Are You Afraid Of Tofu?

I used to be afraid to cook with tofu but it is quite easy. I sauteed firm tofu cubes to throw in a chef salad for dinner tonight. It is fairly tasteless and takes on the flavor of the other food or seasoning cooked with it. I fried tofu in sesame oil with garlic then added a little soy sauce. When brown, I added some hoisen sauce which resulted in a salty sweet flavor.

Tofu is also called bean curd and is just coagulated soy milk curd that is pressed to firm it up by taking out much of the water. I like the firm tofu, because you simply drain it and don't have to press it too much (just pat with paper towels to remove extra water.)

I like tofu in stir-fry Asian dishes. It is low in calories and high in protein. Gotta love that!

The salad shown was a mixture of fresh vegies, boiled egg, dried cranberries, Gorgonzola and Parmesan cheeses and tofu. The salad dressing was drizzled on before the tofu was placed on top. Tomorrow, I will mix the leftover tofu in scrambled eggs.

Homemade Granola Is So Good!

This granola is so easy and quick. Pretty too!

2     Cups Old-fashion oats
1/2  Cup coconut
1/4  Cup oat bran or toasted wheat germ
1/2   teaspoon salt
1/2  Cup nuts (you can use slivered almonds, chopped pecans or walnuts)
1/3  Cup honey
2     Tablespoon oil (I use canola oil)
1     teaspoon vanilla extract
2     Cups dried fruit (raisins, figs, apricots, dates, cranberries or dried tart cherries) Mix it up!

Combine the dry ingredients and nuts in a large bowl. Pour honey, oil, vanilla, salt in next and mix well.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 degrees, stirring half way through. Cook and then add the dried fruit. I store in a glass jar, but any airtight container will do.

You can eat this as a cereal or mix with plain vanilla yogurt or vanilla ice cream for a dessert or snack. It is loaded with healthy good stuff and plenty of fiber as well.

Pass The Muffins, Please!

Need Bran In Your Diet?

I guess we all need more fiber and bran in our diets. When Andy's doctor told him to add more fiber, I pulled out my favorite cookbooks.

I will bet that every Southern church cookbook has a recipe for Six-Week Bran Muffins. They are delicious and I make a big bunch of them. I will give you the basic recipe and then tell you how I tweek mine.

Six-Week Bran Muffins

1-  15 oz. box Raisin Bran cereal
3   Cups sugar
5   Cups flour
5   teaspoons soda
1   teaspoon salt
4   eggs, beaten
1   Cup oil
1   Quart Buttermilk (it doesn't matter if you don't like buttermilk, you HAVE to use it- no substitutes!)

Mix the cereal with sugar, flour, soda and salt. You will need a very large bowl. Add beaten eggs, oil, and all the buttermilk.  This batter is supposed to last for six weeks in a covered bowl in the refrigerator. I go ahead and bake all the muffins and then freeze the extras.

To bake: fill greased muffin pans (or use paper liners) 2/3 full. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 or more minutes. The muffins will be golden brown on top when done.

PS: Now for a few tweeks! I mix up my cereal using All bran, raisin bran and/or Total cereals. I also add 1/4 cup oat bran into the mix. I throw in some chopped walnuts, more raisins or dried cranberries. Just experiment with what you have in the cupboard.

This recipe makes 52 muffins. They are good topped with my homemade tart cherry preserves! Yummy.

Shop 'till You Drop at The Cellar's Chest!

I have written about The Cellar's Chest before but after another visit (I go often!) I just had to post pictures and tell my readers what is new there.

The Cellars Chest is a consignment store in Martinsville, Va. and has so many wonderful things that a "antiquer/picker/re-purposer" like me is right at home when I shop there. They have a little (or sometimes a lot) of everything. There is furniture, glassware (I saw clear Iris pattern there recently,) dishes, antiques, paintings, silver, jewelry, garden, books...... on and on. Oh yes, I saw a ton of Christmas items: sets of dishes, glasses, ornaments and Department 56 Village pieces (houses and accessories) all at great prices.

What I loved looking at this time were darling little collector dolls. They are new and will probably be snapped up soon. See pictures below.

All the profits go to the MARC organization in Martinsville. It is a good place to shop for a good cause. Tania the manager and friendly staff are always happy to show you around.

Here is a picture of a wonderful old cart from a mill in Wilksboro, N.C. I have seen these in magazines and on TV shows (Cash and Cari on HGTV showed one recently.) This cart has been turned into a fabulous coffee table. OH BOY, if I just had more room in my house!!!!!!!!!! This is a very cool find.

The Cellar's Chest is located at 6620 A.L. Philpott Hwy. (Hwy. 58) Martinsville, VA. Phone: 276-632-2225.  Hours: Tues. through Fri. from 10am to 5pm. Sat. 10am to 2pm. Closed Sunday and Monday.

Lovely Dolls Available At The Cellar's Chest

These four little boys are by Austin Drake. The collection is called "Boys N' Toys." The boys are playing with little wooden toys and come with certificates of authenticity. Precious.

Scarlett O'Hara and Shirley Temple

Scarlett and Shirley are from the Franklin Mint. Scarlett has a certificate of authenticity. I am not sure about Shirley. Both are darling and available at The Cellar's Chest.

"Little Scoop"

This little guy has beach toys and a certificate.

Leftover "Borgashmord" Enchiladas

When my sons were young, I would pull out all the leftovers on Friday night and we had a smorgasbord. There was a cute commercial with a little boy (can't remember what the product was) who couldn't pronounce smorgasbord and called it "Borgashmord." Friday night leftover dinner was called "Borgashmord" forever more.

This is a "Borgashmord" Mexican dish I call "Leftover Enchiladas" because you can throw in a lot of leftovers from your refrigerator. It is good, cheap and fast which in our house is a very good thing. I hope you enjoy it.

Leftover Enchiladas

6 medium sized flour tortillas
1 large cooked chicken breast (or about 1/2 of a deli rotisserie chicken)
Leftover cooked beef strips, shrimp or shredded pork or ham
1 small can of chopped Mexican peppers
1/4 of a red pepper, chopped fine
4  green onions, chopped fine
1 can enchilada sauce
Cheddar cheese, Mexican 4 cheese, about 1/2 bag
1 can refried beans
A few lettuce leaves, Romaine or iceberg

Chop chicken and any other meat into small pieces. In large bowl add the can of peppers, fresh red pepper, 1/2 the green onions, and a handful of cheese and the meat. Mix well and add salt and pepper to taste.

Spray a baking dish with Pam. Spoon a generous amount of meat mixture down the center of a tortilla. Roll up and put in baking dish. Continue with each tortilla until there are 6 enchiladas in the dish. Pour the enchilada sauce over all. Top with more cheese and the other half of the green onions.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20-30 minutes. Check after 15 minutes. If tops are getting too brown, cover with a sheet of aluminum foil.

Serve with refried beans topped with cheese. I also shredded about 6 Romaine lettuce leaves for some color and texture. Plate and spoon a little extra sauce over all.

* Tip: If you have a little leftover corn or green peas- throw them in too. Get creative! Have some Jicama? Tomatoes? Garnish or make a salad.