Borscht in the Slow Cooker

Delicious, beautiful, and chock full of nutrients.  This made a nice light supper in combination with a bit of leftover crab dip I needed to use up.  And the next night, we ate the borscht leftovers as a side to steak.  

This isn't a terribly authentic borscht recipe, but it's healthy, tasty, and easy to make, so who cares?  Enjoy!

What you need:

3-4 medium beets, thoroughly washed, ends trimmed off, and cut into rough chunks

1-1.5 cups chopped fresh pumpkin or winter squash (really I was just trying to use this up- you could substitute with carrots, which is what I saw in different recipes I looked at before making this)

1 apple, cored and cut into rough chunks

1 leek stalk, roughly chopped

1 celery stalk, roughly chopped

1/2-1 full head garlic, cloves peeled

3 packets beef seasoning or bouillon cubes (I used Swanson Flavor Boost, concentrated broth)

1 medium onion, roughly chopped

4 slices turkey bacon

Some sort of creamy topping*(sour cream is traditional, but see below for my healthier choice)

Dump the beets, pumpkin (or winter squash or carrots), apple, leek, celery, and garlic into the crockpot.  Saute the onion and bacon in a lightly greased (I use olive oil spray) frying pan and season with a little salt and pepper.  Once browned, add a half cup of water to the pan and scrape around with a spatula to loosen any browned stuff at the bottom of the pan (adds flavor).  Stir in the beef seasoning.  Pour this over the vegetables in the pot.  Cook on high for 3 hours, or until all vegetables are tender.  Use an immersion blender to puree it all up.  Season with additional salt, pepper, or garlic powder if necessary.  Enjoy!

Cottage Cheese and Roasted Garlic Topping:

3/4 cup cottage cheese (I used 1%)

1/4-1/2 cup fat free Greek or plain yogurt

2 whole heads of roasted garlic (cut the tops off, spray with olive oil, season with a little salt and roast at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20-30 minutes, or until soft)

1/2-1 teaspoon black pepper

fresh or dried parsley

salt (if necessary)

Blend everything together in the blender.  Done!

Roasted Tomato and Garlic Gazpacho

A nice refreshing soup- perfect for this hot weather we've been having on Saba.  Serve it with some shrimp, guacamole, and tortilla chips. 

What you need:
4-5 medium-large tomatoes
2 heads garlic (this may sound like a lot, but roasting it really mellows the flavor.  But you can always cut back if you're not a garlic fan)
1 small-medium cucumber, peeled
1 small red pepper, chopped into blendable chunks
1 small onion, roughly chopped (about 1/3 cup chopped)
2 jalapenos or serrano peppers, roughly chopped.
1-2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper, to taste
Soy sauce or Worcestershire (if you think it needs it)
Cilantro, for garnish


Start by roasting the tomatoes and garlic:
Heat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Spray a baking pan that will fit the tomatoes and garlic with olive oil.  Poke a few fork holes in the tomatoes.  Cut the tops off of the garlic heads.  Place the tomatoes and the garlic in the pan and spray again with olive oil.  Season with a little salt and pepper.  Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until the tomatoes are a little charred and the garlic is soft.  Let cool.

Dump your chopped vegetables into the blender.  Add the tomatoes and squeeze the garlic from its paper shell.  Add in the lemon juice and vinegar.  Start blending and slowly add some water to get things going.  Once smooth, add salt and pepper to taste (and maybe a little soy sauce or Worcestershire if it needs a little something more.  I actually cannot quite remember if I did, but I think I might have).  Chill for an hour or two and then serve into bowls and garnish with the cilantro.  Enjoy!

Cauliflower "Breadsticks"

Saw these on a low carb blog and wanted to give 'em a try. I keep meaning to do the cauliflower pizza crust thing, but never end up getting to it.  Here's a compromise.

To be honest, they did not turn out quite like I expected and definitely stuck to the pan.  But they were tasty and pretty healthy, and I'm pretty sure I'll make them again.  I just need to get a food processer when I get off Saba and that will make it a lot easier.

What you need:

One (small to medium) head of cauliflower

2 eggs

1/4 cup shredded cheese ( I used a "pizza" blend- I would have used either low-fat mozzarella or cheddar or low fat anything if they had it here)

2 Tablespoons fat-free Greek yogurt

Salt (maybe a teaspoon?), pepper to taste, dried oregano, garlic powder

Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Grease a 13 x 9 pan with olive oil cooking spray (or maybe a full coating of olive oil- mine stuck pretty badly).  Cut the core out of the cauliflower and purree the rest in a food processor or dice it REALLY finely by hand (which is what I did- messy, time-consuming, but possible, even for an impatient person like me).  Mix cauliflower and the rest of the ingredients and then press into pan.  Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until browned around the edges.  Then flip and bake for another ten minutes (at 400 degrees instead).  Cut into pieces and serve with a marinara sauce.

Enjoy!  (and don't stress if it fall apart a bit when flipping.  mine did too, but it was still tasty!)

BAKED BRIE with Roasted Red Pepper and Walnuts (best wine dinner ever)

Baked brie topped with a mix of spicy and sweet cannot be beat.  Especially if you are pairing it with a bottle (or two? oops) of wine while dining with your sweetie.

This is my favorite "cheat" meal.  I make it differently depending on my mood and what's in the cupboards and fridge.   The picture shows the recipe below, but at the end you will also find further suggestions.  Use bagel chips, pita chips, raw veggies (baby carrots, sliced red pepper, and cucumber), or homemade veggie chips to dip.


What you need:

Brie cheese, either a round or a wedge.  I guess a round is fancier if you have company, but the wedge suits us fine.
Roasted red pepper (either homemade or from the jar), cut into small pieces
Walnuts, chopped (2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup, depending on how much brie you are making)
Honey
Red Pepper Flakes


Slice the brie in half lengthwise and place on greased baking sheet (if you have something that both looks nice and is oven-proof, use that.  This thing isn't moving after baking).
Top with roasted red pepper and walnuts.  Drizzle LIGHTLY with honey and sprinkle the red pepper flakes.  Bake at 300 degrees Fahrenheit for 10-15 minutes, or until the brie is completely melted and bubbly at the edges. (If you have a toaster oven use that!  It broils it a bit as it cooks, which helps toast the nuts and caramelize the sugar a bit).

Enjoy!


And some variations:

Instead of roasted red peppers and walnuts, try out the following combinations:

*spread low sugar/ "just fruit" apricot or orange jam on top of brie and then top with sliced jalapenos or red pepper flakes
*top the brie with thinly sliced fresh peach/nectarine and then sprinkle on the jalapenos or red pepper flakes
*try adding almonds/ walnuts to either of the above options
*if you are like me, and living somewhere you can not easily get jalapenos or red pepper flakes, Tabasco sauce works in a pinch to add some heat to your fruity brie

Salmon with Zucchini, Cherry Tomato, Walnut, and Goat Cheese Topping

Quick and tasty weeknight fare.  Definitely took less than half an hour to throw together, but looks (I think) a little nicer than that.

What you need:

2 (5-6 ounce) salmon fillets

Fennel Seeds, Salt, Pepper

1 teaspoon honey

1 zucchini, sliced thinly

1/4 cup onion, diced

1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1/2 chopped arugula (I only added this because I was trying to use it up, but it was good, so if want to, throw it in)

Garlic powder 

Balsamic Vinegar

Pepper

2 Tablespoons chopped walnuts, toasted

2 Tablespoons crumbled goat cheese

Start by heating your oven to broil on high.  Place salmon fillets on a lightly greased baking sheets.  Rub each piece with 1/2 teaspoon of honey (or a bit more if you aren't trying to cut back on sugar).  Sprinkle with fennel seeds, salt, and pepper.  Place in oven and broil for 5-10 minutes, depending on thickness of fillets and how hot your oven gets.  Salmon should be browned and flake easily with a fork when done.

While the salmon is cooking, saute the zucchini and onion in an olive oil-sprayed saucepan with a pinch of salt.  After a couple minutes, add the tomatoes and arugula.  Add a splash or two of balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Add the walnuts.

Top each piece of salmon with vegetable mixture and half of the goat cheese.  Enjoy!

Baked Veggie Chips

Crispy, flavorful, and totally healthy.  The perfect accompaniment to any dip, or delicious on their own.  We made these to go with a brie, peaches, and hot pepper dish for a "fun supper" night (which I like to have every now and then while drinking a few glasses of wine).  They take a while, but the actual labor is not so much and the oven temperature is low enough that you do not need to be super attentive (also see note at the bottom for a quick fix alternative).

What you need:

Variety of vegetables (we used sweet potato, beets, carrots, and zucchini), sliced as thinly and evenly as possible.  A mandolin would be handy for this, but I just used a sharp kitchen knife and mustered up whatever patience I could manage (let's just say the slices were not perfect).  But, really, the thinner and more even they are, the better the results.

Olive oil spray

A couple of baking sheets 

Seasoning- salt and whatever else you want to add (pepper, garlic, cumin, seasoned salt)

After slicing the vegetables, pat them dry with paper towels to get rid of extra moisture.  Spray two large baking sheets LIGHTLY (all the vegetables are going to really shrink up and will end up greasy if you add to much oil.).  Spread the vegetables across the baking sheets so that they are just touching.  Spray lightly again and season with salt and whatever else you like (I've done just seasoned salt, just salt, and salt, pepper, and garlic on different occasions- all worked well).

Place in the oven and heat to 275 or 300 degrees Fahrenheit.  Cook forever.  Or 1 and half to 3 hours, depending on how thick you cut them.  Since the oven temp is pretty low, you do not have to check them too often and worry about burning.  The end result should be lightly browned, shrunken, and slightly crispy.  Once they cool a little, they will finish crisping up. 

Repeat with two more pans if you have the dedication (Two pans don't really make much because they shrink so much).

Enjoy by themselves or with the dip of your choice!

OR, IF YOU LACK PATIENCE:

You still have to suck up thinly and evenly slicing the veggies.  But I've made the beets, regular potatoes, and carrots in my toaster oven at 425 degrees Fahrenheit or on a low broil in the oven for much less time (maybe 20 minutes with a possible need for flipping over).  For these, I didn't even spray the beets or carrots with oil, just added a little salt.  I did spray the potatoes though.  You have to keep an eye on them with this method because they can burn quickly.  Good luck!

Salmon Topped with Goat Cheese and Roast Vegetable, Olive, and Walnut "Tapenade"

Tasty, healthy, and pretty simple to make.  We ate it by itself, but it would pair nicely with some sort of rice or potato dish if you want some carbs.

What you need:

1 large red bell pepper, cut in half, seeds removed

1/2 onion, cut into slices

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

Olive oil spray

Salt and pepper

2 (6 ounce) salmon fillets

2 teaspoons honey

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

2 ounces goat cheese

3 tablespoons toasted walnuts

1/4 chopped green olives 

1 teaspoon hot red pepper paste (or use red pepper flakes to taste)

garlic powder (I probably used nearly a tablespoon, but we like it garlicky around here)

2 teaspoons dried oregano (or throw in some fresh and maybe basil too if you have it)

1/4 panko crumbs

Start by roasting the vegetables:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Spray a baking sheet with olive oil and spread onions,bell pepper (skin facing up), and tomatoes across it.  Season with salt and pepper and spray again with the olive oil.  Place in oven and roast for 15-20 minutes.  Remove tomatoes and place pan back in the oven.  Roast for another 10-15 minutes or until bell pepper is slightly charred and onions are completely cooked and slightly brown.  Remove from oven and let cool.

Now, start the salmon:

Place the salmon on a greased baking sheet, skin side down.  Drizzle 1/2 teaspoon of honey on each piece, then season with salt, pepper, and fennel seeds.  Spray with olive oil.  Broil on high for 5-7 minutes, or until the top is slightly browned.  Remove from oven.

As the salmon cooks, make the tapenade:

Skin the bell pepper, and chop it, the onions, and the tomatoes into small pieces.  Place in medium-sized bowl.  Add 1 teaspoon of honey, garlic powder and red pepper (to taste), oregano, olives, and walnuts.

Now, assembly time:

Spread one ounce of goat cheese on each piece of salmon and top with a thick pile of tapenade.  Sprinkle evenly with the panko crumbs.  Broil for 2-3 on high, or until top is lightly browned.

Enjoy!