Sunday, January 18, 2009

Greek-Style Stuffed Peppers

2006, Ellie Krieger


1 pound lean ground beef
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 medium zucchini, coarsely grated (about 2 cups)
1 small onion, minced (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup bulghur
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 red bell peppers, halved lengthwise, cores and ribs removed
2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans low-sodium stewed tomatoes, finely chopped
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In a large bowl combine the beef, spinach, zucchini, onion, bulghur, egg, oregano, salt and a few grinds of pepper. Mix until thoroughly combined.

Arrange the pepper halves cut side up in a 9 by 13-inch baking dish and fill each pepper half with the meat mixture. Pour the tomatoes over the peppers and sprinkle with the feta cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake until the meat mixture is completely cooked and the peppers are tender, about 25 minutes longer.


Nutrition Information
Nutritional Analysis Per Serving Calories 210
Carbohydrates 19 g Total Fat 6 g
Saturated Fat 2.5 g Protein 21 g
Fiber 6 g Sodium 400 mg


Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 55 minutes
Yield: 6 servings

Episode#: EK0205

Rants continued......

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Cassoulet-Style Chicken Thighs

Cassoulet-Style Chicken Thighs

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients

2 15-ounce cans white beans, rinsed
¾ cup fresh whole-wheat breadcrumbs (see Tip)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of fat and cut into thirds
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
½ teaspoon dried rosemary
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
½ cup dry white wine
½ cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
½ cup water
½ pound low-fat turkey kielbasa, sliced into ½-inch pieces
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley


Instructions

1. Put 1/2 cup beans in a small bowl and mash with a fork. Add the remaining beans and set aside.
2. Toss breadcrumbs with 1 tablespoon oil in a small bowl. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the breadcrumbs and cook, stirring often, until golden and crisp, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
3. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in the skillet over medium heat. Add chicken in a single layer and cook until browned, turning once, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate.
4. Add onion and garlic to the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Add rosemary, thyme and pepper and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add wine, increase heat to high and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits, until the wine has reduced by about half, 1 to 2 minutes. Add broth, water, kielbasa, the reserved beans and chicken; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes. Top with the toasted breadcrumbs and parsley.



Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Tip: To make fresh breadcrumbs: Trim crusts from firm sandwich bread. Tear bread into pieces and process in a food processor into coarse crumbs. One slice of bread makes about 1/3 cup crumbs.



Per serving: 370 calories; 13 g fat (3 g sat, 6 g mono); 68 mg cholesterol; 40 g carbohydrate; 29 g protein; 10 g fiber; 749 mg sodium.
Source: Eating Well

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Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Brussels Sprouts in Curry Coconut Sauce

Brussels Sprouts in Curry Coconut Sauce

3 Tbsps. vegetable oil
2 cloves finely minced garlic
2 shallots
1 pound Brussels spouts
1 Tbsp. hot curry powder
1 cup coconut milk (used light)
salt & pepper to taste

Cut brussels sprouts in to quarters. Separate cut section from loose leaves. Bring pot of water to boil, add brussels sprouts to water. Blanch in hot water for just about 3-5 seconds. Once cooled, remove brussel sprouts and blot dry with paper towels.
Heat pan , add oil then minced garlic and shallots till brown. Add brussels sprouts, toss in pepper, salt, and curry powder.
Add coconut milk, cook 30 minutes or less . Do not over cook! Remove from heat and enjoy

Rants continued......

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Recommitted 1/6/09

Will come back tomorrow and start posting again.

Rants continued......

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Chicken Breasts with Savory Apple Stuffing

Chicken Breasts with Savory Apple Stuffing
From: The Good Carb Cookbook

4 Skinless Bone-in Chicken Breast halves
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Stuffing:
4 slices firm whole wheat bread
1/4 c finely chopped onion
1/4 c finely chopped celery
1 c chopped, peeled granny smith apple (1 med)
1/2 tsp fines herbs or 1/4 tsp each thyme and sage
1/4 c + 2T chicken broth

Sprinkle both sides of chicken with salt and pepper. Tear bread into pieces and put in a blender and process into coarse crumbs.

Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Add the onion, celery, apple, herbs and 2T chicken broth and place skillet over medium heat. Cover the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 2 min. or until vegetables and apples start to soften. Remove from heat and toss in bread crumbs.

Tossing gently, slowly add enough of the remaining broth to make a moist but not wet stuffing that holds together. Set aside.

Coat a 9"x13" pan with cooking spray and lay the chicken in the pan with the bone side up. Mound a quarter of the stuffing into the depression of the breastbone of each piece of chicken. Spray the tops of the chicken lightly with cooking spray.

Cover the pan with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 40 min. Remove the foil and bake for 20 additional minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

4 servings

248 cal, 3.1g fat, 82 mg chol, 2.9g fiber

Rants continued......