Hey everyone! Hope you guys had a great weekend. I feel like I did everything & nothing...I was busy, but didn't feel like I got a whole lot done. Bummer, right?? I think I'm just bummed because I didn't get ALLLL of my jack-o' lanterns & black cats up before starting the week. Tragedy, right??? hahahahahhaha...
Annnnyway...so I have a whole weekends worth of treats to catch you up on! First up was our dinner from Friday night: Our yearly "post apple picking" traditional German Apple Pancake!
I always look forward to breaking out my revised "Cooking Light" recipe once a yearJ
In case you missed it, here's the same revised recipe I used last year:
The Heartier German PancakeJ
Batter
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg (the nutmeg just MAKES it)
- 1 cup egg substitute
- 2 cups fat-free milk
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 cup thinly sliced Granny Smith Apples
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
For the apple mix, coat bottom of an ovenproof skillet (we used our cast iron) with non-stick spray OR 1 tablespoon of butter....(FYI: I wouldn't ever use non-stick spray on a cast iron skillet...makes it gummy and gross!)
Combine sugar, cinnamon & nutmeg and sprinkle evenly over bottom and sides of pan.
Arrange apples in a spoke like layer around the pan....
Cook apples over medium heat for 8 minutes or until mixture is brown and bubbly. Just check out that bubbling goodness!
Slowly pour batter over apple mixture...
..and watch as your beautifully arranged apples swim in the cascading batterJ
Bake at 425 for 30 minutes or until set.
So while the pancake was baking, I got to work on our side dish. I've always made the Hungry Girl Butternut Squash Homefries to go along with the 'cake, but this year I thought I'd try something new:
The Hungry Girl "Creamy butternut squash & apple breakfast treat."
First, you throw 2 cups of diced butternut squash in a pan and let it cook for about 6-7 minutes, or until tender. (I had to add water to the pan and let it evaporate to get it to soften up)
And can I just say....I LOVVVVVVVVVVE me some PRE-CUT Butternut Squash! This is ONE vegetable that I don't mind paying a little extra for the "convenience." B-squash makes my hands feel VERY STRANGE while I'm peeling & dicing it...I can't even describe it. It's just...STRANGE.
Anyyyway...once the squash is tender, you mash it up with a potatoes masher...
...and then add in a diced apple, a cup of water, a dash of salt & LOTS of pumpkin pie spice...
Stir & let it come to a boil, before lowering the heat and letting it simmer for about 3-5 minutes.
Next, add in 1 tbs. maple syrup, 2 teaspoons brown sugar & a drizzle of milk (or unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze) and cook on low until it reaches your desired thickness. (shorter cooking time for extra creamy...longer for extra dense)
As you can probably tell...I let this cook like CRAZY!
This was a decent side dish. I didn't use the "suggested sugar free maple syrup" and went for the REAL stuff...so this clocked in around, probably, 140 calories?? Not too shabby and just sweet enough with the kiss of spices & apples.
ANYYYYYWAY...back to the main star of the show: THE PANCAKE! And just LOOOK what was awaiting me once I opened the oven door!
Our floofiest pancake yet!! I'm not sure if it's because I used regular all purpose flour...or that I think I ended up letting the batter sit for the suggested 30 minutes or what..but this baby was HUGE!
And required an EXTRA LARGE plate! Noww......1....
....2....
...3...SUCCESS!!!!!!! Maybe my apples weren't quite 'spoke-like,' but a little sprinkle of "snow" and who can tell the difference?? J
Yuuummmmmmm!
We both agreed that, after 3-4 years of making this, that this was the best one yet! The 'cake was super thick and spice filled while the apples were just caramelized & glazed with that brown sugar/cinnamon mix. Sooooo good!
You MUST try this dinner while PRIME APPLE SEASON is upon usJ
And speaking of apples, they also played a part in our Sunday morning breakfast this week!
I feel like it's been a HOT MINUTE since we've had a warm & home cooked "Sunday Morning Breakfast"...I almost feel like it's been 5 minutes since we were eating warm Oatmeal BakeJ
Annywayyyy....so I had read about "breakfast polenta" in a magazine lately and couldn't WAIT to try it out. And since we will be ENDING this week in ITALY (eeeeeeee!), I figured this was an appropriate Sunday to give it a whirl. Or a whiskJ
And I figured I'd "Fall" it up by adding to the pot:
- 2 1/4 cups milk (or, again, unsweetened vanilla Almond Breeze)
- a couple shakes of salt
- a drizzle of honey
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
Bring the milk to a boil and then whisk in 3/4 cups of instant polenta. Cook on low, whisking away, until it masses and the liquid absorbs. Stir in 1 pat of butter until melted.
Meanwhile, I diced up an apple and added it to a small saucepan with enough water to cover the apples. To the water, I added some vanilla & cinnamon and let them cook on high until the water was absorbed.
Once everything is cooked, I layered up my bowl with the spiced polenta, a drizzle of honey, a pile of cinnamon/vanilla apples and a sprinkle of chopped pecans...
Talk about a "stick to your ribs" breakfast! This was just sooooooooo warm & cozy...and a unique alternate to oatmeal. Plus it's super versatile! Try out ANY combo of flavors for any seasonJ
And speaking of "stick to your ribs"...that theme continued through our dinner last night too!
We made Rachael Ray's Steakhouse Sheppard's Pie along with Scott's infamous brown sugar/maple acorn squash.
I wish I had a step by step tutorial for you for this pie...butttt I was too busy trying to make it as QUICKLY as possible that I only have the final result for youJ
That, and to show you how BADLY we got the ratio of potatoes to meat/onions/gravyJ Opppppps! hahahahahhahaha...
But really?? Far be it from me to complain about a dinner of 96% mashed potatoes! I only wish I made more "gravy"...you can just barely catch a glimpse of it peeking out from under the mound of carbs potatoesJ
SOOOOOOO good and SUPER COZY 101!
And to quote Scott: "Every time we have acorn squash, just like sweet potatoes, I wonder why we don't have it more often." AKA.-he's a fan. hahahahahahahha
So annnnyway....after a migraine-induced BUST of an exercise schedule 2 weeks ago, I actually have stuff to show you from last week!
Monday: 30 minutes dance + jogs + weights
Tuesday: DCC "Power Squad" yoga + weights
Thursday: Bethenny yoga + weights
Friday: DCC yoga (again:)
Saturday: 1 hour yoga class
Sunday: 45 minute walk
I'm still trying to do the best that I can. I get frustrated if I have "off" weeks, but have been learning to cut myself some slack cause some days it's just NOT. GONNA. HAPPEN. Oh well, as long as I take it easy when I need to AND work it out when I'm feelin good: that's what keeps me happy!
Alright...this may be the longest post in recent history! Hope you guys have a great Monday. (and if you're in Jersey....stay warm! It's is BEAUTIFULLY CRISP out there!!)
1 comment:
Holy yum!!! That apple pancake looks fabulous! I am totally bookmarking this. I want one in the morning.
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