Georgia Peanut Salsa

If you are looking for a new salsa recipe check out this great flavor combination. I have tried lots of veggie salsas, bean salsas, and fruit-based salsas but this is the first peanut salsa I have ever come across and it is wonderful ... and very addicting! It claims to serve 13 (1/2 cup servings) but Mike and I polished off the whole batch in one sitting. The peanuts add a nice crunch along with general substance in every bite, the bell peppers and cilantro add freshness, and the corn and tomato give your salsa base.

Serves: 6 1/2 cups

Start-to-Finish: 25 minutes (plus overnight chilling)

Recipe By: Lane and Elizabeth McCloud

Ingredients:

3 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1 jar (8-oz) picante sauce
1 can (11-oz) white or shoepeg corn, drained
1/3 cup Italian salad dressing
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 1/2 cups salted roasted peanuts
Tortilla chips

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, combine the first nine ingredients.
2. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours.
3. Just before serving, stir in peanuts.
4. Serve with tortilla chips.

Chicken Stuffed Green Peppers

This is one of the best recipes in my arsenal; definitely in my top ten. It has wonderful flavor, sophisticated presentation, and loads of healthy vegetables. This recipe can easily be made into a vegetarian dish if you replace the chicken broth with vegetable broth and the shredded chicken with fresh chopped mushrooms. The flavor combination of the wild rice, thyme, and zucchini is fantastic! If you need a "wow" recipe that looks and tastes like it requires lots of culinary talent, this is your dish. It does take some time to put together (1 1/2 hours) but none of the steps are hard so plan ahead and enjoy.

Serves: 4 people
Start-to-finish: 1 hour 30 minutes
Recipe By: Shelley Armstrong

Ingredients:

4 large green peppers (you want them to be similar sizes)
1/3 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
2 TBSP butter
3 cups diced cooked chicken (I like to use a large can of cooked chicken or a precooked little rotisserie chicken)
2 cups chicken broth
1 (6-oz) pkg long grain brown and wild rice blend
1/3 cup sliced celery
1/4 cup finely chopped carrots
1/4 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1 (14-oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1/2 cup chopped zucchini
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Cut tops off peppers and remove seeds and insides.
2. In a large pot, cook peppers in boiling water for 3 min.
3. Drain and rinse in cold water.
4. Place upside down on paper towels; set aside.
5. In a large saucepan, saute the onion and garlic in butter until tender.
6. Add the chicken, broth, rice with contents of seasoning packet, celery, carrot, basil and thyme; bring to a boil.
7. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 25 min or until the rice is almost tender.
8. Remove from the heat; stir in the tomatoes and zucchini.
9. Spoon rice mixture into the peppers; place in a greased 2-qt. baking dish. (You can spoon any remaining rice mixture around peppers.)
10. Cover and bake at 350° for 25 min.
11. Uncover and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese; bake 5 min longer.

Spaghetti Squash with Marinera

This recipe won grand prize in a "Taste of Home" for bountiful harvest ideas. In my house we serve it with a breaded chicken breast as Chicken Parmesan. If you wanted to make this a vegetarian meal you could serve it with Lightlife's Chick'n-style smart patties and get the same results. It does need a little something hearty to make it a full meal. My favorite part of this recipe is the squash, it is so much fun and I had no idea that a vegetable could pass as spaghetti. So without further ado...

Serves: 6
Start to Finish: 20 min
Recipe By: Kathryn Pehl

Ingredients:

1 medium spaghetti squash (about 4 lbs)
2 cups fresh tomatoes, chopped (or you can substitute for 1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes)
1 cup green peppers, diced
1/2 cup carrots, shredded
1/4 cup red onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/8 tsp pepper (don't overdo pepper)
1 TBSP olive oil
1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Cut squash in half lengthwise; scoop out and discard the seeds.
2. Place the squash, cut side down, on a microwave-safe plate (if your microwave is not wide enough, you can stack one upside-down on top of the other).
3. Microwave, uncovered, on high for 14-16 minutes or until tender.
4. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute the tomatoes, green pepper, carrot, onion, garlic, Italian seasoning, and pepper in oil for 6-8 minutes or until tender.
5. Add tomato sauce; heat through.
6. When squash is cool enough to handle, use a fork to separate strands (this is done by gently running the fork over the inside of the squash. You will begin to see the strands appearing, like magic).
7. Place squash on a serving platter; top with sauce. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.