Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

29 Oct

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There has been a lot of pumpkin around these parts lately. Last week, I ate a pumpkin-laden something or other every single day. This week, I’ll be cooling my pumpkin jets, but just because I am taking a pumpkin break doesn’t mean you should…

These oatmeal cookies are magical because the only “glue” holding them together is 1 egg and 1/2 cup pumpkin puree. No butter, no oil. Just pure pumpkin goodness. Reminiscent of a trail mix cookie, every bite is full of something oaty, fruity, doughy, and chocolatey. Who else is with me in that they love the softness of a chocolate chip once it has been baked into something?! So tempting to pick out all of the chips from the cookies!

You know when you make something with pumpkin puree and always have leftover puree to finish off? These cookies are perfect for using up that last 1/2 cup of puree. You could also swirl some puree into hot cereal…

Don’t like pumpkin? Try using mashed bananas instead!

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Healthy Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

from Sally’s Baking Addiction

makes about 12-15 cookies

  • 1/2 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup whole wheat flour 
  • 1 1/2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup sugar (I used 1/4 cup granulated and 1/4 cup dark brown)
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup dried fruit (I used chopped, dried figs and dried blueberries)
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
  2. In a mixing bowl whisk together pumpkin, egg, and vanilla until well combined. In a separate bowl, combine flour, oats, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, spices, chocolate chips, and dried fruit. Fold together the wet and dry ingredients until just combined (I like to use my hands at the end!). The dough will be very thick.
  3. Drop by spoonfuls onto cookie sheets and slightly flatten to the shape you want your cookie. Bake for 12-14 minutes until lightly browned. Allow to cool on the cookie sheet for at least 3 minutes and transfer to a wire rack. Cookies stay fresh at room temperature for 3 days in an airtight container.

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Savory Pumpkin Dip

19 Oct

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A quick snack for my over-worked brain.

A variation on the Yogurt Tahini Sauce from my last post. Just add pumpkin puree. This is definitely becoming my new ‘hummus’ (I usually eat A LOT of hummus, and even though there are no garbanzo beans in this recipe, it is still a nice change…).

Tear up some bread (I found a great rosemary bread at my farmer’s market) or serve with crackers or veggies.

A little dash of paprika on top makes everything pop.

This dip is accompanying me to a pot luck this weekend. I am also going to make it next week with the group of vivacious ladies and gents. at the senior center where I conduct nutrition lessons. So easy, requires no cooking, and you get all the goodness and nutrition of yogurt, sesame, pumpkin, garlic, and lemon. Hurrah!

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Savory Pumpkin Dip

a variation on this dip

1/3 cup tahini paste

2/3 cup plain yogurt

1/3 cup pumpkin puree

1 garlic clove, minced

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

paprika, for dusting on top

Whisk all ingredients together in a bowl. Taste and adjust seasonings.

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Roasted Eggplants with Ground Lamb and Yogurt Tahini Sauce

8 Oct

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Eggplant season is still here, and I’ve seen loads of eggplant-related recipes featured on the NYTimes lately, like Martha Rose Shulman’s Lasagna with Tomato Sauce and Roasted Eggplant, Melissa Clark’s Eggplant Dip for non-eggplant eaters, and the awesome Eggplant Marinana Sandwich from Frankies Spuntino Restaurant in Brooklyn. Inspiration central.

It just so happens that while I was ‘fondling’ the beautiful eggplants at the market the other day, my eye flecked over to the Brooklyn Cured meat booth, and they had lamb sausages on special–with Greek yogurt, lemon, and parsley. Suddenly my brain switched from craving a hearty winter pasta to Mediterranean mezze. The weather has been so lovely lately, so I figured I could spare a hearty pasta for a few more weeks. And then I remembered Deb’s recipe for Roasted Eggplant with Yogurt-Tahini Sauce and Cumin-Crisped Chickpeas from her cookbook!

Since I found this amazing lamb, I swapped my usual chickpea preference for ground lamb. With a few heaps of roasted cauliflower (I didn’t use harissa this time but if I had it around I might have…) and warm whole wheat pita, I felt very proud of my meal.

The smaller eggplants are great for roasting in larger hunks (oxymoron?!). I quartered mine because I like a greater surface area for browning on the edges but still being soft on the inside.

As you can see, I smothered my meal in the yogurt-tahini sauce. I ended up making a second batch of the sauce the next day because it was just so good for dipping and spreading. Threw some fresh mint into the mix, but you could use whatever herbs you like, or nix the herbs and go garlic and paprika! This may be my new hummus. And all you have to do is whisk.

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Roasted Eggplant + Ground Lamb

From the Smitten Kitchen Cookbook

2-3 small eggplants

olive oil 

salt

1/2 onion, chopped fine

1 lb. of ground lamb or ground lamb sausage

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Take the tops off the eggplants, and either half them or quarter them. Brush a baking sheet with olive oil, place the eggplant pieces cut side up and brush the exposed sides with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt. Roast in the oven for about 15 minutes, flip, and roast for another 15-20 minutes, until the skin is dimpled and the interior glazed and golden.

About 10 minutes before the eggplants are finished roasting, heat a (cast-iron if you have one) skillet. Add a touch of olive oil and saute the onion until starting to brown. Add in the lamb and cook for about 5 minutes, until no longer pink inside. Drain the fat.

Serve the lamb with the roasted eggplant (you can roast cauliflower, too!), the yogurt tahini sauce, and some warm (whole wheat) pita bread.

Yogurt Tahini Sauce

2/3 cup plain yogurt (I used Stonyfield low-fat yogurt)

1/3 cup tahini

1 garlic clove, minced

pinch of salt

lemon juice, to taste (about 1-3 Tablespoons)

fresh herbs, chopped (I used fresh mint)

Whisk everything together. Taste and adjust for seasoning. Give it a sprinkle of paprika for a pop of color!

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Brain Food: Seasonal Frittata with a Potato Hash Crust

25 Sep

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School is in full swing, and I am having writers block like woah.

It is so hard to concentrate when I get paid to stare at these salty gems 3 mornings a week:

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…but I must remember to eat my veggies so that my brain can start working properly again…

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This is a funky time of year at the farmer’s market in New York City. Apples, pears, potatoes, and winter squash abound, but the tomatoes, peaches and plums, and corn are still pulling through for their final hurrah.

I just learned about the “nuke and shake method” for husking corn, and now before I blink my eyes three times, all of the corn will be gone! Drat.

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This is a simple egg bake that you could do with any seasonal ingredients–vegetables, herbs, cheeses, and meat. I adapted the recipe from Sara Forte’s The Sprouted Kitchen Cookbook. Sara’s recipe includes sweet potatoes and goat cheese; I happened to have a variety of small colorful potatoes on hand and a ball of mozzarella hanging out in the fridge, so into the frittata they went.

Fresh corn got thrown into the mix as well, because corn + eggs = awesome.

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Sure, I love a good quiche. How could you not love anything baked up in a flaky, buttery crust? But remember, we need brain fuel here, so potatoes for a “crust” will do. A few dashes of hot sauce always help fire up those neurons, too.

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Seasonal Frittata with a Potato Hash Crust

adopted from Sprouted Kitchen, also seen on Cookie and Kate

serves 4-6, depending how you slice and serve

6-8 eggs (I used 6 extra large eggs)

1/2 cup milk

pinches of salt and pepper

2 small sweet potatoes, or about 2 cups of colorful new potatoes, chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon cumin

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 cups baby spinach

1-2 ears of corn, husked and sliced off the cob

3 oz. cheese, mozzarella ball or goat cheese

herbs, hot sauce, salt n’ pepper for topping

  1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, a pinch of salt and black pepper.
  2. Chop the potatoes into 1/4-inch cubes. In a 10-inch sauté pan (or well-seasoned cast iron skillet), warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the potatoes and toss to coat, then sprinkle with cumin and 1/2 teaspoon salt and stir. Cook the potatoes, stirring occasionally, until they are cooked through and have brown marks, 10 to 15 minutes (add another little splash of olive oil if the potatoes start sticking to the pan).
  3. Sprinkle the garlic on top of the potatoes, then the spinach and corn. Cover the pan with a lid or cookie sheet if you have one, and cook until the spinach wilts, a minute or two.
  4. Turn the heat down to low. Whisk the eggs one last time and pour them over the spinach. Crumble or slice the cheese and plop over the top of the frittata. Put the pan in the oven and bake until you can shake the pan and see that the middle is just barely set, about 12 to 18 minutes.
  5. Set the frittata aside to cool down slightly. You can either leave it in the pan or flip it onto a plate. Sprinkle with more salt and pepper, and add some herbs and hot sauce if you’re feelin’ it.

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Fall is Coming: Pumpkin Farina

7 Sep

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I forget sometimes that pumpkin is a vegetable. It has such a creamy taste to it, and so often gets sweetened and used like a dessert. But low and behold, half a cup of plain pumpkin puree is low in calories (about 45 calories) and fat, and contains a hefty amount of vitamin A and potassium.

So let’s get on the vegetable-for-breakfast bandwagon and cook up some Pumpkin Farina!

Are you familiar with Farina? Some people call it Malt-O-Meal because that is one of the name brands, but it is basically the same thing as Cream of Wheat. You could definitely swap regular oats or steel cut oats (or millet, or quinoa, or couscous, or amaranth, or bulgar…) if you prefer those, I just chose to use Farina this morning.

The exciting thing about Farina is that, like regular old-fashioned oats, it only takes about 5 minutes to cook!

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Plain pumpkin puree gets swirled into the nearly cooked cereal grain. Without any seasoning, plain pumpkin puree tastes a little too…plain. To bring out the fall flavors, throw in some spices–I used cinnamon, but feel free to add nutmeg, ginger, cloves…–and a nice dash of maple syrup and vanilla extract. I also stirred in a little spoon of ground flaxseed to boost the healthy fats.

If you use a non-dairy milk, boom, vegan breakfast.

Toppings can be endless. This morning I used a dried fig sliced in half and a little sprinkle of coconut chips.

Warm milk, soft cereal grains, and smooth pumpkin make for a breakfast that tastes like dessert, but packs in a lot more nutrition.

Sayonara summer. Fall is coming.

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Pumpkin Farina

adapted from Healthy.Happy.Life

makes 2 big bowls

**NOTE: If you use a different cereal grain, check to make sure you use the correct ratio of grain to liquid. 

1 1/2 cups of water

1/2 cup milk (use a non-dairy milk to make this vegan)

1/3 cup Farina or Cream of Wheat

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 Tbsp ground flaxseed

3 Tbsp maple syrup

1/3 cup canned pumpkin

additional milk for topping

garnish: dash of cinnamon, dried or fresh fruit, coconut chips

Directions:

1. Bring water and milk (2 cups total) to a boil. Add salt and farina. Constantly stir gently. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low.

2. Continue stirring until the cereal thickens. At this point you can stir in the cinnamon, flaxseed, vanilla, and maple syrup. If you desire a thinner cereal, add in additional milk.

3. When cereal has cooked into a thick consistency (like thick applesauce) turn the heat to low.

4. Stir in the pumpkin over low heat.

5. Turn off heat and spoon cereal into bowls. Add a dash of cinnamon and a splash of milk on top. Top with dried or fresh fruit and a sprinkle of coconut chips.

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