sauteed apples.

After all of the necessary indulgence for Thanksgiving (my mom's pumpkin cheesecake for one), my favorite thing post-Thanksgiving are sauteed apples.  They are sort of apple pie, without the pie.  I know this will sound sound sacrilegious, but I am not a fan of apple pie.  It is too cloyingly sweet and doesn't taste like real apples!  This is a good, breakfast alternative for a Thanksgiving hangover....

sauteed apples.

*recipe is for one serving, double or triple if making for 2-3 people 

2 small apples, cored and sliced

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp cloves

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 tbsp butter

 

Heat butter in a skillet over low heat.  Add apples and spices.  Raise heat to about medium and saute a few times.  Cook for 4-5 minutes.  Saute again to cook evenly.  Cook another 3-4 minutes.  Saute again and remove from heat.  Serve warm.

healthy quick italian wedding soup.

My quest for easy, healthy soups continues!  I love Italian wedding soup - it is perfect with garlicky bread for a post-yoga winter dinner....  But the fatty meatballs and the high sodium broth don't exactly scream "I just worked out" - nor does standing over a stove for an hour!  Enter frozen turkey meatballs, low sodium broth and lots of veggies....

healthy quick italian wedding soup. 

1 handful baby carrots (I always have them on hand), diced

1/2 onion, diced

1 head escarole, rinsed, dried and rough chopped

1-2 garlic cloves, minced

1 14 oz bottle low sodium veggie broth

1/2 bag frozen turkey meatballs

1/4 cup whole wheat spaghetti, broken into thirds

fresh cracked pepper

salt to taste

1 tbsp oregano

1 tbsp paprika

1 egg

2 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan (divided)

 

 

Heat olive oil in a large stock pot.  Add carrots, garlic and onion and saute 5 minutes.  Add escarole, salt and pepper and cook down, about 2 minutes.  Add broth and bring to a boil.  Add spaghetti and spices.  Cook about 5 minutes.  Add meatballs and cook for another 5 minutes.  In a small bowl, beat egg and 1 tbsp of Parmesan.  Slowly pour into the soup, stirring to combine.  Cook about 1-2 minutes and remove from heat.  Serve in a bowl topped with reserved Parmesan and a side of crusty garlic bread! 

 

*This makes enough for a couple meals but it keeps and reheats great!

apple panini.

With my recent apple picking trip, I have a ton of apples.  This time of year is perfect for apples, pears and grapes.  The farmer's market is teeming with them and I've come up with multiple ways to use them up and not get tired of them at the end of the season....  My favorite new panini with crisp apples, goat brie and a generous spread of seedy mustard is great after a long day with a mug of butternut squash soup.

apple brie mustard panini. 

baguette

1/2 apple, sliced thin with a mandoline

2-3 slices of goat brie (or regular brie)

mustard with seeds (mine is from Trader Joe's)

Heat panini press while assembling panini.  Cut baguette and spread each side with mustard.  Layer apple slices and brie.  Transfer to panini press and cook until cheese is melted and bread is toasted.  Meanwhile, heat up butternut squash soup and pour a glass of red wine! 

healthy version: french fries

Recently, I made THIS - one of my favorite German dishes: currywurst.  Currywurst is served with french fries in Germany and I have never and will never deep fry anything at home.  I make oven baked fries instead and this recipe doesn't make anyone miss the extra fat!  

oven baked (spiced) fries.

1 russet potato

olive oil cooking spray

1 tbsp paprika

1/2 tbsp pepper

1/2 tbsp salt

1/2 tsp turmeric

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Scrub potato and cut into small spears.  In a zip lock plastic bag, add spices and potato spears.  Shake to coat.  Note: I have tried this without the plastic bag and it just doesn't work as well!  Spritz a baking dish with olive oil cooking spray and add potatoes.  Spritz again with olive oil.  Bake about 30 minutes.  Great with currywurst or curry ketchup (ketchup mixed with curry powder to taste). 

healthy version: currywurst

I love German food and my trip to Germany this summer gave me the chance to try everything and be a little naughty!  I won't exactly do the full fat originals or too much sausage at home (although I ate at least a sausage a day in Munich).  I made one of my favorites, currywurst, with a slightly healthier twist.  The result was amazing - especially with oven baked - not fried - fries (coming soon!)....

healthy currywurst. 

2 chicken or turkey sausage links - can even be hot dogs

1 cup tomato sauce

2 tbsp curry powder - adjust to taste

2 tbsp paprika 

sprinkle of sugar

Heat a saucepan over medium heat.  Cut sausage links into bite sized pieces.  Add a little oil to the pan to prevent sticking.  Brown lightly.  Add tomato sauce, paprika and curry powder.   Simmer for about 5 minutes for flavors to blend and sausage is cooked through.  Enjoy with a good German beer! 

make your own muesli.

I've been in the mood to mix up my breakfast routine but wanted something a little different.  Granola? Too hot to turn on the oven.  Eggs and turkey bacon?  Meh - I have that every day (with a slice of sourdough toast and heirloom tomato).  Muesli is probably the perfect cereal and one that can easily be made at home!  The good thing is that it can be kept in the fridge for a few weeks and can be eaten either hot or cold....

tropical muesli.

1 cup old fashioned oats

1/3 cup slivered almonds

1/4 cup coconut flakes

1/4 cup chopped dried mango

2 tbsp flax seeds

 

Assemble and store in an airtight container (fridge is best).  

To enjoy hot: add heated milk and sit for about 5 minutes.  

To enjoy cold: add cold milk and sit for 5 minutes. 

vegetable enchiladas.

Since I recently tore out my parsley plant resulting in a bunch of pesto and went to the farmer's market, I decided to make vegetable enchiladas since they are good for lunches and dinners and I can freeze the rest (with my upcoming trip, I need options!).  I ended up making two pans since I got on a roll!  These are a slightly healthier version, not only because of the in season veggies, but the sprouted grain tortillas and cheese made with skim milk instead of whole. 

vegetable enchiladas with parsley pepita pesto.

makes enough to fill two nine inch pans (10 enchiladas)

10 tortillas 

2 zucchini 

1 bell pepper

parsley pepita pesto (recipe here)

1/2 bag Trader Joe's low fat Mexican shredded cheese

1 bottle enchilada sauce (again, Trader Joe's)

1/2 can black beans (approximate)

green onions for garnish

Preheat grill on medium-high.  Cut zucchini and bell pepper into strips and place on olive oil spritzed grill. Spritz other side of veggies with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Grill until char marks appear on both sides (the darker the better!).  Remove and cut into bite sized pieces.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Working one tortilla at a time, spread a tsp of pesto, add about a tbsp of black beans and about a 1/4 cup of grilled veggies.  Sprinkle with cheese and arrange in a 9 inch baking dish.  Finish with the remaining tortillas.  Pour 1/2 bottle of enchilada sauce over each pan and sprinkle with cheese and chopped green onions. Bake about 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted and sauce is bubbly. 

multi-tasking veggies (radishes: day 1).

I love veggies that have more than one purpose because it helps keep things interesting during the work week!  I recently bought a bunch of radishes at the farmer's market for only $1 and decided to use not only the radishes themselves but also the radish greens.  The result was three dishes that made my lunches anything but boring!  

israeli couscous with summer vegetables.

 1 cup cooked israeli couscous

1/4 onion, chopped

handful zucchini, cut into small bite sized pieces (mine were attached to my squash blossoms!)

1 bunch radish greens, thoroughly washed and chopped

1/2 shallot, minced

1 garlic clove, minced

handful sundried tomatoes

lemon vinaigrette (recipe below)

salt and pepper to taste

 In a large skillet, heat olive oil over low heat and add garlic.  Cook about 10 seconds.  Add onion and cook for about 5 minutes.  Add zucchini and cook about 2 minutes.  Add radish greens and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Cook down until greens are wilted.  Remove from heat and toss with couscous.  Stir in lemon vinaigrette and sundried tomatoes.  

 lemon vinaigrette.

juice of 1 lemon

1/2 tsp. dijon mustard

salt and pepper to taste

good quality olive oil (a couple tablespoons)

Juice lemon in a small bowl.  Add dijon and salt and pepper.  Stream olive oil, whisking to emulsify. 

last of the edible flowers.

Since I still had 1/2 a bag of squash blossoms and I was short on time, I made a quick dish before yoga that is a more traditional use of the flowers.  Squash blossoms are actually used in traditional Mexican cooking - often seen in a soup, enchiladas or quesadillas.  My favorite is the latter: quesadillas de flor de calabaza.  Just a couple minutes to assemble and place on my stovetop grill and I was out the door!  

quesadilla de flor de calabaza.

1 flour tortilla (I used one that was whole grain - actually pretty good)

2-3 squash blossoms, cut in half

about 1/4 cup shredded Mexican cheese (I cheated and used the Trader Joe's lowfat pre-shredded in a bag to save time and calories)

about 2 tbsp. mild green chilis

about 3 tbsp. black beans (drained and without liquid)

Preheat stovetop grill pan on high.  Lay tortilla on a work surface and layer green chilis, black beans and squash blossoms.  Fold in half and place on grill, weighted down with a plate.  Cook about 4 minutes per side.  Transfer to a plate and cut into wedges.  Enjoy with a side of black beans sprinkled with queso fresco or cheat and sprinkle with fat free feta....

more edible flowers.

My obsession with edible flowers - squash blossoms has not ended.  Their season is short so I am taking full advantage of them while I can still buy them at the farmer's market.  Strangely enough, I have a farmer's market shadow: a woman has been following me around and asking me what I do with things as I put them into my bag.... 

I got a bag of blossoms and decided to do them two ways this week: one modern and one traditional Mexican (more on the latter later).  I love Pizzeria Mozza's squash blossom pizza but since I didn't have burrata, I swapped it out for goat cheese, added salty prosciutto and made it a little healthier (and easier) with Trader Joe's whole wheat pizza dough. 

squash blossom goat cheese pizza.

1 package whole wheat pizza dough, rested at room temp on a floured board for 20 minutes

8 squash blossoms

about 1/3 cup marinara sauce 

1/2 package goat cheese

4-5 slices prosciutto

fresh ground pepper

Note: this makes 2 medium sized pizzas - I made extra for lunch later in the week!  It keeps well, but I would suggest reheating in a toaster oven if possible.  Microwave made it chewy....

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and allow to heat up for at least 15 minutes (I did this when I took out the dough to rest).  Once dough is ready, on a well floured board, roll out dough to form a thin layer.  Top with marinara sauce and spread thin.  Top with blossoms, goat cheese, prosciutto and a couple cracks of pepper.  Bake for about 15 minutes on a lightly oiled baking sheet.  Cool on a wire rack for a couple minutes before cutting.  

edible flowers.

I went to the farmer's market the other day and got a good amount of loot for my $12 limit (otherwise I go crazy and things turn on me, rotting in the fridge).  Strawberries, apricots, radishes (with greens), reed avocado (better than hass), tomatoes and zucchini blossoms.  

I was thrilled to find zucchini blossoms with little zucchinis attached!  I managed to use the little zucchinis later in the week and made baked fritters out of the blossoms.  One of the ways chefs prepare blossoms is to fry them.  I can't bring myself to do that so I did a baked version...I think it turned out just as good! 

baked zucchini blossom fritters.

handful blossoms, washed and zucchini trimmed and reserved for another dish

1 cup panko bread crumbs

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp paprika

salt and pepper to taste

filling:

1/2 cup ricotta

zest of 1 lemon

1 garlic clove, minced

fresh chopped parsley and basil

salt and pepper to taste

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Pour panko into a shallow dish and add paprika, salt and pepper.  Mix all filling ingredients and set aside.  Working in an assembly line, stuff filling into each blossom.  I find it helps to cut a little slit in the top of the blossom and use a small spoon!  Dip filled blossom in egg and dip in panko, pressing on all sides to coat.  Transfer to a baking dish lightly spritzed with olive oil.  Repeat with the remaining blossoms.  Once finished, lightly spritz with olive oil spray.  Bake for about 20 minutes, or until panko is crisped and lightly browned.  

Since I was in the mood to OD on carbs, I also made an easy nut and herb pasta dish - recipe can be found here