Herb and Egg Scramble with Garlic Toast and Sliced Tomato

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

12 eggs, beaten
4 ounces garlic and herb cheese (such as Boursin or Alouette) or,
cream cheese, cut or crumbled into small pieces
3 tablespoons chives, chopped -- about 12 blades
Salt and black pepper
A few drops hot sauce
2 tablespoons butter or extra-virgin olive oil
4 plum or Roma tomatoes, sliced lengthwise
Smoked salmon, sliced ham or salami, chopped -- optional additions for the eggs
Toast:
8 slices white, wheat, soft sliced Italian or whole grain bread
2 large cloves garlic, cracked away from skin
4 tablespoons softened salted butter

Whisk eggs with cheese and chives and season with salt and pepper and
a few drops hot sauce. Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium
heat. Add butter or extra-virgin olive oil to the pan. Heat butter or
oil, then add eggs. Add the optional addition, if desired, at this
point. Scramble to desired consistency and serve with a sliced plum
tomato per person, seasoned with salt and pepper, alongside the eggs.
Pass garlic toast at table: rub hot toast with cracked garlic, then
butter as usual.

Quick Chocolate Banana Cream Pie

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Yield: 8 slices

1 frozen pie shell, pricked several times with tines of a fork
1 package instant chocolate pudding, prepared to package directions
2 ripe bananas, sliced thin on an angle
1 can spray whipped cream
1 dark chocolate candy bar

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Bake pie shell 10 to 12 minutes, until
golden. Remove from oven and let cool.

Line the baked and cooled pie shell with a layer of chocolate pudding,
half of the prepared amount. Add a layer of bananas. Top with
remaining prepared instant chocolate pudding and remaining bananas.
Cover the top with a giant swirl of whip cream from the spray can,
starting at the center and working out. Shave a chocolate bar with a
vegetable peeler and top pie with shavings. Serve immediately.

Cheesy Potato and Sharp Cheddar Hash

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 24 minutes
Yield: 4 to 6 servings

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, chopped
5 cups shredded frozen hash brown potatoes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
1 cup extra-sharp white Cheddar crumbles

Heat a large skillet with extra-virgin olive oil and butter over
medium-high heat. Add onions and let soften 2 to 3 minutes. Add
potatoes, season with salt and pepper and cook 20 minutes, turning
occasionally, until brown and crispy. Season with a little freshly
grated nutmeg, to taste, and add cheese. Turn the potatoes and onions
with cheese to melt the crumbles and crisp the cheese a bit, about 1
minute. Transfer to serving dish.

Thai Shrimp Curry with Chopped Lettuce and Basil-Lime Couscous

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

2 tablespoons vegetable or other light oil, eyeball it
1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined with tails removed
6 ounces, about 1/3 pound, shitake mushrooms, stemmed and thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, grated or finely chopped
1-inch ginger root, peeled and grated or finely chopped
4 scallions, chopped into 1-inch pieces, whites and greens
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons mild or hot red curry paste
2 roasted red peppers, sliced
1 cup "light" or unsweetened coconut milk
1 cup frozen peas
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 tablespoon butter
1 lime, zested and juiced
1 1/2 cups couscous
1 cup shredded fresh basil leaves
2 cups chopped iceberg lettuce, 1/2 small head
1/2 cup chopped peanuts, for garnish

Heat a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil over high heat. Add
shrimp and toss 2 minutes then add the mushrooms, garlic, ginger,
scallions, salt and pepper and cook 3 to 4 minutes more tossing
constantly. Stir in curry paste, roasted red pepper and coconut milk
and reduce heat to low. Simmer a few minutes then stir in peas to heat
through.

In a sauce pot bring chicken stock, butter and the lime zest to a
boil. Add couscous and stir. Turn off heat, cover pot and let stand.
Add basil and the lime juice to the pot and fluff with a fork.

Serve couscous topped with a layer of chopped lettuce then a few
ladles of red curry shrimp. Garnish with chopped peanuts.

Meringue-a-Tangs

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 8 sandwiches

1 pint raspberries
2 tablespoons limoncello, plus more if desired
1 pint lemon sorbet
16 meringue cookies

Add the raspberries and the limoncello to a small bowl and allow to
macerate. Place 1 scoop sorbet between 2 cookies. Top each sandwich
with the raspberries and enjoy!

Looking for Mr. Goodbar Sundaes

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 minute
Yield: 4 servings

These sundaes taste like Mr. Goodbar candy bars. I used to look for
mini Goodbars first in my Trick-o-Treat bag.

2 pints vanilla ice cream
1 jar chocolate fudge sauce
1 cup red skinned salted peanuts, available on snack aisle of market
1/4 cup honey
Whipped cream, canister
8 mini chocolate covered crunchy peanut bar (recommended: Mr.
Goodbar), optional garnish

Get 4 sundae cups or goblets out and place a huge scoop of ice cream
in each. Heat the fudge sauce 30 seconds in microwave, with the lid
off the jar. Sprinkle a handful of nuts into each dish, top with a
layer of fudge, another scoop of ice cream, a spoonful more of fudge.
Heat the honey in microwave 10 to 15 seconds. Top sundaes with whipped
cream, a drizzle of warm honey, then garnish with a few red peanuts
and a couple of mini candy bars at the edge of the cup or goblet.
edge. Serve with long spoons if you got ??em on plates, to catch any
overflow.

Grilled Green Chili Quesadillas

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Yield: 6 servings

3 fresh chile peppers, such as poblanos -- any variety may be used,
according to your tolerance for heat
4 (12-inch) large flour tortillas
3 cups (3/4 pound brick) smoked cheddar (recommended: Cabot brand, shredded)
1 cup store bought salsa verde, available on chip and snack aisle or
in Mexican food section
1 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Heat a grill pan over high heat. Place whole chiles on grill and char
all over. about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and split chiles. Scrape
away seeds with a spoon and slice.

Heat a large nonstick skillet or griddle over medium high heat. Char
the tortilla and blister it on 1 side, 20 seconds, then flip tortilla.
Cover half of the tortilla with cheese and chilies, then fold over.
Press down gently with spatula. Cook quesadilla 15 seconds more on
each side, transfer to a cutting board. Repeat. Pile up 2 completed
quesadillas at a time and cut into 3 generous wedges. The yield will
be 12 pieces from 4 quesadillas. Serve slices on a large platter with
small dishes of salsa verde and sour cream for topping. Garnish the
platter and toppings with chopped cilantro.