Janice's Bulgur with Fresh Basil and Tomatoes

Loved this! If you've never tried bulgur, this is an tasty recipe to start with. The nutrition facts can be found at Calorie Count! Hint - this dish was super awesome the next day. When freshly prepared it was slightly juicy and tasty with more of a consistency you would find in grits (only with flavor). The next day the juice completed the absorbing but it was still moist and the texture was more like rice. Just wonderful!

Bulgur with Fresh Basil and Tomatoes

Ingredients:

2 T olive oil
1/2 small onion, chopped
4 small or two large garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup fresh basil, rinsed and torn
1 cup bulgur
1 cup tomatoes, chopped
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 t honey (then to taste)
1 T tomato paste
fresh cracked black pepper to taste
1/4 t cayenne
2 T fresh parsley, chopped

Directions:

Heat oil in a medium pan until shimmering. Saute onion til it begins to caramelize (about 6-8 minutes), add the garlic and saute another minute or two. Stir in the chopped tomato and cook a few more minutes.

Stir the bulgur. Add the broth and remaining seasonings except the parsley, and cook on low covered for about a half hour or until all liquid is absorbed.

Remove from heat and leave covered for 10 minutes or so. Stir, plate, and sprinkle with parsley.

Notes:

If you prefer, use as many pearl onions as you want instead of chopped onion!

Crazypotato98's Roasted Ratataouille

Ratatouille can be made on your stove top, in your oven, or on your grill! The ingredients vary to personal taste - so when Crazypotato98 says "squash" - you use the type you love! The nutrition facts can be found at Calorie Count.

Roasted Ratatouille

Ingredients:

3 ½ cups  eggplant, cubed

1 cup  squash, cubed

8  pearl onions, halved

1  yellow sweet pepper, cut into 1-inch strips

2 tbsp  fresh parsley, snipped

1 tbsp  olive oil

2 cloves  garlic, minced

1/8 tsp  salt

1/8 tsp  black pepper

2 large  tomatoes, chopped

1 ½ tsp  lemon juice

Directions:

Coat a 15x10x1 inch baking pan with cooking spray. Place eggplant, squash, onions, sweet pepper, and parsley in the pan.

In a small bowl, stir together oil, garlic, salt, and black pepper. Drizzle over vegetables; toss to coat.

Roast, uncovered, in a 450 oven about 20 minutes or until vegetables are lightly browned, stirring once. Stir in the tomatoes and lemon juice. Roast, uncovered, for 8 to 10 minutes more or until tomatoes are very soft and starting to juice out.

BluejeanSue's Corn with Bacon & Caramelized Onion

5 stars/2 thumbs up, scrumptious. and simple to prepare. The nutrition facts are at Calorie Count!

Corn with Bacon & Caramelized Onion

Ingredients:

4 ears fresh corn
6 bacon slices, chopped
2 medium size sweet onions, cut in thin strips
2 Tbl light molasses
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Directions:

Cut corn from cob; set aside in a bowl.

Cook bacon in a heavy skillet until crisp; remove bacon. Leave 1 Tbl drippings in pan for the next step. Crumble the bacon and set aside on plate or bowl.

Add onion to reserved drippings in skillet; cook over medium-high heat stirring often, about 15 minutes or until onion is caramel colored. Do not cut this step, the onions need to turn a beautiful deep brown and become sweet and soft...in fact, cut up even more onions than you think you need so you can "test" them repeatedly to make sure they are tasty.

Add corn and cook, stir often, 8 minutes. Stir in in molasses, salt and pepper. Place in serving dish and sprinkle with the crumbled bacon.

Note:

If you only have dark molasses, that's fine, just use a little less!

Experimental Ratatouille

This is one of my experimental recipes. I've found a bunch of ratatouille recipes on line and in cookery books. I kind of liked the layered idea in this one. It may be that I'll just pan saute the whole thing, but I'd like to see what you all think first!

not mine, but I thought it was pretty ratatouille!

Experimental Ratatouille

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 eggplant

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons dried parsley

1 t thyme

Crushed red pepper to taste

Black pepper to taste

1 t basil

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 zucchini, sliced thin

1 cups fresh mushrooms, sliced thin

1 red bell pepper, chopped

2 large tomatoes, chopped

2 T Romano cheese - optional

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray Pam inside a 1 1/2 quart casserole.

Cut all vegetables except the eggplant and measure your spices to make assembly a snap.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium high skillet over medium heat. Saute onion until soft. While the onion is sautéing, quickly dice the eggplant and add the diced bits to the pan as they are chopped until the entire eggplant is in the pan. Exposure to air is not a friend of eggplants and one reason it is often bitter or soggy. Add the chopped garlic and stir until the eggplant is soft (10 minutes or so). Add parsley and other seasonings – stir well.

Spread eggplant mixture evenly across bottom of prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle with some of the cheese.

Add alternating layers of zucchini and cheese, mushrooms and cheese, bell pepper and cheese, and finally tomatoes and cheese on top of the eggplant.

Bake, covered, in preheated oven for 30 minutes, remove the lid and allow the cheese to brown and the juices to evaporate a bit.

Top with a sprinkle of Romano cheese and serve with couscous.

Janice's Louisiana Style Eggplant

Excellent low calorie and super healthy way to enjoy eggplant! The nutrition facts can be found at Calorie Count!

Louisiana Style Eggplant

Ingredients:

1 eggplant
2 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons butter
1 (15 ounce) canned crushed tomatoes
8 oz water or veggie stock
2 bay leaves
1 red bell pepper, chopped 

1 stalk celery, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1/2 t fresh cracked black pepper
1/2 cup grated white cheddar or Swiss cheese
1/2 cup bread crumbs

optional - if the pre-baked mixture is too thin, add some prepared or instant roux

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cut eggplant in cubes (no need to peel) and boil for eight minutes. Drain into a colander. 

In a large skillet, saute bay leaves, red bell pepper, celery and onion until softened. Put the sauteed mix in a bowl. Wipe the skillet with a paper towel so it can be used for the next step.

Melt the butter over medium heat in the wiped clean skillet, when bubbly, add the flour and stir well until incorporated. Add canned or fresh tomatoes and water or stock; stir to incorporate. Add the sauteed mix. Taste and adjust seasonings. Add roux if needed. I like to use Tony Chacheres Instant Roux. The roux also has some seasonings so taste the liquid after the roux incorporates. You may want to add some of your favorite Louisiana seasoning at this point too - it all depends on if you are a spice person or prefer to let the veggies shine.
 

After the sauce thickens, stir in the eggplant. Pour into a Pam sprayed or non-stick casserole and sprinkle with cheese and bread crumbs.

Bake for 1/2 hour at 350 degrees

Serve with brown rice!

Ninav on How to Turn Zucchini into Pasta!

Instead of pasta, my friend Ninav from Calorie Count loves to substitute zucchini! Her method is so simple and accessible that it is a fantastic way to make a lovely work night meal. Zucchini has only 20 calories per cup, a lot fewer calories than pasta -so enjoy this as often as you like!

How to Turn Zucchini into Pasta

Use either a julienne peeler or a vegetable peeler and make wide strips of "noodles".

Lightly sprinkle with salt and let it sit for 10 min.

Then rinse, squeeze off the excess water.

Eat it raw, microwave, or sauté it for a few minutes to heat it up.

Try it! You'll be surprised!

Susan's Zucchini Tomato Saute

This is the fourth entry for the Chefery Challenge #2! Fast and simple, make it today!

The nutrition facts can be found at Calorie Count!

Zucchini Tomato Saute

Ingredients:

1 onion
2 garlic cloves
1 T olive oil
1 large tomato peeled and deseeded
1 small can of corn, drained
2 medium zucchini
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Saute one chopped onion and 2 finely chopped cloves of garlic in a tablespoon of olive oil, while cooking add the meat of one fresh tomato, about 5 minutes. Add one drained can of corn and 2 chopped medium zucchini cook an additional 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

This sounds too simple to be a recipe, but it was really good!

Susan's Boat Lasagna

This luscious pasta-free lasagna is the third entry in zucchini/tomato Chefery Challenge! Enjoy. The nutrition facts are at Calorie Count!

Boat Lasagna

Ingredients:

1 very large zucchini

a drizzle (maybe a tablespoon) of olive oil

garlic bread sprinkle or garlic salt

black pepper

1 pound of lean ground turkey

1 tablespoon of olive oil

salt, pepper, italian seasonings mix

1 jar prego extra chunky pasta sauce

1/2 cup parmesan shredded

1 cup mozzarella shredded

1/2 cup ricotta

Directions:

Slice a large zucchini lengthwise and hollow out the seeds etc. Brush with the olive oil, and sprinkle with the garlic bread sprinkle or the garlic salt and black pepper.

place in 350 degree oven for about 30 or 40 minutes or until the zucchini has lost it's boat shape.

In a pan, brown the seasoned turkey in the oil and drain off some of the liquid. Add the Prego and let it simmer well to meld the flavors. Turn off the heat and let it sit until the zucchini boats are done.

Take the "boats" out of the oven and spoon the meat mixture onto them. coat with thin layers of riccota and cover with a mixture of the cheeses. Put back in the oven until the cheese is melty and bubbly.

Hollie's Tomato Zucchini Souffle

This recipe, the result of The CC Palate's Chefery Challenge #2, was a delicious success! Excellent combination of ready to prepare (the ready to bake rolls) with freshly prepared vegetables make this dish a terrific choice for a busy weeknight.

The nutrition facts are on Calorie Count!

Tomato Zucchini Souffle

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 can ready-to-bake crescent rolls (8 count)
1 medium zucchini, cut lengthwise and then into 1/4 inch slices
3 campari tomatoes, cut into 1/8 inch slices
1 hot hatch chili, finely chopped with seeds removed
5 eggs
1/4 cup low fat milk
4 heaping Tablespoons fresh mozzarella pearls (the smallest size, 1/4-1/2 inch pearls)
Seasonings: a few dashes of each of the following spices, to taste: sea salt, fresh ground pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne, and cumin - let your nose be your guide. When it smells just right, it probably is.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Generously spray a non-stick pie pan with cooking spray (try not to use an olive oil based spray, because this will burn easier in the oven).

Pull apart the crescent rolls, and line the pan, with the wide side in the center and the pointed ends draped over the sides of the pan. Gently press together any overlapped layers of dough to make a relatively flat surface.

In a medium bowl, lightly beat eggs with milk. Stir in chopped hatch chili and desired quantities of spices. Set aside.

On top of the dough, place the zucchini and tomatoes in a flat layer.
Slowly pour the egg mixture over the veggies, then evenly scatter the mozzarella pearls over the mixture.

Fold the ends of the crescent rolls in to the center. Some of the egg will spill around the edges of the pan, but this will not effect the baking or end presentation.

Place in preheated oven and bake about 30 minutes undisturbed. Pull out and check the center by inserting a knife. If it comes out clean, it's ready to eat! If there is any egg residue, pop back in the oven for about 3 minutes and check it again.

A perfectly baked Tomato zucchini Souffle

Buggy's Green & Yellos Zucchini Ribbons

This is the first entry in the Chefery Challenge #2! Beautiful dish that earned the Special Kudos due not only to the number of ingredients but due to the fact that the zucchini came from her own garden!

Remember for all recipes by Buggy, use the handy dandy link to the Calorie Count Conversion Tool to the right hand side of this page! Click here for the most excellent nutrition facts found at Calorie Count!

Green & Yellow Zucchini Ribbons

Ingredients:

800 grams  zucchini, 4 medium

250 grams  onion, 1 large

450 grams  tomato, 3 large

500 grams  mushrooms, 6 large

3 tbsp  Becel margarine*

1 tbsp  chili oil

454 grams  ground beef, extra lean

Directions:

Mix the ground beef with 50 grams of minced onion. Form in to 24 small meatballs. Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes.

the ingredients!

Cut the ends off zucchini. Cut zucchini in half. Use a melon ball tool to scoop out the seeds. Discard seeds. Use a vegetable peeler to cut the zucchini in to long strips.

Heat chili oil in a large stir-fry pan. Add remaining 200 grams of sliced onions. Cook for 2-3 minutes.

Add zucchini and stir. Cook for 15-20 minutes.

Clean and slice mushrooms in 1/4 thick pieces. In a separate frying pan with Becel margarine, cook mushrooms in batches.

Cut tomato in to wedges. Add tomato to zucchini.

Plate up zucchini ribbons, mushrooms and meatballs.

Notes:

Buggy said that she used Becel Margarine because she was out of butter. It should rock both ways so use what you prefer!

If you are a vegetarian or have gluten allergies, consider omitting the meatballs and treating this dish as a pasta replacement!

Janice's Broccoli and Carrot Alfredo

This light version of Alfredo is great on anything, but I particularly love it on pasta or baked potato!

The nutrition facts can be found at Calorie Count!

whenever possible, use organic vegetables

Broccoli and Carrot Alfredo

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 Cups fresh broccoli florets
2 Cups carrots, slice thinly
2 T butter
1/2 Cup onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
3 T flour
2 tsp low sodium instant bouillon
pinch pepper
2 Cups fat free milk
6-8 oz 0% fat Plain Greek Yogurt (calories based on 8 oz)
1/2 Cup grated Parmesan

Directions:

Steam, microwave, or boil broccoli and carrots until crisp tender (about 6 minutes), drain and set aside to keep warm.

Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat and add onion. Saute til soft (several minutes). Add garlic and saute 2 minutes.

Stir in flour, bouillon, salt and pepper til there are no lumps. then gradually stir in milk.

Cook on medium until the mix boils and thickens - stir constantly.

Stir in the cooked broccoli and carrots, yogurt and Parmesan

Toss with pasta or serve over baked potato.

Notes:

Get creative with vegetables and add whatever is seasonal to the sauce. Pearl onions rock. Peas too.  Mushrooms are superb.

Jam it full of veggies and treat it as a saucy veggie side dish!

Janice's Gnocchi in Cacciatori Sauce

these filling delicious puffy little bundles of potato and flour are wonderfully versatile and an excellent candidate for one of my favorite "comfort foods" so it's a good thing each serving is so low in calorie. Look for white or wheat gnocchi in boxes or tightly sealed plastic containers in the dried pasta section of your store.

The nutrition facts can be found at Calorie Count!

gnocchi

Gnocchi in Cacciatori Sauce

Serves 4 for dinner or 6-8 as a side dish

Ingredients:

1 T pure olive oil
1/2 cup onion, chopped
30 oz tomatoes, if canned, drain into a bowl and crush them with your fingers
1/4 C parsley, fresh, torn or chopped
1/4 C basil, fresh, torn
1/8 cup red wine, only use a good drinkable wine, the type doesn't matter. Do not ever use cooking wine or I will disown you all.
4 garlic cloves, chopped or crushed
1/2 t oregano
1/4 t crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 T pure olive oil
16 oz gnocchi, white or wheat
Directions:

Heat 1 T pure olive oil in a medium pan. When it is hot and shimmering and add the onions, saute til soft. Add all the ingredients except the gnocchi and 1 T olive oil.

Heat to a simmer, partially cover, and stir every now and then. Taste after 10 minutes or so and adjust seasonings. You will notice that I do not add salt. I'm used to that. But you may not be, so add salt if you need to. Also, depending on the tomatoes you use, you may need to add a tablespoon or so of brown sugar to counter the acidity. Once you have the flavors as you prefer, just keep it going on low heat until the gnocchi are done.

To make the gnocchi, heat 1 T pure olive oil in a large skillet until shimmering. Add the gnocchi and toss or stir every now and then allowing the little puffy pillows of deliciousness to soften and turn a beautiful brown. Should take about 10 minutes or so depending on your stove. Let them sit every now and then for a minute or two as this encourages browning. Constant stirring prevents browning.

Either serve in separate bowls for people to fix on their plates, or arrange the gnocchi on a serving platter and top with sauce. Fresh grated parmigiana is perfect on this.

Notes:

To turn this into a casserole dish, combine the sauce and gnocchi, place in a pam sprayed casserole, top with a bit of parmigiana and heat in the oven til the cheese browns.

Musicmissionary's Apple Juice Potatoes

You will notice there is no salt in this dish. The apple juice combines so beautifully with the other seasonings that there is no need which makes this dish perfect for those on a sodium restricted diet.

The nutrition facts can be found at the best place on the internet to count your calories - Calorie Count!

Apple Juice Potatoes 

Ingredients:

Serves 4

8 Red skin potatoes (2 small potatoes per person)--sliced thin, like potato chips
3 cups 100%, no sugar added natural apple juice
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 cup minced onion (or a t of powdered onion)
1/2 t ground basil
1/2 t ground oregano
1/2 t ground paprika
1/2 t ground cumin

Instructions:

Fill skillet to about half full with apple-juice. Put thin layer of each spice an top of the liquid.  Turn stove on to medium-high.  Bring apple juice to a medium boil.

Add potatoes to juice, add more juice if you need to in order to just cover the potatoes, and cook for 5-10 minutes or until thoroughly cooked, stirring occasionally.

Remove potatoes with a ladle, covering potatoes with the "sauce" that is leftover in the pan.  Sauce may be thickened a bit with a bit of cornstarch before pouring over the potatoes.

Serve and enjoy.

Notes:

The measurements above were mainly to get a nutrition fact for you to consider. Everything is all depending upon how many people you feed and how spiced you prefer a dish to be. Thus the amounts listed may be considered as as start. Taste after it cooks a bit and adjust as needed.

Hollie's Mexican Rice

No Tex-Mex dinner is complete without a bit of that fantastic rice, but you don't have to go out to get it.  Mexican Rice is incredibly easy to make, and just as easy to change up and make it your own. The nutrition facts can be found at the best FREE website on the planet for counting your calories - Calorie Count.

Mexican Rice

about 6 side servings

Ingredients:

1 tsp vegetable oil
1/2 small onion, chopped
1 cup uncooked long grain rice
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup frozen corn
~1 1/2 cups water
1/2 14 ounce can diced tomatoes
Include ALL of the tomato juice from the can - juice and water should equal about 2 cups

Directions:

In a large sauce pan, saute onion in oil until translucent.
Pour in rice and stir to coat grains.
Stir in water, tomatoes and juice, corn, salt, cumin, turmeric, and chili powder.
Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to low.
Allow to simmer 20-30 minutes, until rice is tender, stirring occasionally.

Notes:

This is my personal preference on Mexican rice, but a lot of Mexican chefs I know will add carrot medallions or green peas to theirs as well.

45 minutes prep/cook time

Aea's Simply Peas

So easy and aromatic. Give this dish a try soon. The nutrition facts can be found at Calorie Count.

Simply Peas

Serves two

Ingredients:

2 cups frozen and rinsed peas
2 tsp. fresh mint leaves finely chopped or 2 pinches of dry rubbed mint
1/2 cup thin sliced celery (make sure you include some of the tender leaves)

Directions:

Steam saute in a splash of water for only few minutes until peas are warm and the celery/mint starts to smell great!

Notes:

Serve over brown or white steamed rice.  Aea likes the proportion of 1cup of peas to 1 cup of rice for a delicious meal.

Janice's Salad Pizza

The nutrition facts for this fast to fix combination of bread and salad can be found at Calorie Count!

Janice's Artichoke Salad Pizza

makes 6 generous servings

Ingredients:

4-6 oz. container semi-soft cheese such as Neufchatel in your choice of herb or garlic (calories assumes 4 oz)
12 inch (16 oz.) pre-baked pizza shell
6 oz. jar marinated artichoke hearts
3 cup shredded mixed greens (do not pack when you measure)
1/2 cup quartered or halved cherry tomatoes
2 slices bacon, crisp cooked and crumbled 

Directions:

Spread the semi-soft cheese over Italian bread shell. Drain and quarter the artichoke hearts over a small bowl, reserving the marinade.

Combine artichoke hearts, shredded greens, cherry tomatoes, and add as much of the reserved artichoke marinade (likely about 2 T) as you like in a large mixing bowl, toss lightly. Spread the salad onto the pizza shell.

Sprinkle with crumbled bacon. Cut into wedges to serve. 

Alternatives:

Toss just the lettuces with the marinade (about 2 T) and lay that down first, then a layer of artichoke hearts, then a layer of tomatoes, and finally the bacon - makes a more precise appearance.

Have room in your day for more calories or have people in the house that insist on a more visible presence of meat? Add a couple more slices of bacon and fool them all. You'll only add 65 calories to the entire meal, but it sure looks like there's more meat - that's what I did in the photo in this article.

Skip the artichoke hearts and make a BLT Pizza! Dressing is not at all required and double or triple the bacon.

Note: 

I've made this Salad Pizza for a very long time, since my adult children were very small. I thought I had it from the Boboli pre-made shell people, and visited their website in case they needed to be credited for it. While I did not find this recipe at their website, they do have a number of pretty great sounding easy pizza recipes, so you may want to check them out here!

Susan's Zucchini Chips

You are taking your chances when you try out a zucchini chip recipe on a 17 year old who has repeatedly declared, "I don't like zucchini!". He was convinced to taste it anyway and THEN declared, "I take it all back! Dees da' bom!!" I think it is safe to say that Susan's recipe is a taste, nutrition, and caloric winner!!!

The nutrition facts can be found at the best FREE website to count your calories - Calorie Count!

Zucchini Chips

serves 4 normal people or one 17 year old

Ingredients:

1 medium or 2 small zucchini cut into 1/4 inch rounds slices or "chips"

3/4 cup Italian seasoned panko bread crumbs (Susan used Progresso)

3 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

2 egg  whites

Directions:

Preheat oven to 475

Mix Panko and Parmesan together in one bowl.Mix egg whites in another bowl. It helps to use large bowls for this because you can mix more at one time.

Coat the "chips" with the egg white.

Individually toss chips in Panko/Parmesan mixture. Susan patted firmly to make sure they were well coated and that all of the mix was used. If you want less Panko on yours, just toss and lightly press.

Arrange chips in a single layer on Pam sprayed non stick cookie sheet.

Bake 5 minutes on one side, gently flip the chips and bake 5-10 minutes on 2nd side until crispy.

Remove from oven and try to let them cool a couple minutes and crisp a bit before eating. They are so good, that after the first warm bite, you will have trouble resisting and will be compelled to consume them all.

The 17 year old mentioned earlier suggested that they would be even "bommer" dipped in ranch. But he's a bean pole and can afford the calories. They are awesome as is.

Notes:

For a bit of a kick, sprinkle some ground hot pepper or chili powder on the chips after flipping them! Or dot with Tabasco, dip in salsa, or anything else you can think of.