Fruit

Crepes and Baked Eggs with Spinach and Feta Cheese

Crepes
From left to right: strawberry, nutella-strawberry, and lemon
Basic Crepe Recipe
Makes 12 crepes
6 oz milk
5 oz beer
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs (room temperature)
1 cup all purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt
1.  Put first four ingredients in a large bowl. Using an electric mixer, mix for 30 second. Add the remaining ingredients and mix for another minute, or until thoroughly mixed and smooth.
2.  Cover bowl and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
3.  Re-whisk the batter just before you begin frying the crepes.
4.  Preheat 10 inch non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Spray with non-stick spray.
5.  With the skillet off the heat, pour 2 oz (1/4 cup) batter in the center of the skillet. Tip the skillet so that the entire bottom is covered.
6.  Return to heat. When the top begins to dry and the bottom is beginning to brown, flip using a wooden or rubber flipper. The edges will begin to curl away from the pan at this time.
7.  Fry the crepe for another 10 second. The crepe should be be very lightly brown.
8.  Remove from skillet.
9.  Add fillings, fold or wrap and serve -OR- stack with wax paper between layers for later use.
Nutritional data (per crepe, without any filling):
Calories:           64
Fat:                   1.2g
Sat fat:              0.5g
Chol:           36.5mg
Sodium:       43.8mg
Carb:                 9.2g
Fiber:                0.3g
Protein:             2.7g
Possible fillings are endless:
Sweet
A whole banana, sauteed in some butter
Nutella (or peanut butter) and banana
Nutella (or peanut butter) and strawberry
Any other fruits (fresh or canned pie filling) with whipped cream
Lemon juice and powder sugar
Greek yogurt and your favorite fruit
Your favorite jam/marmalade
Savory
Bacon and eggs (with a touch of cheese)
Ham and cheese
Cream cheese and smoked salmon
Shredded chicken and salsa
Thin-shaved beef with horseradish yogurt
Baked Eggs with Feta and Spinach

Baked Egg with Feta and Spinach
Serve 4

4 eggs, separated
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 teaspoon of your preferred herb blend (I used Penzey’s Sunny Paris.)
1 cup (packed) fresh baby spinach, finely chopped
Pepper to taste

1.  Preheat oven to 350F.
2.  Spray oven-safe custard cups with cooking spray (or otherwise grease them.)
3.  With electric mixer, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form.
4.  Gently stir in cheese, spinach and herbs.
5.  Divide between the four cups.
6.  With a spoon, create a small well in the center of the egg white mixture.
7.  Carefully slide a yolk into each well.
8.  Place cups on a baking sheet, and place in oven.  Back 10-14 minutes, until the egg white puffs up and browns. The yolk will be hot and thick, but not solid.

Note: in the picture, I topped the egg with a half tablespoon of Greek yogurt. That was unnecessary, and won’t be repeated in the future.

Nutritional data:
Calories:          106
Fat:                    7g
Sat fat:               3g
Chol:           220mg
Sodium:       186mg
Carbs:             1.6g
Fiber:              0.2g
Protein:           9.3g

Alternatives:
Crumbled bacon and finely shredded sharp cheddar
Shedded Swiss and minced mushrooms
Fresh basil, scallion and Parmesan

Uh-oh Smoothies

What happens when the winter chill gets COLD!

A few weeks ago, the air temps in northeast Wisconsin were subfreezing for a few weeks, and then dove down to subzero Fahrenheit numbers and stayed there for 61 continuous hours. Then they warmed back up to subfreezing temps! Woo-hooo!

Many people use a garage fridge to store beverages. You know, things like milk and soda. (And maybe beer.) In addition to beverages, we keep use our garage fridge to store produce, just to save space in the kitchen fridge. We eat a LOT of vegetables and fruits. This gives us the space to prepare several meals at once to make future dinners faster and easier.

(Tip: Frozen clementines and spinach are edible, but not beautifully presentable. When the clementines thaw, their internal texture is a little soggy. The spinach is as limp as if cooked. Like I said, edible…but not pretty.)

But I am a frugal person. What can I do with those food items that are good to eat but not “normal?”

Clementine and Spinach Smoothies!

Serves 2

3 ounces (by weight) Baby Spinach
3 clementines, peeled
1 scoop of protein powder
1 packet of Crystal Light (orange flavor)
1 cup water
1 cup ice (hard to see in that bowl)

  1. Place everything in your blender. I use a Ninja Master Prep.
  2. Blend until smooth (hence the name!)
  3. Pour and enjoy.
  4. Don’t drink too fast. Smoothies will cause ice cream headaches, too.
Each mug holds about 24 ounce (720ml)
Nutritional data:
Calories:      138
Fat:               1g
Sat fat:        0.3g
Chol:         19mg
Sodium:  74.2mg
Carb:         16.9g
Fiber:          2.9g
Protein:     17.2g
Obviously, the options are almost unlimited. Different fruits, different greens, different powders. Use what you have on hand.
What is your preferred combination of fruits and greens in a smoothie?
Give us your ideas below!