Delicious on a Dime

At first glance of this cookbook with it's title one might think it was printed awhile ago. After reading the page of acknowledgements, the book was done not so long ago, 2012. The premise is to use non-pricey ingredients to create cost effective or cost cutting delicious recipes. Saving you time and money while eating well.

With 154 recipes, there is something for everyone. Each recipe has a point breakdown into Prep, Bake/Cook Time, Yield/Serves, and a Cost per Serving. There are helpful Kitchen Tips for boosting flavour, substituting an ingredient, storing, adding more veggies, making it healthier, adding more spice, omitting nuts, and saving time. All in all this cookbook is quite handy. 

There are plenty of recipes to ponder over like Chicken Tamale Casserole, Baked Pasta with Peas and Ham, Potato, Pepper and Chorizo Hash with Fried Eggs, Green Salad with Roasted Beets, Goats Cheese and Almonds, Salmon, Potato Green Bean Salad, "Fried" Ice Cream Truffles, and Mocha Truffle Cake. I am going to share this interesting recipe from the cookbook...

Pretzel-Crusted Chicken Nuggets

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Prep: 15 mins  Bake: 25 min  Serves:4  Cost per Serving: $1.79

•2 cups salted pretzel twists (about 3 oz)

•1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

•1/2 cup all-purpose flour

•1/4 teaspoon pepper

•2 large eggs

•1 Ibs. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch pieces

1. Preheat oven to 400ºF and coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray. Place pretzels and Parmesan in a food processor and process until coarsely ground and well mixed, 20 to 30 seconds. Transfer to a large bowl.

2. Combine flour and pepper in a separate bowl. Beat eggs with 1 teaspoon water in a third bowl. 

3. Roll a chicken piece in flour mixture until throughly coated. Dip in eggs, allowing excess to drip off. Transfer to pretzel mixture and turn until throughly coated. Place chicken on baking sheet. Repeat with remaining pieces of chicken. Bake until lightly browned, 20 to 25 minutes.

Kitchen Tips: 

*Switch cuts. Make this recipe with boneless chicken thighs. Bake for about 10 minutes longer. 

*Get Saucy. Serve the nuggets with ponzu, a Japanese dipping sauce made of lemon juice, soy sauce, sugar, vinegar and grated fresh ginger. Or offer a honey-mustard or barbecue option if you prefer.  

It's been hot and humid here; doing what we can to stay hydrated and cool. - JD   

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies

I know, what an interesting combination. Who would have thought that peanut butter, chocolate chips and pumpkin would work so well together to create a delicious cookie. The texture is velvety and melts in your mouth. 

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1/2 cup caster sugar

1 cup dark demerara sugar, not packed

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin purée  

1 cup unbleached flour

1 cup whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons ground flax seeds

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 cups Old Fashion Rolled Oats

1 cup good quality chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375ºF.

In a large bowl mix together the unbleached flour, whole wheat flour, ground flax seeds, baking soda, salt and oats. Set aside.

In another large cream together the peanut butter, butter, caster sugar and brown sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla to the creamed mixture. Add the pumpkin purée and stir until combine. Gradually add in the flour mixture and stirring until well combine. 

Add in the chocolate chips, stirring until evenly distributed.

Drop the cookie dough by spoonfuls onto a non-stick baking tray. Gently press the top with a floured fork. Bake in a preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until matte and golden.

Feeling a bit better today. Hope everyone had a good weekend! - JD 

Chickpea & Cauliflower Curry

I really enjoyed creating this for dinner... super delicious and full of, what I call, spicy goodness. Cauliflower and chickpeas were a great way to change up one of our dinner favourites, curry. This curry sauce is easy and able to adapt to any veggies you wish to add or meat, if you are so inclined, however it was unanimous that this vegetarian version was the preferred dish hands down! 

Cauliflower & Chickpea Curry

--------------------------------------------------------------

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1 onion, diced

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed

fresh ginger, peeled and crushed

2 teaspoons ground coriander

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 large can of diced tomatoes

1x 15 ounce can of coconut milk

1 x 15 ounce can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 medium head of cauliflower, cut into florets

4 teaspoons garam masala

Fresh chopped cilantro for a garnish

In a large stock pot, heat the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and sauté for about 10 minutes. Stir in the coriander, cumin, cinnamon, turmeric, and sauté for 1 minute.

Add the tomatoes, chickpeas, cauliflower and coconut milk. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in the garam masala and cook uncovered for about 10 minutes, until it thickens slightly. Stir in the fresh cilantro. Serve with your preference of rice. 

Hope everyone is having a good week. Just think... the weekend is almost here. - JD  

Lovely Green Goddess Dip

I did make the Green Goddess Dip that I posted about before Christmas. Here it is! in it's cool pale green glory. I avoided the anchovy paste, used white wine, and did about 3/4 cup low fat sour cream and 1/4 cup light mayonnaise. It was quite easy to make and very delicious. Next time, I will definitely add an avocado. Just in case you missed the recipe I am posting it again. Enjoy! 

Green Goddess Dip

-----------------------------------------------------

Makes about 2 cups

1/4 cup white wine or white balsamic vinegar

1/2 - 1 cup chopped fresh parsley (stems removes)

3 green onions, chopped 

small bunch of fresh chives, chopped 

1 teaspoon - 1 tablespoon anchovy paste (optional)

1 - 2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tablespoon lemon juice (or to taste)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 freshly ground black pepper 

1 cup low fat mayonnaise

Purée the vinegar, parsley, green onions, chives, anchovy paste (if you like), garlic, lemon juice, and salt and pepper in the bowl of a food processor until smooth; blend in the mayonnaise. Refrigerate until ready to serve.  

* You can add a mashed ripe avocado to the mixture before adding the mayonnaise.

Just getting back into the swing of things with our usual schedules. - JD  

Delicious Oat Bran Flax Muffins

I must start off by saying these muffins are by far the most tasty muffins I have made. Packed with loads of fibre, some fruit and veg to maximize taste and give a simple healthy twist. These would be great to start your day, as a snack or for packed lunches. They do have nuts however if you are unable to enjoy nuts or can not have them at school or work then just omit them and add raisins instead.

Delicious Oat Bran Flax Muffins

-------------------------------------------------------------

makes 12 muffins

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

 3/4 cup ground flax seed 

3/4 cup oat bran

1 cup of dark brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground British mixed spice, optional 

3/4 cup milk (skim or 2%, which ever you prefer)

2 eggs, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 cups shredded carrots

2 apples, peeled and shredded

1 orange, rind grated 

1 cup chopped nuts (unsalted walnuts, almonds or mixed nuts) 

Pre heat the oven to 350ºF (175ºC)

Grease a muffin tin or line the tin with muffin papers.

Shred... grate the carrots, apples and the orange rind then set aside.  

In a large bowl combine all the dry ingredients (flour, ground flax, oat bran, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and mixed spice). Set aside.

In a medium bowl combine all the wet ingredients (milk, eggs, vanilla, oil, carrots, apples and grated orange rind) plus the nuts and give a stir to combine those ingredients. Now add the wet ingredients to the bowl of dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Fill the prepared muffin cups about 2/3 of the way full. Bake in the preheated 350ºF (175ºC) oven for 15 or 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. 

Notes: I thought that the next time I make these I will cut down on the amount of sugar added. I may also add 1 to 2 cups of grated zucchini. You may also want to add about 1/2 cup of raisins or dried cranberries. Replace some of the flour with whole wheat flour.  

Hope everyone had a great weekend! - JD 

Super Easy Ice Cream

Basically this ice cream has 2 ingredients and I just happened to have those 2 ingredients. This recipe is super easy, hence the name, and is great for kids to make too. Plus, it gives anyone a chance to be creative in developing an ice cream flavour. Because it was my first time making ice cream this way, I do have a very good quality ice cream maker, I kept the flavour basic. However we did have fun at the dinner table discussing which flavours we want to create. I would say the texture is a semi soft creamy ice cream. Which melts in your mouth beautifully. 

To make this super easy ice cream you will need the following ingredients:

1 pint (473ml) whipping cream/heavy cream

1 can (14 oz) of sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon ground vanilla bean - optional

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips - optional

First, pour the whipping cream into a large bowl and using a hand held mixer blend until soft peaks form.

Once the soft peaks have been established add the condensed milk. Mix until thick and well combined.  

The ice cream mixture should look like this. Nice, thick, and creamy. 

Now it is time for the fun bit... creating an ice cream flavour. I added ground vanilla bean and mini chocolate chips. However the possibilities are endless so be creative and fun. Using a spatula stir until the ice cream mixture and flavours are combined. 

Pour the flavoured ice cream mixture into a freezer safe container cover with cling film and place the lid on. Freeze for about 6 hours.  

After 6 hours the ice cream should look like this. Solid and firm... and ready to eat. 

A perfectly delicious scoop every time! 

Vegan Blueberry Banana Bread

Most of the time I luv to browse through my cookbook collection searching for promising recipes. However sometimes recipes just fall into my lap, as did with this one. A friend posted it and I just happened to be in the right place at the right time and voila! I had all the ingredients except the soy milk. Not a problem I went to the grocery store and bought some. This recipe came from a website called Fat Free Vegan Kitchen. It is a wonderful blog with many recipes. I am not vegan however I do like to try different recipes and do not mind eating vegan dishes. This recipe is absolutely delicious! And I can not stress that enough. For the recipe click *HERE* This recipe will probably replace all the other banana bread recipes I use. Also read the thread of comments for suggestions and substitutions. I will be making another loaf this time I will substitute the blueberries for strawberries. Enjoy the recipe and have a wonderful weekend! - JW