A Yummy Salad Recipe to try!!

Julie’s Crunchy Romaine Salad

1 head Romaine lettuce, washed, patted or spun dry, and torn/chopped
1 bunch fresh broccoli, coarsely chopped
4 green onions, chopped (green and white parts)
1 cup chopped pecans
1 pkg beef flavor Ramen noodles (raw), broken up
4 T butter

Sauté nuts, ramen noodles, and flavor packet in melted butter in medium saucepan until toasty and well coated. Set aside to cool. Combine and toss all in a big bowl until well mixed. Toss with dressing just before serving. Enjoy!


Dressing

½ cup plus a bit more sugar
½ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup plus a few extra shakes red wine vinegar
1½ tsp plus a few extra shakes soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Mix ingredients well (I use an old jam jar and shake well, or you could whisk in a bowl). Add a bit more of all except oil until it tastes perfect.

These are Healthier CC Cookies I plan to try...

There is a new or reinvented way of adding veggies to things! Check this recipe out. There are two cookbooks out there that I found on this topic:
Deceptively Delicious(Seinfeld) (By the way, this is at Costco for $13.59!)
Sneaky Chef(?)
This recipe is from DD by Seinfeld(yes, this is by the comedian's wife)

Chocolate Chip Cookies
Nonstick cooking spray
1 cup firmly packed light or dark brown sugar
3/4 cup trans-fat free soft tub margarine spread
2 large egg whites
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 (15 - ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed. *She does non suggest pureing these, but after making them I would!*
2 Cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
3/4 cups raisins (optional)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees, F. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.
In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the sugar and margarine with a wooden spoon or on medium speed until smooth.
Beat in the egg whites and vanilla, then the chickpeas and chocolate chips.
Add the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt, walnuts and raisins (if wanted,) and mix on a low speed until a thing dough forms.
Drop the dough by the tablespoonful onto the baking sheet, spacing the cookies about 2 inches apart. Press gently with a fork to flatten. Bake until the cookies are golden brown and just set, 11 to 13 mintues; do not overbake. Transfer to a rack to cool.

Try this with us...well, minus the cheese!!

From my friend's cooking blog:

"Pizza Pasta
We have a lot of fun making this meal, assembly line style. Each child gets to be in charge of one item. This is a favorite meal at our house.1 large jar pasta sauce (2 lbs. 13 oz. size)1 cup water4 cups grated mozzarella cheese1 large onion, chopped 2 Tbs. Italian seasoning2 lbs. wide egg noodles8 oz. pepperoni slicesCook the egg noodles for 3 minutes, until just barely tender. No longer!Combine the sauce with the water. In another bowl, combine cheese, onion, and Italian seasoning. Layer in the crock-pot: 1/4 of each item in the following order:noodles, sauce, pepperoni, cheeseCover and cook on LOW 3-4 hours. *Serve with garlic breadsticks."

Recipe to Try!!! DELICIOSO!!

Smoky Chicken Chili
½ Poblano green pepper (cut up very small)
1 cup of frozen chopped onions, red peppers mix (comes in a bag in the frozen section)
3 garlic cloves (diced)
2 T olive oil
2 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes
3 Cups of shredded smoked chicken(about 1 lb)(we just used a roasted chicken from Costco and pulled the chicken off--it's about half of the roasted chicken)
1 16 oz can navy beans
1 15 oz can black beans(rinsed and drained)
1 12 oz can of chicken broth
1 1.25 oz envelope of white chicken chili seasoning mix
Toppings: shredded cheese, chips, sour cream, cilantro, or whatever you come up with.
Saute veggies(not the ones in the cans) in olive oil. Add the items from the cans, chicken, broth, seasoning packet, and cook for about 20 minutes.
Kids(about 10 years old- 12 years old)made, ate this chili and liked it!!! They didn’t even say anything about the veggies!!

My kids loved it and so do John and I!!! It's dairy free and fabulous!!! You can eat it without the chees and it's still yummy!!!

Try it with us Recipe!

Email me with what you think after you try it. If you have a recipe for us to try, send it on! The ones we try will be dairy free over here, fyi.

White Bean and Chicken ChiliSubmitted By: Sarah Breckenridge
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Servings:6

3 tablespoons olive oil
6 scallions, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2-1/4 teaspoons chile powder
1-1/2 teaspoons cumin
3 (15 ounce) cans white beans, rinsed (I might use a mixture of beans?)
1-1/2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes, drained
2-1/4 cups chicken broth
2-1/4 cups leftover cooked chicken breast meat, shredded
Tabasco sauce to taste (optional):

In a medium saucepan, heat oil on medium high. Add scallions (saving some greens for garnish) and garlic and saute until golden. Add chile powder and cumin. Saute for 1 minute. Add white beans, tomatoes, and broth. Simmer 15 minutes until liquid is slightly reduced. Stir in chicken and simmer 5 minutes more.
Season with Tabasco and garnish with scallion greens. If desired, serve with baked tortilla chips and low-fat sour cream.

Santoku and Utility--My favorite kitchen friends!

What is a Santoku---???? It's my favorite knife along with my utility knife. I feel like Rachel Ray when I smash my garlic and peel it like a champ! If only I could cut as fast as she does!! My mom gave me these two knives and I love them! They will go where I go, live where I live, maybe not sleep where I sleep, but you get the picture! I don't own the paring knife(the smaller one), but with the other two, who needs it? I just thought everyone would also enjoy the detailed description of the Santoku--plus, now you know a new word and can sound very smart saying it!!

Santoku description from Calphalon:

"Combining features of a chef's knife and a cleaver, the Santoku is an all purpose Asian-style knife that's ideal for cutting meat, fish and vegetables. The word santoku means "three good things" - a reference to the three cutting tasks it performs so well: slicing, dicing and mincing. The Santoku is designed with kullens, or indentations along its edges, which reduce friction and prevent food from sticking to the blade. The knife also serves as a spatula as you cut, removing cut foods quickly and easily from the cutting surface."

Russian Honey Cookies

My kids have enjoyed eating Russian Cookies since we got back from our trip in March, so I looked up a recipe to try! I always love to experiment! So, here's the recipe. I will try to make them and take pictures for all to enjoy. I will keep you posted--no pun intended!

Nut and Spice Cookie Recipes - Russian Honey Cookies

Ingredients
3 cups/450 g all-purpose/plain flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cardamom( When cardamom is not available, use a blend of nutmeg and cinnamon or cloves and cinnamon)
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp salt
2 large eggs
1 cup/200 g granulated sugar
1 cup/250 ml honey
1/2 tsp vanilla extract/essence
2 tbsp confectioners'/icing sugar, to dust
Method:
Sift the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, and salt into a medium bowl.
Beat the eggs and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at high speed until pale and thick.
Heat the honey in a small saucepan over low heat until liquid. Stir the honey and vanilla into the beaten egg mixture.
Mix in the dry ingredients to form a stiff dough. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C/gas 5. Butter two cookie sheets. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of 1/2 inch (1 cm).
Use a 2-inch (5-cm) cookie cutter to cut out the cookies. Gather the dough scraps, re-roll, and continue cutting out cookies until all the dough is used.
Use a spatula to transfer the cookies to the prepared cookie sheets, placing them 2 inches (5 cm) apart.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until just golden. Cool on the sheets until the cookies firm slightly. Transfer to racks to finish cooling. Dust with the confectioners' sugar.