The NaNoWriMo Cookbook

Cake in a Mug (AKA 5 minute personal chocolate cake)

First, the actual recipe:

1 coffee mug
4 Tbsp. Cake flour (plain, not self-rising)
4 Tbsp. Sugar
2 Tbsp. Cocoa
1 egg
3 Tbsp. Milk
3 Tbsp. Oil
Small splash of vanilla
3 Tbsp. Chocolate chips, optional

Add dry ingredients to mug, mix well with a fork.
Add egg, mix thoroughly.
Pour in milk and oil and vanilla, mix well.
Add chips, if using.
Put mug in microwave, and cook for three minutes on 1000 watts.
Cake will rise over top of mug--do not be alarmed!
Allow to cool a little; tip onto a plate if desired.
Eat!

Now, my personal suggestions. This needs a bit more chocolate than the recipe calls for. I don't consider the chocolate chips to be optional. Don't put in too much vanilla or it tastes horrible. Ice cream or whip cream with it is absolutely delicious. I'm still experimenting with this recipe- I've made it good a couple of times and horribly a few times as well.

2006: Unnamed, about 16,400 words
2007: Wars, 50,056 words
2008: The Library, being written!

OMG, that sounds so good. :o
Added to .txt document. Will add to cookbook tonight.

Oh yeah. Meant to say. Finished product will be found on LightWithin Productions November 1. :)

--

[lightwithin productions: bloggin' in america (and canada) | nanowrimo cookbook]

Three Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies.

Ingredients:
2 cups peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg

Instructions:
Mix.
Roll dough into smallish spheres, flatten them on cookie sheet (I usually bake with parchment paper on the cookie sheet. Easy cleanup.) and flatten with fork for the classic "PB cookie" design.
Cook at 350* until, when stabbed with fork, fork comes out clean.

Voila.

Pretty amazing. Super peanut butter-y

[IMG]http://i33.tinypic.com/2my7vo6.jpg[/IMG]

Muddie Buddies

Recipe:
9 cups Chex cereal
6 oz. semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar

Measure Chex into *large* bowl. Set aside.
Heat chocolate chips, peanut butter, and butter in saucepan over low heat until it's all melted. This is relatively fast and you have to keep stirring it or else it will burn easily. Be sure that it is a *low* heat.
Remove from heat and stir in vanilla
Pour chocolate chip mixture over cereal in bowl and stir until everything is evenly coated.
Pour into two plastic bags with powdered sugar in the bags, half the cereal with half the powdered sugar in each.
Close these bags and shake them until the cereal is evenly coated.
Put it airtight bowl with lid to cool (putting them in the freezer works best)
And that's it! It's actually a lot easier than it seems.

Assuming you're not just wanting sweets, here's a super easy crockpot chicken recipe that I think will be wonderful to use during NaNo -- takes very little time away from writing and is delicious. Taken from a Fix-it and Forget-it Cookbook. They call it Super Easy Chicken, and it really really is.

4 frozen chicken breasts (~ 2 lb of tenders works, too! And yes, frozen!)
1 packet italian dressing mix
1 cup chicken broth or water

Put frozen chicken in crock pot. Sprinkle dressing mix over it. Pour in broth/water. Cook on low for 8-10 hours.

No thawing required! I've done it twice and it comes out fantastic exactly as described. I eat it with rice, but it'd probably be good with pasta or... anything, really.

This takes about 10 minutes to cook and I live off it already! Let alone when NaNo starts:

1 piece of chicken
1 onion
1/2 pepper
pasta sauce (I use Tomato and Basil but you can vary it)
80g of rice
vegetable stock cube
handful of peas
1 clove of garlic

Add rice and vegetable stock cube to pan of boiling water. Stir occasionally. Chop up the onion, pepper, garlic and chicken into pieces and throw them, along with a dash of sunflower oil, into a frying pan on low heat. (If you want the chicken browned, put that in first for a minute or two). Keep things moving in the frying pan. Add the peas to the rice. Around 7 minutes later, add pasta sauce to the mix in the frying pan, along with any herbs you may enjoy adding to your cooking. When all is cooked, drain the rice and put that and the frying pan mix onto a plate and voila.

.Suzanne.
NaNoWriMo2008: Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway.
Imagination is the one weapon in the war against reality.
"But we'll dance anyway, you and I. Even in the dark. Especially in the dark."
- Stephen King 'Danse Macabre'

Banana Cookies!

1/2c unsalted butter, room temp
1c sugar
1 egg
1c mashed bananas
1t baking soda
2c flour
pinch of salt
1/2t ground cinnamon
1/2t ground mace or nutmeg
1/2t ground cloves
1c of pecans (walnuts &/or chocolate chips are fine alternatives)

Preheat oven to 350. Cream the butter and sugar together until light & fluffy. Add the egg and continue to beat until the mixture is light & fluffy. In a separate bowl, mix the mashed bananas and baking soda. Let sit for two minutes. The baking soda will react with the acid in the bananas, which in turn will give the cookies their lift & rise. Mix the banana mixture into the butter mixture. Mix together the flour, salt & spices & sift into the butter & banana mixture & mix until just combined. Fold in the pecans or chocolate chips or walnuts into the batter (if so desired). Drop in dollops onto parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake for 11-13 minutes or until nicely golden brown. Let cool on wire racks. Makes about 30 cookies.

I love these cookies! The consistency is more like a muffin-top than a cookie, but they're still wonderful! : ) Enjoy!

dittoing that cookbook ... crockpots are GREAT for November.

Proud Member of the Trebuchet Club!

This is amazing.

NaNo 2007: Don't Quit Your Day Job

Special K Bars

The Bars

1 Cup Light Corn Syrup
1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Peanut Butter
6 Cups Special K

Spray a 9 X 13 inch pan and a large mixing bowl with cooking spray and set aside.

Combine the corn syrup and the sugar in a sauce pan over medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the peanut butter and continue stirring until the peanut butter has melted and is uniformly combined. Place the Special K in the prepared mixing bowl, then pour in the peanut butter mixture and stir until the Special K is uniformly coated. Dump the Special K mixture into the prepared 9 X 13 inch pan and spread until the mixture is a uniform thickness. The set aside to cool. When cool; cut to the desired size.

If you like your bars frosted try this

Chocolate Peanut Butter Ganache

1 Cup Peanut Butter
12 Ounces Chocolate, Chopped

In a heavy sauce pan melt the peanut butter stirring constantly. When the peanut butter is melted add the chocolate chips, stirring constantly until the chocolate is melted and uniformly combined. Pour the ganache over the bars and spread until the ganache is a uniform thickness, then set aside and allow to cool and set. Then cut to size and enjoy

Comments:

I use creamy and chunky peanut butter depending on whether I want nuts in the bars or not.

As far as the ganache goes; it is a function of your taste in chocolate as to whether you use dark, white, semi sweet, or milk chocolate.

Suggestions

I also cheat and use a 12 ounce bag of chocolate chips. This removes the chopping and measuring steps of dealing with the chocolate.

I also spray my measuring utensil that I am going to use to measure the peanut butter and the corn syrup with cooking spray so that it comes out easier.

If I feel that I need to make the bars a little on the healthy side I add a 3/4 cup of chopped dried fruit such as cherries, apricots, peaches, cranberries, raisin, etc. The same is true of adding chopped nuts of any kind if you don’t use chunky peanut butter.

Here is one for those who have a crockpot.

A boned pork loin that will fit in your crock pot or 6 thick cut pork chops
1 Can or jar of Pie filling
1 Tablespoon of lemon juice

Combine all of the ingredients in a crock pot and cook until the meat reaches an internal temp of 165 degrees. I usually cook the meat until it falls apart.

I prefer tart cherry, apricot or peach, however any commercially available fruit pie filling will work.

All of the above sound very good.

Joey's Quiche:

8-12 eggs (depending on how many people you are feeding)
1 pkg frozen chopped broccoli or spinach (defrost & drain)
8 oz of extra sharp cheddar cheese
salt & pepper
1 premade pie crust.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Whisk eggs together first until combined then add veggies of your choice (feel free to experiment, the above are the favorites in my house). Add the cheese and seasonings to taste. Then pour into the pie shell. [I have also made this is a casserole dish and have made it without the crust - just use non-stick spray.]

Bake in oven from 40 minutes to an hour until it turns lightly golden on top. Put foil around the crusts if they start to cook too quickly.

Live Long & Bead Forever!!!

I forgot to add milk for texture. About a half cup to 3/4 depending on size.

Live Long & Bead Forever!!!

A fun way to play with your hot cocoa is to add a dollop of ice cream. Try different flavors, but don't overlook plain vanilla!

Exploded this thread has. o.o [/yoda]

Thanks for all the submissions!
And NovelistByNight, I remember you from last year's cookbook. ^.^

--

[lightwithin productions: bloggin' in america (and canada) | nanowrimo cookbook]

Here's a yummy vegetarian curry that's pretty easy to make.

1 to 4 tablespoons green curry paste [I used 3, which was the perfect amount of spiciness for me, but I like things pretty spicy. You might want to use less. Also, I actually used red curry paste cos it was what we had, and it worked fine.]
7 ounces coconut milk
7 ounces evaporated skim milk
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 1/2 inch slice ginger root, peeled and shredded
6 to 8 kaffir lime leaves (or the zest from 1 lime)
4 cups chopped assorted vegetables: zucchini, cauliflower, broccoli or carrots [I found at the grocery store a bag of cauliflower, broccoli and carrots already chopped up and ready to go.]
4 cups cooked white rice or noodles
10 fresh basil leaves, minced

In a wok or large frying pan, bring the curry paste, coconut milk and evaporated skim milk to a simmer. Stir in the soy sauce, ginger, lime leaves or zest, and vegetables; simmer until tender, about 5 to 7 minutes. [I actually had to do it for about 15, I don't know why it called for such a short time. My mom says if they were in smaller pieces it would have been faster though.] Remove and discard the lime leaves. Serve the curry over rice or noodles. Garnish with basil.

Quinn
*~*~*
The story was writing itself and I was having a hard time keeping up with it. ~Ernest Hemingway

http://www.museumofidiots.com

Heehee! The cookbook was awesome last year! I couldn't not contribute again! ;)

Who doesn't love a good banana muffin-cookie concoction anyways? :) Thanks for putting together the cookbook, DM! :)

I have two relatively healthy snacks that you can make and leave in the fridge till you're hungry:

Shrimp dip

ingredients:
- One 8 oz package of plain cream cheese, I personally like to use Philadelphia brand cream cheese with all the fat and calories included, but you can use any type you like.
- one can of tiny peeled shrimp

Put the cream cheese out beforehand so that it softens. In the meantime, open and drain the shrimp and dump them in a bowl. Use a fork to mash them up very well. Cut the cream cheese block into peices and mash it together with the shrimp until well-mixed. Leave it covered in the fridge when you're not eating. This is great on all sorts of crackers, crunchy breadsticks, pretzels, (and has the added bonus of holding the crackers together so that they don't drop as many crumbs on your keyboard!) and veggies. And it contains plenty of protein!

Guava Cups
ingredients:
- Guavas. As many as you like.
- sugar
- cream cheese

Peel and cut each guava in half, and use a spoon (and, more helpfully if you're not opposed and have clean nails, your thumbnail, as it is more precise), to scoop all the seeds out until each half is like a little cup. When finished, mix together equal parts sugar and hot water, (I use two cups each, but depending on the size of your pan, you can use more or less) and pour into a large flat pan, (a wok is great.) Place the guava halves in the mixture and let them simmer. When they get tender, (soft, but not mushy. Times vary, I would guess about ten-fifteen minutes), take them out and put them in a closed container and let them chill in the fridge. Whenever you need a sweet-yet-healthy snack, take a few out, put a spoonfull of cream cheese inside each guava cup, and eat up! (I'm really not a fan of raw guavas, yet I love these, so even fellow guava-dislikers can enjoy it.)

A lot of the other recipes on here look great, I'm definitely going to try some out. ^^

"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace."

Wow! Fabulous idea, and incredible recipes so far! I can't wait to try them!

Now, my contribution: my husband created this recipe off the cuff and it turned out phenomenal. Simple and tasty!

Hubby's Pork Chops
Serves 6

6 thick-cut pork chops (boneless preferred)
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
1 can Cheese Soup
6 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch slices

Use spray oil to coat an 8x10 glass pan. Layer the potatoes on the bottom until it's completely covered. Top the potatoes with the pork chops. Mix the soups together in a bowl then pour over pork chops and potatoes. Bake in a 375 degree oven for one hour. Serve with thick slabs of bread and a fresh salad.

This next one is mine:

Shrimp Dip
Serves 15-20 as appetizer

8 oz cream cheese, softened
3T mayonaise
2T ketchup
2T brown mustard (or 1t dry mustard)
2t onion powder
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
2 small cans tiny shrimp, drained

Mix the first six ingredients together well in a medium bowl. Add cucumber and shrimp, mixing very well. (Shrimp will break down a little bit, and this is fine.) Chill for a couple of hours to allow flavors to mix, then serve on your favorite crackers. (My crew love it on Triscuits.)

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<~>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Imagination is the only reliable weapon against reality. Use it well.

2008 - Piper & the Witch's Cave

I guess my recipe isn't as unique as I thought. *laughs* Well, at least I know that others enjoy the same kinds of foods that I do.

Imagination is the only reliable weapon against reality. Use it well.

2008 - Piper & the Witch's Cave - 0 words and counting!

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<~>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Imagination is the only reliable weapon against reality. Use it well.

2008 - Piper & the Witch's Cave

xD Nah, yours is far more creative than mine. Just proves though that it must be a good NaNo snack if more than one person thought of it. ^^

"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace."

Hi DM,
TK here, formerly insp_nelson from last year.

Looking forward to this cookbook. I think I still have last year's somewhere.

So here's a recipe I got earlier this year from the top secret recipe newsletter. Haven't tried it but I thought it would fit the holiday season and NaNo.....

Starbucks Gingerbread Loaf
Source: The Secret Recipe Blog - http://www.recipesecrets.net/blog

From Chef Tom:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
2 1/4 teaspoons ginger
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon orange extract, optional
1 cup applesauce
1 teaspoon baking soda

FROSTING
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon orange extract
2 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9 inch
square pan.

In a medium bowl, mix together flour, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and
salt. Then set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Stir in
orange extract.

Mix baking soda into applesauce and stir into creamed butter
mixture.

Add flour mixture. Mix until smooth.

Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 40 to 50 minutes or until a
toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean.

FROSTING:
Beat cream cheese until fluffy. Beat in vanilla and orange extract.
Slowly beat in confectioner's sugar.

Once the cake has cooled, evenly spread the frosting on top.
Decorate with chopped candied orange peel or candied ginger.

Genre: Historical Romantic Religious Suspenseful Thrilling Fantasy Mystery with a hint of horror.

ah quick desserts that don't need to be cooked! Also the measurements vary. I noticed the oreo crust from store to store vary *shrugs*

Whipcream Creation:
Tub of whip cream
Some cut up apples
cut up snicker bars

The amount depends on you! I think the nuts from the snicker bars and the apples taste like a carmel apple. It's tasty and quick!

Peanutbutter orea pie:
1 oreo pie crust.
a layer of peanutbutter on the crust bottom
a couple of boxes of chocolate pudding (the just add milk and stir kind!)
then whip cream on top and tada you have a yummy pie!

Oooh, love this. The following recipe takes about 20 minutes to make and serves 2 generously. Oh, and is de (wait for it) licious!

Easy Spaghetti Carbonara

Half packet spaghetti (250g)
Half packet bacon bits (125g)
1 Tbs butter
2 Eggs
50g Cheddar cheese
Salt & pepper to taste

Bring a pot of (salted) water to boil, add spaghetti
While spaghetti is cooking, cook bacon bits in butter over medium low temperature
In a seperate bowl, beat eggs and add chesse plus salt and pepper
Once spaghetti is cooked, use a pasta lifter to transfer directly from the pasta water to the bacon pan - you do not need to drain the spaghetti beforehand - and stir briefly to coat with butter and bacon fat.
Pour over egg mix and stir until spaghetti is coated and egg is just cooked
Serve

Why is it called tourist season if you're not allowed to shoot them?

Here is an easy coffee cake

Heath Bar Cake

2 Cups Flour
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1 Cup Dark Brown Sugar
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/2 Cup Butter, Softened
1 Cup Buttermilk
1 Egg
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
1 Cup Heath Toffee Bits
1 Cup Mini Chocolate Morsels
1 Cup Chopped Nuts (Not Peanuts)

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Butter 13x9x2-inch pan.

Sift the flour, salt, and soda together and set aside.

Cream the sugars and butter together. Add the Flour mixture, then the rest of the liquid ingredients and mix until uniform. Pour into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the toffee bits, morsels, and nuts uniformly over the top of the batter. Bake until the top is golden and a toothpick comes out of the center clean. About 30 to 40 minutes, depending on your oven.

Here's another easy crockpot dinner:

Crockpot Chicken Chili

boneless, skinless chicken (breasts or thighs, depending on your preference)
1 jar chunky salsa (your choice of temp)
1 can corn, drained
1 can black beans, drained

Put salsa, corn, and beans into crockpot and stir together. Add chicken and stir again to coat. Cook for 6-8 hours on low or 4 hours on high. Shred chicken when you're ready to serve.

I usually serve this over brown rice.

Here is an easy and healty soup.

Black Bean Soup

1 Tablespoon Oil
2 Medium Red Onions, Finely Chopped
1 Medium Red, Yellow or Orange Bell Pepper, Chopped
1 Green Bell Pepper, Chopped
2 Stalks Celery, Chopped
4 Cloves Garlic, Minced
1 Tablespoon plus 1 Teaspoon Cumin
1 Pound Dried Black Beans
1 Tablespoon Chopped Canned Adobo Chile Peppers
4 (14 Ounce Cans) Beef Broth
1 Tablespoon Tabasco Chipotle Sauce
2 Teaspoon Salt
1/4 Teaspoon Black Pepper
Juice and Zest of One Lime
1 Cup Sour Cream

Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions, peppers and, celery and sauté until lightly browned. Add garlic and cumin; stir 1 minute. Transfer onion mixture to slow cooker. Add beans, adobos, broth, Tabasco, salt, and pepper. Cover and cook on high until beans are very tender, about 6 hours. Transfer 2 cups bean mixture, and the lime juice and zest to blender; puree until smooth. Return puree to the slow cooker and stir in.
Ladle soup into bowls. Spoon a dollop of spur cream into each bowl.

This is the best recipe ever - it's super easy, it's very healthy, it tastes great, and it makes a fairly large amount to put in the fridge and reheat!

5 Can Soup

1 can kidney beans
1 can black beans
1 can tomatoes with chiles
1 can refried beans
1 can chicken broth
1 packet chili seasoning

Mix in a large pot and heat. Top with cheddar cheese, if desired, and enjoy!

NaNo 2006 - Divergence: 50,021
NaNo 2007 - A Love in Darkness Wrought: 50,023
NaNo 2008 - Missing (near)

Whoo! More recipes! <3
Thanks all!
I got to add some of them last night but I got confused because I'm stupid and didn't clearly mark all of them.
I fixed that though. ^^;;

NovelistByNight - Heh. ^^ Glad you like the idea!
It was just some random thing that came to me at 7:00 in the morning. Would've rathered it to be a plot bunny, mind you, but hey. I'm feeding people.

TK - Thank you for letting me know you changed your username.
I would've still had you as insp_nelson if not. ^^;;
This reminds me. I need to track down some of the other people who contributed...

And hallo again to Sulwen. :D I knows you.
Thanks for submitting. <3

--

[lightwithin productions: bloggin' in america (and canada) | nanowrimo cookbook]

Do you have a pancake recipe yet?

1 cup self-rise flour (if you use all purpose add about a tbsp of baking powder)
1 cup milk
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp oil (I use canola. Vegetable should work just as well)
1 egg (or a tbsp of soy flour and about 1/8 cup of water)

1. Mix it all together.

2. You can add pretty much anything to it and they come out great. Blueberries, strawberries, chocolate chips, nuts, etc... They taste great plain, too. You can subsistute buckwheat for part of the flour, or add oatmeal for healthier pancakes.

3. Heat frying pan/skillet on medium until water sizzles when dripped on surface. Spray with cooking spray or use butter to grease the pan. Pour on the batter, cook until golden on bottom (the edge should be slightly dry), flip, and cook until golden on that side.

4. Top with your favorite topping! And enjoy. :)

I'm not sure how many pancakes it makes, because we eat them almost as fast as they are cooked. I'd say around 9 or twelve, but if you are feeding four or more people, you'll probably want to make a double batch.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And Mom wants me to add the Peanut Butter Cookie recipe. This is so simple, you'll laugh.

1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg

Mix everything together.
Form little balls and make a crisscross pattern using a fork.
Cook them at about 375 degrees F, for ten to twelve minutes.
Enjoy! :)

~dreams come from within, let your imagination soar~