Starlight Mint Surprise

It's the holiday season and everybody is making their favorites. Here is a cookie that is in my top 5 (just below Chocolate Chip and Russian Teacakes). It's called Starlight Mint Surprise and it was the prize winner in the cookie category at the Pillsbury Bakeoff in the 60s. The original mint wafers are no longer sold although you can substitute with either the mint wafers sold by Fanny Farmer (makes one heck of an expensive cookie!) or use Andes Mints (sold in most grocery stores). These are intended to be small cookies and personally, I think the result is better if you don't use nonstick bakeware (I have commercial aluminum uncoated baking sheets).

Starlight Mint Surprise

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 100 chocolate mint wafer candies or Andes mint candy
  
• 100 walnut halves

1. Combine flour, baking soda, salt, white sugar, butter or margarine, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla. Combine and mix at lowest speed until dough forms.
2. Drop by scant teaspoons 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheets. Press candy wafer on top of each - mold dough sides up around mint. Cover with scant teaspoons of dough. Top each with walnut half.
3. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 9-12 minutes.

Bok Choy Salad

Bok choy has been popular here since the 80s at the local farmer's markets, perhaps because we have a high population of Hmong (hey, that's who I bought it from!). It is now in most grocery stores. Yummy and crisp. The salad below started appearing in church cookbooks in the mid to late 90s using Romaine, but now feature bok choy. I like both. Yummy, but as I get older, I prefer a lot less sugar.

Bok Choy Salad

2 heads bok choy, stems removed (can substitute Romaine lettuce)
2 (2 oz) packages ramen noodles, crumbled, throw out seasoning packet
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1/2 cup sunflower seeds, unsalted (more or less to taste)
1 cup almonds slivered (more or less to taste)
1 1/2 tablespoons butter or margarine
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1/3 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup olive oil

Toast sunflower seeds and almonds in melted margarine in a skillet until light brown. Place on paper towels. Tear bok choy (or lettuce) into bite sized pieces. In a large bowl, combine bok coy, ramen noodles, green onions, sunflower seeds and almonds.

In another bowl, prepare the dressing by mixing soy sauce, white vinegar, sugar and olive oil together with a whisk or blender stick. Pour the dressing into the salad. Toss to blend and serve at once.

Mock Chow Mein

This is one of those mainstay recipes that any kid growing up in the 70s likely had. Every church cookbook that I have come across dated from the mid-60s until mid-80s had this recipe. Easy, inexpensive and yum. This recipe serves 2-3. This is my cut-down version. While I can use a 1 quart casserole for baking this, if you don't have one, feel free to use a 2 quart (cut your baking time or your dish will become too dry). Serve with a salad.

Mock Chow Mein

1 pound ground beef
3/4 cup uncooked rice
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 can cream of mushroom soup
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 cup celery, chopped
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 bag chow mein noodles

Cook ground beef until brown. Add onion and celery, cook until almost tender. Add remaining ingredients except chow mein noodles. Put into one or two quart casserole dish. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for about an hour. Uncover and layer with chow mein noodles. Return to oven, uncovered and bake until noodles are brown, about 15 minutes. Serves 2-3.

Chai Tea and I Love My Ipod

Yes, getting a new iPod is important enough to blog about it in both of my blogs! Got my brand new, 16 gig iPod yesterday and it's about 3/4 full now with various podcasts.

Here's my new toy.


While I have a lot of yarn and fabric related podcasts downloaded, I discovered several cooking podcasts as well. Well, actually, iTunes has TONS of cooking shows. However, I suspect the videos are not completely compatible, but I'll give a few a shot. I'm mostly interested in shows that I can listen to as opposed to 'watch'. I have the America's Test Kitchen dvds for that.

Today's recipes are Chai Tea, both a traditional method and an instant mix method. While Chai Tea has always been popular in India, until the recent interest in tea, it was relatively unknown to most Americans. It has become super popular as a result of Tastefully Simple's amazing instant blend. While Tastefully Simple's recipe is superior for a mix, my budget simply can't afford it. I have included the best homemade instant blend I've had so far. Believe it or not, this recipe is the exact same one that has floated around for years (before the Internet) to copy one flavor of International Multifoods' Instant Coffees. All they've done is substitute instant tea for the instant coffee and used some of the new French vanilla flavored instant creamer.

If you have a metallic aftertaste from cooking tea in a metal container, then you need something else to cook in such as a glass or pyrex coffee pot. Easy to find at garage sales. If you can't find one, look on Ebay. Since you are not trying to perk, you do not need a complete one, so if it will save you money, buy one that doesn't have the cover or innards. Be sure you are getting one that actually cooks on top of the stove (very thick glass) and not a Pyrex coffee server.

Masala Chai

1-1/2 cups water
1 inch stick of cinnamon
8 cardamom pods
8 whole cloves
2/3 cup milk
6 tsp. sugar (or to taste)
3 teaspoons any unperfumed loose black tea

Put 1-1/2 cups water in saucepan. Add the cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves and bring to a boil. Cover, turn heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the milk and sugar and bring to a simmer again. Throw in the tea leaves, cover, and turn off the heat. After 2 minutes, strain the tea into two cups and serve immediately.

From Madhur Jaffrey's Indian Cooking, Barron's, New York, p. 196 (1983).

Chai Tea Instant Mix

1 cup nonfat dry milk powder
1 cups powdered non-dairy creamer
1 cup French vanilla flavored powdered non-dairy creamer
2-1/2 cups sugar
1-1/2 cups unsweetened instant tea
2 tsp. ground ginger
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. ground cardamom

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix thoroughly. In a blender or food processor bowl, place 1 cup at a time, and process until mixture is blended and the particles are fine.

To make: Add 2 heaping serving tablespoons Chai tea mixture to a mug of boiling water and stir to mix well.

For stronger flavor add 1/8 tsp. vanilla extract directly to mug and stir.

If you want a mix for anybody, leave out the instant tea. When making up, add 1 tsp. instant tea or Folgers Instant Coffee to the mug. Add the mix and the water.

German Chocolate Cool Bars

I occasionally try recipes featured in ads, because, well, they are often pretty tasty. Thus comes today's recipe: Cool Whip and Baker's German's Sweet Chocolate ad. I made this and even with some substitutions, it was yummy. My substitutions included crushed Oreos instead of wafer crumbs (flavor was fine, but crust was too heavy for this whipped confection) and leftover Halloween Chocolate Kisses instead of the German Sweet chocolate (worked fine). Feel free to use the Cool Whip Light.

For other Cool Whip recipes, take a look at the site.
http://brands.kraftfoods.com/coolwhip

German Chocolate Cool Bars

1 cup chocolate wafer crumbs
1/4 cup melted butter or margarine
2 packages (4 oz each) Baker's German Sweet Chocolate
1/3 cup milk
1 package (3 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 container (12 oz) Cool Whip Non-Dairy or Extra Creamy Whipped Topping, thawed

Combine crumbs and melted butter. Press firmly onto bottom of 9 inch square pan.

Grate of finely chop 1/2 package of the chocolate. Set aside. Heat remaining chocolate and milk in medium saucepan over low heat, stirring until chocolate is melted. With whisk, beat in cream cheese until smooth. Cool 5 minutes. Fold in 3 1/2 cups of the whipped topping and the grated chocolate. Spread mixture over crumbs.

Spread remaining whipped topping over chocolate layer. Freeze until firm, about 2 hours. Garnish as desired. Cut into bars. Makes about 15.

Baked Spaghetti

I was actually surprised to discover that I had not posted one of my favorite pasta meals, Baked Spaghetti. Now, I'm not a huge fan of pasta, but I love seconds of this. The recipe is slightly altered because we like the spice of hot Italian sausage added to the mixture and use a large can of black olives. This meal is great for leftovers as well. The recipe is from Taste of Home Test Kitchen Favorites.

Baked Spaghetti

Amy Welk-Thieding

1 pound ground beef
1/2 pound hot Italian sausage
1 cup chopped green pepper
1 tablespoon butter
1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (4 oz) mushroom stems and pieces, drained
1 can (2 1/4 oz) sliced ripe olives, drained
2 teaspoons dried oregano
12 ounces spaghetti, cooked and drained
2 cups (8 oz) shredded cheddar cheese
1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

In a large skillet, cook the beef and sausage over medium heat until hamburger is no longer pink and sausage cooked; drain and set aside. In same skillet, saute onion and green pepper in butter until tender. Add the tomatoes, mushrooms, olives, oregano and ground beef. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered for 10 minutes.

Place half of the spaghetti in a greased 13 in x 9 in x 2 inch baking dish. Top with half of the vegetable mixture. Sprinkle with 1 cup of cheddar cheese. Repeat layers. Mix the soup and water until smooth; pour over casserole. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake,uncovered, at 350 F for 30-35 minutes or until heated through. Yield: 12 servings.

Here is another version from Quick Cooking, another Taste of Home publication. This one is just as yummy, but uses a lot more cheese.
http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Baked-Spaghetti-4

Dinner and A Movie - Men In Black

One of the more interesting concepts in weekend movie watching is the long popular Dinner and a Movie show featured on TBS. The idea is to key a recipe with a popular movie. During movie breaks, the dish or snack is prepared by the chef, step-by-step throughout the movie. You once could get an ingredient list before the movie and cook your way through and then feast during the last 1/2 hour or so of the show. Many of the recipes featured are gourmet, some are expensive, but there is still a lot of snacks and good ol' American food to choose from. I even bought the cookbook. Anyway, they recently featured Men In Black (which I already have in DVD). There are 4 recipes for this movie, but I'm giving you the two I tried and loved! Do visit the website at www.tbs.com. Lots of great recipes there. If you sit back to watch Star Wars IV, you MUST try the Obi-Wan Cannelloni with Darth (To)mater Sauce. Recipes are by Claud Mann. The sole complaint (and it is minor) that I have for Mann's recipes is that he doesn't give options if it is a very expensive ingredient or if it contains alcohol (Other than certain deserts like Rum Cake, I don't cook with alcohol).

Plot Twisted Pretzels

• 1 pound pizza dough (available in most groceries)
• 4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 quart water
• 1 egg, beaten with 2 teaspoons water

Suggested Toppings: kosher salt, sesame and poppy seeds, Parmesan and garlic, cinnamon and sugar, or your favorite topping

Divide pizza dough into 12 even pieces, and then roll each piece into a 16-18 inch rope. Form dough into pretzels by tying the dough into a loose knot and then pinching the ends across the loops.

Combine the baking soda and the water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Using a slotted spoon, carefully lower each pretzel in the boiling water until it begins to float, about 30 seconds.

Drain each pretzel and transfer to a greased baking sheet, brush lightly with the egg-water mixture and sprinkle generously with kosher salt and any other toppings that sound yummy.

Cover the pretzels with a cloth and allow about five minutes for the dough to rise. Bake in preheated 450°F oven for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. These are delicious plain or with your favorite mustard for dipping.

Note: Feel free to make your own pizza dough. Use half for pizza tonight, then refrigerate the other half after the first rise for these twists tomorrow or the next day.

Cherry Chocolate Nut Clusters

• 8 ounces raw nuts (peanuts, almonds, cashews, walnuts…or even smoked nuts)
• 4 ounces dried sour cherries or cranberries (I used Craisins)
  
• 16 ounces dark chocolate, cut into pieces
• Sea salt

Place nuts on a cookie sheet and roast in a 350F oven for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and toss with sea salt.

Place chocolate pieces into a slow cooker or top of a double boiler. Stir often until melted and then fold in the toasted nuts of your choice.

Use a tablespoon to pile individual clusters onto wax paper or Parchment paper. Use a fork to drizzle with white chocolate if desired.

Please note. You can melt chocolate in a microwave. I use a greased, glass measuring cup. Melt in small increments, stir, then put back in the microwave.

Simple Cucumber Side

Right now, the cucumbers are coming in. I love home grown cucumbers and the ones she is growing this year are supurb. I think they are English cucumbers, so remain narrow and long and never with a bitter skin.

Today, I'm going to give you a common Midwestern Scandinavian recipe for something different to do with cucumbers. If your cucumber skins are bitter, then consider peeling them first. Ingredients aren't exacting here, but cucumbers with large seeds don't work very well. You can still use these large cucumbers if you use a spoon to scoop out the center section, removing seeds. Add more or less sugar. Taste in a couple of hours. Add more sugar if needed. Make this 2-3 hours before serving.

Sweet Cucumbers

1 long English cucumber, washed and sliced thinly
1 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup sugar

Place all in a deep dish and mix together. Cover and refrigerate. After an hour, and every hour until serving, stir to marinate the cucumber.

It's Chicken Again

Yep, yet another chicken recipe. This one was fabulous, won a first prize and actually is a tad on the gourmet side. From the Taste of Home Winning Recipes cookbook, this recipe is actually from someone I met in the first year or so after moving to Minnesota! Good for her that she is still cooking and great for her that she wins a prize! This had the most flavorful juice and it permeated the chicken. Wonderful!

I didn't have any acorn squash, but that didn't stop me this time. I sliced up a couple of Vadalia onions and placed those in the baking pan. I used butter in the pan, instead of oil (up to you), but I did use oil to brown the chicken (all thighs) and do try to remove all the skin. The giant rosemary bush (depicted in past entries) provided the fresh rosemary.

Baked Chicken and Acorn Squash

Connie Svoboda, Elko, MN

2 small acorn squash (1 1/4 pounds)
2 to 4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
4 chicken drumsticks (4 oz)
4 chicken thighs (4 oz)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary or 1 tsp. dried rosemary, crushed
1 can (15.25 oz) sliced peaches, undrained

Cut squash in half lengthwise; discard seeds. Cut each half widthwise into 1/2 in slices; discard ends. Place slices in an ungreased 13 x 9 x 2 baking dish. Sprinkle with garlic and drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil.

In a large skillet, brown chicken in remaining oil. Arrange chicken over squash. Combine the sugar, salt and rosemary; sprinkle over chicken. Bake, uncovered, at 350 F for 45 minutes, basting with pan juices twice.

Pour peaches over chicken and squash. Bake, uncovered, 15 minutes longer or until chicken juices run clear and peaches are heated through. Yield: 4 servings

Ham and Sausage Jambalaya

Sometimes, those little cookbooklets that you see at the grocery store have some really great recipes. This particular one, Favorite Recipes (1988) was put out by Tabasco Brand Pepper Sauce entitled Louisiana Cookin'. Yum, yum, yum. This is a great recipe to try Cajun style cooking without worrying about it being too spicy. I used frozen yellow and red pepper instead of green, so it looked very festive (and tasted great). We discovered that letting it sit for an hour or so, it tasted even better, so this is a good choice when you don't know when your company is going to arrive.

Ham and Sausage Jambalaya

Louisiana Cookin', Tabasco Brand Pepper Sauce

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 package (about 20 oz.) kielbasa, cut into 1/2 inch slices
2 large onions, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
1 cup chopped celery
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups chicken broth (see note)
1 can (16 oz) whole peeled tomatoes, undrained
1/2 pound cooked ham, cut into cubes
1 bay leaf (or 1/8 tsp. bay leaf powder)
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco pepper sauce
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1 1/2 cups uncooked rice

In large saucepot or Dutch oven, heat oil. Add kielbasa, onions, green pepper, celery and garlic; cook 8-10 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add chicken broth, tomatoes, ham, bay leaf, Tabasco sauce, thyme and allspice; simmer uncovered 15 minutes. Add rice. Dover; simmer 15 minutes. If necessary, add more broth or water and simmer until rice is tender. Remove bay leaf. Serve with additional Tabasco sauce, if desired. 6 servings.

Note: Original recipe says 3 cups chicken broth. I misread and put only 2. With so much juice in my canned, diced tomatoes, 3 cups would have been way too much, so I suspect that it may be a misprint. My suggestion? Start with 2 cups and be prepared to add 1 more cup of hot broth.

Chicken Marrakesh

For those of you who know I am not a big fan of goumet food, hold on to your hats for this one. This is one of the yummiest recipes I ever got out of the newspaper and I have since purchased the book from which it came. Totally yummy. I have to say though that this should be eaten the same day. It's awfully strong as a leftover (still good, but stuff kindof mushes together). This is a generous meal for Passover. One tip. It took me a long time to find dried figs as my grocery stores didn't carry it. If yours doesn't, check for a local natural foods grocery store. Should be a good selection of dried figs there.

Chicken Marrakesh

Roselle Cranford, Hadassah, NJ

4 whole chickens (2.5 pounds each), each cut into eighths
12 large cloves garlic, finely minced
3 tablespoons dried thyme
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup red wine vinegar
1 cup best quality olive oil
8 teaspoons green peppercorns, soaked in water and drained
2 cups whole pitted black olives
3 cups dried apricots
2 cups dried small figs
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup good red wine
2 cups large pecan pieces
grated zest of 4 lemons

1. The day before, combine the chicken, garlic, thyme, cumin, ginger, salt, wine vinegar, oil, peppercorns, olives, apricots and figs in 2 large bowls, dividing the ingredients equally; marinate covered in the refrigerator overnight. Mix several times during the day. Remove the bowls from the refrigerator 1 hour before cooking.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3. Arrange chicken in single layer in 2 large, heavy, shallow baking pans. Spoon marinade evenly over both pans. Sprinkle with the brown sugar and pecans and pour the wine evenly between the pieces in both pans.
4. Cover the pans with aluminum foil and bake 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake, basting frequently with the pan juices, 50 minutes.
5. Using a fork and slotted spoon, transfer the chicken, olives, dried fruit and pecans to a large serving platter. Drizzle with a few large spoonfuls of the pan juices. Serves about 8.

Spanish Noodles 'n Ground Beef

Ordinarily, I'm not actually big on ground beef recipes because, since I lost my sense of smell, the flavor isn't all it could be. This particular recipe was not only fast and easy, but yummy as well. While the original recipe does call for green pepper, let me suggest to you to spend the extra and use a red pepper. The flavor is outstanding! Also, if you use spiral noodles, like I did, the noodles come out al dente instead of mushy - quite a change from many skillet dishes. Also, I used low fat ground beef, so didn't bother to drain. This recipe is from Taste of Home Winning Recipes.

Spanish Noodles ' Ground Beef

Kelli Jones, Peris, CA

1 pound ground beef
1 small green pepper, chopped
1/3 cup chopped onion
3 1/4 cups uncooked medium egg noodles (I used spirals)
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup water
1/4 cup chili sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
4 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled

In a large skillet, cook the beef, green pepper and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink and vegetables are tender; drain. Stir in the noodles, tomatoes, water; chili sauce, salt and pepper. Cover and cook over low heat for 15-20 minutes or until the noodles are tender, stirring frequently. Top with bacon. Yield: 5 servings.

Orange-Pineapple Chicken with Walnuts

Made this again recently and I had forgotten how good it is! I recommend mixing the sauce ingredients together and letting them stand an hour before starting to cook. Roma tomatoes work better than other kinds in this recipe, but if all you have is diced, canned tomatoes, they work as well. It comes from Betty Crocker's Complete Chicken Cookbook (c 1994).

Orange-Pineapple Chicken with Walnuts

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
8 chicken drumsticks (about 2 pounds)
1 can (15.25 oz) pineapple tidbits, undrained
3/4 cup orange juice
1 medium onion, cut into thin wedges
1/3 cup raisins or currants
1/4 cup rum or orange juice
1 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
3 tablespoons cold water
1 tablespoon plus 1 tsp. cornstarch
1 cup coarsely chopped tomatoes (about 1 medium)
1/3 cup chopped walnuts

Heat oil in 12 inch skillet over medium heat until hot. Cook drumsticks in oil about 15 minutes, turning occasionally, until brown on all sides; remove from skillet. Drain drippings from skillet.

Mix pineapple, orange juice, onion, currants, rum, coriander, allspice, salt and pepper in skillet. Return chicken to skillet. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 30 to 35 minutes, stirring occasionally, until juice of chicken is no longer pink when centers of thickest pieces are cut.

Remove chicken from skillet, using tongs; keep warm. Mix water and cornstarch; stir into mixture in skillet. heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute. Stir in tomato and walnuts; heat through. Serve sauce with chicken. Serve over hot cooked rice, if desired. 4 services.

Cheesy Chicken and Rice Bake

Here's an easy chicken dish from Campbell's ad in one of my magazines. Yes, it has Campbell's soup in it. I used chicken thighs with skin removed. I cannot taste the onion powder, but as you know, my sense of smell doesn't work. Next time, I will add some minced onion for that reason. When you need a brainless day, this works. I served it with cornbread and salad. I've noticed that I've been on a real casserole bent of late for posting recipes. I haven't had a lot of recipes lately that I ever cared to have again. I am also trying to cut back on the baked goods. While my cholesterol is not too bad, my weight is suffering. I've been having a great time trying out different recipes for stir fry. We have a new Oriental grocery store that opened up blocks from here. Yum. But just like in regular supermarkets, most of the canned stuff has a lot of salt.

Cheesy Chicken and Rice Bake

1 can (10 3/4 oz) Campbell's Cream of Chicken Soup (regular or 98% fat free)
1 1/3 cups water
3/4 cup uncooked regular long-grain white rice
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 1/2 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (4-6)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (4 oz).

Mix soup, water, rice, onion powder and black pepper in 2 qt. shallow baking dish. Top with chicken. Sprinkle chicken with additional pepper. Cover and bake at 375 F for 45 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and rice is done. Uncover. Sprinkle cheese over chicken. Serves 4.

Pineapple Chicken

I'm not shy about where I get my recipes. One of the best additives I have for soup (baby spinach) came from a recipe in one of the grocery store magazine grabs. The recipe below also comes from Women's World - a weekly that has diet of the week as well as occasional useful health tips and fairly often, some pretty good recipes.

Yep, made some substitutions mostly to use what was on hand, so I'm going to give you the recipe the way I did it. The original recipe did not include a thickener; I opted to add a little cornstarch. Add very little (no more than 2 tsp) as it thickens quickly. If you use fresh pineapple, it will have an even better flavor. I used frozen, prechopped red/yellow pepper. Thaw it first and it works great!

Now, you might ask, frozen pepper? Red, yellow and orange peppers are very sweet, but only really affordable when in season. So, when they are on special, buy 10, chop them neatly and stick them in freezer Ziplocs. This is especially useful if you have family members who don't like green peppers as these taste quite differently. Use them in any kind of casserole or sauce. If you thaw first, they will brown nicely as well.

Pineapple Chicken

1 1/2 lbs. skinless chicken thighs
1/2 tsp. curry seasoning blend
1 red or yellow sweet pepper, chopped
1 can chunk pineapple, drained
1 can unsweetened coconut milk
1 tbsp. packed brown sugar
thickener, arrowroot or corn starch (optional)
1 serrano pepper, thinly sliced (optional)

1. Sprinkle chicken with 1/2 tsp. salt and curry seasoning. In 12 inch skillet, quickly brown chicken on both sides in 1 tablespoon hot olive oil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-high; cook 12 minutes, until tender and no longer pink.
2. For sauce, in another skillet, cook sweet pepper in 1 tablespoon hot olive oil over medium-high heat 3 minutes; set aside. Add pineapple; cook 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Add serrano pepper; cook 1 minute. Stir in coconut milk, brown sugar and thickener; heat through. Serve sauce over chicken.

Almond Turkey Casserole

Been a while since I've tried some new recipes. Needed new things to do with turkey and tried this casserole which was yummy and easy to make. If you start the rice, you'll get everything else done by the time the rice is cooked. I discovered after I had already chopped vegetables that I didn't have enough mayonnaise, so made half the recipe in a 9x9 Corning casserole. I used The extra celery, onion and water chestnuts (used the whole can) worked extremely well. I did not add the salt required in the recipe because I'm serving some folks who can't have the salt. I didn't miss it.

Almond Turkey Casserole

Jill Black, Troy Ontario from Taste of Home's Best of Country Casseroles

2 cans (10 3/4 oz. each) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped onion
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
5 cups cubed cooked turkey
3 cups cooked rice
4 celery ribs, chopped
1 can (8 oz.) sliced water chestnuts, drained
1 cup sliced almonds

Topping:
1 1/2 cups crushed butter-flavored crackers (about 38 crackers)
1/3 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup sliced almonds

In a large bowl, combine the soup, mayonnaise, sour cream, onion, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Stir in the turkey, rice, celery, water chestnuts and almonds. Transfer to a greased 13 x 9 x 2 in baking dish. Combine topping ingredients, sprinkle over turkey mixture. Bake, uncovered, at 350 F for 35-40 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown. Yield 8-10 servings.

Note: Do not substitute reduced-fat or fat free mayonnaise in this recipe.