Coconut Oil

I have been reading a lot about coconut oil because of the questions about it brought up at the last Relief Society meeting.

Coconut and palm oils are the only plant oils that contain a high percentage of saturated fat, however, they are also high in lauric acid. Lauric acid actually raises HDL cholesterol in your body which decreases risk of heart attack and stroke. When using coconut oil, make sure that it is virgin coconut oil as hydrogenated coconut oils contain trans fats which are not very good. There are tons of claims for different health benefits that come from using coconut oil but there is little research to back the claims at the moment. Just remember to be moderate in your use of any oil/fat as they are high in calories.

If you want to read more about coconut oil, I found the following 2 articles to be informative:

Coo Coo for Coconuts: http://isacksrd.com/?p=792

Once a Villain, Coconut Oil Charms the Health Food World: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/02/dining/02Appe.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

RS Meeting for March

Mark your calendar! The Relief Society Meeting for March is March 17. There will be a pasta bar, cupcakes to celebrate the birthday of Relief Society, and a special speaker. Nursery will also be provided.

National Nutrition Month

March is National Nutrition Month - this year's theme is "Eat Right With Color".

Different foods add a variety of color, texture, shape and flavor to meals and snacks, as well as different nutrients. Vary the color on your plate to provide a festive and nutritious meal.

Here are some ideas of different colored produce:

• Green: avocados, apples, grapes, honeydew, melons, kiwi, limes, artichokes, asparagus, broccoli, green beans, green peppers and leafy greens such as spinach
• Orange and deep yellow: apricots, cantaloupe, grapefruits, mangos, papayas, peaches, pineapples, carrots, yellow peppers, yellow corn and sweet potatoes
• Purple and blue: blackberries, blueberries, plums, raisins, eggplant, purple cabbage and purple-fleshed potatoes
• Red: cherries, cranberries, pomegranate, red/pink grape fruit, red grapes, watermelon, beets, red onions, red peppers, rhubarb and tomatoes
• White, tan and brown: bananas, brown pears, dates, white peaches, cauliflower, mushrooms, onions, parsnips, turnips, white-fleshed potatoes and white corn.

Go to http://www.eatright.org/NNM/ for some recipes, games and quizzes. (I found a pdf of recipes on their home page, but it is also in the "Nutrition Education Resources" section)

Heart Healthy Recipe Book

For a 156-page recipe book of heart healthy recipes put together by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, go to the following link:

http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/other/ktb_recipebk/ktb_recipebk.pdf

Heart Healthy Recipes

To find several recipes that are Heart Healthy by the American Heart Association - Go here (http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/NutritionCenter/Recipes/Recipes_UCM_001184_SubHomePage.jsp).

The Mayo Clinic also has a ton of Heart Healthy recipes on their website: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/heart-healthy-recipes/RE00098

Picky Eaters

Go here (http://www.eatright.org/Public/content.aspx?id=6442462194) for a short article giving some ideas for tackling that picky eating phase.

Healthy Snack Ideas

Looking for a snack? Here are 5 healthy ideas:

1. Peel a banana and dip it in low-fat yogurt. Roll in crushed cereal and freeze.
2. Spread celery sticks with peanut butter or low-fat cream cheese and top with raisins for "ants on a log."
3. Stuff a whole-grain pita pocket with ricotta cheese and Granny Smith apple slices. Add a dash of cinnamon.
4. Mix together ready-to-eat cereal, dried fruit and nuts in a sandwich bag for an on-the-go snack.
5. Smear a scoop of frozen yogurt on two graham crackers and add sliced banana to make a yummy sandwich.

Red Velvet Pancakes

Here is what we will be trying for breakfast this morning...This would be a fun breakfast idea for Valentine's Day!

Red Velvet Pancakes

1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 large egg
¾ cup buttermilk
¼ cup sour cream
1 teaspoon red food coloring (or more if you want them more red!)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl and set aside. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk, sour cream, food coloring and vanilla. Add wet ingredients to dry, and mix just until combined.

Pour about 1/3 cup onto medium/high griddle and lightly brown on both sides.

http://www.zupas.com/index.php/2011/02/recipe-red-velvet-pancakes/

RS Meeting Tonight

Sorry I haven't posted much this year...I guess that's what happens when you have a baby :) Anyways, just wanted to remind you all that we have our Relief Society Meeting tonight (Wed, Jan 19) at 7pm. See you there!

French Toast Casserole

I saw a post for this recipe before Christmas- we tried it yesterday and it was delicious!

French Toast Casserole

5 cups bread cubes
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup white sugar, divided
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon margarine, softened
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly butter an 8x8 inch baking pan.
2. Line bottom of pan with bread cubes. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, milk, 2 tablespoons sugar, salt and vanilla. pour egg mixture over bread. Dot with margarine; let stand for 10 minutes.
3. Combine remaining 2 tablespoons sugar with 1 teaspoon cinnamon and sprinkle over the top. Bake in preheated oven about 45 to 50 minutes, until top is golden.

Here is a link to the original post: http://www.mormonmommyblogs.com/2010/12/tasty-tuesday-christmas-french-toast.html

Frosty Recipe

Yes, I know it is winter but I have been craving ice cold drinks lately...I blame it on pregnancy :)

Here is a recipe for my current favorite cold drink.

Frosty

Combine in blender:
1 1/2 to 2 cups ice water
1 1/2 cup Nonfat dry milk powder
2/3 to 2/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 tsp vanilla
1 to 1 1/2 trays ice cubes (I just add ice cubes until it is the consistency I want)
2 Tbsp oil for emulsification

Pumpkin Squares

I keep meaning to post the recipe for Pumpkin Squares - this is the dessert we had at our wonderful Relief Society Meeting last week.

Sorry I haven't been the greatest at posting stuff lately :)

Pumpkin Squares

Whip together:
16 oz pumpkin
4 eggs
1 cup oil
1 2/3 cup sugar

Sift together:
2 cups flour
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Combine all ingredients and pour into a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Cool and frost.

Frosting:
Cream together:
1 8oz cream cheese
1/2 cup butter
Add 1 lb powdered sugar and 1 tsp vanilla
Mix until creamy and frost cooled pumpkin squares.

Reminder

Don't forget about the Relief Society Meeting - Wednesday, Dec 1 at 6:30pm. Join us for a program and dinner. Nursery will be provided. Also, you can bring any donations for The Child and Family Support Center that evening.

Child and Family Support Center of Cache Valley

The Child and Family Support Center in Cache Valley needs our help! They are a 24 hour crisis nursery which helps over 3,000 children under the age of 12 each year.They are in desperate need of warm jammies, socks, supplies for new babies, and cleaning supplies, but any donations would be greatly appreciated. They are happy to accept gently used items, so this might be a good time to go through your kids' closets - they need things for children under 12.

Please donate any new or gently used items by December 1. You can drop things off with Natalie McNeil, Karma Waite or Cheryl Bodily or you can bring any donations to the Relief Society Meeting on Dec 1.

Chocolate Turtle Cookies

Blake (my 2 year old) and I made these tonight. They were super easy and very fast - perfect for little kids to help with :)


The recipe calls for the cookies to be frosted, but we didn't take the time to make frosting - they still tasted great to me!

Chocolate Turtle Cookies

1/2 cup melted butter
3/4 sup sugar
2 eggs
6 Tbsp cocoa
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup flour

Mix melted butter and sugar, add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Drop by teaspoons on a medium-hot waggle iron, grill with the lid down. Cook for 1 minute. cool then frost. Makes about 2 dozen.

Roasting a pumpkin

I found this tutorial on roasting a pumpkin. They also talk about making pumpkin puree and they have links to some pumpkin recipes at the bottom of the post.

Have a Happy Halloween!!!

http://www.zupas.com/index.php/2010/10/how-to-roast-a-pumpkin/

Announcement

I just posted 23 recipes from this week's Relief Society Meeting, so scroll down and enjoy! Thanks to everyone who contributed!!!

~Samantha Rasmussen

Money Saving Mom's Sweet Potato Casserole

Money Saving Mom's Sweet Potato Casserole

4 cups sweet potatoes, mashed
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoons vanilla
2/3 cups milk
6 Tablespoons butter, melted

Topping:
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/3 cup butter
chopped pecans, opt

Mix first six ingredients together and spread in a 9x13-inch dish. Mix topping ingredients together and sprinkle over sweet potato mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Makes approximately 10 servings. This can be made the day before and baked the next day.

http://moneysavingmom.com/2008/11/thanksgiving-on-a-budget-sweet-potato-casserole-and-make-ahead-mashed-potatoes.html

Angie’s Homemade Donuts

Angie’s Homemade Donuts

2 cans of biscuits
Granulated sugar
Vegetable oil

Use a cap from a 20oz soda (or something similar) to make a hole in the center of each biscuit. Heat 3 inches of oil on medium/high. Place donuts and donut holes in the oil for about a minute on each side, until golden brown. Remove from oil and place on a paper towel to soak up the excess oil. Put some sugar in a small bag, add the warm donuts to the bags and let them shake, shake, shake until the donuts are coated!


http://www.5dollardinners.com/2010/10/angies-home-donuts.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+5Dinners+%28%245+Dinners%29

Light Wassail

Light Wassail

1 gallon apple cider
2 tsp cinnamon
2 cups cranberry juice
½ tsp ground cloves
1 cup brown sugar
1 orange, thinly sliced

Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan or pot, adjusting sugar to taste and simmer for 30 min.

Chili

Chili

2 (16oz) cans red kidney beans, drained
2 (14.5oz) cans tomatoes
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 ½ lbs ground beef, browned
1 small onion, chopped
½ green pepper, chopped
2-3 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
Salt to taste

Combine all ingredients in a crock pot. Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours (high 3-4 hrs).

Slow Cooker Baked Potato Soup

Slow Cooker Baked Potato Soup

5 lbs potatoes, peeled and diced in 1 to 2-inch chunks
1 teeny onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon red pepper
2 quarts chicken broth
2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, to add at the end

Use a 6 quart or larger slow cooker. Peel and dice the potatoes, and put them into the stoneware. Add onion and garlic. Sprinkle in the seasonings, and pour in the broth. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or on high for 4. The potatoes should be fork-tender. If you want a smooth soup, you can use a potato masher to mash the potatoes in the soup.

After smashing the potatoes, crumble in both packages of cream cheese, and put the lid back on. Cook on high for about 30 minutes, or until the cream cheese is completely dissolved. Stir a few times during the 30 minutes.

Garnish with crumbled bacon, green onion or chives

Double Crumb Apple Crisp

Double Crumb Apple Crisp – Desta Watkins

2 cups oats
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup flour
1 Tbsp cinnamon
¼ cup sugar
½ tsp cinnamon
1 cup soft butter or margarine
1 tsp salt
½ cup chopped nuts (opt)
11 cups Apples peeled and sliced (14 apples)

Combine oats, sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt, and butter till crumbly. Mix in nuts if desired. Press about a third in the bottom of a 9×13″ pan. Spread apples over crust and sprinkle with ¼ cup sugar and ½ tsp cinnamon mixture. Sprinkle remaining crumb mixture evenly over the top. Bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes or till apples are tender. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Notes: Tart apples like Granny Smiths work best for this recipe. Golden Delicious are good too. But not Red Delicious, they are not good apples for baking, they turn mushy.

Fresh Apple Cake

Fresh Apple Cake – Desta Watkins

1¾ cups sugar
3 eggs
1 cup oil
2 cups flour
1 tsp Baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup chopped nuts (opt)
¼ tsp salt
3 cups grated or chopped apples

Cream Cheese Frosting
½ cup butter
8 oz cream cheese
1 lb powdered sugar (approximately 3 ¾ cups)

Preheat oven to 350°. In mixing bowl beat sugar, eggs and oil together. Add dry ingredients. Add apples and nuts. Pour cake in to greased 9x13 pan. Bake 350° for 50-55 min. Top with Cream Cheese Frosting and chopped nuts.

Caramel Apple Dip

Caramel Apple Dip

6 caramels
1 tsp water
4 oz cream cheese, softened
5 Tbsp brown sugar
½ tsp vanilla

Melt caramels and water in small glass bowl in microwave. Beat cream cheese till smooth. Slowly beat in melted caramel, brown sugar, and vanilla. Serve with sliced apples.