Recipe #4-Winter Ratatouille created by Chef Brian Morris

My fiance, Mike, made this delicious dish from the "Relish" newspaper insert I had ripped out.  It's full of veggies and very light.  We had it as a side to some pork chops but you can also serve it over rice or pasta for a more filling dish.

Ingredients:
2 T extra virgin olive oil
1/2 med red onion, diced
1 med yellow bell pepper, diced
1 med orange bell pepper, diced
1 med zucchini, diced
1 med yellow squash, diced
1/2 medium eggplant, peeled and diced (best part of the dish in my opinion!)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 large ripe tomato, seeded and diced
1/2 t coarse salt
1/4 t black pepper

Directions;
-Heat olive oil in a large saute pan over med-high heat
-Add onion, cook for 2 min
-Add yellow and orange bell peppers, cook for 2 min
-Add zucchini, yellow squash and eggplant, cook for 2 min
-Add garlic, tomato, salt and pepper, cook for 1 min

Additional Info:
Serves 6
84 calories, 5g fat, 0mg cholesterol, 2g protein, 10g carbs, 3g fiber, 137mg sodium

Wendy Williams, you let me down.

Wendy Williams

Recently on The Chew, Wendy Williams was on as a guest and 'treated' the hosts and audience to her Hoppin John dish.  Wendy Williams for those of you who do not know, is an outspoken talk show host.  See her on the left...

Anywho, this Hoppin John dish is supposed to be good luck for the New Year.  The recipe calls for 7 simple ingredients, most of which I had.  Even better, you throw everything together in a slow cooker for 9 hours.  PERFECT!  Or so I thought...  One of the ingredients is a smoked ham hock.  I've never purchased a ham hock before.  I'm at Pick N Save and looking in the pork section naturally and no hocks.  Butcher service counter, no hocks.  I'm now getting frustrated on where the friggen hocks are!  Guess where they are... next to the ham... DUH!  Why wouldn't they be...

Here's the recipe from thechew.com if anyone is brave enough to make it..
Ingredients:
1 cup Small dried black-eyes (soaked in water for 6 hours)
2 cup Water
2 Garlic cloves (minced)
1 Dried hot pepper (optional) --I did not add this as I didn't have one so it may make a difference
1 Smoked ham hock
1 Medium onion (chopped)
1 Red bell pepper (chopped)

Directions:
-Combine everything in a slow cooker and cook on low for 6-9 hours.
-Serve over rice with hot sauce... didn't help.


photo credit from thechew.com



Recipe #3-Sweet & Russet Potato Hash

This recipe was actually supposed to be something else but since I am obsessed with my new dutch oven pot, I had to use it when really, I should have pulled out a frying pan. My fried potato hash therefore turned into a less crunch and more delish stuffing consistency type hash...

Ingredients:
3 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 smallish russett poatoes, peeled and cubed
2 stalks of celery

2-3 c of kale

1/2 can/1 c veggie broth

1 small onion

1 clove of garlic

1 T of olive oil

Salt and pepper

Directions:

-Heat oil in a dutch oven or other deep pot over med/high heat
-Add onion, garlic and celery and cook until soften, about 1 minute
-Add cubed potatoes and stir
-Liberally add salt and pepper
-After about 5 mins of occasional stirring, add veggie broth, place lid on pot

-When potatoes are almost fork tender, add kale and put a lid on pot to wilt the greens

-When greens are wilted, viola!

Recipe #2-Ground Nut Stew from Carla Hall on The Chew

One of my favorite shows is The Chew on ABC daytime. Absolutely love it. I probably make something from that show at least twice a week if not more. One of the hosts, Carla, made an interesting stew which is a little spicy, creamy and overall delicious. You can find this recipe on thechew.com also

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil (plus 1 tablespoon)
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1 clove garlic (minced)
2 cups peeled and cubed sweet potatoes
1 1/2 cups cooked small red beans -- I used 2 cans of red kidney beans
3 cups vegetable stock or broth-- 1.5 cans
1 cup chopped red pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger -- Or jarred ginger..
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 (14.5 oz. can) diced tomatoes
1 green or poblano chile roasted peeled (seeded and diced small)
1/2 habanero seeded and chopped finely (optional!)--or you can cut slits in it and the flavor will still be in the stew without quite as much spice
3 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
Lime wedges to squeeze on top-- Didn't have lime so I missed out on this one..

Directions

-In a sauté pan add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and cubed sweet potatoes. Season with salt and cook for 2-3 minutes until the potatoes begin to caramelized (it took about 5 mins for me)

-In large pot, heat oil over medium heat and sauté onion and garlic until soft

-Add sweet potatoes, beans, stock, peppers, chiles, tomatoes & spices. Bring to a boil, then cover and cook on low until vegetables are tender (about 35 – 40 minutes)

-Take 1/4 cup of the stew stock and place in a small bowl, add peanut butter and whisk smooth. Add mixture back into stew and stir

-Serve soup piping hot with a squeeze of lime and chopped peanuts if you'd like

Recipe #1- Oven Roasted Turkey Breasts with Onions, Garlic and Pomegranates

Last night for dinner we tried something a little different. Piggly Wiggly had turkey breasts on sale last week so in lieu of our normal chicken breasts, we fancied it up a tad.

Ingredients:
2t olive oil
1/2 t dried sage
1/2 t garlic powder
2 t salt (or to your liking)
1/2 t pepper
1 small to medium onion (average size you'd find in a bag of onions) sliced
2 cloves minced garlic (or to your liking)
1/2 c pomegranate seeds
3 T white wine vinegar (probably could try other vinegars like cider or champagne)
2 turkey breasts with bone-in

Directions:
-Rub 1t of olive oil on each turkey breast
-Sprinkle spices over both and rub to distribute flavor
-Put turkey breasts in a bowl suitable for marinating and cover with onions, garlic and pomegranate seeds
-Pour vinegar over and place lid on bowl
-Give it a good shake and put it in the fridge

-Preheat oven to 400
-Pour entire contents of bowl into a baking dish
-Bake for 1-1.5 hours depending on the size of the turkey breasts
-Temperature should read 165
-Let rest for 15 minutes before slicing