Spring Resolutions

One of my spring traditions is Walk Kansas, a fitness challenge by Kanas State University Extension's Family Consumer Sciences program. I've loved this idea since the program started, almost 20 years ago. The first year we had 33 teams of walkers in Greenwood County, I wasn't the only one looking for motivation! Since its beginning, Walk Kansas has been a popular activity with teams of 6 people adding their walk time or distance to try to cover the miles across Kansas during the 6-week period of time.
This year I am on the Stray Cats team, a clever name for a few people scattered across the state who are K-State fans. We don't have to walk together so being in the same location isn't important. The state program is coordinated by a good friend of mine who also does a weekly newsletter to participants. This newsletter contains healthy tips for activity and eating. And good recipes.


This blog's recipe is Southwest Vegetable Frittata. Just 19% of Kansas eat enough fruits and vegetables. Here is a tasty way to add some vegetables to a meal. Each week's newsletter has healthy recipes to encourage us to eat more fruits and vegetables. Check out some of these at: www.walkkansas.org

SOUTHWEST VEGETABLE FRITTATA

(4 servings)

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon canola or olive oil

½ cup diced red pepper

¼ cup diced yellow onion

½ to 1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely minced

½ cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed

6 large eggs

salt and pepper

¼ cup grated reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese

¼ avocado, thinly sliced

½ cup chunky salsa or pico de gallo

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro, for garnish (optional)

Directions:

1.     In large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat.

2.     Add red pepper, onion and jalapeno; sauté for 5 minutes. Add black beans and with wooden spoon, stir vegetables and beans until evenly distributed.

3.     Beat eggs in bowl and pour eggs over top. Spread with spoon to evenly distribute across vegetables and beans. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover and cook over medium heat until eggs are just set, about 2 to 3 minutes.

4.     Remove pan from heat and sprinkle with cheese. Cover and allow cheese to melt for a minutes. Gently slide the frittata onto plate or platter.

5.     Top with avocado slices and salsa. If desired, garnish with fresh cilantro.

Nutrition Information per serving:

200 calories

13 g fat (3 g saturated fat)

9 g carbohydrates

13 g protein

3 g fiber

260 mg sodium

Not another Chicken Dinner!

40 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken, 6 cups mayonnaise, 6 cups cheese, 10 packages Ranch dressing.....  Its another chicken dinner.

This is the time of year when many organizations, academic groups, and businesses have their spring banquets. Usually complete with recognitions, reports, and a chicken dinner.  But how often have you had "another dry chicken dinner"?
A few weeks ago our UMW group served the Eureka Honors Dinner. It would be chicken. After some searching and trials I found a great recipe! Moist and tasty, plus easy to prepare. My family likes this when I serve it at home and we had many compliments on the Honors Dinner meal. I think you'll like this amazing baked chicken with creamy, cheesy Ranch topping.

Here's the home version:

RANCH CHEDDAR CHICKEN

(to serve 8)

Ingredients:

½ cup mayonnaise

½ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 (1-oz) package Ranch Seasoning and Salad Dressing mix

            (I buy this in a large jar. 1 package is equal to 3 tablespoons)

3 cloves garlic, minced

8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (or breasts)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

            (or Monterey Chicken Seasoning)

⅓ cup Panko (Japanese-style breadcrumbs)

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves

Directions:

1.     Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly oil a 9 x 13-inch baking dish or coat with nonstick spray.

2.     In a small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, cheese, Ranch Seasoning and garlic.

3.     Season chicken with salt and pepper. Place chicken in a single layer onto the prepared baking dish and top with mayonnaise mixture. Sprinkle with Panko.

4.     Place into oven and cook until completely cooked through and golden brown on top, reaching an internal temperature of 175 degrees F., about 25-30 minutes.

5.     Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired.

Even on a white church plate, it looks good. 

It isn't just about ingredients and recipes....

Baking and cooking together are things my granddaughter likes to do at my house. We usually make lunch for the ranch partners (her mom/my daughter and her 'papa'/my husband) and often treats for everyone. So it is an activity that keeps us busy and has good results. The results aren't just the goodies that come out of the oven - cooking with children is a great learning tool.

A bit of searching yielded this list of skills that cooking with children helps build:
* Builds math skills
* Enriches oral vocabulary
* Teaches scientific concepts
* Boosts reading skills
* Introduces life skills
* Develops fine motor skills
* Promotes social skills
* Provides fun connect time together

At 3 1/2, some of these are beyond what we're doing now; but counting, fine motor skills, life skills, and vocabulary are part of our cooking time. And we have fun together!

We recently made Applesauce muffins from a children's cookbook that came with a food preservation guide from the University of Georgia. I think using good resources for recipes is important, U of Georgia is the go-to for home food preserving, so I expected a good set of recipes in the children's book also.

APPLESAUCE MUFFINS

Makes 12 servings/muffins

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour

¾ cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon cinnamon

½ cup vegetable oil

1 ½ cups applesauce

2 eggs

1 cup chopped pecans

What to do:

1.     Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2.     Wash hands well with soap and water. Dry hands.

3.     Measure and combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl; then stir well.

4.     Measure and combine oil and applesauce in a smaller bowl, then crack open and add eggs. Remember to wash your hands after handling raw eggs!

5.     Pour the wet ingredients onto the dry ingredients and stir with a long handled spoon until mixed evenly. Measure and stir in nuts if you like.

6.     Spray in 12-muffin pan with vegetable oil spray or use muffin liners.

7.     Use a ladle to fill each muffin cup about ¾ full.

8.     Lower filled muffin pan carefully onto a rack in the middle of the hot oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center of a muffin – it if comes out clean then the muffin is done baking.

9.     Carefully remove muffin pan from oven using oven mitts or potholders and place on a cake-cooling rack or towel-covered countertop to cool.

10. Enjoy for breakfast, snack, or dessert!

Some of the tips I use when cooking with the Little:
* I tell her to stand by the refrigerator when I open the oven to keep her away from the hot stove.
* She loves to play in the flour - 'measuring', scooping, patting - it is like an indoor sandbox. So what if there's flour dust in the drawers?
* Keeping a small step stool in the kitchen makes her the right height for working at the counter and helps me reach the top shelves.
* We always count the ingredients to help her learn numbers.
* She develops fine motor skills with having her hands in the process.
* We talk about ingredients and nutrition - she's learned vocabulary and health.
* And we have a lot of fun together, making memories!

APPLESAUCE MUFFINS

Makes 12 servings/muffins

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour

¾ cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon cinnamon

½ cup vegetable oil

1 ½ cups applesauce

2 eggs

1 cup chopped pecans

What to do:

1.     Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2.     Wash hands well with soap and water. Dry hands.

3.     Measure and combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl; then stir well.

4.     Measure and combine oil and applesauce in a smaller bowl, then crack open and add eggs. Remember to wash your hands after handling raw eggs!

5.     Pour the wet ingredients onto the dry ingredients and stir with a long handled spoon until mixed evenly. Measure and stir in nuts if you like.

6.     Spray in 12-muffin pan with vegetable oil spray or use muffin liners.

7.     Use a ladle to fill each muffin cup about ¾ full.

8.     Lower filled muffin pan carefully onto a rack in the middle of the hot oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center of a muffin – it if comes out clean then the muffin is done baking.

9.     Carefully remove muffin pan from oven using oven mitts or potholders and place on a cake-cooling rack or towel-covered countertop to cool.

10. Enjoy for breakfast, snack, or dessert!

The best part is sampling!

The book from University of Georgia
that had the recipe for Applesauce
Muffins. 

Yummy Brownie Crunch Bars

This is the time of year when the ranch gets even more crazy. Still feeding cattle, burning pastures, giving calves shots, and moving them all from pasture to pasture keeps everyone everyone busy. For all of this I'm the support staff. My job is lunch, treats, and child care. Last weekend was a full one and these Brownie Marshmallow Crunch Bars were appreciated by all who passed through my kitchen.

I had tried several other recipes for the chocolate/marshmallow/crunch type of bar cookie in the past. Mostly with little success -  too gooey to cut, bottom too hard, various other problems. Yet, when these would show up at church coffee time I loved them. So I was glad to find this recipe that works well, I think the success is the marshmallow frosting!

BROWNIE MARSHMALLOW CRUNCH BARS

Ingredients:

1 (18.4 oz) package chocolate fudge brownie mix

⅔ cup vegetable oil

¼ cup water

2 eggs

1 (12 oz) container vanilla marshmallow fluffy frosting

1 cup peanut butter

1 tablespoon butter

1 ½ cups crisp rice cereal

Directions:

1.     Follow package directions and combine brownie mix with oil, water, and eggs. Bake in a 13” x 9” pan, as directed. Remove from oven and allow to cool for about an hour.

2.     Top brownie layer with the frosting, smoothing out evenly.

3.     For topping, combine the chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter in a small saucepan. Cook and stir over low heat until chocolate chips have completely melted and mixture is well combined. Remove from the heat and quickly stir in crisp rice cereal. Immediately spoon the mixture over the top of the frosting layer and gently spread out evenly. Chill until set.

4.     Allow to set out for 10 minutes before slicing and serving. Bars are delicious served cold or at room temperature.

brownies with the marshmallow frosting

wonderful gooey chocolate-peanut butter-crispy rice cereal

All together, ready to chill and enjoy

5.