photo © 2010 jenny cu | more info

Ingredients:
1 lb pasta, ideally Penne or other large pasta
1 lb shrimp, peeled, deveined, tails removed
1 head broccoli, cut into small florets
3 teaspoons Watkins garlic liquid spice or 3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon Watkins Grapeseed oil, flavor of choice
1 can chopped tomatoes (12 oz/

1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon Watkins chicken soup and gravy base
1 teaspoon Watkins basil
Watkins black pepper to taste

Instructions: Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.

In a frying pan, sautÈ the shrimp in the garlic liquid spice and grapeseed oil. Add the broccoli florets and tomatoes, simmer for about 5 minutes. Then add the water, soup base, basil and pepper. Stir and allow to simmer gently for another few minutes.

Pour the sauce over the cooked pasta, mix well. Sprinkle with additional basil leaves and serve immediately with your choice of cheeses such as parmesan, romano or asiago cheese. Serves 4-6

Ingredients:
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp rice vinegar or white wine vinegar
Juice of 1 small orange (or freshly pressed orange juice)
1 tsp brown sugar
2 tsp cornstarch
2 tbsp Watkins Grapeseed oil
1/2 cup unsalted cashew nuts
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 large skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces
2 cups small broccoli florets
1 red bell pepper, cored and thinly sliced
1 cup sugar peas

Directions: In a wok heat the oil and add the cashews, stir for 1 minute. When the nuts are golden brown, remove from the wok and place on a plate lined with a few paper towels to drain. Add the onion slices to the wok and saute for about 3 to 5 minutes until soft and slightly browned. Remove and add to the cashews.

Next, put the chicken pieces into the wok and stir fry on high heat for about 3 to 4 minutes, then add all the vegetables and continue stir frying for another 4 to 5 minutes. Don’t overcook the vegetables you’ll want to make sure they are still crunchy.

In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, vinegar, orange juice, sugar and cornstarch. Pour into wok and stir fry for a few minutes. The sauce will thicken slightly. Garnish with the cooked onions and cashews. Serve immediately with rice. Enjoy!

1/2 cup frozen apple juice concentrate
3 tsp Watkins garlic liquid spice
1 tbsp Watkins rosemary, crumbled
2 tbsp honey mustard
1 tbsp Watkins grapeseed oil
1 tbsp Watkins minced green onion
1/2 tsp Watkins granulated black pepper
1 1/2 lbs pork tenderloin, fat trimmed

Directions: In bowl, mix all ingredients, except tenderloin. Place tenderloin in a bowl and pour mixture over it. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Pre-heat the BBQ on medium heat. Remove tenderloin from the marinade and set marinade aside. Barbecue the tenderloin for about 15 minutes, turning and basting the meat often with the marinade. The meat should be brown on the outside with just a touch of pink on the inside. Remove from heat and let it sit for 5 min to let the juices settle before slicing it into half inch slices.

Heat the remaining marinade, bringing it just to a boil and serve it with the sliced tenderloin.

You’ll find the herbs, spices and other barbecue essential ingredients in the Watkins US store or the Watkins Canadian Store. When you drop by, be sure to ask for a free Watkins products catalog.

Thanks to Live♥Laugh♥Love, on Flickr for the photo, click the image to see more of Sabrina’s photos.

2 tbsp sesame oil
1 chili, finely chopped
1 lb oriental mushrooms (oyster, shitake etc)
3 1/2 oz pine nuts
1 onion, sliced
1 lb green vegetables (Pak Choi, Bok Choi, Spinach, Chinese cabbage etc)
1 11 oz can baby corn, halved lengthwise
2 red bell peppers, sliced
3-4 tablespoons soy sauce
Handful fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions: Heat the sesame oil in a wok and add chili, pine nuts and garlic. Sautè for about 30 seconds on high heat. Add mushrooms, onion, green vegetables, baby corn and red pepper and stir-fry for a further 3 to 4 minutes. Pour in the soy sauce and stir-fry for about a minute. Sprinkle with cilantro, stir well and serve immediately with rice  or oriental noodles.
(Serves 4)

Stir fry tips:

• vegetable should be tender but still a bit crisp when done.
• left over stir fry keeps and reheats well, make extra for packed lunches. A healthier and cheaper alternative to fast foods.
• add some tofu or left over cooked meat to make this a main dish.
• don’t have pine nuts? substitute slivered almonds

Barbecue Basted Ribs
5 lbs/2.27 kg pork loin back ribs
2 cups/500 mL water
1/2 cup/125 mL apple cider vinegar
1-1/2 tsp/7.5 mL Watkins Garlic Granules
1-1/2 tsp/7.5 mL Watkins Seasoning Salt
1/3 cup/80 mL Watkins Original Barbecue Sauce

Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C. Place ribs in a large, shallow roasting pan, bone side down. Combine water and vinegar and pour over ribs. Sprinkle with garlic granules and seasoning salt. Cover and bake for 1 to 1-1/2 hours or until ribs are nearly tender. Let cool. (Ribs can be covered and chilled at this point if you wish to make them ahead.)  Place ribs on grill over indirect heat or bake at 350°F/180°C for 30 to 35 minutes or until tender, brushing the ribs with Watkins Barbecue Sauce.
Makes 6 servings

Backyard BBQ Pizza
1 Watkins Pizza Crust Mix (deep dish or whole wheat)
Watkins Barbecue Sauce
Up to 1 lb. Ground Turkey, as desired (may substitute beef)
7 or 8 strips crumbled Cooked Bacon (use thin cut and cook crisp)
2 cups grated Mozzarella Cheese,
Parmesan Cheese, as desired

Following the directions on the label of the Watkins Pizza Crust Mix, prepare dough. Roll dough out onto a large cookie sheet sprayed with Watkins Cooking Spray so crust will be thin. Bake the crust in oven for 4-5 minutes. Remove crust from oven and thinly spread Watkins BBQ Sauce over partially cooked crust.  Layer remaining ingredients in order listed and return to oven for 10 minutes to complete baking cycle. You could also add your other favorite toppings to this pizza. Watkins Omelet and Soufflé Seasoning would be a great quick addition to shake over the top of pizza prior to final baking!

Watkins Barbecue Sauce Ideas:

• Use on chicken, turkey, pork, beef and vegetables for basting on the grill or in the oven.
• Mix one tablespoon of Watkins BBQ sauce into 8 oz. of cream cheese plus 1/2 tsp. Watkins Cayenne Pepper to make a cheese ball.
• Add BBQ sauce to browned ground meat with addition of ketchup and a small amount of brown sugar for Sloppy Joes.
• It’s great on any  sandwich, for open face sandwiches brush on BBQ sauce and place under broiler pan for one minute or less!

Watkins barbecue sauce is a perfect blend of spices and seasonings, you can order it along with your other pantry essentials in the Canadian catalog or the US catalog.

Ingredients:
3 lbs chicken pieces
1 cup low fat yogurt or no fat sour cream
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons Watkins curry powder
1 teaspoon Watkins garlic granules
1 teaspoon Watkins onion granules
1/4 teaspoon Watkins cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon Watkins black pepper
1/2 teaspoon Watkins seasoning salt

Mix spices into yogurt or no fat sour cream. (I used no fat sour cream this time.) Place chicken pieces into a glass or plastic container, pour yogurt spice mixture over top, turn to coat each piece of chicken well, cover. Marinate chicken in refrigerator for 2 hours or longer. Heat oven to 450 F. Remove chicken from marinade, arrange pieces in a single layer in roasting pan. Discard any remaining marinade. Roast chicken for 15 minutes, reduce heat to 325 F and continue cooking for 45 minutes or until done.

Tips from the kitchen:

• I buy chicken in bulk, separate enough for one meal in zip top bags and freeze. This also make marinating the chicken pieces a snap, as it can be done right in the bag and clean up is a breeze.
• Prepare chicken and marinade the night before or in the morning, the longer it marinates the better.
• The marinate on this chicken makes it brown beautifully, however do keep your eye on it as it browns quite quickly. Don’t forget to reduce the oven temperature after 15 minutes.
• Cook extra, this chicken makes a delicious summer time meal served cold along with a salad.  Great for pick nicks and packed lunches as well.

Ingredients:

2 pounds lean ground turkey
2 tsp Watkins poultry seasoning
1 tsp. Watkins black pepper
1/2 tsp. Watkins ground ginger
1/2 tsp. Watkins cayenne pepper
Watkins grapeseed oil

Directions: Place the turkey into a large mixing bowl. Add the poultry seasoning, pepper, ginger and cayenne pepper. Mix with your hands until completely incorporated together. Shape the mixture into 2 inch balls or patties about 1 inch thick. Place a tablespoon or so of grapeseed oil into a large skillet and place over medium heat. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the meat balls till the pan is half full, brown the sausage balls on all sides by gently shaking the pan so they can roll around. Cook balls for 5 – 8 minutes or until cooked through. If making patties brown for about 5 minutes, turn the patties and continue cooking 5 minutes longer or until the meat is not longer pink.

Makes 16 -24 sausage balls or 8 patties.

Nutritional Information: (Approximate Value for 2 patties) 85 calories; 5 g fat; 1 g saturated fat; 45 mg cholesterol; 25 mg sodium; trace carbohydrates; trace fiber; 10 g protein

Using Watkins poultry seasoning and other spices makes it quick and easy for you to have perfectly spiced delicious sausages every time!

Ingredients:

1 7-8 lb organic grown turkey
1/4 cup/60 mL Original Grapeseed Oil
2 tbsp/30 mL Watkins Organic Garlic Powder
2 tsp/10 mL Watkins Organic Basil
1 tsp/5 mL Watkins Organic Sage
1 tsp/5 mL Watkins Organic Parsley
1 tsp/5 mL Watkins Sea Salt
1/2 tsp/2.5 mL Watkins Organic Black Pepper

Directions: Preheat oven to 375°F/190°. Rinse turkey inside and out, discard giblets and neck or set aside in refrigerator for another use and place turkey in a roasting pan.

In a small bowl, combine oil, garlic powder, basil, parsley, sage, salt and pepper. Using a basting brush, liberally apply the mixture to turkey.

Roast turkey for 2 to 2 ½ hours, baste every hour with left over herb mixture or pan drippings. Cook until the internal temperature of the thickest part of the thigh reaches 160°F/71°C. Remove bird from oven and allow to stand for about 15- 30 minutes, to allow juices to distribute and internal temperature to rise.

Note: if you are cooking a larger bird allow approximately 20 minutes cooking time per pound of turkey.

You’ll find the very best organic herbs and spices in the Watkins US store or the Watkins Canadian store.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon butter or Watkins grapeseed oil
2 cups water
1/2 cup Watkins roasted turkey gourmet gravy mix
3 cups cubed cooked turkey
1 large unpeeled tart apple, cored and cubed
1/3 cup golden raisins
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon Watkins ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon Watkins black pepper
1 (9 inch) pie crust

Directions: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Preheat a large saucepan over medium heat, add butter or oil and onion and sauté until translucent. Add water and whisk in the gravy mix, heat stirring frequently until it comes to a boil. Mix in turkey, apples, raisins, lemon juice and spices. Combine all ingredients together well and heat until just heated through. Pour into a large ungreased baking dish. Roll out pie crust on a floured surface. Place rolled pie crust over top of turkey mixture, tuck sides of pie crust down sides of dish or leave hanging over the edge. Cut slits in top of crust to allow steam to escape. Place in oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until top is brown.

Tips from the kitchen:

• You may use left over turkey gravy for this however if you are like me you probably won’t have any! Watkins roasted turkey gourmet gravy to the rescue, it tastes so good you’ll swear your grandmother made it!
• Brush your unbaked pie crust with a beaten egg yolk for a beautiful, shinny golden brown crust.

You’ll find just the right spices and ingredients to make this in the Watkins US catalog or the Watkins Canadian catalog.

Ingredients for the chestnut stuffing:
1/4 cup whole chestnuts or dried if you can’t find whole
1/4 cup raisins
2 Tablespoons Watkins grapseed oil
1 onion, peeled and diced
2 celery ribs, diced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1 teaspoon Watkins sage
1 teaspoon Watkins rosemary
1 teaspoon Watkins thyme
1 cooking apple, peeled, cored and diced
1 egg, lightly beaten
5 cups stale bread, cubed
1 cup boiling water
1 teaspoon Watkins Chicken soup and gravy base

Ingredients for the turkey:
1 10 lb. turkey
Watkins grapeseed oil
Watkins sea salt
Watkins black pepper

Ingredients for the gravy:
2 carrots, roughly chopped
1 onion, diced
2 celery stalks, roughly chopped
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup cold water
1 teaspoon Watkins Chicken soup and gravy base

Directions for the Stuffing: To roast the chestnuts, cut an X on the flat side of each chestnut and bake 15 to 20 minutes at 375 °F oven. Let cool for 10 minutes and then peel and chop. Do not turn oven off as it will need to be preheated for cooking the turkey.

In a large pot over low heat, heat the oil then add onions and celery. Sauté for about 3 minutes or until soft. Stir in crushed garlic, sage, rosemary, thyme and apple and sauté for a further 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in egg, then add chestnuts, raisins and bread. Toss mixture well. Stir in warm broth made with 1 cup boiling water and 1 teaspoon chicken soup and gravy base, season with salt and pepper. Set aside to cool.

Directions for preparing the turkey: About one hour before cooking, prepare your turkey. Remove any giblets and rise well (inside and out) with cold water, then pat dry with paper towels. Generously rub turkey with grapeseed oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Loosely stuff the neck cavity with chestnut stuffing, fold the skin under and secure in place with a toothpick. Then loosely stuff the main cavity, making sure to leave room for expansion and the air to flow through.

Then prepare your roasting pan. Add carrots, onion and celery to the bottom of a large roasting pan. Place the rack over the vegetables. Now place your turkey, breast side up, on the rack. Put prepared turkey in oven.

Roast, uncovered, at 375 °F for the first 30 minutes, then baste and reduce oven temperature to 325 °F. Continue basting turkey every 25 to 30 minutes. The cooking time should be approximately 20 minutes per pound of turkey, which would be about 3.5 hours for a 10 lb turkey. To check if the turkey is cooked pierce the thigh bone, juices should run clear without any pink. Or use a meat thermometer on the thickest part of the thigh. The temperature should show 180 °F. Turkey should be golden and crispy on the outside too. Remove the turkey from roasting tray and reserve juices for gravy.

Directions for the Gravy: Mash the vegetables in the roasting tray, then push all ingredients through a sieve or use a hand blender. Discard any remaining vegetables or fat. Place the sieved liquid in a saucepan and simmer over low heat. If you don’t have enough liquid then add 1 cup or more (depending on how much gravy you need) boiling water and chicken soup and gravy base.

In a small bowl add 1/4 cup flour and mix with about 1/2 cup cold water until all lumps dissolve. Slowly add a little of this mixture to the saucepan, stirring well after each addition and allowing time for gravy to thicken. Keep adding flour/water mixture until gravy is desired thickness. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed.

Tips:

• For extra added safety, remove the stuffing from turkey once turkey is cooked, serve right away and store left overs in a separate container in the fridge.
• Try adding a couple of tablespoons of red wine or Madeira to the gravy for a richer taste. The alcohol will evaporate during the cooking process so the children will be able to have the gravy.
• Allow roasted turkey to stand or rest for 15-20 minutes for best results. This allows the natural juices to redistribute throughout the meat so it doesn’t get too dry.

You find just the herbs and spices to cook your turkey in the Watkins US catalog or the Canadian catalog. Enjoy!