CHIA BANANA BREAD

I found a quick bread recipe that calls for no oil and is moistened by Chia Seeds. I tweaked the recipe and eliminated the White Flour and substituted Garbonzo Flour instead. It is a dense bread and I enjoyed the texture and flavor, of course a light spread of butter or honey butter on each slice tastes even better. My kids gobbled slices of it up for breakfast today too.

You are probably scratching your head... What the heck are chia seeds??? My next post will help educate you on the benefits of Chia Seeds. You can get them at a natural/nutrition store, Whole Foods Market, Market of Choice, Capella's or even On-line. They come in a bag or in bulk.

CHIA BANANA BREAD

2 T Chia Seeds, soaked in 1/2 cup of water; set aside for 10 min.

1/2 c All Purpose Flour (or substitute Garbonzo Flour)

1-1/2 cups of Whole Wheat Pastry Flour

1 tsp Baking Powder 1/2 tsp Salt

1 Egg

1-1/2 tsp of Lemon Juice

3/4 cup of Brown Sugar

1/4 cup of Honey

3 mashed Bananas

1 T of melted Butter

1 T Vanilla

1/2 cup of Walnuts, chopped

*optional 1/2 cup of Nestle Mini Morsel

1. Mix the Chia Seeds and water and let sit while you get the rest of the ingredients ready or until they've started to gel.


2. Mix all the dry ingredients together (flour, baking powder and salt).


3. In separate bowl, beat egg with lemon juice, brown sugar and honey. Add the mashed bananas, chia seeds, vanilla and melted butter.


4. Add wet mix to flour mix until combined.


5. Fold in nuts and/or mini chocolate chips.


6. Bake in greased loaf pan at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes.

(Makes one standard loaf or four mini loaves)

Grab and Go Breakfast Burrito's

Today I made a bunch of grab and go breakfast burritos for my teenage son to take with him on the way to school. I filled them with scrambled eggs, ham, cheese and salsa. Then wrapped them in plastic wrap and placed them in Ziploc bags. All he has to do is microwave them in the plastic wrap for a minute or so. I hope he knows how much his Mama loves him.

Pacific N.W. Gumbo

I was creative the other day and started putting items from my fridge into a stock pot and this is the recipe I came up with. I call it Pacific N.W. Gumbo, because it is served like Southern Gumbo, but has North West ingredients. We don't grow okra in our neck of the woods, we grow mushrooms. Ground Beef is what I had on hand, shrimp and andouille sausage is a bit expensive for my budget. It is delicious and feels like comfort food. I hope you enjoy it like my family did. By the way it is loaded with fresh vegetables and is healthy too.

Pacific N.W. Gumbo

1 1/2 pounds of ground beef
2 shallots, minced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tsp ranch seasoning
4 tsp of taco seasoning
1 tsp Lawry's seasoning
1 cup carrots, diced
1 cup cabbage, diced
4 cups of beef broth
3 cups of chicken broth
1 can of diced tomatoes with juice
3 T of tomato paste
1 cup zucchini, quartered and diced
1 cup mushrooms, diced
1/4 cup of red or yellow bell pepper

Hot buttered rice (the real thing, not instant)

Directions:

Make rice as directed on package ahead of time.

Brown ground beef, add shallots and garlic, add seasonings, carrots and cabbage. Saute a few minutes. Add beef stock, chicken stock, tomatoes with juice and tomato paste. Stir together and bring to a boil. Add remaining veggies and simmer another 10 minutes. Taste and season to your liking.

In a bowl add a half a cup of hot buttered rice, and ladle the gumbo over rice (about a cup and a half or two).

Super Bowl Sliders

Man are these making my mouth water. Sliders are almost bite size gourmet burgers. Some restaurants have them on their menus. I make these up every once in a while and they are a big hit. My husband works for a bakery that makes these little tiny buns. If you can't find them in your local grocer then check out a local restaurant food supplier, like Cash n Carry (at least that is the name of ours), where restaurant owners purchase from. The general public are usually welcome to purchase too. You could also make them from scratch.

The Slider pictured is a sauteed mushroom and swiss with grilled onion that I had made (the slider looks big but is just sitting on a salad plate). They are just wonderful and are the hit of any party or family night. You can make a bunch up and have your guests top them with their favorite toppings. Other ideas that you could make are mini bacon burgers, sloppy joes, a chicken slider using half of a grilled chicken tender, chicken salad.... or what ever your hunger is in the mood for. My kids like Peanut Butter and Jelly Sliders, the perfect size for little hands or big mouths. You can't just eat one.

Fast Food Breakfast

I have three kids that love pancakes and french toast. Sometimes, I don't have the time to get out the griddle and begin breakfast with a big mess. So I spend a morning and make up about a 100 pancakes and about 75 slices of french toast. I love this idea because I make only one big mess in the kitchen. I let them cool on a wire rack then flash freeze them on cookie sheets (this way they won't stick together, when stacked). I stack them into gallon size Ziploc bags and freeze.

Whenever I need a quick fix breakfast for my toddlers I just grab a few from the freezer and pop them into the microwave. Our preteen loves getting them and microwaving them himself. We have even taken them with us on vacation. I don't buy the frozen brands from my grocery store anymore. You see.. Mama Angie makes them with love and they are cheaper to make too.

Plan C

We all have those days where we get so busy or we have forgotten to take something out to thaw for Dinner. Then you have to go to plan B which might be having to go to the store, go out to eat or it's soup and sandwiches for dinner. I have plan C on hand, and it sure comes in handy.

About every four months I brown up ten or twelve pounds of hamburger and/or ground turkey and season with Garlic Salt, Lawry's Seasoning and Parsley. Just enough to give it some taste. Then I drain beef in a mesh strainer. Let cool and package into Ziploc quart size bags, which is about a pound each. They stack flat in the freezer and are nice to have on hand.

In a pinch I grab a package from the freezer and thaw in the microwave in a matter of two minutes. I can throw it into some spaghetti sauce, or into a soup or casserole, or add some taco seasoning and have tacos or nachos. This really helps on those nights that you don't want to be in the kitchen very long and want to spend it with your family instead. It is my way of saving a step by being prepared in advance.

Homemade Croutons

What do you do with left over bread? I had made four loaves of garlic toast for a Spaghetti and Meatball Dinner/Potluck for a friends birthday and had this many slices of garlic toast leftover. Normally I would have just tossed them out into the garbage because cold buttered garlic toast is just nasty tasting. However.. I decided to be frugal and make croutons out of them. Since they were already seasoned and cold, I just sliced them into thin strips and then into cubes. I tossed them with a little olive oil and parsley and toasted them at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes, turning twice. Once they were crispy I let them cool and then bagged them up in Ziploc bags. Since there was butter on them originally they needed to be used up within the week. I kept a bag and then gave a bag to a friend.

So save your day old bread or left over garlic toast and make croutons out of them. Great on salads or just snacking on.

Holiday Cookie Exchange

Big Plate of Holiday Cookies.

Each Family went home with a box of cookies.

Icing a fresh batch of cookies.

A dozen for you, a dozen for me.

Oh Sweet Treats!

Today I hosted a Holiday Cookie Exchange during our weekly morning coffee. We had a lot of fun. There were six of us who were able to participate. We each baked six dozen cookies. We kept one dozen for ourselves and then each person exchanged a dozen of theirs for others. So we each ended up with a box of six dozen cookies in six varieties.

We had Snicker Doodles, Frosted Christmas Sugar Cookies, Amish Ginger Cookies, Oatmeal Scottchies, Iced Lemon Cookies and Holiday M&M Cookies. One of the ladies even brought some fudge that her Mom made (Thanks Momma Kathy!)

I think that the cookie exchange was a success. If we would of had ten or more women who would have participated we would only have exchanged six cookies each. I didn't want to have everyone bake ten dozen, six dozen cookies was a lot of baking in one day. Our families will be reaping the rewards with the tasty cookies over the holiday season.

Be Inspired to Host or participate in a Cookie Exchange with your friends and family.

A big bowl of comfort

Ahh!!! Fall is here and winter is just around the corner. I just love making soups, stoups and stews. Whether it is a classic like chicken noodle, tomato or potato soup, or a hearty beef stew or a comforting bowl of navy bean soup over fried potatoes and onions.... or a new recipe like Reuben Soup or Cacciatore Stoup. There is nothing like a steaming bowl of pure comfort to take the chill off and add warmth to your soul.

When I make a soup or stew I make it in the largest pot I have and sometimes I make it in two pots. I ladle the leftovers into two cup containers and freeze them. They are quick and easy meals to thaw and reheat for lunch or dinner. They make great gifts too! I have brought them to a sick friend and have given them to other families in need of a meal. I have even donated a few containers of soup to one of our church bake sales and they were auctioned off. The recipients begged for the recipe.

This is a bowl of my homemade Vegetable Beef soup that has eleven vegetables in it. It is incredibly delicious. I also make a couple dozen Potato Rolls to soak up that wonderful broth. I'll post the recipes soon for you to enjoy. What is your favorite bowl of soup?

Be Inspired to warm your families heart and belly's with a big bowl of comfort.

Bakers Helper

Holy gadgets batman!

Here are a few of my latest bargain finds for my kitchen. I just love Ross, I always seem to find something for my home, kitchen or family. Here I purchased a bronze cookbook holder ($2.99) and a wooden pastry rolling pin ($4.99).

The cookbook holder holds my latest cookbook or my personal family cookbook. It holds the book open and keeps me from touching it or dripping something on it. The pastry rolling pin is awesome for pie crusts, cinnamon rolls, pizza dough etc... With a regular rolling pin the barrel is a lot shorter and you get indentations in your dough or pastry and may cause an uneven thickness in areas. These are great tools and I use them all the time.

Kitchen Garbage Bowl

I like this idea from Rachael Ray, to use a plastic bowl to put produce waste, recipe prep trash, crumbs etc... in and then tossing it out all at once. However, I didn't want to spend over $20.00 for her recycled garbage bowl that she sells at the gourmet cooking store in town. I was trying to be frugal. So, I found this bowl at Bi-mart for $2.49 It came in four different sizes and colors to choose from. I chose one that would compliment my kitchen colors and chose the size I would like to use most. It sure saves me from stepping on my garbage can pedal dozens of times.

Election Banquet

Tonight I prepared an Election Banquet Dinner for my family. I thought I'd put some corny twist on dinner while watching the election on TV. The feast included:

Presidential Pot Roast
McCain Mashed Potatoes
Oh Good Gravy
Steamed Barackoli
Ballot Buttered Corn
Candidate Cottage Cheese

Our pre-teen thought it was funny and got a few giggles out of him. Of course the giggles ceased when he had to do the Democratic Dishes. I wanted to invite friends over for the election banquet, but dear hubby wanted to focus on the election (the analytical that he is) with out added distractions. We have two toddlers, what was he thinking? It's a Republican Circus with the two of them, what's a few more. Oh well.. I understood and enjoyed the evening with our family.

Hope that you all voted and watched the election.
God Bless America!

Weekly New Recipe

Do you ever get in a rut and run into preparing the same old go to recipes/meals. I am sparking a new change and have decided to add a new recipe to my weekly menu planning. This week I have two new recipes that I want to try, because I have the ingredients and am inspired to be creative in the kitchen. These will be recipes that I haven't tried and will rate them for you at the end of the week.

I am also working on launching a recipe co-op exchange with family, old friends and new foodie friends too. I will post the new recipes in the recipe blog that are a hit with my family and guests.

Be Inspired in the Kitchen!

Just the beginning of Canning Season

Here is the view of my kitchen during canning season. I had awoke in the early morning dawn to can tomatoes and to get a jump start before my sweet cheeks awoke from their slumber. Before starting my second batch, I took a moment and looked around my kitchen and saw my first batch of tomatoes cooling and the empty jars lined up waiting to be filled with more nourishing food. When... pure joy and happiness warmed my heart. I grabbed my camera and snapped a couple photos, so I can look back on the moment that gave me such joy for my hard work I had been enduring for the love of my family. I can't wait to taste those tomatoes this Winter and savor the flavor of love and joy.
My kitchen is the heart of my home.

Calling all cooks

All good cooks need the proper tools in the kitchen to make cooking and baking simple, fun and easy. Even if you are an amateur chef, good tools make cooking an ease. Over the last twelve years I have purchased Pampered Chef products and my kitchen and motor home are filled with them.

The new Fall products and catalog are now available. I am hosting a Kitchen Show and would like to invite you to shop online from the comfort of your home or kitchen. Go here to do your shopping for yourself or for Christmas gifts and stocking stuffer's. Yes, Christmas is just around the corner.... If you spend over $60 you get a free gift. This months gift is the meat chopper tool.

All shopping must be done by Friday, September 19th as I am closing my show on the 20th. If you want to view the catalog and/or shop online, click on Order Products it will ask you for a host name. The correct spelling of my name is Angela Koch.

Happy Shopping and Cooking!

Cooking with Friends

The last two days my friend Misty and I have been in my kitchen canning and freezing fruit. I showed her how to make no sugar added apple sauce sweetened with 100% apple juice. She was busy slicing her peaches and putting them on giant trays and freezing them and making zucchini chocolate chip bread. It was really good.

I made marinara sauce, a few more apple pie fillings, five quart bags of diced apples for apple cake, two loaves of apple walnut bread and canned quarts of fresh tomatoes. I still have to make more peach pie fillings tonight after my sweet cheeks go to bed. It has been a busy few days but it will be so worth it this winter. My freezer is filled with colorful fruits and veggies, pies, sauces, bread etc...

Today I treated her for lunch. I made us an heirloom tomato and bocconcini mozzarella salad on baby lettuces drizzled with a homemade tomato, balsamic vinaigrette and garlic dressing. It was just delicious. She had brought over her grandma's vintage aprons and recipes to show me. It makes me wonder how many fabulous dishes her grandma made wearing those handmade aprons. We had such a good time in the kitchen together. It is fun cooking with friends.

Pie Baking Day for Frozen Pie Filling

Step by step instructions for pie baking day for your frozen pie filling.

Make your homemade pie crust and roll out or cheat and use the store bought kind.
Roll pie crust onto your rolling pin and place over and into your pie pan.
Place your frozen pie filling that you made earlier. DO NOT THAW (I happened to use one of my blackberry pie fillings I made) If you are using cooking cutters to vent now is the time to do them.

Roll second pie crust onto rolling pin and place on top of pie filling.
Crimp edges of pie crust and place cut outs on top crust, brush with egg wash and sprinkle with 1 tsp sugar.

DO NOT THAW / BAKE FROZEN
Bake and let cool on cooling rack. Slice into pie when completely cool (4-6 hours) and serve with vanilla ice cream. Yummo!

Frozen Apple Pie Filling

Frozen Apple Pie Filling

Ingredients
6-7 baking apples sliced or 6 cups ( I use Gravenstein)
2 T Minute Tapioca granules
1/2 C sugar
1/4 C brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg

Put fruit, tapioca, sugars and both spices in large bowl. Mix together, let stand 15 minutes.
Line pie plate or disposable aluminum cake pan (that will drop into pie plate perfectly after frozen) with wax paper.
Pour pie filling mixture into lined pan.
Let freeze several hours or overnight until frozen solid.
Remove from wax paper.
Wrap in saran wrap and place in Ziploc bag and label or place in food saver and vacuum seal and place back in freezer.

Coffee Gathering - Part 2

So let me tell you about the frenzy that took place on Friday at our first Coffee Gathering this Fall. Well... while we were all talking about recipes and freezing food for winter. I opened my freezer and showed the girls my frozen pie filling that I had made the night before. A Gravenstein Apple and a Fresh Peach. When they saw them they were amazed. All you have to do is set it into a pie crust and bake. I told them what inspired me to do it (I had watched it on the Food Network Channel with Alton Brown on Good Eats). Searching online I found another recipe for Fresh Peach by Paula Deen, who is another one of my favorite cooking chefs on the F.N. Then I looked at the back of my box of Instant Tapioca pudding mix and found similar recipes for more types of fruit pies. So far I have 6 apple, 3 peach and 5 blackberry in the freezer.

Well by that afternoon I had three of the women run to a local farms fruit stand in Creswell and purchase fruit. One of them even had apple trees and blackberries on her property so she made them dirt cheap. A few of them even mentioned it to more women in our church and what we all had been up to. My pastor's wife told me this morning when I arrived at church that she had heard all the hubbub about my pie filling and homemaking inspirations that I had started. It has been a lot of fun spreading inspirations and seeing how much fun we all are having.

The Recipe, how to steps and rating will follow after I make my first homemade pie crust and bake a pie tonight.

Friday Morning Coffee Gathering - Part I

On Friday Mornings several mothers from Church gather at my home for coffee and breakfast. With their little sweet cheeks in tote. We have anywhere from a half dozen to a dozen infants to preschoolers playing sweetly. We don't meet on Fridays during the Summer months, only during the school year. However many of the same families do go group camping together, take the kids to the park during the week and have BBQ's over the Summer. So we do stay connected in other types of activities.

Today was our first Coffee Gathering since Summer has ended. Boy were we excited to get together and visit. I think that we all were looking forward to it. We have a very strong bond with one another and we keep each other spiritually connected and focused.

Today we discussed our prayer chain and the healing that is needed in the lives of those who are struggling health wise, physically and mentally with their extreme situations. Our hearts go out to those in need of healing and prayer. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need. Luke 12:31

We also caught up on some of the things that are going on in our lives, how our children were doing since school has started, homeschooling, etc..... We also took turns looking at catalogs from Pampered Chef, Tupperware and Lia Sophia Jewelery (there is always a party going on).

The subject of food, recipes and freezing food for winter came up (when doesn't food come up?) Then the simplest thing was said... then an inspiration took off into a frenzy...

**Stay tuned for Part II