Fun for Summertime

I have had my next naughty recipe planned for weeks, but funnily enough, this is not it!  I just had this great idea one day and had to try it... okay, are you ready?

S'mores pie.  Sounds so good, right?!

Mmmmm, and it was.  :)

And also so easy.  Here's what I did:

1 graham cracker crust (from the store)
1 package chocolate pudding
Marshmallow cream (shoot, I have been doing better about this... but I don't know how much I used!  Let's see, I have the 13 oz jar, and I didn't use it all.)
Blowtorch?

Follow the directions for pie on the pudding package, refrigerate for a few hours, add mallow cream and then, spray some fire on it:

AWESOME, right?  I have to admit, my research team was in charge of the torching.  So funny... such a manly tool, a torch, being used for pie.  :)    Here is the end result:

The burnt parts were the best!  They made it taste just like we roasted it over the fire.  As opposed to under?  :)

The Verdict:

So good, but the research team and I agreed that the ratio of chocolate to marshmallow cream was off.  Unlike with actual s'mores, we needed more chocolate than cream.  I think it's because the chocolate isn't dense like a Hershey's bar.  (Although, when I first was planning this pie I seriously considered putting a whole layer of Hershey's dark chocolate bars...)  So next time I am going to use two pudding boxes.  I also might cut the marshmallow cream with some whipped cream, or use half as much, because it was super sweet.


So, originally I was going to put it in the oven, you know, like baked alaska?  (I have never made baked alaska either.)  But I was too nervous that the whole thing would melt!  So I guess what I am saying is, if you don't have a blowtorch... putting it in the oven miiiight work?  Maybe.  If you are brave enough to try it, let me know!

A Week of Kale

My good friends Kim and Chris have an awesome garden with all kinds of goodies.  We got a bag full of kale from them,  along with a challenge, "here hide this!"

Now kale is perfect for this hidden vegetable project, because it is a SUPERFOOD!  In fact, now don't quote me on this, but I think it might be the number 1 superfood.  Well... let me go check, hold on a sec...



Good thing you didn't quote me!  It's not number 1, and on some of the lists (none of which are the same from one website to the next) it wasn't even there!  But it was listed here on Green Superfoods, down at the bottom under leafy greens.

Well anyway, the point is, it is still very good for us, but hard to eat a lot of.  So, I steamed and pureed the whole bag, and here is what I have done with it...

I decided to use it in small amounts (so that it didn't turn the food bright green), in everything we ate this week:

1/2 cup kale puree in homemade lentil soup: it looked hilarious at first because all the kale floated on top and looked like algae!  Sorry, I tried to take a picture but I couldn't figure out how to change the lens on the camera fast enough.  It was funny though.  Once it blended in, the soup was maybe a little greener, but I think I am the only one who would notice.  We couldn't taste the kale at all.

Spoonful of kale puree in mom's green chili, on top of bean burritos: again, it may have turned it slightly greener, but no big deal, and I couldn't taste the kale it at all.

1/4 cup kale puree (and also 1/2 cup purple cabbage puree) in meatloaf:  yay! It didn't turn it all green!  Couldn't taste the kale.

Spoonful kale puree (and also 1 cup carrot puree) in the family secret tomato sauce:  if I may:  OMG this was the best sauce, I am going to continue to mix additional veggie purees into it and will make a post just for this.  So good.   Also, it did change the color slightly, but it wasn't green, just a little darker.
(we had tomato sauce twice this week:  once with tortellini's, and once on pizza)

Other not-exactly-hidden ideas I had, but haven't had the guts to try:

Green mashed potatoes
Green eggs and ham
Green pancakes
Green oatmeal

I would say that the week of kale was a success!  I think this might be a better way to add hidden veggies, just a little at a time instead of as much as I possibly can!  I also like hiding more than one vegetable puree.  Well, I'm sure I will keep pushing the limits, I just can't help it!  This week, more hidden purple cabbage...

Meatloaf

Not to be confused with American rock legend, Meat Loaf.

I know what you are thinking, but I don't understand why meatloaf has such a bad rap.  I must be in the wrong generation, or maybe it's because I can't remember my mom ever making meatloaf, but I love it.  After making it, I can understand why moms of a generation before fast food made it all the time... it's so easy.  And it makes 1 lb of ground beef go a long way.  Anyway, this is my friend Miss Kelli's recipe.  She told me that it is a really good recipe, so what am I going to do?  Yep!  Try and ruin it with veggies.  It is also very simple and easy, which is good for experimenting...

 Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1 12 oz bottle hunts chili sauce
1 package onion soup & dip mix
1 cup bread crumbs
1 egg

1/2 cup purple cabbage puree
1/4 cup kale puree

Mix all together, pour into bread pan and bake 375 for 45-60.  I did mine for 60 minutes total, taking it out of the bread pan and adding ketchup to the top for the last 15.

The purees:  purple cabbage and kale, I steamed them before blending, and added water as necessary to keep the blender going.  I honestly have no idea how much kale I started with, but I pureed 1/2 a cabbage head with about 1 cup water.

This was my first meal with pureed purple cabbage.  It was totally hidden.  I think I could easily have added 1 cup.  Next time!   The kale has some little stringys that are visible if you know what to look for... but otherwise the kale was hidden as well.  I was SO worried that it was going to turn the whole thing green, like the turnip greens did to my hamburgers, remember?

Here's the meatloaf picture:

Hee, my meat pictures never turn out very good, do they?  It wasn't burnt, but in the picture it looks sort of burnt.

It was good.  It had great flavor.  With the addition of the purees I think I needed another egg.  It was sort of... fallapartee if you know what I mean.  It was also a little salty for my taste, I don't know if it was the brand of onion soup mix, or the chili sauce, but I might try and do something about that next time... like add more veggies!

The Verdict:

The research team really liked it, but he said "this meatloaf is thirsty!"  Which I think is his way of saying it was a little salty.  So I'll try to figure that out for next time.


I'd say as a whole, this was a success.  A great way to make feel good home cookin' a little bit healthier.  So that makes it okay that along with the carrots I served it with, we also had tater tots, right?

Sauces for Sister

A few weeks ago my sister issued me a challenge... to come up with a non-tomato, non-cheese based sauce for pasta.  No prob.  These will be, dun dun dun, wait for it... vegetable puree based!  I know, you are shocked, right?  Well, really, that is what tomato sauce is, isn't it?  Tomato puree.  So it should be fun to try and find a different vegetable to use.   


These are my first three ideas.  They are not perfect yet, but I thought I'd share the journey of trying to find my sister the perfect sauce.  So,   

1st Pasta Sauce:  Carrot with Orange and Ginger

I got this from a soup recipe with the same flavors.  This is the link.

Ingredients:
1 cup carrot puree (thick - from 8 or 9 carrots, 1 cup water)
1 spoonful orange-pineapple juice concentrate
1/4 cup water
         (or 1/4 cup orange juice instead of the concentrate and water)
1 tsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp ground ginger  (or fresh if you've got it!)
1 tsp lemon juice (or lime)
sprinkle of salt

I cooked it all together on the stove, but of course, the microwave would work just as well. 

It's good.  It smells very ginger-y, but the taste isn't as strong as the smell.  I like it, but I think I'd use less ginger next time.  Maybe only 1/8 tsp.  Also, this barely serves two.  I'd make twice as much for my research team and I for dinner. 

Here is a picture:

Plus, can't you just hear Mom saying that ginger is sooooo good for you?   ;)

The Verdict:

The research team thinks it needs something else.  Maybe something spicy.  Paprika?  Chili pepper?  Chalula?  But he thinks everything needs to be spicier.  :)  

2nd Pasta Sauce:  Peppers and onions

What's with the orange sauces, I wonder?   Alright, this one is peppers and onions.   This one is sort of strange because peppers are one of those veggies that is so easy to eat, so it is sort of weird to puree them.  Although, not any different than carrots I guess!  So here we go:

Ingredients:
Bag O' Peppers and onions
Some olive oil (shoot, ummm, maybe a tablespoon.)
Sprinkle of salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika

This time I didn't use fresh peppers... sigh, I know, but no one is perfect right?  I used this whole bag:

 It says there are 4 cups of veggies, but I'd say it was just under.  I'm going to add more pictures of the process here, because I made this sauce differently than I normally do.   Plus, peppers are so pretty! 

I cooked the peppers/onions on the stove with the olive oil and spices until the onions turned clear.

Then I poured the whole thing into the blender, and blended it up.

It became just over one cup of sauce.

I put some ground beef in it, but I don't think the sauce HAS to have the meat.

It was pretty good.  The research team and I both liked ours with some cheese on top.  Believe it or not, it taste like peppers!

The Verdict:

The research team thought it was better than the carrot sauce, but thought a spicy pepper would be a good addition.  Green pepper, jalapeno, he didn't think it really mattered (but here we go again with the extra spice...)  So next time I am going to make this same recipe with one can of green peppers.  

3rd Pasta Sauce:  Cauliflower Pesto

Now, anyone who is a true pesto aficionado will not be pleased with me.  I called it a pesto only because the flavors are similar.  It does not have the fresh herbs, chopped by hand, or the toasted nuts, chopped by hand, or the fresh garlic... basically I used the same flavors, but mostly from dried herbs and I paid the price in flavor I'm sure.  Actually, feel free to use fresh, I would have if I would have planned this in advance! 

Ingredients:
2 cup cauliflower puree
1/4 cup chopped walnuts (I used walnuts because I had some left over from the knock you naked brownies, but I think pesto usually has toasted pine nuts)
1/4 cup dried basil
1 cup milk
1 tsp garlic powder
sprinkle salt and pepper

Here is a picture of the sauce:

Pesto also usually has Parmesan or Romano cheese, but as my sister specified 'non-cheese based,' I left it out.  But if it only had a little cheese, would that be okay?  Because in truth, I think this would have been better with 1/4 cup shredded cheese.  So, after we tried it without...  we both sprinkled some cheese on top.  :)  But I like cheese, so what can I say.   

I learned two lessons here.  Number one:  It is not possible to substitute this much dried basil for fresh.  In the future I will plan ahead and buy fresh.  (Although, my research team thought it was just fine and said it tasted a lot like pesto.)  Lesson number two:  The addition of milk made the sauce much creamier, and is something I will continue to experiment with in my sauces and macaroni and cheese.

The Verdict:

This was the research team's favorite sauce so far.  And it didn't have ANY hot spicy-ness in it... what's that about?!  


In conclusion...

The only issue I see with all three of these sauces, is that they are all puree based.  Which means they are not the easiest dinner ideas for a busy student.  So I think your best option would be to buy a bunch of a vegetable when it is on sale, puree it and freeze it in reasonable amounts (assuming you have the freezer space?).   Then you will have it ready and dinner will be easy.   Or, do like I do.  Puree something at the beginning of the week, and keep it in the fridge and use it all week.

Well there you go, the beginning of an on going experiment to find the perfect sauce for my sissy.  More to come!   

Beef Enchiladas

Last night I just threw this together, it was so good, and a great example of actually hiding pureed vegetables instead of having them take over the whole dish.

This is just a variation of the Mexican Lasagna I did a few posts ago...

Beef Enchiladas

The inside:
1 lb ground beef
Salt, Pepper, Garlic, Onion, and Chili powder, Cumin... or other spices of your choice
1/2 cup carrot puree
1/2 cup chopped green chili's (one of those small cans, you know?)
1/2 cup green enchilada sauce

The outside:
Corn tortillas
The rest of the can of enchilada sauce, warmed
Shredded cheese

Brown the ground beef, add lots of yummy spices.  Mix in puree, green chili's, and enchilada sauce.  Keep warm.

Warm tortillas on griddle or in microwave, roll up with ground beef mixture, and top with enchilada sauce and cheese.   It made 8 rolled enchiladas, but I probably added a little too much meat.... I kept busting the tortillas, so maybe it should make 10.  :) 

These were delicious, and really caught the spirit of this blog.  My research team had no idea anything was hidden in it, and he is used to trying to find hiding veggies!  Granted, there isn't as much puree as I would normally have put... and honestly I think I could have easily added another 1/2 cup of puree, but I thought I wouldn't push it this time.

I have to say, that I do think the hidden carrots made it a little bit sweeter, which complemented the spicy green chili nicely.  I would guess that in a side by side taste test, the enchilada's with the carrot puree would win.  So there you go, I am finally on the way to making some really good food where the puree makes it healthier and tastier!

Sorry, no pictures, we had all but finished eating when I realized this recipe should be on the blog.  But here is a funny for you...

As we were eating last night, I had one of those moments...  when I realized how hilarious it was that I was feeding our 5 month old pureed squash, straight up, but hiding it in our food!  I wonder what happens between the ages of 5 months and 5 years, when we go from "Mmmmmmm, squash!" to "I HATE SQUASH." ???   Well, I'm sure we will find out!  

Here is what it looks like to love eating plain pureed peas...  (and be falling out of the chair... I'm a good mom, I swear! ;) ) 

 

Next time...   pasta sauces for my sister!

More Mac and Cheese

Well, technically, this would be Shells and Cheese.

So, I have experimented with it a few times since my last mac and cheese post, but I just can't seem to make it as good as I want it to be.  Then today, I had a breakthrough.  It is still not quite worthy of the "done" recipe list that I have yet to build, but it is getting closer.  And honestly?  I really don't mind experimenting with mac and cheese a few more times!! 

Ingredients:
1 cup extra sharp cheddar cheese (my new favorite)
1 cup cauliflower puree
1 cup carrot puree
1 tsp mustard
Sprinkle salt and pepper (more pepper than salt, sorry, still just can't stop with the sprinkling!)
Some sort of cooked pasta, I used shells this time... I just used the rest of the box, shoot, I should have measured that too!! 

This time I cooked the sauce up separately so I could taste it as I was adding ingredients.  See, I am getting smarter.

Before I go on, if a recipe calls for 1 cup of shredded cheese... how exactly do you measure it?   Do you sort of sprinkle the cheese into the cup, or do you pack the cheese down into the cup, or do you just shred the whole block of cheese and call it good?

So, what about the breakthrough, you ask?  The breakthrough was in the flavor... with the addition of mustard!  Mustard made a world of difference.  I was shocked.  This had great flavor.

The texture is still not at all mac and cheese creaminess, though.  It sort of seems like the cheese isn't all melted.  I think it is due to the fact that I am not only trying to hide vegetables, but I am apparently trying to hide AS MUCH PUREE AS I POSSIBLY CAN.  So what has happened is this no longer resembles mac and cheese at all, which was reiterated by my research team...

The Verdict:

And I quote, "You can't call this mac and cheese, but it's good!" 

The good news is that I can remedy this.  See, this recipe has twice as much puree as cheese, and it would be easy to even out the ratio, or even add (gasp!) less veggies than cheese.  There would still be hidden veggies and the texture might be much closer to non-puree containing mac and cheese.  I also might try adding milk to thin out the sauce.  See how thick it looks?

Ha, it doesn't look like mac and cheese at all!  (And not just because it is shells...)  Actually, it looks a lot like some of the sauces I have been experimenting with for my sister... but that post will come out soon! 

So, I am going to work on the creaminess and hopefully soon I will have a recipe for my 'done' recipe list!

Dressing Experiment

Alright, first things first... thanks to my friend Suzy (check out her amazing projects on her blog savedbysuzy.blogspot.com) who showed me how, I made a new tab!  See above?  It's called 'How I Make Puree.'  I probably should have put it up sooner... but I didn't realize that I wasn't the only person who didn't know how to make a puree!

I was also thinking I'd put my 'done' recipes up there, but I'm not sure how to organize them.  Breakfast, lunch, dinner?  Or by vegetable?  But many of the recipes could use any number of vegetables... hmmm, let me know if you have any bright ideas!  

So, today as my research team was mowing the lawn, I thought I would make him a salad for lunch on this hot summer day.  Now, I know what you are thinking... how can you hide vegetables in something that is made of vegetables?  Just wait my friends, I have found a way.  :)  Well, actually, I have to agree that it is sort of silly to try and make salad healthier... but if I can eat half as much ranch dressing, I come out ahead. 

So began the dressing experiment.  At first I thought it would be a grand experiment, with many different kinds of dressing, but it turned out that we only had ranch and balsamic vinaigrette.  Well, we also had jalapeno ranch, but I wasn't going there (sorry, research team, but I am going to have this salad too!).

This week the purees are carrot and cauliflower.  I figured I'd mix up some dressing with each puree and see what I like best!

I mixed each of the dressings (balsamic vinaigrette and ranch) with each puree (carrot or cauliflower) in equal portions.

Here is an example of my measuring skills...

These are the purees:

These are the dressings:

Stir each one up, and begin the taste test!

I didn't think I should use carrots as the tester, because it seemed unfair to the carrot puree, so I used my favorite dipping tool, green pepper.

After eating half a pepper, and switching over to tasting the dressings with a spoon, I decided I liked them all!  I leaned toward the carrot balsamic vinaigrette or the carrot ranch... but maybe just because the orange color was so pretty!  I just couldn't decide which one to put on the salad, and eating the other half of the pepper was not going to help. 

I thought I'd build the salad and see if that inspired me one way or the other.  I started with spinach and threw in whatever I could find in the kitchen.  I was pleasantly surprised by some avocados I found in the fridge (usually I keep them on the counter), and resisted the urge to put carrots in, because I was going to use one of the carrot dressings. 

I ended up with spinach, the rest of the green pepper, blueberries, walnuts, and a whole avocado.

With the avocados and blueberries, I guess I thought it leaned more toward the vinaigrette...  maybe a salad with hard boiled eggs and meat would have leaned more toward the ranch, but either way, I chose the carrot balsamic vinaigrette and mixed it in.

Now, don't be shocked here, but I didn't measure the carrot puree or the vinaigrette...  but I think that the ratio was more carrots to vinaigrette.  :)

It was so good!  We ate the whole bowl.

The Verdict:

The research team likes carrot puree better than carrots, and he likes balsamic vinaigrette better than I do, so he thought it was very good.


The conclusion here is that whether you are eating a salad or need something to dip your hot wings in, any vegetable puree would mix right in and only serve to enhance the flavor and lessen the fat.  And the best part?  After this very healthy lunch.... I can have some cookie dough ice cream!!

Knock you naked brownies - no hidden veggies here!

Alright, after receiving some great advice, that this is my blog and I can put what I want on it... and also that every blog needs a "naughty" recipe... I just can't resist putting this recipe up.  

This is one of those, someone else commented on a friends facebook page with a link that I am not sure why I clicked on it, stories.  It's a fun read, and the brownies, well... the brownies were delicious, but I SWEAR they didn't knock all my research team's clothes off.  ;)

I am going to put the recipe up here on my blog, but you should check it out on The Pioneer Woman, she is funny.   Here is the link to her Knock You Naked Brownies. 

My research team likes caramel, so I am making them for him!  Sigh.  Well, also my sink looks like this and I would much rather make brownies than do dishes... 

 

Anyways, here are the ingredients:

1 box German Chocolate cake mix
1 cup chopped pecans  (I used walnuts because that is what I had)
1/2 cup butter
1/3 cup evaporated milk (mine was no-fat, because that is what I had)
1/2 cup evaporated milk
60 caramels
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (mine were mini, because I bought them on accident)
Powdered sugar

So it's pretty simple.  Mix cake mix, pecans, butter, and 1/3 cup evaporated milk in a bowl.  It is pretty thick.  I'd say the pictures the Pioneer Woman put up are very accurate.

Divide in half.  Press one half into greased 9x9 baking pan, bake for 8-10 min on 350.

Melt caramels with 1/2 cup evaporated milk in double boiler.  (I did it in the microwave and it worked just fine.)  Pour on top of slightly baked brownie bottom.  Sprinkle with chocolate chips.

Here's where it got a little tricky.  Somehow, we are supposed to get the rest of the brownie batter on top of the caramel layer.  The Pioneer Woman suggested making a square out of the rest of the batter and placing it on top.  So that is what I did.  See?

It was a little difficult, even with our biggest spatula, to get it nicely on top, but it got there, even if it wasn't the most beautiful top.

Now, bake for 20-25 minutes.  I baked mine for 23.

Then let them cool, cover, and put in refrigerator for a few hours.  This wasn't as hard for me as it sounds like it was for the Pioneer Woman (her name is Ree, by the way).   Mine sunk down in the middle, like brownies do, so maybe next time I would make the top square smaller. 

Then sprinkle with powdered sugar, take a big bite (you might want a fork), and wait for it... ALL YOUR CLOTHES FALL OFF!!!!

Not really, which is unfortunate, because that would be hilarious!

I warmed each one up again in the microwave so it was all gooey and warm.  These are definitely a treat.  I had some extra caramel left on my plate, so I might use less caramels next time... although my research team disagreed!  (And since they are for him after all...  I guess I should leave the caramel.)



ps.  After looking at The Pioneer Woman's page I wonder if I need to put up more pictures of my recipes?  My pictures aren't as good as hers are, but what do you think?  More pics?  Or nah, we all know what caramels look like... ;)

pps.  As I write this, I am eating leftover Mexican Lasagna for lunch... mmm, mmmm, mmmm, mmmm so good.  WAIT, WHAT!!  There are carrots in this?!?!

Mexican Lasagna

Remember how I said I don't like anything from a can?  Well... that was a lie.  Actually two of my most favorite foods are still so so good out of the can.  1.  Beans.  2.  Green chili's.   Maybe it's because I grew up in New Mexico, but even though I have the most gringo tongue, I could eat beans, cheese, and green chili every day and it would never get old.  Both of these things are better fresh (you know that great roasting chili smell in the summer?  mmmm), but it's hard to beat the ease of opening a can of beans, a can of chili's and have dinner ready already.  SO... where was I?  Ah yes, Mexican lasagna.

It's actually a bean enchilada recipe that one of the gym mom's used to bring to potlucks (thanks Missy!).  She rolled up the enchilada's, but I am too lazy and layer them... and we have been affectionately calling them Mexican Lasagna ever since.

So I started with pureed carrots.  The puree had maybe 8 or 9 large carrots and 1 cup of water.  It was pretty thick.  SIDE NOTE:  after a bite of puree, the research team said that carrots were so good when they weren't as hard to eat.  Hee hee, and I thought I was lazy!!   

Alright, so here is the recipe:
 
Ingredients...
1 can pinto or black beans
1 can kidney beans
2 cans green chili's  (you know those small cans?)
1 cup carrot puree
1 can enchilada sauce
Some tortillas (I'm honestly not sure how many... less than one small bag)
Some cheese (man, I'm horrible at this!!  I really just shredded the cheese as I put it in... sigh.  Sorry.)

Here we go.  Rinse, drain, and mash the beans (hello, potato masher!) in a bowl.  Add green chili's and carrot puree. 

Here is a picture so far:

This is not a trick of the light.  The carrots really did turn it this orange.  But even at this point, I couldn't taste them at all!  

Missy also added some cheese and enchilada sauce to the bean mixture, but since I am layering with them, I leave them out.  If I was going to roll them up, then I would add them to the mixture.  Yeah?

Alright, so then pour some enchilada sauce into the bottom of the pan.  I like the green sauce, medium hotness, but I'm sure red would be good also.  I use the small square pan (8x8 or 9x9 I guess.  I never measured), and it turns out pretty thick, like lasagna!

And the layering begins:
Enchilada sauce on the bottom then...
tortillas  (I like the corn tortillas, but it's also good with flour tortillas)
bean mixture
cheese
repeat

With the corn tortillas I tear them to make them fit:

I think it is usually 3 layers or so.  On the last layer of tortillas pour the remaining enchilada sauce and top with cheese.  Bake at 350 or 400, depending on how much of a hurry you are in, until bubbly!

This is one of my most favorite dishes, and we could not taste the carrot at all.  Mmmm, I could eat beans and cheese all day...

The Verdict:

The research team said he liked it a lot, and he couldn't taste the carrots even though he was trying really hard to!  He felt like this recipe was "good."  As in "done." 



Soooooo, what I think I will do now, is start a recipe list on the side of my blog --------------->  that has hidden vegetable recipes that are "done."  As in, "I am done experimenting with this recipe."  Although, I don't think I AM done experimenting with this recipe... I was thinking I'd also hide some pureed peas or spinach or something else green in the green enchilada sauce.   But I guess the experimenting can continue even with great recipes posted on the side of the blog!  So maybe the recipe list will be more like, "these recipes are really good, and see if you can find the hidden vegetable."