Egg Roll Stir-Fry

I haven't posted in ages but am compelled to share this, if only to remember it for myself. I tend to go through food phases, and then totally forget about something I previously loved until 5 years later I see it on a blog and think, oh YEAH I can't believe I haven't been making that. So, I bring to you, my take on the Egg Roll Sir-Fry.

A lot has happened since I posted last. Has it really been three years?? I got engaged, planned and executed a perfect wedding day including making my own cake (it wasn't brilliant but I had a lot going on that day lol), had an amazing honeymoon in New Orleans (lots of awesome food and music, so perfect for us!), applied and was accepted to grad school (finally, currently underway), started a new job that's not so new anymore (and that I love), renovated and sold our condo (which looked flippin' AMAZING after renos), bought a house (which does not look at all amazing but will someday) with a huge yard (turns out I have a real green thumb, woot!!), developed major gut issues which seem to be related to a terrible dairy intolerance, which led to much mourning for cheese (I can have a little now, but not much), and currently planning for a major kitchen reno. All that, and I still had time to gain back all the weight I had lost previous :S. Well, the only failure is not trying, right? So I try....I know what works for me, just have a really hard time sticking to it.I blame the microbes in my gut http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2016/second-brain-microbes-gut-may-affect-body-mind/  but until they come up with some killer cure, it's up to me.

This dish makes it look easy though....it's lower in carbs and fat, chock-full of veggies and lean protein, and a total flavour-bomb in your mouth! I have recently discovered kimchi and gochujang, both being good sources of probiotics, and as a bonus make everything they come into contact with delicious. They are a terrific add, but even without them it's a yummy dish, just not as cool, because well fermented stuff is pretty cool these days. I named it for its resemblance to the inside of an egg roll, and the internet supports it....this is not the first or only egg roll stir-fry out there! I contend it may be the best ;).

Egg Roll Stir-Fry

1 Tbsp oil of choice (I use avocado or olive)
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 stalks celery, sliced thin
1/2 head green cabbage, shredded
2 large carrots, julienned
2 bell peppers, julienned (I like red and yellow)
1/2 cup kimchi, chopped small
1 Tbsp gochujang (or sriracha, if you can't find it)
1 tsp chicken or "no-chicken" Better Than Boullion
2 tsp sesame oil
3 green onions, sliced
2 small wads mung-bean vermicelli (a.k.a. bean threads or glass noodles)
1 pkg tofu cut into cubes or 1 lb ground turkey
1-2 Tbsp soy sauce or Bragg's aminos (GF and less sodium)

In a large fry-pan or wok heated to medium, add 1 tsp of the oil, garlic, cabbage, and celery. Stir-fry for 5 minutes and then add carrots and peppers. Cook for 5 minutes longer or until veggies are all tender but not too soft. Add the kimchi, gochujang, boullion paste, sesame oil, and green onions, combining well.

Meanwhile, soak vermicelli in water and heat a separate pot of water to boiling. Once boiling, drain the vermicelli and snip them so that they are shorter threads, about 3 inches long. Add them to the boiling water and boil for one minute, then drain and place in a large holding bowl.

Once the veggies are done, place them in the holding bowl as well and stir everything together.

Return the frypan to the stove and add the remaining oil and ground turkey or tofu. Fry until browned. Add soy sauce and fry until evaporated. I usually do both (separately), and divide the veggies into two to create both vegetarian and meatatarian versions.

Add the veggies back into the frypan with the meat or tofu, and combine well. Done!

At this point it looks like a massive amount of food, but it's actually just 5 servings, at 365 calories each! Compare to a similar amount of, say, pad thai, and its a third of the calories. Yet, totally deliciously satisfying.

Calories 365
Fat 15 g
Protein 29 g
Carbs 31 g
Fibre 5g
Sodium 568 mg

Cauliflower Crust Pizza (CCP)

It's no secret that I love pizza. There are a couple of pizza recipes already on this blog, so this one is not the first and won't be the last. The thing that makes it different is the crust - it's made of cauliflower! Examine the gorgeous toastiness, the well-formed roundness. It's looks tasty, doesn't it? Well, it WAS. This recipe truly belongs here in Yummyland. The pizza got a firm two-thumbs-up from all of us at the dinner table. And crazy enough, this recipe is vegetarian, gluten-free, low-carb, in high in awesomeness. 

I had a conversation today about pizza, and how even the thinnest of thin-crust is still relatively high in carbs and so not a great choice for those with diabetes or pre-diabetic, which relegates it to the rare-treat department. Which got me to thinking about the vegetable-based crusts that are out there these days....which is the best? And at it's best, can it be anywhere near as good as the "real thing"? So I did a quick cruise around the interwebs and found this one. By all accounts it seemed like a good choice. I haven't credited the original site because there are so many versions of this out there, I have no idea where it came from originally. Several people who posted on it mentioned the importance of squeezing the water out of the cauliflower really well...listen to them. I may not have squeezed adequately and so the centre didn't get crispy like the edges, needed more time to brown and firm up, but as the edges were already brown I didn't want to cook too much longer so I ended up with a pale undercrust. Next time I will squeeze more and remember to heat up pan or stone before placing the crust on it, and get that gorgeous golden crust all over. Was it the same as wheat-crust pizza? Well it was less different than expected. Was it as good as wheat-crust pizza? Hmm I didn't think it would be, of course not, but you know what? It is equally delicious! And because of it's healthiness, even better. The kind of better that makes your mouth AND body happy. 

So here it is, without further adieu, my take on the popular cauliflower-crust pizza! Welcome to Yummyland, CCP! 

Ingredients

1 small head cauliflower (about 500g)

¼ cup parmesan cheese

¼ cup mozzarella cheese

¼ tsp sea salt

½ tsp Italian herbs

½ tsp garlic powder

1 egg

Place a pizza stone in the oven, or baking sheet if you don’t have a pizza stone. Preheat oven to 450ºF. On a cutting board, place a large piece of parchment paper and spray it with olive oil (Mr. Misto is a great oil spray jar, get two and use one for olive oil and one for canola or other vegetable oil wih a higher smoke point and you will be set!).

Wash and dry a small head of cauliflower. Cut into florets. Pulse in your food processor for about 30 seconds, until you get powdery snow like cauliflower. You should end up with 2 to 3 cups cauliflower “snow”. Place the cauliflower in a microwave safe bowl, cover and cook on high for 8 minutes OR steam in a steamer pot on the stove top, whichever you prefer. Dump cooked cauliflower onto a clean tea towel and allow to cool for a bit before attempting the next step.

Once cauliflower is cool enough to handle, wrap it up in the dish towel and wring the heck out of it. This is the exact instruction from three or four different recipes....and it's maybe the most important step. You want to squeeze out as much water as possible. This will ensure you get a chewy pizza like crust instead of a soggy crumbly mess. So squeeze and squeeze and then when you are pretty sure your hands can't take any more squeezing, tag off and get someone else to squeeze some more. 

Dumped squeezed cauliflower into a bowl. Now add Parmesan cheese, mozzarella cheese, sea salt, dried herbs, garlic powder, and a dash of red pepper if you want. Mixy mix, form into ball. 

Now the fun part. Use your hands to form the dough into a crust on your oiled parchment paper. Pat it down thoroughly, you want it well-compressed and smooth around the edges and a nice thin-crust thickness. 

Using a cutting board, slide the parchment paper onto your hot pizza stone or baking sheet in the oven. Bake for 8-11 minutes, until it starts to turn golden brown. Remove from oven.

Spread with a simple pizza sauce (see below), cheeses, and whatever toppings you like, just not too much or your crust will get too weighed-down. Slide parchment with topped pizza back in the hot oven and cook for another 7 to 10 minutes until the cheese is melted, bubbly, and slightly golden.

Cool for a few minutes before cutting, then behold your delicious grain-free cauliflower crust pizza! Cut and serve wit ha big ole salad. This was such a great dinner, and not even a treat dinner, just a regular everyday healthy dinner! Who knew. Cauliflower is my new favourite thing. Remind to tell you about cauliflower rice sometime soon!

Nutritional info: for 1/3 of the crust recipe above, there are 136 calories, 6g fat, 13g protein, 8g carbs (woot!), 3g fibre, and 450mg sodium. The toppings are up to you!

Simple Pizza Sauce: 

1/3 small can tomato paste, 2-3Tbsp water, 1/2 tsp dried Italian herbs, 1/8 tsp cayenne, dash of salt and pepper. Combine in bowl, should be thick but not pasty, but good a spreadable. I find this sauce is great for pizza as it has lower moisture content (you can control that) and so does not make the crust soggy, especially important with this one. 

Amaretti Cookies and Cranberry-Pistachio Bark

More Christmas baking, and still more to come...so much for cutting back this year! Every year my mom and my sisters and I bake a bunch of cookies/treats and then do a cookie exchange, making up trays of delectable treats for friends, family and coworkers. This year I resolved to only bake two kinds, but that hasn't worked out for me. I just had to make these cute amaretti cookies from Alive magazine, not only are they made from healthy ingredients but they are also gluten-free, perfect for my mom (we try to make all our xmas baking gluten free so that they can all intermingle without concern). They turned out just like the picture in the magazine, and SO yummy!

The bark is, of course, a Christmas no-brainer. Cranberries, good...pistachios, good...chocolate, definately good! Yup these qualify as all good. And I must get it out of my house before there is none left for our cookie trays. I used craisins and pistachios for both kinds, both dark and white chocolate, but you could use any kind of dried fruit and nuts...cashews and flame raisins would have been nice in the dark chocolate. Next time!



Amaretti Cookies
from Alive magazine

1 3/4 cups almond meal
1/2 cup natural brown sugar
1/4 tsp almond extract
zest of 1/2 lemon, grated finely
2 large egg whites
1/3 cup sorghum flour
1/3 cup natural brown sugar
30 whole almonds (15 blanched and 15 natural)

Combine almond meal, 1/2 cup brown sugar, almond extract, and lemon zest in food processor until smooth (I just did it old-school with a wooden spoon). Refrigerate for one hour. Add egg whites and sorghum flour, combining well; dough will be soft and sticky. Scoop out a teaspoonful and roll between damp palms and then drop into a small bowl containing 1/3 cup natural brown sugar. Gently roll around in sugar, shake off excess. Place on a baking sheet lines with parchment paper and press one whole almond in the centre. Repeat with remaining dough, placing balls 1 inch apart.Bake in a 325F oven for 18 minutes or until golden. Remove to a rack and cool. Sotre in a sealed container at room temperature for up to a week, or freeze them.

Makes 30. The original recipe says 40, but they lie.



Cranberry-Pistachio Bark
This doesn't really qualify as a recipe, it's really just a cheat but man it's yummy and is always a favourite on the cookie tray. Just melt down a block of good chocolate that you've chopped into bits (I did two kinds, Callebaut dark and white). Stir in a good handful of craisins and another of pistachios, you should have about the same amount of nuts/fruit as chocolate. Pour it all onto a cookie sheet lined with wax or parchment paper, spreading it in a thin layer. Stick that in the freezer until it firms up, then take it out and peel it up off the paper. Break it into jagged peices. Done! And no one has to know how easy it was ;).

OPTIONAL: Just to be fancy, I decorated each kind with the alternate colour of chocolate. Reserve a couple of spoonfuls of chocolate after it's melted and before you add the fruit and nuts, then after you've spread the mixture out on the tray, just heap some melted chocolate on a spoon and wave it over the tray so that it drips in fine lines.I know I know, it's all very high-tech.

Parmesan Chicken Casserole

This recipe is my pick for Light Bites. It looked and sounded like a good fall comfort meal with a bit of zing. But, I will be interested to see what the other bloggers in the group thought of it, because I don't think I did it right. On close inspection, the recipe seems like there must be a mistake - it involves over two cups of liquid absorbing into the rice during only 15 minutes in the oven?! Doesn't seem right, but then again, it also says to use boil-in-a-bag rice which I have never cooked with and didn't intend to. I don't mean to be a rice Snobby McSnobberson, but boil-in-a-bag, really? Not in my house. Of course there is the possibility that said rice is somehow magic and can make 2 cups of liquid absord in 15 minutes, if so my bad. Instead, I used par-cooked rice and added less liquid to the casserole itself, I had to cook it for 50 minutes and even so the dish was a bit watery. Next time I'll use a bit of thickener in the liquid to it will be a lovely sauce...I say "next time" because this dish was SO yummy, definately a do-over is in order. Instead of plain brown rice I used a combo of red, brown, and wild, and added some red peppers and celery when sauteeing the onion. I also strayed from the recipe by seasoning and browning my chicken before adding to the dish. It seemed like the right thing to do. See the pool of liquid on the left side of the rice? Yeah baby, that liquid will next time be saucified.



Parmesan Chicken and Rice Casserolemodified from Cooking Light

Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped red pepper
1 celery rib, chopped finely
2 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup mixed rice (dry)
1/2 cup dry white wine
4 boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 1/2 tsp dried thyme
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup half and half cream
1/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper
cayenne
2 tsp cornstarch or flour

Directions
1. Add 1 cup of chicken broth to the rice in a small pot, bring to a boil then reduce heat to low and cover. Simmer gently until all the liquid is absorbed, about 30 minutes.
2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion and celery to pan; sauté 2 minutes. Add garlic, red pepper, 1/2 tsp thyme, and some black pepper; sauté about 8 more minutes, until vegetables are soft and onion is translucent.
3. Add wine and vegetable mixture to rice; cook until liquid almost evaporates. Remove from heat and spoon rice mixture in an even layer into a 13 x 9–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.
4. Season chicken thighs with 1/2 tsp thyme, salt and pepper, and a dash of cayenne. Brown both sides in a pan on high heat (chicken does not need to be cooked through). Place thighs on top of rice mixture.
5. Combine remaining broth, cream,1/2 tsp thyme and some pepper, stirring well; I am thinking that at this point adding a bit of cornstarch or flour would be beneficial, maybe 2 tsp or so. Pour over chicken and rice mixture.
6. Bake at 425° for 45 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake an additional 5 minutes to melt cheese.

Artichoke and Potato Gratin

I admit, the picture is not great and does this dish absolutely no justice. Because I gotta tell you, this was one of the most amazingly delicious potato dishes I have ever eaten, maybe THE best ever. I printed off the recipe from another blog several months ago and it got shoved off into the Big Pile of Recipes. Last weekend I decided to spend some time organizing them, finally, and came across this recipe. Since I had all the ingredients on hand, I decided it was time to make it, and boy am I glad I did! It was so good, we could could not stop exclaiming all through dinner "This is so delicious!". The sharp tang of the cheese and the wine sauce, the saltiness of the ham and tender artichokes, the textures and flavours all layered together to form one rockin gratin. This is how food should taste.

And the best part is that this dish achieves this amazing level of deliciousness without a smidge of cream and only a small smidge of butter. Who knew a scalloped potato-type dish could be improved by removing the very thing that I figured made it so delicious? I made a couple of minor modifications from the original recipe that came from Bon Appétit, the recipe does not need improving on but I just wanted to cut back on the ham content to make it a side dish rather than a main dish. Even with less ham the sodium content is pretty high, so better to pull some of that out. The calorie count is entirely reasonable, especially if you serve it with a lower-calorie protein like chicken or fish and a steamed veg...we had it with steamed broccoli and sauteed chicken with a pomegranate glaze for a total calorie count of 589, perfect for a weekend dinner. Try this. You will thank me.

Artichoke and Potato Grain
modified from Bon Appetit (just barely!)

•1 tsp butter
•2 cups thinly sliced leeks or onions
•kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
•400g russet potatoes, peeled, thinly sliced (I used mixed baby potatoes and it worked great)
•150g ham, chopped
•1 jar artichoke hearts, rinsed and sliced lengthwise
•90g (about 1 cup) finely grated Comté or Gruyère cheese
•1/4 cup low-salt chicken broth
•1/2 cup dry white wine
•2 tsp flour or cornstarch

Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray a small casserole dish with cooking spray. Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add leeks or onions; sprinkle with coarse salt and pepper and cook until tender, stirring occasionally, about 12 minutes. Set aside.In the same pan, saute the chooped ham until very lightly browned.
Cover bottom of baking dish with 1/3 of potato slices, overlapping as needed, and season with pepper. Scatter 1/2 of ham and leeks/onions over, then 1/2 of artichoke hearts, and sprinkle with half of cheese. Repeat layering with potato slices, ham, leeks, and artichokes, reserving a few leeks/onions for top. Cover with remaining potato slices and sprinkle with remaining leeks/ onions and cheese.
Whisk broth, wine, four and some ground pepper in a small pot over medium heat until flour dissolves. Bring mixture to boil; cook until smooth and thickened and slightly reduced, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Pour over gratin. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes, then cover gratin with foil, tenting in center to prevent cheese from sticking. Bake 30 more minutes or until potatoes are soft, topping is browned, and juices are bubbling. Let rest 10 minutes before serving. Makes 3 servings.

Nutritional Info: 389 calories, 13.5g fat, 23.7g protein, 52.2g carbs, 5.2g fibre, 1000mg sodium.

Sausage and Bean Casserole

Ah Fall, with your cooler weather and promise of winter you put us in the mood for comforting soups and stews and casseroles. Since I've been on a casserole kick for a while now, this Light Bites choice of recipe was welcome. When I read over the ingredient list, I thought heyyyy this is just a fancied up wieners n beaners! Cool, I'm in!

The verdict? Hmm. Not a fan. It was only ok, despite attempts to jazz it up. I found it lacked depth...the brown sugar gave it sweetness but there wasn't enough flavour going on for that sweetness to enhance. I have the leftovers for lunch and am not particularly excited about it...and I even added bacon. Bacon, man! That should make anything awesome! Mind you it was low-fat peameal bacon so maybe the lack of fat in this dish just made it fall flat for me, I dunno. I am generally on the low-fat bandwagon, but not today folks. I'd only recommend making this as a last-minute meal; the trouble I went to soak beans overnight and whatnot was not really worth it, so the original recipe's recommendation of using rinsed canned beans is more in keeping with this recipe. Kids would probably love it.

Sausage and Bean Casserole
adapted from Cooking Light

1 cup chopped onion (about 1 medium)
2 slices peameal bacon (uncooked Canadian bacon), chopped
200g light smoked turkey sausage, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup water
1/2 chicken stock cube
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1/2 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp marjoram
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup dry white beans, cooked al dente
1/2 teaspoon harissa
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 slice whole grain bread

Directions
Preheat oven to 375°.

Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion, garlic, and bacon to pan; sauté for 10 minutes or until browned. Add turkey sausage, and sauté for 2 minutes. Stir in water, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Add chicken stock cube, brown sugar, tomato paste, dried thyme, mustard, freshly ground black pepper, beans, and harissa. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat.

Place bread in a food processor, and pulse 10 times or until coarse crumbs.Sprinkle breadcrumbs evenly over bean mixture, and lightly coat with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 15 minutes or until browned.

Lemon Bars, Dark Cocoa Cookies, and Cranberry Almond Macaroons

A trio of cookies for a departing coworker! I baked last night like it was my job.It was actually really fun, starting off with this big mess of bowls and spoons and ingredients covering every surface, then one by one completing a task and cleaning that part up, and in the end I had clean counters and neat rows of baked cookies. Of course I forgot to take picures, so instead my pics are of the remnants. The lemon bars were the biggest hit!

Each of the are made with a healthy component, like whole wheat flour or trail mix or yoghurt, but lets face it, cookies are meant to be savoured and enjoyed and to me that means real sugar and butter.I only made substitutions where I figured I could get away with it and not sacrifice taste, and they all worked out very well. And the last ones are gluten-free, to boot.

The first is a recipe I got from another blogger, Apples to Zuchinni, that came from a Cooking Light recipe.

Dark Cocoa Fudge Cookies
adapted from Cooking Light

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp sea salt
5 Tbsp butter
7 Tbsp dark cocoa powder
1 cup raw (Demerara) sugar
1/3 cup fat free plain yogurt
1 tsp vanilla

1.combine dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside
2.cream butter and sugars with the yogurt and vanilla
3.add dry ingredients until moistened
4.drop by level tablespoons full onto parchment paper
5.bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes or until nearly set in the centers
6.cool on the sheet for 2-3 minutes
7.transfer to wire cooling racks

Makes 18 cookies
Each cookie: 97 calories, 4g fat, 1.5g protein, 17g carbs, 1g fibre, 70g sodium.


These lemon bars were a huge hit. The recipe came from an online friend whose delectable description of them made me demand the recipe. They are super-tangy and sweet and delicious, and my addition of whole wheat flour gives them a bit of texture and nutty flavour. Watch out, these are pucker-licious!

Lemon Bars

Crust:
1 cup whole wheat flour
½ cup butter
¼ cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Filling:
2 Tbsp ww flour
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
½ cup lemon juice – about 3 lemons

Preheat oven to 350F.
Prepare crust: beat flour, butter, powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Press dough into 9in x 9in pan. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Prick crust with a fork and bake for 25 minutes.
Just before crust is done baking, prepare the filling: Beat ingredients for 3 minutes with an electric mixer. (Don’t make this ahead of time).
Pour filling onto hot crust, and bake 25 minutes more. Dust with powdered sugar.

Makes 20 bars.
For each bar: 119 calories, 5g fat, 2g protein, 17g carbs, 1g fibre, 70mg sodium.

And last but certainly not least, my personal favourite, coconutty yumminess in the form of macaroons. The recipe is from my mom, who has been making them as a Christmas treat for years. I left off the red and green glace cherry decorations and used craisins and cranberry-almond trail mix as the fruit and nut component, but you can use any dried fruit and nuts/seeds in this. Dates and walnuts, sour cherries and almonds, apricots and pecans, figs and cashews, the possibilities are endless. And a few mini-chocolate chips thrown in wouldn't hurt anyone's feelings either.

Cranberry Almond Macaroons

1 cup fancy shredded coconut
1 cup finely shredded coconut
1/2 can sweetened condensed skim milk*
1 egg white, beaten until frothy
3/4 cups cranberry-almond trail mix, finely chopped
1/2 cup craisins, chopped
1/4 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp almond extract

Method
Add all ingredients to a large bowl a stir thoroughly.
Dollop teaspoonfuls on greased cookie sheet. Bunch together with finger so the drop is solid.
Preheat oven to 300F.
Bake at 300F till lightly golden- about 25 min. They burn easily, so watch them during the last 10 minutes. Turn oven off and leave in oven for another 30 minutes. This prevents them from going soggy.

*If you realize at the last moment you don’t have any condensed milk, a perfect substitution is 1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp dry skim milk, 6 Tbsp sugar, and 2 Tbsp hot water. Combine all and whisk or blend in blender until well combined (I had to give it a shot in the microwave to dissolve all the milk and sugar). Chill for 30 minutes to set.

Makes 25 cookies.

Per cookie: 106 calories, 4g fat, 2g protein, 16g carbs, 1g fibre, 40mg sodium

Chicken with Cider and Bacon Sauce

This recipe represents my first entry for Light Bites, a cooking/ blogging group I joined. Every Friday we blog a recipe from Cooking Light, which just happens to be one of my favourite magazines. This week's recipe is Chicken with Cider and Bacon Sauce, woo a dish right up my alley! And I only did a few minor modifications ;). I added a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar to add a bit of tang with the sweetness, upped the bacon (because I agree with Pam ,you can never have too much bacon, though I did use the slightly leaner cut of side bacon) and I used locally raised chicken thighs instead of breasts. I have nothing against breasts, but recently had a bad chicken breast experience and so preferred to use the moister, more flavourful thighs. Also added a few herbs, cayenne, and thickened the sauce with a bit of cornstarch, as others who'd reviewed it mentioned it was too thin and I can't stand a thin sauce, the cornstarch was perfect and made it a lovely, glossy sauce.

Verdict? Two yums up! Appley, bacony deliciousness. The chicken pretty much just came along for the ride, but I'm glad it did. Since I got behind and have a massive box of tomatoes to salsify this evening, I just had the chicken straight up for dinner, but I think the suggested sides of wild rice and broccoli would be perfect.

Chicken with Cider and Bacon Sauce
adapted from Cooking Light
Serves 2

4 side bacon slices, chopped
4 boneless skinless chicken thighs
1/4 tsp each freshly ground black pepper, Herbs de Provence, and cayenne
1 onion, sliced
3/4 cup unsweetened apple cider
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp cornstarch

Directions
Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan. Sesaon chicken with pepper, herbs,and cayenne and add chicken to drippings in pan. Cook 8 minutes on each side or until brown. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.

Add onion to pan; cook 10 minutes or until tender and lightly carmelized, stirring occasionally. Add cider, broth, and bacon; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook until broth mixture is reduced to 2/3 cup (about 5 minutes). Add cornstarch and stir well to combine, when sauce had thickened add chicken back to pan. Cook for another 5 minutes or so to allow sauce to penetrate chicken.Serve with rice and broccoli, or if you have a vat of salsa to make, just chow it down.

Curried Chickpea Stew

With fall arriving, I have this urge to delve into comfort-food recipes and have been making soups,stews, and casseroles galore. This recipe originally came from a friend, and got morphed with a soup I tried at a restaurant last week and wanted to replicate. The result is belly-warming deliciousness. My dad would disagree, two of the foods he hates the most are yams and curry lol....this is the Anti-Dad Stew I guess! I've never been a big fan of curry myself, until recent years when I realized there are all sorts of different curries...I actually do like most of them.
I wanted to have red lentils in this stew to thicken it, but when I went to the pantry I discovered I was out...so curry, meet quinoa. A nutritious alternative that worked quite well, I believe, but red lentils would be super too.

Curried Chickpea Stew
2 tsp olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp minced ginger
1 Tbsp curry powder
1 cup diced tomatoes
4 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable stock
1 yam, peeled and cut into 1” cubes (about 2 cups)
1 large carrot, diced
1/3 cup quinoa or red lentils
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Pepper to taste
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

Directions
In a Dutch oven or large pot, heat oil and add onion, garlic, and ginger and sauté on medium heat until onion is translucent., about 10 min.
Add stock, yam, tomatoes, and curry powder. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low and simmer, with lid offset, for one hour.
Add carrot and quinoa. Simmer for 30 more minutes.
Add chick peas and simmer for 40 minutes. Stir in cilantro and add pepper to taste.

Crockpot directions:
Combine all ingredients except cilantro in slow cooker. Cover and cook on low setting for 8 hours. Season the stew with pepper and stir in cilantro.

Nutritional Information per serving: 248 calories, 3.7g fat, 10.2g protein, 42.8g carbs, 7.6g fibre, 552mg sodium.

Mushroom-Jalapeno Bison Burgers

Ah, summer, time for grilling and drinking Caesars out on the patio. Is there anything more delectable than the smell of grilling meat wafting through the languid summer air? I don't think so. I also adore the smell of cut grass as a summer favourite, but it does not make me want to eat it. Grilling, however, turns me into a rabid dog whenever I pass a house with that unmatchable scent emanating from the yard.

These burgers will turn you into the envy of the neighborhood....like in those old commercials for Johnsonville brats, I'd make enough to feed a crowd ;).

And if that isn't enough good press for you, these burgers are low in calories, low in fat, and extremely high in yumminess! You also get the benefit of grass-fed, hormone-free meat, as bison are raised in fields not pens. That also means they had a decent life, as livestock go. Yay! You can taste the happiness. The addition of mushrooms means that the meat is stretched further, replaced by the mighty mushroom - fat free, protein rich, moisture-lending,earthy-tasting goodness. The resulting burger is lean yet juicy and packed with flavour. Add some kick from jalapenos, and maybe a slice of sharp cheese and man oh man I will be knocking down your door at dinner time.

Mushroom-Jalapeno Bison Burgers
900g (two 1-lb packages) ground bison
2 Tbsp BBQ sauce
1/2 egg
1/4C canned jalapenos, chopped
6 large or 12 small mushrooms, finely chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
¼ tsp salt
A few grinds of pepper (about ¼ tsp)


Sauté onions and mushrooms in a non-stick pan with some cooking spray until soft and mushrooms have released about half of their moisture, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate to cool. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients with hands. Squish through fingers until all ingredients are well-combined, do not over-mix! Remember, every time you overmix a kitten dies.

Divide mixture into 8 equal portions and form into patties, pressing firmly. Refrigerate until ready to cook (this helps them firm up a bit). Grill or cook in non-stick fry-pan until cooked through and brown.

If you like cheese on your burgers, top with slices of cheese and allow these to melt before removing burgers from heat. Pop on a bun, whole wheat for me, and garnish how you like.

I don't have to tell you what to do next ,do I?

Nutritional info: Each burger patty is 152 calories, 5g fat, 25g protein, 3g carbs, 0g fibre, 220mg sodium.

Thai Salad with Honey-Peanut-Lime dressing

This salad recipe is based on one from a lovely little cookbook I was given for Christmas last year. It's a Favourite Brand Name cookbook "3 books in one" with Chinese. Thai, and Japanese recipe sections. I love this book! And this recipe has no brand name items in it at all, same as many other recipes, so not sure why it's called Favourite Brand Names. Just as well! Apparently the recipe originally came from the National Honey Board, so it really gets around ;).

I've modified it, of course, I can never leave any recipe alone. One modification was including both Napa cabbage and romaine lettuce - the recipe had suggested either, which confused me as they are totally different things. I think including both makes it a cool coleslaw/salad morph. The dressing was way too sweet so I cut back on the honey (that it came from the Honey Board is now making sense!)and added extra lime juice for more tang. Also, I used basil instead of mint, but I think mint would be wonderful too. A few other changes and voila, a salad that has gotten rave reviews every time I make it!

You can add some chicken to it for a full meal deal, I've included the recipe for honey-lime glazed chicken as well. Enjoy!

Thai Salad with Honey-Peanut-Lime Dressing
1/2 head Napa or Savoy cabbage, shredded (about 4 cups)
1/2 head romaine lettuce, shredded (about 4 cups)
1 English cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeded and sliced into cute little crescent-moons
2 medium carrots, matchsticked
1/3 cup sliced red onion
2 small oranges, peeled and cut into segments (or suprêmes, if you are fancy)
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
1/4 cup dry-roasted peanuts, chopped

Dressing
5 Tbsp honey
3 Tbsp natural peanut butter
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
2 Tbsp chopped fresh basil or mint
1 Tbsp minced jalapeno
2 tsp soy sauce
1 clove minced garlic
1 tsp lime zest

Whisk together dressing ingredients until well-combined. Pour over salad ingredients and toss to coat.

Nutritional values: Makes about 10 cups of salad. For each cup: 99 calories, 4g fat, 2.7g protein, 14.2g carbs, 2g fibre, 42mg sodium.

Variation: Add Honey-lime chicken: Combine 4 Tbsp honey, 2 Tbsp lime juice, 2 Tbsp chopped cilantro, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 2 tsp jalapeno, 1 clove minced garlic. Add 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, toss to coat and let sit in fridge for 2 hours or overnight. Remove from fridge 15 minutes before cooking. Grill on medium heat for 15 minutes, turning once, or until no longer pink inside. Let rest. When cool enough to handle,pull into shreds.

Pasta L'estate

This dish sings with the bright summery flavours of dill and lemon, balanced with the briney saltiness of capers mellowed in a tangy wine sauce. Is that flowery enough for you? I can't help myself, this dish inspires poetic thoughts!

Regularly, I am not a big fan of white pasta. I wish I could get whole wheat tortellini, because sometimes nothing but tortellini will do! One day I will make a bunch myself and freeze them for future use. In the meantime, I have a shameful little bag of white flour tortellini lurking in my pantry. By weight, it's slightly lower in calories than other dried pastas, I guess because the stuffing is less calorie-dense.

This dish could be modified to use any whole wheat pasta, but today we are looking at spinach and ricotta tortellinis in all their white flour glory. I used a very small portion and and pumped the dish up with tons of shrimp and asparagus, low-cal powerhouses loaded with protein and nutrients, respectively. I wanted a sauce that didn't add a lot of extra calories or richness, something light and summery, and one of my absolute favourite flavour combinations is lemon, capers, and dill. So in they all went to create a lusciously lovely summer pasta dish. I looked up "summer" in Italian just to name this dish ;).


Sherylyn's Pasta L'estate

1/2C dry pasta (corn or rice pasta for GF)
1 clove garlic, crushed
10 asparagus spears, cut diagonally into 2" peices
1/4C chopped onion (I used spanish onions from my balcony, exciting!)
1/4C frozen peas (fresh would be awesome)
200g frozen peeled and deveined shrimp
2 Tbsp snipped dill
1/4C dry white wine
1/4C low-sodium chicken broth
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 Tbsp capers
fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp cornstarch
1 Tbsp parmesan cheese, finely grated

Boil pasta as directed. In the meantime, heat a wok on medium-high heat and spray with olive oil cooking spray. Add garlic and onion, sauté for one minute. Add asparagus and saute for another minute. Add chicken broth and stir occasionally until broth is nearly evaporated. Asparagus should be al dente at this point.

Things are going to move very quickly from this point. Add shrimp, dill, peas, lemon, capers and pepper. Sauté until shrimp is pink, maybe one minute. Remove vegetables and shrimp with a slotted spoon to a bowl,leaving behind liquid, add half the wine and simmer. Allow the liquid to reduce to a couple of tablespoons, then add the cornstarch dissolved in the reserved wine. It will thicken very quickly, stir contstantly until it's a thick paste and add the vegetables and shrimp back in. Add the parmesan as well and toss to coat.



Nutritional values: 436 calories, 11.8g fat, 43g protein, 38.7g carbs, 7.3g fibre, 900g sodium.

Appies 101

I am calling this post "Appies 101" because these little morsels are embarassingly simple to make. Gosh they are sure are pretty though, eh?



If you can hollow out stuff and stuff bits of stuff into other stuff, you can make these. I am not writing them up as proper recipes, it's really not necessary as you'll see. Exact amounts are not needed; what IS needed is patience for all the mini stuffing, and self-control not to eat them all up as you go!

Caprese Bites

So named because they are basically a one-bite caprese salad. Just cut the tops off of a bunch of cherry tomatoes and hollow them out. Season with a little salt and pepper, then stuff in a basil leaf and a pearl bocconcini. Drizzle with good olive oil and balsamic vinegar (I used a dropper to get just a drop on each). Repeat for as many times as you can stand; these little guys will be VERY popular and go fast!

Cucumber Cups Stuffed with Herbed Cream Cheese

Cut an English cucumber into 1.5" slices. Using a melon baller, hollow each one out, removing the seeds but not all the way through (leave a "bottom" on them). Mix together cream cheese, chopped fresh dill, chives, parsley (whatever you've got as long as it includes dill, dill is KEY here), and a smidge of minced garlic, dehydrated onion or onion powder, salt and pepper. If you can let the mix sit in the fridge overnight, even better. Just before serving time, stuff a teaspoon or so into each cucumber cup, and garnish with a sprig of dill.

Cranberry Turkey Burgers

Turkey Burgers are the absolute best kind of burgers, in my humble opinion. I never make beef ones, but do make bison ones once in a while, which are also good. I just love the versatility of turkey though; you can add all sorts of different flavours to dress it up. These ones taste like Thanksgiving, if Thanksgiving was a summer BBQ!

I like to use ground turkey thigh. If you are fancy like me, you can grind it up yourself in your meat grinder. I just looooove being able to do that, as I know there is nothing in the ground meat but turkey thigh, no skin or fat bits or goodness knows what else. However, that said, the ground turkey packets are perfectly fine for this. I don't recommend using breast meat as it dries up too much, and there are no other moisteners in this recipe.

I am leaving the recipe as I'd regularly do it, with just the turkey thigh, but yesterday (due to availablity issues) we did them with a combination of mild Italian turkey sausage, chicken breast, and chicken thigh, and they were FABULOUS. The extra fat content in the sausage balanced out the chicken breast, so all was well in Yummyland.

Cranberry Turkey Burgers

500g (about 1 lb) lean ground turkey thigh
1/8C chopped onion
1 clove garlic, smashed
2 Tbsp chopped parsley
1 egg, beaten
1/4 C dried cranberries
1 Tbsp A-1 sauce or BBQ sauce
1 tsp each fresh thyme and sage, chopped (or 1/2 tsp each of dried)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

Combine all ingredients well, but do not overmix (will makes meat tough). Form into 4 patties (this makes large patties, you could also make 6 medium ones or 8 sliders) and refrigerate until ready to grill, at least ½ hour. Grill on BBQ or use stovetop method.

Stovetop method: Preheat a frying pan on medium-high heat. Spray with cooking spray and place burgers in pan, patties should not touch. Cook on both sides until browned and cooked throughout, about 8 minutes per side.

These are lovely with a slice of havarti cheese melted on top, served on a whole wheat bun with dijon mustard, mayo, lettuce leaves, and maybe some red onion. I would not use stronger-tasting condiments, as they would overpower the delicate cranberry and sage flavours.

TIP from my mom: Roughly chop the craisins to get a more even distribution and release the cranberry goodness.

Nutritional values: for each large burger patty, there are 194 cals, 6g fat, 24g protein, 8g carbs, 1g fibre, 292mg sodium. With bun, cheese, and condiments, mine came to 400 calories. Add a salad and you've got a perfect summer meal!

Orange-Ginger Glazed Pork Medallions

Tenderloin of pork is such a wonderful meat. Lean, nutritious, and yet so...tender. Aptly named, I guess! This recipe is based on one I clipped from a food magazine many moons ago....it was about healthy takes on comfort foods. I am not sure I'd consider this a comfort food, or even all that healthy of a recipe; the healthiness can really be attributed to the type of meat itself rather than working any healthy magic. It's really yummy though, and overall a good choice for dinner. Really quick too!

Orange-Ginger Glazed Pork Medallions
adapted from Taste of Home Comfort Food Diet Cookbook Issue April 2008

400g pork tenderloin (about one medium-sized tenderloin)
salt and pepper
1 Tbsp minced ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp orange marmalade
2 Tbsp cider vinegar
1 Tbsp worcestershire sauce
2 tsp siratcha or other hot sauce

Cut pork into medallions about 1.5" thick and season both sides of each one with salt and pepper. Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat and and coat with olive oil cooking spray. Place pork medallions in, leaving room between each one, they don't like to be crowded. Brown on both sides. By the time they are well-browned they should also be cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. While they are cooking, combine the rest of the ingredients in a small bowl. Remove the pork from the pan and put on a plate to rest. Dump the bowl of marmalade mixture into the still-hot pan, this will deglaze it and let the sauce simmer down until it's thickened, maybe 3 minutes. Put the pork and any juices on the plate into the pan with the sauce; toss the medallions around to coat. Done and done!

I like to serve this with a quinoa pilaf, ideally with extra sauce to drizzle over the pilaf...but that's optional! Serves two hungry people.

Nutritional values: For half the recipe: 316 calories, 8.9g fat, 12.2g protein, 16g carbs, 0 fibre, 200mg sodium.

And because I thought it was funny, here is a picture of my actual non-styled dinner including the massive pile of greens that dwarf the medallions:

Enchiladas! Olé!

Please excuse the photo. It's mine lol. This is what happens when you take food out of the oven 10 minutes before it's done to take pictures. I promise to fully cook it next time and replace this sad picture with one that shows bubbling, melty cheese and browned tortilla edges.

Mexican food is one of my favourite cuisines, certainly in the top 5. And Taco Bell does not count as real Mexican food, in my books....loses something in the translation. When I first had authentic Mexican food, it was a revelation. Unusual, complex, warm flavours and real comfort food. Over the years my own style has evolved a bit towards more authentic south-of-the-border flavours, but is still definitely on the side of a North-Americanized version...though I do like it spicy!

These enchiladas are lower fat, higher protein and just plain fun. You can mix and match the fillings; I have four presented here, but DO NOT be intimidated by the long list of ingredients and instructions!! You can pick and choose one or a couple or do all of them at once. They freeze well, so are great for making up individual lunches, and make delicious next-day leftovers as well. It's an awesome way to use up leftover roasted chicken, too.

As cool as these are, the real star in my opinion is the guacamole. Once again my favourite Biobest yogurt steps up to the plate to make a truly special addition to a great meal. The guacamole is made lower in fat and $$ by stretching out the avocado with the yogurt. Yes, avocados are good fat, and should be a part of a healthy diet, but eating a whole avocado at a time is about 260 calories. You can have a lot more for a lot less with the yogurt added in, and trust me, the flavour does not suffer....in fact it's improved and has a lighter feel to it.

Enchiladas with Chicken, Peppers, Beans, and Creamy Cheese Fillings

Makes 12 enchiladas, which is 4-6 servings
These enchiladas have chicken, beans, sautéed peppers, and a creamy cheese inside. You can mix and match two or three of these, or use all of them at once, it’s up to you!

1 leftover roasted chicken with about ½ the meat left, OR three or four pieces of roasted chicken, dark and/or white meat
1 C grated cheddar cheese
12 corn tortillas

For the pepper mixture:
2 large or 3 medium bell peppers
1 large onion
2 jalapeno peppers, 2 cerrano peppers, or any hot peppers of your choosing
½ tsp each of cumin, chilli powder
¼ tsp each of salt, cayenne pepper, and black pepper

For the bean mixture (OR use a can of refried beans with chillies):
1 can of mixed beans
2 cloves garlic
½ tsp each of cumin and chilli powder

For the cheese mixture:
½ small tub light cream cheese
¾ C plain yogurt, drained to ½ C, OR ½ C light sour cream
¼ C of pepper mixture

For the sauce:
1 small can of crushed tomatoes
Hot sauce to taste

1.Prepare pepper mixture: Chop onions and peppers into a small dice. Spray a frying pan with cooking spray and sauté the vegetables on medium heat until they are soft and lightly browned. Remove from heat and put into a bowl, set aside.

2.Prepare bean mixture: Spray same frying pan with cooking spray and add garlic. Once it is sizzling, add beans and mash with a fork or potato masher while stirring, until coarsely mashed. Cook for two minutes, remove from heat and set aside.

3.Pull chicken meat apart into shreds, set aside.

4.Grate cheddar cheese into a bowl and set aside.

5.Prepare cheese mixture: Put cream cheese in a bowl and beat with a wooden spoon until smooth. Add the yogurt and ¼ C of the pepper mixture and stir to combine.

6.Prepare the sauce: In a bowl, mix together half of remaining pepper mixture and the can of crushed tomatoes. Blend with an immersion blender (or in a blender). Add hot sauce to taste.

7.Assemble: Pour 1/3 of the sauce into a large baking dish (like a lasagne pan) and spread to cover the bottom. On a plate or cutting board, lay out four tortillas and spoon a portion of each chicken, bean mixture, pepper mixture, and cheese mixture. Roll up and set in pan seam side down. Continue with remaining tortillas, laying them all in rows in the pan, preferably in a single layer. Cover with remaining sauce and the grated cheddar cheese.

8.Bake at 400F for about 20 minutes, just until sauce is bubbling and cheese is melted and lightly browned.

9.Optional items to serve with: sour cream or plain yogurt, chopped green onions, salsa, chopped tomatoes or shredded lettuce. And, of course, guacamole!

Nutritional values: for a serving of two fully loaded enchiladas: 346 calories, 7g fat, 24g protein, 44g carbs, 3g fibre, 580mg sodium.

Sherylyn's Famous Light Guacamole:

1 ripe avocado
equal amount of Biobest yogurt (about 1/3C but will depend on size of avocado)
juice of 1/2 lime
pinch of salt
two grinds of black pepper
1 clove garlic, crushed - optional (I actually prefer it without)

Remove the avocado flesh from the skin and stone, and roughly chop. Put into a flat-bottomed bowl and mash with a fork until mostly smooth but with some texture. Add yogurt, lime juice, salt, pepper, and garlic if using, and combine with the fork. Done! So simple and lightly, deliciously fresh-tasting.

Kung Pao Chicken with Shirataki Noodles

I first heard of Shirataki noodles some time ago, but was skeptical of them. They are an asian-style noodle that come in fettucine shape and spagetti shape, and are only 20 calories per serving (comparable to a serving of regular pasta that's 200 calories). How can they make them so low-cal? What could be in these freak noodles?? I have never been one for "fake foods", so I was not terribly interested until I discovered they are actually an all-natural food, made from the root of a plant with some tofu thrown in to improve the consistency (they are rather chewy). They are high in fibre and so keep you feeling full for a good long time. Some complaints I had heard about them were that they were fishy-smelling,rubbery, and generally unappetizing. The good press seemed to focus mainly on the calorie count, so I was not very optimistic about results. Well I have to say, I LOVE these noodles! I love the chewiness, and I find that when you follow the prep directions carefully, the odd fishy smell is completely removed and they are a blank slate for whatever flavour you put on them. I don't think I will be using them as a pasta replacement; pasta (whole wheat for me) has it's place in a healthy diet, too. But sometimes you just want a nice protein-filled dish without too many carbs but still with some bulk to it and a good vehicle for sauce.

My variation of Kung Pao Chicken is just that. If you want to make it a more balanced meal, feel free to replace the Shirataki noodles with some other noodles, like whole-wheat spagettini or rice noodles, or even omit the noodles completely and serve it over a bed of brown rice. It's really versatile that way. Oh and delicious; don't forget delicious!!

Kung Pao Chicken with Shirataki Noodles

1 lb. skinless chicken thigh meat, cubed
1 tsp cornstarch
2 tsp low-sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp Shaoxing cooking sherry or red wine
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp vegetable oil
6 dried red chili pepppers, sliced
1 Tbsp ginger, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can bamboo shoots
1 large carrot, diced or sliced
1 stalk celery, diced or sliced
1 small onion, sliced
8 mushrooms, quartered
1 small red pepper, diced
1 package Shirataki noodles** or cooked brown rice
1/4 cup peanuts or cashews, roasted and unsalted
2 stalks green onions, sliced

sauce
2 T low-sodium soy sauce
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp seasoned rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp water
2 tsp cornstarch
Mix together in a small bowl.

Make the kung pao chicken: Mix the chicken with 1 teaspoon of cornstarch, 2 teaspoons of soy sauce, cooking sherry, and sesame oil. Let sit for 30 minutes. Heat a wok, sauté pan, or large frying pan on high heat. When hot, spray with cooking spray and add the chicken and stir-fry until browned and cooked through. Remove the chicken the from pan to a bowl. Add oil into pan and toss in the ginger, garlic, and red peppers, stirring until the oil is fragrant. Add the veggies and stir for several minutes, then toss in chicken, bamboo shoots, and noodles if using. Pour in the sauce and continue to stir-fry until the chicken is coated and veggies are tender-crisp. Add the green onions, stir, sprinkle with nuts and serve hot.If not using the noodles, serve over rice.

You don't have to put the nuts on. Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't.

Makes two very generous servings.

Nutritional values: For shirataki noodle version without nuts: 426 calories, 12.6g fat, 46.4g protein, 28.6g carbs, 5.4g fibre, 570mg sodium.

**VERY IMPORTANT Instructions for making the Shirataki noodles palatable: Drain package into a colander and rinse well with water. Throw noodles into a large bowl and microwave for 1.5 minutes (or put in boiling water for one minute). Drop back into colander and rinse again. When you think they are well-rinsed, rinse some more. Then put them back into the bowl, fill with fresh water, and swish around for a minute or two. Drain again and rinse some more. When you are starting to feel horribly guilty about all the water wastage, they are finally done. Drain well and drop them onto a bed of paper towels and pat dry (after all that water, you will feel guilty about the paper towel wastage too, but I can't help you with that.) Now they are squeaky clean, dry, and ready for use!

If this seems too terrible and labour-intensive to contemplate, go ahead and make some brown rice instead.

Roasted Herbed Root Vegetables

It was a chilly, damp bike ride home today, so I was craving warm comfort food. This dish of starchy veggies fit the bill....comfort does not have to mean bad for you! Yams, parsnips and onions combined to form sweet roasty goodness packed with vitamins, and filled the kitchen with delectable smells. I ate this with a grilled pork loin chop and some lemon-roasted asparagus I had tucked in beside the other veggies. With just one bowl for mixing and one pan for roasting, clean up was a breeze. Gotta like that!

Roasted Herbed Root Vegetables

1 large yam
1 large parsnip
1 small onion
2 tsp olive oil
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/2 tsp herbs de Provence or Italian herbs
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

Clean the yam and parsnip with a vegatable brush. Do not peel, the richest concentration of vitamins is just under the skin!* Chop all the vegetables into one-inch chunks and toss into a large bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and toss well to coat. Turn out onto a large baking pan or cookie sheet,spreading out...these guys like lots of space to do their thing. Bake in a 400 oven for 30 minutes, turning with spatula after 15. Easy peasy! Makes two servings.

*Unless your parsnip is old and growing hair like mine was, in which case by all means, peel, ew.

Nutritional values: One serving (1/2 of recipe) is 318 calories, 4.6g fat, 3.9g protein, 66g carbs, 10.5g fibre, 300mg sodium.

These veggies are absolutely delicious served with my green onion, herb, and yogurt dip (just combine 1/2C yogurt with 2 tsp reduced-fat mayo, 1 finely chopped green onion,1T chopped dill or other herbs, and salt and pepper to taste. If you like a thck dip, drain the yogurt for an hour before combining).

Brandied Chicken Paté with Green Peppercorns

Yesterday after work I went to the grocery store to buy some liver. Now before you think I've gone off my rocker (ewwww does anyone really like liver?) let me tell you why. I got it stuck in my head to make my own paté. I love paté, but I don't love all the fat they put in it, plus the best paté comes from the sausage guy at Granville Island who does not have nutritional values provided, so who knows how many calories are in it. Don't get me wrong, I still intend to have that as a treat once in a rare while, but when I came across this recipe for Lightened Up Paté I totally thought, I can do that. It involves a 1:1 ratio of chicken livers and chicken thighs, no pork fat or chicken fat at all (though I did add a tablespoon of cream to give it a nicer texture). Healthy, really, since liver is very high in iron and other nutrients, as is chicken thigh meat, and they are both pretty good calorie-wise. Now I have never bought chicken livers in my life, nevermind cooked them, but I really wanted to try this. So I thought I'd suck it up and just do it, and if it was a disaster, I bet my cat would like it! I purchased said livers, and said chicken thighs, and cooked them all up according to the directions (apparently liver should still be light pink in the centre, I had to keep mushing them up to check, man it took a long time to cook those things!), cooked up the onions and some garlic to go in, added some other touches of my own, blended it all up and voila, paté! Delicious paté, too!! How totally exciting!

Brandied Chicken Paté with Green Peppercorns
adapted from Lightened Up Chicken Paté with Brandy at nourishnetwork.com

200g chicken livers, cleaned and trimmed
200g boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 2" peices
2 tsp olive oil
1/2C finely chopped onion
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground pepper, black or blend
2 Tbsp dry white wine
2 Tbsp brandy
1 Tbsp whipping cream
1 tsp green peppercorns

First prepare your chicken livers and thighs, sprinkle with half the salt and pepper and set aside.

Heat a non-stick pan on medium-high and add oil, onions, and garlic. Season with remaining salt and pepper and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the chicken livers and continue to cook until livers are seared on the outside and light pink on the inside (do not overcook). Transfer to a bowl or food processor.

In the same pan, add the thighs and sauté until they are browned, then add wine and simmer until cooked throughout and wine is mostly absorbed. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 5 minutes.

Add the thighs and the remaining ingredients to the bowl of liver and onions. Using either a food processor or a handblender, pulse until mixture is smooth and uniform. Transfer to a vessel of your choosing and chill for at least 2 hours. I went with plastic-wrap-lined ramekins (fills three small ramekins) because I intend to freeze two of them. Using the plastic wrap means you can just pop it out and invert it cleanly onto a plate.

Serve with slices of baguette (I bought a multigrain ficelle and it's perfect with this), crackers or any GF cracker for those with gluten intolerance, cornichons, and hey remember that bottle of wine you had to open to use 2 stinkin' tablespoons in this recipe? Well that wine would go awfully nice with this too ;).

Nutritional values: for 1/6 of recipe (about 4 Tbsp): 95 calories,3.5g fat, 10.8g protein, 1.4g carbs, .2g fibre, 144mg sodium.

Not bad considering store-bought paté is around 160 cals/14g fat for the same amount!

Lemon Chicken

For as much chicken as I eat, I can't believe I only have one chicken recipe on here so far! So, here is another to tempt your palate...tangy,sweet Lemon Chicken. I adapted this recipe from one my mom used to make, that one involved breading and frying and simmering in the crock-pot for hours and hours. I cut back on the added sugar and fat as well as the chicken skin, and made it much more time-efficient too!

Lemon Chicken

6 chicken legs, skin removed
salt and pepper
cayenne pepper
1/4C frozen lemonade
1/4C vinegar
1 Tbsp ketchup
1 Tbsp demerera sugar (or brown)
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp cornstarch
juice of one lemon

Place the chicken legs in a baking dish and sprinkle liberally with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Add just enough water to cover the bottom of the dish, and bake in a 400F oven for 25 minutes.

In a bowl, mix together the remaining ingredients. Pour over the chicken and return to the oven for another 20 minutes, basting the legs with sauce twice during cooking.

Serve with brown rice. If you put some rice on to cook right before you put the chicken in the oven, they will be done at the same time. Gotta like that.

Serves 2
Nutritional Values (for half the recipe): 304 calories, 5.4g fat, 27.5g protein, 36g carbs, 0 fibre, 450mg sodium.