First Place Winner - Spicy Zucchini Omelet

July was a busy month for me, but somehow I found a sliver of time to participate in the Summer 2011 Dining on a Dollar Contest on Food.com. It's always a surprise to me when I enter more than one recipe in a contest to see which one gets the most attention. There is always one that I put the most time and effort into, convinced that it's the best creation, and there is always one (or maybe two) that I feel are good, but not great. It amazes me that the less I over-think a recipe the more attention it gets. Someday I might learn that it's always going to be that way and I'll quit over-thinking... well, maybe.

This contest was no different though, and after toiling for days over two over-constructed, over-thought and out-of-the-box recipes, I just needed to use up the rest of the contest ingredients and submit the two best recipes. It was breakfast time, on a day when Bryan and I were both off work, and the "genius" recipe I had planned on winning the contest with was a total flop! We still needed to eat, but I wasn't going to make my family suffer that atrocious creation. The Mystery Muffins went straight into the garbage and I took one last look at the list of contest ingredients.

I needed to use five ingredients from the list, and one of them had to be zucchini to qualify. I scanned the cluster of vegetables and spices already on my counter top and gathered the shredded zucchini, eggs, cumin, purple onion and jarred salsa. Before I knew it I was cooking up an omelet to feed the family. When we sat down to eat and my feedback was all positive, I realized I could submit this recipe for the contest instead of one of the other two I had planned on. It was really down to the wire for submissions and I hadn't done any "work" on the recipe, but at this point I had nothing to lose.

I've had several recipes in the top 5 or 10 over the years, but the fun of contests for me is simply the challenge of creating a new, original recipe, using specific ingredients. Often there are ingredients I wouldn't normally pair up that turn out surprisingly good. I was delighted to see my omelet in the number one spot this round, but especially surprised when it stayed there and took home the first place win! I'd like to share the slightly revised recipe. After all the reviews were in I took the main suggestion to saute the onion and zucchini before adding to the egg mixture. This is probably something I would have done anyway, had I considered what I was doing contest-worthy, and not just a way to use up the ingredients and quiet the natives. Feel free to substitute white onion for the purple, reduce the number of eggs, and even add some garlic, if desired. Enjoy!

Spicy Zucchini Omelet

2 tablespoons purple onions, finely diced
1/2 cup fresh zucchini, shredded (squeeze tightly to remove moisture)
6 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons cold water
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
3 tablespoons salsa (medium to hot)
sour cream (optional for serving)

1. Spray a skillet with non-stick cooking spray and heat on medium heat. Saute the onion and zucchini to soften, but not brown.
2. Meanwhile, add the water, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper to the eggs and lightly beat to combine.
3. Pour egg mixture into skillet, over the onion and zucchini, stir quickly to combine and then allow it to cook, untouched, for about 3 minutes.
4. Using a rubber spatula, gently lift egg around the edges, pushing slightly in toward the center, to allow the uncooked egg to flow underneath.
5. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook about 3-4 minutes, or until the top is mostly set.
6. Pour the salsa in a straight line from one end of the omelet to the other, just off center.
7. Gently pick up the opposite side of the omelet with your spatula and quickly fold it over onto the salsa.
Serve with sour cream and additional salsa.
Serves: 3-4, Prep time: 10 minutes, Cook time: 8 minutes

Homemade Chicken Stock

Homemade Chicken Stock For Cooking

I've been MIA for a few months and although I've been thinking a lot about cooking and writing, none is really getting done. I took a job in April as Head Baker at Jake's Gluten Free Market. The market has been around for about 10 years but the bakery was just added in April. I have to admit I was a little apprehensive, as I've never worked in a commercial bakery before and now I was going to be opening one! Coordinating family schedules hasn't been easy, but just like every other time, we seem to adjust and adapt in some way that meets the demands. Unfortunately, getting up early, working a physically demanding job and then dealing with an energetic toddler the rest of the day hasn't left me with any excess energy for cooking or baking at home. One recipe that has really saved me from subsisting on fast food and cold cereal these past few months has been homemade chicken and vegetable stock.

The first time I made my own stock was in October of 2009. I admit that I'm not big on leftovers, but I don't like to waste food either. The one thing I never had any desire to re-purpose though, was the leftover chicken or turkey carcass. Eww! Just saying the word carcass makes me gag! I don't even like getting close enough to the bones to cut off all the meat. We usually ended up throwing out enough for a good batch of soup. I remember watching mom while she meticulously picked off every bit of meat after the Thanksgiving meal. She made some delicious dishes with those leftovers, and I could even enjoy them if I forced that visual out of my head!

When trying to reduce the amount of sodium in our diet from canned foods and continue my effort to make everything homemade at least once, I tried a recipe posted on Food.com by Nana Lee for Homemade Chicken Stock For Cooking. I couldn't believe I was using chicken bones and whole vegetables... without waste! I was so excited about it that I made Bryan and Nick come look into the pot. Of course, they expected some delicious looking meal to accompany the aroma filling the kitchen. Instead, they stood stunned wondering what the heck had gotten into me, when they saw celery leaves & onion peels floating around with chicken bones! And there I was, also wide-eyed, but instead of bewilderment I looked like Christmas had come early!

I've made several different stocks and broths since that first time and I love that I can simply toss all my vegetable ends and leaves into a large Ziploc baggie that I keep in the freezer, until I have enough for a batch of stock. I also freeze the chicken bones now too and having these items handy in the freezer has allowed me to make healthy, homemade soups while we're adjusting to our busy new schedules. I started my stock-making with Nana Lee's recipe because her instructions are well-written, detailed and with a sense of humor. It felt like my own grandma was standing there teaching me her family recipe and gave me the confidence to attempt what I thought was going to be complicated, and... Well, gross. It wasn't at all what I expected and the end result is amazing. I encourage everyone to try this. I make a batch when I have enough chicken and/or veggies to boil down and then freeze it in 2 cup portions. Use it just like you would a can of chicken or vegetable broth, but with the knowledge that it's fresh, low/no salt and free of preservatives.

Another of my favorite recipes is posted on Food.com by Sharon123. This one has a light tomato base that adds a hearty flavor and rich, beautiful color.


Herb and Garlic Broth - Aigo Bouido

Spiced Vanilla Pecans

Growing up I ate hundreds, if not thousands, of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, but I wouldn't eat a peanut, and I honestly cannot remember ever eating any other kind of nut. I even avoided baked goods that contained them. Hmmm... maybe that's why I started doing my own baking! Well, after years of nut-avoidance I got a bee in my bonnet, as Grandma would say, and I followed a recipe using pecans. To my surprise, I liked them and have been sneaking them into everything from oatmeal to chicken strips ever since! While I've tried pretty much all the different nuts now, the only one I keep on hand is the pecan.

There are over 500 varieties of pecans grown around the world, with the United States making up 95% of the industry. Native American Indians were using pecans long before European settlers arrived. They used pecan oil for seasonings, ground pecans to thicken stews, cooked pecans with beans and roasted pecans were packed for nourishment on hunting trips.



Most pecan trees grow best in the moist soil of the humid, coastal regions, but there are varieties hardy enough to withstand the negative temperatures, snow and ice of northern regions.
Although pecans are a major commercial nut crop, they are not eaten much outside of America. Europeans were already enjoying the walnut, long before the pecan was discovered.

Pecan trees can take 10 years before they begin to produce nuts, like the Stuart variety, or they can produce as early as the first year, as in the case of the Desirable Pecan variety.



Since pecan trees ripen in the fall, harvesting will usually begin in mid-October and continue through November or even December. To harvest the pecans, the trees are shaken until the nuts fall off. Commercial shakers are attached to the tree trunk and as they shake and vibrate the tree, the nuts fall to the ground for collecting. The nuts are extricated from their outer husks and then sorted. Fresh pecans are then air dried for two to three weeks before storing.




Shelled pecans will begin to turn rancid when exposed to light and oxygen, so if you need to store them for more than a month, freezing them is the best option. It is suggested that they be used within a year of freezing, but they have been known to last several before quality is compromised.




The largest pecan tree in the state of Georgia, and possibly the largest pecan tree in the world, is known as the TyTy Big Pecan Tree and measures 15 feet and 5 inches around the trunk!

One of my favorite treats is found at a little country store in Boise, Idaho. They have what looks like a commercial popcorn maker but it just holds some pretty purple, wax-papered cones that are filled with the most addictive nuts! These sweet and spicy pecans (or walnuts) have a slightly crystallized sugar coating over a tender, but crunchy nut. I love this recipe posted to Food.com by Mirj (http://miriyummy.wordpress.com/), that gives me the tender but crunchy texture I’ve been looking for. They’re so easy to make, just plan ahead because the secret is allowing the nuts to marinate in the sugar mixture for 12 hours before baking. I like to use my own homemade vanilla for this recipe.

Spiced Vanilla Pecans

Getting Skinny with Soups!

According to scientists who have studied how the body responds to the same meal eaten in two different forms, soup can help you lose weight.

Let's imagine a meal for two of poached chicken, fresh vegetables and a glass of water.
Subject #1 eats the meal and drinks the water as served.
Subject #2 combines the three components into soup.

On the outside of our body they're both the same meal, besides eating one with a fork and the other a spoon. But on the inside they are completely different. Your body will process the two meals differently and using MRI and ultrasound technologies, scientists have been able to see what happens to the meals once they leave our plate.

When Subject #1 eats the food and drinks the water, the food and water will enter the stomach together, but the food will be stopped by the pyloric sphincter at the bottom of the stomach, while the water passes straight through to the intestines. While the food is being broken down by digestive juices, Subject #1 will feel full; for approximately 2 hours.

When Subject #2 eats the food and water combination as a soup, the stomach reads all of it as food and everything stays in the stomach to be broken down. The subject will feel full up to an hour and a half longer than the subject eating the solid food plus water.

All this magic happens in the stomach and starts with a little hormone discovered in 1999 called, ghrelin. Ghrelin is constantly released by special cells in the stomach wall whenever the stomach is empty and while traveling through the blood stream, ghrelin heads straight for the hypothalamus part of the brain; our body's appetite center. When Ghrelin reaches its destination, the hypothalamus sends out messages that we're hungry.

However, if the stomach wall is stretched and full, ghrelin is not produced. Consequently, the hypothalamus does not send out signals that we need to eat.

Ghrelin has another job as well, and that is to promote fat storage and inhibit stored fat breakdown in times of hunger. This may explain why some sensible diets that have the "six small meals a day" philosophy can prove successful.

Let's keep this little gremlin, I mean, ghrelin, at bay by eating more soup!

I just recently discovered No Guilt Soup posted to Food.com by TLu and by substituting fresh vegetables and dried beans instead of canned, the sodium can be reduced even more!

Homemade Refried Beans

I've mentioned before that I tend to hang on to everything. My sister is always encouraging me to de-clutter my house by getting rid of anything I'm not using. I donate a lot, every month we have stuff to give away, but my argument for keeping some things is that maybe someday I can repair or re-purpose them. And it does happen... occasionally.

Last night my teen and I were gathered around the kitchen island developing a recipe for homemade re-fried beans. We would add an ingredient, pulse the processor, taste the result and repeat. About halfway into the recipe I pushed the button to combine the most recent addition and the processor did not whir into action. I unplugged it, plugged it back in, pushed every button combination possible, and still nothing. Normally, at this point I would lovingly pack up the machine and find a spot for it in my Appliance Graveyard, also known as the garage, hoping to have it repaired in the future. But this time I decided I was just going to face the fact that I'll never get it repaired, because it's already 10 years old and I'd probably have better luck just buying a new model. So, I picked up the heavy, motor-containing base and hauled it straight to the 96 gallon garbage can that had just been emptied that morning.
It made an awful bang and a crunch as it hit bottom. I hate to admit that the sound was sort of satisfying, since after all, it was its fault that I'll be mashing and stirring by hand for another 30 minutes. But at the same time I felt a pang of guilt for not giving my faithful KitchenAid processor its rightful spot on the retired appliance shelf.

Of course, there's no turning back now, so I returned to the kitchen for the accessories and tossed them in, with slightly less aggression.
Now, washed up and back to mixing, my teen and I discussed the sadness I felt over the sudden loss of my food processor. Okay, he looked at me like he was evaluating which level of security I'd qualify for in the loony bin, as I babbled on about how it had been a good machine for all these years, but it had a couple things I didn't totally love, but it always made a great pie crust...
Finally, the mixing was over. We had tasted and adjusted the re-fried beans to our liking, and now it was time to make some cheese and bean tostadas. I pulled my favorite (20 year old) griddle down from the top of the fridge and plugged it in at the kitchen island. I turned the dial to 375° and... nothing. No light, no heat, nothing.

I looked at Nick with saucers for eyes and he began to laugh. In between near hysterical squawks he managed to get out something like, "What are the chances that you would blow up two appliances in one night?!"
That's when I felt the shock on my face turn to complete horror, as I realized what had just happened. I looked back at him and repeated what he had said, emphasizing the TWO appliances part. His laughing stopped abruptly and his face mirrored the horror on mine for just a moment before changing to something that can only be described as resignation. He got up from the island and calmly said, "I'll go get it."

Just three dumpster diving trips, a couple scrapes on his torso and one on his arm, and we had all the parts and pieces back. You don't want to know what the processor looked like, but note that it cleaned up well and believe it or not, still works like a champ! As does Nick... well, the clean up part anyway. We moved the griddle to another outlet, crisped up a few corn tortillas, spread them with our Trip the Breaker Re-Fried Beans, topped it all off with shredded cheese and slipped them under the broiler until the cheese melted. Delicious, nutritious and an exercise in temperance!

Homemade Refried Beans (Gluten Free)

2 cups dried pinto beans
1 1/2-2 cups chicken stock
2-4 cups water
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
2-3 teaspoons tomato paste
1/2 tablespoon white vinegar
3 tablespoons onions, finely chopped
1 small jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped (optional)
1 garlic clove (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
1/8 teaspoon sea salt (or to taste)
1/8 teaspoon cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder

Sort through dried beans and remove any pebbles, off-colored beans or debris. Rinse thoroughly and drain. Put beans in crock pot, add chicken stock and enough water to cover beans by about 3 inches. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours or until tender.
Drain beans, but reserve 1 cup of cooking liquid and set aside. Reserve about 1/2 cup of cooked beans and place the rest into food processor (or a large bowl to mash by hand). Pulse a few times and then add oil; process to incorporate. Add tomato paste, vinegar, onion, jalapeno, garlic, salt, cumin and chili powder; process until smooth and combined. Add reserved beans and pulse a couple times; just enough to break them up. Serve as desired.

The Great Beanie Brownie Experiment!

Brownies and donuts are like Kryptonite to my will power. I'm always testing or creating a new recipe and a few years ago, black bean brownies became one of the many unusual-ingredient recipes that I challenge myself to try once in a while. They were good, but at the time, altering or creating new recipes with black beans just wasn't a priority for me. However, I've been experimenting with gluten-free baking for a couple of years now and my interest was piqued again by the beanie brownie when I realized that many black bean brownie recipes don't call for flour; therefore, by default they're gluten-free. I've been calling recent weeks in my life, "The Great Beanie Brownie Experiment".

The real benefit of using black bean puree in brownies was replacing the fat in the recipe, making the brownies lower in fat... and dare I say, healthy! All kinds of beans contain dietary fiber, protein and no fat or cholesterol. So what better way to get your kids to eat a very healthy food, than hide it in their snacks? It's a win-win situation. In my case, my toddler who is learning to assert her independence wants to only eat two bites of dinner and then move on to dessert. I want her to eat six bites of dinner before dessert. Well, now I can accept two bites of dinner, knowing that she's getting 13 grams of fiber and 20 grams of protein in that deliciously moist, chocolatey brownie! Sure, she leaves the table thinking she's pulled one over on mom. But as a parent, we have to pick our battles, right?

We don't have to limit ourselves to brownies though. Pureed beans can be substituted for all or part of the fat (shortening or oil) called for in a recipe, and make other goodies low-fat or even fat-free. Cannellini, great Northern and small white navy beans are great choices for homemade or boxed brownies, quick breads or muffins. Either canned or dried beans can be used. Dried have zero salt and are cheaper to purchase, but will require a little extra planning. When using canned beans, simply drain and rinse the beans well, then proceed with the recipe. To use dried beans, follow these three steps the day before you want to make the dessert:

1. Put 1 cup of dried beans in a bowl. Sort through the beans and remove any rocks or discolored beans. Add two cups of water and soak the beans overnight.
2. In the morning, drain the soaking water and gently rinse beans. Put the beans into a medium saucepan and cover with two cups of fresh water. Bring to a boil and cook until beans are soft. Or, put them in a crock pot and cook on low for six to eight hours.
3. When soft, drain the cooking water, place the beans in a bowl and store in the refrigerator until cool.

To use the bean puree in a recipe that doesn't call for beans, put the cold, cooked beans (or your rinsed and drained canned beans) into the bowl of a food processor, or a blender, and puree until smooth. Add water, a Tablespoon at a time, until the mixture is the consistency of shortening.
Although you can replace all of the fat called for, some recipes do have better results when some of the fat is left in. In 2005, a study was published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association reporting that taste testers gave the highest ratings for flavor and texture to brownies with only 25% to 50% of the fat replaced with bean puree. And in Pocotello, Idaho, researchers from Idaho State University made a successful cookie with 75% of the butter replaced with beans. The beans helped these cookies go from 150 calories down to 105 and from 7 grams of fat to 3. At these percentages, the beanie brownies and cannellini cookies weren't much different than the full-fat options, except that they were considerably more nutritious.

Sometimes good recipes start with an accident and this is one of those times. I was simply trying to create a white bean brownie with flavors other than just chocolate. The recipe was great the first time out, but since I prefer fudgy brownies, the texture was too cakey for me to actually call a brownie. You can double this recipe to make a 13x9 pan and take it to your next bake sale. No one will ever know they're eating something healthy!

Gluten-Free Cranberry-Orange Beanie Cake

Learning to Love Lima Beans!

Sometimes I wonder if I missed out on a childhood rite of passage. I mean, aren't kids simply hard-wired to hate Lima beans? Every time I heard the words Lima Bean, they were followed by shrieks of disgust, whether on television or in the lunch line. The strangest part was that even though I was the pickiest eater in town (peanut butter and jelly on white bread, every single day), I seemed to be the only one not fully understanding what was so gross about Lima beans. I quite liked them, in fact.

The only bean that looks like someone with an orange peel smile, Lima beans make ME smile. How can a food that looks like a happy face be threatening? I didn't understand it, but chalked it up to my mom's awesome kitchen skills. Obviously, everyone else under the age of 10 had never tried my mom's recipe for ham and Lima bean soup.

Dating as far back as 6000 B.C., the Lima bean has been cultivated in the tropical climes of South America and the Caribbean. Although known by other names, such as the chad bean, butter bean, haba bean, pallar beans, burma beans, guffin beans and hibbert beans, the common name comes from Peru's capital city of Lima. Just to confuse you further, and I'm not saying that any of my 10 year old friends were right, but the smiley-face bean does have some evil properties. Raw Lima beans (including dried beans ground into flour) contain cyanide compounds that can inhibit digestive enzymes and cause red blood cells to clump together, resulting in sickness or death. However, soaking and cooking the beans before eating them, will kill off these poisonous toxins and render the beans harmless. What you're left with is a delicate, butter-flavored bean with a creamy texture.



Lima beans are actually the seeds found inside a 3-inch long, flat, curved pod. Usually, 2-4 green or cream colored seeds are found in one pod. There are also a few varieties that can be found in other colors, like red, white, black, brown or even purple. As with most legumes, Lima beans are rich in fiber to lower cholesterol and avoid spikes in blood sugar levels. Low in calories and nearly fat-free, they are also an excellent source of the trace mineral, molybdenum, to detoxify sulfites, magnesium for lowering your risk of heart attack and iron for increasing your energy.

While difficult to find in the United States, fresh Lima beans can sometimes be found at farmer's markets, but dried, canned or frozen beans are always available. When choosing the fresh variety, look for pods that are firm and glossy, without wrinkling or yellowing. If the beans have been removed from their pods, inspect them closely for signs of mold or decay. Look for green or greenish-white, unblemished beans.

Until researching these delicious beans, I'd not realized how many ways they can be used. Besides ham or root vegetable soups, they can be pureed with garlic and herbs to make a unique sandwich spread or vegetable dip.
Succotash, a traditional Native American dish, is made from a combination of Lima beans and corn that can be served as a side dish or wrapped in corn tortillas for Lima bean burritos.

Here are a few recipes to kick start your love of Lima beans!


Easy Crock Pot Ham and Lima Bean Soup


Microwave Succotash Photo by Lainey6605


Hillbilly Beans
Butter Bean Dip with Red Onion and Olives
Marinated Bean Salad