Whole-Wheat Pancakes

One of the pleasures of being on vacation is trying new foods. One of the unexpected treasures from a trip to Maine last summer were the Whole-Wheat Pancakes from Denny's. We nearly missed out, though.

We planned on eating breakfast at about 6:30 in the morning, before driving on, and Denny's WAS CLOSED! As if to taunt us, we saw the "Always Open" sign and heard the shuffle of employees inside. Mike convinced a sleepy worker to open the door after ten minutes of waiting.

Whole Wheat Pancakes

2/3 c whole wheat flour

1/3 c all-purpose flour

4 Splenda packets

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

7 oz buttermilk

1 egg white

1/4 c Egg Beaters

1 Tbsp canola oil

Mix dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, and then mix together. Be careful not to overmix, or the pancakes will not be as fluffy. Cook at medium-low heat on a prepared griddle. Serves 2.

Banana Bread (or Muffins) a la Mike

When Mike & I first got married, I told him that I had never attended an auction. I was intrigued by the sign a few miles down US 31 that boasted a weekly auction... So, he brought me to my one and only auction that weekend. I got excited during the auction about "all the bananas you can fit in a bag" for some silly, low price. The auctioneer organizers had somehow intercepted a truckload of bananas from the South. As it turns out, you can fit A LOT of bananas in the particular bag they employed.

We had raw bananas, smoothies with banana, banana bread, banana cake with banana cream frosting, banana on cereal, banana pudding... You get the idea (think Bubba Gump Shrimp, but with bananas). We couldn't give enough bananas away! For a couple who would have banana on cereal every morning in addition to one as a snack on most days, no one is more surprised than us that we got sick of eating them. The result was a month-long banana strike... and a loss of my auction privileges.

However, one of life's simple pleasures is homemade banana bread. The delicious smell is like a promise of the sweetness to come. Probably every household that contains a baker has its own recipe; I like to add raisins instead of nuts to ours, and swap some of the whole flour for oats and whole wheat flour. The result is still tender, but delightfully more wholesome.

Banana Bread a la Mike

1/2 c oats

1/2 c whole wheat flour

1 c all-purpose flour

1/2 c Splenda for Baking

1/2 c raisins

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp ginger

1/4 tsp cloves

1/4 c Egg Beaters

1/2 c shortening (or 1/4 c each shortening and applesauce)

3 medium-sized ripe bananas, mashed

1 tsp vanilla extract

Blend the dry ingredients. Mash the shortening and bananas together, then mix in EggBeater. Mix all ingredients together. Transfer either to a prepared bread pan or prepared muffin tin. Sprinkle the top with sugar for some sparkle. The bread should be baked at 350F for one hour, while the muffins should be baked at 400F for 20 minutes. Enjoy!

Sweet & Sour Meatballs

When I was growing up, my mom would let us choose our birthday meal, not just our birthday cake. I ALWAYS chose her amazing Sweet & Sour Meatballs. She served these flavorful meatballs with peas and fettucini alfredo. Are you drooling yet?

I tend to make several batches of meatballs at once and freeze them for future Spaghetti & Meatballs or Sweet & Sour Meatballs dinners. My meatball recipe is slightly modified from Mom's since I take advantage of Egg Beaters to lower the cholesterol of the recipe (and garlic powder rather than garlic salt).

Meatballs

1 lb lean ground beef

1/3 c seasoned Italian breadcrumbs

1/4 cup Egg Beaters

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp black pepper

splash of milk

Blend the meat, but don't overmix or the meatballs will taste tough. Form 1" meatballs and place on a baking dish. Bake at 500 degrees until browned, approximately 10 minutes. Use or freeze immediately.

Sweet & Sour Meatballs

1 batch of meatballs

1 jar La Choy Sweet & Sour Sauce

1 14oz can pineapple chunks

Warm the ingredients on the stovetop or in a Crock Pot. Tastes wonderful with mashed potatoes (or fetuccini alfredo). Serves 3-4.

Smashing Super Bowl Chili

Ok... Apologies in advance for not having a picture! It's a testament to how quickly this meal was eaten.

One of the really challenging culinary days for me is Super Bowl Sunday. All those nachos, wings, pizza, etc are delicious, but clearly not Weight Watcher friendly! Therefore, I carefully planned our menu this Super Bowl Sunday to include modified family favorites that have a healthier spin. That and watching portion sizes should make the weekly weigh-in as palatable as the food!

The chili was so good, my sweet husband asked me to make chili with this recipe from now on. It had a rich, satifying meatiness and just enough spicyness to make you feel like a super hero....

Super Bowl Chili
1 15.5oz can Brooks Hot Chili Beans
1 15.5oz can Brooks Mild Chili Beans
2 15.5oz cans diced tomatoes (with juice)
1 bell pepper, diced
1lb lean ground beef, browned
1 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 c small pasta shells, cooked al dente

Brown the beef, then "sweat" the peppers until tender. Add everythig to the Crock Pot except the pasta. Cook on Low for 8 hours. Add the pasta right before serving. Enjoy with corn bread!

Whole Grain Cranberry Cobbler

One of my favorite neighbor gifts to make at Christmastime is Cranberry Orange Bread. The red flecks are so festive and the whole house is filled with the aroma of citrus and cranberries. The bread recipe in our battered copy of the Better Home & Garden cookbook makes two very fluffy loaves. However, I overbought cranberries last Christmas.

So, I decided to make a dessert from the orphaned bag of cranberries. I didn't want to make an apple dessert with a few token cranberries, I wanted to make a cranberry dessert. Such recipes aren't very easy to find! There was one, however, on the blog My Husband Cooks. http://myhusbandcooks.wordpress.com/2006/11/22/dont-bogart-that-cranberry-cobbler/

My recipe is based on theirs, but I lowered the sugar and revamped the topping to be whole grain. The sweet/tart combination was so flavorful! We didn't have the cobbler with ice cream, but I imagine that would be over the top delicious.

By the way, I plan to buy a few extra bags of cranberries again next Christmas!

Whole Grain Cranberry Cobbler

Filling:

3 c fresh cranberries (the whole Ocean Spray Cranberries bag)

2 oranges (zest & juice)

1 c Splenda for Baking

1/2 c brown sugar

2 tbsp corn starch

1 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp all spice

1/2 tsp clove

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

Topping:

1/2 c oats

1/2 c Splenda for Baking

1/2 c whole wheat flour

1/2 stick Blue Bonnet Light margarine

In a large bowl, add the cranberries and the juice and zest of the oranges. Add the remaining filling ingredients and transfer to an 8 x 8 baking dish (or four ramekins). Bake for 30 min at 375F. Meanwhile, chop together the topping ingredients to get a crumbly mixture. WHen you remove the filling from the oven, top the cranberry mixture with the crumble topping and return to the oven. Return the ramekins or baking dish to the oven and cook at 425F for 20-25 min or until the topping has turned golden brown. Serves 4.