Sweet Beet Cookies

Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Makes 40 cookies
Calories: 21 per cookie
Source: Weelicious


Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 fresh medium beet
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.
3. Peel the beet and shred with a fine grater.
4. Stir 1/2 cup shredded beet into flour mixture.
5. Add the oil and knead 2-3 minutes until a dough is formed.
6. Roll to 1/4-inch thick and cut into shapes.
7. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until firm.

What new parent hasn't come across "Weelicious" and all its delicious and healthy recipes?  These little pink cookies are so very cute that Charlotte and all of her daycare friends love to gobble them up.  And I don't mind how many cookies my girl eats when I know she's eating her beets at the same time!

Starving Student Sausage Jambalaya

Total time: 35 minutes
Serves 6 people
Calories: 450 per serving
Source: unknown


Ingredients

• 4 Italian sausages, coarsely chopped
• 19-ounce can undrained tomatoes
• 1 1/2 cups uncooked long-grain rice
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp dry mustard
• 1/2 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne (optional)
• 1 sweet pepper or zucchini, chopped

Directions:

1. Place a large saucepan over medium-high heat.
2. Cook sausages until brown, about 8 minutes; drain fat.
3. Add tomatoes, including juice.  Fill the can with water and add to pan.
4. Stir in rice and spices.
5. Cover and bring to a boil, then immediately reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring once, halfway through.
6. Stir in pepper or zucchini; simmer for 5 minutes more.

This recipe takes me back!  I made this countless times in the kitchen at Laval University in Quebec City in the late 1990s.  My boyfriend at the time loved it and it kept us both fed for ages - cheaply too.  It was the perfect meal for those long, cold Quebec nights.  I thought I had lost the recipe, but I recently rediscovered it and cooked up a batch in the Blackford Island kitchen.  Still delicious!  I used to leave out the veggie at the end, but now I know better and it was perfectly delicious with a pepper thrown into it.

Roasted Parmesan Broccoli

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
Serves 3 people
Calories: 126 per serving
Source: http://www.barefootcontessa.com/recipes.aspx?RecipeID=335&S=0


Ingredients

• 2 heads broccoli, chopped into florets
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2.5 tbsp olive oil
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp grated lemon zest
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/6 cup Parmesan

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425.
2. Place broccoli in a bowl; toss with garlic, 1 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper.
3. Transfer to a baking sheet and roast 20-25 minutes or until crisp-tender and some florets are browned.
4. Remove from oven and immediately toss with olive oil, lemon and Parmesan

Anyone who knows me knows that veggies are not my favourite thing to eat.  However, they do need to be eaten from time to time and it would be great if I could at least appear to enjoy it for Charlotte's sake.  This recipe does the trick for me; it is no chore to eat my broccoli and look like I'm enjoying it - because I actually am!  I usually make this with popcorn chicken; the broccoli roasts in the oven while I'm frying up the chicken on the stove top.  Delicious!

Banana-Date Breakfast Cookies

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
Makes 9 cookies
Calories:297 per cookie
Source: www.thekitchenmagpie.com


Ingredients

• 2 large bananas, mashed
• 3 cups large-flake oats
• 1 cup dates, pitted and chopped
• 1/3 cup applesauce
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/2 cup hemp hearts
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325.
2. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
3. Line a baking sheet with parchment; roll dough into balls and press down to flatten onto sheet.  Cookies should be large and sheet should hold only 3-4 cookies.
4. Bake 25-28 minutes until bottoms are browned.
5. Allow cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet for several hours in order to prevent crumbling.

I have been looking for some good breakfast recipes that can be made ahead of time, ready for busy daycare mornings.  I went in search of a breakfast cookie recipe and lucky me, the first one I tried was a keeper.  These cookies are so healthy and yet they taste so good.  The on-line recipe calls for applesauce or softened butter, but I've never used butter in this recipe.  I was going to the first time I made them, but Pete had put my softened butter back in the fridge so I had none on hand when I needed it.  Happy accident as these are delicious with the applesauce - I'm sure they're good with butter too, but I see no reason to bother trying!

Dig'n Cheese Dog Biscuits

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
Yield: 18 cookies
Source: The Doggy Bone Cookbook


Ingredients

• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar
• 2 tbsp softened margarine
• 1.5 cups whole-wheat flour
• 1/2 cup milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Cream together cheese and margarine.
3. Add milk and flour.
4. Roll mixture to 1/4-inch thickness and cut with cookie cutters.
5. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for 30-35 minutes.

Baking in the Blackford Island kitchen doesn't always mean that it's the humans who are in for a treat!  Theo loves these cheesy biscuits and so do the pups of all of my co-workers!