One Great . . . shrimp dip recipe

When the new book "Farm Fresh Southern Cooking," by Tammy Algood arrived recently, I was expecting squash casseroles and green beans, not a chunky shrimp dip. But friends were coming over and I needed a substantial appetizer for noshing.

It certainly fit the bill. Easy to make, simple ingredients and plenty of flavor. My book club approved. Since it's chunky, serve it with scoop-shaped tortilla chips but include a small knife or spoon so people don't break their chips in the bowl.

Not For Wimps Shrimp Dip

From "Farm Fresh Southern Cooking," by Tmamy Algood (Thomas Nelson, $24.99).

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon pickled jalapeno liquid
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
1 1/2 pounds cooked salad shrimp (I used a 12-ounce package of small shrimp, thawed)
3 stalks celery, minced
6 green onions, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped pickled jalapenos

Combine the cream cheese, mayonnaise, pepper liquid and mustard and beat with an electric mixer on low speed. Fold in the shrimp, celery, onions and peppers.

Transfer to a serving bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour (and up to 24 hours) before serving.

Serve chilled with hefty chips or crackers.

One Great . . . lamb stew for a winter night

The rest of you might be happy about our unusually warm winter, but not me. I love winter, the more bracing the better. Give me a couple of good snow storms, at least one ice event and enough cold Saturday nights to get through the whole canon of great cold-weather cooking.

We haven't had that many good, cold weekends to trot out the heavy-duty comfort food this year. So a burst of chill this weekend is a cooking excuse you don't want to miss.

Lamb, Fig & Olive Stew

From "EatingWell One-Pot Meals," from Jessie Price and EatingWell magazine (Countryman Press, 2011). If you can't find lean ground lamb, pick a lean cut, such as leg or loin, trim the fat, cut it into bite-size pieces and pulse it in a food processor just until ground but not turned into paste. Or ask the meat department to grind it for you - some stores will do it.

1 pound lean ground lamb
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup plus 2 teaspoons minced garlic, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons herbes de Provence (see note)
1/2 cup dry red wine
2 (14-ounce) cans reduced-sodium beef broth (3 1/2 cups if you have homemade beef broth)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
4 plum tomatoes, cored and diced
1/2 cup chopped dried figs
1/4 cup finely chopped pitted green olives
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest

Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add lamb and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon, until browned, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a sieve set over a bowl to drain. Discard the fat.

Wipe out the pot. Add the oil and heat over medium-high. Add 1/4 cup garlic and herbs and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add wine and cook, scraping up any browned bits, until slightly reduced, 1 to 2 minutes.

Combine broth and cornstarch in a small bowl. Add to the pot, increase the heat to high and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. Add tomatoes, figs, olives and pepper. Return to simmer, stirring often. Reduce heat to maintain a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Add the reserved lamb and cook, stirring occasionally, until heated through, about 2 minutes.
Combine the remaining 2 teaspoons garlic, parsley and lemon zest and sprinkle over servings of stew.

NOTE: It's not exactly the same, but if you don't have herbes de Provence, add 1/4 teaspoon each dried thyme, oregano, rosemary and marjoram.

One great recipe: Cranberry thighs

It sounds like something you'd call someone the week after Thanksgiving. But cranberry thighs were my solution last week when I needed a pre-holiday meal for a big group. I wanted something that felt like the season but didn't steal the thunder from Thanksgiving the next night.

Since I was feeding a crowd, I stretched the sauce over two big pans of 14 chicken thighs. If you need to cut it down to 8, you'll have some sauce left over. But you can stick it in the freezer and have a head-start for another night. With fresh cranberries making their brief appearance in stores through Christmas, this will be tasty and festive anytime.

Cranberry-Glazed Chicken Thighs

Figure on two chicken thigh per serving.

8 to 12 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 (12-ounce) bag fresh cranberries, rinsed and soft ones discarded
1 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup ketchup
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon dry mustard

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Choose a 13-by-9-inch baking dish or roasting pan large enough to hold the thighs in a single layer with a little space between each one. Spray it with nonstick cooking spray.

Sprinkle chicken thighs with salt and pepper and arrange them in the prepared pan or dish. Place in the oven and roast for 25 minutes.

While chicken is roasting, combine the cranberries, sugar and 1/2 cup water in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes, or until the berries start to pop. Remove from heat and stir in the ketchup, brown sugar, vinegar and dry mustard.

Remove chicken thighs from the oven and spoon some of the sauce over each one. Return to oven and roast 20 minutes longer. Spoon a little more sauce over each and turn oven to broil. Broil about 5 minutes, until brown in spots, watching carefully to make sure they don't burn.

One Great Chicken Dish

A little spicy, a little sweet. These made a simple early-fall Sunday supper, with grits and a Waldorf salad with apples and pears.

The original recipe called for skinless, boneless chicken thighs. And you can certainly go that way. But whole chicken thighs taste so much better.

Spicy Honey-Brushed Chicken Thighs
Adapted from Cooking Light, September 2010 issue

2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 chicken thighs (see note)
Cooking spray
6 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons cider vinegar

Preheat the broiler. (To really get a burst of heat in an electric oven, I usually preheat the oven to 500 degrees, then switch to the broiler setting when the food is ready to go in.)

Combine the garlic powder, chili powder, salt, cumin, paprika and red pepper in a large bowl. Add the chicken and toss to coat well. Spray a broiler pan with cooking spray. Place the chicken in the pan skin-down. Broil 6 to 7 minutes. Turn with tongs and broil 6 to 7 minutes longer.

Combine honey and vinegar in a small bowl while thighs are broiling. Remove chicken from oven and turn chicken skin-down. Brush with about half the honey mixture. Return to oven and broil 2 minutes. Remove chicken from oven, turn pieces skin up and brush with the remaining honey mixture. Return to oven and broil 1 to 2 minutes, until browned but not burned.

Yield: 4 servings.

NOTE: If you use skinless, boneless chicken thighs, broil 5 minutes per side and 1 minute per side after brushing with honey glaze.

One great potluck dish

What do you make to take? I found this in the premiere issue of Recipe.com, a new magazine (yes, a printed magazine with the name "dot.com") from Meredith that brings together budget-focused recipes from their other magazines, such as Better Homes and Gardens, Midwest Living and Eating Well. This one originally ran in BHG.

24-Hour Chicken Fiesta Salad

4 cups torn lettuce (iceberg, bibb or Boston)
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded pepper-Jack cheese
1 cup (or 1/2 of a 15-ounce can) of black beans, pinto beans or garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
8 ounces chopped cooked chicken or turkey (about 1 1/2 cups)
2 small tomatoes, cut into thin wedges
1 cup jicama (about 4 ounces) cut in bite-size strips, or 1 cup shredded carrot
1/2 cup sliced, pitted ripe olives
Chile dressing (see below)
3/4 cup crushed tortilla chips

Place lettuce in a large (2-quart) salad bowl. Layer ingredients in the following order: Cheese, beans, chicken, tomatoes, jicama and olives. Spread Chile Dressing evenly over the salad, sealing to the edge of the bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap. Chill for 4 to 24 hours. To serve, toss lightly to coat evenly. Sprinkle with crushed tortilla chips.
Chile dressing: Stir together 1/2 cup mayonnaise, 1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles, 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder and 1 minced clove garlic.

Makes 4 servings.

Per serving: 444 calories, 26g protein, 17g carbohydrates, 32g fat (7g saturated), 73mg cholesterol, 460mg sodium, 5g fiber.