She's Cookin' Again

So, maybe it's been three months....aaaand more than a few days on top of that. I've missed you. And I see that I've gotten a few hits here and there since I've been gone, so maybe you missed me too. :)

This little guy has stolen my heart and my spare time. But I wouldn't trade it. He's pretty fun to hang out with. And, as you can tell, he likes to eat just like his mama.

If you've wondered, I have been cooking. It's less frequent than before, but I still find immense joy in the kitchen. It's life-giving. Especially when I feel sucked dry. Literally. Too much information?

I'm starting small on this post, but I have more up my sleeve. Not to worry. I am back. Maybe not as often, but I will be posting new stuff soon.

For now, I finally got around to making kale chips!

These have been around for a while. In fact, they are even selling them in bags at the grocery store now. For some reason I was always afraid of messing them up, so I didn't try it. But it's really not that difficult. I've been missing out.

They are crispy and flaky-like and addicting! I haven't figured out how to store them well, though. I tried to save them in a Ziploc bag and they got sort of chewy. Not the consistency you want in a chip. But, straight out of the oven, they are yummy. You should just eat them all in one go.

Here's how I did it:
I used one bunch of kale and one bunch of beet green leaves. They were washed and spun dry in a salad spinner, then dabbed even drier with paper towels, and torn into chip-sized pieces. Be sure they are really dry. Preheat your oven to 275F.

Lay the greens on a foil-lined cookie sheet in one layer. Drizzle about 2 tablespoons of olive oil over the greens with a few pinches of kosher salt. Toss well so that all the leaves are coated. Bake for 25 minutes.

Let rest a few minutes. Enjoy with a friend or two.

Stay tuned for more fun recipes and food adventures. Happy cookin'!

Oven Fries

I had 3 sweet potatoes in my CSA box, and a handful of fingerling potatoes from another day's cooking adventure. I decided to try making oven fries again - you know, fries that are baked instead of deep-fried. It's been a while. I've tried before and they haven't crisped up much for me, so I tried a few different things this time.
1. I cut them thinner.

2. I made sure they were all flat on the pan (the best I could using one pan, may have been wiser to use two).

3. I made sure they were all coated with olive oil, salt and pepper before putting them in a hot 400F degree oven.

4. I turned them in the middle of baking, after about 15 minutes.

5. I let them cool a bit before eating them. Patience - something I'm trying to get better at.

I baked them for a total of about 25 minutes. The fingerlings did much better than the sweet potatoes, but the thinner cut ones definitely were more firm and crispy.

They weren't perfect, but they were better than I've ever made them! And they tasted good, which is all that really matters.

Homemade Granola

I made a few different food gifts this year for Christmas. It has become a very economical way to love on our many cousins, aunts, and uncles that we get to visit with every winter.

This year, I went with a sort of breakfast theme, serving up granola, hot cocoa mix, and a homemade jar of jam, fruit butter, or jelly.

I got this recipe for homemade granola from our cousin, Sarah. She's a great cook and has her own {blog}too. I love making my own granola because I can control what goes in it, like the amount of sugar, and I can use whatever I have in my cupboards to make it unique each time. 

First, preheat the oven to 275F. Prepare your baking pan (either a 9x13 pan or a cookie sheet with edges) by covering it with aluminum foil and spraying it with cooking spray.

Second, mix up all of the dry ingredients: oats, wheat germ, salt, brown sugar, nuts, and dried fruit. You can wait to add the dried fruit until the middle of the baking process (unlike how I did it this time) so that the fruit doesn't taste too "cooked."

Then you mix the wet ingredients (no picture, sorry!) in a small saucepan: maple syrup (I use sugar-free pancake syrup), flavorings like vanilla or almond extract and cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice, vegetable oil, and a little bit of water. Heat it up until it reaches a simmer, then take it off the heat and pour it onto the dry ingredient mix. Stir thoroughly so that all of the oats are coated with the wet mixture.

Then, pour out the granola onto your prepared cookie sheet. Make sure that it's evenly spread out. I like to pat mine down flat so that the grains actually look like one large sheet. When it bakes, it will become crunchy and become little clusters.

I packaged my granola in these little bags that I found on eBay.  Aren't they cute? I especially like the peekaboo windows. I printed up labels and it was ready to deliver to the family!

Here's the recipe:

Homemade Granola

2 cups old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup wheat germ
2 Tbs. dark brown sugar (I used Splenda brown sugar blend)
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup Extra Ingredients (see complete list below)
1/4 cup maple syrup (I used sugar free maple syrup)
3 Tbs. flavorless oil, such as vegetable or canola
1 Tb. water
Flavoring (see below)
Adjust oven rack to middle position, and heat oven to 275 degrees. Coat a 9-by-13-inch metal pan with cooking spray, and then set aside. Mix oats, wheat germ, brown sugar, salt and Extra Ingredients --except dried fruit -- in a bowl. Bring syrup, oil, water and any Flavoring indicated below to a simmer in a saucepan over low heat. Drizzle over oat mixture, and stir to combine. Pour mixture onto prepared pan. Spread out evenly and press it down flat. Bake for 30 minutes. Stir in dried fruit. Continue to bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes longer. Let cool. Granola can be stored in an airtight tin for up to two weeks.


Flavoring
1. Classic Granola
Extra Ingredients: 1/3 cup chopped walnuts, 1/3 cup sweetened flake coconut, 1/3 cup dark or golden raisins
Flavoring: 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
You can replace the 1/4 cup of maple syrup with 2 Tbs. each of maple syrup and molasses.
2. Crunchy Granola
Extra Ingredients: 1/4 cup slivered almonds, 1/4 cup sunflower seeds, 2 Tbs. sesame seeds, 6 Tbs. currants
Flavoring: none
3. Granola with Tropical Flavoring
Add the coconut along with the cashews and banana chips.
Extra Ingredients: 1/4 cup chopped roasted unsalted cashews, 1/4 cup chopped banana chips, 1/4 cup sweetened flake coconut, 1/4 cup chopped dried pineapple
Flavoring: 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
4. Granola with Cherries and Almonds
Extra Ingredients: 1/3 cup sliced almonds, 1/3 cup sweetened flake coconut, 1/3 cup dried cherries
Flavoring: 3/4 tsp. almond extract

Bugs On A Log

It was the afternoon on Sunday and we were ready for a snack. I had celery. What goes with celery?
Why, peanut butter, of course!

Back in 1st grade, my teacher, Ms. Nobusada, showed us how to make "bugs on a log." Some people call them "ants"...anyway, same idea.

Since that day, it's been one of my favorite snacks (although I'm often out of bugs, so it just ends up being peanut butter on celery sticks).

Well, I found some bugs (raisins) in the pantry, along with peanut butter...and I also remembered that I had some Laughing Cow cheese wedges in the fridge. Yum. And I threw some bugs on there too. Cheese goes with grapes, right? Yes, yes it does.

It turned out to be a great snack to tie us over until dinner. These things aren't just for 6-year olds. They can satisfy a grown-up's tummy just as well.

Don't forget all the things you learned in 1st grade. They could come in handy later in life!