pork burritos (or ode to leftovers part 2)

Another use for that leftover pork tenderloin...

Make a burrito with your favorite fixings and leftover pork tenderloin. We used re-fried beans from our food storage (I'm not a fan, but we've got to rotate them!).

granola

I already posted about making granola for the first time on my personal blog, but I wanted to post the recipe here too. It is super easy and super tasty. This time I added dried pineapple chunks, blue berries, and almonds. Soooooo good! Try it!

Here is the original recipe, but you can do all sorts of fun things with it!

Ingredients
• 4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (from our food storage)
• 2 cups coarsely chopped nuts
• 1 cup golden raisins
• 3/4 cup agave nectar
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Salt, to taste

Directions
1. Combine oats, nuts and raisins in large mixing bowl; mix well and set aside.
2. Combine agave, butter, cinnamon, vanilla and salt in saucepan; bring to boil and cook one minute.
3. Pour agave mixture over oat mixture and toss until well blended. Spread in lightly greased cookie sheet.
4. Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes or until lightly browned; stir every 5 minutes. Cool. Crumble and store in airtight container up to 2 weeks.

penne and cheese

I know this picture isn't the best, in fact, it kind of looks gross, but this is my most recent take on good old mac and cheese.

I based the recipe on one of Jennifer Seinfeld's Deceptively Delicious recipes. I did some tweaking and came up with this:

Ingredients

• 2 cups whole wheat penne pasta
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 can of evaporated milk
• 1/2 cup sweet potato puree
• 1/2 cup cauliflower puree
• 2 cups shredded white extra sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1/3 cup cracker crumbs

Directions

1. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package
2. Add olive oil, evaporated milk, purees, cheese, flour, salt, and pepper to a sauce pan at medium heat and stir constantly
3. Allow sauce to thicken
4. Drain pasta and place in a casserole dish
5. Pour sauce over pasta and mix well
6. Top with cracker crumbs and pepper
   
7. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes

make-ahead lasagna

yesterday my friend sarah invited ambrose to come play with her son elijah for the morning... i seized the moment! i put on one of my trusty aprons, that's how you know i was serious. asher stayed half awake, half asleep so i could get work done, that's how you know he was serious.

then, i consulted my awesome friend angie's trusty directions on the delicious lasagna recipe i begged her for last week:
For the Sauce I just kinda add things to taste, I never measure anything so Hopefully this will make some sense:

1/2-1 onion
1 tbs (ish) of butter
Oil
Minced Garlic
Tomato Sauce
Tomato Paste
Dried Parsley
parmaesan cheese
brown sugar

I start by melting butter with oil. Then add some finely chopped onion. I usually let that go until the onions are translucent, when they are about halfway there I'll add some garlic. You don't want to add it too soon cause it tends to burn quickly if there aren't any other ingredients, Next I add the hamburger. I find that doing it after the onions give it some good flavor while it's cooking. Just make sure to keep moving it around so the onions don't burn. and add a little bit of salt and pepper. NEXT add 1-2 cans of regular tomato sauce, 1 can of tomato paste, dry parsley, grated parmaesan cheese, and more minced garlic to taste. Then I like to add about a handful (Or so) of brown sugar to cut the acidity. just keep tasting it, and when it is pleasing to the palate it is DONE!

Cook Lasagna Noodles

Prepare Cheese mixture: This is the part from the box that I used. But I used Cottage cheese because it's MUCH cheaper!! (and at costco you can get A HUGE tub that will make you lots)

I think basically you add 1 egg, and some parsley and some spinach and salt and pepper, maybe a little garlic powder and sometimes I add grated carrots. It's a good way to sneak in veggies if your kids aren't veggie eaters. Luckily mine are. But it's still a good place to add carrots.

Now start with a thin layer of sauce in the bottom, then Noodles, then pretty much whatever you want. Noodles, C.Cheese, Sauce , grated mozzarella noodles OR Noodles sauce, mozzarella, c. cheese, Noodles. I'm not sure if it really matters. I'm pretty sure anything goes! Just do what you want. You are the one eating it! When you get to the top put a little more sauce on and then load on the Mozzarella. Usually you bake it covered in the oven for 25 minutes basically until it's warm throughout then, I like to uncover and bake until the cheese on the top is nice and bubbly and brown.

*and to make it a make-ahead meal: freeze it before baking it. take it out when you know you're gonna have a busy day and throw it in the fridge to defrost. pull it out about an hour before dinner time and throw it in the oven!*

and then i got to work!


and i remembered to make three smaller ones since our family doesnt eat a monster pan of lasagna in one sitting yet (thanks for that tip too ang):
and then i foiled 'em up

and now they are sitting in my freezer, ready for me whenever i need them. whew. that was fun. three meals DONE in a hour flat. next up: enchiladas. stay tuned.

homemade rice ceral

I've been making my own rice cereal for my son. I used the recipe and suggestions in Ruth Yaron's book Super Baby Food. If you are interested in making your own baby food, this book is GREAT! It breaks down the whole introducing solids by months, has recipes, and all sorts of tips and advice.

It took my son a little while to transition from the store-bought cereal to the homemade cereal. I had to tweak Ruth's recipe a bit. The first time I made it, it turned out too thick/rubbery. I added more water and it has worked really well.

How to Make Dry Rice Cereal

1. Place 1/4 cup of rice in blender (I used my awesome Magic Bullet)
2. Grind until very fine

How to Cook the Rice Cereal

1. Boil 1 to 1 1/2 cups water (I do 1 1/2 cups)
   
2. Add 1/4 cup dry rice cereal
3. Stir constantly with whisk
4. Change heat to low
5. Cover pot and let cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning
6. Divide into individual servings and store in refrigerator
7. You can microwave each serving when needed

Other Tips
You can grind a lot of rice at once and store it in the refrigerator. The recipes yields 2 to 3 servings for my 6 month old. I just cook the cereal every 3 days.

Another method you can do is cook the rice just as you would for your family and then puree the cooked rice. I haven't tried this method, but it would work well if you are already making rice for dinner.

I like to add a cube or two of fruit to the cereal when I am ready to serve it to my son.

quick, easy, refreshing

flat bread baked at 450 for 8 minutes cause i like it to have some crunch

hummus or cream cheese is good too

diced chicken seasoned with lemon pepper and dill

spinach

grilled green bell peppers

roma tomatoes

feta cheese

fresh squeezed lemon juice to top it off

ode to leftovers

What I love about crock pot cooking is that we usually have plenty of leftovers. Remember that pork tenderloin I cooked in the crock pot? We enjoyed leftovers the following day. Even after a second dinner, we had plenty of pork left, so I decided to change it up a bit. I shredded the pork and marinated it in some hulihuli sauce. Then I baked it in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. While that was in the over, I got some rice and broccoli going in the rice cooker. Easy, easy and oh so tasty! It reminded me of life in Hawaii.

Wheat ya doing?

*sorry i forgot to take pictures of these recipes . if you have any questions please feel free to ask or email me if you want more info.

if you are like me than you have asked yourself this question many times before, 'what else can i do with my food storage wheat besides grind it up for bread?' i mean, don't get me wrong, there is nothing better than homemade wheat bread. but sometimes i want to be a bit more creative with it. 

so now i steam it.

yup, steam it.

first, i measure out 2 cups of water per 1 cup of wheat. any wheat will do but i have red hard wheat so that is what i used.

boil at a high heat for 5 minutes

then turn down the heat and let simmer for 30 more minutes

next you take it off the heat and let it sit in the water for about 8 hours/overnight or until berries are the texture you want. oh, and do all of these steps with the pot covered.

and voila, your done. 1 cup of hard wheat yields about 2 1/2 - 3 cups soft wheat berries.

as this is a long process to make i usually start with 2 or 3 cups of the red hard wheat and freeze the soft berries that i don't plan on using.

now that you have them what in the world do you do with them??

well, you could just add some sugar and eat it for breakfast. which is one of my favorite breakfasts. (i grew up eating fresh cracked wheat and 9 grain cereal) or you could

-add it to your spaghetti sauce

-add it in your homemade chili (i did that yesterday) or soups

-sprinkle it on top of your salad

-as an after church snack today i peeled, halved (long ways), and seeded a cucumber filled the middle with some tuna fish mixed with the wheat berries and topped it with cheese. a refreshing inside out sandwich.

-or i have even used it as a dessert topping. on the stove top mix a little butter, peanut butter (i use crunchy style cause i like the chunks of nuts), honey, and wheat berries. then spoon it over some vanilla ice cream. so yummy.

it is such a versatile food and can be put into anything really. so just be creative!

happy wheat eating!!

"the best romaine lettuce i've ever had!"

That's what dear hubby/chef Jeff had to say about this salad. We recently changed our approach to grocery shopping and instead of buying lettuce and spinach in bulk at Costco, we now buy it weekly at Whole Foods. I thought Jeff was just being a little over-the-top until I took a bite and had to agree. The romaine lettuce actually had a flavor and it was good.

thanks!

make-ahead-meal update:

thanks for all the emailed recipes and suggestions! i feel i have plenty to work on now and i have a lot of people to thank for that.

now i just have to find the perfect evening or weekend to do it (and this requires mustering up some energy too so it may take me a bit)!

i shall return at a future date with some results and in the meantime may post a quick recipe or two that my family enjoys- i'm all about fast, easy, healthy (this isnt always a must for me though... who are we kidding), and DELICIOUS!

so stay tuned....

peanut butter pizzas

The real name for this recipe is On-the-Double Peanut Butter Cookies, but I like to call them peanut butter pizzas because they look like little pizza slices to me. I made these for our Family Home Evening treat this week. I had to tweak the recipe a bit, but they hit the spot!

This recipe comes from Betty Crocker Baking for Today. It is a great cookbook that I use a lot!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1 cup Gold Medal all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup peanut butter chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. In large bowl, mix sugars, peanut butter, oil, and egg with spoon until smooth
3. Stir in flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt
4. Divide dough into fourths
5. On ungreased cookie sheet, shape each fourth into a 14 inch roll
6. Place 2 rolls on a cookie sheet
7. Pat each roll to about 1/2 inch thickness
8. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the peanut butter chips on each strip
9. Pat lightly
10. Bake 6 to 8 minutes until golden brown
11. Cool on cookie sheet 2 minutes
12. Cut each strip crosswise at an angle into 2 inch slices
13. Cut slices crosswise at an angle the other direction to make triangle shapes
14. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack

How I Tweaked the Recipe
I used natural peanut butter, which made the dough too dry. I added soy milk to moisten it, but then it was a little too sticky. I also used whole wheat flour instead of white flour. I had to add more flour to the dough to get it to be less sticky. I also didn't have peanut butter chips so I used a Lindt chocolate bar and broke it up into little chunks.

grilled asparagus

I've never been a big fan of asparagus until I discovered how good it is grilled. Try this!

Ingredients

• 1 bushel of asparagus
• 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil
• Ground pepper

Directions

1. Cut asparagus into 1-2 inch pieces
2. Add olive oil to pan
3. Place asparagus in pan and mix around in the oil
4. Add ground pepper
5. Grill on medium heat and mix until they start to blacken

chef jeff's pizza sauce

Quite honestly, my pizza sauce varies a bit each time I make it. So, I'll give the building blocks of what I use and you can adjust it to suit your tastes and needs. I use one 6 oz. can of tomato paste (lately we've used Contadina Organic) and then I fill the can with water twice and mix that together.

I find that there are two specific ingredients that make the sauce taste like pizza sauce. First is oregano, I've only used dried oregano from the spice rack, and a good portion too, at least one tablespoon. Next is about 1 tablespoon of sugar (I've only used table sugar, but I'm sure that there are many possibilities). This helps reduce the acidity of the pizza sauce a bit. Be careful not to add too much sugar, as this make the sauce less desirable.

Personally, I like to bring the sauce to a slow boil in a saucepan, it seems to help marry all of the flavors well. However, this is not necessary and when in a hurry I've slapped it on a pizza cold (after all, it gets cooked a bit while the pizza is baking).

Some other things I like to add include: garlic (I prefer chopped cloves, but powder works), Italian seasoning, a bit of salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper. I hope this helps, here is the recipe:

Chef Jeff's (Amazing) Pizza Sauce
Adoring Wife/Messy Chef added the "Amazing"

Ingredients

• 1 6 oz. can tomato paste
• Fill the can with water twice
• 1-2 tbsp. oregano
• 1 tbsp. sugar

optional ingredients:

• garlic
• Italian seasoning
• salt (not too much, though)
• pepper
• crushed red pepper
• (any other favorites?)

Directions

1. For the best results, mix the water into the paste until it is a good saucy consistency
2. Add the desired ingredients
3. Heat on a low temperature until it is well-heated throughout (I usually wait until it starts boiling up, watch out for splatter!)

The sauce can be used on a pizza or for dip for bread sticks. We use it for bagel or english muffin pizzas (see above image). It even tastes good as a red sauce for pasta. I hope this is helpful!

Bon appetit,

Chef Jeff
(^8=3

magic muffins

Great recipes are all around us! Today I was making myself a bowl of Malt-o-Meal and I noticed the recipe on the side of the box. Hmmm... Magic Muffins from Malt-o-Meal, sounds intriguing! I quickly made the batter and into the oven they went. The muffins turned out to be really, really good. They are hearty, but still sweet enough for me. I'm sure you could use honey, agave, or some other sugar substitute if desired.

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour (I used whole wheat)
• 3/4 cup Malt-o-Meal
• 1/2 cup sugar (I used a little less)
• 3/4 cup milk (I used soy milk)
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Raisins, optional (I added this)
  

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients
3. Stir together until al ingredients are moistened
4. Pour batter into greased or paper-lined muffin pans, filling cups 3/4 full
5. Bake 18-20 minutes or until center is form to the touch
6. If desired, sprinkle raisins on top of warm muffins
   

Yield: 12 muffins

grilled portobella mushrooms

I made some marinated and cheese filled portobella mushrooms. Unfortunately, I used too much cheese, but I somewhat knew this when I was making it. However, they turned out pretty good, and it is a good summer grilling treat!

Marinade:
1-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2-3 tbsp onion, finely chopped
1 tsp marjoram
1 tsp thyme
freshly ground pepper
freshly ground sea salt
1/4 c. olive oil

I used a plastic zipper bag and mixed it up. Then I placed my mushrooms in the bag and turned the bag to coat the mushrooms. I then let it sit for about an hour, turning it about 4 times. I probably had enough marinade for about 4 mushrooms, but I was just testing it.

I then grilled the mushrooms on our little propane camping grill. Since I was filling the underside with cheese, I grilled that side first. In order to keep the onion and garlic in the mushroom's cap, I used some aluminum foil to contain it. When I flipped them over I put the cheese into them.

One of them I filled with some type of romano cheese (I'm not sure of the type exactly because I got if from a friend before he moved). The other cheese uses the same mold as Roquefort, but instead of being made of sheep's milk, it is made from cow's milk. Two different cheeses, but both very tasty.

The mushroom with the blue cheese I made into a grilled portobella burger and the other I ate as-is. If I were to do this again, I would limit the amount of cheese I put on it, I was just trying to get rid of the cheese since it was getting a bit old.

Bon appetit,

Chef Jeff
(^8=3

lemon, onion, and cilantro pork

If you haven't already figured it out, Chef Jeff and I don't eat a lot of meat. We are by no means vegetarians, nor do I think we ever will be (because I crave a big juicy beefy cheeseburger every now and then). We just don't eat a lot of meat because there are so many other delicious foods to eat. Well, with us getting ready to move, I decided it was time to use the pork tenderloin that we had in the freezer. Here is a crock pot recipe for pork tenderloin. I threw it together during my son's morning nap and enjoyed a warm and tasty dinner when Chef Jeff came home.

Ingredients

• 1 pork tenderloin
• 2 cups onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, diced
• 2 small zucchinis, sliced
• 1 stalk celery, sliced
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice (we juice fresh lemons in bulk, freeze the juice in ice cube trays, and store the cubes in a freeze bag)
• 2-3 cups chicken broth

Directions

1. Thaw the pork tenderloin in the refrigerator for a day or 2
2. Place pork in crock pot
3. Add onions, cilantro, zucchinis, celery, lemon juice/cubes
4. Add 2-3 cups of chicken broth
5. Set crock pot to high/4 hour setting

fresh food is beautiful

I bought this butternut squash to puree it for my son's baby food. When I cut it open, I was struck by the color. It was such a vibrant orange! I love the colors of fresh fruits and vegetables.

now that's a pizza!

Homemade pizza is always so good, especially on a Friday night. We enjoyed this tasty spinach, basil, tomato, and goat cheese pizza while watching a movie and drinking Hansen's root beer.

Ultimate Pizza Dough

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons yeast
• 1 ¼ cups warm water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 4 cups of whole wheat flour
• desired sauce and toppings

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Mix water, sugar, and yeast in a bowl
3. Proof yeast
4. Add olive oil
5. In a separate bowl, mix 3 cups of flour (saving 1 cup) and salt
6. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture
7. Add additional flour as needed
8. Knead dough
9. Let rise for 30 minutes to 1 hour
10. Beat down the dough and shape on a pizza pan
11. Add desired sauce and toppings
12. Bake for 15-20 minutes depending on desired toppings and crust preference

Light and Creamy Pizza Sauce
For the sauce, I used a can of diced tomatoes, a garlic and herb seasoning mix, oregano, and sour cream. I mixed them all up in my Magic Bullet (you'll be hearing a lot about it!).

Finishing Touches
I spread the sauce on the pizza dough, added a layer of spinach and fresh basil. Next came the tomato slices and finally, the goat cheese and a bit of ground pepper.

sweet potato pasta

This is another example of a meal that just comes together from this and that. I had some spinach and chive pasta from Trader Joe's just waiting to be used, so I grabbed it and started pulling together a meal. I added some olive oil to the drained pasta. I baked a sweet potato in the oven for about an hour and then cut it up into little pieces. I grilled the zucchini and peppers in a bit of olive oil, but made sure they didn't get too mushy. I cut up a couple scallions, added some pepper, and then added some grated parmesan cheese. It was intended to be a warm meal, but it also tastes great cold as a pasta salad.

a request!

hello culinary world:

i have little to no time to make an elaborate dinner these days.

this is a sad fact for me because i LOVE to cook and try new things. i hum in the kitchen and feel accomplished when i make something delicious that my family loves.... how 1950's. but it's true and i love it.

having said that, i must reiterate: i just dont have the time that i used to to make nutritious and tasty meals for my family. it seems as if every time i get into my messy, blissful kitchen groove my baby is crying to be nursed or held and my toddler is at my feet, tugging on my apron, demanding to be entertained or wanting to "help me," and so on and so forth. i think a lot of moms can relate. cooking with a new baby and toddler around is tricky sometimes.

so, i have decided that "make-ahead-meals" will be my dinnertime salvation.

how do make ahead meals work? on the days when making dinner seems an impossible task, i will be able to retrieve something fabulous out of the freezer that i had previously prepared and throw it in the oven!

i have a couple of recipes that are sure bets so far:

cheese enchiladas (my sisters make ahead recipe)
lasagna (thanks for the idea angie)
spaghetti sauce for pasta, chicken parm., lasagna...etc. (my sister-in-law's recipe)
chimichangas (my mom used to make a ton when we were little and freeze them)
homemade chicken taquitos

and here's where you come in: do you have any other suggestions for me? maybe even a recipe to go with that suggestion??

i'm going to collect a bunch of ideas, make them, and report back here so all the busy chefs reading this can start making ahead (like on a lazy weekend or an evening when the kids are in bed) and stop the dinner time stress!

because dinner time should be a happy time of day- not a stressed out, sweaty, everybody's crying time of day so let's help each other out!

get those ideas in if you have them and let's get cookin'!

(you can comment here or submit recipes to: stephaniexrobertson(at)gmail(dot)com!!)

making it up as i go

Sometimes I cook with a recipe and sometimes I use a recipe as a guideline and do my own thing with it. Sometimes I just come up with an idea and try to make it. One thing I've learned about cooking is that you don't have to stick to a recipe all the time. There is freedom to experiment, which I love.

This was our dinner a couple nights ago. It is a cross between an enchilada and a quesadilla in a way. I don't know what to call it really. I don't have a formal recipe, but here is the gist of it.

1. Mix 1/2 cup cauliflower puree and 1/2 cup sweet potato puree
2. Add grated cheese and enough soup cream to thicken it up
3. Add some pepper
4. Pour a little of the mixture into the bottom of a 9x13 pan and spread it around
5. Spread mixture into whole wheat tortilla shells and roll them up
6. Place rolled tortilla in the 9x13 pan
7. Continue adding the mixture to the tortillas and adding them to the pan until it's full
8. Add any remaining mixture to the top
9. Sprinkle fresh cilantro and black beans to the top
10. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes

I use a lot of vegetable purees in my cooking. It is based on Jessica Seinfeld's cookbook Deceptively Delicious. I'll probably be posting about this concept in the future, but it is basically secretly adding vegetable purees to kid friendly foods. There is no secret around here though, we add veggies all the time, even in sweets!

quinoa and black bean salad

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons grated lime zest
• 2 tablespoon fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 cup quinoa
• 1 cup of black beans (I used dry beans, but you can also use a can to speed up the process)
• 4 scallions, chopped
• 1 tomato, diced
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro
• Salt
• Pepper

Directions

1. If using dry black beans: soak beans overnight and cook in crock pot until they are barely opening up
2. Cook quinoa (I cooked it in my rice cooker, but you can also boil it)
3. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together lime zest, juice, butter, oil, sugar, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper
4. Place cooked quinoa, beans, cilantro, scallions, and tomato in a large bowl
   
5. Add dressing and mix well

Recipe from epicurious

I am really into salads and quinoa right now and this is the PERFECT mix of the two. I've already made it twice and love how it turned out each time. It is light and refreshing with a zing of lime. It is a fabulous summer salad.

looking for contributors

This is a place to share recipes and ideas about cooking. Are you interested in being a contributor to Fine Meal Woman? You don't have to be a chef, just someone who enjoys cooking up a storm in the kitchen from time to time.