Hearty Beef Vegetable Soup

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 pound beef stew meat, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 can (14-1/2 ounces) Italian diced tomatoes

1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon dried oregano

3 cups hot water

4 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

6 medium carrots, sliced

2 medium turnips, peeled and cubed

1 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced

1 medium green pepper, julienned

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms

1 medium onion, chopped

1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies

2 tablespoons sugar

• In a large resealable plastic bag, combine the flour, salt and pepper. Add beef, a few pieces at a time, and shake to coat.

• In a soup kettle or Dutch oven, brown beef in oil. Stir in tomatoes, tomato sauce, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, garlic and oregano. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1 hour.

• Stir in the remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1 hour or until meat and vegetables are tender.
  

Yield: 8 servings (about 2-1/2 quarts)

Raspberry-Stuffed French Toast

4 oz. Neufchatel Cheese (1/3 less fat cream cheese), softened
1/2 c. sugar
2 t. vanilla
1 t. ground cinnamon
2 eggs, plus 2 egg whites
5 cups fat free milk, divided
1 loaf (ends trimmed off) French baguette, cut into 18 slices
1 pkg. frozen unsweetened raspberries
1 pkg. (4-serving size) Vanilla Instant Pudding Mix

• Beat Neufchatel Cheese, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon with mixer until well blended. Add eggs and egg whites, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Gradually add 2 cups of the milk, beating until well blended.
• Arrange 9 of the bread slices in a greased 13x9 inch baking dish. Sprinkle with half of the raspberries, top with remaining bread slices. Pour wet mixture over bread. Let stand 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Bake 40 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, bring remaining 3 cups of milk just to boiling in a saucepan, gradually add the dry pudding mix, whisking until well blended. Remove from heat, let stand 5 minutes. Microwave remaining berries in small microwaveable bowl in high 15-20 seconds or until warm. Serve French Toast topped with custard sauce and raspberries.

Makes 9 servings.

Herbal Iced Tea

4 Celestial Seasonings Lemon Zinger tea bags
4 Celestial Seasonings Red Zinger tea bags
4 cups pure apple juice

• Steep the 8 tea bags in 4 cups of boiling water for 10 minutes.
• Discard the tea bags*.
• Combine the tea with the apple juice and refrigerate until cold.
• Serve over ice.

*note: I thought that the tea bags still had more potency, so I steeped them again and made regular iced tea.

Cinnamon Stewed Apples

6 cups chopped peeled Granny Smith apple (about 2 pounds)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup apple juice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon salt

• Combine all ingredients in a large, heavy saucepan.
• Cover and cook over medium-low heat 45 minutes or until apples are tender, stirring occasionally.
• Let stand 5 minutes.

Grilled Marinated London Broil

4 large garlic cloves, minced
4 T. balsamic vinegar
4 T. fresh lemon juice
3 T. Dijon mustard
1 1/2 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 T. soy sauce
1 t. each dried oregano, basil, and thyme, crumbled
1/2 t. dried hot peper flakes
2/c c. olive oil

one 2 to 2 1/2 pound London Broil

To make marinade:

• In a bowl, wisk together ingredients until combined well
• Put London Broil in a large resealable plastic bag and pour marinade over it. Seal bag, pressing out excess air and set on a plate. Marinate meat, chilled, turning bag once or twice, overnight.
• Grill meat, marinade discarded, over medium heat turning once (9-10 minutes on each side or until meat reaches 135 degrees). Alternatively, meat may be broiled. Transfer meat onto a cutting board and let stand 10 minutes. Cut meat diagonally across the grain into thin slices. Serves 6.