Monthly Archives: April 2010

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Posted by suzyhomebaker in ice cream, kid friendly, low-fat

A couple of years ago I started an herb garden and planted just 4 mint plants. They have since overtaken my herb garden and part of the grass and each summer I have more mint than I know what to do with. Here’s a tip: don’t plant mint or use a container instead of your garden. You’ll thank me later. So I’m always looking for ways to use the mint; in sun tea, in fruit salads, and then I found this recipe for mint ice cream. Great. I made this simple ice cream and it was really yummy. You can definitely tell that its fresh mint from the garden and not that artificial mint flavor. It was really refreshing and surprisingly low-fat, well, until I added chopped bittersweet chocolate. You can leave it out but I felt it needed that chocolate and so did the baby in my belly. I think this will be the recipe for the summer of 2010. Mint ice cream every week! Ps: Riley eats a leaf of mint each day so she really loved this ice cream.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: about 1/2 cup)

Ingredients (adapted from Cooking Light)

  • 2  cups  2% reduced-fat milk
  • 1  cup  half-and-half
  • 1  (1-ounce) package fresh mint sprigs
  • 3/4  cup  sugar
  • Dash of salt
  • 2  large egg yolks
  • 1/2 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate (optional)
  • Small fresh mint leaves (optional)

Preparation

1. Combine milk, half-and-half, and mint sprigs in a medium heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Heat milk mixture to 180° or until tiny bubbles form around edge (do not boil). Remove from heat; cover and let stand for 10 minutes.

2. Pour milk mixture through a fine sieve over a bowl, pressing slightly with a wooden spoon; discard solids. Return liquid to pan.

3. Place sugar, salt, and egg yolks in a bowl; stir with a whisk until pale. Gradually add half of hot milk mixture to egg mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Pour egg yolk mixture into pan with remaining milk mixture; cook over medium-low heat until a thermometer registers 160° (about 2 minutes), stirring constantly. Place pan in a large ice-filled bowl until custard cools completely, stirring occasionally. Pour mixture into the freezer can of an ice-cream maker; follow manufacturer directions adding chocolate chips at end. Freeze in plastic container for at least 4 hours or overnight. Garnish with mint leaves, if desired.

Green Tip of the Week: Steam Mop

Posted by suzyhomebaker in Green Tip

I bought this mop at least 2 years ago, maybe longer, and I love it still. I did my research and found that the Bissel steam mop was the best bet. Since I’ve owned it I’ve had to replace a small part but it still works like a charm. I have four of the washable pads and when cleaning the house, steaming the kitchen floors is my favorite thing to do. It steams up the toughest stains on my kitchen floor and with a 2-1/2 year old, one dog, and two cats, that floor can get kinda nasty. I use it on all flours, tile and hard wood.  Its healthy for the environment because it uses no chemicals, strictly water. Buy one. I know $90 seems like a lot but think of all the cleaners you don’t have to deal with. You’ll love it. You can find it here.

Grapefruit Avocado salad

Posted by suzyhomebaker in low-fat, salad

This was an interesting dish. Very refreshing and fairly low in fat. It was easy to prepare but the next day it didn’t look so hot. I suggest eating it the same day.

Ingredients

1 ripe avocado, cut into bite size cubes

1 pink grapefruit, peeled & cut into segments

1 Tbsp toasted pine nuts

5 mint leaves, chopped

Directions

Put all ingredients into a bowl. Squeeze excess grapefruit juice over mixture. Stir lightly to combine. Eat.

I’m loving this right now……Pear Salad.

Posted by suzyhomebaker in I'm loving this right now......., salad

After losing all the baby weight (and then some) from Riley, it was a bit of a shock to gain back 15 pounds in 5-1/2 months with baby #2. So I’ve been trying my best to eat right and choose wisely when it comes to food. But those sweets keep calling my name and all I want is pasta. So lately for lunch I’ve been making myself salads. But I really hate salads, at least those salads that have tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce. Gross. Where’s the flavor and excitement in that? And I really don’t dig on tomatoes raw like that anyway. So I’ve been mixing it up with mixed greens; taking some ideas from restaurants I’ve been to and cooking shows I’ve seen. Here’s one of my favorites and its so easy to prepare.

Ingredients

2 to 3 cups organic mixed greens

1/2 ripe pear, cut into bite size pieces

1 to 2 Tbsp toasted pine nuts (to toast: put in pan over medium heat, toss till golden brown)

Pecorino Romano cheese

Lemon Vinegarette (1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, 1/2 cup olive oil, pinch of kosher salt and pepper to taste, whisk together)

Directions

Put mixed greens in a bowl. Top with pear and pine nuts and add 1 to 2 Tbsp vinegarette. Toss to coat. Using a vegetable peeler, shave Romano cheese onto salad. As much or as little as you like. Eat it out of the bowl.

Pineapple Upside-Down Spice Cake

Posted by suzyhomebaker in chocolate

This cake was really good. I made it for this past Easter and it was a hit. And this one cooks completely in a skillet. Easy.

Serves 6 to 8 (Adapted from Stonewall Kitchen Favorites)

Ingredients

Topping

1 small fresh pineapple (2-1/2 to 3 pounds)

1/2 stick unsalted butter

3/4 c. packed light brown sugar

Cake

1-1/2 c. all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cardamom

1 tsp ground ginger

1/8 tsp ground allspice

pinch of salt

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temp.

1 c. sugar

2 large eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 c. fresh orange juice

Directions

Place a rack in middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 375. To make topping: Cut the tough outer skin and any eyes off the outside of the pineapple. Cut in half lengthwise, and cut out the core with a small, sharp knife. Cut the pineapple into 1/2 inch thick half moons. You should have about 2-1/2 cups pineapple.

In a 10 inch cast iron or heavy skillet, heat the butter over low heat. Increase the heat to medium, add the brown sugar, stir and let cook for 3 to 5 minutes, or until bubbling. Remove from the heat.

Carefully lay the pineapple slices on top of the brown sugar mixture, fitting the pieces together like a puzzle, and pressing them down to create a flat layer. You will have more than one layer – fit the pineapple into the pan as tightly as possible.

To make the cake: In a bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, baking powder, cardamom, ginger, allspice, and salt and set aside.

Working with an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter until soft and light on medium speed, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well between additions and scraping the sides of the bowl if necessary. Add the vanilla and mix well. Add half of the flour mixture and beat on low-speed until blended. Add the orange juice and then the remaining flour mixture, mixing just until blended. Pour the (thick) cake batter on top of the pineapple slices and, using a soft spatula, spread it out evenly. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let the cake cool for about 5 minutes, but not longer or it may stick to the pan. Place a large serving plate on top of the skillet and, very carefully, flip the cake over onto the plate. Let cool slightly and serve warm or at room temperature.

Blueberrilicious Muffins

Posted by suzyhomebaker in kid friendly, muffin

They really are chock full of blueberries. You won’t be disappointed.

Adapted from Lee Bailey’s Country Desserts


Ingredients

2 cups plus 3 Tbsp sifted all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup sugar

2 large eggs, beaten

6 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

2/3 cup milk

2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen

Directions

Preheat oven to 425. Either grease a 12 and a 6-cup muffin tin or place 16 paper cups in the muffin tins. Set aside.

Sift together 2 cups flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside. Beat together sugar and eggs, then add the melted butter and mil, mixing well. Briefly stir in the dry mixture, being careful not to overmix. Sprinkle the remaining flour over the berries to coat them, then fold into the batter. Fill the muffin cups about two-thirds full. Bake for 20 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean.

I’m loving this right now…..Old Navy Yoga pants

Posted by suzyhomebaker in I'm loving this right now.......

I know this isn’t food related but I do have other things going on too, like a belly that’s slowly getting larger and larger. I’ll admit it, my jeans (especially my skinny jeans) no longer fit around my expanding booty so I’ve started wearing yoga pants, pretty much everywhere. I love em. By the end of my day, my belly seems bigger but no longer hurts from the constricting buttons and zippers of jeans. I love my yoga pants, and I can wear them after the baby too. How economical. Ps: they’re only $19.50.

Crisp Rice Chocolate Chip Cookies

Posted by suzyhomebaker in cookie, kid friendly

I’ll be honest, these were not my favorite chocolate chip cookie. But everyone else who had them loved them and came back for more. They were a bit thin for my taste although the crispiness of the Krispies was very nice. Personally I like my cookies fat, chunky, and gooey. To each his own.

Recipe adapted from The Search for the Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie

Ingredients

1-3/4 c. flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 c unsalted butter, softened

3/4 c sugar

3/4 packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

2 c Crisp Rice cereal

1 c semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Mix together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. Combine butter and sugars and beat until well blended. Add eggs and vanilla and beat well. Add dry ingredients, mixing until combined. Stir in cereal and chocolate chips. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto greased or lined baking sheets. Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on trays for 1 minute, then transfer to cooling racks.