Roasted Veggies...

It's that time of year again. Where we all want to hibernate in our caves and eat warm comfort food. This is your gentle reminder of the pure yumminess of roasted vegetables.

Here is a recipe from last January. 

Some good vegetables to roast are:

Root vegetables - sweet and white potatoes, carrots, turnips, rutabaga.

Winter squashes - acorn, spaghetti, butternut

Summer squashes - yellow and green (zucchini)

Brussels sprouts

Mushrooms of all kinds are also great to toss in for the last 20 minutes or so.

Most vegetables roast well at 375 or 400 degrees and for 40-45 minutes, flipping half way through.

Here is what I had for dinner tonight...

Olive oil and herb couscous topped with zima tomatoes.

Brussels sprouts, petite green beans and baby carrots.

Pumpkin and Broccoli - the tastes of Fall.

As you know, I enjoy buying new products and giving them a shot. My two recent purchases were no disappointment!

They have pumpkin flavored everything from yogurt, to cream cheese, to bagels, to granola, to English muffins, to beer, to donuts, etc. You either love pumpkin or you hate it. I am one of those that love it! Therefore I had to test these out. And they are super yummy!

110 calories

1g fat

5g fiber

3g sugar

5g protein

AMAZING!

topping suggestion: 2 tbsp. whipped cream cheese! (only 60 calories!)

Next up! Veggies!

Green Giant has come out with seasoned steamers. I looked at some of the stats on all of them and these seemed to be the most reasonable. 

Of course you can season broccoli yourself and come up with even better calorie stats but most of us are busy and need something quick. This broccoli has a delicious Tuscan inspired flavor with Parmesan cheese, garlic, peppers and onion. 

60 calories, 2g protein, 2g fiber, 2g sugar and 4g fat per serving

Spaghetti Squash with Spicy Arrabiata Sauce

I've been hearing for months about this spaghetti squash and how amazing it works as a swap for spaghetti. After being ultra intrigued by all the hype I finally gave in and bought one. For a week it's been sitting on my counter, staring longingly in my direction and tonight I put it to good use.

First, you have to cut it in half lengthwise but it's a bit more tricky than you might expect. The only issue I have with hard winter squash is just that... they are hard! So, what you can do is poke a few holes in it with a fork or a knife and put the whole squash in the microwave for 2-4 minutes. This will cause it to soften up enough to cut it in half. Before baking scoop out all the extra seeds and strings. Place both halves with the skin side up on a baking sheet and bake at 375 for 20-30 minutes or until done (depending on size). Let cool then easily shred with a fork. Take shredded squash and place in a colander while cooking the rest of the dish. The squash will have quite a bit of water in it so you might also pat it with a clean tea towel or paper towels.

Spaghetti Squash with Spicy Arrabiata Sauce

4 cups cooked, shredded spaghetti squash

2 - 6 oz. chicken breasts*

1/2 pkg. sliced baby bella mushrooms

1/2 yellow onion, sliced

1/2 red pepper, sliced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1 c. Arrabiata sauce (or sauce of your choice 70 cal or less per serving)

Serves 2 - 345 calories each

In a large nonstick skillet cook chicken breast, mushrooms, garlic, onions and peppers until done. You can either add your sauce to the chicken and veggies in the skillet or heat it up and add it on your plate. Top with shredded Parmesan or pecorino romano. *If you're a vegetarian you can easily omit the chicken and add garbanzo beans or a  faux meat product. Enjoy!

Workout Music!

I'm a big, big, BIG, fan of music. All kinds. And I've searched all over for great workout mixes... even tried to make a few of my own. While looking for a streaming radio app for my Android I stumbled upon this FITRadio app... it sounded promising - music to keep you motivated... even listing the BPM (beats per minute) in the mixes... so I thought, hey, it's FREE, why not?!

The results? I FREAKIN' LOVE IT!

So... go ahead. Download it. Choose a Genre. And get your body movin'!

FITRadio

Cabbage & Cannellini Bean Soup

My family was in town visiting from Kentucky and naturally we went on a few food related adventures. Had some amazing seafood. Went to a brewery in Salem. Went to a winery in Amherst. And of course, had to go to a large farmer's market. :)

We we're incredibly impressed by the ridiculously huge cabbages at Atkin's Farm. And... did I mention they we're only $1.49 a head!? So of course we had to buy one...

What exactly does one do with a massive cabbage? Well... make soup of course! Here's what happened... I Googled a bunch of soup recipes and then did my own variation... you know, what I normally do. It turned out delicious! Here's what fell together:

CABBAGE AND CANNELLINI BEAN SOUP

4-5 cups of chopped cabbage (1/2" strips essentially)

1 medium yellow sweet onion, diced

7 oz. carrots (about 2 medium carrots)

3 garlic cloves, grated or minced (you can use less if you like)

1 - 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes

1 - 5.5 oz. can V8

2 tbsp. tomato paste

1 1/2 c. rinsed cannellini beans

6 c. water (or vegetable stock)

2 bouillon cubes (if not using stock) (use veggie, chicken or beef)

salt & fresh ground black pepper to taste

Makes 12 - 1 cup servings - 50 calories each

In a Dutch oven or soup pot bring water or stock to a boil. Add in cabbage, carrots, onion, and garlic, bring to rolling boil and continue to cook on high for 10 minutes. Next bring to medium heat and add in remaining ingredients. Cover and let simmer (but not boil) for another 45-60 minutes. You could certainly cook low and slow for longer and have a deeper flavor. Or you could cook for less time and have your veggies more al dente. Depends on what you prefer. However you prepare it this soup will be satisfying, hearty and warm on a cold fall night. Perfect with grilled cheese!

"Fried" ready made chicken and fish...

Even healthy people crave fried things. I'm from the South... we fry EVERYTHING. But as you know... that is not a fit food. But these are! I'm a coupon printer/finder/hunter and I stumbled upon coupons for these Gorton's Skillet Crisp Tilapia. One filet of the Classic Seasonings type is 190 calories, 9g fat and 13g protein. The best part is (especially since most people don't seem to really enjoy cooking fish) you just heat it up in the pan and it crunches up to a "fried" consistency. Bonus, it's tasty!! Serve over salad or with your favorite steamed or roasted veggies!

Another product I stumbled upon in the grocery was Perdue Whole Grain Chicken Breast Cutlets. Now, generally I make my own "fried" chicken coating but we are all busy people and often, time is not on our side. These cutlets are 180 calories, 10g fat, and 13g protein. They are perfect to put over salad, make a fitter chicken cordon bleu, or any other veggie pairings! 

Just thought I'd share some new grocery findings for folks on the go!

Chicken Enchilada "Pie"

So last night I made my first attempt ever at making enchiladas... I know that sounds weird and sad at the same time! Who doesn't love a good enchilada?! So anyhow here's what I did and what I learned.

CHICKEN ENCHILADA PIE

10 oz. chicken breast

1 can of Medium or Mild Enchilada sauce (I think I used Old El Paso)

1/2 large green pepper, diced small

1/2 yellow sweet onion, diced small

2 cloves of garlic

4 corn tortillas (60 calories each)

1 1/2 oz. reduced fat cheddar cheese (I used Cabot - 70 calories per oz.)

2 large servings - 370 each.

Put your chicken, enchilada sauce, garlic, pepper and onion in a crock pot. Cook on high for about an hour then cook on low for another hour or so until chicken is tender and all white. Remove chicken breast from slow cooker and shred using two forks, then place back in slow cooker to absorb more sauce. Let sit for a few minutes while you prepare your oven.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9" cake pan with cooking spray. Take out 4 corn tortillas and cut two of them in half. Dip the tortillas into the sauce in the slow cooker and place 1 and two (of the cut four) halves along the bottom of the pan as best as you can to cover. Using a slotted spoon take out the chicken and place it over top of the bottom "crust" tortillas. If you want it to be a little saucier you can add more of the sauce. Repeat the dipping steps for the remaining tortillas to create the top crust. Shred your cheese (or if you can find that type already shredded!) and sprinkle over the top layer of tortillas. Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes.

Now, some notes. I bought Chi Chi's brand tortillas and they were too thick to roll, hence the "pie" instead. Also, you don't have to cook the chicken in the slow cooker but it did make it very tender. I'm sure you would get a similar result from baking the chicken or cooking it low and slow on the stove top. Lastly, it may not look that pretty once you tried to cut it of the pan and plate it but it sure is tasty!

Top with salsa and fat free or light sour cream.