cooking

In The Kitchen: Fall Favorites

Lisa’s Pumpkin Bread

3 C. Suger

3 1/2 C. Flour

1 29 oz. Can Pumpkin Puree

1 C. Vegetable Oil

2/3 C. Water

4 Eggs

3 t. Baking soda

2 T. Cinnamon

1 t. Nutmeg

1 1/2 t. salt

Mix dry ingredients in bowl. In a separate bowl, Combine pumpkin, oil, eggs and water. Slowly add dry mix until combined. Pour into desired baking dishes, coated with nonstick cooking spray or lined muffin tin.

This recipe makes 4 loaves (Bake at 325 degrees for 90 minutes), 6 mini loaves (Bake at 325 degrees for 75 minutes), or 24 muffins (Bake at 325 for 60 minutes. Your house will smell so heavenly that you’ll probably eat a few several and be glad you made such a large batch.

I borrowed this recipe from the Kilpatrick Family while I was nannying in college. Lisa is a total whiz at getting her kiddos to eat veggies – I distinctly remember feeling guilty that her zucchini muffins had easily 4x the amount of zucchini as mine did. Admittedly THIS is not the healthiest pumpkin recipe out there… but it is delicious. And Lisa’s kids love it as much as I do. Sure you could substitute applesauce for the oil or double up on the pumpkin. I also cut down the sugar a tad. But it’s 100% yummy just the way it is. This is also a rather large batch – but as with most muffins… they freeze/reheat well.

Hot Spiced Tea

1 1/2 C Tang

1 1/2 C. Country Time Powdered Lemonade

1/2 C. Sugar

1 1/2 C. Instant Unsweetened Lipton Tea (Optional: Decaf)

2 T. Cinnamon

1 t. Ground Cloves

Pinch Nutmeg (to taste)

Pinch Allspice (to taste)


Mix ingredients together in a large bowl. Transfer to air-tight container.

When ready to drink – Stir 3-4 T with hot water, stir, and Enjoy!

I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve thrown the measurements out on more than one occasion. As long as you use equal parts lemonade, tang, and tea, you’ll be good. Sometimes I even skip the suger…. Sometimes. I’ve had a hard time finding the tang at regular grocery stores – but Target usually has it, and WalMart is an even safer bet. This mix makes a great homemade hostess gift or just a nice alternative to apple cider.

 

Pumpkin Spice Cake 

1 box Spice Cake Mix

1 can pumpkin (not pie filling, just pumpkin)

2 cup Cinnamon Chips

Mix pumpkin and cake mix on low speed with hand mixer, or mash with a fork until combined. Fold in cinnamon chips. Do not over mix.

Bake at 350 for 18-20 min.

Serve warm, a la mode.

OR if you’re like me… make a batch on Sunday night – enjoy as dessert… then as breakfast for the rest of the week 🙂 This recipe, and similar are all over Pinterest, but it came to me by way of my mom’s Texas Treasure, Mrs. Mindy Campbell.

 

Mom Life: Starting Solids

Olivia is just a week shy of 7 months old – and should be well on her way to enjoying solid foods. I say should lightly because I don’t REALLY agree that babies should master certain milestones by certain ages. That being said, most parents begin to feed their babies solids around 4-6 months. Since we were in California when the clock struck 6-months… we delayed just a bit past the target window. Almost 2 weeks ago, at 29 weeks, we finally decided to take the plunge…

Many month ago, I picked up a copy of Tyler Florence’s “Start Fresh” and started planning. All along, I’ve known that I wanted to make Olivia’s food. Mostly, I’m concerned with the amount of preservatives and additives in even the organic varieties available on the shelves. Obviously, we also considered the cost-factor as well – knowing that it would be significantly cheaper to DIY. I love Tyler’s one-family, one-meal mentality… Kids should eat the same meal that the family eats for dinner. Mom WILL NOT make multiple meals to please multiple family members’ tastes. Very much aligned with the “You don’t have to like it, but you have to try it”  rule. His book includes recipes slightly altering “the family meal” for babies, toddlers and younger kiddos.

Buy Here

Totally in-line with our pediatrician, Tyler suggests starting with cereal (rice or oat) for the first few weeks then moving to veggies for the first month or so before introducing sweeter (more desirable) fruits. He suggests creating combos (adhering to the 3-day rule) after baby has mastered several foods, at around 9 months. His cookbook includes wonderful combos and stage II/III meals for older baby/toddler.

My daughter, who puts EVERYTHING in her mouth, and I do mean EVERYTHING, doesn’t want ANYTHING to do with food. Two weeks of our most desperate attempts to get Olivia to swallow even ONE bite… and she’s STILL completely uninterested.

We started with 3 days of Rice Cereal, then 3 days of Oat Cereal, followed by 3 days of sweet potatoes, 3 days of avocado and now we’re making our way through 3 days of carrots. I’m out of ideas…. Ready to call the pediatrician on Monday if things don’t turn around. OR give it a break and wait a few more weeks. I mean… what’s the harm? She doesn’t seem hungry, or cranky… and there’s lots of earthy-crunchy material suggesting that it’s perfectly healthy for babies to exclusively breast feed until 9-12 months.

Oat Cereal

Sweet Potato

Avocado

Believe it or not – we did start with a plastic bib… when she seemed more interested in eating it… it came off and I decided that Rice Cereal wouldn’t stain and I could easily just toss her outfit in the laundry… then came sweet potatoes… knowing that those might stain, we tried a cloth bib… after a week+ we’ve resolved to eating in the nude. Still followed by a hose-down in the sink…

Note: Ignore the fact that I still need to DIY a high chair cover… notice that even it got caught in the crossfire and ended up in the laundry before Avocado day.

COOKING GEAR: We decided against the uber fancy BEABA or Baby Brezza mainly because of the cost. When we put in perspective the span of time that we would be making pureed foods – it just seemed silly to invest. We even decided to forgo the BabyBullet  in favor of using the high end blender/food processor we own. With limited freezer space (we’re storing close to 500 ounces of frozen breast milk) I’m still unsure of the most compact way to store prepared food. We have some of the Oxo Tot 2oz and 4oz containers that I like (and will probably buy more of as I have 20% off coupons to BBB/BBB).

Interested in trying these Tovolo Silicone Ice Cube Trays too.

Recently I’ve done some more searching online and found some other great resources that are worth sharing…

Momtastic’s Wholesome Baby Food – A friend referred me to this site – Awesome nutritional information, suggestions on what foods to start with, recipes, etc.

Tyler Florence’s Sprout Organic Baby Food – Tyler Florence’s line of organic baby food + more recipes.

Mash Your Heart Out Baby Food – great recipe and combination ideas

 Featured Image Here

 

In the Kitchen: Homemade Granola

Following my momma’s lead – I’ve gifted homemade granola on many occasions. Like her, I believe that handmade gifts are the best variety – especially edibles. Homemade granola wrapped in a mason jar + tea towel makes the perfect hostess gift (A la Pinterest)

Meg’s Homemade Granola

(Respectfully adapted from Mrs. Renee Sensabaugh’s Recipe)

  • 12 Cups Old-Fashioned Quaker Oats Oatmeal (NOT Quick Oats)
  • 2 1/2 Cups Shredded Coconut
  • 2 1/2 Cups Chopped nuts (Suggested equal parts chopped pecans and chopped walnuts)
  • 1 T Salt
  • 1 1/2 Cups Light Brown Sugar
  • 1 Cup Warm Water
  • 1 Cup Vegetable Oil (* See Variation Below)
  • 2 T Honey
  • 2 T Vanilla

* Because I’m sort of a coconut-nut (Evidence Here)… I like to sub Earth Balance Organic Coconut spread

Mix all dry ingredients well in a (REALLY) large bowl. Mix all wet ingredients in separate container.

Drizzle liquid over dry mixture – combine with clean hands!

Spread even layer covering 3 baking sheets – Bake at 200 degrees (lower if your oven allows – I set mine at 170) at least 4-5 hours until dry, crispy and toasted.

 

Stir every half hour or so. Great dry or with milk. Makes a delicious parfait topping or my husband’s fav Acai Bowls!  Keeps well in air-tight container for a couple of weeks. Enjoy!

Homemade Blueberry Acai Bowl

Yogurt Parfait

Because Poppa G says, “EVERYBODY Love Parfait”

In the Kitchen: Texas Salsa

While we were living in SoCal, I introduced Daniel to the wonderful world of Baja Mexican food. It was love at first bite. And now I’m living with the harshest of critics when it comes to salsa, guacamole and chicken tacos. This recipe was concocted in Texas, for Daniel – who can’t imagine a world without chips + salsa.

Megan’s Texas Salsa

28 oz. Can Diced Tomatoes

1/2 t. Chopped Garlic

1 t. red pepper flakes

1/2 t. salt

2 t. white wine vinegar

1/2 c. chopped cilantro (more. if desired… And Daniel always does)

2-3 jalepenos, chopped and seeded

Blend all ingredients in food processor or blender to desired consistency.

Note: This makes a pretty large batch but it definitely lasts in the refrigerator for a few weeks (in fact, it’s definitely tastier after it sits for 6-12 hours).

In the Kitchen: South of the Border Fettucini

Aunt Mary’s South of the Border Fettucini

 To say there are some great cooks in my family would be an understatement. This is one of my favorite creations from my Aunt Mary McElyea. I’ve come to always stock the ingredients in my pantry just in case I get a hankering. South of the Border Fettucini is one of my go-to week night dinners; Relatively healthy and inexpensive, I guarantee you’ll love it.

4T. Butter (Cut this in half for a healthier version or use Earth Balance – it’s just as delicious)

1/2 T. garlic, minced

1C. diced tomatoes

1/2 C. canned black beans

1/4 C. sliced black olives (I don’t think these were included in the original recipe… so if you’re not a fan of olives- Omit)

1 whole roasted chicken, meat removed and chopped (Can substitute 3-4 grilled chicken breasts – I find it so much easier and just as inexpensive to buy a pre-roasted chicken)

1/4 C. white wine

1/4 C. chicken stock (I use “Better than Bouillon” Chicken Stock” mixed with some of the leftover pasta water)

1C. chopped cilantro (or more)

1T. chopped, seeded fresh jalepeno

8 oz. Spicy fettuccini (al dente Three Peppercorn Fettucini) (DO NOT SUBSTITUTE! This pasta makes the dish!) Buy Online Here or my local Albertson’s and Central Market carry it.

 

Image From Here

In medium saucepan, heat butter. Add tomato, half the cilantro, black beans, jalapeño and garlic. Saute 3 to 5 minutes. Add chicken, wine and stock and simmer until reduced by 1/4. Add salt and pepper to taste. In a large pot, cook pasta. DO NOT OVERCOOK! This pasta only takes 3 to 5 minutes to cook! Do not rinse. Just before serving toss all together and add the rest of the cilantro.

South of the Border Fettucini

Note: This is a VERY forgiving recipe….sometimes I use canned tomatoes, sometimes fresh. Very easy to omit the wine and/or chicken stock and just add the can of diced tomatoes with their juices for a slightly healthier option. Daniel almost always makes me add more cilantro, because he’s kinda a cilantro nut!