Category Archives: Mo-o-om! I’m hungry!!

snacks

Quick Summer Tortellini Salad

Posting for Mom so i can access this on my phone and make it myself, this is one of my favorite Summer Salads.

This is a quick delicious summer salad. Perfect for picnics, no need to refrigerate. A little sweet, a little tart, with a touch of fresh basil for a punch of flavor. You choose the tortellini and smoked sausage you like the most. Chop, chop, chop and you’re done! Enjoy.

Cook time: 5 Min  Prep time: 30 Min  Serves: 10-12

Ingredients

16 oz fresh tortellini
1 1/2 c swiss cheese
1 1/2 c summer sausage or salami
1 can(s) small black olives
1 1/2 c fresh mushrooms
4 green onions
2/3 c red wine vinegar
2/3 c canola oil
2/3 c sugar
1/4 c basil, fresh
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1. Cook the tortellini in boiling, salted water for 5 minutes. Rinse with cold water and cool.
2. In a large bowl combine, cubed sausage and cheese with chopped mushrooms, olives and minced green onions. Add the cooled tortellini and basil.
3. In a separate bowl combine the sugar, vinegar, oil, salt, garlic and pepper. Stir until thoroughly combined. Add to the pasta mixture. Adjust seasoning to taste.
4. Enjoy!
Originally Found: HERE

Mango Salsa

We LOVE mango salsa!!  I got this recipe from a grocery store (where they had samples….my first taste of mango salsa and I was hooked!)

4 medium mangoes, peeled, pitted and cubed
12 medium red onion, minced
2 green onions, sliced thin
1/2 med jalapeno chili, stemmed, seeded, minced
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
2 Tbsp minced fresh cilantro leaves
salt & pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients, including salt & pepper in small bowl. Transfer to airtight container & refrigerate at least 1 hour. May be kept 4 days.

No-Fry Onion Rings

I found this recipe at www.pamcookingspray.com and just had to try it.  We LOVE onion rings, but I HATE deep frying things (and the way it makes my house smell is awful too!)  So we made these and they’re fairly easy and very tasty!  Yay!

Oven-baked onion rings with the flavor and crunch of traditional deep-fried onion rings

Hands On:10 | Total: 25 | Makes: 6 servings (about 4 rings each)

Ingredients:

  • PAM® Olive Oil No-Stick Cooking Spray
  • 1 large sweet onion, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
  • 1/3 cup fat free milk
  • 1 cup Ultragrain® All Purpose Flour
  • 4 large egg whites, lightly beaten
  • 2 cups cornflake crumbs

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Cover 2 baking sheets with aluminum foil; spray evenly with cooking spray.
  2. Separate onion slices into rings. Dip into milk, then into the flour, turning to evenly coat both sides of each onion ring. Dip coated onion rings in egg whites, then into cornflake crumbs, again turning to evenly coat both sides of each onion ring. Place in single layer on prepared baking sheets; spray evenly with cooking spray.
  3. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, or until onions are tender and golden brown.

Cook’s Tips

Variation: Omit cornflake crumbs. Prepare as directed, coating the onion rings with a mixture of 2/3 cup dry bread crumbs and 2 tablespoons sesame seeds.

Yummy yogurt

A gallon of homemade yogurt!! I find, with the way my kiddos like yogurt, this is the best and cheapest way to do it. And this is plain yogurt, but I also have a great way to flavor it (other than just mixing in something at the last minute). So I thought I’d share the recipe as this is VERY easy to make

The recipe makes 2 quarts, so you’ll have to double it for a gallon

1 pkg unflavored gelatin (ya know, like Knox)
1/4 cup cold water
6 cups very warm water
3 cups powdered milk
1 can evap milk (or you can scald 1 1/2 cups of milk instead)
1/4 cup yogurt (yeah, you have to have yogurt to make yogurt)

Put 1/4 cup water in small saucepan, sprinkle with gelatin, mix and slowly heat until gelatin has dissolved and mixture is just about to boil. Remove from heat and set aside.

Combine powdered milk with 6 cups warm water and mix well.  In saucepan with gelatin mix, pour in evaporated milk and yogurt. Mix well, then pour into warm milk mixture. Mix gently, then set in a very warm place to set for 6-8 hours (I put it in my oven with the light on). That’s it! Refrigerate before eating (unless you like really liquid yogurt!). Note that homemade yogurt is a bit “slimier” than store bought.

Now, for flavoring (and if you have picky people who are grossed out by the slimey yogurt). Bring 1 cup of water to a boil in a large glass bowl. Pour a 4oz box of FLAVORED gelatin (one of our favorites is lime) into the water and mix until it is all dissolved. To this, add 3 cups of plain yogurt. Mix well, refrigerate. Later you will have a custard like yogurt to make any picky person happy!

Philly Chippers

warning:you may get unexpected marriage proposals when you share these cookies….they’re that good!!

1 (8oz) pkg softened cream cheese

1 cup margarine (it MUST BE margarine, butter does NOT work)

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

2 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

12 oz pkg semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Combine cream cheese, margarine, and sugars, mixing until well blended.  Blend in egg and vanilla.  Add combined dry ingredients, mix well.  Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.  Drop by rounded teaspoonful onto greased cookie sheet.  Bake at 375 degrees for 15-18 min or until lightly browned.

Edible Greeting Cards

I’ve tried other gingerbread cookie recipes but LOVE this one! And the frosting is great too. This made quite a few cookies (we didn’t make them into “cards” but cut with cookie cutters and decorated

2 cups molasses

1 cup oil

6 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp ginger

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp clove

Optional extras:

candies, currants, raisins, sprinkles

Decorator Frosting:

3 egg whites

1 pound powdered sugar

pinch of cream of tartar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To make dough, stir molasses and oil together. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Lightly flour work area and roll out the dough. Cut into squares (for cards) or use large cookie cutters. Make a hole near the top using a straw, for stringing ribbon through to hang from the tree and decorate tree with candies, currants and raisins if desired. Place cookies on greased cookie sheet and bake for 10 min.

To make frosting, beat egg whites until stiff, then stir in the powdered sugar and cream of tartar. If you don’t have a cake decorating bag, place frosting in a small plastic bag with a tiny bit cut from a corner and gently squeeze out frosting. When frosting has hardened, string with ribbon and hang. If mailing a “card”, sandwich between cardboard before putting it into an envelope. This gingerbread will hold up well during the holiday season!

Chocolate Harvest Bread

It’s that time of year again!! 🙂 I’ve pulled 4 zukes off of just one of my plants in the last couple of days and that got me remembering this yummy recipe I found in Sesame Street Parents magazine in the summer of 2000 (so you know it’s good, I’ve had it a while!)

Yield: 16 muffins, 1 large loaf or 2-3 small loaves

1 med. Zucchini, washed and stems trimmed

2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp ground cloves

½ tsp salt

½ tsp baking soda

¾ cup milk

½ cup (1 stick) butter, melted

2 eggs

1 tsp almond extract

1 cup walnut pieces (optional)

********************

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease and flour the loaf pans or line the muffin pans with cupcake liners. Peel and grate zucchini until you have about 1 cup. Combine flour, sugar, cocoa, cinnamon, cloves, salt, and baking soda. Using a fork, toss the ingredients until they are well blended. In a separate, smaller mixing bowl, combine the milk, butter, eggs and almond extract. Add them to the dry ingredients and stir until blended. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for about 25 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes.

Aussie Bites

One of my sisters introduced me to a store bought version of Aussie Bites and they were WONDERFUL!!  I found a recipe online and have finally gotten around to making them (seriously, it’s been years since I had them) and they are SO good!!  Seriously worth the effort of gathering together all the good stuff!

2 cups oats

2 cups whole wheat flour (yes, seriously, no white flour)

2/3 c brown sugar

1 (3 1/2 oz ) can unsweetened coconut (I only had a bag of sweetened, so I just threw in a huge handful of that)

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1 cup dried fruit (raisins, dates, figs, cranberries, etc) (I used chopped dates)

1/4 cup honey

1 cup unsalted butter (I used salted, it’s not that important to me)

1 tsp baking soda

2 Tbs hot water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine first 6 ingredients in a large bowl.

Melt honey and butter together in microwave; set aside.

Mix baking soda with hot water and add to butter mixture.

Pour butter mixture into dry ingredients and mix well (will be kind of dry and crumbly).

Place tablespoons of mixture into non-stick mini-muffin cups (no need to grease) and flatten mixture slightly.  Bake 10 min. or until golden.  Cool on wire racks.

Okay, and here’s the Amy-tweaks….I couldn’t find my mini-muffin pan (which I hate anyway, so no real loss there) so I decided to make “mookies”….what’s mookies, you ask?  Mookies are muffins that you make like cookies!  So I scooped up some dough, shaped it into a ball and flattened it slightly and put it on a large cookie sheet.  Worked GREAT and so much nicer than a mini-muffin pan (unless you’ve got mini elves who don’t mind cleaning all those mini holes!)  I also added a handful of mini-chocolate chips, to entice the children, but really they didn’t need them at all…these things are GOOD!!  Be careful you don’t eat to many at a time though, they are very filling!!

WIC Peanut Butter Cookies

Years ago (like BEFORE I had my oldest son) I was on WIC (Women Infants and Children) program for food.  I cannot say enough good things about the program in Alaska.  I still have some of the cookbooks they gave me (pamphlets really, but full of good info)  The following recipe comes from one of those cookbooks, called Legume Pages, put out by the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services.  My daughter made these the other night to take to youth group and they were a big hit (and she’s getting to be quite the little chef!)

 

WIC Peanut Butter Cookies

3 cups Kellogg’s Product 19 (we used cornflakes, it’s what we have)

2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup margarine (we used 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup canola oil)

1 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup (packed) brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla flavoring

 

Measure Product 19.  Crush to 1 1/2 cups.  Stir together crushed cereal, flour, soda, and salt.  Set aside.  Combine margarine, peanut butter, and sugars in a large mixing bowl.  Beat until light and fluffy.  Add eggs and vanilla.  Beat well.  Stir in dry ingredients until thoroughly combined.  Drop by level tablespoons full on to ungreased baking sheets.  Using back of fork, press dough flat in two directions to make a crisscross design.  Bake 10 minutes at 350 degrees.  Remove immediately from baking sheets.  Cool on wire racks.  Makes 6 dozen cookies, 2 1/2 inches in diameter.