Cooking has been the big to-do around here the past couple of days as we head into Week 4 of isolation.
Being somewhat therapeutic, it has given us something to do as family + definitely something to look forward to everyday.
While we are all toying some sort of survival hibernation mindset, I’m also trying to remember that summer IS just around the corner lol
A lot of these are recommendations from friends / family that we have tried and loved.
Here are a few of them : )
Enjoy !
Spinach Salad
Receipe by MEGHALL
DRESSING
almond butter
squeeze of honey
some EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
a clove of garlic
juice of half an orange
pink of stone ground mustard or mustard seed
siracha
pinch of salt
(blend + thin with water until desired texture)
SALAD
baby spinach
chicken seasoned with
carrotts
blueberries
feta
Scrambled Egg Skillet
Scrambled Egg Skillet by The Girl Who Ate Everything
INGREDIENTS
- 4 strips bacon cut into 1-inch pieces
- 6 cups (about 3/4 of 30 ounce bag)frozen cubed southern style hash browns fresh potatoes can also be used
- 1/2 cup white onion
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 clove minced garlic (this is optional)
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 tablespoons sliced green onions (optional)
+ we added 2 spicy sausage links from The Butcher Block !
INSTRUCTIONS
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In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove bacon and drain on paper towels, leaving about 2 tablespoons of drippings in the skillet.
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Add onion and potatoes to the pan stirring to coat in bacon drippings and cook for a couple of minutes. Add water and cover skillet. Cook for 15 minutes or until soft, only flipping once or twice. When you let the potatoes sit without flipping, they get nice and brown. Stir in garlic and cook for a minute. Add more salt and pepper to taste.
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Make four wells in the potatoes, exposing the skillet underneath. Carefully, crack the egg in each spot. Cover skillet and let eggs cook over low heat until egg whites are set, about 8-10 minutes. Sprinkle cheese and bacon on top during the last couple minutes of cooking. Sprinkle with green onions and serve.
Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread
Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread by my friend Jessica ! + Garden and Table
Ingredients
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- 3 over-ripe bananas, smashed up
- 1/3 cup melted butter
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp baking soda
- dash of salt
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 Tbs cinnamon
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350. Butter and four a loaf pan. Mine was 9 x 5, but you could use any sort, I suppose. Just keep a close eye on it in the oven, and adjust the time as needed
- Mix bananas, butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla together. sprinkle baking soda and salt around on top of the banana mixture. Then gently stir in flour. Be careful not to over-mix!
- In a small dish, mix together the 1/3 cup sugar and 1 Tbs cinnamon.
- Add 1/2 of the batter to the loaf pan and then sprinkle half, or a little more than half of the cinnamon-sugar mixture all over the batter in the pan. Add the rest of the batter, and then sprinkle the leftover cinnamon-sugar on top.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes, but remember, if you’re using a different-sized loaf pan, be careful and keep a close eyeball on it!
Gelato Chocolate Chip Sandwiches
Sugar Cookies + chocolate Chips + Gelato
We used Gelato for ours! but use the below recipe for homemade Ice Cream Sandwiches
INGREDIENTS
CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
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1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
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1/2 teaspoon baking soda
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1/2 teaspoon salt
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7 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
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3/4 cups brown sugar packed
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2 tablespoons granulated sugar
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1 egg
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1 teaspoon vanilla
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1 cup mini chocolate chips
ICE CREAM SANDWICHES
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Chocolate chip cookies
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Vanilla Ice Cream about half gallon
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1 cup mini chocolate chips
INSTRUCTIONS
CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
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Preheat oven to 350° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
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In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
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In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat on medium speed the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about four minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl when necessary. Add the egg and vanilla. Beat until combined, 20 to 30 seconds.
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With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour mixture to the dough. Careful not to over beat. With a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, stir in the chocolate chips by hand.
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Scoop about 2 tablespoons of cookie dough, shape into a ball, and place onto the prepared baking sheet. Repeat placing each ball of cookie dough about 1- to 2-inches apart. Bake for about 12 minutes or until the edges start to turn brown. Cool on the pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Transfer to the freezer for 20-30 minutes.
ICE CREAM SANDWICH ASSEMBLY
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Take one cookie and place a scoop of ice cream (about 1/4 cup) on the flat side of the cookie. Top with flat side of second cookie to make a sandwich.
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Place mini chocolate chips in a bowl or on plate. Roll sides of the sandwich in the chips. Serve immediately or wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freeze.
NOTES
*Transferring the chocolate chip cookies to the freezer is essential. If you try to make the sandwiches with warm or room temperature cookies, the cookies will break when you press the ice cream between them. You will also get chocolate chips all over your hands!
Chocolate Oatmeal
Recipe from my friend Erin !
organic rolled oats
hemp seeds
chia seeds
coconut flakes
brown sugar
dark chocolate morsels
Sweet Spinach Muffins
Sweet Spinach Muffins recipe from my friend Erin + Super Healthy Kids
Ingredients
- 18 standard cupcake liners
- 2 cup flour, whole wheat
- 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup butter, unsalted
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1 large banana
- 6 ounce raw baby spinach (by weight)
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 F, and line a muffin pan with paper liners (or use silicone muffin cups sprayed with cooking spray).
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Combine all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
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Heat the butter until just melted. Using a blender or food processor, blend the raw spinach, banana, honey, milk, egg, vanilla, and melted butter until completely pureed.
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Pour the puree into the dry ingredient bowl, and fold together gently until just combined. (Do not over-mix.)
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Spoon the batter into the muffin pan, and bake for 18-22 minutes, or until the muffins are firm to the touch on top, but not quite browning.
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Cool most or all of the way before serving.
Banana Muffins
Banana Bread recipe from Kate’s MEMA ! + Simply Recipes
No need for a mixer for this recipe! Clean-up is easy too, if you want, you can mix everything in one mixing bowl.
The best bananas to use for banana bread are those that are over-ripe. The yellow peels should be at least half browned, and the bananas inside squishy and browning.
INGREDIENTS
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2 to 3 very ripe bananas, peeled (about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups mashed)
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1/3 cup melted butter, unsalted or salted
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1 teaspoon baking soda
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Pinch of salt
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3/4 cup sugar (1/2 cup if you would like it less sweet, 1 cup if more sweet)
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1 large egg, beaten
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1 teaspoon vanilla extract
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1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
METHOD
1 Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C), and butter a 4×8-inch loaf pan.
2 In a mixing bowl, mash the ripe bananas with a fork until completely smooth. Stir the melted butter into the mashed bananas.
3 Mix in the baking soda and salt. Stir in the sugar, beaten egg, and vanilla extract. Mix in the flour.
4 Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour at 350°F (175°C), or until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
5 Remove from oven and let cool in the pan for a few minutes. Then remove the banana bread from the pan and let cool completely before serving. Slice and serve. (A bread knife helps to make slices that aren’t crumbly.)
SAMwich’s by Jen Higgins
Chicken Cutlet SAMwich by Jen Higgin’s !
Chicken Cutlet
Prosciutto
Fresh Mozzarella
Arugula
Roasted Peppers
Pesto
Balsamic Glaze
HOMEMADE PESTO
INGREDIENTS:
-
- 1 cup fresh basil leaves
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled
- 3 tablespoons pine nuts
- 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1/3 cup olive oil
DIRECTIONS:
- To make the pesto, combine basil, garlic, pine nuts and Parmesan in the bowl of a food processor; season with salt and pepper, to taste. With the motor running, add olive oil in a slow stream until emulsified; set aside.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
HOMEMADE CAKE POPS
Homemade Cake Pops by Sally’s Baking Addiction
We used a Cake Pop Maker for ours ! Click here for the one we used 🙂
Ingredients
- 1 and 2/3 cups (208g) all-purpose flour (spoon & leveled)
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (115g; 1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (240ml) whole milk (or buttermilk)
Frosting
- 7 Tablespoons (100g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 and 3/4 cups (210g) confectioners’ sugar
- 2–3 teaspoons heavy cream or milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Coating
- 40 ounces candy melts or coating (or pure white chocolate)*
- sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease a 9-inch springform pan.
- Make the cake: Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside. Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until creamed, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat on high speed until combined. Scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl as needed.
- With the mixer running on low speed, add the dry ingredients and milk to the wet ingredients until combined. Manually whisk the batter to ensure there are no large lumps at the bottom of the bowl. Batter will be slightly thick. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pan. Bake for 30-36 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If the top begins browning too quickly in the oven, loosely place a piece of aluminum foil on top.
- All the cake to cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack.
- Make the frosting: With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar, heavy cream, and vanilla extract with the mixer running on low. Increase to high speed and beat for 3 full minutes.
- Crumble the cooled cake into the bowl on top of the frosting. Make sure there are no large lumps. Turn the mixer on low and beat the frosting and cake crumbles together until combined.
- Measure 1 Tablespoon of moist cake mixture and roll into a ball. Place balls on a lined baking sheet. Refrigerate for 2 hours or freeze for 1 hour. Re-roll the chilled balls to smooth out, if needed. Place back into the fridge as you’ll only work with a couple at a time.
- Melt the coating in a 2-cup liquid measuring cup (best for dunking!). you can use a double boiler or microwave.
- Coat the cake balls: Remove only 2-3 cake balls from the refrigerator at a time. Dip a lollipop stick about 1/2 inch into the coating, then insert into the center or the cake ball. Only push it about halfway through the cake ball. Dip the cake ball into the coating until it is completely covered. Make sure the coating covers the base of the cake ball where it meets the lollipop stick. Very gently tap the stick against the edge of the measuring cup to allow excess coating to drop off. Decorate the top with sprinkles and place upright into a styrofoam block or box (as explained above). Repeat with remaining cake balls, only working with some out of the refrigerator at a time. The cake balls must be very cold when dipping!
- Coating will set within an hour. Store cake pops in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: I always make the cake 1 day ahead of time. Cover and keep at room temperature. You can store the undipped cake balls in the refrigerator for up to 2 days or freeze them for up to 6 weeks. Allow to thaw in the refrigerator then continue with step 9. You can also freeze the finished cake pops for up to 6 weeks once the coating has fully set. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator
- Special Tools:KitchenAid Stand Mixer | KitchenAid Hand Mixer | Glass Measuring Cup | Springform Pan | Silpat Baking Mat | Half Sheet Baking Pan | Lollipop Sticks | Americolor Food Coloring
- Coating: You can use candy coating/candy melts, almond bark, or pure white chocolate. If using almond bark or pure white chocolate, chop it up before melting. Melt it down with 1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil to thin out so it’s easier to use as a coating. Semi-sweet, bittersweet, or milk chocolate work as well. Coarsely chop and melt down with 1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil to thin out. Keep warm over a double boiler.
Carmine’s Chicken Parm
Chicken Parm recipe from CARMINE’S NYC
Ingredients
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1 CUP FLOUR
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2 LARGE EGGS
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3 CUPS BREAD CRUMBS
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TWO 5-OUNCE CHICKEN BREASTS, POUNDED TO ¼-INCH THICKNESS BETWEEN 2 PIECES OF WAXED PAPER
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SALT AND FRESHLY GROUND BLACK PEPPER
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½ CUP VEGETABLE OIL
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2 CUPS MARINARA SAUCE
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FIVE OR SIX ¼-INCH-THICK SLICES MOZZARELLA. ABOUT 7 OUNCES TOTAL
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2 TABLESPOONS GRATED ROMANO CHEESE
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Directions
Step 1.
Preheat the oven to 450°F. or preheat the broiler.
Step 2.
Spread the flour on a large plate. Whisk the eggs in a shallow bowl. Spread the bread crumbs on a baking sheet.
Step 3.
Season the cutlets with salt and pepper. Coat them with flour and shake off any excess. Dip them in the egg mixture and let any excess drip off. Press the cutlets into the bread crumbs, making sure they are covered with bread crumbs on both sides. Set them aside on a plate. Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours until needed.
Step 4.
In a large sauté pan, heat the oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the cutlets and cook them for about 3 minutes on each side or until they are a deep golden brown all over. Transfer them to paper towels to drain.
Step 5.
Meanwhile, in a medium-sized saucepan, heat the marinara sauce over medium-high heat for 4 to 5 minutes or until it is hot.
Step 6.
Transfer the cutlets to a shallow ovenproof casserole. Place the mozzarella on top and sprinkle it with the grated cheese.
Step 7.
Transfer the cutlets to the oven and cook them for 3 to 4 minutes or until the cheese is melted. If you are cooking under the broiler, this will take 2 to 3 minutes.
Step 8.
Ladle the sauce onto a large platter. Place the cutlets on top of the sauce and serve.
The Block Box Burger
2lbs ground beef (add salt + pepper + garlic + shredded cheddar cheese)
spicy harissa mayo
arugula
onions
cheddar cheese
Creamy Spinach and Sausage Pasta
Creamy Spinach and Sausage Pasta inspired by my friend Kaitlin ! + Budget Bytes
INGREDIENTS
- 6 oz. smoked sausage
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion
- 1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes w/chiles
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 8 oz. pasta
- 3 cups fresh spinach
- 1 cup 4 oz. shredded monterrey jack
- 1 whole green onion
INSTRUCTIONS
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Thinly slice the smoked sausage and add it to a large skillet with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Saute the sausage over medium heat until it is nicely browned (about 5-7 minutes). Drain off the excess fat.
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Dice the onion and add it to the skillet. Continue to saute until the onion has softened (about 5 minutes). Add the can of diced tomatoes with chiles and the chicken broth. Stir to combine and dissolve any browned bits off of the bottom of the skillet.
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Add the uncooked pasta to the skillet and make sure it is all submerged under the liquid. Place a lid on the skillet and allow the mixture to come up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to low and let it simmer for about ten minutes, or until the pasta is tender. Stir once or twice while the pasta cooks to keep it from sticking.
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Stir in the fresh spinach, one cup at a time, until wilted. If you add it all at once, the skillet will be too full to stir. Keep the heat on while adding the spinach, so the liquid will continue to simmer and thicken.
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Sprinkle the shredded cheese on top, replace the lid, and let it sit for a few minutes, or until the cheese is melted. Slice the green onions and sprinkle them over top. Serve hot!
Frozen Fruit Smoothie
Ingredients
1 frozen banana, peeled and sliced
2 cups frozen strawberries, raspberries, or cherries
1 cup milk
1/2 cup plain or vanilla yogurt
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
2 to 3 tablespoons honey or to taste
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Put all the ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. Pour into glasses and serve.
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Cooks note: For non-dairy smoothies, substitute 1 cup rice milk for the milk and yogurt. Or, use soy yogurt or milk instead of dairy.
No Knead Bread Recipe
Stuff In Our Cupboard No Knead Bread Recipe by Glen and Friends Cooking
This is a super easy no knead bread loaf, that gives you a rustic, hearty loaf of bread. You can make this loaf with all -purpose flour, or bread flour; whatever you have in your cupboard. We’re also show you how to save yeast, so you can make the next loaf. Ingredients: 875 mL (3½ cups) all-purpose flour 7 mL (1½ tsp) coarse salt 2 mL (½ tsp) instant yeast** 450 mL+ (1¾ cups+) cold water
Method: In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt and yeast. Add the water and mix with a fork until the flour is moistened, and forms a ragged dough mass. Cover and let rest 8 to 12 hours on the counter at room temp. Preheat the oven to 225°C (450°F). Place a Dutch oven or heavy pot with a lid in the oven to preheat. An hour before baking; fold the dough in on itself 6 – 12 times. Grab the edge, pull up and fold over; turn the bowl a bit and then repeat. Sprinkle a little flour in a second bowl, transfer the dough and coat with flour. Re-cover and let rest for about 45 minutes. Drop the dough into the preheated Dutch oven, cover and cook 30 minutes. Remove the cover and cook for another 20 – 30 minutes. Bread is cooked when internal temp reaches 190ºF. **If using Traditional dry yeast, increase the amount by 25%
Will continue to update this page as we go !
xx
– Elise
welcome . 