Archive for April, 2009

Menu Ideas – April 30, 2009

Try out this menu for dinner one night this week – Everything is cooked either on the grill or in a skillet so you won’t have to heat up the house!


Lemonade Chicken
Green Salad (made with the Kumback Dressing above)
Roasted Corn on the Cob
Okra & Tomatoes
Cornbread or Dinner Roll

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Kumback Salad Dressing

This salad dressing recipe has been a favorite of my family for years. My mom has made it the regular version (with regular mayonnaise) and we have also made it this low-fat version. The dressing works well for salads, dip for shrimp or veggies, etc. It’s similar to a tangy style Thousand Island.

2 teaspoons garlic juice (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
2 tablespoons onion juice (or 1 tablespoon onion powder)
2 cups low-fat or fat-free mayonnaise
1/4 cup chili sauce
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon mustard
Dash of paprika
Dash of Tabasco hot sauce

Combine all ingredients in a quart jar. Shake and chill in refrigerator. Make sure that your quart jar is fully sealed before shaking!

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Kids Korner – 25 Healthy Snack Ideas

Check out this very popular list of healthy snacks from my website and cookbook:

1. Peel a banana and dip it in yogurt. Roll in crushed cereal and freeze.
2. Spread celery sticks with peanut butter or low-fat cream cheese. Top with raisins. Enjoy your “ants on a log.”
3. Stuff a whole-grain pita pocket with ricotta cheese and Granny Smith apple slices. Add a dash of cinnamon.
4. Mix together ready-to-eat cereal, dried fruit and nuts in a sandwich bag for an on-the-go snack.
5. Smear a scoop of frozen yogurt on two graham crackers and add sliced banana to make a yummy sandwich.
6. Top low-fat vanilla yogurt with crunchy granola and sprinkle with blueberries.
7. Microwave a small baked potato. Top with reduced-fat cheddar cheese and salsa.
8. Make snack kabobs. Put cubes of low-fat cheese and grapes on pretzel sticks.
9. Toast a whole grain waffle and top with low-fat yogurt and sliced peaches.
10. Spread peanut butter on apple slices.
11. Blend low-fat milk, frozen strawberries and a banana for thirty seconds for a delicious smoothie.
12. Make a mini-sandwich with tuna or egg salad on a dinner roll.
13. Sprinkle grated Monterey Jack cheese over a corn tortilla; fold in half and microwave for twenty seconds. Top with salsa.
14. Toss dried cranberries and chopped walnuts in instant oatmeal.
15. Mix together peanut butter and cornflakes in a bowl. Shape into balls and roll in crushed graham crackers.
16. Microwave a cup of tomato or vegetable soup and enjoy with whole grain crackers.
17. Fill a waffle cone with cut-up fruit and top with low-fat vanilla yogurt.
18. Sprinkle grated Parmesan Cheese on hot popcorn.
19. Banana Split: Top a banana with low-fat vanilla and strawberry frozen yogurt. Sprinkle with your favorite whole-grain cereal.
20. Sandwich Cut-Outs: Make a sandwich on whole grain bread. Cut out your favorite shape using a big cookie cutter. Eat the fun shape and the edges, too!
21. Spread mustard on a flour tortilla. Top with a slice of turkey or ham, low-fat cheese and lettuce. Then roll it up.
22. Mini Pizza: Toast an English muffin, drizzle with pizza sauce and sprinkle with low-fat mozzarella cheese.
23. Rocky Road: Break a graham cracker into bite-size pieces. Add to low-fat chocolate pudding along with a few miniature marshmallows.
24. Inside-Out Sandwich: Spread mustard on a slice of deli turkey. Wrap around a sesame breadstick.
25.Parfait: Layer vanilla yogurt and mandarin oranges or blueberries in a tall glass. Top with a sprinkle of granola.
Tips from the American Dietetic Association

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Heavy Cream Substitution

Last weekend, I began to make a delicious cheesecake recipe, only to find that I had no heavy cream! Living 30 minutes in the country, I am very familiar with improvising/finding substitutions to fit a recipe. I busily searched and found the recipe below, which worked perfect in my Easter Cheesecake:

Heavy Cream

3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted

Warm milk to lukewarm temperature. Mix together milk and butter. If milk is not warm enough, butter will clump together – simply microwave for a few seconds and the butter will melt back into the milk (this happened to me).

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Menu Ideas – 4/23/09

This week’s menu idea is very similar to our Sunday dinner this week:

Tacos -
- Beef
- Lettuce
- Tomatoes
- Cheese
- Salsa
- Sour Cream
- Guacamole
- Olives
- Taco Shells

Sides/Salads
Low Fat Black Bean Dip, served with chips

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