Bridget's Waffles

Ingredients:

2-1/2 cups organic oatmeal
1 cup organic whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup organic flaxseed meal
1/2 cup hemp seed powder
1 tablespoon Sucanat or sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 cup chopped organic walnuts
4 large eggs
2 cups low fat yogurt, plain
2-1/2 cups skim milk
1 generous tablespoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

1. Mix wet & dry ingredients in separate bowls.

2. Heat waffle iron.

3. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and gently stir in the blended wet ingredients. Batter may be slightly lumpy, but all ingredients should be well moistened.

4. Ladle batter into the waffle iron and cook until steaming stops and waffles are a golden brown. If you are freezing the waffles, cook them a little less, they'll brown in the toaster.

Cod Fish Stew

NOTE: The following units were converted from metric equivalents. They should be used only a very rough guide. Luckily this is the kind of recipe that does not require exact measurements.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb. onions
3/4 lb. potatoes
14-1/2 oz. tomatoes
1 qt. vegetable stock
2 lbs cod
1/4 c. canola oil
4 ea. garlic cloves
2 oz. bell pepper
1 ea. carrot
10 oz. zucchini
1 tsp. salt

DIRECTIONS:

1. Boil the potatoes in a separate pan, drain & quarter.

2. chop the vegetables.

3. Put oil in a dutch oven.

4. Saute the onions and garlic until soft.

5. Add stock, bell peppers and tomatoes.

6. Let simmer a few minutes.

7. Add cod fillets and potatoes.

8. Cook on low for about 30 minutes.

* * *

This recipe originally did not call for vegetable stock. I found, however, that without more liquid the mixture was in danger of burning. Further, I use a can of diced tomatoes.

Banana Nut Cookies (Sugar-free)

3 Bananas -- the riper, the better
1/3 cup oil
2 cups quick cooking oats
1-1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 teaspoon salt

Preparation:

In a large bowl mash bananas and add remaining ingredients. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.


NOTE: I use an electric mixer to mash the bananas.

17 Bean & Barley Soup

2 cups Trader Joe's 17 Bean Mix
2 ea. 32 oz. Trader Joe's Vegetable Broth
1 cup onion, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup carrot, chopped
1 cup bell pepper, chopped
1 tsp. tried basil
1 clove garlic
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. Italian Seasoning
1 can Trader Joe's Canned Tomatoes
salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Soak beans overnight in a large pot of water, then rinse & drain.

2. Pour 4 cups of Vegetable broth into the pot with the beans.

3. In a separate pan, cook onion, celery, carrot, pepper, basil and garlic in olive oil until soft.

4. Combine this mixture and remaining ingredients into the bean pot and cover with more broth. Simmer covered for about 1 hour to desired tenderness.

5. Be sure to occasionally check liquid level and add more broth if necessary.

6. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Makes 8 hearty servings.

Source: the back of the package of Trader Joe's 17 Bean & Barley Soup.

NOTES:

1. The beans may also be "quick soaked": In a large saucepan, cover dried beans with triple their volume of cold water. Bring water to a boil, then lower heat and cook uncovered beans over moderate heat for 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat and soak beans for one hour.

2. The original recipe called for Trader Joe's products. However, this is hardly necessary. But I did have great success using a 20 oz. package of a 15-bean mix that made the trip with us from Arkansas.

3. Plain kefir (aka drinkable yogurt) works really, really well with this soup, making for a pleasantly mild sour taste. Plain yogurt should work just as well as would no doubt sour cream.

Chocolate Coconut Cookies

1 ea. 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk
3 oz. unsweetened chocolate
2 cups shredded coconut
1 cup pecan pieces
1 tsp. vanilla
dash of salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300° F.

2. Grease some cookie sheets very well.

3. Heat the sweetened condensed milk and the chocolate in a small pot over simmering water until the chocolate has melted.

4. Stir in the remaining ingredients.

5. Arrange by teaspoonfuls on the cookie sheets and bake for about 15 minutes, taking care that the bottoms do not burn.

The Ultimate Cookbook

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NOTE:

1. These cookies turned out to be sweeter than I expected. I only made them once. I might try them again in the future but with unsweeted condensed milk and less sugar.

Buttermilk Chocolate Cake

2 eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla
2 cup sugar
2 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
2 sticks margarine
1 cup water

DIRECTIONS:
Mix eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, and sugar together.  Mix flour, cocoa, and baking soda together.  Add the wet and dry batches together.  Boil 1 cup water and 2 sticks margarine and then pour over mixture.  Bake 30 minutes in a 9x13 inch floured cake pan at 350 degrees.

Icing:
1 lb powdered sugar (approximately 3 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup cocoa
1 stick margarine
1/3 cup milk

Mix powdered sugar and cocoa.  Boil 1 stick margarine and 1/3 cup milk and pour over mixture.  Pour hot icing on cake.

Note:

1. Be sure to pour the melted margarine evenly and slowly over the entire pan of batter. Don't just dump it onto the cake in the middle like I did the first time that I made this cake. The result is almost inedible.

2. For the "death by chocolate" version substitute dark cocoa for regular cocoa.

Curried Chick Peas and Tofu

1 medium onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced or pressed
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
pinch of cayenne (optional)

1 cake tofu (3/4 pound), cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 cups undrained cooked chick peas (= 16-ounce can)
2 tomatoes, chopped (about 1-1/2 cups)
pinch of salt (or more to taste)

* * *

chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
plain yogurt (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Saute the onion and garlic in the oil until the onions are translucent, stirring occasionally.

2. Stir in cumin, coriander, turmeric, black pepper, and optional cayenne.

3. Add the cubed tofu and cook for about a minute, stirring occasionally.

4. Add the chick peas and about 1/2 coup of their liquid and simmer for 5 minutes.

5. Add the tomatoes and continue to cook until thoroughly heated. Add salt to taste.

Serve topped with chopped cilantro and/or yogurt.

SOURCE: Moosewood Cooks at Home.

NOTES:

1. This is an excellent recipe to introduce someone to tofu. It is flavorful without being overwhelming.

2. Serve this with yesterday's Coconut Basmati Rice.

3. In America yogurt is primarily a sweet, dessert food. In many parts of the world, especially in Central Asia yogurt is valued for its sour flavor and is used sauces for main meals.

4. I strongly recommend the cilantro and yogurt for a clean, almost refreshing taste.