unbelievable rice pudding

It doesn't seem possible that this is enough rice - but it is!

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Easy Chocolate Pudding

This dessert feels so simple and wholesome, it barely qualifies as as dessert. The menu suggestion on the original recipe says that "no matter how many fancy desserts are in your repertoire, this is most likely the one the kids will remember when they are grown and gone." No kids here, but I would guess that this would be an easy dessert to make frequently enough for it to be a household staple.

Easy Chocolate Pudding
(just barely adapted from Moosewood Low-Fat Favorites)

• 3 Tbs cornstarch
• 3 Tbs sugar
• 2 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 C milk (I usually use skim)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

In a saucepan, whisk together the dry ingredients, then stir in the milk. Over medium heat, stir frequently until the mixture comes to a boil. Lower the heat and gently simmer, stirring constantly, until thickened (~4 minutes). Stir in the vanilla. I prefer to heat this pudding warm, but it's also good cold if that's your thing.

A tiny bit of cinnamon or espresso powder, added with the other dry ingredients, are a nice addition. A little almond extract can also be added when you add the vanilla.

makes 4 small servings

Esther Ann's Beef Stew

Some of my earliest food memories are of eating this stew at my grandmother's house, and it was one of the first meat dishes I made on my own. Today there are a number of ways I could fancy it up, but it's too precious of a memory for that. For those without fond childhood memories to preserve, you might try switching in your favorite stew spices (marjoram, perhaps?) and browning the beef before starting the stew.

Esther Ann's Beef Stew

• 2 lbs stew meat (Grandma uses top round), cut into large chunks, perhaps 2-3"
• 3 celery stalks, cut into 2" segments
• 2 medium onions, cut in lengths
• 4 carrots, cut into 4 pieces 
• 1 C tomato juice
• 1/3 C quick-cooking tapioca
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 2 medium potatoes, cut into large chunks

Preheat oven to 300F.

Combine beef, celery, onions, and carrots in casserole dish. In a small bowl, combine tomato juice, tapioca, and seasonings. Pour over meat and veggies, stirring to cover.

Cover and bake for about 2 1/2 hours. Remove the cover and add the potatoes. Bake for another hour, uncovered, or until potatoes are very soft.

Can also be made in the crockpot by combining all ingredients and cooking on low for 8 hours.

A dish for a cold spring day

This recipe - Victor's grandmother's - is one of the most beloved and oldest in my original orange binder. It's written on the back of a Dean's List letter from my college days and shows its pre-binder origins in the large grease stain that covers much of the writing. I'm not sure how many the casserole is supposed to serve, but it disappears with a speed that probably isn't terribly healthy. I did serve it with a green salad, though.

Eleanor's Bean Casserole

• 1 can B&M beans
• 1 can pork & beans
• 1 can kidney beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 can lima beans, drained & rinsed (if you can't find these, just use an extra can of butter beans)
• 1 can butter beans, drained & rinsed
• 1/2 lb bacon, either thinly sliced before cooking or crumbled afterward
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 C chopped onions
• 1 tsp mustard (whether this should be "prepared" mustard or the ground mustard is a matter of much debate - the recipe tastes good with either)
• 2/3 C packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp vinegar (I usually use apple cider or white)
• 1/2 C ketchup
• 1/3 C molasses

Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat. Brown the beef and onions in the bacon fat; drain off excess liquid. Mix the remaining ingredients with the beef, onions, and bacon in a large casserole dish. Cook, covered, in a 325 F oven for one hour; remove lid and cook an additional hour.  (If you save a tiny bit of the cooked bacon and crumble on top, it will be very very slightly fancier...)

Friendship & Herby Bread

A friend brought this amazing dill-y bread to a potluck we hosted many years ago. I basically couldn't stop eating it, even though conceptually it sounded a little strange: dill, honey, and yogurt bread? It was delicious; when I asked, it turned out to be from Molly Katzen's Enchanted Broccoli Forest. Later (I think after hearing me pine away after the cookbook, mostly because I wanted to make this recipe), another friend got me the book as a gift. I generally make this bread when I have some leftover dill, and every time I do, I think about my friends and feel very loved. It is supremely comforting.

Yogurt & Herb Bread
from The Enchanted Broccoli Forest

• butter, oil, or oil+flour spray for the pan
• 1 C white flour
• 1 C whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 C firm yogurt
• 5 Tbs butter
• 2 eggs
• 1/3 C sugar, honey, or agave nectar
• 2 Tbsp fresh dill, minced (or 2 tsp dry)
• 1 - 3 tsp dried herbs (oregano, thyme, marjoram, and basil are all good bets)

Grease a medium-sized loaf pan. Preheat oven to 350F.

Sift together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Put the butter in a medium bowl and melt it in the microwave (on high, stirring after every 15 sec). Beat the yogurt and sweetener into the melted butter. Beat in the eggs. Mix in the herbs.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour the wet mixture into it. Mix until completely blended.

Spread into the prepared pan and bake for 40-45 minutes, until a knife inserted all the way into the center comes out clean. Let it sit for about 5 minutes, then remove and cool on a rack for at least 20 min before slicing.

yield: 1 medium-sized loaf

Not-Entirely-Unhealthy Mac & Cheese

I came across this recipe recently and immediately bookmarked it. I don't have a favorite mac & cheese recipe, mostly because I haven't found anything that's relatively healthy but still tastes good. (I recently picked up a box of Kraft Mac-n-Cheese and it was frakkin' delicious... but not at all something I can justify eating on a regular basis.) This caught my eye because it wasn't crazy complicated, it used whole wheat pasta, AND it wasn't full of butter or cream.

We had some excellent whole wheat elbow pasta I'd been meaning to use in something, so this seemed like the perfect opportunity. I ended up doctoring the recipe pretty substantially, and I'm still not sure that it was quite right, but it's a keeper nonetheless. (Also, Victor LOVED it.) I think it would be good topped with fried or caramelized alliums (leeks and onions would both definitely work, and maybe garlic).

Not-Entirely-Unhealthy Mac & Cheese
inspired by this recipe

• 2 pieces hearty whole wheat bread
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt

• 2 1/2 C whole wheat pasta
• 3 C whole milk
• 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp dry mustard
• 1-2 C water (if needed)
• 1 C shredded cheddar (I used Dubliner)
• 1 C frozen peas
• 1/4 C grated Parmesan, optional

Make bread crumbs: toast the bread, then tear into pieces and pulse in a mini-prep until broken into small crumbs. Melt the butter in a small sauce pan over medium heat, add the crumbs and 1/2 tsp salt. Toast, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and fragrant. Remove from heat and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375F.

Add the pasta, milk, 1 1/2 tsp salt, and mustard to an oven-safe medium sauce pan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until the pasta is tender. If the milk thickens too much before the pasta is cooked, add some water. When the pasta is tender but still slightly al dente (for whole wheat pasta, I find that this point is where it still tastes slightly bitter but has softened - it will finish cooking in the oven), remove from heat and stir in the cheddar.

After the cheddar has melted, stir in the peas. Top with the bread crumbs and the Parmesan, if using. Bake (uncovered) for 10 minutes.

serves 4