Greek Yogurt Cherry Waffles

C is obsessed with waffles. OBSESSED. He wants them ALL THE TIME. For breakfast. For lunch. Anytime. However, I've never understood the appeal of the frozen waffle. They look so dense and flat and boring. As a result, I'm always experimenting with different waffle recipes that are appealing and tasty. This was a great Movables recipe that uses flavored Greek yogurt as the flavoring base. They were light and fluffy with lots of flavor. Best of all, the freeze beautifully! Now THAT's a frozen waffle I can get behind.

You need:

3 large eggs

1 c. whole milk

1 c. black cherry Greek yogurt (or any flavored Greek Yogurt of your choice)

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 tbsp. butter

2 tbsp. honey

2 c. flour

2 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

In a large mixing bowl, whisk eggs. Add milk, yogurt, vanilla, butter, and honey. Whisk until creamy. In a small bowl, mix the dry ingredients. Slowly add to the wet ingredients and mix until evenly combined. Cook according to your waffle iron's directions. 

Granola

THIS is a really crunchy, yummy granola.

We've started following "Farm to Family Table" on the PBS App, and as a result we've tried out a lot of healthy dinners and treats that are simple, clean, and healthy. The kids were bowled over by how good this granola looked, so we tried it out this afternoon. It did not disappoint, and it let me continue to cook through my freezer and pantry as we desperately attempt to have as little as possible left in the deep freeze when we move. NOTE: We doubled up on the fruit because of C's nut allergy.

You need:

2.5 c. old fashioned (NOT quick) oats
1 c. raw nuts
1 c. mixed dried fruits (I used dried cherries, cranberries, and blueberries(
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. honey
1/4 c. maple syrup
1/2 c. applesauce
1 tbsp. coconut or vegetable oil


Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Mix the first seven ingredients in a bowl. In a small bowl, whisk the remaining ingredients. Add to the dry mix. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Spread the granola over the parchment in a single layer. Baker for 30 minutes, tossing every ten minutes.

Super Moist Banana Wee-Breads

Where did all of these bananas come from?!

Right. Thank you, Trader Joe's, for your fun-sized, kid carts.

Don't get me wrong - shopping with A and C is a lot of fun. We get up early every Saturday morning and head out together to do our shopping. They know each aisle well, and they can spot the hidden buffalo and pick out good looking avocados with enthusiasm.

Just don't shop with them when you are recovering from the flu. And bronchitis. And you can barely see straight. Because when you say, to yourself, "ok, so, we need bananas," you'll put a bunch in your cart. And so will your eldest. And so will your baby boy.

And then you have a lot of bananas.

They browned and ripened faster than I could eat them, and we had already indulged in enough gingerbread cookies to make a batch of V's banana bars. That's when I thought to turn, again, to The Mom 100 Cookbook. Because every mom has, at one point, been stuck with a lot of ripe bananas.

I've been making banana bread for years, but I'm always interested in new recipes that change things up a bit - different spices, different ratios - so I decided to tweak her "moist banana muffins" recipe a bit. The original calls for 12 large muffins, but I have this great Pampered Chef four-mini loaf pan which is great for freezing the extra three loaves for future munching, so I used that instead of a muffin pan and baked them for 30 minutes. However, if you want to make muffins, bake for 23-25 minutes. If you want to use one large loaf pan, bake for 45 minutes.


You need:
1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
3/4 c. granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
4 very ripe bananas
1/2 c. plain greek yogurt (or buttermilk or sour cream or heavy cream)
1/2 tsp. grated orange zest
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease your pan. In a medium bowl, mix the first three ingredients. In your mixer (set with the paddle attachment), mix the sugar and butter until well-blended. Add the eggs, one at a time, and vanilla. Mix in the bananas, yogurt, zest, and cinnamon. Slowly, mix in by hand your dry ingredients until just combined (don't over mix!) Pour into your baking receptacle of choice and bake according to what's above. Let cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan.

Falafel with Yogurt Sauce

I am exhausted. We move a month from tomorrow, and our house looks like a labyrinth of boxes and totes and Legos. In addition to tossing and packing and sorting, I'm trying to use up the food in my pantry so we have less to pack and take with us. It makes for much smaller grocery bills, but takes a lot of patience to find recipes that work for what you already have without buying much more.

I've had this recipe for years, and we all love falafel. However, I was astonished to find that I had never made these falafel. I ripped this recipe out of a copy of Kiwi magazine years ago, and with the exception of the fresh parsley and cilantro, I had everything else in the fridge or pantry already. The recipe is fast and easy to prepare. I served a few corn chips and a fresh tomato salad on the side. Easy. Fast. Kids loved it.

You need:

1 15 oz. can chickpeas
1 garlic clove
1/4 c. onion
1/4 c. fresh cilantro
1/4 c. fresh parsley
1/2 c. breadcrumbs
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. salt
olive oil
pita bread
1/2 c. plain greek yogurt
1 tbsp. lemon

In a food processor, combine the first eight ingredients. Mold into patties. Heat the oil on a large griddle. Fry until crispy. Flip. Fry until crispy on side two. Meanwhile, mix the yogurt and lemon. Serve the patties on pita bread with a dollop of the yogurt sauce. Top with lettuce, tomato, and/or cucumber if desired.

"Spaghetti" and Meatballs, Veggied up!

Over the last few weeks, I've kept a close eye on my diet. I've always wondered if wheat was troublesome, but I was truly unwilling to give up bread of any kind. However, I made the conscious (and painful) decision to give up all forms of gluten for three weeks to see if there really was a difference in how I felt.

Was. There. Ever.

I don't have celiac disease. And I'm not going whole-hog, gluten free. However, I'm going to spend 2015 eliminating unnecessary gluten - pasta as a special occasion, not a weekly staple; bread when it's truly worth it, and not as a daily treat. However, that means I need to get creative, specifically when it's just me eliminating the wheat. Sure, I can keep the bun off of my burger, but what about spaghetti and meatballs?!

I'm also looking to double up our veggie load at each meal, especially during the winter months when we get lazy about veggies. This recipe, found in this month's Good Housekeeping magazine, was just what I needed to get started. I was able to cook a small spaghetti squash for me and still boil a little spaghetti for the rest of the pack. And both the meatballs and sauce were jam-packed with vegetables. I doubled the recipe below and froze the meatballs nestled in the sauce in an aluminum, freezer-safe pan for another day.

You need:

2 medium spaghetti squash (for a family of four eliminating the wheat)
1 lb. ground turkey
2 small zucchini, grated and squeezed dry with paper towels
4 cloves of garlic, crushed with a press
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 medium eggplant, peeled and chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can (24oz) crushed tomatoes
1 Tbsp. sherry vinegar (or balsamic, if you don't have sherry)
1 bag baby arugula

With a sharp knife, pierce the squash all over. Place on a microwave-safe dish and microwave for about 5 min per pound (about 20 min total). Let cool for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine the turkey, zucchini, garlic, paprika, and 1/4 tsp. each salt and pepper. Form into meatballs and place on a large platter. In a deep, large skillet, heat the oil. Cook the meatballs for 5-7 minutes or until browned on both sides. Gently transfer all of the meatballs back to the platter. Reduce the heat to medium and add the eggplant and onions to the skillet. Cook 3-5 minute or until softened. Stir in tomatoes and vinegar and 1/8 tsp. salt. Nestle meatballs in the sauce and cook for another 8-10 minutes or until meatballs are cooked through. While the meatballs are cooking, cut the squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and the use a fork to scrape the pulp into spaghetti-like strands. Toss the squash with the arugula and serve the meatballs and sauce on top.

Fudgy One-Pot Brownies

This is no joke.

YUM.

As we approach the end of the year, I realize that I've done a relatively good job of sticking with this year's "from scratch" resolutions, which I do plan to continue into next year. I made all of our birthday cakes and frostings from scratch, and our popsicles and ice creams, too. I never got around to homemade pasta or bread, but there's always next year.

However, I will never, ever, ever buy a box of brownie mix again. Ever.

I was picking up something at Kohls for my dad the other day, and there was a sale on the "Kohls Cares" table - you know, those $5 children's books and cookbooks and stuffed animals that donate a portion of the sales to a charity somewhere? Well, this cookbook, The Mom 100, was discounted to $2.50. Had. to. get. it. Because I love cookbooks. The way some women love purses and shoes.

I've really had a lot of fun trying out some of the recipes, but this takes the cake. Or the brownie?

You need:

2 sticks unsalted butter (save the wrappers to grease the pan)
3 oz. unsweetened chocolate
1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. vanilla
3 eggs
1 1/2 c. flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the butter and chocolate in a medium sized saucepan over low hear and let melt together, stirring until smooth. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the cocoa powder, sugar, and salt. Blend in the vanilla. Beat in the eggs once at a time, rapidly, so that they don't cook. Blend in the flower. Pour into a greased baking pan. Cook for 25-30 minutes.

Giada's Turkey Meatballs

I've been making meatballs forever. And nothing will ever take the place of my mother's meatballs. They are amazing. They are great plain, slapped in between a honking slice of fresh bread or as a side to a pasta dish. 

However, I came across this recipe when watching an episode of Giada at Home which focused specifically on great little meals for little mouths. Not only were these really tasty little meatballs, but they froze beautifully in the sauce. And I had so many leftover that I had a ton of "oh snap! We got home way too late from shopping and the children are shouting for lunch with angry zombie eyes" mini lunches in the freezer. I popped them in the microwave to defrost and served them up with a slice of toast. And all wee ones instantly returned to normal....ish. 

You need:

for the meatballs:

1 c. plain breadcrumbs

1/2 c. Parmesan cheese

1/4 c. fresh basil

1/4 c. fresh parsley

1/4 c. whole milk, room temperature

1 tbsp. ketchup

1 tbsp. tomato paste

3/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

2 eggs, room temperature

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 lb. ground dark turkey meat

1 lb. spicy turkey sausage, casings removed

olive oil

for the sauce:

1/4 c. olive oil

3 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled

1 onion, chopped

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. black pepper

3/4 c. fresh basil, chopped

2 tsp. ground fennel

2 tsp. dried oregano

2 28oz. cans of crushed tomatoes

1/2 c. chicken broth, optional

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, combine all meatball ingredient. Mix well with your hands. Form into small balls and place on a non-stick cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and bake until cooked through, about 15 minutes.

While they are cooking, heat the 1/4 c. olive oil in a large deep skillet. Add the garlic, onions, salt and pepper. Cook for about 6 minutes on medium-high. Add the basil, spices, and tomatoes. Simmer for about 15-20 minutes. Add the cooked meatballs and simmer about 10 minutes more. Thin with chicken stock, if needed. 

Top with grated Parmesan and crusty bread. Freeze leftovers in wee beastie lunch portions.