a bushel of apples

I went apple picking this weekend. Autumn is finally here, the leaves are changing and the temperatures are cooling and picking apples just seemed like it was the appropriate thing to do. Ok, who am I kidding... I've never gone apple picking, I never thought I would like apple picking, and most days I'd rather be doing something that seems a little more active than that. In the end, I really did have a great time. I can not even begin to explain how different and wonderful these apples taste right off the tree, as compared to in the supermarket. The entire ride home, I couldn't stop daydreaming about what I was going to make with these apples. An apple bread I remember from my childhood, an apple pie maybe, apple tartlets, caramel apples, mmmm.... and with each recipe idea, I thought about all those calories planting themselves right on my ass. And so, I decided some savory recipes might be a better idea. Here's what I came up with:

Cabbage Apple Slaw Recipe

1-16 oz package of tri-color ready slaw cabbage mix (or chop up a head of cabbage)

1 yellow onion, chopped

1 tart apple (I used a Winesap apple with the skin on, you can take the skin off if it doesn't appeal to you), chopped

1 english cucumber, chopped

3 tbsp. dijon nayonaise (it's a soy based low fat mayo alternative)

2 tbsp. spicy mustard of your choice

juice from 1 large lemon

salt and pepper to taste

Mix it all up, chill for about an hour, enjoy.

*k*

Pancakes and Eggs with a little flair

Sometimes we get in a rut and end up staying with the basics. With a little modification, you can turn a basic breakfast into something unique, and some may even call a little gourmet.

Pancakes and Eggs Recipe (with a little flair) - makes 1 serving

Enough of your favorite pancake mix + liquid to make one serving

1 tbsp. wheat germ

2 tbsp. rolled oats (also called old fashioned oats)

4 fresh figs

1 tsp. white sugar

cooking spray

1 tbsp. raspberry preserves (or jam / preserves of your choice)

2 eggs

1 tsp. herbs de provence

1 heaping tsp. white flour

pinch of salt

1 tbsp. milk (or soy milk)

1. Turn on your broiler to high. Put a griddle or a large saute pan on the stove and turn the heat to medium. Let it stand, dry, over the heat to pre-heat the pan.

2. Mix up the pancake mix as usual. Add the wheat germ and rolled oats and add a little more liquid, as needed to make a thick batter. Let stand for about 5 minutes.

3. Cut off the stem of each fig, and then cut an X in the top of each one. Do not cut all the way through. Place the figs, X side up, on a cookie sheet or other baking dish. Spray lightly with cooking spray and sprinkle a little bit of sugar atop each one. Put in the broiler and keep a watch on it. As the figs cook, they will open up like a flower. Make sure the sugar doesn't burn. It should be about 7 minutes.

4. Now start making your pancakes. Your pan should be hot and the batter should be a little bit thicker. Pour pancake batter onto your hot surface (pan or griddle), and once bubbles appear on the top, flip the pancakes. I like mine to be a little darker than traditional. If you like that too, then don't flip the pancakes until a minute or so after the bubbles appear. Continue cooking until you have used all of your pancake batter. If you are making a large batch and want to keep the pancakes warm, put them in some aluminum foil and put them on the bottom rack of your oven.

5. Next, in a small bowl, mix 2 eggs, herbs, milk, flour and salt and whisk until smooth. Using a medium non-stick saute pan (I use the same pan I did the pancakes in), take the pan off the heat, holding the pan in one hand and using the other hand gently pour about half of the mixture into the pan. It is extremely important to use a non-stick pan. Swirl the pan around to form a thin coat around the entire bottom of the pan and set back on the heat. Let the egg mixture cook for a minute until it is easily removed from the bottom of the pan and then flip it. Let it cook on the other side. Then remove from the pan and roll up. Do the same with the other half of the mixture.

6. By this time, I hope you took the figs out of the oven, otherwise they will be charred. Arrange the pancakes on a plate, put the rolled up eggs/crepes next to them, top the pancakes with the figs and raspberry preserves.

Serve hot and enjoy.

A few things to note about this recipe -

- I was lucky enough to find a high-protein, low calorie pancake mix in the Whole Foods. If you can locate something like that, you'll be better off in terms of a healthy choice. I added the wheat germ and rolled oats to add some more fiber to this dish. You could also sub oat bran, or other higher fiber grains and put a little bit in the pancake mix.

- Limit the white sugar, and rasperry preserves. Just use a bit to carmelize the top of the figs.

- If you use a non-stick pan, there's no need for any butter or oil. Another way to keep this healthier.

- Use fresh ingredients, substitute egg beaters if you like, you can also use soy milk in place of milk, etc. Feel free to substitute similar ingredients in order to suit your needs. Have fun with it!

*healthy foodie*

Gridiron Grub Week 4: The Chewy

There are a few readers out there who I know are lucky enough to be part of Rob's weekly cookie exploitation, I'm one of them. While I often engage in the cookie festivities, in the past couple of weeks, I have been remiss in my baking duties and have been relegated to licking the the spatula (my favorite part!). I have been trying to avoid taking a dive face first into the cookie jar, so I haven't been championing the cookie baking lately. The cookie baking went from one day a year to a weekly ritual during football season.

This past weekend, Rob was at it again. The fortunate few indulged grandly on Sunday night, leaving nothing but scraps. So for those of you waiting for the Monday afternoon cookies, well it will have to be next week. In the meantime, here's a chance to see behind the scenes.

One of my favorites, the Chewy:

Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
2 sticks unsalted butter
2 1/4 c. bread flour (all purpose works fine, you'll have a chewier crumb if you use bread flour)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 c. sugar
1 1/4 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c. white chocolate chips
1/2 c. milk chocolate chips
1/2 c. semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 c. chopped walnuts

Heat oven to 375 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a heavy-bottom medium saucepan over low heat. (the microwave works too)

Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda and set aside.

Pour the melted butter in the mixer's work bowl and add the sugar and brown sugar. Cream the butter and sugars on medium speed.

Add the egg, yolk, 2 tablespoons milk and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.

Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until thoroughly combined.

Stir in the chocolate chips. Chill the dough, then scoop onto parchment-lined baking sheets, 6 cookies per sheet.

Bake for 14 minutes or until golden brown, checking the cookies after 5 minutes.

Eat immediately. :)

*k*

flavorful rice

This post ties in a few of the previous posts quite nicely - I used my pressure cooker, got rid of some of my rice, and continued my adventures with Indian cuisine. I can't get enough of it actually. I made vegetable biryani using a recipe reprinted from Recipe Delights. If you have been reading for any amount of time, you'll know that I had to make some tweaks to this recipe. Here's what I did:

Vegetable Biryani Recipe (makes about 10-12 servings)
2 c. Basmati rice or other medium grain white rice
3 small red potatoes
2 c. mixed vegetable (I used a frozen vegetable mix w/broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, squash)
1/2 c. french beans
1 c. green peas
1 medium vidalia onion, diced
2 serrano chili, diced
Salt to taste
1 tsp. Red chilli powder
2 tsp. Cinnamon
2 tsp. Caraway seeds
1/2 tsp. clove
1/2 tsp. Black pepper powder
1/2 c. plain fat free yogurt
2 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
3 tbsp. Dried fruit and nut mix (I mixed cashew pieces, raisins and dates)

Dice and cook the potatoes in a pressure cooker. Set aside.

Wash rice well before cooking. Then take rice with 3-3/4 cup water and a little salt added to it and 2 tbsp of dry fruits. Cook it in pressure cooker (wait for one whistle and then switch off the gas). You can also cook it in a pan or do microwave cooking just the same way as you cook ordinary rice.

Cut all the vegetables, except potatoes, into bite sized pieces and saute in a little bit of olive oil. When done, set aside.

Then fry mustard seeds, green chilli, cinnamon and caraway seeds powder, cloves, black pepper powder for about half minute and then add onions. Fry till the color of onion changes to pink.

Add salt and red chilli powder and stir it properly.

Next add yogurt and stir well.Heat it for about 10 seconds.

Add all the vegetables, including potatoes.

Lastly add the cooked rice and mix well with very light hands so that the rice grain doesn't break. Cook for about 3 minutes.

May be covered and kept in fridge for about 5 days.

I did a few things to refine the recipe to my tastes. First, I just about doubled the amount of vegetables in the recipe. I did this so that I would fill up more on the vegetables than on the rice. I also used plain fat free yogurt instead of full fat yogurt. No need to add extra calories. Last, I used less oil. Especially when you're sauting frozen vegetables, there is usually enough liquid in them so that you don't need to add much, if any, oil. You definitely need to add oil to cook the mustard seeds and chili and onions or else they will stick to the pan and get messy.

This is a great dish with a lot of nutrients and balanced food groups - cinnamon, chili pepper, black pepper, cloves, and mustard seeds show up on the healthiest foods list, as do many of the veggies like squash, carrots, cauliflower, green beans, onions, potatoes, broccoli, raisins, and even the yogurt.

Keep your portion sizes measured and enjoy this fulfilling and satisfying autumn dish.

*healthy foodie*

zucchini bread I

Zucchini bread is one of my all time favorite cake breads. I have a number of recipes and I constantly try new ones and tweak those to suit. This one is adapted from a Paula Deen recipe (I love Paula, but damn if she doesn't make the most caloric dishes there could be). I'll call this one Zucchini Bread I because I suspect that I'll be posting some other recipes.

Zucchini Bread I Recipe
3 1/4 c. whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 c. brown sugar
1 c granulated sugar
1/2 c. apple sauce
1/2 c. vegetable oil
4 eggs, beaten
1/3 c. water
2 c. grated zucchini
juice from 1/2 lemon
1 c. toasted pine nuts (because that is what I had, use walnuts or pecans)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and sugar. In a separate bowl, combine oil, apple sauce, eggs, water, zucchini and lemon juice. Mix wet ingredients into dry, add nuts and fold in. Bake in 2 standard loaf pans, sprayed with nonstick spray, for 1 hour, or until a tester comes out clean. Alternately, bake in 5 mini loaf pans for about 45 minutes.

Using some apple sauce in place of the oil helps to reduce the fat. I don't recommend a complete substitution for the fat though because then the muffins will be dry. Also, the original recipe called for 3 cups of granulated sugar. So if you like it a little sweeter, you can add in the extra sugar. I was trying to go light on the sugar though.

*healthy foodie*

faux-mosas

Rob coined this name and I really like it actually. We made samosas the other weekend, except we tried to cut a few corners in order to speed up the time to prepare. The result - our American version of this famous Indian snack - fauxmosas :)

Samosa Recipe (makes about 6 to 10 depending on size)
3 medium roasting potatoes
1 1/2 cup frozen peas
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chili powder
salt and pepper to taste
puff pastry thawed

Preheat the oven to 375.

Cut the potatoes into 1" chunks and boil them or cook them in a pressure cooker to speed up the cooking time. Once they are cooked, drain them, keeping some of the liquid so that they aren't too dry.

Keep them in a large saute pan over medium heat and add the cumin, garam masala and chili powder, salt and pepper. Using a potato masher, roughly mash the potatoes so that it forms a thick and chunky mashed potato consistency. Add the frozen peas and allow them to thaw in the mixture. This is now your filling. At this point, give it a little taste and add more of the spices if necessary to give it a flavor that you like.

Unwrap and unroll the thawed puff pastry dough and roll it out slightly to thin it out a little. Cut the puff pastry dough into about 3" x 6" rectangles. Place about 1 to 2 tbsp. of the filling (depending on the size of your square) and fold up the pastry dough around the filling into a square. Press the edges down firmly (you can wet your fingers slightly to help the dough stick) so that they will not separate when you cook them.

Place the samosas into the oven and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes until the pastry has puffed and is golden brown.

Serve with green chutney.

Green Chutney Recipe
1 cup fresh cilantro
1 cup fresh mint
1 garlic clove
1 serrano chili pepper (less if you don't want it to be so spicy)
juice from 1 lime
salt and pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in a food processor and puree on high for several minutes until mixture is essentially liquefied. Chill for about an hour to let the flavors combine.

This is healthier than the traditional fried samosa because it's baked. So you can easily make these at home and save yourself a lot of calories and fat. Also, you can make this recipe a little more healthy by not using the puff pastry. While it works just fine in a pinch, it is a processed food and has quite a bit of fat in it due to all the butter. To make your own dough, use 1 cup of whole wheat flour (Chapati flour), 1/2 tbsp olive oil, and about 1/2 cup of water. Add the water a little bit at a time and mix until the dough forms a ball. Knead it out for a few minutes and then let it sit in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to let the gluten form. After at least 30 minutes, knead the dough for about 3 more minutes. Then roll it out into 1/8" thick, fill with the samosa filling and bake at 375 until golden brown.

*healthy foodie*

Gridiron Grub Week #2: Mediterranean Munchies

Sometimes you just get tired of the same old salsa and chips. You can mix it up and still have great munchies. Here are a few recipes and tips for setting out a Mediterranean themed brunch.

Hummus Recipe (chickpea dip)
1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 clove of garlic
2 tbsp tahini paste (available in most grocery stores)
1/4 c. of lemon juice (juice from about 2 lemons)
about 1/4 c. of water (more or less to make a good consistency for dipping)
salt and white pepper to taste

Put all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend for several minutes until completely pureed. Chill for at least 1/2 hour before serving.

Baba Ganouj Recipe (eggplant dip)
1 medium eggplant
Juice of ½ lemon
2 tbsp tahini paste
3 tablespoons fat free yogurt or ff sour cream
4 garlic cloves
½ tsp. chili pepper
1 tsp. tarragon
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut eggplant lengthwise and brush cut side lightly with 1 tbsp. of olive oil. Place cut side down on a baking dish or baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. At the same time, put 4 garlic cloves in 1 tbsp. of oil in a covered baking cup. Roast garlic in the same oven as the eggplant for 45 minutes. Scoop out eggplant from the skin and put in food processor along with the roasted garlic and olive oil, yogurt, chili pepper, tarragon, salt and pepper. Process until smooth. Chill for 90 minutes.

By taking it easy on the tahini in these two recipes, you end up keeping the nice mediterranean flavor but without the extra calories and fat. If you eliminate it all together, you won't get the same flavor, but I do it sometimes and it is still good.

Items to assemble to complete your Mediterranean Platter
Pita bread or flat bread cut into bite sized dipping pieces

veggies for dipping like baby carrots, celery, cherry tomatoes, julienned squash, broccoli florets, cauliflower florets

kalamata olives

other fun items to serve - sun dried tomatoes, feta cheese crumbles, stuffed grape leaves

*k*

Gridiron Grub Week #1: A trio of salsa

When you're watching the game, munchies are key. But over-do it and your pants don't fit on Monday. Each week I'll post one or a few [healthier] recipes good for lounging around watching the game. Since the first game is on Thursday, I figured that I better get moving - don't forget your picks!

This week's line up is a Tex-Mex theme with a trio of salsa recipes that you can serve with pita chips or baked tortilla chips. Try and make these at least an hour before game time so that the flavors have time to combine. All of these make a medium bowl full - make all three and you'll have enough for about 15 people.

Traditional Salsa Recipe
6 plum tomatoes
1 small onion, diced
about 1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped (more or less to taste)
2 jalapenos, seeded and finely chopped (more or less to taste, use fresh, not jarred)
2 cloves garlic, minced
juice from one lime
hot sauce to taste
salt and pepper to taste

1. Cut and remove the seeds from the tomatoes (the seeds will make this bitter). Dice the tomatoes and put them in a bowl, reserving about 1/2 cup of them. With a potato masher, mash up the tomatoes in the bowl for about 2 minutes. Place the rest of the tomatoes in the bowl.

2. Add the onion, cilantro, garlic, jalapeno and lime juice and stir.

3. At this point, take a taste of the salsa and adjust it with salt, pepper and Tabasco (or another hot sauce) to taste. Chill for at least an hour. Garnish with fresh cilantro.

Variation: This will give you a rustic and chunky type of salsa. If you want it a little bit smoother, then you'll have to break out the food processor. You can do everything pretty much the same, except put all of the ingredients in the food processor and use it in pulse mode to obtain your desired consistency.

Smokey Chipotle Salsa Recipe
6 plum tomatoes
1 small onion, diced
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (they come in a can, the small can has a few peppers in there, use more if you can take the heat), sauce drained
dash ground cumin (optional)
1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped
adobo sauce to taste
salt and pepper to taste

1. Cut and remove the seeds from the tomatoes (the seeds will make this bitter). Dice the tomatoes and put them in a bowl, reserving about 1/2 cup of them. With a potato masher, mash up the tomatoes in the bowl for about 2 minutes. Place the rest of the tomatoes in the bowl.

2. Add the onion, chipotle, cumin, and cilantro.

3. Take a taste of the salsa and adjust it with salt, pepper, more adobo if needed, to taste. Chill for at least an hour. Garnish with fresh cilantro.

This next one might seem like it would be too sweet, but we have made this a few times and the combination of sweet and hot makes it hard to resist. Since plums won't be in season much longer, you'll have to make this one soon.

Mango Plum Salsa Recipe
4 plums pitted and chopped (try and find firm plums)
1 mango, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup scallions, sliced
3 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and chill for at least an hour. Garnish with fresh cilantro.

If you want to round out your menu, you might consider grilling some portobellos with large slices of onions and peppers (could also do steak and chicken) and serve with some tortilla roll-ups. Have some fixings on the side like diced tomatoes, lettuce, and salsa (ahem, above!). You can lay it out on a buffet and have people make their own.

Go Giants!

*k*

the mysterious souffle

I saw an Alton Brown show recently that focused on souffles. I usually only make eggs on weekends, and having just saw this show, I thought it would be appropriate to try my hand at the mysterious dish. After creating a whirlwind through the kitchen, this is what I ended up with.

Bruschetta Souffle Recipe

a basic souffle recipe

1/2 cup havarti habenaro cheese

leftover brushetta, drained

To the roux, I added cheese and brushetta. Fold the roux into the egg whiles and bake according to the basic recipe.

I had some trouble with the folding technique. It seems easy enough, and I've done it before with cake mix, muffins, etc. For some reason it felt like the egg whites were much much lighter than the roux and I was having a hard time getting them to combine. Well, this came out pretty good but I definitely need some practice.

*k*

bundt cake madness

I told you that there would be photos of bundt cakes in the near future. Here it is. I have made 3 bundt cakes in as many days. Two for friends who needed comfort food (hence the other comfort food post) and one for an anniversary party. These things aren't too healthy, but they make great gifts. I have modified this recipe to make a chocolate, pistachio and strawberry bundt. Here they are:

Bundt Cake using boxed Cake Mix Recipe - Chocolate
1 box chocolate cake mix
1 package chocolate pudding
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup chocolate chips

Frosting - optional
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour a bundt cake pan. Place all ingredients into a large mixing bowl, except for the chocolate chips. Beat on low until just combined. Then switch speeds to high and beat on high for about 3 to 4 minutes, until smooth. Pour batter into bundt cake pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until wooden skewer comes out smooth.

Frosting: Wait until cake is cooled. Melt butter and chocolate chips together. While still liquid, brush over the bundt cake.

Pistachio Cake Recipe
Replace chocolate cake mix with yellow or white cake mix
Replace chocolate pudding with pistachio pudding
eliminate chocolate chips, add pistachios (optional)

Strawberry Cake Recipe
Replace chocolate cake mix with strawberry cake mix
Replace chocolate pudding with vanilla pudding
eliminate chocolate chips, add chopped strawberries (optional)
2 cups chopped strawberries
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp white sugar

Place strawberries, vinegar and sugar in a bowl and toss together. Let the mixture chill for at least 2 hours. Spoon over cake.

To make this slightly more healthy:
Use low fat or fat free sour cream
Use sugar free pudding
substitute apple juice for the oil (but cake won't be as light)

Have fun with it - use lemon cake with lemon pudding, or vanilla cake with chocolate chips. There are so many variations of this.

remember that giant zucchini?

I tried my hand at the thai curry again, this time worked a little better.

Thai Curry Zucchini Recipe (4 servings)
1 giant zucchini (a medium or two small would work too)
2 plum tomatoes
1 small can bamboo shoots
1 can coconut milk
2 tsp. red curry paste
1 red chili
salt and pepper to taste
tbsp. olive oil
cooked white jasmine rice

1. Cut the zucchini into bite size pieces and saute in olive oil until browned.
2. Meanwhile, put the can of lite coconut milk in a sauce pan , add curry and chili until the curry paste is dissolved.
3. Add the bamboo shoots to the zucchini and then the coconut milk mixture.
4. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Serve over white rice.

*enjoy*
photos soon

*healthy foodie*

fat free bruschetta

oh so many tomatoes.... this easy recipe will get rid of a few :)

Fat Free Bruschetta Recipe (about 4)
3 tomatoes, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced or through a garlic press
1 clove of garlic, sliced lengthwise
about 1/4 cup basil, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
A loaf of long Italian bread, sliced into rounds (the one that looks like a baguette)

Add all ingredients to a bowl, except for bread and 1 clove of garlic. Chill for at least 1 hour. It tastes better if you allow the flavors to combine together in the fridge for an hour or so. When you are ready to serve, slice the Italian bread, rub the sliced garlic clove on the bread and then toast it for a couple minutes until it is barely golden.

Serve the bruschetta atop the toasted bread.

*healthy foodie*

I am a tartlette

Well, it's true. I do goofy stuff all the time and when I get into something, I really get into it. I'm pretty psyched about this recipe today and I hope you are too. It's definitely something to do on a Sunday morning though, because who has time to do this on any other day.
You can make the pastry dough ahead of time, bake it until it's almost done and then chill or freeze it until you are ready to use. I made the crusts yesterday, when I had some time, and then did the rest this morning.

Tart Crust Recipe (makes enough for 4 tarts)
1 c. whole wheat pastry flour
pinch of sea salt
1 tbsp. plain fat free yogurt
1 tbsp. crumbled goat cheese
1 tbsp. olive oil
about 3 tbsp. ice water

Preheat oven to 375.

The easiest way that I have found to do this is in a food processor. Put everything in the food processor except for the ice water. Pulse it until it starts to form pea sized balls. Then slowly add the water one tablespoon at a time through the food processor feed tube. You probably won't need all of the water. Keep pulsing the food processor until a soft ball forms. Then the dough is done.

Roll the dough into a lag between your hand and cut it into four equal pieces. Shape it into a disc and lay it on a floured work surface. Roll each of the discs out into a circular round that is about 1 inch bigger than the diameter of the tart pan.

Place the crust into the tart pan. Take the excess dough and fold it down along the edge of the crust around rim of the tart pan (but not over the rim, otherwise you won't be able to get the tart out of the pan). Basically, you want to make the edges of the crust a little thicker than the bottom so that it will hold nicely when you take it out.

Fill each tart with either pie baking beads, or rice (I use rice since I don't have the beads). This will keep the crust from rising. Bake for about 10 minutes.

Tomato, Onion and Goat Cheese Tart Recipe
Basic Tart Crust (above)
4 eggs
1/4 c. skim milk
4 thinly sliced rounds of vidalia onion
1/4 c. diced onion
1 tsp. herbs de Provence
4 tsp. crumbled goat cheese
4 thinly sliced rounds of tomato
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375.

In a medium bowl, crack the 4 eggs and add the milk and chopped onion. Whisk until blended. Season with salt, pepper and herbs de Provence.

Remove the seeds from the tomato, and dry the tomato between a few paper towels. If you don't do this step, the tomato will be too wet for the tart.

Put the thinly sliced onion round in the bottom of each tart pan. Then fill with the egg mixture (careful not to over fill - you'll probably have some left over egg mixture, depending on how deep your tart pans are).

Then place one tomato on each tart and sprinkle with goat cheese.

Place the tart pans on a cookie sheet, to avoid any overflow from making a mess in your oven. Bake at 375 for about 30-35 minutes. Let cool about 10 minutes and then remove the tarts from the tart pans.

Enjoy!

date nut pumpkin muffins

I was praying that this recipe was going to come out ok when I put it in the oven. But rest assured, the recipe worked. It's a good thing Rob wasn't here, because he doesn't like when I experiment with the recipe before trying it first ;) I limited the amount of sugar in this recipe, because with the dates and applesauce, there is enough sweetness. If you would like the muffin part of it to be sweeter, you can add about a 1/4 cup more sugar.

Date Nut Pumpkin Muffin Recipe (6 muffins)
1 scoop vanilla whey powder
2 tbsp wheat germ
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch ginger
pinch salt
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp applesauce
2 tbsp chopped walnuts
1/4 cup chopped dried dates
1/4 cup hulled pumpkin seeds (reserve 1 tbsp)

Preheat oven to 375. Combine all ingredients in large bowl. Do not over mix, you only need to make sure the ingredients are combined - no need to break out the electric mixer. Divide into 6 muffins in a muffin pan. Sprinkle the remaining pumpkin seeds on top of the muffins. Bake for 25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

Here is some nutritional content information
Healthy Foodie Pumpkin Muffins: 200 calories, 9 g. protein, 7 g. fat, 22 g. carbs, 4 g. fiber
Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins: 470 calories, 6 g. protein, 24 g. fat, 60 g. carbs, 1 g. fiber

Panera Pumpkin Muffins: 590 calories, 7 g. protein, 13 g. fat, 93 g. carbs, 1 g. fiber

Which one will you choose?

*k*

mango mango

quite possibly the best fruit on earth - the mango. You can add it to savory dishes, sweet dishes, or enjoy it solo. I made this one a while back when we had an impromptu picnic, which I found here. This was a great recipe, and it actually travelled well too. We packed up some containers of food, a bottle of wine and a camera and headed out to the waterfront. We spent the evening enjoying being outside and a great view of Manhattan. Next time you think there is nothing to do, you don't need to look too far.

the what's in my garden salad recipe

I have been acquiring lots of vegetables lately, which I will post about shortly, and I've been coming up with salad after salad and thought now would be a good time to share. Since this is all about whatever is in your garden, please substitute, well, whatever is in your garden of course!

The Whatever is in My Garden Recipe - about 4 servings

2 small cucumbers

1 ear of corn

lots of cherry tomatoes

some carrots

1 tsp. olive oil

a few basil leaves

1 tbsp. goat cheese (optional)

salt and pepper to taste

1. Slice the cucumbers lengthwise into quarters, and then into quarter rounds. Slice the cherry tomatoes in half. Dice the carrots.

2. If your corn is sweet and juicy enough to eat off the cob w/o cooking, then go ahead. Otherwise boil it for a few minutes. Stand the ear of corn on end and slice downward along the kernels to separate from the cob.

3. Toss all ingredients together with the olive oil, chopped basil, and salt and pepper. Put in serving bowls and sprinkle with goat cheese (optional).

This no-cook, straight from the garden, crunchy salad is a great way to eat all those vegetables while maintaining their nutrients in their original form (i.e. no cooking, no heating, no destruction of nutrients).

enjoy!

thai eggplant curry over coconut rice

I haven't experimented much with cooking Thai cuisine, not because I don't like it. I guess I just never had the right ingredients or the wasn't in the mood. But tonight was the night. I had been thinking about this since I went food shopping yesterday and picked up some eggplant. This is really as simple as braised vegetables over rice. I have broken it into two recipes, both full of healthy goodness.

Thai Eggplant Curry Recipe
1 medium eggplant, cut into rounds and quartered
1/2 vidalia onion, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
3 c. crimini mushrooms, cut into thick slices
1 package Thai baked tofu
1 tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. curry powder
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 c. lite coconut milk
1 c. water
salt and pepper to taste
few basil leaves

1. Preheat oven to 400. Heat olive oil in dutch oven (or large roasting pan) over medium-high heat. Add onion.

2. While onion is browning, cut up the mushrooms and add them to the pan along with some salt.

3. While the onions and mushrooms are cooking, chop the garlic and then add them to the pan.

4. While the onions, mushrooms and garlic are cooking (see where this is going??), chop up the eggplant and put that in the pan.

5. While the onions, mushrooms, garlic and eggplant are cooking, chop up the tofu and add that to the pan.

6. Let the entire mixture brown for about 5 minutes until nicely browned.

7. Add the coconut milk, water, chili powder and curry and remove pan from heat. Put a cover on your pan or dutch oven and put it in the oven for 25 minutes.

8. Once done, remove from oven, add a few basil leaves and replace cover for 5 minutes.

9. Serve over coconut rice (recipe below).

Coconut Rice Recipe

1 tsp. olive oil
1 c. white or brown rice
1/2 c. lite coconut milk
1 c. water
1/4 c. unsweetened coconut
salt and white pepper to taste

1. Heat oil in pan over medium heat. Add rice and saute for about 3 minutes.

2. Add coconut milk, water, coconut, salt and pepper.

3. Cover and bring to a boil.

4. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer and simmer for about 20 minutes until all liquid is absorbed.

5. Let stand 5-minutes. Fluff with fork.

Mushrooms, eggplant, onions, basil all show up on the World's Healthiest Foods list. With this recipe, you'll also get at least 2 servings of vegetables in for the day, well on your way to meeting the recommended daily 3 to 5 servings. Make sure you use the "lite" coconut milk - it has about 40 calories per serving compared with more than 100 for the regular, or double that for the coconut cream. If you make both the eggplant and the rice, you'll need one can of the coconut milk. Also, take it easy on the olive oil to save a few more calories. Especially in the sauteing part. Since the mushrooms and onions release their own juices, you'll only need a little bit of oil - 1 tbsp is generous. One last calorie saving idea - portion the veggies to rice by 2 to 1 (i.e. 2 parts veggies to 1 part rice).

Enjoy!

*k*

a stick to your bones, last until lunch breakfast

I don't have a photo of this one, because it's oatmeal. While it tastes good, it's like me - doesn't photograph well. Lots of times, I think people think that they don't have time to make breakfast and so they grab a bagel or a muffin. They taste good, but they are loaded with simple carbs, calories and in the case of muffins, sugar, and fat. Who wants to start their day like that. Try this quick way to have a healthy, whole food, delicious breakfast. Start your day off with a stick to your bones, last until lunch breakfast.

Tropical Oatmeal Recipe
1/2 cup quick oats
1/2 banana
1/4 c. sweetened coconut
3/4 c. water
1/4 c. skim milk (or soy milk)

In a bowl, mix all of the ingredients. Microwave on high for 2 minutes. Watch the microwave so that it doesn't boil over. Let stand 3 minutes. Add more liquid if too thick. Eat immediately.

Modification: Old fashioned (also called rolled oats) are less processed and I usually prefer to use them. However, they need to cook a little bit longer. If you use rolled oats, microwave on 50% for 4 minutes. Use a bigger bowl so that the oats have room to expand.

*k*

a diversion

Every now and then, a diversion is in order. I'll be visiting a friend's house for dinner tomorrow and decided to bring a dessert. I thought of making something healthy, but not everyone likes healthy desserts. I wasn't feeling particularly ambitious, but ended up coming up with something that I thought was pretty interesting. These came out a little more cakey than I had planned, so I am certain that I'll be revisiting this recipe. Here it is, feel free to tweak it.

Cake Mix Blondies Recipe
1 box yellow cake mix
1 egg
2 containers of snack-pak butterscotch pudding
1 c. chopped walnuts + 1/2 c. reserve
1/2 c. raisins
3/4 c. unsweetened coconut

Pre-heat oven to 325. Mix all ingredients, except 1/2 c. walnuts (keep that for later) into a large bowl and using a spatula, fold the mix together. It will be very stiff. Grease an 8-inch brownie pan and press the batter into the pan. Sprinkle 1/2 c. walnuts on the top. Bake for 45-50 mins. or until done.

These came out with a very nice crumbly texture (I was trying for dense blondie texture). Maybe a liquid, instead of the pudding, would work for a denser crumb. I suspect that you could increase the temperature to 350 and cook it a little faster. Ideas for next time.

enjoy!

jersey fresh

As I am sure you have figured out by now, I just love this time of year. Everything is so fresh and to me, there's almost nothing better than just picked fruits and vegetables (except maybe just-baked oatmeal cookies).

Someone at work gave me these tomatoes and they really aren't from New Jersey, they are from an upstate New York backyard tomato garden. The fresh basil is from my garden. The two combine into one delicious snack!

Vine Fresh Tomatoes and Basil Recipe (I'm not sure I can even qualify this as a recipe, but try and humor me)

1 just-picked vine ripened tomato (preferably from your own or your friend's backyard. A farmer's market would work too).
6 just-picked basil leaves
salt and pepper to taste

1. Slice the tomato into 1/4" thick slices

2. Lightly salt and pepper each slice

3. Place one basil leave on each slice

Eat immediately and enjoy

*k*