Category Archives: Cooking

Pancakes

Cooking, ,

20150301_195602 I love pancakes!

There are so many ways to make them. I always use Bisquick for my pancakes. I find that it produces the best results.  The other similar mixes just don’t measure up.  I alter the basic recipe on the box to whatever suits my taste.

I always add extra liquid so the batter is a little thinner and I can get a bigger, flatter pancake. Not too much liquid though or you will have trouble flipping the pancakes. The liquid can be varied. The recipe calls for milk. I rarely use regular cow’s milk because of lactose issues in our household. Generally I use vanilla almond milk. You can also substitute chocolate almond milk or orange juice. Don’t forget the eggs and oil as per the box recipe. Next the standard recipe calls for vanilla extract. I often use almond extract instead. Any other flavor would work just as well depending on the final product you are going for. I whisk all of the wet ingredients together before adding them to the dry. Sometimes I add in canned pumpkin or mashed bananas. You may have to adjust the liquid depending on the consistency of these. No big deal. If the batter gets too runny, just add a little more of the Bisquick to thicken it up. I like to add cinnamon and nutmeg to the pumpkin and maybe a little molasses to make it like pumpkin pie.

And then you are ready for what I call the “add-ins”. Nearly all of my pancakes include chocolate chips. Other things you could add include:  almonds, pecans, walnuts, chopped cranberries, coconut, sliced strawberries, blueberries, orange zest, lemon zest, raspberries or blackberries, chopped dates. The possibilities are many. I mix these items into the dry Bisquick before adding the liquid. I find that having them coated and dispersed reduces the needed mixing and makes a better quality pancake.

I always use a silver stone, non-stick pan to cook the pancakes in. I add a little cooking spray before the first pancake. Make sure the pan is well heated on medium heat. Then pour in the batter and spread it around a little with a spoon to get the pancake thin enough and as large as you want it. Small bubbles or holes will surface starting at the outside and then toward the center as cooking takes place. Flip the pancake when the bubbles are coming up near the center. I often have trouble flipping the first pancake. It is usually the “sacrificial pancake”. After this I never have any trouble. If there is no chocolate, this is the pancake the dogs get.

I hope you have fun making these pancakes and coming up with different combinations. I always do. My particular favorites that I make over and over are:

  • Pumpkin Chocolate Chip (All time favorite!)
  • Banana Chocolate Chip
  • Orange Chocolate Chip

Other tasty combinations are:

  • Orange Almond Chocolate Chip
  • Banana Pecan
  • Coconut Pecan Chocolate Chip made with Chocolate Almond Milk (like German Chocolate Cake!)
  • Raspberry White Chocolate Chip

So, have fun with this. You are only limited by your imagination!

The Kitchen Challenge

Cooking, Dogs & Other Animals,

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Cooking has its extra challenges around here. Most people just go into the kitchen and cook. Not us. Cooking in our home involves a multi-species audience. Our animals are eternal optimists. They are certain that we will share with them or at the very least that some morsel of food will fall. They are rarely disappointed.

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Even the cats insist on getting their fair share. Above, Lacey waits her turn as Baxter eats his treat. Our animals will eat nearly anything. The cats usually prefer meat or cheese but sometimes will have bread or squash.  The dogs will try anything we give them. Having this many bodies in the kitchen does make for some rather acrobatic moves as we try to maneuver from counter to stove to refrigerator and back.

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Shelby is a very intense beggar. She takes it seriously and sees begging as a job.

At this point in my life I would find cooking alone without these challenges to be boring and lifeless. I love my life as it is with all my furry family members and the challenges and the joys that they bring.

Leek Spinach Potato Soup

Cooking,

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The leek is a wonderful vegetable. Very like its cousin the onion, but so much more. It adds a depth of flavor that is a pleasant surprise. The only fault of the leek is that it often has gritty dirt within its layers. You must carefully wash this away. It is easiest to cut it into slices first and then soak and rinse them.

Ingredients for the soup:

  • Leeks (1 or 2)
  • Spinach
  • Potatoes
  • Broth
  • Salt, onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper
  • Butter, 1 Tablespoon

The amount of the ingredients used is not really important. Just suit your taste. The de-gritted leeks should be sautéed in the butter until soft. Then add the rest of the ingredients and cook until the potatoes are soft. The final step is to blend it all. I used an immersion blender. You can also blend batches in a blender or food processor.

Serve with some crusty bread and enjoy!

The Fine Art of the Muffin

Cooking

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A good muffin is a beautiful thing. Crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.  You can make them quickly and with things you have available.  I decide what kind to make depending on what I have on hand. If I have bananas in the freezer that I’ve saved for this purpose, I use those.  Or it might be pumpkin or orange juice.

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I have the above basic muffin recipe taped onto the inside of a cabinet door. The dry ingredients are always the same. The brown sugar, oil, and egg are always the same. You can use the vanilla or substitute any other extract.  I often use almond extract but you could also use anise, rum, or any other to suit your taste.  The original recipe called for milk as the liquid but I have also used almond milk, soy milk,  or orange juice. You can add in anything that doesn’t change the consistency of the batter. I use chocolate chips almost every time. Other possibilities in addition to or on their own are berries,  nuts of any kind,  pineapple, orange zest, cranberries,  date, raisins, coconut, etc.

Sift the dry ingredients together. Mix the wet ingredients together with the add-ins, then add the wet to the dry ingredients. Stir just until mixed but no longer! Stirring longer makes the muffins tough and they will not be light and fluffy.

You can make the topping on the recipe, which is like a streusel, or leave it off.  I have done it both ways. Spray muffin tins with non-stick spray and portion out the batter. Then just bake in a preheated oven at 400 degrees for 18 minutes.

I  make these about twice a month. It’s nice to have something delicious and homemade rather than something not so good and probably full of preservatives. And you can make them quickly after you’ve done it a couple of times. Enjoy!