Yogurt

I have been thinking about making my own yogurt for some time now and I've been looking for a really easy recipe.

Don't get me wrong, I don't know that recipes get easier than yogurt, but many require thermometers and whatnot, and I wanted something with no equipment required.

I found a method in which one can make yogurt in a crockpot!

I found it at A Year of Crockpotting and you can see it below.

Ingredients/Supplies:

• 8 cups (half-gallon) of whole milk
• 1/2 cup store-bought natural, live/active culture plain yogurt
• thick bath towel
• crockpot

Directions:

• Plug in your crockpot and turn to low.
• Add an entire half gallon of milk.
• Cover and cook on low for 2 1/2 hours.
• Unplug your crockpot.
• Leave the cover on, and let it sit for 3 hours.
• When 3 hours have passed, scoop out 2 cups of the warmish milk and put it in a bowl. Whisk in 1/2 cup of store-bought live/active culture yogurt. Then dump the bowl contents back into the crockpot. Stir to combine.
• Put the lid back on your crockpot. Keep it unplugged, and wrap a heavy bath towel all the way around the crock for insulation.Go to bed, or let it sit for 8 hours.
• In the morning, the yogurt will have thickened---it's not as thick as store-bought yogurt, but has the consistency of low-fat plain yogurt.
• Blend in batches with your favorite fruit.

Your fresh yogurt will last 7-10 days.
Save 1/2 cup as a starter to make a new batch.

Cranberry Chicken

I made this dish tonight for dinner. I have to be honest; I didn't love it.

BUT, everyone else did, so I think it's a winner.

It's also super simple.

Cranberry Chicken

Ingredients:

6 boneless chicken breasts
12 oz can of cranberry sauce - I used one with whole cranberries
1 cup french dressing
1 packet of dry onion soup mix

Directions:

• mix the cranberries, dressing and soup together.
• pour over chicken in a glass baking dish
• cover and let marinate for at least 8 hours
• cook at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes
• eat and enjoy

This recipe comes from our friends at allrecipes.com

Tex-Mex Quinoa Salad from Allrecipes

Today's Cook Something is a two-for-one; a great website and an easy recipe.

If you haven't already checked out AllRecipes.com, you should do so immediately. As it sounds, it's a recipe site. I like to use it for inspiration when I make my weekly meal plan and I like the reviews so I know what I'm getting into!

Today's recipe is Tex-Mex Quinoa Salad posted by AllRecipe.com user SnuzzleMonkey.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chile peppers, drained
1 (14 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
2 avocados, cubed
1/4 cup crumbled cotija cheese*

DIRECTIONS
1. Bring quinoa, water, and salt to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the quinoa is tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Meanwhile, stir together the lime juice, olive oil, pepper, diced tomatoes, and garbanzo beans.

2. When the quinoa is done, stir it into the tomato mixture, then cool in refrigerator until cold, about 2 hours .

3. When the quinoa is cold, fluff with a spoon, and gently fold in the cilantro, avocados, and cheese.

I recommend serving this with tortillas or even tortilla chips. Or eat it straight. Go crazy.

*Cotija cheese is a mexican cheese similar to feta. I used a mexican farmer's cheese, but you could use a goat cheese or even feta.

Easy Cookies

For our first cook something, I had to choose this recipe for peanut butter cookies from the 13Months blog.

If there's an easier cookie recipe I don't know it.

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1 cup peanut butter
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:
Mix the sugar and peanut butter together.
Add the egg and vanilla. Mix it together.
Make balls from the dough on an ungreased cookie sheet. Press them with a
fork
Cook at 350 for 15 minutes.

I have made these twice already. The second time I made them, I substituted 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed and 3 tablespoons of water for the egg.

To do this, mix the water and flax together and beat until egg-like. I was amazed at how easy it was and it made the cookies [seem] healthier.