December 31, 2007 Introduction/New Years Eve Special Edition

Easy Tastebud Delights
First Edition (December 31, 2006)
Easy Recipes
45 minutes+

Hi Everyone and Welcome to Easy Tastebud Delights. I'm sure this edition will be a little longer than the ones to follow because I would like for you to be able to understand what the newsletter is about and to also introduce myself.

Newsletter Objective:

In today's world where everyone is rushing around with busy schedules, most people that I know are looking for ways to get healthy food on the table quickly and with as little effort as possible without hitting the drive-thru or calling for delivery, which isn't the healthiest or cheapest way of eating. I've been collecting these kinds of recipes long before Rachael Ray got her popularity for making 30 Minute Meals, simply because I wasn't confident in the kitchen but I did love collecting and reading recipes of all kinds. My Mom on the other hand, would spend hours letting dough rise only to punch it down and repeat the process before making her bread. She always served up delicious meals for us. I spent very little time in the kitchen with her and now regret not receiving her talent OR patience! After looking through her recipe binder and reading the techniques and processes I realized that most of her recipes were fairly straightforward and easy to follow. I've made a few of them and either loved them as is or decided to revise them a bit to make the time in my kitchen a little shorter.

I will be sharing quick and easy recipes with you, in the form of a daily menu meal plan with Main Dish and Side Dish combinations with either actual recipes or serving suggestions. Many of them will be revised versions of longer processes and will have a time factor at the top of the page with a notation of either Quick and Easy Recipes (less than 30 minutes) or Easy Recipes, (30+ minutes).

Please note that not all the recipes being shared are TNT, but they are all recipes that are either requested cooking methods, (vegetarian, Weight Watchers, Diabetic, Low Calorie, Low Cholerosterol, etc), or recipes that I found interesting enough to keep.


About Me:

This is my first attempt at creating a newsletter and I am so excited!! I have always enjoyed collecting recipes and cookbooks and have close to 1000 cookbooks stored in my garage and all over the house. I am currently putting together a cookbook of Mom's recipes that I'm planning to print and publish by October 2007, this will be the 10 year anniversary of Mom's death. I've spent alot of time talking to my aunts, brothers and sister on the phone trying to fill in the holes on some of the directions of the recipes. This is also a new experience for me but one which I am thoroughly enjoying!

Okay, let's get on with the recipes now! My feature meal for New Years Eve would be greatly suited for entertaining purposes or a family meal.

For the main part of the meal I will be sharing a recipe that my whole family loves, then later in the evening, serve packaged or premade appetizers and a platter of crackers, cheese, pickles, crusty rolls and other items that don't need to be heated up. (You want to spend time with your guests, not in the kitchen!)

Nothing says comfort more than Stuffed Pasta. It's quick to make and can even be made earlier in the day and popped into the oven when it's dinnertime:

Spinach & Feta Cannelloni

24 cannelloni - uncooked or just partially cooked
2 packages feta cheese
2 packages frozen spinach - thawed and drained
2 tbsp. cream cheese or sour cream
2 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese
2 cans tomato sauce, (2 different flavours to save on adding spices)

Preheat Oven: 350 degrees
This recipe will make 2-9x12 pans

Put a little bit of tomato sauce on the bottom of the pans so that the noodles do not stick
Cut feta cheese into 24 pieces. (1 piece per noodle) And stuff in center of
noodle. (repeat 24x)
Mix spinach with cream cheese or sour cream.
Stuff both ends of the noodles with the spinach/cheese combination and place in pan. (repeat 24x)
Pour the tomato sauce over the noodles.
Sprinkle the grated cheese on top.
Cook for about 30-40 minutes - until cheese is browning.

Serve with packaged caesar salad that has been washed and dried well. (With all the salmonella scares involved with packaged produce it is best to not take any risks.) For the dressing, buy a bottle of well-known brand name dressing. Croutons can be made quickly by spreading garlic butter on slices of bread then cubing and putting under the broiler and turning until brown on all sides. Bacon bits can be made by dicing bacon slices and crisping up in a frying pan.

For the garlic bread get a long Italian loaf of bread and cut lengthwise then widthwise into chunks. In a small container, add butter and 1 tsp. minced garlic from a jar. Mix well and spread on bread slices, place on cookie sheet and sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese. Broil until just crispy and serve.

Because this dinner has a garlic factor of 10, be sure to have plenty of mints on hand for after the meal.

Serve appetizers around 10:30 and enjoy the countdown. At midnight, let the champagne flow!

Happy New Years everyone and have a safe and happy 2007!

Remember! Be a responsible host and don't allow your guests to drink and drive!! Either make early arrangements for them to spend the night or have them go home in a cab.

If someone chooses to be a designated driver, have them drive some of the other guests home.
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If you have any comments or suggestions, you can send me an email at lotsarecipes@gmail.com with Newsletter in the Subject Line.

I have many more recipes on my website.