Sunday, October 26

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Breakfast today was one of my favorite pancake recipes.

Carrot Breakfast Pancakes
(adapted from RecipeZaar)

1-3/4 cups milk
2 eggs
¼ cup butter
4 medium carrots
1¼ cups unbleached flour
1¼ cups whole wheat pastry flour
2 tablespoons flaxseed meal (optional)
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup sugar
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon cinnamon

Put milk in blender or food processor; add eggs and butter.
Blend. Add carrots and blend well, until carrots are completely chopped with no visible pieces.
Pour into a bowl and add flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and spices until thoroughly combined.
If you think the batter is too thin add a little more flour.
Spray frying pan or griddle with cooking spray or oil lightly.
Pour batter into pan using ¼ cup measure and cook until bubbles appear on top; turn and cook until golden brown on the other side.
Serve with maple syrup.
Sometimes I add a few pecans to the batter. Again this is optional.
These pancakes are similar to pumpkin pancakes, but they are a good way to help use carrots.

I traded my friend, Lora, a cauliflower for some beets. I decided it was time to make a batch of pickled beets.

Pickled Beets
(from Simply Recipes)

1 bunch (4 or 5) beets
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
Salt and pepper

Steam or boil around 1 hour or until done. (Alternatively, you can roast them by wrapping them whole in foil and cooking them in a 350°F oven for about an hour.) A fork easily inserted into the beet will tell you if the beets are done or not.
Drain the beets, rinsing them in cold water. Use your fingers to slip the peels off of the beets. The peels should come off easily. Discard the peels. Slice the beets.
Make the vinaigrette by combining the cider vinegar, sugar, olive oil, and dry mustard. Whisk ingredients together with a fork. The dry mustard will help to emulsify the vinaigrette. Adjust to taste. Add salt and pepper to taste. Combine beets and vinaigrette in a bowl and allow to marinate for a half hour at room temperature.

This is a very simple recipe and the beets turn out neither too sweet nor too sour. Arthur gave it thumbs up.

I also made some Broccoli and Shrimp Chowder
(adapted from Weight Watchers)

2 medium potatoes, diced
4 cups broccoli, florets & stems
1 medium onion, minced
3 cups chicken broth
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 pound shrimp, peeled & chopped in large pieces
1 cup milk
1/2 cup-1 cup sour cream
1/2 tsp table salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

Combine potato, broccoli, onion, broth and thyme in a medium-size pot. Bring to a boil, partially cover and cook until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. Puree soup in pot using an immersion blender, leaving a few chunks.
Add remaining ingredients to pot; simmer until hot, about 3 minutes. (Do not allow to boil.)

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