Green Salad with Mango -OR- What to do with a mango that is too tart to eat

I got some mangoes this week through my organic food co-op so I cut one up for Robin and me to eat. It was pretty tart, even for me, so I decided to just throw it on my green salad that I already had going. I added salsa and some salad spritz and wow, I couldn't believe how good this was! The sweet-tartness balanced very well with the spiciness of the salsa and the acidity of the salad spritz. Very good!!

Father's Day Oat and Flax pancakes

I made these pancakes for Father's Day. Well, I just happened to make them ON Father's Day before realizing it was Father's Day. LOL.

This recipe makes about 13 pancakes at 2 points a piece.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup white flour
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 cup 2% milk
• 3/4 cup water
• 2 Tbs olive oil
• 2 Tbs honey
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup ground flax seed meal

Directions:

• Combine dry ingredients in mixer.
• Add wet ingredients until completely mixed.
• Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, scoop batter onto medium-hot pan.
• Cook the 1st side a few minutes, until edges start to get dry and bubbles break through the top of the batter and start to pop.
• Flip, and cook 2nd side a few more minutes.

Grilled Portobello (Portabella) Mushroom Burgers

Grilled Portobello (Portabella) Mushroom Burgers

6 points

I made these a few nights ago during a visit to my parents' house. I don't have an outside grill of my own (I don't grill a lot and the small amount I do grill, I can do on my cast iron grill pan on the stove), but my parents do. My dad fired up his small grill for these absolutely DELISH burgers. The points from these come from the cheese (I think 3 points per slice) and the hamburger bun (also 3 points, if I remember correctly). We served these with yellow squash that was sliced and sauteed with a small amount of butter, olive oil, fresh onion slices and garlic powder.

These burgers were SO GOOD.

Ingredients:

• Portobello (portabella) mushrooms - one for each burger
• Newman's Own Light Balsamic Vinaigrette dressing* (I used about 1/4 cup for 2 mushrooms with a bit left over)
• 1 - 2 tsp dry thyme
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 - 2 tsp dried onion flakes
• Slices of cheese (I used muenster)
• hamburger buns
• hamburger condiments and garnishments, as desired (e.g., mustard, mayo, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles).

Directions:

• Prepare your grill for cooking.
• Clean mushrooms by wiping them lightly with a damp towel. You just want to get the dirt off without damaging the mushroom. Avoid using water because it could reduce the flavor of the mushroom. (See this reference: http://www.recipetips.com/glossary-term/t--33854/portobello-mushroom.asp).
• Mix the Balsamic vinaigrette dressing, thyme, garlic powder and onion flakes in a bowl.
• Brush the tops and bottoms of the mushrooms with the dressing mixture.
• Grill the mushrooms about 5 - 7 minutes on each side.
• Add the sliced cheese to each mushroom and cook until just melted (only about a minute or two).
• Place mushroom on hamburger bun and garnish as desired.
• Enjoy!

*If you don't have balsamic vinaigrette dressing, you can mix about 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar with about 2 tsp olive oil, the above spices and salt for the marinade.