4 large good baking apples (I used Golden Delicious) 

1Preheat oven to 375°F. Wash apples. Remove cores to 1/2 inch of the bottom of the apples. It helps if you have an apple corer, but if not, you can use a paring knife to cut out first the stem area, and then the core. Use a spoon to dig out the seeds. Make the holes about 3/4-inch to an inch wide.

2 In a small bowl, combine the sugar, cinnamon, currants/raisins, and pecans. Place apples in a 8-inch-by-8-inch square baking pan. Stuff each apple with this mixture. Top with a dot of butter (1/4 of the Tbps).

3 Add boiling water to the baking pan. Bake 30-40 minutes, until tender, but not mushy. Remove from the oven and baste the apples several times with the pan juices.

If you’d like, serve warm with vanilla ice cream on the side. (MJ would have LOVED this but we were staying within our WW points so we refrained…)

Makes 4 servings.

Several of them are Weight Watcher recipes, courtesy of my friend, Kayla Mansour, who is an amazing WW leader. Though I’ve never been a huge fan of sloppy joes, nor of ground turkey, I have to say – this dish had me at hello.

It smelled just that good.

It tasted even better.

But don’t take my word for it. Try it! You’ll be glad you did.

Ingredients:

2 pounds ground lean turkey
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup Catsup 
12 oz diet Coke

Brown the ground turkey and onions together in a skillet sprayed with non-stick spray. Be sure the turkey is well browned.

Add the catsup and diet Coke. Simmer uncovered on medium heat until the cola and catsup cook down to a rich, thick sauce. Serve on whole-wheat burger buns.

DELISH!

Makes 10 sandwiches @ 5 Pts each (including the bun)
Use Sandwich thins and they are 2 Pts. each!

Recipe courtesy of: Kayla Mansour, Weight Watcher Leader

Some of our weeks are truly crazy.

With MJ’s work schedule, we’re sometimes separated for two - three days and nights at a time each week. By the time he drives back into town from whatever kind of week he’s had, he’s ready for a few good things.

Namely –  his home, his bed, his table.

I guess my burgeoning love for cooking and spending time in my kitchen originally stemmed from the sheer knowledge of this. It became important to me to find ways to make his arrival home each week something for him to anticipate.

That’s not to say that there is always ample time on my part – or in my own schedule – to prepare a labor intensive meal or spend loads of effort on ambiance. But I’ve learned that in setting a table I’m also setting a heart, and that doesn’t require a lot of time or money or even effort.

It merely asks that I care.

I care deeply.

The next time you find an occasion to prepare a table – or a heart – here is a great recipe that is beautifully pleasing and deliciously memorable!

Farfalle with Tomatoes & Spinach

Ingredients:

• 1  tablespoon  plus 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 8  ounces  uncooked farfalle pasta
• 2  tablespoons  extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1  cup  vertically sliced yellow onion
• 1  teaspoon  dried oregano
• 5  garlic cloves, sliced
• 2  cups  grape tomatoes, halved
• 1  tablespoon  white wine vinegar
• 3  cups  baby spinach
• 3  tablespoons  shaved fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4  cup  (3 ounces) crumbled feta cheese

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Makes: 4 servings

1. Toast almonds in a dry skillet over medium high heat until barely brown. Cool.
2. Combine greens, fruit, and nuts.
3. Combine dressing ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
4. Drizzle dressing over salad and enjoy!

• 3/4 cup cornmeal
• 1 1/4 cups flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes (adds an extra “kick” – you can leave it out if you want!)
• 1 cup milk
• 1 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1 (15 ounce) corn, drained
• jalapenos, chopped, to taste (I like a LOT, Mike – not so much!)

Directions

1. Mix cornmeal, flour, baking soda, salt, and red pepper flakes together. Add milk, egg, sugar, oil, corn and jalapenos.
2. Pour into heated and oiled cast iron skillet (I used the wedge cast iron pan that belonged to my grandmother).
3. Bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees.

This is a SCRUMPTIOUS recipe – ENJOY!!

I’ve become a cook.

A real, love-to-be-in-the-kitchen-cooking-up-my-next-big-creation type of cook. Here is what I created tonight – a great, stay-at-home Saturday night meal. In collaboration with Mike’s doctor, I am trying to take care of his heart, so this meal – like most that we make these days – is health conscious and heart healthy.

But best of all – I got in the middle of my kitchen and had a blast and put all thoughts of polynomial functions on the back burner of my mind!

Ole!