Bacon Wrapped Shrimp

1-2 tbsp. sour cream

1/2 tbsp. mayonnaise

Juice from one lime

1/2 tsp. chopped green onion

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper

7 large shrimp

7 slices lean bacon

1/4 of a medium onion, chopped

1 cup chopped mushrooms

1 cup chopped green bell pepper

Canola or olive oil for sautéing

Dash of steak sauce


For the dipping sauce, mix together first 7 ingredients, cover and chill until ready to use.

Wrap shrimp with bacon and skewer with toothpick. Sauté onion, mushrooms and pepper in canola or olive oil. Add a dash of steak sauce; stir. Lightly sauté shrimp/bacon skewers until done, no more than 5 minutes.

Chipotle-Yogurt Chicken Kebabs

1/2 cup plain fat-free yogurt
1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, minced
1 large garlic clove, crushed
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
cooking spray

Adobo chiles used to give this recipe a smoky and spicy flavor.  Serve with grilled pineapple slices and cooked couscous tossed with chopped tomato, onion and fresh parsley.

Combine first 6 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk.  Pour into a heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag.  Add chicken; seal bag, and toss to coat.  Marinate in refrigerator 1 to 2 hours, tuning bag occasionally.

Prepare grill.

Thread chicken evenly onto 4 (10-inch) metal skewers; place on grill rack coated with cooking spray.  Grill 11 minutes or until done, turning once. 

Yield:  4 servings (serving size: 1 kebab).




Per Serving:  Calories 206 (10% from fat); Fat 2.3g (saturated fat 0.6g);Protein 40.7g; Carbohydrates 3.4g; Fiber 0.2g; Cholesterol 99mg; Iron 1.5mg;  Sodium 445mg; Calcium 64mg

Cinnamon French Toast Strips

2/3 cup granulated sugar

4 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 cup skim milk

1/8 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

6 (1/2-inch) slices French bread

In a wide shallow bowl, stir together sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and milk.  Remove crusts from bread and cut each slice into 3 or 4 strips. Working with 1 strip of bread at a time, turn strips quickly in butter, coating them on all sides, letting any excess drip off, then turn them quickly in cinnamon-sugar, coating them on all sides. Bake strips in lightly buttered jellyroll pan in upper third of a preheated 375 degree F oven for 10 minutes. Turn and bake 10 more minutes. Transfer with tongs to serving plate.

Spiced Blueberry-Peach Cobbler

FILLING
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon finely chopped crystallized ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
7 cups thickly sliced peeled peaches (generous 1-inch slices)*
2 cups blueberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice

TOPPING
2 cups all-purpose flour
8 tablespoons sugar, divided
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, chilled, cut up
1 1/4 cups whole milk
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Heat oven to 400°F. Spray 13x9-inch glass baking dish with cooking spray. Combine 1 cup sugar, cornstarch, ginger and nutmeg in large bowl. Gently stir in peaches, blueberries and lemon juice. Spoon into baking dish. Bake 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, whisk flour, 6 tablespoons of the sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl. With pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles very coarse crumbs. Stir in milk just until soft dough forms.

3. Combine remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and cinnamon. Remove fruit from oven. Drop 12 mounds of dough over hot fruit; sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

4. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until fruit is bubbly and topping is rich golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack 30 to 45 minutes to serve warm or cool completely.

TIP *To peel peaches, drop peaches into large pot of boiling water; boil 30 seconds or until peach skins loosen. Remove with slotted spoon; drop into ice water to cool. Use knife to peel away skins.

12 servings

PER SERVING: 320 calories, 9 g total fat (5.5 g saturated fat), 4 g protein, 57.5 g carbohydrate, 25 mg cholesterol, 215 mg sodium, 3 g fiber

Melanie Barnard

Dorothy's Almond Cheesecake

Preheat oven to 375*

Crust

1 3/4 cups crushed graham crackers
1/4 cup crushed almonds
1/2 stick melted butter

Line bottom of pan

Filling

2  8 oz. cream cheese, softened
3 eggs, room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon almond extract
3 cups sour cream

Mix well and pour in pan.

Wrap pan in aluminum foil.

Put in roasting pan with about an inch of water.

Bake at 375* for about 35 minutes.

Nana's Baked Bananas

6 bananas
2 tablespoons melted butter
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Slice bananas in half length and width
Lay in buttered casserole
Pour 1/2 butter, sugar and lemon mixture over bananas
Bake in slow oven about 1/2 hour
Baste with rest of mixture
Continue baking until soft and caramelized

Artichoke Spinach Dip (from Whitney's shower)

Ingredients

• 1 Cup chopped artichoke hearts (canned or frozen & thawed)
• 1/2 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed
• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• dash black pepper
• On the side
• Crackers
• Chips
• or Sliced toasted Pitas

Instructions

Boil the spinach and artichoke hearts in a cup of water in a small saucepan over medium heat until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain in a colander when done. Heat the cream cheese in a small bowl in the microwave set on high for 1 minute. Or, use a saucepan to heat the cheese over medium heat just until hot. Add the spinach and artichoke hearts to the cream cheese and stir well. Add the remaining ingredients to the cream cheese and combine.

Serve hot with crackers, chips, or toasted pitas for dipping

Buffalo Chicken Dip

2- 8oz cream cheese (softened)
1 jar of Franks buffalo wing sauce
1 jar bleu cheese dressing (from cold produce section)
2 large cans chicken

Mix all together, serve warm with tortilla chips
Can be microwaved or heated in oven until hot

Pastry-Wrapped Chicken with Vegetable Stuffing

Serves 4 to 6

• by Barbara Lynch
  from Fine Cooking
  Issue 122
  Last Edit Date: 2/21/2013 9:59:51 PM

Chicken stuffed with aromatic vegetables and wrapped in a buttery bread-like crust, known as “poulet au pain” in France, is the ultimate comfort food. As it bakes, the dough becomes golden and flaky, perfect for eating along with the tender meat and vegetables. It's a bit reminiscent of chicken pot pie.

• 13-1/2 oz. (3 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour; more as needed
• 1/2 tsp. granulated sugar
• Kosher salt
• 6 oz. (3/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces
• 1 Tbs. olive oil
• 2 medium celery stalks, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1 medium carrot, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1 medium yellow onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1 Tbs. chopped fresh rosemary
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 whole chicken (about 3-1/2 lb.)
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten with 1 Tbs. water

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, and 1-1/2 tsp. salt. Add the butter and mix on low speed, stopping the mixer occasionally to break up bigger chunks of butter with your fingers, until the mixture resembles coarse meal with some pea-size pieces. (If you don’t have a stand mixer, use a pastry cutter or your fingers to work the butter into the dry ingredients.) Add 1/2 cup water and continue mixing (or stir with a fork) until the dough begins to come together, about 1 minute more. Turn the mixer off, scrape the dough off the paddle, and switch to the dough hook. Knead the dough on medium-low speed (or by hand) until it comes together in a mass, 1 to 2 minutes (longer by hand).

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and continue to knead it briefly until it feels smooth and elastic. If the dough is very sticky, add a little more flour.

Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and heat the oven to 400°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a heavy-duty 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the celery, carrot, onion, rosemary, and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are just tender but not colored, about 8 minutes. Let cool.

Remove the giblets from the chicken and discard or save for another use. Pat the chicken dry and trim away any excess fat. Cut off the first two joints of the wings and discard or save for another use. Season the chicken liberally inside and out with salt and pepper. Put the vegetables inside the cavity and tie the legs together with kitchen string.

On a very lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to a 1/8-inch-thick, 18x13-inch rectangle. (If the dough shrinks back, let it rest for a few minutes at room temperature, then roll again.) Put the chicken on the dough breast side down and wrap the dough around the bird, overlapping the edges. If there is a lot of overlap, trim the dough. Pinch the seams together to seal them. Turn the bird over and put it seam side down on the prepared baking sheet. Gently mold the dough over the contours of the chicken to delineate its shape.

Brush the tops and sides of the dough with the egg wash and sprinkle with salt.

Bake the chicken until the pastry is golden-brown (if it’s browning too much, tent it loosely with foil) and an instant-read thermometer inserted through the crust and into the breast registers 160°F, 1 to 1-1/2 hours. Let cool for at least 1 hour (the chicken will still be quite warm after 1 hour) and up to 3 hours before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.

To carve the chicken, crack into the crust with a knife and carve away pieces of the chicken, starting with the breast. Serve the chicken with some of the crust and the vegetable stuffing.

Make Ahead Tips:

You can wrap the chicken in dough up to 1 day ahead; wrap it in parchment and refrigerate. Brush with egg wash just before baking.

You can let the fully baked chicken rest at room temperature for up to 3 hours before serving (though the meat and vegetables will be closer to room temperature after resting this long).

Nutrition information (per serving):

Calories (kcal): 790; Fat (g): 45; Fat Calories (kcal): 400; Saturated Fat (g): 20; Protein (g): 41; Monounsaturated Fat (g): 15; Carbohydrates (g): 52; Polyunsaturated Fat (g): 6; Sodium (mg): 600; Cholesterol (mg): 195; Fiber (g): 3