Grandma's Piece of St. Patrick's Day

I'm not even a little bit Irish (well at least not that I know of) but I always grew up celebrating St. Patrick's Day with great Irish food.  I always buy extra corned beef in March, just to put in the freezer so I can have it all year.  Once March begins I always find myself looking to bake Irish soda bread.  There is only one recipe I use, the recipe my mom used when I was growing up, oddly enough my Canadian grandmother's recipe. It's honestly the best Irish soda bread I have ever had and is a very simple recipe.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup dark raisins
• 1 cup golden raisins
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup buttermilk

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar into a large bowl.  Mix in raisins and then add eggs, oil and buttermilk with a spoon.  Divide dough in half and shape each half into a round loaf,  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 40-40 minutes.

**Notes:

I don't own a sifter so I use a wire mesh colander to sift the dry ingredients.  I like to throw in an extra tablespoon of buttermilk before making the loaves, it makes the bread extra moist.  Lastly, if you are serving a big crowd (I like to share mine), make one loaf and bake it for an hour.

Menu Planning with a Crafty Twist

With the change of every season I tell myself I'm going to eat healthier, more veggies and protein, fewer carbs and less junk.  Sometimes it lasts, sometimes it doesn't.  I've found that I have the most success when I plan ahead, making a grocery list and planning meals for the week.  Let's face it, most people struggle with organization and time.  There is never enough time to do what we need to, let alone get organized.  This year I am determined!

So after scouring Pinterest and talking to my sister about a craft to work on with mom, we came up with menu boards.  For under $10 I made myself get organized.  My menu board was made with a $5 frame from Christmas Tree Shop and some card stock that I had in my craft closet.  My sister used a frame, burlap and some craft paper.

Here's mine:

I think it came out pretty neat!

Now I can sit down on Saturday, plan my meals for the week and make a grocery list.  Healthier eating, better organization and responsible spending one week at a time.

Crockpot Cooking- Sausage and Peppers

My Crockpot is easily my favorite kitchen gadget.  I use it all year long and even have a Pinterest board exclusively dedicated to it.  I've used it for everything from appetizers, main dishes, sides, desserts and even for baking bread.  (My mind was blown and it is now my favorite bread to make!)  Here is my recipe for super simple Sausage and Peppers in the Crockpot.

6 Italian Sausage links (Sweet or hot)

1 large green pepper, sliced

1 large red pepper, sliced

1 large onion, sliced

1 tablespoon of jarred garlic or 2 cloves minced

2-14.5oz cans of tomatoes (I used one each of stewed and diced tomatoes)

olive oil

1. Place cans of tomatoes in Crockpot. Add garlic and sausage.  

2. Cook on high for 5-6 hours.

3. In a frying pan, heat oil and cook onions.  Add peppers and cook through.  Add to pot.  (This can be done early in cooking time or later, but I suggest letting them cook in the tomatoes for at least an hour.)

4. Enjoy!

Serving suggestions:  Slice sausage and stir in pasta or serve with hard rolls.  Tastes great with a little Parmesan cheese on top.

When I made it for myself I used 5 links and had 4 meals out of it.  You could easily add more sausage for a larger crowd.  Double the peppers and onions for anything more than 10 sausage.

Here is one of my meals!  Enjoy!

Simple Summer Salad

When the weather warms up I get into a salad routine.  Even though I have more time to cook, simple salads become a dinnertime staple.  Tonight was one of those nights.

Baby greens, slices of cucumber, chick peas, chunks of tomato and pepper, green onions and black olives.  I topped it with grilled chicken, made with my go to marinade and a quick red wine vinaigrette.  Simple, delicious, summer.

Make dinner easy!  Enjoy a salad!

~Catherine

Wine and Dine Wednesday

Wednesday afternoons I work my "grown up" job at a popular local wine shop.  It's quite a change of pace from being surrounded by 5-13 year-olds all day! By the time I get home it's late, I'm tired and usually hungry since I haven't eaten since lunch.   This used to mean cereal or heavy leftovers from earlier in the week.

About a month ago I came up with an easy fix. Oven omelets! (Ok, it's probably a less fancy way of saying frittata, but it's too easy for such a fancy name.)

So simple. Chopped veggies, shredded cheese and eggs. And fresh ground pepper.  I love my pepper grinder. I have such great memories of dinners around my parents kitchen table when my Nana was alive. She would grind and grind that pepper until you could see it from across the table. I like to think I got my love of pepper from her!

Back to cooking.....Monday afternoon when I get home from work I take veggies from the fridge and a giant onion and get to chopping. I put all the veggies in a bowl and scramble 5 eggs right into it. I shred some extra sharp cheese (or whatever I have in the fridge) into the bowl, grind some pepper and stir. I spray down a glass dish, usually my Pyrex bowl, and dump the egg mixture in. Pop it in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes or until the eggs are set.

I let it cool, put the lid on the bowl and keep it in the fridge, cutting slices for an easy breakfast or dinner after a 13 hour day with a slice of toast or some fruit.....and maybe a glass of wine.

Oven Omelets

about 3 cups of chopped veggies (a great way to clean the fridge!)

5-6 eggs

1/2 cup of shredded cheese

Mix everything in a bowl.  Pour into a greased glass baking dish.  Cook at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes until the eggs are cooked to your liking.  Slice and serve or let cool and refrigerate for later.  Warm in the microwave for 30 seconds. 

A New Adventure

May is typically a crazy month for teachers like myself.  Yet sitting at my desk today, eating my Caprese salad for lunch (YUM!), checking my email and trying to do 3 other things all before the kids came back from lunch, I had a wacky idea to start this blog.

Fast forward a few hours.  Track practice is over and I know I have no vegetables at home......the dreaded stop at the grocery store at 5 o'clock and I have no list.  I wander the produce section looking for signs of good looking veggies.  I manage to find a few things that pass my picky eye.

In 40 minutes I had dinner.  Sweet and sour chicken with stir fry veggies.  I'm not much on measuring when I cook, but here are my measurements.

Oven Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken

2 boneless chicken breasts, cubed

1/4 cup chili sauce

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
1 inch long piece of ginger grated

hot sauce to taste

sprinkle of cornstarch ( 1 teaspoon)

pinch of red pepper flake

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and put in a glass dish sprayed with cooking spray.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.

Stir Fry Veggies

1 large onion sliced

1 yellow squash cut in strips

1 red or yellow pepper chopped

2 cloves garlic cut in small pieces

1 cup frozen green beans or peas

salt and pepper to taste

splash of low sodium soy sauce or Worcestershire sauce

Cook veggies in a large pan with about a tablespoon of olive or vegetable oil.  You can cook them in any order you like.  I like to cook the onions and garlic for a few minutes first, then adding the pepper and frozen veggies.  I add the squash last so it doesn't get mushy.  When the veggies are done to my liking I add the soy or Worcestershire sauce and cook for a minute.

Serve with rice if you'd like but it makes quite a meal on its own!  I would say I will get at least 4 meals from the chicken alone!

Enjoy!!

~Catherine