Low-cal Labor Day picnic recipes, light BBQ grill entrees, meatless menu pleasers for weight loss, special diets

Labor Day is the last official picnic day of summer. With everyone on some special diet--vegan, vegetarian, kosher, weight loss, lactose intolerant, gluten-free, diabetic, halal--it's difficult to plan a picnic buffet that suits everyone. Throw some picky, fussy eaters (a.k.a. kids) into the party crowd and the harried Labor Day hosts are at their collective wits' end to know what to feed the hungry multitudes. Here are low-cal Labor Day picnic recipes, light grill entrees, menu pleasers that dieters and everyone else will love!

Whip up the Ultimate Labor Day Salad Bar Buffet. Make your own restaurant-style salad bar and hot buffet. If you do the whole thing, it may get expensive, so trim corners as you need to. Or have guests each bring 3-4 salad toppings. Create an outdoor refrigerated salad bar by laying a clean bath or beach towel on the buffet or picnic table. Cover towel with a layer of ice cubes. Place another clean towel over ice. Replace ice as it melts.

Next make a huge bowl of greens. Get a package of six romaine lettuce heads. Tear up lettuce, rinse with warm water and drain or spin to dry. Place lettuce in zippered plastic bag and chill in the refrigerator until serving. This makes lettuce extra crisp. Or use pre-cut bagged salad like Dole Classic Romaine, with Romaine lettuce, matchstick carrots and purple cabbage. If you serve field greens, remember these lettuces are much more delicate and must be used immediately. Serve in a large stainless steel mixing bowl or salad bowl.

Here are salad toppings guests can pick and choose from to fit any special diet. Arrange salad toppings in individual bowls with forks, spoons or mini tongs for sanitary self- service. Set out diced cucumbers (leave skin on),sliced mushrooms (white or Baby Bella), chopped celery, chopped sweet onions, chopped green, red, yellow and orange peppers, baby spinach, sprouts (alfalfa, broccoli, onion, or spicy), chopped broccoli and cauliflower or broccoli slaw mix, shredded carrots, chopped tomatoes, shredded beets, shredded purple cabbage, pea pods and avocado slices.

Make a relish tray of assorted olives: Spanish (green),black, pitted Greek olives, capers, sports peppers, banana peppers, hot pepper rings, sweet pickles, dill pickles and canned beets. Set out fruit
toppings: raisins, dried cranberries, strawberries, blueberries, mandarin oranges and pineapple tidbits. Set out nachos, croutons, chow mien noodles, sliced almonds, mixed nuts, sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds.

Set out garbanzo beans, cottage cheese, shredded Mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese grater, cubed feta cheese (for Greek salad) and diced hard-boiled eggs, salad shrimp, flake crab meat, sliced pepperoni and anchovies. To season salad, set out fresh chopped herbs (dill, rosemary, oregano, sage, basil), pepper grater and Himalayan pink salt grater.

For hot buffet items, place in three-sided warmer. Grill chuck steak, ham slice, salmon and chicken breast and cube each. Grill bacon and crumble. Make taco meat. Warm nacho dip in a crock pot. A good salad bar should include these dressings: vinegar and olive oil in separate cruets, a lite or low calorie salad dressing (spray-on salad dressing like Raspberry vinaigrette is good), ranch (Hidden Valley is best), French (Russian, Western, sweet and sour) Thousand Island and bleu cheese (Marie's) and Caesar. Serve with french bread. Guests can make their own taco, Caesar, Greek, Salad Nicoise, Antipasto, Cobb or other specialty salads.

Pumpkin Spice Recipes and Pumpkin Themed Kids Lunches, Treats, Snacks

Boy, pumpkin and pumpkin spice sure is a shtick for fall foods--everything from IHOP pancakes to coffee creamer, Oreos to beer. So I thought, why not tap into that beta-carotene goodness for my +Week-of-school-snacks and +Five-day-school-lunch-menu series? Here are healthy kids lunch and snack recipes featuring pumpkin. But no pumpkin beer, promise :)

Use fresh pumpkin (be sure to get pie pumpkin, not a jack-o-lantern) or take my lazy way out and use canned--not pie filling. Or substitute yams, sweet potatoes or squash. Involve toddlers and preschooler in preparations.   You can vegan-ize any of these recipes that call for dairy and eggs but swapping tofu, TVP or almond milk. These recipes are kosher, halal and diet-friendly, too! Click to read more. 

Pumpkin Soup/Pasta Sauce: Perfect power packed nutrition for chilly fall days. In a large, deep skillet melt two sticks of butter or ghee (olive oil if you are a vegan). saute one medium chopped onion, one small stalk of cleaned, pared and sliced celery, five chopped sage leaves (or 1 teaspoon of ground sage) and one half teaspoon cracked pepper. Pour contents of saute pan in soup pot. Add one 29 oz. can of pumpkin and a carton of Progresso chicken broth (vegans and vegetarians, replace chicken broth with vegetable broth). Fill the pumpkin can with milk (vegans, use water) and add that to the pot. Simmer until blended and heated through. Just before serving, add chopped cucumbers and butter croutons. Send a jar to an elderly neighbor, a family with a new baby or a sick friend.

Pumpkin Upside-Down Custard: In a large bowl, blend 1 29oz. can of pumpkin, one teaspoon of cinnamon, one half teaspoon of nutmeg and ginger, one quarter teaspoon of cloves, one teaspoon of salt, four large eggs, one cup of packed brown sugar, one tablespoon of flour Refill pumpkin can with milk and add to ingredients. Blend until smooth and fold in one cup of peeled, chopped apples (optional). Placed in 9x13 glass baking dish coated with non-stick pan spray. Bake at 400 degrees about 40 minutes until set. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

 

For topping: blend 1 cup finely chopped pecans with 1 stick melted butter and one quarter cup brown sugar. Mixture will be crumbly. Sprinkle over surface and bake for five to ten minutes to set. Vegans can replace eggs and milk with two packages of silken soft tofu also.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Custard:</b></i> Using the same ingredients as above, cut milk down to 10 oz and add two 8 oz packages of softened cream cheese. You will need to use blender or electric mixer to blend. Using two cartons of whipped cream cheese will be easier to blend also.

"Jerusalem: A Cookbook" Celebrates Diversity, Shares Passions

Preface: When I wrote this piece, the Palestine-Israel War was but a far-off thunder. Now more than ever, we need collaborative efforts like "Jerusalem: A Cookbook" to lead us to peace. 

I love to cook, and it particular to experiment with different ethnic foods. I like to recreate the dishes we sample from different cuisines. I try to tie in not just the ingredients and cooking styles themselves, but the entire milieu in which they developed. Here's a great cookbook for exploring the varied cultures in Jerusalem, written by men from two sides of the city: Jewish and Muslim. This book would make a great Christmas or Hanukkah gift.   

We've tried New Orleans creole, Louisiana Cajun, Polish, Russian, Indian, African, Jamaican, South American and others across the globe. My own favorite styles are Indian and Mediterranean. I follow the Mediterranean Diet. Knowing that, my youngest son mentioned a cookbook he'd heard about on NPR. The book "Jerusalem: A Cookbook" celebrates religiously and culturally diverse city of Jerusalem through food. I'd forgotten his suggestion until, perusing new books at Barnes & Noble, I happened on it. When I said how intrigued I was, Jake quipped, "That's the one I was telling you about!"

 

The "Jerusalem Cookbook" authors, both natives that city, are agemates. But they came from opposite poles of the religious (and geographic) Jerusalem map. Yotam Ottolenghi (author of "Plenty" and restauranteur of Ottolenghi fame) is from the Jewish west side while Sami Tamimi, is an Arab from eastern Jerusalem. Not only do Ottolenghi and Tamimi share recipes and historical information from their own backgrounds, they include cultural tidbits from the myriad of heritages represented in this most "flavorful" city. Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews, Coptic and Armenian Christians, eastern Orthodox, Muslims and many more call this ancient and pivotal city home. From these many traditions, "Jerusalem: A Cookbook" combines different elements into one wonderful feast.

As a teacher, I always plug for the educational. Beyond a cookbook, "Jerusalem" is a comprehensive, stand-alone social studies unit. The pictures are eloquent and evocative. Along with recipes, "Jerusalem" gives local bioscopes, is jam-packed with historical, anthropological, traditional and cultural detail. And it is relatable and even funny sometimes. I recommend any teacher of world history or world religions invest in a copy.

"Jerusalem: A Cookbook" touches a nerve with me on a deeper level. I have my own faith, but love to explore the faith backgrounds of others. I'm concerned when our differing ideologies interfere with our treatment of each other. I look for initiatives that promote common ground and social justice. I love how "Jerusalem: A Cookbook" focuses on shared passions not divisive differences. The "Jerusalem" cookbook doesn't homogenize because the city doesn't either. It turns diversity into a one big party! It blends similarities into a tasty multicultural salad where each flavor is identifiable and honored. And what better medium to share of ourselves than food?