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Author Archives: myfoodiecall
- What we did for teacher gifts this year.
  
  Posted at 8:00 pm by myfoodiecall
  
  Dec 17th
  
  A break from cooking. Had an idea.
  
  Cute pot, right? No, we didn’t make the pot. Just the pineapple flower on top.
  
  Mr. Foodie Call got one of those Edible Arrangements a couple of months ago from the women at work for Boss Day, Manager Day, whatever it was… Edible Arrangements. Those insane fruit bouquets that you can eat? Well, Mr. Foodie Call got one. The family devoured it. Very cool gift.
  
  We actually have never really gotten one of those as a gift or have even bought one. They always seemed so expensive.
  
  When Mr. Foodie Call’s fruit arrangement was kicked, I started to dissect it to see how they put it together and what it entailed. It really did not look hard. And it wasn’t. A couple of kabob sticks, some foam, fancy cut fruit…not too bad. Long story short: The kids decided they wanted in on this fruit cutting thing and the Fruit-Teacher-Pot idea was born.
  
  Ours is a toned down Edible Arrangement with one change. Instead of a throw away pot, I decided to use a really cool mixed media stone pot to set it in. That way the teachers could have an actual gift to keep. These pots are my new obsession.
  
  These are the mini pots. They are available in mini, small, medium, large, and extra-large. I’m hooked!
  
  The kids and I made 8 fruit arrangements, all with these mini pots.
  
  My oldest has 5 teachers. These would have taken FOREVER had we gone with a larger size.
  
  The arrangements varied quite a bit based on the fruit cuts and how sick of making them the kids were. 🙂
  
  Here are a couple more pictures of the mixed media pots.
  
  Awesomeness.
  
  So, so cute.
  
  If you have any questions about purchasing these pots, please email the owner of Nests & More Creations:
  
  rachellebartholomew@yahoo.com
  
  Don’t you want to be a teacher so that we can make you one of these? Ha.
  
  Below is an example of a completed gift. This pot had a sand dollar instead of the medallion.
  
  For my youngest’s teacher. Love 6-year-old handwriting.
  
  Posted in Random stuff | Tagged fruit, kids, school
- Non-Dairy Sweet Potato Corn Chowder
  
  Posted at 8:00 pm by myfoodiecall
  
  Dec 16th
  So this family was feeling a bit overscheduled. We, like everyone, have been running around doing the crazed holiday thang, trying to find the balance between holiday events, school work, volunteering, seemingly endless gift wrapping…you know how it goes.
  
  Another thing I am discovering is that the big problem with Charleston is that there are too many great things going on all the time. Fun stuff, but just all of the time. I know, such problems….
  
  This particular day we were supposed to go to a Christmas parade. Last year’s was super fun, all of our friends would be there, all the more reason to go. Feeling tapped out physically and mentally, we debated skipping.
  
  Should we? Shouldn’t we?
  
  Hate missing out on fun, cool stuff.
  
  But then I remembered.
  
  There is always fun, cool stuff happening.
  
  We skipped it. Decided it would be a day to take a minute to breathe.
  
  Guess what? The world didn’t end.
  
  Decided to make a cozy meal instead. My point in this story. Made a cozy meal instead.
  
  “What does everyone want for dinner?” I asked??
  
  The only child with a reasonable response was my oldest child.
  
  “Corn Chowder.”
  
  Corn chowder it is.
  
  Of course I made it without dairy.
  
  No dairy? No problem. This chowder is plenty creamy with almond milk and sweet potatoes.
  
  Non-Dairy Sweet Potato Corn Chowder
  
  Ingredients:
  - 2 tablespoons coconut oil
  - 1 small onion, chopped
  - 1 cup celery, chopped
  - 1 clove garlic, minced
  - 2 cups veggie broth
  - 1 large sweet potato, peeled and chopped into small chunks
  - 1 cup frozen corn (I used Trader Joe’s frozen roasted corn)
  - 1 can creamed corn
  - 1 cup almond milk
  - 1 tablespoon flour
  - 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  - 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  - 1 teaspoon salt
  - 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  Directions:
  1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in onions, garlic and celery. Cook until just slightly soft. About 2-3 minutes
  2. Add veggie broth and sweet potatoes.
  3. Simmer on medium low until tender. about 30 minutes.
  4. Add the frozen and creamed corn. Stir for about a minute.
  5. Reduce heat to low, and pour in 1 cup almond milk.
  6. Whisk in flour.
  7. Stir in parsley, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until chowder thickens to desired consistency.
  I did not double this recipe because I was unsure of the outcome, but I wish I had. I want leftovers. :/.
  Posted in Salads, Soups, and Sides | Tagged chowder, corn, soup, sweet potato
- Healthy Holiday Ice Cream Sandwiches
  
  Posted at 8:00 pm by myfoodiecall
  
  Dec 15th
  Healthy-er Holiday Ice Cream Sandwiches
  
  What makes these babies healthy-ER???
  
  Whole wheat pastry flour. Love this stuff.
  
  What makes these babies “holiday”?
  
  Really it’s just the crushed peppermint. These ice cream sandwiches can be made anytime, I just wanted to holiday it up a bit so I crushed some mints and called it a day.
  
  Crushed peppermints in the ice cream. Holiday-ish right?
  
  For a closer look scroll down past the recipe for the pictorial.
  
  Healthy Holiday Ice Cream Sandwiches
  
  Ingredients:
  
  For the cakes:
  - 1 cup almond milk
  - 1 T. apple cider vinegar
  - 1 1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
  - 2/3 cup cocoa powder
  - 1 t. baking soda
  - 1/2 t. baking powder
  - 1/4 t. salt
  - 1/3 cup Earth Balance vegan butter
  - 1 cup sugar
  - 3 eggs (or try making flax eggs: 3 tablespoon flax mixed with 9 tablespoons water. Let set for 30+ minutes in the fridge)
  The ice cream center:
  - 1- 32oz tub Vanilla Ice Cream of choice (I used Trader Joe’s Soy Vanilla Ice Cream, but you could use any vanilla: light, frozen yogurt…what ever you like)
  - 15-18 peppermint candies, crushed in the food processor
  Directions:
  
  For the cakes:
  1. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Easy clean up!
  2. In a small bowl, whisk almond milk and apple cider vinegar.
  3. In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
  4. In a large mixing bowl using an electric hand mixer, beat the Earth Balance and sugar until fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.
  5. Add the egg and beat until the mixture is creamy and well combined, another minute.
  6. Add the flour mixture next (in several batches,) alternating with the almond milk mixture, until all ingredients have been added and the mixture is smooth.
  7. Using a large spoon, drop the batter onto the prepared sheets, creating 2-3 inch rounds.
  8. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Use a spatula to transfer the cakes to a wire cooling rack. Cool completely before filling.
  For the ice cream center:
  1. In a large bowl, scoop all of the ice cream out of the container and let thaw a bit.
  2. Stir in crushed peppermint candies.
  To assemble:
  1. Turn half of the cooled cakes upside-down (flat side up), and spread a generous amount of ice cream. Top with the other cakes (flat side down).
  2. Eat immediately or wrap and freeze.
  A closer look.
  
  Here is your almond milk and ACV mixture.
  
  And your dry ingredients…
  
  Vegan butter/sugar
  
  Mix it all….Couldn’t you just lick this batter?
  
  Your cakes.
  
  Add your mints to your processor.
  
  Crush ’em.
  
  Add your peppermints to your softened ice cream.
  
  Pile it on your cake.
  
  Top it and devour.
  
  Or freeze for later.
  
  Although there wasn’t much of a “later” for us.
  Posted in Desserts | Tagged dessert, healthy, holiday, ice cream, sandwich, whole wheat pastry flour
- Blueberry Steel Cut Oats
  
  Posted at 8:00 pm by myfoodiecall
  
  Dec 14th
  Steel cut oats with brown sugar and blueberries.
  
  Does your family all prefer different things for breakfast? This family is no different from yours. Some mornings the kids are freaking over eggs, Cheerios are the arch-enemy, or calling out my burnt toast. Nobody is ever happy or on the same page.
  
  However, this breakfast is great, gets no complaints and has a regular spot in the breakfast rotation.
  
  Must be doing something right on this one.
  
  If you are not a big fan of oatmeal’s texture, steel-cut oats may be the kind to change your mind. Although steel-cut oats take a bit longer to cook, they are chewier than regular oatmeal which I like. No slop factor on this breakfast. And although I mention that they take a bit longer than regular oats, really they just simmer on low and you stir every so often. Nothing to stress on. Big deal.
  
  Give this breakfast recipe a try and let me know what you think.
  
  Grab your stuff….35 minutes later…
  
  Breakfast is served.
  
  Easy Blueberry Steel Cut Oats
  
  Ingredients:
  - 1 cup steel-cut oats
  - 4 cups water (OR…a lot of times I will use a can of coconut milk to replace some of the water. Yup, that much creamier. )
  - 1 cup frozen blueberries
  - 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  Directions:
  1. Bring water to a boil (or milk/water mixture)
  2. Add steel-cut oats
  3. Boil for 4-5 minutes until they thicken a bit.
  4. Reduce heat to slow and simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring periodically.
  5. Add frozen blueberries. Stir for a minute or so, keeping on low heat.
  6. Add brown sugar. Stir.
  7. Serve.
  ***Optional add-ins: Peanut butter, Chia seeds, Chopped walnuts, gogi berries, raisins***
  Posted in Breakfast | Tagged blueberries, oatmeal
- Small changes…Why I always use grapeseed and coconut oil in my recipes.
  
  Posted at 8:00 pm by myfoodiecall
  
  Dec 13th
  
  You might have noticed that pretty much all of my cooked recipes use either grapeseed oil or coconut oil. Why??
  
  So many oils, what to do…
  
  Although there are some pretty great oils out there, I use these two oils in my kitchen specifically for cooking because they have a high smoke point.
  
  What is a smoke point??
  
  Basically its the point at which the oil starts to break down its fatty acid chains.
  
  And starts to smoke…
  
  and the nutritional benefits are null and void….Might as well go grab some fries. 🙂
  
  and the taste goes kaput.
  
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoke_point
  
  FYI…A couple of smoke point temperatures.
  
  Smoke point: 420 degrees
  
  I use grapeseed oil quite a bit for stir frying, and baking. It rocks because it is always liquid and can blend seamlessly into recipes.
  
  Smoke Point: 420 degrees
  
  Coconut oil is great too. We all know that. Problem is that coconut oil is sometimes hard when it is at cooler temperatures. Or it might be too liquid-y when you want it semi-solid. You sometimes have to do a tiny bit of prep to work with it. Sometimes.
  
  That said, coconut oil is still pretty dang good though…And you can slather your body in it too and feel like you are on tropical island instead if your nasty kitchen.
  
  Smoke Point: 375 degrees
  
  Olive oil, yes its great, but only for use in dressings or as a dipping oil for breads. If you must cook with it, use it at the tail end of your cooking.
  
  Make sense???
  
  Posted in Random stuff, Small changes
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