Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Hello Joe.

Tonight for dinner, I made the tastiest, most wonderfully sloppy, sloppy joe. *Swoon*

He was handsome, spicy, flavorful and filling. He kept me wondering what the next bite would bring, and had me begging for more.

Maybe that's a little dramatic, but tonight I learned that I make one heck of a good vegan sloppy joe. My joe consists of tempeh, mushrooms, onions, ketchup, mustard, brown sugar, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper all piled onto a whole wheat bun.



Really, this is as close as I can get without settling for something like fake meat crumbles (which I have sort of grown to despise).  If you have an appetite for sloppy joes, please give this recipe a whirl and let me know how it turns out!

I'm off to have seconds!
-Megan

Quinoa Fritters

I love it when I take a bite of something that I've just made and my first thought is, "Mmmm," and my second thought is, "My mom would love this."


My mother and I have a special appreciation for quinoa. I remember when she first introduced it to me--I was in high school and she had made these quinoa burgers that were to die for. Or at least I thought so. (My younger brother hates quinoa; I believe the last time I mentioned I was cooking some and I had invited him over, he assured me that if I gave him any he would throw it in my face...) Now that I'm on my own and a vegetarian and constantly trying out new recipes, every time I spot a recipe that calls for quinoa, I stop and investigate. And every time I make something with quinoa that tastes delicious, I have to tell my mom.

She'll definitely be hearing about these fritters! I found the recipe HERE. I made a few changes, though; instead of feta cheese (which I really don't like) I used gouda (which I really love!) but I bet these would be great with goat cheese, as well. And in the end, they were a little too salty for me (I'd probably be fine with 1/2 teaspoon of salt) but the sauce helped even things out a bit. I'll definitely be keeping this recipe--and if you're a fan of quinoa, I suggest you give it a shot!




That's all for now!

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Spaghetti Squash--with a Twist

I didn't want to cook tonight. I haven't been feeling well for the past few days and spending time in the kitchen sort of interferes with my plans to lounge around in my bed. But I haven't had a legit meal for dinner all week, so I made myself get in the kitchen.

I'm glad I did. Here's the recipe!


Have a good night!
-Rosalyn-



Sunday, February 19, 2012

Stuffed French Toast

I've been craving french toast, lately. This morning I decided I had been craving it long enough, so before church I started the dough for some whole wheat french bread. Hours later, I discovered that I wasn't crazy about the recipe. It had been my first attempt at making french bread and, a common issue I face when I'm making artisan bread with wheat flour, my loaves didn't grow as much as I wanted them to. They tasted fine, but I wasn't sure how satisfying the slices would be as french toast.

Then I got to thinking. What if I stuffed my french toast?

After a few minutes of internet searching, I had gathered enough information to just wing it. I had some left over cream cheese that I mixed with a dash of cinnamon; I spread the cheese on half of the slices I had, sandwiching them with the other half; I dipped each side into my 2 egg, 1/2 cup vanilla soy milk, dash of cinnamon mix, and then placed each serving in my George Foreman panini press. Five minutes later, they were done. I drizzled a bit of maple flavored agave nectar over the top and discovered that my stuffed french toast was the best idea I have had all day. The sweet nectar with the flavored bread paired with the unsweetened cream cheese was delicious. I bet when I find a french bread recipe that I love, it'll turn out even better. But for now, I'm content.

Craving satisfied.


Thursday, February 16, 2012

Whole Wheat Biscotti

You know what I love most about my new eating/cooking habits? Nights that look a little something like this:

I had made plans with a friend to come over to my place. We hadn't seen each other in a while and a catch-up-session was in order. Once we agreed on a time, she informed me that she had some homemade chai she could bring over for us to enjoy. She then proceeded to ask me if I had any cookies or treats that we could pair with the chai. I didn't, I told her, but wondered if I had anything to throw something together. Biscotti was the first thing to come to mind. I'd never made it before, but had seen recipes for it over the past several months and thought it'd be easy enough to throw together. Sure enough, within five minutes I had s simple recipe at my fingertips. I assured her that we'd have something to pair with our chai, and our date was set.

As I was making the biscotti, I thought more than once that I wasn't doing something right. It didn't look very attractive and I was unsure about whether or not my dough was the right consistency. As I stuck it in the oven for the first round of baking, I checked on it a few times--suspicious at the substance I had molded and plopped on a baking sheet. Fifteen minutes later, the smell wafting from the kitchen boosted my confidence.

Turns out, despite their less than perfect shape, my whole wheat vanilla biscotti was delicious! Especially dipped in my friends homemade chai--who just so happens to be the co-author of a new food blog. You can find the recipe to the chai mix if you click here. I definitely plan on mixing up my own batch of chai this weekend to enjoy with the leftover biscotti!

Whole Wheat Vanilla Biscotti

Ingredients:
2 cups white whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
--Preheat oven to 350 degrees
1. Mix together the dry ingredients.
2. Add the remaining ingredients with the dry and mix well.
3. Divide the dough in half. On a greased baking sheet, form 2 logs--as long as your dough will allow (10-13 inches).
4. Bake for 25 minutes then cool on a rack for 5 minutes.
5. Slice along each log at 1/2 inch intervals.
6. Return the slices to the oven for 15 minutes, turning once.
7. Cool completely.

I think biscotti is my new go-to dessert. I've already found a recipe for chocolate biscotti that I can't wait to share. But, alas, that's all for now.

Rosalyn

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Whole Wheat Banana Bread

It's been quiet in the kitchen.

I've been a very busy girl. I recently just published my first book (yippy!) and have been a little bit preoccupied. I've been enjoying leftovers, trying to clean out my freezer so that I can fill it up again. Even half of my groceries, apples for applesauce, bulgar wheat for almond veggie burgers, quinoa for fritters, and more--all purchased with me under the impression that I would be spending time in the kitchen--have all just been waiting to be used.

They shall wait only a little while longer. Hopefully I'll have tons of new experiences to share with you in the next couple of weeks.

However, just because my kitchen has been quiet does not mean that it has been silent. I have made a couple things here and there to quench my appetite. Banana bread being one of those things. I made it last week and shared it with some friends. I promised one in particular that I'd blog about it so, here I am.

A while back, I spent a considerable amount of time hunting for a banana bread recipe. There was a reason I hadn't made it in months--that being, most of the recipes I found called for a heaping amount of sugar. I couldn't help but think to myself, I put that much sugar in cookies! Why do I need to put that much sugar in my bread? I needed a recipe that would leave me satisfied with the taste of my bread, yet not worried about the nutritional content. After a number of disappointing finds, I found one that appealed to me.

Now, I used to not eat bananas very often. Actually, I have been eating more bananas over the past few weeks, but I find it very difficult to do so--they go bad before I can eat them all; which is okay if I have it in mind to make banana bread, but it's not okay when I'd just like to enjoy all my bananas! In any case, I've forgotten where I got the recipe because, by the time I had bananas ripe enough to make the bread, it had been months since I discovered it. However, I do have the recipe to share! My friends and I all enjoyed the finished product. I will not hesitate to make this healthy version of banana bread in the future.


WHOLE WHEAT BANANA BREAD

Ingredients:
2 ¼ cup whole-wheat flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
3 ripe bananas, mashed
¼ cup plain yogurt
¼ cup honey
2 eggs
1/3 cup oil
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease pan.
2. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
3. In a separate bowl mix mashed bananas with yogurt, honey, eggs, oil, and vanilla.
4. fold the banana mixture into the flour mixture until blended. Do not over-mix.
5. Pour batter into prepared pan.
6. Bake large loaf for 40-50 minutes or until it comes clean with a toothpick.

 I'll post pictures soon!

P.S: if you'd like to know more about my book, check out my website, here. And if you'd like to purchase my book, you can buy it here!
 

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