MIA

I'M SORRY.....  I've been MIA. I started my Doctoral program again.  I'm still cooking but haven't had a chance to blog at all...  I promise a post this weekend!!!!

:)

Sunday Brunch - Banana Walnut Pancake Donuts

Other than starting this morning with a migraine (which is blessedly gone now!) I'm having a really great weekend!  I caught up on sleep, lounged at home with my guys, and got to spend some time with my sister.  She got tickets to see Robin Thicke with meet & greet passes!!!!  How cool is that????

He was really nice in the 4.2 seconds we spent with him.  He is incredibly good looking with impeccable manners.  I think the manners mattered more than the looks!

That's me in the blue...  I know, it's blurry.  My sister's friend took it with her cell phone.  We had a great time!  I came home and watched the end of SNL (Justin Timberlake is my FAVE!!!) while cuddling with my guy.  

 I cooked a lot this weekend and loved every second of it.  We bought a mini-donut maker (baker?) for Christmas.  I've made several variety of donuts and love experimenting with it.  I made Banana Walnut Pancake Donuts!!!  They turned out better than I expected!!!  I can't wait to experiment with different flavors!!!  I'm thinking Lemon Poppyseed next time!!!

This recipe is super easy!!!  If you don't have a donut maker, don't worry!  I have a different way to prepare this yummy goodness to show you later in this post.  We ate these several ways!

Banana Walnut Pancake Donuts

2 cups pancake mix (I used Aunt Jemima Homestyle Pancake Mix)

1 cup water (follow the instructions on the box)

1/2 cup Slenda Brown Sugar Blend (you could use regular brown sugar if you prefer)

1 banana, mashed

1/4 - 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Heat the donut machine.  Put 1 tablespoon of batter into each well.  Close machine.  Cook 4 - 5 minutes.

I also cooked some turkey sausage patties.  We made the cutest little sausage sandwiches!!!  I didn't think to cook some eggs until after the fact.  Eggs would be good.  Maybe a slice of cheese too?  

These donuts are light and fluffy.  They don't taste like pancakes at all.  After making them this way, I wanted to try the recipe as muffins!

I poured the batter into muffin tins and cooked in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes (or until a toothpick comes out clean).

They are just as good this way!!!  Next time, I may actually make the batter and make pancakes!!!  Crazy, I know!!!!

The boys are screaming that they are withering away to nothing...  I haven't fed them since Brunch!!!  GASP!!!!  I'm grilling Paprika Lime Chicken and making some cous cous and green beans.  

I hope you had a great weekend!  I know mine has been good!  

Greek Turkey Meatballs with Tzatziki and Marina

This has been the longest week in all of history; I'm sure of it!!!!  I had a meeting after school on Monday, training all day Tuesday, Open House on Wednesday, my evaluation yesterday, and a full day today.  Not to mention trying to get ahead in reading for my Doctoral program.

And lots of planning....

Luckily, I have company!  It's a true family affair.  We all sit around the kitchen table working on homework (the boys are in school, the Hubs is taking classes, and I start again on the 24th - EEEK!).

This is how it is lately... I was so excited that today is Friday!!!  Even with the insanity of the week, I cooked every night (except Wednesday when we had left overs after Open House).  I came home today  ready to cook something amazing.  Call me crazy if you must (and I know those of you who know me will corroborate that craziness) but there's something about cooking that calms me.  It's a lovely transition from my day to my evening.

Today, it was Greek Turkey Meatballs with a quick marinara and Tzatziki Sauce.  My tastebuds did a dance!!!

Meatballs

1 package ground turkey (about a pound)

1 egg

1 jarred roasted red pepper, chopped (I used the food processor)

1/2 cup bread crumbs (I used Italian herb)

1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon tomato paste

juice of half of one lemon

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (I used 1/2 teaspoon)

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon dill weed

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Chop the roasted red pepper in the food processor.  I could have done it by hand but I really love my food processor.  Put the turkey in a bowl.  Add the rest of the ingredients to the bowl and mix.  I use a spoon because I don't love the feel of ground meat.  Form meatballs; about 24 total.

Cook the meatballs in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.  While the meatballs are cooking, cook a package of Orzo (or any pasta you like) according to package instructions.

Quick Marinara

1 14.5 oz can tomato puree

1/4 cup bell pepper chopped

1/4 cup red onion chopped

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon black pepper (more of less to taste - I used more because we love pepper!!!)

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon oregano

Heat the oil in a pan.  Add the onions and peppers.  Sauté for a minute or two.  Add the garlic. Cook for another minute.  Add the tomato puree.  Stir in the sugar.  Add salt and pepper.  Cover and simmer on low until you're ready to eat.

Tzatziki Sauce

3 tablespoons sour cream (or plain yogurt - I prefer sour cream)

3 tablespoons chopped cucumber

1 clove garlic minced

1/2 teaspoon dill weed

salt and pepper to taste <= I don't use a lot of salt so I use it sparingly.  You may want more.

Mix all of the ingredients together.  It gets better then longer it sits so I make this before I do anything else.  

Go watch tv for a few minutes. Play with dog.  Snog with the husband.  Cuddle with the Middle Schooler when no one else is looking.  Get on Facebook and see what you missed while you were at work. This is what I did while the food cooked.  

This was soooo good.  The Middle Schooler at plain Orzo.  Shrug.  He's not a very adventurous eater and I'm okay so long as he takes a courtesy bite to try the food.  He wasn't a fan of the meatballs or either sauce.  I'll keep offering...  The Husband had two servings and the High Schooler ate a giant bowl full.  He said the Tzatziki was his favorite part.  Mine too.  I might add an additional roasted red pepper next time and leave out the parmesan just to make it with fewer (less? - Way to go English teacher!) calories.  

My belly is happy.  We're going to watch our school's football team online (GO JAGS!!!!) if we can figure it out how to play it on the Wii or the laptop.

Until then....  

Sunday Brunch - Sausage Gravy with Cheesy Eggs and Hash Browns

I love Sunday.  I lounge in bed and then I lounge on the sofa and then I cook some food.  I lounge some more.  I write lesson plans and grade papers and then I cook some more.  It's a beautiful thing.  We've had a really relaxed weekend so far and today is looking good for relaxation as well!  I had a horrible cold all week and am finally starting to feel better.  I started the weekend lounging on the sofa, writing recipes (or ideas for recipes) and writing the grocery list.  Call me a nerd but I dig that!!!!  I hear names of recipes or see pictures or think of recipes I've tried in the past and then run with it.

I don't start the recipe with steps or procedure; just the ingredients.  I add that later.  That's how today's recipe came about.

We love Biscuits and Gravy but I am not a fan of a strong breakfast sausage.  I prefer a mild sausage.  I'm going to tell you a little secret about me - [Insert stage whisper here] I'm not much of a baker.  It's so scientific and precise.  Shrug.  Not my forte.  I like to toss in a little of this and a dash of that.  Not so precise...  So, my biscuits aren't the flaky loveliness I'd like them to be so I improvised.  I cooked a bag of hash browns according to the package instructions instead.

Sausage Gravy

1 tube Mild Country Breakfast Sausage (you can use any sausage you like)
1/2 small onion
3 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons margarine (or butter)
3 cups milk

Cook the sausage on medium heat until done.  Add the onion.  Cook for another 2 - 3 minutes (or until onion reaches desired doneness).  Sprinkle with flour.  Let it sit like that for a minute.  Stir.  Add the margarine.  Stir until melted and cook for another minute or two - you don't want that raw flour flavor.  Blech.  Add the milk.  Cook over medium high heat until bubbly.  Lower heat to medium or medium low until thickened.  Ladle over hash browns or biscuits.

Cheesy Scrambled Eggs

6 whole eggs
1/4 cup shredded cheese (I used cheddar)
splash milk
salt and pepper to taste

Scramble the eggs with a fork (I feel like I get a better scramble with a fork than a whisk but that's just my weirdness).  Add the milk, salt, and pepper.  Mix in the cheese.  Spray a nonstick pan with cooking spray.  Pour in the eggs.  I use a spatula to make "holes" (scrape?) the egg mixture and let the wet egg mix fill in the holes until the eggs are done.  I do not like well done eggs nor do I like runny eggs.  My mother-in-law and I had an in-depth conversation about just that last weekend while we were making breakfast burritos (recipe to follow soon, I promise - It was another GREAT Sunday Brunch!).  Once the eggs are almost the doneness you prefer, remove from the heat.  They will continue to cook a little as you assemble the bowls.

Put a layer of potatoes in the bowl.  Ladle some of the gravy over the potatoes.  Top with eggs.  Sprinkle with pepper to taste.  I use salt while I'm cooking so I don't typically add salt to a finished dish.

This is really filling!  I only ate half of it.  The rest is in the fridge for breakfast tomorrow if I can beat the boys to the fridge.

I truly love Sundays in our house.  It's time to get off the sofa and hop in the shower - Papers won't grade themselves!  If only I can pull myself away from Football (which I don't even watch but there's something about Fall and the sound of Football on a lazy Sunday....)

Scalloped Potatoes with Ham

I grew up eating scalloped potatoes with ham and peas.  When we got married and moved to Japan, The Husband and I wanted scalloped potatoes one night for dinner.  We didn't have the internet and there was a 13 hour time difference.  It was really expensive to call home to get my mom's recipe so I became really good friends with my Betty Crocker cookbook.  The recipe was different than what I grew up with but it turned out sooooo good!!!!  I've made a few modifications since then (no peas for one...) ... But when don't I????

5 pound bag of potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
4 cups milk
5 tablespoons butter (or margarine)
5 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 cup diced ham
1 onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed pan.  Add the onion to the pan.  Cook 2 - 3 minutes on medium heat. Add the ham.  Cook until browned.  Add the flour.  Stir until mixed.  Add the milk.  Whisk until smooth. Cook, stirring constantly until thickened. Layer peeled and sliced potatoes into a casserole dish.  Pour the milk, ham, onion mixture together.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for  1 1/2 to 2 hours (or until done).  We had enough for 5 of us plus 2 big servings for lunch at work the next day.

Serve with salad.  This one was spinach and arugula with strawberries, red onion, cucumber, celery, and walnuts.

No one liked them.... Clearly.

This Planning/Grading Break Brought to You By... Not Your Momma's Grilled Cheese

My brain is fried from grading and planning.  We're all around the kitchen table. I'm grading and planning.  The husband is planning.  The High Schooler is doing Geometry.  The Middle Schooler is doing Math - Fractions more specifically.  Fractions make me want to curl up in a ball and cry.  The Husband is left to help.  I want to go to my happy place during Math homework.  So, here I am!  Talking about food and cooking and cooking and food.

Grilled cheese and tomato soup....  That's the ultimate in comfort food for me.  I don't know if I wasn't a fan of chicken noodle soup when I was growing up or if my Mom didn't like it and thus didn't buy it.  Every time I was sick, Momma made me grilled cheese and tomato soup.  To this day it's what I want to eat when I'm sick.  I'm not sick today but wanted something quick and easy for lunch today because I had a ton of grading to catch up and lots of planning for the week ahead.

I may have mentioned a love of all things Trader Joe's.  If I haven't said it before.... I LOOOOOOVE TRADER JOE'S!!!!!  We always buy cheese at Trader Joe's for our Saturday Date Night.  We buy some fancy cheese, some fancy crackers, some fancy meat.  It's fancy.

We bought a Danish Havarti - so creamy and mild!

We bought an Unexpected English Cheddar - sharp with a lovely bite!

And we bought a Red Leister Cheese - creamy and sweet with a hint of heat and roasted red pepper.

We had a lovely cheese and fruit plate which we shared with the boys - not quite Date Night.  I didn't want them to eat the grapes.  They remind me of what we called "Squeezy Grapes" growing up.  Grandpa would bring them home from trips to the lake - I think.  Where he got them is a mystery to me.  All I know is that we  snarfed them down.

Today, we had some of the cheese left over.  We decided these cheeses would make some fabulous grilled cheese sandwiches.  I also threw some Pumpernickel bread into the cart yesterday.

Sandwich #1 - White bread and American Cheese (for The Fussy One)
Sandwich #2 - White bread and Red Leister
Sandwich #3 - White bread and Havarti
Sandwich #4 - Pumpernickel and Red Leister
Sandwich #5 - Pumpernickel and Red Leister and Roasted Red Peppers
Sandwich #6 - Pumpernickel and Havarti
Sandwich #7 - Pumpernickel and Havarti and Red Leister
Sandwich #8 - Pumpernickel and Unexpected English Cheddar

Make these just like grilled cheese.  Butter a slice of bread.  Put the butter side down in a skillet or griddle.  Top with cheese.  Top with a second slice of buttered bread, butter up.  Cook until lightly browned.  Flip.  Cook until lightly browned and cheese is melted.  Remove from heat.  Cool slightly.  Cut.

We cut each sandwich into 4 pieces so we could all try each one.

Our faves?

Mine:  Pumpernickel and Unexpected English Cheddar followed by Pumpernickel and Red Leister and Roasted Red Pepper
The Husband:  Pumpernickel and Havarti
The High Schooler:  Pumpernickel and Red Leister followed closely by Pumpernickel and Havarti and Red Leister
The Middle Schooler:  Pumpernickel and Havarti

Back to School - There's still time for a breakfast sandwich or two!!!

We've been back to school for 2 weeks now.  I know a lot of people are headed back this week or the following week.  Mornings are hectic!!!  We get up extra early to go to the gym most mornings.  I really, really am NOT a morning person.  The gym is alarmingly bright and loud at 4:30 a.m. Alarmingly.  But...  I feel better for it.  I'm not very fast or very fit - YET...

.... and everybody who is still asleep.  I daydream about sleeping while I'm on the elliptical trainer.  The first 10 minutes are the worst.  [I've thought about NOT going but all My Lovelies keep telling me how proud they are or that they're inspired by me or my fave... "You're looking good, girl!" I LOOOOOOOOVE MY LOVELIES!!!!!]

When we get home from the gym, I am starving!!!!  (Starved???  I don't know which is correct...). And sweaty.  And energized.  But mostly HUNGRY!!!!!

I've made at least 4 different sandwiches since school started but only remembered to take pics of two...  ACK!!!!

Smoked Sausage and Egg Muffin Sandwich
1 package Smoked Sausage (I used Chicken Hardwood - it's our favorite)
4 eggs
4 slices cheddar cheese (I use the extra thin sliced cheese from Sargento - only 45 calories a slice)
4 English Muffins
salt and pepper to taste
spray butter ( I use I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray - you can use real butter or margarine if you prefer.)

Cut the sausage into 3 inch pieces.  Cut those in half (length-wise) to lay flat on the muffin.  Cook on a griddle until browned (the sausage is already cooked - you only need to heat it up)

Crack 4 eggs into a preheated skillet.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Flip the eggs when the bottom looks done.  Be careful not to break the yolk.

Toast the English Muffins.

When the eggs are done, put on the English muffin.  Top with a slice of cheese and a piece of sausage. Enjoy!  This took less than 10 minutes to make.  Even on mornings when we don't go to the gym, I have 10 minutes to make a healthy breakfast.  It would take that long at the drive thru.

Some mornings, I don't want meat or egg yolks so I make this instead...

Egg White and Cheese Muffin Sandwich
6 eggs - separate the whites and yolks.  Save the yolks for later if you want
1 teaspoon water
4 English Muffins
4 slices cheddar cheese (I used the Sargento thin sliced cheese - I don't like American Cheese)
spray butter (use butter or margarine if you prefer)
1 teaspoon dill (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

Separate the egg whites and the yolks.  Save the yolks for later if you'd like.  You can also use cartoned egg whites.  I always forget to buy them and just use whole eggs.  Whip with a fork.  Add water.  Continue to whip.  Add 1 teaspoon dill.  Add the eggs to a pre-heated pan.  Scrape the sides and let the uncooked portion fill the "hole" left by the scrape.  Continue until you can flip the egg.  Cook until done.  Cut the egg into 4 pieces.

Toast the English Muffin.  Spray with butter.  Top with cheese and egg.  YUMMY!!!!  My eggs are never pretty but they sure do taste good!

I also made Bacon and Cheese Bagel Sandwiches (we use bagel thins!) but didn't take a picture.  Also lacking a picture is the Roasted Red Pepper and Vegetable Cream Cheese (Laughing Cow) Bagel (thin) sandwich.  I'll try to remember to take pictures next time I make those!

I love sending my family off to school with a belly full of warm food.  We save money and don't eat as many empty calories.  I feel like the Tick...  SPOOOOOOOOOON!!!!!  (only in this case it's handheld food but it's The TICK!!!!!)