Cream of Mushroom Soup

So much yummier (and healthier) than the canned condensed stuff.

I like to use a combination of white button and baby bella mushrooms.  Keep in mind, though, that if you use baby bellas, your soup will be light brown in color, and not white like the traditional cream of mushroom soups.

Cream of Mushroom Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons Smart Balance
• 1 shallot, minced
• 3 8oz. containers of sliced mushrooms (I used 1 white button and 2 baby bellas tonight)
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 carton (4 cups) chicken broth
• 1 can (12 oz.) fat-free evaporated milk
• couple tablespoons of whole wheat flour

Directions:

• In a large pot, sauté the minced shallot in melted Smart Balance for a minute until fragrant.
• Add the sliced mushrooms and stir for a couple of minutes.  Season with TSSS and thyme.
• Add in the carton of chicken broth.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer until the mushrooms are soft, 15 - 20 minutes.
• Use an immersion blender for a few seconds to puree the soup; I like to leave it somewhat chunky.
• In a small bowl, whisk the evaporated milk with a couple tablespoons of whole wheat flour.  Add to the soup, increase heat and bring to a boil, then reduce heat again and simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes.
• Serve while hot.

Oven-Fried Chicken Strips

Having lived for many years in the South (Tennessee & Alabama), I've always loved me some fried chicken.  I just don't love what it does to my hips and thighs.  So I've learned to enjoy the alternative: oven-fried chicken.  Not the same thing, I know, but still delicious and I don't need to toss my jeans the next morning.  ;-)

This is my boneless, skinless chicken strip recipe.  Of course you can modify it with bone-on pieces, just remember to adjust baking times accordingly. 

This recipe is adapted from a compilation of many traditional fried chicken recipes I'd picked up during my residency down south.  I just modified it to be baked.

Oven-Fried Chicken Strips















Ingredients:

• 1 pound chicken tenders or breasts cut into strips
• 2 cups nonfat or reduced-fat buttermilk
• couple dashes of paprika
• couple dashes of Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt (or salt & pepper)
• cooking spray
• 3 cups whole wheat panko bread crumbs
• few dashes of paprika
• few dashes of Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt (or salt & pepper)
• few dashes of Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic (or garlic powder)
• few dashes of Tastefully Simple Onion Onion (or onion powder)

Directions:

• In an airtight container, combine chicken, buttermilk, paprika and TSSS.  Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours, up to 24 hours.  I like to do it overnight so I don't have to think about it.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Lightly spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
• In a shallow bowl, combine bread crumbs, paprika, TSSS, TSGG and TSOO.
• Remove chicken strips from marinade.  Shake off excess marinade.
• Dredge chicken strips in seasoned bread crumbs.  Place on prepared baking sheet.
• Bake for 20 - 30 minutes.

Mustard-Dill Meatloaf Patties with Pomegranate Sauce

I decided to make the meatloaf into patties because let's face it, there's no way this family will go through an entire loaf.  Besides, it's just easier to portion control this way.  Also, I'm not a big fan of the typical tomato-based meatloaf, so I was thrilled when I found this recipe for a mustard-dill one.  It's scrumptious.

Not only do I not like tomato-based meatloaf, I loathe ketchup on meatloaf.  I don't particularly like ketchup in general, so I came up with this pomegranate sauce for the meatloaf, only because I had some leftover POM juice sitting in my fridge.  It turned out pretty good, the tartness of the pomegranate sauce goes well with the mustard-dill flavors of the meatloaf.  Note: the sauce is not SBD-friendly because it's made from juice.  Try a simple balsamic reduction sauce (see recipe at the bottom of this post) if you want to be 100% SBD-compliant.

Mustard-Dill Meatloaf Patties with Pomegranate Sauce
Meatloaf adapted from this recipe.

Ingredients for meatloaf:

• cooking spray
• 1/2 cup rolled oats
• 1/2 cup chicken broth (only b/c I don't keep beef broth on hand)
• 1 pound lean ground sirloin
• 2 shallots, minced
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 egg
• 2 teaspoons dry dill
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt

Ingredients for pomegranate sauce:

• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 cup pomegranate juice
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt

Directions for meatloaf:

• Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees F.  Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
• In a small bowl, combine rolled oats and chicken broth.  Let sit for 5 minutes.
• In a large bowl, combine the rest of the meatloaf ingredients.  Add in the oats and combine.
• Divide the meat mixture into 4 portions and form patties.  Place onto prepared baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes.

Directions for pomegranate sauce:

• While the meatloaf is cooking, drizzle 1 teaspoon olive oil into a small heated saucier.
• Add minced shallot and sauté over medium heat for a few minutes until soft and translucent.
• Whisk in the Dijon mustard.  Then add the pomegranate juice and a couple dashes of TSSS.
• Bring to a boil and continue to cook until reduced by half, stirring occasionally.
• About 5 minutes before the meatloaf patties are done, spoon half the sauce over the patties and continue to bake the patties.
• Once the meatloaf patties are done, spoon the rest of the sauce over them just before serving.

ETA 6/6/12: Recipe for simple balsamic reduction
Ingredients:

• 1 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 clove garlic, crushed

Directions:

• Place the balsamic vinegar and garlic into a small sauce pan.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer and cook until the sauce has reduced by half.  Spoon over the meatloaf patties.

Chicken Stuffed with Feta and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Chicken Stuffed with Feta and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

 

Ingredients:

• crumbled feta cheese (approx. 1 oz. per chicken breast)
• a couple tablespoons of sun-dried tomatoes in oil, thinly sliced
• boneless skinless chicken breasts
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F. 
• In a small bowl, combine feta cheese and sliced sun-dried tomatoes.
• Butterfly the chicken breasts.  Stuff with feta-tomato mixture.
• Brush both sides of stuffed breasts with a little bit of oil from the sun-dried tomatoes.  Sprinkle with TSSS.
• Place in baking dish in a single layer and bake for 15 - 20 minutes until cooked through.

ETA on 3/3/11: I did a goat cheese and spinach stuffing.  YUM!

Garlic Green Beans

One of my favorite ways to prepare green beans (or the thinner French haricots verts) is to sauté it in olive oil with garlic.  It's quick, simple and yummy.

Garlic Green Beans

Ingredients:

• olive oil
• green beans, stemmed and washed
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt
• a couple cloves of garlic, minced (or Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic)

Directions:

• If using large green beans, I like to nuke them for a minute (or blanche them in boiling water) before sautéing, just to soften them up a tad.  If using thinner green beans, or haricots verts, I skip this step.
• In a sauté pan, heat a tablespoon or two of olive oil.
• Toss in the green beans and sauté for a minute or two.
• Add TSSS and minced garlic.  Toss for a few more minutes until the green beans are slightly soft but still crunchy.
• Serve immediately.

Honey Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls

This is a basic bread recipe that I normally use to make loaves in my bread machine.  Today I decided to just use the machine's "dough" function, and then take it out and make individual rolls baked in the oven.  They turned out nice and chewy, very different than the texture of the machine loaves.

Most wheat bread recipes use a combination of whole wheat flour and all-purpose flour, which yields a lighter, fluffier end product.  This recipe uses 100% whole wheat flour, so the rolls are a little denser and chewier than the traditional dinner roll.  If you're not used to eating 100% whole wheat bread, it may take a little getting used to, but I, personally, love it.

Honey Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls
Makes a 2-pound loaf, or 18 - 24 dinner rolls.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups warm water
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 cups whole wheat flour
• 3 tablespoons vital wheat gluten
• 2.25 teaspoons (1 packet) active dry yeast

Directions:

• Place ingredients into bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer.
• Select the "dough" function.
• Once the machine has completed the "dough" function, remove the pan and turn the dough out onto a smooth surface.
• Punch down the dough and knead for a few minutes until the dough is soft and stretchy.
• Divide dough into 18 equal pieces and roll them into balls.
• Place dough balls into muffin pans lightly sprayed with cooking spray.  Lightly spray the tops with cooking spray.
• Loosely cover muffin pans with plastic wrap, then lay a kitchen towel over the top.  Let rest in a warm location to rise for 30 - 45 minutes, until double in volume.
• Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Remove kitchen towel and plastic wrap. Brush tops lightly with milk or egg wash (optional).  Bake in pre-heated oven for 12-15 minutes, until tops are golden brown.

Salmon with Balsamic Vinegar

Normally I'd make a balsamic vinegar reduction on the stove top first, and then glaze the salmon with it before baking.  However, with a toddler and a newborn in the house, I just didn't have the time to make the glaze (go figure), so I just drizzled everything directly onto the fillets.  If you have the time, combine the TSSS, lemon juice, and balsamic vinegar in a small sauce pan over medium-high heat and cook until reduced by half, then pour over the salmon fillets before baking.  The flavor of the glaze is much more robust.

Eat more fish!

Salmon with Balsamic Vinegar

Ingredients:

• cooking spray
• wild salmon fillets in individual portions, skinned and de-boned
• balsamic vinegar
• lemon juice
• Tastefully Simple Seasoned Salt

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
• In a small bowl, combine about 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, juice of 1/2 lemon, and TSSS to taste.
• Coat both sides of the fillets with the seasoned mixture and place onto the prepared baking sheet.
• Bake in pre-heated oven for 15 - 20 minutes.
• Drizzle with additional balsamic vinegar before serving if desired.

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!