freezer friendly

Smorkaka: Danish Breakfast Pastries

December 2, 2011

Both Joshua and I trace our ancestry to Denmark (or at least the tiny Faroe Islands they rule), so Danish foods are fun part of the holidays for me.

These breakfast pastries are one of my family’s favorites, but with a little deviance from the original. Thanks to my mom’s tweaking, the rich and decadent pastries are transformed into rich-and-somewhat-more-healthy pastries, but still so yummy.

Smor means butter in Danish, as you might guess from the recipe.

Smorkaka: Danish Breakfast Pastries

Ingredients:

scant cup milk
1 ½ T yeast
1 ½ T sugar
1 cup butter
1 egg
¾ tsp salt
Approx. 3 ½ cups flour (I use 1 ½ wheat)

Fillings:

1 cup pudding (use store bought or make your own.)
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
Raisins, optional

Frosting:

3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 T butter
a few drops of milk

Instructions:

Prepare pudding, and refrigerate.

Combine milk yeast and sugar. Let sponge five minutes. Add butter, eggs and salt. Add flour ’til it stops sticking. Let rise 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix together powdered sugar, butter and cinnamon.

Press 1/3 of dough into well greased 10×15 pan. Spread with thin layer of powdered sugar mix, then one cup pudding. Sprinkle with raisins (if desired.) Roll out rest of dough. Spread with powdered sugar mix. Cut into 18-24 pieces and place on the pudding. Rise 30 minutes.

Bake at 400 for about 15 minutes or until lightly golden.

Cool slightly and drizzle with frosting.

Healthy? maybe not. But you should have seen the original recipe!

Why Cook Your Own Beans?

November 10, 2011

Besides the fact that they taste good, beans are promoted for two main reasons: cost and health.

Beans are one of the cheapest sources of protein. “Eat more beans” makes it onto many lists of money-saving tactics. If the point is to save, it makes sense to save as much as possible, right? Canned beans easily cost double the amount of dried.

There’s another reason I find more compelling: health. Beans are a wonderful source of protein and fiber and all that. But as we all know, beans can be difficult to digest.

They are difficult to digest because they contain a significant amount of phytic acid. Phytic acid is a good thing for the plant. It protects the kernel and prevents it from loosing nutrients like zinc, calcium and iron until planting time. However, our bodies need those nutrients, and in order to use them we have to break down the phytic acid.

Cooking breaks phytic acid down a little, but to get the most nutrition (and have it be as easy on the digestive tract as possible) you need to soak your beans.

photo by marina nisi

Save yourself some time and cook up a big pot and freeze in smaller amounts. We love homemade bean dip and chili and Mexican foods, so try to always have soaked, cooked beans in the freezer to pull out.

How to soak your beans:

What you’ll need:

A big pot
Water
Beans
Lemon juice or vinegar (one of many uses for vinegar!)
Time for them to soak

The night before you need them, rinse your beans really well. Even “triple washed” beans occasionally have a clump of dirt.
Add beans to pot or crock pot and cover with lots of water. Add a couple tablespoons of vinegar or lemon juice.
Let soak 12-24 hours.
Drain, rinse and add more water.
Bring to a boil and simmer until almost tender (anywhere from 1-8 hours, depending on the bean type and whether you’re using a crockpot)
When nearly tender, add salt. (Why wait? Adding salt at the beginning makes the skins tough. Waiting ’til they’re completely cooked doesn’t let the flavor penetrate.) and finish cooking.

I usually use some for dinner and freeze the rest in glass jars or Tupperware. It doesn’t take much effort, but soaking and cooking beans saves time and adds nutrition (or at least makes what is already there more usable!)

Linked up at Frugal Friday

Tagged with: freezer friendly • healthy living • kitchen tips • phytic acid • recipes

Hearty Baked Beans Recipe

June 1, 2010

I hope you have had a wonderful extended weekend! After a restful couple days at home, we spent Memorial Day at a barbecue with good friends.

No barbecue is complete without baked beans but they used to be the one item I’d skip. Then I tasted Joshua’s Grandma’s recipe. I could eat these for dinner by themselves!

Hearty Baked Beans

1/4 pound hamburger
1/2 cup onion, diced
1/4 pound bacon

1 can butter beans
1 can (2 cups) kidney beans
2 cans (4 cups) pork and beans/pinto beans

2 T barbecue sauce
2 T ketchup
1 T mustard
1/4 cup sugar or honey
1 1/2 T molasses
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt

(If you have time) Soak pinto and kidney beans in water and 2 T vinegar overnight to break down the phytic acid. In the morning, drain water and rinse. Fill with fresh water and cook, unsalted, until nearly tender. Add salt and finish cooking.

Brown hamburger and onions; drain fat. Brown bacon, drain fat (and save them for frying eggs!) and crumble.

Combine all ingredients in a crockpot and cook on low for 3-4 hours or bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Makes 8-10 servings. Enjoy!

Tagged with: freezer friendly • recipes • side dishes

Almond Crunch Cookies

May 29, 2010

Freshly baked cookies and a cup of hot (or iced) tea spell hospitality to me. Growing up on a small island in a little village where everyone knows everyone you just expect a friend to pop in for tea and a little chat as she walks home from work or heads to the grocery store.

If it weren’t for the walking part, I would have gained ten pounds last time I visited. The day I left I stopped in to say good-bye to friends and relatives and lost track of how many times I was offered tea and cookies. You just can’t leave without something to eat.

Living as most of us do in cities in fast paced America, “dropping in just to say hi” isn’t a daily occurrence. But that’s no reason to be unprepared when it does happen.

And freezing the cookie dough makes it so easy. Not all recipes work well frozen, but many do.

My mother-in-law introduced these to me a while back and they are my new absolute favorite…and freeze wonderfully.

Texas Almond Crunch Cookies

In large bowl combine:
1 c. sugar
1 c. powdered sugar
1 c. butter, softened
1 c. oil (1/2 olive; 1/2 canola)
Add and mix well:
2 eggs
1 tsp almond flavoring
Combine and gradually add to wet mixture:
3 cups white flour
1 1/2 cups wheat flour
3/4 tsp b. soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cream of tartar
Add and mix well:
2 cups coarsely chopped almonds

If necessary cover and refrigerate for an hour, then shape into balls and
roll in sugar. Criss cross tops with fork. Bake at 350 for 12-18 minutes or
until edges are slightly golden. Cool for a minute on pan before removing to
cooling rack.

Bake what you want for the moment and then roll the remaining dough in wax paper and stick it in the freezer.

When a friend stops by or your husband has had a long day and needs some cookies and coffee, just pull out the dough. Slice it up, roll it in the sugar and bake. Yum!

part of the Ultimate Recipe Swap over at Life as Mom

Tagged with: desserts • freezer friendly • recipes

Freezer cooking

April 30, 2010

I didn’t quite get to everything on my master list, but the freezer’s full and Joshua should be set for the weeks the kids and I are gone.

Since I didn’t have a big chunk of time to set aside, I focused on spending an extra hour or two in the kitchen each afternoon preparing similar meals.

With a tiny kitchen, no dishwasher and two little helpers, this worked really well for me and netted a full freezer without too much extra work.

Afternoon 1:

Pizza and Western Burgers. These are two of my favorite foods to have in the freezer so every couple weeks I mix up a big batch of dough for these.

After making a few meals worth of Western Burgers, I rolled the rest of the dough out for mini pizzas. The small size makes them so easy to warm up.

Afternoon 2:

The first step this afternoon was to clear out the freezer to make room for all the fresh food.

I keep a bag in the freezer to collect stale bread or bread crusts. It was getting full so I made breadcrumbs.

Just break the bread into a food grinder and pulse until it is fine. Spread in a pan and bake at 300, stirring often, for about 15 minutes or until the crumbs are dry. Dump into a jar and keep sealed until you’re ready to use them.

Then it was time to start filling the freezer up with fresh bread. I made up two big batches of dough for three loaves of wheat bread, rolls, cinnamon rolls and hamburger buns.

While they baked, we mixed together granola, baked beans and nourishing protein bars.

Afternoon 3: Burrito Central

In the morning I mixed up tortilla dough to let it soak for the day. After several hours, we began making burritos.

I love how versatile they are! Just about anything works in a burrito: leftover rice, and handful of olives, the half a can of beans. Anything goes.

“Breakfast burritos” make a great filling high-protein breakfast as well as a perfect snack throughout the day.

Fill burritos with

Scrambled eggs
Hash browns or tator tots
Bacon, ham or sausage
Cheese, etc.

(Homemade hash browns are easy to make. Scrub potatoes and grate. Fry in oil (or bacon fat!) for twenty minutes or until lightly golden. )

The rest of the burritos we filled with homemade refried beans, leftover rice, meat and cheese.

Burritos are a very “kid friendly” food to prepare. From rolling out dough to putting on toppings, it’s easy for them to help.

Rosalind was such a good helper and before long we had a pile of burritos to put in the freezer. Her papa shouldn’t go hungry while we’re gone!

Afternoon 4:

There was just enough time before we headed out the door to whip up a batch of meatballs. Now the freezer is packed with bachelor friendly fare and Joshua shouldn’t starve!

Tagged with: freezer friendly

Freezer Cooking: absentee wife edition

April 27, 2010

“Absentee wife” sounds a lot nicer than “abandon the husband,” doesn’t it?

Law school finals are about to hit in full force for Joshua and an ideal opportunity for the munchkins and me to visit family for a couple weeks came along. Now Josh will feel no guilt for staying up ’til three studying with us entertained by grandparents, cousins and siblings.

Criminal Procedure, not food, will be first priority for him, so before I leave I need to join the Once a Month Cooking party and fill the freezer with bachelor friendly fare.

The decision to go was very last minute so I won’t have a whole weekend to devote to cooking, but will put together meals over the next few days when I have a chance.

So here’s my too ambitious master list:

Brown bag burritos
Breakfast burritos
Western burgers
Mini pizzas
Mini meatloaves
Barbecued chicken
Baked beans
Bread and rolls
Cinnamon rolls
Homemade yogurt
Granola

And if I have time, some snacks:

If I leave with a full freezer and clean laundry I won’t exactly be abandoning him, right?

Tagged with: freezer friendly

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins

April 19, 2010

Muffin season may be slowly winding down with the rising temperatures, but a chill breeze this morning called for muffins.

Based on Better Homes and Gardens pumpkin bread recipe, numerous tweaks have left this recipe practically unrelated. Healthy, but still very yummy!

Everything tastes better “mini sized”—at least in my daughter’s opinion. If you have kids a mini muffin pan is a worth-while investment. Not only are mini muffins much easier (and more fun) to eat, but you eliminate the “half-eaten-muffin-syndrome”.

Not only do we make mini muffins, but every time I make anything in the kitchen, my little helper wants to bake some in her little bread pan. What better way to encourage her to want to help?

This recipe makes enough for 18 regular muffins or 24 mini muffins and a mini loaf.

½ cup coconut oil
½ cup honey
2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin or sweet potato (Either works great. I generally do half and half)
1 ¾ cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ tsp cinnamon
Dash of nutmeg
½ cup water

Combine oil and honey. Add eggs and pumpkin or sweet potato; mix well. Mix dry ingredients together. Alternate adding dry ingredients and water.

Spoon into well greased pans. If desired, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

Bake at 350 for 8-15 minutes (depending on size) or until the center of muffin is no longer sticky.

They freeze wonderfully.

part of Tasty Tuesday and Tempt my Tummy Tuesday

Tagged with: freezer friendly • recipes

Western Burgers

March 29, 2010

Western Burgers: healthier, cheaper, tastier and almost even easier than running to get a Big Mac (at least once they’re in the freezer!)…

All you need is:

Dough (Any dough works, but I included the recipe my sis-in-law gave me ’cause it’s so yummy.)
Browned hamburger and onions (seasoned with whatever spices you wish)
Cheese

Dough:

Combine:

2 1/2 cups warm water

1/2 cup sugar (or other sweetener)

2 1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup oil

3 cups flour

Combine, add and mix well:

2 T yeast

1 cup flour

Continue adding more flour (about 5-6 cups) until dough is soft and cleans the side of the bowl.

OR make your favorite dough.

Let it rise ‘til doubled. Punch down and roll into fairly thin 8-10 inch squares.

Cut into four smaller squares. Scoop a spoonful of hamburger and cheese onto each square.

Fold over the edges. Place the edge side down on a lightly greased cookie sheet.

Repeat.

I generally make several meals worth and then shape the rest of the dough into mini-pizzas to pull out of the freezer for another quick meal.

Let rise ‘til slightly puffy, then place in a 350* oven and bake for 20 minutes, or until golden. Remove to a cooling rack and brush with butter.

They are delicious dipped in barbecue sauce, ketchup or miracle whip and freeze beautifully. When Joshua is at school during dinner time, we often eat them alone for a super simple meal but they go great with homemade fries, macaroni & cheese or salad.

part of Tasty Tuesday and Tempt my Tummy Tuesday

Tagged with: freezer friendly • recipes

Smorkaka: Danish Breakfast Pastries

Smorkaka: Danish Breakfast Pastries

Why Cook Your Own Beans?

How to soak your beans:

Hearty Baked Beans Recipe

Hearty Baked Beans

Almond Crunch Cookies

Freezer cooking

Freezer Cooking: absentee wife edition

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins

Western Burgers

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