Staple Recipe: Yogurt Cake

Ingredients :

1 6oz container of plain yogurt (or 3/4 cup yogurt)

1 yogurt container of vegetable oil 

1 packet of leuvre chimique (2 tsp baking powder) (*can skip if using self-rising flour*)

2 yogurt containers of sugar

3 yogurt containers of flour

3 eggs

To Make:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C or Oven level 6)

Mix ingredients in a large bowl.  

Pour mixture into a greased cake pan or cupcake liners.

Bake at 350 for 35 minutes (less for cupcakes) or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Let cake cool partly before removing from pan, then cool entirely on a wire rack before frosting.

Variations:

Spice Cake

• sub brown sugar for white sugar
• add 2 tsp pumpkin spice mix (1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp all spice and 1/4 tsp ground cloves)
• top with cream cheese frosting (1 package or 3oz cream cheese softened, 1/3 cup butter softened, 1 tsp vanilla, 2 cups powdered sugar)

Pumpkin Spice Cake

• prepare as spice cake above but add canned pumpkin puree to batter before baking

Carrot Cake

• prepare as spice cake above but add shredded carrots, chopped walnuts, and golden raisins to batter before baking.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

• Prepare as spice cake above but lay rings of pineapple in pan before adding batter
• flip cake over to cool
• decorate with a light caramel glaze and/or maraschino cherries placed in each hole of the pineapples

Chocolate Cake

• add cocoa powder to mix before baking
• top with a chocolate sour cream frosting (1 cup semisweet chocolate chips, 1/4 butter, 1/2 cup sour cream, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/4 tsp salt, 2 1/2-2 3/4 cups confectioners sugar, melt butter, chocolate and sour cream together, add rest of ingredients and beat till smooth)

Chocolate Coconut Cake

• prepare as chocolate cake above but add shredded coconut to batter before baking
• sprinkle coconut on top of chocolate frosting for decoration

Chocolate Coffee Cake

• prepare as chocolate cake above but add instant coffee to mix before baking

Birthday Cake

• Add rainbow sprinkles to mix before baking
• Top with creamy butter frosting (1/3 cup butter, 3 1/2 cups confectioners sugar, 3-4 Tbsp milk, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/4 tsp salt, cream together and beat till light and fluffy) and more rainbow sprinkles or chocolate candies

Lemon cake

• add lemon extract to batter
• add lemon zest if desired
• top with a glaze (powdered sugar and milk)

Apple Rum Cake

• add thinly sliced, diced or shredded apples to batter
• add a Tbsp of Cognac or Rum

Other Variations:

Add Different Mix-ins: coconut, walnuts, cocoa powder, instant coffee, shredded carrot, raisins, chocolate chips, pecans, almond extract, orange extract, dried apricots (snipped into small chunks), craisens, espresso...

Vary Yogurt Flavors: cherry, banana, blueberry, strawberry, pineapple, vanilla...

Vary Frostings and Toppings: glaze (powdered sugar and milk), chocolate frosting, buttercream frosting, cream cheese frosting, caramel sauce, a sprinkling of powdered sugar, whip cream, a sprinkling of cocoa powder, Nutella...

Veggie Tot Hotdish: The No Can Recipe

Here's a quick freezer meal that's easy to assemble and can be frozen as a make-ahead meal as well.  Our vegetarian version of the Minnesota Classic: Tater Tot Hotdish.

The big differences?
1. No canned ingredients (original recipe calls for canned veggies and soup)
2. No ground beef (go without or use those awesome Trader Joe's tofu crumbles)
3.  Use veggies on hand (I used some frozen corn and peas mixed with a bag of mixed vegetables)

Here's how to whip it up quickly for dinner tonight or to freeze ahead for another day.

Take a glass baking dish or ceramic casserole dish.

Sprinkle in a variety of mixed frozen vegetables.

Add ground tofu if desired.

Top with homemade cream of mushroom soup (Homemade white sauce thinned with milk and cooked with sliced mushrooms.  You can blend it all in a blender like I did after it's cooked for a smoother texture.)  Stir.


Cover top with a layer of frozen tater tots

Cover and freeze or bake directly at 350 to 425 until hot in the middle and bubbling a the sides.

That's it!  Easy, quick and healthier that the original.   You can even use sweet potato tots if you want but they're a bit crumbly.  Enjoy for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner.

This freezes well in a casserole dish or aluminum pan.  Before baking, assemble frozen ingredients and cooled sauce into freezer safe container.  When ready to eat, reheat in oven until warm throughout.

Staple Recipe: Garnished Sauerkraut

Here's another super simple and versatile recipe that's a staple in the winter time when you need a hearty meal.  Called Choucroute Garni in France, this garnished sauerkraut dish is both easy and delicious.  An best of all, like Vegetarian CousCous, you can make it with what you have on hand.  It's also easy to make into a vegetarian dish like we do.

I'm a huge fan of root vegetables and my husband is vegetarian now so we've made some changes to this recipe over the years and that's just fin!  There's no real wrong way to do it.  Use the items that you'r family prefers.   I did some Goggling, compared a bunch or recipes for garnished sauerkraut, and came up with the flexible formula below:

Ingredients:

Canned, jarred or packaged sauerkraut

Any of the following components:

• garlic sausage
• hotdogs or veggie dogs
• onion
• carrot (peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks)
• sweet potato (sliced 1/4 in thick)
• new potatoes (peeled)
• russet potato (peeled and cut into large chunks)
• bratwurst
• thick cut bacon
• sliced ham
• any sausage
• pork ribs
• corned beef
• diced beef
• pitted prunes
• sliced apples (no need to peel)

Add any of the following to the sauerkraut for added flavor:

• a dash of white wine
• a couple glugs of your favorite beer
• bouillon cube or broth
• salt and pepper
• peppercorns
• a bay leaf
• minced or whole garlic cloves
• cherry tomato garnish
• onion
• garlic
• juniper berries
• caraway seeds
• parsley
• a spoonful of sugar
• any leftover meat on the bone

Step 1: Put 1-2 cans or jars of sauerkraut in a large stock pan.  Drain and rinse first if you are not a fan of the brine flavor.  I don't drain.  Add whatever flavorings you want to simmer with the kraut.  Classic choices are wine, sugar, onion, garlic, broth salt and pepper.  But you can use whatever.  We always have beer so I usually use that.  

Step 2: Prepare the components.  Peel and dice or cut into chunks, all the veggies and fruit you want.  One of each is fine, the more vegetables you use, the bigger the batch will be.  Brown franks and sausages in a pan.  Slice large sausages or meats.  Tough vegetables and whole potatoes can be steamed in a steamer first to make the whole thing cook faster.  That's usually what I do.  

Step 3: Then pile all your meats, vegetables and fruits onto of the kraut and cover.  Simmer till you are ready to eat and all the items are tender to the fork.  Pile a bit of each onto a plate and garnish with a shake of parsley or a cherry tomato or two if desired.  Serve with mustard. Dijon and fig mustard are our favorites but any will do.  Some meats are better served cold.  We usually ate cold slices of garlic sausage with hot sauerkraut.

Optional: You can also make this in a crock pot.  If you do, add a bit more broth, wine and beer to properly steam all the vegetables.  Or pre steam and place all in crackpot to simmer.  

Ta Da!

Easy right?  You can make it on the stove top or throw it all into a crock pot for later.  Store leftovers in an airtight containers in the fridge.  Easy to reheat in the microwave and makes a great lunch to go.

Our recipe changes with the ingredients we have on hand but almost always has sauerkraut, potatoes, franks, and a mustard relish.  

So there you have it.  Not so much a recipe as a choose-your-own-adventure!  Have fun mixing and matching!

Bread, Eggs, Milk...

There are certain grocery items that we need to buy weekly to compliment our pantry and freezer items and fresh fruits and vegetables.  They are the same items that your grandmother probably asked your grandfather to pick up on the way home from work: bread, eggs and milk.

I thought I would challenge myself to come up with as many dishes as I could with these three items.  To make them complete or even better, you will need to use fresh, frozen and canned additions, baking basics and spices.  For the most limited grocery shopping, dorm room cooking, or super tight budget.  No more, there's nothing to eat!  Pair with home grown fruit, herbs and veggies for a complete meal



        Breakfast:

French Toast

• Make it Better with a pinch of salt and a shake of cinnamon before dipping bread 
• Complete it with fresh fruit or homemade applesauce topping

Scrambled eggs

• Make it Better with a pinch of salt before whipping
• Complete it with fresh herbs or a handful of shredded cheese

Soft Boiled Eggs and Soldiers

• Make it Better with salt and pepper on the egg and butter on the toast
• Complete it with a cup of tea and a fresh fruit side

Egg in a hole or sunshine toast

• Make it Better with salt and pepper on the egg and butter on the toast
• Complete it with a side of bacon or sausage and orange slices

       Lunch or Dinner:

Crustless Mini Quiche

• Make it Better with salt and pepper, fresh herbs and a dollop of sour cream
• Complete it with fresh veggies or leftover meat and a handful of shredded cheese and a green salad on the side

Egg Salad Sandwich

Poached egg on toast

Omelettes

        Snacks Drinks & Desserts:

Hard Boiled Eggs

• Make it Better by serving it sliced and topped with salt and pepper
• Complete it by turning them into deviled eggs with mustard, paprika and mayo

Custard/Pudding

Ice Cream

• Make it Better with a spoonful of cocoa powder for a chocolaty taste
• Complete it with fresh fruit, chocolate chip or chopped nuts

Bread Pudding

Milk Shake

• Make it Better with a spoonful of cocoa powder for a chocolately taste
• Complete it by adding fresh or frozen pureed fruit

Steamed Moo

• Make it Better with a sprinkle of cocoa powder or nutmeg on top
• Complete it by adding a spoonful of cocoa powder and sweetener for a hot chocolate

        Sides and Extras:

Croutons

• Make it Better with a sprinkle of cocoa powder or nutmeg on top
• Complete it by throwing them on top of a fresh green salad or into a homemade soup

Stuffing

• Make it Better with any seasonings that you love
• Complete it by adding chopped onion, celery, dried fruit or nuts

Bread crumbs

Check out this fun fritatta recipe using our three favorite staples and more:

Staple Recipe: Vegetable Couscous

When my husband and I lived in France, vegetable couscous was a staple meal for us.  I loved it for several reasons: it was easy, there was no measuring involved (seriously, who measures flour by weight?!), I could use up vegetables we had on hand and it was delicious!!  Also, I was fascinated with turnips, a vegetable out of fairy tales about farmer's wives in far off countries, that I had never even thought about eating in the US and which I bought every time I saw them in the grocery store in France.  Purple tinted creamy white vegetable?  Yes please!

The best recipe I know for using turnips, and probably the only one, is vegetarian couscous.  I think I was inspired by a meal out at a Moroccan restaurant and tried to reproduce the results at home.  My recipe changed every time and that was okay with me!  There's no real wrong way to do it.  I did some Goggling, compared a bunch or recipes for vegetable couscous, and came up with the flexible formula below:

Ingredients:

Dry Couscous
Any of the following components:

• turnip
• zucchini
• onion
• carrot
• peas
• garbanzo beans
• golden raisins
• butternut squash
• sweet potatoes
• yellow or red bell pepper
• potatoes
• tomatoes
• canned crushed/diced tomatoes
• dried apricots

Any of the following seasonings:

• olive oil
• garlic
• bouillon cube or broth
• salt and pepper
• cinnamon
• turmeric
• coriander or coriander seeds
• tomato paste
• cilantro
• a bay leaf
• ras el hanout (Moroccan spice blend)

Step 1: Make up a batch of couscous and set aside.  Follow directions on the box.  I prefer making it with broth as opposed to water.  If you want, add golden raisins and cinnamon to the couscous before it begins to absorb the water.

Step 2: Prepare the components.  Peel and dice or cut into chunks, all the veggies you want.  One of each is fine, the more vegetables you use, the bigger the batch will be.  Add some dried fruit, peas or garbanzo beans.

Step 3: Cook it.  You can make this one of two ways.  As a hearty soup with plenty of liquid or as an ensemble of vegetables without the juice.  I prefer the latter, my husband the former but do whatever works for you. Couscous is kinda a dry grain and the soupy version may be best if you're unsure which way to go.  Just add water or broth to the vegetables to your desired consistency.  Steam or boil all the vegetables.  Steam the vegetables and combine them with canned or fresh diced tomatoes for a chunky stew or boil them in broth with 2 spoonfuls of tomato paste, give or take, and a bit of olive oil for a brothy soup.

Step 4: Season it.  Season the mixture to taste.  Use whatever you have on hand or like. Start with a small amount and taste it.  You can always add more of the flavor you like best.  After a while of making this dish, you'll get a feel of what you want to add a lot of (like cinnamon) and what you want to use sparingly (liker coriander seeds).

Step 5: Plate it up.  Put a pile of couscous on the plate and use the back of a spoon to spread it out and make a large hole or dip in the center of the couscous.  Ladle a couple scoops of vegetables and broth into the center and serve.

Ta Da!

Easy right?  You can make it on the stove top or throw it all (except for the couscous) into a crock pot for later.  Store leftover vegetable mix and couscous in separate containers in the fridge.  Easy to reheat in the microwave and makes a great lunch to go.

Our recipe changes with the ingredients we have on hand but almost always has cinnamon, golden raisins, turnips and garbanzo beans in a brothy soup with tomato paste.  I also really love the crunch of the coriander seeds and will usually sprinkle them directly into the couscous mixture.

So there you have it.  Not so much a recipe as a choose-your-own-adventure!  Have fun mixing and matching!

Extra Credit:  The appetizer at these restaurants was usual a cold steamed veggie mix.  I have no idea what it was exactly but you can make a simple version by mixing up some extra steamed carrot and potato chunks with some olive oil and a bit of ras el hanout or curry powder.  Sprinkle with fresh cilantro or parsley and serve cold in a small dish with toothpicks before the main dish.

Our Weekly Menu System

I'm really trying to install some rhythm to our days, especially when it come to meal time.  I like cooking and baking but hate thinking of a meal idea on the spot or planning shopping lists.  (We're the "walk down the aisles at Trader Joe's grabbing what we typically buy and anything that interests us" types.)  I don't know how many times we've gone out for bar food because neither of us wanted to think of what to make or verify if we had all the right ingredients for something.  Since I work from home managing a small family child care, I'm making meals and snacks several times a day and I wanted to make it more automatic and easy.

Here's the system I put in place that seems to be working for us so far:

Basic Grocery " Healthy Shopping List"
Dry Erase "Weekly Menu Planner"
Homemade Family "Menu" with variation ideas
Stash of "Staple Recipes" in a DIY cookbook

I'll show you what mine look like and let you know how you can do variations on these to make it suit your family.  I'll include the blank printables so you can cater to your family.

We don't have a basic Grocery List on paper yet, we just cruise the aisles and grab things.  We've done our research so this is easy for us, but if you need a place to start, this Healthy Grocery Shopping List from Fit Body, Full Life will get you started.  Add you favorite items on the blank lines and save a copy.

Currently we use the paper system.  I have two magnetic shopping list notepads from the dollar store on the fridge.  One is a running shopping list that I add to whenever I use the last of something.  The other is a list of meals to make and other shopping such as Target.  When I see that I have the ingredients to make something, I jot it down on this list so I don't forget.  I use it for staple items like banana bread and applesauce as well as meals ides.

I used this Weekly Menu Panner template from Dancing with my Father to design a two week flexible menu for the family and child care kids.  In general, the dinner from the previous night is our lunch the next day.  I have toddlers so this is perfect portions for us.  I put in 3 eat out times that we can skip if we want to (Date night, Friends night out and weekend brunch.)  Each lunch or dinner has two similar options like Quiche or Brunch (both egg based) or Soup or Stew (both stovetop or crock-pot options).  This gives me the flexibility of choosing either or.  I try to rotate the choice between the two options each week but if on-hand ingredients don't allow, I don't sweat it.  Here is the blank template here.  And here is a copy with my meal idea prompts in each box.  This helps me when I look in the fridge and think " I should remember to use up 'that' this week.  I just throw it on the planner on the correct day.  Usually I just wing it though.

To add more variety, I made a Family Menu, a double sided and laminated piece of cardstock that I keep by my cookbook with all our favorite options for meal listed (like various kinds of pizzas, quiches or salads.)  We eat vegetarian so these ides are catered to us and often use tofu crumbles.  You can use the same ideas and easily add chicken or ground beef to any of these ideas if you wanna be more of a meat eater.

Note: I know the yellow Wednesday is hard to read but I wanted to use the Waldorf weekly rhythm colors.  It's just a reminder to me as we use a Montessori/Waldorf inspired curriculum, and it helps inspire my food and color choices that day.

My husband is vegetarian but the kids and I are not so sometimes I add sliced ham or chicken to our meals but most often I just get my dose of meat when we eat out.  I think that's a perfect amount of animal protein for me and I have been much slimmer and healthier (with the help of the gym as well) since we started eating like this.  Here is a copy of that menu with my meal ideas removed.  You can fill in the blanks with your own ideas.  It's a word document so you will have to play around with the format as you add things to it so the titles will end up where you want them.  Or just print a blank copy and fill it in with pencil.

Note: I got the images off of a google image search for crocheted food.  If this is you crochet work, please let me know and I will link to your website.  Thanks!

And last but not least, a big list of my favorite staple recipes!  I put them in alphabetical order for you here.  I'll link them if I can, but for now just find your favorite recipe online.  I'll add to this list if I think of new great ideas.  But I highly recommend The Starving Students' Cookbook and the Starving Students' Vegetarian Cookbook both by Dede Hall as well as the recipe index at 100 Days of Real Food which is where I found many of my recipes.

Applesauce, crock pot and stovetop versions (100 Days of Real Food)

Banana Bread, whole wheat (modified from The Starving Students' Handbook)

Banana "Ice Cream"

Breakfast Cookies

Breakfast Burritos

Brownies, dark chocolate whole wheat

Donut Holes, whole wheat (100 Days of Real Food)

Eggs, hard boiled, scrambled, over easy,

Energy Bites, no bake (Gimme Some Oven)

French Toast

Fruit Crisp/Crumble

Gin Fizz

Granola, homemade

Chili, cheatin' (The Starving Student's Cookbook)

Chocolate, dark freezer chocolate

Chocolate Chip Cookies, whole wheat

Chocolate Mousse

Crepes, whole wheat (100 Days of Real Food)

Custard, vanilla (Pudding)

Hot Chocolate

Hot Toddy

Hummus (The Starving Students' Vegetarian Cookbook)

Iced Tea

Iced Mocha

Lemonade (The Starving Student's Cookbook)

Oatmeal, Homemade Instant Mix

Pancakes/Puffins, Homemade Mix

Pesto Sauce (The Starving Student's Cookbook)

Pizza Crust, whole wheat

Popcorn, cinnamon glazed (100 Days of Real Food)

Pumpkin Bread, whole wheat (100 Days of Real Food)

Salad Dressing, homemade vinaigrette

Savory Cake

Quiche Crust, whole wheat (100 Days of Real Food)

Quiche Base, Blender Version, no crust needed (The Starving Students' Cookbook)

Quiche Base, to use with crust 

Ratatouille

Risotto Base, stove top version (Betty Crocker)

Risotto Base, crock pot version (Stephanie O'Dea)

Savory Cake Base

Tortillas, whole wheat (100 Days of Real Food)

Vegetable Couscous

White Sauce (The Starving Student's Cookbook)

Wild Rice Soup, creamy (Betty Crocker)

Whisky Ginger

Yogurt Cake or Muffins

Yogurt, frozen

I have them printed or hand written on various recipe cards and taped into a DIY cookbook (a blank notebook with thick pages).  I keep this on a stand on the kitchen counter.  I don't have any other cookbooks out. If I find a great recipe in another cookbook, I  put a copy of it in here.  I DO have other cookbooks, but I don't keep them out.  Too much visual clutter.  I recommend doing this too.  If you have a lot of recipes, a recipe box might be easier.  You can file them alphabetically or by food type (pizza, stews and crock pots, salads...).  I think, now that my recipe collection has grown, that I would have preferred the alphabetical option.

Another great idea is a three ring binder and page protectors.  This idea is great if you print a lot of recipes from the internet.  You can move the pages around and use tab dividers to separate the sections.  I think this is the method I will go to next, divided alphabetically.  There's lots of cut binders out there now!  And it will keep my recipe cards clean while I'm cooking.  This can get a bit heavy though.  To save page space, you can print several recipes on a page or tape multiple recipe cards on the same sheet.

Perfect Gift Baskets for All: Part 1

There's so much great stuff at the dollar store!  That said, there's also so much junk there!  It can be tricky weeding out the good stuff from the bad.  Here's some tips and then some inspiration of different gift baskets you can make quickly and cheaply that will be things people want!

Tips for finding the good stuff:

Ask yourself:

-What is it made of?  Is it wood, metal, dishwasher safe plastic?  These are good buys!  Is it cheap dent-able plastic, super thin fabric, easily breakable?  These are buys that won't last long. Look at the seams, the joins and any moving parts.  Look for tight seal on lids.

-Can I get this for the same price or cheaper elsewhere?  Even if it comes in a different size.  Travel size toiletries are not always a deal if you can buy the big versions for a little more.  Same goes for toilet paper and paper towels.  Beware, just because it's in the dollar store, doesn't mean that $1 is the best price for this!  This is especially true for food products that are often 69 or 79 cents in the grocery store under a trusted name.

-Is this unique, fun or one-of-a-kind? Often I happen across a tiny single item that I just think is too cool to pass up!  It's funny or clever and can serve as a gift for anyone anytime.  Like a chocolate bar wrapped up like a $100 bill, a sumo wrestler stress ball or a pack of Garbage Pail Kids trading cards (child of the 80's) These items make great present toppers, stocking stuffers, and add ons.  Resist the urge to stock up but a few on hand can be handy in your gift wrapping supplies!

-If I got this, would I use it often?  A happy birthday wine glass looks cool, but it sits on your shelf for most of the year.  Not a good buy.  But an elegant Martini glass filled with confetti and select candy serves the same purpose and has more life span.

-Consumables can be good!  Not everyone wants to load up on "stuff" each holiday or celebration.  In that case, things that get used up can be the best route.  Think meal baskets, planting kits or craft kits.  At the end, you use it up and there's noting to store!  Get clever with disposables, plastic cups and a ping pong ball=party drink game, a pack of toilet paper or two makes a fun bridal shower or halloween game.

-Does this go back to basics or serve a purpose? Sometimes the simplest things are the easiest to overlook.  Perfect gift for a new mom?  bubbles!  You may not think of it right away but it's hours of fun for mom and baby.  How about baking soda, vinegar and spray bottles paired with homemade cleaning recipes.  Practical and simple!

Now!  Browse the aisles!  Take your time.  Go up and down each aisle including the food aisles.  Look at everything and think what else you could do with that or what it would go well with.  If you find something too awesome to pass up, try to build a basket of things around it.  Keep in mind that most of the plastic bins or woven baskets at the dollar store are cheap or ugly.  Would you want that hanging around after the gift is unwrapped?  Look for practical containers like flower pots, plates, dish pans, tote bags, oven mitts, etc.  You can simply bag a bunch of stuff on a cardboard circle in a basket bag.  Presentation is everything so assemble it so you can see all items right away without taking anything out.  Add a bag, bow or stuffing/ shred if desired.

Have fun!