homemade refried beans (healthy version)

And yet again I have no after picture. I just get so excited. And hungry.

I have been wanting to make homemade refried beans for some time now. Kevin fell in love with them on our trips to Mexico. He would eat refried beans for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
But I did not want to put bacon grease or lard in it (like 1/2 cup!). That fat is probably what Kevin loves about it, but Im pretty sure if I saw that much lard or grease go into anything, I would feel sick.
But I will gladly eat refried beans made at any Mexican restaurant since I don't have to watch them make it :).

People these are good. Flavorful and good.


Healthy Refried Beans

1 T olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 C diced carrots (about 4 med carrots)
1 diced onion
2 cans beans, rinsed and drained
1 3.5oz can green chilies
2 cans low-sodium beef broth
1 t kosher salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/2 t chili powder
1/4 t cumin
1/2 t dry oregano leaves
1 bay leaf

Saute onion, carrots and garlic in olive oil for 3-5 minutes.
Add the rest of ingredients and simmer for 25 minutes.
Remove bay leaf.
Puree in blender until completely smooth.
Enjoy!
Sprinkle cheese, or melt cheddar cheese on top.

perfect roast chicken

Sorry no pictures. My computer is being difficult.

Found this Ina Garten recipe online. Looked easy enough. And it was! I will be making this over and over and over and over again.

Roast Chicken

1 (5 to 6 pound) roasting chicken
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 large bunch fresh thyme, plus 20 sprigs
1 lemon, quartered
1 head garlic, cut in half crosswise
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter, melted
1 large yellow onion, thickly sliced
4 carrots cut into 2-inch chunks
1 bulb of fennel, tops removed, and cut into wedges ( I didn't add this, and it was still awesome)
Olive oil

Preheat oven to 425 F.

Pat the outside of the chicken dry so the salt + pepper and butter will stick to make a nice crusty top.
Generously sprinkle salt + pepper all over chicken and inside cavity.
Fill the cavity with the fresh thyme, lemon quarters and garlic.
Brush melted butter all over chicken and then again sprinkle with salt + pepper.
Tie the legs together with some kitchen string (you want those legs close to the body so they will not get burnt), and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken.
In your oven-proof pan, toss carrots,onion and extra thyme with the olive oil and sprinkle will salt + pepper. Place the chicken on top.
Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours.
Remove chicken and cover with aluminum foil for about 20 minutes.
Enjoy!
You'll probably want to eat the whole chicken in one sitting between just the two of you; we did.

Easy Baked Eggplant Parmesan

Recipe from Whole Foods Market

I made this last week, because I was given my aunt and uncles fresh eggplant ... this recipe is really easy and yummy!!

Ingredients:
1 large eggplant, sliced lengthwise into 1/2-inch-thick pieces (about eight)
2 eggs, beaten with a fork
1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs (sundried tomato or plain)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil*
1 (25-ounce) jar pasta sauce (roasted vegetable or any variety)*
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese*
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven with a baking sheet inside to 375°F. Coat eggplant slices with beaten egg, then bread with panko crumbs. Spread oil on hot baking sheet and place eggplant slices on it in a single layer. Bake 15 minutes, flip and bake another 10 minutes.
Increase oven temperature to 475°F. In an 8 x 10-inch ovenproof dish, layer pasta sauce, then eggplant, and top with cheeses. Repeat, finishing with cheese. Bake until the cheese melts and turns golden in spots, about 15 minutes.

Aebleskiver ... Dutch Pancakes

Recipe from Peacocks on my Porch

This is a yummy new find! The only thing is you will have to buy a fancy Aebleskiver pan they are $20-40 ... but, it would be a great Christmas gift!



2 cups flour

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 cups buttermilk ( 3/4 cup milk, 1 T white vinegar for each cup)

2 eggs, separated

melted butter

Sift flour, sugar, soda and salt together into a medium sized bowl. Blend buttermilk and egg yolks and add to flour mixture. Beat until smooth. Fold in stiffly beaten egg whites. Place abelskiver pan over low heat on stove and add small amount of melted butter to each cup. Pour batter into holes (you can use a cookie scoop) about 3/4 full. Cook over low heat and turn quickly when cake begin to brown around edges. Lightly brown other side. Serve piping hot with syrups, jams, or powdered sugar.

Our favorite way to eat these is break one of the aebleskiver, dip in melted butter and then powder sugar! just try it you will LOVE it!

Chili Chocolate Chili

This recipe is supposed to be called Chipotle Chocolate Chili. Since me and Kev are not fans of heat, I opted out the chipotle sauce. But I did keep the chili powder in it, so hence the name CHILI Chocolate Chili. I wanted to make sure you didn't think I was special and just accidentally wrote chili twice.

Due to the recent cold weather, The crock-pot has been used non-stop. I love the smell of something yummy cooking all day, especially something warm on a cold, supposedly-fall day.

I wanted to make some homemade chili and I happened upon this recipe. It said chocolate in it and that was all I needed. I did change it quite a bit though. They used ground turkey, but this stuff just drives me nuts. Why does everyone think ground turkey is soo much better for you than ground beef? It's not. More times then not it has more sodium added to increase flavor. Hold the sodium and "natural flavoring", I want my ground beef. Just always get the lean ground beef. I also took out the cumin, because that tastes like dirt to me. And opted out the extra cans of diced tomatoes and kidney beans: I have a small crock-pot. I was hesitant to add the chili powder but am glad I added it. Just adds great flavor, not heat. And I added corn because I like it.

Chili Chocolate Chili (Crockpot Style)

1 1/2 lb. lean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
1 red (or green) bell pepper, minced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 15-oz. cans diced tomatoes
1 14.5-oz. cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-oz. can beef broth
1 can corn
3 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. chili powder
1 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. freshly-ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped (optional; use to taste as needed; be careful, because too much will make your chili bitter)
3-4 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

sour cream
Chopped green onions
Shredded cheddar cheese

Heat oil and sauté onions. Add beef and cook until cooked through. When cooked through, add brown sugar and cocoa powder and stir until evenly coated. Add to crockpot. Saute chopped bell pepper in some oil; add to crock pot. Add tomatoes, beans, corn, beef broth, salt and pepper and stir.
Let this cook on high for an hour or two.
Add red wine vinegar and unsweetened chocolate. Add more of these if you want to play with the flavor. But be careful with the chocolate, you don't want your chili to become bitter and muddy.
Cook on high for another hour.

Adapted from here.

herb focaccia bread

My In-laws recently came home from a trip to Tuscany. They brought us home some amazing Olio Extra Vergine di Olivia, a.k.a. Olive Oil. Since I am only going to use it for dipping bread, I knew I need to make some special bread to go with it.
I introduce you to the yummiest focaccia bread ever!!

And if I could make it, you can make it! I have a lot of trouble over here with bread and, well, baking in general. But I figured out the problem!! My oven is retarded. I bought an oven thermometer so now I can adjust the temperature to the temperature I really need. Its been off by a good 25-50 degrees for who knows how long. Hallelujah!

Herb Focaccia Bread

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 large clove garlic, finely minced
3/4 teaspoon dried rosemary or 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme or 1/2 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup warm water

In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer), mix the flour, salt, sugar, and yeast. Mix in the garlic and herbs. Pour in the water and olive oil and mix until the dough comes together, by hand or with a dough hook attachment, if using a stand mixer. Knead the dough until it has pulled away from the sides of the bowl, about 4-6 minutes. The dough should be soft and pliable but not overly stiff.

Cover the bowl with lightly greased plastic wrap and let the dough rise for 30 minutes, until it is puffy. Deflate dough and allow to rest for 5 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly grease a large, rimmed baking sheet and with your hands, spread the dough out roughly an 8″x10″ rectangle. Use your knuckles or fingertips to make indentations over the dough, about every 1/2 inch. Lightly brush dough’s surface with olive oil and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until golden brown.

Immediately after removing from the oven, stir together 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt and brush over the surface of the hot bread.

Recipe from here

recipe: stuffed green peppers

Kevin really loved these! And BONUS...they were easy!

4 green bell peppers
1-2 lbs lean ground beef
1/2 sweet onion, chopped
EVOO
1/2 cup uncooked jasmine* rice
1 can tomato soup
2 TB Worcestershire sauce
1/4 t garlic powder
1/4 t onion powder
salt and pepper (of course)
1 t Italian seasoning
Shredded cheese
Corn (optional, I added it for fun. FUN)

Cook the rice.
Preheat oven to 350.
In the EVOO, sauté the onions 3 minutes. Add ground beef and cook until browned. Add Italian seasoning to beef.
Cut tops off peppers. And bottom if they don't stand up on own.
Combine worcestershire, garlic & onion powder, salt & pepper with tomato soup.
Fill half full with beef, cover with sauce, corn, then cheese. Repeat.
Easy-peasy.

Bake for 35 min-60 minutes. My oven is retarded and makes its own rules. Really just bake until warm throughout and cheese on top is a nice golden brown.

*Ok am I the only one to recently discover jasmine rice? IT. IS. SO. GOOD. Geeze, I have been using regular rice for so long and have been constantly disappointed whenever I cook it. Well look no further Malorie! Jasmine rice is here. Always good. Always fluffy. Always flavorful. I am forever hooked.