Cooking - for a new lifestyle (Our Test Kitchen)

2 servings Soaking 20 min   Preparation 10 min 230 calories per serving   Ingredients 6 dried apricots   4 tbsp 2 tbsp white wine   30 mL 5 cups baby spinach   80 g 2 tbsp canola oil 30 mL 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar   8 mL 1/2 tsp honey   4 g 1 pinch salt  [optional] 0.1 g   ground pepper to taste     1/4 cup walnuts  [optional] 26 g Method In a small bowl,  macerate  the apricots in the white wine for at least 20 min. Drain the apricots, resrving the liquid, slice them into bite size pieces and put them in a salad bowl. Wash the baby spinach and spin dry, then add it to the salad bowl. Set aside. Mix the reserved wine, oil, vinegar, honey, salt and pepper.  Beat  the mixture using a fork until well emulsified. Pour the vinaigrette over the spinach and apricots then  toss  gently. Add the walnuts (optional) and serve.

I found this recipe at  http://www.sparkrecipes.com and it sounded so good I just had to try it. 1 medium onion, diced 6 oz fresh baby spinach 2 large eggs 1/2 cup egg beaters (I didn't have any so added 3 more eggs.  Why 3?  Because there were 5 in the carton . . . LOL) 1/2 cup all purpose flour 1/2 tsp baking powder pinch cayenne pepper 1-1/3 cups non fat milk 1/2 cup feta cheese Preheat oven to 400F. Lightly great a 10 inch quiche/tart pan  or pie plate. In a medium frying pan, cook diced onion with a bit of vegetable oil or cooking spray over medium-high heat until translucent and tender.  Add in fresh spinach and cook until just wilted.  Set aside to cool for a few minutes. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, flour and baking powder.  Whisk in milk, then stir in spinach-onion mixture. Pour quiche base into prepared pan.  Top with feta cheese. Bake for 25 minutes, or until centre is set and outside edge is golden ...

I will have to guesstimate some of the quantities because I just made this recipe up out of my head and it turned out really well. 1/2 big bag of Rotini pasta, cooked, rinsed with cold water and drained In a 9" x 13 pan pour enough pasta sauce to just cover the bottom and prevent the pasta from sticking. In a frying pan on medium heat cook 2 medium diced onions, 2 stalks diced celery, 1 diced large carrot, 1 lb ground beef, 2 diced cloves of garlic and seasonings of choice.  I used Epicure foccacia seasoning.  When this mixture is cooked through add the remains of the pasta sauce you already have open and then another whole can. Now that your pasta is cooled, toss in a medium carton of ricotta cheese, 1 package of no-name frozen chopped spinach, 1 egg, salt and pepper. Put the pasta mixture into the baking pan.  Cover with the sauce mixture.  Top with grated mozzarella cheese (I used 1/2 of a big block) and a couple of handfuls of grated Parmesan. C...

For 2 servings 7 cups baby spinach (120 g) 6 button (white) mushrooms, thinly sliced 1 tbsp. lemon, freshly squeezed 1/2 orange, pressed and zested 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil salt and ground pepper to taste Prepare the spinach and put it in a large bowl.  Set aside Prepare the mushrooms by thinly slicing them and transferring them to a small bowl.  Season with salt and pepper and pour in half of the lemon juice.  Set aside. Grate half of the orange to obtain the zest, then juice it.  Put the zest and juice into a small bowl.  Pour in the remaining lemon juice, mustard and oil.  Add salt and pepper to taste, then beat well using a fork, until the vinaigrette is emulsified.  Pour the vinaigrette over the spinach. Peel the remaining orange, cut into small pieces and add to the spinach.  Add the mushrooms and toss well.  Serve. From soscuisine.com

olive oil cooking spray or 1 tbsp olive oil  I use olive oil 1 medium onion, chopped 1 can (1 pound) unsalted tomatoes, crushed  the big 28 oz can 4 cups unsalted vegetable broth or water  I always use vegetable broth 2 tbsp tomato paste 3/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp ground black pepper 1 tsp dried Italian seasoning 4 ounces sea shell pasta 2 cups (packed) chopped fresh spinach  I usually use a package of frozen chopped spinach 1/2 cup grated nonfat or reduced-fat Parmesan cheese Coat a 3-quart pot with cooking spray or olive oil and place over medium heat.  Add the onions, and saute for 3 minutes, or until the onions are soft. Add the tomatoes, vegetable broth or water, tomato paste, salt, pepper and Italian seasoning to the pot.  Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil.  Add the pasta, cover and cook over medium-low heat for 8 minutes, or until the pasta is almost al dente. Add the spinach to the pot and simmer for 1 to 2 minutes, or just until the pa...

Since I am doing Herbal Magic at the moment, I have been looking over their recipes. Mum and I tried this one Sunday and even though it says it serves four we managed to get several servings from it. INGREDIENTS 2 cups tomato, diced 1 cup celery, chopped ½ cup green onion, chopped 1 cup green pepper, chopped 2 garlic cloves, minced black pepper to taste cayenne pepper to taste 3 cups spinach leaves 1 cup (8 oz.) 1% cottage cheese 10 oz. tofu (medium-firm)* 8 oz. lean ground beef** ¼ cup (2 oz.)shredded mozzarella *If tofu isn't to your liking, you can replace it with another 8oz of ground beef **You can also replace the ground beef with ground chicken, though we do suggest adding some seasoning as you brown it. Preheat oven to 400°F. Brown beef in a skillet and add tomato, celery, onion, and green pepper. Season to taste with garlic, pepper, and cayenne, and let simmer. Wash spinach. Alternate layers of meat sauce, spinach, cottage cheese, and tofu. Top with cheese and bake fo...