A Tightwad Granola Recipe

4-6 ingredients:  Easy homemade granola!

Cereal is crazy expensive.  We are talking around $3.00 a box on average and they have a dozen ingredients that you can't even pronounce.  Almost all of them have high fructose corn syrup, which is a no-no, and what the hell is  tripotassium phosphate?  When you get into the organics section things may get healthier, but they also get pricier.  My kids eat homemade granola.  The cheap version.  You can add wheat germ (which I have done), flax seed (which I have not done) and a whole host of sticks and twigs to make this granola as healthy as you want.  I am posting the scaled down tightwad recipe.  Play with it as you like:

Set oven to 375 degrees
In a roasting pan or baking sheet with sides pour 5 c. regular (not quick) oats,  a pinch of salt, and 1/2 c. nuts (optional)  if you are using wheat germ add 1/4 c.
In a saucepan combine 2/3 c. brown sugar, 2/3 c. canola or vegetable oil, and 1/3 c. honey (here's a tip - use a 1/3 measuring cup and measure out the sugar first, then the oil and then the honey.  The oil will prevent the honey from sticking to the cup.)  Cook until the sugar is dissolved.  Pour honey mixture over the oats and mix to coat the oats.  Bake for 10 minutes, stir, and bake another 10 minutes.  Once the granola is cool add 1/2 c. raisins (cheap) or other dried fruit (not so cheap).

Here are some other options:

Fruit - Nut:  Dried cranberries/pecans, dried apricots/pistachios, dried cherries/hazelnuts, dried blueberries/almonds
Banana-Nut:  Add 1/2 c.  dried banana chips and 1/2 c. chopped walnuts and 1 tsp. cinnamon before baking
Almond Joy:  Add 1/2 c. chopped almonds and 1/2 c. sweetened coconut before baking, add 1/2 c. chocolate chips after granola has cooled.
Tropical:  Add 1/2 c. sweetened coconut and 1/2 c dried mango, pineapple and papaya
Rocky Road:  After granola has cooled add 1/2 c. mini marshmallows and 1/2 c. chocolate chips

Use your creativity and create a granola to suit your taste.  You can also put this in a quart size mason jar and tie it with raffia to make a nice hostess gift!

Making Pickles: My New Obsession

I have a whole bookcase full of cookbooks, and I will read a cookbook from cover to cover.  People who know me know that a great or interesting cookbook is a great gift for me.  I especially enjoy vintage cookbooks because they can give us a real insight as to the foodways of the past.  I recently had an abundance of green tomatoes that had developed on a rapidly dying vine.  In search of some green tomato recipes I pulled out a couple of my favorite oldies - one is a Menonite Cookbook published in 1950.  The other is the Little House Cookbook, which is a newer book that features recipes for many of the dishes mentioned in Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House book series.  I found my tomato recipes - one for green tomato pickles, (meh)  the other for green tomato preserves (fantastic).  Here's the other thing I discovered:  at some point along the way in our change from a primarily agricultural/  rural society to urban, one where our food is grown and sold to us by a handful of corporations, a decision was made that "pickles" means pickled cucumbers.  There are rows and rows of pickled cucumbers at my local grocery and little else.  There are a couple of jars of pickled beets, one brand of pickled okra, and one brand of pickled green beans ($7 for a small jar!)  Going through the books I was astonished at not only all the different pickle recipes - some with dill, some with mustard, some with curry, etc. - but the variety of fruits and vegetables that were pickled or preserved was amazing.  Yes, cucumbers, okra, and beets, but also squash, tomatoes, carrots, cauliflower, peaches, plums, beans, peppers, onions, even watermelon rind.  I compost watermelon rind.  I consider it to be garbage.  They were pickling it!  One of my favorite recipes was for "End of Garden" pickles.  Basically, you take whatever's left over from a harvest - a few okra, some green beans, one gangly squash, etc. and you bung it in a jar and pickle it together.  Brilliant.  I recently bought a big bag of green beans on sale for $1 a pound.  I haven't done the math yet, but with vinegar costing mere pennies and if I use garden herbs a quart of pickled green beans are bound to come in for less than $7!   Here's how to do it:

Green tomato pickles. Meh.

Pick your veggie and pick your recipe.  Do you want sweet pickles, dill, or spicy?  There are loads of pickle recipes all over the Web.  Here's the recipe I used for sweet and sour sugar snap pea pickles. They were addictive. I only had enough sugar snap peas to make one jar of pickles since the kids go out and munch on them while they are outside playing.  Sterilize your jar(s) and lids.  Remember jars and rims can be reused, but you need to purchase new lids each time you do any canning.  Once jars are sterilized stuff them with the sugar snap peas that have had their strings removed, add some red pepper flakes, and 1 clove garlic per jar.  In a saucepan combine 1 1/4 c. white wine vinegar, 1 1/4 c. water, 1 Tbsp salt, and 1 Tbsp sugar and bring to a boil.  Pour hot vinegar into the jars, seal with lids and rims and place in a pot of boiling water for 10 minutes to seal.  Make sure the water fully covers the jars.  Remove and let cool.  Check the lid for a proper seal.  If the lid pops it didn't seal.  Put any that don't seal in the fridge.  You are supposed to let them sit for 10 days to let the flavors meld.  Good luck with that.  I broke into mine the next day and they were gone within the hour.

Dilly beans.  Oh.Yeah.

For dilly beans, follow the same procedure, only omit the sugar and add 1 sprig of dill to the jars before putting in the liquid.  Truly addictive.  Great with martinis!  Happy pickling!
For more on canning click here.

Glorious Greens: 3 Great Recipes to Use Greens

Sugar Snap peeking through the greens.

I came to appreciate the glory of greens late in life.  Neither of my parents, apparently, liked any sort of leafy green - kale, mustard, chard, spinach, collard, turnip, arugula or broccoli raab.  And I can understand.  My grandfather did the cooking in my father's house, and while he was a fantastic gardener, he wasn't the world's best cook.  I seem to remember him cooking collard greens in a saucepan on the stove for hours with lumps of greasy fatback floating in it.  The aroma was less than appetizing, and filled the house entirely.  So, I get it.  If your only experience with greens is stinky, greasy and overcooked, it would be enough to turn you off forever.  As a result, it wasn't until I was an adult that I discovered delicious garlicky greens at a chi chi Houston restaurant called  Catalan.  Hubby knows the chef, Chis Shepherd, who we see at the Urban Harvest Farmer's Market on Saturdays buying local produce.  We went there for my birthday several years ago, and Hubby ordered the Gulf shrimp with grits and garlicky local greens.  I don't remember what I ordered.  It doesn't matter, because once I tried the shrimp, grits and greens I wasn't going back.  Hubby generously swapped plates with me (it was my birthday after all) and I will never forget cleaning my plate  - just short of picking it up to lick it.  I asked the waiter what, exactly, the greens were.  They were mustard.  You could have knocked me over with a feather.  My only other experience with greens is from when we first moved to Memphis.  At the local farmer's market there was a table loaded down with all kinds of greens - mustard, turnip, and collard.  I bought one of each, took them home and made a salad with a nice light vinaigrette.  One bite in and it was clear I had done something wrong. We sat there, Hubby and I, looking at each other and chewing and chewing and chewing.  Clearly clueless as to how to handle greens, I abandoned them altogether.  I never tried to cook them, never ordered them at restaurants, and never even tried them when we were in someone's home for dinner, which is a shame, because I'm sure they would have been very good.  Then, BAM, on my 37th birthday I get introduced to garlicky mustard greens and I went berserk.  I started buying them, growing them and really experimenting with them.  My favorite is broccoli raab.  It tastes nothing like broccoli, it is one of the more bitter greens, and I bought some on a whim at the farmer's market.  I now grow it every year.  My favorite lunch is a soft boiled egg with a side of gently sauteed greens with garlic.  Greens are really good for you  - they are high in iron, calcium and potassium as well as vitamins K, C, E and many B vitamins as well as small amounts of Omega 3.  Make sure when you use them they are clean, soak them in a bowl of water to get the sand and dirt off.  Here are just a few ideas for serving greens:

Kale chips  (Sugar Snap loves these)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Clean and dry a bunch of kale - use a salad spinner or pat dry with towels.  Remove the tough stems, using only the leaves.  Spray on both sides with Olive Oil Pam and sprinkle with kosher salt.  Bake on a baking sheet in a single layer until edges are just brown - 10 minutes or so.

Sauteed greens w/ garlic and lemon
Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet, add 2 cloves chopped garlic.  Cook until garlic is hot, but not brown.  Add a couple of big handfuls of clean greens - kale, spinach, broccoli raab, etc.  Toss until covered with oil.  If you are using Chard, spinach or arugula you can remove from heat when the greens are just wilted and eat them.  For the tougher greens like kale or mustard you will want to add a 1/4 c - 1/2 c water and cover.  Cook the greens down until tender, adding more water if necessary.  Right before serving squeeze the juice of one lemon over the top and sprinkle with kosher salt.  Serves 2.

Cream of Swiss Chard Soup
In a saucepan put a couple handfuls of washed Swiss Chard, 1/2 chopped onion and just enough chicken stock to cover.  Cook until chard is tender.  Allow to cool just a bit.  Put mixture in a blender and blend until smooth. Add 1/3 c. sour cream and whisk until blended.  Season with a sprinkle of nutmeg and salt and pepper.  For hot soup put back into the saucepan and heat gently.  For chilled soup after adding sour cream and spices do not return to the heat, put in a bowl and chill in the fridge until ready.  Serves 4.

Update:  Chef Chris Shepherd is no longer at Catalan, he is now the Executive Chef at Underbelly on Westheimer.

Sweet Potato picking arugula for lunch after church.

White Trash Sunday: The Superbowl!

It's the happiest of all WT holidays...a time for all our favorite high fat, high cholesterol, low quaility foods - hot wings, seven layer dip, nachos, pizza pockets, pigs in a blanket, chips, dips, and of course, beer.  While I actually do not watch football like, ever, I attend a Superbowl party every single year.  I tune in for the ads and halftime show and  hang out with the ladies in the kitchen eating my weight in cheese dip (the classic version made in the microwave from Velveeta and Rotel tomatoes).  This year's hostess, Alice, asked me specifically to bring something sweet.  What to make that is cute, clever, but also super tasty?   Finally it dawned on me.  Hubby said I literally had a lightbulb over my head - cake balls shaped like footballs!  Here's how I did it:    

Bake a cake according to box directions.  Allow to cool.  

Crumble into a bowl until it is crumbs and add 1 can of frosting, mix well.

Freeze until firm but not frozen, about 15 minutes.

Form into football shapes,  chill again.

Using a spoon, coat each "football" in melted chocolate chips.  This is the hard part, and it is tedious, no matter what.  I put a schmeer of chocolate on a plate, top with a cake ball, and then use a spoon to coat the rest.

Allow to cool.  Once the chocolate is firm, make an icing using 1 c. powdered sugar and a very small amount of milk or water.  Add the liquid by the 1/4 tsp. unit it's the right consistency.  Icing should be thick,  but not too thick so you can pipe it.  You don't want it runny.  Put icing into a baggie and cut the tip off of one corner of the baggie.  Pipe icing onto each one to make the football "stitches".  Allow to dry.  These came out super cute and they are really tasty, much better than store bought cupcakes.

See also the Chocolate Bacon Cake Balls from a previous post for more cake ball ideas!

Mac N Cheese Cupcakes w/ Pink Sour Cream "Frosting"

Try these - a fun way to serve mac n cheese.  You can use homemade mac n cheese, or you can do what I did,  (the lazy way) and used Kraft.   Make the macaroni and cheese according to the instructions on the package.  Spray a muffin tin with oil spray, heat the oven to 350.  Once mac and cheese is cooked on the stove top, spoon into the muffin cups.  Top with a little grated cheddar and some bread crumbs, bake until cheese is bubbly, about 15 minutes.  Allow to cool.  They will pop out easily.  Top each "cupcake" with some sour cream tinted with red food coloring.  I served these for Sugar Snap's birthday and they were a huge hit!

Step 1: prepare mac n cheese

Bake in muffin tins

Cupcake!

White Trash Yum: Chocolate Bacon Cake Balls w/ recipe

Today is Hubby's birthday!  To celebrate, Sugar Snap and I made chocolate bacon cake balls.  That's right.  Chocolate.Bacon.Cake.Balls.  Cake balls and cake pops are all the rage, and are really easy (albeit messy and labor-intensive). I have found the "WOW" factor on these little treats make them worth the trouble.  I have made them many times for all sorts of occasions and in many different flavors, but for Hubby's special day we decided to combine two of his favorite things:  chocolate and bacon.  If I could have infused it with Shiner Bock beer, that's the only thing that would have made them better as far as Hubby's concerned.  Here's how we did it:
Following the directions on the box, bake one chocolate cake.  While the cake is baking, fry your bacon to crisp.  I made 32 fairly large cake balls using one cake, and used about 16 slices of bacon.  Drain the bacon on paper towels:

Allow the cake to cool.  While the cake cools, crumble the bacon, saving 32 small pretty pieces for decoration.  Set the bacon aside. Crumble the cake into small crumbs in a big bowl.  Add 3/4 of a can of chocolate frosting and 3-5 drops of liquid smoke and mix together.  Refrigerate for an hour or so to get the mix firmed up, making it easier to handle.  Once it's firm,  make 32 more or less equal balls.  Roll each ball nicely, and using your thumb, make a hole in the middle and fill with crumbled bacon, and wrap the dough ball around it, fully encasing the bacon inside:

Once all the balls are all made, chill a while and in the meantime melt in the microwave your chocolate chips.  I used about 2 1/2 bags of chocolate chips to cover all of the cake balls.  Getting the chocolate on the balls is a messy messy process.  There is no way around that.  So, put your apron on and roll up your sleeves.  I hold the ball in one hand and use a spoon to coat the bottom half, and then place it on wax paper to coat the rest.  After you completely coat the ball, top it with a bacon piece and let dry on the counter.  Do not put them in the fridge or freezer to hasten the process.  They will weep and discolor.  It's best to just let them sit.  Voila!

Chocolate Bacon Heaven!

New in the Garden: Lemon Cucumber (w/ recipe!)

That's a cucumber on the left!

I have planted these every year for the last few years, and this is the first year they have really taken off for me.  They are cute little guys - the size, shape and color of a large lemon, but they are cucumbers!  Use them in any dish you would normally use a cucumber.  They have a good cucumber flavor, but you will want to seed them as the seeds are tough.  Also, don't let them get too big or the skin will be tough.  I don't know why they are thriving this year.  Because of the drought I did a lot of watering at the beginning of the season, so maybe they like a lot of water.  Whatever the reason, I like having them.  I take a few as a hostess gift whenever we are invited to a dinner party, and they never fail to make an impression.  There are not enough cucumber recipes in the world to use all the cukes I have on my vines right now.  I have been making cucumber water for my family.  Sugar Snap (my girly girl) loves it.  Do this:  slice seeded clean cucumbers into a pretty pitcher, fill with water and chill.  We discovered this in a chi-chi spa in California.  The cucumber imparts a subtle and refreshing flavor to the water, perfect on a hot day!

                                                My Favorite Cucumber/Dill Sauce for Fish

In a bowl, combine 1/2 c. mayonnaise and 1/2 c. sour cream,  1 finely chopped seeded, peeled cucumber, and a healthy shake of dried dill or, even better, a handful of fresh dill.  Add some cracked pepper to taste.  Serve over grilled or poached fish.  4 servings.

My Perfect Muffin (lol!) w/ recipe

I am a tightwad.  Bigtime.  I make every meal from scratch because it allows  more nutrition for less money.  I have also found that using a boxed muffin mix takes the same amount of time as making them from scratch.  This recipe is very versatile - use what you have in your pantry to create fantastic healthy muffins your whole family will love.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  In a bowl put two cups of flour.  This can be white or whole wheat or a mixture of both.  Add 1 Tbsp baking powder, 1/2 c. sugar  and 1/4 tsp. salt and mix together.  To this add 2 eggs, 1/4 c. vegetable oil and 1 c. milk or other liquid.  Now, here's where it gets fun!  You can substitute the 1 c. of liquid for a wet addition (such as juice or canned pumpkin puree) and also add 1 c. of dry addition (nuts/chocolate chips/ dried fruit/ or a combination of them) plus some flavoring (cinnamon, herbs, vanilla).  Here are some of our favorites:

Lemon balm muffins - add a handful of finely chopped lemon balm and a tsp or more of lemon flavoring (I make my own using grated lemon peel soaked in vodka for several weeks).

Banana chocolate chip muffins - Use a mashed up mushy banana, add 1 c. chocolate chips, and a tsp. of vanilla.

Chocolate zucchini muffins - Instead of 1 c. of milk use 1 c. grated zucchini, and 1/2 c. milk and 1/4 c. cocoa powder and a tsp. of vanilla (you can add some chocolate chips if you really want to spoil the kids).

Best Blueberry muffins - I make these for company or as a hostess gift - Use 1 c. fresh washed blueberries, 1 tsp. lemon flavoring.  Top with a streusel topping before baking - mix together 2 Tbsp flour, 2 Tbsp melted butter and 1/4 c. brown sugar and a good few shakes of cinnamon.

Orange Almond muffins - use orange juice instead of milk, melted cooled butter instead of oil,  brown sugar instead of white and the grated chopped rind of one orange (use only the orange zest, not the pith or it will be bitter) add 1. c. toasted chopped almonds.

You get the idea, the possibilities are endless and delicious.  Spray some vegetable spray into 12 muffin tins or use the fancy muffin papers and fill the muffin cups almost to the top.  Bake at 400 for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 375 and bake for an additional 8 minutes.  Makes 12.  Yum!

Hot muffins 

The Perfect Summer Lunch (w/ recipe)

It starts with a glorious summer vine ripened tomato out of your garden. The supermarket varieties will not do.  Those imposters have been raised to look lovely and travel well.  They are the blonde bimbos of the vegetable world - all fluff and no substance.  Pick the reddest ripest real tomato you can find.  Next, bake a loaf of whole wheat bread.  It doesn't take that long, and most of the time spent is on rising and baking so you can do other things.  Mine is in the oven as I'm typing.  Here's my recipe:
Dissolve 3 Tbsp yeast with 1/4 c. honey in 3 c. warm water (as warm as you like your bath).  When it smells yeasty and looks bubbly add 2 c. whole wheat flour and 2 c. white flour and 3 tsp. salt.  Start mixing.  Depending on your humidity level you will have to add more flour (I sometimes add as much as 2 more cups).  When the dough gets stiff enough to handle, start kneading, keep adding flour as it gets sticky.  You want it slightly tacky but not sticking to your hands or the bread board.  Knead 5 minutes, cover and let rise in a warm area until it has doubled in size.  Knead again 5 - 10 minutes.  The more you knead it the better it will be.  Divide into two loaf pans sprayed with oil and let rise again.  Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour.  Cool before slicing.

Once the bread is sliced, slice the tomatoes generously and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Spread the bread with a good mayonnaise, and that is it.  A good old fashioned tomato sandwich that you can only enjoy once a year when the tomatoes are ripe.  I enjoy this with a glass of cheap Chardonnay but Hubby has his with Shiner Bock.  Either way, it's a little bit of sunshine in your mouth.