Non-Crumbly Cornbread

My mother in law made this cornbread for us and it was like eating cake! It's fantastic!

1/2 c. Butter
2/3 c. Sugar
2 Eggs
1 c. Buttermilk (if you don't have buttermilk, use the little trick of adding 1 Tbsp of either lemon juice or white distilled vinegar to 1 c. milk!! Let it sit for about 10 minutes, and voila!)
1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
1 c. Corn Meal
1 c. Flour (can use white or wheat)
1/2 tsp Salt

Melt Butter. Add sugar and eggs. Combine milk and soda in another container, then add to sugar mixture. Mix together cornmeal, flour and salt, then slowly stir into liquid mixture. Pour into 8x8 greased pan. Bake at 375 F for 30 minutes.

(Even works well doubled!)

Almond Poppy Seed Muffins

This was an experiment, and it turned out wonderfully! :)

3 eggs
2 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 cup butter (NOT margarine!!!!!!!!!), melted
1 1/2 cups water (or milk)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 tablespoons poppy seeds
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
3 cups whole wheat flour
2 Tbsp flaxmeal
2 Tbsp bean flour


Beat together the eggs, sugar and melted butter. Add in water, salt, poppy seeds, vanilla, almond flavoring, and flax. Stir quickly together. Top with flour (both wheat and bean) and sprinkle with baking powder. Use wire whisk to mix just until moistened! Do not over-mix as that will make the muffins more dense and 'rubbery'. The mixture will be very thin.

Bake in paper lined muffin cups (filled 3/4 full or 3 small greased loaf pans) at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 15-20 minutes for muffins and 50-60 minutes for loaves. The tops should be browned and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean.

This makes 3 dozen poppy seed muffins (or 18 Jumbo). I like to make 12 muffins, and two loaves. Tastes great either way!

Simple Beans

This is how I prepare beans. I eat them like this, or use them as a base for many of my soups or dips. With this recipe, you can make TONS AND TONS (you can double, triple quadruple...), divvy it out into 2-4 cup portions and freeze to use later. They last for months in the freezer, and have become my 'fast food' option! :)

2 c. beans (any kind)
Water (a LOT. I never measure. I just pour it in. Maybe 8 cups?)
1 Bay leaf
1 whole, peeled onion
3-4 whole, peeled garlic cloves
1-2 Tbsp Olive Oil (or Canola Oil--the oil keeps the beans from foaming too much and boiling over.)

Rinse and clean beans. Pour beans in large pot and add all ingredients. Bring to a boil, then put on Low for around 5 hours. Add salt or chicken boullion to taste right before serving. Voila! :)

As you can see, I don't presoak my beans. I also don't do the quick soak. I just cook them straight from dry and eat them. For many people, this doesn't agree with their 'systems'. If you prefer to soak them overnight, just soak them, rinse, then cook for 2 hours. If you prefer a quick soak, just boil them for 10 minutes, turn off the heat and let sit for about 1 hour. Rinse, then cook for 2 more hours. To me, this is a pain in the neck, so I just let them sit and cook, and it works for us. Lazy? Yes. Still yummy? Yes. :)

Black Bean Soup

This is the most fantastic soup! Oh, so yummy and simple!!

4 c. Black Beans (prepared or 2 cans)
3-4 potatoes, diced
½ lb cooked ham, cut in pieces
4-5 tsp beef bouillon
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 cup mild chili peppers (Optional)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp ground cumin
1 ½ tsp oregano
½ tsp thyme
dash of ground cloves

Combine all ingredients in crock pot. Cook on low 8-10 hours, or high 4-5 hours. (If you would rather prepare in a sauce pan, simmer all ingredients for 45 minutes.)

Garnish: Sour cream (I make my tofu sour cream for this. It tastes wonderful!) and fresh diced tomatoes.

Meal Ideas:
Black Bean Soup
Homemade Tortillas (I use the Masa Harina. You can find it almost anywhere.)

Fresh Chunky Salsa

This is a nice fresh chunky salsa that I like (and that says something, because I don't usually like salsa)!

8 tomatoes--seeded, drained, finely chopped
1/2 c diced green bell pepper (***this is optional. I've made it without, and it tastes great. I also don't like spicy, so if you want a kick, you could substitute with a hot pepper such as a jalapeno, or scotch bonnet...)
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, minced (I use my garlic press)
Juice of 1 small lime
1 Tbsp Olive Oil (Extra Virgin is best)
1/2 c chopped fresh cilantro AND/OR parsely (both are good!!)
3/4 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
dash pepper (to taste)

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl with a lid. Cover, and let stand at room temp. for about an hour. Serve as is, or chill. Keeps for about 3-4 days in the fridge.

(Goes really well with Black Bean Dip!!)

Black Bean Dip

One of my most favorite dips in the entire world!

4 cups cooked black beans (you can use two cans if you would like, I prefer to prepare them myself. If you use the cans, make sure you drain all the liquid!!)
3-4 whole cloves garlic
1/4 c Fresh cilantro (or parsley, if you can't find cilantro. Dried does work, just not as flavorful. Use about 2 Tbsp if substituting dried.)
1/4 c Water
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
3 Tbsp freshly squeezed Lime Juice (lemon juice can be substituted, but, again, just doesn't taste quite as good...)
1tsp Salt (or more, to taste)
1 tsp ground Cumin

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend on high until smooth! Tada!! (If you need to add more liquid, alternate adding more lime juice and olive oil by the 1/2 tsp.)

Quick Meal ideas:
Eat this with your favorite chips as a light lunch (I sometimes sprinkle the beans with feta cheese and that adds a very Central American taste to it.)

Use in a burrito for a fun replacement of the usual refried beans!

This is always a hit at parties!

Lemon Herb Quinoa

This is a grain from South America. Pronounced 'Kee-no-ah'. It tastes like a mix between brown rice and cous cous. Super yummy!!

1 c quinoa
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp chicken bouillon
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp rosemary
1 Tbsp lemon juice
2 c water

First, rinse the quinoa under fast running cold water. (It has a somewhat bitter taste to it, so the rinsing washes it away. The amount of bitterness you can handle will tell you how long to rinse it! Like bitter? Don't rinse it! Don't like bitter? Rinse for 5 minutes!) While rinsing, pour the olive oil into a small sauce pan and turn on the heat! Add the rinsed quinoa plus all the herbs--not including the water and lemon--and stir constantly over med-hi heat until you see the little quinoas bouncing around with the heat. Add the lemon and water, and let simmer until the water is gone. (About 15 minutes) Serve warm. Goes well with chicken, fish, and pork, and veggies!!

Seasoned Salt

This is my own version of Lawry's Seasoned Salt. It's almost identical...and yet I know just what is in it! :)

1 c. Salt
4 Tbsp Paprika
3 Tbsp Black Pepper
1 Tbsp Garlic Powder
1 Tbsp Onion Powder

Place all ingredients in an airtight container (I use an old Lawry's Salt 16 oz container). That's it! Enjoy!!

Shrimp-Skewers

Barbequed Shrimp-Skewers

40-50 raw jumbo shrimp, peeled
2-3 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 tsp Seasoned Salt
Juice of 1 small lemon
2 cloves garlic, minced

Combine all in a small bowl to marinate at least 3-4 hours.

Soak shishkabob sticks in water (to avoid burning). Place about 5-6 shrimp on each stick. Place on barbeque and cook for about 5 minutes. Turn. Cook about 5 more minutes until all shrimp are evenly pink. Enjoy!

Quick meal Idea:
Shrimp Skewers
Lemon Herb Quinoa
Green Beans

Introduction

I've been putting this off for some time, thinking what a pain it would be to have to create a whole new blog. Ok, so it took me about 13 seconds. Ha!

So now here we are...the Grand Opening of my Food Blog! Hopefully I can keep this up and have a nice collection of some of my personal (and my family's) favorite recipes.

A little background on my search for good food in our family: I never cooked. I just didn't do it. I am a musician and as such, never had time for it. All through high school/college, my idea of a square meal was ramen noodles (grains), orange juice (fruits and veggies), chicken nuggets (meat) with cheese on top (dairy). Hey, it's all there, right?!? This was my basic staple for such a long time, it's a wonder I didn't die early.

When I got married, I decided it was time to learn to cook! (About time!) And there I was, Rexburg 1st Ward cookbook in hand, a cupboard full of cream of ... soups, and a crock pot. While the foods I made were definitely not something you'd find in a restaurant, it was fun to have things come together.

Time went on, and our tastes changed. The most important changes being our kids with dairy allergies. That was a hard thing to deal with, since I felt that unless the food was covered in cheese and basted in sour cream, it wasn't food!! That took a LOT of time and an amazing amount of effort to acheive. Doing without dairy in cooking is virtually improbable--but not impossible! I found a lot of freedom and a wonderful new challenge to wrap my mind around in looking for ways to cook without dairy.

Another important event that once again changed the way we eat was when my mother was diagnosed with diabetes. I read many books on diabetic diets. I learned that a great many of my ancestors had incredible issues with diabetes and that it runs in my family. Great. So, we began another slow and steady change of the diet. This involved a lot of label reading... :) Trying to avoid things that were hidden in foods such as high fructose corn syrups, corn syrups, dextrins, sugars, bleached and processed flours, etc.

It's been a fantastic challenge for me to make food that is both healthy, interesting, and diverse, and which, more importantly, my family will eat! If Claire had her way, we'd have no bake cookies and mashed potatoes for dinner every day.

I hope all who see this blog will enjoy some of the things that I've made and try them at home. Just remember to enjoy your time preparing, your time cooking, and your time eating with family, and it makes all of this worth it!