Cooking – Page 5 – Fervent Foodie

Healthified Italian Sub

January 9, 2011 7 Comments

Today, it dawned on me: I am kitchen appliance dependent.

Nearly every meal I cook up makes use of my oven, stove top, or George Foreman grill. If the meal is not something that typically requires one of these appliances I FIND a way to use them. A sandwich, for example, can go from “meh” to “ohmmmmmmm myyyy gawddd” with just a quick bake in the oven.

Take a gander at today’s lunch:

Why oh why can’t I put a toaster oven in my cubicle??? Google searches for “cubicle toaster oven” and “George Foreman in my cubicle” turned up with disappointing results… (Yes, I actually spent 30 minutes looking at this) Alas, at least I get to use my gadgets for weekend lunches!

Today’s delicious healthified Italian sub consisted of:

1 Pepperidge farm 7 grain deli flat
4 ounces lean turkey breast
1/2 a slice Sargento Pepper jack cheese
red onion
tomato
banana peppers
4 slices turkey pepperoni
1 tbsp Ken’s Steakhouse Lite Italian Romano dressing
Couple sprinkles of Franks Red Hot
dried oregano
black pepper

All together nah:

I popped this guy into a 400 degree oven for 10-15 minutes, until the cheese was nice and melty:

Then sandwiched the two halves together:

YEESSSSSS.

Of course I also had a good size salad on the side, which rounded out this lovely Sunday lunch.

Love me some veggies Smile

Stats on the sandwich: 312 calories, 33g carbs, 9g fat, 28g protein, 6g fiber

Recipes

10-Minute Taco Salad for One

January 7, 2011 3 Comments

When I was a kid, there were a few dinners that I got off the charts excited about. Spaghetti, Meatloaf, Stuffed Cabbages, Steaaaaaak, anything involving potatoes, Paella, Hamburgers, Pizza, Macaroni and Cheese… ok maybe there were more than a few…. But one of the ULTIMATES was Taco Salad Night. Just thinking about it makes my tummy rumble!

Last night, in anticipation of my very own Taco Salad Night, I pulled 4 ounces of 93% fat free turkey breast from the freezer to defrost. I swear, freezing individually portioned meats (and meals) never ceases to bring me joy!

Four ounces of love:

All I could think about ALL DAY at work was TACO SALAD! I’m talking a serious unable-to-computate-numbers craving. I could barely make it til 5. Thankfully, my tasty taco salad for one cooks up in ten minutes flat—sooooo, I didn’t have too long to wait once I finally arrived at home.

Feast yo’ eyes!

First up, I seasoned the defrosted turkey breast up with a little salt and pepper and cooked in a sauté pan until no longer pink. Then I sprinkled on 1 tbsp of McCormick’s taco seasoning blend and a 1/4 cup a water, reduced the heat, and let the turkey simmer away until the liquid thickened.

Meanwhile, I put 1/2 a bag of romaine lettuce on a plate and topped with some chopped tomato, onion, banana peppers, 2 tbsp fat free sour cream, and the secret ingredient: 10 smashed up baked nacho cheese Doritos.

10 minutes to tasty!

When the hot meat hits the smashed Doritos and mixes in with the sour cream you get this deliciously cheesy slightly spicy oh-so-creamy sauce.

LOVE this taco salad!

Stats on the taco salad: 368 calories, 34g carbs, 11g fat, 26g protein, 8g fiber

Recipes

Turkey Time

December 8, 2010 6 Comments

I swear every time I make meatballs I forget to write down what I threw into them. Ohhhh, the elusive turkey meatball recipe… changes every time. Yet, always tastes delicious.

I bring you spaghetti squash with turkey meatballs and garlic mushroom marinara:

Easier than it looks, I promise!

(Check out this post for some tips on cooking up your spaghetti squash)

While my spaghetti squash was doing its thang in the oven, I got to work on the meatballs. Here’s what went into them:

Your guess is as good as mine. Winking smile

Alriiiiiiiiight, here’s approximately what went into the meatballs:

10 ounces 99% fat free ground turkey breast
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 egg
2 tbsp bread crumbs
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp marjoram
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp dried oregano

This mix gave me 10 2-bite meatballs:

I sprinkled each meatball with a little olive oil (about 1 tbsp for all 10 meatballs). I cooked these in a 400 degree for 15 minutes, flipped them over and cooked for another 10.

Meanwhile, I sautéed 2 cloves minced garlic and a couple handfuls of sliced baby bella mushrooms in a sauce pan:

Then added 1.5 cups of Prego sauce to the pan along with some garlic powder, red pepper flakes, black pepper, and dried oregano. I popped a lid on the pan and let it simmer away on low heat until the meatballs and spaghetti squash were done cooking:

I promise you–this dish will totally satisfy your pasta cravings. Look how tasty:

As an added bonus, I was able to get 3 servings out of this batch. Hello tomorrow’s lunch and the day after tomorrow’s dinner!

Stats on 2 cups Spaghetti Squash with 3 Turkey Meatballs and 1/2 cup sauce: 320 calories, 37g carbs, 10g fat, 27g protein, 7g fiber. Molto bene!

Since the ground turkey comes in a 20 ounce package, I decided to use the remaining 10 ounces to make up some of my beloved Turkey Meat Muffins Open-mouthed smile

Only thing I did different this time was to omit the oil. I didn’t notice much of a difference, so I think I’ll stick with the oil-free version in the future.

I LOVE these guys for several reasons.

They are pre-portioned and super cute.
They satisfy my belly in a healthful way.
Leftover meatloaf sandwiches rock my socks off.
Saying “meat muffin” brings an unavoidable smile to my face 😀

Nom.

Recipes

Szechwan Shrimp

December 5, 2010 2 Comments

Whelp, I haven’t been doing much blogging lately BUT I have been doing a decent amount of cooking! Time to play catch up!

Three things that I look for in any good recipe:

Easy.
Healthy.
Onions.

ok… The recipe just has to be friggin delicious (usually that comes with the addition of some onions, but not always).

This recipe for Szechwan Shrimp has been a favorite of mine for a couple years now, simply because it meets my three criteria (even the onions!). Even though it has lots of ingredients, most of them are things I always have on hand. Can’t complain about that!

First up, I mix up the sauce ingredients in a small bowl:

2 tbsp water
1 tsp ketchup
2 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp honey
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp olive oil

Then I sprayed down a skillet, heated it over medium heat, and added 1 large sliced green onion and one clove minced garlic. I let these sauté for a bit, then added 3 large raw shrimp:

Once the shrimp was cooked through I added the sauce and used a rubber spatula to combine.

I let the mixture heat up until it started to bubble and thicken and then tossed on top of 1 serving of brown rice. I also added some steamed oriental veggies and a Chung’s veggie spring roll:

So pretty!

So delicious…

Recipes

Mini Pumpkin Muffcakes

November 14, 2010 3 Comments

Oh so simple, and oh so delicious.

In the past week or so, I realized that my year-to-date pumpkin intake is severely below goal this year. It dawned on me that I have only enjoyed ONE Starbucks pumpkin latte this year and I’ve only made pumpkin cookies ONCE. Sad! The very next day, I received an email newsletter from Hungry Girl that was ALL ABOUT PUMPKIN. Fate? I’m thinking yes.

Do any of you get the Hungry Girl email newsletter? I am a big big fan. She always has simple healthy recipe ideas and offers up tips on healthier options to make at chain restaurants. She’s also coming out with a show in January, which I’m pretty pumped about.

One of the pumpkin recipes in the newsletter that caught my eye was this recipe for Caramel Pudding Pumpkin Cupcakes. I truly am a baker at heart. Yes, I love to cook, but if I had to choose I’d pick baking any day. One of the reasons I rarely bake is that I possess little to no will power against baked goods. I’m the girl who has to try a “little bite” of each baked good at family get togethers… only to end up eating the sugar equivalent of 7 king size snickers bars… For those of you who were Sex and the City watchers, I could totally relate to the episode where Miranda ate chocolate cake from the trash can. Like I said. Little to no willpower. So rather than suscept myself to sugar induced comas, I avoid baking.

Unless of course I have plenty of people to pawn my wares off on… And when all else fails, I scale it down. I mean way down. I’ve been known to make a solitary no-bake cookie. Talk about proactive measures!

When I got to baking these pumpkin cupcakes, I decided to cut the recipe down to 3 cupcakes. Come on. You have to give yourself a little wiggle room Winking smile

I assembled the ingredients for 3 cupcakes in a large bowl (making a few minor tweaks from HG’s recipe):

1/2 cup Better Crocker moist yellow cake mix
1/4 cup canned pure pumpkin
1 egg white
1.5 tsp Smuckers sugar free breakfast syrup
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 packet Truvia
dash of salt

I whisked everything together with a fork for a good two minutes:

Then divided evenly into 3 muffin tins, which I popped into a 350 degree oven for 12 minutes…. and VOILA!

Little bits of joy:

I’m so proud Smile

While the cupcakes cooled, I got to work on the caramel icing. For three cupcakes, I only needed 1 caramel candy (the little cube caramels you can find individually wrapped in the bulk candy section of the grocery store) and 1 tsp Almond Breeze Vanilla Unsweetened Almond Milk. I put both of the icing ingredients into a bowl and popped into the microwave on 50% heat for 1 minute, then stirred, and repeated for another minute.

Then I just drizzled the caramel goodness over top of the three cupcakes:

I had one of these little guys with my evening cup of Earl Grey tea. It reminded me of the pumpkin muffies you can get at Panera (you know, the ones that are dusted with powdered sugar?). These cupcakes really are a cross between a muffie and a cupcake…. A muffcake, if you will Winking smile

Not only were they super easy and scrumptious, but they made my kitchen smell absolutely heavenly.

Stats on 1 Mini Pumpkin Muffcake (as prepared by Fervent Foodie): 106 calories, 23g carbs, 1g fat, 2g protein, 1g fiber

Mini Pumpkin Muffcakes Ingredients List (makes 3)

1/2 cup Better Crocker moist yellow cake mix
1/4 cup canned pure pumpkin
1 egg white
1.5 tsp Smuckers sugar free breakfast syrup
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 packet Truvia
dash of salt
1 caramel candy
1 tsp Almond Breeze Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk

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