Kibbe - "Middle Eastern Meatloaf" & Rice with Lentils

I LOVE Middle Eastern food. I mean what can beat hummus with warm pita bread! Yum! This is my absolute favorite Middle Eastern food. I've never found this at a restaurant and I'm not sure why cuz it would seem like a pretty easy thing to have on a menu...just as easy if not easier, than falalfils . Though once I looked at the picture I posted, it doesn't look that appealing, but it is a hunk of meat (the darker glob on the right is the kibbe. the lighter glob on the white plate is the rice). The other raw meat picture is to show you what it will look like before going into the oven.



There are several authentic ways to serve it: patties, balls, loafs, etc... The way I like it is square patty style. I believe this meal is mainly Lebanese. I've had two different Lebanese mothers teach me how to make it. Neither used a recipe and one didn't speak English, so I've done a little research and modified the recipe so it will be easy for you to make. I served this with my Middle Eastern Rice with Lentils recipe which is also listed below and a garlic dressing green salad. As for the verdict: everyone loved it!


Kibbe

2 # ground beef (authentic way to make it is to use lamb...you can combine meats by using half lamb, half beef, which is the way the mother's taught me, but if you have a lamb aversion or can't find it in the grocery store, which is a good possibility, just use all beef which is how I made it tonight)
1 cup bulgar (or cracked wheat as it may be called)
1 large onion, chopped fine
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon allspice
1/2 cup olive oil

Stuffing:
1 # ground beef
1/2 cup pine nuts
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon allspice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Rinse the bulgar in a pan of water; drain well by squeezing or running through a fine mesh colander. Add wheat to raw meat, then add spices: onion, salt, basil, and allspice. Mix well together. Just like American meatloaf, the best way to do this is to use your hands, but if you have a touching-raw-meat aversion, then you can use a large spoon. Divide mixture in half. Take one half and layer the bottom of a 9X13 baking pan. Smooth down as much as possible. Can use water drops to help with this process. Layer will be very thin. Reserve remaining mixture for later.

Make stuffing by sauting 1# of ground beef. The finer the meat is cooked up, the better. Add pine nuts, cinnamon, salt and allspice. Place cooked mixture on top of raw meat mix. Top this with the remaining reserved raw meat mixture. Smooth top as much as possible (I usually take a little bit of water with my fingertips and dribble over the top to help smooth it out...and just like the mixing, fingers seem to work best).

Loosen the edges by taking a table knife and running it around the edge of the pan. Make slice marks in the top of the "loaf". I guess you could make a diamond-shape design if you want, but I usually make square marks as if I was cutting the patties out. Where the lines intersect, I then take my finger and poke a hole in the meat. Then take your oil and drizzle over the whole loaf, filling each hole. May use more if needed. I usually never measure this out. I just take the bottle and start pouring until it is all covered and holes filled. If you were Lebanese it would almost seemed drenched in oil, but I tend to use enough to fill the holes and have a rubbed oil layer over the whole top.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes until meat is cooked. Cut into squares and serve. I personally just like them plain, but you could serve with a yogurt sauce (tzikiti), ranch dressing, or do I even dare say ketchup (but only if you try a plain bite first and can't stand it- ok?!)




Middle Eastern Rice with Lentils

1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 Tb oil
1 cup uncooked brown rice
1 Tb tomato paste
2 1/2 cups water
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup dry lentils
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
Additional water if needed

In large saucepan, cook onion in oil, stirring until soft, over medium heat. Add rice and stir for several minutes. Combine tomato paste with the water and cinnamon. Add to rice along with the lentils. Bring to boil, cover and lower heat. Simmer 30 minutes.

Preheat oven 350 degrees. Stir the salt, raisins, and pine nuts into rice mixture. The mixture should be a little watery; add 1/4 cup water if it is dry. Place mixture in greased 2 1/2 quart baking dish. Cover and bake for 20-30 minutes.

Pot Sticker - Spinach Soup

I feel like Rachael Ray today, cuz this meal I was able to get ready in 30 minutes or less. The longest thing to make was the rice, so make sure you start that first, unless you completely omit the rice altogether, which is fine to do. It just makes the soup a little more filling, especially for those young tummy's, they hardly knew they were eating spinach! Another reason I like this recipe (besides being healthy and fast) is it is another way to use up spinach, especially if you go all out crazy and get the Costco bag of spinach. The hot chili oil must really help, because I've never added that before nor do I have it in stock, so we all added a little soy sauce instead. On the side I also heated up some ready made spring rolls from Trader Joe's....sorry if you don't live near a TJ, that store just rocks!



Pot Sticker - Spinach Soup


2 14 1/2 oz. chicken broth (or 1-32oz box)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 fresh green or red jalapeno chile, seeded and minced (this was the first time I actually bought one and did this...normally I leave it out entirely or I'll open a small can of green chili's found in the Mexican food section of the grocery store, and put in about 1/2 the jar)
16-18 frozen pork or chicken pot stickers
1 1/2 cup fresh baby spinach or 1/3 cup frozen
Hot chili oil (optional...I've never used it before)

In medium saucepan, simmer chicken broth with garlic and jalapeno over low heat for 5 minutes. Add frozen pot stickers and simmer additional 5 minutes. Add spinach and simmer until wilted, but still bright green. Serve over rice.

Amish Baked Oatmeal

Ya! We have a follower! Thanks, Shawn! This recipe is for you!



I originally got this recipe from a friend whose sister used to live in Pennsylvania near Amish Country. I changed a couple of things like adding raisins and cinnamon. (Yes, Shawn, you can leave the raisins out!) It is a good comfort breakfast food and great to serve to company. I normally use rice milk to make mine dairy free. I've experimented, too, with using less sugar (1/4 cup), 2 eggs whites, and 3 TB butter and it worked well, just make sure you add a little more cinnamon.



Getting the request for this recipe made me realize that I have a lot of oatmeal recipes as I've already posted a recipe for Steel-cut Oatmeal. I can already think of a couple of other ones that I use on a regular basis that I'll post someday in the future, especially with the weather turning cooler. I guess I like oatmeal. I think it is such a comfort food.



Amish Baked Oatmeal
serves 4-6

1 1/2 cups quick oats
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
one egg
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup raisins

Combine ingredients mixing well. Spread evenly in 8X8 buttered pan. Bake 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes until edges slightly golden brown. Spoon into bowls. Top with milk, fruit, and powdered sugar.

Crockpot Power Soup

I've renamed this meal Power Soup. I think it is from lentils or the sweet potatoes, I don't know, way too many healthy power foods in this meal to tell. I personally think lentils are a little gross looking, and they sound entirely WAY too healthy, but my family loved this meal, even the 9 month old. I picked out the potatoes, carrots, and a couple of straggling lentils for him, pureed them all up and he gobbled down the whole cup, then he slept that night for 9 1/2 hours until 5:45am! I feel like a new mommy! The first night I've slept that long in I can't even remember! I think he'll be getting this every night, except everyone had seconds and there aren't any leftovers. Now if it only would have caused my older two children to listen, not get in disagreements, and go to bed without me telling... but then I would have had to rename the soup Miracle Soup instead.




Crockpot Lentil and Sausage Soup
a.k.a Power Soup


1 cup lentils
2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 sweet potatoes, cut in chunks
2 Italian chicken sausage, cut into wheels
2 handfuls baby carrots
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup red wine (I used white, cuz it was all I had)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Put all ingredients in the crockpot and cook on low for at least 6 hours.

Turkey Noodle Soup

Fall is in the air which is the start of my favorite, easy, fast, one-pot way to cook: SouP!!! I threw this recipe together today and it got rave reviews from all of the family. Everyone ate at least one bowl. I browned the meat up, then threw all of the ingredients in the crockpot on high before leaving this morning. When we got home early afternoon, I added the pasta while some bread was warming in the oven, and it made for a super, easy, healthy lunch.


TURKEY NOODLE SOUP

1# ground turkey
2 carrots, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 sweet potatoes, skinned and cut in chunks
32 oz chicken broth (I like the box containers, but have used bullion cubes before and it works)
1 cup water
2 cloves garlic, diced
Juice of 1/2 lemon (about 1 tablespoon)
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 cup noodles (I used farfalle)
salt and pepper to taste

Brown the turkey in a skillet. I added a little seasoning (salt and garlic salt) to the meat. Place meat, carrots, celery, sweet potatoes, chicken broth, water, garlic, lemon juice, seasoning and noodles in large stock pot (or crockpot) and cook over medium heat for 20-30 minutes until vegetables are soft and noodles are cooked. Add salt and pepper to taste.

White Buttercream Frosting

No photo. It's frosting. It's white. You get the idea.

You know how frosting is usually so sickening sweet you have to scrape it off the cake or it is so crisco-y greasy you have to dump it in the trash...ok, well, at least that's what I always do with frosting.

Until now. There is nothing ordinary about the taste of this frosting.

This recipe comes from my friend Judy.  While Judy's husband was stationed in France, Judy had nothing to do. So she enrolled in Le Cordon Bleu. In Paris.  The result: Judy is an amazing chef. Absolutely amazing! I love living in the same town so I can ask her lots and lots of questions.  She gave me this recipe a few years ago, and I don't know why I never made it before.

Actually, I do know why. One, I do NOT allow Crisco in my home, and two, I do not use marshmellow creme. Yuck. Double yuck. 

But there are now substitutes for both, so thus, I modified the recipe and am now happy to say, this is my very favorite frosting I have EVER made.

Prep:    Like 10 minutes

Ingredients:

½ cup spectrum shortening (no trans fat)
½ cup butter, unsalted, softened
¼ tsp almond extract
½ tsp salt
½ cup warm water
2 lbs powdered sugar
⅓ cup rice mellow cream  (made from brown rice syrup so it is DF and GF)

In a large mixing bowl, sift sugar and all remaining ingredients. Mix on medium speed until mixed thoroughly. Blend for 2 minutes longer until mixture is creamy.

Makes:  enough to frost a Texas sheet cake with a cup left over

Classic Scones

I LOVE tea! I love drinking it, I love the tea cups, I love the way it makes you slow down and savor, and I love the pastries that are eaten with tea. Yes, I live in the Pacific NW and don't drink coffee. The only other person I've found here that doesn't drink tea are my two good friends from England. We love getting together for tea and scones as often as we can. I couldn't be a contributor to a blog without a section labeled "tea recipes" of course.

My sister emailed me asking me for a scone recipe, one that had easy, simple, frequent, ingredients-already-in-the-house-don't-have-to-go-to-grocery-store-with-three-kids-in-tow ingredients. Our grandmother had given her a jar of lemon curd and she wanted to make scones. Since I'm the tea queen, I of course have the perfect scone recipe.

I made the recipe with rice milk and it works fine (it wasn't even chilled). Of course chilled, whole milk gives it a rich, fluffy, creamy texture, but feel free to use whatever % milk is in your fridge. You may also add currents, raisins, or craisins. Scones can be served with fresh whipped cream and jam, lemon curd, or butter. All I could find in the fridge today was cream cheese, so I added a little sugar and vanilla to that, whipped it up and no one complained! I have a good friend that makes these and freezes them (I think she keeps them there just for when I come over to visit!) Don't forget to serve the scones with a cup of hot tea!!!

CLASSIC SCONES

2 1/4 cups Flour
1 Tbl Sugar
2 tsp Baking Powder
3/4 cups (or more) chilled whole milk
1 large egg
1 Tbl vegetable oil

Mix dry ingredients. Whisk 3/4 cup milk, egg, and oil in small bowl to blend. Gradually add milk mixture to dry ingredients, tossing until moist clumps form and adding more milk by tablespoons if dough is dry. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface; knead gently for several turns until dough comes together.

Pat out dough to 1" thick round. Using 2 1/2" diameter cutter, cut out scones (You can also cut into triangles.) Gather dough scraps; press out to 1" thickness to cut more.

Bake 425 until golden on top and tester is clean about 14 minutes. Cool on sheet 5 minutes.

Easy Steel Cut Oatmeal

I love oatmeal. My kids love oatmeal. I don't know about you, but I never have time in the morning to make oatmeal, especially steel cut oats as they take over an hour to cook. I got a wonderful tip from a friend about how to make it in the crockpot. This is super easy and totally works. If you want to cook it all night, you'll need to use steel cut oatmeal (which is super healthy). It works with regular oatmeal, too, but only if you wake up in the middle of the night because regular oatmeal only needs about 2 hours of cooking time. If steel cut, you can throw it in the slowcooker before you head to bed and it will be ready in the morning. Even if you wake up late!

EASY STEEL CUT OATMEAL

Ingredients:
1 cup Steel cut Oatmeal (the super healthy kind)
1 tsp Cinnamon
2 cups water
2 cups milk (I used rice milk)

Mix up ingredients in a cookware dish that is oven safe and fits in your crockpot. I have a round corningware dish that fits snugly in the top of my crockpot with just enough clearance to put the crockpot lid on. Add a small amount of water in the bottom of the crockpot about just enough to cover the bottom. Place dish on top. Leave that dish uncovered, but then cover the crockpot with the crockpot lid. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Warm, yummy, healthy oatmeal for breakfast!!! Our favorite toppings are maple syrup, fresh cut up fruit (raisins on the quick days), and milk.

Grandma's Zucchini Bread

This is the BEST zucchini bread ever, of course it is a recipe from my Grandmother. Grandma recipes are the best...maybe not the most nutritious, but definitely taste the best! These usually don't last long in our home. Last year I made two sets of double the recipe, froze them and then gave away as Christmas gifts to the kids teachers and neighbors.




Grandma's Zucchini Bread
3 eggs
1 cup oil
2 cups sugar
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups grated zucchini
1- 8 1/2 oz can crushed pineapple
3 cups flour
2 tsp soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp nutmeg
1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)
1 cup raisins or dried cranberries

Beat eggs, oil, sugar, and vanilla until thick. Add remaining ingredients and stir in. Pour into loaf pans. Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees.

I bake in smaller pans and it takes 40 minutes for medium size and 35 minutes or less for real small. May substitute 1/2 cup applesauce for half the oil.

Curried Corn Fritters

 

 Not such a great photo...I took it last minute, but wait till you make it! Oh, this is a keeper!

My family isn't too keen on spicy anything, so I was a bit hesitant when I first read the title of this recipe in a recent book, Tea, by Sarina Jacobson, which I picked up in Ashland while at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival.   But once I read the ingredient list, I knew I absolutely had to try it! I used fresh corn from Iowa which my husband cut off the cob for me, and fresh green beans someone so graciously gave us at church. Tonight, all the ingredients came together, and I paired this with grilled salmon.

The big guy loved it! The littlest guy wanted more, more, more please. And the other guy ate it, no comment.

I didn't have curry paste, so just substituted curry powder. And I omitted the cilantro since all I had was parsley. Also, I used non-dairy cheese, so this was dairy free for me.


Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time:  15 minutes

Serves:  makes about 10 fritters

Ingredients:

2 cups corn , cooked
½ cup green beans, trimmed & chopped
2 Tablespoons cilantro, chopped  (I omitted)
2 eggs, large
¼ cup yellow cheese, grated  (I used almond cheese)
¼ cup soft white cheese, cottage, cream, ricotta (I used tofutti cream cheese)
4 tablespoons rice flour
4 tablespoons flour
1 tsp salt
2 tablespoons indian curry paste, OR  2 tsp curry powder
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
oil for frying



Directions:

In a large bowl, mix together corn, green beans, cilantro, eggs and cheeses.
In a separate bowl, mix together flours, salt, curry/paste, and brown sugar. Add flour mixture to corn mixture and stir until well combined.

In large frying pan over medium heat, heat 1 tsp of oil. Drop scoops (I use Pampered Chef medium scoop) of batter into the pan about an inch apart and gently press to flatten. Fry about 2 minutes until brown. Flip patties and fry other side until brown.

Transfer to a paper towel on a wire bakers rack to drip off excess oil. Continue frying in batches.

Serve warm with butter and/or honey.

Mini Italian Pub Burgers

We don't eat much red-meat in our family; maybe once or twice a month. But I bought some organic ground beef at the farmers market and did a search for a good burger recipe. I usually search Food Network and Myrecipes and Crockpot365 as my top 3 go-to-sites.  This recipe was one I grabbed from Giada De L....which brings up the question of how many adaptations/adjustments do you have to do to a recipe in order to call it your recipe?  How long do you keep giving credit to the originator, and when does it become a "new recipe"?

Back to the recipe. I'm telling you, this is the BEST burger I have ever made at home. And we have made it quite a few times over the summer. Juicy and moist!  The last time I made it, I went easy on the parsely and added zucchini...I mean, zucchini is overflowing in everyones garden come the end of summer...and if my family can't see the zucchini, they are far more apt to eat it willingly. Which they did.

 

Prep time: I've never made this without the boys wanting to help, so for me it takes at least 30 minutes

Cook time:  8-10 minutes

Ingredients:

2 cloves garlic, peeled

½ cup packed fresh flat-leaf parsley (or half zucchini)
2 ¼ pounds ground chuck

3/4 cup (1 1/2 ounces) grated Parmesan

3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
9 small ciabatta rolls, sliced in 1/2
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
9 Taleggio cheese, sliced
9 large basil leaves

Place a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill.

Place the garlic and parsley in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped. Add the ground chuck, Parmesan cheese, tomato paste, salt, and pepper. Pulse until ingredients are combined. Form the mixture into 9 patties. Place the burgers on the grill and cook for 4 to 5 minutes each side.

Brush the cut side of each roll with the olive oil and toast on the grill for 1 to 2 minutes until slightly golden.

To serve, place 1 mini burger on the bottom half of each of the rolls. Place 1 slice of Taleggio cheese on top of the burgers. Place the basil leaf on top of the cheese and cover with the top half. Serve.

Chicken Caprese

First, do you know what "caprese" refers to?  Honestly, there was that point in my life, not so very long ago when I couldn't even pronounce the word...was embarassed to even attempt to say it to the waiter because I knew I was blundering it. Foodgeeks.com (gotcha again...betcha didn't know there was such a site!) defines "caprese" as: Caprese... is an Italian specialty that is a simple dish designed to feature its three primary ingredients: Tomatoes, basil and mozzerella cheese. The preferred mozzerella is made from the milk of the water buffalo. 


Now I know "caprese", love all things "caprese", and I can hardly wait for the end of summer when the basil is fresh and the tomatoes are overflowing the gardens and farmers markets so I can make a caprese salad.

One day last week, I had that abundance of basil and wanted to do something with it, so I combined a caprese salad with grilled chicken...and the result is simply end-of-summer-time wonderful. Well, my serving was without the cheese, but the rest of the family loved the Chicken Caprese.  If any readers have found a good dairy-free substitute for mozzerella, please comment and share with me. I haven't found a substitute that is worth using.

Here's the easiest chicken you'll ever grill:

Prep:   15 minutes active; 30 minute marinade
Cook: 15 minutes


Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1/ 2 teaspoon coarse salt
Freshly ground pepper
2 garlic cloves minced
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

12-16 fresh basil leaves, plus more for garnish
2-3 heirloom tomatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
8-12  thick slices of fresh mozzerella cheeses

First, butterfly chicken breasts which is much simpler than you think.  Just put breasts on a cutting board, smooth sides down, with the pointed ends facing you. (Kinda like a mamogram!) Starting on one long side, cut breasts almost in half horizontally (stop about 1/2 inch before reaching the opposite side).

Sprinkle each piece all over with salt and pepper. Transfer to a plate, and coat both sides with garlic, balsamic vinegar and oil. Let stand 30 minutes.

Heat a grill until medium-hot. Place 2-4 basil leaves on the bottom half of each opened chicken breast; top each with 2-3 slices tomato, then 2-3 slices of mozzerella. Fold over other half of chicken breast, and secure with 2-3 toothpicks.

 Here is the no-cheese breast, unfolded, and the cheese topped breast already fastened with toothpicks.

Grill chicken breasts, turning once, until golden brown on both sides and no longer pink in the center, about 15 minutes. Place on a clean serving platter; garnish with basil. If desired, remove toothpicks before serving.

 

Use any leftover tomatoe slices, basil and mozzerella to make caprese salad. Garnish salad with a little oil, and a few kalamata olives. 

Pacific Rim Chicken

I found this in the Sonoma Williams Grilling Cookbook, made some changes, and it has become a favorite of my boys. It's easy, quick and can be halved for smaller portions.

Prep time:  30 minutes with kids
Cook time:  less than 10 minutes

Ingredients:

6 chicken, boneless, skinless
1 cup lime juice
2 tablespoon walnut oil
3 green onion, including tops
1 ½ cups coconut milk
½ cup peanut butter
¼ cup cilantro, fresh, chopped
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
½ tsp ginger, ground
½ tsp cumin, ground
Cut chicken breasts into long strips, 1-inch wide (about 12 strips)

Marinate:
Place chicken in shallow, non-aluminum pan. Pour lime juice over chicken and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Sauce:
In small saucepan, warm oil over medium heat. Add green onions and saute until tender, about 5 minutes.
Stir in the coconut milk, peanut butter, cilantro, brown sugar, ginger and cumin.
Cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. If sauce becomes to thick, add more coconut milk. Pour sauce into bowl and let cool. (Refrigerate if making ahead).

Drain chicken, discard juice, and weave 2 chicken strips on to a skewer. Place skewers on grill, cover and open vents, and grill, turning once.
Measure 2 oz of sauce and brush over chicken during last minutes of grilling.

Transfer to a serving dish, and pass the remaining sauce with the chicken.

Roasted Sweet Potato Cheesecake

Yes, this is dairy-free!  No one could believe it when I said it had sweet potatoes and no dairy. Here's the secret: never tell anyone the ingredients until after they eat it -  - just present it as a "cheesecake".

This is NOT a difficult recipe, altho, yes, it is time consuming. BUT, make it and you will not regret it. And when you serve it, you will be famous. Forever. Whoever eats it will be your biggest foodie fan the rest of their life. It's that good.

Prep:  a lot of time! seriously.

Cook:  roast potatoes, 55-60 min; bake cake, 50 -75 min

Ingredients for cheesecake, crust and topping:

• 2 dark orange-fleshed sweet potatoes (1 1/4 to 1 1/2 lb. total), such as jewel or red garnet (sometimes sold as yams)
• 1 tablespoon melted butter (ok, so a lil bit of dairy here)
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 24 ounces rice cream cheese
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
• 4 eggs, large
• ¼ cup soy whipping cream
• ¼ cup rice sour cream
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 cup pecans
• 1 1/4 cup graham crackers
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 5 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 cup soy whipping cream
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
  

Directions:

Roast your Sweet Potato's

You can do this a day ahead of time and refrigerate cooked potatoes.

• Preheat oven to 375° (convection not recommended). Peel sweet potatoes and cut in half lengthwise. Place in a 9- by 13-inch baking pan and brush with melted butter. Bake until potatoes are soft when pressed, 45 to 55 minutes.

• Scrape any charred spots off potatoes, then cut potatoes into chunks. Whirl in a food processor or mash in a bowl with lemon juice until smooth. Reserve 1 cup; save any extra for another use.
  

Meanwhile, prepare crust.

Pecan Crust:

• Whirl 1/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans in a blender until finely ground; you should have 1/4 cup. 
• In a bowl, mix pecans, 1 1/4 cups fine graham cracker crumbs, 2 tablespoons sugar, and 5 tablespoons melted butter. 
• Pour into a 9-inch cheesecake pan with removable rim (2 1/4 in. tall). 
• Press mixture evenly over bottom of pan.
• Bake crust in same oven with potatoes until lightly browned all over, 10 to 12 minutes.

Back to the cheesecake:

Reduce oven temperature to 325°.

• In a bowl, with a mixer on high speed, beat cream cheese until fluffy. 

• Gradually beat in granulated and brown sugars, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally, until mixture is well blended and smooth. 

• Beat in eggs, one at a time, until blended. 

• Add reserved sweet potato mixture, the whipping cream, sour cream, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Mix on low speed until well blended.

• Wrap bottom of cheesecake pan with heavy-duty foil, pressing it up the sides. You want to wrap it really, really tightly.

• Pour batter over crust.
  

• Put cheesecake pan in a 12- by 15-inch roasting pan at least 2 inches deep. Set pans in oven and pour enough boiling water into roasting pan to come halfway up sides of cheesecake pan.   This is important.  This ensures even baking of your cheesecake.
  

• Bake until cake barely jiggles in the center when gently shaken, about 55 minutes. Remove pans from oven. Lift cheesecake pan from roasting pan and let cool completely on a rack, about 1 hour.  

When cooled, chill until cold, at least 1 1/2 hours, or up to 3 days (cover once cold).

Up to 6 hours before serving, cut around inside of pan rim to release cake; remove rim.

With a pastry bag, pipe dollops of maple cream onto cake. Or serve maple cream separately, to spoon onto each wedge.

Maple Cream:

• In a bowl, with a mixer on high speed, beat 3/4 cup soy whipping cream until stiff peaks form. 
• On low speed, beat in 1/4 cup maple syrup just until blended.

Notes:  Can be made up to 3 days ahead; wrapped tightly; refrigerated.

Halibut Proscuitto Kebabs

Halibut Proscuitto Kebabs:   I give this a 5* rating in my MacGourmet collection.  So easy, healthy and delicious!

Prep:  About 30 minutes
Cook:  About 10 minutes

Ingredients:
¼ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
1 teaspoon pepper, ground
1 ½ pounds halibut, boned and skinned, cubed
4 cups bread, crusty and thick , cubed
12 ounces proscuitto, thinly sliced (I usually can cut each slice into 3 strips; you may only be able to cut the slices in half depending on how the deli slices the proscuitto for you)

Directions:
Combine olive oil, rosemary and pepper in a bowl. Set aside.
Add cubed halibut and crusty bread. (Make sure it is thick AND crusty. Don't skimp here.)
Toss to coat, then set aside for 5-10 minutes.
Skewer proscuitto on end of a metal kabob, then thread it around a piece of bread, then a piece of halibut, as if you are weaving.
Repeat as needed.
Grill over medium heat, turning often, for about 5-6 minutes.

Notes:  most proscuitto is smoked, so there is no salt added to this recipe

Welcome to our new recipe adventure!

The  first post of the new blog! 

Here's wishing you darling diva's success in all the recipes you try.

Be adventurous with us.  
We're always looking for tried and true healthy recipes...dairy free, gluten free, vegan, low fat...we want them all.