To Frost Or Not To Frost?

That is always the question for me! See I don't really like frosting EXCEPT for whipped cream frosting. That is hard to make (in my opinion) AND does not hold its color. So in making cakes for the Harvest Festival at church, I had to come up with a solution. Not that I was going to eat the cake because it was for the cake walk but I wanted it to be superb!

Wellll.......the answer. Jello Frosting! That's right. See I had heard of Kool Aid frosting but heard that the taste and texture was a little "off" but that kids enjoyed the color and the cool flavors. I thought why not Jello. I am a HUGE fan of Jello Frosting now! Not to mention the color options! We used Raspberry Jello! YUMMY! The color was exactly what I was going for.....hot princess pink! So here is the recipe compliments of http://www.cooks.com/.

3 oz pkg Jello of choice
2/3 cup sugar, granulated
2 egg whites
1 tsp vanilla, optional
1/2 cup boiling water.

Combine jello, sugar, egg whites and vanilla. Pour in boiling hot water. Beat at high speed using the whip attachment for at least five minutes or until the desired spreading consistency. Enjoy!

Lentil Soup

1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic chopped
2 T olive oil
3 -4 carrots, sliced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
6 teaspoons dry bullion
6 cups water, boiling
1 c lentils
1 pinch thyme
1 large can stewed tomatoes (minimum 14.5 ounces) *Personally I like to use Muir Glen Organic Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes because of the flavor that it adds to the soup.

(1) Put water on to boil.
(2) Saute onion and garlic in oil.
(3) Add carrots and celery, saute 2-3 minutes more.
(4) Add chili powder, bullion, boiling water, lentils and thyme.
(5) Cook covered for 35 minutes.
(6) Add tomatoes and cook for 5 more minutes.

Make sure to use boiling water. This decreases that amount of time needed to cook the lentils.
Bullion can be either chicken, veggie or beef. It should be dry bullion otherwise the liquid will be doubled. So if you need to use a liquid bullion/soup base, boil the base and omit the dry bullion.

This is the basic recipe. There are many things that you can add to make even more yummier soups.

Lentil and Lamb Stew
Add 1 -2 cups lamb meat, cooked
Decrease the water by 2 cups
Add some oregano...Greek oregano if you have it

Today we added cooked chicken, leftover noodles and some browned turkey meat. So yummy.

Serve with shredded cheese, chopped green onions, black olives and some hot bread.

Enjoy!

This recipe is compliments of my mother, Esther Ruth (Hostetler) Zook who would often make this in the fall when the Midwest weather would turn crisp and cold or would become cold and rainy. "Good soup day!" would be my mom's comment as she began to pull the ingredients out of the cupboards. I think of her every time I make this soup.

DG Approved!

Yummy Italian Minestrone Soup!

Courtesy of Arlene on Clean and Cozy Yahoo!

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup onion, sliced
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
3/4 cup sliced carrots
1/2 cup sliced potatoes
2 cups sliced cabbage
1 cup sliced zucchini
1/2 cup garbanzo beans (drained and rinsed if canned)
1/2 cup navy beans
16 oz can tomatoes with liquid (I used Fire Roasted from Trader Joe's)
1/2 cup celery
2 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon oregano
1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley
1/2 cup rotini (uncooked) (I used macaroni because that is what I had in the pantry)

1. Sauté onion in oil until brown. Add broth, carrots, and potatoes, cover and cook for 30 minutes.
2. Add remaining ingredients and cook for 20 minutes more.

NOTE: When I make this again I will probably double the broth since this was more of a stew than a soup. I plan on adding the broth right before serving.

Makes 8 servings (1 serving = 1 cup)

Calories - 116
Fat- 3 gr. (23%)
Carbohydrates - 19gr. (66%)
Protein - 5 gr. (17%)
Fiber - 4 gr
Sodium - 188 or less mg
Cholesterol—O

Fish Chowder!!!!

Last night I made a wonderful Fish Chowder.....that is quite economical....you can use whatever you have on hand for the veggies AND a can or two of tuna. I used some "fresh fish" that I had frozen several months ago.....I knew its taste would be sort of flat so I just steamed the fish and added it to the chowder.....so Yummy!

Potato Tuna Chowder (Fish Chowder)
Serves 4 - 6 people

2 1/2 c diced potatoes (divided)
2 c chicken or veggie stock
2 T finely chopped onion
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sage
1/4 tsp paprika
Dash of white pepper
1/2 c sliced carrots
1/2 c green beans, cut into pieces
1/2 c sliced celery
3 c milk
1 (6 1/2 oz) can tuna fish, drained and broken into chunks.

1.) Combine 1 c potatoes, chicken stock, onion and salt in large saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 - 15 minutes, or until potatoes are fork tender.
2.) Add sage, paprika and pepper to saucepan; with fork, mash potatoes in saucepan.
3.) Add remaining potatoes, carrots, green beans, celery, and milk to mashed potatoes in saucepan; bring to a boil, then immediately reduce heat. Simmer for 15 minutes, or until veggies are tender.
4.) Add fish to saucepan. Simmer for 5 minutes, until well heated. Serve at once.

That is the recipe as listed in the book. Now here are my modifications/notes:

1.) Used one medium to large sized Yukon Gold potato.
2.) Since I had no Sage or White Pepper on hand, I used Summer Savory, Oregano, Basil, Marjoram and Black Pepper.
3.) While the potatoes were cooking, I steamed my fish by placing it in a shallow frying pan on a rack and adding some water, fish sauce, garlic and fresh grated ginger. Steamed until fish flaked. Took out and let it cool.
4.) No green beans on hand so I threw in some fresh asparagus, broken, some sliced mushrooms, fresh chopped parsley (coarsely chopped).
5.) Served with grated colby and a Strawberry Goat Cheese Salad.

There are many possibilities with this recipe. You can use any canned fish or oysters that you can find on sale. You can use whatever fresh veggies you have on hand or use some frozen veggies. Don't be limited by what the recipe says....use what you have on hand..... This can be quite economically ladies!

Original recipe from Creative Cooking: Fish and Other Seafood. Ottenheimer Publishers, Inc. 1992. Page 18.