Food of the Gods

Reuben - Light!

2008-09-10T11:16:00.001-05:00

If you’re like me and LOVE Reubens, but saw the calories and fat of a real one, this is the sandwich for you! It’s got the thousand island flavor and the saurkraut cruch all in the cole slaw.

For the life of me, I can’t find light rye bread, so I’ve been buying Pepperidge Farm’s whole grain rye (has whole rye seeds in it – yum!). I also used hamburger dill chips instead of gherkins. They seem to have more flavor, plus they’re easier to mince.

Turkey and Swiss Reuben

POINTS® Value: 5
Servings: 1
Preparation Time: 10 min
Cooking Time: 0 min
Level of Difficulty: Easy

We remade a high-fat classic with lean turkey, low-fat Swiss cheese and a light sweet-n-sour coleslaw. The result is a tasty, slimming sandwich.

Ingredients
• 1/3 cup packaged coleslaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots)
• 1 Tbsp fat-free mayonnaise
• 1 Tbsp ketchup
• 1 tsp pickle relish, or minced gherkin pickles
• 1/8 tsp table salt, or less to taste
• 1/8 tsp black pepper, freshly ground, or less to taste
• 2 oz deli-sliced turkey
• 1 oz low-fat Swiss cheese
• 2 slice reduced-calorie rye bread

Instructions
1. In a small bowl, combine coleslaw mix, mayonnaise, ketchup and relish; toss to combine and season to taste with salt and pepper.
2. Place turkey and cheese on one slice of bread; top with slaw mixture and then second slice of bread. Yields 1 sandwich per serving.

Notes
Make the cabbage-carrot slaw up to 12 hours in advance if you prefer a coleslaw with a softer consistency.

This recipe can easily be multiplied for more servings. Serve as is or grilled.

So many recipes, so little time!

2008-09-10T11:07:00.002-05:00

Wow, so we're already through the summer! I've found some fantastic recipes this year and I need to be much more religious about posting them. Best way to keep up with all my favorites and share them also!

This was an excellent side from Weightwatchers that we made recently. Very easy to do after you trim the beans and slice the tomatoes. I didn’t have olive oil spray, so I tossed the beans in olive oil in the strainer (hoping to drain any excess). I also put the beans into the bowl with the tomato rather than putting the tomato mix on the pan. I couldn’t find my cookie sheet with sides. So, the tomato mixture probably didn’t “cook” as much as it would have otherwise.

Roasted Green Beans and Fresh Tomato
POINTS® Value: 0
Servings: 4
Preparation Time: 12 min
Cooking Time: 15 min
Level of Difficulty: Easy

Sometimes simple is best. Just a few fresh herbs are all you need to accentuate the natural flavors of sweet tomatoes and roasted green beans.

Ingredients
• 3 sprays olive oil cooking spray
• 4 cup green snap beans, trimmed
• 2 cup grape tomatoes, or cherry tomatoes, cut in half (or quartered, if large)
• 1/4 cup basil, fresh, cut into ribbons, divided
• 2 tsp minced garlic, or less to taste
• 1/2 tsp table salt, or more to taste
• 1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground, or more to taste

Instructions
• Preheat oven to 450ºF. Coat a large roasting pan with cooking spray.
• Place green beans in a single layer in prepared pan and coat with cooking spray. Roast until desired doneness, stirring once or twice, about 10 to 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine tomatoes, 2 tablespoons of basil, garlic, salt and pepper; set aside.
• When green beans are finished, remove from oven and spoon tomato mixture into pan; toss thoroughly. Serve hot, room temperature or chilled, topped with remaining 2 tablespoons of basil. Yields about 1 cup per serving.

Notes
This is the perfect side for a burger, grilled chicken or steak. It's equally delicious served on mixed greens drizzled with balsamic vinegar, with herbed brown rice, or added to marinara sauce and then tossed with pasta and topped with shredded cheese.

Way to go Weight Watchers!

2008-05-08T19:16:00.002-05:00

I've been finding some fabulous recipes lately on www.myrecipes.com (the Cooking Light section) as well as perusing my Weight Watchers cookbooks a little more. We made this recipe tonight, which comes from Weight Watchers "New Complete Cookbook" which I recommend as a standard in any kitchen (it's got my all time favorite roasted chicken -Garlic Roasted with Gravy - plus other great standards). Great, light, healthy pasta dish!

Notes: We used whole wheat penne, took the skin off the sausage (not sure how you'd slice it otherwise), used 1.5 red bell peppers because that's what I had on hand and bell peppers are expensive, and I had big bella slices on hand from grilling, so I sliced those up.

Penne with Sausage and Proscuitto

2 cups penne
2 ½ cups broccoli florets
½ pound hot Italian turkey sausage, cut into ½” slices
4 teaspoons olive oil
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into strips
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into strips
1 red onion, thinly sliced and separated into rings
1 cup thinly sliced mushrooms
2 ounces prosciutto, cut into thin strips
2 garlic cloves, minced
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
¼ cup chopped basil
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

1. In a large pot of boiling water, cook the penne 6 minutes; add the broccoli and cook until the penne is al dente and the broccoli is tender, 2-4 minutes longer. Drain and transfer to a serving bowl.
2. Meanwhile, spray a large nonstick skillet with nonstick cooking spray; heat. Saute the sausage until cooked through, 6-8 minutes. Add to the penne.
3. In the skillet, heat 2 teaspoons of the oil. Saute the bell peppers and onion until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms, prosciutto, garlic and pepper flakes; sauté until tender, 3-4 minutes. Add to the penne, then add the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil, the basil and cheese; toss to combine.

4 servings

Nutrition: 368 calories, 13 g Total Fat, 1g Saturated Fat, 57 mg Cholesterol, 572 mg Sodium, 44 g Total Carbohydrate, 5 g Dietary Fiber, 21g Protein, 97 mg Calcium. Points per serving: 6.

Chicken and Mushroom Goulash with Gnocchi

2008-03-07T10:16:00.001-05:00

One more favorite. I finally broke down and bought smoked paprika which was a great buy. I’ve used it in goulash recipes and also when I make spiced almonds (one of my favorite Spanish tapas).

Chicken and Mushroom Goulash with Gnocchi
Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
1 tablespoon butter
1 1/2 pounds ground chicken
1/2 pound white mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 teaspoons smoked paprika, 2/3 palm full
Salt and pepper
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup tomato sauce
1/2 cup sour cream or reduced fat sour cream
Handful chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 package fresh gnocchi, in refrigerated section of market, 12 to14 ounces
2 tablespoons chives

Heat the extra-virgin olive oil and butter in a large, deep skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add the ground chicken. Brown the meat 3 to 4 minutes, push it off to the sides of the pan then add mushrooms, garlic, onions and peppers to the center of the pan. Cook the vegetables 5 minutes then mix them together with chicken and season with smoked paprika, salt and pepper. Stir in stock and tomato sauce and bring to a bubble. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook 5 minutes then stir in sour cream and turn off heat. Add parsley. Adjust seasonings, to your taste.

While chicken goulash cooks, bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Salt boiling water and cook gnocchi until they puff up like pillows and float, 5 minutes or to package suggestions. Drain gnocchi and add to chicken just after you stir in the sour cream.

Ladle goulash with gnocchi into shallow bowls and garnish with chives.

Beef Tenderloin with Mushrooms

2008-03-07T10:12:00.000-05:00

We’ve officially started a dinner club in my neighborhood. I know 3 of the 4 couples and all of us love to cook! We’re having our first dinner in a few weeks and I offered up this fantastic recipe from my friend Amanda. It’s the perfect dinner party recipe if you want to buy a beef tenderloin. Otherwise, we tend to eat it at holidays (Christmas mostly).

Beef Tenderloin with Mushrooms

1 lb fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup melted butter or margarine
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 (6 to 7 lb) beef tenderloin
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
1/4 tsp. lemon pepper
4 oz. blue cheese crumbles
1 8 oz. bottle red wine vinegar and oil salad dressing (I use Newman’s)
1/4 cup crushed peppercorns
10 whole mushrooms
Several sprigs of fresh watercress

Saute mushrooms and green onions in butter in skillet. Drain. Stir in parsley and set aside.

Trim excess fat from tenderloin (or ask butcher to do this). Cut a pocket in 1 side, leaving 1/4 inch or more uncut at each end. Sprinkle with seasoned salt and lemon pepper. Spoon mushroom mixture into pocket. Sprinkle filling with blue cheese. Close the pocket and secure at 2 in. intervals with heavy string. Place the tenderloin in shallow dish. Add the salad dressing. Marinate in refrigerator for 8 hours or longer basting occasionally.

Drain the tenderloin: press peppercorns into surface. Grill, covered, over medium heat for 35 mins (it has usually taken longer depending on outside temperature) or until done to taste. Remove to platter, discarding the string. Arrange whole mushrooms and watercress around tenderloin and serve.

Two great cookbooks!

2007-09-11T18:00:00.000-05:00

I got two new cookbooks that are great! Plus, the Williams-Sonoma Plank Grilling cookbook that Mapgeek got. The first cookbook, I bought specifically for Babygirl and I to cook together, now that she insists on helping with everything. It's called C is for Cooking. It's great with young kids. We've been trying out some stuff in it. I'll post some of our favorites later. The second is a Southern Living cookbook called Busy Moms Weeknight Favorites. It's a great, fast, easy meal planning book. It's got quick meals, cook ahead meals, freezer meals, double duty meals, and suggested side items.

The two notable recipes from the Busy Moms book I've used recently are Ham and Cheese Muffins, which I made and froze. They are the perfect portion for a quick breakfast along with juice and maybe yogurt. The second is a Shepherd's Pie recipe. Below is how I made it, which is generally the recipe, but missing a bunch of cream cheese and butter in the potatoes. The pie was incredibly easy to make, though it wasn't my favorite recipe for this. I prefer the ground meat to the tips and gravy.

Shepherd's Pie
1 package of the refrigerated sirloin tips in gravy (I found this in the meat section in the already prepared stuff)
1/2 package of refrigerated mashed potatoes (used the original recipe)
1 cup of frozen veggie medley (peas, carrots, corn, green beans, lima beans)
Shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 350. I nuked the sirloin tips in the microwave according to the directions. I then nuked the potatoes according to those directions. Next, I nuked the frozen veggies to thaw them out. I used a small casserole dish and poured the meat and gravy into the dish. I then spread the vegetables over that. Then, I spread the potatoes over the meat and vegetables and sprinkled cheese on the potatoes. The whole thing goes into the oven for around 15-20 minutes until bubbly.

Easy huh? I have to say, I don't think I've nuked an entire meal before. I feel so cheap and tawdry.

Prosciutto and Mozzarella Sandwiches

2007-07-12T06:30:00.000-05:00

Found a link on the Food Network site to “no-cook” recipes. Sometimes I’m all about no cook just for the sake of not having a bunch of pots to clean. This sandwich was delicious. Plus it helps that I love prosciutto and arugula. I’m not hugely fond of generic black olives and wanted more taste so I bought a tapenade from the deli. I then added the tomatoes to that. The tapenade was obviously stronger since it also had green olives and garlic in it. It was still delicious.

And, I didn’t feel like dealing with fresh mozzarella, so I bought slices. Probably a huge faux pas for the true gourmand. But quite honestly, with the strong flavors already on the sandwich, I wasn’t sure that I’d be able to tell much difference anyways. At the end, we had a cutting board, knife, and two bowls to wash. Not to shabby!

One huge plus to this sandwich is that it would work perfectly for a picnic or a takealong sandwich! This recipe is definately a keeper just for that reason as well as being easy and yummy!

Prosciutto and Mozzarella Sandwiches
Recipe courtesy Gourmet Magazine

1 large plum tomato
3 tablespoons black olive paste
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1 pound fresh mozzarella
4 cups trimmed arugula
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 store-bought focaccia
1/2 pound thinly sliced prosciutto

Seed tomato and chop fine. In a bowl stir together tomato, olive paste, and basil. Cut mozzarella into thin slices. Coarsely chop arugula and in a bowl toss with oil, salt, and pepper, to taste.

Halve focaccia horizontally and spread bottom half with olive mixture. Top olive mixture with mozzarella, prosciutto, arugula, and remaining focaccia half. Press focaccia gently and cut lengthwise in half and crosswise into thirds to make 6 sandwiches. Cut sandwiches diagonally in half and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Chill sandwiches at least 1 hour and up to 1 day.

Tri-Colore Orzo

2007-07-02T08:51:00.000-05:00

Also, off the same Everyday Italian episode, I found this recipe. It was delicious! Very complex with the tangy lemon juice, salty feta (we used feta), bitter arugula, and sweet cherries. Only other change I made was to chop up the cherries. Smaller pieces made it distribute further.

Very light and fresh tasting. And, I think the arugula is holding up for this dish to be a leftover. I’ve been very impressed with Giada’s recipes that we’ve tried out.

Tri-Colore Orzo
Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

1 pound orzo pasta
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 1/4 cup
2 cups fresh arugula (about 3 ounces)
3/4 cup crumbled ricotta salata cheese (or feta cheese)
1/2 cup dried cherries
12 fresh basil leaves, torn
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta and put the pasta on a large cookie sheet. Drizzle the pasta with 3 tablespoons olive oil, toss, spread out, and set aside to cool.

Once the orzo is cool, transfer to a large serving bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and toss gently to combine. Serve.

Chicken with Balsamic BBQ Sauce

2007-07-02T08:43:00.000-05:00

Here’s a YUMMY-LICIOUS barbeque recipe that we used last night. Mapgeek grilled over charcoal, but no smoking. It was decided that smoking the chicken might make the flavors too much. We used chicken thighs because they grill great and are the perfect size. It’s been decided that this is a definite keeper in our barbeque collection. Go figure that it came off an Everyday Italian episode!

Chicken or Steak with Balsamic BBQ Sauce
Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

For the Balsamic BBQ sauce:
1 cup balsamic vinegar
3/4 cup ketchup
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the chicken or steak: 4 pieces chicken (any combination of breast or leg-and-thigh pieces) or 4 pieces of New York strip or Club strip steak Salt and freshly ground pepper
For the BBQ sauce: Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan and stir until all the ingredients are incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Simmer over medium heat until reduced by 1/3, about 15 to 20 minutes.

For the chicken or steak: Place a grill pan over medium heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Lightly coat with some of the BBQ sauce using a pastry brush. Place the meat on the grill. Place the remaining BBQ sauce, still in the small saucepan, over low heat or on the edge of a gas or charcoal grill and allow to gently simmer while the meat cooks.

Cook the chicken about 8 minutes per side. Cook the steaks starting at about 4 minutes per side until a meat thermometer reads the desired temperature, 120 degrees F for medium rare, 135 degrees F for medium (about 6 minutes per side), 155 degrees F for well done (about 9 minutes per side). Continually brush the meat with BBQ sauce every few minutes. Remove the meat from the grill and let rest for at least 5 minutes. Serve with the heated BBQ sauce alongside.

Alternately, the chicken can be baked in the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place the chicken skin side up in a baking dish and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the baking dish from the oven and spoon the BBQ sauce all over the top of the chicken. Return the baking dish to the oven and bake for another 15 minutes.

Turkey Shepherd's Pie

2007-05-10T18:52:00.000-05:00

Another winner from Apron’s. I’ve made a great Shepherd’s Pie from a Paula Deen recipe. The most time consuming part of making a pie is making the potatoes (if you do it from scratch). This recipe uses the refrigerated mashed potatoes. And you are putting everything together hot and then you broil it, so there’s time saved by not having to heat the whole pie through.

The other pie recipes I’ve seen also include a TON of butter. That Paula Deen recipe above included 6 tablespoons of butter in the potatoes, not to mention what you might use to make the gravy. This recipe uses no oil, except for a little cooking spray and uses ground turkey (7% fat) instead of beef (not a huge fat difference, but not red meat). The interesting thing was that it used a package of the dried mushroom gravy for seasoning. I’ve never tried that before and it worked great!

One comment I’ve noticed with different recipe collections. Each one seems to have its own stock ingredients…ingredients that seem to show up in lots of their recipes. The Apron’s site has been using a lot of garlic butter in various recipes. I bought one stick of Irish herbed butter and have been using it over and over with some of these recipes. As I mentioned, Apron’s also uses the frozen prepped veggies too. So, at least I’m not feeling like I’m wasting food.

Turkey Shepherd's Pie
Ingredients
cooking spray
1 cup frozen seasoning blend (diced onions, bell peppers, celery)
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey breast
1 (.75-ounce) packet mushroom gravy mix
1 (8-ounce) can mushroom pieces (undrained)
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon quick-mixing flour
1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (24-ounce) package refrigerated mashed potatoes
1 tablespoon garlic butter

Steps
1. Place oven rack 6 inches from broiler, then preheat oven on broil. Preheat large sauté pan on medium-high 2–3 minutes.
2. Remove pan from burner; coat with cooking spray. Add seasoning blend to pan; cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until vegetables begin to brown.
3. Add turkey and dry gravy mix. Cook 5–7 minutes until meat is brown and no pink remains. Stir frequently and break meat up as it cooks.
4. Stir in mushrooms, pepper, flour, and tomato sauce. Cook 6–8 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until gravy thickens.
5. Meanwhile, place potatoes in microwave-safe bowl; microwave on HIGH 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated and softened.
6. Stir butter into potatoes until melted. Spoon turkey mixture into 2-quart baking dish. 7. Spread potatoes evenly over turkey mixture. Coat potatoes with cooking spray; broil 6–8 minutes or until golden. Serve. (Makes 6 servings.)

CALORIES (per 1/6 recipe) 370kcal; FAT 19g; CHOL 110mg; SODIUM 1120mg; CARB 22g; FIBER 2g; PROTEIN 23g; VIT A 10%; VIT C 6%; CALC 6%; IRON 15%

Baked Pa-sghetti

2007-05-09T18:22:00.000-05:00

I made this last night on our Easy night – softball. I found it on the Apron’s site. I’m really encourage with this site because the recipes call for ingredients that are already prepped, like diced carrots, onions, etc. Some of these you can buy frozen, and some you can buy in the produce section. Costs a little more, but I definitely buy the frozen, cut up veggies since I’ll use them eventually. Sometimes, convenience is worth the cost!

This was an absolute fabulous mix of “easy” and tasty! Surprisingly, it required no pre-cooking of ingredients. Everything went into the pan as is and then into the oven. Loved it!!

Baked Spaghetti
Ingredients
1 pound lean ground beef, 7% fat
1 cup frozen diced onions
1/4 cup frozen diced bell peppers
3 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
8 ounces spaghetti
2 cups shredded Italian cheese blend, divided
1 (26-ounce) jar tomato and basil pasta sauce

Steps
1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Fill large saucepan 1/2 full of water. Cover and bring to a boil on high for pasta.
2. Meanwhile, mix beef, onions, peppers, 1 egg, garlic powder, oregano, and seasoned salt in large bowl. Mix by hand (or in food processor) until thoroughly blended. Spread mixture evenly in 9- x 13-inch baking dish. Wash hands.
3. Stir pasta into boiling water. Boil 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender.
4. Drain pasta thoroughly (do not rinse). Whisk remaining 2 eggs, in medium bowl, until well blended; stir in 1/2 cup of the cheese. Add pasta and toss to coat until eggs and cheese are well blended into pasta. Spread pasta evenly over meat mixture.
5. Spoon pasta sauce over top. Sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 cups cheese. Bake 30–35 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165°F and meat is fully cooked. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. (Makes 8 servings.)

CALORIES (per 1/8 recipe) 360kcal; FAT 14g; CHOL 130mg; SODIUM 660mg; CARB 32g; FIBER 3g; PROTEIN 27g; VIT A 15%; VIT C 10%; CALC 25%; IRON 20%

Pepperoni Bread Roll

2007-05-02T14:55:00.000-05:00

Here's another easy and yummy one I found on the Apron's site. The meal set was for ravioli and pepperoni bread. However, I won't even comment on the pasta recipe since what we ended up making was NOTHING like the recipe.

The reason I'm posting, is that the pepperoni bread was a great new find, especially for kids! It was very easy and could probably be modified to add other flavors, though I'm not sure how uncooked veggies would fare. But maybe saute some onions, mushrooms, and garlic and roll it up. We used turkey pepperoni in ours. Kind of calzone-like. Mapgeek cut a hunk and served it up with pasta sauce for lunch.

Verdict - great easy snacky thing

Pepperoni Bread Roll
Ingredients1
tablespoon garlic butter
1 (13.8-ounce) container refrigerated pizza crust dough
24 pepperoni slices
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan/Romano cheese
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

Steps
1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Place garlic butter in small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH 30 seconds or until butter melts.
2. Lay pizza dough flat on work surface. Spread butter evenly over dough. Sprinkle evenly with remaining ingredients.
3. Fold over one side of dough (about 2 inches wide) and gently pat down folded side. Continue to fold over until seam is on bottom. Cut 1/2-inch slits in top of dough about 2 inches apart; place on baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes or until golden. Serve.

CALORIES (per 1/4 recipe) 440kcal; FAT 15g; CHOL 60mg; SODIUM 880mg; CARB 61g; FIBER 4g; PROTEIN 17g; VIT A 20%; VIT C 10%; CALC 20%; IRON 15%

Osso Buco in the crock

2007-04-29T18:20:00.000-05:00

We made this on Sunday (great crock pot day!). I was wandering around Publix’s website looking for party trays and found a recipe area (Apron's) on their site. It’s actually a really, really good site! If you’ve ever been in the store and seen someone demo-ing quick meals where you buy stuff already cooked or cut, these are the recipes that go along with it. They give you an entire meal, complete with sides and then the grocery list, equipment needed, etc.

The meal called for Osso Buco with saffron risotto. I couldn’t find risotto in the store and was in too much of a hurry to blindly wander around for 10 minutes looking. So, I made saffron rice instead. Just as good and probably easier.

My only recommendation would be to cut up the shanks at the end, when it says to discard the bones and herbs. We used 2 shanks and one was significantly more fatty than the other, so one of us got a bunch of meat, and the other a bunch of fat. If you cut up the meat, discard the fatty parts, and stir it back in, you’ll get a better distribution of meat and avoid the fat.

Verdict – AWESOME! We will definitely be making this again. Neither one of us had ever cooked Osso Buco and it was wonderful!

Osso Buco
Ingredients
1/4 cup flourlarge zip-top bag
2 pounds veal shanks (about 4 shanks)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 (10-ounce) bag frozen seasoning blend (contains diced onions, green/red peppers and celery)
1 (8-ounce) bag shredded carrots
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano
1 (12-ounce) jar chicken gravy
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 teaspoon Maggi seasoning sauce
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
1 sprig fresh rosemary
4 bay leaves

Steps
1. Preheat large saucepan on high 1–2 minutes. Preheat slow cooker on low. Place flour in zip-top bag. Season veal shanks with salt and pepper; add to bag, seal tightly and shake to coat.
2. Place olive oil in saucepan. Add veal; cook 3 minutes, turning occasionally, to brown. Add seasoning blendand cook 3 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Stir in remaining ingredients and bring to boil. Place veal shanks into bottom of slow cooker and top with remaining mixture, covering veal completely. Cover and cook 8 to 10 hours.
4. Skim any excess fat from top. Remove and discard bones, rosemary sprig and bay leaves. Serve. (Makes 6 servings.)

CALORIES (per 1/6 recipe) 317kcal; FAT 10g; CHOL 118mg; SODIUM 736mg; CARB 17g; FIBER 2g; PROTEIN 34g; VIT A 165%; VIT C 21%; CALC 3%; IRON 10%

Italian Baked Chicken and Pastina

2007-04-25T07:10:00.000-05:00

Found a winner tonight! Semi-healthy, though it has mozzarella in it and a small amount of margarine. It was easy to prep and super easy to cook. And it surprisingly, didn’t taste as “Italian” as I thought it might. Probably because it didn’t have any oregano in it. In fact, besides onions, garlic, salt, and pepper, the only flavorings was the fresh flat-leaf parsley. Anyways, we enjoyed how light it tasted and will definitely be making this again.

Verdict – a keeper!

Italian Baked Chicken and Pastina
Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

1 cup pastina pasta (or any small pasta)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup cubed chicken breast (1-inch cubes)
1/2 cup diced onion (about 1/2 a small onion)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1 tablespoon butter, plus more for buttering the baking dish

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until just tender, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Drain pasta into a large mixing bowl. Meanwhile, put the olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes. Add the onions and garlic, stirring to combine, and cook until the onions are soft and the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Put the chicken mixture into the bowl with the cooked pasta. Add the canned tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, parsley, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Place the mixture in a buttered 8 by 8 by 2-inch baking dish. In a small bowl mix together the bread crumbs and the Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle over the top of the pasta mixture. Dot the top with small bits of butter. Bake until the top is golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Seared Salmon and Tomato Butter Dill Sauce

2007-04-25T07:05:00.000-05:00

This was Fish Night this week. I was looking for salmon and a lemon/dill-type something. But I found this Tomato Butter Dill Sauce instead and it looked good. So all I had to do was find something interesting to do with the salmon and found this Seared Salmon Fillet recipe. Both came from Food Network. I usually start my recipe searches on Food Network and usually find something there, so that’s where it seems that most of my recipes come from.

The searing part of the salmon burned the skin but you don’t eat that anyways. The recipe says “high” heat and “nonstick pan” and “about seven minutes” so that’s what I did. Though it probably should have been closer to 4-5 minutes on the seared side. Then the 3 minutes on the flip side. The only real problem with searing was smoking up the kitchen. The fish itself turned out cooked through, rather than the barely pink center, but it wasn’t overcooked and was still moist and tender.

The tomato dill sauce tasted great with it! It was less saucy and more like warm, diced tomatoes with dill. Because it was just warmed through, the tomatoes kept their fruity flavor and the fresh dill was great. Served it as white rice on the bottom, topped with the seared fish, and topped with the tomato dill sauce.

Verdict – pretty good, but there have been other salmon recipes that I like better. The big HOWEVER here was that it was very easy to make and very quick to cook (the rice takes the longest).

Seared Salmon Fillet
Recipe courtesy Robert Bleifer
Show: Sara's Secrets

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets, skin on
Salt and pepper
Dill fronds, for garnish
Lemon slices, for garnish

Heat a large non-stick pan over high with olive oil. Liberally season salmon with salt and pepper. Place skin side down in pan and reduce heat to medium-low. Do not move fillets. Allow to cook about 7 minutes or until well browned and cooked about three quarters of the way through. Turn fillets and cook about 3 minutes more, or until still just barely pink in the center. Serve immediately, with the skin side up.

Tomato Butter Dill Sauce
Courtesy of Michele Urvater

2 tablespoons butter
4 plum tomatoes, seeded and finely chopped
2 tablespoons minced dill fronds

Heat butter until golden, saute tomatoes just to warm; add dill off heat, season with salt and pepper. To assemble hot meal: Place a bed of rice on a plate; top with salmon steak and spoon any steaming juices over salmon. Garnish with warm tomato sauce.

Chicken Boudine

2007-04-18T19:10:00.000-05:00

We made this tonight and it was pretty easy and yummy! Though, in typical Paula Deen fashion, not very healthy. I remember Paula saying that if you’re trying a recipe for the first time, you should make it like it says so you know what it’s supposed to taste like. After that, modify.

If you buy all the ingredients already sliced and diced (like cooked, diced chicken, shredded cheese, etc), it’s even easier. However, I couldn’t stomach spending the money for cooked chicken when boneless, skinless breasts were on sale. So I had to cook the chicken (30 minutes at 350), then boil the noodles. After that, everything else was quick.

Also, I forgot to buy almonds so left those out, which Mapgeek didn’t mind (not a nut fan). I also didn't use dry sherry, though the sherry was probably intended to complement the almonds, which weren’t there. Next time, I’ll probably use white wine or just broth. Probably also try light cheese for the healthier option. Of course, all of this means I broke Paula’s rule (see above), but it still was tasty!

One other consideration is that I did halve the recipe, since it’s just 2.5 of us eating it. I usually make a full casserole recipe, divide it into two Gladware casserole pans and freeze one for a screaming kid day.

Chicken Boudine
Recipe courtesy Paula Deen
Show: Paula's Home Cooking
Episode: Fridge Finds

2 cups cooked egg noodles
2 (10 3/4-ounce) cans cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup dry sherry
4 cups chopped cooked chicken
3 cups grated sharp cheese, your choice, divided
1 (2 1/4-ounce) package slivered almonds, toasted
1/4 cup drained, chopped pimentos
1 (4-ounce) can sliced mushrooms, drained
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl, toss together the noodles, soup, broth, and sherry. Add the chicken, 2 cups of the cheese, the almonds, pimento, mushrooms, and salt and pepper, to taste, and toss gently to combine. Transfer the mixture to a greased 13 by 9 by 2-inch casserole and top with the remaining cup of cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes, or until bubbly.

Barbecue Roasted Salmon

2007-04-17T17:12:00.000-05:00

We've been cooking salmon lately after several years of avoiding it all together (couple bad experiences). Surprisingly, all the recipes we've found have been really good and we've been buying the fish at our local Publix on Mondays and cooking it the same day.

This is the recipe we used last night, courtesy of Food Network. However, it doesn't taste barbecue-like if you're expecting that. It's very citrus with the orange juice and lemon. The sauce carmelizes in the pan. Yum! With some rice and steamed broccoli, the whole meal took about 30 minutes to fix. Gotta love the quick ones!

Barbecue-Roasted Salmon
Copyright, 2005, Robin Miller, All rights reserved
See this recipe on air Thursday May. 17 at 3:30 PM ET/PT.
Show: Quick Fix Meals with Robin Miller
Episode: To Your Health

Cooking spray
1/4 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
4 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt Pinch cayenne pepper
4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets, about 1-inch thick

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a shallow baking dish with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, whisk together orange juice, lemon juice, brown sugar, chili powder, lemon zest, cumin, salt, and cayenne. Using tongs, add salmon fillets to the prepared pan. Pour the orange juice mixture over the salmon and turn to coat both sides. Roast for 15 minutes, until a fork can be easily inserted into the salmon.

Nutrition Information
Nutritional Analysis Per Serving
Calories 302
Total fat 16g
Saturated fat 3g
Cholesterol 84mg
Sodium 402mg
Carbohydrates 10g
Protein 29g
Fiber 1g

Coq Au Vin Crock Pot Style

2007-04-16T14:23:00.000-05:00

To start off this wonderful blog, I've got a great Coq au Vin recipe. It comes from www.crock-pot.com. I was trying to find some good crock pot recipes (I'm not a big fan of pot roast) and remember seeing a great Alton Brown show about Coq au vin. Anyways, this is now one of our favorites! Recommended for picky eaters.

Coq Au Vin (Chicken braised in wine)
Ingredients:
5 slices bacon, diced
2/3 cup green onions, sliced
3 1/2 lb broiler, cut up (or 6 chicken breast halves) - we used skinless chicken thighs
4 - 6 small boiling onions, peeled
1/4 lb whole mushrooms
6 - 8 small new potatoes
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup Burgundy wine
Chopped parsley

Directions:
In large skillet, saute diced bacon and green onions until bacon is crisp. Remove and drain well. Add chicken pieces to skillet and brown well on all sides. Remove chicken and set aside. Put peeled onion, mushrooms, potatoes, and garlic in stoneware. Add browned chicken pieces, bacon and green onions, salt pepper, thyme and chicken broth. Cover and cook on Low 8 to 10 hours or on High 4 to 5 hours. Add Burgundy wine during last hour of cooking.

Welcome to Food of the Gods!

2007-04-16T14:05:00.000-05:00

I posted recently on Curleygirl Days about the Food of the Gods...casseroles! Now that we have two little Curleygirls, I'm having to greatly minimize our grocery store adventures, which means one trip per week, usually during preschool hours (don't know what I'm gonna do this summer!).

Every week, usually on Saturdays, I put together the menu for the week (Sundays through Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays are for grilling or eating out). This usually means scouring the web, starting with the Food Network site, and gathering recipes. I gather everything electronically and then create my grocery list from the ingredients lists. Then I add the staples such as milk, and anything else we need. Then I do the supernerd thing and organize the grocery list according to my store to maximize shopping efficiency. I only have one morning of shopping freedom ya know...don't need to spend it all in Publix!

Anyways, I've run across some great recipes that I wanted to share. I want to post them here and let you know what we thought. Also, please let me know if you've got any good recipes. I'm always on the lookout!

Just for informational purposes, our schedule requires the following:
Easy night - Mapgeek's softball night usually
Casserole night - day Mapgeek works late and I'll have dinner ready when he gets home without a lot of effort
Crockpot night - my day off, so dinner is ready on time
Fish night - trying to eat healthier!
Experiment night - usually Sundays, when we're both home and have more time for involved cooking