Bean Minestrone

This is a stand-by for dinner in our house when I'm out of time. The last week of school was just such an occasion for this quick meal.

Any shape pasta works great. This time I used whole wheat spirals, but I've used penne, shells and even spaghetti. The only thing I do not recommend is egg noodles since they taste different.

1/4 cup chopped onions
Olive oil
1/2 cup dry pasta 
2 15 1/2 oz cans diced tomatoes, undrained
1 15 oz can kidney beans, drained
1 15 oz can great northern beans, drained
Pinch crushed red pepper
Oregano*
Basil*
Salt*
1/4 cup chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley
Grated Parmesan

Fill a medium sauce-pan with enough water to cook pasta. Bring water to boil, and cook according to package instructions; drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, drizzle a large sauce pan with olive oil. Heat over medium heat; add onions. Saute for about 5 minutes, or until tender, stirring frequently. Add tomatoes, beans and next four ingredients. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about ten minutes. Add parsley and noodles to mixture and stir. Serve with grated Parmesan.
 
*The seasonings should be added according to taste. Usually I sprinkle, stir, simmer for one minute or so, then taste. Often I repeat these steps. If this is too abstract for you, use 1/2 tsp each oregano, basil and salt. I prefer this method for many tomato-based recipes because I think the brands and types of canned tomatoes differ so much in taste from each other.

Crepes

Ahh...Saturdays...sleeping in, coffee and CREPES! A Saturday tradition in our house, crepes are a healthy favorite. This recipe makes 15 crepes, which feeds our family of 5 quite well. You may want to reduce the recipe, depending on how many people you're cooking for.


3 cups skim milk (or whatever type you have; soy or rice milk work, too)
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup white flour
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/4 cup ground flax seed
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
5 eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp butter, melted

1. Pour milk into a blender. A mixer works, but a blender is ideal; crepes turn out much smoother when blended rather than just mixed.
2. Add dry ingredients. Puree on blender, scraping sides of pitcher if necessary.
3. Add eggs. Blend.
4. Add vanilla and melted butter. Mix.
5. Heat a non-stick pan on medium heat. If your pan is even slightly sticky, spray with spray oil. Swirling pan, ladle a scoop-ful of batter (about 1/4 - 1/3 cup), making sure the batter covers the bottom of a pan in a circle. The crepe will be quite thin. Once edges begin to separate from the pan, slide a spatula under the edges of the crepe; once loosened, flip and cook for a short time on the second side. The crepe should be pale with a slightly golden center when done.
6. Transfer crepe to a plate and fill with sour cream, yogurt or ricotta and fruit. If desired, sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Breakfast Potatoes

Hash-browns are always welcome with eggs; but they can be a pain to cook properly and aren't necessarily all that great for you (starch + fat...). Here's a "healthier" option, that's a bit lower maintenance. For the potatoes, you can use any variety, but lower starch potatoes (white, yellow or red) won't be as prone to crumble when stirred than high starch potatoes (Russets). That said, I typically use Russets because that's what we have.

6 medium potatoes (about 6 c.)

1/2 medium onion

1 bell pepper (any color works)

1 Serrano pepper (optional)

2 t dried thyme

1 t dried rosemary

1/2 t salt

1/4 t black pepper

2 T olive oil

Preheat oven to 325-degrees. Cube potatoes. (The size isn't so important; but larger cubes will need to cook slightly longer.) Dice or chop the onion to preference. Chop peppers. Place all of the ingredients in a 13X9X2-inch pan. Sprinkle thyme, rosemary, salt, and pepper on top. Add in olive oil and stir ingredients together. Bake for 60-75 minutes, stirring with a metal spoon every 10-15 minutes.

This cooks well alongside the Spinach Quiche I posted. Just put in the oven right after you take the pie crust out and they should be done around the same time. Serve with light sour cream and green onions.

Spinach Quiche

A 5-month baby who has a 7 o'clock bed time means dinner parties are nearly impossible. Sunday brunch is now more my speed. This quiche recipe is a relatively healthy way to start the week.

1 (whole wheat) pie crust

1/2 sliced green onion

8 beaten eggs

1/2 c. light sour cream

1/2 c. 2-percent milk

1/4 t salt

1/4 t black pepper

1/4 t coriander

2 t dried parsley

3 c. chopped (fresh) spinach

2/3 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

1/2 c. Swiss cheese (or another cheese, I used Rhinette Alpine)

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Roll out the pie crust for a 9-inch pan. Place the dough in the crust, trim and flute the edges if you wish. Line with foil, and use pie weights (or pinto beans) in the center to make sure the crust does not rise. (Do not prick with a fork or your crust will leak.) Cook for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven. If the crust is not fully cooked, bake for 1-2 minutes without foil. Turn the oven down to 325 degrees.

While the crust is cooking, beat the eggs. Combine with the sour cream, milk, salt, pepper, coriander and parsley. Stir in the cheeses. Add in the vegetables and pour into the hot pie crust. Bake (at 325 degrees) for 45 minutes. When it is done, the quiche will be solid and a knife will come out clean.

If you can't do a quiche without meat, add in 1/2 c. crumbled bacon or finely chopped ham with the cheeses. Serve with sliced tomatoes.

Broccoli Cheese and Chicken Soup

Don't worry. This soup is not as calorie-laden as it could be, thanks to using mozzarella instead of all cheddar and skim and 2% milk instead of half & half or even heavy cream. In fact, it is about 270 calories for a 1 cup serving! I also feel better using real ingredients rather than processed cheese, as many similar recipes do. As a result, the soup is not as smooth looking as one that uses processed ingredients, but it tastes great and is much healthier, in my opinion.

2 cups chopped onion
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 garlic clove, minced
3 tbsp butter
1/4 cup flour
4 cups 1% milk (or 2 cups 2% and 2 cups skim as I used)
14 oz (1 3/4 cup) low sodium chicken broth
4 cups small broccoli florets or peeled stem pieces
4 oz (1 cup) cubed mozzarella cheese

4 oz (1 cup) cubed cheddar cheese

3 cups cooked chicken or turkey, cut into 1 inch cubes

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

3/4 tsp sea salt

1) Spray a dutch oven with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Add chopped onions, and saute for 2 minutes. Add mushrooms and cook for 3-5 minutes, or until onions and mushrooms are tender. Add garlic.

2) Add butter to the pan, stirring until melted. Sprinkle mixture with flour. Gradually add milk and broth, stirring constantly to keep the mixture smooth. Bring to a boil, then add broccoli. Turn heat to medium-low to maintain a simmer. Stir occasionally, simmering for 10 minutes.

3) Stir in remaining ingredients. Keep over low heat, stirring, until cheese melts.

Banana Bread and Cake

I love using ground flaxseed: it makes a moister, higher fiber and protein, lower carb product. 

Of course, depending on your preferences and health goals, you can eliminate or change the nuts. I love using walnuts as, again, they contribute to a higher fiber and protein, lower carb food, plus they have omega 3 oils in them, benefits I think outweigh the added calories.

Oh, and everyone knows you shouldn't have sugar, right? Stevia is my ingredient of the year. Wow! A natural, calorie free sweetener! What can go wrong with that? Because of stevia, I was able to cut the amount of actual sugar down to 1/2 cup (less than half of what an original banana bread recipe would use). I use liquid stevia here. You can adjust to use powdered or whatever type of sweetener you like. The amount I used translates to about 1/2 cup sugar.

Everyone needs a treat sometimes, and if that's for you now, add this lower fat (portion helps here) cream cheese frosting and voila! You have banana cake now!

Banana Bread
1/3 cup oil
48 drops stevia
1/2 cup evaporated cane crystals (or sugar)
2 large eggs
3-4 overripe bananas, peeled and mashed
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup ground flaxseed
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup whole wheat flour (for banana bread, I would use 1 cup whole wheat and 1/2 cup white flours; the cake would require a bit smoother taste most likely)
1 cup white flour
1/2 cup chopped walnuts


Cream Cheese Frosting (optional)
6 oz. Neufchatel cheese, softened
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tsp skim milk


1) Put the first 9 bread ingredients into a mixing bowl, and mix. Add the remaining ingredients. Stir.
2) Spray 2 8 1/2" X 4 1/2" X 2 1/2" loaf pans or 2 round cake pans. 
3) Bake at 350 for 50 min. - 1 hr. for loaves or 30-35 min. for rounds.
4) Keep at room temperature for up to a day. Keep refrigerated for up to one week.


For Frosting
1) Beat softened cheese until fluffy. Stir in vanilla and powdered sugar. Add milk until it reaches proper spreading consistency.
2) Lightly frost a plate or platter. Place first cake round on plate, then frost the top of this round with about 1/3 of the frosting. Place second round on top of the first. Spread remaining frosting on top of this. Keep frosted cake refrigerated for up to a week.