Favorite recipes from the last week or so.... (original) (raw)

Hi everyone! This is not my first time on the diet-- every other time we have made a few of the lasting changes (I cannot tell you when the last time I ate white bread or a white potato was...) but always ended up scrapping the other parts of the diet after a few months. Well, we're feeling better about the whole thing this time around (we don't feel like we're giving up as much because we haven't been eating too poorly, just poorly enough to not lose weight...) At any rate, it does help that I now have 4 cookbooks to pull from. I really enjoy cooking and I love finding recipes that are not "diet" like. (In fact, we had friends over the other night and the male friend was skeptical of eating because he didn't want "diet" food. He was very happy with the meal!)

Nutty Summer Squash with Asiago Cheese
Ingredients:
2 tsp. Margarine 2 large cloves garlic, minced
1 medium zucchini, cut into 3 in. strips
1 medium yellow squash, cut into 3 in. spears
2 TBL chicken broth
1/8 tsp salt 1/8 tsp pepper 1/4 cup toasted chop walnuts
1/3 cup shredded Asiago cheese

Melt the margarine in a large skillet over medium low heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute or until soft. Add the zucchini, yellow squash, broth, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 6 minutes or until the squash is tender. Remove from the heat. Sprinkle with walnuts and cheese.
*Idea: Put dish in oven to brown the cheese.

Chicken Capri
Ingredients:
1 cup RF ricotta cheese 1/2 tsp oregano 1/4 tsp salt, pepper
4 boneless chicken breasts 1/2 tsp garlic powder 2 TBL EVOO
1 cup crushed tomatoes 4 slices RF mozzarella cheese

In food processor, combine ricotta, oregano, salt and pepper until blended.
Rub chicken with garlic powder. Heat oil in a large skillet over med-high heat. Add chicken and cook for 12 minutes per side. Place the chicken, side by side, in a large baking dish. Allow to cool.
Preheat oven to 350. Spoon 1/4 cup of the cheese mixture and 1/4 cup of the tomatoes over each breast. Cover with mozzarella cheese. Bake for 20 minutes or until 170 degrees and juices run clear.

Chicken and Eggplant Casserole
Ingredients:
1 eggplant, cubed 2 TBL Asiago or Parm. Cheese
1/2 tsp. garlic powder 3/4 lb. chix breast, chopped
14.5 ounces diced tomatoes 1 medium chopped onion
1 large green bell pepper, chopped 1/2 cup of mushrooms, sliced
3/4 tsp. Italian Seasoning 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 cup shredded reduced fat mozzerella
Preheat the boiler. Arrange eggplant in a single layer on baking sheet. Mist cubes with cooking spray. Broil 4 in. from the flame for 2 mins, or until golden. Turn and remist, sprinkle with cheese and garlic. Broil for 1 min, or until golden. Set aside.
Heat a sprayed skillet over med-high heat for 1 minute. Add chix and cook for about 5 mins, stirring frequently.Add tomatoes, with juice, pepper, mushrooms, seasoning, and black pepper, stirring to break up tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and let simmer for 5 mins. Add the roasted eggplant to the skillet.
Preheat oven to 375. Coat an 8 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Put the casserole into the baking dish. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil and finish cooking for 30 minutes or until heated through.

*Can refrigerate for up to a day
*Can freeze for up to 3 weeks. To reheat, bake at 375 for 50 minutes, or until heated through.

Vegetable Frittata with Parmesan
Ingredients:
2 TBL margarine 1 onion, chopped
2 zucchini, thinly sliced 4 large mushrooms, chopped
1/2 large red bell pepper 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dried thyme 1/4 black pepper
4 large eggs 1 cup egg whites
1 1/2 TBL Parmesan Cheese
Preheat the broiler. Melt 1 TBL of margarine in a large oven-safe skillet over medium heat. Add all of the vegetables, 1/8 tsp of pepper, 1/4 tsp of salt, the thyme to the skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 miutes or until the vegetables are tender and no juices remain in the pan.
In a large bowl, combine the eggs, egg whites, the rest of the salt and pepper, and cheese.
Melt the remaining margarine in the skillet with the vegetables over very low heat. Pour in the egg mixture. Cook, uncovered, without stirring for 15 minutes, or until only the top remains runny. Place under broiler for 2 mins or until the egg is just set.
*Note: I used a cast iron skillet and mine cooked completely on the stove.

Whole Wheat Loaf
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups water (room temp) 2 1/2 TBL Olive Oil
2 TBL sugar substitute 3 to 3 1/2 cups whole wheat bread flour
2 TBL gluten flour 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1 1/2 tsp salt 1 1/2 tsp quick rise yeast

In a large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, combine the water, oil, sugar substitute, whole wheat bread flour, gluten flour, walnuts, salt and yeast to form a rough dough. (I mixed the wet, added the dry and mixed with my clean hands…) Let dough stand for about 15 minutes.
Place dough on a lightly floured board and knead for about 10 minutes (yes, ten whole mins!) until the dough is smooth and elastic. Place the dough in an oiled bowl and cover it with a damp cloth. Let the dough rise in a warm spot for about an hour, until it has doubled. Preheat the oven to 350. Turn the dough onto a board and shape it into an oblong loaf. Coat an 8.5x4.5 bread pan with cooking spray. Place dough in pan. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Remove bread from oven and transfer to a cooling rack.

Artichoke Salad with Olives
Ingredients:
1/4 cup mayonnaise 2 TBL sugar free creamy Italian dressing
1/8 tsp black pepper 10 ounces artichoke hearts
1/2 cup chopped roasted red bell pepper
1 rib celery, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil 8 kalamata olives, pitted and halved

In a small bowl, whisk together the mayo, Italian dressing, and black pepper. In a larger serving bowl, combine the artichokes, roasted pepper, celery, basil and olives. Stir in the dressing. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

All of the recipes came out of one South Beach Diet cookbook or another. I have recipe cards of all of these in Publisher, if you would like them. I won't be able to email them out until Monday, though. Oh! And all of the recipes, except the whole wheat bread, are phase one friendly. the bread, obviously is phase 2.