vt = maple syrup

among other things as well, but i will be moving there in the fall, so i should start getting to know my new home, yes? spent last week up in New England (and have the but bites to prove it) and also came back with "The Official Vermont Maple Cookbook" (2nd ed). it's got recipes for real foods as well as breakfast and desserts. so of course, i have my lovely jar of maple syrup from the vermont country store still left and so i picked a recipe that was quick and fast (trying to bake before my nephew sleeps so i don't make any noise is a very interesting dilemma, if only i was getting skinnier...haha).

i chose the maple gingerbread recipe and made just one tweak for ease and to decrease calories and boost the nutritional value of it.

Maple Gingerbread (makes 1 large loaf)
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup maple syrup (i used B grade)
1 cup plain Greek yogurt (the recipe originally called for 1 cup sour cream, if that's what you have on hand, feel free to use)

Preheat oven to 325F. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. Mix maple syrup with beaten eggs and add yogurt. Combine the dry and wet ingredients and pour into greased bread pan (or 8" x 8" cake pan) and bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown and pulling from edges. You can serve with whipped cream or ice cream (it tastes really good as a bread too by itself). Eat it when it's warm, it's amazing then!

*you can really taste the ginger in this bread, although while it was baking all i could smell was the maple syrup. the bread is really soft and moist (go yogurt!) and it would probably make great french toast bread or bread pudding but it's so good by itself that it might take away from the taste. now i'm out of maple syrup again....and still a dozen recipes to go...guess i need to make another trip to VT before i move there!

and lest you think there's no future dietitian in me, here's the low down on maple syrup- i never knew it had manganese and riboflavin (along with other minerals)!

i'm not done! if you're looking for a super quick and easy dinner idea this can be prepped the morning of (or night before and kept in the fridge until you can pop it into the oven). it's also very versatile and can be made to fit your tastebuds and what's on hand in your kitchen.

i'm calling this mexican lasagna b/c it takes the form of lasagna and i had lots of mexican ingredients on hand. i spooned salsa on the bottom of the baking dish, layered corn tortillas next, then i had frozen broccoli and kale so in that went. then followed chickpeas and black beans (rinsed and drained), chopped onions and sprinkling of mozzarella cheese. i made two layers and left it in the fridge while i was at work. when i got home i popped it into a 350 F oven and baked for about 20-30 minutes or until the cheese is nice and melty (feel free to add or take away any ingredients- avocado, olives, chicken for you meat eaters, etc would all be really good in this)

is it too early to eat?

since M and D get up before the crack of dawn and stop eating by 3 or 4 pm i suppose it's okay to eat something like this at 7 am:) it's super easy and delicious! i got this recipe from Eating Well and based on what i had in the pantry it became more of a "mexican" lasagna. and even with all the changes it tastes good!

Mexican Lasagna (serves about 5-6, or one and a half M's)

1/2 Tblsp oil
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 zucchini, diced
about 9 oz of black beans, drained
1/2 tsp cumin
about 9 oz salsa of your choice
3-4 small whole wheat tortilla wraps, quartered
1 cup grated pepper jack cheese

Preheat oven to 400 F. Lightly grease a 9 x 9 pan. Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook until brown (about 5 minutes). Add the zucchini, black beans and cumin and cook for about 3 more minutes. Make a layer of tortilla wraps on the bottom of the 9 x 9 baking pan. Top with the vegetables, then a layer of salsa and then cheese. Repeat. Bake covered for 15 minutes. Bake uncovered for about 7 minutes or until the edges bubble and the cheese is melted.

and with all the tortilla wraps left over nothing like baking them w/ some olive oil and sea salt to make a stacy's pita chip kind of goodness.and to round out a productive cooking/baking day made a loaf of banana bread! running out of my breakfast granola bars (finally) so i went back to banana bread. i made a few changes again.

Banana Bread (Adapted from The Everything Cookbook)

Yield: 1 large loaf

1 2/3 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup instant oats
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
a little less than 2/3 cup applesauce (unsweetened)
2 Tblsp maple syrup
2 eggs
1 1/2 cup mashed banana
1/2 cup greek yogurt

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray and flour a large loaf pan. In a medium bowl mix together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a large bowl mix together the applesauce and maple syrup, add in eggs one at a time. Add the mashed banana. Add the flour mixture in thirds, alternately with the yogurt. Blend quickly and pour into pan. Bake about 45 minutes or until the center tests done.

i couldn't taste the maple syrup unfortunately, so i'm thinking next time of soaking the oats in the yogurt and maple syrup to really suck up the flavor. but probably the healthiest bread you could make that still tastes delicious. now i just need to get some pumpkin butter to mix with peanut butter and spread on top!