Baked Tofu Parmigiana

The toddler and I love tofu, but the hubby doesn't.  When I came across this recipe, I thought I'd give it a try and see if hubs even notices that it's tofu. Well, he saw me making it so there was no tricking him involved, but he did eat his entire portion.  ;-) 

Baked Tofu Parmigiana
Adapted from this recipe.


Ingredients:

• cooking spray
• 2 blocks (12 oz. each) of firm or extra firm tofu
• 1 cup-ish whole wheat flour
• 1 cup-ish Egg Beaters
• 1/2 cup-ish whole wheat panko bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup-ish grated parmesan cheese
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• Tastefully Simple Garlic Bread Seasoning (or other Italian seasoning)
• 1 jar marinara sauce (I use Trader Joe's)
• a cup of part-skim shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
• Cut each block of tofu in half width-wise.  Then cut each piece in half again, thick-wise (so they're 1/2 inch thick instead of 1 inch thick).  You should have 8 pieces of tofu.
• Place each piece of tofu between a few layers of paper towels, to remove any excess water.
• Arrange three shallow bowls in an assembly line.  Add whole wheat flour to the first bowl, Egg Beaters to the second bowl, and a 1:1 ratio of whole wheat panko bread crumbs and grated parmesan to the third bowl.  Season the first and third bowls with TSSS and TSGBS.
• One by one, dredge each tofu piece into the whole wheat flour, then dip into the Egg Beaters, then press into the panko:parmesan mixture.  Place in a single layer onto the prepared baking sheet.
• Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes.  Flip, then bake for another 15 minutes.
• Remove baked tofu from oven and increase temperature to 400 degrees F.
• Spread a few spoonfuls of marinara sauce into the bottom of a small baking dish.  Arrange 4 pieces of tofu in a single layer over the sauce.  Ladle 1/2 of the remaining sauce over the tofu, as well as 1/2 of the shredded mozzarella and 1/2 of the remaining parmesan.  Repeat with the other 4 pieces of tofu and the rest of the sauce and cheese.
• Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

Instead of a double-layer, you can do it all in a single layer in a larger baking dish.  My baking dish just couldn't fit all the tofu pieces in a single layer, so I did the double.

If you want to conceal/minimize the tofu taste, cut each slice in half again thick-wise for thinner pieces.

Cabbage Rolls

Deeeelish!

Cabbage Rolls
Adapted from this recipe.


Ingredients:

• one medium head of cabbage
• 1 cup cooked brown rice
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/4 cup skim milk
• 1/2 small onion, minced
• 1 pound ground sirloin (or other lean ground meat)
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar (Splenda if you're strictly SBDing)
• juice of a small lemon
• few dashes of worcestershire sauce

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray a baking dish with cooking spray.
• Carefully remove a dozen or so of the large outer cabbage leaves and wash them. Microwave on high for a minute or two with a splash of water, until the leaves are soft.  Set aside.
• Core the remainder of the head of lettuce, and chop into bite-size pieces.  Spread the chopped cabbage across the bottom of the prepared baking dish.
• In a mixing bowl, combine rice, egg, milk, onion, ground sirloin, TSSS and pepper.
• One at a time, place 2 huge heaping tablespoons of meat mixture in the center of each cabbage leaf and roll.  Place in a single layer on top of the chopped cabbage in the baking dish.  Sprinkle TSSS and ground pepper over the top.
• In a separate bowl, mix tomato sauce, sugar, lemon juice and worcestershire sauce.  Pour over cabbage rolls.
• Cover baking dish with foil and bake in preheated oven for1 hour.

Baked Zucchini Fries

I saw this on Our Best Bites the other day and thought it sounded scrumptious, so I figured I'd give it a try tonight.  I modified the recipe from that site with my Baked Onion Rings recipe to come up with the one below, and it is indeed scrumptious.

You can make thick or thin zuke fries.  I oped for thin, and they are nice and crispy outside, and soft and flavorful inside.

Basically you take a zuke and cut the ends off.  Then cut it in half so you have two shorter pieces.  Take each half and cut in half length-wise so you have 2 flat pieces, then again so you have 4 flat pieces.  Take each flat piece and cut into quarters to make sticks.  They turn out to be the same size as traditional french fries.

Baked Zucchini Fries
Adapted from this recipe and this recipe.

Ingredients:

• PAM
• 3 medium zucchini, washed, dried, sliced into sticks
• whole wheat flour
• EggBeaters
• 1 part whole wheat Panko bread crumbs to 1 part grated parmesan
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Spray a baking sheet with PAM.
• Set up three shallow bowls in an assembly line: first with the flour (about a cup), then with the EggBeaters (about 2 cups), then with the 1:1 Panko to parmesan mixture (about 2 cups total).
• Season the flour and Panko:parmesan with TSSS.
• One by one, dredge the zucchini sticks in flour, then dip into the EggBeaters, then roll in the Panko:parmesan mixture.  Lay them on the prepared baking sheet in a single layer.
• Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes until crunchy.  (Our Best Bites says to flip them after 10 minutes, but I didn't and they turned out perfectly fine.)
• Serve immediately.  (They lose their crunch once they cool down and sit on the counter for a while.)

I served mine with some warmed jarred marinara sauce.  YUM!

Brown Rice and Lentil Soup

Today I got my second weekly box from Farm Fresh To You.  (Got my first last Thursday and everything's gone.  ;-))  So far I'm loving my organic CSA deliveries (right to my door!).  The produce is so incredibly fresh and yummy-tasting. 

I consider myself pretty versed in produce, but there was something in the box today that I'd never seen before.  It's a substitution (I was supposed to get collards but I specified I don't want collards), and there was no label or indication of what it is.



So I consulted Google and found out it's a type of kale called Dinosaur (or Tuscan, Lacinato, Black, Cavolo Nero) Kale.  It's dark green like the regular kale I use to make kale chips with, but the leaves are narrower and much thicker, almost rubbery-like.  Very interesting, I think I'll use it to make soup.

Brown Rice and Lentil Soup
Adapted from this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 medium carrots, chopped
• 2 celery ribs, chopped
• 1/2 medium onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 box (4 cups) chicken broth
• 4 cups water
• 1 cup brown rice, rinsed
• 1 cup dry lentils, rinsed
• Vietnamese fish sauce (or salt & pepper)
• a big bunch (approx 3 cups) kale, rinsed and chopped (or spinach, or chard)

Directions:

• In a large pot, brown the turkey with 1 tablespoon olive oil.
• Add carrots, celery, onion, cumin and thyme.  Sautee about 5 minutes until fragrant.
• Add chicken broth, water, rice and lentils.  Season to taste.
• Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer until rice and lentils are soft, 45 minutes - 1 hour.
• Stir in kale and cook a few minutes until wilted.

Banana Baked Oatmeal

This recipe is adapted from the Baked Oatmeal one on the official South Beach Diet website and cookbook. It is not fluffy like a muffin, but rather dense and chewy like a bar, which is what the original recipe instructs you to make.  You can prepare it in a 9"x9" pan and then cut into bars per the original recipe, or you can use a muffin tin and make individual muffins from it, which is my favorite way to do it because it makes things much more convenient in the long run. The chocolate chips are totally optional. ;-)

I don't have a link to the original recipe because I don't subscribe to the SBD website, but if you do, or if you check out the cookbook, you can easily find it.

Banana Baked Oatmeal
Adapted from the official South Beach Diet Baked Oatmeal recipe.
Yields 12 bars/muffins.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup fat free milk
• 3 eggs
• 1.5 cups ground flaxseed
• 2/3 cups brown sugar (or Splenda if you're strictly SBD-ing)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 medium (or 2 large) mashed over-ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray a 12-count muffin tin with non-stick spray.
• In a bowl, combine rolled oats and milk.  Toss it to evenly coat the oats with milk.  Set aside.
• In another mixing bowl, beat eggs with a hand mixer.  Beat in the flaxseed, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, baking powder and salt, until well combined.  Add in the mashed bananas and chocolate chips and combine.
• Add the oatmeal mixture to the egg mixture and combine with a wooden spoon.
• Divide into the prepared muffin tin.  These hardly rise at all, so don't be afraid to fill 'er up to the top.
• Bake for 25 minutes.

Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins

When I was pregnant with the now-toddler, I developed quite a sweet tooth.  I was eating ice cream to the point where the Baskin Robbins lady knew what my "usual" was and had it ready for me between the time she saw me pull up in the parking lot and when I entered the store.  I was also eating my weight in Cinnabons and cupcakes.  I'm amazed I'd only put on 18 lbs. that entire pregnancy, it could easily have been 58 lbs.

An online friend of mine (hi Mindy!) posted a link to her favorite Blueberry Cream Muffins recipe, and after reading it I was drooling.  BUT!  I had to make it a little more healthful in quality to compensate for the sheer quantity I would be consuming.  :-D  So I replaced the AP flour with a combination of whole wheat flour and rolled oats, the oil with ground flaxseed, and the sour cream with fat-free plain yogurt.  If you are strictly following the SBD way of eating, use Splenda in place of the brown sugar.

These are dense muffins, but they are delicious!

Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins
Adapted from this recipe.
Yields 24 muffins.

Ingredients:

• cooking spray
• 2 cups whole-wheat flour
• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 4 eggs
• 2 cups brown sugar, packed
• 2 cups ground flaxseed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup water
• 2 cups fat-free plain yogurt
• 2 cups blueberries

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Spray two 12-count muffin pans with cooking spray.
• In a bowl, stir together flour, oats, salt and baking soda.  Set aside.
• In a separate mixing bowl, beat eggs, sugar, ground flaxseed, vanilla and water.
• Gradually combine the dry ingredients with the egg mixture, alternating with the yogurt, just until everything is moistened.  Do not over-stir.  Mixture will be quite thick.
• Gently fold in the blueberries.  Again, do not over-stir.
• Divide batter into the prepared muffin pans.
• Bake for 20 minutes until golden.

ETA on 2/14/11:  I had a bag of frozen pineapple, so I decided to try pineapple cranberry muffins.  Instead of the 2 cups of blueberries, I used 1 bag of frozen pineapple (approx. 1.5 cups) and 1/2 cup dried cranberries.  YUM!

ETA on 2/19/11:  Instead of the 2 cups of blueberries, I added 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips and 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts.  YUM!

ETA on 10/1/11:  Instead of the 2 cups of blueberries, I added 2 large ripe mashed bananas and 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts.  I also omitted the 3/4 cup of water since the bananas added enough moisture.  YUM!

ETA on 11/29/11:  Instead of the 2 cups of blueberries, I added 2 cups of chunky home-made applesauce and 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon.  I also omitted the 3/4 cup of water since the applesauce added enough moisture.  YUM!

Chicken with Peanut Sauce

This post is dedicated to the toddler, who LOVES anything peanut.

Chicken with Peanut Sauce

Ingredients for chicken skewers:

• 1 pound chicken tenders or breasts, cubed, all visible fat removed
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• olive oil
• 1 large mango, peeled, pitted and sliced

Ingredients for peanut sauce:

• 2 parts natural peanut butter
• 1 part rice wine vinegar
• 1 part soy sauce
• sugar to taste (or Splenda if you're SBDing)
• water

Directions:

• Toss chicken with TSSS and a tablespoon of olive oil.  Thread onto skewers, alternating with mango slices, and grill until chicken is fully cooked.
• For the sauce, whisk peanut butter, vinegar, soy sauce and a teaspoon or two of sugar until smooth.  Add water, a little at a time, to thin it out to desired consistency.
• Drizzle sauce over cooked chicken and serve immediately.
• The sauce is good over any accompanying veggies (steamed broccoli, cabbage, carrots, etc.) as well, and great over brown rice or soba noodles.

If you're using "mainstream" peanut butter (like Jif or Peter Pan) instead of natural peanut butter, you can omit the added sugar since it already has sugar in it.  Natural peanut butter only has peanuts, and maybe salt, in the ingredients.

If you like your sauce a little spicy, you can add red pepper flakes to it.

2/14/2011:

Baked Pasta

This is just a springboard idea.  There are so many different ways to make this, and so many different ingredients that can go into it.  It freezes well, too, and is great for leftovers for lunch the next day.

Baked Pasta


Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground chicken (or turkey, or sirloin)
• olive oil
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• 1 package (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 1 jar no-sugar-added pasta sauce (I like Trader Joe's organic marinara)
• 1 pound whole wheat pasta, cooked to al dente per package directions
• 1 small tub (8 oz.) fat free cottage cheese
• 8 oz. part skim mozzarella, shredded

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a large skillet, brown ground chicken in a tablespoon of olive oil and season to taste with TSSS.  Drain.
• Add spinach and pasta sauce.  Bring to a boil.
• Stir in the cooked pasta and remove from heat.
• Spoon half of the mixture into a large baking dish.
• Layer on the cottage cheese, then top with the rest of the pasta mixture.
• Bake for 30 minutes until bubbling.  Sprinkle shredded mozzarella on top and return to oven for 1-2 minutes until cheese is melted.
• Serve hot.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Pear Soup

I've had a beautiful butternut squash on my counter for a couple of months now.  I keep meaning to use it, but what with the recent holiday season and hubby being off for two weeks, we mostly ate out (unfortunately for our waistlines as well as our pocketbooks).  The good thing about winter squashes (like butternut and acorn) is that they can keep for quite a while in the pantry if you buy them when they're really fresh.

Normally I just make a straight-forward butternut squash soup, but today I happen to have two beautiful firm Anjou pears in my fruit bowl, and I thought they'd give the soup a delicious sweet twist.  I've also been known to add carrots, sweet potatoes, and whole peas to this recipe (not all at once, though).  If you decide to try other combos, please let me know how they turn out.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Pear Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 large-ish butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed
• PAM cooking spray
• ground cinnamon
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• olive oil
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
• 1 firm Anjou pear, seeded and cubed (I left the skin on)
• 2-3 cups chicken broth
• plain lowfat Greek yogurt
• a few tablespoons roasted sunflower (or pumpkin) seeds

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Spray a baking sheet with PAM and place the cubed squash in a single layer on the pan.  Sprinkle lightly with ground cinnamon and TSSS.  Roast for 30-40 minutes until tender.
• In a heated sauté pan, drizzle olive oil and sweat the diced onion.  Add the pear and toss for a few minutes.  
• Add the roasted squash and chicken broth.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes until the pear is tender.
• Using a stick blender, puree the mixture until smooth (or chunky if you prefer).
• Ladle into bowls and serve with a dollop of Greek yogurt and a sprinkle of sunflower seeds.