Salvaging mealy fruit and coconut whipped cream recipe

We had a half dozen peaches that Laura would not touch last week. She didn't complain about them but would just leave them sitting on her plate after I served them. I finally tasted one and "blah" it was all I could do to choke it down!

"Waste not, want not" is my motto so I was determined to figure out something to do with them. I chopped them all up, threw them in a pot with water, a bit of sugar, cinnamon and lemon juice and let them simmer for about two hours until they were soft, sweet and most of the water has boiled down. I couldn't believe how the flavorless mealy peaches were now delicious and ready to be eaten. I might have eaten a few spoonfuls of boiling hot peaches off my stovetop in the process.

I then turned to my favorite Paleo dessert blogs site for a cobbler dough inspiration. I used her Oven Skillet Cobbler recipe as the base for my own cobbler. I didn't have quite enough fruit so the coconut flour was a bit overwhelming. I topped it all off with easy to make coconut milk whipped cream.

Coconut Milk Whipped Cream

Ingredients and supplies

• Can of cold, full fat coconut milk
• Tablespoon of your favorite sweetener
• Cold metal or glass mixing bowl and whisk beater attachment. 

Refrigerate your coconut milk overnight or if you're a last minute person like me stick it in the freezer for a bit. Just don't forget about all afternoon or you'll be trying to figure out how to defrost it without heating up too much.
While you've got your freezer open pop in a small glass or metal mixing bowl and the whisk attachment   for your stand or hand held mixer. You could beat this by hand if you would like to get in a forearm workout and are in a pinch without a mixer.
Open your chilled coconut milk and scoop out the hardened fatty milk off the top. Save the water for smoothies or your kid's oatmeal.

I used maple syrup to slightly sweeten this while I beat the cream into a luxuriously thick whipped cream that would have fooled most people into thinking it was dairy. Now that Daniel no longer has a dairy sensitivity to what I'm eating it's nice to enjoy dairy products again. However,  I don't usually keep heavy whipping cream on hand but my pantry is always stocked with canned coconut milk.

Use the whipping cream in coffee, fruit or dessert. This was delicious the next day on fruit salad.

Freezer Cooking this week

I tried to do a one hour freezer cooking session on Monday night. It ended up taking nearly two hours to get everything done and I had to put off making spaghetti sauce until Tuesday morning.

I nearly started a kitchen fire after leaving this towel near a hot burner. 

Here's what I got done

• Two meat and potato casseroles (one for dinner and one for the freezer)
• Five freezer bags of mashed potatoes
• Five onions chopped and frozen
• Seven bags of spaghetti sauce with meat
• French Toast Casserole for breakfast on Tuesday morning. I made this the night before and got up an hour early, popped it in the oven and went back to bed while it cooked for an hour. It's a great use for stale bread. 

David's favorite - Meat and potato casserole

Pancake Syrup

From Allrecipes.com

Ingredients

• 2 cups white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon maple flavored extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. In a saucepan, combine the white sugar, brown sugar and water. Bring to a boil, and cook for about 3 minutes. Stir in the maple extract and vanilla, and remove form the heat. Let cool, and serve at room temperature. Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator. Be aware that it may crystallize a little if the container is not completely airtight.

Crockpot Yogurt

Several months ago I started making my own yogurt. We usually go through at least one large container of plain yogurt a week which costs about $2 a carton. I can make my own for less than $2 and it makes about two yogurt containers worth or 64 ounces. For simplicity sake, let's say it comes out to about $1 dollar per 32 ounces. It doesn't save much money but it's simple to make and there's just something very satisfying about making your own yogurt. It's one of those foods I always assumed you had to buy until I tried to make my own.

It is not as thick as store bought yogurt. I tried straining it with a cheese cloth and made a huge mess without much success at making it thicker. The more yogurt that's in the fridge, the more we eat, especially with all the yummy summer fruit coming into season. I love to make smoothies for breakfast using yogurt as well.

Here's the original recipe  I used and a quick summary of how I make my yogurt. While there is little labor involved it is a long process so plan accordingly. The total process takes 13.5 hours. I like to start mine around four or five in the afternoon, so it will be ready by the morning. I think it's okay if it sits covered for more than eight hours.

Crock Pot Yogurt

• Pour 8 cups of whole milk into crockpot
• Cook on low for 3 hours
• After three hours unplug the crockpot and allow to sit for 2.5 hours
• After 2.5 hours whisk in 1/2 plain yogurt as a starter culture. I always use store bought for this, I think the bacteria is stronger in it, but homemade from your last batch may work as well.
• Cover the crockpot with a towel and allow to sit for 8 hours. 
• Decant into smaller containers and refrigerate. 

Tuna Casserole

I never know what to make for lunches on the weekend, I hate sandwiches and David's tired of eating them by Friday. I used to eat a can of tuna a day in high school until I read that you should limit your consumption because of the high mercury content. 


I normally don't like baked tuna because it tastes quite fishy but this recipe was delicious and after the two of us ate, there were enough leftovers for tomorrow's lunches. Because I try my best to use whole foods and cook from scratch, I don't use canned cream soups. Unfortunately, most casserole recipes call for cream of mushroom or cream of chicken. Instead of canned soup, this recipe makes a delicious and simple roux from scratch.  


Recipe courtesy of Diary of a Housewife
From-Scratch Tuna Casserole

3 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
3 cups milk 
2 heaping tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
2 cans tuna, drained
1 pound rotini pasta, cooked very al dente (very important, otherwise it will get mushy while baking!)
salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder to taste 
1 heaping tablespoon shredded Parmesan cheese
2 heaping tablespoons panko bread crumbs (I used plain)

Melt the butter in a large saucepan, over medium heat.  Whisk in the flour all at once.  Add the milk a little at a time, whisking continuously until a thick sauce is formed (approximately ten minutes).  Remove from heat.

Stir in the grated Parmesan cheese and seasonings, whisking until well combined.  Add the pasta and tuna.  Mix well, and spread in an oiled 8x8  casserole dish. 

Top with Parmesan cheese, and panko bread crumbs.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, then broil on low for 2-3 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown.

Freezer Marinades for Chicken

Sorry for the terrible font discrepancies, I can't seem to fix it. 
I try and cook enough meat for a large serving for David and I plus enough for leftover. Usually about 3 breasts or thighs in a freezer Ziploc bag and add a marinade. Freeze flat. Once frozen they can stay flat or be stacked vertically likes books to save space.

I pull one bag out and let defrost in the fridge for about two days and bake. For bone in breasts bake at 350 for 45 minutes. I turn the oven up to about 425 for boneless breasts and cook 20-30 minutes. I'm not the best at keeping track of how long things actually take to cook. The juices should run clear when the chicken is done.

Freezer-Friendly Marinated Chicken

Honey and Soy

3 whole frozen chicken breasts
1 garlic clove
1/4 cup liquid sweetener (honey, maple syrup, agave)
1/4 cup soy sauce
Put chicken breasts and garlic clove in a freezer bag. Mix together sweetener and soy sauce and pour over chicken in the bag. Seal bag air-tight (use a straw to remove extra air, if necessary). Stick in the freezer (or you can cook immediately).
To cook: Thaw on the counter top for a few hours or in the refrigerator overnight. Cook in the crockpot on high for 3-4 hours or in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 to 45 minutes.

Serve over rice, if desired. May also chop and add steamed veggies and serve over rice. Makes 3-4 servings.

The following marinades are enough for about six pieces of chicken. It makes enough for three meals for us.

Asian: Life as Mom

6 Tablespoons rice vinegar

3 Tablespoons soy sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/4 cup oil

1 Tablespoon sesame oil

Spicy Southwest (Blend in food processor or blender):Life as Mom

1 tomato, quartered

1/2 onion, cut into chunks

1/4 jalapeno pepper

2 cloves garlic

1/4 cup oil

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 Tablespoon lime juice

1/4 cup cilantro leaves

Dijon: Life as Mom

1/3 cup Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/4 cup oil