January 25, 2012: Zucchini Chocolate Chip Bread

Zucchini bread may sound healthy, but other than the nutritional value of the veggie, it doesn’t have any fewer calories or fat content than any other type of sweet bread. Still, it’s quite yummy – especially with the addition of chocolate chips.

Zucchini Bread

3 cups flour

¼ teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

3 eggs

1 ¾ cups sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups peeled, grated zucchini (about 1 large or 2 small)

1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

½ cup mini chocolate chips (I used regular chocolate chips; you could certainly add about 1 cup more if you’re a chocolate lover)

1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and lightly flour two 9 x 5 inch loaf pans.

In medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. In another larger bowl, beat eggs until light in color. Gradually add sugar and continue beating. Stir in oil, vanilla, zucchini, nuts, chocolate chips, and lemon zest.*

Fold in dry ingredients until combined and then pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees 50 to 55 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

Remove bread from pans to cool on wire rack.

*If you have a stand mixer, just mix all ingredients at once, starting with the wet ingredients and adding the chocolate chips and nuts after combining the rest of the recipe.

January 9, 2012: Honey Nut Cereal Bars Recipe

Here’s a recipe I devised use several others as a base. I wanted something somewhat nutritious to serve to my women’s Bible study group as well as have a bit left over that I could contribute to the kids in the Good News Club (an after school program to teach kids about the Bible and Christianity), for which my pastor and his wife are teachers. I used what I had on hand to come up with this yummy recipe.

Honey Nut Cereal Bars fresh out of the oven and waiting to be cut.

Honey Nut Cereal Bars

¼ cup peanut butter

1/3 cup honey

2 T. vegetable oil

2 T. vanilla extract

2 T. plain Greek yogurt

½ cup brown sugar

½ cup sweetened coconut

¼ cup roasted sunflower seeds

½ cup pomegranate flavored craisins (or any flavor of your choice)

½ cup blueberry flavored craisins (or any flavor of your choice)

2 cups rolled oats

2 cups honey nut Cheerios

In a large mixing bowl, combine peanut butter, honey, and vegetable oil. Microwave on high for 30 seconds, or until the peanut butter is softened enough to easily blend with the other ingredients. Add vanilla and yogurt and mix well. Add remaining ingredients and stir together just until combined. Press into bottom of greased 13 x 9 inch baking pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Let cool completely and stand for several hours before cutting into bars and serving.

Makes 32 bars with about 100 calories in each bar, 3.3 grams total fat and 29.6 mg sodium (as calculated on SparkRecipes.com).

October 2, 2011: Green Chile Sauce Recipe

If you’re a green chile fan like I am, you know that these hot peppers reach their peak right around Labor Day. In fact, the famous Green Chile Festival in Hatch, NM – the self-proclaimed Green Chile Capital of the World – always occurs on Labor Day weekend. For those of us who didn’t make the festival, grocery stores and certain civic groups are always roasting green chiles around this time. The smell of roasting chiles is better than the finest perfume, to my nose!

So if you stocked up on fresh or roasted green chile when it was available, chances are you’ve got quite a bit of it on hand. If so, this recipe for green chile sauce is perfect. Make a huge batch and then can your leftovers so you can enjoy homemade green enchiladas any time of the year!

A meal worthy of any Mexican restaurant - beef burrito smothered in green chile sauce with a side of Spanish rice.

Green Chile Sauce

2 T. vegetable oil or bacon grease (the bacon grease really adds to the flavor)

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

½ cup finely chopped yellow or white onion

2 T. flour

1 cup coarsely chopped green chiles (about 4 – 5)

½ cup peeled and seeded tomato, chopped

2 ½ cups chicken broth

1 t. dried cilantro (or 1 T. fresh, minced cilantro)

1 t. cumin powder

1 t. garlic salt

½ t. black pepper

Heat the oil or grease to medium in a saucepan. Add the garlic and onions and cook for a couple minutes, until vegetables begin to soften. Stir in the flour and cook for a minute longer. Add the chiles and tomatoes. Slowly stir in the chicken broth and add the spices. Stir frequently until mixture comes to a boil. Boil for one minute to thicken sauce, then reduce heat to low and simmer for at least 10-15 minutes, to heighten flavor.

Tip: Green chile sauce is quite versatile – you can use it to smother a burrito, make enchiladas, heat with Velveeta for a quick chile con queso, or make huevos rancheros for breakfast.

September 23, 2011: Copper Pennies Salad Recipe

As I shared with you, we held the Women’s Bible Club meeting at my house Tuesday morning. Everyone was asked to bring a salad. Margaret brought what she called Copper Pennies. Apparently this is an old recipe that is currently making a comeback (as they say, everything old is new again).

She had lots left over so I kept some of her copper pennies and served it to my husband and our friend with dinner that night. They absolutely loved it! Here is Margaret’s recipe.

Copper Pennies

3 cans sliced carrots, drained

1 cup diced celery

1 cup diced green peppers

1 cup chopped green onions

Dressing:

1 can tomato soup

1/2 cup vinegar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

Combine vegetables. Combine dressing ingredients in a saucepan; salt to taste. Bring to boil and pour over carrot mixture. Let stand several hours for best flavor.

Now, if you want to modernize it a bit (like I’m included to do), I would use fresh carrots and steam them. I’m thinking balsamic vinegar and olive oil would be a good combination in the dressing, too. And some freshly cracked black pepper along with a fresh herb, such as dill or basil, would add to the flavor.

Note: The recipes I found online also included a half cup of sugar. That would be a bit sweet for my tastes, but you could try adding a tablespoon or so. Some also called for Worcestershire sauce.

September 6, 2011: Chicken Fried Breakfast Steak Recipe

I usually don’t go to the trouble of making a real elaborate breakfast for just my husband and I but I wanted something special over the long weekend. I dug down in my freezer and found a couple pork cube steaks. Voila! A breakfast fit for a king (with enough calories to last a week but we won’t mention that)!

Chicken Fried Breakfast Steak with Cream Gravy

2 beef or pork cube steaks (or two boneless chops, pounded thin and tenderized)

Garlic salt and black pepper

1 cup flour

1 egg, beaten

1 cup coarse bread crumbs (or Panko if you do not have fresh)

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 cup milk

Season the cube steaks with salt and pepper on each side. Dredge in the flour. Dip each into the beaten egg, then the bread crumbs, generously coating each side. Save remaining flour. Let the coated steaks rest for about 10 minutes minimum.

Heat the oil in an electric skillet (you can also cook them on the stove but I find the electric skillet, which is Teflon-coated, works best) to 325 degrees. Carefully place the steaks in the pan, being sure to minimize loss of bread crumbing coating. Cook about 5 minutes, until oil begins to bubble up through the spaces. Turn over and cook an additional 5 minutes or so, until the steaks are well done. Remove from the skillet and transfer on a plate to a warm oven.

Reduce heat to 250 degrees and add remaining flour to the skillet. Cook and stir for a couple minutes, to ensure that the oil and flour are well incorporated. Slowly stir in the milk. Bring to a boil and cook for a couple more minutes, until gravy is smooth and thick. Add salt and pepper to taste, if desired.

Serving suggestion: as pictured, serve with scrambled eggs, hash browns, and a piece of toast.

Serves two.

September 4, 2011: Thai Red Curry Paste Recipe

I’ve been looking for Thai red curry paste at my local grocery store for some time now (it’s used in yummy curry sauces) – with no luck. I just happened to find this recipe online recently and I was ecstatic! I didn’t have exactly the ingredients as listed so I made some slight substitutions and this is what I came up with. Try it and see what you think.

Thai Red Curry Paste

3 T. red chili sauce

2 shallots, coarsely chopped

1 t. peppercorns

2 ½ t. cumin seeds

1 ½ T. coriander seeds

2 T. fresh or dehydrated cilantro

1 t. lemon balm

1 t. salt

2 t. paprika (for color)

1 t. curry powder

2 t. finely chopped lemon or lime peel

1 t. minced ginger

2 t. Asian fish sauce

1 T. vegetable oil

Using a mortar and pestle or coffee grinder, grind the whole spices to a fine powder. Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Add more oil or a little bit of water, if necessary, to make a smooth paste.

Store in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. If desired, you can freeze any remaining paste in baggies or ice cube trays (when frozen pop the cubes into baggies or a plastic container).