Friday Meals

If it's Friday, can the weekend be far behind? Here's some good food to help you get through the weekend. Enjoy!

FRENCH ONION SOUP

My dad used to make French Onion Soup after church on Sundays, so I associate this with the weekend. This version of the recipe comes from About.com's American Food email. It starts off, “French onion soup is one of America's most popular 'restaurant soups,' but with this easy recipe you can make it at home anytime you want. This French onion soup recipe is topped with the traditional Gruyere cheese, but any melting cheese will work.” It makes 8 portions.

Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes; Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Ingredients:

4 large yellow onions, cut in large dice

1/2 stick unsalted butter

1 tbsp sherry vinegar

1/4 cup dry sherry wine

2 sprigs fresh thyme

1/2 tsp salt

fresh ground black pepper to taste

1 bay leaf

3 cups high-quality beef broth

3 cups high-quality chicken broth

1 cup water

For the topping:

toasted French bread

8 oz shredded Gruyere cheese, or other Swiss cheese

Preparation:

In a large soup pot, melt the butter over med-low heat. Add the onions and salt; slowly cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are golden-brown - about 30 minutes.

Add the vinegar and sherry; cook for 5 minutes, and then add the remaining ingredients. Simmer on low for one hour. Taste and adjust seasoning. Ladle into heatproof bowls, or crocks, and top with a piece of toasted bread (cut to fit top of bowl).

Cover with the cheese, and place under a preheated broiler until the cheese melts and begins to brown. Serve hot.

LEMONADE PIE

Linda Larsen is About.com's Busy Cooks guide. She writes, “Try substituting different fruit juice concentrates in this delicious, super easy recipe. I like putting the lemony ice cream mixture into a chocolate cookie crust for a nice flavor contrast.” Yields 8 servings

Prep Time: 20 minutes; Freezing time: 4 hours; Total Time: 4 hours, 20 minutes

Ingredients:

4 cups vanilla ice cream or lemon ice cream, softened

6 oz. can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed

1 9" graham cracker crust

Preparation:

In medium bowl, mix ice cream and lemonade concentrate until blended. Immediately spoon into graham cracker crust. Freeze at least 4 hours until firm. Let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes before cutting to make serving easier.

EASY SUMMER CAKE WITH FRUIT & CREAM

This recipe is from thekitch, one of my favorite emailing lists. (Hint: check it out, along with it's partner, Apartment Therapy.) Faith Durrand writes in thekitchn, “Summer, the season of impromptu picnics, backyard get-togethers, and lazy dinners, demands hospitable and casual desserts that come together easily and feed everyone from large to small.

“This is one of my favorites: a one-bowl butter cake, baked in a pretty dish, and topped with tangy whipped cream and piles of summer fruit. Easy as 1-2-3, and beautiful too. The base of this summery dessert is my favorite one-bowl butter cake, which mixes up quickly and doesn't even require you to use a separate bowl for the flour and baking powder.

”The cream on top is a quick blend of whipping cream and sour cream; the tanginess lightens the rich cake. And then the fruit — just go wild. I like the contrast of colors here, with rosy strawberries, juicy blackberries, and ripe peaches. But you could use any stone fruit or berries. If you want to get really crazy, drizzle with chocolate, although I don't think fruit like this needs that at all. Just keep it easy!” Serves 12.

For the cake:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened at room temperature for 1 hour

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 large eggs

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/4 cups milk

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the cream:

2 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup powdered sugar

Pinch salt

For the fruit:

2 nectarines or peaches, sliced

1 apricot, sliced

1/2 cup chopped strawberries

1/2 cup blackberries

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare a 9 x 13-inch pan by greasing it thoroughly with baking spray.

Use a hand mixer or stand mixer to beat the softened butter and sugar together until fluffy and light, then add the eggs and beat until fully incorporated and creamy. Beat in the flour, salt, baking powder, and finally the milk and vanilla. Beat the cake batter on low for 30 seconds, then medium-high for 3 minutes.

Immediately pour into the prepared pan and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the tops spring back slightly when pressed and a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Cool the cake completely for at least an hour.

Beat the cream, sour cream, powdered sugar, and salt together until soft peaks form. Spread over the cooled cake, then top with the sliced or chopped fruit.

Refrigerate until serving, and refrigerate any leftovers for up to 5 days.

DEEP DISH LOW-CARB PIZZA

This recipe comes from Laura Dolson, About.com's Low Carb diets guide. Laura writes, “I know this egg-based crust is going to sound strange, but I urge you to trust me and try this. I've tried a whole lot of low-carb pizza crusts over the years, and this is really the best one. No, it isn't like regular, but it's really good. Based on some of the comments, I'm now realizing that some people are expecting a crisp crust, or a thin crust. This crust is neither crisp nor thin. However, you can make it thinner by using fewer eggs and less cream cheese.” Makes 8 servings.

Ingredients:

6 eggs

6 oz cream cheese (3/4 package) at room temperature

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 1/2 teaspoon oregano or other Italian seasoning

1/2 teaspoon salt

pinches of black and/or cayenne pepper

1 cup (or a little more) shredded Italian cheeses, at least half of which is a hard cheese (Parmesan, Assagio)

Preparation:

Heat the oven to 350° F.

Be sure the cream cheese is at about room temperature. Using a regular blender, food processor, or (my preferred) stick blender, mix the egg and cream cheese until well blended. Add the salt and spices and blend again.

Spread cheese in bottom of well-buttered 9X13 pan. I often use an Italian blend such as Trader Joe's Quattro Formaggio. Pour egg mixture over the cheese, and bake for 22-25 minutes, or until the top is browning.

Remove from oven, add pizza toppings, and bake until done - about another 10-15 minutes.

Nutritional Information: Each serving has 1.5 grams effective carbohydrate plus 11 grams protein, and 179 calories.

LOW-CARB PIZZA BITES

Another offering from Laura Dolson, who writes, “These are like pizza-flavored mini-quiches using pepperoni as the crust in a mini-muffin pan. They also can be made without the pepperoni. You can use small amounts of whatever pizza ingredients you like.” Makes about 24 pieces.

Ingredients:

8 oz cream cheese

2 eggs

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon oregano

1/4 cup sugar-free pizza sauce or spaghetti sauce

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese, or combination mozzarella and other cheese such as Parmesan

1/4 cup finely minced green pepper or other pizza topping

24 slices of thin-sliced pepperoni, preferably in large thin slices

Preparation:

Heat oven to 350° F.

Poke the pepperoni slices into the bottoms of the mini-muffin cups, or butter the cups well if you aren't using the pepperoni (I find that oiling the pans doesn't work as well).

Cream the cream cheese with a mixer until smooth and fluffy. Add eggs, garlic, and oregano, and beat until smooth.

Mix the rest of the ingredients in by hand.

Fill the muffin cups with the egg and cheese mixture.

Bake for about 15-18 minutes, or until lightly browned on top and set in center. Remove from oven, and cool for a few minutes (5-10), then run a knife around the top to loosen (I use a plastic knife for my nonstick pan). Remove to a plate.

Nutritional Information: Each piece with pepperoni has 1 gram effective carbohydrate, 3 grams protein, and 67 calories. Without pepperoni, each has 1 gram effective carbohydrate, 2 grams protein, and 47 calories.

BONELESS BUFFALO WINGS

Yield: 4 servings

Serving Size: 2 oz. chicken per serving

Online Recipe: http://diabeticgourmet.com/recipes/html/658.shtml

Source: The Diabetes Food and Nutrition Bible

Book Info: http://diabeticgourmet.com/book_archive/details/11.shtml

Ingredients

1-1/2 teaspoon hot sauce

Pinch cayenne

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/2 pound chicken tenders

Dressing Ingredients:

1/2 cup reduced-fat blue cheese dressing

1/4 cup low-fat mayonnaise

3 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese

Celery Sticks

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In a shallow bowl, combine the hot sauce, cayenne, and paprika. Roll the chicken tenders in the mixture.

Place the chicken tenders on a small nonstick baking sheet. Bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes until chicken is tender.

Combine the dressing ingredients. Serve the dressing with the chicken and celery sticks.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 192; Protein: 14 g; Fat: 12 g; Sodium: 572 mg; Cholesterol: 42 mg; Dietary Fiber: 0 g; Sugars: 4 g; Carbohydrates: 7 g; Exchanges: 1/2 Carbohydrate, 2 Medium-fat Meat