3/4 C brown rice
1/4 C amaranth
2 C water
3/4 t salt
3 cloves garlic, minced fine or grated
1/2 to 1 T butter
1/2 to 1 T olive oil

In a pressure cooker, bring the water to a boil. Add the rice, amaranth, and salt. Lock the lid and pressure cook for 20 minutes. Allow the pressure to come down naturally for 15 minutes. Open the pressure cooker and stir in the garlic, butter, and olive oil.

Serve garnished with parsley or nuts.

1 T olive oil
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 orange or yellow bell pepper, diced
1 onion, diced
5 cloves garlic, chopped fine
1 14-oz can diced tomatoes (not drained)
1 14-oz can of garbanzo beans (drained)
Juice of 2 limes
1 C large black olives, halved
1/2 C pimiento-stuffed green olives, sliced
1 C TVP, toasted in a dry skillet until golden brown
2-3 C water

In a Dutch oven, saute the onions and peppers until soft. Add the garlic and stir for a few seconds, then add the tomatoes and beans and a couple of cups of water. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the lime juice, olives, and TVP. This is when you might want to adjust the water and add more for soup or less for stew. Simmer until the TVP is cooked and serve.

Optional: Garnish with grated co-jack cheese and cilantro.

In a jar or cocktail shaker, use a fork to mash the banana with the soymilk. Add the yogurt, water, and brown sugar and shake vigorously.

Serves one happy person, 140 calories, 6 grams protein, 1 gram fat.

Mash all these ingredients together. Stir in 1-2 jalapenos, seeded and finely chopped, and a little bit of finely diced onion. Add salt to taste.

Combine all ingredients in blender. To serve, stir in some sparkling water or soda and garnish with a lemon or orange slice on the rim. Put a spoonful of frozen berries in each glass.
Serves 4.

For alternative sangria recipes, see:
Schulte Sangria
Cynthia’s Sangria

2 large sweet onions, such as Walla Walla or Vidalia
8 T brown sugar
1 t ground chipotle pepper (for a spicy version) or Hungarian paprika (for a mild version)
4 T butter, softened
Dash salt

Peel the onions and slice them in half. Place an onion half on a cutting board with the round side down and the cut side facing up. Carefully make three parallel cuts down into the onion without going all the way through. Turn it 90 degrees and make three more parallel cuts.

Place the onion half on a large square of foil. On each half, spread 1 T butter and then sprinkle with 2 T brown sugar, 1/2 t pepper or paprika, and some salt. Bring the sides of the foil up around the onion and twist the foil together at the top.

Place the foil-wrapped parcels in the coals of a campfire and roast. It takes about 15 minutes if the fire is very hot, or it may take over 30 if the coals are cooler.

When you open the parcels, the onions will be soft and sweet. You can just pull pieces of onion off with your fingers, or use a knife and fork.

Julienne or slice 4 large carrots. In a large skillet, heat a tablespoon of sesame oil over high heat. Saute the carrots for about a minute, then turn the heat to medium-low and continue sauteeing them for as long as you have patience. You can cook them for 10 minutes, or 30. The longer you cook them over medium-low heat, the sweeter they get. Season to taste with salt.

Cook the carrots, rhubarb, lemon zest, and water together until the carrots are tender and the rhubarb breaks down and forms a sauce. Stir in the garlic and salt and heat gently for a moment before serving.

Marinate the chicken in the dressing for at least 4 hours. Remove it, barbecue it, and cut it into small pieces.

In the remaining marinade, cook the onions, pepper, and asparagus until tender. Toss with the chicken and the tomato sauce and serve over pasta or polenta.

1 onion, cut into large chunks
2 chicken breasts, cubed
Lots of garlic (4-5 cloves)
28 oz can diced tomatoes
14 oz can coconut milk
1-1/2 C dried garbanzo beans (soaked overnight), or 1 can garbanzo beans
1 C frozen peas

Saute the onions until tender. Add the chicken and brown it. Stir in the garlic and coconut milk.

Dried beans/pressure cooker version: Add the tomatoes, not drained, and the beans, drained. Bring to pressure for 15 minutes, then remove from stove and let pressure drop naturally for about 15 minutes.
Canned beans/regular pot version: Add the tomatoes, drained, and beans, also drained. Simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Keep it uncovered to allow it to thicken.

After it’s cooked, stir in the cup of frozen peas.

Season with na pla (Vietnamese fish sauce), hot sauce, and soy sauce. Garnish with fresh coriander or parsley. Serve over rice.

Beat the egg in a small bowl and set aside. In a medium saucepan, combine the cornstarch, cocoa, sugar, and salt. Blend in the milk. Over medium heat, cook this mixture, stirring constantly, until it thickens.

Stir about a quarter-cup of the pudding into the beaten egg, then stir this back into the saucepan. Cook for another minute or so.

Remove from heat and stir in as many chocolate chips as you like. Garnish with the white chocolate chips and serve immediately.

In a pressure cooker, bring the water to a boil and add the rice. Bring to pressure and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to sit for 25 minutes before opening. Toss hot rice with remaining ingredients.

The tastiest way to cook corn on the cob:
Make a campfire and let the wood cook down to form a nice bed of coals. Take an ear of corn, leaving the husk and silk on it. Wrap it in a large piece of aluminum foil and lay it on top of the coals. If the fire is really hot, cook it for 5 minutes, then turn it over and cook it for another 5. If there’s a lot of corn, or the fire’s not super-hot, turn it twice, cooking it for three 5-minute periods. Even with the foil on it, it will be a little bit charred on the outside, which is how you know it’s done.

How to husk and eat the corn:
When the corn is cooked, it’s usually too hot to handle. If you pull back some of the husk, that will cool more quickly than the ear itself. Hold the husk in one hand, dangling the corn from it, and pull back each petal to make a husk handle. The silk will come right off.

What to put on fresh corn:
Salt. Butter. Or, if you like gilding the lily, you can serve it Mexican-style, spreading it with a mixture of mayonnaise and chili powder and squeezing wedges of lime over it.

In the pressure cooker, saute half an onion with some garlic. Add the garbanzos with just enough stock to cover. Pressure cook until tender, about a half hour.

Release the pressure and stir in 1/2 C cranberries, 1 peeled diced apple, half a diced red pepper, a bit more garlic, and 1/2 C chopped sweet onion. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste, and a pinch of sugar.

This is good with brown rice.

3 C water
1-1/2 C brown sugar
1-1/2 C white sugar
1/4 C molasses
1 t powdered cloves
2 t cinnamon
2 C dried tart cherries
60 oz (5 12-oz bags) fresh cranberries

Wash and pick over the cranberries. Bring the water to a boil in a large kettle. Add the sugar, molasses, and spices. Stir until sugar is dissolved, then add cranberries. Simmer them for 5 minutes, then add the cherries and cook for another 5 minutes. You should have a thick sauce with a fair number of whole berries in it.

Spoon the sauce into sterile pint and half-pint jars. Process in a boiling water bath for 5-10 minutes (I did the half-pints for 5 and the pints for 10 minutes).

Note: I made a single batch of this for Christmas dinner, using a 12-oz bag of cranberries and about 3/4 C of sugar. After I removed the sauce from the heat, I stirred in a couple of tablespoons of Cruzan Black Strap Rum instead of the molasses.

Saute the onion in the butter until soft. Add the tomatoes and chicken stock, cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes. Stir in the cilantro and garlic and simmer for 5 more minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the half and half before serving.

Shake well in a cocktail shaker or a jar.

See also Sweet Lassi and Pink Lassi.

4 oz champagne (substitute Martinelli’s sparkling cider for non-drinkers)
4 oz orange juice
Generous splash vanilla syrup (such as Torani)
Generous splash half-and-half

Stir together in a tall glass and fill with ice. Garnish with a thin slice of orange.

Alternative recipe: Raspberry mimosa
Substitute raspberry syrup for the vanilla and garnish with raspberries.

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a large cast-iron skillet or an 8×8 pan.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs and add the butter, pepper, onion, cheese, and buttermilk. Stir in the salt and cornflour. Spread batter into prepared pan and bake for about 35-40 minutes, until it’s starting to brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Note: If you don’t have buttermilk, you can do the following: Put one tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice in a measuring cup. Add milk to make one cup. Let stand for 5 minutes before using.

In a large bowl, combine:
3 cups cottage cheese
2 T fresh lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

With:
Diced or grated fresh vegetables, such as:
A carrot
A large tomato, or a handful of cherry tomatoes
A cucumber, peeled and seeded and chopped
Any color of bell pepper
A seeded, chopped jalapeno pepper
A scallion or a couple tablespoons of diced sweet onion
Fresh garlic (1/2 clove is plenty)

Choose some nuts from this category:
The best are a couple of tablespoons of sesame seeds and 1/4 C toasted sunflower seeds
Or use 1/4 C chopped roasted peanuts, walnuts, or pine nuts

Fun things to add:
1/2 C of minced parsley
A handful of cilantro leaves
A small can of sliced black olives
Sliced green olives
Water chestnuts
Sun-dried tomatoes
A dash of Tabasco