Tag Archives: onion

Thai Chicken

December 6, 2011 admin Leave a comment

Just the right amount of heat, tons of flavor and a dish I will make again and again ! This authentic Thai Chicken recipe combines the sweetness of coconut milk sugar and ginger with the heat of hot chile sauce, onions and garlic and turns out a flavor popping meal.

4 servings
403 calories per serving

3.5 oz. bag boil-in-bag rice
1 1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite sized pieces
1 T cornstarch
1 T fish sauce
4 t oil, divided
1 c sliced onion
2 t garlic, minced
1 t ginger, minced
1/2 c light coconut milk
2 t Sriracha (hot chile sauce available in the Asian section of your grocer)
1 T sugar
1 T fresh lime juice
2 T chopped cilantro
Lime wedges

Cook rice according to package instructions and keep warm. Mix starch and fish sauce and then toss with chicken. Heat 1 T oil and sauté chicken 6-8 minutes them remove to a plate and keep warm. Add 1 t oil to pan and cook onion, and sauté 3 minutes. Then add garlic and ginger and cook another minute. Put chicken back in the pan and cook 1 minute them add coconut milk, chile sauce, sugar and lime juice and cook a minute to heat through. Plate and garnish with cilantro. Serve with a lime slice.

Crock pot, Dinner, Turkey

Porcupine Meatballs (Crock Pot)

October 21, 2011 admin 2 Comments

Decadent tasting due to the creamy mushroom sauce, but low cal, low fat and a perfect weeknight dinner. This one gets filed with my ‘all time favs’ !

5 servings
142 calories per serving

¾ lb. lean ground beef or ground turkey
1 c skim milk
½ c raw long grain rice
1 onion, chopped
1 c breadcrumbs
¼ t pepper
½ pack of dry onion soup mix
1 can low fat cream of mushroom soup
½ c skim milk

Mix meat, 1 c milk, rice, onion, crumbs, soup mix, and pepper. Shape into meatballs and place in crock. Mix soup and ½ c milk and pour over the meatballs. Cover and cook on low 5 hours.

Dinner, Sides, Vegetables

Company Casserole

October 5, 2011 admin Leave a comment

This is just what it’s called…a great company casserole. It is easy to prep, all the prep is done way ahead, and the result is a creamy, tasty vegetable side dish that disappears very quickly !

7 servings
178 calories per serving

1 can low fat cream of celery soup
1 c low fat sour cream
1 c shredded low fat cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
½ t garlic powder
½ c finely chopped onion
9 oz. frozen cut green beans, thawed
6 oz. frozen peas and carrots, thawed
2 c frozen corn, thawed
¼ c crushed low fat Ritz crackers
I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter spray
Pam

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix soup, sour cream, cheese, garlic powder, salt, pepper and onion then stir in the veggies and place in a 2 quart baking dish sprayed with Pam. Cover and bake 25 minutes. Then uncover, sprinkle crumbs around edges and spritz the crumbs with the ICBINB spray. Bake another 10 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned.

Dinner, Italian, Kid Friendly

Pepper and Onion Boboli

October 2, 2011 admin Leave a comment

Bobolis make great pizza crusts – top them with just about anything and you have a hit dinner or lunch in 20 minutes flat ! For this one, I’m using a pepper and onion topping, a favorite for my family.

4 servings
387 calories per serving

1 original Boboli crust
½ c pizza sauce
½ t garlic powder
½ t oregano flakes
Optional red pepper flakes (if you like it spicy)
1 c part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 c peppers sliced very thin
1 c onions sliced very thin

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spoon sauce onto crust and spread within ½ inch of the edges. Sprinkle with garlic powder and oregano. Add cheese and toppings. Bake 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Beef, Crock pot, Dinner, Kid Friendly

Crock Pot Goulash

September 17, 2011 admin Leave a comment

What a great goulash ! The caraway flavor is mild, yet it really steals the show and makes this a great tasting goulash.

8 servings
181 calories per serving

2 lb. beef stew meat, trimmed and cubed
2 t caraway seeds
2 T paprika
1/4 t salt
Pepper, to taste
1 large onion, chopped
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
14 oz. can diced tomatoes (undrained)
14 oz. can beef broth
1 t Worcestershire sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
2 T cornstarch mixed with 3 T water
2 T chopped parsley
Pam

Place beef in the crock pot. Crush caraway seeds in an herb grinder or with the back of a heavy pot. Mix crushed seeds with paprika, salt and pepper and sprinkle on the meat pressing the spices into the meat so they stick. Add onion and pepper to a skillet sprayed with Pam and cook 5 minutes. Mix tomatoes, broth, Worcestershire and garlic and add to pan and bring to a simmer. Pour into the crock and then place the bay leaves on top of the meat. Cover and cook 4-5 hours on high or 7-8 hours on low. Discard the bay leaves and then add the cornstarch mix and cook on high 15 minutes to thicken the sauce. Garnish with parsley and serve with optional whole wheat egg noodles.

Appetizers

Pickled Eggs

September 16, 2011 admin Leave a comment

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.

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.

Dinner, Pork

Burgundy Pork

September 15, 2011 admin Leave a comment

I love mixing red wine and brown gravy mix – it gives you such an awesome gravy – definitely restaurant worthy !

4 servings
400 calories per serving

2 lb. pork tenderloin
1/2 t salt
1/2 t black pepper
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 c red wine (I used cooking wine and it came out great!)
.75 oz. packet dry brown gravy mix
Pam

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a baking dish with Pam. Sprinkle pork with spices and then top with onions and celery. Pour wine over pork. Bake 45 minutes to 1 hour or until done. Let meat rest and then cut into thin slices. Pour gravy mix into pan with the cooking juices and stir until thick – serve over the sliced meat.

Dinner, Fish

Tilapia with Melon Salsa

August 19, 2011 admin Leave a comment

The melon salsa is sweet but has a bite (onions + jalapenos) and is a perfect accompaniment to a simply broiled tilapia fillet.

4 servings
268 calories per serving

2/3 c honeydew melon, in very small cubes
2/3 c cantaloupe, in very small cubes
1/3 c English cucumber, peeled and diced small
1/3 c red onion, diced small
3 T chopped mint
1 t grated lemon zest
2 T lime juice
4 t oil
1 ½ t minced jalapeno peppers
¾ t agave nectar (or honey)
Salt and pepper to taste
4 6 oz. tilapia fillets
Pam

Preheat broiler. Mix first 10 ingredients and set aside. Spray baking sheet with Pam and sprinkle tilapia with salt and pepper and broil 3 minutes per side or until done. Serve with melon salsa.

Appetizers, Dinner, Italian, Sides, Snacks, Vegetables

Eggplant Caponata

August 15, 2011 admin 1 Comment

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.

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.

Dinner, Sides, Vegetables

Parmesan Green Beans from the Keep the Beat ™ cookbook from the National Institutes for Health We Can! (Ways to Enhance Children’s Activity & Nutrition) Campaign

August 14, 2011 admin Leave a comment

I’m always looking for new ways to serve up green beans – the family loves them but it gets a little boring. Sprinkling with parm just before serving is a great way to prepare them !

Check out the online cookbook, Keep the Beat ™ (available in pdf format) for some great ideas for healthful food that kids will eat and they will enjoy preparing with you. Kids learn by example – show them how good healthy food can be !!!

4 servings
95 calories per serving

1 T olive oil
1 t garlic, minced (about 1 clove)
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 bag (16 oz) frozen green beans
1 c low-sodium chicken broth
¼ c grated parmesan cheese
¼ t ground black pepper

Combine olive oil and garlic in a large saucepan. Cook until garlic is soft, but not browned (about 30 seconds). Add onion, and continue to cook for about 5 minutes over medium heat until soft. Add green beans and chicken broth. Bring to a boil and simmer for 2 minutes, until the beans are heated through. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and pepper, and serve.