"Healthy" Stuffing - From Naturally Thin

"Out of this World" Stuffing

This is from Bethenny Frankles's NYT Best seller: Naturally Thin.  The book is great and you can buy it on Amazon.  I got it very reasonably.

She intros this recipe by saying this stuffing has the same yummy flavor of traditional bread stuffing with a fraction of the calories and fat.  It has many ingredients but the process itself is easy.

OK, Ingredients...

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 stalks of celery, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 0.5 tsp salt, add more as needed
• 0.5 tsp pepper, add more as needed
• 1-2 fresh garlic cloves, minced
• 4 sprigs sage, finely chopped
• Leaves from 6-8 springs of thyme, finely chopped
• 0.5 pound of turkey sausage
• Splash of dry white wine
• 1 tsp butter
• 1 pound fresh mushrooms --- This is where I changed this to chopped granny smith apples
• 0.5 cup dried morels, chopped and soaked in water until soft
• 0.5 loaf of multi-grain bread, toasted and chopped
• 0.5 - 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 egg, beaten

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Saute the onion and celery in the oil in a nonstick pan.  Add in salt, pepper, sage, and thyme.
3. Break up sausage and add to the pan, saute until brown.  Add in wine and butter.
4. Stir in apples, morels and the water from soaking the morels.
5. In a large bowl put the breadcrumbs adn pour the sausage mixture overtop and toss to coat.  Add chicken stock to add moisture as needed.
6. Add salt and pepper to tast, as desired.
7. Stir in the beaten egg and stir all together.
8. Ok, here is where I totally change up the recipe and use the ol' Monts family muffin pan stuffing trick:
1. Form the stuffing mixture into balls and add into lightly greased muffin cups.
2. Bake under a watchful eye (30 minutes?) and remove once tops are lightly darkened.

Enjoy!!

Creamy Basil Pesto wth Avocado

Creamy Basil Pesto with Avocado

Whether you keep it vegan or make it vegetarian or just good old pesto I think this is a winner. Chef Chloe Coscarelli who won the Cupcake Wars on the Food Network, shared this easy recipe on KLG and Hoda or as I call it Hoda and Kathi Lee. Basil Pesto is one of my favorites and I have made my own this year. With this recipe there is no cheese but healthy avocado is added to keep it creamy. I will probably heap on more basil and garlic! Can't wail to try this! If you aren't into vegan or vegetarian you could add chicken or shrimp or whatever you choose and toss some cheese back in. Added later: I might toss in a little Cayenne too. (Lovely puppy name I thought!)

Ingredients:
1 pound linguine or pasta of choice
1 bunch fresh basil, reserve some leaves for garnish
1/2 cup pine nuts
2 avocados, pitted and peeled
2 tablespoons lemon juice
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes or sliced sun-dried tomatoes (optional)

Directions:
Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil. Add linguine and cook according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
Meanwhile, make the pesto by combining basil, pine nuts, avocados, lemon juice, garlic and oil in a food processor. Process until smooth. Season generously with salt and pepper.
Toss pasta with pesto.
For an extra touch of color and flavor, top pasta with cherry or sun-dried tomatoes.
Divide pasta among serving bowls and garnish each serving with a basil leaf.
Serving SizeServes four to six

Balsamic Chicken

Chicken with Balsamic Vinegar and Vegetables

Chicken on sale and you are tired of the same old recipes??? There is nothing like chicken for low-fat, low calorie meals. This recipe- thanks to Joy Bauer is also filled with what is good for you. This is only about 250 calories and packed with flavor! This is pretty pungent so plan to serve it with something pretty simple. I was stuck at home without a car and substituted green peppers for the red ones. I think the balsamic vinegar overwhelms either so you would not know the difference. I even had to substitute part of the balsamic vinegar with some pomegranate infused balsamic vinegar- it still worked. It might have even been better.

INGREDIENTS:
1 large onion, yellow, thinly sliced
1 large pepper red, bell, sliced
4 garlic, cloves, minced (may substitute 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
4 chicken, breast, boneless, skinless, medium-thin (may substitute 8 chicken tenders)
1/2 cup vinegar, balsamic
1 can tomatoes, diced, (15-ounce) with liquids, preferably no salt added

DIRECTIONS:

1. Liberally coat a large sauté pan with oil spray, and preheat it over medium-high heat.
2. Add the onion, bell pepper, and garlic (or sprinkle in the garlic powder if using). Sauté for 3 to 5 minutes, until the onions and peppers begin to soften. Add additional oil spray or a tablespoon of water if the vegetables start to stick to the bottom of the skillet.
3. Add the chicken to the pan and sauté for about 4 minutes on each side or until lightly browned.
4. Add the balsamic vinegar and canned tomatoes. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with optional salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste.

Good for:
Heart Health
Eye Health
Arthritis
Celiac Disease
Type 2 Diabetes
Mood
Hair
Skin
Cancer Prevention