Porcupine Meatloaf (Crock Pot)

March 25, 2010 admin Leave a comment

What makes a meatloaf ‘porcupine’ ? The addition of rice ! And it also gives the meat a really nice texture and moistness. Try it !

6 servings
306 calories per serving

1 can condensed tomato soup
½ c thick salsa
¼ c water
1 ½ lb. lean ground beef
½ c raw instant white rice
¼ c dried onion pieces
1 T Worcestershire sauce
¼ t salt
¼ t pepper
¼ t garlic powder
¼ t onion powder
¼ c Egg Beaters

Combine soup, salsa and water. Combine beef and all the rest of the ingredients plus 1/2 cup of the tomato mix. Shape into an oblong meat loaf and place in the bottom of a crock pot and pour the rest of the tomato mix over the loaf. Cover and cook on low 7-9 hours. Remove from crock and let stand 5 minutes. Slice into 6 slices and spoon the sauce over the slices.

Dinner, Sides, Vegetables

Stuffed Zucchini

March 24, 2010 admin 2 Comments

Stuffed zucchinis are a great side dish. You can change up what you ‘stuff’ them with and that makes it easy to pick complementary flavors. This one is great next to Italian flavors and Italian inspired dishes.

4 servings
162 calories per serving

2 medium zucchini
½ c onion, diced finely
1 clove garlic, minced
1 t oil
½ c chopped green bell pepper
½ c chopped peeled eggplant
½ c chopped tomato
¼ c Egg Beaters
1 t basil flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
20 Ritz crackers, divided
2 T grated parmesan cheese
Pam
I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Spray

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Slice zucchini in half lengthwise and scoop out the centers leaving just a shell. Reserve 1 c of the insides and chop it up. Heat a skillet and add oil and sauté onion and garlic 4 minutes. Add pepper, eggplant, tomato and zucchini and cook 5 minutes or so. Remove from heat and stir in basil, salt and pepper, and eggs.

Break 15 crackers and stir into the veggie mix and then spoon the mix into the zucchini shells and place on a baking sheet sprayed with Pam. Crush the other 5 crackers and mix with the parmesan and sprinkle over the zucchini boats. Spray the crumbs on top of each of the zucchinis with the butter spray so that they brown a bit. Bake 25 minutes or until hot.

Chicken, Lunch, Mexican, Videos

Chicken Cheese Burritos

March 24, 2010 admin Leave a comment

These took just 10 minutes to throw together and were so very good – the onion was just enough, the beans leant a great flavor as well as making the texture really nice, and the cumin and lime made for a great overall flavor. You can make these ahead and freeze them – then you have a quick nutritious microwave lunch ready in 3 minutes !

6 servings
367 calories per serving

2 t oil
1 c diced onion
1 T minced garlic
1 15 oz. can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
2 c cooked and diced chicken breast (Perdue Shortcuts work great here!)
1 T cumin
2 plum tomatoes, diced
2 jalapeno peppers, diced
1 T minced lime zest
2 T fresh lime juice
2 t oregano flakes
¼ t salt
¼ t pepper
6 8 inch whole wheat tortillas (Smart Delicious 80 calorie version)
1 ½ c shredded low fat cheddar cheese

Heat oil in skillet and cook onion and garlic about 2 minutes then add beans. Mix chicken with cumin and add to onion mix. Stir in tomatoes, jalapeno, zest, juice, oregano, salt and pepper and cook until jalapenos are slightly softened, about 5 minutes then let filling cool slightly. Place tortillas on a flat surface and fill with ¾ c filling and ¼ c cheese. Fold and eat ! Here is a video that will help you learn how to roll the burrito so it does not leak.

If you are making these to freeze and eat later, make sure you let the mix cool completely before putting them together and then fold in all 4 sides and roll, securing the filling inside. Wrap each in plastic wrap and then place all the burritos in a zip loc freezer bag.

Instructional, Vegetables

Cucumbers, Cucumbers, Cucumbers

March 24, 2010 admin 1 Comment

Cucumbers come in many varieties – but the 3 I find most often in the food markets and the 3 I use most often in my cooking are:

1. Kirby Cucumber
2. Common / Garden / Slicing Cucumber
3. English Cucumber

They are all a bit different and here I’ll explain some of those differences.

1. The Kirby Cucumber is the cucumber of choice for making pickles (here is a great quick pickle recipe). They have a thin skin and have a firmer flesh than a garden cucumber.

2. The Garden Cucumber is your regular, every day cucumber – they have a thicker, waxy, dark green skin which tends to be bitter and they have lots of seeds – I often remove the seeds by taking a spoon and scraping down the center to remove them.

3. English Cucumbers are long and thin, and my market wraps them in plastic. The skin is grooved and bumpy but not bitter. They are sometimes called seedless but really it is just that the seeds are very small. The one pictured here actually has larger seeds than usual, but I have had some with just about zero seeds. They have crisper flesh then the Garden Cucumber.

Often I use English and Kirby cucumbers interchangeably though I often opt for English for salads and Kirbys for cut up spears – – no idea why, but in my head it belongs that way 🙂 And I find myself using Garden cucumbers more and more infrequently, probably because of the consistency – I like the crisper flesh of the English and Kirby.

Dessert, Kid Friendly

Linzer Bars

March 24, 2010 admin Leave a comment

These are VERY easy to prepare and yet have a very elegant presentation. They were quite sweet and really satisfied my sugar craving !

16 servings
105 calories per serving

½ roll refrigerated sugar cookies
½ c seedless raspberry preserves
1 t cornstarch
¼ c sliced almonds

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Break up cookie dough and press it evenly into the bottom of an ungreased 8 inch square pan. Bake 15 minutes or until edges are golden. In a saucepan combine preserves and cornstarch and cook over medium heat just until it comes to a boil, stirring constantly. Pour preserves over crust and spread to within ¼ inch of the edge and then sprinkle with almonds. Bake another 10 minutes then cool 1 hour before cutting into bars.

Uncategorized

Sunshine Award

March 23, 2010 admin 2 Comments

My blogging friend, Ed, sent me a Sunshine Award – very sweet of him ! Funny, because if I had received it first, I definitely would have passed it on to him because his recipes and his blog definitely inspire me ! For those not familiar the Sunshine Blog Award is awarded to bloggers whose positivity and creativity inspire others in the blog world. Check out Ed’s great posts at Detroit Eats.

Now it is my turn to pass along this award and I would like to send it to a few bloggers who I have met along my blogging trails 🙂

Weekend Carnivore – without help from this blogger, I would not be blogging away so fast right now !

Modern Comfort Food – I love when someone’s passion for food just SHOWS – it sure does over here. As well as great recipes, I love the photography and can’t believe she is not a professional photographer !

Savvy Vegetarian – you can see how this blog is DEDICATED to giving all the best advice; it’s just packed full of information

Smitten Kitchen – A blog I looked to for inspiration when creating my own – I just love it !

If you have received this award please consider passing it along to others. Here are the instructions:

* Put the logo on your blog or within your post
* Pass the award on to as many as 12 bloggers.
* Link the nominees within your post
* Let the nominees know they have received this award by commenting on their blog
* Share the love and link to the person from whom you received this award

Fish, Lunch, Soups

New England Clam Chowder

March 23, 2010 admin Leave a comment

This soup is just brimming with clams. If you like extra veggies, just leave out the 2nd can of clams and fill with celery and carrots instead !

4 servings
237 calories per serving

Pam
1 T margarine
1 medium onion, finely chopped
8 oz. clam juice
8 oz. water
2 large white potatoes, peeled and cut in small cubes
2 6.5 oz. cans chopped baby clams with juice
1 pint fat free half and half
1 t pepper
1 t salt
2 t chopped parsley

Spray pan with Pam and melt margarine and add onion and cook 5 minutes. Add clam broth and increase heat to high. Add potatoes and bring down to a simmer and cook 10-12 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Add clams with juice and cook 7 minutes then add half and half, salt and pepper and continue cooking over medium heat until almost at the boiling point. Do not allow to boil. Serve with the parsley as a garnish.

Appetizers, Lunch

Spinach and Cheese Squares

March 23, 2010 admin 2 Comments

This is basically a super easy recipe for a superb spinach quiche. The crust is light, the filling perfect, and this makes a great appetizer or lunch.

8 servings
79 calories per serving

1 ½ c Egg Beaters
¾ c skim milk
1 T dried onion flakes
1 T grated parmesan cheese
¼ t garlic powder
1/8 t pepper
¼ c bread crumbs
¾ c fat free shredded cheddar cheese, divided
10 oz. frozen spinach, thawed and drained well
Pam

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine eggs, milk, onion, parmesan, garlic powder and pepper. Spray an 8×8 pan with Pam and press bread crumbs evenly into the bottom. Place ½ c of cheddar on top of the bread crumbs then add the spinach. Pour the egg mix on top of the spinach and then add the rest of the cheese. Bake 40-45 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Salads, Sides, Vegetables

Veggie Salad

March 22, 2010 admin Leave a comment

Often times the best thing about a salad is not the lettuce, but all the other stuff ! And this salad agrees 🙂 No lettuce – – just all the good veggies in a great lemony dressing. If you have extra broccoli, throw it in. If you are out of celery, don’t’ sweat it ! Make this salad anything you want 🙂

4 servings
82 calories per serving

1 yellow bell pepper thinly sliced
1 large cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 large carrots, shredded or sliced
6 radishes, sliced
1 T chopped parsley
2 T lemon juice
1 T oil
½ t garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Toss tomato, cucumber, celery, carrots, radishes and parsley. Combine juice, oil, salt, pepper and garlic and mix well and then pour over salad and serve immediately.

Dinner, Fish, Italian

Sicilian Scallops

March 22, 2010 admin Leave a comment

I always find bay scallops sweeter than their larger sisters. The spinach mix gives this dish a special feel and it is sooooo low calorie !

4 servings
197 calories per serving

1 ¼ lb. bay scallops or seas scallops, quartered
Pam
1 T oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T chopped basil
¼ t salt
½ t black pepper
1 c cherry tomatoes
4 c spinach leaves
¼ c sliced black olives
2 T grated parmesan cheese

Rinse and dry scallops. Spray skillet with Pam and then add oil and heat. Add garlic and cook 1-2 minutes. Do not let it brown or it will be bitter. Add scallops, basil, salt and pepper and cook until scallops are lightly browned, about 5 minutes. If you get a lot of water in the bottom of the pan, drain it or the scallops will not brown. Remove to a platter and keep warm. Add tomatoes and spinach to skillet and cook just until spinach is wilted. Add olives and cheese and mix well. Place tomato mix around bed of scallops and serve immediately.