Recipe Sifter

Basic peanut-style dipping sauce (no actual peanuts) with cashew butter, tahini, coconut milk, lime, miso, and ginger. A richer, Thai-leaning satay sauce for grilled skewers, coconut shrimp, or crudités.

Slow cooker beef shanks braised in beer and tomato paste with mushrooms, carrots, red potatoes, and garlic, finished with fresh lemon zest and juice. Set it and forget it for up to 9 hours.

Lower-fat 'guacamole' built from puréed green peas, green chiles, garlic, and salsa. A creamy, spicy dip that mimics the avocado original at a fraction of the fat.

Mexican baked beans, dried white beans baked low and slow in a tomato sauce with jalapenos, bell pepper, onion, chili powder, cumin, and a touch of molasses. Vegetarian, dairy-free, deeply spiced.

Homemade Polish kielbasa sausage with pork, garlic, black pepper, and sausage seasoning stuffed into natural casings. Five ingredients and a meat grinder are all you need.

Crawfish tails simmered in a creamy shrimp soup sauce with sauteed onions, garlic, bell pepper, celery, and white wine. Ladle this Cajun-style goodness over rice or pasta.

Gooseberry curd made with fresh gooseberries, eggs, butter, and sugar cooked to a silky custard. A tart, floral fruit curd for filling tarts, tartlets, or spreading on scones.

Golden, hollow popovers that puff up dramatically in the oven using just 4 simple ingredients: flour, eggs, skim milk, and salt. No sugar, no butter in the batter, and naturally diabetic-friendly. Pure baking magic.

Pork chitterlings: soul food classic of pork intestines simmered with vinegar, onions, and hot peppers until fork tender, then served hot or battered and fried. A Southern holiday tradition.

Soft pineapple cookies with crushed pineapple and chopped nuts or coconut in a tender, cake-like drop cookie. A tropical twist on the classic cookie jar favorite.

Note: 15 bean mixtures are available packaged in supermarkets and health food stores. If you prefer, make your own by combining equal amounts of dried blackeyed peas, red kidney beans, white kidney beans (cannellini), green lentils, split peas, black beans, yellow split peas, navy beans, cranberry (Roman, shell, or shell out) beans, great Northern beans, pinto beans, small white limas, red lentils, cow peas (field peas), and pink beans. Avoid using beans such as garbanzos and large lima beans, as these take longer to cook than other varities.

A great summer relish to serve with chips or as a topping for hamburgers off the grill.

Don't let winter creep up on you, and try this fruity drink made with pineapple and orange juice.

Start your own sourdough with just flat beer and flour. Stir 3 times a day for 5 to 10 days and you've got a bubbly, tangy starter ready for any sourdough recipe.

Crispy Cuban-style fritters made from soaked black-eyed peas blended with garlic into a thick batter, fried golden, and finished with a squeeze of fresh lime. Vegetarian, gluten-free, and seriously addictive.

Spiced red lentil veggie burgers with Cajun seasoning, garlic, and fresh herbs. Cook lentils until they break down, mix with breadcrumbs, then grill or pan-fry until crispy.