wild rice butter bean soup

seriously so good.

Ingredients

• 1 can drained butter beans
• 1 can drained chickpeas
• about 1 cup sliced portabella mushrooms
• 1 head of kale chopped and rinsed
• 1 onion finely chopped
• 1/4 cup long grain wild rice
• 2 cups brown rice
• 6 vegetable bouillon cubes
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp celery salt
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp dried sage
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• a splash of olive oil (2 tbsp)

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Put all ingredients in a large soup pot with about 6 cups of water. let cook for 1 hour or until the rice is cooked, thinning accordingly to taste. enjoy!

for a non-vegetarian soup you can make meat balls with a package of ground chicken or turkey, 2 tbsp italian seasonings, half an onion chopped and 1 egg. mix the ingredients, form into small balls and drop into the soup when the rice is done cooking. the meat balls are done when they all float (about 5 minutes)

feather dumplings

this is my mom’s recipe and it has never let me down.

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 egg beaten
• 3 tbsp oil
• 2/3 cup milk or water

mix em up & drop by spoonfuls into liquid (usually a vat of creamy soup). cook covered for 18 minutes.

Phyllo Wrapped Chicken & Chickpea Delight

We are running really low on food here at the homestead, and with my complete unwillingness to dig my car out of it’s current snow tomb last nights dinner was basically me taking what little food we do have and running with whatever my little brain could think of. It was surprisingly delicious and I am sure I will be making it again soon :)

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

• 3 medium sized boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 can chickpeas drained
• a handful of spinach rinsed and stems removed
• 1 package phyllo dough
• 1 tomato
• 1 tsp mustard powder
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp garlic power or fresh (1/2 clove)
• 1/2 tsp celery salt
• 1 tbsp fresh chopped basil
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 tsp sesame oil
• spray cooking oil

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1. preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Lightly spray 2 glass baking dishes with oil (about 9″x12″)
3. cut chicken breasts in half width wise so that you have 2 thin breasts, set aside
4. put chickpeas on a plate and using a potato masher and fork break them up until they are mushy but still slightly chunky, put in medium mixing bowl. add all spices, olive oil, and sesame oil,  and stir, set aside.
5. slice tomato thinly however you prefer I made  sandwich style slices
6. When working with phyllo dough I always wet 2 paper towels, wring them out  and lay them flat BEFORE I open the package. I then keep the sheets I am not working with sandwiched between the paper towels so that they don’t become brittle.
7. take about 5 sheets of dough and lay it flat, spray the top with a light coat of oil. Place spinach leaves and tomato slices about 3-4 inches from one end, place a chicken breast half on top and then  spread  1/6th of the  chickpea mixture on the breast now fold the smaller flap on top of the filling and gently wrap the food being sure to spray the underside of the dough with oil in between flips, your goal is to coat the entire underside so that the dough will stick to itself properly and flake up nicely. when fully wrapped lay gently in the prepared baking dish, space the wraps about 1-2 inches apart.
8. repeat this for all of the chicken breasts bake for about 45 minutes, if the dough starts to look burned spray with a bit more oil. they should be a nice golden brown after 45 minutes not black! They are done when the chicken is no longer pink and the juices are running clear, I cut one in half after 35 minutes to check on it.
9. let sit for 5 minutes and enjoy!

I served these with avocado slices and it was the perfect accent. One of these was the perfect meal size all by itself.

Some filling suggestions if  you have a better stocked kitchen than I.

sliced black olives, delicious crispy bacon, artichoke hearts, sliced almonds, sun dried tomatoes, kale, swiss or Parmesan cheese.

( I know it’s a terrible photo, my bad!)

Biscotti!

I made these using this recipe.

I followed it exactly and it was a lot easier than I had thought it would be. plus quite tasty!

Almond and Basil Eggs

YUM! today I had a happy accident and I recommend that you give it a try.

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• a handful of almond slices (1/8 cup)
• 2-3 leaves basil chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• sun dried tomato & basil Hummus
• a rosemary wrap (or whatever type you love)

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1. crack eggs in lightly sprayed frying pan gently break the yolks
2. sprinkle on top almonds basil and salt and pepper
3. while that is cooking spread a thin coat of hummus on your wrap
4. when eggs are done cooking to your tastes place in wrap roll up and enjoy!

I really need to start taking pictures of my food, but I always wind up eating it all before I even think about it.

Banana nut bread with marzipan leaves

I used this recipe from handful of sand it’s pretty good, I added 1 tsp baking powder, and I changed the crumb coating mixture and made some fresh icing.  I should have baked it for an additional 20 minutes, it was still pretty gooey in the middle.

Crumb Coating

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

3 tbsp butter, melted

mix ingredients in a medium bowl until large clumps form, sprinkle over batter in bread pan before baking.

Icing

3/4 cup confectioners sugar

2 tbsp butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp milk

mix until well blended, keep refrigerated. put in a small ziploc bag and cut the tip off an end to make a decorating bag.

For the leaves I rolled out a tube of marzipan, and using a cookie cutter, cut out the leaves, drew some lines with a toothpick and painted them with red and yellow food coloring. I have terrible luck with marzipan, never once have a gotten it to harden, and I usually wind up with a sticky melting mess, but it was ok this time. The humidity did make me need to set the candies in front of an a/c for a while to dry them out a bit, I tried baking a few leaves for a few minutes and that was a melty disaster.

Ice Cream Cake

Ingredients-

One carton of your favorite ice cream (i used edy’s chocolate)

2/3 cup contrasting ice cream (for decorating top)

1 package cookies of your choice

1 bar of chocolate

Supplies-

cold pie plate

rolling pin

large ziploc bag

plastic spatula

butter knife

large bowl

melon baller

cheese grater

Directions-

let ice cream sit on counter or in fridge to soften. Take about 1/2 the package of cookies put them in a large ziploc bag and carefully smash them with a rolling pin. make sure you squeeze most of the air out of the bag before you seal it or it will open when you hit it. Spread a thin layer of cookies (about 1/4 inch) on the bottom of a cold pie plate. Take the softened ice cream and put it in a large bowl. Fold the ice cream over several times with a plastic spatula until it is an even consistency. Carefully “plop” base ball sized balls of the ice cream on top of the cookie crust. The ice cream was sticking to my spatula so using a knife I “cut” the ice cream free. You don’t want to spread the ice cream  with the spatula because that will lift up the cookies into the ice cream, so I also “cut” the ice cream to spread it. Smooth out the top as best as you can and let sit in the freezer for at least an hour to solidify. Once the ice cream has set you can decorate the top however you like, I used a melon baller to put little scoops of vanilla bean around the edge, placed cookie halfs around the outside and filled in the middle with the remaining crumbled cookies, then using a cheese grater I coated the top with shavings from my favorite chocolate bar.

**NOTE**If you are feeling especially lazy you could always use a pre-made pie crust!**

if you are having trouble grating your chocolate put it in the fridge or freezer until hard and try again.

Lint loaf

Hello friends! what an appealing name for a dish, right? This is an adult take on another dish that my mother used to make quite frequently for us (the kids). It’s basically a loaf made out of the stuffing that was left over from stuffed peppers. You can bake it in hollowed out veggies of almost any variety OR in either a cupcake pan ( I have a lovely silicone heart shaped pan that is my personal favorite) OR you can make it in a bundt pan or casserole dish.

Ingredients

• 2-3 cups uncooked brown or wild rice
• 1/2 lb any ground or chopped meat (ground turkey is my favorite but I will use what ever I have)
• One 16 oz package of rinsed baby spinach (or one thawed frozen block)
• 2 stalks celery, washed and chopped thin
• 1 small white onion diced
• 1 clove garlic chopped or pressed
• 1-2 eggs
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 tbsp Italian seasonings
• salt and pepper to taste

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1. Preheat oven to 350, or if stuffing peppers ready a pot large enough to tightly (but not too tightly) fit all of the peppers while allowing them to be covered with a lid.
2. Cook the rice according to package directions, for extra flavor you can add a few bouillon cubes but it is not necessary. If you are using wild rice in a one setting rice cooker let it run for 2 cycles.
3. pre-cook the onions, garlic and celery in a bit of water for about 15 minutes or until soft, add the spinach for another 3-4 minutes or until wilted.
4. Mix all of the ingredients in a large bowl.
5. Lightly coat the pans you are using in spray oil (not for peppers) and then fill with the mixture. Baking time will vary for each pan, cupcakes take about 20 minutes, bundt and casserole between 30-45 minutes. It is done when the meat you used looks cooked and the loaf holds together firmly.
6. For stuffed peppers-Remove the lids and seeds, wash thoroughly and fill with the lint loaf mixture. Place the filled peppers standing up in the pot with 1-2 inches of water. Bring water to a boil and let simmer covered on medium heat for about 30 minutes. Do not let them cook dry, check occasionally to make sure there is still water in the pot. I usually just cut one open after 30 minutes to see if they are cooked all the way through. For other stuffed vegetables I recommend that you bake them on a lightly greased baking sheet for 25-35 minutes.

Serve with a bit of tomato sauce and some parmasean cheese. I promise you will love it!

Coney Island Quail

Don’t let the name fool you this fast inexpensive and delicious recipe has absolutely nothing to do with either Coney Island or Quails, it is however a guaranteed crowd pleaser and absolutely delicious, although I must admit it is not especially healthy.

Ingredients

• about 4 cups of mashed potatoes
• mustard
• cheese
• a package of hotdogs

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1. Pre heat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Prepare about 4 cups of mashed potatoes, either fresh or instant. The simpler the better with this meal.
3. Slice the hot dogs down the middle so that they split apart easily but are still attached and place them opened & cut side up on a lightly greased baking pan.
4. If you like you can put mustard or cheese on the hot dogs and then spoon heaping mounds of mashed potatoes on top.
5. bake for 20-30 minutes, they are ready when the potatoes are just starting to brown.
6. Enjoy!

This recipe is perfect for an after school quick meal for kids! my mom used to make it for us and we always loved it. Don’t be afraid to mix and match your toppings, for example sour cream and chives or chili would be great!

Spinach bake

This delicious vegetarian dish can be served as a meal or a side dish (depending on how much you eat!). It is an AMAZING dish, seriously, it’s flaky, nutty, crunchy and gooey all in one!

I got the basic recipe from fat free vegan kitchen, and made a few delicious changes.

Ingredients

• 1 medium sized onion chopped
• 1 cup quartered artichoke hearts
• 24 oz baby spinach washed (2 packages)
• 1 clove garlic chopped or pressed
• 1 large ripe tomato sliced thin
• 1/4 cup chopped black olives (omit for yeast-free)
• 3/4 cup slivered almonds
• 1/2 cup black beans (drained or re-hydrated)
• salt to taste
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 dash celery salt
• cayenne to taste
• black pepper to taste
• olive oil spray
• 1 package egg roll wrappers
• If you’re not a vegetarian you can add 1/2 lb sausage or ground turkey and dashes of parmesan cheese. You probably want to omit the beans if you use meat.

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1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a deep skillet with a lid brown onions, garlic and the rest of the spices in a few tablespoons of water.  If you are adding meat you should cook it with the onion and spices.
3. Add the spinach and cover, if the spinach wont all fit in the pan put as much as you can in and cover for a minute or so until it cooks down. Then you should be able to add the rest. Don’t let the spinach cook dry, add a bit of water to the skillet if necessary. Cook until all of the spinach is wilted and soft. Remove from the heat. Stir in olives, beans, artichoke hearts, 1/2 of the almonds and if you are using it the cheese. Set the mixture aside.
4. Spray a 13″x9″ baking dish with the oil, make a full layer of egg roll wrappers on the bottom of the pan, spraying the top of each sheet lightly with the oil. You should make the bottom about 4-6 sheets deep. Cover the dough with 1/2 of the spinach mixture, spread out the tomato slices evenly and them cover with the other half of the mixture. Lay out the rest of the egg roll wrappers on top of the mixture, sprinkle the almond slivers in between the layers, saving some for the top. Spray the top of each sheet of dough as you go so as not to leave any un-oiled spots, try to make the top about 6 sheets thick. Cut the spinach bake before you put it in the oven to prevent the dough from breaking when it’s ready to serve.
5. Bake for 35 minutes or until the dough is nicely browned, enjoy!

It sounds like a complicated recipe but it really isn’t any more than 10 -15 minutes of prep.

**Note to self DO NOT ADD BROCCOLI RABE (it tastes horrible in this)**