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Hash Brown Casserole with Bacon, Onions, and Cheese

6  bacon slices
1  cup chopped onion
2  garlic cloves, minced
1  (32-ounce) package frozen Southern-style hash brown potatoes
1  cup (4 ounces) preshredded Classic Melts Four Cheese blend, divided
1/2  cup chopped green onions
1/2  cup fat-free sour cream
1/2  teaspoon salt
1/4  teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1  (10.75-ounce) can condensed 30% reduced-sodium, 98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
Cooking spray

Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, and crumble. Discard drippings in pan. Add 1 cup onion and garlic to pan; cook for 5 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in the potatoes; cover and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Combine crumbled bacon, 1/4 cup cheese, green onions, sour cream, salt, pepper, and soup in a large bowl. Add potato mixture; toss gently to combine. Spoon mixture into an 11 x 7-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup cheese. Cover with foil coated with cooking spray.

Refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Remove casserole from refrigerator; let stand at room temperature 15 minutes. Bake casserole, covered, at 350º for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 30 minutes or until bubbly around edges and cheese begins to brown.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: about 1 cup)

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Chicken Sate with Ponzu Sauce

To prevent wooden skewers from burning while grilling, soak for 30 minutes in hot water beforehand. Total time: 30 minutes.

4  (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4  cup packed light brown sugar
1/4  cup sake (rice wine)
1/4  cup rice vinegar
1/4  cup fresh lime juice
2  teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
1  teaspoon dark sesame oil
1/4  teaspoon crushed red pepper
1  garlic clove, minced
Cooking spray

Prepare grill.
Cut each chicken breast half lengthwise into 4 strips. Combine sugar and remaining ingredients except cooking spray in a small bowl; stir until sugar dissolves. Combine half of sake mixture and all of chicken in a large bowl. Let stand 10 minutes. Reserve remaining sake mixture.
Drain chicken, discarding marinade. Thread 1 chicken strip onto each of 16 (8-inch) skewers. Place chicken on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 2 minutes on each side or until done. Serve with remaining sake mixture.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 4 skewers and about 1 1/2 tablespoons sake mixture)

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Kale with Carmelized Shallots+

From the book: Clean Food, by Terry Walters.

My niece gave me this book for Christmas – it is FULL of healthy recipes designed to use what is in season, thus the “cleaner” aspect.  I was excited to see recipes for vegetables I’ve never prepared before.  We really liked this recipe and I was inspired to create my own, Colorful Kale and Peppers.  Kale is a nice mix between the “cookability” of brussel sprouts and spinach.  It is quick to prepare, but I don’t think you risk the sprout’s bitterness if you overcook the leaves; and they don’t wilt so dramatically as spinach, so you still have something to fork up and chew.  I reduced the amount of oil in the original recipe – it seemed like too much.

  • 2 bunches kale
  • 6 large shallots
  • 1-2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • 1/8 tsp coarse sea salt
  • freshly ground pepper

In a large skillet over medium heat, saute shallots in olive oil for 6-8 minutes or until very soft and caramelized.   Add lemon juice and saute another 2-3 minutes to brown.  Remove from heat and set aside.

Bring large pot of water to boil.  Cut and remove dried stems ends from kale and submerge whole leaves in boiling water for 2-3 minutes or until tender and bright green.  Remove from heat, drain water and cut leaves into bite-sized pieces.  Add kale to pan with shallots and saute 1 minute.  Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

 

I served this with gnocchi and used the hot water to cook the gnocchi.  Clean and green.

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Brown Sugar and Balsamic glaze pork loin

  • Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

  • 2 pound(s) pork tenderloin
  • 1 teaspoon(s) ground sage
  • 1/2 teaspoon(s) salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon(s) pepper
  • 1 clove(s) garlic
  • 1/2 cup(s) water
  • 1/2 cup(s) brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon(s) cornstarch
  • 1/4 cup(s) balsamic vinegar
  • 2 tablespoon(s) soy sauce

Preparation

place top 6 ingredients in crock pot. Cook 6-8 hours. Stir together the rest of ingredients for glaze.

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Classic Lamb Curry

  • YIELD: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup lamb mixture and 1 cup rice)
  • COURSE: Main Dishes

Ingredients

  • Cooking spray
  • 2 pounds boneless leg of lamb, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
  • 5 whole cloves
  • 3 cardamom pods
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 (3-inch) cinnamon stick
  • 1 tablespoon ground coriander seeds
  • 1 tablespoon paprika
  • 2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
  • 2 teaspoons Garam Masala
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 cups finely chopped plum tomato (about 1/2 pound)
  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided
  • 4 cups hot cooked long-grain rice

Preparation

Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add lamb, and cook for 5 minutes on all sides or until browned. Remove lamb from pan.

Heat the oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and next 4 ingredients (onion through cinnamon); cook for 4 minutes or until onion is browned. Stir in coriander and next 6 ingredients (coriander through garlic); cook 1 minute. Add lamb, tomato, water, and salt; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 1/2 hours or until the lamb is tender. Stir in 1/4 cup cilantro. Serve over rice; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup cilantro.

Nutritional Information

Amount per serving

  • Calories: 457
  • Calories from fat: 22%
  • Fat: 11.2g
  • Saturated fat: 3.5g
  • Monounsaturated fat: 4g
  • Polyunsaturated fat: 1.8g
  • Protein: 40.4g
  • Carbohydrate: 46.8g
  • Fiber: 4.5g
  • Cholesterol: 112mg
  • Iron: 5.7mg
  • Sodium: 477mg
  • Calcium: 70mg
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Rita’s Lemon Bars+

Crust:

1 ½ cup flour

¾ cup melted butter

1/3 cup powdered sugar

Mix together and put in 9 x 13 ungreased pan.  Bake 20 minutes at 350 degree oven.

 

Batter:

3 eggs

4 ½ Tb lemon juice

4 ½ Tb flour

1 ¼ cup sugar

¾ tsp baking powder

¾ cup fine coconut

Beat together.  Spread mixture over crust and return to oven for another 25 minutes.

 

Frosting:

Let it cool and frost with:

1 cup powdered sugar

2 Tb butter

1 tsp lemon juice

1 tb milk

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Fettuccine with Butternut and Gorgonzola Sauce+

9 points/11 plus points

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 1/4 cups)


1 tablespoon butter
3 cups vertically sliced onion
3 cups (1-inch) cubed peeled butternut squash (about 1 pound)
1 1/4 teaspoons salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups 1% low-fat milk, divided
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) crumbled Gorgonzola cheese, divided
8 cups hot cooked fettuccine (about 1 pound uncooked pasta)
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

Melt butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, squash, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and pepper; sauté 6 minutes or until the squash is almost tender. Add minced garlic; sauté 1 minute. Cover and set aside.

Bring 2 cups milk to a boil in a saucepan. Combine the remaining 1 cup milk and flour, stirring well with a whisk; gradually add to boiling milk, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to medium, and cook 5 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add 1 cup cheese, and stir until smooth.

Combine squash mixture, pasta, and cheese mixture in a large bowl. Sprinkle with remaining 1 teaspoon salt; toss well to combine. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup parsley, chopped walnuts, lemon rind, and the remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Serve immediately.

CALORIES 429 (25% from fat); FAT 11.9g (sat 6.6g,mono 2.2g,poly 2g); IRON 3mg; CHOLESTEROL 26mg; CALCIUM 299mg; CARBOHYDRATE 65.5g; SODIUM 723mg; PROTEIN 17.6g; FIBER 5.4g

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Clams Casino with Pancetta+

Soak the clams for about 10-15 minutes before shucking.  I found a great video demonstrating how to shuck clams.  It is kind of time-consuming, but these appetizers were well liked by all.

Yield: 12 servings (serving size: 3 clams)

Cooking spray
3/4 cup finely diced pancetta – get the store to slice this thin
2 tablespoons dry white wine
1/3 cup finely diced red bell pepper
3 tablespoons minced shallots
1 garlic clove, minced
1 (1 1/2-ounce) slice day-old country white bread (I used some stuffing mix but crushed croutons would also work)
1 1/2 tablespoons grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
36 littleneck clams, cleaned (this was about 2 lbs)
Lemon wedges (optional)

Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add pancetta to pan; cook 6 minutes or until pancetta begins to brown, stirring occasionally. Add wine; cook until liquid evaporates (about 30 seconds), scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Add bell pepper, shallots, and garlic to pan; cook 4 minutes or until tender. Place pancetta mixture in a medium bowl.

Place bread in a food processor; pulse 10 times or until coarse crumbs measure about 3/4 cup. Add breadcrumbs, cheese, parsley, and black pepper to pancetta mixture; stir until blended.

Preheat broiler.

Discard any clams with broken or open shells. Shuck clams; discard top halves of shells. Top each clam with about 1 rounded teaspoon pancetta mixture. Broil 4 minutes; turn pan. Broil an additional 3 minutes or until tops are browned and clams are done. Serve with lemon wedges, if desired.


CALORIES 61 (43% from fat); FAT 2.9g (sat 1.2g,mono 1g,poly 0.3g); IRON 3.9mg; CHOLESTEROL 15mg; CALCIUM 25mg; CARBOHYDRATE 3.2g; SODIUM 163mg; PROTEIN 5.3g; FIBER 0.1g

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Apple-Parsnip Soup

Pink Lady apples are wonderful for applesauce, and so work very well in this pureed appetizer soup. Sweet Fuji or all-purpose Spartan apples would also lend themselves nicely to the dish.

 

3 points

Yield: 8 servings

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
2 1/2 cups chopped peeled Pink Lady apple (about 1 pound)
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 1/2 teaspoons grated peeled fresh ginger
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 garlic clove, chopped
3 1/2 cups chopped peeled parsnip (about 1 1/2 pounds)
4 cups fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
1 cup apple cider
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 teaspoons crème fraîche

1. Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion; cook 5 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Add apple and the next 4 ingredients (through garlic); cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add parsnip, chicken broth, and apple cider; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes or until parsnip is tender.

2. Place half of parsnip mixture in a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Pour into a large bowl. Repeat the procedure with remaining parsnip mixture. Stir in salt and pepper. Ladle about 3/4 cup soup into each of 8 bowls; top each serving with 1 teaspoon crème fraîche.


CALORIES 136 ; FAT 5.6g (sat 1.6g,mono 2.6g,poly 0.6g); CHOLESTEROL 5mg; CALCIUM 30mg; CARBOHYDRATE 21.2g; SODIUM 381mg; PROTEIN 1.8g; FIBER 4.2g; IRON 0.7mg