Great served hot – and equally as good served chilled. This side salad has a great taste and is very easy to prepare!
4 servings
280 calories per serving
2 c Minute brown rice, uncooked
6 oz. baby spinach leaves
11 oz. can mandarin oranges
½ c light Catalina dressing
Cook rice according to package instructions. Place in a bowl and add spinach and oranges then toss with dressing t coat.
Simple yet fancy. Light yet filling. This is a great side salad. If you are making it as a main salad instead of a side, add some grilled leftover chicken.
8 servings
140 calories per serving
2 c grape tomatoes
11 oz. can artichoke hearts, drained and cut into chunks
10 oz. spring mix salad
1 c low fat shredded cheddar cheese
½ c low fat balsamic vinaigrette
Mix salad ingredients and then combine with dressing.
This dip would be equally as good used as a salad dressing (even though it is nice and thick). But as a dip for vegetables, it makes the perfect healthy snack.
2 cups
87 calories per serving (1 serving=3 T)
1 c light mayonnaise
2 T lemon juice
2 T chopped parsley
2 T chopped green onion
1 packet Equal
1 T dry ranch salad dressing mix
1 T Dijon mustard
1 ½ t minced garlic
¼ t salt
¾ c buttermilk
Combine mayo, juice, parsley, onion, Equal, mustard, garlic, ranch mix and salt and whisk well. Then whisk in buttermilk and cover and refrigerate 2 hours. Serve with veggies.
Regular bell peppers will do fine here, but I often like to mix in fryers, and special varieties that you find at farmer’s markets. At the very least, I try to mix colors of the store bought peppers to make this a colorful dish. At only 38 calories per serving (which is a WHOLE pepper and ¼ of an onion), don’t be afraid to have an extra portion ! This is great next to steak and even next to hot sandwiches.
4 servings
38 calories per serving
4 bell peppers, varied colors, cut into thin strips
1 large onion, sliced thin
1 T oil
Pam
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 t garlic powder
1/4 t onion powder
hot water
Place oil in large skillet and heat to medium high. Put onions in pan and saute 5 minutes. Move onions to the side, remove pan from heat and spray skillet with Pam. Return to heat and add peppers to skillet. Let cook down a little and then season with all the spices. After about 5 minutes, lower heat to medium and continue cooking to desired doneness. I like mine pretty soft and let them cook a good 20 minutes. If you do the same, you will likely need to add a couple tablespoons of hot water a couple times during the cooking process so that the veggie stay moist and do not burn.
Adding balsamic to grilled or broiled vegetables brings out a whole new dimension of flavor. Vinegar is often used as a flavor enhancer and boy does it do the trick here. This is a great side, lunch, appetizer – – however you slice it, you gotta make it ! 🙂
8 servings
140 calories per serving
1 green pepper
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
8 oz. Portobello mushroom caps
6 eggplant slices
1 c low fat Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
Cut peppers lengthwise into quarters and place all veggies on a broiler rack or on a wire rack atop a baking sheet and brush them with 1/2 c of the dressing. Broil 6-8 minutes turning and brushing a few times with the another ¼ c of the dressing. Slice mushrooms and mix all ingredients together and dress with the last ¼ c of dressing.
Tortellini are so versatile. And this is a great recipe to show off their cheesy goodness 🙂 The sauce is light and packed with healthy veggies.
4 servings
182 calories per serving
1 9 oz. package of refrigerated cheese tortellini
1 T oil
2 medium shallots, minced
1 medium bell pepper in 1 inch pieces
2 c chopped plum tomatoes (about 6 tomatoes)
1 medium zucchini cut in half lengthwise and then sliced into half moons
½ t garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste
½ t basil flakes
½ t oregano flakes
Cook pasta according to package instructions. Heat oil in pan and cook bell pepper and shallots in oil 4-5 minutes then add tomatoes, zucchini and seasonings and cover and cook 5 minutes. Finally add in tortellini and cook 3 minutes or until hot.
Top off the dish with some fresh herbs of your choice (basil and parsley do quite well).
What a symphony of flavors ! Your mouth doesn’t know what to be the happiest about – is it the pine nut accent? Or the spicy pepperjack cheese? Or the creamy avocados? Or the smoky chipotle dressing? This is one of THE BEST salads I’ve ever made.
4 servings
300 calories per serving
8 c fresh baby spinach
1/2 c corn with sweet peppers
1/3 c halved black pitted olives
2 T chopped fresh cilantro
2 oz. diced pepper jack cheese
2 plum tomatoes, cut into 8 wedges each
2 hard boiled eggs, quartered
1 ripe avocado cut into 16 slices
3 T lime juice
2 T oil
1 t chopped chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
1/8 t salt
1 garlic clove, minced
2 T toasted pine nuts
A few extra squirts of lime juice if you like your salad nice and ‘wet’
Combine spinach, corn, olives, cilantro and cheese. Place 2 c worth on each plate. Arrange tomato, egg and avocado slices atop the spinach. Combine lime juice, oil, chopped chipotle, salt and garlic. Whisk well and pour over salads. Sprinkle with pine nuts.
This meal as just the right amount of each ingredient and everything tasted great. To save yourself time, use the pre-cut carrots and zucchini available at your grocer !
4 servings
380 calories per serving
1 c uncooked orzo
½ c chicken broth
1 T lemon juice
2 t cornstarch
2 T oil
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (3/4 lb.) cut in half lengthwise and then cut in thin strips
2 cloves garlic minced
½ t salt
1 c julienne cut carrots
1 yellow bell pepper cut into thin strips
2 c julienne cut zucchini
Cook orzo according to package instructions. Combine broth, juice and cornstarch and mix well. Heat 1 T oil and cook chicken, garlic and salt 5 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink then remove from skillet and keep warm. Heat 1 T oil and cook carrots and bell pepper 3 minutes then add zucchini and cook another 3 minutes. Stir the broth mix until smooth and then add to the skillet and cook 2 minutes or until thickened then add orzo and chicken and heat through.
Even my non-lasagna-loving kid had to have seconds of this one. It is just cheesy enough without that part being overpowering. Much like the physical layers of the lasagna, there are great flavor layers here since the cheese mix, zucchini mix and tomato mix are all flavored independently. This was a really superb dish !
4 servings
376 calories per serving
½ c low fat ricotta cheese
3 T parmesan cheese
3 T plus 2 t oil
Coarse salt
Pepper
8 lasagna noodles broken in half
1 garlic clove, minced
2 pints grape tomatoes, halved
½ t red pepper flakes
2 zucchini, thinly sliced
½ t garlic powder
1 T basil leaves, torn
Mix cheeses and 2 t oil. Add salt and pepper. Cook lasagna noodles according to package instructions and then drain. Heat 2 T oil in a skillet and cook garlic and tomatoes with some salt and pepper and the crushed red pepper about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and then add 1 T oil and zucchini to the skillet, season with garlic powder, and cook about 8 minutes then remove to a bowl and add basil. Place some tomatoes on plates and top with a noodle and a small spoonful of ricotta and a spoonful of zucchini and then some more tomatoes. Repeat layers twice and then top with the rest of the noodles and tomatoes and garnish with basil.
Serve next to just about anything !
6 servings
68 calories per serving
1 lb. fresh bean sprouts
1 T sesame seeds, toasted
1 T sesame oil
2 T soy sauce
1 1/2 T finely chopped scallions
1 1/2 T sugar
1 small clove garlic, finely minced
1 t salt
Place sprouts in boiling salt water for 3 minutes. Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Add all other ingredients and mix well. Chill at least ½ hour.
To toast sesame seeds, just stir fry them for a few minutes in a hot skillet.
