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Title: Turkey & Wheat Germ Meatloaf
Ingredients
1lb ground turkey
1 chicken cube
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup wheat germ
3 - egg whites
1 tbsp garlic powder w/ parsley
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
0 - Pam cooking spray
1/3 cup ketchup
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add bouillon cube to boiling water. Mix all ingredients together, except ketchup, in a large bowl. Lightly spray loaf pan with cooking spray and place in pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove from oven, top with ketchup and place back in oven for 15 minutes. Cool 5 minutes, then serve.
Number of Servings: 4
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Title: Chocolate Marble Pound Cake
Ingredients
0 - Vegetable oil cooking spray
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter, softened, plus 3 tablespoons melted
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, preferably Dutch process
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
2 - large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup heavy cream or milk
0 - Confectioners' sugar, for dusting
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Spray an 8-by-4-inch loaf pan with vegetable oil cooking spray and line it with parchment paper. Spray the paper.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder and salt. In another medium bowl, combine the melted butter with the cocoa until smooth.
3. In a food processor, combine the softened butter with the granulated sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla and process until smooth. Add the dry ingredients and pulse just until combined. Add the cream and process until smooth. Transfer 1 cup of the batter to the bowl with the cocoa and stir until smooth.
4. Spoon half of the remaining batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface. Spread the chocolate batter in the pan, then cover with the remaining plain batter. Using a table knife, cut 5 swirls in the batter. Bake the pound cake for 25 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 325° and bake for 25 minutes more. Cover loosely with foil and bake for 15 to 20 minutes longer, or until the cake is lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs attached. Let the pound cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then unmold and let cool completely on a wire rack. Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.
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Title: Lemon Ginger Cookies
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar
1 - egg
3 tablespoons golden syrup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
zest of two lemons
demerara sugar (raw cane sugar) for sprinkling
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Line 2 cookie sheets with a silipat or parchment paper. Sprinkle a place with demerara sugar and set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the egg, lemon juice, zest and golden syrup and mix well. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, ginger, baking powder and salt. Slowly add it to the butter and sugar mixture. Mix to thoroughly combine. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and roll the balls in the demerara sugar. Place cookies 2 inches apart onto the cookie sheets. Flatten each cookie slightly with the heel of your hand or a spatula. Bake 8-12 minutes or until set and the bottoms are golden.
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Mmm. I made these today, and they were way, way good. I didn't feel like skinning, toasting, and chopping hazelnuts, so I dusted them with Ghirardelli's Chocolate Hazelnut cocoa powder instead. The recipe isn't difficult, but it is time-consuming. Make them when you're willing to spend about 2 1/2 hours doing little else. The only breaks you'll get are when the truffles are in the refrigerator, and you only have to stir them every 15 minutes.
Really, though, worth the time.
I have fallen victim to the latest in marketing ploys: soda fridge packs. Used to be that I would just pick up the odd can or bottle at the grocer, but once I spotted Diet Dr. Pepper and got serious with Judy, who loves Diet Coke, I started buying these 12-can packs. Now I'm making special trips to CVS to pick them up so I have my soda pick-me-up in the morning. And it's all a game by the soda companies to get you to buy more and drink more, a trap that I've willingly fallen into.
I have recently tried both Diet Pepsi with lime and Diet Coke with lime. They're both excellent. They barely have that diety aftertaste. The Pepsi really doesn't have an aftertaste at all. Tastes pretty sweet.
I like cottage cheese. With a little fruit, it's delish. Anyone got a problem with that?
You know those little fruit cups? Don't open them when they're facing you. I do and boom! It explodes and sprays juice all over my pants.
Second tip - don't wear brown shoes with navy pants. I was pointing out what happened to my pants to a co-worker, and she fixated on the shoe-pants mismatch, completing missing the fact that my pants were saturated.
This story about a man who swallowed 100 pork buns in 12 minutes reminds me of two things. First, when I went out to dinner last night with Jennifer, I wolfed down my dish while she took a remarkably long time to eat hers. At least an hour, possibly more, and she didn't even finish it. I was tempted to comment that she was eating slowly, but didn't think that would go over too well. "Tell me, Jon," I could hear her say, "do you have a problem sitting here in the restaurant with me?" The second thing that comes to mind is that they actually televise speed eating contests on ESPN. I actually watched a few minutes of the Alka Seltzer - how fitting, right? - U.S. Championship recently. Not because the contest itself interested me but because the idea that it was actually televised with play-by-play and color commentary astounded me. The announcers were commenting on the different styles of the two contestants and how they were progressing. Eating as a spectator sport. Guess ESPN has to do something with the available air time on its many channels.
That's the advice printed on a Snapple cap. I didn't heed the advice last night only to discover halfway through the bottle that the bottle was cracked. Gulp! Fortunately, I am fine and seem to have ingested no glass accidentally. Next time I pay attention.
Drink can of Pepsi to perk up. Works great. For an hour. When I crash. Memo to self: remember this cause and effect in the future.
The claim: Real cola taste. Zero calories.
The reality: Actually, it's closer than any diet soda has ever come. It doesn't taste exactly like real Coke, but it's pretty damn good. None of the nasty diet aftertaste of Diet Coke (even Diet Coke with Splenda still tastes pretty diet-y).
P.S., I haven't forgotten about my top 100 movie quotes. I added another one this afternoon, and I intend to finish the remaining 35 off over the weekend.