Rosemary & Garlic Crackers

Who knew that home made crackers could be so easy and so good? The whole family loved these simple crackers. I found the recipe here, and below is my version. These could so easily be changed up! You can use any type or combination of flours as well as herbs or spices.

Rosemary & Garlic Crackers

3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (or combination of grains –I used whole wheat and oat flours)
1/4-1/2 c. butter, melted
1 cup water and 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 t. dried rosemary, crushed

1 t. garlic powder

1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese

The flours can be soaked for 12-24 hours, but the crackers will be great even if you skip this step.

Combine flour(s) with water and vinegar. Soak (or not) for 12-24 hours.

After soaking (or not) add the melted butter, salt and baking powder. Knead ingredients together until well combined. Divide dough into two portions. Roll each portion into a large rectangle (about 1/16 inch thick). Cut into desired squares and place on a cookie sheet. Pierce each cookie with a fork 2-3 times. Bake in a 425 degree oven for 10-12 minutes until lightly brown. Enjoy!

Browned Butter Banana Bread

My Mother-in-law makes a mean banana bread. Seriously, it is the BEST. I have the recipe, and it uses a cake mix in the ingredients. Call me lazy, but I just never buy or use cake mixes. Well, maybe that is the opposite of lazy? I have tried my best to find a banana bread recipe that is even close to as good as hers. I have made probably about 5 versions. This one is very, very good! I found the recipe at Sing for Your Supper. I love her blog! Her recipes never disappoint. This bread was even better the 2nd day!

Browned Butter Banana Bread
1/2 c. butter
2 c. flour
3/4 c.brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
4 bananas, mashed
1/2 c. chopped pecans (I omitted)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 and grease an 8" loaf pan.

In a medium saucepan over high melt the butter. Once it is melted lower the heat to medium and swirl the butter around the pan. Continue to swirl the butter occasionally. After about 5 minutes the butter will literally turn brown. Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool while getting everything else ready.

In a large bowl sift the dry ingredients.
In another bowl whisk the eggs then add the mashed bananas, vanilla and the semi-cooled butter.
Add the liquid to the dry mixture. Mix just until incorporated, don’t over mix. Pour the batter into the greased loaf pan.

Bake at 350 for 60-70 minutes, until it is browned on top and a fork inserted comes out clean. Cool for at least 15 minutes in the pan before cutting and serving.

Kale Chips

We got our 2nd CSA box for the summer today. In our box was some beautiful kale and I was sooooo excited. I’ve seen recipes online for kale chips and have been dying to try them. Well- the verdict is in——–DE-LIC-IOUS! Everyone in the family loved the chips. They just melt in your mouth. What a cool way to get your leafy greens! I combined a few recipes and came up with my own. Give it a try!

Kale Chips

2 bunches (or 1 large bunch) kale, washed and cut into small pieces (think smaller than tortilla chips)

1 1/2 T. rice wine vinegar (balsamic or even apple cider vinegar would work)

3 T. Olive oil

1 t. sea salt

1/3 c. grated Parmesan *optional

Whisk together oil, vinegar and salt. Using hands, toss kale with oil mixture. Spread onto 2 cookie sheets. Sprinkle with cheese (or not). Bake at 300 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Use a spatula about half way through to loosen the chips. Enjoy!

Blue Mac 'N Cheese

There is a great local vegetarian restaurant that serves fantastic soups. They also have some of the best macaroni and cheese I've ever had. My favorite is their "Blue". I am a huge blue cheese fan, and lucky for me, my two little children are too! I found a great recipe online that is close, but still lacking a little of the magic. I lightened the recipe up a tad, but it was still great comfort food!

Blue Mac 'N Cheese
1 lb. penne pasta
2 T. butter
1 T. olive oil
1/4 c. flour
2 1/2 c. skim milk
1 1/2 c. blue cheese
3 c. cheddar cheese
Salt, black pepper, cayenne to taste
3 T. minced fresh chives

Preheat oven to 350. Cook pasta as directed, drain and set aside. Melt the butter with the oil in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat. Make a roux with the flour. Cook for about a minute and slowly whisk in the milk. Once sauce begins to thicken, add the cheddar and 1 c. of the blue cheese. Add salt, pepper and cayenne to taste. Toss pasta in cheese sauce and pour into 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle remaining blue cheese over top and bake 15-20 minutes until bubbly. Sprinkle with chives and serve.
Greta and Miles rating: Greta had 3 helpings and Miles ate every last drop of his!

Cheeseburger Bread

I think this could be more accurately described as a Cheeseburger Calzone, but either way- this is an easy delicious dish! The original recipe calls for premade pizza dough, but I made mine from scratch. This is a fun recipe that would be great to serve to dinner guests that might be a little less adventurous :) I used ground turkey, and it was fabulous!

Cheeseburger Bread
1 lb. ball of pizza dough
1 lb. ground turkey
Worcestershire sauce
salt, pepper, and garlic powder, to taste
1 c. shredded cheddar
1 kosher dill pickle, chopped into small pieces
ketchup and mustard, to taste

Preheat oven to 400. Brown ground turkey with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Worcestershire sauce. Drain. Stir in cheese and pickles; stir until well mixed.

Roll dough ball into a big rectangle. Spread the dough with ketchup and mustard (I skipped mustard). Put meat mixture in the middle of dough. Roll to make a loaf pinching edges to make a seam. Bake for 15-20 or until dough starts to brown.

Greta and Miles rating: They thought this was awesome!

Light Oat Bread

This is a fabulous bread recipe!! I have made it with all AP flour and also with 2 c. AP, 1 c. Whole Wheat. The loaves were delicious both times. This is our favorite homemade bread to use for making grilled cheese sandwiches. I usually double this recipe...I figure if I'm going to go to the trouble to make fresh bread, I want at least two loaves from the deal! Here is the original, which is for a breadmachine, but I prefer the taste and shape of the loaves when cooked in the oven.
Light Oat Bread
1 1/4 c. warm water
2 T. brown sugar
1 1/2 t. yeast
2 T. butter
3 C. Flour (whatever combination floats your boat)
1/2 c. Oats
1 t. salt

In small bowl, combine the water, sugar, yeast and melted (and cooled) butter. Set aside for about 10 minutes. In large bowl combine dry ingredients. Whisk together. Pour water/yeast mixture into dry ingredients and stir with spatula until combined. Then knead for 10-15 minutes. Cover and let rise until doubled. Punch down and transfer to bread pan. Cover and let rise until the dough is the same height as the pan. Bake at 350 for approx. 30 minutes.

Crispy BBQ Tofu Slices

Let me start by saying that I don't like Barbecue. I think it might have something to do with the fact that I am not crazy about meat. And meat attached to a bone is just plain scary to me! My husband and kids love barbecue sauce...and meat. I found this recipe on Allrecipes, I was excited! I love crispy tofu, but until now, my family has not had the same opinion. This recipe was such a hit that I had to double it to feed our family of 4. The little ones were fighting Daddy for the leftovers! This recipe was terrific and a new addition to our "regulars". I wouldn't recommend this recipe for the beginner cook as there are many steps. In the end- this is definitely worth all of the preparations.

Crispy BBQ Tofu Slices
1 (16 oz) pkg. extra firm tofu
3 T. EVOO
1 egg white
1 T. bbq sauce
1 c. AP flour
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1 c. bbq sauce

Drain tofu, and slice into strips. Place in a plastic bag , and freeze overnight. This gives the tofu a meatier texture. Thaw tofu strips, and blot with paper towels to dry. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over med. heat. In a small bowl, whisk the egg white and 1 tablespoon of barbecue sauce (I had to double this).

Combine the flour, salt, and pepper in a separate bowl. Dip the tofu slices into the egg mixture, then into the flour mixture, Fry in the hot oil for about 1 minute on each side, until golden brown. You will have to do this in batches. Remove from the oil to paper towels to drain and cool.Preheat the oven's broiler. Brush tofu slices with additional barbecue sauce, and allow to marinate while the broiler heats up. Arrange them on a broiler pan. Broil for 5 minutes on each side, or until browned and crisp, watch closely so as not to burn them. Serve warm with the remaining barbecue sauce for dipping.

Greta and Miles rating: They absolutely LOVED this!!!