Zucchini & Eggplant "Lasagna"

2 egg whites
1 medium zucchini
1 medium Italian eggplant
1 ½ cups panko bread crumbs
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
salt & pepper
8 oz low fat, shredded, mozzarella cheese
48 oz jar, fat free, low sodium pasta sauce

1. Slice zucchini and eggplant into ¼ inch thick rounds
2. Beat egg whites in one bowl
3. Mix together bread crumbs and onion, garlic, basil, oregano with a sprinkle of salt and pepper in bowl
4. Set aside ½ cup of cheese.
5. Take one slice of eggplant and dip in egg then dip in bread crumbs.
6. Place in baking dish or slow cooker.
7. Continue with the rest of the eggplant, creating a layering in the bottom of the cooking vessel.
8. Pour ½ the jar of sauce over the rounds, spread evenly and top with ½ of the remaining cheese.
9. Repeat with zucchini slices. Top with remaining sauce and cheese.
10. Cover and cook in slow cooker on low for 5-6 hours or bake in oven at 325 for 1 hour.
11. During the last 15 minutes in the slow cooker top with reserved ½ cup cheese or after 1 hour in the oven top with cheese and bake uncovered until bubbling.
ENJOY!!!

Give the Corn a hand!

Its corn season now too! Sweet corn is definitely a memory of childhood. Whether it was from a weekend bbq, clam bake or picking in the field, corn is usually one vegetable kids will love. Here is a zesty grown up thing to do with your childhood summer treat!

Corn, Mango & Edamame Salad

2 cups, shelled edamame
1 ½ cups corn kernels
1 ½ cups mango, cubed
1 cup chopped tomato
½ cup chopped red onion
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
coarse salt & pepper

1. If edamame is frozen, prepare per package directions.
2. Transfer to large bowl, combine with all other ingredients. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Toss to combine.
ENJOY!! As a side dish or with unsalted corn chips and smooth pale ale!

Tomatoes Stuffed with Shrimp Salad

Tomatoes are in their prime right now! Sweet and juicy, they are for sure my favorite vegetable! Get good ones for this recipe from a local farm stand or farmers' market if you aren't lucky enough to grow your own!

¾ pound, peeled, shrimp, cooked and cut into ½ inch pieces
1 cup watercress, washed
8 leaves Bibb lettuce, shredded
juice from ½ lemon
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon Extra virgin olive oil
coarse salt & black pepper
4 large tomatoes

1. In a bowl combine shrimp, watercress, lettuce, lemon, mustard, olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to combine.
2. Hollow out the tomatoes from the stem end. You can mix any of the juice from the tomatoes into the bowl with shrimp.
3. Stuff the tomatoes with the mixture. Serve.
ENJOY!!!

Zucchini, Avocado & "Small, Round Fruit of your Choice" Salad

While I am baking up a batch of granola, I thought it would definitely be the perfect time to post another recipe! I made this one for a cocktail party once and it seemed to be a big hit - I hope you enjoy it too!

1 pound zucchini, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 tablespoon (approx) olive oil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 cup red onion, fine chopped
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds or 1 cup fresh blueberries/raspberries/sliced strawberries
1 avocado, halved, pitted and cut into 1/4 inch dice (about 1 cup)
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 tablespoon lime juice
1/2 teaspoon dried mint
coarse salt (sea or kosher) & black pepper

1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil, spray with cooking spray. Toss zucchini with oil, oregano, salt and pepper - spread on baking sheet and roast (stirring once) about 15-20 minutes. Then remove from oven and let cool.
2. Once cool, transfer zucchini to bowl, add onion, avocado, fruit, feta, lime juice, mint, and a little more salt and pepper. Toss to combine. Refrigerate about 30 minutes before serving.
ENJOY!!

Serve with pita chips or grilled bread and maybe a crisp glass of Chardonnay!

Substitutions

Some of our favorite recipes we shy away from because of their salt, sugar, or fat content. Here are some suggestions of replacement ingredients to help lighten the load of your favorite recipes!

Recipe calls for-> You should add instead:
Butter - Olive oil if sauting, apple sauce if baking
Vegetable Oil - apple sauce, mashed ripe bananas, fig paste/jam
Milk chocolate - 85% or more dark chocolate
Eggs - egg whites
Sour cream - non-fat, plain yogurt
Reg. Ricotta cheese - part-skim ricotta+non-fat cottage cheese (for lasagna or cheese cake)
Bottled salad dressing - olive or safflower oil + vinegar + dijon mustard
Sugar (in a sauce/soup) - raisins (then strain/sift them out)
Sugar (in baked goods) - Splenda, agave, Stevia
Buttermilk - skim milk (1 cup)+1 tablespoon vinegar/lemon juice
Mayo - low fat mayo/miracle whip, hummos on sandwich, balsamic+mustard for salad

So apparently the previous recipe is supposed to be called "String Beans and Eggs" not Green Beans - my apologies Grandma :)

Kind of sounds like a Dr. Seuss book....

Green Beans & Eggs

This is an old Armenian dish, one of my Grandmother's favorites. Traditionally it is served as a side dish, but my father used to make it for dinner on nights when got home late from the airport or a sports game. It is super simple and really fast to make!

I have lighten up the original Green Beans and Eggs recipe to make it a little more artery friendly :)

For 2 people as dinner:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
8 oz green beans, fresh or frozen (thawed), cut into 1 inch pieces or French cut
1 small Vidala onion, cut in half and sliced thin
6 whole eggs
6 egg whites (save the yolks you can use them to make Challah bread!)
Salt & Pepper
Two large slices, thick cut, sourdough - grilled or toasted
2 oz feta cheese (or grated sheep's milk cheese)

1. Saute onions in butter and oil over low-medium heat, until soft and translucent (8 min), season with a little salt and pepper
2. Add green beans and saute 1 minute more
3. Whisk together eggs with egg whites and pour over bean & onion mix
4. Stir into vegetables as if you were making scrambled eggs - continue to stir through the cooking process about 3 minutes.
5. Divide egg mix over toast. Top with cheese. (Serve with garden fresh tomato wedges - optional)
ENJOY!!!

(Would be great with an IPA or or good Amber beer - though traditional Armenians don't drink beer ;))

Spinach Salad

One of my patients asked for a spinach salad recipe so here goes!

1 bag of baby spinach
1 cup sliced strawberries (or 1/3 cup dried cranberries)
1 shallot, sliced
1/2 cup celery sliced about 1/4 inch thick
2 oz goat cheese, crumbled
2 strips, thick cut bacon (or 1 oz pancetta cut into little cubes)


Dressing:
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon dried mint
1 small clove garlic, minced

1. Cook bacon or pancetta cubes until very crispy. Remove from pan and let drain on towel.
2. Arrange all other salad ingredients in bowl.
3. Whisk together dressing ingredients.
4. Crumble bacon or pancetta over greens. Drizzle dressing over salad and using tongs toss to combine.
ENJOY!!!

I might be a dietitian, but I can't lie - my new favorite thing is Ben & Jerry's Phish Food Frozen Yogurt - OBSESSED!!!! w/those little dark chocolate fishie goodness!

Artic Char with Lemon-Garlic Greens

Artic Char is a pink flesh fish, of the same texture as salmon. It is an oily fish with about the same omega profile as salmon is but it is not farmed. You can find it in fish markets like Captain Marden's in Wellesley or at Whole Foods. (Legal Sea Foods is one of the only restaurants I have seen serve it.) The taste is not as strong as salmon so it is a good alternative for salmon-frowners.

olive oil
1 large shallot, sliced thin
1 large clove garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
8 oz Frisse (green-white greens which look somewhat like frizzy hair)
1 pound of arctic char (or salmon if you can't find artic char)
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh marjoram (herb)
1 lemon, quartered

1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in saute pan. Saute shallot and garlic until soft and fragrant - pour oil, shallots and garlic into a bowl
2. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in same saute pan, place fish flesh side down, sear fish about 3 minutes. Flip, sprinkle with salt and pepper and let cook, skin side down, an addition 5-7 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, whisk mustard, juice of one lemon wedge and an additional 1-2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil together. Poor dressing over washed frisse and toss to coat.
3. Enjoy with a glass of Pinot Gris!

WOW all! It has been almost a whole week since the last post! I have been traveling the northeast in search of knowledge and fun! I spent 2+ days in NYC at the Allergan conference for Lap Band Instruction and then 2 days in VT with the ponies.

The Lap Band conference was mighty interesting. It was definitely geared more for the surgeons, but I certainly picked up some good info for teaching patients about food/eating etc. I also gained much insight into how the band actually works (for some reason, where the band is placed causes signals to be sent to the brain which tell it that the body is not hungry. As soon the band is loosened, the patient is ravenously hungry again!) as well as getting to see a live surgery! All good info to take back to the hospital with me - now I just need to have some more band patients come through so that I can test out all this new stuff on them!

Creamy Fettuccine with Sea Scallops

You want the scallops good and seared on the outside like the ones in this photo. Done under very high heat the inside will stay moist and they will crisp up outside quickly!

8 oz spaghetti (Barilla Plus has good flavor and lots of fiber and protein)
1 pound, large sea scallops
salt & pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 8oz bottle of vegetable or chicken stock
1 cup skim milk
3 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
3 cups asparagus (cut into 1" pieces)
3/4 cup finely shredded manchengo cheese
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

1. Cook pasta as normal in boiling water. When there is about 1 min left until pasta is done, drop asparagus into water to blanch. Drain when done.
2. Meanwhile, pat scallops dry, sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Heat oil in saute pan over high heat - you want the pretty darn hot.
4. Whisk flour, milk and some salt and pepper in a bowl until smooth.
5. Heat stock in a sauce pan. Whisk milk mixture into warm stock, continue stirring constantly at a simmer for 1-2 minutes until thickened.
6. Oil should be hot, place scallops into hot oil (be careful oil will splatter) flat side down. Let cook 1-2 min, flip cook 1 min more.
7. Mix pasta, sauce, and scallops together with lemon juice, lemon zest, cheese and thyme. Toss to combine.
ENJOY!1