kattitudes

As nice as it is to make gifts for everyone for the holidays, sometimes those with special dietary needs are left out of the rotation. I find this particularly true now that I have completely given up chocolate and caffeine (migraine issues). The first thing that people want to give me for Christmas is, of course, chocolate!

I know that so many people are looking for mix in a jar recipes this holiday season. I think everyone is feeling budget pinching and wants to carefully use their holiday cash wisely. Mix in a jars seems a wise way to do just that, particularly since it is something that you yourself can use in your own pantry if you end up with too many mixes.

This particular mix is geared towards those that follow a vegetarian dietary lifestyle. The combination of soybean flour and vegetable protein actually makes it pretty hefty on the protein levels, so it would be great for you to keep around for quick lunches for you if needed.

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons dried onion flakes
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon soybean flour
2-3 tablespoon vegetable protein
2 tablespoon instant mashed potato

Combine ingredients and store in airtight container.

Attach a tag with the following instructions:

Instant Cheesy Soup

Add two tablespoons mix to one mug boiling water (or to taste) and stir.

2 pounds fresh string beans, cleaned and ends trimmed
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 fresh clove garlic, finely minced
4 tablespoons chopped, toasted almonds
4 tablespoons Locatelli (Romano) cheese, grated
1 tablespoon finely minced onion
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/6 teaspoon salt
2-4 tablespoons butter
a sprinkling of paprika

In separate bowl combine almonds and cheese. Mix well and set aside.

Steam green beans until just tender. Run under cold water to cool and drain thoroughly and place in a buttered casserole dish.

In a cruet or small jar with a lid, mix olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, onion and garlic. Shake well. Pour over beans and mix well. Top with almond/cheese mixture. Dot with butter and sprinkle with paprika. Bake uncovered 15-20 minutes. Remove from heat, toss and serve.

This is a fantastic gift mix. And it is utterly wonderful to mix up and keep in your own pantry. You use it in place of all that plastic condensed canned plastic soup junk. You can use it for casseroles or as a base for soups that you make. This is such a great trick to keep in your cupboard. You will find you pull it out as a recipe rescue time and time again.

Ingredients:

2 cups powdered nonfat milk
3/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup (or less) instant vegetable bouillon
2 tablespoons dried onion flakes
1 teaspoon basil leaves
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Combine ingredients and store in airtight container.

Attach a tag with the following instructions:

Use to substitute one can of condensed soup. Combine 1/3 cup dry mix and 1 1/4 cup cold water in saucepan. Cook and stir until thickened. Add as you would soup.

If you are gifting this mix to a vegetarian, you can omit the vegetable bouillon altogether. If you are gifting to a regular omnivore, you can easily replace the vegetable bouillon with beef bouillon or omit altogether.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup assorted vegetable flakes according to your tastes (Suggestions include tomatoes, celery, onion, zucchini, onion, peas, broccoli and carrots. You can make your own by putting dried veggies in a blender until pea-sized)
1 tablespoon cracked wheat
1 tablespoon pasta, broken up
1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
1/4 teaspoon dried sweet basil
pinch garlic powder
pinch onion powder
salt and pepper to taste
Optional: one cube vegetable bouillon

Combine ingredients and store in airtight container.

Attach a tag with the following instructions:

Add mix to 2 cups of boiling water (or stock if preferred). Allow to steep covered for approximately 3-4 minutes.

I am one of those rare creatures that just does not care for tomato soup. Tomatoes in soup are perfectly wonderful, but plain tomato soup - bleah. Bizarre dichotomy, I know.

As a result, I am absolutely unable to judge which of these recipes are a better fit. Therefore, since I have both, I decided to simply post both so as to allow those that like this sort of thing to make a final determination for themselves.

These simple mix in a jar recipes make an utterly fantastic packaged gift for university mates and children that are going back. Send them with as many mixes as you can package up. They will already have access to a kettle in their dorm rooms, I am sure (as I most certainly did), and the ability to whip up a nice (free) mug of soup from home would be most appreciated.

Ingredients for Variation One

4 tablespoons nonfat dry milk
2 tablespoons powdered dry tomatoes
1/8 teaspoon basil
dash of salt
dash of pepper

Combine ingredients and store in airtight container.

Attach a tag with the following instructions:

Add mix to one mug of hot water. Stir and let steep for two minutes.

Ingredients for Variation Two

3 cups dried tomato slices
1/2 cup dried milk powder
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Combine ingredients in blender to crush to powder.

Store in airtight container.

Attach a tag with the following instructions:

1 package mix
1 1/2 quart boiling water

Combine and simmer 10 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon butter after cooking.

Usually I try not to include too many mixes that require additional contributions as I want to keep it as simple as possible for all involved. However, this particular mix makes a wonderful layered flavor combination that hits just right. The resulting soup is a hot dreamy wonderland of Italian goodness. Definitely a great gift idea for those that like Italian foods.

Ingredients:

2 cups penne pasta
1 cup sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 cup dried shiitake mushrooms
1/4 cup onion flakes
1/4 cup parsley flakes
1 tablespoon dried minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed thyme
1 1/2 teaspoon dried minced basil
1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper

Combine all ingredients in large jar.

Attach a tag with the following instructions:

1 jar mix
8 cups vegetable broth
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced Roma tomatoes
1 (15 ounce) can cannelloni beans
salt and pepper

Combine all except beans in large pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover & simmer until pasta & veggies are tender.

Add in beans and simmer for approximately more 15 minutes (until beans are heated through).

It’s Halloween. Am I going to leave you high and dry? No. Voila, a recipe for how to roast pumpkin seeds.

You carved your pumpkin. Now you have all those lovely seeds left over (in all that … muck). What to do with them?

I used to have a trick to clean the seeds and make them nice and salty. I boiled them in salt water for about 10 to 20 minutes, then I would bake them nice and dry. However, I find as I age, I am liking the nuts and twigs part of life more and more, so I enjoy the flavor of the dirty seeds more now. Eew, I know.

Anyway, on to what to do.

While it’s O.K. to leave some strings and pulp on your seeds (it adds flavor), clean off any major chunks. They won’t cook in time.

Preheat oven to 300° F.

Combine 1 to 2 tablespoons melted butter or oil (olive oil or vegetable oil works well) per cup of seeds.

Salt to taste.

If you like, you can add other spices like pepper, paprika, garlic, cayenne, cajun seasoning blend. I always add worcestershire sauce because that’s how my Mister rolls. I like paprika and cayenne and salt.

The beauty of pumpkin seeds is that they are pretty much a blank canvas. You can add whatever your favorite spice combo is and it always tastes good.

Toss pumpkin seeds in a bowl with the melted butter or oil and seasonings of your choice.

Spread pumpkin seeds in a single layer on baking sheet. Bake for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown.

Do yourself a favor and start checking in on them at 30 minutes, because every oven does things different. You might end up with burnt seeds otherwise. Such a waste.

This is such a fantastic food that once you make your own, you will wonder why you ever buy it in a can. The processed version is packed full of fat and sodium and while it tastes decent, there is just no comparison to the flavor you get from making refried beans on your own.

If you make this mix to give away as gifts, it would be a fantastic ingredient in a gift basket full of spicy foods; include some pepper sauces and homemade salsas. If you do make this mix, definitely keep some for your own pantry. You will be pleasantly surprised at how handy it is.

Ingredients:

3 cups dried pinto beans
3 tablespoons dried minced onion
3 teaspoons chili powder
3 teaspoons dried cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Using your kitchen tool of choice (blender, food mill or coffee grinder) grind dried beans to a flour consistency. Combine all ingredients and store in airtight jar.

Include instructions for use with gift:

3/4 cup mix
2 1/2 cups boiling water

Mix until combined. Bring to boil, cover and reduce to simmer until thickened. As beans cool, this will continue to thicken.

It’s that time of year when we have lots of people over and many opportunities for party food. My Mister loves this dip. Absolutely loves it. And it is truly an easy dip to whip out when you have people on the way.

The nice thing about this recipe is that it is super easy to mix up ahead of schedule and keep in the fridge. Then when it is time for serving, finish by topping with cheese, bake and serve. Easy and tastes fantastic.

1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach
2 (13 3/4-ounce) cans artichoke hearts
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 cup grated pepper jack cheese
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a casserole dish with nonstick spray.

Heat the spinach in a microwave oven on high for 5 minutes and squeeze dry. Drain the artichoke hearts and coarsely chop in a food processor.

Combine all the ingredients except the jack cheese in a large bowl. Stir well. Scrape into the prepared casserole dish and sprinkle the jack cheese on top. Bake for 30 minutes. Transfer to a chafing dish and keep warm over a low flame.

adapted from a recipe by Paula Deen

Previously, we talked about chow-chow and how interesting it was as a relish. Hopefully you gave it a shot (it is available on the condiment aisle of pretty much every grocery store if you are not up to making your own the first time around).

As odd as it sounds, it really is quite tasty in a tangy sort of way. This recipe is simply a variation on a theme, and quite good on its own merits (although, as a southern lady, I am required to question as to whether this is really a chow-chow or more along the lines of some sort of vegetable marmalade. It’s all technical details anyway, so in the end, why fuss over a name?).

4 cups chopped cabbage
3 cups chopped cauliflower
2 cups chopped onions
2 cups chopped green tomatoes
2 cups chopped green bell peppers
3 tablespoons salt
2 1/2 cups vinegar
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 teaspoon celery seeds
1 teaspoon mustard seeds

Combine cabbage, cauliflower, onions, green tomatoes and bell peppers. Sprinkle with salt. Let mixture stand 4 to 6 hours in cool place.

Drain well. Combine vinegar, sugar, mustard, turmeric, ginger, celery seeds and mustard seeds in large saucepan. Simmer 10 minutes. Add vegetable mixture and simmer 10 minutes longer. Bring to boil.

Pack, boiling hot, into hot sterilized jars, leaving 1/4-inch head space. Adjust lids and process 10 minutes in boiling water bath.