Moroccan Vegetables.

I got this recipe from Betty Crocker’s vegetarian recipes. I should admit that this Moroccan recipe is very similar to the way I cook my Indian vegetables, but nonetheless it was a good experiment and my husband really enjoyed it.

Tip: This was mentioned in the book. Whenever you cannot find the Indian spices like turmeric, Garam masala and chili powder, use the curry powder blend.


½ cup carrots sliced
½ cup onion chopped
½ cup red pepper chopped
¾ cup zucchini sliced
¾ cup garbanzo beans
1 clove garlic chopped
¼ cup raisins
½ tsp ground cumin
¼ tsp turmeric powder
¼ tsp cinnamon powder
1 tbsp EVOO
Salt and pepper

Heat oil on medium high heat, cook carrots, onion, red pepper and garlic for about 4 minutes until onion is tender.

Stir in the other ingredients and cook for about 5 minutes until zucchini is tender. Sprinkle half the cilantro or parsley and mix. Use the rest for garnish.

Serve over rice or couscous.

For me it made about 2 servings.
Per serving: Calories- 259 Carbohydrates- 43g Fiber- 7gFat- 8g Protein- 6g

I think I can reduce or probably not include raisins for the extra Carbs they add.
Without Raisins the counts are:

Calories:204 Carbohydrates: 29g Fiber: 6.5g Fat: 8g Protein: 6 g

Healthy Irish soda bread!

With all the Green theme for the St Patty’s day going on I finally decided to make this healthy Irish soda bread. Since my husband is strictly against white flour I incorporated whole-wheat flour and almond flour into the recipe. The almond flour gave it a great texture and made it amazingly chewy. In fact I was enjoying my pre baked bread batter and was so sure that the final product would be great.

Happy St. Patty’s Day!!



¾ cup whole-wheat flour
¾ cup almond flour
¾ cup low fat buttermilk
½ cup raisins
1 tsp caraway seeds
1 tsp orange zest
¼ cup splenda
1 ½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
2 tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 350

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and sift them through a sieve.

Add the raisins, caraway seeds, orange zest and Mix.

Add the buttermilk and the butter. The dough will be sticky and wet.


On a cookie sheet sprayed with non stick cooking spray, place this mixture and let it bake for about 30- 40 minutes, until a knife pierced in the center comes out clear.



Eat with butter on top….YUMM…

Spaghetti squash with spinach

Today is day 2 of lunch without husband and boy am I actually having fun cooking for myself. When I have to just cook for myself it’s a total experiment scene in my kitchen. I am a spaghetti squash fan and I was so enthusiastic about making it today. It tastes just like a nice pasta meal minus the loads of calories and unwanted carbs. I added chicken to my dish to pump the protein and make it a complete meal. The counts do include the chicken, but I must suggest you to give this a try and tell how you like it.




1 cup cooked spaghetti squash
2 oz canned crushed tomatoes
1 oz chopped onions
1 clove garlic chopped
1 cup fresh spinach
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper
1 tbsp EVOO

Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan over medium heat, add the onion and garlic cook till soft and smells great add the tomatoes and add the seasoning, salt and pepper. When the tomatoes are cooked a lil water and then the spinach. when the spinach wilts add the spaghetti squash. Cook for another 2- 3 minutes and done.

Made me 2 servings

Per serving:

Calories—100 Carbohydrates-9g Fiber- 2.5g Fat- 7g Protein- 1.5g

Happy eating!!

Southwestern Chicken Burgers.

I was so bored to make myself lunch today as husband is away, I thought I would probably avoid cooking. However when hunger took a toll on me I stepped towards the kitchen and it was relieving to see pre-cut peppers and ground chicken in the refrigerator.I finally tried these burgers and was so happy I made them…Obviously husband missed it heheh…they were yummy.



4 oz ground chicken
¼ cup green and red peppers chopped
2 tbsp chopped red onion
1/4 cup dry instant oats.
1 scallion chopped
Cilantro chopped
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp cumin powder
¼ tsp dry coriander powder
salt and pepper
Non stick spray



Mix all the ingredients together its just that simple and fry them in a pan over medium heat coated with non stick spray. Cook for about 3-4 minutes on each side.




I had no whole wheat burger buns, but I cut the whole wheat bread I had into circles and had it with some multigrain chips. Real treat!!! Yay...

Makes 2 burgers

Per burger
Nutritional information: Calories- 99 Carbohydrates-5.5 g Fiber- 1 g Fat- 4.5 g Protein-9 g

Peanut butter cookies.

Lets keep this post really short coz’ there isn’t much to say except that these simple and easy cookies are delishes and so easy to make. Just some alteration, many low carb versions of these cookies do not incorporate almond flour. I have tried it without the almond flour but they come out very crumbly. I added almond flour and it was intact and did not break. My husband was so happy with the texture and of course the taste.


Ingredients:

1-cup natural creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup almond flour
1-cup granular splenda
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
Slivered pistachios for the topping

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Beat the egg and splenda thoroughly with an electric mixer. In a separate bowl mix almond flour, peanut butter, vanilla and the egg+ splenda mixture. Mix to incorporate the splenda mixture properly. Mix till it forms dough like consistency.

Scoop out 1 tbsp mixture shape them into balls and flatten them. Place them on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Top each of the cookies with pistachio in the center.

Bake for about 10 – 12 minutes. Bake till the edges are light brown and the center still light.

Makes 15 cookies.

Per cookie:
Calories: 120 Carbohydrates: 6 Fiber: 1.5 Fat: 9 and Protein: 4.5

Black Bean Vegetable Chowder.

With the ongoing trend of vegetarian recipes since the past few posts, I continue it again by posting a really nice and simple chowder I found in Betty Crocker’s Vegetarian cooking.



Ingredients:



1 ½ cups Black beans
1-cup broccoli
½ cup frozen corn
¼ cup frozen green peas
½ cup chopped onion
2 cups Low fat milk
1-cup veggie stock
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 ½ tbsp whole-wheat flour
½ cup Monterey jack cheese
2 tbsp olive oil
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp Jalapeno hot sauce
Salt & pepper

Preparation:

Heat EVOO, cook onion, stirring occasionally until crisp tender. Mix flour, cumin, garlic powder and paprika in a bowl, whisk in the milk and add this mixture to the onions. Stir in the vegetables. Heat to boiling and stir. Keep it on heat for about 1 minute.

Remove from heat and add the cheese until melted. Add the cilantro and serve with chopped scallions on top.

Serves 4

Per serving
Calories- 264 Carbohydrates- 15g Fiber- 4 g Protein- 6 g

PS- I added some jalapeno hot sauce for myself to just give it some Zzing.

Zucchini cakes

I have been roaming around the blogosphere a lot these days and have found some really cool and interesting sites and blogs. I came across this grrrrrreat recipe on Roni’s site. She used Spaghetti squash to make these cakes. When I read the recipe I was so excited to make it, but alas my Squash decide to spoil on one corner today. I peeped into my refrigerator and decided to experiment these with the Zucchini’s. Here is Roni’s Spaghetti squash cake.



Ingredients:



2 Zucchinis shredded yields 1 ½ cup
2 egg whites
¼ cup whole-wheat flour.
¼ cup Red and green bell peppers chopped
¼ cup onion chopped
1 clove garlic chopped
¼ cup shredded carrot
1 tbsp chopped cilantro
Salt & pepper to taste
Non-stick cooking spray


Preparation:

Shred Zucchinis and press out as much water as possible. Mix egg whites and Flour thoroughly and keep aside. Mix the Zucchini with the other ingredients and the flour+ egg mixture.



Form into cakes and Fry them in a pan heating with non-stick spray.



Makes 8 cakes.

Per Cake:

Calories: 27
Carbs: 5
Fiber: 1
Fat: Trace
Protein: 1.75