There are many different buzz words that explain this phenomenon: flexitarian, semi-vegetarian, and week day vegetarian; where you only eat meat on the week-ends. But anyway you want to say it, you are cutting back on the meat you eat. Some do it for health reasons, animal rights, the environment or all of the above!

Removing high fructose corn syrup and preservatives from our table.
This is my on-line recipe book with my adventures into finding healthy food for my family to eat....
Trying to cook more from scratch with less prepared foods.

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Meatless Monday

Is that something, I googled Meatless Mondays to find the blog hop and I find that it has a history. Gee I must have been asleep in class for this one... but back in World War 1 Herbert Hoover was the head of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and he was asking Americans to cut back because of the shortages (that I remember) and many items where rationed. He coined the terms "Meatless Monday" and "Wheatless Wednesday” saying that “Food Will Win the War”. Wow I guess now many environmental and health groups are coining this phase to help people cut back....

So today I did a real easy meatless meal.

I had some frozen ravioli in the freezer..... I have been craving some cheese ravioli....
So I baked some! Real easy simple lazy recipe:

Italian tomato sauce
1/4 onion chopped finely
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
1 teaspoon of baking soda

Mix together. I should have heated this to make sure it was spaghetti sauce consistency but I didn't tonight.

I pour some sauce just to cover the bottom

Then I layered the frozen cheese raviolis. I covered with more sauce. I sprinkled some 5 cheese Italian grated cheese and some Parmesan cheese . Layered more raviolis and sauce and the cheeses...

Cover with foil

Bake at 375 for about a hour and 15 minutes. The last fifteen minutes I took the foil off...
Yum...

Raspberry Oatmeal Cookie Bars

 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
 1 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup of applesauce
2 tablespoons of  seedless raspberry jam


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease one 8 inch square pan,
 Combine brown sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, and rolled oats. Rub in the butter using your hands or a pastry blender to form a crumbly mixture. Add applesauce. Press 2 cups of the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Spread the jam to within 1/4 inch of the edge. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the top, and lightly press it into the jam.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes in preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool before cutting into bars.

It was kinda crumbly but I did use 1/2 of the butter from the original recipe and added applesauce but it turned out tasty.  




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Monday, October 11, 2010

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Grease 12 three-inch muffin pan cups or line muffin pan

Cream together

1 cup of sugar.
5 tablespoons of butter.
3 tablespoons of shortening.
2 tablespoons of applesauce

Mix in:

1/2 cup shredded apple (about one medium apple) 

3 teaspoons of baking powder.
1 teaspoon of salt.
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
2 medium eggs.


Stir in the flour and milk alternately until mixture is just combined.
3 cups of flour.
1 cup of milk.



Topping:
1/2 cup of melted butter.
1 cup of sugar blended with 1 tablespoon of cinnamon.


Fill muffin cups to the top.

Bake at 350F oven for about twenty minutes.

Allow to cool for a few minutes.

With each muffin, dip in the melted butter.
Roll each muffin in the cinnamon sugar blend.

  I just rubbed the rest of the stick of butter on the tops of the muffins and then dipped in cinnamon.
They look pretty and all and yea they are tasty but I think next time I will just do a strudel topping  just easier I think....


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