A Vegetarian Meal: Zucchini PIe

I've been super busy and I don't think things will let up until the end of the month!  So I want to apologize in advance for not posting recipes and pictures, but in the meantime Karen Moreno, Feed Your Sister's nutritionist has been sharing with us many of her great healthy recipes and good tips for living and eating while trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle!  I hope you've enjoyed them thus far, today she shares with us a vegetarian meal that's easy to put together with minimal ingredients!  I hope you enjoy!!

Here's Karen's Recipe for today...

Sometimes I’m not always in the mood to have a heavy dinner that consists of chicken or fish. I actually just came back from Israel and over there they eat very differently than from us in the United States, maybe its something we should learn from. They have a big lunch and a light dinner, which could be an omelet or even some yogurt, or a light cheese sandwich. This way you go to sleep without that full feeling or being stuffed. Try to aim to have one day a week where you become a vegetarian and don’t eat meat. This can help lower your cholesterol, and maybe even your weight. This recipe is super easy and quick to make. Serve along with a colorful green salad and you’ve got dinner ready  to put in the oven in less than 20 minutes.

Zucchini Pie

Serves: 8

Prep Time: 10 minutes   Cook Time: 1 hour

Nonstick cooking spray

4 tsp breadcrumbs

5-6 zucchinis, peeled, and cubed small

½ cup 0% cottage cheese

½ cup part skim shredded mozzarella cheese

2 tbsp reduced fat feta cheese

2 eggs

1 egg white

¼ tsp each: garlic powder, onion powder, pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x11 inch Pyrex with nonstick cooking spray. Spread 2 tsp bread crumbs on the bottom of the Pyrex.  In a bowl, combine breadcrumbs, cubed zucchinis, cottage cheese, ¼ cup mozzarella cheese, eggs, egg whites, and spices. Mix all together. Pour into the Pyrex. Sprinkle remaining mozzarella cheese and feta cheese on top.  Bake at 350 degrees for one hour, or until the top browns and bubbles.

NOTE: This recipe calls for breadcrumbs but it can easily be omitted for those following a Gluten Free diet

This can also be served with a Tzatziki sauce:

2 cucumbers, diced

2 tbsp dried mint leaves

8 oz 0% Greek Yogurt

Salt, to taste (and garlic powder—optional)

Mix all ingredients into a bowl and serve.

Nutrition Content (per serving: 4x2½ inch piece of zucchini pie with 2 tbsp tzatziki):

126 Calories, 4.45g Fa,t 2.5g Sat Fat, 8.3g Carbs, 1.5g Fiber, 12.4g Protein, 122mg Sodium, 361mg Calcium, 375.7 mg Potassium.

-Karen Moreno, RD, CDN

Bakes Pesto Parmesan Spaghetti Squash

I love Tastespotting.  It's a great site for when you are looking for new cooking ideas.  Let's say you have a spaghetti squash but don't know what to make with it, you can search through tons of photos/recipes to find just what you are looking for. It's also a great way to find new food blogs and sites to start reading. I spotted this recipe and this recipe and that's how I came to make my version of the recipe. Each serving has a points plus value of 4!  And you leave the table feeling nicely full!

Baked Pesto Parmesan Spaghetti Squash
(makes 2 large portions)
1 spaghetti squash, baked or microwaved
3 tablespoons pesto (Vegans use this recipe and omit the parmesan or use vegan parmesan or nutritional yeast)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
4 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese, separated in half
(I didn't add tomatoes, but feel free to add them in if you'd like, no added points there!)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Pierce squash with a sharp knife or split in half and discard the seeds/pulp, then place on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for about 60-70 minutes. Take out squash but keep oven on.  Use a fork to separate spaghetti strands and place them in a large bowl.  Combine spaghetti with pesto, salt and 2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese and mix well.  Divide squash mixture  into two large ramekins or small lasagna dishes and sprinkle with the rest of the parmesan cheese. Bake in the oven under the broiler for about 5 minutes or until golden brown crust forms.  Enjoy!

Cannoli-Stuffed French Toast

This past Saturday I was watching Lisa Lillien's Hungry Girl show on the Cooking Channel.  The theme for the show that day was "Rise and Dine."  I really enjoy her show and look forward to watching the new episodes every Saturday!  After I watached the show I was a convert.  I now am in love with unsweetened almond milk, which has less calories than skim milk, although not much protein.  Oh well, it's amazing and great with cereal, oatmeal, and in smoothies!  And since Saturday I've been searching for light hot dog buns in every supermarket in NYC that I pass...she uses the buns to make this recipe.  I never found light  hot dog buns, but I did find Fiber One hot dog buns and settled on them for 1 extra points+ point, on top of the 6 the recipe already contains.  That's the other great thing about Hungry Girl, she posts the weight watchers points+ values on every single recipe she makes.  I can't wait to go to her book signing in NYC on March 30th in Union Square!!  Here's the recipe for Cannoli-Stuffed French Toast!  Have it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner! Enjoy!

Cannoli-Stuffed French Toast
(serves 1)

3 tbsp. fat-free ricotta cheese 

2 tsp. mini semi-sweet chocolate chips 

1 tsp. vanilla extract, divided 

1 no-calorie sweetener packet (like Splenda or Truvia) 

1 light hot dog bun with about 80 calories (like the kind by Sara Lee) 

1/4 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute (like Egg Beaters Original) 

1/4 tsp. cinnamon 

2 tsp. light whipped butter or light buttery spread (like Brummel & Brown) 

1/2 tsp. powdered sugar 

Optional topping: sugar-free pancake syrup 

In a small bowl, combine ricotta cheese, chocolate chips, 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract, and sweetener, and mix 

well. 

Split hot dog bun open lengthwise, without fully separating the two halves. Spoon ricotta mixture onto the 

bottom half of the bun. Gently press the top half down over the filling. Carefully slice into four "nuggets" using a serrated knife 

and set aside. 

See the chocolate chips?...Mmmm! I made one for breakfast and one for another day's lunch!

Mix egg substitute, cinnamon, and remaining 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract in a small bowl. Set aside. 

Bring a skillet sprayed with nonstick spray to medium-high heat on the stove. Add butter and allow to coat th

e bottom of the skillet.  

Meanwhile, coat each nugget on all sides with the egg mixture. (You won't need to use all of the egg 

mixture.) 

Once butter has melted, place nuggets in the skillet and, flipping occasionally, cook until golden brown on 

all sides, 3 - 4 minutes.  

Plate your nuggets and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Top with syrup, if you like. Enjoy! 

Lowfat Dill Ranch Dressing

When I was away in Michigan last week visiting my friend Hilary, she took me to eat at the Red Coat Tavern.  It's a burger joint in Royal Oak, Michigan.  Really good burgers, very much like JG Melon, here in NYC.  

Here we are in front...

Anyways, before my burger I ordered a wedge of iceberg with tomatoes and cucumbers, served with a great dill ranch dressing.  I decided to create my own version inspired by the one I ate at the Red Coat Tavern.  Here it is.

Lowfat Dill Ranch Dressing

8 tablespoons light mayonnaise

1 cup lowfat buttermilk

the juice of 1 lemon

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1.4 teaspoon paprika

1/2 of a shallot (or 1 small shallot), minced or grated on a microplane

1 cup chopped dill

1/2 cup parsley

Blend all ingredients together in a blender until smooth and green.  Drizzle on top a wedge of iceberg letter, tomato chunks, and cucumber slices.  I think raw corn would be a great addition, and if you eat bacon, some bits would be great as well!

Nutella Chocolate Tart

I saw this recipe while reading the many blogs I read daily. It looked very simple and delicious.  Not sure if you've noticed but I've been on a baking kick lately...I decided to make this and bring it for dessert at my family's Chanukah Lunch yesterday.  It took me less than an hour to prepare this yummy decadent tart!  If you are allergic to nuts leave out the Nutella!  Some other variations I thought could be good in place or in addition to the Nutella is peanut butter, banana slices, or some whipped cream!  You can also make this tart with a chocolate or graham cracker cookie crust.  The options are truly endless! 

Nutella Chocolate Tart

(adapted from Baking Kids Love by Cindy Mushet and Sur La Table)

For the crust:

1/2 of the dough from this recipe or this recipe (You can use butter, vegetable shortening, or margarine.)

For the filling:

4 ounces semi-sweet good quality chocolate (I used Ghiradelli)

2/3 cup heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract

1 shot of espresso or strong coffee OR 1 teaspoon of instant espresso powder

3/4 cup Nutella (Chocolate Hazelnut Spread)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a small tart pan with non-stick cooking spray. (If you want to make a larger tart use all the dough from the crust recipe and double the chocolate filling.) Use fingers to press dough into the greased tart pan making sure to have the dough along the sides of the pan as well.  Blind bake the tart shell by placing a piece of aluminum foil or parchment paper over the dough and pour rice or beans on top to weigh the dough down while baking.  Blind bake for about 10 minutes then remove beans and aluminum and bake for another 10 minutes or until edges are light golden brown.  Let tart shell cool completely. Put aside.

Blind Baking

Meanwhile, chop chocolate and place in a bowl.  In a sauce pan bring the heavy cream to a soft simmer over medium heat.  Pour warm cream over chopped chocolate, espresso, vanilla, and nutella. Let stand for a few minutes until chocolate gets soft then whisk mixture until smooth.  Pour chocolate ganache into cooled tart shell and spread to the edges.  Place in fridge for at least 3 hours. Tart and filling can be prepared 2-3 days in advance, keep uncovered in the fridge. Serve at room temperature with a cold glass of milk, coffee, or hot chocolate!

French Onion Soup

I recently purchased a bunch of these porcelain soup bowls at Sur La Table.  I was thinking I'd try to make French Onion Soup in them with the broiled cheese and all!  I've never made onion soup before so I went to one of my favorite sites, TasteSpotting, and searched through a whole lot of onion soup recipes.  Some called for beef stock others used veal stock.  Some used white wine and some used brandy, cognac, or sherry.  I really just kind of made up my own recipe. So here it is!!

French Onion Soup
(serves 4)


3 large white onions, chopped
4 tablespoons olive oil
2 bay leaves
10 sprigs of fresh thyme, tied together using one of the sprigs
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
3/4 cup dry sherry
3/4 cup dry white wine
4 1/2 cups water or stock of your choice. (If using water you will need to add 3 tablespoons Osem Chicken Consomme or 3 bouillon cubes)
To top the soup: (optional)
French baguette, sliced on the bias
1 1/2 cups shredded Gruyere cheese

Place first 6 ingredients together in a large soup pot.  Turn heat to medium-high and saute onions for about an hour, mixing every now and then.  The onions will turn a dark golden brown color.

Add the sherry and white wine to the pot and de-glaze.  Use a wooden spoon to scrape the bottom of the pot. Let boil for about 15 minutes.

 Now add the water or stock, if using water add the chicken consomme now as well.  Using a pair of tongs take out the thyme sprigs and bay leaves.  Stir and let boil for another 30 minutes.

Place soup in containers until ready to serve.  You can freeze soup up to 6 months.  

When ready to serve, place warmed up soup into 4 oven-safe bowls.  Bake slices of baguette, sprinkled with some olive oil in the oven at 375 degrees until crisp and golden brown, about 15-20 minutes.  Place toasted bread on top of soup and sprinkle it with cheese. Broil soup in the oven until cheese is golden brown and melty, about 5 minutes.  Serve and enjoy!

Eggs and Cream: Part 1

I took home a leftover challah from work on Friday and was thinking what I could do with it. I opened up my fridge and saw that I had eggs, milk, and half and half. I also knew I had some vanilla beans in the pantry. I decided I'd make french toast for breakfast!

You'll see in the recipe below that I added splenda into my egg mixture. I like making the egg mixture sweet, not sure why but I do. If you add real sugar or maple syrup, you'll find that your french toast will have a nice caramelized crust. I ended up having leftover egg mixture and I did not let it go to waste. Stay tuned to see what I ended up using it for!!

Vanilla Bean French Toast

(serves 4 people, 3 slices each)

1 cup skim milk

1/2 cup fat free half and half

5 eggs

1/2 of a vanilla bean with seeds scraped out

1/2 cup sweetener (such as sugar, 6 packets splenda, maple syrup, honey)

12 slices of challah bread

Place first 3 ingredients in a large baking dish or bowl. Whisk together. Add vanilla bean scrapings and vanilla bean to the egg mixture, whisk again until well blended. Add sweetener of choice into the mixture and whisk.

Heat a large frying pan on medium heat. Spray non-stick cooking spray on the pan. Dip slices of challah into egg mixture and let sit 10-15 seconds on each side. Transfer wet challah slices into the pan to cook. Cook each side for about 3 minutes until golden brown. Repeat until all challah slices are dipped and cooked. ENJOY!