Basic Honey Vanilla Ice Cream

To one lovely couple who today celebrate their 39th wedding anniversary... Dad & Mother, this is for you. Happy Anniversary!

For a treat for your honey on that special day...

Basic Honey Vanilla Ice Cream

1/2 c. honey
4 c. milk/cream mixture*
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

In a small saucepan, dissolve honey in 1/2 cup milk/cream over very low heat, stirring until well blended. Pour this and remaining ingredients into the canister of an ice cream maker. Stir well together. Process until mixture thickens and freezes. Serve immediately as soft serve. Or take out of ice cream maker canister and put into an airtight container, putting it into the freezer to harden.

*You can use soy milk/soy cream mix for this (Silk brand sells a soy creamer). The more milk you use, the more it will be like "ice milk." The more cream, the more like "ice cream" it will be.

Vitamix: Freeze part or all of the milk/cream into ice cubes adding honey & vanilla when processing in Vitamix, skipping the stove top and the ice cream maker steps. Proceed as directed to harden in freezer.


Flavor ideas:

mint: use mint extract to sub for the vanilla (same for other extract flavors)
carob/chocolate: add in carob or cocoa powder
strawberry: use some strawberry jam to replace some of the honey

Stir-in ideas (to be mixed in when putting into ice cream maker or into freezer after blending in Vitamix :

carob/chocolate chips
fruit or berries (ie: strawberries, peaches, pineapple, raisins, banana, etc.)
nuts: any ones you like, chopped (ie: pecans, walnuts, peanuts, macadamia, cashew, etc.)
coconut

Have a great vegan cookie dough you like? Mix up a small batch of cookie dough as usual and put onto a pan thin (flatten to about 1/4") like a bar cookie, but don't bake. Then score into very small squares. Now freeze it, still in the pan. When frozen, break up into small squares. Add as a mix-in to the recipe above.

Ok, now I'll have to start posting some cookie recipes! I must be craving something sweet! =)

This would work well with baked oatmeal or carob cake too!

Baked Oatmeal

You know you live in a hot climate when it gets down to 75 degrees F and everyone is cold! Recently we've had some cooler weather here in Ghana because of the wet season. It can cool down considerably here right before it storms.

So like everyone during the winter season (in other parts of the world), my mind turns to something warm. From socks and jackets to baked food...like baked oatmeal. I don't ever think that I had this as a child, but children (and the young at heart) love this.

Baked Oatmeal

Dry:
6 c. rolled oats (aka: old fashioned oats)
4 tsp. baking powder, optional*
1 Tbsp. (or more) cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
Wet:
3/4 c. - 1 c. honey/maple syrup
2 c. non-dairy milk, or water (or pasta water, or...)
1/4 c. flax seed/meal ** mixed with 1 c. water
2/3 c. - 3/4 c. coconut oil (can use part applesauce/pumpkin puree or equivalent in mashed bananas)
2 tsp. vanilla extract (optional)

Mix dry and wet ingredients separately, then mix all ingredients together. Put into greased (I use coconut oil) 9" x 13" baking dish. At this point, I let it "soak" for a few minutes. Bake at 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) for 45 minutes or more until done. Great warm with fruit and some non-dairy milk. Wonderful for leftovers!

*Note about baking powder: I do not always use baking powder. Using it means that your baked oatmeal will have a lighter texture, more like cake. I do not use it for any other recipe. I found that not using it still gave me satisfactory results. Even our church's men's group loves it, even without it. You can decide. Not sure? Try a half batch without and decide for yourself. Baking powder also adds sodium to the recipe.

**Flaxseed substitute info here. I have used my Vitamix to blend up the water together with whole flax seed to my liking. No cooking required. And if you have flax seed meal (in your freezer only please - it will go rancid fast!) you can just follow the first suggestion in the aforementioned link.
I have been able to use bananas to replace half the "egg" amount with success. If using any applesauce or bananas to replace any oil or "egg" amounts, decrease honey amount.

Great for breakfast or any meal. Try it as a snack meal with homemade soy ice cream sometime! Come back for the recipe in the next post!

For other frugal tips, visit Biblical Womanhood.

Edited on 10/3/2012 to add note about baking powder.

Ginger

What to do with all this fresh ginger? Well, after I washed and trimmed it, I made a puree with added water and fresh lemon juice.

Now it looks like this...

Nice and creamy...

I used about 1 & 1/2 c. each of water and fresh trimmed, chopped ginger and about 1/2 c. fresh lemon juice (2 lemons). The recipe I was (somewhat) following said to strain it, but I think I'll leave it all in there. It will settle anyway. Juice at the top and solids at the bottom.

We had a curry dish the other night and because we are giving our daughter foods from the table these days, we added our own ginger "juice" to our dishes at the table. That way she wouldn't get too spicy a bite and we'd still get our ginger taste. Yum.

I want to try to make other things with it, maybe even make a version of ginger ale with it. Flavoring in cookies, cakes...?

The following recipe is one I used from the vegetarian cookbook, "A Celebration of Wellness," by James Levin and Natalie Cederquist.

Fresh Ginger Concentrate

1/2 c. fresh ginger root, peeled and chopped

1 c. pure water

1/4 c. lemon juice

Liquefy all the ingredients in a blender for a couple of minutes. Strain into a glass jar and store in the fridge. Use this is stir frys, salad dressings, soups or sauces - or added to sparkling waters or juices. You can also add 1 tsp. to hot water as a beverage to increase your circulation. An easy way to have fresh ginger around. Make ahead and store in fridge. It saves preparation time.

Also from the same book: "Ginger...This tasty aromatic rhizome soothes the digestive system, stimulates the circulatory system, and acts as a decongestant. To make ginger tea, pour boiling water over a bit of chopped ginger root; it will warm you up on a chilly day."

Carrot Dip - Art Or Invention?

I like my favorite hobby. Food. Sometimes I play a little and see what I can come up with. Recipes, that is. Then sometimes something just looks cool...

I love the way good food looks. Things are beautiful in the "natural," don't you think?

This was my latest experiment...not too bad. Can you even guess what's in my Vitamix?

I'll give you a hint...it was dip for our "homemade" corn tortillas (the last ones till we get back to the good old USA). No tomatoes either...

OK, give up? It is the beautiful orange carrot. Pureed. Yes, that's right.

Carrot Dip

I put in about 6-8 carrots with water to cover and pureed it. So that's what you see in the bottom under my seasonings.

Seasonings (the artsy part!) from top, going clockwise around to the middle (very rough estimates...I am a shake and pour kind of person sometimes):

2 tsp. chili powder

1/2 tsp. salt (hard to see)

1 tsp. dried onion flakes

1 1/2 tsp. cumin powder

1/2 tsp. dried minced garlic

2 Tbsp. beet juice! =)

and about 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast on top of this

All mixed up, very good. I wanted to see if the beet would make it more red. Not really. But it didn't hurt anything. The finished product still looked orange, just darker. Sort of a cheesy type carrot sauce. And no, it did not taste like overcooked carrots with no flavor. It was very good.

We had this alongside some avocado (Remember our friends? They supply us about once per week!) and corn tortillys and we had us some happy mouths.

...and because I couldn't decide which photo to use, I'll leave you with a parting shot...ain't it perdy?

Beans, beans...

...the musical fruit!



That's how my husband jokingly refers to beans. The whole little rhyme (even has a musical tune - of course! LOL)...

"Beans, beans, the musical fruit,


The more you eat, the more you toot,


The more you toot, the better you feel,


So let's have beans for every meal!"

I will say that for some people, beans (correctly called legumes) and their "musical" after effects is not on their all time favorite things in life. Many people just avoid them altogether. If you happen to like them, like me (and to avoid pain and embarrassment), check out the list below.

1. when soaking ahead of time, always drain and rinse before adding fresh water to cook beans


2. add ginger to beans when cooking


3. cook beans with a piece of kombu, a seaweed perfect for this


4. change the cooking water after boiling for a few minutes, rinse beans, then add fresh water to a clean pot before continuing. (I don't always do this, but it helps when I cook soybeans to avoid boil overs.)

5. "Add epazote to the beans when cooking. Epazote, a little-known herb also called Mexican Tea, helps control gas when cooked with beans. It adds a strong, distinctive taste that is common to Central and South American cooking. Look for it in Hispanic groceries or health food stores. You can also buy it online; just search for 'epazote.'" - (from Bean Bible website)

(6. I would suggest another popular remedy for digesting beans here, but alas, I have heard it is not vegetarian friendly, because it contains gelatin and other non-veg ingredients - oh well...)

Some people think that being vegetarian means that you have to eat beans (legumes) for protein. While this statement is not entirely true, many people find a few varieties of beans they like.

Here are my favorites:

Pinto: for "refried" beans, or tex-mex type meals

Lentil: very quick cooking (without soaking ahead) for soups and stews

Black (turtle): just because I like them (my dad used to grow them)

Small red: a nice small colorful bean for salads and soups

Peanut: for peanut butter, even in (African) stews and boiled (I love boiled!)

Mung: for bean sprouts in Asian dishes

Garbanzo (Chick Peas): great in salads, in curries, and yummy as a fried snack

Great Northern: nice white bean for soups and bean mixes

There's always more that I find interesting, so the list could go on...and on...

Beans from a can are ok in a pinch, but home cooked are not only cheaper, but you control what amount of salt (if any - it is not a requirement) and other things in it. Preparing beans from dry form is an easy job and can be done very efficiently once you have done it a couple of times.

There are many kind of beans with varying yields from each cup of dry beans. If you look up all the amounts that people say you should be able to get out of your particular kind of bean, you'll find that roughly for every 1 cup of dry, you'll get about 2 to 2 1/2 cups cooked.

The jury is still out on whether to soak or not, salt or not, and other things bean related. There are many ways to prepare and handle beans. Read up on other methods (see links at end of this post). What I've heard is to just try different things until you find what works for you. A combination of things might be best.


My take on beans at present:
As far as soaking time, most beans should be soaked for at least 8 hours. Soaking water should always be discarded and use only fresh pure water. You can use soak water to water your plants.

Cooking time can vary quite widely, but as a rule of thumb, plan on two hours to cook. Some take about an hour, some are slightly more than 2 hours. Hard water can affect the time needed to cook. Best to use purified/filtered water to soak and cook.



Test if they are done by picking some out with a spoon and blowing on them. Skins should crack and they should be soft. They can be a bit firmer if you plan to freeze for later use. Taste some for final test. Cooking can take a while for beans that are old. The fresher the bean, the faster it will cook up from dry.



There are some exceptions to the general rules above.

1. I have found that with soybeans, it is easier if I soak them a full 24 hours, changing water at least once during this time, more if I remember.

2. Lentils do not need a prior soaking time before cooking. They usually cook in under an hour from dry.

3. Soybeans take about 3 hours or more to cook, less than this if they are the black soybean variety.

4. Dry lima beans will yield less than 2 cups cooked from 1 cup dry, generally.



Loretta's Slow Method To Cooking Beans From Dry:



1. Measure out how many cups of beans you'd like to cook.



2. Sort, tossing stones and other misc. foreign materials out. Also, toss out any beans that don't pass your inspection. A lot of cracked skins on beans may indicate the beans are old. I toss beans that are not whole (generally), or have holes, and cracks. These indicate bugs or age, etc.



3. Rinse them with clean water. For this step, I like to use a bowl big enough to have more water than beans and do the following ... toss ones that float. Swish around with hands or spoon, till you have tossed all floaters and to agitate them a little to dislodge dirt, etc. Pour out water and do this 2-3 times until water is clear (generally) and all floaters, etc. have been tossed out.



4. Put sorted, rinsed, clean (still wet) beans into pot with enough water to cover plus a little more.



5. (Optional step) Cook until the beans have boiled for about 10-15 minutes. Then drain and rinse in a colander over the sink. Use a clean pot to put back on stove repeating step #4 above. Then proceed to step #6.

6.* Put in pot, with beans, in desired amounts:

onions, quartered or roughly chopped

garlic, roughly chopped

a tablespoon or two of oil to avoid a boil over.

Do not put in salt at this point, because it usually will take the beans longer to cook that way. I wait until they are done to add any type of salt.



7. Cook until done (take into account the guide above).



8. Drain and rinse in colander over sink, discarding cooking water. This will also help to alleviate digestion problems associated with eating beans.



9. Proceed with recipe as needed. Or you can freeze them for later use in amounts that are best for your family. I like to freeze in 2 cup amounts. I do use some cooking water to cover beans if I freeze them, discarding it after thawing before I proceed.



*Note: You would not add onions or garlic if cooking soybeans intended to make soy milk. Likewise, if you plan to cook your beans intended for any sweet dish, do not add onions or garlic.


Other helpful links:
To check out the many varieties of the humble bean, look here.

For other storage and soaking helps, check out part 1...and part 2 - the many options for cooking beans.

For cooking times and yields in a chart form, check this out (they also have a chart for whole grains). This is from another vegetarian site called Vegetarians in Paradise.
Check out the Bean Bible for some thoughts on avoiding the musical part and all things bean related.

What I "do" for fun...French braids!

Life is more fun if you get a little creative. When you don't "do" a lot of entertainment (by the world's standards), you start to have fun with the simple things in life.


Take for example, doing a little girl's hair. To me, it's fun to see what I can do for a "do.''



French braids are my preference because she has many short hairs that need corralling. When I first started doing them, even though I knew how to do them, with a wiggly child...easier said than done. I figured out that having a distraction was very helpful. Some barrettes, rocks & shells, or a fun colorful toy to play with helped me out while I did the following hairdos.

This is from one of the first times I did her hair...


One time I did a three French braid "do", another... a side part French braid...

Last week...a spiral, one continuous French braid...why not?
And today, a "crown" style that turned out really well!

Simple, frugal, and fun. 

Lemon Water

"Mama, can I make lemon water?" My son is asking if he can serve us a refreshing drink we all like around here. "Sure!" is my usual answer to him because I'm glad he's getting into the habit of using lemon in his water. He makes it from start...washing lemons... to finish...even cutting an apple up and garnishing our cups with the apple slices as well. Ain't that swell?


His recipe for Lemon Water:


1 lemon, juiced

water

apple slices for garnish


Divide lemon juice into 3 drinking cups/glasses. Pour water in to fill. Put apple slices onto glass. Serve on a tray to your family. Hope you like it.

Mama's addition: if you like you can add a little sweetener (stevia would be good) and if you're adventurous, sprinkle a little cayenne pepper on top of the lemon water. There are so many benefits from drinking this. Drink this everyday for a month and you'll see why.