Fairly healthy and great for the morning rush.  Filling and a great excuse to eat chocolate early on in the day. 

3/4 Cup Sugar

1/4 Cup Canola Oil

2 Over-Ripe Bananas

1/2 Cup Applesauce

2 Eggs

1 Tablespoon Milk

2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract

1 1/4 Cups Unbleached Flour

1/2 Cup Whole Wheat Flour

1 Teaspoon Baking Soda

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

3/4 Cup Chocolate Chips (or Chopped Nuts)

Oil or Cooking Spray to Grease Muffin Pans (or Use Those Nifty Paper Cupcake Liners)

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Lightly oil or spray the muffin pan(s)
2. In a mixer bowl, combine sugar, oil, bananas, applesauce, eggs, milk and vanilla, and beat until blended.
3. In another bowl, combine flours, baking soda and salt.  Gradually add this and the chocolate chips (or nuts) to the banana mixture, stirring until combined.  Do not overmix.
4. Spoon batter into the muffin pans, filling all the way to the top.  Bake for about 30 minutes, until the muffins are golden and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Cool and enjoy!

CHICKEN PARMESAN

Super Yummy!

Prep: 15 min; Cook: 20 min – Easy
Serves 4 – 6

• 2 large whole boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 – 1 1/2 pounds total), **OR** use Perdue Fit & Easy Thin Sliced Chicken Breasts (to avoid the slicing/flattening of regular chicken breasts.  WAY FASTER!)
• 2 cups dry bread crumbs (can be seasoned with grated Parmesan cheese, if desired) – you can also use plain flour
• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, or cooking oil of your choice
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 cups Italian tomato sauce like plain tomato sauce, or tomato sauce with oregano (or use your favorite prepared sauce)
• 1/2 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced or grated
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Skillet, oven-proof dish; oven with broiler

TRIM and carefully slice the chicken breasts in half. (skip if you’re using the thin sliced Perdue chicken).

OPTIONAL, for thinner cutlets: with the flat side of a cleaver or a heavy skillet (you can also use a roller or even a wine bottle), pound or roll the chicken breasts between two sheets of plastic wrap to the desired thickness (usually about 1/4″).

SPREAD the bread crumbs on a flat plate.

PREHEAT oven to 400 degrees F.

SET the tomato sauce on low heat to warm (it will spread more easily).

THOROUGLY coat cutlets with bread crumbs (press down firmly while coating with bread crumbs).ON medium-high heat, melt the butter with the olive oil. Sautee the breaded cutlets until they are deep golden brown on both sides. Remove to paper towel spread over old newspaper to drain.

PLACE 1/2 cup of the warm tomato sauce in the bottom of a baking dish large enough to hold the cutlets in one layer. Add the cooked cutlets to the baking dish; cover with the rest of the tomato sauce of the warm tomato sauce and the sliced/grated mozzarella.COOK the chicken parmesan in the oven for ten minutes. If the cheese has not melted/browned you can slip it under the broiler for a minute or so – keep an eye on it so the cheese does not burn.

VARIATION: For a thicker ‘crust’ bread the cutlets by dipping them first in flour, then in a beaten, raw egg before the breadcrumbs and sauteeing, which gives a thicker crust. You will want to move each one to the hot skillet when breaded so they don’t get soggy.

SERVE with grated Parmesan cheese. Goes great with a side of pasta and a green salad and or French/Italian bread, or garlic bread.   

**This is one of those “eyeball” recipes…you sort of eyeball the measurements.  Measurements are approximate, but the recipe is pretty forgiving.** 

-1/2 lb Ground Turkey

-1 stack saltines, crushed

-1 egg

-salt and pepper to taste

-chopped onion (1/4 cup or less)

-1 cup mozzerella cheese, shredded*

-1/2 Roma tomato, sliced into 1/4 inch slices*

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix ground turkey, crushed saltines, egg, salt & pepper together.  Roll out on a sheet of greased tin foil.  Work into a rectangle, roughly 13″ x 10″ (I’m guessing here!).  Layer cheese, onion, and tomato in a 3-4 inches wide strip on the middle of the meat.  Fold remaining edges of meat over the layers of filling to form a roll.  Pinch ends and smooth out seams. 

Bake on a greased baking sheet for 30 minutes or until brown.

*You can stuff this with just about anything you like.  This is normally what we use.

Thanks Roxy!

-4 Boneless Chicken Breast Halves
-1 Italian Salad Dressing Mix envelope
-1/3 c. of water
-8 oz. cream cheese
-1 can cream of chicken soup
-1 (4 oz) can of mushrooms

Place chicken in the slow cooker. 
Combine salad dressing mix with water and pour over chicken.  Cover and cook for 3 hours.
After 3 hours: wisk together cream cheese and soup until well blended.  Stir in mushrooms.
Pour cream cheese mixture over chicken and cook for another 2 hours.

Serve over rice or egg noodles.  Excellent on reheat!  (I think it’s better on reheat than on the first night).

-3/4 cup chopped onion
-5 cloves garlic, minced
-1/4 c. olive oil
-2 (28 oz) cans whole peeled tomatoes
-2 tsp salt
-1 tsp white sugar
-1 bay leaf
-1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
-3/4 tsp dried basil
-1/2 tsp ground black pepper
-1 lb ground beef or turkey (optional)

In large saucepan over medium heat, saute onion & garlic in olive oil until onions are translucent.  Stir in tomatoes, salt, sugar, and bay leaf.  Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 90 minutes.  Stir in tomate paste, basil, ground pepper and cooked ground meat (if desired), simmer 30 mins more.  Serve.

Serves 6

-8 oz. ground beef (or ground turkey)
-1 jar spaghetti sauce (usually Ragu)
-6 lasagna noodles, UNcooked
-8 oz. cottage cheese
-2 cups mozzerella cheese


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In an 11″ x 7″ lasagna dish, spread a thin layer of sauce. Place two noodles on top of sauce, then layer ground beef, cottage cheese, mozzerella cheese, and sauce. Repeat layers, until ingredients are used up. (I usually reverse the sauce and mozzerella cheese on the last layer).

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 1 hour or until done. Works really well as leftovers (even if it’s a little runny on the first night).

Serves 6

-2.5 pound roast
-2 carrots, cut up
-2 potatoes, cut up
-6 oz. mushrooms, sliced
-1 (10.75 oz.) can cream of mushroom soup
-1 can beef broth
-1 (1 oz) package of dry onion soup mix
-3 cloves of garlic minced
-2 tablespoons of olive oilIn a large pan, sear roast on both sides with the olive oil — which will give it a nice brown color on the outside. (No need to cook through.) Place the roast in the bottom of the slow cooker. Add veggies. Pour the soup mix, mushroom soup, and beef broth over the top. Scatter the minc ed garlic over the roast and then cook on low for eight to nine hours (or high for four to five hours).

6 Generous Servings

-Approx 1 pound deboned, cooked and diced chicken
-16 oz. package mixed veggies, frozen
-1 can cream of chicken soup (mixed with 3 tablespoons mayonnaise)
-8 oz. sliced cheese (monterey jack or chedder)
-10-12 crackers (Keebler’s Club or Ritz), crushed
-3-4 tablespoons margarine, melted


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spread frozen veggies in bottom of an 8″ square or round casserole dish. Layer chicken (season with salt and pepper if desired) on top of veggies. Layer soup mixture on top of chicken. Layer cheese slices on top of soup mixture. Mix crushed crackers with the melted margarine and spread on top of cheese. Bake for 40 minutes.

Serves 6 to 8 as a starter course

-1 can (28 oz.) diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano, with their liquid, chilled.
-1 large cucumber, peeled and cut into large pieces
-2 tablespoons olive oil
-1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Place the tomatoes and their liquid and the cucumber, olive oil, and vinegar in a food processor. Process in short pulses until the mixture is souplike in consistency, smooth with a few lumps…15-20 seconds. Or puree the ingredients in batches in a blender, and serve.

-1 whole chicken (approx. 3 pounds)
-Salt & pepper (or any other seasoning of your choice)

Wash chicken inside and out (removing the ooky stuff inside). Sprinkle seasoning of your choice on the chicken. Next, put three balls of aluminum foil in the bottom of the slow cooker (this creates a rack so the chicken doesn’t soak in its own juices). Place the chicken in, breast side down, and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

I haven’t tried this one before, but it sounds good and easy.