Chocolate Zucchini Cake

Reposting in honor of my beloved Zucchini ( and the fact I made some more healthy suggestions)

 

This is without a doubt one of my most favorite things to eat in the entire world. I just love this stuff. I have to be sure to have lots of people to share it with or I will eat it all myself. It is really a sad state of affairs to admit such a lack of self- control but it is what it is. This cake is just so moist and yummy. And yes, I use wheat flour! The fact that it has something green in it helps justify in my mind the enormous portions I consume.

A warning: If you have picky eaters like I do, do not, I repeat, DO NOT let them see you put the zucchini in! Last summer my pickies devoured this stuff. This summer I made the mistake of telling them about the zucchini. Two kids would not even try it! Of course that meant there was more for me. But as you now know, that is not a good thing.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup oil (I prefer coconut oil)

1 3/4 cup sugar ( I prefer Coconut sugar)

2 eggs

1/2 cup sour milk (if you don't know your cow personally, mix 1/2 cup Almond milk with 2 teaspoons lemon juice and let stand for 10 minutes- it works)

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups sifted flour (I really do use all white winter wheat but you can substitute with part white flour if you scared--but you shouldn't be)

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1/2 tsp salt

4 Tbl unsweetened cocoa powder

2 1/2 cup grated zucchini

1/4 cup ground walnuts or pecans

1/4-1/2 cup chocolate chips ( I prefer dark)


What you do:

1. cream butter, oil, and sugar

2. add eggs, milk, and vanilla

3. In a separate bowl-sift together dry ingredients

4. blend dry ingredients into butter mix

5. add zucchini and mix well

6. spread in a 9 x 13 pan (greased and floured) sprinkle with walnuts and chocolate chips

7. Cook in a preheated 325 oven for 45 minutes-55minutes until toothpick comes out clean

The trick to this cake requires some degree of self-control. You have to wait to eat it until the next day (or at least a few hours). For this exercise in delayed gratification you will be rewarded. The cake will taste twice as good- I promise.

 Enjoy the harvests of summer.

Eat Cake

You can skip the ice cream and forget about frosting. This cake stands on its own and needs no assistance from anything!

My son Boo is trying to kill me. Okay, well maybe it would be more accurate to say he is trying to kill my diet. 

I was determined to not eat any sugary concoctions for a couple more weeks but I caved!

And it is all Boo's fault. If he wasn't such a master baker I might have been able to stick with my goal.

But the combination of homemade chocolate cake and my son's flashing dimples and his query, "You are going to try some of my cake, aren't you mom?"-well, it was all a little too much for me.

More like, a lot too much for me.

In honor of Valentine's Day, I am sharing the love.

Yum. It is so good!

Dark Chocolate Cake

2 cups boiling water

1 cup dark chocolate cocoa powder ( or just use regular cocoa)

2 3/4 cup flour ( we really do use 1/2 white wheat and 1/2 white flour)

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup butter (softened)

2 1/4 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour a 9 x 13 pan. In a medium bowl, pour boiling water over cocoa and whisk until smooth. Let cool. Sift together flour, soda, powder, and salt and set aside. In another bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in one egg at a time, then stir in vanilla. Add cocoa mixture alternately with flour mixture. Spread in pan. Bake for 30- 45 minutes checking with a toothpick in the center for doneness. You do not want the toothpick to be a gooey mess but you also do not want it to come out totally clean because the cake will be dry. When masterfully done, this cake is a little dense but moist and melts in your mouth.

Now back to my regularly scheduled abstinence from sugar.

Frozen Yogurt Pie ( and a crust recipe too)

This time I was lazy and used a pre-made graham cracker crust I had hiding in the pantry. But the pie itself is so good we weren't swayed from partaking.

So this is what we ate while watching The Biggest Loser last week. Ironic, I know. Somehow we always find ourselves eating during our once a week pilgrimage to the tube. Luckily, we have a big family so this delicious concoction was gone in about 10.5 seconds and everyone only got one piece.

My sister in law calls this pie "High Octane". It is pretty rich but a frequent request by immediate and extended family alike. It takes about two minutes to put together -no joke. Just be patient while it freezes for a few hours.



Frozen Yogurt Pie

1 package cream cheese, softened
1 cup of plain yogurt (we love Mountain High, Cascade Fresh, and Stoneyfield Farms))
1/4 -1/2 cup honey, depending on your own taste buds
1/4 cup of dry milk powder*


Beat the cream cheese and yogurt together until well blended. Beat in honey and milk. Pour into a graham cracker crust, cover, and freeze for at least 4 hours. Serve after thawing for just a few minutes. Top it with some yummy frozen fruit right out of the bag. We prefer blueberries.

If you do not want to use those yucky pre-made crusts you can try the recipe below. I have made this before and it is really down home and yummy. It is way easier to just go to the health food store and get yourself some all natural graham crackers. But if you are super motivated you can actually make your own graham crackers. It is not too hard and my kids all like them. Unfortunately the crackers are gone in about 2 seconds because I have so many kids. So in an effort to not spend ALL my time in the kitchen, graham crackers are something I buy on occasion at the health food store unless I really need some and don't feel like driving two hours to pick some up.


Graham Cracker Crust

2/3 cup graham cracker crumbs (all -natural or homemade)
1/4 cup wheat germ
1/4 c dry milk powder*
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup melted butter
1 T molasses or honey

Mix together first 4 ingredients. Stir in melted butter. Then add molasses and mix well. Press firmly over bottom of greased pie plate. Bake at 300 for 10 minutes. Cool before filling.

Now you are wondering how I make graham crackers, right? Well, I will be posting that recipe some time next week so stay tuned.


*There is evidence that milk powder has stuff in it that is not too good for you. In recipes where you are reconstituting the milk, just use regular milk or a milk substitute (like almond or coconut milk) to substitute. In the case of the above recipes the milk is not being reconstituted so you need to use some other powder to substitute (such as coconut powder) or you can take a chance and just omit it altogether.

Not Really Fudge

My sister Heather gave me this recipe. In my no sugar state I really appreciated it! But even my kids and husband who still consume sugary sweets on a somewhat regular basis, love these. Don't be expecting fudge because it isn't. It is gooey goodness with lots of wholesome flavor. Your first taste will be surprising. Then you will be intrigued. The next thing you know, you will not be able to go into the kitchen without digging these out of the freezer. And before you know it, they will be all gone!


Not Really Fudge

1 banana
1/2 cups soaked and pitted dates (soak at least 15 minutes)
1 heaping Tbl of coconut oil
1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds (I like to soak mine for a few hours but it is not necessary)
1/4 cup cocoa
natural peanut butter (optional)

process all ingredients in a food processor except peanut butter
smooth out onto wax or parchment paper on a small cookie sheet
swirl peanut butter through fudge with a knife (or spread on top once fudge starts to freeze)
freeze

serve frozen in bite size pieces *

*This fudge thaws really quickly. It cuts easily frozen and by the time you get it on your plate or pop it in your mouth it is perfect.

Josh's Famous Guacamole

Again, a post and recipe from my awesome sister Jessica. Josh is her husband and he is awesome too. Not only is he a talented artist and an incredible Dad, he is a master in the kitchen.

Josh’s Famous Guacamole

Josh has experimented with his guacamole quite a bit and has finally developed a recipe he loves. And I love it. And so does everyone who’s ever tasted it. Many people agree that it is one of the best guacamoles they’ve ever tasted. It has definitely ruined some other guacamoles for me. Josh’s Famous Guacamole is most often eaten at our house with Heather’s fajitas, but was a great accompaniment to the Bacon and Black Bean Quesadillas.

3-5 Avocados

3-4 Roma Tomatoes, diced

½ Large Red Onion, diced

½ bunch Cilantro

2-3 Tbsp. Lemon Juice

Garlic Salt, to taste

Chipotle Powder, to taste (Josh prefers chipotle powder, but you can also use 2-4 Serrano Chilies. Make sure to remove the seeds and wear gloves!)

Black Pepper, to taste

Cut the avocados in quarters. Throw out the pit and peel the skin. Combine the avocados, diced tomatoes, red onion, and cilantro. Mix. (Josh’s mixes it by hand so he can squish the avocados. We like chunky guacamole.) Add the lemon juice. Mix again. Mix in garlic salt, black pepper and chipotle powder one at a time. In between adding each seasoning, do a little taste check to make sure the flavor is where you like it. Go easy on the chipotle powder because it packs a powerful punch.

Use with: fajitas, burritos, tacos, quesadillas, taquitos, chips, 7-layer dip, turkey sandwiches, chicken sandwiches, burgers . . . you get the idea!

Black Bean and Bacon Quesadillas

This is a guest post/recipe from my sister Jessica, who is awesome.

Black Bean and Bacon Quesadillas

I love recipes, which is odd because I hardly ever cook. But I am constantly on the lookout for new recipes. In my perusing the other day, I found a recipe for a bacon quesadilla and one for a black bean quesadilla and I thought, why not combine the two? So I took a little of this and a little of that from each recipe and added something of my own and VOILA! Bacon and Black Bean Quesadillas. These were seriously delicious. Alek, Josh and I all devoured them. They’re especially tasty with Josh’s Famous Guacamole, the recipe of which Jen will post later. The other thing is – they’re super easy, which I am a big fan of. I love, love, love Mexican food and could eat these every night.

Bacon and Black Bean Quesadillas

4 strips of cooked bacon (we used maple-flavored, which was awesome; also, when I say 4 strips, I guess that’s not right. I used two long strips, which I cut in half and then cooked.)

1 can of black beans, drained

1 can of corn, drained

1 small can of diced green chilies, drained (or dice your own green chilies – make sure you take out the seeds!)

1 green bell pepper

4-cheese Mexican cheese blend, grated (or any kind of cheese you like)

4 large flour tortillas

Open your cans of ingredients and drain them all in a strainer to get as much moisture out as you can. Dice the green bell pepper and add it to the strainer. Once drained, transfer the ingredients to a mixing bowl. Crumble the strips of bacon and add to the other ingredients. Mix well.

Warm a pan to medium heat and spray a generous coat of cooking spray on it (or spritz olive oil, if you have one of those cool spritzer things – you know what I mean).

Lay a tortilla flat in the pan.

Sprinkle a light layer of cheese on the tortilla – just enough to help everything stick together.

Spoon in about a fourth of the mixture onto one half of the tortilla. Sprinkle a little more cheese on the top and, using tongs fold the other side of the tortilla on top of the side with the filling. Cook on one side until the tortilla is browned (a few minutes) then flip over (carefully, the filling will want to escape) and brown on the other side. Once browned on both sides, the filling should be plenty warm.

Serve with your favorite salsa, sour cream and/or guacamole.

Makes 4 quesadillas.

Notes:

• I didn’t use a lot of cheese in these quesadillas (so perhaps I need to rename them!) and they were still awesomely delicious. If you finely grate your cheese (or purchase finely grated cheese), a little can go a long way. Of course, you can use as much cheese as you want, but just know that it’s not necessary to use a lot.

• I have recently begun cooking my bacon in the oven, which is so much better than cooking bacon on the stovetop. You can cook a lot more bacon at one time and you don’t have to stand over the stove and have hot grease fly up and hit you in the face. I cook my bacon at 350 for about 20-25 minutes and it gets pretty crispy, which is how I like it.

• I didn’t use any seasonings or spices when I cooked these, but would recommend one or both of the following:

  • Garlic salt (go easy on this, though, because the bacon is already salty) or garlic powder

  • Chipotle powder (But not if you eat the quesadilla with Josh’s Famous Guacamole, because that already has chipotle powder in it and a little of that can go a long way)

• You could also add some sautéed red onion to the filling, but we didn’t because Josh’s Famous Guacamole has red onion in it.

-Jessica

Retro Peanut Butter

No, this isn't the recipe for the pie.

I think you can do a Google search though.

I am talking retro as in Latin for "backward"

Lets' go back a little to a couple of former recipes posted on Food Ophelia just a few short months ago.

These are two of my all time favorite dessert recipes, I kid you not. And I am worried you missed them.

My number one favorite thing about both of these recipes is that I can eat these desserts without feeling like I am doing some sort of irreversible damage to my body.

In fact, I would say that these actually do a body good.

Although I have no scientific proof to back this up.

This is not that kind of a blog.

That is just my opinion based on the little knowledge that I have that whole grains, fruit etc are good for you.

Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Shakes (click on the link) from my sister Heather

You know what the sweetener is in these glorious shakes? Bananas and dates. That is it.

In my no sugar state of being I am loving these peanut butter shakes more than ever. These are heaven and I dare say I would choose to drink one of these babies over some sugarfied concoction any ol' day of the week-even if sugar was an option for me right now.


I just love you so much I had to get these back on your radar. Do yourself a favor and make some shakes tonight. Try to share with your family because that is the right thing to do.




Second-oh these peanut butter cookies ( that was a link too).These definitely have more of a sugar factor but they are so delicious. Make sure you have lots of people to share them with or you could be in trouble.

I love these cookies better than any other peanut butter cookie recipe ever. That is saying a lot because I love all peanut butter cookies.

Try making these with agave* which is a low glycemic food. I did and they turned out just as delicious as the honey version.

I hope you have enjoyed George Washington Carver week* on Food Ophelia for that is what I dubbed this tribute in my mind. Now I am letting you in on it.

George Washington Carver did much to popularize peanut production in this country and for that, I am truly grateful.


* George Washington Carver Appreciation Day is actually January 5th. So I am a little late. But my motto in life is "Better Late than Never" -as everyone who knows me can attest. So, because I have loved Mr. Carver since childhood I hope to make up for the fact that I missed his big day, by dedicating this whole week to him.

** When using agave nectar, use 3/4 cup for every 1 cup of sweetener you are replacing. Reduce any other liquids by 1/3.

Peanut Butter Bars

These bars are one of my favorite "on the healthier side" desserts. They are moist and a little messy and melt in your mouth.

I can think of two reasons you would not like these:

1-because you do not like peanut butter in which case, I am sad for you

2-If you like peanut butter and do not like this recipe it is probably going to be because you are used to sugar laden desserts. Wean yourself off of that bad magic food and taste and love real food. That is all.


Peanut Butter Bars

1 C. rolled oats
1 C. very hot water
1/2 C. butter, softened
1/2 C honey or agave
1 egg
1 C. whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/3 C natural peanut butter
1 tsp. vanilla

Optional: I like to melt dark chocolate chips and spread on top. My kids like it when I actually add chocolate chips into the mix itself before baking. It really is yummy of course, because chocolate is just like that.

Soak oats in hot water in a bowl for a few minutes. Meanwhile cream butter, honey, and egg in another bowl. Add the oats, soda, peanut butter, and vanilla and stir until well combined. Spread in a 9 x 13 pan*. Bake at 350 for at least 15 minutes until done. Cool and cut into bars.

* I actually usually double this recipe and still put it in the one pan. This makes for thicker bars and you will need to cook them longer of course.

Mmmm....this will be one of the wholesome home made desserts I will turn to once I start eating sweets again.

Peanut Butter Balls

While we are on the subject of peanut butter, I thought I would post one of my all time favorite no sugar recipes.

I could eat these all day-and actually I have. I keep them in an airtight container in my fridge and whenever I get a hankering for some peanut butter goodness, I go and (try to) eat (just) one.


Peanut Butter (Power)Balls

3/4 cup natural peanut butter
2 T frozen 100%orange juice concentrate, thawed
6 T frozen 100% apple juice concentrate, thawed
1 Tsp vanilla
1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut OR nonfat dry milk
1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup ground flax seed OR sesame seeds
1/3-2/3 cup chopped nuts of your choosing

Blend the peanut butter, juices, and vanilla in a bowl. Add coconut (or dry milk), oats, and flax seed (or sesame seeds) and mix until thoroughly blended.

Roll into balls 1 Tablespoon at a time. Then roll into the chopped nuts. Place the balls on wax paper to dry. Store in the fridge in an airtight container.

This is not a low fat food in case you couldn't figure that out on your own. But it is very nutritious and delicious and high in protein. Enjoy in moderation-if you can!

Cauliflower and/or Broccoli Soup

My sister Heather shared this yummy recipe with me and it has quickly become my favorite!

It is so good and so good for you. This tastes like a creamy soup but there are no dairy products in it! Therefore, less calories which is important if you are on your New Year's Diet like me!



Not Cream of Cauliflower and Broccoli Soup

1 onion-chopped

2 cloves garlic-minced

3 cups stock (veggie or chicken)

1 small head cauliflower or broccoli or a combination of the two (my personal favorite)- chopped

salt and pepper to taste

simmer all ingredients in a saucepan for 25 minutes

blend well in a blender. Return to saucepan to heat again if necessary. Top with cheese if you really want some dairy! I do!

Just an Idea

I always buy what I consider to be "good" flavored yoghurt for my kids to eat. I buy "all natural" and/or organic brands like Mountain High, Stoneyfield Farms, Cascade Fresh, Brown Cow, or Nancy's.

But lately I have been wondering about just feeding them good old plain yoghurt and adding my own flavors. I am thinking this could be more healthy and when I get around to actually making yoghurt in my yogurt maker, cheaper.

I always have plain yoghurt in the fridge because my husband likes to eat it in place of mayonnaise. I hate mayo so I use plain yoghurt in any recipe that calls for it or sour cream and I have even used it in place of buttermilk and cream cheese. Yoghurt is awesome!

So anyway, I did an experiment with my 4 year old. I gave her a cup of plain yoghurt and then mixed in about 1 Tablespoon of pure maple syrup-you know the kind that comes out of a tree?

She loved it. She loved it so much she ate 3 bowls in one sitting. Then her siblings joined in.

Maple syrup is expensive so I may have to use something else if I am going to save money on the deal because most of my kids went crazy over this.

You could use honey or agave to sweeten the yoghurt and of course, fruit.

Try it. You may like it.

*Apparently yoghurt made from whole milk is best for you. So if you want to be healthier than me do not buy "Low Fat" as pictured above. Also, look for brands that say they pasture feed their cows. That way you are getting a product from healthy animals who are eating the way they were created to eat and high in Omega-3's!

Chicken Apple Pecan Salad

After watching Food, Inc. I may never eat chicken again-well at least until we start butchering our own. But you might like this recipe...

Seriously, it is yummy. Ellie made this up and called to tell me all about it. Lee and I ate this twice last week. Simple dishes like this are my favorite kinds of food to eat. The apples are the key ingredient in this dish.


Chicken Apple Pecan Salad

*Chicken breasts seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic, & lemon juice, (and a dash of Kirkland's Signature No-Salt Seasoning if you have it-but it is good without it too.)

*Apple (we used Gala-the preferred apple at our house)

*Pecans

*Romaine Lettuce

* Parmesan Cheese

Combine all the ingredients and top with your choice of salad dressing. I personally do not like salad dressing and love this salad as is. My husband used Balsamic Vinegar dressing. Raspberry Vinigarette would also be a good choice.

Peanut Butter Cookies

This is one of my favorite cookie recipes. It is made with honey, natural peanut butter, and whole wheat flour and is therefore a little bit more nutritious than the typical cookie.

Have I told you that I love peanut butter? Because I do. I really, really do.

The natural variety of course.

I am not talking about the pornographic kind. (To my sisters: No, I am never going to let that one die. But even though you make fun of me behind my back, I still love you!)

I am talking about peanuts, ground up into peanut butter.

Hmmmm....

I love this cookie recipe. It is one of my favorites and I can usually eat them with little guilt involved as long as I have plenty of people to share them with lest I eat all of them myself! They are so moist- they melt in your mouth. They are addictive.

You have been warned.

Peanut Butter Cookies

3/4 cups softened butter

1 1/3 cups honey

2 eggs

1 1/2 cup Natural Peanut Butter (that means no added sugar etc, kids!)

3 cups whole wheat flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Beat the butter, honey, eggs, and peanut butter together. Combine flour, soda, and salt. Mix into the cream mixture. Scoop tablespoon size balls onto cookie sheets and press lightly with a fork using a criss cross pattern. Bake at 350 for about 8 minutes. Cool and eat and be happy!

Dutch Oven Artisan Bread

Variations of this recipe have appeared all over the internet in recent years. I personally love Artisan bread. It is my favorite, but buying it is expensive and possibly not as healthy. I never imagined I could make my own and that it would taste so good! Cooking it in a dutch oven imitates using a steam oven which I am assuming you do not have unless you are the owner of a bakery.

My husband would prefer if I made a fresh batch of this bread every day. Unfortunately, I do not have my act together enough to make it every single day! But I have made it often

You need to plan ahead when you are going to make this because of the raising time. It needs to raise at least 12 hours, preferably about 18 hours! So you might have to do some calculating in order to ensure you are going to be actually baking it when it is most convenient for you.

This makes a delicious, simple, rustic bread. The crust is hard while inside it is airy and soft. It is beautiful and so incredibly yummy.

You can use just white flour but why when wheat is so much better for you and so much more flavorful? I started out by using two cups white to 1 cup wheat, then kept increasing the amount of wheat with every batch. The best results seem to be either half and half or 1 cup white and 2 cups wheat.

I will walk you through what you do, complete with pictures!

There are 4 ingredients. That's it!

Dutch Oven Artisan Bread

3 c flour

1 5/8 c water (room temperature)

1/4 tsp yeast

1 tsp salt

Combine the dry ingredients in a large glass or metal bowl, then pour in the water and mix together well with your hand. Seriously. This shouldn't take more than about 30 seconds. This is a no knead bread and the dough will be quite sticky.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in your pantry. Somewhere away from light is better than just on the counter. Let it sit undisturbed for 12- 18 hours.

You will know your bread is done raising when it has raised significantly. It will look wet and very bubbly.

Remove the dough from the bowl and work in a small amount of flour-just enough to work with- the dough will still be pretty sticky. Shape into a round loaf-it doesn't have to be pretty. The less you handle the dough, the better. Place on a floured surface, then toss some flour on top of the dough and cover with plastic. Let it rest for about 20-30 minutes.

The dough will have expanded. Fold dough into the center from the top, bottom, and sides. Place it on a smooth cloth (like a cloth napkin, not terry cloth or something that the dough will catch on) with corn meal or bran. Shake a small amount on top too and cover with a second smooth cloth.

After it raises for about 90 minutes, preheat your oven with the dutch oven inside to 450. After 30 minutes, carefully and quickly throw the dough into the hot pan. Place the heated dutch oven lid on top. Cook for about 45 minutes, then remove lid and cook for 30 more minutes.

Try to refrain from cutting into the bread immediately. Rather give it a few minutes to cool.

This may seem like a lot of work but it really isn't. Truly. The times on all of this are flexible. I have had to rush it or leave things longer due to the craziness of my life and it still turns out great!

This is delicious with just butter or you can use it for sandwiches or bruschetta-whatever! One of my favorite ways to eat it is to dip it into olive oil with some salt, pepper, garlic, and basil. Yum!

Bruschetta

There are many bruschetta recipes in this world. This is a simple one I made up last week.

Have you never tried bruschetta? You should. It is very yummy.

I love you, Italy!

Bruschetta

4-5 roma tomatoes (with core and seeds removed)

1 small red onion

fresh basil (about 5-8 leaves depending on your preference)

1 clove garlic

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

olive oil

salt and pepper

granulated garlic or garlic powder

artisan bread*

Here’s what you do:

Finely dice tomatoes,onion, garlic, and basil. Mix together in a small bowl. Add about 1 tsp of balsamic vinegar and gently combine. If you wish, you may add a little extra-virgin cold-pressed olive oil and let this marinate in the fridge. Just don’t go too crazy. This shouldn’t be liquid-y.

Heat oven to 425 and slice up some yummy artisan bread (French bread-whatever). Brush some olive oil on one side of the bread. Sprinkle with garlic (powder, granulated etc) and salt and pepper. Toast in the oven on the top rack until the bread begins to crisp.

Spoon the tomato mixture on the bread and you have bruschetta!

*Soon I will tell you all about how to make wheat artisan bread ( maybe tomorrow) and you will never be the same.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre Cookies

Versions of this recipe have been floating around on the internet for years now. I got this one from my sister-in-law a few years back. Most of the time they are referred to as Texas Governors Mansion Cookies or Laura Bush’s Cowboy Cookies. I do not know anyone else that calls them Texas Chainsaw Massacre Cookies. I made that name up myself-much to my family’s chagrin.

“Why do you call them that, Mom?”

Simple. Whenever I eat these cookies I cannot control myself. Therefore it is like taking a chainsaw to my diet. It rips it to shreds. Seeing the number on the scale after indulging makes me feel like I am in a really bad horror movie.

But you can eat them if you want.

Just don’t say I didn’t warn you. As my sister-in-law would say, “These are high octane”

When I am feeling extra generous I make them for my family. My husband practically does a jig. These are his very favorite cookies in the world.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre Cookies

3 cups flour ( I use 2 cups wheat, 1 cup white)

1 Tbl baking powder

1 Tbl baking soda

1 Tbl cinnamon

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups butter ( at room temp) -that is 3 sticks, but you can replace one of them with a 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 1/2 cups sugar ( I use raw, organic)

1 1/2 cups packed Pure Cane Brown Sugar

3 eggs

1 Tbl vanilla

3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips ( I use dark, however)

3 cups rolled oats

2 cups coconut flakes

2 cups chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350. Mix flour, powder, soda, cinnamon, and salt together. In a another bowl, beat the butter until smooth and creamy-about 1 minute. Gradually beat in the sugars-beat for about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each. Beat in vanilla. Stir in the flour until just combined. Add chocolate chips, oats, coconut, and pecans. For each cookie, drop 1/4 cup dough onto ungreased baking sheets, spacing 3 inches apart. Bake for 17 -19 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. Cook until the edges are lightly browned. Cool these gigantic cookies, then eat them, and and enjoy life.

Makes about 3 dozen cookies OR you can make 6 dozen smaller cookies by using 2 tablespoon dough for each cookie and reduce cooking time to about 15 minutes.

It is almost the weekend. You can use Michael Pollan’s advice and only eat sweets on the days that start with “S”. I tried that and it hasn’t been working. So for now, I am off sugar-again! So none of these cookies for me. I will fill you in on a later post.

Indian Fried Bread

No eggs? No milk? No problem!

This is the breakfast food I turn to when we run out of the staples-which sometimes happens because I am kind of disorganized like that.

My Mom has been making this recipe since I was a little girl. Of course, I made some slight modifications to make it a little more healthy.

But my kids love to smother these in honey butter, which kind of defeats the purpose of me using wheat flour.

I recently tried frying these in coconut oil (cold-pressed, extra-virgin) because that is supposedly a healthier oil to use. At least according to my sister. The kids didn’t even notice a difference and I thought they tasted great! Frying foods should always be the exception rather than the rule however.

Powdered milk is not-too-great for you either so if you have milk, use that.

Indian Fried Bread

2 cups flour ( I use 1 2/2 cups wheat, 1/2 c white)

1 tsp salt

1 Tbl baking powder

1/4 c dry milk plus 1 cup warm water

OR

1 c warm milk

Oil for frying

Mix dry ingredients together and then add liquid. The dough should be sticky but not so much that you can’t work with it. Tear off about 1 1/2 inch ball of dough-it won’t really look like a ball though. Dip it into some flour, then gently stretch it out so it doubles in length. Repeat the process until you get enough pieces to fill up the frying pan. Cook in hot oil turning once so that both sides are a golden brown. You will repeat this several times, adding more oil as needed until all the dough is used. This whole process goes pretty quickly.

I usually triple this recipe for my large family.

Salmon Patties

You may wonder how my life as a pseudo-vegetarian is going. Well, just fine. Thanks for asking. Tonight the family attended a party at the lake and there were hamburgers and hot dogs to be had. The kids loved it. My husband and I chowed on salad and chips & salsa and fruit. And oh yeah, the delicious tilapia we brought along with us and threw on the grill. Do you think that was rude to bring our own meat of the fish variety? I hope not.

If you ever want to grill tilapia, marinate it in some olive oil, lemon juice, and some Kirkland brand Organic No-salt seasoning. Oh my, I love that stuff. Cook it to flaky perfection and then eat it on a bun with some lettuce and tomato. Wow! I swear it was better than a hamburger. But my kids disagree.

But this isn’t that recipe.

This is Salmon.

This is a dish that we also love when we feel like we need some protein. It is super fast and easy and yummy. I actually do not love Salmon but I am trying to love it. But I can say in all honesty, I love this recipe. There are no leftovers when I make this.

Salmon Patties

14 oz. canned salmon, drained

3/4 C bread crumbs or crackers

1/4 C onion, finely chopped

1/4 C red pepper, finely chopped

1 Tbl olive oil

1 egg

1 Tbl lemon juice

1/2 tsp dill weed

salt and pepper

Mix salmon and crumbs. Set aside.

Cook onion and pepper in oil until tender (about 5 minutes)

Add to salmon and mix gently

Add dill weed, egg, lemon juice, and salt and pepper and mix

Add a little more oil to frying pan. Form mixture into patties and cook about 4-5 minutes on each side

Makes about 10-12 patties

We ate the patties with quinoa and steamed zucchini, carrots, and onion. It was delicious. And I felt so healthy after eating it. In a good way.

3 Comments

1. Becca
   Posted August 11, 2010 at 2:59 pm

   Good Job, Aunt Jenny! And to think you use to roll your eyes at me for being a vegetarian..:p

   • Jen
     Posted August 13, 2010 at 8:48 am

     Becca, I wasn’t rolling my eyes. I have eye spasms.

2. Jessica
   Posted August 11, 2010 at 9:26 pm

   Well, I had biscuits and sausage gravy for dinner. But they were homemade, at least.

Black Bean Burritos

Now that we are being vegetarians for the next several weeks, I have started using this recipe again.

After we ate them I wondered why I waited until summer to make them again.

They are super good. And of course super good for you. Black beans are a super food and you should eat lots of them.

I am just sayin’….

I love this super easy recipe. Especially with lots of cheese, pico de gallo, a side of rice, and stacks of romaine lettuce.

Black Bean Burritos

2 cans black beans (or about 3 cups cooked beans)

1/4 c dehydrated onion flakes* or about 1/2 of an onion, chopped

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1 Tbl chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 Tbl oil

1 can (14.5 oz) diced Mexican flavored tomatoes ( or equivalent fresh with a splash of lime juice and a few sprigs of cilantro)

1/4 tsp lemon juice

1 tsp died oregano

1/4 tsp salt

* You reconstitute the onion flakes by adding them to a 1/4 cup very hot water. Let them sit for about 5 minutes.

Combine the onion, garlic powder, chili powder, and cumin in hot oil. Stir in undrained beans, undrained tomatoes, lemon, and oregano.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, uncovered.

Serve these on warm tortillas. We like to eat them on heated corn tortillas-and of course-smothered in cheese!

Super!

One Comment

1. Julie Wilkerson
   Posted August 6, 2010 at 8:33 am

   I am super excited to try this out! It sounds really good and I am a huge fan of black beans and can eat them right from the can! Thanks for sharing your “meatless meal” it is going to make its way to my menu, I am sure of it.

Double Dark Chocolate Cookies

Cookies are an all too frequent treat around here. I am surprised that this is the first cookie recipe I have posted given the rate at which my children bake and consume cookies. These have quickly become one of my kids’ very favorite cookie recipes. But don’t worry. There are plenty more where these come from.

• 1 cup unbleached white flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup cocoa powder -we like dark cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 3/4 cups dark chocolate chips

Combine the dry ingredients.

In a separate bowl, beat butter, sugars, and vanilla until creamy. Add the two eggs and beat until well blended. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the cream mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. Cook at 350 for 9 minutes.

Makes about 40 cookies.