Peanut Butter Pancakes

I was so hungry Sunday morning when I woke up and I wanted something quick and easy to satisfy my craving and hopefully help get rid of this horrendous headache...think comfort food! I took a peek at my go to foodie blog Rookie Cookie and found this recipe. I never thought to put Peanut Butter IN pancakes. I really have never put peanut butter ON pancakes but Sydney's good friend Kaylee comes over and slathers the stuff all over her pancakes. I thought it was odd...until Sunday, that is. I don't even think I can make pancakes differently now. Not only were they ridiculously easy to make they were super tasty! It's like eating a peanut butter cookie with syrup on it. You HAVE to try these. Whitney at Rookie Cookie is seriously a cooking genius...she has some great recipes...go check her out...you are guaranteed to find something you will love!

Peanut Butter Pancakes

1 1/4 cups flour
3 Tbsp sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup milk
1/3 cup peanut butter
1 egg
3 Tbsp melted butter

Heat a griddle or heavy skillet over medium heat.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar baking powder and salt. Whisk to combine. In a large bowl, combine the milk, peanut butter and egg. Whisk until smooth. Combine the flour mixture with the milk mixture and gently stir until just combined. Fold in the melted butter.

Spray non-stick spray on the heated griddle. For each pancake, pour 1/2 cup batter onto griddle. Cooke until golden brown, turn when the edges are slightly dry. Yields 8 pancakes.

Crispy Bacon & Egg Fried Rice

My son loves fried rice - I hate spending $10 on a dinner size portion so I decided to make him some homemade fried rice with a tasty twist, BACON! Who doesn't love bacon? Two of my favorite things, rice and bacon.

This dish was a breeze and sooo good! Easy, tasty and back to basics!

Ingredients:

2-4 cups of cooked white rice (semi-cooled)

4 eggs

5 strips of diced bacon

2 T of veggie oil

soy sauce (I use the low sodium one)

sesame oil (you purchase this oil in the asian section of the grocery store)

black pepper

I also used a wok - of you don't have a wok, use a large frying pan

Directions:

Add oil and set heat on high, get the oil nice and hot and then add the bacon. Let the bacon cook in the oil until crispy. Add 4 eggs (make sure you scramble them before adding into the hot oil and bacon). Cook until all eggs are scrambled well. Add cooked rice and stir, make sure to blend up the bacon, egg and rice together. Now add soy sauce, sesame oil and black pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

Fried Chocolate & Peanut Butter Wontons

This is such a tasty treat and so easy to make. I made two different wontons, one has just milk chocolate in it and the other wonton I added creamy peanut butter and milk chocolate. My boys love this little dessert that has so much flavor.

Ingredients:

wonton wrappers
milk chocolate pieces or morsels
oil
1 egg whipped


Optional:


peanut butter
powdered sugar


Place chocolate in the middle of the wonton wrapper and using your finger, wipe all 4 edges of the wonton with the egg wash. Pinch edges together and then take the 2 corners and match it in the middle, using more egg wash to keep it sealed. Fry in hot oil until golden. Serve warm & add powdered sugar on top.

Pierogi Casserole

Ingredients:


1 box of dried lasagna noodles
8 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 large onion (diced finely in food processor)
1 stick of butter
1/3 cup of milk
1 tsp. of salt
1/2 tsp. of pepper
2 cups of shredded mild cheddar cheese


Full of flavor, this pierogi casserole is nothing short of rich & hearty goodness. My entire family loved it, including my 1 year old baby girl. I was able to make it during the day and quickly bake it before Bart got home for dinner. I served it with a sausage patty which complimented the dish nicely. Cost less than $10 to make and there is plenty of leftovers! If you love pierogis, you'll love this dish, total comfort food!



Directions:

1. Cook pasta accordingly to package. Set aside.


2. Cook potatoes in boiling water for about 20 minutes or until tender. Drain and place in a large mixing bowl. Mash well until it's creamy, I used a hand blender.


3. In a large skillet, add onions until tender. Add to mashed potatoes once onions are done.


4. Now add the butter, milk, salt and pepper and 1 1/2 cups of cheese together and stir together with a spoon. Make sure you taste, taste, taste, if you feel it needs more salt, add more, salt, more pepper, add more pepper.


5. Let mix sit for 15-20 minutes for the flavors to mix together.


6. In a casserole dish, spray with cooking spray, add a layer of pasta, potato mixture and then sprinkle with a little more cheese. Repeat this step until all the ingredients are used. Top off with remaining cheese, cover with foil and bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes.

Banana Bread

I have been away from the foodie blog world for quite some time. I missed it! I sat down one morning with my morning cup of joe and was floored when I started looking up some of my old stomping grounds. The meals were so detailed...and extravagant. I was so overwhelmed, I walked away from the computer...bummed. I stayed away for quite some time after that really thinking that I had lost touch with the food Internet world. But the more I stayed away, the more I longed for it. So once again I decided to give it a whirl. And eventually I found some of my oldies but goodies...Picky Palate, Prudence Pennywise & Rookie Cookie, to name a few. Then one day on Facebook a friend of ours posted that we had all but abandoned our food blog (not naming names..AMBER!) and it made me sad because what people are searching for in this economy are meals that are cheap, easy to make and basically BASIC! I feel that's what people are looking for these days...simplicity.

I remember when I started this blog, I would go nutso writing down recipe after recipe and heading to the grocery store only to spend hundreds of dollars on meals that were mediocre. I missed the good ole days of Fried Chicken and Peach Cobbler. Well I will still have to semi miss those days as we know that Fried Chicken is bad on the thighs and the heart but if it was so bad for us why is the generation of our grandparents living into the 90s and my generation is dying off? It's because back then, ingredients were grown in their gardens and the environment was much kinder to our foods. What I'm getting at, is times are tight and tough and time is precious. Let's get back to our roots and save ourselves some time and money and we might just be surprised at how much we miss it.

My first recipe in my Back to Basics theme is Banana Bread. I know there are zillions of recipes out there for banana bread and I know some of the originals call for sour milk or vinegar and can take up to almost an hour to bake, but I wanted something easy and on any given day I always have every ingredient for this quick and easy recipe. I made this and was so happy with the results...it was so moist and yummy. Give it a try and it might just become one of your basic recipes!

BANANA BREAD

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 t ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large ripe bananas
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

3/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)


Heat oven to 350 degrees

Coat two loaf pans with nonstick cooking spray

In large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Make a well in the center. (basically pull the flour up the sides of the bowl so when you pour the banana mixture in, it goes in the middle, much easier to combine that way)

Mash bananas in medium-sized bowl (potato masher works GREAT).

Add eggs, sugar and butter and beat with mixer until fairly smooth.

Pour banana mixture into well in dry ingredients and stir just until blended. (Don't over stir as this will make your bread tough and chewy)

Fold in walnuts, then dive batter evenly between prepared loaf pans. (One of my sons is allergic to some nuts so I don't give him any. Before I add the walnuts, I pour half of the mixture in one loaf pan, decrease the nuts by half, mix in with the remaining batter, and pour the remaining batter in the second loaf pan)

Bake loaves for about 35 minutes or until browned and tops spring back lightly when gently pressed. The sides will pull away from the pan as well.

Cool on a wire wrack.

Serve with butter...YUM!

Back To Basics

Well it's been almost a year since we updated this blog...SHAME ON US! Life got hectic for both of us. We were having a little too much fun!

But we're BACK! And we're all Back to Basics. In this economy, the basic essential of making a meal for your family can break your budget. I think it's important to get back to our roots and stop getting so overwhelmed by all the extravagances...there will be plenty of time for that later. I'm a mother of 4 and live on a tight budget and my time is precious. I scour the ads every week and I clip coupons (occasionally) but ask anyone that knows me I'm a sucker for a bargain. I want to teach my children to stretch our dollar all while making a healthy home cooked meal. This will be my goal for my next several posts. I want my boys to be able to "fend for themselves" in the kitchen and I want my daughter to have all the skills needed to be a wife and a mother...especially in the kitchen. I don't feel like this is being femanist...I feel like this is being a realist. So without much further ado, I would like to say "Welcome Back" and I can't wait to hear from you all. Drop us a line and let us know how we're doing or what you would like to see on this blog. We are here to make your life easier in the kitchen. Help us help you. I'm so excited!!!

Vanilla Bean Shortbread (Light version)

I got this recipe out of the Cooking Light magazine. It was sooooo GOOD!!! I love shortbread but when I read that this was a healthier version, I just had to try it out. It has half the butter of normal shortbread so it makes it less fattening (I guess), and more heart healthy (I guess.. ha!). I had some vanilla beans left over from when I got them at a great price at Costco. I made up a batch of these and let me tell ya, they didn't last long in my house. I even sent some over to my mom and she LOVED them! They have an amazing taste and texture. They are so flaky and yummy. They are a perfect compliment with tea. They almost taste like a pecan sandie sans the pecans. But I did do a second batch and added toasted pecans...DELISH!!! These are so easy, you have to try them!


Ingredients:

Cooking spray
9 ounces all-purpose flour (about 2 cups)
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sugar
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Line bottom and sides of a 13 x 9–inch baking pan with foil; coat foil with cooking spray, and set aside.
3. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, cornstarch, and salt in a large bowl; stir with a whisk.
4. Place butter in a medium bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed 2 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add oil; beat with a mixer at medium speed 3 minutes or until well blended. Gradually add sugar, beating well. Scrape seeds from vanilla bean, and add seeds to butter mixture; discard bean. Add flour mixture, beating at low speed just until blended. Spoon dough into prepared pan. Place a sheet of heavy-duty plastic wrap over dough; press to an even thickness. Discard plastic wrap. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool in pan 5 minutes on a wire rack; cut into 32 pieces. Carefully lift foil from pan; cool squares completely on a wire rack.

My kiddos couldn't wait for them to cool. They were hovering over them. They were a HIT!

I added toasted pecans to the second batch. Just typing this post makes me want to go make another batch. They are dangerous though. I could eat the entire pan, they are just so good!

Tilapia Fish Tacos

Let's just say I completely rocked it in the kitchen!!! This was so easy to make and the taste was unbelievable. I have never tasted a fish taco anywhere that had this much flavor. The white sauce was so delicious.

I got this recipe from my friend Alexis. I believe she got it from Allrecipes.com. You can use any type of white fish I'm sure but the tilapia was amazing. My hubby was very quiet and the whole time he was eating all I heard was "mmmmm...mmmmm"...so I know it had to be good. We served it with lime wedges and a simple pico de gallo which complimented the flavor even more. Please try this dish, it was super simple...you will not be disappointed.

1 quart oil for frying

1 lb Tilapia or any type of white fish, cut into small strips

1 package corn tortillas

cabbage, shredded

Batter:

1 cup all purpose flour

2 Tbl cornstarch

1 tsp Baking Powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg

1 cup beer

Sauce:

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 lime, juiced

1 jalapeno pepper, minced

1tsp minced capers

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp dried dill

1 tsp ground cayenne pepper

To make beer batter: In a large bowl, combine flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt. Blend egg and beer, then quickly stir into the flour mixture (may be a little lumpy)

To make white sauce: In a medium bowl, mix together yogurt and mayo. Gradually stir in fresh lime juice until consistency is slightly runny. Sean with jalapeno, capers, oregano, cumin, dill and cayenne.

Heat oil in deep fryer or heavy deep skillet.

Dust fish pieces lightly with flour. Dip into beer batter, and fry until crisp and golden bornw. Drain on paper towels. Lightly fry tortillas, not too crisp. To serve, place fried fish in a tortilla, and top with shredded cabbage, and white sauce.

Blueberries and a 4 year old's Dream

My kiddos LOVE fruit...especially blueberries. They could eat pounds and pounds of blueberries. The other day, my 4 year old, Luke, opened the fridge looking for the big white bowl of washed blueberries and to his dismay, they were GONE! He was so disappointed. He said to me "Mom, I want to grow a whole bunch of blueberries so I can have them forever and ever". What a GREAT idea!

The problem...I have no garden and I live in Arizona. I guess that's two problems. I have an area reserved to start a garden at the end of the summer. But I have to be honest, I have never heard of anyone in this horridly hot state ever growing blueberries. Does anyone out there know how you grow blueberries and where they actually grow the best? Luke would love you forever if you give me any tips. Thanks.

My very adventerous and future gardener, Luke.

Bacardi Rum Cake

Many moons ago when I worked as a legal secretary, before I was a mom, there was this guy that came around to our office all the time selling books. I bought the coolest cookbook from him. I've seen similar cookbooks pop up all over the place but I don't think I've ever seen one quite like this one. It is LOADED with recipes. It's called the Best Recipes From The Backs of Boxes, Bottles, Cans and Jars. I bought one for me, one for my mom and one for my greasy granny. Actually I didn't buy one for my greasy granny...I just like to say Greasy Granny.

Anyhoo, this recipe was in the book. After each recipe in this book, there is a little blurp where the recipe came from or some significant fact about the recipe. The blurb underneath this particular recipe reads: "Here's the very first cake to incorporate a pudding mix. It's simply fabulous".

I made this cake and it was GREAT! I think I put too much bacardi in it though because I was totally drunk afterwards...AGAIN...fibbing...I wasn't drunk but there was WAY too much bacardi in the glaze the first time around so I had to half the amount the next time. I also used dark bacardi which could have made a big difference in the taste. Maybe next time I'll try the light bacardi.

Cake:

1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (I used pecans)

1 18 1/2 ounce package yellow cake mix

1 3 3/4 ounce Jell-O Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix

4 eggs

1/4 cup cold water

1/2 cup Wesson oil

1/2 cup Bacardi

Glaze:

1/4 lb. butter

1/4 cup water

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup Bacardi

Preheat oven to 325 dgrees. Grease and flour Bundt pan. Sprinkle nuts over the bottom of the pan.

Mix all ingredients together.

Pour the batter over the nuts. Bake for 1 hour
.

Cool. Invert on serving plate.

While the cake is cooling, make the glaze:

Melt butter in saucepan.

Stir in water and sugar. Boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly.

Remove the heat. Stir in the rum.

Poke holes in the top and the sides of the cake.


Pour the glaze all over the cake.

Mmmmmmmmmmmm....ENJOY!!!