Polenta and Vegetable Bake (Nancy)

I got this one off Dr. Oz's great site, RealAge.com, and I've made it a couple of times. It's very hearty for a vegetarian recipe -- and it also freezes well.

2 tablespoon(s) extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium eggplant, diced
1 small zucchini, finely diced
0.5 teaspoon(s) salt
0.5 teaspoon(s) freshly ground pepper
0.5 cup(s) water
10 ounce(s) baby spinach
1.5 cup(s) prepared marinara sauce
0.5 cup(s) chopped fresh basil
14 ounce(s) prepared polenta, sliced lengthwise into 6 thin slices
1.5 cup(s) shredded part-skim mozzarella, divided

Preheat oven to 450°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add eggplant, zucchini, salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and just beginning to brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Add water and spinach; cover and cook until wilted, stirring once, about 3 minutes. Stir marinara sauce into the vegetables and heat through, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in basil.

Place polenta slices in a single layer in the prepared baking dish, trimming to fit if necessary. Sprinkle with 3/4 cup cheese, top with the eggplant mixture and sprinkle with the remaining 3/4 cup cheese. Bake until bubbling and the cheese has just melted, 12 to 15 minutes. Let stand for about 5 minutes before serving.

Nancy's tips:
--Polenta is so easy to make, I disregard the directions about the prepared stuff. Most grocery stores have the coarsely ground cornmeal used for polenta. I make a couple cups of it for this recipe (and it's even yummier if you throw some Parmesan cheese in toward the end of cooking).
--This calls for a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, but I prefer using a small, round casserole dish (think Corningware).

Creamy cole slaw (Nancy)

This is one of our faves from Dr. Oz's "You on a Diet" ... You have to take a leap of faith to substitute yogurt for mayonnaise -- but it really does work. Who knew! You can eat this stuff with impunity.

INGREDIENTS
3 tablespoons reduced-fat mayonnaise
3 tablespoons nonfat plain yogurt
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons cider vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon caraway seed, or celery seed (optional)
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 cups shredded red cabbage, (1/4 of a small head)
2 cups shredded green cabbage, (1/4 of a small head)
1 cup grated carrots, (2 medium)
(Or you can substitute with five cups from a bag of cabbage and carrots already cut up for cole slaw)

Directions
1. Combine mayonnaise, yogurt, mustard, vinegar and sugar in a large bowl. Add caraway seed (or celery seed), if using. Season with salt and pepper. Add cabbage and carrots and toss well. (It's best if you let it sit in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.)

Nutrition Information
Per serving
Calories: 49
Carbohydrates: 7g
Fat: 2g
Saturated Fat: 0g
Monounsaturated Fat: 0g
Protein: 1g
Cholesterol: 2mg
Dietary Fiber: 2g
Potassium: 174mg
Sodium: 153mg
Nutrition Bonus: 50% dv vitamin a, 22 mg vitamin c (35% dv).

Greek-style stuffed peppers (Nancy)

This is a favorite of ours from the Food Network's website ... It's so filling, you won't believe your eating only 210 calories -- and it's a festive dish for company, not to mention easy to prepare. It's a particular point of pride that it's been a hit with Joel, Lindsay, Katie, and Adam!

1 pound lean ground beef (or turkey)
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 medium zucchini, coarsely grated (about 2 cups)
1 small onion, minced (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup bulghur wheat
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 red bell peppers, halved lengthwise, cores and ribs removed
2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans low-sodium stewed tomatoes, finely chopped
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large bowl combine the beef, spinach, zucchini, onion, bulghur, egg, oregano, salt and a few grinds of pepper. Mix until thoroughly combined.

Arrange the pepper halves cut side up in a 9 by 13-inch baking dish and fill each pepper half with the meat mixture. Pour the tomatoes over the peppers and sprinkle with the feta cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and bake until the meat mixture is completely cooked and the peppers are tender, about 25 minutes longer.

Calories: 210
Carbs: 19 g
Total fat: 6 g
Saturated fat: 2.5
Protein: 21 g
Fiber: 6 g
Sodium: 400 g

NANCY'S NOTES:
I really like this "tomato-y," so I pour a small can or two of tomato sauce over the whole thing before baking.

Unstuffed Cabbage (Kate Gordon)

Just like stuffed Cabbage -- but without all the fuss
6 servings, 350 calories each
Prep time - about 20 minutes, then let it do its thang!

1 medium head green cabbage, chunked
1 big onion, diced
1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes in puree (I use Redpack)
1/2 can tomato paste (Contadina has no added salt)
28 oz. water (rinse out the tomato can)
1/4 cup lemon juice (I use the Minute Maid frozen since it has no weird chemicals in it)
3 Tbs honey

1/4 cup raisins

1 lb 90% lean ground beef (I use beef or bison, turkey doesn't work for this one)
3/4 cup raw brown rice (the original called for white rice, but brown is much tastier)
2 Tbs Worcestershire sauce (or to taste)

Put cabbage, onion, tomatoes, tomato paste, water, lemon juice, honey and raisins in a big pot and put it on to come to the boil. Mix the beef, rice and Worcestershire sauce and form into 1" to 1 1/2" meatballs. Put them on top of the cabbage mixture, turn down the heat, cover and simmer about 1 1/2 hours till the meatballs are cooked. Alternately, do it in a big crock pot and let it simmer on high for 6-7 hours.

I consider this a meal in a bowl and just follow it with fruit, but you can add bread, salad etc. if you like. And like all such dishes, it just gets better and better every time you reheat it.

Vegan waffles (Nancy)

This recipe --from our friend Shawn Bakker, who's a vegetarian -- has become a mainstay in our home. And don't let the "vegan" in the name scare you off. They are delish! I wish I could give you the calorie count, but alas, I don't have it. Still, considering it has neither oil nor dairy ingredients, consider it healthy.

2 cups rolled oats

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup ground flax

3 cups water

1 banana

1 T brown sugar

1 t vanilla

1 t cinnamon

1/2 t salt

1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Combine all ingredients (except pecans) in blender or food processor until smooth. Stir in pecans. Spray waffle iron with Pam and pour in batter. For a four-square waffle iron, the recipe will make 10-12 waffles.

Nancy's notes:

--Word of warning: Unless you have a blender that’s industrial strength, be careful that you don’t burn out your motor. The problem seems to be the oats, so here's what I do: pulverize the dry oats first, then remove them from the blender. Combine all the other ingredients in the blender and mix well, then dump the batter into a mixing bowl and blend in ground oats manually.

--Whatever you do, don't forget the Pam. (Spoken from grim experience.)

--The original recipe calls for 2 cups of water, but I find the consistency way too thick. You can try it with 2 cups, then add water until you get it to the consistency you prefer.

--I zap the banana in the microwave for a minute to break it down and turn it more "blendable."

--I've started making these ahead. They both refrigerate and freeze well. A toaster will crisp them right back up.

--These are good with syrup (of course), but we prefer them with no-fat flavored yogurt.

Enjoy!

Chicken and Barley Bake (Kate Gordon)

8 servings, 317 calories each

8 pieces of chicken, skin & excess fat removed
2 T olive oil
1 large onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups uncooked barley
4 cups water + bouillon cube or chicken stock (2:1 with barley)
Juice & zest of 1 lemon
Optional: few sprigs of rosemary

Brown chicken pieces in oil. Set aside. Saute onion and garlic in same pan. Add barley, stir for a few minutes. Return chicken to pan, add broth, lemon juice, zest and rosemary. Bring water to boil on top of the stove. Transfer all ingredients to large ovenproof casserole or dutch oven, cover, and bake for about an hour or till all liquid is absorbed and barley is cooked.

Kate’s tips:
Use skinless thighs; quicker than dismembering and skinning a whole bird.
Use about 2 tsp Better Than Bouillon chicken concentrate and one Rapunzel unsalted veggie cube (if you're watching sodium intake).
Add green salad and some fruit for dessert, and you've got an elegant dinner for 500 calories!