Penne with Tomato Basil Sauce

in 30 Minute Recipes, Healthy Pasta Recipes

pasta tomato basil

In the pantry: Barilla whole-grain penne pasta, olive oil, and a large can of whole peeled tomatoes. In the fridge: almost-past-its-prime-basil. The result: a delicious, fresh-tasting chunky tomato sauce that works great with short pasta.
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Vegetarian Empanadas

in Vegetarian Recipes

vegetarian empanadas

I love my baked beef emapanads, and feel justified serving them because hey, at least they’re not fried! But I was curious to see if it was possible to make baked vegetarian empanadas that taste just as good.

Of course it’s possible! These vegetarian empanadas are at least as good as beef empanadas, and two of us actually thought they were better. When you’re done making the filling, taste a little and you’ll see why – the filling is absolutely delicious. And when you envelope a savory, tasty filling in a buttery, flaky crust, how can you possibly go wrong? My next endeavor would be to make a whole-wheat version… but for now I’m very happy with these.
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Spicy Drumsticks

in Low Carb Recipes, Meat & Poultry Recipes, Paleo Recipes

spicy drumsticks

These roasted drumsticks truly are spicy, but not overwhelmingly so. I like to serve them with sautéed spinach and roasted butternut squash. The chicken and the squash can be roasted together in the same oven, which I find convenient.

You can leave the skin on the drumsticks and rub them with a dry rub, or you can take the skin off and rub them with an olive oil rub. Nutrition information for both options is provided below, and both are excellent, although the skin-on drumsticks do tend to be slightly juicier.
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Thai Chicken Curry

in 30 Minute Recipes, Low Carb Recipes, Meat & Poultry Recipes, Paleo Recipes

thai chicken curry

In this easy Thai chicken recipe, succulent chicken pieces are sautéed in fragrant coconut oil and flavored with a delicious, creamy, mildly spicy sauce of coconut milk, almond butter (healthier than peanut butter), garlic and ginger. Do use the full-fat coconut milk in this recipe – it imparts so much more flavor and creaminess, and coconut fat is a very healthy fat.
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Pickled Red Onions

in Dips, Dressings, Sauces, Condiments, Low Carb Recipes, Paleo Recipes

pickled red onions

These pickled red onions are very easy to make, and are wonderful paired with just about any meat dish you can think of. Most pickled red onion recipes call for sugar – some for lots of it, some for just a teaspoon. I’m trying to eliminate sugar as much as possible these days, so did not use any sugar, and we loved the result. You could add a teaspoon or two of sugar to cut a bit on the acidity, if you prefer.
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Eggs In a Basket

in Breakfast and Brunch Recipes, Featured, Vegetarian Recipes

eggs in a basket

Eggs in a basket make a fun breakfast, and although traditionally you make them by cutting a circle out of bread slices, pouring an egg inside and frying, I like to make mine baked. I think the presentation is nicer, and the bread, sprayed with butter flavored cooking spray and baked, is crisp and delicious. Baking does mean that the yolks will not be runny anymore, and this can be an advantage or a disadvantage, depending on your personal preferences. If you like runny yolks, frying is probably the way to go.

I usually serve eggs in a basket for breakfast, but it’s easy to turn this dish into a lunch or a dinner if you spread tomato sauce (prepared, or the one I make for my thin crust pizza – see paragraph 4) or pesto on the bread before shaping it and filling with eggs. You can also sprinkle the eggs with grated Parmesan cheese before baking.
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Vegetarian Sushi

in Healthy Appetizers, Kid Friendly Recipes, Vegan Recipes

vegetarian sushi

I love sushi, and have been thinking for a long time now about learning to make it at home. I finally took the time this weekend to give it a try, and boy, am I excited – this has opened so many possibilities. Once you purchase a bamboo sushi mat (I bought mine on Amazon), and learn a few basics, sushi does not seem so intimidating anymore. Of course, any sushi expert will easily see that I’m just a novice, and that my sushi is far from being perfect. But it tastes great, so who cares.

I wanted to make sushi that my kids would be able to enjoy, and I don’t feel confident enough to deal with raw fish anyway, so I decided to focus on making simple vegetarian maki sushi with avocado, cucumber and carrots. It’s very tasty, and I love the way the avocado adds creaminess (and lots of flavor, of course) while the cucumber and carrot add crunch.

To make brown rice sushi, I simply add 2 tablespoons of water to whatever amount of water the package directions call for, then cook the rice 5 extra minutes on very low heat. This produces rice that is sticky enough to use as sushi rice, but still pleasant and somewhat fluffy.

This is obviously a very healthy dish, with the exception of its high sodium content. The sodium here comes mainly from the soy sauce (even though it’s reduced-sodium), without it you’re looking at 350 mg of sodium per serving. This is entirely up to you of course, but you could use less soy sauce, or just half a teaspoon kosher salt in the rice. I chose not to, because I didn’t want to mess with the flavor.
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