Easy Fudge with sweetened condensed milk and chocolate chips

square 8x8 pan lined with wax paper

melt 1 minute in microwave

• 14 oz sweetened condensed milk
• 2 c. chocolate chips
• 1 t. vanilla (optional)

sit 1 minute, then stir

if necessary, microwave 30" more, then stir

pour into prepared pan.

let sit overnight in fridge till solid before cutting.

Mexican Wedding Cookies (gluten free)

modified these from https://elanaspantry.com/mexican-wedding-cookies/

Bake 7-10 minutes at 350F, about 1 pan of cookies

Combine in food processor

• 1 1/2 cups blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
• 1/8 t. salt
• 1/8 t. baking soda

Pulse in

• 2 T. butter (didn't have palm shortening)
• 2 T. maple syrup (winter is here so honey is not liquid in our house)
• 1 t. vanilla extract (didn't have, so didn't add.)

Mix in by hand

• 1/2 c. pecans chopped, raw (I didn't toast)

Scoop out dough in scant tablespoons and use hands to firmly press into balls.

Roll cookies into

• 1/2 c. powdered sugar (didn't use coconut sugar) (Optional, only if you want them sweeter.)

I discovered you can powder sugar by mixing regular sugar in food processor but it takes a while. A blender might work better.

Very nutty and yummy.

12/21/18 Made them again this year and doubled the recipe. Still very yummy .

Filling Chocolate Smoothie

I have a smoothie every morning except when I am traveling. I gradually worked my way to a less sweet version by changing from sweetened nut milk to unsweetened nut milk.

Here's my RECIPE.

PREP THE NIGHT BEFORE in blender 2 cup for single serving:

• layer of quinoa or other cooked whole grain (I have a bag precooked in my freezer)
• layer of beans (canned)
• layer of chopped beets or squash or pumpkin or sweet potato, etc.
• layer of raspberries (I had a bumper crop this year so trying to use them up)
• layer of blueberries, cherries, or other berries (but not strawberries)
• heaping teaspoon of ground nuts (I grind a whole package & store in fridge)
• 1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon spice blend (cumin, coriander, tumeric,..)
• A fresh green leaf or 2 (in summer I just took something out of my garden)

IN THE MORNING

• layer of frozen sweet fruit, like mangoes, peaches, pineapple...
• 1 shot of cold coffee
• 1-2 shots of pom juice (pomegranate, cherry, blueberry) to sweeten
• fill of the rest of the way with unsweetened nut milk.

Grind till everything smooth.

Green Soup with Italian Sausage

Put some

• olive oil in the bottom of a medium to large soup pot

Brown

• 1-6 italian sausages

While the sausages are browning chop and add

• 1 onion
• 2 carrots
• 1-2 celery
• 2-3 potatoes (don't have to peel)
• 4-6 garlic cloves

Pull out sausages, slice into fat coins, and return to pot
Deglaze pan with

• 1 can diced tomatoes with liquid

Add

• 1 can white navy or northern beans with liquid

Add

• water or broth or combination to cover about 1" above everything in pot (I put in the broth from roast beef this time.)

Bring everything to a boil, then turn down to a simmer while you remove ribs and thinly slice

• Large bunch of Kale or Swiss Chard or Spinach or combination*

Turn off heat. It is plenty hot to wilt the greens
Add

• Juice from 1/2 large lemon (I add the pulp too)

Taste and adjust flavor as necessary with

• Salt (might not need if used broth)
• Black pepper (optional)
• Red pepper (Italian sausages may have made it spicy enough)

 Ingredients are approximate. You can use 1 sausage for flavoring or if you really like meat add all 6 from the package. Same with the greens. I usually add a large steel bowl's worth of the raw greens. Swiss Chard is my favorite but right now we had a lot of Kale in the garden so used that. I don't think mustard greens would work.

Condiments:
hot sauce

Polish Casserole

Make 2 sets of layers in 13x9 pan, cook about 1 hour at 300-350F

Sauce Layer - blend the following together

• can mushroom soup
• can diced tomatoes (Traditional used milk.)

Potato Layer (Traditional uses about 1/2 pkg of cooked egg noodles.)

• 2-4 thinly sliced potatoes cooked until somewhat soft in microwave

 Sauerkraut Layer

• package fresh mushrooms sauteed
• package drained fresh sauerkraut
• green peas (If you have them)
• worchester sauce
• spicy brown mustard
• generous amount of fresh ground pepper

 Meat layer

• Onion chopped
• 2 carrots chopped
• 1 celery stalk chopped
• 1 # ground beef
• lightly salt to taste*

Optional
Sprinkle with crumbled bacon if you have it.

*Don't need a lot of salt due to sauerkraut and canned ingredients

Lasagne

13 x 9 pan or Lasagne pan, buttered or oiled,
bake 40' covered with buttered/oiled foil at 350F,
then 15' uncovered after sprinkle with cheese.

Ingredients and Directions
 
Regular Lasagne noodles about 6 for each layer for a total of 12 (Don't need to precook. Will cook in oven)

Meat mixture

Cook til soft, adding one at a time

• Onion chopped
• Green pepper chopped
• 1-2 celery stalks chopped 
• Mushrooms chopped
• Garlic minced

then set aside and brown

• 1# ground meat

 then combine meat with cooked vegetables.

Season if needed very lightly with

• salt (better to under season)

Cheese Mixture

• Thaw a bag of spinach in microwave 

while spinach thawing grate

• a triangle of Parmesan cheese into a large bowl

then combine with

• bag of shredded mozzarella

put aside (reserve) a small bowl of these 2 cheeses to sprinkle on top later

Then add the following to remaining cheese and mix well

• 16 oz cottage cheese
• thawed spinach
• 1 egg
• generous amount of cracked black pepper 

Tomato Sauce Mixture

Combine in large bowl  

• 24 oz tomato pasta sauce
• can of diced tomatoes
• 1/2 can of black olives chopped 

Put the mixtures as follows into greased lasagne pan

• 1/2 of tomato sauce mixture
• 1 layer of uncooked noodles
• 1/2 cheese mixture
• 1/2 meat mixture  

Repeat a second layer same as first.
Cover with foil and cook in oven 40'

Then remove from oven, take off foil, sprinkle on reserved cheese mixture and bake an additional 15' till cheese melts and browns.

Let sit about 15' or so until serving.

Candied Grapefruit Peels

This came from a variety of recipes. However it is very humid here so in the end I needed to use the drier/dehydrator to make the candied peels less sticky which was not in any of the recipes.

Cover in water in saucepan and bring to a boil, then put in colander to drain water

• Grapefruit peels from when a grapefruit has been sliced into 12 parts from about 2-4 grapefruits

While grapefruit peels are draining, bring to a boil in frypan/wide shallow pan until clear

• 2 parts water
• 1 part sugar

Then add drained grapefruit so it is covered by above sugar syrup. Bring to a boil, then lower to simmer and cook until liquid cooks down and is absorbed by the grapefruit peel.

Put on dryer rack. See if it dries overnight.
If not dry, dehydrate in drier about 2 hours each side. (Turn peels over 1/2 way through drying process). Should only be very slightly sticky.

Roll in sugar and store in fridge.