Ingredients

1 whole roasting chicken (4-5 lbs)
1 Tbsp. EVOO
Juice of 1/2 a large lemon
1 Tsp. chopped fresh thyme
Kosher salt
1 red onion, cut into wedges
1 lemon
Assorted sprigs of rosemary, parsley and thyme

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 F. Prepare a shallow roasting pan and rack by coating with nonstick spray. Rinse and pat dry chicken. Insert a spoon under skin to separate it from flesh on breast and drumstick. Place chicken on prepared rack in pan. Drizzle oil and juice over chicken, rubbing to distribute. Sprinkle bird with thyme and salt. Insert juiced lemon half into cavity of chicken. Loosely tie the legs together. Place onion wedges on rack.

Roast chicken for 30 minutes; rotate pan and roast another 30 minutes. Start checking bird for doneness every 10 minutes by inserting a thermometer into thigh. Chicken is done when temp reaches 175 F and the breast is golden brown. Let chicken rest for 10 mins before serving. Arrange onion and lemon wedges around chicken on a serving platter and garnish with fresh herb sprigs.

~Ingredients

18 fresh jalapeños
One 8-ounce package cream cheese
½ cup grated cheddar cheese
1 green onion, sliced
18 slices thin bacon, cut into halves
Bottled barbecue sauce
Toothpicks
Rubber gloves (or plastic bags) for working with jalapeños
Cooking Directions

Preheat the grill on one side.

Begin by cutting jalapeños in half lengthwise (see warning in headnote). Try to keep the stems intact. They look prettier that way.

With a spoon, scrape out the seeds and light-colored membranes. Remember: The heat comes from the seeds and membranes, so if you can handle the sizzle, leave some of them intact.

Now, in a bowl, combine the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, and chopped green onion. Mix the ingredients together gently.

Next, stuff each hollowed jalapeño half with the cheese mixture.

Wrap bacon slices around each half, covering as much of the surface as you can. Be careful not to stretch the bacon too tightly around the jalapeño, as the bacon will contract as it cooks.

Brush the surface of the bacon with your favorite barbecue sauce. Chutney or apricot jelly works well, too!

Secure the jalapeños with toothpicks and put them on the cold side of the grill and cook for 1 hour, or until the bacon is sizzling.

Serve hot or at room temperature, and watch them disappear within seconds.

Variations:

For a simpler version, omit the cheddar and green onion from the cream cheese.

Cut sliced peaches or pineapple into small bits and press them into the cream cheese before wrapping the jalapeños in bacon.

Use Pepper Jack cheese in place of the cheddar cheese.

Ingredients

Makes 8 servings, 2 stuffed pepper halves per serving

8 red, yellow, or orange bell peppers or a mixture of all (about 4 lbs)
2 tbsp canola or olive oil, divided
1 medium-sized yellow onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp ground cumin
16 oz fresh Italian turkey sausage, removed from casing or lean ground turkey (You can use pre-cooked turkey or slices of deli turkey cut into small pieces and use it in place of the turkey sausage, if desired.)
1 (16 oz) jar chunky salsa, mild or hot
2 cups fresh baby spinach, rinsed and chopped or 1 (10 oz) package chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed to remove moisture
1 cup cooked quinoa (optional)
1 cup cooked brown rice
1 cup low-fat cheddar cheese
2 large avocados, peeled and pit removed, sliced
1/2 cup low-fat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil leaves

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F. Cut the peppers in half lengthwise, slicing from the stem to the bottoms, leaving the stems intact. Remove the white pithy ribs near stem and down length of inside. Remove the ribs and seeds and discard. Place the peppers in a shallow 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Drizzle the peppers with 1 tablespoon of the oil. Cover the dish with foil, and bake the peppers 15 to 20 minutes, until they start to soften.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, salt, black pepper, chili powder, and cumin; cook until the vegetables are softened, about 3 minutes. Add the sausage to the skillet. Cook, breaking it up with a slotted spoon or potato masher, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the salsa and the spinach, and cook, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the cooked brown rice and quinoa (optional).

Carefully fill the pepper halves with the turkey mixture. Cover the dish with foil, and bake until the filling is hot and the peppers are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove foil, and sprinkle the cheese over the top of the peppers. Return to oven; bake, uncovered, until cheese has melted, about 7 to 10 minutes. Top the peppers with a heaping tablespoon of the yogurt. Place slices of the avocado on top of each pepper. Sprinkle with the basil. Serve immediately.

Shortcake Pie Dough (45 mins + cooling time)

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
6 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cubed
6 Tbsp heavy cream
1/4 c. plain yogurt
Minced zest of 1 orange

- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.
- Cut butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two forks until they pea-sized.
- Stir together the cream, yogurt and zest in another bowl and add to the flour mixture; blend with a fork, just until the mixture comes together.
- Roll our the dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/4-inch thick. Transfer dough to a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate.
- Trim the dough so only 1/2-inch hangs over the edge of the pie plate. Roll the dough under itself and crimp. Firmly press the dough onto the sides of the pie plate.
- Bake crust until golden, about 20 minutes, then cool completely on a wire rack. If (when) the crust starts to slide down the side of the pie plate during baking, use a spoon to gently press the crust back up the sides and continue baking.

Vanilla Pastry Cream (15 mins + cooling time)

6 Tbsp sugar
3 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp table salt
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 1/2 c. whole milk
3 Tbsp plain yogurt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

- Whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, salt, egg and egg yolk in a bowl.
- Heat the milk in a saucepan over medium heat until steam rises from pan. Slowly ladle half of the milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Pour the egg-milk mixture into the remaining milk in the pan; bring to a boil, whisking constantly until pastry cream is thickened, about 1 minute.
- Remove from heat, whisk in the yogurt and vanilla. Transfer to a bowl. Cover the surface with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming and chill until cold.

Putting It All Together (1 1/2 hours + cooling time)

1 recipe shortcake pie dough
1 recipe vanilla pastry cream
3 lb. strawberries, hulled, divided
1 c. sugar
2 Tbsp light corn syrup
2 Tsp fresh lemon juice
pinch of salt
2 tsp unsweetened gelatin
4 Tbsp water, divided
1 Tbsp cornstarch

- Puree 1 pound of strawberries in a food processor or blender until smooth.
- Transfer to a large saute pan. Add the sugar, corn syrup, lemon juice and salt.
- Sprinkle the gelatin lightly and evenly over 3 tablespoons of water in a small bowl; let it sit for at least 5 minutes. Whisk together the remaining 1 tablespoon of water and cornstarch; set aside.
- Reduce the strawberry mixture over medium-high heat to 1 1/2 cups, 20-25 minutes.
- Once reduced, whisk in the cornstarch mixture and simmer 1 minute.
- Add the gelatin mixture; whisk to melt and combine. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and allow it to cool to room temperature.
- Quarter the remaining 2 pounds of strawberries (about 6 cups); stir into cooked strawberry mixture.
- Spread the pastry cream into the bottom of the pie crust.
- Top the pastry cream gently with the strawberry mixture so that the strawberries don’t sink into the cream.
- Cover with plastic wrap and chill at least 3 hours. Serve with homemade whipped cream, if desired.
- Enjoy!

Homemade Whipped Cream

3/4 c. heavy cream

3 Tbsp powdered sugar

2 Tbsp plain yogurt

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

- Beat the heavy cream in a bowl with a hand mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form.

- Add the powdered sugar, plain yogurt and vanilla extract; beat until medium peaks form and serve with pie.

- Enjoy!

Halibut:

1/4 c panko
2 T grated parmesan
minced zest 1/2 lemon
S&P
4 tsp purchased pesto
2 halibut filets, 4 oz each 1″ thick

Crazy Water

1/4 red onion, minced
1 t minced garlic
1/4 t red pepper flakes
2 t olive oil
1/4 dry white wine
2 c water (orig recipe calls for 2.5 – I’d go less in the future)
1/2 c halved grape tomatoes
1/4 dry orzo pasta
1 t sugar
2 sprigs fresh thyme (I used lemon thyme from the garden)
1/2 c coarsely chopped zucchini (I shredded about half of one on a box grater)
1/3 c jarred roasted red pepper, cut in strips
1/4 c halved kalamata olives
2 T chopped fresh parsley
juice 1/2 lemon
Lemon Wedges

Preheat 450. Coat baking sheet with nonstick spray.

Combine panko, parmesan, lemon zest, S&P in bowl. Spread pesto on each halibut filet and arrange on prepared baking sheet. Press panko mixture onto pesto side of fillets, spritz crumbs with nonstick spray, then refrigerated til ready to roast.

Saute onion, garlic, and pepper flakes in saucepan over med high for the crazy water. Cook til soft, then deglaze with wine. Simmer til nearly evaporated then stir in water, tomatoes, pasta, sugar and thyme. Cook til orzo is tender, about 9 min.

Roast fish in the meantime. Cook til crumbs are golden and flesh flakes easily w/fork, 10-12 minutes depending on thickness.

Add zucchini, red pepper, and olives to crazy water. Simmer til heated through. Off heat add parsley, lemon and season to taste w/S&P.

To serve, divide broth between 2 bowls, top each with fish and garnish with lemon wedges.