Mushroom Maddness--Marsala Wine Sauce

After grilling this weekend we had a bunch of left-over mushrooms that I knew were going to go bad if I didn’t use them up. I decided to throw together some Marsala sauce so I could freeze it and use it at a later date. I usually serve it over chicken breast, but veal would work as well. Just pound the chicken or veal thin, dredge it in a mixture of flour, salt, pepper and paprika and brown it in a tablespoon of oil (you can use PAM too, but you will get a better brown on the protein with oil).

Marsala Sauce
8 PointsPlus values in whole recipe
400 calories, 0g fat, 0g fiber
Serves 2-4, depending on how saucy you like things

Ingredients
-1.5 cups Marsala cooking wine
-1 cup beef broth
-1 cup sliced mushrooms
-1/2 onion, finely diced
-1 clove garlic, crushed
-1 tbs balsamic vinegar
-1 tsp soy sauce
-1 tsp dried oregano
-1/2 tsp ground black pepper
-2 tsp cornstarch mixed with 1 tsp cold water (do this right at the end)

Directions
-Spray a large pan with PAM. Over medium-high heat, saute mushrooms and onions until they are soft and all liquid has evaporated.
-Add crushed garlic and saute 30 seconds.
-Remove from heat and add the rest of the ingredients EXCEPT for the cornstarch.
-Simmer for 5 minutes over medium-high heat.
-Reduce heat to low, add cornstarch/water mixture and stir until it looks well incorporated. This will thicken your sauce.
-Simmer for 10 more minutes over low heat.
-Serve over chicken or veal. You can also cool and freeze.

Healthy meals to nourish your mind.

Falling for Falafel Take Two

I have been craving falafel, but since I am a new girl in a new city I have no idea where to get it. I have not been able to find my favorite frozen variety, featured in my November 5th blog so I have had to come up with my own recipe. I created this tonight so that I could have falafel tomorrow for lunch. It smells delicious, and the final verdict will be in tomorrow, but I think it is safe to say that it is going to be yummy!

Baked Falafel
Makes 9 falafel balls
2 points per ball
75 calories, 1 gram of fat, 1 gram of fiber

Ingredients
1 can chick peas, drained and rinsed
1 tsp cumin
1/2 cup breadcrumbs, divided
1 egg
1 tsp dried parsley or 1 tbs fresh
½ tsp garlic powder
¼ red onion, chopped

Directions
-Preheat oven 350 degrees
-In a large bowl, mix garlic, parsley, ¼ cup breadcrumbs, and egg. Let sit 5 minutes until thick.
-Mix in red onion.
-Add chickpeas.
-Mash entire mixture with a potato masher or a large fork until you get a smooth consistency.
-Form into golf-ball sized balls.
-Roll each ball lightly in breadcrumbs.
-Spray with each ball with PAM and bake 10 minutes. Turn each ball over, spray again with PAM, and cook 5 more minutes.

Healthy meals to nourish your mind.

A berry yummy breakfast--low-fat blueberry mini-muffins

Since we have moved I am amazed by all of the wonderful berries we have available to us! We went a little overboard at The Fresh Market with blueberries, and I wanted to use some of them up before they went bad. I also wanted to make a healthy option to give my 17 month old for breakfast. I came across many blueberry muffin recipes on line, and I mixed a few of them together to come up with these yummy treats. I added 1 tbs of Benefiber to the flour mixture to increase the fiber content, but you can omit and the points will stay the same.

Low-Fat Blueberry Mini-Muffins
Makes 32 mini-muffins
1 point per muffin
60 calories, 3 grams fat, 1 gram fiber


Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbs Benefiber
2 tablespoons baking powder
½ cup sugar
4 tbs unsalted butter, melted
¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
1 egg, slightly beaten
¾ cup skim milk
1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Spray a 24-cup mini-muffin tin with PAM.
In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and sugar.
In another bowl, combine melted butter, unsweetened applesauce, egg, and milk and mix well.
Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture and with a spatula, stir until just combined.
Gently fold the blueberries into the batter.
Spoon the batter into the muffin tray, filling each cup about 2/3 full.
Bake for 10-15 minutes until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool for about 10 minutes in the pan before removing the muffins from the tin.
Bake remaining 8 muffins, for a total of 32 mini-muffins.

Healthy meals to nourish your mind.

Midsummer Memories--Swedish potato salad with cucumber and red onion

As many of you know, we recently relocated to the South. Our move happened to fall on Midsummer, which is better known as the summer solstice. While not a huge deal here in the USA, in Sweden (which is where my mom is from) people go all out celebrating. While massive amounts of liquor are usually consumed, standard summer fare is served consisting of boiled potatoes and pickled herring. The potato salad below offers a nice twist on traditional Midsummer dishes. I make this potato salad year round, and it is especially great for those of you who do not like the typical mayo-based potato salad.


Swedish potato salad with cucumber and red onion
Serves 10
141 calories/6 grams of fat/3 grams of fiber per serving
3 Weight Watchers Points per serving

Ingredients
6 medium sized red potatoes, skins on, well-scrubbed, cubed into large chunks
1 cup English cucumber, skin on, diced
¼ cup red onion, diced
1/2 cup red-wine vinegar
¼ cup canola oil
1 tsp salt,
1 tsp pepper
1 tbs fresh parsley, chopped

Directions
-Boil cubed potatoes until fork tender (about 10 minutes once they start to boil).
-Drain and return to pot.
-In a small bowl, mix remaining ingredients.
-Pour mixture over hot potatoes. Lightly toss until well mixed.
-Allow salad to cool, and then refrigerate overnight.

Healthy meals to nourish your mind.

Father's Day Flashback--Balsamic green beans with baby mozzarella and tomatoes

2 years ago on Father's Day, I found out I was pregnant with our little man! Being excited, we went out for dinner to celebrate at a local Italian place (this was pre-morning sickness!). I ordered this salad and fell in love. I have modified it to be lower in fat and calories. It is the perfect dish to serve prior to a meal, or just as a plain old side. It also works great for a picnic take-along! It has become a summer time favorite of mine.

Balsamic green beans with baby mozzarella and tomatoes
Serves 8
141 calories/8 grams fat/3 grams fiber
4 Weight Watchers points per serving

Ingredients
2 pounds fresh green beans, trimmed and cut in half
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
½ a red onion, quartered and sliced thin
½ cup fresh mini-mozzarella balls, packed in water (not oil marinade)
½ cup balsamic vinegar
¼ cup canola oil
¼ cup honey
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

Directions
-Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
-Drop in green beans and cook for 2 minutes until color turns bright green.
-Quickly strain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.
-Pour cooled green beans into a large mixing bowl.
-Mix green beans with tomato halves, sliced onion and mozzarella balls.
-In a separate bowl, mix balsamic vinegar, oil, honey, salt and pepper. For best results, use an immersion blender for a rich and creamy dressing. If you don’t have an immersion blender, use a whisk and beat ingredients until dressing begins to thicken.
-Pour dressing over green bean salad, and combine well.
-Refrigerate overnight.

Healthy meals to nourish your mind.

A taste of the islands--coconut and red bean rice

Summertime always makes me want to experiment with new dishes, and recently, the Caribbean seems to be my inspiration. Something about the smell of jerk seasoning makes we want to sit back with a margarita and indulge in foods from the islands. This side-dish incorporates some traditional flavors with a twist to make it a healthy alternative. Serve with jerk chicken for a complete meal.


Coconut rice
Makes 2 cups of rice
4 servings (1/2 cup of rice)
Per serving
Calories 185
Fat 2
Fiber 3
POINTS 3

Ingredients
2/3 cup low-fat coconut milk
1/3 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup canned kidney beans or red beans
1/2 cup white rice
1/2 onion, diced
1/4 red pepper, diced
1/8 tsp tumeric
1/8 tsp thyme
salt/pepper

Directions
-Saute onion and pepper in PAM
-Add coconut milk and chicken stock, bring to a boil.
-Add beans, spices, salt and pepper.
-Add rice. Return to boil. Cover and reduce heat to low.
-Simmer cook 15 minutes.

Healthy meals to nourish your mind.

Eating ourselves out of house and home: 20 days, 1 full freezer, 2 hungry adults

The count-down has begun. We have decided to take the plunge and move South. While many challenges lie ahead, the biggest one right now is eating all of the food we have in the house! My goal over the next few weeks is to eat my way through all of the frozen ingredients I have stocked up on. From a meat/poultry perspective the freezer isn't too full: 1 flank steak, 2 packs of ground turkey, and 12 chicken breasts. There are also the random veggies: corn, broccoli, artichoke hearts, brussel sprouts and spinach. The goal is to use up as much as I can in the next 19 days so I have as little left as possible by the end of the month.

Turkey-Spinach Meatloaf will knock one pack of turkey and 1 box of spinach off the list, while supplying us with 2 dinners (one loaf to eat this week, one to freeze for next week). 1 loaf easily serves two adults, with enough left over for a small sandwich the next day. Serve with mashed potatoes for a real comfort-food dinner.

Turkey-Spinach Meatloaf
Makes 2 loaves
16 points per loaf (800 calories)
Each loaf makes 8 pieces, 2 points per piece (100 calories)

Ingredients
-PAM
-1/2 onion, chopped
-1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
-1 egg, beaten
-1 teaspoon salt
-1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
-1.25 pounds ground turkey breast
-1 (10-ounce) packages frozen leaf spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed dry
-1 cup chili sauce, divided

Directions
-Pre-heat oven 350 degrees.
-In a large saucepan, saute onion until soft and translucent.
-Add spinach and cook over low heat for 5 minutes.
-In a medium bowl, mix breadcrumbs, egg, ½ cup chili sauce, salt and pepper.
-Combine breadcrumb mixture with spinach and onion mixture.
-Add ground turkey to mixture and work until well blended but do not over mix.
-Line a large cookie sheet with foil and spray with PAM.
-Form turkey mixture into 2 loaves. Top each loaf with 1/4 cup chili sauce.
-Bake 30-45 minutes, until juice from loaves run clear.

Healthy meals to nourish your mind.