I have always been suspicious of cold soups...just doesn't seem right...but during the heat wave of this July, I took a crack at a chilled soup, made with seasonal canteloupe and I was pretty impressed with myself!
It was so simple too!
Ingredients:
-1 medium, ripe canteloupe
-2 or 3 cups plain sparkling water
-8 thin slices of prosciutto
-cracked white pepper
-chopped basil to garnish (optional)
Directions:
-Cube the melon and put the cubes in a food processor in batches until smooth
-Pour the melon puree into a large tupperware or bowl, gently mix in the sparkling water
-Crisp the prosciutto in a pan and crumble over the soup in each bowl, right before serving
-Garnish with crushed white pepper to taste & perhaps a pinch of chopped basil
Serves 4, oh so refreshingly!
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Slim Enchiladas
I had a lot of fun making these enchiladas, and they happily fed me all week-- LOTS of great flavor!
These are "regular" enough to smell/look/feel/taste like enchiladas, but they offer so much more- the pepperiness from the arugula, the heartiness from the occassional mushroom bit, the smokey kick from the chipotle, and the slow-roasted chicken all really came together to make for a great dish...if I do say so myself :)
The recipe is wordy, but its really not difficult.
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These are "regular" enough to smell/look/feel/taste like enchiladas, but they offer so much more- the pepperiness from the arugula, the heartiness from the occassional mushroom bit, the smokey kick from the chipotle, and the slow-roasted chicken all really came together to make for a great dish...if I do say so myself :)
The recipe is wordy, but its really not difficult.
-->
Slim Chicken Enchiladas with Salsa Verde & Chipotle Sauce
INGREDIENTS
4 small sweet peppers, diced
½ red onion, diced
1 lime, chopped & wrapped in cheese cloth
½ c diced mushrooms (I like baby bellas best)
Generous handful of baby arugula, if desired, you can chop it up
1 can rinsed black beans (reduced sodium is best)
2 uncooked organic chicken breasts
1 small can diced green chiles
½ c water
½ c plain fat free Greek yogurt
1 tsp each cumin & salt & pepper
16 small corn tortillas
1 c (or more) salsa verde or green taco sauce (Wegman's roasted tomatillo sauce is the BEST!)
2T chipotle sauce
¼ c shredded Parmesan cheese
Fresh cilantro
Fresh cilantro
DIRECTIONS
Place the following in a Crock Pot & cook on HIGH for 3
hours
4
small sweet peppers, diced
½
red onion, diced
1
lime, chopped & wrapped in cheese cloth
½
c diced mushrooms
Generous
handful of baby arugula
1
can rinsed black beans
2
uncooked organic chicken breasts
1
small can diced green chiles
½
c water (swish in empty chile can to get the rest of the goodness out)
Discard the lime.
Use 2 forks to shred the chicken and combine ingredients.
Mix in the following:
½
c plain fat free Greek yogurt
1
tsp each cumin & salt & pepper, to taste
Warm tortillas in batches of about 4 in the microwave for
~30 seconds, between damp paper towels.
You are warming them in batches so they won’t cool down by the time you
get around to rolling them up, obviously.
16
small corn tortillas, warmed in batches
I covered my pan with tin foil because I am averse to
cleaning pots, but do whatever you want.
Use a ¼ c measuring cup to spoon ~ ¼ c filling into a warm
tortilla, wrap it up, and place the seam-side of the tortilla down into the pan. Be aware that there will probably be
excess liquid in the chicken mixture, so try to be draining it as you scoop out
each ¼ cup. Fit the rolled
tortillas tightly in the dish. I
squeezed in 16, using 2 pans of different sizes, but I think 16 would be about
right for a standard 9x13 pan (5 rows of 3 + a bonus somewhere)
Cover with green salsa and spoon a little chipotle sauce
over each tortilla roll. Sprinkle
with cheese.
1
c (or more) salsa verde or green taco sauce
2T
chipotle sauce
¼ c shredded parmesan cheese
Cover loosely with foil and bake at 350 for around 30 mins,
until you see some bubbling juices & the cheese is melted completely.
Serve with fresh cilantro!
Serve with fresh cilantro!
The beauty of this recipe is the unusual amount of veggies
and the high amount of protein even though only 2 chicken breasts are
used. Supplementing the meat with
beans & yogurt means less saturated fat and less animals dying (if you’re
not too into that) and still getting 8 servings with a substantial amount of
wholesome protein. ¡QuĂ© bueno!
Also, I'm a believer of only adding cheese ON TOP because it takes A LOT of cheese mixed inside of a dish for it to even be noticeable, so why waste cheese and why waste calories? This is also my philosophy on omlettes. Putting it on top makes it easier to taste while using less.
NUTRITION INFORMATION
According to my calculations at Livestrong.com/myplate
For 2 enchiladas (recipe makes 16 enchiladas, ie, 8 servings
total)
218 Calories
2.4g Total Fat
7g Fiber
14.5g Protein
That’s light enough to have 2 servings if you wanna! If you do, that’s about 14 GRAMS OF
FIBER & 29 GRAMS OF PROTEIN! Whoa!
Winner.
Sesame Street Fruit & Veggie Platters
I'm a big fan of healthy eating.
And I'm a REALLY big fan of engaging kids in healthy eating!
Which explains my love of this season's Biggest Loser (challenging America to fight childhood obesity), my support of Michelle Obama & her Let's Move! campaign for kids, AND my recent gift to my little baby niece on the way:
Plush fruit & veggie baskets from IKEA- love!
So when I saw these platters posted by the local schwanky health club in town that I am currently saving my pennies to become a member of...
I had to share them. No recipe required, I think the photo speaks for itself.
Cookie Monster:
Blueberries, blackberries
Elmo:
Strawberries, blackberries, clementine
Oscar the Grouch:
Broccoli, olives, bell pepper
Big Bird:
Pineapple, mango, strawberry
All with yogurt dip in shallow dishes + blueberries or blackberries for eyes.
Too cute!
Thanks to the Sporting Club at the Bellevue for the inspiration!
And I'm a REALLY big fan of engaging kids in healthy eating!
Which explains my love of this season's Biggest Loser (challenging America to fight childhood obesity), my support of Michelle Obama & her Let's Move! campaign for kids, AND my recent gift to my little baby niece on the way:
Plush fruit & veggie baskets from IKEA- love!
So when I saw these platters posted by the local schwanky health club in town that I am currently saving my pennies to become a member of...
I had to share them. No recipe required, I think the photo speaks for itself.
Cookie Monster:
Blueberries, blackberries
Elmo:
Strawberries, blackberries, clementine
Oscar the Grouch:
Broccoli, olives, bell pepper
Big Bird:
Pineapple, mango, strawberry
All with yogurt dip in shallow dishes + blueberries or blackberries for eyes.
Too cute!
Thanks to the Sporting Club at the Bellevue for the inspiration!
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Unique, High-Protein Zucchini Lasagna
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This recipe was inspired by a conversation I
eavesdropped into while riding on the train to work last week. A very hip-looking man was describing
his urban garden and things that he does with his zucchini crop when they start
growing like crazy. Intrigued, I
looked into zucchini lasagna recipes and, as always, added plenty of twists to
make it uniquely my own.
One tip I will share is that in the various
components of this recipe, be sure to go light on the salt because there will
be plenty of remaining salt on the zucchini with the way I instruct you to
prepare it.
I made this in a high-walled 9x9 pan, like a
brownie pan, and it made 9 good-sized servings about 3x3 inches each and 1 ½ -2
inches tall.
INGREDIENTS:
-4 small zucchini, thinly sliced length-wise
with a mandolin
-2T olive oil
-½ yellow onion, diced
-6 cloves garlic, minced
-½ lb ground lean turkey (1/2 a regular pack
from the store)
-23oz can tomato sauce with basil (or add fresh
basil, which is even better)- NOT ready made pasta sauce, just regular tomato
sauce in a can with NO sugar in it
-16 oz can (regular-sized can) plain
fire-roasted diced tomatoes
-1 c low fat cottage cheese
-¾ pack of black tofu, minced
-1 c cremini mushrooms, diced in a food
processor, or thinly sliced with a mandolin
-Oregano, salt & pepper to taste (go easy on
the salt)
-2 oz fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
DIRECTIONS:
Zucchini Noodles~
Use a mandolin or veggie peeler to slice zucchini the long way,
so you have long, thin strips of zucchini. You can choose to discard the pieces that are mostly skin if
you prefer. Layer the zucchini on
a large platter and sprinkle with sea salt, which will absorb excess
moisture. After about 30 minutes,
use paper towels to press accumulated water and excess salt off of the
zucchini. While you are waiting
the 30 minutes, you can prepare the sauce.
Meat Sauce~
Drizzle the olive oil into a large pot or dutch
oven and allow olive oil to heat to medium. Add onions and soften.
Add garlic and cook until soft, stirring regularly. Add the ground turkey and sautee until
mostly cooked. Add the cans of
tomatoes and use a wooden spoon to get the browned bits off the bottom and
incorporated into the sauce.
Season to taste- I always add crushed red pepper, loads of black pepper,
basil, and a tiny hint of cumin to tomato sauce. When combined, cover and cook on low, stirring
occasionally. It really only needs
to cook until everything is warmed through and well-combined. (*See NOTE below- I reserved 2 cups of meat sauce when I made this dish!)
Cheesey Layer~
As you let the sauce cook, work on the cheesey
layer. In a mixing bowl, combine
the cottage cheese, tofu, mushrooms, and seasonings until very well combined.
Also thinly slice the fresh mozzarella.
Put
it all together~
Prepare the 9x9 pan however you prefer, I
sprayed it with a little more olive oil.
Set the oven to 375.
Note that there will be 3 layers of zucchini, 2
layers of the sauce, 2 layers of the cheese, and 1 layer mozzarella on top.
1) Layer 1/3 of the zucchini strips into the
bottom of the pan, slightly overlapping them, having them all lining up in the
same direction.
2) Ladel 1/2 of the meat sauce over top, smoothing
it out with the back of the ladel.
3) Add ½ of the cheesy mixture over the sauce,
making it as smooth as possible.
4) Layer another 1/3 of the zucchini strips, as
before.
5) Ladel on the rest of the sauce, smoothly.
6) Add the rest of the cheesy mixture, as
smoothly as possible.
7) Layer the rest of the zucchini strips.
8) Finish with the mozzarella slices, evenly distributing
them over top.
Bake for about 30 minutes. If the mozzarella is looking melted,
loosely put a layer of foil on top.
Cook until the sauce is bubbling up, about 50 minutes. I recommend putting a foil-lined baking
sheet on the rack beneath the lasagna in the oven, to catch any sauce
spill-over.
Allow to cool slightly, use a sharp knife to cut
into 9 pieces, and enjoy your healthy dinner than looks like the real thing!
It’s gluten free, if you’re into that, includes
>2 servings of vegetables per piece, and is incredibly high in protein while
not using that much meat (only 2 servings of turkey for a 9-serving dish!)
Here’s the nutrition info, compliments of the
MyRecipes calculator on livestrong.com~
177 calories
5g fat (1 saturated)
4g fiber
16g protein
16g carbs
**NOTE: Because I make up all of my own recipes, sometimes the quantities aren't perfect. When I made this dish, I had about 2 cups of meat sauce left over that I DID NOT use in the final product. I saved this for topping spaghetti squash with- another excellent veggie/pasta swap!
**NOTE: Because I make up all of my own recipes, sometimes the quantities aren't perfect. When I made this dish, I had about 2 cups of meat sauce left over that I DID NOT use in the final product. I saved this for topping spaghetti squash with- another excellent veggie/pasta swap!
Friday, January 11, 2013
Stuffed Bell Peppers- easier than you think!
What does one do when Wegmans is having a sale on big bags of beautiful bell peppers? Stuff them!
I reviewed a few recipes for stuffed peppers on foodnetwork.com, and combined some of their insights to make my own (superior) recipe. Healthy and delicious as always :)
INGREDIENTS:
I reviewed a few recipes for stuffed peppers on foodnetwork.com, and combined some of their insights to make my own (superior) recipe. Healthy and delicious as always :)
INGREDIENTS:
1 c uncooked brown wild rice
2c low sodium vegetable stock
½ pound lean ground turkey
½ c chopped red onion
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large handful of fresh baby spinach, chopped
black pepper to taste
sea salt to taste- remember, you’re gonna be eating an entire bell pepper here, so make sure
you use
enough salt
enough salt
pinch of cayenne powder
2T chopped fresh oregano
4 bell peppers, any color
3T shredded Parmesan cheese
3T plain Panko breadcrumbs- whole wheat, if available
Honestly, this recipe tastes best when made with chorizo
instead of ground turkey…but it's still pretty close to New Years, so we’re all
still trying, right?
DIRECTIONS:
Boil the vegetable stock or broth & cook the rice in it; cover & set aside.
Chop everything that needs to be chopped.
Wash the peppers and cut out the tops. You will want to remove the seeds and the white stem things inside. Discard the seed pod and the stem, but if there is pepper flesh surrounding the stem that you've cut out, salvage it and chop it up too for adding in with the garlic and onion.
Stand up the peppers in a pot that is just big enough to fit them all. You may want to slightly cut the bottoms of the peppers if they are lopsided so that they stand up straight, but don't cut deep enough to make a hole in the pepper!
Stand up the peppers in a pot that is just big enough to fit them all. You may want to slightly cut the bottoms of the peppers if they are lopsided so that they stand up straight, but don't cut deep enough to make a hole in the pepper!
Preheat the oven to 400
Brown the turkey over medium heat with salt, pepper & cayenne. When turkey is nearly cooked, add the garlic/onion/pepper tops and cook until the veggies are soft and turkey is fully cooked. Turn heat to LOW (or OFF if your rice is still hot) and add the spinach & oregano and any other spices you want to add.
Add the rice and mix everything all together. Sample to make sure you have seasoned it enough- my favorite part :D
Add the rice and mix everything all together. Sample to make sure you have seasoned it enough- my favorite part :D
Spoon it all into the 4 bell peppers.
In a little bowl, combine the bread crumbs, shredded cheese, and a little more crushed pepper (I prefer Rainbow Peppercorns) and spoon it over the now-stuffed bell peppers.
Carefully add about 1/2 to 1 inch of water to the bottom of the pot.
Bake in oven for 30 minutes. If the topping is browning too quickly, cover with foil.
Bake in oven for 30 minutes. If the topping is browning too quickly, cover with foil.
Serve hot.
I really like this method- I think blanching &
refreshing the peppers beforehand is kind of overkill. Plus, baking them this way, instead of
cooking them swimming in sauce, really helps the peppers maintain their
structural integrity, shape, color (vitamins!), and gives the dish a fresher taste. And, of course, eliminating a needless sauce logically
eliminated needless calories and needless kitchen prep- double bonus!
From our friends at livestrong.com where I crunched the
numbers, each stuffed pepper contains the following:
Calories 283
Total Fat 5.8g
Saturated
Fat 1.7g
Dietary Fiber 6.5g
Sugars 1.5
Protein 21.25 (whoa!)
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Butternut Squash Baked Mac & (a smidge of) Cheese
I'm really impressed by this recipe, which I just served up for my Sunday dinner. I adapted it from a health magazine and it was excellent! It's a delicious baked mac
& cheese with the added vitamin/fiber bonus of butternut squash!
Indulgent and creamy, but with NO cream, NO butter, and only a 1/4 cup
of cheese for the entire dish!
Your cheat meal just became healthy!
Best of all, I made it with a butternut squash my parents grew in their garden, that I snuck into my suitcase on the plane home from my parents' house this Christmas! It gave the dish a gorgeous, deep orange color, making me feel like I was in Cheddar Heaven, but knowing that I was really in Vitamin A Heaven, which is all the more divine :)
Here are the details...
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 medium sized butternut squash, peeled & cubed into smallish pieces (~1/2 inch squares)
- 6 cloves of garlic, minced & separated
- ~10 fresh sage leaves, chopped & separated
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk (I actually used unsweetened almond & coconut milk. Whatever your milk du jour, make sure its unsweetened because the squash adds plenty of sweetness on its own)
-1 cup reduced sodium chicken stock
-pinches of sea salt, cayenne pepper, and crushed black pepper
- 1/2 pound whole wheat elbow macaroni (~3 cups uncooked)
- cooking spray or olive oil
- 1/4 cup shredded good quality Gruyere cheese
-1/2 cup plain Panko bread crumbs- use the whole wheat variety if you can find it!
DIRECTIONS:
-Preheat oven to 475, spray an 8x8 deep baking dish (like one
for brownies) lightly with cooking spray or olive oil.
-Peel and cube the stem part (i.e., the entire squash except the
bulbous bottom- save it for something else) of a medium-sized butternut squash.
-Add the squash cubes to a large sauce pan with the chicken
stock, almond milk, pinches of cayenne pepper
& crushed black pepper, most of the chopped sage leaves (~8 leaves total), and most of the minced garlic (~4 cloves worth).
-Heat pot over medium
heat and simmer until squash is tender, about 10 or 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
-When squash is soft, use a stick blender and puree until
pretty smooth. (Or allow to cool
and puree in a blender)
-Meanwhile, cook the pasta al dente. Rinse briefly in cool water and add to prepared
pan.
-Cover the al dente pasta evenly with the
squash mixture. Cover the pan with
foil and bake for 25 minutes.
-As it bakes, put the shredded gruyere cheese, panko, 1/8 t sea salt, ~2 more chopped up sage leaves, and ~2
more minced garlic cloves in a bowl and mix together.
-Spoon the cheese mixture over the pasta & squash and broil on low for
about 4 more minutes (watching closely!) until the top is lightly browned.
BEAUTIFUL!
Makes 4 very generous servings.
I did the math on livestrong.com's MyPlate feature, and came up with these fabulous stats:
Calories 261
Total Fat 4.28g
Saturated
Fat 1.3g
Dietary Fiber 5.75g
Sugars 6.5g
Protein 11g
I included a side of wild Atlantic salmon baked with a ginger glaze, just cuz I'm wonderfully indulgent.
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