Old Fashioned Homemade Pancakes...and Freezer Cooking!

It is the way that God created me!!!

I LOVE to try new recipes. All.the.time!  The good news - we get to taste a variety of flavors.  The bad news - is there really any bad news associated with this?  :)

This past Tuesday was Pancake Day!  YUM!!!  So, I decided to make pancakes for dinner!  The kids were so excited - so was I!

Photo courtesy of Pocket Change Gourmet

I tried a new recipe that is called Old Fashioned Homemade Pancakes that I found on Pocket Change Gourmet.  I have been looking for a recipe that would produce light and fluffy pancakes, and I believe that I found it!  The pancakes came out great - EVERYONE LOVED them and the boys asked me to make them again and again! The original recipe only made 6 large pancakes, so I doubled it.  The recipe that I used is below.

Do you know what else I did?  I decided to take their suggestion, and prepare a few of the pancake mixes ahead of time.  To do this, simply take a ziploc bag, pour the dry ingredients into the bag, seal it up and use a sharpie to write the wet ingredients that need to be added the the dry mix on the outside of the bag (be sure to date and label the bag with the name of the recipe!).  I labeled the bag BEFORE I poured in the dry ingredients - it is a little easier to write on a flat surface - and used a sandwich sized bag!  I made up five of these bags, then put the sealed bags into a large gallon ziploc bag.  To keep the ingredients fresh, I will place this bag into my freezer, mark it on my freezer inventory sheet...and I just completed some "freezer cooking/preparation."  Then, when I feel like making pancakes, I will save myself a few minutes of time by simply grabbing one of these already prepared bags of dry ingredients!

Check out this recipe:

Old Fashioned Homemade Pancakes

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients
• 2 cups flour
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 2 Tablespoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups milk {a little less or a little more is fine depending on the consistency you like}
• 1/4 cup (4 T) oil - I used canola

Instructions

1. In a large measuring cup, whisk together dry ingredients
2. Add wet ingredients and mix well
3. Heat griddle and spray with non-stick cooking spray
4. Pour batter onto hot griddle
5. Cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes, flip and cook other side
6. Note: batter makes 3 cups - use 1/4 cup for each pancake, it will make 12 large pancakes - these will spread out a little bit while they cook, so be sure they have a little bit of "room to grow"!

Hearty Ham and Potato Soup

It's raining and the wind is blowing pretty hard here...which makes me want to cuddle up to a nice bowl of soup. I found this soup recipe on a blog that I read called Simple Organized Living, and it sounds and looks really good! Andrea, mentions that this soup does not freeze well, so I figured that I would pass that along to you too! Enjoy Andrea's recipe - I am going to!

Hearty Ham and Potato Soup

Ingredients

• 2 T. oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 qts. water
• 6 medium baking potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 3 carrots, sliced
• 2 celery stalks, diced
• 1/2 c. butter
• 1/2 c. flour
• 1 1/2 c. milk or cream
• 1/2 lb. ham, cubed
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Heat oil in a large pot and sautee onions until soft

• Add water, potatoes, carrots, and celery

• Boil until veggies are tender {about 15 minutes}

• Drain and reserve all liquid {you will use some of this broth later on…and you can freeze the rest of it}
• Set veggies aside
• In the same pan, melt butter
• Whisk flour and milk together and add to the melted butter, string constantly until mixture thickens
• Add 1 cup or more of reserved broth — if you like thicker soup, add less — thinner soup, add more
• Gently stir in cooked vegetables and ham.
• You may add more broth if you want a thinner soup, or let it simmer for a while if it’s too thin. (freeze the reaming broth for future use)
• Serve with salad and fresh bread, garlic bread, or rolls.

Update: I have to say that I thought that this soup was bland. It could have been that I only had 5 oz of ham instead of 8 oz, or it could be lacking in some herbs. It was good, but not the best tasting soup that I have made.

Soup, Soup, and more...(Chicken) Soup!

Lately, I have been on a soup kick - making soup, eating soup, and giving soup away too - mainly to my parents!

It all started about 3 or 4 weeks ago (give or take). I decided to make a few freezer meals on a weekend and when I went to put it away in our garage freezer, I realized that I really needed to start making some more room in there. There were 2 whole turkeys in there and about 4 whole chickens that needed to be cooked and then made into a variety of meals. So, I began planning, defrosting (one at a time - I did not get through all of them yet!), and then the cooking began.

Initially, when the bird was done cooking, we would have the chicken or turkey for dinner that night along with a few sides. The bird would then be stripped of the rest of its meat, and then I used the bones to make broth for my turkey or chicken soup! I believe that the first soup that I made was the basic, delicious chicken (or turkey) soup recipe that I adapted from my mom's recipe - so delicious! Then I made some other meals - like a chicken and broccoli quiche - which is SOOOO delicious! I used the recipe found in one of my favorite cookbooks, Don't Panic, More Dinner is in the Freezer. It is a hearty quiche, filled with onions (which I saute), broccoli, chicken, cheese and the egg mixture. I also made it with chopped spinach, instead of broccoli!). Then...more soup...other types, which I will get to at another time! Today, I will share my mom's recipe with you! Enjoy!

Mom's Chicken (or Turkey) Soup

3 1/2 lb. stewing chicken (if I already have cooked chicken - I just use the leftover bones)

2 1/2 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

1/4 tsp. dried basil

1 bay leaf

1 T. finely chopped fresh parsley (or 1 tsp. dried)

1 lb. carrots, chopped (can use 1 bag of baby carrots)

1 large onion, chopped

4 stalks celery, chopped

1 cup fine noodles (optional) - (do not freeze soup with noodles in it - add them later)

1. Wash chicken. Place in a large dutch oven and cover with 5 cups of water. Add seasonings.

2. Simmer covered 1 1/2 hours, or until chicken is tender.

3. While chicken is cooking, prepare vegetables...carrots, celery, and onions

4. When chicken is done, remove it, along with bay leaf from the stock. Skim off as much fat as possible from stock. Pour stock through a strainer/colander and into another pot. Be sure there are no little bits of bone left in the stock!

5. Bring stock back to boiling. Add carrots, onions, and celery. Simmer 45 minutes.

6. While vegetable are cooking, remove skin and bones from chicken, leaving chicken in large pieces.

7. When vegetable are soft, blend/puree at least half of them. This will thicken the broth! You can blend as much or as little as you would like to.

8. Cook noodles and add to stock, along with chicken pieces (you decide how much you want to add). Cook 10 minutes longer.

You can double or even triple this recipe - which is what I usually do! You can freeze some of what you made for a future cold day, or share some with a friend!

Getting ready to freeze some of the soup!

Recipe: Gingerbread Cake (or muffins!)

I have never used Stevia in baking...or really in anything, but my sister in law inspired me to try it out! So far, I have only tried one of the recipes that she gave to me, and I think that the muffins tasted great...although I did over-cook them a little bit since I forgot to shorten the baking time, since I made muffins instead of a bread! Oops!!! My boys did not really like the taste of them...maybe because they were not really moist or it was a taste that they are not used to. I am going to make them again...and I will remember to shorten the baking time!!! Try them out and tell me what you think!

Gingerbread Cake

1 cup buttermilk
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp ginger
1 tsp cloves
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup sugar (Substitute 1 tsp stevia and about 1/2 cup oats)
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup molasses
1/4 cup boiling water

1. Mix all ingredients together. (I mixed wet together first, then added dry ingredients and then added the hot water)

2. Pour into pan - bread/can pan or muffins

3. Bake for 350 degrees for 35 minutes, if in a bread pan.
**I dropped the temperature down to 325 degrees and I would bake them for 15-20 minutes, so that they remain moist.

I would include a photo of the muffins, but I guess I forgot to take one! So, just imagine muffins with a dark brown color! YUM!

Recipe: Chicken Cacciatore

This is a recipe from my cookbook, Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook. I have not made this version of the recipe before, but grew up with a similar version of it. However, I believe that this was the main (only?) slow cooker recipe that my mom made and was tired of it! I wanted to try new and different slow cooker recipes, which led me to find this cookbook, thanks to my friend Anne H. I have refrained from making this recipe for year, but I am tempted to try it again because this recipe in this cookbook is quite a bit different from what I grew up with and I like how they suggest to thicken the sauce. Enjoy!

Cooker: Medium or Large round or oval
Setting and Cook Time: HIGH for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, or LOW for 6 to 7 hours

16 ounce jar Italian marinara sauce, such as tomato basil or about 2 cups of homemade marinara sauce**
1 medium yellow onion, cut in half and sliced into half moons
1-3 cloves garlic, to your taste, minced
1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1 1/2 inch chunks
4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs and 4 chicken drumsticks, skin removed (or you can use 4 chicken quarters)
6 ounces fresh mushrooms, quartered
1 T all-purpose flour
2 T water (optional)
2 T dry white wine (optional - I always like to add wine when they call for it!)

1. Layer half of the tomato sauce and all of the onion, garlic, bell pepper, and chicken in the slow cooker (in that order). Sprinkle the mushrooms on top and cover with the remaining tomato sauce. Cover and cook until the chicken is tender and cooked through (180 degrees in the thigh), 2 1/2 to 3 hours on HIGH or 6 to 7 hours on LOW. The chicken will add some juices on its own to the dish.

2. Transfer the chicken to a warm platter. If you wish to thicken the sauce, in a small bowl, whisk together the flour, water, and wine until smooth. Stir into the sauce in the cooker, turn the cooker to HIGH, cover, and cook until thickened, 10 to 15 minutes (or transfer to a pot on the stove and cook there - be sure to stir constantly). Pour the sauce and vegetables over the chicken and serve.

**this is a little different from what I grew up with. I think it was more like add tomato sauce and then spices like basil etc.

I think that this always tastes good with rice or pasta - whatever suits your family's taste! If you try it out, please let me know what you think...and if I should give it another try!

Anyone Really Can Cook!

I really believe that anyone can cook. You need to be able to read and follow directions, and if you can, then you will be able to place delicious meals on the table! The types of meals that you cook, is up to you! Find a cookbook (or cooking website) that you like and begin to experiment and have fun in the kitchen!

The other day, I made a chicken soup, black bean soup and apple sauce. That evening, my mom came over to watch Smiles for about an hour or so and she taste tested the different things that I made, and told me that I was a great cook! That made me smile. The chicken soup recipe was actually hers! I did not puree the whole entire soup base (like she does) - we like to have some chunks of carrots and celery to chew on while we are eating our soup. Did you know that if you do puree part of your soup, it makes your broth thicker? I have learned that probably in the past year.

Chicken Soup - This is such a delicious recipe! I tripled the recipe for this so that I could freeze it. I froze some of it in plastic storage containers and have read that if you place saran wrap over the top of your food before you freeze it, it will help to prevent crystals to form on the top of it. I also froze some of it using the freezer bag method, where you place the bag on a flat surface (like a jelly roll pan) and freeze it completely flat before storing it in another part of your freezer - this helps it maintain a flat shape and not some weird shape.

Black Bean Soup - I wanted to make a soup from my new slow cooker cookbook, and decided to try the recipe, Old-Fashioned Black Bean Soup. I am always a little excited and nervous when I try a new recipe…wondering how it will turn out. I left out the ham bone/ham hock, I did soak my beans overnight, and I did use the optional sherry in the recipe. My beans never came to a boil in the crock pot in the first hour, but I continued with the recipe anyway. To my delight, it was SO delicious! Dawson really enjoyed the taste and I made a second batch of it to share with my family when we watched football together on Sunday! It was a hit. I froze enough for two separate meals, with the freezer bag method.


Applesauce - Everyone should make this! It is SOOOO easy to make! There are a few different ways that you can make it (depending if you have a food mill or not). I do not have a food mill, so I peel the apples and then use my corer/slicer to chop the apples. I throw the apples into a huge pot and fill it to the top! Then I place about a half inch or so of water at the bottom of the pot and cover the pot, turn the heat to medium, wait until it boils, and then I turn the heat down a little bit so that it is simmering, stirring it now and then. After about 30 minutes or so (once the apples are mushy), I take it off of the stove and mash it with a potato masher, and there you have it - fresh homemade applesauce! YUM! You should try it! As you can see, I chose to use plastic containers to freeze the applesauce. The plastic bag method should work too, but for some reason, I wanted to freeze it in these 3 cup containers. This is the first time that I have frozen a lot of applesauce. I am excited that I will have homemade applesauce to feed to my family throughout the year! I think that I have made about 8 quarts of applesauce so far and I have MORE apples to process! I think that I will make some apple crisps to freeze too! :)

So, there you have it - 3 recipes that I have tried (ok, well only one recipe was new to me), have enjoyed and frozen part of it...so that I can enjoy it on another day! One thing to remember - be sure to label anything that you are placing into your freezer - date and name of item. You don't want to try and figure out what mystery meat is in there or what mystery red tomato-y things are in there - I don't think that it is sauce! I have those tomato-y things defrosting in the refrigerator as I type in order to figure out what it is! :)

Super Power Muffins Recipe

I am always eager and ready to try a new recipe, especially if there is a healthy aspect to it, and it tastes great too (or at least someone initially recommended it - and it sounds good too!). Money Saving Mom recommended this recipe that one of her commenters gave her.

I have to admit that I have not been a fan of substituting white flour for whole wheat flour in my baking - besides bread. I WANT to like the way that it tastes for health purposes, however the texture and taste of the whole wheat flour in the waffles and cookies that I made was not really tasty...kind of a weird taste.

So, when I came across the following recipe, I had a combination of feelings - excited to try it, yet a little hesitant. However, since I enjoy adventure when I bake, I decided to try it tonight.


Super Power Muffins:
1 cup brown sugar (don’t pack it!)
¼ to ½ cup peanut butter (I decided to use 1/3 cup)
1 banana
*optional ½ cup of apple sauce or carrot puree
(I am not sure if this is additional or not, but I did not add this in today's mixture. I am going to try adding it next time - it may make them a little more moist...or, I am sure that you can add another banana too.)
1 egg
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
*optional ¼ cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all dry ingredients well and set aside. Blend everything else and then sift in dry ingredients. Spray muffin tray. Bake for 15-18 min. Makes 12 (double for 24)

What did I think about them? They are quite tasty - and healthy! It had more of a peanut butter taste than banana taste. I would recommend trying them and tweak them to your own taste!

I actually made two versions of the muffins:

1. Version 1 - followed the recipe (using white whole wheat flour, and the 1/4 cup of mini chocolate chips)

2. Version 2 - used white flour (I just wanted to compare it with version 1, and I did not add any chocolate chips - wanted to see how they tasted without that sweetness)

White Chili with Chicken

This is a delicious recipe that I was given by my friend the Literary Gourmet at my bridal shower, almost seven years ago! (from the Bon Appetit magazine.) It takes a little while to make, but it is SO worth it...if you like this kind of thing!

Here is the recipe that I was given - I always double it!

1 large onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 hot chili peppers, minced (be sure to wear plastic gloves while handling)
3 Tbl Butter
1 14oz can chicken broth
1 cup half & half
1/4 cup flour
2 cans canellini beans (or any small, white)
2 cups cooked chicken, cubed
1 1/2 tsp chili powder
1 1/2 tsp Tobasco
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup sour cream (optional, I don't use)

Garnish: grated Monterey Jack cheese (highly recommended), cilantro (optional)

1. Saute onion, garlic, and chilis in butter over medium heat until translucent (about 7 min).

2. Add flour and stir constantly for 2-3 minutes (not letting mixture brown)

3. Gradually stir in broth and half & half, a little at a time, simmering gently until thickened. (this is the longest part)

4. Stir in chili powder, Tobasco, cumin, salt and pepper. Then stir in beans and chicken and simmer for 10-15 mins to combine flavors. (be sure to occasionally stir it during this time)

5. Stir in sour cream for the last 5 minutes, if desired.

6. Garnish with Monteray Jack cheese and cilantro, as desired.

I enjoy eating this with a nice slice of homemade bread - a side salad is also delicious to serve with it as well!

Happy cooking and Enjoy!

What's Your Favorite Soup To Make?

I just finished making colcannon - I got the recipe here (I will also post it below). It uses kale, carrots, onions, garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, and then it is topped with mashed potatoes. I never heard of the veggie kale until I started to get veggies from the farm, and the only way that I like it (so far), is when it is made in the dish colcannon. The flavors of the veggies and potatoes are delicious!

So, after I boiled the potatoes (to make the topping), I drained them and saved the water to use as broth in a future soup. Now I need to decide what soup I am going to make...

What would you make?

Recipe for Colcannon
1 Bunch of Kale or Lacinato Kale, cut into thin slices and then cross cut fine
2 Onions, chopped
5 cloves of garlic
2 C grated carrot
1/3 C olive oil
¼ t pepper
1 t salt
6 C potatoes, diced with skins on; more nutrition, richer flavor, less work
¼ C minced fresh parsley

Saute the onions, garlic, and carrots until soft. Add the kale all at once and stir often over high heat until well wilted. Add ¼ C water, salt & pepper. The steam will rise, cover the pan and allow steaming at low temp for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Place this on the bottom of a 9x13-buttered pan.

Parsley-Mashed Potatoes: Dice 5-6 cups of potatoes. Barely cover with water, add 1 t salt. Bring to a boil and then simmer until potatoes are very soft, about 15 mins. Pour off water (save for soup stock). Add about 2 C milk, 4 T butter, and parsley. Mash by hand or with mixer. Add salt (I used about 1 tsp), pepper (about 1/4 tsp) and 1/8 t nutmeg to taste.

Spread parsley mashed potatoes over the kale mix. Top with 2 C of your favorite cheese, cheddar is great. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour.