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I have created a few recipes and collected a few more. Some are my favorites and I use them often. Others are for special occasions and actually make some occasions special! I hope you enjoy them. Dave's Copycat Garlic Italian Salad Dressing/Marinade Dave's Easy-As-Pie Smashed Potatoes Christine Gamboa's Potato Salad Cassie's Jalapeno Chicken Bake Sugar-Free Vanilla (or other flavored) Ice Cream Dave's Easy and Excellent Beef Stew Mom's Ambrosia Mom's Cranberry Jell-O® Salad Debra's Pumpkin Chiffon Pie Roast Turkey in a Paper Bag Dave's Chunky Hearty Vegetable Soup Dave's Chocolate Smoothie Dessert Dave's Smoked Chicken Pieces Dave and Carly's Adaptive Quick and Easy Low-Carb, High-Fiber Chili Dave's Pressure Cooker Pinto Beans Dave's Copycat Garlic Italian Salad Dressing/Marinade - [Makes: 24 oz. as written.] I have admired the Garlic Expressions® salad dressing for several years now. It goes great on salads, soaked on french bread, and as a vegetable dip. It is light and healthy and EXTREMELY expensive! At least I think so! I have thought many times that with a bit of effort, I should be able to come up with a concoction that would taste pretty close to theirs but I never before tried. Last night, I finally got to work. I brewed for a while and my results are promising! (this was written 08.31.2007) I've managed to "nearly" duplicate the Garlic Expressions® salad dressing we love so much. I say "nearly" duplicated because although the taste is pretty close to the original, I suspect it will grow to be even closer once the mixture has a chance to steep together for a while -- like tea does after it has a chance to brew. Anyway, here is my version of this recipe: Ingredients: [last edited 09.20.2007] 1.25 cups (350 ml) apple cider vinegar 1.25 cups (350 ml) olive oil - (the original recipe uses canola oil but I use olive oil for the heart benefits) 1 tsp salt substitute (I used Mrs. Dash® Original Blend which is all natural and salt free -- again, for the heart benefits) 1 tsp sugar substitute (I used Splenda® -- because sugar is bad) .5 tsp black pepper finely ground (flaked pepper would be good too but I didn't have any) 3 Tbsp lemon juice. 1 tsp Mrs. Dash® Original Blend seasoning mix (yellow cap). 2 tsp fresh crushed garlic Procedure: Mix all ingredients in a glass jar. I use a recycled pickle jar. To serve, a narrow-necked bottle is best to control the flow from gushing out. I like the 20 oz plastic pop bottles that are so popular these days. Allow mixture to steep for a while (perhaps a week or more). When it's ready, shake the bottle vigorously and pour. Although I don't think it's absolutely necessary, this mixture tastes better to me when it's chilled so I leave it in the refrigerator. Oh, man, this is good! At $5.59/12 oz. bottle from our local grocery store and an amazingly high $4.56/12 oz. bottle bulk price from the manufacturer (online, including shipping, 12 oz. bottles), the original is pretty expensive! The alternative (brewing it up myself) is looking really attractive! I will continue to tweak this recipe and post my changes on this page. I made some changes on 09.20.2007 and it is WAY better! Not as acidic as it was before and the overpowering vinegar taste has been toned down. Also, the seasoning is very good now. I think this is much closer to the original. top Dave's Easy-As-Pie Smashed Potatoes - [Makes: at least 1 gallon of potatoes as written.] Mashed potatoes are always a big hit at large gatherings at my house. Why? I mean, they're only potatoes, right? Well, yes and no. At my house, the potatoes are so good they could serve as a meal by themselves! Here's how I make them. As for the name ("Smashed Potaotes"), that's the name my brother and I used to call mashed potatoes when we were kids. It drove my mom nuts so we kept it up. Ingredients: 8 - 10 large baking size russet potatoes, peeled, chunked 1 pint sour cream (low-fat version is fine) .5 cup real butter (more, if you like, for taste) 1 Tbsp garlic (granulated or powder) 1 tsp black pepper (I use black rather than white because I like the little black speckles in the finished dish) .5 - 1 tsp salt (I offer a range because I recommend salting to taste) 1 splash of buttermilk (optional — I love the taste but it's up to you) 1 tsp Mrs. Dash® salt-free Original Blend (yellow cap). Procedure: Boil the chunked potatoes until just done. Not too done. Pay attention! You don't want goosh! You're better off stopping short of being fully done because the potatoes will continue to cook even when you turn off the heat. Drain boiled potatoes and put into large mixing bowl or KitchenAid® stand mixer (I highly recommend a KitchenAid® stand mixer if you do not have one. They are WONDERFUL!) Break up the butter stick and add as you mix. The broken pieces will melt slowly in the hot potatoes. If you are using a KitchenAid® stand mixer, turn it on a slow speed and allow the potato chunks to break up and mix with the butter. If you are hand mixing, don't get too anxious about making the potatoes all smooth and creamy, that will come with time. Just break up the chunks and get the mixture to break down somewhat. Add the sour cream one large dollop at a time, mixing as you add. Add the spices to your potatoes by dispersing them evenly, mixing all the while. Continue mixing until you get the texture you like. If your potatoes are too "stiff" (too thick), you can add a splash of buttermilk. Add sparingly and mix between additions making sure to avoid making your potatoes too runny. Before you serve, I recommend leaving your potatoes to sit after you're finished mixing. This will allow all the flavors to blend nicely while the potatoes are hot and accepting the spices and other ingredients. These potatoes are the hit of my Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. They are so easy to make, inexpensive, and very convenient. My kids have asked me for this recipe so many times, I figured I would just post it so they could get to it any time they needed it. top Christine Gamboa's Potato Salad - [Makes: enough to serve 8 as written.] Christine brought this potato salad to one of our monster barbeques and it was a huge hit! She has given us the recipe and we'd like to share it with you. Ingredients: 1 bottle of Japanese Kewpie Mayonnaise (17.64 oz) 1 bag red potatoes - about 4 lbs - boiled (it takes about 18-20 mins) the breast of 1 roasted chicken, shredded (those rotisserie chickens from Costco® are great!) a splash of chicken stock (Costco® has organic chicken stock in a box that's good) to flavor and loosen the mixture 12 bacon strips - cook until extra crispy 1 granny smith apple, peeled and diced 4 green onions - thinly sliced, just use the lower 2/3rds of the onions) sweet paprika, ground pepper, sea salt to taste Procedure: Boil the chunked potatoes until just done. Not too done. Drain boiled potatoes, chop into smaller pieces and put into large mixing bowl. Shred chicken breast and add to mixing bowl. Chop apple into small pieces and add to mixing bowl. Chop bacon into small pieces and add to mixing bowl. Toss in sliced onions. Add mayonnaise and spices. Fold all ingredients together until fully mixed and all are dressed with the mayonnaise and spices. Put into refrigerator and allow to chill. This potato salad was a HUGE hit at our barbeque and everyone was asking about the recipe! Christine says her potato salad is very easy to make and goes together quickly. She was quite amazed that we were all so impressed with it. I'm sure you will like it as much as we did. top Cassie's Jalapeno Chicken Bake - [Makes: a lot.] This is a very tasty, easy, winner recipe. My daughter, Cassie, got this recipe while attending college. She told me about it and I have made it several times - okay, a hundred times! Anyway, everyone who tastes this dish tells me they LOVE it! To give you an idea, Becky and I were going on an hour-long trip one day and she said to me, "Oh! Wait! I'll be right back!" She ran into the house while I waited in the car. When she came back, she had a plastic container of this Jalapeno Chicken Bake dish in her hand and a fork! I asked her what she was doing and she said, "I've just got to have more of this! I'm bringing it with me!" So you can rest easy, make this at least once for your family and taste it but I'm quite certain you will love it like we do. Ingredients: 1 family size can of Campbell's® Cream of Mushroom Soup (26 oz can) 1 jar of green salsa - I use Trader Joe's green salsa because it is relatively low-carb 4 (or so - more if you like, less if you don't) fresh jalapenos diced finely 1 16 oz container of sour cream (Tillamook® works best for low-carb) 1 big bag of Mexican style shredded cheese mix (or you can grate your own) 4 full chicken breasts (8 half breasts), boiled until just cooked, then shredded. If you want a real treat, smoke two chickens in your smoker the day before. Debone the chickens and use the smoked chicken meat for this dish. Oh, that's GOOOOOD! Procedure: To a 8 qt dutch oven, add mushroom soup. Put the green salsa in a fine strainer and allow a lot of the water to drain off. Then add the solids to the pot. I drain off the water because if I don't, the end result is too runny for my taste. I like it thicker. Finely dice jalapeno peppers and add to the pot. You might want to start with 2 and adjust on your next time around. Don't make it too hot for your lightweight diners or they won't try it again. Turn the heat on to medium - bring the contents of the dutch oven up to temperature slowly. Add the sour cream. Fold and stir until all ingredients are fully blended. Add cheese stirring as you go. Make sure the cheese gets blended throughout. Shred the boiled chicken breasts and add to the pot. Break the pieces down to spoon-size. Diced or chopped isn't as good - I'm not sure why. It just isn't. Once contents start to bubble a little and steam a little, transfer to the oven set to 350 F degrees. Bake for 35 minutes with the lid on. When the dish is finished baking, you can remove it, sprinkle a bit of cheese on top for effect, and serve. Makes enough to feed a lot of people! Or have a lot of leftovers! Or a few people who are really hungry! This is a very good dish and re-heats perfectly. You can be confident that your guests will really enjoy this simple, easy-to-fix dish. I like making this amount so I can have more tomorrow! top Sugar-Free Vanilla (or other flavored) Ice Cream - [Makes: about 1.5 gallons as written.] This is the one! This is the recipe for the best soft-serve, just-like-out-of-the-local-ice-cream-parlor ice cream. Best thing is, it's SUGAR FREE! I searched and tried many different recipes to get the one that really tasted as good as ice cream with sugar. It was a tough search. But I found it! Now I'm giving it to you. This is just an amazing thing that you can have ice cream, this good, without sugar. I hope you enjoy it. Ingredients: 6 eggs 1.75 cup heavy whipping cream 1 cup maltitol or erythritol crystals (these are sugar alcohols which are not recognized by the body as sugar and therefore don't spike insulin levels which prevents your body from packing on weight around your butt). .5 cup maltitol syrup (pick your favorite flavor) - I use Da Vinci sugar-free syrups and they come in a huge variety of flavors. 4 Tbsp real vanilla extract (quality of the vanilla makes a big difference) 3.5 cup half and half Procedure: In a medium size bowl, whip the eggs thoroughly until fluffy. Add heavy whipping cream and continue whipping until fluffy. Add maltitol crystals and beat into mixture thoroughly. Add maltitol syrup flavoring and beat into mixture thoroughly. Add vanilla extract and beat into mixture thoroughly. Add half and half and beat into mixture thoroughly. Pour mixture into ice cream freezer and churn until firm. Empty firm mixture into freeze-able container. Put container into freezer to finish freezing. Again, this is an amazing recipe yielding wonderfully and surprisingly great tasting ice cream. This is the vanilla recipe but you can easily add different flavors, fruits and and other goodies (think Oreo cookies!) to extend this recipe. If you check the internet for sources you can find where maltitol and erythritol are available for sale. The only thing I should tell you is: don't eat too much! You will get gas if you do. You have been warned. (Hey, you've gotta take the bad with the good, right?) top Dave's Easy and Excellent Beef Stew - [Makes: enough to feed 10 people.] If you want a great dish, one that is sure to please everyone, this stew cannot miss. It has that old fashioned, slow cooked flavor that you find in only the finest eating establishments; the ones that take the extra time to do it right. I offer two ways of cooking it. The first way is with a Crock Pot® style slow cooker. The second way is with a pressure cooker. With a slow cooker, the resulting taste is wonderful but the texture and color is the only thing I don't like. Texture is soft and all ingredients look like they've been through a tumbler; the edges are smoothed and rounded. As for color, everything takes on a brown color and the ingredients are only carefully discernable. With a pressure cooker, not only can you cut the cooking time by 80% but the ingredients maintain their texture (firm but tender and fully cooked) and color (all ingredients look vibrant and original). It is up to you which method you use but knowing this information beforehand might cause you to sway one way or the other. Ingredients: 2 lbs beef. A poor cut of meat is preferable to prime. I like a nice thick chuck roast. Cube the meat into 1" pieces. You can remove a lot of the excess fat and lard off the roast and this is the time to do it. 5 - 6 good sized russet potatoes, cut into 1" cubes. 8 average sized carrots, chopped about every 1". 1 large red onion, coursely chopped. 6 - 7 celery stalks, chopped about every 1". 2 cans stewed tomatoes (the larger, fatter, squatty cans - not the small 12 oz cans) 4 bay leaves 6 beef bullion cubes (crushed) a splash of soy sauce (about 4 Tbsp) a splash of Worcestershire sauce (about 4 Tbsp) freshly pressed garlic (I like garlic so I add about 3 Tbsp). salt and pepper to taste 1.5 cups instant potatoes Procedure: Open the stewed tomatoes and run a sharp knife through them several times making sure they are cut up. Add to pot (either slow cooker or pressure cooker). Set slow cooker to low setting (approximately 8 - 10 hour cook time). Or turn heat up to medium if using pressure cooker. Heat some oil in a large skillet. Cube meat into 1" cubes. Coat meat in baking flour. When oil comes up to temperature (hot enough to fry), carefully add cubed meat one layer at a time turning after a minute or so to sear all sides. When meat is seared, add to pot. Cube/chop vegetables into spoon sized pieces. Chunky is good. It makes the stew very hearty looking and people LOVE that! Add to pot. Add all seasonings and stir gently. Add just enough water to cover most of the ingredients - not too full or it will boil over but enough to stew all ingredients. Remember: the ingredients will cook down and end up in the liquid. If you're using a slow cooker, set to low temperature and cook for 8 - 10 hours or until meat is tender. If you're using a pressure cooker, apply the lid, increase temperature, watch pressure. When pressure reaches 15 lbs, turn off heat and wait for pressure to drop. When safe, remove lid and move on to next step. When stew is finished cooking, slowly stir and add instant potatoes sprinkling slowly. The instant potatoes thicken the stew nicely and it's probably the easiest way. This recipe serves a gob of people! Depending on how many ingredients you used, you could end up with a couple of gallons of stew. Often times, I have to use two crock pots or my 12 qt pressure cooker just to hold it all! No matter how you cook this recipe, it will fill your house with the most inviting aromas and you may only feed 4 or 5 people with it because they'll eat it all before anyone else can get to it! It's a wonderful meal after a long day working or after a cold fall or winter day of hunting or fishing. I hope you enjoy this recipe. It has been a favorite with my family for years. top Mom's Ambrosia - [Makes: enough to serve 8 people as written.] This light and delicious salad is a lifetime favorite of mine. My mom has made this salad for all of our great family get-togethers and it is the bowl that is scraped clean before any other! This dish is sure to please your family like it has ours for many years. Ingredients: 1 can pineapple chunks, drained 1 can mandarin oranges, drained 1 cup green seedless grapes 1 cup miniature marshmallows 1 cup sweet flaked coconut .5 cup mayonnaise .5 cup thawed Cool Whip® topping Procedure: In a medium bowl, blend mayonnaise and Cool Whip® until smooth. In a large bowl, place all fruit, marshmallows and coconut. Fold all ingredients together gently until coated. Chill in refrigerator overnight. [Optionally, you may add more marshmallows, chopped nuts, drained fruit cocktail, bananas, or other treats as desired.] This dilectible treat is light and flavorful and easy to assemble. All of your guests are sure to want MORE! top Mom's Cranberry Jell-O® Salad - [Makes: enough to serve 8 people as written.] This salad is another of my fondest memories growing up and feasting at Thanksgiving and Christmas times. It has a tart/sweet flavor that is so great with turkey and roast beef. Be sure to make plenty because this dish will be a favorite! Ingredients: 2 three-ounce packages of raspberry Jell-O® (any brand will do nicely). 1 can crushed pineapple, drained with the juice saved. 1 lb can cranberry sauce OR you can buy a bag of raw cranberries and make your own sauce according to the instructions on the bag. If you choose to make your own cranberry sauce, use 1.5 cups of the finished sauce. 1 cup chopped walnuts. 1 cup orange juice (fresh is best - and yes, it makes a difference!) 1 can mandarin oranges, drained with the juice saved. Procedure: Combine the pineapple juice, mandarin orange juice and orange juice in a sauce pan. Bring mixture to a boil. Dissolve the raspberry Jell-O® in the boiling juices. Allow to cool. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and gently fold together. Place in refrigerator and allow to set. This salad is sure to be a crowd pleaser. If you take the time to make your own cranberry sauce, it's even better! The flavors are wonderful and the texture is amazing. I love this dish! top Debra's Pumpkin Chiffon Pie - [Makes: enough to serve 10 people as written.] Pumpkin pie is a holiday favorite; at least it is for some people. I find the standard pumpkin pie heavy, strong in taste, and soggy crusted. It is NOT one of my favorites. One year, long ago, my sister, Debra, concocted this recipe as an alternative to the standard pumpkin pie and I absolutely fell in love with it! Remember: I do NOT care for regular pumpkin pie. But I LOVE this stuff! It's incredible! I started making this recipe for my family gatherings almost 30 years ago after we got married and started hosting holiday meals like Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. It didn't take long before people started telling me they were looking forward to coming over for some of my pumpkin pie, "that special kind you make." My pleasure comes from seeing my guests smile and gobble up the dishes I make and this one never fails. Thanks, Deb. You make me look good with this one! Ingredients: 3 egg yolks .5 cup sugar (condensed milk can be substituted) 1.25 cup canned pumpkin .5 cup milk .5 tsp salt .5 tsp ginger .5 tsp cinnamon .5 tsp nutmeg 1 envelope (or 1 Tbsp) unflavored gelatin .25 cup cold water 3 stiff beaten egg whites .5 cup sugar (additional to above sugar) 2 cups (+) thawed Cool Whip topping 1 box ginger snap cookies .5 cup melted butter (or more, as needed) Procedure: Start the day before... First make the pie crust: Add ginger snap cookies to your food processor a few at a time allowing them to reduce to a course powder. Without a food processor, crushing ginger snaps to powder is a giant pain! Borrow a food processor if you have to but it is the only GOOD way to get the ginger snaps crushed up enough to make the pie crust. Oh, and you could substitute a graham cracker crust but, trust me, graham cracker crust is a DISTANT second choice to ginger snaps! Once all snaps are a powder, place in a medium bowl and add melted butter. Mix with a fork until all ginger snap powder becomes a coated with butter. Using a fork, press the mixture into a casserole dish (or a couple of pie tins) until you form an even layer of crumbs for the pie crust. Place crust in the refrigerator; allow to firm up. Now make the pie filling. Soften gelatin in cold water. Make a space in your freezer for a large bowl. Put Cool Whip in refrigerator to allow it to thaw. In a small bowl, stir yolks until pretty and add sugar. Keep stirring, it'll get prettier. In a sauce pan on a medium fire, heat pumpkin with the milk. Add seasonings. It'll get pretty hot. Take a little of the hot, seasoned pumpkin and mix it with the egg yolks. Don't go too fast or you'll cook the egg yolks. Add the warmed up egg yolks to pumpkin stuff in the sauce pan. Mix in the gelatin. Heat well. It'll look like boiling mud, bloop, bloop, blooping all over the stove. Take it off the heat and let it cool. Then put it in the freezer (if you can watch it) or in refrigerator overnight. (You can leave a spoon in it and test it for a set.) When set, take it out and stir it. * Don’t start next step until this mixture is set. Whip egg whites until stiff. Gradually add .5 cup sugar to the stiff egg whites and continue whipping. Watch for peaks to form. In a large mixing bowl, alternately fold whipped egg whites and Cool Whip into pumpkin mixture. Pile the mixture into the prepared pie crust. Use additional Cool Whip for decoration on top. Freeze until served. Don't allow it to freeze solid. It's good very cold but not frozen solid. Double this recipe for a crowd. If I don't double this recipe, I always come up short. This dessert is light and tasty and always brings a smile to those who taste it. You're sure to get many requests for this dish once you've served it. top Roast Turkey in a Paper Bag - [Makes: a whole roasted turkey.] This recipe came from watching TV. My wife, Becky, was watching a show where the studio commissary chefs asked everyone on the show for their best turkey recipe. Grandma's, Aunt Martha's, whomever; just bring in the best recipe you've got, they would make it, and then they would have a "taste-off" to see which one was best. The commissary chefs gathered all the turkey recipes from everyone's contributions and made about 50 turkeys. They put them all out and served everyone who worked at the studio. Afterward, they collected ballots indicating people's favorite roasted turkey. This is the recipe that won by a landslide! When I heard this story, I was intrigued. Then I heard how the turkey was cooked (in a paper bag). I thought it sounded like a crazy way to cook anything — I thought the paper bag would catch on fire! But I couldn't argue with the ballots cast by those who had eaten the turkeys. So I decided to try it. My timing couldn't have been worse. I had 20 guests coming for Thanksgiving dinner and I was cooking the turkey. I already had a pretty good way to cook a turkey but this paper bag method really sounded intriguing. So I decided to go for broke and try it — with guests coming — for Thanksgiving. Well, I now cook ALL my turkeys this way! It's the best turkey you will ever try! It comes out golden brown, moist and succulent, a gorgeous meal and the hit of the day — every single time! It's one of the best things I make and it's so easy! Ingredients: 1 turkey, thawed .5 - 1.0 cup real egg mayonnaise, depending on the size of the turkey 2 Tbsp granulated garlic 1 tsp salt 1.5 Tbsp Mrs. Dash® Original Blend .5 tsp black pepper 2 Tbsp yellow mustard 2 brown paper sacks, 1 peck size (the large grocery sacks from your local super market) Procedure: Combine mayonnaise, garlic, salt, pepper, Mrs. Dash®, yellow mustard in a bowl and whisk together until smooth. Use a butter knife to separate the skin from the breast and thigh meat leaving it connected to the bird at the edges. Use a rubber or silicon spatula to spread the spiced mayonnaise mixture under the skin. Be generous. Don't be shy. Use the remaining spiced mayonnaise to slather the insde and outside of the bird all over. I use my hands but you can continue to use the spatula if you like. Smear it on like you're mad at it! Drop the entire bird into one of the paper sacks. You might need help to get it to fit if the bird is large but don't worry about the mess you're making. It will turn out perfect! Use the second paper sack to cover the open end of the first sack. They should go together open end to open end with the bird inside. Once encased in paper sack, place the bird on a rack in a large roasting pan with the breast side up. Using your fingers, locate one of the thighs and push a thermometer through the paper sack material into the thigh. Place the bird in the preheated oven (325o F) so you can see the thermometer. Watch the thermometer and remove when the innermost part of the thigh reaches 165o F. When I cook my turkey this way, it comes out golden brown. If you would like to brown your turkey further (just for looks), that's fine. Tear open the paper sacks and spread them aside exposing the turkey. Leave the turkey in the oven for about 15 - 25 minutes more or until the color is to your liking. Remove the turkey and roasing pan from the oven. Turn the turkey over so it is on the rack breast side down. Leave it this way for about 25 - 30 minutes. It will finish cooking and the juices will fill the breast meat beautifully. After the resting time, place the turkey, breast side up, on a serving platter. Be sure to carve it when everyone is watching. It will be the most succulent, juicy turkey you have ever tasted or served, I promise! The breast meat which is typically dry as cardboard will be juicy and flavorful and perfect. The dark meat will be the same. You will wish you had cooked two turkeys this way. People will compliment you and ask you how you did that because they have never had nor cooked a turkey that tasted this perfect! When you tell people you cooked your turkey in a paper bag, they will look at you cross-eyed. But it's true and easy and perfect every time! I cannot take credit for this recipe (read where I got this recipe above) but once I discovered this method, I have practiced it ever since — and that is about 10 years now. top Dave's Chunky Hearty Vegetable Soup - [Makes: about a gallon.] After starting on the South Beach Diet®, I needed a way to taste vegetables a different way than raw. So, one day, I started working on a hearty soup that would be easy to make, full of nutrients, and have a full-bodied memorable taste. This is what I came up with. I should also say that the choice of vegetables is wide open. I chose vegetables that stand up to a simmer without turning to goosh and which are low in carbohydrates (read "sugar") so the result would be South Beach Diet® friendly. The lemon juice does a nice job of fooling your tastebuds too so you don't have to use salt — better for your heart. Ingredients: 2 quarts chicken broth, low-sodium 2 zucchini squash 2 crookneck squash 6 sprigs cauliflower 6 sprigs broccoli ½ cabbage ¼ red onion 1 bunch fresh cilantro 1 Tbsp fresh garlic, minced 1 jalapeno pepper ¼ cup lemon juice ½ Tbsp cardamom 1 ½ Tbsp Mrs. Dash® Original Blend seasoning mix (yellow cap) 2 Tbsp olive oil Procedure: In a high-walled stock pot, add chicken broth and put on medium heat. Chop cauliflower and broccoli into spoon size pieces and add to pot. As pot starts to simmer, keep heat low enough to maintain simmer. Stir every few minutes and keep covered. Wait about 7 - 8 minutes of simmering for the cauliflower and broccoli to soften a bit. While you're waiting, chop the zucchini, crookneck squash into spoon size pieces, not too thin or they will fall apart. Thinly slice the cabbage. Dice the onion. Finely chop the cilantro. Mince the jalapeno pepper. Check the cauliflower and broccoli for tenderness. Add zucchini and crookneck squash. Add cabbage, onion, cilantro, garlic and jalapeno. Add lemon juice, cardamom, Mrs. Dash® and olive oil. Fold ingredients together. Allow mixture to simmer a few minutes. Stop early. If you cook it too long, the soup will get mushy. Error on the side of uncooked. This recipe is so easy, anyone can make this in just about 30 minutes. And the taste is so good, it will surprise you. I'm not against adding shrimp, chicken, or even diced beef or ham to this soup. I haven't because of the South Beach Diet® restrictions but it could easily become a quick stew with very little effort. I served this soup (as written) to my family and employees and got rave reviews. It is most rewarding on a cold, rainy day when everyone is chilled and needs something hot and good-tasting. top Dave's Chocolate Smoothie Dessert - [Makes: approximately 16 oz.] Since starting my new way of eating (lifelong diet), I have tried to find things that are both diet compliant and tasty. This one is both. It's a bit gritty because of the ingredients but it's really tasty and like I said, it follows the low carb diet guidelines. One of the best things about this dessert is that it is easily changed to make it your favorite flavor. I like that. Ingredients: 3 Tbsp of part-skim ricotta cheese. Scoop some up with the tablespoon and don't worry about measuring too closely. 2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder 1.5 Tbsp Splenda® sweetener 1.5 Tbsp vanilla extract or your favorite flavoring that goes well with chocolate flavor (I like orange with chocolate!). 2 cups ice cubes Procedure: Add ricotta cheese, cocoa powder, sweetener, vanilla to a strong blender (I use my VitaMix). Add the ice cubes on top. Pulse the blender multiple times until smooth. If you've been on a restrictive diet or you cannot have sweets of any kind, this treat is a welcome pleasure you will enjoy. I'm surprised at how good this really is. The additional flavors are available from DaVinci's in the form of sugarless syrups. I especially like blending chocolate flavor (the cocoa powder) with orange flavoring (DaVinci's) to make a really tasty blend. top Dave's Smoked Chicken Pieces - [Makes: as many pieces as you smoke..] Smoking chicken is so easy and so pleasing to your guests, once you try it, you will find it a favorite and repeat it often. I must confess this recipe is a result of trial and error (not too many errors, thankfully) and is now legendary amongst our clients. I assume you have a smoker or a way to smoke barbeque the chicken. Ingredients: Chicken pieces. We like the drumsticks and boneless skinless thighs from Costco®. Lea & Perrins® worcestershire sauce, also available at Costco®. Montreal Steak® Seasoning, one of the McCormick® Grill Mates®. Be sure to get their STEAK seasoning, not their chicken seasoning. The steak seasoning is wonderful even though you're cooking chicken. Procedure: Start the day before you are going to serve. With the drumsticks simply lay them out on a cookie tray, the kind that has a lip on it so it will hold liquid (the aluminum ones from, yes, you guess it, Costco®, work perfectly). With the boneless skinless thighs open them up and lay them out on cookie trays, smooth side down. Pour orcestershire sauce over all chicken pieces until fully splashed with sauce. Season amply with Montreal Steak® Seasoning Cover the chicken with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. On the day you're going to serve, remove the chicken from the refrigerator and allow it to come up to room temperature. Prepare your smoker. Start the fire with hardwood charcoal if you have it. When your smoker is up to about 220F degrees and holding steady, you're ready to put the chicken on the grill. With the drumsticks, simply align them on the grill close together and remember, these pieces have large bones in them and will take longer to cook than the boneless skinless thighs. With the boneless skinless thighs, use tongs and roll the meat pieces back up in a ball the way they were packaged when you bought them. This will slow down the cooking process and allow the smoke to penetrate and flavor the meat nicely. Monitor your smoker and make sure the temperature doesn't go up or down very far or you run the risk of burning the meat or taking too long to cook it. When the meat just starts to look dry, you're getting close. I won't tell you when to pull the meat from the smoker but you might have to sample some from a variety of locations on the grill to be sure it's finished. When you do decide to pull the meat from the smoker, be sure to keep it warm (cover it) and serve as soon as you can afterward. I hope you made enough! It's sure to be the hit of your meal and you are likely to find yourself smoking chicken a LOT! Smoke barbequeing is a tinkerer's way of cooking. You don't set it and walk away. You mess with the fire, check the temperature, check the meat, baste it, adjust the choke on the fire, add hardwoods for flavor... the list goes on and on. If you like this kind of cooking, you're going to be hooked in no time. top Dave and Carly's Adaptive Quick and Easy Low-Carb, High-Fiber Chili - [Makes: enough to feed 6 to 10 people depending on how hungry everyone is..] I dubbed this recipe "Adaptive" because you can do so many different things with it and adapt to whatever you have in your refrigerator. My daughter, Carly, and I have been working on this recipe and adapting it to our South Beach® needs while trying to keep up the flavor and taste. We both find this recipe tasty and nutritious and, better still, we don't seem to get tired of it. Get creative. This recipe as written gives you the basis of where to start. Once you get going, you should try different (and interesting) ingredients that you like while keeping within the South Beach Diet® boundaries. Good luck and have fun! Ingredients: [last edited 08.17.2008] 2 #300 cans of pinto, white, kidney, or black beans, drained. If you have a pressure cooker, you can prepare dry beans quickly and easily and (best of all) very cheaply. I've placed a pressure cooker dry bean recipe just below this recipe. If you use it, the resulting cooked beans will be ready for you to use in this chili recipe in a very reasonable amount of time. 1.5 - 2 lb lean hamburger or ground turkey Optional: 1 lb bulk breakfast sausage or Italian seasoned sausage NOTE: if you use ground turkey, you can greatly enhance the flavor of your chili by adding some robust sausage to the meat. A little goes a long way so take it easy but try some good sausage and you'll be very pleased with the taste. 3 - 5 #300 cans diced tomatoes with green chilies (you may want to hold back on the number of cans here until you know how full your rice cooker is going to be with all the ingredients). 1 fresh jalapeno pepper, finely diced -- I have found dehydrated jalapeno flakes to be very good too 1 - 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth (again, consider your rice cooker's capacity when evaluating the quantity on this ingredient). 1 whole medium size white or yellow onion, finely chopped 1.5 tsp minced garlic 2 Tbsp powdered taco seasoning 2 Tbsp chili powder 1 Tbsp cumin 1 Tbsp Mrs. Dash salt-free seasoning 1/4 cup hickory barbeque sauce Procedure: Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add finely chopped onion and saute' until translucent. Add all of the meat and cook thoroughly, breaking up the meat as you go. Into the rice cooker, add diced tomatoes and canned beans. Set the rice cooker on the "Cook" setting and let it warm up as the meat finishes cooking. When the meat is finished cooking, drain the meat and onions and add to the rice cooker. Add all other ingredients and spices and toss all ingredients together. Close the rice cooker and wait for steam to appear. When steam starts coming from the rice cooker, wait about 25 minutes, then put rice cooker on lowest setting. Before serving, add the barbeque sauce and toss ingredients one more time to distribute flavors evenly. Serve hot (but this dish re-heats nicely in the microwave). I've got to take a new picture of our chili. In our latest version we've done away with the green beans so this picture is inaccurate. But you still get the idea. This dish is very filling. It tastes great and goes down good on a cold wintery day. We've tried turkey and chicken breast and a variety of beans can also be used. I've used fresh onion and dried onion; I recommend using whatever you have. Both are great. The rice cooker method will keep you in the safe zone while cooking and will keep the whole pot of chili warm during and after you serve. top Dave's Pressure Cooker Pinto Beans - [Makes: about 2.5 - 3 quarts of cooked beans.] Beans are good food. They are high in fiber and protein and very cheap to buy if you get them in their dry form rather than in cans. Carly and I love to make chili and we've used the canned beans for convenience and speed of preparation but dry beans are so cheap at Costco I just had to figure out a way to cook them quickly and efficiently so I could use them in my chili. The trick is a cooking device called a pressure cooker. If you have one and are familiar with using one, you're in business! If not, then I would suggest getting a 6-quart model from a discount store like Walmart or Target and start using it today! They're GREAT! The pressure cooker I use for cooking beans is a Fagor (brand) Duo (model) in the 6-quart size. Excellent little pot for doing a huge amount of cooking in a short amount of time! The below list of ingredients and procedure would prepare enough beans to make the above chili recipe quick and easy. Ingredients: 1 lb dry pinto beans (or dry red kidney, black, navy, cannellini, etc.) 1/2 tsp salt 1 Tbsp olive oil Procedure: Measure 1 lb of dry beans (by weight -- not by volume). Sort the beans separating the beans from debris and stones. Put the beans in the pressure cooker and add water to the water limit. Allow the beans to soak for at least 4 hours -- overnight is better. Drain and rinse the soaked beans. Discard the soak water. Put the beans back into the pressure cooker on top of the basket so the beans are not touching the bottom of the pressure cooker. Add water to the limit line. Add salt and olive oil, bring to a boil. When the pot begins to boil, lock the lid into place and allow the pressure to build until steam is steadily escaping. Lower the temperature but maintain pressure. Start timing NOW! Allow the beans to cook for 30 minutes. Use a timer. You won't be sorry. After 30 minutes has passed, turn off the heat and remove the pressure cooker from the heat source. Allow pressure to reduce per the instructions for your pressure cooker. When pressure is gone, open the pressure cooker. Your beans are cooked just right and ready to be added to your chili pot. If you like chili with beans and you cook it as often as we do, you will be glad you bought a pressure cooker and learned to use it! Not only does it save you money (dry beans are far cheaper than canned beans) but it is so easy and efficient. It's awesome! This recipe is a great starter for refried beans, ham and beans, bean soups and any other recipe requiring cooked beans. top  | Home | Grandchildren | Harry Plotter | Biodiesel | Sources|  | Recipes | Smoke Barbeque | Diet | Listeroid Diesel | Crash | Contact | ©1999 - 2008 Three Dead Flies, All rights reserved.