Blueberry Banana Muffins

• 1 and 1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3 medium)
• 1 and 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup oatmeal - quick or instant
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 large egg - slightly beaten
• 2 Tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Prepare 12 muffin cups with papers or generous coating of cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, oats, baking powder and salt.

In a separate bowl, mix together the bananas, milk, egg, oil and lemon juice.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until just moistened. Fold in the blueberries.

Fill each prepared muffin cup a little more than 3/4 full.

Bake for about 20 minutes until golden brown.

Low-Fat Banana Muffins

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar (or Splenda baking substitute)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 2 Tablespoons melted butter
• 1/4 cup applesauce
• 2/3 cup nonfat milk
• 1 egg lightly beaten (or 1/4 cup egg substitute)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 small ripe bananas-mashed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a nonstick 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray or line with paper cups.

In a large bowl, stir flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg together. Make a well in the center.

In a medium bowl, combine butter, applesauce, milk, egg, vanilla. Add wet ingredient to dry mixture, followed by mashed bananas. Stir with a wooden spoon until just combined.

Fill muffins cups two-thirds full. Bake for 18-22 minutes.

Spiced Apple Cider Muffins

Recipe Ingredients
	2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
	4 teaspoons whole-wheat flour
	1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
	1 tablespoon butter , cut into small pieces
	2 tablespoons finely chopped walnuts (optional)
	1 cup whole-wheat flour
	1 cup all-purpose flour
	1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
	1/2 teaspoon baking soda
	1/4 teaspoon salt
	1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
	1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
	1 large egg
	1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
	1/2 cup apple butter , such as Smucker's
	1/3 cup maple syrup
	1/3 cup apple cider
	1/3 cup low-fat plain yogurt
	1/4 cup canola oil

Recipe Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Coat 12 muffin cups with cooking spray.
2. To prepare streusel: Mix brown sugar, whole-wheat flour and cinnamon in a small bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender or your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in walnuts, if using.
3. To prepare muffins: Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl.
4. Whisk egg and brown sugar in a medium bowl until smooth. Whisk in apple butter, syrup, cider, yogurt and oil. Make a well in the dry ingredients; add the wet ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula until just combined. Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin cups (they'll be quite full). Sprinkle with the streusel.
5. Bake the muffins until the tops are golden brown and spring back when touched lightly, 15 to 25 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Loosen edges and turn muffins out onto a wire rack to cool slightly before serving.

Buttermilk Spice Muffins

Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
3 extra large eggs
2 cups flour
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup, plus 1 tablespoon well-shaken buttermilk

Topping

In food processor, combined ½ cup sugar, 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts, ½ teaspoon cinnamon and ½ teaspoon nutmeg. Pulse until nuts are very finely ground and ingredients are well-blended.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a muffin tin (or line with paper cups). In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and beat until well mixed.
2. In another bowl, whisk together flour, whole wheat flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Add half of the dry ingredients to the butter mixture. Then mix in the buttermilk. Add the final amount of the flour mixture, beating just until combined. The batter may still be a bit lumpy. Prepare sugar nut topping.
3. Spoon batter into prepared muffin tin, filling each cup about 3/4 full. Sprinkle the top with a rounded tablespoon of the sugar nut topping. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the muffin comes out clean. Cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes, and then carefully lift out to a cooling rack.

Grilled Jerk Chicken with Mango Cilantro Salsa

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 onion, coarsely chopped
• 2 scallion, coarsely chopped
• 1 large Scotch bonnet pepper, stem and seeds removed
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
• 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
• Pinch ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
• 4 chicken thighs, skin on, bone in
• 4 drumsticks, skin on

To prepare the jerk chicken:

Directions

Puree all the ingredients, except the chicken, in a food processor until almost smooth. Piece the chicken with a fork to make tiny holes. Place the chicken in a large shallow baking dish and rub the marinade into the chicken. Cover and refrigerate for 24 to 48 hours, depending on how intense you want the flavor to be. Preheat grill. Grill chicken on each side for 5 to 6 minutes or until cooked through.

• MANGO-CILANTRO RELISH
• (recipe courtesy of Bobby Flay)
• 2 mangoes, peeled and diced
• 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• 3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
• Salt and freshly ground pepper

Combine the mangoes, onion, cilantro, lime juice, and orange juice in a bowl and gently mix. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Moroccan Chicken with Apricot Couscous and Green Olive Sauce in Flat Bread

Ingredients

Moroccan Spice Mix:

• 1 cinnamon stick, chopped in pieces
• 8 whole cloves
• 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 2 teaspoons cumin seed
• 1 teaspoon fennel seed
• 1 teaspoon coriander seed
• 1 tablespoon sweet paprika
• 11/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar

Chicken:

• chicken
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 lemon, halved
• 1/4 bunch fresh cilantro
• 1 head garlic
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Apricot Couscous:

• 1 cup couscous
• 11/2 cups warm water
• 10 dried apricots
• 1/4 cup whole almonds, toasted
• 2 green onions, green parts only
• 2 handfuls fresh mint leaves
• 2 handfuls fresh cilantro leaves
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Green Olive Sauce:

• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons
• 2 shallots, sliced
• 1 fresh red chile, halved lengthwise
• 1/2 pound large green Spanish olives, pitted
• 1/4 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
• 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 4 pieces lavosh bread, cut in 1/2

Directions

To prepare the Moroccan Spice Mix for the Chicken: Combine the cinnamon stick, cloves, cayenne, cumin, fennel, coriander, and paprika in a dry skillet over low heat and toast for just a minute to release the fragrant oils; shake the pan so they don't scorch. In a spice mill or clean coffee grinder, grind the toasted spices together, with 1 1/2 teaspoons of kosher salt and the brown sugar. (A word of advice: make sure you thoroughly wipe out your coffee grinder before you make coffee again - Moroccan spices taste great on chicken but horrible with coffee.)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Rinse the chicken with cool water, inside and out, then pat it dry with paper towels. Massage the chicken skin with the spice rub; make sure you don't miss a spot. Season the inside of the chicken generously with salt and pepper. Stuff the lemons halves, cilantro, and garlic in the cavity and place the chicken in a roasting pan fitted with a rack. Fold the wing tips under the bird and tie the legs together with kitchen string. Drizzle the oil all over the chicken. If you have time, let the chicken marinate for 30 minutes to really get the flavors down deep into the meat. Roast the chicken for 1 hour; pop an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh; if it reads 160 degrees F, it's done. Allow the chicken to rest for 10 minutes so the juices can settle back into the meat. Remove and discard the skin from the chicken. Pull the chicken from the bone and shred the meat, with your fingers or 2 forks. Put the shredded chicken in a large bowl and squeeze the lemon halves that have cooked inside the bird over the meat to moisten.

To prepare the Apricot Couscous: Put the couscous in a medium bowl; pour the water over it, stir with a fork to combine. Cover and let sit for 10 to 15 minutes, then uncover and fluff with a fork. Put the apricots, almonds, green onions, mint, and cilantro on a cutting board and coarsely chop everything up; add this to the couscous. Add lemon juice, drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Toss gently to combine.

To prepare the Green Olive Sauce: In a small skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Saute the shallots and chile over low heat for 8 minutes until caramelized, then scrape into a food processor. Add the olives, parsley, vinegar, lemon juice, and 1/2 cup of oil; puree a good 3 minutes until totally smooth.

To put the whole thing together: put the shredded chicken and couscous on the lavosh bread, add a few spoonfuls of the olive sauce, and roll the sandwich up.

Roman-style Chicken

Ingredients

• 4 skinless chicken breast halves
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus 1 teaspoon
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus 1 teaspoon
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
• 3 ounces prosciutto, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• 1 teaspoon fresh oregano leaves
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons capers
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

Directions

Season the chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. In a heavy, large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, cook the chicken until browned on both sides. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Keeping the same pan over medium heat, add the peppers and prosciutto and cook until the peppers have browned and the prosciutto is crisp, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, wine, and herbs. Using a wooden spoon, scrape the browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Return the chicken to the pan, add the stock, and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 20 to 30 minutes.

If serving immediately, add the capers and the parsley. Stir to combine and serve. If making ahead of time, transfer the chicken and sauce to a storage container, cool, and refrigerate. The next day, reheat the chicken to a simmer over medium heat. Stir in the capers and the parsley and serve.