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Posts Tagged ‘vegetarian’

Pizza Dip

Posted in Sides (For the High Cal Right Brain, tagged , , , on September 5, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

Mother-effin Pizza Dip.  Done and Done.

Ingredients:

  • 1, 8 ounce, block of cream cheese, softened
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella
  • 1 cup pizza sauce (or any tomato sauce you have lying around, preferably not too chunky)
  • Chips, homemade garlic bread, crackers for dipping

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Put the softened cream cheese in a pie plate or any small square/round oven safe dish.  Add the spices and mash around until well mixed, then evenly distribute across the bottom of the dish.  Sprinkle on about 1 cup of cheese, pour on tomato sauce and evenly distribute, then add the rest of the cheese.  Bake for about 15 minutes, until melty and starting to bubble.  Then, if you would like, kick on the broiler and brown the top for 3-5 minutes, or just continue baking.  Serve!

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Black Beans and Rice

Posted in Main Dishes(For the High Cal Right Brain), tagged , , , on August 30, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

We were pretty lucky with Hurricane Irene, but we still drowned ourselves in comfort food while we waited out the storm.  After consuming pizza dip, chips and salsa, peach rings, dried mango, eggs and toast, we decided we needed a dinner meal.  This is really simple to put together, has a slight kick, and will help you forget about the giant looming crane that is outside your window during a hurricane.  However, the giant gaping holes of the 2nd avenue subway and the debris to match?  That you may need some wine for.

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 6 cloves of garlic minced
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 3 teaspoons cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons oregano
  • 2 teaspoons of onion powder
  • 2 cups of rice
  • 2 cans of Rotel (or if you like it less spicy, one can of Rotel and one can of plain old diced tomatoes)
  • 2 cans of Black beans (15 ounces)
Drain the black beans and tomatoes, reserve the liquid.
Add enough water or chicken broth until you hit 4 cups.  Heat the oil in a large cast iron pan until shimmery.
Add the garlic, and cook for 2 minutes.  Add in the spices, and cook stirring constantly for a minute.
Add the rice and toast for about 30 seconds, then add the liquid and tomatoes.
Bring to a boil, then cover and cook for about 20 minutes.  Add the beans and cook until the rice is cooked through and fluffy.  Remove the bay leaves and serve.
Preferably to some hungry Irene survivors.

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Zuchinni Pasta

Posted in Main Dishes (For The Low Cal Left Brain), tagged , , , on May 25, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

First of all, Happy Birthday to my lovely father, who is 50% responsible for creating this monster and 100% responsible for my love of cheese.


I was so frightened and concerned by the Rapture along with Schwarzenegger’s love child that I lost my camera.  I found it two days later under my couch, but I missed the opportunity to take pictures of this food gem.  I’ve made raw zucchini pasta before, but the cooked version takes the cake.  It is really worth using good quality tomato sauce here (I would give my first-born for an endless supply of Rao’s Arrabbiatia.) and having machinery to shred your zucch.  Feel free to add any other preferred vegetables, or just a heaping amount of cayenne when you eat it the next day because you have an uncontrollable urge for spice.

Ingredients:

  • 2 large zucchinis
  • 3/4 cup tomato sauce, around 70 calories per 1/2 cup
  • 1 tablespoon fat free half and half (optional)
  • 8 ounces sliced mushrooms
  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • Salt and peps to taste

Spray a high sided pan or Dutch oven with Pam.  Grate the zucch either by hand or using the grating tool on your food processor.  Add the garlic to the pan and let soften for around 30 seconds, then add the zucchini and mushrooms and a pinch of salt and pepper.  Allow to cook until the mushrooms and zucch are tender and the zucch has a wiggly pasta-like consistency.  Add the tomato sauce and cook until it bubbles, then stir in the oregano and salt and pepper to taste.  Feel free to add some fat free half and half here if you’re feeling frisky.  Serve and enjoy!  Makes two servings at around 115-130 calories each.

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Stuffed Poblano Peppers

Posted in Main Dishes (For The Low Cal Left Brain), tagged , , , on May 16, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

Nothing gets me more than a good, homemade tomato sauce.  I’ve never sat around and made my own slow cooked-style sauce.  However, this food processor genius may be close.  It is flavorful and thick, matching the chunky, cheesy filling of these poblanos perfectly.  They aren’t too many calories sans cheese, so adjust your cheese amount if you care about your calories.  Oh, and the pepper jack is definitely a must have and there is no exception.  Pepper jack, #winning!

Adapted from Back to the Cutting Board

Ingredients:

  • 1 can (28 oz.) whole tomatoes in puree
  • 1 jalapeno, minced (remove ribs and seeds for a milder sauce)
  • 2 small onions, chopped, divided
  • 3 garlic cloves (2 whole, 1 minced)
  • 1/2 tsp. salt, or to taste
  • 1 can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
  • 1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese, divided
  • 1 tsp. cumin
  • 1/4 tsp. pepper, or to taste
  • 1 tsp. Chipotle chilli powder (optional)
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 3 large poblano chiles, halved lengthwise (stems left intact), ribs and seeds removed

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In a blender or food processor, puree tomatoes, minced jalapeno, half the onions, and 2 whole garlic cloves. Season with 1/4 tsp. salt; taste and add more if necessary.  You can also add any chilli powder of choice here. I have been on a chipotle kick, but ancho would work, or anything with a flavorful heat.

Pour sauce into a 9×13 in. baking dish. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine beans, remaining onions, minced garlic, cornmeal, 1/2 cup cheese, cumin, chili powder and 3/4 cup water. Season with 1/4 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper (or more to taste).

Stuff poblano halves with even amounts of the bean mixture. Nestle them side-by-side in the baking dish, over the sauce. Sprinkle the poblanos with remaining 1/2 cup cheese.

Cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 45 minutes or until poblanos are tender. Uncover and continue to cook until sauce is thickened slightly and cheese is browned, about 10 to 15 minutes more. Let cool for 10 minutes.

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Taco-Style Veggie Rice

Posted in Main Dishes (For The Low Cal Left Brain), tagged , , on May 11, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

I think I have a Mexican food addiction.  Once I learned that I could finally make rice without destroying it, all I want is rice mixed with veggies and Mexican flavorings.  Every night I’ve been fighting myself from ordering guacamole for dinner from this awesome, cheap restaurant next door to me, or throwing out my packed, healthy lunch to go get a taco salad from the food truck.  I don’t know what it is about the combination of garlic, onions, cumin and tomatoes that makes me quiver from within, but I need to have it.  All of the time.  The following recipe was a result of my impulse buy Goya Mexican rice mix and my need to shove my face into the packaging as soon as possible along with whatever I had in my cabinet.  Make sure you have 5 people around when you make this; you are going to need to save yourself…

Ingredients:

  • 1 8 ounce box Goya Mexican-flavored yellow rice, or the like (around 160 cals per 1/4 dry cup)
  • 4 green zucchini, diced
  • 16 ounces sliced mushrooms, preferably baby bellas
  • 2 teaspoons taco seasoning (or more to taste)
  • Toppings of your choice (salsa, fat free sour cream)
Make the rice according to the box.  Meanwhile, spray a large skillet with Pam. Start sauteing the zucc and mushrooms, and mix in the taco seasoning.  Cook until tender, around 7 minutes.  Mix with the rice and divide into 5 servings.  Add your toppings and enjoy!  Each serving is around 200 calories.
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Vegan Stuffed Mushrooms

Posted in Sides (For the High Cal Right Brain, tagged , , on January 13, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

I’ll admit it, I’m an appetizer whore.  I would rather spend my meal at a cocktail party, eating one bite-sized delight after another, than at a full sit down dinner. One appetizer that has always disappointed me at weddings and restaurants alike, are stuffed mushrooms.  Not only is this recipe great, but you can saute the onion, garlic and mushrooms ahead of time to save time when your guests arrive…if you can save any for them.

Adapted from Vegan Piggy

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 pounds Baby Portobellos, the bigger the better (or button mushrooms)
  • 1 cup Italian Seasoning Bread Crumbs (The original recipe ground up two slices of bread and said that you needed 1.5 cups. However, I could barely fit a cup in.  I would have extra bread crumbs lying around and add slowly; you want the mixture to be crumbly, but stick together when you pinch it.)
  • 3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 Medium Red Onion, chopped
  • 1 Garlic Clove, pressed

Remove stems from mushrooms. Brush one of the tablespoons of oil around in a 13 X 9 pan. Chop up the onion, garlic, and mushroom stems. (I did this in the food processor; just pulsed a few times.) Heat the rest of the oil in a pan over medium high heat.

Add garlic and onions and sauté for 7 minutes. Stir in the bread crumbs.

Evenly distribute mixture to mushroom caps. Bake for 30-45 minutes, depending on the size of your mushroom caps. Keep an eye out that they don’t get too brown.

Sorry, they went quickly…

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