BellyHealthy

I’m sorry, I just have no idea what the origins of a name like Toad In The Hole could be. I googled a few possibilites, but the most interested or reputable information I found was a reference to it in Mrs. Beeton’s as a “homely but savoury dish”. But I was a bit worried about some of the meat she called for. So, historically, Toad In The Hole was a basic dish for leftovers: throw in surplus meat (ground up and made into sausages), root veggies, pour in the Yorkshire pudding and Bob’s your uncle. (Actually, Bob really is my uncle.) Today, a pub menu featuring Toad... 

Recipe below! So I had to wait a while to post this one so I wouldn’t spoil the gift-giving surprise, but this homemade vanilla extract was super easy (and super economical) to make. You could probably still make it now and have it looking decent by Christmas, too. My sister in law liked this idea so much, she took it a step further and made three times as many as I did. Plus, it keeps for about a year and just gets better and better the more you let it steep. I got the idea from the Dalai Mama, Catherine Newman, so I can’t claim that this was all me. But her original article and links... 

Sara is my sister-in-law and my kind of cook — she’ll throw in ingredients she thinks might pair well and not get caught up in exact measurements. This one is super healthy, as the zucchini is practically raw: by finely chopping it and throwing it in with the still-very-hot rice, the veggies cooks themselves, thereby keeping all the nutrients in the dish and not evaporated away in a pan or oven. She’s also the wise creator of Spaghetti Squash Recipe, which is equally awesome and a version of pasta that is low carb. Ingredients: 2 cups of chicken broth 1 cup of brown rice 1/2 onion,... 

Hooray!!! After only a couple dozen dairy free cookies coming out of the oven and sliding directly into the rubbish, I’m getting the hang of baking, and these turned out much easier than the last big batch (which is why they weren’t included in the Dairy Free Thanksgiving Cookies post). I guess the trick was really to watch them brown and take them out immediately to finish ‘cooking’ on the racks. You’re going to need a cookie gun to make them look like this, and given the negative reviews on most cookie guns online, I’m going to vouch for a cheapo Wilton one,... 

Two dairy free versions of autumn cookie classics: Snickerdoodles and Iced Pumpkin Cookies, too. Originally, the recipe comes from the Disney Family website, who also came up with the 12 Cookies of Christmas. But I made them dairy free for my colleague’s birthday and nobody could tell they weren’t dairy, so I figure mission accomplished! The Iced Pumpkin ones are like mini pumpkin pies, and the Snickerdoodles, well, they snuck themselves in as they’re my husband’s favorite cookies, but who doesn’t appreciate a good Snickerdoodle treat around 11 o’clock? Enjoy! Dairy... 

…Or VeganMoFo, one of the most amusing linguistic contractions I’ve come across in a while. November is officially the month push yourself to write as much about food as possible. Inspired by NanoWriMo, the folks over at Brooklyn-based Post Punk Kitchen decided they’d just much rather write about food and vegan cooking. The site is a wonderful resource for vegans or even for those considering the vegan lifestyle (props to you — I tried it for a year and never quite clicked into it). The Post Punk Kitchen is actually a public access television show that is currently on hiatus,... 

The key to this dish, I found, was using smaller chicken breasts, as the final dish is quite rich and no one at the dinner table will need vast amounts of chicken protein to fill up their bellies. Also, this might seem obvious, but since you’re wrapping the chicken up with the Parma ham (and the ham will stick together very nicely as the oils dry it and make it slightly crispy, too), you can feel free to make a very wide slit horizontally through the chicken breast, instead of a conservative slit like I’d done before. In fact, this makes it a lot tastier since the pesto can be spread... 

This is my mother’s evergreen recipe (although she only ever uses red, yellow or orange peppers – ba dum PSSHHH!). Keep them handy in the fridge for up to a week and serve them as an antipasto, a veggie side, use the juices as a chicken marinade, or in a toasted panini with some ‘Better Than Cream Cheese’ Tofutti spread. These peppers can be served hot or cold, but I prefer them cold as I find that really brings out the original flavour of the peppers. Ingredients: 8 peppers bunch of flat-leafed parsley 2 cloves garlic 1 – 1 1/2 cups very good olive oil or extra virgin...