Eat Comfy, Go Lightly

This is my absolute favorite recipe for chili.  It's so filling, so healthy, and I promise you won't miss the meat!

Portobello mushrooms, cashews (sounds strange, but they're great in this!) and amazing spices make this chili stand out.  The beans and cashews add protein, iron and zinc.  It's a complete meal all by itself, but it's great with cornbread (whole -wheat cornbread recipe below) or some brown rice.  It's perfect for a cold night -- especially a cold super bowl Sunday night!  Have fun! Portobello Mushroom Vegetarian Chili 1 yellow onion, diced 1 carrot, diced 1 red pepper, diced 2 cloves garlic, minced 2 cerrano (or other mild… continue reading the BEST vegetarian chili. | 2 Comments

Well, I guess I took about a month-long blogging hiatus.  It wasn't intentional, but I guess I've been getting adjusted to living somewhere new, cooking in a different kitchen, and of course...working.  But now that a month has passed, and Superbowl Sunday is around the corner, I decided it was time to get "back in the game" before the big game! Honestly, I don't really watch football, but I've always loved Superbowl Sunday because of the commercials, the half-time show, and the Superbowl parties!  Great excuse to get together with friends and eat good food!  One of my favorites for Superbowl Sunday is spinach-artichoke dip.  Actually, it's one of my favorites, period.  But it's usually so unhealthy.  Did you know… continue reading getting "back in the game" with a healthier spinach-artichoke dip.

I know I have been MIA for a while but life got kinda crazy for a while--between starting a new job right and dealing with all the craziness that comes with the holidays, I didn't have that much time to blog. But life, has hopefully settled down once again and I should be back to regularly blogging. To end 2009 with a bang, I decided my last blog entry of the year should end with some spice--zippy shrimp tacos! These shrimp tacos have just the right amount of heat to light up all the taste buds in your mouth. Shrimp Marinade 1 pound shrimp, peeled with tails removed and butterflied11/2 teaspoons chili powder1 teaspoon paprikaPinch of cayenne pepper… continue reading zippy shrimp tacos! | 2 Comments

It's officially holiday season!  Tonight is the first night of Chanukah, a holiday where you're supposed to eat fried foods to commemorate the miracle of a small amount of oil burning for 8 nights.  Somehow, the traditional foods that evolved from this are potato latkes (i.e. potato pancakes) and jelly doughnuts.  That sounds pretty good, but Chanukah lasts 8 days, and although I'm a huge proponent of sticking to tradition, 8 days of fried potato and dough can really wreak havoc on your body.  So while I think eating the fried stuff sparingly is fine, if you'd like to lighten up some of your holiday dinners this week (and try some creative twists on traditional foods) then keep up… continue reading a whole lotta latke! | 2 Comments

I have another confession to make, one of my favorite things in the world is fried chicken. Of course we all know how terrible it is for you since its deep fried chicken but I have come up with a recipe that will never make you miss "the real" fried chicken again. This recipe was so good I had it for breakfast the next day.  I know what you are guys are thinking I'm a little gross, but it really was delicious. Well in order to recreate a healthy fried chicken I think there are two things you need to do. You need to leave the bone in the chicken and you need to make sure you… continue reading oven baked fried chicken, some delicious goodness | 6 Comments

Making your own cranberry sauce is a great way to infuse your thanksgiving meal with personality, and it's also a great way to cut some of your thanksgiving sugar intake.  There's no reason not to make your own cranberry sauce; it takes all of 20 minutes and your home will smell amazing as guests start arriving!

Using agave nectar (a natural sweetener from the agave plant) instead of sugar allows you to cut the sugar in cranberry sauce by about half.  That's because agave nectar tastes sweeter than sugar, even though it's lower on the glycemic index.  Adding apples and some orange juice not only makes the flavor/texture more… continue reading planning a thin thanksgiving: agave cranberry sauce with apple and spices.

Risotto is one of those amazing Italian dishes that's been made in a very specific way for a very long time.  There really is a method to the madnes.  First, only certain types of rice can be used - short grain rice that gives off the most starch during cooking (traditionally, carnaroli or arborio).  The rice grains need to be coated by a fat (oil or butter) and toasted with the fat to enhance the flavor and ensure that each grain of rice cooks evenly.  Then, wine must be added and absorbed into the rice grains.  The rice is then cooked very slowly over very low heat, adding one ladle of broth at a time and stirring almost constantly… continue reading easy, whole grain, butternut squash risotto. | 2 Comments

I love love love pumpkin pie, but since it isn't thanksgiving yet, I thought that a pumpkin swirl cheesecake would be more appropriate.  It's so easy to make thanks to the prepared graham cracker crust I used (I keep finding great ones - only 100 calories per serving in this one and no bizarre artificial ingredients) - using a prepared crust saves so much time!   This is much lighter than regular cheesecake, and you get protein from the tofu and vitamin A from the pumpkin.  Also, don't tell anyone that there's tofu in this - you really won't taste it!  I think this is my favorite dessert I've made in a long time - it's sweet and yummy but… continue reading pumpkin swirl cheesecake. | 9 Comments

So the other day I was craving something really yummy for dessert. I really really wanted a cupcake but did not want all the calories that come with a yummy cupcake. So as Tali had mentioned, with it being fall, I decided to make a lowfat pumpkin muffincake with cream cheese frosting. The reason I am calling them muffincakes rather than a cupcake or muffin is because they are a cross of both of them. The consistency of the muffincakes are a cross between a muffin and cupcake and they have a yummy frosting that goes on top so I decided to call them muffincakes. The actual muffincake has no butter or oil and are very easy… continue reading lose the muffin top, eat a muffin cake. | 4 Comments

Ever since The New York Times told me that pumpkin seeds are one of The 11 Best Foods [I'm Not] Eating, I've been trying to work them into my diet.  They have a ton of magnesium and B vitamins, and also have anti-inflammatory properties.  They're great on salads and they make a really easy snack that's packed with protein - 9 grams in every 1/4 cup serving!  

Anyway, enough about how healthy pepitas are.  Yes, they're healthy, but on their own they're not all that much fun.  This recipe changes that.  These pepitas are a perfect party snack - or anytime snack.  But if you are making them for a party, be sure to make 2 batches -… continue reading put some pep in your pepita. | 6 Comments