Zucchini & Shrimp Stir Fry with Tofu & Snow Peas

YUMM-O! I got this recipe out of one of my favorite cooking mags, Clean Eating. I had skimmed over this a couple months ago, and my friend Katie reminded me about it. I followed the recipe pretty close. She sauteed the veggies in a wasabi oil, which I think would have been fab. I just added a little red pepper flakes and Sriracha sauce for a little kick of heat. I also served this over barley, which is a nice change to rice!

1/2 cup barley, rinsed

1 cup low sodium veggie broth

2 T. peanut oil

1 large onion, sliced

3 scallions, chopped

1 lb frozen shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 T. low-sodium soy sauce

1 large zucchini, cut into matchsticks

1 large red pepper, sliced

8 oz. extra firm tofu, cut into 1 inch cubes

2 cups fresh sugar snap peas

1. In a medium saucepan, bring 1 cup water to a boil. Add barley. Stir in vegetable broth. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for about 30 minutes or until barley is tender. Remove from heat. Drain. Set aside and cool.
2. Meanwhile, heat a wok or deep frying pan over medium heat until a drop of water sizzles. Add oil swish around pan and quickly add onion, scallions, shrimp, and soy sauce. Stir gently. Add zucchini, pepper and tofu and continue to stir. Add peas and stir until tender.
3. Carefully plate shrimp stir fry over barley. Serve piping hot.

ENJOY!!!

Broccoli Gratin

This is a great side dish to a steak dinner, and a great way to sneak veggies in a meal. I love broccoli every way you can make it. This is a great casserole alternative with not much fat in it. I made a half recipe which was perfect for 2 with leftovers.

3 slice whole wheat bread

3 T. olive oil

salt and pepper

1/4 cup all purpose flour

3 cups skim milk

2 heads of broccoli ( about 2 pounds), florets finely chopped, stalks peeled and finely chopped

1 cup shredded reduced fat white cheddar

1. Preheat oven to 400, with rack in upper third. In a food processor pulse bread and 1 T. olive oil until large crumbs form; season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. In a large saucepan, heat remaining oil over medium. Whisk in flour; cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Gradually whisk in milk. Bring to a boil; add broccoli. Reduce to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until broccoli is tender. Remove from heat and stir in 3/4 cup cheese.
3. Transfer to a shallow 1 1/2 quart baking dish; top with breadcrumbs and remaining 1/4 cup cheese. Bake until breadcrumbs are golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Recipe is slightly modified from Everyday FOOD by Martha Stewart.

Whole Wheat & Vegetable Lasagna

Well I guess I cannot photograph lasagna, every shot I took looked like a pile of crap, and would not do this goodness any justice. So instead, here is a picture of the lasagna noodles I used. This post is for Miss Allie, who called me out the other night for not updating my blog. The story behind that is I have not been up to cooking lately due to the whole pregnancy thing. For a while nothing sounded good, so Abe just did a lot of grilling, hence no posts. I am now in my second trimester, so I think I'm all clear on the nausea thing. So Allie this one is for you. I made a half recipe of this lasagna, which was plenty for 3.

1 Box (9oz.) Whole Wheat Lasagna

2 Jars (24 oz.) Tomato Basil Sauce

2 Eggs

2 lbs. Part Skim Ricotta Cheese

2 cups Shredded Mozzarella

1/2 cup Grated Parmesan

1 T. Dried Parsley Flakes

2 Medium sized Zucchini

1 8 oz. Pkg. Baby Bella Sliced Mushrooms

1 6 oz. pkg. Baby Spinach

3 T. Olive oil

2 Cloves Fresh Garlic, minced

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a 9X13 glass baking dish with a nonstick spray.
2. In a medium bowl combine: ricotta, mozzarella, Parm, eggs, and parsley; set aside.
3. In a large skillet, heat olive oil and saute garlic; add zucchini, mushrooms, and gently saute for 2-3 minutes. ( Do not over cook veggies, they will get to soggy) Set aside.
4. Remove Lasagna from box, DO NOT BOIL.
5. To assemble, cover bottom of pan with 6-7 oz. of sauce.
6. Layer 4 uncooked noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta mixture, 1/3 of the vegetables, and 1/3 of the spinach. Drizzle with 6-7 oz. of sauce over the vegetables. Create the next layer beginning with the pasta sheets. Gently press down each layer until completed. Repeat layering until you have created 4 layers. Top with 6-7 oz. of sauce.
7. Cover and bake for 45-50 minutes, covered with foil.
8. Remove from oven and let stand for 15-20 minutes before cutting and serving.

Original Recipe at Gia Russa

Tangy Mustard Coleslaw

This crisp, creamy salad is my answer to coleslaw and is a great companion for most grilled meals. I made this with the spice rubbed pork tenderloin, but would be great with burgers or fish sandwiches. I got this recipe from Cooking Light, of course. Oh yea, and use a food processor for the prep.....you will be very happy.

7 cups finely shredded green cabbage

1 cup thinly sliced red onion

1 cup grated carrot

1/4 cup white wine vinegar

2 T. sugar

2 T. whole-grain mustard

2 T. reduced fat mayo

1/8 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

1/8 tsp. ground red pepper

1. Combine first 3 ingredients in a large bowl. Combine vinegar and remaining ingredients in a small bowl; stir well with a whisk. Add mustard to mixture to cabbage mixture, and toss well to coat. Cover and chill 20 minutes. Stir before serving. Yield: 7 servings.

THE Verdict: FAB!! Great side dish. Add a dash of hot sauce to the mustard mixture for extra spiciness.

Summer Veggie Soup

Anyone else feel like I do and cannot eat one more hamburger or brat. My body is craving veggies, so you can imagine the boys were surprised to come home to a huge pot of veggie soup. I was already prepared for the, "where's the meat?" question. But it never came. Have they become veggie lovers? Not quite! But they each had a huge bowl. The one great thing about this recipe is that it makes quite a bit, so you can freeze leftovers. I scooped about 2 cups in freezer bags, and lay them flat in the freezer. They are gonna make great lunches in the next coupe weeks.

4 ears corn, husks and silk removed, corn cut off cob (or about 2 cups frozen corn)

2 T. olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cans (14.5 oz. each) reduced sodium veggie or chicken broth

2 zucchini, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

8 oz. green beans, cut into thirds

1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes in juice

1/2 cup orzo (look for the whole wheat)

1. In a dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion; season with salt and pepper. Cook stirring frequently, until onion is translucent, 3 to 5 minutes.
2. Add broth and 2 cups of water; bring to a boil. Add zucchini, green beans, corn, tomatoes (with juice), and orzo; cook uncovered, until orzo is tender, 8 to 11 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

THE VERDICT: Quick and easy to throw together, and chock full of good summer produce. If freezing, thaw before you reheat it. ENJOY!!

Gnocchi with Summer Veggies

This is a super simple dish to make for the warmer weather.  I served this as a side dish to easy grilled chicken.  It would work as a main dish as well, for those veggie lovers out there, but my man needs meat.  I got all the veggies from the local farmers market, and they tasted fab.  Plus the basil was from my Aerogarden, which is still overflowing.  I got this recipe from the June issue of Everyday FOOD by Martha Stewart.

1 T. olive oil

2 zucchini or summer squash or a combo, quartered and sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced

salt and peeper

1 pint grape tomatoes, halved ( I had plum tomatoes on hand)

1 Pkg. frozen gnocchi (I used whole wheat)

1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

2 T. grated Pecorino Romano cheese (or Parm.)

1 T. butter

2 tsp. fresh lemon juice

1. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high.  Add squash and garlic and season with salt and pepper.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until squash is crisp-tender, 4-5 minutes.  Add tomatoes and cook, until juicy, about 2 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling salted water, cook gnocchi according to package instructions.  Reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid, drain gnocchi and transfer to skillet.  Toss gnocchi, adding enough cooking liquid to create a sauce.  Remove from heat and stir in basil, cheese, butter, and lemon juice.    

The verdict:  Perfect side dish, everyone went back for seconds, and it is gone.  Always a good night when there are no leftovers!!!

Grilled Sweet Potatoes with Lime and Cilantro

Thanks Bobby Flay!!!!  That's the best  I can do for this fab recipe.  I was browsing my new Food Network Mag, and this recipe jumped off the page.  Ok maybe it was the Double Chocolate Marshmallow Milkshake featured with it, but I'm not going there!!  I had a bunch of cilantro and some limes left over from Cinco de Mayo, so I thought this would be a perfect side dish for tonight's dinner.  

3 sweet potatoes, unpeeled (the skin is really good, who would have thought!)

kosher salt

2 tsp. finely grated lime zest

pinch of cayenne pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

freshly ground pepper

1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro

1. Parcook the potatoes:  Place in a pot of water and boil until fork tender; let cool.  Slice potatoes lengthwise into eighths.
2. Preheat grill to medium.  Mix 1 T. salt, the lime zest and cayenne in a small bowl.
3. Brush the potato wedges with olive oil (I just drizzled) and season with salt and pepper.  Grill until golden brown on all sides, including the skin, and just cooked through, about 1 1/2 minutes per side.  Transfer to a platter; immediately season with salt mixture and sprinkle with cilantro.

THE VERDICT:  Way better than roasting sweet potatoes in the oven.  The combination of the lime, salt and cilantro was perfect.  This is my new go to recipe for sweet potatoes.  I also found that parcooking the potatoes made the cooking process much faster.

Asparagus with Olive Gremolata

Wow the macro button really emphasizes the scratches on my plate.  Any who, this asparagus was fabulous.  The original recipe called for it to be steamed, but I was grilling my salmon and just threw the asparagus next to it.  The gremolata is very fragrant and it gave the asparagus a new interesting taste.  This recipe is adapted from my Cooking Light year book 2008.

Gremolata:

1/2 cup picholine olives, pitted

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 T. grated lemon rind

1/4 tsp. salt

2 garlic cloves, minced

Remaining ingredients:

2 1/2 lbs. trimmed asparagus, grilled

1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper

1. To prepare gremolata, place olive in a food processor; pulse 3 times or until finely chopped.  Add parsley, lemon rind, salt. and garlic.  Pulse 2 times or until mixture us combined.  Serve gremolata over grilled asparagus; sprinkle with black pepper. (Gremolata can be prepared in advanced)

The Verdict:  This was just for me tonight; and I really enjoyed it.  I had a piece of grilled salmon, asparagus, and a piece of homemade bread**.  It was a perfect dinner.  Now off for a run!!

**Which was a flop but still tasted good. I will post later!!

Everything But The Kitchen Sink Fried Rice

Need a way to clean out the fridge for people who won't eat leftovers?  Fried Rice is my new answer.  We had pieces of grilled meat like steak chicken and pork, and I had a ton of random veggies.  Some things were from restaurants but much of it was leftover from our grilling last weekend!  I went to the store and bought some sugar snap peas, and a can of "Fancy Vegetables" from the Asian section, just to make it a little more authentic.  You can pretty much throw anything you want in here, but this is what I did.

peppers, diced

onions, diced

mushrooms, sliced

sugar snap peas, cut diagonally

asparagus, chopped

green beans, chopped

zucchini, diced

cooked chicken, roughly chopped

cooked steak, roughly chopped

pork, roughly chopped

1 can "fancy vegetables"(I used La Choy brand), drained

3 cups cooked brown rice

2 eggs, slightly beaten

dark sesame oil

pineapple teriyaki marinade

Add sesame oil to a pan and heat over medium high heat.  Add about 1/4 teriyaki sauce, and a few dashes of soy.  Then add raw vegetables and saute til crisp.  Then add any vegetable that have been previously cooked, or grilled.  Along with the cooked veggies, add meat.  Saute all together until warm.  Add can of fancy veggies, and brown rice.  Stir until combined.  Make a well in the rice mixture, and add beaten eggs.  Let eggs sit until cooked through, then combine with rice mixture.

  

THE VERDICT:

That's all there is to it.  My hubby loves egg rolls, so I bought some frozen to serve with this.  Other than the egg rolls, this is a very healthy dish!  I could eat this everyday!   

Garlicky Green Beans with Grilled Salmon

Nice Healthy Dinner in a matter of minutes!

I got the idea for dinner tonight from flipping through my Everyday FOOD magazine.  It was under cooking for 1, which I know is hard, because I use to do it all the time.  Cooking for 1 or 4 can be just this easy.

2 tsp. olive oil

2 large garlic cloves, sliced

green beans, trimmed (couple handfuls)

seafood seasoning and pepper

salmon fillets (# of people feeding)

1. In a nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium heat.  Add garlic, and cook til golden brown.  Transfer to a plate; wipe out skillet.
2. Add green beans to skillet with about 1/4 cup water; cover, and cook until tender.  Drain any liquid from skillet.  Season green beans with salt and pepper.  Add to plate with garlic, toss, and cover with foil until salmon is cooked.
3. Season salmon fillets with seafood seasoning, and pepper.  Throw on the grill skin side down.  Grill until cooked to your liking.  

THE VERDICT:  So that took like what 20 minutes to make dinner, and its nutritious.  I don't think we could have driven through a fast food restaurant in that time!  ENJOY!  Oh yeah, and check out my fresh dill on top, from the Aerogarden, it was a last minute add, and very flavorful!

Healthier Scalloped Potatoes

OK I KNOW THIS IS A BAD PICTURE! BUT IT TASTES OH SO GOOD!

Recipe from Rachael Ray Mag March 2009

I cut the recipe in half and it was perfect for 3, with leftovers.

Ingredients

Cooking Spray

1/2 head of cauliflower, cut into florets

1/2 onion, half chopped and half thinly sliced

1/2 cup skim milk

1/2 cup grated Parmesan

1 T. flour

salt and pepper

1/4 cup whole wheat bread crumbs

1 lb. yellow fleshed potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

3/4 lb. zucchini, sliced lengthwise

1. Preheat oven 400. Spray a 2 quart baking dish with cooking spray. In a large pot of boiling water, cook the cauliflower until tender, 8 min; drain.
2. Using a blender, puree the cauliflower, chopped onion, milk, 1/4 cup Parmesan, and the flour; season with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, combine 1 T. Parmesan with breadcrumbs.
3. Spread 1/3 cup cauliflower puree in the prepared baking dish. top with half the potatoes, then half the zucchini. Sprinkle with half each of sliced onions and Parmesan. Spread half the remaining cauliflower puree on top. Layer the remaining potatoes, zucchini, sliced onions, Parmesan, and cauliflower puree.Cover with foil and bake 45 min, then discard the foil. Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture on top and bake until golden brown, about 30 min. Let cool 10 min. before serving.

The Verdict: I pulled it out early because the rest of dinner was ready and the potatoes were still hard. BOO! So we ate the zucchini during dinner and pooped the rest back in , and ate later for a snack. I really liked this alot, my hubby said it was a little bland, but that's because it wasn't drowning in cream and salt.