Havarti-Dill Mashed Potatoes

• 1 large russet potato
• 1/4 C milk
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp shredded Havarti cheese
• 1 tsp fresh dill
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Peel potato and chop into 1/2 inch pieces (see notes below). Place in large saucepan and add enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes or until potatoes can be broken up with a fork.
2. Drain, return to saucepan, and shake over low heat for 1 minute. Mash in remaining ingredients, leaving some potato chunks if desired.

Robyn's notes: he likes potato skin in his mashed potatoes, I can't have the skins, so I sometimes make two versions of any mashed potatoes, peeling half the potato for mine and leaving the other half unpeeled for his.  Add the milk while mashing, depending on the size of the potato it may not be necessary to use the full amount.  Havarti, being a semi-soft cheese, is difficult to shred.  It can help to spray the grater with cooking spray, or simply cut it into small pieces off the block instead of shredding. 

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Banana Bread Mini Loaf

Since the checker at the market chose to put my canned goods in the bag on top of my bananas, some had to be sacrificed to bread.  This was meant to also have a chocolate glaze, but the unsweetened chocolate that was in my grocery basket was never rung up by the checker.  No way was I driving all the way back to town when I got home and discovered I didn't have it (since I also was not charged for it), so I decided to just make the bread without the glaze, which is of course also perfectly good.

• 1 1/4 C all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/3 C sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 Tbsp butter, softened
• 1/2 C mashed ripe banana 
• 2 Tbsp plain yogurt
• 1/4 C chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

1.  Preheat oven to 350°F.  Grease and flour a mini loaf pan (5 1/2 " x 3") .
2.  In a medium mixing bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and baking soda.
3.  In another medium bowl, beat sugar, eggs, and butter until fluffy.  Slowly beat in bananas and yogurt.  Add flour mixture and mix just until blended.  Do not overmix or the bread will be tough.  Stir in nuts if using.
4.  Pour batter into prepared pan and bake on middle shelf for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool in pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then remove from pan to finish cooling on wire rack.  Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and let stand overnight to allow flavours to mellow.

Robyn's notes: I did not use the nuts, because I'm not able to eat them.  For me, the amount of banana needed was one-and-a-half medium bananas once the completely black bruised sections had been cut out.  This probably translates to one large banana that hasn't been manhandled by a checker who was presumably having a lousy day.  My baking time was 40 minutes.  I made this bread again after we moved, so I can confirm it was as good without any needed changes at 4,500ft.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Peanut Butter Bread Mini Loaf

This is a very simple recipe that produces a bread that's good for snacks or pbj sandwiches.  I've eaten it toasted or not, spread with jelly or honey.  While it's baking the whole house gets a nice smell of peanut butter, but the flavour of the finished loaf is pretty subtle.

• 1 C flour
• 2 rounded Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 Tbsp beaten egg
• 1/2 C milk
• 1/4 C + 2 Tbsp peanut butter

1.  Preheat oven to 350°F.  In medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add egg, milk and peanut butter; stir just until combined. Pour into greased mini loaf pan (5 1/2 by 3 inches).
2.  Bake for 40-50 minutes, until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.  Allow to cool 10 minutes in the pan, then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.  

Robyn's notes: I own steel mini loaf pans, but for households that don't, disposable ones can generally be found in the kitchen supplies aisle of grocery stores (I always keep a few of those on hand for cooking gluten-free breads, so there's no danger of cross-contamination from my regular pans).  As I've said before, I suspect that my oven thermostat is off, so while this took 40 minutes to bake for me, it may take longer for more accurate ovens.  This makes a fairly dense bread, but I still think it has good texture.  It would get a higher star rating if there was more peanut butter flavour, it's just a bit too mild for my taste and adding much more peanut butter would keep it from baking properly.  Chunky peanut butter is an option for those who can have it, I'm not supposed to.

Drop Biscuits

Growing up, my mom had an old recipe for baking powder biscuits that we all loved.  Soft and fluffy and flaky, perfect with jam or honey or even just butter.  I've made the recipe myself a few times, but don't have the recipe available just now. These drop biscuits aren't a replacement for the old cut-out biscuits I love, but they're an easy substitution, especially for a leisurely morning.

• 2/3 C flour
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/8 tsp sugar
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/3 C buttermilk, cold
• 2 Tbsp butter, melted and slightly cooled, plus 1 tsp extra for brushing the completed tops

1.  Preheat oven to 450°F.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
2.  In medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt.  In a small bowl, combine chilled buttermilk and melted butter until butter forms small clumps.  Stir buttermilk mixture into flour mixture with a rubber spatula until just combined and dough is pulling away from the sides of the bowl.
3.  Using a greased 1/4 C measure or #16 scoop, drop four mounds of dough onto prepared baking sheet (see notes, below), about 1 1/2 inches apart.  Bake 12-15 minutes until tops are golden brown and crisp, turning pan halfway through baking.
4.  Brush additional melted butter on tops of baked biscuits, transfer to a wire rack, and allow to cool for 5 minutes, serving warm.

Robyn's notes: I used a 1/4 C measure to scoop the dough onto the baking sheet, and got exactly three biscuits.  The original recipe gives a yield of four, so it's up to you whether to scoop the dough into four equal portions or measure out in 1/4 C amounts as instructed.  Be aware that smaller biscuits will cook faster.  These came out slightly dry for my taste, but I strongly suspect that my oven thermostat is wrong and that they were baking at a temperature higher than the oven claimed.  Since I haven't found my oven thermometer in any of the boxes we have here, I can't check it yet.  The biscuits were still good, easy to pull apart and tasty both with jam and just with dabs of butter.  

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Queso Blanco

Last Wednesday I leaned over the bed to pull off the fitted sheet for washing, and immediately felt a series of spasms in my lower back.  I have a herniated disc that leads to sciatica, so this is not the first time I've experienced this, it generally happens about once a year.  This time I fell forward onto my face screaming from the pain, which is where I remained until my sweetheart got home and rescued me.  He moved me onto my back in bed with pillows under my knees, and I stayed there until Thursday morning when we went to the ER for stronger pain meds and muscle relaxants.  Monday was the first day I was truly up and moving around, but since it's best for this sort of back problem to keep moving as much as possible, I decided that today I'd make the most basic of cheeses.  Queso blanco is not a melting cheese, but it's good on crackers or bread, sliced and fried, or sprinkled over tacos or refried beans.  Read all my notes at the bottom before beginning, the recipe I followed was not perfect.

• 1/2 gallon cow's milk (raw or pasteurized is ok, not ultrapasteurized)
• 1/4 C lime juice (for me this was every drop of 3 limes)
• salt to taste

1.  Heat milk in a non-aluminum pot on medium-low heat for about 10 minutes (see notes, below) or until it looks like it’s just about to boil. If you have an instant-read thermometer, heat until milk is between 185°F and 190°F.
2.  Pour in lime juice. The curds will separate from the whey and the mixture will begin to look lumpy or grainy.  Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
3.  Pour the pot’s contents into a cheesecloth-lined colander and drain for 2-3 minutes.  Sprinkle curds with salt (see notes, below).  If desired, add herbs, spices, or chopped chiles (about 1/4 C of chopped chiles would be right, or about 1/2 Tbsp of fresh herbs.  Really it's whatever tastes best to you, you'd need to experiment).
4.  Gather curds in the center, tie the cheesecloth’s ends and hang the cloth on the faucet so it can drain for 4 hours or overnight.
5.  Untie cheesecloth, and store cheese in sealed container in the refrigerator.  It will keep as long as the milk would have, so note the expiration date on the milk before disposing of the packaging.

Robyn's notes: I used raw cow's milk because it's easily available, but as mentioned above, pasteurized is fine.  Ultrapasteurized should never be used for making cheese.  The recipe I was following phrased step 1 almost exactly as I've written it here, and since it didn't say whether or not to cover the heating milk, I left it uncovered so I could see better when it was getting close to a boil (I have many thermometers of various types, all are still in storage).  When, after 15 minutes, the milk was just slightly warm to the touch, I put the lid on.  Another 30 minutes later, it still wasn't coming up to a boil and I bumped the burner to a slightly higher heat.  Counting from the time I first turned on the stove, it took 50 minutes to get the milk to the proper temperature, and I've seen other people comment that they had the same experience.  A lot of this will depend on your stove, the size of the pot you use, etc.  Visually for me, the milk quickly got a yellow skin on top, and after all that time tiny bubbles started to form all across the underside of that skin.  When I poured in the lime juice I did give it a quick stir, but didn't agitate it very much.  The entire pot separated without my having to do so.  I only used two thicknesses of cheesecloth over my strainer, and I lost a lot of curds, so in future I'll probably use four thicknesses.  The recipe I followed gave no guidelines as to amount of salt.  It just said it was ok to use more than you normally would, because a lot of the salt will drain out as the cheese dries.  Since I didn't know how much "normal" was, I used about 1/2 tsp.  It was definitely not enough.  As I was draining in the strainer, I scraped the cheesecloth with a spoon in several places to help the whey drain out.  I would recommend not pressing with the back of a spoon, as that will just force the curds through.  The completed recipe worked, but the cheese was completely tasteless.  I've had queso blanco many times, and while it's a mild cheese it does usually have some flavour.  This did not.  Obviously if I'd added herbs, spices, or chiles it would have been different, and I will try that in the future and revise my rating if it improves.  For now I'm being generous in a 3 star rating, as so many of the instructions were vague and the final product tastes like nothing.
 

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Spinach Cucumber Salad with Yogurt Dressing

I don't really like to buy salad dressing unless I'm using it to cook with.  I'd much rather make my own, as it's fresher and can be made in small amounts as needed.

• 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp honey
• 1 Tbsp plain yogurt
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 Tbsp fresh mint, chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 C baby spinach leaves
• 1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and halved lengthwise (see notes, below)
• few slices red onion

1. Whisk the lemon juice and honey in a bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the yogurt and olive oil together. Add the yogurt mixture to the lemon juice mixture in a thin stream, whisking constantly. Stir in mint, then add the salt and pepper to taste. Cover and chill the dressing for up to 24 hours.
2.  Combine the spinach, cucumbers and onion in a large bowl. Season with a little salt and pepper if desired. Add just enough dressing to moisten the salad. Toss to coat, and serve with extra dressing on the side.

Robyn's notes: My sweetheart prefers that I not peel or seed cucumber, as lots of nutrition is lost in disposing of the peel, so I just wash it well and slice it into half-coins.  This is a side salad, not an entree salad, and was made to use leftover cucumber, red onion, and yogurt from recent meals.  I can't eat spinach, cucumber, or red onion, so I can only go by his opinion, which was that this was "fine".  Dressing smelled nice, I can say that!  

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Patriotic Fruit Skewers

This probably doesn't need a recipe, just an explanation and closer photo than the one I posted on July 4th.

On each toothpick a raspberry, banana coin, and blueberry, in that order.  As a dipping sauce, Honey Cream Fruit Dip.  Make as many skewers as needed for the appetites of the eaters.

Only gets three stars because I'm not supposed to eat blueberries, they make me somewhat ill, so I'm not able to enjoy it much.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Raspberry Curd

• 2 oz raspberries
• 1/4 C + 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1 Tbsp lime juice
• tiny pinch salt

1.  Whisk all ingredients in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water until slightly thick. Strain; refrigerate until cold and thick.

Robyn's notes: lemon juice is also ok, I had half a lime needing to be used.  I served this over my Cold-Oven Quarter Pound Cakes and used it for an additional topping with Blueberry Upside-Down Cakes.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Happy Independence Day!

Recipes on another day, we're busy having our 4th of July celebration!

Honey Cream Fruit Dip

I took the ratios for this from an episode of Alton Brown's Good Eats. It's easy to upsize if necessary, as this makes quite a small amount of dip.  The show used 1 Cup of sour cream, to give a sense of scale. 

• 1/2 Tbsp honey
• 2 Tbsp sour cream
• berries of your choosing

1.  In a custard cup or small glass bowl, heat honey in microwave for 20-25 seconds.  Whisk in sour cream.  Serve with fruit.

Robyn's notes: this was a way to keep from wasting even the tiniest remaining bit of sour cream after having used it in several recipes.  It was good on strawberries, but I think where it really shone was on raspberries. If making a large batch, the honey should be warmed on the stove in a saucepan, but for such a tiny amount as this that would be ridiculous.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Peach Mango Smoothies

About 10 or 12 years ago, I picked up a couple Smoothie cookbooks, with the intention of eating more healthily.  I only ever made 3 or 4 recipes out of both, partly because they called for a lot of specialty ingredients and insisted that I put the items into the blender in a certain order, processing for a certain number of seconds between each addition, and I was lazy and poor and those things didn't work for me.  So eventually I stopped bothering with some of the ingredients in one of the smoothies, and stopped worrying about careful combining.  This is where I ended up, and it's a smoothie I've been making ever since.

• 1 banana, diced
• 1/4 C mango sorbet (store-bought ok)
• 1 C frozen sliced peaches
• 3/4 C frozen diced mangoes
• 1/2 C juice of your choice (see notes below)

1.  Combine all ingredients in a blender and process until combined and smooth, stopping blender as needed to stir and push chunks down.

Yield: approximately 22 fl oz

Robyn's notes: it's ok to use a frozen banana, but if so, the banana needs to be diced into coins before being frozen.  I usually have a couple frozen diced bananas on hand for making smoothies with, they do turn brown in the freezer but as long as they were fresh to start they'll retain their freshness long after they stop looking pretty.  A full-size frozen banana is very hard to process and becomes quite frustrating.  I have used both store-bought frozen fruit and fruit that I've frozen myself for the peaches and mangoes, and it really doesn't make any difference.  I prefer buying fresh and freezing myself; if getting the store-bought make sure to buy fruit that has not got added sugar or syrup, it'll mess with the flavour of the finished smoothie.  It is best to use frozen, not just fresh fruit, however, because of the moisture content.  I use whatever juice I can find or have in the house, with a few guidelines.  My preference is for Orange Peach Mango, it just gives the best and truest flavour for this combination of ingredients.  If I can't find that, I'll go for whatever peach-mango combination I can find.  If there isn't one, I'll go for an orange-banana combination, and if that's not available, straight orange juice.  I prefer not to use "tropical mix" juices or strawberry-banana (even though I love the latter as a juice), because it just doesn't taste as good for this use.  For measuring the mango, I usually use the 1 Cup measure and just don't fill it up, since there's a lot of air between the mango pieces it's hard to get an accurate measurement without using a scale.   

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Red Potato Gratin Dauphinois

• 3/4 C heavy cream
• 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1/2 Tbsp garlic, minced
• salt and pepper to taste
• 8 small to medium red potatoes
• 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 C Gruyere cheese, shredded
• 1/2 C fontina cheese, shredded

1.  Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2.  In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, Dijon, and garlic; add salt and pepper. Cut the potatoes as thin as possible using either a mandoline or your sharpest knife and place them in the cream mixture to marinate.
3.  Rub the olive oil all over the sides and bottom of two gratin pans and then begin shingling the potato slices in a single layer on the bottom of the pans. When the first layer is finished, sprinkle a thin layer of both Fontina and Gruyere on top of the potatoes (it should be about 1 Tbsp of each, depending on the shape of your pan). Repeat this process until you have 3 layers of potatoes, then pour the cream mixture over the top, filling it up about halfway; make sure you reserve enough of the Gruyere to liberally coat the top layer of potatoes.
4.  Bake, uncovered, at 400°F for 30 minutes, then turn on broiler and broil for 2 more minutes.  Let cool for at least 5 minutes before serving.

Robyn's notes: this is another recipe I'm quite proud of.  It came out fabulously.  When the first 30 minutes of cook time had finished, I took the pan out of the oven, turned on the broiler, and poked through all three layers of potatoes with a toothpick, to see how tender they were.  If any part of them had been still crunchy, I would have broiled for longer than the 2 minutes, to get them nice and tender.  Fortunately all three layers were perfect, so the 2 minutes under the broiler was just right to give it an extra browning on top.  Since I'm not allowed to eat potato skins, I peeled my half of the potatoes.  I served this as a meal, but it can also be a side, though I'd recommend getting all the smallest potatoes possible if serving as a side.  

***** 5 Stars: Excellent. A favourite for both of us, I will make this repeatedly

Quick Herb-Tomato Soup

• 1 (14.5 oz) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/4 C roasted garlic hummus
• 1 tsp crushed dried rosemary
• 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning blend, crumbled
• 1/2 tsp pepper (coarsely ground preferred)
• 1 Tbsp snipped fresh parsley (optional)

1. In a small saucepan, stir together all the ingredients except the parsley. Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Carefully pour into a blender and process until smooth (or remove from the heat and use an immersion, or handheld, blender).
2. Return to the pan. Heat over medium-low heat for 2 to 3 minutes, or until just simmering. Ladle into bowls. Garnish with the parsley.

Robyn's notes: this was far too strongly herb flavoured. If making this again, I'd actually halve the amount of all of the herbs. It was quite easy and quick, though. Shown with Grilled Triple Cheese Sandwiches.

** 2 Stars: Acceptable. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, if I make changes

Nutritional Facts: Exchanges = 1/2 Starch, 2 Vegetable, 1 Fat. Calories 125; Calories from Fat 55; Total Fat 6g; Saturated Fat 1.1g; Trans Fat 0g; Polyunsaturated Fat 2.4g; Monounsaturated Fat 2.7g; Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 200mg; Total Carbohydrate 16g; Dietary Fiber 5g; Sugars 7g; Protein 4g

Green Bean Un-Casserole

Most Americans are familiar with the 56-year-old Thanksgiving side dish that calls for cream of mushroom soup and french fried onions. This is a much lighter and healthier version, sized, of course, for two.

• 1 tsp butter
• 1/4 C panko
• 1 1/2 tsp dried minced onion flakes
• 1/4 tsp salt (to taste)
• 1/2 lb green beans, trimmed and cut
• 1/3 lb mushrooms, thinly sliced

1. In a small pan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add panko, onion flakes, and salt. Saute about 6 minutes or until crumbs are slightly toasted.
2. At the same time, steam green beans and mushrooms for 6 minutes.
3. Place green beans and mushrooms in serving dish, top with crumb topping.

Robyn's notes: as a refresher, to steam the vegetables with a steamer basket, place a pot on the stove and add about an inch of water. Place steamer basket into pot so that the veggies are not touching the water, but with the water almost reaching the bottom of the basket. With the lid on the pot, bring the water to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and steam for the required time.
This recipe is obviously not as rich as the original, but my taste-testers both enjoyed it.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Cheddar Cheese Bread

• 1oz Parmesan cheese, shredded on large holes of box grater (about 1/3 C; see note)
• 3/4 C plus 2 Tbsp unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• pinch cayenne pepper
• pinch pepper
• 2oz extra-sharp cheddar cheese, cut into 1/4-inch cubes (about 1/2 C)
• 1/4 C whole milk
• 3 Tbsp sour cream
• 1 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus extra for greasing pan
• 1 large egg

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease 5-1/2 by 3 inch loaf pan, then sprinkle 2 Tbsp plus 1 tsp Parmesan cheese evenly over bottom of pan.
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, cayenne, and pepper together in medium bowl. Fold in cheddar, breaking up clumps, until it is coated with flour mixture. In separate bowl, whisk milk, sour cream, melted butter, and egg together until smooth. Gently fold milk mixture into flour mixture with rubber spatula until just combined (do not overmix). Batter will be heavy and thick.
3. Scrape batter into prepared pan and smooth top. Sprinkle remaining 3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese evenly over top of batter. Bake until golden brown and toothpick inserted into center comes out with few crumbs attached, 30 to 40 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking.
4. Let bread cool in pan for 5 minutes, then turn it out onto wire rack and let cool for 1 hour before serving.

Robyn's notes: this is an America's Test Kitchen recipe, which means it's very specific and has several notes. These are theirs: Shredding the Parmesan on the large holes of a box grater and sprinkling it over the top of this bread adds a nice texture and helps prevent the cheese from burning; do not grate it fine or use pre-grated Parmesan. The texture of the bread improves as it cools, so resist the urge to slice the loaf while it is piping hot. The bread can be wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days. These notes are mine: I did grate the Parmesan myself, and I measured both cheeses by weight, not cup measurement. Cutting the cheddar into quarter-inch cubes probably took me about as long as the rest of the preparation. The first loaf I made was cooked through (clean toothpick) after 30 minutes, but the top wasn't at all golden. I took it out and let it cool anyway, so that the inside wouldn't get too dry. It was tasty and moist but a bit dense. I'm making two more mini-loaves as gifts, so I will likely let them cook a bit longer to see how they do. The Parmesan top and bottom was a great touch.

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Sugar 'n Spice Fruit Dip

• 1/2 Tbsp packed brown sugar or honey
• 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
• Pinch ground nutmeg
• 1 container (6 oz) Yoplait® Thick & Creamy vanilla yogurt
• 1 C red raspberries
• 1 1/4 C cubed honeydew melon, apple, or pear

1. In small bowl, mix brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir in yogurt.
2. Spoon yogurt mixture into small serving bowl. Sprinkle with additional ground cinnamon. Serve with fruit.

Yield: 5 servings (2 tablespoons dip, 3 pieces cubed fruit and 5 raspberries each)

Robyn's notes: this is half of the original recipe, but still makes quite a bit of dip. It will keep in a covered container in the refrigerator for a couple days if necessary.  Watch me demonstrate this recipe on youtube!

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Nutritional Information: 1 Serving (1 Serving) Calories 70 (Calories from Fat 5); Total Fat 1/2g (Saturated Fat 0g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 30mg; Total Carbohydrate 13g (Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 10g); Protein 2g

Mediterranean Vegetable Medley

• 1/2 onion
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 medium tomato
• 1/2 eggplant
• 1/2 zucchini
• 1/2 yellow pepper
• 1 C mushrooms
• black pepper
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce

1. Chop & salt eggplant, let stand 15 minutes.
2. Chop remaining vegetables.
3. Fry onion and garlic until soft.
4. Add yellow pepper and zucchini, fry for 5 minutes.
5. Rinse eggplant and squeeze to remove water and juice, add to frying pan with mushrooms and black pepper, fry for 10 minutes.
6. Add tomatoes to the pan with lemon juice and soy sauce, fry until tomatoes are soft.

Robyn's notes: this was meant to be placed on Foccacia or Ciabatta bread and topped with cheese, but I didn't have any bread in the house, so I simply served it as a side as shown below. Because this called for 1/2 each of several vegetables, I prepped two meals at once so as not to waste the other half.

Herbed Whole-Wheat Couscous

• 3/4 C reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 2 sliced scallions
• 2 Tbsp chopped parsley
• 1/2 C whole-wheat couscous

1. Bring first 3 ingredients to a boil in small saucepan. Add couscous, return to a simmer, cover and remove from heat. Let stand, covered, 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork before serving.

Robyn's notes: he liked this and it went very quickly.

Mini White Breads

Note: Total time approximately 2 3/4 hours

• 1 package (1/4oz) active dry yeast
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1/3 C warm water (110F to 115F)
• 2 1/4 to 2 1/2 C all-purpose flour (divided)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 C milk
• 2 tsp butter or margarine, melted
• additional melted butter or margarine

1. Combine yeast, sugar and water in a large mixing bowl. Add 1 1/2 C flour, salt, milk, and butter.
2. Mix for 3 minutes on medium speed. Add enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes.
3. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 minutes. Punch dough down. Divide in half; shape into two loaves and place in greased 5 3/4inch x 3inch x 2inch pans.
4. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 375F for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans; cool on wire racks. Brush tops with melted butter.

Robyn's notes: mini loaf pans can be found in the utensil aisle of the grocery store if needed. I have never actually checked the temperature of the warm water, just keeping it warm but not hot. I've made these mini loaves several times over the past 8 years and they're very simple to make. Using these loaves makes for cute mini sandwiches or mini toasts, which may seem less than useful but they're great for smaller households because having two mini sandwiches is similar to having one regular sized sandwich, and then the loaves don't last so long that they get stale.

Nutritional Analysis: One 1/2 inch slice (prepared with margarine) equals 75 calories, 156mg sodium, 0 cholesterol, 14gm carbohydrate, 2gm protein, 1gm fat.
Diabetic Exchange: 1 starch

Carrots with Rosemary Butter

• 1 1/2 C julienned carrots
• 1 Tbsp butter, softened
• 3/4 tsp minced fresh rosemary OR 1/4 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
• 3/4 tsp minced fresh parsley OR 1/4 tsp dried parsley flakes
• 3/4 tsp brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp garlic powder

1. Place carrots in a steamer basket; place in a small saucepan over 1inch of water. Bring to a boil; cover and steam for 4-6 minutes or until crisp-tender.
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the remaining ingredients. Add carrots and toss to coat.

Robyn's notes: Easy and quick, I served these with Flavorful Chicken Pasta