Christmas recipe serves: 4

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Calories per serving: 875

Suitable for freezing after step 3.

Christmas Recipe Ingredients:

• Sherry or balsamic vinegar, 15 ml (1 tbsp)
• Caster Sugar, 10 ml (2 tsp)
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil, 120 ml (8 tbsp)
• Cranberries, fresh or frozen 50 g (2 oz)
• Celery, 125 g (4 oz)
• Walnuts, toasted 50 g (2 oz)
• Turkey, roasted meat 450 g (1 lb)
• Garlic cloves, 2
• Olive oil, 15 ml (1 tbsp)
• Fennel seeds (optional), 10 ml (2 tsp)
• Oregano, dried 10 ml (2 tsp)
• Cranberry sauce, 30 ml (2 tbsp)
• Breadcrumbs, fresh 125 g (4 oz)
• Eggs, 2
• Parmesan cheese, freshly grated 50 g (2 oz)
• Oil
• Green salad

Christmas Recipe Instructions:

1. Chop the turkey, walnuts and celery into small pieces. Crush peeled garlic. Cook the oregano, fennel seeds, garlic and celery in oil for about five minutes. Then add the cranberry sauce. leave to cool.

2. Add salt and pepper to the vinegar and sugar, mix

   in the oil and cranberries. Heat to boiling, cook for 1 minute and leave to cool.

3. Combine salt and pepper, parmesan cheese, walnuts, eggs, breadcrumbs, celery mixture and turkey. Split into twelve golf-sized meatballs.

4. Deep-fat fry the meatballs until golden brown (about 4 minutes). Place them on kitchen towel paper to soak up the oil and serve onto green salad sprinkled with cranberry dressing from step 1.

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Osso Bucco

3 ½ to 4 lbs veal shanks ( I serve one shank per person. If the cost is high you can cook down the meat and separate it from the bone.)

¼ Cup all-purpose flour

2 Tbs olive oil

2 oz diced salt pork

¼ Cup butter, melted

½ lb diced and peeled onions

1 large clove garlic, mashed

1 tsp dried rosemary

1 tsp salt

1 tsp fresh ground pepper

2 bay leaves, remove before serving

¾ Cup dry white wine

2 Tbs finely chopped carrot

½ stalk celery minced

8 to 10 sprigs fresh parsley, chopped fine

1 Cup canned chopped tomatoes (I have used fresh tomatoes, but I find that the canned are constantly good in taste and the liquid is always welcomed in the sauce)

1 Tbs tomato paste

½ Cup warm water

Dredge the veal in flour and shake off any excess. Heat olive oil, salt pork and butter in a heavy-bottomed skillet. Add the onion and brown. When the onions are browned add the veal and garlic. Brown on all sides for about 8 to 10 minutes. Add, rosemary, salt and pepper. Stir and brown for about for

about 10 minutes longer. Add bay leaves, wine, carrot, celery, parsley, and tomatoes. Stir tomato paste with the warm water until well blended and then add that to the mixture. Stir and simmer covered for about 40 minutes. ( I tend to let this simmer longer on my stove. This serves two purposes, one makes the meat extremely tender and two fills the house with wonderful aromas.)

Serve over Ravioli ( I use fresh over sized store bought ravioli. I have made my own, but I find that the store bought is good quality and much simpler. If you would like a recipe for homemade ravioli please send a request to recipes@gourmayeats.com )

Shauna Hanus is a gourmet cook who specializes in creating gourmet recipes. She has extensive experience cooking with easy to find grocery items to create delightful gourmet meals. She is also the publisher of a no cost bi-monthly gourmet newsletter. Her newsletter is always fun and informational packed with tips and trivia you can use everyday. http://www.gourmayeats.com

Have you ever been out to eat at a chinese restaurant when someone at the next table orders sizzling rice soup. When the soup comes out there is a big demonstration of the pouring of the soup and toss in the rice cakes. You then here that familiar sizzle and everyone begins to eat. Now you can create this magic at home with your own homemade sizzling rice soup.

Sizzling Rice Soup

3 Cups Chicken Broth

4 Dried Shitake Mushrooms, soaked and sliced thin (1/2 cup or 1 large Portobello can be used instead of dried mushrooms)

½ Cup Chicken Breast, cooked and thinly sliced

¼ Cup Small Petite Shrimp

1 Green Onion, julianned into 1 inch strips

½ Cup Frozen Peas, thawed

1 Tbs Soy Sauce

1 Tbs Sugar

3 Tbs Cornstarch, mixed with ¼ Cup of water to make a paste

2 Tbs Rice Vinegar

2 1/2 Cups Sizzling Rice,* (rice crusts) these can be found in a Chinese food market.

Salt to taste

Bring the chicken broth and mushrooms to a boil, add the chicken, shrimp, green onion, and peas then

return to a gentle boil.

Add the soy sauce and sugar. Mix in the cornstarch paste and stir gently until slightly thickened. Stir in rice vinegar.

Serve the individual bowls of boiling soup (it must be boiling for the rice to sizzle). Toss in the rice crusts at the table.

*This soup can be served without the rice. It will not have the same flair but it will still be delicious.

Shauna Hanus is a gourmet cook who specializes in creating gourmet recipes. She has extensive experience cooking with easy to find grocery items to create delightful gourmet meals. She now has available the Recipe of the Month Club. This is a way for you to give the gift of gourmet to all those people who love to cook. With the Recipe of the Month Club you can give 3, 6 or 12 months of new and exciting gourmet recipes as a gift for Christmas, Hanukah or birthdays to all the cook-aholics in your life. Find out more at http://www.cookbookaddict.com

Note: This dish is simply out of this world. If you have pasta on hand, this fancy meal takes little time to prepare. Whip up a zesty green salad and dinner is done.

Carbs per serving 11.7 grams of carb. NUMBER OF SERVINGS: 6.

Ingredients:

4 cups pasta

½ cup broth or stock (see “stock and broth”)

1 cup heavy cream

2 egg yolks

freshly ground black pepper to taste

salt to taste (about ½ Teasp)

5 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese

¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 Tablesps butter (1/4 stick)

¼ cup bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 325ºF or 350ºF. Butter a medium-size ovenproof casserole dish or other baking dish.

Cut the pasta in short pieces and put the pieces in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.

Heat the broth and ½ cup cream in a small saucepan. In a small mixing bowl, whisk

the egg yolks until smooth. When the broth and cream begin to heat up, add Tablesp amounts to the egg yolks, beating the yolks while you do this. When you have added about 1/3 cup in this way, pour the rest of the liquid into the eggs. Add the remaining cream. Add salt and pepper to this sauce and stir it into the pasta. Add the cheeses to the pasta and stir again. Put the mixture in the casserole dish. Dot with the butter and bread crumbs. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes or until the top begins to brown (do not let the bread crumbs get too dark).

Mia LaCron is the founder of low-carb-diet-blog.info – http://www.low-carb-diet-blog.info – devoted to helping individuals eat a low carb diet.

What you need:

3-pound chicken

2 tablespoons ground coriander

2 teaspoons fennel

2 teaspoons cumin

0.5 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2.5 teaspoons salt

1 tablespoon raw rice

2 tablespoons desiccated, unsweetened coconut

2 whole cloves

3 cardamon pods

2 tablespoons raw cashews

4 tablespoons corn oil

0.5 teaspoon whole fenugreek seeds

1 stick of cinnamon

2 cloves garlic, splintered

5 tablespoons splintered shallots

2-inch fresh pandanus leaf

1 fresh green chili, chopped

1 cup peeled and chopped tomato

0.5 cup fresh coconut milk

What you should do with them:

Skinned the chicken and cut into serving pieces. Put them in a large bowl. Add the cumin, fennel, cayenne pepper, coriander and 1 teaspoon of the salt. Rub those spices all over the chicken and leave them for about 20 minutes.

Put the rice in a cast-iron frying pan, set over medium-high heat and stir well until it turns golden. Add the coconut and stir it until it turns golden.

Withdraw it and let it cool. Take this mixture with the cardamon and grind them with the spices. Empty into a bowl, continue mixing and slowly pour 0.5 cup

of water along the way. You have yourself a paste now. Put it aside for a while.

Put the corn oil into a lidded pan and set over medium-high heat.

When the oil is hot, add the pandanus leaf, chili, garlic, shallots, fenugreek seeds and cinnamon. Stir for about 3 minutes.

Add the chicken and brown lightly, don’t stop stirring. Put in the the remaining 1.5 teaspoons of salt, 2.5 cup of water and the tomato. Stir in the spice and nut paste. Wait until it boils, cover it, reduce the heat to low and cook gently for about 30 minutes.

Stir in the coconut milk and heat through.

Serve it for 4.

F. Aziz is the owner of all-about-Virgin-Coconut-Oil.com, a site that provides many valuable informations around Virgin Coconut Oil, its definitions, derivations, benefits and uses in the form of articles, reports, recommended sources, books, products and others. Visit all-about-Virgin-Coconut-Oil.com and see whether this miracle oil could help you improve your health.

Guacamole is a staple when it comes to condiments in Mexican cooking. It can be found with ingredients ranging from tomatoes to peppers and even mayonnaise. This simple guacamole recipe is a bit more traditional than the mayonnaise versions but it is a tasty addition to any Mexican meal.

By taking this simple and irresistible guacamole and placing it on top of crispy tortilla rounds you have an appetizer that is fit for the finest of gatherings or the simplest of family meals.

Try Mini Guacamole Tortilla Rounds as a stand alone snack or the beginning of a spicy Mexican meal.

Mini Guacamole Tortilla Rounds

2 Avocados, Very Ripe

1 Roma Tomato, finely chopped

1 Roma Tomato, finely chopped for garnish

2 Cloves Garlic, minced

1 Lime, juice of 1 lime

2 Tbs Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Corn Tortillas

Vegetable Oil for cooking

Peel and seed the avocados and place in a medium sized bowl.

Mash the avocado with a fork until as smooth as desired. Add in the tomatoes, garlic, lime and olive oil and stir to blend.

Cut each tortilla with a biscuit cutter so that it is 1 ½ – 2 inches round.

Heat the oil to 350°. Fry each tortilla round in the hot oil until golden brown. Remove from oil and drain on layered paper towels and allow to cool.

Spoon the guacamole onto each tortilla round and garnish with chopped Roma tomatoes.

Shauna Hanus is a gourmet cook who specializes in creating gourmet recipes and menus. She has extensive experience cooking with easy to find grocery items to create delightful gourmet meals. She is also the publisher of a no cost bi-monthly gourmet newsletter. Her newsletter is always fun and informational packed with tips and trivia you can use everyday. http://www.gourmayeats.com

With the holiday season just around the corner, cranberries will start to make their yearly appearance in Thanksgiving and other seasonal meals. Their tangy flavor and bright red color make them a favorite this time of year (it’s also when they’re most plentiful, as their peak season runs from October to December).

But flavor and color aside, there’s another reason to enjoy cranberries (and even make them part of your diet year-round)–they’re incredibly nutritious and great for your health.

Cranberries and Your Heart

Studies have found that cranberries reduce the risk of heart disease. Most recently, a study presented at the annual congress of the International Union of Physiological Sciences in March/April 2005 found that pigs with atherosclerosis (a primary causes of heart disease) that received a daily dose of cranberry powder had restored blood vessel health.

Other studies have also found that people who drink cranberry juice have higher levels of good (HDL) cholesterol and may have improved blood vessel function.

Antioxidant Powerhouses

Cranberries are a rich source of antioxidants, according to the Cranberry Institute, a trade association for cranberry growers. In a study funded by the Institute it was found that:

“Cranberries contained the most antioxidant phenols compared to 19 commonly eaten fruits. Cranberries are loaded with antioxidants and should be eaten more often,” said study author Joe Vinson, Ph.D., research chemist at the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania.

Other studies also rank cranberries as leaders in phenolic compound content. “These antioxidants may play a role in helping to prevent heart disease and certain cancers,” Vinson said.

Cranberries Fight Cancer

Certain compounds in cranberries have been found to be toxic to many cancer tumor cell lines, including:

• Lung cancer
• Cervical cancer
• Prostate cancer
• Breast cancer
• Leukemia

One study, for instance, published in the June 2004 Journal of Nutrition, found that whole cranberries inhibit prostate, skin, lung and brain cancer cells. Experts believe a compound in the whole cranberry (not just the juice) is responsible for this effect.

Unique “Anti-Adhering” Properties

Cranberries possess a unique ability to inhibit bacteria, including E. coli, from adhering to the urinary tract. This is why cranberry juice is often recommended to prevent urinary tract infections (UTIs). Cranberries also contain hippuric acid, which is antibacterial and helpful for warding off UTIs.

But cranberries’ anti-adhering properties are helpful for much more than your urinary tract. A study published in the October 2004 issue of the Journal of Science, Food and Agriculture found that an antiviral compound in cranberries called proanthocyanidin A-1 inhibits the herpes virus from attaching to and penetrating the genitals.

Likewise, a compound in cranberries is known to keep Helicobacter pylori, the bacteria that causes most gastric ulcers, from adhering to the cells of the stomach lining.

Cranberries and Your Teeth

A study published

in Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition in 2002 found that compounds in cranberry juice are great for your oral health. They help to dissolve aggregates formed by many oral bacteria while decreasing the level of Streptococus mutans, the major cause of tooth decay.

Tasty Cranberry Recipes to Try This Season

The best part about all of this is that cranberries are not, like some health foods, hard to swallow. In fact, they add a unique, tart flavor to all kinds of dishes, including these three recipes for everyone’s holiday favorite: cranberry sauce. Enjoy!

Traditional Cranberry Sauce (No Sugar Added!)

Ingredients:

1 12oz bag of fresh or frozen cranberries

1 cup fresh orange juice

1 tsp minced fresh ginger

1 tsp minced orange zest

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup crushed pineapple

1/2 cup honey

Directions:

• Bring orange juice, ginger, zest and cinnamon to a boil on high heat in a medium saucepan.
• Rinse cranberries and add once liquid is boiling. Reduce heat to medium and cook uncovered for about 10 minutes.
• Add crushed pineapple and honey. Remove from heat and cool.

Recipe from The World’s Healthiest Foods

Spicy Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups water

1 orange (including juice and finely chopped rind)

2 cups sugar

1 piece stick cinnamon

4 cups fresh or frozen cranberries

Directions:

• Cook first 4 ingredients together for 5 minutes.
• Add cranberries. Cook until the berries stop popping.
• Cool without stirring.

Recipe from The Cranberry Lady

Cranberry Chutney

Ingredients:

2 cups chopped Braeburn apple

2 cups whole cranberries

1/4 cup chopped onion

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup white vinegar

1/2 tsp. chopped garlic

1 medium red pepper chopped

1 Tbsp grated ginger root (or 1 tsp ground ginger)

Directions:

• Combine all in a non-aluminum kettle.
• Simmer until all fruits and vegetables are tender, about 20-30 minutes.
• Stir often to prevent scorching.

Recipe from the Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association