Grilled Potato Salad

From: "The Ideal Way to Cook: Food for Thought", by Addie Daabous

INGREDIENTS:

8 medium potatoes

olive oil

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup green onions

1 cup celery

1 cup radishes

1 cup peas

DIRECTIONS:

Chop potatoes into cubes. Toss with a bit of olive oil and wrap in aluminum foil, folding to seal completely.

Place on barbecue on medium-hot grill. Turning occasionally, cook for 25-30 minutes until potatoes are tender when pierced.

Toss potatoes in large bowl with mayonnaise, chopped green onion, celery, radishes and thawed frozen peas. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve. Serves 12.

Photo: by http://www.blogger.com/photos/27836576@N02/

"Delish" Veggie Lasagna

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. spinach, washed/stemmed or 2 pkg. frozen, defrosted

1/4 cup butter

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 onion, finely chopped

1 lb. (500 g) mushrooms, sliced

1/4 cup flour

2 cups milk

2 teaspoons basil

1 teaspoon oregano

3/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated

salt and pepper to taste

3 cups tomato sauce

12-16 lasagna noodles, ready-to-use

1 cup mozzarella cheese, grated

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated

DIRECTIONS

Cook fresh spinach. Drain any water, chop and set aside. If using frozen, defrost, squeeze out water, chop and set aside.

Melt butter in large pan on medium heat. Saute garlic and onion until softened, about 2 minutes. Add mushrooms and cook 1-2 minutes until lightly browned. Add flour and cook, stirring for 1 minute. Add milk, stirring constantly. Bring to boil. Lower heat and simmer sauce 1-2 minutes. Add basil, oregano, parmesan and spinach. Season to taste. Add vegetables.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread tomato sauce on bottom of 12" x 8" (3 L) pan. Cover bottom with noodles, add vegetable sauce, repeat noodle layer, finishing with vegetable sauce. Sprinkle mozzarella and parmesan on top.

Bake for 45 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.

Serves 6.

Photo: rachel_bernadette

Banana Bran Breakfast Bread

Recipe from "The IDEAL WAY to Cook: Food for Thought."

Delicious plain or toasted and stays moist for days.

INGREDIENTS:

3/4 cup wheat bran
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
pinch salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup soured milk or buttermilk*
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup melted butter
2 eggs
3 ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 tablespoon orange peel, grated
1/2 cup raisins or dried cranberries (optional)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

PREPARATION:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, stir together bran, both flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, beat together soured milk, brown sugar, butter, eggs, bananas, orange juice and peel. Fold into dry ingredients just until moistened. Stir in raisins and walnuts and spoon batter into a greased 9" x 5" loaf pan.

Bake for 55-60 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

*To sour milk, combine 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice with 1 cup of milk.

Photo: .j.e.n.n.y.

Asparagus, Salmon & Rice Bake

Excerpt from "The IDEAL WAY to Cook: Food for Thought", by Addie Daabous.

You may prepare early in the day and refrigerate before baking.

INGREDIENTS:

1/4 cup butter

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 tablespoons flour

1 1/2 cups milk

1/2 cup dry white wine or milk

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

3 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped

2 teaspoons lemon rind, grated

2 cups brown rice, cooked

1 pound asparagus, trimmed and halved

4 salmon fillets, skinless (4-6 ounces each)

3/4 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs

PREPARATION:

In pan, melt 3 tablespoons butter. Add onions and garlic; cook until softened. Stir in flour; cook without browning for 1 minute. Whisk in milk, wine, salt and pepper; bring to boil, whisking constantly. Reduce heat and cook, stirring until thickened. Remove from heat; stir in dill and lemon rind. Set aside.

Spread rice in 8" x 11" dish. Top with single layer of asparagus crosswise. Drizzle with half of the sauce. Arrange salmon over asparagus; drizzle with remaining sauce.

Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter and toss with breadcrumbs; sprinkle over top. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 - 35 minutes or until golden and bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Serves 4 - 6.

Photo: kimberlykv

Chocolate Applesauce Cake

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup oil

2 eggs

2 cups flour (half all-purpose/half whole wheat)

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons cocoa

2 cups unsweetened applesauce

1 banana

2/3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat together all ingredients, except chocolate chips, for approximately two minutes. Fold in 1/3 cup chocolate chips.

Pour batter into a bundt pan. Sprinkle 1/3 cup chocolate chips mixed with two tablespoons brown sugar on top. Bake for 50 minutes. If you prefer to use a 9 x 13 cake pan, bake for 30 to 40 minutes.

IDEAL TIP:

Grease and flour pans? When a chocolate cake requires greasing and flouring
the pans, try using cocoa instead of flour. When the cake is done, there will be
no white flour residue on your cake and it adds flavour.

Photo: Tracy Hunter

Garden Pasta Toss

From "The IDEAL WAY to Cook: Food for Thought".

For the adventurous, add slivered sun-dried tomatoes to sauce just before serving.

IDEAL TIP:

To prevent burning butter, add a little olive oil. The combination will
keep the butter from burning.

3/4 lb. fettucine pasta
1 tbsp. butter

1 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 cup thin carrot sticks

1/2 cups broccoli florets

1/2 red pepper, cut in strips

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley

1 tbsp. finely chopped fresh basil

1/2 tsp. salt, or to taste

2 tbsp. orange juice

1 tsp. grated orange peel

1 1/2 cups milk

1 tbsp. cornstarch

2 tbsp. parmesan cheese, grated

1 cup cherry tomatoes

1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, diced

PREPARATION:

Cook pasta according to directions. Meanwhile, in large frying pan, heat butter and oil. Add carrots, broccoli and red pepper and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute.

In medium bowl, combine herbs, salt, orange juice, peel, milk and cornstarch, blending well. Pour over vegetables, bring to a boil and simmer for 1 to 2 minutes or until slightly thickened. Stir in parmesan.

Toss sauce with hot pasta and tomatoes. Serve in pasta bowls and sprinkle each with diced mozzarella.

Photo credit: Lachlan Hardy

The IDEAL Best Brownies

1/2 cup butter

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa

1/2 cup flour

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. baking powder

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease/flour an 8 inch pan. In large saucepan, melt butter. Remove from heat and stir in sugar, eggs and vanilla. Beat in cocoa, flour, salt and baking powder. Spread into prepared pan. Bake in oven for 25-30 minutes. Do not overbake.

Make frosting: frost brownies while warm.

FROSTING:

3 tbsp. butter, softened

3 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa

1 tbsp. honey

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup icing sugar

Mix to make frosting.

Photo: GracesSweetLife

Grace Langlois