Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Apple Cranberry Spice Muffins

Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups Flour
1/2 cup Sugar
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
Pinch of Ground Cloves
Pinch of Salt
2 Eggs
1/4 cup Canola Oil
1 cup Sour Cream
1 large Granny Smith Apple (peeled, cored, and finely chopped)
1/2 cup Walnuts (finely chopped)- optional
1/2 cup Sweetened Dried Cranberries

Directions:
Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease the bottoms only of 12 standard muffin cups. In large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, oil, and sour cream until well blended. Add the egg mixture, apples, walnuts and dried cranberries to the dry ingredients. Stir just until the batter is blended, then divide it among the muffin cups. Bake for 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean. Let the muffins cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5-10 minutes before removing them. Makes 1 dozen.

(http://www.familyfun.com/)

Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
3 Cloves Garlic (finely chopped)
1 (14.5 oz) can Diced Tomatoes (not drained)
1/4 tsp Crushed Red Pepper
10 Kalamata Olives (pitted and chopped)
1 1/2 lb Medium Shrimp (peeled, deveined and rinsed)
3 oz. Feta Cheese Crumbles
1 tsp. Dried Oregano

Directions:
Warm oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes, crushed red pepper and olives, and simmer until mixture is thickened, about 10 minutes. Add shrimp and cook, stirring until shrimp are pink and firm, 4 to 5 minutes. Divide shrimp into 4 servings and sprinkle each with feta cheese and oregano. Serve hot.

(www.allyou.com)

Simple Beef Stew

Ingredients:
2 1/2 lb. Beef Chuck (trim fat and cut into 1-inch cubes)
Salt and Pepper
4 Tbsp All-Purpose Flour
3 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
2 Onions (cut into wedges)
6 Carrots (cut into 1-inch pieces)
8 Cloves Garlic (finely chopped)
1 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
1 1/2 cups Dry Red Wine
1/2 tsp Dried Thyme
1 Bay Leaf

* consider serving with a side of No-Yolk Egg Noodles

Directions:
Place meat in bowl; season with salt and pepper and coat with flour. Warm 2 tbsp oil in skillet over med-high heat. Fry half of the meat until brown all over, about 4 minutes, and place cubes in slow cooker. Warm remaining 1 tbsp oil in skillet and fry remaining meat and place in slow cooker. Add onions and carrots to skillet and cook, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Add garlic; cook for one minute longer. Add onion mixture to slow cooker. Pour vinegar and wine into skillet, bring to a boil and then add mixture to slowcooker. Season mixture with salt, pepper and thyme; add bay leaf. Cover and cook on low heat until meat is tender, about 5-6 hours. Remove bay leaf and serve hot.

(http://www.allyou.com/)