Holiday Cheer

Here is a family recipe for no-egg eggnog. I think your family isn't really big on eggnog, but mine definitely is. Here's a recipe for eggnog with no raw eggs, so you don't have to be creeped out. I love this stuff and Ryan likes it, too.

1 pkg. (3.5 oz) French vanilla instant pudding
5 cups milk
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup whipping cream, whipped
1/2 tsp. each nutmeg and cinnamon (for topping each serving)

1. In a blender, combine all ingredients except whipped cream and spices, or beat by hand for two minutes.

2. Blend the mixture into the whipped cream and chill thoroughly.

3. Shake the eggnog just before serving it. Sprinkle the top of each glass with nutmeg and cinnamon if desired.

Also, I made THIS recipe and it will be coming out of the oven in a few minutes. I'm taking some to our book club Christmas party tonight. I don't see how it could be anything but delicious.

Veggie Chili

I have been wanting to whip up a veggie chili for a while now and I finally forgot about the weather outdoors (high in the 90s yesterday, yes October 19th) and hunkered down to make it. We plan to whip this up for October's family dinner later this month so we tried out our own version of veggie chili. I might make a couple small adjustments for that version... we shall see. Siblings, don't put your nose up yet. I think you might actually enjoy this stuff. If not, we'll have tortilla chips on hand! ;o) 

I got the idea for using zucchini from a pin I recently put up on Pinterest for Spicy Vegan Chili by acozykitchen.com. I guess this is vegan chili as well if you don't use the cheese topping! Credit for the idea to use RO*TEL to spice things up goes to another pin for Chicken Tortilla Soup by shopchopnserve.blogspot.com.

Ingredients:

1-2 T vegetable oil

1 zucchini, quartered lengthwise, then sliced thin

1/2 white onion, rough chopped

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1/2 green pepper, diced

1 can original RO*TEL (tomatoes with green chilies)

1 can petite diced peeled tomatoes

1 can black beans

1 can pinto beans

a few shakes of cumin

a few shakes of chili powder

dash or two of salt

dash or two of freshly ground pepper 

Warm vegetable oil over medium heat in large pan or medium pot. Throw in garlic and onion to start things off. After the air is potent and you are getting hungry, add in the green pepper and zucchini. After that cooks and slightly browns for a couple minutes, add in the canned goods (tomatoes and beans) and the spices. Let simmer on medium low heat for approximately 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. From first chop to last bite it was a total of one hour! We were able to enjoy this on a busy night. 

Top with: cheese, diced onion, cilantro, sour cream... the options are endless. We stuck with just some shredded medium cheddar cheese and served with tortilla chips.

Makes approximately 4-6 servings depending on the level of starvation.

I really liked the spice that the RO*TEL added to the dish. This was a winner in my book!

More pumpkin cookies

I made these cookies today to take to Jamie as a birthday treat at school. They're not low fat, but they sure are tasty. I added regular choc chips for good measure.

Low Fat Pumpkin Spiced Chocolate Chip Cookies

I made THIS recipe and it turned out great! I only used unbleached white flour, though. AND I have made the regular low fat choc chip recipe that this was adapted from and they didn't turn out that well.

Burrito Bowls

Here's an easy dinner idea that is GF. I even got the chips she recommends from Target and they are delicious (and healthy)!

Burrito Bowls

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Filled Crepes

October Conference weekend makes me want to make all things pumpkin! Yesterday I made pumpkin waffles for breakfast. This morning was pumpkin cream cheese filled crepes. I made my usual crepe recipe, but used the cream cheese recipe found HERE. Topped with whipped cream, it was like having pumpkin pie for breakfast!

7 layer tostadas

Here's an easy "recipe" I made for dinner tonight. I was the only one with 7 layers on my tostada, but that's the beauty of a customize-able recipe for dinner!

7 layer tostadas

(This recipe calls for whole wheat tortillas as the base, but we just used regular tostada shells, which makes it gluten-free for those who need it to be!)