I almost forgot about you Meatless Monday, pledge. But today is the 31st. Still October. Still made it.
I keep going back to Mexican recipes for my Meatless Monday round up. But its for good reason. I really never miss meat in Mexican food. And these enchiladas are no exception. I like to throw mushrooms in with this combo, but the original is so perfect no rewriting is really fair. I have a standby enchilada sauce recipe that I will share at some point (if I haven't already... Did I already post it? No idea. Lolz.) but wanted to try something different so I <gasp> actually followed the directions rather than substituting my most comfortable standby sauce. Except for my sub of dried oregano because unfortunately my name is not Ina Garten so I do not have herb bushes in my backyard in the Hamptons. BOO.
Okay. Field trip time. You do need to go out and head for the "ethnic foods" aisle near the Goya section to find some dried chiles. It will be worth the extra two minutes it will take to find them, randomly squeezed in hanging on the side of the shelf between lentils and recaito, where it definitely does not belong. Go forth and get thee some ranchero sauce. Don't substitute. Get the damn dried chiles. Mine were "New Mexico" chiles and perrrrrrrfection.
This is another fabulous Cooking Light recipe. Seriously the best 13 bucks I spent so far this year. I get an average of 5 meal ideas per issue. Their new Thanksgiving double issue is also aweeeesome. You've been warned.
~ *Black Bean and Cheese Enchiladas with Ranchero Sauce* ~
Ingredients
2 dried ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded
2 cups water
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup chopped yellow onion
5 garlic cloves, sliced
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups organic vegetable broth
2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
2 tablespoons no-salt-added tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups (8 ounces) preshredded reduced-fat 4-cheese Mexican-blend cheese, divided
3 thinly sliced green onions, divided
Cooking spray
12 (6-inch) corn tortillas
6 tablespoons light sour cream
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Combine chiles and 2 cups water in a saucepan; bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand 5 minutes. Drain chiles in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid.
3. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add onion; saute 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium; add garlic and salt. Cook 5 minutes or until golden, stirring occasionally. Add broth and next 3 ingredients (through cumin); cook 8 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally.
4. Pour onion mixture into a blender; add chiles and reserved liquid. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in lid. Blend until smooth; stir in lime juice and red pepper.
5. Combine the beans, 1 cup cheese, and half the green onions in a bowl. Spread 1/2 cup sauce in the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch glass or ceramic baking dish coated with cooking spray. Warm tortillas according to package directions. Spoon 3 tablespoons bean mixture down center of each tortilla; roll up. Place, seam-side down, in prepared dish. Pour remaining sauce over filled tortillas. Top with the remaining cheese. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Sprinkle with remaining green onions; serve with sour cream.
Showing posts with label gluten free vegetarian. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gluten free vegetarian. Show all posts
Monday, October 31, 2011
Sunday, August 28, 2011
FRITTATA FRENZY
I have seriously been neglecting the original content portions of this blog. To make up for it, I bestow upon you all a frenzy of frittata recipes. Frittatas are easy midweek meals to throw together and serve with potatoes or a great salad. I also love them for lazy weekends since one will get two people through breakfasts with a little to spare.
The first version I made below was created based on what veggies I had around thanks to my parents picking everything from their garden to avoid it all being trashed by the hurricane. I'll give you three different versions to choose from, but you can really swap any vegetables or cheeses that you like. I've even made it with light sour cream instead of ricotta in a pinch. Frittatas are great because you can pretty much throw in whatever you have in the fridge. You can also knock out some more of the calories by using egg beaters or egg whites, without compromising the overall texture of the dish.
For an added fiber boost and crunch factor, add ground flax meal to the top before baking. Today, I processed a gluten free frozen waffle in my food processor and topped the first frittata with that.
Frittata a la Irene
5 eggs (or 1 + 1/4 cup egg beaters/egg whites)
1 cup of part skim ricotta cheese
3 oz goat cheese
3 oz parmesan cheese, finely grated
1 large zucchini, sliced into long matchsticks and cut into quarters
2 roasted red peppers
1/2 large spanish onion, thinly sliced and diced
Moroccan seasoning blend (Fresh Direct's is fantastic)
In a large frying pan, add cooking spray and onions. While onions cook, dice zucchini. I like to cut it into thin match sticks and then into quarters. Once onions are translucent, add zucchini and at least one tablespoon desired dried seasoning. With this vegetable combination, I used a Moroccan seasoning mix which was delicious.
Preheat oven to 375.
While zucchini cooks until tender and lightly browned (you should be able to easily slice with your cooking spoon), add 5 eggs (or substitute 1 1/4 cups egg beaters or egg whites) and beat until slightly frothy. Add ricotta and stir until well integrated. Crumble goat cheese and stir, leaving crumbles intact for pockets of cheese.
Take vegetables off the heat and add to a bowl to cool slightly. Meanwhile, thinly slice and dice roasted red peppers (2 should be fine) and stir into egg mixture. Once onion/zucchini mixture is partially cooled, stir this into egg mixture as well.
Pour combined egg, vegetable and cheese mixture into baking dish. I like a pyrex pie dish for this. Bake at 375 for at least 25 minutes or until frittata is browned all around and firmly set in the center.
Greek Frittata
5 eggs
3/4 cup feta cheese
1 cup part skim ricotta
3/4 cup grated parmesan/reggiano
3 or 4 roasted red peppers, cleaned of seeds and finely diced
10 oz spinach, finely chopped, frozen or fresh
1/2 small package of fresh mushrooms, washed and finely diced
red/black pepper
dried oregano
1/2 red onion, diced
1/2 tsp all spice
Same as the above. Cook the vegetables, allow them to cool a bit and add to egg and cheese mixtures.
Mexican Frittata
5 eggs
3/4 cup queso fresco, monterey jack or pepper jack
1 cup part skim ricotta
3/4 cup grated parmesan/reggiano
1 cup of diced green chiles (any heat level)
2 bell peppers, chopped
1 can of black or pinto beans, rinsed
red/black pepper
cilantro
1/2 red onion or 2 green onions, diced
Same as the above. Cook the vegetables, allow them to cool a bit and add to egg and cheese mixtures.
The first version I made below was created based on what veggies I had around thanks to my parents picking everything from their garden to avoid it all being trashed by the hurricane. I'll give you three different versions to choose from, but you can really swap any vegetables or cheeses that you like. I've even made it with light sour cream instead of ricotta in a pinch. Frittatas are great because you can pretty much throw in whatever you have in the fridge. You can also knock out some more of the calories by using egg beaters or egg whites, without compromising the overall texture of the dish.
For an added fiber boost and crunch factor, add ground flax meal to the top before baking. Today, I processed a gluten free frozen waffle in my food processor and topped the first frittata with that.
Frittata a la Irene
5 eggs (or 1 + 1/4 cup egg beaters/egg whites)
1 cup of part skim ricotta cheese
3 oz goat cheese
3 oz parmesan cheese, finely grated
1 large zucchini, sliced into long matchsticks and cut into quarters
2 roasted red peppers
1/2 large spanish onion, thinly sliced and diced
Moroccan seasoning blend (Fresh Direct's is fantastic)
In a large frying pan, add cooking spray and onions. While onions cook, dice zucchini. I like to cut it into thin match sticks and then into quarters. Once onions are translucent, add zucchini and at least one tablespoon desired dried seasoning. With this vegetable combination, I used a Moroccan seasoning mix which was delicious.
Preheat oven to 375.
While zucchini cooks until tender and lightly browned (you should be able to easily slice with your cooking spoon), add 5 eggs (or substitute 1 1/4 cups egg beaters or egg whites) and beat until slightly frothy. Add ricotta and stir until well integrated. Crumble goat cheese and stir, leaving crumbles intact for pockets of cheese.
Take vegetables off the heat and add to a bowl to cool slightly. Meanwhile, thinly slice and dice roasted red peppers (2 should be fine) and stir into egg mixture. Once onion/zucchini mixture is partially cooled, stir this into egg mixture as well.
Pour combined egg, vegetable and cheese mixture into baking dish. I like a pyrex pie dish for this. Bake at 375 for at least 25 minutes or until frittata is browned all around and firmly set in the center.
Greek Frittata
5 eggs
3/4 cup feta cheese
1 cup part skim ricotta
3/4 cup grated parmesan/reggiano
3 or 4 roasted red peppers, cleaned of seeds and finely diced
10 oz spinach, finely chopped, frozen or fresh
1/2 small package of fresh mushrooms, washed and finely diced
red/black pepper
dried oregano
1/2 red onion, diced
1/2 tsp all spice
Same as the above. Cook the vegetables, allow them to cool a bit and add to egg and cheese mixtures.
Mexican Frittata
5 eggs
3/4 cup queso fresco, monterey jack or pepper jack
1 cup part skim ricotta
3/4 cup grated parmesan/reggiano
1 cup of diced green chiles (any heat level)
2 bell peppers, chopped
1 can of black or pinto beans, rinsed
red/black pepper
cilantro
1/2 red onion or 2 green onions, diced
Same as the above. Cook the vegetables, allow them to cool a bit and add to egg and cheese mixtures.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Sunday Vegetable Soup
If my apartment wasn't 89 degrees right now, despite a box fan and an air conditioner fan running on high, I'd be eating this soup. I hope this post redeems me in some of your eyes.
This came about in a fit of laziness. I had always been afraid of soups, or turned them into weird KITCHENFAILS!!!111!! so this was a pleasant surprise when it actually turned out well. I made this with the veggies I had in the house, but you could substitute broccoli, cauliflower or even two mixed freezer bags.
3 cups fat free, low sodium, gluten free chicken or vegetable stock (I like Imagine brand)
1 cup skim milk
2 tablespoons smart balance spread
1 1/2 tablespoons corn starch
28 ounces diced tomatoes with liquids, if canned
2 bunches or about 4 cups chopped broccolette
1 cup finely diced onion
3 cloves of garlic, minced
4 wedges laughing cow light swiss spreadable cheese
2 tablespoons thyme
black pepper
Chop all your veggies. Turn the heat on under a large sauce pot and measure out your tomatoes, seasonings and liquids so everything is ready to go. Add smart balance to the pot, stirring to melt evenly. Whisk in corn starch, continuing to whisk until mixture (roux) is perfectly smooth and starting to brown slightly and bubble. Slowly whisk in milk and stock until the mixture starts to bubble and steam. Add chopped veggies, tomatoes, garlic and seasonings. Stir and bring to strong simmer. Add laughing cow. Allow mixture to simmer on medium heat and reduce by at least a third. Season more as needed. Pinch of salt could be good too, but be wary that laughing cow wedges are high in sodium, which is why I omitted it.
The total will end up being 8 - 9 cups, 6 servings of 1 1/3 cups.
Each serving has 186 calories, 3.8 grams of fat (1.3 saturated), 10mg cholesterol, 274 mg sodium, 27g of carbohydrates, 4g of fiber, 12g of sugar and 12g of protein.
This came about in a fit of laziness. I had always been afraid of soups, or turned them into weird KITCHENFAILS!!!111!! so this was a pleasant surprise when it actually turned out well. I made this with the veggies I had in the house, but you could substitute broccoli, cauliflower or even two mixed freezer bags.
3 cups fat free, low sodium, gluten free chicken or vegetable stock (I like Imagine brand)
1 cup skim milk
2 tablespoons smart balance spread
1 1/2 tablespoons corn starch
28 ounces diced tomatoes with liquids, if canned
2 bunches or about 4 cups chopped broccolette
1 cup finely diced onion
3 cloves of garlic, minced
4 wedges laughing cow light swiss spreadable cheese
2 tablespoons thyme
black pepper
Chop all your veggies. Turn the heat on under a large sauce pot and measure out your tomatoes, seasonings and liquids so everything is ready to go. Add smart balance to the pot, stirring to melt evenly. Whisk in corn starch, continuing to whisk until mixture (roux) is perfectly smooth and starting to brown slightly and bubble. Slowly whisk in milk and stock until the mixture starts to bubble and steam. Add chopped veggies, tomatoes, garlic and seasonings. Stir and bring to strong simmer. Add laughing cow. Allow mixture to simmer on medium heat and reduce by at least a third. Season more as needed. Pinch of salt could be good too, but be wary that laughing cow wedges are high in sodium, which is why I omitted it.
The total will end up being 8 - 9 cups, 6 servings of 1 1/3 cups.
Each serving has 186 calories, 3.8 grams of fat (1.3 saturated), 10mg cholesterol, 274 mg sodium, 27g of carbohydrates, 4g of fiber, 12g of sugar and 12g of protein.
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