Homemade Herbed Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 onions, diced
• 6 stalks celery, diced
• 6 carrot, diced
• 3/4 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 3/4 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
• 3/4 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
• 3/4 tablespoon chopped Italian flat leaf parsley
• 4 quarts low-fat, low sodium chicken broth
• 3 1/2 cups cubed skinless, boneless chicken breast meat
• 1 (16 ounce) package egg noodles
• salt and pepper to taste

Cooking Instructions

1. In a large skillet over medium heat, cook onions in oil until translucent. Stir in celery, carrot, rosemary, tarragon, thyme and parsley and cook, covered, until vegetables are soft, 5 to 10 minutes.

2. Transfer vegetable mixture to a large pot and pour in chicken broth. Simmer over low heat, covered, for 30 minutes.

3. Stir in chicken breast pieces and egg noodles and simmer, covered, 30 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper.

Paste with Turkey Meatballs

Ingredients

• Meatballs:
• 1 lb. (500 g) ground turkey
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup (125 mL) bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup (50 mL) very finely chopped onion
• 1 tsp. (5 mL) salt
• 1/4 tsp. (2 mL) pepper
•  
• Sauce:
• 2 tbsp. (30 mL) olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/2 medium red or green pepper, chopped
• 1 can (28-oz/796-mL) ground or crushed plum tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp. (2 mL) crumbled dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp. (2 mL) crumbled dried basil
• 1 tsp. (5 mL) salt
• 1/2 tsp. (2 mL) pepper
•  
• 1 lb. (500 g) uncooked spaghetti or linguine
• grated Parmesan cheese for sprinkling

Cooking Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375° F (190° C).

2. In a medium bowl, combine ground turkey, egg, bread crumbs, onion, salt and pepper. Mix together with a fork or clean bare hands until thoroughly combined. 3. Form into 1-inch (2-cm) meatballs, rolling them between your hands so they're nice and round. Place meatballs in a single layer on a cookie sheet and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, turning them over halfway through baking.

4. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and red or green pepper and cook for about 10 minutes, until softened. Pour in ground tomatoes, oregano, basil, parsley, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer and cook, covered, for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

5. Add browned meatballs to the tomato sauce and continue to cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for another 30 to 35 minutes. The sauce should be thickened and the meatballs tender.

6. Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but not mushy. Drain thoroughly and return to the pot in which it was cooked. Add a few spoonfuls of the tomato sauce, stir to coat evenly, transfer to a serving bowl and spoon the remaining sauce and meatballs on top. Serve immediately and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad

Ingredients

• 1 eggplant (1 lb/500 g)
• 2 each yellow and green zucchini (1 1/4 lb/625 g total)
• 3 large carrots, peeled
• 1 each sweet red and yellow pepper
• Half Spanish onion
• 8 oz (250 g) asparagus
• 1/3 cup (75 mL) white wine vinegar
• 1/3 cup (75 mL) olive oil
• 1 tsp (5 mL) Dijon mustard
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp (2 mL) each salt and pepper
• 3 cups (75 mL) rotini pasta
• 1/4 cup (50 mL) chopped fresh basil

Cooking Instructions

1. Cut eggplant into 1/2-inch (1-cm) thick rounds. Cut yellow and green zucchini and carrots lengthwise into thirds. Seed, core and cut red and yellow peppers into wedges; cut onion into wedges, leaving root end intact. Snap off ends of asparagus. Place in bowl. Whisk vinegar, oil, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper; toss half with vegetables.

2. Place vegetables on greased grill over medium-high heat; close lid and cook, turning once, for 10 to 15 minutes or until tender-crisp. Return to bowl; let cool slightly. Cut into 1-inch (2.5-cm) pieces, returning vegetables and any juices to bowl.

3. Meanwhile, in large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender but firm; drain well and add to bowl along with remaining vinaigrette. Toss to coat. (Salad can be covered and refrigerated for up to 6 hours.) Add basil and toss. Serve at room temperature.

Chocolate Breakfast Bar

Ingredients

• 2 ounces white chocolate
• 1 and 1/2 cups honey
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1 cup sunflower seeds or your favorite nut
• 1/2 cup wheat germ or shredded coconut
• 2/3 cups crunchy peanut butter
• 1 cup dried fruit (like blueberries or strawberries)
• 5 cups quick-cooking oats

Cooking Instructions

1. Boil the honey, butter, and chocolate for 1 minute. Remove from heat and add the vanilla.

2. Mix together the remaining ingredients and stir into the chocolate mixture.

3. Pour the dough onto a cookie sheet and flatten it into one large rectangle about 1 inch thick. let cool, then cut into bars.

Linguine with Shrimp Scampi

Ingredients

• 1 pound linguine pasta
• 1/4 cup butter
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 pound medium shrimp - peeled and deveined
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1/4 cup light olive oil

Cooking Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add pasta, and cook until al dente. Drain pasta, and set aside.

3. In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add most of the garlic, keeping some for later. Coat the garlic completely with butter. Do not let the garlic brown. Add shrimp, and toss to coat. Immediately remove pan from heat; shrimp will not be cooked yet.

4. Sprinkle the shrimp with breadcrumbs (enough to coat the shrimp), and transfer the entire mixture to a medium casserole dish. Pour wine and the lemon juice over the shrimp. Cover, and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 10 minutes.

5. Remove cover, and bake an additional 5 minutes.

6. In a small saucepan heat olive oil with remaining garlic. Toss the pasta with the olive oil and garlic mixture. Serve the shrimp over the pasta with additional lemon slices on the side.

Oven Roasted Spring Vegetables

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 lbs (750 g) small new potatoes
• 1 lb (500 g) asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch (5 cm) pieces
• 1 bunch green onions, trimmed and cut into 2-inch (5 cm) pieces
• 2 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch (1 cm) chunks
• 2 cups (500 mL) baby carrots
• 2 cups (500 mL) grape tomatoes
• 1 sweet red or yellow pepper, cut into 1-inch (2 cm) squares
• 1 can (14 oz/398 mL) artichoke hearts (not marinated ones)
• 1/4 cup (50 mL) olive oil
• 2 tbsp (30 mL) lemon juice
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp (5 mL) salt
• 1/4 tsp (1 mL) black pepper

Cooking Instructions

1. Wash the new potatoes and, if they’re larger than 1-inch (2 cm) in diameter, cut them into 1-inch (2 cm) pieces. Place in a steamer basket over boiling water and steam for about 10 minutes or until about half cooked. (A sharp knife poked into a potato should meet some resistance.) Remove from steamer and place in a large bowl. Add the asparagus, green onions, zucchini, carrots, tomatoes and sweet pepper to the bowl and toss to mix.

2. In a small bowl, stir together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Whisk briefly to blend, then pour over the vegetables in the bowl, tossing to coat everything evenly.

3. Spread the vegetable mixture out onto one or two lightly greased large, shallow baking pans. The vegetables should be in a single layer so it’s better to use two pans than one so that they can spread out. Place in a preheated 450° F (230° C) oven and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring once or twice to make sure everything browns evenly. Remove from pan and serve immediately.