Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Yesterday morning I decided that I didn't want to go to the gym before work, but I needed something to occupy myself...like bake. I always bake with good intentions, that I'll send them to the hospital for the nurses with Joe or pass them out at work, but then I remember that I didn't like when food was forced upon me so I end up keeping them. At least I threw a few bags in the freezer so there's not so much pressure to Eat. Them. Now.

I'd never made oatmeal raisin cookies before, but they're one of my favorite kind of cookie. I mean, you get your whole grains and fruit in cookie form. Plus they're rarely heavy. I decided to go straight to the source, Quaker Oats, for a recipe, and they didn't disappoint.

Before they go into the hot fiery oven:

I've been accused of making my cookies a little on the large side, so I like to give them room to spread out.

Joe was very pleased to come home to some homebaked goodies, and I enjoyed licking the bowl while making these. They're very chewy, like injure-your-jaw-chewy, and the oatmeal features prominently. Next time I might look for a recipe with a higher flour to oat ratio and add in more raisins since the cookies are a little too oaty. I don't know if that would work though since I haven't quite mastered the chemistry of baking.

Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies (courtesy of Quaker Oats)

Ingredients
1/2 pound (2 sticks) margarine or butter, softened
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
3 cups Quaker® Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
1 cup raisins

Directions
1. Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat margarine and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well.
2. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

Florentine Turkey Meatloaf with Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes

This wasn't a terribly appropriate dinner for one of the hottest days of the year so far, but it was a lighter version of delicious comfort food. Unfortunately, Joe ended up having to work later than I thought he would, and I was relying on him to be able to pop this in the oven before I got home. We didn't end up eating until 8:45, and we were hungry, especially with the smell of this permeating the house.

I'm not very particular when it comes to meatloaf. I don't think I've met a meatloaf I didn't like, but I thought stuffing it with spinach was a nice touch, and I'm a big fan of stuffing as many vegetables as possible into things. If you like meatloafs that stay together, this is not the one for you, though maybe it was my fault for not sealing it well enough on the sides. These pictures are not very flattering, but it was good.


Florentine Turkey Meatloaf (recipe from here)

Ingredients

1 1/4 pounds ground turkey
1 cup spaghetti sauce, divided
1/2 cup Italian-seasoned bread crumbs
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 eggs (or 1 egg and 2 egg whites), slightly beaten
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon fennel seed, crushed (optional)
1 package (10 oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained (I used fresh spinach and cooked it down.)
3/4 cup low-fat shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Line an 8- or 9- inch loaf pan with foil with dull side toward food.
Combine ground turkey, 1/4 cup spaghetti sauce, bread crumbs, onion, eggs, Parmesan cheese and fennel seed in medium bowl.
Press half of turkey mixture into foil-lined pan. Press a 1-inch indentation down center of mixture, leaving 1-inch thickness on all sides.
Toss spinach and mozzarella cheese together; spoon into indentation, mounding in center. Press remaining turkey mixture evenly over top, sealing edges.
Bake 45 to 50 minutes. Spoon remaining spaghetti sauce over meat loaf. Bake 15 minutes longer. Let stand 10 minutes.

Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes (recipe from here)

Ingredients
2 1/2 pounds baking potatoes, peeled and quartered (I used redskin potatoes and left the skins on because that's how I like them.)
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1 cup sour cream (I used reduced-fat.)
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter (I used light margarine.)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
(I also added about 2 tsp of parsley.)

Directions
Place potatoes in a bowl and wash under cold, running water until water runs clear. Place in a medium saucepan with salt. Add enough water to generously cover. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, until soft, about 15 minutes. (Drain the water. I don't know why the recipe doesn't mention this, and it made me a little confused.) While potatoes are still warm, mash with a fork, in a food mill, or gently in a food processor.

In a medium saucepan, warm sour cream and butter. Fold warm sour cream mixture into potatoes, add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately. Garnish with cracked pepper.

These potatoes are so easy that I don't know why anyone would make them with those awful flakes. I just love having the skins in there and the little chunks of real potatoes. Honestly, I probably could eat these potatoes even without the sour cream and butter; they're so smooth and creamy.

Lentil-Walnut Burgers with Mint Yogurt Sauce

In planning our meals for the week, my new goal is to have at least one vegetarian meal on the menu. The trick is to have Joe not necessarily notice that it's vegetarian so no giant piles of vegetables. It's not that Joe is particularly picky because he's not, but he is a big guy and needs his protein. Cue lentils. Containing high protein levels, dietary fiber, vitamin B1, and minerals, lentils are a great meat substitute. When I saw this recipe on Liz's Cooking Blog (side note: Liz's blog is awesome and has so many great, quick, and tasty weekday meal recipes that even a baby cook like me can master) I knew it would be a perfect veggie night recipe.

Plus, I would get to break out this baby for the first time:

Originally, the recipe calls for a cilantro yogurt sauce, but when I went to the grocery store there was no cilantro to be had. That was fine because I was looking for an excuse to use my latest purchase:

Please give a nice warm welcome to my mint plant, purchased at the Nashville Farmers Market. We're still working on coming up with a name for him. Suggestions are welcome.

Okay, enough of that. On to the recipe.


Lentil-Walnut Burgers with Mint Yogurt Sauce (from Everyday Food via Liz's Cooking Blog)

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup toasted walnuts, cooled
• 1/3 cup plain dried breadcrumbs
• 3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes (We prefer things on the spicy side, so I used a touch more)
  
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 3/4 cup lentils, cooked, drained, and cooled
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large egg
• pita bread (I used whole wheat)

For the sauce:

• 3/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves (I used mint leaves.)
  
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Instructions:

1. In a food processor, combine walnuts, breadcrumbs, garlic, cumin, coriander, pepper flakes, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; process until finely ground. Add lentils and 1 tablespoon oil; pulse until coarsely chopped (some lentils should remain whole).
2. In a large bowl, whisk egg. Add lentil mixture; mix well. Divide into 4 equal-size parts; roll into balls, and flatten with the palm of your hand into 3/4-inch-thick patties.
3. Heat remaining 3 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet. Add burgers; cook over medium-low heat until crisp and browned, turning gently with a thin-edged spatula, 8 to 10 minutes per side. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain.
4. Prepare sauce: in a small bowl, whisk together yogurt, cilantro, and lemon; season with salt and pepper.
5. Serve lentil-walnut burgers in pita bread; drizzle with sauce.

I served this with red onion and fresh tomato slices and a spinach salad. This was a very tasty dish. It's similar to falafel and could also be served in lieu of chicken or lamb on top of a Greek salad. Next time I will make the patties slightly thinner and not over-process the ingredients, which I think I did trying to get the hang of my food processor. It was still delicious though!

Neighborhood Spotlight: Las Paletas

We love our neighborhood, and in the spirit of keeping it local, I will occasionally be profiling a local food-related business here.


Las Paletas sells popsicles, but these are not the high-fructose corn syrup "grape" flavored popsicles that I grew up eating by the pool. These are made with real fruit. There is no sign on the outside of the building, but you will know that you're getting close when you see couples, groups of students, and moms with strollers crossing the street, popsicle in hand, to take a stroll in Sevier Park. The daily menu is written on a giant chalkboard with "creamy" milk-based popsicles on one side and fruity popsicles on the other.

When we first moved to the neighborhood, I think Joe and I visited Las Paletas probably 8 times in one month. At $2.50 a pop (Oh, I kill myself), it's cheaper than getting ice cream, gelato, or even coffee most places. The above photo features the chocolate chip cookie popsicle (Joe's) and the peach popsicle (mine). All of their fruit flavors taste like the real deal. Peach tastes like a peach, not like a peach Jolly Rancher. Trying to remember the flavors I've had: raspberry pineapple, hibiscus, lime, and blackberry strawberry are the ones I can come up with off the top of my head.

It's not unusual to see one or both of the Paz sisters who run the place working behind the counter, and you have the chance to see them on Throwdown with Bobby Flay on August 13th. I know who we'll be rooting for, especially after the Loveless Biscuit Lady lost last year!

Las Paletas
(615) 386-2101
Located on the NW corner of 12th Ave S and Kirkwood
Tuesday-Saturday 12-7

Knock it off Napoleon! Make yourself a dang quesadilla!

Quesadillas are another dish that I would make fairly often when I was living alone and didn't have the mad cooking skills that I have now (Besides, guys only want wives that have great skills.) (/Napoleon Dynamite references) These are much nicer than the ones I used to make which mostly consisted of cheese, green bell pepper, and canned green chiles. My grocery store in Houston had its own tortilleria and carried real Mexican cheeses. Oh, the days of living in a city with ethnic food, not that there's anything wrong with meat-n-threes.

I got this recipe from KC720 at Tiny Kitchen Cooking, and they turned out great. Flipping the quesadilla was a little involved, but I somehow managed to do it without flinging black beans all over the kitchen. I served them with reduced fat sour cream, Chipotle salsa (not pictured), and sliced avocado.

Black Bean Quesadillas

Ingredients:

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
about 2 tbsp chopped red onion
(1/2 green bell pepper chopped)
1-2 cups shredded pepperjack cheese (I used quesadilla cheese.)
a couple of handfuls of baby spinach
chili pepper (I used cayenne)
juice of 1/2 lime
(ground cumin)
4 whole wheat tortillas
oil/cooking spray

Directions:
Heat a skillet w/a little oil on medium heat (anything with a larger diameter than your tortillas - a double griddle so that you can do two at a time would be even better!).

Mix black beans and red onion with chili powder and cumin (season to taste) and the juice of 1/2 a lime. Lay one tortilla out on a flat surface. Sprinkle 1/4 of the cheese on the tortilla, covering most of its surface. Layer 1/2 of the black beans over the cheese. Spread a few spinach leaves on top of the black beans and top with another 1/4 of the cheese. Place another tortilla on top. Repeat this process with the rest of the cheese, black beans, spinach, and the other tortillas. Cook the quesadillas for 3-4 minutes on each side until the tortillas are brown and crispy and the cheese in melted. Flip carefully! (I did this over the sink just in case.) Move to cutting board and cut into 4 wedges. Enjoy!

Thanks Tiny Kitchen Cooking for gussying up my normal quesadillas! Oh, and Joe took the picture. Didn't he do a good job?