[Editor’s Note]
This recipe is modified from the bread-less meatballs. Since that recipe and this are meant for those dieters who are avoiding carbohydrates, there is no topping. However, if you just can’t look forward to a 3lb mass of meat without a condiment of some sort, may we suggest salsa to you? Salsa does contain carbohydrates, in the form of natural sugars (onion, tomatoes and garlic, corn if you make *that* sort of salsa), but it is far healthier for you than the brown-sugar, tomato paste or ketchup topping we are all used to. -matt

3 lbs. hamburger
1 med onion, diced
8 cloves garlic, diced
1 small green pepper, diced
6 eggs
1 1/2 cups parmesan cheese
basil, oregano, salt and pepper to taste

Heat oven to 400º and prepare a 9×13 baking pan with tin foil.

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, mixing by hand. Make sure your parmesan cheese doesn’t have large clumps. Mixture is ready when the egg is thoroughly worked into the meat - you should not be able to make out the color of the yolk, nor should you be able to feel the wetness from the egg.

Place mixture into baking pan and cover with foil. Place in oven for 40 minutes, then remove foil and continue cooking for another 35 minutes. Remove from oven and enjoy!

3 lbs. hamburger
1 med onion, diced
5-8 cloves garlic, diced
1 small green pepper, diced
6 eggs
3/4 cup parmesan cheese
Parsley, salt, pepper, Italian spice to taste

Heat oven to 400º and prepare two baking sheets with tin foil.

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, mixing by hand. Make sure your parmesan cheese doesn’t have large clumps. Mixture is ready when the egg is thoroughly worked into the meat - you should not be able to make out the color of the yolk, nor should you be able to feel the wetness from the egg.

Form into round balls, fitting 12 meatballs per cookie sheet. Heat in oven for 20-25 minutes, slicing open one meatball to make sure the center is not pink. A lot of cheese and fat will “escape” from the meatballs while cooking - this is perfectly normal, however messy it may seem. If you prefer a crispier meatball simply heat longer, but keep an eye so that they do not char (as meat tends to).

This recipe makes 3 batches.

This tasty, rich and cheesy treat also works well as a brunch dish. Be sure to make two pies, as they might go fast!

3 large onions, sliced thinly
3 tbs. butter
2 1/2 cups grated Gruyere cheese
3 eggs
1/3 cup flour
3/4 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup milk
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste
4 - 5 slices sourdough bread

Preheat oven to 375º. Saut» onions in the butter until well carmelized, 20 - 30 minutes. In the meantime, grate the cheese. Then butter a 9 x 13 inch casserole dish and arrange the slices of bread neatly on the bottom of it to form a crust. Evenly spread the cheese on top of the bread. Whip together the eggs, flour, wine, milk, nutmeg, salt and pepper until smooth. When the onions are done to your liking, arrange them on top of the Gruyere and then pour the custard over the lot. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown on top and bubbly. Serve hot. Mmmmmm!

This is a good way to use the last of your Thanksgiving leftovers for breakfast in the days after that beautiful holiday. Serves two (one if you’re hungry!).

4 tbs. butter
1 small onion, diced
1/2 cup diced turkey meat
1/2 cup mashed potatoes
1/2 cup stuffing
1 or 2 eggs
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup cranberry relish

Sauté the onion in two tablespoons of the butter in a frying pan on medium heat. Add your leftovers and the remaining butter and form mixture into a pancake-like shape in the pan. Fry until browned and crispy on both “sides”. Crack your eggs on top of the hash, mix until the eggs are just done, add salt and pepper and serve with the cranberry relish on the side. Gobble gobble gobble!

This goes well with almost any pasta and is perfect when fresh veggies and herbs from your garden are at their peak. You can always adjust the seasonings or add different vegetables and it will turn out just fine. This makes a very large amount, so it is good for a dinner party or for leftovers because it tastes even better the following day.

2 tbs. olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped
4 - 7 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 lbs. ground lean beef
1 - 2 cups fresh mushrooms, sliced
3 small zucchini, diced
salt & pepper to taste
2 tbs. chopped oregano
2 tbs. chopped basil
30 oz. tomato sauce (I recommend Muir Glen Organic, or you can make your own from your garden tomatoes)
8 oz. tomato paste
2 cups dry red wine

In a deep pan or stockpot, saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil until soft. Add the beef. When it is browned add the mushrooms, zucchini, salt, pepper and spices and saute until tender. Stir in the tomato sauce, paste and red wine, adjust seasonings to taste, and simmer on low heat for at least an hour.

Perhaps my favorite breakfast. Enjoy!

8 large eggs
1 3/4 cups milk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tbs. honey
1 tsp. orange juice
orange zest

1 loaf of sourdough, oat, french or brioche bread

In a large bowl whisk liquid ingredients together. Take your sliced bread and coat with egg mixture until saturated and cook in a large frying pan (using butter to coat) over medium heat until brown. If you use large slices of bread you may have to finish cooking in the oven as the egg mixture won’t be cooked all the way through. Simply heat your oven to 250º and bake (there is no set time), coating with butter or oil, until nice and crispy, but not crunchy (if you want crunchy then you could use these as nice croutons for a spring salad, perhaps combining with a vinegarette that uses raspberry.

Serve warm with plenty of butter, a dash of confectionary sugar, fresh fruit (apples, raspberries, bananas, crispy plaintains, you name it!) and maple syrup.

With a name like meatloaf it has to be good, right?

This meatloaf is adapted from a recipe of She Who Should Not Be Named. I can vouch for its goodness, even though it is a bit salty (Unavoidable. Without the salt this loaf falls flat - not literally of course!). Now, depending on the texture of the pre-baked loaf, you may wish to add more hamburger as the final result should be firm, not limp or soupy. Several things can alter the texture, including the water content of the vegetables and the ketchup, so just be warned. You can substitute ½ pork, ½ burger if you wish as this will make a more succulent meatloaf.

Loaf
3 slices of white bread
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, smushed
½ cup parsley
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 tbs. dill
¾ cup ketchup
4 tsp. dry mustard
1 ¾ pounds hamburger
2 eggs
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. pepper

Glaze
2 ts.p brown sugar
2-3 tbs. ketchup
2 tsp. dry mustard

Preheat oven to 400º

Crumble your bread in a food processor until fine and add to a mixing bowl. Place your veggies in the processor until minced; add to bread crumb bowl. Add in ketchup, mustard, hamburger, eggs, salt & pepper and knead with hands. Place loaf in a loaf pan.

Mix brown sugar, ketchup and mustard in a bowl and use to glaze the loaf. Place loaf in oven and bake for 50-60 minutes. If you are unsure if it is cooked fully-through, simply use a meat thermometer - it should register at 160º Remove and serve immediately or refrigerate and use for cold sandwiches.

This is a pretty weird recipe. That’s all there is to it. It isn’t the best thing you’ll ever have- I’m not going to lie to you there. It is simply something that takes 10 minutes to make and 30 to cook and leaves you with about two days worth of left-overs.

22 oz. Tuna
2 cups heavy cream
6 cups shredded cheese
6 eggs
1 medium onion, chopped
1-2 cups mushroom, sliced
1 small green pepper, sliced
oil
spices to taste

Heat oven to 350º. Sauté onions and peppers in a frying pan with oil until they start to soften. Add mushroom, cook until they start to soften. Remove from heat and add tuna (crumble your tuna, making sure there are no big “chunks” of tuna in your mixture- even out your tuna, make it fluffy!). Scramble your eggs in a small bowl and add to onions and mushrooms; also add cream and four cups cheese, stir together. Add any spices you wish (I like to add garlic powder, crushed red pepper, oregano and dill) and pour into a baking dish, making sure to butter the sides first. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top, heat in oven for about 30 minutes or until the cheese has turned to a golden brown.

This oddly named item is, according to my sources, the national dish of Korea. It makes a wonderful, tender, juicy, sweet beef dish that is a great dinner for four–perhaps you, your sweetie and his or her parents whom you need to impress? You will need:

1 head red leaf lettuce
1 cup uncooked sticky white rice
1 1-lb. steak, sliced thinly
1 kiwi
1 onion
sugar
soy sauce
sesame oil
red wine
black pepper
rice vinegar
4 - 5 cloves of garlic, chopped
5 scallions, chopped into 1-inch lengths

The beef is most easily cut when it is frozen and thawed just a bit in the microwave. Make sure the slices are very thin, and set them aside in a bowl. Sprinkle some sugar on them and let the beef sit for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a food processor, liquify the onion and the kiwi. After that, in a measuring cup, combine 1/4 cup of soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of red wine, 2 tablespoons of sesame oil, a dash of black pepper, a dash of the rice vinegar and 3 tablespoons of sugar. This sauce should be a little more sweet than salty, so you might need to add more sugar. Combine the onion, the kiwi, and the soy sauce mixture all together in the bowl with the beef and add the scallions and the garlic. Mix well and allow to marinate for anywhere from three hours to overnight.

Prepare the rice in whatever way works best for you. I usually have one cup of rice to two cups of water, which I have brought to a boil with a pat of butter, and simmered for 20 minutes. In the meantime, in a large pan or wok on high heat, cook the beef in its sauce, until the beef is done and the marinade is reduced down to a glossy paste. To assemble, take a leaf of the red lettuce, place a good dollop of rice in its middle, top with a bit of the Luscious Bulgogi and roll up. Mmm-mmm!

I learned my omelet-making techinique partially from Julia Child’s The Art of French Cooking and partially from trial-and-error. Omelets are the perfect quick meal when you’re alone–cheap, fast, nutritious and filling. Here is my recipe for a light, fluffy French omelet.

3 eggs
1 tbs. of cold water
cracked pepper to taste
1 tsp. of butter
1 omelet pan
1 small bowl

Heat your pan with the butter in it–otherwise the butter will scorch or brown, giving the omelet a funky taste. While it’s melting, beat your eggs with a fork in the bowl briskly. Add the water and beat some more. Then add the pepper and whip the eggs a bit more. All this air you’re whipping into the eggs, especially the whites, will make the finished product lighter and fluffier. When the butter is foaming, pour the eggs in the pan. Using a fork or a spatula, lift the edges of the omelet here and there and turn the pan to allow the runny portion of egg to flow underneath any set parts on all sides. This action makes the omelet bigger and fluffier. Just before the eggs set up add your ingredients of choice and a dash of salt. Adding the salt at the end prevents the eggs from getting rubbery. As for turning the omelet out onto the plate, I do the sloppy thing and tilt it halfway out of the pan and flip the remainder over on top. Whatever way works best for you. Bon appetit!

Almost every chili recipe looks like the next but it is the subtle differences in the ingredients which really make the dish stand apart. If you’re not fond of the kidney bean (shame on you!) then you can substitue with pinto beans, though I’d use about 28 oz. of tomatoes instead of 32. You can also use black beans, though in that case i’d substitute the parsley with basil and I would use about 36 oz. of tomatoes.

4 tbs. olive oil
1 green pepper, chopped (seeded to preference)
1 red pepper, chopped (seeded to preference)
1 medium to large onion, chopped
2 cups zucchini or summer squash
2-6 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup tomato paste
32 oz. stewed tomato
30 oz. kidney beans
2 tbs. chili powder
1 stick cinnamon
5 tsp. chopped parsley or cilantro
2 tsp. dill
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste

In a dutch oven or deep pan, caramelize onions. Either set those aside or saut» with peppers and garlic in olive oil. Add zucchini as peppers are tender; cook slightly- these get mushy when overcooked. Add rest of ingredients, bring to boil. Cover and simmer on low heat for 60 to 90 minutes. Served best with fresh shredded cheese, a dollop of sour cream, and fresh parsley or chopped basil.

This is my all-time favorite. Perfect for any occasion or a lazy day at home.

1 package phyllo dough
1 bunch fresh spinach, woody stems removed and chopped
1 1/2 lbs. feta cheese
1 bunch scallions, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
16 oz. cottage cheese
6 eggs
salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp. dried basil
2 tsp. dried oregano
2 tsp. dried dill
1/2 cup olive oil
1 stick butter

Preheat oven to 400º. In a small saucepan on the stove on very low heat, melt the butter. In a big bowl, mix the feta, cottage cheese, scallions, garlic and herbs. Set aside. Keep chopped spinach in a seperate bowl. Add the olive oil to the melted butter and set aside. Grease a big roasting pan or baking dish, unwrap and spread out the defrosted phyllo dough. Make sure you keep the phyllo under a damp towel the whole time you are working with it.

Begin assembly. Place 6 sheets of phyllo in the pan, brushing the butter/olive oil mixture on each piece. Pour a layer of the cheese mixture on the dough and sprinkle a third of the spinach on top. Then again place 3 layers of phyllo, each buttered/oiled on top and repeat with another third of the cheese and spinach. Repeat again for another layer and then top with the remaining phyllo. Make sure each piece of phyllo is buttered and oiled. Pour any remaining butter over the top and sprinkle some herbs–oregano, basil and dill–on top for decoration. Bake for 1 hour. Enjoy!

I used to serve this recipe with my favorite cornbread, but ever since being diagnosed as a borderline diabetic, I’ve had to forgo this beloved treat. Even without it, this chili is still a hearty meal.

1 1/2 lbs. ground turkey
2 yellow onions, chopped
2 bell peppers, chopped
4-6 cloves garlic, chopped (or more to taste)
2 tbs. chili powder
2 tbs. chopped fresh oregano (or 2 t. dried)
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 tbs. cocoa powder
28 oz. can stewed tomatoes
30 oz. can kidney beans
2 cups dry red wine
salt and pepper to taste

In a deep stockpot or dutch oven, saute the onion, peppers and garlic until tender. Add the turkey and brown completely. Then add the chili powder, salt and pepper, cilantro, cinnamon, cocoa powder, tomatoes, kidney beans and red wine and bring to a boil. Cover and slowly simmer for 45 minutes to a hour and serve. It’s even better the next day when the flavors are fully melded!