Pasta Of Lies

Picky eaters can be any age, race, sex... They can be picky for lack of adventure, because they truely dont enjoy tastes of certian foods or possibly because the effects after eating it on a persons body just cant be tolerated.  I was asked about a month ago how to add more veggies into a diet.
I came up with a few ideas.

Im a vegetarian and I love veggies.  I cook, breath, eat, sleep veggies.  So when people say they dont like veggies I instantly think "Oh Please"

Recently I made dinner for someone who "didnt like veggies"  This is what I made:

Simply Lies Pasta Bake
Pasta of choice (I used tri color because it blends with veggies well almost hiding them)
1 jar pasta sauce
1 cup shredded cheese
olive oil
spices to taste

Now this is where you pick your potion.
I chose everything in the fridge. Onion, broccoli, carrot, spinach, cabbage etc.

Directions:
Make pasta according to package.

Mince veggies.  Make these little treats as small as possible!

Heat oil in frying pan and fry these guys up, depending on what veggies you use will depend on how long.

Dont cook all the way make sure theres still a bit of crunch....(5min-ish) it still needs to be baked.

Add pasta sauce and some water to the frying pan, bring to a boil and simmer until thickened again.

Poor cooked pasta in a casserole dish and mix in 1/2 the sauce and then poor the rest over the top.

Sprinkle cheese over top.

Heat oven to 350, place the lie on the center rack and bake til bubbly...

25 or so mins.  Pull out of oven and let cook for 5 mins before scooping it out onto plates.

This is the final turn out. 

He ate it, and although Im sure he knew I was full of it he asked for more later on that evening. 

:)

Portobello Bruchetta Burgers

Bruchetta Portobello Burgers:

2 large tomatoes diced and seeded
2 tbsp low cal mayo
1/2 C shredded mozza
1 tsp dried sweet basil
1/2 C minced red onion
2 portobello mushrooms stemmed
2 "thin" buns
1 tbsp olive oil
Paper Towel


1.Mix the first 5 together and put in the fridge for 30 mins or so.
If baking preheat the oven to 350.
2.Place mushrooms in baking dish and brush with olive oil, cook for 5 mins, remove from oven.
3.Take the bruchetta mixture and fill both mushroom caps, return to oven and cook for another 12-15 mins. Place "burger" in the bun and enjoy! Make sure you have your paper towel handy because these guys are messy!!!

Tomatoes are one of the top anti-oxidants and even if you don't usually like them the sweet basil in this recipe changes the flavor!


This recipe makes 2 servings
Each "burger" is 368 Calories.

Greek CousCous Stuffed Peppers

A Delicious low calorie vegetarian main dish!

Greek CousCous Stuffed Peppers
4 Bell peppers
1/2 Cup whole wheat couscous
1 can chickpeas
1 med onion - diced
1 tbsp olive oil
1tsp sweet basil or oregano
1/2 cup feta
2 handfuls spinach
2 small tomatoes - diced 

1. Cook CousCous as directed.
2. Cut Peppers in half and remove the seeds.  Place in microwave safe dish cut side down. Add 1/2 inch water to dish and cook on high for 4-6 mins or until fully steamed and soft.  Remove from microwave and let cool down.
3. Rinse and drain chickpeas and place in a bowl.  Take a fork and mash the peas until half are mashed and half are whole.  Mix with couscous, diced tomato and feta.
4. Put oil in frying pan and heat over med heat.  Add onion and cook for 4 mins, add basil, stir, add spinach and cook until wilted. Add in the chick pea mixture and cook for a few mins til everything is mixed together and heated through.
5. Spoon couscous mixture into peppers evenly and serve while warm.

This makes 4 servings.  Total time is 40 mins.
Calories: 340
Fat: 11g
Protein: 14g
Fiber: 11g
Carbs: 48g

Tofu Parmigiana

Heres a simple dish thats high in protein and fairly low in carbs.  While trying to plate the final dish I dropped mine so theres no pics of the final meal :) oops.  I was hungry and in a rush. 

Tofu Parmigiana
1 Package firm tofu
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1 tbsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp garlic powder
8 ounce mushrooms - sliced
1 onion - diced
2 cloves garlic - diced
3/4 cup marinara sauce
salt/pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup shredded cheese

In shallow dish mix bread crumbs, Italian seasoning and garlic powder.
Drain tofu and cut into 4 equal sized steaks. Press tofu into bread crumb mixture and set aside.

In frying pan mix 1 tbsp olive oil with mushrooms, garlic and onions, fry until cooked about 5-7 min.  Put in bowl and set aside.

In the same frying pan heat the rest of the oil and place tofu steaks in the pan.  Fry for 5 mins and flip over.  Take the mushroom mixture and spoon over the steaks.  Divide marinara sauce over the steaks and sprinkle cheese over them.  Cover and cook until cheese is melted and sauce is heated through.

This recipe takes 30 mins to make and serves 4.

Nutritional info:
262 calories
16g fat
15g carbs
16g protein
3f fiber

Kung Pao Tofu

Kung Pao Tofu

1 package Extra firm tofu
1 tbsp olive oil
1 teaspoon Chinese 5 spice powder
3/4 Cup Water
1 teaspoon corn starch
3 tbsp oyster flavored sauce
1/4 Cup roasted peanuts
1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
3 garlic cloves minced
4 Cups Chopped Broccoli
2 Cups other chopped Veggies:
(peppers, sugar peas, bok choy etc)
2 handfuls spinach
1 tbsp hot sesame oil

1. Pat dry tofu and cut into chunks, put in a bowl and mix in half of the 5 spice powder.
2. Heat oil in a wok or pan and add tofu in once hot.  Stir every few mins and cook on med heat until sides of tofu are crispy.  About 10 min.  Remove from pan and put aside.

3. Mix water, oyster sauce, and corn starch in a bowl.
4. Add chopped veggies to the pan and saute for 3-5 mins.  Stir in garlic and ginger. Turn to low heat and add the sauce mixture.  Cook for another min or so.  Add in tofu and peanuts and mix until everything is well coated in the sauce.  Lastly stir in the sesame oil and easy as 1-2-3, your done :)

This makes 5 servings. Cook and prep time 35 mins.
Calories: 205
Fat: 11g
Carbs: 16g
Protien: 12g
Fiber: 5g