Spaghetti Squash Casserole

1 spaghetti squash
2 large carrots, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
Red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
Pinch of ground allspice
3 cloves garlic, chopped
3/4 pound part-skim mozzarella
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

 Place the spaghetti squash in a large pot of water (it should float) and bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover and boil gently for 50 minutes.

2. Another option is to bake the squash first. Cut it lengthwise and place the halves skin-side down in a baking dish with an inch of water. Cover the dish with foil and bake at 350º F for about 45 minutes, or until meat is tender.

3. While squash is cooking, peel and slice the carrots, celery, onion and bell pepper.

4. Heat olive oil in a skillet and add the onion and carrot, with some water to prevent sticking. Sauté over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add remaining vegetables with some red pepper flakes and a dash of salt, if desired. Sauté, stirring frequently, till vegetables are barely tender, about 10 minutes.

5. Add crushed tomatoes, basil and oregano to taste, and a sprinkle of ground allspice. Squeeze in 2-5 cloves of garlic. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, grate the mozzarella and Parmesan.

6. Remove squash from pot or oven and allow to cool until you can handle it. If it is whole, cut it in half lengthwise, then remove seeds with a spoon and squeeze any excess water out of meat.

7. Remove meat and break it up into strands with a fork or potato masher. Mix squash well with vegetables and put half in the bottom of a large baking dish. Top with half the cheeses, the rest of the squash, and then the rest of the cheeses.

8. Bake for 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and slightly browned. Let cool 15-20 minutes before serving.

Candied Sweet Potatoes

 Peel and boil about 4 sweet potatoes in salted water until done. Drain and save liquid. Put sweet potatoes in buttered casserole dish. Boil the liquid with 1/4 cup of margarine and 3/4 cup of brown sugar until slightly thick like syrup. Pour over potatoes and bake for 30 minutes @ 350. Put some marshmallows on top and put under broiler until brown. Watch closely will brown very quickly.

Viva Las Veggies

Spray a 9x 13 pan with cooking spray. Add 2 tomatoes cut into chunks, 2 chopped  medium zucchini, 2 large chopped  portobello mushrooms (scrape off gills and discard first) 1 coarsely  chopped red onion and 1 tsp. minced garlic. Mix well with your hands. Add 1 tbsp. olive oil, 1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar and 1 tbsp chopped fresh herbs, basil,  rosemary, or what ever. Add 1/4 tsp each of salt and pepper. Mix well to coat vegetables. Roast uncovered in 425 oven for 25 minutes. Meanwhile mix 1 cup fresh whole wheat bread crumbs with 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese and 1/2 tsp of thyme. Sprinkle mixture over after the 25 minutes and bake another 5 minutes.

Vegas Vegetable Sauce

In blender put 3/4 cup of mayonnaise, 1 T. soy sauce, 1/2 t. lemon juice, 1/2 t. garlic salt, 1/2 t. lemon pepper and 1/2 t. grated fresh ginger or 1/4 t. ground ginger. Whirl for 1 minute. Pour over cooked broccoli and serve. Good on other vegetables also.

Spicy Green Beans

Blanch fresh  green beans 2 minutes in boiling water. Drain beans and plunge into ice water. Drain.   Heat 4 Tbsp. sunflower oil in pan, add 4 tsp. finely chopped anchovies, 2 tsp. chopped garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add  5 tsp. sambal oelek and green beans, tossing the beans until evenly coated, then cook for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Kale

2 pounds of Kale, stems removed and chopped
1 cup of chicken stock
1/3 cup of light brown sugar
1/2 cup of rice wine vinegar
2 shallots, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon of caraway seeds
2 tablespoons of Olive Oil
2 bay leaves
salt and pepper to taste

• To prepare this recipe:

Combine all the ingredients except the salt and pepper in a 10-quart pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer over low heat for 1/2 hour. Season with salt and pepper and serve hot. 

The reason you don't put the salt in the pot with everything is because when its finished cooking the liquid may have reduced some and the saltiness increases as the liquid reduces, so you don't add the salt until the end... you could probably use regular vinegar instead of rice wine, and finely chopped onions instead of shallots, if you don't have them on hand

Sweet potato Souffl'e

Scald 1 cup of milk and add 1/2 cup of sugar, 2 T olive oil, 1 t nutmeg and 2 cups of cooked mashed sweet potatoes. Beat until fluffy. Add 2 beaten egg yolks. Add 1/2 cup of raisins and 1/2 cup of nuts. Fold in 2 stiffly beaten egg whites  Bake in 350 oven for 50 minutes or until firm.

Red cabbage

Melt 1/4 cup butter in a large pot. Add grated or shredded red cabbage and cook on low until lightly wilted. Add about 1/4 cup of blackberry vinegar and simmer for half an hour or so. Sprinkle a little nutmeg or toasted sesame seeds over if you like.

Zucchini with cheese

Mix 1/4 cup flour with salt pepper and oregano into a large bowl. Toss zucchini slices into flour mixture (coating well) after you have sliced them into 1/4 inch slices.  Heat olive oil in pan and brown them 4 minutes on each side until golden brown. Place them in the bottom on an 8x8 buttered casserole dish. Cover with sliced tomatoes. Add salt pepper and oregano to 1 cup of sour cream and spread over the tomatoes, Now cover with parmesan cheese and bake at 350 for 1/2 hour. Note if the zucchini is very small it won't need peeling or seeding.

Chicken and snow peas

Combine soy sauce, lime juice, water and cornstarch in a 2 quart round casserole. Stir chicken and mushrooms into soy sauce mixture.

Watercress Stir fry

Whisk 1/4 cup water with 2 T oyster sauce, 1 T cornstarch and 1 t dark sesame oil until cornstarch dissolves. Set aside.  Heat 2 t oil in wok.  Add 2 lge. crushed garlic cloves. Stir 30 seconds. Use 4 bunches of watercress. Add the water cress stems and stir fry for 1 minute. Add the watercress leaves and stir often until the stems  begin to soften and the leaves wilt. Stir your sauce mixture that you set aside and pour over and stir until the sauce begins to thicken. 1 to 2 minutes. This is also good with spinach or even using half watercress and half spinach. Go here to find the nutrition value for watercress.

Okra Casserole

Take a medium size casserole dish.  Lay a layer of okra, add in order, layer of chopped onion, chopped bell pepper, can of  tomatoes with green chilies, cheddar cheese, layer of okra, layer of onion, layer of green pepper, can of stewed tomatoes, monterey jack grated cheese, Top with 4 slices of bacon.  Bake for 45 to 60 minutes, @ 375.

Baked Tomato Pudding

Bring to a boil 1 small chopped onion  with 1 and 1/2 cups canned tomatoes,  1/2 tsp seasoning salt and 1/2 tsp. lemon pepper. Slice 4 slices of brown bread into cubes and place into 9x9 baking dish. Sprinkle with 1 cup of grated cheddar cheese.  Pour the hot tomato mix over the bread cubes.  Dot with butter and bake uncovered at 325 F. for 45 minutes. This dish can be made up a few days ahead and stored in the fridge and baked.

Stuffed Eggplant

1 c Rice 1 med Eggplant 1/4 c Oil 1 Tomato, diced 1 Green pepper, diced 1 small Onion minced, 1 Garlic clove, minced Salt to taste Pepper to taste 1/4 t Basil 2 T Butter. Cook rice according to package directions. Cut eggplant in half lengthwise, and scoop out the center from each half, leaving a 1/2" shell. Dice the eggplant meat. Place eggplant shells cut side down in a large skillet with about 1/2" boiling, salted water. Cover and steam 3 minutes. Drain and reserve. Heat oil and cook diced eggplant, tomatoes, green pepper, onion and garlic until tender. Add cooked rice and seasonings, and stir to combine. Stuff mixture into the eggplant shells and dot with butter. Bake in a preheated, 350'F. oven about 35 minutes or until eggplant shells are tender. Makes two main dish servings. 

Egg Plant Curry

 4 lge  Eggplants, peeled & cubed
       2 tsp Salt
       2 lge  Onions, chopped
       2  Garlic cloves, crushed
       4 tbs Oil
       1 tsp Cumin seeds, crushed
       1 tsp Coriander
       3  Cardamom pods
       2 tsp Ginger, grated
     1/2 tsp Turmeric
       1 tsp Salt
       2 ea chili  peppers, crushed
       3 lge Potatoes, chopped
       1   Tomato, peeled & chopped
       1 tsp  Tomato paste
 
   Sprinkle eggplant pieces with salt & set aside for 6 to 8 minutes.
   Meanwhile in a large skillet, saute onions & garlic in the oil until
   golden, stirring & ensuring that it's not scorching.  Add all the
   spices & peppers & stir-fry a couple of minutes. Squeeze eggplant
   pieces to get rid of excess moisture.  Dump the pieces into the pot.
   Stir until they become limp & slightly golden. Add more oil if
   necessary Add the potatoes & let them brown on all sides. When
   potatoes are somewhat tender, but still fork resistant, add tomatoes,
   paste & 1 1/2 c water. Stir, bring to a boil, reduce heat & simmer
   until vegetables are tender but not mushy. The sauce should be thick,
   like syrup. If too thin, simmer a little longer. Serve over rice.
 

Roasted Vegetables.
Peel, clean and cube 1 parsnip, 1-2 carrots, 1 leek and 1 purple turnip. Toss with oil and place in small roasting pan. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg and bake until done.

Impossible Chicken 'n Broccoli Pie
300 Gram frozen chopped broccoli
3 cups grated cheddar cheese divided.
1 and 1/2 cups cooked cut up chicken.
2/3 cup chopped onion.
1 and 1/3 cups milk.
3 eggs
3/4 cup bisquick baking mix.
1/2 tsp salt 1/4 tsp pepper
Heat oven to 400. Grease pie plate. Rinse broccoli, drain thoroughly. Mix broccoli, 2 cups cheese, chicken and onion in the  pie plate.   Blend milk, eggs, baking mix, salt and pepper until smooth. Pour over  plate.  Bake until knife inserted in centre comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes. Top with remaining cheese. Bake just until cheese is melted, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Broccoli Casserole
4 Stalks Broccoli
1 1/2 cups Partially cooked Rice
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
1 LB Velveeta Cheese
1/2 cup Milk
Preheat oven to 350 deg. f
Place Broccoli flowers and about half of each stem chopped up in a large pot with enough water to cover broccoli. Cook over med heat just until tender. Remember broccoli will cook some in the oven. Drain. Cut Velveeta into 1/2" cubes. In a large bowl combine all ingredients. Pour into a 11"x13" baking pan. This dish may be refrigerated for later. Place in oven and bake until cheese is melted.

Broccoli and Cauliflower Casserole 
Cut broccoli cauliflower onions and put in casserole dish with whole fresh mushrooms.
Mix 1 egg with 1 cup mayonnaise and 1 tin mushroom soup and pour over.
Sprinkle with bread crumbs and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes. Cover with cheddar cheese and bake an additional 10 minutes. This can be prepared ahead of time and put in the oven in time for dinner.

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