Sweet Substitutions: Chocolate Chip Cookies

So welcome, welcome to my newest feature on the blog.  The sweet substitution posts will be done with the help of my sister.  Between the two of us she bakes far more than I do.  Between tending to not have the patience for the measuring (as readers of this blog have no doubt noticed) and not having a whole lot of sugar in my diet I just don't seem to make delicious desserts, which is a shame.  However, with a group of sorority sisters and fraternity boys at her disposal, my sister isn't lacking people to try the sweets that she makes.  The ones posted here make substitutions to the typical oil, egg, and sugars to make the desserts a bit healthier without being any less delicious.  She said that the texture and flavor were just as good, and that the applesauce and banana played very nicely off of the chocolate.

100th Post: Steak and Sweet Potato Empanadas

Wow, a year really goes by fast.  I can't believe I started this blog last February and that one year later I'm on my 100th post.  I want to thank everyone who has read my blog, commented, shared, or otherwise been a part of this journey.  I hope that you continue to enjoy the recipes that are still to come.

Today's recipe really hits both the cheap and easy portions of the blog.  While it may not be entirely traditional it is incredibly versatile.  I used diced sweet potato and beef.  If you don't have that on hand, scour the fridge: taco meat, shredded chicken, roasted veggies, anything with tomato sauce (boom calzones), chicken or tuna salad.  The only other ingredient you need is a package of thin crust pizza dough.  Plus, these are baked instead of fried and still turn a lovely golden, crispy brown.

P.S. It may seem like a lot of steps, but if you have the filling leftover from something you can skip to the stuffing phase which will cut down prep time considerably.

Dessert: Key Lime Fudge

As I move towards my 100th post (wow, can't believe it will be the next one!) I thought I'd share one of the few desserts that I make.  This fudge, simply put, is phenomenal.  It combines all the things that I love about good food: easy to make, pretty easy on the wallet, and absolutely delicious.  The bright acidity of the limes sets off the more muted tones of the white chocolate...and that is not even getting into the pretty pop of color of the green on white.   It has been a go-to best seller for me at bake sales this year.  I got the idea from the blog  Dozen Flours , which is a beautifully designed dessert blog (trust me, go look at some of the pictures).  I've played around with the ingredients and lime amount to find a variation that I like.

Recipe: Tomato Soup

The only thing better than a big hot bowl of soup on a cold day is a big hot bowl of soup that all came together in a food processor for super cheap and makes enough to feed.  This is not a fussy soup and eschews some of the traditional ingredients such as  milk, cream, or basil (though the latter would have been great had I had some).  I add thickness and creaminess to the soup with white beans but otherwise let the tomatoes do the talking.  You will need a large food processor such as a 10-14 cup but you can process it in batches and then add into the pot.  This would be great if you wanted to add thawed, wrung, spinach, or as you'll see at the bottom some cheese and pieces of ham.  There are so many options.

Snacktime: Hummus

I love hummus...and I love it even more now that I have a food processor (I'd recommend a 10-14 cup one for this recipe) and I can make it for myself. Not only is it significantly cheaper but I can control exactly what goes it in, which is always a plus.  Also, it couldn't be easier.  The one tough ingredient for hummus is the tahini paste which is made from ground sesame.  It can be found at many groceries, though I could not find it at Wal-Mart.  Best advice is to check a Publix, Hy-Vee, Wegmans, or the like.  The tahini will set you back 6 or 7 dollars but you will get lots of hummus batches from the bottle. I used olive oil in the recipe, but you could play around with other oils or sub out up to half with the liquid from the chickpeas.

Recipe: Santa Fe Soup

This is a great recipe that my mother makes in the winter.  It is spicy, full of vegetables, and makes a large amount (the leftovers of which are wonderful frozen.  It can also be made with a variety of different proteins, or none at all.  I used a rotisserie chicken, but that could be substituted for 3-4 cooked and shredded chicken breasts, 1-2lbs of cooked and drained ground beef, or even cooked and drained stew meat.  If making it without meat, you might consider adding another can or two of beans to the mix.

The rest of the ingredients pretty much include canned items (and optional chicken stock) making this an affordable, and pantry clearing soup.  Other substitutions you could play with are the beans.  You need two cans and can really use any combo of black, kidney, or white.  In the end, this will make around 8-10 servings.  At the end of the post you can see a picture of how much it makes to give you an idea.  The canned veggies are all the standard sizes, so the 10-14.5 ounce varieties.

Recipe: Mixed Greens with Clementines and Apple Cider Vinaigrette

So let me start off by saying how sorry I am for such a long gap between posts, my exams got in the way.  That being said, I have lots of great recipes to share with you all over the coming days, and I'm going to start with this one.  Over Thanksgiving, my family had a variation of this salad at my aunt's house.  She used blueberries where I used clementines, though any berry (strawberry and blackberry also come to mind) would be great in this.  If you don't have a few clementines on hand, I think a can of well drained mandarin oranges would also work.

On a different note, if you wanted to leave out the greens, the clementines could be tossed with the dressing, almonds, and feta to make a lovely citrus salad/salsa.  I would love to hear back if any of your try these variations.
*Note to vegans, the dressing contains Worcestershire, so it is not vegan in this form, but I believe there are substitutes for it out on the market.
This recipe makes 4 side salad portions or two dinner portions, but can easily be doubled.