Oatmeal Pancakes

At Ann Marie's request (great to see you, by the way!!), I am posting our oatmeal pancake recipe.  It is actually from Runners' World, and is entitled "America's Healthiest Breakfast".  So you can't go wrong!  This is our go-to recipe . . . though we usually just eat it with real maple syrup, vice the homemade blueberry syrup in the recipe.  Enjoy!  :)

Soak 1 1/2 cups rolled oats in 1 cup of buttermilk in a small bowl for 15 minutes.  (You know the buttermilk trick, right?  To make homemade buttermilk, just put 1 TBSP of vinegar into a 1 cup measure and fill it the rest of the way up with milk.  Let sit 5 minutes and WALLA!  Buttermilk!)  :)

Combine 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup whole wheat flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon in a medium bowl. 

Whisk 2 large eggs together with 2 large egg whites (who are we kidding here.  I just use 4 whole eggs.  Why leave out the most nutritious part??!)  in a small bowl and stir in 1 1/2 cups milk.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir.  Fold in soaked oatmeal.

Cook!  :)

For Wild Blueberry Sauce: Combine 2 cups frozen wild blueberries, thawed, 1/4 cup sugar, and 1 TBSP fresh lemon juice in a medium saucepan.  Cook over medium heat until the berries pop.  Stir in 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon.  Enjoy. 

Quinoa Salad Winner

Hello ladies! Ann Marie, thanks for posting!  My garden is just on the cusp of cranking out heaps of tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, etc.  (Actually, the eggplant harvest looks really small this year, unfortunately.)  And the corn from the Farmers Market is at its peak . . . the best time of year!  I'll post this past week's menu plan as well as a recipe from Eating Well for a quinoa salad that is the best I've ever had.  Liam and I agree that I should make a huge batch every week and eat it for lunch/snack every day.  Its that good!  Enjoy!  :)

Sun: Chicken and black bean tostadas
Mon: Pizza with grilled veggies
Tues: Quiche, green beans, melon
Wed: Tilapia, grilled veggie quinoa
Thurs: Mussels, grilled sweet potatoes, farro
Fri: Fettuccine Alfredo, big salad, corn on the cob
Sat: Cuban shredded beef, Rice and beans with kale and grilled squash
Sun: Burgers on the way home from a birthday party
Mon: Butternut squash bisque, pesto pasta with garden fare
Tues: Chicken and veggie kabobs with brown rice

And now for the recipe:

CORN AND BLACK BEAN QUINOA SALAD

They used 1 cup of dried black beans . . . soaked and then cooked with 6 cloves of peeled garlic and 1/2 tsp salt . . . I used a can!  :)
1 tsp salt, divided
4 medium poblano peppers
2/3 cup red quinoa (I couldn't find red, just used regular)
3 large ears fresh corn
6 1/2 TBSP of olive oil, divided
1 large red onion, halved and sliced
1 tsp whole cumin seeds, toasted and ground (no way . . . I used ground cumin!)
1 cup crumbled cotija cheese (Couldn't find, so I used little pearl-sized fresh mozz. balls, and it was awesome)
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup cilantro leaves
1 avocado, thinly sliced

1.)  Cook beans with garlic and salt as per bean directions, if you are more energetic than me!  :)
2.)  Preheat broiler to high
3.)  Place peppers on a baking sheet and broil 3 to 4 inches from the heat source, turning often, until blistered and charred, 8 to 15 minutes total.  Transfer to a paper bag and seal, or place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap.  Let stand 10 minutes.  Peel the peppers and discard the stems, ribs, and seeds. Tear the pepper into fat strips and cut the strips into 1-inch lengths.  (Note: I did all this, and while the finished product was awesome, I commented that if I was pressed for time I might just throw in a can or two of diced green chilis.  I think the salad would still be awesome, and much less work!)
4.)  Bring 4 cups of water to boil. Add quinoa and 1/4 tsp salt.  Boil til tender but still crunchy, 10 to 14 minutes.  Drain well and spread on a plate to cool.
5.) Meanwhile, boil corn for 3 minutes, cool, cut kernels off  cobs.
6.)  Heat 1 1/2 TBSP oil over med-high heat.  Add onion and 1/4 tsp salt.  Cook, stirring frequently until limp and speckled with charred spots, 4 to 8 minutes.  Stir in cumin.
7.) Combine beans, peppers, corn, onion, and cheese.  Add 1/2 tsp of salt and toss.  Add 5 TBSP of oil and lime juice and toss again. Gently stir in quinoa.
8.)  Just before serving, stir in tomatoes and cilantro.  Serve the salad with avocado and lime wedges. 

I need someone to make dinner

With swim lessons and violin lessons from between 4 and 5:30 each weeknight, we've been crock-potting a lot the last few weeks.  Jennifer, I've been sympathizing with you a lot more than I would like to admit recently as well.  Yes, I guess we are moving again and it is time to have another baby.  Wait....actually it wasn't time at all, but we are having another baby!!  I'm guessing the title of this post is going to get truer and truer, am I right Kathy?  

Pulled Pork, corn on the cob, salad, melon

Moroccan Stew (ala Jennifer and Mark) 

Fiesta Quinoa with scallops

Beef Braised in Rice wine, fresh bread, salad, sauteed summer squash

Trying to make each meal last a few nights.  And I'm sure there will be a "pizza" night in there!  

Have a great week everyone!

Ann Marie

Home for a week

Home from Cincinnati, off to Three Lakes on Saturday!

Sunday:  Grilled tuna steaks (splurge!), corn and black bean quinoa salad (an Eating Well recipe, really good!)
Monday:  Shrimp and garden veggie pasta
Tuesday:  Chicken and noodles, green beans, salad
Wednesday:  Beef (crock pot) tacos, corn on the cob, melon
Thursday:  Quiche, broccoli, fruit
Friday: clean out the fridge leftovers

This week Liam will be home for a grand total of one meal, so it makes the motivation to cook even harder to find.  We will leave as soon as he gets off work next Tuesday for a couple days with his folks down in Cincinnati, so I will try to use lots of garden produce before then!

Wednesday: after camp, bike to pool, home via the farmers market, dinner there.  Happy Summer!!
Thursday: grilled shrimp, farro salad with tomatoes, garden produce
Friday: grilled pizza (my Eating Well magazine had some interesting recipes for "pizzalads". . . A salad on a pizza crust.  If I get energetic, I may try one of them!)
Saturday: fish tacos
Sunday: pork from Farmers Market (chops? Tenderloin? Roast?ribs?), green (or purple!) beans cooked with bacon and new potatoes
Monday: garden produce and eggs :)

Have a great week!
Kathy

MD Menu

Hi ladies,

I'm recapping and forecasting a little with today's menu addition.  I'm really envious of all of the garden vegetable talk.  Our garden plot has turned out to be mostly a hug flop.  I think I would have to be there daily to stay on top of the weeds, and unfortunately I have pretty much lost total control of them.  Commuting to a garden with three kids in 90+ degree weather seemed like such a great plan.  One of these days I might get real!  Oh well, the farmer's market has been doing pretty well for us.  I second Kathy's comments on your recipes Jennifer...would love some cooking instructions.  One of Steve's favorite meals is Adobo chicken!  Love the sounds of all the grilled veggies, Kathy.  I'll try to emulate with whatever fresh things we can find this week! 

Broiled Steel Head Salmon, pesto, Caprese salad
Balsamic pork chops, wild rice, tomato and cucumber salad
Chicken tacos, coleslaw
Beer can chicken, grilled squash, arugula and lettuce salad
Chicken and sausage gumbo with fresh okra, over rice, salad
Spaghetti and meatballs, salad
Fish packets with basil, squash, and leeks on the grill
Crock pot pot roast, corn on the cob, salad
Fried rice with scallops
Chicken adobo, rice

Still dreaming of the squash and tomato salad during vacation.  Cooking would be so much better if we could prepare meals together all the time!    

Love,

Ann Marie

 

Home again, home again . . .

Back from vacation . . . what to eat now?  Where's Mom??!  Help!!  :)

Here's my quick "on the fly at the grocery store" plan to get us through Liam's trip, etc.

Saturday:  (All from the freezer/garden, and it was awesome!)  Grilled salmon, summer squash, and red onion, tossed with a little soy sauce and some pea pods that were "lightly grilled", all served over brown rice.  (I called it "grill stir-fry".)  :) Salad.

Sunday: Mussels in garlic butter sauce (had them in the freezer from the store, never tried them before, they were awesome!  Kids (minus Grace) loved them too!  WIN!) pesto pasta with broccoli

Monday: Round steak and portobellos (totally ruined the round steak.  Knew I had to cook it very slow so it wasn't tough, but got distracted (KIDS!), grill flared up, meat ruined.  Like eating a rubber tire.) sweet potatoes, tom/basil/mozz.

Tuesday: "Slow and low dry rub oven chicken", edamame, corn, fried rice with pea pods if there are any more in the garden.  (If not, I saw some purple beans ready while I was weeding yesterday . . . YAY!)

Wednesday:  BILL'S PUB!!!  (Kids get a treat for completing their "good manners sticker path"!  Obviously, this is really a treat for me.  WIN-WIN!) 

Thursday: Chard and black bean enchiladas

Friday: BBSGFB (Booher Birthday-Season Grand Finale Bash)  :)  Grilled something + potluck!  :)

Saturday: Dinner at a friend's house . . . they have 5 kids and their oldest is 8.  Should be veeeeeery interesting!!  :)

Its tough to be back from a GREAT vacation!  Hope you all are doing well, and everyone who was traveling is home safe and sound. 

Love,
Kathy