Banana Buckwheat Pancakes

Mouth-watering good!! Yummiest pancakes I've ever had. :) You can serve them with the traditional butter and syrup, but I like them best with apple sauce on top! I tried peanut butter and almond butter too, and both were good, but the apple sauce is definitely the best! Also, I didn't have baking powder, so I used a 1/2 tsp baking soda and left the powder out, and it worked great!

2 cups plain soy milk
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 c buckwheat flour
1 c flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
2 tsp egg replacer powder
2 Tbsp canola oil
1 Tbsp maple syrup (pure is best!)
2 bananas, thinly sliced

Mix 1 3/4 c soy milk with lemon juice in small bowl. Let stand 5 minutes.

Combine flours, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in medium bowl.

Whisk egg replacer and remaining 1/4 c soy milk in small bowl. Add to soy milk mixture. Whisk in oil and syrup. (For those of you who don't know what egg replacer powder is, see the picture below.)

Stir flour mixture into soy milk mixture. Fold in bananas.

Lightly oil griddle, and cook the pancakes just like any other pancake. Yummy!

Hazelnut Quinoa Salad

For those of you who have never tried quinoa (pronounced keen-wah), you need to!! It's a whole grain that is absolutely delicious and super good for you! With no further ado:

1/2 c quinoa
1/2 c bottled Italian salad dressing
1/2 c hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
1 medium cucumber, peeled and diced
1 c cherry tomatoes, halved
1 c petite peas, frozen, thawed and drained
1/2 c yellow or orange bell pepper, seeded and diced
1/4 tsp black pepper


Place quinoa in 1 c water in medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 15-20 min. or until water is absorbed. Fluff with fork. Cool completely.

Process salad dressing and 1/4 c hazelnuts in food processor or blender until smooth; set aside.

Place cooked, cooled quinoa in large bowl. Add cucumbers, tomatoes, peas, and bell pepper. Pour dressing over salad and toss until blended. Sprinkle with black pepper and remaining hazelnuts. Serve immediately.

Egyptian Edamame Stew

This recipe was super easy and oh my goodness so delicious! It comes highly recommended. :)

3 cups edamame-I used the frozen variety still in their shells. It takes a little more prep time, but shelling edamame is therapeutic for me. :)
1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1 large zucchini, diced
2 Tbsp minced garlic
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
1/4 c fresh cilantro, chopped (or mint)
3 Tbsp lemon juice

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until starting to soften-about 3 minutes. Add zucchini and cook, covered, until the onions are starting to brown-about 3 more minutes. Add garlic, cumin, coriander, and cayenne and cook, stirring, until fragrant-about 30 seconds. Stir in tomatoes and bring to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer and cook until slightly reduced, about 5 minutes.

Stir in the edamame and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in cilantro (or mint) and lemon juice.

I'm not kidding-this recipe is 5 stars!!! Next time, though, I think I might try a little more cayenne and mint instead of cilantro.

Chicken Stock

Ps. With my leftover chicken carcass (ha ha), drippings, and etc I made a chicken stock.

I boiled all the leftovers in a stockpot for about 3-4 hours, drained it, and put all the extra chicken back in for a yummy chicken noodle soup. Season accordingly!

How's that for directions?

Roasted Lemon Pepper Chicken

I have FINALLY started feeling good enough to actually cook again! Yeah! For the last 2 months all I really make is quick stuff for the kids like pancakes, grilled cheese, soup, frozen chicken nuggets, mac n' cheese, etc. So crap essentially. ha ha.

Last night we celebrated my husband's birthday and I wanted to actually MAKE a good meal so I roasted a whole chicken with mashed potatoes. Sooo yummy. This is the second best way to make chicken, the first being in the dutch oven of course. :)

So after thawing out my whole chicken, I cleaned out the stuff out of the inside and patted it dry. I put it in a casserole dish lined with tin foil and cooking spray. I then chopped up these:

4 lemons
2 onions
4 T butter
I put half of them inside the little birdie and the other half around the pan. I then put a couple pats of butter in between the skin and meat. I then sprinkled liberally with kosher salt and lemon pepper seasoning. Then finally I drizzled it with olive oil.I put it in a 375 degree oven, uncovered for about an hour and a half. I had my internal thermometer set at 170, so when it went off I took it out and made sure it was done and then my wonderful husband cut it up. I totally forget to take a final picture so I hope this does.I LOVE roasted chicken I had thank you's all around, ever one went to bed so stuffed. Especially after we topped it off with birthday cake! Being pregnant is fun when I don't feel like crap all the time.

PS. I love sharing recipes with my sisters and the rest of you should too. I command it. The end. :)

Kung Pao Tofu

I love Chinese food! It's probably my #1 comfort food, and something I am pretty sure I can't live without. So, I obviously had to find recipes to make vegetarian Chinese food. This one is really yummy!

Ingredients:

1 14-oz package extra-firm water-packed tofu, rinsed
1/2 tsp five-spice or all-spice powder
1 Tbsp canola oil
1/2 c water
3 Tbsp oyster-flavored or oyster sauce
1/2 tsp cornstarch
4 cups broccoli crowns in bite-size pieces
1 yellow bell pepper, diced into 1/2 inch strips
1 red bell pepper, diced into 1/2 inch strips
1 Tbsp minced fresh ginger
1 Tbsp minced garlic
2 Tbsp unsalted roasted peanuts
2 tsp hot sesame oil--I used straight sesame oil and it added a lot of flavor-do it!

Directions:

1. Pat tofu dry and cut into 1/2 inch cubes. Combine with 1/4 tsp all-spice in med bowl.

Now, I know that some of you are scared of tofu, so here are some tips! The texture can be really nasty, but if you hate tofu I'm betting you've never had it made the right way! I have to attribute the following tip to my Mom who learned it from her fishetarian friend. :) First, rinse the tofu! Then squish it between two napkins until the napkins are dry. This reduces the slimy texture and makes the whole experience a lot better.



Also, the type of tofu you buy really matters! Extra-firm is the way to go for most recipes.



2. Heat canola oil in large nonstick skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add tofu and cook, stirring every 1-2 minutes, until golden brown, 7-9 minutes total. Transfer to a plate.

3. Meanwhile, whisk water, oyster sauce, cornstarch and remaining 1/4 tsp all-spice in small bowl.

4. Add 1-2 Tbsp oyster mix to bowl and then add broccoli and peppers to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally until vegetables begin to soften, about 4 min. Add ginger and garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Reduce heat to low, add the oyster sauce mixture and cook, stirring, until thickened, about 30 seconds. Return the tofu to the pan along with peanuts and stir to coat with sauce; stir in hot sesame oil.

And enjoy!! I really liked this recipe. I made some brown rice and bulgur to go with it, but it can definitely stand alone too.

Fruit Pizza

Crust:
1/4 C shortening
1/4 C sugar
1 large egg
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 C flour
1/2 tsp baking powder

Mix shortening, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Blend well. Add flour, vaking powder, and salt. Cover and chill in freezer 10-15 minutes. Press onto greased pizza pan. Roll or cul up the edges of the crust like a pizza to prevent edges from burning. Bake at 375 F for 10 minutes. Watch carefully so it doesn't burn!


Cream Cheese Topping:
4 oz. cream cheese
1/4 C sugar
Blend well

Lemon Sauce Topping:
1 TB cornstarch
1/2 C sugar
pinch of salt
2 TB lemon juice
1 tsp. grated lemon rind
1 drop yellow food coloring

Thoroughly mix the cornstarch, sugar and salt. Stir in 1 C boiling water. Bring slowly to a boil, stirring constantly, then simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add lemon juice, rind, and food coloring. Makes about 1 cup.

Fruit Pizza:
Spread cream cheese on cooled crust, then spread lemon sauce over the cream cheese. Then add your favorite fruit to make it beautiful and delicious. Apples, mango, strawberries, kiwi, pineapple, mandarin oranges, etc. Be creative!