Crock-Pot Cheddar Broccoli Crab dip

This is one of the appetizers I brought to my parents' Christmas dinner this year.  It's a definite departure from anything I've made before, but it was a hit.  I used my crock pot so I could focus on making another -- disastrous -- appetizer that will not be mentioned again.  If you'd prefer to bake this one, it should go in a 9-inch pie plate and bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

1 8-oz package low fat cream cheese
1 8-oz container low fat sour cream
1 envelope Italian Dressing mix
1 10-oz package of frozen chopped broccoli, thawed and well drained
1 8-oz package shredded cheddar cheese, divided in half
1 8-oz package shredded crab meat or imitation crab meat (for shellfish allergies)
1/4 cup sliced green onions

Beat cream cheese, sour cream and dressing mix with mixer until well blended.  Add broccoli and half of the cheddar cheese.  Mix well.

In the crock pot, set on low for 1 hour, then "Hold Warm" until it's time to serve.

Sprinkle remaining cheddar cheese on top of the dip before serving with tortilla chips or crackers.

Chocolate Caramel Bars

This one was definitely my favorite because  not only was it delicious, it was also EASY.

3/4 cup melted butter
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
32 caramels, unwrapped (I used Werther's soft caramels)
3 tbsp milk
2 tbsp butter
12 oz. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.  In a small mixing bowl, combine butter, flour, oatmeal, brown sugar and baking soda; mix well.  Put 3/4 of the butter-oatmeal mixture in an ungreased 1 1/2 qt baking dish, pressing evenly over the bottom of the pan.  Bake for 10 minutes.

While mix is baking, combine caramels, milk and butter in a saucepan and heat, stirring until the caramels are melted.  Pour caramel mixture over the baked bars and sprinkle chocolate chips generously over the top.  Top with remaining butter-oatmeal mixture.  Bake for 15 more minutes.  Cool and cut into bars.

Amazing Chocolate Chip Cookies!

These were entitled "Best Chocolate Chip Cookies" on the website where I found the recipe.  It was adapted from a book whose author adapted it from Cooks Illustrated.  At this point, including my adaptations, I'm not sure how well it resembles its source material... but it's definitely one of the best recipes I've tried!

1 3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 3/4 stick butter (14 tbsp)
1/2 cup white sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp coconut extract  (the secret ingredient)
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
12 oz. chocolate chips

Whisk together flour and baking soda in a medium bowl.  Spray baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.

Put 10 tbsp of butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat.  Allow the butter to melt for 2 minutes and begin to swirl it around the pan, allowing it to brown.  Keep the butter moving so it doesn't burn.  Browning should take about 3 minutes and you'll know it's done when it smells nutty and has a dark golden brown color.  Remove the pan from heat and transfer it to a large mixing bowl.  Add the remaining 4 tbsp of cold butter to the melted butter and stir gently until it's melted.

Add the white and brown sugar, vanilla and coconut extract and salt to the butter and whisk the ingredients together.  Add the egg and egg yolk and whisk again until the mixture is smooth (about 30 seconds).  Allow the batter to rest for 3 minutes, then whisk again for another 30 seconds.  Do this two more times; the result should be thick and shiny.

Add the flour mixture and stir until just combined, about 1 minute.  Gently stir in chocolate chips.  The batter will be soft.

Form each cookie with about 2 tbsp of dough onto greased baking sheet.  Bake 3 minutes, then rotate sheet and bake for 4 minutes.  Allow to cool on a wire rack.

Banana Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Since most Christmas cookies aren't of the meat variety, I have a lot of options for this time of year!  Here are the most recent ones I've tried.  I didn't care for these myself... they tasted a little too much like banana bread, which I don't happen to like.  However, from those who are so inclined, these have been given the seal of approval.

1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
2 tbsp hot cocoa mix
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 egg
2 mashed ripe bananas
1 cup raisins
1 3/4 cup quick-cook oats

Soak raisins in 1 cup warm water for 15 minutes.

Combine dry ingredients in a mixing bowl; beat in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Add egg, bananas and oats; mix well.  Stir in raisins.

Spray baking sheet with non-stick spray.  Drop tablespoon-size balls onto greased baking sheet.  Bake at 375 for 13 minutes.

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

I love these for fall.  A muffin and a glass of almond milk were the perfect breakfast this morning, and my daughter expects one every morning when she gets up!  The original recipe makes these as cupcakes, with cream cheese frosting, but I cut some of the sugar, added some flax seed and totally eliminated the frosting, and  -- voila! -- breakfast!


2 1/4 cups whole-wheat flour
1 cup raisins
1/3 cup flax seed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1/3 cup milk
1 15-oz can organic pumpkin puree  (I like Farmer's Market brand)

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees. Spray muffin tin with non-stick spray.

Soak raisins in 1 cup warm water for 15 minutes to soften.

Sift together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, clove, allspice, salt, baking powder, and baking soda; set aside.

Beat 1/2 cup of butter, the white sugar, and brown sugar and eggs with an electric mixer in a large bowl. The mixture should be noticeably lighter in color. Stir in the milk, flax seed, and pumpkin puree.

Combine with the flour mixture, mixing until just incorporated. Drain the raisins, then fold into the batter.  Pour the batter into the muffin tin.

Bake in the preheated oven until golden and the tops spring back when lightly pressed, about 25 minutes. Cool in the pans for 5 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.

Happy Fall!

Spinach Nuggets

My daughter loves these and I haven't made them in a a while, so it's her surprise for dinner tonight.  These are quick and easy, and they're great for meals or just munching.  I prefer to use flax seed as an egg substitute, but if you don't, you can replace the flax seed and water with 3 whole eggs or 5 egg whites.

2 cups frozen spinach
1/2 cup chopped frozen broccoli
1 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
3 tbsp flax seed mixed with 1/2 cup water
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp parsley
1/2 tsp paprika


Preheat oven to 375.  Boil spinach and broccoli together, then drain.  Add remaining ingredients and mix well.  Shape into nuggets on non-stick baking sheet.  Bake for 15 minutes, flip nuggets, and bake for 10 minutes.  Allow to cool before serving.

A Note About Soy

I have tried both Smart Ground brand and Boca brand soy crumbles and I have to say that Smart Ground tastes like cigarette butts.  I still have a box in my fridge that I don't even want to open because I'm afraid of the smell.  It ruined an otherwise perfectly good Mexican Lasagna last week.

Boca, on the other hand, is gracing my spaghetti sauce tonight.  I've heard Morningstar Farms is even better, but I haven't tried them yet.

I have, on the other hand, tried Morningstar Farms' veggie burgers, and found them to be delicious, especially the Griller burgers.  I also bought Mushroom Lovers burgers and Chik'n Burgers, but have yet to try them.

Morningstar Farms Chik'n nuggets are pretty good substitutes for the real thing, and I really dug on the veggie corn dogs.  Unfortunately, they have been discontinued... some sort of a supplier issue.  Sad face.

Spinach and Mushroom Couscous with Feta and Black Beans

This pretty much hits all my staples in one go.  It's the assimilation of two recipes with a little of my own personal touches thrown in.


1 1/2 cups couscous
1 12-oz. pkg frozen spinach
1 lb chopped mushrooms
1 14-oz can low-sodium black beans
2 1/4 cups vegetable broth
1 cup onion, chopped
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp garlic & herb Mrs. Dash
1 pkg low-fat crumbled Feta cheese


In a saucepan, combine the couscous and 2 cups of broth and cook as directed.


In a separate skillet, cook onion, mushroom, black beans and garlic until tender.  Stir in lemon juice, remaining broth and Mrs. Dash.  Add spinach and simmer.  Stir couscous into vegetable mix and sprinkle feta on top.

Salmon Potato Cakes

I came up with these up the other night for the baby's dinner, but they were so good that we've been munching on them ever since!

1 medium red potato, peeled and diced
1 2.5-oz pouch of pink salmon (I used Chicken of the Sea)
2 tsp Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb
1 tsp butter
3/4 cup bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350.

Boil the potato and butter until soft.  Drain and add to the food processor with the salmon and 1 tsp of Mrs. Dash.  Puree until well blended.

Mix the other tsp Mrs. Dash with the breadcrumbs and fold the salmon-potato  blend into the breadcrumbs. Stir until well-mixed.

Pat into small cakes on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.  Flip and bake for another 10 minutes.

Lea's Boursin Pasta

This recipe is directly lifted from my friend Lea.  About ten years ago, when she was in culinary school, she made this for dinner one night and it was AMAZING.  When I asked her for the recipe the other day, she said she didn't have one... but she helped me figure out what the basic ingredients might have been.  I made it for dinner last night, and WOW!  Exactly as I remembered it!  Best of all, it's fast... I think this took me around 30 minutes to make.

2 packages fresh shiitake mushrooms
1 cup chopped onion
2 tbsp chopped garlic
1 bunch of fresh asparagus, cut into pieces
3/4 cup vegetable broth
2 cups whole wheat pasta shells
1 8-oz container of Boursin Garlic & Herb cheese

Cook pasta, drain and set aside.

In olive oil, cook the onions until they're clear in color.  Add garlic and mushrooms.  Saute for about 5 minutes before adding the vegetable broth and asparagus.  Let simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is gone.  Add the pasta at this point, and stir until all the ingredients are mixed.  Finally, add the Boursin.  It should melt pretty quickly since everything is hot.  Make sure the Boursin is well blended into the main ingredients.

Add black pepper to taste, and (if you need MORE cheese), top with a little fresh grated parmesan.

Black Beans Extraordinaire

This one comes from a neighbor, and she had been telling me about her famous black beans long before I was able to try them in person.  Believe me, they were worth the wait!  Once I tried them, I had to get the recipe... I've made it twice and both times, I was asked for the recipe, too!  As usual, I changed it up a little, but the bulk to this recipe is solely to her credit.

2 cans low-sodium black beans, rinsed and drained
1 bunch cilantro, FINELY minced
1 large tomato, chopped
3 stalks green onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 large avocado, diced
1 small can green chiles
1 lime
1/2 cup Greek Yogurt
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 tsp Tony Chachere's
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tbsp Mrs. Dash Onion & Herb seasoning

Simmer beans, cilantro, tomato, onion, garlic and spices on the stove for 30 minutes.  Add the diced avocado, squeeze the lime into beans, and simmer until ready to serve.  Immediately before serving, stir in Greek Yogurt.  Top with mozzarella cheese and serve.

Spicy Rice Casserole

This one was a throw-together last night that turned out pretty well... I intended to make Green Chile Casserole (which I will post later) but found I was out of green chiles, so I was forced to improvise.  I also forgot to turn on the slow cooker, so I ended up throwing the whole thing in a pan, then in the oven, BUT it was meant to be crock-potted so that's how I will report it.

1 medium green pepper, diced
1/3 cup diced onion
2 cloves minced garlic
1 1/2 cups chopped mushrooms (I used crimini)
1 28-oz can whole stewed tomatoes in juice
1 14-oz can corn, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen sweet peas
1 cup vegetable broth
1 cup brown rice
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp Tony Chachere's

Throw everything except the cheese in the slow cooker on low for 4 hours or high for 2 hours.  (Rice should be tender and liquid will be mostly simmered out.)  Sprinkle cheese on top.

Veggie Muffins for Kids

This one is from recipezaar and while I thought the muffins were bland, my daughter and -- surprisingly -- my husband loved them.  The only problem is that they were SO moist, they almost crossed over into soggy... my answer was to put them in a tupperware container and leave the lid off for about half a day to let them dry out a little!  This also calls for 3 cups of baby food vegetables (I used organic sweet potatoes, sweet carrots, sweet peas and mixed veggies) but perhaps the moisture levels would be cut by just pureeing your own vegetables.  I also added raisins, of course, which the recipe doesn't call for.

2 c. flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp allspice
3 cups baby food vegetables

Preheat oven to 350 and spray muffin tin with Pam.

Mix all ingredients with electric mixer until well blended.

Fill muffin tins, bake 25 minutes.

Carrot Breakfast Muffins

I found the bare bones of this one on allrecipes.com and (after some changes, of course) my daughter and niece both ate them up!  The original recipe was for cupcakes, with frosting, but I just made them as muffins... one of the many ways I sneak veggies on my girl.

1 cup raisins
2 cups warm water
2 cups flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp allspice
4 eggs
1/4 cup sunflower oil
1/4 cup flax seed
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
3/4 cup brown sugar
3 cups shredded carrots

Combine raisins and water in a small bowl.  Let soak for 15 minutes to soften the raisins.  Drain raisins, discard water, and set raisins aside.

Preheat oven to 350.  Spray muffin tin with cooking spray.

In large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and allspice.  In a separate bowl, combine eggs, oil, applesauce, brown sugar and flax seed; beat well or use electric mixer to blend.  Combine egg mixture and flour mixture; mix until moistened.  Fold in carrots and raisins.  Spoon into muffin tin.

Bake for 25 minutes.

Orange-Vanilla Granola with Cinnamon and Raisins

I'm not crediting anyone with this recipe because it's a compilation of about 4 different ingredient lists and then my own modifications.  My husband has a nut allergy so I used seeds instead of nuts, and I added raisins instead of the usual coconut.  I have had trouble finding pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds) in the store so I ordered some online and ended up just using dried soy nuts for this batch. I also added a cup of dried mixed berries to the mixture and hated it so much, I picked all the pieces back out.  I guess I'm not a dried fruit fan, but I will leave that step in, just in case you are.

I like this recipe because it uses honey and orange juice to sweeten instead of sugar, and I've gotta be honest... the daughter and I were munching on the mix long before it ever made it to the oven.

3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1/4 cup flax seed
1 cup raisins
1 cup dried fruit
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/3 cup pepitas
1/3 cup orange juice
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp pure orange extract

Soak raisins in water for 20 minutes.  Drain, discard water, set raisins aside.

Preheat oven to 325.

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine orange juice, honey, cinnamon, vanilla and orange extract until honey is melted.

In a separate bowl, combine oats, flax seed, raisins, sunflower seeds and pepitas.  Mix well.

Pour honey mix into oat mix until well coated.

Spread in a thin layer on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.  Remove from the oven, stir, and bake for another 15 minutes.

Remove from oven, stir, and add dried fruit (if you are so inclined).  Allow to cool and store in air-tight container (or, realistically, a plastic throw-away container).

Southwest Veggie Soup

A modification from The Hungry Girl Cookbook, this soup is low calorie (168 calories per serving), almost fat-free (under 1g), and high in fiber (6.5 g).  I admit, it looks like there are quite a few ingredients but the workload mainly consists of opening cans.


1 16-oz package sweet kernel corn
2 15-oz. cans black beans, rinsed and drained OR 1 can black beans, 1 can chickpeas (rinsed, drained)
1 15-oz. can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
3 15-oz cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes
1 15-oz. can Italian style diced tomatoes
1 7-oz. can chopped green chiles
1 envelope taco seasoning mix
1 envelope ranch dressing mix
1 cup water
1/4 cup minced onions

Pour the tomatoes and corn into a large pot. Add remaining ingredients and stir thoroughly. Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until ready to serve (at least 15 minutes. The longer it simmers, the better.)

I like to top mine with fresh chopped green onions and a bit of shredded cheddar cheese, but that does tend to boost the fat content above 1 gram!  It's also excellent eaten cold.  (In fact, sometimes, I prefer it that way, like gazpacho!)

Makes 12 servings. (Serving is described as "one generous cup".)

Mushroom Stroganoff

The original recipe came from a "Vegetarian Starter Kit" I received from PETA, which actually consisted of a small magazine with a lot of talky-talk and a few really good recipes.  Of course, PETA is advocating a vegan lifestyle so their recipes called for soy sour cream, but I used Greek yogurt, which is an EXCELLENT low-fat substitute for sour cream.  There's no difference in taste when it's mixed into a recipe like this, and one serving is abut 1/2 cup instead of 1 tablespoon.  I also want to mention that if you buy plain old mushroom gravy (canned or mix) or mushroom soup, it's made with beef stock, so you'll probably want to seek out vegan mushroom soup or gravy.  I've added and subtracted, and here's the final product, friend and husband-approved.


1 medium yellow onion
1 tsp chopped garlic
1/2 lb quartered baby portobello mushrooms
1/2 lb quartered button mushrooms
2 tbsp flour
1 can vegan mushroom soup or gravy
1 cup vegetable broth
8 oz. low-fat sour cream or Greek yogurt
2 tbsp ground mustard
1 tsp red pepper flakes
3 cups cooked whole wheat pasta

Saute onion, garlic and mushrooms in olive oil.  Sprinkle in flour and cook to a paste.  Add vegetable broth and gravy and simmer for 20 minutes.

Mix together the Greek yogurt, mustard and red pepper flakes.  Pour into the mushroom mixture and heat through.  Serve over pasta.

Makes 4 servings.

Vegetarian or Vegan?

I just want to clarify for the purposes of the recipes I will post...  I am a vegetarian, not a vegan.  Therefore, I will be using milk, cheese, sour cream, and other dairy products in my cooking.  I am also fond of seafood.  If you are not a fish, shellfish, or dairy-eater, I'm sure you already know how to make the necessary substitutions, so I will not be giving substitution information with my recipes... I want to post everything exactly the way I tried it and you can modify the way you see fit!

I also want to mention that most of my recipes come from other sources and I modify the heck out of them. When the original source is available, I will credit or link to it... if no credit is given, it's a family recipe or one of my own creation!