Tag Archives: parmesan cheese

Summer Soup

This is a perfect summer soup – full of great fresh garden offerings…zucchini, squash, parsley, basil. Just a bit of pasta and cheese make this perfectly amazing.

Summer Soup
Summer Soup

4 servings
304 calories per serving

6 c vegetable broth
3 c water
6 oz. uncooked pasta (ditalini, orzo, elbows – anything small)
2 c diced yellow squash
2 c diced zucchini
1 T chopped parsley
1/3 c chopped basil
1 T lemon juice
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
1 t onion powder
1 t thyme flakes
1 t oregano flakes
Red pepper flakes to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
½ c grated parmesan cheese

In a large soup pot bring broth and water to a boil. Add pasta and cook 5 minutes less than the suggested cooking time and then at that point, add squash, green beans, zucchini, chopped parsley and basil, lemon, onion powder, thyme, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to the broth. Cook for 5 minutes and then place in bowls. Sprinkle with cheese.

Quick and Easy Mushroom Risotto

This consistently turns out an awesome risotto textured dish yet takes so little time to make ! Be sure to use Arborio rice or it just won’t turn out tasting like risotto. Get creative with your mushrooms – mix it up, use some canned, some fresh, some baby bellas, some portobellos – have fun 🙂

Quick and Easy Mushroom Risotto
Quick and Easy Mushroom Risotto

4 servings
164 calories per serving

1/3 c chopped shallots
1 T butter
2/3 c Arborio rice
2 c water
1 t chicken bouillon powder
Salt and pepper to taste
2 c mushrooms (your choice on type of mushroom) diced very small
Pam
½ t onion powder
¼ c grated parmesan cheese

Heat butter and cook shallots until tender. Add rice and cook and stir 2 minutes. Stir in water, flavoring, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 minutes. Spray a small skillet with Pam and sauté mushrooms with onion powder for 3-4 minutes. Stir mushrooms into finished rice (it will still be quite moist) and let stand covered 5 minutes. If not a creamy texture, add in some hot water. Finally stir in parmesan cheese.

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Spaghetti with Sausage

Spaghetti. Sausage. ‘Nuff said ! 🙂

Spaghetti with Sausage
Spaghetti with Sausage

4 servings
380 calories per serving

8 oz. hot Italian turkey sausage
8 oz. FiberGourmet spaghetti (if you use regular spaghetti, you have to add 80 calories per serving)
28 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
2 T oil
1/2 t red pepper flakes
5 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 t kosher salt
½ t onion powder
½ t basil flakes
½ t oregano flakes
1/4 c basil, chopped
2 oz. shaved Parmesan cheese

Preheat broiler and cook sausage 5 minutes per side or until completely cooked. Slice sausage into ¼ inch thick pieces and arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet and broil another 2 minutes to get them nice and brown. Cook pasta according to package directions. Heat oil in a skillet and add pepper and garlic and sauté then add tomatoes, salt, pepper, basil, oregano and onion powder and cook 5-7 minutes. Add sausage and cook another 5 minutes. Garnish with cheese and basil.

Quick Risotto

This consistently turns out an awesome risotto textured dish yet takes so little time to make ! Be sure to use Arborio rice or it just won’t turn out tasting like risotto.

Quick Risotto
Quick Risotto

4 servings
179 calories per serving

1/3 c chopped shallots
1 T butter
2/3 c Arborio rice
2 c water
1 t chicken bouillon powder
Salt and pepper to taste
1 c frozen peas
¼ c grated parmesan cheese

Heat butter and cook shallots until tender. Add rice and cook and stir 2 minutes. Stir in water, flavoring, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 minutes. Stir in peas and let stand covered 5 minutes. If not a creamy texture, add in some water. Finally stir in parmesan cheese.

Onion Blossom

My family declared that this tastes better than the Blooming Onion at Outback – that has a bajillion calories while this…only 70 per serving 🙂 If there are any leftovers save them for soups, mixing with potatoes, etc.

Onion Blossom
Onion Blossom

4 servings
70 calories per serving

1 large Vidalia onion
2 T A.1. Steak Sauce
3 T grated parmesan cheese
½ t kosher salt

Peel onion and cut partially into 6 wedges – do not cut all the way down , just get close to the bottom. Place on a sheet of foil and loosen the layers so that the sauce and cheese will sink in. Drizzle with the steak sauce and sprinkle with cheese and salt then wrap rightly and grill for 40 minutes. Alternately place foil pouch on a baking sheet and bake at 450 degrees for an hour or until desired tenderness.

Tortellini with Tomatoes

This is a great dinner – you can serve this warm, at room temperature or even cold. The cheesy tortellini are the perfect base for a savory dressing and tons of flavorful tomatoes and rich artichokes and asparagus. The arugula and fresh basil top it off perfectly.

Tortellini with Tomatoes
Tortellini with Tomatoes

6 servings
400 calories per serving

2 9 oz packs fresh cheese tortellini
1 lb asparagus, sliced into 1 ½ inch long slices
3 T red vinegar
1 T balsamic vinegar
1 T olive oil
Salt to taste
1/4 t pepper
4 c baby arugula
1 1/2 c cherry tomatoes, halved
3/4 c grated parmesan
1/3 c thinly sliced fresh basil
14 oz can artichoke hearts, drained and cut in fours

Cook tortellini according to package instructions. Add asparagus into the pasta water during the last 2 minutes of cooking time then drain all. Mix vinegars, oil, salt and pepper and mix with pasta, arugula, tomatoes, cheese, basil and artichokes.

Tuna Casserole

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Everyone loves a good tuna casserole. This one tastes great and is way lower in the calorie department than my regular recipe. It gets skinnied up by using a slim milk and broth based sauce rather than a creamier version. The results are great !

Tuna Casserole
Tuna Casserole

6 servings
390 calories per serving

8 oz. whole wheat egg noodles
1 medium onion, chopped finely
8 oz. sliced mushrooms
½ t salt
¼ t pepper
½ c chicken broth
6 T flour
3 c skim milk
12 oz. can chunk light tuna in water, drained well
1 c frozen peas, thawed
1 c finely shredded parmesan cheese
½ c panko breadcrumbs
Pam

Cook noodles according to package directions. Preheat broiler.

Heat a skillet and spray with Pam. Then cook onions 5 minutes. If they start to dry out, add a tablespoon or so of hot water. Add mushrooms and cook another 3 minutes. Add wine and continue cooking until liquid is evaporated, about 4 minutes then add milk, salt and pepper. Sprinkle peas with flour and mix to coat. Add to mushroom mix with tuna and half of the parm. Stir in the noodles. Place in a baking dish and sprinkle with crumbs and the rest of the parm. Broil 3-4 minutes until bubbly and top is brown.

Sprinkle the casserole with breadcrumbs and the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan. Broil until bubbly and lightly browned on top, 3 to 4 minutes.

You can also prepare this ahead and then sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and cheese last minute, cover and bake at 350 degrees for an hour or so, taking off the cover the last 10 minutes to brown the top.

Chicken Tetrazzini

Mark this down as another of those recipes that you will make again and again. Some of the noodles get a little crunchy from the oven and it makes the dish that much more enjoyable. Tetrazzini is usually made with spaghetti, but I like using fettucine noodles sometimes !

Chicken Tetrazzini
Chicken Tetrazzini

6 servings
400 calories per serving

7 oz. FiberGourmet pasta (fettuccine noodles or spaghetti) – without FiberGourmet pasta, this dish will not come in under 400 calories !

¼ c margarine
¼ c flour
½ t salt
¼ t pepper
1 c chicken broth
3/4 c heavy cream
¼ c skim milk
2 T water
1 ½ lb. cooked chicken in bite sized pieces (Perdue Shortcuts work great here!)
1 can sliced mushrooms
½ c parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta according to package instructions. Melt margarine on low heat and stir in flour, salt and pepper and stir constantly until smooth and bubbly then remove from heat. Stir in the broth and cream and then heat to boiling stirring constantly and cook 1 minute. Then stir in water, pasta, chicken and mushrooms. Put into a baking dish and sprinkle with cheese and bake ½ hour.

Garlic Shrimp with Spaghetti

There is an Italian dish called Spaghetti Aglio e Olio (spaghetti with garlic and olive oil) – the way it sounds and not being able to pronounce it, my daughter used to say we were having ‘Spaghetti Hallelujah’ for dinner. It still makes me giggle whenever I think about it 🙂 This recipe is for a similar dish, but with some added shrimp to make it a great complete meal. It is one of my favorite Italian dishes – so simple yet scrumptious… like some of the best homemade dishes.

This version removes a lot of the oil replacing it with chicken broth to save a ton of calories. The flavor profiles are still there, though and while not quite authentic, this is a great low cal version.

Garlic Shrimp with Spaghetti
Garlic Shrimp with Spaghetti

4 servings
397 calories per serving

Pam
3 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz. sliced mushrooms
1 lb. shrimp, peeled and cleaned
1 t basil flakes
1 t oregano flakes
½ t pepper
Salt to taste
½ t garlic powder
8 oz. FiberGourmet Spaghetti
1 c chicken broth
1 T olive oil
5 T chopped parsley
4 T grated parmesan cheese

Spray skillet with Pam and add garlic and mushrooms and cook 4 minutes. Add shrimp, basil, oregano, salt, pepper, and garlic powder and cook another 4 minutes or until shrimp get translucent. Cook linguini according to package instructions. Drain, cover and keep warm. Add broth to skillet and bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer. Stir in parsley and cook another 4 minutes to meld flavors. Mix shrimp mix and pasta together with oil and serve each portion with 1 T of parmesan cheese over the top.

Italian Veggies and Pasta

Savory, cheesy, hot baked goodness ! This pasta and veggie dish has just enough spice and everything is right. The mixture of cheeses is awesome and when you add in all the veggies. This becomes a super nutritious, healthy meal.

Italian Veggies and Pasta
Italian Veggies and Pasta

4 servings
390 calories per serving

8 oz. uncooked FiberGourmet rotini (with regular pasta, add 80 calories per serving)
3 c diced, peeled eggplant
1 c thinly sliced zucchini
1 c chopped green pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
½ t garlic powder
½ t onion powder
½ t basil flakes
½ t oregano flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
8 oz. spicy tomato sauce
4 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
2 oz. shredded gruyere cheese
2 T grated parmesan cheese
Pam

Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain, cover and keep warm. In a Dutch oven or large skillet combine eggplant, zucchini, pepper, garlic, seasonings, tomato sauce and tomatoes. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and cover and simmer 20 minutes. Spray a 9×13 pan with Pam and spoon in pasta then sprinkle with parm and pour over the veggie mix. Sprinkle with mozzarella and gruyere cheeses. Broil 1-2 minutes or until cheese is melted.

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