Recipe #44: Ham and Mushroom Quiche

This recipe is slightly modified because I was looking for something to make for lunch with ingredients I already had, but it's still very close to the original. This made for a great lunch, but it would be a nice breakfast or dinner as well.



INGREDIENTS:

Olive oil spray
1/2 cup whole wheat bread crumbs (I used regular seasoned breadcrumbs)
4 oz lean deli ham, torn/cut into bite-sized pieces (about 1 cup)
1 cup sliced shiitake mushrooms (I used baby portobellos)
1 cup sliced red onion (I used white onion)
2 large eggs
4 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup reduced-fat shredded Cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat bottom and sides of a 6-inch shallow pie plate or casserole dish with olive oil spray. Sprinkle bread crumbs over bottom and sides of plate, rolling the plate to make sure the sides are covered. Gently shake the plate to evenly distribute excess crumbs across the bottom.

Place the ham, mushrooms, and onion in the pie plate. In a small bowl, lightly beat the 2 whole eggs and 4 egg whites with a fork. Add the nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste. Pour into the prepared pie plate. Press the ingredients under the eggs with a fork. Sprinkle cheese on top. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Recipe #43: Beef and Spinach Stir Fry (Wok)

I believe this is my favorite wok recipe so far. I modified it a little bit from my stir fry cookbook.


INGREDIENTS:

1lb rump or sirloin steak, cut into thin strips
1/4c sweet chilli sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1-2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger (or dried, to taste)
1 tablespoon sherry (or chicken broth)
oil, for cooking (I used canola)
1 large onion, cut into wedges
8oz spinach leaves, shredded

DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine chilli sauce, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and sherry in a bowl and set aside.
2. Heat the wok until very hot, add 1 tablespoon of the oil and swirl to coat the side. Stir-fry the meat in batches over high heat until well browned, adding more oil when necessary. Remove from the wok and set aside.
3. Reheat the wok, add 1 tablespoon of the oil and stir-fry the onion wedges for 3-4 minutes, or until tender. Return the meat to the wok, and add the sauce mixture. I also added black pepper.
4. Just before serving, toss the spinach through the beef mixture until the spinach is just wilted. Serve immediately. (I served mine on brown and wild rice).

Recipe #42: Southwest Chicken Salad

Healthy, hearty, and easy! After Nick's reaction (an enthusiastic "MMM!!" after his first bite), I know I'll be making this one again... (My only change was using sour cream instead of yogurt because I didn't have any of the yogurt...)



INGREDIENTS:
2 cups chopped or sliced cooked skinless chicken breast
1/2 cup black beans, drained
1/2 cup sweet corn, drained if canned or thawed if frozen
1/4 cup red onion, finely chopped
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/4 cup fat-free mayonnaise
1/4 cup plain, non-fat yogurt
1 tsp lime juice
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 cup chopped red pepper

DIRECTIONS:

In a bowl, blend mayonnaise, yogurt, lime juice and cumin. In another bowl, combine chicken, pepper, black beans, sweet corn, red onion and tomato. Stir in dressing. Option to serve on a bed of spinach or lettuce leaves.

Serves 4.

Recipe #41: Hummus!

I LOVE hummus, and decided it was about time I made it myself. I found a great recipe on allrecipes.com. I used dried parsley because that's all I had, and added more garlic. I might add more lemon next time, but this is a great base recipe that I'll use over and over...

Ingredients

• 2 cups canned garbanzo beans, drained
• 1/3 cup tahini
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cloves garlic, halved
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 pinch paprika
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley

Directions

1. Place the garbanzo beans, tahini, lemon juice, salt and garlic in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth. Transfer mixture to a serving bowl.
2. Drizzle olive oil over the garbanzo bean mixture. Sprinkle with paprika and parsley.

Recipe #40: Drunken Tuscan Pasta

This recipe is from Rachael Ray's book, Book of 10. I wanted to try something really hearty and different, and this didn't disappoint. I am still amazed at the idea of cooking pasta in wine...



INGREDIENTS:

• 1 bottle Tuscan red table wine, such as Chianti (I used Pinot Noir because that's what I had at the time... and not the WHOLE bottle- I saved a glass for myself!!)
• Coarse salt
• 1 pound dried long-cut pasta like spaghetti
• 3 tablespoons EVOO (extra-virgin olive oil)
• 1/4lb deli-sliced pancetta (I used bacon instead because we don't like pancetta)
• 3 portobello mushroom caps, thinly sliced
• 2-3 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 pinches of red pepper flakes
• 4-5 cups chopped dark greens, choice of chard, escarole, spinach, or kale (I used spinach)
• Black pepper, to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (I used dried spice instead)
• Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, a handful plus more for the table

DIRECTIONS:

Pour the entire bottle of wine into a large pot. Add water and fill the pot up as you would to cook pasta. Bring the wine and water to a boil over high heat. When the liquids boil, add salt and the pasta and cook to al dente. Heads up: You will ladle out some cooking liquid for the pasta sauce before draining the pasta.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons EVOO, then chop and add the pancetta (or bacon). Brown the pieces until they are golden at the edges and transfer them to a power-towel-lined plate. Add the mushrooms to the EVOO in the same skillet, season with the chopped rosemary, and cook until deeply golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Push the mushrooms to the sides of the pan and add the remaining tablespoon of EVOO to the center of the skillet. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes to the EVOO and cook them for a minute or so, then toss the mushrooms together with the garlic. Add the greens to the pan and season them with sald, pepper, and the nutmeg. When the greens have wilted down, add a couple ladles of the pasta cooking liquid to the pan and cook for a minute to reduce.

Drain the pasta well and add it to the skillet. Add the pancetta/bacon and a handful of cheese to the pan. Toss the pasta for a minute or so to allow it to absorb the remaining liquid. Adjust the seasonings and serve with extra cheese.



NOTES: The pasta is very dark because it was cooked in red wine, and also because it was a whole grain pasta, which is darker to begin with... and healthier! Next time I'm going to use more bacon and less pasta.

Recipe #39: Cinnamon Apple Pork Chops

I have failed you, dearest blog readers. I was too impatient to begin eating this meal, so I didn't take any pictures. I also didn't think it would be blog-worthy until I dug in. I'm not the biggest fan of pork chops, but this is a definite WIN recipe- cheap, easy, very little mess, and definitely delicious. I used pink lady apples, but any tart apples would work fine.

So, here's a picture I found online of a similar recipe. I served mine with asparagus, of course, which I sauteed in margarine with pepper, garlic powder, and some crushed almonds for about 7 minutes.



For two people, here's the quick recipe:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Core and cut up two apples into slices. I left the skins on, but you can remove them if you want. Put them in a 9x9 casserole dish and sprinkle generously with cinnamon and brown sugar.

In a small skillet, brown 2 pork chops in butter, one minute per side. Place the chops in the casserole dish with the apples, making sure some of the apples are on top of the chops. Place several small dabs of butter or margarine in the dish. Salt and pepper to taste.

Bake in the oven for about an hour, or until cooked through.

Recipe #38: Tilapia Scaloppine

This dinner was AWESOME. Full flavor and easy to make, I found this on allrecipes.com when I was trying to find a new way to make tilapia. The only thing I changed was using chicken broth instead of white wine since I didn't want to open a new bottle.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 pound tilapia fillets
• salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup sliced fresh button mushrooms
• 2 tablespoons drained capers
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 lemon, juiced

Directions

1. Heat olive oil with butter in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic. Place fish fillets in the skillet; sprinkle the fish with salt and pepper, and cook for 90 seconds. Turn the fish; season with salt and pepper, and cook an additional 90 seconds.
2. Add the mushrooms, capers, and wine. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until the fish flakes easily with a fork and the wine is reduced by half, 6 to 7 minutes. Remove the cover, pour in lemon juice, and cook for one minute.

Recipe #37: Clam Chowder in Sourdough Bread Bowls

Well, this is definitely NOT a healthy recipe, but we decided we can be bad every once in awhile to reward ourselves for working out and eating better over the past couple months. This recipe is from my Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade cookbook, which is one of my favorites. It was fun to make and really hearty.

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon butter
1/2 onion, minced
3 tablespoons dry vermouth
1 can (6.5oz) chopped clams in juice. (NOTE! I used 2 cans!! I recommend this!)
1 cup heavy cream
Salt and pepper
Sugar
1 can (10.75oz) cream of potato soup
Round sourdough bread loaves- center cut out to make a bowl
Croutons
Parsley

Nick's precision work cutting out the bread bowls:


DIRECTIONS:

In a medium saucepan melt butter over medium heat. Add onion; cook and stir until tender. Stir in vermouth. Bring to a simmer and allow vermouth to reduce slightly.

Strain clams, reserving juice (only ONE of the cans if you're doubling the amount). Add clam juice to the pan. Bring to a simmer and allow juice to reduce slightly. Add cream; reduce by half. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and sugar. (NOTE: I plan on omitting the sugar next time. I'd rather have a saltier than a sweet flavor) Add potato soup; Bring to a simmer.

Add clams and cook until just heated through. Serve in sourdough bowls and top with croutons and parsley. (I used dried parsley because I didn't have any fresh)

Recipe #36: Scallops and Fish in Ginger and Lime

Another excuse to use my wok! This seafood stir fry turned out with great flavor, but I think the texture was wrong because I used cod. Yeah yeah, I was being cheap. Next time I'll use a heavier fish that will compliment the scallops better, or maybe even shrimp. Regardless, this recipe is worth making again.

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb firm white fish fillets
12 oz scallops
2 tablespoons oil
2 inch piece fresh ginger, grated
3 green onions, chopped
1 tablespoon lime juice
2 tablespoons chili jam (in the asian section)
2 teaspoons finely grated lime rind
3 tablespoons coriander leaves (I could not find these and therefore skipped this ingredient)

DIRECTIONS:

Cut the fish into bite-sized pieces and remove any black veins from the scallops. Heat half the oil in a wok and stir-fry the ginger and onions for 30 seconds. Remove from the wok.

Reheat the wok and, when it is very hot, add the remaining oil. Add the fish and scallops in three batches and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. Remove from the wok and set aside.

Add the lime juice, chili jam, lime rind and 2 tablespoons water to the wok and bring to a boil, stirring. Return the fish, scallops, and onion mixture to the wok, tossing gently with the sauce. Serve immediately sprinkled with coriander leaves.


I served this over regular white rice.

Recipe #35: Stir-Fried Chicken Pasta

Here's a wok recipe that isn't in an asian style. The creamy sauce and flavors come together to make a really hearty meal for four.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 lb sun-dried tomatoes, in oil (jar) or dried, thinly sliced
1 lb chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
2 cloves (or more!) of garlic, minced
1/2 cup (or more to desired texture) heavy cream
2 tablespoons shredded basil (I also used dried basil)
13oz penne pasta (I used whole grain penne rigate), cooked
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted (dry-fry in wok until lightly browned)

DIRECTIONS:

Heat the wok until very hot, add 1 tablespoon oil and swirl to coat the sides. Stir-fry the chicken strips, adding more oil when necessary.

Add the garlic, sun-dried tomatoes and cream. Simmer gently for 4-5 minutes.

Stir in the basil and pasta, and heat through. Season well. Serve topped with the toasted pine nuts.



Sadly, I didn't have enough fresh basil, but I put some dried basil in to make up for it.