Hearty Breakfast Egg Bake

• Prep: 10 min. + chilling Bake: 45 min. + standing
• Yield: 8 Servings

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Ingredients

• 1-1/2 pounds bulk pork sausage
• 3 cups frozen shredded hash brown potatoes, thawed
• 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese
• 8 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
• 3/4 cup evaporated milk

Directions

• Crumble sausage into a large skillet. Cook over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Transfer to a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish. Sprinkle with hash browns and cheese.
• In a large bowl, whisk the remaining ingredients; pour over the top. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 45-50 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. Yield: 8 servings.

Nutritional Facts1 piece equals 427 calories, 32 g fat (15 g saturated fat), 281 mg cholesterol, 887 mg sodium, 12 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 21 g protein.

Originally published as Hearty Breakfast Egg Bake in Simple & Delicious November/December 2008, p48

Great Green Chicken Chili

INGREDIENTS

• 8 Cups fat free, reduced sodium chicken broth
• 1 Onion, finely chopped
• 8 Portions chicken breast (about 2 pounds)
• 2 Packages Knorr Roasted Chicken Gravy Mix
• 3 Cans (7 ounces each) mild diced green chilies
• 6 Cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 Cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1/2 Teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 Jalapeños, seeded and chopped
• 1 Can (28 ounces) white hominy, drained
• 8 (6-inch) flour tortillas
• 1 Tomato, diced
• 1/2 Cup fat free sour cream

DIRECTIONS

• 1

  In a large pot, combine chicken broth, onion and chicken breasts. Heat to boiling over high heat. Then reduce heat to low and simmer until the chicken is no longer pinck in the center, about 20 minutes. Remove chicken from the broth and set aside to cool.

• 2

  Use whisk to blend and gravy mix into the broth. Then add chilies, garlic, cilantro, cumin, jalapeños and hominy. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; then reduce heat to low. Shred the cooked chicken by pulling it apart with two forks, and add it back into the broth. Cover and simmer for 40 minutes.

• 3

  Warm flour tortillas by placing them between two damp paper towels and microwaving on high for 45 seconds.

• 4

  Spoon a portion of the green chili (about 1 1/2cups) into each bowl, top with a spoonful of diced tomato and a tablespoon of sour cream.

• 5

  Fold a warm tortilla, and place it beside the bowl of chili for dipping. Serve and enjoy!

Source: Eating for Life

Broiled Sea Bass Staten Island Style

Makes 2 servings

I have used sea bass and flounder for this recipe and both are great. You just have to adjust the cooking time for the thickness of the fish. I have also used dried parsley and dried basil in place of fresh.

INGREDIENTS

• 3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic
• 10-12 oz. Chilean farm-raised sea bass, cleaned ( or other desired fish)
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper
• 1 tsp. fresh chopped Italian parsley
• 1/2 tsp. fresh basil
• 1/2 lemon

DIRECTIONS

• 1

  Preheat oven to 500°F.

• 2

  In a blender, combine the oil and garlic until well-blended.

• 3

  Place the fish in a medium bowl. Pour the oil mixture over the fish. Marinate well,

  for about 30 minutes.

• 4

  Remove the fish from the bowl and place in a small broiling tray, about 1" larger

  than the fish. Sprinkle the fish with salt, pepper, paprika, and red pepper.

• 5

  In a small bowl combine the parsley and basil. Sprinkle over the fish. Squeeze

  the lemon juice over the fish.

• 6

  Bake the fish for 25 to 30 minutes.

Source: SouthBeachDiet

Choucroute Garnie a l'Alsacienne (Sauerkraut with meat)

Add any meat you want to the crockpot......sausages, hotdogs, pork chops etc.

Rinse a bag of sauerkraut in a strainer and then place over meat in crockpot.

Add: 2 sliced onions

2 cloves of garlic

1 bay leaf

8 Juniper berries (found at specialty grocery stores in the dried herb isle)

Salt and pepper to taste

Cover with Alsace wine ( can also use German wine)

Cook in crock pot for 4-6 hours ( after a couple hours I usually try to mix it up a little)

Sage and Rosemary Pork - Phase 1 South Beach Diet

Serves 6
Description
Butterflying the pork loin open, filling it, and then rolling it back up is a great way to infuse flavor into the loin. This recipe is perfect when you're having guests for dinner.

Ingredients
FILLING:
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage or thyme leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

PORK LOIN:
2 pounds boneless center-loin pork roast
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/3 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Fresh sage leaves, for garnish
Rosemary sprigs, for garnish

Instructions
To make the filling: In a small bowl, combine the parsley, sage or thyme, rosemary, garlic, oil, mustard, salt, and pepper.

To make the pork loin: Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Butterfly the pork loin. Sprinkle the top side of the butterflied loin with half of the salt and pepper. Spread the filling evenly across the loin, leaving a 1?2-inch border along the edge where you made the first cut.

Beginning at the opposite edge, roll the loin up to wrap the filling. Using kitchen twine, tie the loin every 1 1?2 inches to hold its shape.

Rub the loin with the oil and sprinkle with the remaining salt and pepper. Place the loin in a small roasting pan and position on the center rack of the oven. Roast for 1 hour, or until a thermometer inserted in the center registers 155°F and the juices run clear. Let stand for 10 minutes before carving. To prevent slices from unrolling, skewer the roast every 1/4 inch with wooden picks along the edge where the roll ends. Slice crosswise between the wooden picks and ties. Remove the kitchen twine before serving. Garnish with the sage leaves and rosemary sprigs.

Caprese On A Stick

Caprese on a stick

Makes: 40 pieces

Ready in: 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 pint cherry/grape tomatoes
• 1 bunch basil leaves (need a leaf for every piece)
• 8 oz tub of bocconcini (aka mozzarella in brine/water)
• 3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
• toothpicks to assemble the caprese
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Wash and dry the cherry tomatoes. Pierce the tomatoes with the toothpicks and lay them out on a plate.

2. Fold the basil leaf and push it next over the toothpick.

3. Now comes a piece of mozzarella. Bocconcini sometimes comes as small marinated mozzarella balls and at times in plain brine. I picked out the plain ones. Also the ones I got were large so I had to slice them into smaller pieces. I cut them approximately the same size as the tomatoes.

4. For the dressing, I whisked together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, italian seasoning, pepper and salt and then drizzled it over the caprese. I made sure that I drizzled the mozzarella pieces generously. If you leave the salad out for a bit before serving it, the cheese gets marinated quite well. Also I just put these out on one plate, but you could get creative and lay them out in a line, or on a couple of different plates to spread it out in your party! Also when you start eating it, as you pick up each piece you can coat it nicely with the dressing that has dripped onto the plate. Enjoy!

Best French Onion Soup Ever

THE BEST FRENCH ONION SOUP

From: Cook’s Illustrated

Serves 6

Notes:

For the best flavor, make the soup a day or 2 in advance. Alternatively, the onions can be prepared through step 1, cooled in the pot, and refrigerated for up to 3 days before proceeding with the recipe.
Ingredients:

Soup

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter , cut into 3 pieces
• 6 large yellow onions (about 4 pounds), halved and cut pole to pole into 1/4-inch-thick slices (Make sure you get Yellow)
• Table salt
• 2 cups water, plus extra for deglazing
• 1/2 cup dry sherry
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth (They recommend Swanson Certified Organic Free Range Chicken Broth )
• 2 cups beef broth (They recommend Pacific Beef Broth)
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme , tied with kitchen twine
• 1 bay leaf
• Ground black pepper

Cheese Croutons

• 1 small baguette , cut into 1/2-inch slices
• 8 ounces shredded Gruyère cheese (about 2 1/2 cups)

Directions:

For the soup:

1. Adjust the oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Generously spray the inside of a heavy-bottomed large (at least 7-quart) Dutch oven with a nonstick cooking spray. Place the butter in the pot and add the onions and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, covered, for 1 hour (the onions will be moist and slightly reduced in volume). Remove the pot from the oven and stir the onions, scraping the bottom and sides of the pot. Return the pot to the oven with the lid slightly ajar and continue to cook until the onions are very soft and golden brown, 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours longer, stirring the onions and scraping bottom and sides of pot after 1 hour.
3. Carefully remove pot from oven and place over medium-high heat. Using oven mitts to handle pot, cook onions, stirring frequently and scraping bottom and sides of pot, until the liquid evaporates and the onions brown, 15 to 20 minutes, reducing the heat to medium if the onions are browning too quickly. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the pot bottom is coated with a dark crust, roughly 6 to 8 minutes, adjusting the heat as necessary. (Scrape any fond that collects on spoon back into onions.)
4. Stir in 1/4 cup water, scraping the pot bottom to loosen crust, and cook until water evaporates and pot bottom has formed another dark crust, 6 to 8 minutes. Repeat process of deglazing 2 or 3 more times, until onions are very dark brown. Stir in the sherry and cook, stirring frequently, until the sherry evaporates, about 5 minutes.
5. Stir in the broths, 2 cups of water, thyme, bay leaf, and 1/2 teaspoon salt, scraping up any final bits of browned crust on bottom and sides of pot.
6. Increase heat to high and bring to simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove and discard herbs, then season with salt and pepper.

For the croutons:

1. While the soup simmers, arrange the baguette slices in single layer on baking sheet and bake in a 400-degree oven until the bread is dry, crisp, and golden at edges, about 10 minutes. Set aside.

To serve:

1. Adjust oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Set individual broiler-safe crocks on baking sheet and fill each with about 1 3/4 cups soup. Top each bowl with 1 or 2 baguette slices (do not overlap slices) and sprinkle evenly with Gruyère. Broil until cheese is melted and bubbly around edges, 3 to 5 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.