HASTY TASTY MEALS BLOG

March 18, 2012 · 12:06 pm

Guilt-free Pizza

Are you shunning America’s favorite fast food because it’s rich with fat and calories? Good news: You can have your pizza and eat it, too. The caveat: you need to make your own. With the growing availability of whole grain, thin crusts, you can make pizza that isn’t labor-intensive.

Today I took leftover pasta sauce (which I’d made using ground lean turkey, lots of garlic and onions, and San Marzano tomatoes crushed using my Vitamix) and spread it on a store-bought crust. I added a few items (sliced Crimini mushrooms, a bit of green bell pepper, and sweet onion), topped with reduced fat Mozzarella cheese and Parmesan cheese plus a sprinkle of Redneck Pepper Italian. I baked it ten minutes in a preheated 450° oven (but I used a Pampered Chef stoneware baking pan. If you use a metal pizza pan, reduce heat to 425°). After removing it from the oven, I sliced it into six pieces (3 servings).

You can use any combination of toppings you like. There are pizza sauces available. Just read the labels to be sure you don’t get too much fat or sugar. Shred your own cheese or buy it already shredded and ready to use. The two big offenders that make pizza less healthful are meats and refined flour crusts. If you stick to meat-free or lowfat meats like ground turkey, and if you use a thin, whole wheat crust, you can enjoy two slices of pizza without wrecking your diet.

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Gravy Train

Several have asked me about my fat-free roux method for making gravy or sauce. Traditional roux is made from browning equal amounts of fat (typically butter) and flour. Although my gravy isn’t fat-free (I finish it with a Tbsp. of butter for flavor and gloss), mine is a lot lower in fat calories. I recently made a batch of this gravy to reheat leftover cooked turkey. The turkey flavored the gravy while the gravy gently warmed the turkey. That’s a win-win!

Start by preheating a quality, heavy-duty skillet. To make one cup of gravy, add two tablespoons flour to the dry skillet over medium heat. Whisk often to cook the flour. Season the flour as desired. When the flour turns light brown and emits an aroma indicating it’s cooked, remove the skillet from the heat.

Carefully add about a pint of broth or stock, whisking into the roux. Stand back as the hot skillet may steam from the cold liquid (as an additional step, preheat your broth or stock before adding it to the roux). After roux is incorporated into the liquid, return the skillet to medium heat. Whisk occasionally.

Allow the gravy to thicken and reduce, then lower the heat. If using the gravy to reheat cooked food (see photos) such as leftover turkey, place the food in the gravy and let it cook gently until warmed.

To serve, remove all food from the gravy and plate for serving. Remove skillet from heat. Stir in one pat (approx. 1 Tbsp.) butter to finish the gravy. Pour into gravy bowl to serve.

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FIERY FISH WITH FENNEL Encore

By request, here is one of my favorite (and easy) fish recipes. Use low heat and don’t overcook. If you don’t have an electric skillet, use a quality covered skillet over low heat.

Enjoy!

RECIPE

Fiery Fish with Fennel and Onion
Serves 2

Ingredients:

1-1¼ pound any firm fish fillets
1 fresh bulb fennel (save some of the fennel fronds for garnish) 1 large yellow onion
1 Tbsp. lemon juice or 1 lemon, sliced
½ tsp – 1 tsp Redneck Pepper Flamin Fish seasoning (optional for sissies)

Directions:

Preheat a large electric skillet to 250°. Quarter, core, and slice fennel bulb into ¼” slices. Peel and slice onion into ¼” slices. Arrange fennel and onion slices in bottom of the skillet and cover, simmering for about ten minutes. Meanwhile, rinse the fish fillets, sprinkle with lemon juice (or if you prefer, cover fish with lemon slices when cooking), then season fillets with the Redneck Pepper Flamin Fish seasoning (or regular lemon pepper if you can’t find Redneck Pepper*) on both sides.

Carefully placed the fish fillets on top the sliced fennel and onions, cover, and steam for approximately fifteen minutes. Avoid lifting the lid, but if too much steam escapes, adjust temperature a bit lower, to about 225°. Check fish after fifteen minutes. If done, unplug skillet and serve. If fish needs additional time, cover and time an additional five minutes. Check again.

Serve the fish with a side of the cooked onions and fennel slices, cornbread, and a side vegetable of your choice. Tasty and healthful, too!

*For information on how to purchase Redneck Pepper, call 1-78-REDNECK2 or visit http://www.redneckpepper.com/ . You’ll be glad you did!

Fiery Fish and Fennel for 4

Peanut Butter and Honey Sandwich?

I didn’t realize today is National Peanut Butter Day. In honor of this holiday, I made my own peanut butter (using my Vitamix, of course. Do not try this with a regular blender or you’ll burn up the motor).

The following slide show demonstrates making one cup of fresh, all natural peanut butter. However, the process works better with two or even three cups at a time. This recipe makes two cups.

RECIPE

Fresh ground peanut butter

Ingredients:

2 cups roasted peanuts

Directions:

Place all peanuts into the Vitamix container.

Set Vitamix at Variable Speed 1 and turn on.

Gradually increase speed to 10 then switch to high. Run for approximately 1 minute.

Turn off machine and check contents. You may need to scrape the walls of the container with a spatula.

Repeat steps 2 and 3. When the sound of the motor changes as if laboring, stop.

Remove the Vitamix container from the base and scrape (using a spatula) out all peanut butter into a container for storage.

Peanut butter keeps in the refrigerator for a week, although it probably won’t be around that long! After you taste fresh peanut butter, you won’t enjoy the commercial jars of peanut butter that contain additives.

I enjoy spreading the peanut butter on a toasted slice of whole grain bread. I drizzle with honey. Nutritious and yummy! Try it and see.

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Filed under Healthful Eating, snacks

Tagged as peanut butter, peanut butter and honey sandwich, Vitamix