Food goodness

Based on this recipe , with some fairly substantial modifications. I've made it once with the blueberry sauce and once without, and I think it's actually better with just plain maple syrup on top. You could make this right before eating it, of course, but letting it sit overnight helps everything meld together. Ingredients: A loaf and a half of challah (the best way) or a substantial amount of any kind of bread One package cream cheese (you can use reduced fat, but the regular kind melts better) A pint of fresh blueberries or a few handfuls of frozen 8 eggs 1/2 to 1 c milk 1/2 c maple syrup dash of vanilla dash of cinnamon Grease a 9x13 glass baking dish. Cut the cream cheese into little squares. Tear the bread into bite-sized pieces and layer them in the dish with the cream cheese and blueberries, distributing things somewhat evenly. Whisk together the eggs, milk, syrup, vanilla and cinnamon. Pour it over the casserole a little at a time, making sure it...

Adapted from ATK's Slow Cooker Revolution and a recipe I swiped from I's. 1 container low-sodium chx broth 1 can hominy, drained and rinsed or 2 C fire roasted frozen corn (no need to thaw) 2 T veg oil 2 onions, small dice 3 large bell peppers, medium dice 4 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded and minced OR 2 chiles in adobo, minced 6 garlic cloves, minced 4 t ground cumin 2 t ground coriander 1 t smoked paprika 1/2 t cayenne 3 15 oz cans cannellini or Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed 3 lbs bone-in chx thighs, skin removed and trimmed (I used 2 large breasts and 6 drumsticks because that's what was in my freezer) S&P potato flakes for thickening soup, optional In a microwave safe bowl add oil, onions, spices and jalapenos/chiles in adobo and microwave on high for 4 min then stir.  Microwave another 3 min and add to slow cooker along with broth, bell peppers and beans.  Season chx with S&P and nestle into slow cooker.  Cover and cook until c...

From Joy the Baker . 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 pound spicy chicken sausage, uncased 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced 3 celery stalks, finely diced 2 carrots, finely diced 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 teaspoons dried ground cumin 1/4 teaspoon red chili flakes 2 cups uncooked French lentils, rinsed 8 cups chicken stock salt and pepper to taste parmesan cheese, olive oil, and bread to serve In a large saucepan over medium heat, warm olive oil.  Add the uncased chicken sausage and cook, breaking up with a spatula as it cooks.  Sausage should finish cooking in small chunks.  Remove from the pan. Add a touch more olive oil if necessary.  Add onions, celery, and carrots.  Cook until the onions are transluscent, about 5 to seven minutes.  Stir occasionally.  Add the garlic, cumin, and chili flakes, and cook for one minute more. Add the sausage back to the pan.  Stir to incorporate.  Add the lentils and chicken stock.  R...

This has officially replaced the old way I used to make this meal , because this way is easier and better. That is all. Up to two lbs. peeled, seeded butternut squash, cut into 1/2-inch cubes 2 large onions, cut into 3/4-inch pieces 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg Salt Freshly ground black pepper Some tablespoons olive oil 8 ounces dried corkscrew-shaped pasta, such as fusilli or rotelli 1 1/2 cups low-fat ricotta cheese 4 to 6 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with heavy-duty aluminum foil and spray with olive oil or cooking spray. Oil the baking sheet and spread out the squash and onions in a single layer. Grate nutmeg over everything, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and spray or drizzle with olive oil. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, until the squash is tender and the onion has browned lightly. Remove the vegetables from the oven; reduce the temperature to 350 degrees. While the vegetable...

From: Honest Fare We ate muesli almost every morning when we were in Ireland a couple of years ago, and it was so much better than muesli I've been able to find here in the States.  Weaver's in Lancaster now makes a version of it that you can buy in quart-size containers, and theirs is pretty good.  It's kind of expensive, though, especially if it's going to be an every-morning kind of thing.  So, I decided to make my own.  I'm kind of using this post from Honest Fare as a basic formula, and I like her instructions regarding the order to add the ingredients so the dates don't clump together and everything gets dusted with cinnamon, etc.  Obviously you can mix up the ingredients to your taste.  I added some dried apricots instead of raisins, and pepitas instead of sunflower seeds.  I'll be eating this for breakfast this week.  I also recently figured out that I like muesli even better when I add the milk the night before and let it soak overnight...

An answer to the age-old question: Yes, you can use salsa instead of enchilada sauce. Both of them have basically the same ingredients, but enchilada sauce is a little more processed and/or labor-intensive to make yourself. Most of the ingredients in these enchiladas are things you might just have lying around, so salsa seems to go with that. And the filling is healthy and protein-tastic, but it gives that creamy yum you want with Mexican food. Loosely based on these vegetarian enchiladas . 2 T olive oil 1 onion, diced 2 cloves of garlic, chopped 2 jalepenos, de-seeded and chopped dash of red pepper flakes 1 T cumin a big handful of cilantro, washed and chopped 1-10oz package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and excess water squeezed out 1 container (about 6 or 8?) large mushrooms, sliced 1 cup whipped lowfat cottage cheese (if you have regular cottage cheese, drain it first)  1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed 8 corn tortillas 1 jar s...

From: Honey & Jam I made these apple bars to celebrate all the September birthdays in our small office (half of our staff of 8 are Sept birthdays).  They were good, and everyone loved them.  I thought they could be a little less sweet, so when I make them again (and I probably will), I will try cutting down on the sugar in the apple filling first.  I'm not sure how it would affect the consistency of the crust if you decreased the sugar there... might still work. Base: 2 c. flour 1/2 c. sugar 1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp. salt 1 c. real butter, softened 1 egg, beaten Apple Filling: 1/2 c. white sugar (could probably use less - these are pretty sweet bars) 1/4 c. flour 1 tsp. cinnamon 4 c. (about 3 medium) sliced, peeled baking apples Glaze: 2 c. powdered sugar About 3 Tbsp. milk (whole milk is best) 1/2 tsp. almond extract To prepare crust, mix flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender or two ...