So, I fell off the wagon.
Not only did I fall off the wagon, I got run over by the wagon.
And dragged behind it.
I don't know if it was the miserable winter we had, or just a general feeling of major disorganization. I just haven't been able to get it together.
Well, here I go again back to square (cycle) one. I'm on Day 3 and finding my way again with the help of my favorite Cycle 1 Italian Egg Drop Soup. And lots of Advil.
Spring break is coming up and I need to be able to put my shorts on without cutting off my circulation. And then get back to where I was before and go past that point.
I did manage to knock off a few more cookbooks...all of the recipes were super unhealthy and somewhat lowbrow.
I'll share with you ASAP.
In the meantime, I am headed to the kitchen. I have some Eggplant Plop to cook up!
Showing posts with label eggplant. Show all posts
Showing posts with label eggplant. Show all posts
Friday, March 20, 2015
Thursday, January 8, 2015
Hidden Gem
Cookbook number 4 of 98 just knocked my socks off!
I pulled it off the shelf and figured that this would be one that ended up in the discard pile at the end of this experiment.
Another relic from the late 1990's and the beginning of my relationship with my husband:
The White Dog Cafe Cookbook.
When I was first dating my husband, we were living in New York. He had grown up just outside of Philadelphia and I had never been there before. Being the crazy kids that we were, we decided to get in the car and drive to Philly so he could take me to the White Dog where we would eat nachos and drink Leg Lifter Lager. We literally drove to Philadelphia, looked at the house where he grew up (not telling his parents that we were driving right by) and then went into the city to sightsee and eat.
Ahh, young love. You can stay up all night and do impulsive things and it never seems to take a toll on you. After being married for 15 years I can barely make it until 10:00 before I start falling asleep!
The following year we went back to the White Dog Cafe with my husband's family for Christmas Eve dinner. It was not as good as the beer and nachos night.
As one of our gifts, my future mother-in-law gave us the White Dog Cookbook. I don't recall ever using it. I'm sure I paged through it at the time but it must not have spoken to me, so it sat on the shelf untouched.
Imagine my surprise when I took it out and found myself putting flags on multiple recipes! I guess I needed to grow into the book to appreciate it?
I chose a soup recipe because it is FREEZING here. Literally. It's going to be 0 degrees tonight. Brr.
Making this soup was a bit of a project, but fortunately it was well worth it!
Ratatouille Bisque
This soup was AMAZING. Well worth the effort. It wasn't hard to make, but it was what we call in Yiddish a "patchke." That means it was a bit of a mess. There are multiple roasting pans involved, lots of chopping, using the blender or food processor, etc. This doesn't bother me but I know some people don't care for too many steps and a bunch of pans to wash! Regardless, I think this soup is worthy of the time and mess. It was that good!
I did adapt the recipe just a bit to fit into the 17 Day Diet. I also cut it in half because I didn't want to be stuck with a huge pot of soup that no one liked if it wasn't very good. I'll post my version of the recipe here and just let you know that it can be doubled to make more.
Ratatouille Bisque
Preheat oven to 450 degrees
1 small head of garlic, roasted (easy to do...cut off top, pour on a bit of olive oil, wrap in foil and bake for 30 minutes at 375 in the oven. I threw mine in the toaster oven.)
1 large red bell pepper, chopped and seeded
1 large yellow pepper, chopped and seeded
1 sweet onion, peeled and chopped
1 bulb fennel, fronds removed and core cut out, chopped
1 eggplant, sliced lengthwise
6 large, ripe plum tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 cups tomato juice
1 1/2 cups water
1 T Balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 packet of Truvia (recipe called for 1 tsp sugar)
Toss peppers, onion and fennel in a bowl with half of the olive oil.
Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast until lightly charred for 45 minutes
Toss the tomatoes with 1 T of the oil and spread on another baking sheet and roast until charred, about 30 minutes.
Rub the eggplant halves with the remaining oil and put them cut side down on baking sheet. Roast until soft, about 20 minutes.
When the vegetables are done, remove and let cool to room temperature.
Remove the eggplant pulp from the skin by scraping out with a large spoon. Discard skins. Squeeze garlic cloves out of their skin.
Puree all of the roasted vegetables in blender or food processor in batches.
In a large, non-reactive saucepan combine vegetables with the remaining ingredients. Taste for seasonings and add more tomato juice or water to thin if needed.
Depending on who is eating it, you can serve with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese or some crusty bread.
I'm really looking forward to seeing what other treasures this cookbook has in store!
I pulled it off the shelf and figured that this would be one that ended up in the discard pile at the end of this experiment.
Another relic from the late 1990's and the beginning of my relationship with my husband:
The White Dog Cafe Cookbook.
When I was first dating my husband, we were living in New York. He had grown up just outside of Philadelphia and I had never been there before. Being the crazy kids that we were, we decided to get in the car and drive to Philly so he could take me to the White Dog where we would eat nachos and drink Leg Lifter Lager. We literally drove to Philadelphia, looked at the house where he grew up (not telling his parents that we were driving right by) and then went into the city to sightsee and eat.
Ahh, young love. You can stay up all night and do impulsive things and it never seems to take a toll on you. After being married for 15 years I can barely make it until 10:00 before I start falling asleep!
The following year we went back to the White Dog Cafe with my husband's family for Christmas Eve dinner. It was not as good as the beer and nachos night.
As one of our gifts, my future mother-in-law gave us the White Dog Cookbook. I don't recall ever using it. I'm sure I paged through it at the time but it must not have spoken to me, so it sat on the shelf untouched.
Imagine my surprise when I took it out and found myself putting flags on multiple recipes! I guess I needed to grow into the book to appreciate it?
I chose a soup recipe because it is FREEZING here. Literally. It's going to be 0 degrees tonight. Brr.
Making this soup was a bit of a project, but fortunately it was well worth it!
Ratatouille Bisque
This soup was AMAZING. Well worth the effort. It wasn't hard to make, but it was what we call in Yiddish a "patchke." That means it was a bit of a mess. There are multiple roasting pans involved, lots of chopping, using the blender or food processor, etc. This doesn't bother me but I know some people don't care for too many steps and a bunch of pans to wash! Regardless, I think this soup is worthy of the time and mess. It was that good!
I did adapt the recipe just a bit to fit into the 17 Day Diet. I also cut it in half because I didn't want to be stuck with a huge pot of soup that no one liked if it wasn't very good. I'll post my version of the recipe here and just let you know that it can be doubled to make more.
Ratatouille Bisque
Preheat oven to 450 degrees
1 small head of garlic, roasted (easy to do...cut off top, pour on a bit of olive oil, wrap in foil and bake for 30 minutes at 375 in the oven. I threw mine in the toaster oven.)
1 large red bell pepper, chopped and seeded
1 large yellow pepper, chopped and seeded
1 sweet onion, peeled and chopped
1 bulb fennel, fronds removed and core cut out, chopped
1 eggplant, sliced lengthwise
6 large, ripe plum tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 cups tomato juice
1 1/2 cups water
1 T Balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 packet of Truvia (recipe called for 1 tsp sugar)
Toss peppers, onion and fennel in a bowl with half of the olive oil.
Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast until lightly charred for 45 minutes
Toss the tomatoes with 1 T of the oil and spread on another baking sheet and roast until charred, about 30 minutes.
Rub the eggplant halves with the remaining oil and put them cut side down on baking sheet. Roast until soft, about 20 minutes.
When the vegetables are done, remove and let cool to room temperature.
Remove the eggplant pulp from the skin by scraping out with a large spoon. Discard skins. Squeeze garlic cloves out of their skin.
Puree all of the roasted vegetables in blender or food processor in batches.
In a large, non-reactive saucepan combine vegetables with the remaining ingredients. Taste for seasonings and add more tomato juice or water to thin if needed.
Depending on who is eating it, you can serve with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese or some crusty bread.
I'm really looking forward to seeing what other treasures this cookbook has in store!
Monday, January 5, 2015
Ode to Joy
#2 of 99......
The Joy of Cooking
It was the second cookbook that I can remember buying for myself. The first was a Betty Crocker baking book that I picked up in college. We'll visit that one another day.
This book was purchased at the beginning of my relationship with my husband. All of the cooking I had done previously was either from magazines or my mother's collection of cookbooks. She didn't have many, and most of them were either Jewish cooking or Chinese. Go figure.
The Joy of Cooking was my go-to for absolutely everything. It covers all the bases, and I used it to make everything from Vichyssoise (Leek and Potato Soup) to Tiramisu. My mother's copy was well used, and looked something like this:
As usual, I had to toy with the recipe a bit...I ended up using two larger eggplants rather than four smaller ones. I also chose to use some crushed tomatoes we had from our CSA farm share rather than using fresh as the recipe called for. I tossed in some garlic as well. Those are the only changes. I'll put the original recipe here, and you can feel free to change it up if you'd like.:
Baked Eggplant
4 oblong eggplants (about 6 ounces each)
3 ounces crumbled fat-free or low-fat feta
3 T olive oil
4 plum tomatoes, seeded, peeled and chopped (or just used canned...about 1 1/4 cups)
1/2 tsp oregano
salt and pepper
1 clove of minced garlic
Halve the eggplants lengthwise. Score the cut surfaces with a knife without cutting through to the skin.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet, then add the eggplant cut size down. Cook at medium heat for about 5 minutes. Turn and cook on the second side for a few minutes. Remove and arrange cut side up in a shallow baking dish.
Sprinkle with ground black pepper and the crumbled feta.
Wipe out the skillet and cook the tomatoes until broken down into a rough sauce. Add salt, pepper and garlic to taste.
Spoon the sauce over the eggplants. Cover and bake until the eggplants are tender, about 35 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle the top with oregano and cook for another 5 minutes more.
Looks pretty good, right?
I ended up crumbling some of my leftover Turkey Sausage on top of it to add some protein. The husband ate it with some crusty bread. The kiddo turned up his nose and ate some Balsamic Chicken instead.
It's going to be a keeper in my house. Just like my trusty copy of The Joy of Cooking!
The Joy of Cooking
It was the second cookbook that I can remember buying for myself. The first was a Betty Crocker baking book that I picked up in college. We'll visit that one another day.
This book was purchased at the beginning of my relationship with my husband. All of the cooking I had done previously was either from magazines or my mother's collection of cookbooks. She didn't have many, and most of them were either Jewish cooking or Chinese. Go figure.
The Joy of Cooking was my go-to for absolutely everything. It covers all the bases, and I used it to make everything from Vichyssoise (Leek and Potato Soup) to Tiramisu. My mother's copy was well used, and looked something like this:
I guess I knew my boyfriend and I were on a serious track, because I went out and bought my own copy of The Joy of Cooking thinking I would need it when we set up our own little home. I can't get over the fact that my version is approaching 20 years old! There have been updated editions since 1997, but I'll stick to mine for nostalgic reasons.
Unfortunately, the poor book fell by the wayside once I discovered Auntie Ina....and even moreso with the internet becoming the go-to place for recipe ideas. I have to say I am kind of thrilled to pick this one up again, it really is a gem.
That being said, I had to stick to my guns and find something healthy to make.
Luckily, there were plenty of options in my old friend!
I chose Baked Eggplant.
I wanted something relatively easy, and something that my husband (the vegetarian) would eat. This recipe had only a few ingredients and took less than and hour to prep and cook.
As usual, I had to toy with the recipe a bit...I ended up using two larger eggplants rather than four smaller ones. I also chose to use some crushed tomatoes we had from our CSA farm share rather than using fresh as the recipe called for. I tossed in some garlic as well. Those are the only changes. I'll put the original recipe here, and you can feel free to change it up if you'd like.:
Baked Eggplant
4 oblong eggplants (about 6 ounces each)
3 ounces crumbled fat-free or low-fat feta
3 T olive oil
4 plum tomatoes, seeded, peeled and chopped (or just used canned...about 1 1/4 cups)
1/2 tsp oregano
salt and pepper
1 clove of minced garlic
Halve the eggplants lengthwise. Score the cut surfaces with a knife without cutting through to the skin.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet, then add the eggplant cut size down. Cook at medium heat for about 5 minutes. Turn and cook on the second side for a few minutes. Remove and arrange cut side up in a shallow baking dish.
Sprinkle with ground black pepper and the crumbled feta.
Wipe out the skillet and cook the tomatoes until broken down into a rough sauce. Add salt, pepper and garlic to taste.
Spoon the sauce over the eggplants. Cover and bake until the eggplants are tender, about 35 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle the top with oregano and cook for another 5 minutes more.
I ended up crumbling some of my leftover Turkey Sausage on top of it to add some protein. The husband ate it with some crusty bread. The kiddo turned up his nose and ate some Balsamic Chicken instead.
It's going to be a keeper in my house. Just like my trusty copy of The Joy of Cooking!
Thursday, December 4, 2014
I Know An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie
When I taught Elementary School, one of my favorite books to read at Thanksgiving was I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie by Alison Jackson. Obviously it's a take-off on the Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly…but with Thanksgiving foods instead of spiders and cats and horses. My kind of gal.
Wouldn't you know it? The old bag popped into my head as I was getting ready to return home from a Thanksgiving vacation in Florida. Specifically this page:
In where said "Lady" has eaten so much that she becomes a balloon in the Thanksgiving Day Parade.
I was feeling pretty balloon-ish myself.
Maybe it was the Carvel cake before we left for Florida. Or the stuffing and potatoes at Thanksgiving dinner. It could have been the brisket and carnitas tacos at our favorite Mexican place, El Jefe Luchador. Possibly the two different stops at Menchie's Frozen Yogurt where some incredible genius has invented Cinnabon-flavored yogurt and Cream Cheese Frosting as a squirtable topping. Then there was the night I actually drank…a rarity for me. I had a Strawberry-Rhubarb mojito. And I liked it. A few bialys here, some handfuls of Target Monster Trail Mix there. You get the picture.
By the time I was sitting in the airport waiting for my departing plane, I couldn't even squeeze in my usual "flying chocolate" with my requisite People magazine. It wasn't the big photo of Bill Cosby on the cover making me nauseous…it was all of that food I had over the past week. I made it through the flight without the candy…but somehow made room for the free Popcorners that they passed out.
When I got up the next morning I faced the scale and owned that number on it. I had earned it. Now it was time to make it disappear. I was never so excited to have some cottage cheese and fruit in my whole entire life!
Two days later I have rid myself of two of the (cough-cough) pounds I have seemed to find somewhere between Halloween and Thanksgiving-time. I need to get rid of them before the next holiday rolls around. Ugh, I said rolls.
Unfortunately I have picked up the nasty cold that my husband and son both had last week. I managed to find enough energy to make a pot of my favorite Cycle 1 Italian Egg Drop Soup with Chicken Meatballs. I also had some Eggplant Plop in the freezer and that made the transition to home easier for me. Tomorrow I need to make a turkey breast that I have defrosted, and I was thinking of trying out a new recipe for Balsamic Red Cabbage. I will let you know how it goes, and share it with you over the weekend.
Hopefully I will continue to be the Old Lady Who Swallowed a 17 Day Diet Compliant Fat-Free Unflavored Greek Yogurt. There's a story in there somewhere, right?
Sunday, November 16, 2014
There's Fancy, and There's Funny
The fancy name for this next recipe would be something like Chicken and Eggplant Bolognese.
The funny name, which I use in my house and amongst my 17 Day Diet local crew is Eggplant Plop.
It isn't the first time I've deigned something "plop." I believe back in February of this year I wrote about Mexi-Plop.
Not a pretty word, I know. But this recipe isn't particularly pretty. But is is one of the ultimate comfort foods for me.
Bolognese is traditionally a sauce over pasta, and this certainly can be eaten with pasta or spaghetti squash. I prefer it as is, in a bowl or a mug. Hot or cold. It is my go-to recipe that continues to evolve every time I make it. Over the course of a year I must have made a variation of it practically every week. I just can't seem to go without it!
There aren't many ingredients involved….
1 pound of ground chicken breast
1 eggplant, peeled and diced
1 8 ounce package of mushrooms, chopped
1 jar of your favorite marinara sauce
Fat-free mozzarella
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
Salt & pepper
The funny name, which I use in my house and amongst my 17 Day Diet local crew is Eggplant Plop.
It isn't the first time I've deigned something "plop." I believe back in February of this year I wrote about Mexi-Plop.
Not a pretty word, I know. But this recipe isn't particularly pretty. But is is one of the ultimate comfort foods for me.
Bolognese is traditionally a sauce over pasta, and this certainly can be eaten with pasta or spaghetti squash. I prefer it as is, in a bowl or a mug. Hot or cold. It is my go-to recipe that continues to evolve every time I make it. Over the course of a year I must have made a variation of it practically every week. I just can't seem to go without it!
There aren't many ingredients involved….
1 pound of ground chicken breast
1 eggplant, peeled and diced
1 8 ounce package of mushrooms, chopped
1 jar of your favorite marinara sauce
Fat-free mozzarella
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
Salt & pepper
 |
| Veggies ready to prep |
 |
| Ground chicken in the pan |
 |
| Almost ready for sauce |
 |
| Sauce added |
 |
| First half of sauce with cheese |
Put 2 tablespoons of olive oil in pan, sauté ground chicken. Break into pieces. After chicken seems cooked at least halfway through, add the eggplant and mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper.
Saute until eggplant and mushrooms have softened and browned. Then add the jar of sauce.
In an 8 or 9 inch square dish, add half of the bolognese. Then sprinkle with cheese. Add rest of sauce on top and top with some more of the shredded cheese. Bake for 30 minutes at 350.
And there ya have it. Ground chicken and eggplant bolognese. Or eggplant plop. You choose! I'm sticking with this:
Friday, March 21, 2014
The Return of Auntie
An appearance by Auntie Ina is long overdue!
I had a little inspiration when I walked into the grocery store the other day and there was a sale display of eggplant and red peppers. It dawned on me that there was an old Auntie recipe that incorporated those two ingredients, along with a few others. After a quick check on my iPhone, I saw that all of the ingredients were completely 17 Day Diet friendly with no modifications needed! No trademark Auntie decadence, etc. Just a few simple whole ingredients.
Eggplant
Red Pepper
Red Onion
Garlic
Tomato Paste
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
That is IT, people!
What happens with these few ingredients is magical! They are roasted in the oven, then pureed in the food processor. That's it. It can then be served with crudite and pita wedges. It is absolutely delicious.
After dipping some veggies, I found myself wondering what else I could do with this concoction. It didn't take long to come up with this:
Sliced grilled chicken, roasted eggplant spread, crumbled reduced-fat feta. Let me tell you, it was GOOD! I think even Auntie would approve of how I turned her dip into something different!
Here is the link to the eggplant spread:
Roasted Eggplant Spread
I had a little inspiration when I walked into the grocery store the other day and there was a sale display of eggplant and red peppers. It dawned on me that there was an old Auntie recipe that incorporated those two ingredients, along with a few others. After a quick check on my iPhone, I saw that all of the ingredients were completely 17 Day Diet friendly with no modifications needed! No trademark Auntie decadence, etc. Just a few simple whole ingredients.
Eggplant
Red Pepper
Red Onion
Garlic
Tomato Paste
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
That is IT, people!
What happens with these few ingredients is magical! They are roasted in the oven, then pureed in the food processor. That's it. It can then be served with crudite and pita wedges. It is absolutely delicious.
After dipping some veggies, I found myself wondering what else I could do with this concoction. It didn't take long to come up with this:
Sliced grilled chicken, roasted eggplant spread, crumbled reduced-fat feta. Let me tell you, it was GOOD! I think even Auntie would approve of how I turned her dip into something different!
Here is the link to the eggplant spread:
Roasted Eggplant Spread
Friday, September 20, 2013
She Likes It! She Really Likes It!
Let me tell you something about eating whole, unprocessed foods. After the initial withdrawal from sugar, flour, and other crap....and the massive headaches it brings....food starts to taste different. Everything is suddenly DELICIOUS!
Honestly, in all of my years of eating and dieting I think that I have never had this experience. It is almost as if the processed food dulled my senses. Even things that I thought I had previously hated are now favorites of mine. Something as simple as carrots roasted in the oven suddenly tastes like candy! It is blowing my mind.
One of the vegetables that never seemed to make it to my plate was eggplant. The texture and weird little seeds always grossed me out. Of course when it was covered in egg and bread crumbs and fried I managed to choke some down, but otherwise I avoided it like the plague.
When I was searching for 17 Day Diet-friendly recipes I came across one that had people raving...and it was eggplant based. I figured since I had already been able to change my mind about cooked carrots (love those roasted suckers) and cauliflower (wait until I tell you about this miraculous vegetable!) I could try eggplant again.
The first thing I did was peel that sucker, even though the recipe did not suggest it. I may be able to change my mind about eggplant...but I won't change it about the skin. Yuck. Not a fan.
All I had to do was cut it into rounds and bake it on a sheet pan sprayed with PAM. That was it. Oy. Where's the egg? The breadcrumbs? The hot oil that always splattered all over me? How was I going to manage this?? Plain eggplant sprayed with PAM? Eww.
So, I baked up the eggplant rounds and then browned the ground turkey. I added the tomato sauce, and then got ready to layer them with some fat free mozzarella....another food I thought I would never be caught eating. Alternated the eggplant with the turkey sauce and cheese, then baked for about thirty minutes.
And wouldn't you know it? It was FAAABULOUS!
Try it! Who knows? You may learn to like something new!
Healthy Eggplant Turkey Parmesan (17 DD Cycle 1 Friendly)
So, I baked up the eggplant rounds and then browned the ground turkey. I added the tomato sauce, and then got ready to layer them with some fat free mozzarella....another food I thought I would never be caught eating. Alternated the eggplant with the turkey sauce and cheese, then baked for about thirty minutes.
And wouldn't you know it? It was FAAABULOUS!
Try it! Who knows? You may learn to like something new!
Healthy Eggplant Turkey Parmesan (17 DD Cycle 1 Friendly)
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