Changes in the Kitchen

Some changes are coming to Debbi's Kitchen, my actual kitchen which (theoretically) will be reflected here. Through a string of events that started with my brother-in-law being extremely sick and hospitalized it was discovered that Bob has celiac disease as well as at least one of the girls. That means that I'll be making changes in the kitchen so that he can eat gluten free. It will be challenging since I don't have to and generally won't be. I'll be sharing some gluten free recipes that worked for us and tasted good, a combo that from what I hear can sometimes be hard to find. We've been doing some research, including price checking, looking at various gluten free pasta and bread options but it's all still very new. Eating out is a bit of a challenge, there's lots of pasta and breaded things at restaurants along with hidden gluten. So join us for this food adventure.

German Chocolate Angel Pie

 This pie recipe is one my mom has made for years. She got it when she was taking cooking classes through the county with a friend. All sorts of chocolaty goodness!

German Chocolate Angel Pie

2 egg whites

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp cream of tartar

1/2 c sugar

1/2 c finely chopped nuts

1/2 tsp vanilla

for the filling:

8 oz German Sweet chocolate

3 Tbsp water

1 tsp vanilla

1 c heavy cream, whipped

Beat egg whites with salt and cream of tartar til foamy. Add sugar 2 tablespoons at a time and beat until very stiff. Carefully fold in copped nuts and vanilla. Spoon into well greased 8" pie plate to form a shell. Build up sides 1/2" above the sides of the pan. Bake 55 minutes at 300*.

Melt chocolate and water, cool until thickened. Add vanilla and whipped cream by folding into chocolate mixture. Pile into meringue shell. Chill 2 hours.

Can be made early in the day but not the day before or the shell will get soggy.

Beer Cornbread

This a perfect pairing for crockpot chicken chili. 

Beer Cornbread

makes 1 loaf

2 c flour

1 c - 1 Tbsp cornmeal

1 Tbsp + 1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 Tbsp honey

12 oz can/bottle beer (room temperature)

2 Tbsp butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350*. Lightly grease a 9-inch loaf pan.

Mix all ingredients except butter just until combined. Pour into loaf pan and top with melted butter.

Bake 45-55 minutes, until golden brown. 

Notes:

-Use your favorite beer, although lighter beers are best.

-Can also be baked in a 10-inch cast iron skillet

-Add in your favorite cornbread additions - corn, sharp cheddar cheese, jalapenos

Roasted Veggie and Orzo Bowl

This could either be a salad or a bowl, a main dish or a side, you decide. We had it as a bowl and everyone here really liked it. Super easy and quick, once you're done chopping the veggies. If you're not a fan of the veggies in the recipe feel free to substitute ones you do like. I think it'd be really good with butternut squash instead of the sweet potatoes.

Roasted Veggie & Orzo Bowl

Serves 6

 

1.5 c orzo

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled & cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 lb Brussels sprouts, trimmed & halved or quartered, depending on size

1 medium red onion, roughly chopped

Olive oil

Salt

15 oz canned chickpeas, drained & rinsed

1 c walnuts

 

Dressing

1/4 c extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp + 1 tsp red wine vinegar

1 Tbsp maple syrup

1/4 tsp dried basil

1/4 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 tsp salt

Freshly ground black pepper

 

1/3 c dried cranberries

 

Preheat oven to 425*. Cook the orzo according to the package directions until al dente. Put the sweet potato, Brussels sprouts, and red onion into a large bowl. Toss with a generous drizzle of olive oil and salt to taste. Transfer to a large nonstick rimmed baking sheet (you may need two so the veggies can lay in one layer). Roast about 20 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are fork tender. Toss after 10 minutes so they cook evenly.

 

Toss the chickpeas with a drizzle of olive oil and salt and put on a small rimmed baking sheet. Also toss the walnuts with olive oil and salt and put on the other half of the baking sheet. Roast with the veggies on the lower rack. Remove the walnuts after about 5 minutes or once they are golden and fragrant. Continue cooking the chickpeas until the vegetables are ready.

 

Meanwhile add the dressing ingredients to a small jar with a lid. Cover and shake until well combined.

In a large bowl, combine the orzo, sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts, red onion, chickpeas, and walnuts. Add the dressing and cranberries, toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

This can be enjoyed warm or chilled.

from Cooking for Peanuts

Meat Marinade

 For years my family has used McCormick's Meat Marinade, mostly for flank steaks. It is the flavor of my childhood cookouts. Alas they have discontinued it. After some digging on the internet my brother found a recipe that is pretty similar in flavor although not an exact match.

Meat Marinade

makes enough to marinade about 2 pounds of steak

 

1 tbsp soy sauce

2 tsp minced onions

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground mustard

1/2 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

 

1/4 c vegetable oil

2 tbsp vinegar

1 tbsp water

Mix the seasonings together then add the soy sauce, oil, vinegar, and water. Use either a 9x13 glass pan or mix in a bowl and put into a large resealable bag.

Pierce tougher cuts of meat a few times with a fork and add to marinade. Refrigerate 30 minutes or longer for more flavor. Remove steak from marinade; discard any remaining marinade.

Grill, broil, or roast until steak is cooked to desired doneness. 

Note: you can use powdered soy sauce and make a big batch of the seasoning mix. Be sure to keep in a sealed container. No need to add extra water if using powdered soy sauce. If doing a big batch use 2 Tbsp and 2 1/2 tsp of the season mix.

Shopping & Eating on a Budget, Part 2

 In the first part of this series we talked about generally saving money, how combining errands, knowing prices, and shopping smart will save you money. Today part two continues that but focusing on saving on groceries.

Tip #1 is to shop store brands. Most of the time they're the exact same thing, made in the same factory as national brands but much cheaper. You can save a lot of money by buying store brands or other "no name" brands. I'll caveat this by saying that I do find there's a few things that I'll buy the name brand just because I find they taste better. Be discerning on how many national brand items (that cost more) you allow into your shopping cart. I much prefer Cherrios to the store brand and Domino's brown sugar; I know people who swear by Kraft mac & cheese but frankly I like the store brand better. You'll have to figure out which national brands you're going to splurge on; it's really personal preference. Keep in mind that that you can save 50c or more by buying the store brand and that can add up to quite a bit of money.

Tip #2 is about club stores such as BJs, Costco, Sam's Club. I'll caveat this up front by saying that you have to pay a membership fee to join although sometimes, at least with Costco you can get a free day pass. You'll have to figure out if it's worth the cost of membership, will you save more in groceries to offset the cost to join? These are places where you'll really need to know your prices to know if you're going to be saving money. 

A few things to consider when shopping at these kinds of stores

• do you have room to store the multi-pack of toilet paper along with the multi-pack of paper towels? 
• will you be able to finish off the big jug of ketchup or all those chicken nuggets before they go bad? 
• do you actually like broccoli enough that you won't get tired of it before the oversize bag goes bad and do you have space in your refrigerator for it? 

Sometimes that oversize product is worth purchasing, even if it ends up being more expensive than buying it at the grocery store. If it's something you go through a lot of (for us it's cat food) it's worth one trip to buy the bigger package vs several trips to the grocery store to buy several packages to get the same amount because the gas savings will offset the slightly more expensive club purchase. 

A note about prices. When I say "you have to know the price" what I mean is that you have to know the price per pound or per gallon or per ounce. That's the only way you'll be able to compare prices. If you know a gallon of the milk you buy at the grocery store is $2.69 you'll know whether or not you'll be saving money at BJs. If you know ground beef is $4.49/lb that'll help when you hit Costco. One thing you need to be careful about is if you know pasta, for example is usually on sale at the grocery store for less than a dollar a box, make sure you know how big the box is so you can compare when you shop elsewhere. I'll admit it's not easy to keep track of prices but at least having a general idea will help when you hit multiple grocery stores and are looking for the best deal.

Banana Pudding

Gotta say, not one of my favorites but I'll put the recipe here for next time I need to make it since it *is* a favorite of someone in my house. This is easy to make and a delicious dessert. I got the basic recipe from Delish then modified it a bit and it turned out perfect. It's good to have a trifle bowl or a glass bowl of some sort so you can see the layers. The amounts of some of the ingredients depends on the size of your bowl.

Banana Pudding

5 oz package of vanilla pudding

1 c milk

1 can sweetened condensed milk

8 oz Cool Whip

1 or 2 bananas, sliced

Vanilla wafers

Whisk together the milk, pudding mix, and condensed milk. Chill in the refrigerator for 5 minutes or until set. Mix in about half of the Cool Whip.

 

Cover the bottom of your trifle bowl with vanilla wafers. Top with 1/3 of the pudding, cover with a layer of cookies and a layer of banana slices. Add another layer of pudding, cookies, and bananas and finish with a last layer of pudding. Refrigerate at least 3 hours or overnight. Top with the rest of the Cool Whip and sprinkle with some crumbled cookies.

You can make it fancy looking by putting the cookies on edge along the outside of the bowl and flat in the middle.