5 Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

Ingredients

Serves: 1

4 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons cocoa

1 egg

3 tablespoons milk

3 tablespoons butter flavour infused rice bran oil, or butter

¼ teaspoon vanilla essence or peppermint

1 tablespoon choc chips

1 large mug

Preparation method

Prep: 10 minutes |Cook: 3 minutes

1. Add dry ingredients to the mug and mix well.

 

2. Crack an egg and add it to your mug. Be sure to mix it well to avoid any pockets of flour in the corners. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well. Add the vanilla essence.

 

3. Pop your mug into the microwave & zap for 3 minutes on maximum power (1000watt). Wait until the cake stops rising, and sets in the mug.

 

4. If necessary, run a knife around the sides of the mug, and tip the still warm cake out of the mug and onto a saucer.

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Chicken and Tropical Mango on Romaine

Just four ingredients will make your taste buds happy. The beauty of this salad is in the mango: it’s so juicy, you don’t need dressing.

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, chopped
• 1 head Romaine lettuce
• 1 mango, rough cut
• 1 big handful of cilantro, lightly chopped
• ¼ c. toasted slivered almonds

Grab a big salad bowl and add lettuce, cilantro, chicken and mango. Gently toss, just enough to mix the ingredients well. As you toss the salad, the mango releases its juice and turns everything sweetly delicious, and the cilantro adds zing. Throw some almond slivers on top and serve. Yes, it was that easy.

Tip: Do you know how to cut a mango? What may seem daunting is a cinch. Slice your mango in half lengthwise and watch out for the stone. Pull it apart, remove the stone and hold one half mango in your hand. Using a small paring knife you’re very friendly with, make diagonal cuts left to right and then repeat right to left for a cross hatch design. Now, turn the half inside out. Voila! Your mango pieces will pop up, easy to slice off into your salad (or slurp directly into your mouth!).

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Spinach and Spring Greens with Strawberries and Goat Cheese

Full of iron, antioxidants and flavor, this summer treat is perfect for a special luncheon and gives you a great excuse to have friends over (or eat it all alone!

• 1 bunch or bag of spinach, well-rinsed
• 1 big bunch or bag of spring greens
• 1 basket strawberries
• 3 oz. goat cheese
• ¼ c. pecans, rough chopped
• 3 Tbsp. vinaigrette (dealer’s choice)

Mix your spinach and spring greens together. After removing stems from strawberries, slice in half lengthwise and toss into salad. Add pecans and goat cheese. Dress with the vinaigrette you like best. Balsamic and strawberries are incredible together… champagne vinaigrette works well, too. Toss and serve.

Tip: We like to use organic ingredients whenever possible, and it’s especially important when it comes to strawberries. Why? Because they’re a flashy red that bugs adore and they soak up a lot of water. That means, without making an organic choice, strawberries have the potential to contain more pesticide than most produce, so go organic when possible. Instead of washing organic berries (and rinsing out yummy juice), wet a soft cloth and gently wipe them down, removing grit while preserving flavor.

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Lovely Lentil Salad

Lentils are so good and good for you, and this recipe is ideal for taking to parties: it travels well since there’s no lettuce involved. Lentils are easy to cook (there’s usually a recipe right on the bag) or use canned lentils, as time allows.

• 2 c. lentils, cooked and cooled
• 
  
• 1 c. celery, medium chop
• 
  
• 1 c. carrots, thinly sliced
• 
  
• 1 small red onion, diced
• 
  
• Italian dressing, bottled or fresh

Salt and pepper

Mix the first four ingredients gently. Season with salt and pepper then add Italian salad dressing to taste. Mix again and chill for an hour, if you can wait that long! It’s also very good at room temperature. If you do make fresh lentils, take care to avoid over-cooking.

Tip: Celery absorbs liquid so easily that it has a tendency to get mushy if it sits too long. You want it crunchy celery. If you are taking this dish to a party, hold back your celery until right before serving.

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Healthy Taco Salad with Black Beans and Corn

Taco salad is a huge hit in our house, since it combines great flavor with protein all wrapped up in a yummy little fiesta. This version uses ground turkey which is notoriously flavorless, so we have a few tricks to up the taste factor.

• 1 head Romaine lettuce, chopped
• 1Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 lb. (more or less) ground turkey
• 1 onion, any color, rough chopped
• 1 or ½ Tbsp. chili powder (depending on the spicy tolerance)
• 1 Tbsp. Balsamic vinegar
• ¾ c. grated cheddar cheese
• 2 Haas avocados, large dice
• ½ lemon
• 1 large can stewed tomatoes
• 1 can kernel corn
• 1 can black beans
• 1 bag blue corn chips

1. Drizzle olive oil around a big pot on medium heat. Add onions and ground turkey; cook until seared. Drizzle with Balsamic, add the chili powder and brown a little more. The balsamic adds flavor and colors the turkey, making it visually more appealing.
2. Next, add the canned ingredients: corn, tomatoes and black beans. Mix all ingredients together and continue cooking until it’s all hot. Meanwhile, set your table with pasta-style bowls (this is a big salad). Place a handful of blue corn chips in each bowl. When you cut the avocado, squeeze the lemon on it so the avocado won’t brown.
3. With your chopped Romaine in a really big salad bowl, add the cheese and avocado, then mix. Next, add the turkey mixture and toss gently. Serve generous portions atop the corn chips and eat immediately! Salsa and/or sour cream are optional.
4. Tip: Open cans, drain and rinse your beans while the turkey cooks. Don’t try another type of lettuce to replace romaine, it won’t hold up. This recipe easily doubles, so we often use the turkey mix for tacos or burritos the same day. Kids all ages love this!

Link to intructions through playing cooking games: 

http://www.dressup24h.com/game/1719/Summer-Salad.html

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Asian Slaw Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 firm mangoes, julienne and shredded
• 1 head of red cabbage, shredded
• 1 green papaya, shredded
• 1 bunch of bok choy, chiffonade
• 4 carrots, julienne
• 1 cup bean sprouts (250 mL)
• 1 teaspoon sugar (5 mL)
• Juice of 2 limes
• 1 teaspoon sweet chili sauce (5-10 mL)
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce (5 mL)
• 3 green onions
• Cilantro
• Grape cherry tomatoes, halved
• Chopped, roasted peanuts

Directions

1. Shred, julienne and mix all of the fruits and vegetables in a large bowl.
2. In a separate bowl, mix the sugar, lime juice, chili sauce, fish sauce and green onions.
3. Pour over the vegetables and mix thoroughly. Refrigerate and let marinate for 1 hour.
4. Garnish with grape cherry tomatoes, cilantro leaves and chopped toasted peanuts.

Link to intructions through playing cooking games: 

http://www.dressup24h.com/game/7402/Asian-Slaw-Recipe.html

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HAM AND CHEESE CALZONES

Dough:
1 1/4 c – Water (Luke warm)
1 tsp – Sugar
2 tsp – Salt
2 T – Olive Oil
3 c – Hi-Gluten Flour
1 tsp – Active Dry Yeast
Filling:
1/2 c – Bill’s Neapolitan Sauce
6 oz – Ricotta cheese
1/4 c – Grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp – black pepper
4 slices – deli ham
4 slices – Provolone cheese
1/2 c – Mozzarella cheese
Crust Glaze:
1 egg, beaten
I rolled the dough into a circle as I would for pizza, but I only spread sauce on half of the blank. I then mixed the ricotta, Parmesan, and pepper in a bowl and spread it on top of the sauce about 3/4 inches thick. This was topped with two slices of provolone and a handful of mozzarella. Finally, 4 slices of deli ham where sliced into strips and layered over the cheese. The dough was then folded over and pinched along the edge. I used the back of a fork to crimp the rim after pinching and cut 4 small vent holes in the top crust. A beaten egg was brushed over the calzone and it was placed on a stone set on the middle oven rack at 450 degrees for about 15 minutes.
This calzone was incredible! We couldn’t even wait for it to cool down before serving it. I think next time I will try a bit more sauce, but we used a bowl of sauce to dip anyway which was fine. I must say that even though it was my first calzone, I can’t think of a way to make it any better! I will be adding this to my menu for sure!
Link to intructions through playing cooking games: http://www.dressup24h.com/game/7433/Ham-And-Cheese-Calzones.html

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