**** This Weeks Winners ****

# 1 - Venison

I was given some venison by a neighbor, whose husband is a weekend hunter and her freezer was stocked full of venison. Wanting to make room for other types of meats, she gave me a few steaks and a roast Not having time to do slow cooking, I decided to cook the steaks on the GF Grill. I marinated it in a dry rub and then "grilled" it for 4 minutes. It came out juicy and fabulous. Served with some grilled veggies and a caesar salad, this was a meal fit for a king.

Grilled Venison (GF Grill)
Recipe By : RisaG
Servings : 4

4 small venison steaks
salt and pepper
1/4 cup favorite dry rub

Wash venison and pat dry. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and then pat on some dry rub (I used Paul Kirk's Master Dry Rub from his book). Place in large pan (13x9 is good) and put in refrigerator to marinate for about 1/2 hour to 1 hour.

Preheat GF Grill. When hot, spray with some cooking spray. Place 2 venison steaks on grill. Spray tops with cooking spray. Close top and grill for 3 minutes. Pick up top and move steaks to create really good grill marks. Take steaks off after another minute. Let sit. Cook the other 2 (unless you have the jumbo grill and can cook 4 steaks at a time).

Served with Grilled Sweet Potatoes & Caesar Salad.

Grilled Sweet Potatoes (GF Grill)
Recipe By : RisaG
Servings : 2

2 sweet potatoes -- scrubbed & dried
salt and pepper
Emeril's Vegetable Dust -- or other seasoning
Cooking spray

Preheat GF Grill. When hot, spray with cooking spray.

While preheating, scrub sweet potatoes and dry well. Cut in diagonal slices. Sprinkle with salt and pepper on both sides. Then sprinkle with some of Emeril's Vegetable Dust or your favorite seasoning mix. Let sit for a few minutes.

When grill is hot and ready to grill, place several slices on grill. Close top and let grill for 4 minutes. Pick up top and turn slices over. Let grill for another 4 minutes. Test for doneness. If you can get a knife point through easily, remove from grill and replace with rest of slices. Cook exactly the same way. If they are not ready, cook for another minute or 2 until done.

Serve with meat or poultry.

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# 2 - Cuban Black Beans & Rice

Looking through the 1998 Southern Living Annual, I came upon a recipe for Traditional Cuban Black Beans that looked like it took less time than normal for dried beans. I had some black beans in the pantry (for who knows how long) and thought I should use them. So I cooked the beans in the microwave to soften them (same amount of time as on the stovetop just no chance of burning them) and then I continued with the recipe. It was delicious. I would add some chiles somewhere in the recipe next time (I put them on mine before I served it).

Traditional Cuban Black Beans (adapted)
Recipe By : Southern Living Annual 1998, p. 21
Servings : 6

1 lb dried black beans
2 1/2 qt water
2 lg green bell peppers -- chopped & divided
2 tsp olive oil
1 lg onion -- chopped
4 cloves garlic -- minced
1 tsp hot sauce -- your favorite*
1/4 tsp dried oregano -- crumbled
1 bay leaf
2 tsp sugar
3 tsp salt (to 4 tsp)
2 tbsp dry white wine
2 tbsp olive oil
hot cooked white rice or yellow rice -- ** see note
onion -- chopped, for garnish

Sort and wash beans; place in microwaveable container (corningware is perfect). Add water and half the green pepper; cook on HIGH, covered, for 1 hour. (for stovetop, place in dutch oven. Add water and green pepper; bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 1-1/2 hours or just until beans are tender). If not cooked thoroughly, cook for another 15 minutes. If still, then continue, every 15 minutes until thoroughly cooked (mine took 1:45 because the beans were quite old).

Heat 2 tsp oil in a skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add remaining bell pepper, chopped onion, and next 4 ingredients; cook, stirring constantly, 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Add onion mixture, sugar and salt to beans***; cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, 45 minutes. Uncover and cook 15 minutes or to desired thickness.

Stir in wine and 2 tbsp oil. Remove and discard bay leaf. Cook black bean mixture until heated. Serve over white or yellow rice. Garnish, if desired. Yield: 6 cups.

NOTES : * this was my addition. The original called for 1/2 tsp which is too little to flavor the beans, IMHO.

** I put some saffron in some basmati rice and made yellow rice.

*** If using microwave to cook beans, when thoroughly cooked and soft, drain well and add to pot with onion mixture. Then continue with recipe.
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# 3 - Really Good Vegetarian "Meatballs"

Usually vegetarian "meatballs" taste bad to me or they use nuts which make them slightly greasy. Not these. These taste really close to real meatballs and my DH loved them. From the January issue of Vegetarian Times. Really good. You'll like them even if you are a meat-eater. I swear.

Vegetarian Meatballs In Tomato Sauce (adaptation)
Recipe By : Vegetarian Times Magazine, January 2000, page 32
Servings: 8

1 26 oz jar pasta sauce (tomato & basil my favorite)
1 tsp dried oregano -- crumbled

"Meatballs":
2 2/3 cups vegetable broth
3/4 cup uncooked Arborio rice
1 pound cremini or baby bella mushrooms -- qtr if large
4 teaspoons olive oil
1 small onion -- finely chopped
1 large egg -- lightly beaten
1 cup dried Italian-style bread crumbs
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese -- > than 1 oz
1/4 cup fresh parsley -- chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Cooking Rice - Stovetop version:

In large saucepan, bring broth to a simmer over high heat. Add rice, reduce heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until rice is tender and mixture is creamy, 18 to 20 minutes. Stir almost constantly during last 5 minutes of cooking. Transfer to large bowl.

Cooking Rice - Microwave version:

Put rice and broth in microwaveable container (if using canned broth or bouillon don't add extra salt. If using homemade, use a bit of salt). Cover and cook on HIGH for 15 minutes. Stir rice well. Uncover and cook on HIGH for 10 minutes.

In food processor, pulse mushrooms in batches until finely chopped.

In large nonstick skillet, heat 2 teaspoons oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring, until tender and most of liquid has evaporated, 3 to 5 minutes. Add to bowl with rice; let cool.

Preheat oven to 400F. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray.

Add egg, bread crumbs, cheese, parsley, salt and pepper to cooled rice mixture and mix well. Form mixture into about 24 oval-shaped nuggets, each about 2 by 13 inches.

In clean large nonstick skillet, heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil over medium- high heat; tilt to coat bottom. Add half the nuggets and cook until browned on one side, about 2 minutes. Turn nuggets over onto prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining nuggets. Bake until nuggets are browned and firm, 15 to 20 minutes. Put 3 nuggets on each plate, spoon sauce on top and serve hot.

PER 3-NUGGET SERVING: 342 CALORIES; 12G PROTEIN; 7G TOTAL FAT (1G SAT FAT); 55G CARBOHYDRATE; 30MG CHOLESTEROL; 980MG SODIUM; 5MG FIBER.

Risa's note: I served it over cut fusilli. Use whatever pasta you like.

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# 4 - Pork Chops, GF Grill

As usual I messed up again. I was supposed to make chicken tonight and then
checked the freezer and found NO chicken. Yikes. So I decided to make the
adapted recipe that I was going to make on Saturday. We had already had 2
vegetarian nights. I knew it wasn't a good idea to make a 3rd night in a row
vegetarian so I switched nights on my schedule. I adapted this from the
Southern Living Annual 1998. The original called for pork tenderloins which
were impossible to find at my local supermarket so I used pork chops which were
easy to find. This came out really good. Just don't overcook the pork - easy
to do on the GF Grill. The book says between 5 and 7 minutes. Do it 6 and they
will still be a bit juicy. If not, they will be hard to cut.

Pork Chops with Rosemary Pesto (GF Grill)
Recipe By : RisaG
Servings : 6

1 cup fresh rosemary leaves
8 cloves garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tbsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
6 1/2" thick center cut pork chops

Place rosemary and garlic in food processor. Process until smooth, scraping down the sides once. With processor running, pour oil through feed tube in a slow, steady stream. Add salt and pepper; pulse until blended.

Spread pesto evenly over chops. Place in a pan big enough to hold all 6 comfortably. Let marinate in pesto for 1/2 hour, refrigerated.

Preheat GF Grill. Take chops out of refrigerator and let sit until GF Grill is ready. When hot, spray GF with some olive oil spray and then place chops on grill. Close and cook for 3 minutes. Turn and let cook for another 3 minutes. Remove from grill.

Serve with white rice and a vegetable of your choice.

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# 5 - Comfort Food - Restaurant Style

I love Bon Appetit Magazine. Especially the R.S.V.P. Section. Tonights dinner was from Vinci in Chicago, IL. Someone had requested the recipe and I can see why. It was so good. The only changes I made were shittake for the porcini (none left in the house) and I microwaved the polenta (my favorite way) instead of stovetop. It was so good even DH loved it.

Polenta with Porcini Mushroom Sauce (adapted)
Recipe By : Vinci in Chicago, IL
Servings : 3

Polenta:
2 1/2 cups water
1 tbsp olive oil
3/4 cup yellow cornmeal
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese -- freshly grated
1 tbsp butter

Porcini Mushroom Sauce:
3/4 oz dried porcini mushrooms -- * see note
1 cup warm water
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup onion -- chopped
2 cloves garlic -- minced
1/4 cup Marsala wine -- ** see note
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/2 tsp fresh rosemary -- minced
1/2 cup chicken stock or canned low-salt broth
1/2 cup beef stock or canned low-salt broth
1/2 tbsp butter -- room temp
1/2 tbsp all-purpose flour

For sauce:

Combine porcini mushrooms and warm water in small bowl. Let stand until mushrooms soften, about 30 minutes. Remove mushrooms from liquid, squeezing excess liquid from mushrooms back into bowl, reserve liquid. Place mushrooms in another small bowl.

Heat oil in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; saute until onions brown, about 15 minutes. Add Marsala and white wine. Increase heat; boil until most liquid evaporates, about 7 minutes. Add rosemary, mushrooms and both stocks. Pour in reserved mushroom liquid, leaving any sediment behind. Boil until liquid mixture is reduced to 2 cups, about 15 minutes.

Mix butter and flour in small bowl to blend; whisk into mushroom mixture. Simmer until sauce thickens, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

While sauce is cooking, put cornmeal, water, salt and olive oil in microwaveable container (a 2 qt corningware is fine). Cook on HIGH for 3 minutes, uncovered. Open microwave and mix cornmeal mixture to get all lumps out. Then cook on HIGH for another 3 minutes, uncovered. When done, add butter and cheese. Mix well.

To plate: Ladle polenta into shallow bowls. Top with mushroom sauce. Serve with additional cheese, if desired.

NOTES : From R.S.V.P section of Bon Appetit Magazine, January 2000, p. 30.

Risa's notes:

* I did not have porcini in the house (unfortunately) so I used dried shiitake.
** I used rice wine instead of Madeira only because I had none.
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# 6 - More Comfort Food

I decided to start using up the Y2K food I had stocked up. With that mind,
I saw this recipe in the new issue of Bon Appetit that called for canned
salmon and potatoes. I had some potatoes leftover from the huge bag I bought
for the holidays. Perfect - I could use up two things at once. So here it
is - Potato & Salmon Casserole.

Potato and Salmon Casserole
Recipe By : Bon Appetit, January 2000, p. 169
Servings : 6

Nonstick cooking spray
1 14.75 oz can pink salmon (with bones) -- drained
2 1/2 lb russet potatoes -- peeled, cut in 1" pc
1 cup 1% low-fat milk
4 oz soft fresh goat cheese -- such as Montrachet
3 tbsp Parmesan cheese -- freshly grated
2 lg eggs
1/2 cup green onions -- chopped
salt and pepper -- to taste

Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray 10" diameter glass pie dish with oil spray. Separate salmon into chunks, leaving bones intact (bones are very soft and will blend into potato mixture). Remove black pieces of skin; discard. Set salmon aside.*

Cook potatoes in large pot of boiling salted water until very tender, about 20 minutes. Drain. Transfer potatoes to large bowl. Add milk, goat cheese and 1 tbsp parmesan cheese. Using electric mixer, beat until almost smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Beat in eggs. Stir in salmon and green onions. Transfer mixture to prepared dish. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese.

Bake casserole until golden and heated through, about 45 minutes.

Nutritional information: Per serving, 330 calories, 11g total fat, 5g sat fat, 150mg chol.

NOTES : * I used boneless salmon (Chicken of the Sea - 2-6 oz cans).