I started out more than an hour early this morning (Tuesday, April 20) for a 10 a.m. meeting with my state senator and two state representatives to do a story about the close of a very contentious special session. The meeting was at the White Salmon Library, which is only 20 or so miles east of here. However, the state Department of Transportation is removing excess rock from S.R. 14 and I was warned the road would be completely closed for blasting from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. I left before 8 a.m., more than enough time, and was amused to discover rock was already blocking one lane and crews were frantically trying to open the lane to let people through for a few minutes before closing the road again for two hours. They accomplished their temporary clearance, and I proceeded to another detour at M.P. 64, which is up the White Salmon River via Alternate 141 and through a lovely section of curves and narrow roadway, guaranteeing that people will stop in the City of White Salmon just to catch their breaths before proceeding on.
I did, and arrived in time for my rendezvous with the lower Yakima Valley legislators, who had no idea what I had just traversed to arrive for their version of the state meltdown budget. We are not yet California, but give us a couple of years.
After our meeting and renewing my driver's license at the White Salmon office (the new photo looks like someone's grandmother), I headed to Hood River. I bought some fuschia starts in five colors at RiteAid, and went grocery shopping at Rosauer's in the Heights. It has a few faults, but it has lovely produce and a wonderful health food section. I found a large 22-ounce bottle of agave syrup on sale, and a 12-ounce bag of erythritol, which is supposedly in short supply now due to its sudden popularity. I had tried to order some online from Emerald Forest, the source of my 5-pound bags, and was notified that all but the individual one-serving packets were unavailable in Colorado due to high demand. So I paid $11 (on sale!) for a 12-ounce bag in Hood River. At least I didn't have to pay shipping.
I also got a package of turkey breast tenderloins at Rosauer's, and other items, including parmesan, frozen seafood mix and ham, all under 3 percent fat.
After I arrived home, we planted the fuschia in a hanging basket (cheaper at five plants for 89 cents each than a Mother's Day hanging basket would be at $25). I will make up for it another way, such as a Mother's Day sternwheeler cruise.
Preparing dinner, I took out a big fat sweet potato, peeled it and cut it into strips, placing the pieces on a rectangular baking sheet sprayed with canola. Then I took the turkey tenderloins, cut them into smaller strips and put them in a shallow container of leftover pancake batter with extra Eggbeaters, buttermilk, Hungarian paprika, garlic and onion powder and fresh ground pepper. I then rolled the turkey strips in panko crumbs, and placed them on a canola-sprayed cookie sheet into a 400 degree oven, after giving them a light spritz with the cooking spray. They were all done about the same time, and I added raspberry mustard to the plate as a dipping sauce. It was a marriage made in heaven. Mom was thrilled at a supposedly "verboten" dinner menu. Who needs deep frying? Hooray for panko crumbs.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Our Easter Dinner
Every year I have the same Easter routine: I take photos of the youngsters at the noon Lions Club Easter egg hunt on the courthouse lawn, then at 1 p.m., go to Wind River Middle School for the American Legion Easter egg hunt. Last year, it poured. This was one cold and blustery day, and I think I preferred the rain. I could see fresh snow falling on the top third of the mountains across the way from the 1 p.m. hunt.
In other years while living by myself, I wasn't worried about producing an Easter dinner, maybe throwing a half chicken, a potato or a squash in the oven for when I returned home. Now I'm living with Mom. Her mother was an old-fashioned cooks, roasting a goose or a whole ham, meanwhile knocking out Jello salad, a batch of yeasty dinner rolls and a couple of pies with a sweet potato casserole or mashed potatoes as accompaniment.
Mom went to church services this morning, and usually arrives back home at 12:30 p.m. I set to work on my menu a little after 9:30 a.m., just after she left.
The menu, working within Mom's low sugar, low fat restraints:
My version of a gelatin salad -
Bloom two packets of unflavored gelatin with a little water and/or juice in a glass measuring cup and microwave a minute, stirring twice. In large glass bowl or casserole dish, add bloomed gelatin plus 1/3 cup erythritol or equivalent of Splenda, 3 cups of unsweetened pomegranate juice (Trader Joe's, or a cranberry-raspberry cocktail with Splenda.) and stir until dissolved, then add half a pound of fresh or frozen raspberries, and one can of peach slices canned in Splenda, drained. Refrigerate until set.
Fruity Clafouti -
Take half a bag of frozen raw cranberries, dice three large apples and place together in a large glass casserole dish with a lid. Add the peach juice from the gelatin, 1/2 cup of erythritol, and 1 T. little tapioca. Grate a little fresh nutmeg over the top and mix well.
For the topping, take 1-1/2 cups low fat Bisquick, 1/3 cup erythritol or the equivalent of Splenda, a pinch each of soda and salt, 1/3 cup Eggbeaters or two beaten eggs, 2/3 cup buttermilk, 1 tsp. vanilla and a couple grates of nutmeg. Mix up quickly, just removing lumps, and pour over the fruit. Grate a little nutmeg over the top. Bake in a 325 degree oven for one hour.
Pineapple/Ginger/Raspberry Mustard Ham
Take a 1-1/2 to two-pound chunk of Black Forest ham (2 percent fat), slicing thickly and trimming off the black edges from each slice. Mix 3 T. agave syrup, 3 T. Splenda maple syrup (Safeway house brand is best), 4 T. Beacon Rock brand raspberry mustard (or substitute 2 T. low sugar raspberry jam plus 2 T. Dijon mustard), a one inch knob of freshly grated ginger, 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce, 1/4 cup white wine, 2 T. finely grated orange peel, two grinds fresh pepper, 1 large clove of garlic put through a garlic press or 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, one-half 16-ounce can pineapple chunks in its own juice (drain -- save the juice). Optional -- 1/2 tsp. dried red pepper flakes. Mix together.
Put down a thin layer of the sauce and a few pineapple pieces in a glass/enamel-coated shallow casserole dish with a cover. Lay down a layer of ham slices, add another layer of sauce, add a layer of ham, etc., ending with a layer of the sauce and pineapple. Bake in a 325 degree oven for 35-40 minutes.
Orange Sweet Potatoes
Meanwhile, peel and cut into chunks one very large sweet potato, or two small ones. Place in a covered casserole dish; salt and pepper, adding one-third cup of the reserved pineapple juice from the ham. Take the whole orange from the grated peel for the ham, and section it, placing membraned pieces with the sweet potato chunks in the casserole dish. Toss with 3 T. agave nectar. Cover and bake in a slow oven with the ham until tender, uncovering if it gets too juicy.
Side dish: frozen green beans cooked with 3 T. water and a little Smart Squeeze. Add 1 tsp. dried dillweed and salt; lower heat to keep warm.
I was gone when Mom got home, and because I insisted due to her tendency to become hypoglycemic, she was eating. I had 15 minutes between Easter egg hunts and the last one was close to home, so I had a little ham and sweet potatoes, then had the rest of my Easter dinner after returning.
You will note some ingredient and flavor overlap --- It all worked out, and best of all, we have leftovers. But alas, no fresh hot dinner rolls.
In other years while living by myself, I wasn't worried about producing an Easter dinner, maybe throwing a half chicken, a potato or a squash in the oven for when I returned home. Now I'm living with Mom. Her mother was an old-fashioned cooks, roasting a goose or a whole ham, meanwhile knocking out Jello salad, a batch of yeasty dinner rolls and a couple of pies with a sweet potato casserole or mashed potatoes as accompaniment.
Mom went to church services this morning, and usually arrives back home at 12:30 p.m. I set to work on my menu a little after 9:30 a.m., just after she left.
The menu, working within Mom's low sugar, low fat restraints:
My version of a gelatin salad -
Bloom two packets of unflavored gelatin with a little water and/or juice in a glass measuring cup and microwave a minute, stirring twice. In large glass bowl or casserole dish, add bloomed gelatin plus 1/3 cup erythritol or equivalent of Splenda, 3 cups of unsweetened pomegranate juice (Trader Joe's, or a cranberry-raspberry cocktail with Splenda.) and stir until dissolved, then add half a pound of fresh or frozen raspberries, and one can of peach slices canned in Splenda, drained. Refrigerate until set.
Fruity Clafouti -
Take half a bag of frozen raw cranberries, dice three large apples and place together in a large glass casserole dish with a lid. Add the peach juice from the gelatin, 1/2 cup of erythritol, and 1 T. little tapioca. Grate a little fresh nutmeg over the top and mix well.
For the topping, take 1-1/2 cups low fat Bisquick, 1/3 cup erythritol or the equivalent of Splenda, a pinch each of soda and salt, 1/3 cup Eggbeaters or two beaten eggs, 2/3 cup buttermilk, 1 tsp. vanilla and a couple grates of nutmeg. Mix up quickly, just removing lumps, and pour over the fruit. Grate a little nutmeg over the top. Bake in a 325 degree oven for one hour.
Pineapple/Ginger/Raspberry Mustard Ham
Take a 1-1/2 to two-pound chunk of Black Forest ham (2 percent fat), slicing thickly and trimming off the black edges from each slice. Mix 3 T. agave syrup, 3 T. Splenda maple syrup (Safeway house brand is best), 4 T. Beacon Rock brand raspberry mustard (or substitute 2 T. low sugar raspberry jam plus 2 T. Dijon mustard), a one inch knob of freshly grated ginger, 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce, 1/4 cup white wine, 2 T. finely grated orange peel, two grinds fresh pepper, 1 large clove of garlic put through a garlic press or 1/2 tsp. garlic powder, one-half 16-ounce can pineapple chunks in its own juice (drain -- save the juice). Optional -- 1/2 tsp. dried red pepper flakes. Mix together.
Put down a thin layer of the sauce and a few pineapple pieces in a glass/enamel-coated shallow casserole dish with a cover. Lay down a layer of ham slices, add another layer of sauce, add a layer of ham, etc., ending with a layer of the sauce and pineapple. Bake in a 325 degree oven for 35-40 minutes.
Orange Sweet Potatoes
Meanwhile, peel and cut into chunks one very large sweet potato, or two small ones. Place in a covered casserole dish; salt and pepper, adding one-third cup of the reserved pineapple juice from the ham. Take the whole orange from the grated peel for the ham, and section it, placing membraned pieces with the sweet potato chunks in the casserole dish. Toss with 3 T. agave nectar. Cover and bake in a slow oven with the ham until tender, uncovering if it gets too juicy.
Side dish: frozen green beans cooked with 3 T. water and a little Smart Squeeze. Add 1 tsp. dried dillweed and salt; lower heat to keep warm.
I was gone when Mom got home, and because I insisted due to her tendency to become hypoglycemic, she was eating. I had 15 minutes between Easter egg hunts and the last one was close to home, so I had a little ham and sweet potatoes, then had the rest of my Easter dinner after returning.
You will note some ingredient and flavor overlap --- It all worked out, and best of all, we have leftovers. But alas, no fresh hot dinner rolls.
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Pause that refreshes
taken at Trout Lake Arts Fest
