New Zucchini Recipes

Everyone I know who plants zucchini seems to end up with more than they anticipated.  They are always looking for new ways to prepare it.  Tuesday evening I created Warm Zucchini Bruchetta.  I promise this recipe will become a new summertime favorite in your home.  I've also included a lightly spiced and fabulously moist Apple Zucchini Bread recipe that I'm sure you will love.

Warm Zucchini Bruchetta

Bruchetta:

1 large zucchini, cut into 1/2" rounds

oil for frying

Dredging Station:

container #1 = 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

container #2 = 1 egg, well beaten

container #3 = 1/4 c. all-purpose flour, 1/2 c. cornmeal, 1 tsp. sugar, 1 tsp. baking powder, 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, salt & pepper to taste

Heat oil to 350 degrees. Dredge zucchini rounds in flour, dip in egg, dredge in cornmeal mixture.  Fry in hot oil until golden, about 1-2 minutes.  Place on baking rack to drain AND to retain crispness.

Toppings:

1 c. mozzarella cheese, shredded

1 tomato, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

fresh basil leaves, chopped OR 1/2 tsp. dried basil

Mix together tomato, garlic and basil.

Assembly:

Sprinkle mozzarella cheese onto each zucchini round.

Top mozzarella with 1 tsp. tomato topping.

Garnish tomato mixture with more shredded mozzarella.

 Place under broiler (on a baking rack to retain crispness) until cheese is melted and begins to brown.
 Mmm, Mmm, Good!

Apple Zucchini Bread

(adapted from Taste of Home Recipes)

4 c. all-purpose four
1 Tbsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
5 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 c. vegetable oil
2 c. sugar
1 c. packed brown sugar
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
2 c. shredded unpeeled zucchini (about 3 med.)
1 c. shredded peeled apple (about 2 med.)
1 c. chopped walnuts (original recipes calls for 1-1/2 c. pecans)

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.  In another bowl, beat eggs.  Add oil, sugars and vanilla.  Pour over dry ingredients, mix well.  Stir in zucchini, apples and walnuts (batter will be stiff).  Spoon into three greased loaf pans.  Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool in pans for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
Yield:  3 loaves OR 3 dozen muffins
NOTE:  If making muffins, reduce baking time to 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Frugal Feasting Friday

During the holidays large gatherings of family and friends for meals and fellowship can easily blow one's grocery budget.  For families already living on a very tight budget, the expense of special meals and traditional treats can really add to one's financial stress.  It is so sad, but very true, that some families must choose between a traditional Thanksgiving and/or Christmas meal(s) and gifts for their children or even paying one or more utility bills.  I remember all too well that there was a time when our family had to make those sorts of tough decisions. 

I generally try to keep my Frugal Feasting Friday meal suggestions under $2.00 per serving.  However, I realize that with Thanksgiving only one week behind us and Christmas only 3 weeks ahead, there are families who simply can't afford $2.00 per serving meals if they are going to enjoy traditional celebrations.  So, today I am sharing a meal that cost less than $1.00 per serving and packs a TON of flavor!

Lentil-Tomato Soup
(adapted from November 2011 Taste of Home Magazine, pg. 43)

4 1/2 c. water
1 tbsp. bacon grease OR oil OR butter/margarine
4 carrots, sliced
1 onion, chopped
2/3 c. dried lentils, rinsed
1  6 oz. can tomato paste
2 tbsp. minced fresh parsley OR 1 tbsp. dried parsley
1 tbsp. brown sugar OR 1 tbsp. white sugar & 1tsp. molasses
1 tbsp. vinegar
1 clove mined garlic OR 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/4 tsp. dried dill weed
1/4 tsp. dried tarragon (optional)
1/4 tsp. pepper
salt to taste

In a stock pot, saute the onions, carrots in bacon grease over medium high heat until the onions begin to turn clear; stir in the garlic.  Add the water and lentils and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat; cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until the lentils are tender.  Stir in remaining ingredients; and return to a boil.  Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes to allow flavors to blend.
6 servings

Spicy Oven Sweet Potato Fries

3 medium sweet potatoes
2 tbsp. olive oil OR cooking oil
1 tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Peel and cut sweet potatoes into wedges.  In a large mixing bowl combine oil, sugar, chili powder salt & pepper.  Add the sweet potatoes and toss to coat.  Place seasoned sweet potatoes onto a baking sheet.  Bake at 425 degrees for about 12 minutes, turn and continue to bake for another 10-12 minutes or until fries are tender.  NOTE:  I prefer to place my oven fries on a baking rack placed over my baking sheet - thus, I don't have to turn the fries mid-way through the baking process and they come out crispy on both sides.
Serves 6

Best Dinner Rolls
(adapted from Taste of Home magazine, November 2011 pg. 61)

These really are the BEST dinner rolls ...

1 c. whole wheat flour
3 1/2 to 4 c. all-purpose unbleached flour
1/4 c. sugar
1 tbsp. active dry yeast OR 1 pkg. active dry yeast
1 1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. milk
1/2 c. water
2 tsp. butter
2 eggs
1 egg, lightly beaten (optional)
Toppings, below (optional)

In a large bowl, combine whole wheat flour, 1 c. all-purpose flour, sugar, yeast and salt.  In a saucepan, heat the milk, water and butter to 120-130 degrees.  Add to dry ingredients; beat on medium speed for 3 minutes.  Add 2 eggs; beat on high speed for 2 minutes.  Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft, sticky dough.  Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes.  Place in a greased bowl and turn to coast dough.  Cover with greased wax paper and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.  Punch down .  Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into 24 portions.  Shape into balls.  Place the dough balls in two 13in. x 9in. greased baking pans (12 each).  Cover with greased waxed paper and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.  If desired, brush lightly with beaten egg and sprinkle with desired topping(s).  Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from pans to wire racks to cool slightly serve warm.  NOTE:  You may freeze 1/2 of this dough in a zip lock bag and thaw for later use.  After thawing allow to rise, punch down and proceed as directed - dough that has been frozen will take about 2 hours to rise the 1st time. 
Makes 24 servings.

Toppings:
*2 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese and 1/2 tsp. dried minced garlic OR garlic powder
*2 tbsp. chopped sliced almonds, 1/2 tsp. kosher salt, 1/2 tsp. dried basil, 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
*1 tsp. poppy seeds, 1 tsp. kosher salt, 1 tsp. dried minced garlic, 1 tsp. sesame seeds, 1 tsp. dried minced onion
NOTE:  Get creative with your toppings.  If it's summer time and you have aromatic herbs growing in your garden, substitute fresh herbs.  Don't have dried minced garlic, mix fresh minced garlic into the egg wash.  You can also shape these rolls into rosettes, twists or other desired shapes for visual appeal.

Estimated Cost Breakdown:
Lentil-Tomato Soup - $0.41 per serving
Spicy Oven Sweet Potato Fries - $0.39 per serving
Best Dinner Rolls - $0.19 per serving

Total Cost Estimate for Entire Meal:  $0.99 per serving

Disclaimer:  The recipes for Lentil-Tomato Soup and Best Dinner Rolls have been adapted from recipes found in the November 2011 issue of Taste of Home magazine.  For some reason I never follow recipes exactly as directed, adding my own "spin" or techniques that I think enhances the flavor profiles or nutritional value.  If you'd like the recipes exactly as published, please visit www.tasteofhome.com.

Last week ...

marked the REAL beginning of harvest for those of us living S.E. Texas. As you can see from the above photo we are harvesting a nice bounty daily. Within two weeks these amounts will double or triple and we'll have baskets of fresh home grown tomatoes and cucumbers to add. What did I do with all that zucchini, squash, green beans, lettuce, basil and oregano I collected the other day?

Italian Sausage Soup served with a Garden Salad

1/2 lb. bulk Italian sausage
1 zucchini, cubed
1 yellow squash, cubed
2 c. green beans, snapped
3 med. tomatoes, diced
1 med. onion, diced
1/4 c. garlic chives OR 3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp. fresh oregano, chopped
1 tbsp. fresh basil, chopped
1tsp. beef bullion
water
-------------
1/4 c. elbow pasta, per person
water
salt & pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese, grated

Crumble sausage into skillet and brown. Transfer sausage to crock pot, add zucchini, yellow squash, green beans, tomatoes, onion, garlic chives, oregano, and basil, beef bullion and combine well. Add salt & pepper to tastes and enough water to barely cover the sausage and vegetables. Cook on low 4-6 hours or on high 2-4 hours. One half hour before serving cook pasta in salted boiling water until tender. When serving place pasta in the bottom of bowl & ladle the soup over the pasta. Garnish with grated Parmesan cheese, if desired. 8 servings


Although I didn't add any of our harvested vegetables to the next recipe, I'm thinking that the chocolate lovers out there will enjoy it. Saturday morning, OG & EJ enjoyed this special treat for breakfast ...

Brownie Muffins

1 1/2 c. all purpose unbleached flour
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1/3 c. cocoa powder
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 c. chopped pecans (optional)
3 tsp. baking powder
1tsp. salt
1/2 c. vegetable oil
3/4 c. milk
1 egg

Heat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium mixing bowl combine dry ingredients until well mixed. In another small bowl, combine and mix well the vegetable oil, milk and egg. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and combine until just moistened. Spoon into greased muffins tins. Bake at 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Immediately remove from pans. Cool slightly before serving. Makes 1 dozen muffins.

Menu Day

It is still baseball and softball season around the B house. That means this week's supper menu will again consist of quick, easy and frugal meals. Mr. B grilled quite a bit of chicken this past weekend and we have enough left over to prepare three additional meals.

I also have two wonderful sugar free recipes to share, honey banana nut bread and honey almond cookies. I hope you and your family enjoy them as much as we did.

Monday - out
Tuesday - chicken & black bean whole wheat burritos, Mexican rice
Wednesday - bbq chicken sandwiches, potato salad
Thursday - chicken fried rice, noodle soup
Friday - toasted ham & cheese sandwiches w/ sauteed onions, bell peppers & mushrooms, tomato soup
Saturday - meatless spaghetti, garlic toast, salad (fresh lettuce & spinach greens from our garden)
Sunday - crock pot sausage & kraut, beer bread
\

Honey Banana Walnut Bread2/3 cup honey

1/2 cup olive oil

3 eggs, beaten

3 ripe bananas, mashed

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 cup walnuts, chopped

Glaze (below) optional

Beat together the honey and oil; mix in eggs. Add mashed bananas, salt and vanilla, mix well. Sift together flour and baking soda. Gradually blend the flour mixture in with the banana mixture until the batter is smooth. Fold in the walnuts. Grease a Bundt pan OR a large loaf pan. Pour in the batter and bake at 350 degrees for 40-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Lower the oven temperature if the bread is browning to quickly. Cool on a wire rack for 5-10 minutes. Loosen edges with a knife, turn bread out onto a wire rack and continue cooling. Glaze: 1 cup confectioners sugar, 1 tsp. vanilla, 1-2 Tbsp. milk. Mix confectioners sugar, vanilla and milk with wire whisk until smooth. Drizzle over cooled bread.

Honey Almond Cookies

1 1/2 cup honey

1 1/2 stick butter, softened

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp. almond extract

2 3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. almonds, finely chopped

45 - 50 whole almonds

In a medium mixing bowl, cream together honey, butter, egg and almond extract. In a smaller bowl sift together flour, baking soda and salt. Stir into honey mixture. When flour mixture is almost incorporated into honey mixture add chopped almonds. Mix well. Refrigerate dough 30 minutes. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto the greased baking sheet. Top each cookie with a whole almond. Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 12-15 minutes or until golden.

Fresh Baked Bread: Less Than $0.50 Per Loaf

Mmmmm ... fresh baked bread. Nothing smells better than bread baking in the oven, except for maybe apple pie ...
Today I decided to try a friend's, H4MH, recipe (& I'm proud of myself because I made only 1 very small change to her recipe ... her's calls for all-purpose flour, I replaced 1/2 of it with whole wheat). As you can see, it turned out GREAT and it was large enough for 2 loaves of sandwich bread, 1 loaf cinnamon raisin bread and a dozen rolls. Not only did OG and I have a terrific time in the kitchen, but we saved several dollars. Do you realize that baking your own bread generally costs less than $0.50 per loaf? That's less than half the cost of cheap unhealthy generic brands and several dollars less than the expensive healthier brands. If you'd like to try H4MH's recipe just click here http://frugalhomeliving.blogspot.com/2009/03/homemade-white-bread.html . Thank you H4MH for a terrific recipe!

Fried Green Tomatoes

Long before the novel, "Fried Green Tomatoes at The Whistle Stop Cafe", by Fannie Flagg and the box office hit, "Fried Green Tomatoes", starring Jessica Tandy, my family looked forward to spring and summer just so they could indulge in this fine southern delicacy. Here's my recipe for Fried Green Tomatoes. Ingredients:

green tomatoes, sliced

salt

flour

eggs, well beaten (notice how the yolks in yard eggs are so dark they are almost orange?)

cornbread mix (recipe below)

oil for frying (about 1/2 -3/4 in. deep)

Lightly sprinkle tomato slices with salt. Dredge tomatoes in flour, dip in beaten egg, dredge in cornbread mix.

Fry tomatoes in oil until golden on one side, flip and continue to fry until other side is also golden

For a yummy summer time dinner, serve with ranch dressing for dipping, cornbread and fruit.

Cornbread Mix (makes about 5 batches)

4 1/4 c. flour

4 c. cornmeal

3/4 c. sugar

1/4 c. baking powder

1-2 tsp. salt

1 c. shortening

Combine dry ingredients. Cut in shortening. Store in airtight container in cool dry place.

To Mix Up Cornbread:

2 1/3 c. mix

1 egg, well beaten

1 c. milk

Combine all until moist. (batter should be lumpy) Pour into greased 8in. baking pan. Bake at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until golden and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

What do You do When the Milk Sours?

Most folks figure that since it's soured it is no longer useful and toss it into the trash.

Soured milk is a wonderful baking ingredient. It can be used in all baked recipes that call for sweet (fresh) milk and buttermilk. The flavor of the baked product is just as wonderful as if made with sweet milk or buttermilk and often times the products are lighter and fluffier.

If we think about it, we are soured milk. God originally created us in His image. If we were created in His image, then we were created perfect and without flaw because God is perfect and without flaw. But then sin entered into us and soured us. Has God tossed us into the trash? No! For those of us who will allow Him, He takes the soured milk of our lives and creates wonderful and favorable products that He, once again, finds delight in.

Here are a couple recipes using soured milk. It is my prayer that if you try them, you will consider yourself and your relationship with God. Are you allowing God to create something wonderful and favorable from the soured milk of your life?

Soured Milk Hotcakes
1 egg
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. soured milk
1 tbs. sugar
2 tbs. melted butter
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Beat egg until fluffy, beat in remaining ingredients until just smooth (there may be a few small lumps). Grease heated griddle, if necessary. Pour batter onto hot griddle (griddle is right temperature when a few sprinkles of water will skittle around) to desired diameter. Cook hotcakes until puffed and bubbly. Turn and cook other side until golden brown.
makes about 5 6" hotcakes

Soured Milk Waffles
2 eggs
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 c. melted butter
1 3/4 c. soured milk
1 tbs. sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Heat waffle iron. Beat eggs until fluffy; beat in remaining ingredients until smooth. Pour batter from cup or pitcher onto hot waffle iron. Bake until steaming stops, about 5 minutes. Remove carefully.
makes about 3 10" waffles

Soured Milk Biscuits
1/2 c. shortening or lard
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1 tbs. sugar
1 tbs. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
3/4 c. soured milk

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Cut shortening into dry ingredients with pastry cutter or two knives until mixture looks like crumbs. Stir in soured milk just until dough leave sides of bowl (dough will be soft and sticky). Turn dough out onto flour surface. Lightly sprinkle top of dough with flour. Turn and fold dough 3-4 times. (Remember, the more you play with the dough the tougher your biscuits will be - A LIGHT TOUCH MAKES FOR LIGHT BISCUITS). Roll out to 1/2 - 3/4 in. thickness. Cut with floured biscuit cutter or rim of a glass. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, sides touching. Bake until golden brown 10-12 minutes. Immediately remove from cookie sheet.
makes about 1 dozen

Soured Milk Dumplings
3 tbs. shortening
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
3/4 c. soured milk

Cut shortening into dry ingredients until mixture looks like crumbs. Stir in soured milk. Drop dough by spoonfuls onto hot meat or vegetables in boiling stew. Cook uncovered 10 minutes. Cover and cook an additional 10 minutes.