Serves 6 to 8

3 pounds potatoes (red, purple combo, yellow fingerling okay too)
6 Tbs red wine vinegar
salt and pepper
4-5 hard-boiled egged, peeled and coarse chopped
6 Tbs gherkins (Edward Fallot are the best), minced
2-3 celery stalks, minced
¼ cup red onion, minced
¾ cup mayonnaise
1 Tbs Dijon mustard
3 Tbs fresh parsley, minced

1. Cover potatoes with at least 1 inch water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until just fork tender (15-20 minutes for smaller potatoes, ~30 minutes for larger potatoes).
2. Drain and cool slightly, then cut potatoes (preferably with serrated knife) to ¾ inch cubes. Place warm potaoes in a large bowl with vinegar, ¾ tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper. Toss gently to mix. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and cool in the fridge for20-30 minutes.
3. Add remaining ingredients and toss gently to mix. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Can be covered and refrigerated for up to 1 day.

Brine (for a 20 lb. turkey)
2 gallons water
2 cups kosher salt
3 bay leaves
1 Tbls. Lightly crushed peppercorns
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1 tsp. lightly crushed coriander seed
Peel of 1 lemon
Peel of 1 orange

For Injection liquid
½ cup of low salt chicken or turkey stock
½ cup of unoaked white wine like Riesling
3 Tbl. melted butter
½ tsp. crushed dried thyme
½ tsp. coriander powder
½ tsp. fennel powder or pollen

For Turkey
20 lb. turkey
1 lemon
1 onion stuck with 2 whole cloves
Salt & Pepper
4 Tbls. softened butter

Brining: Late the night before or early the day of, mix the salt and water together until all of the salt is dissolved. You can use a brining bag or a double-bagged garbage bag to hold the water and turkey. Add the bay leaves, peppercorns, garlic, coriander seed and lemon & orange peel. Submerge the turkey in the brine and tie the bag closed. I place mine in a hotel tub in case the bags leak. Any large bowl will do. Let the turkey soak for 4 – 8 hours. I usually start early in the day and do 4-5 hours.

Preparation: Heat the oven to 400 F. Remove the turkey from the brine, rinse with cool, fresh water and pat dry. Cut the lemon in half and rub the interior of the turkey with the lemon, squeezing lightly to extract some juice. Drop the cut lemon in the cavity with the clove-studded onion. I add the neck and giblets, too, but you don’t have to. Salt and pepper the inside. Seal the cavity with a turkey lacer or trussing needle. Tie the legs together with butcher’s twine or silicone bands. Mix the injection liquid ingredients together. Use a kitchen syringe to inject the liquid into the major muscles of the bird concentrating on the breast meat. Salt and pepper the outside and rub the softened butter over the turkey, again concentrating on the breast meat.

Place a roasting rack in a fairly shallow roasting pan (too deep a pan inhibits air flow around the turkey) and place the turkey breast side DOWN on the rack. Roast for 30 minutes at 400 F and then reduce the temperature to 350 F and roast another 30 minutes.

Turn the turkey on one side, baste with pan juices and continue roasting for 1 hour, basting again 30 minutes in. Flip the turkey to its other side, baste and roast another hour, basting again 30 minutes in. Turn the turkey on its back, breast side up, and roast until done about 20-30 minutes. The target internal temperature in the leg/thigh is 170 F.
Remove from the oven, tent with foil and let rest 15-20 minutes before carving. The pan juices make a great gravy, but that’s a different recipe.

Note: The cooking time is about 10 minutes per pound so you can adjust accordingly, e.g. for a 14 lb. turkey you should roast a total of 2 hours, 20 minutes divided as 40 minutes breast down, 40 minutes one side, 40 minutes the other side and 20 minutes breast up.

1 (14 oz) package firm tofu, drained and cut into 6 (3/4 inch-thick) slices
1/4 cup chickpea flour or all-purpose flour
2 tsp canola oil
2 cups thinly sliced onion, separated into rings (about 1 large onion)
1 Tbs curry powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 – 1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground tumeric
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 cup diced plum tomato (about 3 medium)
2 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro
1 Tbs brown sugar
1/2 cup water
3 Tbs red wine vinegar
4 cups hot cooked long-grain rice

1. Place tofu slices on several layers of paper towels; cover with additional paper towels. Let stand 5 minutes, pressing down occasionally. Cut each tofu slice diagonally into 2 triangles. Place flour in a shallow dish, and dredge tofu triangles in flour. Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet over med-high heat. Add tofu; sauté 3 minutes on each side. Set aside; keep warm.
2. Add onion to pan , and stir-fry 4 minutes. Add curry, salt, cumin, tumeric, and pepper, and stir-fry 1 minute. Add tomato, cilantro, and sugar, and stir-fry 2 minutes. Add water and vinegar; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook 2 minutes. Spoon onion sauce over tofu. Serve with rice.

ICING:
6 Tbs butter
1/3 cup fat-free milk
¼ cup cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar
¼ cup pecans, toasted (this is not enough – I used ½ cup!)
2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 375F. Grease and flour a 15”x10” jelly-roll pan.
2. Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a mixing bowl. Stir to combine.
3. Combine water, butter and cocoa in a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Pour into flour mixture and beat at medium speed until well blended. Add buttermilk, vanilla and eggs; beat well.
4. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake at 375F for 17 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Note: This recipe can be made in a 9”x13” baking pan. Bake at 375F for 22 minutes (or until wooden pick comes out clean)

5. To prepare icing, combine butter, milk and cocoa in saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and gradually stir in powdered sugar, pecans and vanilla.
6. Spread icing over hot cake. Cool completely.

FILLING
10 ounces fresh or frozen unsweetened strawberries, thawed, juices reserved
3 8-ounce pkgs cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 Tbs. flour
3 large eggs
1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract

TOPPING
1/3 cup strawberry or currant jelly
3 pints fresh strawberries, hulled, halved lengthwise

FOR CRUST:
Preheat oven to 325F. Butter 9″ springform pan with 2 3/4″ sides. Grind cookies in food processor to coarse crumbs. Add butter and blend until crumbs are evenly moistened. Press crumb mixture over bottom and 1 ” up sides or prepared pan. Bake crust until just golden, about 8 minutes. Set aside while preparing filling. Maintain oven temperature.

FOR FILLING:
Puree thawed strawberries and juices in processor until smooth. Measure 3/4 cup puree (reserve any remaining puree for another use); do not wash bowl. Add cream cheese and sugar to processor. Blend until smooth. Using on/off turns, blend in flour. Add eggs; process until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally. Add 3/4 cup strawberry puree, lemon juice, vanilla extract and almond extract; process until well blended. Transfer filling to prepared crust.

Bake cake until center is softly set and edges begin to color, puff and crack, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Place hot cheescake on rack. Refrigerate uncovered on rack until cold, at least 4 hours. Can be made up to 2 days ahead. Cover and keep refrigerated.

FOR TOPPING:
Using small knife, cut around pan sides to loosen cake; remove pan side. Stir jelly in heavy saucepan over low heat until melted. Arrange berry halves atop cheesecake in concentric circles; brush with warm jelly to glaze. Chill at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours.

Serves 8 to 10

For shortbread crust
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes and softened

For filling
1/2 lb Stilton, rind discarded and cheese crumbled (1 cup)
3 (8-oz) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 large eggs
1 (8-oz) container sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla

For rhubarb compote
1/2 cup Port
1/2 cup sugar
24 pink peppercorns, coarsely crushed
2 lb trimmed rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (6 cups)

3 tablespoons sugar for caramel topping (optional)

Make shortbread crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F.

Blend together flour and sugar with an electric mixer. Add butter and blend until mixture
resembles coarse meal (it will not form a dough). Transfer to a buttered 24-centimeter
springform pan and press evenly onto bottom. Bake in middle of oven until pale golden, about
30 minutes, then cool in pan on a rack.

Reduce temperature to 300°F.

Make filling:
Beat together crumbled Stilton, cream cheese, and sugar in a large bowl with
an electric mixer on low speed. Beat in flour and add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after
each addition. Beat in sour cream and vanilla, then pour filling over cooled crust in pan.

Bake cheesecake in middle of oven until puffed and pale golden around edge, about 1‚ hours.
Transfer cake in pan to rack and run a knife around edge of pan to loosen. Cool completely,
about 2 hours. Chill, covered, until cold, at least 4 hours. Remove side of pan and transfer
cake to a plate.

Make compote while cake is cooling:
Boil Port, 1/2 cup sugar, and peppercorns in a 12-inch nonstick skillet, stirring until
sugar is dissolved, until reduced to about 1/2 cup, 2 to 3 minutes. Add rhubarb and gently
stir to coat. Simmer rhubarb, stirring gently once after 5 minutes, until just tender but
not falling apart, about 10 minutes, and transfer to a bowl. Chill compote, covered, until
cold, at least 4 hours.

Make optional caramel topping:
Just before serving, sprinkle tablespoons sugar evenly over
cheesecake and heat with a blowtorch, moving flame back and forth just over sugar until
evenly melted and caramelized.

Cooks’ note:
• Cheesecake and compote can be chilled up to 2 days before caramelizing top of cheesecake
and serving.

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Heat a Dutch oven coated with cooking spray over med-high heat. Add chard, squash, onion, bell pepper, carrot, and salt; sauté 10 minutes or until tender.
3. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic; sauté 30 seconds. Add flour and cook 1 minute. Stir constantly with a whisk. Gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until blended. Cook until thick (for about 4 min). Remove from heat; add ½ cup Parmesan. Stir until cheese melts.
4. Combine ricotta, cottage cheese, ½ cup Asiago, and oregano in a bowl.
5. Spread 2 Tbs milk mixture in the bottom of 8” square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 2-3 noodles over milk mixture; top with half of ricotta mixture, half of vegetable mixture, and ½ cup milk mixture. Repeat layers ending with noddles. Spread remaining milk mixture over noodles. Sprinkle with ½ cup Asiago and ¼ cup Parmesan. Bake at 375 for 45 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes.

Cooking Light, April 2001

1 Tbs butter, melted
Cooking spray
12 oz fresh baby spinach, or cleaned bunch spinach loosely chopped
1 ¼ cup (5 oz) shredded reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese
¾ cup (3 oz) shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
1 1/3 cups flour
1 ½ cup fat-free milk
4 eggs or 1 cup egg substitute
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp Dijon mustard
¼ tsp (at least) freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground red pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Pour the butter into the bottom of a 13×9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray; tilt dish to coat. Place spinach evenly in dish; sprinkle evenly with cheeses.
3. Combine flour and remaining ingredients in a bowl; stir with a whisk until blended. Pour mixture over cheese. Bake at 350F for 40 minutes or until lightly browned. Serve immediately.

Cooking Light, May 2007

Transfer nut mixture to prepared baking sheet. Working quickly, separate nuts with spoon. Sprinkle with salt. Cool completely. Store in airtight container.