Jeremy's Rice Pudding

Yummy!!

4 cups milk
1 cup white rice
3/4 cup sugar

Put all  ingredients in medium saucepan on medium heat.  Stir constantly (to prevent boiling over) until it begins to boil then reduce heat and simmer for 25-30 minutes until most of liquid is absorbed. Continue stirring frequently.
Serve hot or cold. Optional toppings: cinnamon, dulce de leche, nuts, vanilla

Dairy Free Alternative

1 can coconut milk
1/3 cup sugar
2 cups water or almond milk
1/2 cup rice
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon

Same instructions as above.

Vegetarian Black Bean Taquitos

Ingredients:

1 (14 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 TBSP bottled salsa
1 garlic clove
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 TBSP lime juice
1 (10 oz) box frozen spinach, thawed, drained, and roughly chopped
3/4 cup frozen corn kernels
1/2 cup diced roasted red peppers
1 cup shredded cheese (Monterey Jack, pepper jack, or cheddar)
8-10 soft taco tortillas

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Place 3/4 cup of the beans in a food processor with the salsa, garlic, cumin, salt, pepper, and lime juice. Process until mostly smooth. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl and add remaining ingredients (except tortillas), including rest of beans. Mix together.
3. Place about 1/4 cup of the mixture on each tortilla. Roll up the tortillas and spray with cooking spray. Bake in oven for 20-25 min or until edges are golden brown and crisp. Serve with cilantro-lime dressing, salsa, or green salsa.

Credit: Best Bites Cook Book

Breakfast Baby Muffins

Credit: http://www.goldmedalflour.com/ourbakerblog/2013/august%202013/baby%20food%20muffins
Ingredients:

• 1 cup Gold Medal® whole wheat flour
• 1 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 large banana, mashed (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 medium avocado, mashed (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a mini muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.

Make a well in the center and add the mashed banana, mashed avocado and applesauce. Stir until well combined.

Divide batter evenly among the 24 mini muffin cups. Bake for 12-14 minutes until set.

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.

Variations: Feel free to use any combination of your baby's favorite mashed foods for a total of 2 cups. I recently replaced the avocado and applesauce with 1 (15 ounce) can of pumpkin and three shredded apples (squeezed of liquid). The babies LOVED them!

Savory Baby Muffins

Credit: http://feedingolive.tumblr.com/post/33525643032/savoury-mini-muffins

What you need

• 1 cup plain flour
• 1/2 tbsp baking powder
• 1/4 cup grated cheese
• 1 egg
• 1/8 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup milk (cows milk/breastmilk/formula)
• 1 cup veggies (I used grated carrot and peas, but you could use grated zucchini, chopped red pepper (capsicum), chopped broccoli, chopped spinach etc. You could also use ham or tuna for some protein)

How to do it

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Lightly spray a mini muffin pan with cooking spray. 
2. Sift flour and baking powder together. Give it a quick stir to make sure the baking powder is evenly distributed. Stir through veggies and cheese. 
3. Pour oil and milk into a jug then crack the egg into the jug and whisk it all together. Make a well in the centre of the dry mix and pour in the liquid. Mix until just combined, giving you a thick batter.
4. Spoon batter into muffin tray and bake in the oven for 15 - 20 mins, until the muffins are nice and golden on top. Remove tray from oven, and cool muffins in tray for 5 mins, then turn out onto a rack to cool. 

Makes 12 muffins

Strawberry White Chocolate Cookies

YUM! :)

Ingredients

• 1¼ cup all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup unsalted butter-softened
• 4 oz cream cheese-softened
• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ¾ cup chopped fresh strawberries
• 2 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1-2 tablespoon flour
• 5 oz white chocolate-chopped
• sanding sugar

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F and line pans with parchment paper.
2. Pour fresh lemon juice over chopped strawberries, drain them after a few minutes.
3. Whisk together 1¼ cup all-purpose flour, salt and baking powder and set aside.
4. Beat butter with sugar and cream cheese until it’s light and fluffy.
5. Add egg and vanilla and mix well.
6. Gradually add flour mixture and mix until it’s well combined.
7. Stir in chopped white chocolate.
8. Sprinkle strawberries with 1-2 tablespoon flour, toss them until all strawberries are coated with thin layer of flour and then stir them really gently in the batter.
9. Drop heaping tablespoon of batter onto pan leaving an inch space between.
10. Set the cookies in the refrigerator for 5-10 minutes before baking.
11. Sprinkle the cookies with sanding sugar if you want, but do not overdo it because they are sweet enough.
12. Bake for 13-15 minutes( until the edges become golden brown).
13. Let them cool a few minutes in the pan than transfer them to a wire racks to cool completely.

Credit: http://omgchocolatedesserts.com/strawberry-cookies/

Chicken Fajita Stuffed Peppers

Pic source: Cooking Classy

Ingredients

3/4 cup dry brown rice (2 cups cooked)
5 medium red, yellow, orange or green bell peppers
1 medium yellow onion, chopped (1 1/2 cups)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp canola oil, divided
1 lb chicken, diced into 3/4-inch pieces
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp paprika
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 (10 oz) can tomatoes with green chiles
1 cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup frozen corn
3 Tbsp fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish
1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
2/3 cup shredded monterey jack cheese
Sour cream
Mexican style hot sauce (such as Tapatio or Cholula, optional)

Directions

Prepare brown rice according to directions listed on package. Halfway through brown rice cooking, preheat oven to 375 degrees and begin making filling and boiling peppers.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cut peppers in half through length (top to bottom), seed and devein peppers, then boil 4 - 5 minutes (fully immersing them in the water), just until tender. Drain well and align in baking pans, set aside.
Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large and deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and saute until golden about 5 minutes, then add garlic and saute 30 seconds longer, transfer onion mixture to a plate. Add remaining 1 Tbsp oil skillet, and add chicken, sprinkle with 1/2 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp cumin, the paprika and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, add tomatoes, onion mixture, black beans, corn, cooked brown rice, remaining 1/2 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp cumin cumin, cilantro, lime juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook just until heated through.
Add a heaping 1/2 cup of the mixture to each pepper half (and slightly press as filling to fit). Pour enough water into bottom of baking dishes to reach 1/8-inch in height (careful not to pour it in peppers). Cover baking dishes with foil and bake 30 - 35 minutes, until peppers are soft. Remove from oven, sprinkle tops evenly with cheese then return to oven to bake until cheese has melted, about 3 minutes longer.
Serve warm topped with more cilantro, sour cream and hot sauce if desired.
Recipe Source: Cooking Classy

Lemon Garlic Chicken Pasta with Spinach

Ingredients:

6 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
6 TBSP olive oil
2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 lb)
salt and pepper to taste
1 pound penne pasta
1 (5 oz) bag baby spinach (I just bought a 10 oz bag of fresh spinach and steamed a little over half myself)
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil OR 1 TBSP dried
6 TBSP juice from 2 lemons (I just used 1 large lemon and it was plenty! Lots of delicious lemon flavor)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Meanwhile, combine garlic, red pepper flakes and oil in a small microwave-safe bowl and microwave until garlic is golden and fragrant, about 1 minute.

Pat chicken dry with paper towels and cut into bite-size pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer 1 TBSP of the garlic/red pepper oil to a large skillet and heat over medium heat until oil is rippling. Add chicken and cook until well browned and cooked through. Transfer to a plate and tent with foil.

Add 1 TBSP salf and the pasta to boiling water and cook until tender but still slightly firm. Reserve 1/2 cup cooking water. Drain pasta and return to pot. Stir in chicken, spinach, basil, lemon juice, Parmesan, and remaining garlic mixture, adding pasta water as needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.