1. Yukon Gold Potatoes: Jacques Pepin stye.
I made these for the first time on Christmas, after reading the rave reviews online, and was AMAZED by how delicious they were! The technique is very simple and the recipe requires very few ingredients: baby Yukon Gold potatoes, chicken stock, butter (I used Smart Balance to improve the nutritional profile), parsley, salt & pepper. But these are not ordinary potatoes. They are soft and moist inside with a salty, flavorful crust on the outside. Better than saturated-fat-laden au gratin potatoes any day.
Who would have thought to roast green beans with anise seeds?? It sounds strange, but they are SO good! This recipe calls for 1/2 cup of oil, but I just use about a tablespoon. Olive oil may be healthy, but it still has lots of calories, so I don't see the point in using more than I need to. And you definitely don't need much here.
3. Chipotle Mashed Sweet Potatoes
I had these for the first time at a restaurant and fell in love. It may seem like an odd pairing, but the smoky-spicy flavor of the chipotle works very well with the sweet potatoes. And making them couldn't be easier! Microwave or bake a sweet potato, pull the flesh out of the skin and mash it with a little salt, and as much chopped chipotle (canned in adobo sauce) as you want. A little goes a long way, so start with maybe 1/4 or 1/2 a pepper for a large potato. Then, add a little low-fat milk or fat free half and half to desired creaminess.
4. Italian-style Broccoli Rabe
One of my favorite foods growing up was broccoli rabe with sausage. It was garlicky with a little spice from the sausage, and like most things Italian, enough oil to endanger aquatic life if it were ever spilled into the Gulf of Mexico. My grown-up nutritionist take on this dish is a lot lighter on the oil, but still heavy on taste.
1 bunch broccoli rabe
sliced garlic cloves (to taste)
red pepper flakes (to taste)
2 tbs freshly grated parmigianno reggiano cheese (it's worth the expense)
1 tbs olive oil
Serves: 2-4 (1-2 in my house)
Rinse the broccoli rabe and chop into medium-ish pieces
Steam until just tender in vegetable steamer
Remove steamer from heat and add olive oil to a pan on med/high heat
When oil is hot, add garlic and pepper flakes
When garlic is just browned (not burnt!), add broccoli rabe and toss to coat
Remove from heat. Add salt/pepper and cheese.
To make this side dish an entree, you could add turkey or chicken sausage, lean beef or turkey meatballs, chicken breast, and/or cannelini beans.
5. Herbed Spaghetti Squash
I came up with this idea last Thanksgiving. I love spaghetti squash because it is a great low-calorie substitute for pasta or rice. Instead of having one cup of pasta, you could have 3 cups of this stuff! And, it just happens to be fantastic. Bear with me with this "recipe" because I really don't measure things when I'm making them. Here is the general gist:
1 spaghetti squash
1-2 tbs. smart balance (or butter, if you must)
handful chopped basil
handful chopped tarragon
handful chopped sage
1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano reggiano cheese
salt and pepper to taste
salt and pepper to taste
Serves 4-6
Cut the spaghetti squash in half and remove the seeds
Place halves cut side down in a microwave-safe dish with a little water in the bottom and cover with plastic wrap
Microwave on high for 10-12 minutes or until squash is very soft and can be easily pulled out of the skin like spaghetti. You can't really over-cook, but you can under-cook so it's better to cook longer if you aren't sure
When the squash is cool enough to handle, use a fork to pull the strands out into a serving bowl
Add all of the other ingredients and mix to combine
So there you have them. If you try any of these recipes, please post a review!
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