Tomato quiche majig

It looks horrible and calorie-ridden, doesn't it?

Not so!!! I found this recipe in a book called Country Cooking, which is filled with all kinds of amalgamations of butter and grease and lard. This is an example of how to take a fatty recipe and use replacements to make it healthy. I don't have the recipe to share with you, but these are just suggestions you can use to healthify a country-fied greasy quiche or omelette.

Instead of heavy cream (gasp!) I used plain fat-free yogurt. Instead of a pie crust, I used a thin layer of frozen hashbrowns. Instead of the layer of shredded cheddar, I used a couple slices of Muenster cheese, and sprinkled just a little of the shredded cheese on top. I also added some extra veggies to the filling.

After all that, it was about 300 calories for a fourth - a FOURTH - of that casserole dish. Mind-boggling! :)

Pan-glazed tempeh

Orange Pan-glazed Tempeh from Jude Blereau via 101 Cookbooks

This something I've been wanting to try for a while. If you've never heard of tempeh, it's similar and dissimilar to tofu. They're both made from soy beans, but tempeh has a very different texture, among other things.


My veggie sister bought a pack of tempeh the other day and I decided to go ahead and try it for lunch. I didn't have all the ingredients for this recipe, so I just used what I had. I ended up using V8 Mango-Peach juice instead of orange juice, and I left out the mirin because...quite frankly I don't know what that is. ;)

Ok, ok, I looked it up...mirin is a Japanese sweet cooking wine.

So the verdict is: tempeh is....interesting. I'm glad I tried it, but...I'm not entirely sold. From what I've heard, it's one of those take-it-or-leave-it kind of foods. There were some bites that were very nutty and crunchy, and I liked that part about it. So maybe I didn't crisp them up enough. Or maybe I'll just use tofu next time.

As a side note, my older sister claims this tempeh recipe tastes exactly like brisket. So if you're a vegetarian craving barbecue, this is the recipe for you. :)

Big Red ice cream

Big Red ice cream from Recipezaar

All I can say is.......YUMMMMMMM. My mom has made this for a long, long time.

Of course, Big Red ice cream isn't really healthy, but it's unbelievably delicious. So if you haven't tried it before, you should get ya summa that.

Buffalo chicken sandwich

This post is dedicated to Kathy of Panini Happy: my family and I are ETERNALLY grateful to you for introducing us to Frank's Red Hot Buffalo sauce. MMM - I'd never had it before! It's amazing! We are obsessed! We have three bottles in the house right now! No joke!

I didn't exactly follow Kathy's recipe but I was definitely thinking about it while I made this. Thanks Kathy, I love your blog! Y'all check her out!

Homemade granola bars

I found a bag of marshmallows in the pantry today, along with a big box of rice cereal. I was so tempted to make rice krispie treats, but instead I made some healthy homemade granola bars.

Here's what I threw into mine....however you can play around with ingredients, this is just what I had in the house. To make it even healthier, you could omit the butter and use Kashi or another healthier cereal instead of the rice krispies. Any kind of nut would also be a good addition.

Peanut Butter Oat Bars
based on this recipe from suite101.com

3 1/2 cups puffed rice cereal
3 c quick-cooking oats
3 oz raisins
1/4 c toasted pumpkin seeds
1/4 c craisins
1/2 c almond butter
1/2 c peanut butter
1/4 c maple syrup
1/4 c honey
2 TB butter

Spray a 13 x 9 pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Mix puffed rice cereal, oats, raisins, craisins, and pumpkin seeds. Heat peanut butter, maple syrup, honey and butter on medium-low heat for a few minutes, until melted. Stir. Pour over cereal mixture. Stir to coat. Press mixture into prepared pan using your hands. Freeze 30 minutes. Cut into bars. Keep refrigerated.

Makes 16 bars, 235 calories each.

Frozen yogurt and chile relleno casserole

Vanilla Frozen Yogurt from David Lebovitz
1/2 c for 127 calories

Chile Relleno Casserole from Peertrainer.com
6 servings for 288 calories each

I first tasted Pinkberry frozen yogurt when my family visited Hollywood two summers ago. Since then we have tried to find a frozen yogurt that is comparable. The frozen yogurt with berries at Central Market comes pretty close. Well then I found this recipe, and this is the closest thing yet.

I will definitely make this again, and double it, because there was not enough to go around with 7 people. I will use a little less sugar next time. We topped ours with white chocolate chips, but pretty much any fruit, nut, or chocolate topping will taste good with this yogurt.

The chile relleno casserole was a recipe that I found randomly, when I was looking for tips on how to make a low-calorie chile relleno. (Although it's made from a very large chile, at Mexican restaurants it's usually stuffed brimming, overflowing with cheese....and usually has at least 600 calories.) I've never heard of peertrainer.com but this recipe was good, so I might look to see if they have other tantalizing recipes.

Mango mousse

Mango Mousse from About.com

This is a pretty healthy dessert, definitely a good alternative to ice cream. I'm going through a mango phase, so I wanted to try a mango dessert.

I can't remember exactly how many calories are in this, but you can get a large portion for about 200 calories I think. I would say the key to success is to get very ripe mangoes. Ours weren't quite ripe enough, so the mousse turned out a little sour. If you use very ripe mangoes, then you could use less of the confectioner's sugar. One other note is that I used low-fat whipped topping instead of the whipping cream, so that cuts down the calories as well. Sprinkle some nutmeg or cinnamon on top.

Spinach soup and sourdough

Spinach & Zucchini Soup from 101 Cookbooks

Finally got around to making this soup... It was different than I expected. I mean, it was good, but I guess I expected it to be creamier....even though it doesn't have cream in it. I don't know, ok!? But it was very good, and I added some red pepper flakes and jalapeno to give it some oomph. Sourdough slices were dusted with olive oil and Italian spices and broiled.

The recipe makes 6 servings, with about 90 calories a piece. (Awesome!)