Whole Wheat Buttons

Sorry I haven't posted in a while.  I probably won't have another post for quite a while after this, either.  The hubby and I are in the process of moving and everything's all hectic.  We're also going back to Michigan for a week and a half next week.  So, it might be a little bit before you hear from me again.  Sorry :(



I found this recipe on a blog.  I have, however, changed it quite a bit to make it "healthier".  I replaced all purpose flour with less whole wheat flour, I cut the sugar in half, and reduced the butter.  They are a nice sweet snack and only come in at 1 ww points plus per button.  They can either be topped with a teaspoon of Nutella or coated in cinnamon sugar.  If you coat them in cinnamon sugar, you will want to serve them upside down since the cinnamon sugar doesn't seem to stick to the tops (maybe patting them with a damp paper towel would do the trick?).  I think next time I make them, I will experiment with applesauce or canned pumpkin in the batter.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup light butter, melted
• 1/2 cup skim milk
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teeny tiny pinch nutmeg

Preheat oven at 375 degrees.  Combine sugar, butter, and spices and mix well.  Next, add in milk and mix some more.  Slowly add the dry ingredients; mix until smooth.

Spray a mini muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray, and fill each hole until about half full.  Bake for 15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Roll in cinnamon sugar or top with a teaspoon of Nutella.  Enjoy!!!

Fajita... in a Bowl!!!

It looked much better before we ate it all :(

The other day for dinner I was planning on making pizza.  I got my husband all worked up about it while he was at work and I told him it would be ready when he got home, but then, I had to text him with some bad news.  “We have no dough.”  He was very disappointed and I had to think of a dish that could make it up to him.  So I tried a new recipe: Chicken Fajita Bowls!!! (minus the chicken of course)  They were delicious.  I was a little worried at first because it smelled more like a chili than a Mexican dish, but it definitely tasted perfect.  I was on the phone with my mom so the only photo I was able to get was of Dan’s 2 bites away from being finished (sorry).  The recipe is kind of… not well put together.  I’m not sure about the exact amounts I used, but really just do everything to your taste.  I also added my left over fajita vegetables from when we went out to eat the other night.

Ingredients:

• 1 large can crushed tomatoes (the large cans should equal about 2 cups)
• 2 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 can corn (I didn’t use this in mine but I really think it would be good)
• 2 bell peppers diced or cut into strips
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
• garlic powder (to taste)
• 1 tsp cumin

• 2 cups white rice, cooked

• ¼-1/2 cup chopped cilantro

• Tortilla chips (baked for me and regular for the hubby)

Toppings (your choice):

• Fat free Cheddar cheese

• Fat free Mozzarella cheese

• Fat free sour cream

• Salsa

• 1 avocado (cut into 1 inch cubes)

• Lettuce

Combine tomatoes, beans, corn, peppers, onions, garlic powder, and cumin in large skillet and cook on medium heat until veggies are cooked to your liking.  Stir cilantro into rice.  I served it as a layer of rice topped with some tortilla chips, next fajita mix and then some cheese and then a little more fajita mix (to help melt the cheese).   Now top with the toppings and ENJOY!!!

Roasted Broccoli Pasta

Sorry the pics are bad.  I had to take them with Dan's iphone again.

I found this recipe for roasted broccoli a while ago.  While I love veggies and I could just eat veggies for any meal, hubby likes to have a little more sustenance.  So I decided to make it into roasted broccoli pasta!  However, if you just want this as a side dish with meat, then forget the pasta and just have some roasted broccoli.  You could also make the pasta and slice up a chicken breast to put on top.

What I love about this recipe is that it’s simple, easy, and hardly uses any ingredients.  Oh yeah, and it’s healthy!  Now, the first time I made this I used whole wheat spaghetti, which was really good.  The second time I made it I didn’t have spaghetti on hand so I used orecciette which is a cup or bowl shaped pasta.   Both ways were good, I’m not sure which I liked better.  You can use any pasta, although I do not recommend any tube shaped pastas.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds broccoli (four heads)
• 1 package pasta
• 2 head of garlic (or 3 if you love garlic like me)
• red pepper flakes (0ptional)
• 2 tsp olive oil
• olive oil cooking spray
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese (not the stuff in the green container)

Pre-heat your oven to 450.  Cut you broccoli as you normally would, but leave the stems about a half inch longer than you usually would.  Now, cut each piece of broccoli length wise (about 3 times on larger piece and 1-2 times on smaller pieces).  Lay your broccoli as evenly as possible on a baking dish sprayed with olive oil spray.  I prefer to use two dishes because it helps all the pieces roast evenly.  When it comes to the garlic, I like to crush about ¾ of it and slice the rest into almond-looking pieces.  Sprinkle it evenly over the broccoli.  Sprinkle with red pepper flakes according to you taste and finally spray with olive oil spray.  Bake in the oven for 25-35 minutes.  In the meantime, you can cook your choice of pasta.  The broccoli will begin to brown and crisp up a little and the stalks should be tender.

Once both the pasta and the broccoli are done, combine them together.  Make sure you get all the pieces of garlic out of the baking dish.  Add your 2 teaspoons of olive oil and ½ cup of parmesan cheese and toss to evenly coat.  I also like to add even MORE parmesan cheese on top of my serving :)

Enjoy!!!

REAL Cottage Living: Chocolate Peanut Butter S'mores and Tin Foil DInners

Rogue LOVES Peanut butter S’mores!!!

Now that I have my egg rolls out of the way, I can blog about why I haven’t posted in a while.  Dan and I went back to Michigan on a vacation for two weeks.  We stayed at my mom’s lakefront cottage (thanks mom!).  I know, it sounds glamorous and romantic and wonderful, but trust me… it’s not.  It’s about 700-800 square feet, was built in the 60’s, and has never been redecorated.  There are bugs and mice and kinds of creepy crawly gross stuff.  But we like it :)

It can be hard to figure out what to cook in an environment like my mom’s cottage.  There are limited ingredients and cooking supplies.  I’ll share with you a couple of meals I made while I was there.  Some I have pictures of and some I don’t (the pictures I do have were taken with my husbands iphone)

One of my favorite new-found foods is veggie burgers, but not just any veggie burgers, homemade veggie burgers.  They’re quick and easy.  I cook them in a pan (they cook through better that way) and then I throw them on the grill for a couple of minutes to get some nice grill marks.  I will supply the recipe for these in a post once I get a larger food processor!

Another one of my absolute favorites to cook at the cottage is tin foil dinners.  These are easy, delicious, and healthy.  Here’s what I put in mine: 1 medium potato, lots and lots of cabbage, green peppers, jalapenos, carrots, zucchini, summer squash, onion, about a head of garlic (I love garlic) I smash half of the cloves and I mince the rest, garlic powder (I really love garlic), dried parsley flakes, and about an eighth cup of salsa (I use this instead of olive oil to help steam my vegetables).  Spray your tinfoil with nonstick spray and dump your vegetables in.  Tightly seal the tinfoil to ensure that no moisture can get out.  I cook in on the grill over medium heat for about 40 minutes to an hour and turn it halfway through.  I then top mine with LOTS of Parmesan cheese.

My husband like two potatoes in his dinner.  He likes more potatoes and I like more veggies.  He also uses olive oil (just a drizzle) instead of salsa and a vegetarian tomato basil sausage cut up.  You can add in ground beef, turkey, or chicken for you meat lovers out there.

The great thing about tin foil dinners is if you’re feeding a family or entertaining a group of people, you can rest assured that everyone can make their dinner just the way they like it!

You can’t stay at a cottage on a lake without having s’mores.  Dan and I try and spend as many nights around the campfire as we can, depending on how bad the mosquitoes are.  Since I’m not really a big chocolate person (I know, it’s crazy, a girl who doesn’t like chocolate), I usually just roast marshmallows and eat them plain.  I like chocolate mixed with certain flavors, but not in s’mores.  But this  year I had an epiphany!   Chocolate peanut butter s’mores!!!  I’m sure many of you have heard of this before, so please excuse my excitement since I have just discovered it.   They are the best and I love them!  So does Dan… and Rogue.

Moose just likes the peanut butter.

Sorry I haven't posted in a while - The BESTEST Vegetarian HEALTHY Baked EGG ROLLS

So, I was going to post a blog about why I haven't posted in a while, but I just made these egg rolls and they were soooo amazing that I decided I had to post these first!

I made these egg rolls yesterday too, but I feel that my recipe is better perfected today.  They also looked better today, but since my camera was dead and I couldn't wait to charge it before eating them.... well... I'll just use the pictures from yesterday!

Ingredients:

•  1 16 oz bag of coleslaw mix
• 1 package egg roll wrappers (should contain about 21 wrappers)
• 1/8 cup shredded carrots (optional, I just like a little extra)
• 4 tbsp chopped green onions
• 1tsp olive oil
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 3 tsp rice vinegar
• garlic powder to taste
• pepper to taste
• red pepper flakes to taste
• olive oil spray

Preheat oven 350 degrees.  In a large skillet, over medium heat, saute all ingredients except egg roll wrappers and olive oil spray.  Cook until cabbage begins to get translucent (about 5-8 minutes).

Place about 2-3 tbsp of veggies in the center of the egg roll wrapper and roll up (there should be instructions on the egg roll package).  Don't get frustrated if they look a little goofy.  Trust me, it takes time to master wrapping egg rolls.  Before rolling up the final little tail, using your fingertip, wet the final tip of the wrapper with water and then finish rolling it to seal (I hope that makes sense... I think the instructions will tell you to do that anyways).

Place a cookie cooling rack over a baking sheet.  I use the cooling rack because I think it gives the egg rolls more of a crispiness and prevents them from getting soggy.  Spray the cooling rack w/ olive oil spray.  Place the egg rolls on the cooling rack (be careful not to crowd) and then lightly spray with olive oil spray.  Bake for 20 minutes on each side.

When you flip them the first time, make sure to spray that side with olive oil as well.  After both sides have baked for 20 minutes each, flip the egg rolls one more time and crank that oven up to 450 degrees!!!  Bake 10 more minutes.  AND THEY'RE DONE!!!

I eat them with a sweet chili sauce (it's like a sweet and sour sauce with a kick).  You can find bottled sweet chili sauces in the Asian section of your grocer.

Enjoy your egg rolls!!!

*This recipe can easily integrate meat and different veggies if you feel like experimenting.