Friday, February 28, 2014
ROLO CHEESECAKE BARS
CRUST:
3 cups of graham cracker crumbs
1 cup sugar
2 Sticks of melted butter (16 tablespoons)
Stir all together and press into a 9 X 13 pan lined with non stick foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 7-10 minutes and cool.
FILLING:
2 (8-oz packages) of cream cheese
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
Beat until smooth. Once smooth, add one package of mini Rolos (the unwrapped one) and pour onto the cool crust and bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Let cool and glaze.
GLAZE:
Melt in microwave: 1 stick of butter and 6 ounces of chocolate chips. Stir until smooth and add 4 teaspoons of light corn syrup. Pour smoothly on bars and chill overnight. Cut with a big knife! I added a chocolate drizzle and a half of Rolo on top! Enjo
Thursday, February 27, 2014
Oven Baked Tacos!
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Brown your ground beef and drain completely - then add
refried beans, taco seasoning and about half a can of
tomato sauce. Mix together and scoop into taco shells, (stand them up in a casserole dish).
Sprinkle the cheese on top and bake at 375 for 10 minutes!!!!!!
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
Cold Soups or Hot Soups, Which One is The Ideal Meal?
There are many soups that are called "comfort foods" and this is because there really is nothing that can compare to the feeling of cradling a warm vessel of delicious soup in your hands on a cold day. However, soup is also a summer food when you make it with fresh vegetables and sip it cold under a shady tree.
Additionally, the smoothie craze has led more and more people to give a lot of different cold soups a try as well because they are often quite close in taste and texture to healthy smoothies.
Just think of that wildly popular favorite known as gazpacho. This is something that usually has very little salt and relies instead on the freshest herbs, garlic, vegetables, and a bit of healthy vinegar to give it zing. Whether eaten as a snack, a meal substitute, or the first course of a larger meal, it is one of the cleanest and most invigorating foods you can ever experience. It is, as many say, "like drinking a summer day".
Naturally, many people want a nutritious hot soup as well, and though cooking and processing can decrease the nutrient counts of some foods, there are ways to still enjoy the pleasures of warm and hot soups while also getting a lot of "bang" for the buck. For instance, the classic miso soup recipes can deliver a high number of enzymes, nutrients, and loads of protein. Whether enjoyed with or without noodles, these hot or warm soups really give a ton of nutrition.
If you are more concerned with fiber, you can get a classic "cream" soup by using roasted or boiled potatoes (or other starchy vegetables) and pureeing them for a soup base. This would allow you to gently heat the mixture, rather than boiling it and killing off a lot of enzymes. You could make everything from a creamy broccoli mixture to a classic "chowder" without the dairy and fat. Bean soups work in this way as well, and you can easily puree half of the cooked beans to make an amazingly "creamy" result. Blending beans really adds flavor and texture and is a "trade secret" of vegetarian and vegan soup fans.
We suggest you have a good mix of hot and cold soup recipes on hand. These should put an emphasis on cold soups because it means that they are, technically, "raw" and full of enzymes and nutrients in a way that cooked and processed foods just cannot be.
Like all foods and recipes, however, you do want your soups to be made from the finest whole and fresh foods. While it can be tempting to purchase vegetables that are not in prime condition, thinking that because they are going into the soup pot their "ugliness" won't matter, but just think of the nutrition they have already lost. You want food to bring vitality and to do that it needs to be made from the best ingredients. The keys are fresh, organic, and local (whenever possible).
The Many Benefits of Healthy Crock Pot Cooking
Healthy crock pot cooking allows families to prepare their meals, have it cooked and be ready at dinner time with little effort. Once all the ingredients have been combined into a slow cooker (crock pot) you can easily set the meal to cook while away at work, or out enjoying other activities. In fact, foods cooked in a crock pot tend to have more intense flavors because of the extended cooking time. Having the ability to control all added ingredients can enhance the nutrient content of every family meal.
The first slow cooking crock pot was manufactured in the early 1970s. By the end of that decade, manufacturers had made them easier to clean. Within the first few years, hundreds of quality cookbooks dedicated to slow cooking became very popular with home chefs.
Nutritious Meals
Having the ability to control every meal's nutrient profile helps maintain a healthy family. As an example, adding organic vegetables to a recipe helps increase the nutrient content of the meal while adding more bulk and fiber from the vegetables. In fact, high-quality tougher cuts of meat turn out perfectly when the cooking time is extended at a lower temperature. Often times, these meats become fork tender without the need to add tenderizers or fat. This helps the family maintain a lower calorie content and consume leaner cuts.
Increased Nutrient Content
During any cooking process, there tends to be a breakdown and nutrients, with the exception of lycopene that often is heightened during cooking. Fortunately, a crock pot offer significant advantages over other cooking methods because of its relatively low heat an extended cooking time. The lower temperature tends not to destroy healthy nutrients, which is often the downside to boiling or steaming. Recapturing juices and sauces with the slow cooker tends to increase the results of healthy crock pot cooking.
Reduced Processed Food Consumption
One of the greatest benefits of a slow cooker is the ability to reduce the consumption of harmful processed foods. In fact, a slow cooker provides the opportunity to decrease the amount of sodium intake, while reducing calories and fat in the family's diet. Prepackaged meals purchased from the frozen or box section of the store can now be easily prepared using the family's slow cooker. As an example, the home chef can find a wide assortment of recipes specifically designed for the slow cooker including casseroles, roasts, soups and even baked desserts.
Aside from healthy crock pot cooking results, there are other significant benefits to using a slow cooker. These include:
• A Timesaver - Most meals prepared in the slow cooker require only the single pot. There is only minimal initial preparation required, and the slow cooker will perform all the work while the family is away.
• Reduced Energy Consumption - Slow cookers are manufactured to use substantially less electricity than through conventional ovens and stoves.
• Easy Cleanup - Manufacturers now create crock pots that are easy to clean. The pot simply lifts out of the cooker and can be placed in the dishwasher, or cleaned at the sink. With the exception of cutting utensils and a cutting board, all meals are prepared in the crock pot.
• Useful during Every Season - Because the slow cooker does not emit high levels of heat inside the kitchen, it works well for year-round cooking. There is a huge variety of recipes available including comfort foods for the wintertime, and easy to repair meals for the summer.
With the ability to use less expensive meats, cooking at lower temperatures, and controlling nutrient content, preparing meals in a slow cooker makes sense. It offers convenience, because it cooks the meals while the chef is away
Monday, February 24, 2014
Burned Biscuits - A lesson we all should learn.
When I was a kid, my Mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then. I remember one night in particular when she had made breakfast after a long, hard day at work. On that evening so long ago, my Mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage and extremely burned biscuits in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed!
All my dad did was reach for his biscuit, smile at my Mom and ask me how my day was at school. I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him smear butter and jelly on that ugly burned biscuit. He ate every bite of that thing...never made a face nor uttered a word about it!
When I got up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my Mom apologize to my dad for burning the biscuits. And I'll never forget what he said, "Honey, I love burned biscuits every now and then."
Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I asked him if he really liked his biscuits burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said, "Your Mom put in a hard day at work today and she's real tired. And besides--a little burned biscuit never hurt anyone!"
As I've grown older, I've thought about that many times. Life is full of imperfect things and imperfect people.
I'm not the best at hardly anything, and I forget birthdays and anniversaries just like everyone else. But what I've learned over the years is that learning to accept each other's faults and choosing to celebrate each other’s differences is one of the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship.
And that's my prayer for you today...that you will learn to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your life and lay them at the feet of God. Because in the end, He's the only One who will be able to give you a relationship where a burnt biscuit isn't a deal-breaker!
We could extend this to any relationship. In fact, understanding is the base of any relationship, be it a husband-wife or parent-child or friendship!
"Don't put the key to your happiness in someone else's pocket--keep it in your own."
So, please pass me a biscuit, and yes, the burned one will do just fine.
And PLEASE pass this along to someone who has enriched your life--I just did!
Be kinder than necessary because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.
"Life without God is like an unsharpened pencil--it has no point"
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