Chicken Mirabella
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup pitted prunes, halved
8 small green olives
2 Tbsps capers, with liquid
2 Tbsps olive oil
2 Tbsps red wine vinegar
2 bay leaves
1 Tbsp dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste
1 (3 lbs) whole chicken, skin removed and cut into pieces
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley, for garnish

In a medium bowl combine the garlic, prunes, olives, capers, olive oil, vinegar, bay leaves, oregano, salt and pepper. Mix well. Spread mixture in the bottom of a 10x15 inch baking dish. Add the chicken pieces, stir and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
When ready to prepare, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove dish from refrigerator. Sprinkle brown sugar on top and pour white wine all around chicken.
Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour, spooning juices over chicken several times as it is baking. Serve on a platter, pouring juices over the top, and garnish with fresh parsley.

My notes: I recently found a recipe for this type of chicken on Denise's friend, Laurel's, blog. I found a different version on Allrecipes and thought I'd give it a shot. Originally I would've been completely turned off to the idea of chicken and prunes, but I had made a recipe a few years back for an exotic pot-luck at Erin & Jermaine's (the first time I had met them actually!) and it came out pretty tasty! I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts instead of the bone-in kind. Next time I might stick everything in the crockpot for the day after it marinates overnight. It's always nice to come home to a house that smells like cookin'!!

Teriyaki Tuna Steaks
1/4 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
3 Tbsps brown sugar
3 Tbsps olive or canola oil
2 Tbsps white wine vinegar or cider vinegar
2 Tbsps sherry or chicken broth
2 Tbsps unsweetened pineapple juice
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 tsps ground ginger
4 (6 ounce) tuna steaks

In a bowl, combine the first eight ingredients; mix well. Remove 1/3 cup to a small bowl for basting; cover and refrigerate. Pour remaining marinade into a large resealable plastic bag; add tuna. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for up to 1 hour.
Coat grill rack with nonstick cooking spray before starting the grill. Drain and discard marinade. Grill tuna, uncovered, over medium heat for 5-6 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily with a fork, basting frequently with reserved marinade.

CALORIES 338; FAT 9 g (sat 1 g); PROTEIN 52g; CHOLESTEROL 99 mg; SODIUM 484 mg; CARBOHYDRATE 9 g

My notes: This was my first attempt with fish (aside from the breaded frozen kind!). I was very pleased with the way it turned out and would definitely use this recipe again. I didn't have any ginger so I left that out (I guess I could've used the ground stuff I had, but I'm not a big fan of ginger anyway). For grilling I used the new cast iron pan which worked well (I still need to figure out how to clean the thing without soap!). I made some broiled zucchini to go along with it. Stir-fry with some rice would also be a good option.

Minestrone Soup
3 Tbsps olive oil
1 cup minced white onions (about 1 small onion)
1/2 cup chopped zucchini
1/2 cup frozen cut italian green beans
1/4 cup minced celery (about 1/2 stalk)
4 tsps minced garlic (about 4 cloves)
4 cups vegetable broth (Swanson is good *note: Do not use chicken broth!*)
2 (15 ounce) cans red kidney beans, drained
2 (15 ounce) cans small white beans or great northern beans, drained
1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup carrots, julienned or shredded
2 Tbsps minced fresh parsley
1 1/2 tsps dried oregano
1 1/2 tsps salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp dried thyme
3 cups hot water
4 cups fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup small shell pasta

Heat three tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot. Saute onion, celery, garlic, green beans, and zucchini in the oil for 5 minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent. Add vegetable broth to pot, plus drained tomatoes, beans, carrot, hot water, and spices. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for 20 minutes. Add spinach leaves and pasta and cook for an additional 20 minutes or until desired consistency.
Makes about eight 1 1/2 cup servings.

CALORIES 397(16% from fat); FAT 7.2g (sat 1.1g, mono 4.1g, poly 1.5g); PROTEIN 20.7g; CHOLESTEROL 1mg; CALCIUM 169mg; SODIUM 935mg; FIBER 15.2g; IRON 8mg; CARBOHYDRATE 65.3g

My notes: The minestrone soup from the Olive Garden is probably my absolute favorite soup (unfortunately for Seth, he's not a huge fan of O.G....he'd much rather have some "real" Italian food!) So, when I found this recipe I was excited to try it out...and even more excited when it actually tasted VERY similar to the soup at the restaurant! I made half of the recipe just in case it didn't turn out very good. I left the celery out because I don't really like the stuff. I also left the spinach out, by accident, but I'll definitely include it the next time I make it (spinach isn't my favorite, but I know that it's very good for me and try to eat it when I can!). Now Seth doesn't have to suffer through some imitation Italian while I enjoy a couple bowls of yummy minestrone!

Maple-Mustard Pork Tenderloin With Caramelized Apples
2 (1/2-pound) pork tenderloins
Cooking spray
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
6 tablespoons maple syrup, divided
1 tablespoon chopped fresh or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
4 medium Granny Smith apples, each peeled and cut into 16 wedges (about 2 1/2 pounds)

Preheat oven to 425°.
Trim fat from pork. Place pork on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Combine mustard, 2 tablespoons syrup, rosemary, salt, and pepper in a small bowl; brush over pork. Insert meat thermometer into thickest part of pork. Bake at 425° for 25 minutes or until thermometer registers 160° (slightly pink).

While pork is baking, heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add apples, and saute 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Reduce heat to low, and add 4 tablespoons maple syrup. Simmer 10 minutes or until apples are tender, stirring occasionally. Cut pork crosswise into slices; spoon cooked apples over pork.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 3 ounces pork and 1/2 cup apples)

CALORIES 301(13% from fat); FAT 4.3g (sat 1.1g,mono 1.8g,poly 0.5g); PROTEIN 24.1g; CHOLESTEROL 74mg; CALCIUM 39mg; SODIUM 351mg; FIBER 4.5g; IRON 2.1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 44.6g

My notes: I didn't have pork tenderloin thawed out so I used pork chops instead. I dipped the chops in the mustard sauce and then cooked them in a grill pan. After they were finished cooking I placed them in the pan with the apples. Also I used a different kind of mustard (had the ground mustard seeds in it) and added some onion powder to give things a little more flavor.

Banana Bread
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 very ripe, soft, darkly speckled large bananas, mashed well (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup plain yogurt
2 large eggs, beaten lightly
3/4 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups walnuts, chopped coarse (optional)

Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 350°F (175°C) degrees. Grease the bottom and sides of a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan; dust with flour, tapping out the excess.
Spread the walnuts on a baking sheet and toast until fragrant, 5 to 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and walnuts together in a large bowl; set aside.
Mix the mashed bananas, yogurt, eggs, butter, and vanilla with a wooden spoon in a medium bowl. Lightly fold the banana mixture into the dry ingredients with a rubber spatula until just combined and the batter looks thick and chunky. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
Bake until the loaf is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 55 minutes. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. (The bread can be wrapped with plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days.)

My notes: This has become my regular recipe when it comes to banana bread. It's not heavy and greasy like a lot of other recipes I've had in the past. I usually use vanilla yogurt instead of plain (I've even used sour cream in a pinch and it tasted fine). If your bananas are super ripe and almost ready for the trash, but you don't have time to bake, just pop 'em in the freezer! When you do ave the spare time just thaw them out completely before mashing them up.