I don’t do mix cakes anymore (I like to be able to pronounce what I put in my kids’ bodies), and I don’t think the Snackin’ Cakes are made anymore.

So I decided to experiment and come up with my own version.

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Snackin’ Cake

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Snack Cake

1 1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/3 cup  all purpose flour
1 teaspoon  baking powder
1/2 teaspoon  salt
1 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cup water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 teaspoon white vinegar
2/3 cup  semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350°.

In an ungreased 8×8″ square baking pan, mix the flours, baking powder, salt and brown sugar with a fork. Add the water, oil, and vinegar and mix well with the fork. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top of the batter.

Bake for 35-40 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean (well, clean of batter – it may get some melted chocolate chip on it!)  Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

This doesn’t taste just like the cake I remember, and you obviously have to add more than water, but like the cakes I was remembering, it’s mixed right in the pan with a fork, and it’s super moist and delicious.This was a huge success.

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Snackin' Cake slice

The snack cake was so good, it was almost addicting. My kids are already asking when I’m going to make it again. (And since the whole cake was made from pantry ingredients, it was super affordable and I’ll be able to make it again anytime.)

This post is linked to Tasty Tuesday and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Seven-Layer Dip

Seven-layer dip - so pretty and festive!

2 cans refried beans
1/2 cup salsa
1 15-oz. container of sour cream
1 cup shredded cheese (I used a blend of cheddar, jack, and asiago)
1 small can sliced black olives

For pico de gallo:
2 tomatoes, diced
2 shallots, diced
1 jalapeno, seeds and membrane removed, and diced
Juice of half a lemon or a lime
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

For guacamole:
2 ripe avocados

Empty the cans of refried beans into a 9×13″ pan and spread evenly. Add the salsa. and then the sour cream, spreading each evenly.  Mix the pico de gallo ingredients together in a medium bowl (please use gloves when dicing the jalapeno). In another medium bowl, mash the avocado and add 1/3 of the pico de gallo to make guacamole. Spread the guacamole over the sour cream in the pan, and then the cheese. Sprinkle the remaining pico de gallo and the olives over the cheese. Refrigerate, covered, until ready to serve. Serve with corn tortilla chips.

Optional: You can also add a layer of seasoned ground beef, but I like to have at least one item at a party for vegetarians. (I usually have something for vegans, too, but I didn’t do that this time.)

We still have more than half a pan in the fridge. I foresee a lot of dip eating going on around here in the next couple of days!

So for Sunday dinner, we had seven-layer dip and empanadas. I didn’t like how the chorizo empanadas came out (the filling was delicious, but the dough I used was too dry and flavorless), so I won’t share that recipe yet – but I’ll be trying them again soon.

I will share the recipes for the seven-layer dip and the dessert empanadas with banana-cinnamon filling. I’ll share the empanadas today, and the dip tomorrow.

Menu Plan

Dinners
Sunday: Seven-layer dip and banana-cinnamon empanadas (recipe below)
Monday: Dahl (recipe coming)
Tuesday: Grilled cheese and ham
Wednesday: Spaghetti with Italian sausage
Thursday: “Fend for yourself”
Friday: Breakfast for dinner
Saturday: The kids will be at their dad’s, and I’ll figure something out on the fly

Lunches: Leftovers, quesadillas, sandwiches

Breakfast: Oatmeal with fruit, cold cereal, farina, cinnamon rolls, eggs and toast

Banana-Cinnamon Dessert Empanadas

Banana and Cinnamon Dessert Empanadas

4 medium bananas
Juice from 1/2 a lemon
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 cup brown sugar
5 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter
1/8 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup ice water
Powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 425°.

Chop up the bananas. (I chopped them into thin slices and then cut the stack of banana slices into quarters.) Immediately squeeze the lemon over the banana pieces and toss to coat. Add the cinnamon and brown sugar and stir gently. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix the flour, shortening, and butter together with two knives or a pastry blender, until it is evenly blended and the clumps are the size of peas.  Stir in the yogurt and the water, and mix just enough to form a cohesive dough.

Divide the dough in 4 pieces and roll out one piece to about 1/8″ thick and cut into 3½ – 4″circles. I don’t have a larger cutter and I didn’t want to spend that much time cutting around a dessert plate with a knife, so I rolled the dough a little thicker and used my largest biscuit cutter, and then smooshed them flatter (and larger diameter) with my fingers.

Lay the circles out on a cookie sheet, and put a very small amount (about a teaspoon) of the filling in each circle.

Filling an empanada

Fold over the circles and pinch the edges together. Fold them again, and seal with the tines of a fork. Make sure they are well-sealed.

Bake for 30 minutes, until golden.  Let cool completely and dust with powdered sugar.

Makes about 36 empanadas.

Linked to: Menu Plan Monday

Curried Cauliflower

Curried Cauliflower

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt (divided)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
Pinch of cayenne
1 head of cauliflower, cored and cut into bite-size pieces
1 15-oz. can coconut milk
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped (plus some sprigs for garnishing)
1/2 cup golden raisins (optional)
1 cup frozen peas (optional)

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and half the salt, and cook until golden, about 8-10 minutes. Add the rest of the salt and the spices and stir for a minute, and then add the cauliflower, coconut milk, and broth. Cook uncovered until the cauliflower is tender, about 15 minutes. Increase the heat and reduce the sauce until it coats the cauliflower. Stir in the cilantro. Stir in the raisins and peas, if using, and let heat through. Garnish with sprigs of cilantro.

We skipped the raisins and peas because… well, because we really dislike raisins. And I forgot to buy peas.

This actually makes a good meatless dinner, as well as a side dish. And it’s yummy, and inexpensive – and wayyyy less expensive than eating out. I love that I can introduce my kids to a lot of different cuisines, especially since two of them want to be chefs.

This post is linked to:

Foodie Friday

Food on Fridays

Grocery Cart Challenge

Friday Favorites

Frugal Friday

Naan Recipe

Naan (Indian Flat Bread)

2½ tablespoons instant yeast*
1 cup warm water
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
2 teaspoons salt
4½ cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, melted

In your mixer’s bowl, mix everything but the butter and then knead with the dough hook for 5 minutes (or knead by hand for 8 minutes). Put the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with a towel, and set in a warm place to rise until doubled in volume (about 45 minutes to an hour).

Punch down the dough and form into golf-ball sized balls. Place on a cookie sheet and cover with a towel, and let rise until doubled (about half an hour).

Preheat a large skillet to medium heat. Lightly oil the skillet (I used nonstick spray).

Just before cooking each ball, flatten it out to a very thin disk. You can use a rolling pin or your hands, but the thinner it is, the bubblier it will be. Put the dough disks in the skillet (I could get three at a time). As the bottom browns (just 2 minutes or so), brush the tops with the melted butter. Turn and brown on the other side. You only want the raised parts brown – let the rest stay white.

Wrap the naan in aluminum foil to stay warm until dinner.

* If you are using active dry yeast or rapid rise yeast, mix the warm water, sugar and yeast together first and let it sit about 10 minutes, until it’s foamy and puffy. Also, that’s about a packet.

I would have loved to try this and the chicken on the grill – but I don’t have one! I hope to remedy that this summer.

For dessert, I heated up some butter in a frying pan, briefly warmed the naan in the butter, and sprinkled it with cinnamon sugar. YUM!

Linked to: Ultimate Recipe Swap – go check it out for more recipes using flour!

Tonight, I’ll post the chicken, and post the other recipes over the next few days.

Tandoori Chicken Recipe

Tandoori Chicken

4 large chicken breasts
Juice of one lemon
1 teaspoon salt
1½ cups plain yogurt
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
2 teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons chopped cilantro

Make three deep cuts into the chicken breasts on one side, and turn them over and make three deep cuts on the other side, going the other direction.

Sprinkle the chicken with the lemon juice and the salt. Put the chicken into a gallon-size zip-top baggie and let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes, while you mix the marinade.

Mix yogurt, onion, garlic, ginger, garam masala, cayenne, and turmeric. Put the marinade in the bag with the chicken, seal the bag, and mush it around so that every surface of the chicken is coated in the marinade. Refrigerate for 6 to 24 hours. Periodically turn the bag, if you can.

Heat the oven to 425°. Fit a cookie sheet or roasting pan with a rack and position the chicken breasts on top, with room between them. If any marinade got rubbed off, touch it up with leftover marinade from the bag.

Roast for 30 minutes, and then turn the chicken breasts over and roast for an additional 20 minutes. You should get a little bit of char on them. Turn the oven off and don’t open the door for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and top with the cilantro.

I can’t wait to have this again – the chicken was so tender and full of flavor. We had some monster-sized chicken breasts (making me wonder what kind of chicken they came from!), so you may need to cook it for a little less time. Or use thighs (even less expensive), and cook it for only 15 minutes after turning them.

Our Fruit Bowl

You see, every time I buy a nice fruit bowl to put out on our kitchen island, I end up snagging it for a mixing bowl. And then I end up with no place to put the fruit – which apparently really annoys my daughter!

Recently I was in a TJ Maxx store, and saw this lovely fruit bowl. I love that it’s so whimsical and pretty – and there’s no way it’d function as a fruit bowl, so its job description is safe from me!

Low-Calorie, Low-Fat Banana Muffins Recipe

Low-Fat, Low-Cal Banana Muffins

3/4 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cups flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4  tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 cup banana, mashed
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
nonstick cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 350°.

In a medium bowl, stir together flours, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.

Mash the banana in a large bowl. Add the egg, sugar, and applesauce. Mix well. Stir flour mixture into banana mixture just until everything is moistened.

Spray a muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray. Divide the batter evenly between 12 muffin cups and bake for 18 to 22 minutes or until toothpick inserted near middle comes out clean.

Cool the muffins in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and cool thoroughly on a wire rack.

The result: you’d never know that these have only 73 calories per muffin, and less than a gram of fat. They are moist and delicious and very banana-y. I will be making these a lot more often!

This post is linked to Tasty Tuesday and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Monday: Pan-seared cod, roasted asparagus, and rice

Tuesday: Chicken tandoori. Ish. (New recipe)

Wednesday: Spaghetti w/ Italian sausage

Thursday: Fend for yourself

Friday: Grilled cheese and ham sandwiches and baked beans

Saturday: Tuna with capers and white wine sauce

Sunday: Roast chicken, roast potatoes and green beans

Lunches:

Quesadillas, leftovers, sandwiches.

Breakfasts:

Oatmeal with fruit, farina, cold cereal, banana bread

Linked to: Menu Plan Monday

Sometimes, my fifteen-year old and I will have this for lunch, too (the boys aren’t very fond of potatoes). I will give the recipe for two large servings. It doubles just fine.

Fried Potatoes with Cilantro and Tomatoes

Fried Potatoes and Eggs with Tomatoes and Cilantro

2 russet potatoes, scrubbed or peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1 large tomato, chopped
2 or 3 sprigs of cilantro, chopped

Chop the potatoes into 1/2″ cubes. Put them in a microwave-safe dish, cover with cling wrap, and microwave on high for 5 minutes.

Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat until the butter is melted and the oil shimmers. Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. With a slotted spoon, remove the garlic and onion to another dish.

Add the potatoes to the pan and spread them out in an even layer. Let them sit for about 3 minutes, or until browned. Add the salt, pepper, and chili powder, and stir. Let sit for another 2 minutes and then add the garlic and onions. Stir to heat through, and then put on plates.

Top the potatoes with the tomato and then the cilantro.

I like this served with over-medium eggs that were cooked in the same pan. Mmmm…

Linked to:

Foodie Friday

Food on Fridays

Grocery Cart Challenge