Bodywise recipe

When cooks travel, they inevitably bring back recipes as souvenirs. I found these pancakes during a summer road trip through northern Minnesota at a sweet little coffee shop in Bemidji called the Minnesota Nice Cafe -- just steps from the giant Paul Bunyan statue.

It was a chilly morning (do they have any other kind there?), and I was torn between the wild rice and the blueberry pancakes. So I got both.

This Breakfast Berry Enchilada is a clever spin on a typical egg-meat-cheese wrap.

Greek yogurt has become quite popular with consumers in the last few years. Most consumers say they like this tangier and creamier style of yogurt.

Celebrate the New Year with fillet of beef in a cognac mustard sauce, roasted potatoes and asparagus. It's a simple, elegant meal that takes only 30 minutes to make.

For this meal, I cut the tenderloin into steaks and saute them in a skillet. The sauce only takes a few minutes to make in the same skillet.

To shorten the cooking time for the potatoes, I use canned potatoes and cut them into 1-inch pieces. They take about 10 minutes to brown under the broiler. The asparagus can be placed on the same baking tray as the potatoes.

Want to cut down on your salt intake?

Use more rosemary in your cooking.

Throughout the ages, rosemary's aromatic addition to food has improved the flavor of all kinds of dishes, including this Rosemary Grilled Shrimp and Vegetables with Brown Rice Pilaf.

Rosemary contains compounds that stimulate digestion, protect the immune system and improve circulation. It is a good source of iron and calcium, as well as fiber.

Storage tip: Before storing woody herbs like rosemary in a plastic bag in the refrigerator, wrap stems in a damp paper towel.

The exciting flavors of Chinese cuisine are captured in this five-spice stir-fried pork. Five-spice usually consists of ground cinnamon, cloves, fennel seed, star anise and Szechuan peppercorns. It gives a pungent flavor to this quick dish.

The pork is accompanied by noodles and greens made with bok choy, a mild vegetable with a crisp, white stalk and dark green leaves. It can be found in the produce section of most supermarkets and can be eaten cooked or raw.

The secret to wok cooking at home is to make sure the wok is very hot -- the oil should be smoking. Add about half the meat and wait several seconds for the wok to regain its heat before adding the rest.

This meal contains 521 calories per serving with 27 percent of calories from fat.

Helpful hints:

* Chinese or Napa cabbage can be used instead of bok choy.

* White vinegar diluted with a little water can be used instead of rice vinegar.

* Dried Chinese noodles or angel hair pasta can be used instead of fresh or steamed Chinese noodles.

You can whip up a quick Southwestern dinner without all of the fat found in tacos and burritos by making quesadillas. Though quesadillas usually are served as an appetizer, these are large and filling enough for supper.

This recipe uses flour tortillas filled with a savory bean mixture, melted Monterey Jack cheese and ham. Once prepared, they only take 2 minutes to cook under a broiler.

Jicama is a root vegetable with a thin brown skin and white crunchy flesh. Served raw or cooked, it retains its crisp water-chestnut-like texture.

You get almost zero waste and solid protein with pork tenderloins.