Recipe Swap

I've promised a couple recipes to people and am finally getting around to posting them. I'm trying to get the processed foods out of our house and am looking for good recipes (especially for snacks). Please post any you have! Thanks, Elizabeth Lewis


Simple Roasted Chickpea Snack

These remind me of corn-nuts if you roast them the full length of time (but try them softer first). The original recipe had chili powder, red pepper and a lot more oil in it. I changed it to more of a hummus like spicing and my kids approve. Let me know if you'd like the original recipe (I think I got it off of allrecipes.com) I usually use a pound of dry beans soaked and cooked in my crock pot instead of canned.

Prep Time: 10 Min Cook Time: 45 Min Ready In: 55 Min Yields: 8-12 Half cup servings

 Ingredients

·   1 splash seaseme or olive oil

   1 splash lemon juice

·   1-2 tablespoons ground cumin

·   1 teaspoon garlic powder

  1 teaspoon garlic salt (omit if using canned beans)

·   1 teaspoon onion powder

·   1 pinch black pepper

·   2  (15 ounce) cans chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained

Directions

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).  Whisk the oil, lemon juice, cumin, garlic, salt, onion, and together in a medium bowl; add the chickpeas and toss to coat. Spread into a single layer on a baking sheet.  Roast in the preheated oven, stirring occasionally, until nicely browned and slightly crispy, about 45 minutes. (Up to 1 hour and 15 mins for more crispness).

Spinach Balls

I think this recipe came from Taste of Home, but I've seen it other places too. My kids LOVE these and will eat 1/2 of them before I can even get them off the pan. I have recipe for homemade stuffing that I use with this one b/c the Wymount office had bags and bags of bread crumbs sitting around for weeks after Thanksgiving. I'll pass that along too for anyone that requests it.

2 (10 oz) packages frozen chopped spinach
1 tablespoon dried minced onion.
2 cups herb-flavored stuffing mix (this is 1 box of Stovetop Savory Herb)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons butter, melted (or vegetable oil)
 
1. Preheat oven to 375. Lightly grease a 13x9 inch baking pan.
2. Cook spinach and onion together according to directions on spinach
package; drain well. Place in mixing bowl.
3. Add stuffing mix and cheese, blending well.
4. Add eggs and butter; mix well. Shape into 1-inch balls.
5. Arrange on baking pan. Bake 15 to 20 minutes, until firm and golden.
 
Makes about 45 or so.

 Homemade Granola Bars

These are like chewy store bought granola bars but so much better. I usually make my own sweetened condensed milk for it (reicpe follows) so that I can use dried milk from my food storage and only 1/2 of the sugar as canned. The recipe is also very versatile where you can add any combination of fruit, nuts, and/or chips. I store them in snack baggies and they freeze well, but never stay around long enough in my house to need freezing.

3 cups rolled oats
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 tablespoons butter, melted (or vegetable oil)
1 cup flaked coconut
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup sweetened dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch pan.
In a large bowl, mix together the oats, sweetened condensed milk, butter, coconut, almonds, chocolate chips and cranberries with your hands until well blended. Press flat into the prepared pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, depending on how crunchy you want them. Lightly browned just around the edges will give you moist, chewy bars. Let cool for 5 minutes, cut into squares then let cool completely before serving.

Sweetened Condensed Milk

(This recipe is as I found it on www.hillbillyhousewife.com/milkproducts.htm As I said, I usually only add about 1/2 the sugar and 1 T butter. I can never get all the lumps out, but in the granola bar recipe, it doesn't matter). 

"On the stove, bring to a boil 1/2-cup of water, 1-cup of sugar and 3-tablespoons of margarine or shortening (butter flavored shortening is good).  Add a dash of salt.  Stir the mixture every now and then.  When it comes to a full rolling boil, remove it from the heat.  Allow it to cool slightly.  Add a cup of instant dry milk powder.  Use a whisk to stir it smooth.  A fork or a spoon will not get the mixture smooth, you really need a whisk, or egg beaters.  This is the equivalent of a can of sweetened condensed milk.  It will keep unrefrigerated for a day or two because of the sugar.  I have never kept it longer than that without refrigeration.  In the fridge it will keep for 2 weeks. For longer storage than that, I freeze it."

Low-Fat Homemade Tortillas from http://www.cooking-mexican-recipes.com/flour_tortilla_recipe.html

I miss Taco Cabana from my days living in Texas. This is how I get my tortilla and queso fix now! Makes about 10 – 6” (Fajita Sized) Tortillas (I always double the recipe and they're gone by the next day)

·                     2 cups of white flour (I use whole wheat) + enough for kneading

·                     1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

·                     1 tsp. salt

·                     2 tsp. vegetable oil

·                     3/4 cup warm water

Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. In another bowl combine the warm water and oil. Add the water/oil mixture to the flour mixture, one tablespoon at a time and mix the dough with a fork. Once the water is mixed in, add another tablespoon of water and repeat the process until all the water is mixed into the dough. The dough will be sticky.

Lightly flour a wooden cutting board and knead the dough. Kneading is done by pushing the dough with the heals and palms of both hands down onto the board. Fold the dough back onto itself, give a quarter turn and push again with the palms and heels of your hands. Just repeat the process of pressing, folding and turning for about 4 or 5 minutes. Add a dusting of flour when the dough gets sticky. If the dough sticks to the cutting board while kneading, scrape up the dough and dust the board with a little flour and continue kneading. Eventually the stickiness will go away and you will have a nice smooth dough. Place the dough back into the bowl and cover it with a damp towel or damp paper towel. Let the dough rest for 20 minutes.

Divide the dough into golf-ball-size balls by pinching off the dough with your thumb and fore finger. Form each ball into a nice ball shape. Place the balls on a flat dish making sure they don't touch each other and cover with the damp cloth. Let the dough rest again for 10 minutes.

Preheat a skillet or cast iron pan on medium high heat. You really can't beat cast iron pans for even heat distribution and their ability to withstand high heat without warping.

Lightly dust your wooden cutting board with flour. Take one of the balls of dough and flatten it out on the cutting board to a 4 inch circle. Rub flour on your rolling pin and begin to roll out the dough starting from the center out. Roll the tortilla until it is 6 or 7 inches in diameter and about 1/8 inch thick. 

Once you have rolled out the tortilla, place it on a preheated skillet. You don't need to add any oil or butter. Cook the tortilla for about 30 seconds. You will notice brown spots all over your tortilla. Flip it over and cook an additional 30 seconds. Don't over cook it as you want the tortilla to be nice and soft. Keep your tortillas warm by covering them in a towel on a plate or in a tortilla warmer.

Tortillas are best eaten hot right off the griddle, but you can refrigerate and freeze them too. If you freeze the tortillas, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and put them in a ziplock bag. When you are ready to use them, first thaw at room temperature and then wrap them in foil and place them in a 250 degree oven for a 10 to 15 minutes. I don't recommend microwaving them as this tends to toughen them.