Ja cię kocham…

I woke up this morning to a dreary, rainy day that was simply begging me to be lazy.  No problem, Lazy Sunday,  I will listen to you.

Lazy Sundays can be tough because there is nothing on the itinerary forcing me to wake up, shower, and get moving and for some reason I always feel as if there is something that I could do that would alleviate the stress during the week.  Should I do laundry?  How about pick a room to clean?  Why must I insist on being productive on a perfectly good Lazy Sunday?!  Let’s just sit at the kitchen table, looking out the sliding glass door with a steaming cup of coffee and a good book.  Sounds good, huh?

Instead of changing the sheets and mopping the floor, I am going to whip up a very simple and sophisticated mocha that immediately whisks me away to my favorite little corner cafe with budding flowers and early morning chatter.  Maybe I’ll make pancakes, too.   Or home fries.  I’m going to see where my motivation leads me (or doesn’t lead me).  For now, I’m just going to sip my mocha and enjoy a morning filled with nothing to do.

Toasted Almond Mocha

Source: Claire Robinson of 5 Ingredient Fix
Serves 4

Ingredients:

8 ounces sliced almonds
4 cups milk
4 tablespoons honey
4 shots espresso or 1 cup very strong coffee
4 tablespoons good quality cocoa powder

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the almonds on a sheet tray in 1 even layer and toast in the oven until fragrant and light golden, about 7 minutes.

Put the toasted almonds and milk in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat until steaming and hot, but not boiling, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the honey and stir until incorporated, then strain through a fine mesh strainer.

In a warm mug or heatproof glass, mix an espresso shot or 1/4 cup coffee with 1 tablespoon cocoa powder and then top with the toasted almond-infused milk. Repeat with remaining espresso, cocoa and hot milk.

I just had two weekends both consisting of going out with my girlies.  And yes, it’s Friday night, and I already went out this weekend with my girls.  And yes, it’s before 8pm and I am home already.  Don’t judge.  I start early

Confession: I cannot tell you the last time that I had a girls’ night out let alone having it happen two weekends in a row.  One of which was my darling sister’s bachelorette party downtown filled with laughter, mojitos, and tapas and the other consisted of a bunch of co-workers hitting up Happy Hour at a local restaurant.

Another Confession: If I’m out with a bunch of friends and the restaurant offers free bread to snack on before our meals come out, I’m doomed from the start.  You can be pretty certain that I’m the first one to take a piece of bread and then wait until everyone has eaten her share to see if I can also have the last piece of bread.  Don’t you hate when there is just ONE piece of bread left untouched in that basket?  Personally, I think it’s a crime, but so often I find that no one is willing to take that last piece of bread as if it makes them greedy or something.  C’mon, we all know you want it.  I know I want it.

Sometimes I wish that they wouldn’t even offer that bread because then I’m “forced” to eat it until I’m full.  Then my meal comes out and I’m “forced” to eat that, too.  I can’t let it go to waste, right?  We won’t talk about the dessert that I inevitably always have room for despite eating most of the bread and my meal.  I can’t divulge too many secrets right now.

We’ll just stick with the irresistible bread.

I have to laugh because I made this bread WAY back in February when my area was slammed with several MONSTER snow storms.  The snow piled up against my sliding glass door, and I had nothing to do besides bake (even though I am challenged in the baking department) and play Wii.  Since I work at a school and the snow was well over 2 feet high, I had several days to mill around the house finding something to do.

That’s when I discovered this guilt-free bread.

Did you catch that, people!?  GUILT-FREE bread!!  You may wonder why this bread is worthy of such a title.  Does it have carbs?  Yes.  Does it satisfy your hunger?  Yes.  Is it tasty enough for restaurants to put it on their tables instead of the yummy white bread?  YES!  It’s that good.

And it has minimal ingredients.  And the ingredients are good for you.  This bread was specifically made so that we can consume it without a guilty conscience.  SWEEEEET!!!

Let’s have a go with it, shall we?

Clean Whole Wheat Bread

Source: Clean Eating Magazine and Eric Pater
Yields 18 slices

Ingredients:

3 cups whole-wheat flour
2 tsp yeast
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp olive oil

Directions:

Mix 1 ¾ cup warm water, flour and yeast in a small bowl. Let rise until mixture doubles in size, approximately 30 minutes.

Combine remaining ingredients with dough and knead by hand or with bread maker until dough is sticky. Add additional warm water if needed. If kneading by hand, let rise for 30 minutes, knead again and let rise for 30 minutes. If using a bread maker, let rise once, then put it in standard bread loaf pan to rise for an additional 30 minutes until dough fills out loaf pan.

Bake at 350°F for 40 minutes. Slice to desired width and serve.

NUTRIENTS per 2 5/8-inch slices:

Calories: 160
Total Fat: 3.5 g
Sat. Fat: 0.5 g
Carbs: 30 g
Fiber: 5 g
Sugars: 14 g
Protein: 3 g
Sodium: 55 mg
Cholesterol: 0 mg

Holy crap, it’s a blizzard!

I stepped outside and the snow is blowing sideways and the visibility is probably oh, 100 feet.  I took this picture of my deck before the wind kicked in.  We have satellite TV and the only channel we are able to get is Syfy, and the ONE thing that bores me more than no TV is Science Fiction.  Okay, that’s not completely true, Country Music TV would probably do me in.  Sorry country lovers.  Not my thing.

Food on the other hand is totally my thing.

These pancakes were gone in less than 5 minutes.  Hubby and I split them.  We were so hungry that we didn’t even put them on separate plates.  He grabbed the silverware, I grabbed the serving platter filled with pancakes, we crowded at the dining room table and just stuffed our windblown faces.

We managed to squeak in a conversation while we were shoveling in the sweet, fluffy discs of oatmeal and vanilla.  We debated whether or not it actually tasted like an oatmeal cookie.  Honestly, they tasted like regular pancakes to me… the nutmeg and cinnamon were awesome, but I just couldn’t find the oatmeal taste.  Jay told me that they tasted exactly like oatmeal cookies.  Don’t get me wrong, these were VERY good, and I could understand the “cookie” in the title as they were a little sweeter and had a freshness about them that reminded me of a bakery but the oatmeal flavor and texture was lost on me.  I couldn’t find it.  Of course I did omit the raisins from the recipe because nuts and raisins are a deal breaker for me as far as baking is concerned.  Most of you know this about me already.  I just can’t bear them in my sweets, but I’ll be the first to put carrots in my pancakes.  I know, I’m weird.

Maybe they should be called Sugar Cookie Pancakes.   They weren’t overkill on the sweetness, but it was like eating a very fluffy cookie.  Yum!  Perhaps you’ll find the oatmeal in there like Jay did.  Or not.  Quite frankly it doesn’t really matter because they were perfect for being snowed in.  Side note: I think these would be faboo with bananas on top, too.

Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes

Source: Joy the Baker
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

2 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
heaping 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
2 Tbs brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
healthy pinch of freshly ground nutmeg
2 cups buttermilk
1 Tbs pure maple syrup
4 Tbs butter, melted and cooled
½ tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup golden raisins (optional)
oil or cooking spray (for cooking)

Directions:

In a large bowl beat eggs. Add buttermilk, butter , maple syrup and vanilla and mix well. Add flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt. Mix well until mostly smooth. Fold in raisins and let batter set for a few minutes.

Heat griddle or pan over medium heat. Add a teaspoon of oil to the pan or spray with cooking spray. You can test to see if the pan is hot enough by adding a few drops of water,  when the drops start to dance its hot enough.

Pour 2 Tablespoons of batter onto the griddle. Cook on the first side until bubbles that form start to pop. You can also gently lift up the pancake to make sure the bottom is not overcooking, if it is the pan may be too hot and you will need to adjust the heat. Flip the pancake over with a spatula and cook until golden brown. Repeat until all the batter is gone. Let cooked pancakes rest on a heat proof plate in a 200 degree F oven until ready to serve.

It’s a party up in here!  This time last year, I posted for the very first time and had no idea what was going to come of this blog.  Little did I know that I would have so many foodie friends (HUNDREDS of you!) and so much support!  Thank you!

And in celebration of Ja cie kocham’s birthday, I’m making chocolate covered pretzels – a boatload of them.   They are festive, easy to make, and I’m probably going to eat them all within a few days.

I’m also going to use this time to recap on some of my favorite recipes of the year:

Breakfast:

Peanut Butter and Banana French Toast – Heaven on a plate.  ‘Nuff said.

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Appetizer:

Crab-Stuffed Mushrooms – What a crowd pleaser!  Make sure to double the recipe because these will be gone in minutes!

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Pizza:

Pear and Blue Cheese Pizza – Wish I would have thought of this one sooner!  Seriously melted in my mouth.  I could have eaten the whole pizza by myself.

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Sandwich:

Grilled Vegetable, Herb, and Goat Cheese Sandwich – Perfect for a picnic and requires no refrigeration!

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Chicken Dish:

North African Grilled Chicken Paillards – Add ethnic flare to your chicken with a few pantry staples!

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Lime Chile Steaks with Pico de Gallo and Homemade Guacamole – Home run dish.  Bursting with flavor and super healthy to boot!

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Vegetarian:

Lemon Chickpea Stir-fry – AMAZING.  Nothing is more gratifying than making a very healthy meal that is so full of flavor.  I had several people ask for the recipe because they loved it so much.

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Pasta:

Linguine with Bacon, Baby Spinach, and Sage – I found this recipe on the back of the pasta box.  Always check the back of boxes for recipes.  They tend to be real winners!

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Side Dish:

Grilled Pineapple with Agave Nectar (or Honey) and Coconut – Elegant, healthy, delicious!

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Cookie:

The best Chocolate Chip Cookies EVER.  They were huge, fat, chewy, and absolutely sinful!

Thank you for spending time with me in my little corner of cyberworld this year.  Here’s to many more years together!

Today is my last day of Christmas Break.  After a glorious week and a half filled with family, friends, pajamas, Wii games, and of course FOOD, it’s time to look towards 2010 with determination, spirit, and excitement.

I tell myself that I will get up a little earlier in the morning so I can sit and enjoy my cup of coffee in my jammies.  It always sounds like such a great idea until that morning when the alarm goes off, and I know I have more time to sleep.  Apparently sleep is far higher on the priority list than my morning coffee in the kitchen.

Looks like I have to take my travel mug and sip it while going to work…

Santa was very good to me and brought me an embroidered travel mug, clipboard, and lunchbox. It may seem crazy… but I’m an elementary school teacher.  I’m allowed to get cutesy things like this!  Pink fuzzy pens and cute sparkly stickers and picture frames are also widely accepted in my world filled with five, six, and seven year olds…

Plus, you know you want my travel mug.

This New Year brings me much excitement.  My little sister Emily is getting married in April and Jay and I are taking a long overdue summer vacation to Cape Hatteras, NC with a wonderful group of friends.  This means that I need to get healthy – well, healthier.  I’ve always been really good at eating my fruits and vegetables, but now I need to put those cookies down.  Well not all of the cookies… I can still have a cookie, right?

Let’s start with a healthy and incredibly filling breakfast!   What better way to start your day than with bright, vibrant fruit, and oatmeal.  I always mention that oatmeal needs to be loved.  If you leave it unloved, it can be bland and just flat-out disappointing.  Love your oatmeal and it will love you back.

I really enjoyed this breakfast but my only concern was the time it took to make it.  This is a perfect weekend breakfast, but for those of you that are like me and sleep to the last possible second before getting ready for your day’s events, you won’t have time to make this.  Although you could make it the night before and warm it in the oven while your in the shower in the morning.   That’s a thought.  Maybe I’ll try that tomorrow!

Baked Apple with Oatmeal

Source: Oprah.com

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 lemon, cut in half
4 large red apples
3/4 cup agave nectar or honey
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 teaspoons butter (optional, I omitted this)
1 3/4 cups milk or water for cooking oatmeal
1 cup oatmeal
fruit and nuts of choice to mix into oatmeal – dried fruit, fresh berries, almonds (optional)
2 tablespoons light brown sugar (I omitted this)
Whipped cream, optional

Reserve all cut-away pieces. Place carved apples in lemon water. Chop cut-away apple pieces into small chunks, removing any core or seeds. Toss with 3 tablespoons honey and cinnamon; set aside.

Oh. My. Heavens.

This was absolutely to die for.  I totally made this on a whim and had no clue how it would turn out.  I had no clue that I would be making one of my favorite desserts of all-time.  I’ve always liked rice pudding, but this has fallen into the LOVE LOVE LOVE category.  It’s sweet, creamy, and light just as it should be.   Oh dear.  Probably not the best thing to have in my fridge during the New Year.  A New Year filled with promises to eat more wisely… but I did use brown rice (it’s all that I had) so that counts as healthy, right?

I vote yes.

Homemade Rice Pudding

Source: The Dutch Baker’s Daughter

Serves 8

Ingredients:

Bring the water, rice and salt to a boil over medium/high heat in a large, non-stick saucepan.  Cover and let it boil until the water is absorbed, about 7 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium, add the milk and the butter and bring to a boil, stirring often. Reduce the heat to simmer, replace the lid and let the rice cook for 90 minutes, stirring every 20 minutes or so.

Remove the rice from the heat and slowly pour in the beaten eggs, stirring constantly. Put the pan back on the heat and cook for another minute or two. Stir in the sugar, vanilla and the raisins. Serve warm or cold with a sprinkle of cinnamon.

The New Year is quickly approaching, which means many of us are racking our brains with ways to make our 2010 better than our 2009.  Some of us want to volunteer more and spend more quality time with family, and others want to lose weight and/or live a more healthy lifestyle…or you want to do all the aforementioned, plus more!

Let me start by stating what is the obvious to me – my dad is my hero.  Everything he does, aspires to be, and accomplishes is so motivating and so awesome.   His New Year’s Resolutions are a little different than your typical lose weight and save more money resolutions.  Not that those aren’t great… every year I vow to lose the same weight and it never happens.  I tend to lose some weight, rejoice, and then overindulge.  Oops.  Some day love handles… I will defeat you!

Anyway, about my dad…sure he’s running 5 miles a day now (GO PAPS!)…

It must be disclosed that we are loyal Temple Owls fans despite the Nittany head gear

…but what makes his resolutions so intriguing are how personal they are.  And the fact that he sticks to them:

• Don’t sweat the small stuff or even the large stuff
• Let others finish what they are saying before he speaks
• Read one book a week

These are all great ideas!  I am sure that many of you out there in cyber-world also have very cool resolutions that set themselves apart from the traditional ones.

For those of you that are like me and can’t help but want to live a healthier lifestyle each January, this recipe is for you.

The holiday seasons are coming to an end, and I have allowed myself to overindulge a little (okay… a LOT) without guilt.  Seriously what’s the point of eating the food if you’re going to feel guilty about it?  You don’t enjoy it.  So I say if you are eating the savories and sweets this week, please take time to enjoy them.  If you’re going to fret about it, you might as well not do it.

That being said, I am noticing that I am feeling a little more sluggish and run down than usual.  And it’s simply because I haven’t been eating and exercising the way I should be.  It’s amazing how food alters your mood and more importantly your health.  You are what you eat.  This week, I am sweet, fat, and delicious because that is what I am eating.

Well not today!

I had my biweekly bout of insomnia and starting researching new recipes that are easy and healthy.  Just the way I like it.

I came across Oatmeal Pancakes from the Clean Eating Magazine.  These were very good although the texture was initially off-putting.  Pancakes don’t normally feel like oatmeal.  BUT oatmeal is so good for you (Oprah starts her day off with a bowl of it every morning) and it is incredibly filling.  Often I get so excited to eat my oatmeal and then taste it and wonder what I was thinking.  This recipe is a new way to consume that healthy bowl of oatmeal.  I added a little turbinado sugar to the batter so it wasn’t as blah as unloved oatmeal can be.  I’m glad that I did.  Next time I will add vanilla extract, too.

I couldn’t finish the meal!  I am a piggy, and I could not finish one serving.  LOVE that!  And it’s a different type of being full.  When I eat junk and need to unbutton my pants, I feel sleepy and overloaded.  These pancakes fill you but unbuttoning is not necessary!  I still feel light and healthy even though I am quite full.

Try these out!  They are a little different in texture, but they are a great start to a healthy and satisfying day!

Oatmeal Pancakes

Source: Clean Eating Magazine Online -  Nutritional information on website.

Serves: 1

Ingredients:

3/4 cup quick cook oatmeal
3/4 cup egg whites (from 5 or 6 large eggs)
1 Tbs. low-fat cottage cheese
1-2 Tbs. turbinado sugar (not reflected in nutritional value)
1 tsp cinnamon (optional)
1 Tbs. agave nectar, honey, or pure maple syrup (Grade B)
1/4 cup berries (strawberries, blueberries) – (I used bananas and added a little almond butter to each pancake, also not reflected in nutritional value)

Directions:

Mist small pan with cooking spray and set over medium heat.

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients except agave and fruit (and almond butter if you’re using that as well).

Pour into pan in pancake form. When sides start to brown, flip, cooking for about 3 minutes per side. Serve with agave and berries.

That one banana slice decided to be different.  I was just haphazardly slicing them onto the pancakes.  Ha.

Here’s to a healthy and fun-filled New Year!

I have so much leftover ham from Christmas Dinner!  I could feed a family of 15 or 20 with the ham that I have left!  This means that it’s time to get creative.  Sure I could just reheat the ham and eat it, but that gets boring by the end of the second day.  I want to feel as if this is an entirely different meal and not just reheated leftovers.

The day after Christmas I made Jay and I homemade biscuits using left over ham.  Boy these were good.  I’m not exactly the best baker in the world, but I managed to bake biscuits while still throwing in ingredients allowing me to feel as if my personality shines through.  Normally when I do this with baking I end up with disastrous results, but not this time!  This time there was much success!!

Ham and Cheddar Biscuits with Lemon and Chives

Yields 12-14 biscuits

Mildly adapted from: Thibeault’s Table

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1 Tbs. baking powder
1 Tbs. paprika (I used smoked paprika)
1-2 Tbs. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter (room temperature)
1 cup milk, cream, or buttermilk*
*if using buttermilk add 1/2 tsp. baking soda
zest of 1/4 lemon
handful chives, finely chopped
handful cooked ham, cubed

Directions:

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Mix the flour with the baking powder, paprika and salt. Cut in butter until it resembles coarse sand.

Add lemon zest, ham, cheese, and chives.  Stir milk or cream in to flour mixture.  Mix quickly with fork until dough comes together. Using hands gently pat the ingredients together. Do not over mix. Pat out to about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick on a lightly floured board. Cut with biscuit cutters and place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake for approximately 12 to 15 minutes.

Then you can make a delicious breakfast sandwich out of your biscuits using MORE leftover ham, cheese and eggs!

Hello you sinfully satisfying sandwich.  Thank you for being so sweet and creamy, melting in my mouth with every delectable bite.  I have never truly believed in love at first sight, but you have proven me wrong.  I fell for you the moment I laid eyes on you.  And I fell hard.

You didn’t disappoint.

The Travel Channel has this awesome show that the hubby and I watch called Man vs. Food.  Have you seen this show?!?  Adam Richman (the host) goes around to different towns to tackle the most monstrous food challenges from the insanely spicy hot wings to the largest hamburger platters the world has ever seen.  And he eats it all.  Adam is the man, and he has conquered food.

During one episode he visited Pittsburgh.  Now I’m from PA  (and if you’re from PA, you say “PA”, not “Pennsylvania”.  It’s a state law, I swear), and I’ll be honest, I have never had the desire to go to the Burgh.  (Sorry Steelers fans. )  I visited the Burgh during my tour of the University of Pitt during my high school years… and subsequently went to Temple University because I have a love affair going on with Philly.  Anyway, what I DID NOT know during my tour of Pittsburgh was that the people eat LARGELY.  When you order breakfast, you get a meal for like 6 people!  They even serve ICE CREAM on their french toast and pancakes.  Oh Pittsburgh, why I have I neglected you?!  A french toast sundae?!?!  Can I start drooling now?!?

I decided to make my own Pittsburgh breakfast with the help of food blogger Burghilicious.  She turned my absolute FAVORITE sandwich (PB and banana) into something so heavenly that I HAD to make it – a PB and banana french toast sandwich.  It was outstanding!  And it was so simple to make.

I used cinnamon bread from the local Amish Market and boy was that a smart move.  Nothing beats homemade cinnamon bread, especially from Shady Maple.   Make sure your bread is sturdy otherwise the sandwich will turn into a droopy, soggy mess.  Lauren, from Burghilicious, used thick slices of challah bread.

If you decide to serve this sandwich with a healthy scoop of Vanilla Bean ice cream, please be sure to invite me over to your house because I want some.

Peanut Butter and Banana French Toast Sandwich

Source: Slightly adapted from Burghilicious

Serves 4

Ingredients:

8 slices cinnamon or challah bread, 1/2 inch thick
2-3 ounces cream cheese, softened
2-3 ounces peanut butter, at room temperature
1-2 bananas, sliced no thicker than 1/4 inch
2 eggs
1 Tbs. half and half
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-2 tablespoons butter for the pan
confectioner’s sugar for topping
maple syrup

Directions:

Spread 4 slices of bread with a nice layer of cream cheese and other 4 slices with peanut butter.  Add banana slices to the peanut butter slices.

Close the slices to make a sandwich.  In a large skillet warm butter on medium-high heat.

Mix eggs, cream, cinnamon and vanilla in a bowl.  Generously dip the all sides of the sandwiches into the egg mixture and place in buttered skillet.  Cook on each side for about 3 minutes or until golden brown.

Place sandwiches on serving dish, pour maple syrup on them, and sprinkle with confectioner’s sugar.

Enjoy!

I know, I know… I can’t get enough of fall flavors!  It’s too much fun.

Now that I’ve started a new job, I’m out the door in a hurry every blessed day.  Typically I have a banana, a granola bar, and coffee, but I’m in the mood for something a little different this week.  I actually had a free moment this afternoon and decided to whip up some bread.  This bread was far from high maintenance… I love recipes that are incredibly easy.   And it was just sweet enough to satisfy my sweet tooth but also just tart enough to keep things interesting.  It was perfect!!  Eat it warmed with a little butter and honey – it is delicious!

Whole Wheat Cranberry Bread

Source: Adapted from Blue Ridge Baker and Martha Stewart Every Day Food

Serves 8

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pan
1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup packed light-brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup milk
1 bag (12 ounces) cranberries
1 tablespoon turbinado sugar, for topping (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees; butter and flour a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan (8-cup capacity), and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together flours, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In a medium bowl, combine butter, egg, and milk. Add wet mixture to dry mixture, and whisk to combine; fold in cranberries.

Pour batter into prepared pan; sprinkle top with turbinado sugar, if desired. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of loaf comes out clean, about an hour. Transfer pan to a wire rack; let bread cool 30 minutes. Invert onto rack, then immediately turn right side up to cool completely.