New Year New Diet

Let's talk about that New Years's resolution to lose weight. Have you given up already on that new diet?  We all do it; we all make a resolution to lose weight. I have too. In fact this is the year I've decided on several resolutions. Oh, no I don't think I've taken on too much.

There are so many diets and  programs. Low caeb, low fat, dairy free, gluten free, vegetarian, vegan... On and on the list goes  Everybody has a solution. Everyone has a plan. It can be overwhelming. And not every solution is not right for everybody. 

Now it is true some people are intolerant of certain  foods, and some people make dietary choices for other reasons. 

This where I'm going to get a little boring. My solution... Eat less, move more. Find a support person, and get at least 7 hours of sleep at night. 

Make a routine of keeping a daily journal. Track how much sleep you get, what you are eating, and when, and most important-- how did it make you feel.  The point is to be conscious. Most people are going to be surprised. Just try it for a week. 

The other thing to do is to go get one of those frozen diet meals. It's just to give you an idea about what 300 calories looks like, and guess what you can do better. My point is, some of those frozen meals are loaded with salt and sugar. 

Ready?  

Here is my favorite chicken 4 servings. 

20 oz. lbs chicken breast no skin

1 tbls olive oil

1 Lemon 

1 tbl Butter

1 tbl Rosemary, chopped

1 tsp Salt 

1/3 tsp Pepper

Mix butter and olive oil together in a small bowl. Place chicken in a baking dish. Rub butter and oil on chicken. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and rosemary. Squeeze the lemon over the chicken. 

Bake at 375 untill chicken is done. Serve with 1 cup of roasted vegies and 1/2 cup brown rice. 

Total calories doe the meal: about 450 give or  or take. 

Kale with Creamy Cashew sauce

2 lbs kale

1/2 cup raw cashews

1/2 cup unsweetened soy milk

1 tbls onion flakes (optional)

1 tbls Dr Fuhman's VegiZest (optional)

Remove the thick stems from the kale and discard

Place the kale leaves in a large steamer pot. Steam 10 to 20 minutes

Meanwhile place remaining ingredients in a blender and blend till smooth

Place kale in a colander and press with a dish towel to remove some of the excess water

In a bowl coarsly chop and mix kale eith cream sauce. 

Chili Verde

Well, another chili cool off has come and gone. There were 12 of us this time. So completion was a bit stiffer, but we have another success, and another award. 

I always wanted to know how to make chile verde. So I searched the Internet until I found one I liked.

Found it on Simple Recipes. 

Of course I did it my way.  

1/2 lbs tomatillos

2 jalapeños

1 poblano pepper

3 tbls minced garlic

1large bunch cilantro 

1 large onion

4 lbs pork roast

1 small can green chilies

Salt and pepper

2 tsp oregano

1/2 cup Sour cream

2 cups chicken stock

Husk the tomatillos and slice in half. Half the peppers, and remove the seeds. Place on a baking sheet until the tomatillos are browned and the peppers and charred.

Put the peppers in a zip lock bag and let sit for 5 minutes. This will help the skins to loosen so they can be removed. 

Place the skinned peppers, garlic, cilantro and tomatillos in a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside. 

Cut  the pork in chunks, so it easier to cook. 

Brown in a skillet with the sliced onions and salt and pepper. Don't cook the meat all the way. 

 Add the meat, oregano, onion,  blended contents and chicken stock  to a crock pot. Cook on low 5 hours. And the sour cream and serve. 

Granola Bars

2 1/2 cups (230 grams) old fashioned rolled oats

1/2 cup (80 grams) whole nuts, coarsely chopped

1/3 cup (113 grams) honey

1/4 cup (56 grams) unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1/4 cup (50 grams) packed light brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 cup (60 grams) dried fruit, coarsely chopped

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (67 grams) white chocolate chips

2 bananas 

Method

Prepare Oven and Pan

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line bottom and sides of a 8-inch or 9- square pan with aluminum foil. Then lightly oil or spray with cooking spray.

Combine ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well. 

Press the mixture into pan make sure it is tightly packed and even in one layer. 

Bake 30 minutes until they it has lightly toasted. 

Remove from the oven and let cool before cutting into bars. Then refrigerate to set.  

The Story of Cheese

In the beginning God created the cow, and He saw that the cow was good, and He gave the cow to man. He said " take this cow for she gives milk. It will sustain you."

Man was very pleased and took the cow and the milk. Man enjoyed the fresh milk and declared it good. 

But soon man was not pleased, for the milk soured. He wanted his milk to be portable as he traveled through out the land, and he asked God how can he make the milk portable and keep it from souring? 

God told man in order to make the milk portable and not sour he needed to make the milk solid. 

Man was so excited by this, but yet puzzled. "How Lord do we make the milk solid?  Surely only you can do this". And God smiled. 

"Take the rennet from the sheep's stomach and add it to the milk. Mix it well, and that will make the milk solid." 

So man went off excited. He found a way to extract the rennet and added it to the milk. 

Man mixed and stirred the milk. And lo the milk started to separate and solids formed. Man was in awe. He took the solids and ate of them and declared them good. 

Then man said to God "what should call this wonderful treasure?"And God said "you shall call it cheese. And it will be good and portable and won't sour."

And man took his cheese with him though out the land and it was good. 

Cheese Soufflé, a short story

Peggy stood at the stove looking  at a lumpy gooey pale yellow puddle in her cassarole dish. She blew her bangs out of her face and sighed. 

"I''m never going to get this right". She picked up the dish and and scraped the contents down the garbage disposal.
Another attempt down the tubes. She looked at her recipe again. No one understood. No one would ever understand he obsession to make the ultimate cheese soufflé.  

She had a signed photo of Martha Stewart hanging over the stove and "The Art of French Cooking" prominently displayed on the counter. Her friends thought she was a fanatic. They couldn't figure out why she idolized celebrity chefs. 

She wanted something different for this party. Something other than hot dogs and cheese whiz with crackers. 

She looked at her ingredients again...Egg whites, flour, gruyere, butter, Parmesan.... where did it all go wrong...

Butterscotch pie

4 tbls butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
3 egg yolks
2 cups milk
2 tsp vanilla
.... And a mound of whipped cream


 in saucepan, Melt butter until a light brown.  Add brown sugar and flour, Mix untill well blended. In a small bowl blend milk,  egg yolks and vanilla. Add milk beaten eggs and vanilla. Add egg mixture a little at a time so The eggs dont currdle  Continue cooking until thick and bubbly. Pour into a pre-baked pie shell and cool. When ready to serve top with whipped cream.

Banana Cake

Well it's pot luck time again. At work we seem to do this about once a month. 

I discovered the jalapeño cream corn. For this one I made a banana cake.   

3 mashed bananas

2 1/4 cups flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

 1 1 1/2 baking powder

1/2 cup butter

1 cup butter milk

1 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Frosting

In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients.

In a second bowl melt the butter in the microwave for 1 minute. 

Add the buttermilk, vanilla, and eggs to the melted butter. 

Add the dry ingredients to the butter egg mixture. Add the bananas and chocolate chips. 

Mix well. 

Pour into a 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes, or a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean. 

Frost with your favorite frosting. 

Hot Dog Days.

There is nothing like grilling hot dogs. The sizzle, the smell. The fun that usually goes with a cook out. It says Summer Time!

I have some ideas for some different toppings. Try a taco dog, or a burrito dog, or maybe a pizza dog. Hot dog Nachos or that old childhood favorite hot dogs and spaghetti. Then there are chili dogs and Chicago dogs. How about a Hawain Dog? (add pineapple and sweet and sour sauce.)

Peanut Butter Cookies

So it’s a busy Sunday in the kitchen.  The morning started off with biscuits, and sausage gravy. Then I made a sour dough starter. It is now happily bubbling away. I can’t wait to use it next weekend.

I've got butter softening to make peanut butter cookies. They will be dipped in chocolate.

The family reunion is coming up in a month. Mom said “You’re the cook” plan us a menu for the week.  I have some ideas. I've been thinking dishes like, steak brushed with rosemary infused olive oil, grilled chicken with a white barbecue, pasta with fresh spinach and beans with a lemon sauce, and of course beans and corn bread, fried chicken and grilled corn with Parmesan cheese. Maybe a chocolate pie

And I have recipes to start organizing for the cookbook.

--Thanks to the cousins for providing some goodies.  I've been working on that. And so yeah, A very busy Sunday.

For the peanut butter cookies:

Preheat the oven to 375

½ cup butter softened

½ cup peanut butter

½ cup white sugar

½ cup brown sugar

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp baking powder

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 ¼ flour

For the dip: 8 oz Hershey Crunch bars melted.

In a large mixing bowl beat butter and sugar and peanut butter with an electric mixer. Add the egg soda and baking powder. Slowly add the flour.

Chill for ½ hour.

Scoop out teaspoon full roll in a ball and flatten onto a greased cookie sheet. Take a fork and press into each cookie, turn the fork at a 90 degree angle and press again to get a tick tack toe pattern on the cookie.

Bake for 7 to 9 minutes Cook on a rack.

Next melt the chocolate candy until smooth. Take each cookie and dip part way into the chocolate.

Let dry in a rack.

When the chocolate sets up… enjoy with a nice tall cold glass of milk. 

Cherry Limeade Pie

Sunday dinner for two? Looking  For a special meal for two? OK, how about steak with a mushroom sauce, rice pilaf, and asparagus with lemon. Followed by a slice of cherry-limeade pie. 

Sounds good, yes? 

Start with pie. Since this has to chill a few hours before serving. 

You need one graham cracker crust

1/2 cup lime juice

4 eggs

18 oz sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup cherry juice 

4 tbl water

15 maraschino cherries. 

For the filling:

Separate the egg yolks from the whites and place in a separate bowl. Put 3 yolks in one bowl and the 4th yolk in its own bowl. Set the whites aside. 

Beat the 3 yolks with a wire whisk. Slowly add 3 tbls of water and 14 oz of the milk. Blend until smooth.  

Pour into pie shell. 

Beat the other yolk, water, cherry juice and remainder of milk. Blend until smooth. Pour over lime mixture. 

Bake 25 to 30 minutes at 325 degrees.

For the meringue:  

While the pie bakes place the egg whites in a mixing bowl. Start with the mixer on low and start beating the whites, when they start to foam add cream of tarter and slowly turn the mixer up to medium. Add the auger 1 tablespoon at a time. Continue mixing until stiff glossy peaks form. 

When the pie comes out of the oven torn up  temp to 350, spread the meringue    on the pie. Make sure none of the filling is showing. Bake 15 minutes to set the meringue.  

Refrigerate pie for at least 2 hours before serving. 

Before cutting, sprinkle the maraschino cherries on top. 

Mocha Java Chocolate Cake

1 cup cocoa powder (unsifted)

2 cups fresh brewed coffee  

1/8 tsp coffee extract

2 3/4 cups flour, all-purpose (sifted)

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup butter (or margarine, softened)

2 1/2 cups sugar

4 large eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1) To make the cake: In medium bowl, combine cocoa with boiling water, mixing with wire whisk until smooth. Cool completely. Sift flour with soda, salt, and baking powder. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease three 9 by 1-1/2 inch layer cake pans. Line with parchment paper. Grease paper and lightly flour pans. Set aside. In large bowl of electric mixer at high speed beat butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla, scraping bowl occasionally, until light, about 5 minutes. At low speed, beat in flour mixture (in fourths), alternately with cocoa mixture (in thirds), beginning and ending with flour mixture. Do not overbeat. Divide evenly into pans; smooth top. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until surface springs back when gently pressed with fingertip. Cool in pans 10 minutes. Carefully loosen sides with spatula; remove from pans; cool on racks.

To make the coffee mousse filling:

Yield: 8 servings of coffee mousse


Ingredients:


2 cups evaporated milk
2/3 cup strong coffee
2/3 cup brown sugar
3 egg yolks
1 envelope unflavored gelatin, softened in 3 tablespoons cold water
1 ½ cups heavy cream
Preparation:


In a medium saucepan, combine the evaporated milk and coffee; cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until it just starts steaming. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and brown sugar.


Add ½ cup of the hot milk to the egg mixture, whisking constantly, until the mixture is thoroughly combined. Add the warm egg-milk blend back into the hot milk in the saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture reaches 165 degrees on a digital candy thermometer. Remove from the heat and stir in the softened gelatin. Chill the coffee custard thoroughly.


Beat the 1 1/2 cups of cream in a separate bowl until stiff peaks form. Thoroughly stir ½ cup of the whipped cream into the chilled custard, and then gently fold in the remaining cream. The coffee mousse is ready when the custard is thoroughly incorporated into the whipped cream, and no marbling shows. Serve the mousse chilled.


This coffe mousse recipe makes 8 servings.

Lemon Chicken Pizza with Spinach

Cute. This happens to be one of those things to reproduce at home. This cute little bite of culinary bliss came from Old Chicago. 

It is a thin crust topped with a lemon garlic sauce, grilled chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, fresh spinach, and a lemon vinaigrette. The cheese tasted like an Asiago Parmesan blend. 

The drinks were a sparking effervescent mix of pomegranate and ginger ale.  

The only set back--The pizza was not warm enough. 

But I will be attempting to make this succulent wonder at home soon. Wish me luck.