Happy New Year!
Today is a day for new beginnings.
Some of you may be thinking it is a bit of a leap to go from writing about KC Singles to posting recipes. It all makes good sense...in my head. So, allow me explain.
Being single is expensive! Meeting friends for meals or happy hour adds up over time. Cooking for one is not all that exciting so singles eat out A LOT or eat prepackaged and take out food. They are taking care of all of the household chores that couples may split so cooking often falls off the bottom of the list.
Cooking is a great way to show how much you care for and appreciate the people in your life and that includes yourself. In my experience, when you are cooking for one or maybe two people there is not much opportunity to practice. When you do cook you need it to taste great - every time.
It is my hope that in reading Single Conversation over the last two years you have been encouraged to meet some new people and grow your existing relationships.
I had some specific goals in mind when I dreamt up this 2016 blog plan.
Some of you may be thinking it is a bit of a leap to go from writing about KC Singles to posting recipes. It all makes good sense...in my head. So, allow me explain.
Being single is expensive! Meeting friends for meals or happy hour adds up over time. Cooking for one is not all that exciting so singles eat out A LOT or eat prepackaged and take out food. They are taking care of all of the household chores that couples may split so cooking often falls off the bottom of the list.
Cooking is a great way to show how much you care for and appreciate the people in your life and that includes yourself. In my experience, when you are cooking for one or maybe two people there is not much opportunity to practice. When you do cook you need it to taste great - every time.
It is my hope that in reading Single Conversation over the last two years you have been encouraged to meet some new people and grow your existing relationships.
I had some specific goals in mind when I dreamt up this 2016 blog plan.
- Share recipes for daily staples. Trimming cost, calories, and pre-packaged food from the Monday - Friday breakfast and lunch meals. We could all use more cash and less meals a la drive through.
- Share recipes for group events. You've got to mingle! Whether you are getting together with friends to watch the game or heading to your monthly book club (aka wine) group we all have occasions that beg for a sharable dish. Party guests are more likely to strike up conversation with you about your killer, homemade fill in the blank than over some thoughtless store bought offering like Sabra Hummus. (no offense Sabra)
- Share recipes for entertaining in your home. You should invite some friends over for dinner. Maybe host a family members birthday meal. Or, propose dinner and a movie at your place for date #3 with that hottie you met at the Super Bowl Party. Of course, dinner will have to be fabulous! I mean you tell everyone about your amazing house and all the work you've done. Don't you want to show it to them?
I am starting my New Year by sharing two recipes that I hope will help you get yours off to a great start. Both of these work perfectly as day-to-day staples for breakfast, sack lunch, or an evening snack.
Hosting brunch? These are easy make ahead options.
First Things First: Flavored Yogurt
Several years back I hired a personal trainer. Some of you may remember my FB posts about "Trainer Peggy". She was AWESOME despite the fact that she may, or may not have, tried to kill me. For the record, I was fine. But, I was certain that I was dying upon completion of every training session.
Trainer Peggy gave me several tips to reduce sugar and increase protein in my diet. Flavoring my own yogurt is one tip that I have used regularly ever since. Single serving flavored yogurts get a lot of bad press these days. They are packed with sugar and chemically altered ingredients. It is not nearly the health food we may have all wished for.
So, take a few minutes each week to make your own. You can choose your flavor, cut the sugar, preservatives, and chemicals. Equally as important, you will save money on groceries....which you can reallocate to your resolution to hire a personal trainer.
Go ahead! Make your trainer proud!
Thanks Peggy! Click here for an intro to Trainer Peggy.
Next Up: Fuel To Go Muffins (He got that ambition, baby, look in his eyes - Kanye)
This recipe is fairly new to me. It is one of the 6,800+ Pinterest picture I have "liked". I know, I know. Ridiculous! I told you last week that I have some free time on my hands these days. Hopefully, blogging about my kitchen time will help me use my powers for good.
If you are an energy bar freak this is for you!
If your New Years Resolution is to J.E.R.F. (just eat real food) this is for you!
If you are looking to casually connect with a granola eating hottie this is definitely for you!
If your New Years Resolution is to J.E.R.F. (just eat real food) this is for you!
If you are looking to casually connect with a granola eating hottie this is definitely for you!
Honestly, and maybe most importantly, if you have any kind of nut or seed allergy you likely steer clear of energy bars. Being allergic to sesame seeds and sesame oil they are pretty much off limits for me -- thus the pinter-rediculousness. This recipe seems flexible enough to taylor it to what you like and easily avoid any allergy issues that you and yours may have.
I have made these twice now. Once following the recipe exactly. The second time I altered the ingredient list to cut down on gluten and sugar. I recommend using the source recipe if you are looking for perfection. Safety first!
By the way, that is a great tip! Make a recipe three times. First, exactly as the recipe calls for making notes on the recipe for reference. Second, alter ingredients to your preferred tastes. Third, make the dish as if it was your own.
I am a recipe person. I am not good at cooking from memory or by taste. Some people, like my sister-in-law and my mother cook by taste. They just know what they are doing in there. It is amazing and almost always delicious. NOT ME! Most of my kitchen failures happen when I try to wing it. So, needless to say, I rarely make it past cooking from a recipe with my personal notes included.
[totally off topic] If you need a suggestion for book club or a gift for a friend Bread and Wine by Shauna Niequist is an excellent choice! It is filled with heart warming stories and great recipes.
Finally, I think now is the time to tell you that I will be taking pictures as I cook. They are not fancy or photo shopped. They are real. Isn't it upsetting when your food doesn't turn out beautiful like the cookbook pictures?!? I promise that won't be the case here.
Now, Let's Eat!
| Flavored Yogurt | |
| 32 Oz Container of plain (unflavored) yogurt | |
| Flavoring(s) of choice: extracts: lemon, almond, vanilla, orange, etc Spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie, apple pie, cloves, etc Fruit (frozen or fresh): berries, peaches, apricots, mango, etc |
Servings: 4, Serving size: 1C, Calories: 164, Carbs: 13, Fat: 8, Protein: 8, Sugar: 12
INSTRUCTIONS- Add yogurt and flavoring(s) to a medium sized bowl. Stir to combine.
- Amount of flavoring(s) depends on your preference. Start with a teaspoon and increase as needed. You are unlikely to need more than a tablespoon. remember the flavors will bloom over time.
- If you flavor with fruit I recommend 1 part fruit to 4 parts yogurt.
- Put the yogurt back into the original container or separate into serving size plastic containers for quick access or ease of packing food to go.
NOTES
- Read the labels! Minimize or eliminate the sugar, chemicals and preservatives.
- Use whatever kind of yogurt you like. Recipe will work with any plain yogurt. (percentage of fat, fat-free, greek yogurt, sheep milk, etc.)
- Try mixing up just a 1/2 cup or so with various flavors until you find what you like.
- I don't add any sugar. It took me 4 or 5 servings to get used to the flavor.
- If you prefer sweetener, add some. Experiment with honey, agave, etc to see what you like.
- I use Dannon because it does not contain anything other than milk.
- Be careful using citrus fruit or juice to flavor. It will probably sour the yogurt. (bad news)
 |
| Source Recipe |
 |
| Modified Recipe |
Servings: 12, Serving size: 1 muffin, Calories: 438, Carbs: 51, Fat: 24, Protein: 7, Sugar: 36
Modified Recipe:
Servings: 12, Serving size: 1 muffin, Calories: 408, Carbs: 46, Fat: 24, Protein: 8, Sugar: 31
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a large bowl mix together all dry ingredients.
- In a second bowl mix together dried fruits, vegetables, nut & seed mixture.
- If you prefer a smoother texture use a food processor to blend this mixture (or any portion of it)
- In a third bowl mix together wet ingredients
- Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredient bowl. Mix well.
- Add fruit, vegetable, nut, & seed mixture to large bowl in two parts. Final mixture will be thick.
- Fill 12 cupcake baking cups heaping full.
- Really, get them full. The mixture doesn’t rise very much.
- Bake at 350 degrees for at least 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick or knife can be removed cleanly from the center of a muffin.
- In my modified recipe I had to bake for 50 minutes due to increase in wet ingredients.
NOTES
- As with a lot of real food this one does not look very sexy when you mix it up. Just go with it. It looks much more appetizing once baked.
- I used a 1/4 C measure to spoon them into the muffin tin. I needed 1/2 C to 3/4 C to use up all the mixture in 12 muffins.
- I think you are safe to use whatever nuts, seeds, fruit, or vegetables that you like. Just be cautious of moisture content. (i.e. zucchini would need to be dried up some)
- Don't have muffin wrappers? cut foil squares. Press into the tin with a cup. Coat w/cooking spray.
- These should freeze beautifully!
- Click here for the source recipe
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