Hi, my name is Aileen and it’s great to see you here sharing my blog. I have been cooking since I was a teen. My Mom put a home cooked meal on the table every night and so do I (it’s a challenge when you work full time, but it is well worth it!). I love food – I love making it, I love eating it. I love how it brings people together. My most favorite thing to do is share a meal with family and friends. And we often end up talking about other food while we are eating this food.
There’s pretty much nothing I can’t make, though I really prefer cooking savory meals to baking. I have made it all from scratch at one time or another and still cook mainly this way. I have a discerning palate and a taste for spicing things just the right way. My recipes are definitely not bland and that helps when creating satisfying meals – your mouth knows it ate after it’s done with one of my meals
I am one of 5 Neon Pigs, a self named group of foodies. How did we get the name? We decided it was sooooo appropriate because everything right in the world exists in a BBQ joint with a neon pig hung in the window
I was blessed with a great metabolism and for years and years ate anything I wished without gaining an ounce. From 35 forward I gained a few pounds here and a few pounds there and then after age 40 my metabolism came to a screeching halt and I could just not get off the weight that had compounded with just plain exercise. A drastic plan was needed….so here I am, 40 something and trying to make my world right by creating recipes that satisfy yet still fall into a healthful lifestyle that I know I will have to now forever follow if I want to maintain a healthy body.
Once again, without FiberGourmet pasta, this meal would not have been near as substantial for the low amount of calories – I can’t live without FiberGourmet Pasta !
I was a bit heavy handed on the crushed red pepper and this came out just fantastic tasting – spicy and hot with a nice deep flavor from having simmered all day long.
Pasta and Lentils (Crock Pot)
4 servings
230 calories per serving
½ c chopped onions
½ c chopped carrots
½ c chopped celery
2 c canned diced tomatoes, undrained
1 c tomato sauce
4 oz. dried lentils, rinsed and drained
½ t oregano flakes
½ t basil flakes
½ t garlic powder
¼ t crushed red pepper
4 c FiberGourmet pasta (cooked)
Up to a cup of hot water
Mix all except pasta in the crock and cover and cook on low 8-10 hours or high 3-5 hours. If your crock pot gets hot and this mix is drying out too much, add up to a cup of hot water. Cook pasta according to package directions. Add cooked, drained pasta to crock and serve immediately.
This is always a crowd pleaser and people can’t believe it’s made without sugar (Equal is the sweetener here). This is a perfect and refreshing end to a meal.
Key Lime Pie
8 servings
150 calories per serving
1 low fat prepared graham cracker crust
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
1 ¾ c skim milk
8 oz. low fat cream cheese, at room temperature
12 packets Equal
½ c fresh lime juice
Green food coloring (optional)
Lime slices (optional for garnish)
Sprinkle gelatin over ½ c milk in small pan and let stand 3 minutes then cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until gelatin is dissolved. Beat cream cheese until fluffy and then beat in res of the milk and the gelatin mix. Then mix in the juice and 12 packets of Equal. Add a couple of drops of green food coloring if you wish. The pie will be very thin and runny but will firm up quickly. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.
Bruschetta is simply a dish that has some short of chopped tomatoes served on top of some type of bread product. There are a million variations – this one is Greek and oh so good ! Cut into wedges, these make a great appetizer. Served whole, they make an awesome lunch ! 1 whole pita is only 180 calories so there’s still room for some soup or salad on the side 🙂
Greek Bruschetta
6 servings
60 calories per serving
2 7 inch whole wheat pitas
1 T fat free balsamic vinaigrette
1 T chopped basil
1 large plum tomato, seeded and chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/3 c fat free plain hummus
1 T shredded parmesan cheese
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place pitas on a cookie sheet and bake 6 minutes or until a bit crisp. Mix vinaigrette, basil, tomato and garlic. Spread the hummus evenly on the 2 pitas and then spoon over the tomato mixture. Sprinkle with the cheese and bake 5-6 minutes or until hot. Cut each pita into 6 wedges.
What a festive way to serve fruit! This was a great dessert and great drink – so colorful, so flavorful, so sweet ! It’s also a very versatile recipe – don’t like strawberries, use bananas instead….don’t like raisins, leave them out…substitute mandarin oranges for fresh oranges ! Make it your own 🙂
Champagne Fruit
4 servings
82 calories per serving
½ c chopped oranges
½ c sliced banana
½ c chopped apples
½ c sliced strawberries
2 T raisins
12 oz. diet lemon lime soda
Mix fruit and spoon into fancy cups – pour soda over fruit and serve with spoons.
This is so pretty, I had to take a nice close up shot… Champagne Fruit
Roasted chicken is a bit higher in calories than chicken breast cooked without the skin, but sometimes you just gotta splurge 🙂 Even though you peel the skin off to stay at the low calorie level, because it was cooked with the skin on, it is super moist and quite tasty.
Roasted Chicken
142 calories per 3 oz. serving of white breast meat
1 Roaster chicken
Water
Salt
Pepper
Lemon Pepper
1-2 onions
Pam
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove chicken from wrappings, wash it off inside and out. If there are any packets of giblets or anything stuffed inside the chicken, be sure to remove them.
Place the chicken in a roaster pan, or a baking dish atop a rack. If you don’t have a rack or a roaster, you can just place it in a baking dish and it will do fine, the bottom will just have a bit of a different texture.
Sprinkle the inside of the chicken with salt and pepper and then stuff with the whole, peeled onions. As the chicken cooks, the onion flavor really flavors the meet nicely. Lay the chicken back down breast side up and sprinkle with salt, pepper and lemon pepper. Place ½ c water in the bottom of the pan so the chicken will ‘steam’ as it cooks. This helps keep the meat moist.
Spray one side of aluminum foil with Pam. Place this side toward the chicken and cover the pan trying not to press the foil down against the chicken – make more of a tent of the foil.
Cook chicken for the time directed on the package which will be based on the weight of the chicken. The juices should run clear when it is completely done. Chickens usually cook for 15 minutes per pound.
Let it sit a bit before carving so that the juices do not all leave the meat as you carve it.
Here are some great instructions for how to carve a chicken – it’s really not hard ! Especially if you are mainly wanting nicely sliced breast meat (and you can save the thighs, legs and other dark meat for making soup).
http://www.howcast.com/videos/8687-How-To-Carve-a-Chicken
If you can resist the urge to stir these, the outsides get so nice and crispy ! Combine that with the soft and fluffy insides and it’s quite a taste treat. The dry mustard gives these an unexpected flavor – very subtle but still noticeable.
Home Fries
6 servings
122 calories per serving
1 T oil
1 ½ lb. small red potatoes cooked and quartered (to cook, boil in unsalted water 15 minutes or until tender)
2 medium shallots, chopped
1 t paprika
½ t parsley flakes
½ t dry mustard
¼ t salt
¼ t pepper
In a large skillet heat oil on medium high heat. Add potatoes and cook on one side 3-4 minutes. Resist the urge to stir 🙂 If you let them sit, they will get a nice brown ‘skin’ and taste so much better ! Turn potatoes, add shallots and cook another 4 minutes or so. Stir in the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Saute 1-2 minutes or until potatoes are completely done.
This is a very dense cake – almost more like a brownie consistency. But no matter the consistency – it’s CHOCOLATE ! Served with a nice spritz of whipped cream, it hit the spot.
Mocha Bundt
16 servings
250 calories per serving
3 1/2 c cake flour
2/3 c cocoa powder
3 T dry milk powder
1 3/4 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
7 T margarine, softened
3/4 c Splenda
1/3 c Splenda brown sugar blend
3 large eggs
2 large egg whites
1 1/2 c low fat buttermilk
3/4 c strong brewed coffee
Pam
Whipped Cream for garnish
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Spray a bundt pan with Pam. Sift flour, cocoa, milk, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. In another bowl beat margarine and both sugars until mixed and then beat in eggs and egg whites one at a time beating 1 minute after each egg. Combine buttermilk and coffee in a cup. Beat 1/3 if the flour mix into the margarine mix on low speed and then beat in half of the coffee mix and continue beating until the liquid is absorbed. Repeat and then pour batter into pan and smooth the top. Bake 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes and then on a wire rack until completely cool. Serve with whipped cream.
This is a nice change from having a regular salad next to your meal – I sometimes put it out as an appetizer or even add a few breadsticks and make a lunch of it 🙂 By cooking the veggies and leaving them in the ‘brine’ you get a giardiniera flavor, though not as strong since it sits for just a few hours before serving.
Cold Antipasto
4 servings
149 calories per serving
1 c vegetable broth
½ c dry white wine
½ t oregano flakes
¼ t crushed red pepper flakes
1 lb. carrots, sliced on the diagonal
2 c cauliflower florets
¼ lb. green beans, sliced in half on the diagonal
½ c pickled pepperoncini peppers
¼ c white vinegar
1 t oil
½ t salt
½ c cubed mozzarella cheese (part skim)
In a large skillet bring the broth, wine, oregano and red pepper flakes to a simmer and then add the carrots. Cover and cook 6 minutes. Add the cauliflower and beans and return to simmer and cook 8 minutes more. Put the veggies and liquid in a bowl and stir in the pepperoncini, vinegar, oil and salt. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours. Just before serving, plate the veggies along with the cheese.
