The past couple weeks have been particularly hectic, with more appointments, meetings, and unexpected events than usual.

Not only have I not had as much time to spend in the kitchen, but I’ve had to replace my old reliable gas range. During a mid-April electrical outage and subsequent power surge, the oven’s control panel was fried. Because of its age and the inability to locate a new part, that range is now in Appliance Heaven.

But by the time you read this (if everything goes according to plan), all will be back to normal here at the Cove. Picture me standing in front of my lovely new stove while a new (and apparently very important) gizmo hums away in the circuit breaker box downstairs.

I haven’t been starving, nor have I been living on take-out. I’ve been making do with my stove top, microwave, and the considerable stash of stuff in the freezer.

For instance, I always have a package of ground turkey, so I made a batch of burgers in the cast iron skillet. I cook them up all at once then reheat as needed. They’re so yummy with a swirl of pesto mayo and a side of Rx Salad. The leftover burgers are also delicious for breakfast on a toasted English muffin with avocado and tomato, or with egg and cheese. Sometimes I change up the herbs or add hot sauce.

And how I love my Rx Salad, my go-to meal of many years. I know the ingredients by heart and whenever I shop, these items go in my basket. Sometimes I vary it, but mostly I like it just the way it is. Whether I enjoy it at home, on the job, at the office, the beach, on top of Mt. Battie, at the Brunswick Green, or on a road trip, you can count on me bringing along my crunchy Rx Salad.

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The day before the power outage, I had fortunately baked a pan of another favorite take-along, Apricot-Walnut Bars. They’re wonderfully healthy, not too sweet, and are fabulous with afternoon tea. They’re also perfect for lunch boxes and can even be substituted for breakfast. You can use any combination of dried fruit and nuts. Sometimes I add ground flax seed, coconut, cinnamon, or candied ginger. Yes, you have my permission to add chocolate chips and/or drizzle the bars with icing, too.

For my next column, I’ll be in the throes of getting acquainted with my new kitchen range. Here’s hoping the new power surge gizmo does its job.

My Turkey Burgers

1 pound ground turkey

2 eggs

1/3 cup bread crumbs

1/4 cup scallions, minced

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2/3 cup dried parsley

1/2 tsp. sage

½ tsp. marjoram

1/2 tbsp. olive oil

Salt & pepper to taste

Crumble turkey into a bowl and mix in all other ingredients except oil. Shape mixture into patties. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat and cook patties for 5-7 minutes on each side. Yield: 4 patties

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Rx Salad

1 cup greens of your choice

1/3 cup red cabbage, shredded

1/2 cup red pepper strips

1/2 cup grape tomatoes, halved

1/3 cup canned chickpeas

1/2 cup carrot, grated

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1/2 avocado, cubed

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

2 tbps. olive oil

1 tsp. balsamic vinegar

Toss all ingredients except oil and vinegar in a bowl. Whisk those together and add to salad just before serving. Yield: 2 servings

Apricot-Walnut Bars

1 cup (2-3) mashed banana

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1 tsp. vanilla

2 tbsps. brown sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 cup dried apricots, chopped

1/3 cup walnuts, chopped

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2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine bananas, vanilla, brown sugar and salt in a medium bowl. Stir in apricots, walnuts, and oats.

Press mixture evenly into an 8 x 8 parchment-lined baking pan. Bake 30 minutes. Lifting the parchment paper, remove from pan and set on wire rack to cool before cutting. Yield: 9 bars

Karen Scneider cooks and writes in the village of Cundy’s Harbor. You can reach her at iwrite33@comcast.net.

Easy and healthy: Turkey Burgers and Rx Salad.


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