Of hints to help small children & more, & of lasagna
Today is the second day of Chanukah, & within the hour we will light the candle for the 3rd day. A luminous, happy, & healthy holiday to all!
A lovely prayer for the Sabbath: Love of my soul, merciful Father, draw Your servant to Your will. Your servant will hasten like a fleet deer to bow to Your glory. Your love will be sweeter to him than honey & all delicacies. (Page 74 of LIVING EACH DAY)
HELPFUL HINTS:
A quick way to cook veggies in a way that kids will love: In a large bowl, put a package of ramen noodles, cut in half by your hands, plus various frozen veggies with short cooking times such as corn & peas & carrots, the veggies altogether measuring what you want your kids to be eating. Putting the entire contents of the bowl into a pot, prepare the ramen according to package directions. DO use the entire package of seasoning at the time called for in the directions. It will flavor the food. Then – guess what! – DRAIN all the liquid out before serving the veggies & noodles to the kids. Now, there will be only a little bit of sodium clinging to the veggies.
When you prepare oatmeal or other sticky cereal, spray the pot with cooking oil spray before you start putting the ingredients into the pot.
For small children who have trouble knowing their right from their left when it comes to footwear, here are 2 hints. For slippers or sneakers, sew or cement a coordinating button on the outside of the heel portion of the right shoe. For shoes that are not made of fabric, use permanent marker to write the child’s first name on the heel of the left-hand shoe or boot, & to write the child’s surname on the heel of the right-hand shoe or boot. When his or her name is lined up correctly, so will be his or her footwear. Plus, it will help with reading readiness.
To save time & money on darning kids’ jeans, patch them before they wear them for the first time. Do this on the INSIDE of the knees. Duct tape makes an adequate patch.
Don’t you prefer chewy raisins to ones that are dried up? Here’s how to plump a cup or so at a time. Put them in a quart jar & pour ½ c of boiling water over the raisins. Shake the jar. Let it cool to room temperature & then store in the fridge.
ANOTHER CATALOGUE PRODUCT YOU DON’T NEED:
Advertised widely for prices that are at the cheapest $3 are “cooking oil sprayers.” These are simply spray bottles. You can get one at a 99 cents store for 69 cents or so. Use one for canola oil, & others for olive oil & your favorite vinegar to season your salads.
RECIPE OF THE WEEK:
Low-fat Lasagna Yum-Yum:
I found great buys on spinach lasagna noodles & stewed tomatoes, so used those in this recipe. But you can use whatever ingredients (that are similar to those called for) that you can find cheaply.
8 oz lasagna noodles, cooked according to package directions
2 T canola oil
½ large or 1 medium onion, cut lengthwise & then sliced into thin half-moons
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 medium carrot, cut lengthwise & then sliced into thin half-moons
1 large stalk celery, together with its leaves, sliced thinly
2 c PLUS 2 T water (this is NOT the water used to cook the noodles in)
24 oz whole tomatoes (snipped in can to make pieces), stewed or seasoned in any way OR unseasoned
6 oz tomato paste
1 tsp EACH salt, oregano, & basil (salt may be reduced if dietary needs require)
Dash freshly-ground black pepper
8 oz canned mushroom pieces & stems, rinsed & drained
1 c corn kernels (fresh, or frozen & thawed)
1-3/4 c chickpeas (thawed from one of your freezer containers – see the blog dated September 10, 2004 -- or one 15-oz can of chickpeas, rinsed & drained)
½ of a 15 or 16 oz container of part-skim ricotta cheese (I was able to find a container with exactly 8 oz in it)
8 oz part-skim mozzarella cheese, sliced into 8 pieces
Coat a 9x13” casserole dish with cooking spray.
Put the canola oil into a Dutch oven. Add the onion & garlic. Saute for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the carrots & celery, cover the pot, & sauté another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add tomato products & water. Stir thoroughly. Bring to a boil. Cook on high heat (uncovered) for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. You are “reducing” (boiling down) the sauce – thickening it. Place lasagna noodles at the bottom of the casserole dish. Cover with mozzarella cheese. At the 20 minute mark, preheat the oven to 350 degrees for a Pyrex™ casserole dish, 375 degrees for any other kind. At the 25 minute mark, add the mushrooms, corn, & chickpeas to the Dutch oven. Stir thoroughly. Remove from the heat when the 30 minutes have gone by. Add the ricotta & stir thoroughly.
Pour sauce over the casserole of mozzarella cheese & noodles. Bake for 45 minutes (uncovered). Upon removing from the oven, do not cut for 10 minutes. Serve to 8.
A lovely prayer for the Sabbath: Love of my soul, merciful Father, draw Your servant to Your will. Your servant will hasten like a fleet deer to bow to Your glory. Your love will be sweeter to him than honey & all delicacies. (Page 74 of LIVING EACH DAY)
HELPFUL HINTS:
A quick way to cook veggies in a way that kids will love: In a large bowl, put a package of ramen noodles, cut in half by your hands, plus various frozen veggies with short cooking times such as corn & peas & carrots, the veggies altogether measuring what you want your kids to be eating. Putting the entire contents of the bowl into a pot, prepare the ramen according to package directions. DO use the entire package of seasoning at the time called for in the directions. It will flavor the food. Then – guess what! – DRAIN all the liquid out before serving the veggies & noodles to the kids. Now, there will be only a little bit of sodium clinging to the veggies.
When you prepare oatmeal or other sticky cereal, spray the pot with cooking oil spray before you start putting the ingredients into the pot.
For small children who have trouble knowing their right from their left when it comes to footwear, here are 2 hints. For slippers or sneakers, sew or cement a coordinating button on the outside of the heel portion of the right shoe. For shoes that are not made of fabric, use permanent marker to write the child’s first name on the heel of the left-hand shoe or boot, & to write the child’s surname on the heel of the right-hand shoe or boot. When his or her name is lined up correctly, so will be his or her footwear. Plus, it will help with reading readiness.
To save time & money on darning kids’ jeans, patch them before they wear them for the first time. Do this on the INSIDE of the knees. Duct tape makes an adequate patch.
Don’t you prefer chewy raisins to ones that are dried up? Here’s how to plump a cup or so at a time. Put them in a quart jar & pour ½ c of boiling water over the raisins. Shake the jar. Let it cool to room temperature & then store in the fridge.
ANOTHER CATALOGUE PRODUCT YOU DON’T NEED:
Advertised widely for prices that are at the cheapest $3 are “cooking oil sprayers.” These are simply spray bottles. You can get one at a 99 cents store for 69 cents or so. Use one for canola oil, & others for olive oil & your favorite vinegar to season your salads.
RECIPE OF THE WEEK:
Low-fat Lasagna Yum-Yum:
I found great buys on spinach lasagna noodles & stewed tomatoes, so used those in this recipe. But you can use whatever ingredients (that are similar to those called for) that you can find cheaply.
8 oz lasagna noodles, cooked according to package directions
2 T canola oil
½ large or 1 medium onion, cut lengthwise & then sliced into thin half-moons
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 medium carrot, cut lengthwise & then sliced into thin half-moons
1 large stalk celery, together with its leaves, sliced thinly
2 c PLUS 2 T water (this is NOT the water used to cook the noodles in)
24 oz whole tomatoes (snipped in can to make pieces), stewed or seasoned in any way OR unseasoned
6 oz tomato paste
1 tsp EACH salt, oregano, & basil (salt may be reduced if dietary needs require)
Dash freshly-ground black pepper
8 oz canned mushroom pieces & stems, rinsed & drained
1 c corn kernels (fresh, or frozen & thawed)
1-3/4 c chickpeas (thawed from one of your freezer containers – see the blog dated September 10, 2004 -- or one 15-oz can of chickpeas, rinsed & drained)
½ of a 15 or 16 oz container of part-skim ricotta cheese (I was able to find a container with exactly 8 oz in it)
8 oz part-skim mozzarella cheese, sliced into 8 pieces
Coat a 9x13” casserole dish with cooking spray.
Put the canola oil into a Dutch oven. Add the onion & garlic. Saute for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the carrots & celery, cover the pot, & sauté another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add tomato products & water. Stir thoroughly. Bring to a boil. Cook on high heat (uncovered) for 30 minutes, stirring frequently. You are “reducing” (boiling down) the sauce – thickening it. Place lasagna noodles at the bottom of the casserole dish. Cover with mozzarella cheese. At the 20 minute mark, preheat the oven to 350 degrees for a Pyrex™ casserole dish, 375 degrees for any other kind. At the 25 minute mark, add the mushrooms, corn, & chickpeas to the Dutch oven. Stir thoroughly. Remove from the heat when the 30 minutes have gone by. Add the ricotta & stir thoroughly.
Pour sauce over the casserole of mozzarella cheese & noodles. Bake for 45 minutes (uncovered). Upon removing from the oven, do not cut for 10 minutes. Serve to 8.
posted by THE PENNY ORCHID -- "Thrift with Flair" at 4:24 PM
<< Home