Category: Recipes

Kosher, vegetarian recipes tried and tested by me.

My Favorite Fall Pins

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Fall LeavesYes fall is here, at least in my heart.  Why the rush?  We’re going to Israel for the High Holidays so I miss a chunk of my favorite season and it’s American traditions: apple picking, pumpkin spice everything, and Halloween for a month.  This year we’ll be coming back two weeks before Halloween so I’ll get to feel the holiday a little more.  It is my favorite holiday and the memories of my children these past few years celebrating with me are so precious.

With my early fall celebrations I’ve started pinning crafts, decorations, DIY projects, and recipes to enjoy when we get back.  Here are some of my favorites:

  1. Popsicle stick monster craft.

Craft Stick Monsters - Kid Craft More

2. Metallic foiled pumpkins

Painted Metallic Foiled Pumpkins. It makes your pumpkins stand out and brings a new decoration to the home!

3. Acorn Donut Holes

This acorn donut hole recipe is a fun way to celebrate the end of summer and the beginning of fall!

4.  Speaking of donuts, Maple Glazed Donuts!

Baked Maple Donuts Recipe with Maple Glaze

5. Bronze Pumpkin Stack

You won't waste your $1 buckets on candy when you see her porch trick

6.  For the High Holidays there are so many edible Torahs and Sukkahs!

Design Megillah: Edible Torahs for Children

I have linked all of the images back to the pin so you can explore these ideas.  Please be sure to follow My Petite Picassos on Pinterest for more autumnal awesomeness!

 

 

Baked Chocolate Milk Doughnuts with Nutella Frosting

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Chocolate milk is something I should  think about getting stock in.  Ben loves his organic, whole, with vitamin D.  I know it has added sugar, but the good outweighs the bad right now so I let him enjoy his favorite drink.

Another thing he has recently discovered is Nutella.  He loves Nutella on challah bread sandwiches for lunch at camp.  He also likes plain peanut butter sandwiches, but no jelly!

Since starting camp 7 weeks ago he has had so much fun making friends, learning, and he loves his teacher!  He gets so excited for camp everyday!  I love watching  this little learner grow and develope!

Even though he loves camp he has had separation anxiety and when he’s home he wants “momma!” Last weekend he was really dealing with some rough anxiety and was right next to me all weekend.  I thought this would be the perfect time to do a project.  He loves doughnuts and so we made doughnuts!

I have a 6 doughnut pan and this recipe makes 6 baked chocolate doughnuts with Nutella frosting.  I made the batter thin with chocolate milk so I could pipe it into the pan using a gallon sized Ziploc bag.  This is my first attempt at making doughnuts and I must say I was pleased at how they turned out!

donuts

One of the nice things about making doughnuts is that the ingredients are in small amounts-so if you’re being frugal they will stretch into several batches!

This was the first time Ben helped me cook.  Even Adam got into it.  They used spatulas to stir and dumped in the pre-measured dry ingredients.  We counted how many tablespoons of this and scoops of that.  I showed Ben what “half” means using my measuring cups.  Baking is wonderful for math and science.  We also talked about powder, solid, and liquid ingredients.  I really believe that moments like this where I take a little time out of my day to teach makes a big difference!

Ingredients for doughnuts:

Dry

1c. all purpose white flour

1/2t. baking soda

1/2t. baking powder

2tbsp.  baking cocoa

1/4c + 2t. granulated sugar
Wet

2 eggs

2t. melted coconut oil

2/3c. chocolate milk

Set oven to 325 degrees F.  Combine dry ingredients first in a mixing bowl.  Then add wet ingredients until a batter is formed.  Spoon into gallon size Ziploc bag or piping bag and pipe into a sprayed doughnut baking pan.  Bake for 12 minutes.  Tip:  Do not over fill the doughnut pan with batter, these doughnuts will rise in the pan and you want them to keep their shape.  Allow to cool before frosting.

Frosting:

3 tbsp. Nutella

1c. confectioner’s sugar

1t. Vanilla essence

Mix together, and spoon into a a Ziploc bag or piping bag to pipe onto the doughnuts.

I am not expert piper, so I just went around my doughnuts twice with the icing.  Then I added sprinkles and edible pearls.  You can add cut fruit like bananas or strawberries, crushed Oreos would be heavenly!  Enjoy with a nice tall glass of chocolate milk!

 

Nutritious Pancakes With Fruit and Oats

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Nutritious pancakes
Pancakes are Ben’s favorite breakfast.  He won’t eat anything but pancakes in the morning!  Some mornings he’ll have some apple and carrot sauce or down a bottle of chocolate milk for added nutrients.  Usually I give him Organic Silver Dollar Pancakes from Trader Joe’s which I just heat up in the microwave or in a pan on the stove. On lazy mornings when we’re not rushing out the door I like to make him these nutritious homemade pancakes.

img_9062

Adding the oat flour to the egg/fruit mixture

Ingredients:

1/2 cup oat flour (I grind rolled oats in the blender first)

3 eggs

5 oz. applesauce

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 banana

1 apple (cored, skinned, and sliced)

2/3 c. flour

Directions:

Grind up rolled oats in a blender and pour into a bowl.  In the blender add apple, banana, eggs, and applesauce.  Blend.  In a bowl or using a stand alone mixer mix oat flour, flour, and baking powder. Pour in and mix egg and fruit mixture to form a batter.

Using a tablespoon spoon the batter into a warm pan with coconut oil or butter and fry until golden.  Flip over and fry on the other side.  Serve with honey or fruit.

What I really like about this recipe is that you can add a variety of fruits and veggies in.  Zucchini, bananas, crushed pineapple, pumpkin puree, pureed beans, and carrot sauce can all be mixed in and give nutrition to a simple breakfast food!

Garbanzo Bean Chocolate Chip Cookies 

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garbanzo bean cookies

I have not been quiet about the fact that my Ben is a picky eater.  He’s a total carbaholic, he eats tofu, and that’s about it.  Getting fruits and veggies into him can be a struggle.  One way I do manage to get veggies in him is baked goods.  I have tried black bean brownie, garbanzo bean cupcakes, and pumpkin loaf made from scratch with shredded carrots.  I find myself baking him healthy treats each week and he seems to love them!

This past week it was Garbanzo Bean Chocolate Chip Cookies. They come out soft, and I do refrigerate them to be on the safe side because they have a lot of egg.  When I need one or two I pop them in the oven or microwave quickly.

These cookies are high in protein as they have 3 sources of protein: eggs, peanut butter, and garbanzo beans.  They’re actually a healthy indulgence for me as I’m trying to lose the last bit of baby weight.

Ingredients:

1 can of garbanzo beans rinsed

3 eggs

1 cup of flour

1 cup of coconut sugar

2 tbs. creamy peanut butter

1/2 tsp. baking powder
Directions:

Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and blend.  Using a tablespoon spoon not a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Place in a 350 oven for 10 minutes.  Cool after you take them out and enjoy!

I’ll share some pins below of tried and tested hidden veggie recipes.  It’s amazing how much like the real thing they taste and it’s reassuring that my boys are getting some good nutrition with their treats!

Easy homemade banana zucchini bread, perfect for freezing! Toast a slice and add a pat of butter for an amazing after school snack.:

 

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Banana Muffins - a perfect use for overripe bananas and a great way to sneak some veggies into your child's diet. They're picky toddler approved too!:

These delicious dark chocolate flourless brownie muffins will satisfy your sweet tooth without sabotaging your diet. And they're gluten-free! Click through to get the recipe and find out what the secret ingredient is. // desserts // healthy recipes // cheat clean // gluten free // Beachbody // http://BeachbodyBlog.com:

Bananas Foster Protein Shake with Trader Joe’s Bourbon Vanilla 

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bananas foster
I’ve gotten really into lifting heavy weights lately. I’m finding that it’s making the most difference in shedding my baby weight.  Of course any weightlifting routine means an increase in protein, which can be problematic if you’re a vegetarian like myself. This shake is not only high in protein and vegan.  It’s the perfect pre-workout shake!

Recipe:

In a blender combine:

1.5 tsp. Trader Joe’s Pure Bourbon Vanilla Extract

Ice

1 c. unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1 scoop Trader Joe’s Vanilla Protein Powder

2 bananas


Blend it up and enjoy either before or after a hard workout!  I added a packet of Stevia to my shake because I have a sweet tooth, but it’s not necessary.  The Bourbon Vanilla tastes amazing in cookies and I used it in Adam’s Birthday cake icing.  It’s good stuff!

Delicious and Nutritious Israeli Tahini Smoothie

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tahini shake

If you follow my Instagram, which I post on daily, you know I love smoothies!  My husband and I drink them daily.  Since it’s been a while since I shared a recipe with you I decided this smoothie has to be my next recipe for the blog.  It’s officially amazing and so good for you!

If you are not familiar with tahini it’s sesame paste that is used in several Middle Eastern dishes.  It comes very thick in the jar and can be thinned out with water or lemon juice.  It’s one of the main ingredients in hummus and is amazing as a dressing.  When we were in Israel last fall they were pouring it over their ice cream.  You can find tahini in most large supermarkets, I love the Organic Tahini from Trader Joe’s-it’s the best I’ve ever tasted.

This recipe calls for half a cup of Taster’s Choice coffee in the hazelnut flavor.  In the Middle East Nescafe and instant coffee are very popular.  My husband likes Taster’s Choice and for a change he’s been trying the hazelnut flavor.  I pre-brewed the coffee.  When making a smoothie start with the liquid ingredients first and then add the solid ingredients.  I make my smoothies in a Ninja every morning, but a blender works fine too.

The recipe for this is to simply blend:

ice

1 c. of unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1/2 c. of hazelnut Taster’s Choice coffee

1 tbsn. of tahini

2 bananas

2 packets of Stevia or a tbsn. of honey (agave or maple syrup would work too)

It’s a really great way to wake up in the morning.  You have a caffeine kick from the coffee, potassium from the banana, healthy fats from the tahini, and calcium from the almond milk.  It has a deeper taste than a traditional peanut butter and banana smoothie.  The hazelnut coffee mixes with the sesame flavor beautifully.  I hope you enjoy this recipe.  I’ll be sure to share more recipes soon!

Tip:  To make the smoothie vegan omit the honey.

Matboucha Tutorial and Recipe Suggestions

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About a month ago I shared with you my Matboucha recipe.  It’s a spicy, cooked salad from Morocco. It’s a staple in my household.  I make it every Friday for our Sabbath meal as my husband is of Moroccan decent.  I am including a video tutorial on how to prepare it as it is a little tricky for beginner chefs and recipe suggestions on how to use this delicious salad will be posted below.

 

 


Recipe Suggestions:

1.  Eat with charred pita and hummus.  It’s delicious either hot or cold.

2.  Incorporate it into a sandwich like grilled cheese or as a burger topping.

3.  Top off a seared salmon filet with a spoonful of Matboucha.
5.  Use it in a quiche. Spoon a generous helping into a store bought pie-crust.  Beat 4 eggs with salt and pepper, pour them into the pie shell.  Add smoked provolone on top and bake for 50 minutes at 350F.

6. Start an omelet with olive oil and Matboucha.  Then add your beaten eggs and cheese once the moisture has evaporated.

7.  Top of rice or quinoa with Matboucha and a chopped hard boiled egg.

Truly the options are limitless!

Easy and Beautiful Gluten-free, Vegan, and Kosher Gift Basket

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For the holidays I struggled with the idea of what to get my parents this year. In years past when I was making a salary I could purchase them anything I wanted but this year was different as I’m a stay at home mom.   I figured DIY would be the way to go this year.  My dad just recently switched to a gluten-free diet. In my home we keep kosher and vegetarian. So as my parents were visiting I figured it would be a lovely hostess type presentation to give my dad a gluten- free gift basket that he could snack from while staying with me.

 

I started with this tin basket that I found at Michael’s. I got it for 40% off with my coupon which turned out to be a great deal. Then I went on to find some cute snowflake tin containers that I could put different food items and as well as snowflake treat bags.

I filled the gift tins and treat bags with nuts and a dried fruit. I included a bag of gluten-free pretzels and a bag of gluten-free granola. I found all of these items at Trader Joe’s.  If you go to their customer service they will print you out a list of all of their gluten-free items which is so incredibly helpful.

This turned out to be a really easy and useful gift for my dad. He didn’t have to go searching in my pantry for something to eat. He had plenty to eat while he was at my house despite all of the very different diets that we have in my home. This would make a great gift to anybody who’s visiting or staying with you. Also this would be a great teacher gift as it was fairly inexpensive and only took about 30 minutes to put together!  For shipping: I would recommend wrapping cellophane around it and tying some ribbon on top before putting it into the box so everything will stay pretty well in tact during the shipping. I also would recommend going with a lighter box, maybe even a wooden crate which they have plenty of at Michael’s and with that 40% off coupon it would be very inexpensive. You could also paint the crates different colors and match them with your tins!

Make Ahead Pesto with DoTerra Oregano Essential Oil (Kosher, Vegan, Gluten -Free)

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make-ahead-pestoAs you know I love essential oils. I am actually not at all advertising for DoTerra -I don’t have a membership anymore and I’m not selling oils. I do believe in the oils and I use them every day.  I use DoTerra products every day. I believe that they do help overtime to make your family a little bit healthier. I have started cooking more and more with DoTerra oils.  This is an easy pesto that you can make ahead of time and freeze in baby food jars and have on hand when you want to make pastas or pizzas or flat breads or avocado toast. I use a Ninja to process all of the ingredients but this can be done in a food processor or blender. I also will be sharing with you how to do this with a pasta and brussels sprouts which is how I’ve been serving it almost weekly to my husband -he loves it!  This recipe is kosher, vegan, and gluten free!
Ingredients:

1 stalk of brussel sprouts

12 oz. of pasta (I used brown rice and quinoa pasta from Trader Joe’s.)

16 oz. of fresh basil

6 oz. of Olive Oil plus 2tbs. For the brussel sprouts

2 tbs. garlic, minced

salt and pepper to taste

6 drops of DoTerra Oregano Oil

Directions:

Set the oven to 350°F. Remove the brussels sprouts from the stock using a serrated knife and then cut each of them and have removing the outer petals. Wash all of the brussel sprouts. I did this by placing on my brussel sprouts in a colander and then rinsing them off.  Set out a large pot of water with lots of salt and placed on the stove on high heat.

While you are waiting for the water to boil put all your brussels sprouts on a cookie sheet and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil.  Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix it up with your hands.  Put the brussels sprouts into the oven for 30 minutes.

By now the pasta water should be boiling add your pasta and cook according to the instructions on the box. While your pasta is cooking put the basil,  6 ounces of olive oil, garlic and oregano oil into the blender or food processor and blend until you see all the ingredients are completely combined.  Add salt and pepper to taste and blend one more time.  I only use 2 ounces of the pesto each time I make my pasta or pizzas so I put them into baby food jars and store them in the freezer.  They store nicely for about six weeks. If you really want to give your pesto a healthy boost you can add one or two more drops of oregano oil once it has defrosted on the countertop. The defrosting usually takes about an hour and a half at room temperature.

Shakshuka Pizza with a Beer Bread Crust

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shakshouka pizza.jpg

One thing about cooking is that I like to use an ingredient or leftovers to make something new. Last week I shared with you my recipe for matbucha.  Which you can find here. You will need to make it in order to complete this recipe-as it becomes the sauce for my pizza.

Shakshuka is basically matbucha with basted eggs on top.  It’s a really popular breakfast food in Israel. Every restaurant has their own version and it’s incredibly delicious along with some pita bread or some Israeli salad.  I saw a video last year on how to make this pizza but they just used tomato paste, onion, and some spices. Tomato paste has such a strong flavor and such a richness that I think it would be overwhelming. I believe using the leftover matbucha makes for more complex flavor.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 c. of flour, plus a little extra for rolling out the dough

1 c. beer

1 tbsp. sugar

1 tbsp. salt

6 tbsp. matbucha

2 c. feta cheese crumbles

4 eggs

Directions:  Pre-heat oven to 350 F.  Mix flour, salt, and sugar together in a large mixing bowl with either a standalone mixer or hand mixer on medium for a minute.  Pour in a cup of beer and mix until a dough is formed on medium, scraping the sides down. Roll out the dough on a floured surface and transfer onto a baking sheet.  Spread the matbucha out over the dough and crack four eggs over different areas of the pizza, nesting the eggs throughout. Then sprinkle your feta crumbles all over.  Bake for 25 minutes and enjoy!!!