Category Archives: Healthful Eating

May 10, 2015 · 1:15 pm

Oodles of Noodles=Low-calorie Fun.

Too much cooking and too much eating have led to too much weight! While I hate the word diet, I’m on one now to drop pounds. A recent addition to my kitchen gadget collection is a vegetable spiral slicer. Many brands are available. I chose a handheld model by Spiralife.

The spiral slicer creates several long strands of vegetable pasta.

The spiral slicer creates several long strands of vegetable pasta.

I love pasta dishes, so the concept of creating vegetable ribbons as a substitute for spaghetti appeals to me. Vegetable noodles save me approximately 200 calories per serving when substituted for my whole wheat or semolina spaghetti. What a fun way to sneak more nutrition and fiber in my diet. 😀

For my first adventure in spiral slicing, I steamed a squash medley for a side dish. Using one yellow squash and one zucchini, I produced enough “noodles” for two pasta dishes or three side dishes. I tossed with a tablespoon of butter for a side, but next time I plan to use a pesto sauce for an entrée.

Steam pasta over low heat just until tender. Or you can boil it if you don't have minimum-moisture cookware.

Steam pasta over low heat just until tender. Or you can boil it if you don’t have minimum-moisture cookware.

A side of squash medley served with chicken and mashed potatoes.

A side of squash medley served with chicken and mashed potatoes.

The handheld Spiralife® is great for round vegetables, like carrots, zucchini, and yellow squash. It isn’t designed for onions or broccoli, which is no problem because a pasta substitute should have a mild taste. I enjoy a medley of flavors, so I blend squashes with a carrot. In the past, I’ve created veggie curls using an ordinary vegetable peeler. This new gadget speeds up the process.

Bottom line: The Spiralife is worth the purchase. I may even consider upgrading to a fancier model!

Handheld vegetable spiral slicer by Spiralife

Handheld vegetable spiral slicer by Spiralife

6 Comments

Filed under cooking, Healthful Eating, pasta, Zucchini

Tagged as ,

April 20, 2015 · 8:03 am

Sausages Revisited

Remember my earlier post on Healthy Midway Food?. After reading a post about grilling brats on the Lodge Cast Iron site, I modified my method with tasty results. Take a large cast iron skillet, add the contents of one can of beer, then add a package of your favorite polish sausage or bratwurst. Bring beer to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Cook until all the beer evaporates (approximately 30 minutes), then turn the sausages to brown on all sides. You will have delicious and beautifully browned sausages! I sauté sweet peppers and onions to top the sausages. Yummy!

Leave a comment

Filed under Healthful Eating, sausages

Tagged as , ,

March 8, 2015 · 4:00 pm

Sausage Farfalle Skillet Dinner

Here’s a quick and easy skillet dinner. Although I make my own sauce and grate my own cheese, you can use a jarred sauce and shredded cheese. I cook the dish in 25 minutes using my Kitchen Craft Electric Skillet, but you can adapt the recipe for baking in the oven.
100_1157100_1156

RECIPE

Sausage Farfalle Skillet Dinner
Serves 4

Ingredients:

  • 1 package chicken sausage (Italian Style)
  • 2 cups dried farfalle pasta (Bowties) or your choice
  • 16 oz. low sodium tomato sauce
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 carrot
  • 1/2 yellow onion, quartered
  • 1 tsp. dried Italian seasonings
  • 1 tsp. Kosher salt
  • 1/4 tsp. pepper
  • 2 cups shredded Italian cheese (or Parmesan, Mozzarella mix)

Directions:

  1. Preheat electric skillet to 225°
  2. Slice sausages into 1/4″ slices.
  3. In a blender (I use a Vitamix) combine all other ingredients except the pasta and cheese. Puree into a sauce.
  4. Cover bottom of skillet with sliced sausage. Layer farfalle pasta on top the sausage. Then pour the sauce over the layers, completely covering the pasta.
  5. Cover and cook 20 minutes.
  6. Lift lid, stir layers, then cover with the shredded cheeses. Cover and reduce heat to its lowest setting.
  7. Cook an additional 5 minutes then serve.

100_1160

100_1158

100_1161

100_1162

100_1163

Enjoy!

100_1164

1 Comment

Filed under casseroles, Healthful Eating, Italian

Tagged as , , ,

February 23, 2015 · 6:57 am

Shrimp Brown Rice Recipe

Check out this healthful and tasty dish from my friend, author Nancy Cohen.

Nancy J. Cohen's avatarNancy's Notes From Florida

Here’s an easy one-dish meal that you can serve alone or with a salad.

Shrimp Brown Rice

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium red pepper, chopped
16 oz. sliced mushrooms
2 cups uncooked brown rice
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. saffron powder
48 oz. low-sodium chicken broth
1-2 lbs. cooked, deveined shrimp
12 oz. frozen broccoli florets
8 oz. frozen peas

In a Dutch oven, sauté onion, red pepper, and mushrooms in oil until tender. Stir in the rice, garlic and saffron. Cook 1 to 2 minutes, then add broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until liquid is absorbed, about 45 minutes. Add broccoli, peas, and shrimp, and cook until heated through. Serves 6-8.

Shrimp Rice

Find more of my favorite recipes at http://nancyjcohen.com/fun-stuff/recipes/

View original post

Leave a comment

Filed under Healthful Eating

Tagged as ,