Giveaway Winner

First of all I have to give a big “Thank You!” to Jen Boss for the Home Executive planner giveaway.  I’m on week three of using mine and I’m still just really loving it. 

And now what you’re waiting for – the giveaway winner is…

Carol!

(I’ve sent you an email Carol)

Thank you to all of you – I wish I could give each of you one!   Jen does sell these planners on her website (you pay through paypal) and she also has a list of stores that carry her planner as well.  If you didn’t get a chance to look through the Home Executive planner, go here and flip through. 

And now because I should have a little bit of something that is food related…

These are a recent favorite around my house – black bean burgers with tomato, salsa, guacamole and lettuce.  Now lest you start to think that I’ve been cooking, I have to admit that there is no recipe for these burgers.  Here’s the secret:





Yes, Costco to the rescue again.  Don’t be afraid of the “chipotle” on the label.  These are not spicy.  They do have great southwest flavor though.  Another great thing?  You keep this box in your freezer and throw these burgers on the grill right from the freezer.  No thawing necessary.  They cook up in 6-8 minutes or so.  Perfect for those hot Summer evenings!

Organizer Giveaway

Last week we were browsing through a bookstore and my husband spotted this:



He flipped through it and instantly knew I would be interested.  He handed it to me and literally within two page-turns I knew it was perfect for our family and I bought it immediately.

As most of you know, I have been keeping a weekly menu for years.  I also usually have in my kitchen somewhere a moleskine that I lovingly refer to as my “magic notebook.”  Inside that book goes all of my to-do lists, appointments, reminders and grocery list.   It worked for me, mostly.  I still found myself checking the calendar on my phone and using a separate note pad for my menus. 

When I first saw this Home Executive organizer I instantly loved that all of those separate things that I used daily were now in one place.  Let me show you.

First of all, I love the design, the colors and the protective plastic cover on the front and back. (see photo above)

Each month has a two page layout like this: 



It includes a recipe, a note section and holidays for that month.  Then if you flip the page, each week of that month has it’s own two-page layout:



The dates are listed on the left, and there are columns for a menu, grocery list and whatever else you can think of.  At first I thought I would use the three sections on the left page for “Mom” “Dad” and “kids.”  But after using the planner for just a day I decided to do “morning” “afternoon” and “evening.”  My to-do list I put on the right side, next to the grocery list.

This is what last week looked like (I blurred all names): 



I’m on week two of using the organizer and I’m still a huge fan.  HUGE.

Here are some other features of the organizer -

• There are pages to help you with your plans for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years
• The planner goes from August 2012 to Aug 2013 (with additional month calendars for Sept – Dec 2013
• There are five pages open for “notes” in the back
• Additional pages included in the back are “babysitter notes,” “emergency plan,” “important people and places,” a “year at a glance” page, a master list of all holidays, and a birthday list organized by month. 
• My kids’ favorite feature are the three pages of stickers at the back.  (They already added several stickers to the calendar.) 

This Home Executive planner was designed by Jen Boss of Picket Fence Publications.  You can see more of the planner here.  Would you like one of your own??  Jen has generously offered one of her Home Executive planners for me to give away to a lucky reader!  Thank you Jen! 

To enter the giveaway, click over to my other blog (LINK HERE) and  leave a comment on the giveaway post telling me what feature of the Home Executive planner you think you would like the most.  The giveaway is open until Monday, September 3rd at midnight (MST).  The winner will be randomly selected and announced on both blogs on Tuesday (Sept 4th).

** You don’t need to be a follower of my A Bright Corner blog to be eligible for the giveaway.  I just need all of the comments to be in one place so that selecting a random winner will be easier for me!**

Homemade Soft Pretzels

Have you ever tried making pretzels?  I always thought they were too much work and not worth the bother.  I couldn’t have been more wrong.  I tried making my first batch a few months ago and we loved them so much (and ate them so quickly) that I made a second batch that same week.

Think you’re not a fan of pretzels?  That’s what I thought too, but my only frame of reference were those pretzels you can find at any mall.  These are (like most things homemade) significantly better. 

I used this recipe from Alton Brown.  I recommend weighing the flour and not just scooping it out of the bin.  Also, when he says to divide the dough into 8 equal pieces I did 12. 

 Recipe found here

Orange Pound Cake

I have another cake recipe for you this week.  This is another Cooking Light recipe (from January 2012).  It is meant to be a Grapefruit Pound Cake but since I had a whole bowl of lovely oranges and absolutely no grapefruit, I decided to make this into an Orange Pound Cake.  Check out my adroitness.


I followed the recipe as written but swapping 2 T grated orange rind for the grapefruit rind and 1/2 cup fresh orange juice for the grapefruit juice.  The cake is lovely (can you spot the pretty little bits of orange peel?) and delicious.   This makes a delicious, summery dessert and would be terrific with a few fresh strawberry slices.

Recipe found here

Texas Sheet Cake

I’ve had my share of Texas Sheet Cakes.  There really are recipes everywhere for this sort of thing.  Most families have their favorite recipes.  I had one.  That recipe called for plenty of butter (both in the cake and in the frosting) and way too much sugar for anyone’s good.  A few months ago I found this recipe and tried it.  Really good.  Really.  Very.  Good.  Less sugar and less butter-great!.  The cake was still really sweet – almost too sweet.  I left out the nuts (kids don’t like ‘em) and we found that we didn’t use all of the frosting.  Instead we set the extra aside and used it as an ice cream topping.  Next time I’ll cut the sugar down and omit the cinnamon.

Recipe found here

Slow Cooker Lasagna

I cannot remember how I came across this recipe but it was one of our busy-day favorites during the winter months.  Really nothing beats homemade lasagna that someone has lovingly worked on for hours but let’s be honest – that’s way too much work for a weeknight meal that most of my family members are going to devour in less than 8 minutes.  This recipe (for me) is a nice balance.  Not a lot of prep work, but a decent tasting lasagna (maybe a bit messier though) that everyone in the family enjoys. 

Link to recipe HERE

The last few times I made this recipe I added a few tablespoons of basil pesto in with the ricotta/mozzarella mixture.  It’s fine without it, but if you have some on hand then add it in!

What’s For Dinner?

Tonight?  Fish Tacos!  My sister shared a sauce recipe that she loves on her fish tacos.  She found it here, but I make mine a little different.  Here’s what I do-

First of all this makes a bit more sauce than we need.  So I cut the mayo amount in half but use the same amount of plain yogurt.  We don’t ALL like spicy food, so I don’t use all of the jalapeno or cayenne pepper (start with a bit and add it as you taste.  Stop adding them when you like it!)  I do like a bit more cumin and oregano so I sprinkle a bit more on than the 1/2 tsp.  As you can tell, I don’t do exact measurements when I mix up this sauce. 

For the fish, we tried some leftover baked tilapia one week and it was just okay.  Then I found this at our local Costco.  Big hit.  Huge hit.  Baked AND crispy.  I make a batch for dinner, the adults eat them as tacos and the kids eat them like chicken nuggets.

Add a package of corn tortillas, shredded cabbage, some pico de gallo and a couple of limes and you have a quick weeknight dinner!

Link to Fish Taco Sauce recipe

 Hi Cathy!  Your hubby said you were wanting some new blog posts :)  

Oatmeal Peach Cobbler: rediscovery

I recently had a large box of peaches on my kitchen counter that needed to be eaten (they’re gone now…. and oh how I miss them.)  I flipped through some of my recipe notebooks and rediscovered this recipe for Oatmeal Peach Cobbler.  I had forgotten how much I loved it.  Especially when it is piping-hot from the oven. 

Now I have a large box of apples, and I’m wondering if an Oatmeal Apple Cobbler would be just as lovely.  hm…..

Pesto Panini

Come to find out that this bread makes a mean panini.  So. Very. Good.  Add a little pesto, some fresh mozzarella and a few slices of tomatoes from your garden and you have an easy dinner.


Another version we had was with pesto and some leftover grilled vegetables (zucchini, onions, red peppers.)  They were amazing. 





For the kids I use the same bread, spread it with a little (usually leftover) spaghetti sauce, add some fresh mozzarella and call them “pizza paninis.”  They love them.





P.S.  I love my panini press.  It is one of my most-used kitchen tools in the summer.

My Favorite New Treat (that won’t make me sick)

I don’t eat a lot of dairy.  I can’t eat it.  It makes me quite sick. 

Not many years ago I had no such problem, and enjoyed a daily (oh yeah) bowl of ice cream.  I miss my daily bowl of ice cream. 

Last week I was perusing my friend’s raw food blog and came across her recipe for a dessert chocolate shake.   I had all of the ingredients so I thought I’d try it out.  (Well, I didn’t have the raw cocoa powder so I subbed in the regular stuff.)  I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical so I only made a half-recipe at first.  It was delicious!  Amazingly creamy.  I’m a big fan now and since last week I’ve made four or five more.  It’s hard to share, but I do – and everyone else loves this shake too.

Angela recently gave a mini class about raw food.  Here’s a link to some notes from her presentation.  She also brought yummy samples for Raw Milk Chocolate Fudge and a creamy Apple Salad.  Really, really good.


Want to know more about eating raw? 
http://www.choosingraw.com/
http://www.rawmazing.com/
http://www.rawmelissa.com/
http://www.rawfoodnation.org/
http://www.goneraw.com/recipes

Cheesy Enchilada Stack

My local grocery store has started doing something which I think is akin to brilliance.  Each week they feature two recipes, and in a certain section of the store they have stacked everything you need to create the recipe – including a paper bag w/ handles to tote it all away in. 


Just today as I was bagging some onions, I saw two shoppers stop and grab that brown bag and a copy of the recipe.  Now, the recipes they feature are often not much my style, but I think the idea is a great one, and a much-needed one.  Even when I am on my A-game with meal planning  I still have days – maybe once each month - when I have to make a quick dash to the store to get something for dinner.  And of course there are always those that wander the aisles of the grocery store searching for some inspiration as to what to make for dinner all week. 






This recipe was one that was featured a couple of weeks ago.  When I saw it I thought my kids would like it, but that I probably wouldn’t.  Some dinners are like that you know.  Anyway…  I loved it.  Kids loved it.  Grandparents loved it.  I made it once more the next week, tweaking a few things and we liked it even more. 

What I loved:  It’s a quick meal using things I usually have around the house.  It’s a great substitute for taco-night (which my toddler is NOT a fan of.)  The leftovers are great the next day for lunch.  It’s flexible ( try subbing in red enchilada sauce, use ground turkey or shredded chicken, add in some diced green peppers & tomatoes, swap the refried beans for some mashed up black beans….) 

There’s a version here and here

Here’s the original recipe that I used

This is MY favorite version:

Cheesy Enchilada Stack

1 lb lean ground beef (as lean as I can find)
1 (10 oz) can green enchilada sauce
6 (10-inch) flour tortillas
8 oz shredded Monterrey Jack cheese (cheddar is fine if that’s what you have)
1 (16 oz) can refried beans
1 (4 oz) can chopped green chiles (mild)

preheat oven to 400 degrees

Brown ground beef in a skillet.  Remove from heat and drain off any fat.  Add 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce to the ground beef and stir.  Set aside. 

Layer 1:  Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.  Place one tortilla on baking sheet.  Top with 1/3 of the beef mixture and 1/4 cup of the cheese. 

Layer 2:  add a tortilla to the stack and spread with half of the refried beans, half of the diced green chiles, 1/4 cup of cheese about 3 Tablespoons of enchilada sauce.  Spread evenly.

Layer 3:  add a tortilla, 1/3 of the beef mixture and 1/4 cup of cheese.

Layer 4:  add a tortilla and spread with remaining refried beans, remaining green chiles, 1/4 cup cheese and 3 –4  Tablespoons enchilada sauce.  Spread evenly.

Layer 5:  add a tortilla, remaining beef mixture and 1/4 cup cheese. 

Top with last tortilla.

Cover entire stack with foil.  Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until filling is hot.  Remove foil.  Top with 3-4 Tablespoons enchilada sauce and remaining cheese.  Bake for another 5 minutes until cheese is melted.

To serve, cut the stack into wedges.

Baked Lemon Chicken with New Potatoes and Vegetables

This recipe is one of our family’s newest Sunday favorites:  Baked Lemon Chicken with New Potatoes and Vegetables.  For me, it is a perfect Sunday dinner.  It’s easy, it is flexible AND it’s delicious (the kids love it!)  Good combo. 


Even if you’re not a big fan of lemon, there’s a good chance you’ll like this one.  It’s not overly-lemony.  In fact, you are in control of just how lemony this meal will be.  I prefer to include every.  last.  bit.  of the lemon/olive oil mixture  - once everything is in the pan I pour the remaining sauce over the top.  This last time I also added some fresh thyme right as it came out of the oven.  Delightful!





The recipe calls for new potatoes, carrots and green beans.  Don’t have new potatoes?  You can substitute whatever you have.  The red skins on the new potatoes are lovely in the finished dish, but don’t make a special trip to the grocery store just for cute little red-skinned potatoes.  I also don’t usually have baby carrots on hand.  No biggie – cut up regular carrots.  This last week I also didn’t have green beans, so instead we opted for a spinach salad and roasted asparagus on the side. 









The asparagus was a quick add-on….  rinse and trim the asparagus.  put a square of foil on a baking sheet.  Add asparagus, add 2 tsp or so of olive oil, a pinch of kosher salt and pepper and toss to coat.  Put the asparagus in the oven right along with the Lemon Chicken – just for the last 8-10 minutes or so.  Set the table, make the spinach salad, pull everything from the oven and voila!  Dinner is served.

Rustic Pan Bread (part 2)

My current favorite:  Rustic Pan Bread.  The recipe can be found here, although there are no “after” pics on that post.  I love, love love this bread.  So fast.  So easy.  No kneading. 




In these photos I topped the bread with some melted butter, rosemary, garlic powder and a pinch of kosher salt.  Next time I’m trying some thinly sliced tomatoes before baking, and a sprinkle of fresh basil when it comes out of the oven.

Heavenly Chocolate Mousse

This stuff is amazing.  Rich.  Very rich.  But oh so good.  It doesn’t make a lot, so if you’re needing to serve more than 5 or 6 people then make a double batch.  I made the recipe as-is, and I would recommend reading some of the reviews – there’s a lot of great tips in there (for instance, how to properly whip cream without over-beating.) 


link to recipe for Heavenly Chocolate Mousse

Have You Tried Barley?

As I mentioned a few days ago, I love barley.  Love.  I thought you might like to know more about this under utilized grain.

• Barley is the fourth largest grain crop after wheat, rice and corn. It is grown all over the world
• Barley is a great source of dietary fiber and contains both soluble and insoluble fiber.
• Barley is naturally cholesterol-free and low in fat.  A 1/2-cup serving of cooked pearl barley, a typical grain serving, contains less than 1/2 gram of fat and only 100 calories
• Barley is generally available in its pearled, hulled and flaked form (pearled barley is probably the easiest to find – any grocery store should carry it)
• Store barley in a tightly covered container in a cool, dry place

I read somewhere that you can grind the barley to make barley flour.  It has a weaker gluten than wheat flour, so you can only use barley flour to replace one quarter (or less) of the regular flour in yeast bread recipes.  In other recipes (like pancakes, muffins or banana bread) it can replace up to half of the regular flour.  One of the things I love the most about barley is the wonderfully, nutty flavor so I can imagine that I would love it in some banana muffins or some Sunday afternoon waffles.   


Want to try barley?  These soups are on my “recipe testing” list:

Chicken and Barley Stew

White Bean ‘n’ Barley Soup

Tomato Barley Soup

Want to read more?

Why Barley Makes the Best Breakfast

The World’s Healthiest Foods: Barley

Barley Foods: Heath and Nutrition

I Spy…

[photo from Pleasant Home]

Jodi over at Pleasant Home has some great Valentine’s Day treat ideas.  I just love these candy cane lollipops!

[photo from Pleasant Home]

On a side note:  sometimes I think it’s unfortunate that our kids can’t take homemade treats to school anymore.  I really do understand the reason for the policy, but when Valentine’s Day rolls around it seems quite lamentable.

Vegetable Beef Soup with Barley

When I think about all of the Sunday afternoons of my childhood, what comes to mind is our lunches:  soup and sandwiches.  I’m not sure just how often we actually ate it, but from where I stand now it seems like it was pretty much every week.  It was always the perfect just-home-from-church meal.  Having soup and sandwiches for lunch meant a can or two of some variety of Campbell’s soup and grilled cheese sandwiches slathered with honey.  Yes, I said honey.  Not just any honey.  Raw honey from Wyoming.  Amazing.  Ah but I digress.  This post is about soup.

As a kid, there were only one or two soups that I cared for.  I was never a big fan of chicken noodle, unless it was mom’s homemade soup with dad’s noodles from scratch.  Over the years my tastes would change, but for most of that time my favorite soup was Campbell’s Vegetable Beef.  I loved the soft chunks of carrots and bits of potato, but mostly I loved, loved, loved the barley.  I would try to scoop out as much barley as I could without being obvious about it.

Over the past few years I’ve made my own version of Vegetable Beef soup, changing the ingredients depending on what was in the pantry.  The only “recipe” that I had was a scribbling of what herbs to add and what the barley-to-broth ratio should be.  When I got a few requests for the recipe I decided to write it down and make it official.

One of the things I do love about this soup is how flexible it is.  I’ve tried different combinations of vegetables (see the notes section at the end of the recipe) and it’s always great.  If I’m wanting more of a stew I’ll only add in two cans of beef broth (plus the one cup of water.)  The barley soaks up the liquids and makes a lovely thick and hearty soup.  To stretch the soup (or if I’m serving a crusty loaf of bread along side) I’ll add in the third or even a fourth can of beef broth – perfect for sopping up with the bread!

Vegetable Beef Soup with Barley

1 lb stew meat **
2-3 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp vegetable or canola oil
2 or 3 (14.5 oz) cans beef broth (total about 5 to 6 cups)
1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes
4 carrots, sliced
1 small onion, large dice/small chop
1-2 stalks of celery, large dice/small chop
1/4 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup pearl barley (use 3/4 cup if you LOVE barley)
1 small zuchinni, large dice/small chop
1/4 tsp dried thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste

Cut meat into 2-inch chunks.  Place flour in a large ziplock bag.  Add in beef chunks and shake to coat with flour.  Heat oil in large dutch oven or soup pot, over medium high heat.  Remove beef chunks from ziplock (shaking gently to remove excess flour) and place in hot pot.  Brown beef on one or two sides.  (What you’re doing here is developing flavors, NOT cooking the beef.)  Add 1 cup of beef broth to the pot, and use a spoon to scrape up bits on bottom of pan (that’s called fond and it adds wonderful depth of flavor to your soup.)  Add the canned tomatoes and the rest of the beef broth.  Cover and simmer (not boil!) on medium-low for 1 hour. 
Add onion, carrots, celery, barley, zucchini, thyme, and bay leaf (all remaining ingredients except peas) and 1 cup of water.  Simmer on medium-low for 1 hour or until beef and barley are tender.  Taste soup and add salt and pepper to your liking.  Add peas and simmer for 5 additional minutes to heat through.

notes:

I rarely buy meat that is cut and marked as “stew meat.”  It is usually more expensive because you are paying for the butcher to cut it up for you into nice little pieces.  I watch for large roasts to go on sale and then I buy several.  I cut them up myself and then freeze them into 1 lb packages – perfect for soups and stews!

For the vegetables in this soup you can really use anything.  Try adding small potato chunks, frozen/canned corn, frozen/canned green beans and even mushrooms.  My favorite though is the combination I used in the recipe above.

Orange / Lemon Brownies

I tried this recipe for Orange Brownies a couple of weeks ago.  Of course I can’t leave a recipe alone, so I tried them with lemon instead of orange.  The lemon version was just okay – I found myself wishing they were just regular (and delicious) lemon bars.  Next time I’m sticking with the original orange version. 

Here is a link to a gluten free version of orange brownies.  I haven’t tried it yet, so I can’t comment on this recipe.

By the way, I saw them first here.  Thanks Jodi!

Menu No. 115

Monday – Robyn’s Roast, brown rice
Tuesday -  Sloppy Joe Sliders, fruit salad, oven fries
Wednesday – Taco Bar! (Chicken or beef tacos with all of the topping options)
Thursday – Fajita Chicken Quesadillas
Friday – eat out
Saturday – let’s be honest.  We’ll probably eat out. 
Sunday – Chicken Piccata (I’ll make this version, although there’s a alternative version here.)

[Linking to Menu Plan Monday] 

Speaking of Spices...

There's an interesting article over on the Jacob's Cove blog.  Even though it mentions specific stores here in our local area, I'm sure with a little bit of investigation you could find bulk spices where you live as well.  Some friends of mine have also gone in together to purchase bulk spices and herbs from the San Fransisco Herb Co.

Have a great weekend everyone!

--andy