Publisher's Desk...
Good morning to all and a lovely first day of March it is. Our weather looks like March is here but I know for many of you, March seems rather far-fetched. I am delighted that we had a mild winter but certainly do not look forward to Texas' world-famous summer heat (and those pesky mosquitoes!!!). But, since we have just ushered March in the door, I should count my blessings and enjoy the marvelous weather.
We have a great issue for you with some delicious recipes. And the Crazy Corner is a hoot today. We also have some other things that should interest you so stay a while, won't you?
Please make sure to take a look at the newly announced monthly theme topic. This may be our best theme issue yet! Go to the Next Monthly Theme section for details. I'll be working all this week on the theme issue for Saint Patrick's Day which will be posted on this Sunday, March 7th.
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Enjoy!
Ramblings...
THE TODDLER MIRACLE DIET
Shared by Julie, TX
Faintly flabby earthlings are always on the lookout for a new diet. The trouble with most diets is that you don't get enough to eat (the starvation diet), or you don't get enough variation (the liquid diet, or you go broke (the all-meat diet). Consequently, people tend to cheat on their diets, or quit after 3 days, or go right back to stuffing their faces after it is all over. Is there nothing you can do but give up and tell your friends you have a gland problem? Or is there slim hope?
Such is the new Toddler Miracle Diet! Over the years you may have noticed, as I have, that most two year olds are trim. It came to me one day over a cup of black coffee and a carrot that perhaps their diet is the reason.
After consultation with pediatricians, x-ray technicians, and distraught moms, I was able to formulate this new diet. It is inexpensive, offering great variety and sufficient quantity. Before embarking on this diet, however, be sure to check with your doctor -- otherwise you may have to see him afterward. Good luck!
DAY ONE:
Breakfast - One scrambled egg, one piece of toast with grape jelly. Eat 2 bites of the egg, using your fingers; dump the rest on the floor. Take 1 bite of toast, then smear the jelly over your face and clothes. Get some in your eyebrows too. It'll give you something to pick at for several hours of satisfying appetite control.
Lunch - Four crayons (any color), a handful of potato chips, and a glass of milk (3 sips only, then spill the rest down your leg).
Dinner - A dry stick, two pennies and a nickel, 4 sips of stale beer.
Bedtime snack - Toast piece of bread and toss it on the kitchen floor. Be sure to step on it and hear it go crunch!
DAY TWO:
Breakfast - Pick up stale crunched toast from kitchen floor and eat it. Drink half bottle of vanilla extract or one vial of vegetable dye. Um, yummy!
Lunch - Half a tube of "Pulsating Pink" lipstick and a cigarette (to be eaten, not smoked). One ice cube if desired.
Afternoon snack - Lick an all day sucker until sticky, take outside, drop in dirt. Retrieve and continue slurping until it is clean again. Then bring inside and drop on the rug. Wander away without thought.
Dinner - a rock or an uncooked bean, which should be thrust up your left nostril. Pour iced tea over mashed potatoes, eat with a large strainer spoon, since taking your time is vital to your dieting success.
DAY THREE:
Breakfast - Two pancakes with plenty of syrup, eat with fingers, rub in hair. Don't pull it out later though, it hurts. Glass of milk, drink half, stuff remainder of picked over pancakes into glass. After breakfast, pick up yesterday's sucker from rug, lick off fuzz, and put it on the cushion of your best chair. Wander away without direction.
Lunch - Three matches, peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Spit several bites onto the floor. Pour glass of milk on table and slurp up. Smear a design on table with remaining milk. It's good for your artistic expression.
Dinner - Dish of ice cream, handful of potato chips, some wine and coffee.
FINAL DAY:
Breakfast - A quarter tube of toothpaste (any flavor), bit of soap, an olive. Pour a glass of milk over bowl of cornflakes, add a half-cup of sugar. Once cereal is soggy, drink milk and feed cereal to the dog. Be sure to rub some in dog's fur just for fun.
Lunch - Eat crumbs off kitchen floor and dining room carpet. Find that sucker and finish eating it.
Dinner - A glass of spaghetti and chocolate milk. Discard meatball on plate. Stick of mascara for dessert.
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Did You Know?...
Is Your Rice Not Nice?
Never have rice boil over again. Put amount of rice and recommended amount of water in a roaster, cover; put in cold oven-turn oven to 350F and 25 minutes later, you have perfect rice with no mess and almost no sticking to the roaster. Try it-it really works.
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Discussion Forum
Our discussion forum at QuickTopic for our topic "Eating and Cooking Healthier" is well under way. To join in (or just to read) use your web browser to go to:
A to Z Recipes Discussion Forum
You don't have to register or sign in, and you can choose to receive email for newly posted messages -- just click the Subscribe button when you get there.
NOTE:
Maybe once you get to the site using the above link, you could add it to favorites. Links that are easy to find are more likely to be used again.
Next Monthly Theme...
Five Items Or Less Recipes
I believe this is a GREAT theme topic, don't you? I had been toying with the idea and then Mary from Nashville, TN solidified things for me when she sent me a slew of great recipes compiled when her local group had their theme of using 5 items or less. Yes, we all enjoy preparing those more complex recipes and serving up something unique (if not spectacular!) to our family and friends. However, there is much to be said in "less is best". Do you have a recipe or two that require 5 items or less to prepare? You know...the ones you rely on when time (or money) is at a minimum and hunger is high? How about that recipe that is so simple ingredient-wise but produces such fabulous results? Please share them with us in what could be a superb theme issue. Now, here is the NEW set of rules:
A to Z Recipes continues with its popular Theme Issues. We will share theme recipes and post them on the first Sunday of each month. Send your recipes no later than the last Friday of each month to have them posted in the next monthly theme issue. You may send in TWO of your favorite theme recipes in ONE email. If the number of recipes exceeds those needed in the issue, the publisher will post as many from every submitter as possible and save the remaining recipes for the following Sundays of that month. The rules for recipe submissions for the monthly theme issues are the same as ALL recipes submitted for posting.
The rules are as follows:
As a service to your fellow readers, please send only recipes that are in a form that others could easily copy and save for their own use. Recipes that would require a lot of editing or cleaning up or use non-standard measurements should not be submitted. Recipes without a name and location of sender may NOT be posted or posted without any credit given. There will be NO recipes posted that are from other recipe-zines. A to Z Recipes protects the privacy of its readers and does NOT publish email addresses. There will be no exceptions.
The deadline for April's theme issue is Friday, March 26th.
Theme recipes must have subject: "Five Items Or Less Recipes" and will be posted on Sunday, April 4th.
As usual, only recipes are to be sent to: A to Z Recipes Inbox
Click here to submit an item for posting in this section.
Crazy Corner...
Californian
Shared by Linda, CA
You have a cow and a bull. The bull is depressed. It has spent its life living a lie. It goes away for two weeks. It comes back after a taxpayer-paid sex-change operation. You now have two cows. One makes milk; the other doesn't. You try to sell the transgender cow. Its lawyer sues you for discrimination. You lose in court. You sell the milk-generating cow to pay the damages. You now have one rich, transgender, non-milk-producing cow. You change your business to beef. PETA pickets your farm. Jesse Jackson makes a speech in your driveway. Cruz Bustamante calls for higher farm taxes to help "working cows." Hillary Clinton calls for the nationalization of 1/7 of your farm "for the children." Gray Davis signs a law giving your farm to Mexico. The L.A. Times quotes five anonymous cows claiming you
groped their teats. You declare bankruptcy and shut down all operations. The cow starves to death. The L.A. Times' analysis shows your business failure is Bush's fault.
Original Hollywood Squares
Shared by Mary Jane, Stockton, CA
If you remember the Original Hollywood Squares and its
comics, this may bring a tear to your eyes. These
great questions and answers are from the days when
"Hollywood Squares" game show responses were
spontaneous and clever, not scripted and (often) dull,
as they are now. Peter Marshall was the host asking
the questions, of course.
Q. Do female frogs croak?
A. Paul Lynde: If you hold their little heads under water long enough.
Q. If you're going to make a parachute jump, at least how high should you be?
A. Charley Weaver: Three days of steady drinking should do it.
Q. True or False, a pea can last as long as 5,000 years.
A. George Gobel: Boy, it sure seems that way sometimes.
Q. You've been having trouble going to sleep. Are you probably a man or a woman?
A. Don Knotts: That's what's been keeping me awake.
Q. According to Cosmo, if you meet a stranger at a party and you think that he is attractive, is it okay to come out and ask him if he's married?
A. Rose Marie: No; wait until morning.
Q. Which of your five senses tends to diminish as you get older?
A. Charley Weaver: My sense of decency.
Q. In Hawaiian, does it take more than three words to say "I Love You"?
A. Vincent Price: No, you can say it with a pineapple and a twenty.
Q. What are "Do It," "I Can Help," and "I Can't Get Enough"?
A. George Gobel: I don't know, but it's coming from the next apartment!
Q. As you grow older, do you tend to gesture more or less with your hands while talking?
A. Rose Marie: You ask me one more growing old question Peter, and I'll give you a gesture you'll
never forget.
Q. Paul, why do Hell's Angels wear leather?
A. Because chiffon wrinkles too easily.
Q. Charley, you've just decided to grow strawberries. Are you going to get any during the first year?
A. Charley Weaver: Of course not, I'm too busy growing strawberries.
Q. In bowling, what's a perfect score?
A. Rose Marie: Ralph, the pin boy.
Q. It is considered in bad taste to discuss two subjects at nudist camps. One is politics, what is the other?
A. Paul Lynde: Tape measures.
Q. During a tornado, are you safer in the bedroom or in the closet?
A. Rose Marie: Unfortunately Peter, I'm always safe in the bedroom.
Q. Can boys join the Camp Fire Girls?
A. Marty Allen: Only after lights out.
Q. When you pat a dog on its head he will wag his tail. What will a goose do?
A. Paul Lynde: Make him bark?
Q. If you were pregnant for two years, what would you give birth to?
A. Paul Lynde: Whatever it is, it would never be afraid of the dark.
Q. According to Ann Landers, is there anything wrong with getting into the habit of kissing a lot of
people?
A. Charley Weaver: It got me out of the army.
Q. It is the most abused and neglected part of your body, what is it?
A. Paul Lynde: Mine may be abused, but it certainly isn't neglected.
Q. Back in the old days, when Great Grandpa put horseradish on his head, what was he trying to do?
A. George Gobel: Get it in his mouth.
Q. Who stays pregnant for a longer period of time, your wife or your elephant?
A. Paul Lynde: Who told you about my elephant?
Q. When a couple have a baby, who is responsible for its sex?
A. Charley Weaver: I'll lend him the car, the rest is up to him.
Q. Jackie Gleason recently revealed that he firmly believes in them and has actually seen them on at
least two occasions. What are they?
A. Charley Weaver: His feet.
Q. According to Ann Landers, what are two things you should never do in bed?
A. Paul Lynde: Point and Laugh
Maw And Paw
Shared by Jean, Syracuse, NY
Maw is outside hangin up the laundry, when she hears Paw in
the kitchen. Maw walks in and says, "Paw, get out there and
fix that there outhouse." Paw says, "All right, Maw."
Paw walks out to the outhouse, looks at it, and says, "Maw,
there ain't nothin' wrong with this here outhouse!" Maw says,
"Yes, there is. Put your head down in the hole." Paw says, "I
ain't puttin my head in that there hole!"
Maw says, "Well you're gonna have to if'n you're gonna fix
the problem!"
Paw puts his head down in the hole (just a little bit mind
ya) and he hollers, "Maw, there ain't nothin' wrong with
this here outhouse!" Maw hollers, "Now pull your head out of
the hole." Paw goes to lift up his head and he says, "Oww!
OWW! Maw! MAW, my beard's stuck in the cracks in the seat!"
Maw says, "Aggravatin', ain't it?"
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Your Favorites...
BUTTERFINGER CAKE
~Submitted by Jean, Syracuse, NY
2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon dark rum
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups mashed ripe bananas (about 5)
1 1/2 cups chopped Butterfinger bars (about 6 oz.)
Frosting:
2/3 cup whipping cream
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into large pieces
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
14 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 teaspoons dark rum
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups chopped Butterfinger bars (about 7-1/2 oz)
Position rack in top third of oven; preheat to 350-degree F. Butter two 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1-1/2-inch-high sides. Line bottoms with waxed paper rounds. Butter and flour paper.
Sift flour, baking powder and salt into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until fluffy. Gradually add sugar and beat 2 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in dark rum and vanilla extract. Combine sour cream and baking soda in medium bowl. Add mashed bananas to sour cream mixture and stir until well blended. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture alternately with banana mixture, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Stir in chopped Butterfinger bars.
Divide batter between prepared pans. Bake until center of cake feels firm and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool in pans on rack 10 minutes. Run small knife around sides of cakes to loosen. Turn out cakes onto racks and cook. Peel off waxed paper.
Combine cream, butter and corn syrup in heavy medium saucepan. Bring to simmer over medium heat, stirring until butter melts. Remove from heat; add chocolate and stir until melted and smooth. Stir in rum and vanilla. Pour glaze into small bowl. Cover and refrigerate just until cool and thick, stirring occasionally, about 40 minutes.
Transfer 1 cake layer to platter. Slide waxed paper strips under edges of cake. Stir glaze until smooth. Spread 1 cup glaze evenly over top of cake layer. Top with second cake layer. Spread remaining glaze over top and sides of cake. Cover top and sides of cake with chopped Butterfinger bars. Remove paper strips.
DUTCH RYE BREAD
~Submitted by Shirley, WA State
This is my favorite bread served with a thin slice of cheese. Easy to make and sliced thin to serve.
2 c. cracked wheat (bulgar)
1 c. rye flour
1 c. white flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 c. brown sugar packed
1/2 c. molasses
2 c. warm water
Mix till holds together well. Put in 9x5 loaf pan greased. Bake at 325F for 1 hour or can be baked in 2 small loaf pans.
TOMATO FIDEO DINNER
~Submitted by Rosemarie, Kansas City, MO
1 lb. sirloin steak, thinly sliced
1/4 C vegetable oil, divided
8 oz. uncooked fideo, angel hair pasta or vermicelli, broken into 1 inch pieces
1 T minced garlic
3 cans (8 oz each) tomato sauce
3 C frozen broccoli florets, thawed and drained
Season steak generously with salt and pepper. Heat 1 T oil in large skillet over medium heat; cook steak in it about 3-4 minutes until browned and no longer pin, stirring frequently. Remove from pan and keep warm.
Add remaining oil, broken pasta and garlic to pan. Carefully toss pasta in oil to coat; cook until pasta is golden brown, stirring constantly. Stir in tomato sauce until well blended. Cover and reduce heat to low. Cook about 10 minutes or until pasta is tender.
Combine steak and broccoli with pasta, toss all together. Cover and cook on low until heated through.
Source: Hunt's Kitchens
KENTUCKY PECAN PIE
~Submitted by Mary B, MI
1 cup white corn syrup
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/3 tsp. salt
1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 tsp. vanilla
3 whole eggs, slightly beaten
1 heaping cup shelled pecans
1 (9") unbaked pie shell
Combine syrup, sugar, salt, butter, and vanilla and mix well. Add slightly beaten eggs. Pour into a 9" unbaked pie shell. Sprinkle pecans over all. Bake in preheated 350 degrees oven for approximately 45 minutes.
ZUCCHINI CASSEROLE
~Submitted by Joyce, IL
1 cup sliced carrots
5 cups thinly-sliced zucchini (unpeeled)
1 (6 ounce) package chicken-flavored stuffing mix
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup chopped onion
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place carrots in large pan and boil for 5 minutes. Add zucchini, cover and boil 5 minutes longer. In medium bowl, melt butter in microwave. Add contents of seasoning packet and stuffing crumbs and stir until moistened. Spoon 2/3 stuffing mixture in bottom of a 9x9, 10x10 or 9x12 pan. Drain cooked vegetables. Mix with soup, sour cream and onions. Pour over stuffing mix. Sprinkle with reserved stuffing crumbs. Bake for 40 minutes.
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Heart Healthy...
PUMPKIN PECAN WAFFLES
~Submitted by Larry Holmes, Ontario, Canada
Source: The Honolulu Advertiser
Makes 14 (four-inch) waffles, about 7 servings
1 cup unbleached white flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons baking powder
?? teaspoon salt
2 ?? teaspoons pumpkin-pie spice (or 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon)
?? teaspoon ground ginger
?? teaspoon ground nutmeg
3 large egg whites (keep 1 yolk and discard the other two)
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons egg substitute
1 cup low-fat milk
?? cup low-fat buttermilk (well-shaken)
?? cup canned solid-pack pumpkin
2 tablespoons canola oil
About 7 tablespoons dry toasted pecan pieces
Canola cooking spray
Preheat waffle iron. Whisk together flours, sugar, cornstarch, baking
powder, cinnamon, salt, ginger, and nutmeg in a bowl; set aside.
Put egg yolk and egg substitute in a bowl and whisk in milk, buttermilk,
pumpkin, and canola oil. Continue to whisk until mixture is smooth. Add the
flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture, whisking just until smooth.
Add egg whites to a mixing bowl and beat until soft peaks form (about 2
minutes). Gently fold the egg whites into the bowl with the pumpkin and
flour batter.
Coat hot waffle iron with canola cooking spray. Spoon batter (a slightly
heaping ?? cup of batter per four-inch waffle, depending on your particular
waffle iron) into the waffle iron, spreading quickly. Sprinkle about a
tablespoon of dry toasted pecan pieces over the top of the two waffles (you
can sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or mini chocolate chips instead if
desired). Close lid and bake about 3 minutes, until steaming almost stops
and the waffles are golden brown. Serve warm.
. Per serving (including pecans):
289 calories, 9.5 g protein, 40 g carbohydrate, 10.5 g fat (1.4 g saturated fat, 6 g monounsaturated, 2.7 g
polyunsaturated), 33 mg cholesterol, 3.5 g fiber, 371 mg sodium.
Calories from fat: 33 percent. Omega-3 fatty acids, 1.7 g; omega-6 fatty acids, 1 g.
Weight Watchers, 5 points.
. Per serving (without pecans):
239 calories, 9 g protein, 39 g carbohydrate, 5.7 g fat (1 g saturated fat, 2.8 g monounsaturated fat, 1.5 g
polyunsaturated fat), 33 mg cholesterol, 3 g fiber, 371 mg sodium.
Calories from fat: 21 percent. Omega-3 fatty acids, 1 g; omega-6 fatty acids, 0.5 g.
Weight Watchers, 4 points.
. Note: Instead of the pecans, cinnamon sugar or mini chocolate chips can be
sprinkled on the waffle batter before closing the waffle iron. To make
cinnamon sugar, blend 1/4 cup of sugar and 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
together well in a custard cup. Use a 1/2-teaspoon-measuring spoon to
sprinkle over the batter.
BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS Eat and Stay Slim 1979 edition
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For Two...
SWEET AND SPICY STICKY CHICKEN
~Submitted by Jean, Syracuse, NY
This recipe serves 2 but can easily be doubled.
Whisk together in a bowl:
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce (optional)
1/4 cup water
1 1/2 tablespoons rice-wine vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large frying pan over medium heat.
Add: 1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced.
Cook onion until soft, about 3 minutes.
Add to the pan: 4 chicken thighs, fat and skin removed
Add the brown sugar sauce. Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil. As soon as it comes to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, turning the thighs occasionally until they are cooked, 25-30 minutes.
Remove the thighs from the pan; cover with foil to keep warm.
Increase the heat to high and reduce the sauce by about half until it is thick and resembles a caramel sauce. Serve the chicken with rice and the sauce.
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Publisher's Choice...
GRILLED LIME-CILANTRO CHUCK STEAKS
1-1/4 lb well-trimmed boneless Beef chuck eye steaks, 1" thick
Marinade:
3 Tbsp fresh lime juice
3 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
1 small jalapeno pepper, chopped
1 large clove garlic, crushed
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1. Combine marinade ingredients. Place Beef steaks and marinade in plastic bag, turning to coat. Close bag securely and marinate in refrigerator 1 to 2 hours, turning occasionally.
2. Remove steaks from marinade; discard marinade. Place steaks on grid over medium, ash-covered coals. Grill, uncovered, approx. 16 to 20 minutes for medium-rare to medium doneness, turning occasionally.
3. Carve steaks into thin slices; season with salt and pepper as desired.
4 servings.
Source: National Cattlemen's Beef Association
Sabatier Precision 38-Piece Knife Block and Tool Set
Knife set includes 16 knives, fork, shears, steel in a wood block
Utensil set includes nine plastic utensils in stainless-steel holder
Also includes set of four each stainless-steel measuring cups and spoons
High-carbon stainless-steel blades on knives; full tangs
Lifetime limited warranty on cutlery
List Price: $380.00
Price: $39.99
You Save: $340.01 (89%)
This item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping.
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