vegetable stir-fry

Adapted from Student's Vegetarian Cookbook.
Choose one of the following sauce recipes and serve over cooked rice or noodles. 
Serves 2-3.

Sweet and Sour Sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons catsup
4 teaspoons sugar
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Tangy Sauce
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Stir-Fry
About 1 tablespoon of vegetable or canola oil.
2 cloves garlic
2-3 cups of whatever stir-fry vegetables you want (I don't measure really).
I use any combination of corn, peas, sugar snap peas, green beans, red or green peppers, carrots, broccoli, zucchini, or sprouts.
To make it an even quicker meal I sometimes just buy a big bag of frozen stir-fry veggies from Costco and use a few cups of that. 

1. Choose one of the sauces, and combine sauce ingredients into a small bowl.

2. Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and swirl it in the oil for a moment. Add the rest of the vegetables. Stir and fry for 3-4 minutes.

3. Stir the sauce and pour it over the vegetables. Stir and simmer for about 30 seconds or until the sauce thickens and the vegetables become glazed. Serve immediately. Garnish with chopped scallion if you desire.

pancake toppings

#1
1 cup vanilla yogurt
2 cups sliced peaches
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon or nutmeg
optional: replace peaches with 1/2 pint raspberries or mixed berries
Blend everything together. Makes 4-6 servings.

 #2
1 cup powdered sugar
1 package (8 oz.) whipped topping
1 package cream cheese
Blend. 

Use for pancakes, waffles, french toast, etc. I like both of these toppings together.

baked ziti

I am the only one in my house who will eat leftovers, which means a recipe that feeds 8-10 must be halved. This is my go-to recipe for Baked Ziti scaled down to an 8-inch square baking dish. It can easily be doubled for a 9x13-inch dish.

Serves 4-5

8 ounces cottage cheese (1 cup)
1 egg
1 1/2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (about 3/4 cup)
Table salt
8 ounces ziti (about 2 1/2 cups)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 (14.5-ounce) can tomato sauce
1/2 of a (14.5-ounce) can of diced tomatoes*
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon sugar
Ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon corn starch
1/2 cup cream
4 ounces mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/4-inch pieces (about 3/4 cup)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk the cottage cheese, egg, and 1/2 cup of the Parmesan together in a medium bowl; set aside. Bring a pot of water to a boil and add 2 teaspoons of salt and the pasta; cook until the pasta begins to soften but is not yet cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain and leave in colander.

2. Meanwhile, heat oil and garlic in a skillet until garlic is fragrant but not brown, about 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and oregano; simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes. Off the heat, stir in 1/4 cup of basil and the sugar; season with salt and pepper to taste.

3. Stir the cornstarch and cream together in a small bowl, transfer to the now empty pasta pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook until thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat, add cottage cheese mixture, 1/2 cup of the tomato sauce and 1/2 cup of the mozzarella; stir to combine. Add the pasta and stir to coat with the sauce.

4. Transfer to an 8-inch square baking dish and spread remaining tomato sauce over the top. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup of mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

5. Remove foil and continue to cook until the cheese is bubbling and beginning to brown, about 30 minutes more. Cool for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with the last tablespoon of basil and serve.

* I know there's nothing more annoying than recipe that calls for a half can of something. Save your diced tomatoes for your breakfast omelets, add them to a curry, or top a bean burrito! Sorry. :)

pudding cookies

Speaking of cookie recipes that are too good to not post...
This is my all time favorite easy cookie to make! This recipe makes 4 1/2 dozen, but they stay moist for a long time.

4 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) softened butter
1 1/2 cups brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup white sugar
2 (3.4 ounce) packages instant vanilla pudding
4 eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups of add ins (chocolate chips, cut up candy bars, etc.)

1. Combine flour and baking soda in a separate bowl.

2. In a large bowl cream butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Add packages of pudding and blend well. Then stir in eggs and vanilla. Next add the flour mixture, slowly. Then mix in your choice of add ins.

3. Make 1 inch balls and place on cookie sheets with parchment paper. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

I like these better if they are slightly undone, pull them out when they are just a tiny bit golden.

lemon snowflakes

Meatless cookie recipes aren't hard to come by (hehe), but these were too good not to share.

From America's Test Kitchen "Christmas Cookies" magazine.

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups sugar
4 teaspoons grated lemon zest (from 2 lemons)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
4 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup powdered sugar

1. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Mix granulated sugar and lemon zest until well blended. Add melted butter, oil, lemon juice, egg and yolk, and vanilla and mix until pale and thickened, about 30 seconds. Transfer to bowl with flour mixture and stir until incorporated. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and chill until dough is firm, at least 1 hour.

2. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and place powdered sugar in a small bowl.

3. Working with 1 1/2 tablespoons dough at a time, roll into balls, roll in powdered sugar, and space 2 inches apart on prepared sheets. Bake until cookies are cracked and set on top but look moist within cracks, 10-12 minutes. Let cookies cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely, about 45 minutes.

the lower lights- oh come all ye faithful

And because it's December now...

the piano guys- the cello song

I am really liking cellos lately (nerd cough). Sorry.