Gingerbread Ducks

As our sweet baby boy arrived one week before Christmas (on my birthday no less!) there were a few holiday activities that I didn't get around to doing with Lottie. Making gingerbread men was one of them.

After days of telling her "tomorrow we are going to make cookies" and forgetting that I don't have molasses, or need baking soda, I finally got everything together to make these stinking cookies. (Actually, they don't stink, they smell pretty good).

The recipe I used is basically a glorified sugar cookie, with added ginger, cinnamon & cloves. Next time I would add more of somethings, perhaps fresh ginger to make them have more bite in the front, instead of just a mild bite in the back.  I used whole wheat flour cause that's what I have and they still turned out moist. Well, half of them did.

Classic Gingerbread Cookies
Dry Ingredients
3 cups all purpose flour (I used whole grain wheat)
2 tsp ground ginger
1tsp baking soda
1tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cloves

Wet Ingredients
2/3 cup butter softened (Now that I see this measurement I think I only put one stick in?)
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1 egg

• Preheat oven 375
• In separate bowl mix dry ingredients. 
• In large mixing bowl beat butter 30 seconds. 
• Add brown sugar & molasses; beat until combined. 
• Add egg, beat until combined
• Add flour mixture, beat until just combined
• divide dough in half, cover and Chill for 3 hours.
• Roll dough on well floured surface
• cut into shapes
• bake @ 375 for 5-6 minutes (Do not put the cookies in then sit down to nurse an infant)
• cool and place on wire rack
• Decorate

We mixed the batter in the morning then waited 3 whole hours for the dough to chill. This was the hardest part. Lottie asked me over and over "We make cookies mama?","We decorate cookies?","We make cookies? Now?", "We use sprinkles mama?"

Perhaps I talked up the decorating part too much, but while we waited we made and colored icing. I thought I was pretty ingenious with this part. 1. I didn't want to spend the money on multiple colors of icing from the store. 2. Even though this icing is PURE. SUGAR. its not loaded with a bunch of chemical crap that I can't pronounce. 3. I wanted to give Lottie some fun, arty, mixing colors, fine motor skills, extra mommy time :)

For the powdered sugar icing: 2 cups powder sugar, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, 2-3 Tablespoons milk. 
I used too much milk. Next time I would stick to just 2 Tablespoons.

I put 2-3 spoonfuls of icing in snack bags. 

3 drops of food coloring. Lottie picked out each color and I convinced her that we would do one color per bag. I know, I know, it would have been way more educational if I let her mix every bag into a lovely shade of "preschool grey" but mama wanted pretty cookies.

After smacking the bag a couple of times and the food coloring going nowhere I showed Lottie how to "tickle" the bag. Then she got the hang of dispersing the color, giggling as she squished.

"teekle teekle teekle hehehe"

 This is what the icing looked like when Lottie declared it done and ran off to play. Mama added a few more drops of food coloring and squished some more. 

This is our end product. Pretty. 

(I used a combination of neon and primary food colors, originally bought to make play dough - I cant wait.)

Then in the late late afternoon, we rolled, and cut.

Then baked.

Oh finally the glory! To Decorate!!

Cut the tip of the corner of the snack bag very small (did I mention, very small tip) and squeeze. Any larger then a smidgen will be to much. I also think thicker icing would make less of a icing puddle. 

See above picture.

Then roll and cut some more.

  Then burn.  Bummer!!

Maybe it was a good thing, because it was 8:30pm and my almost 3 year old had already had a fair share of mini M&M's and royal icing (which is basically straight up powdered sugar). Decorating another 16 cookies would have been the end of us for sure.

Eat and share!

I am pretty proud of those ducks & men. Of course, Lottie's creations are so super cute too.

Happy Decorating!

Healthy Cookies!!

 Finally, after many horrible attempts at making a healthy cookie I found a recipe that suits me. The healthy baked oatmeal bars were to mushy. The Aussie bites crumbled easily and were dry.  I love, love the Vanishing Oatmeal cookie & sub the all-purpose-flour for spelt, barley or whole wheat flour, but it has still too much sugar to eat with no holds barred. 

My sister has been trying the Paleo diet. It really is healthy to eat only whole foods, meat, no grains or sugar and limited dairy. I personally couldn't go without dairy, and think that certain whole grains are good for you. I'm also a sugar addict so, you got me there. Nether-the-less, I have been looking up Paleo recipes for dinners, desserts and my christmas present to her, a (mostly) Paleo Christmas dinner. Lo and behold I found a GREAT cookie! wha hoo!

The N'Oatmeal cookie. (Not Oatmeal cookie).
Adapted from Stacey's Paleo Kitchen. 

Wet Ingredients @ room temperature*

• 1 small banana mashed
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup coconut oil (warmed)
• 2 eggs (v)
• 2 tbsp milk (v)
• 1 tbsp vanilla

Dry Ingredients

• 2 cups almond flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 tsp baking soda 
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp cinnamon

Add Ins - About 2 cups total or more
What I used:

• 1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips (v) (I can't make cookies without chocolate in them :)

Other suggested add ins:

• Raisins
• Dried Blueberries or cherries
• Chopped dates
• Cacao nibs
• Goji berries
• Flax Seeds**
• walnuts & pecans
• Whole grain oats, barley or Quinoa flakes

1. In a big bowl mash the banana. Add the remaining wet ingredients at room temperature*. maple syrup, coconut oil, eggs, milk and vanilla and mix until combined.
2. In another bowl add dry ingredients. Almond flour, coconut, baking soda, salt and cinnamon and mix to combine.
3. Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix.
4. Stir in to this mixture your add ins.
5. Mix until thoroughly combined.
6. Scoop onto a parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 13-15 minutes. Let them cool on the pan slightly before removing to a cooling rack.

*If the wet ingredients are cold it will cause the coconut oil to congeal.
**Flax seed should be ground. Your body cannot process the exterior to get to the good stuff, though it will provide lots of fiber if whole. Flax oil should not ever be cooked, put oil in smoothies and such for the full benefits.
(v) The original recipe called for almond or goat milk. For my vegan friends, I'm sure you can make some easy substitutions to the egg, milk & chocolate chips.

Enjoy!

I would seriously let Lottie eat as many of these as she wants. There isn't anything in them I wouldn't serve her by itself. I love how fluffy they are with the added crunch of the seeds. Be careful though. They are very satisfying, 3 cookies can leave a belly feeling full.

SquEEEZie!

Lottie and Mama have fallen in total like with the Stoneyfield YoKids Squeezers. She calls them, "SquEEEZies." They make a great mess-free snack when frozen. Then Lottie started eating two in one sitting,  twice a day. It seems like a lot, but for a child that doesn't eat much besides blueberries, I'm happy for her to get protein and good bacteria where she can get it.

Probiotic.org claims that the bacteria stays alive through freezing --

 The live bacteria, few of which are killed in the freezing process, go into a dormant state. When eaten and brought back to warm temperatures within the body, these cultures again become active and impart the same health benefits as regular yogurt. A 1999 study by the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University confirmed the high survival level of bacteria during freezing using three different methods.

When we started going through so many it felt like it was getting expensive, making lots of trash, and I want to control the ingredients in her frozen treats (even with YoKids being WAY better about sugar content then Gogurt). When I was growing up we always had homemade popsicles available in the summer. They were usually made out of orange juice (The way OJ flakes when frozen is spectacular!). So I started searching for the ultimate popsicle molds for tots.

Since the push up style seems to be working well for Lottie, I looked for something similar to squeeze out the frozen goodness without it running down her hand.

I found 2 brands of squeeze style silicone pops.




Kinderville Ice Pop Molds: All their items are made with BPA, Phthalate, and PVC free Silicone that is a non-leaching material so it’s safe for use in the dishwasher, microwave and the freezer. I like that this brand feels substantial. The top has a good fit and the rim holds it shape when adding yogurt to it.These are short and chunky. I put 3 in a small plastic cup to stand upright in the freezer.

 Exciting News!! These are Coming Soon to Ecological Babies.

Norpro- I can't find any claims particular claims about the material, but all silicone is BPA free. These are tall and thin, I think they are kind of flimsy, and don't stand up in the cup well because of some extra material on the bottom.



Disclaimer: If you have a tot under 2, they won't be able to keep the yogurt squeezed tight, which let's the hunk fall to the bottom. My daughter decided to dig her hand into the container to grab handfuls of yogurt to put in her mouth. Big mess!



My solution was to use a chip clip. Unless you want to sit next to your child during a perfectly good 15 minutes that they are content without you, I recommend the chip clip. I can bounce around the house and adjust it every so often with no mess. :)




Jewel Ring Pops made by Tovolo - These are Lottie's favorite. She gets pretty upset when we run out. I like that they are only 1.5 ounces, so she can eat it before it melts and gets messy, but an older child may eat them in one bite. Each pop comes out of the base for individual servings. The top 'stick part' clicks into the mold and they are so small that it can be difficult getting the pop out sometimes. I recommend running it under warm water then 'unclicking' the top by jiggling a little section at a time.


You can put anything in these popsicle molds, but I opt for frozen yogurt. I get plain organic 32oz yogurt for Lottie, sometimes Stoneyfield, sometimes little Dreaming Cows, and have had success with the following easy mixes.

Drain the Yogurt. (*see below)
Put the fruit in a food processor or blender.

banana                 or         banana              or     banana
strawberry                        strawberry                 strawberry
blueberry                          peas                          peach

Then add ~32 oz of drained yogurt.
Mix. Pour. Freeze. Eat.

I know, they are not very innovative, but I use what I have. Looking at the Plum Baby Organic blends that Lottie likes, I will experiment with some of these flavor combos in the future -

blueberry, pear, and carrot
sweet potato, corn, and apple
spinach, peas, and pear
pumpkin and banana
pear and mango
peach, apricot, and banana
apple and carrot

A side note. We ran into The Pop Stop at Railroad Square this First Friday. Their popsicle flavor combos were ridiculous. Orange Basil. Say what! and Chocolate Sea Salt. Of course I got that one. A-Maze-ing!



Mama's Frozen Yogurt

I am not really a fan of yogurt. I think it's the texture. I wish I was a fan because I know all those cultures are great for my digestive system. I am, however, a total addict to TCBY chocolate vanilla swirl. I buy it by the quart and heart the drive thru in town. We are very lucky to have about 10 frozen yogurt cafes in a five mile radius. Still, I find it necessary to make my own, for the same reasons I make Lottie's, and for a good excuse  to use my dusty ice cream maker (Yes, Mom, thanks, I'm using the ice cream maker!).

I had a lengthy discussion today with a young man at our local co-op about the different types and textures of yogurt. I am aiming for a high, active culture count, plain or vanilla, whole milk, creamiest yogurt, that comes in a large, 32 ounce container.

• Kefir has great cultures but only comes in drinkable yogurt - I need creamier.
• Greek is creamy - but to tangy for dessert.
• Dreaming Cow (our local yogurt)- only comes in 6ounce containers (I sent them an email today requesting they sell 32 ounce).
• Liberte is super sweet and creamy - I got one to sample, but it doesn't come in plain or large containers.
• Stoneyfeild is pretty creamy, comes in plain, vanilla and in large containers - this works for me. I choose vanilla.

Instructions:
Freeze your ice cream maker 24 hours ahead of time, I wrap mine in a plastic bag to prevent frost bite. I read that somewhere.

*Drain the yogurt on cheese cloth, a bio bag or a strainer. Whatever contraption you want to come up with. This makes a creamy yogurt and prevents it from crystallizing.

A pretty jar w/cheese cloth





Makeshift strainer in an empty yogurt container








Put the drained yogurt in the ice cream maker (it should be thick and about half the original volume). Let it mix while you get the chocolate ready. Yes, chocolate. I did say this was Mama's Frozen Yogurt, right. ;)


I melted the chocolate in a double boiler with a touch of cream till it was a congealed mess. Then I scooped it into the yogurt, which had already starting to freeze. Some chocolate instantly cooled into flakes and chunks while some mixed into the yogurt making it a tangy, chocolate, chocolate flake/chunk goodness.


If I had actually looked at the Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Book beforehand, I would have known to wisk the melted chocolate with milk, mix the cooled chocolate sauce with drained yogurt, cool the yogurt with chocolate mixed in for 1-3 hours. Then add the cooled mixture into the ice cream maker.

But hey. Happy accidents sometimes make yummy treats! After all isn't the fun of cooking experimenting?

Happy Experimenting.

Lasagna for a friend

This is one of Richard's favorite meals, and the meal I bring when friends have a baby. I have experimented a lot with lasagna and finally figured out my perfect layering order for a hearty lasagna. It doesn't stay together very well, but I claim that it is super yummy no matter what it looks like.

Kristy's Super Yummy Lasagna.

Jar of good spagetti sauce (Muir Glen Cabrenet Marinara is my fav.)
15oz Can of tomato sauce
Small can tomato paste
Noodles (I used to get the no boil kind but lately I get DeBoles)
1 lb ground beef (I like Local, organic, grass fed. Ground turkey or crumbles work too.)
Mushrooms-slice em up (I mix porabella and button or whatever is available)
Worstershire
Dried basil, parsley & Rosemary
2/3 container of ricotta
Mixed Italian cheese bag (pre-grated multi cheese goodness)
1 large egg or 2 small eggs
Green bell pepper
Spinach
Garlic
Carrots
Fresh parmesan when serving

Mise En Place
Boil the noodles. I never use a whole box and they only take a few minutes to get al dente so I do ~6 noodles at a time in a huge pot so they have room to boil. When they come out lay them out flat on a clean cloth so they don't stick together.

Brown the meat and add a touch of worstershire, sauce, some basil, parsley & Rosemary. Push the meat to the side and add the sliced mushrooms so they touch the pan. I do this so that they get caramelized and not just soaking in meat sauce. Then they cook down a bit then mix it all together. For veggie friends I do the same but with just shrooms.

The following can be done while you are cooking the meat and noodles. (or before hand, intermittently over a 3 hour period of entertaining a toddler if you are me)

in a medium bowl mix 1/3 container of ricotta (you'll see why its important to save some later) 2/3 bag of mixed italian cheese and egg.

Wash and chop spinach. Dice the bell pepper and a a couple cloves of garlic. put all these ingredients together in a big bowl.

Use a veggie peeler to make ribbons of carrots. (I've been using veggie peeler for cheese on salads too.)

Time to Layer!

• Put a bit of sauce on the bottom of the pan.
• add noodles the length of the pan
• using a mini spatula, paint the noodles with the paste! (This is my special secret* technique that I think helps the lasagna be extra rich and hearty)
• Add the meat mixture - or just mushrooms
• noodles width ways - you may need to cut them to fit
• paint the noodles
• put ricotta mixture and smooth it out.
• add the spinach mixture and squish it down by pressing.
• Pour a bunch of your favorite sauce on top. the spinach will keep the cheese from becoming a saucy mess, and do it before the carrots or the sauce will just go off the sides.
• place the carrots 1 layer thick on top of spinach and sauce in pretty rows like they are noodles.
• put a little more sauce
• noodles length ways
• paint with paste
• put the rest of the bag of cheese on top of the whole thing.
• put tinfoil on the top. don't press down too hard or the cheese will stick a little.

When I am giving this meal to someone I put it in the fridge now. This way I can make 2 in the beginning of the day, deliver one and the recipient can cook it when they want & I put mine in the oven when we are ready to.

• Put it in a preheated oven @ 350 covered for 45 min. bake uncovered for 15 min to get the cheese gooey and crispy.

let it cool, and enjoy for a couple days.



What do you do with the leftover ricotta? 
Make chocolate ricotta pie!

*This is not a healthy recipe, it is a version of chocolate cheesecake. I repeat, not very healthy...but sooo good.

I saw Giada De Laurentiis make this pie on the foodnetwork christmas special. The first time I made it, for Christmas dessert, I pretty much followed the recipe forgoing the hazelnuts because I didn't have them. It is an incredibly rich pie. This last time I made the pie I tried to make it less rich by using milk and dark chocolate bars instead of semi sweet and added a touch of cream as the chocolate melted. For the crust I used Annies Chocolate Bunnies, following my grandma's graham cracker crust recipe. I also had a bit less ricotta then called for so added the difference in more cream cheese. The result was a creamier pie with lighter chocolate flavor and a killer crust!
I do like the way it turns out with the called for amount of ricotta, it is airier and has more texture than a cheese cake.

Here is Giada's recipe with my noted changes.

Giada's Cornmeal crust

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornmeal
• Pinch salt
• 1/2 cup skinned, toasted hazelnuts
• 1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

For the crust:
In the bowl of a food processor combine the flour, 1/4 cup sugar, cornmeal, salt, and 1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts, and pulse to grind. Add the butter and pulse, just until the mixture forms a dough. Press the dough over the bottom and about 2 inches up the sides of an 11-inch diameter tart pan with a removable bottom. Refrigerate until the dough is firm, about 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Line the tart dough with aluminum foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake the tart shell in the lower third of the oven until just set, about 25 minutes. Carefully remove the foil and pie weights. Bake the shell again until golden, about 10 minutes longer. Remove from the oven and cool completely.

Chocolate Bunnie Crust

process 2 cups of bunnies. add 1/4 cup melted butter and 1/4 cup brown sugar. Pulse. Press into pie pan. Bake @ 350 ~10 min. 

Pie Filling:

• 1/2 cup water
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips (about 1 1/3 cups) (milk chocolate and 70% dark)
• 3/4 cup ricotta cheese
(when using less ricotta I made sure to substitute with cream cheese so the cheese content stayed the same total amount.)
• 1/3 cup cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 large egg
• 3 large egg yolks
• 1/4 cup toasted and chopped hazelnuts ( I didn't use these)

For the pie filling:

• Add the chocolate to a double boiler, over very softly simmering water and heat until melted. (I added 2 TBS of cream here)

• Combine the water with the sugar in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat and cool.

• Add the ricotta cheese and cream cheese in a food processor and pulse until smooth.
• Add the egg and egg yolks, 1 at a time, and process until smooth.
• Add the melted chocolate and the sugar syrup and pulse until combined.
• Pour the custard into the tart shell and bake @ 350 until the custard is just set, about 30 minutes.
• Scatter the remaining 1/4 cup of chopped hazelnuts on top of the filling. (if you what)
• Let the tart cool completely before serving. 
• The tart can be wrapped in plastic and refrigerated for up to 3 days. Return the tart to room temperature before serving.(its good cold too)

of course there is already a piece taken out - Do you really think I would wait till it cooled?!

Happy Cooking.

P.S. Friends that just had babies like chocolate ricotta pie too, so be nice and share.

*not so secret

Sunshine Soup

I loose all motivation late November thru mid January. It's gross outside and I could wear my PJs all day. S.A.D., also known as the winter blues, hits me with just a few days of dreary weather. Luckily I live in Florida, so they are few, with at least one day of 60 degree sunny weather between. I don't have ANY idea how I would handle living up north in the winter (or any other time, really). I guess I would eat a lot of Sunshine Soup...

For the past few months I have spent my days with Beans lounging in her play tepee, reading books and pretending that we know how to play guitar (to my credit, I have been watching a few 'how to play guitar' VHS tapes).

Yet somehow I've recently found motivation and decided to get back to this blog thing. Instead of sticking to a theme, and worrying about cohesive content, I have decided to write about whatever I want. So here goes, happy reading...

And eating! Yes, I'm adding recipes too. Kasey and Mom, this is for you. I like to cook, because I like to eat, and I try my darnedest to eat healthy whole foods (mostly so I don't feel guilty when I do hit Chick Fila or go crazy on chocolate muffins!). I'll start sharing my favorites and new concoctions gone right.

Writing recipes will be difficult for me since I don't follow them well, not even in baking. I usually look at more than one recipe for the same dish, pick what I like about each, and cross my fingers. I can tell you what I used and how I cooked it, but I can't guarantee yours will turn out the same as mine, or mine will ever taste the same two times in a row. But hey, that's my love of cooking: it's all experimentation, yummy, yummy experimentation!

Sunshine Soup

My inspiration for Sunshine Soup comes from Twig and Toadstool, it's a super sweet story. I also looked at a couple recipes online and in my new Farm Fresh Seasonal Produce Cookbook.

You'll need --

• 1 big Butternut squash (or 2 small)
• 1 sweet potato
• 32 oz chicken or veggie stock (and some more)
• 1 can coconut milk (not lite, you want the cream)
• Olive oil
• 2 cloves Garlic
• 1 nugget of fresh Ginger
• 1 Bay leaf
• Cinnamon
• Nutmeg
• Rosemary
• Salt
• Pepper
• Maple syrup

Directions:

Cut and de-seed squash
Roast squash and potato around an hour

Go do something else while it cools

Dice garlic small
Get a big pot and heat a swirl of olive oil
Put in garlic and grate ginger into the pot
Stir and let cook around 2 minutes
Add stock
Peel squash and sweet potato and put it in the pot  

(I used a big gravy spoon to scoop the flesh out)
Let it heat up a bit

Use an immersion blender and blend till smooth-ish
(you could put it all in a food processor in batches then back into the pot for a smoother consistency, 

and a bigger mess)
Let it heat up some more and watch out for labyrinth swamp type bubbles (I put a lid on it)
Add seasonings and bay leaf to your liking. My grandma measures spices by covering the top of the sauce or soup once or twice. I measure the same way.

Add coconut milk. Mmmm coconut fat is Sooooo good for you. 

Add a swirl of maple syrup and blend again if you like (I personally enjoy the chunks.)
Let it sit on low until you are ready for dinner.
Yumm, yumm eat your bowl of Sunshine Soup! 

I served mine with a salad of greens, blue cheese, pecans, pears and big ol' croutons.

Next time, I'll try carrots and apples instead of sweet potato. Doesn't that sound good?

Happy Eating...