Thursday, June 27, 2013

Cauliflower Buffalo Bites



Cauliflower Buffalo Bites 


Ingredients
1 head of cauliflower, washed and broken up into small florets
1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. chili powder
½ tsp. kosher salt
2 tbsp. of your favorite hot wing sauce

Directions
Pre heat oven to 425

Toss cauliflower with olive oil and distribute evenly.

Combine garlic powder, paprika, chili powder, and salt in a small bowl. Toss spice mixture over cauliflower and mix well, making sure all the cauliflower is coated in the spices.

Spread cauliflower out on a rimmed baking sheet a roast for 20 minutes.

Toss with wing sauce and serve with your favorite blue cheese dressing for dipping. Enjoy!

Makes about 2 cups.

Nutritional Information per serving = 1/2 cup serving:
Calories: 69; Total Fat: 3g; Saturated Fat: 0.5g; Cholesterol: 0mg; Carbohydrate: 8.1g; Dietary Fiber: 3.1g; Sugars: 3.1g; Protein: 3.2g

Saturday, June 15, 2013

Yummy Yogurt Sauce


YUMMY YOGURT SAUCE


2% Greek Yogurt (small container)
1/2 Lime
Lots of Dill
Salt

Mix to taste
Fantastic with Lamb, Crab Cakes, or whatever you want.

ps - fresh mint works instead of dill if that's your preference

Monday, June 3, 2013

Cauliflower Pizza Crust Pizza


For the Crust
half a head of cauliflower
1/4 cup of mozzarella
1 egg
sprinkle of parm cheese
any seasonings you want (Basil, a blended Italian seasoning, garlic salt, salt, pepper, and 5 or 6 cloves of garlic pressed in the garlic press….you need it to really infuse flavor into the “dough”)
To Cook:
1.Rough chop cauliflower

2.Throw it in the blender to “rice” it….which just means grind it up as fine as you can get it…kind of so that it looks like cous cous, or smaller than rice.  you want it really fluffy.

3. Cook it for a few minutes, either in the microwave, for 5-8 minutes or in a skillet on the stove top with a little bit of olive oil.

4. When its soft, and you think its cooked, and its actually browning a little- take it off, throw it in the freezer to cool down a little bit.( i left it in for like 5 minutes….the reason is you don’t want to put an egg on something hot, because it will start to cook and curdle.)

5. Then, AND THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT: Strain the cauliflower into  a dish towel or cheese cloth. 
you want to get as much water out as you can, and squeeze, squeeze squeeze!  
6. On a greased piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet, spread out your “dough” and create any shape or size you want. the trick here though, is the thinner you can get it- the crispier it will be. Its hard to get it even, and its easy to make holes in it, because its not really dough, so try to get it as even as possible, and as thin as possible.

7. BAKE. Now. Depending on ovens….this took 35-40 minutes. So its not quick. 
8. Once its crispy and firm ( you can kind of lift it off the paper without it feeling like its going to fall apart) and its golden brown, and looks like pizza crust……add your toppings of choice! I threw on some :
tomato sauce (quick sauce that i whipped up…..just a small can of tomatoes, garlic, onion, basil, salt, pepper, and italian seasoning…i hateeeee pre seasoned jar sauce..ick.),
-low fat mozzarella  and a little swiss and gruyer blend from trader joes (very little cuz its higher in cals)
-and shredded chicken. (prepared however youwant.)
Put the pizza under your broiler for like 2 or 3 minutes (keep an eye don’t burn) to melt the cheese, and THEN STUFF YOUR FACE!!!

No Bake Banana Bites

No Bake Banana Bites

Serves: 6 (makes 1 dozen 1-inch balls)
Ingredients:
1/2 cup banana chips
1/2 cup rolled oats
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/4 cup chunky peanut butter (or your desired nut butter) 3 tablespoons honey
Directions:
1. Crush the banana chips with the back of a butter knife (or roughly chop in food processor) and add to a large mixing bowl. Add the oats and cocoa to the banana chips and mix together. Stir in the peanut butter and honey.
2. Place in the refrigerator and chill for 30 minutes. Once chilled, remove from the refrigerator and form 1-inch balls with your hands.
3. Place onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and chill for 15-30 minutes (until firm). Store in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Quinoa Chicken Casserole

Quinoa Chicken Casserole

2 c. chicken stock
1 lg. onion, diced
1 T olive oil
8 mushrooms, thinly sliced
2/3 c. acorn squash, sliced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1# ground chicken
2 tsp. poultry seasoning (or dried sage)
1 tsp. salt
1/3 tsp. pepper
1 1/2 c. quinoa, rinsed
1/3 c. parsley, minced - remember if you use the kind in a jar, you use way less
1 c. monterey jack cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a skillet, saute onion in olive oil on med-high heat 2-3 minutes.  Add mushrooms, squash and garlic.  Cook 2-3 mins. Add chicken, breaking into small pieces as if browns, about 3-4 mins.  Add poultry seasoning, salt, pepper, chicken stock and quinoa and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10 mins.  Transfer ingredients from pan into a 9X9 casserole dish or baking pan.  Mix in parsley and 1/2 c. cheese.  Sprinkle remaining cheese on top of casserole.  Bake 30-35 minutes."

Poached Salmon Over Ratatouille


Poached Salmon Over Ratatouille

Ingredients

  • 2 fish steaks or sturdy fillets, 3/4 to 1 pound each
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 onions, chopped
  • 2 red or green bell peppers, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic
  • 2 28-ounce can whole tomatoes, with their juice
  • 8 cups cooked or canned chickpeas or cannellini beans, drained
  • 2 zucchini, chopped
  • 1 1/2 to 2 pounds eggplant, preferably small
  • 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
  • Black pepper
  • 2 tablespoon capers, optional
  • 1 tablespoon minced garlic
  • 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper, optional
Preparation
2. Peel the eggplant if the skin is thick or the eggplant is less than perfectly firm; cut it into 1/2-inch cubes and salt them if the eggplant are large and time allows. Put the olive oil and all but 1 teaspoon of the garlic in a large, deep skillet, preferably nonstick or cast iron, over medium heat. Two minutes later, add the eggplant. Stir and toss almost constantly until the eggplant begins to release some of the oil it has absorbed, after 5 or 10 minutes.
2. add the onion, bell pepper and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften, 3 to 5 minutes.
4. To the skillet, add the tomatoes, beans, zucchini and the salt and some pepper to the skillet. Adjust the heat so the mixture bubbles steadily. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes break down, the beans begin to get soft and creamy, and the mixture begins to thicken, 10 to 15 minutes. If the mixture looks too thick, stir in a splash of water. Cook until eggplant is tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Place in Duch Oven
5. Lay the fish in the sauce and add water, if needed, so that the sauce comes just up to the top of the fish, not over it. Bring to a boil, then cover and remove from the heat. The fish will be done in about 10 minutes (a thin-bladed knife inserted between bone and flesh should reveal little or no translucence; if not, return the pan to a simmer and cook for another minute or two more). Remove the fish with a slotted spoon and serve, topped with vegetables and a little of the broth, garnished with the herb.
Preparation


Sunday, June 2, 2013

Mark's Peanut Butter "Mousse"



 0% Fage Greek yogurt with some natural creamy peanut butter swirled in and 1 packet of splenda (or preferred sweetner).  Put in freezer for about 10-15 and stir it up. It's like a decadent peanut butter mousse. Sprinkle a few almonds or walnuts on if you'd like.  Tastes like peanut butter pie! :)"

Mark's Cumin Dusted Chicken



Cumin Dusted Chicken with Guacamole sauce
1 6oz breast and 1/4 of the sauce = 270 calories and 42g of protein!!!!!!!!

Sauce:
· 1/4 cup finely chopped green onions
· 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
· 1/4 cup 0% plain Greek yogurt
· 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
· 1/4 teaspoon salt 
· 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
· 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
· 1 ripe peeled avocado, seeded and coarsely mashed
Chicken:
· 2 tablespoons brown sugar
· 1 teaspoon ground cumin
· 1/2 teaspoon salt 
· 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
· 4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
· Cooking spray

Preparation
1.     To prepare sauce, combine first 8 ingredients; set aside.
2.     Preheat oven to 400°.
3.     To prepare chicken, combine sugar, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper; sprinkle evenly over chicken. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add chicken; cook 3 minutes or until browned. Turn chicken over. Place pan in oven; bake at 400° for 10 minutes or until done. Serve chicken with sauce."

Mark's Banana Pancakes



Bananas 
3 eggs
1/3 cup Crunchy Almond Butter (or any crunchy nut butter)

1.     Mash bananas until you have 3 cups of mashed bananas. 
2.     In a large bowl, mix bananas and the eggs. 
3.     Add the almond butter and mix really well .
4.     Depending on the consistency and your preferences, add more almond butter to get a more pancake-like batter.
5.     Cook like normal pancakes!
They should fluff up like normal pancakes, so if they don't at first you probably need more almond butter. It might take trial and error to get it the way you like them, but it is so worth it!