Baked Oatmeal

My sister was given this recipe and shared it with me. I made a few adjustments:
-Less baking powder
-Applesauce used to replace half the oil
-Only egg whites rather than the whole egg to cut back on calories but not on protein
-More cinnamon, for flavor!

1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 egg whites
1 cup skim milk
3 cups oats
1 1/2 Tab. Baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 heaping tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup walnuts or almonds
Choose on of the following
1 Apple peeled (my favorite)
1/2 cup blueberries (pictured)or
1/2 cup dried cranberries

Combine all ingredients
Spray a 9x9 pan with cooking spray
Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes

Serve with soy milk, almond milk or skim milk

You will NEVER like plain old oatmeal, again!!

Pasta Salad with Tomatoes and Blue Cheese

This is from Fitness Magazine, so I can't take the credit!
It's a very filling lunch, especially if you use whole wheat pasta.

Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook time: 10 Minutes
Makes: 6 Servings
3 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons cider vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons chopped fresh marjoram (I didn't have any so I left this out!)
1 teaspoon salt
Pinch red pepper flakes
2 cups cherry tomatoes
1 lb. pasta (I used fusilli)
1 cup baby arugula
2 ounces crumbled blue cheese

-Mix the first six ingredients together
-Cook the pasta until al dente, drain and transfer to a large bowl
-Quarter the tomatoes and pour the vinaigrette over
-Toss the pasta, arugula and tomatoes together, then toss in the blue cheese
Nutritional facts, per serving
387 Calories
13 g protein
59 g carbohydrate
11 g fat
3 g fiber

Bread Pudding & Roasted Potatoes

Hi folks, here are a few recipes from the RS Christmas party last week.



Bread Pudding

1 lb brioche, challah, or other buttery, eggy bread (Panettone is in stores now and makes awesome bread pudding. Good-quality cinnamon bread is also nice)
1 cup semi-sweet chopped chocolate or chocolate chips
4 large eggs
2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup whole milk
zest of one orange
1/4 tsp almond extract
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 F. Cut the bread into small (less than 1") cubes. Bake for about 15 minutes, until they start to toast and get a little color. They should start to get crisp but not terribly hard--you're not making croutons. Let bread cool.

In a mixing bowl, beat together the eggs, cream, milk, and 2/3 cup sugar. Once well-mixed, add the vanilla, orange zest, almond extract, and cinnamon.

Place the bread cubes in a large bowl and pour the custard over the cubes to soak. Soaking time will depend on the bread you started with and how toasted/dry the cubes are, but plan on it taking at least 30 minute and maybe up to an hour. Toss the bread periodically so it soaks evenly. The bread should absorb most--but not all--of the liquid, and not be hard or dry, but should still hold its shape and not be disintegrating.

Add the chocolate chips to the bowl and toss to distribute. Pour the bread and any remaining custard that hasn't been absorbed into a 13x9 pan. Sprinkle with remaining 2 tbsp sugar. Bake at 350 for about 1 hour, until golden brown and center is set.

Allow to cool until warm, then cut into pieces and serve. Enjoy!

And if you've ever wanted to know what 75 servings of bread pudding looks like while it's soaking, wonder no more:



Roasted Potatoes

3 lbs small red or white-skinned potatoes (no Russets, please, those don't roast nicely)
1/3 cup olive oil
2-3 tsp salt
1 tsp ground pepper
1/4 cups minced rosemary leaves, preferably fresh (but dried can be substituted)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Cut the potatoes in quarters (or smaller, if the potatoes are large) and place in a bowl with the olive oil, salt, pepper, and rosemary; toss until the potatoes are well coated.

Dump the potatoes on baking sheets (I always cover mine with foil so they don't get gross) and spread out into 1 layer; roast in the oven for at least 1 hour, or until browned and crisp. Flip twice with a spatula during cooking to ensure even browning. If you have lots of sheets in the oven at once it might take longer to get them brown and crispy.

Remove the potatoes from the oven, season to taste, and serve.

Chicken Pasta Salad

I made this for the going away potluck for the Gunns and Andersons this week. This is another one from Recipe Shoebox.

Ingredients
1 lb. cooked, shredded chicken (I usually use can of Costco chicken)
1 lb. cooked rotini noodles (or bow tie)
2 heads broccoli, finely chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1/3 onion, chopped
1 can sliced olives
1 cup shredded cheese (optional)
1/3 - 1/2 cup ranch dressing (don't skip this--it's what holds it all together)

Dressing:
2 envelopes dry Italian dressing mix
6 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
4-1/2 Tbs. water
3/4 cup oil (you can reduce this some)

Combine cooled chicken, chopped vegetables, and olives. Whisk together dressing ingredients and pour over vegetables and chicken. Mix together. Add ranch dressing and cheese. Refrigerate 1 hour before serving. Serves 8 - 10.

Whole Wheat Applesauce Oatmeal Muffins

In my family we call these the "Butterfly" muffins because my Mom would always make them when we were going to an early morning piano competition and we had butterflies in our stomach from being nervous!
They are very delicious, and healthy. Jane just finished her 2nd one this morning!












1/4 cup Margarine
3/4 cup Brown Sugar
Cream together then add:
1 Egg
3/4 cup Applesauce
1 cup Rolled Oats
Mix
Add:
1 cup Whole Wheat Flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1/4 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
1/2 cup nuts(optional)
Raisins (optional)
Mix all together and spoon into a greased muffin tin or lined with muffin papers.
Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until browned.

Garlic Chicken Pasta with Spinach

This is quick and delicious!


From the Recipe Shoebox.

The ingredients:
6 Tbs. olive oil
6 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 box (1-lb) penne pasta
5-oz. fresh spinach, chopped
1 Tbs. dried basil (or 1/2 cup fresh)
6 Tbs. lemon juice
1 cup Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Heat olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes in a small glass bowl in the microwave for about 1 minute to blend flavors. Pour about 1 tablespoon of the flavored oil in a skillet. Salt and pepper chicken and cook in the oil over medium high heat until chicken is browned and juices run clear. Add the chopped and spinach and saute with the cooked chicken for 1 minute (or until just barely wilted) and remove from heat. Meanwhile, cook pasta as directed on package; drain well. Add cooked chicken/spinach to pasta, along with basil, lemon juice, and Parmesan cheese. Then stir in the remainder of the flavored olive oil. Toss lightly until all ingredients are well-combined. Serve immediately. Makes about 6 servings. Enjoy!

Monday Menu Planning

Monday: Upsidedown meatloaf (even if you hate meatloaf, you'll love this one!) Roasted Red Potatoes, Broccoli

Tuesday: Ebelskivers, (These are a Danish dish, basically little round pancakes. You can put filling in them or just eat them topped with powdered sugar.) Eggs, Bacon, yogurt & strawberries

Wednesday: HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOSH!! His favorite: Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo, Grilled Salmon, Grilled veggies, and Oatmeal Cake for dessert.

Thursday: Leftovers

Friday: Taquitos, refried beans, rice

Saturday: Pizza

Sunday: Easter dinner: Ham, Grandma G.G.'s potatoes, salad, rolls