Confessions of a Foodie

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Showing posts with label Cool Whip Pie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cool Whip Pie. Show all posts

Friday, October 2, 2015

Friday Recipes

Oh, boy, it's Friday! The start of another weekend! Of course, we're going to want to eat, so here are a few things to try out. Enjoy!

HUMMUS

This makes a great, quick anytime snack, especially weekends, when we occasionally entertain, watch sports (either our kids' or friends' sporting events, on TV) or want something extra to bring to the beach or on a picnic. Great for chips, tortillas, or on pita bread.

Yield: 12 servings

Serving Size: 2 tablespoons

Online Recipe: http://diabeticgourmet.com/recipes/html/659.shtml

Source: The Diabetes Food and Nutrition Bible

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

Ingredients

1 (15 oz.) can chickpeas, drained, reserve 1 tablespoon liquid

3-6 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon sesame tahini

Juice of 1 lemon

2 teaspoons olive oil

Pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions

Combine all ingredients into a blender until smooth, using 1 tablespoon chickpea liquid if necessary to make a smooth spread.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 49; Protein: 2 g; Fat: 2 g; Sodium: 33 mg; Cholesterol: 0 mg; Dietary Fiber: 2 g; Sugars: 1 g; Carbohydrates: 7 g; Exchanges: 1/2 Carbohydrate

RASPBERRY DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CREAM CHEESE BARS

Peggy Trowbridge Filippone, About.com's Home Cooking guide, writes, “These rich bar cookies use two flavors of chocolate. Fast and easy to make due to the cake mix. Tried and true recipe brings raves." Prep Time: 15 minutes; cook time: 45 minutes; Yield: 24 to 36 cookie bars, depending on cut size

Ingredients:

Bottom:

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1 egg, at room temperature

8 Tablespoons butter, melted, but at room temperature (1 stick)

1 box (18.25 ounces) chocolate devil's food cake mix

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Topping:

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, at room temperature

2 eggs, at room temperature

2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup raspberry-flavored chocolate chips

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9-inch by 13-inch baking pan with nonstick foil.

For the Bottom: Cream 4 ounces of cream cheese, 1 egg, and butter together on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Blend in cake mix by hand until combined. It will be very thick (and give your arm a workout!), but piable like a soft dough. Using a spatula, press evenly into the bottom of the foiled pan. Evenly sprinkle on chocolate chips and press lightly into the batter with a spatula, but do not bury them.

For the Topping:

Place cream cheese, 2 eggs, and powdered sugar in a small bowl. Begin mixing on low speed until sugar is incorporated. Increase to medium speed and beat until smooth, at least 3 minutes or longer if need be. Spread evenly over bottom layer. Sprinkle on raspberry chocolate chips.

Bake at 350 degrees F. for 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely. Carefully remove from pan, peel off foil, and cut into squares to serve.

Note: If you cannot find raspberry-flavored chocolate chips, substitute any other flavor or plain chips. Feel free to experiment using other flavored cake mixes.

EGG AND VEGGIE SALAD WITH DILL GREEN GODDESS DRESSING

This is from the July/August 2012 issue of Vegetarian Times, page 34. Serves 4, in 30 minutes or less. Recipe starts out, “Look for French breakfast or watermelon radishes to add color and interest to this salad. Don’t be tempted to make the dressing in just one step; only part of the yogurt is puréed with seasonings, then stirred into the remaining yogurt to achieve the right consistency.

5 large eggs

10 small purple potatoes, halved lengthwise (14 oz.)

16 medium orange cauliflower florets

4 Persian cucumbers

1/3 cup plus 1 Tbs. finely chopped fresh dill

3/4 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt

2 Tbs. olive oil

1 Tbs. white balsamic vinegar

1 bunch large radishes, sliced or quartered, radish leaves reserved, optional

Set large vegetable steamer rack in pot over boiling water. Place eggs on rack; surround with potatoes. Cover pan, and steam 10 minutes. Scatter cauliflower over potatoes. Cover, and steam 3 to 4 minutes more, or until vegetables are just tender and eggs are hard-boiled.

Meanwhile, cut 1-inch piece from 1 cucumber. Peel, and place piece in blender. Add 1/3 cup dill, 1/4 cup yogurt, oil, and vinegar, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Purée in blender until smooth. Place remaining 1/2 cup yogurt in medium bowl. Stir purée from blender into yogurt until smooth.

Slice remaining cucumbers thickly on diagonal.

Peel eggs under cold running water. Quarter eggs.

Divide radish leaves (if using) among plates. Top with eggs, potatoes, cauliflower, cucumbers, and radishes. Drizzle each salad with dressing. Sprinkle with remaining 1 Tbs. chopped dill.

nutritional information Per Serving: Calories: 288; Protein: 16 g; Total Fat: 14 g; Saturated Fat: 3 g; Carbohydrates: 26 g; Cholesterol: 233 mg; Sodium: 123 mg; Fiber: 3 g; Sugar: 5 g; Gluten-Free

“BETTER THAN THE DELI” MACARONI SALAD

This is also from Kathy Kingsley, American Food guide, who writes, “Take your time, and use your sharpest knife to get a nice fine dice on the veggies in this classic pasta salad. When made right, this is a macaroni salad where every forkful bursts with flavor.” Serves 8

Prep Time: 30 minutes; Cook Time: 10 minutes; Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

1 pound dry elbow macaroni, cooked, rinsed in cold water, and drained well

1 1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 cup finely diced celery

1/4 cup minced red onion

1/2 cup sweet pickle relish

1/4 finely grated carrot

2 tablespoons finely diced roasted red pepper or pimento

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Preparation:

Whisk together all the dressing ingredients in a large mixing bowl, and add the drained pasta. Toss to combine thoroughly. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

COOL WHIP PIE

Jolinda Hackett, About.com's Vegetarian Food guide, writes, “You can 'whip' together this easy Cool Whip pie in five minutes and it lasts for several days in the freezer. If you're looking for an easy no-bake dessert or no-bake pie recipe, this quick and easy Cool Whip pie is the one to try! This is one of my favorite dessert recipes ever, since it's so unbelievably quick, easy, delicious, and not too fattening.” Prep Time: 5 minutes; Total Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

8 oz (one small container) Cool Whip

18 oz (three individual servings) yogurt, any flavor

1 ready made pie crust

Preparation:

Thoroughly combine the Cool Whip and yogurt until smooth. Pour into pie crust and freeze until firm. Remove from freezer approximately 20 minutes before serving. Serve with fresh fruit if desired and enjoy!

BERRY MERINGUE TART

This comes from Lindsey Goodwin, About.com's Coffee/Tea guide. Lindsey writes, “Recently, I was faced with a dilemma that I was very grateful for: a surplus of freshly picked red currants. I had picked a bucketful, eaten a few handfuls, set aside plenty of juicy berries for my morning porridge... and I still had lots left. I'm not skilled at making homemade berry preserves and my freezer is beyond full. So, what to do with all these extra berries?

”Then I thought, 'What would taste amazing with coffee or tea?' and the words 'berry tart' came to mind. I ended up whipping up a tart with a baked meringue-berry topping, and it was so absurdly good that I just had to share it here. You can use your own surplus of berries (strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, huckleberries, black currants, cherries or even cranberries). Just be sure to decrease the amount of sugar in the meringue a bit for sweeter berries. (Keep it as is for more tart berries, like currants and cranberries.)” To view this on Lindsey's page, click here.

Serves 10. Ready in under 2 hours, with about 25 minutes of actual work. Totally worth it!

Tart Ingredients

1 1/2 cups plain flour (Spoon the flour into the measuring cup to measure.)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup superfine sugar (known in some places as "caster sugar")

2 egg yolks (Be sure to keep the whites for the meringue.)

1 1/2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest or 3/4 teaspoon dried lemon zest (optional)

up to 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Berry Meringue Ingredients

2 egg whites

1 cup superfine sugar, or a little less for sweeter berries (like strawberries, blueberries, cherries and raspberries)

2 teaspoons corn flour, cornstarch or potato starch

2 cups berries (Slice them first if they're large berries, like large strawberries or blackberries. Otherwise, you end up with a cup of berries and a cup of empty space!)

How to Make a Berry Meringue Tart

First, you're going to make the pastry. As it's baking, you can start on the meringue.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour and baking powder.

Mix in butter, sugar, egg yolks and lemon zest until mixture forms dough. You can use a spoon, a handheld beater or your hands. (Lesley wrote, “I used all three just for giggles.”)

Let the dough rest, covered, in cool place for 30 minutes.

Before the dough is done with its little nap, preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Roll out dough into a circle and put into a 6-8" springform tin. (Don't have a rolling pin? Use a glass bottle with a flat edge. Don't have a springform pan? Line a square or rectangular pan of similar size with two pieces of parchment paper that are perpendicular to each other and that hang over the sides of the pan. With another set of hands, you'll be able to grab the four edges and life the tart out of the pan safely after it's done.)

Bake in oven for 25 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.

When it's almost done baking (about 8-10 minutes to go), you can start the berry meringue topping. In a medium bowl, beat egg whites until stiff.

Gradually stir in sugar and cornflour, then beat for 5 more minutes.

Fold berries into mixture.

Remove the partially baked tart when the time's up, and pour the meringue over the tart.

Bake for 20-35 minutes, until top is golden on the peaks. Start checking it every couple minutes starting 20 minutes in. If your oven light is really yellow, you may need to pull the tart out to tell if the meringue is golden on the peaks or not.

Serve hot or cold, preferably with coffee or tea!

Monday, July 28, 2014

Meatless Mondays

I know that some people find it strange, but I actually have an easier time figuring out to eat when meat is not involved. Somehow, it seems to open up more options. At least that's how I feel about food. That said, for those who are vegetarian, or simply trying to go meatless one day a week, here are more meatless recipes to try. Enjoy!

BLACK BEAN-QUINOA BURGERS

This comes from the July/August 2011 issue of Vegetarian Times, page 60. By the way, Vegetarian Times has an emailing list you can subscribe to for fantastic vegetarian recipes. I highly recommend it.

This recipe serves 8, and begins, “Here's a delicious veggie burger you can whip up from scratch. Any steak seasoning (which is just a combination of herbs and spices) will work to give the patties a rich, hearty flavor. Stash a few in the freezer for busy weeknight meals. For super-easy cookouts, bake the patties ahead, then reheat them on the grill. Serve with your favorite burger fixings.”

1/2 cup quinoa

1 small onion, finely chopped (1 cup)

6 oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and finely chopped (1/4 cup)

1 1/2 cups cooked black beans, or 1 15-oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained, divided

2 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp.)

2 tsp. dried steak seasoning

8 whole-grain hamburger buns

Stir together quinoa and 1 1/2 cups water in small saucepan, and season with salt, if desired. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 20 minutes, or until all liquid is absorbed. (You should have 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa.)

Meanwhile, place onion and sun-dried tomatoes in medium nonstick skillet, and cook over medium heat. (The oil left on the tomatoes should be enough to sauté the onion.) Cook 3 to 4 minutes, or until onion has softened. Stir in 3/4 cup black beans, garlic, steak seasoning, and 1 1/2 cups water. Simmer 9 to 11 minutes, or until most of liquid has evaporated.

Transfer bean-onion mixture to food processor, add 3/4 cup cooked quinoa, and process until smooth. Transfer to bowl, and stir in remaining 3/4 cup quinoa and remaining 3/4 cup black beans. Season with salt and pepper, if desired, and cool.

Preheat oven to 350°F, and generously coat baking sheet with cooking spray. Shape bean mixture into 8 patties (1/2 cup each), and place on prepared baking sheet. Bake 20 minutes, or until patties are crisp on top. Flip patties with spatula, and bake 10 minutes more, or until both sides are crisp and brown. Serve on buns.

nutritional information Per Burger: Calories: 215; Protein: 9 g; Total Fat: 3 g; Saturated Fat: less than 1 g; Carbohydrates: 40 g; Cholesterol: 0 mg; Sodium: 438 mg; Fiber: 6 g; Sugar: 5 g; Vegan

SUMMER VEGGIE KEBABS WITH FRESH CORN RELISH

This is from the July/August 2013 issue of Vegetarian Times, page 32. The recipe serves 4, and can be made in 30 minutes or less. It starts out, “Easy-to-assemble vegetable kebabs are paired with a lightly sautéed corn relish for a dish that can be served either as an appetizer or as an entrée when placed atop couscous or another quick-cooking grain. To ensure even cooking, make sure all the vegetables are about the same size.”

Corn Relish

1 Tbs. olive oil

1 medium yellow tomato, diced (2/3 cup)

1 large ear corn, kernels removed (1 1/3 cups kernels)

1 1/2 Tbs. white balsamic or white wine vinegar

1/4 tsp. dry mustard powder

2 Tbs. coarsely chopped fresh basil

Kebabs

1/4 cup olive oil

2 Tbs. white balsamic or white wine vinegar

3/4 tsp. dry mustard powder, divided

1 small yellow bell pepper, halved, seeded, and cut into 12 square pieces

1 medium zucchini, halved and cut into 12 slices

1/2 small red onion, cut into 12 chunks

12 whole cremini mushrooms

12 grape or cherry tomatoes

Coat grill grate or grill pan with cooking spray, and preheat over medium heat.

To make Corn Relish: Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add tomato, cover, and cook 4 minutes, or until tomato is breaking down. Add corn kernels, and cook 2 minutes, or until corn is tender. Stir in vinegar and mustard powder, and cook 1 minute more. Remove from heat. Mix in basil; season with salt and pepper, if desired.

To make Kebabs: whisk together oil, vinegar, and mustard powder in small bowl.

Thread each of 12 skewers with 1 bell pepper square, 1 zucchini slice, 1 red onion chunk, 1 mushroom, and 1 tomato. Place skewers on large platter, and brush with vinaigrette mixture. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.

Grill skewers 6 to 8 minutes, turning every 2 minutes, or until vegetables are tender and browned on all sides. Serve with Corn Relish.

nutritional information Per Serving (3 kebabs and 1/2 cup relish): Calories: 247; Protein: 5 g; Total Fat: 18 g; Saturated Fat: 3 g; Carbohydrates: 20 g; Cholesterol: 0 mg; Sodium: 30 mg; Fiber: 3 g; Sugar: 9 g; Vegan; Gluten-Free

BAKED TOFU WITH ASIAN GLAZE

Jolinda Hackett, About.com's Vegetarian Food guide, writes, “A simple vegetarian and vegan baked tofu recipe suitable for an appetizer, or to add to cooked noodles or vegetable stir-fry. Tofu is marinated and then baked in a sweet and sour miso-based Asian barbecue sauce with maple syrup, sesame oil, black pepper and sherry. Makes 4 servings.

Recipe courtesy of the Soy Foods council.

Ingredients:

1 (14-ounce) package extra–firm tofu, drained and well-pressed

1 tablespoon miso

1/4 cup water

1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

3 green onions, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons sesame oil

2 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoon sherry

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Preparation:

Cut the tofu into chunks and place in a wide shallow dish or bowl.

In a small bowl, combine the miso and remaining ingredients and whisk well until combined. Pour over tofu and gently mix to ensure that the tofu is coated well. Cover and marinate in refrigerator for at least two hours and up to 8 hours.

When you're ready to bake the tofu, pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Drain the tofu, reserving the extra marinade. Place the tofu on a baking sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, turning occasionally and basting with the extra sauce, until tofu is lightly browned and lightly crisped.

Serve your Asian-glazed tofu over noodles for an entree, with toothpicks as an appetizer, or add it to your favorite vegetable stir-fry.

Nutritional information, per serving:
Calories: 26; Total fat: 1 g; Protein: 39g; Carbs: 24.7g; Iron: 1.4mg;
Calcium: 20mg

VEGAN PUMPKIN GRATIN

Ashley Adams is the Dairy Free Cooking guide for About.com. She writes, “Perfect for the autumn months when pumpkin is in season, this veganized pumpkin gratin is a healthier, yet delicious, take on the fall-time classic. (And if you happen to crave pumpkin during the rest of the year, you can just use canned pumpkin instead of fresh!) If you've never prepared your own homemade pumpkin puree before, read the Cook's Note at the bottom of the recipe to learn how! As always, feel free to add more tasty things to your gratin; pecans, pine nuts, coconut, dried cranberries, dried figs, and fresh apple pieces are all welcome additions to this dish.”

Prep Time: 10 minutes; Cook Time: 20 minutes; Total Time: 30 minutes; Yield: 4

Ingredients:

For the bread crumb topping:

3 slices white dairy-free bread (French bread, sourdough, or another white sandwich bread will do)

1/4 cup shredded dairy-free cheese, such as Daiya

1/2 t. salt

1/8 t. freshly ground pepper

For the Filling:

3 cups pumpkin puree (from either steamed or canned pumpkin)

1/4 cup dairy-free sour cream, such as Tofutti

2 T. white granulated sugar

1 t. salt

1/2 t. sage

1/2 t. marjoram

1/2 cup finely chopped scallions (also known as green onions)

2 medium Bosc pears, cored and chopped

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

4 T. softened dairy-free soy margarine, cut into small pieces

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 450 F. Lightly grease a 1-quart gratin dish or casserole dish. Set aside.

Make the topping. In a food processor, process the bread crumbs, dairy-free cheese, salt and pepper, pulsing until the mixture resembles large crumbs. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Make the filling. Combine the pumpkin puree, dairy-free sour cream, sugar, salt, sage, and marjoram in a food processor, pulsing until well combined. Using a spoon, fold in the chopped scallions and pears. Transfer the pumpkin filling to the prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle evenly with the bread crumb topping, then dot with the dairy-free soy margarine. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the crumb topping is golden brown. Serve hot.

Cook's Notes:

For this recipe, I vastly prefer using Daiya Mozza Shreds over other varieties, but use whatever dairy-free cheese you're comfortable with.

For gratins and other pumpkin casseroles, making your own puree from fresh pumpkin is always better than using canned. (Again, canned will work, so if you don't have fresh pumpkins available or the time to make your own puree, it is fine to use the canned.

To prepare steamed pumpkin (for the pumpkin puree): Peel, seed, and cut a small to medium-sized pumpkin into 2-inch pieces. Place in a steamer basket set over a saucepan with 1-2 inches of boiling water. Cover and cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Puree the pumpkin and use in your pumpkin gratin or other pumpkin recipes!

EGG AND VEGGIE SALAD WITH DILL GREEN GODDESS DRESSING

This is from the July/August 2012 issue of Vegetarian Times, page 34. Serves 4, in 30 minutes or less. Recipe starts out, “Look for French breakfast or watermelon radishes to add color and interest to this salad. Don’t be tempted to make the dressing in just one step; only part of the yogurt is puréed with seasonings, then stirred into the remaining yogurt to achieve the right consistency.

5 large eggs

10 small purple potatoes, halved lengthwise (14 oz.)

16 medium orange cauliflower florets

4 Persian cucumbers

1/3 cup plus 1 Tbs. finely chopped fresh dill

3/4 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt

2 Tbs. olive oil

1 Tbs. white balsamic vinegar

1 bunch large radishes, sliced or quartered, radish leaves reserved, optional

Set large vegetable steamer rack in pot over boiling water. Place eggs on rack; surround with potatoes. Cover pan, and steam 10 minutes. Scatter cauliflower over potatoes. Cover, and steam 3 to 4 minutes more, or until vegetables are just tender and eggs are hard-boiled.

Meanwhile, cut 1-inch piece from 1 cucumber. Peel, and place piece in blender. Add 1/3 cup dill, 1/4 cup yogurt, oil, and vinegar, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Purée in blender until smooth. Place remaining 1/2 cup yogurt in medium bowl. Stir purée from blender into yogurt until smooth.

Slice remaining cucumbers thickly on diagonal.

Peel eggs under cold running water. Quarter eggs.

Divide radish leaves (if using) among plates. Top with eggs, potatoes, cauliflower, cucumbers, and radishes. Drizzle each salad with dressing. Sprinkle with remaining 1 Tbs. chopped dill.

nutritional information Per Serving: Calories: 288; Protein: 16 g; Total Fat: 14 g; Saturated Fat: 3 g; Carbohydrates: 26 g; Cholesterol: 233 mg; Sodium: 123 mg; Fiber: 3 g; Sugar: 5 g; Gluten-Free

COOL WHIP PIE

Jolinda Hackett, About.com's Vegetarian Food guide, writes, “You can 'whip' together this easy Cool Whip pie in five minutes and it lasts for several days in the freezer. If you're looking for an easy no-bake dessert or no-bake pie recipe, this quick and easy Cool Whip pie is the one to try! This is one of my favorite dessert recipes ever, since it's so unbelievably quick, easy, delicious, and not too fattening.” Prep Time: 5 minutes; Total Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

8 oz (one small container) Cool Whip

18 oz (three individual servings) yogurt, any flavor

1 ready made pie crust

Preparation:

Thoroughly combine the Cool Whip and yogurt until smooth. Pour into pie crust and freeze until firm. Remove from freezer approximately 20 minutes before serving. Serve with fresh fruit if desired and enjoy!

Friday, July 25, 2014

Weekend Meals

Oh, boy, it's Friday! The start of another weekend! Of course, we're going to want to eat, so here are a few things to try out. Enjoy!

HUMMUS

This makes a great, quick anytime snack, especially weekends, when we occasionally entertain, watch sports (either our kids' or friends' sporting events, on TV) or want something extra to bring to the beach or on a picnic. Great for chips, tortillas, or on pita bread.

Yield: 12 servings

Serving Size: 2 tablespoons

Online Recipe: http://diabeticgourmet.com/recipes/html/659.shtml

Source: The Diabetes Food and Nutrition Bible

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

Ingredients

1 (15 oz.) can chickpeas, drained, reserve 1 tablespoon liquid

3-6 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon sesame tahini

Juice of 1 lemon

2 teaspoons olive oil

Pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions

Combine all ingredients into a blender until smooth, using 1 tablespoon chickpea liquid if necessary to make a smooth spread.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 49; Protein: 2 g; Fat: 2 g; Sodium: 33 mg; Cholesterol: 0 mg; Dietary Fiber: 2 g; Sugars: 1 g; Carbohydrates: 7 g; Exchanges: 1/2 Carbohydrate

RASPBSERRY DOUBLE CHOCOLATE CREAM CHEESE BARS

Peggy Trowbridge Filippone, About.com's Home Cooking guide, writes, “These rich bar cookies use two flavors of chocolate. Fast and easy to make due to the cake mix. Tried and true recipe brings raves." Prep Time: 15 minutes; cook time: 45 minutes; Yield: 24 to 36 cookie bars, depending on cut size

Ingredients:

Bottom:

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1 egg, at room temperature

8 Tablespoons butter, melted, but at room temperature (1 stick)

1 box (18.25 ounces) chocolate devil's food cake mix

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Topping:

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, at room temperature

2 eggs, at room temperature

2 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup raspberry-flavored chocolate chips

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9-inch by 13-inch baking pan with nonstick foil.

For the Bottom:Cream 4 ounces of cream cheese, 1 egg, and butter together on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Blend in cake mix by hand until combined. It will be very thick (and give your arm a workout!), but piable like a soft dough. Using a spatula, press evenly into the bottom of the foiled pan. Evenly sprinkle on chocolate chips and press lightly into the batter with a spatula, but do not bury them.

For the Topping:

Place cream cheese, 2 eggs, and powdered sugar in a small bowl. Begin mixing on low speed until sugar is incorporated. Increase to medium speed and beat until smooth, at least 3 minutes or longer if need be. Spread evenly over bottom layer. Sprinkle on raspberry chocolate chips.

Bake at 350 degrees F. for 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely. Carefully remove from pan, peel off foil, and cut into squares to serve.

Note: If you cannot find raspberry-flavored chocolate chips, substitute any other flavor or plain chips. Feel free to experiment using other flavored cake mixes.

EGG AND VEGGIE SALAD WITH DILL GREEN GODDESS DRESSING

This is from the July/August 2012 issue of Vegetarian Times, page 34. Serves 4, in 30 minutes or less. Recipe starts out, “Look for French breakfast or watermelon radishes to add color and interest to this salad. Don’t be tempted to make the dressing in just one step; only part of the yogurt is puréed with seasonings, then stirred into the remaining yogurt to achieve the right consistency.

5 large eggs

10 small purple potatoes, halved lengthwise (14 oz.)

16 medium orange cauliflower florets

4 Persian cucumbers

1/3 cup plus 1 Tbs. finely chopped fresh dill

3/4 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt

2 Tbs. olive oil

1 Tbs. white balsamic vinegar

1 bunch large radishes, sliced or quartered, radish leaves reserved, optional

Set large vegetable steamer rack in pot over boiling water. Place eggs on rack; surround with potatoes. Cover pan, and steam 10 minutes. Scatter cauliflower over potatoes. Cover, and steam 3 to 4 minutes more, or until vegetables are just tender and eggs are hard-boiled.

Meanwhile, cut 1-inch piece from 1 cucumber. Peel, and place piece in blender. Add 1/3 cup dill, 1/4 cup yogurt, oil, and vinegar, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Purée in blender until smooth. Place remaining 1/2 cup yogurt in medium bowl. Stir purée from blender into yogurt until smooth.

Slice remaining cucumbers thickly on diagonal.

Peel eggs under cold running water. Quarter eggs.

Divide radish leaves (if using) among plates. Top with eggs, potatoes, cauliflower, cucumbers, and radishes. Drizzle each salad with dressing. Sprinkle with remaining 1 Tbs. chopped dill.

nutritional information Per Serving: Calories: 288; Protein: 16 g; Total Fat: 14 g; Saturated Fat: 3 g; Carbohydrates: 26 g; Cholesterol: 233 mg; Sodium: 123 mg; Fiber: 3 g; Sugar: 5 g; Gluten-Free

“BETTER THAN THE DELI” MACARONI SALAD

This is also from Kathy Kingsley, American Food guide, who writes, “Take your time, and use your sharpest knife to get a nice fine dice on the veggies in this classic pasta salad. When made right, this is a macaroni salad where every forkful bursts with flavor.” Serves 8

Prep Time: 30 minutes; Cook Time: 10 minutes; Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

1 pound dry elbow macaroni, cooked, rinsed in cold water, and drained well

1 1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 cup finely diced celery

1/4 cup minced red onion

1/2 cup sweet pickle relish

1/4 finely grated carrot

2 tablespoons finely diced roasted red pepper or pimento

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Preparation:

Whisk together all the dressing ingredients in a large mixing bowl, and add the drained pasta. Toss to combine thoroughly. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.

COOL WHIP PIE

Jolinda Hackett, About.com's Vegetarian Food guide, writes, “You can 'whip' together this easy Cool Whip pie in five minutes and it lasts for several days in the freezer. If you're looking for an easy no-bake dessert or no-bake pie recipe, this quick and easy Cool Whip pie is the one to try! This is one of my favorite dessert recipes ever, since it's so unbelievably quick, easy, delicious, and not too fattening.” Prep Time: 5 minutes; Total Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

8 oz (one small container) Cool Whip

18 oz (three individual servings) yogurt, any flavor

1 ready made pie crust

Preparation:

Thoroughly combine the Cool Whip and yogurt until smooth. Pour into pie crust and freeze until firm. Remove from freezer approximately 20 minutes before serving. Serve with fresh fruit if desired and enjoy!

BERRY MERINGUE TART

This comes from Lindsey Goodwin, About.com's Coffee/Tea guide. Lindsey writes, “Recently, I was faced with a dilemma that I was very grateful for: a surplus of freshly picked red currants. I had picked a bucketful, eaten a few handfuls, set aside plenty of juicy berries for my morning porridge... and I still had lots left. I'm not skilled at making homemade berry preserves and my freezer is beyond full. So, what to do with all these extra berries?

”Then I thought, 'What would taste amazing with coffee or tea?' and the words 'berry tart' came to mind. I ended up whipping up a tart with a baked meringue-berry topping, and it was so absurdly good that I just had to share it here. You can use your own surplus of berries (strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, huckleberries, black currants, cherries or even cranberries). Just be sure to decrease the amount of sugar in the meringue a bit for sweeter berries. (Keep it as is for more tart berries, like currants and cranberries.)” To view this on Lindsey's page, click here.

Serves 10. Ready in under 2 hours, with about 25 minutes of actual work. Totally worth it!

Tart Ingredients

1 1/2 cups plain flour (Spoon the flour into the measuring cup to measure.)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup superfine sugar (known in some places as "caster sugar")

2 egg yolks (Be sure to keep the whites for the meringue.)

1 1/2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest or 3/4 teaspoon dried lemon zest (optional)

up to 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Berry Meringue Ingredients

2 egg whites

1 cup superfine sugar, or a little less for sweeter berries (like strawberries, blueberries, cherries and raspberries)

2 teaspoons corn flour, cornstarch or potato starch

2 cups berries (Slice them first if they're large berries, like large strawberries or blackberries. Otherwise, you end up with a cup of berries and a cup of empty space!)

How to Make a Berry Meringue Tart

First, you're going to make the pastry. As it's baking, you can start on the meringue.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour and baking powder.

Mix in butter, sugar, egg yolks and lemon zest until mixture forms dough. You can use a spoon, a handheld beater or your hands. (Lesley wrote, “I used all three just for giggles.”)

Let the dough rest, covered, in cool place for 30 minutes.

Before the dough is done with its little nap, preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Roll out dough into a circle and put into a 6-8" springform tin. (Don't have a rolling pin? Use a glass bottle with a flat edge. Don't have a springform pan? Line a square or rectangular pan of similar size with two pieces of parchment paper that are perpendicular to each other and that hang over the sides of the pan. With another set of hands, you'll be able to grab the four edges and life the tart out of the pan safely after it's done.)

Bake in oven for 25 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.

When it's almost done baking (about 8-10 minutes to go), you can start the berry meringue topping. In a medium bowl, beat egg whites until stiff.

Gradually stir in sugar and cornflour, then beat for 5 more minutes.

Fold berries into mixture.

Remove the partially baked tart when the time's up, and pour the meringue over the tart.

Bake for 20-35 minutes, until top is golden on the peaks. Start checking it every couple minutes starting 20 minutes in. If your oven light is really yellow, you may need to pull the tart out to tell if the meringue is golden on the peaks or not.

Serve hot or cold, preferably with coffee or tea!