Greens the kids will love!

All 3 of my kids like vegetables (for the most part). I've never had a problem getting them to munch on fresh veggies, especially with some yummy dip. While each has had their moments where they don't seem to want a certain veggie, it's not a general dislike for vegetables. The boys have each had a phase where they flat out insisted they didn't like a vegetable: Zach hated peas from birth until very recently; Gabe quit liking cooked carrots about the time he turned 3 1/2.

Zach also had a major dislike for all things potato (with the exception of french fries, of course) from birth until just the last 6 months or so. And Gabe, being the perfect little brother, has decided that sounds like a cool dislike to pick up right where Zach left off. Words cannot describe how aggravating it is for Mommy to have to sit and watch him push what used to be one of his favorite foods around his plate, refusing to even try it. Grrr.....

But fortunately, my kids have veggies they absolutely LOVE. Funny enough it's the veggies that most kids don't like til they are adults, if even then. All 3 go nuts for roasted asparagus, which surprises me to no end (I know some kids like them, but as a collective whole I hear about kids that won't touch any veggie at all except raw carrots & celery, so it surprises me to know end that all 3 love them!) And they will all ask for spinach. Yes, spinach. And without Mommy having to mention Popeye's name (ok, bad example, I doubt they'd even know who Popeye is!) They love creamed spinach and especially something we call "Spinach Squares".

Spinach Squares are something I discovered long before I had kids, and are without a doubt one of my favorite ways to get my greens. A co-worker brought them to a potluck, and they reminded me of something that I'd made before (but had lost the recipe). They were such a hit at the potluck, I think everyone demanded the recipe.

Over the years, I have changed up the recipe slightly to fit my own tastes (would it be on my blog if I hadn't changed it up a bit???) and I've made several variations over the years to fit the menu. But one thing never changes, all 3 kids will eat way more than their fair share. And it does my heart good to see the veggies disappear!

Spinach Squares (original recipe)

1 stick of butter or margarine, melted

3 10oz packages of frozen, chopped spinach, thawed & drained

1 pound of jack cheese, shredded

1 cup of all-purpose flour

1 tsp of baking powder

3 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350. Mix all ingredients well and put in a greased 9x13 casserole dish. Bake for 35 minutes. Let cool 30 minutes before cutting. Cut into 2 inch squares.

Now, like I said, I change it up a little to suit my tastes. I never make them without a little fresh ground black pepper - I'm not really sure why it wasn't included in the regular recipe. I always add some fresh ground nutmeg, something I always do with spinach or cheese dishes. And I have found I actually prefer the flavor if there is some cheddar in there. I've made them with the mexican blend shredded cheese (usually the cheddar/jack blend), all sharp cheddar (probably my favorite), 1/2 a pound of jack & 1/2 a pound of cheddar, all colby jack, and even mozzarella. You really can't screw them up.

If I'm taking them a potluck or serving as an appetizer or buffet item, I typically cut them in bite size squares. I also have a tendency to throw in a little crumbled bacon if I've taking them to a party/bunco, just to get that little extra yumminess!

I have cooked these in a throw away pan and taken them to friend's who have had a baby more times than I can count. And as some of you know, this is the perfect freeze-ahead item when you are having a baby! Those of you who have been pregnant with me, know that I make about 12 batches of these and freeze them so I've got ready made side-dishes for when I'm too busy with a newborn to care about cooking! And even if you aren't expecting, they are a great addition to your meal plan if you like to freeze ahead. (Note: When I freeze ahead, I typically split the recipe into two 8x8 throw away pans so we don't have quite so many to eat at once.)

The possibilities are endless! Hope your kids (and you) enjoy them as much as my family does.

A little Irish for St. Patty's Day.....

Sorry for neglecting the blog. Between illnesses and house-hunting, I haven't been doing a lot of fancy cooking. When I'm always throwing stuff in the crockpot or cooking my easy, standby meals, it's hard to find inspiration to share with all of you. But I've been meaning to get back on track!

I've had several requests for my corned beef & cabbage recipe in the last couple weeks. I think most of my friends know that I always make corned beef for St. Patrick's Day and New Years Day, as well as several other times a year. It's without a doubt one of my favorite meals. And with the exception of Gabe possibly having a "I don't like cabbage day" (thankfully those are rare), all 3 of my kids will even ask for seconds when I fix it.

Now for the record, I'm not Irish. At least not much. My great-grandfather's last name had a "Mc" in it, so quite possibly there is a little in the mix. But not enough for me to claim Irish heritage. My love of corned beef comes from my grandmother from England -- "Nanny" -- as I discussed in the yorkshire pudding post. Or maybe my mom. Which ever one first decided to make corned beef the traditional New Year's meal in our family.

Sorry to disappoint, but I don't usually corn my own beef. I have before. And I probably should every time (to eliminate preservatives, nitrates and all that yucky stuff). But I don't. One of two things happens when I buy a corned beef: I either forget to buy one til the last minute (when it's too late to do one myself) or I find one on really good sale. The latter is the case this year. Whole Foods had theirs on sale last week for a too-good-to-be-true price last week. And with the 'no preservatives', 'no nitrates', 'no growth hormones', 'no antibiotics' label, I figured it was a great alternative to trying to have my own done in time. Especially when St. Patty's day falls on a Wednesday this year.

Corned Beef & Cabbage

1 3-4 lb corned beef (including the spice packet)

10-12 red potatoes, cubed

1/2 pound of baby carrots (or regular carrots, peeled & cut into sticks)

1 small onion, diced (optional - I've left it out and didn't really notice a difference)

1 small head of cabbage, cored & chopped

First I trim off quite a bit of the fat. You certainly don't have to, but I figure I'm not going to eat it, and it is just as flavorful without letting the meat & veggies boil away for hours in all the excess fat. Give the beef a good rinse (if using a prepackaged one, it will be covered in this hot pink colored jelly stuff that, believe me, you won't want to cook). Put beef in the bottom of a good stock pot (I use my good Le Creuset pot). Add cold water to cover the beef. Add the seasoning packet (note: you can use less if you like your veggies a little less flavorful or you can leave it out entirely if you like a little bit easier clean-up!) Bring to a boil. Let it cook at a heavy boil for about 10 minutes, then use a spoon to skim off the "stuff" that cooks out of the meat. Then reduce heat, cover, and let cook for about 2 1/2-3 hours (or recommended time on our package). Remove meat and place it on cutting board. Add cabbage, potatoes & carrots, and cook until potatoes & carrots are fork tender. Slice corned beef. If you want the meat HOT, place the meat back in the broth with the veggies til ready to serve.

Yes, it's that simple. :) Without a doubt to easy to not enjoy it several times a year.

I have corned my own beef a couple of times. The last time I used Alton Brown's recipe from Food Network http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/corned-beef-recipe/index.html It was long enough ago that I honestly don't remember if I eliminated or changed any ingredients. But I do remember that it was a really good alternative to going the easy route.

Enjoy!

Speaking of letting the kids create their own recipe.....

It's funny that my last entry was about my mom letting me take the reins in the kitchen, since yesterday my kids took charge of the cupcakes.

My oldest came across a cake mix in the pantry yesterday and wanted to make cupcakes. So as I was pouring the dry mix into the bowl, my just-turned-3-year-old picks up the box and counts the eggs in the picture. Then says, "One egg for Zach, one for Gabe, and one for me!" Now, I've never been one to let my kids crack eggs very often (those organic eggs get expensive!), but I figured in the spirit of making cupcakes together on a snowy day......sure why not.

So I helped her crack hers, then let the boys do their own. It was about the time Gabe dumped his egg in the bowl that he announced he wanted strawberry cupcakes. Almost instantaneously, Zach said he wanted cream cheese frosting. Well, no matter how I stretched my imagination, I just couldn't come up with a way to make strawberry cupcakes from ingredients in the house. So I offered the compromise of making chocolate-cream cheese frosting since the cupcakes were going to be boring old yellow (well, butter-recipe yellow, but still just yellow to my little dessert lovers.)

Gabe suddenly changed gears and asked for orange juice, just as I was measuring the 2/3 cup water to put into the cake batter. So I stopped to get him some oj, and he said, "Orange juice has water in it, can we put it in the cupcakes?" And I thought that sounded like a brilliant idea.

So after all the kids chiming in, our butter cupcakes turned into orange vanilla cupcakes. And I figured since our cupcakes were turning into an experiment, I would do the unthinkable and use the whipped "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" that I had on hand. This was technically my daughter's suggestion who grabbed the tub when I said I needed butter, and refused to accept that hers wasn't what I needed.

Yes, like all bakers, I have REAL unsalted butter on hand. But to be honest I've used enough real, unsalted butter in my cooking recently that my cholesterol level has probably gone from "very healthy" to "one foot in the grave" just since Thanksgiving. So I figured why not play around and see what happens. After all, I'm still learning to bake at an altitude of over 6500 feet, now is the time to play around.

So in went the orange juice, vanilla extract (dangit - I just remembered I have actual vanilla beans I should have used!) and tub butter. (OK, sidebar, are any of my Grey's Anatomy friends now envisioning Izzie eating an entire tub of butter right now?? LOL) And the 4 of us took turns whipping them up as I fully expected a disaster to come out of the oven. I even took the advice of a friend who told me to never, EVER bother with high altitude directions. That part certainly makes life easier.

Much to my surprise, we created the absolute moistest cupcakes I have ever put in my mouth. Granted it was probably a fluke -- some strange combination of the altitude, sub-freezing temps and massive fluffy snowflakes saturating the air around the house that attributed to this experiment actually turning into something heavenly. But hey, I'll take it.

And it just goes to show that you can always doctor up a cake mix to make something your own. It's easy to feel like you've made something homemade just by changing one ingredient.

Orange Vanilla Cupcakes

1 box Duncan Hines Butter Recipe Yellow Cake Mix

2/3 cup orange juice

1/2 cup tub margarine (please, feel free to use the REAL stuff!!!)

3 eggs

1 Tbsp vanilla extract

Mix & bake according to package directions.

And if you desire......

Chocolate-Cream Cheese Frosting

(I usually double this recipe)

1 8oz package cream cheese, softened

1/2 stick REAL unsalted butter, softened

1 cup confectioner's sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1/3 cup dutch cocoa powder

Whip together til fluffy

My Very First Actual Recipe

Years ago, when I was like 8 or 9 (maybe 10), I was helping my mom make dinner for my dad for his birthday. She had bought some chicken leg quarters. She pulled down ALL the spices from her spice cabinet. She let me sit there smelling them & tasting them til I created my own recipe for the chicken. I'm not really sure how long it took me, but I do vividly remember standing there at the counter intently deciding what spices made the best combination for my dad's special meal. After much consideration, I decided on "Rosemary Coriander Chicken".

My mom and I then covered each piece of chicken in salt, pepper, rosemary & coriander. Then she pan fried them in a little oil & butter. The chicken was incredible and my dad LOVED it. It quickly became a staple in our house after that.

The funny thing about my recipe is it never got referred to as just "chicken". I never asked "What's for dinner?" and had my mom reply "Chicken" or "chicken quarters". It was always called "Rosemary Coriander Chicken".

I have made it several times for my family, especially at our last house in Texas where we grew a rosemary bush in the front yard. But I didn't realize til this week that I had gotten out of the habit of calling it by it's full name.

In fact, I hadn't even decided on how I was going to cook the leg quarters until I opened my spice cabinet and saw the brand new bottle of coriander that I bought a couple weeks ago and I suddenly craved it. Eating it always gives me the chance to think about my childhood and remember my dad. I knew I'd have to tell the kids we were having "Rosemary Coriander Chicken" for dinner. Zach especially got a kick out of the fact that I wasn't much older than him when I created the recipe all by myself.

Now, I don't dare google it. I'm sure somebody out there somewhere has come up with the same idea. I'm sure somebody has coined it as their recipe. So my apologies to whoever if this comes out sounding like I straight plagiarized it. But I do know I created this from my heart. So if someone else has created the same exact recipe, well that just means they have really good tastes. :)

Rosemary Coriander Chicken

4 chicken leg quarters (chicken/thigh combos)

salt, pepper, rosemary & coriander to taste (enough to sprinkle & cover both sides)

2 Tbsp of olive oil

2 Tbsp of butter

1/2 cup white wine (optional)

additional pat of butter (optional)

Remove skin from chicken quarters (you can leave them on, but I remove them in an effort to be a little healthier). Rinse chicken in warm salt water, then rinse again in clean water. Pat the chicken dry. Evenly sprinkle the chicken with coriander. Sprinkle rosemary on the chicken and salt & pepper to taste. Heat the oil & butter over the stove in an oven safe pan.

Place chicken in the pan. Cook til the bottom side is nicely browned. Then flip to brown the other side (5-6 minutes each side). Once both sides are browned, put a lid on the pan. You can either turn down the heat and continue to cook it on the stove, or transfer the pan to a 350 degree oven. Cook for an additional 30-40 minutes. Chicken can be served as is or with the following pan sauce.

Deglaze the pan with a 1/2 cup of white wine. Scrape up all the 'bits' off the bottom of the pan. Allow wine to simmer til it cooks down by about half. Turn off heat. Stir in a small pat of butter. Sauce goes great over roasted potatoes if you desire!

Batter Pudding anyone?

Or as you Americans probably call it, Yorkshire Pudding.

Funny, even though Yorkshire is the proper English name for it, my very proper English grandmother always called it Batter pudding. In fact, I have to force myself to call it Yorkshire pudding when I'm talking to "yanks" about it.

Growing up, I always thought I was the only kid who had Yorkshire pudding on a semi-regular basis. After all I was the one with the grandmother who was actually born and raised in England. That always made me feel a little different, a little special. It still amazes me to learn how many of my adult friends actually like Yorkshire pudding.

My grandmother was an incredible cook, which probably makes all of you who know anything about English cooking laugh a little. Yes, I know English cooking has a reputation for being bland and not worth the price of admission. But Nanny, as she was known to me, could make food delicious. While she could do just as good on American fare, she would still make her old English favorites all the time. While my mouth still waters for some of her fish & chips or her bacon pudding, I must admit I don't miss the jellied tongue she made every year for New Year's.

She grew up during the depression. She was forced to drop out of school at 14 and get a job to help keep the family afloat. And it was while preparing meals for her mom, dad and two little sisters that she learned to cook so well. And I can still hear her voice, with her English accent telling me how much her Daddy loved her batter pudding. How even as a teenager she could make the best he'd ever tasted.

She had been making them for so many years by the time I came around, that she would laugh if I ever actually asked her for a recipe. I made the mistake one time of asking her for the recipe for her "baby's head" (the English terminology for a steamed suet pudding) and it took her almost an hour to give me approximate ingredients and a visual of what consistency I was aiming for. Then she had to call me back when she remembered she actually had a recipe of sorts written down.

So, sans recipe, she made her batter pudding by "feel". And that's the way she taught my mom. And it's the way my mom explains it to me every time I want to make one and call her up and ask her about specific quantities. So I have finally given up on looking at a recipe, and I just go by feel. And in an effort to not risk screwing it up, if my mom happens to be here when I want one for dinner, I let HER make it.

The important thing to remember about Yorkshire pudding is that they will not always be consistent. Even my grandmother would occasionally complain (or more appropriately shout, "Ah, bloody hell!") about the fact that hers fell, or never rose in the first place. My mom still jokes every time she puts one in the oven that crossing fingers & hoping it rises is the most important ingredient.

So bearing that in mind, I can give you the "recipe" that worked for me tonight. TONIGHT, I paid attention to how much flour, salt, etc I put in the bowl so I could share the recipe without simply googling someone else's recipe for you. But as I learned from my Nanny and my mom, I can't promise results.

Yorkshire (Batter) Pudding

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

3/4 cup of milk (probably could have used a splash or two more)

1 egg, beaten

1-2 Tbsp meat drippings

For the batter, mix ingredients in a bowl thoroughly (you want it to be the consistency of very thin pancake batter). If you happen to have an egg beater (the little hand mixer with the handle that you manually turn), use it and make my grandmother proud. But if you're like me, just use a fork. :) Set the bowl aside for at least 30 minutes to an hour so it can rest and come to room temperature.

Once your meat is done and removed from the oven, spoon drippings into a glass pie dish. (Note: pie dish is the right size for this amount of batter, you can always increase the ingredients and make a larger pudding.) Place dish in a 450 degree oven for about 10 minutes to get it hot. Remove dish from oven and pour in the batter. Return to oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes. Let cool slightly, cut into wedges and serve immediately.

Note: If you're fancying Yorkshire pudding, but aren't making a roast, you can use shortening or oil in the bottom of the pie dish instead. And if you want individual popovers, you can always make them in muffin tins.

Adding a few twists......

OK, so years ago I had this great idea for a cookbook. I thought it would be a lot of fun to write a cookbook (and maybe even sell a few). But I really truly have always believed my recipes are just tweaked versions of other people's recipes. Now I know Simon Cowell preaches you should always "make it your own", but I couldn't see having Emeril Lagasse or Rachael Ray sue me because my recipe was just a wee bit too much like theirs. So my idea for the cookbook was to give people ideas versus recipes.

But it got too convoluted. There was no actual THEME to the book. I just couldn't see making it marketable since it wouldn't really appeal to the crowd that wanted to cook everything in less than 30 minutes or to the crowd that was so in love with butter they only wanted Paula Deen type recipes. I had a million random tips I wanted to share and I wanted it to make sense.

My first idea for the book was to show frugal shoppers how they could plan ahead and incorporate some time saving into that 10-pound family pack of ground beef they bought to save money. It would involve freezing some raw, making some freezable meals, and cooking a meal now that would allow some leftovers. In fact, the more I thought about it, the more it seemed like a cooking show than a cookbook.

But of course, all my random ideas were still a bit too convoluted for a cooking show. There wouldn't be a theme whatsoever. Show #1 would be the ground beef idea. Show #2 might be about making homemade baby food (something I did for all 3 of my kids). Show #3 might be about incorporating lots of veggies into a meal (bare in mind this was a few years before Deceptively Delicious came out). Show #4 may be about how to make homemade chicken stock, how to freeze it, and a good soup recipe to make at the same time that could utilize some of that freshly made stock. Show #5 may be "do ahead steps" for stay-at-home moms who were very hands on with their kids, yet wanted to put a good meal on the table. See.........way too convoluted. So I finally just gave up on the idea.

But since I now have this blog, and a few of you have already asked me via email for some of my tips, tricks & stock recipe, I figure I can finally do what I thought about doing years ago. And it might actually be appreciated in this format. Random tips intermixed with recipes. There won't be any rhyme or reason to it. Posts will probably still coincide with what I'm making in my kitchen that day or questions I get asked from friends.

Sorry, for rambling. Not exactly a recipe is it?

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Well since I mentioned it on FB, I thought I'd add the recipe (no pics since I managed to mess up my ankle before cooking dinner last night. Cooking with all my weight on one foot is difficult enough without trying

to take decent pics at the same time! LOL)

I make this soup a lot since we have a lot cooler nights than I'm used to. Soup really warms you up on a cold, snowy night, and it's something you can add some spicy salsa to in order to really heat you up. And most importantly the kids like it (even though Gabe will invariably take 2 hours to eat a small bowl, acting like it's going to eat him, yet saying, "Mmmm" after ever bite. Go figure!)

Here is my original "recipe". I wrote this down years ago after I made it for a neighbor who had a baby and she wanted the recipe. I kept it on hand in case I was ever drawing a blank or was making a special trip to the store for specific ingredients. Thankfully I did since I've given it to at least 3 friends on FB recently.

But like I said in my last post, I don't really 'do' recipes. So every batch I make is tweaked usually. I am a firm believer in make do with what you have and don't rush back out to the store because you are missing one ingredient. And I'm also a firm believer in chalking recipes full of veggies for nutritional value. You'd be amazed how a kid may start to like a veggie they "hate" just because it tasted really yummy in a certain meal. Just don't tell Gabe I sometimes hide a finely chopped carrot in there.

This is the crockpot version. This recipe fills a programmable crockpot to the brim, so you'll have to adjust accordingly based on the size of your crockpot. However, I usually make it in my Le Creuset stockpot and let it simmer. I'll give you those instructions as well.

Chicken Tortilla Soup (Crockpot)

1 lb boneless/skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces
1 lb boneless/skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite sized pieces
2 15 oz cans diced tomatoes (preferably fire-roasted)
2 15 oz cans ranch-style beans (if you substitute regular pinto beans, additional spice will be needed)
1 zucchini, diced
1 onion, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bell pepper (I usually use red to add some color & sweetness), diced
3-4 tsp chili powder
1-2 tsp cumin
bunch of cilantro, chopped
4 cups chicken broth
10 oz box frozen, chopped spinach (just put in frozen)

Throw all ingredients in the crockpot and cook on high for 4-5 hours or low all day.

Serve with shredded mexican blend cheese, sour cream, fresh cilantro & crushed tortilla chips (or hot, fresh tortillas from a local mexican restaurant. Believe me, the special trip makes a BIG difference!)

Stockpot version:

Sautee chicken in oil. Remove from pan. Sautee veggies about 5 minutes (if spinach is thawed add it at this point, if still frozen add when you add the broth). Add tomatoes & beans. Cook another 2-3 minutes. Add broth, spices & meat. Put lid on it and simmer about 45 minutes.

There are many other options as well. This recipe works GREAT with a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store. Or leftover roasted chicken from another meal. What I do most often is just use the chicken that I used to make my homemade chicken stock, also using this fresh, homemade stock for the soup. And the veggies are optional as well. If you aren't feeding kids (or if they like things really spicy) you can always throw in a jalapeño or two. Tonight I threw in some celery & carrot since I had it on hand. Like I said, Gabe isn't too fond of cooked carrots and will use that as an excuse to not eat. So I take the time to chop it really, really fine.