Gail’s New Recipes

This makes a nice breakfast or brunch dish, and children especially love it. Heat a small amount of oil in a skillet. (Water-saute’ if oil must be avoided.) Add mushroom and cook 1-2 minutes. Next add the carrots and corn and finally the scallions. Crumble tofu over vegetables. Reduce flame and simmer for 5 minutes. Season with shoyu to taste or chopped umeboshi plum. Simmer again 3-4 minutes and serve.

Chicken and Egg on Rice

10.5 oz. skinned and boned chicken breast
4 eggs
4 dried shiitake mushrooms
1 onion

Simmering Sauce:
1/2 C water used to soak mushrooms
3 T soy sauce
2 T mirin

5 C cooked rice

Cut the chicken breast diagonally into thin slices. Soak dried shiitake mushrooms in lukewarm water until soft. Cut off hard stems and cut into halves or slice. Cut onion into thin slices.
In 10 in. skillet, mix all simmering sauce ingredients; bring to a boil. Add chicken, mushrooms and onion and cook over moderate heat, 2 – 3 minutes or until chicken is done and onion is tender.
Beat eggs in a small bowl; pour over the chicken and cover with a lid. Cook until the egg is set, about 1 minute over low heat.
To serve, put about 1 1/4 C cooked rice in a large deep bowl and gently lay 1/4 portion of chicken and egg on top of rice. Pour simmering sauce over. Serve immediately or cover with lid.

Marinated Wakame Seaweed with Tofu

Ingredients:

1 cup soaked wakame seaweed
1 tablespoon soy sauce
3/4 teaspoon rice vinegar
1/2 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1/2 tablespoon mirin or 1 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped scallions, plus more for garnishing
1 block silken tofu, cubed
Toasted sesame seeds, for garnishing
black pepper to taste

Combine the soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, mirin (or sugar), and chopped scallions in a small bowl, reserving 1/4 for the tofu.

Drain and toss with the soy sauce dressing. Marinate for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator.

When ready to serve, place the tofu on top of the seaweed and pour the rest of the dressing on top. Garnish with more scallions and toasted sesame seeds. Season with black pepper to taste. Toss all ingredients together.

Olive Oil Roasted Eggplant with Lemon

Quick and easy eggplant slices are roasted in the oven with olive oil and lemon to garnish. Since you don’t have a baking sheet, use cast iron pans.

Ingredients

1 large eggplant
1.5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice or to taste

Directions:

Step 1
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or lightly grease.

Step 2
Slice the eggplant in half lengthwise, then cut each half into quarters lengthwise. Cut each of those in half to make two shorter quarters. Place the eggplant onto the baking sheet with the skin side down. Brush each piece with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Step 3
Roast in the preheated oven until softened and golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with lemon juice. Serve hot.

If you want to get fancy, here’s what to do next, to make a Russian favorite called Eggplant Caviar:

Eggplant Caviar (Russian dish)

Ingredients:

1 large eggplant already baked as in Olive Oil Roasted Eggplant With Lemon
1 onion or half an onion
1 tomato or 1 small can of tomato paste
1 green pepper, chopped very fine
1 tsp. vinegar or lemon juice
1/2 tbsp. (or more if needed) olive or vegetable oil
1 tsp. powdered sugar
salt and pepper according to taste

When the baked eggplant has cooled, skin it and chop very fine. Chop onion and pepper and brown them slightly in 1/2 tbsp. of oil. Add tomato (or paste) and simmer for 3-5 minutes. Add vinegar (or lemon juice), sugar, salt, pepper and chopped eggplant. Cook very slowly for 20-30 minutes adding a little more oil if necessary, to prevent browning.

Remove from heat and cool. Serve thoroughly chilled as an appetizer with thin slices of pumpernickel bread and fresh unsalted butter.

Nasu Dengaku (Japanese Eggplant)

This is an absolutely delicious recipe that uses miso paste to create a flavorful and creamy glaze for eggplant. Serve with sushi rice. Adapted from World Vegetarian Classics.

Ingredients

1 eggplant, sliced in half length-wise
3 oz (block) tofu, drained and cubed
2 T miso paste
2 egg yolks (beaten)
1 T sugar (sorbitol sugar substitute also works great)
2 T mirin
1 tsp. roasted sesame oil
green onions, chopped finely
toasted sesame seeds (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 200C or 392F, and score eggplants in a diagonal grid pattern.

Brush a foil-covered baking tray with extra virgin olive oil, arrange eggplants skin-down, and brush eggplants with olive oil.

Bake eggplant 30 minutes, until tender but still firm. Add tofu and cook for another 5 minutes.

Combine miso, egg yolks, sugar, mirin in a small saucepan, and cook over low heat, stirring constantly. Towards end of cooking, add in sesame oil. The glaze is done when it is thick and smooth – do not overheat or it will curdle.

Preheat grill (broiler) to the highest setting. Spread glaze on top of eggplants and tofu, and good 4-5 minutes until glaze is puffed and browned. Sprinkle with green onions and sesame seeds.

GARLIC INFUSED OIL

INGREDIENTS:

1/3 cups (480 ml) extra virgin olive oil, pure olive oil or vegetable oil such as canola, grapeseed, rice bran, safflower or sunflower
1 large clove of fresh garlic, peeled, whole or halved

PREPARATION:

Have ready a glass storage bottle, container or jar with an airtight lid. Rinse with boiling water and dry thoroughly; set aside.

You have your choice of oil: grapeseed, olive oil, light oil, vegetable oil, etc.

Pour oil in a small sized non-reactive pot and heat over low heat just until just warm to the touch, then remove from heat. It is important not to overheat the oil as its flavor and integrity will degrade. No need to use a thermometer, just go by touch and only heat the oil until it is warm, not hot.

Use your knife to half the cloves, then smash the cloves first inside their skin, then peel them. Do NOT chop off the ends. For a more subtle garlic flavor, leave the cloves whole; for more potent garlic flavor halve the cloves Add garlic to oil, off the heat, and allow to sit for about 2 hours. Strain into the clean jar, making sure to remove all of the garlic pieces; we like to line a fine wire-meshed strainer with cheesecloth to catch any garlic pieces. Seal jars and store in refrigerator, using within 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months for safety (see headnote and TIPS below).

Can Garlic-Infused Oil Be Frozen?

A few community members asked if the oil could be frozen and we were fascinated by the idea!

I reached out to Linda Harris, the Department Chair at University of California, Davis, for Food Science and Technology. She said that the oil could be safely frozen “indefinitely”. I tried to pin her down to length of time and she clarified that this was from a safety perspective and not a taste perspective.

So, the answer is YES you can freeze the oil, which means you can make larger batches and have them in the freezer available for you whenever you need it! Of course, we are concerned with flavor as well. We suggest freezing some for a month, tasting it, and see it the flavor is to your liking.

If it is, try pushing it and try 3 months the next time! And we would love to hear about your experiences, as well.

The freezing does not affect the FODMAP aspect and the recipe remains a low FODMAP recipe per Monash University recommendations.

How to Freeze Garlic-Infused Oil

Now that we know we can freeze our garlic-infused oil, what is the best way to accomplish this? Of course you have to use freezer safe containers to start, but that still leaves a variety of approaches.

We certainly think freezing in very user-friendly portions is the way to go. You can try freezing in ice cube trays and once frozen, transfer the cubes to a large airtight container or heavy zip top bag. This is great for individual (or close to it) servings.

Or, find jars that allow you to pour the oil easily once defrosted and use up within 3 days, during which you would keep it refrigerated.

KOMBU SEAWEED CHIPS

Serving size 2~3 person

Ingredients:

Used kombu after making dashi stock 1 oz (30g)

Direction

Cut used kombu into inch size
Wipe all the unnecessary water on kombu with paper towel
Place kombu seaweed on microwavable flat plate
Microwave for 3-4 minutes at regular microwave setting in U.S.

This was okay, but the chips were still chewy. But good enough, that I finished the entire plate. Next time, I will try one of the following methods:

As possible, separate the fronds to facilitate even toasting, and as necessary, cut or tear into bite-size pieces. Toast as much seaweed as you’ll eat in a week or so or as oven space allows.

Long Toasting: Turn on the oven light, pilot light or (if your oven is so equipped) bread proofing cycle. Or place in a box-style dehydrator heated to 100 to 200°F. Arrange the seaweed in a thin layer on a baking sheet and crisp for 8 to 24 hours. The time depends upon what temperature you use, the moisture content and thickness of the seaweed. There’s no need to turn them. Don’t worry; you won’t burn it, and prolonged crisping won’t lower the quality of the food. Taste periodically, and when the sea vegetable is both crisp and tender, it’s ready. If it’s chewy, it needs additional time. Store crisped sea chips in a tightly stored container and they’ll retain their texture for a week or so.

Quick Roasting: Roast for 3 to 5 minutes at 300°F; pan-fry in oil for 4 to 5 minutes, until crisp; or dry roast in a skillet over low heat until crisp. Watch closely and turn as necessary.

Optional: After crisping, and just before serving, you may brush or spritz the chips with extra virgin olive oil and dust with a dash of cayenne.

KELP DASHI STOCK

The most distinctive thing in Japanese cooking is the use of giant kombu (kelp), dried bonito flakes, dried sardines including instant mixes as a basic soup stock. Here is the kelp version. Wipe about a 6 inch square of kelp with a damp cloth (do not wash, or much of the flavor will be lost), soak in 4 cups of water, and let sit for an hour. Heat to the boiling point, but remove the kelp just before the water actually boils. You can use the cooked kelp for other recipes. Your dashi stock is done. Leftover dashi stock may be stored in the refrigerator for 2 – 3 days or may be frozen.

Lemon Vinaigrette

NGREDIENTS
⅓ cup garlic-infused olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
½ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon salt

INSTRUCTIONS:

Whisk together all ingredients in a small bowl. Or, shake in a sealed mason jar.

Serve or store.

Storage: Refrigerate in an airtight container for use within 1 week. Whisk or shake to re-emulsify before use.

NOTES:

Low FODMAP Serving: One serving (about 2 tablespoons) of this recipe contains low FODMAP amounts of ingredients. Individual tolerance may vary.

Dill Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Ingredients:

2 large sweet potatoes
4 stalks green onions chopped
2 Tbsp garlic infused olive oil
1/4 tsp each sea salt and pepper
1 large bunch fresh dill (lightly chopped // 1 large bunch yields ~1/2 cup) or 1/8 C dried dill

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil. Lightly spray with non-stick spray.

Rinse and scrub sweet potatoes and remove any dark spots. Then dice into 1-inch cubes and add to a large mixing bowl.

Chop green onions and add to the bowl as well. Add garlic infused olive oil and toss. Then season with salt, pepper and dill and toss again until well coated. Add to baking sheet in a single layer (use more baking sheets, as needed, if increasing batch size).

Bake for 45-50 minutes or until soft and potatoes slide off a knife or fork with ease. Remove from oven and serve immediately. I added mine over a bed of fresh spinach and topped it with bleu cheese and toasted walnuts for a comforting warm salad. Will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for several days, or in the freezer for a month.

Chicken Stock/Soup/Broth

Ingredients:

3 pounds chicken wings (can also use thighs or other pieces)
1 tbsp. black peppercorns
1 tbsp. kosher salt
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. parsley

6-8 cups of water depending on the size of your slow-cooker (will fill it within an inch of the top)

Add any other low-FODMAP seasonings you prefer (rosemary, sage, dill)

Directions for the low-FODMAP Chicken Broth:

Place chicken pieces in slow-cooker

Add enough water to cover with about 1/2 inch room at the top

Add seasonings

Cook on low in Crock-Pot® for about 12 to 15 hours (or overnight is good)

Strain chicken pieces and discard (they really don’t taste good after soaking so long)

Stock may be used immediately or frozen in individual serving sizes

Simple Low Calorie Hot Chocolate

A simple and low calorie low FODMAP hot chocolate. Low FODMAP, gluten-free, and vegan option.

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup milk (lactose-free cows milk or soy protein soy milk)
2 tsp white sugar
2 tsp cocoa powder

INSTRUCTIONS:
Pour 2 tablespoons of the milk into a saucepan. Heat on low and mix in sugar and cocoa. Stir until there are no lumps of cocoa.

Pour in the rest of the milk. Heat on medium-low until the hot chocolate is heated to your preferred temperature. Pour into a mug and enjoy!

RECIPE NOTES:

There are multiple milk options. I prefer lactose-free cows milk.

If you use soy milk, make sure to use one made with soy protein, not soy beans, to keep the FODMAPs low. Almond milk is another option. Coconut milk is only low FODMAP at 1/2 cup.

Cocoa powder is only low FODMAP at 2 heaped teaspoons per serving.

If you use an artificial sweetener instead of sugar, make sure to check the ingredients lists, since some have added sugar alcohols (in particular some stevia blends). It’s best to consume artificial sweeteners in moderation, even if they are low FODMAP.

Smoky Collards With Chickpeas Recipe

Total Time: 25 min
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 10 min
Servings: 4 (3/4 cup each)

Like kale, collards are near the top of the list when it comes to nutrient-rich greens, but many of us have never learned to like them. We’ve created a recipe that will make you want seconds! Blanching the greens before sautéing reduces some of their bitterness, while bacon and smoked paprika contribute rich flavor. Add some variety to your low-FODMAP vegetable rotation with these greens.

Ingredients:
2 1/4 teaspoons salt (divided)
1 pound collard greens
2 tablespoons garlic-infused olive oil
2 ounces sliced Canadian bacon (finely diced)
2/3 cup scallions (green part only)
1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup low-sodium canned chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
6 tablespoons water

Preparation:

In a stockpot or Dutch oven, bring 3 quarts of water and 2 teaspoons of salt to a boil.

While water is heating, trim collard greens. Where the rib is more than 1/8-inch thick, trim closely and discard the rib. Stack several leaves together and slice them crosswise into half-inch slices. Wash and drain the leaves, and submerge them in the boiling water. Cook for two minutes, stirring a couple times. Drain the leaves in a colander.

Return the pot to the stove and heat on medium-high. When the pan is hot, add garlic-infused oil, swirling the pan to coat it with oil. Add the diced bacon and cook until crisp and brown, about one minute.

Add collards, scallions, ¼ teaspoon of salt, smoked paprika, and pepper. Sauté for two minutes.

Add chickpeas and water. Lower the heat to medium, cover and cook until leaves are tender but slightly chewy, about three minutes.

Remove cover; if any liquid remains, turn the heat back up to medium-high and cook with occasional stirring until liquid is evaporated.

Ingredient Variations and Substitutions

Canadian bacon is also known as “back bacon.” You can use diced regular bacon, ham, or pancetta instead of Canadian bacon.

To make this recipe vegetarian, omit the bacon and increase the smoked paprika to 2 teaspoons.

Cooking and Serving Tips

Turn this side dish into a filling meal: serve it on top of cooked rice, quinoa, millet, buckwheat groats, teff, or millet. These are all low-FODMAP grains you can enjoy without triggering symptoms.

Easy Liver and Green Onions

Ingredients:

1 C chopped up beef liver
1/4 C chopped green onions
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 to 1 tbsp. olive oil or butter (add more if liver sticks too much to the pan)

Heat skillet over medium heat. Add oil or butter and coat pan. Add liver, green onions, lemon juice and start stir-frying.

While cooking, add salt and pepper to taste.

Cook until the liver is still pink on the inside, but cooked.

Overcooking liver ruins this dish. Liver tastes horrible leftover, so only make enough for your current meal. That’s why I don’t cook much liver for this recipe. I absolutely enjoy liver this way and it’s great for my anemia diet, cuz it’s so easy to prepare.

Shepherd’s Pie (Iron-rich version)

This is a version to maximize absorption of iron from the ground beef, so I’ve omitted dairy from the recipe, though not sure about the corn, but hell, I got to enjoy my food!

First make dill mashed potatoes as follows:

2 teaspoons butter
3 tablespoons homemade low-FODMAP chicken stock (see above)
4 medium baking potatoes, cut into eighths (leave skins on for nutrition and iron)
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/3 C homemade chicken stock (may use less to keep potatoes from becoming too watery)
chicken stock also used to boil potatoes
1/2 tsp. dried dill

Place stock and butter in a medium bowl. Cook scrubbed potatoes whole in boiling water/chicken stock to cover, 35 minutes or until tender. Drain

Mash with stock and butter in the bowl.

Stir in remaining ingredients.

Now make the Shepherd’s Pie:

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
Olive oil (1 to 2 tsp.) or 2 tsp. garlic infused olive oil
1 medium onion or 5 green onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped or 2 tsp. garlic infused olive oil, if omitting garlic (see olive oil above)
dill mashed potatoes (see above)
2 cups corn (to cover the meat)
salt and pepper and dill to taste

Directions
In a frying pan that can go in the oven, saute the onions and the garlic in olive oil until wilted, remove. Skip sautéing the onions and garlic and just add the oil if using garlic infused olive oil. Add the beef to the pan and cook it until done. Remove the fat. Return the onions and the garlic (if using onions and garlic), add salt, pepper and dill, and stir evenly.

Cover the whole thing with corn. Spread the hot mashed potatoes on top of the corn, making grooves.

Set in the oven about 1 hour at 300 degrees F or until the potatoes are all brown and crispy all around the rim.

We use an iron frying pan and it’s just great. You can also use a glass baking casserole and cover with foil to bake. The longer you leave it in the oven, the better because all the flavors marry and it is just nice. You can lower the heat in order to leave it in longer.

Stir-Fried Chicken & Vegetables With Rice Pasta

INGREDIENTS:
About 3 cooked chicken thighs/legs, with meat taken off the bone, sliced thinly or in stir-fry size pieces. Leftovers from lemon chicken is great.
1/4 head green cabbage (1/2 head if cabbage is small), cut into long shreds
3 oz. cooked rice noodles (slightly undercooked, cuz they’ll cook more during frying)
2 cups matchstick carrots
3/4 cup of broccoli florets (can use frozen)
1 red bell pepper, stem and seeds removed, and sliced very thin
5 green onions, chopped
3 shiitake mushrooms (rehydrated from dry), stem removed and sliced (save water soaked in for stock)
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
1/2 tbsp. garlic infused olive oil
1/4 cup chicken broth OR 1/4 cup shiitake mushroom water
1 tsp. toasted sesame seeds (optional)

FOR THE SAUCE:
1/8 tsp. ginger powder or just a tad
1 tbsp. corn starch
1/8 C soy sauce
1/8 C shiitake mushroom water
A tad of sesame seed oil
A tad of garlic infused olive oil
1/2 tbsp. mirin
1/4 C chicken stock

INSTRUCTIONS:

Combine all of the sauce ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine. Set aside.

In a large skillet or wok, heat 1/2 tbsp. garlic infused olive oil and 1/2 to 1 tbsp. sesame oil over medium-high heat.

Season the chicken with salt and pepper, and sear on both sides in the oil until golden brown and cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. Using tongs, transfer the cooked chicken onto a plate and set aside.

Add the bell pepper, green onion and broccoli to the skillet and saute for 4 minutes (if for some reason your skillet is looking dry after cooking your chicken, add shiitake mushroom water).

Add in the cabbage, rice pasta, carrots, and mushrooms into the skillet.

Season with a little salt and pepper and toss until veggie/pasta mixture is evenly combined, sauté cabbage until it slightly wilts, about 3 minutes.

Pour in chicken broth OR shiitake mushroom water and whisk the sauce once more and add the sauce. Toss until cabbage and pasta are fully coated and let cook until sauce thickens, about 4 more minutes.

Add chicken back into the dish, a tad of sesame oil, salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy!

Apples Cut (To Prevent Browning)

4-5 apples, cored and sliced
4 C cold water
1/2 tsp. salt

Dissolve the salt into the cold water and stir well. Add the apples and immerse them in the solution.

Soak apples for 5 minutes, then drain away the water. Do not rinse them. Package your apples into individual or one large airtight container then store in the refrigerator up to 5 days.

You can do this on a smaller scale with just one apple as well, just reduce the water and salt in half.

Macaroni-Beef Skillet Supper

1 1/2 C brown rice elbow macaroni
1 lb. lean ground beef
1/2 C diced green onions
2 tbsp. garlic infused oil
16 oz. can diced tomatoes (pureed in blender)
freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning

Cook the macaroni in boiling water according to package directions. Drain and set aside. Rinse with cold water and break apart any macaroni that is sticking together with your fingers.

Saute’ the meat, green onions in garlic oil until the meat loses its pink color, and the onions are tender. Add pepper, pureed tomatoes. worcestershire sauce and Italian seasoning.

Bring mixture to a boil, then simmer gently for about 5 minutes. Mix in the cooked macaroni and simmer for 5 more minutes.

Turmeric-Ginger Tea

Ingredients:
1 cup water
1/4 tsp. ginger powder
½ tsp. turmeric powder
2 1/2 tsp. sugar
Slice of lemon or lemon juice to taste
Pinch of black pepper
½ tsp. coconut oil

Directions:
In a small saucepan, bring water to a boil, add the ginger and turmeric root, then simmer for 10-15 minutes, then add sugar to taste and a wedge of lemon. Also add the coconut oil and the pinch of black pepper, both of which make the turmeric more easily absorbable and maximize its health benefits.

HOMEMADE MILD CURRY POWER

2 tsp. ground cumin
½ tsp. ground black pepper or ground coriander
2 tsp. ground turmeric
½ tsp. ground mustard
½ tsp. ground ginger

Mix and shake all together in an airtight jar.

CHICKEN CURRY

1 to 1¾ lbs. chicken thighs or cut-up broiler-fryer chicken or chicken breast with rib-meat
salt and pepper to taste
green onions (equivalent to 2 onions)
7.5 oz. canned diced tomatoes drained (about the size of one tomato) or 1 tomato
coconut oil (1 tsp.)
1 C water
½ C plain kefir
1.5 tbsp. homemade mild curry powder (SEE ABOVE)
1/2 to 1 tsp. garlic oil

Cut chicken into serving size; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Set aside. Chop tomato coarsely (if using tomato instead of canned tomato).

Heat coconut oil in large skillet or Dutch oven and add garlic oil and green onions. Saute’ until green onions are done.

Add chicken and reduce heat to medium low; cover with a lid and cook chicken until half done.

Add homemade mild curry powder and chopped tomato; stir and continue to cook adding 1 C water. Cook 1 hour over low heat. Add more water if necessary and add kefir during the simmering process, stirring constantly.

Pour the chicken curry in a large serving bowl and serve with cooked rice.

Chicken with Wine and Potatoes

Ingredients
• Olive oil, for the pan
• 6–8 chicken thighs, boneless and skinless
• 2 tbsp butter (vegan butter for dairy free)
• 1/3 cup diced onion or green onions
• 3–4 garlic cloves, minced (use garlic oil in place of olive oil)
• 4 large carrots, roughly chopped
• 6 small-medium yellow or red potatoes (this was just under 1 lb for me), cubed
• 1/3 cup dry white wine
• 3/4 cup veggie or chicken broth, if you don’t have plain kefir in place of cream, increase broth by ¼ C)
• 1/4 cup heavy cream (for dairy free, sub a PLAIN unsweetened dairy free creamer. omit if increasing broth)
• 1 tbsp tapioca or arrowroot starch (or cornstarch)
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 4–5 sprigs of fresh thyme, stems removed (omit)
• Sea salt and pepper, to taste
• Juice of 1/2 lemon

Instructions
1. Season the chicken thighs well with salt and pepper. Heat a 10-12 inch cast iron skillet over medium hear and grease with garlic infused olive oil. Once hot, add the chicken thighs and cook for 6-7 minutes per side, until cooked through. Set aside on a plate or cutting board.
2. Add the 2 tbsp of butter to the pan. Once melted, slightly reduce heat and add onions, garlic (if using) carrots, and potatoes. Season with salt and pepper and give everything a good stir to coat. Allow to cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. While cooking, roughly chop the chicken thighs into more bite-sized pieces.
3. Add the wine and allow to cook down for 2 minutes, then stir in the broth, heavy cream (increase broth if no cream), and corn starch. Stir until the corn starch is mixed in well.
4. Add the chicken thigh pieces back to the pan along with the Italian seasoning and thyme (if using). Stir everything well, then reduce heat to a low simmer. Cover the pan with a lid for 20-25 minutes, until veggies are fork tender. Squeeze lemon juice over everything and serve!

Mamma Gail’s Southern Fried Chicken

About 4 to 6 chicken legs and thighs, six, if you’re using more legs than thighs (with skin)
garlic salt
Old Bay seasoning
salt
pepper

Marinate the chicken with the above ingredients for 1 hour, just sprinkle it all over the chicken.

1 cup flour
2.5 tbsp. Old Bay seasoning
½ tbsp. dill
½ tsp. pepper
1 tbsp. smoked paprika
½ tbsp. Italian seasoning

Shake all the ingredients in a jar with lid and then transfer shaked powder to a bag to put all above ingredients in, then add chicken pieces, a few at a time and shake chicken in the ziploc bag. Leave some air in the zippered bag, to help the coating get all over the chicken as you shake it.

Canola vegetable oil, about 3.5 cups or enough to have 1.5 inches in the pan (save this for your next batch)
some butter
If you have old fried chicken oil, add some in

Heat canola oil, add a bit of butter for browning. Also, remember to add in some old fried chicken oil, if you have it. You want the oil pretty hot. Heat up on high, then lower temperature to 5. Drop a piece of bread into the oil and when it browns nicely, you are ready. Lie and drop coated chicken into the pan, skin side down. Fry for 10 to 15 minutes, when it is brown and crispy on the edges, turn it over and COVER. Keep the heat high. After 10 minutes covered, you take cover off.

Turn chicken pieces over again. Cook for about 2 to 5 minutes more, then DONE. Drain on paper towels or on wire racks. I plan to use a colander over the sink. Remember to save the oil for next time.

When it’s time to throw out the oil, large amounts of oil must be disposed of inside a closed container (jar, sealed milk carton, etc.) that won’t leak oil and then placed in the trash. Do NOT dispose of large amounts of oil down the drain, because it will mess up your plumbing.

Chad’s Chili Recipe

(named in honor of my Patreon supporter who gave me the recipe)

4 C water
2 8 oz. cans tomato sauce
2 C chopped onions
2 T vinegar
2 T chili powder
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 oz. unsweetened chocolate
1 bay leaf
1 dried red chili pepper
2 lbs. lean ground beef
hot cooked spaghetti and/or rice

OPTIONAL:
cheddar cheese
kidney beans
fresh sliced onions

In 4 quart Dutch oven, combine water, tomato sauce, onions, chili powder, vinegar, worcestershire, cinnamon, salt, cumin, all-spice, cloves, garlic powder, chocolate, bay leaf and dried red chili pepper. Bring to boil.

Crumble meat and add slowly to boiling liquid. Return to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer 2 to 3 hours, uncovered, till thickened as desired. Be suree to check the concoction to see when you want to remove the chili pepper so that the hotness will be what you desire. I remove it right after all the ingredients are added and the concoction has started simmering. Remove bay leaf at the end.

Serve over spaghetti and/or rice. Top with onion, cheddar cheese and/or kidney beans.

Makes 5 cups sauce.

Spaghetti Sauce Recipe

It’s freezer-friendly and can be easily doubled!

Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion, more if desired
1 pound lean ground beef, can sub for turkey or pork (or do half and half)
2-3 teaspoons minced garlic, more if desired
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon dried oregano, or 1 TB fresh
1 teaspoon Kosher salt, more if desired
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, more if desired
pinch red pepper flakes, optional
28 ounce can whole or diced tomatoes, I prefer San Marzano
1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar, or Worcestershire sauce
1 Tablespoon light brown sugar
Pasta water, as needed

For serving: Cooked spaghetti, parmesan cheese, basil

Instructions:
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until translucent. Add in the garlic and cook another minute. Then remove to a bowl. Next, brown the meat. Remove any extra grease and then add onions back in.

Add in the tomato paste and seasoning. Stir and cook a minute. Then pour in tomatoes, vinegar and brown sugar. Break down the tomatoes with the back of a wooden spoon (not necessary if using diced tomatoes). Bring to a simmer and then turn to low until ready to serve. Cover for 45 minutes, I like to let it simmer for about 30-60 minutes. The longer the better. Last 15 minutes, add 1/4-1/2 cup pasta water if desired to thin out.

Serve over cooked pasta with parmesan cheese and fresh basil if desired.

Notes:

Doubling: This recipe easily doubles. It’s a pretty thick sauce, so you could even double the recipe (but still use 1 lb hamburger) for more of a tomato sauce.

Freezer friendly: This sauce freezes great. I love to double the batch and freeze half for later. Simply allow it to cool and then place in a zip top bag or freezer container. Freeze up to 3 months. To thaw, place in the refrigerator over night. Reheat on the stove top.

If using ground turkey: It can make it taste more bland, so I would add an extra Tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce and more seasonings to taste.

Thai Cilantro Lime Chicken

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. salt or 1.5 tsp. soy sauce
freshly cracked pepper or black pepper
2 limes, divided
1/2 bunch cilantro, divided
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (1.5 to 1.75 lbs. total)

Instructions:

Combine the olive oil, minced garlic, cumin, salt or soy sauce, and some pepper (about 10 cranks of a pepper mill, if you are using this) in a small bowl.

Zest one of the limes and then squeeze the juice. You’ll need 2-3 tbsp. juice, so if needed, juice half of the second lime. Cut the remaining lime into wedges to garnish the chicken once cooked. Roughly chop the cilantro.

Add 1 tsp. of the lime zest, 2-3 tbsp. of the lime juice, and half of the chopped cilantro to the marinade. Stir to combine. (The remaining cilantro will be added fresh after cooking the chicken.)

Place the chicken thighs in a shallow dish or a large zip top bag. Add the marinade and toss the chicken to coat. Allow the chicken to marinate for 30 minutes or up to 8 hours (refrigerated), turning it once or twice as it marinates.

When ready to cook the chicken, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the chicken and cook for 5-7 minutes on each side (covering the pan helps with cooking), or until well browned and cooked through. My chicken had enough of an oil coating from the marinade that I did not need to add any extra to the skillet.

Top the cooked chicken with more fresh cilantro and a squeeze of fresh lime juice. Serve with any extra lime wedges.

Authentic Chicken Curry

Ingredients: 4-6 servings

1 3/4 lb. chicken thighs or cut-up broiler-fryer chicken
salt and pepper to taste
2 onions
1 tomato
1 instant chicken bouillon cube
2 T vegetable oil
1 1/2 – 2 1/2 C water
16 oz. plain yogurt

A:
2 T chopped garlic
1 T julienne strips of fresh ginger

B:
1 t cumin seeds
1/2 t black pepper (1/4 t for mild)
1/2 t clove
1/2 t cardamom

C:
5 bay leaves
1/2 t cumin powder
1.2 t coriander powder
1 t chili powder
1/2 t white pepper (1/4 t for mild)

5 tbsp. wheat flour, mixed with 5 tbsp. water

DIRECTIONS:

Cut chicken into serving size; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Set aside. Chop onions and garlic. Chop tomato coarsely.
Heat 2 T oil in Dutch oven and add ingredients A, then ingredients B. Saute for 1 minute over high heat. Add chopped onions, saute until color turns amber.
Add chicken and reduce heat to medium low; cover with a lid and cook chicken until half done.
Add ingredients C and chopped tomato; stir and continue to cook adding 1 1/2 C water and a bouillon cube. Cook 1 hour over low heat. Add more water if necessary and add yogurt during the simmering process, stirring constantly. During the last ten minutes, add the wheat flour/water mixture until it becomes thickened and bubbly.
Pour the chicken curry in a large serving bowl and serve with cooked rice. Condiments (like fresh chopped cilantro) and chutney of your choice may be added.

Carne Asada (Mexican)

Marinade
1/4 C low salt soy sauce
1/8 C olive oil
1/8 C red wine vinegar
1/8 orange sliced
2 tbsp. lime juice
2 tbsp. orange juice
1 tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1/2 C chopped fresh cilantro
2 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. oregano

1.5 to 2 lbs. skirt, flank or flap steak

avocado (optional)
tacos, pita bread or tortillas (optional)
lettuce
cheese (feta, shredded cheddar, or Mexican Cotija or queso fresco cheese)

In a medium bowl, combine soy sauce, olive oil, vinegar, orange slices, lime juice, orange juice, Worcestershire sauce, cilantro, garlic, black pepper, cumin, chili powder, and oregano in a large bowl and whisk to combine; set aside 1/2 cup of the mixture in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

In a gallon size Ziploc bag or large bowl, combine steak and remaining cilantro mixture; marinate for at least 4 hours to overnight, turning the bag occasionally. Drain the steak from the marinade.

Once your meat is marinated, you’re going to want to cook it over quick, high heat.

On the grill – Medium-high heat 4 to 8 minutes per side.
In the oven – Under the broiler on high 4 to 6 minutes per side.
On the stove – Medium-high heat 4 to 8 minutes per side, cut meat into pan size pieces. Grease pan with a bit of oil.

Preheat grill or stove to medium high heat. Using paper towels, pat both sides of the steak dry.

Add steak to grill, and cook, flipping once, until desired doneness, about 6 minutes per side for medium rare. Let rest 5 minutes.

Thinly slice steak against the grain and serve with reserved 1/2 cup cilantro mixture.

Eat it inside a pita bread or tacos, if you prefer

As a taco:

To assemble the tacos, warm the tortillas (either in a hot skillet or in a microwave) and then top with slices of the beef, lettuce, pico (optional), cheese, and avocado. Can also throw in some chopped cilantro with a fresh lime on top.

To assemble a salad, layer the plates with lettuce, beef, pico, cheese, and avocados as desired. Garnish with limes. Enjoy!

Tangy Tuna With Orange Sauce

Ingredients:
12 oz. package yellowfin tuna
1/4 C orange juice
2 tbsp. light soy sauce
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp. vegetable oil

Directions:

Thaw tuna per instructions and pat dry with paper towel.
Combine six sauce ingredients in a bowl. Brush fish with sauce mixture.
Coat grill or skillet with vegetable cooking spray.
Preheat grill or skillet and cook tuna on MEDIUM HIGH heat for 5 minutes, brushing frequently with sauce.
Turn and cook for an additional 5 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Sprinkle with sea salt and coarsely ground pepper, and serve with a salad or arugula and cherry tomatoes. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Pork Chow Mein (Hungarian Style)

INGREDIENTS

8 oz. soft chow mein noodles or cooked fettucine or cooked lo mein noodles
3 T oil
1 lb. pork, sliced thin (slice it when partly frozen)
1 small onion, sliced
6 forest or shiitake or bella mushrooms, rinsed and sliced
1/2 C sliced water chestnuts
1/2 C sliced carrots
2 stalks celery, sliced on the diagonal
2 C bean sprouts
1 to 1.5 C pea pods
2 T mirin
1 t salt
2 C soup stock

2 green onions cut up
2 T cornstarch dissolved in 2 T water

Add 3 T oil to the wok or 12 inch skillet and cook pork on high heat unti no longer pink (2 min.).

Add all other ingredients (except the pasta, green onions and cornstarch mixture). Cover and bring to full boil, allow to steam 1 minute.

Toss in green onions and stir in cornstarch mixture to thicken.

Add noodles to vegetable mixture and toss to combine.

Vermont Curry (Japan’s Favorite Curry) FROM SCRATCH

This makes a lot of servings, but you can probably freeze leftovers.

2 lbs. chicken thigh (skin removed)
salt and pepper to taste, about 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper
2 large onions, cut into wedges
2 to 4 white potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
6 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
2 tbsp. canola oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped (optional)

4 cups water
2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth

CURRY PASTE INGREDIENTS (tastes like Vermont Curry)
4 tbsp. tomato paste
4 tbsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
3 tbsp. parmesan cheese (like you use for spaghetti)
2 tbsp mozzarella cheese grated
6 tsp. honey
1/2 C baby food apple puree
1/2 C baby food banana puree
4 tbsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. sesame oil
1/2 tsp. cocoa powder
1 tbsp. milk powder
1/4 tsp. turmeric
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. paprika (more if you like it hot)
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1 cup full fat coconut milk or full fat yogurt (coconut milk is probably better)
1 tbsp. flour and 7 tbsp. cornstarch mixed with 7 tbsp. water, mixed together with whisk

DIRECTIONS:
Cut chicken thighs into bite size pieces. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cut onions into wedges. Peel potatoes and carrots and cut into chunks.

Heat 2 T canola oil in a skillet; saute chopped garlic (do not burn), add chicken pieces and stir fry unti light brown; add onions, potatoes and carrots. Stir-fry until onions are tender.

Transfer chicken mixture to 6-quart saucepan or to Dutch oven and add 4 cups of water and 2 cups of chicken broth. Don’t cover (unless you really need to) because you want to boil the water down. Cook over high heat, bring to boil, lower to low heat for 30 minutes or until vegetables are done. After 30 minutes, remove cover (if used) and let the liquid draw down to lower levels.

While the chicken mixture is cooking, prepare the curry paste, using the curry paste ingredients (below).

Combine tomato paste, curry powder, garlic powder, ground ginger, parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, honey, apple puree, banana puree, soy sauce, sesame oil, cocoa powder, milk powder, turmeric, cinnamon, paprika, ground cloves and 1 cup full fat coconut milk or full fat plain yogurt and flour/cornstarch mixture into a curry paste.

Turn off heat, add curry paste mixture. Return to the stove and stir well over low heat, until thickened.

Pour chicken curry over white rice.

Sushi Rice

Ingredients:
2 cups sushi rice. It should say “sushi rice” right on the bag. Calrose rice works ok if you can’t find sushi rice.
2 cups water
two-thirds of 1/4 C Japanese rice vinegar
4 tsp. sugar
3/4 tsp. salt

Instructions
Place the rice into a mixing bowl and cover with cool water. Swirl the rice in the water with your hand, pour off and repeat 2-3 times or until the water is pretty clear. Rinse a few more times. After the rice is rinsed, let the rice sit in the cold water for about a half hour, then completely drain the water from the rice and let it sit for about another half hour.

After the rice has drained and sat for a half hour, put the rice in the rice cooker with the 2 cups of water, cover, and start.

If you don’t have a rice cooker place rice and water in a heavy saucepan or pressure cooker over medium-high heat covered, bring just to boil, reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. Turn off heat and let rice rest, covered, for 15 additional minutes.

While rice is cooking, prepare the vinegar mixture. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. Heat mixture just until the sugar dissolves (do not let it boil). Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

When the rice is done cooking, gently spread out the rice over a cookie sheet (using a wooden spoon or spatula). Evenly distribute the cooled vinegar mixture over the rice, by sprinkling it over the rice using your fingers. Gently turn rice over from time to time with rice paddle or wooden spatula so that rice cooks evenly.

To speed things up, fan the rice each time you turn it over. When rice has cooled to room temperature, it is ready to use for sushi rolls!

NOTES: If you want to wait a little bit before making your sushi or while you are making the rolls, you can keep the rice at the right temperature by placing it in a large bowl and covering with a damp kitchen towel.

California Rolls

Good video on how to cut up English cucumber for sushi

Really good video about how to make California rolls! In my method, I don’t cut the nori in half. He does, and it appears his method will create a great California roll. He explains the techniques well for Americans.

Ingredients:
3 cups Sushi Rice prepared, click HERE for Sushi Rice recipe
6 half sheets Nori dry roasted seaweed (can toast it by waving it over the electric range until it becomes crisp). To make half sheet, cut nori sheet in half horizontally.
1 English cucumber deseeded, and sliced into long strips. Cut into lengths roughly the width of 4 fingers. Quarter lengthwise. Slice off the seeds, and cut each piece into 3 to 4 slices. May want to throw out the ends.
1 Hass avocado cut in half with skin on and seed removed. Don’t use an overripe avocado, when you press on it, as soon as it gives a bit, it’s ready. Also choose the longer avocados in the store, because their pits are smaller. Stem should easily remove, when it’s ready.
3 sticks imitation crab meat. Easiest if it is in the sticks, but the crab pieces work, too. Cut them in half lengthwise. Shellfish allergy: Use kosher imitation crab, or hearts of palm (lower sodium like Whole Foods brand)
1/8 C toasted sesame seeds or to taste.
1 lemon or lemon juice to use on the avocado to keep it from browning after it’s been cut.

Any leftover ingredients, use as is or in other recipes.

Condiments: Kikkoman soy sauce and wasabi with wasabi listed as the first ingredient on the list. S & B’s premium wasabi is like this. Also sushi ginger.

Make sure the bamboo mat is 24 cm by 24 cm or 9.5 by 9.5 inches. Shorter ones don’t work so well.

Will need a small bowl with water in it.

Make sure to give yourself plenty of room to work or you may accidentally tip over something and ruin all your hard work, like happened to me!

Instructions
Lay the bamboo sushi rolling mat on a cutting board with bamboo strips going horizontally from you. Cover the bamboo with plastic wrap. Put a sheet of dried seaweed on top of the mat, shiny side down. Wet hands and grab rice from bowl about the size of a pool ball. Place it directly in the center of the toasted seaweed. Wet hands. Create a hotdog shape with the rice across the width of the nori. Wet fingertips. Gently press in the center of the rice creating a ridge across its width. Divides rice from top to bottom. Going from left to right, using thumbs press rice away from your body, so that it fills the nori. Turn seaweed around, do the same for the bottom half.

Sprinkle a little bit (with fingers) toasted sesame seed on top of the rice. Flip it over using both hands and it lands back on the mat.

Place julienned cucumbers a little below the center widthwise on the seaweed. Take avocado and using butter knife, slice out the avocado you will use in the sushi from the avocado and place it widthwise on the nori, next to the cucumber. Put split crab stick next on top of the vegetables on the widthwise filling.

Line up bottom edge of nori about an inch above bottom of mat. Use thumbs to lift up bottom of mat while other fingers hold ingredients in place. Once it completely covers the ingredients, gently press with your fingertips to encircle it. Make sure you get a complete seal of the rice to the seaweed. Tuck it and gently press to ensure the seal.

Now you’re ready to roll! Always want to have bamboo mat above (never tuck it below the sushi) use fingertips to guide the sushi while rolling the mat forward until sushi roll is formed.

To clean edges of the roll, line edge of bamboo mat with sushi roll so that it is over the roll like a U shape. Tuck extra ingredients back into the roll. Square off the edge using fingers pressing in. Do this to both sides. Once done, still in U shape, give it a good squeeze with the mat over it.

Now you’re ready to cut. Dip clean chef’s knife into water in a bowl and hold knife up so that the water drips down the entire blade edge. Cut sushi roll in half using slicing motions. Cut halves in half. Then the quarters into halves. This will give you 8 even pieces for the sushi roll.

Repeat this procedure for each half sheet of nori. Should end up with 32 pieces of sushi. May want to eat extra sushi because you can’t keep it for more than a couple days in the frig. If you store it in the frig, wrap in plastic wrap and keep it as airtight as possible.

Serve with a shallow dish of Kikkoman soy sauce, wasabi (with wasabi as the first ingredient) and sushi ginger.

I find I have to wash and dry the cutting board between rolls. So this recipe ends up being a lot of work for me.

You can store the sushi in the frig in a sealed container, but take it out and let it stand for 15 minutes, till it gets to room temperature before eating it.

Chicken In One-Pot

2.5 – 3 lb. chicken (whole fryer, thighs, breasts, drum sticks, neck, etc. can be used)
1 1/4 lb. napa cabbage
1 bunch green onions
12 – 18 oz. tofu
4 in. square kombu (kelp)
1/3 C sake or sherry cooking wine
Ponzu sauce (equal amounts of rice vinegar or lemon juice with light color soy sauce)

Place cut-up chicken in a bamboo tray or colander and pour over boiling water to remove odor.
Cut napa cabbage into 2 in. widths cut green onion diagonally and tofu into 1 in. cubes.
Wipe kombu (kelp) with kitchen towel (optional).
In a large pot, place kombu (kelp) on bottom and then chicken pieces. Fill the pot with water, cover all chicken pieces and bring to boil.
Lift out kombu (kelp), or leave it in if you want, and remove scum. Reduce heat; add sake and cook for 40 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and simmer until vegetables are tender. Dip into ponzu sauce with condiments and eat.

Kelp Dashi Stock

4 C water
1 1/3 oz. or 6 inches of kelp

Wipe kelp with a damp cloth (do not wash, or much of the flavor will be lost), soak in 4 cups of water, and let sit for an hour. Heat to the boiling point, but remove the kelp just before the water actually boils.

Simmered Daikon Radish

18 oz. daikon radish
3 T rice or 2 quarts of rice rinsing water
1 piece of kombu (kelp), 2 x 5 in.

Simmering Sauce
3 – 3 1/3 C dashi stock
3 T light color soy sauce
2 T mirin
2 T sugar
1 t salt

Cut daikon radish into 1.5 in. thick rounds. Peel.
Peel a very thin strip from edges or each slice to prevent the daikon radish from breaking up while cooking.
Make a shallow criss-cross in one side of each slice so that heat can go through.
In a saucepan, arrange each slice, cut side down. Cover with water with rice or rice rinsing water and cook until tender, drain. Place cooked daikon on the kombu (kelp). Fill with simmering sauce and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer until soft, about 20 minutes. Arrange daikon slices in 4 warmed dishes and pour remaining cooking liquid over.

Kale Miso Soup

Ingredients
4 C low sodium vegetable broth
2.5 to 3 tbsp. white miso
14 oz. tofu (firmness based on preference)
2 C kale (packed)
4 tbsp. green onion finely sliced
2 garlic cloves very finely chopped
1-inch piece ginger very finely chopped

Instructions

In a medium saucepan, bring the vegetable broth to a simmer. Meanwhile, stir together the miso and a couple tablespoons of warm water together to form a smooth paste. Cut the tofu into cubes of your desired size.
Add tofu (if using silken, add in after the miso), kale, green onions, garlic, and ginger to the broth and simmer for 4-5 minutes, or until the tofu is heated through and the kale has wilted. Remove from heat and stir in the miso paste. Taste and adjust for miso and salt, if desired, add noodles, vegetables, or other protein.

NOTES
Storing miso soup. This miso soup can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days. When reheating, do so gently, taking care not to bring the soup to a boil as this will kill the beneficial probiotics and enzymes in the miso.

Gail’s Milk Chocolate

2 tbsp. 100% cacao cocoa
2 tbsp. sugar or sucralose (Splenda)
3 cups milk (can use a mixture of nonfat and regular or lactaid milk, if you like)

Pour about 2 to 3 tbsp. of the milk in a small sauce pan and simmer until very warm. Add in all the cocoa and sugar or sugar substitute and mix all together until it is gooey and mixed well. Throw in the rest of the milk and stir together with a whisk. It’s ready! Stir well before pouring into your cup. I drink about 1 cup every day and save the other 2 cups in a jar for future days. Remember to shake the jar before pouring the milk chocolate into your cup.

Fruit Salad with Oatmeal & Chocolate Pieces

I eat this every day for breakfast, along with my homemade milk chocolate. This is my own personal recipe that I made up completely on my own. It seems to resemble somewhat the Danish fruit salad called Frugtsalat, except mine is much healthier.

Ingredients:
sliced fresh strawberries
blueberries
mandarin orange slices (broken up)
chopped apples and/or pears
walnuts for garnish
plain probiotic yogurt (about 3 to 4 tbsp.)
red grapes (or whatever grapes you like)
cooked oatmeal (about 1/2 cup) seasoned with sugar or sucralose
1 square of high cacao content chocolate bar, broken into smaller pieces

This is a very versatile dish and the fruits can be adjusted according to preference or whatever you have on hand. Make sure all the fruit pieces are bite size and mix them all together. Then throw in 3 tbsp. or more of probiotic plain yogurt and the oatmeal and lightly mix into the batch. Top with fresh walnuts and pieces of broken up high cacao content chocolate bar.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

How to roast sweet potatoes (basic method)
You don’t even need a recipe for making roasted sweet potatoes! Make this recipe once exactly as written, just to get a feel for the amounts of flavoring. Then you can go free form: and it’s easy to memorize too! Here are the basic steps, then a little more detail in the sections below (or go right to the recipe):

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
Dice the sweet potatoes into 3/4-inch chunks.
Season with olive oil, salt and garlic powder (see below).
Roast about 25 minutes, until tender. No need to stir!

Why to dice into 3/4-inch chunks
This sounds oddly specific, right? But we’ve found that a 3/4-inch dice is the best size for roasted sweet potatoes. A 1/2-inch piece gets small and shriveled, and doesn’t feel like substantial enough bites. 1-inch pieces are rather large and take longer to roast. So 3/4-inch is perfect! (Trust us.) Make sure to separate the potatoes in the baking sheet.

The flavor secret: garlic powder!
Here’s our flavor secret for roasted sweet potatoes: garlic powder takes sweet potatoes over the top! It doesn’t even taste garlicky: it’s just savory, roasty goodness. To the mix you’ll also add olive oil and kosher salt. The quantities are easy to memorize:

2 pounds of sweet potatoes (about 4 medium)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon each kosher salt and garlic powder

Why to roast sweet potatoes at high heat
The best temperature for roasting vegetables? High heat: 450 degrees Fahrenheit or 230 degrees Celsius. Why? This gets them perfectly tender on the inside and caramelized on the outside. Use a lower temperature and it gets cooked through, but not caramelized.

Throw those sweet potatoes onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet, and roast away! The best part? You don’t even need to stir: just leave the potatoes as is to make them beautifully caramelized on the bottom. Remove from the oven and enjoy!

Roasted Sweet Potato Salad

WARNING: This is so good, it’s hard to eat in moderation. LOL

This roasted sweet potato salad recipe is a delicious lunch or side dish! If you’re making it in advance, wait to add the dressing and the avocado until right before you eat.

2 roasted sweet potatoes (cubes)
Ginger Makoto dressing or Annie’s Goddess dressing
4 cups arugula or salad mix with arugula
1/3 cup grated mozzarella cheese
1 avocado, sliced
lemon wedge or fresh lemon juice
3 tbsp. toasted pepitas

INSTRUCTIONS

Prepare the roasted sweet potatoes according to recipe.
Assemble the salad on a large platter with the arugula, a drizzle of dressing, the sweet potatoes, and mozzarella. Top with the avocado slices and squeese a little lemon juice over the avocado. Drizzle with more dressing and top with the pepitas. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

If this is too much for one day, half the recipe and cut the avocado in half (skin on) and the half you don’t use store in water flesh side down in the frig to be made later.

Garlic Butter Frozen Vegetables

Ingredients:
16 oz. package frozen mixed vegetables, usually peas, carrots, green beans and corn
1 C low sodium chicken broth
2 cloves garlic minced (1 tsp.)
2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese, fresh is best, but packaged will work
1 tbsp. fresh minced flat-leaf parsley
freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tbsp. dill

Instructions:

Heat chicken broth in a medium saucepan or large skillet over medium heat until simmering. Add vegetables and cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring often, until heated through. Drain and return vegetables to pan.
Add butter and garlic to the pan and cook over medium heat for several minutes, stirring often, until butter is completely melted and coats the vegetables.
Remove from heat. Season with salt (omit salt if using salted broth) and fresh cracked black pepper if desired, and stir in fresh minced parsley and dill and sprinkle on some Parmesan cheese, if desired.

Danish Fruit Salad Breakfast

This is a variation of the Danish fruit salad, that Gail eats just about every day for breakfast.

Prepare the oatmeal. Heat 1.5 cups dry oatmeal in a saucepan with 2.5 cups boiling water. Once you add the oatmeal, lower heat to medium for 3 minutes, then lower heat to simmer for another 5 minutes and swish it around with a spoon until the oatmeal is cooked. Use 1/2 cup of the cooked oatmeal for the current recipe and save the rest for later. Just microwave what you need for the next day and use it in the recipe. To the cooked oatmeal, add 1 tbsp. of sugar or sucralose.

1 navel orange, peeled, with wedges separated
strawberries, sliced, about 1 cup
blueberries, about 1/2 cup
1/2 cup probiotic whole milk plain yogurt
1/2 C cooked oatmeal, seasoned with 1 tbsp. sugar or sucralose
high cacao content chocolate bar, broken into small pieces, about 1/4 cup
1/4 C walnuts

Add fruit to a large bowl. Add chocolate pieces and walnuts. Add in sweetened oatmeal. Mix all together. Top with yogurt and mix all together.

Gail enjoys this with kefir and her homemade milk chocolate.

Parmigiano Reggiano and Rosemary Potato Wedges (Italian)

3 large russet or yukon gold potatoes, washed
2 tbsp olive oil
2.5 tbsp chopped rosemary
70 g or 2.5 oz. grated Parmigiano Reggiano (about 1/3 C grated)
Black pepper
1 tsp. salt

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Wash and scrub potatoes with potato scrubber.

Slice potatoes into wedges (leaving skin on) and toss in the oil that is already inside a large bowl.

Mix together rosemary, Parmigiano Reggiano and save mixture in the container. Remove a small portion of this and put it in another smaller container. To the main rosemary and cheese mixture, add the black pepper and salt and mix all together. Add the larger mixture to the potatoes, mixing to give a good coating.

Place coated potato wedges on an aluminum foil lined cookie sheet, arranging in a single layer the best you can.

Roast in the oven for 40-50 minutes or until cooked through and golden brown.

Test potatoes with a fork to see if they are done. When done, Serve sprinkled with more Parmigiano Reggiano and rosemary from the mixture you reserved.

To heat up leftovers, reheat in a 375 degree oven for 5 to 8 minutes.

Macaroni-Beef Shiitake Parmigiano-Reggiano

1.5 C elbow macaroni (Barilla preferred)
1 pound lean ground beef
1 cup diced onions
1 clove garlic, mashed
1 tbsp. oil (canola or extra virgin olive oil)
freshly ground black pepper
about 2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
about 4 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in about 1/2 cup water (then chopped)
save the mushroom soaking water
2 tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese

Cook the macaroni in boiling water according to package directions, al dente. Drain, then rinse with cold water and set aside.

Saute the meat, onion and garlic in oil until the meat loses its pink color and the onions are tender. Can cover the pan, tip it, and drain the oil from the pan into the sink, if desired, and you want to lessen calories. Add pepper, crushed tomatoes, mushrooms (with the mushroom soaking water), Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce and Italian seasoning.

Bring mixture to a boil, then cover and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Mix in the cooked macaroni and simmer covered for 5 more minutes.

Serve topped with freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese.

Tofu With Dried Bonito Flakes

14 – 16 oz. regular tofu, well drained
1 egg, beaten
All-purpose flour for dusting

A ingredients:
1 2/3 C dried bonito flakes
1/3 C black sesame seeds

2 T oil

Garnishes:
chopped green onion
grated fresh ginger root

Cut tofu into 1 in. cubes. Mix A and set aside.
Coat tofu cubes with flour and put in a separate container. Next, using each flour coated tofu piece, with one hand dredge the flour coated tofu in the beaten egg and then with another hand, dredge the egg-coated tofu into the A mixture. This way you keep each hand from contamination with the other ingredients. You don’t want your “egg” hand full of the A mixture and you don’t want your “A mixture” hand full of egg. After each piece is coated with the A mixture, place the final versions into other containers (for cooking). When all the tofu pieces are dredged with the A mixture (final stage), you’re ready to cook. The order for dredging each tofu piece is first flour, second beaten egg, and third the A mixture.
Chop your green onion and grate your ginger, to have the garnishes ready for later.
In a 12 in. skillet, heat 2 T oil over medium high heat; add tofu evenly all over the bottom of the pan and saute until brown on both sides. Place on a platter and serve with garnishes mixed with soy sauce. Dipping the tofu into soy sauce mixed with the grated ginger is very good.

Perfect Soba Noodles

Soba noodles are buckwheat noodles and they are much more fragile than, say, spaghetti. They cook faster and are much more delicate. While Italian pasta can stand a bit of overcooking, most soba noodles will turn into a complete mess if you overcook them.
So that’s our main rule here: Don’t overcook them!

The other big problem that can happen with soba noodles is clumping. You need to give them a lot of room to cook. I bring a big pot of water to boil for even 6-8 ounces of soba noodles. Give them lots of room to wiggle around as they boil.

150 seconds.

SET A TIMER. Seriously. I’ll eyeball spaghetti, but not soba. 150 seconds. Most boxes will say three minutes, but I think that’s a bit long after a few tests. I like to err on the side of al dente.

Two and a half minutes and then they are out of the hot water and into cold water. This is the second most important step besides the timer. You have to cool these down as soon as possible. I prefer putting them in a bowl of cold water over rinsing them with cold water because rinsing them compacts the noodles down while the bowl of cool water gives them room to stay separate.

Soba noodles in water.

QUICK.

Once the soba noodles are cooled down you can keep them like that for a bit or drain them and dry them out on a few paper towels.

Dry em out.

My preference is to drain them and then toss them with a small dash of sesame oil and soy sauce which will keep them from sticking and season the noodles nicely.

Quick toss.

The soba noodles are cold at this point and I actually prefer cold soba noodles, but if you want them hot, just dunk them in a pot of hot stock or water right before serving them.

Chicken Noodles (Japanese)

Ingredients:

10.5 oz. buckwheat/wheat soba noodles, about two rolls from the package

Soup:
5 C water
2 1/2 in. square kombu (kelp)
1 1/2 C dried bonito flakes
2 T mirin
1 T sugar

A little less than 1/4 C Kikkoman soy sauce

2 tsp. sesame oil
2 tbsp. Kikkoman soy sauce
3 1/2 oz. skinned and boned chicken breast or lean pork, cut into bite size pieces
2 aburage (deep-fried tofu pouches, in the frozen section in Asian grocers)
2 dried shiitake mushrooms, softened in water
4 hard-boiled eggs (see below)
3/4 C frozen spinach
2 green onions, chopped

Steps:

The eggs can be prepared in advance, even days ahead of the rest of the recipe.

1) Put 4 large eggs into cold water in a small pot. Bring to a boil, turn off heat, cover pan for ten minutes.
2) After ten minutes drain out the hot water and replace with cold water in the pot.
3) Remove eggs from pot, and take off shells, and you have your hard-boiled eggs.

4) Put 2 dried shiitake mushroom in a container with about 1 C water to soften.

5) Cut aburage into lengthwise bite-size pieces, splitting them with your fingers, so that they resemble thin bite-sized strips.
6) Dump them in a boiling pot of water and cook for two minutes to help remove excess oil. Use a slotted spoon to remove them from the pot and store them in a separate container (until needed). Dump the water from the pot down the drain. You won’t be needing it anymore.
7) Using a large pot, bring water to boil. It would be enough water to thoroughly cover the somen noodles. When the water boils, add somen noodles and stir constantly with pasta fork, keeping noodles separate. After cooking exactly 2.5 minutes, drain and immediately run cold water over the noodles to stop the cooking process.
8) Store the cold noodles in containers, since you won’t be using them all at once and coat noodles in each container with about 1 tbsp. soy sauce and 1 tsp. sesame seed oil to keep them from clumping. Store in the frig covered until needed.

9) While the noodles are cooking, cut eggs into round slices and chicken pieces into bite size pieces (if not done already) and add frozen spinach to its own container (no need to cook it, it’s already cooked). Store eggs, chicken, spinach and green onions in separate containers.

10) In a large sauce pan, add five cups of water and kelp pieces, cook until water begins to boil. Remove kelp pieces (you can eat them separately however you want, if you desire).
11) Add dried bonito flakes in kelp stock and bring to a boil. Turn off heat and strain the stock using a slotted spoon or strainer. You probably want to throw out these bonito flakes that have been strained out (but it’s up to you). You can leave a bit of the bonito in the pan if you want.

12) Reheat the stock over moderate heat. Add mirin, sugar and soy sauce. Add chicken, aburage and mushrooms with their soaking water to the stock and bring to a boil.
13) While the mixture in 12 (above) is heating up, add your coated and cold somen noodles to a serving bowl,
14) When the chicken in the stock is cooked, turn off heat in the stock pot, it means the stock is ready. Next, ladle the soup and stock over the noodles. Place some sliced hard-boiled eggs, thawed frozen spinach and green onions atop the soup and noodles and you are done and ready to eat what’s in the bowl!

15) Keep the other eggs, other noodles and unused frozen and thawed spinach in the frig to use for later servings. When you reheat the soup and stock for later, just repeat steps 13 and 14 (above), for each serving.

Red Snapper in Spicy Tomato Sauce (Mexican)

In Mexico, the word salsa means “sauce” and applies to fresh, as well as cooked, combinations of vegetables and/or fruits. This zesty salsa goes well with the delicate flavor of the red snapper for a taste combination that’s a winner.

1 tsp. canola or corn oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
10 oz. can tomatoes, diced with cilantro and jalapeno, with juice reserved
1/4 tsp. sugar
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1 lb. red snapper fillets (about 4 small fillets)
1 tsp. grated lime zest
2 tbsp. fresh lime juice (about 2 medium limes)
1/4 cup sliced black olives
2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

In a large skillet, heat canola or corn oil over medium-low heat and saute onion and garlic until tender, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their juice and the sugar, cumin, and black pepper and simmer, partially covered for 10 minutes. You can add 2 to 3 tbsp. water if mixture gets dry.

Meanwhile, rinse the snapper fillets and pat dry with paper towels. Add snapper and the remaining ingredients except cilantro to the skillet and simmer, covered, over medium-low heat for 10 to 13 minutes, or until fish flakes when tested with a fork.

Remove fillets from pan and place on a serving platter. Stir cilantro into sauce, then immediately pour sauce over fillets. Serve warm.

Kosher Russian Potato Salad

6 to 8 medium red potatoes, skins on
2 to 3 large eggs (cooked as hard boiled and chopped into 1/4-inch dice)
1 cup green peas, fresh or frozen
2 to 3 medium carrots, peeled, trimmed, and diced into 1/4-inch pieces
4 dill pickles, finely chopped
5 tablespoons mayonnaise, or more to taste
Kosher salt, or sea salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
pinch sugar
dash of kosher dill pickle juice

Gather the ingredients. If using frozen green peas, take them out and thaw them in a separate container.

You can prepare the eggs and dill pickles ahead of time. Be sure to save the pickle juice from the jar.

Place the potatoes (with their skins on) in a large pot or Dutch oven. Cover with 2 inches of cold water, and bring to a boil.

At the same time, make the hard boiled eggs by placing eggs in a pot of cold water and heating them till the water boils. Then turn off heat and cover the eggs for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, drain the hot water out of the egg pot and replace with cold water. Leave as is for 10 minutes. You can now peel the shell from the eggs.

Reduce the heat and simmer the potatoes until the potatoes are easily pierced with a knife, about 20 to 40 minutes depending on the size of the potatoes. If your potatoes are different sizes, remove the smaller ones before the bigger ones, so that they all cook evenly. You don’t want to overcook the potatoes or your salad will be mushy.

Drain potatoes, transfer to a smaller bowl, and place in the refrigerator to cool. You don’t want to leave them in there too long, though, just long enough so they aren’t too hot to handle. Warm potatoes do better for this salad.

While the potatoes are cooling, cut eggs into 1/4-inch dice and place in a separate container.

Place the chopped carrots in a small saucepan and cover with enough cold water by 1 inch. Bring to a boil. Add the fresh peas (if using frozen peas, don’t cook them just add to the salad with the eggs), lower the heat, and simmer until the carrots and peas are tender, about 10 minutes.

While the carrots are cooking, chop your pickles into 1/4-inch dice, if you have not already done so. Place pickles in a separate container.

Drain in the same colander you used for the potatoes and rinse under cold running water to stop the cookng process. Transfer the carrots and peas to a LARGE bowl (cuz this is the bowl that you toss the salad in).

Take the still warm potatoes from the frig, peel and cut into 1/4-inch dice. Add the potatoes to the LARGE bowl with the carrots and peas.

Next, add the chopped eggs and pickles and mix well in the LARGE BOWL.

Add the mayonnaise, dash of pickle juice, salt, pepper and sugar to the LARGE bowl. Gently toss together using a large wooden flat-like spoon or whatever works to gently toss the salad. If you want it creamier, add more mayonnaise. I prefer to add more pickle juice instead.

I like it warm. But you can cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Vermont Curry Imitation

This is a VERY CLOSE approximation to Japan’s Mild Vermont Curry!

Saffron Road Coconut Curry Korma Sauce 2 7 oz. packages
or 12 – 14 oz. of any coconut curry korma sauce with tomato paste as an ingredient
4 oz. jar baby food (apple puree)
4 oz. jar baby food (banana puree)
1 tbsp. dark cacao cocoa or cocoa
2 tbsp. honey
Some cornstarch and water
1 lb. chicken thigh
salt and pepper to taste
2 large onions
2 potatoes
1 carrot
2 cups water
1 clove garlic
2 tbsp. oil
5 C cooked rice

Condiment: Parmesan cheese

Cut chicken thighs into bite size pieces. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cut onion into wedges. Peel potatoes and carrots and cut into chunks.

Heat 2 T oil in a dutch oven, saute chopped garlic, add chicken pieces and stir-fry until light brown; add onions, potatoes and carrots. Stir-fry until onions are tender.

Add 2 cups water, cover with a lid. Cook over low heat for 1 hour or until vegetables are done.

Add 2 packages of Saffron Road Coconut Curry Korma Sauce (14 oz. total), 4 oz. apple puree, 4 oz. banana puree, 1 tbsp. dark cacao cocoa, 2 tbsp. honey and enough cornstarch and water to thicken properly. Stir well over low heat until thickened. Pour chicken curry over rice.

Pork With Scrambled Eggs (Authentic Chinese)

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 C sliced forest or shiitake mushrooms
1/2 C tiger lily buds (lily flowers)
1/4 C cloud ears (black fungus)
1/2 C bamboo shoots, sliced
1 carrot, sliced lengthwise in strips
3 eggs
1 T oil

2 T oil
1/2 lb. boneless pork, sliced thin
2 T mirin
Dash soy sauce
1/4 C soup stock
2 green onions, chopped

Soak mushrooms, tiger lily buds and cloud ears until soft (10 min.). Wash well and slice thin. Set aside.
Beat eggs. Fry in 1 T oil in the wok to make scrambled eggs and set aside.
Add 2 T oil to wok and cook pork on high heat 2 or 3 min.
Add mushrooms, tiger lily buds, cloud ears, bamboo shoots, carrots, mirin and soy sauce. Stir together, adding soup stock, cover, bring to boil and cook 1 min.
Add green onions and mix in eggs, breaking into small pieces. Serve with lettuce cup, steamed white rice.

Bavarian Green Beans With Chive Spaetzle

FIRST MAKE THE SPAETZLE:

You will need a colander with large holes

Spaetzle Ingredients:
1 C all purpose flour (Do NOT use more than 1 cup)
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/3 C skim milk (make sure you have 1/3 C exactly)
1 egg
2 T finely chopped chives

In a Dutch oven, bring a large amount of water to a boil over high heat. Meanwhile, in a medium mixing bowl, stir together flour, salt, and pepper. Make a well in the center.

In a small bowl, stir together milk and egg. Add to flour mixture. Add chives. Stir until well combined.

Hold a colander with large holes over the boiling water. Pour batter into the colander. Using a long-handled spoon, press batter (almost like rubbing the batter in a circular motion) through holes in colander so streams of batter fall into the water. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain well.

Be forewarned, it’s hard to get all the batter off the colander, it sticks like super glue, but do your best. A circular PUSHING motion helps while trying to push it through. You may get an arm workout! I end up throwing some of the batter into the boiling water and then breaking it up when I throw all the spaetzle into the colander over the sink to drain it. I also run cold water over the draining and cooked spaetzle in the colander when I drain it after cooking. EVen if you can’t get all of it off the colander while it’s over the boiling water, you will get a cup’s worth of spaetzle out of this deal.

Green Beans Ingredients:
12 oz. fresh green beans, ends cut to remove stems
3 slices low sodium bacon, chopped into bits
2 tbsp. butter
1/3 C onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 C apple cider
Salt, as desired
1/8 tsp. white pepper
1 cup chive spaetzle noodles

INSTRUCTIONS:

Blanch the green beans in some water, drain.
To blanch green beans, fill a large pot of water, set over high heat, and bring it to a boil. Salt the water (per quart of water, estimate a tablespoon of kosher salt), which will bring the green beans to life and enhance their flavor. Once the water is boiling, add the beans and cook for two to three minutes. While the beans are cooking, fill a large bowl with cold water and/or ice. As soon as the beans are done cooking, transfer them immediately to the ice bath to stop the cooking process and preserve their bright green color. Leave the beans in the bowl of ice water for a few minutes before removing them with tongs.
In a large saute pan, melt the butter.
Add the green beans and saute them for about 2 minutes.
Combine bacon, garlic, and onions with the green beans and stir for 5-10 minutes until the onions become clear.
Add the spaetzle to the green beans.
Add apple cider, mix everything well in the skillet.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serve it up and ENJOY!

Ground Beef Stew Skillet Pie

Ingredients:
6 tbsp. all-purpose flour, divided
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 tbsp. canola oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/8 cup dry red wine or cooking sherry
2 cups beef broth, divided
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1 bay leaf
2 medium potatoes, cubed
3 large carrots, peeled and sliced
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
1/2 cup frozen peas
2 tbsp. minced fresh parsley or 1.5 tbsp. minced Italian parsley
1 large egg, beaten

Put ground beef in a bowl and add 3 tbsp. flour and pepper, mix all together with your hands.
Invert a 10-in. cast-iron or other ovenproof skillet onto parchment (or wax paper); trace circle around pan 1/4 in. larger than rim. Cut out circle and set aside.
In the same skillet, saute beef in oil until browned. Add onion and garlic; cook and stir until onion is tender. Add wine, stirring to loosen browned bits.
Combine 1 1/2 cups broth, tomato paste, Italian seasoning and basil; stir into skillet. Add bay leaf. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until meat is tender, about 10 minutes. Add potatoes and carrots and cover the pan; cook until vegetables are tender, 20 minutes longer.
Meanwhile, lay out the parchment circle on a counter, next lay a piece of plastic wrap on top of the parchment paper, next place puff pastry centered on the plastic wrap and unfold it over the parchment circle. Using roller pin, move from center to edges all around to make puff pastry fit the dimensions of the parchment paper at the bottom. May need to cut off some puff pastry to make it fit. Cut venting slits in pastry (IMPORTANT). Now cover the puff pastry top with plastic wrap. Then keep chilled until ready to use.
Combine the remaining flour and broth until smooth (I used a jar to shake them all together). Gradually lift cover off hot pan on the stove (be careful or it will explode everywhere as you lift the cover). Gradually stir flour and broth mixture into skillet. Bring to boil; cook and stir until thickened and bubbly, about 2 minutes. Discard bay leaf. Stir in peas and parsley.
Brush beaten egg around edge of skillet to help pastry adhere; remove all plastic wrap from pastry and carefully place pastry alone over filling. Using a fork, press pastry firmly onto rim of pan; brush top of pastry with egg. Lay lots of aluminum boil on the baking rack, because the filling might boil over into the oven while baking. Carefully place skillet into the oven on top of the foil. Do NOT preheat oven because you need a cold oven to carefully put the very full skillet into the oven without burning your hands.
Bake pie at 425 degrees Fahrenheit until pastry is dark golden brown, 30-35 minutes.
Have a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil on top of the stove ready to receive the skillet on top of the stove when the pie is removed from the oven, unless you want to clean your stove afterwards. Remove the skillet from oven when done and place on the cookie sheet to cool for 10 minutes before serving.

TO REHEAT LEFTOVER PIE: Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Put the pie, turnovers, or pastry on a cookie sheet or pie plate on foil or parchment, and lightly cover with foil. A typical serving will take about 10-12 minutes.

Potato and Egg Salad With Carrots and Spices (Greek)

Ingredients:
3 baking potatoes, peeled, boiled and cubed (see potato cooking instructions below)
1 large carrot, grated on a box grater
8 hard-boiled eggs (medium-sized), chopped
6-7 spring onions, sliced thinly
Large handful of fresh flat parsley (leaves and stalks), finely chopped
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. dried mint or basil, finely crumbled between your fingers
1/4 tsp. sweet paprika (not smoked)
1/4 tsp. ground cardamom
1/4 tsp. ginger powder
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper (about 20 turns of the pepper mill)
3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp. red-wine vinegar
3 heaping tbsp. mayonnaise

DIRECTIONS FOR COOKING POTATOES:

To cook perfect potatoes for potato salad, whichever type you choose, the key is to stay close to the pot and check the potatoes frequently for doneness. Using a timer is helpful, but nothing replaces being there. Since the size of your dice may vary, and the amount of potatoes and the amount of water they’re cooked in will likely change a bit each time you make them, all of that adds up to variables that don’t always respond the same to a set cooking time. The solution is to stand in front of the stove and take care of your potatoes, and if you must multitask, as I often do, make sure it’s something that doesn’t move you away from that space.

BEST POTATOES FOR POTATO SALAD?
Russet, Yukon Gold, or red potatoes (new potatoes) are all excellent for potato salad. They do cook at different rates so be sure to adjust cook time depending on which type of potato you select.

How to cook potatoes, step-by-step:
Step 1. Peel the potatoes if using russets or Yukon gold. Cut out any blemishes.

HOW TO CUT POTATOES FOR POTATO SALAD?
Peel the potatoes if using Russet or Yukon Gold. Cut across the middle lengthwise once (like making a sandwich cut) and then across a few times to make potato sticks. Then dice by cutting crosswise in 1/2-inch dice.

IS IT BETTER TO BOIL POTATOES WHOLE OR CUT UP FOR POTATO SALAD?
Always cut up the potatoes into a dice before boiling them. If you boil the potatoes whole, the exterior of the potato will get too soft and crumbly before the interior has a chance to cook through.

Step 2. Cut a uniform dice. I like ½-inch pieces (or slightly larger, but not smaller).

DO YOU PUT THE POTATOES IN BEFORE OR AFTER BOILING?
Add diced potatoes to cold, salted water before boiling, for potato salad.

Step 3. Place the potatoes in a sauce pan and cover by about an inch with COLD water. Always start with cold water. If you boil the water first, the potatoes won’t cook as evenly (the exterior will cook too fast). I also salt my water with about a teaspoon of kosher salt.

Step 4. Cover the pan and bring the water to a boil. Then reduce the heat to medium and remove the lid so the water doesn’t boil over, and so you can keep a close eye on the potatoes.

HOW LONG TO BOIL POTATOES FOR POTATO SALAD?
The cooking time for potatoes for potato salad depends on the type of potato used. Start with cold water and add the diced potatoes. From there, cook Russet Potatoes for 13 minutes, Yukon Gold potatoes for 15 minutes, and Red Potatoes for 16 minutes.

Step 5. Pierce the potatoes with the tip of a paring knife every minute or so at this stage. Look for a little resistance. If the potato cracks apart or the knife slides right through rapidly, the potato is overcooked.

HOW DO YOU NOT OVERCOOK POTATOES FOR POTATO SALAD?
The key here is to stay on it. Start testing the potatoes every minute or so once they come to a boil in the cooking water. Pierce with the tip of a sharp knife, watching for an al dente potato because they continue to cook from residual heat even after removing from the water. Also: don’t cut the potato dice too small (1/2-inch at the smallest).

Step 6. Taste the potatoes each time you check them with the knife. Your sample should have some body to it, an al dente quality. It should seem slightly undercooked and should fully retain its shape still. Remember that the potatoes will keep cooking a bit from the residual heat even after the water is poured off of them.

Step 7. Pour into a colander immediately when you discover the potatoes are done.

Step 8. My russets cooked in 13 minutes. Yukon gold: 15 minutes. Red potatoes: 16 minutes.

Will perfectly cooked russets still get a little crumbly around the edges? Yes. Is this a problem? Not at all! In fact, the bit of crumble mixes with the dressing and makes for a kind of coating on the potatoes.

SHOULD YOU LET POTATOES COOL BEFORE MAKING POTATO SALAD?
Yes, if your potato salad is a cold salad, as most are, allow the cooked potatoes to cool to room temperature before adding the dressing and other ingredients.

In a large mixing bowl, add the cubed and cooled to room temperature potatoes, grated carrots, chopped eggs, sliced spring onion, chopped parsley, all the spices, and season with salt and black pepper. Toss to combine and then add the olive oil, vinegar and mayonnaise and mix well so all the ingredients are well coated. Give it a taste and adjust seasoning if needed.

Transfer to a salad bowl or individual plates, serve and enjoy.

It keeps in the fridge well for a couple of days, covered with plastic wrap.

Pork Medallions in Cream Sauce (German)

1 pound pork tenderloin, all visible fat removed, cut into 1-inch-thick slices
vegetable oil spray or small amount of oil
2 tsp. butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 cooking apple, such as Granny Smith, peeled, cored, and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
5-ounce can evaporated skim milk
1/8 tsp. salt
pinch of white pepper
pinch of ground nutmeg
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

Flatten each pork slice on a hard surface with the palm of your hand. Using the flat side of a meat mallet, pound pork slices to 1/4-inch thickness.

Spray a large skillet with vegetable oil spray or coat with a small amount of oil and place over medium-high heat. Add pork in a single layer. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side, or until tender and no longer pink inside. Remove from skillet. Reduce heat to medium.

In same skillet, melt margarine. Add onion and apple. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until onion is tender, stirring constantly. Add garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients except parsley. Simmer, uncovered, for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in parsley.

Return pork to skillet. Spoon sauce over pork. Cook over low heat for 1 minute, or until heated through.

Vegetarian Fried Rice (China/Japan)

1 tsp. canola or peanut oil or sesame oil (if you use sesame oil, omit the sesame oil below)
1 cup sliced mushrooms (about 3 ounces)
1 green onion, thinly sliced
1 cup bean sprouts (about 2 ounces)
6-ounce package firm or soft tofu, crumbled (optional)
1/2 cup frozen no-salt-added peas, thawed (about 3 ounces)
1 tbsp. reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 tsp. fragrant toasted sesame oil
3 cups cooked rice, any kind (about 1 1/2 cups uncooked)

Heat oil in a wok or large, heavy skillet over high heat. Add mushrooms and green onion and saute for several minutes, until slightly wilted. Add bean sprouts and cook for another minute to wilt them slightly. Add remaining ingredients except rice, mixing well. Stir in rice and heat through before serving.

Minestrone Soup Recipe (Italian)

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked macaroni, gluten-free if desired
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish
3 cups diced onion
1 tbsp. chopped garlic
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup diced celery
1 tbsp. dry Italian seasoning
1/2 cup dry white wine
6 cups vegetable broth or 4 cups vegetable broth and 2 cups chicken broth
1 small zucchini, diced
28 oz. can whole peeled tomatoes, preferably Italian plum tomatoes
14 oz. can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Grated Parmesan cheese for serving, optional

INSTRUCTIONS:

1) Cook Pasta: Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil. Add macaroni and cook according to package directions.
2) Saute The Vegetables: Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp. oil in a large heavy-bottomed soup pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring often until the onion is starting to brown slightly, about 3 minutes. Add in carrots, celery, Italian seasoning, and stir to combine. Continue cooking, stirring often, until the vegetables are softened and the pan has a little fond along the bottom, 3 to 5 minutes.

Note: Fond is the golden brown tasty crusty bits found on the bottom of the pot once the liquid in the veggies had cooked out. Fond is very flavorful so it is important to develop the fond to maximize the flavor of the soup.

3) Make The Soup: Pour in wine and cook, stirring until most of the wine is evaporated, 1 to 3 minutes. Add in broth and zucchini, increase heat to high, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer and cook until the vegetables are tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Crush tomatoes into the soup and add any tomato sauce from the can. Stir in beans and the cooked macaroni and cook, stirring often until heated through, about 4 minutes.

Note: This soup can be made ahead up to 5 days in advance. To rewarm, bring to a gentle simmer over medium-high heat stirring occasionally. Do not simmer for too long as this will overcook the pasta and zucchini and dull the flavor of the basil. For best flavor, leave the basil out until it is re-warmed.

4) To Finish and Serve: Remove from heat. Stir in basil. Serve in bowls topped with Parmesan and additional olive oil if desired.

Broccoli Cheese Soup

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. butter
1 cup onion, finely diced (from 1 medium onion)
2 cups carrots, (3 medium), sliced into thin rings
4 cups chicken broth
4 cups broccoli, (2 heads of broccoli), cut into small florets
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. thyme
3 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tsp. dijon mustard
4 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
2/3 cup parmesan cheese, (mild) shredded

Italian and French loaf bread to eat with, can dip the bread into the soup.

Instructions:

Prep all of your ingredients before you start cooking. In a dutch oven or medium soup pot, melt 2 tbsp. butter. Add onion and carrots and saute until onions soften (5 minutes).
Add 4 cups chicken broth, 1 tsp. garlic powder, 1/2 tsp. black pepper, and 1/4 tsp. thyme. Bring to a boil then add broccoli and reduce to a simmer, partially cover, and cook until broccoli is softened (10-12 minutes depending on thickness of broccoli).
Remove 2 cups of vegetables with a strainer and set aside. Puree remaining soup in the pot in batches in a blender. Blend until smooth or your desired consistency. Return blended soup to the pan.
In a separate small bowl, combine 1/2 cup cream with 3 tbsp. flour and whisk vigorously until smooth and no longer lumpy, then blend in 1 tsp. dijon. The mixture will be thick like frosting. Bring the blended soup back to a boil and whisk in cream/flour mixture, whisking for 3 to 4 minutes until smooth and thickened.
Remove the soup from the heat. Stir in the cheeses, then stir in the reserved cooked vegetables. Serve right away. Garnish with more cheddar if desired.

This is great with some bread, like an Italian or French loaf bread.

Vegetable Pancakes (Mexican)

1/2 cup diced broccoli florets (about 2 ounces)
1/2 cup diced cauliflower (about 2 ounces)
1 small cactus pad, stickers removed, diced OR
1/2 cup cactus from jar of cactus called Nopalitos
1/2 cup diced mushrooms (about 4)
1/2 cup diced onion (about 1 medium)
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
1 egg
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
2 tsp. canola oil OR 1 tsp. canola oil with 1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil

In a medium mixing bowl, combine, in order, broccoli, cauliflower, cactus pad, mushrooms, onion, bell pepper, egg, flour, baking powder, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add canola oil (or oil and olive oil). Melt lard, if using and swirl skillet to evenly coat the bottom with the oil mixture.

With a measuring cup, scoop up 1/4 cup of the vegetable mixture. Carefully mound it in the skillet, using a spatula to press down on the mixture and flatten it slightly. Repeat with the remaining mixture, making 8 pancakes all together. Cook over medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes, or until browned.

Turn pancakes over with a spatula. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes, or until bottoms are browned. Serve pancakes warm.

To reheat, place pancakes on an ungreased baking sheet (do not thaw if frozen) and bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 5 minutes (8 minutes if frozen)

IF YOU CAN FIND CACTUS: Use a vegetable peeler to shave off any stickers or eyes on the cactus pads. Remove any fibrous or dry areas with the peeler.

Stir-Fried Crumbled Tofu (Japanese)

This is a modification of Stir-Fried Okara, where I’ve substituted crumbed tofu in its place, because I can’t find okara anywhere.

1 lb. firm tofu, finely crumbled

Ingredients A:
2 eggs
2/3 C dashi stock
1/4 C light color soy sauce (or soy sauce)
4 T sugar
1 t mirin

2 T oil
7 oz. frozen mixed vegetables, cooked

In a large heavy pot, heat 2 T oil over moderate heat; add crumbled tofu stirring constantly and heat through.
Add all A ingredients and stir well.
Add cooked mixed vegetables and toss lightly but well. Serve either hot or cold.

Italian Dressing

By making this with garlic powder rather than fresh, this dressing lasts for a couple of weeks (subject to shelf life of your parmesan). If you use fresh, it must be consumed within 2 – 3 days.

Ingredients:

Single Batch (1/4 cup, salad for 4 servings)
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp red or white wine vinegar (Note 1)
2 tsp freshly grated parmesan (Note 2)
1 tsp sugar (any)
1/8 tsp garlic powder (or 1 small garlic clove minced, if using within 3 days)
1/8 tsp. each dried basil, oregano and parsley (or a mix of choice)
1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes (Note 3)
1/8 or 1/4 tsp salt (I prefer less salt)
freshly ground pepper

Big Batch to Keep (1 1/4 cups)
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup red or white wine vinegar (Note 1)
2 tbsp freshly grated parmesan (Note 2)
1 1/2 tbsp sugar (any)
3/4 tsp garlic powder (or 2 garlic cloves minced, if using within 3 days)
1/2 tsp each dried basil, oregano and parsley (or a mix of choice)
3/4 tsp. red pepper flakes (Note 3)
1/2 or 1 tsp salt (I prefer less salt)
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

Instructions:

Place ingredients in a jar and shake well until combined.
Adjust sugar, salt and pepper to taste. For less tang, add more olive oil. For more tang, add more vinegar.
Keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
For the Single Batch, this makes just over 1/4 cup and is enough to dress 3 handfuls of leafy greens.

Notes:

I like to make this with red wine vinegar because the color is the same as what’s sold in bottles at the supermarket. But there is no difference in flavor whether you use white or red.
Freshly grated parmesan cheese dissolves better. If you use store bought, it must be a finely grated one, not the coarse parmesan otherwise you’ll have little grainy bits throughout your dressing. Same flavor, different texture!
This is not so much about heat, it’s about getting little flecks of red in the dressing. Again so it looks like what you buy from the supermarket and get at fancy restaurants!
Use this to dress a simple leafy green salad, or for a more substantial salad. Also fantastic with steamed and roasted vegetables!

Aloo Gobi (Indian)

INGREDIENTS:
2 to 3 tbsp. olive or avocado oil
1 tsp. cumin seed
1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
1 large white or yellow onion, diced
1 green chili such as jalapeno, serrano, or bird’s eye, thinly sliced (I don’t like it this hot, and will omit this)
2 tbsp. garlic, grated or mashed and minced
2 tbsp. fresh ginger, peeled and grated
2 roma or small regular tomatoes, diced
2 large russet potatoes, peeled and diced
10 oz. cauliflower florets, broken into bite-sized pieces
fine sea salt
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice or 2 tsp. amchur (unripe dry mango powder)
1/4 tsp. garam masala (if you like it spicy make it 1/2 tsp.)
2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro, tender stems and leaves

INSTRUCTIONS:
Do the potatoes first and soak them in water, while you prepare the other ingredients.

Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a medium saucepan or Dutch oven. Add the cumin and turmeric, and saute until fragrant and sizzling for 30 to 45 seconds. Add the onion and saute until translucent, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the green chili, and saute for 30 seconds (if using green chili). Add the garlic and ginger and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Fold in the tomatoes, potatoes and cauliflower, season with salt, cover with a lid, and cook until the potatoes and cauliflower are tender enough to be easily pierced by a fork or knife, occasionally stir to prevent burning, 30 to 45 minutes. If the vegetables start to burn, add 1 to 2 tbsp. of water as needed. Drizzle the lemon juice (or amchur) and garam masala over the vegetables, remove from the heat and taste, and season with salt if needed. Serve hot or warm, garnished with cilantro. Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container.

Vegetable Omelette

Ingredients:
4 eggs
1/4 cup water
.7 oz. fresh dill
2 tbsp. butter
1/4 red pepper finely diced
1/4 yellow pepper finely diced
1/4 orange pepper finely diced
1 red onion small
1 jalapeno pepper (optional)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper

Instructions:

Whisk the eggs with the water until you achieve a uniform mixture.
Add the chopped dill and pepper whisk until incorporated. I usually use scissors to cut any fine herbs.
Chop your veggies, finely diced.
Heat up the butter in a large non-stick frying pan/skillet. For two servings, use a 8-10 inch pan.
Finely dice onion and add to the pan. Lightly saute on medium heat for about a minute, then add in the remainder of the vegetables.
Saute the vegetables for just a few minutes, until they begin to soften. Add some dill to the vegetables.
Reduce heat to low and pour in the egg-dill mixture. Allow it to sit for just a few seconds to firm up, give the pan a little shake to let the egg bounce up to the top a bit, then with a spatula gently push the egg away from the sides.
Tilt the pan slightly and allow excess egg to flow into the perimeter of the pan, causing even and faster cooking, so that the omelette is vibrant and fluffy, not overcooked.
You could cover the pan for a couple minutes, which would allow the water in the egg mixture to steam up more, to cook the top of the eggs faster.
Just before serving, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Shake the pan a bit to loosen the egg mixture and then, flip the pan over a plate while tilting the pan to allow omelette to slide onto plate. If this doesn’t work, use a spatula to remove it and eat immediately.

Celery Egg Salad With Greek Yogurt

5 hard cooked large eggs
1 cup diced celery
1/3 cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. or slightly less of salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 tbsp. chopped fresh dill

For Serving:
whole grain bread toasted with arugula, tomato and additional choped fresh dill
OR on a bed of greens

Instructions:

Peel the eggs and cut into a rough dice. Place in a large mixing bowl, then add the celery, Greek yogurt, mustard, salt, pepper and dill. Stir to combine.
Serve egg salad on toasted bread with tomatoes and arugula, or enjoy atop greens for a healthy salad.

Carrots & Onions in White Sauce

2 cups sliced onions
water
2 cups bite-sized carrot chunks (peel or scrape carrots, then cut into chunks)
2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 cup milk

Put onions in saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Add carrots and cook for an additional 10 minutes or until the carrots are tender. The carrots should be tender, but not mushy. Remove from heat and drain.

In the meantime, in another pan, using medium heat, melt butter; then stir in the flour, salt, and pepper. Gradually, add the milk while stirring constantly. Continue stirring until the white sauce thickens. Gently stir in the cooked carrots and onions. Remove from heat and serve.

Beef and Spinach Greek Pie

INGREDIENTS:
1 pound ground beef
1 package (10 ounces) frozen chopped spinach, defrosted, drained well
4 ounces herb-flavored feta cheese, crumbled (can add garlic powder with some fresh herbs like rosemary if you can’t find herb-flavored feta cheese)
2 eggs slightly beaten
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 large onion, chopped (about 2 cups)
4 to 8 sheets frozen phyllo dough, defrosted, cut lengthwise into 1/2 inch thick strips (4 cups)
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Squeeze spinach to remove excess moisture. Combine spinach, cheese, eggs and oregano in medium bowl. Set aside.
Heat large overproof nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Add ground beef and onion; cook 8 to 10 minutes, breaking into 3/4 inch crumbles and stirring occasionally. Pour off drippings. Season with salt and pepper, as desired. Add beef mixture to spinach mixture; mix well. Wipe out skillet.
Combine phyllo strips and oil in medium bowl; toss to coat well. Spray same skillet with nonstick cooking spray. Place half of phyllo strips in bottom of skillet; top with beef mixture, pressing with back of spoon or spatula to flatten. Top with remaining phyllo strips.

Tip: Frozen phyllo dough is sold in a variety of 16 oz. packages. For packages with the dimensions of about 14×18 inches use 4 sheets of the dough. For packages with dimensions of 9×14 inches, use 8 sheets of the dough to equal 4 cuups dough strips.

Bake at 400 degrees F oven 15 to 18 minutes until beef is heated through and topping is golden brown. Let stand 5 minutes. Cut into wedges to serve.

For leftovers, you probably want to reheat it in the oven.

Sage Roasted Potato Wedges with Lacinato Kale (Italian)

Ingredients:
2.5 pounds russet potatoes
3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, plus 1.5 tbsp. more
1 tbsp. fresh chopped sage (or 1 tsp. dried)
1 tsp. sea salt
freshly ground pepper, to taste
4 large cloves garlic, minced or sliced
3 large shallots, thinly sliced
1 large bunch of lacinato kale or swiss chard, stem removed and sliced into thin ribbons
crushed red pepper flakes
grated parmesan cheese, to garnish (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degree F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
Toss the potato wedges with 3 tbsp. olive oil so they are coated in the oil, add the sage leaves, toss again and season with salt and pepper. Spread the potatoes in a single layer on the baking sheet and roast in the oven for 30 minutes, flip over the wedges, add the garlic and continue roasting until golden, about another 30 minutes. Finally, increase the temperature to 400 degrees F and cook until crisp, about 15 more minutes. Remove from the oven and season with a little more salt.
While the potatoes are roasting (when 30 minutes are left), saute the shallots in a large skillet with 1 1/2 tbsp. olive oil over medium-low heat for about 15 minutes or until brown and caramelized.
Add the kale to the shallots and saute until the kale is thoroughly wilted, stirring often. About 8-10 minutes.
Gently combine the kale and potatoes in a large serving bowl. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes (optional). Garnish with parmesan cheese, if using. Add additional sea salt to preference. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Italian Lacinato Kale Recipe (Tuscan)

Ingredients:
1 head lacinato kale
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 lemon, juiced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper

Instructions:

Prepare kale by washing and the cutting kale in half. Set aside.
In a dutch oven on medium heat, add olive oil and wait until shimmering. Stir in the garlic until fragrant, about 1 and a half minutes. Add the cherry tomatoes and juice from the whole lemon. Stir occasionally until the cherry tomatoes begin to break down slightly, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper.
Once the cherry tomatoes have begun to break down, add in the kale and 1/4 cup of water. Save a 1/4 cup for later. Cover the pot and let the kale braise for 15 minutes, stirring once at the halfway point. If when you open the pot at the halfway point, there is no liquid, add the rest of the water.
Open the dutch oven and add the pat of butter. Stir until it is completely melted throughout the sauce. Remove the kale from the dutch oven and serve.

Ground Beef and Cabbage Stir-Fry

Ingredients:
1 tbsp. sesame oil
1 tbsp. sambal oelek chili paste (optional)
1 tbsp. minced ginger
2 cloves garlic minced
1 lb. ground sirloin or beef
pepper to taste
6 cups napa cabbage chopped (or any kind of cabbage or bok choy)
1/3 cup water
1/8 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 tsp. sugar
minced scallions and sesame seeds (optional garnish)

Heat a large wok or saute pan over high heat. Add sesame oil, sambal (if using), garlic and ginger. Heat until fragrant, about 30 seconds, stirring frequently. Add ground beef to the pan along with a pinch of pepper to taste. Using a wooden spoon, begin breaking down the beef into bite-sized pieces. Continue sauteing beef until browned, about 6-8 minutes stirring frequently.
Add the chopped cabbage to the wok along with sugar and pepper to taste, rice vinegar, soy sauce, and water. Stir well then saute until cabbage is softened, about 3-4 additional minutes. Add scallions and sesame seeds, check for seasoning and adjust accordingly.

Perfect Roasted Broccoli

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds broccoli, cut into florets
3 garlic cloves minced
3 tbsp. olive oil
Juice from half a lemon, about 1 tbsp.
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine broccoli florets and garlic. Drizzle with olive oil and fresh lemon juice. Toss until florets are well coated.
Arrange broccoli florets in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste. Roast for 15-20 minutes, until cooked and slightly browned. Remove from oven and serve warm.

Parmesan Herb Roasted Acorn Squash

Ingredients:
2 acorn squash (small to medium sized)
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried oregano

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Slice the top and bottom of the squash, then place it on a flat end and slice it in half. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon, then slice each half into slices about 1-inch thick.
Add the squash to a large mixing bowl along with the oil, parmesan, garlic, salt, basil, thyme, and oregano. Use your hand to toss the ingredients together, until well mixed.
Place the squash slices on a parchment or aluminum-lined baking tray. If there’s extra parmesan herb mixture in the bowl, just press that onto the top side of the slices. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until soft and lightly golden on top.
Transfer the roasted acorn squash to a serving platter and enjoy!

Spicy Ground Pork (Authentic Chinese)

Ingredients:
1 T oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 t minced ginger root
1/2 lb. ground pork
1 Chinese sausage chopped
1 small onion chopped
1/4 C forest or shiitake mushrooms chopped
3 T hoisin sauce
2 T catsup
1/2 T sugar
1 T chili paste with soy bean OR 1 T black bean sauce with a tad of red pepper flakes
1 t soy sauce (low sodium)

1/4 C water used to soak mushrooms with some cornstarch for thickening
1 green onion, chopped
1 lettuce for cups

Heat oil in wok or skillet and cook pork and sausage, drain off excess fat.
Add onions and mushrooms, cook for 1 minute.
Add remaining ingredients and thicken with cornstarch mixture. Add green onions. Serve minced pork mixture wrapped with lettuce.

Gail Chord Schuler