Ratatouille Replay - Because I Can Only Assume Your Garden's as full as Everyone's but Mine ;-)

Ratatouille Replay - Because I Can Only Assume Your Garden's as full as Everyone's but Mine ;-)  There's nothing more wonderful than fresh garden veggies - and enough to share. When everything comes ripe at once, Ratatouille is the way to go!

Ratatouille

1 small eggplant, sliced
1 large tomato, sliced
1 large zucchini , sliced
1 large onion, sliced
2 medium yellow squash, sliced
⅓ cup soy cheese, shredded (I used "Daiya," my favorite!)
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons oil

1. Preheat oven to 400 and oil a 9x13" casserole dish well on the bottom and sides with 2 tablespoons oil.

2. Layer veggies in order listed, standing part way up, making as many rows as fit nicely, until all are gone. If you have extra of one veggie or another, cut these into small pieces and sprinkle them in the "blank spots" in the pan.

3. Sprinkle salt and then "cheese" evenly over the top of the veggies and then bake until top begins to turn golden brown, about 40 minutes.

Low Fat Peanut Butter Muffins

All my guys have all been gone for Mike's short summer break to visit their Grandma and Grandpa and adorable cousins in Indiana. Their two beautiful cousins are just older and just younger than my youngest and they enjoy every moment together! Grandma and Grandpa live out in the country, and the girls' daddy has a huge, amazing garden and greenhouse of all organic food. I'm a bit jealous, but thrilled that they got to spend this time together!

Here's a great "send off" food if you have people you're packing up and out the door - who can resist a yummy muffin? And these are whole grain, low fat, delicious, filling, and just good for you!



Low Fat Peanut Butter Muffins


2 cups whole wheat flour
½ cup pb2
½ cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
⅓ teaspoons salt
⅔ cup carob chips
2 tablespoons oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ⅔ - 2 cups water
 
1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. In a large mixing bowl, mix all dry ingredients thoroughly.

3. Mix wet ingredients and pour over dry ingredients, stirring just enough to mix. Do not over-stir.

4. Spray a 12 cup muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray and fill each cup almost to the top with muffin batter.

5. Bake until inserted toothpick comes out clean (unless you poke it through a chip, which will pull up on the toothpick whether or not the muffin is done!), 23-3- minutes.

NotesPB2 is a powdered peanut butter that is low in fat and still full of flavor. It is just pressed peanuts, a pinch of sugar and a pinch of salt. You can find it and carob powder at your local health food store or online.

Carob is not chocolate. It is it's own flavor that is similar to chocolate, carmel, or vanilla (unfruity but unique and delicious). Carob can be used in the place of chocolate in many recipes and is good for you in moderation. It's also safe for your dog. :-)

Peachy Summer Goodness (Without the Cholesterol)

Working nights leaves me less time to cook creatively, but sometimes you still just have to incorporate summer goodness into your menu! We visited a farmer's market where there was some delicious-looking fresh home made peach ice cream - for $2 per tiny cup. Uh, yeah... so this was my healthier, cheaper version. Of course the boys loved it and so did I! I like it better than almost any dairy peach ice cream I've had!



Peachy Summer Ice Cream


¾ cups Better than milk powder
½ cup cashews, raw
⅓ cup sugar
½ vanilla Bean
1 ½ water
4 ripe peaches

1. In a blender, blend all but 2 of the peaches until mixture is extremely smooth. This could take 3-4 minutes or longer, depending on the power of your blender.

2. Chop the remaining peaches and blend in briefly, making sure to "leave chunks."

3. Prepare in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer recommendations.

Better than Milk powder is a delicious (but expensive) product. It really makes this dessert! You could use any powdered milk product (short of baby formula - yuck!), whether it be soy or something else you can find. I'm sure regular powdered milk would work as well.

You could use 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract in place of the vanilla bean, but make sure you use an alcohol-free type, as it can interfere with proper freezing.

If you re-freeze immediately, this does a "hard-scoop" quite well. If it sets out and is allowed to melt, it crystalizes more harshly than dairy ice cream.