HELPFUL HINT ON USING EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL

Using Virgin Olive Oil is all the craze these days but there's something about it that you might not know.
When you cook with EVOO it cooks out the nutrition of the oil.
 EVOO is expensive and to just burn out all of the good stuff we think isn't such a wise thing to do.
So... the solution is this:  Use a general less expensive brand to cook with.  Then, when you're ready to serve up your delicious salad use the "good stuff" as a dressing.  That way you'll get all of the nutrition and taste you were looking for.

Hope that is a helpful hint.  It made sense to us.

Happy cooking.  Now go eat something.  You look flushed.

Steve & Kim

GREEK MEATBALLS

We're trying to stay on the heart-smart side of things these days.  Carol Feltman, from Washington, provided us with this great recipe so we asked her if we could share it with everyone.  She agreed so here it is.  Hope you enjoy it.  We did.




INGREDIENTS:

1 pound very lean ground round or ground turkey

1/2 cup soft whole grain breadcrumbs

2 TBS. finely chopped onion

2 TBS. skim milk

1 TBS. chopped fresh parsley

1 tsp. minced fresh mint leaves

1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp. salt (can do without because of Worcestershire---if on NSA diet)

1 egg white

2 cloves garlic, minced finely

Vegetable cooking spray

2 (8-oz.) cans tomato sauce (can use no-salt added tomato sauce)

2 TBS. chopped fresh parsley

1 tsp. dried oregano

1/4 tsp. sugar

1/4 tsp. Pepper ( use fresh cracked--it just tastes better)

3 cups of cooked rice---(can use instant--without adding salt or fats)

PREPARATION:

Combine the first 11 ingredients in a medium bowl; stir well. 

Shape mixture into 30 meatballs, about 1 1/4 inch round.

Place the meatballs on rack in a shallow pan. Bake at 350 degrees F. for about 30 minutes

or until browned, turning once during baking. Drain on paper towels.

Combine tomato sauce and next 4 ingredients in a large skillet; bring to a boil. Add meatballs; cover, reduce heat, and simmer for about 10 minutes until completely heated through.

Serve over rice and garnish with Feta cheese and mint leaves.

Yield: 6 servings

CHOCOLATE-CHERRY HEART SMART COOKIES

If you're anything like me you love the taste of cherries and also of chocolate.  So what could be better than combining the two and using them in a great cookie?  The answer is; nothing!  So let's get started.




INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 ounces of all-purpose flour (about 1/3 cup)
1 1/2 ounces of whole-wheat flour (about 1/3 cup)
1 1/2 cups of old-fashioned rolled oats
2 eggs
A pinch of salt
1 teaspoon of baking soda
6 tablespoons of unsalted butter
3/4 cup of packed light brown sugar
1 cup dried cherries
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
3 ounces of bittersweet chocolate coarsely chopped
Cooking spray

PREPARATION:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Weigh or lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with knife.  Combine flours and next 3 ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl; stir with a whisk.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat.  Remove from the heat and add the brown sugar and stir it until it is smooth.  Add sugar mixture to the flour mixture and beat with a mixer at medium speed until it is well blended.  Add the cherries, vanilla and egg; beat until combined.  Fold in chocolate.  Drop the dough by tablespoonfuls 2-inches apart onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray.  Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes.  Remove from oven and cool on the pan for about 3 minutes or until they are almost firm.  Remove from the pans on continue to cool your cookies on wire racks.

Now, step back as the family invades your kitchen.  You did good.  Enjoy this special treat while being heart-smart about it at the same time.

SPICE UP YOUR LIFE WITH ANDOUILLE SAUSAGES

 Our thanks to Carol Feltman of Seattle, Washington for this great recipe.

"Home made spicy Andouille sausages. Adjust the seasonings to suit your preferences. Pack any unused sausage casings in a jar with salt."

Prep Time:
20 Min Cook Time:
15 Min Ready In:
1 Hr 35 Min

Original Recipe Yield 3 sausages
Ingredients

1 1/2 yards of large sausage casing, about 2 to 3 inches wide
4 pounds lean pork meat
2 pounds pork fat
1/4 cup minced garlic
2 tablespoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon ground paprika
1/4 teaspoon crushed bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon dried sage
5 teaspoons hickory-flavored liquid smoke
Directions

Soak the casing in cold water for about an hour to soften it and loosen the salt in which it is packed. Place the wide end of the sausage stuffer up against the sink faucet and run cold water through the inside of the casing to remove excess salt.
Cut the meat and fat into 1/2-inch wide chunks. Pass them once through the coarse blade of a meat grinder. In a large bowl, mix together the ground pork and fat with the garlic, salt, pepper, cayenne, thyme, paprika, bay leaf, sage, and hickory smoke. A wooden spoon works well.
Cut the casing into 26 inch lengths and tie a small knot in one end of each. Fit the open end over the tip of the sausage stuffer and slide it on until the tip of the stuffer touches the knot. The casing will look like accordion folds. This keeps excess air from getting into the casings. Fit the stuffer onto the meat grinder or according the directions that come with the stuffer, or hold the wide end of the stuffer against or over the opening by hand.
Fill the hopper with the sausage mixture. Turn the machine on if it is electric and feed the stuffing gradually into the hopper; for a manual machine, push the stuffing through with a wooden pestle. The sausage casing will fill and inflate gradually. Stop filling about 1 1/4 inches from the funnel end and slip the casing off the funnel, smoothing out any bumps carefully with your fingers and being careful not to push the stuffing out of the casing. Tie off the open end of the sausage tightly with a piece of string or make a knot in the casing itself.
To cook, slice the sausage into half-inch rounds and grill in a hot skillet with no water for about 12 minutes on each side, or until brown and crisp at the edges.