81 posts tagged “light”
I never ate Chinese food as a child. My dad is an incredibly picky eater, and this is something he absolutely refused (and still refuses) to eat, so you can see where I got it. But, one chicken chop suey at a restaurant while out with my mom, and I was hooked. Thing is, I got stuck on chicken chop suey and never tried anything else.
As a freshman in college, I fell head over heels for a local Japanese and Chinese restaurant that was a few blocks from campus. But once again, I got into an ordering funk and stuck to my signature dish--there, it was chicken fried rice. I liked this fried rice more than any others I'd had because it had finely sliced peapods (my absolute favorite), and lots of other veggies; not just the standard (or, what I thought was the standard) peas and carrots.
These days, it's pretty rare for me to order fried rice or even chop suey at a Chinese restaurant. I tend to be more into Kung Pao or sesame chicken, or Mongolian beef. So there you have it, the timeline of my Chinese food eating.
Still, I get cravings for chop suey or lo mein from time to time, but I try to make those dishes at home rather than ordering them out. I mean, if I am going to eat all those calories, I might as well have something that tastes deliciously unhealthy, like fried sesame chicken, rather than something that seems almost healthy (even though it usually isn't) like chop suey.
This is a recipe for a healthier version of pork fried rice. It uses lean pork tenderloin and brown rice, as well as minimal oil. It comes in at just under 500 calories for a healthy sized portion. But don't worry, it still tastes great and will definitely nip your craving for Chinese food in the bud! For a little more oomph, you can drizzle some toasted sesame oil over the top.
Pork Fried Rice
Serves 4
2 eggs, lightly beaten and a little oil or cooking spray
2 Tbsp. canola oil, divided
1 (1 lb.) pork tenderloin, cut into bite sized pieces
1 bunch green onions, sliced (greens and whites separated)
2 celery stalks, sliced
2 small carrots, sliced
4-5 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 knob of ginger, peeled & grated or minced
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/4 cup frozen peas
3-4 cups cold cooked brown rice (from 1 cup raw)
1 cup peapods, sliced
2-3 Tbsp. light soy sauce
Heat a large pan or wok over medium heat and add a little oil or cooking spray. Add the eggs and swirl to coat the bottom of the pan. Cook the eggs without scrambling (so they look like a pancake). Remove from the pan and cut into pieces. Set aside.
Add 2 tsp. of oil to the pan and increase the heat. Season the pork with salt and pepper, and then add to the hot oil. Cook for a minute before adding the white parts of the green onions (set the sliced green tops aside), celery, carrots, garlic, mushrooms, ginger and red pepper flakes. Stir fry for about 2 minutes or until vegetables are tender-crisp.
Add the remaining 4 tsp. of oil to the pan. Add the rice, peapods and peas. Stir to coat with the oil and allow to warm through and start to get "fried" for a minute or two. Add the soy sauce and the egg you sliced earlier. Season to taste, and top with the sliced green onion tops.
I'm pretty sure I've mentioned on here before that as a child, I would eat seconds and thirds of horta, which are basically different greens (for us, primarily, they were dandelion greens). My grandma would always prepare them really simply, usually boiling the greens and then adding lots of fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper.
If there's one thing I've learned over the course of hundreds of food blog posts and even more dishes I've cooked, it's that simple wins out almost every time. If you have a few fresh ingredients, there is little else you need to make something taste great.
That said, any cook will tell you that even a dish you love is often just a starting point; something you modify that will eventually become your own. This dish is no different. Though I love the simplicity of my grandma's greens, I also love garlic. A lot. I like that the shallots add just a little bit of onion flavor and the pine nuts add a nice, toasty crunch. This is my favorite way to prepare greens, and it's so simple. Use it with chard, spinach, kale, dandelion greens, whatever your favorite leafy green may be. And don't forget to modify it and make it your own!
We leave for my in-laws' tomorrow so I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!
Lemony Swiss Chard with Pine Nuts
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 shallot, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch rainbow swiss chard, coarsely chopped
1 lemon, juiced
2 Tbsp. toasted pine nuts
salt and pepper
Heat a large pan over medium heat and add the oil. Saute the shallot and garlic until the shallot is translucent. add the greens and allow them to slowly wilt down, stirring occasionally.
Squeeze the lemon over the chard and season to taste with salt and pepper. Toss with toasted pine nuts and serve.
I had a little shredded coconut to use up and was trying to figure out what to make for it that wasn't TOO awful. I decided biscotti would be a good way to use it because it's one of those things that, even when made according to recipe with no healthy substitutions, is not too bad for you. Plus, it's something to eat with my eggs in the morning.
I didn't have to do any recipe inventing here, though. I was glad to find a recipe for Coconut Biscotti on Cooking Light's site right after I got the idea. These turned out great, and even with my addition of the chocolate, are not a calorie killer. Plus, biscotti have a long shelf life, so these work out great even though there are only 2 of us.
This makes a sticky dough. I would recommend using a silpat or parchment paper to do all the kneading and forming, so you don't have to transfer it to the baking sheet. Kinda wish I would have thought of that when I was making them...
Coconut Biscotti
Adapted from Cooking Light
Makes 20 biscotti
3/4 cup AP flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. grated whole nutmeg
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. coconut extract
2 large eggs
1 cup flaked coconut
3 oz. semisweet chocolate chips
a few drops of canola oil
Preheat oven to 300.
Combine the first 6 ingredients in a bowl. In a separate large bowl, beat the sugar, vanilla and coconut extracts and eggs together at medium speed until thick (about 2 minutes). Add the flour mixture and then fold in the coconut mixture.
Turn the dough onto a heavily floured surface and knead 7 or 8 times. Shape the dough into a roll and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silpat. Pat to about 1" thickness. Bake for 40 minutes or until golden. Cool for 5 minutes on wire rack.
Cut diagnally into 20 slices. Place slices on baking sheet and bake 10 minutes. Flip the slices, and bake 10 additional minutes.
In a double boiler or a stainless steel bowl over simmering water, add the chocolate chips and just a little canola oil to thin it out. Melt the chocolate and then drizzle over biscotti.
For the longest time, I thought I disliked curries. There's no reason for this other than really poor assumption on my part (though I think my mom always saying she didn't like curry didn't help the situation).
But then I started wondering how could I not like curry? I mean, the combo of the sweet & spicy flavors is so similar to Greek and Moroccan cooking, both of which I love. As soon as I saw the spice mixture that was typically used in curry powders, I was on board.
Still, I didn't want to end up with a ton of curry if for some strange reason I didn't like it, so I went to the Spice House and just bought an ounce of yellow curry powder (one of the reasons why I love this store, besides their awesome spices, is the fact that you can buy just a tiny bag of any spice). And then, like most new things I buy, it sat in my cabinet for a while until I remembered it was there.
I very randomly came across this recipe when I was searching for nothing of the sort. Funny how that happens. I love lamb. I adore lentils. It seemed like a great place to start with the curry.
This was delicious. I made modifications based on my tastes and what I had around. It was even better the next day at lunch. I am officially a yellow curry fan. Now I just need to try other varieties.
Curried Lamb and Lentil Stew
Serves 4-6
adapted from Cooking Light
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 ribs celery, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. trimmed and cubed leg of lamb
1 Tbps. curry powder
1 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
2 cups beef broth
1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
3/4 cup lentils
1 large or 2 small/medium carrots, peeled and sliced
1 (10 oz.) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and all moisture squeezed out
Heat a dutch oven over medium heat and add the oil. Saute the onion, celery and garlic until tender. Add the lamb and brown. Add the curry powder, cumin, red pepper flakes and salt and pepper to taste and stir well to coat.
Add broth, tomatoes, and lentils. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat. Simmer, covered for 15 minutes. Uncover and simmer for 5 additional minutes before adding the carrots and spinach. Simmer about 10 more minutes longer.
Let me first get a favor out of the way because I am selfish like that. ;) Remember those savory crepes with mushroom and goat cheese filling I made? I would really appreciate if you voted for them on the Ile de France site (and by voting, I mean rating them highly at the bottom of this page right here). If I win first (which doesn't look terribly promising right now, but as with voting of any type, I remain cautiously optimistic), I will be giving away a gift card on my blog, so there could be something in it for you, too! I think there is something a little...strange...going on with the voting right now but you didn't hear it from me. Someone may have to demand a recount!
Now that I've finished campaigning for your vote, let me share with you one of our staple meals. This meal was probably the second or third entry ever in this blog, but I had no picture (and, well, no readers) so I thought I would share it again. This is pretty much a chicken piccata, but without capers and with mushrooms. OK, so it's not really piccata but it's close enough.
I used to really dislike capers, which is why I started making this dish sans capers. I have to say that, now, I actually like capers but I never really think to buy them and this dish is pretty standard in our household so it's been left untouched. Tom and I like mushrooms. A lot. So we use a half pound for just the two of us. Normal people would probably use that for 4 chicken breasts. We are not normal and would probably be even happier using an entire pound.
To add a little oomph to my orzo, I stirred in some pesto (again, from the freezer. I cannot emphasize the greatness of freezing pesto in cubes enough), which was a great complement to the lemony chicken.
Chicken with Lemon Mushroom Sauce
Serves 2
2 Tbsp. flour
small sprig of thyme, chopped, or about 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
2 chicken breast halves
1/2 Tbsp. butter
1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 lb. sliced cremini mushrooms
1 small shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup lemon juice (about one lemon)
1/4 cup chicken broth
salt and pepper
Season the flour with the thyme and salt and pepper. Lightly dredge the chicken in the flour mixture. Heat a heavy bottomed skillet over medium heat and add the butter and oil. Add the chicken and cook through, about 4-5 minutes per side. Set aside and keep warm.
To the pan, add the mushrooms and shallot and saute until the shallot is transparent. Add the garlic and cook an additional 30-60 seconds.
Add the wine to the pan, and as it's reducing, start scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Stir in the lemon juice and chicken broth and reduce the mixture by about half.
Nutritional information (for a 4.5 oz chicken breast half): Calories: 270 / Fat: 8.2g / Saturated fat: 2.7g / Carbs: 11.8g / Fiber: 1g / Protein: 32.5
Tourlou tourlou is a funny name for a seriously tasty dish. The tou is pronounced like "too" (not like tour). Can you roll your Rs? I sure hope so because my high school Spanish teacher claimed that if you couldn't roll your Rs, you were a mutant. She was a special lady. But if you have issues with R-rolling, it's more authentic sounding to make a D sound. So it's like toodloo toodloo. Got it? You are most welcome for your Greek Lesson of the Day (:::Elly cues "The More You Know" backdrop. "Da da da daaaaa!":::)
Moving on, tourlou tourlou is basically a medley of vegetables roasted over a long period of time. It's essentially the same thing as briam, which you may have seen on the menu at your local Greek place. The vegetables vary frequently, but I would argue that potatoes and zucchini are usually staples. You can use anything I've used, plus green beans, okra...whatever you want. Except cauliflower. Don't use cauliflower because cauliflower is the debil. :P
So, big deal right? Roasted vegetables. Been there, done that. Not like this you haven't. By roasting the vegetables for a really long time, all of their natural sweetness comes out and makes this dish super delicious. So delicious, in fact, that my husband told me when he was reheating his leftovers at work, a virtual stranger stuck his face in front of the microwave to see what smelled so good.
This main dish is especially popular during times when Greeks don't eat meat, but it can also be a side dish for some type of protein. We ate this with some Greek-seasoned chicken breast. As I mentioned, the vegetables can vary as can the herbs. I've used dill and parsley in mine. There is something I just love about dill with certain vegetables, and especially with anything tomato-based.
(Mysteriously absent from photo: garlic)
Tourlou Tourlou
Serves 6-8 as a side
1 eggplant, sliced into about 1/2" slices (peeled or unpeeled, your call)
2 large zucchini, sliced
2 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 large yellow or vidalia onion, cut in half and then sliced thinly
4 cloves garlic, minced
1.5 lbs. potatoes, peeled and sliced or cut into chunks
1 green bell pepper, sliced or cut into 1" bites
1/2 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
fresh dill..oh, about 3T or so?
1/2 cup olive oil (you could probably get away with 1/3 but since everything else here is so healthy, it's ok to splurge)
1/2 cup crushed tomatoes
salt and pepper
Preheat the oven to 375. Toss all the vegetables, salt (use a healthy amount, it's a lot of vegetables!) and pepper, and the herbs with the olive oil in a large pan. Mix the crushed tomatoes with 1/2 cup of water and then pour the mixture over the whole pan.
It will look something like this:
Place the pan in the oven and bake for about 1.5 hours. Then it will look something like this. Oh sure, it's not the prettiest thing, but who cares? It tastes awesome.
Nutritional Information for 1/8 of the casserole: Calories: 231 / Fat: 13.9g / Saturated Fat: 1.9g / Carbs: 25.7g / Fiber: 5.5g / Protein: 4.3g
I've been so behind on my blogging lately, and even more behind on all the great blog events that have been happening. In fact, I was in bed the other day and when I should have been sleeping, I remembered that an Eat to the Beat deadline was approaching and I had no idea what to make. After just a minute or two, I remembered the song "Raspberry Swirl" by Tori Amos and decided that would definitely work. I love Tori Amos. I remember getting From the Choirgirl Hotel the day it came out and discussing it with one of my friends in high school. She liked "Raspberry Swirl" the best. I was hesitant. It was ok, but kind of...weird. But of course it grew on me, big time, and it's now one of my favorite songs on the album.
But anyway, back to Eat to the Beat. How had I not thought of this song before? I mean, it's not really about food (far from), but the title could easily be applied to food. It's definitely the easiest one I've thought of yet, and even easier to execute. Just think of something to stick a raspberry swirl in and be done with it. Right? Not so much.
See, my first idea was cheesecake bars which I ultimately should have just gone with. They would no doubt be tasty and the swirl would be striking against the white bars. But I had pretty much none of the ingredients for cheesecake bars, so I decided to make raspberry swirl blondies. In theory, these were a good idea (and tasty!) but in practice, not so much. First, as you know, blondies are golden in color. Second, I decided to mix some raspberry jam with a few tablespoons of batter which dulled the color way too much. And, while tasty, the blondies didn't look particularly pretty.
Then, I was home alone all weekend because Tom's friends were in town for a bachelor party. The weather was really awful and I was bored, so I decided to make something else raspberry swirled. A quickbread. This is ultimately what I will end up blogging below, but it wasn't really my first choice (err, at this point, even my second). Sort of for the same reasons as above--the swirl is not as striking. And, it's not terribly exciting or different from things I bake pretty much every Sunday--healthyish carbs to go with my eggs in my weekday breakfasts.
So then I thought, of course. Angel food cake. A relatively healthier dessert, a pretty white canvas to work with, and a flavor that raspberry would complement. So, I mashed some raspberries that I figured I would layer in the batter and went by Alton Brown's recipe. But, alas, I don't have a nice tube pan with a removeable bottom. What I have is a tube/bundt pan that doesn't have a tube that raises above the edges and also which apparently hates me. So, after all the whipping and the sifting and the slow dolloping into the pan (and even the use of a small ramekin to help prop my pan upside down to cool when it came out of the oven), I had the hardest time ever getting the damned cake out. It finally came out...but, well, not all of it. Part of it stuck in the pan, making a not very attractive angel food cake. And, I had some air pockets in the cake too. So, although it tasted good, it looked pretty awful. Sigh.
And that's when I decided that this Eat to the Beat was obviously not as easy as I had so naively imagined. And after my share of raspberry swirled items over the last few days, I decided to say screw it and post the quickbread. The funny thing is I always look at blog events to make something sort of sinful and that I wouldn't normally make, but here I am making a variation on something I tend to make all the time. But, oh well.
Light Vanilla Quickbread with Raspberry Swirl
3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
pinch of salt
1 egg
2/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup plain, fat free yogurt
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup canola oil
1/3 cup raspberry jam
Preheat the oven to 350 and spray a loaf pan with cooking spray.
Sift together the flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, beat the egg with the sugar until pale and smooth. Add the yogurt, vanilla, and oil and beat until just incorporated.
Add the flour mixture to the wet mixture in 2-3 additions until just incorporated (don't overmix!).
Put about 1/2 of the mixture into the loaf pan, spreading evenly. Stir the jam vigorously to loosen it a little and then spoon it over the batter, but leave some space around all sides of the loaf. Spoon the remaining batter over the jam. Bake for about 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Nutritional Information Per Serving (1/12 of the loaf): Calories: 177 / Fat: 5g / Carbs: 30g / Protein: 3g
So, I'm a little behind on blogging. And the problem with being a little behind on blogging is that, despite being the young and sprightly age of just-barely-27, I am incredibly forgetful. As a result, I don't really remember what went into a dish I made. I promise I will try to be better--both with staying on top of blogging and writing things down--but I think the recipe below is at least 90% accurate. Maybe even 100%.
I saw this recipe for chicken in a sweet and spicy lentil sauce over on Ben's blog, What's Cooking? I immediately starred it because a) I love lentils, b) I love spicy, and c) I have been trying to incorporate more fruit into my savory dishes and this dish has pineapple.
However, because I am a self-proclaimed lover of both the chicken thigh and the one pot dinner, I adapted this recipe so that everything cooked together in my lovely 3 qt. saute pan with lid. The result was a comforting, delicious, and easy dinner. It had just the right amount of kick from the chipotle, just the right amount of sweet from the pineapple. Thanks for the inspiration, Ben!
Sweet & Spicy Chicken and Lentil Stew
Adapted from What's Cooking?
Serves 2
1 Tbsp. olive oil
4 bone-in chicken thighs, skins removed
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 chipotle in adobo, minced
3/4 cup chicken broth (I actually believe I used a cup and it was a little too much, so maybe somewhere in between...)
1 (14 oz.) can diced tomatoes (with juice)
1 small (8 oz.) can pineapple chunks or tidbits
1/2 cup uncooked lentils, rinsed & picked over
1 tsp. dried oregano
salt and pepper
Heat your high saute pan/dutch oven over medium heat and add the oil. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper and then add to the pan, browning on both sides. Remove.
To the pan, add the onion and saute until translucent. Stir in the garlic and chipotle until the garlic is fragrant. Add the broth, diced tomatoes, pineapple and oregano and bring the mixture to a boil.
Stir in the lentils, and place the chicken and any accumulated juices over the lentils. Cover with a lid and simmer for 30-35 minutes. Remove the lid and continue to simmer for an additional 5 minutes, until the chicken and lentils are cooked and the sauce has thickened.
Nutirion Information Per Serving: Calories: 420 / Fat: 12.5 / Saturated Fat: 2.3 / Carbs: 40g / Fiber: 6.5g / Protein: 33.5g
I'm going to keep this entry short and sweet, since I am a little behind on blogging. We actually had this Chicken and Cashew Stir-Fry last week. Or was it the week before? The days are starting to run together...
I first saw this Gourmet recipe on Liz's Cooking Blog and starred it to make (one of the 85 kajillion starred items in my reader). I am a sucker for anything with cashews and this looked simple and easy, but tasty. I will spare you the rewrite of the recipe because (amazingly) I made very minor changes. One being that I used a combo of boneless/skinless breasts and thighs because of the random odds and ends in my freezer, and the other being that I reduced the oil & used canola instead of vegetable. I probably added some more red pepper flakes too--I always do.
This was a flavorful, healthy, easy weeknight meal and I'm sure I will be making it agian.
If you've followed this blog, you know of my deep-seated hatred for mayonnaise. I literally have to look away when I find myself at a place like Subway and the person in front of me orders mayo on their sub. Sometimes, the sandwich preparer will automatically pick up the squeeze bottle of mayonnaise when it's my turn to pick out my condiments and I get a look of panic on my face, hands flying up into stop signs. Nooooooo! No mayo, please!
So, it's safe to say that I am not a huge fan of the traditional summer salads, like chicken, potato and pasta. And it's sometimes a shame because these things are everywhere, to the point where I often find myself side dish-less at summer parties and barbecues.
When I was about 9 years old, my stepmom (then just my dad's girlfriend) asked if I would like some potato salad with my meal. I debated. Do I try this just to be polite since this could be my future stepmother? Certainly writhing in fear and disgust was not an appropriate reaction. But then, I peeked into the bowl she was pointing to. Hmm. It sure didn't look like mayonnaise. It looked pretty good, really. So, I scooped some onto my plate.
And, I fell in love. This Greek-style potato salad quickly became one of my favorite side dishes. I don't know that you can really refer to it as a "salad" but why not? My stepmother is also a first-generation Greek, but I had never seen this particular dish before growing up because of the differences in Greek regional cuisine. It has the same flavors, though, as those roasted potatoes everyone loves: lemon, olive oil, oregano. A trifecta of awesomeness.
This dish is best served at room temperature or just slightly warm, making it perfect for picnics, potlucks, and barbecues. It's incredibly easy to throw together and it's so, so tasty. This is one of the few dishes where I really enjoy raw onion (I love them cooked, but I have never been big on them raw). I do use a milder red onion, though. My stepmom doesn't add parsley to this, and whether I add it or not depends on my laziness, but I do find it's a good addition to sprinkle just a little on top for more freshness. I like lemon quite a bit so if you want a more muted flavor, just reduce the lemon juice by a little and add more olive oil.
Greek-Style Potato Salad
2 lbs. russet potatoes, cut into uniform pieces
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. dried oregano
1/2 red onion, finely diced
salt and pepper to taste
parsley for garnish (optional)
Put your potatoes into a pot and add cold water. Bring the water to a boil, add some salt and then cook until the potatoes are just fork tender.
Meanwhile, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, and oregano and set aside. Allow the potatoes to cool just a bit (not too much as the dressing will be more absorbed when they are still warm). Mash the potatoes slightly and stir in the onions and salt and pepper. Add the dressing while stirring the potatoes, to be sure it gets everywhere. Adjust seasonings and serve at room temperature. Top with chopped parsley if desired.
