From Linda Larsen,
Your Guide to Busy Cooks.
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Let's celebrate spring with some great menus for the weekend, featuring eggs. Did you know that the American Heart Association no longer makes a recommendation about how many eggs we can eat each week? The recommendation used to be three to four egg yolks a week. We now know that trans fats and saturated fats may raise cholesterol levels more than cholesterol-rich foods.

Spring also means more fresh fruits and vegetables are available in the market, especially strawberries and asparagus, two foods particularly associated with spring. So join me and celebrate spring!

Friday Night Entertaining Dinner

• Hot and Spicy Pecans
  I love to fill small mercury glass bowls with these pecans and set a few on the coffee table for guests to nibble.
• Mexican Peacocks
  These fabulously delicious stuffed chicken breasts are filled with avocado. This is a perfect entree for company.
• Super Easy Fruit Salad
  Combine peach pie filling with some fresh fruits and this delicious salad is ready in minutes.
• Crusty Mini-Loaves
  These cute individual loaves of bread are so easy to make with hot roll mix.
• Caramel Banana Cream Pie
  This gorgeous pie is so easy to make and is the perfect end to this company meal.

Saturday Breakfast

• orange juice, coffee, and milk
• Ham and Tater Slow Cooker Breakfast
  Start this delicious breakfast casserole the night before and everyone will wake up hungry and ready to start the day.
• Blueberry Muffins
  This is the most perfect recipe for blueberry muffins. If you can't find fresh blueberries in your market, these muffins are wonderful made with frozen fruit.

Saturday Lunch

• milk and fruit juice
• Chicken Tomato Wrap Sandwiches
  This delicious sandwich filling lasts for a couple of days in your refrigerator. On your busy Saturday, put tortillas on the kitchen counter and let everybody make their own sandwiches for lunch on the run.
• baby carrots and bell pepper strips

Saturday Dinner

• Warm Cheese Dip
  I love this appetizer; it's warm, creamy and comforting. Serve it with a selection of crackers for a great start to your dinner.
• Pork Chops with Melon
  Did you know that grilling fruit brings out its sweetness and caramelizes those sugars too? Served with these tender pork chops, these grilled melon slices are just spectacular.
• Basil Cheese Pull-Apart Breadsticks
  Sourdough bread is sliced, coated with butter and herbs, then heated on the grill until soft and crispy. Yum.
• Asparagus with Pesto Tomatoes
  When you're preparing asparagus, snap the spears; they will break at the point where the tough, woody area begins.
• Strawberry Chocolate Trifle
  To save time, you can purchase some prepared pound cake instead of making the cake squares for this beautiful dessert.

Sunday Brunch

• juice, coffee, milk
• Filo Sausage Egg Bake
  This delicious make-ahead casserole is creamy, cheesy, crisp, and savory. It's one of my favorite brunch dishes.
• grapefruit halves
• Crescent Hearts
  These sweet, crunchy, tiny hearts are made of refrigerated dough. Make a bunch and store them in your cookie jar for easy, quick treats.

Sunday Dinner

• South Seas Steak
  For a bit of the tropics, pineapple, lime, and jerk seasoning glaze a beautiful grilled porterhouse steak.
• Warm Beet Salad
  This unusual salad combines beets with fresh green beans in a wonderful garlic dressing, and is topped with toasted french bread spread with soft cheese.
• Strwaberry S'More Tart
  There's nothing better than chocolate with strawberries. This beautiful tart is just plain delicious.