Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Pinterest Roundrup July 2012

I am sure that I am not the only person slightly obsessed with Pinterest. Actually, I know I am not, as I am following 62 people's pins, and have 95 people following mine. Not to mention the probably millions of other people out there. I really do try to use Pinterest for realistic ideas. My favorite categories are Home Decor and Food & Drink. I love to look for ideas for our new home (the one will we have once we sell our property here in GA) and for yummy recipes. Home Decor is also a great place to find tips, crafts, and storage ideas. Food & Drink  is basically what it says it is. A great place to find ideas for dinner. I also love to see what my friends are loving. :)

I am going to try and post at the end of each month the best recipes and tips I have found on Pinterest.

Home Decor

Baking Soda is AWESOME!

Jillee at One Good Thing posted about how to clean old, dirty, cookie sheets with a mixture of baking soda and hydrogen peroxide. Martha Stewart's tub-scrub is also a great way to clean porcelain using a mixture of baking soda, water, and liquid dish soap (I did not use the essential oil as I did not have any). I used Martha Stewart's recipe to clean my bathtub and kitchen sink. Great tip to have in the cleaning arsenal! I used Jillee's tip for baking soda and hydrogen peroxide to clean my oven door (we had a major mess happen, when I accidentally dumped a pan of nachos onto the open, HOT, oven door). I wish I had gotten pictures of all of this, but you will just have to take my word for it, BAKING SODA IS AWESOME!!!

Food & Drink

Lemon-Zucchini Loaf with Lemon Glaze By Nancy Creative

I absolutely love lemons! I love zucchini bread. So when I saw this pin, I was more than intrigued. This loaf is moist like a cake, but simple to make, like a quick bread. Definitely take the time to let the bread cool and add the glaze. It imparts a sweetness, as well as the delicious, tangy, lemon-ness.


No-Bake Energy Bites by Gimme Some Oven

I'm not entirely convinced this little bites are healthy, but I am convinced they are GOOD! I have made several variations. My first batch was made with oats, peanut butter, honey, butterscotch chips, and walnuts, since I did not have the listed ingredients. They were pretty tasty. I love the combination of butterscotch and walnuts. These are a common swap-out for chocolate chips when I make cookies. My second batch, I followed the recipe, only substituting mini-chocolate chips. These were tasty too, but not my favorite. I think the toasted coconut, wheat germ, and honey gave it too many flavor profiles.

For my latest batch, I decided to go old school, and make this more like the drop cookies I believe these were based upon. I melted my mini-chocolate chip cookies (1/2 cup) in the microwave, and added the melted chocolate to the peanut butter and oats. I ended up adding about an extra 1/4 cup of oats since my mixture was a bit wet, but once the chocolate cooled and hardened, I don't think the additional oats where necessary. I also did not chill the mixture before forming into balls, since I knew the chocolate would harden once chilled. For all three batches, I used a small scoop to make the balls. The first two batches I rolled into balls, once scooped. For the melted chocolate bites, I just scooped and left them as it. Gave them a more rustic look. However you make these, they are DELISH!


Baked Spaghetti By  Kids in the Sink

With the hubby working crazy hours, occasionally I need super simple, but filling dinner ideas. Enter Baked Spaghetti! The only difference I made to this recipe, is that I added about 8 ounces of ricotta cheese to my jarred marinara, and about a half tablespoon of red pepper flakes. This gave the sauce a kick, and a creaminess. I cooked the pasta, and tossed with my sauce and cheeses, then topped with cheese, before heading to pick the hubby up from work. I just covered the pan with foil, and put it in the toaster oven. When we got home, I removed the foil, and cranked up the heat, to broil the cheese. I added some garlic toast, and VOILA! A quick and easy dinner. 






Crispy Buffalo Chicken by Can You Stay for Dinner?

I have discovered I love Buffalo Chicken. I have never been a fan of wings. I think it has to do with the lack of meat on each wing, and the amount of work and they are messy (good be the same reason I don't care for ribs). Enter BONELESS Buffalo Wings! I can eat with a fork and its another way to enjoy Blue Cheese Dressing? And who doesn't LOVE Blue Cheese Dressing?!?!?

When I found this recipe I was very excited. My husband is not a fan of Buffalo Wings either, but I figured I could make him plain ol' chicken tenders, and I could make mine Buffalo! I like to make my own chicken tenders and nuggets, but I was reminded why I don't make chicken tenders all that often. Each chicken tender has a tendon running down through it (perhaps why it is called a tender?). I can't stand that tendon, so it has to be removed. This is time consuming, but worth it. (I use a pairing knife, and make slits down each side of the tendon, and then take the knife and "push" the chicken down around the tendon while pulling it out. The slits help to keep from leaving a hole where the tendon used to live.) I served these tenders with Steak Fries (LOVE Steak Fries) and dipping sauce. Another yummy, if not as easy, dinner.



Can't wait to share with you what recipes and tips I find next month on the wonderful PINTEREST!



Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Better For You Pancakes

Wow, is that title even possible? Probably not, exactly.

Years ago, while working at the travel agency, I was browsing the internet during some down time. I came across one of those AOL galleries with healthy recipes, and decided that I really should TRY and eat healthier. What I found amid a bunch of recipes that did not sound appealing was a recipe for the South Beach Diet pancakes. I was intrigued. The recipe call for rolled oats instead of flour, and cottage cheese instead of oil or butter. I printed out the recipe to try at a later time.

Fast forward like four years, and I have to say I LOVE THESE PANCAKES! Plus, the recipe is for one serving! In a world of dieting (or just trying to eat healthier), baking for one is HARD. This recipe is also super easy in that you can make it in the blender (or food processor, as I discovered one morning when the blender was dirty, and I didn't feel like hand washing it). Over the years, I have topped these pancakes with strawberries or added blueberries or blackberries, but just this past week, I discovered even further heaven! I had a couple bananas on the verge of over-ripeness, so I threw one into the blender with all of the ingredients. At the end, I added some chopped up walnuts to the batter, and OMG! Banana Bread Pancakes! I made them two days in a row, they were JUST..THAT...GOOD.

 Photo from http://www.food.com/recipe/south-beach-diet-oatmeal-pancakes-109387

Here is the basic recipe I have been using. I have seen other versions, but this works well for me.

1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup lowfat cottage cheese
2 egg whites (I buy Jumbo eggs)
1 teaspoon vanilla
Dash each ground cinnamon and nutmeg

Yields 2 pancakes 

Place all ingredients in a blender, and blend. I have a KitchenAid Blender, and I have discovered that using the Chop setting works best. Sometimes Mix (and definitely the faster settings) make the batter too runny. In those instances, I have added more oats to thicken the batter. You're making pancakes, so you want this the consistency of pancake batter. (Go figure.)

Heat a griddle pan over medium heat, and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Pour half the batter (or less if you want more, smaller pancakes) in the center of the pan. Now is the time to add blueberries (or blackberries or nuts) if you would like. Once bubbles have formed, and popped, go ahead and flip. This can take anywhere from 2-4 minutes depending on the thickness of your pancake. If the pancake is too dark (which happens to me all the time with a glass top stove), adjust your heat. The second side will cook in 2 to 3 minutes, again, depending on thickness.

Note on the Banana Nut Pancakes: The batter will take a little longer to cook, and may seem unset, but that is the yummy banana in the batter.

I hope you find this recipe as delicious as I do!

I use FitBit and Lose It! to figure out calorie counts, and according to my FitBit calculations, the above recipe has 241 calories, 4 grams of fat, 4.4 grams of fiber, 31.3 grams of carbs, 350.2 milligrams of sodium, and 18.1 grams of protein. (FitBit doesn't have Jumbo egg whites, so the above calculations are bases using Large eggs.)