BIZZY BAKES

This week, at WWDH, we are making this delicious "pie" with fresh spinach, onions, eggs, seasonings and of course a crust.   As you may have noticed, I adjust recipes to what I have at hand.   Actually, I went to the store to get phyllo dough and they were out and that leaves me without the necessary dough.It is rare when I don't have puffed pastry on hand so that became the new dough.  Instead of layering like with phyllo, I rolled it out and fit it to a baking pan.  The sides were really too high but that did not affect the taste. I did add a little garlic to the recipe and cut out the salt.  I did use dill and black pepper.  I had no fresh spinach but I did have frozen so I squeezed out the water and used it instead. To top off everything, I took the feta out of the refrigerator to find that it had expired at the beginning of September.  Now what?  That was easy.  I used the same amount of goat cheese which I microwaved to so...

I have Parent Teacher Conferences today and simply don't have time to justice to this post.  I am skipping my recipe and posting two fabulous soup recipes from last week's linkys.  Bear with me. I think these will make up for my lacking. Loaded Potato Soup by Organizer By Day . Can you imagine a cold winter night, snuggled up, in front of the fireplace with this bowl, in front of you?  Yummy delicious. Vegetable Lentil Soup by The Scent of Oranges.   Look at all those goodies.  This seems to be a meal in one, one we could really enjoy. Please link up your recipes. An InLinkz Link-up

A typical food conversation.......... The conversation went like this. I am not kidding. Me: You must be hungry, not having your luncht today. Hubby: I am starving. Me: I know. What would you like? Name it and I will make it. H: I don't care. Anything will do. I am starving. Me: No, I want you to tell me and I will make it. H: Anything. I am starving. Me: Tell me. H: OK, pancakes. I am starving. Me: Great. You got them. He went on his way and I went to the kitchen to make pancakes but I did not want pancakes. Sweet was not for me, tonight, only savory. How could I not make the pancakes? Continued conversation: Me: Do you really want pancakes? H: I don't care. I am starving. Me: How do potatoes sounds? H: Fine, I don't really like pancakes. me: Huh? OK, potatoes it is. I did make the potatoes, nice and creamy and loaded with cheddar cheese. I did this in the microwave to cut the time. After all, the poor man was starving or have you missed that point? Cr...

As long as it has veggies............pasta is not fattening...........or so I tell myself. Creamy Lemon Pasta Plus Some Ingredients: 1 pound thin spaghetti (gluten-free) 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 tablespoons lemon juice 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 1 cup low-fat sour cream plenty of Parmesan to taste chopped parsley 1 zucchini, diced grape or cherry tomatoes, sliced 1 medium onion, diced Method: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook pasta as directed on package. Put olive oil in skillet. Add zucchini, onions and tomatoes. Add lemon juice to pan and cook for a few minutes. Add sour cream and mix it through. Place drained and rinsed pasta in a baking dish. Pour over it the vegetables and sour cream and mix. Bake covered for 15 minutes. Remove covering and bake for additional 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and top with Parmesan cheese. I...

Usually, after making a half dozen recipes from a cookbook, I am ready to move on. That is not the case with Estee Shaftra's, Cooking Inspired .    I keep finding recipes, I can't wait to make.     For this Shabbos,  I took her Cabbage and Noodle Kugel to our youngest's home.  I made them like Estee did in Minis because I wanted to keep some for us at home.      I have made Cabbage and Noodles for years.  In fact, that was one of the dishes, my Mom made, when I was a child so it a comfort food, for me.  Turning it into a kugel is Estee's idea and a good one.  I will be glad to add this to serve for our Shabbos company.         Cabbage and Noodle Kugel - adapted to be Gluten-Free from Estee Shafra Ingredients: 4 tablespoons olive oil 1 bag shredded green cabbage 2 leeks and 1 Vidalia onion, chopped 1 teaspoon sugar - 1 12 oz. package gluten-free spaghetti (no noodles available) 1 t...

Savory Tomato Crisp  -   I Heart Cooking Clubs      Potluck I am a big Mark Bittman fan. He makes so much sense. He leaves a recipe open to interpretation so if you don't have one ingredient, he lets you know what else you can use and still get a top notch dish. His book, Food Matters, is a gem. The recipes are interesting and calls for some unusual combinations that work. The variety is fantastic and in his usual manner, he clarifies for the reader. There used to be a group that cooked from Mark Bittman. I wish it still existed. This is one chef that is fun and easy to cook from. Check out his videos online. I am using Mark as my Potluck choice for this month. The idea of a tomato crisp is quite appealing but this one called for too much topping and while I would make it again, I would cut the topping in half. Savory Tomato Crisp  ----   From The Food Matters Cookbook by Mark Bittman (p. 423) (adapted slightly to make gluten-free)...

I am late posting, this week, because I cooked my Donna Hay recipe tonight rather than on Tuesday.  I started off planning to be a purist and make the recipe for Sausage Rolls as Donna wrote it.  I ran into the problem that Hubby could not eat this week's dish because it was not gluten-free and I was not prepared to make my own puff pastry. I came up with a different recipe for him and used his filling with my sausage for our rolls.  I am sure, I have confused you thoroughly, by now. I had planned to cut the recipe and use only one sausage rather than 2 full pounds until I decided to use some leftover chicken and make hubby turkey-mashed potato pancakes.  Instead of strictly following Donna, I took the chicken filling and added some of the ingredients from the sausage recipe which resulted in a turkey-sausage filled roll.  Actually, it ended in three filled rolls that were delicious and which I plan to have for lunch, tomorrow. Please do check out the ot...

When my grandchildren come over, there are certain dishes, which they like so of course, I make them.  They love potato kugel, rice dishes and "fried" chicken.  I made this following rice dish, last week, for them and although it is good, it was missing something.....an oomph of some kind. Vegetable Fried Rice Ingredients: 4 cups raw brown rice, cooked and refrigerated 3 tablespoons olive oil 1 1/2 cups chopped onion 1 2 cups  chopped carrots 1 cup sliced mushrooms 1/2 cup chopped celery 1/2 cup green beans 4 eggs, lightly mixed 8 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce Method: In skillet fry an egg in 1 tablespoon olive oil.  Break it into small pieces as you cook it.  Remove and put aside. In a large skillet, saute vegetables in oil.  Add eggs, rice and soy sauce to vegetables and mix together.  Heat for a few minutes until everything is hot enough to eat. Eat and enjoy.  Sometimes, I make this with shredded chicken. Linked to...

I have made a variety of spaghetti pies, over the years, and I like this one a lot because I can get my veggie into the one dish dinner.  I guess pasta is always going to be a popular meal in our home so I have to find ways to healthify it. Spaghetti Pie Adapted from REC(ession)IPES 8 ounces gluten-free spaghetti 2 large eggs ½ cup parmesan cheese 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 teaspoon olive oil 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes with roasted onion 1 small onion , chopped 1 teaspoon oregano 3 cups baby spinach 12 ounce container part skim ricotta ½ cup shredded mozzarella Black pepper to taste Method: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put water on to boil. Lightly grease a 10 inch pie plate with olive oil or cooking spray and set aside. Dice onion. Cook in 1 tablespoon olive oil until onions are just translucent, approx. 5-8 minutes. Add diced tomatoes with their juice, along with oregano. Place ricotta in bowl and combine with spinach by removing small clump of spinach from colander, squeezing...

This month, I needed a Hubby friendly cake for you know who and I found this one on my designated blogger for the Secret Recipe Club. Suzanne, a beloved blogger, who we all know through her hard work in the Club has the blog, I was to cook from.  Suzanne was participating in a surprise online party for Shelby and she made this delicious cake below with raspberries.  I had blueberries so I changed the recipe slightly and made this with blueberries.  I also made it gluten-free so hubby could eat it.  He loved it. Blueberry Coffee Cake adapted from Thru the Bugs on my Windshield Ingredients : 1 cup fresh blueberries 3 tablespoons brown sugar 1 cup gluten-free flour 1/3 cup white sugar 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/8 teaspoon salt 1/2 c up greek yogurt (plain or vanilla) 2 tablespoons butter melted 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 1 egg 1/4 c Sliced almonds 1/4 c sifted confectioners' sugar 1 tsp milk 1/4 tsp vanilla extract Method: ...

I kvelled about this meatloaf in my last post.  It is also from Kosher Scoop and specifically from Estee Kafra and her new book, Cooking Inspired.  Maybe it is just me but I don't think so.  I have never tasted a meatloaf like this.  Adding the sausage (pastrami originally) was a stroke of genius and the duck sauce put a whole new spin on the recipe.  No Estee, I don't think a meatloaf is a meatloaf is a meatloaf.  I think this is far superior to the tomato sauce versions. I have made meatloaf in a variety of ways, with spinach, with hard boiled eggs, with barbecue sauce and with any other food that made sense.  None came near this.  I hope you will get a chance to make this and that you enjoy it as much as we did. As you can see, I served it with plain broccoli and parsley oven fried potatoes.  This worked perfectly. Secret Ingredient Meatloaf (adapted from Estee Shafer who calls this her New Meatloaf) Ingredients:  4 – 5...

I have stopped buying cookbooks.  I certainly have enough and as much as I enjoy reading them, there is a limit to how many I can cook from.  Temptation always rears its head when I see a new cookbook but I proudly say, I have been behaving and have not purchased a new cookbook recently and I plan to keep it this way except for.......................................... A new cookbook recently came out and I wanted it.  Each time, I came across it online, I almost bought it but thankfully, I caught myself and stopped myself.  The book is called Cooking Inspired by Estee Kafra and I worked it out, in my mind, that it was not meant to be mine. At my school, we get Chanukah presents from the parents.  Usually the class chips in and gives us money.  This year, besides those nice green bills, a few parents gave me individual gifts, one nicer than the next.  The best one turned out to be.......you guessed it......... Cooking Inspired.  That is an ...

Often, we have salmon instead of gefilte fish for the fish course on Sabbath night. I look for those not made with matzah meal and this week, it turned out, I could only find salmon gefilte fish. It is a little more expensive but it is tastier.  One of my sons was coming with his family and I know he likes when I make patties out of the frozen loaf so I planned to do so with the salmon gefilte fish. Jamie from Joy of Kosher has an interesting recipe on here site and I made a few changes to make it gluten-free and I baked it instead of frying and it was delicious. I think, we will be indulging in these loaves more often. This is cheaper than salmon fillets as well. Gefilte Fish Cakes (Joy of Kosher)  Adapted Serving : 8 Ingredients: 1 loaf frozen salmon gefilte fish, defrosted (22-ounce)  ½ cup diced red bell pepper 1 small red onion, diced 2 celery stalks, diced ½ cup light mayonnaise 4 tablespoons drieddill ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 egg 1 cup c...

I am a bit late posting this.  Last Friday was Ina Fridays starring appetizers from Ina Garten.  I chose this salmon recipe, topped with such good additions.  Ina calls it Panko crusted but to make it gluten-free, I had to substitute.  This is really good crunchy on top but soft in the body.  Nice flavors. Crusted Salmon (adapted from Ina Garten ) Ingredients: 2/3 cup sweet potato chip crumbs (in place of panko) 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 2 tablespoons  olive oil 4 (6- to 8-ounce) salmon fillets 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard Method: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. In a small bowl, mix together the crumbs, parsley, lemon zest, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Drizzle with the olive oil and stir until the crumbs are evenly coated. Set aside. Place the salmon fillets, skin side down, on a board. Generously brush the top of the fillets with mustard and then sprinkl...

This week, our Donna Hay recipe for I Heart Cooking Clubs i s Fast and Fabulous and we were asked to make dinners that take under thirty minutes.  Donna is known for her delicious meals that seem to appear in seconds.  this one certainly did not take that half hour.  While the spaghetti was cooking, I mixed the ingredients and after draining the pasta, it took minutes to thicken the sauce and we sat down to eat in about 15 minutes.  There was no chopping, slicing or dicing.  It was as simple as can be and equally delicious. While I have the ingredients for a carbonara, I left out the meat which would make it a no-no for those of us who keep kosher.  I didn't think it was missing anything. Pasta Carbonara   Donna Hay from Donna Hay – Fast, Fresh, Simple Ingredients: ·8 ounces gluten-free spaghetti · 2 egg yolks · 1 cup cream  · ⅓ cup finely grated parmesan cheese · sea salt and cracked black pepper  · extra finely grat...

It was Chanukah and we were eating all kinds of latkes and other foods, fried in oil, so I stamped my foot a dozen times and went on strike.  No more latkes. No more grease.  No more frying.  It was good while it lasted but enough is enough.  Over-indulgence is a great way to turn one's back on too much of a good thing. This all started when I was going to make a concoction, a mashed potato latke, fried in oil but no, I got smart and turned the pancakes into balls and baked them until crispy and had a delicious potato dish that was a bit different.  Best of all, it was not fried and actually was grease free. Mashed PotatoBalls  Ingredients: 3  cups leftover mashed potatoes 1 egg 1/4 cup corn flake crumbs 1/4 cup chopped scallions  salt and pepper to taste Method: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Mix together all ingredients in a medium-large bowl. Using a large cookie scoop, scoop out mashed potato and roll in hands to make a ball a...

Since I am cooking Donna Hay recipes twice a week, I am discovering more and more about her recipes.  She is a practical cook.  In most cases, I find the ingredients in my house already.  In this case, we eat both sweet potato and goat cheese weekly which means, I had it on hand. The next trait of her cooking appears to be the ease of making the dishes.  She tends to simplify and most recipes are made quickly and with ease. Third, her recipes work.  She adds flavors that make a difference to the overall dish and thus, we like them. This week is no different.  A creamy soup with flavor and a snap to make.  I made this a month go for I Heart Cooking Club, forgetting that I had chosen it for WWDH.  I admit, I like my choice, sweet potato soup with goat’s cheese .  Visit the other members of WWDH,  Gaye , M argaret , Sarah and Kayte and see how their soups turned out.   Linked to  Tuesday’s Table Real Food Fo...

It is almost midnight and we just walked in after a Chanukah party and as a result of the time, I am skipping my meatless recipe.  I will just jump into some of the wonderful ones from last week.  This is something one of my daughters makes quite often so I know just how good it is. Cranberry Apple Crisp from the On the Home Front shared this with us. This is  a dream come true plus some. Drunken Bananas with Spiced Ice Cream from Simple Living and Eating. Cranberry Crunch Cake - another great way to use cranberries and love eating them.  This is from Flavors by Four. Please link up for this coming week and thanks for all the inspiration you give us. An InLinkz Link-up

Today was my baking day for at least part of Chanukah.  I made both cakes for the party and for our Shabbos (Sabbath) company and of course gluten-free for Hubby.  My son who is coming with his family for Shabbos asked for an apple kugel.  I have made many of these, over the years, and I now know that I like them when they have large chunks of apple inside and lots of it.  Any recipe, I draw on, I alter to fulfill these requirements. Gluten-Free Apple Kugel Ingredients:   3 eggs 1/4 cup oil 1 teaspoon orange juice 1 cup gluten-free flour mixture 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon salt 4 apples, chunked into about 1/2 inch pieces Topping: 1/3 cup white sugar 2 teaspoons cinnamon 1/4 cup gluten free flour (I used brown rice flour.) Method:  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.   Grease an 8×8 square baking pan with spray cooking oil. Mix together eggs, oil, brown sugar, and orange juice.   In a separate bowl, combi...