Tangy Lemon Bars

Crust:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup butter (2 sticks)
• Two-thirds cup powdered sugar

Crumble together with your hands and press in the bottom of a 9” x 13” cake pan. Bake in a 350° oven for 14 minutes.

Filling:

• 4 eggs
• 2 cups white sugar
• 2 tsp.

Rhubarb Slush

• 12 cups chopped rhubarb
• 2 c. sugar
• 9 c. water
• 6 oz. frozen lemonade
• 1 pkg. sugar free raspberry or strawberry Jell-O

Bring to a boil the rhubarb, sugar and water. Simmer for one-half hour. Strain the juice into a large bucket with lemonade and Jell-O. Stir to dissolve Jell-O. Freeze. Thaw slightly to slush consistency and serve mixed with 7-Up or Ginger Ale.

Rhubarb Torte

Crust:

• 1 c margarine
• 2 c flour
• 2 T sugar
• One-half tsp. salt
• One-fourth tsp. almond extract

Mix together and pat in a 9” x 13” pan. Bake at 350° for 15 minutes.

Filling:

• 6 egg yolks beaten
• 2 c sugar
• 1 c cream
• 4 T flour
• 5 c diced rhubarb

Mix and pour over crust.

Chicken and Veggies

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast meat
• 6 c of a mixture of your choice of vegetables
• 2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
• a little pepper
• a little Mrs. Dash or your favorite seasoning
• 1 c chicken broth
• slices of Farmers (or your choice) of cheese or shredded cheese

Cut up one pound of skinless, boneless chicken breast meat into strips or chunks.

Chop a mixture of fresh vegetables such as: broccoli, green beans, carrots, onions, green pepper, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, and celery to measure 6 cups.

In a large skillet, pour 2 Tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and set burner to med. high. When oil is hot, place the chicken pieces into the pan. Sprinkle with a little pepper to taste and some of your favorite seasoning like Mrs. Dash (or whatever is available in your area). Reduce heat to medium. When chicken is cooked just beyond the pink stage, move the chicken to the outer edges of the skillet. Pour one cup chicken broth (I like the boxed kind) into the pan and add all the fresh vegetables. Cover and let the vegetables cook until they are done to your satisfaction. I like mine a little on the crunchy side. For the last minute, place slices of Farmer Cheese, or sprinkle with shredded low-fat cheese over the top. Cover and turn the heat off or to the very low setting. As soon as the cheese is melted, it is ready to serve. This goes well with cooked rice on the side, or as is. You have your protein, vegetables, dairy, and very low fat and it is delicious and filling.

Four Bean Delight

• one-half pound or approximately 8-10 lean bacon strips, diced
• 2 medium onions, quartered and sliced
• one-half cup brown sugar
• one-half cup vinegar
• one-half cup ketchup
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground mustard
• one-half tsp garlic powder
• 1 16 oz. can baked brown beans, undrained
• 1 16 oz. can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 16 oz. can butter beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 16 oz. can navy beans or green beans, drained

Note – some cans are only 14 oz. now but that’s fine. You may choose to add one more can of any of the beans to make it go further.

In a skillet, cook the bacon pieces until crisp. Drain and reserve 2 T. drippings. Set bacon aside. Sauté onions in bacon drippings until tender. Stir in brown sugar, ketchup, vinegar, salt, mustard and garlic powder. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes or until onions are golden brown. Combine the beans in a slow cooker. Add onion mixture and bacon and mix well. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours.

Grape Nut Salad

• 8 oz. sour cream
• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• one-eighth cup sugar
• 8 cups green or red grapes
• 1 cup cashew nut pieces

Mix together the sour cream, cream cheese and sugar until creamy. Pour over the grapes and toss the cashew nut pieces into the mix and stir. That’s it! Some other alternative additional ingredients: banana slices, apple chunks, orange sections, pineapple, etc. Be creative. How about a little crunch by adding some granola at the last minute?

Fresh Blueberry Pie

• Bake one pie shell, cool. A graham cracker crust works well, also.
  
• Put 2 cups of fresh blueberries in crust.
  
• Combine in pan:
• 2 cups of blueberries
• 3 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
• one-fourth cup water
• one-fourth tsp. salt

Cook until thick. Take off heat and add 2 Tbsp. butter. Pour over the fresh berries in the pie shell. Cool in refrigerator. Serve with whipped cream. This is very good when you mix strawberries and blueberries or use peaches instead.

Harold’s Fish Fry

• Filet and remove all the bones from the fresh-caught fish and pat the fillets dry. Cut them into 2" pieces.
• In a separate bowl, empty the contents of one package of "Shore Lunch" brand breading. We have also used other coating mixture, but Shore Lunch brand seems to be the best for this recipe.
• Pour Club Soda into the dry mix and bring it to the consistency of a medium to light batter. (Sorry I don’t have the exact amount here).
• Sprinkle fresh pepper and a small amount of salt on the fish and then place the pieces into the batter and completely coat with the batter.

In a large fry pan, heat cooking oil until it is very hot. Test a small piece to see if it bubbles as it enters the hot oil. You will want the fish to be mostly submerged in the oil. When the oil is hot enough, approximately 250°, place the individual fish pieces into the pan. They will quickly be ready on the first side. Turn them and as soon as that side is a nice golden brown, carefully remove them from the hot oil and place them on several layers of paper towel to remove any access oil. Eat immediately while they are nice and hot.

Sue sent me this recipe and I tried it. It’s great and quick and easy! Perfect for summertime cooking.

Chicken Marsala

• 2 large chicken breasts, boneless and skinless, cut into bite size pieces
• 2/3 medium sweet onion, sliced
• 8-12 ounces canned mushrooms (fresh mushrooms, sliced, are better)
• 3/4 cup sweet Marsala wine
• 1/2 stick butter
• 1/2 cup flour

Melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the onion slices and mushrooms. Sauté uncovered until tender. Put the flour in a plastic bag. Pat the chicken pieces dry and add to flour. Shake to coat with flour. Remove the onions and mushrooms from pan. Place the coated chicken pieces in the pan (don’t dump in the extra flour – just pick the chicken pieces out of the flour). Cook uncovered on medium-high heat for 6 minutes without stirring. After 6 minutes stir the chicken. Add one half cup wine to the pan (do not pour it directly on the chicken). Top chicken with the mushrooms and onions. Cook 6 minutes uncovered. Stir. Add the remaining 1/4 cup of wine to deglaze the pan (my pan is non-stick so it had nothing to deglaze). After cooking a few more minutes, stir it all together and serve. Serves 3. This is great with rice and your favorite vegetable.

NOTE: Instead of butter, I just put some extra virgin olive oil in the pan and I did not use any flour and it was STILL great!

Here is a delicious and figure-friendly recipe I made a couple weeks ago and it is SO tasty.

Sweet & Sour Chicken with Pineapple

• 16 oz. chicken breast meat, cut into bite-size pieces
• 10 green onions, chopped finely, or 1/2 sweet onion chopped
• 1/2 large green pepper, cut into 3/4″ squares
• 2 T red wine vinegar
• 1 T cornstarch
• 3/4 cup fresh pineapple cut into chunks. I used canned pineapple in pineapple juice, not syrup
• 2 T Sugar Twin brown sugar
• 1 T ketchup
• 1 tomato diced. I used about 6 of those small tomatoes
• 1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth

Spray skillet or wok with Pam or olive oil. Add onion and green pepper and stir-fry over medium heat until they are crisp-tender. Remove and set aside.

Spray skillet again and add the chicken pieces. Stir fry over medium heat until no longer pink.

In saucepan, mix the vinegar, cornstarch, chicken broth, brown sugar and ketchup together and cook until thickened and then pour over the chicken.

Return the onion and green pepper to skillet. Stir in pineapple chunks and tomato pieces. Cover and cook for 2 minutes or until heated through.

Serve with brown rice.