Recipe: Fruit Salad

Nothing says summer like a fresh fruit salad.  This one will please everyone and is a great side dish or topping for ice cream.

Summer Fruit Salad
2 pints strawberries
1 pint blueberries
3 ripe kiwis
1 ripe mango
1 ripe papaya
2 Tbls lime juice
3 Tbls table sugar

Directions
Cut of the tops of the strawberries and cut into chunks.  Place in large bowl with blueberries.  Peel the kiwis, mango and papaya.  Slice the kiwis and place in blow.  Cut the flesh off the mango pit, slice, add to bowl.  Scoop out the papaya seeds, slice remaining fruit, add to bowl.  Top with lime juice and sugar.  Stir.

Recipe: Sausage Spinach Pasta

This recipe came about by opening the cupboard and fridge and taking stuff out.  It turned out great.  Everyone liked it. Success!

Sausage Spinach Pasta
Time = 30 min
Servings = 8

Ingredients
1 lb mild sausage
1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 c Marsala wine
1 box (1 lb) penne pasta
1 tsp salt
1 large bunch spinach, chopped (stems discarded)
Fresh cracked black pepper
1/2 c sun dried tomatoes
1/2-1/3 c shredded parmesan cheese

Directions
1.  Cook sausage in a large frying pan over medium/high heat for 5 minutes.  Add chopped onion and cook until the onion is opaque and sausage is no longer pink.  Add Marsala wine.
2.  Meanwhile heat a large pot of water to boiling.  Add salt and pasta to water.  Bring back to boiling and cook for 8 minutes.
3.  Add spinach to sausage mixture and stir until wilted.  Add fresh black pepper.  Add sun dried tomatoes.  Reduce heat to low to keep warm.
4.  When the pasta is done, drain reserving 1/4 c of the liquid.  In a large bowl, mix pasta with sausage and spinach.  Mix in shredded cheese.

Notes - If you want to kick up the heat, add 1 tsp of red pepper along with the black pepper.

Recipe: Lentil Curry

Lentil Curry

Time = 1 hr

Servings = 8-10

Ingredients

2 c brown lentils

2 c chicken or vegetable broth

3 c water

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 tsp curry powder

1/2 Tbs sugar

1/4 tsp cumin seeds

1 large onion

1 boneless, skinless chicken breast (optional)

1 large russet potato

1 large carrot

1/2 c milk

Directions

Place lentils in a large stock pot. Pour in chicken/vegetable broth and water. Stir in salt, pepper, curry powder, sugar and cumin seeds. Slowly bring to boil, stirring occasionally.

While the lentils are warming up, chop the onion and add to pot. Use kitchen shears to cut up the chicken into bite-sized pieces - cut right into the pot. Peel the potato, chop and add to pot. Then peel the carrot, chop and add to the pot. Stir in milk.

Once it comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium low, cover and simmer. Stir occasionally and check the consistency. Once the lentils start to break up, the potatoes are soft and the broth thickens, taste it. Adjust the seasonings to desired spiciness. Serve over prepared rice.

Keeps well for about 3 days.

Recipe: Pasta Salad

Pasta Salad

Time = 15 minutes

Servings = 4

1/2 lb spiral pasta

2 large carrots

2 celery ribs

3 green onions

1/2 yellow bell pepper

1/4 cup mayo

1/4 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 cup smoked Gruyere cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add 1 teaspoon salt and stir in pasta. Reduce heat to medium-high and boil for 8 minutes or until al dente. While pasta is cooking, peel carrots and shred. Trim celery and dice. Slice green onions, greens only. Dice the yellow bell pepper. In a small bowl, mix mayo, sour cream and sugar. Cut the cheese into 1/2" cubes.

Drain the pasta and transfer to serving dish. Stir in mayo/sour cream mixture. Add veggies and cheese. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Taste and adjust. You can always add more mayo and/or sour cream to make the pasta creamier. Enjoy!

Note - This salad is best made a day a head of time. Cover the dish and put in the refrigerator for the flavors to mix and mingle.

Kitchen Science

Making food is just science and math. It's proportions and chemical reactions. And it can be really fun for kids. Here is a case in point.

Last night I was thinking about breakfast and decided we should have pancakes. Problem was that there was no butter in the house. But there was half a pint of heavy whipping cream. And so there was a solution - make some butter. I called Jordan in to help.

We poured the half a pint of heavy whipping cream into a mason jar. Then we put a marble into the jar and screwed the lid on very tight. Next came the fun part - shaking. Shake, shake, shake. Everyone got a turn, even daddy. First it becomes whipped, the consistency you'd expect for topping a piece of pie. More shaking. Second it starts to look grainy, but still white. More shaking. Last the watery parts of the cream separate from the fats. The fats come together and are light yellow. The liquid is cloudy. We opened the jar to test the consistency, it wasn't quite solid enough so a bit more shaking. And done. We poured out the liquid and put the butter in a dish.

Jordan asked to taste it. "Wow, it tastes like butter!" I said, "That's because it is butter."

Note - Personally I don't like salted butter, but if you do you can add a little. After you put the butter in the dish add 1/4 tsp of salt and mix it in.

Recipe of the Week - Moroccan Lamb Patties

This recipes is posted over on my farm blog, but it's so good and a great weeknight recipe I thought I'd give the link here. Enjoy http://brookshobbyfarm.blogspot.com/2012/01/moroccan-lamb-patties.html

Recipe of the Week - Twice Baked Potato

This is a fan favorite and you can make enough for two or even three dinners. Just double/triple everything except the broccoli. You can add a new veggie each night to keep it fresh.

Twice "Baked" Potato

Time - 45 min

Servings - 4

Ingredients

2 large russet potatoes

1/2 c shredded cheddar cheese

4 strips turkey bacon

1/4 c or more low-fat milk

1/2 t salt

1/4 t pepper

2 head broccoli

bunch chives

low-fat sour cream

Directions

1. Pierce each potato with a fork, place on a folded paper towel and cook in the microwave for 8 minutes on high, flipping over at 4 minutes. Check to make sure the potatoes are soft all through big piercing with a fork. If not soft, cook for another 2-4 minutes. When the potatoes are done, place on a wire rack to cool. Wait at least 15 minutes or more.

2. While the potatoes are cooking and cooling, cook the bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Cool on a paper towel. When you can handle the bacon, break into 1/2 inch pieces.

3. Also while the potatoes are cooking, cut the broccoli florets from the stalk. Chop the chives.

4. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut each in half lengthwise. Use a spoon to scoop out the soft whites, leaving the skin intact. Error on the side of leaving more whites in the potato to keep from puncturing the skin. Place the potato white in a bowl and mash. Mix in cheese, bacon, milk and salt and pepper. Adjust the amount of milk to your desired consistency.

5. Scoop the potato whites back into the skins, allowing it to mound up slightly. Place back in the microwave and cook for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes to make sure all cheese melts. Set on 4 plates to cool slightly. [One half a potato equals one serving.]

6. While the potatoes are cooking and cooling again, steam the broccoli until just fork tender. Place on plates with potatoes. Serve with chives and sour cream as toppings.

Notes - If you double or triple the number of potatoes, you need to add 1 minute for each potato the the original cooking time in step 1. To keep the leftovers, let the potatoes cool completely to room temperature. Double wrap each individually in plastic wrap and place in fridge. Just reheat each in the microwave and serve with veggies. Steamed beens, small salad or cooked corn kernels are great side dishes.

Recipe of the Week - Basic White Sauce

With a basic white sauce you can make macaroni and cheese, pasta alfredo, scalloped potatoes, anything that needs a nice creamy sauce.

White Sauce

2 T olive oil

1 T butter

1 small onion, diced

1/4 c all purpose flour

4 c milk [not non-fat]

1/2 t salt

1/4 t pepper

Directions

Heat olive oil and butter in a heavy bottom large skillet. Add onion and saute until soft and opaque. Stir in flour until damp. Add a bit more olive oil if the flour doesn't all get damp. Slowly whisk in milk and season with salt and pepper. Simmer, stirring constantly, until sauce thickens.

For mac and cheese, remove sauce from heat and add 2 cups of shredded cheese. Stir until cheese all melts. Pour over cooked elbow pasta. Or pour over steamed broccoli and cauliflower for a delicious side-dish.

Notes - You can use whole, 2% or 1% milk, but not skim/non-fat milk because the sauce needs fat to mix with the flour and thicken up. If you want extra creamy sauce, use 2 c milk and 1 c heavy cream.

Working Mom's Recipe of the Week

Quick Turkey Noodle Soup

Servings = 4

Time = 1/2 hr

Ingredients

4 c chicken broth

1 lb boneless, skinless turkey breasts

1 small onion

1 large carrot

2 large kale leaves

1/2 bag egg noodles

2 t salt, divided

1/4 t pepper

1/2 t dried thyme

Directions

1. Place turkey in a pyrex dish with lid. Microwave for 3 minutes. Flip turkey over and microwave for 3-5 minutes or until done through. Remove to cutting board and cut into bite-sized pieces. It's OK if it's a little bit pink because you'll boil it more in the broth.

2. While turkey is cooking, bring broth to simmer over medium heat.

3. While broth is coming to simmer, dice the onion, peel and slice the carrot into 1/4 inch rounds, de-vein the kale and cut leaves into thin 2 inch strips.

3. Add veggies and turkey to broth. Add 1 teaspoon salt, pepper and thyme. Simmer until carrots are fork tender.

4. While veggies are cooking bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the remaining 1 t salt and the egg noodles. Boil 8 minutes or until aldente.

5. Drain noodles and add to soup. Taste and adjust spices.

Notes - You can add any spices you like to this soup - sage and rosemary are good. Also, use any veggies you like - celery, canned corn, frozen peas, rutabaga, parsnip, etc.

Working Mom's Recipe of the Week

This time of year is so busy and it seems like there is alway a party or event that I'm cooking for. This week it's two work potlucks, mine and Jeremy's, and Saturday it's Jordan's piano recital and cookie party. Thankfully I like to cook. But even with my enjoyment of late night baking, it's hard to muster the energy to also make dinner. Here are my recipes for healthy meals during the holidays:

1. Never underestimate the sandwich. Whole wheat bread, deli turkey, cheese, lettuce, mustard - done, dinner. Or get fancy and use rye bread, cream cheese and sweet pickled beets with the turkey - trust me, it's delicious. Or sourdough with pesto and sundried tomatoes. Everyone can have what they want and it takes about 15 minutes.

2. Pasta, pasta, pasta. Cook penne pasta according to package, skipping the oil. Choose a really good pre-made spaghetti sauce - something thick with garlic and basil. Bring it to simmer and add pre-cut mushrooms and a small can sliced black olives. Mix sauce with cooked pasta. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Add salad-in-a-bag and you got dinner in about 20 min.

3. Quick Mexican. Saute a diced onion in olive oil. Add a can of drained corn and a can of drained black beans. Add a can of diced tomatoes and a small can of green Chiles. Sprinkle with cumin. Take a small bag of tortilla chips and crush into a grease rectangle glass baking dish. Scoop the corn/bean mixture over the tortillas. Sprinkle with a couple handfuls of pre-shredded cheese. Bake at 350 F until the cheese melts. It takes about a half hour start to finish.

4. Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup. This winter standby is a go-to for us. Adult-up the grilled cheese by using gruyere instead of cheddar and adding deli-sliced ham. Have fun with the tomato soup toppers as well - we love gold fish crackers. This take about 10 minutes total.

5. Grilled Chicken Satay. Sounds way to fancy to be easy right? Wrong. Fire up the grill - yes, in the middle of winter. Cut the chicken in to 1-inch wide strips. Grill until done. While the chicken is grilling make some rice. Use a boil-in-a-bag or minute rice or other quick plain rice. Then, take 1/2 c of creamy peanut butter and add 1 T soy sauce, 1 T warm water, 1 tsp brown sugar and 2 T fresh chopped cilantro - whisk together. Taste and adjust to your desired sweet/salty preference. Adjust the saucy-ness by adding more water. Lay chicken over rice and top with a healthy dollop of peanut sauce. Total time is about 20 minutes.

When all else fails, order pizza. If you get thin crust, skip the greasy pepperoni and add a couple veggies, pizza is actually pretty good for you. Bottom line is to cut yourself some slack. All that matters is that people eat something somewhat healthy and hopefully spend a minutes together as well. If that means take-out, that's OK.

Working Mom's Recipe of the Week

Quick Weeknight Stew

Servings = 4

Time = 30 min

Ingredients

2 T olive oil

1 1b stew meat

1 onion, sliced

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 T all purpose flour

1/2 t salt

1/4 t pepper

4 c chicken broth

2 large peeled carrots, sliced into rounds

1 celery stalk, sliced

3 red potatoes, cut into cubes

Handful button mushrooms

1/2 t salt

Directions

1. In a large stock pot, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Add meat, onion and garlic. Cook until meat is browned on all sides, but not done through.

2. In a shallow dish, mix the salt and pepper into the flour. Sprinkle over the meat, onions and garlic - stirring constantly until flour is all moist.

3. Slowly pour chicken broth over the meat mixture, stirring constantly.

4. Add veggies and remaining salt. Cover and simmer until potatoes and carrots are soft; about 10 minutes.

Notes - You can use any veggies you like in the stew. You can add any spices you like - rosemary, thyme, sage, etc. or you can just go with salt and pepper.

Working Mom's Recipe of the Week

Chicken Fried Rice

Servings = 6

Time = 45 min

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup rice

2 c water

1 T butter

2 boneless chicken breast halves

2 T olive oil

2 large carrots

2 eggs

3/4 c frozen peas

3 green onions

3 T soy sauce

Directions

1. In a soup pot, bring water and butter to boil; add rice, cover and reduce heat to low. When all water is absorbed, remove from heat and keep covered.

2. In a large skillet, heat one tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Use kitchen shears to cut chicken into bite-sized piece and place in skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken is no longer pink.

3. While chicken is cooking, peel the carrots and then chop into 1/4-inch halfmoons. Dice green onions.

4. When chicken is done, scoop into a bowl. Add remaining one tablespoon olive oil to skillet and cook carrots until fork-tender, or desired consistency.

5. While carrots are cooking, crack eggs into a small dish and scramble with a fork. When the carrots are done, push the carrots to one half of the skillet and cook the eggs in the other half.

6. When the eggs are cooked, mix chicken, frozen peas and cooked rice with the carrots and eggs. Then stir in soy sauce and green onions. Taste and adjust soy sauce to desired saltiness.

Notes - To save some time you can use "minute" rice, pre-cooked chicken and pre-shredded carrots. To make healthier, use brown rice instead of white. In the picture, I served the fried rice with a side of roasted cauliflower sprinkled with cumin and sea salt.

Working Mom's Recipe of the Week

This is a great kid-friendly side dish. It's a fifty-year-old recipe - when my mom was a little girl, Rose and Clarence Anderson were such close friends of the family they became honorary aunt and uncle. Rose developed this recipe and it became a staple of the Thanksgiving meal. It's easy enough that kids can help make it and it's delicious enough that everyone will love it.

Rose Anderson’s Lime Jello Salad

Servings = 8 side servings

Time = 1 hour, plus chilling

Ingredients
2 small packages limeJjello
Hot water
Sugar
1 small can crushed pineapple in juice
1 small container fine cottage cheese
Mayo
1 small can condensed milk, chilled

Directions
1. Pour 1 ½ cup of water into a glass mixing bowl. Place in microwave and cook for 3 minutes.
2. While the water is heating up in the microwave, drain the juice from the pineapple but keep the juice in a dish (you will use both the juice and the pineapple chunks).
3. When the water is hot stir in jello, ½ cup of sugar and pineapple juice. Keep stirring until the jello is all dissolved.
4. Let the jello sit until soft, like pudding. It may take more than a ½ hour.
5. When the jello is soft scoop it into a medium-size glass or ceramic dish. Use the dish you want to serve the jello in.
6. Carefully stir into the jello:
a. Cottage cheese
b. Pineapple chunks
c. ½ cup of mayo
d. Prepared condensed milk
8. Cover and place jello salad in the refrigerator for 8 hours or overnight. Keeps up to 3 days.

Talking Turkey

I don't know about other people's families, but on Thanksgiving day everyone in my family is in the kitchen helping prepare food. Grandma is making crust for the apple pie. My mom is stirring gravy. My husband is mashing potatoes. I'm forming rolls. Jordan, my daughter, is given small tasks so she feels included. And we are all chatting up a storm. Hearing stories from when Grandma was a little girl on the farm and having to catch the turkey. Laughing about how my mom went into labor with my brother the day after Thanksgiving. Telling Jordan about honorary "aunt" Rose who made up the Jell-o salad recipe that we still serve today more than 50 years later. By the time dinner hits the table, it is well infused with love and laughter and maybe a few tears.

But there is also the stress of the holiday meal. So, here are my tips on de-stressing and how to get kids, and husbands, involved:

1. Make sure everyone, men included, have a dish they are responsible for making. Mashed potatoes are a hard one screw up - peel, boil, mash, done. He can do the potatoes early on Thursday, then scoop them into a buttered crock pot, set on low - they'll stay warm and moist until dinner time. He doesn't even have to miss football.

2. Start early. Figure out what can be done before Thursday. The Saturday before I make cranberry sauce. Jordan helps by pouring water and sugar into the berries. She can also prep the jars and lids so they are ready for me to fill up. Wednesday, Jordan and I will make the Jell-o salad and the pumpkin pie. Jordan can measure ingredients and stir. Early Thursday morning, she and I will start the dough for the rolls. I've had Jordan kneading dough since she was five.

3. Don't make new stuff. Every year all the magazines and newspapers come out with new fangled green bean casserole recipes or stuffing or whathaveyou. Personally, I don't need the added stress of trying something new and hoping it works out. My family has been doing the exact same dishes since I can remember. The way we end up with new items is when a new person joins the family. My brother's wife's family tradition is a apple-cranberry pie. She brought one when they were dating, it was a big hit and is now part of the meal.

4. Laugh. Mistakes will happen. One year we peeled the potatoes into the garbage disposal and tried to run it. We broke the garbage disposal and water came flooding under the sink and all over the floor. As we were cleaning up the mess, the news was on and they were going over tips for the day. One of the tips - don't put potato peels down the garbage disposal. Right. Check. I've also burned the pie crust, used salt instead of sugar in the Jell-o, added vanilla instead of soy sauce to the green beans. Each time we just laugh about it and it makes a great story to tell in the kitchen the next holiday.

5. Keep kids busy. Have a couple crafts for kids to do. Every year Jordan makes the name tags for the place settings. This year she is also going to make a Thank You Sunflower. You take a small paper plate and color it all brown. Then you cut out petals from yellow construction paper. Each person writes what they are thankful for on the petals and tapes them to the paper plate. Note - I suggest choosing the crafts and going to the craft store two weekends before Thanksgiving, so it's not yet another thing you have to do at the holiday.

6. When all else fails, drink more wine.

I hope your Thanksgiving is filled with lots of friends, family, love and laughter and really, really good food! If you want any of our family's recipes, shoot me an email mindybrooks34@yahoo.com

Working Mom's Recipe of the Week

Buttermilk Chicken, Couscous and Green Beans

Time = 30 min

Servings = 4

Ingredients

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/2 c low-fat buttermilk

1/2 c low-fat mayo

1/4 t salt

1/4 t pepper

1 T olive oil

1 lb green beans, trimmed

2 c water

1 T lemon juice

1 1/2 c chicken broth

1 T butter

1/2 t salt

1/2 t dried thyme

1 c whole wheat couscous

Directions

Place chicken between to pieces of heavy plastic wrap. Pound with mallet to 1/2 inch thick. Mix buttermilk, mayo 1/4 t salt and 1/4 t pepper in a bowl. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Coat the chicken in the buttermilk mixture and place chicken in skillet. Cook 6-8 minutes, flip and finish cooking until done through.

Meanwhile, bring water and lemon juice to boil. Steam green beans over lemon water until fork tender. In a second pot, bring chicken broth, butter, remaining salt and thyme to boil. When the broth is boiling, stir in couscous, then cover and remove from heat. Allow couscous to sit 5 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed, then fluff with fork.

Notes - You can add any dried herbs to the couscous - rosemary, oregano, parsley are all good. You can also dice a 1/4 c of onion, mince a garlic and add both to the broth.

Working Mom's Recipe of the Week

Guacamole

Servings: 25

Prep and cook: 15 min

Ingredients

1 c frozen peas, thawed

1-2 T olive oil

1 tomato, diced

2 T onion, minced

¼ c fresh cilantro, minced

3 small ripe avocados

1-2 T lemon juice

Salt and pepper

Directions: Place peas and olive oil in blender and puree until smooth. Scoop into a bowl. Add remaining ingredients. Mix well using a fork to mash up the avocado. Taste and adjust lemon juice, salt and pepper. Scoop into the serving bowl. Place a pieces of plastic wrap over the top, pressing it down against the guacamole and removing all air pockets. Place in fridge until time to serve. Best to make at least 1 hour in advance to allow the flavors to blend.

Notes: The magic ingredient in this recipe is the peas. The peas and lemon juice help keep the green color for a long time. The peas also add a touch of sweet flavor, but no one will guess that there are peas in the guacamole. I made this last night for a party and it was a huge hit. I caught someone using a spoon to get the very last tidbit out.

Working Mom's Recipe of the Week

Creamed Corn

Servings = 4

Time = 15 min

Ingredients

1/2 small onion, diced

2 T butter

2 cans corn, drained

1 c whole milk, divided

1 t salt

2 T sugar

1/4 t black pepper

2 T all purpose flour

Directions

In a large, heavy skillet melt the butter. Fried onions until softened. Add corn, 3/4 cup milk, salt, pepper and sugar. Stir and bring to simmer. Whisk together remaining 1/4 c milk with flour. Pour into the corn and stir until it just starts to thicken. Remove from heat. Use an immersion blender to blend until desired consistency.

Notes - You can use 2% milk instead of whole to trim calories and fat, but it won't be a creamy. You cannot use 1% or skim milk because it won't be thick enough (fat to flour ratio).

Working Mom's Recipe of the Week

Classic Chicken Noodle Soup

Servings = 8

Time = 30 min

Ingredients

2 chicken breast halves

1/2 bag egg noodles

4 c chicken broth

1 small yellow onion, chopped

2 medium carrots, sliced

1 celery stalk, sliced

1 can corn, drained

1 tsp dried parsley

1/2 tsp thyme

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Place chicken breasts in a Pyrex bowl with a lid and cook in microwave until done through, flipping once - about 10 minutes. While the chicken is cooking, chop the veggies. When the chicken is done, remove to a plate and let cool.

Cook egg noddles according to directions, omitting the oil. While the noodles are cooking, in a large pot add chicken broth, veggies and spices. Bring to boil, stirring frequently. Shred or cut up the chicken and add to pot along with drained noodles. Taste and adjust spices.

Notes - You can use any spices you like - basil, rosemary, oregano. You can substitute turkey for chicken. You can also use any veggies you like in the soup. To make it vegetarian, omit the chicken and use vegetable broth.

Picture - Jordan, 9 yrs old, helping me chop veggies. She is wearing goggles because the onions make her eyes water. Believe it or not, the goggles actually work.

Working Mom's Recipe of the Week

Cheap Baked Beans

Servings = 10 - 12

Time = approx. 2.5 hrs (30 min active)

Ingredients

2 c dry black beans, rinsed

2 c dry pinto beans, rinsed

14 c hot water, divided

2 tsp salt, divided

1 lb bacon ends

1 onion, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

1/3 c ketchup

1/2 c molasses

1/4 brown sugar

2 T mustard

1/4 tsp black pepper

Directions

In a large stock pot, add beans, 8 cups hot water and 1 tsp salt. Bring to boil; boil for 2 minutes. Turn off heat, cover and let soak 1 hour. Drain and rinse. Return beans to stock pot. Add 6 cups hot water and bring to boil. Simmer 1 -1.5 hours or until desired consistency. Drain and return beans to stock pot.

While the beans are cooking, fry bacon ends until crispy - cool on paper towel. Drain the grease, but don't clean pan. In the remaining bacon grease, fry onion and green pepper until just tender.

When the beans are done cooking, tear bacon into bite-sized pieces and add to the beans along with the onions, green peppers, 1 tsp salt and the remaining ingredients. Bring to a simmer, stirring frequently. Taste and adjust molasses, sugar, salt and/or pepper. Simmer for 10 more minutes to let the flavors meld.

Notes - Dried beans are very economical and easy to store in bulk. You can get bacon ends at your local butcher. Bacon ends are the parts of the bacon cut off when those lovely strips are made - the ends are cheaper than the strips. You can also use plain sugar rather than brown sugar, which is a little cheaper. These baked beans freeze well. I make a batch and freeze half in individual servings for a quick meal another time.

Working Mom's Recipe of the Week

Mexi-Rice Meal
Time = 30 min
Servings = 4

Ingredients
2 ¼ c vegetable stock (or chicken stock)
1 Tbs butter (or olive oil)
1 ½ c white rice
1 onion, diced
1 garlic clove minced
1 tsp salt
½-1 tsp cumin
½ tsp sugar
¼ tsp chili powder
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (adjust to taste)
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed (or equivalent dried - rinsed and soaked)
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 can corn kernels, drained (or equivalent fresh, cut off cob)
Fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)

Directions
Bring vegetable stock and butter to boil. Stir in rice, onion, garlic and spices. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered for approximately 20 minutes or until all liquid is absorbed. Stir in black beans, bell pepper and corn. Taste and adjust spices as needed. Sprinkle with cilantro.