Recipe: from NYTimes
Yield: 8 to 10 Servings
Time: Total 1 hour
Ingredients:
1 stick (4 ounces) soft unsalted butter
3/4 cup pecan halves
2 large tart apples, like Fuji, peeled, cored and sliced
1/2 cup flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Butter-pecan ice cream, for serving.

1. Use a little butter to grease a 10-inch glass pie plate. Arrange 1/4 cup pecan halves in a pattern in pie plate. Arrange apple slices over and around pecans, in a single layer in a pattern. Scatter any extra slices randomly on top.

2. Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, finely grind remaining pecan halves. Mix with flour, baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Set aside.

3. Whisk 1 cup sugar and remaining salt together in a skillet and mix with 1/3 cup water. Cook over medium-high heat, without stirring, until..Read More at NYTimes

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(Recipe and Photo:nytimes.com)

Recipe: by Ruth Cousineau
Yield: 8 Servings
Time: Active time:15 min | Start to finish:2 hr (includes cooling)
Ingredients:
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
* Scant 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
* 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
* 1 large egg
* 1/2 cup mild molasses (not robust or blackstrap)
* 3/4 cup well-shaken buttermilk
* 1/2 cup hot water

Accompaniment: lightly sweetened whipped cream

Preheat oven to 350ºF with rack in middle. Butter a 9-inch square baking pan. Read more at Gourmet.com

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(Photo:gourmet.com)

Recipe: by Gourmet.com
Yield: Servings 4
Time:
Active time:1 hr
Start to finish:1 day
Ingredients:

For tomato water
* 2 1/2 lb tomatoes, coarsely chopped
* 1/2 cup packed basil leaves
* 1 garlic clove

For tomato vinaigrette and salad
* 1 1/2 cups dry white wine (preferably Chardonnay)
* 3/4 cup sliced shallot (4 oz)
* 3 parsley sprigs
* 1 thyme sprig
* 1/2 Turkish or 1/4 California bay leaf
* 1 1/2 teaspoons black peppercorns
* 1/4 cup packed basil leaves plus 2 tablespoons thinly sliced basil leaves (preferably opal basil)
* Pinch of saffron threads
* 1 teaspoon Champagne vinegar, or to taste
* 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 medium heirloom tomato, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (1 cup)
* 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt, or to taste
* 2/3 lb arugula (2 bunches), coarse stems discarded

For halibut
* 4 (6-oz) pieces skinless halibut fillet (1 to 1 1/2 inches thick)
* 3 tablespoons olive oil plus additional for brushing
* 1/4 cup coarsely chopped basil (preferably opal basil)

Equipment: a flour-sack cloth or several layers of cheesecloth (18-inch squares)

Make tomato water:
Line a colander with damp flour-sack cloth and set over a large bowl or deep pot. Purée tomatoes, basil, and garlic in a blender (in batches if necessary) until smooth and liquefied. Transfer to colander, then gather cloth to form a sack and tie together using a long piece of string. Suspend sack from a knob or cupboard handle, using string, at least 4 inches from bottom of bowl. Let tomato water drip into bowl until you have at least 2 cups, about 24 hours. Reserve solids to add to a tomato sauce.

Make vinaigrette:
Boil wine, shallot, parsley, thyme, bay leaf, peppercorns, and basil leaves (1/4 cup) in a heavy medium saucepan until liquid is reduced to about 1/4 cup, about 15 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing on and then discarding solids. Read more on Gourmet.com

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(Photo:gourmet.com)

Recipe: by Lillian Chou
Yield: 8 Servings
Time: Total 7 hours
Ingredients:
CRUST:
1 graham cracker crumb crust, baked and cooled completely

CHOCOLATE CREAM FILLING:
7 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not more than 70% cacao; not unsweetened), finely chopped
1 cup heavy cream
1 large egg, at room temperature for 30 mins

MARSHMALLOW TOPPING:
1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin (from a 1/4-oz package)
1/2 cup cold water
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Vegetable oil for greasing

Special equipment: a candy thermometer

For chocolate cream filling:
1. Make graham cracker crumb crust and reserve.

2. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350ºF. Put chocolate in a large bowl. Bring cream just to a boil in a 1- to 1 1/2-quart heavy saucepan, then pour hot cream over chocolate. Let stand 1 minute, then gently whisk until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Gently whisk in egg and a pinch of salt until combined and pour into graham cracker crumb crust (crust will be about half full).

3. Cover edge of pie with a pie shield or foil and bake until filling is softly set and trembles slightly in center when gently shaken, about 25 minutes. Cool pie to room temperature on a rack (filling will firm as it cools), about 1 hour.

Make marshmallow topping:
1. Sprinkle gelatin over 1/4 cup cold water in a large deep heatproof bowl and let stand until softened, about 1 minute. Read more at Gourmet.com

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(Photo:gourmet.com)

Everything cooks in just one large skillet

2 servings

* PREP: 25 minutes
* TOTAL: 25 minutes

Recipe by the Bon Apetit Test Kitchen
February 2010
Ingredients

* 2 9-ounce bags spinach leaves
* 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
* 2 5-ounce salmon fillets with skin
* 1/3 cup chopped shallot (1 very large)
* 1/3 cup halved pitted Kalamata olives
* 1/3 cup golden raisins
* 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
* 1 tablespoon honey

Preparation
Pour a few tablespoons water into heavy large nonstick skillet. Place over medium-high heat. Add 1 bag spinach (skillet will be full). Using 2 wooden spoons, turn and toss spinach until most of leaves are wilted, about 2 minutes. Add remaining spinach leaves in 2 batches. Turn and toss spinach until just wilted but still bright green. Transfer cooked spinach to strainer set over bowl… Read more at Bon Appetit

Tomatoes contain about 20 percent protein, vitamin c, vitamin A, and potassium. They can be eaten either raw or cooked in al kind of different ways.
You can also easily prepare a homemade tomato sauce to use with all sorts of pastas. And the best part is that you can keep the extra in small jars in your refrigerator and use them for future meals. Don’t forget to heat them up a little first.

Tomato Sauce Recipe

Ingredients:

10 medium or 8 big tomatoes
Salt
Pepper
Paprika
2 medium onions
Vegetable Oil
Basil

1) Take the tomatoes, peel them and cut them in small chunks and put them in a bowl, add some salt, pepper and paprika and mix up everything.

2) Chop the two onions and cooked them with a little vegetable oil in a pot until they become brownish.

3) Add the tomatoes and some dried basil and mix.

4) Put the lid on your pot and let it cook on a very gentle fire; don’t forget to stir regularly until most the water has evaporated and you are left with a thick tomato sauce.

You can use part of the sauce right away or just let it all cool down. Once it’s cool, divide the sauce in small jars, and cover the sauce in each jar by a thick layer of vegetable oil in order to prevent any air contact with it and keep it fresh.
If the jars have a lid you can put the lid on, otherwise cover them with some cellophane and keep them in the refrigerator. You can keep the sauce in your refrigerator for about 2-3 weeks.

Enjoy!

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It is interesting to note that lean beef has 43% fat, while the ideal body fat for men is between 15 and 22 %, and for women between 20 and 28 %.

Unless you love and enjoy eating red meat, you can swap it for poultry and fish, even with the fattest fish, you would still get better fat. The minerals found in red meat, including iron can be found in vegetables. For example spinach is very rich in iron.

[Disclaimer: These are only the author's opinions and suggestions and in no way guarantee any type of results. Please use these only as suggestions.]

Vegetables are a blend of protein, fat and carbohydrates and contain also vitamins, minerals, and fiber, but are very low in calorie. The fact that their nutrients are complex, the digestion and abortion in the blood is much slower than refined sugars, the satiety lasts much longer, and therefore vegetables are excellent for weigh loss.

It is a must to include vegetables in your daily meals. You can eat them raw, steamed or cooked in little water. They should not be overcooked otherwise they lose a part of their valuable nutritional ingredients. Therefore processed canned vegetables are not a good choice. If no fresh vegetables are available, opt for frozen ones instead.

[Disclaimer: These are only the author's opinions and suggestions and in no way guarantee any type of results. Please use these only as suggestions.]

Fruits taste good and contain vitamins and minerals and must be consumed every day. It is important to eat a variety of them in order to get all necessary vitamins and minerals. Avoid processed fruit juices and canned fruits, as they contain added sugar.

However, since fruits are quite low in fat and protein, they cannot be considered as a full meal. Therefore all sorts of diets promoting eating fruits for a long period of time will result in protein and muscles loss.

In order to have a balanced diet, one must eat grains, vegetables, all sorts of carbohydrates like rice, pasta, potatoes, bread, low or non fat dairy, eggs, fish, poultry (breast is the leanest part), lean red meat (not too often), and fruits. All in moderation, of course.

[Disclaimer: These are only the author's opinions and suggestions and in no way guarantee any type of results. Please use these only as suggestions.]