Dinner Club

It was my week to do dinner club and so I decided to try something new - which is always a risk, but it paid off this week. I stole a recipe from the Pioneer Woman (check out her blog for step by step directions to some of the most heavenly food you have ever seen: www.pioneerwoman.com). I made her Asian Noodle Salad, which she adapted from Jaime Oliver. It was oh-so-good and very healthy. . . Brandi, this would be a great one for your family!

Since I was going healthy, I thought why not throw in an almost-fat-free, almost-sugar-free lemon cheesecake. This recipe I stole from Paula Deen, who stole it from her friend Joann. Nicole said she and her hubby enjoyed this cheesecake even more because they knew it was not going to clog their arteries. So, here's the recipes. Enjoy!

Asian Noodle Salad
* Beware - this makes a ton of food! This one recipe basically fed three families for dinner and lunch the next day. Adapt it to your taste and scale it down if you desire.

1 package linguine noodles, cooked, rinsed and cooled
1/2 - 1 head Napa cabbage
1/2 - 1 head purple cabbage
1/2 - 1 bag spinach
1 red bell pepper, sliced thin (I used 2)
1 yellow pepper, sliced thin
1 orange pepper, sliced thin (I just used carrots for color instead of the pepper)
1 small bag bean sprouts
3 sliced scallions
3 peeled and sliced cucumbers
up to 1 bunch chopped cilantro
1 can whole cashews (I used halves and pieces and it was fine)lightly toasted in a skillet

Dressing:
juice of 1 lime
8 Tb. oilive oil
2 Tb. sesame oil
6 Tb. soy sauce
1/3 C brown sugar
3 Tb. chopped fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1-2 jalapenos
more chopped cilantro

Mix together salad ingredients. Whisk together the dressing ingredients and pour over the salad. Mix with tongs or hands and serve on a large platter. The dressing can be made ahead up to three days - without the cilantro.

Notes: I left out the jalapeno because kids were eating this. I did add a little asian chile sauce though for a tiny kick. To feed all three families I doubled the noodles and 1 1/2 the dressing.


Joann's Almost Fat-Free Lemon Cheesecake

(The beauty of this recipe is that you can make is super low fat/low sugar or not)

Crust:
1 3/4 C fat free vanilla wafer cookie crumbs (I used reduced fat Nilla Wafers)
1/4 C unsalted butter

Filling:
3 (8 oz) packages fat free cream cheese
1 C fat free sour cream
2 C sugar or sugar substitute (I used Splenda)
3 large eggs or 3/4 C egg substitute (I used real eggs)
2 tsp. lemon zest
2 Tb. lemon juice

Lemon Curd:
1 1/2 tsp. lemon zest
6 Tb. lemon juice
1 large egg plus one egg yolk
1/2 C sugar or sugar substitute (I used real sugar here)
2 Tb. unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Lightly spray a 9-inch. spring form pan. Mix the cookie crumbs with the butter. Press crumb mixture onto the bottom of the pan and about 1 1/2-inches up the sides. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until edges are slightly golden. Cool on a rack.

For the filling, mix the cream cheese and sour cream together on medium-high in an electric mixer for 2-3 minutes until fluffy. Gradually beat in the sugar. Beat in the eggs one at a time, just until incorporated. Beat in the zest and juice. Pour into crust and bake for 1 to 1 hour, 15 minutes or until the center is almost set but still jiggly. Do not overbake because it will firm up while it cools. Let cool completely.

For the lemon curd, combine lemon zest, lemon juice, egg, egg yolk and sugar in the top of a double boiler with gently simmering water underneath. Whisk until hot and frothy, about 5 minutes. Gradually whisk in the butter and continue whisking for 7 more minutes or until thickened and coats the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat and cool 30 minutes (it will continue to thicken). Spoon on top of the cheesecake. Chill until serving. Garnish with raspberries if desired.