Something old and something new

My daughter was asking for this recipe over the weekend (originally from Quick Cooking magazine), so I decided it was time to rehash it here. Always a favorite during my vegetarian years, I still love it and make it often. I never hesitated to use chicken broth during that time, but assume vegetable broth could be subbed for those who won’t use meat-based broths.

POTATO CHOWDER

8 cups diced peeled potatoes
1/3 cup chopped onion
3 cans (14-1/2 ounces each) chicken broth
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup*
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, cubed
1/2 pound sliced bacon, cooked and crumbled, optional
Snipped chives, optional

In a slow cooker, combine the first five ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or until potatoes are tender. Add cream cheese; stir until blended. Garnish with bacon and chives if desired. Yield: 12 servings (3 quarts).

Nutritional Analysis: One 1-cup serving (prepared with reduced-fat cream of chicken soup and reduced-fat cream cheese; calculated without bacon) equals 148 calories, 4 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 13 mg cholesterol, 655 mg sodium, 22 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 6 g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 1-1/2 starch, 1/2 fat.

* I prefer to substitute cream of celery soup. Cream of mushroom could also be substituted.


This morning I tried a recipe from my last issue of Simple & Delicious. It was contributed by Amie Longstaff of Painesville Township, OH. I didn’t have enough of a couple of the ingredients (and had to make a substitution for one) so I cut the recipe in half. Also, my muffin pans are standard sized rather than mini, so it ended up making 12 muffins. I extended the baking time to 20 minutes and probably should have pulled them out after 18. They still tasted quite good.

MONKEY MUFFINS

½ cup butter, softened
1 cup plus 1 Tbsp. sugar, divided
2 eggs
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
2/3 cup peanut butter
1 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
¾ cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

In a large bowl, cream butter and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the bananas, peanut butter, milk and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture just until moistened. Fold in chips.

Fill greased or paper-lined miniature muffin cups three-fourths full. Sprinkle with remaining sugar. Bake at 350ºF for 14-16 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Yield: 6 dozen.