Browned Butter Banana Waffles

Brown Butter Banana Waffles 

I can't stand the taste of water. I drink at least 8 glasses a day, but it isn't because I love the flavor, I don't. My husband and two boys don't seem to mind it, but I have to drink my water hot and quickly. I also can't stand ice. I always order drinks without ice and I prefer my pop and iced tea at room temperature. I think a large part of it has to do with the fact that I am very small boned and get cold easily. While everyone else is overheated, I am the one with a sweater on in the middle of the summer. My husband teases me that I never wear a tank top without a cardigan, my shoulders freeze. Whatever the reason, I have strange water habits that everyone in my family always comments upon. I always argue that by not getting ice I receive more drink for my money.

Today my youngest was tired and grumpy. He decided that he would only eat bananas for breakfast. Don't ask me why, he was in a mood. So for breakfast this morning I tried a new recipe for Brown Butter Banana Waffles.

My boys all dressed up! 

This recip has 13 ingredients. It takes 30 minutes of total time, 20 minutes of which is active and makes 6 servings. I did make a few changes to the original recipe. I'm not sure if I had very large bananas, or if the type of waffle maker that I have needed thicker batter, but the batter as stated in the recipe was too thin. So after the first waffle was done, I added an additional cup of all-purpose flour. My bananas were on the large side so that have been why my batter was a little thin without the additional flour added. I also added a small amount of almond butter to the batter (about 2 tablespoons) and more on top of the the finished waffles along with sliced bananas.

My youngest son really liked the banana flavor on these waffles. If you have never browned butter, it needs to be fully brown throughout the pan. The recipe makes it seem that just the edges should be browned, but true browned butter is brown throughout with little bits of brown on the bottom of the skillet. You really want the butter to be fully browned for the flavor to come through in the waffles and have a nice nutty taste. Topped with bananas and almond butter these waffles turned out beautifully and were a great breakfast for a growing 4 year old.

For the recipe go to Brown Butter Banana Waffles. 

Browned Butter Banana Waffles

Recipe Type: Main

Summary:

A great combination of browned butter, bananas and almond butter. Re-heat well in the toaster making them great for a quick weekday breakfast!

Preparation Time: 0h, 20m

Cooking Time: 0h, 10m

Total Time: 0h, 30m

Yield: Serves 6

Lemon Poppy Seed Buttermilk Pancakes

Gluten Free Lemon Poppy Seed Buttermilk Pancakes 

My youngest was at my in-law's house for the last week. He loves going up and spending time with his grandparents and they love having him. What I don't love is how long it takes him to re-adjust. Today he has been whiny, had tantrums and repeated how nannan and papa let him do anything he wants. Mommy is the bad guy because he isn't allowed to have the 5th piece of candy he wants. Growing up my mother always joked that she couldn't wait until she was a grandmother because then she could spoil me without having to deal with the day to day discipline. When I started to act up she could just send me home. I never really understood what she was talking about until I had my own kids. Now my mother-in-law and I laugh about how we are good cop/bad cop. He knows exactly what he can get away with at both houses.  I'm hoping that he goes to sleep early and is back to normal soon. He has always been dependent on having a schedule, I think it might be because he is the baby of the family. We already had a routine in place when he was born and he fell right into it. It's funny how birth order can affect personality. In order to brighten up my son's mood today I tried a new recipe for Lemon-Poppy Seed Buttermilk Pancakes from the November 2013 issue of Food and Wine Magazine.

This recipe has 13 ingredients. It takes 30 minutes of total time, all of which is active and makes 15 3-inch pancakes. I did make a few changes to the original recipe. First I already had gluten free all-purpose flour in my cupboard. I had made a huge batch a couple of months back and I didn't see the point in making a new batch with the recipe in the magazine. I used my indoor electric griddle. A griddle is the best way to have your pancakes come out perfectly cooked with a nice brown color. I did end up making my pancakes a little bigger than the recipe. My pancakes spread out a little more than the magazine photo, so I ended up with pancakes larger than the recipe states.

My youngest loved the poppy seeds in this recipe. I wasn't sure if he would try the pancakes since he had only had poppy seeds a few times previously. It turns out he thought they looked liked Angry Birds pancakes (I have no idea why) so he ate almost half the batch throughout the course of the day. They were definitely a hit. I had my batch with maple syrup, but my youngest insisted on his just having butter. Either way, they were a nice and different way to start the day. If you do not eat gluten free this recipe would work with any type of baking mix (such as Bisquick) or regular all-purpose flour. You might need to adjust the amount of baking soda and baking powder since gluten free recipes rely on them more than wheat flour recipes.

I don't have any Huntington pictures in my post today. I finally ran out of all the ones I took this summer. I'm hoping to have some fall pics up on the blog later this week!

For the recipe go to Lemon Poppy Seed Buttermilk Pancakes.

Lemon Poppyseed Buttermilk Pancakes

Recipe Type: Breakfast

Summary:

A light gluten free Lemon poppy seed pancake recipe. Uses both lemon zest and fresh lemon juice and has a nice crunch from the poppy seeds.

Preparation Time: 0h, 30m

Total Time: 0h, 30m

Yield: Serves 8

Slow Cooker Moroccan Lamb Stew

Slow Cooker Moroccan Lamb Stew

The temperature in my area dropped to the 40's today. I froze most of the day. I am not a cold weather person. While I love fall for the leaves turning colors, the baking etc I hate when the weather starts to turn towards winter. Growing up in Seattle it stayed mild most of the year. While it did get colder in the winter, it was no where near as cold as it gets here. When it hits into the single digits going to the bus stop with my oldest is just torture. Winter also brings about pneumonia and strep throat, just to name a few of the things that I have been fortunate enough to have the last two years (with hospital stays). I don't think my body was built for winter. My husband's is always turning the heat down since he roasts while I literally shake from being cold. I blame genetics, my dad is rail thin and freezes all winter also. Thanks dad.

One thing that I do love about colder weather is stew. There is something incredibly comforting about sitting down at the table with a giant bowl of steaming stew and a crusty loaf of bread. This week I tried a new recipe for Slow Cooker Moroccan Lamb Stew.

Cabell County Courthouse Huntington, WV

This recipe has 16 ingredients. It takes 8 hours and 30 minutes of total time, 30 minutes of which is active and makes 8-10 servings. I made a number of changes to the original recipe. My local grocery stores refuse to stock currants, so I substituted equal amounts of chopped raisins and dried apricots. I could not find my turmeric (sometimes spices hide in my cupboards or simply somehow disappear) so I left it out entirely. Since couscous is not gluten free I served the stew over white rice. While I know brown rice is better health wise, I just can't eat it all the time. When you can't eat gluten free brown rice can become a little bit monotonous so I allow myself white rice when I want it. Finally, as I have talked about before I make my own chicken stock. This way I can control the amount of salt in the recipe and it tastes so much better! I allowed the stew to cook on high for 6 hours and served it with homemade Irish soda bread.

Ritter Park Rose Garden Steps Huntington, WV

Lamb stew is normally a hit in my household and this was no exception. The lamb cooked perfectly and the spices blended well. I did add cinnamon to the crock-pot along with the other spices listed in the recipe. I love the flavor of cinnamon with lamb and it was a nice addition. I used the same amount of cinnamon as the allspice, which worked out perfectly. I would recommend making this addition. Over rice this stew was delicious. It also re-heated well the next day served alone in a bowl with crusty bread. 

For the recipe go to Slow Cooker Moroccan Lamb Stew. 

The Huntington photos from today are from this summer. I wish it was that pretty today!! I miss the warm blue skies.

Slow Cooker Moroccan Lamb Stew

Recipe Type: Main

Summary:

A flavorful slowcooker recipe for Moroccan Lamb Stew. Great with a loaf of crusty bread during the fall and winter!

Preparation Time: 0h, 30m

Cooking Time: 8h, 0m

Total Time: 8h, 30m

Yield: Serves 8

Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies

Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies

My husband hates cake and most sweets. I love any type of chocolate, and have eaten an entire cake by myself on more than one occasion. He likes salt, I can barely stand it in most dishes. We are opposites snack and food wise. When we got married he could care less about the cake. He nodded his head and pretended to be listening, but in the end I chose everything myself. He did have a ton of opinions on the meat try at the buffet at our reception, I could have cared less. Sometimes I have to laugh at how different our food tastes our. When we went to Columbus for a job interview when we were in our mid twenties we went to a restaurant. I ordered mini beer battered corn dogs, he ordered a sashimi lettuce wrap plate. The waitress gave me his and him mine. Nope, I love fried fattening foods and he likes salad. He likes savory, I like sweet. One of my husband's new favorite flavors is salted caramel. He has found caramel sauce, ice cream, candy, you name it, if it comes in a salted caramel flavor he will eat it. So to indulge my family's love of salted caramel I decided to use the last of the packaged caramels I had from my sponsored parties a couple of weeks back and make Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies.

Ruben Pizza from Backyard Pizza Huntington, WV

This recipe has 13 ingredients. It takes 45 minutes of total time, 15 minutes of which is active and makes 16 cookie bars. I did make numerous changes to the original recipe. First I used 2 1/4 cups of flour. I have never owned a 1/8 cup measure and didn't want to deal with a half of a 1/4. Most of the time I weigh my cookie ingredients, I did not for this recipe. I did not use heavy cream with the caramels. Instead I used 2 percent milk. I rarely have cream in the house and see no reason to buy a container for only 3 tablespoons. I heated the baking caramels and milk on the stove until they were fully melted and then followed the remainder of the recipe. When the cookies were done I let them cool for 30 minutes, then for an hour in the fridge. They were still hard to work with so I cut them, took them out of the pan and placed them in the freezer. This allowed the bars to be less gooey.

Last Heirloom Tomato of the Season (It freezes tomorrow night!)

I would make a few changes to this recipe. First, do not make it in a 9 inch pan. The cookies came out too high and had to be cut very small so the taste wasn't over whelming. I would suggest using a 13 by 9 inch pan. This way the cookies would be nice and thin, while still having the great salted caramel taste. I would also suggest that if you use baking caramel like I did to let them set in the freezer, the cookies were great after they had set in the freezer for about an hour. Overall, these cookies had a nice sweet/salty combination according to my kids and husband. I think with the few changes I suggested the cookies would be perfect and nice for a party since salted caramel is very in in the foodie community right now. Great for Thanksgiving or Christmas!

For the recipe go to Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies.

Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies

Recipe Type: Dessert

Summary:

A nice combination of salty and sweet, these Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies would be perfect for a party or to enjoy all by yourself!

Preparation Time: 0h, 15m

Cooking Time: 0h, 30m

Total Time: 0h, 45m

Yield: Serves 16

Caramel Pecan Sticky Buns

Caramel Pecan Sticky Buns

I love my youngest son. We went to the mall a couple of weeks back and my in-laws bought my sons new teddy bears. My oldest named his stuffed animal Mr. Fluffy (it is a cat), my youngest named his teddy bear Steve. That's right Steve. There is a story that makes it a little more logical. My two kids are currently obsessed with Minecraft and one of the characters name is Steve. However, Steve the teddy bear also has a definite back story and personality. My youngest has created a whole story about where Steve came from, what he's afraid of and he even draws pictures for Steve so he doesn't get lonely. When I asked him if Steve got lonely he told me "of course not, he's a teddy bear". A teddy bear named Steve with a back story. I wish that I had half the imagination and simple hilarity of a 4-year-old, I think all adults could use a little more of it.

Today's recipe came about from the groans of my oldest having to eat gluten free bread. While I have to eat gluten free, my kids luckily have not inherited any of my problems. Most of the time they are great about eating gluten free foods, but every once in a while they rebel. This was one of those weeks. So I promised that I would bake my kids something sweet for breakfast made with wheat flour (I wear gloves and use separate bowls etc - I'm lucky that inhaling the flour does not bother me as long as I'm careful). I decided on a recipe for Caramel Pecan Sticky Buns from the Taste of Home website.

Ritter Park Rose Garden Fountain

This recipe has 13 ingredients. It takes 3 hours of total time, 30 minutes of which is active and makes 12 servings. I did make a few changes to the original recipe. First, I was out of pecans so I made half the batch with walnuts and half without. Second, I had caramels leftover from a sponsored party so instead of making the caramel sauce I melted 14 caramels and 1/4 cup of 2 percent milk and poured it into the pan. Since the caramels harden a little more than cream and brown sugar I heated the buns in the microwave for 10 seconds before serving the next day. The dough rose beautifully and it was very easy to work with.

Mushroom at Rotary Park Huntington, WV

These sticky buns were very popular with my two boys. My mother-in-law tried one when they were a couple of days old and she said that they were still very good reheated in the microwave. The dough was very easy to work with and rose even though my kitchen was on the cooler side. They had risen far above the top of the pan after an hour rise and made perfect large buns. Definitely a recipe I would use again with pecans, almonds, or hazelnuts.

For the recipe go to Caramel Pecan Sticky Buns.

Caramel Pecan Sticky Buns

Recipe Type: Breakfast

Summary:

A delicious pecan sticky bun recipe using wrapped caramels. The dough is easy to work with and rises easily.

Preparation Time: 2h, 30m

Cooking Time: 0h, 30m

Total Time: 3h, 0m

Yield: Serves 12

Fish with Tahini Sauce

Fish with Tahini

My high-school calculus teachers bribed us with candy bars. Every time we passed a test we were rewarded with a Butterfinger. I took calculus when I was a junior in high-school and was the youngest person in the class. Additionally my school didn't offer the class so I had to walk across the street to the much bigger high-school where I knew no one and had to have the principal walk me to class for the first two weeks. There are many things that I don't remember from high-school, but I remember those candy bars. They made a less than ideal experience a little less stressful.

Fast forward to this week. My oldest son had his first report card for second grade. He is very smart, but hates doing all the worksheets. So his grades for organization and completing tasks weren't so great. He seems to have the same problems that my husband and I had in school, we tested off the charts, but didn't work as hard as our teachers expected. In high-school I graduated first in my class, but got c's for effort. Apparently I was supposed to be working twice as hard for the same grade, a theory that never made sense to me. So I'm using bribes for my son. Yep, I'm that parent. It worked with me all the way through high-school and I ended up doing very well in college and graduate school. We have a new chart with rewards and last week was a complete change around. He took his reading tests, he turned in his work and he sat and did his work book without complaints. So the bribes will continue until he is able to use his own incentives to complete his work (which is how I did very well in college and to this day to finish the dishes etc.).

Today's recipe came about from having way too much tahini in my cupboard. My husband's godmother is Lebanese and buys us huge vats of tahini. I use it a lot, but the huge container was begging for something other than my usual recipe rotation. So I tried a new recipe for Fish with Tahini Sauce.

Rotary Park Huntington, WV

This recipe has 7 ingredients. It takes 45 minutes of total time, 5 minutes of which is active and makes 6 servings. I did make a few changes to the original recipe. First, since I could only find farm raised Tilapia I substituted wild caught Mahi Mahi. Having worked in the fisheries dept as an undergrad you really want to buy wild caught fish (and know the country of origin where the fish is caught). Plus I love Mahi Mahi, it's one of my favorite types of fish. The only other change I made was to double the sauce since my fillets were on the small side and I had a number of pieces to cover. I followed the remainder of the recipe as written.

Rotary Park Huntington, WV

My husband and I loved this recipe. The fish cooked perfectly and the tahini sauce was delicious. If you aren't a fan of Mahi Mahi or Talipia the recipe would also work well with cod or any other flaky white fish. You could also caramelize the onions first and then add them to the top of the fish. This would work especially well if you aren't a fan of crispy onions.

For the recipe go to Fish with Tahini Sauce.

Fish with Tahini

Recipe Type: Main

Summary:

An easy recipe for oven cooked fish with a delicious tahini sauce. Simple and a great way to add fish to your diet!

Preparation Time: 0h, 5m

Cooking Time: 0h, 40m

Total Time: 0h, 45m

Yield: Serves 6

Curried Lentil and Rice Loaves from Martha Stewart

Curried Lentil and Rice Loaves

Today reminded me that I'm not in my 20's anymore. Since my oldest had the day off school I thought it would be a good day to paint the ceiling in our dining room. The last time I had painted a ceiling was 7 years ago when I was in my late 20's. This evening I am sore, very sore. What was relatively painless in my 20's is an entirely different story in my middle 30's. I'm positive tomorrow is going to be a day for painkillers and my neck and back are not going to be happy. It's days like today that remind me that I have gotten older. On a daily basis I tend to forget my age, but when a task that was easy 10 years ago takes twice as long and makes me feel twice as bad I remember that I'm not the same early 20 year old I was before kids. I also remind myself that that's okay. I might take a little longer and feel a little more sore, but I'm also smart enough to know how to do something right the first time due to the wisdom I have gained with age. I would much rather be where I am now, being in my 20's was confusing and tiring. In my 30's I am older, wiser, and happier. I know who I am and can stand up for myself with no qualms. My younger self was quick to judge, talked first, thought later and could be more than a little selfish. My 30 year old self is pretty great, I listen first, talk later, look at most situations from all angles and have the wisdom to know how to deal with most situations. So tomorrow as I take a few aspirin with my morning coffee I will smile knowing that even though I am older, I am also only getting better with age. Now on to the recipe! Tonight I tried a new recipe for Curried Lentil and Rice Loaves from the Martha Stewart website.

Cabell Huntington Hospital Huntington, WV

This recipe has 12 ingredients. It takes 1 hour 50 minutes of total time, 25 minutes of which is active and makes 1 large loaf or 3 mini loaves. I did make a number of changes to the original recipe. First I was out of curry powder. So instead I used a mixture of the spices I already had on hand to make homemade curry powder. I love making my own spice blends and they are oftentimes cheaper than the pre-made varieties. For the rice I used arborio and homemade black beans instead of canned. Make sure to let the loaf sit after cooking in order that the loaf doesn't fall apart when sliced.

Harris Riverfront Park Huntington, WV

My husband isn't a big fan of meatless meals. He did however, like this recipe. It had the right amount of salt and I added cayenne to my curry powder so the loaf had a nice amount of heat. Finding vegetarian recipes that my family will actually eat can be really hard. This recipe was nice since everyone in my family ate it without complaints.

For the recipe go to Curried Lentil and Rice Loaves.

Curried Lentil and Rice Loaves

Recipe Type: Main

Summary:

A vegetarian recipe for Curried Lentil and Rice Loaves. Full of lentils, black beans and curry powder.

Preparation Time: 0h, 25m

Cooking Time: 1h, 0m

Total Time: 1h, 50m

Yield: Serves 8

IHOP Pumpkin Pancakes

IHOP Pumpkin Pancakes

 
My youngest tried to run into traffic yesterday. It scared me half to death. He always walks out to the mailbox with me in the afternoon and yesterday he decided to run off down the street. In two seconds he was gone and I was running like a madwoman after him. I grabbed him right before he stepped off the curb. Then he was mad the rest of the afternoon since he received a long time out. As I was on the phone with my dad last night he volunteered to talk to my youngest. I turned him down. My dad is the sweetest person in the world, except he would tell me the scariest stories to get me not to do things growing up. In order to get me not to run into the street he told me what happened to our neighbor's cat. I was 5 and I don't think I ever tried to run into the street again. He also had a story with a clown and is one of the major reasons I hate the circus. I don't remember what the lesson was about, but I'm positive I never did the behavior again. They were very effective though and I never did the behaviors again. When I pointed this out to him on the phone, he laughed and told me that he learned from grandmother. I believe him since my grandmother had a look that could turn your blood cold. Whatever you did you would never do again. Ever. I think I need to learn these skills with my youngest. He is the opposite of his older brother and once every couple of weeks does something to give me a panic attack. I think it's going to be a very long 14 years until college. Earlier in the week before the traffic incident I made IHOP Pumpkin Pancakes for my family for breakfast.

Ritter Park Huntington, WV

This recipe has 11 ingredients. It takes 20 minutes of total time, all of which is active and makes 4 servings. I did make a few changes to the original recipe. First I was out of eggs so I followed the recipe with the eggs omitted. I increased the amount of pumpkin to 2/3 cup and the oil to a little under a 1/4 cup. Pancakes always turn out best for me using my griddle and that was the method I used for this recipe. They came out nicely browned and perfectly cooked.

Waterfront Huntington, WV

My kids ate these pancakes for breakfast and loved them. They had a great smell and my kids liked them with just a little bit of butter. My favorite part was that they were easy to wrap in a paper towel with a little bit of butter and walk to the bus. They were definitely easy to transport since they didn't need maple syrup. I would suggest doubling the recipe if you have big eaters. I had to make another batch in order for my whole family to have enough.

For the recipe go to IHOP Pumpkin Pancakes.

Pumpkin Spiced Pecans from Southern Living

Pumpkin Spiced Pecans

Before I had kids I never lost anything. Now it seems that every time I turn around something disappears in my house. This evening it was a 30 dollar library book. I have looked everywhere and can't find it. While in most people's houses it could be hiding behind a bookcase etc. Not in my house. I thrive on organization and could tell you exactly where everything is, everything except the library book. During the book search my husband did find an old iPhone under the seat of our car. We bought it last January used. It had 15,000 miles on it and was a rental car. I have cleaned that car top to bottom every week, but apparently the phone was stuck right up next to the under part of the seat. So my husband got to make a man's day by finding his email on the phone and telling him that his long lost phone was found. I still can't find the library book, but I'm hoping by my husband helping someone else find something lost that the universe can see fit for me to find the lost book. If not at least the day ended up with a good deed, even if it does remind me that I can't seem to find anything even if I have cleaned the same spot for almost a year. I also end the day knowing that I married a man that is sweet enough to spend two hours tracking down someone to return their lost phone. All in all the day is ending on a good note. My food posts have been a little sparse the last couple of weeks due to offline life. I'm hoping to get back into the blogging grove soon. This week I tried a new recipe for Pumpkin Spiced Pecans from the September 2013 issue of Southern Living.

Harris Riverfront Park Huntington, WV

This recipe has 6 ingredients. It takes 55 minutes of total time, 5 minutes of which is active and makes 1 1/2 cups of nuts. I did make a few changes to the original recipe. First instead of apple pie spice I used pumpkin pie spice. I didn't want to have to buy a spice that I don't use, so I substituted the pumpkin pie spice that I already had. I did not add the ground red pepper since my two boys aren't big fans. Make sure to stir the pecans frequently or they will burn. Let them sit for at least 10 minutes after they are done cooking to let them get fully crunchy.

View from Harris Riverfront Park, Huntington, WV

These pecans turned out great. My whole family enjoyed them and they were the perfect blend of crunchy and spiced. I would suggest at least doubling the recipe, the 1 1/2 cups didn't last long at all. These would be a nice party snack or just a fall treat.

For the recipe go to Pumpkin Spiced Pecans.

Gluten Free Banana Bread from Betty Crocker

Gluten Free Banana Bread

My oldest apparently has a problem with talking too much. I think I have myself to blame for this quality. This year they have started a new behavior rewards program at his school and he keeps getting points taken off for talking too much. It's pretty much my fault. I talk a ton. When my husband stops listening I just keep ranting about whatever is annoying me at the moment. It could be politics, a news story or something concerning the kids. My husband has learned just to let me rant until I get tired of talking. Sometimes it lasts a few minutes, sometimes I literally can go on for 20 minutes. My oldest seems to have learned the same talent for talking. He got in trouble on Friday for talking on and on about rocks and minerals. Last time he got in trouble he was talking about how many moons each planet has. It does make me feel slightly better that he rants about things that he reads about or a documentary that he watched. He isn't just babbling about an annoying celebrity or whatnot. I think he is destined to be full of knowledge which he feels the need to tell anyone that's listening. It's obviously genetic since my mother would talk to people in the grocery store about whatever historical non-fiction book she was currently reading. Looking back and seeing that I learned this habit from my mother and passed it on to my son makes me smile. She might be gone, but she is definitely living on through my kids. It's funny how strongly our roles as mothers influence our kids. Now that I have babbled on for an entire paragraph, lets get to the recipe. This week I tried a new recipe for Gluten Free Banana Bread from the Betty Crocker website.

Ritter Park Huntington, WV

This recipe has 10 ingredients. It takes 2 hours 15 minutes of total time, 15 minutes of which is active and makes 12 servings. I did make a few changes to the original recipe. First, I don't like walnuts in my banana bread. I know some people do, but I'm not one of them. I like my banana bread full of banana flavor and nutless. For this reason I left out the walnuts in this recipe. If you haven't baked gluten free before texture and consistency is a big factor. I normally follow directions in a recipe and then adjust. With this recipe I added the amount of flour stated and then added a little more until the batter looked correct. This type of adjustment is very normal when baking gluten free.

Harris Riverfront Park Huntington, WV

Gluten free baking can be very hit or miss. A finished recipe can look delicious, but not taste as great. This recipe surprised me. It not only looked great, but it had none of the texture issues that so many gluten free baked goods do. No grittiness, no lack of sweetness. I would definitely make this recipe again and I look forward to using their new gluten free flour mix in the future.

For the recipe go to Gluten Free Banana Bread.

Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew From All You Magazine

Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew

My husband and I rarely agree on what to watch. We haven't been to a movie in the theater for 8 years. Partly because we are both too cheap and mostly due to the fact that we hate most movies and can't agree on the few that either of us would see. Last month my husband set up separate Netflix user accounts so that what I watch wasn't in his recently viewed section. I was fine with that since he watches nothing but horrible television shows and movies by people that I never thought where funny when they were on Saturday Night Live. He also watches non-funny 80's and 90's comedies that I avoided like the plague when they were originally in theaters. My husband complains that I watch nothing except Sci-Fi and 80's/90's cult classics. He would be mostly right, I to this day claim "Heathers" as my all time favorite movie. So for the most part we watch separate movies and television. However, every year we pick a few new shows that both of us can agree upon. Normally they aren't something that we love, but that we agree we love each other enough to sit through. This normally lasts for a season or two before both of us give up on the show and we have to move on to another show that we both deem semi-adequate. Regardless of our faults we seem made for each other since we continue to try to find common movie/TV ground. It's the constant commitment to finding common ground that reminds me that our marriage is important to both of us. In 10 years we have only found a few shows/movies that we both love, but we have enjoyed the journey of trying to find something together. Tonight's dinner recipe is another example of compromise. My husband loves the Indian restaurant in our city, I pretty much hate it. To compromise I make a lot of Indian dishes at home. Some recipes I pick are traditional (to appease my husband and I) and some are more Americanized (for my kids). Tonight I tried a new recipe for Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew from the September issue of All You magazine.

Harris Riverfront Park Huntington, WV

This recipe has 17 ingredients. It takes an hour and ten minutes of total time, 45 minutes of which is active and makes 6 servings. I made a  few changes to the original recipe. My family loves the taste of ginger so I used 2 tablespoons of minced ginger instead of 1. I was out of turmeric so I left it out and added a small amount of crushed red pepper for flavor. I found that the dish needed a lot more salt than stated in the original recipe, I ended up adding an additional 1 1/2 teaspoons. Finally, I added a cup of coconut milk. I found that it helped with the flavor and made for a more 'stew' like consistency.

Downtown Huntington, WV from Harris Riverfront Park

My two boys were in love with this recipe. The spices were mild enough to be kid friendly while having enough flavor for adults. This is definitely a more 'Americanized' Indian recipe, which is nice for kids or adults that aren't fans of the strong flavors many traditional Indian dishes can have. If you want to increase the heat you can always add 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper. This will add a little bit of heat without overpowering the flavors of the dish.

For the recipe go to Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew.

Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew

Recipe Type: Main

Summary:

A kid friendly recipe for Indian Chickpea and Vegetable Stew from the September issue of All You magazine. Only $1.63 per serving.

Preparation Time: 0h, 25m

Cooking Time: 0h, 45m

Total Time: 1h, 10m

Yield: Serves 6

Csulkos Bableves - Hungarian Bean and Ham Soup from Saveur Magazine

Hungarian Bean and Ham Soup from Saveur Magazine

I have a talent for breaking appliances. While most people have the same vacuum, washer, garbage disposal for years, I don't. This week reminded me of my ability to have appliances wither and die when around me. I have gone through two washers and dryers in the last 10 years. This week my washer stopped working. When I break my appliances they break, break. The last time I called to have my dryer fixed the repairman tried fixing it and told me that it was beyond repair. This happens all the time to me. I use my appliances a lot. While most people use their vacuums a couple of times a week, I use mine 2-3 times a day. The same goes for my washer and dryer. They seem to always be in use. So this week my washer, dryer and vacuum all decided to break. It has been one of those weeks. Since events in my house have been busy I haven't been cooking as much as normal. I'm also playing a bit of blog post catch up. Last week I tried a new recipe for Hungarian Bean and Ham Soup from Saveur Magazine.

Downtown Huntington, WV from Harris Riverfront Park

This recipe has 14 ingredients. It takes 3 hours of total time, 30 minutes of which is active and makes 8 to 10 servings. I only made a few changes to the original recipe. I used canola oil and an extra parsnip. My kids love parsnips, so I try to add extra in recipes that use them. I found that I had to also add extra water to the beans. They ended up a little drier than I prefer so I added an additional cup and a half of water. When I served the beans I added additional paprika to the individual servings.

Rotary Park Lookout Huntington, WV

My boys really loved this recipe. It was a nice blend of beans and soup, with lots of flavor. I was surprised that it only lasted a little over a day due to my two boys going back and eating more and more bowls. It was a nice way to use pinto beans, which are a favorite in my household.

For the recipe go to Hungarian Bean and Ham Soup (Saveur does not have the recipe online, so this is a link to a site with a very similar recipe).

Hungarian Bean and Ham Soup

Recipe Type: Soup

Summary:

A recipe for Hungarian Bean and Ham Soup. A filling dish for fall and winter.

Preparation Time: 0h, 30m

Total Time: 3h, 0m

Yield: Serves 8 to 10