A call for recipes

You may or may not be aware that I'm returning to college in about 2 weeks. I'm returning to the whole super-duper-extra strength budget plan and buckling in for 3 years of taking the bus, mending my clothes, and dollar movie social gatherings. Woot. But the eating. Oh the eating. You see, between choir and work, the past year of my life has been spent in restaurants rather than the kitchen. And let's face it, it's actually more economical for one person to get their veggies from a $5 half salad at Zupa's than it is for them to dump $30 on fresh produce at the grocery store in order to make a salad only have most of the salad go to waste. And $1 fish taco night at Rubio's is ever my Tuesday night fare. But outside of the really great deals and charitable souls willing to buy my food for me, I'm going to have to give up the whoppers, Wendy's, and whims. And cafe rio. *sniff* oh cafe rio.

Plus. I've been eating school lunch for the past 3 years, and I won't have that anymore either. It wasn't great. But it was free.

So as I sit here polishing off the last of my chocolate ice cream, I ask you: what did you eat in college? Favorite, fast recipes for one singular sensational person, priced comparative to a package of ramen or box of Mac and cheese (the generic store brand).

Please. Help out the girl who just dumped $408.09 on 4 textbooks.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

My SIL pointed me in the direction of these cookies. They are really good.

Lemon Crinkle Cookies
Makes 2-3 dozen

Ingredients:
½ cups butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 whole egg
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoons baking powder
⅛ teaspoons baking soda
1-½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cups powdered sugar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease light colored baking sheets with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Whip in vanilla, egg, lemon zest, and juice. Scrape sides and mix again. Stir in all dry ingredients slowly until just combined, excluding the powdered sugar. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again briefly. Pour powdered sugar onto a large plate. Roll a heaping teaspoon of dough into a ball and roll in powdered sugar. Place on baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough.

Bake for 9-11 minutes or until bottoms begin to barely brown and cookies look matte {not melty or shiny}. Remove from oven and cool cookies about 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

*If using a non-stick darker baking tray, reduce baking time by about 2 minutes.

From:
http://ldsliving.com/story/64185-food-dish-cookie-recipe-contest-winner-recipe

The Quotable Crackpot: Katherine (for Stefany)

Aaron wrote a wonderful poem for me for Mother's Day. I still can't read it without tearing up.

The Quotable Crackpot: Katherine (for Stefany): "Those toes, but stubs of pinkish tone, poke out of the blanket’s grasp, and though wanting for a warmer home, are too beautiful to wrap. ..."

Turkey Hummus Spirals

I'm posting our first hummus recipe.  I should get points for that.

1/2 lb deli turkey, thinly sliced
1 container flavored hummus (I like the roasted red pepper)
Bag of baby spinach
Tortillas

Spread hummus on the bottom two thirds of a tortilla.  Spread one piece of turkey and then a layer of spinach.  Roll up, and cover in plastic wrap.  Refrigerate 30 minutes or until ready to serve.  Slice to make little spirals.

Now, most of you probably have the same reaction that Matt had: "Hummus is nasty!"  Buts its not.  Its really good for you, and the flavored kinds are quite palatable.  Brody ate one of these- spinach and all- and didn't hate it.  If you think of the hummus as more of a mayo type spread, its not a big deal.  I told Matt that he had to eat them if we wanted Brody to try it and he actually ended up enjoying them.  1/2 lb of turkey does about 4- 10 inch tortillas. 

DarLee's Birthday Bars

These came from a Relief Society activity our stake did. They are homemade granola bars.

2 cups old fashioned oats
3/4 cups crisp rice cereal
1/2 cup flax seed
1 cup raw sunflower seeds
1/2 cup dried cranberries or cherries
1/4 cup toasted pumpkin seeds
1 cup unsalted roasted almonds

Mix together in a large bowl.

In a sauce pan, bring to a boil:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4-1/2 teas salt
2 Tbl butter
3/4 (+) raw honey

Boil 3 mins for soft bars or 6 for crunchy.

Remove from heat and add 1 tsp vanilla. Quickly stir into dry ingredients.

Shape into a rectangle on a piece of wax paper. (Use wax paper or buttered hands to do this.) Let sit for 5-10 mins. Cut with a sharp knife. Store in an air tight container. These can also be frozen.

Variations:
different fruits and nuts (or, omitting them all together)
cheerios instead of rice cereal
add 1/2 cup peanut butter when you add vanilla
mix cocoa in
use other flavorings
walnuts, dried apples, and sprinkle bars with cinnamon

Popcorn Cake

20 cups popped popcorn
1 bag marshmellows
1/2 stick of butter
1 bag M&Ms

Mix popcorn and M&M's in a large bowl. Melt marshmellows and butter like you would for rice krispies. Mix it together. Put it into a sprayed angel food cake pan. Let sit. Flip the pan over and take it off.

The longer you let it sit, the more solid (and easier) it will be to cut. That means that if you want to snitch little pieces, it's best to do that while it's all still warm. It's easier to hide the holes then.

Mothers' Day Salad

Chicken, Grilled and cubed (season with lime juice, chili powder, and salt)

Canned whole kernel corn
cherry tomatoes
sliced radishes
cubed avocados
mixed greens

Toss with spicy dressing - combine italian dressing with cumin, ground red pepper or chili posder, and black pepper.