Toasted Mushroom Pasta

Yum! This stuff is good! And quick! And moderately healthy! I totally recommend trying it!

Ingredients

3 Tbl olive oil

1 Tbl butter

2ish cups of mushrooms thinly sliced, we used portabellos

2 minced garlic cloves

1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley

1 tsp dried oregano

1/2 cup white wine

1 1/2 cup pasta, we used whole wheat spirals

2 cups veggie stock

1/4 cup cream

1/4- 1/2 cup grated parm cheese

fresh ground black pepper

salt to taste

Directions

In a large skillet on high heat, add 1 Tbl olive oil. Saute the mushrooms until just brown, 2-3 minutes. Reduce heat and add parsley, garlic and oregano. Cook for about a minute. Pour in wine, and simmer for 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer mushrooms and sauce to bowl.

In another skillet, add remaining olive oil and butter. Add pasta and cook until a golden brown, about 5 minutes.

Once toasted, pour in the veggie broth and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered until pasta is al dente, about 10 minutes.

Add the mushroom mix and cream to the pasta. Cook for a few more minutes until the sauce comes together.

Remove from heat and stir in parm and pepper.

Nutrition

This assumes 4 servings, this is for 1

Est WW points: 7

Calories: 327

Fat: 22.7

Carbs: 18.4

Fiber: 2.9

Sugar: 1.7

Protein: 9.7

Enjoy!!

Ooohhh a new blog post!!!

Which must mean that THE FLOORS ARE DONE!!!!! Yippeee! Our kitchen is still a wreck, so I just took a quick photo of the lovely floor to share with you. It's just what I wanted, and it makes my cozy little kitchen feel so much bigger!

Next up: toasted mushroom pasta :0)

Kitchen Update

Soooo we're going on Day 4 without being able to walk in our kitchen. The house is in disarray, I keep having panic attacks that one of us will step on the tile and obviously RUIN the whole project (because I'm a little type A like that), we've been endlessly shuffling the dogs around, and worst of all I haven't been able to cook.

anything.

in well over a week.

So, in the midst of my panic tonight when at 11 pm I realized I havent had anything decent to eat since practically eternity I reached for the most obvious answer out there-

Marshmallow Fluff.

Yes, readers, I ate a whopping spoon full of Marshmallow Fluff. And ya' know what? It made me a bit happier inside. Hopefully, the kitchen will be done soon and I'll be able to share our beautiful new floors with you. Until then I encourage you to grab a spoon.

Update- New goodies coming this week

I have not abandoned the blog! I've been a bit sickly because of the weather and its been my birthday week which has meant lots of eating out! I have a few updates planned this week, so check back later for some brand new goodies to try out!!

Lowfat Mac and Cheese!

Ok, so I really need to stop using tri-colored noodles, especially the green ones. This photo doesnt necessarily look tasty, but I promise you that it was. This is a really yummy, healthy alternative to boxed mac and cheese that even a kiddo enjoyed! This excellent recipe was created by the Moosewood Restaurant.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups lowfat cottage cheese

1 1/2 cups nonfat or lowfat buttermilk

1 tsp grain mustard

1/2 tsp cayenne or chili pepper

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 cup shredded or small cubed extra sharp cheddar

1/2 pound UNCOOKED macaroni or farfalle

2 tbsp granted parm cheese

1/2 cup bread crumbs or panko

Directions

Oven to 375. Prep a 9 inch baking pan with olive oil or cooing spray.

In a blender or food processor, combine cottage cheese, buttermilk, mustard, cayenne, salt and pepper and pulse until smooth.

In a large bowl, combine puree with macaroni and cheddar. Mix well. Pour mixture into prepped pan.

Sprinkle the parm cheese on top of the macaroni mix, then top with panko.

Bake 45 minutes, or until the top is brown and center is firm.

Nutrition

Oye! We have totally forgotten how many servings this is for :0( Sorry we dropped the ball, but I do not have nutrition for this dish.

Enjoy!

Shake and bake tofu

I know just what you're thinking.... 'really Dori, shake and bake tofu???'. Oh yes my friends. And it's glorious. Our attempt at shake and bake tofu actually came out of a sort of conundrum to figure out if it would work and boy did it! This is the perfect side dish to the upcoming Lowfat Mac and Cheese. For days that you're just craving comfort food you cant go wrong here!

Ingredients

1 package of extra crispy shake and bake

1 block extra firm tofu

Optional:

Marinade- I used honey and a little cider vinegar mixed together, but feel free to go crazy!

Directions

** although you're using 'shake and bake', you risk having very mushy tofu of you actually shake it. I recommend dumping the bread-crumbs into a flat plate or bowl to create more of a dredging station.

Oven to 500.

Remove tofu from package and press. Slice pressed tofu into 1/2 inch squares.

If marinading, dip individual tofu pieces into the marinade and immediately place into dredging bowl to cover with bread-crumbs. Arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet.

If you're not marinading, just place individual tofu pieces into the breadcrumbs for a quick roll around. Arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet.

Bake for approximately 30 minutes, until nice and crispy, flipping every 10 minutes or so.

Enjoy!

Portobello 'Pizza'

This is a SUPER easy, quick meal to make for lunch or dinner. I literally ran home over a break during class, did about 5 minutes of prep and ate a delicious (and healthy!) lunch less than 20 minutes later. Awesome!

Ingredients

1 Portobello mushroom cap

2-3 Tbl Spaghetti sauce, whatever you have on hand (I used a traditional tomato basil)

A good sprinkle of shredded mozzarella cheese

(I also added a little sprinkle of a parm mix I had on hand)

Directions

Lightly wipe down the mushroom cap with a damp napkin. Trip out the stem.

Oven to broil.

Place upside down mushroom cap (stem portion up) on baking sheet. Spoon in spaghetti sauce, and top with choice of cheese.

Broil for abut 10 minutes, or until the cheese is nice and bubbly and you're confident that the mushroom is cooked throughout.

Nutrition

This recipe is for 1 serving.

Est WW points: 3

Calories: 120

Fat: 5.3g

Sodium: 274

Carbs: 4.5 g

Fiber: 1.2 g

Sugar: 3.1 g

Protein: 8.5 g

Notes:

If you happen to have a little oregano or basil laying around dont be scared to cut it up and toss right on top. This dish makes an excellent lunch, especially when paired with a nice crusty bread and a little olive oil!