Baked Onion Rings

Randy loves these onion rings, so he is in charge of preparation. I was 8 feet away and still crying! But no matter how strong the onions, these always turn out yummy. Cooking seems to mellow out even the sharpest onion.

Baked Onion Rings

Slice two whole large onions into about 1/2" slices. Separate the rings and place in large mixing bowl. For every two onions, use two lightly beaten eggs; pour eggs over the onions and mix with a large spoon. Sprinkle about 2 tsp. garlic powder over all. (You can experiment with other spices; barbecue blends are good.) Then sprinkle about 1/2 cup purchased dried bread crumbs over and stir lightly.

Line a large cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Spray foil with non-stick coating. Place onion rings in single layer on foil.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 1/2 an hour. Just enough time to grill your steaks.

We used a Butcher's Rub on our steaks that we purchased in Charleston from The Spice and Tea Exchange. Very peppery and spicy. Yum!

Slow-Cooker Lasagna

This was very simple to make and tasted delicious. Keep an eye on it after 4 hours; it all depends on your slow cooker. Mine took about 5 hours.

Slow-Cooker Lasagna

1 - 1.5 lbs ground turkey (I use the 93/7 fat variety)

1 jar or can (26 oz) spaghetti sauce

1 cup water

1 container (15 oz) part skim or lowfat ricotta cheese

1 pkg. (8 oz) lowfat shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided

1 egg

2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

6 lasagna noodles, uncooked

Brown meat in large skillet; drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce and water. In separate bowl, mix ricotta, 1.5 cups mozzarella, 2 Tbsp. parmesan, egg and parsley.

Spoon 1 cup meat sauce into slow cooker; top with layers of half each of the noodles, broken to fit, and cheese mixture. Cover with 2 cups of the remaining meat sauce. Top with remaining noodles, broken to fit, cheese mixture and meat sauce. Cover with lid.

Cook on low 4 to 6 hours or until liquid is absorbed. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses; let stand, covered, 10 min. or until melted.

Note: for best results, do not cook on the high setting.

Blueberry Lattice Pie

This pie won 5th place in a pie contest. Fifth isn't too impressive until you hear that there were 21 entries!

Flaky Whole Wheat Pie Crust

2 cups Whole Wheat Pastry Flour

1 tsp salt

3/4 cup unsalted butter, chilled (I used butter flavored Crisco)

5 to 8 Tbsp Ice Water

Sift flour and salt into a large mixing bowl. Cut butter into 12 pieces and use a pastry blender to rub into dry ingredients until the mixture resembles a coarse meal with some pea-size pieces. Sprinkle water over mixture, one tablespoon at a time and knead lightly just until a dough forms. Form dough into a ball. Cut in half and press each into a disc shape. Wrap each disc in waxed paper or plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes before rolling.

Yield: 2 - 9" single pie crusts or 1 - 9" double pie crust.

Blueberry Lattice Pie

1- 9" double pie crust

2/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

2 tsp. grated lemon rind

5 cups blueberries

1 egg whisked with 1 tsp water

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

On a floured surface, roll half of pie dough (one disc) into a 12-inch circle; fit into a 9-inch pie plate.

Combine sugar, cornstarch and lemon rind in a large bowl. Add blueberries; mix gently. Spoon into pie plate.

Roll remaining pie dough into a 10-inch circle. Cut into 12 strips. Arrange strips in lattice pattern over fruit. Press edges of dough together and fold under. Brush dough with egg mixture.

Bake 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375F and bake 20-30 minutes, or until pastry is glazed and fruit is bubbling. Cool on wire rack.

Note: I used a 10-inch glass plate and pie was done at the 20 minute mark.