Ingredients:

1 rabbit (1½-2 lbs)
1 cup bias-sliced celery
1 medium onion diced
2 cloves garlic minced
1 cup dry red wine
olive oil or butter
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp sugar
12 ounces chicken stock
1 tsp dried oregano crushed
1/4 tsp dried marjoram crushed
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoon fresh parsley chopped

Procedure:

Soak rabbit 30 minutes in 1part white vinegar to 3 parts water, rinse and pat dry. Brown rabbit in oven over medium heat in butter or oil for 10 minutes, turning after 5. Remove from oven. Add celery, onion and garlic to pan and cook until tender. Add dried spices and cook 1 minute longer. Return rabbit to oven and pour wine, chicken stock and sugar over top. Stir. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 45 minutes to 1 hour or until tender and easily pierced with fork. Transfer to a platter and keep warm. Return juices to pan and reduce over high heat for a few minutes until there is only about 3/4 cup left. Add cream and keep stirring until it thickens slightly. Pour sauce over rabbit and vegetables and sprinkle with parsley.

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh orange juice, divided
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided
1 cup uncooked whole wheat couscous
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1 1/2 cups chopped, cooked chicken breast
1 cup chopped cucumber
1/3 cup chopped red onion
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Procedure:

In a small saucepan, bring 3/4 cup orange juice, water, 1/2 teaspoon salt, coriander, cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in couscous and cranberries. Cover and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and move couscous mixture to a large bowl. Add toasted nuts, chicken, cucumber, onion and cilantro to couscous - gently toss together. In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining 1/4 cup orange juice, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, lime juice, and mustard. Gradually add oil to juice mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Drizzle juice mixture over couscous mixture and toss to coat.

Ingredients:

15 ounces ricotta cheese
10 ounces frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry
4 ounces prosciutto, chopped
2 large egg yolks
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
48 square wonton wrappers
Freshly grated parmesan

Procedure:

In a medium bowl, whisk together ricotta, spinach, prosciutto, egg yolks, salt, and pepper. Place 1 tablespoon of the filling in the center of a wonton wrapper. Keep the others covered so they do not dry out. Brush the edge of the wrapper lightly with water. Fold the wrapper in half, forming a triangle, and pinch the edges to seal. Transfer the ravioli to baking sheets and keep covered. Repeat with the remaining filling and wrappers. Working in batches, cook the ravioli in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes per batch. Sprinkle with parmesan and serve with your favorite sauce.

Ingredients:

Bars:
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cloves
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar, packed
1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
1/4 cup molasses
1 cup chopped crystallized ginger, diced into small chunks, divided
3/4 cup golden raisins

Icing:
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar, plus more if needed

Procedure:

For the bars: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, whisk to combine flours, baking powder/soda, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, pepper and cloves. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter until smooth. Add dark brown sugar and cream until light and fluffy. Mix in egg and egg yolk. Add in molasses. Slowly add the flour mixture and mix just until combined. Fold in 1/2 cup crystallized ginger and raisins. Cover a 10″ X 15″ baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray. Spread dough evenly on the baking sheet. Bake for 18-20 minutes, rotating the pan at 10 minutes, until the top is golden brown and firm to the touch. Cool completely on a wire rack before icing.

For the icing: In a medium saucepan, add light brown sugar, milk and butter. Melt over medium heat, stirring constantly, until smooth. Remove from stove and whisk in vanilla extract and confectioners’ sugar. If this mixture is too thick to drizzle, add more milk 1 teaspoon at a time. If it is too thin to drizzle, add additional sifted confectioners’ sugar in small amounts. Let this mixture slightly cool. Drizzle icing over the bars and sprinkle with remaining chopped ginger. Let the icing set at least 20 minutes before cutting into squares.

Ingredients:

Crust:

4 tablespoons butter, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup flour
1/8 teaspoon salt

Filling:

3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
Grated zest of 2 key limes
1/2 cup key lime juice

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

For the crust: In a medium bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Mix in flour and salt until well combined. The mixture will be crumbly. Line an 8X8 baking pan with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray. Press flour mixture into the bottom of the pan to form the base. Bake for about 12 minutes, until the edges have just a small amount of color to them.

For the Filling: In a medium bowl, whisk together sugar and cornstarch. Stir in condensed milk, egg, lime zest and lime juice. When smooth, pour over the warm crust. Place back in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, until the edges are firm, but when you shake the pan, the middle should still have some jiggle to it. Remove from the oven and place baking pan on a wire rack to cool completely. Cover pan and set in the refrigerator until well chilled. Pull up the foil to lift the mixture out and carefully peel away the foil. Cut into bars.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups water
3/4 cup dry quinoa
1/4 cup chopped pistachios
2 cups chopped grilled chicken breast
1/3 cup chopped green onions
1/3 cup chopped dried pineapple
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 1/2 teaspoons ground fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

Procedure:

In a small skillet, toast quinoa over medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until you can smell a nutty aroma. In a small sauce pan over medium-high heat, boil water and add quinoa. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 12 minutes. In a small skillet over medium heat, add chopped pistachios, and cook 2 minutes or until lightly toasted. Transfer pistachios to a large bowl; add cooked quinoa and remaining ingredients to bowl. Toss gently to coat.

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 cup diced onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons minced seeded jalapeño pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle chile powder
1 pound ground turkey breast
1 1/2 cups bottled medium hot salsa
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
4 whole wheat pitas

Procedure:

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add oil and sauté onion, garlic, and jalapeño for 2 minutes. Add sugar, cumin, chili powder, coriander, chipotle, and turkey breast. Cook 5 minutes or until turkey is browned, stirring to crumble. Stir in salsa and cook 4 minutes or until slightly thick. Mix in cilantro. Split pitas and evenly distribute the turkey mixture into each half.

Ingredients:

8 ounces whole wheat penne, cooked
1/2 lb lean ground sirlion
1 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 zucchini, halved and cut into thin slices
15 ounces tomato sauce
1 14.5 ounce can fire roasted diced tomatoes, drained
2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
3 ounces mozzarella, shredded

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large skillet over medium heat, add beef, onion and garlic. Cook and stir frequently to crumble, until beef is thoroughly done. Add zucchini and cook for about 2 minutes. Stir in tomato sauce, drained diced tomatoes, oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Toss beef mixture with pasta. Lightly coat a 2 quart baking dish with cooking spray. Spread pasta and beef into the dish and cover with foil. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and sprinkle with cheese - bake for 5 minutes or until the cheese has melted.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups uncooked basmati rice
3/4 cup dried lentils
Cooking spray
10 skinless, boneless chicken thighs (about 1 1/4 pounds)
2 cups vertically sliced onion
2 teaspoons chopped peeled fresh ginger
1 cup shredded carrot
4 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
1/2 teaspoon grated orange rind
1/2 cup fresh orange juice (about 1 orange)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 1/2 cups warm fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/8 teaspoon saffron threads, crushed
1 (6-ounce) package fresh baby spinach, coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon butter
1/2 cup blanched almonds

Procedure:

Cover rice with cold water. Let stand for 20 minutes. Drain and rinse the rice with cold water. Drain. Sort and rinse lentils. Place lentils in a small saucepan; cover with water to 2 inches above lentils. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 20 minutes or until almost tender. Drain. Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 4 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Remove chicken from pan. Add onion and ginger to pan; sauté 7 minutes or until tender. Add carrot and cardamom; sauté 2 minutes. Return chicken to pan. Add rice, lentils, rind, juice, salt, and pepper. Combine broth and saffron; stir until saffron is dissolved. Add saffron mixture to pan; bring to a simmer. Cover and cook 15 minutes or until rice is almost tender and liquid is absorbed. Stir in spinach. Remove from heat. Cover with a towel; place lid over towel. Let stand 10 minutes. Melt butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Add almonds; cook 5 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring frequently. Sprinkle almonds over chicken mixture. Makes 6 servings.

Ingredients:

1 package of El Monterey taquitos
1 package of Spanish rice mix
1 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 cup purple onion, chopped
1 tablespoon jalapeno, minced
1 tablespoon lime juice

Options:
1 avocado, peeled, seeded and sliced
1/2 cup of sour cream

Procedure:

Prepare rice according to package directions. Combine cilantro, onion, jalapeno and lime juice to prepare a salsa. Heat El Monterey Taquitos according to the packaging, keep warm. When rice is ready, gently fold in salsa. Serve with burritos and taquitos. Garnish with avocado and sour cream, if desired. Makes 6 servings.