BANANA BREAD - - - Got brown bananas?
Preheat oven to 325°F. Use a wooden spoon, as this doesn't have to be mixed well. In order given, mix together the following: 1 stick butter (room temp), 1 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt, 2 eggs, 3 very brown bananas - crushed, 2 cups plain flour, 1/2 tsp. baking soda, 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional). Spray 4"x8" loaf pan, dump in dough and bake for 1 hour. Great served warm with butter. When cool, remove from pan and store in plastic wrap. The acid in bananas is bad for your pan.

HEART ATTACK CHICKEN
This is our family's very favorite recipe. It's so yummy but so bad for your arteries!
Start boiling a large pot of salted water to cook noodles. Add 1 bag wide noodles, cook, drain. Melt 1 stick of butter with 1 pkg. dry Good Season Italian Dressing Mix (or Ranch) in deep pan. Add small bag of flash frozen chicken breast tenderloin strips (should overlap a little in the pan). When chicken is almost done (well done=rubbery), lower heat and add 1 can condensed Cream of Chicken (or Celery) soup and an 8 oz. block cream cheese (melts better from room temp). Chicken will finish cooking while the soup and cheese melt. Mix well. Once the cream cheese is blended in, everything should be hot. Get fancy! Add fresh sliced mushrooms halfway through the chicken cooking time. Add a jar of drained artichoke hearts, canned mushrooms, fresh sliced asparagus, or a handful of frozen peas just before serving. Put drained noodles in a large serving bowl, top with chicken mixture. Total cook time: ½ hour. Good served with a fluffy green salad with grape tomatoes and use the same flavor salad dressing as you used in the chicken recipe.

VEG-ALL CASSEROLE
This is a wonderful dish to bring to any covered dish gathering. Warning, you'll be asked to bring it from then on!
Mix first 6 ingredients in a Casserole Dish (no need to grease it) : 2 cans Veg-All drained, 1 can Niblets Crispy Yellow Corn drained, 1 cup chopped raw Onion, 1 cup chopped raw Celery, 1 cup grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese, and 1 cup Mayo. Melt ½ stick butter and mix with 1½ cup crushed Ritz Crackers. Sprinkle the buttered Ritz Cracker crumbs to cover the top of casserole. Bake at 350 degrees for about ½ hour.

BUTTER MELT AWAY COOKIES A Christmas requirement!
1 lb butter (4 sticks) – room temp, 1½ c. cornstarch, 2/3 c. powdered sugar, 2 c. plain flour
Beat together and either use a cookie shooter, drop by tsp, or make small bite-sized balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Cookies should remain pale and not be browned at all. Remove from oven and slide a few hot cookies at a time into a bowl of powdered sugar and gently roll, then sit cookies on cooling rack. Once finished, I sprinkle more powdered sugar using a screen strainer. Let cool before putting in canister, placing waxed paper between each layer.

In a soup pot, heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil and add 1 small chopped onion and 4 chopped carrots. Cook for about six minutes, or until tender. Add 1 tsp. Cumin, cook another minute, To this, add 1 cup dried red lentils, 14.5 oz. can vegetable broth (I used chicken), a14.5 ounce chopped tomatoes, 2 cups water, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce and cover, then simmer on low for ten minutes. Red lentils soften fast! Stir in a bag of fresh spinach just before serving.
We had this with brown rice, and because we couldn't find red lentils, we tried the totally delicious Anasazi Beans instead. Sweet beans mixed with acidic tomatoes is a wonderful combination!

OTHER MEALS AND RECIPES I HAVE MADE AND LIKED

SOUR CREAM POUND CAKE - I bake cakes for my friends every Christmas.
½ lb. butter (2 sticks) room temperature, 3 c. sugar, ½ tsp salt, 6 eggs room temperature, 3 cups all-purpose flour, ¼ tsp. baking soda, 3 drops lemon extract (1/8 tsp), 1 c. sour cream, 1 tsp vanilla
Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs one a a time. Add vanilla and lemon. Sift all dry ingredients THREE TIMES. Mix into wet mixture, alternating dry ingredients with sour cream. Bake at 300 degrees for 1½ hours in tall tube pan. Cool five minutes in the pan. Take out and cool to room temp.
For the flavors to enhance, it is best to sit (covered) for a day or two before cutting the cake.

KILLER SHRIMP & SCALLOP SALAD - a Paula Deen recipe revised to suit me
1 (6.9-ounce) package chicken flavor Rice a Roni, 1 (6-ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, quartered, 1/2 cup mayonnaise, 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped, 3 to 4 green onions, chopped, 12 to 14 pimiento-stuffed green olives, sliced, 1 teaspoon curry powder, 1/2 pound small or medium shrimp, peeled, deveined, and cooked, 1/2 pound cooked scallops
---In a skillet sprayed with vegetable oil cooking spray, brown the instant rice and pasta mixture. Do not add the butter or oil that the package directions suggest. Add the water the package requires and the seasoning packet and prepare according to package directions. Drain the artichoke hearts and reserve the marinade. In a small bowl, whisk the marinade and the mayonnaise to combine, then add to rice. Add the bell pepper, green onions, olives, curry powder, cooked seafood, and mix together. Gently fold in the artichokes so they don't fall apart.
---This dish is great served hot, immediately after cooking. If serving as a salad, chill until ready to serve. If serving as a casserole, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place in a 2 1/2-quart casserole dish and bake for 20 minutes, until heated through. This is really good...Mark and I couldn't stop ourselves!

APPLE DUMPLINGS
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and quartered
1 pkg. crescent rolls, 8 each
1 cup sugar in a bowl with some cinnamon, about a teaspoon
1 cup Sprite
Roll apples in cinnamon sugar. Enclose apples in crescent rolls. Place apple in 9x13 Pyrex dish. It is a good idea to let this sit out for about 15 minutes to let the dough warm up. Pour Sprite around the dumplings. Pour the rest of the cinnamon sugar over the dumplings in the dish. Cook for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. If close to the end of the cooking time it looks like they are getting too brown, cover lightly with foil.

Uncle RP’s Famous LONDON BROIL Use flank steak - 1/3 pound per person - unless you are really hungry or like leftovers. Yummy in a pita with smothered onions and peppers.
Sprinkle a little garlic salt on meat.
Make a Marinade: ½-cup Worcestershire, ½-cup soy sauce, ½-cup vegetable or olive oil, ½-cup wine (red or white), 2 dashes Tabasco.
Mix marinade, put marinade and meat in covered dish or gallon storage bag in refrigerator. Marinate steak for at least two hours, turning occasionally. Remove from refrigerator one hour before cooking.
Cook on grill about 4 or 5 minutes (no longer) on each side. Brush marinate on meat while grilling. Let meat rest for a minute or two before slicing in thin slices across the grain (at an angle). Meat will be rare. Boil rest of marinade and pour over sliced meat. Serve immediately.
Uncle RP always used flank steak. London broil is more expensive and flank is just as tasty.

EGGS - I was on a diet, and it's easy fixings...lots of grapefruit, soft poached and hard boiled eggs, salads.
Poached Eggs - Fill small pot halfway (as deep as an egg is in the shell, lying on its side) and bring water to a boil on high. Once the water is boiling, turn the fire off and move the pot off so it stops bubbling. One at a time, crack two eggs open and gently slide the raw eggs into the pot of steaming water. If you put raw eggs into bubbling water, they will break to pieces and be a big mess, so don't allow the water to boil again. Place the pot back on the still-warm burner (turned off) and cover. Let sit just a couple of minutes until the yolk looks satisfactory to your taste. Sometimes I like very runny yolks, so I will use a spoon and splash the hot water on the egg to hasten the white to solidify. Using a slotted spoon, gently lift the eggs out one at a time. There will be lots of white residue left behind in the water. My dog thinks it is a great treat to get some of that hot egg-water on her dry dog food in the mornings.
Hard Boiled Eggs - Put eggs in a pot and fill with cool tap water. I heard that using eggs that have been brought to room temperature reduces the green/grey color that sometimes covers the yolk, but I never plan that far in advance. The size of pot depends on amount of eggs you intend to boil. The water must be deep enough to cover the eggs. Put the pot of water and eggs on stove, medium high. Bring to a rolling boil, turn off burner, cover with a well-fitting lid and let sit until water cools to room temperature. Remove and refrigerate. Voila...Hard boiled eggs!

Grilled Pork Chops and Zuchini Squash
A fast dinner..
Chop a small onion, place in medium saucepan with a couple of tablespoons of butter, salt, and lots of pepper. Cook until onions are clear. Slice a few squashes into the pot, then add water to only halfway up the zuchini level. Cover, put on med-high and bring to a boil. Cook a few minutes, turn to simmer untile desierd mushiness. I like mine murdered and mushy.
Slam frozen porkchops on the counter until they seperate. Put on hot grill. Sprinkle with whatever mixed seasoning you can find. Turn over.
Feed family. If they want something starchy to go with this meal, offer buttered bread. We had low-carb ice cream for dessert.

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE TRIFLE
Ingredients: 1/2 baked vanilla sheet cake, large packet (5.1 oz) prepared vanilla pudding, 3 cups whole strawberries, 4 Tbsp. sugar, 1/2 cup Chambord Liqueur, large container(16 oz) Cool Whip, 1/4 cup chocolate syrup or hot fudge ice cream topping.
Steps: Bake cake - cool, cut in half (and freeze remaining half for another day). Cut cake into one inch cubes. Set aside. Mix large package of instant vanilla pudding according to the directions on the package. Set aside to congeal. Slice about 3-cups of strawberries (mine were frozen, so I had to defrost them first), sprinkle sugar over strawberries, add liqueur (optional). If you don't use the liqueur, add a little more sugar. Set aside to get soggy for a few minutes. Place half of the cake cubes in the bottom of a large glass bowl. Cover with half of the strawberries (spoon on so it's even), then spread half of the pudding. Repeat. Top with entire container of defrosted Cool whip. I had hot fudge ice cream topping (thicker than chocolate syrup) and I put 1/4 cup in the microwave for a few seconds to heat to the consistency that allowed me to drizzle all over the top of the whipped cream. Cool for at least 3 hours in the fridge so flavors meld. Yummy.
The liqueur was used as a flavoring, as one would use vanilla. It gave a stronger berry flavor. Perhaps a little strawberry extract would do the same.

SPAGHETTI SAUCE MEATLOAF
Ingredients: 2 lbs ground chuck, 1 lb. ground pork, 3 eggs, 2 cups seasoned dry bread crumbs, 1 large onion, chopped, 1- 26 oz. can Hunts Garlic & Herb Spaghetti Sauce, handful of shredded mozzerella.
Steps: Mix beef, pork, eggs, bread crumbs, onion, and one cup of spaghetti sauce. Mix well. Form two loaves and place in loaf pans, cover with remaining spaghetti sauce. Cover one loaf to freeze (tape baking instructions on the foil) and remember to defrost before baking. Bake (defrosted) individual meatloaf, uncovered, at 350F for about an hour. Spoon sauce over meatloaf, sprinkle some shredded mozzerella cheese on top and continue baking a few minutes to melt cheese.

CHICKEN PICCATA
Ingredients: 1/4 cup water, 2 tablespoons butter, 1 tablespoon butter, 1 tablespoon flour, 1 teaspoon seasoned salt, large zip-top bag, 4 chicken breast cutlets (about 1 lb), 1 tablespoon capers, 1/2 lemon (for juice, rinsed)
Steps: 1. Place flour and seasoned salt in zip-top bag; shake to mix. Add chicken; seal tightly and shake to coat. 2. Preheat large sauté pan on medium-high 2–3 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter; swirl to coat. 3. Add chicken; cook 5 minutes, without turning, or until golden. 4. Turn chicken. Stir in capers, juice of one-half lemon (about 1 tablespoon), remaining 1 tablespoon butter, and 1/4 cup water. Cook 2–3 minutes or until sauce begins to thicken and internal temperature of chicken reaches 165°F. Use a meat thermometer to accurately ensure doneness.
Serve with pine nut couscous and quick asparagus.

QUICK ASPARAGUS
Ingredients: 1 pound fresh asparagus spears (rinsed), 1 tablespoon water, 1 tablespoon butter, 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
Steps: 1. Cut 1 inch from tough root end of asparagus spears and discard. To do this quickly, group half the spears together, align ends, and slice with sharp knife. Cut into 2-inch pieces. Place in microwave-safe bowl with water. 2. Cover and microwave on HIGH 4–5 minutes, stirring once, or until desired tenderness. Drain asparagus; stir in butter and seasoned salt. Serve.

FRENCH ONION BEEF ROAST
Ingredients: 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons flour - divided, 1 boneless beef chuck roast (about 3 lbs), 1/4 cup canola oil, 1 (10.5-ounce) can condensed French onion soup (Campbell's), 1 (1-ounce) packet dry onion soup mix, 1 (4-ounce) can mushroom pieces (drained).
Steps: 1. Preheat large sauté pan on medium-high 2–3 minutes. Place 1/4 cup of the flour on plate (may be paper). Dredge roast in flour, coating both sides. 2. Place oil in large sauté pan; swirl to coat. Add roast; cook 4 minutes on each side to brown. Transfer roast to slow cooker; place slow cooker heat setting to low. 3. Reduce heat on large sauté pan to medium-low. Stir remaining 2 tablespoons flour into drippings in pan; cook 1 minute, stirring until smooth. Stir in soup, dry soup mix, and drained mushrooms; bring to a boil. Transfer soup mixture to slow cooker. 4. Cook 8–10 hours or until meat pulls apart easily with a fork.
Serve over rice. Good with green beans as a side.

CHEESEBURGER PIE
I got this recipe on the back of the Bisquick box and changed it a little to suit myself:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. The recipe said 400, but my pie got too brown on the top and needed some extra baking time to dry out the juice in the pie, so I lowered the temp and lengthened the cook time. Brown 1 pound ground beefand a large onion chopped. I don't like to chop, so I threw in a big handful of frozen chopped onion mix with bell peppers and some sort of seasoning. I came across a box of sliced mushrooms I threw in the freezer ages ago because they were going to spoil and threw that in too. I drained the hamburger/onion in the strainer and then put it on paper towels because hamburger grease is gross. Spray a large glass pie plate with Pam, spread the hamburger in the bottom. Spread a cup of shredded cheddar cheese on top. I doubled this recipe to make two pies, but didn't have 2 cups of cheddar, so the other pie got shredded mozzerella cheese and parmesan cheese. Put 1/2 cup Bisquick in a bowl. The recipe said to add 1/2 tsp salt to the meat, but I forgot. I wanted my dish to taste beefier, and lacking beef bullion, I just added a half scoop of dry onion soup mix from the big Bear Creek bag ($3.99, Big Lots) to the dry Bisquick and I figured that would also make things salty enough as well. Beat 2 eggs into 1 cup of milk and add to dry mix. Mix this up with a fork and pour over the hamburger and cheese. Bake about 30-35 minutes (350F) or until knife inserted in middle comes out clean. The Bisquik recipe says serves six, but they must be serving skinny people. We had this meal with a lettuce and tomato salad.

FRANCES' SAILOR SANDWICHES
Makes four sandwiches: Cut four knockwurst weenies into three long planks, fry in a little oil, both sides. Wipe off most of the oil and warm up about a pound of turkey pastrami in same pan. Open four sets of rye bread, layer three slices of swiss cheese on each slice, then put 1/4 of the pastrami and four slices of knockwurst on each, closing sandwich with the cheese and bread. Grill sandwiches in the frying pan until toasted to melt the cheese. Slice in half, diagonally, and serve with a dill pickle. Mark added mustard and cole slaw to his sandwich. Very yum.

FAUX CRAB CAKES
I saw this recipe being made on a Paula Deen cooking show. Mix together as each ingredient is added: 1 egg, 1/4 cup mayonaisse, 2 tablespoons chopped green onions (scallions), and 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs. Very gently fold in 2 cans drained white albacore tuna, being careful not to break up the lumps. Make into patties, coat with either dry bread crumbs or corn meal (my choice) and fry in a shallow pan with vegetable oil until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Good hot with tartar sauce or coctail sauce. I served this with red beans and rice.

Turkey Noodle Soup
Desperate to get rid of the remaining turkey from Thanksgiving, I chopped it up to throw in a pot for soup. First I chopped up three celery sticks, a medium onion, and two carrots. I put some butter and olive oil in the pot and cooked the vegetables until the onions were clear. I added the turkey and and all of the turkey broth I had left. Before I put in the broth (it was cold and became a jelly), I scraped off and threw away the fat. If you don't have the equivilant of at least two cans of turkey broth, by all means add some canned or boxed chicken broth. Add water until your pot is 3/4 full. Lots of salt, some turkey seasonings, and let it cook for about an hour. Add a bag of wide egg noodles and cook until tender. If it's not salty, it's not good. Should be a hearty soup with lots of meat and noodles.

BBQ Smoked Ribs
It is football season and in honor of our favorite team, Florida State University, I chose to cook a feast while we watch on TV. Pulled the electric smoker out and loaded it up with ten pounds of rib tips, a little spice rub, then let it rip at 250F for four hours. They are fall-off-the-bone cooked wonderfully. Pulled them from the smoker grill racks and loaded the ribs into a large crock pot, poured bbq sauce over it all, and let it sit on low for another couple of hours to soak. OH MAYUN!! Baked beans, cole slaw, and a loaf of baked bread made this a feast. I had to stop Mark from eating non-stop. Dessert is a Mrs. Smith Apple Crumb Pie, called a Cinnabun Pie. Smells good!

WINGY DINGY
Preheat oven to 425F. Divide a bag of 50 flash-frozen chicken wings into two baking pans, both lined with tin foil and sprayed with Pam. Bake 1/2 hour, turn wings over and pour Mr. Yoshida's Original Gourmet Sauce (Costco) over one pan of wings to moisten. In the second pan, coat wings with Bulliard's Louisiana Supreme Chicken Wing Sauce (Big Lots, $1). Cook another 5-10 minutes and enjoy a sweet and sour/hot feast! Serve with sliced celery sticks and blue cheese dressing.

SUMMER SQUASH CASSEROLE
2½ to 3 pounds of squash, sliced, 1 large yellow onion, diced. Cook squash and onion in water until tender; drain. Add the following: 1 stack of saltines - crushed, 3 tablespoons melted butter, 1 beaten egg, 1 cup milk, salt and pepper to taste, 1½ cups shredded cheddar cheese. Mix to blend well. Pour into a greased 8" square casserole pan. Bake in 400° oven about 45 minutes or until golden brown and set in middle. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheese, let it melt for a couple of minutes, remove from oven.

ZUCCHINI PIE
Combine first five (dry) ingredients: 1 c. Bisquick, ½ c. Parmesan Cheese, ¼ tsp. Salt, 1/8 tsp. Pepper, ½ Tbs. Parsley Flakes. Beat together wet ingredients and add to dry mixture: 4 Eggs, ½ c. Light Olive Oil (or you can use veg. oil). Then, add the raw vegetables: 3½ - 4 c. Thinly Sliced Zucchini, 1 Medium Onion, Diced. Mix well. Pour into a sprayed or buttered 10-inch pie pan or 8 inch square pan. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes. It should be a light golden brown on top. If you want, toss on a handful of mozzerella cheese to melt on top just before you take it from the oven.

PEA SOUP CROCKPOT
Pulled leftover ham bone, loaded with ham, from the freezer last night to defrost. This morning I put the ham bone, a bag of dried peas, a handful of frozen chopped bell pepper, two big handfuls of frozen chopped onion, and a fistful of mini carrots into the crockpot and covered it with water. A little salt (not too much, ham is salty) and lots of pepper, then I cooked the soup on low all day, checking to be sure it is stirred and that the water hadn't evaporated. I wasn't home for dinner, but Mark, David, Frances and her granddaughter Blessin all gave good reports. It was a no-brainer.

ONION MEATLOAF
In a bowl, mix a pound of ground sirloin, 1 raw egg, 2 T onion soup mix (I have a big bag), a palmful (1/4 cup) of oatmeal, a slice of dry toasted bread - chopped up, about 1/2 cup (2 palmfuls) frozen chopped onion, several shakes of Spike seasoned salt, squirt about 1/2 catsup, a couple of shakes of hot datil pepper red sauce, a few shakes of worstecheshire sauce, and a beef bullion cube melted in about 1/4 cup hot water to make mixture blend nicely but still hold its form. Stir that all together and dump into a prepared bread pan, forming it into a roll. Mark likes "Meatloaf Surprise", which would include sticking a hot dog or two into the center, but I didn't have any hot dogs, so I put a couple of sticks of string cheese. I knew it wouldn't show when we sliced the meatloaf, but thought, "Hmmmmm, this might give a good taste." (It did.) Squirt catsup in zig-zag over the top, then bake at 350F for 1/2 hour. Pour off fat and cook an additional 10-15 minutes.

MEXICAN BEEF WITH RICE and a VEGETABLE MEDLY
There were five tomatoes in my freezer. I held them under hot running water and peeled the skin off easily. Next I chopped them up and dropped them into the bottom of the crockkpot to start cooking down. I went to a Mexican grocery store where they speak no English. - My conversational Spanish is pitiful... Anyway, I chose a couple of pounds of big thin circles of thinly sliced seasoned mystery beef. I have no idea what the seasoning was, but it was a reddish orange and included salt. Once home, I cut up a large onion into big chunks, stirred that into the tomatoes, ground in a bunch of pepper, then added the beef, making sure to get each slice wet and put some of the tomato/onion between each layer for flavor. Let that rip on low all day, and by dinner time, a good stir and the meat falls apart into wonderful tasty chunks. We had a deliciously fragrant beef dish ready to serve on a bed of rice.
The Vegetables
I had a head of cauliflower and a bunch of little carrots that needed to be eaten, so I opened 2 cans of green beans, put a beef bullion cube in and a small palmful of frozen chopped onions. Then I stirred in the carrots and put the entire head of cauliflower on top to steam. I didn't want it to get soggy. Once steamed, I drained the liquid, broke up the cauliflower into florettes and mixed it all together.

PORK CHOP BROCOLLI BAKE
Mix a box of instant herb stuffing according to directions, adding a little more water. Set aside. Lay 6-7 boneless 3/4" pork chops in the bottom of a greased baking dish. Microwave frozen brocolli florets for a minute to knock off the frozen and warm them up, drain and layer on top of chops. Mix a can of cream of mushroom soup with 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese and 1/2 cup milk. Warm in microwave so it will mix up nicely. Pour on top of brocolli. Crumble stuffing on top. Bake uncovered at 375F for 40 minutes.
Mushroom Butter Topping
Because I knew the bread in the stuffing would be dry, I decided to top the casserole with mushrooms in butter: I pound package of sliced baby bella mushrooms into a pan with 1/2 stick butter and a couple of swirls of olive oil. Stir and cook it until the mushrooms look nearly done. Add 2 T jarred Pesto (for the garlic mainly, but the color is nice), turn down the heat and simmer for about ten minutes until the mushrooms are thouroughly cooked. Turn off stove and set aside, covered, until casserole is ready. Re-warm, then put mushrooms and the butter mixture on top of each serving.
This fed five people.

ITALIAN WEDDING SOUP
I have the recipe somewhere.... but I had to do this one from memory, which is always an adventure.
In a large pot with a swirl of olive oil in the bottom, drop in three or four tubes of sweet Italian sausage, removed from casing and crumbled. I keep chopped onion/pepper/celery in the freezer and threw in about a cup of this. Not looking like enough once the sausage was cooked, I added another handful of chopped onions and let that sizzle until it was clear. Couldn't remember what I put in for liquid, probably chicken stock, but I use what I have, so a can of beef stock plus two cans of water went into the pot. I need flavor! A couple of tablespoons of jarred Italian Pesto went in, a half-stick of butter, and salt and pepper. I let this come to a boil as I cored a head of califlower. Looking like a person's brain, I sat that on top of the soup, turned the heat down to simmer and left that alone for about 15 minutes. Once the califlower was fully cooked, I took a potato masher and squished the heck out of the ugly vegetable so nobody but me would know it snuck into the pool. To this I added a half pint of heavy cream and a half pint of milk, then a large batch (fill up the pot!) of freshly chopped kale. Smoosh it down into the liquid so all the leaves are wet, close the pot and turn up to medium for about five minutes. Back to simmer for about a half hour to allow the kale to soften. Stir occasionally. If you taste califlower, there isn't enough garlic - - more pesto! This would be sooo good served with crusty bread, but that would blow the whole idea of a low-carb meal.

RIBOLLITA CON MARTY
I watched a Rachael Ray 30 Minutes Meals TV show on how to make an Italian soup called Ribollita con Verdure. Sounded great, but I didn't have all the ingredients and didn't want to put bread in my soup (too many carbs), so I changed it to my own invention with a Ribollita flair: In a pot with a swirl or two of olive oil, throw in a packet of chopped ham, dried rosemary, a chopped onion, sliced carrots, 2 sliced zucchinis, chopped cabbbage (no kale in the store!), a box of fresh sliced mushrooms (just went to the local mushroom farm - STINKY!), salt, pepper, and some garlic. Saute this for 7 minutes. Add a regular sized can of crushed tomatoes, a box of chicken broth (because I didn't have beef), and a slosh of any wine you have, which in my case was some white. Add a peeled, cut up potato (no white beans on my shelf). I bought some fresh Zellwood Candy Corn (it is corn on the cob, white and yellow kernels and very sweet), so I shucked four ears and laid those on top to cook for an extra 10 minutes. I sent a container home with Frances who couldn't wait to dive in. It was really good.

FAT AND LAZY? - EAT CHICKEN!
Preheat oven to 325. Slice four medium zuchini squash and a small eggplant (leave on skin) into an oiled 9X11 glass casserole dish. All the vegetables I added were chopped in large pieces. Add an onion, and any other vegetables that will agree with you. I added some red bell pepper, the color looks nice and I like the flavor. Pour in about 1/2 cup of chicken broth, equal amount of marinara sauce, and add salt and pepper. Drizzle about 4 tablespoons of melted butter on top. Lay 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs on top. Salt and pepper or add some more seasonings...I just used Mrs. Dash (it includes salt and pepper). Bake uncovered for 30-40 minutes.

MINORCAN SAUSAGE PURLO
In a large frying pan, add 1 tsp butter and 1 tsp olive oil. Add sliced smoked sausage or kielbasa sausage, a large chopped onion, a couple of sticks of celery, chopped, and a chopped bell pepper. Fry, stirring often, until onions are clear. Add 1/2 tsp celery seed, 1/2 tsp sage, and 2 bay leaves. Pour in a 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes, 2 cups chicken broth, 1 cup water, salt, pepper, and 1/4 cup datil pepper sauce (this is only made in St. Augustine, Florida). Add 4 cups rice and stir well. If it isn't wet enough, add a little more water. Bring to a spurting boil, stir well and lower heat to simmer for 25 minutes, covered tightly. Stir a few times to make sure the rice does not stick to the bottom. Top with more datil pepper sauce if it isn't speecy spicy enough for you. Garnish with green onions.

BAKED ZITI
Preheat oven to 350F. Start a large pot of water boiling. To reduce the change of a boil-over, rub a layer of cooking oil inside the rim of the pot. Add salt, a tablespoon of olive oil, and a 16-ounce box of ziti noodles. Cook until just done - firm, not squishy. In a pot, fry and break up a pound of lean hamburger meat with a small chopped onion, and a box of sliced white mushrooms, and a couple of garlic cloves, finely chopped. Drain fat. Add a jar of quality spaghetti sauce. Pour into greased 9X11 pan and put the remainder in a smaller tin 8X8 pan to have another day. Sprinkle a lot of parmesan cheese, then LOAD the shredded mozerella cheese on top. Bake 20 minutes, losely covered with tin foil.

SPAGHETTI DINNER
A no-brainer...Cook a small chopped onion in a little oil, add a pound of hamburger, break it up while browning in the pan. Pour in a jar of spaghetti sauce, a can of crushed tomatoes in sauce, and a spoon of sugar to neutralize the acids. Serve over boiled noodles. Chop red bell pepper, celery, and carrots on a bed of iceburg lettuce, topped with blue cheese dressing. Store-bought garlic bread heated in the oven.

CHICKEN, RICE, CREAMED SPINACH
I bought a 10-pack of six each boneless skinless chicken thighs. I opened two packs, and seasoned them with salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika, cumin, and some garlic. Cooked on stovetop in 2 T each butter and olive oil.
Rice is rice. I cook it using the easy finger measurement, and I made a packet of instant chicken gravy.
Creamed Spinach is something Mark and David love. You'll need:
5 Tbls. butter OR margarine, 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. black pepper, 1 dash ground nutmeg, 1 cup half and half cream, 4 oz. cream cheese, 1 small onion, chopped, (2) 10 oz. pkgs. frozen chopped spinach - thawed, 1/4 cup water, 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
In a 2-quart saucepan over medium-low heat, melt butter 3 Tbls. butter; stir in flour, salt, pepper, and nutmeg; slowly whisk in cream; stir in cream cheese. Increase heat to medium; whisk mixture constantly until thick and smooth; remove from heat and set aside. In a skillet over medium-high heat, sauté onions in remaining 2 Tbls. butter until transparent; stir spinach and water into pan. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover; simmer, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes. Stir spinach mixture into creamy mixture; return to medium heat; heat, stirring often, until warmed throughout. Remove from heat; fold in Parmesan.

NORWEIGEN BLINTZ
Purchased in Epcot's Norway pavillion pastry shop. I think it was called lefse (lef-suh), a potato-wheat flatbread. I don't know the measurements, because I only tasted this yummy treat and knew I had to make them at home. The mixture was made with minimal spices, and spread thinly, like jelly, not reaching the edges of the bread. After rolling tightly, it was served cut in half, so there was a nice little twirl of tortilla bread. Tortillas in Norway? Surely this was "Americanized", using the tortillas instead of making thin, crepe-like potato pancakes, and probably instant potatoes for the filling, but I liked it. Norweigians probably add another spice, maybe cardamom, which would not be appreciated by Americans. I found a link for you to view the true recipe.
My directions: Ingredients - large flour tortillas, mashed potatoes, salt, sugar, cinamon
Spread a thin layer of potato mixture in center third only of tortilla. Roll tightly into logs (this is why you don't spread to the edge). Chill to set, then eat cold or at room temp.

THATSA SPICY SPAGHETTI !
Break up and fry one-half pound each of hamburger, hot Italian sausage and mild Italian sausage. Remove to drain. In the oil, cook one large onion, sliced thin, couple of cloves of finely chopped garlic, and some fresh small mushroom caps. Drain all, add the meat and a jar of Prego Homestyle spaghetti sauce. Serve with angel hair pasta, a big leafy salad with vine-ripe tomatoes, and garlic bread.

CABBAGE POT
My neighbor Darlene gave me the most beautiful head of cabbage, grown by her husband Tom in their backyard garden. I chopped the cabbage, an onion, a clove of garlic and cooked that in a pot with a swirl of olive oil, then added about 2/3 cup of beef broth and steamed it tender. Added fried ground beef, a large can of chopped tomatoes in sauce, a spoon of sugar, salt, pepper, basil, oregano, and cooked noodles. Sometimes my kitchen inventions turn out pretty good. This was one of those times.

CRANBERRY CHICKEN
My friend's invention, this is really really good! Mix a small bottle of french salad dressing, a packet of onion soup mix and a can of whole cranberries in sauce (not jelled), Pour over chicken pieces and bake for about 40 minutes. Served with rice, green beans, and pickled beets.

BBQ ROAST POT, BAKED SWEET POTATO, SALAD
After roast beef two nights in a row, we're pretty tired of it. What to do?? DISGUISE IT!! I cut up the roast into little bite sized pieces, poured barbeque sauce over it. Not enough meat! Added some ground beef and a package of all-beef hot dogs, all cut up. The barbeque sauce really soaked in as I cooked it a long time on the stove, just waiting for Mark to come home. It was wierd, but good! With this I made baked sweet potatoes with butter. We also had a salad from green lettuce mix, strawberry slices, balsamic vinigarette. Lemon Jell-O with whipped cream for dessert.

ROAST BEEF, FRIED EGGPLANT, SALAD
The roast went into my rotissorie cooker, dredged thinly sliced eggplant in egg/milk, then flour with seasonings, fried in oil. Served with mixed salad, topped with tomato, carrots, and cucumber soaked in balsamic dressing. Fresh sliced strawberries in whipped cream for dessert.

BIJIN MARTY SAIKO CHICKEN, RICE, BROCOLLI
Bake chicken breasts for 30 minutes, drain, then douse with Mr. Yoshida's Original Gourmet Sauce, cook another 20 minutes, serve with steamed rice, and steam brocolli.
While the food cooks, learn some Japanese Slang.

CHICKEN CASSEROLE
David doesn't like tuna, Mark doesn't like peas, so tuna casserole was out of the question. After a busy day I wanted to make something quick and easy. I bought a packet of pre-cooked chicken chunks, a can of condensed cream of chicken-mushroom soup, elbow macaroni, a can of shortcuts green beans, and a packet of shredded cheddar. Boil the noodles, mix everything up, pour into a casserole dish and top with lots of cheese. Bake about 20 minutes at 350. It was good. David loved it, Mark inhaled it. It's all gone.

MEATY SUPERBOWL PASTA, SALAD, GARLIC BREAD, BROWNIES, CUPCAKES
I am doubling Rachael Ray's recipe for Christmas Pasta as the main course. And I am baking a packaged mix of chewy traditional brownies for desert. Cathy is in charge of a big green salad and garlic bread. Mark saw vanilla cupcakes in the grocery store with alternating icing on the top in Steelers colors of yellow and black with little plastic football sticks in them for decoration. I have a bottle of red wine I got as a Christmas gift, which we'll uncork, and Mark has two bottles of beer in the fridge. Is there an expiration date on bottled beer? We also have a bottle of the new soda, Diet Black Cherry Vanilla Coke. Yummy!

CHICKEN, MUSHIES, RICE, GREEN BEENS
Baked chicken with a little tub of garlic butter from the pizza place poured over top. Two packages of sliced mushrooms, cooked in a little tub of garlic butter, 1/4 stick real butter, and a slosh of beef broth (because that's what was open in the fridge). White rice. Canned green beans. Flaky dinner rolls from the tube.

LASAGNA
I follow the easy directions on the side of a lasanga noodle box...but I add more of everything Italian! After I started putting this together, Mark called to let me know he's eating with a friend. I am baking the small dish and froze the large one for another day. I made myself some "spaghetti" with leftover sauce and some noodles.
While the noodles boil, cook the sauce, and mix up the white stuff. The following made a 9x11 and an 8x8 pan.
THE WHITE STUFF: mix 16 oz. cottage cheese with 2 eggs, a couple of handfuls of real grated parmesan cheese, a large palmful of chopped fresh parsley, a few shakes of boxed parmesan cheese, and some garlic powder.
THE SAUCE: mix a pound of cooked and drained ground beef or turkey, a large 2 pound, 13 oz.jar of spaghetti sauce, add Italian seasonings. You really don't have to heat the sauce, because it'll cook in the lasagna.
NOODLES: Once they're cooked, drain the hot water, refill the pot with cold water and immerse colandar in so the noodles cool real fast, otherwise you'll burn your fingers layering. Once they're cooled down, pour out the water and let drain in colandar.
LAYERING: In the bottom of a baking pan, put a cup or so of sauce, lay in cooked noodles, cutting them to fit the length of the pans, about 3 strips per layer. Drop in a layer of the white stuff, top with a generous handful of mozzerella cheese. Another layer of noodles, a cup or more of sauce, noodles, white stuff, cheese...ending with some sauce. Top that with a handful of fresh grated parmasen cheese, a package of sliced provolone cheese (it's chewy and good), top with mozzerella cheese. Bake at 350°F for 40 minutes, covered loosely so the cheese doesn't stick to the foil. Uncover the last 10 minutes.

HOT DOGS WITH CHILI, ICE CREAM
See January 11th. Again, I am so fortunate my family thinks a hot dog meal is a party! This time I used real hot dog buns, and heated a can of Hot Dog Chili (no beans), topped that with shredded cheddar cheese. Cookies & Cream (Oreo) ice cream for dessert.

MEAT LOAF PATTIES, SAUTEED MUSHROOMS, STEAMED CAULIFLOWER
A variation of a Rachael Ray's Meals in 30 Minutes TV show. I forgot Mark had a meeting last night and David went out to eat to celebrate his girlfriend's birthday on Thursday, so I only cooked my portion of the meat. Dinner looked kind of beige (like a plate of oatmeal to be exact!) so I added sides of pickled beets and raw carrots.
Mushrooms Sautee 16 ounces mushrooms and a cup of chopped onions in olive oil and butter with a spoonful of sage (because I like the smell), some salt and pepper, and a splash of worcesteshire sauce.
Cauliflower
Put a bag of frozen cauliflower in a cup of chicken broth. Steam until soft, add a tablespoon of basil pesto from a jar (garlic kills the cabbagey smell of this vegetable), smash, then top with a handful of mozzerella and some parmesan cheese.
Meat Loaf Patties
Add an egg, a handful of breadcrumbs, a spoonful of worcesteshire sauce, sage, and spicy mustard season with salt & pepper, and add to 1 1/2 pound of quality hamburger. Quish up, make into four oval loaves, flat like a hamburger, and cook in a little olive oil in a pan. Don't cook too fast! Top with mushrooms.

STEAK SALAD
Leftover steak was sliced and frozen last week. Sliced cucumber, red pepper, tomatoes, and celery on a bed of fluffy romaine lettuce, topped with blue cheese salad dressing and steak slices, hot from the microwave. What an easy and yummy dinner! Mark had jello with whipped cream for dessert.

MUSHROOM/HAM PIZZA & PEPPERONI/CHEESE PIZZA
Did you know you can order and pay for Papa John's Pizza online and they deliver it to your door?

BAKED CHICKEN THIGHS, YELLOW RICE, SPINACH, BANANA BREAD
The chicken goes into the oven with a shake of zesty italian dressing on it for about 30 minutes. Yellow rice comes from a bag; add water, oil, etc. Spinach is frozen, and I made another loaf of banana bread (with walnuts) this morning.

SOUP A LA FRIDGIE
I love homemade soup, leftovers or all fresh. We had a leftover grilled sirloin steak. I put a can of beef stock and two cans of water in a big pot, chopped up an onion, a zuchini squash, 1/4 red pepper, a garlic clove, two handsful of baby carrots, four red new potatoes, a celery stalk, a palmful of fresh parsley, and I threw in a variety of herbs and I think it was rosemary, thyme, and a couple of bay leaves. I cut the steak into cubes and added that once the vegetables were softened and plucked out the bay leaves, along with salt and pepper. Yum yum, I liked it. Mark didn't. So I added a large can of crushed tomatoes and a fistful of baby spinach leaves. It passed the test.

STEAK, ROSEMARY POTATOES, SALAD
Mark cooked delicious sirloin steaks on the outdoor charcoal grill. I cut red new potatoes in wedges, and shook them in a bowl with enough olive oil to make the potatoes wet and sticky, then added Spike mixed seasonings and lots of dried rosemary. Spread them out on a baking sheet and bake at about 325°F for about 20 minutes. I cut up some cucumber, red bell pepper, celery, carrots, and tomatoes, and threw that in with romaine lettuce, baby spinach and arugula for a yummy salad. There was plenty for Mark, David, me, and our neighbor Cathy.

CHICKEN PENNE MUSHROOM, BANANA BREAD
I invented this chicken dish with what was on hand in my kitchen. We added steamed brocolli, sliced tomato, drizzled with a little zesty italian dressing, and a loaf of French bread from the grocery store. Banana bread for dessert.
Chicken Penne Mushroom
In a large skillet: 2 T extra virgin olive oil, 2 T butter, 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped, 1/2 yellow onion & 1/2 red bell pepper, both chopped, 1 1/2 tsp. thyme, some salt & black pepper, maybe a dash of crushed red pepper (didn't have any, I shook in some cayenne and it was terrific), 1 package sliced baby portobella mushrooms. Once that was cooked down a little, I added into the same pan 6 boneless/skinless chicken thighs, cut into strips. After the chicken is cooked, add 3/4 jar (5 ounces?) alfredo sauce (because that's what was left in my fridge), 1/4 to 1/2 cup- I didn't measure...of dry wine (red or white - I had red), and 1 cup of chicken stock (which for me was a cup of hot water with three chicken bullion cubes melted in it. If there isn't enough liquid, slosh in some more wine or chicken stock, depending on the taste. Stir in some chopped parsley for color. (FYI-When you cook with wine, the alcohol is removed by the heat.) Add penne pasta, boiled and drained. This recipe should take about 1/2 hour to throw together. Oh it was good! After serving himself a huge plateful, picky David had seconds. Plenty of leftovers, this recipe could have easily fed six people.

GIDDYUP LITTLE DOGGIES!
Hot dogs, cut in half to fit on on leftover hamburger buns. We live in a nutritional vacuum here! Just what are hot dogs made of? Chicken lips, pig noses, lizard tails, and cow ears I think! It was late, I was tired. Actually, the hot dogs were delicious! I bought a box of old fashioned natural-casing franks at Albertson's. The skin "pops" when you bite it.

BBQ Sammies
Oh how easy some meals can be, thanks to family members that will eat almost anything!
Frozen On-Cor BBQ Rib Pork Patties, heated in the microwave and served on hamburger buns. We'll also have some corn chips with spinach dip...Corn and spinach ARE vegetables!!

TURKEY POT PIE
I have three cups of leftover turkey from Wednesday.
Preheat oven to 400°F. In a large pan over medium heat, sauté 1/2 cup chopped onions in a tablespoon or two of butter. Add 2 tablespoons flour into 1/2 cup milk, stir away lumps, add to cooked onions and keep stirring until it's thickened. Add 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup, 3 cups boneless turkey, 1-1/2 cup frozen mixed vegetables, salt and pepper to taste. Cook on medium-low for about 10 minutes until vegetables are done. Pour cooked chicken mixture into a prepared baking dish.
Top with a Pillsbury Refrigerated Pie Crust. Brush top with egg white. Cook at 400°F for about 20 minutes.

BAKED SLOPPY JOE
With our meal, we had green beans and strawberry Jello for dessert.
Sloppy Joe
1 pound lean ground beef, 1-1/2 cups biscuit baking mix, 3/4 cup milk, 1 egg, 1 1/2 cups pasta sauce, 1/4 cup barbecue sauce, 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese