Bruschetta

4 Roma tomatoes

1T fresh basil

1 garlic clove

1-2 T extra virgin olive oil

1/8 t salt

You will need 4 six-inch wide slices of Tuscan bread. Toast them, gently rub them with a cut clove of garlic (you don’t want to overwhelm the oil), then drizzle them with good olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste, cut the slices in half, and serve. Serves 4.

There are lots of variations to bruschetta. Here's one of the tastiest: After rubbing the slices with the garlic, rub them with a very ripe cut tomato as well (or spread a thin layer of chopped tomatoes seasoned with basil, salt & pepper over the slices). Then sprinkle with olive oil and season. 

Easy Tome Ka Gai

From Quick and Easy Thai by Nancie McDermott

4 Tbs lime juice
4 Tbs fish sauce
4 green onions, thinly sliced
12 lime leaves, torn into quarters
4 Tbs cilantro, chopped
3 c coconut milk
3 c chicken broth
4 Tbs ginger or galanga, sliced
4 stalks fresh lemon grass, cut into 2 inch pieces
2 lbs boneless chicken, cut into bite size pieces
2 c thinly sliced fresh mushrooms

1. In a large bowl combine the lime juice, fish sauce, green onion, cilantro and half the lime leaves. Place the bowl by the stove.

2. In a stock pot, combine the coconut milk and chicken broth and bring to a boil  on medium high heat. Stir in the ginger, lemongrass and remaining lime leaves. Add the chicken and mushrooms, reduce to a gentle boil and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes.

3. Remove from heat, pour the bowl of herbs into the soup, mix and serve.

Zucchini Soup

From allrecipes.com

Serves 6

2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, halved and sliced
1 Tb curry powder (S&B Oriental Curry Powder is our favorite)
salt to taste
3 largish zucchini cubed (about 8 cups), cubed
1 QT chicken stock (or veg)

1. Heat oil in a soup/stock pot. Add onion and cook until soft. Add curry and stir to combine. Add zucchini and stir, cooking until soft. Add chicken stock and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat. Simmer for 20 minutes.

2. Remove soup from heat. With an immersion/hand blender blend until smooth. Serve warm. (Nice with a few croutons on top.)

Stuffed Zucchini

4 medium to large zucchini, halved lengthwise, seeds removed
2 cups cooked white rice
1 lb ground beef
1/2 medium sweet onion
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 14.5 cans fire roasted diced tomatoes, with their juices OR 1 can tomatoes and 1 10oz can Rotel
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup Parmesan, grated (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 400
2. In a medium skillet, brown the ground beef, onion and garlic. Drain the meat.
3. In a medium saucepan, bring the tomatoes to a boil, then reduce and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, rice, tomatoes, salt and pepper, mix until blended.
5. Place the zucchini skin side down on a cookie sheet. Evenly divide the beef mixture among the zucchini halves. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes.
6. Remove the foil and sprinkle the cheese on top. Return the pan to the oven, uncovered, for about 5 minutes until the cheese melts.

Glazed Carrots

from marthastewart.com

3 Tb dark brown sugar
1/4 c unsalted butter (or vegan equivalent)
2 1/2 lbs baby carrots, or other carrots, peeled and cut
1 Tb fresh thyme leaves, chopped
coarse salt and pepper

In a large skillet bring 1 1/3 cups water, brown sugar and butter to a boil. Add carrots and reduce heat. Partially cover and reduce heat, simmer for 10 minutes. Uncover and cook gently, tossing often until carrots are tender and glazed, about 6 minutes. Add thyme and turn off heat. Add salt and pepper, serve warm.

Spanish Style White Bean and Kale Soup

From Allrecipes.com

Makes 6 servings

3 andouille sausage links

8 1/2 c chicken stock

8 oz dry great Northern beans

1 bay leaf

1 pinch crushed saffron

2 Tb olive oil

1 onion

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 red bell pepper, finely chopped

1 Tb sweet paprika

12 oz kale, stems removed and leaves coarsely chopped

1. Bring 2 cups of water to boil in a large skillet. Add sausages and cook over medium heat for 7 minutes each side. Remove from the pan, slice and set aside.

2. In a large pot, combine the chicken stock and dry beans. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Add the bay leaf and a pinch of salt. Simmer, partially covered, for 2 hours. Discard bay leaf. Remove 1/2 c of the stock to a small bowl. Stir in saffron, and set aside to soak. 

3. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage, and brown for about 5 minutes. Remove from the pan, and reduce the heat to low. Add the onions and cook for about 5 minutes, then stir in the garlic and cook for another minute. Mix in the red pepper and paprika. Cook for a few minutes before adding the mixture to the soup pot along with the sausage.

4. Bring the pot to a boil and stir in kale. Simmer for 10 minutes until the kale is tender. Serve. 

Best Orange Lemonade Ever

From tasteofhome.com

makes 6-8 servings

4 1/4 cups water, divided
1 c sugar
3/4 cup lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
3/4 cup orange juice (about 4 juicing oranges, 5 other types)
2 tea lemon zest
1 tea orange zest

1. In a small saucepan bring the sugar and 1 1/4 cups water to a boil, simmer for 10 minutes to make simple syrup. Cool.

2. Transfer to a pitcher, add lemon and orange juices and zest, refrigerate for an hour.

3. Add the remaining water, serve.

(to make it extra fancy, serve over ice garnished with lemon slices)

Black Beans and Corn Salad

From PCC (will update quantities when I work it out)

Sweet corn
Black beans
Red onion
Red peppers
Lime juice
Olive oil
Sunflower oil
Cilantro
Garlic
Salt
Cumin
Red pepper flakes
Black pepper

Asian Chicken Salad

From Curves Recipes

Serves 2

Ingredients: 1 oz pasta - angel hair
1/2 chicken breast(s) (1 breast is 4 oz)
1/4 cup(s) cabbage - Napa
1/4 cup(s) cabbage - purple
1/4 pepper(s) - bell (red - medium)
1/4 pepper(s) - bell (yellow - medium))
2 tbsp(s) cilantro - fresh
2 tbsp(s) scallions (green onions)
1/4 cucumber(s)
1/2 cup(s) spinach leaves - fresh
2 tbsp(s) bean sprouts
0.5 oz cashews
2 tsp(s) lime(s)
3/4 tsp(s) ginger- fresh
1/2 tsp(s) garlic - minced
1/4 jalapeno pepper(s)
1 tsp(s) cilantro - fresh
3/4 tbsp(s) oil - olive
3/4 tbsp(s) sauce - soy (low sodium)
3/4 tsp(s) oil - sesame
3/4 tsp(s) sugar - brown

Directions:
1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and cool it.
2. Boil or bake chicken breast. Shred chicken breast and set it aside.
3. Slice cabbage and bell peppers and place them in a large bowl.
4. Chop cilantro, scallions, and cucumber and place them in the same large bowl.
5. Add spinach, bean sprouts and cashews to the bowl.
6. Add pasta and chicken to the bowl.
7. For the salad dressing: juice 1/2 lime, mince ginger, garlic, jalapeno and cilantro (coriander). Whisk in the remaining dressing ingredients.
8. Pour the dressing over the salad. Mix well and serve.