Trying to be healthier... Cornbread Makeover!

So, we've been trying to "step-up" 
being healthy even more than ever!

We've been trying to eat more beans, legumes, veggies and healthy fats and have tried to keep our "glycemic" index down as much as possible Monday-Fridays! 
On the weekends we do a little more splurging.

To keep our glycemic index down, 
I've been trying to limit using "unbleached white flour" in my recipes to only cookies and desserts, which means it has been a fun journey for me to tweak my bread recipes to use more whole wheat flour and I've also been venturing out and try using oat flour as well.
Since we purchase steel cut oats in 25 pound bags, I have an abundance of them and so I've been grinding my steel cut oats into flour and incorporating it into my baking.

Well, it turns out, you can't completely 
use oat flour in a recipe if you want it to turn out,
because oats don't contain gluten and so it behaves differently than wheat flours.  
However, after experimenting, I have been able to successfully replace oat flour for up to 1/2 of the whole wheat flour.

When I made up a batch of Bean Chowder for my family, it was just automatic that we would have a delicious pan of Corn Bread to go along with it.  
Cooked bean dishes at our house mean "Corn Bread"! 

So, I tweaked my Corn Bread recipe to use not only less sugar, 
but, less refined sugar. 
(took it from 1/2 cup white flour to 1/3 cup raw cane sugar)
(I buy these bags of Raw Cane Sugar at any of our local grocery stores in the Mexican Food Section.)

I also used one cup whole wheat flour and 3/4 cup oat flour 
and it turned out to be an absolute success!
It was very hearty tasting, VERY moist and delicious and it had my family begging me to make more!

I'll never 
make Corn Bread from unbleached flour again. 
Raw Cane Sugar, Whole Wheat and Oat Flour is how it will be made at our house from here on out.

Delicious Corn Bread 

1/2 cup butter

1/3 cup raw cane sugar

2 eggs

3/4 cup cornmeal

2 tsp baking powder 

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup freshly ground oat flour

1-½ cups milk

Cream butter and sugar. 

Add eggs and stir.

Add in cornmeal, baking powder and salt and stir until just combined

Add flours alternatively with milk. 

Put in greased 9x9 pan.

Bake 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes until lightly browned and toothpick inserted in comes out clean. 

(oven temps vary...check after 30 minutes). 

Absolutely delicious! 

ENJOY... 

being a little more healthy in your day to day life... 

one recipe at a time! 

(PS...I really enjoyed this site here for information about Oats) 

Potato and Ham Casserole

We have a new favorite recipe at our house...

When I had surgery,
one of our sweet neighbors brought in the most delicious meal that my men just LOVED! 
Who would have known that Potato Casserole 
with a little bit of ham mixed in it, 
makes such a delicious dinner!

Serve this with a LARGE serving of steamed vegges, OR, large salad and you have a great, filling, frugal meal.

I usually make my Potato Casserole 
and serve it with ham, or, roast, on the side, 
however, this way is much better, 
because you don't over indulge with eating too much meat.

It's "Lagom"...
There's just the right amount of meat to give it some flavor and to make you feel satisfied!
SO, if you have some leftover Christmas or Easter ham in your freezer, this is the perfect recipe to use you ham in.

AND, the leftover Potato Casserole is awesome to brown up and scramble in some eggs and serve for breakfast!

As usual, I have made my own cream soup replacement for this, but, if you don't want to make your own, just dump in a can of Cream of Chicken/Mushroom soup and 1-2 cups sour cream and it tastes great too!
(that's what my neighbor did and my men thought it was delicious and begged me to get the recipe)

(original Potato Casserole Recipe here)

Potato and Ham Casserole 

Boil 8 large potatoes until tender and then run under cold water and then peel and dice them into chunks

2 Tbsp. Melted butter

1 onion finely chopped

1-2 cups chopped ham

(one recipe of sauce below) (or, just add in a Can Cream of Chicken Soup and 1-2 cups sour cream)

2 cups grated cheese of your choice (I use SHARP cheese)

salt and pepper to taste

(sauce)

3 Tbsp. butter

1/3 cup flour

2 cups chicken broth

1 cup sour cream 

Melt butter and then add in flour and whisk until well combined

Add in chicken broth and whisk together and boil until thickened (about 5 minutes)

Add in sour cream and stir until smooth.

Mix together diced potatoes, chopped ham, melted butter and onions.

Then add in white sauce/sour cream mixture and cheese.

Stir until well mixed.

Put in 9x13 pan... 

Bake covered at 350 degrees for 60-75 minutes—

uncover last 10 minutes  Enjoy!

AND remember if you have any leftover casserole you can turn it into a great breakfast, by browning up the casserole in a little bit of butter and then scrambling in some eggs!  

Kids and hubby LOVE this for breakfast!

PS...
(I apologize for photos that are not the best coloring/quality. I forget that in the WINTER months if I want to blog about a recipe and take photo, I need to make sure I make it early enough in the day where there is still some day light to capture some great photos. I didn't quite bake this in time to get that...you live and learn!).

Finger Bread Sticks... perfect for Halloween!

I LOVE adding fun to dinner!

It's amazing how you can take your normal Bread Stick dough 

and shape it into a different shape and 

Voila... 

you instantly have exited family members,

 Ooohing and Aaahing and thinking that you really did something extraordinary!  

Why not make up a batch of Finger Bread Sticks to serve along side your bowls of soup or Chili during October!  

I promise you it will be a BIG hit for sure!  

Biggest advice of all with making these, 

is to make sure to make them long and skinny, 

because the dough rises quite a bit during baking 

and they can turn out really chubby and fat, which is totally okay, 

because rather than calling them "Witch Fingers", 

you can call them "Monster Fingers"!

However fat or skinny they are, 

I promise you, you'll have a happy family 

that is grateful to have a mom that tries to add FUN 

to dinner and VARIETY to normal everyday life!

Finger Bread Sticks 
1 Tbsp. yeast
2 Tbsp. sugar
1-1/2 cups warm water
1 tsp. salt
3 to 3 1/2 cups flour

Mix yeast, sugar and water together and stir well.
Slowly add one cup of flour and salt and stir.
Then add enough flour until dough is no longer sticky.
Knead for 5 minutes.
Place dough in an oiled bowl, cover and let rise for 1 hour.
Break off small pieces of dough and roll them into finger shapes. (I can usually make 20-24 fingers)
Cut 2 slits in the middle of the shape for the knuckles
SMASH a whole almond into the end of the dough for the finger nail. 
Brush with melted butter
Sprinkle generously with Granulated Garlic and freshly grated Parmesan, OR, Romano Cheese.
Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes (don't overbake) 

Enjoy!

PS... the leftover Bread Sticks are perfect to throw in lunches the next day for school or work

Delicious Fresh Peach Pie

Tis the season for ripe juicy peaches!

We've been enjoying peaches for
 breakfast, lunch and dinner at our house.

Sometimes we wash and eat peaches by themselves...

Sometimes, we slice them and and enjoy them 
with Greek Yogurt, 
or, put them in a bowl and pour milk on them.

We've even been enjoying them 
on top of  our Buttermilk Pancakes!  

Another favorite, is that of FRESH Peach Pie!  

I had my first taste of FRESH peach pie,
while visiting my Aunt Eloise in California when I was just a young girl.
It was so delicious and I couldn't get enough of it! 

 I have made this pie for my own family at least once or twice a year during our entire marriage and it really is something that we all look forward to.  

However, the recipe, called for a package of Peach Jello (here)
and since my passion is making everything from scratch and trying not to use "Mixes" of any kind,
I decided to venture out and follow the recipe for my Fresh Strawberry Pie, which involved water, cornstarch, salt, sugar, butter, pureed peaches and vanilla. . It worked SO well and tasted just as delicious (if not BETTER), than my recipe that used peach Jello!

It's another WINNER for sure!
I LOVE that I can take basic staple ingredients that I always have on hand and turn them into something fabulous and delicious!

Fresh Peach Pie  

7-9 large peaches peeled and thinly sliced (depending how large your pie pan is)

(in a heavy sauce pan mix the following)

1 cup water

2/3 cup OR 3/4 cup sugar (depending how sweet your peaches are)

1/4 cup Corn Starch

1/4 tsp salt 

(whisk together to make sure there are no lumps)

Bring above ingredients to boil and then add in:

2 peaches that have been pureed

2 Tbsp butter

Continue cooking until heated through...

Remove from heat and add in:

2 tsp. vanilla

Let cool slightly 

Prepare pie crust (make and bake it) (here for my favorite pie crust recipe)

Cover the bottom of cooked crust with a little bit of glaze.

Fill baked pie crust with fresh sliced peaches

Pour glaze over the top of peaches 

and chill 2-3 hours.

Serve with whipped cream

Enjoy a taste of heavenly yummyness today!

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread...

Who ever came up with the saying that 
"Chocolate Makes Anything Better"
 was totally on to something. 

My sweet friend Katie dropped me off a loaf of  Chocolate Chip Banana Bread a few weeks ago. (here)

My boys just loved it
and I even had someone comment that they wanted the recipe for it, on the post that I did.
 So, I decided to take my Banana Bread recipe and just sprinkle on some Dark Chocolate Chips on top of the batter before I put it into the oven.

It turned out perfect and delicious 
and left my boys wanting for more!

I'm thinking that the addition of chocolate chips
to our Banana Bread is going to be something we'll be doing from now on!

Of course, I always use this helpful tip when any recipe that I make calls for one cup of oil. 

Banana Bread

3 eggs

¾ cup sugar

½ cup oil

½ cup applesauce

2 tsp. Vanilla

3 cups mashed banana (or however much banana you have)

Mix together the above 6 ingredients 

Then add in:

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp baking powder

After you have mixed this well add in: 
3 cups unbleached flour

Grease two loaf tins.

Pour mix into tins.

SPRINKLE batter with Dark Chocolate Chips (about 1/3 cup per loaf pan)

Bake at 375 degrees for 40-45 minutes. (or until toothpick inserted in comes out clean)

After you have pulled it out of the oven, 

remove from loaf pans  and  I usually put some butter on the top of it. 

Store in Zip-Loc bags...enjoy one loaf now and then freeze another loaf to enjoy on a different day.

I keep mine in the fridge until ready to serve.

THIS bread freezes well 

and is great to pull out of the freezer and slice up, 

add in an apple, string cheese or boiled egg 

and some carrot sticks and you have a yummy lunch.

Enjoy!

Snap, Crackle, Pop... Perfect Treats!

If it weren't for my hubby and boys,
I probably would never bring a box of cereal into my house.

However, who doesn't love and enjoy a yummy Rice Krispie Treat,
especially one that is the perfect texture and has peanut butter in it.

(Another wonderful thing about my family, 
they LOVE peanut butter, 
me, I could take it or leave it).

This recipe is for my husband, 
because we are happy buying the no-name "Crisp Rice" cereal
and there is never a recipe on the box (or the marshmallows) to make up Rice Krispie Treats.
I've tweaked the original recipe to fit our liking, that of adding in peanut butter and vanilla and cut the butter in half. It turns out perfect every time we make them up.

SO, my awesome hubby, here you go!

Perfect Rice Krispie Treats 

(not too sticky, not too crisp, but just right). 

1/4 cup butter 

40 large marshmallows 

6 cups Krisp Rice Cereal

1 large heaping wooden spoonful peanut butter

1 tsp. vanilla 

Melt butter on stove over medium heat

Add in marshmallows and keep stirring until melted

Remove from heat and add in peanut butter and vanilla.

STIR well

Next add in Krisp Rice Cereal 

Stir until all cereal is coated well.

Pour into large RubberMaid container and spread out well, put on lid and let cool.

(We like ours chilled so we keep in the refrigerator until time to serve).
Cut into squares and ENJOY!

Can you say YUM!
Definitely makes for happy and content families,
when a batch of these yummy treats is made up.

LIMES... Oh how we love you!

 It's definitely the dog days of summer...

While the drink of choice at our house 
is cold, refreshing water 99% of the time

in the HOT summer months, 
we love having a pitcher of Refreshing Lime Drink 
in our fridge to quench our thirst 
and replace our electrolytes!  
(Especially when we have been out working hard in our yard in the heat!) 

It's not too tart, 

not too sweet,

but JUST right! 

Water, limes, lemon extract, citric acid and sugar 

combine together 

to make glasses of perfect happiness!

Citric Acid can be purchased at any health food store.

Refreshing Lime Drink 

(The perfect amount for a family of four...

Double the batch, to make a gallon for more people.)

2 quarts water

3/4 cup sugar

1-1/2 tsp. citric acid

2 capfuls of lemon extract

1 large lime sliced  (OR, you can use a sliced lemon rather than lime)

Stir together well. 

Let chill for at least one to two hours and then pull out the limes

(if the lemons are in the drink for longer than 2 hours, they will make it bitter).
Pour in glasses, add ice and a straw and  Enjoy!

Happy Summer...

Happy glasses of happiness to you!

Artisan Bread Dough... makes Calzones!

 Homemade Artisan Bread is a staple at our home.

It has the best texture,
the best flavor,
it makes the best toast ever
and is the perfect accompaniment to soups and salads!
AND
the best part of all... The dough is in your fridge 
ready to make bread anytime you need it.

We have found another wonderful 
use for the Artisan Bread Dough...
making homemade Calzones!

HERE for Artisan Bread Dough Recipe 

Calzones (from Artisan Bread Dough)

Pull off grapefruit size piece of dough...

Roll out on floured surface into 12 inch circle...

On 1/2 of the dough put pepperoni and cheese.

Fold over the other half and seal the edges well.

Prick top with fork

Melt 1 Tbsp. butter and spread on the top of Calzone

Sprinkle with granulated garlic, Italian Seasoning and Grated Parmesan Cheese 

Put Calzone onto baking stone that has generously been sprinkled with cornmeal 

Bake for 25 minutes at 450 degrees. 

Let sit for 10 minutes before cutting 

Cut into 4-6 pieces and dip in pizza sauce and enjoy!

I love being able to add 

a little bit of FUN to dinner 

and I LOVE 

having a family that enjoys and appreciates 

whatever graces our table for dinner!