Delectable Chocolate Bundt Cake

I love cake.  It's my favorite.  I'm not picky about cake...I like it all!  White cake, chocolate cake, cake with frosting, lemon cake, cheese cake, peanut butter cake with chocolate frosting...I could go on and on.  Cake, mmmm.  I love it!

I found a poem about chocolate cake by Michael Rosen. 

you know how the icing on top
is all shiny and it cracks as you
bite into it,
and there's that other kind of icing in
the middle
and it sticks to your hands and you
can lick your fingers
and lick your lips
oh it's lovely.
yeah.

The rest of the poem is pretty funny.  You should check it out!


Anyways...I've been playing with a chocolate bundt recipe that I found on allrecipes.com Too Much Chocolate Cake  I've been trying to lighten it up and make it a little healthier, and I think I've perfected it!  I made my version of the cake last week for my students to celebrate the end of the semester.  I meant to take a picture of the cake before I brought it to class...  I guess the one picture I got tells you how much my students liked it!  Nothing but crumbs are left!

Delectable Chocolate Bundt Cake

1 (18.25 ounce) package chocolate cake mix
1 (5.9 ounce) package fat free, sugar free chocolate instant chocolate pudding mix
1/2 c. plain, fat-free yogurt
1/2 c. reduced fat sour cream
1 c. applesauce (I use no sugar added applesauce)
1 egg white
2 eggs
1/4 c. fat free milk
1/3 c. water
1 T. oil
1-3/4 c. chocolate chunks (If you can't find chocolate chunks, use chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 350*.

In a large bowl, mix together the cake and pudding mix.  In a small bowl, combine the yogurt, sour cream, applesauce, eggs, milk, water and oil.  Mix well.  Pour into dry mix and stir until combined.  Add the chocolate chunks.

Pour/spoon (it will be thick!) the batter into a well greased 12 cup bundt pan.  Bake 55-60 minutes, or until the top is springy to the touch and a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Cool cake in pan until completely cool to the touch.  Invert cake onto a plate and serve!  Enjoy~

Here is my favorite bundt cake video clip...from one of my favorite movies, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding."  

For more information about bundt pans, check this out!

7 Words and 7 Rules for Eating

http://www.gailgibbons.com

I'm kind of interested in food, if you haven't gathered that already.  After all, the name of my blog is "What's Cooking at Jen's House!"  So I read a couple of food blogs every day.  I am on the constant lookout for new recipes.  I cook daily for my family.  But I'm picky about the food we eat.  I read labels.  I make my own bread instead of buying it (have you seen all of the ingredients that are in your average loaf of bread??)  I avoid buying foods that contain High Fructose Corn Syrup.  I try to dodge processed foods (although Velveeta "cheese" makes the best hot cheese dip.)  I also make JP's lunch most days.  Have you seen school hot lunches lately??  School lunch is a whole 'nother post for another day.  Don't get me started on school lunch....grrrr!  

A while ago, I found the 100 Days of Real Food Blog.  It's a pretty interesting blog and I do follow most of the rules.  I try to find items with 5 or less ingredients.  You'd be surprised at how many foods have more than 5 ingredients!  

While looking at Real Food, I came across Michael Pollan's 7 Rules for Eating.  Micheal Pollan is a food author.  He has 7 Words and 7 Rules.  The words and rules make sense and I really do try to follow them. 

7 Words & 7 Rules for Eating

Pollan says everything he's learned about food and health can be summed up in seven words: "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants."  Probably the first two words are most important. "Eat food" means to eat real food -- vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and, yes, fish and meat -- and to avoid what Pollan calls "edible food-like substances."
Here's how:

1. Don't eat anything your great grandmother wouldn't recognize as food. "When you pick up that box of portable yogurt tubes, or eat something with 15 ingredients you can't pronounce, ask yourself, "What are those things doing there?" Pollan says.
2. Don’t eat anything with more than five ingredients, or ingredients you can't pronounce.
3. Stay out of the middle of the supermarket; shop on the perimeter of the store. Real food tends to be on the outer edge of the store near the loading docks, where it can be replaced with fresh foods when it goes bad.
4.  Don't eat anything that won't eventually rot. "There are exceptions -- honey -- but as a rule, things like Twinkies that never go bad aren't food," Pollan says.
5. It is not just what you eat but how you eat. "Always leave the table a little hungry," Pollan says. "Many cultures have rules that you stop eating before you are full. In Japan, they say eat until you are four-fifths full. Islamic culture has a similar rule, and in German culture they say, 'Tie off the sack before it's full.'"
6. Families traditionally ate together, around a table and not a TV, at regular meal times. It's a good tradition. Enjoy meals with the people you love. "Remember when eating between meals felt wrong?" Pollan asks.
7. Don't buy food where you buy your gasoline. In the U.S., 20% of food is eaten in the car.

Interesting, huh?  They make sense, right?  Why not try them?

Herb Dip

Yesterday was Easter.  For the past 7 years, we've spent Easter with the inlaw family in Iowa.  They are just 4 hours away, so it's easy to spend holidays with them.  Even when Jeff was deployed, JP and I traveled to Iowa for Easter.  We've enjoyed visiting with family and Jacob has enjoyed the small town Easter Egg hunt that's held on Saturday morning before Easter.  This year was a little different. JP had his league bowling awards and a bowling tournament on Saturday morning.  On Saturday afternoon, JP and I drove to Kansas City to pick up Jeff.  He's been in Seattle for the past 3 weeks.  On the way home, we met up with some geocaching friends in Topeka.  It was a normal busy Saturday before Easter!  So needless to say, we stayed in Kansas instead of traveling to Iowa.  No family this time, just friends.  A lot of military families depend on friends during the holidays...and this year we had a great Easter with friends!

We had Easter supper (remember, dinner is at noon!) at our friend Amy's house.  The menu was not the typical Easter meal...no ham, no leg of lamb.  Instead, we had turkey.  Amy's son went hunting on Saturday morning and brought home fresh turkey!  Fresh, wild turkey tastes very different than the turkey you usually eat on Thanksgiving.  We had a great time with some great friends.

One of the things that I brought for our Easter meal was Herb Dip and veggies.  Everyone liked the dip and gobbled (haha) up the veggies.  You can substitute dried herbs, but the fresh herbs really make the dip shine.  You can also change up the herbs you use...I think some fresh tarragon would be great!

http://www.ifood.tv

Herb Dip
1/2 c. fat free Greek yogurt (or fat free plain yogurt)
1/2 c. sour cream (I used reduced fat)
1/2 c. mayo
1 t. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. red wine vinegar
1/2 t. sugar
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. onion powder

2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 bunch parsley, chopped (or 2 T. dried parsley)
Fresh dill (I used about 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill)  (or 1-1/2 T. dried dill)
4 green onions, sliced...use the white and green part (or 1 T. dried chives)

Mix the yogurt, sour cream and mayo together.  Add the Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, sugar, salt and onion powder.  Chop the herbs and add to the dip base.  Mix well. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours and serve with veggies.

Semi-homemade (Easy-Peasy) Tortellini Casserole

Semi-homemade (Easy-Peasy) Tortellini Casserole is a big hit in my household.  Everyone loves it and wants seconds when I make this!  It's a hearty casserole that hits the spot.  And it's pretty easy to make.  It tastes like you've been cooking all day!  This recipe makes enough for our family of 3 to have seconds and even leftovers for lunch the next day.

Semi-homemade (Easy-Peasy) Tortellini Casserole
1/2 lb ground turkey (or beef)
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, diced
1 jar Spaghetti sauce (I like Prego, but use whatever you like!)
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste

1 t. Italian seasoning
1/2 t. sugar
1 package frozen cheese tortellini
5 oz mozzarella cheese, sliced or shredded, divided

1/4 c. Parmesan cheese, divided


Brown the ground turkey (or beef) with the diced onion and garlic over medium heat.  After the meat is no longer pink, drain.  Add the jar of Spaghetti sauce, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, Italian seasoning and sugar. 

While the ground turkey (or beef) is cooking, cook tortellini according to the package directions, but cook them 2 minutes less than the package says.  Drain tortellini.

Place 1/3 of the prepared sauce in a greased 9x9 inch pan.  Spread the tortellini over the sauce.  Sprinkle most of the shredded mozzarella and most of the Parmesan  cheese on top of the tortellini.  Save 1/4 c. of mozzarella and 1 T. of Parmesan for the top of the casserole.  Pour the rest of the prepared sauce on the cheese.  Top the casserole with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan.


Bake in a 350* oven for about 20 minutes.  The casserole should be bubbly and the cheese on top should be melted.  Serve with a green salad.  Enjoy~

Rogan Josh

 

The last time I was at Penzeys Spices in Omaha, I picked up a bottle of Rogan Josh Seasoning.  If you've never been to a Penzeys Store, each spice or seasoning is displayed in a little jar.  You can remove the lid and smell each seasoning.  JP loves to do this!  Anyways, the Rogan Josh smelled soooo good.  A little spicy, a little curry-like and a little exotic.  According to Penzeys, Rogan Josh is...

• "Just a little spicy. A very popular dish from Northern India and Pakistan. This version of the red lamb stew comes from the state of Rajasthan, known for its hilly deserts and fierce, yet chivalrous warriors. Rogan Josh can be made with beef, but this blend is a great example of how a crafty seasoning can change the somewhat objectionable, "gamey" flavor of lamb into something far more delicious. Some blends are interesting-this blend is good." 

• Hand-mixed from: paprika, garlic, ginger, cumin, coriander, black pepper, cayenne pepper, Korintje cassia cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and saffron.

The jar of Rogan Josh has been sitting in my cubboard for a few months.  Jeff doesn't care for spicy food, so I've been waiting to make this dish when he wasn't at home.  Wednesday night was the perfect night to make Rogan Josh!

 

I didn't have any lamb, beef or pork on hand, but I did have chicken...I'm not sure how traditional my version of Rogan Josh is, but JP and I enjoyed it!  I served the Chicken Rogan Josh over rice and veggies with a dollap of yogurt and a sprinkling of cilantro. 

Chicken Rogan Josh adapted from Penzeys

2 chicken breasts, chopped into small pieces

1 large onion, diced

2 T. olive oil

3 T. Rogan Josh seasoning

1/2 t. salt

1/2 c. plain, fat-free yogurt

1 c. water

dollap of plain, fat-free yogurt

cilantro leaves

In a dutch oven, brown the chicken in the oil.  Remove the chicken and add the onion to the hot pan.  Add the Rogan Josh seasoning and salt and stir 1 minute.  Add the cooked meat back to the pan.  Mix the water and yogurt together.  Slowly add the water/yogurt mix.  Stir well.  Cook 1-2 hours over low heat.  Severve over rice and steamed veggies with a dollap of yogurt and a sprinkling of cilantro on the top!

Enjoy~ 

April Fool's Day

Ok, I know I'm late with this post.  Here it is the 5th of April and I'm writing about what happened on the 1st.  But hey, better late than ever, right??

So every April Fool's Day, I try to pull one over on JP.  It usually involves food, and I usually trick him.  hee hee hee   I think it's great fun, and so does JP.  He's come to expect a trick and now that he's getting older, it's getting harder and harder.

This year, I had two tricks to play on him.  The first was in the morning.  The night before, I mixed up some Knox gelatin with juice and stuck it in the fridge.  April Fool's morning, JP went to take a sip of juice.  And guess what??  It was stuck in the bottom of his glass!  Bahhhahhhahhh.  This was a trick in itself.  The juice in the bottom of the glass was done so that he would think he was safe for the rest of the day.  Oh nooooo.  I had more trickery up my sleeve!


All week long, I told JP we were having chicken pot pie for supper on Friday night.  He loves chicken pot pie, so he was excited because I never buy or make it.  However, it wasn't really chicken pot pie!  Instead, I make peas, carrots and corn out of Starburst candies and mixed it with vanilla pudding.  I mixed in some chopped dried apples for the chicken stuck it in an individual pie plate and popped a precooked crust on the top!  It looked like chicken pot pie and I totally tricked JP!

Other years, I've made "Strawberry Pie" (meatloaf and pink mashed potatoes in a pie plate,) "Grilled Cheese" (toasted pound cake with cheese colored frosting,) and "Meatloaf and Mashed Potatoes & Gravy" (chocolate rice krispie treats in a loaf pan and cool whip "potatoes" with butterscotch sauce as the gravy!)

Strawberry Pie 2010

Is this really a grilled cheese?

Grilled Cheese 2009

 

What did we have for supper on April Fool's Day?? Leftovers.  I know...so exciting!

Where do I get my ideas??  Family Fun.

Rouladen

Rouladen, red cabbage, fried potatoes, salad and Hefe-Weizen

We love German food.  It's wholesome, hearty and reminds us of good times in Germany.  Jeff and I lived in Germany for 5 years.  We lived in Wiesbaden for 2 years and Ansbach for 3 years.  I also lived in Nurnberg for 3 years with my parents when I was a little girl.

Wiesbaden, Germany

Ansbach, Germany

Nurnberg, Germany

So a few days ago, I made Rouladen, which is a braised beef roll with gravy.  Rouladen is one of our favorite dishes.  It take a little time to make it...it's a little labor intensive... but it is well worth it!

Rouladen

9 slices of bacon
1 onion, finely chopped
1 lb sirloin, thinly sliced length-wise.  (My grocery store sells it already sliced, but you can ask your butcher to slice it for you.)
1 T. olive oil
1/4 c. mustard (you may use more/less depending on the size of the sirloin)
1 dill pickle, sliced length-wise into quarters
salt
pepper
1 t. parsley
1/2 c. white wine
3 c. beef broth
1/4 c. flour
3/4 c. water or milk


Finely chop the onion and 1 piece of bacon.  Place the chopped bacon, 3/4's of the onion and the olive oil in a Dutch oven, or a large, deep frying pan.  Cook the onion mixture over medium heat for about 5 minutes.


To prepare the beef, I use a large cutting board and lay the pieces of sirloin on it.  Spread the mustard on each piece of beef.  Place 2 pieces of bacon on top of the mustard.  Sprinkle the bacon with salt, pepper, the remaining chopped onion, and parsley (about 1/4 t. for each piece of beef.)  Place the pickle slice along one of the short ends of the beef.  Starting with the pickle side, roll the beef up.  Secure each roll with 2 toothpicks (or you can use string if you'd like!) 

Push the cooked onion and bacon to one side of the pan.  Turn the heat up to med/high.  You may need to add another Tablespoon of olive oil.  Place the beef rolls into the hot pan and brown on all sides.  Once the sides are browned, move the rouladen to one side of the pan.  Pour the wine into the pan and stir up the brown bits that are on the bottom.  Add the beef broth.  Place the rouladen in the middle of the pan and stir in the onion/bacon mixture that was pushed to the side.  Turn the heat down to low.    Cover and simmer for 1-1/2 hours.  Occasionally turn the rouladen over and stir the broth.

Mix the flour and water (or milk) together.  Remove the rouladen and increase the heat to high.  Once the liquid is boiling, slowly pour the flour mixture into the pan and whisk.  The gravy should thicken quickly.  Turn the heat to low and add the rouladen.  Coat the rouladen with the gravy.  Serve with potatoes (pan fried or mashed are great!)  Enjoy~