The Challenge

I had a chance to explain to some of you, but not all of you.  So here it goes.

I gave you each a cookbook for Christmas.  Nothing overly exciting, but we all love Taste of Home, right?  Each of you got a different edition.  I can't remember exactly who got what but I do know there was a diabetic, casserole, crockpot, shortcut, and penny pinching cookbooks. 

Your challenge is to simply use the cookbooks and post the recipe here.  If you take the time to post a picture, great- and yes, it does count if you just pull the picture off of the TOH website.  Thats fine.  Make sure that you also include any adjustments you make to the recipe- I know that I make them to pretty much every recipe I try.

Get cookin!

Read More

Mitch & Deb's Buffalo Dip

This one's from my boss & his wife - we traded it for the sausage dip recipe.  We'll be trying it out this Christmas and let you know how it goes.  I called it Buffalo dip for two reasons:  One is that the recipe looks like it probably comes out tasting a little like the buffalo sauce on spicy chicken fingers or wings (which my boss has ordered for lunch every time we've ever eaten out... for 11 years).  The other is they are from Buffalo (MN, not NY)...

• 2 (10 ounce) cans chunk chicken, drained
• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup Ranch dressing
• 3/4 cup pepper sauce, such as Franks® Red Hot®
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

• 1 bunch celery, cleaned and cut into 4 inch pieces
• 1 (8 ounce) box chicken-flavored crackers

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat chicken and hot sauce in a skillet over medium heat, until heated through. Stir in cream cheese and ranch dressing. Cook, stirring until well blended and warm. Mix in half of the shredded cheese, and transfer the mixture to a slow cooker. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top, cover, and cook on Low setting until hot and bubbly. Serve with celery sticks and crackers.

Read More

Almond Chicken, South Beach Style

Tom and I voted this a keeper. The kids scraped the breading off, and then voted it to be a keeper.

Found here.

1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
1/8 cup (1/2 ounce) grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 cup finely chopped almonds
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/2 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
Pinch of ground black pepper
1/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded to 1/2" thickness and cut into 6 pieces
Sprig Italian parsley, for garnish

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400°F.

In a medium bowl, combine the bread crumbs, cheese, almonds, parsley, garlic, salt, thyme, and pepper. Mix thoroughly.

Place the oil in a shallow dish. Dip the chicken first in the oil, then dredge in the crumb mixture. Place the chicken in a shallow baking pan.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until a thermometer inserted in the center of a piece registers 170°F and the juices run clear. (Do not turn the chicken during cooking.) Garnish with the parsley.

Nutritional Information:
383 calories
16 total fat (4 g sat)
91 mg cholesterol
15 g carbohydrate
41 g protein
1 g fiber
730 mg sodium

Read More

Russian Tea Cakes

aka Mexican Wedding Cakes aka "Brushin' your teeth cakes"

1 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup confectioners' sugar (for rolling at the end)

Cream butter ane vanilla. Mix sugar, flour, and walnuts in a seperate bowl. Combine the two together. Mix until it is no longer crumbly. Roll into 1 inch balls. Bake in a preheated 350 oven for 12 mins. Remove and roll in sugar. Makes 36.

Apparently these are very freezable, too. I didn't get a change to try, though, because every time I pulled a batch out, they disappeared.

Read More

Homestyle Green Bean Casserole

From the South Beach Diet Cookbook- This is much healthier than the normal version, and I think it tasted better. I think it could have used more seasoning in the sauce, but I put it down here like it is in the book.

1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
1/4 cup ground walnuts
1 onion, cut crosswise into 1/4 inch slices (onion rings)

Preheat oven to 500. Mix bread crumbs and walnuts together. Dip rings in buttermilk first and then bread crumb mixture. Be careful not to keep liquids in the crumbs to the bare minimum. Once it gets wet, the crumbs won't stick to the onions any more. Lay on a baking sheet that was sprayed with cooking spray. Spray onions with cooking spray, and baked for 20ish mins until golden brown.

Meanwhile, saute:
1 onion, chopped
1/2 pound sliced mushrooms
1/2 teaspoon of thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt

Saute until mushrooms release their liquid (about 3 mins). Sprinkle with 1/4 cup whole wehat flour and stir for 1 min. Then, add 3 cups 1% milk and stir constantly for about 3 mins until thick.

Add 1-16 oz bag of frozen green beans. Stir until beans are coated.

Place beans in baking dish (sprayed with cooking spray). Lay onions on top. Baked for 25 mins in a 400 degree oven.

Read More

Egg Nog Pie

I realize all may not be fans of egg nog. I wasn't, until a pregnancy did that weird thing when it changes your taste for something. So, thanks to my second child, Tom now has to share the egg nog with me. His family all loves it, so this little invention I came up with for Thanksgiving was a huge hit. The egg nog flavor isn't too strong. I have a feeling this will make a repeat performance later this year.

1 1/2 cup egg nog
1/4 cup milk
1 large package vanilla pudding

Mix together. Add in:

1/2 bag toffee chips (with or without chocolate, doesn't matter)
1 tub cool-whip

Mix with pudding.

Pour into a baked and cooled pie crust. You could also use a graham cracker crust.

Read More

Commit now...

To keeping the camera in the kitchen this holiday season.

AHP

Read More

English Muffin Breakfast Pizzas

This looks really yummy.  I'm going to cheat and just give you the link.  http://www.ourbestbites.com/2010/09/english-muffin-breakfast-pizzas.html

Read More

A Plea and A Challenge

Okay, this pregnancy, for some reason, I have developed an intense adverse reaction to anything chicken.  So, please, please please- can we post some non chicken recipes? 

The challenge is that for every non-chicken recipe you post, you get a point.  The person with the most points wins.  Something cool.  I'll send you a brownie mix or something.  You have until September 30th at midnight. 

If you actually bring me something non-chicken, I'll give you 50 points automatically.  Just saying.  You'd totally win that box of brownies...

Read More

BYU Mint Brownies

When I worked in the CES office during college, there were a few weeks in the year that were absolute nightmares.  The opening week of EFY registration, Education Week and the worst, Women's Conference.  While Women's Conference is probably a very uplifting time for most women, my office dealt with the special needs women.  Like the woman who was disappointed in President Hinckley's talk and demanded her money back because she didn't feel the spirit.  Oi.  Anyway, mint brownies are the holy grail during this week.  Its nearly impossible to buy them because any place that sells them is out within the first 30 seconds of opening their doors.  One day, I had an assignment from my supervisor: the on-site registration desk in the WILK had an entire pan of mint brownies hidden away, cleverly disguised in a nametag holder box.  My mission was to get a dozen brownies from the WILK to the Harmon building.  Now, this isn't the longest distance wise trek across campus.  The WILK is in the middle of campus, and the Harmon building in on the north side of campus.  There's no fast way there.  If I was on the south side trying to get to the north side, I could hop in a car, but from the WILK, the nearest parking lot is almost as far as the Harmon building.  So I had to walk.  I managed to time it so that the bulk of my walking was while most of the women were in classes.  I miscalculated one thing: the women who were skipping classes, waiting in line at the Marriot Center to make sure they got prime tickets for President Hinckley's devotional.  As I approached the Marriot Center, I clutched the plate of brownies to my chest (don't worry, they were covered in many layers of plastic wrap).  I had women grabbing at the plate, pulling on my back pack, even offering large amounts of money (I think I got offtered $20 at one point) trying to take these brownies from me.  I had some women yelling obscenities at me because I was just a student and could have mint brownies anytime, but this was their only chance each year to get some. My supervisor saw me being accosted, pushed his way through the large group of women and helped me escape from a very dangerous situation.  The brownies were smushed, I had some bruises on my legs, but we made it.  Recently, BYU published the mint brownie recipe in the alumni magazine.  While many will think this was a very magnanimous action, I'd like to point out that they didn't publish their chocolate frosting recipe, which I think is really what makes the brownies good.

BYU MINT BROWNIES

1 c. margarine
1/2 c. cocoa
2 Tbsp. honey
4 eggs
2 c. sugar
1 3/4 c. flour
1/2 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. chopped walnuts

12 oz. chocolate icing (Use your own icing recipe or purchase some chocolate frosting. You can also search the Internet for chocolate icing recipes.)

MINT ICING
5 Tbsp. margarine
dash of salt
3 Tbsp. milk
1 Tbsp. light corn syrup
2 1/3 c. powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. mint extract
1-2 drops green food coloring

1. Melt margarine and mix in cocoa. Allow to cool. Add honey, eggs, sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix well. Add nuts. Pour batter into a greased 9-by-13 baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Cool.
2. Prepare mint icing: Soften margarine. Add salt, corn syrup, and powdered sugar. Beat until smooth and fluffy. Add mint extract and food coloring. Mix. Add milk gradually until the consistency is a little thinner than cake frosting.
3. Spread mint icing over brownies. Place brownies in the freezer for a short time to stiffen the icing. Remove from the freezer and carefully add a layer of chocolate icing.

Read More

Really good brownies.

2/3 C Cocoa
2/3 C Shortening, Melted (NOT NOT NOT butter flavored)
4 Eggs
2 C Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 1/2 C flour
1 teaspoon baking POWDER
1 teaspoon Salt
1 to 1 1/2 C minature marshmallows
1 C Chopped nuts (optional)
Mix Cocoa and melted shortening in bowl.  In separate bowl beat eggs, sugar and vanilla.  Add to cocoa mix.  Add dry ingredients EXCLUDING marshmallows to cocoa mixture.  Mix well.  Stir in marshmallows.  Pour into 9x13 pan and bake @ 350 for 25-35 minutes.  Your fork or toothpick won't come out super clean because of the marshmallows.

Read More

Chicken and black beans

I was partially inspired for this by one of the posts here, and by some recipes on all recipes. It is a combination of several recipes, but it was a hit.

2-3 chicken breasts
1 jar salsa (we used homemade)

Dump in a crockpot together. You can put it on high if you want it done faster, or low if you want it done slower. I did it on low, and the chicken took 3-4 hours. When the chicken is done, shred it and stir.

Either in the crockpot or on the stovetop (depending on how soon you are serving it), mix in:

2 cans black beans, rinsed
1 can corn
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp garlic salt, or garlic and salt
chili powder to taste

Heat together. Then, just before serving, add half a brick of cream cheese. Stir to combine.

We served this on chips with lettuce, tomatos, olives, and other normal taco topping. I used the leftovers on tortillas with spinach.

Read More

Ethiopian Barley Porridge (Genfo)

Ingredients
3 cups barley flour
4 cups water
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons butter or olive oil
2 tablespoons chili pepper (berebere) or (Awaze)
¼ teaspoon salt

Preparation

1st Step: In a medium saucepan, bring to boil water, milk, 1 tablespoon of butter or oil and salt;

2nd Step: Pour and set aside one cup of the boiling liquid for later use;

3rd Step: Put the barley flour into the boiling liquid; with round spatula, stir continuously until no lumps (10 minutes);

4th Step: Gradually pour the remaining liquid into the pot and continue to stir until the porridge is thick and silky; remove from heat (15 minutes);

5th Step: In a round and deep serving bowls spread oil or melted butter;

6th Step: Divide and scoop the porridge into four portions and place it on the greased bowls;

7th Step: With spoon or spatula shape the porridge into a ball. Then, make a round hole in the center of the porridge; fill up the hole with oil or butter, berebre or awaze. Serve immediately.
4 Servings


Note:
-You can make Geno using wheat flour.
-You will find the barely flour in Ethiopian groceries

Read More

Egg rolls

The other day, as I was reheating Sam's Club egg rolls, Tom said that it was too bad they couldn't be homemade. I said I could make them, but didn't, because this was easier. That led to a conversation where Tom first learned that, yes, egg rolls can be made at home.

Which means, next time it was his night to pick dinner, homemade egg rolls were it. I didn't actually use much of a recipe. I just started dumping things together, and it turned out pretty good.

Ingredients:

egg rolls wrappers
1 lb ground hamburger (that's what I used this time. I may try ground sausage next time for more flavor)
1/2 head of cabbage
5-6 carrots
cumin, garlic salt, and one of those packet seasonings for sweet and sour sauce (you know, the place in the grocery store that has a shelf full of packets, which are a big pain for employees to dela with? Yeah, they had a sweet and sour sauce one)

Fry hamburger. Drain. Shred cabbage and carrots and add to meat. Add seasonings. Sometime, I may actually narrow down the best seasoning combination, but I didn't measure this time. But, you all can taste it out and figure out what you like.

Place in egg roll wrappers and seal with a beaten egg. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Place egg rolls on it. Spray egg rolls with cooking spray. This makes it lightly oiled so that they are still crispy even though you aren't frying them. You could fry them, but we are trying to be healthier here.

Bake at 375 for 10 mins. Flip and bake 12-15 mins more. Let sit for about 10 mins, long enough for them to crisp up a little, but not long enough to get cold. Serve with sweet and sour sauce or whatever else you want to dip them in.

A note- make sure your filling isn't very wet. Moisture will cause steam as it cooks, and that will cause them to split open. Another note- the egg adheres to the wrapper, not to egg, so you only want to wet one side of your seam.

I made 20, and we ate about 10 at dinner. The rest were placed in a plastic bag and put in the fridge. The mysteriously disappeared quite quickly over the next day.

Read More

Homemade Pizza Sauce

Our family has committed to never ordering a pizza again.  In fact, we want to make as much of our pizza as possible.  So, today, we tried to make our own pizza sauce!  It was fabulous.  Way cheaper than buying a jar and it mixes up in a snap.  It may be even faster than trying to open one of those stubborn jars.  So here you go:

1 can tomato sauce
1 can tomato paste
1 1/2 tbsp italian seasoning
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp paprika
1 tablespoon garlic (we used the kind you get in a big jar from Sam's club.  It helps to have a lot of the juice with this recipe).

Mix it all together.  We used an immersion blender to make sure we got the paste blended in well.  But you could do it with some patience and a spoon as well. 

Yield is enough sauce for 4 pizzas.  Its also way cheaper than a jar of sauce.  From my calculations, this recipe costs less than $1.50 and a can of good sauce costs around $2.50.  And you can really only get two pizzas out of a jar of sauce.  So, instead of spending $1.25 per pizza for sauce, you're only spending about 36 cents. 

Read More

Ethiopian Mild Red Chili Pepper Powder (YeAwaze Duket)

Mild Red Chili Pepper Powder (YeAwaze Duket) is one of the main ingredients of Ethiopian cooking.

Ingredients:

10 lbs Hot long red chili peppers
3 lbs Fresh cloves garlic
2 lbs Ginger roots
½ cup Sacred basil (besobla)
½ cup Cardamom (korerima)*
2 tablespoons Cloves
3 tablespoons Cinnamon
¼ cup Bishop weeds (netch azmud)*
1 cup Shallot or red onion
1½ cup Salt
Water as required

Preparation:

1st Step: Cut the peppers and remove all the seeds; keep the seeds aside if you wish to use the seeds for another recipe called Afringe;

2nd Step: Rinse the peppers 3 to 4 times and dry under the sun until crunchy; pound the peppers;

3rd Step: Peel and chop the onion and ginger, peel the garlic; mix with bishop weed, scared basil; add the spices to the pepper and pound again.

4th Step: Add to the spiced pepper one cup of water. Keep it tight in a container for a day.

5th Step: The next day, Put mixture under the sun to completely dry;

6th Step: Lightly warm and grind cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and salt.;

7th Step: Mix all ingredients together and take it to the mill house. Keep the Awaze powder in a tight container preferably in fridge.

* You will find these spices in Ethiopian or Indian shops.

For nutritional facts of this recipe please visit http://www.recipezaar.com/431511. For vitamin content please click on "Print Recipe" on aforementioned site.

Read More

Ethiopian Corn Cereal (YeBekolo Qiniché)

Ingredients:

2 cups cracked Corn
2 tablespoon purified butter (NitirKebe)* or
3 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium shallot or red onion
4 cups or more water
½ cup milk (optional)
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon turmeric powder
Salt to taste

Preparation:

1st Step: Thinly chop the onion; in a medium pot saute the onion with one tablespoon of oil for 5 minutes or until tender;

2nd Step: To the saute onion add, 3 cups of water, milk, 1 tablespoon butter or 2 tablespoon oil, garlic, black pepper, turmeric powder, salt;

3rd Step: Rinse the cracked Corn, add to the spiced boiling pot; in a lower heat, cook it for 20 to 25 minutes or until it absorbs the water, stir continuously and gently;

4th Step: Remove from heat; add the remaining butter or olive oil and mix it very well; serve it immediately or keep it in the fridge, warm it when needed.

* Click here to prepare Purified/Clarified Butter (Nitir Kebe)

For nutritional facts of this recipe please visit http://www.recipezaar.com/431170. For vitamin content please click on "Print Recipe" on aforementioned site.

Read More

Comments

I've noticed that we tend to get a lot of spam comments on this blog.  Anything we can do to eliminate those?

Read More

Bread

My friend Analisa came over last week, and we made bread together. She has a great recipe that is super easy to make. Here it is:

First, make a sponge out of

3 1/2c. Wheat Flour (can also substitute 1/2c. of a grain mix for 1/2c. of this flour)

2 1/2c. Water

4tsp. Yeast

by mixing together the ingredients in your mixer until everything is wet. I remove the paddle after mixing, and throw a tea towel over the bowl.

Wait at least 20 minutes, but as long as 12 HOURS!! When you have a two-hour block of time that you know you'll be around for, finish making the dough by adding

4Tbsp. Butter (softened is best)

1tsp. salt (unless you use salted butter, then you leave this out)

1/4c. Plain Yogurt

1/4c. Honey

2 1/2c. Bread Flour, more or less (start with 2c.)

to the sponge. Use a dough hook to mix it together, and add remaining 1/2c. of flour a little at a time, until the dough pulls away from the bowl and is no longer sticky. You'll probably knead it for around 5 minutes, scraping the bowl down after additions, if necessary.

Next, spray two loaf pans with cooking spray. Flour your counter. Divide your dough into two. Roll the dough out as wide as the length of the pan, and as long as you can easily get it. Roll it up tightly, and stick it in the bread pan. Let rise until you get a nice crown, which should take around an hour. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Cool on a rack until you can't stand to wait any longer, and enjoy!

Read More

AUNT WINNIE'S RAISIN CAKE

AUNT WINNIE'S RAISIN CAKE, from the 'Chez Burnham ' recipe book.

*Aaron's Note: I found this in Grandpa's Journals, and thought it belonged here.

(A favorite request on birthdays. The caramel icing was best - like candy. Her children would peel it off and save it to eat last.)

Boil 2 c. raisins in two c. water. If not enough juice afterward, add water to make 2 cups. Let cool slightly.

Add 1 c. shortening 2 c. sugar

Stir in (sifted):

5 c. flour

2 t. soda

1 t. salt

spices:

½ t. nutmeg

½ t. cloves

1 t. cinnamon

Bake at 350° about 30 minutes.

Caramel icing: (Good on spice cake)

3 c. sugar 1 c. cream* ½ c. water

Melt 1 c. sugar in large fry pan or saucepan. When melted, add enough water (½ c.) to dissolve sugar. To this, add 2 c. sugar and 1 c. cream (sweet) and let cook until it forms a soft ball in water. set aside till it stops bubbling, abt. 5-10 minutes. Whip with spoon till thick for cake. Don't wait too long!

* Can subsitute rich milk. (Half and half?)

Read More

Philly Cheesesteak Sandwiches

Oops. I posted my recipe on my blog instead of this one.  I'm too lazy to redo it, so here's the link.
http://mamamubba.blogspot.com/2010/05/easy-philly-cheesesteak-open-face.html

Read More

Clafoutis

Dallin copied this kind of wierd recipe off a cooking show, and wanted to try it. Then he mixed the batter while I was out getting cherry pie filling for it, without help, so I was doubly surprised when it turned out to be really good.

Spread 12 ozs cherry pie filling in a buttered cast iron pan.

Mix 2 eggs
1/4 c sugar
1/2 c milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 c flour

Pour over cherries.

Bake uncovered 30 min at 400 deg.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Read More

Cheeseball

(by request)

2 8-oz. packages cream cheese, softened (you can use light cream cheese)
2 c. (8 oz.) shredded sharp cheddar cheese
3 Tbsp. finely chopped green onions
1/4 c. finely chopped bell pepper (any color; I used red and orange mini peppers because I like the color and, well, I had some lying around the house that needed to be used!)
2 tsp. seasoning salt
1 small can crushed pineapple, drained very well (you may want to press in a fine-mesh strainer)
1/2 c. pecan pieces, chopped (you can also use pecan "chips")

Shred the cheese yourself. Preshredded cheese won't mush into the ingredients. Chop other things very finely! Mix everything but the pecans together. It takes using your hands to get it all thoroughly mixed.

Shape into a ball and roll in the pecans. Put it in the fridge to set. Serve with crackers or veggies.

Read More

Whole Fish Vegetable Stuffed

This recipe was adopted from a friend long time ago when I was in West Africa, where fish is fresh, straight from Atlantic Ocean.

Ingredients:

4-6 lb Whole fish (Red Snapper, Bass or any firm meaty whole fish )
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
2 cloves garlic (diced)
1 medium onion
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon chili pepper powder (berbere)
2 medium carrots
1 stalk celery
1/2 teaspoon parsley flakes
1 leek
2 medium potatoes
2 medium bell peppers
1 tomato
1 tablespoon white wine
3 tablespoons Vegetable or Olive oil
½ tablespoon margarine or butter (melted)
Salt and black pepper to taste
Fresh parsley or thyme

Preparation:

1st Step: Rinse the fish and the stomach cavity cleaned with lemon juice. Pat it dry with paper towel and put it on flat platter;

2nd Step: Thinly chop all vegetables;

3rd Step: Sauté the vegetables for 10 minutes with 2 tablespoons of oil, chili pepper powder, paprika, parsley, season with salt and black pepper; add the wine, keep it outside to marinate;

4th Step: Meantime, mix 1 tablespoon olive oil, melted butter; 2 tablespoons lemon juice and rub the fish inside and outside; season with salt and pepper;

5th Step: Wrap the head and tail of the fish with foil; Fill the cavity with stuffing mixture and close with skewers or sew; brush outside fish with the butter, oil and lemon mixture; Place fish on roasting rack or pan; bake it at 375 degree for 30 to 35 minutes; Remove from heat and place it on a flat platter;

6th Step: Carefully unleash the skewers or the string; brush it with leftover lemon mixture and garnish it with fresh parsley or thyme and place on the dining table; when time to eat cut it with sharp knife.

4-6 servings.

Read More

Ethiopian Lightly Spiced Bread

Ethiopians bake many kinds of breads. This bread is my favorite one.

Ingredients:

3 lbs all purpose flour or Semolina
½ oz or 1 tablespoon highly active dry yeast
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ cup vegetable oil or corn oil
¼ teaspoon bishop weeds or ground coriander *
2 tablespoon awaze (mild red pepper paste)
¼ teaspoon garlic
½ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon cardamom (Korerima)*
½ teaspoon salt
Warm water (as required)

Preparation:

1st Step: Starter - Mix the yeast with one glass of warm water and wait until rises; or use sourdough starter;

2nd Step: Place the flour in a big bowl, add the yeast mixture and the baking powder; blend it with hand by adding the warm water gradually, until the dough is smooth and elastic; Keep it for 45 min. to rise;

3rd step: Combine, oil, awaze, cardamom, coriander or bishop weeds, salt, black pepper, garlic with 1 cup of warm water, blend the dough well with hand;

4th Step: Cover the bowl and allow rising until triple in bulk, (takes 45-60);

5th Step: After the dough has risen enough, transfer the dough to a deep baking round or square pan; spread the dough evenly on the pan;

6th Step: Allow to rise for another 15-25 minutes;

7th Step: Preheat oven, bake at 350 degree for 45-60 minutes. Use wooden stick to test if the bread is ready;

8th Step: When done, remove the bread from the baking pan and set on a rack to cool.

* You will find the spices mentioned here in Ethiopian or Indian shops/groceries

Read More

Ethiopian Barley and Flax Instant Meal (Besso Betelba)

Barley and Flax Besso is a kind of cereal which is perfect for breakfast or snack.

Ingredients:

2 cups barley flour (Yebeso Duket)
4 tablespoon flax seed powder
2 tablespoons clarified butter (Nitir Kebe) or
2 ½ tablespoons olive oil
½ teaspoon Mitimita (cayenne-type hot pepper)*
1 cup boiling water
½ teaspoon cardamom (Korerima)*
Salt (if needed)

Preparation:

1st Step: Boil water, remove from heat, combine it with butter or oil, mitmita, cardamom, and salt;

2nd Step: Place barley flour in bowl, gradually add the spicy marinated liquid and blend it well with spatula to avoid lump.

3rd Step: Using a tight sifter, spread the flax seeds powder over the blended barley and mix it well. Put it in individual serving plates and serve it with milk or orange juice.

Servings 2

Notes:

• Barley flour (Besso): If roasted barely flour is unavailable (a) Take 3 cups of barley seeds, soak and remove inedible outer skin (b) lightly roast the seeds for 10 minutes (c) grind the seeds (c) add ½ teaspoon roasted garlic powder and ¼ teaspoon ginger powder and salt to taste; grind it more; keep it in a tight container, store it in fridge; use it whenever needed.
• Flax seeds: Lightly roast the flax seeds, grind it; keep it in a tight container, use it immediately or keep it in the fridge for a day or two.

Click here to prepare Purified/Clarified Butter (Nitir Kebe)

* You will find the spices mentioned here in Ethiopian or Indian shops/groceries

Read More

Crock Pot Chicken

So, even though we're back into our apartment now, we're still having some issues.  Like, our oven only broils, and we're short one burner- which wouldn't be a big deal, except its the one big burner.  Fortunately, we did get our crock pot replaced, so I've been doing a lot of experimenting with it.

Spray crockpot with cooking spray.  Add one chicken breast per person eating, or if you're being healthy and want to split the chicken breasts, you do math.

Cover with one jar of salsa.  I like Newman Peach Salsa.  It gives it a nice sweet flavor.

Cook for 4 hours on low.

Add 2 cans of drained black beans.  Cook on low for another 4 hours ish.

Serve with cheese and sour cream.  Its kind of a goolash.  Add fritos if you're feeling frito-ish.

Eat.  This gets better with age.  Optimal age is 2 days, I wouldn't recommend more than 4. 

Read More

Cream Cheese Dip

I made this to dip my cinnamon chips in last night, and it was a hit. It could be used as a fruit dip, too.

2 blocks of cream cheese
1/2-3/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons milk
a splash of vanilla (to taste)

Let cream cheese soften. Throw it all in a mixer and whip it together.

Read More

Ethiopian Oat Cereal (YeAjja Qiniché)

YeAjja Qiniché is a breakfast meal easy to prepare and fulfilling.

Ingredients:

2 cups cracked oats
2 tablespoon purified butter (NitirKebe)* or
4 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups or more water
1½ cup milk (optional)
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1/8 teaspoon turmeric powder
2 tablespoon raisins
Salt to taste

Preparation:

1st Step: Rinse the cracked oats very well;

2nd Step: in a medium cooking pot, boil water; add milk, 1 tablespoon butter or 2 tablespoon oil, garlic, black pepper, turmeric powder, salt.

3rd Step: In the spiced boiling pot, add the cracked oats and cook it in a lower heat;

4th Step: After 15 minutes of cooking the oats, sprinkle the raisins and cook it for another 5 to 10 minutes or until it absorbs the water, stir continuously and gently;

5th Step: Remove from heat; add the remaining butter or olive oil and mix it very well; serve it immediately or keep it in the fridge, serve it warm.

Serving 4 persons

* Click here to prepare Purified/Clarified Butter (Nitir Kebe)

Read More

Contest time

Okay, we need more recipes.

Here are the rules:

1. One point per dessert recipe.
2. Two points for non-dessert recipe.
3. A bonus point per picture that YOU took. (So, make the recipe, take pictures along the way, like fancy cooking blogs do, and you can get a whole bunch of posts.)
4. All recipes must be tried by you, and may not have been previously posted.
5. You lose all points for that recipe if you don't label it.

Contest ends Saturday, April 3oth at midnight.

Winner will receive a prize, of some sort. I'm thinking chocolate. You also get bragging rights.

Edited to change end date. After Emma's comment, I realized that, with all that is going on, one week just isn't enough. We'll go for just over a month.

Read More

Spiced Collard Green (YeGomen Kitfo)

This simple vegetable side-dish is appetizing and nutritious.

Ingredients:

1 lb collard green
2 teaspoons Mitmita *
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil or
1½ tablespoon purified/clarified butter (Nitir Kebe) **
½ teaspoon cardamom powder (korerima) *
½ teaspoon garlic powder or fresh garlic (diced)
Salt and pepper to taste
Water as required

Preparation:

1st Step: Separate the leaves, cut and discard the end stems, wash well in cold water. Then finely chop the leaves. Soak it in cold water;

2nd Step: Boil 8 cups of water in a large pot and add the collard green, whenever needed add boiled water and cook it for 20 minutes or until tender or until it absorbs all water.

3rd Step: Step: In medium pot, on a lower heat melt the butter, remove from heat, add mitmita, cardamom, garlic, black pepper, salt. If oil is used, no need warm, just mix it with the rest of ingredients;

4th Step: Combine the cooked collard green with the spicy butter or oil; using fork and spoon, mix it until completely marinated.

5th Step: Serve it with Injera, pita bread or any bread of your choice.

* You will find these spices in Ethiopian or Indian shops/groceries
** Please click here to see how to prepare Purified/Clarified Butter (Nitir Kebe)

Read More

Sardines Wot (Sardines Stew)

Sardines Stew is my sister Haimi's favorite dish.

Ingredients:

12oz sardines (4 canned)
1 cup shallot or red onions (finely chopped)
1 ½ tablespoons hot red chili powder (berbere)
2 tablespoon tomato sauce
3 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
4 garlic cloves (diced)
¼ teaspoon ginger powder
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon cardamom powder
1½ cup water
Salt (if needed)

Preparation:

1st Step: Cook the onion with 1 tablespoon of oil and ½ cup of water (by gradually adding the water); stir and sauté continuously until it is very soft.

2nd Step: Add ½ cup of water, chili powder, tomato sauce, garlic, ginger, black pepper and 2 tablespoons oil boil; stir and cook for 10 minutes and add ½ cup water and cook for 2 minutes;

3rd Step: Open the sardines, strain and discard the oil or water which comes with it; add the sardines in the stew and stir and cook for 10 minutes. Add cardamom powder and stir. Remove from heat.

4th Step: Serve it warm or cold as dipping sauce.

Serving 4.

Read More

Teff Injera (Ethiopian flat-thin bread)

Teff is tiny ancient grain grown in Ethiopia and Injera is mainly a product of Teff.

Ingredients:

4 ½ lbs (2kg) Teff flour
1 teaspoon dried yeast
water (as required)

Preparation:

1st Step: Starter - mix the yeast with one cup of warm water; keep until rises;

2nd Step: Meantime, sift the Teff into a big bowl, mix it by hand with cold water, or blend it lightly in a food processor; add the starter and mix it well;

3rd Step: Pour the dough in a medium tall container; add water generously; cover and set aside overnight to ferment;

4rd Step: The second day, discard the water from the dough; add fresh water to it generously and keep it outside for another 24 hours.

5th Step: The third day, discard the water from the dough;

6th Step: In a medium pot, boil 3 cups of water; add one cup of the fermented dough, mix it well with spatula for 10 minutes or until it is thick; mix it with the fermented dough; add water as required. It should be thinner than pancake dough.

7th Step: Preheat a flat large skillet or Ethiopian Injera pan (Mettade), leave it on low fire when baking, take ½ cup or less dough, pour it in circle starting from the edge. Bake it for 30 -40 seconds. As Injera is delicate, remove from the pan carefully, put it on a flat surface or a flat platter to cool; depending on the size of skillet, you may get 20 to 30 Injera.

8th Step: Serve it at room temperature. Keep it outside for a day or two. If need, put them in the fridge; microwave each Injera for 40 seconds before serving.

Note:

- Teff flour is available in health store or in Ethiopian groceries.
- Use the dried yeast as a starter only the first time you prepare the dough, otherwise you keep one cup fermented dough in the fridge to use it as a starter.
- If you prefer less sour Injera, you may bake the Injera 24 hours after your prepare the dough.

Read More

Ethiopian Whole Chickpeas Mild Stew (Yeshinbera Alicha Fitfit)

This is a yummy side-dish. It looks like soup and served with Injera cut in pieces. I always prepare it when I have a big gathering during Lent time.

Ingredients:

2 cups dried chickpeas
1 cup onion (thinly chopped)
1 cup vegetable or corn oil
6 cloves garlic (diced) or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon cardamom powder (korerima) *
¼ teaspoon turmeric *
1 teaspoon yellow mustard or 1 tablespoon fresh ginger-root juice
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2 long hot green peppers, seeded and sliced
6 cups of water
Salt to taste

Preparation:

1st Step: Cook the onion with 2 tablespoons of oil and one cup of water (by gradually adding the water); stir and sauté continuously until it is very soft. Add five cups of water, boil it for five minutes;

2nd Step: Rinse and add the chickpeas, cook it for 15 minutes;

3nd Step: Add oil, garlic, turmeric, black pepper, mustard or ginger; mix it well and cook for 20 minutes or until the chickpeas are soft;

4th Step: Add salt and cardamom powder, remove from heat and add the green sliced pepper.
At room temperature, keep it in the fridge.

5th Step: Cut the Injera in pieces and place them in a serving bowl; pour the chickpeas mild stew and mix it gently. Serve it cold.

Note:
* You will find these spices in Ethiopian or Indian shops/groceries.
-If you prefer the chickpeas in a can, it would take less time to cook but rinse it well.
-You may use dried yellow peas instead of the chickpeas.
-To make the dried chickpeas soft and tender, it would be advisable to soak them for at least a day before cooking.

Read More

Ethiopian Chickpeas Fish Stew (Yeshinbera Assa Wot)

This is one of Ethiopian exotic dish. The literal meaning of Yeshinbra Assa is chickpeas fish but there is no fish inside the dish except the design which looks like fish. We prepare this dish, when we have a special occasion during Lent time. It is my mother's favorite dish.

Ingredients

4 cups spiced chickpeas flour
4 cups red onions or shallots (thinly chopped)
1 ½ cups hot red chili powder (berbere) *
5 cups water or more
2 cups vegetable or corn oil
1 tablespoon fresh garlic or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon cardamom (korerima)*
¼ teaspoon black cumin*
½ teaspoon fresh ginger-root juice
Salt and black pepper to taste

Preparation
1st Step: In a medium bowl, combine the spiced chickpeas flour, salt, and ½ cup of oil; gently mix the ingredients together adding water slowly until the dough is smooth;

2nd Step: Spread the dough on a baking sheet using cookie scooping tools; shape them as fish or as desired;

3rd Step: Bake the chickpeas cookies for 25 minutes or until golden brown;

4th Step: In meantime, in medium pot, sauté the onion using one cup of water by adding two tablespoons each time until the onion is golden brown and soft;

5th Step: Add one cup of water to the cooked onion, hot red chili powder, garlic, ginger, black cumin, and stir it well; add 1½ cups of oil, stir for 15 minutes;

6th Step: Add three cups of water (or more if need); Cook for 15 minutes;

7th Step: To the boiling sauce, add the baked chickpeas cookies; stir and cook, in a lower heat, for 20 minutes or until it simmers;

8th Step: Add cardamom, salt and black pepper to taste. Remove from heat.

9th Step: Keep it in the refrigerator and serve it cold with Injera (Ethiopian Flat Bread) or bread of your choice.

Serving 10 or more.

* You will find these spices in Ethiopian or Indian shops/groceries.

For nutritional facts of this recipe please visit http://www.recipezaar.com/415801. For vitamin content please click on "Print Recipe" on aforementioned site.

Read More

Hot Pockets

I made these for Amy's crew, and I heard they were a hit. My kids love them, too. They are very freezable. Just cook them up, and toss them in the freezer, and they easily reheat in the oven. (Don't reheat them in the microwave, though. They are chewy and weird.)

1 1/2 cup warm water
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp yeast
1/2 tsp salt
3-4 1/2 cups flour

Combine water, sugar, and yeast, and let stand about 10 mins. Mix in salt and 1 1/2 cups flour. Add flour gradually until it forms a sticky dough. (You want it a little stickier than normal bread dough, but not so sticky you can't work with it.)

Let it rise until double in size (45 mins -1 hour).

(Note: If you want to, right here, make these into breadsticks, cinnamon sticks, or pizza dough, that works, too.)

Pull off small balls and roll them out into a disc. I do one hot pocket at a time. I tried rolling out half the dough and slicing it into sections, but that didn't work as well. Put filling in (see below), and pinch the edges. Brush with egg wash. Bake at 425 for about 12-15 mins.

Now, for fillings, I have tried the following:

-chicken, spinach, cream cheese, and seasonings. I thought it was great; kids weren't fans.
-pepperoni, cheese, pizza sauce.
-sausage, cheese, marinara sauce.
-ham and cheese (Tom's favorite)

I've found 2-3 tablespoons of total filling is about right. It depends on how big of a pocket you make. My next ones, I want to do some dessert ones with pie fillings and a cinnamon/sugar sprinkle on top.

Read More

Ethiopian Hummus (Elibet)

The broad beans paste is an appetizing and appealing side-dish. In Ethiopia, broad beans are cooked in many ways. This is one of my favorite dishes.

Ingredients:

3 cups dried broad Beans* (baqueella)
1 cup Sunflower seeds (Suff)
4 tablespoons lemon juice)
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 cups or more water

Preparation:

1st Step: Rinse the sunflower seeds with cold water; in a cooking pot, cover it in cold water; boil for 15 minutes or until soft; strain in colander, discard the liquid; place the sunflower seeds in a food processor (blender), add 5 cups of cold water; grind and mash until all the seeds are crushed; strain and pour the sunflower juice into a cooking pot;

2nd Step: Rinse the broad beans and add to the sunflower juice; cook it for 30 minutes or until it is very soft.

3rd Step: Place the cooked beans in a blender or food processor. Add garlic, oil, salt, lemon, 1 cup or more the boiled sunflower liquid, and two cube ice. Blend it for 4-5 minutes until thoroughly mixed and smooth.

4th Step: Place the Elibet (Hummus) in serving bowl or in a container; Serve it immediately with Injera, pita bread or any bread of your choice. Keep the rest in fridge.
*As broad beans come in green, beige or brown, use the beige to get the creamy color.
Serving 6.
For nutritional facts of this recipe please visit http://www.recipezaar.com/416617 . For vitamin content please click on "Print Recipe" on aforementioned site.

Read More

Popovers

These are not that hard to make! I don't know why I don't make them more often. Makes about 10.

2 Eggs

1 C.Milk

1 Tbsp Melted Butter

1 C Flour

Pinch or two of salt

Half fill muffin cups. Put them in a cold oven (I think this also works better if the eggs and milk are at room temperature. The idea is to raise the temp gradually). Start the oven going towards 450 degrees for 15 minutes, then another 20-25 minutes turn it down to 350 degrees.

Read More

Pork Tenderloin in Sauce

My own invention:

1 Pork Tenderloin (remove silverskin and cut in to chunks)

2 Tbsp Olive Oil

2 Tbsp Butter

Salt

Pepper

Melt the Butter and Olive oil together. Sprinkle salt and peper on the Pork Tenderloin pieces. Fry. You could stop here, and they would be tasty. But I used a Cast Iron Fry Pan because it could go straight from the stovetop to the oven:

Add

1 can Chicken Broth

4-5 Tbsp Ketchup

Put it in the oven, stirring occasionally until the Broth and Ketchup are heated and combined. You could stop here, but it gets better:

Mix

2-3 TBSP corn starch

1/2 C. Milk

Add it to the sauce. Put it back in the oven. Let it cook down and thicken. You can cover it loosely with Aluminum foil if you like.

Serve over noodles or bread or potatoes or whatever starch you feel appropriate. (I made popovers to go with it, and it was all yummy.)

Read More

Spinach & Tomato Pasta Salad

Sautee minced garlic in olive oil.

Toss in a lightly chopped pile of spinach and some halved cherry tomatoes. Salt & Pepper.

Add some pre-cooked spiral pasta, lightly salted. Sprinklie on Grated Parmesan and Asiago cheese.

I think the basic idea came from Giada (Food Network) but I can't find it online. But it was very tasty, served as a side to broiled salmon.

Read More

All purpose cleaner

Disclaimer: This recipe is NOT edible. I will not be held responsible for any eating of it.

I got this for Christmas from a friend, and it works really, really well. She made hers with Palmolive, and it's really sudsy. She said she normally uses Dawn, and it's better. When I make it, I will try using Dawn.

1/4 c vinegar
2 tsp borax
3 1/2 cups hot water
20 drops of essential oil (lavendar, tea tree, lemon, peppermint)
1/4 c dish soap (add last)

Put it all in a spray bottle and shake.

I use it in our kitchen and bath, and it's been really great.

Read More

Yam Casserole

This one definitely does not meet Melissa's challenge. In fact, it is preparing fruits and veggies much like Aaron and Tom prefer to- coated in a thick layer of sugar.



4-5 medium yams boiled and peeled
4-5 Apples Peeled and sliced
Alternate Yams and apples in casserole dish.

Boil Together:
1 c. white sugar
2 c. water
4 Tb. cornstarch
1 tsp. salt

After thickened add 1/4 c. marg./butter
Pour sauce over apples and yams and cook 1 hour at 350
Add grated orange rind to sauce for flavor.

Be sure not to overboil yams-mushy is no fun! :)

Read More

Fend for Yourself --A learning opportunity

In our house they are times when I just can't make dinner. I try to keep easy to fix items in the cabinet or freezer for these nights & until recently I always felt guilty telling my husband & kids dinner was going to be Fend For Yourself. One day it suddenly hit me that Fend For Yourself night is actually a very good learning experience for my family. I'm not organized enough to actually

Read More

Cooking with the kids!

When the weather turns cold, everyone in my house seems to get cranky. Baking treats is one of my favorite ways to cure that crankiness (at least temporarily) and involving the kids in the actual making of the treats not only cuts down on their boredom, but is GREAT family time as well.When I first started baking with my kids, I found it easiest to stick to simple recipes or even boxed mixes.

Read More

A New Challenge

Okay, so as most of you know, I'm cutting out refined sugar from my diet. Like totally. I will spare you the details, but even the smallest piece of sugary cereal makes me incredibly sick. I do okay with brown sugar, but no white sugar at all. Right now, I know there's probably more that I can't eat, but the only thing I've been able to pin down for sure is sugar.

Having been raised in this family, I'm sure you can all see the problem this presents. So I need recipes that don't use sugar.

Ready go!

Read More

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

I made this last night, and Tom said it was better than the storebought ones he loves. I may try making lots next time, and freezing them. They were a hit, though. I got them from www.ourbestbites.com, which is my favorite cooking blog. They have recipes that taste good, and can be cooked by the normal person.


Here's the link, because I'm lazy like that. (Actually, for some reason, I just haven't been able to copy and paste it here, and I don't have time to type it out.)

Read More