Spicy Lentils

I LOVE SPICY FOODS!!!  Love, love, love!!!

I love the taste, but I also love that it helps control your portions when it's really spicy.

This recipe can be altered to suit your tastes, so don't worry about that!

This is a perfect side dish for grilled chicken!!!  

Can also serve over rice as a main course.

I like mine spicy and soupy, so I add the full tablespoon of garam masala and the full 2 cups water.  Garam masala is a spice blend used in northern Indian cuisine.   Adjust as your palate prefers!

This recipe makes 2 servings.

Ingredients

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 white onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 tbsp turmeric

1/2-1 tbsp garam masala* (this brings the spice, so adjust to your taste or omit)

Handful of fresh mint leaves, chopped

1/2 cup dry lentils

1 1/2-2 cups water

1/4 cup half and half

Salt to taste

Heat coconut oil in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat.  Add onion and red pepper and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.  Add chopped garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.  Add spices and mint, heat for one more minute.

Add lentils and 1 1/2 cup water.  Bring to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 30-35 minutes, stirring every once in a while.  If your lentils are not tender and the water is almost gone, add more liquid and continue to cook.  Once lentils reach desired tenderness, add the half and half and stir.  Season with salt to taste.

Nutrition Information Per Serving 

Calories: 217

Carbs: 20g

Fat: 11g

Protein: 11g

Stuffed Plantains

Who said that eating healthy has to be tasteless and boring?  

This is probably one of my favorite recipes.  It's so flavorful and completely different!

If you haven't ever tried plantains, you should!  They are starchy, not mushy like bananas.

Serve with a side salad for a really hearty meal!  

You can also make a larger amount of the filling in advance and have it on hand 

for the week, so all you have to do is bake the plantain and stuff!

Ingredients:

2 ripe plantains, peeled and sliced almost through lengthwise

olive oil spray (I use my Misto)

1 tsp coconut oil

1/2 white onion, minced

1 cup canned black beans, drained and rinsed

Handful of cilantro, washed and chopped

1/4 cup tomato sauce (if you like spice like me, use the small cans of Goya hot tomato sauce)

1 tsp cumin

2 tbsp shredded Mexican blend cheese

salt to taste

Preheat oven to 400.  Coat baking sheet with olive oil, place in plantains, and coat with olive oil.  Bake for 40 minutes or until tender.

 

Meanwhile, heat the coconut oil in a pan over medium high heat.  Add the diced onion and sauté until translucent.  Add in cilantro and black beans, continue to cook for 3-5 minutes.  Reduce heat to low, add tomato sauce and cumin, and season to taste with salt.  Remove from heat.

When plantain are tender, carefully remove from oven and fill each with half of the bean mixture.  Top each plantain with 1 tbsp cheese, and return to oven for 5 minutes or until cheese has melted.

Zucchini Marinara

Simply delicious!  I'm a huge pasta-lover, and this truly takes care of my cravings!  

It's super easy to make, too!  The cook time depends on the texture you want to get out of the zucchini.  Some people like it raw, I prefer mine soft but not completely mushy.

I have a lot of kitchen gadgets, the latest is the Spirooli! 

It's very easy to use and clean, and can create veggie noodles, ribbons, shreds, and chips.

It's not expensive at about $25, so if this is something you plan to make regularly, you should go get one!

Ingredients

1 zucchini, turned into noodles using the larger attachment on the Spirooli

Sprinkle of salt

1 tsp olive oil

1/2 cup marinara sauce (I love Mamma Lombardi's- nice and garlicy!)

2 oz. shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat.  Add zucchini, sprinkle lightly with salt, and sauté until it reaches your desired texture.  Add marinara sauce and cook one minute.  Plate and sprinkle with cheese.

Enjoy!

Stuffed Artichokes

I have to confess, I've never eaten an actual artichoke until last month.  I've had marinated artichoke hearts, but that's about it.  Artichokes are fun to eat, but they are certainly not a quick meal.  It takes a long time to eat, but I enjoy that aspect.  Just don't expect to wolf down your artichoke...  Remove one leave at a time, starting from the outside in.  Use your teeth to scrape off the tender part from the inside of the leaf, leaving the very fibrous leaf behind.  

I've had to do some work with this recipe.  Earlier versions resulted in very dry stuffing.  This version gives a moister result, but it is a little harder to stuff in between the leaves.  The end result is worth it, though!

Ingredients
2 artichokes
3/4 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated romano cheese
1 egg white
2 cloves garlic, chopped
olive oil
1/4 crushed tomatoes (or tomato sauce)
1/4 cup white wine
vegetable broth (can use chicken, too)

Preheat oven to 350.  Using a sharp, serrated knife, cut the bottoms and tops of the artichokes by about a 1/2 inch.  With kitchen shears, trim ends of the remaining leaves.

Untrimmed leaves have pointy ends, you don't want those!

Safe edges all around!

Fill a pot with about 2 inches of water, add in artichokes upside down and bring to a boil for about 15 minutes, covered.

Meanwhile, sauté chopped garlic in a small amount of olive oil until softened and just starting to brown.  In a bowl, combine garlic, breadcrumbs, cheese, egg white and tomatoes.  Mix well to combine.  It will be clumpy.

Remove artichokes from pot and allow to cool until you can comfortable handle them.  Gently spread apart the leaves without breaking them off.  Remove the innermost, smallest leaves and the hairy choke and discard.  It's easiest to do this with a small spoon, but take care not to remove the actual heart- that's the best part!!!

Artichoke innards- pretty to look at, not so pretty to pick out of your mouth!

Stuff the artichokes with the breadcrumb mixture, try to get in between as many of the leaves as you can, with the majority going in the center where the small leaves used to be.  Place in a baking dish.  Fill baking dish about an inch high with wine and stock.

Spray tops with olive oil and cover pan tightly with foil.  Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.  Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes.  Serve with a nice salad.  Enjoy!

Grilled Pineapple Salsa

Seriously, you need to make this.  It goes with EVERYTHING!!!  

Eat it with chips, or use it as a topping for some blackened fish, chicken, or mushrooms!

And it's also pretty!

This recipe makes a lot of salsa, but I like having it around!  You can always cut it in half!

Ingredients

1 pineapple, peeled and sliced into rings (with cores still intact)

2 red bell peppers, diced
1 small red onion, diced

1 jalapeño pepper, seeds removed, diced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup cilantro, chopped

Juice from 2 fresh limes

Salt

Pepper

Olive Oil

Spread out pineapple slices.  Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.  Mist with olive oil (I LOVE my Misto- and love that I found it at Marshalls!) so it doesn't stick.  Cook on a grill or griddle pan (my preference), turning every few minutes.  You want it to start to caramelize, not burn.

Remove from heat once it is softened and browning, allow to cool.  Remove flesh from core, and dice flesh, discarding the cores.  Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.  Season with salt if needed.

Mushroom, Onion, Spinach and Couscous Stuffed Poblano Peppers

I've been hearing about stuffed poblano peppers for years, but I've never found them in the grocery store…until now!

I wanted to keep the recipe healthy and vegetarian, and the results were fantastic!  

  Ingredients

4 poblano peppers

2 portobello mushroom caps, diced

1 white onion, diced

3 cups baby spinach leaves

2 cups cooked couscous

2 tbsp olive oil

3 tbsp grated romano cheese, separated

Salt

Pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 400.

Hold each pepper with a long set of tongs and char over a flame.  You want the skin to get blistered and black, you won't taste a burnt flavor, I promise!  

Once they are charred on all sides, put right into a plastic bag and seal.  This will allow steam to loosen up the skins.

While the peppers are in the bag, heat the olive oil in a large pan over high heat.  Saute onions and mushrooms until they are soft and just beginning to brown, season with salt and pepper to taste.

Add the baby spinach.  Turn heat to medium and continue to cook until the spinach has wilted.   Add the couscous and cheese, stir to combine.  

Remove from heat.

Take peppers out of bag and carefully remove the skin.  It should be easy to peel it off.

Cut a "T" shape in each pepper and remove the seeds.

Stuff  each pepper with couscous mixture, and place in baking dish.  Sprinkle all with remaining 1 tbsp cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes, or until couscous just begins to brown.

So delicious!!!!!

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

It's that time of year where you can get pumpkin everything!  Pumpkin coffee, pumpkin beer, pumpkin ravioli.  You name it, someone's made it pumpkin!  I, for one, LOVE pumpkin, but most everything out there has been filled with tons of sugar and fat.  These muffins aren't exactly "healthy," but they are lighter than usual, have added fiber, and are portion controlled!

The muffin recipe is from HungryGirl.  It's so simple, you'll be amazed at how easy it is to get delicious results.
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Take one box of spice cake mix.  Add in one 15oz. can of pure pumpkin (be careful NOT to use pumpkin pie mix.  Only pure pumpkin).  Mix.  Fill 24 mini-muffin tins with the batter.  Bake according to package directions, or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Don't over bake.  That's it.  

While they are cooling, put about 1/4 cup of cream cheese frosting in a pan, and melt it over very, very low heat.  If you make the heat too high, it will separate.  Stir while it melts, and shut off the heat as soon as it's all melted.  Dip in cooled muffins to just glaze the tops.  

Viola!  Pumpkin spice muffins!  Each mini muffin has about 85 calories (depending on the exact cake mix and frosting you use).  Not to shabby, if you ask me!  So moist and delicious, perfect for something sweet this time of year!  They are best eaten on the same day as the frosting tends to get a little melty overnight.

Huevos Rancheros

I will start off by saying I've never had huevos rancheros before, so I don't know how authentic this recipe is.  I can tell you that it's delicious!!!

I often get in a breakfast rut, having yogurt, oatmeal or a shake.  Sometimes I want something different, and this was perfect!

The recipe below is for a single serving, multiply as needed.  Each serving has 247 cals, 24g carbs, 8g fat and 14g protein.

Ingredients
1/4 white onion, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
1-2 tbsp adobo sauce (from canned chipotle peppers in sauce, start with 1 and adjust depending on how much spice you like- I like mine spicy so I added 2 tbsp)
1 tsp salt
Pinch black pepper
1/4 tsp cumin
1 egg
1 corn tortilla (I used a Mission extra thin yellow corn tortilla, one has 40 cals)
2 tbsp reduced fat Mexican blend shredded cheese
olive oil spray

Spray pan and place over medium heat.  Add onions and sauté until softened and beginning to brown.  Add tomatoes, adobo sauce, salt, pepper and cumin.  Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, spray each side of the tortilla with olive oil spray.  Heat a pan over medium heat.  Place tortilla in pan, heat each side until it begins to form bubbles and brown.  Be careful not to burn!  Remove from pan.  

Spray pan , continue to use medium heat, and crack egg in.  I like to cover my pan with foil so that the whites set without overcooking the yolk.  Cook until desired doneness, I like mine yolky!

Plate tortilla, then egg.  Cover with sauce, and sprinkle cheese over top.  Enjoy!

Quinoa

I've had a love/hate relationship with quinoa.  I would make it, it would be just okay, and then the bag would just sit there forever because I didn't really want to eat it.  Until I found some delicious recipes!

For those of you unfamiliar with quinoa, it's a seed and although it looks and cooks like a grain, it's actually a member of the same family as spinach, swiss chard, and beets!  It has a higher protein count than other "grains."  Quinoa is a good source of calcium, fiber, iron, magnesium and phosphorus.  It's also gluten-free!

Important quinoa cooking information- before you cook with quinoa, make sure to rinse it thoroughly in a fine mesh strainer.  This will remove any residual saponins (part of the natural seed coating that can cause a bitter taste).  In my early quinoa days, I don't think I rinsed the seeds, and that might be part of the reason why I never really developed a love for quinoa.

I have yet to develop my own quinoa recipes, but here are 2 that are sure to win you over!

Skinny Taste Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

This salad is my new summer obsession!!!

It's light and refreshing.  I used regular tomatoes instead of cherry since that's what I had in the house.  Also, NEVER use pre crumbled Feta, or any cheese for that matter.  It looses so much of it's flavor.  It's not hard to buy a block of feta and chop it up yourself, and it will taste a million times better!  A generous cup of this salad only has 145 calories!

Skinny Taste Quinoa and Spinach Patties

These made for a very different breakfast!  I will say that these were heavier than I expected them to be, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing.  It means that one fills you up, no need to eat another!  I served mine over baby spinach with a poached egg on top.  

I also sprinkled parmesan cheese on top for a little salty flavor.  

Each patty has 188 calories.

What are your favorite ways to enjoy quinoa?

Beets...2 Dishes in One!

So, a while back I took on beets, and ended up loving them!

I knew I was limited in my beet knowledge, because all I ever did was boil them and put them on salads.

The other day, while at a local farm stand, I saw bunches of golden beets, and knew they had to be mine!  I bought one bunch, greens and all, and headed home.  I always knew you could eat beet greens, but this was something I never experimented with.

Behold...Roasted Beets AND Sauteed Beet Greens.  You can get 2 side dishes out of one vegetable, and it won't cost much!  I paid $1.50 for one bunch of golden beets.  That gave me one large serving of roasted beets and about 3 servings of the greens.  If you can't find golden beets, red beets would taste good as well.

Roasted Beets- 2 Points+ for whole recipe
1 bunch beets, greens removed (set aside)
2 tsp Olive Oil
Kosher Salt
Fresh Cracked Black Pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Wash beets well and chop into large chunks.  Toss with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Place in a baking dish and bake until soft (depends on the size of your beets).  Every 10 minutes or so, toss beets around so all sides get nice and caramelized.

Sauteed Beet Greens- Makes 3 servings, 1 Point+ each
1 bunch beet greens
1 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 white onion, chopped
Salt and Pepper

Wash greens thoroughly (they are full of sand, much like spinach) and dry well.  Chop into inch long pieces.

Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat.  Add onions.  Once they turn translucent, add garlic and continue to sauté.  Just as the garlic starts to brown, add the greens and continue to cook, seasoning with salt and pepper.  Greens should be tender in about 5 minutes, you want them wilted but not mushy.

French Toast with Mixed Berry Compote

I have breakfast issues.  I usually stick to my greek yogurt or oatmeal.  Sometimes I'll change it up with some eggs and center cut bacon, but that's about it.  Over the weekend, I had a huge craving for french toast after working my butt off at the gym.  I really just wanted to head to the diner, but knew that I would be in for a mega-point breakfast that wouldn't help me out at all.


Luckily, I came up with a delicious recipe for french toast with a mixed berry compote.  I was HUNGRY, so 4 pieces of french toast with all of the compote and 1/4 cup of sugar-free syrup came to a total of 7 Points+ (8 if you count the compote as a point).  And, boy, was it tasty!

Ingredients:
1 cup frozen mixed berries
1 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
1 tsp lemon juice
2 packets Splenda


4 slices light wheat bread
1 egg 
2 egg whites
Dash of cinnamon
Dash of vanilla extract
Dash of Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Breeze


1/4 cup sugar-free syrup (I used Vermont Maid- it's not bad!)


Directions:
Combine berries, vinegar, lemon juice and Splenda in a small sauce pan.  Cook over medium heat until it is simmering.  Reduce heat to low and let simmer and reduce, stirring frequently so that it doesn't burn.


While that is cooking, whisk together eggs and egg whites, cinnamon, vanilla and the almond breeze.  Heat a non-stick pan (use cooking spray if you wish) over medium-high heat.  Dip each slice of bread into the liquid until it's completely covered.  Shake off excess liquid and place in pan, flipping after a few minutes.  I prefer to cook my french toast one slice at a time so that I can get it nice and crispy without burning it, but that's up to you.  Continue to dip and cook all slices.  


Serve french toast with the compote and syrup.  I originally was going to not use the syrup, but the compote wasn't enough to moisten the french toast.  Enjoy!

Vegetarian Chili over Spaghetti Squash

Here in good old New York we just like our chili with chili, nothing else, but I know that it's traditional in places like Cincinnati to serve it over pasta.  Based on what I had in the house and my new found obsession with spaghetti squash, I decided to create a low-point chili to serve over some "spaghetti".  One cup of the chili has 4 Points+.  Since spaghetti squash is watery, I upped the spices and salt in the chili.  If you are not planning on serving this over spaghetti squash, I would cut the spices and salt in half and then add from there if needed.   

This might be great to cook up for the Super Bowl if you want that comfort food feeling without eating all of that fat filled food we are accustomed to.  For directions on how to prepare the spaghetti squash, click here.

Ingredients

1 onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 15 oz. can kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 can diced tomatoes and chiles (like the kind by Rotel)

1 cup frozed corn kernels

1 tbsp chili powder

1 tbsp ground cumin

1 tsp salt

Shredded cheese to top (if desired)

If you don't already own a Vidalia Chopper, you should get one!  Look how beautiful my diced onions and peppers are!  And it takes seconds to get uniform pieces! 

Heat oil in a medium sized pot over medium heat.  Add onions and peppers and saute until softened.  Add remaining ingredients except the cheese.  Once simmering, reduce heat to low and stir every few minutes until thickened up.  If you taste it, it will taste too salty and like there are too many spices.  Trust me, it will all be okay.

Serve 1 cup of chili over 1 1/2 cups warm spaghetti squash.  Top with shredded cheese if desired (adds extra points).  The spaghetti squash's watery nature will affect the saltiness of the chili and it will end up being one big happy meal for your tummy.  

Spaghetti Squash

I've heard of spaghetti squash, but I've never really played with it until now!  This week and next I'll be posting a few new recipes using this lovely fruit (yes, it's a fruit!).

The easiest way to prepare a spaghetti squash is to microwave it for about 6 minutes to soften it up a bit.  Then, cut it in half, scoop out the seeds and place each half cut side down in a baking dish filled with about an inch of water.  Bake at 375 until it's nice and tender.  Remove from oven and allow it to cool.


Once you can handle it without burning yourself, use a fork to scrape away the insides.  You'll see that the flesh comes out like strands of spaghetti, thus the name.  Make sure to strain your squash, it's very watery and will dilute anything you may add to it.  I cooked up 2 this weekend since the baking of it is the most time-consuming part.  


You could use this as a straight swap for spaghetti and top with your favorite low-fat tomato sauce.  It's a different texture, but very enjoyable!  On Wednesday, I'll be posting a delicious recipe for a vegetarian-chili to serve on top of spaghetti squash, it's delicious!

Butternut Squash Bisque

I love thick, creamy soups.  Unfortunately, my favorite one is loaded with potatoes, cream and cheese.  Not so Weight Watchers friendly.


Since butternut squashes are abundant this time of year, I decided to create a soup to utilize their texture and really taste like the fall season.  The recipe below makes 6 big servings (depending on the size of your squash) and each only has a Points+ value of 2!  It's so delicious, too!  Most of the ingredients have a zero points, so this is perfect for when you are craving a nice, hearty soup in the colder months, but don't want to abandon your eating goals.

Ingredients:
1 butternut squash
1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp Brummel and Brown Spread
1 clove garlic, diced
1/2 onion, diced
3 carrots, peeled and diced
2 apples (Galas are delicious), peeled and diced
3 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup light cream
Salt
Pepper 
Nutmeg


Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350.  Carefully cut the butternut squash in half lengthwise.  Place each half in a pyrex, cut side up, and fill pyrex with about an inch of water.  Bake squash until tender, at least an hour, more for larger squashes.


In a medium-large pot, heat up oil and B&B spread over medium heat.  Add onion, saute until translucent.  Add garlic and saute for another 2 minutes until it just begins to brown.


Add carrots, apples and stock.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low, simmer until the carrots are tender.  Scoop the squash flesh out of the skin with a spoon, and chop it roughly.  Once the carrots are soft, add the butternut squash and simmer for 5 more minutes.


Remove pot from heat.  Use an immersion blender to puree the ingredients.  Leave it as chunky as you'd like.  Once everything is smooth, slowly add in the cream and stir.  Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.


Note:  Nutmeg is stronger than you think.  I'd start with a half-teaspoon and add more from there.  

Black Beans with Rice

This blog really helps me with my recipes.  I'm infamous for not measuring anything, and then I can never re-create anything!  

I've been eating way too much meat the past few days.  We had to cook up all of the meat from our freezer in the garage since it tripped during the flooding from the hurricane.  I need at least a few days without consuming any meat, so I always turn to beans as a filling protein source.  This recipe came out so good, it's going to be perfect to bring to school for lunch.  You could also use it to fill a burrito.  It's also great since it takes about 15 minutes to make, and most of the ingredients are already in your pantry (well, at least in my pantry!).

The recipe below makes 4 servings with 8 Points+ each.

Ingredients:

1 Batch Cilantro Lime Rice (www.skinnytaste.com)- I left out the cilantro because I can't stand the taste

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup frozen corn kernels

1 can diced tomatoes and chiles, slightly drained

1/2 cup chicken broth

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tbsp lime juice

1/2 tbsp Wondra Flour

Instructions:

Get the rice cooking.

In another pot, combine all remaining ingredients except the Wondra.  Cook over high heat until it is bubbling, reduce heat to low and continue to simmer.  Sprinkle Wondra over mixture and stir in, simmering for another 5 minutes or until it thickens to desired consistency.

Serve 1/4 of the bean mixture over 1/4 of the rice (about a 1/2 cup of each).

I can't wait to make more of this to keep on hand for meals during the week!

Mini Veggie Lasagna

YOU CAN HAVE 8 OF THESE FOR 9 POINTS+!!!

OMG.  I never thought these would be as good as they turned out.  You need to make these ASAP.  As a shortcut to all of the dicing, I suggest looking into a Vidalia Chop Wizard.  They are awesome, quick, easy, and produce equal sized dices.  You will end up using it all of the time!!!


Ingredients:
Cooking Spray
1 eggplant, diced into small cubes
1 white onion, diced
2 portobello mushroom caps, diced into small cubes
5 garlic cloves, smashed
Salt, Pepper, Oregano to taste
8 Nasoya wonton wrappers
1/2 cup marinara sauce
1/3 cup reduced fat italian blend shredded cheese (I used WW brand)


Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375.  Spray a nonstick pan with cooking spray and heat over medium heat.  Add eggplant, onion and mushroom, season with salt, pepper and oregano to taste.  Stir every few minutes while it's cooking.  When the onions have softened, add the garlic.  Continue cooking until all vegetables are soft and starting to brown.  Remove from heat.


Mix 1 cup of your vegetable mixture with the marinara sauce.


Take a muffin tin, spray 8 of the wells with cooking spray.  Press one wonton wrapper into each well so that it's spaced evenly.  Put 1/8 cup (2 tbsp) of veggie sauce mixture into each wrapper.  Sprinkle evenly with shredded cheese, and bake until the cheese is melted and the exposed part of the wrappers are golden brown.

You can eat these by hand (both hands needed).  These were really fun, yummy, and filling!  I highly suggest these for hors d'oeuvres or a meal paired with a salad.  


I have so many more ideas for these wonton wrappers, watch out!