Ingredients:
1lb ground turkey or chicken sausage
3/4 cup diced dried apples
1 Tbs maple syrup or honey
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp Allspice
2 Tbs dried Sage
Mix all ingredients and cook them!
We've been making these instead of purchasing them, mainly because I know what's in these and they are less expensive. Not quite the same as store bought, but the kids like them...
CONDIMENTS
Here are three of our favorites lately. So simple.
RANCH DRESSING
2TBS mayo
2TBS sour cream (Daisy is a good brand, no additives)
2TBS buttermilk, or kefir
pinch of salt
pinch of pepper
sprinkle of garlic powder
sprinkle of onion powder
sprinkle of dill weed
LEMON BUTTER
1/4lb softened salted butter (or non salted butter, with salt added)
Juice from one lemon
sprinkle of dill weed
Mix together. Roll butter in a piece of wax paper and chill in the fridge.
Serve with any of your favorite veggies - green beans, brussel sprouts, etc.
HONEY MUSTARD SAUCE
Just mix a little bit of Dijon Mustard with Honey. Mix to your preferred taste...more sweet versus more mustardy.
Amazing on thinly sliced chicken with lettuce on sourdough bread!
RANCH DRESSING
2TBS mayo
2TBS sour cream (Daisy is a good brand, no additives)
2TBS buttermilk, or kefir
pinch of salt
pinch of pepper
sprinkle of garlic powder
sprinkle of onion powder
sprinkle of dill weed
LEMON BUTTER
1/4lb softened salted butter (or non salted butter, with salt added)
Juice from one lemon
sprinkle of dill weed
Mix together. Roll butter in a piece of wax paper and chill in the fridge.
Serve with any of your favorite veggies - green beans, brussel sprouts, etc.
HONEY MUSTARD SAUCE
Just mix a little bit of Dijon Mustard with Honey. Mix to your preferred taste...more sweet versus more mustardy.
Amazing on thinly sliced chicken with lettuce on sourdough bread!
Baked Apple Pancake
This recipe is one of our kids favorites. The four of them polish off the whole 9" x 13" pan by themselves.
Ingredients:
4Tbs butter, melted
2 apples, peeled and sliced thin
1 cup milk
5 large eggs
2/3 cup wheat flour or sprouted wheat flour
2 Tbs honey
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Preheat oven to 425F. Place butter in a 9 x 13" pan. Place apple slices in the butter on the bottom of pan, overlapping if desired. Bake the apples for ten minutes until the apples and butter are bubbling.
Meanwhile, place all the other ingredients in a blender and blend for a minute. After the apples have baked for 10 minutes, pour the batter over the apples and bake for another 20 minutes. The pancake will puff up, and then puff down when cooled. I usually have to make two pans at a time to make sure there is plenty, or else serve it with other food, like sausages or toast.
Baked Egg Pancake
This is momma's pancake because it doesn't have wheat and sugar in it. You can use wheat flour instead of the arrowroot powder if you don't have a problem eating wheat. This picture is of a half recipe in a 8"x8" pan.
Ingredients:
1 cup milk
6 large eggs
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup arrowroot powder, or wheat flour, sprouted wheat flour
4 Tbs butter, melted
Diced veggies of your choice (I like onion, green pepper or jalapenos)
Precooked sausage, bacon or other meat (optional)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 425F. Place butter in a 9 x 13 pan. Put veggies in the butter pan and bake for about 10 minutes until the veggies are solt and butter is bubbling. While it is cooking, put the milk, eggs, salt, and arrowroot powder in a blender and blend for a minute. When the veggies are done, pour the batter in the pan with the veggies and sprinkle with sausage and bacon if desired. Bake for 20 minutes. This pancake will puff up and is very light!
Chocolate Cake with Creamy Chocolate Frosting
It's Jude's birthday today! The big man is 4 years old. He asked for his favorite, chocolate cake with chocolate frosting!!
This picture is before we decorated it, so you can see how creamy the frosting turns out.
We love this recipe. It is still a special occasion recipe because it has a ton of sugar (rapadura) in it. I personally think that rapadura really adds to the flavor of chocolate cake/frosting because it has a deeper flavor than white sugar.
CAKE ingredients
2 cups whole wheat flour, sprouted wheat flour, bulgur flour or spelt flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp instant coffee
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
12 Tbs (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 3/4 cup rapadura (unrefined sugar)
4 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups whole milk, at room temperature
1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle postion and heat the oven to 350 deg. Lightly grease two 8" or 9" round cake pans or one 9" by 13" cake pan with oil or butter. Then line the bottoms of the pans with parchement paper.
2. Combine the flour, cocoa, coffee, baking soda and salt together in a large bowl.
3. Beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 6 minutes. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
4. Beat in the flour and milk, small amounts at a time, until fully combined.
5. Pour the batter into the pans and bake for 20-25 minutes.
6. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Take them out of the pans, remove the parchment paper and let them cool completely before frosting.
This cake can be made a day in advance is wrapped well and kept at room temperature. It can be frozen for 1 month is wrapped well in plastic wrap and then foil.
Frosting ingredients
10 oz of chocolate chips/chunks. *
1/2 cup whole milk or cream, boiling
8 Tbs (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces and chilled
*If you are using the homemade recipe listed on this site, the recipe makes slightly over 10oz. If you don't have a scale, then remove 1/4 cup of finished chunks, which should leave you with about 10oz.
Directions
1. Place the chocolate and pinch of salt in a food processor
2. Turn on the processor and add the boiling milk/cream gradually. Process for about 30 sec.
3. With the machine running, add the butter through the feed tube one piece at a time and process until smooth and butter is melted and incorporated.
4. Transfer the frosting to a bowl and let it cool at room temperature for about an hour, stirring occasionally.
This picture is before we decorated it, so you can see how creamy the frosting turns out.
We love this recipe. It is still a special occasion recipe because it has a ton of sugar (rapadura) in it. I personally think that rapadura really adds to the flavor of chocolate cake/frosting because it has a deeper flavor than white sugar.
CAKE ingredients
2 cups whole wheat flour, sprouted wheat flour, bulgur flour or spelt flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tsp instant coffee
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
12 Tbs (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 3/4 cup rapadura (unrefined sugar)
4 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups whole milk, at room temperature
1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle postion and heat the oven to 350 deg. Lightly grease two 8" or 9" round cake pans or one 9" by 13" cake pan with oil or butter. Then line the bottoms of the pans with parchement paper.
2. Combine the flour, cocoa, coffee, baking soda and salt together in a large bowl.
3. Beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 6 minutes. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
4. Beat in the flour and milk, small amounts at a time, until fully combined.
5. Pour the batter into the pans and bake for 20-25 minutes.
6. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Take them out of the pans, remove the parchment paper and let them cool completely before frosting.
This cake can be made a day in advance is wrapped well and kept at room temperature. It can be frozen for 1 month is wrapped well in plastic wrap and then foil.
Frosting ingredients
10 oz of chocolate chips/chunks. *
1/2 cup whole milk or cream, boiling
8 Tbs (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces and chilled
*If you are using the homemade recipe listed on this site, the recipe makes slightly over 10oz. If you don't have a scale, then remove 1/4 cup of finished chunks, which should leave you with about 10oz.
Directions
1. Place the chocolate and pinch of salt in a food processor
2. Turn on the processor and add the boiling milk/cream gradually. Process for about 30 sec.
3. With the machine running, add the butter through the feed tube one piece at a time and process until smooth and butter is melted and incorporated.
4. Transfer the frosting to a bowl and let it cool at room temperature for about an hour, stirring occasionally.
Homemade Choc. Chips/Chunks
This recipe is compliments of The Heavenly Homemakers website. I use these to make a creamy chocolate frosting that I'll be posting next...
I used to be a huge chocolate nut. To be honest these chocolate chips really don't compare to the milk chocolate chips that you buy from the store. But.....they do make some wonderful creamy frosting for a special occasion birthday cake!! It's easy to make, and you know what's in them.....
Ingredients
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup rapadura
1 cup butter or coconut oil
1 T vanilla
Directions
Place the cocoa, rapadura and butter (or coconut oil) into a quart sized jar.
Fill a small saucepan with two or three inches of water. Place the jar into the saucepan. Turn the heat on med/high to begin melting the butter.
Stir often. It takes 10-15 minutes for the butter to melt fully. I make sure that it's fully stirred and the butter is fully melted.
Take the jar out of the water and add the vanilla.
Pour the mixture into a 9x13 glass pan. If you are trying to get chocolate chunks to use as chocolate chips in a recipe, then use parchment paper on the bottom of the pan. If you are using it for frosting, then you don't need the parchment paper.
Refrigerate until the mixture is cold and set.
If I'm using this for frosting, I just scrape the chocolate out with a spoon and put into a bowl. If I'm actually trying to using it as chunks then I try to cut them out in chunks and pry them off of the paper.
I used to be a huge chocolate nut. To be honest these chocolate chips really don't compare to the milk chocolate chips that you buy from the store. But.....they do make some wonderful creamy frosting for a special occasion birthday cake!! It's easy to make, and you know what's in them.....
Ingredients
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup rapadura
1 cup butter or coconut oil
1 T vanilla
Directions
Place the cocoa, rapadura and butter (or coconut oil) into a quart sized jar.
Fill a small saucepan with two or three inches of water. Place the jar into the saucepan. Turn the heat on med/high to begin melting the butter.
Stir often. It takes 10-15 minutes for the butter to melt fully. I make sure that it's fully stirred and the butter is fully melted.
Take the jar out of the water and add the vanilla.
Pour the mixture into a 9x13 glass pan. If you are trying to get chocolate chunks to use as chocolate chips in a recipe, then use parchment paper on the bottom of the pan. If you are using it for frosting, then you don't need the parchment paper.
Refrigerate until the mixture is cold and set.
If I'm using this for frosting, I just scrape the chocolate out with a spoon and put into a bowl. If I'm actually trying to using it as chunks then I try to cut them out in chunks and pry them off of the paper.
Oriental Chicken Salad
So, I'm pregnant in the first trimester. Most foods are completely disgusting to me. The only things that I've been eating are two eggs in the morning and sliced ham/turkey, cheese, with green pepper, lettuce and tomato for the rest of the day. I've been eating that for a month straight. Some days I sit dreaming of other foods that might possibly taste good to me enough to try. So, today an Applebees oriental chicken salad came to my mind. Yes, that would taste good. That's what I can try! Well, after coming up with ways of getting myself to Applebees and using their Carside to go, where they would bring the salad to me to at the car, I became practical. The salad is $10 and if it's as good as I'm imagining I may want it every day for the next 3 weeks. Instead I found the recipe for the salad dressing online. Grace and I made a target run this evening and guess what....it's awesome!! Yay! It tastes exactly like the Applebees salad I was imagining, and I can make it everyday for the next three weeks if I want.
So...if anyone else is interested, here it is! (I made mine so fast I forgot to add the honey..and it's still awesome)
Oriental Dressing
3 Tbs honey
1 1/2 Tbs Rice Vinegar or Rice Wine Vinegar
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp dijon mustard
1/8 tsp sesame oil
For the salad, add the lettuce, carrots, either grilled or crispy chicken, mandarin oranges, crispy wontons or anything else that sounds appealing to you!
So...if anyone else is interested, here it is! (I made mine so fast I forgot to add the honey..and it's still awesome)
Oriental Dressing
3 Tbs honey
1 1/2 Tbs Rice Vinegar or Rice Wine Vinegar
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp dijon mustard
1/8 tsp sesame oil
For the salad, add the lettuce, carrots, either grilled or crispy chicken, mandarin oranges, crispy wontons or anything else that sounds appealing to you!
Josh's Family Drawing
This is a picture compliments of Josh. Yes, there's a baby in mommy's tummy in the picture!
Homemade Larabar Recipe
I personally didn't know what a larabar was. A friend was just talking about them, and mentioned a website for making them yourself. This is from the cleaneatingonline website. You can subsitute any dried fruit for the below...bananas, apples, peaches, etc. It's sort of an equivalent to a fruit snack that you buy at the store. Just another good idea for a snack or treat!!
Ingredients
- Very Cherry: 1/4 c. dates (roughly chopped, whole), 1/4 c. dried cherries or cranberries, 1/3 c. whole pecans, almonds, or walnuts, 1/8 tsp. cinnamon
- Cashew Cookie Dough: 1/3 c. dates, 1/2 c. raw cashews
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough: 1/3 c. dates, 1/2 c. raw cashews, 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract, pinch of cinnamon, 1/2 oz. finely chopped semisweet chocolate
- Blueberry Bliss: 1/4 c. dried blueberries, 1/4 c. dates, 1/3 c. almonds, 1/2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest, 1 drop almond extract
Instructions
Lay two pieces of plastic wrap on counter. Place fruit in food processor and pulse until it has a paste-like texture. Transfer to a medium bowl. Add nuts to food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add nuts to bowl with the fruit. Add all other ingredients. Use fingers to knead into a paste.
Divide mixture in half. Place each half on plastic wrap. Wrap plastic around mixture and form into a bar shape. Wrap tightly in plastic and store in the refrigerator. Makes 2 bars.
Protein Bar
This is variation of a recipe given from the passionate homemaking website. Our family loves these!! It works great as a snack or as a treat to keep the kids going on nights when they have to stay up late.
2 cups almonds
1/4 cup flax seeds
1/4 cup pumpkin or sunflower seeds (ground in a coffee grinder or blender)
1/2 cup dried prunes, dates or raisins (we use raisins)
½ cup shredded coconut (unsweetened)
½ cup unsalted peanut butter
½ teaspoon sea salt
½ cup coconut oil
1 Tbsp raw honey
2-3 teaspoons vanilla extract
Place almonds, flax meal/seeds, dried fruit, shredded coconut, peanut butter and salt in a food processor. Pulse briefly for about 10 seconds. In a small sauce pan, melt coconut oil over very low heat. Remove coconut oil from stove, stir sweeteners and vanilla into oil. Add coconut oil mixture to food processor and pulse until ingredients form a coarse paste. Press mixture into an 8 x 8 glass baking dish. Chill in refrigerator for 1 hour, until mixture hardens. Remove from refrigerator, cut into bars and serve. Store in refrigerator or freezer!
Taco Pizzas
This has been my favorite quick and inexpensive lunch for the kids and myself, especially when there aren't any leftovers for us to eat. I buy a good quality corn tortilla, that doesn't have any other ingredients except for corn and a trace of lime. I put them in the freezer to have on hand for the emergency lunch or snack.
First step: Prepare your own beans. Soak dry beans (black, kidney or navy) in cool water over night. In the morning, rinse them and cook them on the stove on low heat for a few hours until they are tender. If you cook them longer, they are easier to mash.
Second step: Mash the beans with a potato masher or put them in your blender or food processor to get a smoother consistency.
Third step: Add seasoning to the beans. For black and Kidney beans I add a little bit of chili powder, cumin and salt. For the navy beans I add a little bit of basil, oregano and salt. The beans will keep in your refrigerator through the week to use for snacks or lunches. You can freeze them too to keep on hand.
Fourth step: Spread the beans on the corn torillas, and top with shredded cheese of your choice. Put them on a cookie sheet and bake at 425F for 8-12 minutes, depending if you use frozen tortillas and frozen cheese or not. The tortillas will be nice and crunchy and the cheese will be melted. If you want to add a little more good fat to fill up your little ones, you can spread some coconut oil or butter on the tortilla bottom before baking them.
Cut them with a pizza cutter into four sections and dip in salsa or sour cream if desired!
First step: Prepare your own beans. Soak dry beans (black, kidney or navy) in cool water over night. In the morning, rinse them and cook them on the stove on low heat for a few hours until they are tender. If you cook them longer, they are easier to mash.
Second step: Mash the beans with a potato masher or put them in your blender or food processor to get a smoother consistency.
Third step: Add seasoning to the beans. For black and Kidney beans I add a little bit of chili powder, cumin and salt. For the navy beans I add a little bit of basil, oregano and salt. The beans will keep in your refrigerator through the week to use for snacks or lunches. You can freeze them too to keep on hand.
Fourth step: Spread the beans on the corn torillas, and top with shredded cheese of your choice. Put them on a cookie sheet and bake at 425F for 8-12 minutes, depending if you use frozen tortillas and frozen cheese or not. The tortillas will be nice and crunchy and the cheese will be melted. If you want to add a little more good fat to fill up your little ones, you can spread some coconut oil or butter on the tortilla bottom before baking them.
Cut them with a pizza cutter into four sections and dip in salsa or sour cream if desired!
Chicken Wild Rice Soup
1 6oz box long-grain and wild rice mix, prepared according to package or
1 to 1 1/2 cups uncooked wild rice/brown rice blend, cooked
2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cooked and chopped or an equivalent amount of cooked dark chicken meat from making broth
2 cloves garlic
1 onion
3 ¼ cups chicken broth
5 Tbs butter
5 Tbs all-purpose flour (Can use gluten free flour/thickener)
2 cups milk
½ tsp dried tarragon
¼ tsp dried thyme
Black pepper & salt to taste
Directions:
Cook wild rice. I like cooking 1 cup of wild rice in 2 cups of chicken broth at a very low simmer.
Fry onion and garlic until soft. Add rice and chicken, chicken broth, tarragon, thyme, salt and pepper. Cook over med-high heat.
In a separate pan melt butter over med-low heat. Whisk in flour and cook, stirring constantly for about 1 minute. Stir in milk and continue stirring over med-low heat for about 4-5 minutes or until thick.
Add the cream sauce to the soup mixture. Cook soup until heated through and serve!
1 to 1 1/2 cups uncooked wild rice/brown rice blend, cooked
2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cooked and chopped or an equivalent amount of cooked dark chicken meat from making broth
2 cloves garlic
1 onion
3 ¼ cups chicken broth
5 Tbs butter
5 Tbs all-purpose flour (Can use gluten free flour/thickener)
2 cups milk
½ tsp dried tarragon
¼ tsp dried thyme
Black pepper & salt to taste
Directions:
Cook wild rice. I like cooking 1 cup of wild rice in 2 cups of chicken broth at a very low simmer.
Fry onion and garlic until soft. Add rice and chicken, chicken broth, tarragon, thyme, salt and pepper. Cook over med-high heat.
In a separate pan melt butter over med-low heat. Whisk in flour and cook, stirring constantly for about 1 minute. Stir in milk and continue stirring over med-low heat for about 4-5 minutes or until thick.
Add the cream sauce to the soup mixture. Cook soup until heated through and serve!
Beef Burrito Casserole
1 onion, minced
2 red bell peppers, chopped (optional)
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp chili powder
salt
2 Tbs coconut oil
2 lbs ground beef
2 cups chicken broth
2 15.5oz cans pinto beans, rinsed
1 14.5oz can diced tomatoes, drained or put through blender for kid friendly
6 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
2 Tbs fresh lime juice
18 6” corn tortillas
8 oz cheddar cheese, shredded (2 cups)
Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 450 degrees. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or frying pan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the bell peppers and onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, chili powder, and 1 tsp salt and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the ground beef and cook until no longer pink.
Stir in the broth, beans, and tomatoes and simmer until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Stir in the ¼ cup of the cilantro and the lime juice. Season with the salt and pepper to taste.
Spread one third of the beef mixture in a 9 x 13” baking dish. Layer 6 of the tortillas on top of the filling, overlapping as needed, then sprinkle with ¾ cup of cheese. Repeat to form a second layer. Spread the remaining filling in the baking dish. Cut the remaining 6 tortillas into quarters, then spread over the top. Sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup of cheese.
Bake until the cheese is golden brown and the casserole is bubbling, about 15 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 Tbs cilantro before serving.
2 red bell peppers, chopped (optional)
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp chili powder
salt
2 Tbs coconut oil
2 lbs ground beef
2 cups chicken broth
2 15.5oz cans pinto beans, rinsed
1 14.5oz can diced tomatoes, drained or put through blender for kid friendly
6 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
2 Tbs fresh lime juice
18 6” corn tortillas
8 oz cheddar cheese, shredded (2 cups)
Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 450 degrees. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or frying pan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the bell peppers and onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, chili powder, and 1 tsp salt and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the ground beef and cook until no longer pink.
Stir in the broth, beans, and tomatoes and simmer until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Stir in the ¼ cup of the cilantro and the lime juice. Season with the salt and pepper to taste.
Spread one third of the beef mixture in a 9 x 13” baking dish. Layer 6 of the tortillas on top of the filling, overlapping as needed, then sprinkle with ¾ cup of cheese. Repeat to form a second layer. Spread the remaining filling in the baking dish. Cut the remaining 6 tortillas into quarters, then spread over the top. Sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup of cheese.
Bake until the cheese is golden brown and the casserole is bubbling, about 15 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining 2 Tbs cilantro before serving.
