Tag Archives: zucchini

Vegetable Tian

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Do you have a threenager? Because I do… I have one that’s seriously kind of exhausting. We didn’t experience the “terrible twos” with either kid… but age three with a little boy is way different than what I expected. All if my friends with little boys warned me… they told me it’s a VERY MEMORABLE stage…. but I was not prepared for the exhaustion. The decision to be consistent and follow through no matter how tired I was and how badly I wanted to give in. There are tests all day long. All day. And right now, he FINALLY laid down for his nap. Finally. After over an hour and a have and me having to go in there with consequences two times.
You know what though? I dearly love him. My heart melts when he looks at me and says “I wuv you mommy, so much!”. He can turn me to absolute mush if I’m not careful! God gave us children that are precious and adorable… with a sin nature, but quite moldable! But oh… these times of molding! I can’t imagine how God must feel! Ha!
Sorry, off on a tangent.

And…. I must have been tired when I edited these pictures I must have been REALLY tired. I put the wrong name of the blog on the pictures! HAHAHAHAHA! And you know what? I’m too tired to change it. Giggle about it in my honor. 🙂
Last night I needed vegetables. I’m on this “need less sugar and carbs in my life because I have a problem” kick. I know when I start slipping. So… veggies for the main course tonight! A vegetable Tian! Most tians have tomatoes, but mine does not for 2 reasons… 1. I didn’t have any. 2. I, sadly, do not care for tomatoes. I’m weird. That’s all I can say. 🙂

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Ingredients

2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 medium yellow sweet onion
1 tsp minced garlic
1 medium zucchini
1 medium yellow squash
1 medium yukon gold potato
1 tsp dried thyme
to taste salt & pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp oregano
4 sweet mini peppers sliced
1/2 cup shredded cheese

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Finely dice the onion. Saute in a skillet with olive oil until softened (about five minutes).
While the onion is sauteing, thinly slice the rest of the vegetables.
Spray the inside of an 8Ă—8 square or round baking dish with non-stick spray. Spread the softened onion in the bottom of the dish. Place the thinly sliced vegetables in the baking dish vertically, in an alternating pattern. Sprinkle generously with salt, pepper, garlic powder, oregano and thyme.
Cover the dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil, top with cheese and bake for another 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is golden brown.

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Serve and enjoy!

This was incredibly easy, and incredibly delicious! Make sure that you cut the potatoes quite thin and all the same size! You can even use a mandolin if you have one!
Another topping idea is also a balsamic glaze! I’m gonna try it the next time I make this one!

And now, for the quote of the day… something I have learned in the past and am currently putting into practice:

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Italian Orecchiette Pasta Bowl with Homemade Meatballs and tomato sauce

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orichiettepastainbowl

So after John’s recent cravings (not unusual) for spicy and Mexican food… I’ve been craving pasta!!!! And lots of it! I have had low to no carb recipes here lately too, so had to get my craving satisfied for some Italian food! So, I went to Giada on FoodNetwork.com. Where else would you go for a good Italian meal?! I mean, seriously!! Here is her original recipe that I changed up a bit: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/orecchiette-with-mini-chicken-meatballs-recipe.html

So, I liked her recipe, but I am not a ground chicken or turkey kind of person. I just cannot do it. So, I made my own usual meatballs that I usually make for Levi. They are dairy and egg free, and one of his absolute FAVORITE meals!! Then, I slightly adapted the rest of her recipe to make it my own, and it was absolutely delicious! This one will go in my book as a “We will make this again!”. I just have to figure out how to boil orecchiette pasta better, because if you’re not careful (like I wasn’t) it all sticks together! UGH! I’ve gotta figure out a trick for it! If anyone has suggestions, please let me know!

So, homemade meatballs first:

Ingredients:

1 lb. 85/15 grass fed organic ground beef (my preference)
3/4 cup plain panko bread crumbs
3/4 tsp. minced garlic
2 TB rice milk (or similar… this is just what I use)
1 TB worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
1/4 tsp. onion powder

Mix all together in a large mixing bowl until well integrated. In the mean time heat 1 TB olive oil (or use cooking spray to coat the pan) in a large skillet. Once all of the meatball ingredients are well mixed and there are no dry breadcrumbs hanging out in the bottom of the bowl, you will start to shape the meatballs. Take a melon baller, or a chefmate cookie scoop and scoop out the meat mixture. Then, roll into 1-2″ balls. Then, place into skillet and start to cook. All of mine fit in to the skillet at once. I cook the top, then the bottom, for about 2-3 min each, and then sear all of the sides to “seal” in the juice. Once this is done to all of the meatballs, you will be adding the chicken broth and the can of diced tomatoes listed below:

homemademeatballs

 

Orecchiette Pasta Bowl

Ingredients:

1 lb. orecchiette pasta
1 1/2 cup low sodium organic chicken broth
1 can (14.5 oz.) fire roasted diced organic tomatoes (no salt added)
1 clove garlic minced (I put it into the garlic press)
1/2 tsp. fresh chopped rosemary
6-8 basil leaves chopped
1 zucchini sliced and cut into bite size pieces
1/2 small ball of fresh mozzarella
2 TB shaved parmesan cheese

Directions:

Now, add the chicken stock and tomatoes to the skillet with the meatballs from above. Bring to a boil. Using a wooden spoon, scrape up the brown bits that cling to the bottom of the pan. Reduce heat to low and simmer until tomatoes are soft and meatballs are cooked through, about 5 minutes. During this time add the minced garlic, basil, rosemary, onion powder and salt and pepper to taste. Drain the pasta, reserving about 1 cup of the pasta water. Transfer pasta to a large serving bowl and add the Parmesan. Toss to lightly coat orecchiette, adding reserved pasta water, if needed, to loosen the pasta. Add the zucchini to the meatball mixture in the skillet and toss until slightly softened and coated with the tomato sauce. Add the meatball mixture, mozzarella cheese, and 1/2 cup of the basil into the bowl of the pasta. Gently toss to combine. Garnish with the chopped basil and a drizzle of pesto.

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This one was GOOD!! Craving Italian food and don’t want to spend the $$ to go out?? Make this one! I have a feeling this one will be crave-able!

Enjoy!

And now, for the quote of the day:

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Lemon Zucchini Muffins with a Lemon Glaze

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lemonzuchinnimuffins

These are DELICIOUS! They are so light and fluffy, and lemony! They taste like summer! And, you get to use up a zucchini that’s been sitting in your fridge for a little bit too long! YUM!

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups all purpose flour (then remove 2 TB and put back into bag of flour)
  • 2 Tb of corn starch ( to replace the 2 TB of flour you removed)
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 2 tsp. baking powder
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 1 cups sugar
  • 2 TB lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk (If you don’t have buttermilk, just add 1/2 TB of white vinegar to your milk and let sit for 2-3 min)
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • 1 cup zucchini grated (on the cheese grater)

Glaze Ingredients:

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 TB lemon juice
  • 1 TB skim milk (or unsweetened coconut milk)

Directions:

  1. Mix flour, salt, corn starch and baking powder in a medium bowl and set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, beat eggs. Then add oil and sugar until well blended. Add lemon juice, buttermilk, lemon zest to this mixture and blend all together.
  3. Fold in zucchini until it is mixed well.
  4. Add dry mixture to the wet mixture and blend all together until well combined.
  5. Pour batter into greased muffin tin. It makes about 16 muffins.
  6. Bake at 350 for 12-15  minutes.
  7. While still warm, make glaze and spoon over the muffins and then sprinkle lemon zest over the top.

Light Summer Lemon-Yogurt Pasta with Veggies and Shrimp

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shrimplemonyogurtpasta

Adapted from Jillian Michaels’ “The Master Your Metabolism Cookbook”

Light Summer Lemon-Yogurt Pasta with Veggies and Shrimp

Serves 4 (calories: 323 per serving)

  • 8 OUNCES WHOLE WHEAT LINGUINE (OR YOUR PASTA OF CHOICE)
  • 1/2 CUP NONFAT PLAIN GREEK YOGURT
  • 1/2 SWEET ONION CHOPPED
  • 1/4 CUP GRATED PARMESAN CHEESE
  • 1 TEASPOON GRATED LEMON ZEST plus the juice of 1 lemon
  • 1/4 TEASPOON SALT
  • 1/4 TEASPOON GROUND BLACK PEPPER
  • 1 TABLESPOON OLIVE OIL
  • 3 MEDIUM (8-OUNCE) ZUCCHINI, CUT INTO THIN STRIPS (3 INCHES LONG AND 3/4 INCH WIDE, LIKE A BIG STICK OF GUM)
  • 2 GARLIC CLOVES, THINLY SLICED
  • 1/2 PINT GRAPE OR CHERRY TOMATOES, HALVED LENGTHWISE
  • 20 medium shrimp (peeled and de-veined and baked at 400 w/oil and salt and pepper for 8-12 min depending on size of shrimp)
  • 1 red bell pepper sliced

 

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  1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the pasta, and cook about 9 minutes, or according to the package directions. Drain the pasta. Set aside.
  2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together the yogurt, Parmesan, lemon zest, lemon juice and salt and pepper. Set aside.
  3. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the zucchini, and cook just until wilted, flipping them over occasionally with a spatula. (The zucchini will be soft and somewhat see-through.)
  4. Use a spoon or spatula to push the zucchini aside so a space on the bottom of the pan is clear. Add the garlic, and onion and cook for 15 to 30 seconds, until golden but not really brown.
  5. Mix the garlic into the zucchini.
  6. Stir in the tomatoes and bell pepper and cook until softened, about 2 minutes.
  7. Transfer the zucchini mixture to the yogurt mixture, and stir to combine. Add the drained linguine, and toss gently to combine. Divide among four bowls and serve.

 

 

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