Friday, February 25, 2011

Mission Prep Class Recipes


This is hand out from the class I taught the young men this week. Simple, fast, and cheap!

I hope when I am on a miss-ion, that I can cook a thing or two!
For myself & also my companion, Be-cause we can’t call home and ask MOM what to do!

Breakfast:
Breakfast is essential. Include in your breakfast some protein, whole grain and fruit. This kind of breakfast will help you feel fuller longer and keep you going throughout the morning.

Examples of protein: eggs and dairy foods, meats and fish, and soy. Beans are also an excellent source, but not too practical for breakfast!

Examples of whole grains: whole wheat breads and cereals. Oatmeal is one of the most nutritious breakfasts you can eat!

Fruits can give you vitamins and nutrients to keep you healthy. Include some with every breakfast! Top your cereal, blend with yogurt and milk for a smoothie, or just eat out of hand on the go.

Fritata
One of the easiest recipes that is available the world over is a simple frittata...just scramble up 3-4 eggs and add a little water or milk and pour into a hot pan. Add any leftover bits of meat and/or veggies.....cover with a lid and turn down the heat till cooked through, top with cheese and eat with toast or tortillas.

Scrambled Egg in Cup
If you are lucky enough to have a microwave, this is a great way to make a round egg that will fit on a bagel or English muffin like the fast food restaurant version.

Ingredients
2 eggs
2 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons shredded Cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions
1. Coat a 12-ounce microwave-safe coffee mug with cooking spray. Add eggs and milk; beat until blended.
2. Microwave 45 seconds at high power; stir. Microwave 30 to 45 seconds more, or until eggs are almost set (see Note).
3. Top with cheese, season with salt and pepper, and serve.
Note: Since microwave ovens vary, you may need to adjust the cooking time

Pancakes from Scratch – you may not have access to premade pancake mix, so it’s a good idea to learn how to make them from scratch. This recipe uses a blender, but it can definitely be mixed by hand with a bowl and whisk- or whatever you’ve got around the apartment!
Ingredients:
2 cups milk
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
Directions:
1.
Place milk, sugar, eggs, oil and vanilla in the blender. Add flour and baking powder. Blend until smooth.
2.
Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.



English Muffin Pizza
Start with an English muffin half and place it on a cookie sheet. To make clean up easier, you can put down foil first on your cookie sheet.

Top the English muffin with pizza sauce (the kind from a jar is fine), cheese, and whatever other toppings you like. These can be baked in a toaster oven or in the regular oven at 375° for ten minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and golden.

IF you have a real oven and you have more time, you can make a foil dinner! Just like camping, right?
Foil Dinner – Preheat oven to 350°
Place a large foil on your counter. In the center you want your protein—You can use a boneless piece of chicken, a pork chop, or even just a ground beef patty. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Slice a potato in ¼ inch slices (no need to peel). Place the potatoes around the meat. Add a few carrots and celery if you’ve got them. You can even use small frozen ears of corn.
 Get another piece of foil about the same size as the first and cover your meat, potatoes and veggies. Seal the edges of the foil well by folding the bottom piece of foil up over the top. Be sure to not wrap too tightly. You still need some air circulating to cook the food inside.

Put on a baking sheet or other sturdy pan. Bake for about 1 hour at 350°.  Cut the foil open and let some steam escape—then peel back the foil and dig in. The best part is having no dishes to clean up!

Dessert is not essential, but it is nice to have once in a while!

3 ingredient PB Cookie

1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg

Preheat to 350
Mix all ingredients together. To form the cookies, get a scoop of dough with a spoon (that you would eat with) and drop the dough onto a cookie sheet. You should get  4 rows of three to bake a dozen at one time.

Bake 6 – 8 minutes or until just golden brown. Let cool 1 minute on the cookie sheet and then transfer to a rack to cool. If you do not have a rack you can cut a brown grocery sack and lay it flat on your counter, then place the cookies on the paper sack to finish cooling.

And a Snack is nice to have to keep you going through the day. This is called Power Trail Mix – 
Br. Runnels’ Favorite (from Runner’s World Magazine)
Nuts: Source of Vitamin E for muscle recovery
1/2 cup almonds
1/2 cup pecans
Quality protein:
1/2 cup roasted soy nuts
Fruit: Loaded with health-building antioxidants
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup dried blueberries
Seeds: Packed with trace minerals
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds

Combine nuts, dried fruit, soy nuts, seeds, and 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (if desired). Store in a plastic container with a tight lid. Keeps for six to eight weeks in a cool, dry place away from light or in the fridge.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Cracker Bread


Last night I made this to go with some minestrone soup. I had some pillsbury thin crust pizza dough in the fridge, so I unrolled it on a cookie sheet and planned on making a quick focaccia bread. I rolled it out on a non-stick cookie sheet. Then I made impressions all over with my fingers. I brushed it with olive oil, sprinkled with some garlic salt and some dried oregano. I baked it almost 20 minutes so I could get it nice and crispy, like a cracker. The thin crust pizza dough was perfect for this recipe! It turned out just like I wanted. I cut into squares and sprinkled with shredded parmesan. YUM!

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Fast and Easy Pancakes

I made these amazing pancakes this morning. It was so nice to mix them in the blender. These are thin, sweet pancakes-- a little more milk and they could be crepes. With 20 inches of snow outside my door, what else is there to do? Fuel for the shoveler! And yes, I used King Arthur flour!

I found the recipe on allrecipes.com
Ingredients:
2 cups milk
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
Directions:
1. Place milk, sugar, eggs, oil and vanilla in the blender. Add flour and baking powder. Blend until smooth.
2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

Swedish Meatballs with Egg Noodles

I found this recipe through Cuisine at Home Magazine. I also subscribe to their recipes by e-mail and this one came recently. It was really nice and light-- not your typical cream of mushroom soup version. The sauce was just perfect. I doubled the recipe, but made my meatballs mini, so I came out with about 24 meat balls. We are snowed in and this was a wonderful warm, comforting meal. 

Prepare noodles according to package directions.

Soak bread in 2 Tbsp. milk.

Combine sirloin, turkey, egg yolk, onion, salt, pepper, and nutmeg in a large bowl; stir in soaked bread. Form mixture into eight meatballs.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Brown meatballs on all sides, 5 minutes; remove meatballs and set aside.

Melt butter in the skillet and stir in flour; cook 1 minute. Whisk in broth; reduce heat to medium. Whisk in 1/3 cup milk; add brown sugar and thyme.

Return meatballs to sauce; simmer, covered, 5 minutes. Stir lemon juice into sauce; serve over noodles. Garnish meatballs with parsley.