Chocolate Pancakes

 

My mom and I had just finished eating dinner one night when she told me she was still hungry. This hardly ever happens...I turned to her and, in shock replied, "What do you want me to make you?"

I decided to make my mom chocolate pancakes as a post dinner snack lets call it. They took me less than 10 minutes to prepare, and I was all finished in under 20 minutes. I used the simplest ingredients: whatever I had in my fridge. Ultimately I could've made just plain old pancakes, but I saw the almost empty jar of Nutella in our cupboard, and I chose to add some hazelnut spice to my evening.

 

These pancakes are almost soft when you eat them, and the chocolate isn't overpowering at all; it gives the hint of chocolate to all the right taste buds.

If you're looking for a healthier chocolate option, follow my recipe! If you would like something sweeter, simply add either 1/2 cup of honey or granulated sugar to this recipe :)

 

Yields: around 6 pancakes

 

Ingredients:

1 cup of flour

1 egg

1 Tbs of olive oil

1/2 cup of Nutella

1/2 cup of cocoa powder

3 Tbs of vanilla yogurt

1/4 cup of milk (add more if the batter is not liquid-y enough)

1 1/2 tsp of baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp nutmeg

 

Assembly:

 

1.) In a large bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, nutmeg, cocoa powder and salt.

2.) In a separate bowl, beat the egg and slowly drizzle in olive oil. Add yogurt, Nutella and milk. Whisk until all are combined.

3.) Slowly, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in thirds. Mix until you have reached a smooth consistency (you might have to add a little more milk if the batter is dry).

4.) Heat oil in a large frying pan. When you see the oil start to lightly smoke, ladle in batter into pancakes of desired size. Let them cook until little bubbles appear on the surface of the pancake and until the edges appear brown. Flip the pancake and fry for another 3-5 minutes, or until golden brown.

 

Serve with maple syrup, honey, jam, preserves or yogurt. I made my moms with raspberry preserves, Greek yogurt, and topped them with fresh figs. You can add more Nutella, fruit or whatever you would like!

 

 

 

 

 

ENJOY

 

<3 Babushka

 



Autism Speaks!

Hello Everyone!

 

I mentioned earlier in my introduction that I am an intern at Autism Speaks for the summer of 2013. Although my internship is only for a short while, I have been an advocate of supporting people with disabilities my entire life, and plan on supporting Autism Speaks and their cause for a long time.

 

I am raising money for Autism Speaks; I ran 5k last weekend, and plan on running for Autism Speaks  every other race that I decide to run as well.

 

If you would like to donate, or know anyone who would like to please visit my donation page:

http://events.autismspeaks.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=1048330&lis=1&kntae1048330=9464E0869FAD4EF3A139DC4ED287B231&supId=384435615

 

 Any amount is greatly appreciated and welcomed! Please spread the word about Autism Speaks and continue to be kind to one another.

 

Please visit the Autism Speaks website if you wish to find out more about our organization:

www.autismspeaks.org

 

or email me with any questions:

claudiamgrabowski@gmail.com

 

Thank you for reading my blog, please post any comments or questions! :)

 

 

<3 Babushka

Polish Beet Pancakes

These Beet Pancakes are a twist on the traditional Polish placki ziemniaczane (potato pancakes)!

 

Potato pancakes are a staple food in Eastern Europe, and many Middle Eastern countries, such as Israel. I remember helping my mom and grandma make these when I was a little girl; I had the job of mixing :) I love making potato pancakes to this day, they're still one of my favorite foods, but trying to cook healthier foods, I came up with the idea to use beets instead! Beets are also a very common food, that is incorporated into many Polish dishes, so we always have a couple of beets stocked in our fridge.

 My family and I absolutely love these pancakes and they go faster than they fry!

Absolutely delicious :)

Ingredients:

Pancakes-
2 beets, peeled
1/2 diced onion
2 eggs
1/4 to 1/2 cup of flour
1 Tbs apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp fennel seed
1 tsp died basil
1 tsp dried parsley
3 Tbs olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Sauce-
1 cup of Greek yogurt
1/4 cup of chopped dill
1/2 a large cucumber, grated
1 tsp of lemon juice
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried mint
1 tsp salt and pepper
1 tsp olive oil

Cooking time: 30 minutes

Assembly:

Beet Pancakes

1.) In a medium pot, bring about 5-6 cups of water to a boil. Add peeled beets, and let them boil until the surface of the beets is fork tender; you've cooked the beet too long if the entire beet is fork tender.

2.) Drain the beets and rinse them with cold water, until they are cooled off enough to handle. Grate the beets in a large bowl (make sure to include all the juices!)

3.) Add 1 Tbs of olive oil, and the remained of the ingredients to the grated beets and mix. You might have to add more flour depending on how much juices the beets release; you want to consistency of cake batter.

4.) Heat the rest of oil in a large pan. Once the oil has heated, form the beets into tennis ball size, add them to the pan, and press them down to make a flat pancake. (You can make the pancakes bigger or smaller).

5.) Fry them until golden an crispy on one side, flip and fry them until golden, about 4-5 minutes on each side. Transfer to a plate covered with paper towel to drain the excess oil.

 

** The pancakes are not going to be perfectly round, its okay if they come out a little deformed, mine always do!

Cucumber Sauce

1.) In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients. Mix together and top beet pancakes!

 

Serve immediately! Best when hot!

 

 

** Everyone loves how bright red these turn out! Also, the red pancakes with the sauce on top resembles the Polish flag!! :)

 

ENJOY

<3 Babushka

Seafood Soup

 

This seafood soup is inspired by the Spanish dish called paella. I've always wanted to try it, and some day make a real, true Spanish paella dish; I hope one day I do get to make that dish but in the mean time, I've thought up this recipe! Its a quick, easy to make and hearty seafood soup/stew that really brings you to the shores of the ocean!

Don't be afraid of the fishy taste of fish, this soup definitely does not taste fishy-- I made sure that the broth has plenty of vegetable flavor that would compliment the fish and shrimp, not overpower it!

 

Perfect for a cooler summer day, rainy day or any day actually! My seafood soup will surely be a crowd pleaser!

 

Ingredients:

5 filets of cubed, bite size pieces of fish (any kind, I used tilapia)
15- 20 shrimp, cleaned and deveined (you can keep the tails of remove them)   
1 cup of rice
2 cups of water
2 cups of vegetable or fish stock
1/2 cup of wine
1 cup of chopped celery (chop up the tops of the celery leaves also)
1/2 cup of chopped parsnip
1/2 cup of onion
1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup of tomato paste
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried parsley
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp of dried mint
1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes
4 Tbs olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Cooking time: About 1 hour

Assembly:

 

1.) Heat 2 Tbs of olive oil in a medium pot, add onions and cook until they appear translucent. Add celery (but not the leaves) and parsnip, add a dash of salt and cook for 15 minutes and stir constantly.

2.) Slowly, add 1/2 cup of wine to the vegetables, stir and scrap the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon (there is a lot of flavor at the bottom from all of those caramelized veggies!) Bring wine to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.

3.) Add both apple, balsamic vinegar and vegetable stock to the pot. Stir in the tomato paste and when the soup starts to simmer, add herbs, red pepper flakes and 1 tbs of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.

4.) When the soup starts to boil, first add in cubed fish and let cook for about 3-5 minutes, then add the shrimp (This is because shrimp cooks much faster than fish): there is no need to season the fish before because it will absorb all the flavor of the broth. Bring the soup to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 8-10 minutes, or until seafood is tender and fully cooked.

5.) In a separate pot, cook rice until fluffy. Add 1 Tbs of olive oil, and 1/2 tbs of salt.

(I actually used bulgur wheat instead of rice when I cooked this because I didn't have rice at home. So feel free to substitute rice with another grain, like couscous, bulgur wheat or even buckwheat!)

To serve: In a bowl, add desired amount of rice and ladle in seafood soup on top of the rice. The grain will soak up all the juices and make for a heartier meal!

ENJOY

<3 Babushka

My favorite food: Farmers Cheese

Farmer's Cheese...many Americans don't know what it is, they simply walk past it at the grocery store not even glancing at it. Me however, I run to the dairy section of every store! It has always been in the fridge at my house; my mom mixes it with sour cream or Greek yogurt, scallions and diced radishes-- it becomes the consistency of ricotta cheese, whereas before it was a block like feta cheese. 

This is MY FAVORITE FOOD! I would eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner, on a sandwich or by the spoonfuls! :)

Ingredients:
1 block of Farmers cheese--comes in a package usually says in Polish "Twarog" 
5 spoonfuls of Greek yogurt or sour cream--you can add more or less depending on how creamy you want it to be
3 diced radishes
3 diced green onions
salt and pepper to taste

Assembly:

1.) In a large bowl, break up or mash the farmers cheese. Add scallions, radishes and Greek yogurt. Add salt and pepper. Taste. If you feel like it needs more salt or pepper, add more. 

** This recipe, and most Polish recipes, are ones that require your judgement on how it looks or tastes. Therefore if you feel like the cheese tastes a little bland, go ahead and add more scallions and salt! You can play around a lot with this recipe to make it exactly how you like it. 

Tastes amazing on: Sandwiches with sliced tomatoes and cucumbers! :) Best breakfast or lunch ever known to exist to man--yet so extremely simple!

ENJOY :)

<3 Babushka

Bonkers for Banana Bread

I have always been a carbo-holic. Loving bread, pasta, crackers, potatoes, and other other kind of carbs out there! I love fruits even more; I used to eat 8 apples a day regularly. So put two and two together--this girl is in paradise! I used to make banana bread from recipes online, and just adding my little flairs here and there...now I'm at the point where I can fully make my own recipe (how exciting is that)!! 

Here is my prised banana bread recipe with my whole hearted love in every ingredient. It is everything I adore on its own but absolutely love when combined together and baked. Its not too sweet, but just the right amount; moist on the inside but glistening golden brown on the outside. 

Just as I tweeked the recipes I was using from the Internet before, you can also tweek this recipe to add ingredients that you love and adore :)

Ingredients:
4 bananas
1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour (I like the nuttiness)
1/3 cup of oats
2 eggs
1 heaping Tbs of Greek yogurt
1/3 cup of honey
1 Tbs agave nectar
2 Tbs of olive oil 
2 caps of orange juice
1 Tbs of coconut oil 
1 tsp salt
2 tbs cinnamon
a pinch of ground ginger
1 tsp baking soda


Assembly:

1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, salt, ginger and cinnamon.  Set aside.

2.) In another bowl, mash together bananas until it become sort of a slurry. Beat in eggs, Greek yogurt, honey, agave nectar, orange juice, and olive oil. 

3.) Slowly, mix in the dry ingredients into the wet banana mixture. Best done in thirds. 

4.) If your coconut oil is solid in a jar like mine was, put it in a glass cup and microwave for about 30 seconds until it becomes a liquid. Then add oil and oats to the batter. 

5.) Get out a long 4X8 bread baking pan, cover it with oil (so banana bread doesn't stick) and spoon in batter. 

6.) Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour. When finished baking, let it rest for 10 minutes and indulge :)

**This banana bread is very moist! Dont think that it is under cooked--thats what my mom thought! It definitely is not...it is simply delicious! 

Not not mention--this recipe is much healthier than most banana breads, but a lot yummier! (And I've had my good share of banana bread in the past)

Ive added, nuts, chocolate chips, cranberries, raspberries and jam to this recipe before and it always tastes great! 

ENJOY!! :)

<3 Babushka