Wednesday Recipes

We're well into our first week of the New Year. Have you made any New Year's resolutions? If you're like me - heck, if you're like many - the list includes exercise of some sort, eating right (which means healthy, but also yummy - who wants boring?!?! Not us!), and getting as healthy as possible.

The only thing I can help you with is the food aspect of it. That said, here are six recipes to get you started. Enjoy!

ORIGINAL PLUM TORTE

This is from The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. It begins, “The Times published Marian Burros’s recipe for Plum Torte every September from 1983 until 1989, when the editors determined that enough was enough. The recipe was to be printed for the last time that year. “To counter anticipated protests,” Ms. Burros wrote a few years later, “the recipe was printed in larger type than usual with a broken-line border around it to encourage clipping.” It didn’t help. The paper was flooded with angry letters. “The appearance of the recipe, like the torte itself, is bittersweet,” wrote a reader in Tarrytown, N.Y. “Summer is leaving, fall is coming. That's what your annual recipe is all about. Don't be grumpy about it.” We are not! And we pledge that every year, as summer gives way to fall, we will make sure that the recipe is easily available to one and all. The original 1983 recipe called for 1 cup sugar; the 1989 version reduced that to 3/4 cup. We give both options below. Here are five ways to adapt the torte.” Yield: 8 servings; Time: 1 hour 15 minutes.

This was featured in “Eating Well” and can be viewed online here.

Ingredients

3/4 to 1 cup sugar

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup unbleached flour, sifted

1 teaspoon baking powder

Pinch of salt (optional)

2 eggs

24 halves pitted purple plums

Sugar, lemon juice and cinnamon, for topping

Preparation

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream the sugar and butter in a bowl. Add the flour, baking powder, salt and eggs and beat well.

Spoon the batter into a springform pan of 8, 9 or 10 inches. Place the plum halves skin side up on top of the batter. Sprinkle lightly with sugar and lemon juice, depending on the sweetness of the fruit. Sprinkle with about 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, depending on how much you like cinnamon.

Bake 1 hour, approximately. Remove and cool; refrigerate or freeze if desired. Or cool to lukewarm and serve plain or with whipped cream. (To serve a torte that was frozen, defrost and reheat it briefly at 300 degrees.)

Tip

To freeze, double-wrap the torte in foil, place in a plastic bag and seal.

CHICKEN PAILLARDS WTIH CORN SALAD

This comes from Florence Fabricant, in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Florence wrote, “This recipe brings together leafy herbs, the whisper of sweetness in fresh corn and summer squash, a ripe tomato, and a splash of lemon, creating a salad with farm-stand allure. It is served it with chicken paillards, and the meal would go great with a bottle of dry German riesling.” Yield: 4 servings; Time: 30 minutes.

This was featured in “A Salad With Farm-Stand Allure”, and can be viewed online here.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 skinless and boneless chicken breasts, about 1 1/4 pounds, pounded thin

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup chopped onion

2 ears corn, kernels stripped

1 jalapeño chile, seeded and minced

1 medium-size yellow summer squash, diced

Salt and ground black pepper

1 medium yellow tomato, diced

1/3 cup flour

2 tablespoons minced cilantro leaves

Preparation

Mix mustard and 1/4 cup lemon juice in a shallow dish. Cut each chicken breast in half (lengthwise, so you have two thin filets) and place in the mustard mixture. Turn to coat both sides and set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet, add onion and sauté on low a few minutes, until softened. Add corn, chile and squash and continue to cook until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat, fold in tomato, add 1 tablespoon lemon juice and set aside.

Remove chicken from marinade, dust with flour and season with salt and pepper. Heat remaining oil in a large cast-iron skillet or grill pan on medium-high heat and sear chicken, turning once, until lightly browned and just cooked through, about 5 minutes a side. Arrange on a serving platter. Add cooking oil to salad, fold in cilantro and spoon over and around chicken.

MULLED APPLE-CRANBERRY CIDER

This comes from Weight Watchers. Unfortunately, it was sent to me a number of years ago (try 2006) and while I tried to find the link for it on the WW site, I couldn’t locate it. If anyone reading this can shed light on this, I’d appreciate it if you’d let me know.

POINTS® Value: 2; Servings: 6; Preparation Time: 5 min; Cooking Time: 15 min; Level of Difficulty: Easy

This begins, “This hot drink is perfect for chilly autumn nights. Curl up with a good book and indulge.”

Ingredients

3 cup apple cider

3 cup cranberry juice cocktail

1 Tbsp unpacked brown sugar

1/2 tsp ground allspice

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1 Tbsp orange zest

3 average cinnamon stick

Instructions

Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan. Bring to a slow boil over medium-high heat and then reduce heat to simmer. Simmer for 15 minutes and then strain into mugs. Yields about 1 cup per serving.

PUMPKIN SPICE SCONES

This absolute yumminess comes from The Baker Chick (otherwise known as Audra). If you haven’t checked out her blog, I highly recommend doing so, along with subscribing to it. Go ahead, I’ll wait. (Imagine the sound of me tapping my foot….) Did you ? Great, if you did. If you didn’t, check it out sometime.

Okay, Audra starts off by writing, “Let’s grab a cup of coffee and a scone, what do you say? It’s been a long day, and right now I just want something delicious and a warm cup of coffee. Doesn’t that sound lovely? And, since pumpkin season seems to be at it’s peak, how about these tender, melt-in-your-mouth, Pumpkin Spice Scones? Oh these were so good. Everything you want in a scone really. Nothing dense or tough about these babies- just fall baked good perfection.” At the end of the recipe, Audra, added, “This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of International Delight. The opinions and text are all mine.”

Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 15 minutes; Total Time: 30 minutes; Yield: 8 scones. Yum!

To view this online at Audra’s blog, click here.

Ingredients

For the Scones:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons white sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into chunks

1/2 cup pumpkin pureé

3 tablespoons International Delight Pumpkin Pie Spice Creamer

1 large egg

For the Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons International Delight Pumpkin Pie Spice Creamer

dash of cinnamon

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425F. Prep a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a sil-pat. Set aside.

In a large bowl stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices.

Add the butter, and use a pastry blender or your hands to break down the butter chunks until they are no bigger than the size of a pea. (I like to use my hands and work them in.)

Make a well in the center of the bowl and add the pumpkin and creamer. Stir gently until dough just comes together. (It may seem dry)

Turn dough onto a well-floured surface and knead until dough has moistened and is a cohesive ball.

Shape into a 6-7 inch circle, about 2 inches thick. Cut into 8 equal wedges, and arrange on the cookie sheet.

Bake for 14-16 minutes, or until scones are just golden on the edges. Allow them to cool slightly while you make the glaze.

For the glaze:

Whisk together the powdered sugar, creamer, and cinnamon until smooth and thick. Drizzle over the scones and enjoy warm or room temperature.

ROASTED CHICKEN SALAD WITH NAPA CABBAGE

Serving size is 4 oz. chicken, 1 cup cabbage, and 1/4 cup snow peas.

Yield: 4 servings

Source: Express Lane Diabetic Cooking

Find this recipe at: http://diabeticgourmet.com/recipes/html/860.shtml

Ingredients

1 pound roasted white-meat deli chicken (either pulled from a whole chicken and skinned or from sliced chicken), cubed or shredded

1 cup fresh snow pea pods, halved

1/2 cup julienne baby carrot strips

1/2 cup low-fat Oriental salad dressing or low-fat vinaigrette

4 cups shredded Napa cabbage

Directions

In a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, heat the chicken, snow pea pods, carrots, and garlic. Cover and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in dressing. Remove from heat.

In a large bowl, combine the cabbage and chicken mixture; toss together until mixed.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 285; Protein: 34 g; Fat: 13 g; Sodium: 416 mg; Cholesterol: 100 mg; Dietary Fiber: 1 g; Sugars: 4 g; Carbohydrates: 7 g; Exchanges: 1/2 Carbohydrate, 4 Lean Meat, 1/2 Fat

KFC’S COLESLAW

Okay, I admit it: I love KFC’s Coleslaw. When I drove cab for a living, I used to pick up some of their coleslaw probably once a week.

This copycat recipe comes from Recipe Lion; it was one of the recipes in their e-cookbook, titled “24 New Top Secret Restaurant Copycat Recipes.” The site has quite a few free e-cookbooks to check out. Please feel free to do so!

This recipe begins, “KFC copycat recipes are always delicious, and this one is an all-time favorite. When you're preparing for your next picnic or potluck with friends, consider this easy coleslaw recipe. It's always a crowd pleaser any time it's served and it couldn't be any easier to make.”

Ingredients

8 1/8 cups cabbage

1/3 cup carrots, shredded

1 teaspoon onion, chopped fine

3/4 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/8 cup milk

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1/3 cup granulated sugar

Instructions

Core the cabbage, then shred using the slicing disk for the shredder attachment to the food processor.

Shred the carrot the same way or use pre-shredded carrots.

Mix together cabbage, carrot and onion.

In a bowl, combine the buttermilk, mayonnaise, milk, and lemon juice with a whisk until well combined.

Add the salt and pepper.

Add the sugar to the sauce until well mixed in.

Add the sauce to the cabbage and carrot mixture. Mix well and allow the mixture to marinate in the refrigerator 8 hours or overnight. Mix thoroughly before serving.