The Times They Are A Changing

Our country has become so diet conscious, but mostly where weight is concerned. Although, there those of us who are more concerned with what is in the food they eat and how it can benefit their health or not. The baked potato has been given a bad rap as being starchy and therefore fattening. However, it does not contain as many calories as you might think and it offers a whole bunch of good things for our body.

In one regular sized baked potato you can expect to get:

* 110 calories (not bad when you think how filling it is and with some additions would make a great lunch.

* Protein - 3 grams
* Fat - 0 grams
* Fiber - 2710 mg
* Sodium - (only) 10 mg
* Potassium - 750 mg
* It is also a good source of vitamin C, iron, essential trace elements, minerals, chromium, selenium, manganese and B6, which is difficult to get in the diet without supplementation.

Toppings

It’s true that the baked potato can put on the pounds if you add sour cream, butter, gravy or other calorie ridden toppings. Here are some ideas for low or no calorie toppings.

* 2 tablespoons pasta sauce and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese
* Steamed vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, zucchini) and a sprinkle of grated low fat mozzarella cheese.
* 1 pat of butter thinned with the juice of one lemmon
* Dried herb mix (parsley, rosemary, chives, basil)
* Fresh chives and cottage cheese
* Plain yogurt and black pepper
* Salsa
* Stir fry with onions, celery and other vegetables
* Red onions and mushrooms

I’m a big fan of breakfast cookies. You might be thinking getting kids to eat something healthy in the morning, but we adults who generally can’t stomach food too early in the morning need a healthy start as well. Okay, so this cookie recipe isn’t as healthy as say a bowl of oatmeal with fruit and a glass of orange juice, but they are as healthy as can be made for the purpose in mind.

Happy Healthy Breakfast Cookies

Ingredients

1 ripe banana, mashed
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup brown sugar
½ cup freshly ground peanut butter
¼ cup water
1 egg
1 cup all purpose flour
½ cup whole wheat flour (pastry)
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups rolled oats (quick or regular)
½ cup pecans
¼ cup dark chocolate chips or (raisins - dried cranberries)

Directions

Preheat oven - 350 degrees
In a mixing bowl, mash the banana.
Pour in the granulated sugar, brown sugar, peanut butter, water and egg. Mix until creamy.
Add to the creamed mixture, the all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking soda and salt. Mix thoroughly.
Pour in the oats, pecans and chocolate chips. Mix.
On an ungreased cookie sheet, drop by heaping tablespoon.
Bake for 12 to 16 minutes or until golden brown.

If you’ve never had homemade noodles, you really haven’t had a full appreciation of pasta. You can use any type of sauce you prefer or add them to soup. Make long fat or thin noodles. On the other hand, you can become very creative and make shapes from small cookie cutters which will make a plate full of hearts, moons or pine trees.

Simple Homemade Noodles

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour (or mixed flours)
1 large egg, beaten
2 tablespoons milk
1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions

In a bowl, combine all ingredients and mix completely.
Let the dough rest for 15 minutes.
On a floured surface, roll out a thin dough.
Cut out noodles and let dry for 1½ hours .
Drop into soup or make separately for pasta with sauce.

February is “Snack Food Month,” but does snack food have to be bad for you in order to taste good? We all know the really bad stuff taste good - the chips, candy, cookies, cakes, just about anything fast food. Many, well some, adults will trade in all those “bad” snacks for something healthy because they are motivated to treat their body better. However, kids haven’t developed that motivation. They will choose the food item that taste the best no matter what it is made of. Which leaves parents in a quandary of how to offer something that both appeals to their children and is healthy for them.

* Ants on a Log - it’s as old as the hills, but it does appeal to children. However, is it the name or the ingredients. I hope both. Celery has a bunch of good things in it, especially potassium which is good for keeping the fluids in our body moving properly. Peanut butter can be an excellent protein, however, commercial peanut butter usually has more than just peanuts (salt, soy). In case you haven’t heard, most forms of soy is not so great for you. You should only eat fermented soy products such as miso, tempeh, etc. But, that’s for another post. The best peanut butter is freshly ground, organic. Many health food stores and health food sections in grocery stores have machines that grind the peanuts as you wait. And what’s not to like about raisins?

* Vegetables and Ranch Dip - a lot of kids love the ranch dressing flavor. When you cut the vegetables pint-sized it is more appealing to small children. Buy the baby carrots, call the broccoli baby trees and the cauliflower baby bushes. Also try sugar snap peas and cherry or grape tomatoes. The commercial ranch dip may not be great for them so limit it to a small container and explain to them that it’s one mini dip to a vegetable.

* Fruit and Yogurt Dip - fruit is much easier than vegetables to sell to children. Make a dip of plain yogurt, raw honey and cinnamon.

* Smoothies - Strawberries and bananas are always a favorite combination. Try different fruits to see which ones are most appealing to your children.

* Applesauce - unsweetened, of course. You can always add a little raw honey. Sprinkle cinnamon and chopped raw nuts on top.

* Muffins - call them muffin-cakes and frost them with a low-fat cream cheese frosting, again sweetened with raw honey. Sprinkle raisins and nuts on top.

I think the biggest secret to getting kids to eat healthy is participation. They are more likely to try something new if they have had a hand in the preparation of the dish. Kids love to help and it’s a perfect opportunity to teach them something new.

We don’t have a big crowd for Christmas every year, but when we do our tradition is to have a Mexican cuisine Christmas Eve dinner. The main course is always my chicken enchiladas. Everyone seems to like them and you can make a huge batch rather quickly. Depending on the size of the group for dinner, we may include side dishes of black beans and corn, Spanish rice, salsa and chips, hot flour tortillas, and cheesecake (even though it’s not Mexican, it’s a favorite.

Karen’s Easy Chicken Enchiladas

Ingredients

1 small can Ortega green chilies, diced
1 small onion, diced
1 tablespoon butter
3 cups cooked, diced chicken
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
2 cups Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
2 cups sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
10 corn or flour tortillas (your preference)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a saucepan, sauté the green chilies and onion in butter until the onion is tender, add chicken, stirring until heated.
Add 1 cup cheddar cheese and 1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, mix well.

In a frying pan (large enough to dip the tortillas) combine the sour cream and chicken soup, heat on low until mixed and creamy.

Grease the inside of a 9X13 inch baking dish.

Dip each tortilla into the soup mixture to coat place in the baking dish with a spoon full of the chicken mixture. Roll up the tortilla and place it with the seam down. Continue until all tortillas are done. Pour the remaining soup mixture over the top and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and bake an additional 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted. You can add sliced olives to the top while cheese is melting if you like.

This recipe can be doubled or tripled for larger groups.

You’ve finished your grocery shopping and now your ready to get your plan in action for your traditional Thanksgiving dinner. Whether it’s your first big holiday dinner or you haven’t done it in quite a while, you may have questions after you’re in the middle of preparation. Who do you call?

USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline
(888) 674-6854
Yes, They’re open Thanksgiving day to answer any question you have about cooking the 25 pound turkey. But call between 8:00 am and 2:00 pm Eastern Standard Time to contact an expert.

Reynolds Turkey Tip Line
(800) 745-4000
They are open until December 31 - 24 hours a day.

Butterball Turkey Talk Line
800-Butterball or (800) 288-8373
Open through December 28 (8:00 am to 8:00 pm weekdays and until 6:00 pm weekends - CST) Thanksgiving day they are open 6:00 am to 6:00 pm Central Standard Time.

Honeysuckle White
(800) 810-6325
Recorded message to the most asked question about cooking your Thanksgiving turkey.

Foster Farms
(800) 255-7227
Experts on the line to answer your questions 24 hours a day - Nov. 19 to Dec. 1. Their hours for the remainder of the year are 8:00 am to 5:00 pm Eastern Standard Time.

Thanksgiving Recipes for Dummies

How to Cook a “quick and easy” Turkey

A Trouble Free Thanksgiving

Happy Turkey Day!

I suppose, I’ve known somewhere in the back of my head that certain potatoes work best for certain dishes and others work best for other dishes, but I never categorized clearly.

Russet Potatoes
The brown-skinned potatoes that we normally purchase in a 5 or 10 pound bag at the grocery store are grown year round and therefore they are easy accessible. When cooked they come out light and fluffy making them the best potato for baking or mashing. They also work well boiled and used in a potato salad recipe.

Red Potatoes
These potatoes are sometimes called “New Potatoes” as they are harvested before they are mature. They are firm, smooth and moist making them a good choice for potato salad, roasting, steaming or boiling. They are great boiled with just a dab of butter. They also make great breakfast potatoes if you have some left over from dinner the night before. Just toss them in a heated pan with a bit of olive oil and sauté.

Yellow Potatoes
The yellow flesh makes them seem as though butter has already been added and, in fact, they taste a bit buttery. They are now available most of the year and are a dense and creamy potato. Yellow Potatoes taste good roasted, boiled, baked and steamed.

Round White Potatoes
These potatoes have a creamy texture, but hold their shape. White potatoes are a good all-around potato that can be used in almost any dish.

Fingerling Potatoes
Fingerlings come in a lot of different colors, but basically they are mostly yellow under the skin. Their great for steaming, baking, boiling and salads.

Christmas Potato Recipe

Ingredients

2 ½ lbs. red potatoes
8 oz. sour cream
¼ cup melted butter
½ can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup shredded cheese (your choice)
½ teaspoon salt
Pepper to taste
½ cup bread crumbs
½ cup Parmesan cheese
1/8 cup melted butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray oil inside of a 9X13 inch baking dish.

Cut red potatoes into desired size (bite size is good). Place them in a large pot of water and boil until nearly tender.

Place drained potatoes in a large mixing bowl. Add sour cream, butter, mushroom soup, shredded cheese, salt and pepper and stir until combined.

Pour potato mixture into the greased baking dish.

In a separate mixing bowl, combine the bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese and remaining butter and stir. Sprinkle this mixture over the potatoes.

Bake for 30 minutes or until the topping is golden brown.

Note: This recipe can doubled for larger crowds.

When carving your Jack-o-lanterns or cooking your fresh pumpkin, don’t throw away the seeds. Not only are they a nutritious snack, but if you are selling your pumpkins at the farmers market or at a roadside stand, they can make a great added item to sell.

Step 1. Prepare the pumpkin seeds by washing them under cold water to get them clean and wash off any of the pulp still left on. Lay the seeds out onto paper towels to remove as much moisture as possible.

Step 2. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Spray a large baking sheet with oil. Spread the seeds out on the pan and spray them on top. An alternate is to rub a heavy coat of oil on the pan and then stir the seeds to oil coat them.

Step 3. Sprinkle the seeds with salt if desired. Bake the them for approximately 25 minutes. Stir them after the first 10 or 15 minutes.

Step 4. Remove them from the oven and cool. Store in zip log plastic bags or container.

Use your roasted pumpkin seeds as snacks, on salads, as a garnish to vegetables or as you would nuts in cookies or candy such as peanut brittle.

Alternate Recipes

* Melt 1 tablespoon butter and add 1/8 teaspoon garlic salt, 1/8 teaspoon onion salt, 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce to 2 cups raw pumpkin seeds and roast as above, just use a slight oil spray on the pan.

* Melt 1 tablespoon butter and add ¼ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice to 2 cups raw pumpkin seeds and roast as above, just use a slight oil spray on the pan.

Use your imagination - granola with pumpkin seeds, chocolate chip pumpkin seed cookies, Checks party mix with pumpkin seeds, pumpkin seed brittle candy.

If you’ve grown pumpkins in your backyard garden or decided this is the year you would sell them at a stand, farmers market, Saturday market or out of your own pumpkin patch, you may want to know how to use pumpkins for more than just decorations.

You may be asking yourself why bother with fresh pumpkins when you can get a perfectly good product at the grocery store in the way of canned pumpkin. There are several reasons. First, consider taste and nutritional value. Fresh anything always tastes better and is better for you. Secondly, consider your ability to become more self-sufficient and less wasteful if, in fact, you have grown pumpkins in your garden. Third, pumpkin seeds are a nutritious snack and can cost a fortune at the health food store. Now you can roast your own.

Preparing Fresh Pumpkin

Warning: Do not use a jack-o-lantern for food after Halloween. Only use fresh pumpkin for cooking and eating as you very well could get food poisoning from a “used” pumpkin.

Also, know that the pumpkin you end up with will not be the dark orange color you find in canned pumpkin. Manufacturers add food coloring to their pumpkin mixture to get this color.

Step 1. Thoroughly wash the pumpkin.

Step 2: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Step 3: Cut the pumpkin open. The easiest way to do this is to cut it in half. Clean out all the pumpkin “innerds,” saving the seeds for roasting later. For now wash the seeds and place them in a container and in the refrigerator.

Step 4: Cut the pumpkin into large chunks and place them in a large roaster with an inch of water at the bottom. Place the roaster in the oven and cook until the pumpkin is tender, you can test it with a fork or sharp knife. Remove and cool.

Step 5: After the pumpkin has cooled, remove the rind from the large pumpkin chunks.

Step 6: Puree the pealed pumpkin in a food processor. A blender will work as well, but will take longer. If you have neither, manually use a potato masher.

Step 7: You will need a large strainer. Place it over a container so that you can put the pumpkin into it and any excess water can drain. When you have gotten as much water out as possible you are ready for the next step.

Step 8: Put the pumpkin in a pot and simmer until it is well heated.

Step 9: It is now ready for canning. However, if you haven’t yet learned this skill, you can place 2 cup parcels in freezer zip lock bags and freeze the pumpkin you won’t be using immediately.

Tomorrow’s post will include recipes for fresh pumpkin.

How to Make Biscotti

Biscotti is either a cookie you love or one you don’t care for, but you won’t know until you try making it. Personally for me, there isn’t a better cookie for a quick breakfast than biscotti. It’s a dry cookie and a bit crumbly. Here are my best tips on making the perfect biscotti.

* Use parchment paper. It has nothing with how good the cookie will taste, but it makes life so much easier. Just give it a try and see how much better you like it.

* It’s good to have a basic biscotti dough that you use most of the time and then add flavorings to it. Commonly you will find biscotti with orange, anis and chocolate. But, please try “out of the ordinary” extras. Be creative, that’s what cooking is all about.

* Usually a recipe will call for you to make certain sized loaves out of the cookie dough. But, in reality, you can make any size, large or small loaves, even regular cookie shapes.

* Try wetting your hands before forming the loaves if the dough is sticky.

* Biscotti is baked twice. The dough should be a golden brown and “not” hard when you take them out of the oven after the first baking.

* Don’t cut the biscotti until it is at the warm stage. When you can handle them without burning your hands, they are ready to cut.

* Don’t put pressure on the loaves when you are cutting them. Using a long serrated knife will give you a clean cut without pressing down.

* No matter what your recipe says about cutting, you can cut both straight across fro shorter biscotti or at the diagonal for longer ones.

* For the second baking your recipe will give you a lower temperature and a longer baking time. You want the cookies to dry out some without cooking them too much.

* Once the biscotti is cooled completely you can decorate them with drizzles of chocolate or whatever your heart desires. However, I like them plain just as well.
They can also be dipped on one half of the cookie and sprinkled with nuts.

* Store your biscotti in an airtight container at room temperature. They should keep quite well for months.