Figgy Pudding

http://www.food.com/recipe/figgy-pudding-337148

Rated without sauce. I made this for fun this year as an experiment. We enjoyed it, but I think it does need a sauce and would do best in a setting where it can be a star, and not dwarfed by other holiday goodies.

White Bean Dip

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/white-bean-dip-with-pita-chips-recipe/index.html
White Bean Dip

I actually made this several years ago, like five or so. It was super tasty and great. I got some compliments on it.

Roasted Vegetable Orzo

http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/roasted-vegetable-orzo-recipe.html
Roasted Vegetable Orzo

I subbed a small (peeled) butternut squash for delicata here, since you can't get it in stores. I liked this dish quite a lot. The garlic sauce was great. I served with toasted pine nuts on top.

Lentil Granola

http://thestonesoup.com/blog/2012/05/lentilgranola/

This is really good. I think I boiled it too long, like 8 minutes instead of 5. I had to bake it an extra 30 minutes to get it dry because of the longer boil I think. This is calorie dense like granola tends to be, but more because of the almonds than anything else. It is mildly sweet. I made it with cinnamon, and had one serving mixed with some fresh blackberries I happened to have (rare occurrence) and two scoops of plain yogurt.

The finished product fits in a 1 quart yogurt container. (Mine is in a 1 kg container and has a tiny bit of extra room).

Servings: 12. Each serving 1/3 cup.
Calories 220 per serving

Crab Cakes

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/crab-cakes-with-roasted-vegetables-tangy-butter-sauce-10000001723371/

I liked these. I didn't have the sides or sauce to go with them though, so it wasn't the complete experience. It is a fun way to have crab though.

4 servings. 443 per serving, (including sauce and veg)

Parisian Lentils

Adapted from http://thestonesoup.com/blog/2012/12/a-lesson-from-my-new-favourite-cookbook/#

I love love this recipe. It is so fast and healthy too, with tons of fiber and protein and very minimal effort. I used part-skim ricotta, regular brown lentils, and halved the olive oil. Everything else the same, and it was so tasty.  The lentils cooked in 20-30 minutes. I wasn't watching because people came to visit during cooking.

Serves 2. 370 calories/serving (with like 30 g protein, 33 g fiber, crazy! I need to do lentils more.)

note: I think the calories are low. THe lentils I used said they were 80 cal per 35 g. But it also had 20 carb+10 protein per serving, which is 120 calories. So assuming 120 is correct and 80 is not, the cals would be 480 per serving.

Spaghetti Squash Casserole

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/spaghetti-squash-i/

This was so tasty. Definitely will make again.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/pumpkin-cheesecake-recipe/index.html

This was awesome. Remember to line bottom with wax paper so it is easy to slide on to a server plate.

Hanukkah Menu

Hanukkah 2012:
Appetizer: http://lrhrecipes.blogspot.com/2010/12/potato-latkes-pancakes.html (rated 4.5)
with homemade applesauce & sour cream

Main course: http://lrhrecipes.blogspot.com/2010/07/baked-chicken.html
I put a tablespoon of herbes de provance in some melted butter and coated the top of chicken pieces with it. Worked great! (Rated 4.5)

Veges: http://lrhrecipes.blogspot.com/2012/12/roast-root-vegetables.html (rated 4)

Dessert: http://lrhrecipes.blogspot.com/2012/12/doughnuts.html (rated 4)

Hanukkah 2016:
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/221041/wine-braised-beef-brisket
Latkes

Roast Root Vegetables

This goes well with roast chicken. You cut up carrots, potatoes, turnips, parsnips, beets, rutabaga, etc into bite size chunks, toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread out on single layer on baking sheet. (my baking sheet was nearly full with 3 carrots, 1 giant potato, and 1 turnip)
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes, and it tastes awesome.

Doughnuts

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/crispy-and-creamy-doughnuts/

I made half a batch, and it made like 18 doughnuts. I did not use their icing recipe (although I may next time).  I mixed confectioner sugar with milk, and microwaved it. The milk curdled I think, but it turned out fine anyway, though it was too sticky, like honey, on the doughnuts. It would be good as a surface for sticking toppings, but not great by itself in my opinion, although the guests liked it as is. I tried to get the temp around 365 or 375, but it was moving around. Medium high was too high (on spiral burner), but medium too low. I used a bottle cap to cut holes.

Sweet Shredded Pork

http://www.favfamilyrecipes.com/2008/09/cafe-rio-sweet-pork.html

I did not follow the recipe exactly because I had no coke (only 7 year old diet pepsi from my car trunk that tasted beyond strange and I threw it out), so this is rated based on a moderated recipe.

2 lbs pork
1/2 c brown sugar
1 cup red enchilada sauce (or so)
1 can diced green chilies

David does not like sweet pork very much. I liked the enchilada sauce and green chilies mixed with pork, but it would do better without the sugar unless you follow the recipe exactly to get cafe rio-ness.

But it makes an awful lot of pork for two people when one of them does not care for sweet pork.

Sweet and Sour Pork

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/spicy-sweet-and-sour-pork-10000001911381/

The calories don't include rice.

Cal: 350 / serving. 4 servings. I liked this pretty well. David likes sweet and sour meatballs better.

Steak and Arugula Salad

Based on http://thestonesoup.com/blog/2012/11/could-you-make-dinner-in-5-minutes/

Steak and Arugula salad

David and I both really liked this. We used Briannas french vinaigrette (the artichoke pic one) instead of the lemon & olive oil thing, and I also sauteed/browned some almond slivers after the meet was cooked. I used shredded parmesan (not the green can, but real parmesan that was shredded) instead of shaved. It was really good! The arugula was fantastic. I've never had a meaty salad I enjoyed quite this much that was so quick to make. A 5 oz bag of arugula was just right for two people.

Calories per serving: Using 1 T salad dressing, this is between 450 and 500 calories with the cheese and nuts, assuming 6 oz cooked top sirloin per person with all the fat trimmed (320 cal).

Gnocchi Stir Fry

1 green bell pepper, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 lb of gnocchi
8 oz kielbasa
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan (or less)
1/4 cup Basilla Arrabiata sauce

Do not cook the gnocchi. Saute onion, pepper, and kielbasa until cooked and pepper is softened somewhat. You may need the lid. Add gnocchi and sauce, toss and let gnocchi steam with lid on. Top with parmesan, stir, and serve.

I made this up and it turned out great.
Calories: 406 /serving. 4 servings.