Recipe(tried): This Week's Winners

I added in one lunch this week (even though this is What's For Dinner?) because it is good enough for dinner. It was a good week.

I copied this off the 'net last year during the TKL chats and never made it. When I read at TKL that it was great, I pulled it out of the cobwebs and made it. It was worth waiting for:

Southwest Lasagna
Recipe By : Terry Ward
Serving Size : 12

9 to 12 uncooked lasagna noodles
1 pound lean ground beef or turkey
1 (1.25 oz) pk taco seasoning mix
3/4 cup water
1 (15oz)carton reduced-fat ricotta cheese
1 (4.5oz) can chopped green chiles
2 eggs*
1 (30oz) jar spaghetti sauce
2 teaspoons cumin
1 (9oz) box frozen corn**
1 (15oz) can black beans -- drained and rinsed
12 ounces shredded Monterey jack cheese

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 13x9" bakinf pan with cookin spray. Cook noodles as directed. Brown ground meat and drain; rinse and drain again. Return to skillet and add taco seasoning and water. Simmer 5 min. or till thickened. IN a small bowl, combine ricotta, chilies and eggs. In another bowl, combine spaghetti sauce and and cumin. Place 3 or 4 noodles on the bottom of prepared pan. Spread 1/3 of the ricotta mixture over noodles; top with 1/3 of the meat mixture, 1/3 of the corn, 1/3 of the beans, 1/3 of the sauce and 1/3 of the cheese. Repeat layers 2 times. Bake at 375 for 40-50 min. Let stand 10 min. before serving.

* I used egg substitute instead of the eggs.
** I had some leftover canned kernel corn and used that.

Other Notes: I only made 2 layers. My pan wasn't tall enough to make 3 layers so I had some leftover parts. I'll use them during the week for lunches. I garnished with some chopped cilantro, a dollop of cilantro pesto and a little of the leftover ricotta mixture from inside the lasagna. It was fantastic. Such a yummy lasagna. Thanks Terry.
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This is supposed to be grilled but it came out pretty good roasted. The marinade sounded so yummy.

Lemon-Rosemary Chicken Halves
Adapted from Born to Grill by Cheryl Alters Jamison
and Bill Jamison
Serves 4 Hearty Eaters

Lemon-Rosemary Paste
1/4 cup packed rosemary sprigs
1/3 cup olive oil
zest and juice of 1 lemon
1-1/2 tablespoons chopped onion
2 garlic cloves
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, or other coarse salt

Two 3-3-1/2 pound whole chickens, halved
1 lemon, cut in wedges
Fresh rosemary sprigs and lemon slices, optional

At least 3 hours or overnight before you cook, prepare the paste. Puree the rosemary with the oil in the blender. Let the rosemary steep in the oil for 5-10 minutees. Strain the mixture to remove the tough stems and leaves.* Return the oil to the blender and add remaining ingredients and puree. The paste will be somewhat soupy.

Coat each chicken half thoroughly with the paste, rubbing it inside and out and working it as far as possible under the skin without tearing the skin. Place the chicken in a plastic bag and refrigerate.

THIS IS WHERE I CHANGED THE RECIPE

Instead of setting up the grill for a medium charcoal, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a baking pan with cooking spray and set up a rack in it.

After the chicken is marinated, let the excess marinade drip off and put the chicken pieces on the rack in the pan. Place the pan in the oven and let it cook for 45 minutes undisturbed. After 45 minutes, test the internal temperature with an instant read thermometer. If it is under 160 degrees, put it back in. If not, take it out and let it sit.

If you have to cook it further, put the chicken on the top rack and let it brown further as it cooks. Let it cook for another 15 minutes. Then take it out and let it finish cooking on its own. This will prevent dryness.

To serve: Place a chicken half on a plate. Put your other side dishes on and sprinkle with a little rosemary and garnish with lemon slices.

Notes: I served it with some packaged mushroom polenta and a salad with Italian dressing and croutons. It was quite good. If you are watching your fat intake, take some of the skin off before serving and sprinkle the lemon juice (from the sliced lemons) over the chicken.
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Sunshine Stuffed Pork Chops
Adapted from Richard Simmons Farewell to Fat Cookbook
Makes 4 servings (I made 2 servings)

1 clove garlic, peeled & cut in half
4 center-cut loin pork chops on the bone, about 6 oz each), trimmed of all visible fat
1/2 teaspoon each freshly ground black pepper & paprika
Nonstick olive oil cooking spray
1/4 cup orange marmalade*
1 can fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth**
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 tablespoons grated orange zest
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed preferable
1 cup uncooked white rice (not converted)***

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Rub garlic all over chops. Discard garlic. In small cup, combine pepper and paprika. Rub all over chops.

Coat large ovenproof skillet with cooking spray. Heat over medium-high heat. Add pork chops. Cook 1 minute per side or until browned.

Remove chops from pan. Spread marmalade on one side of each chop. Set aside.

Add broth to skillet and heat. Add onion, orange zest, and salt. When mixture comes to a boil, add orange juice and rice. Cover.

Bake rice in oven 10 minutes.

Place pork chops, marmalade side up, on top of rice. Cover and bake about another 25 minutes or until rice is tender, liquid has been absorbed, and chops are cooked through. 420 calories per serving, 30g protein and 8g fat.

* I used a small package of marmalade I had from a restaurant. I painted the one side of 2 chops with it.
** I didn't use broth, I used Better Than Bouillon chicken base mixed with hot water.
*** I decided I was bored with rice and used Orzo instead. It cooked for the same amount of time and was fine after the whole cooking was done. Delicious change of pace!

I served it alone without vegetable but a salad or a green vegetable on the side would be great. He shows it with green beans.
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This is so simple and tastes like you put a lot of work into it. My favorite kind of meal. Fill out the meal with some white rice that is sprinkled with some sesame oil and a little soy sauce. Maybe a green vegetable, chinese style.

Anna's Fish With Black Bean Sauce
From Barbara Kafka's Microwave Gourmet Healthstyle
Easel
Serves 4

6 sprigs fresh coriander
8 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
2 ounces ginger, peeled and cut into 8 slices
2 T. salted Chinese black beans (fermented black beans)
4 T. rice wine vinegar
2/3 cup white wine*
2 tsp. sesame seeds
1 c. water
2 tsp. honey
4 red snapper fillets, each 4 oz**

Remove coriander leaves from stems. Coarsely chop leaves and reserve. Place stems in a 10 inch quiche pan or pie plate (microwaveable). Add remaining ingredients except honey and fish. Cover tightly with microwave plastic wrap. Cook at 100% for 8 minutes in a 650 to 700 watt oven. Price plastic to release steam.

Remove from oven and uncover. Discard ginger slices. Puree mixture in a food processor or blender until smooth. Add honey.

Pour sauce back into quiche pan or pie plate, spreading it evenly on the bottom of the dish. Place fillets over sauce. Cover tightly and cook for 6 minutes, or until fish is cooked through and opaque. Prick plastic to release steam.

Remove from oven and uncover. Sprinkle with reserved chopped coriander leaves (cilantro) and serve.

* I didn't have white wine so I used chinese rice wine.
** I didn't have red snapper so I used haddock fillets. It was very good.
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For Trevor's Birthday Lunch
Horn & Hardart's Baked Macaroni & Cheese
Serves 4-6
(From The New York Cookbook by Molly O'Neill

1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
3 cups milk
1 teaspoon salt
dash of freshly ground black pepper
dash of cayenne pepper*
2 cups shredded Cheddar Cheese**
1/2 pound elbow macaroni, fully cooked and drained
1/2 cup canned tomatoes, drained and chopped***
1 teaspoon sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 1-1/2 quart baking dish.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk in the flour, then add the milk, salt, and both peppers. Stir almost constantly until the mixture thickens and is smooth, 8-10 minutes. Add the cheese and cook, stirring, until it melts. Remove from the heat.

In a mixing bowl, combine the macaroni & the cheese sauce. Stir in the tomatoes and sugar. Transfer the macaroni mixture to the greased baking dish. Bake until the surface browns, about 30-40 minutes.

* I didn't use cayenne since I was feeding it to Trevor.
** I used what I had, monterey jack, and it was tasty.
*** I didn't use the tomatoes since I was giving it to Trevor and he likes his mac n cheese plain.
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Risotto with Wild Mushrooms
From Microwave Gourmet Healthstyle by Barbara Kafka (a book in an easel format)
Serves 3 as a first course, 6 as a side dish

1/2 cup minced yellow onion
1 cup arborio rice
3-1/2 cups basic chicken broth, or canned chicken broth
1/2 cup + 2 T. dried mushrooms (such as porcini, cepes, tree ears, or straw mushrooms), or a mixture
Freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
(a touch of butter and some parmesan)

Place onion in an 11x8-1/2x2 inch microwaveable dish. Cook, uncovered, at 100% for 2 minutes in a 650 to 700 watt oven. Stir in rice and cook, uncovered, for 1 minute. Add broth and stir well. Cook, uncovered, for 9 minutes.

Add dried mushrooms.* Cook, uncovered, for 9 minutes. Stir well and cook for 5 minutes more.

Remove from oven and stir in black pepper and parsley. Cover with a kitchen towel and let stand for 5 minutes or until rice absorbs excess liquid. Sprinkle with parmesan and stir in a little butter.**

* I made the mistake of using some dried shiitake mushrooms and the stems were hard and they didn't totally hydrate like the porcini did. If you use them, hydrate them first and take off the stem. Then add them with the porcini.

** In most risotto recipes butter and cheese are added at the end for texture and for flavor. B. Kafka didn't add them in her recipe but I added them for a little authenticity.

I found the texture to be a little less soupy as usual risotto is but the flavor was wonderful. We enjoyed it thoroughly. I served it with a simple salad with some "italian" greens in it, like radicchio (I still had some in my garden) and a simple dressing.