Recipes

Refried Beans (Frijoles Refritos)

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Refried Beans (Frijoles Refritos)

Michelle Underwood
I grew up on the border of Mexico, so pinto beans and I have a long history together. We make a huge batch of refried beans, eat some and freeze the rest in pint size ball jars. My children LOVE them, and I love that they are good for them. Pinto beans are a naturally very high in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. The added grass fed butter in this recipe makes them even more nutritious.
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Servings 12 1/2 cup servings

Equipment

  • instant pot (optional)
  • Food Processor

Ingredients
  

  • 6 cups cooked pinto beans
  • 4 tbsp butter grass fed

Instructions
 

  • See recipe for Pinto Beans (link below)
  • Remove cooked pinto beans from cooking liquid (reserving at least 2 cups). Place beans in the food processor with 1 cup of cooking liquid and process until smooth. If you have a small food processor, you may have to do this in two batches. If they are too thick, gradually add more liquid.
  • Heat a large skillet over medium heat on the stovetop. Add butter. Once butter is melted, add beans. Whisk together. Cook over medium-low heat for about 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently. At this point I add about 1 more cup of the reserved cooking liquid to thin the beans to desired consistency.
  • Serve immediately or freeze in pint size ball jars.

Notes

Pinto Beans recipe
Refried beans are traditionally made with lard.  This recipe calls for grass fed butter.  Grass fed butter has many health benefits including being high in omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins, minerals and conjugated linoleic acid.   Along with the benefits of the grass fed butter, pinto beans are a very nutritious choice on their own.

Mile High Lemon Pie

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I love lemon meringue pie.  It is like eating spoonful’s of joy .  The poet Edgar Guest seems to share my affinity in his 1917 poem titled Lemon Pie.  Allow me to share it with you as you savor the beauty found in this pie through this authors poetical painting. I could only hope my lemon pie could have this affect on my children’s little troubles.   I’d like to think it does.  There is just something so special about sharing homemade pie with those you love.

Lemon Pie
by: Edgar Guest

The world is full of gladness,
There are joys of many kinds,
There’s a cure for every sadness,
That each troubled mortal finds.
And my little cares grow lighter
And I cease to fret and sigh,
And my eyes with joy grow brighter
When she makes a lemon pie.

When the bronze is on the filling
That’s one mass of shining gold,
And its molten joy is spilling
On the plate, my heart grows bold
And the kids and I in chorus
Raise one glad exultant cry
And we cheer the treat before us
Which is mother’s lemon pie.

Then the little troubles vanish,
And the sorrows disappear,
Then we find the grit to banish
All the cares that hovered near,
And we smack our lips in pleasure
O’er a joy no coin can buy,
And we down the golden treasure
Which is known as lemon pie.

Mile High Lemon Pie

This pie has became a family favorite at the first glimpse of spring. It takes like spring and releases a joy that gets us through the final weeks of winter. Lemon Pie reminds me spring time in the Rockies with its mile high meringue and beautiful golden peaks.
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Course Dessert
Servings 8 people

Equipment

  • deep dish pie pan

Ingredients
  

  • 1 each pie crust see notes for a link to my favorite homemade crust. You can use store bought if desired.

For the lemon filling

  • 1.5 cups sugar
  • 3 tbsp flour
  • 6 tbsp cornstarch
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 cups milk
  • 3 lemons zest use lemons for juice as well
  • 1/2 cup lemon juice, fresh squeezed
  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 6 each egg yolks reserve whites for meringue

For the meringue

  • 3/4 cup water
  • 3 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tbsp cornstarch
  • 6 each egg whites
  • 1/4 tsp cream of tarter
  • 1 pinch salt generous
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 cup sugar

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare the crust

  • Place pie crust in deep dish pie pan. Pierce bottom of unbaked pie crust with tines of a fork to prevent crust from bubbling up. Bake pie crust until golden, approximately 25 minutes.
    Decrease oven to 325 degrees (this is for the final step of browning the meringue on your finished pie).

Prepare the lemon filling

  • Separate your eggs:
    Separate egg whites from egg yolks, placing yolks in a medium sized bowl and whites in a small dish to be used during preparation of the meringue. Be very careful not to get any yolk in your whites in the separation process or it will impact your meringue. The whites work best at room temperature, so leave them on the counter as you prepare the lemon filling.
  • Prepare the lemon/cornstarch mixture:
    In a medium saucepan, add 1.5 cups of sugar, flour, cornstarch and salt. Stir in milk, lemon juice and lemon zest until well mixed. Cook over medium high heat until mixture comes to a boil, stirring frequently. Once mixture boils, stir in butter until melted. Your mixture should be a nice gel like consistency at this point. Remove from heat.
  • Incorporate the lemon/cornstarch mixture with your egg yolks.:
    Begin by slowly adding 1 tablespoon at a time of hot lemon/cornstarch mixture to the yolks and whisk together. Continue adding mixture to the yolks until about 1/2 of the mixture is left in the pan.
  • Whisk egg yolk mixture back into the pan with remaining lemon/cornstarch mixture. Bring to a boil and stir constantly until thick. Remove from heat.

Prepare the meringue

  • Prepare the water/cornstarch mixture:
    In a small saucepan, combine water, 3 tablespoons of sugar and cornstarch. Cook over low heat until transparent, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.
  • Now for the egg whites.
    For this step you can use a kitchen mixer or large glass bowl and electric mixer.
    Beat egg whites, cream of tarter and salt until foamy. Add in vanilla, and gradually add in 1/2 cup sugar (1 spoonful at a time), beating constantly. Once soft peaks are formed, gradually pour in cornstarch mixture. Beat mixture until stiff peaks form.
    Note: Soft peaks barely hold their shape when lifted with a spoon. They will flop back over themselves. Stiff peaks will keep their shape and stand straight up when spoon is lifted.
    pread over top of pie and seal to the crust. Brown in oven if desired.

Pie Assembly

  • Warm the lemon filling again. Once warm, place into baked pie shell.
  • Working quickly, spread meringue evenly over top of pie using a rubber spatula. Be sure to seal the meringue to the crust, this helps to keep the meringue from shrinking towards the center of your pie.
  • Using the back of a spoon, create peaks all over the meringue. The meringue will be mile high full of peaks and valleys.
  • Place finished pie in preheated 325 degree oven for approximately 10 minutes. This step is to get your peaks golden brown. Watch them closely so they don't burn.
  • Allow pie to cool at room temperate for 1 hour. Store in the fridge.

Notes

Pie Crust:
Recipe coming soon...
Raw eggs and salmonella:
The dietitian in me has to make a salmonella disclaimer regarding the use of raw egg whites in this recipe.  Salmonella bacteria can be found in raw eggs.  According to the CDC, salmonella is destroyed when eggs are heated to an internal temperature of 160 degrees F or hotter.   The CDC recommends using pasteurized eggs for any foods that contain raw or lightly cooked eggs - this would include meringue.  Pasteurized egg whites are available in the egg section of your grocery store. 
I personally do not use pasteurized egg whites in this recipe.  However, if I was making this for someone who is immune compromised (this includes pregnant women and the elderly) I would go the pasteurized route.  
Soft versus Stiff Peaks:
If you need a quick tutorial on the difference between soft and stiff peaks, hop on over to Fine Cooking.  
 
Recipe adapted from: Simply Recipes and All Recipes 
 

Mulberry Jam

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Mulberry Jam

Michelle Underwood
We were blessed to inherit well established mulberry trees on our property. Mulberries are sweet and delicious, and make a wonderful jam. If you have access to mulberries, take the time to gather them and make some homemade jam!
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Ingredients
  

  • 2 pounds mulberries
  • 1 pound cane sugar
  • 1/2 of a lemon, juiced
  • 4-5 lemon seeds

Instructions
 

  • Gather 2 pounds of ripe mulberries, wash and remove stems. See notes below.
  • Place washed and trimmed berries in a food processor and process until well mixed and smooth (about 30 -45 seconds).
  • Place berries in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil for about 5 minutes and then add 1 pound of sugar and mix well, stirring frequently. Cook on low for about 25 minutes. The liquid should reduce by about 50% during this process.
  • Continue cooking the berries and add juice from 1/2 a lemon. Also add in about 5 lemon seeds. The seeds will help your jam to thicken without adding pectin. Cook for an additional 15 minutes.
  • Remove jam from heat and allow to cool. Store in Mason jars in the fridge. You can can it or freeze it if you would like. I chose to just share some and eat the rest.

Notes

To gather our mulberries, we placed a clean cloth under our tree and shook the branches.  The ripe mulberries fall to the ground.  We then gather up the cloth and pour them into a large bowl.  Once the berries are gathered, we lay them on cookie sheets and sort the leaves and stick out.  Rinse them well and wash with a low concentration white vinegar solution.  Be gentle... the really ripe ones mush easy.  To remove stems I used my kitchen shears and cut the tip with the stem off.
Everything I read about mulberries said to remove the stems before cooking.  This is very time consuming.  I removed the stems from 2/3's of the batch and left the stems on the remaining 1/3.  I couldn't notice the stems in my batch.  Next time I may leave half and see what happens.  Removing mulberry stems is a great time to put on an audio book, grab a glass of iced tea, and sit at your kitchen table and just enjoy the peaceful monotony.   
We serve ours on homemade bread with grass fed butter. 
I found the recipe for this jam at  https://ladyleeshome.com/how-to-make-mulberry-jam/

Grandma Cheri’s Special Potatoes

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Grandma Cheri's Special Potatoes

Cheri Underwood
This is one of my few recipes that comes with a promise attached... and that promise is happy faces! My mother-in-law gave me this recipe for my bridal shower with an attached note that read: "Michelle - Don't tell Matt you're going to make these potatoes - and watch his happy face! Love, Mom". She is no longer with us, so I continue to spread her love by making her "Special Potatoes". She was right - he did have a happy face, and so does everyone else we share them with. Prepare to spread some joy!
Dietitian's tip: Don't count the calories, just the memories. Enjoy!
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Course Side Dish
Cuisine American

Equipment

  • 9x13 casserole dish

Ingredients
  

  • 4 pounds russet potatoes
  • 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
  • 16 oz cottage cheese
  • 12 oz sour cream
  • 6 oz cream cheese softened
  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • paprika to sprinkle on top

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  • Grease 9x13" casserole dish.
  • Wash and pierce potatoes. Place on a baking sheet and bake in preheated oven until tender. (The time will vary depending on the size of your potatoes. Check potatoes at 30 and 45 minute mark. They should be easily pierced with a knife. Remove from oven and allow to cool.)
  • Peel skin from cooled potatoes and grate. Place in large bowl.
  • Finely chop (or grate onion) and add to potatoes. I like mine grated.
  • In a mixing bowl, combine cottage cheese, sour cream, cream cheese, milk, salt and garlic powder. Mix well.
  • Add dairy mixture to potatoes and onions and combine. Do not over stir or your potatoes will loose their grated texture.
  • Pour mixture into prepared pan, dot with butter and sprinkle with paprika.
  • Bake in 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly.

Notes

We don't have a picture of the end product.  I guess we were in too much of a hurry to eat them...  I'll get one next time I make them.  

Honey Cornbread

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Honey Cornbread

Michelle Underwood
This is our families favorite recipe for cornbread. It really is just perfect. It is not too sweet, not too crumbly, and not too complicated. It is just right. I love pairing this delicious bread with a healthy bowl of soup. It seems to take the little eyes off all the veggies I packed into the soup, as they are comforted by their golden friend, smothered in grass fed butter and dripping in raw honey.
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Equipment

  • muffin tin or cast iron pan (~ 9" round x 2" deep)

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup yellow cornmeal
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 1/4 cup cane sugar
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 2 eggs
  • 4 tbsp butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup honey

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees. If using a cast iron pan, place in the preheating oven. You can also melt your butter for the recipe in the pan as the oven preheats. Just be sure to watch it so that it doesn't burn.
  • In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients together (cornmeal through salt).
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, eggs, melted butter and honey.
  • Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, just until mixed.
  • Pour batter into prepared muffin tin or preheated and greased cast iron pan. Bake approximately 15 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Spinach Pecan Salad with Maple Dijon Balsamic Dressing

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Spinach Pecan Salad with Maple Dijon Balsamic Dressing

Michelle Underwood
This salad is hands down my most requested recipe. It is so simple to make, while also worthy of a special occasion. The spinach, parmesan and pecans are perfectly complimented by the Maple Dijon Balsamic dressing.
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Course Salad
Servings 8 servings

Ingredients
  

Salad

  • 16 oz spinach, box
  • 1 oz parmesan cheese thinly sliced (use cheese slicer on cheese grater)
  • 1 oz pecans

Dressing

  • 2 oz olive oil
  • 1 oz balsamic vinegar
  • 1 oz Dijon mustard
  • 1 tsp maple syrup

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees (I use my toaster oven for this). Bake pecans in preheated oven for 3-4 minutes or until golden brown. (Watch them closely... they go from 0 to 60 in hurry.)
  • Place spinach in a large bowl and top with sliced parmesan and cooled pecans.

Dressing

  • To prepare the dressing, mix together olive oil, balsamic, Dijon and maple syrup. Drizzle over the salad and toss well. Serve immediately.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge

This chocolate fudge recipe is so delicious.  I have always loved homemade fudge, but my favorite recipes are made with marshmallow fluff.  Since I try to use as pure of ingredients as possible in my cooking, marshmallow fluff doesn't find a place on my pantry shelf.  I came across this recipe by The Healthy Home Economist and was so excited.  I quickly whipped up a batch and wasn't disappointed.  It is different from traditional fudge in that it is stored in the freezer and melts quickly at room temperature.  If you can look past those two factors, you may just fall in love.  The fudge is made with grassfed butter, honey, cacao powder and peanut butter.  These are a few of my favorite things!  It is indeed a high calorie sweet treat, so one should exercise portion control in enjoying this dessert.  As for kids... I don't recommend restricting their calories as long as they are in the form of wholesome ingredients that nourish their bodies like these do.

IMG_2216

You can find the recipe HERE.

Carrot Apple Muffins

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Carrot Apple Muffins

A delicious combination of apples and carrots for a flavorful treat any time of day. This is a large batch, so freeze half.
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Course Breakfast

Equipment

  • muffin tin

Ingredients
  

Liquid

  • 1 cup carrots, grated about 2 carrots
  • 1 cup apple, shredded (skin on) about 1 apple
  • 1/2 cup pumpkin
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 4 tbsp butter, melted
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tbsp vanilla
  • 1 tbsp molasses

Dry

  • 2.5 cups flour white wheat
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Add in's

  • 1/2 cup walnuts finely chopped (in blender)

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare muffin tins (24). I use unbleached baking cups (see notes).
  • In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients: flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
  • In a separate bowl, combine liquid ingredients: carrots, apples, pumpkin, maple syrup, milk, butter, eggs, vanilla and molasses, until well combined.
  • Add liquid to dry ingredients and stir until combined. Fold in the walnuts.
  • Bake about 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Serve warm.

Notes

Unbleached baking cups
Inspired by Whole Foods Carrot Apple Muffins

Blueberry Banana Muffins

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Blueberry Banana Muffins

Michelle Underwood
We have healthy blueberry muffins and indulgent blueberry muffins in our house. These are the healthy ones. I hope to post the indulgent one soon. Serve these for a breakfast your family will love and that you can feel good about. I usually make muffins about once a week and rotate through my recipes to avoid burnout. These muffins are requested again and again.
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Course Breakfast
Servings 12 muffins

Equipment

  • muffin tin

Ingredients
  

  • 3 ripe banana, small to medium
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup
  • 2 tbsp butter, melted
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tbsp vanilla
  • 1.5 cups white wheat flour can substitute Einkhorn flour
  • 1/8 cup flax seed, ground
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 cup blueberries, mini

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  • Mash bananas in a medium bowl. Add maple syrup, butter, egg and vanilla. Mix well.
  • In a large bowl combine flour, flax, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
  • Add liquid ingredients to dry and stir just until combined. Fold in blueberries.
  • Add batter to muffin tins, filling about 2/3 full. Bake for 20 minutes our until a toothpick comes out clean.

Banana Lentil Muffins

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Banana Lentil Muffins

Michelle Underwood
Adding lentils to your breakfast muffins is a great way to sneak in some extra protein to start your day. My family loves these muffins and I feel good about serving them. This recipe makes 24 muffins. I usually freeze half. It doesn't take any longer to make a bigger batch, but it does save me time down the road. Feel free to cut it in half if you need to make less. Kuddos to my cousin Sarah who turned us onto these! She is also the Mama who inspired Baked Pancakes.
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Course Breakfast
Servings 24 muffins

Equipment

  • muffin tin

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup dried lentils
  • 3 cups water to cook lentils in
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 4 bananas, small to medium
  • 1/2 cup butter, cubed 1 stick
  • 1/2 cup applesauce
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup
  • 2 egg
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 2/3 cup white wheat flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 cup raisins

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare muffin tins. I like to use unbleached muffin liners (see notes below).
  • Cook lentils according to package directions. 1 cup of dry lentils should be equivalent to approximately 2 cups of cooked. Once lentils are cooked, drain, and let cool. (It saves time to do this step in advance.)
  • Using a blender, food processor or immersion blender, combine lentils, milk, bananas, butter, applesauce, syrup and eggs until well blended.
  • In a large bowl mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
  • Add liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. Fold in the raisins.
  • Spoon batter into muffin cups, approximately 2/3 full.
  • Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clear. Remove from muffin tins, cool and enjoy.

Notes

Inspired by:  lentils.org 
Muffin Liner Baking Cups