Vegetable Sesame Noodles

I made a variation of this tonight. It is really good! You can use whatever vegetables you have... it's a great way to use them up!!

Ingredients:
6 oz. whole wheat pasta
1 c. frozen shelled edamame
1/4 c lite (low sodium) soy sauce
1 T oil (I used grapeseed)
1 T sesame seed oil
1 T seasoned rice vinegar
1 tsp Sriracha sauce
4 c chopped veggies, such as
------2 c radishes
------1/2 c each celery, green beans, red bell peppers and broccoli

Directions:
Cook pasta according to package directions. (Chop your veggies in the meantime.) Put frozen edamame in a colander and drain the pasta over the edamame. (I was skeptical of this un-freezing the edamame but it totally worked!)
Whisk together the liquids. Add pasta, edamame and other veggies. Mix with your hands.
You can sprinkle with sesame seeds if you want but I was hungry and forgot!!
Makes 8 cups.

Nutritional Information: (2 cups)
Calories: 300
Fat: 9g
Saturated fat: 0.8g
Carbs: 42g
Fiber: 3.5g
Protein: 12g

Crispy Parmesan Asparagus

Here is the original recipe for the asparagus I made tonight. Oh. Em. GEE!!!!!!!!!!!!! Defreakinglicious.

Ingredients:
1 bunch asparagus
1 egg
1/8c grated parmesan
1/8c flour
1/2c panko bread crumbs

Directions:
Snap the ends off the asparagus. I also cut mine into thirds after that. Dredge first in the egg and then in a mixture of parmesan, flour and bread crumbs. Place on a greased wire wrack placed atop a baking sheet.
Bake at 425 for 10-15 min until golden and crispy.
Enjoy!

Nutritional Information: (2 servings)
I would say I used only 2/3 of the dredging materials (both wet and dry):
Calories: 135
Fat: 3.5g
Saturated: 1.5g
Carbs: 19g
Fiber: 3.5g
Protein: 9g

Calzone

I made a calzone for dinner tonight. I'm only blogging it because it's pretty. :) It's just a store-bought Pillsbury pizza crust with filling. You can put whatever you want inside! I used pizza sauce, mozzarella, and green pepper, plus pepperoni in Dave's half. I got the idea to make it pretty here (found on pinterest).

Pretzel Dog Bites

My friend Lori introduced me to a great vegan recipe blog, Vegan Dad. I got this recipe there. Below is the recipe for only 2 hot dogs, or 1/4 of the full recipe.

Ingredients:
2 vegan hot dogs (I like Smart Dogs)
3/8 c lukewarm water
1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 T brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c bread flour
3/4 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c warm water
1/2 T baking soda

Directions:
1. Sprinkle yeast on 3/8 c lukewarm water in mixing bowl and stir to dissolve. Add sugar and salt, and stir to dissolve. Add flour and knead dough until smooth and elastic. Let rise, covered, for at least 1/2 hour.

2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Dissolve baking soda into 1/2 c warm water in a large bowl.

3. Cut veggie dogs into 4 pieces each.

4. Remove dough from bowl. Cut off a small piece of dough and flatten by hand into a 4" x 2" rectangle (approx.). Place piece of veggie dog on smaller end, roll, and seal ends. Dip in baking soda-water mixture [um, I mixed this together and then completely forgot to use it... oops], and place on a baking sheet. Repeat until all hot dog pieces are wrapped.

5. Bake for 8-10 mins, until golden.

Makes 2 servings.

Nutritional Information:

Calories: 259

Fat: 0g

Carbs: 51g

Fiber: 1g

Protein: 14g

Rating:

Kristen: 4 Yummmmmmmmy!!!

Veggie Pizza

A twist on the classic! I took this to New Year's Eve at my aunt's house. I cooked the crust, mixed the cream cheese "sauce", and chopped the veggies ahead of time. I assembled it just a little bit before serving so that the crust wouldn't get soggy. I don't know exactly how much of each veggie I used (I know it was 2 c total), and I can't remember how many pieces I cut it into, but this should be pretty close. :) And I have no picture... sorry... it got eaten up!

Ingredients:
1 package Pillsbury seamless crescent rolls
8 oz tofutti better than cream cheese
1 tsp dill weed
2 c assorted chopped vegetables
---broccoli
---cauliflower
---black olives
---zucchini
---carrots
---artichoke hearts
---green pepper

Directions:
Bake dough according to package directions. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.
Soften cream cheese in the microwave. Mix in dill weed using a food processor.
Spread cream cheese over the cooled crust. Layer veggies on top.
Refrigerate before serving.
Makes 20 servings.

Nutritional Information:
Calories: 75
Fat: 5g
Saturated: 1.5g
Carbs: 6g
Fiber: 0.5g
Protein: 1.5g

Ratings:
Kristen: 4
My mom and sister also loved it!

Artichokes with Dill Sauce

My mom always made this recipe when we are growing up. It's one of my very favorites!!!!

Ingredients:
2 artichokes, stems chopped off
butter, vinegar and dill weed to taste*We like ours heavy on the vinegar, especially Dave! Start with a tablespoon or 2 of butter, and add vinegar until you like the taste. Maybe 1/2 tsp of dill. Usually I would use whatever kind of margarine. Tonight I used Bestlife Buttery Spread. It's the

Directions:
Boil artichokes, covered, in a large pot for about 30 minutes. Check for doneness by taking off an outside leaf. If you can scrape off the fleshy part with your teeth, it's done. If not, boil longer!
To make the sauce, melt butter in a small saucepan. Add vinegar and dill weed to taste. Serve in individual ramekins or small mugs.
If you have never eaten a whole artichoke before and aren't sure what to do, here is a page that explains it very well!!
Serves 2.

Nutritional Information:

Obviously this totally depends on the size of your artichokes and how much butter you use, but here's an estimate:
Calories: 75
Fat: 1.5g
Saturated: 0.5g
Carbs: 13.5g
Fiber: 7g
Protein: 4g

Ratings:
Kristen: 5
Dave: 4

*We like ours heavy on the vinegar, especially Dave! Maybe start with a tablespoon or 2 of butter, and add vinegar until you like the taste. Maybe 1/2 tsp of dill. Usually I would use whatever kind of margarine. Tonight I used Bestlife Buttery Spread. It's the first time I've noticed a taste difference when using this product. (It's soy-based.) Taste-wise, it blended kind of strangely with the vinegar, I think, for an almost... spicy (?) sort of taste? It wasn't bad, just different.

Potato Skins

Ingredients:
2 potatoes
1 tsp butter (I used  Bestlife Buttery Spread)
cheddar cheese (20g of cheddar style Teese for mine/shredded cheddar for Dave's)
1/2 c broccoli, finely chopped

Directions:
Bake potatoes in the microwave, and then allow them to cool enough to handle.
Preheat oven to 425F. Cut potatoes in half and scoop out the insides.
Melt butter in microwave and brush over the insides of the potatoes. Fill the potatoes with cheese and broccoli.
Bake for 15 minutes. Makes 2 servings.

Nutritional Information*:
Calories: 237
Fat: 5.5g
Saturated: 2g
Carbs: 42g
Fiber: 5.5g
Protein: 5g

*For one whole potato (including scooped out part) using teese (cheese slightly more)

Baked Zucchini Fries

Last month we had a rewards assembly at school and as part of it each kid got a Kid Approved: Healthy Snacks cookbook from PE-Nut (part of the Michigan Nutrition Network). Anyway, I got a cookbook too and that's where this recipe came from.

Ingredients:
1 zucchini, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1-1/2 T italian bread crumbs
1-1/2 T balsamic vinegar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 475F.
Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
Pour vinegar into a small bowl and breadcrumbs onto a small dish. Dip the zucchini strips first into the vinegar, and then coat with breadcrumbs before placing them on the baking sheet.
Bake 5 minutes, turn strips over, and bake until crumbs are lightly browned, about 5 more minutes.

Makes 2 servings.

Nutritional Information:
Calories: 34
Fat: 0.5g
Carbs: 7g
Fiber: 1.5g
Protein: 1.5g

Broccoli Cheese Soup

I got this recipe from a Light & Tasty magazine. Here's a link to the original recipe.

Ingredients:
1/2 c celery, diced
3-4 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 T flour
1-3/4c vegetable broth
4 c fresh broccoli, chopped
1/4-1/2 tsp dried tarragon
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/8 tsp black pepper
1-1/2 c milk (1%)
1 c shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese

Directions:
In a nonstick saucepan coated with cooking spray, saute celery until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in flour until blended. Gradually stir in broth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until slightly thickened.
Add the broccoli, tarragon, thyme and pepper; return to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes or until broccoli is tender. Add milk; cook, uncovered, 5 minutes longer. Add cheese; stir until just melted.
Serves 4.

Nutritional Information:

Calories: 163
Fat: 7.3g
Saturated Fat: 4.6g
Carbs: 13.6g
Fiber: 3g
Protein: 13.1g


Ratings:
Kristen: 3
Dave: 2.5

*I wouldn't call this broccoli CHEESE soup. Yeah, it has cheese in it, but you really can't taste it. More like a cream of broccoli soup. The seasoning makes it better than a run-of-the-mill cream of broccoli though. It was still pretty good, just not cheesy. Dave added some more cheese to his, which he said took it from a 2.5 to a 3. It is very filling though! I had planned on having something else with it, but I am full!
*I'll upload a picture later.

Roasted Garlic Guacamole

Ingredients:
1 avocado (~100g)
2 cloves of garlic
1T chopped fresh cilantro
a squeeze of fresh lime juice

Directions:
Place unpeeled garlic in a small dry skillet over medium heat; cook, turning occasionally, until soft and blackened in spots, 10 to 15 min. Cool, then slip off the skins; finely chop.
Scoop avocado flesh into a bowl. Add the garlic, cilantro and lime juice to taste, and mash everything together with a fork. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Makes 4 servings.

Nutritional Information:

Calories: 44.3
Fat: 3.9g
Saturated: 0.5g
Poly: 0.5g
Mono: 2.5g
Carbs: 2.8g
Fiber: 1.7g
Sugar: 0.1g
Protein: 0.6g

Ratings:
Kristen: 4

Swiss Chard & Mushroom Squares

Had some swiss chard in our produce box this week and made this recipe.

Ingredients:
1 bunch swiss chard, stems cut out and cut into thin ribbons and then chopped (mine was 126g after stemming) (can also use other greens)
*don't throw away the stems!! I should have a recipe on here in the next day or two for those.*
dash of salt
dash of red pepper flakes
onion powder, to taste
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/2 lb mushrooms, diced into small pieces
1/2 T EVOO
1/2 tsp reduced sodium soy sauce
1/2 c shredded mozzarella
1/4 c bread crumbs
4 eggs, beaten


Directions:
Bring a pot of water to a boil while you stem the chard. Wash and chop the chard. Add the chard, salt and red pepper flakes to the boiling water. Boil about 10 minutes, until chard is softened and cooked through. Drain and rinse with cold water.

Preheat oven  to 350 F.

Heat olive oil in a small skillet. Saute garlic over medium heat about 2 minutes; add mushrooms and soy sauce and saute 5-7 minutes, or until mushrooms are softened and liquid is evaporated.

Squeeze water from drained chard and place into large plastic bowl. Add mushroom mixture, shredded cheese, bread crumbs, and beaten eggs, and mix together. Spray 9 X 9" casserole dish or pie plate with non-stick spray. Pour in egg mixture.

Bake 20-25 minutes, until firmly set but not hard, and slightly browned.

Serves 4, or can be cut into 9 squares for appetizers.  

Nutritional Information:

Calories: 168

Fat: 9.3g

Saturated Fat: 3.1g

Carbs: 9g

Protein: 12.3g

Ratings:

Kristen: 4

Dave: 4