Bacon wrapped chicken

This is an exceptionally easy recipe to prepare but looks and tastes great. Start with 5 oz lean chicken breasts, rub them with your favorite choice of dry seasonings and wrap each filet with two slices of bacon.  Bake them in a 400 degree oven for 40 - 45 minutes and serve. The bottoms will be quite greasy so I like to place them first on a few folded paper towels on a paper plate to drain.

QUOTE FOR THE DAY:

"I want to grow my own foods but I can't find any bacon seeds"

- Unknown


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Nantucket Pie

Nantucket pie is great all year around but especially festive for Autumn through the Holidays. This recipe was given to me by my friend Benita who brought it to a post-Christmas Julbord festival. It is easy to make and was a big hit at our event.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups chopped cranberries
• 1-1/2 cut chopped pecans
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 cup flour
• 2 eggs
• 1-1/2 sticks melted butter
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp almond extract

PREPARATION:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Lightly grease a deep pie dish with non-fat cooking spray. Mix the flour, sugar, eggs, melted butter, salt and almond extract. Spread the cranberries and pecans in pie dish and sprinkle the sugar over the top, then pour the mixture prepared above over the top.

Bake 30 - 40 minutes.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

"There are four unbroken rules when it comes to Thanksgiving: there must be turkey and dressing, cranberries, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie.”

- John Hadamuscin


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Low fat carrot cake

I love the spicy flavors of carrot cake!  Especially around the holidays.  However with all of the other sweets and treats I like to find ways of cutting back on some of the excess.  Here's a recipe that is lower in fat but gives up none of the goodness.

INGREDIENTS:

(for a 9 x 13 cake)

• 6 egg whites
• 1-1/3 cups white sugar
• 1 cup applesauce
• 1/2 cup skim milk
• 1-1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 8 ounces canned crushed pineapple with juice
• 2 cups shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup raisins

PREPARATION:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Lightly grease a 9 x 13 inch pan with non-fat cooking spray. Beat egg whites in large mixing bowl, slowly adding in sugar, then applesauce, skim milk and vanilla.  Stir in cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking soda and flour.  Stir in crushed pineapple with juice, then carrots followed by walnuts and raisins.  Pour into baking pan.

Bake 35 - 40 minutes.

HINT:

To test "doneness" of a cake insert a toothpick into the center.  The cake is done when the toothpick comes out clean.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

"All the world is birthday cake, so take a piece, but not too much"

- George Harrison


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Chef Oh Boy Are Deez Good

I love ravioli. It's the universal food that no matter where you are in the world there is some regional variation stuffed with goodness.

But somewhere along the way I've lost my taste for traditional red spaghetti sauces from Ragu and Prego and all the others. Too salty, too bland (even those that promise a kick).

So I experiment. These are some of the easiest and best tasting I've had, at home or anywhere else for that matter.

INGREDIENTS:

• One package of frozen ravioli, cheese or beef or spinach or whatever else you find locally
• Fresh sweet Maui onion
• Fresh mushrooms
• Olive Oil
• Powdered or ground garlic
• Fresh grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

PREPARATION:

Cook ravioli according to package directions, usually about 8 minutes.  Drain.  In same pot, reduce heat to medium-low and pour about 1/4 cup olive oil and sauté two thin onion slices (quartered) for 2-3 minutes.  Then add sliced mushrooms for only about a minute while adding garlic.  Put the cooked ravioli back into the pot and stir gently until warm over very low heat.  Plate and sprinkle with freshly ground hard cheese like Parmesan or Romano.  Serve with garlic bread and a side salad.

WHY NOT JUST COOK WITH RAGU?

Tomato sauce covers up much of the delicate flavors that are found in many ravioli and are high in sodium while this method is rich in two of the most desired foods for good nutrition ... olive oil and garlic. Not only does it make for a gourmet presentation but there are is far more taste than simply soaking the ravioli in spaghetti sauce.

QUOTE FOR THE DAY:

"Italian food is all about ingredients and it's not fussy and it's not fancy"

- Wolfgang Puck


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Turkey Tacos?

First off, the picture is not how I actually make my Turkey Tacos (of course not ... the stuffing would fall right out and it would be too hard to get to the wishbone).
 
And this isn't a recipe for how I make them.  In a taco shell my recipe is "Make tacos, substituting ground turkey for ground beef".

Chili Gone Carne

 

As winter approaches everyone’s thoughts turn to a hot bowl of chili to warm those frosty nights.  Chili is so easy to make it’s a shame to buy the high sodium canned chili that bears little resemblance to the real thing.  There are chili cookoff contests in which the namesake food is a very big deal for serious chili eaters.  Most of those people don’t like to share their recipes, but here at The Old Cooker, sharing is what’s it’s all about.

Berber Black Bean Couscous

This is a meal impressive enough to serve to your gourmand friends who will believe you slaved for hours preparing it.  I “invented” it one evening from a few things I had in the pantry when it was too late in the evening to start a from-scratch meal and didn’t want to resort to the usual suspect quickie meals.  The total prep time was about 10 minutes and as you can see from the photo this looks like anything but a fast-food meal.  After the jump I’ll share some ideas for putting just a little more energy into it to take it to the next level.

Time for thanks

Food is the glue that socially binds us together. In today’s busy world there is little as satisfying as sharing a great meal with friends and family. As you read the various recipes and ideas presented here won’t you please take a moment to give us your feedback by clicking one of the buttons below, leaving a personal comment or by sharing the post to your social media page?

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