Pumpkin Butter

Today I also canned pumpkin butter. It is so delicious, and tastes absolutely amazing on toast. It's like eating pumpkin pie for breakfast!


Ingredients:
1) 1 29 ounce can pumpkin puree
2) 3/4 cup apple juice
3) 2 teaspoons ground ginger
4) 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
5) 1 1/2 cups white sugar
6) 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
7) 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Instructions:
Prepare for canning by filling a large pot a metal canning rack. Place five half-pint jars in the pot and fill the pot, 1/2 inch over the tops of the glass jar with water. Turn the stove on high and place the top on the large pot. To make the water boil faster, place a towel over the top of the pot to insulate.
Combine pumpkin, apple juice, spices, and sugar in a large saucepan; stir well. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, and sirmmer for 30 minutes or until thickened. Stir frequently.
Pour hot into hot, sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space. Adjust the caps. Process half-pint jars for ten minutes in a boiling water bath.
If you choose not to can the pumpkin butter, then place the pumpkin butter in sterile containers and chill in the refrigerator until serving.

Onion and Cabbage Pakoras

Today Little Betty was in the kitchen cooking some Indian food...yum! I've made onion and cabbage pakoras before and they were gone within an hour of making them. So I made them again, and the same thing happened. Pakoras contain protein since they use gram flour, a flour made from ground chickpeas. Gram flour is also known as chickpea flour, garbanzo flour, or besan. It's a staple ingredient in Indian, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi cuisines.


I fry my pakoras in extra virgin olive oil, because I love the taste the olive oil adds. I also love the health benefits extra virgin olive oil has over other oils typically used for frying.

Ingredients:
1) 1 large onion
2) 3 bunches of green onions
3) 1 pound bag of coleslaw mix
4) 1 1/2 cup chickpea flour (also known as besan, gram flour, and garbanzo flour)
5) 1 tablespoon salt
6) 1/2 cup water
7) 1/2 teaspoon tumeric
8) Extra virgin olive oil to fry

Instructions:
Chop the onion and combine it with the coleslaw mix in the bowl. Slowly add the besan and mix. Add the water slowly. Stir and mix until they all come together. It should not be too dry or too runny. If the mix is too dry, the pakoras won't stick together in a ball, however if the mix is too wet, you'll end up with pancake-style pakoras.


Heat the olive oil and add the pakora mix, one heaping tablespoon at a time. Wait until golden brown. You can serve pakoras with ketchup if you wish, however I'm not a ketchup-fan, so I just eat my pakoras plain. Pakoras taste similar to onion rings, although they are much healthier.

Blueberry Cobbler

My Grandma bought 2 pounds of fresh blueberries at Sam's Club today (there's only 2 of us to eat them) so I decided to make some cobbler! It was so buttery and delicious!
Ingredients:
24 ounces fresh blueberries
1/3 cup plus 4 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 ½ cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ sticks (6 ounces) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2/3 cup whole milk (I used Silk unsweetened almond milk since that’s all I had in the house)
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375°. Butter an 8-by-8-by-2-inch baking dish.
2. Mix the blueberries with 1/3 cup of the sugar and 2 tablespoons of the flour. Spoon into the baking dish.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together the remaining 11/2 cups of flour and 3 tablespoons of sugar with the baking powder and salt. Cut the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or 2 knives until it resembles coarse meal. Add the milk and vanilla and stir with a fork to form a wet, sticky dough. Drop rounded teaspoons of the dough over the top of the blueberries to cover them. Sprinkle the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar on top of the cobbler and place the baking dish on the middle rack of the oven. (Place aluminum foil on the rack directly below the cobbler to catch any juices that might spill over.) Bake for 45 minutes, or until the top is golden-brown and the fruit filling is bubbling up through the crust.
4. Let the cobbler cool for at least 20 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Preparation Time: 20 minutes, Cook Time: 45 minutes, Makes: 4 servings
Adapted from Rachel Ray

Vegan Basil Mac-N-Cheese

Ingredients (use vegan versions):
Pasta:
1 pound macaroni
3 cups water for cooking vegetables (1 cup reserved for sauce)
1 large zucchini (about 2 cups), cubed
1 small onion (about 1 cup), cubed
2 medium potatoes (about 2 cups), cubed
12 to 14 fresh basil leaves
1 cup raw cashews
2 to 3 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 cup unsweetened nondairy milk

Topping:
2 cups fresh bread crumbs
1 teaspoon kosher salt and black pepper
4 to 5 basil leaves
1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Cook pasta as directed until al dente in salted water, and drain. In a medium sauce pan, add 3 cups water, onions, potatoes, and zucchini and boil until potatoes are tender.

2. In a high powered blender, add basil, cashews, garlic, lemon juice, and salt. Strain the boiled veggies (reserving 1 cup of the liquid), and add the veggies to the blender. Lastly, add the milk and veggie water to the blender as well, and blend on high until very smooth.

3. For the topping, I suggest you make your own breadcrumbs by cubing some stale or day-old french bread and pulsing in a food processor, then add the salt, pepper, and basil to the processor. Turn on and stream in the tablespoon olive oil for a few seconds, until well coated and mixed.

4. Pour the sauce into a 9x13" casserole dish, then add the drained pasta. Mix until well combined. Sprinkle bread crumb topping evenly over pasta, and bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for about 20 minutes. Serve warm.

Makes: 1 casserole or 8-10 servings, Preparation time: 10 minutes, Cooking time: 1 hour