An Easy Trick to Use to Tell if a Food is Nutritious

I had to go to a class for the local Home Extension group that I’m in.  (I joined thinking that I don’t have a mom or grandma who can teach me things like canning or pie crust tips, I could learn things from these wise ladies.  It turns out that the ladies in the group I’m in are more convenience food ladies. Their canned goods come from Walmart and their pie crust is Pillsbury.  They are very nice, so I stick around.)

Every month, one of the ladies teaches a lesson on some topic that has been predetermined by the Home Extension office.  I’m supposed to teach a lesson to them on reading and understanding food labels.  I had to go to the library where someone from Home Extension taught us the information they wanted us to pass on.  Unfortunately, the other ladies in the class were older and didn’t pick it up quickly.  Simon and I got the gist within the first 15 minutes.  (Partially because I had included nutrition and food labels in his homeschooling.)  We then sat there for an extra hour while they explained it over and over to the other ladies.  I was pretty sure that’s how it was going to work–hence my dread.

First, let me preface by saying that I’m really all about shopping the edges of the store.   Foods that don’t require a nutrition label are my ultimate goal, but I understand that I’m a rarity.  A lot of people have no idea how to cook  the foods that you find around the outer edges of the store–produce, raw meat, dairy, etc.  People also frequently shop the middles because they have been brainwashed into thinking that they don’t have time to eat anything besides the processed stuff in the middle by years of commercials telling them that things like Hamburger Helper are delicious AND nutritious.  The little trick that I learned in this class is a good start for people who shop the middles!

COUNTING ON YOUR FINGERS TO READ AND UNDERSTAND THE FOOD LABEL (Kinda)
by our Extension Service and (Adapted by Shaye of Smarter Than Pancakes)

So you can Google food label to learn all about how the FDA requires there to be labels, that there are 14 items of info, etc.  I’m only giving you the trick they taught us to tell if a food is nutritious or not by counting on your fingers.

So you’re in the store and you’re trying to decide if Multi-Grain Pringles are a nutritious food.  Here’s what they say you should do:

Start with a closed fist and look at the middle section of the nutrition label.
If the food has 10% or more of vitamin A, raise a finger.
If the food has 10% or more of vitamin C, raise another finger.
If the food has 10% or more calcium, raise a finger.
If the food has 10% or more of iron, raise a finger.

Now move up to the top part of the label.
If the food has 5 grams or more of protein, raise a finger.
If the food has 10% or more of fiber, raise a finger.

Now you can either look at calories or fat.
If the food has over 200 calories or 10% or more total fat, lower a finger.

According to them, if you have any fingers standing, the food is nutritious. (Obviously more fingers means more nutritious, but no fingers is a pretty good indication that what you’re holding is a package of empty calories.)

My only problem with that is that they aren’t looking at cholesterol, sodium, or sugar with their finger thing.  Those are the big three that cause the most problems medically.  Their handouts do say that 10% of cholesterol, sodium, and sugar are excessive; but they don’t consider that in deciding if something is nutritious or not.  I would say that if you’re holding up one finger, and notice that the cholesterol, sodium, and/or sugar is above 10%; you should probably put that finger back down again because the nutrition you’d be consuming would most assuredly be negated by the extra cholesterol/sodium/sugar you’d be consuming along with it.  They said if you’re *watching* your cholesterol, sodium, or sugars; you should keep an eye on those numbers.  Shouldn’t everyone pay at least a little attention to those things with the epidemic proportions of heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes in this country?  (Sorry, I’ll get off my high-horse now, and try to start with baby steps.)

Anyway, that’s what I learned.  I’ve already had Simon use it a few times to decide if he was making a nutritious choice, so it is a nice little trick to have your arsenal.  (See how I didn’t say “handy little trick”?  I resisted!)

P.S.- Multi-Grain Pringles have 0% vitamin A, 4% vitamin C, 0% calcium, 2% iron, 1 gram of protein, and 1 gram of fiber.  Exactly zero fingers held up before we even look at fat, calories, or anything else. Don’t be fooled by the “Multi-Grain”.  You need “Whole Grain” if you want healthy.

Homemade Yogurt

I could have sworn I copied this from my old Vox blog into this one, but I can’t find it anywhere.  My niece posted about homemade yogurt on facebook this morning, and I was going to direct her to this post, but then I couldn’t find it.

Be warned, this looks like it’s hard, but I typed every single step in detail to make it foolproof.

There for a while, I was making yogurt about once a week.  The better your milk tastes, the better your yogurt will taste.  We prefer organic, but regular works fine as long as you taste it before you use it.  We’ve gotten regular milk that tastes really nasty before.

I like to add pictures with my posts, so I’m adding this lovely shot of the yogurt maker that I inherited from my husband’s grandmother, but you absolutely don’t need a special maker.  I’ve used a heating pad, the oven pilot light, and my crock pot set on warm.  Lately I use this baby:

This was Steve's grandmother's yogurt maker. I love this stupid thing.

Homemade Yogurt Recipe

To make about a quart of yogurt you’ll need:

1/2 gallon of milk

1/3 to 1/2 cup dried milk–makes it thick and creamy (skim milk takes more than whole milk)

1/4 to 1/2 cup plain yogurt with active cultures

100% apple juice concentrate (I use frozen)

fruit like bananas, strawberries, etc. to puree to mix in

1.      Set out the plain yogurt to warm up to room temp while you do everything else

2.      Combine your milk and dry milk in a large pot and slowly warm it to 180° F. (You need an instant read thermometer.)

3.      Let it cool down to about 110°

4.      Add the yogurt, but stir carefully so you don’t incorporate much air

5.      Pour it into a very clean container (I use a big Tupperware with a lid.)

6.      Put the container somewhere where it will stay at 110° (+/-5°)
(You can use your oven set on low, you can use warm water in a cooler, anything you want as long as it stays between 105° and 115°.  I used to put my Tupperware container in a soft sided cooler with my heating pad set on medium with the probe of my thermometer in there so I can keep an eye on the temperature.)

8.      Leave it to ferment for around 6 hours.  (Don’t jostle it while it’s fermenting or it might not set up.)
You can see when it’s set up because it looks kind of jelled and sometimes you can see the watery whey around it.  The longer you let it set, the tangier it gets.

9.     It’s now ready to eat, but I drain mine so it’s thicker–almost like pudding.

10.  After it’s set up, pour it into a strainer lined with a few layers of cheesecloth (or a coffee filter) over a mixing bowl to catch the whey.

11.  Leave it in your fridge for several hours or overnight so the whey can drain.

12.  After the whey has drained, pour it out of the bowl and dump the leftover yogurt cheese from the strainer into the bowl.  (It will kind of peel away from the cheesecloth.)

13.  Stir in the apple juice concentrate, a little at a time, until it is a sweet as you’d like (I think I use about 1/4 cup.)

14.  To make the fruit for the bottom or to mix in; I frequently use unsweetened, defrosted, frozen fruit that I’ve whirled in the food processor.  Our favorite is a really ripe banana, a few defrosted strawberries, and a drop or two of lemon juice.  (The lemon juice keeps the bananas from turning brown.)  You can experiment to find your favorites.

15.  I just keep all of it in a large container in the fridge and mix flavors when I serve it so I can pick flavors depending on my whim.

16.  If you leave the yogurt to drain longer, it will get more firm—like soft cream cheese.  You can then add herbs and spices and use it as a really good, low fat, savory spread or dip.

Hoppin John for Luck (Do I get double luck if I ate two servings?)

And don't try to tell me that Jiffy cornbread mix is just as good as homemade because you're wrong. Homemade is almost as easy and has no lard. Lard is yucky.

I’m going to go ahead and use the phrase “New Year’s Resolution”.  I know it’s so gauche, but I’m doing it anyway.  You know you’ve “set goals” or “have ambitions” to be more healthy in the new year.  Let’s just call a spade a spade and say they’re resolutions.  Sure, we’ll eventually break them, but why not start out the year on a positive note when it comes to eating habits that we want to install in ourselves?

 

Actually, my big plan is to allow myself enough leeway that it won’t actually be “cheating” or “breaking my resolution” when it happens.  I recently discovered RevolutionaryAct.com.  I completely agree with everything I’ve read so far.  I’ve been recommending it to everyone I know!  Go take a look at their article “Being Healthy Is a Revolutionary Act: A Manifesto for Thriving in a Mixed Up World”.  It’s pretty awesome.

Two ideas that I particularly like from their manifesto are the idea of filling 75% of your plate with veggies, then leaving the other 25% for other things; and focusing on eating healthy 85% of the time and cutting yourself some slack for three or four meals a week.  I’m going to try to do both.  I’m also thinking about going back on the old Weight Watchers.  I’m not willing to pay Weight Watchers for all of the new PointsPlus info, and I know well enough that a three point Twinkie isn’t as healthy as three points worth of produce.  I haven’t officially decided yet.  Let’s see how this 75% produce thing goes.

Ok, so as I understand it, corned beef and cabbage is a thing in the northern U.S. for New Year’s Day luck.  It used to be our tradition to make Reubens for New Year’s Day lunch every year.  I don’ t know if it worked or not.  I do know that we’re not eating corned beef since we went fully veg back in the beginning of 2010, so we thought we’d try on a New Year tradition from the south this year.  I hear they believe that black-eyed peas bring luck and greens bring money.  We could use both, and I could make all of the above vegetarian.  Besides that, it was gooooooood.  I’m not adding how many servings it makes because it makes a lot.  Maybe 8-10 servings.  Next time I’ll pay attention.

And so, without further ado, HOPPIN JOHN! (Converted to vegetarian because that’s how we roll now.)

Hoppin John (Converted to Vegetarian)

Nonstick spray coating (I used olive oil from my handy-dandy Misto)

7-oz soy sausage (I used Gimme Lean)

1 cup chopped onion (I probably used a little more than a cup. We like onion.)

1 cup chopped red pepper (About 1 pepper. I used red because I hate green. You can use green if you want.)

1 cup chopped carrots (Two or three carrots?)

2 cloves garlic, minced

8-oz (1 1/4 cup) dry black-eyed peas

5 cups vegetable broth (I used 3 cans of Kroger brand veggie broth.)

1/2 tsp dried rosemary, crushed

1/2 tsp dried thyme, crushed

1/2 tsp salt free seasoning (I used Penzey’s Mural of Flavor. Use whatever you want.)

1/8 tsp ground pepper

1/8 tsp ground red pepper

1 bay leaf

1 1/4  cups long grain rice

1.      Spray olive oil in a 4-quart dutch oven with nonstick coating.  Cut the Gimme Lean into smallish pieces and brown in hot oil until golden on all sides.  Remove from pan.  (If you throw the sausage in with the veggies, it gets squished.  It’s much better to cook first so it holds the little sausage ball shape.)

2.      Squirt more oil into the pan and add the onion, bell pepper, carrots, and garlic.  Cook the veggies until they start to soften a little.

3.      Add the fake sausage back to the pan, and then add the rinsed black-eyed peas, broth, and seasonings. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer.  Cover and simmer for 25 minutes.

4.      Stir in rice, then cook for 15-20 minutes more until the peas are done and the liquid is absorbed.

5.      Remove bay leaf before serving with collard greens and homemade cornbread—because Jiffy is gross.

I have every intention of posting at least once a week this year, and with two I’ve already posted 1/3 as many times as I did last year.  I got a new bread machine for Christmas, and there’s naan dough rising in there right now.  I’ll let you know how it goes.

2010 in review (a.k.a. “How fresh can I be with only 6 posts?”)

The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high level summary of its overall blog health:

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads Fresher than ever.

Crunchy numbers

The average container ship can carry about 4,500 containers. This blog was viewed about 15,000 times in 2010. If each view were a shipping container, your blog would have filled about 3 fully loaded ships.

In 2010, there were 6 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 56 posts. There were 6 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 523kb.

The busiest day of the year was January 30th with 114 views. The most popular post that day was School Yeast Rolls.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were facebook.com, canarygirl.com, search.aol.com, ellesnewenglandkitchen.com, and joysofjello.blogspot.com.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for sandwiches, sandwich, veggie salad, veggie burger, and hot fudge sundae.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

1

School Yeast Rolls January 2010
3 comments

2

Grilled Vegetable Sandwiches May 2008
5 comments

3

Veggie Burger and Veg-o-Matic Fries April 2008
9 comments

4

Homemade Ding-Dongs February 2009
10 comments

5

Hot Fudge Sundae April 2008
7 comments

The good news is that I’ve got my blogging shoes on and I’m already working on my first new post of the new year!

Stir-Fried Shiitake Mushrooms with Tofu and Bok Choy from VT

Happy Pancake Day, everybody!  We had blueberry pancakes this morning, but I don’t want to be cliché, so I’m not posting a pancake recipe.  Instead, I’ll post a recipe for a stir fry that I got from the latest Veg Times.

This stir-fry was really good!  I’ve been trying all kinds of vegan recipes from that issue, and I can’t believe how good they are.  And surprisingly filling!  I figured that we’d be hungry again in about an hour, but we haven’t been at all.

You can tell that I'm no food stylist. I didn't notice the sauce on the rice in the pink bowl until I uploaded the picture. Now it's going to drive me nuts, so promise me you'll just ignore it.

Stir-Fried Shiitake Mushrooms with Tofu and Bok Choy
Vegan – Adapted from Vegetarian Times Feb 2010 issue.
Serves 4 – 6 WW points per 1 cup serving

1 tsp cornstarch

2 Tbs soy sauce

2 tsp minced fresh ginger

2 tsp Thai chile sauce, such as sriracha (I had never had sriracha before—it’s really good. It doesn’t make the dish super-spicy like you’d think.)

2 cloves garlic, minced (I used about a tbs.)

1 tsp sesame oil

3 Tbs canola oil, divided (I used peanut oil.)

1 14-oz pkg. extra-firm tofu, drained and cut into bite-sized cubes (See draining directions below.)

1 lb bok choy, washed and cut into 1 1/2 –inch pieces (I love me some bok choy.)

2 cups sliced fresh shiitake mushrooms (It took all of a 3.5 oz. box of shiitakes.)

1. (To drain tofu—take it out of the package and put it on a plate.  Put another plate on top, and put some kind of weight on top of it for a little while—I’ve been known to use canned goods for weight.  Every so often, go back and pour off the water that has collected on the plate.  Tofu is like a sponge, and if you don’t do this step, it won’t soak up as much flavor.)
2. Stir the starch into 1 tsp of water; then add the soy sauce, ginger, sriracha, garlic and sesame oil.
3. Heat 1 Tbs of canola (or peanut) oil in large skillet or wok over med-high heat.  (I used my electric skillet.) Stir-fry the tofu until golden brown, then put it on a plate.  (I put mine on paper towel to get rid of more oil.)
4. Add one more Tbs of oil to the pan; then throw in the bok choi for about 4 minutes.  Move that to the plate with the tofu.
5. Add remaining 1 Tbs of the oil, then cook the mushrooms for about 2 minutes, or until tender.  (I don’t think I added all the oil each time.  I don’t think it needed it–my electric skillet is nonstick.)
6. Add the bok choi and tofu back in with the ‘shrooms, then pour the sauce over it.  Cook that all together for about a minute–or until hot.
7. (I served mine with basmati rice—because that’s what I had.)

Diet Super Bowl Food?

We love the Super Bowl.  My favorite parts are usually the food and the commercials–although my team is in the running this year, so I might actually watch the game!

We’ve been eating healthier this year, and I’ve dropped almost 14 pounds.  I love me some Super Bowl food, but there’s no way I’m going to go crazy and pack back on some pounds that I’ve fought so hard to drop.

For the first time in ages, we aren’t having or going to a party for the big game.  That’s going to make it a lot easier to limit ourselves to lower calorie/healthy snacks.  I’ve been trying to come up with some lighter options that will still be festive.

I’m not going to post any recipes until after I’ve tried making everything, but here is the list of what I’m currently considering.  (And no, most of it isn’t wholesome.  There are processed foods a-plenty.  I don’t think it will kill us to eat total crap on Super Bowl Sunday–as long as it doesn’t become an ongoing thing.  I think I’ll also be sure to have everyone drink lots of extra water and take a vitamin before bed.)

So here’s the grand plan so far:

• Sugar Free Jello Jigglers (Made in my official Super Bowl helmet/football mold!)
• Roasted, Spiced Garbanzo Beans
• Veggies and Baked Ruffles with Fat Free Beef Dip (Our local grocery used to make the best beef dip–before they were sold to Kroger.  I got the recipe from a friend who worked there, so I now can make it at home with fat free ingredients.)
• Baked Buffalo Chicken Tenders
• Lightened Potato Skins (I’m thinking about trying something with similar seasoning, only spraying the potato with Pam.  Then using 2% or fat free cheddar and a tiny bit of bacon for flavor.)
• Baked Tostito Scoops with Homemade Guacamole and Salsa
• Bacon Wrapped, Chèvre Stuffed Medjool Dates (Ok, this one doesn’t sound very diet friendly, but very little cheese fits inside.  AND, I’m told that if you par-boil the tiny piece of bacon before you wrap it around the date to bake it, a lot of the fat will boil out and it will crisp right up!  Plus, I’m not making very many.)

My big plan is to make very small batches of all of these things.  One box of Jello, one can of garbanzos, one avocado’s worth of guac., etc.  I’m also sitting here right now trying to figure out the points values of each of these treats.  We’ll be able to have a taste of several different snacks, without breaking the bank on points or stretching our stomachs back out.

I’d love to hear what tricks you have up your sleeve when it comes to “light” eating for parties and/or the big game!

Minestrone with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and White Beans

Ok, I’m starting out my healthy eating posts bent with several recipes I’ve tried from the latest (February 2010) issue of Vegetarian Times.  Even though I’m not a strict vegetarian, I am a huge fan of Veg Times.  I’ve had a subscription since 1993, and this may be one of their best issues yet.  (Of course, that might be because of my newfound interest in healthy eating—who knows?)

The first on the list is a soup that we liked so much that I’ve made it twice already!  It’s delicious, takes less than half an hour to get on the table, and has only 113 calories per one-cup serving.  What’s not to like?

Minestrone with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and White Beans
Adapted from Vegetarian Times Feb 2010 issue
(Vegan & Gluten Free)
2 WW points per 1 cup serving
Yield 4 cups

1 Tbs olive oil (Oil from the jar of oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes adds a lot of flavor)

½ tsp dried oregano

½ tsp dried basil

1 ½ cups diced onion (That’s about one medium onion)

1 cup sliced carrots (One or two carrots?)

1 cup sliced celery (Three stalks?)

2 Tbs minced garlic (Six cloves?)

½ cup sliced sun-dried tomatoes (I used oil-packed, dry is fine.)

15-oz canned Cannellini or other white beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup fresh or frozen green peas

2 Tbs. white wine vinegar

1. In a three-quart saucepan, heat your oil then put your dried herbs in to sizzle for about half a minute.
2. Add the carrots, and let them cook for a minute or two; then add the onion and celery. Cover and cook until the onion is translucent.
3. Throw in the minced garlic and let it sizzle for less than a minute.  (In the original VT recipe, they threw the veggies in at once, but our carrots wound up being really crispy in the first batch.  I also worry about burning my garlic, so I always add it last.)
4. Add the sliced sun-dried tomatoes and cook 5 minutes more.
5. Add the beans, a quart of water, and a little salt and pepper.
6. Bring soup to a boil, reduce heat to about medium-low, and cook in a low simmer for about 10 minutes.  (I think my stove is wonky, because it frequently doesn’t simmer on the burner settings they suggest.  Just keep an eye on it and make sure that you’re still getting small bubbles and lots of steam.  You don’t want a rolling boil, but make sure you’re simmering.)
7. Add the peas, and simmer 3 to 5 minutes more.
8. Stir in vinegar, then taste for seasonings.  Add salt and pepper if needed.

School Yeast Rolls

If you went to public school in my town in the Seventies and Eighties, you know that these yeast rolls are the stuff of legend.  The school cafeteria only served them on Chicken & Noodle day, and you could smell them from the minute you got to school in the morning.  By the time you got to lunch, you were completely starving for them.  They were like lunchroom gold—you could trade a yeast roll for almost anything—even chocolate milk!  (And let me tell you, Chocolate milk was a hot commodity for trading at my alma mater!)

This is not the best representation of these rolls.  I took this picture on a particularly harried day. I had a house full of family, and was trying to get the rolls to the table quickly.  I didn’t let them rise quite enough, and I didn’t bake them quite long enough. When you look at the picture, try to envision them higher, more rounded, and slightly darker–ok?

About thirteen years ago, one of the schools did a cookbook fundraiser.  I snapped one up JUST for the yeast roll recipe.  I’ve been making them for holidays ever since.  In the past few months, I’ve made them for Thanksgiving, December Bunco, Christmas day dinner, and another family gathering after Christmas.  There are rarely leftovers.

The original recipe makes 28 rolls.  I used to try to cut the recipe in half, but yeast breads don’t like it when you try to tamper with them.  I finally realized that I can make the full batch of dough, make all of the balls for rolls, then freeze them like Rhodes rolls.  Then I just pull out the number of frozen rolls I need, and defrost and bake them just like you would Rhodes rolls—only these are so much better!

School Yeast Rolls
Yield 28 rolls
WW Points 4 each  (Points are calculated without the extra butter brushed on top. Why do you think I only have them on holidays?)

1/4 cup plus 1/8 cup sugar  (6 Tbs. if that’s easier.)

4 Tbs dry milk

1 Tbs salt

675 grams all-purpose flour (Approx. 5 cups, but I make no promises for your results if you don’t weigh.)

1 3/4 cup warm water, divided (About 110°)

1 egg, beaten

1/2 lb. plus 1/2 Tbs. butter (No idea why it calls for 2 sticks and another 1/2 Tbs, but I do it.)

2 pkgs. dry yeast (4 1/2 tsp. if you use bulk yeast like I do)

1. Combine the sugar, dry milk, salt and flour.
2. Dissolve the yeast into 3/4 cup warm water.
3. Add the egg and butter to the 1 cup water; mix well then mix that with the yeasty water.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and mix on medium speed until the dough clears the bowl.  (I do this in my stand mixer.)
5. Place the whole mess into a greased bowl and leave in a warm (80°) place about 20 minutes for the first rise.  (The dough will be a little sticky, but not bad. That’s where measuring the flour comes into play.  If you try to scoop, you really don’t know how much you’re really getting, and there’s no way of guessing how stiff or sticky your dough will be.)
6. Pinch into rolls, and place in a greased baking pan.  (I should probably just admit that I am anal enough that I actually weigh the entire ball of dough, divide that by 28, then weigh each dough ball to make sure they’re all the same size.  Trust me when I say that you don’t have to–they’ll be just fine.)
7. Let rise in a warm place until double in size.  (I usually brush melted butter on them before I leave them for the second rise.  It isn’t called for in the recipe, but man is it good that way.)
8. Bake at 350° or 375° for 30-40 minutes, or until they’re golden brown on top. (That’s one thing I like about this recipe.  You can throw them in the oven with other things that are baking, and you won’t have to worry about the temp not being right.  When I bake them alone, I use 350°.)
9. If you don’t want to bake all of the rolls that day, follow the directions through step six where you pinch the dough into rolls.  Instead of putting them in a greased pan, put them on a sheet of wax paper in the freezer, not touching each other, until they’re frozen solid.  (Try to remember to go back and put them in a freezer container or bag as soon as they’re frozen.  They’ll freezer burn pretty quickly if you leave them exposed in the freezer.)
10. To bake from frozen, put them in a greased pan and cover with sprayed plastic wrap.  Let them rise in a warm place for 3-4 hours, or until doubled in size.  (My cousin Jana puts the pan on a heating pad set on low, and they rise considerably faster.) After they’ve risen, bake like normal.

So the rolls and the cake are the two recipes that people have been *reminding* me to post.  Now that they’re out of the way, I should let you know that I started doing Weight Watchers again earlier this month.  January 9th, to be exact.  That was my half birthday–which means I have exactly six months until I hit a milestone birthday.  If you’ve ever needed motivation to stick to a diet, a looming milestone birthday is a good one.  It’s been twenty days, and I haven’t cheated even once!  We also got a Wii Fit for Christmas, so I’ve been trying really hard to exercise, too.  So far, I’ve dropped ten pounds; but I’m not going to post “before” and “after” pictures until I look a lot less like the “befores.”

I’ve been trying all kinds of really good recipes over the past few weeks.  They all happen to be healthy and low calorie, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t fabulous.

I’ve also been making a lot more vegan recipes.  I never knew that vegan recipes could be so delicious and surprisingly filling!  I’ve taken pictures of all of the good ones, and I’ll be posting them in the very near future.  And I really mean it, this time!  I’m typing several of them out right now, and then I’ll just publish them every few days for a while.

The Famed Marble Cake

This was only my second attempt at marbling. I'm still no expert.

Ok, so I made this cake a few times over the holidays, and I’ve gotten a lot of requests for the recipe.  It’s only taken me a month, and I’m just now getting around to blogging it.  (Sorry, but I’ve already admitted to being a blog slacker.)

Not only am I a blog slacker, but this cake actually uses ::gasp:: CAKE MIXES!!  Yup, I said it.  I used mixes.  I swear I never use them normally, but I really liked the look of this cake, and I was too busy/lazy to figure out how to make it from scratch before I hosted Bunco.   Then, it was so good that I made it again for my sister-in-law from Seattle.  Eventually, I hope to figure out how to make it from scratch—but not until my birthday at the earliest.  (I’ve sworn off everything that packs this many calories until then.)

I obviously took the picture during the holidays, and the whole peppermint thing really screams Christmas.  I was thinking about it, though; and you could totally change the extract to almond or maybe even raspberry and change the taste completely.  The peppermint flavor is only in the frosting, so I really think that some almond extract and a few drops of red food coloring in the frosting would scream Valentine’s Day.

White part:
1  (18.25-ounce) package white cake mix

3  egg whites

1 1/3  cups  buttermilk

2  tablespoons  vegetable oil

Red part:
1  (9-ounce) package Jiffy yellow cake mix (or 1 ¾ c. of any other yellow cake mix)

1/2  cup  buttermilk

1  large egg

1 1/2  tablespoons  cocoa

1/2  teaspoon  baking soda

2  tablespoons  liquid red food coloring (That’s almost an entire bottle of McCormick’s Red.)

1  teaspoon  cider vinegar

Peppermint Cream Cheese Frosting:

1  (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1  cup  butter, softened

1  (2-pound) package powdered sugar

2  teaspoons  peppermint extract (Or vanilla, or almond, or raspberry, or whatever you want.)

(Just so you know, you’re going to need two bowls so you can make the two different colored batters before you marble them together.  I used my stand mixer to make the white part, because there’s a lot more of the white batter.  I used a small-ish mixing bowl and my hand mixer for the red part, and it worked beautifully.)

1. Preheat your oven to 350°.
2. Grease and flour three 9-inch, round cake pans.  (I used the baking spray that is especially for cakes—the kind with flour in it.)
3. In your large mixing bowl; dump in the white cake mix, egg whites, buttermilk, and veggie oil.  Beat it for at least as long as the package says.  (Longer is even better.)
4. While that’s whirring away in your stand mixer, take a smaller bowl and dump in the yellow cake mix, buttermilk, egg, cocoa, baking soda, red, and vinegar; then beat that for as long as the yellow cake mix package says.  (Again, longer is always better for cakes.)
5. Spoon the batters into your three cake pans, alternating the red and white, then swirl them together a little with a knife or a toothpick.
6. Put them in the oven, but make sure that each pan is at least a couple of inches away from the other pans or the side of the oven.
7. (While the cakes are baking, wash your stand mixer bowl and beater so they’ll be ready to make the frosting.)
8. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
9. Cool in pans on wire racks for about 10 minutes; then remove from pans and cool on wire racks.
10. While the cakes are cooling, make your frosting by beating the cream cheese and butter together until they’re creamy.  Add the extract; then lower the speed and add the powdered sugar.  (Trust me, if you don’t lower the speed, you’ll have a powdered sugar cloud that is not pretty.)
11. When the cakes are cool, spread the frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake.  (Know that if your cake is lopsided, you do not have enough frosting to pile a bunch extra in the middle to level it out.  Don’t ask how I know.)
12. If you made the frosting peppermint, you can garnish with crushed candy canes.  (It doesn’t really need garnish.)
13. Serve within 2 hours, and keep leftovers refrigerated.

Trust me when I say this cake isn’t as hard as it looks,  is really impressive looking, and absolutely delicious.   Several of my Bunco friends mentioned how dense and moist it is.

If you happen to make it and sub in a different extract in the frosting, do me a favor and leave a comment letting me know how it turns out.   Thanks!

Slow But Sure Post–Now with FRUIT SMOOTHIE!

For those of you who are here looking for the marble cake or the rolls, I swear I’m working on them!  Long recipes take longer to type out.  I have to type a paraphrased version of each recipe for copyright reasons, and both of those recipes are kind of long.  I’ve been working on them, but I’m also homeschooling and just started a new job.  I’m starting with a super-easy recipe, and I’ll try to get to the other two very soon!

Sooo, you already know about how good intentions pave roads–no need to expound on that one.  My grand scheme was to start the big diet on January first, except we were still in full holiday mode and had all kinds of company that first week.  Not to mention that Steve’s work decided that they should let everyone wait an extra week between pay periods the first of the year because there were too many weeks in the year or something.  I don’t know, but the budget got tighter that first week in January.  It actually worked out well because we ate out of our pantry for a while, and got rid of a lot of fattening foods that I didn’t want to have around anyway.   When we finally hit the grocery, we came out with lots of fruits, veggies, and whole grains.  I guess that should cushion the blow that we came out almost $300 lighter.  (In all fairness, we were out everything.  It does cost a little more to stock up on staples when you’re completely starting over with only healthy versions of everything.)

Steve finally got paid on the eighth, and the ninth is my half birthday–which means I have exactly six months to take off this weight before it becomes permanently glued to the body on my fortieth birthday.  (At least I’ve heard that it’s impossible to lose weight after you turn forty.  Hopefully it’s an exaggeration since I’ll still have a little more weight to lose after this initial fifty pounds I’m hoping to drop by mid-July.)

It seems that all the cool people are dropping weight now-a-days.  I just watched an extremely gaunt-looking Alton Brown do a show on that very topic.  (Somebody please tell me when I get too thin. I don’t want to look unhealthy like Alton.)

Anyway, one of Alton’s recipes from his show “Live and Let Diet” was a fruit smoothie that he has for breakfast each and every day.   (I’m not the type who could stand having the same thing every day for breakfast, but I say more power to him!)  His recipe makes 24 ounces of smoothie, which seems like way too much for a normal person to drink.  I made a whole batch and split it with my son for a mid-morning snack.  It was pretty good, but it needed some vanilla in my opinion.  All smoothies need vanilla in my opinion.

Alton’s Buff Smoothie

Alton’s Buff SmoothieMakes 24 oz–which serves two in our house. 3 WW points per 12 oz. / 6 WW points for the whole thing

(Know that Alton is a little strange, so he weighs the whole thing.  I did it like he did and just put the tank of my VitaMix right on my food scale and then zeroed out each time I added a new ingredient.  It worked easily enough.)

4 oz low-fat plain soy milk (I used unsweetened Silk, but the vanilla would be really tasty.)

4 oz Concord grape juice (Grape is cheapest, but according to him you can also use pomegranate or acai juice.)

4 oz frozen strawberries (All fruit is unsweetened–naturally.)

4 oz frozen bananas (I didn’t have any bananas in the freezer, so I just peeled one straight off the counter.)

4 oz frozen blueberries (You can use blackberries, but I don’t like that many seeds.)

4 oz frozen peaches or mangoes (I calculated the points using peaches.  Mango is tasty, but it has more calories and less fiber.)

A splash of vanilla extract (Alton doesn’t call for this, but it needs it.  I added maybe 1/4 tsp. to my half of the finished smoothie, and it was a big improvement since I like everything to taste like ice cream.)

1. Alton measures the ingredients into blender the night before and blends the next morning.  I didn’t, and it was a pain to mix because my fruit was really frozen.  I used a Vita-Mix, which has a power-boat motor.  I don’t know if it would have worked otherwise.  That fruit was rock hard.
2. If you want to know the exact nuance of how he mixed it, check the food network site.  I figure it’s a smoothie–you can’t really do it wrong if it comes out smooth in the end.

Ok, I’m off to nag my son to get his math done, and to work on that stupid marble cake post.