Category Archives: Snacks

Snack Time!

Egg Free, Dairy Free Pancakes!!!!

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dairyfreepancakes

1 cup all purpose flour (I like Lily Self-Rising Flour, makes them extra fluffy!)
1 cup soymilk (or rice milk)
1  tsp flax seed meal
1/4 cup applesauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (optional)
1 tsp vanilla

 

Directions:

1. Spray cooking spray on skillet.

2. Heat on medium.

3. Mix all ingredients in one bowl.

4. Use 1/4 measuring cup to drop pancakes into skillet.

5. Cook pancakes on skillet until bubbly in the middle and a bit dry around the edges.

6. Flip and cook 2 minutes more until done.

 

My kids are creatures of habit. A couple of years ago, when  my mom watched my kids when I was still working full time, they would usually have breakfast with her. She got them into a “toast” routine. Every single morning… I mean EVERY morning (whether we are out of town and at Panera for breakfast, or home) they want toast and bacon and juice for breakfast. That’s it. It’s crazy! The problem this morning is that I didn’t go grocery shopping yesterday, and realized this morning that I am out of bacon and bread. OOPS! So, my toast snob children were not happy. BUT, I whipped up these “Levi Friendly” (my son who has food allergies) pancakes and they DEVOURED them!!! At least I know what I can make now when I run out of bread!!!

 

Enjoy!

 

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Greek Chicken Wraps

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GreekWrap

This used my leftover chicken that I had frozen from this previous post: https://dancinandcookininthekitchen.com/2014/06/02/sunday-lunch/

Now, if you didn’t have this leftover chicken… maybe you had some chicken from a rotisserie chicken leftover… or from a previous meal. This was a quick and easy meal.

Ingredients:

2 small chicken breasts (leftover or otherwise) heated, cooked and cut into 1-2 inch pieces
1 scallion
garlic powder (to taste if you sautee the chicken to reheat)
shredded cheese (as desired)
Lettuce
cherry tomatoes
Tzatziki Sauce (I buy pre-made organic from Trader Joes… you CAN make it… but it takes time)
Tortillas

 

Quick warm up and sautee in a skillet for a couple of min with a bit of cooking spray, add some garlic and a bit of greek seasoning (Pampered Chef has a great one!!), cumin, salt and pepper, etc. Then cut into 1-2 inch chunks. Place onto tortillas. Then, sprinkle desired amount of shredded cheese on top. Top that with scallion (green onion). Then, top with lettuce and tomato. Spoon generous amount of Tzatziki sauce onto wrap, roll and ENJOY!!!!

We paired this with guacamole and Trader Joes sweet potato chips.. DELISH!!! 🙂

Friday the 13th!

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So…. my Friday ended up with me getting 7 stitches in my finger due to me attempting to help my husband with yard work and breaking out the electrical hedge trimmers. Needless to say, no cooking was done in my house last night or tonight.

I AM doing meal planning… So, I am going to post a bit about that.

My husband gets paid 2x per month… so, therefore, to be most efficient, I grocery shop 2x per month. (SOMETIMES I have to go back out for perishables). So, when the grocery shopping time is coming up, I go through and plan out what recipes I will be making for the next 2 weeks. I usually pick about 18 in case I change my mind, or my mood changes. At least 5 have overlapping ingredients, so that I don’t have to double purchase. Also, I like to be able to use leftovers, or excess from one meal, to make another.

I usually use 3 different things to do the planning. 1: sparkpeople.com . This website rocks! They have a large library of recipes WITH the calories listed, which is really great. I also love the weightloss area of the website too, and how it’s free and makes sure that you have a BALANCED diet, not just get skinny. They focus on HEALTH, which I LOVE!

I also use pinterest. I not only search for recipes, I have a board where I pin my bi-weekly recipes, and then when they are made, if I liked them, I transfer them to my meals board.

I also use my cooking magazines. I just picked up Cooking Light from the grocery store. I will for SURE be incorporating these recipes the next two weeks! They have a lot of fresh and clean focuses on the recipes in there, so I’m excited to try some fun and new stuff!

I’m also trying to learn. I really want to go to culinary school, but until I can… I am watching youtube vidoes, trying new methods, new foods, etc as much as I can. I am just soaking it all in! I’m also trying to be cautious about clean, organic ingredients, and also lower in calories… the “lightened” version of things.

Thats my thinking!

Here is my board on Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/rebeccacain23/weekly-meal-plans/

I’ll be up and cooking soon… until then, it will be info, advise, and musings! Praying these stitches heal well and quickly!!

 

Lemon Rosemary Chicken on Sauteed Cabbage

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LemonRosemaryChicken

Ok… so, in my “About Me” I said clearly that I’m not perfect, and my recipes won’t be perfect. They won’t always turn out perfect either! Today’s dinner is one of those examples! I wasn’t sure I wanted to post anything, BUT, I know that if I had changed the cooking time that the chicken would have been really good! So: Here goes!

Ingredients:

8 Chicken tenderloins (still frozen) or 3 Chicken Breasts (frozen)
1 TB olive oil
Juice AND zest of 1 lemon
1 tsp. minced garlic (or one clove)
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 tsp rosemary (chopped, and then place the almost empty stems into broth)
2 tsp. chives
1 tsp. chopped parsley for garnish

Put into crock pot on LOW for 4 hours. 5 Hours MAX! What I need, is a crock pot with a timer…  🙂 I cooked the chicken for over 7 hours… it was a bit dry! Flavor was great though! 🙂 Better next time.

 

 

 

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And now for the cabbage! I gotta say, you have to like cabbage for this one, but I was sick of the chicken and rice recipes, so cabbage it was! I took about 1/4 of the head of cabbage and cut it into smaller pieces. Then I cut up 1/5 of the onion and chopped and put it into a skillet with 2 TB olive oil with 1 tsp of garlic (minced), or 1/2 tsp garlic powder. Sautee until translucent and slightly browned. YUM! (Season with salt and pepper to taste)

The roll is the Honey Wheat rolls that I’ve made before. The recipe is SOO easy! It only takes 30 minutes too! Here’s the recipe: http://www.ihearteating.com/2013/07/29/30-minute-honey-wheat-rolls/

Lighter Version of Banana Bread… and JUST AS GOOD!

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lighterbananabread

2 large bananas
1/2 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 cage free egg
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 cup half&half
1/4 cup apple sauce
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 tsp baking powder
2 cups all purpose flour

 

Preheat oven to 350. Grease bread loaf pan, unless it’s non stick.

Mix all dry ingredients into a large bowl, make sure to mix well.

Mix all wet ingredients in another bowl, make sure to mix thoroughly.

Add liquid mix to dry mix and stir thoroughly.

Put into bread loaf pan and cook for approximately 55 to 65 minutes. I always start checking the colour around 50 minutes, should be a nice golden brown. Insert a toothpick in centre to check if it’s done. Toothpick may be moist from bananas, just make sure it’s not moist from batter.

Let bread cool in pans for about 5 to 10 minutes. Run a knife along outside edge to loosen sides.

Looking for something sweet, add chocolate chips! You can also add walnuts or pecans for extra flavor!

Honey Lime “Guacamole”… or “A Twist on Guacamole”

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HoneyLimeCilantrodip

I could also call this “Messy Bowl” 🙂

original recipe: http://easyrecipestodo.blogspot.com/2013/11/grilled-corn-avocado-and-tomato-salad.html

INGREDIENTS
1 pint grape tomatoes (I’m not a big tomato fan… I only had a few in there for “garnish”…)
1 ripe avocado
1 bag of Steam Fresh sweet corn (or 2 ears freshly grilled corn from original recipe)
2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
HONEY LIME DRESSING
Juice of 1 lime
3 tbsp canola oil
1 tbsp honey
Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
1/2 tsp garlic, minced
Dash of cayenne pepper

DIRECTIONS
Remove husks from corn and grill over medium heat for 10 minutes. The corn should have some brown spots and be tender and not mushy. Cut the corn off the cob then scrape the cob with the back of your knife to get the juices. Set aside and let cool. Slice the tomatoes in half. Dice the avocado and chop the cilantro.
HONEY LIME DRESSING
1. Add all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.
2. Combine the sliced tomatoes, avocado, cilantro and grilled corn and honey lime dressing and mix gently so everything is evenly coated. Be careful not to mash the avocados. Let the salad sit for 10-15 minutes to let flavors mingle. Enjoy.

My LOVE of Grapefruit

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grapefruit

Grapefruit…

Do you like grapefruit? Have you ever tried it warmed up with Brown Sugar melted into it??? If not… DO!

I have memories of going to visit my grandparents in Tampa and going out and picking a grapefruit off of their tree and bringing it inside and making it like in the picture. MMMMMM!!!!

So, what you need: 1/2 grapefruit cut and sectioned
1-2 TB of brown sugar

Cut the grapefruit in half and then take a serrated knife and cut out each individual triangle in-between the membrane. Then, take the same knife and cut around the outside of the citrus, but not into the pith. Then, top w/brown sugar and microwave for 1 minute.

ENJOY!!!

Lemon Curd Blueberry Trifle

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No picture with this one…

So, I made a Trifle the other night, and it actually turned out SOO good! I combined a couple of different recipes and ideas, and really liked it. I, of course, didn’t take any pictures of it, but I’m putting the recipe on here so that I won’t forget.

Step 1: Make Angel Food Cake (Pound cake may also be good!)
I used a boxed Angel Food Cake. All I had to do was add water, mix in my mixer, and bake! 35 minutes later, you flip it over (in the angel food cake pan) and let it cool. EASY!

Step 2: Buy or make lemon curd. I bought a jar of it because I was a bit busy. BUT, you can pretty easily make it. It’s basically eggs, sugar, lemon and butter. So, if you have all of that, just make it!!! (http://www.chefscatalog.com/blog/gift-from-the-kitchen)

Step 3: Blueberries!! Blueberries are just starting to be in season here right now and are DELICIOUS!!!! I had 2 small containers. I washed them and drained them and set them to the side to dry.

Step 4: Make mousse! I got the recipe for the mousse here: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/96616354480891681/
I made the recipe exactly the same, but then instead of Basil, i used mint, and refrigerated the mousse in 1 large glass bowl instead of separate dishes. http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=2736718

Step 5: Assemble!
Use scissors or a serrated knife to cut the angel food cake into approx. 2-inch squares. Then, you layer. Start using 1/3 of the angel food cake pieces, and layer in the bottom of a trifle dish, or large punch bowl. Then layer in the lemon curd, blueberries and mouse. I just dolloped bits of everything in there until the layer was nicely covered, and then topped it with lemon zest. I then repeated 2 additional times until there were 3 layers, and then topped it with chopped mint.

Easy Peasy lemon squeezy!!! HAHA! 🙂

Grown-ups Mac&Cheese

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Myversionmac&cheese

I’m going to call this MY version of grown-ups mac&cheese. Because truly, this is what I would pick over baked Mac&Cheese, or anything similar. This is my comfort food. YUM!

original recipe credit: http://www.lifeasastrawberry.com/parmesan-spinach-orzo/

(Anything that I Change or Add, I will put afterwards with a parenthesis or an asterisk *)

  • 2 and 1/2 cups whole wheat orzo (*I used high-fiber orzo)
  • 2 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 2 green onions, chopped (* I used a sweet onion)
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 tsp. flour
  • 1 cup milk (I used skim!) (I used unsweetened coconut milk)
  • 2/3 cups spinach, chopped
  • 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded, plus extra for garnish

I then cooked 2 pieces of pre-cooked Trader Joe’s uncured bacon in the microwave until extra crispy, and set it aside. (approximately 40 seconds)

Take 4-6 frozen Trader Joe’s boneless chicken tenderloins and put into skillet w/2-3 turns of extra virgin olive oil. (They do not need to be thawed). Put salt&pepper, garlic powder and a little bit of Mrs. Dash to each side of the tenderloin, and simmer on medium to low heat for 10-15 minutes, or until firm. Then remove from heat and set aside.

Directions:

  1. Cook orzo according to package directions. Set aside.
  2. Heat olive oil in a medium-sized pot over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, salt and pepper and saute for 1 minute or until onions are translucent. Add flour to form a roux and cook for an additional minute.
  3. Add about 1/4 cup of the milk to the pot and whisk to work out any lumps from the roux. When lumps are worked out, add the remaining milk and whisk to combine. Bring to a simmer and cook until sauce has thickened, about 8 minutes.
  4. Add chopped spinach to sauce and cook an additional 2 minutes or until spinach has cooked down. Remove sauce from heat.
  5. Stir parmesan cheese into sauce. When cheese has melted, add cooked orzo to sauce and toss to coat. Garnish with extra parmesan cheese and *crumbled bacon and add *chicken to top or chop the chicken into bite size pieces, and serve immediately.

My FAVORITE homemade Salad Dressing Vinaigrette!

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The juice of 2 lemons
1 tsp. minced garlic
2 tsp. grated parmesan cheese
Equal parts olive oil (or a lighter oil) to lemon juice
2 TB fresh chopped cilantro or parsley
1 TB honey
1 tsp. spicy brown mustard

Blend together. I have a Pampered Chef salad dressing mixer that I use. You can also wisk it and store it in an old jam jar or mason jar. You can store it for 10-14 days in your refrigerator.