Basic Baked Beans

(I have no pictures for this post as well! :( I was going through my recipes and saw that I hadn't posted this one, and have NO clue where the pics are for this, but let me tell you, I DO KNOW for a FACT that I will be making this again! This would be GREAT with hamburgers or hot dogs for a cook out! Yummy! I'm thinking I am going to have to make this, and soon!!! :D)


I actually remembered to soak the beans last nite! :) Also, since I was up early, I went ahead and started cooking them. It took about 2 hours to cook and let me tell you, the house smelled sooooo good! I don't know what it is about beans cooking, but I just LOVE the smell! ;) Maybe it's because I remember my mom cooking them and when she did, she always cooked something good! Most likely a recipe that was my Aunt and Uncles, so it was G-O-O-D!!!!!!!! ;)

I served this with rice. It as really good! The kiddos all asked for more, so that's a plus in my book! :)

I really liked the fact that I could just put this in the oven and pretty much forget about it for 4 hours! I am pretty sure you could put this in the crockpot, but this was soo good in my cast iron pot just baking in the oven! Plus, it made the house smell really good too!

This recipe calls for navy beans, which I thought I had, but I couldn't find them. So I just soaked 2 pounds of pinto beans. I knew the recipe for the next nite would have pinto beans, so now, one step done for tomorrow's recipe! ;)

Basic Baked Beans

Soak overnite
1 pound navy beans and enough water to cover and then a bit extra. Your beans will swell up, so you want to make sure there is enough water. ;)

In the same liquid that you soaked the beans in, simmer for about 2 hours. Bring it to a boil and then turn way down to simmer for an hour and a half to 2 hours.
Drain, reserving the liquid.
Preheat oven to 275-300 degrees.
Combine in 2 quart casserole:
cooked beans
1/2 cup molasses
1/3 cup ketchup
1 teaspoon mustard
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 onion, chopped
2 slices bacon, chopped, or 1/4 pound salt pork (optional)
reserved bean liquid to cover
Stir it all to combine.
Bake 4-8 hours adding liquid occasionally if necessary. Cover during first half of baking time, then uncover.

*I didn't have any bacon, so I didn't add any meat. I think it would be GREAT with some bacon flavor in this!
The recipe also calls for 1/4 cup ketchup, but I added a bit more.
And like I said at the top, I didn't have any navy beans, so I used pinto. Tasted just fine to me! ;)
Enjoy this super easy meal! It does take time, but really, the only time is waiting for the beans to soak and then to cook in the oven!

Orange Bread

So... I didn't make our breakfast last nite, but since I was up at the crack of dawn, no wait, scratch that, BEFORE the crack of dawn, I just made it this morning! This orange bread was sooo good!!! The only downfall of this was that i only have 3, nope, scratch that, 2 slices left! We had this with an orange, strawberry, and banana smoothie! It was soooo good!

It was really easy to make, seriously only took about 10 minutes to throw together! It took right at an hour to bake, but the smell was intoxicating! The kids woke up to the smell of fresh bread and could NOT wait to get their hands on a piece, or two, or three! ;)

I really am trying to do better to make some hot for the kids for breakfast, plus a smoothie. Nothing wrong with cold cereal, but something hot and homemade fills them up more and gets them through the day a bit better!


Blend the orange juice, milk, coconut oil and egg in bowl...


Add all other dry ingredients plus the orange peel... (save the orange, either eat it with the bread, of finish peeling it and throw it in your smoothie for the morning! ;))


Stir it all up!


Pour in loaf pan and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar... and bake!


All done, boy did it smell GOOD!! SOOOO wish this was a scratch and sniff picture! You'd be running to your kitchen to make up a loaf right now! ;)





The top, sooo good! I think I liked the top part the best! ;)


Orange Bread

1 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups white flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons grated orange peel
2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup cooking oil (I used coconut oil)
1 egg beaten

Top of bread you will need:
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine orange juice, milk, oil and egg in a medium bowl. Whisk until smooth. Add both flours, sugar, orange peel and baking powder. Stir until well moistened. Pour batter into a greased loaf pan. Sprinkle with the sugar and cinnamon.
Bake 60-05 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

*This is soooo good! I got it from my MCC, More with Less. It calls for 3/4 cup sugar, but I only put in 1/2 and it was just fine! :) also calls for cooking oil, and I substituted coconut oil. A for sure make again!!! ;)

Carrot, Broccoli & Cheese Orzo

So since I had everything planned out for my menu, minus tonites meal, I needed something. And I needed it fast! ;) It was a day!

I had everything I needed for this as well! I had bought some orzo about a month ago and bought it for another recipe, and didn't use it. ;)

I've never had orzo before and was pretty excited to try it.

And since we are talking about easy, I am labeling all posts that are easy, so you can see which ones are easy to make and fast! ;) I also think I will post a blog of must haves in your pantry/freezer! I am hoping I can, it may take a while! ;)


Place oil (I used coconut oil), carrots, broccoli, onion, garlic, and orzo in pot (I almost used a whole box, 1 pound, of orzo. If you do, just add a little bit more water to it. I also didn't really measure my broccoli and carrots, i did use one whole head of broccoli though. ;))


Saute for a few minutes...


Then add your water. You could also use half chicken stock and half water, it would be really good, but I didn't have any chicken stock/broth, so I just used water! Next time I will use half chicken broth.


Once all the liquid is absorbed, add the Parmesan cheese (you can use fresh, but make sure it's grated...)


This was sooo good! I wish I had some leftovers! ;)



Carrot, Broccoli & Cheese Orzo

1 Garlic Clove
1 Small Onion
1 1/2 Cups Baby Carrots
1 1/2 Cups Broccoli Florets
2 Tbsp Unsalted Butter or Olive Oil
2 Cup White or Whole Wheat Orzo
1/2 Tsp Salt
3 1/2 Cups Water
1/3 Cup Parmesan Cheese

Place garlic and onion in food processor and pulse to chop. Add baby carrots and broccoli florets to the food processor and pulse, scraping down the sides half way until finely chopped. In a large stock pot, heat 2 tbsp of butter or olive oil and sauté the chopped vegetables, raw orzo and salt for 4 minutes stirring continuously. Add the water to the pot and cook over medium heat for 10
minutes uncovered, or until the liquid starts to evaporate and the mixture thickens. Add the Parmesan cheese and stir to combine. Serve and enjoy!!!

*I used my Vitamix to chop everthing! SOOOO easy and fast!! If I didn't have a Vitamix, I would've used my PC food chopper!

Remember Me?!?!?

Wow! Seriously? I have NO time! I have all these grand ideas and thoughts and promises that I WILL do better at posting recipes, but I have failed yet again! :\

I really do try to get in here, but by the time the end of the nite comes around when I CAN post something, I am sitting on the couch with my hubs and we are watching a movie... Oh and guess what? I USUALLY fall asleep before the movie is over! WOW, big shocker there!

So my attempt at staying off the computer to stay awake to watch a movie with him, well, it fails... If I am on the computer while watching a movie, I am doing no-brainer things on here... So trying to think and write a recipe blog, yeah, that doesn't count! ;) But I am really proud of myself for this week and part of next weeks menu! I went to Aldi and got what I need, all 70 some items for only 100 bucks! Yeah, seriously, how AWESOME is that!!?!?! Plus, I got a few things that I didn't "need" but knew my hubs would like for a snack! I also bough 3 frozen pizzas! I know, HUGE shock there! I've have COMPLETELY stayed away from already fixed frozen foods! I know, the convenience is GREAT and some nites it would be AWESOME, but I have been really trying to cook all my meals from home, not only are they healthy, but they are WAY cheaper! I am all about cheap!

I don't have all my lunches planned out, but those doesn't always stay the same! I am thinking a tuna wrap here and there and some hummus wraps would be a good lunch! :) Also, if we have any leftovers, that would be our lunch as well!

So, here is my menu from now until the 2nd! :) I still don't have anything planned for tonite, but I'll find something! ;)

Wed the 23rd
B- Graham Gems (They are muffins) and a smoothie
L- Hummus and cheese wraps with fresh veggies and an apple
S- We have a potluck at church, SCORE, no cooking tonite! Well, other than the dessert I am supposed to make, and still have no idea what to make! :\

Thursday the 24th
B- Orange Bread and smoothie
L- Tuna wraps and veggie straws
S- Basic Baked Beans with rice and salad

Fri the 25th
B- Basic Biscuits with jam and eggs
L- ??? Leftovers i am sure
S- Mexican Refried Beans on tortillas

Sat the 26th-
B- I am hoping to have some granola made by this point, so they will be eating some homemade cold cereal! ;) If not, well, there is a box of cheerios waiting for them! ;)
L- I have nothing planned b/c I am doing a cake, so prob a banana and strawberry sandwich!
S- Again, no cooking, over to a b-day party and will eat some hamburgers or hot dogs! :D

Sun the 27th
B- Home made no nuts granola and a smoothie. Too many kiddos at our church with a peanut allergy...
L- 6- Layer Dish (this will be cooking while we are at church!)
S- Mexican Chili Beans with homemade corn bread

Mon the 28th
B- Monday mornings aren't always so nice to me, so nothing planned, whatever the kiddos can find! Like Rice or Corn Chex with frozen blueberries on top! :)
L- Hummus wraps with veggie straws
S- Spaghetti and cheese with broccoli rice

Tuesday the 29th
B- Peanut butter bread with a smoothie
L- Leftovers (or so I hope we have some, if not, prob a bean tortilla!)
S- Pakistani Kima- this should be fun! ;)

Wednesday the 30th
B- homemade english muffins made the nite before with an egg inside for a sandwich!
L- Hummus wraps or tuna wraps
S- Crusty Mexican Bean Bake

Thursday the 31st
B- More homemade granola
L- PBJ and Banana sandwiches
S- Puerto Rican Rice

Friday the 1st
B- Onion and cheese loaf (a slice of it toasted) with a smoothie
L- Leftovers
S- Lasgne Roll Ups ( I am not gonna lie, I am pretty excited about these!)

Sat the 2nd
B- Granola and a smoothie
L- Hummus Wraps
S- Pizza Rice Casserole

So there ya go, like I said, some of the lunches may change and I do have a few frozen pizzas that I may have to substitute for one day.... It's not anything fancy, just simply and full of flavor! :)

Again, a week of lots of beans, sooooo cheap!!!!!!! :)

Will post the recipes as I make them as much as i can! No promises!!! ;)
Will post a roasted chickpeas recipe later tonite! You could easily make those for a lunch or a supper! Also, you can blend them up and us them as hummus, yummy!!!

Roasted Chickpeas

These are really easy to make, and they are really good! I used some of the leftover chickpeas in my hummus. Yummy!!!

You can make these using canned chickpeas, or you could get the bag of dried chickpeas and then soak them over nite and cook until soft. You get WAY more from a bag of dried beans than you do if you bought a can. But if you need something fast, use the cans... ;) A bag of 1 pound beans cost me a buck, where a can of 14 oz beans cost me 99 cents. Ok, you are thinking, 1 cent cheaper, but you know what? You get about 3 times as much from the bag than you do the can! (does that make sense? ;)) I made 2 pounds of dried chickpeas and these guys puffed up like you would not believe! ;)



Mix together the spices and the liquids...


Stir in the chickpeas...


All covered in spices ready to bake!


Place in taco shell...


Add anything you want to it! ;) I added shredded cheddar cheese...


Some lettuce, I want to try spinach instead...


And some sour cream, notice how it got all over the place? Oh well, it's all good! ;)


My little one attempting to eat the taco!


He lost pretty much all of his chickpeas! Guess where they ended up?


Yeppers, the floor!!! He got about 5 in his mouth and rest where on the floor and under his chair!! But he really liked what he tasted! hahaha



Roasted Chickpeas

•2 1/2 t. chili powder
•1/2 t. garlic powder
•1/4 t. onion powder
•1/4 t. dried oregano
•2 t. ground cumin
•1 t. sea salt
•1 T. lime juice
•2 T. water
•One 14 oz. can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
•8 taco shells
•Taco trimmings: shredded lettuce or cabbage, tomato, guacamole, sour cream, and shredded cheese, etc...

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, combine chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, cumin, salt, lime juice and water.
Add chickpeas and marinate for at least 30 minutes. (I like to do it for an hour!)
Place chickpeas on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray.
Bake for 20-30 minutes, stirring once during cooking, until chickpeas are slightly crispy.
Prepare taco shells according to package directions. Fill with chickpeas and desired toppings.

Cakes!

Here are a few cakes that I have done... ;)





Millenium falcon (back view)


Millenium falcon (part of the top)



Millenium falcon (another back view)

Millenium falcon (side view)

Millneium Falcon
Millneium Flacon top view
Strawberry Shortcake cake! Of course it's STRAWBERRY cake too!!! :) The top and side dots are made with molding chocolate.
Star Wars with the Death Star
Lemon cake with buttercream icing.. the 8 year old girl designed this cake and I made it for her!!! ;)

Top view of the lemon cake! ;)

I'm Still Here! ;)

Wow! What a month! Oh wait, February is done AND gone! And wow, it's already March 11th! Yikes! :\ I guess I better get started on those bean recipes from my menu a few weeks ago! ;) There were a few changes, but nothing huge. My mom brought a bean soup mix, so we had that one nite instead. It was soooo good! ;)

Anyways... there will be more postings from me! Maybe not a whole lot this week-end, but will force myself to sit down and write some out! :D

Have a GREAT week-end!!!