Way ahead of you, kim and scott!

Amazing Eggplant Parm

soooooo I am on a total eggplant thing. I've been eating it about 4-5 times a week. Tonight I made Eggplant Parmigiana for the first time. I am eating it now!!

 Here's what you need:
1 lg eggplant, sliced somewhat thin (think thinner than your pinky nail is long)
2 eggs, scrambled
~ 2 c Italian-style bread crumbs*
2 c pasta sauce
~1 c ricotta cheese
~12 oz (by weight) shredded mozzarella

salt the eggplant slices and place in a colander for 15 min or more. rinse them off, let sit till mostly dry. 

Preheat oven to 350.

dip each slice of eggplant in egg, then coat completely in bread crumbs. spray cookie sheet with pam, then place each slice on baking sheet. spray the tops of the slices with pam as well. bake for about 10 min on each side, until bread crumbs are slightly crispy.

 pour some marinara in the bottom of a baking dish. should be about 1/4 c. layer eggplant slices on the bottom, as many as can be fit. spread a thin layer of ricotta over each slice, then sprinkle mozzarella. add another layer of pasta sauce then repeat with eggplant and cheeses.

one dish ended up with 2 layers, one with 3. add some sauce around the edges, cover the dish with foil, then bake 30-45 min, until eggplant is tender and cheese is melted. let rest for 15 min after removing from the oven.

enjoy!! super yummy!


 *bread crumbs: because Gma is gluten free, I made some eggplant so she could eat it. because I could not find gluten-free bread crumbs (and who needs nasty hydrogenated oils anyway?), I made my own. For a half recipe, I used 4 slices of gluten free bread, sprayed with pam, and baked at 250 until dried out (about 15 min each side). Then I threw em in the food processor with dried chopped onion, basil, oregano, garlic powder, and black pepper. Would definitely recommend this method even if you are not gluten free. It's just a little time-consuming. :D

Cranberry Chicken

1 Can cranberry sauce (whole berry)
1 packet onion soup mix
2-3 chicken breasts

mix cranberry sauce and onion soup mix. arrange the breasts in a glass baking dish, and cover with sauce. Make sure they are well covered (to prevent drying)

Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes or until fully cooked.  

Serves well over brown rice with a green vegetable (Asparagus was amazing with it!)


[NOTE: Onion soup mix typically contains gluten. This post is marked gluten-free because there is an easy substitution here http://www.food.com/recipe/copycat-liptons-onion-soup-mix-24952]

The Best Banana Bread [family recipe]

2 1/2 c. sugar
1 c. oil
1/2 c. melted butter (1 cube)
3 eggs
3 bananas, mashed
1 c. buttermilk
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 tsp. almond extract
3 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 c. nuts (optional)


Cream sugar with oil and butter.  Add eggs and beat.  Add bananas,
buttermilk, vanilla and almond exract.  Stir in dry ingredients.  Bake
@ 350 for 45-60 min. (depending on pan size, larger pan, cook longer,
smaller pans, cook less).  Makes 2 large loaves or 5-6 mini loaves or
1 bundt.


Glaze


3/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. orange juice
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 tsp. butter


Boil all these ingredients until sugar is disolved. Poke hundreds of
holes in loaves when warm and brush or drizzle with glaze.

Asparagus

Pick a bunch of asparagus that looks good. I prefer thin to medium stems.

Wash, snap off the ends

Place in a 12 inch skillet with about a few Tablespoons of water.  Cover and place over medium heat.  Let the asparagus steam until it's bright green.

Drain the water

Add a small amount of EVOO (and small amount of butter for flavour if you wish), minced garlic, minced red onions, and a TBSP of balsamic vinegar. Sauté until the vinegar is mostly absorbed. Super delicious, sweet, healthy, and easy! Great with fresh grated Parmesan cheese

Peppermint Breeze Shampoo (name courtesy of Crystal)

what you need:

• empty shampoo bottle (16 oz is great, I recommend one with a cap that has a small hole)
  
• Peppermint Castille Soap (hint: Trader Joe's, natural stores, Amazon.com)
• 100% Aloe Vera Gel [optional]
  
• Lemon Juice (very important)
• Jojoba Oil (again, TJ's or natural food stores)
• distilled water
• eucalyptus oil [optional]

Put 4 oz each of Castille soap and water in the bottle, add 2 oz lemon juice, 1 Tablespoon of Jojoba , 1 TBSP of Eucalyptus oil, and 2 TBSP of Aloe Vera

This is very thin, so instead of pouring in your hand, squirt it directly on your wet scalp, give yourself a good massaging, let sit for a couple of mins, and rinse. This can also be used as a body/face soap, but do not get it near eyes!!  I have noticed with my most recent batch (possibly due to the addition of Eucalyptus oil), it is a LOT thicker. Sometimes I have to add a TBSP of water and shake it up.

I highly recommend following up with an apple cider vinegar rinse. Get a spray bottle or one that has a cap like this. Just squirt on to your hair. Yes, it will stink in the shower, but you will get used to it after a few uses. Once you rinse it out, you just smell peppermint. The acid smooths down the shaft of your hair, preventing knots and adding shine.

Conditioner is hard to make homemade and shelf stable. I recommend Trader Joe's spa conditioner. It is cheap, and has no sulfates. After 2 shampoos/conditions with this combo, almost all of my flaky dry skin is gone, and my hair looks and feels great! Amazing!!

**also recommend Organix Tea Tree Mint Conditioner, though it costs more than TJ's Conditioner

Laundry Detergent

Ok, so I know this is not edible, but it IS still a recipe. . .

Save up those detergent bottles, and when you run out, try making your own detergent. Here is what I did:

grate (finely) 1 bar of Fels-Naptha soap ($0.97 at Wal-Mart). Other lightly scented soap can also be used (body or laundry--another laundry soap I saw is Zote)

1.5 c Sodium Carbonate (pH plus or Washing Soda. Cannot find Washing Soda, so I used pH plus from the pool chemical section. It is 98% Sodium Carbonate and 2% Water. $5.97 at Wal-Mart)

1.5 c Borax. ( I believe it was $3.97 at Wal-Mart)


boil 3 c water in a large saucepan. add grated soap, whisk well. add sodium carbonate. mix; add borax, mix again. pour into a bucket and add about a gallon of water (more if you want it thinner, less if you want it concentrated. I simply did this amount because it was the combined capacity of my bottles). If you add about a gallon, use one ounce per load. It must be shaken before each use, as it will separate almost immediately.


I figured out that this costs about $4 for 120 loads. a lot less than you pay for Tide