Oatmeal and Banana Pancakes

I bought 25 pounds of oatmeal. No, that isn't a typo. 25 pounds! Now we often eat oatmeal for breakfast but 25 pounds may have been excessive so I have been trying some new oatmeal recipes-Oatmeal Bread(alot of work!), Banana Oatmeal Bread, Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookies, and these Oatmeal and Banana Pancakes. Max and Bella LOVED them. I tasted a couple bites and they are delicious and they are good for you! The recipe included a Pomegranate Syrup recipe to use on the pancakes which I didn't try this time but plan to next time.

Oatmeal and Banana Pancakes

3 medium bananas
1/2 cup of skim milk
1/2 tsp of pure vanilla extract
1 cup of rolled oats, ground to a course flour in a food processor
1/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup of whole wheat flour (I used freshly ground hard white wheat)
1/4 tsp of salt
2 tsp of baking powder
2 egg whites, whipped to soft peaks


1. Add bananas, milk, and vanilla to a blender and puree until smooth.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the ground oats, the rolled oats, flour, salt and baking powder.
3. Fold in the blended banana mixture to form a thick batter. Don't overwork!
4. Gently fold in the blended egg whites.
5. Cook until lightly brown on both sides. These will be thick, dense pancakes.


Pomegrante Syrup
1 cup of Pomegranate Juice
2 Tablespoons of Honey

1. Whisk juice and honey together in a small saucepan.
2. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then drop heat to medium.
3. Simmer mixture until it is a thick syrup-about 15 minutes.
4. Cool slightly and use over pancakes.


This recipe is from the May/June issue of Clean Eating Magazine.

Roasted Carrots

This http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/11/roasted-carrots-by-pastor-ryan/
is pretty much the greatest thing to ever happen to a carrot. End of story! Make these today!

Dill Dip

I got this yummy recipe from Lee's family and we love it. It is supposed to be served with veggies but Lee, Ben, and Kim just like to eat it with chips:)!

3/4 cup mayo
3/4 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
1 tablespoon minced onion
1 teaspoon of Beau Monde
1 teaspoon of dill

Mix it all together. I usually double or triple this and you can eat it right away but it tastes better if you mix it up several hours before serving.

Mini Veggie Frittatas

Vegetable oil spray
4 eggs
3 Tbs. low-fat milk
1/4 ts. salt
/3 cup part-skim mozzarella cheese
4 sundried tomatoes chopped or fresh tomato
1/3 cup red, yellow, orange or green pepper.

1.Preheat oven to 375. Spritz 12 mini muffin tins with vegetable oil.
2. In a bowl, whisk eggs, milk, and salt. Add cheese and veggies.
3. Spoon a tablespoon into each muffin cup. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes.

Kid tested by Max at NanaSue's.

Heather's Parmesian Corn Chowder

This is a very yummy soup. You can eat it just the way it is or put in diced ham or chicken. Freezes well too!

2 cups water
2 cups diced peeled potatoes
1/2 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup sliced celery
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup butter or margerine
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 cups milk
1 can cream style corn
6 oz of shredded parmesian cheese

In a large sauce pan, combine first 5 ingredients, bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until veggies are tender(Do NOT drain)
Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour, salt & pepper until smooth. Gradually stir in milk. Bring to a boil, cook and stir for 2 minutes until thickened. Then stir it into the veggie mixture.
Add corn and cheese (and ham or chicken if you are using). Cook 10 min longer. While cooking, this needs to be monitered and stirred frequently because the cheese can stick and burn.

I got this recipe from a friend and she always uses chicken and loves it. I always use turkey- ham and prefer it that way. It's yummy either way or plain!

Cranberry Chicken

This is a family favorite!

8 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 can WHOLE cranberry sauce
1 package of Lipton Onion soup mix
1 8 0z bottle of French Dressing
garlic salt and oregeno

Combine sauce, soup, and dressing. Pour over chicken and sprinkle with spices. Cover and bake for 1.5 to 2 hours @300 degrees. Uncover and bake for 30 more min. Serve with egg noodles or rice.
I have also done this in the crock pot and let it cook on low all day.

Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

3 c. sugar
4 c. flour
1 t. baking powder
3 t. baking soda
6 ripe bananas
4 large eggs
1 c. canola oil
1/2 c. orange juice
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract
12 oz. semisweet chocolate chips (toss in flour so they don't sink to the bottom)

Sift all dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
Put the bananas into a large bowl and mash at low speed.
Add eggs, oil, oj, and vanilla and mix til smooth for 1 minute at medium speed.
Add the dry ingredients, mix til smooth, about 2 minutes.
Add chocolate chips and mix til blended.
Pour into a greased and floured 9 inch tube or bundt pan. (You can also use 2 loaf pans)

Bake at 350 for 1 1/4 hours.
Cool on rack 15-20 minutes, then unmold.
Top with powdered sugar.

Wing Dip

Easy Peasy Creamy Cheesy! (can you tell I am spending time in an elementary school?)

3 bricks of cream cheese
2-3 cooked, chopped chicken breasts
Ken's Steak House Blue Cheese dressing (start with 2 cups, add to taste)
1 cup of Texas Pete Hot Sauce

Microwave all ingredients until creamy and mixed.
Serve with Scoops and celery

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 (16 oz.) can pureed pumpkin
1 1/2 cups oil
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 package chocolate chips

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs, sugar, pumpkin, and oil until smooth. Add in dry ingredients and mix well. Fold in chocolate chips. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups 3/4 full. Bake 16-20 minutes at 400 degrees. Makes 24-30 muffins.

I replaced the oil with unsweetened applesauce and reduced the amount of eggs to 2 eggs and these were still really yummy! They freeze well too! Very yummy with a cup of coffee!!

Happy National Waffle Week! Sept 6-Sept 12

I made these yesterday (I doubled the recipe) and froze the leftovers-Who needs Kashi?!! I also added about 1/3 of cup of ground flax seed.

Money Saving Mom's Favorite Whole-Wheat Waffles
(Makes approximately 6-8 waffles. I usually triple or quadruple this recipe and it will make enough to last for at least 4-6 breakfasts for us.)

1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder
2 eggs
1 3/4 cup milk (I usually use half milk, half water--unless I have a lot of excess milk to use up!)

1/2 cup oil or melted butter (I usually use half oil, half applesauce. You can use all applesauce, but we don't think they turn out quite as well that way. I've also substituted other pureed fruits and veggies and those work as well. So long as you do half oil/half puree, it doesn't make much difference.)
1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
Mix together dry ingredients in one bowl. Lightly beat together wet ingredients in another. Add egg mixture to dry ingredients and stir just until moistened. Pour batter onto lightly-oiled waffle iron and bake until done.
To freeze, I normally just let them cool and then stick 5-6 in each freezer bag. To thaw, just pull them straight out of the freezer and heat in the microwave, in a toaster oven, or in the oven.

Caroline's Blueberry Muffins

2 ripe bananas
2 eggs
1 cup brown sugar (can use Splenda/brown sugar)
1/2 cup olive oil or melted butter
1 1/2 cups blueberries
1/2 ts. vanilla
1/2 ts. almond flavoring
2 1/4 cups flour (1 whole wheat, 1 1/4 white)
2 ts. baking powder
1/2 ts. cinnamon
1/2 ts. salt

Mash bananas.
Combine bananas, eggs, sugar, and oil till blended.

Stir in blueberries and flavorings.

Mix dry ingredients together, then stir into banana/blueberry mixture until well blended.

Spoon into greased (PAM) muffin pans. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.
Makes 12

Darth Vader Bean Lasagna

The first time I served this I told Max the "black things" were Darth Vader Beans and he promptly ate it up! This is a good way to get beans in those that don't like them and a great meatless dish to help save money.

9 lasagna noodles(cooked according to directions)
1 large onion
3 garlic cloves minced
2 (16oz) cans of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can of diced tomatoes, undrained
2 cans of tomatoe paste(6oz)
1 cup of water
2 TBS of fresh cilantro
1/4 to 1/2 tsp of crushed red pepper flakes
4 egg whites beaten
1 (15oz) carton of reducedfat ricotta cheese
1/2 up of grated parmesian
1/4 cup of fresh parsley minced(I used dried)
2 cups of shredded reduced fat Mexican blend cheese(I like mine cheesy and used more than this)
1. In a large skillet over medium heat cook onion and garlic in oil until tender. Add the beans, tomatoes, paste, water, cilantro and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until slightly thickened.
2. Combine egg whites, ricotta cheese, Parmesian cheese, and parsley
3. Spread 1/2 cup of bean mixture in bottom of 13x9 baking dish. Layer with 3 noodles, a third of ricotta cheese mixture, a third of remaining bean sauce and 2/3 cup of cheese blend. Repeat 2 times.
4. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Uncover and bake 10-15 longer or until bubbly. Let it stand for 10 minutes before serving.


***
I use no cook whole wheat lasagna noodles from Super Target(Archer Farm brand). I don’t use the cilantro or red pepper and only use a can and half of black beans(because Lee doesn’t like them) I use whatever cheese I have so sometimes it is cheddar and mozzarella and sometimes the blend or just one or the other. I also use a lot more than 2 cups.

Black Bean Salad

Ingredients

2 cans black beans, drained, about 30 onces
1 (15-ounce) can corn, drained
2 Roma tomatoes, diced
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
1/4 cup diced red onion
1/4 cup diced green onions
1/4 cup diced pineapple
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
4 tablespoons sherry vinegar
juice of 1/2 lime
3 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
pinch of ground cumin

Directions:
Mix all ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate for 1 hour

Steak Bites

Ben loves these steak bites! I don't know how healthy they are considering they are sauted in BUTTER, but they sure do taste good! Here's the link from Pioneer Women.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/01/steak-bites/

Corn Chowder

1 lb Jimmy Dean sausage
1 medium onion, diced
5-6 red potatoes, quartered
1 Tbs basil
2 cups water (enough to cover potatoes)
1 can cream corn
1 can whole kernal corn (drained)*
1 can evaporated milk (the larger can, maybe 10 1/2 oz)
salt/pepper to taste

In a large pot, cook sausage until no longer pink. Drain, leaving a little less than a tablespoon of fat in bottom of pot, set sausage aside. Saute onion in sausage drippings until translucent. Add sausage, potatoes, basil and water to the pot. Cover and cook until potatoes are done. Once potatoes are cooked through, add cream corn, whole kernal corn, evaporated milk, salt and pepper. Simmer until warmed through.

*If you have it, fresh corn tastes the best. The times that I've used frozen corn, it's comes out a little chewy.

Tiffany's Curried Chicken Salad /Kim's Aunt

1 box Ricearoni (chicken) cooked/cooled
2/3 cup green onion -chopped fine
1/2 cup green pepper- chopped
1 can water chestnuts- chopped
1 jar artichoke hearts- chop and use juice
1 stalk celery- chopped
chicken breast-cooked-use 2-3 breasts depending on size- chop

Mix the above with:

1/4 cup mayonaise
1/2 ts. lemon juice
1/4-1/2 ts curry powder depending on taste.
Chill overnight. Add salt and pepper to taste. It can also be served hot. Bake @ 350 until warmed/hot. Serve with green salad, etc. for main meal.

Nana Rich's Forgotten Cookies

Preheat oven to 375

Beat 2 egg whites , then add 3/4 cup of sugar and a pinch of cream of tarter; this should stand up. Add 1/4 package chocolate chips-fold in. Place by teaspoon on greased cookie sheet. Place in oven-TURN OFF oven. Check after a couple of hours. Ideal to do overnight.

Danish Casserole

2 cans crescent rolls (large)
filling:
2 8 oz. packages cream cheese
1 c. sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
1 egg
icing:
1 cup pwd sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 T milk

Roll out one can of crescent rolls in the bottom of a greased 13 x 9 inch pan. In a seperate bowl, mix all the filling ingredients until well blended and "fluffy." Spread filling mixture over crescent rolls. Roll out remaining can of crescent rolls on top of filling. Bake @ 350 for 30 mins. While casserole is baking, mix all ingredients together for icing. Drizzle icing over casserole and ENJOY!

Peanut Pie

Peanut Pie
1 9 inch pie crust baked
1/3 cup of creamy peanut butter
3/4 cup confectioners sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 ts. salt
2 cups of milk
2 egg yolks (slightly beaten)
2 ts. butter
1 ts. vanilla
1 container Cool Whip
Mix peanut butter and confectioners sugar till crumbly; spread over bottom of baked pie crust saving some to sprinkle on top when pie is complete.
Place flour,sugar, salt, milk and eggs in a sauce pan. Whisk together; bring to rolling boil at moderate heat till thick. Remove from heat and add 2 ts. butter and 1 ts. vanilla. Pour over peanut butter mixture-cool. Spread Cool Whip over top, then sprinkle with peanut butter/confectioners sugar crumbs that were saved. Can be doubled and placed in 9x13 pan if Ben is coming to visit.

Pancakes

Basic Pancake Recipe

Ingredients:

4 cups of whole wheat pastry flour or other flour

2 tablespoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

3 or 4 eggs

2-3 cups of milk ( I have used water or a combination)

4 tablespoons of melted butter or oil (I always use oil)

2-3 teaspoons of vanilla extract( the original recipe didn't call for this but I think it makes a big difference)

Blueberries-frozen or fresh

Mix together the dry ingredients.

Beat the eggs into the milk and then add the oil.

Stir the wet ingredients into the dry, enough to moisten the flour. If it's thick, add more milk.

I pour the batter into the hot pan and then add a few blueberries to the individual pancakes instead of dumping them in the batter. Keeps the batter from getting bluish and cold since I mostly use frozen berries.

This recipe is double the original recipe and at the beach I doubled this. It makes a ton of pancakes which you can refrigerate for a few days or freeze-if there are any left:) !

No Fail French Bread

prep time: 10 minutes (then stirring every 10 minutes for another 40 minutes) bake time: 20-25 minutes Makes 2 loaves

Ingredients:½ cup warm water
4 ½ tsp yeast(I buy SAF instant yeast)
2 cups of HOT water
1 Tbsp salt
3 Tbsp sugar
1/3 cup oil
6 cups flour (I used all whole wheat at the beach but you can use half wheat and half white or all white)

1. Sprinkle yeast over warm water in a small bowl or measuring cup
2. In a large bowl, combine hot water, salt, sugar and oil. Let stand until warm.
3. Add yeast mixture and 3 cups of flour. Beat until smooth.
4. Add remaining flour to form soft, stirrable dough. (add a little more if it's too sticky--sometimes the humidity in the air can affect this)
5. Cover the dough with a towel and let it rest for ten minutes. Stir again. Repeat this step 5 times.
6. Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead enough to make dough workable for easy handling.
7. Divide dough in half and use hands to form into an oblong loaf shape. Fold in sides, push through the middle and seal seam.(I have made 4 smaller loaves as well.)
8. Arrange side by side on a large cookie sheet
9. Brush with beaten egg white. Slash diagonally 3 or 4 times.
10. Bake at 400 for 20-25 minutes.

This bread freezes well after it is baked and makes great garlic toast the day after!

I got this recipe from my friend Stephanie.

Burnt Bottom Casserole

Ingredients

2 cans Pillsbury crescent rolls
1 16 oz package of sausage (crumbled and cooked)
Sliced deli ham or ham cut from the bone
6 slices of swiss cheese
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Place 1 package of the crescent rolls on the bottom of a 9x13 pan (unrolled)
layer ham, then swiss cheese, then cooked sausage, then cheddar cheese
Place second package of rolls (unrolled) on top

Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or till brown on top