Still stuck in the cold weather?  This recipe ought to get you dreaming about tropical breezes blowing and palm trees swaying.  Take a bite, close your eyes, and taste the sweet flavor of the Islands. 

4 (5 oz.) chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1/3 C. lite apricot preserves
Dash ground allspice

Spray broiler rack with non stick spray.  Place chicken on broiler rack. Broil for about 6 minutes. Brush first side with lemon juice, turn chicken over and brush with remaining juice. Broil second side 6-9 minutes or until no longer pink. Heat apricot preserves and allspice in a small saucepan. Spoon over chicken breasts and serve. Wonderful served with brown rice.  (Serves 4)

You can never have too many pasta and cheese meals to suit your kids, but what about the veggies?  Simple… mix them right in!  Anytime I can get my kids to eat their vegetables, I feel like a successful cook.  My opinion is that it’s all fair… if you must cover your kids’ veggies in pasta and cheese, so be it.  It works and that’s great!

1 12oz package of shells and cheese pasta mix.
2 tablespoons Italian dressing
1 cup broccoli florets
1 red bell pepper cut into strips
1 cup baby peas (frozen)
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese

Cook shells and cheese pasta as directed on packaging.  In a large skillet, warm dressing over medium heat.  Place broccoli and bell pepper in skillet and cook until somewhat tender.  Add frozen peas, cooked shells, and basil to the skillet and mix well. Top with Parmesan cheese and serve warm.

When green beans become plentiful, I’ll be right there buying them up by the bushel!  You’ll never run out of new ways to serve green beans if you keep in mind that just about any combination of flavors you can imagine will enhance the flavor of that most common of all vegetable – the humble green bean.

1 pound fresh green beans
2 teaspoon olive oil
3 large thinly sliced shallots
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1/4 cup thinly sliced basil leaves
Lemon wedges

In a large nonstick skillet place 1/2 inch of water and bring to boil.  Add green beans cover and simmer over medium low heat until tender crisp, about 8 minutes.  Drain well.  Heat oil in skillet over medium heat.  Add shallots and cook 2 minutes or until soft and slightly browned.  Replace green beans.  Sprinkle with pepper.   Continue cooking, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes or until heated through.  Remove skillet from heat.  Stir in lemon zest and basil. Garnish with lemon wedges and serve immediately.

Stuffed potatoes are normally a great side dish, but this one can be served as a main dish.  The tofu is your protein, so you’ve got a whole dinner right there in those potato skins!  The flavor is very special, too, with the Dijon Mustard perking everything up a bit.

4 medium baking potatoes
1 C. chopped spring onions
1 C.  chopped mushrooms
1 (8 oz.) package soft tofu, drained & mashed
2 Tablespoons chopped parsley
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon honey
paprika
Butter flavored cooking spray

Wash and dry potatoes. Using an sharp knife, stick a hole all the way through each potato. Coat potatoes with a thin layer of cooking spray.  Microwave on high for 10 minutes, turn over and cook 10 minutes longer.  (You may prefer to oven bake the potatoes, just use your favorite method.)

Cut baked potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop out insides, leaving about ¼ inch thick skin to fill.

Combine onion and mushrooms in skillet. Cover and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until mushrooms become tender. Combine scooped out potato with tofu, parsley, mustard and honey. Mix well. Stir in mushrooms and onions.

Re-fill potato skins with tofu mixture and sprinkle with paprika. Reheat in microwave for 2-5 minutes or until heated through. (Serves 4)

Your kids, like mine, may not be too fond of dates.  Mine just won’t eat them right out of the bag, but they will if I mix the dates in with some of their favorite foods.  All these great flavors swimming around in honey-yogurt dressing may be just the thing to get your kids to dig in!

2 medium apples, cored and chopped
1 Tablespoon and 3 Tablespoons orange juice
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
¾ C. chopped celery
1/3 C. chopped dates
1/3 C. raisins
½ C. plain nonfat yogurt
2 Tablespoons honey

To prevent browning, toss apples in a bowl with 1 Tablespoon of orange juice and 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice. Coat well. Add celery, dates, and raisins. Mix together yogurt, honey, and 3 Tablespoons orange juice to make a dressing. Pour over fruit mixture and blend well. Cover and chill for 30 minutes before serving. (Serves 6)

It’s nice to have some simple kid-friendly dishes that you can put together easily and without having to run out to the grocery store.  I normally keep some frozen peas and carrots on hand, as well as rice, so this is a natural combination for our family.

3 C. cooked brown rice
1 teaspoon minced onions
1 (6 oz) bag of frozen peas
1 (6 oz) bag of frozen sliced carrots
2 Tablespoons fresh parsley
2 Tablespoons butter or margarine

Cook brown rice (according to directions on package.) Combine rice, peas, carrots, parsley, and butter in saucepan and mix well.  Heat mixture through slowly until warm. (Serves 6)

We’re right in that time of year when we’ve got the bug to get the grill going, but it’s still covered in snow.  Serve this flavorful flank steak alongside a nice, spring mix green salad with a balsamic vinegar dressing, close your eyes and imagine the trees are budding.

1 ½ lb. lean beef flank steak
¾ C. dry red wine
1 ½ teaspoons lemon pepper
½ teaspoon minced garlic
Cooking spray

Combine wine, garlic, and lemon pepper. Pour over steak, cover and marinate in refrigerator over night. Coat broiler rack with cooking spray and place steak on rack. Broil 4 inches from heat for 6 minutes on each side. Slice steak into small strips (across grain) to serve.  (Serves 6)

I like Chinese take-out just as much as anybody, but would prefer to make it at home, to save money and to control the ingredients.  This recipe is a great uncomplicated dish using simple ingredients that even a beginner cook can master.

1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 onion, sliced
2 celery ribs, sliced
2 cups turkey breast, cooked and cubed
1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts sliced, drained
1 1/4 cup reduced sodium chicken broth
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/4 cup cold water
3 Tbsp. reduced sodium soy sauce
1 (14 ounce) can been sprouts, drained
serve over cooked rice

Place the butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat and allow the butter to melt completely.  Stir the onions and celery into the butter.  Continue to cook until both are fork tender.  Place the turkey into the skillet.  Add the water chestnuts and pour in the chicken broth.  Turn burner up to medium-high and bring mixture to a steady boil.  Reduce the heat to low and allow the mixture to simmer.  Whisk the cornstarch, water and soy sauce together in a small bowl until smooth.  Pour the cornstarch mixture into the turkey mixture.  Bring temperature back up to a slow boil, stirring constantly.  Continue cooking and stirring for 2 minutes after the mixture begins to boil.  The mixture will thicken to your desired consistency the longer it cooks.   Stir in the bean sprouts and continue cooking 1 minute.  Remove from heat, allow mixture to rest 3 minutes and serve over rice if desired.

If you’ve had trouble getting your family to rally ’round your meatloaf dinners lately, could be because they’re dry and lifeless.  How would you like to serve a nice, moist meatloaf for a change?  Cabbage is the secret to your success!  I prefer using the “tri-color” coleslaw mix, actually, rather than shredding my own in this case, but either way it’s very good.

1 lb. ground, lean turkey or beef
6 Tablespoons bread crumbs
1 ½ C. shredded cabbage or coleslaw mix
¼ C. finely chopped onion
¼ c. finely chopped bell pepper
¼ teaspoon dried, minced garlic
2/3 C. ketchup
Butter flavored cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 9 x 5 inch pan with cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine meat, breadcrumbs, coleslaw mix, onion, pepper, garlic, and one-half of ketchup. Mix well. Pat mixture into pan and bake for 45 minutes. Spread remaining ketchup on top of loaf and bake 15 minutes longer. (Serves 6)

Shouldn’t it feel like Spring outside?  Well, it’s still a bit chilly in my neck of the woods, so I need something fresh and colorful to perk me up.  A nice spring mix salad with lots of citrus might just be the ticket!  The  citrus crops are ready and waiting… so dig in!

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon pepper
8 cups mixed salad greens
1 pink grapefruit, in segments
1 orange, in segments
1 pear, sliced
1 cup grapes, seedless
1/2 cup dried cranberries

Pour the olive oil, orange juice and vinegar into a small bowl.  Whisk slightly to combine.  Add the honey and whisk briskly until the honey is completed blended in.  Sprinkle in the pepper and stir to incorporate the ingredients together.  Place the salad greens on a plate.  Top the greens with the grapefruit segments, orange segments, pear slices, grapes and cranberries.  Drizzle the dressing over the entire salad.