Easter Sunday: Mushroom Lasagna Per Uno

It's Easter Sunday (evening) and I had a good day all to myself. Yesterday was tons of fun, too, with the BFF's and the kiddos Easter Egg Hunting Party!!! Plus a great night with another set of friends playing Trivial Pursuit and Taboo. But today was just me and I took full advantage:

I slept in, then went for a short ride to the sunny coffee shop where I sipped a latte in the sun, caught up on homework and researched bicycles (looking for a new ride) and then went for a nice long ride along the Lake, stopping at the "beach" to pretend like I was with my family at the real beach in FLA. That would have made the day perfect- to have been with the Family (I miss them tons!!). Upon returning home, I took The Girls for a super long walk, which they loved, and then back to clean this place I call home. To relax, I made myself a really fabulous dinner, something I have not taken time to do in a while. Yeah, I am still cooking but nothing really that fancy or well thought out. I've had no time (excuses!!--- really I just haven't been inspired. But then...).

A few weeks ago a friend came to visit. I was supposed to do some serious cooking for this friend, but alas we were distracted by the City and all it has to offer via exploring and on-demand-food and, er, beverage... still, I wish I had made at least one tasty dinner for us. Humph. So I guess I made this tonight thinking that it would have been nice to share with this friend of mine...instead I'll hope that (you) read this and make it for (yourself) some time-- It's so tasty!

I'm calling this dish Mushroom Lasagna Per Uno, but I actually made 2 servings- one for now and one for later this week. I had a feeling I'd really like this and want to eat it again this week. Turns out, I was right. 

Ingredients

4 oz lasagna pasta (approx. 4 noodles) 

1.5 C chopped onion 

3.5 oz (1.5 cups or so) Mushrooms sliced 

1 tsp crushed garlic 

2 tsp Italian seasoning 

½ tsp black pepper 

¼ tsp salt 

1 tsp olive oil  

2 T red wine

½ C Fat Free Ricotta  

2 oz reduced fat mozzarella

Make It
In a sauce pan, using 1 tsp olive oil, saute onion and garlic with spices for several minutes until soft. Add the sliced mushrooms and wine. Stir frequently until all are soft and cooked through. Remove from heat and reserve. Don't scrape the sauce pan so that some of the spices stay in the pan. Then add the strained tomatoes to the pan, bring to a simmer and cover. 
Spray 2 individual casserole/souffle/mini-pie (whatever you have that's small enough to make personal lasagnes) dishes with oil-spray. Layer 1 noodle in the bottoms of the dishes. Divide mushroom and ricotta between the two dishes. Layer the remaining noodles. Divide the tomato sauce between the dishes to smother the noodles.

 

Cover with foil and bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes, or until noodles are soft to liking. 
Uncover, sprinkle with mozzarella and return to the oven to melt the cheese. 
Serve with a salad or something light and green*.

One thing, during the visit and discussions about food (less talk, more action, I know I know!) I told my friend was "I try to follow a rule and have something green* with each meal." Yikes! I almost forgot my own rule tonight. Happily, I remembered that I had an artichoke in the fridge and, well, artichokes are certainly green! I boiled this beauty just in time to serve with my tasty lasagna, using the sauciness of the lasagna as a dip, and sipping my newest bottle of Malbec. 

Mushroom Lasagna with Artichoke: 

A delicious and perfect end to a peaceful, solitary Easter Sunday!

Nutritional Info (not including the artichoke*)

Servings Per Recipe: 2

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 397.7

Total Fat: 6.7 g

Cholesterol: 25.0 mg

Sodium: 578.8 mg

Total Carbs: 62.4 g

Dietary Fiber: 7.5 g

Protein: 21.9 g

This dish is higher in calories than I typically like to aim for a single meal. Still, under 500 calories with over 20 grams protein, and less than 7 grams of fat isn't bad at all. If you break it down further, you get over 18% of A, more than 45% calcium and tons of other great nutrients. I think that helps balance the increase in calories. Plus the fact that I went on that long-ass bike ride! Tangent coming soon...time to digress-- let's leave the discussion/post here and say- bon appetite!

Mustard Caraway Lentils & Stuffed Squash

I mentioned in my last post that I had a friend stay with the Critters this last week and that I cooked up a feast for his stay. I shared with you the Spicy & Sweet-Potato Soup recipe in that last post and I am happy to report- he loved it. But the thing he loved more and has repeatedly said so since his stay was the Stuffed Carnival Squash, which was stuffed with a fancy new twist on lentil stew that I am calling, Mustard Caraway Lentils. I made a large batch of lentils and had plenty to eat for dinner the night I was cooking all of this... I put my lentils over spaghetti squash (see pictures and nutritional info below). I also have enough lentils now for a few lunches the rest of this week. Perfect!

As I was thinking about the menu for my friends' stay, I thought about the blog and how I would share the menu with you. I also thought, man I make a lot of curry. I really wanted to make curry lentils for the squash, but decided to try something new. So I looked in the cupboard to see what flavors I had and happened upon this package of cracked mustard seed I picked up in Devon on my last visit there (I think I've mentioned Devon before- the neighborhood in Chicago that has all the fabulous Indian foods). Then I saw the jar of caraway seeds. I never use caraway seeds, but I love the flavor! So I decided I had to try to cook with them. I also had a ton of tomatoes from the garden which made a great base for the lentil stew. The result?  Really yummy lentils!

Do you know about the health benefits of the Caraway seed? I have recently read a bit about the seed and am intrigued! As a matter of fact, while I sit and type this post I am drinking a cup of caraway and ginger tea. Mmm. According to a few sites, Caraway seeds are a great digestive and even help babies with colic! I am constantly complaining of bloating and supposedly this tea will help that. We'll see...

Here's a blurb from one site: 

Caraway promotes gastric secretion and stimulates appetite. It breaks down spasms in the gastrointestinal tract to prevent flatulence, but it is also used to treat menstrual cramps and gallbladder spasms. The German E commission reports that caraway seeds are an antimicrobial, and can relieve the feeling of bloating or fullness associated with indigestion and stomach complaints. Caraway oil is strongly fungicidal, having a stronger anti-fungal and anti-yeast activity than the prescription medication Nystatin. Caraway seed oil is used as a flavoring agent in pharmaceuticals, a fragrance in cosmetics and body care products, and is used in all major categories of food, from meat to candy to condiments. 

I'll let you know if I feel any relief from the caraway tea. For now, the Mustard Caraway Lentil recipe...

Ingredients for Lentils:

2 C Tomatoes, chopped 

½ C Onions, chopped

3 cloves Garlic

½ C Celery

2 tsp Olive oil

1 ½ C Water 

½ T Cracked Mustard

1 tsp Caraway Seed

½ tsp salt

1 tsp coriander 

1 C lentils, dry

* Ingredients for the rest of the dish includes

Squash - 1 small carnival and 1 small spaghetti squash

Collards or some kind of greens, 1 cup chopped. 

Make It:

First prepare the squash. Cut the spaghetti squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Cut the top off the carnival squash and scoop out the seeds. Place squashes flesh side down (shell up) in a shallow dish with about 1 inch of water. Bake at 375-400 until the flesh is soft.

While the squash is cooking prepare the lentils. Add the oil to a large pan that has a lid. Chop the tomatoes, onions and celery and mince the garlic and add it all to the pan. Cook on medium heat to mix the flavors and saute a little bit for 5-10 minutes. The tomatoes will start to stew which is what you want. Add the spices and water. Bring to a boil and add the lentils. Stir boiling for a few minutes, then reduce to simmer, cover and cook until lentils are soft. About 30 minutes or so. 

I wanted something green with this and had some collards and kale. For the friend, I made collards. For me, kale. I steamed them with garlic powder and pepper. 

Again, another awesome meal for less than 300 calories. So filling, so nutritious, so fabulous!

Nutritional Info (for lentils only)

Servings Per Recipe: 6

• Calories: 149.8
• Total Fat: 2.4 g
• Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
• Sodium: 209.8 mg
• Total Carbs: 19.9 g
• Dietary Fiber: 1.3 g
• Protein: 13.1 g

* One cup of spaghetti squash adds about 42 calories and the collards or kale add about 15 calories. 

Base Soup Meal 3 - Spicy Red Bean Chili

Good-bye Summer 2011, at times you were twisted and confounded, other times fun and exciting, but I loved you just the same. Now you're gone and I already can't wait to have you back again.

It's getting cooler. Today was the last day of Summer (9/22/2011- I know I am posting this after the fact, but it's what I can do to stay ahead). I am very, very sad about this. I really don't like Winter anymore and while Fall is beautiful, it still is colder than I like and undoubtedly means Winter is on the way. I do like Fall and Winter foods, though, so that's something to look forward to.
As the season changes it's time to make Chili-- so, I herald: Bring on the Fall and Winter Food! (Like I said, it's pretty much the best thing about the next several, long months.) Oh- back up a minute- as you might be aware, the Chili will be the result of the massive Garden Tomato Base Soup or Sauce I made several days ago now.
Ok, so I woke up this day and realized I hadn't soaked beans over night. Hence, I decided to use the crock-pot as it's meant to be used. Because I was using the crock-pot, I made way more beans than I used in this recipe, but that's okay. They will come in handy for the next meal I think. Plus, it's really silly to make 1 serving of beans from dry beans- especially in a crock-pot- given the effort involved.
Before this time, I had never left the crock-pot on all day while I was away at work. It just seemed scary to me. I know, I know, that's what they are for. But still! It's kind of weird, no?  I think I felt more comfortable this time, though, because I now have a dog walker*. He's awesome for so many reasons- for example in this instance, when he came to relieve the Girls mid-day, he could tell me if the place was burned down or burning down or if he believed it would burn down if he didn't unplug the scary-left-alone-crock-pot. Perfect.
And so with total (shaky) confidence at 630 AM, into the crock-pot went 1/2 cup of beans covered with more water than usual, maybe 2 cups (again so no burning happened), plus a bay leaf or 2 for good measure, set on low and I walked out the door, hoping for the best. This worked out pretty well. Except, I got distracted on my way home from work and totally forgot I had the beans on. So, they were a little softer than usual...but that actually surprised me.  I had them in the pot, on low for about 12 hours. I thought for sure without soaking them, the beans would still be pretty firm by the time I got to them. Maybe if I had made it home in 10 hours, like normal, they'd have been just perfectly cooked, still slightly firm and completely whole. As it was, they were on the more-mushy-but-still-looks-mostly-like-a-bean side. I am thrilled with my new knowledge of crock-pot bean cookin'! I'll definitely make more beany dishes in the crock this Winter.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 C base tomato soup or sauce

1/2 C cooked Red Kidney beans

1/4 C chopped onions

2 T chili powder

1/2 T garlic powder

1/4 tsp white pepper

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

dash of salt to taste

Make It:

1. Cook those beans in the slow cooker (crock-pot)! You could cook them with the spices, but I wasn't sure what else I would use the beans for, so decided to cook them plain with just the bay leaves

2. Heat the base soup to a boil and stir in all the spices. Reduce to simmer, add chopped onions and cover. Simmer for at least 15 minutes. 

3. Scoop out 1/2 cup of beans, mostly beans and a little of the crock-pot cooking liquid, and add to the base mixture. Simmer for 5 minutes to heat everything through. 

4. Toast your favorite chili bread (be it garlic bread, polenta, corn muffins, texas toast, etc.).

5. Pour Chili into a big bowl, serve with your toasted chili bread. 

Oh so easy and delicious! The chili really turned out pretty yummy. I wish I had not dilly-dallied after work or I would have made polenta or corn muffins to go with it. Instead I had some garlic toast. Still not bad, but not the perfect side for chili- in my opinion anyway.

This Chili is brought you by the number 288. As in, only 288 calories make this giant bowl of yumminess and is packed with more than 12 grams of protein. Enjoy!

Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 1

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 288.2

Total Fat: 6.9 g

Cholesterol: 0.0 mg

Sodium: 653.1 mg

Total Carbs: 52.5 g

Dietary Fiber: 19.1 g

Protein: 12.5 g

Base Soup Meal 2 - Creamy Curry Soup in a Snap!

My little sister Nikki called while I was making this, so I am not really sure how long it took to make. But if memory serves me right, it was pretty quick- or Snappy if you will. And, since she called I wasn't able to take as many photos as I usually like to share with my recipe posts, so you'll have to use your imagination.

This is the second dinner I made using the Garden Tomato Base Soup or Sauce. I am really getting into the idea of the "base soup" concept. I have some great ideas for the next few dinners, but will keep you waiting in expense to find out what I was able to do.

I found myself dreaming of curry the other day (I know-shocker since I <3 Curry SO much!). I think I was remembering a conversation I had with my Indian friend, Anette, and how she uses curry almost everyday. We discussed the Tomatillo as we worked in the college community garden together. Anette had never heard of a tomatillo, so I explained its unique tomato-like texture with hints of chili flavor. I ventured to guess that a tomatillo would make a delicious green curry... if my freaking tomatillos ever come in in my own garden, I'll venture to prove my guess correct. But don't hold your breath since they are still not in and it's nearly October!

I digress...this post is not about tomatillos or green curry. It's about a curry dish I made with my Garden Tomato Base Soup or Sauce. And it's about how damn tasty and super quick it was to make (since the base was already started).

Ingredients:

1 1/2 C base tomato soup or sauce 

3/4 - 1 C water 

1 Jalapeno pepper

3 T dry red lentils

1/4 C Almond Milk, Unsweetened
1 T Curry powder
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp white pepper

1/2 loaf of Na'an

Make it: 

1. Heat the base tomato soup and the water to a boil, stir in red lentils and simmer covered. 
2. While that mixture is cooking, roast the pepper on the flame of the stove burner. 
3. Once the skin is scorched, toss it in a paper bag for 5 minutes to cool. 
4. Stir the tomato mixture. Peel the pepper, seed and dice it. Toss it in the tomato mix, recover and simmer. 
5. When the lentils have softened, the new soup mix should be relatively thick. 
6. Start toasting or heating the Na'an anyway you prefer- careful not to burn it. 
7. Stir or whip the soup using a handle held blender to make the mix smooth. Stir in the almond milk and remove from heat. 
8. Pour into a serving bowl and serve with Na'an. This got a little spicy, so it was nice to temper it with the Na'an. Though if calories and carbs of real concern, then you can skip the tasty bread and just fill up on this oh so satisfying soup. 

And there you have it...yet another yummy dinner for 1, with just the right amount of protein and calories and filling goodness to last the whole night. And all for under 400 calories (again, take out the Na'an and we're under 300) with 16 grams of protein and many other nutrients!

Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 1

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 356.1

Total Fat: 7.8 g

Cholesterol: 0.0 mg

Sodium: 428.2 mg

Total Carbs: 60.2 g

Dietary Fiber: 12.7 g

Protein: 16.0 g

Base Soup Meal 1 - Basil Soup & Grilled Chevre Sandwich

I received some sage advice on keeping up with this blog from some fabulous friends (thanks Ladies- Sarah, Lauren & Melissa- you are beautiful). One thing that I will certainly consider is that I don't have to post to you everyday, so long as I am consistent. Well, I am going to do my best then to be consistent and post on Sunday and Thursday of the week. That's my intent- we'll see how well I stick to it.


Given this intent the recipes and meals I made from the big batch of GardenTomato Base Soup or Sauce will be the topic of the next several posts and weeks. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do eating them. If I get more inspiration or, really, more time then I might post more frequently. At least for this series in case you, too, are sitting on a bunch of tomatoes you're not quite sure what to do with.

As you may recall, I posted last about a Garden Tomato Base Soup or Sauce. This was the result of having a TON of tomatoes and not knowing what 1 person could do with them all. I have since managed to make use of nearly all of them. I made this giant batch of soup or sauce and stuck in the fridge, each night (well almost each) making something new with it.
I mentioned in that first base post that I was so tired after cooking all the tomatoes, I opted for something extremely simple. So I made a tomato basil soup and grilled a sandwich with fresh basil and goat cheese. Nothing too fancy, but really, really satisfying!

This is not the most exciting post I'll share, however, it is the first of the dishes I've made with the Base Soup/Sauce and as promised I am telling you about it.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 C Base Soup or Sauce
1-2 T fresh chopped and torn basil
1/4 T garlic powder
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 cup onion rings
2 slices of low-calorie, whole wheat, no crap added bread (45 calories a slice in this recipe and still NO crap added!)
1/2 oz soft goat cheese
Olive Oil Spray

Make It:

1. Bring the base tomato soup to a boil, add spices and reduce to a simmer. Cover and simmer for several minutes while you slice the onions and prepare the bread.
2. Prepare the bread by smearing the goat cheese on both pieces, but only 1 side of each. Then place largely torn pieces of basil on the cheese. Set aside.
3. Heat a small frying pan with some olive oil or olive oil spray and stir-fry or 'grill' the onions until browned. Remove from pan.
4. Add the remaining basil to the soup and stir. Cover and keep on simmer.
5. Return frying pan to heat, coat with olive oil spray, place 1 piece of bread (cheese side up!) in the pan, add the onions to the cheese side and then place the other piece of bread (cheese side down!) on top of it. Cook on med-hi heat to brown and then flip to grill the other side. Slice in half.
6. Pour the hot soup into a soup bowl and serve with the grilled sandwich.

Again, not too involved but a really tasty meal! And it's really low in calories but high in nutrients! Under 300 calories and over 16 grams of protein- not to mention all that C and A from the tomatoes and everything else in there. You really can't go wrong with this simple little dish.

Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 1

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 263.0

Total Fat: 7.9 g

Cholesterol: 6.5 mg

Sodium: 908.9 mg

Total Carbs: 37.0 g

Dietary Fiber: 13.7 g

Protein: 16.8 g

Garden Tomato Base Soup or Sauce

I am having a hard time keeping up with the garden this season. With work, school and all the other committees or groups I work with, it's just been a lot. I knew I had to get in there and do some watering, weeding and picking of fresh food. So, one night last week, I came home from work and took the Girls over thinking I'd work into the night, sweating, pulling weeds, trimming vines, and really get the garden back in shape. Well, I didn't get much maintenance completed because most of my time was spent harvesting a ton of tomatoes, and other vegetables and herbs!
What the heck was I going to do, for a party of 1, with all these tomatoes? I am not ready to bust out the canning gear. I already have some delicious sauce saved in the freezer. I don't have dinner or lunch really planned for this work week, so I should do something with it that will be eaten this week. But that's a lot of tomatoes! So I decided I would make a giant batch of "base soup or sauce" and use it to make 5 different meals this week. I thought it might be fun to see what different things I can create with the same base ingredients.
So far, so good. I'll post them as I get time. But one night was tomato basil soup with grilled chevre sandwich and the other night was creamy, spicy curry soup with grilled Na'an. Next, I think I'll make a sauce and smother grilled eggplant (see those lovely fairytale eggplants above? mmm...) and polenta or maybe make a minestrone...oh, there's a dish I remember making that involves doughy biscuits and tomato soup, that might be nice...
But for now, I am going to share the method and ingredients for the Base Soup or Sauce. I used what I had in the cupboard and fridge. If I were planning this ahead of time I probably would have used more carrots and less celery. As it was I had a little over 1 C of chopped onion, and a little less than 1 C of each celery and carrots. I also had about 40-45 romas and 3 medium sized beef-steaky types  (both are  called some other names as heirloom tomatoes, but I can't remember them).

Ingredients:
27, Italian (Roma) Tomatoes, blanched and peeled - I weighed them, but I don't know if my scale is that accurate and the calorie tool I use didn't want weight, it asked for #. The weight was 40oz.
3, medium tomatoes, peeled - again I weighed these and they were about 10 ounces
1+ C Onions, chopped
-1 C Carrots, chopped
-1 C Celery, diced
1 T Olive Oil
4 tsp Garlic, minced
1 tsp white pepper powder
1 C cup water





Make it

1. Wash, blanch in hot water then a cool water bath, and peel the tomatoes. I didn't bother seeding them, but you can if you want to work that much harder. 
2. Chop celery, carrots, onions and mince (or use jarred garlic) garlic.
3. Add everything to a giant stock pot.
4. Add white pepper and water. Boil on high for 15 minutes, reduce to simmer. Blend with hand held blender.
5. Cover and cook down for 45 minutes or longer if you have time. 

This makes a chuncky-ish type base. By the time this base was finished, I was really hungary. My first meal with it then is not my most creative work. I just made a really simple soup without blending or processing further and dressed it up with a grilled sandwich. It was really great. But I sat and thought of other, creamier ve chevre rsions. Stay tuned...

Serving Size: 5, 1.5 cup servings

Nutritional Info

• Servings Per Recipe: 5
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 140.5

• Total Fat: 4.2 g
• Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
• Sodium: 73.9 mg
• Total Carbs: 26.0 g
• Dietary Fiber: 6.2 g
• Protein: 4.4 g

Scarborough Fair Stuffed Zucchini

My urban garden is in full bloom...and I've been thinking a lot about barley lately. I am not sure why, but since it's been on my mind I decided to do something about it. I really like barley and have mostly enjoyed it in soups. Tonight, I decided to use it as a stuffing. I should back-up a bit...I have also been dreaming of stuffing this perfectly formed [screaming to be stuffed] eight-ball zucchini from the garden. Really, what  else is this thing asking for but to be topped, scooped and stuffed??

I should also note that tonight I have had my eyes dilated and hence was really challenged with vision while cooking. So give me some leeway if my photos or measurements are a little off... I had to take glasses on and off based on what task was to be completed. I now have a slight headache, but a glass of  Merlot (from a nice bottle my neighbor presented me as a 'thank you' for watching his kitties) is helping with that. On another side note, the result of dilated eyes was that I am doing fine- my eyes haven't changed much since my last appointment (over 7 years ago) and I was told by the doc- "Considering your eyes haven't changed much in the last 6-7 years, whatever you're doing, keep doing it!" To which I replied, "well, I do eat a lot of carrots" 'cause I do. I will be getting some new frames/lenses because my insurance will cover it and because of all the time I spend on the PC it's recommended I get the anti-glare lenses. I'll be sure to share whether I note a difference or not. 7-14 days from now, though, so don't hold your breath.

Ok, back to dinner- I am stuffed! As was my lil' zucchini. But it was tasty. Next time, my Scarborough mix will be stronger- I didn't pick nearly enough rosemary, thyme or parsley. I had plenty of sage. (sing along with me, Paaar-sley, Saaage, Rose-Maaary and Thyyyyme). I have amended the recipe to show what I think would be appropriate vs what I actually did. So play with it as you please. I also added a bit more pepper once the plate was served. I think overall, I could have used more salt and pepper while cooking. But to each their own with that. And I definitely had some of the barley mix left over- at least 1/3 of it ( which I plan to put on a salad to bring to work for lunch).

Ingredients

Zucchini

• 1 round, or oblong, zucchini originally weighing about (pre-seeded/scooped 300 grams 
• 1/4 C Barley, pearled, raw, 0.15 cup (remove)1/4 C Celery, chopped
• 1 C Water
• 1/4 C Carrots chopped
• 1/4 C Celery chopped
• 1/4 C + 3 T Onions, chopped
• 1/2 tsp Garlic minced
• 1 C Mushrooms chopped
• Sprigs of parsley, sage, rosemary & thyme divided in 2/3 to 1/3

Sauce

• 2-3 Italian Red Ripe Tomatoes 
• 2 T Tomato Paste
• 1/2 tsp Garlic minced
• 1 tsp Olive Oil
• 2 T Water
• Sprigs of parsley, sage, rosemary & thyme using what remains from barley mix

Make it
 1. Cut the top off the zucchini and scoop out the insides. If needed cut the bottom so it stands flat, but without putting a hole in the bottom. Dust with pepper and salt, add a little water to the inside of the zucchini and wrap in foil. Place it in the toaster oven (no need to warm the whole big oven!) at 400.

2. While the zucchini is baking (this is done to soften it up some before stuffing), start the barley. Rinse it well, then boil it in 3 parts water 1 part barley to cook.
3. As the barley and zucchini cook, chop the rest of the veggies for both the stuffing and sauce. Near the end of the barley cooking add the celery, carrots, garlic and onions plus the herbs. Continue to cook, add water if necessary, until the veggies are soft.
4. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce. In a small saucepan, add all the ingredients and bring to a boil, then cover and reduce and simmer.
5. At the very end of the barley cooking, add the shrooms. This keeps them firm but cooked.
6. Check the zucchini. Make sure it stays firm enough to stuff, but soft enough to poke with a fork.
7. Remove the zucchini from the oven, stuff it with the hot barley mix, and top it with the fresh sauce. Serve hot.


Again, another really satisfying meal for under 300 calories!

Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 1

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 278.1

Total Fat: 2.1 g

Cholesterol: 0.0 mg

Sodium: 420.1 mg

Total Carbs: 60.1 g

Dietary Fiber: 12.4 g

Protein: 11.7 g

Garden Fresh Portobello Tacos

I made these a while ago, but knew I'd want to share them once I got the blog back up and running. I didn't do much "cooking for one" this weekend. One of my best friends, the lovely Sarah came into town with her super cute baby Claudia. We had a BBQ with the beautiful Melissa and Joe- also my best, awesome friends who live here in Chicago with their two amazing little boys, Liam and Evan plus Joe's little brother Nicholas. It was great time with tons of cute baby action and fabulous adult conversations.
Yes, I cooked some things for it but they were meals for many. And I wasn't really pleased with one of the dishes- it needs work before I'd post it here. I might post the marinade, which was really good, I made for the kabobs, but I forgot to take pictures. So that might have to wait until I make them again. But first, I need a grill. Anyone getting rid of a table top gas grill? I really need one for myself, but don't like buying new things if I can find it gently loved by someone else that doesn't need it anymore.

Sarah and I had lunch before she left today. Sarah ordered Chicken Tacos and I had Gazpacho (I just can't get enough!) and we split an order of delicious fried cheese curds. I was admiring her tacos and kind of wished I had ordered some myself (not chicken, of course) so tonight I was thinking about these tacos I made a few weeks ago. I don't have the ingredients tonight, so I'm just eating leftovers from the BBQ. But I really want these instead.

They are called Garden Fresh not because I grew the mushrooms, but the pico de gallo that goes with it is from the garden- well, at least 1 tomato, the cilantro and the jalapenos.

Garden Fresh Portobello Tacos
Ingredients

• 2 caps Portobello Mushrooms 
• 2 Corn Tortillas (approx 6" dia) 
• 1 1/2 ounces Reduced Fat Cheddar Cheese
• 1/4 of Avocados, California (Haas)
• 3 T Pico de Gallo*
*Pico de Gallo

• 1 medium tomato, diced
• a bunch of cilantro, chopped
• 1/4 medium onion (spanish or red), diced
• 1 jalapeno, diced
• salt to taste

Make it

1. Slice the mushroom caps strips. 

2. Heat a skillet with cooking spray and add shrooms. 

3. Add 1/3 the amount of pico de gallo you have (really you can't have too much!) to the mushrooms, stir. Reduce heat to low. 

4. Shred the cheese (if using), chunk the avocado, and heat the tortillas. Getting them slightly damp before adding to a dry hot pan will help loosen up the tortillas for folding. 

5. Fill the heated tortillas with the mushrooms, avocado, remaining pico de gallo and top with cheese. 

These are really delicious and versatile. Try fresh cilantro and chopped onion. Or add cumin to the mushrooms while they cook. Don't use cheese and it's vegan. Oh the possibilities!! Of course, if you leave the cheese off you have a lesser calorie and fat dinner, but even still this one is just over 300 calories. Amazingly yummy, too! As you can see in the image, the mushrooms and pico mixes make much more than can fit in the tortillas, but makes a lovely salad-like dish to put on the side of this. Oh so satisfying. 

Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 1

Serving Size: 2 awesome tacos with extra Pico de Gallo & 'Shroom mixture salad

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 307.4

Total Fat: 14.7 g

Cholesterol: 15.0 mg

Sodium: 437.8 mg

Total Carbs: 36.7 g

Dietary Fiber: 8.8 g

Protein: 14.8 g

I pack my own lunch: part 1

I love to pack my own lunch to work. I enjoy it for several reasons- because I like what I cook; because I know where the food I am eating came from & bringing my lunch creates far less waste than eating out, i.e., I have control over the impact of my choices; bringing my lunch allows me to have more time to enjoy it vs. trying to procure it.

This summer Gazpacho is pretty much like a staple in my home. I love tomatoes!! But year-round they are nearly impossible to enjoy- especially in the Mid-West (because that's where I live- insert your location and empathize with me according to season). I know you can "get them in winter" but they are from far, far away picked while green and having to ripen on a boat, truck, plane, long before they get to the store- and they taste like yuck! Not to mention their embodied CO2...yikes!!

So this is the time of year to make 'everything tomato' your heart (stomach) desires. And by Gazpacho, clearly I don't mean store bought, of course, I mean homemade. Do I mean traditional Gazpacho? No, I don't think so. The interweb isn't really opening up to what "traditional" means anyway...so I am not really concerned. It seems as though so long as the cold summer soup is tomato based, you can call it gazpacho. And that's exactly what I am doing.

I have also been interested in the nutritional properties of nutritional yeast. I'm trying to cut down on my dairy intake, for many reasons but 2 most significant are to minimize my individual carbon footprint & because I've been hearing more about linkages to lactose and cancer growth (not in a good way). I know nutritional yeast makes a nice "cheesy" flavor for things and it's, well, nutritional! So I've experimented with it for cheese-like foods, including dusting popcorn with it for a cheesy flavor and recently, my favorite, coating raw, pressed, extra firm tofu with it and some salt and pepper.

As I mentioned, bringing my own lunch also cuts down on waste since I don't have to use styrofoam, or plastic-ware of sorts, or other "take-out trash" on a daily basis. At the office, I keep a set of cutlery, a cloth napkin and a container of salt and pepper. I carry my lunch in glass jars that once housed something like salsa, garlic, prepared chutney or some other jarred food. And I have a handy cloth sack that keeps it all together. There's a fridge in the common area near my office, so I don't have to worry about keeping things cold in a portable cooler.

There, now you have the rationale behind what I've been enjoying for the last several weeks: since about mid-June my daily work lunch has consisted of the following (with recipes):

Weekly Gazpacho:
(disclaimer: each week there's a new twist, but the following are the base ingredients- amend as you prefer)

6-7 medium tomatoes, roughly skin 3-4 of them & dice them all
3/4, roughly, C chopped of each of the following
- Red onions (or spanish or Vidalia)
- Celery- Carrots
Fresh Basil leaves, 10 or so, torn
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 T olive oil
1 T red wine vinegar

1/2-1 C water

1/2 Haas Avocado, diced

Fresh ground pepper and sea salt to taste


I chop everything pretty rough, adding it to a giant bowl as I go along- all except the water and the avocado. Once it's all in the bowl, I then add the water. Using my blender, I "chop" 3/4 of the mixture until it's somewhat smooth, but not too frothy. I return that to the bowl, add the avocado, stir and refrigerate. *This should make about 8 cups, of which 1 cup is a serving.
This week, I added some rough chopped red cabbage to each serving before leaving the house in the AM. That added some nice texture and flavor.

"Cheesy" Tofu:

Tofu, extra firm, 0.2 block (1/5 block pressed)
Nutritional Yeast Flakes, 1T 
Pepper, black, 4 dash (freshly ground, several twists)
Salt, 2 dash
Chop the tofu, add yeast, salt & pepper, stir to coat. Refrigerate until lunch time.  
And I add a piece of fruit (this week, Pears!) for good measure.

(less than 300 calorie, protein & nutrient rich, & low carbon-impact lunch - oh so satisfying!) 

Gazpacho Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 8
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 71.7
Total Fat: 3.8 g

Cholesterol: 0.0 mg

Sodium: 71.1 mg

Total Carbs: 9.6 g

Dietary Fiber: 2.9 g

Protein: 1.6 g

"Cheesy Tofu" Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 1

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 118.4

Total Fat: 6.1 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 321.9 mg
Total Carbs: 5.6 g
Dietary Fiber: 2.4 g
Protein: 13.7 g

Pear Nutritional Info

Servings Per Recipe: 1
Amount Per Serving (1 medium)
Calories: 97.9Total Fat: 0.7 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 0.0 mg
Total Carbs: 25.1 g
Dietary Fiber: 4.0 g
Protein: 0.6 g