Sesame Radishes and Eggs

I have been cooking a lot of radishes for breakfast. I never would have bought them from the store in the past, let alone eaten them for breakfast! But we get such beautiful radishes from the CSA! How could you resist veggies like this?:

Corn, Cucumber, Feta, Mint Salad

This is a Mediterranean style salad. I served it for dinner with grilled chicken on the side. It was a super light but filling dinner.

Serves 6 (1 cup servings)
ww = 3 points per serving.

Basil, Tomato, Mozzarella Salad

I bought some beautiful tomatoes and purple basil from the farmer's market today.

I was really craving cheese so when I stumbled upon some grass fed mozzarella I bought that too. Keeping up with ww has made my relationship with cheese go through a rough patch...so it was time. But I decided to make a healthy salad for dinner. To make it more hearty I served it over some cooked spelt. This salad was delicious. The only thing I will change next time is that I will not mix all ingredients together at once, instead I will gently toss in the beans and cheese at the end. Because the beans were canned and the cheese was so fresh they started to fall apart with the mixing. I had wanted all the ingredients to marinate together while the spelt took its lovely time cooking (1 hour+!!). But I learned my lesson about this.

This spelt was leftover from my winter csa. Let me tell you, letting it do its' thing is worth it. This was a lesson I learned back in December. You don't want to eat crunchy spelt-- you will end up with a headache.

Serves 6 (1 cup servings)
ww points = salad alone (5 points); salad with arugula and 1/2 cup cooked spelt (7 points)

Cold Cucumber Avocado Soup

As I mentioned in a previous post, I made this soup as an appetizer on a hot summer night. It is refreshing and super fast to make! I know that I have blogged about a few other cucumber soups. What can I say it's hot and nasty out there! This one is by far the creamiest. I adapted it from a Cook's Illustrated Recipe (you may need a membership to view original). Their recipe called for much bigger portions. I also tried to make the process easier and lighten it up a bit for the good ol ww.

Serves 5 (1 cup servings)
ww = 3 points per serving (since this was an appetizer I actually served less of the soup than 1 cup)

Healthy Sloppy Joes and Smokey Collard Greens

These collards are sooo good. You would think there is bacon, or some form of piggy pig in them, as they taste so damn good. It is the fennel, chipotle in adobo, and the smoked paprika which really give them their kick. Marc and I have made these two times and I will continue to go back to this recipe. The sloppy joes paired very well with these collards and are so low in points, that you can even indulge in a carby hamburger bun for dinner. These recipes call for Worcestershire and chicken broth but if you wanted to make this vegetarian you could substitute vegetarian Worcestershire and veggie broth.

The collard recipe serves 5 and was adapted from this site. ww = 1 point per serving
The sloppy joe recipe serves 5 and was adapted from this site. ww = 2 points per serving (no roll)
(The whole dinner with a hamburger bun is 7 points!!!)

Smoked Salmon Spread

This smoked salmon spread was served as part of a four course "mini" dinner. Marc and I had our friends Guez and Azul over. It sounds elaborate but really, I whipped up this meal in a snap. I served smoked salmon spread with cucumbers, cucumber avocado gazpacho soup (next post), swiss chard burgers with sweet potato fries, and then marc's new low-fat chocolate ice cream-- made with skim milk and xanthan gum! This recipe was inspired by the following site.

Swiss Chard Pancakes

This morning I woke up with a REAL craving for pancakes. I would have settled for buckwheat pancakes, but those aren't even all that healthy either because of the carbs. Plus we have another fridge full of greens from our CSA.  This week we got: chioggia beets, lacinato kale, rainbow chard, baby fennel, green basil, red torpedo spring onions, garlic, parsley, tart cherries and blueberries.

What better thing to do with swiss chard and red torpedo spring onions than make pancakes!? This is adapted from an Epicurious recipe.

Serves 3.
ww points = 3 per serving

Low-Fat Pesto

 This is a low-fat version of pesto. It is pretty tasty considering there is no where even close to the normal amount of cheese, oil and pine nuts in it. I used Organic Better than Boullion vegetable base because it has no msg. Since this is not a low-sodium bouillion, I did not add any additional salt to the recipe. I used xanthan gum to thicken it up to produce the same consistency as regular pesto. Xanthan gum is a plant-based bacteria used as a thickener. My husband bought it from our favorite store Brooklyn Kitchen to see if he could make homemade ice cream lower in fat. So I am going to start experimenting with it as I continue on my cooking escapade. I will be serving this pesto tonight over halibut and broiled treviso.

Makes about 3/4 cup sauce.
ww points = 2 pts per 3 T

Stir-Fried Ginger-Sesame Bok Choy and Seitan

Tonight I decided to use the bok choy from my CSA and attempted to cook seitan for the first time. I have had this "wheat meat" before,  I just never cooked it. Anyway, I used the ginger-sesame dressing that Heidi Swanson uses in her Otsu recipe. This recipe is in Super Natural Cooking, a beautiful cookbook full of healthy recipes and a staple in my kitchen. The only thing I changed was the addition of garlic. This dish is filling and healthy.

Serves 4.
WW = 10 points per serving (with rice)

Lettuce and White Bean Soup

So I know this might not sound like the most appetizing soup in the world. I definitely had my doubts! Who would think to cook lettuce let alone put it in a soup? Well this soup is very tasty, healthy and a easy way to use up CSA greens. It is inspired by Epicurious. I was stuffed after eating it!

Makes about 4 cups.
Serves 4-8 (1 cup servings for main meal or 1/2 cup servings for appetizer)
WW = 4 points per cup

Ingredients:
1 cup white onion, chopped
2 T extra virgin olive oil
5 cups green leaf lettuce (or romaine), broken into pieces
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup veggie broth (use all veggie if you prefer)
1 cup cooked cannellini beans
1/2 t agave nectar
fresh black pepper
1/4 c fresh basil leaves, chopped
2 sprigs summer savory, rough stems removed and chopped
1/2 T (per serving) non-fat greek yogurt (optional)

Instructions:
1. In a large pot saute onion in the olive oil until just starting to brown.
2. Add the lettuce and stir constantly until wilted.
3. Add broth, beans, agave, black pepper (to taste) basil, and savory.
4. Simmer for 10 minutes on low heat.
5. Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes. Then puree in a blender in batches. (Be careful of the steam build-up! I learned that lesson the hard way a long time ago= soup all over the kitchen).
6. Serve warm or cold. Add a 1/2 T greek yogurt if you desire but it is already pretty creamy.

Update: 7/1/12
I didn't have anymore basil left for the recipe as I used it all in my pesto recipe. Instead for the fresh herbs I used 2 sprigs of savory, 2 sprigs lemon-thyme, and 2 sprigs of oregano. If you would like the soup thinner just add a little more water. I added a 1/2 cup the second time around in addition to the broth.

Red quinoa and kale pilaf

This recipe kicks ass! It has such texture and flavor. I was inspired by Food 52 to cook it but ended up substituting almost all the ingredients. It is pretty easy, super healthy for you, and very filling without feeling like a piglet. The quinoa is a great source of protein, iron and fiber. Plus it is gluten free so it is easy to digest. I gobbled it up after I went swimming, which is my latest obsession. The dish has more kale than grain in terms of the proportion. I highly recommend making it as a main dish or you can leave out the beans and serve it as a side.

Beet Corn Summer Salad

This salad is very high in fiber, filling and super quick to make. I served it as an appetizer but it would make a nice side served with plain fish or meat. Then I ate the leftovers with a hard boiled egg.

Serves 6.

Bastard Baba Ganoush

If zucchini and eggplant had a bastard son, it would likely taste like this dip.

Cannellini Bean, Sage, and Garlic Dip

We routinely make hummus at home. Or I should say Marc has been making it ever since he learned how to. He is the snack master in this house. But we have all this sage from the CSA that I have been trying to use up. I made sage honey muffins, turkish eggs with fried sage, and now this dip. This dip has a very powerful flavor but it is super healthy and goes great with pita chips.

Summer Vegetable Pilaf

This is a great summer dish. It could be a main course, a side for a potluck or a good picnic food.

 

Roasted Beet and Tatsoi Salad

This is a very light and healthy salad bursting with flavor and color. It can be served at room temperature or prepared in advance and served slightly chilled. It is very easy to make but the beets take some time to cook.

Braised Yuba w/Steamed Bok Choy & Sushi Rice

 After going to Spa Castle recently, Marc and I ended up in Hong Kong Supermarket in Flushing. It was a winter wonderland of msg filled products along with random asian specialties. We came home with our arms full for a price way cheaper than many trips to Whole Foods. One of the things I bought was yuba or tofu skin. I had no idea what to do with this until tonight. If you have never had tofu skin before it is very interesting. It doesn't really have much of a taste and therefore will take on the flavor of whatever it is cooked in. It has a chewy texture which may turn some off but I think it has great consistency. I tried to follow Pham Fatale's recipe for it and added on to make it a meal.

Orange Fennel Salad

This is a great side to any fish. It is fast and healthy! I posted another fennel salad this past summer. This one is slightly different, but just as good.

Broiled Miso Tofu with Chili-Garlic Sesame Kale

This dish is very easy to make and is also delicious and light. It is similar to another post I did on broiled miso salmon. The recipe is adapted from Epicurious.

Serves 4-6.

Spinach-Matzoh Pie!

Sadly, this picture does not even represent how delicious this pie is. I have made it three times, and the last for my book club. I think it went over well. The good thing is it can be as healthy or as rich as you want it to be. I have made it with low fat milk and cottage cheese and it has turned out just as good. I think the trick is using fresh dill. And while it is not a requirement, two of the times I made it, I let it sit overnight in the fridge because I was having company and needed it to be prepared in advance. That is a true bonus--coming home and popping it in the oven. This recipe is adapted from Epicurious.