Just like Jiffy

As I mentioned before, I always used Jiffy cornbread mix in the US. I tried this recipe and it is JUST LIKE JIFFY! Even once we return to the US I think I'll keep making this and save a few cents!

Jiffy-like Cornbread

(this recipe equals one Jiffy box)

2/3 cup flour

1/2 cup yellow cornmeal

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/4 tablespoon salt

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 egg

1/3 cup milk

Combine flour, corn meal, sugar, baking powder and salt. Mix well with whisk.

Preheat oven to 400F.  Combine above dry mixture with oil, then egg and milk.  Mix well.

Fill muffin tins 1/2 full.

Bake 15-20 minutes

Makes 6 muffins.

Or, pour batter into a small cake pan and bake for 20-25 minutes.

Zucchini Bread

This zucchini bread recipe turned out great! I was running low on nuts, so I just topped it with nuts instead of mixing them into the batter. I only wanted to make one loaf, so I cut the following recipe in half.

Zucchini Bread

(makes 2 loaves)

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

3 teaspoons cinnamon

3 eggs

1 cup vegetable oil

2 1/4 cups granulated sugar

3 teaspoons vanilla

2 cups grated zucchini with peel

1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

1. Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.
3. Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans.
4. Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.

What you eat...

In 1825, the French philosopher and gourmand Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin wrote, “Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are.” What do you think? Does your food selection reflect who you are?

Chocolate-Raspberry Cakes

These molten chocolate cakes turned out really well! Delicious topped with fresh fruit, powdered sugar, or whipped cream.

Chocolate-Raspberry Cakes

8 oz bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

14 tablespoons (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, diced

2 tablespoons seedless raspberry preserves (I used strawberry because that is what we had)

4 large eggs

1/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 325. Butter six 3/4 cup soufflé dishes or custard cups (I used muffin tins and that worked well, too! Since muffin cups are smaller, I buttered about 8 or so). Mix chocolate, butter, and preserves in saucepan. Stir over low heat until chocolate melts. Remove from heat, cool to lukewarm, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Whisk eggs, sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl to blend well, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk in chocolate mixture. Divide batter among prepared dishes. Bake cakes until tester inserted into centers comes out with some moist batter still attached, about 20 minutes. Let cool 30 minutes (centers may fall). Serve cakes warm or at room temperature.

Ham and Mushroom Pasta

This is an Everyday Food recipe and turned out great! I added a handful of frozen peas for added color... and we didn't have any ham, so we used some cooked and crumbled bacon. My only complaint is that it says 4 servings but it is really more like 6 servings.

Ham and Mushroom Pasta

12 ounces short pasta (penne, etc.)

1 large yellow onion, chopped

1 pound mushrooms, sliced

1 1/2 cup ham pieces (we used less)

2 tablespoons olive oil

grated Pecorino cheese to top (we used Parmesan)

Cook pasta in boiling salted water until al dente. Reserve 1/4 cup pasta water, drain pasta and return to pot. Meanwhile, mix onion, mushroom and oil in a large bowl and then spread onto a baking sheet. Bake for about 15 minutes at 400 or until mushrooms are browned and onion is tender. In pot, combine pasta, mushrooms, onion, ham, and 1/4 cup pasta water and mix until combined. Serve with grated cheese.