Beet Green Soufflé

This is the first recipe I ever made cooking with beets. I found beets a bit intimidating and never bought them...until I received a bunch in a box from Urban Organics (a delivery service for organic foods that we subscribed to when the kids were both in diapers and lugging a lot of produce, a stroller and two toddlers was a bit much. It ensured that we always had some fresh stuff on hand and opened up my mind about beets. Luckily, the box of fruits and veggies always was accompanied by a newsletter with recipes for the more exotic things....

This recipe is from theFebruary 15, 1999 edition of the Urban Organics Today newsletter:

Ingredients:

• 2 tb Parmesan cheese grated
• 2 md beets, cooked and peeled
• 2 tb butter
• 2 tb flour
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup beet greens, chopped and sautéed
• 1/2 cup Cheddar cheese, grated
• 3 egg yolks (I use 4)
• 4 egg whites

Butter a 1qt soufflé dish (granny's corning ware works fine). Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Slice the cooked beets and line the bottom of the soufflé dish with them. In a saucepan, melt the butter, stir in the flour, add the hot broth and continue to cook until slightly thickened. Add beet greens along with the Cheddar cheese.

In a separate bowl, beat egg yolks; blend with beet green mixture. Beat egg whites until they form peaks. Fold into bowl with other ingredients, blend well. Transfer all to buttered soufflé dish. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Bake at 175C (Convection) for 30 minutes or until soufflé is puffed and golden.

• 
  

Stress Eating

Some people lose weight when they are stressed. Makes sense to me. Wouldn't that be a natural response. You are stressed and anxious, your stomach gets into a know...you don't eat. This holds not true for me. I eat to fight stress. Funny that this is a fairly new realization of mine. When I am relaxed and don't have a worry in the world, I lose weight easily. When stressed, my thoughts centre around food and I don't have the energy to fight it.

I am quite aware of what my stressors are:

• Sleep Deprivation: This is huge for me. I have been an insomniac all my life. My sleep is poor, easily disrupted and fragmented. In my younger years, I probably was able to cope better with the exhaustion and sneak in a nap during the day. With the demands of work and my family, naps are out of the question now. I have read that scientists have identified different sleep patterns inherent to specific people. One of the more common pattern were two sleep cycles per day, i.e. sleep from 11pm to 3am and again from 5am to 7am. And here I thought I was an insomniac. The above describes my natural sleep pattern - not that it plays out like that every night... What to do with that information? I am not inclined to get up at 3am and busy myself...too cold and I might wake up the rest of the family.
  For now, I try to be in bed by 11pm. I need 7 hours of uninterrupted sleep to fill my bodies need for sleep. Getting up at 7am allows for an hour of toss and turn...
• Fighting children: Ever have the feeling after the kids are finally in bed and all the bickering has stopped to just stuff your face? I always feel that once they are tucked in, I am in need and deserve something sweet. Very dangerous. My tactic to fight that right now is to keep busy after dinner. I am also following the rule of no more food after dinner (difficult with a grazing, skinny husband).
• Abdominal discomfort: this is almost counter intuitive, but I often eat when my stomach/intestines feel irritated, bloated or crampy. I think I have a bit of IBS and when I do have symptoms I tend to put more food into my system to fight the uncomfortable feeling. Weird one. Eating veggies and fruit eliminates my abdominal issues almost completely, maybe because they are easier to digest?
  

They say that knowing your enemy is winning half the battle, but I have known most of my stressors for a long time...

Double Dipping Moms

The cooks in this world deserve a pat on their shoulders for staying thin or attempting to lose weight. Think about it, you are supposed to cook healthy, nutritious and tasty meals for your charges, what is more natural than lick a spoon here or sample a little something there. How can you cook without sampling? Don't you have to test your product?

I try to limit my nibbling during cooking, but boy, it's not easy. First of all, I am hungry when I am cooking. It's dinner time after all. And of course, I want to make sure that the dish is balanced and passed my taste buds. Cooking and baking to me is an art. I love experimenting with spices, consistencies and combinations. I hardly ever cook from a cookbook or if I do, I change the recipe to suit our tastes or availability of ingredients. I grow my own herbs and some spices and love to use them. I pick up new ideas from books, conversations or just standing at the grocery check-out looking at the covers of magazines. I am proud of my cooking... and a ruined meal is a stain in my reputation as good cook.

But even if you just try to get dinner on the table without any culinary aspirations, how do you avoid turning into a double dipping mom? During the last couple of weeks of intense dieting, I have stuck to tried and true recipes, where I didn't feel the need to sample before serving. But I know the day will loom when I am tempted to experiment and need to sample. One might say that if you sample during cooking you'll limit what you eat at dinner...well, that has never worked for me.

Come to think about it, I am not just a double dipping mom, but more like a triple dipper...What to do with all the leftovers. I was raised in a time where you ate your peas and finished your plate. Never a problem for me, unfortunately. I admire people who for reasons nebulous to me cut the crust off their pizza or the fat of the meat. Since I raised my children to listen to their hunger indicators in their bodies, I have never forced them to finish what is on their plate...so they regularly have leftovers. Danger zone for me. It just hurts to throw food out. Are you a triple dipping mom? And what are your tricks to avoid the pre and post dinner sampling?

Nutrient Values of Some Common Foods

This is a great resource from Health Canada: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/alt_formats/hpfb-dgpsa/pdf/nutrition/nvscf-vnqau_e.pdf

The Nutrient Value of Some Common Foods lists 19 nutrients in 975 foods marketed in Canada. The nutrient values are taken from the 1997 version of the CNF and are given in terms of the common household measure of the ready-to-eat form of the food. The nutrients listed in this booklet are:

Energy in kJ Protein Carbohydrate Total Dietary Fibre Total fat Cholesterol Calcium Iron

Zinc Sodium Potassium Vitamin A Vitamin C Vitamin B6 Folate Thiamin Riboflavin Niacin

Values for total saturated, total monounsaturated and total polyunsaturated fatty acids are given for some foods in an appendix to the main tables.

Use this quick and easy reference as a guide or a teaching tool towards forming better food choices through an understanding of the nutrient content of the foods you eat.

Obtain Nutrient Value of Some Common Foods

PDF Version

You can view or print the PDF version of the publication , Nutrient Value of Some Common Foods. You will need Adobe Acrobat reader to view this file.

Order a booklet:

Publishing and Depository Services
Public Works and Government Services Canada
Ottawa ON K1A 0S5
Canada

Hours of operation: Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET
Phone / Local: (613) 941-5995
Phone / Toll free: 1 800 635-7943 ( Canada and US)
Fax / Local: (613) 954-5779
Fax / Toll free: 1 800 565-7757
E-mail: publications@pwgsc.gc.ca
Web site : http://publications.gc.ca/

Please indicate the catalogue number when ordering:
H58-28/1999E
ISBN 0 - 660 - 17784 - 6

Price: $9.50Cdn +GST, Shipping and Handling, per copy
Payable to the Receiver General of Canada
Issued by Health Canada
Date: 1999

Mama's Fries

Here are healthy fries that don't put money into the pockets of fast food chains. They are easy to make but take a bit of time.

For two small baking trays and to feed a family of four use about 10 large potatoes. Peel the potatoes. Slice them into wedges. The wedges should be able to sit on the tray without falling over. Spray the wedges with vegetable oil. Sprinkle with salt and curry powder (or other spices to taste). Bake at 175C for 90min or until browned and crispy.

Zucchini Loaf

• 250g butter or unsalted margerine


• 150g sugar (original recipe calls for 350g)


• a few drops vanilla extract or vanilla sugar


• 3 eggs


• 1 small level tsp salt


• 1.5 tsp cinnamon


• 50g ground nuts (almonds or hazelnuts)


• 320-350g shredded zucchini


• 500g whole wheat flour


• 2 tsp baking powder

Mix everything well with electric mixer. Fill into 2 small loaf pans. Bake at 175C for 1 hour (165C for 45min in convection oven) Cool down in loaf pan.

2006-06-14 Making Pancakes 006

2006-06-14 Making Pancakes 006, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

 

2006-06-14 Making Pancakes 008

2006-06-14 Making Pancakes 008, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

 

Mexican Corn Muffins

Mexican Corn Muffins, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

Ingredients:

• 140g cornmeal


• 120g wholewheat flour


• 1 Tblsp. baking powder


• 1 tsp. salt


• 1/2 tsp baking soda


• 1/2 tsp sugar


• 1 medium onion, diced


• 1/2 tsp hot chili powder


• 1/2 green pepper diced


• 2 eggs


• 250ml buttermilk (or yoghurt)


• 125ml vegetable oil


• 200g shredded cheese


• 1 can corn

Mix flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar.  In blender pulse together onion, pepper, chili powder, eggs and buttermilk. Add to dry ingredients. add oil, cheese and corn. Mix well but not too long.
Bake at 210C for 18min. Yields 12-18 muffins.

 

Sour Dough Bread

Sour Dough Bread, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

 

Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup sour dough starter
- 6 cups whole wheat flour
- 1tblsp salt
- 1 tblsp yeast
- warm water to make a soft, non-sticky dough

Mix ingredients and let rise in warm location until the dough has doubled in volume. Knead dough and form 2 small oval loafs or one large one. Place on greased baking sheet and let rise again. Bake at 200C (400F) for 50 minutes. In convection oven bake at 165C for 40 minutes.

 

German Vollkornbrot

Ingredients:

- 500g whole wheat flour
- 500g oats
- 200g seeds (ground flax, sesame, pumpkin, sunflower, millet, amaranth etc)
- 1 tblsp salt
- 3 tblsp yeast
- 1000ml warm water
(you can experiment with different flour and seeds, the dough should be soft and sticky for baking in loaf pans. If you like to make oval loafs, add more flour to make the dough smooth and non-stick)

Mix everything with the dough hooks on your electric mixer. Let rise for 1h. Spoon into 3 small loaf pans. Bake in preheated oven at 200C (400F) for 50min or in convection oven at 175C for 45min. Let cool slightly then remove from loaf pan and let cool on wire rack. Can be frozen.

Gewuerzkuchen

Gewuerzkuchen, originally uploaded by Turtlepace.

After looking on ebay, Buy and Sell and Craigslist for years, I finally found exactly the convection range I was hoping for.

I've been baking up a storm since I brought the beast home last week.

This Gewuerzkuchen is the latest creation. BTW, family loves the stove...or should I say the end results ;-)

Ingredients:
125g butter
150g sugar (original recipe calls for 350g - yikes)
320g whole wheat flour
1 tbls baking powder
125g grated dark chocolate
4 eggs
1/2 tblsp ground gloves
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 cup milk

Combine all ingedients with electric mixer. Pour into greased bundt or 2 loaf pans. Bake on 175C or 75 min (less if using 2 loaf pans) or on 200C for 60 min. In the convection oven I baked at 175C for 50min.

Chilie Con Carne - The Secret Ingredient

I love chillies. Comfort food. Easy to make, so many different possibilities. This one is my standart recipe. It always ends up tasting different because I don't measure the ingredients.

Ingredients:

• onions chopped


• garlic, minced


• red and green bell peppers, diced


• jalapeno peppers, minced


• lean ground beef


• can of red kidney beans


• can of diced tomatoes (or fresh tomatoes when in season)


• can of pureed tomatoes


• sugar


• chili powder


• paprika


• cocoa powder


• ground coffee


• salt

Brown the onions and garlic, add the peppers, add meat and brown. Add remaining ingredients. Add water if to thick. Bring to a boil. Let simmer for at least 1h. Serve with rice and corn bread

Greek Salad

Spicy Squid Salad

Ingredients

• cooked squid


• onions


• ground fried rice


• lime juice


• fresh chili


• mint leaves


• fish sauce


• garlic


• sugar
  


• lettuce


• tomatoes


• cilantro
  

Instructions

Mix cooked squid, rice, onions, garlic, chilies, lime juice, mint leaves, fish sauce and sugar in bowl. Present on bed of lettuce with tomatoes and cilantro

Phad Thai

If Thailand were to have a national dish, this would be it. There are lots of different variations on the same theme, so be sure to experiment the second time you prepare this.

Ingredients:

• 4 tblspn oil


• 50g hard tofu, finely cut in strips


• 2 cloves finely chopped garlic


• ½ tblspn dry shrimp


• 1 egg, beaten


• 150g vermicelli or glass noodles


• salted radish (ready to use)


• 3 tblspn soy or fish sauce


• 1/2 tblspn sugar


• vinegar


• 1/2 teaspoon ground dried chili


• mung bean sprouts


• 1 tblspn crushed peanuts


• spring onions


• lime


• vegetable stock or water

Instructions
Heat some oil in wok, add tofu, stir add fried shrimp and garlic, stir well while stirring , add egg, noodles, stock and let cook. Add vinegar, soy, 1/2 tablespoon of sugar, ground chili and ground peanuts cook until dry add bean sprouts and spring onions

Notes
Serve extra chili, sugar, ground peanuts and sprouts on the side for personal taste. Decorate with half a lime. Eat with chopsticks