West African Fruit Salad

I found this recipe one Thanksgiving when I was assigned to bring fruit salad to the family celebration. I didn't want to make the same old thing or pay for super out of season produce. This salad was the perfect remedy. It's great as a side or dessert. The recipe came from allrecipes.com

West African Fruit Salad

4 cups cubed pineapple, canned or fresh
2 mangoes, peeled and diced
2 oranges, peeled and segmented
2 bananas, peeled and sliced

2 TBS dark brown sugar
2 TBS lime juice

1 cup toasted coconut

Combine fruit in large bowl. Mix brown sugar with lime juice and stir into fruit. Chill for 1 hour or more. Add toasted coconut before serving.

Goat Cheese Tortellini with Roasted Butternut Squash

1 pkg (20 oz) pre cut Butter Nut Squash, cut into 1/2 in cubes
2 Tablespoons Sage, thinly sliced, divided
1 Tablespoon basting oil (I use olive oil instead)
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 Tablespoons of unsalted butter, chopped
3 cups butternut squash soup( you can buy prepared or see below for recipe)
18 oz of goat cheese tortellini, cooked 4 min, drained

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Toss squash, 1 Tbsp of sage, oil, salt, pepper, and butter in mixing bowl. Spread mixture in even layer on baking sheet. Roast 15-18 minutes until golden-brown. Add squash, soup, and remaining Tbsp sage to skillet on medium; bring to a simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add pasta. Cook 1 min.

Recipe for Butternut Squash Soup
1 pkg of pre cut butternut squash(20 oz)
1/3 c. of chopped onion
1/3 c. of chopped celery
1/3 c. of chopped carrot
1 Tbsp of oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/4 c chicken stock

Cut larger squash pieces into smaller uniform pieces: place in 2- qt microwave-safe dish with 1 Tbsp water, cover. Microwave on High 10 min until soft. Set aside. Add onions, carrots, celery, and oil to stock pot on medium-low. Cook, stirring, 10 min, until soft but not browned. Add squash; season to taste with salt and pepper. Add stock, simmer 10 min. Remove from heat; let cool 10 min. Ladle small batches (about 2 cups at a time) into blender; puree until smooth. Return soup to pot; reheat on LOW. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Sweet Potato Muffins

I had an extra sweet potato lying around so I used it to make these muffins. I made mini muffins so that I can send them to school with my son in his lunch, but they'll work as regular size muffins as well. What I love about these is that sweet potato really is the main ingredient! The batter looks like grated sweet potato coated with muffin batter. And they're super yummy, of course.

This recipe comes from Vegetarian Planet by Didi Emmons.

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 cup canola or corn oil (I used canola)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups whole wheat flour (I used soft white wheat flour, but I think others would work just as well. The original recipe calls for unbleached white flour, which would also be fine.)
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder (if you use white flour, use only 2 teaspoons)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (or use a heaping teaspoon of nutmeg from a spice jar)
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large sweet potatoes (about 1 1/3 pounds), peeled and finely grated, to make 4 cups
1/2 cup raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts

1. Preheat the oven to 350. Coat with cooking spray a tin or tins to hold twelve regular muffins, or 48 mini muffins. (I often do half regular and half mini, so six regular muffins and 24 mini muffins.)

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the brown sugar oil, vanilla and eggs.

3. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, spices, salt, and grated sweet potatoes. Make a well in the center, and pour in the egg mixture. Stir in the egg mixture, gradually incorporating it with the flour mixture. (Note: This batter is very stiff and will require some work to incorporate the wet ingredients into the dry. Don't give up!) Stir in the raisins and walnuts. Spoon the batter into the tins. Here's what the batter looks like in the tins:

I like to fill each tin to the rim to make a large cap (no, the batter doesn't overflow). Bake the muffins for 25 to 30 minutes (regular muffins) or 13-15 minutes (mini muffins) or until a wooden toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

4. Take the muffin tin(s) out of the oven. Run a knife carefully around each muffin, then invert the pan, and knock one edge against your work surface to release the muffins. Serve right away, or place on a rack to cool.

Pumpkin and Barley Stew with Sausage

This originally came from a Better Homes and Gardens magazine. We made some modifications to better suit what we like to buy. Husband and I thought it was delicious. Our five-year-old ate it hesitantly but without argument. Our nearly three-year-old fought it for all of dinnertime, but under the threat of no ice cream, accepted a bite, said "this is really good, mommy," and finished her bowl.

A note, make sure that you season well with salt and black pepper at the end. It makes a big difference. The pepper is especially delish with the pumpkin and keeps it from being too pumpkin-y.

Pumpkin and Barley Stew with Sausage

8oz sausage (or precooked andouille or sausage links)
1 small onion, chopped
1 TBS snipped fresh sage
1 TBS vegetable oil
2 cups (or more) cooked barley
1 tsp chicken base or bouillon
1 15 oz canned pumpkin
2 TBS maple syrup
1 TBS cider vinegar

If you are using regular sausage, cook and either slice or crumble. When sausage is nearly done, add onion and sage (use the 1 TBS oil as needed). Add about 4 cups water and the chicken base. Stir in pumpkin, maple syrup and vinegar. Stir in cooked barley. Heat through. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

Whole Wheat Pancakes

1 1/4 c whole wheat flour
3 tsp baking powder
3 T. brown sugar
3/4 tsp. salt
2 or 3 beaten egg yolks
1 1/4 c. milk
3 T. oil or melted shortening
2 or 3 stiffly beaten egg whites(beaten to peaks)


Combine dry ingredients. Beat in egg yolks, milk, and oil. Fold the beaten egg whites into mixture. Bake on griddle until golden brown and bubbles form on top, then turn.

Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins

2 c. blueberries washed, stems removed
3 c. whole wheat flour (2 T. of it will be used to coat blueberries)
1 1/4 c sugar
4 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 c. milk
1 c. butter, melted
2 eggs, lightly beaten(although this morning, I whipped the egg whites to peaks, and I think it made the muffins lighter)



Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line muffin tin with papers. Toss blueberries with 2 T. of flour(from your 3 c.) and set aside. Sift the remaining flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together into a large bowl. Add the milk, butter and eggs and stir until just combined. Gently fold in the blueberries and spoon batter into the prepared muffin tins (I usually do about 1/3 c. worth). Bake for 20-25 min until tops are browned. Makes about 18 regular muffins.

Fiesta Salad

This bean and brown rice based salad is great for a main dish or as a side. My kids eat it happily and we love it too. Vary the number and types of beans as well as the amount of jalapeno to suit different tastes.

Fiesta Salad

Mix the following in a large bowl:
2 cups cooked and cooled brown rice
1 can of corn (frozen corn would work too)
2-3 cans of beans-black, pinto, garbanzo, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup minced onion
2 jalapenos, seeded and minced
2 TBS cilantro, chopped

Mix and add dressing:
1/4 cup white vinegar
2 TBS vegetable oil
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt

Stir, mix and serve. This salad is even better after it sits in the fridge for a couple of hours so all of the flavors can combine.

Edamame Garden Salad with Citrus Soy Vinaigrette

Steph requested this one, so here it is...

This comes from the book Simply Salads by Jennifer Chandler. Highly recommended.

Salad:
2 cups frozen shelled edamame
1 carrot, peeled and shredded
1/4 cup halved and sliced radishes
1/4 cup cherry tomatoes, quartered
1/2 cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeded, and diced
1 bag (5 ounces) Sweet Baby Greens

*Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the edamame, return to a boil, and cook until just tender, 3 to 5 minutes more. Drain the edamame and rinse with cold water until cooled. Place in a large salad bowl.

*Add the carrot, radishes, tomatoes, cucumber, and Sweet Baby Greens. Add the vinaigrette to taste and gently toss to coat. Serve immediately.

Citrus-Soy Vinaigrette:

3 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons canola oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

*In a small bowl whisk together the orange juice, lemon juice, soy sauce, and oil until well combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Note: You can just use orange juice and lemon juice from a bottle, and it's still really good. However, I have noticed that the flavor is noticeably better if you squeeze it fresh.

Chicken Pesto Pizza

This pizza got rave reviews from my husband and kids alike. I picked up the recipe at Blog Chef, then made a few modifications.

Ingredients:
4 pieces of naan bread (can be bought already prepared, or see recipe below to make at home)
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 (6 ounce) jar artichoke hearts (drained)
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Basil Pesto Sauce-
1 cup fresh basil leaves (packed)
1 garlic cloves
1/8 cup pine nuts
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil (divided)
Salt and pepper (to taste)
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Step 1: To make basil pesto- Combine basil, garlic, and pine nuts in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add 1/3 cup of oil and blend until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the cheese and set aside.
Step 2: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Divide the pesto four ways, and spread over each piece of naan. Arrange chicken and artichoke hearts over the sauce. Top with mozzarella cheese.
Step 3: Bake for 5-10 minutes (on a pizza stone, if you have one, or on a baking sheet if you don't) or until the cheese has melted.

I made this recipe pretty much exactly as above, but as we were eating we thought of several additional toppings that would be delicious:

Sun dried tomatoes (either packed in oil, or soaked from dry)
Mushrooms (fresh, marinated, or canned)
Kalamata olives

You could easily add these toppings, omit the chicken, and have a fantastic vegetarian meal.

If you want to make your own naan bread, here's a great recipe for it:

Naan Bread

2 3/4 cups flour, (either white or whole wheat) plus more for dusting
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 egg
1/2 cup plain lowfat yogurt or sour cream
1/2 cup milk

In the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl by hand), stir together the flour, salt, baking powder, sugar, and yeast. In a small bowl, mix together the egg, yogurt, and milk. Pour the egg mixture into the dry ingredients and stir for about 1 minute, until the dry ingredients are completely incorporated into the wet ingredients.

Increase machine speed to 2 (or by hand) and knead the dough until it is smooth and shiny. Remove the bowl from the mixer and cover with a towel. Leave in a warm place to rise until the dough doubles in size, about an hour.

Put a baking stone or heavy baking sheet on the lowest rack of your oven. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees for at least 30 minutes prior to baking.

Divide the dough into eight pieces and form into oval shapes with your hands, about 6 to 8 inches across.

Cook two or three pieces at a time. Drop the dough onto the hot stone and shut the oven door, watching until they are just starting to turn brown in places, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Remove the naan, then follow instructions as above.

In the Kitchen With Friends

FOOD. We like it healthy. We like it simple. We like it delicious. Sometimes we like it to be all of these things at once. We want to eat wholesome food, as free from artificial ingredients and preservatives as is reasonable. We will try to use meat sparingly and use the flavors of fruits, vegetables, alternate proteins and grains to enhance our meals. We want to respect the earth as we decide what ingredients to buy and to stay somewhat connected to where our food comes from. We don't want to spend a fortune. This site will be a place for us to share recipes and tips as we attempt to accomplish these goals and feed our families well.