Easy Homemade Play Dough

Several years ago I was a Preschool Teacher. I loved it! I taught Pre-Kindergarten to kids whose birthdays missed the cut off. The school I taught at didn't have a big budget, so I learned to make things. This is one of the best Play Dough recipes I've ever used. It would last 1/2 of the year for my class, as long as it was properly stored.

By the way, do you know why Preschools have Play Dough for kids? It develops the muscles that children need to write! That's also why they cut so much. You learn something new every day!

Now I know that this isn't easy "food", but letting your kids play with this while you cook might make dinner preparation go faster!

Easy Play Dough

1 cup Flour
1 cup Salt (non-iodized is OK)
1 Tablespoon Cream of Tartar
1 Tablespoon Vegetable oil
1 cup Water
Food Coloring to desired color
1/4 teaspoon almond extract or peppermint extract, or a few drops peppermint oil

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly for 3 - 5 minutes, until mixture forms a ball. Remove from heat. Remove from pan and put on a cutting board. When dough is cool enough to handle, knead until smooth. Store in an airtight container that is easy for children to open and close.

Hint of the Day: Watch your store for "Neon" food coloring. I have only been able to find it in the stores occasionally. The colors that result are fantastic! The colors are similar to store-bought Playdoh, and the green ended up looking like "Shrek". Half the fun of Play Dough is the color - don't skimp!

Banana Macadamia Muffins

A few years ago, I got on a muffin kick. I tried several muffin recipes and kept a few that were real winners. This is one of those. These muffins are pretty healthy, and very tasty. I made them even more healthy by adding whole wheat flour. I also decreased the amount of butter and increased the amount of bananas without changing flavor or texture. White chocolate chips are optional, and these are still delicious without them.

Banana Macadamia Muffins

3/4 Cup Flour
3/4 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/8 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1 1/2 cup Bananas, Mashed
1/2 cup Sugar
1/4 cup Brown Sugar, Firmly Packed
1/4 cup Milk
1/4 cup Butter, Melted
1 Large Egg
1 cup Macadamia Nuts, Divided
1 cup White Chocolate Chips, Divided (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 12 muffin cups or line with paper liners. Sift first 5 ingredients into a large bowl. Combine bananas, both sugars, butter, milk and egg in medium bowl. Mix into dry ingredients. Fold half nuts and white chocolate chips into batter.

Divide batter among prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle tops of muffins with remaining macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips. Bake until muffins are golden brown, and tester inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Transfer muffins to rack and cool.

Nutrition Information per serving (1 muffin): 352 Calories; 18 g Fat (46 % of calories from fat; 5 g Protein, ; 43 g Carbohydrates; 3 g Dietary Fiber; 27 mg Cholesterol; 277 mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Grain (Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Fruit; 3 1/2 Fat; 1 1/2 Other Carbohydrates.

If you leave the White Chocolate Chips out, the calories drop to 245 calories per muffin, quite a drop if you can do without them.

Tip of the Day: My family only has 3 people. My daughter loves muffins for breakfast, so we freeze leftover muffins in a zip-lock bag. She is delighted to have extra choices for breakfast, and I'm happy for her to have something she loves with no more extra work for me on busy mornings.

Farfalle with Chicken and Pinion Nuts (Pine Nuts)

When we lived in New Mexico, we made several trips up to Colorado to see family, and we explored nearly every inch of the state. One day we noticed some pinion pines right next to a remote road. We had to stop and try to pick some pinion nuts. We had great luck - great STICKY luck! The pine nuts are inside of the pine cones, and you pine pitch all over you when you try to get them out. After about a half an hour we had about 1/4 cup of pine nuts and "stick um" all over our hands. Nothing would take it off. I think we finally ended up using gasoline (this was before we knew about "Goof Off" and "Goo Gone"). To say the least, we never tried that again! That doesn't mean that we don't still like pine nuts!

We tried this recipe tonight, and decided it needed pine nuts. I think it needs mushrooms as well, try adding about a 1/2 cup of sliced mushrooms and saute them with the chicken if it sounds good to you too!

Farfalle with Chicken and Pine Nuts

1/4 cup low-sodium Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoon Honey
2 Tablespoon Fresh Squeezed Lime Juice
1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
1 Tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Clove Minced Garlic
6 ounces Chicken Tenders, cut in bite-sized chunks
1/2 Cup Sun Dried Tomatoes (not oil packed)
8 ounces Farfalle (Bow-Tie Pasta)
3 Cups Broccoli Florets
1/2 cup Chopped Green Onions
1/4 Cup Pinion Nuts (Pine Nuts)

In a jar, combine soy sauce, honey, lime juice, olive oil, Dijon mustard, balsamic vinegar and garlic. Put a lid on tightly and shake vigorously, until ingredients are well combined. Pour marinade over chicken chunks in a small bowl or in a zip-lock bag. Stir until all chicken chunks are coated with marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Pour 1 cup boiling water over sun0dried tomatoes and let soak for 5 minutes. Drain and chop tomatoes. Set aside.

Prepare pasta according to package directions. Add broccoli florets to pasta cooking water for the last 3 minutes of cooking the pasta.

In the meantime, transfer chicken and marinade to a large, non-stick skillet. cook over medium-high heat until chicken is cooked through. Remove from heat.

Drain pasta and broccoli and immediately put into a large bowl. Add chicken and sauce, sun-dried tomatoes and green onions, Toss until well combined. Immediately put pasta into large serving bowl or portion on plates. Sprinkle pignolia over pasta. Serve.

Nutrition Information per serving: 433 calories; 10 g fat (19.8% of calories from fat); 16 g protein;74 g carbohydrates; 8 g dietary fiber; 0 mg cholesterol; 1284 mg Sodium
Exchanges: 1 grain (starch); 1/2 lean meat; 1 vegetable; 0 fruit; 1 1/2 fat; 1/2 other carbohydrates.

Tip of the Day: For recipes with marinated meats, freeze meat for individual meals in zip-lock bags with the marinade. When you are ready to cook, simply thaw the chicken and it's already marinated, making meal preparation even faster!

Maple Pecan Granola

My Aunt Ruth is an incredible cook. She loves to cook and she knits! She has the most beautiful flower garden. She was also one person in my life who loved on me just because I was me (I'm the only girl on my Mom's side of the family - ALL boy cousins!) She lives in Wisconsin. I wish she lived closer - I'd be in her kitchen every week learning from her!

This recipe is based on the granola she made when I was a kid. I was thinking about the recipe one day and wondered if I could substitute maple syrup for the honey in her recipe, and if I did, how would I adjust the amount? I did a Google search and discovered that I could substitute the maple syrup 1:1 for the honey, and this new recipe was born. I experimented a bit with the amount of Maple extract, but think I've finally come up with the right amount for a good maple flavor.

Feel free to add what ever kind of dried fruit suits your fancy. My favorite is dried cherries. My daughter likes Craisins (dried sweetened cranberries). I've also used a dried berry mix. All are good.

Maple Pecan Granola

Preparation time: 15 minutes. Start to finish time: 1 hour

6 Cups Oatmeal
2 Cups Shredded Coconut
1 1/2 Cups Wheat Germ
1 1/2 Cups Chopped Pecans
1 1/2 Teaspoon salt
3/4 Cup Maple Syrup, Pure
3/4 Cup Canola Oil
1 Tablespoon Maple Extract
1 1/2 Teaspoons Cinnamon
1 Cup Dried Fruit (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Mix all ingredients except dried fruit together in a large bowl until well combined. Spread evenly on two large ungreased jelly roll pans and bake 10 minutes. Take each pan out of oven and stir to center, then again spread evenly in pan. Rotate pans and return to oven for 10 additional minutes, or until golden brown. Do not over bake.

Cool until room temperature. If desired, raisins or other dried fruit may be added after granola cools. Store in an airtight container. Serving size is a generous 1/3 cup.

Nutrition Information per serving: 192 calories; 11 g fat, (47.9% calories from fat); 3 g protein, 21 g carbohydrates; 3 g dietary fiber, 0 mg cholesterol; 93 mg sodium. Exchanges: 1 grain (starch); 0 lean meat; 1/2 fruit; 2 fat; 1/2 other carbohydrates.

Time-Saving Tip: When you chop pecans for recipes, do a large amount at a time and store them chopped (that is if you don't buy them chopped already!)

Yucatan-Style Chicken, Lime & Rice Soup

When my husband and I were first married, we lived in Southern New Mexico. Since I'm from Northern Wisconsin, I had really never experienced "real" Mexican food. I learned to love Mexican food while we lived in New Mexico, and got to the point that if it didn't make me "cry", it wasn't hot enough. I don't eat food quite that hot anymore, but I still love Mexican food.

This soup sounded good when I found the recipe, and it exceeded my expectations. I found it on http://www.epicurious.com/, and it comes from Bon Appetite, March 2004. As always, I made some alterations to the recipe. The original recipe had 1/2 cup Orzo (rice shaped pasta) instead of rice. Since I had some leftover rice, I decided to use it.

Yucatan-Style Chicken, Lime and Rice Soup

Start to Finish time: 30 minutes

1 1/2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

1 Medium Onion, thinly sliced

6 Cloves Garlic, thinly sliced

2 Jalapeno Chile Peppers, thinly sliced

3/4 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, thinly sliced

5 Cups Low-Sodium, Fat Free Chicken Broth

1/4 Cup Freshly Squeezed Lime Juice

1 Large Tomato, seeded and chopped

1 Cup Cooked White or Brown Rice

1/4 cup Fresh Cilantro, chopped

Fresh Cilantro Sprigs

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic and chilies. Saute until onion begins to brown, about 4 minutes. Add chicken; saute 1 minute. Add broth, lime juice and tomato. simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 3 minutes. Mix in the rice, then chopped cilantro. Season soup with salt and pepper. Ladle soup into 4 bowls. Garnish with cilantro sprigs.

Nutrition Information per Serving: 247 calories; 6g Fat (23.6% calories from fat); 26 g Protein; 21g Carbohydrates; 1g Dietary Fiber; 49 mg Cholesterol; 836mg Sodium. Exchanges 1 Grain (Starch); 3 lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 1 Fat.

This nutrition information is for White Rice. Brown Rice adds 1 g Fiber, reduces the calories to 242, and decreases the Grain exchange to 1/2.

Much of this soup can be made ahead. The onion, garlic and jalapeno can be sliced (be sure to wear latex gloves when you slice the jalapeno). The chicken can also be precooked and sliced. The lime juice can be squeezed ahead, the tomato can be seeded and chopped, and the fresh cilantro can be chopped. If all of these things are done ahead of time, this soup can be put together very quickly.

Enjoy!

First Recipe

Welcome!

This year, my resolution is to find better recipes to cook for my family. I really enjoy cooking, but with me working more, it's harder for me to find time to cook the way I would like, which is mostly from scratch. This blog is going to be about finding those excellent recipes, that are quick and easy, and yet mostly made from scratch. I should also mention that I rarely make any recipe exactly as written, so the recipes here will have my little tweaks.

With our busy schedule, I don't cook every night of the week, but I hope to get in at least 1 new recipe a week, more if I can find the time and the good recipes! I often get an idea in my head of what I want to cook, and then go searching on the Internet until I find it. I also hope to post some of those websites that I find that have good, healthy (and sometimes not so healthy), easy recipes. My absolute favorite site is http://www.epicurious.com. I have found many incredible recipes there.

One other important thing - I have a wonderful program called "MasterCook", cookbook software. It helps me build a cookbook, makes it easier to e-mail recipes, and gives me nutritional analysis for my recipes. I'd highly recommend it. Here's a link to purchasing it at Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/ValuSoft-10470-MasterCook-Deluxe-9-0/dp/B000B7TBNE Any nutritional analysis that is on the end of the recipes comes from MasterCook.

My first recipe will be one I've made for years, and is my husband's favorite: Chicken Enchiladas.

Chicken Enchiladas

1/2 pound Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, cooked
1Medium Onion, chopped
8 Ounces Monterrey Jack Cheese, shredded
1 15 Ounce Can Hatch Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
1/2 Cup Water
8 6-inch White Corn Tortillas

Spray 9 x 11 inch baking pan with cooking spray; set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

With a fork, shred the chicken into small pieces. Cool.

Saute the onion in a small amount of olive oil until translucent. Cool.

In a medium bowl, combine the cooled chicken and onion and 3/4 of the cheese. Set mixture aside.

In a skillet, combine the enchilada sauce and water; heat the sauce to boiling. Place a tortilla in the sauce. when the tortilla is limp, remove it to a plate, letting the excess sauce drain back into the skillet. Spoon a generous 1/4 cup of chicken/cheese filling across the diameter of the tortilla. Roll up the tortilla and set it, seam down, in baking pan. Repeat this procedure with the remaining tortillas, one by one, arranging them in a single layer.

Pour the remaining sauce over the rolled tortillas, sprinkling remaining cheese over them. Cover the pan with foil, and bake the enchiladas for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and bake the enchiladas for an additional 5 minutes uncovered, or until they are heated through and lightly browned.

Note: If you have extra filling, simply fill more tortillas. I usually end up with 10 enchiladas with this recipe.

Serving Ideas: Serve with Black Beans
Serving Size: 2 Enchiladas

Nutrition Information: Per Serving: 285 calories, 18 g fat, 27 g protein, 3 g carbohydrates, trace dietary fiber, 83mg cholesterol; 343mg sodium. Exchanges 3 1/2 lean meat; 12 vegetable; 2 1/2 fat.

The original recipe for this comes from Jane Brody's Good Food Book, published in 1985, ISBN# 0-553-34618-0.

Hint of the Day: I cook many chicken breasts at once, and freeze them individually for use in recipes later. I cook them in 3 different ways: I "poach them" in water, I bake them in the oven, or I grill them on the grill. Try each to see what you like for each recipe you use. Since I often use shredded chicken in recipes, I shred the chicken when I cook it, put each individual breast in a sandwich-sized zip-lock bag, and freeze. Then I can pull what I need out of the freezer each morning so that I'm ready to cook when I get home. You can also portion your "servings" for each recipe that you use, and label it as such.

Enjoy!