Lime in the Coconut Chicken Wraps

For something different…

· 2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 1 inch strips
· 1 (14 ounce) can coconut milk
· 1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
· 2 cups water
· 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
· 1 1/2 tablespoons curry powder
· 1 tablespoon garlic salt
· 3/4 cup vegetable oil
· 2 limes
· 10 (10 inch) flour tortillas
· 1/2 cup shredded coconut
· 1/2 cup chopped green onions

1. Place the chicken and coconut milk in a container (bowl, zip lock bag), and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
2. In a pot, bring the rice and water to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 20 minutes.
3. In a small bowl, mix the flour, curry powder, and garlic salt. Drain the chicken, and discard marinade. Dredge chicken in the flour mixture to coat.
4. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat, and cook the coated chicken strips 5 minutes per side, or until golden brown and juices run clear. Squeeze lime juice over chicken, and discard limes.
5. On each tortilla, place equal amounts of rice, chicken, coconut, and green onions. Wrap burrito style.

Cheese Spaetzle

Don’t be turned off by this recipe—it’s not as fattening/unhealthy/whatever as you think.

You’ll need
· 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
· 3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
· 3/4 teaspoon salt
· 1/8 teaspoon pepper
· 3 eggs
· 3/8 cup 2% milk
· 3 tablespoons butter
· 1 onion, sliced
· 1 1/2 cups shredded Emmentaler cheese

Now…

Sift together flour, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Beat eggs in a medium bowl. Alternately mix in milk and the flour mixture until smooth. Let stand for 30 minutes.

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Press batter through a spaetzle press/potato ricer/colander/or a cheese grater into the water. When the spaetzle has floated to the top of the water, remove it to a bowl with a slotted spoon. Mix in 1 cup of the cheese.

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, and cook until golden. Stir in spaetzle and remaining cheese until well blended. Remove from heat, and serve immediately.

Moroccan-flavoured lentil soup

You will need:

· 2 onions, chopped
· 2 cloves garlic, minced
· 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
· 6 cups water
· 1 cup red lentils
· 1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained
· 1 (19 ounce) can cannellini beans
· 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
· 1/2 cup diced carrots
· 1/2 cup chopped celery
· 1 teaspoon garam masala
· 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cardamom
· 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
· 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
· 1 tablespoon olive oil

Now…
In large pot or Dutch oven, sauté; the onions, garlic, and ginger in a little olive oil for about 5 minutes.
Add the water, lentils, garbanzo beans, white kidney beans, diced tomatoes, carrots, celery, garam masala, cardamom, cayenne pepper and cumin. Bring to a boil for a few minutes, then simmer until the lentils are soft (about an hour).
IF DESIRED—puree half the soup in a food processor or blender. Return the pureed soup to the pot, stir and enjoy!

Breakfast Cookies: Pumpkin

Pumpkin Breakfast Cookies

1 cup brown sugar
1 1/4 cups rolled oats
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (heaping)
6 tablespoons applesauce
6 tablespoons pumpkin puree (if using homemade, make sure it is thick like canned)
2 egg whites or one egg
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup dried cranberries

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Stir all ingredients together.
3. Roll the cookies into golf ball sized balls.
4. Place on cookie sheet (s) about 2 inches apart, giving them room to spread slightly.
5. Spray tops with cooking oil, flip over with a cooking oil sprayed spatula, these are precautions so your cookies won't stick to the pan.
6. Bake about 8 minutes for moist cookies.

Enjoy!

Sweet potato burritos

All right, so for sweet potato burritos you will need:

1 onion, chopped
minced garlic to taste (I use 2-3 cloves)
28-32 ounces of black beans
4 cups (or so) of mashed sweet potatos (get three sweet potatoes: chop them into chunks; boil until soft: peel skin off, and mash. Voila!)
Cayenne pepper to taste
Cumin, to taste
10 or 12 inch tortilla
Cheese—(if you want)—either cheddar or whatever “Mexican” blend you want.

Saute the onion with garlic.
Cook the beans in a little bit of water until they are soft enough to mash. Season the “mash” of beans with cumin, cayenne pepper, and even chili powder if you want. Stir in the onions.

Take one tortilla. Put equal amounts of mashed sweet potato and black bean mash on the tortilla. Sprinkle with some cheese, and then wrap burrito style. Place in a large baking dish.

Repeat, repeat, repeat. This makes 8-12 burritos.

Sprinkle all the burritos with cheese, and place the baking dish in a 350F degree oven for about 10 minutes, until cheese is melted.

Enjoy!

Quinoa with Corn and Black Beans

• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• ¾ cup uncooked quinoa (I like to use red quinoa here, for the colour contrast)
• 1 ½ water
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup corn kernels (frozen is fine)
• 2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained\
1. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic, and sauté until lightly browned.
2. Mix quinoa into the saucepan and cover with vegetable broth. Season with cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes,
3. Stir frozen corn into the saucepan, and continue to simmer about 5 minutes until heated through. Mix in the black beans and cilantro.
**We like to eat this as a tortilla filling and top with salsa! Yummy!

Quinoa with Chickpeas and Tomatoes

• 1 cup quinoa
• salt
• 1 ¾ cups water
• 1 cup garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained and rinsed
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• 4 teaspoons olive oil (or less)
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 pinch salt and pepper to taste
• ½ teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
1. Place the quinoa in a fine mesh strainer, and rinse under cold, running water until the water no longer foams. Bring the quinoa, salt, and water to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the quinoa is tender, 20 to 25 minutes.
2. Once done, stir in the garbanzo beans, tomatoes, garlic, lime juice, and olive oil. Season with cumin, salt, and pepper. Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley to serve.