Peanut Butter Banana Sushi

I saw this idea quite a while ago on a blog...which one I cannot remember. (Hopefully none of the vast number of our followers sues me for plagiarism.) The blog used apples, but I tried bananas. You take a piece of bread (I used whole wheat) and cut the crusts off, then roll it into a rectangle with a rolling pin. Spread the bread with peanut butter and then add slivered bananas. Roll and slice.

Its kind of a fun twist on a pb sandwich, and I'm sure the older kids would like to help. H took one look at his plate and said, oh I don't like this lunch. But after a little coercion he happily obliged.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Here's another good one from Our Best Bites
The cinnamon and chocolate together give it that Mexican chocolate kind of taste that I know some of you (Anne Marie) love. Enjoy!


Chocolate Zucchini Bread {makes 2 loaves}
Recipe by OurBestBites.com
2 C flour
2 t cinnamon
1/2 t salt
1 1/2 t baking soda
6 T unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 C canola oil
1 C sugar
1/4 C brown sugar
3 eggs
2 t vanilla
1/2 C sour cream
3 C grated zucchini
3/4 C mini chocolate chips

Topping:
2 T brown sugar
2 T white sugar
1/2 t cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour 2 loaf pans and set aside. I actually used one 8" disposable pan to give away and a larger 9" one for me and the batter divided perfectly. So you should get 2 very full 8" pans or slightly less full 9". Do one of each like I did!

Mix topping ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.Place flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.With a stand or hand mixer beat oil, white sugar, brown sugar, and eggs until combined and slightly fluffy, 1-2 minutes.Add vanilla and sour cream and mix until combined.Gently stir in the grated zucchini.

Take a spoonful of the flour mixture and stir in with the chocolate chips (that will help keep them evenly distributed.) If you only have regular chocolate chips, or a chocolate bar, just give it a chop so it's the size of mini chocolate chips. Stir remaining flour mixture into batter and mix just until combined. Add chocolate chips and stir to combine.Divide the batter between the two pans. and sprinkle topping over each.

Bake in your preheated 350 degree oven for 50-60 minutes. I set my timer for 45 minutes and then keep an eye on it for the remainder. Ya never know how different ovens handle things.When it's done a toothpick or skewer should come out without goopy batter on it and the top will be gorgeous and cracked with sugar.

Let it cool on a rack for 5-10 minutes and then remove from pans. You definitely have to eat a slice warm. And slathered with butter.

I Heart the Pioneer Woman

I think everybody that actually reads this blog has already made this pulled pork recipe from the Pioneer Woman. Just thought I'd let you all know that I tried it...had several tiny disasters and it was still absolutely delicious. I bought a 4 1/2 pound pork shoulder and it fed my family, plus the missionaries, plus one meal of leftovers. In case there is anyone else out there...its a must try!

More Teriyaki

I tried another new and yummy teriyaki sauce this week. This time it was Kikkoman's Spicy Miso. We used it to marinate shrimp and then I poured some over steamed broccoli too. Its spicy for sure, but not too much for the kids and Braden and I would have taken a swig right from the bottle if there had been any left!

Zucchini Bread

3 c all-purpose flour
1 t salt
1 t baking soda
1 t baking powder
3 t cinnamon
3 eggs
1 c oil
2 1/4 c white sugar
3 t vanilla
2 c grated zucchini
1 c chopped walnuts

1. Grease and flour 2 loaf pans. (i just use pam.) Preheat oven to 325.

2. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl. (i skipped this whole step.)

3. Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into loaf pans.

4. Bake for 40 to 60 (mine took 60) minutes. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely.

Super yummy and easy!

Grilled Veggie Sandwiches

I found this recipe on one of the blogs I frequent. We had it the other night and they were super yummy and easy to put together. I used french bread and needed twice as must of the mayo mixture. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup mayonnaise
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
olive oil
salt and pepper
1 cup sliced red bell peppers
1 small zucchini, sliced
1 red onion, sliced
1 small yellow squash, sliced
2 (4-x6-inch) focaccia bread pieces, split horizontally
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese



DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a bowl, mix the mayonnaise, minced garlic, and lemon juice. Set aside in the refrigerator. Throw cut veggies on a large cookie sheet or in a roasted pan. Generously drizzle with olive oil and then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pop in oven for 15-20 minutes or until veggies are tender. Then turn on the broiler and broil for 3-5 minutes.
Spread mayo mixture on bread and sprinkle with feta. Put on cookie sheet and place under broiler for 2-3 minutes. Load bread up with veggies and enjoy!

I forgot to add... next time I think I'll add portabello mushroom and maybe some eggplant too!

Chocolate Sheet Cake

Another recipe that I got off another blog, but am sharing here....

Anyway, last night we had some people over for dessert and so I tried The Pioneer Woman's chocolate sheet cake. I wasn't expecting to like it because I don't think I've ever met a sheet cake I've liked, but this is awesome. Its easy to make, uses ingredients you have on hand, and makes a lot. It is VERY chocolaty, but I like that. So try it and then eat it all in less than 24 hours like my family has!!

Bacon-Wrapped Teriyaki Chicken Skewers

This recipe is from a new food blog I found, Our Best Bites. Its certainly not the kind of meal you'd want to eat regularly, but super yummy every once in a while. The blog has a bunch of really good and practical (things you'd really prepare and your family would really eat) recipes.

Bacon-Wrapped Teriyaki Chicken Skewers

Click here to print text only

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs

About 8 oz. lean bacon, NOT thick-sliced (thick bacon is too hard to work with in this recipe)

1 large can pineapple chunks (you won't use all of them)

Homemade Teriyaki sauce (the best!) or Kikkoman Teriyaki Baste and Glaze

Kebab skewers or toothpicks

Now...the easiest way to handle the bacon situation is to remove it from the package and while it's still all stuck together, stretch it out a little (lengthwise). If you're using center-cut bacon (and the "slab" is not as wide as regular bacon), just cut it in half. Otherwise, use kitchen shears to cut the slab into thirds. Refrigerate until ready to use, partially because it's easier to work with cold bacon and partially because you don't want to kill any dinner guests with dead pig germs.

Using kitchen shears, cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. You can gauge about how many pieces you'll need by how many pieces of bacon you have; you probably won't use all the bacon, but you'll need about 8 oz. or 2/3 of a standard-sized package of bacon. So count the bacon pieces and keep that in mind when cutting up your chicken.

Drain the pineapple and set up a little work station with skewers, bacon, chicken, and a 9x13 baking dish (for big skewers) or a sturdy Ziploc bag (for toothpick skewers). Wrap a piece of bacon around a chicken piece, secure with toothpick/skewer, and top with a chunk of pineapple. Repeat twice if using large skewers. When all chicken pieces have been sufficiently staked, pour Teriyaki sauce over everything, reserving about 1/4 c., and marinate in refrigerator for at least 4 hours, no longer than about 8.

Preheat grill**; when about 350-400 degrees, place skewers on grill and baste with reserved Teriyaki sauce. Cook about 7 minutes and flip skewers. Baste again and cook another 7 minutes.

*If serving at a party, you can keep the appetizer-sized skewers warm in a crockpot set to low or an electric roaster set to 170 degrees.

**If cooking in oven, preheat oven to 400 and bake about 20 minutes, turning once, following the same basting instructions.

Black Bean Burgers and Potato Wedges

We tried the Black Bean Burger recipe from Safely Gathered In last night. I'll let you look up the recipe there, if you're so inclined. They were pretty yummy, although (surprise) tasted nothing like burgers. We tried them with a few different toppings and salsa was definitely the best.

We've also had these potato wedges a few times. They are way easy and really good: Wash and DRY 4 med potatoes, then cut into wedges. Coat in egg whites, place skin side down in a greased pan and sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake at 400 for 20-25 minutes.

Baked Oatmeal

Betsy and I discussed Baked Oatmeal this week and I tried it for breakfast this morning. Here is the recipe I used:

3 cups rolled oats
1 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup melted butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup raisins



DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In a large bowl, mix together oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Beat in milk, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla extract. Stir in dried cranberries. Spread into a 9x13 inch baking dish.
Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes.

It was really good and super easy. Everyone liked it. I'm going to try to find another recipe that would be food storage suitable. When I do I"ll let you know.

My Minestrone

I tried Kris' minestrone soup recipe and it was delicious. Thought I'd show you a photo...

I was missing a spice or two and (gasp) was out of parmesan cheese, but it was still great. A good way too for Harrison to have carrots and celery since they're still a little too much for him to chew.

Peanut Butter Brownies

This recipe requires a couple bowls but is totally worth the clean up. It is best eaten cooled down, not right out of the oven. A brownie mix could be substituted for bowl 2 and 3 but I have never tried it that way.


mix until smooth in bowl 1:
6 oz cream cheese softened
3/4 c peanut butter
1/4 c sugar
1 egg
2 T milk

in bowl 2 mix:
1 c butter, melted
2 c sugar
2 t vanilla
3 egg

in bowl 3 combine:
3/4 c cocoa powder
1 1/4 c flour
1/2 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1 c semi-sweet chocolate chips

add bowl 3 to bowl 2.

spread all but 1 c of chocolate mixture into 9x13 pan
spread peanut butter filling on top
drop remaining chocolate mixture over top
mix with knife for marbled or desired effect

bake at 350 for about 40 minutes.

Cabbage Rolls

This may be cheating, but we just tried a new recipe that I got from allrecipes.com for cabbage rolls. We've been trying some new meals and this one was pretty good. It was nice to put it in the crockpot and just have it ready at dinner time. We had it with a green salad. (I would double the sauce recipe)

Microwaved Cocoa Cake

This one's just a quicky, and unfortunately I just devoured the evidence so there's nothing left to photograph. I read about this on the internet a while back and tried it...It's not the finest chocolate cake I've ever had, but it might help you kill twenty minutes with the kids. I (unsurprisingly) replaced the egg in mine with 1 T ground flax.

2 packets hot cocoa mix

2 T flour

1 egg

1 T vegetable oil

splash of water

Mix all in microwave safe mug. Nuke on high for 2 minutes. Run a knife around the edge and it should just pop out.

edit: Psyche! I totally still have a photo from when I made it before. Apologies for the blurriness.

Coconut Cocoa

Today is atrocious in Chicago. We've got a foot of snow (it's still falling in heavy persistent clumps) and sub-zero temperatures. So I thought it would be a good day to make a cup of this. In my continuing battle against milk I thought I would try hot cocoa with coconut milk. Low and behold it's delicious—even to me, someone who isn't totally into coconut. The secret is cutting the coconut milk with something. Both times I've used water at about 1:1. If you're even less excited about the coconut you could do 1:2. For the 'dry' I used cocoa powder and sugar once, and regular cocoa mix. Both are good.

½ c coconut milk

½ c water (milk, etc...)

2 T cocoa powder

2 T sugar

½ dash cinnamon

Heat liquid, add dry. Mix.

p.s. I was going to add an actual photo, but it looks just like regular cocoa; brown liquid.

Lemon Curd

I bought a bunch of lemons the other day and didn't end of needing them for what I had planned on so I made this instead. It is so easy to make. One recipe filled 2 half-pint canning jars.

Lemon Curd
3/4 C freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 Tbsp grated lemon zest
3/4 C sugar
3 eggs
1/2 C unsalted butter

Directions:In a saucepan, combine all ingredients and cook over medium-low heat*. Cook 6-10 minutes, and occasionally whisk until thick enough to hold marks from the whisk (about the consistency of pudding.) Store in the refrigerator. *If the heat is turned up too high, the eggs will curdle.

Minestrone Soup

This is what we had for dinner tonight and everyone liked it. I didn't use celery (just because I didn't have any) and threw in some summer squash also. It would be great in the summer (for most locales) when you can get all the produce fresh at the farmers market.

Minestrone Soup
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
I large onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, miced
8 cups of vegetable or chicken stock
28 oz can of tomato sauce (or crushed tomato's)
2 celery stalks, diced
2 med-sized carrots, sliced
2 potato's, cut into cubes
2 med-sized zucchini, diced
1/2 C fresh parsley, chopped (or you can use 1 Tbsp dried)
1 C small pasta (shells, macaroni, etc.,)
1/2 C Parmesan Cheese
2 tsp. dried basil leaves
1 tsp. dried marjoram
1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves
1/4 tsp. ground celery seed
Dash of cayenne pepper
Directions:Over medium heat, in a sautee pan combine olive oil, onions & garlic and 3 Tbsp of stock. Sautee until onions are translucent, about 5-7 minutes. Add the remaining stock, tomato sauce, celery, carrot, potato, zucchini and all spices (do not add pasta or parmesan). Mix and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to simmer and simmer for 15 mintues. Bring to a boil again and add pasta & parmesan. Reduce to a simmer for an additional 20 minutes. I usually sprinkle some more parmesan on top once it's served. Enjoy!