Bread in a Bag

2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, divided
3 tbs white sugar
1 (.25 oz) package rapid rise yeast
1 cup warm water
3 tbs non-fat dry milk
3 tbs oil
1 ½ tsp salt
1-2 tbs flour for floured surface

In a large resealable freezer bag, combine 1 cup of flour, sugar, yeast and warm water. Squeeze most of the air out of the bag, and seal. Squish with your hands until well blended. Set aside to rest for 10 minutes at room temperature, or until bubbles appear (wrap in towel).

In quart sized freezer Ziploc squeeze together until crumbly ½ cup of flour, dry milk, salt, and oil. Add into the large Ziploc bag and squeeze out most of the air. Seal and squish until well blended. Add the last cup of flour to the bag, and continue mixing in the same manner until well blended. Dough will be sticky.

Remove dough onto a floured surface by turning bag completely inside out. Add remaining flour a little at a time to get right consistency as you knead for 5 minutes. Form into a small loaf and place in a greased 8x4 inch loaf pan. Cover with plastic wrap sprayed with nonstick spray and a towel. Allow to rise for 30 minutes or until your finger leaves an impression when you poke the top of the loaf gently.

Preheat oven to 375. Bake for 30-35 or until golden brown.

Easy Tootsie Rolls in a Bag

These are softer than the variety in the store, and they taste even better! Only 10 minutes to make. Recipe makes two dozen (12 servings).

2 tbs butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ cup white corn syrup
2 tbs oil
3 tbs cocoa
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
¾ cup dry milk powder
Wax Paper
Freezer Ziploc

Kneed all ingredients together in a Ziploc bag. If mixture is too thin, add more powdered sugar. Roll into logs and cut into desired lengths, wrap in wax paper and store (or eat). Do not wrap in plastic wrap, it will stick! Play with like play dough.

Half Recipe

1 tbs butter, softened
½ tsp vanilla extract
¼ cup white corn syrup
1 tbs + 1 tsp oil
2 tbs coca
1½ cup confectioners’ sugar
⅜ cup dry milk powder
Wax Paper
Freezer Ziploc

Ice Cream in a Bag

This no-cook recipe for vanilla ice cream makes about eight half-cup servings.

Ingredients:
2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 cups half-and-half cream
1/2 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 bag crushed ice
4 cups coarse salt

For each kid you'll need:
2 pint-size resealable plastic freezer bags
1 gallon-size resealable plastic freezer bag
Gloves or towel to protect fingers

1. In a pitcher or large measuring cup, stir together the whipping cream, half-and-half, sugar, and vanilla extract until sugar has dissolved.
2. Pour about 1/2 cup of mixture into a pint-size plastic bag and seal carefully, squeezing out extra air. Place each sealed bag into a second pint-size bag, again squeezing out extra air. Seal carefully.
3. Fill each gallon-size plastic bag about halfway with ice and add 1/2 cup coarse salt. Place one sealed small bag into the large bag, squeeze out most of the air, and seal the large bag.
4. Wear mittens or thick gloves, or wrap the bag in a towel to protect hands against the extreme cold. Shake and massage the bag for about 5 minutes or until mixture thickens into ice cream. Add more salt and ice to the outer bag if ice cream hasn't formed after 10 minutes of continuous motion.
5. Remove the outer pint-size bag before you open the inner bag so you don't get any of the salty ice on your ice cream!

Eggplant Parmesan

Yummy, delicious, fabulous, but time consuming. It's worth it though, oh, so worth it.


Shot in the pan

and on the plate.

Eggplant Parmesan
2 pounds globe eggplant (2 medium eggplants), cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
1 tablespoon kosher salt
8 slices high-quality white bread (about 8 ounces), torn into quarters
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 ounces)
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
6 tablespoons vegetable oil

Tomato Sauce
3 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 medium cloves garlic , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 1 generous tablespoon)
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
½ cup fresh basil leaves chopped
8 ounces whole milk mozzarella or part-skim mozzarella, shredded (2 cups)
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 1 ounce)
10 fresh basil leaves torn, for garnish

1. Eggplant: Toss half of eggplant slices and 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt in large bowl until combined; transfer salted eggplant to large colander set over bowl. Repeat with remaining eggplant and kosher salt, placing second batch in colander on top of first. Let stand until eggplant releases about 2 tablespoons liquid, 30 to 45 minutes. Arrange eggplant slices on triple layer paper towels; cover with another triple layer paper towels. Firmly press each slice to remove as much liquid as possible, then wipe off excess salt.
2. While eggplant is draining, adjust oven racks to upper- and lower-middle positions, place rimmed baking sheet on each rack, and heat oven to 425 degrees. Pulse bread in food processor to fine, even crumbs, about fifteen 1-second pulses (you should have about 4 cups). Transfer crumbs to pie plate and stir in 1 cup Parmesan, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; set aside. Wipe out bowl (do not wash) and set aside.
3. Combine flour and 1 teaspoon pepper in large zipper-lock bag; shake to combine. Beat eggs in second pie plate. Place 8 to 10 eggplant slices in bag with flour; seal bag and shake to coat eggplant. Remove eggplant slices, shaking off excess flour, dip in eggs, let excess egg run off, then coat evenly with bread crumb mixture; set breaded slices on wire rack set over baking sheet. Repeat with remaining eggplant.
4. Remove preheated baking sheets from oven; add 3 tablespoons oil to each sheet, tilting to coat evenly with oil. Place half of breaded eggplant on each sheet in single layer; bake until eggplant is well browned and crisp, about 30 minutes, switching and rotating baking sheets after 10 minutes, and flipping eggplant slices with wide spatula after 20 minutes. Do not turn off oven.
5. Sauce: While eggplant bakes, process 2 cans diced tomatoes in food processor until almost smooth, about 5 seconds. Heat olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes in large heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and garlic is light golden, about 3 minutes; stir in processed and remaining can of diced tomatoes. Bring sauce to boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened and reduced, about 15 minutes (you should have about 4 cups). Stir in basil and season to taste with salt and pepper.
6. Assembly: Spread 1 cup tomato sauce in bottom of 13 by 9-inch baking dish. Layer in half of eggplant slices, overlapping slices to fit; distribute 1 cup sauce over eggplant; sprinkle with half of mozzarella. Layer in remaining eggplant and dot with 1 cup sauce, leaving majority of eggplant exposed so it will remain crisp; sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan and remaining mozzarella. Bake until bubbling and cheese is browned, 13 to 15 minutes. Cool 10 minutes; scatter basil over top, and serve, passing remaining tomato sauce separately.

Notes: Sometimes I serve this on it's own, sometimes with pasta, sometimes, just standing by the pan with a fork. I love this as is, but if you don't want to assemble it, this would be great as an appetizer, using the tomato sauce for a dip. Of course, then you would miss out on the cheesy goodness of the mozzarella.

Grilled Fish Tacos

Sorry, no picture for this one. Besides, all you would really see is the tortillas. This is a great summer recipe.

2 lbs fresh grouper, snapper, mahi-mahi or haddock fillets
8-12 flour tortillas
1 head lettuce, shredded

Marinade
4 tbs olive oil
4 tbs garlic, minced
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp chili powder
4 tbs lime juice

Mango Avocado Salsa
2 mangos, diced medium
1 avocado, diced medium
¼ cup red onion, diced
1 tbs jalapeno pepper, minced
2 tbs cilantro, chopped
1 tbs lime juice
1 tbs olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Combine fish fillets with marinade mixture and refrigerate for 1 hour. Grill fillets on a hot grill. Chop cooked fillets into bite-sized pieces. While fish is grilling, combine ingredients for salsa. Refrigerate until ready to use. Fill tortillas with fish pieces, shredded lettuce, and salsa. Serves 6.

Notes: The first time I made this, I didn’t think there was enough of the marinade, so I doubled it. It seemed to be the right amount, so that’s the way it’s written now. I’m not a seafood person, but I love these tacos. This salsa would probably make anything taste good. If you aren’t familiar with grilling fish, watch it carefully, it doesn’t take long. I use the frozen mahi-mahi fillets from Costco, and those take 5-8 minutes to cook, depending on their size.

Pineapple Pork Roast

Yummy, tender, and even Michael, the hater of pork roasts, liked this.

3 lbs pork roast, I used a boneless loin, but any will work
1 15 oz can crushed pineapple with juice
¼ c packed brown sugar
¼ c soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ tsp pepper
½ tsp salt
1 tsp dried rosemary
2 tbs cornstarch dissolved in ¼ c cold water (to thicken the sauce after cooking)

To prepare the sauce, mix all the ingredients (except roast and cornstarch slurry) in a bowl.
Place roast in a crock pot and pour the sauce on top. Cook on high for 5-6 hours or on low for 7-8 hours.
Remove roast from crock pot when done, set on a heated platter. Prepare the cornstarch slurry, being sure that all of the cornstarch is dissolved (no one likes lumpy sauce). Whisk the slurry into the sauce in the crock pot to thicken.
Add the roast back to the crock pot and let cook on high for about 15 min more.
Remove roast from crock pot and slice to serve, spooning sauce over sliced pieces.

Chili Blanco

Sorry, no photo this time. Even though the calendar says spring, the feeling outside is more winter-like! Enjoy a healthier version of white chili.

2 poblano chilies
½ teaspoon olive oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
4 large garlic cloves, minced
¾ pound chicken breast cut into chunks
½ pound white mushrooms, quartered
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
½ teaspoon salt
1 (15-ounce) can small white beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15-ounce) can Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 ¾ cups chicken broth
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
½ tablespoon fresh lime juice

1. Preheat the broiler. Line a baking sheet with foil; place the chilies on the baking sheet. Broil 5 inches from the heat, turning occasionally with tongs, until lightly charred, about 10 minutes. Transfer the chilies to a bowl, cover, and let stand 5 minutes. Peel, seed, and chop the chilies. Set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a nonstick Dutch oven (or a large pot) over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until the onion is softened. Add the chicken, mushrooms, cumin, coriander, and salt; cook until the chicken is no longer pink and the mushrooms begin to soften, about 4 minutes. Add the beans, broth, and chilies. Cover and cook until flavors and blended, about 8 minutes. Uncover, reduce the heat, and cook until thickened, about 7 minutes longer. Stir in the cilantro and lime juice.

Makes 6 servings. Per serving (about 1 cup): 196 cal, 4g fat, 1g sat fat, 34mg chol, 845mg sod, 26g carb, 8g fiber, 22g protein, 87mg calcium

I’ve been known to cheat and use canned green chilies instead of roasting the peppers. You can lower the sodium by using reduced or no sodium beans. You can also use 3 to 3½ cups of any combination of cooked beans, such as pinto, navy, or red kidney, in place of the small white beans and Great Northern beans. This may alter the color of your chili. If you don’t have coriander, you can use chili powder, though the taste will be different.

Smashed Potatoes

This really isn't the best picture, but these are the best potatoes!

2 lbs red potatoes (about 16 small to med; 2 inches in diameter), scrubbed
1 1/2 tsp salt, divided
1 bay leaf
4 tbs unsalted butter, melted and warm
½ cup cream cheese (4 oz), room temperature
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
3 tbs chopped fresh chives or 4 ½ tsp dried (optional)

1. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with 1 inch cold water; add 1 teaspoon salt and the bay leaf. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer gently until a paring knife can be inserted into the potatoes with no resistance, 35 to 45 minutes. Reserve ½ cup of the cooking water, then drain the potatoes. Return the potatoes to the pot, discard the bay leaf, and allow the potatoes to stand in the pot, uncovered, until the surfaces are dry, about 5 minutes.

2. While the potatoes dry, whisk the melted butter and softened cream cheese in a medium bowl until smooth and fully incorporated. Add ¼ cup of the reserved cooking water, ½ teaspoon pepper, the chives (if using), and ½ teaspoon salt. Using a rubber spatula or the back of a wooden spoon, smash the potatoes just enough to break the skins. Fold in the butter-cream cheese mixture until most of the liquid has been absorbed and chunks of potatoes remain. Add more cooking water 1 tablespoon at a time as needed, until the potatoes are slightly looser than desired (the potatoes will thicken slightly with standing). Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper; serve immediately.

Notes: White potatoes can be used instead of red, but reds are so much better. Try to get potatoes of equal size; if that’s not possible, test the larger potatoes for doneness (using a paring knife). If you only larger potatoes, increase the cooking time by about 10 minutes. I usually end up using all of the reserved liquid, it will look a little loose at first, but after standing for five or so minutes, the potatoes soak up all the excess.