Pour the orange juice into a jar with a tight fitting lid.
Add the oil and mint.
Close the lid and shake until blended together well.
Pour the dressing over the chicken and stir to coat.
Divide the lettuce between four plates.
Top the lettuce with the chicken salad.
Makes 4 servings
Switch up your salad each time you make it by substituting chopped cantaloupe or honeydew melon for the grapes. You can also add chopped tomatoes if you like.
Preparation Time: approximately 25 minutes
Total Time: approximately 25 minutes
Nutritional Information: (approximate values per serving)
Place the oil into a large skillet positioned over medium heat.
Stir in the green onions and cook for 1 minute, stirring often.
Add the fresh tomato, carrots and dried tomatoes.
Cover the skillet and cook for 5 minutes, stirring once.
Add the mixture to the pasta and stir to blend in well.
Sprinkle the cheese over the top just before serving.
Makes 4 servings
Give your dish a little extra color by using fresh yellow tomatoes instead of red. Feta cheese can be found in different flavors including garlic and herb or peppercorn. Try one of these to give your side dish an extra kick. If feta cheese isn’t one of your favorites substitute crumbled blue cheese instead.
Preparation Time:approximately 15 minutes
Cooking Time: approximately 6 minutes
Total Time: approximately 21 minutes
Nutritional Information: (approximate values per serving)
1 (17 oz.) pkg. refrigerated cooked beef roast with juice
1 T of butter
2 T shallots, minced
2 T of tarragon vinegar
1 C fresh apple wedges
1 C fresh peach wedges
How to Make It:
Pour the juice from the roast into a bowl.
Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat.
Stir the shallots into the melted butter and cook for 1 minute.
Place the roast in the skillet with the shallots and reduce the heat to low.
Cover the skillet and simmer the roast for 10 minutes or until heated through.
Pour the reserved juice into a mixing bowl.
Add the vinegar and stir until blended in well.
Pour the juice over the top of the meat.
Lay the apple and peach wedges on top and along the sides of the meat.
Cover the skillet and cook 2 minutes longer.
Makes 4 servings
This throw it together pot roast is well worth the short time it takes to fix. Mix and match your fruits such as pears and plums to make this quick meal a family favorite.
Preparation Time:approximately 15 minutes
Cooking Time: approximately 13 minutes
Total Time: approximately 28 minutes
Nutritional Information: (approximate values per serving)
Some of the world’s greatest dishes came from experimenting with certain foods. Take, for instance, the waffle cone or the potato chip. Both of these classics were invented by mistake. People playing around and experimenting with the ingredients they already had on hand turned out with a new product that was completely unique. Both of these are now huge successes around the world. Let’s take a look at what you may have in your pantry or fridge and see what new ideas can be formulated.
Pasta is a food that most people have in their arsenal of common foods. Next time you fix pasta, try adding in some raisins and olives for the sweet and salty feel of a slightly Mediterranean dish.
Run out of milk? That’s ok, just use yogurt to replace the liquid content in your cereal. Incorporate some bakers chocolate into your next batch of chili and deep fry the pickles in some flour before topping your next burger, for a different kind of crunch. There are many different ways to spice up your arsenal of food; it just takes a little creativity to keep out the mundane.
Step into the kitchen; pick up your pan and oven mitt and start adding in new ingredients. Don’t be afraid to try something completely out of the ordinary, after all, there are always the frozen pizzas as a quick and easy back up to a meal gone awry. Just stay away from the junk food cabinet unless you plan on a Twinkie Cheesecake – although regular potato chips make a great coating for fried chicken.
If you went over and looked in your pantry, what would you find? Do the same thing with your refrigerator and freezer. Now take a look in the cabinet that you keep all the junk food stashed in – ok, close that cabinet, it won’t help any with what we are about to do.
Chances are if you are the average American home, you probably have some basic ingredients that are kept well stocked in case there is a rushed day. You know the ingredients that you can pull out at a moment’s notice and whip something together that will nutritiously satisfy your family for a night while you make sure to actually take out the pot roast so it can defrost this time.
The next time you are stuck trying to pull together a last minute dinner, stop for a second and think about the ingredients you are using. Could you add in another vegetable or try brazing instead of pan-frying to change the entire taste and texture of your emergency meal?
The tongue has about 10,000 taste buds; you would be surprised how quick it becomes accustomed to flavors and textures. Shortly after that, boredom sets in and the tongue awaits something new to experience. In order to keep your tongue on its toes, figuratively speaking of course, it is always a great idea to change things up. This change can be as easy as working a new ingredient into a well-known dish.
Set the oven temperature to 350 degrees and allow the oven to preheat.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Toss together the sugar and cocoa powder in a mixing bowl.
Cut each phyllo sheet crosswise into 3 separate pieces.
Stack the pieces together to make 4 stacks.
Cover the stacks with plastic wrap,
Cover again with a kitchen towel to keep the phyllo dough from drying out.
Place one piece of phyllo on a baking sheet and brush with the melted butter.
Sprinkle the sheet evenly with the sugar cocoa mixture and top with another piece of phyllo dough.
Repeat the process with this sheet and then place a third sheet on top.
Repeat the butter sugar process again.
Continue in this manner until you have 4 stacks of prepared dough.
Place the stacks in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator.
While still on the baking sheet use a sharp knife to cut the stacks into 3 triangular pieces.
Place a piece of parchment paper over the top and lay another baking sheet on top to weight them down.
Bake for 14 minutes or until a golden brown.
Remove the crisps from the oven, remove the top baking sheet and peel off the parchment paper.
Place on a wire rack to cool.
Place the cream into a mixing bowl.
Beat with an electric mixer on high 2 minutes or until stiff peaks form.
Beat in the caramel sauce on high speed for 20 seconds or until well blended.
Place one triangle stack of crisps on a serving plate.
Top with a teaspoon of caramel mousse.
Add another crisp and more caramel mousse then top with the third crisp.
Makes 4 servings
To garnish these elegant treats warm caramel topping in the microwave for about 10 seconds. Drizzle the topping over the entire crisp. Trickle chocolate topping over the top to create a chocolate dessert that will be asked for over and over again.
1 stick + 2 T of unsalted butter, cold and cut into small pieces
1 C of semisweet chocolate chips
1 large egg yolk
1/2 C of half and half, chilled
How to Make It:
Place the rack into the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Lightly spray a baking sheet and set aside.
Dump the flour into a mixing bowl.
Add 4 T of sugar, the baking powder and the salt and whisk until blended well.
Toss the butter pieces over the flour mixture.
Working with a pastry cutter cut the butter into the dry ingredients until crumbly.
Mix in the chocolate chips.
Place the egg yolk into a small mixing bowl.
Whisk in the half and half until well blended.
Pour the egg mixture over the flour mixture and stir with a fork until a soft moist dough forms.
Sprinkle a little flour over a flat surface such as a cutting board.
Place the dough on the prepared surface and knead with your hands 6 times.
Pat the dough out to form an even disk.
Cut the disk into 6 pieces with a sharp knife.
Place the scones on the prepared baking sheet.
Sprinkle the remaining 1 t of sugar evenly over all the scones.
Bake 20 minutes or until golden brown on bottom and just starting to brown on top.
Cool the scones on a wire rack.
Makes 6 scones
These scones are best eaten on the day they are baked. Serve them warm with a little cream or at room temperature. If you have a couple of scones left and want to reheat them later in the evening wrap them in foil and reheat in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 5 minutes.
Line the 12 cups of a muffin tin with paper liners.
Let the oven preheat to 350 degrees.
Break the egg into a small bowl.
Whisk in the oil, sugar and vanilla until well blended.
Fold in the zucchini.
In a separate bowl blend together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
Add the chocolate and toss the mixture until the chocolate is blended in well.
Fold the zucchini mixture into the flour mixture and stir just until the dry ingredients are moist.
Fold in the walnuts.
Fill the muffin cups 2/3 full of the batter.
Bake 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Let the muffins cool 10 minutes in the pan then transfer to wire racks to continue cooling.
Makes 12 muffins
The zucchini in these muffins gives off very little taste but is important to keep the muffins moist. It’s the chocolate that stands out. Even the children will love these tasty little muffins. It’s a great way to incorporate some vegetables in any child’s diet.
1/4 C + 1 T of unsalted butter, chilled and cut into pieces
1/4 C + 2 T of raspberry preserves
1/2 C + 2 T of semisweet chocolate chips
How to Make It:
Allow the oven to preheat to 375 degrees.
Place the oven rack into the center of the oven.
Line the bottom of an 8X8 square pan with foil and extend the foil over the edges about 1 1/2 inch.
Spray the foil well with a non stick cooking spray.
Blend together the flour, oats, brown sugar, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl.
Use a pastry blender or two knives and cut the butter into the mixture until crumbly.
Remove a little over 1/4 of a cup of the mixture and set aside for topping.
Press the remaining mixture into the prepared pan.
Bake for 8 minutes or until it’s beginning to brown and appears dry but not fully baked.
Remove the pan and place on a wire rack and allow to cool 30 minutes.
Spread the preserves over the crust to within 1/4 inch from the edges.
Sprinkle 2 T of the chocolate chips over the top of the preserves.
Sprinkle the reserved oat mixture evenly over the chips and press gently to make an even layer.
Return to the oven and bake for 24 minutes or until the top if a light golden brown.
Remove and transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely.
Place the remaining chocolate chips into a heavy duty sealable plastic baggie.
Do not seal the bag and place it in the microwave on medium power for 45 seconds or until the chocolate melts.
Remove the bag, seal and knead with your fingers until the chocolate is smooth.
Press the chocolate into one corner of the bag.
Snip just the end out of the corner of the bag and swirl the chocolate over the top of the cooled bars.
Let the bars cool for 30 minutes or until the chocolate is set.
Remove the bars by using the aluminum foil handles.
Makes 9 bars
An elegant but easy and tasty treat these bars will be a hit with everyone. Use any type of preserve such as strawberry, apricot or even pineapple for something a little different.
