BIZZY BAKES

I was right when I said, I would not be able to post for a while.  I have cooked literally dozens of new dishes but had no time to blog.  I thought, I would get at least one here to prove I didn't forget you. The holiday, we are celebrating is Succos and it is a time we eat and some sleep in the sukkah, a temporary structure covered with wood slats or branches or bamboo.  People decorate them with pictures and projects, the children make in school. If you are interested in learning more about the holiday and its meaning, I found should fill you in. Here is the inside of one which I found online.  Another: Some are fortunate and have a yard where they can build their sukkah which is relatively close to the kitchen.  Some live in apartment houses and have a shared sukkah outside meaning, all the food is taken from the floor they live on down several flights of stairs.  Since we do not use elevators on the holiday itself, it means carrying...

This week's recipe was selected by Kayte and is called Lemon-Tarragon Chicken with Squash Ribbons.  I have been wanting to make zucchini ribbons for a while but you know how something can fall under the radar which this did. It is so easy to do, I can't imagine why I waited.  I only used zucchini while the recipe called for both green and yellow squash,  Cooking for one means (to me) cutting back on some of the ingredients when it looks workable.  In this case, all I could see the yellow squash doing was adding color to the recipe which is nice but not a necessity. It was a good dish, a little too lemony for me but easily edible.  I would make it again and change the flavor slightly.  This may not be a common citrus to use in such a recipe, but I think I would like orange. You can share in everyone's results at our Eating with Ellie p age.  Please join us. Linked to:   Full Plate Thursday       Lou Lou Girls  ...

Made today....... Made in April..... This is Catch Up week at EwE, Eating with Ellie.  I look forward to these days and this is only the second one we have which makes me  sillier than I thought I was.  What did I do?  I made this yummy dish for each of the  catch-up days.  You can tell, I was well aware when I missed this the first time around. It is one o'clock in the morning and I am not going to make something, at the last minute.  Perhaps, if I had found out, earlier in the day. Actually, I made this for my youngest granddaughter who has gotten fussy with her eating.  She loves pasta and this was a way to make it healthier.  She does love vegetables but they are not filling enough alone.  For breakfast, she filled herself with broccoli and broccoli and broccoli.  She was so happy eating.  I made eggs which she pushed away.  I even offered her some crackers while I figured out what to do and she pushed tho...

I have had the book, Thirty Minute Pasta by Guiliano Hazan since 2011 and went through stages with it.  First, I loved it and took it off the shelf at least once a week.  Then, I found too many similarities in recipes and returned the book to it proper location. Recently, I discovered that  Margaret , and Kayte    have been cooking recipes from this book weekly and enjoying themselves as  well as eating well.  That prompted me to take another look and in doing this, I found many recipes, I would like to make.  Yes, I did find some repetition but I found enough unique recipes to make cooking along with the gals, very worthwhile.  Hopefully, you will be seeing some examples of  filling recipes from this book, in the near future. I started with this  Fettuccine with Zucchini and Onions After cooking from this, I realized I like Guilano Hazan's style.  His directions were clear, the recipes - simple and the results (b...

This photo is from another soup.  I forgot to take one after it was blended.  The second photo is a true one.  This looks just like it though. My husband is having difficulty swallowing and is on a creamy liquid diet.  I have been playing around with different foods.  The easiest is soup, any kind, due to the wonderful immersion blender.  I use it for many foods but I use it the most in soups to thicken them or smooth them out.  This time, I used some of our basic veggies to make this soup.  Usually, I go to spinach or broccoli or butternut squash.  This is what we had in the "olden days." Creamy Vegetable Soup Ingredients: 6 carrots, peeled, 1/2-inch chunks 1 large onion, quartered 2 celery stalks, 1/2-inch chunks 1 zucchini, chunked 3 medium Yukon Gold potatoes chunked 3 cups vegetable stock 2 cups water 1 teaspoon basil 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes salt to taste pepper to taste spices ...

Tonight was supposed to be an aspargus mozzarella pizza but knowing hubby's dislike of asparagus as well as his sportsmanship when I have served asparagus as a group recipe, I decided to use zucchini.  Granted, asparagus has a more distinct flavor but the zucchini picked up flavor of the other ingredients.  We loved it.  (Photo Above) Thinking, it might need something more, I made another one with sauce and chopped zucchini instead of sliced and I think, I liked the plain one better but I loved the chopped zucchini in place of the spokes. (Photo Below) Peggy selected the Asparagus and Mozzarella Pizza which is found on page 215 of Weeknight Wonders and I love Peggy for this.  I could see serving this regularly and using other vegetables as well.  Broccoli or cauliflower would work well. Do check out our group page to see what others have done with this recipe. Linked to:              Whimsy Wednesday ...

This is the very first Catch-Up week for Eating with Ellie.  I missed two recipes because of Passover.  The one, I am making up, this week is  Pasta Fagioli with Zucchini which I believe was scheduled for the first night of Passover (Pesach). Since pasta is one of the items, we do not eat, on Pesach, this was skipped for a very good reason.  I admit, I had wanted to make it ahead of time so it could be posted but with the preparation that went into the holiday, it just didn't happen. I wish, I had the time, to let you peek into our home before the holiday.  Ask any woman who celebrates Passover which is the busiest time of the year, and I would bet that many if not most, would say Passover.  I learned many years ago that despite the work and lack of sleep, to enjoy this prep time.  It is good to love cooking when you  plan a holiday and we did cook and cook and cook.  It can be healthier food if you choose to not to throw matzah in ev...

I love quick breads, yes because they are easy to make but more so, because they are usually delicious. Zucchini Carrot Bread Ingredients: 3 cups flour 2 teaspoons cinnamon 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 1/2 cups sugar 2 medium carrots, peeled and grated 2 medium zucchini, unpeeled and grated 1/2 cup canola oil 2 eggs This recipe is on page 223 of Kosher Design Entertains.  It includes a delicious sounding streusel. Method: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease two loaf pans on the bottom and half-way up. You can use one 9 x 13 inch pan, if you would prefer. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder and sea salt. Set aside. In a separate bowl, combine sugar, carrots, zucchini, oil and eggs and stir. Add flour mixture to zucchini mixture and stir until combine. Bake uncovered for 1 hour.    F oodie Friday    ...

These turned out to be better than the best roasted veggies, we have had, in the past.  I think, the Balsamic had something to do with this.  I, also had never used  eggplant in roasted vegetables before either. I owe an apology to someone but I don't remember where I got this recipe.  I did so much cooking for the first days of Passover and used many books and recipes from the Internet, I am confused about this particular one.  If this is your recipe, please let me know, so I can give you credit. Crispy Roasted Vegetables Ingredients: 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 1 yellow pepper, chunked 1 orange pepper, chunked 3 small zucchini , sliced down the middle and then cut into one inch pieces 1 eggplant, peeled and cut into chunks 1 tablespoon dried parsley cooking oil spray salt and pepper to taste 1/2 teaspoon onion powder Method:  Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Pour olive oil and balsam...

I fell in love with recipes by Ellie Krieger in our original group CEiMB and have done that again in our new group Eating with Ellie, EwE.  I probably say this every week but that is what happens with true love.  Ask my hubby. This week, I chose a simple vegetable recipe which had spinach and corn, two of my favorites and zucchini which fits anywhere.  I made this about a month ago and all I remember is that we liked it.  It is an uncomplicated  side dish, won't be spectacular but it should be good to eat and goes with everything. To see what the other gals did this week, stop by Eating with Ellie (EwE )

I am blessed to sit for my less than a year old granddaughter in the mornings.  It is different than mothering.  I look back and when my kids were young, life was filled with many mundane chores.  I didn't have time for anything but the basic cooking.  My first child spent the first three months crying day and night.  Only if I walked with him did I get a break.  I was exhausted.  In the following months, I was learning and missed some of the fun growth. After that as we were blessed with more children, I did not have time to watch for every nuance each child did and was thrilled with the biggies, turning over, sitting up, standing and walking.  The funny little actions may or may not have been seen. After  my fourth, I was teaching, and the day only got busier.  I did only teach afternoons because even then, I knew, I did not want to be cheated out of seeing my precious ones grow.  It still is not the same as not having t...

My husband got it, in his head, he had to have kasha and went as far as making the kasha. I got a pretty good deal on this one. Wish, he did this, more often. Since, the kasha was cooked, I did a search on what I could add to it, to give it taste and color. This is it. It is a nice grain to work with and I imagine, with a minimum of creativity, we could come up with some really good recipes to incorporate in our diet. Kasha With Zucchini and Red Bell Pepper adapted from Foodista Ingredients: 1 cup organic vegetable broth 3 tablespoons olive oil 1 cup whole kasha 1 egg beaten lightly 1 onion chopped 1 red bell pepper chopped 1 zucchini scrubbed, halved lengthwise, and cut into 1/4-inch slices salt and pepper to taste Method: In a saucepan combine the broth, 1 cup water, and 1 tablespoon of the oil and bring the liquid to a boil. In a bowl combine the kasha and the egg, stirring to coat the kasha well with the egg, transfer the mixture to ...

You may feel like Joy Bauer is living in your home.  I certainly do and she would make a great guest and we would be eating healthier and more delicious meals.  I am doing second best and simply cooking her recipes and we are a happier family. My husband loves meatloaf and I tolerate it.  When I eat it, I like it but I wouldn't just make it if hubby didn't consider it a favorite.  I saw a photo of this Mediterranean Meatloaf i n Joy's book, Slim and Scrumptious.  The picture showed this turkey mixture loaded with veggies and it was pretty with all the colors shining out.   I made it that night.  Mediterranean Meatloaf  (adapted from Joy Bauer) 1 pound lean ground turkey  1 cup packed chopped spinach cup diced roasted bell peppers (in a jar)   I must include these more  often. ½ cup shredded zucchini ¼ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, diced (another winning addition ) ¼ cup dice...

There is nothing tastier than roasted vegetables.  Use any seasonings you like and make them as spicy as you prefer. Zucchini and Potato Bake Ingredients : 1 medium zucchini, quartered and cut into large pieces 6 small red potatoes, halved 1 large onion, sliced thickly 1 medium red bell pepper, chopped 1/8 cup olive oil 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1 teaspoon onion powder pinch of cayenne Method: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F . In a medium baking pan, toss together the zucchini, potatoes, red bell pepper, onion and olive oil.  Season with onion powder, cayenne and black pepper. Bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender and lightly. Eat and enjoy. Linked to:   Saturday Night Fever       W eekend Bites       Weekend Social Link Part y            Foodie Friday    

This recipe had a different name and honestly, I intended to follow directions but in some silly way, I left out the flour and this no longer could be called a Zucchini Onion Pie. I have learned to forgive myself through a practice in school.  Particularly in math, the kids make errors and much of the time they are silly mistakes like adding 10 and 5 and getting 50. I tell them, these are minor and they will learn from them. We tend to cheer our mistakes since we truly do learn from them. I learn from my cooking mistakes and while, I can't say, I will not leave an ingredient out, in the future, I am going to be more careful. The resulting dish, although not a pie was tasty and we enjoyed it. Zucchini and Onions Ingredients: 3 eggs 1/2 cup olive oil 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon pepper 3 cups sliced zucchini 1 cup brown rice flour mix 1 small onion, chopped Method: In a larg...