Fun and Easy Snack

Last week was spring break for my 5 year old. He wanted to have crackers for snack so he asked if we could make some. Crackers are quite easy and can be very fun. Together we made rectangles, triangles, and squares. By then he was tired of making crackers so I finished them (and surprised him) with his name made from crackers. It was quite a treat. This recipe came from my friend's food blog Practical Preparedness and Healthy Eating (recipe here)

Wheat Thins

1¼ cups whole wheat flour
1½ Tbsp sugar
½ tsp salt (plus more for dusting top, if desired)
¼ tsp paprika
4 Tbsp butter
¼ cup water


1. Combine dry ingredients in large bowl. Cut in the butter until it is pea sized. Add the water and knead until smooth (I use the KitchenAid for about 5 minutes).

2. Preheat oven to 400°F.

3. Divide the dough into four pieces; keep other pieces covered while working with one. On lightly floured surface, roll dough into square about ⅛” thick. Cut into squares using rotary cutter. Repeat until all dough has been used.

4. Transfer to parchment lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt, if desired (it totally worth it). Bake for about 7-10 minutes or until they start to brown (be careful because they can burn quickly).

Makes 8 servings
975 total calories (122 Calories per serving)

Chicken Paella

About 2 weeks ago I was watching Martha and her guest made a yummy looking paella chock full of clams, octopus, shrimp, chicken, and more. It looked so good so I suggested it to my husband who knew much more about paella than me (until I saw that episode of Martha I had never even heard of paella - I took French in High School). We searched around the internet for a paella that was easy and inexpensive (as much as I would love to have tons of shellfish it is really not in our budget right now). We found two recipes that looked promising - this one and one from Martha. I went off of them and created my own recipe, which the whole family loved. I don't have a paella pan so I just used my large stock pot (my skillet doesn't have a lid). Go ahead and give it a try. (FYI I used basmati rice because that is what we like and have so if you intend to use something like brown rice it may need more time and liquid).

Chicken Paella

2 Tbsp oil
½ onion, chopped or 1 Tbsp dehydrated onions
½ green pepper, chopped
½ red pepper, chopped
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 cup cooked chicken, chopped
3 cloves garlic (2 chopped, 1 smashed with the heel of your hand)
1½ cups uncooked rice
4 cups chicken stock
½ cup frozen (or fresh) peas
Salt
Pepper
1 tsp Paprika
1-2 tsp Turmeric
2 tsp dry Parsley


1. Heat oil in paella pan or large skillet (be sure you have a lid that fits well because you will need it later). To hot oil add onion and peppers. Sauté until peppers soften, about 3-4 minutes. Add 2 cloves chopped garlic and sauté for about 1 minute. Add tomatoes and chicken. Cook until tomatoes are soft and flavors meld, stirring occasionally to prevent burning or sticking to pan.

2. Meanwhile, in a mortar (bowl for crushing herbs) add 1 clove of smashed garlic, salt, pepper, paprika, turmeric, and parsley. Crush with a pestle to form a paste-like mixture.

3. To the vegetable mixture on the stove, add the rice and stir until the rice becomes somewhat translucent. Add the seasonings from step two, stir well. Add the stock and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Once the mixture comes to a boil cover, reduce heat, and simmer until rice is done, about 15-20 minutes. Finally stir in the peas and let cook for about 2-5 minutes to heat the peas through. Serve warm.

Makes 8 servings
1823 total calories (228 Calories per serving)

Lovely Little Snack

Last night my husband and 5 year old surprised me with a yummy little family dessert. It was sweetened peanut butter (peanut butter with honey) and jelly sandwiches on shortbread. Because you shouldn't eat PB&J without milk, you shouldn't have dessert PB&J with out a dessert milk (or Creme Anglaise in our case). It was a tasty little treat!

Stock - Chicken or Turkey

This is a recipe everyone should own - it will save you lots of money with minimal effort. Just buy a whole chicken (or turkey), roast it (or you could just pop it into a crockpot on high for 4-6 hours), then eat. After you are finished eating the meat, pick off the rest and store for future use. Keep the carcass and make stock. So easy, so rewarding. I freeze my stock by measuring 2 cup increments into quart sized freezer bags (be sure to label with contents and date). Seal the bags and lay them flat on a cookie sheet, place the cookie sheet(s) in the freezer overnight, then in the morning you will have easy to store bags of stock. To use the stock you can just place the bag in a large microwave-safe bowl, microwave for 1 minute, then add to whatever you are making that calls for stock. You could also plan ahead and let it defrost either on the counter or in the refrigerator (just be sure to place the bag in a bowl so it won't leak). After Thanksgiving I used the turkey carcass (in my roasting oven) to make tons of stock. Anyhow, here is the recipe:

Chicken/Turkey Stock

1 carcass, practically picked clean
2 bay leaves
1 onion, peeled and quartered (or a handful of dehydrated onions)
2 carrots, peeled and quartered (or a handful or so of dehydrated carrots)
1 sprig of thyme


1. Toss all ingredients into a large stock pot and fill with water (the water should cover as much of the carcass as possible).
2. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for about an hour.
3. Strain. It is easiest for me to pour everything except the carcass into a large measuring cup (with a spout) then pour the broth from there through the strainer. Freeze in quart bags in 2 cup increments.

Great Idea! You can also use the tops of carrots and the bottoms of garlic cloves (that would otherwise be thrown out or composted) to season the stock. Just pop them into baggies in the freezer and pull them out when you are ready to use them.

Black Bean Soup

I had planned on posting a picture of this soup but I totally spaced it when I served it (we had company, if that makes it better) and we ate it all up - even our company's six year old son who took one look at it and said, "That doesn't even look good. I don't want to eat it." I have to agree with him that this is not a pretty soup but after taking one bite to try it, he gobbled up his whole bowl and asked for more. So on that note, here is my recipe for black bean soup:

Black Bean Soup

1 onion, finely chopped or 2 Tbsp dehydrated onions
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 cups stock
4 cups cooked black beans
½ tsp salt
½ Tbsp cumin
1 Tbsp lemon juice or juice from ½ of a lemon
1½ Tbsp cornstarch
1½ Tbsp cold water


1. In a pot combine the onions, garlic, and stock. Simmer for about 10 minutes.

2. Add 1 cup beans, salt, and cumin. Simmer for about 5 minutes.

3. Puree soup using either immersion blender or a regular blender (do it in batches).

4. Pour pureed soup back to the pot. Add remaining beans and lemon juice. This should be a thicker soup, but if it is looking too dry, add some water in ¼ cup increments.

5. In a small bowl with a lid combine the cornstarch and cold water, replace lid, and shake until combined. Pour cornstarch mixture into soup and stir continually until thickened and heated through.

Makes 4 servings
930 total calories (232 Calories per serving)

Naan

Naan is a traditional Indian flat bread that is often used in place of silverware at meals. It is often made with white flour but we don't use white flour so I made these with whole wheat flour. They were perfect with our yogurt chicken.

Naan

3 cups whole wheat flour, plus more for dusting
1 tsp yeast
1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp oil
1 tsp honey
¾ cup water
4 tsp plain (unsweetened) yogurt
¼ cup butter, melted (or oil)


1. Combine flour, yeast, salt, oil, and honey in large bowl. Add water and mix well. Add yogurt and mix until a cohesive ball of dough is formed. Cover with a towel and let sit for about an hour.

2. Divide dough into 8 pieces, shape pieces into balls (use flour to keep dough from sticking). Allow balls to sit, covered with towel, for about 20 minutes or until they double in size.

3. Preheat oven to 500°F. Coat each ball with small amount of flour and roll out to about ½” thick.

4. Place flattened dough on baking sheet (it works really well to bake two at a time on a cookie sheet). Brush with melted butter then bake for just a few (2-5) minutes (watch carefully!). Once they are baked, wrap them loosely in a towel until the rest are finished. Serve warm.

Makes 8 servings
1900 total calories (238 Calories per serving)

Yogurt Chicken

Rarely do we have meat. When we do it is usually a whole chicken because they are cheap and I can get at least 4 meals out of one chicken. Sometimes, however, we need a change so we have something exciting like drumsticks or thighs (because they come in large, inexpensive packages so I can just freeze them and thaw only what we will eat for a particular meal). One of the most delicious meals you can make with things like drumsticks is yogurt chicken. This is an Indian inspired dish that is not spicy but very flavorful. I first found this recipe in the book Cooking the Indian Way by Vijay Madavan at our local library while I was looking for books to teach our eldest son about Indian food and culture. Since then I have tweaked it to fit our tastes. Here it what I have come up with:

Yogurt Chicken

6 – 8 pieces of chicken (drumsticks, thighs…)
1 tsp salt
1 cup plain (unsweetened) yogurt
1 Tbsp fresh ginger, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 Tbsp curry powder
4 Tbsp butter, melted


1. Prick chicken several times with a fork and place in large bowl (preferably with a lid). In a small bowl combine salt, yogurt, ginger, garlic, and curry powder, pour over chicken, cover bowl, and refrigerate for 6 – 8 hours.

2. To cook chicken, preheat oven to 400°F. Pour half of the melted butter in a 13”x9” baking pan. Place chicken in roasting pan and pour yogurt mixture on top. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, reduce heat to 350°F, baste the chicken with the yogurt mixture and pour the remainder of the butter over the chicken. Return to the oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until chicken is done, basting about every 10 minutes.

3. To serve, don’t forget to pour the sauce over the chicken (it also helps to have some delicious naan to soak up any remaining sauce).

Makes 8 servings
1600 total calories (200 Calories per serving)