FROM THE COOKBOOK SHELF
It's rare for me not to get a cookbook for Christmas and this year was no exception. Mary Beth gave me Southern Living Cookbook, America's Best Home Cooking, published by Oxmoor House in 2008. It's loose-leaf-bound and opens flat for easy access to recipes.
Iceberg head lettuce may be the least nutritious of the lettuces available in today's supermarket but on New Year's Eve in a Naperville, IL restaurant I had a wedge of iceberg lettuce with blue cheese dressing that made me rethink my attitude about it. The Southern Living cookbook also has an iceberg lettuce salad recipe but this one is even better with a topping of crumbled bacon, Parmesan cheese and chopped chives. With the generous amount of bacon, it's almost a meal in itself! Yum!
ICEBERG LETTUCE WEDGES WITH BLUE CHEESE DRESSING
- Blue Cheese Dressing
- 1 medium head iceberg head lettuce, cut into 4 wedges
- 8 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled
- 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
- Pour Blue Cheese Dressing over lettuce wedges placed on individual salad plates. Combine bacon, Parmesan cheese and chives; sprinkle over dressing. Recipe makes 4 servings.
Blue Cheese Dressing recipe:
- 1 cup mayonnaise (I use Hellmann's Light)
- 1 8-ounce container sour cream
- 1 4-ounce package crumbled blue cheese
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
Stir together all ingredients. Cover and chill until ready to use. Recipe makes 2 1/2 cups.
Source: Southern Living Cookbook, Oxmoor House, 2008.
MEATLESS CHILI A HIT WITH TASTE TESTERS!
Just as fall magazines leading up to Halloween through Christmas are filled with rich foods to make for the holidays, early winter editions focus on what's healthy, especially this year when we know that a third of the population is overweight and/or obese. It's a serious problem that even politicians are addressing. Let's keep the latter element out of the picture and make a personal effort to lose weight this year.
My first week back at the Bryan Chief I served Slow Cooker Meatless Chili. Although I am not a vegetarian, I'll be making this vegetable chili again, especially during Lent. Pinto beans add protein. For heartier fare, serve with a grilled cheese sandwich. Recipe makes a lot so plan to freeze some for future meals. |
SLOW COOKER MEATLESS CHILI
- 2 large carrots, diced
- 2 ribs celery, diced
- 1 medium onion, diced
- Pam
- 2 8-ounce packages sliced fresh mushrooms
- 1 1/2 cups chopped zucchini (about 1 large)
- 1 cup chopped summer (yellow) squash (about 1 medium)
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon seasoned pepper (I used McCormick brand)
- 1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
- 3 cups tomato juice
- 2 14 1/2 ounce cans diced tomatoes, undrained
- 4 15-ounce cans pinto beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt (optional or to taste)
- Tabasco sauce (optional)
Over medium-high heat, saute carrots, celery and onion in a 12-inch nonstick skillet coated with Pam for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add mushrooms and squash; saute 3 minutes. Add chili powder, basil and seasoned pepper and saute 5 more minutes. Stir together tomato sauce and tomato juice in 6-quart slow cooker until smooth. Stir in diced tomatoes, pinto beans and carrot mixture. Cook on low for 8 hours. Recipe makes 15 1 1/2 cup (125 calorie) servings.
Source: Adapted from Southern Living magazine recipe.
RAW OR COOKED?
Cooking broccoli depletes it of sulforaphane, a compound found in the vegetable that appears to protect against cancer and stomach ulcers, according to a recent study. Dutch researchers gave volunteers about 2 cups of cooked or raw broccoli on different days and then measured the amount of sulforaphane in their blood and urine. Levels of the disease-fighting compound were nearly 11 times higher after eating raw broccoli than cooked. But other research has linked even cooked broccoli with lower rates of cancer and other diseases.
Source: Consumer Report, February 2009.
BE PREPARED
I do the memos a month in advance and as I do this one, we're to have a blizzard tomorrow. During the blizzard of 1978, many people were unprepared and either didn't have or ran out of critical supplies. Since then, nothing helps supermarket business like a winter storm advisory. Shoppers flock to the store and stock up, never to be caught unaware again! I do the same.
Watch what you eat, though. I find myself thinking about food more than ever and have to restrain myself from snacking. But if I keep busy enough I don't have time to eat except at mealtime. I'm cleaning out drawers and shelves. Organizing things, whether it's in the kitchen or elsewhere takes time but when it's done it gives one such a sense of satisfaction. |
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