ORANGE WHOLE WHEAT WAFFLES/PANCAKES

 I can't quit laughing at myself. Determined to make 2021 better than 2020 while we fight this pandemic, I decided I would make Saturday mornings extraordinary for us by making something special for us for breakfast. Being retired especially at this time in our world means most days are light every other day. So why not enjoy a special breakfast. 

Last Friday night I remembered just before going to bed that it was Friday and I hadn't chosen anything to cook for breakfast the next morning. I picked up my Volume One The American Country Inn and Bed & Breakfast Cookbook to find the perfect recipe. We have only stayed at a B & B once (well for 3 nights) and the breakfasts were the best ever! It was in Vermont. So I can't go wrong by checking out a cookbook with recipes from different B & B's around the country.

I found a recipe for waffles that used orange juice for the liquid which was perfect since I had plenty of orange juice I needed to use. We loved them! 

It has been a quite a while since we have made waffles. It has been so long that we couldn't remember how to use the waffle maker. We enjoyed a laugh over that. I sprayed the grills and closed it and flipped the switch to start. After about a minute, I told Wayne I thought we were supposed to add the batter and then close the griddle. Then when they were done, the ready light would come on. That worked fine then. 😉

The recipe said it served 3 to 4 so I expected to make four waffles. Since I have been trying to freeze instead of having leftovers in the refrigerator, this made it even more perfect. We each ate one waffle and then I froze the other two. 

Besides being scrumptious, they were very light tasting but very filling. When we ate a really late lunch around 4ish, I wasn't really hungry. 

So are you still wondering why I am laughing so hard at myself? I decided I needed to write up the recipe in a post to publish Friday and started looking for the recipe in the cookbook. That's why I started laughing. You see the recipe is called Orange Whole Wheat Pancakes not Orange Whole Wheat Waffles. I can't believe I mixed up the ingredients and cooked the batter and never noticed I was supposed to be making pancakes instead of waffles. I'm getting a little concerned about myself. This pandemic had better end soon. When I told Wayne he should be concerned about me and what I had done, his response was, "Well, I think they tasted better as waffles than they would as pancakes." He does know the right thing to say sometimes. 😍

They really were the best! I've been using some Hungarian whole wheat flour that is milled in Denver and I'm loving how "light" tasting everything is that I make using it. I found it at Walmart. (Trust me I am not being paid to recommend this flour.)

The pancake recipe was shared by the Manchester Highlands Inn: The Victorian Inn in Manchester Center, Vermont. You can check it out here. I have never been there; I just like to check out what the Inn or B & B looks like when I chose a recipe from it.

ORANGE WHOLE WHEAT PANCAKES/WAFFLES

2     eggs

1/4  cup oil

2     cups whole wheat flour 

1/2  teaspoon baking soda

1/2  teaspoon salt

1-1/2 to 2 cups orange juice (I used the whole 2 cups)

Beat the eggs and oil together with a whisk.

Sift together the dry ingredients and

add to the eggs.

(This is a mess so I didn't stir the mixture very long before I started to add the orange juice.)

Gradually add the orange juice until you have a batter of the consistency you like.

For pancakes: fry the pancakes on a medium hot griddle and serve immediately. (Obviously I didn't read that sentence.)

For waffles: Fill griddle and

cook til done.

I tried to be creative with my waffle and tried to make a happy face. Maybe that is what my Happy Face looked like at the moment. 😉

If you want to freeze two of the waffles, place them flat on a cookie sheet without touching and put in freezer until frozen.

Then place in a gallon-size freezer bag until you are ready to eat them. Heat up in oven or in microwave.

IMPOSSIBLE LASAGNE PIE

 Today I am sharing one of the main dishes I made this month for us to enjoy several times. I can't tell you how much easier my life seems by simply doing my menu planning. Some days Wayne will ask as we sit down to eat at the dinning room table, "Is this our big meal for today?" Then he will say, "That's fine if it is. I need to lose these extra pounds I have added with this pandemic."

You may have made a main dish called Impossible Cheeseburger Pie? I know I have many times. I never knew there were other options until I found the recipes from a tear-out in a box of recipes I was trying to go through earlier in January. There is also an Impossible Taco Pie that if I made it I would have to omit the green chilies and an Impossible Quesadilla Pie for the same reason. (Sorry chilies and peppers and onions don't agree with me.)

Anyway, I decided to make the Impossible Lasagne Pie and we really liked it. As I said it lasted for three meals but I spread them out so we didn't eat it two days in a row. As I typed up the recipe I realized I didn't put half of the mozzarella cheese in the meat mixture. I put it all on top of the pie after it came out. Made a nice cheesy top for the pie. Need to make sure I have on my stronger glasses next time I am reading small print in a recipe.

IMPOSSIBLE LASAGNE PIE

1     pound ground beef

1     teaspoon dried oregano leaves

1/2  teaspoons dried basil leaves

1     can (6 ounces) tomato paste

1     cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2  cup small curd creamed cottage cheese

1/4  cup grated parmesan cheese

1     cup milk

2/3  cup baking mix

2     eggs

1     teaspoons salt

1/4  teaspoon pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease or spray a deep-dish pie plate.

Cook and stir beef over medium heat until brown; drain.

Stir in oregano, basil tomato paste, and 1/2 cup the mozzarella cheese.

Layer cottage cheese and Parmesan cheese in the pie plate.

Spoon beef mixture over top.

Beat milk, baking mix, eggs, salt, and pepper until smooth, 15 seconds in the blender on high or 1 minutes with hand beater.

Pour into plate.

Bake until knife inserted between center and edge comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes.

Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Cool 5 minutes before serving.  

SIMPLE SWEET POTATO BISCUITS

I have made sweet potato biscuits before by several different recipes. This recipe is made with a purchased baking mix which is new for me. The recipe calls for ingredients that would make the biscuits low-fat, but I didn't use those ingredients. I do use skim milk when I cook, but I did not use light butter or reduced - fat baking mix. The biscuits are so light though and so deliciously tasting of sweet potato!

I especially liked freezing sixteen of the biscuits so that we could enjoy freshly baked ones with a later meal. I admit, before I just baked all of the biscuits initially and we just warmed them up in the microwave or oven the next few days until we had eaten all of them. 

For the sweet potatoes I did open a can of sweet potatoes in light syrup. It was a fairly large can, but that just meant we were able to enjoy some as a side with a later dinner. I also made some awesome Sweet Potato Nut Muffins, but I haven't had time to write up the recipe yet. Just give me a couple of days, please. 

Until then you will just have to give these Simple Sweet Potato Biscuits a try.

SIMPLE SWEET POTATO BISCUITS

1/2       cup light butter (I used unsalted butter)

2-3/4    cups reduced-fat all-purpose baking mix (I used regular mix)

1          cup mashed sweet potatoes

1/2       cup 2% reduced-fat milk (I used skim milk)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Cut butter into baking mix with a pastry blender or 2 forks until mixture is crumbly.

(I cut the butter into thin chunks and add a few at a time and mash them into the baking mix using my finger.

It is okay to have some of the butter in pea+ sized pieces.)

Whisk or stir together the sweet potato and milk.

Add to butter mixture,

stirring with a fork just until dry ingredients are moistened.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface,

knead gently 4 or 5 times. (Dough will be moist - just sprinkle some flour onto hands and fingertips.)

Pat or roll dough to 1/2-inch thickness.

Cut with a 2 - inch round cutter as close as you can. Rework dough as little as possible until you use it all up.

Place biscuits on lightly greased baking sheets.

Bake for 10 minutes.

I baked four biscuits and prepared the rest for freezing to bake later. I placed the rest of the biscuits on a greased cookie sheet and placed in freezer to freeze (30 minutes or until frozen).

Once they were frozen, I removed and placed them in a gallon-size freezer bag and labeled the bag with cooking instructions: Bake 10 minutes at 450 degrees F.

Baking from frozen state: I removed four biscuits while the oven was preheating. I was busy with something else and probably waited an extra 10 minutes before I placed the biscuits on a sprayed pan in the oven to bake. After 10 minutes they seemed ready, but I cooked them an extra five minutes so they would be a little browner. Tasted so good. Just as good as they were when I mixed up the ingredients and baked four originally for us. 

AMISH WASHBOARD COOKIES

 I don't often take cookies to Hillcrest Thrift Shop for the volunteers, but I saw this recipe for Washboard Cookies in my latest addition to my Amish cookbook collection that Friend Jean found at the thrift shop. The recipe was contributed by Mrs. Erwin Miller in the Amish Country Cooking by the Amish of the West Kootenai of Rexford, Montana. I am so excited about having it in my collection. 

The Amish often name recipes for a reason. I bet they make these delicious cookies on "Wash Day". It wasn't "wash day" for me but my cookie jar had been empty for at least a week and the recipe made enough I could keep at least a dozen at home and not feel guilty. The only change I made for the recipe is substituting dried cranberries for the raisins. I rarely keep raisins in my pantry so this is a common substitution I make. Another thing I want to mention is make sure you sift some flour and then measure out the amount of flour you need. I know most flours say "pre-sifted" on the bag, but you still need to sift before you measure.

The cookies were a big hit at the shop and at our house. 

WASHBOARD COOKIES

1        cup sugar

1        cup brown sugar

1        cup butter (2 sticks), at room temperature

2        beaten eggs

3-1/4  cups sifted flour (sift flour before measuring)

2        teaspoons cream of tartar

2        teaspoons baking soda

1        teaspoon vanilla

1        teaspoon lemon flavoring

1        cup raisins (I used dried cranberries)

1/2     cup chopped nut

1/2     cup coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. I lined two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

Cream sugars and butter til

completely blended.

Add beaten eggs and beat

til smooth.

Add flavorings.

Sift some flour and measure out 3-1/4 cups. Add flour with the cream of tartar and baking soda in a bowl and blend with a whisk.

Add flour mixture to sugar mixture a little at a time and

beat til blended.

Add raisins or dried cranberries along with the nuts and coconut. Stir til blended.

Using a small cookie scoop, round dough and place on cookie sheet.

Flatten.

Cookies do spread when they bake so don't crowd them on the cookie sheet.

They will separate nicely if they run together as they bake. Bake 12 minutes and remove cookies to cool on wire racks.