Penny's Brown Rice

Penny is a trendsetter. She ate brown rice and whole wheat pasta long before anyone else did. I used to couldn't stand (sorry, poor grammar on my part there) either one of those things, and now they're staples in my pantry---much preferred to the white versions. Of course, that relationship was cemented once I realized that on myWeWa eating plan, brown rice and whole wheat pasta both have ZERO points, and their white cousins have a zillion points. But I digress.

I sent Penny a box of Pampered Chef goodies for her new kitchen---What was I thinking? She doesn't cook!---including a microwave rice cooker. Penny, I promise you it will be a life-changing thing if you just cook up a pot of brown rice once a week, eat part of it, save the rest in the fridge, and then a couple of days later make yourself a yummy stir-fry.....in ten minutes! These step-by-step directions will give you perfect brown rice---super cheap, super nutritious, and you don't have to leave your house to go pick it up: you make it yourself. See, that's what cooking means, darlin'.

1. Measure out 1 cup of brown rice (NOT instant or minute rice, just regular long-grain brown rice.) Put it in the bottom of your rice cooker, and then add about 1 teaspoon of salt and 2 1/2 cups of cold water.

2. Put the white/clear inner lid on top of your rice cooker---be sure the edges/ridges are on the top. Then put the brown lid on top of that, and lock the sides in the up position.

3. Put the cooker in the microwave. You want to set

it to cook as follows: first, cook it for 10 minutes on HIGH power, then for 25 minutes on MEDIUM (50%) power. Your microwave will probably let you set them both at one time, so you don't have to re-set after 10 minutes. (Push 10:00, power, 10; then push 25:00, power, 5; then START).

THAT'S ALL! After it cooks, take it out and let it set for 5 minutes before you take off the lid. Be careful, there will be some steam.

Here's what it will look like when you take off the lid, with little holes in it.

This is after you fluff it with a fork.

Because I needed to make some rice to take these pictures, Lucy and I had this for dinner: brown rice topped with fresh spinach sauteed in garlic-infused oil, salt, and pepper; and topped with parmesan cheese and tomatoes. It was tasty.

I have 2 cups of rice in the fridge now, for a meal later in the week. One of Lucy's favorite dinners (she can make it herself, so you SHOULD be able to as well, Penny!) is to make a quick stir-fry. She heats a little oil in a skillet, throws in a little fake chicken or tofu (or nothing if she wants just veggies), adds a package of stir-fry veggies from the freezer, stirs them all around for a few minutes until almost done, adds the cooked rice to the skillet, then pours in some Thai Peanut Sauce or Ginger-Wasabi sauce (I think I sent you both) and heats it all through. There's not an easier, quicker dinner to make----and it's as good as Pei-Wei without ever leaving home. You can even buy some chicken tenders to cook in there, or a little pork cutlet that you chop up---they cook so quickly, just do them first in the oil, then add the frozen vegetables.

Am I kidding myself, or might Penny actually start to cook her own brown rice? Stay tuned, for the next portion of "As the World Turns." I love you, Peeeeeeeeeeny!

Which is it?

Are they garbanzo beans?
Or are they chickpeas?

Who cares, when they're so delicious. Buy a bag of dried whatever-you-call-them, soak them in cold water for a few hours or overnight, drain and cover with fresh water and cook just until tender----I think it usually takes about 45 minutes or so. You owe it to yourself to try cooking them yourself instead of using canned ones. When they're almost done cooking, season liberally with Cavendar's Greek Seasoning (or salt and pepper, but if you don't cook with Cavendar's you're missing out big-time cuz this Arkansas product makes EVERYTHING taste better.) Then bake yourself a pan of cornbread and enjoy a super-healthy taste treat. The first time I cooked these from dried, instead of opening a can, Lucy didn't know what I had done but she immediately tasted the difference and asked why the garbanzo beans tasted so good. Now I buy them in bulk at Whole Paycheck (the canned ones taste slimy to me now...sorry) and cook up a super big pot so I can keep half in the freezer in small bags for whenever needed. These are perfect to throw in a salad, or to add to a whole wheat pita with whatever leftovers you have for a super work-day lunch.

Another favorite way to use half a batch is to spice and roast them. Drain cooked beans completely, and pat them with paper towels so that they're as dry as possible. Put them on your big bar pan in one layer and either spray or toss them with a tiny bit of olive oil and your favorite spices---I use cumin and a bit of cayenne, but my next batch will be in Old Bay. Roast them at around 450 until----here's the hard part----until they're very crispy but not burnt. It's a fine line, and I usually cross it with at least half of mine. But if they're not crispy-crunchy, they're really not worth it in the flavor and texture department, so step out there and take a chance. They're like munching on a big bowl of delicious nuts, but without any of the fat and a delicious flavor.

Polenta Pizza Crust

It's not possible. That's what I tell visitors here. It's just not possible to get bad pizza in New York, at least in my experience. Sister and I have our favorite place: Patsy's on 2nd Avenue. But you can walk into any Italian deli on the corner of East-where-the-heck-am-I and Get-me-out-of-here-before-something-really-bad-happens, and I swear you will get a tasty slice. Some may be a little greasier than you want, but the flavor and crust of every one of them will be super good. It just will.

But today I'm talking about homemade pizza. My own. I'm a leftover-eater, a behavior inherited from my mother. It's not that it bothers me to discard food (Lucy's the one who can't bear to throw it out, "But that would be wasting it!" Soooooo, it ends up in the fridge until I throw it out for her; what's wrong with this picture?). It's just that I love food so much, I want to eat every morsel of whatever it is. Pizza is a great "palate" for using leftovers. You can throw a few things together on a crust and end up with a piece of art that fully satisfies both your eyes and your (other kind of) palate.

Except for one thing. That crust thing I mentioned. Unless you happen to keep a ball of pizza dough in your fridge---which I have done at different times, mostly when I was extra fat, since my best shopping friend Trader Joe sells a great ball of whole wheat pizza dough for about a buck-fifty---you're kinda S.O.L. when the mood for pizza strikes or when just the right mix of leftovers present themselves. Being a WeWa member, I've been told all the low-cal, low-fat tricks for making a mini-pizza: use a split toasted pita; an English muffin; a multi-grain wrap. Yeah, yeah, I know. Some of them are ok, but not really. For one thing, I want a whole pizza, not some little fake mini thing. And I'm not willing to use the WeWa points for real dough. In fact, I am so stinkin' picky I want a real crust that costs me ZERO points. So what's a WeWa foodie to do?

Drumroll, please. Enter POLENTA, wonder food of the world! Seriously, this stuff is freakin' amazing. Just ask Leslie if you don't believe me----she's like some kind of creamy polenta pod-person. I've already mentioned on here that when I make creamy polenta, I now make extra and use it for a replacement fried cornbread fix. That experience got me thinking about the possibility of using polenta to make a super thin pizza crust. I DID IT! And IT'S DELICIOUS! I made last weekend's pot of creamy polenta a little thinner than usual (it would have thickened up more if I had continued to cook it a few more minutes). The part we ate as a creamy base for leftover tomato sauce mixed with haricot vert, pork cutlet (mine), fake chicken (Lucy's) and freshly grated parm was as delicious as always. The difference was that what I spread out in an olive-oiled bar pan was super, super thin. After it was covered in the fridge for a day, it was time for Dr. Frankenstein's polenta pizza crust experiment. I put the bar pan of super-thin polenta into a 400 degree oven and left it to crisp up. It also shrunk a good couple of inches away from the sides, and browned around the edges. Then I flipped it over to crisp on the other side while I got toppings ready for Southwest Pizza. My half, in order from the crust up: refried beans spread on just as if it was tomato sauce, salsa, shredded chicken breast (cooked), lightly sauteed red onion with yellow and red peppers, and a sprinkle of cilantro. Lucy's half: refried beans, salsa, freshly grated part skim mozzarella, same onion and pepper mixture, and cilantro. I popped it into the hot oven just until the cheese melted. On my slice (OK, on my multiple slices, cause we both ate the whole thing) I added a dollop of Greek yogurt, another spoonful of salsa, and more cilantro. We both deemed the Polenta Pizza Crust a rip roaring success.

Now, if you're a normal person (i.e., not a chubbette like me) you can just use a regular pizza crust for your nice Southwest Pizza and forget all this polenta nonsense. But if you like really thin crispy crust, as I do, or if you're a Simply Filling/Core WeWa'er who wants to avoid the use of flour and use zero points on her pizza, as I am, this is a solution. The Southwest Pizza variation lends itself to the polenta crust especially well, of course, but this technique is a keeper for us. We've already decided our next one will be a Greek Pizza: feta cheese, tomatoes, spinach, and other mediterranean goodness. My own New York pizza success, thank you very much.

Where there's a will, there's ..... applesauce!

Don't you hate it when you think you have an ingredient, so you don't buy it while you're at the store, then when it's time to make your recipe you don't have it after all. Harrumph. Makes me want to do a Rumpelstiltskin and stomp my feet so hard. But, wait, happy ending after all, just like all those scary, weird fairy tales.

I wanted to make oatmeal muffins with shredded carrots---one of I'm sure a gazillion variations you could make with that oatmeal muffin recipe. But, alas, no applesauce. Too danged hot to think about going back to the store....lots of gala apples and one granny smith in the crisper....hmmmmm, I'll just make a little applesauce. I cored and cut up 2 gala's and 1 granny smith (I didn't peel them cuz I like the peel) into a heavy pot; added 1 TBSP sugar; about 1/2 cup water; tiny pinch of salt; put the lid on and cooked over medium heat for about 15 minutes, just until the apples broke down. I stirred with a wooden spoon a few times while it cooked. After it was done it was still too chunky to put in the muffins, so I used my handy-dandyPampered Chef Mix 'n Masher (the black stick thing in the picture) to mash it up in the pan. This is the little tool that Libby swears every parent must have as soon as a toddler starts to eat any table food----works like a charm, even though it's actually made to break up ground meat when you're browning it.

After I made the muffins I still had more than a cup of applesauce left, so of course I tasted it as I was putting it away. WOW! I forgot how good homemade chunky applesauce tastes, and how satisfying it is to take the 20 minutes to make it. I used to make this for Lucy when she was little, and as soon as I took the taste it made me remember how making that applesauce for her made me feel like I was the best mom in the world. I mean, even though I didn't have a clue of how to be a parent and still don't, anyone who would make homemade applesauce for their child couldn't be all bad, right? Heck, I saw Diane Keaton in Baby Boom at least ten times.

If you're making this for a brand new eater, you'll want to peel the apples and mash it up really good after it cooks, or even puree it. But for a sweet little three-year-old who is so precious and whose Tia misses him so much she can't stand it (but I digress, sorry) chunky applesauce made by his very own mama in 20 minutes will just reinforce that she's the very best mama and he's the very best big brother in the whole world.

Here's a real recipe in case you want to make a bigger batch, from America's Test Kitchen's Family Cookbook.

Old-Fashioned Applesauce

4 pounds Jonagold, Pink Lady, Jonathan, or Macoun apples (8 to 12) cored and cut into 1 1/2 inch chunks

1 cup water, plus extra as needed

1/4 cup sugar, plus extra for seasoning

Pinch salt

1. Combine all ingredients in a large Dutch oven. Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the apples begin to break down, 15 to 20 minutes.

2. Process the cooked apples through a food mill fitted with a medium disk. (Susan's note: huh?) Season with extra sugar or add water to adjust the consistency as needed. Serve warm or cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. Can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Susan's note: Just like with apple pies, I recommend that you use a mix of two different kinds of apples when you make this applesauce.

p.s. The muffins turned out really yummy, with 1/2 cup of applesauce and 1+ cup of shredded carrots. Oops, I forgot to add any sugar! Oh, well, they still taste good---all the better if no added sugar.

Moroccan Vegetable Salad

I can't wait to make this...looks like a great hot-weather salad, and a change from my regular cucumber-onion-tomato mix. I'm cooking a pot of garbanzo beans today, so I'll have everything I need.

Ingredients

	2 large tomato(es), cut into wedges
	2 medium sweet red pepper(s), seeded and diced
	2 average kirby cucumber, seeded and diced
	4 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
	1/4 tsp kosher salt
	1/8 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
	2 tsp olive oil
	1 medium garlic clove(s), minced
	1/4 tsp ground cumin
	1 cup(s) canned chickpeas, rinsed and drained
	1/3 cup(s) fat-free sour cream, or plain fat-free yogurt

Instructions

• Combine the tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice, the salt, and pepper in a medium bowl. Refrigerate, covered, until the flavors are blended, about 30 minutes.
  
  
• Meanwhile, heat the oil in a small nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the cumin and toast, stirring constantly, about 1 minute.
  
  
• Puree the chickpeas, sour cream, and remaining 2 tablespoons lemon juice in a food processor or blender; add the garlic mixture; pulse until combined.
  
  
• Divide the tomato mixture among 4 salad plates. Top evenly with the chickpea puree. Yields about 1 cup salad with about 1⁄3 cup chickpea puree per serving.
• (Recipe from WeWa)

Mini Quiches

Fast and easy does it for me! And healthy is way up there on the list nowadays, too. I make these every couple of weeks with whatever I have in the fridge and freezer---you can use just about anything. I keep a few in the fridge to throw in my lunch bag--they're great at room temp; freeze the rest and take out as needed. They also make a quick breakfast or a good protein snack any time. Southwestern style seems to be my go-to variety, but maybe because I tend to always have those add-in's on hand; every variation I've made is delicious. Another combination not mentioned here is when I throw in left-over breakfast potatoes, center-cut bacon crumbles, tomatoes, a little onion, and whatever cheese I have on hand. Just look for whatever dibs and dabs you have left over and give it a go. Your lunch box or late-night snack monster will be so glad you did.

Kippy's Mini Quiches

(A filling foods WeWa recipe that is definitely NOT only for WeWa)

Start with: 1 c egg substitute or 4 large eggs and add-in choices such as:

• SPINACH QUICHE: 1 (10 oz) package chopped frozen spinach (squeezed dry); 3/4 c FF or soy cheddar cheese, shredded; 1/4 c diced red/green peppers; 1/4 c onions
• QUICHE LORRAINE: 1/2 c Canadian bacon, chopped, cooked until crispy; 1/2 c FF cottage cheese; 1/2 c FF or soy swiss cheese, shredded; 1/4 c roasted peppers; dash of ground nutmeg
• CHEDDAR BROCCOLI: 1/4 c chopped onion; 1 (10 oz) package frozen chopped broccoli (squeezed dry); 1 c FF cottage cheese; 1/2 c FF or soy cheddar flavored cheese, shredded
• SOUTHWESTERN: 1 c FF cottage cheese; 1 small can green chiles; 1/2 c black beans or Mexi-corn

PREPARATION:

Preheat oven to 350* F. Spray the cups of your 12-cup muffin tin or stone with cooking spray. Beat the eggs or egg substitute; fold in the add-ins. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Fill the foil cups with the mixture. Bake at 350* F for 20 minutes, testing so that a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from cups to serve.

Note: these are freezable, microwaveable, portable, full of protein (and fiber when veggies are used), and contain no artifical sweeteners.

Black Bean & Poblano Dip

Thank you, WeWa, for another easy go-to recipe. For a little more heat add a fresh jalapeno or a little chipotle chili powder. It's great as dip, or on top of pork chops or tenderloin. I don't think Jakey is interested in feeding it to Baby Noah...in fact, maybe not much interested in him at all.

Ingredients

	2 cup(s) poblano chile, fresh, seeded, deveined, chopped (about 4 medium)
	14 1/2 oz canned black beans, rinsed and drained
	1 cup(s) cilantro, fresh, leaves
	1 tsp table salt
	1 cup(s) scallion(s), chopped
	1 cup(s) tomato(es), chopped
	2 Tbsp fresh lime juice

Instructions

• Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender; process to desired consistency. Yields about 1/4 cup per serving.
• The other way I fix a quick black bean dip for either my home-baked tortilla chips or for carrot sticks, is to just throw a can of rinsed black beans, a palmful of cumin and related seasonings, a big handful of fresh cilantro, and a cup of plain greek yogurt into the food processor. Sometimes I also include a can of diced green chilies. This looks beautiful in a hollowed out red or green bell pepper if someone is coming over to munch with you. Add some Coronas and limes, and you're set. Hey, if you'll come over I'll fix it NOW.

Grilled Flank Steak with Onions

This Weight Watchers recipe has turned me into a flank steak lover. I cook mine a little more than shown in this photo. Let me know if you try it this weekend. Just be sure to buy extra flank steak....or you'll be sorry.

	1 Tbsp olive oil, 3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
	2 tsp dried oregano
	2 tsp minced garlic
	1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
	1 1/2 pound(s) lean flank steak
	3/4 tsp table salt, divided
	1 large red onion(s), cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
	2 spray(s) cooking spray

Instructions

• Mix vinegar, oil, oregano, garlic and pepper in a ziploc bag. Add steak; turn to coat, making sure steak is coated with vinegar mixture. Marinate in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
  
  
• Heat outdoor grill. I used my grill pan on the stovetop.
  
  
• Remove steak from marinade; discard marinade. Sprinkle steak with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Coat onions with cooking spray; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt.
  
  
• Grill steak, turning once, until medium rare, about 15 minutes, or longer for desired degree of doneness. Let steak rest for 10 minutes. Do not even be tempted to skip the resting part.
  
  
• While steak is resting, grill onions, turning occasionally, until lightly charred and tender, about 7 to 9 minutes.
  
  
• To serve, thinly slice steak against the grain and place on a serving platter; scatter onions over top. Yields about 3 1/2 ounces steak and 1/3 cup onions per serving.
• 
  
• (If you're wondering what the green diamonds mean in the ingredient list, it's a Weight Watchers thing to show those are "filling foods"---something I should eat lots of and don't have to count points for. It's a GOOD THING.)
• 
  
• Hey, why are they called red onions when they're really purple?