Hello Recipe Club,

Pam and I use Dana Carpender's cookbooks on a fairly regular basis. Her recipes are easy to follow and they are tasty. So when we heard about her newest book, we were excited to have her back as a host. Here is part of a recent Press Release on the book.

Los Angeles, CA - September, 2004 - The low-carb lifestyle is sweeping the nation. With people shedding pounds, increasing their energy levels, and feeling great the choice to eat low-carb is an easy one. And thanks to low-carb expert, block-buster author, and recipe magician Dana Carpender it just got easier. Following on the success of her summer release, The Low-Carb Barbeque Cookbook and demand from her fans, Dana has gone back into the test kitchen and created 500 More Low-Carb Recipes: 500 All New Recipes from Around the World (September 2004; Fair Winds Press; $19.95/original trade paperback)

This new recipe collection is packed with even more delicious choices including appetizers, side dishes, main meals, and desserts that the entire family will love - although this time with an international flare! Dana knows that the secret to success of any diet is variety and this new book has it all. With crowd- pleasing favorites such as Sherry-Sage Pork Steaks, Beef in Coconut Sauce, Gingerbread Waffles, luscious desserts like Grandma's Peach Cobbler and Italian Walnut Cake, perfect for last minute weeknight fare, the diet doldrums will disappear.

Today's Theme is...Comfort-Food Family Supper - perfect on those chilly fall nights.

Hellzapoppin Cheese "Rice"

Another recipe I've adapted from the funniest cookbook ever written, The I Hate To Cook Book, by Peg Bracken. And truly fabulous it is, too.

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients:

1/3 cup (55 g) cooked wild rice
4 eggs
1 cup (240 ml) Carb Countdown Dairy Beverage
1/4 cup (60 g) minced onion
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
3 1/3 cups (500 g) shredded cauliflower (about 1/2 head)
1 pound (455 g) grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 10-ounce (280 g) box frozen chopped spinach, thawed

Preparation:

You need to have your wild rice cooked before you start. Make more than you need for this recipe and stash it in a snap-top container in the freezer; next time you'll have it on hand!

Beat the eggs till they're foamy, then whisk in the Carb Countdown Dairy Beverage, onion, Worcestershire, salt, thyme, and marjoram. Now, stir in the raw cauli-rice, the wild rice, the cheese, and the spinach. Stir till everything is well combined.

Pour the whole thing into a casserole dish you've sprayed with nonstick cooking spray, and bake it at 375°F (190°C) for 35 to 40 minutes.

Each serving with: 409 calories; 30 g fat; 27 g protein; 10 g carbohydrate; 3 g dietary fiber; 7 g usable carb.

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Philippa's Meat Loaf

Philippa was my grandmother, and this is the meat loaf she made, and the meat loaf my mom made (and still makes). Or rather, it's my sister Kim's de-carbed version, because the original had cereal in it. Kim says to tell you that this recipe doubles or even triples well.

Makes 4 to 5 servings

Ingredients:

1 pound (455 g) ground beef
1/2 cup (25 g) crushed pork rinds
1/2 cup (120 ml) Carb Countdown Dairy Beverage
1 egg
1 medium onion, diced
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning
1 teaspoon salt or Vege-Sal

Preparation:

Just plunk everything into a big mixing bowl, and use clean hands to smoosh it all together very well. Pack it into a loaf pan, then turn it out onto your broiler rack. Bake at 400°F (200°C) for 40 minutes.

Assuming 5 servings, each will have: 318 calories; 26 g fat; 18 g protein; 3 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber; 3 g usable carb

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Lemon Mousse Cup

This is pretty darned simple, but delicious, with a sunny lemon flavor.

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 package (4-serving size) sugar-free lemon gelatin
3/4 cup (180 ml) boiling water
3 ounces (85 g) Neufchatel cheese or light cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup (120 ml) cold water
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
3/4 cup (180 ml) heavy cream
2 teaspoons sugar-free vanilla instant pudding mix
2 tablespoons (15 g) almond meal
1/2 teaspoon polyol

Preparation:

Put the gelatin and the boiling water in your blender, and run the thing for a minute or so to dissolve the gelatin. Put the Neufchatel cheese in, cut into chunks, and run the blender again until the mixture is smooth, about 1 more minute. Now add the cold water and your teaspoon of grated lemon rind, and run it one more time, to blend.

Pour the gelatin mixture from the blender jar into a mixing bowl, and stick it in the fridge. You're going to chill it till it's just starting to thicken a bit. While that's happening . . .

Use your electric mixer to whip the heavy cream with the vanilla pudding mix until you have a good, thick whipped topping. (Don't overbeat, or you'll get vanilla butter!)

When the gelatin is starting to thicken, fold 1/2 cup (40 g) of the whipped topping gently into it, until everything is well blended. Pour into four pretty dessert dishes. Put the dessert dishes and the leftover whipped topping in the fridge. Let your mousse chill for at least a couple of hours.

Sometime before dinner, stir the almond meal with the polyol sweetener in a skillet over medium heat until it just gets a hint of golden color. Remove from heat.

When dessert time rolls around, top each serving of mousse with a little of the leftover whipped topping and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the toasted almond meal, and serve.

Each serving with: 249 calories; 22 g fat; 7 g protein; 4 g carbohydrate; trace dietary fiber; 4 g usable carb.