APPLE CRISP - Cooking Light Magazine

I've made a zillion apple crisps,  usually motivated by the fact that I have a 38 pound box of Utah apples and can only eat so many apples a day.  This is another good apple dessert recipe--not too sweet, and would also be great for breakfast with a little Greek yogurt (pretty sure I've mentioned that before).  And my Emma Bridgewater baking dish still makes me happy.

• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup regular oats
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup chilled butter, cut into small pieces
• 3 tablespoons chopped walnuts
• 7 cups sliced peeled Rome apple (about 3 pounds) (I used Honeycrisp) 
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375°.

Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, sugar, oats, and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon in a medium bowl; cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture is crumbly. Stir in walnuts.

Combine apple and remaining ingredients in a large bowl; toss well. Spoon apple mixture into an 8-inch square baking dish or 1 1/2-quart casserole. Sprinkle with crumb mixture. Bake at 375° for 45 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

MAPLE-GLAZED SALMON DINNER - Cooking Light

The cover of the September 2010Cooking Light Magazine jumped out at me with its gorgeous photo of salmon just waiting to be eaten.  Salmon anything is usually a winner and my family loves salmon.  Super easy, of course, and healthy--at this point, who doesn't know that Omega-3 fatty acids are good for us?

The maple-glazed salmon was excellent--a bit of spice with the sweetness of maple syrup.  Everyone loved it.

I paired this with Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Dijon from Cooking Light's August issue.  But I didn't use Fingerling potatoes, I used Yukon Gold, and I substituted Rosemary for Parsley.  I also doubled the amount of Dijon mustard and next time will double it again.

And my go-to green vegetable as of late is a pretty medley of broccoli, red bell pepper, and garlic sauteed in a little garlic-infused olive oil.

Hope you give this delicious and healthy Sunday Supper a try.

Maple-Glazed Salmon

1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground ancho chile powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
4 6-oz Alaskan salmon fillets
Cooking spray
2 Tablespoons maple syrup

1. Preheat broiler
2. Combine first 6 ingredients; rub spice mixture evenly over flesh side of fillets.  Place fish on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray; broil 6 minutes or until desired degree of doneness.  Brush fillets evenly with syrup; broil 1 minute.

Calories: 352  Fat: 20 g  Protein: 34.6 g  Carb: 8.6 g

 

Roasted Fingerling Potatoes with Dijon (adapted from Cooking Light Magazine)

2 1/2 lbs fingerling potatoes, cut in half lengthwise (I used Yukon Gold)
2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard (I used 2 teaspoons and would add even more next time)
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (I substituted Rosemary)

1.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2.  Place potatoes on a baking sheet.  Drizzle potatoes with 1 Tablespoon oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Toss to coat.  Add chopped parsley (or rosemary).  Bake at 425 for 30-45 minutes or until golden brown.
3.  Place the remaining 1 Tablespoon olive oil, pepper, and mustard in a large bowl; stir well with a whisk.  Add potatoes; toss gently to coat.

Calories: 172  Fat: 5.2  Protein 2.8g  Carb 29.4  Fiber 2.9

LATIN BAKED CHICKEN - Cooking Light

Super easy and you probably have the ingredients on hand (which is always a plus).  However, I did make a substitution.  I was at Sprouts and they didn't have any chipotle chiles (can you believe it?) and no adobo sauce so I substituted with a chipotle chile sauce found in the tabasco area.  It worked (good thing because it was way too hot to go to another grocery store in search of chipotles and adobo sauce).

Also, this was good cold the next day (don't you just love cold chicken?)

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 2 chicken thighs)

Ingredients

• The 5 Ingredients
• 1/4  cup  fresh lime juice
• 3  tablespoons  less-sodium soy sauce
• 2  tablespoons  honey
• 2  tablespoons  minced chipotle chile in adobo sauce
• 8  (4-ounce) bone-in chicken thighs, skinned

Preparation

Directions: Preheat oven to 400°. Combine lime juice, soy sauce, 2 tablespoons honey, and chipotle in a large bowl. Add chicken, and toss well to coat. Let stand for 10 minutes at room temperature. Arrange the chicken on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray (this is a must because, otherwise, the sugar in the honey will leave a lovely glaze on your baking dish), reserving marinade. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes. Place reserved marinade in a blender, and process until smooth (I didn't do this and it was fine, you be the judge). Place pureed marinade in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, and cook 3 minutes. Brush chicken with half of cooked sauce; return to oven and bake an additional for 10 minutes. Brush chicken with remaining sauce; bake an additional 10 minutes or until a thermometer registers 165°.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

316

Fat:

9g (sat 2.3g,mono 2.8g,poly 2.2g)

Protein:

45.3g

Carbohydrate:

11.9g

Fiber:

0.8g

Cholesterol:

188mg

Iron:

2.8mg

Sodium:

677mg

Calcium:

28mg

SUMMER VEGETABLE FRITTATA - Cooking Light

A frittata without cheese?  Hmmmm.  But it was excellent.  Of course, since this recipe is from Cooking Light magazine (June 2010), calories must be reduced so the cheese was sacrificed.  My usual frittata recipe (which I haven't made in years) calls for two types of cheese which is why it's so yummy.

The zucchini (fresh from the garden!) and red bell peppers are perfect but you could easily substitute asparagus and call it a Spring Vegetable Frittata or chopped potatoes and broccoli would be divine. So there are lots of veggie variations you can come up with and you probably won't go wrong.  Also, if you care, two wedges equals 6 Weight Watcher points (hooray!)

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 2 wedges)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2  tablespoons  olive oil
• 1  cup  diced zucchini
• 1/2  cup  chopped red bell pepper
• 1/3  cup  chopped onion
• 1  tablespoon  chopped fresh thyme
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt, divided
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper, divided
• 2  garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2  cup  chopped seeded tomato
• 9  large eggs

Preparation

1. Heat olive oil in a 10-inch nonstick broiler-proof skillet over medium heat. Add zucchini, bell pepper, onion, thyme, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon black pepper, and garlic. Cover and cook 7 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in tomato. Cook, uncovered, for 5 minutes or until liquid evaporates.

2. Combine eggs, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/8 teaspoon black pepper in a medium bowl; stir with a whisk until frothy. Pour egg mixture into pan over vegetables, stirring gently. Cover, reduce heat, and cook 15 minutes or until almost set in the center.

3. Preheat broiler.

4. Broil frittata 3 minutes or until set. Invert onto a serving platter; cut into 8 wedges (2 wedges per person).  

Nutritional Information

Calories:

227

Fat:

16.4g (sat 4.2g,mono 8g,poly 2.1g)

Protein:

15.1g

Carbohydrate:

5.5g

Fiber:

1.1g

Cholesterol:

476mg

Iron:

2.4mg

Sodium:

458mg

Calcium:

80 mg

YANKEE POT ROAST - Cooking Light

Don't you think a pot roast on Sunday is lovely? It is so old-fashioned and comforting. This recipe comes from Cooking Light magazine and my family loved it.

This is one of those recipes I decided to make when I woke up on a Sunday morning so I used what I had on hand. Instead of fresh plum tomatoes, I used canned diced. And I added flat leaf parsley and garlic.

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 (4-pound) boneless chuck roast, trimmed

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon cracked black pepper

2 cups coarsely chopped onion

2 cups less-sodium beef broth

¼ cup ketchup

2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 cup chopped plum tomato

1 ¼ pounds small red potatoes

1 pound carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Cooking instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 300°.

2. Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sprinkle roast with salt and pepper. Add roast to pan, browning on all sides (about 8 minutes). Remove from pan. Add onion to pan; sauté 8 minutes or until browned. Return roast to pan. Combine broth, ketchup, and Worcestershire; pour over roast. Add tomato; bring to a simmer.

3. Cover and bake at 300° for 2 1/2 hours or until tender. Add potatoes and carrots; cover and bake 30 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Stir in lemon juice.

Serving: 10

LEEK AND POTATO SOUP - JAMIE OLIVER

Most leek and potato soup recipes have cream added. This does not. It is a Jamie Oliver recipe adapted by Cooking Light magazine and is delicious.

I made this soup on one of those unusually cold days in the Phoenix area and we gobbled it up for lunches and dinners. As is usually the case, the soup was even better the second and third day.

This recipe is dedicated to my friend Leslie. When we were in London several years we ate at Jamie Oliver's restaurant, Fifteen. And miracle of miracles he hopped out of a black Range Rover and popped in to the restaurant dressed in black tie, minus the tie, looking quite darling. We were told that he does not come to the restaurant on Saturday nights so we lucked out.

Leslie is a big fan of Oliver's so our server took her to meet him and to have her photo taken with him. He was very gracious (otherwise I wouldn't have posted his recipe!).

SERVES 8 , 8 1 1/4 c servings

2 leeks (about 1 lb)

6 cups fat-free chicken broth (or veggie broth)

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 cups onions, chopped (about 1 lb)

1 cup celery, chopped

1 cup carrot, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 cups potatoes, peeled and cubed (Yukon Gold recommended)

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1. Remove roots, outer leaves, and tops from leeks. Cut each in half lengthwise, then crosswise into 1/2" slices. Immerse in cold water; swirl. Drain.


2. Bring broth to a boil in a large saucepan over medium high heat.


3. Heat oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat. Add leek, onion, celery, carrot, and garlic. Partially cover, and cook 20 minutes. Stir occasionally.


4. Add hot broth and potato; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer until potato is tender. Stir in pepper and salt.


5. Serve chunky, or puree with an immersion blender.
   

Note: I, Kim, added 5 garlic cloves and did not puree the soup.

CHEDDAR APPLE QUESADILLA - Ellie Krieger

Last November, I attended the Arizona Kidney Foundation's Authors Luncheon and met Ellie Krieger from the Food Network. She is darling and her skin is gorgeous--probably from all of that healthy eating!

It's not some earth-shattering idea to combine apples and cheese but I hadn't thought about it for a quesadilla. This recipe comes from Krieger's latest cookbook, So Easy, it was great but it would also be a good choice for a quick lunch. I think kids would like this, as well. Of course you can use whatever apples and cheese you have on hand, but there is something about a tart apple with sharp cheddar cheese.

1 Granny Smith apple, cored and thinly sliced

4 whole-wheat flour tortillas (9 inches in diameter)

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese (4 ounces)

Preheat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.

Fan out apple slices over the bottom half of each tortilla and top with the cheddar cheese. Fold the tortillas in half. Working in batches, place the quesadillas in the skillet and weigh them down with a smaller, heavy skillet or a ovenproof plate topped with a heavy can.

Cook until the cheese is melted and the tortillas are golden brown, about 1 1/2 minutes per side. Cut each quesadilla in half and eat warm.

Serves 4.

GOAT CHEESE AND CORN QUESADILLA - Cooking Light Magazine

When my friend, Ashley, told me about a quesadilla recipe with goat cheese and corn, I perked up. I love both ingredients (really, who doesn't?) and quickly hunted down the recipe in my stack of Cooking Light magazines.

Ashley added grilled chicken so I did the same. I made two, one with chicken and one without, splitting each with my sister, Tammy.

I grilled the chicken first (with a little blood orange infused olive oil from Queen Creek Olive Mill).

For the first round I grilled the tortillas in the same pan I grilled the chicken. The recipe said to use a non-stick pan but I wasn't inclined to dirty up another pan (I'm sure you would do the same). But it was a mess when I flipped over the quesadilla stuffed with chicken (no picture, too gruesome).

I liked the combination of all the ingredients plus the chicken, but preferred the quesadilla without the chicken. The mixture of the goat cheese, corn, and tomatillo sauce is so good it doesn't need to be dressed up.

So the following day I made two more quesadillas and served grilled chicken on the side. Perfect. Beans or rice would have been great, too.

Since we don't use a lot of tomatillo sauce I bought a small can of Herdez salsa verde sauce (about 50 cents) and added 1/2 teaspoon of sugar since tomatillo sauce is generally sweet. Really good.

Note: this quesadilla is five points on Weight Watchers.

Ingredients
1 cup fresh corn kernels (about 1 large ear)
2/3 cup (5 ounces) goat cheese, softened
8 (6-inch) corn tortillas
1/4 cup chopped green onions (about 1 green onion)
10 tablespoon bottled salsa verde, divided
Cooking spray

Preparation
1. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add corn; sauté 2 minutes or until browned. Place corn in a small bowl. Add goat cheese to corn; stir until well blended. Divide corn mixture evenly among 4 tortillas; spread to within 1/4 inch of sides. Sprinkle each tortilla with 1 tablespoon green onions. Drizzle each with 1 1/2 teaspoons salsa; top with remaining 4 tortillas.

2. Heat pan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Place 2 quesadillas in pan; cook 1 1/2 minutes on each side or until golden. Remove from pan; keep warm. Wipe pan clean with paper towels; recoat with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining quesadillas. Cut each quesadilla into 4 wedges. Serve with remaining 8 tablespoons salsa.

Nutritional Information
Calories:223
Fat:8.9g (sat 5.2g,mono 1.8g,poly 0.9g)
Protein:9.9g
Carbohydrate:28.6g
Fiber:3.2g
Cholesterol:16mg
Iron:1mg
Sodium:266mg
Calcium:75mg

BERRY-PEACH COBBLER - Cooking Light

The minute I saw the cover of the July issue of Cooking Light Magazine I wanted to make this dish. I love fruit desserts, especially fruit cobblers. And with the abundance of fresh blueberries and blackberries in the store right now (and on sale) you should consider making this yummy dessert soon.

My friend Christine and her two little guys (Grant and Will) came to dinner Saturday night so after eating Leslie's Balsamic Chicken Bow Tie Pasta (to be posted soon) we finished the evening with cobbler and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Lovely on a hot July night.


This recipe calls for turbinado sugar which is raw, crystallized sugar. I don't know how easy it is to find since I had a box that I had purchased in Paris after taking the baking class. I've already used it more than I thought I would, though. Note: Trader Joe's carries Turbinado sugar for $2.99.

Ingredients

• Filling:
• 3 (6-ounce) packages fresh blueberries
• 3 (5.6-ounce) packages fresh blackberries
• 3 medium peaches, peeled and sliced
• Cooking spray
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 
  Topping:
• 4.5 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 cup)
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 cup half-and-half
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds
• 3 tablespoons turbinado sugar (raw, crystallized sugar)
  1 tablespoon egg white

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. To prepare filling, combine blueberries, blackberries, and peaches in a 13 x 9–inch baking dish lightly coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle 2/3 cup granulated sugar, 2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch, juice, and 1/8 teaspoon salt over fruit; toss gently to combine.

3. To prepare topping, weigh or lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons cornstarch, baking powder, and 1/8 teaspoon salt, stirring well. Cut butter into flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add half-and-half; gently knead dough just until moistened. Drop dough by spoonfuls evenly over top of filling. Combine almonds, turbinado sugar, and egg white; sprinkle over top. Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until topping is browned. Let stand 10 minutes. Serve with ice cream (reduced fat, of course).

ZUCCHINI-WALNUT MUFFINS

Muffins in July? Is that odd? Since I have an abundance of zucchini I thought this would use up at least one of the little darlings.


This recipe comes from the June issue of Cooking Light magazine. I added walnuts since I like a little crunch in my muffins, and zucchini and walnuts are a good combination. I also mixed in the little tiny bits of walnut dust with the cinnamon and sugar sprinkling it on top of the unbaked muffins. Mmmm, good.

Can't tell you if they freeze well since they didn't last long.

Ingredients
4.75 ounces whole-wheat flour (about 1 cup)
3 ounces all-purpose flour (about 2/3 cup)
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups shredded zucchini
1/2 cup fat-free milk
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 tablespoons honey
1 large egg
Cooking spray
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Weigh or lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine whole-wheat flour and next 6 ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl; stir with a whisk. Combine zucchini, milk, oil, honey, and egg in a small bowl; stir until blended. Make a well in center of flour mixture; add milk mixture, stirring just until moist. Spoon batter into 12 muffin cups coated with cooking spray.
3. Combine 1 tablespoon sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon; sprinkle over tops of muffins. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until golden. Remove from pans immediately; cool on a wire rack.

BANANA OATMEAL CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES - Cooking Light

One lonely over-ripe banana sat on the counter and since I had enough of them in the freezer I needed to do something with it. Very few recipes call for just one banana. But, I was in luck. The July issue of Cooking Light magazine had a yummy looking recipe submitted by Cathy Brixen from Phoenix, Arizona--being from Phoenix I thought it was a good sign.

I also like that this recipe makes just 2 dozen cookies--sometimes that's all I want to make--just a couple of batches. And while they are not the most attractive cookies, they are good enough to bake again. My friend, Kirstin, and her family loved them so enjoy!

Ingredients
1/2 cup mashed ripe banana (about 1 medium)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
5.6 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 1/4 cups)
2 cups old-fashioned oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until smooth. Add egg; beat well.
3. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, oats, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add flour mixture to banana mixture in bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips.
4. Drop batter by heaping tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 18 minutes or until golden. Cool on pans 2 minutes. Remove cookies from pans; cool completely on wire racks.