Kale Chips from Kay Holcombe

After bicycling to the Farmers Market for fresh Kale, Kay donned her League apron to create these delicious, healthy Kale Chips.

One bunch organic kale
1 tablespoon olive oil or olive oil spray
Sea salt to taste

Rinse and pat dry kale leaves.
Remove leafy part from stem and rip into chip size pieces.
If using olive oil; put all the leaves into a bag, drizzle the olive oil into the bag, add seasonings and shake.
Arrange on cookie sheet. Or, if using olive oil spray: simply arrange kale on cookie sheet, lightly spray all the chips and season with salt.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
Watch carefully that they do not burn. As soon as the edges turn brown, they are done and ready to enjoy!

Lemon Merinque Pie at Desert Botanical Gardens Cooking class

Leslie Christiansen will conduct another cooking class July 15 at Desert Botanical Gardens. This time she will present this luscious Lemon Merinque Pie. The best part of her classes is the wonderful helpful hints she has for preparation and creating healthy alternatives. Cooking is a passion for Leslie and she conveys how important a legacy it can create with families.

Sign up at http://www.dbg.org/shop/courses/summer-pies-7-15-12
or Phone 480-481-8188.

Leslie's Facebook Page
Private Cooking Classes and
Custom Culinary Parties

Tastes & Treasures cookbook has a different pie called Lemon Rub Pie recipe on page 178. We like both recipes.

Lemon Rub Pie

Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
5 eggs
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
1 unbaked (9-inch) pie shell

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cream the sugar and butter in a bowl of a stand mixer. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the lemon juice, flour and lemon zest and mix until combined.
Spoon the lemon filling into the pie shell and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the top is brown and the filling is set. Cool on a wire rack.

Serves 8

Red White and Blue

Beautiful presentation. Who can guess the ingredients?

Neighborhood 4th of July Parade

This year's neighborhood parade was all Red, White and Blue. Complete with Pledge of Allegiance, singing of the National Anthem, hot dogs, watermelon, cookies, balloons, streamers and prizes, it was very patriotic. The Phoenix Fire Dept had 3 trucks but the most popular was the one with the cooling spray. The Historical League was a sponsor donating Tastes & Treasures cookbook and Centennial apron, and representing the AHS Museum.

Red, White and Blue Trifle

Celebrate the Fourth of July with this layered dessert. It is both beautiful and delicious -- just right for that cookout. Plus you can use your elegant trifle dish.

Summer Trifle, page 154 in Tastes & Treasures, is also delicious with the addition of blackberries and orange juice. A few more calories and it is made from scratch - well worth it.

Red, White & Blueberry Trifle

Ingredients:
One 8-oz. container Cool Whip Free (thawed)
1 sugar-free vanilla pudding snack with 60 calories or less (like the kind by Jell-O)
Half of a 13-oz. angel food cake, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 5 cups cubed)
2 cups chopped strawberries
2 cups blueberries
2 cups raspberries

Directions:
In a medium-large bowl, thoroughly fold pudding into Cool Whip.

In a large glass bowl (or trifle dish, if you've got one), evenly layer half of each ingredient: cubed angel food cake, Cool Whip mixture, strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries.

Repeat layering with remaining ingredients. Serve immediately or chill.

MAKES 8 SERVINGS
Thanks to Hungry Girl for the statistics.
Serving Size: 1/8th of trifle (about 1 cup)
Calories: 170
Fat: 1.5g
Sodium: 133mg
Carbs: 38g
Fiber: 3.5g
Sugars: 20.5g
Protein: 2g

Patriotic Stuffed Strawberries

Very impressive recipe for that very special dinner. Add a small flag and you have a perfect Fourth of July dessert.

Stuffed Strawberries


Ingredients:

1/2 tbsp. Jell-O Sugar
Free Fat Free Vanilla Instant pudding mix


1/2 tbsp. Splenda No Calorie Sweetener (granulated) or 1/2 tbsp. sugar
1 drop vanilla extract


1/4 cup Cool Whip Free (thawed)


2 tbsp. fat-free cream cheese, room temperature

6 extra-large strawberries

2 tsp. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips



Directions:
In a medium bowl, combine pudding mix, sweetener, vanilla extract, and 1 tbsp. cold water. Stir vigorously until smooth and slightly thickened. Stir in Cool Whip and cream cheese until smooth. 

Cover and refrigerate until chilled, about 10 minutes.



Slice the stem ends off the strawberries, about 1/2 inch, revealing an opening in each berry. Use a narrow spoon to remove about half of the flesh inside each berry, allowing room for filling.



Spoon pudding mixture into a bottom corner of a plastic bag; snip off the tip of that corner to create a small hole, and pipe the mixture through the hole into the strawberries.



Press chocolate chips into the exposed filling. Serve and enjoy!



MAKES 1 SERVING

Thanks to Hungry Girl for the statistics.
Entire recipe: 173 calories, 4g fat, 309mg sodium, 30g carbs, 3.5g fiber, 16.5g sugars, 5.5g protein.
Granulated white sugar in place of Splenda, this recipe is 194 calories, 35.5g carbs, and 22.5g sugars.

Grilled Veggie Wraps

Vegetarians can enjoy delicious food on the grill.

Grilled Veggie Wraps

Ingredients:
2 Low Carb High Fiber Large Tortillas
Two 1/2-inch-thick peeled eggplant slices (cut lengthwise)
1 large portabello mushroom cap
1 red bell pepper, halved, seeds removed
1 small zucchini, ends removed, cut lengthwise into 4 slices
3 tbsp. plain fat-free yogurt
1 tbsp. finely chopped fresh basil
1/2 tsp. crushed garlic
2 dashes salt
2 dashes black pepper

Directions:
Spray grill well with nonstick spray, and bring to medium-high heat.

Grill all the veggies for 5 minutes with the grill cover down. Then carefully flip with long barbecue tongs.

Grill veggies for about 5 minutes longer with the grill cover down, until slightly soft and blackened. Remove from grill and allow to cool slightly.

Meanwhile, in a small dish, combine yogurt, basil, and garlic, and mix well. Set aside.

Once veggies are cool enough to handle, cut mushroom cap and pepper halves into slices. Then warm tortillas slightly in the microwave (or carefully and quickly on the grill).

Spread half of the yogurt mixture onto each tortilla. Place a slice of eggplant down the center of each tortilla, and place a slice of zucchini on either side. Sprinkle with salt and black pepper.

Evenly distribute mushroom and pepper slices between the two tortillas, laying them in the same direction as the other veggie slices. Roll each tortilla up like a burrito.

Slice each wrap in half (giving you four halves total).

MAKES 2 SERVINGS

Thanks to Hungry Girl for statistics PER SERVING (two halves): 145 calories, 3.5g fat, 483mg sodium, 31g carbs, 16.5g fiber, 8g sugars, 12g protein