Edamame Succotash

This dish puts a spin on the traditional succotash by using the ever trendy edamame. If you adore the old standby instead, feel free to use lima beans.

Ingredients:

2 cups shelled and cooked edamame
1 cups chopped red pepper
2 tablespoons diced red onion
1 cup sweet corn (fresh, canned or thawed frozen)
1-2 tablespoons light margarine or 1 tablespoon olive oil or ICB spray
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Cook (and shell, if needed) the edamame according to package directions. In a large pan add 1 tablespoon light margarine or 1 teaspoon of olive oil or 10 sprays ICB and add the onions and red pepper. Saute until slightly tender, about 5 minutes. Throw in the corn and edamame and add the second tablespoon light margarine, or teaspoons of olive oil or 10-20 more sprays of ICB and sauté for another 5-7 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Makes 3.5 cups, 7 servings

Serving size: ½ cup Calories 100 Protein 7 g Carb 11 g Fiber 2 g Sugars 4 g Fat 3.5 g Saturated fat 0 g Sodium 140 mg

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Sesame Asparagus

Liven up asparagus with a double dose of sesame. This side dish comes alive with the flavors of sesame oil and seeds and a hint of soy sauce and garlic.

Ingredients:

12 ounces fresh asparagus, rinsed and chopped into one inch pieces (3 cups of chopped stalks)
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 teaspoons soy sauce (*use a gluten-free brand such as San-J if you are on a gluten-free diet)
¼ teaspoon crushed garlic, or ½ a clove minced
1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Directions:

Cook the asparagus until almost done- by either boiling them in a pot of water, steaming in a pyrex dish in an half inch of water or even quicker, put them in a Glad® Simply Cooking™ Microwave Steaming Bags and heat on high for about 2-3 minutes. Add sesame oil, soy sauce and garlic to a medium sized pan and put on medium heat. Add the asparagus and sauté 5-7 minutes until just before browned. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

Variations:

If you re watching sodium, you can use low sodium soy sauce.

Makes 3 cups, six servings

Serving size: 1/2 cup Calories 40 Protein 2 g Carb 4 g Fiber 2 g Sugars 1 g Fat 2 g saturated fat 0 g Sodium 125 mg

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Spicy Fruit Dip

Another great dip recipe to serve with any cut up fruit/ fruit salad.

Ingredients:

1 cup non-fat Greek yogurt
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons pineapple juice
1/8 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
1/8 teaspoon powdered ginger

Directions:

Combine all of the above listed ingredients in a small bowl. Chill and serve.

Makes about 1 cup, 8 servings

Serving size: 2 tablespoons Calories 30 Protein 3 g Carb 5 g Fiber 0 g Sugars 5 g Fat 0 g Saturated fat 0 g Sodium 10 mg

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Ridiculously Easy Three Bean Salad

Packed with fiber and protein, this snappy side salad has virtually no fat.

Ingredients:

1 cup kidney beans, rinsed well
1 cup garbanzo bean, rinsed well
2 cups cut green beans, fresh or frozen thawed
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
¼ cup rice vinegar
¼ cup fat free Italian dressing (*use a gluten-free brand such as Marzetti® if you are on a gluten-free diet)

Directions:

Rinsed the canned kidney and garbanzo beans well and place in a medium bowl. Rinse and chop the green beans into 1 inch long pieces and cook by either boiling them in a pot of water, steaming in a pyrex dish in an half inch of water or even quicker, put them in a Glad® Simply Cooking™ Microwave Steaming Bags and heat on high for about 2 minutes. Rinse under cold water to cool, drain and put in the bowl with the rest of the beans. Add the vinegars and Italian dressing and place in the fridge to chill and marinate at least 30-60 minutes before serving.

Variations:

If you’re watching sodium use low sodium canned beans.

Makes 3 cups, 6 servings

Serving size: 1/2 cup Calories 100 Protein 5 g Carb 18 g Fiber 4 g Sugars 6 g Fat 1 g Saturated fat 0 g Sodium 520 mg

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Ridiculously Easy Lemon Blueberry Mini Cupcake-ish Muffins

Kind of like a cross between a muffin and a cupcake but no eggs, no butter, almost no fat (ok-like one gram), really.

Ingredients:

1 box lemon cake mix (I used Betty Crocker Super Moist)
1 ½ cups nonfat Greek yogurt
1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen, thawed)

Directions:

Put the cake mix into a large mixing bowl and add Greek yogurt and stir until completely blended into a uniform thick doughy batter. Fold in the blueberries. Spray mini muffin tins with cooking spray and spoon in the batter (even better, less messy- use a small scooper) to make 36 mini muffins. Bake at 350 for about 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Makes 3 dozen

Serving size 1 mini-muffin Calories 63 Protein 1 g Carbs 12 g Sugar 7 g Fiber < 1g Fat 1g Saturated fat <1 g Sodium 12 mg

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Chunky Primavera Sauce with Sausage

This hearty sauce is reminiscent of a primavera, chocked full of veggies with the added bonus of savory turkey sausage.

1 cup chopped broccoli
1 cup chopped yellow squash
1 cup chopped zucchini
3/4 cup chopped white onion
2 cups sliced button mushrooms
½ teaspoon crushed garlic or 1 clove diced
One 14 ounce can crushed tomatoes
One 14 ounce can tomato sauce/puree
¾ cup sliced black olives
5-6 ounces chicken or turkey sausage((*use a gluten-free brand such as Trader Joes or Applegate Farms if you are on a gluten-free diet)
ICB spray or olive oil using olive oil sprayer (if both n/a use a 1 ½ teaspoons of olive oil)
Chopped fresh basil (optional, for garnish)
Salt and pepper to taste

Spray a large pot with ICB or an olive oil sprayer or drizzle very lightly with a teaspoon olive oil and put on medium-high heat. Add the broccoli, carrots, onions and garlic and sauté for 5-6 minutes, stirring frequently. Spray again with ICB or olive oil sprayer (or add ½ teaspoon olive oil), add the mushrooms, cover and heat for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, cook the sausage until almost done- either by grilling on a barbeque, in a non-stick pan or microwave according to package directions and then slice it up. Throw in the cooked sausage, zucchini, squash, olives, crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce, cover and reduce to medium-low heat. Simmer for 10-15 minutes until all the vegetables are tender. Stir in fresh basil before serving and add salt/pepper to taste if desired.

Variation: to reduce sodium content you can use low sodium crushed tomatoes/tomato sauce
Makes 7 cups 14 servings

Serving size: ½ cup Calories 63 Protein 4 g Carb 8 g Fiber 2 g Sugars 3 g Fat 2 g Saturated fat < 1g Sodium 403 mg

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Lettuce Wraps

These make a nice appetizer or you can add cooked fish, chicken, lean beef or pork and serve with a side of brown rice to make them a meal.

Wraps:

Ingredients:

1 ½ teaspoons sesame oil
¼ cup finely chopped onion
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 cup finely chopped celery
1 cup finely chopped carrots
1 eight ounce can water chestnuts, finely chopped
1 cup finely chopped red, yellow or orange bell pepper
1 cup finely chopped mushrooms
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce (*use a gluten-free brand such as San-J if you are on a gluten-free diet)
4 -6 lettuce leaves, rinsed well and dried
chopped fresh basil (optional, for garnish)
slivered almonds (optional, for garnish)

Directions:

Place ½ teaspoon sesame oil, garlic and onions in a large skillet, pan or wok and sauté for a few minutes until slightly browned. Add another ½ teaspoon sesame oil and throw in the celery, carrot, water chestnuts and pepper and sauté for about 4-5 minutes. Then add the last ½ teaspoon of sesame oil, the tablespoon of soy sauce and the mushrooms and sauté for another 3-5 minutes until all the vegetables are slightly softened. Let cool for a few minutes then spoon the mixture into the lettuce leaves. Top with sauce (recipe listed below). These can also be made ahead of time, chilled and served cold.

Sauce

2 tablespoons peanut butter
2 tablespoons light coconut milk
2 tablespoons water
1½ teaspoons soy sauce (*use a gluten-free brand such as San-J if you are on a gluten-free diet)
1½ teaspoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon lime juice
¼ teaspoon fresh or powdered ginger
1/4-1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes


Combine all of the above listed ingredients in a small bowl. Whisk together until a smooth consistency is reached.

Makes 4-6 wraps, (4 large or 6 smaller)

Serving size: 1 small lettuce wrap without sauce (1/6 recipe) Calories 48 Protein 1.5 g Carb 8 g Fiber 3 g Sugars 3 g Fat 1 g Saturated fat <1 g Sodium 134 mg

With sauce: Calories 90 Protein 3 g Carb 10 g Fiber 3 g Sugars 4 g Fat 5 g Saturated fat 1 g Sodium 217 mg

Serving size: 1 large lettuce wrap(1/4 recipe) Calories 73 Protein 2 g Carb 13 g Fiber 4 g Sugars 5 g Fat 2 g Saturated fat <1 g Sodium 199 mg

With sauce: Calories 136 Protein 4 g Carb 15 g Fiber 4 g Sugars 6 g Fat 8 g Saturated fat 1 g Sodium 323 mg

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A new segment: food FYI

I’ve decided to add a new component to my blog- a new segment called food FYI where I’ll post a random and fun piece of info, a sort of “did you know that?...” in the realm of food and nutrition. So the first one is……

Did you know that draining and rinsing canned foods can reduce sodium levels by 23-45%, according to a recent University of California, Davis review of literature, published in the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture. You can read the full review here.

This interesting tidbit was brought to my attention by Roberta L. Duyff, MS, RD, FADA, CFCS Consultant to the Canned Food Alliance.

One of the great canned foods to apply this to is beans, i.e. pinto, black, kidney, lentils etc. Beans are a cheap and healthy source of low fat protein, fiber-full carb foods, as well as B vitamins and the key mineral iron. So cracking open a can, draining and rinsing them not only helps make them more digestible but washes away some of that sodium too. Try some in my Black Bean and Corn Enchiladas, Quick Spiced Indian Lentils and Ken’s Vegetarian Chili for Champions recipes!

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