like orange or ginger in their chocolate. 

(the batter is even delicious!)

Vegan Chocolate Cupcakes

makes 24 standard cupcakes

3 cups all purpose flour (organic unbleached preferably) (I substitute out 1/2 c for whole wheat flour)

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (the darker the better!)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups natural cane sugar
1 2/3 cups cold freshly brewed coffee (or water)
1 cup canola oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon orange juice (I eliminated & added an additional tbsp of coffee)
4 tablespoons cider vinegar

Preheat oven to 375 F. Mix all dry ingredients and whisk to combine. Add water, oil, vanilla, and orange juice. Stir to combine. Add vinegar and stir quickly to combine. It will be slightly foamy and lighter in color. Once the mix turns slightly darker again you know all the vinegar has been mixed in. Now pour it into muffin tins (or even two cake pans.) Bake for 15 minutes for standard sized cupcakes. Allow to sit in pan for 5 minutes, remove and place on wire rack until completely cool.

Frosting (non-vegan)

1 cup butter, softened (use vegan margarine for a vegan frosting)
4 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 tablespoon orange juice (can substitute with coffee)
4 tablespoon milk (or cold freshly brewed coffee) (use almond milk for a vegan frosting)
1/2 cup cocoa powder + 2 heaping tablespoons Ghirardelli chocolate mocha powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

Blend butter in a mixer until creamy, add in powdered sugar and mix to combine. Add remaining ingredients and mix until creamy consistency. You're ready to eat! Refrigerate any unused frosting for up to a week.

 (one of the few remaining... its been dark all day and the lighting is horrible but I knew I had to hurry before all the cupcakes were gone!)

And the highest praise came from my son to be 18 year old... "Mom, whatever you do, DO NOT change anything about this frosting or these cupcakes!"  So for his birthday it will be this cake with with a bit of the  frosting lightened with whipping cream between the two layers of cake with fresh berries and chocolate leaves as a garnish.

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Maple glazed oven roasted carrots

Well the weather has turned again.... Grey, fluctuating between snow, sleet, and ice but NO wind!  Basically a peaceful winter day.  In other words the perfect day for getting caught up on the self perpetuating laundry, oh yeah we have teenagers so maybe its not really self perpetuating, ha ha!  And the perfect day for roasting vegetables.

From this to....

to

 Maple glazed oven roasted carrots

and

And yes I am sharing recipes.... Trust me these are so EASY, in fact I didn't even follow a recipe but I did make notes so that I could pass it on to my mom... she LIKES recipes!  I'm a throw it in, fly by the seat of my pants while hoping for the best kinda gal!!  Yes there have been a few flops but not too often.

Maple glazed oven roasted carrots

2 lbs carrots, peeled and cut into chunks

1 to 2 TBSP olive oil

1/2 to 1 tsp coarse sea salt

3 or 4 sprigs fresh lemon thyme or 1 tsp dried lemon thyme

Preheat oven to 400F.

Place carrots in a large rimmed cookie sheet.  

Drizzle with olive oil.  

Sprinkle on seasonings and toss to coat.

Roast carrots for approximately 20 minutes. Stirring occasionally. (juicy carrots can take a bit longer)

2 TBSP maple syrup... preferably grade B

Transfer carrots from pan into bowl.

Drizzle maple syrup over carrots and toss to coat.

Return to pan.

Return to oven and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes, stirring once or twice in the process.

Serve hot or allow to cool for later use.

Servings: 4 to 6 (but I'm not really sure because I can't keep out of them!)

"Plain" roasted carrots

2 lbs of carrots, peeled and cut into chunks

1 to 2 TBSP olive oil

sea salt and ground pepper, to taste

Bake at 400F for approximately 20 minutes depending on moisture content of carrots.  Juicy carrots take anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes longer.

I hope you enjoy!!

Now I'm off to fold some more laundry!  Have a wonderful day!