Ginger!

I don't know if many of you go shopping for fresh or dried herbs and spices, but the sticker shock (especially lately) is nothing short of a heart attack in my book. One night I was out looking for some fresh basil and went home empty handed because I wasn't paying three dollars for an ounce of leaves which, if I had a garden, would probably cost me a penny to grow.

I love ginger, and crystallised ginger (aka candied ginger) is notoriously expensive. I think a tiny jar will cost you around $6 a pop, and that would be on the cheap end. But you can make your own! A whole pint of the stuff for a dollar or two. It lasts for ages and since it's so concentrated, just a sprinkle will be more than enough. As an added bonus you get ginger sugar and ginger syrup just for making it. Oooh...think of the all recipes! And wouldn't a jar of it make a fabulous present? Brilliant!

Crystallised Ginger, Ginger Syrup & Ginger Sugar

10 ounces fresh ginger, blemish free
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup water

1. Peel* and slice the ginger into 2 inch length about 1/8 of an inch thick. (Use a very sharp knife or a mandoline slicer if you have one)
2. Toss the sugar and ginger together in a bowl.
3. In a large, heavy bottomed pan heat the water. Add the sugared ginger pieces and bring to a very slow simmer.
4. Stir occasionally over low heat for 1 and 1/2 hours.
5. The ginger will become translucent and the sugar will crystallize on the edge of the pan.
6. Sprinkle 1/2 cup sugar on a piece of parchment paper or a silicone mat. Use a slotted spoon to take the ginger pieces out of the syrup and lay over the sugar. Toss with the sugar to coat when the ginger has cooled enough to handle. (about 10 minutes) Reserve the syrup in the pan if you want to keep it (instructions follow)
7. Place in an airtight container when fully cooled. Store in a cool, dark place.
8. The leftover sugar can be saved in a jar (I just keep mine with the ginger) and used for tea, to sugar the rims of glasses or even for baking in cookies or cakes.
9. For the leftover syrup in the pan, add 1 cup of water and heat to mix. Use as you would corn syrup.

*The easiest way to peel ginger is to scrape the peel off with the tip of a metal spoon. The peel is very thin and comes right off.

Oaty Cakes

I was going to make a treat for the husband to take to work, seeing as he didn't get today off and neither did his co-workers, so I decided to Google "Pioneer Day Days of '47". Up came the most hilariously awful, poorly researched article on e-how about how to celebrate Pioneer Day. Aside from the fact that the person who wrote it said we celebrate Pioneer Day because Brigham Young proclaimed "This is the Spot!" the ideas were "read the Book of Mormon" and "Buy plane tickets to Salt Lake City".

I suggest, instead of buying plane tickets to SLC (although you could come visit me, eh?) you could do something real pioneers would have done. Like cook over a campfire, sew your own clothes, walk really, really far, pick bugs out of your flour, or make something from a cherished, well-loved family recipe. I think I choose the latter this 24th of July.

Aunt Pheby's Oatmeal Cake

1 and 1/2 cups boiling water
1 cup quick cooking oats
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 and 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)
1/2 teaspoon salt

Pour boiling water over oats, add butter and let stand until melted. Add remaining ingredients and mix until just combined. Spread into a greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

Broiled Icing:

6 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons cream
1 cup coconut
1/3 cup pecans or almonds, chopped

Stir together and spread over baked cake. Put under broiler (watch it closely!) until it turns bubbly and just starts to turn golden.

Pumpkiny Wumpkiny!

This is one of the easiest and tastiest low-fat/low-cal desserts I have in my collection. It tastes just like pumpkin pie but without all the work and NO baking. I like to serve it in pretty glasses topped with a dollop of cool whip and a sprinkling of nutmeg or gingersnap cookie crumbs.

You can always make it with the full-fat ingredients if you like. I know some people have issues with sweeteners and like...either way it's tasty!

Pumpkin Mousse

1 small box (4 serving size) sugar free butterscotch pudding mix
1 and 1/2 cups cold skim milk
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 and 1/2 cups light or fat free whipped topping (aka: cool whip)

1. Beat pudding mix into milk until smooth.
2. Blend in pumpkin and pie spice.
3. Fold in whipped topping.
4. Spoon into dessert dishes.
5. Chill until ready to serve.
6. Top with a dollop of cool whip and a sprinkle of spice or cookie crumbs, like graham crackers, gingersnaps, vanilla wafers or even granola. You could also layer this with cookie crumbs and cool whip for a lovely parfait.

Serves 4-6

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Pumpkin is healthy! Only 40 calories per 1/2 cup serving.
Low in fat and has no trans fat, saturated fat or cholesterol.
It's also an excellent source of fiber and vitamin A. 80% of it is Beta-Carotene, an important anti-oxidant.

J-E-LL-O!

This is actually an old, old recipe from the Jell-O company which is called "Poke Cake". *Snigger* I'm sure you've seen it in one incarnation or another. I think I had it once for my birthday cake when I was wee... This is my take on it, with a lot less fat and calories. And it doesn't taste like it! The cake is still moist and wonderful and you don't have to feel guilty. And because it has to stay in the refrigerator it's always nice and refreshing in this horrid heat.

You can mix it up by changing Jell-O flavors; I think orange would be fabulous with a yellow cake mix. And feel free to make it with the regular ingredients (regular jell-o, regular cake mix directions, whipped cream...it's the same basic recipe) if you're feeling naughty.

Pokey Jell-O Strawberry Shortcake

1 package white cake mix
1 small package sugar free strawberry Jell-O (4 serving size)
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup cold water
1 8 ounce container Cool-whip Free, thawed
sliced strawberries (optional)

1. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with pan spray.
2. Heat oven as directed on cake mix directions.
3. Follow directions on cake box, using the egg whites option (it will tell you how many to use on the box) and replacing the oil with an equal amount of applesauce~~this tastes even better if you use strawberry flavored applesauce!
4. Bake cake according to directions, remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes.
5. Pierce cake with a large fork at 1/2 inch intervals.
6. Stir the boiling water into the gelatin for 2 minutes until completely dissolved.
7. Stir in the cold water; pour the gelatin carefully over the cake.
8. Refrigerate for 3 hours.
9. Frost the cake with whipped topping.
10. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve. Top with sliced strawberries if desired. Store any leftovers in refrigerator.

Banana Fana Fo Fana

It seems like no matter how many bananas we try to eat, we always end up with a freezer full of spotty, over-ripe loners that are begging to be made into something tasty (except the ones that end up falling hard and frozen onto my TOES.)

Speaking of which, don't throw your speckled bananas away! Throw them in the freezer and they stay in ripe banana limbo for months! To defrost, just submerge them in a bowl of warm water until mooshy, then tear off the stem and squeeze the banana into a bowl.

This is my redux for my favorite Banana Pancake recipe, reducing the fat and adding fiber where I could without sacrificing the taste, since I'm trying to eat healthier. They're really good and very filling. I suppose, if you were feeling like you needed some say, extra anti-oxidants with endorphin inducing benefits, you could add a few semi-sweet mini chocolate chips to the batter.

This recipe makes a LOT of pancakes. But you could always make them and freeze them. Then they're ready to pop in the toaster or microwave for a quick breakfast.

Fluffy Banana Pancakes

3 egg whites
2 very ripe bananas, mashed
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 cups low-fat buttermilk
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons wheat germ
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1-In a bowl beat the egg whites until frothy, then mix in bananas, applesauce, and buttermilk. Set aside.

2-In a large mixing bowl stir together the dry ingredients, then add the banana mixture. Beat together until everything is well incorporated. (You can add more buttermilk if you feel the batter is too thick.).

3-Pour 1/4 cup batter for each pancake onto a preheated griddle. Flip over when the edges begin to dry and the batter bubbles on top.

4-Serve with sliced bananas and/or warm maple syrup.