Chickpea Salad

2 cans of chickpeas
a couple of handfuls of grape tomatoes, cut in half
1 cucumber, chopped into small pieces
several cubes of haloumi cheese
lots of parsley
olive oil
lots of lemon juice
a sprinkle of cumin

Put it all together and you have one yummy (and healthy) salad.

*Recipe compliments of Laura Chau.

Garden Risotto

6 cups low-sodium chicken broth (I used vegetable broth)
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine (I use cooking wine but you could omit this if you want)
3/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 lightly packed cups baby spinach leaves
1 cup frozen peas
1/2 pound asparagus, steamed and cut into 3/4-inch pieces
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Bring the broth to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan over moderately low heat and cook the onion, stirring occasionally, until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the rice and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Add wine and simmer, stirring constantly, until absorbed, about 1 minute. Add 3/4 cup of the hot broth, the salt and a few grinds of fresh pepper and simmer, stirring constantly, until broth is absorbed. Continue simmering and adding hot broth, about 3/4 cup at a time, stirring constantly and allowing the broth to be absorbed before adding more, until rice is almost tender and creamy-looking, about 18 minutes.

Add the spinach and peas and cook until the spinach is wilted. Add the asparagus and cook just until the vegetables are hot. Stir in the Parmesan and more broth if the risotto seems too thick. Serve in soup plates.

*Recipe compliments of thefoodnetwork.com

Garlic Chicken Farfalle

I highly recommend you make this. We give it five stars in our house. It has such a good flavor. I made it twice in one week (granted it was for someone else the first time, but this dish makes a lot so there was plenty for us too. Yum!)

16 oz. Farfalle pasta
1 c. heavy whipping cream
3-4 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)
2 to 3 cloves garlic, crushed OR garlic salt (I do a spoonful of crushed garlic)
1 Tbsp. pepper*
1/2 c. butter
1 lb. bacon, crumpled**
1/2 c. shredded Parmesan cheese
1 (12 oz) Lawry’s mesquite marinade with lime juice

*Seems like a lot of pepper, but it has a wonderful flavor when everything mixes together. If you're apprehensive, do less pepper. You can always add more.

**We like to cook our bacon in the oven (400 degrees, convection). Way less messy. And it's crispy every time. Time varies, so you just have to watch it. I think it's usually around 30 minutes. Allow to cool and then crumble.

[ directions ]

Crock pot chicken and bottle of marinade on low for 6 hours. Pull marinated chicken out of the juices, allow to cool a little bit, and shred (I pull it apart). Set this aside. About a half-hour before serving, boil the pasta. In a small saucepan, melt butter, add garlic, whipping cream, pepper, parmesan cheese, and crumpled bacon. Whisk together on low heat for 3-4 minutes. In a large bowl, pour over cooked, drained pasta, add chicken and stir through. Sprinkle a little bit more shredded parmesan cheese on top.

*Recipe compliments of Becky Higgins.

Scotcheroos

I have heard this treat called lots of different things, but the recipe I have for it calls them scotcheroos. They are delicious.

1 C. sugar
1 C. light Karo syrup

Mix in a large saucepan and bring to a boil, then take off heat immediately.

Add: 1 C. peanut butter

Stir together and then add 7 cups of Rice Krispies

Pour into greased 9x13 pan

Melt: 1 package of milk chocolate chips and 1 package of butterscotch chips in the microwave for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring after every minute. You can also melt them in a saucepan but watch carefully so the chocolate doesn't burn. If it melts too much it can become too hard and won't spread.

Spread melted chips on top of Rice Krispies. Don't refrigerate scotcheroos or they will become too hard to cut.

*For a variation of this recipe, click here.

Lemon Fusilli with Arugula

*This is not a low fat meal. But man, it is delicious. Of course, I have a thing for arugula. Ever since my friend Stacey introduced it to me a couple of years ago, I have been hooked.

1 tablespoon good olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic (2 cloves)
2 cups heavy cream (I also think half and half would work if you want to cut out some fat and calories)
3 lemons (or one fresh lemon and some lemon juice from concentrate - adding by taste)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch broccoli
1 pound dried fusilli pasta
1/2 pound baby arugula (or 2 bunches of common arugula, leaves cut in thirds)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, halved

Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the garlic, and cook for 60 seconds. Add the cream, the zest from 2 lemons, the juice of 2 lemons, 2 teaspoons of salt, and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, until it starts to thicken.

Meanwhile, cut the broccoli in florets and discard the stem. Cook the florets in a pot of boiling salted water for 3 to 5 minutes, until tender but still firm. Drain the broccoli and run under cold water to stop the cooking. Set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add 1 tablespoon of salt and the pasta, and cook according to the directions on the package, about 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain the pasta in a colander and place it back into the pot. Immediately add the cream mixture and cook it over medium-low heat for 3 minutes, until most of the sauce has been absorbed in the pasta. Pour the hot pasta into a large bowl, add the arugula, Parmesan, tomatoes, and cooked broccoli. Cut the last lemon in half lengthwise, slice it 1/4-inch thick crosswise, and add it to the pasta (this is really only for looks and isn't necessary if you don't want to add it). Toss well, season to taste, and serve hot.

*I like it vegetarian as is, but you could add some chicken for protein.
*If you know you won't eat it all in one night, you can save some of the sauce separate from the salad and mix it together the next day when you are going to use it. Or just pour it all on and then reheat it the next day like I did. It was just as good as left overs.

[Recipe compliments of Barefoot Contessa]

Cafe Rio Pork Salad

Any Cafe Rio fans out there? I love it and crave their salads. I was pretty disappointed to find that there aren't any here in Washington. My friend Eryn was nice enough to give me this recipe, which is supposed to be the actual pork salad recipe. The dressing is delicious. Make it tonight. [The picture above is actually not of this exact recipe, but of a similar chicken taco salad. I was so excited about the salad, I forgot to take a picture. I will replace this one when I make it again.]

Meat:
About 1 1/2 lbs. Pork tenderloin (you can also use chicken if you prefer)
1 cup salsa
1-1 1/2 cups brown sugar
Cook in crock pot about 5 hours on low, cut fat off and shred.

Creamy Cilantro dressing:
Put the following in a blender and blend until smooth:
3 fresh tomatillos quartered
1 package Ranch buttermilk dressing mix (or regular Ranch mix if you can't find buttermilk)
1 cup mayo
1/2 cup buttermilk (or put 1 Tbsp of lemon juice in 1/2 cup of regular milk and let it sit for a minute before adding it to the other ingredients)
1 cup fresh cilantro
2 cloves fresh garlic
1/2 a jalapeno or Serrano pepper, no seeds

(If you have extra dressing, you can put it in a ziplock and freeze it for next time.)

Pico de Gallo recipe:
6-8 small tomatoes diced up
1 small onion diced up or half a medium onion
1 small jalapeno chopped as small as possible,
no seeds, start with half and add the second half after you've
tasted the salsa for hotness.
about 12 sprigs of cilantro chopped up finely
about a 1/2 tsp. salt
juice from 1/4 a lime or more
1 clove garlic minced (or about 1 tsp. if using minced garlic from a jar)
juice from half a lime. or about 2 -3 tsp.

Put everything together and taste to see if you need to add more of anything.

Guacamole:
Mash up the following:
2 ripe avocados
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 clove garlic minced
1/2 tsp. Tabasco or 1-2 Tbsp. salsa

While you're making everything, cook up some rice.

To serve, pile on a plate in the following order:
Romaine lettuce
beans and rice
pork
a scoop of pico de gallo
a scoop of guacamole
crumbled tortilla chips
dressing

You can also serve these as burritos instead of a salad.

Citrus Asparagus

1 lb. asparagus, ends trimmed
1 lemon
2 T. olive oil
1 1/2 T. garlic, minced
salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 T. freshly chopped parsley


Slice each of the asparagus stalks diagonally into 1/2-inch thick pieces, but leave the tips 2-3 inches long, and set aside. Cut the lemon in half. Cut one half of the lemon into wedges, place them in a small dish, and reserve for service. From the other half, remove the zest, reserve the lemon half for use in the cooking process, and set it and the zest aside. In a non-stick skillet, saute the asparagus in the olive oil for 3 minutes. Add the garlic, the reserved lemon zest, season the mixture with a little salt and pepper, and saute an additional 2-3 minutes or until the asparagus is tender. Add the chopped parsley, squeeze some juice from the zested lemon half, and toss well to combine. Taste and add additional salt and pepper, if needed. Serve the reserved lemon wedges along with the asparagus. Serves 2-4

*Recipe compliments of www.veganchef.com