Spinach Citrus Salad

This pretty salad comes from Sandra Lee's Almost Homemade cookbook and food show website.

For Dressing:
1/4 cup reserved citrus juice
1 tablespoon Champagne vinegar
2 tablespoons orange olive oil (recommended: O Olive Oil)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
Salt and pepper

9 ounces baby spinach
1 jar (24-ounce) sun fresh citrus salad, drain and liquid reserved
4 ounces goat cheese

In a medium bowl, whisk together all ingredients for dressing and 1/4 cup reserved citrus liquid. Add spinach and toss. Divide dressed spinach onto chilled salad plates. Divide citrus salad among plates and garnish with crumbled goat cheese.

Soft Ginger Cookies

This is not my recipe but one I found at Allrecipes.com. The picture is also from the website. This might be my favorite cookie. It is soft and chewy and spicy.

Big Soft Ginger Cookies

Submitted by: AMY1028 Rated: 5 out of 5 by 1343 members

Prep Time: 15 Minutes Cook Time: 10 Minutes

Ready In: 50 Minutes Yields: 24 servings

"These are just what they say: big, soft, gingerbread cookies. They stay soft, too. My oldest son's favorite."

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons ground ginger 1 teaspoon baking soda 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves 1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup margarine, softened 1 cup white sugar 1 egg 1 tablespoon water 1/4 cup molasses 2 tablespoons white sugar

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside.
2.	In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually stir the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture. Shape dough into walnut sized balls, and roll them in the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet, and flatten slightly.
3.	Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

NUTRITION INFORMATION

Servings Per Recipe: 24

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 142

• Total Fat: 6g
• Cholesterol: 9mg
• Sodium: 147mg
• Total Carbs: 20.9g
• Dietary Fiber: 0.4g
• Protein: 1.6g

Brunswick Stew

This is from one of those compilation cookbooks with multiple contributors. Specifically, the name of the book is Grand Recipes: a collection of recipes from Friends of the Grand Opera House, published in 1983 to benefit the Grand Opera House in Wilmington, Delaware. It is my most used compilation cookbook - many great recipes in it. I am typing the recipe from memory so it might not read exactly how it is in the cookbook.

Brunswick Stew is a southern dish that has many variations. I believe it originally was made with squirrel but I was fresh out of squirrel this weekend so I used chicken. This stew is very thick and incredibly flavorful. I tried to take a picture but honestly, it's not the most attractive dish in the world.

4 chicken thighs, bone-in
2 stalks celery
1/2 onion, coarsely chopped
salt/pepper

2 large potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 can diced tomatoes, with juice
1 can butter beans, drained and rinsed
1 can corn, drained
1-2 T sugar

Cook chicken, celery and onion until chicken is done. Strain broth and return to pan. Let chicken cool and dice or shred. Meanwhile, cook potatoes in broth until well done. Remove from pan and mash coarsely. Return to pan with shredded chicken, tomatoes, beans, corn and sugar. Cook for several hours. Stew will be very thick. Season with salt and pepper as necessary and sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley before serving.