Healthy Lasagna Roll Ups

I love lasagna, but the classic lasagna is typically weighed down with whole-fat cheeses, and is very rarely portion controlled. I stole this from the Clean Eating Mag site, and what I love about this recipe, outside of the taste, is that it allows you to easily portion control your meals, and helps fill that craving for pasta and cheese.  I come back to this recipe time and time again, sometimes using ground bison, and sometimes using turkey.  Each will create a different texture and flavor, but they are equally delicious.

When it comes to whole foods, and clean foods, I always tell people that you need to know what you're willing to compromise in your diet.  I use low-fat and fat-free cheeses, however, other clean eaters would argue that these are over processed and not a healthy solution.  You have to be your own gauge when it comes to what you put in your diet, and what you choose to leave out.  If you prefer whole-fat, you can still make this recipe, it will just clearly have a higher fat content.

Ingredients:
- 8 Whole Wheat Lasagna sheets (cooked to pkg. directions)
- 1 15 oz. pkg. Low-fat Ricotta
- 1 pkg. Frozen Spinach, thawed and drained
- 1 Egg
- 3/4 c. Low-fat Shredded Mozzarella, divided
- 2 tbs. Fresh Basil (chopped)
- 1 tsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 small Onion, chopped
- 1 clove Garlic, chopped
- 1 lb. Ground Bison
- 1 28 oz. can Whole Tomatoes
- 1 tbsp. Smoked Paprika
- 1 tsp. Garlic Powder
- 1 tsp. Cumin
- Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:
1. In a skillet or saute pan, heat EVOO on medium. Add onions, lightly salt, and cooked for 3 minutes.  Add garlic, and cook for additional 2 minutes.
2. Add bison, salt, pepper, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and cumin to bison and break up meat, cooking until very little pink is left.
3. Add whole tomatoes to pan, cover, and allow ingredients to simmer on low for 25 minutes, occasionally stirring in order to break up tomatoes.
4. While the meat sauce is cooking, cook lasagna noodles to package directions.  In a medium bowl, combine egg, ricotta, fresh basic, salt, pepper, spinach (squeezed of all excess fluid), and 1/4 cup mozzarella and mix well.
5. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spread 1 cup of cooked tomato sauce into the bottom of a 9 x 10-inch casserole dish.  Lay a cooked lasagna noodle flat in front of you.  Use a spoon to spread 1/8 of the ricotta mixture across the noodle, and roll it up.  Place the rolled pasta seam side down, into the casserole dish.  Repeat with the remaining noodles.  Spread the remaining tomato sauce over the roll-ups, then top with the remaining 1/2 cup of mozzarella.
6. Bake, covered with foil, for 20 minutes.  Remove foil and broil for 5 minutes or until roll-ups are browned and bubbly.

If you find that you are someone who doesn't know how to eat lasagna without overeating, you'll greatly appreciate how each roll-up is an individual serving running around 234 calories (this is not a solid number as it will change depending on what type of meat you use). And like any pasta, the next day leftovers taste almost better than the fresh out of the oven product.  So, good luck and enjoy!

Chicken Penne with Sun-Dried Tomato & Fresh Red Pepper Sauce

What I'm about to tell you, might shock you...I LOVE PASTA!!!  In any form, with any cheese, I'm pretty much sold on most pasta dishes.  The biggest problem that I run into with pasta recipes, both at home, and when I dine out, is that no red sauce is EVER comparable to my father's sauce, so I rarely attempt to make, or order it for dinner.

What initially drew my attention to this dish was that the sauce was not a typical red sauce, and also that with my recent withdrawal from most dishes with chicken, I am forced to start looking for new ways to prepare this protein.  As with most people who eat clean, when you're limited to certain lean proteins, at some point you start to get bored with the way you habitually cook a particular protein.  I was reaching the point that I had about as much desire to eat chicken, as I did to lick a cardboard box.  Sooooo...time to switch it up.

This recipe started as a by-the-book dish, meaning I was't planning on altering it at all.  But, as I started to really prepare the dish, I realized that it was supposed to be served room temperature, the sauce wasn't hot, and the yellow pepper was tossed raw.  Ummm...NOPE!  I'm like a 90 year old woman. I need my food so hot that I can barely stand to eat it, and so I took this recipe from The Best of Clean Eating 3, and modified it to how I wanted it to be built.  AND...IT WAS AMAZING!!!

Ingredients:
- 2 5 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp low-sodium dry rub
- 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 cups uncooked whole-wheat penne
  (or other small whole-wheat pasta)
- 1 yellow bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken stock
- 1 garlic clove finely diced
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh basil



Red Pepper Sauce:
- 1 red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
- 1/2 sun-dried tomatoes, coarsely chopped
- 2 tomatoes, coarsely chopped
- 1/4 cup unsalted raw cashews
- 1/4 cup whole fresh basil leaves
- 1 garlic clove
- fresh ground pepper to taste
- 3 oz. shredded Romano cheese, divided evenly

Instructions:
1. Preheat saute pan with chicken stock to medium-high.
2. Prep chicken breast with a thin coating of olive oil (1 tsp.), black pepper, and seasoning of choice.  Cook chicken in preheated pan for about 7 minutes per side, until juices run clear when pierced with a fork.  Set aside to cook for about 10 minutes, and then slice chicken.
3. Meanwhile, prepare pasta according to package directions.  Rinse in cold water to remove sticky starches; drain well and set aside.
4. Prepare Red Pepper Sauce: In a blender or food processor, add all sauce ingredients; blend until very smooth.
5. Dice yellow bell pepper, yellow onion, and garlic, and saute in a pan heated to medium-high with 1 tsp. of olive oil.  Saute vegetables for about 5 minutes.
6. Add chicken, pasta, and Red Pepper Sauce to the pan with vegetables, and toss until everything is heated through.
7.  Divide evenly, and top with 1.5 oz. of shredded Romano cheese, and garnish with freshly sliced basil.

The recipe directions claim that this serves 2, and that a 2-cup serving is 648 calories.  I'll be honest when I say that I actually split this into three servings because it was a little too high, calorie and carb wise, so it will largely depend on how big of a portion you want for your lunch or dinner.  Where some people really try to avoid pasta, I recommend this:  always make sure you know what one portion looks like, and try to eat your carb-heavy meals early in your day so that you have hours to burn those carbs off.

I also want to point out the importance of recognizing what your food preferences are when you're trying a new recipe, and learning how to modify the recipe so you can fully enjoy it when all of your hard work is done.  I know I don't like luke warm food.  I also know that I don't like raw vegetables in my hot pasta.  So, I changed the recipe.  Get creative, step outside of your comfort zone, know what you like and don't like, and learn to modify your recipes according to your nutritional desires.  If you're going to try something new, wouldn't you rather fully enjoy it, rather than go in knowing there are certain things you're not going to like right off the bat?  So, if you're reading through this recipe, and you decide there's something you want to change, go ahead a mix it up to suit your needs!  ENJOY!!!

<3 MARIA

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 

Summer Eatin'

It's Almost Too Simple to Post About

Leftover Summer Chicken Salad

I haven't posted in quite some time.  For myself, much like everyone else in New England, when summer comes, almost all my other responsibilities come to a screeching halt. I'm lucky enough to work a job that allows me afternoons to sit by the pool, or drop by the beach.  Sometimes I'm not sure how I make it day to day (total sarcasm).  

It's because of this that I rarely post, but it's also the fact that my meals seem to become extremely simplified in the summer.  I stop by the same Spring Brook Farm farm stand every ride home from my mother's pool, pick up my produce for the next few days, and head home to decide what I'm going to make.  Protein, vegetable, complex carb, and then most likely grill.  I'm not losing time in my kitchen, and everything tastes so simple and fresh.  I also get to use every little bit of produce in my fridge, and whatever protein I already have cooked.  I'm a simple girl in summer, no frills, just fresh food and grills.

Chicken Salad

4 oz. chicken, grilled or broiled, sliced

1/2 Cucumber, peeled and quartered

1/2 Tomato, diced

1/2 Yellow pepper, diced

2 C. lettuce or spinach or green of your choice

1 tsp. Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste 

Now, here's where it gets really complicated.  Put it on a plate.  

Yup, that's why most of the time it's just hard for me to blog about food in the summer.  Why go and mess a good thing up.  The most complicated this can get is marinating or boiling the chicken with some salt, pepper, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, and chicken stock.  Why not just enjoy the amazing food that is summer produce???

Toasted Ciabatta Bread with Pea Pesto and Slice Tomato

You'll never guess where I got this recipe.  What?  Giada De Laurentiis?  Yup, shocking, I know.  For the most part, I kept the recipe the same, but I changed the type of bread I used, and I rubbed the bread with sliced garlic after it had been toasted.  What had drawn me to this recipe, was that I really enjoy pesto, but my husband hates pine nuts.  Because of this, I'm drawn to pesto sauces that don't involve pine nuts, but have a similar texture.  Also, this entire show, 'More for Less', had several recipes that I wanted to try, and this recipe, paired with the Lemon Chicken Soup (I will get to that blog soon), seemed delish!  And so, on the pea pesto journey I went.

Ingredients:
1/2 Loaf day old Multi-grain Ciabatta bread
1 10 oz. Frozen peas, thawed
2 Garlic cloves
1/2 c. Parmesan, grated
1 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. Pepper
1/2 c. Extra-virgin Olive oil
2 Roma tomatoes, sliced

To make the pesto pulse together the peas, 1 garlic clove, cheese, and salt and pepper to taste.  With food processor running, slowly add in 1/3 c. of olive oil until well combined.

For toast, use day old bread prior to toasting so you get a really good crunch.  If you don't have day old, you can always toast it in the oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.  Slice the bread about 1/4 in. thick, and brush with olive oil.  Place the bread slices on a stove top grill or griddle and toast on each side for 2-3 minutes.  Immediately remove and take one garlic clove, cut in half, and rub the bread with the garlic, sliced side down.  You're basically making a quick garlic bread.

To build, lay the bread flat, top with the pea pesto, and cover with the sliced tomato.  You can add any additional salt and pepper to taste. 

I enjoy the recipe because it's something that you can serve with a soup, or as a passed appetizer at a party. It's so annoying when people offer starters that are near impossible to eat while standing up, or moving around.  For the love, I'm Italian, I talk with my hands, so I need something that can hold up to a little movement while I'm eating!