Halloween Fun!

Now to figure out what to do with all this candy that needs to not be in my house. Any suggestions??

Curried Apple Potato Soup

Every Thursday, the Philadelphia Inquirer has a Food section. It has some food related articles and usually about 6 recipes. I make sure to pull this section out so I can find some fun new recipes. This soup was in last weeks paper.

• 1 3/4 cups vegetable broth
• 5 cups water
• 3 large potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 3 leeks, whites only, thinly sliced
• 1 tart green apple; peeled, chopped, and cored
• 2 tsp curry powder
• 2 tsp lemon juice

Over high heat, bring all ingredients to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, partially cover, and cook until veggies are tender, about 20 minutes. Transfer soup in batches to a blender to smooth

The only change I made to this recipe was to use 5 medium sized potatoes instead of 3 large.

Sophia didn't like this soup too much. I enjoyed it, but probably wont rush to make it again. It was very simple to make and not at all time consuming like most soups. The soup needed some salt and pepper for flavor. I served this for lunch with some buttered toast. It was satisfying at lunch time, but two hours later I am very hungry. A hungry mommy is not a happy mommy :(

Happy Halloween!!!

White Bean Turkey Pumpkin Chili

I really need to get into the habit of putting my memory card right back in my camera as soon as I am finished uploading my pictures. Tonight when I was finished cooking I took a picture of my meal with the intent of posting it on this blog. As I sat down to do so, I realized the memory card was still in my computer, not my camera. Luckily I had some leftovers I could take a picture of to share with you.

I found this recipe on a the facebook page called Skinny Crock Pot . They have a bunch of recipes that I would love to try, especially since they are lower in calories and I am on the constant battle to lose my muffin top. I 'like' a lot of recipe pages on facebook. It makes finding new recipes and ideas super easy since they just pop up right on my news feed.

• 1 1/4 lb ground turkey
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 chopped yellow pepper
• 1 chopped orange pepper
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cups pumpkin puree
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 2 tbsp chili powder
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp ground pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp oregano
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 cans great northern beans, rinsed and drained
• 14.5oz can chopped green chilies

Heat a skillet over medium heat to brown the turkey. Drain and add onion, garlic, peppers, and all spices except the bay leaves. Saute a few minutes. Put in crock pot with pumpkin puree, broth, beans, chilies, and bay leaves. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours.

I made a few changes to this recipe:

1. I used a green pepper instead of the orange pepper. I am not a fan of red or orange peppers at all. If something is cooked with red pepper I can't even just pick the pieces out or eat around them. The flavor infuses the entire meal and I just cant eat it. This is my own personal preference, everyone has a few things they just don't like no matter how it is prepared.
2. I used vegetable broth instead of chicken broth. No personal preference here, I just have my vegetable broth on hand in the freezer. I would rather use what I have then spend the money. Especially when my vegetable broth was homemade from fresh veggies, while store bought chicken broth is bound to be loaded with lots of sodium and who knows what else.
3. I left out the green chilies entirely. I felt they would make the meal too spicy for Sophia. It had a little bit of spice from the chili powder so the extra heat was not needed for my family.

As I chopped the onion and peppers, I saved the top and skins from the onion and the core of the peppers. I put them in a big Ziploc bag and tossed it in the freezer. As I come across scraps from veggies I will add them to this bag. When the bag is full and my supply of vegetable broth runs low, I will use the contents of this bag to make new broth. I used to just throw these "un-useable" pieces of veggies right down the garbage disposal. It took less than a minute to save these pieces and will save a few dollars in the long run. I will not have to buy as many new veggies when I want to make broth nor will I ever have to buy premade broth. Plus by making homemade broth, I am able to better control the quality of food Sophia and I consume.

This was pretty good. Maybe not my favorite meal I have cooked, but something I would do again. I usually don't have to add salt to much, but I did have to add some salt and pepper when I sat down to eat. The pumpkin flavor was not overpowering at all. Some pumpkin flavored foods are too strong for my liking. My sister, Chrissy, stopped by and I made her try some. She is not a fan of pumpkin and even she said she couldn't taste it in there. The only taste she didn't like was the cumin. It is one of her least favorite flavors. I didn't notice a very strong cumin flavor, but maybe it is just like how I am with the red pepper. If there is one flavor in a meal that you do not like, that is what will probably stand out the most. I sent her home with some home to give to her husband and I will be bringing some to my mother tomorrow. I look forward to hearing their reactions as well.

This recipe made way more than I needed for just one night. After I separated some for my brother in law and my mom, I was able to freeze about 2 cups and still have some leftovers to have later in the week.

Upcoming....

I decided my next two recipes to try. Tomorrow I will be doing Turkey Pumpkin Chili in the crock pot and  Monday I will do Potato, Leek, and Apple soup for lunch. Later in the week I will be using some of my saved Lentil Sauce and will share that recipe as well!
I have also decided that after the Turkey Pumpkin Chili and an attempt at a homemade pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving, I will be done with cooking fresh pumpkin for the season. I have enough fresh pumpkin puree saved in my freezer for both recipes and I do not fancy carving or cleaning any more pumpkins for a long while.
Lastly, I am excited and honored to announce a new project in the kitchen that will start within the next few months. My sister and brother in law asked me if I would like to make fresh homemade baby food for my newest nephew, Christopher, once he starts eating fruits and veggies. He holds a very special spot in my heart. I can't wait to start. I will need to stock up on ice cube trays!

Stay tuned...

Day Off!

For Sophia's 4th birthday, I got my baby girl a kitten. We had just moved into our own apartment, so it was about time she had a pet of her own. I searched for a Russian Blue, because they are hypoallergenic and that was the type of cat I had as a little girl. My step-father is allergic to cats and I never wanted to live in a home that he could not come to visit comfortably. He actually was the one who found the cat that would eventually be Sophia's. Her name is Tina Ballerina. She is most likely not a full Russian Blue, because she was a rescue, but her dander count is way lower than almost any other non-hypo cat. Most of the people I know who are allergic report back that their symptoms are not as severe in my home as opposed to any other place that has cats. Tina is a bit feisty. She bites at times, but is very good with children. She is great with my nephews. Collin who is scared of most animals, except bugs, searches her out when he comes over. The only time she acts out on Soph, is when my darling angel is way too rough with her. Sophia is like that Loony Tunes character who gets ahold of a pet and exclaims, "I wanna hold you, and squeeze you, and love you forever" as the cats eyes pop out of its head from being squeezed too tightly. I can't blame Tina at that point. I even had to set up safety zones, so if the cat needs to get away, Sophia is not allowed to get her. Ms. Ballerina does love Soph though. Every night Tina stands guard in her room as she goes to bed. This is the one time Sophia doesn't want her cat around and she makes me take her out of the room.
Tina has never had much interaction with other cats since I adopted her. Tonight one of my girlfriends offered to cook us dinner, so we can bring Tina to her house to play. She has 3 cats, so it will be interesting how Tina manages with other feline companions. Sophia loves my friend's one cat, Dexter. Dexter will let her drag him all around and not put up a fight. Tina could use a few pointers.
Not having to cook today left me wondering what I was going to post. I am not obligated to post here everyday and there will be days that I don't cook for some reason or another, but I enjoy blogging. I came up with two things to share:

1. Halloween is on a Monday this year. It is a tradition in my family for everyone to congregate at my sisters for pizza and then my brother-in-law and I take the kids trick-or-treating. Until I realized this coming Monday was Halloween, I had fully planned to use some of the Lentil Sauce I have frozen for dinner and share the recipe. I guess I will do that one other day during the week. Looks like 2 dinners out of next week are already planned. I may look for a fun vegetarian lunch to make and share for Monday.
2. Neither Soph or I will use the end pieces of a loaf of bread. I usually save them with the intent to take her to feed the birds, but they wind up getting moldy and then trashed. This morning I finished a loaf of bread and decided to put the two end pieces in the freezer. They can be used when making a whole chicken or turkey to hold the stuffing inside the cavity. Maybe I will make some home-made croutons, since I never buy them. Also, I could save up some ends and make a batch of breadcrumbs. I don't know exactly what I will do with them right now, but they will be used!

Leftovers with Pressured Potatoes

Tonight was Sophia's dance night, which is synonymous with leftover night. Good thing she dances in the middle of the week. If she had dance on a Monday, my recipe schedule would be screwed. I combined Sunday and Monday's dinners and added potatoes. In effect, I am a very stuffed lump on my sofa shaped log.
I had one boneless rib left from Sunday. When I was younger, less responsible, and had more money there is no way I would have saved ONE rib. Into the trash it would have went. Now I am broker than a joke, so no wasting if possible. I cut this rib up into small pieces and added it with its BBQ sauce to the 2 cups of leftover Mexican Chili from Monday. I was not sure exactly how this would taste combined, but the idea of a BBQ Mexican Pork and Beans seemed like it could work. It was pretty good. I served that with the green beans from Sunday.
I also decided I wanted a baked potato. It is a shame they take so long to bake since their ingredient list consists of 2 items. Tin foil and potato. My craving got me thinking, "If only I had the means to speed up that cooking process." AHA! Enter the pressure cooker. The guidelines in my pressure cooker cook book says to cook whole potatoes with one cup of water for 5 minutes on high. Remember, liquid is VERY important when pressure cooking, since it creates the steam that builds up. I thought the water might turn my "baked" potato into boiled potato, so I decided to still wrap it in foil to protect the skin. I wound up having to cook it for 15 minutes total and performed a quick release. Worked like a charm. I may never wait the hour+ it takes to bake a potato again. I'll just pressure it. The cooking time could vary if you have a bigger potato. Mine was medium sized. Test it with a fork before serving.
With a little margarine and some sour cream, this meal left me fully satisfied. I actually went back for seconds on leftover night!

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

Tonight I did not plan a big meal. I pulled chicken out of the freezer, but was not quite sure what I wanted to do with it. I am beginning to feel a tad bit of pressure to make outrageously impressive meals, because now my dinner audience is not only a 4 year old and the occasional guest. It is you! And I strive to impress you! Well, kinda. I strive to do my best and make this blog an enjoyable experience all around, but like I said before: I am no chef! New recipes aren't going to happen everyday, though I strive for them at least twice a week. Monday is almost definitely always going to be a new recipe day. At least until I get to the point of having to redo some favorites. This is about the everyday mom who doesn't like to cook plain and bland.
So tonight's dinner consisted of 3 basics. Chicken, potatoes, and corn. I marinated the chicken in the Hawaiian flavor of Lawry's 30 minute marinade. I highly recommend Lawry's marinades. They are very inexpensive and lots of times you can find a coupon. I have used the Hawaiian, Steak and Chop, and a Lemon Garlic flavor. 30 minutes is the minimum for the marinade, but you can have it in longer. I put mine in for about 2 hours. If you store your frozen chicken in a Ziploc bag, pull it out of the freezer the night before you cook it and add the marinade then. It will infuse the chicken as it thaws and you will be able to cook with it right away after work without waiting the 30 minutes to marinade.
I tried to jazz up my mashed potatoes a bit. I boiled and mashed 4 medium sized potatoes. As they were getting mashed, I added a tbsp margarine, some milk, rosemary, and garlic powder. Usually I just use milk and butter or margarine, but I was in the mood for something more. Sophia was not too thrilled over the strings (rosemary) in her mashed potatoes. Next time I want to jazz up the flavor of my mashed potatoes, I will go with flavors that are less visible. She loves to use the mixer to make mashed potatoes, so I am no longer allowed to do that by myself. Once the potatoes are done being mashed, she loves licking the mixer prong. We call it a mashed potato lollipop.
I didn't do anything to the corn. Just steamed it in a bit of water. No butter needed. Who wants those extra calories? My mother is what I call a Butterington. She likes to add a ton of butter to everything. At least that is what she did when I lived there; it drove me nuts. Any vegetable that was steamed would be covered in butter. Now that I am able to cook for my little family, I use the least amount of butter possible. I tend to use margarine if butter is needed.
Sophia's favorite vegetable combination is mashed potatoes and corn, so this dinner was bound to be a winner before it was even served.

Mexican Chili

• 1 can garbanzo beans (chick peas)
• 1 can black beans
• 1 24 oz jar salsa
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 cup water
• 1 15 oz can Mexican corn

Drain cans. Mix all ingredients together. Cook in the crock pot on low for 4-6 hours.
Top with sour cream and cheddar cheese if desired.


I may as well admit this now. I messed up. I didn't realize that I messed up until right now when I reread the recipe to type it here. Instead of 2 TSP chili powder and 1 TBSP cumin, I mixed it up. I used 2 TBSP chili powder and 1 TSP cumin. Oops! Honestly, it did not taste messed up, so no biggy! That's one great thing about cooking. Lots of mix ups wind up just being happy mistakes. though certain ingredients you should be careful with. If this recipe called of cayenne pepper then it would have been a whole different story!! Then again, if the recipe called for something as hot as cayenne pepper, I may have been a bit more careful!

My sister hosted a pumpkin carving party tonight, so I brought the chili with me. Everyone seemed to enjoy it. The only complaint I heard was that there was no meat in it. Oh well! If the party was on a Tuesday, maybe it would have meat. I think everyone liked it or they were too polite say otherwise. My sister told me it seemed a bit spicy, but still delicious. Wait till I tell her my mix up (or until she reads the previous paragraph). At first it seemed too liquidy but it really wasn't. I was tempted to put a little corn starch in it to thicken it up. I am very glad I didn't. The chili tasted great topped with sour cream. I have never had vegetarian chili and was pretty nervous at how it would turn out. I will definitely make this again as well as other versions of veggie chili.

Fun tip: I saved some of the eyes and mouth pieces of everyone's pumpkin. As I type this I am baking them to make puree that I will freeze. It will not be as sweet tasting as a small pie pumpkin would taste, but will still be a great fresh ingredient in future recipes. Waste not, Want not!

This was a great meal to get Sophia involved in cooking. When it was time to set it up in the crock pot, I let her sit on the counter and be my helper. Actually I was her helper and she was the chef. I opened and drained the cans, measured out the spices, and plugged in the crock pot. She poured everything in and stirred. She loves that she made our meal.

BBQ Ribs

The first time I made these ribs, I had my parents over for dinner. They are very easy and very delicious. Use of the pressure cooker cuts down cooking time drastically. Ribs were something I never thought to make until I got my pressure cooker and its accompanying cookbook. I would like to try baking ribs and eventually grilling them, once I purchase a grill. I did not follow the recipe from the cookbook completely this time around, what would be the fun in that? The only real change I made was with the sauce. A pressure cooker requires a lot of liquid to cook. To keep the sauce thick enough to stick to the ribs, the cookbook I have suggests adding 4 tbsp tomato paste. I did not have tomato paste on hand tonight so I opted for a tsp cornstarch. It did not add to the flavor like tomato paste, but it got the job done. An added bonus to this recipe is the ease of switching it up. You can use any flavor BBQ sauce you like. I go with a sweet honey BBQ, because some other flavor sauces have too much of a kick for Sophia.
I used one pound boneless ribs, because they were on sale. Either boneless or bone in ribs will work with this recipe.

• up to 3lbs pork spare ribs
• 1 bottle BBQ sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tsp cornstarch - or - 4 tbsp tomato paste

Mix the BBQ sauce, water, and cornstarch (or tomato paste) in the chamber of the pressure cooker. Dip each rib in the sauce to coat and stand up along the side of the chamber, overlapping if necessary. Lock the lid onto the pressure cooker and cook on High for 20 minutes. Perform a quick release and serve.

I served mine with string beans and green beans tonight. Cornbread would also be a delicious side if you are up to it.

My Great-grandmother's Special Pumpkin Bread

Since I have been working alot with fresh pumpkin lately, I knew I wanted to try making a pumpkin bread. I researched recipes and thought I found a winner. That was until I told my sister my plan. She informed me that she just got her hands on our Great-grandmothers recipe. Obviously this recipe took priority in my desire to bake pumpkin bread. Our family isn't really one that passes down recipes from generation to generation. This is the first time I came across a gem such as this. My awesome sister shared the recipe and gave me permission to post it.

I was not fortunate enough to have been able to get to know my Great-grandmother Anna Marie Gallagher. I did meet her, but she died before I was old enough to really remember. The only actual memory I have is her looking out her front door at me while her cat sat in the window. My sister was lucky enough to have a close relationship with her. Mommom Anna would babysit my sister and in the fall they would bake pumpkin bread together for thanksgiving. She died at the age of 78 on July 30, 1990. I was only 5 years old; my sister was 10. The last time my sister baked the Great-grandmoms special pumpkin bread was for Thanksgiving of 1990. My grandmother and sister baked the bread together. As they were preparing it, the song Wind Beneath My Wings came on the radio. Both of them started to cry as they remembered the lose of the matriarch of our family.

• 3 cups sugar
• 3 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 2 cups pumpkin*
• 2/3 cup water
• raisins and walnuts (optional, desired amount)

*My sister said she remembers using canned pumpkin when baking the bread with our Great-grandmother. I decided to use fresh pumpkin puree. A bit more work, but take I'd rather take advantage of any chance I have to use fresh ingredients over processed food.

Preheat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients. Pour into a greased loaf or cake pan. Bake for approximately one hour. Test if it is fully cooked by stabbing it in the middle with a butter knife or tooth pick. It is done when the knife comes out clean.



This bread came out delicious. I used a small amount of both raisins and chopped walnuts. I think next time I will add some extra walnuts. I like the crunch. The batter allowed me to bake two small loafs and a single layer cake (pictured). I iced the single layer cake with my sisters homemade buttercream and added some chocolate to the top of the icing. Yum!

Mustard-Pretzel Chicken

This meal was inspired when I made the pretzel breadcrumbs. I made the breadcrumbs so the pretzels wouldn't go to waste, but had not thought about what I would do with them. I decided to spice up basic breaded chicken. What pairs better with pretzels than mustard?  A new recipe was born!

• 3 thin sliced chicken breasts
• 2 eggs
• 1tbsp brown mustard
• flour
• pretzel breadcrumbs
• cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 350. Spray a thin layer of oil on a baking sheet. Use three bowls to set up your breading station. I did not indicate a specific amount of flour or breadcrumbs, because I just pour a nice pile of each into its own bowl. Use what you think you will need to coat the chicken, you can always add more. So one bowl for flour, one bowl for eggs, and one bowl for the pretzel breadcrumbs. Add the tbsp of brown mustard to the bowl of eggs and beat together. Coat your chicken with flour, then egg mixture, then pretzel breadcrumbs. Place on baking sheet. Lightly spray the top of the chicken to help the pretzel breadcrumbs brown while baking. Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked. I have a habit of slicing my biggest breast to check before I decide it is finished cooking. This makes the presentation less attractive, but I would rather not give someone food poisoning just because I wanted to make sure it looks pretty.

I will definitely be making this again. I may add more mustard next time though. The flavor with the pretzel was nice, but I think it could use a little more of a kick. I could be wrong though. I am still fighting a cold, so my taste buds might not be up to par. The texture was great as well. I am not a huge fan of frying my breaded chicken in oil. It is hard to keep the breading on the meat, the breading gets soggy, and it adds unneeded fat. Baking keeps everything intact and requires much less oil. Whether you bake or fry, it is up to you. Any recipe can be tweaked to suit your own tastes!

Pretzel Breadcrumbs

As I mentioned in the vegetable broth post, I was left with way too many soft pretzels than I could eat after a party. I gave some away, but was still left with too much. Even if I could eat that many pretzels before they were stale, I'd rather not eat that many carbs in such a short amount of time. I decided I would make breadcrumbs out of them. This way they could be saved and used longer than they could have been as the original pretzels. My sister doubted they would come out all that great, but I figured I would try anyway.

The pretzel tray consisted of rods that were seasoned with salt, garlic, poppy seeds, and sesame seeds. I rubbed as much of these seasonings off and then sliced them in half. I layed them out, with the sliced part up, on a lightly oiled baking stone. You can use a regular cookie sheet if you would like. I am just in love with my stone and use it for just about everything that goes into my oven. I lightly sprayed them with cooking oil spray and placed them in the oven that was preheated to 300. They were baked until completely crispy. I tested them by breaking them in half. They have to be baked all the way through, make sure all the chewiness is gone. If there is any soft part of the pretzel left it will not crumble properly. Once the pretzels were completely crispy, I broke them up into inch sized pieces and put them in my blender. I processed them until they were broken down into crumbs. I put them in a Tupperware container to store in my fridge.

At first I thought the pretzel breadcrumbs came out of the blender too fine, but after using them for Mustard-Pretzel Chicken, I think they are just perfect! I would also suggest trying a bag of hard pretzels that might go stale before they can be finished. I have not done this idea yet, but it seems like it could work.

Chick's Got Some Big Breasts!

Thank goodness tonight was a leftover night! Today I woke up sick. I am all stuffed up and have massive pressure going on in my head. On top of that I had promised my sister I would babysit my three nephews so she could go on a date night with her husband. I had no extra energy to put towards a meal, so tonight was leftover sausage, autumn pasta carbonara, and mixed veggies in creamed corn. If you cook great early in the week, leftover night is not so bad! Tomorrow I plan to make Mustard-Pretzel Chicken using the homemade pretzel breadcrumbs that I mentioned yesterday. The only work I had tonight was to prep my chicken breasts.

I do not refer to most of my cooking and prepping as "work" often, but I really do hate getting up close and personal with raw chicken. I don't have much of a choice though, since I eat chicken more than I do any other meat. It is healthy, quick, and very versatile. I will usually look for a large family pack of skinless boneless breasts. When buying the larger packs the price per pound is usually a bit cheaper. Once I get home, I will break the pack down into small portions and freeze them. This has to be one of my least favorite kitchen activities, but it is so worth it once it is done.

I think the chicken breasts are too thick. The only time I like using breasts as thick as they come is when I plan on stuffing it. For the most part, I prefer thin slices of chicken. Thinly sliced chicken breasts are available at most supermarkets, but they are usually more expensive. I also feel they use a lower quality of meat for these thin slices. So I cut them into thin slices myself. It is nice to have my perfect portions in my own freezer ready to use once thawed. I will cut one thick breast into 2-3 slices, a quarter inch thick each. These smaller slices of breast also help myself with portion control. If food is front of me, I will eat it, whether I am still hungry or not. Having smaller slices portioned out before I even cook them makes it easier to eat less. I portion out 3 slices into a Ziploc bag. Sophia will usually only eat half a slice and I will eat one and a half. Between the two of us, we are only eating one thick breast. I can turn a pack of 8 breasts into 8 meals.

The technique I use is simple. I hold a breast down flat with my left palm while slicing horizontaly with my right hand. Imagine how a delicatessen would slice a hoagie roll.

This tip may seem obvious for some, but it wasn't to me! I only started doing this to my chicken 6 months ago. It sure did make my packs of chicken last longer!

Quick, Easy, and Satisfying Dinner Tonight

Sophia, my ballerina, has dance class on Wednesday nights. I don't have the time to get into a big recipe on dance nights. In general, most of my bigger recipes happen earlier in the week. I spend the weekend deciding on a recipe, figuring out what I need for it, and do a big shopping trip if needed. By Wednesday or Thursday I try to do as much with leftovers as possible. I may have to cook one or two things to pair with leftovers, but I usually don't do a whole lot of cooking later in the week. Id rather eat what I have than trash it.

Tonight I did not use leftovers; I just threw together a quick meal that I found very satisfying!
I started by cooking brown rice by using my vegetable broth. I may never go back to using water to cook the rice. Then I cooked up some sausage that is meant for making sandwiches on a grill. I do not own a grill. Not yet! I cut the sausage up into bite sized pieces and threw it on a grill pan while the rice was simmering. I wanted to add some flavor. My first idea was to throw a can of diced tomatoes onto the grill pan once the sausage was almost fully cooked. Even though I usually have diced tomatoes in my cabinet, I was disappointed that I was all out. I did, however have a small 5 oz can of tomato juice. Once the sausage was just about done, I poured the juice over the sausage mixed it up. Most of the juice burnt off in the pan, but it did coat the sausage nicely and give it some good flavor. Surprised myself with that one. Finally, I made a bag of frozen mixed vegetables mixed with a can of creamed corn. I learned this trick from an ex-boyfriend's mom. It creates a nice light sauce for your veggies.

I was able to cook this meal in just over 30 minutes. And to think I used to get McDonald's every week when Soph had dance...

Vegetable Broth

Last week, my girlfriends and I threw a Sprinkle for two of our special ladies. Most of the parties we throw are potluck to helps to cut costs for everyone. I hosted the Sprinkle in my apartment, so I wound up keeping most of the leftover food. Along with other fun snacks we had a vegetable tray and a pretzel tray. These two trays left me more food than I knew what to do with. As I have mentioned before, I hate to waste and try to avoid it at all costs. Usually my main method is freezing stuff for a later date. I didn't know how well the pretzels would fare after being frozen and thawed. I roasted some of the vegetables to have with a dinner, but there was no way I could manage to eat all the left overs before they spoiled. I am happy to report that I managed to find uses for both!! Pretzel bread crumbs and vegetable broth!

I will explain how I made the pretzel bread crumbs in a future post. Today I will share how I made the vegetable broth.

My leftover vegetables from the tray consisted of baby carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers. I decided to discard the cucumbers. I also added one onion, half a bag of spinach, half a garlic bunch (is that what you call the cluster of cloves? that's what I am going with), some onion powder, dried parsley, and two bay leaves. I was nervous about using the spinach, but it would have went bad if it was not used soon.

No chopping or dicing needed! The only prep I did to the vegetables was slicing the onion in half and smashing the garlic bunch with a knife. You can even leave the skins on the onion and garlic. I put all my ingredients in my crock pot and filled it with water, making sure all the veggies were covered. Then I covered the crock pot and set it to low. It cooked for about 12 hours only because I had work then a job interview (fingers crossed!). I am sure you could cook it on low for less time. My guess 6-8 hours.

When I walked into my apartment, the smell of garlic was very overpowering. That made me so nervous to taste it! I could not expect the broth to turn out great because I had never made it before. To separate the broth from the veggies, I put a fine holed colander (strainer) in my largest pot and poured it through. I filtered it twice to be sure most of the herbs and tiny pieces were out. My nose lied! It was very delicious! It came out to be about 11 cups of broth.

Broth of any type can easily be frozen and stored later use. I separated mine into 2 cup quantities, so I wont have to thaw out more than I need when a recipe calls for broth. You can substitute vegetable broth in any recipe that calls for chicken broth and you can cook rice with it instead of water to add some extra flavor. Using it to cook rice will most likely be my first use for my homemade broth.

You can use any type of vegetable to make your broth. Whatever you have on hand, it is a great use for veggies that will go bad if not cooked.If you have leftover veggies from dinner and its not enough to save to eat as leftovers another night, maybe you want to toss them in a Ziploc bag and freeze. Continue to do this and when the bag is full make broth! Why throw food you already paid for in the trash?

Pressure Cooked Teriyaki Chicken Wings

I apologize in advance for the lack of picture with this recipe! I have a picture and they look really delicious. Except that I forgot to put the memory card back into the camera when I took the picture and I do not have a cord to connect it to my computer. So let's use our imagination, shall we?

I promise, next time I make them, I owe you a picture!
(same goes for the vegetable broth I also made today)


Anyway.....We found out recently that Sophia loves chicken wings. My child is such a finicky eater. Trying to get her to eat more than 3 bites of anything is torture. I do not know where she came from! I have always been a great eater. If I find something she loves, I try to make it often. This is the first time I have ever tried to cook wings, and they came out fabulous. Plus a pack of 6 full wings (drums and wings connected) cost me less than $2!

• 2 pounds chicken wings
• 6tbsp sesame oil
• 1 cup low sodium teriyaki sauce
• 1tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
• toasted sesame seeds**, for garnish

Combine all ingredients, except 2 tbsp sesame oil and the toasted sesame seeds, in a large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours (overnight is recommended).
Heat 2tbsp sesame oil in pressure cooker on "high" or "brown" with lid off until sizzling. Using tongs, remover chicken wings from marinade (reserve marinade) and place in cooker to brown. Stir around to brown as many wings on as many sides as possible. Pour marinade over wings, securely lock on lid, and cook on high for 7 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes, then perform a quick release to safely remove lid. Remove with tongs and top with toasted sesame seeds.
**To toast raw sesame seeds heat them in a pan on the stove over medium heat until golden brown. Shake the pan to keep them moving so they don't burn.


OK, I cheated. I used olive oil instead of sesame oil and I left out the sesame seeds. I love sesame seeds and have nothing against sesame oil. I did not have either of them on hand. The wings were delicious. Sure, they probably would have had some more flavor if I had used sesame oil. I plan to grab a bottle next time I am at the food store.
As I should have done with the Autumn Pasta Carbonara, I have omitted the crushed red pepper. My objective is a child that eats. Spicy is not the way to reach that goal!
The recipe called to have the drums and wings separated. Mine came as full wings and I decided to keep them that way. My knife collection is crap and I am never really in the mood to fight with raw chicken. I am so glad I did. These wings were so tender that once cooked, they came apart super easy. I prefer the wing portion and Sophia likes the drum. Perfect couple!

Definitely will make this again! Cheap, easy, and delicious! I paired them with wild rice and stir-fried pea pods. Soph insisted the pea pods were string beans. While eating she exclaimed "I know why they are called STRING BEADS!!! On the outside it is a STRING and the inside has the BEAD!!!"

Cooking Under Pressure

 Last year, Santa (my mother) gave me a fun new kitchen gadget that I didn't quite know what to make of. What the heck is a pressure cooker?  I'll tell you what a pressure cooker is! It is one of the best investments a mother who works full time could make. When I began using my pressure cooker, I was working 6 days a week - up to 10 hour days! I had to commute 45 minutes each way, so there were days I would be out of the house up to 12 hours. I have never been one to order take out often. I love to eat and I love to eat home cooked meals! Enter pressure cooker, love of my busy busy life.

So really, what the heck is it? Its basically a crock pot set on fast forward. Like the crock pot, electric pressure cookers generate their own heat based on the setting you input (high, low, brown, warm). Some don't use temperature settings and instead use the term PSI or pounds per square inch. With these cookers, high=12-15psi and low=5-8psi. Basically the inside of this gadget is a chamber. As it generates its own heat none of the steam is released. It builds up in the chamber and pressurizes allowing the cook time to speed up. I am not quite sure what the exact science to all of this is and quite frankly I don't need to know! All I care about is my food is delicious and my meat is safely cooked. Another aspect of the pressure cooker that you need to know is how and when to release all that pressure and steam. Recipes will call for either a "natural release" or a "quick release". Your cooker locks into place as a safety feature until the pressure is safely released. If this lock was not in place, you would quite literally flip your lid. It would shoot right off! A natural release is simple. When the timer is finished, leave it alone. The pressure cooker should switch from cooking to just warming and the pressure will slowly deflate. Think of a balloon with a pinhole in it. At the end of the natural release you may have to perform a quick release to let any remaining pressure escape so you can safely remove the lid. Now to quick release (this is the fun part)....there is a nozzle on top of the lid. You need to turn it to "pressure" to allow said pressure to build up and cook. If you are to perform a quick release, turn this nozzle to "steam". Do not get your hand or arm in the way. I don't know if you will wind up with a steam burn, but I would rather not take the chance! All of the steam with shoot straight up to 4 feet into the air and may make some whistling noises. I seriously get excited when I get to do this! It reminds me of a train! ....hey, its the small things in life, OK?

Well now you know how to work it, but whats the point? Isn't the crock pot a busy mom's best friend? Nope. Lets talk cooking times. Traditional corn beef or ham and cabbage? 65 minutes as opposed to up to 4 hours. Chicken Marsala? 10 minutes. Two can cola pork roast? (deliciousness!) 40 minutes as opposed to up to 4 hours in a crock pot for a 2-3 lb roast. Most soups? under 15 minutes!

So who is hungry now, after 8-12 hours of work all day? And who wants to wait up to 4 hours?

I thought so...

Pumpkin Puree

After making the Autumn Pasta Carbonara, I was left with more than half a pumpkin. I have never worked with fresh pumpkin so I do not know how long it will keep in the fridge. Freezing is a great way to keep fresh ingredients, so they don't spoil. I researched freezing pumpkin and the best bet seems to be freezing it as a puree. A puree can be used for pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, and pumpkin pancakes. I am sure I could find some more recipes using pumpkin puree. Any vegetable puree makes for a great all natural baby food as well. I did not do this with Sophia, but it is something I would be very interested in if I were to have another child.

• Fresh pumpkin - I used a small 6 inch pumpkin, but any size will work. Different size and varieties of pumpkin will produce variations in flavor.

   Cut a pumpkin into fourths. Use a large spoon to remove seeds and guts. Place the pumpkin skin side down in a roasting pan or baking dish. Cover the bottom of the pan with water. Cover with foil. Place in a 300 degree oven. Bake for about 1hour. When done it will slice as easy as butter. Remove from oven, uncover, and allow to cool. Cut flesh away from skin. Place in a food processor or blender and process until smooth.
Your plans for the puree will determine how to store it. For pies or pastries, store in 1 or 2 cup quantities. For baby food, an ice cube tray will allow for perfect portions to pop out and be defrosted individually.

I plan to make pumpkin bread and pumpkin pie with my puree in the near future.

Autumn Pasta Carbonara

• 1 1/2 cup pumpkin - 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 lb penne
• 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
• 3 garlic cloves, sliced
• 1 cup crimini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 cup spinach, chopped
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3oz Parmesan cheese
• pinch rosemary and thyme
• 1tsp red pepper flakes   **

Toss pumpkin in a little olive oil. Spread on baking sheet and roast at 300 to 350 for 25-30 minutes, until tender.
Cook penne as directed.
Heat 1tbsp olice oil in a skillet. Add mushrooms and garlic. Cook 3-5 minutes. Add spinach and cook while stirring, until leaves wilt (about 3 minutes) Add remaining olive oil and milk. Stir. Add pumpkin and cheese. Toss and lower heat to simmer. Season with rosemary, thyme, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper.
Toss with cooked pasta.

** OPTIONAL:  I used half a tsp because I knew Sophia would not eat it with the heat (I'm not the biggest fan of hot spicy foods either). I should have left it out completely. The flavor was good for me, but I wound up having to feed Soph a peanut butter sandwich.



As I started cutting the fresh pumpkin up, Sophia came into the kitchen and got all excited. "ARE YOU MAKING PUMPKIN PIE!!!" Ummm, no. Pumpkin pasta. Note to me: plan on making pumpkin pie and let her help. The pumpkin was a pain in the rear to cut up into 1/2 pieces when it was raw, but that may be because my knife collection is seriously lacking.

I have a system. I keep a marble copybook, where I compile all the recipes I am interested in cooking. Whenever I find one I write it in the book that instant (or I do not close the browser until I get a minute to jot it down). If the recipe was found in a magazine or any other sort of paper source, I tend to rip it out and shove it in the pages until I get a chance to write it in permanently. When I make the recipe, I note any opinions or changes I may have in the margins.  It may seem archaic, the old "pen and paper" method, but it works! I am then able to bring the book into the kitchen to work. I definitely would not feel comfortable bringing my laptop into the kitchen with me. Things get messy! I like my system. It works for me. Most of the time. Then there are times that instructions are not so clear. Like today, my first instruction of this recipe is "Toss pumpkin in a little olive oil. Spread on baking sheet and roast 25-30 minutes until tender." OK, simple enough. Except how hot would you heat the oven to? Stupid question? I never did claim to be a chef. I am just a simple mom who likes to cook. I need this stuff spelled out to me! Sooo, I picked my fall back oven temperature of 350. Everything I cook in the oven without a recipe to follow gets shoved in at 350.

I think I will definitely make this recipe again. I will completely omit the red pepper flakes, but the fresh pumpkin was very tasty. I have never had fresh pumpkin. It is very close to a butternut squash flavor. I guess that should not come as a surprise since it is in the squash family. It was hard to cut up the pumpkin raw and I am not a fan of cleaning out the guts. My sister is hosting a pumpkin carving party closer to the end of the month. I think I will collect the eyes, noses, and teeth to use and make this recipe again or possibly another that includes fresh pumpkin. Let the others at the party do the cutting for me!!

Introducing Meatless Monday

I have recently jumped on board with the global trend of Meatless Monday. At the start of each week Sophia and I will be going without meat. This movement started during World War II, along with Wheatless Wednesday, to help preserve food to feed our soldiers. If it has continued through the years, I am not sure, but lately it has been gaining popularity. The words 'Meatless Monday' kept popping up at restaurants and while searching for recipes online. Eventually it caught my interest and I decided last week to make it a part of our lifestyle.
 Last week I made Spaghetti with Lentil Sauce. It was pretty tasty and very filling. The recipe I used yielded such a large amount enabling me to divide it into two batches and freeze them for a later use. Waste not, want not!! I hate wasting anything that can be reused. At a later date, when I decide to use some of my frozen Lentil Sauce, I will share the recipe! This week I am planning to make Autumn Pasta Carbonara using fresh pumpkin, spinach, and crimini mushrooms. I have never cooked with pumpkin, whether canned or fresh, so I am pretty excited. To use the leftover fresh pumpkin, I am contemplating baking pumpkin bread. We shall see...more on that tomorrow!


Participating in Meatless Monday has many benefits!

• Save your health! Reduce the risk of heart disease and high cholesterol by reducing saturdated fats. Fight Diabetes. Plants are full of fiber, which helps you feel fuller faster, to curb obesity. Also, studies show diets full of fruits and veggies can help lower the risk of cancer.
• Save your wallet! As prices continue to rise, packaged foods and meat show the highest spikes in price. Cutting meat and eating fresh products, even if one day a week, can lower your weekly food budget. 
• Save your planet! The meat industry produces one-fifth of the man made green house gases emitted that are effecting climate change. Livestock uses more water than vegetables and grains. By reducing the constant need for meat, we can reduce the human carbon footprint.

If you are interested in learning more visit Meatless Monday. This website is full of useful tools to guide you through this global movement. There are some fabulous recipes, news articles, and plenty of resources if you want to spread the word and encourage others to go Meatless.

Welcome to My New Adventure!

    Hi! My name is Nicole. I am a single mother of a 4 year old girl named Sophia. Being in charge of the well being of a whole little person, I have a very little social life. As I have never been one to plant myself in front of the television for hours (partial lie), I had to find something to do with the quiet hours that come after my child's bedtime. I have always loved to eat and now I love to cook. While I cannot claim to be a gourmet chef, cooking has provided me with something productive to pass my time. I love to find new recipes and work my way through them. New ingredients scare me at times, but the challenge makes the finished product that much more enjoyable. I have become more aware of what goes into my body and it has inspired me to try even more new recipes and live a healthier lifestyle.
    I decided to start this blog, so I can share my life through the meals I create. Pictures of a lot of my meals wind up on facebook. I hope this can be a more in depth way to share my recipes, mishaps, and opinions on the food I cook. I cannot claim to be a chef nor a writer, but I will do the best I can at both!


One of the most rewarding benefits of my adventures in cooking is when my slow and picky eater exclaims, "Mommy, my belly says yummy!!" Hopefully if you decide to follow along with what I have to share, I can make your belly say yummy too!