Shown below is a shot of the chicken breast in a baking pan with all the seasonings – thyme, basil and oregano, along with salt and pepper. We prefer range-free chicken because it is healthier than chicken raised conventionally. Preheat oven to 425°.

Place in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes. Adjust cooking time according to the weight of the chicken.

Serve hot with sliced vegetables. Below it is shown with sliced radish, cucumber and tomato.

Shown below is a photo of the package of salmon on a cutting board. This is just over 1 lb. We like Wild Alaskan Salmon.

Cut the salmon into small slices for slightly crispy edges and a nice texture.

Place in a foil-lined pan and sprinkle with paprika and garlic powder.

Broil on high for about 10 minutes … cooking time will vary according to the thickness of the salmon. Folding the foil over to completely enclose the salmon and allowing to steam for about 5 minutes will help make it more tender and juicy.

Serve with green salad or sliced vegetables or brown rice. Shown below with sliced cucumbers and tomatoes with a little brown rice.

Shown below is a photo of most of the ingredients. Starting from the back row and going left to right: turmeric, chopped garlic, whole cumin seeds, garam masala, 3 large tomatoes, onion, dried mung beans, ginger root, coriander (cilantro) and Anaheim chili peppers.

Shown below is the rest of the ingredients – fresh spinach.

Start by rinsing the mung beans. Rinse them about 5 or 6 times, straining through a mesh colander after each rinsing.

Add 5 cups of water to the rinsed mung beans plus 1/4 tsp. of turmeric and 1 tsp. of salt. We are using sea salt. Place the pot over a high flame then cover and bring to a boil. After it comes to a boil, turn the flame way way down and cook slowly for 1 1/2 hours. Cook it over a low flame to get a creamy texture. Cover it with a lid while cooking.

While the dal is cooking, chop up all the vegetables. Start with the Anaheim chili peppers.

Cut the end off the pepper, then cut the pepper in half.

Remove all the seeds and ribs.

Slice the pepper halves lengthwise into about 4 or 5 slices each.

Now chop into medium sized chunks. Repeat for all three peppers.

Gather up al the chopped peppers into a bowl and set aside for now.

Slice the onion into thin slices. Start by quartering the onion. If you are using two small onions instead of one large onion, you can cut them into halves instead of quarters.

Peel the skin off and slice each part into thin slices.

When the onions are all sliced up, set them aside.

Chop the fresh coriander (cilantro).

Peel the fresh ginger root and slice up into chunks.

Either use a chopper or chop the ginger root with a chef’s knife. Chop it up real fine – nearly minced.

I like to prepare all the chopped ingredients in bowls so they are ready to add when the time comes. Shown below left to right, back to front: ginger root, chopped garlic, coriander and whole cumin seeds. Lately I’ve been doing this a little differently. I place all the chopped peppers in a bowl, then add the coriander, ginger and garlic over the top of the peppers because they are all added to the skillet at the same time.

Finally, chop all the tomatoes and set them aside in a bowl.

Check the dal and stir it with a wooden spoon once in awhile. Keep it covered while cooking.

In a large skilet, add about 1/2 cup of water and bring it to a boil over a high flame. Then add the whole cumin seeds.

Cook the cumin seeds over a high flame for about 1 to 2 minutes. The seeds will start turning dark and the cooking water will become yellowish in color.

Add the sliced onions, then cook over a medium flame for about 10-12 minutes. Stir continuously with a wooden spoon.

After the onions have cooked for about 10-12 minutes, add the chili peppers, coriander, chopped garlic and ginger root. Cook for 2 minutes and stir with a wooden spoon.

After the chili peppers, coriander, chopped garlic and ginger root have cooked for 2 minutes, add the chopped tomatoes.

Stir all the vegetables together with a wooden spoon.

Cover the skillet and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

After the dal has cooked for 1 1/2 hours, add the fresh spinach. I like to cut the spinach into smaller pieces so they aren’t too stringy in the finished soup.

Stir the fresh spinach into the dal until it is completely covered.

Cover the pot with a lid and continue cooking over a very low flame for another 15 minutes.

When the vegetables have finished cooking 20 minutes after the tomatoes have been added, they are ready to be added to the dal.

Add the cooked vegetables to the dal.

Stir the cooked vegetables into the dal and add 1/2 tsp. of garam masala. At this time I like to add about another 1/2 to 3/4 tsp. of salt.

Simmer for about 15 minutes to marry up all the flavors, then serve hot. Serve with brown rice and some naan bread. Naan bread is really good but it can make you hungry so go easy on it.

Shown below is a photo of all the ingredients: starting in back and going left to right – chicken broth, fat free plain yogurt, cliantro (coriander), curry powder, turkey meat, onion, garlic clove, ginger root and Anaheim chili pepper. Start by cooking the brown rice. I like to use a rice cooker.

Next, cut up all the vegetables. Start by slicing the onion. This is a large onion so I am going to cut into quarters first.

Slice the onion into thin slices. This recipe works better with sliced onions rather than chopped onions. It makes for a better texture.

Now all the onions are sliced up…

Next, prepare the chili pepper by removing all the seeds and ribs.

Start by cutting off the end, then by slicing the pepper down the middle.

Scrape out all the seeds and ribs by hand.

Slice each of the pepper halves into long thin slices.

Arrange the slices into a bunch, then chop the pepper into small chunks.

Now the pepper is all chopped up …

Measure out the curry powder into a dish.

Measure out a cup of chicken broth …

Chop up the fresh coriander (cilantro). Fresh coriander goes bad real fast even when kept in the refrigerator, so only buy as much as you need.

Measure out the chopped coriander into a dish and set aside for now …

… Same thing for the yogurt … measure it out into a dish and set it aside for now …

Next, chop up the garlic clove and fresh ginger root. Here I am using a chopper, but you can do it just as easily with a good chef’s knife. Peel the ginger first.

Now the garlic and ginger is all chopped up ….

Cut the turkey meat into small bit sized chunks.

Now the meat is all chopped up and ready to go …

Now that the vegetables and meat have all been sliced and chopped and all the ingredients have been set aside in dishes, it’s time to cook. Start by adding the onions, chili pepper, garlic and ginger to a skillet. Add about 1/2 cup of water to the skillet. This is the fat-free way to cook it.

Cook over a medium flame stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon. Cook for about 10 minutes or so until the onions are soft and translucent.

Next, add the turkey meat …

… followed immediately by the curry powder. Keep cooking over a medium flame.

Stir everything together until the curry is evenly distributed and the meat is slighty seared. This should take about 2 minutes. Don’t overcook or burn the turkey.

Then add the chicken broth …

Cook for another 5 minutes or so. Again, don’t overcook the turkey. Cook until the sauce is of a smooth consistency.

Now turn off the flame and add the yogurt and coriander.

Stir everything together until all is thoroughly mixed. Now it is ready to serve.

Place some cooked brown rice into a bowl.

Cover with a serving of the cooked ginger turkey curry.

Shown below is a photo of all the ingredients. Starting in the upper right corner and moving counter-clockwise: crushed garlic, ground cumin, cayenne pepper, chili powder, onion, lime and dried pinto beans.

Start by cooking the pinto beans. Please see this post for complete instructions. After cooking the beans, use a masher to mash them while in the pot.

Chop the onions …

Place the chopped onions in a large skillet.

Measure out portions of the other ingredients and set them aside in dishes. Shown below (left to right): all the dry ingredients in the dish on the left (ground cumin, cayenne pepper, chili powder and salt), then crushed garlic in the middle dish followed by fresh squeezed lime juice in the last dish.

Sauté the chopped onions in water, gradually adding more water as necessary – about a tablespoon at a time – to keep the onions from sticking to the skillet or burning. After cooking for about 8 minutes, add the crushed garlic.

Continue to cook the vegetables for about 2 minutes more. Just infuse the flavors into the vegetables.

When the onions and garlic are cooked, add the mashed beans.

Use the masher or wooden spoon and continue to cook the vegetables and mashed beans together. After a minute or two, add the dry seasonings (ground cumin, cayenne pepper, chili powder and salt).

Continue to cook and stir the mashed beans with a masher or wooden spoon for another minute or two, then add the fresh squeezed lime juice.

Using the masher, thoroughly mix the fresh squeezed lime juice throughout the mashed beans. When everything is all mixed together, the refried beans will be done.

Fat Free Pinto Beans

Start with a medium sized cooking pot with lid. I like to cook 3 1/2 cups of dried beans at a time. Measure out the beans and spread them out on a clean, flat surface, then sort through them and discard any stones or shriveled beans.

Cover the beans with 1 to 2 inches of water (see photo below … it is hard to see the water line in the photo). Place the lid on the pot and set the beans in the refrigerator and allow to soak overnight.

The next day, most or all of the water will have been soaked up by the beans. If necessary, add more water just prior to cooking. Add enough water to just cover the beans.

Place the pot over a flame and bring water to a boil, then reduce to a very low flame. Allow to cook for 2 1/2 to 3 hours.

Shown below is a photo taken just after water begins to boil and just before reducing the flame. Stir occasionally, checking the water level periodically and adding more water as necessary to just cover the beans during cooking. It has been my experience that water needs to be added around the first 20 minutes after boiling.

During the last 30 to 45 minutes, there may be a tendency for the beans to stick to the pan, so be careful around this time. Stir the beans and make sure the flame is very low and that the water level covers the beans.

The beans should be fully cooked in no more than 3 hours. Once you have cooked the pinto beans, you can make them into refried beans, or you can allow to cool and place in a covered container in the refrigerator. You can also freeze some of them if you like, then place in the refrigerator after thawing.

Here’s how to cook brown rice in a rice cooker. Start by measuring out the amount of rice you want to cook. I will be making 3 cups in this example.

Rinse the rice thoroughly – several times – until the rinse water is clear.

Strain the rice after each rinse … I will usually rinse about 5 or 6 times.

After rinsing, add water. The cooker has marks on the sides of the cooking pot. I will add water up to the 3-cup mark.

Place the cooking pot in the cooker. Here it is just before closing the lid.

Set the cooker for cooking brown rice and push the button to start cooking. This model has a red LED indicating that the rice is cooking and a yellow LED for the rice to "keep warm". Just before the rice is done, the yellow LED will flash, indicating that it is almost finished cooking.

When the rice has finished cooking, this model will beep out loud to alert you. Open the lid and fluff the rice as soon as it is done to allow excess steam to escape. Close the lid back down to keep warm.

Fluff the rice and serve.

Start by adding water to a saucepan, then add a dash of salt.

Stir to dissolve the salt, then add the oats, stirring them as you add them. Turn on a high flame after adding the oats.

Stir, then bring the mixture to a boil. Turn down the flame and keep stirring to keep the bottom part from sticking to the pan. The oatmeal will be cooked when it has thickened and starch has formed. You can see the starch forming when the fiberous part of the oats break down.

I like to add a tablespoon of rice bran and a tablespoon of milled flaxseed plus a little Stevia extract for sweetening. Stevia is more healthy than sugar. Instead of adding the rice bran and flaxseed to the bowl, sometimes I will just add it to the cooked oatmeal in the pan.

After adding the cooked oatmeal to the bowl I will add toppings. One of my favorite topping combinations is shredded coconut and banana.

Another great topping combination is all natural apple butter (made without sugar) and ground cinnamon. I use about a tablespoon of apple butter. You can also sprinkle some chopped raw almonds or pecans or walnuts for a crunchy texture.

You can always serve it plain – without toppings…

Or you can simply add some fresh or frozen berries … here it is with some bluberries – one of my favorite toppings.

Shown below is a shot of all the ingredients: carrots, celery and onions, garlic cloves, bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper.

Add water to a pot, then turn on the flame to bring water to a boil. While the water is heating, chop the vegetables. I am using a food processor to speed things up.

Shown below is a shot of the pot with the water before boiling.

When the water begins to boil, add the carcass and all the turkey bones to the water. I added a little meat from the neck in this example…

Add all the vegetables, the chopped garlic and bay leaves to the water, then add the thyme, salt and pepper. Bring everything to a boil, then lower the flame to a low boil and cover and allow to cook for a couple of hours.

After a couple of hours, check the soup and see how the meat is softening on the bones. Add more water if necessary to replace any that gets boiled away. I usually have to continue cooking for another hour.

After an hour or so, check the soup again. It will be done when the meat is falling off the bones.

Turn off the heat and pull the bones out of the soup with some kitchen tongs. Place them into a strainer over a plate. Pour the strained soup back into the pot, then separate all the meat from the bones and add it to the soup. At this point you can also skim off the fat that floats to the top of the soup.

Use a soup ladle and serve hot. Store excess in 2 qt Mason jars in the refrigerator for later.

Shown below is a shot of the ingredients that I use to prepare the turkey before roasting: olive oil, sage, thyme, a brush and a cooking thermometer.

I will add about 1/4 cup of olive oil to a small dish (shown above), then I will add about 2 – 3 tsp of thyme and about 1 to 1 1/2 tsp of sage to the dish.

Rinse the cavities of the bird with fresh water and clean them out. Remove the neck and giblet pack. Place the turkey in a roasting pan breast side up and arrange the neck and giblets in a free space in the pan.

Preheat the oven to 325°.

Brush the skin with the oil and spice mix. This will prevent drying of the skin and will add flavor. Optionally, lightly salt the skin after brushing the oil and spice mix.

Insert the thermometer in the deepest part of the thigh without touching the bone.

Shown below is a shot of the prepared turkey, ready to cook. By now, the oven should be ready.

Place the roasting pan and turkey in the oven so the thermometer is visible, close the door and set a timer for about 2/3rds of the amount of cooking time. In this case I am cooking an 18 lb. unstuffed bird, so I will set the timer for about 2 hours and 45 minutes.

After the turkey has been cooking for about 2/3rds of the cooking time, cover the breast with a piece of aluminum foil to keep from overcooking the breast.

Close the door and set the timer for about 30 minutes less than the remaining cooking time. Check it at that time to make sure you don’t overcook. Continue cooking until it is done, checking it every 10 or 15 minutes. When the thermometer reaches 180°, the bird is done.

Shown below is a shot of the finished turkey. It is ready to carve.

After carving the turkey, you can make a delicious soup from the carcass. That way you don’t waste anything.