Homemade Ketchup

Those of you who already think I'm crazy for doing stuff like making yogurt and potato chips, you're right. At least I know it.

In case you were wondering how these things happen, this time it started with an empty bottle of ketchup and an abundance of tomatoes.

"How difficult could it be to make ketchup?" I ask myself.

The answer? Not difficult AT ALL.

Start by putting all of this in a big pot:

(Recipe adapted from HERE)

Simmer the whole pot on the stove on low for about 4 hours (or if you're impatient, like me, set it to medium low and simmer for 3 hours, stirring every once in a while). You want the mixture to reduce down until it's really thick. Next, pour everything into the blender and blend until smooth.

Done.

You just made ketchup.

Seriously. It's that easy.

Then you can use the ketchup to make Beer and Ketchup Meatballs.

Enjoy!

*Next time I use that ketchup recipe I'm going to double or triple the amounts. It made about 2 cups.

Bran Flax Muffins

I realize "Bran Flax Muffins" doesn't sound enticing. How about we just call them "Blueberry Breakfast Muffins"? I'm not much of a cook (as in I rely heavily on recipes) nor am I one of those, "it needs a little more ___" people. Thank goodness for the internet. I can pick an ingredient from the kitchen and find something to make with it. In this case it was 3/4 c. of oat bran. Random, I know. I can't even remember why I purchased the oat bran in the first place but it has been driving me nuts in cabinet and I can't throw anything away. Ever.

The recipe for these muffins was adapted from one on the side of the Bob's Red Mill Flaxseed Meal package:

1 1/2 c, whole wheat flour

3/4 c. flaxseed meal

3/4 c. oat bran

1 c. brown sugar

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. cinnamon

1 1/2 c. shredded carrots (I used some parsnips too)

1 c. frozen blueberries

3/4 c. milk

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine dry ingredients.

Mix in shredded carrots and blueberries.

Whisk together milk, eggs and vanilla.

Pour liquid ingredients into dry ingredients.

Fold together (don't over mix).
Spoon into muffin tins (makes 12).

Bake 15-20 minutes.

I substituted the carrots, parsnips and blueberries for raisins, apples and nuts from the original recipe because Tage isn't a fan of nuts in food and I really like carrots and blueberries together. They turned out great! The muffins taste really rich and almost buttery. Make sure to enjoy them warm with a little *real* butter or fresh jam.

Combined with a big cup of green tea, it was the perfect start to my day off.

I ♥ Wednesdays

Weekend Fun

Happy New Year! Thank you so much to Mason's cousin Kelsey for hanging out at our house so Tage and I could go out for dinner and dancing. (We were home by 11:30PM... I feel so old.)

Our New Years Day tradition of playing Frisbee.

So much different than last two years when we played in the snow!

Mason in the Ergo.

We play with an Aerobie-- it's a flat Frisbee which is easier to throw than a regular Frisbee (good for those of us who are disc-challenged.)

Traditional New Years Day black eyes peas (I used this recipe and it was delicious) and cornbread at our house with Uncle Justin, Grandpa Flint and Great Grandma Pete.

Our first 5K of 2010! Me and Mase with our friend Elaine.

Mase and Vinny getting ready for the run.

My little Peanut offering me some water after the race.

What a great year 2009 was. Lots of changes-- probably the most change Tage and I have ever experienced. But so many good things. Here's to looking forward to 2010!

Pizza Friday (for $12.55)

For a while now Friday nights in our house have been designated Pizza Fridays. It is Tage's favorite food and an easy weeknight meal to plan for. Up until recently we would just pick up a Safeway or Freshetta boxed pizza-- which we know isn't the healthiest meal.

When we were in Iowa we watched an episode of Man vs. Food where they were in New York and visited a Sicilian pizza parlor. They made this AMAZING looking pizza that Tage was pretty sure he could duplicate (he is definitely the cook in the family, not me.) We tried it out a couple of weeks ago and it was delicious! Not only that but we had left overs for daaays. A small piece was enough to satisfy both of us for dinner and I'm pretty sure we had pizza for breakfast and dinner the rest of the weekend.

Here is how you can make your own Sicilian pizza (thank you to my own personal Sicilian chef for obliging me and taking pictures while cooking.)

(All of our ingredients were purchased at Trader Joe's)

You'll need:

2 packages of pizza dough ($1.29 each)

(we use the garlic and herb for extra YUM)

1 jar of marinara sauce ($2.29)

(my favorite is the no salt, organic kind)

8 oz. mozzarella ball ($2.99)

shredded romano and parmesan or, in this case, TJ's Quattro Formaggio cheese ($4.69)

Step 1: Follow the directions on the pizza dough package to prepare. You have to let TJ's pizza dough "rest" before you roll it out. If you use a canned pizza dough like Pillsbury you can just open it up and unroll it in the pan.

Step 2: Roll out your dough and place in a 13 x 9 pan. If you don't have stonewear, I highly recommend it. It is extremely durable, easy to clean, and food doesn't get stuck to it. Plus we just put the entire pan in the refrigerator and keep the leftovers in it.

Step 3: Slice the mozzarella ball into about 12 slices and spread them out evenly on top of the dough. Trust me, we didn't skip a step. The sauce goes on AFTER the cheese! At this point take a moment to sip your Blue Moon (top left of the photo.)

Step 4: Now pour the marinara on top of the mozzarella and dough. We use about 2/3 of the jar.

Step 5: Sprinkle your shredded cheese on top of the marinara.

Step 6: Drizzle the pie with extra virgin olive oil.

Step 7: Bake in a 450 degree oven for at least 25 minutes. You can follow the instructions on the pizza dough package, just know it's going to take a bit longer because of how thick the crust is.

The mozzarella melts and covers the crust and it makes this unbelievable cheesy layer beneath the sauce that is even better the next day when you're eating it cold. (Don't act like you don't do that.)

Enjoy!

Under wraps

I'm working on Mason's Halloween costume tonight (yes I'm a procrastinator).

What could it bee???

This actually isn't his costume. It's a receiving blanket and beanie he got from Grandma Pete.

Mason digs it though!

Here's one last Halloween dinner for you!

Mummy Meatloaf

3/4 lb. lean ground beef

3/4 lb. ground turkey

1 egg

1 c. bread crumbs

1 c. dry stuffing mix

1 c. ketchup or barbecue sauce

6 cooked lasagna noodles (with the wavy edges trimmed off)

Mix the first 5 ingredients together, shape into a mound (or bake in an oven-safe bowl) and cook in a 350 degree oven for 45-55 minutes. Cover with ketchup or barbeque sauce and "wrap" with the lasagna noodles.

We ate the Mummy Meatloaf with stuffing and butternut squash (which you can slice in half, place face down in a baking sheet with 1/4 inch of water and cook in the oven with the meatloaf).

Enjoy!

Wrapping up dinner

Hebrew Nationals + crescent roll dough cut into strips = Yummy Mummies!

Homemade Potato Chips

Okay, okay, to echo Lindsey's question when I made yogurt, "Why would you do that?" In this case there are several reasons I was prompted to make homemade potato chips. A) We always seem to have an abundance of potatoes in our kitchen (I'm Irish, what do you want?) B) We're on a budget (and really, who isn't right now?) C) Tage likes chips in his lunch. D) I don't like them because they're always so greasy.

So I gave it a shot and was amazed at how easy it was to make my own and found that I really liked them! Tage is okay with them but he really likes the salt and grease in regular old store-bought potato chips. The best part? These are made in the microwave. So here's how you do it...

1. Wash a potato and slice it into thin slices. I prefer the skins on but you could peel them.

2. Spray a plate with oil. We use olive oil for just about everything because it's good for the heart.

3. Lay the potato slices on the plate, making sure they do not overlap, otherwise they will stick together.

4. Spray the potatoes with oil and season to taste. I make Tage's with just seasoned salt but I like mine with chili powder. I really want to try to make salt and vinegar ones!


5. Put the plate in the microwave and cook. This part you'll have to adapt for your own microwave. In ours I cook the chips for 5 minutes on one side, turn them all over and season the other side, then another 3 minutes. You want to stop cooking once they begin to turn light brown. The thinner you slice them the faster they will cook.

6. The chips have a tendency to stick to the plate so as soon as they come out of the microwave I run a knife under them to separate them. Let them cool before you package them so they don't get soggy (I learned that with the first batch.)

Enjoy the crunchy goodness!