Vegetable Wrap Recipe: Variation 1

After maintaining a 20 pound weight-loss for over a year, I decided recently to go back on weight watchers to help take off the rest of the 30 pounds I need to lose. I don't know if this is even possible. This first week has been tough! I could go into this further but that's not what this post is about. Let's just say that I like to cook and eat. Anyway, I made this delicious vegetable wrap the other day and wanted to share!

1 Mission Wrap Sun-Dried Tomato Basil

1/4 of a zucchini, cut into strips

1/4 of a bell pepper, cut into strips

1/8 of a yellow onion, cut into strips

5 mini carrots, cut into strips

1/4 to 1/2 cup arugula

1 wedge of the Laughing Cow Light cheese spread, I used the Queso Fresco and Chipotle flavor for this

Olive Oil

I sauteed my zucchini and yellow onion in a little bit of olive oil in a small saute pan for about 10 minutes. Then to assemble the wrap, spread the cheese spread on the wrap. Add arugula, zucchini, pepper, onion, and carrots. I also ate mine with some dill pickles for added flavor but it really didn't need it.

Additional notes: This was 7 ww pointsplus after all was said and done. 5 of those points came from the wrap!! I usually choose to buy these wraps because they are made with little to no trans fat (they claim none but we know they can get away with putting a little in their wraps and can still make that claim). No store bought wrap that I have found is really void of all the ingredients that you want to avoid but these seem to be on the better side. This is a compromise for me, people. Anyway, I am interested in finding a lighter wrap, one with less calories perhaps, but I don't want to sacrifice my "natural food" tendencies and go with one that is loaded with hydrogenated oils and corn by-products. We'll see what I can find.

I am planning on making these a regular staple. It was absolutely delicious! I have discovered lately that the only reason that I have a difficult time eating vegetables (and fruit for that matter) is my extremely sensitive teeth to anything cold. I think that's why I "don't like" ice cream. In reality, I like it, I just would prefer to eat a dessert that is warm! :) This was a great fix for the cold vegetable thing. Some of the veggies were still cold and raw but the wrap was warm so it wasn't as extreme. I am thinking of several variations of this recipe, perhaps with tomatoes and feta or even some sort of grain added like quinoa. I will try to post my variations as they happen.

It's been so long since I posted a recipe and it certainly isn't for lack of cooking. I'm still shelling out almost 3 homemade meals a day unless we have leftovers of something. On the menu for tomorrow is a Sausage 15-bean soup that I can't wait for!! Mmmmm!

Noah's Birthday Cupcakes

For my babies' first birthdays I attempt to not include much, if any, sugar in their cakes. I've gotten a little more relaxed about this over the years so this frosting does have a little sugar in it but the cupcakes do not. I have used honey sweetened cream cheese frosting before and I'd probably do that again if I were to make these again. I chose not to do it this time because I didn't know how well I could decorate with the honey sweetened cream cheese frosting but I will experiment sometime!! These were yummy and easy to make!

Enjoy!!

Original link:
http://www.thekitchn.com/maple-cupcakes-from-baked-expl-128758

Maple Cupcakes

Ingredients
for the maple cupcakes
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, slightly softened,cut into chunks
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening, at room temperature
2 cups pure maple syrup (I use grade B to bake with but any grade will suffice)
3 egg yolks
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 cup walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped

for the cream cheese maple frosting
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
12 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons maple syrup

assembly
Whole toasted walnuts (optional)

Baked Note: Do not, I repeat, do not use imitation maple syrup in this recipe. Actually, avoid imitation maple syrup at all times. It is usually composed of corn syrup and food coloring and, sadly, contains very little, if any, real maple syrup. In short, it’s hard to think of a more disingenuous grocery store product.

make the maple cupcakes
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two 12-cup cupcake pans with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and shortening until ribbonlike. Turn the mixer to low and stream in the maple syrup. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until the mixture is nearly uniform in color, about 3 minutes.

Add the egg yolks and egg, one at a time, and beat until just incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add half of the flour mixture and mix on low speed until incorporated. Stream in the milk. Stop the mixer, add the rest of the flour, then turn the mixer on until just combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and fold in the walnuts.

Fill the prepared cupcake pan about three-quarters full. Bake the cupcakes for 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through the baking time, until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Note: These cupcakes take longer to bake than traditional cupcakes due to the maple syrup.

Allow the cupcakes to cool for 15 minutes in the cupcake pan, then turn them out onto wire racks to cool completely.

make the cream cheese maple frosting
In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the softened butter until it is completely smooth. Add the cream cheese and beat until combined.

Add the sugar and the maple syrup and beat until smooth. Be careful not to overbeat the frosting or it will lose structure. (At this point, if you want to, you can tightly cover the frosting and refrigerate it for a day. Let it soften at room temperature before using.)

assemble the cupcakes
There are many ways to frost a cupcake. If you have a pastry bag, simply fit with the largest tip, fill the bag with frosting, and pipe enough to cover the cupcake in a big mound. If you do not have a pastry bag, use an ice cream scoop with a release mechanism to scoop the frosting and dispense it onto the top of the cupcake. You can also use an offset spatula to frost the cupcakes. Top with whole toasted walnuts.

Refrigerate any leftover cupcakes in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Bring cupcakes to room temperature before serving.

Food Blogging Friday - Smashed Sweet Potatoes with Honey

This is a recipe that I got from Rachael Ray. It's definitely yummy!

Take sweet potatoes. Wash, Peel, and Cube them.


Boil 'em. :)


Return them to the pot and mash with chicken stock, honey, orange juice. Add salt, pepper and nutmeg.

Sorry I forgot to take a finished picture. Ah! I'm so bad at this photography stuff.

Anyway, these are a healthy and delicious side to add to any meal.



Smashed Sweet Potatoes with Honey
Rachael Ray

• 2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1/4 cup honey
• Juice of 1 orange
• Salt and pepper
• Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste

Boil the potatoes until tender; drain and return them to the hot pot. Mash with the chicken stock, honey and lemon juice and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg, to taste.

Food Blogging Friday - Whole Wheat Cinnamon Vanilla Pancakes

We are BIG breakfast eaters around here. It is the most important meal of the day after all. We don't eat boxed processed cereal for breakfast (every once in a blue moon the parents do but our kids never have). Instead I usually make something from scratch. Usually it's toast and eggs but sometimes we have something else . . . like these pancakes. I love these. Hearty, flavorful, delicious!

Whole Wheat Cinnamon Vanilla Pancakes

2 cups whole wheat flour
4 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups + 2 tbsp milk
2 tsp vanilla
Butter for frying

Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl. Add wet ingredients to the mixing bowl and mix well with a spoon until there are no more dry spots; don't over-mix. Pour 1/4 cup into hot griddle or pan and cook each side 2 to 4 minutes until golden brown. Serve with butter and REAL maple syrup. Yum!

I will often make a big batch and freeze them for other breakfasts.

Food Blogging Friday - Baked Berry Custard

I don't often make dessert especially if it is just our family eating at a meal. However when I do make dessert this is one of my favorite ones! It's yummy, flexible, and most importantly, easy! Note: This is not necessarily a healthy recipe. It does use white sugar. As with all things, eat in moderation. Ha ha!!

I got the original recipe from the Martha Stewart Show. The original recipe called for Raspberries but I have made this recipe using all sorts of different berries! I suspect that it would also be good with peaches or plums (or a similar fruit).

Recipe:
Baked Berry Custard

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
3/4 cup whole milk
3 large eggs
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups berries (about 9 ounces)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In oven, melt butter in a 9-inch pie plate, about 6 minutes.

In a blender, combine milk, eggs, 1/2 cup sugar, flour, salt, and vanilla. Add melted butter and blend mixture until smooth, 30 seconds.

Distribute berries evenly in pie plate and pour batter over top. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar and bake until slightly puffed and just set in middle, 20 to 25 minutes. Heat broiler and broil until top is deep golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes.

Serve warm.

My favorite is probably with strawberries as seen below. Yum!

Food Blogging Friday: Sloppy Joes (crockpot optional)

These aren't fancy but they sure are good. I love Sloppy Joes - especially when they live up to their name . . . "sloppy". Mmm! Another one of my favorite tastes is BBQ and this recipes combines those two things beautifully.

So . . . if you like your Joes sloppy (ha!) and you like them to be a little more on the barbeque side then this easy recipe is for you!

First you take one pound of beef and brown it in a skillet.

*This beef is actually in my crockpot. I actually doubled this recipe because I was making it for a family at my church as well as my own family so I stuck all these things in the crockpot all day so it would be hot for me to take it to them come supper time.*



Chop 1/4 cup onion and add it to the beef.


Then add 1/2 cup ketchup, 3 tablespoons barbeque sauce, 1 tablespoon mustard, 1 tablespoon vinegar, 1 1/2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce, 1/2 teaspoon celery seed, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper to the beef and onions.

*Note: You can go very right with these ingredients or you can go very wrong! Read ingredient labels because many of these things can contain HFCS. You can easily find products without it though, just shop around!*

Simmer 10 minutes until all the flavors combine and sauce thickens. Or you can add it all to the crockpot on low at the beginning of the day and have it be hot and perfect right about dinner time.

Add to your favorite bun (I like using Thin Buns because they are only two or three weight watcher points - depending on the kind you get but it is just a regular bun in the picture below).

You can also add cheese or cole slaw or pickles or anything else that might strike your fancy!

Yum! (Sorry for the drop of meat on the plate. I saw that after I downloaded the pictures of my camera. I need to work on my photography skills. Just pretend it isn't there! Ha!)

Full Recipe:

Sloppy Sloppy Joes

1 pound ground beef or turkey breast

1/4 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup no-salt-added ketchup

3 tablespoons barbecue sauce

1 tablespoon prepared mustard

1 tablespoon vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

1/4 teaspoon pepper

6 whole wheat hamburger buns, split

Brown beef in a skillet. Add remaining ingredients except buns and simmer 10 minutes. Serve on buns with cheese (optional).

Food Blogging Friday: The BEST Chicken Pot Pie

I can honestly say in all my years on this earth that I have never found a better chicken pot pie recipe than this one. I haven't lived all that long but I challenge you to find one. This uses a white sauce instead of gravy and it is . . . yum!!

Okay, to start out with I made Pioneer Woman's Perfect Pie Crust. It was my first time trying it and yes, it was perfect. As a side note, I was tempted to try it with butter, and I think I will next time, but I used organic expeller pressed shortening and not Crisco.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/12/p-p-p-pie_crust_and_its_p-p-p-perfect/

Then you take 2 tablespoons butter and melt it in a sauce pan. Add 2 tablespoons flour and stir to combine. Cook over medium heat for about a minute. Don't burn it!!


Add 2 cups milk. Whisk constantly to prevent lumps.

Here is the key to this recipe. No matter now long it takes you must wait until this mixture is thickened. I have had it thicken in 5 minutes and sometimes I cook it more like 15 minutes. You'll know. I'm not sure what the difference is but you'll have watery and runny pot pie if you don't have a thick sauce.

*Add 1 cup of cooked shredded chicken.

Add one bag of mixed vegetables (your preference).

Add one teaspoon of Nature's Seasons.

Add the chicken, vegetable, and sauce filling to your pie crust.

Please ignore the beauty of my pie crust. It was NOT beautiful. It was delicious but not beautiful.

Add the top pie crust.

Bake for 45 to 55 minutes at 350 degrees. I actually ended up baking mine longer because the Pioneer Woman's crust was a bit thicker than my usual. I just made sure that the top crust was baked and the rest was perfect.

I forgot to get a picture of it before we dug in! I had some hungry people to feed!!

* The chicken. I made this recipe and others with cooked shredded chicken that I will occasionally put 5 or 6 chicken breasts in a crock pot with carrots, onions and celery and cook all day. Then I will shred the chicken, measure it out into one cup portions and freeze it. Makes this dish super simple! If you haven't done that ahead of time you can just bake or boil (or whatever) your chicken.

This is one of our favorite recipes. I could make it in my sleep, I think. Anyway, enjoy!!

The BEST Chicken Pot Pie

jaimeschechter.blogspot.com

2 pie crusts

2 Tbsp flour

1 cup cooked shredded chicken

2 cups milk

2 Tbsp butter

1 tsp Natures Seasons

1 bag frozen mixed vegetables

Place one crust in deep pie plate. In large saucepan, melt butter. Add flour and cook for 1 minute. Stir in milk, stirring constantly to prevent lumps. Cook until thickened. Add chicken, seasoning and vegetables and stir. Pour into crust. Top with other crust and seal and flute edges. Bake at 350 for 45-55 minutes until golden brown and bubbly. Freezes well.

Food Blogging Friday - Naan & Dal Nirvana!!

Finally! I made this recipe for the first time last fall right about the time I was starting to feel the effects of the first trimester with Noah. I definitely couldn't food blog so I'm thrilled to be able to finally share these recipes with you!

Indian Food is a recent discovery in our household (well, several years ago). We have tried several different Indian Food recipes and these are definitely our favorites.

First of all, as a basis for most Indian Food you will need Basmati Rice. It has to soak a bit first but then only takes 25 minutes to fully prepare. Read the label for the best way to prepare this.


Then we have the crowning jewel of the Indian Food, in house household at least. Naan! Yum! We have often said that we just make the other stuff to put on the Naan. So true.

Here we go:

In a large bowl place once packet (2 1/4 tsp) of dry active yeast. Add 1 cup warm water (between 105 and 115 degrees) and stir. Let sit for 10 minutes or until frothy. Then stir in 1/4 cup sugar, 3 tablespoons milk, one egg (beaten), and 2 teaspoons salt. Mix well.

Stir in approximately 4 1/2 cups of bread flour. Keep adding flour until a soft dough forms.

Let rise 1 hour until dough doubles in volume.

Meanwhile, chop 2 cloves of garlic (this, in my opinion, is the secret weapon of this bread).

When the dough is done rising, knead the chopped garlic right into the dough, evenly distributing the garlic.

Pinch off golf ball sized pieces of dough and roll until round. Place on a cookie sheet and let them rise 30 minutes or so.

Melt the butter, fire up your grill, and take the dough balls outside with a rolling pin, melted butter, and a brush for the butter.

Roll out dough until 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Brush one side with butter and throw that buttered side down onto the grill. Grill 2 or 3 minutes until lightly browned and brush other side with butter. Flip! Repeat.

Yum! You MUST eat one hot off the grill with a little extra butter thrown on. You'll thank me. Really!



Okay, now for the Dal Nirvana.


Take 1 cup dry lentils . . .

And add it to a sauce pan. Fill the sauce pan with water until the water covers the lentils by 2 inches.



Bring this to a boil and lower temperature to simmer 10 minutes until lentils begin to open. Drain lentils and return lentils to the pot. Stir lentils around and smash some with the back of a spoon to break them open.

Add six ounces tomato puree, 1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger, 1 tablespoon of minced (or grated) garlic, scant teaspoon of cayenne pepper (you can adjust this to your heat level - a whole teaspoon is decently hot!), one cup water, 4 tablespoons butter, 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper.

Cook for 1 hour until Dal is thick (see below photo! yum!). Check often to make sure the water doesn't cook out.

Add 1/3 cup of heavy cream and cilantro to garnish.

Eat with Naan bread and Basmati Rice. The Dal is particularly delicious smeared all over the Naan bread.

Yum!

Here is the brave crowd (last fall) that endured my first attempt at Indian Food.

Here are the full recipes:

Naan

jaimeschechter.blogspot.com

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast

1 cup warm water

1/4 cup white sugar

3 tablespoons milk

1 egg, beaten

2 teaspoons salt

4 1/2 cups bread flour

2 teaspoons minced garlic (optional)

1/4 cup butter, melted

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.

Punch down dough, and knead in garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

During the second rising, preheat grill to high heat. At grill side, roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle. Lightly oil grill. Place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared.

Indian Dal Nirvana

from Nirvana Restaurant, Beverly Hills

1 cup dry lentils

6 ounces canned tomato puree

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 cup water

4 tablespoons butter

1/8 teaspoon salt, more to taste

freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

In a large sauce pan, add the lentils and fill with water to cover by 2 inches. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes until the lentils open and are tender. Drain the water from the lentils and return the lentils to the pot. Stir the lentils around in the pot mashing some of them against the pot to break open. Add the tomato puree, ginger, garlic, cayenne pepper, water, butter, salt and pepper. Cook for 1 hour until the dal is thick. Make sure to check the pot periodically to make sure the water does not cook out.

Stir in cream, garnish with minced cilantro.

Food Blogging Friday - Sesame Seed Cookies

These cookies bring back memories of my childhood. We grew up making these cookies! I never remember having very many other cookies than these until I could bake them myself! :) Ha!

I love to make these with my children and know that the only sweetner they are getting in these cookies is from the honey.

You can tell I took these pictures to blog this LAST summer (as in 2010!). Look at my little darling. :)

First you have to take a big spoonful of honey and eat it. At least if you are my girl. :)


Use natural and raw honey . . . not the cooked stuff . . . that removes all the healthy and good things from the honey.

Yum, trying the dough!

Finished product.

Here is the recipe:

Sesame Seed Cookies

jaimeschechter.blogspot.com

½ cup honey

½ cup oil (I use butter or coconut oil)

1 egg, beaten

1/3 cup wheat bran

1 ¼ cup oatmeal

1 cup ww flour

1 tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp salt

¾ cup sesame seeds

Combine honey, oil and egg. Mix well. Stir in remaining ingredients. Dough should be stiff; add tablespoon or two of milk if too stiff.

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets. Flatten each cookie with the bottom of glass dipped in cold water. Bake at 375 for 10 minutes.

Hint: I love to make a sandwich out of these cookies with a little nutella or nut butter in the middle.

Food Blogging Friday - Curried Beef Stew

Finally! Finally! I have returned to food blogging. I do not claim to be good at it but cooking is something I enjoy (and eating too, obviously). I stopped posting recipes when I became pregnant with Noah (a year ago!!) because I was so nauseated that I couldn't think of food and I never really got into it after that.

Anyway, I have lots of new recipes to share.

Here is probably the easiest one I have made in a while. The idea for this recipe came from my mother-in-law. She watched the girls while we were in the hospital having Noah and fixed a version of this for us the night we returned home from the hospital. We had round steak thawed from the freezer so she was trying to use that up. All of these measurements are estimated. I just threw these ingredients into the crock pot and the result is some deliciousness!

Here is is:

1 to 2 round steaks, outsides sprinkled with flour and browned in a pan with olive oil
2 medium potatoes cut into chunks
2 medium carrots cut into slices
1/2 of a large onion roughly chopped (can be big pieces)
1 to 2 cups of water
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Throw it into a crock pot and let 'er go 8 hours or so on low! You can adjust the curry powder to your tastes. I may have gone a bit overboard because my oldest daughter claimed it to be too spicy. My middle daughter (21 months old) LOVED this dish. She gobbled it up!

I also cooked some brown rice in the extra liquid from the stew (I had put in too much water) so we served this over rice. Extra yummy. All the juices soaked up in the rice.

When I brought it to the table my daughter asked, "Does it have peas?". What a great idea!! Next time I will throw some peas in at the last minute. They just need to stay in a few minutes to warm up but would become a mushy mess if left too long.




It was a great way to serve a tougher cut of meat to my family. The kids (3 and 21 months old) can't really eat steak yet but this was fork tender and very easy to eat. If you like curry, this is the way to go. So good.

I calculated it to be about 8 points plus for about 2/3 to 3/4 cup scoops, which seem to be plenty big.

Also, please excuse my poor photography skills. That's my husband's department and I'm terrible at it.

Healthier Chocolate Chip Cookies

It's really funny that I would follow up my last post with this one. Chocolate Chip Cookies are my favorite - especially if they are under-baked and gooey. Yum!

In my quest to eat a little better I have searched for an alternative chocolate chip cookie that wouldn't contain shortening, could be made with whole wheat, and less sugar or a sugar alternative.

I couldn't really find one that was good, honestly. The few I tried fell flat, literally. The cookies were runny, or flat or crispy.

So . . . I took my old favorite basic chocolate chip cookie recipe and simply modified it by changing the ingredients.

The verdit . . . . YUMMY!! The only problem with these cookies is that my mind thinks they are "healthier" so I tend to eat too many. Now keep in mind that they are still cookies. I wouldn't eat them for breakfast or label them as a health food but as far as a cookie goes, they are better than store-bought or your "regular" chocolate chip cookie.

Here's the recipe:

Jaime’s Healthier Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:
1 stick real butter, softened (preferrably from grass-fed antibiotic and hormone-free cows)
3/4 cup Sucanat
1/2 cup pure cane sugar (can also use raw turbinado sugar)
1 fresh free-range egg
1 tsp pure vanilla extract (scant)
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 cup unbleached white flour (sometimes I use all whole wheat pastry)
1 tsp aluminum free baking soda
1 tsp unrefined sea salt
1 cup chocolate chips (can find grain-sweetened chocolate chips)

Instructions:Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cream butter and sugars. Add egg and vanilla and beat until foamy. Add flours, salt and baking soda. Stir just until mixed. Fold in chocolate chips. Drop in rounded balls onto a cookie sheet.

Bake for 7-8 minutes (or perhaps slightly less). Remove from oven before they are fully done in the middle for a cookie that stays soft and chewy the next day.


If you make these, let me know what you think!!

Oatmeal Maple Cookies

My toddler loves cookies! I try not to make cookies that fill her with too much white sugar, flour, and especially hydrogenated oils. These is a great recipe that I found at Whole Foods. Believe it or not, I even modifed it more to make it better! The original recipe called for Canola Oil. I also avoid that at all costs. After all . . . can someone explain to me what a canola is? No seriously, most of these modified oils are what can cause heart attacks and stroke.



I'm not providing much info but . . . you're all smart . . . you can research it for yourself!



So here we go.

If you can see, I had two little helpers in this picture. Elsie didn't last long though. She'll help me some day.

Take 2 cups rolled oats.

Pour it into a skillet or pan ("oops, mama I spilled a little") and toast for about 3 minutes.

Remove from heat and add 3/4 cup spelt flour,

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

and 1/8 teaspoon sea salt.

Melt butter in a separate pan (or you can use melted unrefined virgin coconut oil).

Mix together maple syrup (1/2 cup), 1/2 cup of melted butter and . . .


2 teaspoons of pure vanilla extract in a separate bowl.

Having a cheerful helper helps speed the process up considerably! :)

Combine maple mixture to oat mixture in a mixing bowl and combine completely. (Yes, I scraped the sides of the bowl down to get the flour after I took this picture).

Drop by teaspoonful onto a baking sheet. Flatten slightly. (I used my spatula to flatten and it worked fine).

Bake about 15 minutes at 350.

Cool cookies on a wire rack before enjoying.

Then enjoy!

Abigail LOVED these cookies. Andrew liked them but thought they'd be better with butterscotch chips (perhaps). They just weren't as sweet as conventional cookies so his sweet tooth was missing something, I think. Anyway, these are delicious and a decently healthy choice (at least with no chemicals like store bought cookies have) as an occasional snack for kids.

I think we may make more today. This batch is gone! :)

Complete Recipe

Oatmeal Maple Cookies

jaimeschechter.blogspot.com

original recipe from whole foods

2 cups rolled oats

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons spelt flour

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 cup pure maple syrup

1/2 cup melted butter or melted unrefined coconut oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350. Place oats into a pan and toast for 3 minutes or until slightly golden and fragrant. Remove from heat and stir in flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. In a separate saucepan, melt butter. In a mixing bowl, whisk together maple syrup, butter and vanilla until combined. Add oat mixture to maple syrup mixture and stir to combine completely. Dough will be warm. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a greased baking sheet. Flatten dough slightly with a spoon or wet fingers. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Cool cookies and enjoy!!

Mardi Gras Eggs

So, I'm not from New Orleans, nor have I ever visited . . . but

I have visited Lucile's. It is a Creole restaurant in Colorado. It's yummy. If you live in Colorado . . . you'll do yourself a big favor by eating there!

What I really wish I could duplicate is their biscuits but I'm not THAT talented!

Anyway, I ordered a yummy dish called "Farmer's Eggs" which is something that I consider a "skillet" or "scramble".

I decided to dupliate or get close to the same recipe at home.


Start by dicing 2 medium sized potatoes. Saute them in a skillet with olive oil for 15 minutes or until tender.



After the potatoes are on the tender side, you'll want to add sausage. Here is a disclaimer: we usually (80% of the time) eat unprocessed foods (our meat is usually organic or nitrate-free). This sausage is well . . . not. It's what I had in the fridge. In my defence, my husband bought it. I only used about 1/3 of a pound, which means the other 2/3 is still sitting in my freezer!

Oh, this is hot sausage by the way.

Add the sausage to the skillet with the potatoes and cook until brown.

Chop your peppers (you can choose what type you'd like) and onion. I used red, yellow, green, and a teeny tiny bit of jalepeno.

Add the peppers and onion to your sausage and potatoes.

Cook until veggies are slightly softened.

In a separate mixing bowl, crack 8 eggs (you can vary the amounts, btw) and scramble with a fork. The add 1/2 to 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese.

Cook until eggs are scrambed through. Salt and pepper to taste.

The last step (and most important) involves adding the Creole seasoning. Yum!

And can you believe that I didn't take an after picture? I know, all that work on this recipe and you're left with out the beauty of this dish! Oh well, you'll just have to make it yourself.

I served my Mardi Gras Eggs with corn on the cob. We also sprinkled a little Creole seasoning on the corn and it was also delicious!

Enjoy!

Recipe follows:

Mardi Gras Eggs

jaimeschechter.blogspot.com

1 tbsp olive oil

2 potatoes (cut into cubes)

1/3 pound hot sausage

1 red pepper (chopped)

1 yellow pepper (chopped)

1 green pepper (chopped)

1/4 jalepeno pepper (chopped)

1 small onion (chopped)

8 eggs

1/2 to 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

salt

pepper

creole seasoning

Saute potatoes in olive oil until soft. Add hot sausage to potatoes and cook until browned. Add chopped peppers and onion to skillet. Cook peppers and onion until barely soft. Whisk 8 eggs in a mixing bowel and add cheese. Pour egg mixture into skillet and scramble until eggs are cooked. Add seasonings to taste.

Yummy!