Liam is a smoothie addict. I'm pretty sure that he would eat all his meals in smoothie form if we let him. I figure if I'm already making a smoothie for him I might as well make enough for everyone. Between me getting bored quickly using the same recipe all the time, and my available ingredients always changing I am always looking for new smoothie ideas.
This recipe was adapted from one I found on the Self magazine web site. They have some great ideas, but I usually have to alter them a bit until I get them how I want them.
I really do not think of myself as a hippie, so I had to laugh a bit at this smoothie recipe. It calls for both almond milk and chia seeds, both things I currently had on hand. I had some almond milk on my freezer left over from the last time I made it here. Almond milk freezes really well. If you don't have any, that's fine. Just use regular milk.
I totally forgot to take pictures of the process, but really it's a smoothie. How many photos can you really take of a few ingredients sitting in front of a blender?
The kids (and I!) loved this smoothie. It wasn't too sweet, but you couldn't taste the carrot-y vegetable taste. Both kids sucked theirs down in a second and Liam tried to beg seconds. I probably could have made a second batch without worrying about it going to waste. Considering I only got to drink a third of this, it was pretty filling too!
This might be the quietest they have every been while awake and in the same room.
Note to self: it is difficult to take a photo of yourself holding a smoothie plus two wiggly boys. And brush your hair first!
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wake-up smoothie
by Liesl August-28-2014
a delicious fruit and vegetable smoothie that will keep you filled up all morning.
Ingredients
1 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt
8 oz can pineapple chunks including juice
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 carrot
1 banana
1 tbsp chia seeds
Instructions
1. Throw all the ingredients in a blender together. Turn on high and leave on for about 2 minutes, until everything is pureed. Pour into glasses and drink immediately. If your blender isn't very strong cut up the carrot before blending to help.
Details
Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: 1-3 servings
Making egg rolls was really a spur of the minute idea. I already had the wrapper handy left over from making pumpkin raviolis. That plus my massive love of Chinese food meant I HAD to make egg rolls! Sorry for the bad photos.
Dice and chop all the veggies and tip them all into a medium sized pot with the pepper, garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce, and white wine vinegar.
Cook on medium-low for about five minutes. Stirring occasionally. The vegetables should have softened slightly but still have some crunch.
Take the pot off the heat and set up the assembly area. You'll need a clean surface to roll the egg rolls, egg roll wrappers in easy reach, somewhere to set the prepped egg rolls, a brush, and a small bowl with water.
This picture is horrible, but you get the idea. Point one end of the wrapper towards you and put a large spoonful of vegetable mix in the bottom center of the wrapper.
Fold the bottom corner up to the center.
Brush the two lines marked with arrows gently with water.
Fold the two sides in towards the center, making sure the wrapper seals the area brushed with water.
Brush the four open edges with water.
Push the vegetables towards you within the wrapper, tightly but not so tight as to break through the wrapper. Roll the wrapper away from you, pushing down the edges to ensure a good seal. Congratulations, you just made an egg roll. Not as much of a pain as you thought it would be, right?
Keep doing this until you run out of wrappers (like me because I had already used some from this pack) of filling. You should end up with about 12 egg rolls.
Heat some vegetable oil in a skillet about 1/4" deep, and turn the heat to medium. Prep somewhere to place the finished egg rolls. I don't like to lay them on paper towels becaue they tend to stick, so I like to use a cooling rack over a lipped pan (for quick and easy clean-up).
Once the oil heat up place several egg rolls at a time in the skillet. Don't overcrowd them. Four was the perfect amount for my pan.
They will cook quickly, so keep an eye on them. They only need about a minute or two a side.
They should be golden and crispy. Be careful not to let them get too brown. Once you have cooked them on both sides, set them on the cooling rack for several minutes. They retain heat very well, so let them cool off a little before eating.
I'll be honest, I never actually tried eating them by themselves. I'm a huge fan of sweet and sour sauce, so I had to dip every bite in the sauce. Jeff said they were pretty good plain, but he too loved them with the sauce.
I didn't have any sweet and sour sauce on hand, and this turned out really well. It's not my recipe though. sweet and sour sauce I left out the MSG, but otherwise followed the recipe, and it turned out soo yummy.
These egg rolls didn't last long, and I'm definitely making them again. For leftovers, pop them in the oven (or toaster oven) at 300 for just a few minutes until warm. That keeps them nice and crunchy!
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vegetable egg rolls
by Liesl August-26-2014
Ingredients
1 yellow onion, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 1/2 large carrot, shredded
1 cup jicama or water chestnuts, diced
1 cup cabbage, shredded
3 cloves garlic, diced
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp ginger
2 tbsp sesame oil
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
some oil for pan frying
12 egg roll wrappers
Instructions
1. Dice or shred vegetables and place in a medium pot with garlic, pepper, ginger, sesame oil, soy sauce, and white wine vinegar. Stir over medium-low heat for several minutes until the vegetables have softened slightly, but are still crunchy. Remove from heat. 2. Set an egg roll wrapper in front of you with one point towards you. Spoon about 1/4 cup of vegetable into the bottom center of the wrapper. Lift the bottom wrapper point over the vegetables to the center. Brush water on the recently folded edges. Bring the two side points to the center, making sure the water brushed edges have now been covered. Press lightly over the covered edges to seal. Brush water over the current four edges. Push the vegetables gently towards the you inside the wrapper and roll the wrapper away from you. The egg roll should now be sealed closed. Set it aside and continue this until you run out of wrappers or filling. 3. Prep a large skillet with 1/4" vegetable oil covering the bottom of the pan. Turn the heat to medium. Prep a resting place for finished egg rolls. Set a cooling rack over a lipped baking pan within easy reach of the skillet. 4. Once you are ready and the oil is hot place about 4 egg rolls at a time into the pan. Be careful for possible oil splatter. Don't crowd the egg rolls in the pan. They cook quickly, 1-2 minutes a side. They should be golden and crispy. When they are finished, use tongs to place them on the cooking rack, and put the next egg rolls into the pan. When the egg roll batches are through, move the pan aside and let the egg rolls sit for several minutes to cool. Serve with sweet and sour sauce. Store in an airtight container in the fridge, and reheat in the oven.
Details
Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: 12 egg rolls
Apple crisp is one of those desserts that I always forget to make, but every time I do make it I think, "Why am I not making this all the time?!"
Apple crisp is great.
It takes about half an hour to make.
It's healthy for a dessert.
The ingredients are simple and almost always currently in the kitchen.
I say this is a healthy dessert. My version is at least. I don't use any butter. By far the most unhealthy part of my apple crisp is the brown sugar, and you can always cut that down yourself.
One of the other random things I love about this recipe, no mixing bowl needed. Dump everything directly into the 8x8 baking dish and mix together a bit with a wooden spoon.
As you can no doubt notice I leave the peels on my apples. Jeff and I like it this way, and I generally try to keep as much nutrients possible. Feel free to peel your apples.
My apple crisp gets its crispiness from the apples being partially cooked and soft, while keeping a bit of the uncooked crunchiness. The only other way to get crispness without butter is to almost overcook it so the edges begin to brown. That way is okay, but the majority of the apples get too soggy that way.
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apple crisp
by Liesl August-24-2014
Ingredients
4-5 small varieties of crisp apples like fuji and granny smith
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/3 cup quick oats
1/2 cup unpacked brown sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
1. Slice (and peel optionally) apples. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. 2. Pour the applesauce on the bottom of an 8x8 baking dish. Pour the rest of the ingredients over top. Mix gently with a wooden spoon. Bake for 30 minutes. Eat immediately or cooled. Pairs very well with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
Details
Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: 4 servings
I love cooking with couscous and lentils. Just in general. They are both quick, easy, and can be seasoned numerous ways. I often have a pre-made container of each in my fridge either to eat as-is, or to add to a new dish.
This is a great dish for dinner in a hurry. And as usual for my dishes, is very kid friendly. Both kids loved it.
All that's needed for this recipe is two small pots and a strainer. I love meals that don't require a million pots and pans, and that take less than 30 minutes to make.
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lentils and couscous
by Liesl August-22-2014
Ingredients
1/2 cup dry couscous
1 cup red lentils
2 tbsps olive oil
2 tsps sea salt
2 tsps lemon juice
2 tsps basil
2 tsps garlic
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
1. Boil one cup of water in a small pot. As soon as it boils take it off the heat, pour in the couscous, put a lid on, and set aside for 10 minutes. After ten minutes mix in 1 tbsp olive oil, a tsp sea salt, the lemon juice, a tsp basil, a tsp garlic, and the pepper. 2. Boil the red lentils in a pot of water until very soft. Pour them into a strainer to drain, then pour them back into the pot. Mix in the remaining tbsp of olive oil, a tsp of sea salt, a tsp of basil, a tsp of garlic, and the cayenne pepper. 3. Either plate the couscous and lentils side by side or mix them together. Eat immediately.
Details
Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: serves 2-4
Fig scones are the outcome of my scone loving family combined with figs I forgot I had stating to get a bit soft. Use them or lose them. These turned out pretty well I guess, Jack ate two of them for breakfast!
These are so easy to make. Seriously.
Cut the tops off the figs and place them in the food processor. Pulse them briefly until they are almost fully pureed.
I prefer them with a little chunkiness.
Dump the fig into the mixing bowl with all the other ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon.
Don't over-stir. It will make the scones firm and stiff. Stop mixing them when everything has just come together. Prep a scone pan or baking sheet with baking spray or cake release and scoop the batter out 2 tbsp at a time, leaving 2-3" between each lump.
My scone pan gives me pretty little triangles. If you use a cookie sheet your scones will more closely resemble muffin tops.
Jeff likes them best as-is, but a maple based icing would not go amiss on these... Maybe for next time.
Store in a dry cool area in an airtight container and these should last a week, if you haven't eaten them by then!
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fig scones
by Liesl August-21-2014
soft, sweet, and so very easy to make!
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups AP flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
6 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 cup almost pureed figs
1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
1. Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees F. Almost puree the figs in a food processor. They should be slightly chunky. Add them into a large bowl with the other ingredients. Mix until just incorporated. This will look ugly and lumpy. That's ok. 2. Prep a scone pan or a baking sheet with spray or cake release. Scoop the batter out with a medium cookie scoop, or use about 2 tablespoons of batter each scone. Keep them at least 2-3" apart. Bake for 12-15 minutes. Let cool for ten minutes, then place on a baking rack to cool completely.
Details
Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: 20 scones
