Lime or Lemon Bars

Well, all this talk about lemon bars on by Katie on facebook has given me a new craving.  Thanks a lot Kate.  :)  Not long ago I was at a dinner party and someone brought Lime bars.  They were so good.  Debbie requested that I post the recipe on here.  I'm pretty sure it's the same recipe as Lemon bars only you use Lime juice instead.  But here is the recipe anyways. :)

Ingredients


Crust:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup confectioners' sugar, plus more for dusting
Pinch salt
2 sticks butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing

Filling:

4 eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
6 tablespoons lemon (or Lime) juice

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9 by 13 by 2-inch pan.

Make the crust by combining the flour, confectioners' sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Cut in the butter to make a crumbly mixture. Press the mixture into the prepared pan. You may need to dip your fingers into a little flour or confectioners' sugar to keep the dough from sticking to your fingers. Bake for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, to make the filling, mix the eggs, granulated sugar, flour, and lemon juice. Pour this over the baked crust and bake for 25 minutes longer. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar, if desired, when the bars are done.

Dessert Nachos

I just saw this on familyfun.com and it sounds sooooo good. I am totally trying this this week. :)


Ingredients
3 6-inch flour tortillas
Cooking spray
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, cleaned and hulled
1 tablespoon orange juice
8 ounces vanilla yogurt
1 cup chopped strawberries
1/2 cup shredded coconut or white chocolate shavings

Instructions
To make the tortilla chips, heat the oven to 350º. Cut the tortillas into triangles, lay them on a baking sheet, and spritz them with cooking spray.

Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sugar over the tops of the tortillas and bake for 12 minutes or until crisp.

For homemade strawberry sauce, combine the strawberries, orange juice, and the remaining 1/2 tablespoon sugar in a blender. Puree the ingredients until smooth.

Once the chips have cooled, set them on a plate. To complete the buffet, set out separate bowls containing the strawberry sauce, yogurt, chopped strawberries, and coconut or chocolate shavings. Serves 4 to 6.

Split Pea with Barley Soup

This soup has been one of our family's favorites for a long time. It fills you up without using too many of your calories for the day. It makes a lot, so you people with smaller families should half the recipe, and you'll still probably have leftovers for lunch the next day... or two. I usually make half-whole-wheat breadsticks and cut up some fruit to go with it.

8 cups water
1 pkg (16 oz) dry green split peas, rinsed
1 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup uncooked barley (find this either where the oatmeal is or with the flour and other grains)
4 chicken bouillon cubes or 4 tsp chicken bouillon
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
1 1/2 cups cubed cooked ham (I use John Morrell 12 oz diced ham--it's usually in the meat department)

In a large pot, combine all ingredients except ham. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 1 1/2 hours or until soup reaches desired thickness. Add ham and cook until thoroughly heated. Remove bay leaf and serve.

Makes 10 cups.

Nutrition Info:
Serving size - 1 cup
Calories - 228
Total fat - 1.6 g
Saturated fat - .3 g
Trans fat - 0 g
Cholesterol - 12 mg
Sodium - 673 mg
Carbohydrate - 38.4 g
Dietary fiber - 13.4 g
Sugars - 5.6 g
Protein - 16.8
Vitamin A - 1%
Vitamin C - 4%
Calcium - 4%
Iron - 14%

Spaghetti & Turkey Meatballs

I found this recipe in my Eating for Life cookbook and made it thinking I wouldn't really like the meatballs, but I loved them! (Probably because I actually used fresh parsley instead of my usual dried. :) )  I use Ronzoni Healthy Harvest spaghetti because it's got good stuff in it, and I think it tastes good, too. 

1 1/2 lean ground turkey
2 egg whites
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs or quick oats
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup fresh parsley, minced
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp ground black pepper
3 cups Hunt's Chunky Vegetable spaghetti sauce
Spaghetti (about 12 oz)
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

In a large mixing bowl, combine turkey, egg whites, breadcrumbs, water, onion, garlic, parsley, basil, and pepper.  Mix thoroughly and shape into 1 1/2" balls.  Arrange meatballs on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until browned, turning once after 10 minutes. 

In a large saucepan, combine spaghetti sauce and cooked meatballs.  Simmer over low heat until warmed thoroughly.  Prepare spaghetti according to package directions.  Serve with Parmesan cheese. 

Makes 8 servings (one serving = 3 oz meatballs [about 3], 1/3 cup sauce, & 1/2 tbsp parmesan cheese).  Serve with 2 oz spagetti.

Nutrition Facts (does NOT include spaghetti):
Calories - 206
Total Fat - 7.9 g
Saturated Fat - 2.4 g
Trans Fat - 0
Cholesterol - 62 mg
Sodium 534 mg
Carbohydrates - 13.5 g
Fiber - 3.1 g
Sugars - 6.7 g
Protein - 20 g
Vitamin A - 16%
Vitamin C - 14%
Calcium - 10%
Iron - 14%

Blueberry Banana Muffins

I had a couple over ripe bananas and some blueberries in the fridge I needed to use up so I googled blueberry banana muffins. I found this one on cooks.com and they turned out soooooooo good.

1 med. banana, mashed
1/3 c. skim milk
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 egg whites
2 c. Bisquick
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 c. frozen blueberries, thawed and drained or 1 cup fresh blueberries

Beat banana, milk, oil and egg whites in medium bowl. Stir in baking mix, sugar and cinnamon until moistened. Fold in blueberries. Fill greased muffin cups 3/4 full. Bake 20 minutes @ 400 degrees. Makes 12 muffins.

Black Bottom Banana Cream Pie

This has got to be the best pie ever known to mankind. :)

1 precooked pie crust
1 12oz container of cool whip
1 package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups cold milk
1 pkg 5.1 oz vanilla instant pudding
2 medium bananas
Strawberries for garnish

Microwave 1 1/2 cups of whipped topping and chocolate chips on high for 30-45 seconds; stir until smooth. Spread on bottom of pie crust. Mix milk and pudding until thickened. Fold in 1 1/2 cups whipped topping. Slice bananas over chocolate. Spread pudding mixture over bananas. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Garnish with remaining whipped topping and strawberries.

Disillusioned

I posted this link to some canola oil research on the diet and exercise blog, but I'll past it here as well: http://www.naturalnews.com/026630_canola_oil_olive_oil_saturated_fat.html Maybe I should just stop making anything that calls for fat. :(