Pasta with Garlic Zucchini

Ingredients:
1 package wacky mac
3 TBSP olive oil
kosher salt
fresh ground pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 large zucchini, cut into strips
1/2 cup water
onion powder
6 grape tomatoes, cut into strips
3/4 cup parmesan cheese

Directions:
Boil pasta according to package directions.
Meanwhile, heat 2 TBSP olive oil and add garlic. Cook for 3 minutes.
Add zucchini, cook for a minute or two, then add water and onion powder.
Let sit on medium heat for 10 minutes.
Add tomatoes and 1 TBSP oil.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Stir in pasta and cheese.
Serve.

I adapted this recipe from Nie Nie's cooking blog.

You could use any pasta, Stephanie uses whole wheat spaghetti, I was hoping that the colors and shapes of the wacky mac would appeal to my kids and be easier for them to eat. Except for Ruby, they still thought it was gross, but not too gross to eat when told they wouldn't get a snack if they didn't eat it. That's saying something.

Creamy Tomatillo Dressing

Cafe Rio Style Creamy Tomatillo Salad Dressing

Place the following in a blender:
3 fresh tomatillos, cut into quarters
juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 cup buttermilk (or make w/dry buttermilk mix)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1 package of dry Ranch Buttermilk Dressing Mix
1 cup fresh cilantro (abt. one bunch)
5 stalks (1/2 bunch) of green onions w/ends
2 cloves crushed garlic
1/2 to 3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. crushed cayenne pepper
4 tsp. sugar or other sweetener (you might want to taste it w/out first)

Combine well in blender and refrigerate at least one hour.

Black Bean Taco Salad

Stephanie blogged about her latest craving awhile ago, and since then, we've been eating something similar. It's really yummy.

Ingredients
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 TBSP canola oil
1 cup water
1 large tomato
1 green onion
cilantro - 1 tsp dried or 1 TBSP chopped fresh
lettuce, in bite sized pieces
olives, sliced
grated cheese - cheddar, queso fresco, or monterrey jack would be good
tortilla chips
creamy tomatillo salad dressing or ranch dressing

Directions
Heat oil in large skillet, add garlic and cook until fragrant. Add beans, stir in one cup of water, and simmer until desired consistency.

Cut tomato into tiny pieces. Cut green onion into small slices and add to tomato. Stir in cilantro.

Layer tortilla chips (I crunch mine up on the bottom), lettuce, beans, cheese, olives, salad dressing, and any other toppings.

If you want to skip a step, you can leave out the mini-pico (tomato, onion, cilantro) and serve with salsa instead.

Pinto Bean Chiliquiles

My kids ate a ton of this tonight - I'm not sure whether they were just really hungry, or if they actually liked the dinner. I started out with a recipe from A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen for Black Bean Chilaquiles (p 288-289), and made a few changes.

8 small corn tortillas
3 TBSP canola oil
salt
3 cloves garlic, minced
onion powder
1 15 oz can pinto beans (drained and rinsed)
1 15 oz can chili beans
2 cups water
shredded cheese (cheddar, monterrey jack, or queso fresco)
sour cream

1. Make tortilla chips by cutting tortillas into 6 wedges. Toss in a bowl with 1 TBSP oil and some salt. Bake in a single layer on a baking sheet in the oven at 350 degrees until edges are golden brown (10-15 minutes). (Or use regular tortilla chips)

2. Heat remaining oil in saucepan, add garlic, and cook till fragrant. Add beans and 2 cups water. Bring to boil and simmer about 10 minutes. Beans should still be soupy. Using a potato masher, mash beans until they form a coarse puree. Bring the beans back to a simmer, and stir in the tortilla chips. Cook until tortilla chips are soft, but retain some chewiness. (You can add water if the beans get too dry.)

3. Sprinkle liberally with cheese, and serve with sour cream or creamy tomatillo salad dressing drizzled on top.

Husbands Delight

When I asked John what he wanted to eat for Father's Day,

he said "something no one else will like."

I had a feeling what he really wanted was fish, but I

don't like fish (unless it's battered, fried, drizzled with lemon juice,

and smothered in tartar sauce), so I pulled out this old recipe

that I found on Recipezaar years ago.

John and I liked it, but most of the kids hated it.
That's what John asked for, right?

Ingredients:
10 oz egg noodles
1 lb ground beef
onion powder
1 (14 1/2 oz) can diced tomatoes (with juice)
1 tsp salt
1 TBSP white sugar
1 1/2 cups sour cream
3 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain.
Meanwhile, brown hamburger with some onion powder (or you can use diced onions - fresh or dried). Add can of tomatoes, salt, and sugar. Bring to boil and simmer for 15 minutes. In a medium sized bowl, combine cream cheese and sour cream.

Put a little over half of the cooked noodles in the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Cover the noodles with the meat mixture, and then the cream cheese and sour cream mixture. Top with the remaining noodles, and sprinkle with cheddar cheese.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until it is hot and bubbly. (I usually cover with tinfoil for part of the time to keep the cheese from getting too brown.)

Oatmeal Cookies

For Father's Day, John requested Oatmeal Cookies.

And to make things complicated, he asked that

1/3 of them be plain, 1/3 have white chocolate chips,

and the last 1/3 to have butterscotch chips.

John got this recipe from his mother, and I've blogged
about them once before on my regular blog.
They're delicious!

Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 cups oatmeal
1 cup butter softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 TBSP vanilla
2 eggs
optional - white chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, or chocolate chips

Directions:
Mix butter and sugars until well blended. Add vanilla and eggs.
Mix in oatmeal.
Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl, then add to butter mixture. Beat just until mixed.

Drop by tablespoons onto a cookie sheet.
Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes or until edges are golden.

This time around, I split the dough into thirds, then rolled the portions into logs (about 2 inches thick) and wrapped them in wax paper. Once the dough was chilled, I sliced the dough into half inch discs, put them on cookie sheet, and baked them.

Wet Burritos

This recipe originally called for hamburger. I tried it tonight with just the refried beans, and we didn't miss the meat. Store bought enchilada sauce is usually too spicy for John and the kids, so I mixed the gravy with some tomato sauce and half the enchilada sauce. Some unbaked tortillas are trans fat free, so I prefer those to the precooked ones.

Ingredients:
1 pkg tortillas (either the precooked, or cook the raw ones)
2 cans refried beans
1 pkg brown gravy mix (mixed), or one jar brown gravy (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 can enchilada sauce (10 oz)
1-2 cups shredded cheese (I like Monterrey jack and cheddar)
lettuce (shredded or finely chopped)
tomato (finely chopped)
sour cream

Directions:
Put a spoonful of beans on a tortilla, roll it up burrito style, and place in a 9x13 pan. Repeat with other tortillas and remainder of beans (you'll probably get about 6-8 burritos).
Mix brown gravy and enchilada sauce together and pour over burritos. Top with cheese and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes, or until cheese melts and sauce is hot and bubbly.
Serve with shredded lettuce, tomato, and sour cream.