top five light recipes

[constance]

I'm taking a little liberty here, amelia_eve, and putting actual recipes I've tried out (usually on a Sunday, which is when my schedule best allows for hunkering down in the kitchen) and adored. Mostly because my basic weekday fare is, well, deeply and fundamentally basic. You know. Cold or hot cereal for breakfast, turkey sandwiches and Healthy Choice or Progresso soups for lunch, stir-fry or salads or chicken with veggies for dinner. In between, fruit or string cheese for snacks. (Have I mentioned that I am perfectly comfortable with eating the same thing for weeks on end? It is all too tragically true.)



Tomato, Onion, and Goat Cheese Pizza
Serves 6; 6 points per serving

1 teaspoon olive oil
1 Vidalia onion or 2 yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons butter
8 plum tomatoes, chopped (about 3 1/2 cups)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 pound fresh or frozen pizza or bread dough
4 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
10 olives, black or green, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

1. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and salt; cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is golden, about 15 minutes. Set onion mixture aside.



2. Melt the butter in the same skillet. Add the tomatoes and sugar; cook, stirring frequently, until most of the liquid is evaporated, about 10 minutes. Add the vinegar and simmer about 1 minute.



3. Arrange 1 oven rack on the bottom rung. Preheat oven to 450°F.



4. With floured hands, stretch and press the pizza dough onto the bottom of a 15" pizza pan (or a 10 1/2" x 15 1/2" baking sheet). spread the onion mixture onto the dough. Spoon the tomato mixture on top. Sprinkle with cheese, olives, and thyme.



5. Bake on the bottom rack of the oven until the crust is golden and the cheese is slightly melted, 15-20 minutes. Cut into six servings and serve immediately.

Note: I've also made this with fresh spinach and substituted feta for the goat cheese -- they're the same number of points, and just as yummy.


Italian Wedding Soup
Serves 6; 2 points per serving

1/2 pound uncooked ground turkey sausage
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
2 Tbsp dried bread crumbs
1 1/2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves minced garlic
8 cup fat-free chicken broth
2 cup escarole, thinly sliced
1/2 cup onion(s), sweet-variety, thinly sliced
1/3 cup shredded carrots

Remove casings from turkey sausage. In a medium bowl, combine turkey, egg white, bread crumbs, cheese, oregano and garlic; shape into 3/4-inch balls.

In a large saucepan, heat broth to boiling; stir in escarole, onion, carrot and meatballs. Return soup to boiling and then reduce heat to medium; cook at a slow boil for 15 minutes. Soup is done when meatballs float to the top and escarole is wilted. (Yields about 1 1/2 cups of soup and 5 to 6 meatballs per serving.)

Note: I don't know why I suddenly can't get enough of this stuff, but I really can't. Like all soups, it's great to make and then eat for several days, and it just gets better every day.


Thyme-roasted Sweet Potatoes
Serves 3-4; 3 points per serving

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch-thick rounds
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup fresh thyme leaves, plus 6 thyme sprigs for garnish
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 450°F. In large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and toss. Arrange potato slices in single layer on heavyweight rimmed baking sheet or in 9x9-inch baking dish. Place on top rack of oven and roast until tender and slightly browned, about 40 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature, garnished with thyme sprigs.

Note: I usually eat these with roasted chicken. Oh my God, they are unbelievably good -- a perfect mixture of sweet, spicy, and savory.


Portobello (and Eggplant) Lasagna
Serves 4; 6 points per serving

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large garlic clove, minced
8 extra-large portobello caps, stem and gills removed
1 teaspoon salt

Filling:
1 (15-ounce) container fat-free ricotta
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed
2/3 cup coarsely shredded skim mozzarella
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, optional
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 large garlic clove, minced
3/4 cup low-fat marinara sauce, divided

1. Heat oven to 425F. Mix oil and garlic in a microwavable cup; microwave until aromatic and lightly golden, about 30 seconds. Brush oil onto both sides of mushrooms, and sprinkle with salt. Arrange, smooth sides up, in a single layer in a baking pan. Bake 10 minutes.



2. Make the filling: While mushrooms are baking, stir together ricotta, spinach, Asiago cheese, egg, nutmeg, salt, pepper and garlic in a large bowl. Remove mushrooms from oven. Turn over 4 mushrooms, gill side up, and divide filling evenly onto caps; drizzle 1 tablespoon tomato sauce over each. Cover with remaining caps, smooth side up. Pour remaining tomato sauce evenly over tops, and bake until filling is hot and slightly puffed, 12 to 14 minutes more. Lift stack with a large spatula to include any stuffing that may surround sides.

Note: This one is frustratingly labor-intensive for someone who's kind of into insta-food-gratification, but to me it's totally worth the effort. My mother has made it with an extra layer of eggplant, sliced thinly, oven-roasted with a little salt until tender, and it is equally delicious.


Scallop, Orange, and Asparagus Stir-fry
Serves 4; 4 points per serving

2 Large oranges
2 Tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons chicken stock
1 tablespoon Worceststershire sauce
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 pounds fresh asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
4 large garlic cloves, slivered
2 tablespoons minced peeled ginger
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 pound sea scallops, each cut into 2 rounds
1 small white potato, peeled and finely shredded

1. With a vegetable peeler, remove wide strips of the zest from each orange and set aside. Cut off the rind, then section each orange and put sections into a mixing bowl. Stir in the soy sauce, stock, Worcestershire sauce, and vinegar.



2. Spray a large nonstick skillet or wok with nonstick spray and set over medium-high heat. Add the asparagus, garlic, ginger, and crushed red pepper; stir-fry until the asparagus shoots are crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Add the scallops and stir-fry until just opaque in the center, about 3 minutes. Add the orange mixture and reserved orange zest; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil about 30 seconds. Add the potato and cook, stirring constantly, until the potato is tender and the mixture thickens, about 1 minute. Serve immediately.

Note: It's so superlight that it makes me feel virtuous just thinking about it. And asparagus. Mmmmmmmm.

Any recipes you'd like to share?

Comments

[xanthophyllippa.livejournal.com]

Note: I don't know why I suddenly can't get enough of this stuff, but I really can't. Like all soups, it's great to make and then eat for several days, and it just gets better every day.

I think I've made a big batch of soup at least once every two weeks for the past year and a half. I was really sick immediately following Christmas 2006, and the only thing I could eat without getting stomach-sick was soup. Now I just keep on making it. I make a variant on your Italian wedding soup recipe:

Ingreds:

Vegetarian or vegan bouillon cubes (I use vegan chicken or vegetable flavor), plus two cups of water per cube depending on how much you want

a can of tomatoes (check to make sure you've got just tomatoes, and not something that contains high fructose corn syrup or the taste will be off), run through the blender on puree

some olive oil

garlic

onion, carrots, and celery, cubed into a mirepoix (including the celery leaves and the inner, tender bits)

bay leaves, basil pesto, oregano, crushed red pepper, or some combination thereof

potatoes, cubed; turnip, if you're adventurous, also cubed

spinach or kale

some kind of pasta (I use shells and stars or alphabets and tortellini)

Sauté the garlic and bay leaf/-ves, then toss in the mirepoix and other spices (not the pesto yet). When the onion has gone translucent, add the water, bouillon, tomatoes, pesto, potatoes, and turnip and bring to a slow simmer. Cook until potatoes are tender (roughly 45 minutes), then toss in pasta and cook until that's tender (keep in mind that "fresh" pasta takes less than half the time as dry, so toss in the dry stuff first). If you're adding kale, then add that in and simmer for another 10 mins. If you're adding spinach, do it right when you serve the soup so it doesn't overcook and get slimy. Serve with grated parmesan, romano, or even (dare I say it?) high-quality cheddar.

I rarely cook with recipes, so I hope this is pretty close to what I usually do. Sometimes I add in meatballs, which I make more or less according to your process above, only with beef, some chopped celery leaves, and chopped onion.

[tofty.livejournal.com]

Oh, that does look yummy! I am lazy about vegetarian cooking, though I really know I should commit. Are you a vegan?

I can make a few dishes without recipes, but not very many; I deeply admire people who mostly cook without them. To me, it seems like magic.

[amelia-eve.livejournal.com]

Oooh, the sweet potatoes and the stir fry both look really interesting.

I tend to cook a big batch of something on the weekend and bring it in lunches all week (it goes straight into single-serving containers so it's grab and go). Tonight it was Mexican Skillet Dinner.

Basic Ingredients:

Chopped onions
Pinto beans (canned)
Salsa or chili powder
Hominy (canned)

Other stuff:

Ground turkey or beef
Chopped bell peppers
Jalapeños
Tomatoes (fresh or canned)
Corn (canned or frozen)

Sautee onions with meat (if using) and any other fresh vegetables. Dump in beans and other canned vegetables and simmer together.

You can vary most of the ingredients at will, as long as you have some sort of beans and hominy. The hominy gives the tortilla flavor that makes this more interesting than regular chili. This is a good pantry dish that tastes pretty decent with all canned food. The version I made tonight has extra-lean ground turkey, tomatoes, jalapeños (canned, seeded), red bell peppers, hominy, crushed tomatoes, one can pinto beans, and one can black beans. It also has chili powder, which really made it too spicy with the jalapeños already in there. I added the black beans to try to lighten the flavor a little, but I may have to serve it over rice. I am a spice wimp. I'm figuring this for six generous servings at about six points each.

If I weren't doing it WW, I might top it with Fritos and shredded cheddar for extra yum.

[tofty.livejournal.com]

Ahahahaha, I make several different variations of this as well! I'll usually use black beans and rice in my basic mix. I like your addition of hominy, though -- I adore hominy, and hadn't really thought about what the corny taste would add to a mix like that.

OMG FRITOS. HOW DO I MISS THEE LET ME COUNT THE WAYS.