Date Cake

This date cake does not contain a drop of sugar. It is super moist and so delicious. I like to serve it with (a lot) of whipped cream (can sweeten with a bit of honey or maple syrup to make it truly sugar-free), and sliced bananas. This recipe doubles well for a 9x13" pan.
It is from The Great Nova Scotia  Cookbook, by Pauline Carter

Place in a saucepan:
juice of 1 large orange
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
1 C raisins (I usually use extra dates in place of the raisins but I don't think it matters)
1/2 lb dates
2 C water

Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes or until dates are very soft. Make sure to stir it often. Set aside to cool. Puree with hand blender (or mash well with a potato masher or something).

Pour into a large bowl and add the following:
1/2 C oil
2 tsp vanilla
2 C whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Mix well and then pour into a greased 9x9" pan. Bake in preheated oven at 350F.
The original recipe says to bake it about 1 hour, but I find it's always done before that.
Bake it until a toothpick comes out clean!

World Famous Paradise Bakery Sugar Cookies

With Christmas coming, we could all use another sugar cookie recipe. This one is dear to my little heart since it's about as close to the Paradise Bakery ones as you can get without actually going there. I recommend using regular or decorative sugar and not other sprinkles since (I think) they need a bit more sweetness. They are almost like a shortbread, but different. I'm sure that's helpful. Here it is:

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup powdered sugar
2 cups shortening
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg, beaten
4 1/3 cups cake flour (really, do use cake flour or cake flour substitute)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Sugar, for decorating

Directions
Preheat oven to 375. In a medium bowl, cream together the sugars and shortening using an electric mixer. Mix on slow speed 30 seconds, then scrape down the bowl with a spatula. Increase speed to medium and mix for 3 minutes. Slowly add vanilla and beaten egg while mixing. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Gradually add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl, mixing on slow speed just until blended. Do not overmix. Scoop with an ice-cream scoop and roll in sugar. Place directly on cookie sheet. Flatten slightly with palm of hand. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. Cookies are done when pale golden. Ideally, edges do not brown.

Pumpkin Brownies

I got this recipe from Pinterest, but after I read the comments and people were saying that they were cake-y and muffin-y, I changed the oil and eggs amounts to hopefully make them denser and more like a brownie. In my defense, I also changed the flour to 1/2 whole wheat, and cut down the sugar! :) But don't hold back on the chocolate chips, and definitely bake them long enough so that they aren't completely doughy, but without over baking them...I'm confident that you can find that balance.

4 eggs

1 ¼ cup pumpkin puree

1/3 cup oil

1 cup ww pastry flour

1 cup white flour

2 tsp cocoa powder

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp allspice

½ tsp nutmeg

½ tsp salt

1 cup brown sugar (packed)

1 cup chocolate chips

Mix eggs, pumpkin and oil. Add dry ingredients and stir well. Add chocolate chips. Bake on greased 12x18 cookie sheet with sides, for about 15 minutes. (it looked puffed up, but definitely still soft in the middle and not overbaked!) Cut into 48 bars.

Whole Wheat Banana Muffins

I've been using this recipe for years, and I will give credit to my friend Angie for it. She brought them to one of our coffee mornings when our kids were tiny and I've been using it ever since! I've adjusted the sugar level but you can add more if you think they should be sweeter. I think they're fine with this amount.

Beat thoroughly:
1/2 C sugar
1 1/2 C mashed bananas
1/2 C oil
2 eggs

Then add:
1 1/2 C whole wheat flour (regular or pastry)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp salt

At this point you can add anything else you want, like:
sunflower seeds
sesame seeds
flax
nuts
coconut (this is our favourite and I add about 1 C or more)
chocolate chips (today I threw in some butterscotch chips I had leftover from Christmas baking!)

Bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes.

Basil Chicken with Coconut-Curry Sauce

I got this recipe out of my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, and I'd pay money to know why it has the title it does instead of, say, Curry Chicken in Basil-Coconut Sauce. Or Basil Coconut Curry Sauce for Chicken. Anyway. Suffice it to say that I (and 2 of my kids) thought this was a big hit. I think I might even choose it for my birthday meal, it's that good.

Cut 4 chicken breast halves into 1" pieces. In a bowl, combine the following:
2 tsp curry powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp chili powder
Sprinkle the spice mixture over the chicken, tossing to coat evenly. Cover and chill for 1-2 hours. (Or 10 minutes if you're like me.)

1 large onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped

In a large wok or skillet, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil and stir-fry the onion, garlic and peppers over medium heat for 2 minutes. Remove from wok.

Add half of the chicken to the work and cook and stir for 3-4 minutes or until cooked through. Remove chicken and repeat with remaining chicken. (Add additional oil if necessary.)

Combine 1 14 oz can light coconut milk and 1 tbsp cornstarch. Carefully add to the wok, cook and stir until bubbly. Add onion mixture and chicken.

Stir in 3 tbsp fresh basil, finely chopped, and 1 tsp grated fresh ginger.

Heat for 1-2 minutes. Serve over rice.

Rhonda's changes: I used less chicken and then added 4ish cups of a raw stir-fry mix (broccoli, pea pods, carrots and cabbage) and fried that a bit before I added the onions, etc. Also, I didn't have any jalapenos, so I used 3-5 good shakes of jalapeno Tabasco sauce. I'm pretty sure I used more like a tbsp of ginger, too...why bother with just a teaspoon??

Elote Sauce

1 cup mayo
1/2 cup parmesan cheese (just the powdered stuff, not fresh)
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1 lime, juiced
Black pepper, to taste
Sea salt, to taste

Mix together and refrigerate for one hour.  Spread on corn on the cob...preferably grilled or roasted.

And for you gringos, elote (corn) is pronounced ay-LOH-tay.  I guess you can leave out the cilantro if you must.

Mayonnaise

*note: I would post a picture, but my photos are not that great and it would make it look bad. thank you.


*another note: I have always steered clear of making my own mayo, because I couldn't imagine it actually turning out. Last night I wanted garlic mayo and found this darling. This is the most amazing mayo I have ever tasted. I don't think I'm exaggerating. I added about 3 cloves of garlic to this and I may have had terrible breath afterwards, but it was worth it. Don't ask anyone else if they agree.


And now, whisk together the following, or use a mini-food processor:

1 large egg yolk
2 tsp dijon mustard
1/4 tsp salt

Measure out 1/2 C oil. (I used canola oil. I was hesitant to use olive oil)
Add a few drops of oil and continue to whisk or pulse in food processor.
It will begin to thicken soon, and when it does, add tiny bits of oil in a slow and steady stream (or a few drops, pulse, a few more drops, pulse) If you add too much at a time it will not blend properly.
Continue to whisk or process until all oil is mixed in and mixture is thick.
Add:
1-2 tsp fresh lemon juice
3 cloves chopped garlic, if you want
Mix again.

This will keep in the refrigerator about 3 days.
I was very surprised how easy and fast this was. And so much better than prepared mayo!
I'm thinking this would make wonderful egg salad sandwiches!

Coconut Whoopie Pies

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons vegetable shortening
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
White of 1 large egg
3/4 cup lite coconut milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
About 1/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut

Coconut Fluff Filling:
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup marshmallow crème
1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut
2 tablespoons lite coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon coconut extract

Position oven rack in center of oven. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. 

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter, shortening, and sugar until fluffy at medium speed of an electric mixer. Add egg and egg white, and beat until incorporated. Add half of flour mixture and half of coconut milk to creamed mixture; beat at medium speed just until blended. Add remaining half of flour and coconut milk and vanilla; beat until blended.

Using a 1/4-cup ice cream scoop, drop batter into 12 mounds onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart. Or drop batter into 24 mounds by well-rounded tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheets. Sprinkle half of the mounds with coconut. Bake for about 10 minutes for large cakes and 8 minutes for small cakes (just bake them the way you like them). Remove from oven and onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Spread flat side of the plain cakes generously with Coconut Fluff Filling. Top with remaining coconut-topped cakes, pressing down lightly to seal them together. 

Coconut Fluff Filling:

Beat butter and marshmallow crème in a large mixing bowl at medium-high speed of an electric mixer until fluffy, scraping sides of bowl as necessary. Beat in confectioners’ sugar, coconut, coconut milk, and extracts. Makes about 1 3/4 cups.

My notes: This recipe is almost perfect. I still want to tweak it a bit next time, but wanted to share it with you whilst I do so. I made it almost exactly as the original recipe. My only change was that I added coconut to the cookie batter itself, because I thought it seemed like it needed it. The original recipe said to bake the cookies til they have cracks in the top, which is ridiculous. Who likes dry cookies? Not me. Next time I will make a double batch (12 total small cookies are just not enough), and instead of this filling (which really is very good) I'll try Karla's which you can find here, but I'll use coconut milk and coconut extract in it. 

Black Bean Quesadillas

1 15 oz. can black beans
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped (we used a yellow onion and just put in a little bit)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 bunch fresh cilantro
2 cups shredded cheese
2 1/2 Tbsp taco seasoning
10 taco sized tortillas

Here are the directions from the original recipe:

STEP 1: Drain the can of beans and rinse lightly. Place the beans in a large bowl along with the corn (no need to thaw).

STEP 2: Rinse the cilantro, remove the leaves, and chop roughly. Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Add the cilantro, onion, garlic, and shredded cheese to the bowl with the beans and corn. Lastly, mix up a batch of taco seasoning and add to the bowl. Stir everything until evenly mixed.

STEP 3: Place a half cup of the filling on one side of each tortilla and fold over. Cook in a skillet on both sides over medium heat until brown and crispy and the cheesy filling has melted.

STEP 4: To freeze the quesadillas, simply fill each one and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place in the freezer for one hour to solidify the quesadillas and then transfer to a freezer bag. To reheat either microwave (for a soft quesadilla) or cook in a skillet on low heat (make sure to use low heat so that the filling has time to thaw and melt before the outside burns).

These are really, really good and really easy too. We ate them with leftover rice and sliced avocado and dipped them in yogurt (we were out of sour cream and it's good anyway). Make them right now. Go.

Hearty Whole Wheat Waffles

This recipe is from the King Arthur website, and is our most-used waffle recipe.

1 1/2 cups King Arthur whole wheat flour,  white whole wheat or traditional
 (I use any combination, any brand, of course)
2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

1 large egg

1 1/2 cups milk

1/3 cup melted butter or vegetable oil

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, and butter or oil. Mix together the wet and dry ingredients, stirring just till combined. 

Cook the waffles as directed in the instructions that came with your waffle iron. 
Yield: about eight 8" waffles.