Wednesday Recipes

Wow, I'm really running late today! I'm going to have to figure out a way to get this blog out earlier in the day so that people can have a better chance of using the posted recipes the same day, if needed. (I'll see what I can do...) In the meantime, I'm going to gather a few favorite recipes from the past. Enjoy!

SPAGHETTI SAUCE

This recipe, as well as the Vegetarian Lasagna are from my e-cookbook, Off the Wall Cooking.

28 oz. can tomatoes (note)

2 – 8 oz. cans tomato sauce

2 – 6 oz. cans tomato paste

3 onions, chopped

3 – 5 cloves garlic, crushed

2 T oil

1 T oregano

1 tsp. basil

1 tsp. thyme

1 tsp. dill

1 tsp. anise

2 T honey

1 T vinegar

1 T soy sauce

1/4 – 1/2 lb. grated cheese

Brown onions & garlic in oil. Add tomatoes, sauce & pasted. Stir. Add everything except cheese & stir. Simmer 1 hour. Add cheese & stir until cheese is melted. Serve over hot spaghetti. Better the next day—if any is left!

Note: I usually use crushed tomatoes. If you’d rather use fresh tomatoes, 6-8 large ones may be used (diced, of course) in place of the canned tomatoes, & add an extra can of tomato sauce.

VEGETARIAN LASAGNA

I’d been making lasagna for years, using a favorite cookbook. One time, my oldest son took the same recipe, and replaced the meat with eggplant. His came out tasting better than when I made it.

I tried recreating the eggplant version, but it never quite came out the same. So, I ended up changing the recipe drastically, changing ingredients and amounts. The funny thing is that, while I use one or two packages of tofu crumbles instead of meat, it tastes enough like meat to fool several non-vegetarians. One person, after eating this, even looked at me aghast, asking, “What are you, some kind of vegetarian?” Never heard from him again.

Tomato sauce:

2 – 3 onions, chopped

3 – 5 cloves garlic, minced

28 oz. can tomatoes

2 – 8 oz. cans tomato sauce

2 – 6 oz. cans tomato paste

2 T oil

1 T oregano

1 tsp. basil

1 tsp. thyme

1 tsp. dill

1 tsp. anise

1 or 2 – 10 oz. package tofu crumbles

Brown onions & garlic in oil. Add remaining ingredients, stir well, simmer for 1 hour. While sauce is cooking, in a separate pot, cook 16 oz. lasagna noodles & make cheese layer.

Cheese layer:

2 C sour cream

2 C cottage cheese

2 eggs

4 C mozzarella, grated

2 C cheddar cheese, grated

1 C Parmesan cheese

Mix ingredients together in large bowl.

Assemble:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In 9” X 13” pan, place half the cooked lasagna noodles length-wise. Top with half the cheese mixture, then half the tomato sauce. Repeat. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Let cool a few minutes before cutting, as it tends to be a little runny when it first comes out of the oven. Serve with a salad and a loaf of hot Italian bread. Very yummy.

BENECOL MACARONI AND CHEESE

While I've posted this once before, one of my sons and I love this enough to warrant a repost.

For several years, there was a magazine dedicated to walking, titled Walking Magazine.It had many good articles, tips and recipes for those of us who feel a little more comfortable race-walking, rather than running. Unfortunately, the magazine folded several years ago. This recipe was in it during its final year. Serves 4.

1/2 lb. small shell style macaroni

4 Tbs. Benecol

3 Tbs. all purpose flour

3 Tbs. finely chopped onion

1 1/2 C 2% milk, warmed

few drops Tabasco Sauce

1-pint nonfat cottage (or ricotta) cheese

1 tsp. salt

1/2 C flavored bread crumbs

1 Tbs. olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 9-by-9 inch pan liberally with nonstick cooking spray. Cook shells according to package directions, strain, and rinse with cold water. Set aside.

To prepare sauce, melt Benecol in 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Quickly whisk in flour, add onions, and cook for 1 minute. Slowly pour milk into flour mixture, whisking constantly to avoid lumps. Add Tabasco Sauce and cook an additional minute. Whisk in cheese and salt, and blend in shells; transfer mixture to prepared pan.

In small bowl, mix oil and bread crumbs together; spoon over top of macaroni and cheese. Bake for 20 minutes.

Per Serving: 510 calories; 27.2% calories from fat; 3G saturated fat; 65G carbohydrates; 12MG cholesterol; 612MG sodium; 2G fiber

J’s B-B-Q GLUTEN

This is from my oldest son. For the most part, the recipe is included exactly as he wrote it out for me, though I have changed a word or two. (This stuff is definitely good.)

Ingredients:

5 lb. whole wheat flour

2 onions

1/2 C creamy peanut butter

2 bottles of B-B-Q sauce

1 stick butter

2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons paprika

Huge bowl

Take whole wheat flour, empty into Big Bowl. Add enough water to knead into dough ball. Knead really well. I repeat, knead really well. For at least 10 minutes.

Fill huge bowl with water, put dough ball under water for 2 hours. Pour off water. Knead doughball under cold running water for 10 minutes or more. Water should be clear. You are washing out the starch and bran. You know it’s ready when stringy and it sticks together and is bouncy.

Melt 1 stick butter and fry 2 chopped onions until clear. Dump onto Gluten. Add salt, paprika, and peanut butter. Mix with hands completely.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray cooking pan with non-stick spray. Pinch off pieces bigger than a golf ball. Take piece and fold it and twist it and lay it down in pan. Bake for 10 minutes, then flip over and bake for 10 more. Pour B-B-Q sauce and bake 10 more minutes, then flip and pour more B-B-Q sauce and bake 10 more minutes. It’s done—enjoy.

(Xtra note—be careful when you first mix wheat and water. Don’t add too much water. Make a hard dough ball. It might take 20 minutes to knead it.)

DECADENT CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

14-16 oz tub silken tofu

16 oz package chocolate chips

1 T vanilla

1 T maple syrup, optional

Melt chocolate chips over low heat, stirring constantly. Set aside. Place tofu in blender. Pulse once or twice to start breaking it down. With spatula or wooden spoon, scrape melted chocolate chips and vanilla into tofu in blender, along with maple syrup, if using. Blend on low setting until chocolate and tofu are completely mixed, maybe 30 seconds. Pour into 4 bowls and let cool.

Note:If you prefer, you can use carob chips in place of the chocolate chips.

BUCK-EYES

My mom made these and passed them out for Christmas presents in 1989. It’s amazing that any of them made the trip home; they are incredibly good.

1 lb. butter or margarine, room temperature

2 lb. peanut butter, room temperature

2-3 lbs. confectioner's sugar

1 tsp. vanilla (optional)

2-12 oz. packages of chocolate chips

1/2 bar paraffin (4 oz.)

Mix butter & peanut butter. Add vanilla. Blend well. Mix in confectioner’s sugar. Boil into small balls & refrigerate several hours. Melt chocolate chips & paraffin in top of double boiler. With toothpicks in each peanut butter ball, dip ball into melted chocolate, leaving spot on top of peanut butter balls undipped, then place on wax paper to harden. Try not to eat in one sitting!