Taste of Home February 2013

YOUR FAVORITE MAGAZINE GETS HEALTHIER. You asked. We listened. Starting with this issue, our recipes include nutrition details, making it easy to balance good-for-you food with fun splurges. Also new: an Eat Smart icon on recipes that are better for you, a Makeover recipe that undergoes a nutritious fix, and a Light Nights section including a week’s worth of healthy, homey dishes. OUR 20TH BIRTHDAY STARTS NOW! Have I told you lately how wonderful it is to have you as part of our big, happy recipe swap? Some of your hands-down favorite recipes will be in our special August/September Birthday Issue. But we’ve already started celebrating with Very Vanilla Cupcakes, page 37. It’s going to be a good year! A HUGE HUG AND CONGRATS TO MELISSA MILLWOOD OF LYMAN, SOUTH…

Annie’s Eats Our latest crush is Annie Marshall of Annie’s Eats (annies-eats.com), with 2.5 million visitors a month. She’s a resident physician in Indianapolis who encourages her followers to discover easy and delicious homemade meals. How do you instill a love for cooking in your little ones? My 4-year-old son, Andrew, is my kitchen helper. He even has his own little step stool. No matter how involved a recipe is, I find a task he can do. He loves recipes that involve rolling out or shaping dough, so pizza, pita bread, scones and biscuits are great. Kids often want only certain foods. Any tips for parents on expanding young palates? Provide them with a wide range of foods at a young age, and keep trying new things. It’s also very…

Q: I enjoy making fancy desserts. What’s the easiest way to make chocolate curls? A: Lucky for you (and me), I keep a stash of chocolate in my desk drawer ready for any emergency, like this curl question. The best curl is created with room-temperature chocolate bars and practice. CANDY BAR METHOD Grab a king-size chocolate bar and a vegetable peeler and “peel” off curls. Keep a backup candy bar handy to use when one bar softens in your hand. Place curls on the dessert with a toothpick. MELTED METHOD Melt ½ cup chopped milk or white chocolate or candy coating in a microwave-safe bowl. Stir until smooth. Spread melted chocolate thinly (about ⅛ inch thick) on plastic wrap or waxed paper. Let stand until almost set but not completely…

1 CAlI-MEX Dress french fries with pork carnitas, tomatillo salsa, jalapenos and lots of jack cheese. Finish with sour cream, chopped cilantro and a squeeze of lime. Simply amazing. —INSPIRED BY JOHNEEN JJ LEAR MODESTO, CA 2 BlT PlUS I top tortilla chips with chopped cooked bacon, lettuce and tomato. Caramelized onions, green olives, banana peppers and avocado are great add-ons, too. Yum! —SARA HALLORAN FALCON, CO 3 BBQ-RRIFIC Pulled pork, barbecue sauce, cheddar cheese and chopped pickled or fresh jalapenos. Mmm. —MELISSA ANNE WHITESBORO, NY 4 OLD CHICAGO The way to go is Italian sausage, pepperoni, shredded mozzarella, chopped pepperoncinis and a side of homemade pizza sauce. —STEPHANIE CASTEELE LOWELL, MI 5 SHRIMP COCKTAIL Lemon juice-dressed cocktail shrimp, chopped green onion and cocktail sauce give this version coastal flavor.…

Celebrate National Hot Breakfast Month with good-for-you slow-cooked oats. Oatmeal lowers LDL “bad” cholesterol without lowering good cholesterol. Reader Geraldine Saucier has a recipe that will be ready for you when the sun comes up. EAT SMART Overnight Cherry-Almond Oatmeal Combine 4 cups vanilla almond milk, 1 cup steel-cut oats, 1 cup dried cherries, ⅓ cup packed brown sugar, ½ tsp. salt and ½ tsp. ground cinnamon in a greased 3-qt. slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours. Makes 6 servings. PER SERVING 276 cal., 4 g fat (trace sat. fat), 0 mg chol., 306 mg sodium, 57 g carb., 4 g fiber, 5 g pro. —GERALDINE SAUCIER ALBUQUERQUE, NM…

Make a meal with special meaning for Chinese New Year, the most important holiday on the Chinese calendar. This celebratory dish features noodles, which symbolize long life. But only if they’re left uncut, so knives down! Chicken Lo Mein Stir-Fry Cook 6 oz. uncooked lo mein noodles or vermicelli according to package directions. Cut 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts into strips and marinate with 1 Tbsp. reduced-sodium soy sauce, 4 tsp. sesame oil and 3 minced garlic cloves for 10 minutes. Whisk ¼ cup hoisin sauce, 3 Tbsp. reduced-sodium soy sauce, 3 Tbsp. water and 1 tsp. sugar. Stir-fry chicken until no longer pink. Stir in hoisin mixture and one 9-oz. pkg. fresh spinach. Drain noodles; add to skillet. Cook and stir until spinach is wilted. Makes 4 servings. Per…