Black Beans and Black Bean Enchiladas

I found this excellent recipe for black beans. You can have them with rice, or make them into these delicious Black Bean Enchiladas. I made them the other night and they're yummy. Cheap to make, a little complicated the first time, take about an hour and fifteen to put together and bake, but low fat and delicious!

Lemon Bread

This recipe is from my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. We've made this recipe twice in the past week and love it! I especially like that it only requires 1 lemon. It's great as dessert or a breakfast bread.

1 3/4 c. flour
3/4 c. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 beaten egg
1 c. milk
1/4 c. cooking oil or melted margarine
2 tsp. finely shredded lemon peel (about 1 whole lemon peeled, remember to do this before juicing the lemon!)
1 Tbls. lemon juice
1/2 c. chopped almonds or walnuts
2 Tbls. lemon juice (opt)
1 Tbls. sugar (opt) (I actually used powdered sugar, not granulated, to form more of a glaze)

1. Grease the bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of an 8x4x2-inch pan; set aside. In a medium bowl stir together the flour, the 3/4 c. sugar, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in center of flour mixture. Set aside.

2. In another medium bowl combine the egg, milk, oil, lemon peel, and the 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Add the egg mixture all at once to the flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter should be lumpy) Fold in nuts. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan.

3. Bake at 350 for 50-55 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. If desired, stir together the 2 Tbsp lemon juice and 1 Tbsp sugar. While bread is still in the pan, brush lemon-sugar mixture over the top of the loaf. Cool in a pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan. Cool completely on a wire rack. Wrap and store overnight before serving.

Melt-in-Your-Mouth Sugar Cookies

1 1/4 c. soft margarine
2 c. sugar
2 eggs

Beat until fluffy. Mix together, slowing beating in an additional
1/2 c. milk

Then add:
5 c. flour
1 tsp salt
4 tsp baking pwdr
1 tsp nutmeg

Bake at 325 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Watch closely. At 4 minutes they will be slightly shiny on top. When they stop being 'shiny' they are done! Let them sit on the sheet for a minute, then move to a cooling rack. They will fall apart if you move them too soon and will seem like they're not done. This is not the case-- this is what makes them so soft and yummy.

I'll make a lemon glaze (couple tbsp lemon juice mixed with some powdered sugar until reaches desired consistency) and put on top. Delicious!

Given to me by Heather Anderson

Cheesy Quesadillas

I made a couple of variations to the recipe I found at Campbell's cooking website.

1 can Campbell's Cheese Soup
1/4 c. milk
1-2 tomatos, chopped
1 lg. jalapeno, chopped
1/2 of a small onion, chopped
mozzerella/colby jack/cheddar cheese to taste, shredded
1 chicken breast
corn or flour tortillas
water

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cut chicken into 1/2" slices, sautee in pan until cooked on all sides.
2. Add soup and milk. Stir until smooth. Add tomatos, onion, jalapeno. Cook until onions are slightly tender.
3. Brush water on each side of tortilla. Fill with cheese sauce, a little of the shredded cheese, fold in half, press down and place on cookie sheet. Repeat until filled cookie sheet.
4. Cook for 5 minutes.

Since it is a cheesy soup, the cheese never hardens up like normal cheese does once cooled. It gets a little gooey. This can make a ton of quesadillas, so good for appetizers for lots of people, or meal. We liked them okay. Enough to make them again, especiall since it's super easy!

Rotini Sweet Pepper Primavera

2 1/2 - 3 c. rotini pasta
1 bunch artichoke
1 sweet pepper (red or yellow)
2 summer squash
1 jar alfredo sauce (or your own recipe for alfredo sauce)
1 tsp tarragon, fresh or dried

1. Cook the pasta according to box. While pasta is cooking, chop artichoke tips off before woody base (I cut them about 1/2 down). Chop pepper into 1/2" strips. Finally, chop squash into small slices.
2. Add all vegetables to boiling pasta 3 minutes before pasta is finished boiling to al dente.
3. In separate pan, warm alfredo sauce. Add tarragon. (I added fresh basil instead)
4. After pasta is finished, mix all together and serve immediately.

This dish is SO delicious, fairly healthy, and looks beautiful with all the different colors. We loved it and will definitely be making it over and over.

Green Smoothies

So I came across a recipe for green smoothies the other day on this blog and decided to try it. There are quite a few green smoothie recipes out there, but this one is the one I like so far. It's a great way to get your fruits and veggies!

1 1/2 cups of liquid (I use 1/2 cup water, 3/4 cup skim milk, and 1/4 cup coconut milk. The recipe I found also recommended using Kefir, but I haven't gone there quite yet. Basically any liquid in any amounts added up to 1 1/2 cups is the best.)

3 oz or more greens (You can do as much or as little as you like. I have been using one nice big organic Kale leaf. The recipe I found recommends using Spinach or Kale, but you can use any green veggies your heart desires. I'm planning to increase my greens but wanted to start off small)

2 Tablespoons orange juice concentrate

1 frozen banana

4 frozen strawberries

Okay here's how I do it - I put the water in first then blend the greens with it until it's smooth. Then I add the other liquids. Doing it this way will help make sure that the greens are well blended in and you're not left with lumps. Then I add the rest of the ingredients. I've been using banana and strawberries because I found a great sale on strawberries and because bananas in any smoothie makes it better, but you can add any kinds of fruit. Some others recommended were blueberries, raspberries, and peaches. If you would like to you can also add honey to sweeten it (I liked it without) and you can add any "boosts" you would like such as ground pumpkin or flax seeds.

Is Couponing Creative?

Hi All!

It's been so long since I've posted here. Mainly because lately my creative juices have been going into cutting our family's budget. My friend Renee introduced me to couponing and so far it has been great! I had no idea how many great deals are out there and how many ways there are to save money. For any interested, I've listed a couple of great websites below.

www.moneysavingmom.com
www.dealseekingmom.com
www.savvyshopperdeals.com