Spaghetti Squash with Garlic Chicken

Since my parents were coming to visit, Taylor and I decided we should fix something a little fancier (and maybe not as "strange" as quinoa)... and my family loves squash, so we decided this was the best bet.

I had never cooked spaghetti squash, and didn't think I had ever eaten it either - but my parents informed me that wasn't true. First thing you should know about cooking spaghetti squash: it's not easy to cut. There's also a few different ways to cook it. I baked mine (I had a bad feeling about microwaving it, especially with warnings about "Squash Explosion" possibilities) and it worked well. I followed these instructions. [ignore my ugly pan...]

We combined it with diced tomatoes and onions, salt and pepper, a little olive oil, and some feta cheese. I didn't even have a very large spaghetti squash, and it made about seven servings!


Now the recipe for the chicken, we followed exactly as we were told, but had a few problems. The breading mix wasn't dry at all, and therefore didn't stick onto the chicken very well. We used two large chicken breasts (since this was a meal for four), so we ran out of our breading (and just dipped the last few slices of chicken in Italian seasoning crumbs).

We also baked the chicken as well, since frying it didn't seem so healthy. The chicken tasted great, even if it didn't get coated quite properly. And, we finished off the meal with some pumpkin pie shakes.

 

Rating: This meal took a little more time and concentration to make, but turned out delicious!

Stacked Roasted Vegetable Enchiladas

Healthy enchiladas? Yes, please! I could've probably just eaten the roasted veggies by themselves. This recipe takes a little more prep and cooking time, but it's so worth it!

2 bell peppers, (one red, one green) cut into matchsticks
1/2 head of cauliflower, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1 small potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 medium onion, halved and slivered
1 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen
1-2 cups of green beans (optional)
Vegetable oil
1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
2 garlic cloves, minced
salt and black pepper
2 cups homemade or store bought salsa/pico de gallo
2 ounces baby spinach leaves (about 2 big handfuls)
9-10 corn tortillas, halved
2 cups shredded cheese

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Lightly oil a large shallow roasting pan or rimmed cookie sheet.

Place bell peppers, cauliflower, potato, onion, green beans, and corn kernels onto cookie sheet. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle the cumin and minced garlic over top. Add a generous pinch or two of salt and black pepper, then use your hands to mix everything together. After everything is coated well, spread the vegetables evenly in the pan. Roast for 30 minutes until vegetables are tender and begin to brown in spots. Stir or shake the pan every 10 minutes for even roasting.  Remove pan from oven and reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.

Prepare a 9x12 baking pan with nonstick spray. Spread 1/4 cup of salsa into the bottom of the baking pan. Add a layer of tortilla halves, to completely cover the salsa. Top with 1/3 of the vegetables, a handful of spinach, and 1/3 of the cheese. Make a second layer of tortilla, salsa, vegetables, spinach, and cheese. Top with with a layer of tortillas, salsa, vegetables, and cheese. Cover with aluminum foil.

Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 10 minutes, until cheese is melted and everything is heated through.

Let it sit for 5 minutes and cut into squares.

[Feel free to switch out the vegetables or cheese for those you like, add some beans or shredded chicken if your family prefers, or even use flour tortillas if you don't have (or like) corn.]

Rating: Another vegetable-heavy recipe, and even with the tortillas - it's healthy, and affordable!

Pumpkin Pie Shake

If you haven't figured it out already, I love pumpkin. After the last smoothie turned out awesome, I now want to try every smoothie. This recipe caught my attention, and as usual... I altered it just a little! I used slightly less healthy ingredients than it originally called for (like soy milk), and lessened the amount of ingredients so it would fit in my magic bullet!

1/4 banana (peeled, diced)
1/3 cup pumpkin puree (Libby’s)
1/3 cup FF plain yogurt
1/2 cup 1% milk (or milk of choice)
Few shakes of pumpkin spice and cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
2 ice cubes
2 packets of Splenda
Throw in some oatmeal if you want!


Mix together, and enjoy! This adds up to be about 200 calories.

Rating: The ingredients needed for this recipe will last long enough you could make this several times, which helps make it more cost efficient! And, it's decently healthy!

Pumpkin Spice Peanut Butter Granola

I love pumpkin, and I love granola. And to my luck, I came across this pumpkin spice granola recipe. I changed it up a little, and it's so good! I lessened the sugary ingredients to make it healthier (and more diabetic friendly).

6 cups old-fashioned oats (not instant)

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 tsp. honey

2 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. pumpkin spice

1/2 tsp salt

1 Tbsp. peanut butter (optional) 

 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place oats in a large bowl. In a separate smaller bowl, mix together pumpkin, brown sugar, honey, vanilla, spices, and salt. Pour over oats and mix together until everything is moistened. Spread evenly onto a large silpat or parchment lined cookie sheet (or 2 smaller ones). (If you don't have a silpat or parchment or wax paper to line the pan, you can just lightly grease it, which is what I did.) 

 

Bake in oven for about 15-20 minutes. Take out pan. Using a large spatula, flip the granola in batches. Disturb it as little as you can if you like lots of clusters. If you don't care about clusters, just stir it around as much as you please and break it up a bit with your spoon or spatula. Place back in oven and bake for about 10-20 more minutes. It will kind of depend on oven temp and how thin you're able to spread the granola on your pan(s). 

 

Remove from oven and allow to cool undisturbed. It should continue to crunch up as it cools.  Once cool, break up any clusters you feel are too large. If you want, mix in a few handfuls of chopped almonds and craisins and store in an airtight container. 

I had some granola start to burn around the edge of the pan, so I turned down the temp just a little bit. My baking time increased because I didn't have enough pans so I had to rotate and do a few batches. I didn't cluster together as much as I should have, so right now I have a big mixture of some clusters, and some loose granola. But, that's okay because I eat granola plain, in yogurt, as cereal, in smoothies, etc.

Rating: This recipe was really easy, and quick to make! Not to mention, you can eat granola with a lot of things, and it's healthy!

PB&J Wrap

I've been wanting to try this recipe for about a week now, and finally got to try it tonight, but I altered it just a little bit. It'll probably be my dessert replacement from now on :)

I used a whole wheat tortilla (even though I normally eat corn tortillas),

frozen strawberries (thawed),

half of a banana

and natural peanut butter.

I should've looked closer at the strawberries. Fresh strawberries are out of season, and therefore more expensive, so I bought frozen strawberries, but they have a lot of extra sugar added in (35g). I needed to thaw the strawberries, so I just popped 'em in the microwave for 30 seconds, and a lot of the extra juice spilled off. So, I'll probably thaw the whole container, drain it and rinse the strawberries.

This was a really good snack, but it's not as filling for as many calories it contains (about 400).

Rating:

Butternut Squash and Red Onion Pizza

I got this recipe out of a Rachael Ray magazine. There were a few ingredients that I did not want to spend money on, so I just left them out (radicchio and parsley). I also used butternut squash that came pre-cut, and in a bag. It was much easier than having to buy a whole stinkin' squash and then peel and cut it.

1/3 butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes (1 1/4 cups)
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons chopped parsley (optional)
1/4 radicchio, cored and cut into 1/2 inch strips (optional)
1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
1 pound refrigerated pizza dough at room temperature
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

Serves 4; Prep time - 20 minutes; Bake - 15 minutes

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.

2. Line a baking sheet with parchment, toss butternut squash with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Roast butternut squash in oven until golden (about 12 minutes).

4. In a small bowl, combine garlic and parsley with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, season with salt and pepper.

5. In a larger bowl, combine radicchio and onion with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Add the butternut squash and toss.

6. Line the baking sheet with new parchment (I just spread flour over the baking sheet). Stretch dough out on baking sheet and smear the garlic mixture on the dough.

7. Sprinkle with the cheese and then the squash mixture.

8. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

When tossing the butternut squash with the olive oil, I accidentally used a 1/4 of a cup instead of a 1 tablespoon. Oops. It turned out fine, I just had to drain the excess olive oil.

This recipe tasted really good and was very different from any pizza I have had. You could make it healthier by using a low-fat cheese or a whole wheat pizza crust. Also, not using 1/4 cup of olive oil wouldn't hurt either. Overall, this is a good recipe if you want something healthier and a little more unique than delivery pizza.

 

Rating:  The ingredients weren't too expensive. But just so the rest of the garlic and red onion don't go to waste, I would recommend finding other recipes that use those ingredients.

Zucchini Boats

Zucchini is one of my favorite vegetables - I could probably eat it every day (that's why it gets its own label on the side of the blog). Taylor found this recipe, and it turned out to be another big success! The only problem we had, is this recipe (found here) is meant for large zucchini... and the store only had small/medium ones.

1 tbsp sour cream
1/4 to 1/2 tsp salt and pepper
1/2 tomato
2 tsp thyme
2 zucchinis
1 onion
Cheese

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Slice them in half length-ways. You can trim the ends if you like. Spoon out the guts. Just take it out (leave about 1/2 an inch in) until you end up with boat like shells.
 
Now give the zucchini pulp a good chop, also chop a small onion and 1/2 a tomato while you’re at it. Sautee the onions in one tbsp oil or butter.

Now (in no particular order), add the thyme, salt pepper, sour cream, the zucchini pulp, and the tomato. Lightly butter a baking dish and put the zucchini boats in. Grab a spoon and fill the shells with the mix. Sprinkle some aged cheese on top. Put them in a preheated oven, give them about 20 minutes and then turn on the grill until the top is golden brown.

 

Rating: The only hard part about this recipe was spooning out the zucchini, otherwise super easy to make... and very cheap! It was pretty filling too.

Quinoa Salad

Quinoa is not something I cook with regularly, and hadn't really heard of it before trying this recipe – but it's super healthy and yummy. I found this recipe, and thought I'd give it a try... turned out so good!

 

1 cup quinoa* (I used the Garden Vegetable flavor)
1 can of vegetable or chicken broth
2 cups frozen shelled edamame, thawed (10 ounces)
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup diced bell pepper (red or green)
1/4 cup chopped walnuts, preferably toasted**


1. Toast quinoa in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring often, until it becomes aromatic and begins to crackle, about 5 minutes. (The instructions said to rinse, but since my quinoa was flavored, it created a broth when I added water to it... so I lost some of the taste from it.)

2. Meanwhile, bring broth to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Add the quinoa and return to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer and cook gently for 8 minutes. Remove the lid and, without disturbing the quinoa, add edamame. Cover and continue to cook until the edamame and quinoa are tender, 7 to 8 minutes longer. Drain any remaining water, if necessary.

3. Whisk lemon juice, oil, and salt in a large bowl. Then combine with peppers, walnuts and the quinoa mixture.


*Note: Quinoa is a delicately flavored grain that was a staple in the ancient Incas' diet. It is available in most natural-foods stores and the natural-foods sections of many supermarkets. Toasting the grain before cooking enhances its flavor and rinsing removes any residue of saponin, quinoa's natural, bitter protective covering.

**To toast walnuts: Cook in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 2 to 4 minutes. (Don't let them burn like I did!)

Rating: The quinoa was the most expensive part, but I'm going to look around to see if there's a cheaper place to buy it, and in a bigger portion. Otherwise, a very affordable and healthy meal.

Blueberry Oatmeal Breakfast Shake

Taylor and I tried this new, delicious shake this morning (adapted from this recipe). It makes a lot; we probably should have split the shake in half. I would recommend either splitting it with someone, or divvy it up so you can have it for breakfast over the next few days.

1/2 cup ice cubes
1 very ripe banana
4 oz. fresh blueberries
2 Tbsp. natural peanut butter
1/3 cup instant oatmeal
1 cup of milk

You'll need a blender, a magic bullet isn't big enough. We drank it immediately, but it you want it to set and thicken a little, stick it in the fridge for awhile.

[I actually cut down the recipe to fit in my magic bullet, because I don't have a blender and this smoothie is too good to not eat every week! I did 1 ice cube, 1/4 banana, 1 oz. blueberries, 1 Tbsp. natural peanut butter, 1/4 cut oatmeal and 1/4 cup milk. It filled it up about 3/4 the way, but then only had about half a cup or less to drink... so I may try adding more halfway through next time.]

Rating: Incredibly healthy, and reasonably priced (plus you'll have enough ingredients to make multiple shakes!)

Summer Vegetable Pasta Salad

So, here is my latest cooking endeavor - one that I can already see will be repeated many times as it is healthy and incredibly easy to make - and not to mention, delicious. I got the recipe from Budget Bytes - a new favorite website of mine.


Ingredients
12 oz. bow tie pasta (I ended up having to use a different pasta)
2 medium roma tomatoes
1 medium summer squash
1 medium zucchini
1 medium broccoli crown
1/2 medium red onion
1/2 bunch parsley

Vinaigrette
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
1 tsp dried oregano (used cilantro instead)
1 tsp minced garlic
3/4 tsp salt
to taste: fresh cracked black pepper

[I'm at the point right now where if it's too expensive or if I'm not crazy about it, I just leave it out. Yes, I know, not the best technique but it's worked so far. What's italicized in the ingredients, I left out. Yes, I realize that's not really a "vinaigrette" with it being just oil... but it still tasted great!]

STEP 1: Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and boil for 5-7 minutes or until tender. Drain in a colander.

STEP 2: While you're waiting for the pasta water to boil and the pasta to cook, prepare the vegetables (squash, zucchini, broccoli, tomato, onion, parsley, red pepper). Give the vegetables a good wash and then cut into bite sized pieces (onions and red pepper thinly sliced; parsley removed from stems and chopped).

STEP 3: While the pasta is cooling, prepare the vinaigrette. In a small bowl whisk together the vegetable oil, olive oil, red wine vinegar, dijon mustard, oregano, minced garlic, salt, and pepper.

STEP 4: Combine the cooked pasta, chopped vegetables, and vinaigrette. Stir until everything is well mixed and coated with vinaigrette. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to eat.

Rating: One of the easiest recipes I've ever made, and cheap too!