This may have been the first time I've seen someone suggest more fat.  Good call, but still a rare suggestion.

          Definitely agreed, just that people for some reason have an obsession with low-fat, low-carb. diets.  I still wonder why random family members complain about too much fat and too many carbs at the same time, what do they expect to eat?  A diet built of 500 grams of daily protein?  lol.

          You need to make some fridge cleanout sushi. 

Okay I just invented a dessert and thought I'd share it here. It's not exactly "healthy" but it could be a lot worse, and as desserts go, it's actually not that bad. It's pretty simple to make but it comes across as elegant, so it may be a good option for when you want to impress someone.

Almond Joy Custard

1 cup sweetened, shredded coconut
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 pkg. sugar-free instant pudding, chocolate fudge flavor
1 1/2 cups skim milk
1 Celestial Seasonings chai teabag
1 teaspoon dried orange peel
1/2 cup boiling water
1 tablespoon Ghirardelli (or other premium brand) dark chocolate instant cocoa (it has to be dark chocolate, a milk chocolate flavor will taste yucky)

Put coconut and almonds in a non-stick skillet over medium heat to toast, stirring often. Meanwhile, measure out milk and place in freezer to chill, and put water on to boil. Place orange peel in a tea diffuser. When water boils, pour into a mug with the instant cocoa and stir briskly to dissolve. Place orange peel diffuser and chai teabag in mug with cocoa to steep. Meanwhile, keep stirring coconut and almonds to toast to an even golden-brown. Mix instant pudding mix in a bowl with chilled milk. Whisk briskly until thickened slightly and almost dissolved. Add cocoa-chai mixture, stirring briskly to incorporate. Keep stirring until almost set.

When coconut and almonds are toasted, remove from heat and divide evenly among dessert cups (looks especially elegant in clear flutes), making a "crust" at the bottom. Pour/spoon a layer of pudding into dessert cups. Top with remaining coconut-almond mixture. Chill until set.

Bon appetit!

I found this recipe in "Gourmet" magazine. I really like it because I love watermelon and I can't easily take a watermelon to practice sites XD. Also it's very carb friendly, which is perfect for me because I have diabetes and it helps to not shoot up my blood sugar, but it keeps me hydrated ((like a million percent water lol))

Watermelonade ((their name not mine))

1 ((12-lb)) watermelon ((preferably seedless))
1/4 cup sugar, divided ((I used this splenda/sugar mix they just made, tastes just like sugar, but I don't suppose too many traceurs are diabetic XD))
4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, divided ((mine came from a bottle...))
16 cups ice cubes, divided

Cut watermelon flesh into 2-inch chunks and discard rind. Purée one fourth of watermelon in a blender with 1 Tbsp sugar, 1 tsp lemon juice, 4 cups ice, and a pinch of salt. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, discarding solids. Make 3 more batches. Add sugar to taste if desired and serve over ice.


I only used one part of the puree mix thing, so I didn't make "3 more batches" It came out to about 22 oz. with the one batch, so plenty to last the session. My blender is small so I ended up mashing it down with a spoon. For future reference, I suggest layering the ice and the watermelon to get an even puree and you aren't mixing too much of one thing. It confused my blender XD. Other than that, it tasted great, try it, hope you like it. If you don't, hey, it wasn't my recipe!

Yixin's "f#ck General Tso's" Chicken.

Note: This is far more authentic than General Tso's Takeout, in terms of Chinese Chicken. Unfortunately, the flavor is very strong, so cut down on the spices if you have to.

Ingredients:
*1 package of boneless, skinless chicken breasts.
*4-5 strips of bacon (replace with 2-3 tsp. peanut/palm oil for authenticity, or olive oil for health, the bacon's just tastier.)
*1 tablespoon diced fresh ginger
*3 cloves diced garlic
*1/2 large onion
*4-5 chopped fresh Thai birdseye chilies (or 2 tablespoons sambal olek chili paste, if you're REALLY hardcore and can make your own chili paste, use that.)
*2-3 tablespoons soy sauce (or more if you want)
*1 tbsp of rice vinegar
*Pinch of brown sugar
*2 tbsp green onions
*1 Naga Jolokia pepper (exercise caution when using this ingredient, or skip it)
*Black and white pepper to taste

Cooking:

1.) Fry the bacon until crisp. Discard of bacon, or use in a BLT later.
2.) Put the onions into the oil left by the bacon, sweat the onions out.
3.) Add the chicken in.
4.) While the chicken is frying, add the ginger, then garlic (in that order). Add the soy sauce, vinegar and chilies. Let cook until garlic is browned.
5.) Turn heat to low and add green onions.
6.) Add pepper to taste.
7.) Serve with steamed vegetables.

Oh man these recipes are great!

I roasted a chicken in my Crock-Pot today and thought I'd share the directions, since many at APK seem to be less experienced cooks interested in eating healthier. It's super easy to do, and once you have a whole roasted chicken on hand you can use it for all sorts of things like salads (Animus Salad, perhaps!), wraps, etc.

Take a whole chicken. Be sure neck and giblets are removed and discarded. Rinse the chicken and pat dry.

Salt the inside of the chicken cavity. Chop 1/2 an onion, and 2-3 celery stalks, into large chunks. Stuff these into the chicken cavity. They should fill up the cavity but there should still be room for air to circulate around in the cavity.

Rub the entire outside of the chicken, over all the skin, with 1-2 tablespoons of butter. Place the chicken in the crock-pot. Sprinkle the juice of 1 lemon over the whole chicken (about 6 tablespoons of bottled lemon juice). Sprinkle dried herbs (I prefer thyme, rosemary, and a lemon-dill blend) liberally over the chicken. Cover the crock-pot and cook the chicken on low for 6-8 hours (although mine was done in 4; watch it carefully so it doesn't overcook and dry out!)

When the chicken is done, discard the vegetables from inside the cavity. You can use any juices in the pot to make gravy, if desired.

Bon appetit!

two things:
1) You two are going to be making my weekend meals have a lot more variety
2) Why hasn't this been stickied yet?

I cook a lot, so I'm going to be trying a number of these once I can find the time to find all the ingredients. But I'm not one for coming up with any recipes... although that guacamole one a few pages back was almost exactly like the one I made up a while ago for a Spanish class... I used diced green, red, and yellow peppers, diced onions, a number of avocados (duh), jalapenos, lime juice, diced tomatoes, I can't remember if I put pineapple in there or not or if I just wanted to. And for presentation, some lime slices on top with an artichoke in the middle of the bowl, lol. I'm sure I'm missing some things, but that was a good 18 months ago.