Whole Wheat Banana Pancakes

These are super quick to make and the leftovers keep well in the fridge.  Everyone at my house is a fan and they aren't too bad for you either.  You should try them!

Ingredients:
1 large overripe banana
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
3/4 cup whole wheat flour

Directions:

• Mash the banana in a medium bowl.  Add egg and milk and whisk until frothy/bubbly on top.
• Combine baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg and flour in a sifter and sift into the banana mixture.  Stir until just combined/blended.
• Cook on medium high heat in a skillet or a griddle.  Small bubbles will form but not as many as traditional pancakes - I think it was about 2 - 3 minutes per side for cook time. 

This recipe made 7 medium sized pancakes.  Colin loves them and has been taking the leftovers to school this week for breakfast.

Sour Cream Mexican Rice

Again, this was really good! I love any kind of rice so maybe I am not the best critic, but this was something new and different and everyone loved it, even Colin. I probably wouldn’t make this on a weeknight just because I like super quick meals but I think we will be eating a lot of this side dish in the future. *Note: I accidentally left out the cilantro and it was still really amazing. Can’t wait to see what it tastes like when I remember to add all of the ingredients. Also, I doubled the recipe as we had 7 adults and one hungry baby and it was way more than enough.

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
1 (14 ounce) can chicken broth
1 cup sour cream
1 (4 ounce) can diced green chile peppers
2 cups shredded pepper Monterrey Jack cheese, divided
1 can corn
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
salt and ground black pepper to taste
Directions:
In a large pot, bring the rice and chicken broth to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a 1-1/2 quart casserole dish.

In the pot with the cooked rice, mix the sour cream, green chile peppers, 1 cup pepper Jack cheese, corn, and cilantro. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to the prepared casserole dish, and top with remaining cheese. Bake uncovered 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until cheese is bubbly and lightly browned.

Source: http://www.allrecipes.com/

Refried Beans

Ingredients:

2 lbs pinto beans, rinsed
10 cups water
2/3 onion, peeled and halved
1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon and 1/4 teaspoon salt
1-1/4 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin

Directions:
Mix all ingredients in the pot and cook on medium high for 1 hour, checking and stirring beans every hour until they are fork-tender. After about 4 hours (probably 1 hour too long) I put the beans and water/juices in the stand mixer, turned it on the highest setting and let it go for a few minutes. Next time we won’t cook them as long as a lot of liquid evaporated and I didn’t want to add too much more because I was afraid it would affect the flavor. This beans were delicious and we will be eating the leftovers in breakfast tacos this week. Again, this was another really easy recipe – you have to let them cook for awhile but the amount of work is very minimal.

Homemade Salsa

This salsa was delicious and so easy to make. A food processor is a girl’s best friend in the kitchen – this really only took maybe 10 minutes and part of that was sticking the dirty stuff in the dishwasher after it was all done. It got rave reviews from everyone at lunch!

Ingredients:
2 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and sliced in half
4 cloves garlic, halved
2 large vine-ripened tomatoes, quartered
1 (28 0z.) can diced tomatoes (drained or not, depending on how much liquid you want in your salsa) (I used 14.5 oz can)
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. cumin
1/2 sweet yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
juice of one lime

Directions:
In the bowl of a food processor, combine the jalapenos and garlic. Process until finely chopped. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add all other ingredients to the food processor. Pulse in very brief pulses until the vegetables have reached the size you desire (it does not take many pulses so don’t overdo it). Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving to allow the flavors to blend.

Source: http://www.annies-eats.com/

Taco Seasoning

My family came over to celebrate mother’s day on Sunday and boy did we have a feast! Of course I didn’t get pictures of anything because we were all starving and I wasn’t thinking about it at the time. I used a lot of new recipes on Sunday, so here is the first one:

Taco Seasoning

This was really good and it’s so much better for you than the envelopes you buy at the store. Plus, for me, taco seasoning packets are what I always forget to buy – but not anymore!
Source: http://www.annies-eats.com/

Ingredients:
4 tbsp. chili powder
3 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. paprika
3 tbsp. ground cumin
1 tbsp. plus 2 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
¼ tsp. cayenne pepper

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a bowl, and mix well to blend. Store in an airtight container until ready to use.

To prepare taco meat, use 2 heaping tablespoons in place of a package of taco seasoning (cook approximately 1 lb. of beef or chicken, add 1 cup of water with the seasoning, and simmer until the liquid is almost completely gone.)  I was too lazy to take a picture but it looks pretty!  Also, this makes a little less than 1 cup of taco seasoning, so it will last quite awhile.  I have mine stored in a mason jar.

Spinach Lasagna Rolls

I have seen this recipe floating around the blog world since February and I have had the ingredients in my fridge and pantry to make it for over a month....tonight I finally got to make it and it was so, so, so good.  It is light but filling at the same time.  It definitely did not taste like a "light/diet friendly" meal at all.  The best part is we have leftovers - the rolls still come out a pretty good size and 2 were more than enough for me.  This is not a weeknight friendly meal for our house, even though it's super easy.  It takes a little longer than normal to boil the noodles, drain them and let them dry, then roll them and bake the whole thing.  It is so definitely worth the extra time and like I said, it is really super easy!  I think from now on I will make all lasagna in this fashion (the roll) instead of the casserole version...it comes out looking pretty too and would definitely impress any dinner guests.  We devoured our plates along with some garlic bread and a bottle of red wine, yum.

Ingredients:
9 lasagna noodles, cooked
10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed and completely drained
15 oz fat free ricotta cheese (I used a fat free version of whatever HEB had in stock)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg
salt and fresh pepper
32 oz tomato sauce
9 tbsp part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded (I used pizza blend cheese, it was all I had)

Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- Combine spinach, ricotta, Parmesan, egg, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.
- Ladle about 1 cup sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 12 baking dish. (I couldn't find the right size dish so I used 2 smaller dishes instead)
- Place a piece of wax paper on the counter and lay out lasagna noodles. Make sure noodles are dry. Take 1/3 cup of ricotta mixture and spread evenly over noodle. (I did this with my hands, it was too difficult to smooth it out with a spoon). Roll carefully and place seam side down onto the baking dish. Repeat with remaining noodles.
- Ladle sauce over the noodles in the baking dish and top each one with 1 tbsp mozzarella cheese.
- Put foil over baking dish and bake for 40 minutes, or until cheese melts. Makes 9 rolls.
- To serve, ladle a little sauce on the plate and top with lasagna roll.

Source: Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes
Servings: 9 • Serving Size: 1 roll • Calories: 188

Here is a picture when you cut into the lasagna roll....pasta, spinach, and cheese...3 of my favorite things!

  And here is a picture of the little rascal who runs our household.  He did try the lasagna but was much more interested in peas and blueberries, 2 of his favorite things!  Tonight he sat at the dinner table with us for the first time in a booster chair instead of his high chair.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Grilled Pizza

I have been hearing about folks grilling pizza instead of baking it in the oven for awhile now...and it sounds so good.  I mean, for the most part, I think anything cooked on the grill is the best way to go.  I was lazy and used a store bought crust instead of homemade, but I think this made it a little easier for the first try.  The crust was refrigerated (Target brand 3 cheese crust) but wasn't doughy - does that make sense?  We ended up cooking it a little too long (correction: my husband didn't take it off when I told him to!) but it was still super tasty and a fun new way to cook pizza.

There really isn't a recipe, top the pizza crust with whatever toppings you want.  Everything I read online said to keep the toppings light when cooking on the grill, otherwise you might end up with a burned crust and raw toppings.  We cooked ours on a gas grill on medium high heat for 5 minutes, then took it off and put it on top of the cold pizza stone and put it back on the grill with the lid closed for another 10 minutes or so...until the cheese was melty, bubbly, and starting to brown.  Yum, yum, yum!  I love pizza night!