84-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 30, 1991
MICROWAVE
minutes
Think of leftovers as your
bonus for cooking a large meal.
And, think of your microwave as
the fast way to make a delicious
second meal. Dice leftover pieces
of meat or poultry and combine
them with some cooked veget
ables and a low calorie micro
waved sauce for a wonderful tast
ing main dish.
Both of today’s recipes call for
cooking a vegetable first. Green
peppers and onions are steamed in
a little water for the turkey dish,
while frozen Brussels sprouts and
a bit of green onion are the begin
ning for the ham casserole. Both
combinations arc cooked quickly
and nutritiously in the same dish
that you can use later for serving.
The sauce is what adds charac
ter to both dishes. It’s cooked
separately and then added to the
other ingredients. And, Us just
about foolproof to make in your
microwave. There’s no chance of
scorching, no constant stirring and
less chance of lumpy results. Also,
at the end, there’s no sticky pan to
clean up.
The sauce for Devilish Turkey
and Peppers is a standard
cornstarch-based sauce. It’s fla
vored with Worcestershire, brown
sugar and prepared mustard to
give a not-so-sweel-and-sour
sauce with a hint of devilish fla
vor. (Add more prepared mustard
and some hot pepper sauce if you
like a stronger deviled flavor.) To
get a smooth mixture, the corns
tarch and sugar are stirred together
first, then Worcestershire and
mustard stirred in and finally the
HCAITH K*X
By JOYCE BATTCHER
broth is added gradually.
The cornstarch sauce must
come to a full boil in order to
thicken. Since mixtures boil high
in the microwave a big enough
cooking dish is needed. A four to
six-cup measure works best for
cooking sauces. A deep container,
like a measure rather than a
shallower casserole let the mix
ture heat and thicken more evenly.
The sauce which goes into Ham
and Brussels Sprouts Casserole is
not your usual milk, butter and
flour-based white sauce. Instead,
it’s a mixture of flour and non-fat
plain yogurt. Calories and fat are
low in this sauce and the flavor
has a special tang which compli
ments flavors of ham and veget
ables. It’s a bit thicker than tradi
tional white sauce. Try the sauce
made without mustard and sea
soned with herbs for a good varia
tion to use with other vegetables,
such as asparagus, cauliflower,
green beans and broccoli.
To prevent yogurt from separat
ing, bring it to room temperature
before cooking or before adding it
to hot mixtures. If there’s no lime
for yogurt to set out, microwave
an opened carton for 30 seconds
on Medium Low (30 percent pow
er, about 200 watts). (If the carton
contains metal, remove the yogurt
to a small microwavable dish
first.) Stir and repeat microwaving
on Medium Low at 15-second
intervals or until room tempera
ture.
Both sauces are stirred at one
minute intervals to prevent them
from forming a big lump in the
bottom, and towards the end of
cooking time to prevent boilovcrs.
A wire whisk is ideal for stirring
sauces because if the sauce starts
to gel lumpy, whisking it smooths
it quickly.
Devilish Turkey and Peppers
1 large green pepper, diced
1 medium onion, diced
2 tablespoons water
2 cups diced cooked turkey
A cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons low-sodium
Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 10/a -ounce can condensed
chicken broth
Hot cooked rice or chow mein'
noodles
Place green pepper, onion and
water in a microwavable VA to
2-quart casserole. Cover with lid
or plastic wrap. Microwave
(High) 2 to 3 minutes or until veg
etables are tender. Stir in turkey,
re-cover and set aside.
Stir together brown sugar and
cornstarch in a microwavable I
quart measure. Add Worcester
shire sauce, prepared mustard,
stirring until smooth. Add con
densed broth. Microwave (High) 4
to 5 minutes, stirring after each
minute, or until thick and bubbly
around edges. Stir into reserved
turkey mixture. If necessary, cov
er and microwave (High) 1 to 3
minutes or until hot. Makes about
4 servings.
Each serving: 172 calories, 17g
protein, Ig fat, 23g carbohydrate,
637 mg sodium, 32mg cholesterol.
VARIATIONS: Add 1 cup
cooked, drained, sliced carrots or
other cooked vegetable to turkey
mixture. For a more deviled fla
vor, add another 2 to 3 teaspoons
prepared mustard and / to 'A
teaspoon hot pepper sauce.
Ham and Brussels Sprouts
Casserole
1 10-ounce package frozen
Brussels sprounts or 1 pint (1
pound) fresh Brussels sprouts
GOOD FOOD OUTLET STORES
See Our Original Line Of Golden Barrel Products Plus AH
Kinds Of Nuts, Beans, Candies, Etc. At Reduced Prices
Processors Of Syrups, Molasses,
Cooking Oil, Funnel Cake Mix
& Shoofly Pie Mizes
(With or Without Syrup)
Good Pood Outlets
Located At
L&S SWEETENERS
388 E Mam St, Leola, PA 17540
717-656-3486 1-800-633-2676
GOOD FOOD OUTLET
Located At Good Food, Inc.
W. Main St, Box 160, Honey Brook, PA 19344
215-273-3776 1-800-327-4406
WE UPS DAILY
'A cup sliced green onion
2 cups diced cooked lean
smoked ham
1 8-ounce carton non-fat plain
yogurt
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
VA to 2 teaspoons Dijon-style
prepared mustard
Dash ground white or black
pepper
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded
Swiss cheese
Place frozen Brussels sprouts
and green onion in a microwav
able 1/2 to 2-quart casserole.
Cover with lid or plastic wrap.
Microwave (High) 4 to 5 minutes
or until Brussels sprouts are
thawed and hot. Stir in ham, re
cover and set aside.
Stir together yogurt, flour,
Dijon-style mustard and pepper in
a microwavalbe 1 quart measure.
Microwave (High) 214 to 3
minutes stirring after each minute,
or until thick and starling to
bubble around edges. Stir into
reserved ham mixture, along with
cheese. If necessary, cover and
microwave (High) 1 to 3 minutes
Manage Tension
Keeping Tension Within
Reasonable Limits
1. See your Physician: A check
up is always important especially
if you are busy. Your physician
can usually discover the cause of
frequent “aches and pains.”
2. Talk it Over: When tensions
build up-, discuss the problem with
a close friend or with the people
involved.
3. Exercise Regularly: Swim,
walk, bicycle, jog, any favorite
sport will help you let off steam
and work out stress.
4. Plan your Work: Tension and
anxiety really build up when your
work seems endless. Plan your
If your local store
does not have it,
CALL OR WRITE
FOR FREE
BROCHURE
& PRICES
L SPECIAL FOR APRIL
P REGULAR
I GOLDEN BARREL
TABLE SYRUP
Reg. $1.69
Special Price
$1.19
or until, hot. Makes about 4 serv
ings.
Each serving: 244 calories, 23g
protein, 14gfat, 12g carbohydrate,
842 mg sodium, 57mg cholester
ol.)
VARIATION: Substitute
reduced-fat cheese for regular
Swiss cheese. Or substitute 4 turk
ey for ham and reduced-fat or reg
ular sharp Cheddar cheese for the
Swiss cheese.
Questions for Joyce?
Do you have a question about
microwave cooking? Send it to
Microwave Minutes, c/o Extra
Newspaper Features, P.O. Box
6118, Rochester, Minn. 55903.
Please include a self-addressed,
stamped, business-size envelope.
Recipes in this column are
tested in 600- and 650-watt micro
wave ovens. With an oven of dif
ferent wattage output, timings
may need slight adjustment.
Joyce Battcher is an independent
home economist microwave specialist.
She is author of "Microwave Family
Favorites" and editor of "A Batch of
Ideas" newsletter.
© 1991 Extra Newspaper Features
work to use time and energy more
efficiently.
5. Take a Break: A change of
pace, no matter how short, gives
you a new outlook on old prob
lems.
6. Learn to Relax: Everyone can
teach himself or herself to relax.
Just a few minutes of peace and
quiet every day makes a big differ
ence. Try it!
7. Be Realistic: People who
expect too much of themselves can
get tense if things do not work out.
Set practical goals and expect to be
successful.
8. Avoid Stress: Whenever pos
sible, plan to avoid 100 many big
changes coming at the same lime.
* CORN SYRUP * BAKING
* PANCAKE SYRUP MOLASSES
* PURE MAPLE SYRUP * BARBADOS
* SORGHUM SYRUP MOLASSES
* TABLE SYRUP * BLACK STRAP
* COCONUT OIL MOLASSES
* CORN OIL * HONEY
* COTTONSEED OH. * PEANUT LOITER
* PEANUT OIL * FUNNEL CAKE MIX
* SOYBEAN OIL * SHOOFLY PIE MIXES
* 100 LB. BAG GRANULATED SUGAR
Comparable To Turkey Syrup
Or Old Barrel Syrup
From Good Food Inc.
Honey Brook, PA