Endive, Apple and Goat Cheese Salad

Salad:3 large endives, unblemished
1 medium Honey Crisp or Braeburn apple
3/4 cup walnut halves, toasted and roughly chopped
3oz goat cheese, crumbled

Apple-Cider Vinaigrette:
1/2 apple, cored and chopped
2 Tbs apple cider vinegar
2 tsp mustard
2 tsp honey
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup parsley leaves
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tsp lemon juice

For Salad, slice the endive in 1/2-1" pieces and put in a bowl of ice water for 5 min. Drain, sprin and throughly air-dry. Quater, core and thinly slice apple. Toss with lemon juice to prevent browning.

For vinegairette, put all ingredients except for the oil and lemon juice into a food processor or blender. Puree. Add oil slowly and allow to throughly blend. Just before serving, mix in lemon juice.

Toss endive, apple, goat cheese and walnuts with 4-6 Tbs of the dressing (or to taste) in a bowl.

{notes} This salad serves 4-6 people as a side. You can double the endive and apple to make it go further (with no need to increase the other ingredients). Add more dressing if you do that. The dressing makes a boat-load; several times what you actually need, so feel free to scale down. The recipe says you can keep the dressing up to 8 hours in the fridge, but I'd give it a week, probably.

Linda's Dill Pickles

several small cucumbers
bunch fresh dill
head of garlic, peeled
black peppercorns (optional)
dried chilis (optional)

6 cups water
2 cups white vinegar
1/2 cup pickling salt

quart mason jars with lids, sterilized

Thoroughly clean cucumbers, cutting off ends and any bruises.

Combine water, vinegar and salt. Bring to a boil.

In each hot jar, place a clove of garlic, a handful of dill, peppercorns and chili (if using). Pack each tightly with cucumbers and then ladle the vinegar mixture into the jars leaving 1/2" headspace. Put lids and rings on, gently tightening.

Place filled jars into a (boiling) waterbath canner and return to a boil. Keep jars submerged in boiling water for 5 minutes before carefully lifting them out and setting them on the counter to cool for 24 hours. Allow the cucumbers to brine for at least 2 months before opening.

Double or triple the brine as needed to accommodate the number of cucumbers you have.

Broccoli and Tortellni Salad

6 slices of bacon
20oz fresh cheese tortellini
1/2 cup mayo
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tsp cider vinegar
3 heads fresh broccoli, cut into florets
1 cup raisins
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 red onion, finely chopped

Cook bacon, drain, crumble and set aside.

Cook tortellini in lightly salted water for 8-10 min or until al dente. Drain and rinse under cold water.

In a small bowl, combine mayo, sugar and vinegar to make dressing.

In a large bowl, combine broccoli, tortellini, bacon, raisins, sunflower seeds and red onion. Pour dressing over salad and toss.

Morning Glory Muffins

½ cup (3 ounces) raisins or dried cranberries
2 cups (8 ounces) whole-wheat flour, traditional or white whole wheat
1 cup (7½ ounces) packed light or dark brown sugar (see note)
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp salt
2 cups (7 ounces) peeled and grated carrots
1 large tart apple, peeled, cored and grated
½ cup (1½ ounces) sweetened coconut (see note)
½ cup (1½ ounces) sliced almonds or chopped walnuts
⅓ cup (1⅝ ounces) sunflower seeds or wheat germ (optional)
3 large eggs
⅔ cup (4⅝ounces) vegetable oil
¼ cup (2 ounces) orange juice
2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease a muffin tin or line with papers and coat the papers with nonstick spray.Put the raisins in a small bowl and cover them with hot water; set aside to soak while you assemble the rest of the recipe.Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, spices and salt in a large mixing bowl.Stir in the carrots, apple, coconut, nuts and sunflower seeds (or wheat germ, if using).In a separate bowl, beat together the eggs, oil, orange juice and vanilla.Add to the flour mixture, and stir until evenly moistened. Drain the raisins and stir them in.Scoop the batter evenly into the prepared pan (the muffin cups will be almost full to the top—that's OK).Bake the muffins until nicely domed and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 28 minutes.Remove from the oven and allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn them out onto a rack to finish cooling.
 
NOTE: When I made these, I used half the amount of sugar called for and unsweetened coconut and I thought they were great. I think they'd be rather sweet for breakfast made with full sugar, but do as you please.

Alton Brown's Guacamole

3 avocados, smashed
1 lime, juiced
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
2 roma tomatoes w/o seeds, finely chopped
1 Tbsp finely chopped cilantro
1 clove garlic minced

Combine and enjoy.

Greek Style Garbanzo Salad

1.5 cups cooked garbanzo beans (1 can), drained
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
1/2 cup chopped tomato
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
3 Tbs rice vinegar or ceider vinegar
2 Tbs lemon juice
2 tsp olive oil
2 Tbs minced garlic
2 Tbs chopped fresh parsley
Salt and Pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients. Let marinate at room temperature or several hours, then refrigerate.

5 servings
130 cal (35 cal from fat)

4g fat
1g saturated fat
0g trans fat
0mg cholesterol
65mg sodium
19g carbohydrates
4g fiber
4g sugar
5g protein

6% vit A
35% vit C
4% calcium
10% iron

Curried Couscous

time: 15 min
servings: 4
skill level: easy

1 ½ cups couscous
3 cups chicken stock
1 Tbs curry powder
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp salt (or to taste)
1 tsp pepper (or to taste)
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
½ cup raisins
3-4 cups frozen mixed vegetables
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
½ cup slivered almonds, toasted

Bring everything except for the cilantro and almonds to a boil in a large pot. Cover, remove from heat and let sit for 10 min. Add cilantro and almonds, fluff with a fork.

Broccoli Crunch

4 -5 cups tiny broccoli florets (and chopped stalks if you like)

1 garlic clove, smashed and chopped
scant 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1/4 cup almond butter
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon honey
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons hot water

2 small crisp apples, cut into bit-sized pieces (if you aren't going to use the apples immediately, let them sit in a bowl of water with the juice of 1/2 a lemon)

1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup toasted or candied walnuts or almonds
1/3 cup pan-fried crunchy shallots *(see note)
chives (optional)

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil and salt as you would pasta water. Boil the broccoli just long enough to take the raw edge of - 10 or 15 seconds. Drain and immerse it in cold water (or let cold water run over it). At this point, I like to spin the broccoli in a salad spinner to get the water off, but a few good knocks against the sink in a strainer can do the trick pretty well. Set aside.

Make the dressing by sprinkling the salt over the clove of garlic. Smash the clove and chop, smash and chop - turning it into a paste. In a small bowl whisk the salty garlic paste with the almond butter, lemon juice, honey and olive oil. Add the hot water and whisk until light and creamy. Taste, make any adjustments and set aside.

In a large bowl gently toss the broccoli, apples, red onion, most of the shallots and nuts with a generous drizzle of the almond dressing. Turn out onto a platter and finish with the rest of the shallots and chives if you like. Serve family style.

Serves 4.

*Stir together the shallots, a splash of clarified butter (or olive oil) and big pinch of salt In a large skillet over medium heat. Stir every few minutes, you want the shallots to slowly brown over about fifteen minutes. Let them get dark, dark brown (but not burn), and if needed turn down the heat. Remove from skillet and onto a paper towel to cool in a single layer where they will crisp up a bit.

{From 101 Cookbooks}

Chile Pea Puffs

nonstick cooking spray (HS note: or a bit of olive oil)
2 cups cooked green peas, lightly mashed
1/2 cup crumbled paneer (or any cheese that crumples- I used feta)
2 small green serrano chiles, minced (remove seeds to reduce heat)
1/4 teaspoon salt to start
1/4 teaspoon red chile powder or red chile flakes (less to reduce heat)
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 pack medium wonton wrappers


Preheat oven to 400F degrees. Lightly grease a baking sheet with cooking spray (HS note: or line with parchment paper).

In a bowl combine the peas, paneer, green chiles, salt, chile powder, and garlic. Mix well.

Place one teaspoon of the mixture into a center of a wonton wrapper. Lightly brush the sides og the wrapper with water. Fold the wrapper over to form a triangle, or if you are using round wrappers, fold to form a half-moon. Press the edges firmly to secure the seam so the filling does not fall out.

Place the puffs in a single layer on the baking sheet. Spray them lightly with cooking spray. Cook for 7 to 8 minutes per side or until they are crisp and the skin changes to a lovely golden brown. Serve immediately with your choice of chutney.

Makes about 50

Note: these freeze well, so if you don't want 50 right now, freeze before spraying/baking.

Napa Cabbage Salad

Dressing
2 tbs lime juice
1 tbs tamari
1 tea olive or grape seed oil
1/2 tea grated, peeled fresh ginger
dash of ground red pepper

Slaw
4 cups (1/4 inch) slices napa cabbage
1/2 cup snow peas, trimmed and cut lengthwise into thin strips
1/2 cup fresh bean sprouts
1/2 cup julienne-cut peeled jicama
1/4 cup julienne-cut red bell pepper
2 tbs thinly sliced green onions
2 tbs finely chopped cilantro

Combine dressing ingredients, stir with whisk
Mix veggies and stir in dressing.  Chill 30 minutes

Alternate dressing
2 tea grated orange rind
3 tbs orange juice
1 tbs mirin or slightly sweet white wine (Riesling?)
1 tbs cilantro
1 tea minced, peeled fresh ginger
2 tea rice vinegar
1 1/2 tea dark sesame oil (I used grape seed oil because it's what I had.  walnut oil might not be bad either)
1 tea tamari
1/4 tea salt.

Note: My personal favorite of the dressings is the alternate one. I also just rounded up on the veggies because I don't like having half a pepper left or whatever. You can always make more dressing, if you need to.

Garlic Roasted Broccoli

1.5 pounds broccoli, cut into bite-sized pieces
8 cloves fresh garlic, coarsely chopped
2-3 T olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450. Toss broccoli with garlic, oil and sesonings. Spread on a baking sheet. Bake for 20-30 min, or until broccoli is just starting to brown. Serves 4


Nutritional Information:
Serving Size 186 g

Calories 156
Calories from Fat 97

Total Fat 10.8g 17%
Saturated Fat 1.4g 7%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 57mg 2%
Total Carbohydrates 13.3g 4%
Dietary Fiber 4.5g 18%
Sugars 3.0g
Protein 5.2g
Vitamin A 22% • Vitamin C 256%
Calcium 9% • Iron 8%
Nutrition Grade A