healthy Archives - Page 25 of 26

Strawberry Vanilla Pancakes

August 8, 2011 ·

My Adam is a pancake-eating machine. Though he is pretty set on eating his favorite Cottage Cheese Pancakes every morning, I like to encourage a little variety. So when I had some extra strawberries, I decided to give strawberry pancakes a whirl. I figure Adam loves strawberries. Adam loves pancakes. It just might work. I scoured the internet, found some inspiration, and crafted this recipe with fingers crossed it would be a success.

I had Mike test the first pancake. After one bite, he asked for another. 🙂

I gave a pancake to Adam…instead of pushing away the new pancake, he ate the whole thing. Success!

Strawberry Vanilla Pancakes are packed with an abundance of juicy strawberries and simply delicious. I used whole wheat pastry flour, but you can definitely substitute all-purpose flour if that’s what you have. I diced the strawberries (in eighths), though sliced strawberries would work just fine and yield a beautiful result. Using orange zest is optional. You could substitute any other citrus zest or simply omit the zest if that’s your preference.

There is no question that Cottage Cheese Pancakes are Adam’s favorite, but these Strawberry Vanilla Pancakes may someday rival that top spot. Mike and I definitely love them, so here are tasty fruit-filled pancakes that will please everyone at the table, big and small.

Strawberry Vanilla Pancakes
Yields 32 small pancakes

1 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or all-purpose flour)
1 tablespoon brown sugar, packed
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
2 cups strawberries, diced or sliced
1-2 teaspoons granulated sugar
zest of 1 orange (optional)
powdered sugar or maple syrup, for serving (optional)

In a small bowl, mix strawberries and orange zest (if using) with 1-2 teaspoons of granulated sugar (adjust the sugar based on the sweetness of your berries).
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, brown sugar and baking powder. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk buttermilk, egg, oil and vanilla until combined.
Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, mixing until combined. Fold in strawberries and orange zest, if using.

Heat griddle to medium heat (add oil and/or use cooking spray as needed). Pour about 1 tablespoon of batter onto griddle for each pancake.

Cook until you see bubbles appear (about 2-3 minutes), flip and cook on the other side until set (about 2 minutes).

Adapted from All Recipes

Filed Under: breakfast, healthy, Recipes Tagged With: baby/toddler, pancakes, strawberries

Chipotle Black Bean Tacos

August 1, 2011 ·

Chipotle Black Bean Tacos are a delicious meatless taco recipe filled with black beans and vegetables. {gluten free, vegetarian, vegan, depending on toppings}

Chipotle Black Bean Tacos | alidaskitchen.com

Chipotle Black Bean Tacos are my favorite dish for meatless Monday, taco Tuesday or any day. They are fabulous! These tacos are made with mashed black beans, onions, peppers, chipotle peppers, spices, salsa, some broth, and then topped with any of your favorite taco toppings. The taco filling reheats well, and I often enjoy leftovers for lunches throughout the week (that is if there are any leftovers).

These Chipotle Black Bean Tacos can be vegan and gluten free, depending on the tortillas and/or toppings. I enjoy them as a vegetarian options, since I like to add a bit of cheese. The taco filling reheats well, and I often enjoy leftovers for lunches throughout the week (that is if there are any leftovers).

Chipotle Black Bean Tacos

Author: Alida Fischbach

Yields: 6 servings

Ingredients

1 tablespoon canola oil
1 onion, chopped
2 bell peppers (ribs and seeds removed), chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1-2 teaspoons chipotle chili in adobo sauce, minced
⅓ cup vegetable broth
2 15 ounce cans of black beans, drained and rinsed
½ cup salsa
6 10-inch whole wheat tortillas
Topping ideas for serving: spinach or lettuce, diced tomatoes, shredded cheese, Greek yogurt or sour cream, chopped green onions, salsa

Instructions

Heat oil in large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and peppers to pan and saute for 3-5 minutes, until crisp-tender.
Add garlic, chili powder, cumin and chipotle chilis, and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add beans and broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat until medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes, until mixture has thickened.
Remove from heat and stir in salsa. Mash lightly using a potato masher (or fork).
Stack tortillas, wrap in damp paper towel and microwave for 45-60 seconds.
Serve ⅓ cup filling for each tortilla along with desired toppings.

Notes

Adapted from Pink Parsley, originally from Cooking Light

Filed Under: gluten free, healthy, kid-friendly, main dishes, Recipes, vegan, vegetarian Tagged With: beans, black beans, dinner, easy, Mexican, quick, vegan, vegetable

Grilled Chicken Caprese

July 29, 2011 ·

Happy Friday everyone! I hate to the be the bearer of bad news, but can you believe the end of July is upon us? Summer is whizzing by in the blink of an eye. We are trying to take advantage of all that summer has to offer, though a few activities still remain on our ‘to do’ list. On the other hand, we certainly are taking every opportunity to grill (something we did not do once last summer, back when I was still working, and we were stuck in our pizza/pasta/p’eggs routine).

In any case, we are having a great summer here at Alida’s Kitchen, and I hope you are too!

After making Herbed-Grilled Tomatoes, I developed an appreciation for the delicious flavor of grilled tomatoes. So when I saw a Caprese Chicken recipe that grilled the chicken AND the tomatoes, it went on my ‘must make’ list immediately!

Grilled Chicken Caprese is a simple weeknight (or quick weekend meal) that takes little effort and yields an impressive result. First you make the marinade. Then marinate slices of the fresh mozzarella (yum!). While the cheese is marinating, you grill the tomato slices and chicken cutlets, which takes about 5 minutes. Last, simply put everything together, let it sit a little bit if you can, and then eat!

The result is a delicious Caprese-inspired grilled chicken dish that is quick and easy to make. The original recipe states it takes 30 minutes, which sounds about right…but that includes eating time! 🙂 Enjoy!

Have a great weekend!

Grilled Chicken Caprese
Yields 4 servings

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons red wine or balsamic vingar
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
4 slices of fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/4-inch slices, halved and patted
4 chicken breast cutlets (or butterflied chicken breast halves)
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
8 tomato slices (2-3 tomatoes), cored and cut into 1/2-inch slices

Make marinade/dressing: whisk together basil, vinegar, garlic and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to your taste preference.
Take 2 tablespoons of the marinade and pour over mozzarella slices, turning the slices to make sure cheese is coated. Set aside.
Pat chicken dry and then drizzle about a 1/2 teaspoon of olive oil on each side of chicken cutlet and season with pepper.
Preheat grill to medium-high heat and spray grates with cooking spray or rub with oil.
Grill chicken and tomatoes until chicken is thoroughly cooked and browned and tomatoes are slighly charred (about 2 minutes per side).
Transfer chicken to platter and top each cutlet with 2 tomato slices. Drizzle with remaining vinaigrette and top with mozzarella. Cover with an inverted plate or tented foil and let sit for 5 minutes (up to 10 minutes, if you can wait that long). Serve.

Adapted from Cook’s Country, August/September, 2011

Filed Under: gluten free, healthy, Recipes Tagged With: chicken, easy, grilled, quick

Rosemary Roasted Potatoes

July 27, 2011 ·

As my rosemary plant continues to flourish, so continues my search for tasty recipes using rosemary. I recently made Herbed Balsamic Grilled Chicken, which required a suitable accompaniment. For some reason it was just screaming potatoes to me.

This recipe for Rosemary Roasted Potatoes has a nice short list of ingredients and could not be any easier. It is very hands off, which worked well with cooking the rest of the meal on the grill (or doing whatever else you need to do).

The only changes I made from the original recipe were adding more garlic and increasing the amount of potatoes to use up my 2 pound bag. Otherwise, this recipe is absolutely THE perfect go-to recipe for roasted potatoes.

Rosemary Roasted Potatoes
Serves 6 to 8

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, minced
1/2 teaspoon kosher flake salt
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 pounds red potatoes, quartered
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Cut potatoes in quarters and put in bowl with the olive oil, garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper. Toss making sure potatoes are well-coated.
Dump potatoes on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet and spread out so they are 1 layer.
Roast in oven for at least an hour, or until browned and crisp. Flip twice during cooking to ensure evenly browning.

Slightly adapted from Ina Garten

Filed Under: gluten free, healthy, Recipes, sides, vegetarian Tagged With: potatoes, rosemary, vegan, vegetable

Garden Pizza Puffs

July 25, 2011 ·

We eat a lot of muffins in this house. We also eat a lot of pizza. So when I stumbled upon a recipe for pizza made in a mini-muffin tin, it was like two worlds colliding into something brilliant!

Garden Pizza Puffs are cheesy, delicious and very easy to make. With only about 35 calories per puff, they are a fun and healthy option to satisfy your pizza cravings.

The original recipe is made with pepperoni, which would be pretty good. I thought it would be even better with made vegetables and herbs. The recipe written below reflects the vegetables that I used, though you can experiment with the same amounts of whatever meats and/or vegetables you like. I have also used whole wheat and all-purpose flours, and either one works great. The beauty of this recipe is the ability to customize everything to suit your preferences.

Served with a side of pizza sauce for dipping or with a dollop of sauce on each puff, these would make for a super cute appetizer at your next dinner party. Mike and I had 10 puffs each and called it dinner. These puffs would also be a tasty treat for kids.

Given the unlimited possibilities, I look forward to doing lots of experimenting with this recipe. In the meantime, we will just have to continue to test several variations of pizza puffs. Oh the sacrifices we make! 🙂

Garden Pizza Puffs

Yields: Yields 24 puffs (see note)

Ingredients

¾ cup all-purpose flour or whole wheat pastry flour
¾ teaspoon baking powder
¾ cup skim milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
4 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup red onion, chopped
½ cup roasted red pepper, chopped
1½ teaspoons Italian seasoning
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
pizza sauce, for serving

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a 24-cup mini-muffin pan with cooking spray and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder. Whisk in the milk and egg. Fold in the cheese, garlic, onion, roasted red pepper, Italian seasoning, and crushed red pepper (if using). Let stand for 10 minutes.
Stir the batter and divide evenly among the mini-muffin cups (fill to about ½ to ⅔ full).
Bake until puffed and golden, 20 to 25 mintutes. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes. Remove from pan serve with pizza sauce.

Notes

Yields 12 puffs in a regular-sized muffin pan - adjust baking time to 25 to 30 minutes.

Adapted from Rachael Ray

Filed Under: appetizers, healthy, main dishes, Recipes, vegetarian Tagged With: baby/toddler, cheese, dinner, easy, pizza, quick, vegetable, whole wheat

Herbed Balsamic Grilled Chicken

July 22, 2011 ·

I love cooking marinated chicken on the grill. It is such a quick and easy way to make a delicious dinner. Mix the marinade, pour it in a Ziploc bag, put chicken in the bag and let is sit. Easy.

So when I saw this recipe for Herbed Balsamic Grilled Chicken, it was calling my name. I made a few changes to the recipe, which are reflected in the recipe written below. I reduced the oil, added garlic and substituted Italian herbs seasoning for the herbes de Provence. Combined with the balsamic vinegar, I dare say the combination resulted in the best grilled chicken ever!

Herbed Balsamic Grilled Chicken is a light, healthy and versatile dish that can easily go with any vegetable, starch or salad.

Herbed Balsamic Grilled Chicken
Yields 4 servings

1 pound chicken breast or breast tenders
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons Italian herb seasoning
2 cloves garlic, minced
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
Pinch of kosher flake salt

In a small bowl, whisk the vinegar, olive oil, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper until combined.
Put chicken in a Ziploc bag. Pour vinegar mixture in bag with chicken, making sure chicken gets coated. Refrigerate for at least two hours, turning the bag occasionally.
Grill chicken over medium-high heat until cooked thoroughly (approximately 4-5 minutes per side).

Adapted from Cooking with Chrissy, originally from Bon Apétit, June 2009

Filed Under: healthy, main dishes, Recipes Tagged With: chicken, dinner, easy, grilling

Herbed-Grilled Tomatoes

July 13, 2011 ·

Growing up, I remember summer was filled with an abundance of zucchini, rhubarb and tomatoes. According to me, zucchini was best served as bread, rhubarb was best served as crisp and tomatoes were best served to someone else. I was not a fan of tomatoes.

Actually, I still do not care for plain tomatoes, unless they are in a salad. I like my tomatoes made into something. And I must say, these Herbed-Grilled Tomatoes are definintely something!

Of course you can’t go wrong with balsamic vinegar, fresh basil and garlic. In fact, that makes for a pretty common (and tasty) vinaigrette. The role of the marinade in this dish is perfectly subtle.

What takes these tomatoes from ordinary to extraordinary is in the grilling. The charring from the grill, combined with the marinade, results in tomatoes literally bursting with fresh flavor. Topped with Parmesan cheese, Herbed-Grilled Tomatoes are an easy, healthy, and delicious side dish made on grill.

Herbed-Grilled Tomatoes
Yields 4 servings (2 tomato halves per serving)

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon minced fresh basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
4 medium tomatoes, halved
1 tablespoon grated fresh Parmesan cheese

In a wide shallow bowl (13 x 9 baking dish works well) mix together the olive oil, vinegar, garlic, basil, salt and pepper.
Add tomatoes, and turn to coat them on all sides.
Prepare grill: brush grates with oil or spray with cooking spray, and preheat to medium high.
Place tomatoes, cut sides down, on the grill rack. Brush once with remaining marinade, and then discard marinade. Grill about 5-7 minutes on each side, or until tomatoes begin to blister, soften and brown. (Note: They can burn easily so keep an eye on them.)
Remove the tomatoes from grill and top with parmesan cheese. Garnish with fresh basil leaves, if desired. Serve immediately.

Adapted from Health, June, 2007

Filed Under: healthy, Recipes, sides, vegetarian Tagged With: easy, grilled

Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

July 6, 2011 ·

Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Pancakes are made with whole wheat flour, studded with blueberries and a bright flavor from the lemon. These are a wonderful breakfast treat!

Recently, my favorite (well,…only) pancake turner met an early and unfortunate demise. Let’s just say the combination of a very hot pan, quesadillas sticking to said pan and a non-silicone turner resulted in a slightly melted pancake turner (and a slightly not pleased Alida). Now I am armed and dangerous with a fancy silicone pancake turner, ready to take on the world…of pancakes!

What better way to christen this handy new tool than by making ricotta pancakes. Ricotta pancakes are delicate to flip, so they’re sure to put this new device to the test.

Not just any ricotta pancake recipe would do, however. It was time to liven up my go-to ricotta pancake recipe from Everyday Food. First I swapped lemon zest for the orange zest, and whole wheat pastry flour for the all-purpose flour. I then decided to add vanilla and blueberries to the recipe.

The result was fabulous! We thought they were perfect without any topping, though you could add a little confectioners’ sugar or maple syrup, if desired. While these pancakes are easy to make, the batter is quite thick, thus requiring a few extra minutes to cook and extra care when flipping. In the end, it is all worth it – trust me!

Whole Wheat Blueberry Lemon-Ricotta Pancakes

Author: Alida Fischbach

Yields: 4 servings

Ingredients

15 ounces low fat ricotta cheese
⅓ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
zest of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
⅔ cup whole wheat pastry flour (or all-purpose flour)
1 cup blueberries
cooking spray
confectioners' sugar or maple syrup, for serving (optional)

Instructions

In a medium bowl. whisk together ricotta cheese, sugar, eggs, grated lemon zest and vanilla extract.
Fold in flour until just combined; add blueberries, gently mixing until combined.
Spray large non-stick skillet with cooking spray and heat to medium-low heat. Add batter, using a scant ¼ cup for each pancake. Cook until browned, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer pancakes to a paper towel-lined plate.
Serve hot, with confectioners' sugar or maple syrup, if desired.

Adapted from Everyday Food

Filed Under: breakfast, healthy, kid-friendly, Recipes Tagged With: blueberries, blueberry, brunch, lemon, pancakes, ricotta

Fresh Strawberry Pie ~ Lightened up!

July 1, 2011 ·

Let’s just get this out in the open. Yes, I am doing another strawberry recipe. And yes, I am doing another strawberry recipe with yogurt. Every year around the Fourth of July, I look forward to making this healthy version of a strawberry pie. It just so happens to coincide my Strawberry Yogurt Muffins post from Wednesday. I promise you a break from strawberry and yogurt recipes in the coming weeks. In fact, there are even some indulgent recipes on the horizon!

There are 3 parts to making this pie. The first step is making yogurt cheese, which is draining plain yogurt through cheesecloth. This step needs to be done a day in advance, as the yogurt needs at least 16 hours to drain.

Part 2 is making the crust. This crust is a simple stir and roll crust which uses oil instead of shortening. It is nice and thin, and serves as the perfect vehicle for the rest of the pie.

The last step involves mixing the yogurt cheese with sugar, vanilla and chopped strawberries; then pouring that mixture in the crust and topping/decorating with strawberry halves. It is all very easy.

Now I do not want to mislead you into believing this pie is a replica of its sugary, fat-laden counterpart because it is not. It is, however, delicious, light and healthy! It’s a wonderful summer dessert!

Happy pre-Fourth of July and have a great weekend!

Fresh Strawberry Pie ~ Lightened up!
Yields 8 servings

16 oz plain yogurt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons powdered sugar (adjust amount to taste and the sweetness of your berries)
1 cup diced strawberries
approximately 1/2-1 pound strawberries, halved (the amount depends on the size of your berries)
1 tablespoon strawberry preserves (optional) – amount many vary depending on size of strawberries
1 Stir ‘n Roll Pie Crust (recipe below)

Make yogurt cheese: Arrange wire strainer lined with double thickness cheesecloth (or coffee filters) over bowl. Spoon yogurt into lined strainer; cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until liquid has drained from yogurt and yogurt is very thick (16-24 hours). Discard liquid.
Combine yogurt cheese, vanilla extract, powdered sugar, and diced strawberries.
Pour yogurt mixture in cool pie crust, spreading evenly. Top with strawberry halves.
Optional (see note below): Microwave strawberry preserves for 5-10 seconds, just to melt it. Then with a spoon or silicone pastry brush, brush the strawberries with preserves.
Refrigerate for 2 hours, or until serving.

Note: If you do not plan on serving this immediately, I highly recommend using the preserves in order to seal and preserve the appearance of the berries. It gives them a little shine as well, which can be nice.

Stir ‘n Roll Pie Crust
Yields 1 9″ pie crust

1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/4 cup canola oil
3 tablespoons cold skim milk

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
In medium bowl, combine flour and salt; stir in oil and milk just until blended. Form dough into a smooth ball.
Dampen counter top. Place 12 x 15 inch sheet of waxed paper on dampened counter. Place pastry on paper; cover with another sheet of waxed paper. Roll dough into a 12 inch circle, turning dough and paper over once to roll evenly.
Peel off top paper. Lift dough and paper, and place dough-side down in pie plate, fitting dough to the plate. Carefully peel off the remaining paper.
Trim edge so it fits evenly with the pie plate. Prick dough with fork, and press edges with tines of fork.
Bake until golden brown (12 to15 minutes). Remove to wire rack to cool.

Adapted from The Best of Byerly’s Cookbook

Filed Under: dessert, healthy, Recipes Tagged With: easy, pie, strawberries, yogurt

Strawberry Yogurt Muffins

June 29, 2011 ·

Strawberry Yogurt Muffins are an easy, healthy muffin recipe made with lots of fresh strawberries and Greek yogurt.

After picking up 8 pounds of strawberries from a local farm, I noticed these were the most perfect strawberries I have ever seen. They had a perfect shape, a perfect stem and were a deep red throughout (no white inside these berries). My husband wondered what I could possibly do with 8 pounds of strawberries? Spend a LOT of time experimenting in the kitchen, that’s what!

In fact, I was thinking 8 pounds might not even be enough. I eat strawberries on my plain Greek yogurt every day. My son eats strawberries by the fistful. There is also a long list of goodies that I want to make with strawberries…hmm.

For the longest time, I have been searching high and low for the perfect strawberry muffin recipe. I was inspired by this recipe for Strawberry Bread on Cate’s World Kitchen. I love that Cate uses yogurt, a good dose of vanilla, and this recipe uses more actual strawberries than other recipes I found. From the original recipe, I reduced the amount of sugar and used plain nonfat Greek yogurt. The recipe below is written accordingly.

These muffins smelled incredible while baking in the oven. It was hard to resist digging in while they cooled, but I knew they would be worth the wait. And worth the wait they were indeed! They are moist, delicious and have bits of sweet strawberries in every bite. We are definitely going to make another trip to the farm to pick up more strawberries, and I will definitely be making more of these muffins!

Strawberry Yogurt Muffins

Yields: 12 muffins

Ingredients

1½ cups white whole wheat flour
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt (optional)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
¼ cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
¼ cup oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
1½ cups strawberries, chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line or grease 12 muffin cups.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, combine eggs, yogurt, oil and vanilla until blended. Add to flour mixture and gently mix until combined (Be careful not to over mix). Gently fold in strawberries.
Divide batter evenly between muffin cups. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let muffins cool in pan for 5 minutes. Transfer muffins to wire rack and let cool completely.

Adapted from Cate’s World Kitchen