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Hello, my friends!  I have some very exciting news to share with you: I’ve made the switch to wordpress.org.  The news doesn’t end there though, I’ve given my blog a complete makeover, even a new name!  I’ve been wanting to take this step for a while now and am so excited to finally have done it!  Why the name change?  Well, I want to start sharing some of my DIY projects and thrift store find makeovers – I though this would be a great way to incorporate that.  I hope you like it!

Come check it out!  I’ll have something delicious there for you later this week!    Oh, and don’t forget to subscribe through the new site, as I will no longer be posting here at elisebakes!

http://paintchipsandfrosting.com

Facebook: Paint Chips & Frosting

Twitter: @AndFrosting

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/egothard

RSS: http://feeds.feedburner.com/PaintChipsAndFrosting

Email: info@paintchipsandfrosting.com

This quinoa and spinach pizza casserole was fabulous!  It was cheesy and flavorful, and the leftovers held up great in the fridge for reheating as weekday lunch!  It’s even compatible with children and picky eaters because the flavors of the tomato sauce and spices are so powerful.  This dish is a winner!

Spinach Pizza Quinoa Casserole

Yield: 9 servings / Prep Time: 15 minutes / Cook Time: 30 minutes

• 1 cup dry quinoa
• 16 oz tomato sauce
• 2 cups frozen spinach, thawed
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp basil
• 1 tsp parsley
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• optional: cheese for topping (I used shredded cheddar and slices of mozzarella)

1. Cook quinoa according to package directions.  While it is cooking, chop your vegetables and thaw your spinach.  Let the quinoa sit for five minutes while you combine the vegetables and seasoning.
2. Preheat oven  to 350.
3. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a medium bowl and mix to combine.  Add quinoa and mix again.  Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.  Pour into a 8×8 baking dish and cover with cheese.
4. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes covered, uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes until cheese is completely melted.

Lentil Soup with Mustard Greens:

Yield: 8-10 servings / Prep Time: 10 minutes / Cook Time: 45-60 minutes

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1 1/2 cup chopped carrots
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 3/4 cup dried lentils, rinsed
• 9 cups water or stock
• 4 cups mustard greens, stemmed and torn

1. Heat olive oil in your soup pot over medium-high heat.  Add onion and garlic and cook until onions are translucent (~5 minuties).
2. Add water and the remaining ingredients to the pot.
3. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low.
4. Simmer for 30-35 minutes, until lentils are tender.

Notes:  You can use stock/broth instead of water, I wanted a milder taste, so I stuck with water.  You can also reduce the water down to 7 cups if you like a heartier soup versus a brothy soup.  This recipe makes a lot of soup, but it freezes well, and can be kept up to two months in the freezer.  You can freeze it in an airtight tupperware, plastic bags, or mason jars.  Make sure that if you use a jar, you let it first cool in the fridge (if you cool glass too rapidly, it can break).

Country White Bread (yield 1 9×5 loaf, 2 8×3 loaves)

• 1 1/2 cup lukewarm water
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
• 2 Tbsp + 2 tsp oil
• 3 – 3 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 Tbsp salt

1. Dissolve sugar and yeast in water and let set for 10 minutes.
2. Add the oil, then 3 cups of flour, mix it a little, then add the salt.
3. Mix thoroughly and then knead until dough is smooth, elastic, and a tad sticky (6-10 minutes).  You can do this by hand or in a stand mixer with dough hook.
4. Cover the bowl with a dishtowel and let rise until doubled.  I placed mine in a warm oven with a bowl of water on the bottom rack and let it rise for about 1 hour.
5. Punch dough down and knead for another minute or so.  Divide it in half and form each half into a loaf.
6. Cover with a dishtowel and let it rise until the dough is about 1-2 inches above the top of the pan (about an hour for me).
7. Bake at 375 for 25 minutes.  Remove from pans and allow to cool on a wire rack.

My coffee machine is on the fritz.  Sorry, did I say on the fritz?  I meant broken.  It’s so irritating – I’ve only had the thing for 8 months!  I’ve adjusted by using my espresso machine and fixing myself lots of lattes!  …And by steeping a filter with coffee grounds in a cup of hot water like tea.

I made a batch of homemade vanilla coffee syrup to liven up the lattes I’ve been drinking.  It was pretty standard as far as vanilla coffee syrup goes, and it’s so much cheaper to make it yourself.  Next time I want to add honey and make honey vanilla syrup.  I think that it would be perfect with hot blackberry tea.  Naturally, I really want to whip up a batch of caramel syrup too – keep your eyes open, it’s bound to happen in the next few weeks!

Vanilla Coffee Syrup

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 tsp vanilla

1. Heat sugar and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved.  Reduce heat to low and let simmer for 10-15 minutes, just to thicken the syrup up a little bit.
2. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla (you can adjust this for different levels of flavor or substitute a different flavored extract).
3. Store in refrigerator in an airtight container.

My husband and I are fortunate enough to not pay for heat in our apartment building and it’s usually right around 74-76 without even turning the thermostat on (almost too warm – we have crack the window overnight).  With that heat, some days I crave an iced coffee despite the icy temperature outside.  I’ve just discovered the process of cold brewing coffee this year and I am in love with!  In summer, I used to brew a pot and stick it in the fridge for a couple hours to cool –  no more of that!  You can make a whole pitcher at once with this method and it’ll last you all week!  …Or maybe only a couple days if you drink coffee the way I do.

Cold Brewed Coffee

• 6 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups coffee grounds

1. In a pitcher, or any container large enough that can be covered, mix water and coffee grounds.  Mix or shake to ensure that all of the grounds have been submerged.  Let it sit for 8-12 hours – overnight works perfectly.
2. When ready, place a coffee filter into a funnel and put the funnel over the container you will be storing your cold brewed coffee in.
3. Pour the coffee, grounds and all, into the funnel and let the filter do its job.  Add more as it empties until all of your coffee is filtered!
4. Store in the refrigerator, the coffee will be good for up to two weeks.

This really is so simple to make, just butter a pan and turn it to medium heat.  Cut a hole in a slice of bread with a cookie cutter, glass, jar, or even tear it.  You can cook it sunny side up if you’d like, just brown the bread on one side for a couple minutes, then flip it, and crack an egg into it.  Cover and let cook until it is done.  I prefer cracking the egg into the bread right away, cooking it on one side for a couple minutes, flipping it, and cooking the other side.

French Toast: (serves 3-4)

• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk (or regular milk)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/8 tsp cinnamon
• 6 – 8 pieces of bread
• butter for greasing the pan

1. Mix eggs, almond milk. vanilla and cinnamon with a fork or whisk in a wide, shallow bowl.
2. Add a small amount of butter to a large frying pan and heat on medium-high heat.
3. Dip bread slices in egg mixture for at least 10 seconds on each side, then place on frying pan.  Cook until bottom is golden brown, flip and repeat.

Bananas Foster Sauce: (adapted from http://basil-albi.blogspot.com))

• 4 Tbsp butter
• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 maple syrup
• 1/8 tsp cinnamon
• pinch of nutmeg, allspice, and salt
• 2 bananas (slightly underripe), sliced

1. Melt butter over low heat.  Add brown sugar and stir until dissolved.
2. Add maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg. allspice and salt and cook for three minutes.
3. Bring it to a simmer, add the bananas and cook covered for five minutes.