Brazilian Rice

This recipe comes from my next-door neighbor and good friend Kim, who is a fantastic cook. It is delicious!

Ingredients:
• 1 c. milk
• 4 eggs, beaten well (can use Eggbeaters instead)
• 1 pinch each thyme, marjoram
• 2 Tbsp. instant minced onion
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 lb. grated sharp Cheddar cheese
• 1 10 oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach, cooked and drained (or 2 bunches fresh, cooked & chopped)
• 4 c. cooked rice
• 4 Tbsp. melted butter

Directions:
Add milk to eggs; add seasonings. Add cheese, spinach and rice. Mix well and put in a greased 3 qt. casserole. May refrigerate up to 24 hours at this point. When ready to bake, bring to room temperature, put butter on top and bake in preheated 375 degree oven for 35-40 minutes. Serves approx. 6.

TIPS: For parties, holidays, etc., you can make a double batch and bake it in a 9x13 baking dish.

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Sukiyaki

Growing up, my parents enjoyed experimenting with recipes from different cultures. I didn't always appreciate it as a kid, but I know now how lucky I was to have the opportunity to experience so many different types of food. One of my parents' favorite recipes was this one for Sukiyaki. I have only slightly adapted the original recipe, which comes from my mother's "Chopstick Cookery" cookbook, by West Bend, copyright 1971! The original recipe calls for 1 tsp. msg, which I omitted, and I have also decreased both the amount of oil used and the amount of sodium.

Ingredients:

• 2-3 tbs. vegetable oil

• 1 pound tenderloin, sirloin, or tenderized round steak; cut into diagonal strips 1/4 inch by 2 inches (I used tenderloin, and it was great)

• 1/2 pound washed fresh sliced mushrooms (about 4 cups)

• 1 cup diagonally sliced celery into 1/2 inch strips

• 1 medium sized spanish onion, sliced diagonally (you can use more onion if you like)

• 1/2 head chinese or celery cabbage, cut into 1/2 inch diagonal slices (we used regular green cabbage and loved it)

• 1 10-12 ounce can bamboo shoots, drained

• 2 6 ounce cans water chestnuts, drained and thinly sliced

• 1/2 cup reduced sodium chicken broth

• 1 green pepper, sliced into thin strips

• 1 tbs. brown sugar

• 1/2 tsp. salt

• 1/2 cup Bragg liquid aminos, or reduced sodium soy sauce

• 3 cups raw spinach leaves, torn in large pieces

Directions:
1. Pour oil into wok. Preheat, uncovered, for 4 minutes at 375 degrees. (Make sure everything is sliced and measured before starting.)
2. Place meat into the hot oil and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Push up the side.
3. Add mushrooms and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Push up the side.
4. Add celery and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Push up the side.
5. Add onions and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Push up the side.
6. Add cabbage and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Push up the side.
7. Add bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, and chicken broth. Stir once on cook for 2 minutes. Push up the side.
8. Add green pepper, brown sugar, salt and liquid aminos. Stir once and cook for 30 seconds. Push up the side.
9. Sprinkle spinach over the top of all ingredients in wok, cover and simmer for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to warm. Gently stir all ingredients together and serve immediately with hot steamed rice, brown rice, or chow mein noodles. makes 6 to 8 servings.
TIPS: This recipe involves a lot of slicing of vegetables, so if you are in a hurry, you may want to buy as much of it pre-sliced as possible. We prepared the meal as a family with everyone helping to slice the veggies, and we had a great time. Next time, I will be sure to take some pictures to share. I hope you will enjoy this as much as we did.

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Another Great Dessert Recipe

Can you tell that my sweet tooth has been acting up lately?

Lemon Sorbet Dessert Rolls*

Ingredients:
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 pint of lemon sorbet, slightly softened
Directions:
Heat oven to 375. Line jelly roll pan with foil and grease generously. Beat eggs on high speed until very thick and lemon colored, about 5 minutes. Gradually beat in sugar. Beat in water and vanilla on low speed. Gradually add flour, baking powder and salt, beating just until batter is smooth. Pour into prepared pan.

Bake until wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean, 12 to 15 minutes. Immediately loosen cake from the edges of the pan; invert on a towel generously sprinkled with powdered sugar. Carefully remove foil. Trim off stiff edges of cake if necessary. While hot, carefully roll cake and towel from narrow end. Cool on wire rack at least 30 minutes. Unroll cake and remove towel. Spread with one pint of lemon sorbet, slightly softened. Roll up in plastic wrap and freeze until firm, at least 4 hours.

TIPS: You can really use any can of ice cream or sorbet you like. If you love chocolate, beat in 1/4 cup cocoa with the flour and use chocolate ice cream, or chocolate chip mint, or chocolate fudge brownie...you get the picture!

*Adapted from Betty Crocker's Cookbook - my go to cookbook for just about everything!

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A Versatile (and Easy!) Dough Recipe

Ingredients:
• 1 1/4 cups water
• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/4 cup cornmeal
• 3 Tbs. whole wheat flour
• 3 cups white flour
• 1 tbs. yeast

Directions:
Put the ingredients in the order listed above into a bread machine. Use the dough setting on your machine. After removing, let the dough rest for about 10 minutes. You may need to add a little flour as you roll it out as it can be a little sticky.

TIPS: Use this versatile dough for pizza, calzone, pocket sandwiches, breadsticks...you name it! Roll the dough thin as it rises quite well. For extra flavor, add some of your favorite spices - I like to mix in some garlic powder and basil. This dough also refrigerates and freezes well. The picture above is a very simple pizza I made from half of the dough, using olive oil, cheese and some wonderful nitrite free pepperoni I found at our local New Seasons market. This is a favorite of my girls. The pizza measures about 13 inches in diameter and the crust turned out nice and thin. I will probably use the other half of the dough to make some pocket sandwiches for their lunches, which saves me some time in the morning.

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Cinnamon Chip Cookies

Now that the busy holiday season has passed, I am again finding time to sit down and share some of my favorite recipes. Throughout the month of December I did quite a bit of baking, as I'm sure many people did. These cookies were a big hit everywhere I took them, and I had many requests for the recipe, so here it is!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs
2 tsp. cream of tatar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 3/4 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tbsp. sugar
1/2 - 1 cup cinnamon chips

Directions:
Heat oven to 375. Mix thoroughly butter, shortening, 1 1/2 cups sugar and eggs. Blend in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Stir in cinnamon chips. Shape dough by rounded teaspoonfuls into balls. Mix 2 tablespoons sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon; roll balls in mixture. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake 8-10 minutes, or until set. Remove immediately.

TIPS: You can freeze these cookies after you have rolled them in the cinnamon-sugar mixture, then bake them in smaller batches when you need them. They are unbelievably good when they are fresh out of the oven, so beware!

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Cheesecake Cookies

Where have the last two weeks gone??? Life has been a little crazy, to say the least. But I think that things are settling down now...just in time for the holidays!! I am also feeling back to normal now that I have an oven again. I love the new oven, and I am having fun experimenting with the convection feature, which is something I have never had before. I am thinking that it will come in very handy for baking Christmas cookies! One of my favorite holiday recipes is one for cheesecake cookies. It's not one that I would put on a list of particularly healthy desserts, but I tend to relax a little bit around the holidays and just enjoy. This recipe was given to me many years ago when I was first married by a friend and neighbor of my in-laws.

Ingredients:

Crust:
• 3 oz. cream cheese
• 1 cube butter
• 1 cup flour

Filling:
• 8 oz. cream cheese
• 2 T. milk
• 1 T. lemon juice
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup sugar

Directions:

Crust: Mix ingredients well and divide into 24 balls. Press into the bottom and up the sides of a miniature muffin tin. Filling: Beat until smooth and put into crusts. Bake for 30 minutes at 350. Cool and top with your favorite jam.

TIPS: These may be made in advance and frozen without toppings.

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Stovetop Lasagna

You know how when the power goes out, you still find yourself trying to turn on the lights? That's kind of how it is when your oven suddenly goes out. Today I planned lasagna for dinner and didn't realize that I would need a working oven until I had already started making it. So...stovetop lasagna was born! Lasagna is one of those meals that I don't use a recipe for, so it is almost always different, and varies based on what I have on hand. This is the general outline of what I used tonight.

Ingredients:
• 1 lb. lean ground beef
• 1 lb. ground spicy italian sausage (not links)
• 2 tbs. minced garlic (or to taste)
• 1/2 cup chopped onion (or to taste) I actually used onion flakes because I didn't have an onion on hand, and that worked just fine
• 2-3 tbs chopped sun-dried tomatoes
• 1 jar low-salt marinara sauce (I like "Trader Giotto's" Organic Marinara Sauce from Trader Joe's)
• Lasagna noodles (any kind)
• 1/2 cup chopped carrots
• 1 cup chopped fresh spinach
• 1/2 cup low fat ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup low fat grated mozzarella cheese
• 1 tsp. basil
• 1 tsp. granulated garlic

Directions:
Cook the ground beef and ground sausage with the onion and garlic in a large skillet or saucepan over medium heat. At the same time, cook the lasagna noodles in a separate pot and drain when done. When the meat is cooked through, drain and return to the pan. Add the jar of marinara sauce and a little bit of water (I put some water in the jar when it is almost empty to get out the last bit of sauce and add that). Add the sundried tomatoes, carrots and spinach and simmer over low heat for 1/2 hour or so. Place another large skillet on the stove and put approximately 1/3 of the sauce mixture in the bottom. Top with a single layer of the noodles. Mix the ricotta cheese with the basil and granulated garlic and spread 1/2 of the mixture on top of the noodles. Top with half of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat with another layer of sauce, noodles and cheese and finish with the last 1/3 of the sauce. Cover and cook over low heat until heated through, approx 20 minutes.

TIPS: Remember that all of the amounts are approximate. You can adjust any of it to suit your own taste. Oh, and I found that using a large nylon spoon was the best way to get servings out of the pan.

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