Chocolate Chubbies

Best.

Cookie.

Name.

Ever.

Marquie and I made these today as a great farewell treat to, well, ourselves. We've had such fun cooking and chatting in the kitchen this week, and this was a totally out of control, over the top way to finish off what has been a truly amazing week. Here's how you eat them:

Step 1: Contemplate

Step 2: Prepare

Step 3: Rocket that thing into your mouth so fast your hand is blurry

Step 4: Lick Fingers

Step 5: Reaction

Chocolate Chubbies

Adapted from Sarabeth Levine

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

9 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped

1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

3 large eggs, at room temperature

1 1/4 cups superfine sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

1/4 cup white chocolate chips

1/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

2 cups peanuts

Preheat oven to 350˚F and line two sheet pans with parchment. Place oven racks in upper and lower thirds oven.

Combine butter, 9 oz. chopped chocolate and 3 oz. unsweetened chocolate in top of a double boiler and heat over barely simmering water until melted completely, combined, and silky smooth. That there is chocolate amazing. Pull it off the heat and let it cool—you'll probably have to stir it from time to time to make that happen in a timely manner.

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. Put eggs in a large mixer bowl with whisk attachment and beat until they are foamy, about 1 minute. Slowly add sugar and vanilla and continue to beat on medium speed until thick, creamy, and richly pale yellow, 3-4 minutes. Add melted chocolate and beat just until combined. Switch to paddle beater and add flour mixture, mixing until just combined.

Now you add your chubby ingredients: chocolate chips and nuts, and mix until combined. Now, I decided you can use almost anything you have on hand for this, but you need the amounts indicated in the original recipe. We had peanuts and different chocolates, so that's what we used, and they're great. They'd be better with the original walnuts and pecans, to be sure, but what can you do when you're baking cookies first thing in the morning?

Yeah, we're like that.

Use your cookie scoop to mound these onto your cookie sheets, and bake 15-18 minutes, or until they are shiny and just barely start to crackle. Try not to overcook them—you can even leave the centers a little mushy if you want. Cool on the pans, then eat them the way Marquie showed you.

Pancakes and Waffles...now healthier...

I love my new wheat grinder. The great thing about it, besides the fact that it provides freshly ground wheat flour any day, any time, is that is grinds all sorts of other grains. I am now actively grinding dried corn and pursuing recipes that involve cornmeal. Know any good ones?

I have a few recipes lined up to try and today I tried the pancake recipe from this discussion board. It was delightful, and I recommend it to anyone wishing to add more grains to his or her diet. I'll sum up.

Cornmeal Pancakes

• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 TB sugar
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 TB butter
• 1/2 cup flour [I used white, but I'm sure whole wheat would have been good]
• 2 tsp baking powder

Combine cornmeal, salt and sugar. Stir in boiling water, cover and let stand 10 min. Meanwhile, beat together egg, milk and butter in one small bowl and mix together flour and baking powder in another. Add them to the cornmeal mixture. Cook on pan or griddle.

After pouring our first pancake we thought it was too runny, so we added flour, then we decided it was to thick and added milk, and in the end we think the original texture was probably just fine, but you are welcome to play around like we did to find the right thickness for you.

We decided to have waffles for dinner one night and I maintained that I did not have a reliable waffle recipe. Dang you Bryce and your '3 second pour of oil' crap! I went fishing on allrecipes.com. This is often where I go looking for recipes. The trick is that once you search for something, click "sort by rating." This way, you'll see all the recipes that everybody just loves. Another trick is to take a glance at the comments, for they often have useful tips for adjusting the recipe to be even better. After such a long intro, here is the recipe:

Whole Grain Waffles

• 2 eggs
• 1 3/4 cup skim milk
• 1/4 cup canola oil [you can replace this with applesauce]
• 1/4 cup applesauce
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup flax seed meal
• 1/4 cup wheat germ
• 1/4 cup white flour
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 1 TB sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt

Mix dry and wet ingredients separately and then combine. Cook in waffle iron until waffles are crisp and golden brown.

Popping Gnocchi

I wish I cooked enough to actually post something useful on this blog, but fortunately Bryce and I found something far better than anything we could have come up with in the kitchen on our own. Check out the popping gnocchi.

Calzones

Okay, so this picture is totally just to make you jealous. But really, they were that good!

I want to let you know what I put in these creations. First, I should let you know that I made these for our "break the fast" meal on Sunday. They were delicious, but we only managed to eat half each!

I made a 1/4 recipe of Heather's pizza dough recipe (half white, half whole wheat), and then put together a mixture of staples and leftovers from the fridge for the filling:

• onions
• garlic
• cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 a cucumber, diced
• 1 cup lettuce, minced
• 1/2 can corn
• 1 shredded carrot
• 1/3 lb ground beef
• 1/2 cup pepperoni slices, quartered

I'm sure there were more things in there, but I can't remember them. I used any and all leftover vegetables I had in the fridge. I combined it with a homemade cream sauce (2 TB butter, 1/4 cup flour, 1/2 cup milk), some leftover spaghetti sauce (1/4 cup), and a sprinkle of italian seasoning. Justin did the rolling and pinching, making sure to add shredded cheese on top of the mix before sealing. We baked them at 420 degrees until golden brown and painted with pesto from Costco.

The best part? Jaime loved it. She's starting to be a finicky eater and I get excited when I find something she'll eat a lot of. Excuse me, something HEALTHY that she'll eat a lot of. She's down with junk food.

Butternut Bisque

For Thanksgiving Dinner this year, we had a four course meal and served one course at a time with musical programs and even just a little visiting and playing in between courses. It was a great success and made it very fun for the cooks who labored in the kitchen for two days that the meal lasted hours instead of minutes. Plus we cleaned up each portion between courses, so clean up seemed to be a snap!

So, here is our recipe for our first course...soup....it was delicious! We juiced our own apples for the apple juice, so my guess is it was a bit sweeter and thicker than it would be if we had bought juice at the store. Even the kids liked it!

Ingredients:
4 Tablespoons sweet butter
2 cups finely chopped yellow onions
4 to 5 teaspoon curry powder
2 medium-sized butternut squash (about 3 pounds)
2 apples - peeled, cored, and chopped
3 cups chicken stock

1 cup apple juice
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 shredded and unpeeled Granny Smith apple (garnish)

Directions:
Melt the butter in a pot. Add curry powder and chopped onions and cook, covered, on low until onions are tender, about 25 minutes. Meanwhile, scrape out the seeds from the squash and chop the flesh. When onions are tender, pour in the stock, add squash and apples, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer partially covered, until squash and apples are very tender, about 25 minutes. Pour the soup through a strainer, reserving liquids, and transfer the solids to the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, or use a food mill fitted with a medium disc. Add 1 cup of the cooking stock and process until smooth. Return pureed soup to the pot and add apple juice and additional cooking liquid, about two cups, until the soup is of the desired consistency. Season to taste with salt and pepper, simmer briefly to heat through and serve immediately, garnish with shredded apple.

Serves: 4 to 6.

Hummus

I know you all know how to make hummus. You've told me so. What I discovered a couple of months ago, though, is that you all neglect one of the essential ingredients in hummus.

Really people? If you're not making Hummus with Tahini, what are you thinking? Please give it a try.

I've combined a few recipes and tweaked it to my own tastes. Here's the recipe I use:
Hummus

• 3 cups garbanzo beans, drained (reserve bean juice for blending)
• 1/3 cup tahini
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 cloves garlic [I usually double this]
• 1 TB olive oil
• 1 tsp cumin
• 2 sprinkles crushed red pepper

Blend in blender, adding the bean juice to get it to the consistency you want. Place in serving dish and sprinkle with paprika and parsley.

I serve it with sliced carrots, celery and cucumber. It can also be served with pita or chips. It's up to you, but it's a 100% healthy snack or side dish when served with vegetables.

Fall Favorites

Seriously, are you all bored? Speak now or forever hold your peace.

This is an alternative winter squash soup recipe. I happened to like it more, but Justin's sticking by the bisque. I like how it's less intense - less thick, less creamy and less sweet. I guess Justin is all for intensity in food. What's your food style?

Creamy Squash Soup

• 3 cups diced winter squash
• 1 1/2 cups diced onion
• 1/2 cup diced celery
• 2 TB diced carrot
• 1 tsp basil
• 1/4 tsp each sugar and white pepper
• 1/8 tsp each ground cloves and mace [I left out mace because I didn't have it]
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 TB butter [I used canola oil]
• 2 1/2 cups chicken stock [I used my homemade vegetable stock]
• 1 cup half-and-half cream
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• paprika
• minced fresh chives [I left these out because I didn't have them]

Cook and stir vegetables, herbs and seasonings in butter 10 minutes. Add stock, cover, bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer until vegetables are tender. Puree, add creams and heat through; do not boil. Cool, chill and adjust seasonings [I ate it hot and cold at different times, and either works fine]. Sprinkle with paprika and chives [Justin gave me the idea to give the paprika a swirl and it looked way cooler].

I found these this season as well, made them a couple of times and they've never failed to delight. I turned these into whole wheat wonders as well and recommend it. I first made them when Marquie was over and she seemed to enjoy them. Then I made them when my sister and her son were over, and they loved them too. My sister was impressed that they were whole wheat, because you couldn't really tell, and her son loved the fun shapes (see below). Jaime even loved them, which makes me so happy! I love when she snarfs things that are 1) whole wheat and 2) have vegetables within.

Pumpkin Pancakes

• 2 cups flour [I used whole wheat]
• 3 TB brown sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp allspice [I can't seem to find this in stores, so I always substitute with a mixture of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and salt]
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1 cup pumpkin puree [I used 1-2 cups fresh pumpkin puree]
• 1 egg
• 2 TB vegetable oil [I used canola]
• 2 TB vinegar

Mix together dry and wet ingredients separately, then combine. Oil griddle or pan on medium high heat and pour batter onto griddle in whatever amounts you desire. Serve hot.

If you happen to be making these for Halloween like I was, it never hurts to get out the cookie cutters and let the kids have at it. Apparently, it makes them much more appealing than regular pancakes.

I also gave these a try to use up some acorn squash and don't have anything good to say about them.

I particularly disliked the seasoning of the innards. That much parsley without any other spices just ruined them for me, but Justin likes them. So, if you've got some acorn squash and the picture looks good to you, click on the link and give it a try. If you think the parsley would be an issue for you too, switch it up to accommodate your liking of spices.

Bread and Yogurt

I had a friend request Mom's wheat bread recipe, so here it goes.

Mom's Whole Wheat Bread

• 2 1/2 cups hottest tap water
• 1/4 cup honey or 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1 TB salt
• 4 cups flour

Mix. Add 1 TB yeast. Mix. Add flour until dough pulls away from sides of bowl. Knead for 4 minutes. Scoop batter onto oiled surface and let sit for 10 minutes. Divide in half. Form each into a loaf, put in loaf pans (I use one loaf pan and 1 glass bowl because I don't have two loaf pans). Let rise until dough reaches top of pan. Bake at 370 degrees for 35 minutes. Remove from pans and let cool.

Also, I know I've given it to some of you already, but below is my homemade yogurt recipe. I discovered this recipe on a baby food website. I'm now making it for the whole family and have it memorized. I suggest starting this process in the morning, so you can keep an eye on it in the cooler throughout the day. If not, do it right before bed and check it in the morning.

Homemade Yogurt

• 1 gallon milk
• 1 small cup of yogurt with active cultures (read the ingredient list)
• candy thermometer
• camping cooler
• heating pad

Heat milk in large stock pot, slowly, stirring constantly to avoid film on the bottom of the pan. Keep track of the temperature and when it reaches 185 degrees, remove from heat. Let it cool until it is between 105-115 degrees. Whisk in yogurt and pour into containers (I use canning jars). Place containers in camping cooler with heating pad. Have the heating pad turned on to medium*. Keep the temperature inside around 110 degrees (just guess) for 4-10 hours, until the yogurt is set. Refrigerate until served.

*if you don't have a cooler and/or heating pad, there are other ways of doing this. The website lists some more options, or you can email me and I'll talk to you about it.

Another Laundry List

Am I boring you all now? I guess I'm the only one excited about the recipes I've been trying. I know Justin has just about had it with my obsession of taking pictures of the things I make.
Here are some fun ways to spice up this fall

First, my favorite: Spooky Chips (I came up with the title :). I found this recipe in this year's Taste of Home Halloween Edition. I used Marquie's birthday party as my excuse to make them. Aren't they so fun?
Spooky Chips

• flour tortillas
• taco seasoning OR salt
• cooking spray
• halloween cookie cutters

Press cookie cutters into a stack of about 8 tortillas (depending on how deep your cutters cut).

Separate shapes and place on greased cookie sheet. Spray shapes with cooking spray. Sprinkle with taco seasoning or salt.

Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until edges just begin to brown. Remove to wire racks to cool.

Next, more efforts to use banana squash. This recipe was amazing. The creator of the recipe admits it's from his friend's restaurant. I made it and Justin and I agreed that it is very rich and also very filling.

Winter Squash Bisque

• 5 cups winter squash, peeled and chopped
• 3 TB oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped [I didn't have any, so left them out]
• 2 apples OR pears, peeled and chopped
• 2 cups apple cider OR vegetable stock (if using stock add 2 TB brown sugar)
• 1 tsp asian 5 spice powder [I didn't have this, and substituted with a mixture of red pepper flakes, cloves and salt]
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup maple syrup [I used maple flavored regular syrup]
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tsp salt and more to taste
• 1/2 tsp white pepper

Season squash with salt and 5 spice powder, place on a greased cookie sheet, and bake for 30-45 minutes until tender and lightly browned.

Meanwhile, cook the onions, carrots, apples or pears in a large soup pot and season with cinnamon. Add the apple cider and roasted squash and simmer until vegetables are soft. Add syrup and cream and simmer a few more minutes. Puree the mixture and season with salt and pepper. Serve garnished with butter/cinnamon croutons, cinnamon sugar wontons, or drizzled sweetened sour cream.

Lastly, a final effort to discover ways to use pumpkin. I'm now content with the recipes I've found and feel confident I can use up my pumpkin reserves. I turned these into whole wheat wonders and wouldn't do it any other way. It does change the taste, but is well worth the nutritional and fibrous benefits. This recipe made 12 regular muffins and 24 mini muffins that I sent to work with Justin and he passed around there. They were a hit.

Pumpkin Muffins

• 2 cups of homemade pumpkin puree
• 3 cups flour [I used freshly ground whole wheat]
• 2 cups sugar [I used 1 1/2 cups]
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp ground cloves
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp ground allspice
• 1 tsp salt
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil [I used canola, it's better for you than vegetable oil]
• 3 eggs

Combine dry ingredients; set aside. Blend wet ingredients in a large bowl. Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients until smooth. Scoop batter into muffin cups or greased muffin tin. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees.

The best part of this recipe was how much Jaime enjoyed it, and how she showed her enthusiasm. I scooped some patter into this small glass bowl and microwaved it. Didn't know you could bake in the microwave? Think again. I gave her the bowl and she loved it. After awhile she gave up on using her hands to eat the crumbly muffin and resorted to other methods. She and I snacked on these together all day. I loved that she ate so much whole wheat!

Winter Squash

Confession. I am having a love affair with the farmer's market. Yes, Justin knows. I just can't help myself. This is where I've obtained my beloved pumpkins, squashes, peppers, peaches, you name it. I love the produce, the people, and the prices. When Saturday comes around, I can't keep away!

Most recently, I've decided to take on banana squash. I couldn't help myself when I saw this at the farmer's market for only $1! It's my everest.

I began my search for acceptable recipes. I soon learned that search results for "banana squash" will yield recipes that have both bananas and squash (all kinds of squash) in them. After a tad bit of research, I learned that banana squash, along with pumpkin and acorn squash (which I also have) are part of a larger category, winter squash, that can virtually be used interchangeably. Consequently, searching "winter squash" yields much more satisfactory results. By the way, I can't wait for the day when I just know this kind of stuff, and am not such a newbie who has to learn it all for the first time. I find myself so fascinated with people older than I, who I can sit with and ask all sorts of questions, and they have such vast knowledge, knowledge that is only gathered from hard-earned experience.

I digress. The point is, I've got some ideas brewing for winter squash. They are so cheap right now, so take advantage of the sales!

This first recipe, from ifood.tv, was generally good and we enjoyed it, but I'd use it as a side dish instead of a main dish. And with how easy it is, it's worth making it as a side dish in my opinion.

Squash Casserole

• 3/4 cup onion, minced
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 3 banana peppers, chopped (peppers are a great price right now at the farmer's market too!)
• butter
• 2 cups squash, stewed, drained and mashed
• 2 eggs, beaten
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 cups cracker crumbs

Saute onion, green pepper and banana peppers in butter until soft. Combine with squash. Add eggs, salt and pepper. Place in casserole dish and cover with thin layer of cracker crumbs. Dot with butter and cook for about 25 minutes.

Next, rolls. Oh how we love rolls at our house. These, from allrecipes.com, were amazing. They've got me scheming to put squashed vegetables into all the bread I make.

Winter Squash Rolls

• 1 1/2 cups cubed winter squash, boiled and mashed [save this broth for the soup recipes I have coming up!]
• 1 cup milk scaled
• 2 TB yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 6 cups flour (I used half whole wheat, half white)
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/2 shortening [I used canola oil]

Dissolve yeast in warm water, set aside. In bowl or mixer, combined 5 cups flour, sugar and salt. Add yeast mixture, shortening, squash and milk. Mix well. Add remaining flour until correct consistency. Knead. Place in oiled bowl, cover with damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour. Form dough into rolls and place in 13x9 baking dish. Cover with damp cloth again and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.

This next recipe is reverting back to my efforts to use pumpkin in new and interesting ways. Check this out - pumpkin stir fry! For some reason, ours came out really spicy, which doesn't really make sense to me considering the ingredients. I would recommend trying it, but again, not as the only main dish. I'd make this again, but maybe in tandem to one or two other chinese dishes.

Stir-fried Pumpkin

• 3 TB olive oil [I used canola]
• 1 tsp minced garlic [I used more]
• 4 cups cubed fresh pumpkin [do small cubes, mine were too big and it didn't get as soft as it probably should]
• 1/2 cup grated carrot
• 2 TB soy sauce
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 tsp black sesame seeds [I used white]

Heat the oil in a large skillet [we used our wok]. Saute onion and garlic until onions begin to brown. Stir in the pumpkin, carrot, soy sauce, and pepper. Cook another 5 to 7 minutes until pumpkin is tender. Sprinkle with sesame seeds before serving.

Happy winter squash cooking!

Pumpkins!

I've acquired a few pumpkins this year, for decoration and for eating. I've only done a few things with them so far, and am looking for good ideas. But for now, I'll show you what I've come up with. If you've got pumpkins, put them to good use.

First of all, pumpkin puree. I learned how to make this here, and it worked just great. Mine came out lighter than the example, but I can't see why that's a problem.

Second, the seeds. Clean the yucky stuff off them, rinse them in cold water, spread them out on a greased baking sheet, sprinkle with salt, and bake for 25 minutes at 325 degrees, stirring once. They are delicious.

Third, soup. This recipe isn't anything to brag about, but it's good.

Black Bean Pumpkin Soup - Yield: 9 cups

• Three 15 1/2 ounce cans black beans (about 4 1/2 cups), rinsed and drained [*see note*]
• 1 cup drained canned tomatoes, chopped
• 1 1/4 cups chopped onion
• 1/2 cup minced shallot [omitted]
• 4 garlic cloves minced
• 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
• 4 cups beef broth
• a 16-ounce can pumpkin puree (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1/2 cup dry Sherry [omitted]
• 1/2 pound cooked ham, cut into 1/8-inch dice [omitted]
• 3 to 4 tablespoons Sherry vinegar [I used regular vinegar]

Garnish: sour cream and coarsely chopped lightly toasted pumpkin seeds

In a food processor coarsely puree beans and tomatoes.

In a 6-quart heavy kettle cook onion, shallot, garlic, cumin, salt, and pepper in butter over moderate heat, stirring, until onion is softened and beginning to brown. Stir in bean puree. Stir in broth, pumpkin, and Sherry until combined and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, 25 minutes, or until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Just before serving, add ham and vinegar and simmer soup, stirring, until heated through. Season soup with salt and pepper.

Serve soup garnished with sour cream and toasted pumpkin seeds.

*beans: if I haven't told you already, the rice cooker does wonders on dried beans. I discovered this in China. They will be soft as canned beans after two cycles on the rice cooker, changing the water in between cycles.

Fourth, I made pumpkin pie today and found the recipe here.

Share your knowledge about pumpkin usage! I am eager.

Granola

I stayed with Grandma and Grandpa for awhile and came to love their granola, fast. Soon after I left, I called her for the recipe and was able to obtain everything I needed at Winco, in Orem.

Grandma’s Granola

• 4 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup wheat germ
• 1/4 cup brown sugar or honey
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups mixture of extras (seeds: sunflower, flax, pumpkin)
• 1/2 cup maple syrup [I used maple flavored syrup, its much cheaper]
• 1/3ish cup oil (put 2 TB water in a 1/2 cup, and fill it up the rest of the way with oil)
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon [I used more cinnamon than this, and also a bit of nutmeg]
• coconut (optional)

Mix together ingredients (besides coconut) and bake flat on cookie sheets for 30 minutes at 275 degrees [I used Mom’s input on this and cooked it for longer, 35-40 minutes to make it crispier, and I think it’s better that way]. If desired, sprinkle coconut over the top and bake for 5 more minutes.

It is SOooooo good. Mix it with yogurt and chopped fruit and you’ll have a breakfast that always hits the spot! Plus, I love how it is so healthy - so much fiber and not too much sugar.

Non-Meat Meals

I've been doing a great deal of culinary experimentation lately. Justin and I are diligently seeking to eat meat more and more sparingly. I think Justin is going along somewhat reluctantly though. He loves his meat. I think he wants to make the change but his heart isn't in it. To illustrate, here's a story for your reading pleasure.

He called me on his way home from work one day, already informed that we were eating a delicious surprise meal that night. "Hon, guess what? We're having a vegetarian dinner!" I said, awaiting his response. Long pause. He begins slow, "I need you to do me a favor." "What's that?" I asked apprehensively. "I need you to not use the word vegetarian." "What?" "When we're eating something without meat, I want you to call it a 'non-meat dish' instead of a 'vegetarian dish.'" "Okay..." Upon further discussion, I learned that to him, the word vegetarian has a multitude of politically and religiously charged arguments, none of which he believes are sound. So, we call them non-meat dishes at our house.

With no more ado, here are my concoctions. One with picture, one without.

Non-meat Chicken Supreme Casserole (from Hutchings cookbook, by Michelle)

Follow cookbook directions, with the following exception:

Precook a little bit more potato cubes as you usually do, and instead of mixing chicken in with the potato cubes for the bottom layer, mix in chopped onions and garlic sauteed with montreal chicken seasoning, chicken bouillon and any other spices you feel like. Then mix in a can or two of diced tomatoes before spreading it in the bottom of the pan.

It is delicious and you won't regret making it this way.

I'll admit, Justin was pretty displeased with me when I made "Chicken Supreme Casserole" with no chicken. When he tasted it he got really quiet, so I asked him, "how do you like it?" and he responded "I'm not going to deny that I love it....but next time, with meat!...okay, well, sometimes with meat....maybe on my birthday?" I love him.

This next one might surprise you. I revamped the title.

Aji de Potato

Justin laughed out loud when I told him what we were having for dinner.

You know that delicious Peruvian chicken dish that I make? It's just as delicious with potatoes in place of chicken.

Follow the family cookbook's directions, with the following exception.

Instead of precooking the chicken and shredding it, precook diced potatoes and add them in at the same time you would the chicken

I served this one with Indian Naan Bread which was also delicious, and I had no complaints from Justin. Here's the recipe I used. I don't remember where I got it.

• 2 3/4 cups flour, plus more for dusting
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons instant yeast
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup plain lowfat yogurt or sour cream (I used my homemade yogurt)
• 1/2 cup milk

In the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl by hand), stir together the flour, salt, baking powder, sugar, and yeast. In a small bowl, mix together the egg, yogurt, and milk. Pour the egg mixture into the dry ingredients and stir for about 1 minute, until the dry ingredients are completely incorporated into the wet ingredients.

Increase machine speed to 2 (or by hand) and knead the dough until it is smooth and shiny. Remove the bowl from the mixer and cover with a towel. Leave in a warm place to rise until the dough doubles in size, about an hour.

Put a baking stone or heavy baking sheet on the lowest rack of your oven. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees for at least 30 minutes prior to baking.

Divide the dough into eight pieces and form into teardrop (mine were more like oval) shapes with your hands, about 6 to 8 inches across.

Cook two or three pieces at a time. Drop the dough onto the hot stone and shut the oven door, watching until they are just starting to turn brown in places, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Remove the naan and lay on a board. Butter the naan with garlic butter after it comes out of the oven.

I have a funny story about this one, too. If you'll notice, it calls for preheating the stone. I did, but what you should know is that my stone has never been seasoned. So, it goes about it's smelly smoke-producing seasoning business unbeknown to me, as I stepped out with Jaime on the front lawn. While I was out there, I met another young mother in my neighborhood and invited her in to see our home. The house was filled with smoke and smelled terribly. To ad insult to injury, I also showed her the backyard which happenwedd to have our underwear draped everywhere, line drying, due to a nonfunctional dryer outlet. I felt pretty foolish and haven't seen the woman since (but I'm determined to make her a park-going friend). By the way, the dryer outlet is now fixed thanks to Bryce.

Happy non-meat cooking to you all!

Puffs Unplugged

Here's another idea that would be fun for kids (and adults too!) I did my regular cream puff recipe but put all of the dough in zip lock bags, cut the tip off and handed them out.

We drew shapes and wrote names (they must be thick or they will burn).
Cooked them for about half the time. Separated the filling into individual bowls.
Scraped them off the pan (you might consider greasing) and watched them disappear!

Nuts and Bolts Trail Mix

This is another of my crock-pot favorites. For those of you with the book, it is page 393. I have made this twice and loved it both times. I am putting the original recipe here, but I halved the sugar and still loved it. Experiment and choose your fancy.

2 1/2 c unsalted nuts ( I used cashews, pistachios, peanuts, and almonds(when Joe isn't eating it))
1 1/2 c pretzel sticks
1 cup dried cranberries (the second time I substituted half for unsweetened dried bananas)
2 T butter, melted
1 1/2 tsp water
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 c sugar

Use 6 quart slow cooker. Put nuts, pretzels, and fruit into the stoneware. Combine remaining ingredients. Pour over the top of dry ingredients. Stir well to coat. Cover and cook on high 2 to 3 hours, ( I did 2), stirring every 30 minutes. When the nuts are toasty, spread out on parchment, tinfoil, whatever. Let cool and enjoy. My kids thought this was awesome.

Sorry it s blurry, but it is yummy.

Cream Puff Swans

Swan puffs are a beloved childhood treat of mine. I have fond memories of making them with my mother, and more importantly stuffing my face with the puffs and filling. These are in your recipe additions, but I thought I'd show you what the end result is like and calm your fears. These are not complicated!

You can make any cream puff recipe you like. Save a little batter, put it into a zip lock bag, cut off the tip, and squeeze several candy cane shapes on a cookie sheet. Don't cook these as long as the puffs. From my experience, keep your eye on them and take them out 15 minutes or so before the others are done. These will be the necks.

When you're cutting off the tops, scraping out the middle, and filling them with a wonderfully creamy mixture of pudding and whipped topping, cut the tops in half and stick them in the top for the wings! Yours will look better than mine. I pulled my puffs out too soon and they sank, which presented all sorts of problems, including the wings being rather pitiful.

Give it a try!

Chicken Bacon Ranch Pot Pie

I had a fantastic discovery last night. It turned out much better than yesterday's Bacon Potato Chowder, which I won't post. The amazing discovery was using part of a ranch dressing packet to flavor the homemade white sauce. It was delicious. I really don't have any measurements for most of the things I added, but I'll do my best.

I used my super easy pie crust for this. It's in the new additions to the cook book, but here it is again:

Combine 2 cups flour (I used 1 cup white, 1 cup wheat) and 1/2 tsp salt. Add 1/3 cup milk and 2/3 cup vegetable oil. Stir until combined, divide in two (one slightly bigger, for the bottom). Roll out the bigger one between wax paper and transfer to pie tin. Roll out the smaller one and set aside.

I use it for every kind of pie that I do. I don't think I'll ever roll out a dry pastry pie crust again. I baked the bottom for about 30 minutes at 400 degrees until it was browned. I definitely recommend precooking the bottom, it made it nice and crunchy and sufficiently rigid to stay in-tact when served.

Chicken Bacon Ranch Pot Pie

• 1 large celery stalk, diced
• 1/2 cup frozen peas
• 1/2 cup frozen corn
• 1/2 cup frozen spinach
• 2 small potatoes, diced
• 1 large carrot, diced
• 1/4 cup onions, diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, diced
• 3/4 cup bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 3/4 cup chicken, cooked and cubed
• 3/4 cup sausage, cooked (I added this because we had plenty on hand that needed to be used up)
• 1 large dollop of sour cream
• dash of salt
• dash of pepper

Use almost any amounts of these, until you have enough to fill up the pie dish. Precook the potatoes and carrots by boiling them in water to soften them. I also sautéed the onions and garlic together before adding them to the mix, but they probably don't need it. Combine veggies and meat in a bowl and set aside.

White sauce:

• 1/3 cup butter
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1 1/4 cup milk
• 1/3 to 1/2 packet of ranch dressing mix

Melt butter in saucepan, whisk in flour to combine. Gradually add milk, whisking continually. When sauce thickens, remove from heat. DO NOT allow to boil. Add ranch dressing mix until it tastes right to you.

Stir white sauce into veggies and meat. Add the dollop of *sour cream and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Fill precooked pie shell. Cover with top crust and decorate however you'd like. I smooshed Vs on the outside and did a star in the middle. Bake for 35-40 minutes at 350 degrees.

*Note: the sour cream was to make it more moist because it was looking dry. You can add more sour cream if it still looks dry after one dollop, or you can make more white sauce in the first place.

Easy Curry

I must admit something to you all. I'm scared to death of James' recipes that look complicated. When there's a long ingredient list chock-full of ingredients I'm not sure I've ever heard of, my stomach cramps up and I think to myself "oh gee, I'll never be able to make that...it looks lovely though..." So, for anyone else that's ever felt that, here's a curry you can handle.

Easy Curry

• 3 medium carrots, cut into 1/4 inch slices
• 2 medium potatoes, cut into 1/4 inch slices, quartered
• 2 medium onions, cut into 1/4 inch wedges
• 6 cloves of garlic, minced
• strips of chicken (any amount, optional)
• 1 can coconut milk (the thick kind, if possible)
• curry powder
• sugar
• salt
• cornstarch and cold water

Place vegetables (and chicken) in large pot with barely enough water to cover them. Bring to a boil and boil until vegetables are about 80% eatable softness. Drain a small amount of water (just enough to not completely cover the vegetables anymore). Add the coconut milk and sprinkle 3 parts curry powder, 2 parts sugar and 1 part salt (I usually prepare the proportions ahead of time in a small bowl) until it tastes as strong as you want it to. When it tastes right to you, thicken with cornstarch mixture. Serve over cooked rice.

Edamame!!!!

Today my piano lessons' Mom brought be an edamame salad to eat for lunch--I haven't had lunch yet, but I had to snitch the salad. It is incredible and I'm very much looking forward to lunch. Luckily, she also gave me the recipe, so I thought I would share it!

Black Bean and Edamame Salad

1 10-ounce package frozen shelled edamame, thawed
1 15-ounce can low-sodium black beans*, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup chopped red onion
2 cups thinly sliced celery (about 3 medium stalks)
1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped
2 cups of your favorite cabbage, chopped, or cole slaw mix
*Optional: low-sodium kidney beans, white beans, or blackeyed peas can be substituted for black beans [or even just added]

For the rice vinegar dressing:
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt, optional

1. In a large bowl, mix together the ingredients.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients, then add to the vegetable mixture. Chill until cold, about 1 hour. Serve

(Make this salad up to one day ahead, because the longer it marinates with the dressing, the better it gets!)

Per serving with dressing: 383 calories, 22g protein, 56 g carbohydrate, 8 g fat, 21 g fiber, 49 mg sodium.

Give it a try. I think you'll like it!

POPCORN on steroids

This post is about an experiment that I need y'all's cooking expertise to perfect!

Yummy Popcorn

• Popped popcorn
• Chocolate, melted
• Peanut butter, melted
• Peanuts, chopped
• salt

Pop popcorn using an air popper. Spread into jelly roll pans. Drizzle chocolate and peanut butter. Sprinkle peanuts. Sprinkle salt. Eat.

Commentary:

I melted an unsweetened baking chocolate cube and added butter, sugar and corn syrup. It would have worked better if I hadn't allowed it to come to a boil as many times as it did during the melting process. As it was, it hardened into a stiff gel upon pouring, and we were required to eat it from the pan, instead of putting it in a bowl.

I melted the peanut butter in the microwave. I had a bit of trouble with it: I wanted it runnier, so I put it in the microwave again which made it too hard, so I added water and it made it worse, so I added honey and it still didn't work out. So, I put it in a zip lock bag, cut off the tip and squeezed it on. I would recommend adding the honey, it was yummy, but I'd skip all of the hassle of trying to make it runny enough and put it in a zip lock bag right after the first microwaving.

I'd really like to figure out a way for the chocolate to stay looser, for the peanut butter to harden slightly, and for the nuts to stick better. If you have any advice on the matter, do say.

4th of July Treats

Red, White and Blue Strawberries

• desired number of strawberries, washed and dried (completely)
• melted white chocolate
• blue sprinkles

Dip strawberries two-thirds of the way into chocolate. Then dip the bottom one-third into the sprinkles. I found it helpful to dip and roll gently, in order to get clean lines.

Red, White and Blue Drinks

• cranberry juice
• blue gatorade
• diet 7-Up
• ice cubes

Put a few ice cubes into a see-through glass. Pour 1/3 glass cranberry juice. Pour the blue gatorade next, being careful to pour onto an ice cube, instead of into the juice. Next, pour the diet 7-up, again on top of an ice cube.

*Note: This works because of the varying amounts of sugar in each of the liquids, which creates varying densities. I mistakenly asked for regular Sprite, instead of diet 7-Up, and had to pour "white" as the middle layer. This worked, except it would have been slightly better if the densities were more diverse. Also, you can do this with ANY JUICES/SODAS you want. Check the sugar content, and pour the one with the greatest amount of sugar on the bottom.

Pretzel Jello

• 2 cups crushed pretzel rods
• 1/2 cup butter
• 3 TB sugar

• 8oz cream cheese
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 (small) tub cool whip

• 1 large package of strawberry Jello
• 1 small package of frozen strawberries, chopped

Mix crushed pretzels, butter and sugar. Flatten into a baking dish and bake for 8 min at 400 degrees. Let cool. Mix Jello with water according to package directions, add strawberries. Set aside. Blend cream cheese and sugar, then add cool whip. Spread over crust, making sure to spread all the way to the edges on all sides, sealing in the crust. When the jello is completely cool and slightly set, pour over cool whip layer. Refrigerate until completely set.