Thursday, September 29, 2011

Great article about what oils are healthier than others!

Check out this great article on the different types of oils out there. You'll find that using olive oil and even butter in recipes offers greater heart healthy outcomes than fat free or tub margarines!

http://health.yahoo.net/articles/nutrition/are-cooking-oils-good-you

Monday, September 19, 2011

Quick Snack: Banana Parfait

Here is a hearty snack that is packed with protein, vitamins and minerals.
About 1 cup Greek yogurt vanilla flavor, granola and a sliced banana!
Hearty and filling!

Monday, September 12, 2011

Quick and Easy Italian

I was pretty hungry when I got home from work today so I whipped up a quick and easy Italian style veggie sandwich! I am definetely the kind of person that has to couple a sandwich with something so I chose some "Food Should Tasta Good" multi-grain chips. Here is what I put on the sandwich and how I made it.

1 Arnolds 100calorie roll
1 sliced plum tomato (from my dad's garden!)
1 slice romaine lettuce halved
thinly sliced red onion

shredded red cabbage
4 basil leaves (from my garden!)
olive oil
garlic powder
black pepper
sprinkle of salt

I have a fantastic little oil sprayer from The Pampered Chef. It allows you to use your own oil and convert it to a spray oil. This helps cut calories but mainain flavor. I sprayed the bun with oil and sprinkled my seasonings on it. I toasted it for about 5 minutes.

Slice the tomato and lay the slices onto the bread. Top with cabbage, onion and lettuce. Spray the vegetables again with a bit of oil.

Add a handful of chips. I coupled the chips with a Laughing Cow Tomato Basil Cheese wedge.

Enjoy!! Yum!

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Spicy Pumpkin Soup

My pumpkin obsession continues! I have been wanting to dive into my pumpkin baking but always end up with excess pure pumpkin. I found a great recipe from Lisa Lillien's first recipe book, Hungry Girl- Recipes and Survival Strategies for Guilt Free Eating in the Real World (Amazon.com Link!). The book is really good and offers recipe ideas that are practical and often include kitchen staples! Love it!

So I modified the recipe a little bit because I did not have some of the ingredients but it turned out to be a hearty but not heavy soup that will be delightful tomorrow during our rainy day.

Ingredients
-16 oz. pure pumpkin
-16 oz. low-sodium vegetable broth (or chicken broth if you like)
-15 oz. black beans drained and rinsed (1 average size can)
-1 cup sweet corn (I used canned but use a fresh ear if you have it!)
-1/2 tsp cumin
-2 cloves of garlic minced
-1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
-1/4 cup prepared salsa (any spice level you prefer)
-8 oz water
-1 tsp olive oil
-Optional- dollop of fat-free sour cream or plain fat free Greek yogurt

Pour oil into a medium saucepan. Add garlic and allow to simmer.

Add chicken broth, water, cumin and red pepper. Bring to a simmer.

Mix pumpkin until smooth (will look watery). Add in corn, beans and salsa.

Stir and simmer for 15 minutes.

Serve with/without sour cream and enjoy!!

My Love Affair with Pumpkin continues.....

Fibery, pumpkiny goodness!!!!
I cannot express enough how much I LOVE pumpkin sweets. This time of year offers a wide variety of sweet pumpkin treats that also pack a calorie punch! I opted to make 2 different pumpkin dishes with a large can of pure pumpkin.
I started out with Pumpkin Pecan Muffins.

Ingredients
3 cups whole wheat flour
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
3 eggs + 1 egg white
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup veg. oil
3/4 cup applesauce
2 cups pure pumpkin
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cupcake pan with liners.
Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger and cloves.
In a mixing bowl combine pumpkin, sugar, oil and applesauce. Mix on a low speed and add eggs one by one.
Slowly add dry ingredients until batter is thick and smooth. Fold in pecans.


Baked for 15-18 minutes or until the batter no longer comes off onto a fork when tested.

Yummy Pumpkin goodness!!

I also made a cream cheese glaze for the topping. Mix 1 stick of cream cheese with about 1/2 cup of confectionary sugar, 1 tbsp of vanilla and 1/4 cup water. Mix until smooth and drizzle over the muffins.

Monday, September 5, 2011

Honey-Lime Fish Tacos

Since today is Labor Day and the official end to summer, I decided to make a delicious SoCal favorite.

Ingredients
- 1lb fresh Cod
- 1 cup honey
-1 cup olive oil divided
-1 1/2 limes- 1/2 red cabbage
- 2 plum tomatoes- sliced
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- small bushel of cilantro (optional)
- salt
-pepper
-pinch thyme
-4 tortillas

Zest the limes into a bowl. Squeeze the juice from one of the lime into the bowl. Add honey and 1/2 cup olive oil.Chop cilantro and add a pinch of salt and pepper.  Mix until smoothe.

Filet cod into 2x3 sections. Add filets to honey-lime marinad Cover and let sit in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes.
Time to marinate!




Fish tacos and a margarita! Adios summer!
Slice cabbage into thin strips. Add remaining olive oil, vinegar, pinch of salt, thyme and any additional cilantro if you like.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Once fish is marinated, place on parchment paper on a baking sheet. Wrap tortillas in aluminum foil. Put fish and tortillas in the oven for 10 minutes.

Place the cod on the tortillas and top with cabbage slaw and tomato slices.

I would have loved to put some avocado on this but I didn't have any.
You can add tortilla chips on the side like I did or a salad! Whatever
you prefer.

Isn't my lil girl cute?? :)
Enjoy!

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Nutella Oat Pancakes with peanut butter, banana and Nutella drizzle

Happy Sunday everyone! This recipe was inspired by my friend Matt! He went to a diner in Philadelphia that had a similar style pancake recipe on the menu. In the photo he posted on facebook there was more nutella and PB on the pancakes. I personally love the bready taste of pancakes so I didn't try to overwhelm them with the toppings, but add as much as you prefer based on your preferences. Here we go!

There are 2 ways to make these pancakes, the short-cut route or the from scratch way. I went a little half and half. I really like the pancake mixes from the New Hope Mills and I used the Oat Bran mix for this recipe.

Ingredients
2 cups Oat Bran pancake mix
1 3/4 cups cold water
1/4 cup egg beaters (or 1 egg)
4 tbsp Nutella
1 1/2 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp skim milk
1/2 banana

Add pancake mix, water and egg in a large bowl. Mix in 2 tbsp nutella and mix until batter turns a light brown.

Cook pancakes on medium heat until both sides are browned.

In a small saucepan add the remaining nutella with 1 tbsp milk. Warm on very low heat and stir continuously to remove lumps and prevent from burning.

Cut the banana into slices and layer on top of pancakes.

Using a large spoon, drizzle the warmed nutella over the pancakes.

Top with peanut butter and enjoy!


Tips
- When making pancakes, cover cooked pancakes with a pot lid to keep pancakes moist and warm.
- You can top this recipe with maple syrup, but taste it first because it is already deliciously sweet!
- If you want to make your pancakes from scratch, here is a good recipe . Just add in the Nutella.


- You can use any pancake mix and add in the additional ingredients.