Happy Friday!

Welcome to the weekend ,almost, again! I hope everyones week was fun and productive. I would really like to thank everybody once again for reading my blog. My readership is not huge by any means, but it seems to be growing slowly. One way to assure you remember to read my blog daily, is to sign up for an email subscription. There is a short form on the right hand column where you can do this. That is all that the subscripyion sign up form is for. You will not get any spam or junk mail by signing up for an email subscription. It is strictly an automated subscription service that only sends out my blog by email.
Anyway, have a good day!
Live , love, laugh!
Kent

Quick "Cheesecake"

Schmear ricotta cheese and your favorite jam on graham crackers for an instant "cheesecake."


Ingredients


4 whole-wheat graham crackers

4 tablespoons part-skim ricotta cheese

8 teaspoons jamPreparation


1.Spread each graham cracker with 1 tablespoon part-skim ricotta cheese and 2 teaspoons jam.

Nutrition

Per serving: 239 calories; 6 g fat (2 g sat, 1 g mono); 10 mg cholesterol; 42 g carbohydrates; 7 g protein; 2 g fiber; 259 mg sodium; 39 mg potassium.



3 Carbohydrate Serving

A classic reinvented: currant scones

Scones are a smart way to celebrate a quiet weekend morning. Nothing more than gussied-up biscuits, scones are easy to make, and a plate of them offers the perfect excuse to sit, chat and relax.




Guests are sure to be touched that you went to the trouble to bake a batch from scratch, but they may weep with joy when you let it slip that these mini currant scones contain less butter and substitute fat-free half-and-half for heavy whipping cream. For comparison's sake, the classic cream scones in "The Joy of Cooking" call for 8 tablespoons of butter, an amount that we whittle down to 3 tablespoons. And using fat-free half-and-half saves 40 calories and 5 grams of fat per tablespoon.



To resist overeating, modern wisdom says to keep portion sizes petite. We doubt anyone will notice you used a 2-inch biscuit cutter rather than the standard 2 1/2 -inch cutter.



And the end results?



A tender, flaky scone, of course.



Tips: Look for currants in the dried fruit aisle of your supermarket. Use remaining currants in place of raisins or dried fruit in other baked goods.



Mini currant scones



Prep: 25 minutes

Cook: 10 minutes

Makes: 16 scones



Note: Look for parchment paper in the baking aisle. Pastry blenders and silicone pastry brushes are available in specialty stores.



Ingredients:

2 cups flour

¼ cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powde

¼ teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces

½ cup currants

¾ cup fat-free half-and-half

1 egg white, slightly beaten



1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Combine flour, 3 tablespoons of the sugar, baking powder and salt in medium bowl. Cut butter into flour mixture until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add currants; toss gently. Add half-and-half, stirring just until moistened. Mixture will appear slightly crumbly. Use hands to form a solid ball of dough; knead 4 or 5 times on a floured surface.



2. Roll dough to 1/2-inch thick. Cut scones with a 2-inch round cutter; place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush egg white over tops . Sprinkle lightly with remaining 1 tablespoon of the sugar. Bake until golden, 10 to 12 minutes.



Nutrition information

Per scone: 106 calories, 19% of calories from fat, 2 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 6 mg cholesterol, 20 g carbohydrates, 2 g protein, 198 mg sodium, 1 g fiber.

Baby Bok Choy with Yellow Bell Peppers

Baby Bok Choy with Yellow Bell Peppers Recipe


For an added touch you can include some pine nuts in step one.

Ingredients

1 Tbsp grapeseed oil or canola oil

1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil

2 large yellow bell peppers, stem and seed pod removed and discarded, sliced (about 2 cups sliced)

4 green onions, chopped, including green parts that are not dried out

1 lb baby bok choy, bottom root ball cut off and discarded, rinsed thoroughly, torn into smaller pieces

Method

1 Heat a tablespoon each of grapeseed (or canola) oil and sesame oil in a large sauté pan on high heat. Add the chopped yellow peppers and green onion, and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. (Keep a watch so that the onions don't burn.)

2 Lower the heat and add the bok choy. Stir to coat with the oil in the pan. Cook only until the bok choy has wilted. The thicker, whiter ends of the baby bok choy should still be somewhat crunchy.



Serve immediately. Serves 4-6 as a side.