Zucchini Day 2015

We had zucchini day yesterday, sponsored by The Cupboard Project. We don't have enough to do zucchini week, but one day of all zucchini meals was pretty good.

I began with these muffins.

Zucchini Muffins

Mix together:
1 1/3 c flour
1 t salt
2 t baking powder
1/4 c sugar

Combine 1/4 c oil
2/3 c water
1 egg, beaten
1/2 c dry milk
1 c shredded zucchini

Fill greased muffin pans two-thirds full. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Take out of pans immediately.

They were pretty good, especially considering I used whole wheat flour and, substituted the oil with applesauce. They were plenty sweet, even with only 1/4 c sugar.


For lunch Camille and I had Vegetable Quesadillas:

1 c salsa
1 c drained canned black beans, rinsed
1 zucchini, shredded
eight 6 inch fat free flour tortillas
3/4 c shredded Monterey Jack cheese

In medium bowl, combine salsa, beans, and zucchini. spread 1/4 mixture over each of 4 tortillas. Top each portion with 3 tbsp cheese. Cover over with another tortilla.
Heat an 8in nonstick skillet over med. heat. One at a time, cook each quesadilla, turning once until cheese is melted, about 1 min per side. Cut each into quarters.
Makes 4 servings - 5 pts per serving.

I really liked these. C told me she didn't like the red in it or the zucchini in it, but I managed to get her to eat a few bites.

Dinner was this Zucchini Beef Bake:

2 zucchini (sliced in 1/4 inch slices)
1 lb ground beef
1 T chopped onion
1/2 c diced celery
8 oz can tomato sauce
1/2 t salt
1/2 t basil or oregano
1/4 t pepper
1/2 lb mozzarella cheese

Layer a 9x13 pan (greased) with 1/4 inch slices of zucchini. Brown ground beef with onion and celery. Pour off grease. Stir in tomato sauce, salt, pepper, and basil or oregano. Pour over zucchini. Spread grated mozzarella cheese on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

This was especially good. Brian said it tasted kind of like lasagna. Since it has zucchini instead of noodles, it must be healthier, right? I made it in a smaller pan (8x11 maybe) because I didn't think I could spread the 2/3 lb of meat I had across a 9x13. It has been a long time since I used real ground beef instead of ground turkey. I forgot how fatty it is when you buy the cheapest kind.

Bonus Dessert! Brian actually made these a few days ago. C and O "helped." Brian commented that he didn't understand how I ever managed to cook anything without going nuts when the kids help. The cupcakes were delicious. I remember Mom making them a few times. They are pretty ugly cupcakes, but they are also very yummy. 

Zucchini cupcakes

3 eggs

1 1/3 c sugar

1/2 c vegetable oil

1/2 c orange juice

1 t almond extract

1 1/2 c all-purpose flour

2 t ground cinnamon

2 t baking powder

1 t salt

1/2 t ground cloves

1 1/2 c shredded zucchini

Caramel Frosting

1 c packed brown sugar

1/2 c butter or margarine

1/4 c milk

1 t vanilla extract

1 1/2 to 2 c confectioners sugar

In a mixing bowl, beat eggs, sugar, oil, orange juice, and extract. Combine dry ingredients; add to the egg mixture and mix well. Add zucchini and mix well. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until cupcakes test done. Cool for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack.

For frosting, combine brown sugar, butter, and milk in a saucepan; bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in vanilla. Cool to a lukewarm consistency. Stir in confectioners sugar until desired consistency is reached. Frost cupcakes. Yield: 1 1/2-2 dozen

Oh, I forgot to mention that the cupcakes really didn't rise much at all. Brian was a little disappointed, but again, they were delicious, so appearance doesn't matter.

Snickerdoodles

I've been in a cookie making mood lately, so I decided to make these for our Sunday evening treat. It's a page ripped out of a cookbook so I figured it would be pretty good.

1 c. soft shortening
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
2 1/4 c. all purpose flour, stirred and measured
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon


In large mixing bowl, cream shortening and 1 1/2 c. sugar; add eggs; beat until light and fluffy. Stir together flour, cream of tartar, soda, and salt; stir into shortening mixture until well blended. Roll dough into balls the size of small walnuts, then roll in mixture of 2 tbsp. sugar and 2 tsp. cinnamon. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees F. for 8 to 10 minutes or until cookies have barely flattened out and are slightly browned. (Cookies puff up at first, then flatten out with crinkled tops.) Makes 5 dozen 2-inch cookies.

These were yummy snickerdoodles. I do already have a recipe I like to use for snickerdoodles that is in a Gooseberry Patch cookbook, but this one was good, too.

I purposely halved the recipe so there would not not be 5 dozen (though I only got about 18 2 inch cookies) tempting me to eat them. Good thing, too, becau
se there were not very many left when we went to bed that night.

Buttery Butterscotch Cut-outs

This recipe is from Gail Hansen. It looks old, so I don't think it was part of the collection given to Mom when they moved. I like seeing what people consider a recipe worth sharing.

This is a good way to use the other half  of a bag of butterscotch chips after you make Scotcharoos.

Buttery Butterscotch Cut-outs

1 c butterscotch
1 c butter or marg.
3 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c br. sugar
1/2  sugar
1 egg
2 T milk
2 t vanilla

Melt butterscotch chips and pour into a large bowl; stir in remaining ingredients. Belnd well and place in refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll out cookie dough on a floured surface. Cut out with cookie cutters. Bake for 5-8 minutes.

They were okay. I definitely wouldn't go out of my way to make them. I'm not sure why, but even when the edges were cut smoothly, they spread weirdly.

Spicy Nutmeg Carrots

Spicy Nutmeg Butter Carrots
From a McCormick recipe card

We really liked the Korean Beef we ate with the carrots

2 T melted butter
1/4 t ground nutmeg
1/4 t garlic salt
1/4 t ground red pepper
1 package (16 oz) baby carrots

Mix butter, nutmeg, garlic salt, and red pepper until well blended.
Cook carrots as directed on package. Pour butter mixture over carrots; toss to coat well. Serve immediately.

This was kind of a strange combination that didn't really fit out fancy. They weren't terrible, but I won't make them again.

Blackberry chicken

Ingredients

2 tablespoons plus 1/2 cup fresh blackberries, divided
1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth, divided
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 teaspoon paprika, divided
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (5 ounces each)
4-1/2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Directions
In a small bowl, mash 2 tablespoons berries. Add 1/4 cup broth, brown sugar, vinegar, oil, garlic, 1/4 teaspoon paprika and cumin.
Place chicken in an 11-in. x 7-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray; pour broth mixture over the top. Sprinkle with thyme, salt, pepper and remaining paprika.
Bake, uncovered, at 375° for 20-25 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 170°, basting occasionally with pan juices. Remove chicken and keep warm.
Skim fat from pan drippings. In a small saucepan, combine cornstarch and remaining broth until smooth. Gradually stir in drippings. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened. Serve with chicken; sprinkle with remaining blackberries. Yield: 6 servings.
Originally published as Blackberry Chicken in Taste of Home April/May 2008, p33

Nutritional Facts
1 chicken breast half with 2 tablespoons sauce equals 192 calories, 4 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 78 mg cholesterol, 315 mg sodium, 8 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 29 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 4 lean meat, 1/2 starch.

Yummy! It was a good change-up to usual chicken flavorings. And since we got a good digital food thermometer, I've been a lot more successful at cooking things like this without completely drying them out. Thanks to our neighbor for the blackberries that grow over the fence. This year looks like a bumper crop, and the neighbor hasn't been home in a few weeks, so we might need to help out with some of the berries on her side of the fence. I included the nutritional facts because they are pretty good. A 4 or 5 oz piece of chicken with 1/2 c of brown rice, 2 T sauce, and a hefty serving of vegetables should make a well balanced meal under 400 calories.

Raspberry Mudslide Pie

We had the missionaries over for dinner last week. Big Chubb felt sorry for them when he saw them helping a family in the ward move, and they said no one signed up to feed them. So he invited them over. For the next day. Luckily, I had a pretty simple meal planned, but I needed a dessert. I looked through my recipes and this packet of Berry recipes from the Lunenburg County Home Economics Extension Agency.

No picture. Sorry :(

1 prepared 9-inch crumb pie crust (Oreo would be fantastic)
1 pkg. (6 oz) milk chocolate pieces
1 pkg. (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1 3/4 c. frozen sliced raspberries in syrup, thawed (who knew you could slice a raspberry?)
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
Sweetened whipped cream, for garnish (optional)

Melt chocolate in double boiler over hot (not boiling) water; mix until smooth. Cool to room temperature. Pour into pie shell. Beat cream cheese until fluffy; add vanilla and blend thoroughly until smooth. Pour over chocolate mixture in pie shell; smooth top. Chill until firm. Meanwhile, heat raspberries in small saucepan. Mix lemon juice and cornstarch and add to raspberries. Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until clear and thickened, about 3 to 4 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Pour over pie, spread to cover filling. Chill. Pipe top with sweetened whipped cream, if you wish. Cut into wedges to serve. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

It was a hit! One of the elders kept saying that it was really good. The other didn't repeat it as often, but he also said it was good. All of us liked it. Baby Chubb loved it so much she basically bathed herself in it, and then smeared it around the table.

However, it didn't turn out very well. The chocolate hardened up since it had to be chilled and was almost impossible to cut through. Everyone got it on their clothes (even the elders who had more appointments later that night). And, the raspberries didn't get very thick. I even added a little more cornstarch, but that didn't help. The next time I make this I think I will add some of the cream cheese into the chocolate to make sure it stays a little soft, and use more cornstarch to thicken the raspberries.

Zucchini Bread

Bisquick Zucchini Bread

2 c. Bisquick
1 1/2 c. zucchini, shredded
1/4 c. vegetable oil
3/4 c. sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. nutmeg

2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 c. nuts, chopped

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottom only of loaf pan. Beat all ingredients on low speed, scraping bowl constantly, 30 seconds. Beat on medium speed, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour into pan and bake until toothpick comes out clean, 50 to 55 minutes. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pan. Cool completely before slicing. Store in refrigerator.

I made the bisquick with 2 c flour, 1 T baking powder, and 1 t salt. 

Meh, it was zucchini bread. There was nothing wrong with it, but there are other ways I prefer to use my zucchini.