Oriental Veggie Salad

I didn't take an original photo and thought this one I found online was too pretty not to post with this. The link is here for this photo which I think you will like for some more salad combinations as well.
I recently mistakenly made this recipe up for a luncheon and candle party at a friend's house. I took it anyway, even though I was unsure because it didn't have any meat in it. Surprisingly, it had rave reviews and so I thought I would post it here. Hope you may like it!

Oriental Veggie Salad

Salad:

1 romaine heart, chopped up (or one bag of romaine lettuce)
1 1/2 c. coleslaw mix w/ purple & white cabbage and shredded carrots (or finely shredded carrots and cabbage)
1/3 c. toasted almond slivers or slices (blanched almonds)
1/2 c. thin tortilla strips

Dressing:

1/3 c. vinegar
1/2 c. sugar
3/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. horseradish or lemon curd
1/4 c. spanish or green onion, finely diced
1 c. canola oil

To make dressing, combine everything but the oil in a blender or food processor and process until liquified.

Continue to blend and slowly drizzle in the oil until blended.

To be really authentic, make coleslaw with the cabbage and the dressing first and top it with the lettuce, almonds and tortilla strips.

I've had good results by layering first the romaine then the cabbage, almonds, carrots and dressing.

Time Saver Note: If you don't have time to make the dressing above, although its really tasty, then I suggest using Ken's Steakhouse Asian Sesame with Ginger & Soy instead. It's a great oriental dressing but it will give the salad a slightly different taste than the dressing above. It will still be good.

Cloning of a Twinkie

I just watched this on Yahoo video about how to bake the clone of a Twinkie. I thought it was really funny and Todd Wilbur has some great ideas too. Watch and see what you think while learning how to make a Twinkie clone as well.

Christmas Cookie Exchange

Each year I like to join a Christmas Cookie Exchange. It's a tradition, I love cookies as much as Cookie Monster and I think its fun. I thought I'd post my photos and recipe from the cookies I made from this year '08, Orange Glazed Gingersnaps and last year '07, Raspberry Almond Thumbprint cookies. Maybe you'll like them. Recipe's are linked above on the name of the cookies.

Here's the glaze I used for both but I added orange zest and flavoring for the gingersnaps and left it plain for the thumbprint cookies:

• 1 1/2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 tablespoons half-and-half cream or whole milk
  

To make Glaze: Combine powdered sugar, butter, vanilla and enough cream to make glaze of spreading consistency. Beat until smooth. Use a Ziploc bag and cut a small corner hole for a more detailed line like I did for the raspberry cookies. Or drizzle with a spoon on cookies like I did for the gingersnaps and I also put fresh orange zest on the tops as shown in the photo.

Cranberry Orange Muffins

Cranberry and orange together is one of my favorite combinations, so I'm always looking for good recipes that combine the two. This one did the trick. I made a bunch of substitutions to make it healthier since I'm on WW, but I'll include both the real ingredients and my substitions. Your choice.

Cranberry Orange Muffins (makes 12 large muffins)

2 cups flour (I used whole wheat)
3/4 C sugar (I used 1/2 c Splenda and 1/4 c sugar)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup fresh cranberries (I used dried, which worked just as well)
1 egg (I used two egg whites)
3/4 C orange juice
1/4 c vegetable oil (I used 1/4 c fat free yogurt)
1 tsp orange zest

Combine the dry ingredients together. Stir in cranberries. Mix the egg, orange juice, oil, and zest together. Add in all dry ingredients at once and stir just until moistened. Fill muffin cups 3/4 of the way full. Bake at 400 F for 15-20 minutes. (I cooked mine at 375 for 16 minutes).

Enjoy. If you have all of the substitutions I did, these muffins are only two WW points each.