Yield: 3 serving

This easy chicken recipe only uses four ingredients but is packed with taste. Boneless chicken breasts are coated in a flavorful blend of cheese and spices for a wonderful main dish that goes with anything from spaghetti to baked beans.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese 
• 1 package Good Seasons Italian Dressing mix 
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 
• 6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Mix cheese, dressing mix and garlic powder.

3. Moisten chicken breasts with water; coat with cheese mixture. Place in shallow baking dish.

4. Bake 20 to 25 min. or until chicken is no longer pink in the center.

Yield: 4 serving

The fabulous 50's gave us so many great recipes, this chicken salad is one of them. When ladies had luncheons and served chicken salad in perfectly cored tomatoes, presentation and taste were done to perfection.

From shredding the chicken breast by hand, to adding just the right amount of mayo with hard boiled eggs...this recipe is worthy of the finest women's club menu offerings.

Ingredients

• 2 cups cooked shredded chicken, cold
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup mayonnaise 
• 2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped

Directions

1. Mix chicken, celery, lemon juice, salt and pepper.

2. Add mayonnaise, mix well.

3. Fold in chopped eggs, blending throughout.

4. Serve on rolls, in a hollowed out tomato, or on a bed of crisp lettuce leaves

Yield: 7 serving

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups (375 mL) whole blanched almonds 
• 1 cup (250 mL) brown sugar 
• 1 pound (500 g) carrots 
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) (125 mL) butter, softened 
• 2 large egg yolks 
• 1 teaspoon (5 mL) vanilla extract 
• 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 mL) almond extract 
• 4 tablespoons plus 3/4 teaspoon (63 mL) cake flour 
• 2 teaspoon (5 mL) cinnamon 
• 6 large egg whites 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and butter a Bundt pan. Grind almonds in a spice grinder. Beat together butter and white sugar until thoroughly combined, then add ground almonds, egg yolks, vanilla, and almond extract. Beat until thoroughly combined.

2. In a second bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon and salt. Pour dry ingredients into wet ingredients, add carrots, and mix well.

3. In a third bowl, beat egg whites until they hold stiff peaks, gently fold them into the batter until just combined. Pour batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 50 minutes. Cool cake in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes, then gently loosen and turn out onto the rack to finish cooling. Frost or enjoy plain

1. Acerola, Blueberries and Strawberries Juice Ingredients 100 g Acerola Pulpa Handful of Blueberries 2 Strawberries 150 ml Apple Juice Instructions Blend and serve.

2. Apple and Strawberry Juice Ingredients 1 large red apple 250 g (1 punnet) strawberries Ice cubes Instructions Halve 1 large red apple and remove the core. Cut each half into 4 wedges. Wash 250 g (1 punnet) strawberries and remove hulls. Process the fruit in a juice extractor. Pour the juice over ice cubes in serving glasses. Serve immediately.

3. Apple Strawberry Delight Juice Ingredients 5-6 apples 1 cup strawberries Instructions Cut the apples up into sections, juice the ingredients.

4. Carrot Strawberry Juice Ingredients: 6 Fresh Carrots 8 Strawberries Instructions Cut the carrots into sections. Juice the Strawberries and the carrots. Mix.

5. Carrot Strawberry and Banana Juice Ingredients 4 Fresh Carrots 2 Bananas 12 Strawberries Instructions Cut the carrots and the Bananas into sections. Juice all Ingredients. Mix.

6. Frozen Strawberry Juice Ingredients 1 cup frozen strawberries 2 cups water (tap water or mineral water) 4-5 teaspoons sugar Instructions Pour frozen strawberries into the blender and add water. Blend until smooth. Add sugar to your liking.

Yield: 16 serving

Ingredients 

• 2 boxes White Cake Mix
• 4 drops Food Coloring
• 4 packages Cream Cheese (8 oz)
• 1 cup Butter
• 5 cups Powdered Sugar (Confectioners Sugar)
• 1 tablespoon Vanilla

Preparation

1.For the cake, make one box cake mix according to the directions on the box. Separate batter into 3 bowls with roughly about 1 cup of cake mix per bowl. Add desired food coloring to each bowl (purple, blue, green). 

2 Bake cakes in round pans according to box instructions, but make sure you check the cake about 10 minutes before it’s supposed to be done. With less mix in each pan, they can cook faster. 

3 Repeat for the remaining colors (red, orange, yellow). You will now have six layers of different colors. .

4 For the frosting, mix together softened (room temperature) butter and softened (room temperature) cream cheese until well combined. Add vanilla. Combine. Slowly add in powder sugar. 

 5 After the 5th cup of powdered sugar, taste the frosting and see if you would like it sweeter. I tend to use the full 6 cups, but some prefer the frosting less sweet. 

6 Try to level each layer of cake with a large bread knife. For the rainbow cake especially, if all the layers are level, then they will evenly display when you cut into it. 

7 Start with the PURPLE layer first. Put the purple layer on your cake stand or plate. Add enough frosting to cover the layer and some to spill over the edges, anywhere from 1/2 to one cup of frosting. Run the flat, straight side of a knife around the cake to smooth out the edges. 

8 Add the BLUE layer of the cake. Put frosting in the middle, start spreading out frosting with the flat, straight side of a knife so that it covers the cake and falls out over the edges. Then run your knife around the outside edge of the cake to smooth out the sides. 

9 Put the cake into the fridge for at least 2 hours or freeze for 1 hour. 

10 Repeat with GREEN layer, then YELLOW layer. 

11 Put cake into fridge for at least 2 hours or freeze for 1 hour. 

12 Repeat with ORANGE layer, then RED layer. 

13 Cover cake with frosting and run the flat, straight edge of a knife around the edges of the cake to smooth out the frosting. 

14 Once you have finished frosting the cake, add any decorative touches or words that fit your occasion! Good luck!

Yield: 6 serving

Ingredients

• 5  tablespoons  butter, plus more for the baking dish
• 1  pound  elbow macaroni
• 1/2  cup  all-purpose flour
• 6  cups  whole milk
• 2  cups  grated Gruyere (8 ounces)
• 1 1/2  cups  grated Cheddar (6 ounces)
• 1/4  teaspoon  cayenne pepper
• Kosher salt

Preparation

1. Heat oven to 400° F. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish or some other shallow 3-quart baking dish.

2. Cook the pasta according to the package directions.

3. Wipe out the past pot and melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes (do not let it darken). Still stirring, slowly add the milk. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce slightly thickens, 6 to 8 minutes.

4. Add the Gruyère, Cheddar, cayenne, and 1½ teaspoon salt and cook just until the cheeses melt. Mix in the pasta. Transfer the pasta mixture to the prepared baking dish and bake until golden, 25 to 30 minutes.

By Sara Quessenberry and Rori Trovato , November, 2006

Shawarma is like the ultimate on the go meal. Thinly sliced meat, 

wrapped in a pita bread with veggies and sauce is a delicious quick meal.

Yield: 6 serving

Ingredients

• 2 lbs beef, prime rib is best
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 1/4 cup vinegar
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cardamom pods
• 1 teaspoon allspice
• juice from 1 lemon

___________________________
FOR THE SAUCE:

• 1 cup tahini
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons yogurt

___________________________
PITA FILLINGS:

• 8 loaves of pita bread or 4 large
• thinly sliced cucumbers
• thinly sliced onions
• 1/2 teaspoon sumac
• thinly sliced tomatoes
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
• pickle slices (optional)

Preparation

Combine all ingredients except for beef, fillings, and sauce ingredients to make marinade. If it seems a little dry, add a little olive oil 

Add beef, cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours, preferably overnight. 

In a stockpot or large saucepan, cook beef over medium heat for 45 minutes or until done. Be sure not to overcook! If beef becomes a little dry, add a few tablespoons of water throughout cooking duration.

While beef is cooking, prepare the sauce. Combine sauce ingredients and mix well. Set aside. 

Take the onions, tomatoes, cucumbers and sprinkle with sumac. Add other filling ingredients in a large bowl and combine well.

When the beef is done, you can shred it, slice it, or leave into large pieces. As long as it it thinly cut, there is not much difference. I prefer to cut mine into wide strips.

Prepare the Pita

Place enough beef on pita that cover 1/4 of the loaf. Add veggies and pour sauce. Roll like a soft taco or burrito and you have shawarma! You can also stuff the pocket of the pita if you like. I prefer to roll large pitas .

Serving Shawarma

You can serve shawarma with fries, falafel, hummus, or with a salad like tabouleh.

Edward Karaa

Falafel Recipe. A traditional middle eastern dish. 

A very filling vegetarian dish, perfect as a starter, 

main course or just a snack. Savour our Falafel recipe.

Yield: 4serving

Ingredients

• 250 g chickpeas
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 handful of parsley
• 1 handful of coriander
• 1 chilli
• 2 flour
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 1 ltr vegetable oil
• salt
• pepper
• 1 blender or food processor
• 2 bowls
• 1 spoon
• 1 tray
• 1 slotted spoon
• 1 saucepan
• paper towel

Preparation

Step 1: You will need…

See top right.

Step 2: Prepare the chickpeas

Take a large bowl and put in the chickpeas. Then, pour over enough water to cover the chickpeas and an additional 2 cm more. Leave to soak overnight. In the morning they will look plump and swollen.

Step 3: Drain and purée chickpeas

Hold the chickpeas over the sink and drain off the water with your hand over the bowl.

Now spoon the chickpeas into the blender bowl.

Don't overfill the blender! If the blender is small, you will have to do it in batches. If you have a bigger mixer you can do it all at once.

Close the blender and pulse a couple of times, then blend on full power until you create a breadcrumb like mixture. Check the consistency by stirring with a spoon. If necessary, blend again on full power until you create a fine purée. Then transfer into a bowl.

Step 4: Purée the rest of ingredients

Introduce the parsley, coriander, chilli, garlic along with 2 tablespoons of the puréed chickpeas into the bowl of the blender. Put the lid on and blend until well combined.

Step 5: Mix and season

Spoon the blended mixture into the bowl of puréed chickpeas. Then add the flour, the cumin, the crushed coriander seeds, the baking soda and about one and a half tablespoons of salt. Finally, add some pepper. Combine it all together thoroughly with a spoon. If it looks too dry, a few drops of water can be added.

Step 6: Preheat the oil

Place the saucepan on the hob and add the oil. Then heat it up on a medium high setting.

Step 7: Make the Falafel balls

Take a small amount of the blended mixture in your fingertips and mould into small balls. Then place onto a baking tray.

This amount of ingredients should make around twenty five to thirty balls.

Kept covered, this mixture will keep for one day in the fridge.

Step 8: Fry the Falafel balls

The oil should now be hot enough to fry. Individually, spoon half the batch of falafel balls into the oil. Allow to fry for 2 minutes until golden brown, stirring with the slotted spoon, so they brown evenly. Then remove and drain on a tray prepared with some kitchen towel. Now repeat the process with the remaining falafel balls.

Step 9: Serve and enjoy

The falafel balls are now ready! They are usually served inside pitta bread with tahini, humus, or chopped salad.

Yield: 6 serving 

Ingredients

• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped shallot
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• Salt
• 4 peaches, halved, pits removed 
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (about 4 oz. each) 
• 8 cups baby arugula or other tender salad greens

Preparation

1. Preheat grill to medium-high. Whisk together 4 Tbsp. oil, vinegar, shallot, mustard and 1/2 tsp. salt.

2. Brush peaches with 1 tsp. oil. Grill, flat side down, until warmed through, about 4 minutes. Remove from grill.

3. Brush chicken on both sides with remaining 2 tsp. oil and sprinkle with salt. Grill until cooked through, turning once, about 8 minutes total. Cut chicken into thin diagonal slices. Cut peaches into 1/2-inch-thick slices.

4. In a large bowl, toss greens with dressing. Divide greens among serving plates, top with peach halves and sliced chicken, and serve.

All You August  2009

Yield: 8 servings 

Ingredients 

• 2 pounds (32 ounces) chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
• 1 cup salsa, homemade or purchased
• 1 cup petite diced canned tomatoes (choose low-sodium)
• 2 tablespoons Taco Seasoning
• 1 cup onions, diced fine
• 1/2 cup celery diced fine
• 1/2 cup carrots, shredded
• 3 tablespoons sour cream, reduced fat

Preparation

Birdie, one of our most successful members to date, is a doctor and mother of five. Having lost 143 pounds on SparkPeople, she is always on the lookout for healthy recipe ideas, but they have to be quick and easy. “I'm not a good cook,” she confesses, but this is one dish she serves regularly without worry. She's not the only member who's making this for dinner: the recipe has been rated more than 2,700 times!

Salsa Chicken is easy to make; just put all the ingredients in a slow cooker and let the machine do the work. There are infinite variations, and your family is guaranteed to like each one. 

6-8 hours to prepare; 15 minutes of active cooking time

Makes 8 one-cup servings of chicken. 

Place the chicken in a slow cooker. Sprinkle the taco seasoning over the meat then layer the vegetables and salsa on top. Pour a half cup water over the mixture, set on low and cook for 6-8 hours. The meat is cooked when it shreds or reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. When ready to serve, break up the chicken with two forks then stir in the sour cream. 

Makes eight 1 cup servings.

sparkrecipes

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: about 1/2 cup)

Ingredients

• 8 (3 x 1/2-inch) lemon rind strips 
• 8 tablespoons Limoncello (lemon-flavored liqueur)
• 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice 
• 1 (750-milliliter) bottle brut Champagne, chilled

Preparation

1. Roll up each strip of lemon rind; place 1 into each of 8 Champagne flutes. Add 1 tablespoon liqueur and 1/2 teaspoon juice to each glass. Divide Champagne evenly among glasses. Serve immediately.

Jeanne Kelly 2011

Yield: 18 cookies (serving size: 1 cookie)

Ingredients

• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2/3 cup plus 1 Tbsp. sugar 
• 2 tablespoons grated lemon zest 
• 1 large egg 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups all-purpose flour 
• 1/2 cup raspberry jam

Preparation

1. Using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter until light, 2 minutes. Beat in 2/3 cup sugar and zest, then egg and salt. Beat in flour 1 cup at a time. Divide dough in half and form into 2 disks. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour or overnight.

2. Preheat oven to 375ºF; line 2 large baking sheets with parchment. On a lightly floured surface, roll out a disk to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out cookies with a 2 1/2-inch cutter. Place 1/2 inch apart on sheets. Gather dough scraps, reroll and cut more cookies. Sprinkle cookies with 1 1/2 tsp. sugar. Repeat with remaining dough disk.

3. Bake cookies until golden around edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Place baking sheets on wire racks for 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to racks to cool.

4. Spread 1 tsp. jam on bottom of a cookie; sandwich with another. Repeat with remaining cookies and jam.

Note:

Bake time is per batch.``

All You APRIL 2011

Ingredients

• 1 cup sliced almonds
• 2 cups all-purpose flour 
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 19 tablespoons (2 sticks plus 3 Tbsp.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar 
• 2 large eggs, beaten 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
• 1 cup white chocolate chips
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

Preparation

1. Place almonds in a single layer in a dry skillet; cook over medium heat, stirring often, until lightly toasted and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Transfer almonds to a bowl to cool. When cool enough to handle, roughly chop almonds.

2. Place racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter with both sugars until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl and beaters. Beat in eggs and extracts. Stir in flour mixture on low speed until combined. Stir in almonds, all chocolate chips and coconut.

3. Spoon dough by rounded tablespoons, 2 inches apart, onto baking sheets. Bake until edges are brown, 12 to 15 minutes, switching sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through. Let cookies cool on sheets on wire racks for 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to racks to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough.

All You MARCH 2013