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A peek Into My Kitchen: Searching for the Perfect Hot Chocolate

I have never been a chocolate person. Given a choice of vanilla or fruit flavored treats or chocolate, the former will almost always win out.  This makes my sudden obsession with hot chocolate a bit bizarre.

I don't know whether to attribute it to long sleepless nights with my nursing infant or simply to a love of the whip cream that I always squirt all over the top...

Whatever the reason, I have had more cups of Swiss Miss and Boulevard Organics hot chocolate this winter than I care to count..and gone through way too many cans of whipped cream.

Not really being one for processed foods, I have been trying to find a hot chocolate recipe that is as satisfying and easy to make as opening a packet of the sugary, powdery stuff...and different enough to make bothering to fuss around worth it ;)

Here are some links to recipes that have caught my eye:

Max Brener's Work-a-holic's Hot Chocolate

Copy-Cat Starbucks Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate

Mayan Hot Chocolate

Brown Sugar Hot Cocoa

White Peppermint Hot Chocolate 

Paula Deen's Frozen Hot Chocolate

Wittamer's Belgian Hot Chocolate

Serendipity's Frrrozen Hot Chocolate

Hot Cocoa Mix in a Jar

Campton Place Hot Chocolate

and a You Tube clip showing how to make Chocolate Ganache (warning--annoying music!)

Care to share your favorite hot chocolate recipe or mix that I may have missed?

A peek Into My Kitchen: Hamentaschen (Filled Triangle Cookies for Purim)

It's white out conditions outside even though it's almost March and my son has a snow day from preschool. Argh.

Luckily, Purim is this weekend so we have a perfect indoor activity on this pre-Purim Friday--baking Hamentaschen!

I posted this recipe a year ago, but here it is again--an oldie but goodie.

You can find recipes for prune and apricot filling on my older post :) If you want to use prepared jam, use preserves--otherwise your filling will leak out of your cookies and make a mess!

Happy baking!

Gloria Kobrin's (aka Mommy) Hamantaschen

makes about 36 smallish cookies

Ingredients:

3 c flour

1/2 c sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 c frozen margarine (I tend to use butter--which makes for a slightly less pliable dough)

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 Tbsp water

Directions for making dough:

 Combine dry ingredients in bowl of processor. Pulse processor three or four times. Cut margarine (butter)into tablespoons and add to flour mixture. Pulse several times until mixture resembles small crumbs.

Beat egg with vanilla and two tablespoons water.

Turn on processor and pour liquid through feeding tube. Dough will form in less than a minute. Add one tablespoon more water if mixture seems too dry.

Scrape dough onto a sheet of waxed paper. Wrap well and chill several hours or up to two weeks.

To make the cookies themselves:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Bring dough to room temperature.

 Sprinkle flour on a flat surface (a clean counter or marble slab works perfectly!)

 Divide dough in thirds.

Take one portion and roll out until it is about 1/8^th inch thick. Cut into circles with cookie cutter.

Place about 1 teaspoon desired filling towards the top of the circle. Fold over the top and two sides to form a triangle. Pinch corners together and place carefully on a greased cookie sheet (or one covered with parchment paper.)

Repeat process until all the dough has been used. Combine scraps and roll again to produce a few more hamantaschen.

Before baking, seal corners by pinching them together with water. Bake 10-12 minutes or until cookies are just barely browned.

Cool completely before eating or freezing.

A peek Into My Kitchen: Creamy Cauliflower Soup (Dairy & Soy free)

This soup is simple to make--and so filling that it is almost a meal in itself.  If you are feeding it to a young child who isn't accustomed to spices, you may want to use less cumin.  Do not fear the fennel--it adds a mild exotic flavor to the soup--barely a hint of licorice.

Creamy Cauliflower Soup

2 medium onions, chopped

2 tbsp canola, or other mild vegetable oil

2 medium potatoes, diced (Yukon Gold potatoes will make for the creamiest soup)

1 medium head cauliflower, chopped

2 tsp ground cumin

1 1/2 tsp ground fennel

4 c water and 2 Tbsp vegetable bouillon powder or 4 c vegetable stock, plus a cup or two extra to thin out soup if necessary

Juice from 1/2 a lemon

White pepper, to taste

1 medium tomato, chopped

Heat oil in a soup pot.  Saute onions over medium heat until they begin to appear translucent.

Add cumin, fennel and potatoes and cook for a minute or two, stirring constantly.

Add hot water, bouillon and cauliflower, give a quick stir, cover and bring to a boil.

Lower heat and simmer, covered until the vegetables are tender--10-15 minutes.

Using an immersion blender, puree vegetables and broth until smooth.  (Of course, you can also puree in batches using a blender or food processor.)

Add lemon juice and white pepper. Taste to correct seasonings.

Stir in chopped tomatoes.

A peek Into My Kitchen: Impossibly Easy Lentil Casserole

This is based on a recipe that I saw on twitter friend Hannah Katsman's Cooking Manager site. We generally eat lentils at least once a week in my house because they are so simple, filling and a great healthy source of protein and iron--and my son and husband both love them.  I'm always looking for flavorful, user-friendly recipes--and this one definitely fits the bill.  You mix everything together in the baking pan and then just stick it in the oven--how easy is that?!  The depth of flavor from the combination of the lentils, broth, spices and cheese surpasses expectations for a dish so simple to make.  You do need to do a little bit of advance planning because it needs to cook for about an hour and a half.

Impossibly Easy Lentil Casserole

comfortably serves two hungry adults and a toddler, with a little bit leftover

3 cups vegetable broth

3/4 c lentils (I like a mix of red, green & black for the varied texture)

1/2 c brown rice

1 medium onion, chopped fine

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried basil

1/2 tsp dried thyme

2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Mix together broth, lentils, rice, onion, garlic and spices in a 9 x 13 inch glass baking pan.

Cover tightly with foil and bake for 1 hr 15 minutes--or until liquid is absorbed (may be slightly more or less time depending on your oven and whether or not you are cooking something else in the oven simultaneously.)

Remove foil and spread cheddar cheese over the top of the casserole.

Return to oven, uncovered, and bake for another 15-20 minutes--or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Heat oven to 300° F. (150° C.).

Add broth, lentils, brown rice, chopped onion, and spices to 9×13-inch glass baking dish. Stir together and cover tightly with foil.

Bake at 300 for 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Remove foil and  sprinkle shredded cheese over the top.

Return to oven and bake uncovered for 20 more minutes, or until cheese is completely melted.

Read more: http://www.cookingmanager.com/lentil-bake/#ixzz0fXC1HkEU
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution

Heat oven to 300° F. (150° C.).

Add broth, lentils, brown rice, chopped onion, and spices to 9×13-inch glass baking dish. Stir together and cover tightly with foil.

Bake at 300 for 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Remove foil and  sprinkle shredded cheese over the top.

Return to oven and bake uncovered for 20 more minutes, or until cheese is completely melted.

Read more: http://www.cookingmanager.com/lentil-bake/#ixzz0fXC1HkEU
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution

Heat oven to 300° F. (150° C.).

Add broth, lentils, brown rice, chopped onion, and spices to 9×13-inch glass baking dish. Stir together and cover tightly with foil.

Bake at 300 for 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Remove foil and  sprinkle shredded cheese over the top.

Return to oven and bake uncovered for 20 more minutes, or until cheese is completely melted.

Read more: http://www.cookingmanager.com/lentil-bake/#ixzz0fXC1HkEU
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution

A peek Into My Kitchen: Dressed Up Kale with Breadbrumbs

Kale is one of those vegetables that packs a super nutritional punch--it's high in vitamins A, C, Folic Acid, Calcium and Iron.  Unfortunately, it can have a strong cabbage-y taste which makes it one of those veggies that you either love or hate. 

If you offer it to your kids at a young age, they may develop a taste for it and eat it steamed plain (I gave it to my 3.5 year old as a baby and now he loves it!)...it may, however, be a harder sell for older kids and adults (I have worked very hard to convince myself to like it at all.)

Fortunately, almost anything served with butter and bread crumbs can be yummy--and this Kale is no different.  The buttery bread crumbs soften the taste of the Kale and make it pretty mouth watering.  The bread crumbs get stuck in the curly edges of the Kale so that you get some with every bite.

You may want to double this recipe, because it is so good I tend to eat most of it right out of the pan!

Dressed Up Kale with Breadcrumbs

1 bunch of Kale, chopped roughly, tough inner stems removed and washed well*

2 Tbsp butter (I used salted butter for extra sweetness)

1/2 cup bread crumbs

In a steamer basket, steam Kale until completely wilted.

While Kale is steaming, melt butter in a medium frying pan.

Once butter is melted, add bread crumbs and saute until golden brown.

Add steamed kale to bread crumbs and saute for another couple of minutes until bread crumbs begin to get stuck in the crevices of the Kale and all the flavors have melded together.

Serve warm.

* To wash Kale: Fill a large bowl or pot with cold water and swish kale around in it. Remove kale and change the water a few times until you no longer see floating bits of dirt and bugs in the water.

Also try my Crispy Snacking Kale

A peek Into My Kitchen: Irish Soda Bread--a work in progress

For some reason, I decided that I needed to bake bread with my 3 1/2 year old this afternoon...knowing that he wasn't going to be in a patient mood today, I looked around for a recipe for a non-yeast bread that wouldn't involve waiting for it rise or too much babysitting.

I happened upon Mark Bittman's recipe for Irish Soda Bread in one of my favorite cookbooks How to Cook Everything Vegetarian and figured that it was worth a shot.  It came out somewhat too dense, but with a sweet, salty and altogether pleasant taste--definitely worth a second try.

I have a picture of the bread we made hidden somewhere within the recesses of my husband's camera, and I will try to add it to this post sometime within the next day or two.

Irish Soda Bread

Neutral oil for the baking pan (I used canola, but you could use corn or grapeseed)

1 1/2 c warm milk plus 1 1/2 Tbs vinegar

4 c flour (I used 3 c white flour and the 1 c of whole wheat flour that I had left in my cupboard)

2 tsp salt

3/4 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp baking powder

1. Preheat over to 375 degrees F.

2. Grease a baking sheet ( I covered with foil first to avoid too much cleanup)

3. Combine all dry ingredients in a food processor and process to combine.

4. Add soured milk gradually and process until you have a soft ball of dough. (You make not need all of the soured milk)

5. Shape the dough into a round loaf and make a pretty cross hatch design on the top with a sharp knife.

6. Bake for about 45 minutes, until the loaf is golden and sounds hollow when you thump the bottom.

7. Let cool thoroughly before slicing.

A Natural Constipation Remedy: Prunes for Baby

My children tend towards constipation in their first year of life...whether formula fed, like my son, or breast fed, like my daughter, the results seem to be the same.

Keep in mind, that infrequent pooping does not a constipated baby make.  According to my doctor, and everything else that I have read on the subject (amazing how fascinating bowels are once you become parent!), a baby is only considered truly constipated if they have hard, often marble-like, stools which cause discomfort.  You actually aren't supposed to freak out if your baby only poops once a week, as long as they are having normal stools and aren't having excess gas or any discomfort.  Don't believe me? the experts at WebMD concur.

Because prunes and plums are a food with low risk of allergic reactions and aren't particularly acidic, prunes are a good go to remedy for your baby once he or she starts solids.

I recommend buying your prunes in a see-through bag instead of in an opaque container so that you can see and squish the prunes through the bag to make sure that they aren't too dried out.  Look at the package carefully and make sure that there is no added sugar and (particularly if you have a family history of food allergies) that they are processed in a nut-free facility.

Keep in mind, dried prunes are not the same as dried plums. They look and taste quite different.

Pooping Prunes

1 12-15oz bag of good quality dried pitted prunes (organic is best)

Pour prunes into a small saucepan, and add just enough filtered water to cover them.  Cook them over medium-low heat until prunes plump up and soften considerably--about 10-15 minutes.

Puree them in an electric food processor or blender (if you choose this option for a young baby, I recommend pushing it through a fine sieve after you are through pureeing to remove any bits of skin that may be chokable) OR 2. Puree prunes using the finest setting of a hand food mill (this will give you the smoothest prunes) You may want to add more water to make processing them easier.

To store:  Freeze in a small container or ice cube trays. Pureed prunes will be thick and gloppy and will not freeze into completely solid cubes--you will probably have to store them in the ice cube tray in your freezer.

When introducing prunes to your baby, do so very slowly. More than a teaspoon or two (or 1 cube) may cause stomach cramping.

A peek Into My Kitchen: Chocolate Chip Blondies (Nut Free)

These are just a great stand-in for brownies if you're not into the really fudgey, chocolatey ones.  My nut allergic son is often disappointed when he goes to someone's house and they are serving a variety of nut-filled treats. This is a great crowd pleaser to bring to just such an event!

Chocolate Chip Blondies

4 tbsp.  butter, cut into pieces

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 c. packed dark brown sugar

1 egg

2 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1 c. flour

1 c. chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Spray an 8 x 8 inch square baking pan with non-stick spray.

3. Cream together butter with brown and white sugar.

4. Add egg and vanilla and mix.

5. Combine baking powder, salt and flour.

6. Add to butter mixture and mix until just combined.

7. Stir in chocolate chips.

8. Scrape dough into prepared pan (it will be very thick and sticky), making sure to spread the top out as evenly as you can.

9. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until light golden and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. (if you hit a chocolate chip with the tester, it may come out chocolatey even if the blondies are done--try another spot before you put it back in!)

Note: You can make even shorter work of this recipe by making it in a food processor--simply pulse after each addition!

Making Your Own Baby Food Is Not Rocket Science--Gathering Your Tools

As I previously mentioned, I have recently started feeding my daughter solid foods. As I did for her brother, I am making all of her food (save for her baby cereal) from scratch.  While all of the peeling, chopping and pureeing takes time I am fully convinced that the results are worth it! Homemade baby food not only tastes better (have you ever tasted some of those jarred vegetables?!) and is generally more nutrient dense, but also introduces your baby to fruits and veggies as they were meant to taste--generally resulting in fewer rejected foods and less picky eaters.

To help other parents see how simple it can be, I am trying to gather all of my tips as I go along.

First and foremost, you need to gather your tools:

1. Basket steamer--one of those folding ones is great for fitting in different sized pots--for steaming fruit and vegetables

2. Food processor or blender--for pureeing large batches quickly (I think the food processor far surpasses the blender in ease of use and quality or purees)

3. Fine mesh strainer--for straining large batches of fruit/veggies that you have pureed in your Food processor or blender

4. Full-sized food mill--if you want to strain and puree simultaneously--takes a lot of elbow grease ;)

5. Travel-sized food mill for making single portions on the go

6. Potato masher--for later, when your baby is eating chunkier foods

7. I oz Ice Cube Trays and small freezable containers--for freezing portions of pureed food

8. Plastic Wrap for covering ice cube trays when you freeze cubes--to prevent other flavors from your freezer from infusing your cubes

8. Freezer friendly zip-top bags--for storing food cubes

9. Permanent marker--for labeling date and contents of bags in freezer (cubes of similar colors can look the same and different foods have different freezer shelf lives)

 

A peek Into My Kitchen: Simple Stir Fry

Stir fried vegetables are a huge favorite in my house--in fact, when my son isn't feeling well and I know that he won't feel like eating, a stir fry will usually tempt him to eat something for dinner.

Here is one of my go to recipes:

Simple Stir Fry

2-3 tsp dark sesame oil

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

1 red, orange or yellow pepper, cut into thin slices

2 zucchini

I can baby corn, drained

3 tbsp hoisin sauce

3 tbsp low sodium soy sauce or tamari

1/2 cup vegetable broth

1. Heat sesame oil in a wok or other large pan.  

2. Add garlic, zucchini and peppers.

3.Cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until peppers and zucchini are beginning to get soft.

4. Add soy sauce, vegetable broth and baby corn.

5. Stir  in hoisin sauce.

6. Continue to cook for another 5 minutes or so until vegetables are thoroughly cooked.

To change it up a bit, you can add broccoli, scallions, carrots, mushrooms, snow peas...the list goes on.  You can also round it out by adding a protein--Quorn, seitan, edamame, tofu...or even chicken or beef.]

Serve with white or brown rice.