Yeah... not the healthiest thing in the world... but don't they look gooood?



1-1/2 cups flour
1 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp. Baking Powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup milk
24 Oreo Chocolate Sandwich Cookies
3 cups oil, for frying
2 Tbsp. powdered sugar

Mix flour, granulated sugar, baking powder and salt in medium bowl; set aside.

Beat eggs and milk with wire whisk until well blended. Add to flour mixture; mix well. Let stand 10 min. Meanwhile, pour oil into deep fryer or large deep saucepan to 3-inch depth; heat to 375°F.

Dip cookies, 1 at a time, into batter, allowing excess to drip back into bowl. Gently add cookies to hot oil. Fry, 3 to 4 at a time, until golden brown on both sides, turning over halfway through the cooking time. Drain on paper towels; sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve warm.

Categories: desserts, cookies

This was dinner tonight. It was VERY easy and cooked up FAST. Prep is quick and can easily be done earlier in the day. (naptime!) Cooking it takes all of ten minutes.
I would suggest doubling the sauce though and using a little more lemon juice than it calls for.

This tasted EXACTLY like the chicken piccatta I get at italian restaurants! Hubby liked it too! It's a keeper.

Categories: recipe_reviews

From Cooking Light:
Chicken Piccata with Capers


4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (about 1 ounce)
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup white wine
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons capers
2 teaspoons minced fresh garlic
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 cups hot cooked spaghetti (about 8 ounces uncooked)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Place each breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2-inch thickness using a meat mallet or small heavy skillet. Place flour in a shallow dish, and dredge chicken in flour.
Heat butter and oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken, and cook for 3 minutes on each side or until browned. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm. Add white wine, 1/4 cup lemon juice, capers, and garlic to pan; scrape pan to loosen browned bits. Cook for 2 minutes or until slightly thick. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Serve chicken over pasta. Top with sauce; sprinkle with parsley.

Wine note: When a recipe calls for wine as an ingredient, it's nice to find a bottle that is delicious enough to drink but affordable enough to toss a little in the skillet. Mani Masianco 2005 ($15), an Italian blend of pinot grigio and verduzzo, fills the bill. It's aromatic, with apple, lemon, and floral notes. It also has the necessary acidity to greet the potent acid of the capers. -Jeffery Lindenmuth

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 breast half, 1 cup spaghetti, 2 tablespoons sauce, and 1 1/2 teaspoons parsley)

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 519(21% from fat); FAT 12g (sat 3.7g,mono 4.9g,poly 1.8g); PROTEIN 48.1g; CHOLESTEROL 116mg; CALCIUM 40mg; SODIUM 396mg; FIBER 2.3g; IRON 4mg; CARBOHYDRATE 51g

Categories: chicken, italian

Hrm. Something went very very wrong with this recipe. I followed all the directions to a tee... I used a 3-quart casserole dish... I baked at all the right temperature for all the right lengths of time. But for some reason, it just WOULD NOT set up! It stayed all liquidy throughout. I even baked it an extra half hour and cranked up the temp... then, as a last ditch effort, I microwaved it for TEN MINUTES. Still liquidy. No idea what went wrong... I ended up spooning some into a smaller dish and microwaving it some more and it came out "okay". Tasted great. Just a very strange consistency.

I'll be watching the reviews of this over on cookinglight.com to see if anyone else had the same difficulties. :\

Categories: recipe_reviews

Dinner tonight... IF the toddler naps and I can get a chance to chop the vegetables! Sheesh... I could not find anything called "Simply Potatoes" at the store, so I bought two baking potatoes and a medium yellow onion. Hope that works!
--------------------------------------------

Garden Vegetable Crustless Quiche

From Cooking Light


Substitute corn or spinach for some of the vegetables, if you wish.

1 1/2 cups egg substitute
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded reduced-fat extrasharp cheddar cheese, divided
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Monterey Jack cheese, divided
1/2 cup 1% low-fat milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour (about 2 1/4 ounces)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (16-ounce) carton fat-free cottage cheese
Cooking spray
4 cups sliced zucchini (about 4)
2 cups diced potato with onion (such as Simply Potatoes)
1 cup finely chopped green bell pepper (about 1)
1 (8-ounce) package presliced mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 tomatoes, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 400°.
Beat egg substitute and eggs in a large bowl until fluffy. Add 3/4 cup cheddar cheese, 3/4 cup Jack cheese, milk, flour, baking powder, salt, and cottage cheese.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add zucchini and the next 3 ingredients (through mushrooms); sauté for 5 minutes or until tender. Add the zucchini mixture and parsley to egg mixture. Pour mixture into a 3-quart casserole dish coated with cooking spray. Top with the remaining 3/4 cup cheddar cheese and 3/4 cup Jack cheese. Arrange tomato slices over cheese. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350° (do not remove dish from oven), and bake for 35 minutes or until lightly browned and set.

Wine note: Because of its eggy, custardy character, quiche is excellent with chardonnay. But this version goes in a "greener" direction, incorporating lots of zucchini, bell pepper, and parsley. So serve it with sauvignon blanc, a wine that has a touch of green flavor. Try the Honig Sauvignon Blanc 2005 from Napa Valley, California ($15). --Karen MacNeil

Yield: 10 servings

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 230(30% from fat); FAT 7.7g (sat 4.6g,mono 1.3g,poly 0.3g); PROTEIN 23g; CHOLESTEROL 84mg; CALCIUM 382mg; SODIUM 716mg; FIBER 1.9g; IRON 2.1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 18.1g

Categories: eggs, brunch, one_dish_meals

We made these tonight.


They were really good. The only problem was when I flipped them halfway through cooking, the coconut on the bottom side stuck to the cookie sheet (despite having sprayed it with cooking spray). If I could figure out how to fix that, these would be even better! :)

Suggestions?

Categories: recipe_reviews

It has been a long week here at our house... (for no particular reason). I have NOT felt like cooking, so I just wanted to share our menu for this week. The theme? Easier is better.

Chinese Chicken Salad ( I started off the week ambitious... I should have paced myself better) ;)
Tacos
Spaghetti and meatballs
Pizza (ordered!)
Lipton pasta in a bag (Tom had stroganoff, I had tomato parmesan)

Tonight? No clue... I do not feel like making anything though, so it will probably be "Grilled cheese a la Tom." (my husband makes the world's best grilled cheese!)

The toddler has been eating varations on chicken nuggets, english muffin pizzas and grilled cheese (a la mommy).

Just thought I'd share... I wanted to shatter the illusion (if there was noe) that I am some kind of a "cooks every night" domestic goddess because um... yeah... NOT.

My Cooking Light magazine came today though, so hopefully I'll be posting some yummy new things to try later on. I also have to sit down and spend some time categorizing the last two months of recipes on here! Not looking forward to that. :\

I made this for dinner last night. Normally, I don't cook on both Saturday AND Sunday, but I had chicken thawed out that I had to use.

The dressing was really quick and easy to mix up. And I roasted the chicken breasts in the oven, which was easy. But the chopping of the rest of the ingredients took FOREVER. I guess this is the problem with any salad that you don't buy in bag. (next time, I'm thinking I might at least buy the romaine and the cabbage in bags to save a little time)

In the end, all the effort was worth it. The flavor was AMAZING. I will absolutely make this again!

Forgot to take a pic... sorry. :(

Categories: recipe_reviews

These are SO SO SO SO SO good and I even think, every bit as good as the fried version...

26 large shrimp (cleaned and deveined)
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper (can use more)
3 large egg whites mixed with a tablespoon (or so) of lime juice.
1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

Set oven to 375 degrees.
Rinse the shrimp under cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
In a shallow dish combine the cornstarch with salt and red pepper; stir to combine.
Place the egg whites in a medium bowl; beat using an electric mixer on high speed until frothy (about 2 minutes).
Place the coconut in a shallow dish.
Working one shrimp at a time dredge the shrimp firstly in the cornstarch mixture, then dip in egg whites and then in shredded coconut.
Place the shrimp on a foil-lined baking sheet that has been coated with cooking spray.
Repeat with remaining shrimp (cornstarch, then egg white and then in coconut).
Lightly spray the shrimp with cooking spray.
Bake for about 20 minutes or until the shrimp are done, turn the shrimp after 10 minutes of cooking making that 10 minutes per side.

Serve witha pineapple or fruit salsa. Recipe can easily be doubled to feed a crowd! :)
Each shrimp has about 40 calories (in case you were wondering) In the fried version, each shrimp has about 100 calories!!! (and a ton more fat!)

Categories: shrimp, caribbean

This is more of an autumn/winter recipe, but I saw it on Take Home Chef and wanted to file it away for later! :)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Thyme Roasted Acorn Squash

Serves 4

Ingredients:
3 acorn squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves chopped (about 1 tablespoon)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/3 cup pure maple syrup

Method:

Preheat the oven to 450°F/230°C. Cut the squash lengthwise into ¾- to 1-inch-wide wedges. Place two heavy large baking sheets in the oven for 5 minutes or until hot. Remove the baking sheets from the oven and drizzle the oil over the hot baking sheets.

Arrange the squash in a single layer over the hot baking sheets and sprinkle with the thyme, salt and pepper. Turn the squash to coat with the oil. Bake for 20 minutes. Using tongs, turn the squash over. Drizzle the maple syrup over the squash and continue baking until the squash is tender and golden brown, about 20 minutes longer. Transfer the squash to a platter and serve.

Categories: easy_sides, kid_friendly

I think these would be great to make and freeze for easy breakfasts! Even better, I'm guessing the picky toddler might like them too! I found them on another recipe blog, Erin Eats.

Egg Muffins
-adapted from Kalyn's Kitchen

13 Jumbo eggs (1170)
20-30 drops Tabasco
2 TB. fat free half and half
1 TB. olive oil (120)
1 pkg. (275g.) mushrooms, cleaned and sliced (59)
2 big handfulls arugula, about 55g. (17)
1/2 med. onion, chopped, about 95g. (40)
1 bunch green onions, chopped (35)
1 TB. fresh chopped thyme (3)
16 slices ham (640)
1 1/2 cups reduced fat cheese (480)
salt and pepper

Whisk up the eggs with the tabasco and a little salt, set aside.

Saute the onions in the oil and then added the mushrooms with salt and pepper; when the mushrooms are cooked through, add the arugula and toss for a minute, or until the arugula is wilted. Remove mixture to a fine mesh sieve and press to get the excess moisture out*. To the same pan, add the ham and cook until browned and all of the moisture in the pan has cooked out/evaporated.

Toss the ham, cheese, green onions and mushroom mixture together and fill your muffin pans 3/4 of the way. Pour the egg mixture over the mixture, filling to the top.

Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes.

*Kalyn said that the muffins tend to let go of a little liquid when they're being microwaved, so I went ahead and cooked the ham until it was brown and the liquid had completely evaporated, and strained the mushroom mixture.

Makes 16 Egg Muffins, 160 calories per muffin.

Categories: eggs, brunch, breakfast

I ran across this on another blog today (can't remember where now!). It's a Food Network/Bobby Flay recipe... the reviews are all five stars and everyone raves that it tastes like something you'd get at a restaurant! I'll give it a try this week and let you know!

p.s. The reviews all say that chipotle pepper puree is really hard to find and they all just used chipotle peppers in adobo sauce pureed in the food processor.

Chinese Chicken Salad with Red Chile Peanut Dressing

Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 4 servings


1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons smooth peanut butter
1 tablespoon chopped fresh ginger
2 teaspoons chipotle pepper puree
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1/2 cup canola oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 head Napa cabbage, shredded
1/2 head romaine lettuce, shredded
2 carrots, shredded
1/4 pound snow peas, julienned
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onion
2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
1/2 cup chopped roasted peanuts
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
Chili oil, optional
Grilled lime halves, for garnish
Whisk together the vinegar, peanut butter, ginger, chipotle pepper puree, soy sauce, honey, sesame oil, and canola oil in a medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Combine cabbage, lettuce, carrots, snow peas, cilantro, and green onion in a large bowl. Add the dressing and toss to combine.
Transfer to a serving platter and top with the shredded chicken, chopped peanuts, and mint. Drizzle with chili oil, if desired. Garnish with grilled lime halves.

Categories: asian, salads, one_dish_meals, chicken

I made this for dinner tonight. It took a total of maybe 20 minutes from start to finish. Super easy and REALLY good. I like that you can easily swap out the cheese for a different flavor. (see recipe) My husband and I both loved this and it will be going into the regular rotation!

The only change I made was that I used whole wheat spaghetti instead of fettucine. I also used the bacon that you can buy that is precooked.

Categories: recipe_reviews

My mom made these yesterday while I was over so we could taste test them. They are SO good. They baked quickly and came out perfectly crispy and brown. Bonus, the toddler scarfed down about half of them. Now I'm trying to figure out what other veggies I can do this with!!

I'll definitely make this often!


----
I made these for myself tonight and they were just as good! Here's a quick pic. (the rest of the meal was just Shake n Bake chicken and mashed potatoes. ;)



Categories: recipe_reviews

If you like spice, you'll love this... especially if you use HOT curry paste. Yowzah.

It was good and the husband loved it. However, I substited chicken for the shrimp that this recipe calls for and I'm not sure that was a good idea. I had to cook the chicken separately whereas if you use shrimp, it cooks in the curry sauce. So, my chicken was sort of blah... I think if make this again, I'll either use the shrimp OR cook the whole thing together in my big skillet so the chicken gets a chance to really absorb the sauce and the spices. I also thought maybe it needed a little salt? We'll have to experiment with that one.

Fairly easy to make... I started dinner a little later than I usually do because I was out this afternoon but I still managed to have it on the table by about 6:30. So it took about 45 minutes to prep and cook...

Summary? Indian-food and hot-food fans, this is a good one! :)

Categories: recipe_reviews

Uh... yum? ;)

Yield: 2 1/2 cups

4 oz olive oil
4 oz sundried tomatos (rehydrated till tender)
2 tablespoons chopped Italian parsley
2 tablespoons fresh basil 1
tablespoons fresh chopped garlic
2 oz grated parmesan cheese
2 oz chopped pinenuts
2 oz balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoons tomato paste
3 oz crushed canned tomato
2 oz red wine
1 oz diced white onion
salt to taste

First rehydrate sundried tomatoes by soaking in warm water for a few minutes until tender.
Place basil, garlic, pinenuts, parsley, onion, and sundried tomatoes in food processor or blender. Puree until well incorporated.
Add all remaining ingredients except parmesan and olive oil. Once again puree until incorporated. finally, stir in olive oil and parmesan cheese, salt to taste.
Serve with bread.

Categories: dips_spreads_dressings

My mom made these last night. I'm waiting to find out how they were! Will update! :)
----------------------------------

Zucchini Oven Chips

From Cooking Light


1/4 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons fat-free milk
2 1/2 cups (1/4-inch-thick) slices zucchini (about 2 small)
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 425°.
Combine first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk. Place milk in a shallow bowl. Dip zucchini slices in milk, and dredge in breadcrumb mixture. Place coated slices on an ovenproof wire rack coated with cooking spray; place rack on a baking sheet. Bake at 425° for 30 minutes or until browned and crisp. Serve immediately.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: about 3/4 cup)

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 61(28% from fat); FAT 1.9g (sat 1g,mono 0.5g,poly 0.2g); PROTEIN 3.8g; CHOLESTEROL 5mg; CALCIUM 87mg; SODIUM 231mg; FIBER 1g; IRON 0.6mg; CARBOHYDRATE 7.6g

Categories: easy_sides, appetizers

To go with the salad below! ;)

Olive Garden Breadsticks


Author/Submitted by: Gloria Pitzer
Servings: 8
Categories: Breads

Ingredients:
1 Frozen bread dough, *see Note
Nonstick cooking spray
Garlic powder
Oregano, crushed


Directions:
When dough is soft enough to knead, spray your fingers with Pam or oil and knead just until you can shape into cigar-sized pieces (about 8 to 10). Place these 3" apart on Pam-sprayed cookie sheets. Let rise in warm place until doubled - about 1-1/2 hours. Then holding Pam about 8" from sticks, lightly spray top of each and then dust with garlic powder and oregano. Bake at 375~ about 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in pan on rack to serve within a day or two.



* 1 loaf, thawed in bowl at room temp

Categories: biscuits_and_bread

YUM.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup white vinegar
1 tsp vegetable oil
2 Tbls. corn syrup
2 Tbls. Parmesan cheese
2 Tbls. Romano cheese
1/4 tsp. garlic salt
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp. parsley flakes
1 Tbl. lemon juice

Olive Garden Salad Mix:
1 bag American blend Dole Salad
4-5 slices red onion
4-6 Black olives
2-4 Banana peppers
1/2 cup croutons
1 small tomato, quartered
Freshy grated Parmesan cheese


Directions:
Mix all ingredients in a blender or processor until well blended. If this is a little too tart for your personal taste, please add a little sugar.

Categories: dips_spreads_dressings

Sorry for the blurry picture. I never realize they are blurry until I upload them. Argh.

Sooo anyway, after peer pressure from Krystyna, and drooling over the sauce description, I decided to give this a try this weekend. It is most definitely a weekend recipe. I can't imagine trying to juggle the three things cooking at once AND keeping the toddler from killing himself. However, since the daddy was home to entertain the toddler, this was fairly painless.

I didn't change anything from the recipe... it was delicious. I seriously could have eaten the sauce BY ITSELF, which would have been bad since it has 1-1/2 cups of heavy cream in it. Um yeah, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that this recipe is not for calorie counters. If you ARE a calorie counter, take a break one weekend and treat yourself. This meal is worth it.

Now... if only someone could find me the recipe for the Olive Garden breadsticks and salad to go with this? I'd be in heaven.

**update** Nevermind! Found them! NOW we have a complete Olive Garden meal! ;)

Categories: recipe_reviews

There is already a Sloppy Joe recipe on here somewhere, but it doesn't have much flavor... I was looking for one with a few more ingredients. This one got five stars on Allrecipes.... so, we'll give it a try!

Sloppy Joes II
Submitted by: Tamara

Photo by: WANDA
"This is the recipe my mother used for sloppy joes, and it always gets compliments!"
Original recipe yield: 6 servings.
Prep Time:
10 Minutes
Cook Time:
30 Minutes
Ready In:
40 Minutes
Servings:
6 (change)
INGREDIENTS:
1 pound lean ground beef
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard
3/4 cup ketchup
3 teaspoons brown sugar
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS:
In a medium skillet over medium heat, brown the ground beef, onion, and green pepper; drain off liquids.
Stir in the garlic powder, mustard, ketchup, and brown sugar; mix thoroughly. Reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

<Categories: ground_beef, ground_turkey, one_dish_meals, kid_friendly, sandwiches

This is a Take Home Chef recipe I saw last night. My plan is to substitute chicken for the shrimp.

Curried Shrimp with Snow Peas
Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons/30 ml olive oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon/5 g finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon/10 g to 1/4 cup/40 g red curry paste (preferably Madras-style)
1 cup/200 ml water
2 plum tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 cup/235 ml unsweetened coconut milk
2 tablespoons/25 ml white wine vinegar
24 large uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
5 ounces/145 g snow peas, stringed, cut diagonally in half


Method:
Heat the oil in a heavy medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and sauté until lightly golden brown, about 7 to 10 minutes. Add the ginger and garlic and continue to sauté until soft, about 2 minutes longer. Add the curry paste and stir until the paste begins to stick to the bottom of the pan, about 2 to 3 minutes. The amount of curry paste to add will depend on the brand you choose and how spicy you desire the curry.

Add the water and tomatoes and simmer gently over medium-low heat until the tomatoes are very tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Add the coconut milk and vinegar and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and snow peas to the curry and continue to simmer for 4 minutes or until the shrimp are just cooked through. Serve with rice.

Categories: indian, shrimp

This is actually a favorite at our house. It has been in the rotation for a year or two... since I actually remembered to take a picture tonight when I made it, I figured now was as good a time as any to review it.

This is another perfect one to make the night before or during naptime and then just pop in the oven for 30 minutes at dinnertime. It's really easy and there are only a few ingredients. The only tedious part is actually stuffing the shells, but even that doesn't take very long. You can top it however you like and you can use either taco sauce or salsa for the sauce. Either tastes great. I would recommend doubling the amount of sauce the recipe calls for... otherwise, it doesn't quite cover the shells.

Try it! :)

Categories: recipe_reviews

You'll notice on the sidebar that I've finally started adding menus/shopping lists! The two that are there are just the two menus that I created for our house the last two weeks. Please don't hesitate to use them as a template and create your own. Email them to me at erinspring@gmail.com and I'll add them to the sidebar. If you don't have the time to do all the formatting, just send me your list of recipes and I'll do it. I'd love to have a wide variety over there! :)

from August 2006 Cooking Light

Indian-Spiced Chicken with Tomato Chutney


A serving of this dish provides about one-tenth of your daily potassium needs. Serve with broccoli and whole wheat pitas.

Chutney:
1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 cup chopped shallots
1 teaspoon minced seeded serrano chile
1/4 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 garlic clove, minced
1 cup coarsely chopped seeded tomato
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1/2 teaspoon salt

Chicken:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/2 teaspoon salt
Cooking spray

To prepare chutney, heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and serrano; cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add ginger and garlic; cook 30 seconds, stirring frequently. Add tomato, vinegar, sugar, mustard seeds, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Uncover and simmer 5 minutes or until mixture is thick. Set aside, and keep warm.
Prepare grill.

To prepare chicken, heat 2 teaspoons oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add coriander, curry, cumin, and black pepper; cook 1 minute, stirring frequently. Brush mixture evenly on both sides of chicken; sprinkle evenly with 1/2 teaspoon salt.

Place chicken on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 4 minutes on each side or until chicken is done. Serve chutney over chicken.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 chicken breast half and about 2 1/2 tablespoons chutney)

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 268(30% from fat); FAT 8.9g (sat 1.9g,mono 4.7g,poly 1.5g); PROTEIN 40.6g; CHOLESTEROL 108mg; CALCIUM 36mg; SODIUM 687mg; FIBER 0.9g; IRON 1.8mg; CARBOHYDRATE 4.3g

Categories: indian, chicken

From August 2006 Cooking Light

Broccoli and Parmesan Casserole

Broccoli is one of the best vegetable sources of calcium. Here it's paired with a béchamel sauce thickened with cheese, which boosts the calcium even more. A short boil of the broccoli preserves the bright color for the dish.

8 cups coarsely chopped broccoli florets (about 2 pounds)
1/3 cup all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 ounces)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1 1/2 cups fat-free milk
1 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 cup (4 ounces) reduced-fat shredded extrasharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated Parmesan cheese, divided
2 tablespoons diced pimientos, drained
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cooking spray
12 garlic melba toast rounds

Preheat oven to 400°.
Cook broccoli in boiling water 3 minutes or until crisp-tender; drain.

Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup, and level with a knife. Place flour, salt, and dry mustard in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat; gradually add the fat-free milk and chicken broth, stirring with a whisk until blended. Cook for 8 minutes or until it is thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and add shredded cheddar cheese and 6 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese, stirring until melted. Stir in pimientos and pepper. Add broccoli, tossing to coat.

Spoon the broccoli mixture into a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Place garlic melba toast rounds in a food processor; pulse 10 times or until coarse crumbs measure 1 cup. Combine toast crumbs and the remaining 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, and sprinkle evenly over broccoli mixture. Spray top of casserole lightly with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: about 1 cup)

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 154(30% from fat); FAT 5.1g (sat 3g,mono 0.5g,poly 0.3g); PROTEIN 11.9g; CHOLESTEROL 15mg; CALCIUM 274mg; SODIUM 415mg; FIBER 3.7g; IRON 1.5mg; CARBOHYDRATE 16.6g

Categories: easy_sides, casseroles

From the August 2006 issue of Cooking Light.

Spinach Fettuccine

You can use Asiago cheese for a slightly sweeter flavor, or Parmigiano-Reggiano for a sharper flavor than the pecorino Romano.

1 pound uncooked fettuccine
1 tablespoon butter
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup (2 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
3/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (3 ounces) grated fresh pecorino Romano cheese
3/4 cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed dry
10 center-cut bacon slices, cooked and crumbled (about 1 1/4 cups)
Parsley sprigs (optional)

Cook pasta according to package instructions, omitting salt and fat. Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water.
Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic; sauté 30 seconds. Add reserved pasta water and cream cheese, stirring with a whisk until smooth.

Combine broth and flour in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Add flour mixture to pan, stirring with a whisk to combine; bring to a boil. Cook 2 minutes or until mixture thickens, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; add pecorino Romano, stirring until smooth. Add half-and-half, salt, and pepper. Stir in spinach. Combine cheese mixture and pasta in a large bowl, tossing to coat. Place about 1 cup pasta mixture in each of 8 bowls; top each serving with 2 1/2 tablespoons bacon. Garnish with parsley, if desired.

Yield: 8 servings

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 365(30% from fat); FAT 12.2g (sat 6.3g,mono 3.3g,poly 0.6g); PROTEIN 15.9g; CHOLESTEROL 34mg; CALCIUM 188mg; SODIUM 681mg; FIBER 2.3g; IRON 1.8mg; CARBOHYDRATE 46.6g

Categories: italian, pasta, one_dish_meals

A Better Homes and Gardens recipe

What kid doesn't like chicken nuggets?

3 tablespoons margarine or butter, melted
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
2 whole large chicken breasts (about 2 lbs total), skinned, boned, and cut into 1-inch pieces
50 wheat wafers, finely crushed
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

In a bowl stir together margarine or butter and worcestershire sauce. Add chicken and toss to coat. In a plastic bag, stir together crushed wafers and parmesan cheese. Add chicken pieces, a few at a time, closing bag and chaking to coat pieces well. Place chicken pieces in a single layer in a 15x10x1-inch pan. Bake in a 450 degree oven for 7-9 minutes or till no longer pink. Makes four servings.

Categories: chicken, kid_friendly

a better homes and gardens recipe

4 ounces packaged spaghetti, linguine, or fettucine
2 tablespoons margarine or butter, cut up
1/2 teaspoon dried basil, oregano, thyme, or marjoram, crushed; dried dillweed; or caraway seed

Cook pasta. Drain well. Return to hot saucepan. Add margarine and desired herb. Toss gently till pasta is well-coated. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serves four.

This is really easy, and pleases the toddler!

Categories: pasta, italian, kid_friendly

I finally got around to making this last night for dinner. Two words: freaking delicious. It was like we had ordered out from the Olive Garden. The sauce was just unbelievable – I may end up using that sauce on some plain pasta in the future. I was still scraping the pot after dinner, trying to scoop up a stray drop or two, it was so good. The cheese-y goodness, balanced with tomatoes and basil…YUM. That being said I made a few changes to the recipe.

First, I only used 4 chicken breasts, but that didn’t make much of a difference. I did end up cooking the chicken entirely in the sauté pan, though. It seemed so silly to just sauté them for a moment or two, and then put them in the oven. Plus, by the time they were golden brown like I wanted them, they were already 160 on the inside, and that was all I needed.

Other than that, I stuck to the recipe fairly faithfully. Next time I might end up only pouring half the sauce over the pasta before broiling. (Which, I’ll admit, is really kinda unnecessary, unless you really want the "pretty" browning of the cheese. All you really need to do is heat it enough to melt the cheese.) I’d save the remaining sauce and pour it over the pasta when you serve.

In summary: Time consuming? Yeah. A little tricky having 3 pots going at the same time? Yeah. Worth it? HELL yeah.

Categories: recipe_reviews

1 lb thinly sliced London broil, cut into 1 inch squares
2 Cups Bean Sprouts
1 8oz can water chestnuts
1 small head of Bok Choy, coarsly chopped
1 small Napa Cabbage, coarsley chopped
1/2 orange or yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced
1 ripe mango, diced
1 cup fresh or thawed frozen corn
1 T minced ginger
2 strands of Lemon grass, finely chopped
1/2 cup roasted peanuts
1 T sugar
1 tsp salt
8 T sesame oil
2 T Hot oil
1/2 cup fish sauce
2 cloves of garlic, minced
juice of 2 limes

Put the Bok Choy, Napa Cabbage, peppers, bean sprouts, water chestnuts, scallions, and mango in a large salad bowl.
In a food processor combine garlic, ginger, lemon grass, and peanuts and chop coarsley. Add to salad.
Flash fry the corn in 2-3 T of the sesame oil over medium high heat. Add sugar and salt and cook until the corn starts to brown. Add in the london broil with the 2-3 T of sesame oil and flash fry for 2-3 minutes. Add to salad.
Wisk together the fish sauce, lime juice, hot oil and 1 T of sesame oil. Add to salad and toss.

Categories: beef, asian, salad, one_dish_meals