3.1.21 - Mom's lasagna

Ingrediets

• 1 lb. mild Italian Sausage
• 1 T. basil
• 1 T. olive oil
• ½ t. Salt
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 large can crushed tomatoes
• 1 T. chopped parsley
• 1 6-oz. Can tomato paste

• 10. oz. lasagna noodles

• 24 oz. cottage cheese
• ½ t. pepper
• 2 beaten eggs
• 2 T chopped parsley
• ½ t. salt
• ½ cup parmesan cheese

• 1 lb. mozzarella cheese (slices or shredded)

Instructions

• Brown sausage in hot oil then drain excess oil. Add the next 7 ingredients. Simmer uncovered until thick, about 1 hour. Stir occasionally. 

• Meanwhile, cook noodles in boiling water until tender; drain then rinse in cold water

• In a separate bowl, combine cottage cheese with the next 5 ingredients.

• Place half the noodles in a 13 x 9 baking dish; spread half of the cheese mixture over the noodles, then half of the mozzarella cheese. On top of the cheese spread half of the meat mixture. Repeat layers.

• Bake in a 375 degree oven for 30 minutes. Let stand 20 minutes before cutting. Makes 12 servings.

12.16.19 - Grandma Snyder's Christmas fruitcake recipe

As written by Mom...

11.30.19 - joy statuses

9.5.19 - Mom's Fried Chicken

I haven't actually tried to make this yet, but I wanted to keep the recipe somewhere I could find it again. And this food is definitely in my joy inventory - one of my all-time favorites from childhood. Oh to be able to cook like my mother.

Mom’s Fried Chicken

1 whole chicken, cut up

2 cups milk

2 cups flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. pepper

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

½ tsp. onion powder

1 T. paprika

Soak chicken in milk. Mix dry ingredients together.  Heat 1 inch of oil in skillet on medium high until hot (drop of water “dances” on top). Dip each piece of chicken into flour mixture, back into milk, and again in flour mixture, set on plate. Carefully add enough pieces of chicken to hot oil to fill pan without pieces touching each other. Fry until first side is golden, about 5 min. Turn to other side, reduce heat to medium low and cover pan; cook 10 min. Uncover pan and return heat to medium high for about 5 more min. Drain on paper towels.

7.2.18 - Spinach Sausage Loaf

This is one of my all time favorite recipes. I don't make it anymore because it's not at all gluten free, but I'd still like it in my Joy Inventory recipe archive for posterity (or special gluten occasions, I guess).

Ingredients (per loaf)
8 oz Italian sausage
2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
10 oz froz chopped spinach
1 loaf bread dough
1 egg
Flour for bread-rolling

About 5-6 hours before you want to start baking, set the bread dough out to thaw. The longer it thaws, the easier it will be to roll out. You can sprinkle flour in either a bread pan or on wax paper, place the frozen loaf there, add some more flour to the top of the loaf, cover it, and let it thaw.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Cook the sausage and break it into little pieces.
Thaw the spinach and make sure to drain it (I hand squeeze the water out).

Lay wax paper out where you want to roll the bread dough. Sprinkle more flour. Also rub flour on your rolling pin. Roll out the dough to roughly 14 or 15" long and maybe 6" wide (I'm just guessing, I always eyeball it).

Add some of the cheese. Add the sausage and chunks of spinach. Top with cheese again.

Get a cookie sheet and spray it with nonstick spray.

Wrap one end of the dough over the toppings, and wrap the other end of the dough over the first end, so they overlap. Pinch the ends of the loaf together. Flip the whole loaf upside down (so the overlapping and pinched parts are all underneath the loaf) onto the cookie sheet. \

Beat one egg in a small bowl; use a pastry brush to brush the egg over the whole top of the loaf.

Bake at 350F for 18-20 mins.

Here it is again in picture form.

5.6.18 - Potato Latkes

Another recipe from the 5 ingredient Gluten Free cookbook:

• About 2 lbs of potatoes
• 1 medium onion, peeled
• 2 large eggs
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 3/4 c vegetable oil
• 2 medium zucchinis

Shred the potatoes and let them soak in ice water for a few minutes. Then drain them, then squeeze them out in a towel. They need to be as dry as possible.

Shred teh zucchini and onion. Mix those with the potatoes and egg and salt and pepper.

Heat about 1/4 c of oil in a skillet and add the potato mixture in pancake sizes. Fry on each side until brown (a few minutes). Let cool and serve with sour cream or ketchup or apple sauce.

I let Clara try a bite and she asked for more, so I'd call that a resounding success.

4.30.18 - Cuban chicken and rice with fried bananas

Another gluten free dinner success, this one heavily improvised from this original recipe.

1 teaspoon cumin
3 cloves equivalent of garlic flakes
3/4 cup apple juice
Tablespoon of lemon juice
1 teaspoon GF teriyaki sauce
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed

Mix the above and let the chicken marinate for at least 20 minutes. Cook over low heat.

2.5 cups brown rice

Prepare according to package directions.

2 tablespoons olive oil
15 ounces black beans
2-3 clementines, divided into slices
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flake
Salt & pepper

Mix the above

3 bananas, sliced
2 more tablespoons olive oil

Fry the above.

Mix everything together.

This picture is from the original recipe. Mine didn't look exactly like this, but close enough and still delicious.

4.28.18 - Tuna casserole

I've been making a concerted effort to try to cook more. I never was much of a cook and once we had to go gluten free I became even less so. Plus I've been calorie counting for cumulatively probably over half of Clara's life, and calorie counting also really slows down cooking.

So for my most recent bet with Julie, I basically created a loophole where if I cook a gluten free dinner, I can eat that dinner without calorie counting it. That's a pretty good motivator for me. So far it seems like I am not losing any weight on this bet, but I am experimenting with more gluten free cooking, which is something I think my family needs and will need long-term.

Anyway, in the last couple weeks I've tried a teriyaki chicken stir fry, a "creamy eggs" toast, a potato hash, and two versions of tuna casserole. The stir fry was delicious but involved and a bit expensive. The creamy eggs were actually not at all good. The potato hash was cheap and tasty enough, but so far the winner is definitely the (second version of the) tuna casserole. Cheap, easy, delicious. So for posterity, here is how I made it:

• 12 oz GF penne
• 3 soft-boiled eggs
• Maybe 0.5 oz shredded sharp cheddar
• 15.25 oz canned corn, drained
• 12 oz frozen peas, microwaved
• 2 5 oz cans of tuna, drained
• Maybe 2 Tbsp of butter

I basically boiled the pasta and then mixed everything else into it. I did add some parmesan to my serving. Anyway it's delicious, and Jane loves it too. Haven't tried it on Clara yet.

1.20.18 - Gluten free oatmeal cookies

Oddly we have a whole ton of certified gluten free oatmeal in the pantry right now, so I decided to take a Saturday afternoon and try some gluten free oatmeal cookies. I followed the following recipe except I used all raisins (no chocolate chips on hand) and substituted GF flour for the cornstarch. The batter was delicious (hard to go wrong with a lot of butter and sugar) and the cookies themselves turned out pretty well too. I like to tell myself this is a cheat to get Clara to eat more oatmeal. :-P

Ingredients

4 1/2 cups gluten-free old-fashioned oats, divided

2 tablespoons cornstarch (used 1:1 GF flour as substitute)

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup chocolate chips

3/4 cup raisins

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a blender, process 1 1/2 cups oats into a fine meal. Whisk together ground oats, cornstarch, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.

In a large bowl, using a mixer, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. With mixer on low, gradually add oat mixture, beating until combined. Fold in chocolate chips, raisins, and remaining 3 cups oats.

In batches, drop dough in 2-tablespoonful mounds onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake until cookies are golden brown at edges, 15 to 18 minutes. Let cool on sheet on a wire rack 2 minutes, then transfer to rack and let cool completely.

Store in an airtight container, at room temperature, up to 5 days, or in freezer, up to 1 month.

(link)

Sweet Potato Casserole (aka Candy Yams)

(From Mom)

Oven 350 degrees

3 cups peeled, mashed sweet potatoes (4 medium)

3 eggs

¾ c. sugar

¾ stick of butter

1 t. vanilla

Dash salt

Mix above ingredients with mixer till blended. Pour into buttered 13 x 9 casserole dish.

Topping:

1 c. brown sugar

¾ stick butter, melted

1/3 c. flour

1 cup chopped pecans

Blend topping ingredients with a spoon. Drop by spoonfuls over top of sweet potato mixture. Bake uncovered for 35-45 min. 

Remove from oven, add mini marshmallows, broil for 2-3 mins or until marshmallows start to brown.

Butterscotch Banana Bread

Baking Time:  40 minutes

Recipe Makes: 10

Calories:          249

             

Ingredients

3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed

1/3 cup melted butter

1 cup sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cups flour

1 cup of butterscotch chips 

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F. Combine all ingredients (butterscotch chips last) and mix.  Pour mixture into a buttered 4x8 inch loaf pan. Bake for 40 mins or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on rack. Remove from pan and slice to serve.

Green and Gold Bake

I eat this dish a lot when I'm calorie counting. It's savory and easy to throw together. I also eat it when I'm not calorie-counting, but usually I add more cheese and maybe some ground beef or breakfast sausage in that case.

1 24-oz package of frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1 24-oz container of fat-free cottage cheese
9-12 Tbsp of egg whites
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
1 tomato, diced

Mix all ingredients together. Use cooking spray on a baking dish and add mix, spread evenly. Bake at 350 until a toothpick comes out of the center clean. (Sometimes I mix all ingredients but the tomato, add half to the baking dish, add all the tomato, add the other half on top.)

I like to then toast some bread and add a bunch of the G&G Bake to make a sandwich, but it's pretty good on its own too.

Chocolate Fudgy Cookie Bars

Oven at 350.

CRUST -- 1-3/4 c. flour, 3/4 c. powdered sugar, 1/4 c. cocoa, 1 c. butter/margerine, cold. Blend dry ingredients, then cut in butter with fork or pastry blender until crumbly (pea-sized). Press into 13 x 9 pan. Bake 15 min.

FUDGY MIDDLE -- 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 1 c. chocolate chips, 1 t. vanilla (optional). Pour chips into milk and heat in microwave until warm. Maybe 30-60 sec. Stir till smooth. Pour onto baked crust.

TOP -- 1 c. chocolate chips, 1 c. chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans). Pour over and slightly press into fudgy middle. BAKE 18 min. Cool 1 hour. Cut into bars.


This picture doesn't even begin to capture the fudgy goodness.

5.19.12 - cherry pineapple snack

I have no better name for this.

Two pineapple slices.

Two tablespoons of fat-free cream cheese.

Two cherries (pitted).

Cream cheese on pineapples, cherries on cream cheese, and stack. :)

The one in the pic was about 120 calories of deliciousness.

8.12.11 - Sunshine Fruit Salad

Ingredients
3.4oz instant lemon pudding
20z pineapple chunks in 100% pineapple juice
1 c. quartered strawberries
1 large banana sliced
(Optional) 1 c. mini marshmallows
(Optional) 1 c. chopped walnuts or pecans or whatever you prefer

Directions
1. Drain the pineapple, setting the juice aside
2. Use the juice instead of milk to make the pudding
3. Add all the other ingredients to the pudding and mix

Guiltless Banana Split

One Skinny Cow Fudge Bar removed form its Popsicle stick

One banana

Sugar-free chocolate syrup

Sugar-free strawberry preserves (or fresh strawberries themselves)

Fat-free whipped cream

Voila! A banana split that is somewhere between 200-250 calories. I just enjoyed it thoroughly.

3.7.09 - Pumpkin Pie Pudding

Ingredients:
2 1½ oz. packages of sugar-free vanilla pudding
1 cup of Vanilla Soy Milk (or Fat Free milk)
1 can pumpkin mix
Pumpkin Pie Spice

Directions:
In a large bowl, pour both packages of pudding, milk, and 2 cups of pumpkin mix.
Stir to consistency.
Add Pumpkin Pie spice to taste.
Optional: add fat-free Reddi whip cream.

Tomato Basil Soup

4 cans of stewed tomatoes, drained

1 can tomato sauce

Bring to a boil in a large sauce pan, then let simmer for roughly 30 minutes. Blend in a blender or food processor until smooth.

1/2 cup basil leaves, chopped

1 cup fat-free milk

4 oz fat-free cream cheese, softened

Add tomato mix and above ingredients back to large sauce pan, cook on medium heat until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste (I added sort of a lot of pepper, nice and spicy).

Got about 18 calories/oz.

Lower Calorie Banana Bread

Note: Normally prepared banana bread is, apparently, roughly 90 calories/oz even without nuts.

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix:
4 bananas, mashed up
2/3 cup fat-free milk
2 teaspoons sugar-free vanilla syrup (note: 4 teaspoons of vanilla extract instead adds 1.3 calories/oz at the end)
2 tablespoons Smart Balance Buttery Spread, melted

Separately, mix:
2 2/3 cups wheat flour (white flour is same calories, just not as good for you, apparently)
1 cups Splenda
2 tsps baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Mix two sets of ingredients together
Spray non-stick cooking spray on two ~5" x 9" baking pans
Split mix evenly into each
Bake ~ 50 mins or until center is set

Overall, slightly less than 50 calories/oz.

2.7.09 - Ain't nobody ever said "Hell, no! I don't like no parfait!"

So instead of continually eating the (free) Starbucks parfaits I have access to, I made bulk of my own parfait. Use:

Non-fat plain yogurt.
No-sugar-added sliced peaches.
No-sugar-added fruit cocktail.
Splenda.
Mix.

I don't add granola, but you could, or any other variation of the fruit, etc. The one I made was tasty and came out to roughly 13 calories/oz, which is awesome.