Cleaner Shepherd's Pie

A traditional shepherd's pie is made with lamb or beef, as well as corn and potatoes, with additional ingredients depending on what recipe you consider a "real" shepherd's pie. When I look over those traditional recipes, they often lack enough veggies and are pumped full of carbohydrates. In order to reach the right sized portion, with the appropriate amount of macronutrients, I took the traditional recipes, limited the carbs, and increased the vegetables. This cleaner shepherd's pie may be quite different from the recipe that your mother made, however I know that once you give this a try you will understand eliminating the extra fat and carbohydrates, doesn't mean you also eliminate the flavor. And, if you're someone who is looking for new recipes to add to your 21-Day Fix meal preparation rotation, I list your servings and macronutrient counts so you can easily track your meal.

Shepherd’s Pie

1 Protein, 1 Veggie, 1 Carb

(Makes 6 servings)

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 cups Sweet Potatoes, peeled, cubed and steamed
• 1 tsp. Garlic, minced
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 2 tsp. EV Olive Oil
• 1 ½ lbs. Lean Ground Turkey
• 1 medium Yellow Onion, diced
• 1 cup Peas, frozen – defrosted
• ½ Summer Squash, sliced into ¼ slices
• ½ Zucchini, sliced into ¼ inch slices
• ½ cup Mushrooms, sliced
• ½ cup Carrots, sliced
• 1 rib Celery, sliced
• ½ tsp. Garlic Powder
• ½ tsp. Onion Powder

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Steam sweet potatoes until soft, or a fork pierces through easily and place in food processor. Add garlic powder, onion powder, pepper to taste, and puree until smooth. Put aside. 

2. Heat 1 tsp. EVOO in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground turkey, salt and pepper to taste, and stir often to break up meat. Cook until no pink remains, about 8 minutes. Drain and discard fat; set turkey aside.

3. In same pan, heat remaining 1 tsp. EVOO on medium-high heat. Add onion, summer squash, zucchini, mushrooms, carrots, celery, salt and pepper to taste, and cook, stirring occasionally, until veggies are soft; about 8 minutes.

4. Add turkey back to pan, and stir into vegetables. Add peas. Transfer mixture into a 13 x 9 in. baking dish and cover with whipped sweet potato, spreading out over entire mixture. Bake in oven for 30 minutes.

You may find that this is a bit different in texture from your traditional recipes, but the flavor is great.  It's also packed full of veggies, proteins, and the proper amount of carbohydrates per serving.  I hope you enjoy your cleaner version, and always remember that you can substitute different veggies per your preference. If you don't like mushrooms, substitute a veggie you do like.  There's no sense in eating foods that you don't enjoy!

Maria

Spaghetti Squash with Mushroom and Peas

As I sit here waiting for my Personal Mini Quiches to be ready for this mornings breakfast, it seems only appropriate to work on my next post which features the spaghetti squash that I randomly picked up when I was grocery shopping last week.  I've been following a woman on Instagram who's screen name is 100daysofcleaneating, and it's a daily catalog of her foods and workouts.  Some days I find what she's doing interesting, some days I glide over her post with a quick glance, and a whatever attitude.  Over the last week or so, she has either mentioned or featured spaghetti squash in her posts at least a couple times, and clearly because of this, my subconscious felt the need for some as well.

I'm a squash lover anyway, and I've definitely cooked with the vegetable before, but to be honest, it's not something that makes it into my weekly dinner regimen, and now I'm asking myself why.  In discussing it last night with my BFF Jackie, I was saying how much I enjoy cooking dishes that allow me to walk away, do some prep, and a quick saute, toss it all together, and then pretend that I did a fair amount of work.  This is totally one of those dishes. Keep in mind that outside of the squash, the vegetables that went into this dish ended up in here basically because they are what I had in my fridge, not because they are what I had planned on cooking with the squash itself.  I'm lucky enough to be at a point in my clean eating cooking that I can pick up a handful of random things, see what I'm left with near the end of my week, and then throw something together.  If you aren't there yet, just keeping researching, testing, and eating clean, and at some point it'll all just click, and you'll be able to do the same.

Ingredients:

- 1 Spaghetti Squash
- 1/2 Medium Yellow Onion, diced
- 1 c. Mushrooms (any variety would be fine)
- 1/2 c. Peas (fresh or frozen)
- 2 Cloves Garlic, chopped
- 2 tsp. Olive Oil, divided
- Salt, to taste
- Pepper, to taste
- Smoked Paprika, to taste
- 1 tbsp. Shredded Parmesan, divided





Directions:

Preheat oven to 375.

1. Cut spaghetti squash in half from stem to stem, and hollow out seeds.  Rub 1 tsp. of olive oil between the two halves and season with salt and smoked paprika to taste.  Turn the squash halved sides down on the baking sheet (I lined mine with parchment paper for easy clean up) and bake for 35-45 minutes, or until squash is soft.  Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, place 1 tsp. of Olive Oil in a medium saute pan on medium heat.  Add onion, season with salt and pepper to taste, and saute until translucent, about 3-5 minutes.  Add mushrooms and cook for 3 minutes, and then add peas (thawed if frozen) and garlic and cook an additional 3 minutes.

3. Reduce heat to low, and take one of your squash halves, holding the skin in your palm carefully with a paper towel or towel, and with a fork shred the inside of the squash from top to bottom until all of the 'meat' of the squash is in the saute pan.  Repeat with the other half of the squash.  Toss all ingredients together.  Top each serving with 1/2 tbsp. of shredded Parmesan cheese.

I split this dish into two servings, however it may have been possible to break it into three depending on what serving size or calorie portion you are looking for.  If you are trying to avoid wheat products, or pasta in general, you'll find that this is a great substitution for those due to the texture of the squash.  Also, as I stated before, you are able to add whatever vegetables or meat that you would like to the dish, so feel free to modify it with ingredients that you prefer, or that you have hanging around at the end of your grocery week to ensure that you don't waste any food in your fridge.

I hope you enjoy as much as my husband and I did!

Maria

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Healthy and Easy Shrimp Pasta

Shrimp and Asparagus Buckwheat Pasta

I know, I know, you're asking yourself where I've been.  OK, maybe not, but the truth is ever since I decided to get AFAA Personal Trainer certified, everything else in my life came to a stand still.  In life, we must zero in on our goals, define our steps of action to achieve them, and keep our eye on the prize.  Now, with that out of the way, I have re-dedicated myself to some things that have been pushed aside, my food blog being one of them.  So, let's get going!

I have said it before and I'll say it again: I WILL NEVER STOP EATING PASTA!!!  Alright, perhaps that was more of a shouting, but I'm Italian, and I only have one volume.  The reality is, people who say you shouldn't eat carbs, or that they avoid pasta at all cost, are just eating the wrong carbs or the wrong pasta.  My all time favorite pastas to use are Organic Soba noodles.  Often found in the Asian isle in your grocery store, Soba noodles are made with buckwheat, are extremely thin, and cook in about 4 minutes.  Talk about healthy and easy!  They even come in three individual bundles so you can choose your serving size!

Shrimp and Asparagus Buckwheat Pasta

2 Pre-portioned bundles of Soba noodles

1/2 lb. Medium Shrimp Cooked, de-veined

8 Stalks Asparagus, ends removed

2 Vine Ripe Tomatoes, diced

3 Cloves Garlic, chopped

1/2 c. Sliced Mushrooms

1 tbs. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 tbs. Grated Parmesan Cheese

1. Prepare Soba noodles to package directions.

2. Cut asparagus stalks into three even pieces, at a bias (at an angle).

3.  Heat olive oil on medium in a saute pan, and add asparagus.  Cook for approximately 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

4.  Add the mushrooms and saute for two minutes.

5.  Add tomatoes and garlic, and cook for an additional 5 minutes.  

6.  Add the shrimp (I take the tails off of mine because I can't stand working for my food once it's placed in front of me), and the drained Soba noodles, and heat through.  

7.  Top each potion with a small amount of Parmesan cheese.  

I break this amount of pasta into four different servings.  I'm not huge on calorie counting so I apologize to anyone who wants to know calories, carbs, proteins, etc.  I eat whole foods, control potion sizes and workout like a maniac.  Depending on how my metabolism feels that day, I may eat more or less.  

What I LOVE about this recipe is how quickly it all comes together.  I buy pre-cooked shrimp, boil my pasta while I'm chopping everything else, toss ingredients in while I'm waiting for my pasta to be done, and by the time it's drained, I'm throwing my last couple of ingredients in, and heating the whole dish through.  Super easy, super healthy!  Enjoy!

Remember, pasta is good.  People who tell you that is not, are bad! <3 

Spinach, Mushroom & Chicken Sausage Frittata

It's pretty evident that in order to eat healthy on a regular basis, it helps to have meals that are already made and ready to go in the fridge.  I find this especially helpful for my husband because he works mornings, and doesn't always have time to make a breakfast before he heads out of the house.  I don't know why it took me so long to give this recipe a try, but it was definitely great to have something already made, and that could be portioned away for when one of us needed a quick breakfast in the morning.  And, for the love, if I'm not using my cake pans for cake, then I'll use them for my eggs!

Ingredients:
3 c. Baby spinach
1 c. Mushrooms, your choice, diced
2 Chicken sausage links, your flavor choice
8 Eggs, scrambled
4 oz Reduced-fat goat cheese, or cheese of your choice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a saute pan heated on medium, sprayed with non-stick spray, saute mushrooms for about 5 minutes, or until soft, and add the spinach and cook until wilted.  Remove from pan.  

Slice the chicken sausage (I like to remove the casing because I find it to be a little bit chewy), re-spray the pan, and saute the sausage until browned (most chicken sausage is already cooked, but I like the flavor of a re-heated link).  Remove from pan and let cool about five minutes.

Spray the 9 in. pie pan with non-stick spray, and then lay the sliced chicken sausage on the bottom of the pan, covering the entire pan.  On top, spread out the mushroom and spinach mixture.  Take the scrambled eggs and pour them over the chicken sausage, mushroom, and spinach mixture. Top the mixture with crumbled goat cheese.  (You'll notice here that one side varies from the other.  This is because my husband doesn't like goat cheese, so I did one side with goat cheese, and the other with non-fat mozzarella.)

Place the pie pan in the oven for 12-15 minutes, or until cheese is bubbling and eggs are firmly set.  Let cool for about 5 minutes and serve immediately, or cut into 8 wedges and portion them away for later use.

I liked to pair this breakfast with 1/2 an English muffin or a piece of fruit.  By itself, the frittata wedge can be a little bit light, so eating something else filled me up a little bit more.  Remember, the frittata's greatness lies in the fact that it can be a vehicle for almost any protein and vegetable.  Take whatever you have in your fridge, throw some scrambled eggs over it, and bake away.  You'll find that this can be an extremely versatile dish, and great for left-overs.   

Clean Eggs Benedict

Egg whites.  All by itself, another boring ingredient.  When my husband and I first starting eating clean, all I knew to do was make egg whites scrambled, or make an omlette.  Needless to say, after two months, my husband objected, and said he just couldn't eat any more egg whites.  So, in my food journey, I am always looking to modify, and build on any breakfast recipe that contains egg whites.  

This recipe is courtesy of The Best of Clean Eating, although I pretty much halved the recipe, changed the type of mushrooms, and used Fat-free Cheddar cheese.  I also changed the order in which the recipe is executed, because I wasn't about to use three pans in order to make one egg-white based dish.  Sorry, but I don't own a dishwasher, and it turns out my personal maid is on a permanent vacation.  

Ingredients:
Non-stick Olive Oil spray
3 c. Baby spinach
1 c. Mushrooms, diced
Olive Oil cooking spray
5 Egg whites, scrambled
1 tbsp. whole-wheat flour
1/2 c. Skim milk
1/4 c. shredded Fat-free Cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
2 Sprouted grain English muffins, toasted

Heat a saute pan on medium heat, spray with non-stick spray, and saute mushrooms for about 5 minutes.  Add the baby spinach and saute until spinach is wilted.  Season lightly with salt and pepper, and remove from pan.

Spray the pan again with non-stick spray, and add your egg whites.  Scramble egg whites for about 5 minutes, until cooked through.  Season lightly with salt and pepper and remove from pan. 

To the same pan, over low-medium heat, add 1 tbsp. of whole-wheat flour, and skim milk.  Whisk these ingredients together until the mixture becomes thick.  It can take any where from 4-6 minutes.  Just as it starts to thicken, add your Fat-free cheese and whisk until smooth.  If you find that the sauce is to thick, add more milk, one tablespoon at a time.

On your toasted English muffins, place egg whites, topped with the spinach and mushroom mixture, and then topped with your cheese sauce.  

You may find that although this technically makes two servings, one half of the English muffin may be filling enough.  In that case, save the other half for a snack later, or for breakfast the next day.  Remember, the easiest way to stay on track and stay clean, is to make extra, keep your left-overs, and use them as a snack or meal at a later time.  

Slow-Cooker Mushroom Barley Risotto

Every once in a while I pick up a Crock Pot cookbook because I love when I can just put something in a pot and walk away.  Who doesn't?  We all love great tasting food, but why does it seem like we are always slaving over the stove to create it?  Well, we don't have to, and the Crock Pot is the solution to saving time and energy.  This recipe made it's way to my kitchen via The Complete Series: Slow Cooker, which is a great Crock Pot companion for the clean eating individual.  I'm not going to lie, this recipe needs some TLC on the stove before it makes it's way into the pot, but I promise that the end result makes the preparations well worth the time and effort!

Ingredients:
1 tbsp. Olive oil
1 Onion, diced
1/2 lb. Button mushrooms, coarsely chopped
3 large Portobello mushrooms, sliced
1/4 c. Fresh parsley, chopped
1 tbsp. Fresh thyme, chopped
2 Garlic cloves, crushed
3/4 c. Pearl barley
4 c. Vegetable stock
2 tbsp. tomato paste
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese, grated

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.  Add the onion, and saute for 4 minutes.  Add all the mushrooms and saute until golden brown, about 15 minutes.  Add the parsley, thyme, garlic and barley and stir for 1 minute.

Transfer all of the mushroom mixture to a slow cooker set on high, add 4 cups of stock, cover and cook until liquid is almost absorbed and barley is almost tender, about 3 hours.

Stir in the tomato paste, check for seasoning and cook for 1 more hour or until the barley is tender and the mixture is creamy.  At the end, stir in the Parmesan cheese and season again if necessary.  

Although this dish takes a few hours to create, I find it much more manageable then stirring my risotto for and hour and a half, standing over my stove, frustrated that the sauce isn't thickening.  Instead, I just check in on it a couple times, go about my daily household duties, and come back to it when it's done.  It is so creamy and delicious, it's hard to believe it's vegetable based and that just one cup is enough for any lunch or dinner!

Bad-Ass Bison Burgers

I love a good burger, but I very rarely CRAVE a burger to the point of breaking.  My husband however, can dream about a good burger for an entire month, waiting until he feels he "deserves" his burger and then sits down at a restaurant, napkin in hand, with fingers ready for french fry dipping. 

The idea of trying the bison burger came primarily out of the fact that I was finishing up a round of P90X, and I wanted to go to Kimball's Farm to get ice cream, and I had been planning this for about a month.  Three days prior to this, my husband turned to me and said, I know you want to get ice cream, but I really want a Gibbet burger.  Well, too bad for him. I wasn't coming into work on my day off, when I was supposed to be eating ice cream, so that he could have a burger.  And so, to the ground bison I went to satiate his burger craving.  

Ingredients:

16 oz. Ground bison meat
2 Bakery whole wheat ciabatta rolls, toasted
Salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste
1/2 Yellow onion
3/4 c. Chopped mushroom
Cheese of your choice
1 Roma tomato
1/2 c. Romaine lettuce

I'm sure, by know, you're all aware that I grill my meat as often as  possible, so of course this is the cooking approach that I took with the bison burger itself.  The only ingredients I add to the meat is the salt, pepper, and garlic powder, and I then form the meat into two patties (yeah, I like an 8 oz. burger, no matter how unnecessary that may be).  Prior to throwing the bison on the grill, I caramelized the onion and mushroom by sauteing them in a non-stick pan over medium heat, so it would be ready to place on the burger as soon as the burger is done.  

While the bison is cooking on the grill, spray the buns with a little bit of olive oil, and throw them on the grill to toast.  Because bison is an extremely lean meat, the recommended temperature for the meat is between medium rare or medium.  If you prefer your meat more done than this, I would warn you that bison tends to get dry and tasteless once you go too far into medium well.  Both myself and my husband have grilled meat in restaurants, so as far as temperature goes, we can tell how far along the meat is just by touch and look, but use a meat thermometer if you need to.  

Once the meat hits medium rare, I top the burger with the mushroom and onion, and then place the cheese on top to melt (in this case I used a goat chevre, although on my husbands, I used a Swiss cheese).  I then placed some chopped Romaine lettuce and sliced Roma tomato to the bun, and then took a giant bite into one of the best burgers I've probably every had.  My husband actually looked at me after his first two bites and said, "I could never eat a ground beef burger again, and totally be OK with it!"     

The reality is, that bison meat is far more expensive than ground beef (about $8 for a pound of bison), but you are paying for the health benefits of bison, and when you see the comparison of fats and nutrients to several other meats, it's obvious why bison can be the better choice.  

National Bison Association

Chicken Sausage Spinach Mushroom Grilled Pizza

A couple of years ago, when my husband and I tried to make the change into clean food, and a healthier lifestyle, he would constantly say that there were some things that he could just not let go of.  Greasy, gross, disgusting Greek pizza was one of those things he craved.  Where I'm an admitted sugar-whore, my husband is a greasy food lover.  It wasn't until I introduced this pizza into our dinner rotation,  that my husband openly stated that this pizza, was much better than any pizza you could get at a pizza shop, and this only two months after we had a full blown conversation about how there is no substitute for the nasty pizza you get at your local Main Street pizza pub.  Celebration!

The recipe itself was inspired by the Spinach and Chicken Sausage Pizza in The Best of Clean Eating, but took on a whole new life when we were watching a Grill It episode with Bobby Flay.  Grilling pizza dough?  Yup, that's what we're talking about here.  

I had tried making my own clean pizza dough at one point, which was very good, but found that my local grocer had a multi-grain pizza dough, already defrosted and ready to go, that was healthier, and easier, and so, I shaved some time of my prep and went in this direction.  

Grilling the pizza, again came out of necessity.  Our oven had given up on us, and in order to prep all our food for a couple days before we received our new one, I decided this was a food adventure I wanted to jump into.  I formed the dough, and brushed one side with a thin layer of Canola oil.  I placed that side down on a preheated grill grate and let it cook until browned.  In the meantime, I brushed the other side with Canola oil, and flipped when it was ready.  

I then topped the pizza with one can of organic diced tomatoes, drained, and over this put sauteed mushrooms onion and spinach.  I then placed on two sliced, grilled chicken sausages, and topped it all with part-skim mozzarella cheese that was grated.  Throw the lid back on your grill, and let everything get nice and warm and gooey, and you're good to go!

If you want to cook the pizza in your oven, you can always do that as well.  Just follow whatever instructions are on your pizza dough, and top your dough when raw, and then cook in the oven for 15-20 minutes.  Not quite as tasty and delicious, but still pretty freaking yummy!

I think what I love most about this recipe is the idea that you have all sorts of Superfoods on here.  Spinach, tomatoes, grains, chicken...who knew pizza could fall under the Superfood category???  Just don't go eating half the pizza in one sitting.  This would completely eliminate the meal as a healthy alternative.  

Italian Portobello Mushroom Sandwich

The Portobello made it's way into our lives through a grilling day when my husband and I were trying a Bobby Flay recipe of marinated pork tenderloin and some steak or another, and I made it as a side dish on top of some greens with some sort of dressing (we'll get back to this recipe at another time).  Anyway, my husband turned to me and said, "I can see how people can eat these as burgers.  They're so hearty and delicious."  What's that husband?  You'll eat them in sandwiches?  Ummm, done and done!

In making the Portobello Mushroom Sandwich delicious, one has to realize that the seasoning for the mushroom itself, when roasted, makes the vegetable worth eating and very savory.  I came across a recipe in Clean Food by Terry Walters (an unbelievable read if you're looking for great seasonal recipes), saw the ingredients, and couldn't resist.  

I take Oregano, Basil, and Parsley and chop it all up.  How much you need really depends on how many mushrooms you're preparing.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  I brush all of the dirt off of the mushroom and take out the stem.  I then rub olive oil on the tops, and place them top down in a baking dish.  On the bottoms place all of your herbs mixed together with some salt and pepper.  Roast them for 10 minutes (more or less depending on the size of the mushrooms).  I then take the Food For Life 7 Sprouted Grains Bread, spread either Dijon mustard, or hummus if I have it in the house, on the bread, and on the bottom slice place thinly sliced tomatoes, topped with the Portobello mushroom, topped with thinly sliced avocado and then topped with the other slice of bread.  

It's up there with one of the best sandwiches I have ever made.  You should try it out if you haven't used Portobello mushrooms as the "meat" in your sandwich before!