Make your own Kettle Corn

My daughter LOVES Kettle corn and wants to buy the huge $7 bags every time we go to the farmer's market. I don't buy it very often, but she would eat the whole bag by herself if I did. So I got to thinking that maybe I could make Kettle corn on my own using the popcorn that was already in my pantry. I've made 2 batches so far and they've been a hit both times. Even my son ate some and he's not a popcorn fan normally. I have no idea how much homemade kettle corn costs, but it can't be much more than 50 cents per batch. I found a recipe online and used that the first time, but last night I couldn't find it so I just "winged" it, and Hubby liked this batch better than the rest.

Homemade Kettle Corn

Ingredients:

1/4 cup popping corn

2 Tbs oil (I used vegetable oil)

2 Tbs sugar

1 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon (optional, but my family loves it this way)

Directions:

Mix sugar, salt and cinnamon in a small bowl or mixing cup. Put oil and corn in a fairly deep skillet (mine is almost wok-like) and heat on medium heat until oil starts to bubble. At this point put the lid on the skillet. When you hear the first few pops shake the skillet with the lid on to move the corn around in the pan (like you've seen people do when they make popcorn). When most of the corn has popped sprinkle the sugar mixture over the corn, replace the lid and shake some more. Heat for a few seconds more until all corn has popped then remove from heat and enjoy!

My new favorite bread and pizza dough recipe

I've been reading about artisan bread and loved how easy it sounded to make and use over a couple of weeks. According to a couple of books I read you don't knead artisan bread or proof your yeast, and you can refrigerate it for up to 2 weeks while using a portion when you want to use it. I made a batch of 50/50 whole wheat and AP flour dough the other day and made 2 six inch round loaves and a 12 inch pizza crust from it. I put the rest, which is probably one 6 to 8 inch loaf's worth, into the fridge to age. Apparently the longer it stays in the fridge the more flavor it acquires. Here's the recipe I used.

Artisan bread basic recipe
Ingredients:
2 tsp yeast (I used active dry yeast)
3 tsp salt
3 C warm water (about 100 degrees. too hot will kill the yeast)
3 C AP flour
3.5 C Whole Wheat flour

Directions:
Dissolve yeast and salt in warm water. Mix flours in a container with a lid (not air tight) then add water mixture to flour. Mix until all flour is incorporated, about 50 strokes. Let the dough sit at room temperature covered for at least 2 hours. You can let it sit for up to 5 hours if need be. At this point you can refrigerate to use the dough at a later time or can use it right away. When you are ready to use dough sprinkle the dough in the container and your hands with a dusting of flour so you can handle the soft wet dough. Quickly shape into whatever shape you want by stretching the dough into a ball or oval with the ends on the bottom. If you're making pizza crust stretch dough into a flat disk using a rolling pin if needed. Sprinkle a flexible cutting mat with corn meal then put shaped dough on mat to rest for about 40 minutes. 20 minutes into resting turn on your oven to 400 degrees and place a pizza stone in the oven. On another rack place a pan of water. After 20 minutes take a serrated knife and cut an X or a few slits into the dough then slide your dough onto the hot pizza stone from your mat. Bake for about 30 minutes until the crust is nicely browned.

Chocolate Pudding

I bought a food dehydrator a few weeks ago. Ever since then I've been looking for neat things to make with it. I've dried strawberries, bananas, cherries, oranges, made my own fruit leather and made some cookies. (Dehydrator post coming soon) While searching for these recipes and ideas I've stumbled across a few Raw Food diet books that have some interesting recipes. Yesterday while the kids and I were sitting outside on the deck reading I found a recipe for raw vegan chocolate pudding. There was no cooking or waiting involved so it seemed like a good treat to make right away. Although anything vegan might not sound too yummy to you, it actually turned out really good. And with the healthy ingredients I'll definitely make it again. The kids gobbled it up!

Healthy Chocolate Pudding

Ingredients:

1/2 C raw almonds (I used mixed nuts)

2 peeled bananas

3 Tbs Cocoa or Carob powder

1/2 C dried plums or dates soaked in 1/2 C water for 15 minutes

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth.

Granola Bars - Take 4

My search for the perfect granola bar has been interesting and mostly yummy. Granola bar #1 was too cakey for a granola bar but good for muffins, #2 was like a peanut butter cookie, #3 tasted too healthy :). So, after much testing and tasting attempt #4 is the winner. This granola bar is adaptable to whatever mix-ins you prefer from chocolate chips, raisins, shredded coconut, nuts, marshmallows, etc. The recipe below is the one that my kids (hubby and I, too) liked best.



Chocolate chip granola bars
Ingredients:
1/3 C brown sugar
2/3 C natural Peanut butter
1/2 C Honey
1/2 C applesauce
2 tsp vanilla
1.5 C Oats
1.5 C Brown rice cereal
1 C chocolate chips
1/2 C shredded unsweetened coconut
1/3 C flax seed meal
1/3 C wheat bran
1/3 C wheat germ


Directions:
Mix all ingredients and press into a greased cookie sheet. Bake for about 30-40 minutes at 350 then cut into granola bar shapes.

Homemade Cheese-it/Goldfish crackers

I went looking for a cheesy cracker recipe to replace the goldfish crackers my kids love and found one that I've modified a bit to make it more healthy. I don't have a fish cracker mold, but my kids seem ok with square cheese-it shaped ones. :)

Cheesy Crackers
Ingredients:
2 C whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 C grated Parmesan cheese (use the real stuff if you can)
4 Tbs butter
2 Tbs sweet potato puree (to give it more orange color and add more healthy stuff)
1/4 C cream or half and half

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and grease cookie sheet. Mix butter, sweet potato puree, cream, butter, salt and cheese in a bowl. When combined, slowly add flour until a dough forms. Roll out dough on a floured surface. Roll as thin as you can - no more than 1/4 inch thick; the thinner the better. Place rolled out dough onto cookie sheet and cut into squares with a pizza cutter. The farther apart on the tray the crackers are cooked the crisper they will be. Bake for 15 minutes then check for doneness on the edge crackers. The crackers on the edge may be cooked before the ones in the middle are crisp. Remove those crisp ones and keep cooking the middle crackers until they reach the desired crispness.

Granola/Energy Bars - Take 2

The first set of energy bars I made were very cakey so I looked around to find ones that were more chewy. I found this one on Allrecipes.com and altered it to fit what we had in the pantry. I'm going to keep looking around and experimenting, though, until I find one that is like the chewy granola bars you buy in the store. Enjoy!


Granola Energy Bars
These bars are a foundation to create your own granola bars to your liking. The original recipe called for raisins, toasted sesame seeds & sunflower seeds, but my kids don't like those things, so I substituted some less healthy things in small quantity to make them seem more like a cookie. I'm going to try to slip in some grains, seeds and dried fruit that I've run through the blender next time. Chocolate chips may be mixed in or sprinkled on top of bars, melted and spread over bars in last 10 minutes of cooking.

Ingredients:
3 C oats
1/2 C wheat or oat bran
1/2 C Wheat germ
1/2 C flax seed meal
1 C Chocolate chips
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1 C honey
1 C Peanut butter
1/2 C apple sauce

Directions:
Mix Oats, bran, wheat germ, flax seed, salt, cinnamon, chocolate chips (if mixing in) and any other nuts, seeds, or dried fruit you are adding together in a large bowl. mix honey, peanut butter and applesauce in a separate bowl. Add wet to dry and mix. Press dough into a 1/2 sheet pan covered in parchment paper or well greased. If putting chocolate on top, sprinkle chips onto bars in last 10 minutes of cooking and spread on top when chips are melted. Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes.

Kid Friendly Energy bars and Cheese Souffle

I saw a friend's post the other day about making your own energy bars and wanted to give it a try. The original recipe can be found here, but I made a couple of changes. I was hoping they would be granola bar chewy but they really turned out more cakey. Hubby toasted one and said it made the outside crispy but the inside was still moist.


Homemade Healthy Energy Bars
Ingredients:
•1 1⁄2 cups whole wheat flour
•3⁄4 cup flaxseed meal
•3⁄4 cup wheat bran
•2 tsp. baking soda
•1 tsp. baking powder
•1⁄2 tsp. salt
•2 tsp. cinnamon
•1⁄2 tsp. allspice
•1 Tbs. cocoa powder
•1 1⁄2 cups carrots, shredded
•1 1⁄2 cups apples, cored and shredded
•1 cup mixed nuts finely chopped
•3 eggs, slightly beaten
•1 cup applesauce
•1⁄4 cup honey
•1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preparation:
Stir together dry ingredients.
Add carrots, apples, nuts, and stir well.
In a separate bowl, combine eggs , applesauce, honey and vanilla. Add to flour mixture and stir just until ingredients are moistened.
Spray a half sheet pan with cooking spray then add batter spreading evenly over entire pan.
Bake in a 350-degree F oven for 25-40 minutes. cut into squares. Makes 32 2-inch squares.


The same night I made the energy bars I didn't really want to make a big dinner so I found a recipe for a healthy cheese souffle that included veggie puree. We called these cheese puffs and both kids ate them! With a serving of veggies, protein from the eggs and whole wheat flour, each serving of these cheesy puffs is a meal for a child.


Healthy Cheesey Puffs
Ingredients:
3 eggs
3 egg whites
1/2 C veggie puree (I used sweet potato puree - don't peel the sweet potatoes.)
2 T shredded cheese (I used a blend, but cheddar would be great.)
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 Tbs whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp salt

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and coat 4 ramekins or small glass bowls with cooking spray. Mix all ingredients and pour into ramekins. Put ramekins on baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes or until the puffs are puffed.