1 t garlic powder
½ t onion powder
½ t oregano flakes
½ t basil flakes
½ t parsley flakes
2 t paprika
4 6-inch pita breads cut in half like a sandwich
Pam
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine seasonings and set aside. Cut each pita half into 6 wedges and spray both sides with Pam and sprinkle seasoning mix on the pitas and bake 12 minutes or until golden. Turn once halfway through cooking and cool before serving.
This is a more old fashioned dish – but still a fan favorite and these eggs are great cut up in salad, served as a snack, or placed on an appetizer platter.
Pickled Eggs
6 servings
88 calories per serving
Liquid from 1 15 oz can beets
1 c cider vinegar
1/2 c sugar
2 t Kosher salt
2 bay leaves
4 whole cloves
1 medium onion, sliced into rings
6 large eggs
Drain beets and reserve for another use. Pour liquid in a saucepan and add vinegar, sugar, salt, bay and cloves and bring to a boil Stir to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat, add onion rings and let sit 1 hour.
Place eggs in a pan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over medium heat and let boil 2 minutes. Shut off heat, cover and let sit 11 minutes. Then rinse in cold water. (By the way – this is the recipe for a PERFECT hard boiled egg!!) Peel eggs and place in a deep jar and pour over the liquid and top with the onion rings. Refrigerate for 24 hours then remove onions (you can use these on burgers). I remove the eggs from the liquid at this point – you can keep them in the liquid if you wish. These will store well for 3 days.
What a beautiful aroma as these cook up in the oven – the cheese and spinach make a perfect stuffing for succulent, meaty Portobello mushrooms. Serve as an appetizer or as a dinner side.
Spinach Stuffed Portobellos
4 servings
181 calories per serving
4 large portobello mushroom caps
1 c part skim ricotta cheese
1 c finely chopped fresh spinach
1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese
2 T finely chopped kalamata olives
½ t oregano flakes
1/2 t parsley flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
Pam
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with Pam and place mushrooms with the gills facing up. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and bake for 20 minutes them take them out and tip each cap to make any juice run out of them. Mix ricotta, spinach, half of the parmesan cheese, olives, herbs, salt and pepper and divide mix among the mushroom caps. Sprinkle the rest of the parmesan on top and then back for another 10 minutes to heat through. Switch to broil and brown the tops just a bit.
This makes a great side dish or a perfect appetizer served with Crostini bread or crackers. Every caponata you find is a little different – there are so many components that it is easy to get different versions. This one uses very little oil and is my absolute favorite. By pre-cooking the eggplant in the oven, you use much less oil and you won’t even miss it ! It has all my favorite things and has a great depth of flavor.
Eggplant Caponata
6 servings
149 calories per serving
1 large eggplant, trimmed, but not peeled and then cut into 1 inch cubes
½ t salt
2 t oil
2 c chopped celery
¼ c celery leaves, chopped
1 c chopped onions
½ c water
2 t minced garlic
1 15 oz. can petite diced tomatoes (including the juice)
2 T tomato paste
20 small black olives, chopped (you can use green if you prefer)
2 T white wine vinegar
1 t unsweetened cocoa
½ t black pepper
Kosher salt to taste
¼ c chopped basil
¼ c toasted pine nuts
2 t oil
Pam
To toast pine nuts, sauté in a hot, dry skillet for a few moments – until golden and aromatic. Place eggplant cubes in a colander over a bowl and sprinkle with ½ t salt. Mix well so that all eggplant is salted. Then place a small plate or bowl on top of the eggplant and weight it by placed a canned product or some other heavy object. The salt and the weight will draw some of the bitter liquid from the eggplant and you will end up with a much sweeter tasting caponata. Let sit for an hour then rinse eggplant and pat dry. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with Pam, and place eggplant on sheet in a single layer. Cook for 20 minutes then remove from oven and set aside.
Heat a skillet and add 2 t of oil. Also spray with a bit of pan and then sauté onions and celery on medium high heat until partially softened, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and sauté a minute longer. Add ½ c water and continue cooking another 10 minutes. If the mix gets dry, add up to ¼ c more water to keep it moist. Add tomatoes and their juice, tomato paste and olives and cook on medium for 10 minutes until sauce thickens a bit. Add eggplant, vinegar, salt, pepper and cocoa and cook on low for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in toasted nuts and 2 t oil. Serve room temperature or chilled.
This is basically a crustless quiche. It is great served for brunch, lunch, as an appetizer, or even as a dinner side dish. So good !
Spinach Pie
8 servings
150 calories per serving
16 oz. low fat cottage cheese
10 oz. frozen chopped spinach, thawed, and drained well (press in a sieve to get rid of all the water)
1 c shredded low fat mozzarella cheese
4 eggs, lightly beaten
6 oz. roasted red peppers, well drained, and chopped
1/3 c grated parmesan
1 t oregano flakes
½ t garlic powder
½ t onion powder
Salt and pepper to taste
Pam
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix spinach and cheeses. Add eggs, peppers and spices. Pour into a 9 inch pie plate or cake pan sprayed with Pam. Bake 40 minutes or until the center is set. I like to use a glass pie plate for this, that way if the center does not set before the top is getting brown (which sometimes happens), you can slip it into the microwave for a few quick minutes to finish it up. This reheats great !
Tabbouleh is a Lebonese salad of cucumbers, tomatoes, parsley, mint and bulgur wheat. It is so healthy, so delicious and so very pretty to look at – serve some up as an appetizer at your next get together.
Tabbouleh
8 servings
214 calories per serving
1 c bulgur wheat
2 c boiling water
3 tomatoes, seeded and chopped into small bits
2 cucumbers, peeled and chopped into small bits
3 scallions, chopped
1 c chopped fresh parsley
1/3 c mint leaves chopped
2 t salt
1/2 c lemon juice
¼ c olive oil
Place wheat in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Soak 45 minutes to an hour and then drain it and squeeze out any extra water. Mix all the ingredients together and refrigerate at least 4 hours. Serve with pita bread, pita chips or as a side salad.
This is a super savory, super healthy dish and a perfect summer dinner. The platter is just stunning to look at and this makes a great dish for entertaining. Serve as a full dinner or as an appetizer.
Grilled Antipasto
4 servings
291 calories per serving
6 T lemon juice
3 T white balsamic vinegar
2 t oil
¼ t kosher salt
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 plum tomatoes
2 red peppers, quartered
2 yellow peppers, quartered
2 zucchini cut lengthwise into thick slices
1 red onion cut into thick slices
1 large eggplant cut into thick slices
Pam
4 oz. prosciutto slices
1 oz. peppered ham
2 oz. fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced
Basil as a garnish
6 green olives
Salt and pepper to taste
Mix the first 5 ingredients as a marinade and dressing for the veggies. Take ¼ c of the dressing and brush it over the veggies. Spray a grill rack with Pam and grill veggies 5 minutes a side or until they have a bit of char on them. Place veggies on a platter and brush with the rest of the dressing and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add the rest of the items to the platter and serve immediately.
Want a great quick lunch or a perfect appetizer? Try one that you are seeing at all the lunch cafes – a goat cheese pita pizza. This one adds and mushroom and tomatoes for an out of this world flavor.
Pita Rounds with Mushrooms and Cheese
4 servings
283 calories per serving
1 1/2 t minced garlic
1 t oil
4 6-inch pita breads (I love the Sahara Pitas)
Salt and pepper to taste
6 oz. portobello mushrooms
2 medium tomatoes, cut into ¼ inch thick slices
1/3 c goat cheese
1/2 c chopped fresh basil
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together the garlic and oil and then brush over the pitas. Add tomato slices and mushrooms then sprinkle with the cheese then with salt and pepper and place on a baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes. Sprinkle with basil when done cooking.
These are GREAT ! And at only 91 calories, you’ll be making these all the time. This recipe sprinkles them with chili powder – very nice. But you could just as easily use different spices instead. These went great with the Black Bean Dip recipe I have !
Homemade Tortilla Chips
48 chips
91 calories per serving (13 chips)
6 corn tortillas
1 c water
Chili powder to taste
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Dip each tortilla in water and then cut into 8 wedges and place on an ungreased baking sheet and sprinkle with chili powder. Bake 5-8 minutes or until crisp. Cool on wire rack before serving.
OH SO GOOD ! Ditch the canned black bean dips ! This one takes no time to put together and is so fresh tasting. This makes a great appetizer served with homemade tortilla chips.
Black Bean Dip
6 servings
139 calories per serving
15 oz. can of black beans, rinsed and drained
2 c corn
2 green onions, sliced
½ c plain nonfat yogurt
½ t thyme
½ t chili powder
1/2 t cumin
Pepper to taste
Place all ingredients in a blender and puree for 20 seconds or until mixture is smooth. Serve with baked tortilla chips.
