This week in class  we had the pleasure of practicing our measuring and baking skills together and made Oatmeal Blondies and Silver dollar pancakes.

I think everyone had a blast  and the kids really enjoyed making and eating their creations!

The cool thing about these recipes is they use a  convenient baking mix we call Everyday Baking Mix.

It is easy to make and can be used for several different recipe variations.

I’m posting it here for all of you to try out……..it stores for up to 3 months in an airtight container.

Just be sure to mix it up before measuring out for your recipes.  Enjoy!

Everyday Baking Mix

v 6 Cups all purpose flour

v 3 Cups sugar

v 2 Tablespoons baking powder

v 1 Tablespoons salt

In a large bowl, whisk together 6 c. flour (spooned and leveled), 3 c sugar, baking powder and salt.  Store in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 months. Whisk before using.  Makes about 9 cups

Use it to make the following 3 Recipes

Chewy Oatmeal Blondies

• 1 stick butter room temperature
• ½ Cup  packed light brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 ½  Cup Everyday baking mix (spooned and leveled)
• 1 Cup old fashioned oats/ not quick oats

Preheat oven 350. Brush 8’’ square baking pan with butter. Line bottom and 2 sides with parchment paper letting 2’’ overhang on both sides.

Using an electric mixer beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add egg beat until combined with mixer on low, gradually and slowly add baking mix.  Mix until combined.  Mix in ¾ cup of oats.  Pour batter into pan.

Using a butter knife, smooth batter evenly in pan, and sprinkle remaining oats on top pressing gently.   Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Using overhang on sides of pan, transfer brownies to a wire rack to cool.

Toothpick test:  The toothpick test is one of the best and most accurate ways to judge the doneness of baked items such as cakes and brownies.  One simply takes a clean toothpick and gently pushes it into the middle of the pan.  If the toothpick comes out clean without any batter attached to it, you will know that the cake is done.  If it comes out still gooey and sticky more time is needed in the oven.

Silver Dollar Pancakes with chocolate sauce

WE made these with chocolate chips instead of chocolate sauce! Just put a  handful of semis sweet chips in the batter before you  cook them .  They are great either way.

• 2 teaspoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for skillet
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1 ¼ cups everyday baking mix
• 1/3 cup store bought chocolate sauce or chocolate hazelnut spread
• ½ cup vanilla ice cream

Caution hot stove or griddle!  Adult Supervision required for young children!

1. 1. In a medium bowl, whisk together butter, egg and 2/3 cup milk. Add baking mix, whisk lightly just until moistened.

IMPORTANT ( DO NOT OVERMIX; a few small lumps are fine).

1. Preheat oven to 200. Heat a large nonstick skillet or griddle over medium, very lightly butter the bottom of the pan.
2. Drop 2 -3 tablespoons of batter onto the hot skillet or griddle.  Cook until surface of pancakes have some bubbles and a few have burst, 1 to 2 minutes. Flip pancakes with a thin spatula, and cook until browned on the underside another 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Transfer pancakes to a baking sheet, cover loosely with foil and put into the preheated oven to stay warm. Continue to make pancakes with remaining batter, adding more butter to skillet as necessary.
4. Recipe should make about 12 pancakes.
5. In a small saucepan combine chocolate sauce with 1/3 cup milk. Bring to a simmer over medium low, and whisk until smooth.

Serve pancakes topped with chocolate sauce and ice cream.

Jam Sandwich Cookies

4 cups Everyday baking mix

1 cup (2 sticks ) butter cold unsalted , cut into pieces

½ cup milk

¾ cup seedless jam or jelly any flavor

(Recipe makes 36 cookies/  18 sandwiches)

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.. In a food processor, pulse baking mix and butter until mixture resembles coarse meal.  Add milk; pulse until a thick dough forms.
2. Drop dough by heaping tablespoons on to cookie sheets, 4 inches apart.
3. Bake until cookies begin to turn golden but center is still pale, approx 12-14 minutes. Rotate sheets halfway through.
4. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. Spread flat side of half of the cookies with 2 teaspoons jam each
6. Sandwich cookies with the remaining cookies.

Cooking Cures

Tips and Strategies!

By:   Reader’s Digest

I found this recipe  for a light carrot cake on allrecipes and wanted to pass it on. It is quite a bit healthier than the traditional version and still tastes delicious! I made some adjustments and it is awesome .

So its a brand New Year. A time when many of us look at ourselves and consider making some resolutions to start the year out right .  Many of us  begin the year determined to make changes to our diet and exercise routine in a desire to shed unwanted pounds that we have gained over the holidays.  Healthy eating is an important part of the process, and making even small changes to our diet can make all the difference in getting results!  I’m no scientist, but we have all read about the benefits of eating healthy natural foods and adding more fruits and vegetables to our diets and cutting back on fats and sugar.

Sometimes just a few changes like portion control and substituting different types of foods to our diet can result in lots of healthy benefits including weight loss, and lower blood pressure.

So…….. on that note, I have printed down a list of 7 easy changes you can make to your diet this year and added a couple of healthy recipes for you and your     kiddos to enjoy!   Happy 2009.

Reprinted from: Allrecipes.com

Replacing high-calorie items with lower-fat and lower-sugar versions is a good place to start.

1. Think baked tortilla and potato chips instead of fried ones

2. Use low-fat or nonfat sour cream, mayonnaise, cheese, cream cheese and salad dressing instead of full-fat versions

3. Substitute evaporated skim milk or fat free half and half in place of cream (for everything except whipping)

4. To thicken soups, gravies, and sauces, use puréed vegetables, mashed potatoes, or a slurry of cornstarch and cold water instead of cream or roux.

5. Its a painless sacrifice to use leaner cuts of meat too: skinless chicken breast, pork loin, ground turkey breast and beef round and flank steak are all good choices.

6. Start turning to non-meat sources for some of your protein needs, too: beans come in all kinds of interesting varieties, as do tofu and soy-based meat substitutes.

7. Try whole grains in place of refined ones more often. You just may find that you prefer the taste of whole wheat bread, brown rice, bulgur, barley and quinoa instead of white bread and white rice.

Changing our eating habits takes some effort, but it is definitely possible to make great strides in weight management by simply making some changes in our eating habits and substituting  some ingredients in your recipes like the ones mentioned above~!

Apple Broccoli Salad:Easy to make and yummy to eat!

Makes  2 servings:

• 2 Cups chopped broccoli

• 1 large organic  apple chopped

• ½ cup plain low fat or vanilla yogurt

• ¼ cup raisins or dry cranberries

• ¼  cup chopped walnuts (optional)

• 1 tbsp chopped red onion

Directions:

In a medium bowl combine all ingredients and refrigerate until  ready to serve.

Honey Mustard Chicken

This is another easy, healthy and tasty recipe that I enjoyed as a kid.  I think your kids will enjoy it too!

INGREDIENTS:

• 6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
• salt and pepper to taste

• 1/2 C honey

• 1/2 C prepared yellow mustard

• 1 tsp basil

• 1 tsp paprika

• 1/2 tsp parsley

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350.  Sprinkle salt and pepper to taste over chicken breasts.  Lightly spray a glass baking dish 9×13 with cooking spray. Place chicken breasts in pan.

In a small bowl combine the honey, mustard, basil, paprika and parsley.  Mix well. Pour half of the glaze over the chicken and brush to cover.  Bake for 30 minutes uncovered.

Remove from oven, turn the chicken and coat the chicken with the remaining honey/ mustard mixture and let cook another 10-15 minutes, or until it is no longer pink in the middle.

Crunchy Orange-Almond Salad

Okay…….so this one isn’t totally low cal, but it is healthy and delicious !

Its easy to make and the kids can do this with a little help from mom or dad for sure!

Remember: You can add diced cooked chicken breast if you desire to make this salad into a great meal!

Makes 8 servings:

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds
• 4 cups torn iceberg lettuce
• 4 cups torn romaine
• 1 (11 ounce) can mandarin oranges, drained
• 1/2 cup diced celery
• 2 green onions, sliced
• 1 3oz bag of ramen noodles crushed or 1/2  cup of chow mein noodles for garnish
• Optional (2 Cups of diced cooked chicken breast )

DRESSING:

• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. In a small skillet over medium-low heat, cook sugar, without stirring for 12 minutes or until melted. Add almonds; stir quickly to coat. Remove from the heat; pour onto waxed paper to cool.
2. In a large serving bowl, combine the two lettuces, oranges, celery, onions and almonds. In a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine the dressing ingredients; shake well. Drizzle a small amount over salad; toss gently to coat. Top with cooked diced chicken if you desire  and if you aren’t watching your calories, go ahead and sprinkle some chow mein noodles over the top and serve.