The week goes so fast that it seems I have just written one column and it is time to prepare another.
This week I have been going through recipe books, making shopping lists, cleaning out the freezer and all those fun things I do to prepare for winter.
Some of my newly frozen items are tomatoes, green peppers, cantelope and other produce people have given us. We so enjoy all that during the winter months.
I like to make out menus by the week when fall comes. I try to do it in the summer but we run so much I cannot depend on it working out. You ought to try it for a week or two. I think you will do it often.
Just sit down with your recipes and pick out items to prepare. I plan breakfast (which we do not have many big ones) and make sure I have oats and cereal stocked up. Lunch is usually our big meal so I plan the meal and make grocery lists and then pick light meals for the evening.
It works out great and saves a lot of money on the grocery bill. One good meatloaf for example makes a great meal. I prepare a big one and then cut it into thirds. One is our meal, one is frozen for another time and the third portion is chopped up and used in a day or two for the meal in my spaghetti sauce.
This week I am still on a cranberry kick so we have had several meals and desserts with the healthy fruit. This afternoon I made an Apple/Cranberry Crisp.
You must try it as it is both delicious. I substituted Splenda, Smart Balance and it was absolutely wonderful.
APPLE /CRANBERRY CRISP
3 cups unpeeled apples, chopped
2 cups cranberries
1 cup Splenda for baking
1/2 cup Smart Balance margarine
1 1/2 cup oatmeal (I used old fashioned)
1/2 cup Splenda brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup chopped pecans
Combine apples, cranberries and sugar in 8-inch baking dish; mix thoroughly. Set aside. Combine remaining ingredients until crumbly; spread evening over fruit layer. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour or until fruit is fork-tender. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream. I used fat-free whipped topping.
The cranberries are extremely healthy, apples are great, the sugar was replaced with Splenda, butter with Smart Balance. The oats are also a healthy addition to this tasty dessert. The change from whipping cream to whipped topping also reduces fat, carbs and cholesterol.
For a tasty, quick snack, open a tube of crescent rolls, separate dough into triangles, put 1/4 cup of cranberry sauce on each triangle and fold dough over the sauce. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve warm.
Soon we will start with some of the soups, stews and homemade bread recipes that make the house smell great in winter and add a little extra heat when the winter winds howl.
See you next week.
