Stuffed peppers with sausage

In all my cooking years, I have stuffed peppers with hamburger (etc.), and I've always eaten them with ketchup. Or basted them with some kind of Italian sauce. These peppers are yummy just the way they pop out of the oven. And I don't precook the peppers. Whoopee, simplicity!

1 c. cooked rice or quinoa
2 large green bell peppers
1 medium onion, diced
olive oil
8 oz. sausage, browned (I usually keep cooked sausage in the freezer, for just this kind of recipe)
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. crushed oregano
salt & pepper
1/4 c. shredded mozzarella

Cut off the tops of the peppers and clean out the seeds. Dice the pepper tops. Sauté onion and pepper tops in olive oil. I sometimes throw in some diced carrot. It's pretty, and I like carrot. Stir sausage and seasonings into skillet. Place peppers in a small casserole dish and stuff with skillet contents. I always have some filling leftover, so I scoop it into a ramekin or small oven-proof bowl and bake it along with the peppers. I like that kind of thing for a lunch when I'm home alone.

Bake peppers at 375 for 30 minutes. Top with mozzarella and bake an additional 10 minutes. Complete dinner in one dish!

Serves 2-ish.

Sweet potato fries

Sweet potato fries are just going to be softer than white potatoes. If I figure out some way to correct that, I'll let you know. But sweet potatoes are so healthy. Prepare yourself for a different experience than the word "fry" suggests, and make your body happy.

2 large sweet potatoes
olive oil

You can spice these any way you like, but I used: black pepper, a little thyme, a little cayenne, and paprika.

Cut the sweet potatoes into "steak fry" wedges. In a large bowl, toss gently with olive oil and spices. Spread on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. Instead of mixing in salt with the spices, at this point I sprinkled the fries with pretzel salt.

Bake at 400 degrees for 35-40 minutes, turning once or twice. You can also broil them for the last 3-5 minutes, but watch them carefully. A little black is okay, but you don't want to blacken them entirely.

I eat them without ketchup. In fact, I can eat them leftover & cold straight from the refrigerator. But if you say "fries" to my husband, he's going to put ketchup or bbq sauce on them. Happy eating!

Stone Fruit Cobbler

I know we should just munch on the peaches and plums by themselves. But cobbler is so pretty and so good! I put 7-8 cups of fruit in this recipe, and I simply use whatever is on hand. This time it was stone fruit, but strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries are also good. Frozen works as well as fresh.

7 cups stone fruit (plums, nectarines, peaches)
1 cup blueberries
juice of one lemon (or 2 T. bottled lemon juice)
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup brown sugar

Stir together and then spread in a 11x7 pan, lightly greased.

I had a white plum, a red plum, a white peach, two regular peaches, and three nectarines. It's pretty.

1 cup oats
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
6 T. butter

In a medium bowl, mix dry ingredients. Cut in butter with a fork or pastry cutter. Sprinkle on top of fruit. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes.

I would include an "after" picture, but we ate it pretty quickly. I let my kids eat it for breakfast--it's not that different from a sugary cereal, right?

And it's so pretty!

Ham and Spinach Lasagna

This recipe does not have any tricky elements, although there are several steps and pans involved. It is one of my favorites because it is so unique. No, my kids don't eat it (I knew you would ask).

6 lasagna noodles
10-oz. package of frozen spinach
2 c. milk
2 T. cornstarch
1 T. dried minced onion (or a tsp. onion powder)
1-1/2 c. diced ham
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 c. cottage cheese
1 c. mozzarella

Cook six lasagna noodles according to package instructions.

Heat spinach in microwave for 2 minutes to thaw.

Heat milk, cornstarch, and dried onion over medium heat until thickened and bubbly, stirring constantly (pretty much). Cook two minutes more.

Place 2 tablespoons sauce on bottom of 11x7 pan. Stir Italian seasoning and ham into remaining sauce. Place 3 noodles in bottom of 11x7 pan. Cover with 1/3 sauce, all of spinach, all of cottage cheese, and half of the mozzarella.

Next: three more noodles, remaining sauce and mozzarella.

Bake at 375 for 30-35 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

You can freeze this after it is baked and just thaw and reheat later. Six servings.

Patriotic Salad

I have come to love salads. I'm not sure what was wrong before, but now they are familiar territory and not a chore to consume (read in monotone) because I know they are so good for me. This salad I made for family July 4th. The jicama stars are easy and a splash of pizazz.

To make the stars, you first peel the jicama. Then slice it and cut the stars with a small canapé cutter. You can save the rest of the jicama for another, less festive, summer salad.

1 head romaine
2 cups (ie, handfulls) raw spinach
2 ribs celery, diced
1/2 of a clamshell of strawberries, sliced
1/2 pint blueberries (fresh only)
Jicama stars

You can also add feta and pecans.

I used poppyseed dressing, which is my favorite. The following makes a lot; I only used what was left in the frig, maybe 1/3 cup of dressing total:

3/4 c. oil
1/2 c. apple cider vinegar
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. dried mustard
1/2 tsp. salt
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tsp. poppy seeds

Wow, this recipe has a lot of sugar in it. Really, it could be a dessert, if it weren't un-American to have raw spinach in a "dessert."

Sweet Pepper Skillet

I love the concept of using what I have, which is where this recipe springs from. I often have a lot of sweet peppers about, and my family just doesn't munch them fast enough. Therefore, to use them up, I throw them in the skillet with other handy veggies and voilà, a dinner is born. Great for summer weather when you don't want to use the oven.

To make this skillet, I have quantified my ingredients per person. If you are cooking for two, use two of everything. If you are cooking for five, multiply by five. All recipes are just standards to depart from, right? But this one is like a lesson in how to make a good dinner. My mind immediately conjures up substitutions that would also make a lovely meal. Please share if you have any yummy alterations!

1 T. olive oil*
1 slice onion
1 clove garlic
1-2 small sweet peppers, any color, but a variety is nice
1/4 c. cooked chicken**
1/2 c. washed spinach
1/4 tsp. ground sage
1/4 tsp. ground coriander
dash pepper
salt to taste
1/2 c. cooked quinoa or rice

Heat oil. Sauté onion, garlic, and peppers until soft and a little brown. Toss in chicken and seasonings. Stir. Toss in spinach and stir until wilted. Serve with rice or quinoa (which I sometimes stir in at the end, just for simplicity).

*I would imagine you could use coconut oil, but I haven't tried yet.
**I keep cooked chicken in the freezer all the time, diced in 1 or 2 cup measurements, for just such a recipe as this.

Dump Cookies

This recipe was a favorite of my mom's when I was a teenager. It's almost good for you. I've noted a few newer options, but it's very flexible and friendly.

1 c. flour
1 c. wheat germ or crisp cereal
2 c. oatmeal
1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. white sugar (both sugars can be reduced by 1/4 cup)
1 c. shortening (or butter)
2 eggs
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. (heaping) baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg (optional)
chocolate chips (4-12 oz., you pick)
1/2 c. chopped nuts (optional)
3 T. flax seed (honestly, I just dumped some in...optional)
1 T. chia seed (optional)

You can also add raisins or dried cranberries, depending on your family. Now here's the clue to the name: dump all ingredients in a bowl and combine. Drop on baking sheet in desired size and bake at 360 for 12-15 minutes.

When I was a kid, the "360 degrees" made Mom & I snort, but now, with digital ovens, you can actually do it.

By the time my family ate the dough and stole cookies as they came out of the oven, I had two dozen to parcel out in individual baggies and set them at everyone's table spot. Now, we shall not collapse in agony if a hungry teenager raids the cookies at midnight. And, I can take a single bite out of any of my cookies. After all, they're mine (insert evil cackle).