Parmesan Scrolls

These sound like a variation on cheese sticks (which I make with edam cheese and cayenne pepper) - I'm loving the idea of parmesan, though!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon paprika
Coarse salt and ground pepper
All-purpose flour, for rolling
1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
1 large egg, beaten

Method:
1. In a bowl, mix cheese and paprika; season with salt and pepper.
2. On a floured surface, roll out pastry to 10 by 14 inches.
3. Brush with egg. Sprinkle with cheese mixture; using a rolling pin, roll mixture into pastry.
4. Roll up pastry, starting from short end. Refrigerate until firm, about 25 minutes.
5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
6. Cut roll into 3/8-inch-thick slices.
7. Place on a rimmed baking sheet; bake until golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool 5 minutes on sheet; transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Beer-Battered Tofu Sticks

These sound tasty - I doubt the rest of the family will eat them, being tofu and all, but I'll enjoy them!

Ingredients:

Tofu Sticks:
1 (14-ounce) package extra firm tofu
¾ cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup beer (preferably ale)
1½ cups panko
1½ teaspoons salt
¾ teaspoon paprika
¼ rounded teaspoon black pepper
canola oil for the pan

Ranch Dressing:
1 cup imitation mayonnaise (I use Vegenaise)
1/3 cup imitation sour cream
¼ cup unsweetened almond milk
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon dried chives
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried dill
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon dry mustard

Method:
1. Drain tofu and wrap in a towel. Press excess water out of tofu by placing a couple of plates on top of it and allowing to sit for 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, prepare the ranch dressing by combining all ingredients in a bowl. Mix until thoroughly combined. Set aside.
3. Cut tofu into ¾” wide sticks. Pat dry. In a small mixing bowl, mix together flour and beer until smooth. In a separate bowl, mix together panko, salt, paprika and pepper.
4. Heat 2 tablespoons canola oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Dip each tofu stick into the wet mixture, then the dry mixture, turning to coat all sides. Carefully place into preheated pan and fry until golden brown on all sides. Add additional oil if needed. Using a slotted spatula, remove the tofu sticks and place on a couple of paper towels to remove excess oil. Repeat until all tofu sticks have been prepared. Serve with ranch dressing.

Low Fat Baked Onion Rings

Yum! I'm thinking I might have to try this with squid rings as well...

Ingredients:
1 medium onion, sliced into 1/4 inch rings
2 1/4 cups low fat buttermilk
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup Italian seasoned whole wheat bread crumbs
1/4 cup crushed corn flake crumbs
salt to taste
olive oil baking spray

Method:
1. Place slices of onion in a shallow dish. Pour the buttermilk over the top and let them soak for about 1 - 2 hours, refrigerated.
2. Preheat oven to 230 degrees C. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.
3. Combine panko, bread crumbs and corn flakes and place half of the crumbs in a large dish, season with salt. Reserve the rest for when the first batch is used up. This should help avoid clumping and they should stick better to the onions.
4. Dip each soaked onion ring into the crumb mixture; coat well. Place rings onto two cookie sheets. Lightly spray with oil. Bake about 12 minutes or until golden brown. Serve immediately.

Pepperoni Pizza Monkeybread

This looks too good not to include a photo - I'm definitely going to be trying it out, and soon!

Ingredients:
2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
4 Tbsp butter
2 lbs pizza dough
6 oz mozzarella cheese, cut into small cubes (you'll need ~48 pieces)
48 slices of Turkey pepperoni (from 1 package)
2-3 cups marinara sauce, warmed, for serving

Method:
1. Heat garlic and butter over medium heat just until the garlic begins to brown. Remove from heat and let sit.
2. Lightly brush the inside of a bundt pan (or other oven-safe dish) with garlic butter.
3. Pull off large marble-sized balls of dough and flatten (a kitchen scale makes this very easy). Top with a slice of pepperoni and a cube of mozzarella.
4. Pepperoni Pizza Monkey Bread Wrap the dough around the pepperoni and cheese, pinching well to seal.
5. Very lightly brush the pizza ball with garlic butter and place into the bundt pan (I dabbed the pizza balls on a butter-dipped silicon brush to keep butter use low - there will be 1+ Tbsp leftover - and my hands butter free. Buttery hands make it hard to get the pizza balls to seal).
6. Repeat until all of the dough is used.
7. Cover and let sit for 30 minutes, while preheating the oven to 400.
8. Bake for ~35 minutes, until the top is very brown.
9. Remove from the oven and let sit for 10 minutes.
10.Turn out onto a platter and serve with warmed marinara sauce for dipping.

Barbecue-Flavoured Popcorn

I don't know if this really sounds like it appeals, but I'm willing to give it a go!

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon onion salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup popping corn

Method:
1. Combine paprika, oregano, thyme, onion salt and half the oil in a bowl.
2. Heat remaining oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add 2 pieces of popping corn. Oil is hot enough when corn turns slowly in a circle.
3. Add remaining corn. Cover pan tightly. Shake pan when corn starts popping. Remove from heat when corn stops popping. Transfer popcorn to a bowl. Discard unpopped corn. Add paprika mixture. Toss to combine. Cool.

Brazilian Cheese Bread

Another recipe I've stumbled upon on Pinterest, and it looks amazing!

Ingredients:
1 egg
1/3 cup oil (olive, vegetable)
2/3 cup milk
Scant 1 1/2 cups (170 grams) tapioca flour
1/2 cup (packed, about 66 grams) grated cheese, your preference. I preferred parmesan.
1 teaspoon of salt (or more to taste)

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Combine all ingredients in blender, blend until smooth.
3. Pour into greased mini-muffin tins, filling each tin about 3/4 of the way full.
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until lightly browned on top (I did about 16 minutes).
5. If using garlic topping continue below

Garlic Topping:

Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 tablespoons minced garlic, preferably fresh
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (dry works fine)

You definitely want to prepare this up to the melting stage (first stage) before putting the breads in the oven or you’ll run out of time.

Method:
1. Melt butter with garlic in small saucepan over low heat for 4-5 minutes or until garlic is tender and fragrant. Cover and put aside-keep warm.
2. When bread is finished, add romano and parsley to saucepan, stir well, and drizzle topping onto breads. (I painted it on with my silicon brush. You can also toss it in a bowl or plastic container). DON’T use all the topping or your rolls will be sickeningly buttery and garlicky. You could probably cut this recipe in half, but I like to have extra for dipping Just add the topping to taste.

77 Kid Friendly Healthy Snacks

Amy over at Serving Pink Lemonade has compiled this fantastic list of healthy snacks for her family, and it was too good not to share here.

The annotations on the list are hers - and the links were provided by her too (although I'll put each one up here separately as I get around to trying them, too).

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With the new year in full swing I'm renewing my resolution to feed my family healthy foods. To help me with my goal I've come up with a list of 77 healthy snacks to keep good food in our tummies when we're getting the munchies. I've tried to compile my list using mostly whole foods and as little processed food as possible. I know everyone has a different definition of healthy so keep in mind that this list is made up according to my definition.

And here they are:

1. Apple slices (My kids love apples more than just about anything.)
2. Home popped popcorn (We love to pop ours with coconut oil. Yum.)
3. Celery sticks
4. Hummus and veggies
5. Tuna on crackers
6. String cheese
7. Roasted pumpkin seeds or squash seeds ( I love this recipe.)
8. Applesauce
9. Frozen grapes (These are super popular in the summer at our house. It allows you to stock up when grapes are on sale without them going bad before they can get eaten.)
10. Almonds
11. Craisins
12. Olives
13. Guacamole and chips (Homemade guacamole is easy. Just mash up an avocado and stir in a dash of salt, garlic powder and some dried minced onions. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.)
14. Clementines (These are my favorite citrus to buy because the kids can peel them themselves)
15. Quick fruit smoothie (frozen berries, ripe banana, yogurt)
16. Hard boiled egg
17. Roasted chickpeas
18. Cottage cheese with peaches
19. Cinnamon raisin almond balls (These are quick and easy to make and incredibly delicious. I highly recommend giving them a try!)
20. Fruit leather (We love to make our own using a dehydrator)
21. Crackers and cheese
22. Mini fruit salad (Strawberries, kiwi, blackberries)
23. Dip banana slices in yogurt, roll in coconut and freeze
24. Cantaloupe
25. Apple slices with nut butter, cinnamon, and raisins
26. Yogurt
27. Chips and salsa
28. Whole wheat bread spread with nut butter
29. One ingredient banana ice cream
30. Kefir smoothie
31. Pineapple (Love pineapple)
32. Homemade popsicle (Blend together frozen berries, yogurt and banana, pour into molds, freeze.)
33. Granola
34. Raisins
35. Nectarine
36. Baked cheese crisps
37. Parfait (Yogurt, strawberries, granola)
38. Pickles
39. Homemade Larabar
40. Carrot sticks
41. Grapefruit (My son loves his grapefruit)
42. Cucumber slices
43. No-bake energy bites
44. Grilled cheese sandwich
45. Crackers spread with nut butter
46. Frozen banana bites
47. Trail mix (Make your own by throwing together craisins, almonds, sunflower seeds, and dried blueberries or cherries)
48. Dried apricots
49. Tropical smoothie (Mango, pineapple, strawberries, yogurt)
50. Apple chips
51. Broccoli florets
52. Fruit sushi
53. Blueberries (I love this bite size snack for little mouths)
54. Fruit kabob
55. Baked potato
56. Pink hummus and veggies
57. Frozen pineapple
58. Dried fruit mix
59. Pistachios
60. Kale chips
61. Beef jerky
62. Yogurt frozen
63. Homemade graham crackers
64. Banana (This is my favorite quick snack when I'm hungry)
65. Frozen applesauce slushy
66. Pears sprinkled with cinnamon (My daughter loves this)
67. Oven roasted fries
68. Granola Bars
69. Yogurt bites (You can make your own if you own a dehydrator)
70. Cheese slices
71. Spinach artichoke dip and crackers
72. Watermelon (For added fun, cut into shapes with cookie cutters)
73. Kiwi (Cut in half and scoop out with a spoon)
74. Orange slices
75. Toast
76. Zucchini chips
77. Tortilla and cheese

So . . . what would you add to the list?

What are your go-to healthy snacks?

Potato Crisps - Microwave-Style

I'm intrigued by this - I'll be giving it a go very soon!

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 potato, sliced paper thin (peel optional)
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Method:
1. Pour the vegetable oil into a plastic bag (a produce bag works well). Add the potato slices, and shake to coat.
2. Coat a large dinner plate lightly with oil or cooking spray. Arrange potato slices in a single layer on the dish.
3. Cook in the microwave for 3 to 5 minutes, or until lightly browned (if not browned, they will not become crisp). Times will vary depending on the power of your microwave. Remove chips from plate, and toss with salt (or other seasonings). Let cool. Repeat process with the remaining potato slices. You will not need to keep oiling the plate.

Cheesy Vegetable Pikelets

Thse sound really good, and I'm sure they could be made with a variety of different vegetables - I'm thinking orange kumara and asparagus, perhaps? And some red capsicum chopped into it, too...

Ingredients:
1 small zucchini, coarsely grated
½ teaspoon olive oil
1 small carrot, grated
½ cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1 cup wholemeal self-raising flour
½ cup self-raising flour
1¼ cups buttermilk
1 egg, lightly beaten
½ cup fat-reduced grated tasty cheese
olive oil cooking spray

Method:
1. Using your hands, squeeze moisture from zucchini. Heat oil in a large, non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Add zucchini, carrot and corn. Cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes or until softened. Set aside.
2. Sift flours into a large bowl. Add husks to bowl. Add buttermilk and egg. Whisk to combine. Add zucchini mixture and cheese. Stir to combine.
3. Spray pan with oil. Heat over medium heat. Using 1 heaped tablespoon per pikelet, cook 4 pikelets for 3 to 4 minutes or until bubbles appear on the surface. Turn. Cook for 2 minutes or until cooked through. Transfer to a plate. Cover to keep warm.

Bhajia

This is a recipe for Week 5 of our Indian cooking class - these bhajia are best cooked and eaten straight away.  I kept mine until the next day, but they had lost their crispiness by then (but were still yummy!)

Ingredients:
1 onion
1 or 2 big leaves silver beet
15 Tbsp channa flour (keep some extra flour handy in case you need to add more)
1 green chilli (optional)
½ tsp chilli powder
1 tsp coriander powder
½ tsp garam masala
½ tsp salt (or to taste)
4-5 Tbsp water (or more as required)
1-2 cups oil for frying

Method:
1. Slice onion lengthwise thin and fine - the thinner you slice them, the crispier the bhajia will become.
2. Wash spinach and take the leaves off the stalk and chop coarse (no stalk) into long strips (roll up and cut thin, basically)
3. Chop the green chilli very finely.
4. Put the onion, spinach, chilli, and all dry spices in a mixing bowl.
5. Sift the flour and salt into a bowl.
6. Gradually add the sifted flour into the onion mixture, rubbing it in with your fingers until firm and sticky, add water as required (because onions and spinach tend to leave their own water) and mix well.
7. Heat plenty of oil in a deep pan, but do not let it get too hot.
8. With your fingers, put small dollops (no bigger than 2.5cm/1") of the mixture into the oil to fry - just a few at a time.
9. Fry them slowly until crisp and golden on the outside, and cooked through in the centre - about 3-4 minutes.  If the oil is too hot, they will be raw and gooey inside.
10. Drain in a sieve placed over a bowl and then serve hot with tomato ketchup or mint chutney.

Beetroot Dip

Those that like beetroot will enjoy trying this one over summer - this recipe was given to me at the Low Cost cooking class I went to.

Ingredients:
1 large beetroot
¼ red onion
2 regular sized lemons
½ tsp dried oregano
2 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp sea salt
pinch cayenne pepper
2 Tbsp olive oil

Method:
Put all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.  That simple!

Oatie Pancakes

Another one from the good ol' Intermediate cookbook - my sons both love these, and I feel like they have a little bit more nutritional value than regular pikelets (I make them small, like pikelets, so they're easier to eat).

Ingredients:
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup rolled oats
1 beaten egg
25g butter, melted
2 Tbsp sugar
½ cup flour
2 tsp baking powder

Method: 
Soak rolled oats in milk for 5 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients and mix well.
Cook as you would pikelets - I place spoonfuls in the sandwich press, so I don't need to use butter or oil for cooking.

The original recipe had a mock maple syrup recipe to serve it with - which is rather extravagant, but I'll put it here, just in case.  Generally, we just eat them plain, or with a slice of banana on top.

Mock Maple Syrup
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup water
1 tsp vanilla essence
- boil sugar and water until sugar is dissolved.  Cool and add vanilla.

Aioli

The only thing I don't like about aioli is that it has raw egg in it, so that's something to watch if you're pregnant or otherwise not willing to run the risk - otherwise, aioli is delicious!

Ingredients:
3 egg yolks
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste
2-3 lemons worth of juice
1 tsp sugar
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
1 cup canola oil

Method:
Bung all ingredients except the oil in a food processor and mix thoroughly.  Slowly add the oil - you'll see the consistency change as you do it.

Pikelets

This recipe is from the good ol' Edmonds cookbook - which every self-respecting Kiwi must have a copy of!!  We have the 1998 edition (my copy) and the 1976 edition (which I think belonged to hubby's grandma?) - there's quite a few differences between the two books, so it's handy having them both!

I admit to shortening the method to "my" way of doing pikelets, because it works well for me!!

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1 egg
¼ cup sugar
3/4 cup milk

Method:
Put flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl.  Put egg and sugar in, and mix well.  Add milk, and mix until just combined.  Drop little spoonfuls into a lightly greased frying pan.  Turn pikelets when they start to bubble on the surface.  Cook second side until golden.

I usually cook my pikelets in the sandwich press (but not pressing them flat!) - that way I don't have to grease the pan with butter or oil.  I also often reduce the amount of sugar, with no discernible difference in the taste - halve the sugar content, and it makes you feel better about feeding them to the kids!

As a variation, I sometimes puree some vegetables and mix this in (adjust the amount of milk accordingly - sometimes you need a bit more or a bit less, to get the right consistency).  With the wee bit of sugar, it makes the pikelets a tasty way of feeding veges to that reluctant toddler!

Rice Bubble Cake

This was always one of my favourites as a kid, and I still love it now. At least one of my boys does too (the second one hasn't tried it yet, as he's not a year old yet, and it has honey in it).

Ingredients:
125g butter
3 tsp sugar
2 heaped tsp honey
5 cups rice bubbles

Method:
1. Add butter, sugar and honey to a large saucepan (large enough to later add the rice bubbles) and melt over a medium heat.
2. Bring the mixture to the boil and allow it to turn over for about four minutes or until the mixture starts to turn brown.  Stir occasionally.
3. Remove from the heat and add the rice bubbles.  Stir well to evenly mix everything together.
4. Press the mixture into a lined tin and chill in the fridge until set.
5. Cut into pieces and enjoy!

Chocolate Cake in a Mug

Sometimes you just want a slice of chocolate cake, but don't want to make an entire cake. Well, the solution is here, thanks to Ally - a chocolate cake made in a mug, and it takes less than 5 minutes from thinking "Hmm, I want cake" to sitting down and eating it!

Ingredients
•1 - Coffee Mug
•4 - tablespoons flour
•4 - tablespoons sugar
•2 - tablespoons baking cocoa
•1 - egg
•3 - tablespoons milk
•3 - tablespoons oil
•3 -4 - tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
•Small splash of vanilla extract

Directions
1.Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well . Add the egg and mix thoroughly.
2.Pour in the milk and oil and mix well.
3.Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla, and mix again.
4.Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 2 minutes at 1000 watts.

Personally, I just bung everything in the mug at the same time, give it a good ol' mix, and toss it in the microwave. Delicious!

Muesli Bars

A while ago, I came upon this recipe at Towards Sustainability - it's a great muesli bar recipe, and got the thumbs-up from Michael (see this link here for his reaction the first time we made it), but we haven't made it often, as both my boys seem to prefer the muffin-style muesli bars these days.

Ingredients

2 cups rolled oats
6 crushed Weet Bix
½ cup sultanas
60g dried apricots, chopped
1 cup 100% orange juice
1/3 cup honey
2 egg whites

Method

1. Combine orange juice and honey in a small saucepan, and simmer over medium heat for around 10 minutes, until it thickens and forms a thin syrup.

2. Combine oats, Weet Bix, sultanas and apricots in a bowl. Add syrup and stir to combine. Add egg whites and mix.

3. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Press mixture into a lined 18 x 28cm tin, and bake 20-25 minutes until golden.

4. Cool in tin, turn out and cut into bars. They will last for up to a week in an air-tight container.