Mozzarella-basil-tomato tart

Fresh Tomato Tart at Ezra Pound Cake
from The Completely Italian Vegetarian Cookbook

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! :)

My first shot at Quinoa

I've never made or tasted quinoa, and I've never made tofu before...thankfully this recipe is really hard to screw up. Of course I got it here from 101 Cookbooks, which, if you couldn't tell, I am slightly obsessed with.

Quinoa (I think it's pronounced KEE-no-uh?) is a whole-grain that's sort of a mix between barley and couscous. It turned out similar to the fried couscous we made the other day...but I think I prefer this recipe. It has a deep, velvety flavor because of the pesto, the olive oil, and the pumpkin seeds.

I substituted peas for corn, but other than that I followed the recipe word for word. The tofu was ridiculously easy to cook up. In general, this recipe requires a bit of preparation but that's the perfect meal for a Sunday afternoon.