Creative Meal Ideas

Having Fun In The Kitchen~Enjoy Playing With Your Food

I watched this video today and had to share with all of you. This is something the kids might enjoy too, maybe even inspire them to join you in the kitchen too. It reminded me of younger days making mud pies and trying to imitate all the chefs I watched on television as a child. Those of us with children, know how kids can be entertained in the kitchen with something as simple as a pot or a pan and a wooden spatula.

What’s your favorite part of the video? My husband and I love the dice sugar cube and the rubix cube garlic. A great reminder that creating a meal for your family can be fun with a simple imagination.

Quick and Easy Bread Recipe 

Every family has its own favorite kind of bread. This is a quick and easy recipe made with quick oats, applesauce and plump raisins. My normal recipe calls for regular apple juice but I decided to try soaking the raisins in apple cherry juice.

Applesauce Raisin Bread

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup quick cooking oats

3/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup raisins

1 1/4 cup applesauce

1/3 cup vegetable oil

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup milk

Apple juice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Soak raisins in apple juice. In a bowl combine all ingredients, drain raisins, add to mixture. Pour mixture into a 8 1/2 inch pan. Bake 55 to 60 minutes. 

Fast Cooking Recipes For Family

It was also baking day. He loved seeing his mother bent over the enormous kitchen table, elbow-deep in dough, moving to the measured rhythm of making bread…Before, in times of plenty, she had put aside a bit of dough, added milk, eggs, and cinnamon, and made buns that were stored in a tin-one for each child for each day of the week. ~Isabel allende, Eva Luna, 1988

Of all the foods that spur memories of childhood for me, few are as instantly memorable as old-fashioned classic desserts. Apple pies were an all time classic in our household. 

I read somewhere as I was researching in one of my books, the author describes that a friend was telling her a story of how she had watched her grandmother prepare a favorite fruitcake many times and wanted to try making it herself. When it came to add the flour, she put in a cupful, just as her grandmother told her to do. When she tried to re-create the recipe, the cake was a failure. When she asked her grandmother why, the older woman opened her cupboard and pulled out an old cracked tea cup. “A cupful, yes-but it has to be this cup!” How many times has this scenario happened to all of us in the kitchen?

Think of a recipe as a trusted guide, it can tell you only so much. If your trying out a new dessert recipe, trust your instincts. If it doesn’t turn out exactly like it says, don’t worry, your oven may be off; temperature may need a slight adjustment. Your apples may be larger, smaller, tarter or drier. Trust your instincts. Experiment with a different fruit, another spice, a different crust, a different topping.

Cooking, after all, should be a great adventure. Recipes are only a guiding tool. One recipe is created and another one is created using a personal touch.

The following dessert recipe has been created over and over again. This dessert is very yummy and a perfect treat for the family or your guests. It is also a very economical dessert and won’t cause a pinch in your budget.

Classic  Apple Pecan Crisp

Ingredients:

5-6 Granny Smith Apples (can substitute with your choice of apple)
1 package (9 ounces) yellow cake mix
1-2 Tablespoons sugar (adjust sugar depending on sweetness of apples)
1 Tablesppon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/2 cup chopped pecans (or your choice of nuts)
Vanilla ice cream or whipped topping

Directions:
 
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Peel, core and slice apples. Place apples in bottom of baking dish.
 
2. In a bowl, combine cake mix, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, vanilla and butter. Mix until crumbly. Sprinkle mixture evenly over apples. Chop pecans and sprinkle over the top of mixture.
 
3. Bake 35-40 minutes or until apples are tender. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped topping if desired.
 
Yield: 10 servings
 
This is a very versatile dessert. Apples may be substituted for blueberries, cherries, pears or peaches. *Pictures show pecans omitted from ingredients.

I was at one of my cooking party demonstrations a few months back and created this recipe after speaking with the husband of my host. We were discussing simple breakfast recipes and family’s sharing breakfast together.  We came up with this quick and easy breakfast casserole dish that your whole family will enjoy! It’s such a versatile dish you can substitute vegetables instead of sausage or create a Mexican style dish by adding bell peppers and tomatoes with a little bit of salsa and Cilantro.

 Quick and Easy Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients:

6 Russett potatoes

12 eggs

1 pound pork sausage

1 medium yellow onion

4 garlic cloves, pressed

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon freshly cracked pepper

2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 teaspoon Chipotle rub

1/2 cup shredded cheese mixture

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray 9 x 12 casserole dish with cooking spray. Shred potatoes and squeeze excess water from potatoes in a cloth towel. Spread shredded potatoes evenly in casserole dish, bake 25 minutes or until lightly brown. In a skillet brown sausage and drain excess fat. In a batter bowl, whisk together eggs and cream. Add salt, pepper, garlic, Italian seasoning, chili powder, and Chipotle rub. Pour mixture over potatoes. Evenly spread chopped onion and pork sausage. Bake an additional 15 minutes. Sprinkle cheese mixture over the top and bake for 5 additional minutes or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before cutting.

 EASY COOKIE FREEZING QUICK TIPS

With the organizing of our Bakers Team, Nevada County Bakers, we spend a lot of our time in the kitchen prior to our bake sales  planning which type of cookies to make and how soon to make them. One of the most important uses of our time is determining which cookies can be made ahead and placed in the freezer to preserve their freshness. Cookie dough in the freezer will last 4 to 6 weeks.

Storing and Freezing Cookies

1. Freeze cookies in layers separated by a sheet of waxed paper.

2. Freeze cookies unfrosted because the frosting may cause the cookies to stick to one another. Also, cookies tend to absorb moisture from the frosting and lose their crispness.

3. Before baking bar cookies, line the baking pan with foil, leaving 2 inches extra at each end. Add the batter, bake, and cool the bars in the lined pan as directed. Lift the foil to remove the cooled bars. Wrap in foil, seal, and freeze. Frost and cut the bars after thawing.

4. To freeze cookie dough, pack it in freezer containers. (For sliced cookies, roll and wrap the dough as directed in the recipe.) Freeze cookie dough for up to six months. Before baking, thaw frozen dough in the container in the refrigerator. If the dough is too stiff to work with, let the dough stand at room temperature to soften.

When your ready to bake your cookies, here are a few Baking Tips.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup margarine

1/2 cup shortening

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup all bran cereal

1 package chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In another bowl beat together margarine, shortening and sugars. Gradually add in eggs and vanilla. Add dry ingredients. Stir in bran cereal and chocolate chips. Drop onto greased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes.