Apricot Salsa

Notes: If making ahead, cover and chill up to 4 hours. Serve salsa cold, or heat in the microwave oven until steaming. It goes well with meat and poultry.

Ingredients

1 pound firm-ripe apricots, pitted and chopped
1 red bell pepper (about 7 oz.), stemmed, seeded, and chopped
2 fresh jalapeño chilies, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons lime juice
Salt

Preparation

Mix apricots with bell pepper, jalapeños, cilantro, and lime juice. Season to taste with salt.

Nutritional analysis per 1/4-cup serving.

Yield

Makes 3 cups

Nutritional Information

CALORIES 22(8.2% from fat); FAT 0.2g (sat 0.0g); CHOLESTEROL 0.0mg; CARBOHYDRATE 5.2g; SODIUM 1.2mg; PROTEIN 0.7g; FIBER 0.7g

APRICOT SYRUP

4 cup apricot puree*
1 cup water
3 Tbsp lemon juice
4 cups sugar

Mix all ingredients together in pan. Boil over medium heat for 5 minutes stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Skim foam.

Pour into jars and process in water bath.

*Make apricot puree by whipping apricots that have been pitted and sliced in a blender. (I did find it easier to put the fruit in the food processor first, then the blender.)

Apricot Salsa:

Doug's Mesquite Chicken With Walnuts – makes up to 4 breasts

This is the mesquite marinade I use

http://www.mccormick.com/productdetail.cfm?id=6203

4-6 Chicken Breasts

1 Package frozen chopped spinach

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (use more or less as desired)

Crumbled feta to taste (I always like herb & garlic with this but any will do)

Prep

1. Prepare marinade per instructions on packet

2. Marinate boneless skinless chicken breasts

3. Thaw and squeeze out water from one box of frozen chopped spinach

Oven style

1. Bake chicken breasts @ 350 in covered glass cooking dish with marinade

2. When approximately 10 minutes left until chicken would ordinarily be done, uncover

3. Top with spinach, feta as desired, and walnuts

4. Return to oven for 15-20 minutes or until feta is golden and/or melty (it's hard to get feta melty, but…)

5. Remove from oven, let set up 5 minutes and serve chicken ensuring each plate has spinach, feta, and walnuts on it

Grill style

1. Grill chicken breasts medium in foil tent

2. When approximately 10 minutes left until chicken would ordinarily be done, open tent

3. Top with spinach, feta as desired, and walnuts

4. Close tent, continue grilling for 15-20 minutes or until feta is melty (it's hard to get feta melty, but…)

5. Remove from grill, open tent, let set up 5 minutes and serve chicken ensuring each plate has spinach, feta, and walnuts on it

Spaghetti Sauce

olive oil
red onion
mushroom
garlic
oregano
parsley
basil
salt and pepper
1 lb. turkey

1 small jar Prego organic
pasta of choice

Start water boiling for pasta.

In a large skillet heat olive oil. Add thin sliced onion and chopped mushrooms. Then add minced garlic oregano, parsley, and basil (fresh is best but still great with dried herbs). Add meat stirring occasionally until the meat is fully cooked. Dump in sauce. Heat and serve.

The World's Best Scones

PREP TIME	20 Min
COOK TIME	15 Min
READY IN	35 Min

SERVINGS & SCALING

Original recipe yield: 8 scones

INGREDIENTS

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup dried currants or raisins
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon milk

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into a large bowl. Cut in butter using a pastry blender or rubbing between your fingers until it is in pea sized lumps. Stir in the currants. Mix together 1/2 cup milk and sour cream in a measuring cup. Pour all at once into the dry ingredients, and stir gently until well blended. Overworking the dough results in terrible scones!
3. With floured hands, pat scone dough into balls 2 to 3 inches across, depending on what size you want. Place onto a greased baking sheet, and flatten lightly. Let the scones barely touch each other. Whisk together the egg and 1 tablespoon of milk. Brush the tops of the scones with the egg wash. Let them rest for about 10 minutes.
4. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until the tops are golden brown, not deep brown. Break each scone apart, or slice in half. Serve with butter or clotted cream and a selection of jams - or even plain.

German Pancakes

PREP TIME	10 Min
COOK TIME	20 Min
READY IN	30 Min

SERVINGS & SCALING

Original recipe yield: 8 servings

INGREDIENTS

• 6 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons butter

Serving suggestions: Powdered sugar, butter, syrup, jams.

DIRECTIONS

1. Place butter in 13-in. X 9in. X2in. baking dish pan in the oven while it preheats so that the butter melts. Place the eggs, milk, flour and salt in a blender; cover and process until smooth. Pour the batter into the melted butter in the middle of the baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees F for 20 minutes.

Our children love this breakfast and we love it as a healthier supplement to pancakes or waffles because the protein to carb ratio is higher. It's something a little different but really good! Hope you enjoy!

Our Thanksgiving Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potatoes
butter
brown sugar
zest of orange
orange juice
salt and pepper

Cut potatoes into 3rds and place in boiling water for about 20min. Let cool enough to peel the skins. Mash the potatoes. Add butter, brown sugar, and zest of orange and mash well. Then add just a tiny tiny bit of fresh squeezed Oj. Salt and Pepper to taste.

If you have left overs put them in a freezer zip lock bag and squeeze all the air out. Throw them in the freezer as an easy side dish for another night.

Grilled Salmon

I saw a picture in a magazine of a dinner that looked so good I tore out the page. I was amazed how simple the recipe was and when we tried it and it was soooo good it became our usual way to prepare salmon. Sometimes I will use lemon in place of the lime and it is really good too! Great with sweet potatoes!


A big slab of salmon- whatever you need to serve X # of people
juice of 1 lime and an equal amount of olive oil
salt and pepper

Combine lime juice, olive oil, salt and pepper and marinade salmon with it for at least a half hour in the fridge.

Heat up the BBQ.

If the steak is at least an inch thick and your grill is really hot throw the steak on and close the top. Turn the heat down to med and let it cook for about 8 minutes then flip and cook for another 5-8 minutes. Cooking time could very with different thicknesses of meat.

But man this is good!! And Easy!!