Tag Archives: recipe

Luscious Limas

by Miralegumes, recipes, vegetables, vegetarianbeans, recipe

Recently we had a our friend Eric over for dinner. As part of the meal we served this lima bean dish which is one that everyone likes. Eric not only had seconds, he asked for the recipe. I figure anytime you have a teenaged boy willingly eating lima beans and asking for more you've got a recipe that is a definite keeper.

Lima beans cannot be eaten raw as they contain a compound which turns into cyanide, however once cooked this compound is inactivated. Lima beans are a good source of soluble fiber, with 13 grams in a one cup service. This, coupled with their low glycemic index, make lima beans a good food for anyone looking to support more balanced blood sugars.

Other benefits include:

An excellent source of iron, one cup offers nearly 25% of the daily recommended intake
Protein - one cup of lima beans can provide 15 grams of protein
A wonderful source of folate which is an important B vitamin that is vital for DNA synthesis and repair while also supporting cellular and tissue growth
Rich in isoflavones which have been shown to be anti carcinogenic for breast cancer
A good source of potassium which supports protein synthesis and carbohydrate metabolism as well as supporting nerve and muscle function
There’s a good amount of manganese in lima beans; this co-enzyme supports metabolic activity as well as bone health
Also a good source of magnesium which is required for over 300 enzymatic functions in the body

Lima beans are tasty and versatile. They can be added to soups, stews, are delicious creamed, turned into a mash, and can be wonderful either baked or slow cooked. This recipe is one of our favorites, especially when we can get fresh lima beans from the farmer’s market.

Luscious Limas

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Ingredients

1 med. red onion diced
2 ribs celery diced
2 C. lima beans
1/2 C. vegetable broth
olive oil
1 t. nutritional yeast
salt and pepper

Instructions

Saute the onion in the olive oil until just starting to soften
Add the celery and saute 2 more minutes
Add the lima beans and vegetable and cook on med-low until limas are cooked through
Add extra broth if needed
Sprinkle with nutritional yeast
Add salt and pepper to taste

Changing A Recipe

by Mirabaking, fats and oil, grains, holidays, questions, recipes, substitutions, sweetenersingredients, recipe, swap

For many people learning to cook is a fun activity; often it's something you learn when you're growing up. In the beginning you learn by simply following the recipes. That's why baking is sometimes equated to science, it has to do with the exactness of the recipes. That science-type focus can make it difficult to understand what to do when it comes to changing a recipe though.

Why do you need to know how to change your recipes? Maybe you've run out of certain ingredients, or, need to make dietary changes to your recipe. Making these substitutions is not always easy and actually can be somewhat challenging. You need to understand the differences between ingredients, which can be subtle and often requires trial and error.

Below are some guidelines to help you get started when it comes to switching up your ingredients.

Baking soda or baking powder?

Before we get into the substitutions I feel it's important to clarify the difference between baking soda and baking powder. A lot of people think they're interchangeable. They can be but you need to be aware of how they each function in order to know if the substitution will work. Some recipes may call for both while other recipes may call for just one of them.

Baking soda, also known as sodium bicarbonate, requires acidity plus heat in order to create the rising action. However, this means that when you're using baking soda you need to be able to pop the recipe into the oven as soon as possible after mixing to take maximum advantage of the rising ability.

Baking powder, on the other hand, is essentially baking soda pre-mixed with an acidifying agent such as cream of tartar plus a drying agent, or starch, of some kind. Single-acting baking powder becomes active immediately after it is mixed with liquid. So the batter does need to be put into the oven as soon as possible.

Double-acting baking powder has a split reaction, partly when the liquid is added, and then a second reaction when the batter is exposed to heat in the oven. Because of this, recipes using double-acting baking powder can be held aside for a short while before you bake them.

Baking powder can be a good substitute for baking soda. If you only have baking soda and need baking powder you'll need to add 2 parts cream of tartar to 1 part baking soda; as an example, 1 teaspoon cream of tartar plus ½ teaspoon baking soda creates the correct ratio.

Substitutions

I've made some great doorstops/hockey pucks in my time by switching everything in a recipe and not understanding where or how I needed to make further changes. Keeping notes along the way is important. It can help you understand the evolution of your recipe and help prevent those inedible disasters.

I will share from personal experience that if you try to change everything at once you may find that you get an unpleasant result, so be careful when swapping. I usually change the flour first, then the fat, then the sugar.

Sugars

1 cup of sugar → substitute 1 cup of applesauce

You'll need to reduce the liquid in the recipe by ¼ cup – good for cookies, muffins, and quickbreads

2 Tablespoons sugar → ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Good for any baked goods, up to 4 tablespoons of sugar

1 cup sugar → 2 Tablespoons stevia powder or 1 teaspoon liquid stevia

The recipe may need further modification to make up for the loss of the volume of sugar

Flour/Starch

7/8 cup white flour → 1 cup whole wheat flour

You may need to let the batter sit for a few minutes to allow the extra fiber to absorb some of the liquid in the recipe

1 cup white flour → 1 cup mashed black beans

Wonderful in brownies

1 cup white flour → 1 cup nut flour + ½ teaspoon baking soda or baking powder

1 cup white flour → 1/3 cup coconut flour + 1 egg + a splash of water

Good for pancakes, cookies, and cake

1 cup white flour → 1 cup gluten-free flour blend

Depending on the recipe you may need to add tapioca starch or xanthan gum to make up for the loss of gluten

Fat and Dairy

1/2 cup oil or butter → ½ cup applesauce

Good for muffins or quick breads

1 cup butter → ¾ cup prunes + ¼ cup boiling water blended together

Good for brownies and other chocolate-flavored baked goods

1 Tablespoon butter → 3 Tablespoons ground flax seeds + 1 Tablespoons water

Let the mixture sit for 8-10 minutes to thicken before adding to the batter

1 cup oil or butter → 1 cup mashed banana

Good in brownies, muffins, or cookies

1 cup buttermilk or kefir → 1 cup whole milk + 1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Let the mixture sit for at least 5 minutes to sour

1 cup milk → ½ cup evaporated milk + ½ cup water blended together

If you need a slightly thicker consistency you can use a little more evaporated milk and a little less water

Eggs

The video below is a great resource for how to make substitutions for eggs.

Eggplant Corn Fritters With Chunky Tomato Red Pepper Coulis

by Miragrains, recipes, tomatoes, vegetables, vegetarianeggplant, fritters, recipe, tomato coulis

I am always experimenting in the kitchen. Recently I created a dinner that came together out of ingredients from the farmer's market that I had on hand. Because this dish turned out so well I definitely plan to make it again; it's a great summertime meal full of flavor and freshness.

Although I used fresh ground flour to make my fritters you can still make this recipe if you don't have a mill by checking out my baking substitutions post.

Eggplant Corn Fritters

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Servings 4

Ingredients

Grapeseed oil
1/2 C. cornmeal
2/3 C. Ezekiel flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup milk, plus more if needed 
1 egg
1 eggplant, peeled and diced
1 ear corn, kernels removed

Instructions

Cut eggplant into medium dice
Toss with 1 t. salt and let rest 20 minutes
Rinse eggplant
Combine dry ingredients
Beat together milk and egg
Add milk mixture to dry ingredients (adding more milk if needed to make a smooth batter)
Stir in the eggplant and the corn
Drop batter by ¼ C. measure into hot oil
Turn fritters once while cooking, fritters should be golden brown on both sides
Drain fritters on paper towels
Serve with chunky tomato red pepper coulis

Chunky Tomato Red Pepper Coulis

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Ingredients

2 T. olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic minced
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
1 red pepper, diced large
1 t. minced fresh basil
1 t. minced fresh oregano
salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Saute onion and garlic in a large saucepan until onion starts to soften
Add red pepper and saute 1-2 minutes
Add tomatoes and herbs, turn heat down to medium low and cook 10-12 minutes until vegetables are soft, tossing vegetables frequently
Add salt and pepper
Remove 2/3 of vegetables from the pan and put in a large bowl
Blend thoroughly with an immersion blender
Add reserved vegetables to blended vegetables
Serve over Eggplant Corn Fritters
Enjoy!

Meat Marinade

by Miraholidays, recipesrecipe

Grilling season is here. There's something special and delicious about gathering around the grill with friends and family. Marinating meat before grilling is a great way to add flavor and tenderness, but it also has a surprising health benefit: it can reduce the formation of carcinogens. When meat is cooked at high temperatures, it can create heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are known to increase the risk of certain cancers.

Fortunately, when you marinate meat it can help reduce the formation of these carcinogens. The acid in the marinade, such as vinegar or lemon juice, helps to break down the proteins and fats in the meat, making it less likely to form HCAs and PAHs when cooked. Plus, using herbs and spices in your marinade adds antioxidants and polyphenols which can help neutralize free radicals and reduce oxidative stress.

When you marinate meat before grilling, you not only add flavor and tenderness to the meat, you also reduce your exposure to the potential for forming carcinogenic compounds and enjoy a healthier grilled meal.

Other ways to reduce the carcinogenic impact of grilling are:

Trim off as much fat as possible to reduce the amount of PAHs
If marinating in the refrigerator bring the meat to room temperature before grilling
Cook at a lower temperature - low and slow is the key here
Cook with gas instead of charcoal, pellets, or wood

Here's one of my favorite marinade recipes:

Mira's Meat Marinade

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Ingredients

1/3 C. olive oil
1/3 C. ketchup
1/4 C. rice wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic minced
2 T. coconut aminos
1 large sprig rosemary

Instructions

Poke meat with a fork before soaking in marinade
Let marinate at least 6 hours before serving (in the fridge), turning as often as you remember (I have left this as long as 24 hours and it is absolutely delicious)
Pull the meat out of the fridge about 30 minutes before you start the grill
Enjoy!

[expand title="Sources"]

Kim SR, Kim K, Lee SA, et al. Effect of red, processed, and white meat consumption on the risk of Gastric Cancer: An overall and dose⁻response meta-analysis. Nutrients. 2019;11(4). doi:10.3390/nu11040826

Joshi AD, Kim A, Lewinger JP, et al. Meat intake, cooking methods, dietary carcinogens, and colorectal cancer risk: findings from the Colorectal Cancer Family Registry. Cancer Med. 2015;4(6):936-52. doi:10.1002/cam4.461

Oranuba E, Deng H, Peng J, Dawsey SM, Kamangar F. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons as a potential source of carcinogenicity of mate. J Environ Sci Health C Environ Carcinog Ecotoxicol Rev. 2019;37(1):26-41. doi:10.1080/10590501.2019.1555323

National Cancer Institute. Chemicals in meat cooked at high temperatures and cancer risk.

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Pesto

by Miranuts, recipes, tomatoes, vegetarianpesto, recipe

My friend Tracy recently mentioned that she is growing basil in her back yard garden and would like to eventually make pesto. Pesto is a delicious way to add flavor to a wide number of dishes, it's not just for pasta. It can be used for a fabulous sandwich spread for tomato or tomato and mozzarella sandwiches. It's wonderful to use on chicken and thinned down it is a great dressing for a cold bean salad.

Basil (Ocimum basilicum) is an annual herb with a very strong flavor; originally from Asia it is now most common in Italian cuisine. Basil comes in a number of different "flavors" so in additional the sweet basil that we are used to you can also get cinnamon, lemon, Genovese (which has sort of a clove flavor), licorice basil and a wide number of others. Basil is a very useful herb with high levels of vitamin K as well as calcium, iron and vitamin A. If you plan to grow it all summer to harvest in the fall for pesto you can increase your yield by pinching the flower stems. This will prevent the flowers and seeds from forming and keeps the essential oils from drying up.

This is my favorite recipe for pesto:

Pesto

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Ingredients

2 C. fresh basil leaves, washed and destemmed
2 cloves garlic
1/2 C. parmesan cheese
1/2 C. pine nuts
1/2 C. olive oil

Instructions

Place all ingredients into a food processor
Turn the food processor on and begin to add in olive oil until mixture is smooth
Add salt to taste

Notes

Note: you can make different types of pesto by using parsley or red peppers instead of basil, using walnuts instead of pine nuts and changing the parmesan for romano cheese. Experiment and find out what your favorite flavor is.

Healthy Granola Recipes

by Mirabreakfast, gluten free, nuts, oats, recipes, vegetariangranola, recipe

The kitchen is fragrant with the smells of baking granola right now.

Steve and the kids like to eat it as a bowl of cereal, I prefer it as a garnish on top of a bowl of yogurt and fruit, as an added treat to a bowl of muesli, or as a crumb topping for making muffins.

One of the reasons that I like to make my own granola is because I can control the flavor and the sweetness; I also believe I save money by making my own.

Bear Naked Apple Cinnamon Granola is $4.85 for approximately 3 cups, Kashi Mountain Medley Granola is $4.56 for approximately 3.5 cups and my homemade version comes out at around $3.65 for 6 cups.

Because I want less sugar in my granola it is admittedly less crunchy but we find it to be very flavorful and enjoy it a lot. Taste testings with friends and family shows that they like it too.

The most recent batch is apricot, raisin, walnut, and cinnamon. The kids were very eager to "taste test" it as it came out of the oven, I had to fend them off with my mixing spoon so that it could cool properly.

Great Granola

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Ingredients

3 T. honey
3 T. molasses
1/3 C. oil
4 C. rolled oats
1 C. nuts, chopped
1 C. dried fruit
1/4 C. flax seed, ground
1 t. vanilla
spices, optional (cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, etc)

Instructions

In a small pot on the stove mix honey, molasses and oil
Heat until just starting to bubble, stirring to mix well
Place oats in a large ovenproof dish
Pour liquid mixture over oats and stir well to coat evenly
Bake for 10 minutes
Remove from oven, stir well, add nuts and return to oven
Bake for 10 minutes
Remove from oven, stir well, add dried fruit and return to oven
Bake for 10 minutes
Remove from oven, stir well, add flax seeds, vanilla and any spices if desired
Let cool completely before storing in a container
Enjoy!

My friend Christine also shared her chocolate granola recipe. She said it's a big hit with her family, I'm sure it will be for yours as well.

With the addition of ground flax and coconut oil, this recipe provides some great fatty acids (flax seeds have omega-3 while coconut oil has medium-chain fatty acids). These healthy fats help provide satiety, or fullness, which means it helps fill you up. Dark chocolate and cocoa provide antioxidants, especially epicatechin (found also in green tea), which protect against cardiovascular disease.

Chocolate Granola

My friend Christine's recipe

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Ingredients

Mix in crock pot:
7 C. organic old fashioned oats
1/2 C. ground flax
1/4 C. organic brown sugar
1/2 C. shredded coconut
Pinch of sea salt
½ C. raw honey
2 T. maple syrup
¼ C. coconut oil
2 T. cocoa powder

Instructions

Mix well and heat on low all day, stir once in while.
After slightly browned (4-6 hours on low) stir in:
½ C. 70% chocolate or darker, finely chopped
1 C. chopped almonds & walnuts
Cool completely then store in an airtight container

Next recipe is...I was trying to decide what to call this cereal. It's probably somewhere in between granola and muesli.

It's not really granola because it doesn't have the hard, crunchy bits that so many people like in granola (mine is less crunchy mostly because I use less sweet stuff). However, muesli (pronounced moos-lee), isn't baked at all. Rather it's mixed together - flaked grains, nuts, seeds, and dried fruits.

Anyway, "muesola" sounds silly. On the other hand, "gruesli" sounds completely unappetizing. I think I'll stick with calling it granola and leave well enough alone.

Granola

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Ingredients

4 C. flaked grains - oats, quinoa, your preference
1 C. raw, unsalted nuts, chopped - my favorites are pecans or almonds
1/4 C. flax seed, ground
1/4 C. sesame seeds
1/4 C. raw, unsalted sunflower seeds
1/4 C. raw, unsalted pumpkin seeds

Instructions

Mix ingredients together well
Store in an airtight container
If making muesli:
Place 1/3 C. of the mixture into a bowl
Add 2-4 T. of dried fruit
Mix in 2/3 C. milk, yogurt, or apple juice
Cover and place in the fridge overnight
In the morning top with 1/4 apple, grated and spicesYum!
If making granola:
Preheat oven to 350F
Put dry mixture into a large 9 x 13 casserole dish
In a saucepan mix together1/3 C. honey - I prefer raw and local1/3 C. molasses1/3 C. coconut oil
Heat in a small pot until just starting to bubble
Pour mixture over the base recipe, coating evenly
Bake 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes to avoid burning
Pull mixture out of the oven and sprinkle with 2 t. vanilla extract, incorporating well
Let mixture cool completely before storing in an airtight container
To serve:
Place 1/3 C. of the mixture into a bowl
Add 2-4 T. dried or fresh fruit
Mix in milk to the desired level
Enjoy!

Comfort Food

by Mirarecipes, substitutionsrecipe, tapioca, yuca

Every now and again there's nothing like a pudding for comfort food. Creamy and sweet, it hits the spot. The other day I was in the mood for comfort food and decided that tapioca was the order of the day. Honestly it's not the quickest comfort food to prepare, but it tastes so good that it's worth the time it takes to make it.

I tend to have tapioca on hand not only for making pudding but so that I can grind it up into a flour when I am experimenting with gluten free mixes.

Tapioca comes from the cassava root and in other parts of the world is referred to as yuca or manioc. Although native to South America it has spread around the world and is the third largest source of carbohydrates for human consumption. There are several different types of cassava root and many of them are poisonous if eaten directly (and like rhubarb, the leaves are completely inedible to humans) but with processing it becomes safe to eat.

Many cultures around the world eat cassava root in various forms, as grated root cakes, using the flour to make thin flat breads, as a stew, to thicken soups, and more. In this country it is most commonly used to make tapioca pudding. To prepare the root for making tapioca it is shredded, soaked and exposed to heat. As it dries it forms pellets that are referred to as pearls. The larger pearls are often used in tea drinks such as bubble tea while the smaller pearls are used for making pudding or ground into flour. Cassava root is very high in calcium, phosphorus and vitamin C but has very little protein.

In rummaging around my kitchen to make pudding I realized that I had very little milk on hand. As they say, necessity is the mother of invention. I was in the mood for pudding, didn't want to go to the store and certainly didn't have enough milk. Having coconut milk in the pantry I decided to try it as a substitute. I'm so glad I did because I've come up with a new favorite way to enjoy tapioca pudding. Try it, I think you'll enjoy it too.

Coconut Tapioca Pudding

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Ingredients

1/2 C. tapioca pearls
1 C. water
2 C. coconut milk
note: coconut milk is sold in 15 oz cans. If you like you can use 15 oz coconut milk and 1 oz of another milk to make the two cups. It occurs to me that almond milk might be a nice addition
2 egg yolks, beaten
1/2 C. evaporated cane juice crystals
pinch of salt
1 t. vanilla
1/2 C. grated coconut, toasted

Instructions

Place tapioca pearls in water and let soak for 4 hours
In a pan gently heat grated coconut, stirring frequently, until light brown
Drain tapioca
Place in a sauce pan with coconut milk, egg yolks, cane juice crystals, and salt
Heat over medium high heat stirring constantly until mixture begins to thicken
Reduce to low heat
Continue to stir until pearls are translucent and pudding is thick, about 20 minutes
Remove from heat and let cool 15 minutes
Add vanilla and let pudding cool completely
To serve spoon pudding into a bowl and sprinkle with toasted coconut
Enjoy!

Ratatouille

by Miracrockpot, recipes, tomatoespolenta, ratatouille, recipe

Not the movie, the food. Even though we are slated to have a high of 75 F today it's a great day to make ratatouille. In part because I have a lot of running around to do and my crock pot makes it very easy to get dinner on the table in spite of that. The other reason is that eggplants were particularly beautiful at the grocery store yesterday so I bought one. Glossy, firm, no wrinkles, that's the way to pick a good eggplant.

Eggplants are related to the nightshade family (along with potatoes, tomatoes, and sweet peppers, so those who are sensitive to nightshades should avoid them) and are actually fruits because their seeds are on the inside. They have many wonderful health benefits including a fair amount of fiber (if eaten with the skin), lots of potassium and vitamin B1, also known as thiamin.

To be honest, in our house making ratatouille is an inexact science. The base ingredients are: eggplant, onion, tomatoes, sweet peppers, garlic, olive oil, pitted olives, basil, salt, pepper, and parsley.

How much of which ingredient depends on what we have available. I know that's not really helpful so here are the proportions I used today.

Ratatouille

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Ingredients

1 medium size eggplant diced
1 medium onion diced
2 zucchini cut into 1/2" rounds
2 peppers (one red one green) chopped medium
2 large tomatoes diced
1 t. dried basil
1 t. dried parsley
salt and pepper

Instructions

Layer it all in the crockpot
Pour a 14.5 ounce can of diced organic tomatoes over the batch
Let it cook on low for 7-9 hours until it is done

Notes

I plan to serve this ladled over freshly made polenta with a generous shaving of fresh parmesan on top for a delicious, filling meal.

Polenta

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Ingredients

1 C. fresh ground cornmeal
1 t. salt
3 C. water

Instructions

Bring water and salt to a boil
Reduce water to a simmer
Very slowly add cornmeal (this is important to avoid lumps)
Cook approximately 20 minutes until mixture thickens
Remove from heat and pour into a pie plate (for triangles) or a cake pan (for squares)
Let polenta set for 10-15 minutes
Cut and serve
Enjoy and be well.