Recipes anyone??

[Brigid]

Okay, since I seem to be the resident cook in the group (its good to be known for something   ) and I mentioned I might do this on another thread, I guess I will take the plunge.

This is a recipe that I got from a man I worked with many years ago.  He used to bring this cake to work every now and then and we all raved about it.  He has us convinced that he was the one who made it, along with the many other delicacies he used to share with us.  At the company Christmas party we finally met his wife.  We told her how much we loved her husband's cooking and had been begging him to share his recipes.  Needless to say, she let us know right then that he barely knew how to turn on the oven and that she had made everything he brought it.  Fortunately, she had no problem sharing this and many of the other wonderful things she made.  This recipe has since been published in a cookbook under my name.  Enjoy!!

Mandarin Orange Cake
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, beaten
2 cans mandarin oranges (11 oz each), drained
1 cup packed brown sugar
4 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter and flour 2 8-inch cake pans or 1 9x13-inch pan.

Sift flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.  Add to beaten eggs.  Add oranges.  Beat with mixer four minutes.  Pour batter into prepared pan(s).  Bake 40 minutes.  Mix brown sugar, milk and butter in small saucepan.  Bring to a boil.  Pour over hot cake right from the oven.  Delicious served with whipped cream.

[Anonymous]

Thought I'd share this recipe, it's so easy, quick and yummy and perfect for when you don't feel like cooking.

Tuna, Oregano & Creamy Tomato Pasta

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 x 400g cans chopped tomato
2 teaspoons dried oregano
375ml cream
300g can tuna in oil (drained)
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
freshly grated Parmesan

Heat oil, add garlic and cook for a minute or two. Add tomato and oregano, salt and pepper and simmer for about 10-15 minutes until sauce has thickened a little.
Pour in cream and heat gently. Gently stir in tuna and lemon zest.
Add hot pasta (500g), mix (gently again) and serve with parmesan on top.

I'm off to get a couple of cans of mandarin...

[Anonymous]

Okay, since I seem to be the resident cook in the group (its good to be known for something   ) and I mentioned I might do this on another thread, I guess I will take the plunge.

Mandarin Orange Cake

this is going to be a fun thread, i cant wait to see what people write.

i only want to know are you supposed to squish up the oranges.... ? i dont have a mixer so id do it by hand. i guess at some point this will be clarified.

yay@ ! recipes.


ok brigid  since you started with oranges, i will say somethign about lemons... i will share a very refreshing drink that is actually used in oriental medicine and called the 'master cleanse'.  its very very healthy (if simple) and good for cleansing your system and recharging those aching brain cells.



master cleanse


16 oz glass
3 FRESH lemons or limes - they have to be fresh
2 - 3 tsp of pure maple syrup - has to be pure
dash cayenne pepper
clean water


squeeze the fresh lemons or limes into your glass. add the maple syrup. add the cayenne.  fill the glass with clean water & stir.  adjust everything to your taste. you can do the ingredients in any ratio really, as long as it tastes the way you like. it can be very strong or very watered down. doesnt matter.  you can make a small glass or a big jug of this at a time.

lemon juice is an astringent and encourages your tissues to release toxins. the cayenne encourages blood flow which helps the toxins exit your body. both have a lot of vitamin c which is good for stress.

if you want to get fancy, do not eat for awhile (be careful about not eating if you are stressed though) and just drink as much of this juice as you want. exercise and make yourself sweat and keep drinking this juice.

a lot of people just pick one full day to not eat and do their 'cleanse'.

ok theres my recipe... this is going to be fun. GFN, did you get that one? give it a shot....! yay - fun
anna

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Brigid,

I'm not much of a cook.  I do the basics since my children have simple tastes at the present time and hubby is easy to please.  I just try to make the meals healthy.

Glad you started this thread.  It's always good to learn new things.  I am willing to experiment and will yield to the expertise of all the chefs on board.

Can't wait for more recipes. Yummy!

Mia

[Brigid]

Anna,

i only want to know are you supposed to squish up the oranges.... ?

Yes, the oranges provide the moisture for the cake and you would not know they were in there if you ate the cake.  You could try using a wisk and a lot of arm motion   , but when you're done the batter will have an orange color to it, but the oranges themselves will be unidentifiable.  Does that make sense?  Good luck.

I have to say Anna, your recipe sounds a little scary   --cayenne pepper mixed with maple syrup is a combination I would never have considered.  I'm guessing that it will really clean you out.  
Thanks for sharing.

Brigid

[mum]

Anna: re: this "cleanse": I'm not a big fan of sitting in the bathroom all day between workouts.... is this like that?
I have been burning the candle at both ends to finish up the school year, (lots of caffiene) so I could use a cleansing... but what kind? hmmmm

[write]

three large leeks
two tablespoons  butter
two large potatoes, cut into small pieces
one onion, finely chopped
water
small tin evaporated milk

wash and slice the leeks ( it's the white/ light green for best eating, and leeks tend to pick up soil so wash carefully ) then lightly cook in the butter for @ 7 minutes.

Fill the pan up with water, add the onion and potato.

Cook for an hour to two until everything is reduced and soft.

Mash!

Add the evap. milk.

Let stand for an hour.
Serve with black pepper.

Can be kept refrigerated for up to 5 days, improves with age I think.

[d'smom]

Anna: re: this "cleanse": I'm not a big fan of sitting in the bathroom all day between workouts.... is this like that?
I have been burning the candle at both ends to finish up the school year, (lots of caffiene) so I could use a cleansing... but what kind? hmmmm

no......     its not at all like that. it comes out through your skin. thats why it helps to sweat and stay clean.  the last time i did one of these, was last year.... i did it for 8 days.....  becuase i was going off a number of medicines, and i really wanted to make sure they were out of my system. i felt -great- afterwards and also lost weight. i try to do one or two days of it at least every year.

the only thing it makes you do is pee a little more (sorry )  and at the end your skin will be silky smooth and you will look 5-10 years younger. that is the feedback i usually get. people kept telling me how great my skin looked. so......??

i can tell from the mandarin cake, that our tastes will all be widely varied. for instance, that cake has a huge amount of sugar for me. (tho i would definitely eat it at a party!) if i were to make it, i would probably fiddle with the recipe to reduce the sugar or try to replace it with honey... so, i see how the idea of cayenne in lemonade could be alarming to someone whose taste is used to 'normal' amounts of sugar in food...... but its really very refreshing.   just start small, til you are used to it.

in mexico the street vendors sell mangoes that are sprinkled with chili powder. its not that unusual.

in my 20's i did this cleanse the first time for 22 days. just got out of a long relatioship and needed a lot of things out of my system. i do at least a few days of it every year, i think it keeps me young.    

thanks brigid, i will squish the oranges. thats what i thought. ok, onward and upward  
anna

[2cents]

Hi Anna,

I'm definitely gonna give it a try - 5 to 10 years younger w. silky soft skin? Can't wait!

Brigid,

Thanks for starting this thread!

(((all))) 2cents

[d'smom]

Hi Anna,

I'm definitely gonna give it a try - 5 to 10 years younger w. silky soft skin? Can't wait!

ohhh!!!!! thought you were gonnna give a recipe!  (im doing that leek soup this week! )

important tip: anytime you do this cleanse for longer than a day or two, its important to begin eating again slowly with broth and steamed veggies and things....... to not shock your newly clean system.

challenge yourself and try to go for two or three days. its an experience.  get a skin brush and scrub a lot. you'l feel great.

also its ok to drink herb tea at night on this cleanse.

have fun!

[mum as guest]

I thought this would crack me up:  as I am writing down the cleanse recipe I am shoving fistfuls of chocolate covered soy nuts in my mouth....
so I guess that's a no no on cleanse day?

[d'smom]

I guess that's a no no on cleanse day?

quite possibly  but, knock yourself out - were all adults here (mostly)

now, you must have a recipe...!  i dont think theres any rules about how healthy it has to be.....

[Brigid]

Anna,
I love the soft skin and looking 8-10 years younger, BUT do I have to just drink that potion for a period of days without eating anything else?   I need to eat a decent amount of calories per day or I start getting light-headed and dropping weight (sorry) which I don't need to do.  

I agree that my recipe has a lot of sugar in it.  It is an older recipe and I'm sure if it were done today, it could be made "lighter" and somewhat healthier.  However, I rarely make desserts, so when I do, I like them to be decadent and don't much care how caloric they are.

Over time, I'll try to share some that appeal to the more health conscious folks among us.  I admit to not being very good about that.

For those of you who think your easy, simple meals aren't wanted or aren't "good enough" to be shared, pleeeeease share them.  My day-to-day cooking for me and the kids is mostly very simple and I, for one, am always looking for easy, quick things to throw together that they will eat.  They aren't as bad as when they were little, but still don't like being my guinea pigs for gourmet meals.  

I would like some grilling recipes from the men, too (how sexist is that   ) since the warmer weather is thinking about coming upon us.

Brigid

[Brigid]

I just remembered that I had this recipe up here in my office because I had recently made it for some friends and they wanted the recipe, so I e-mailed it to them.  Very easy and healthy, too.

Couscous-Vegetable Salad

1 cup uncooked couscous
1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch slices (2 cups)
1 medium yellow summer squash, cut into 1/4-inch slices (1 1/2 cups)
1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 medium red onion, cut into 8 wedges
1 container (7 ounces) refrigerated pesto with sun-dried tomatoes or regular pesto (I will try this with my own pesto when my basil is up this summer)
2 tablespoons balsamic or cider vinegar

1.  Prepare couscous as directed on package.

2.  Meanwhile, heat oil in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook zucchini, yellow squash, bell pepper and onion in oil about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until crisp-tender.

3.  Toss couscous, vegetable mexture, pesto and vinegar in large bowl.  Serve warm or cool.

Serves 6.

[serena]

I just remembered that I had this recipe up here in my office because I had recently made it for some friends and they wanted the recipe, so I e-mailed it to them.  Very easy and healthy, too.

Couscous-Vegetable Salad

1 cup uncooked couscous
1 tablespoon olive or vegetable oil
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1/4-inch slices (2 cups)
1 medium yellow summer squash, cut into 1/4-inch slices (1 1/2 cups)
1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 medium red onion, cut into 8 wedges
1 container (7 ounces) refrigerated pesto with sun-dried tomatoes or regular pesto (I will try this with my own pesto when my basil is up this summer)
2 tablespoons balsamic or cider vinegar

1.  Prepare couscous as directed on package.

2.  Meanwhile, heat oil in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook zucchini, yellow squash, bell pepper and onion in oil about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until crisp-tender.

3.  Toss couscous, vegetable mexture, pesto and vinegar in large bowl.  Serve warm or cool.

Serves 6.

This sounds wonderful.  Incidentally, I'd be very grateful if you could give me any tips for growing basil.  I've tried (and failed) growing it from seed for several years now.  It's really expensive in the UK but my favourite herb and I love homemade pesto also.

This is how I make mine:
3 large bunches of basil
handful of toasted pine kernels
Olive oil
2 cloves roasted garlic
Parmesan cheese
Zest and juice of one lemon

All 'zinged' in a food processor and it doesn't just taste fantastic but there's a wonderful smell in the kitchen!