roasted garbanzo beans

This is my all time favorite snack.  I takes a while to make, bu most of that is idle oven time.  These roasted garbanzo beans are crunchy, chewy, and salty.  I love this dish for many reasons.

• tastes delicious
• healthy
• doesn't require many ingredients
• so easy
• easy to eat
• great source of protein (okay, a bit repetitive, but important!)

Start with two standard 15.5 oz cans of garbanzo beans.  Drain, rinse them, and try to get out as much extra water as possible.

If you see typos, I've tried to find them all.  I had A LOT.  Many of my letters stick.  That's what happens I guess when you have a really old laptop, and you find things like peanut butter stuck to the keys...  Ah, the perks of having kids(?).

Dump the garbanzo beans into a freezer bag along with 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar, one tablespoon each of olive oil and dijon mustard, and a teaspoon of sea salt.  Remove any excess air and seal it shut.

This is Liam's favorite part.  I asked him if he wanted to help me shake it all up to combine everything well.  Well, as you can probably tell from he crazy blurry picture, he's doing a bang up job.  Although, he's always a blur anyway.

Then he thought it would be awesome if I had to chase him to get he bag back...

Yup, looks good.

Empty the bag out onto a lipped baking sheet lined with parchment paper and shake gently.  Strive for a single layer, if your pan is too small for this, that's okay.

Strangely I took a picture of the garbanzo beans before I shook them instead of after.  Aim for them to be spread out more than this.

Stick them in the oven at 400 degrees F for 30 minutes.  Then stir with a wooden spoon and rotate the pan.  Set a timer for another 30 minutes, then remove.

The garbanzo beans should be crunchy, chewy, salty, and delicious.  They shouldn't be hard or burned.  They can be enjoyed warm or room temperature.

I recommend eating them the same day they are roasted, or the next day at the latest.  They will technically last for at least a week in an airtight container on the counter, but they quickly loose the crunch (my favorite part).

I pour the garbanzo beans straight into a bowl and eat them like popcorn.  They make such a yummy, easy, and protein rich healthy snack!

These don't last very long at our house.  There are so many flavor combinations possible when roasting these.  This one is my favorite, but Jeff is pushing for a BBQ variety.  I'll try to work out the kinks and post that one.

If you want, toss another small pinch of sea salt on top after they come out of the oven.

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roasted garbanzo beans

by Liesl October-15-2014

crunchy, chewy, salty, and delicious

Ingredients

• 2 15.5 oz cans garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp sea salt

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place the drained and rinsed garbanzo beans in a freezer bag along with the red wine vinegar, olive oil, dijon mustard, and sea salt. Remove excess air and seal closed. Shake vigorously to mix. Dump the freezer bag contents out onto a lipped baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Try to spread the garbanzo beans out in a single layer. If your sheet is not quite big enough for that, no problem. 
2. Slide the baking sheet onto the middle oven rack and set a timer for 30 minutes. When the timer goes off gently stir the garbanzo beans around with a wooden spoon and rotate the pan. Set the timer for another 30 minutes. When the timer goes off remove the pan from the oven. Pour he garbanzo beans out into a bowl and enjoy! I like them both warm and room temperature. I recommend eating them the same day they are roasted, or the next day a the latest. After that they lose the crunch and are just chewy (which is good too).

Details

Prep time: 5 mins 
Cook time: 1 hour 
Total time: 1 hour 5 mins 
Yield: a cereal bowlful

gingerbread cake with fresh whipped cream

California weather being crazy like it is, still at 90 degrees in mid-October is making me go bonkers.  In my mind it is Fall and I want to make pumpkin, apple, spiced treats, and drink loads of tea.  Then I walk outside and sweat to death.  Not cool California!  Like many people, I love pumpkin, but when I was perusing Pinterest for inspiration the other day I scrolled for about a minute straight through nothing but pumpkin recipes.  It was completely overwhelming and made me crave ANYTHING but pumpkin. I hadn't yet made gingerbread cake this season (one of my favs!) so I thought this would be a good time.

This cake is so yummy.  It is moist, sweet, and spicy, with a hint of orange.  It pairs well with whipped cream, but doesn't NEED it.  In fact, if you don't add the whipped cream you can tell yourself it is just bread and have a piece for breakfast (like I did this morning. ...Shh!).

I love easy cakes that can be made in one bowl.  Tastes great and less dishes?  Score!  Start by creaming the butter and sugar.

 
Next add the egg and molasses.  Stir to combine.  If you have small lumps or air bubbles, it is okay.

Add the remaining ingredients, minus the water.  If you don't have a microplane for the orange zest I recommend you get one.  They are amazing and zest far better than any other style of grater.

All the ingredients are now incorporated.  If you still have little lumps that's fine.

Scoop the batter out with a spatula into a greased 9x9 pan and gently shake to make sure the cake is even.  Pop it into the oven for 50 minutes.

The cake should be done when the timer goes off.  Make sure your toothpick comes out clean when inserted.  If you love eating hot gingerbread wait at least 10 minutes to let it set.

While you are waiting for the gingerbread to cool down you can make the whipped cream.  Store bought is okay, but I prefer homemade.  Plus, this is so easy and only requires three ingredients!

Jeff is our go-to whipped cream guy.  I don't know how that happened, it's just always been that way.  He's also my go-to waffle guy.  Liam likes to "help"...

Pour in 2 cups of whipping cream with sugar and vanilla.  We don't make ours too sweet, so taste as you go to make it your own.  Whisk this in a small bowl with a hand mixer, or use a stand mixer.

This probably should have been made in a slightly larger bowl.  Watch out for splatter if you angle the whisk!

Jeff likes his whipped cream to be crazy thick so it tastes decadent, but looks really ugly.  You can stop whisking as soon as you get stiff peaks on your whisk.  When the gingerbread has cooled a bit put a huge glob of whipped cream on top and enjoy.

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gingerbread cake with fresh whipped cream

by Liesl October-13-2014

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 cup molasses
• 2 1/2 cups AP flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup plain nonfat greek yourt
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ginger
• 1/4 tsp cloves
• 2 tsp orange zest
• 1/2 cup hot water
• 2 cups whipping cream
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1-2 tsp vanilla

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cream together the butter and sugar. In the same bowl mix in the egg and molasses. Stir in the flour, baking soda, yogurt, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and zest. Mix well, then add the hot water. Scoop into a prepped 9x9 inch dish with a spatula and place onto the middle oven rack. Bake for 50 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Set on a cooling rack for at least 10 minutes before eating to help it set. The cooled gingerbread can be stored in an airtight container on the counter or in the fridge for several days.
2. Begin making the whipped cream after the gingerbread comes out of the oven. Using a hand or stand mixer combine the whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla in a bowl. Whip until thick. Taste to see if you need more sugar or vanilla added. You can stop anytime after peaks form. Jeff prefers his whipped cream extra thick which is why ours looks a bit ugly. The thicker it is, the more awkward it looks. Any leftover whipped cream can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for a day or two.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins 
Cook time: 50 mins 
Total time: 1 hour 
Yield: a 9x9 pan

pesto pasta with veggies

This is one of my favorite meals ever.  Seriously, I have to stop myself from taking seconds every time.  Sooo good!

This pasta is full of flavor.  Pesto, garlic, peppers, broccoli.  Yum.  Plus, it looks so pretty but is actually very easy to make.

I love the taste of fresh produce.  The stars of this dish include red and yellow bell peppers, yellow onion, garlic, tomato, pine nuts, and pesto.  I make my own pesto, but you can use store bought if you want to.

I love this with curly pasta.  The shape is just so fun.  Plus it is small enough that if you chop your veggies small enough you can get a bit of everything in each bite.

I got the idea for this pasta from my favorite dish at the Cheesecake Factory, Evelyn's Favorite Pasta.  Mine is a bit different, but the same idea.  Some pasta, pesto, and tons of fresh veggies!

Rough chop the peppers, onion, tomato, and garlic.  Roast them in the oven at 425 degrees F for 35 minutes.

Take the veggies out when they are soft and flavorful.

Making pesto is very simple, but if you are feeling lazy or lack the ingredients, store bought pesto is okay too.  Time isn't even an issue because you can make the pesto while the veggies are roasting, and also while the pasta is cooking, and the broccoli is steaming.  Woohoo, we're multi-tasking.

Okay, time to make pesto.  I use a bullet blender for this.  I like using it for this because if I use my huge vitamix for such a small amount of pesto, I lose half of it scrapping it down the sides.  In whatever blender (or food processor) you choose to use add a tablespoon of pine nuts, a tablespoon of parmesan, a bit of black pepper and sea salt each, a large handful of basil leaves, and about 3 tablespoons of olive oil.  Hit puree for several seconds until the pesto comes together and voila!  Seriously, that's all there is to it.

Make the pasta while the veggies are roasting, drain, and toss with a bit of olive oil.

As soon as the pesto is ready, mix it all in with the pasta, then add the rest of the pine nuts.

Now stir in the roasted veggies, the steamed broccoli, and the olives.  Done!  This is delicious as is, but if you want to add a bit more protein feel free to add more pine nuts, some white beans, or some diced chicken.

Note:  If you do add addition protein you might want to make more pesto so everything can still be well covered.  An extra half pesto recipe would be perfect.

This recipe is great for a busy weeknight dinner or even a dinner party because it looks fancy and time consuming, plus tastes wonderful, but you can multi-task and make all the separate pieces of it in the time it takes to roast the veggies.

This reheats well too if you make a large batch.  Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week, and simply microwave.

The best part?  Both kids wanted seconds!

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pesto pasta with veggies

by Liesl October-4-2014

Ingredients

• 5 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 2 cups spiral pasta, uncooked
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 yellow bell pepper
• 1 medium tomato
• 1 yellow onion
• 3 large garlic cloves
• 3 tbsp pine nuts, divided
• 1 large handful basil leaves
• 8 kalamata olives, halved
• 1 tbsp parmesan
• large pinch each salt and pepper
• 1 small head, chopped broccoli

Instructions

1. Rough chop the red and yellow bell peppers, onion, garlic, and tomato. Spread them evenly in a parchment lined lipped baking sheet. Drizzle with a tablespoon of olive oil and a pinch of salt and roast at 425 degrees F for 35 minutes. They should be soft and fragrant.
2. Meanwhile, cook the pasta, drain, put back into the pot, off heat and add a drizzle of olive oil. While the pasta is cooking. steam the broccoli and set aside.
3. If you are making your own pesto do it while the veggies and pasta are cooking. Using a blender or food processor add a tablespoon of pine nuts, the parmesan, a pinch of black pepper and salt each, the basil leaves, and 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Puree. Scoop out and mix into the cooked pasta. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of pine nuts, the steamed broccoli, the kalamata olives, and the roasted veggies. Stir together and serve.

Details

Prep time: 10 mins 
Cook time: 35 mins 
Total time: 45 mins 
Yield: 4-6 servings