Lemon Loaf

So easy. So delicious!

• 1 package lemon cake mix
• 1 package lemon jello powder
• 3/4 cup salad oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup boiling water

Make up the jelly powder with one cup boiling water. Cool. Add cool jelly and oil to cake mix. Mix well. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each one. Fold into 2 loaf pans.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

Glaze: 1 cup icing sugar with 2-3 tbsp lemon juice. Variation: use vanilla in place of the lemon juice.

Quick Szechwan Sauce

Trying to make a conscious decision to eat better, I made a stir fry, but wanted a sauce to add some flavor. And I was really happy with this one. Sweet and spicy. Two of my favorite things. Can be used a meat marinade or cooking sauce.
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 3 red chile peppers, seeded and chopped fine*
- 2 tsps fresh chopped ginger**
- 2 tsps minced garlic
- 5 tbsp sugar
- 5 tbsp vinegar
- 5 tbsp ketchup

Stir together olive oil, chile peppers, ginger and garlic. Mix in sugar, vinegar and ketchup.

* I used red pepper flakes as I didn't have the chile peppers on hand. Adjust amount to your tastes
** Again I used the ginger powder as I didn't have fresh ginger on hand

Makes 6 servings

Calories: 124
Fat: 6.8g
Cholesterol: 0

Asian Grilled Chicken

This is a tasty way to do up chicken breasts. And best of all - they're good for you!
- 1 can campbell's condensed chicken broth
- 2 tbsp soya sauce
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 1 lb)

Combine broth, soya sauce, vinegar, sugar, garlic and red pepper. Reserve 3/4 cup of mixture for basting; refrigerate.
Pour remaining mixture into shallow non-metallic dish. Add chicken and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour. Discard marinade.
Grill or broil chicken 20 minutes or until cooked through, turning and brushing often with reserved basting mixture.

Serves 4

I used my indoor grill to cook these. Was a little hazy in the kitchen at times, so I'd probably try the BBQ or oven next time around. Delicious!

Calories: 128
Protein: 26 g
Fat: 2 g
Carb: 1 g

Greek Spinach Pizza

• 2 cups fresh baby spinach
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 teaspoons Italian seasoning
• 1 prebaked thin Italian bread shell crust (10 ounces)
• 2 plum tomatoes, thinly sliced
• 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1/4 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped pitted Greek olives
• 2 tablespoons chopped sweet onion

In a small bowl, toss the spinach, oil and Italian seasoning. Place crust on an ungreased 12-in. pizza pan. Arrange spinach mixture over crust to within 1/2-in. of edge. Place tomatoes on top; sprinkle with the cheeses, olives and onion.

Bake at 450 F for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and edges are lightly browned.

Yield: 6-8 slices

* Instead of the Italian bread shell crust I just used a plain pizza crust. It definitely didn't need the whole 10 minutes until it was browned enough.

Homemade Turtles

A friend of mine talked about these just the other day. Then I tried them at a family member's house just a few days later. Oh my! How delicious! And super easy.

- 20 pretzels
- 20 rolo chocolates
- 20 pecan halves

Preheat oven to 300. Arrange pretzels on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Place one rolo chocolate on each pretzel. Bake for about 4 minutes. While chocolate is still warm, press pecan half onto each chocolate covered pretzel. Cool completely and store in an air tight container. You've gotta try it!

Pizza Surprise

This is oh so yummy! One of my favorite things to make for a party. Serve with crackers or raw vegetables.
- 8 oz package cream cheese
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup chili sauce
- chopped tomato, peppers, green onions (as much as you like)
- shredded cheese to cover

Mix together cream cheese, sour cream, mayo. Spread onto pan/dish. Cover with chili sauce, then add tomatoes, peppers, green onions and shredded cheese.

Can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge.

toddler take on chicken soup

In a toddler lunch rut, so I decided to make soup for the 'gents today. Soup seems to always take a long time, but this one was quick, made within an hour including toddler interruptions :)

I took this recipe and made some changes to suit my fridge contents:

1/4 of a small onion, chopped

2/3 c. chopped baby carrots

2 cloves garlic, crushed

tbsp of olive oil

light salt and pepper to taste

Saute in pot, med high heat until carrots start to soften, 5 mins

1/2 yellow/orange or red pepper, whatever you have

Add to pot, saute for a few more mins

Add:

2 cups low sodium veg or chicken stock

1 cup water (or more, to your desired consistency)

1 packet low sodium chicken stock (powder)

1 tbsp dried thyme

I used veg stock, so I added a packet of chicken stock to the water.

Simmer with lid on pot for 20 minutes or so.

Add 2/3 cup crushed egg noodles (I crushed them so they wouldn't be monstrous noodles for the kids to spoon in).

Simmer til noodles are soft.

Enjoy.