Pumpkin Waffles

This is how we do Halloween in our house. Actually Halloween in our house usually involves more spook and cuteness but pumpkin has been on my mind lately so I used Halloween as an excuse. I saw pumpkin waffles paired with cranberry butter in one of my (no joke) 7 or 8 halloween cooking magazines. Since the calories were more than I was willing to stomach I took to Google to find a more figure friendly version. I found these. And because I couldn't get over the thought of cranberry butter I threw some dried cranberries in mine. They were great! Even Thing 1 has been eating them and actually asking for them in the mornings. (It helps that there was a movie on called spookley the square pumpkin and I have been calling them Spookley waffles. I swear kids will eat anything if you give it the right build up.) Any left overs can be saved in the fridge or freezer and thrown in the toaster for a quick breakfast the rest of the week. I think this would be a 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Source: Cooking Light

Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ³⁄₄ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¹⁄₈ teaspoon salt
• ¹⁄₈ teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 cup 1% low-fat milk
• ¹⁄₂ cup Pumpkin Puree
• ¹⁄₄ cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 large egg lightly beaten
• Cooking spray

Directions

1. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour and the next 4 ingredients (flour through cloves) in a large bowl, and make a well in center of mixture. Combine milk and next 4 ingredients (milk through egg) in a bowl, and add to flour mixture. Stir just until moist.
2. Coat a waffle iron with cooking spray; preheat. Spoon about 1/4 cup of batter per waffle onto hot waffle iron, spreading the batter to the edges. Cook 5 to 7 minutes or until steaming stops; repeat procedure with remaining batter.

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 255

Fat: 5.7g

Cholesterol: 57mg

Sodium: 372mg

Fiber: 2g

Protein: 7.4g

Crusty French Boules

I decided to take on the challenge of bread making since I have been scared of it for so long. Don't ask me why I picked a recipe that takes like 2 days to kick off my bread making practice, temporary insanity maybe, I just did. Surprisingly it wasn't awful. Not wonderful, but not awful. Normally Husband helps me with the cooking and actually does the majority of it but I took such ownership over this recipe about the only things I let him do were rip the plastic wrap and spray the bowl. I'm glad too because once this came out of the oven I had such a sense of accomplishment. I know, normal people make bread all the time but for me this was a triumph and the start of something hopefully fantastic. This was a pretty good recipe but I was expecting something a little different to come out of the oven. The loaves were very thin and flat so they didn't make great sandwich bread like I was hoping. The flavor and texture were good so that was a plus. I left the pâte fermentée in the fridge for just under 3 days (supposedly 48 hours is best) and it was just fine. I think I will attempt another bread and see which one I like better. Ok, maybe a few more. All in all a 4 out of 5 stars.

Source: Cooking Light

Serves: 24

Ingredients

• 5 ⁶³⁄₁₀₀ ounces all-purpose flour divided (about 1 1/4 cups)
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon active dry yeast
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt
• ¹⁄₂ cup warm water (100° to 110°)
• Cooking spray
• ³⁄₄ cup warm water (100° to 110°)
• 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
• 9 ounces all-purpose flour (about 2 cups)
• 4 ounces bread flour (about 2/3 cup)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon cornmeal

Directions

1. To prepare the pâte fermentée, weigh or lightly spoon 4.5 ounces (about 1 cup) all-purpose flour into a dry measuring cup, and level with a knife. Combine 4.5 ounces all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon yeast, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Add 1/2 cup warm water, and beat at low speed until mixture is thoroughly combined. Add enough of the remaining 4 tablespoons flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough just begins to pull away from sides of bowl. Increase mixer speed to medium, and beat for 2 minutes. Place dough in a small bowl coated with cooking spray. Place a piece of plastic wrap coated with cooking spray directly on dough. Refrigerate 48 hours or up to 3 days.
2. Remove pâte fermentée from refrigerator; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes.
3. To prepare the dough, place 3/4 cup warm water in the bowl of a stand mixer with dough hook attached, and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon yeast. Let mixture stand for 5 minutes or until bubbles form. Add pâte fermentée to yeast mixture; let stand 10 minutes. Weigh or lightly spoon 9 ounces all-purpose flour (about 2 cups) and 4 ounces bread flour (about 2/3 cup) into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Add flours and 1 teaspoon salt to bowl; beat at low speed until flour is incorporated. Increase mixer to medium speed, and beat for 6 minutes. (Dough should form a ball.)
4. Place the dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray; lightly coat dough with cooking spray. Cover with plastic wrap, and let stand in a warm, dry place, free from drafts, for 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in size. (Gently press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, dough has risen enough.) Punch dough down, and divide into 2 equal portions. Knead each portion for 1 minute. Shape each dough portion into a 5-inch round by pulling the sides down, pinching and tucking them under the bottom center of dough, forming a smooth, taut surface on the top. Place dough rounds on a baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Lightly coat surface of dough with cooking spray. Cover and let rise 1 hour and 15 minutes or until doubled in size.
5. Place a small ovenproof saucepan with 3 inches of water directly on the floor of oven. Preheat oven to 450°.
6. Uncover dough. Spray dough lightly with water. Make 4 (4-inch) cuts 1/4 inch deep in dough to form a grid across top of each loaf using a sharp knife. Bake at 450° for 10 minutes. Remove water pan from oven. Bake an additional 15 minutes or until bread is golden brown and sounds hollow when bottom is tapped. Cool on a wire rack. Cut each boule, crosswise, into 12 slices.

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 82

Fat: 0.3g

Cholesterol: 0.0mg

Sodium: 148mg

Fiber: 0.6g

Protein: 2.5g

View recipe at plantoeat.com

Pesto Lasagna with Spinach and Mushrooms

 

Don't be fooled by the picture, I promise this is really good. I have a major soft spot for lasagna as is evident by how many lasagna recipes are on this blog already. What could make lasagna better? How about pesto, mushrooms, spinach, left overs AND the fact that you can do it in the crock pot. The ease of this recipe makes it by far my favorite lasagna so far. I have literally been eating it all week for lunch thanks to the fact that it makes 8 servings. We used just regular plain old mushrooms and they were fine as well as store bought pesto. I am pretty sure you could do any lasagna using the crock pot technique but I would just go ahead and make this one because it's a 5 out of 5 stars!

Source: Cooking Light

Serves: 8

Ingredients

• 4 cups torn spinach
• 2 cups sliced cremini mushrooms
• ¹⁄₂ cup commercial pesto
• ³⁄₄ cup (3 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• ³⁄₄ cup (3 ounces) shredded provolone cheese
• 1 (15-ounce) carton fat-free ricotta cheese
• 1 large egg lightly beaten
• ³⁄₄ cup (3 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese divided
• 1 (25.5-ounce) bottle fat-free tomato-basil pasta sauce
• 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
• Cooking spray
• 1 (8-ounce) package precooked lasagna noodles (12 noodles)

Directions

1. Arrange the spinach in a vegetable steamer; steam, covered, 3 minutes or until spinach wilts. Drain, squeeze dry, and coarsely chop. Combine spinach, mushrooms, and pesto in a medium bowl, stirring to combine; set aside.
2. Combine mozzarella, provolone, ricotta, and beaten egg in a medium bowl, stirring well to combine. Stir in 1/4 cup Parmesan, and set aside. Combine the pasta sauce and the tomato sauce in a medium bowl.
3. Spread 1 cup pasta sauce mixture in the bottom of a 6-quart oval electric slow cooker coated with cooking spray. Arrange 3 noodles over pasta sauce mixture; top with 1 cup cheese mixture and 1 cup spinach mixture. Repeat the layers, ending with spinach mixture. Arrange 3 noodles over spinach mixture; top with remaining 1 cup cheese mixture and 1 cup pasta sauce mixture. Place remaining 3 noodles over sauce mixture; spread remaining sauce mixture over noodles. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan. Cover with lid; cook on LOW 5 hours or until done.

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 398

Fat: 18.2g

Cholesterol: 56mg

Sodium: 1036mg

Fiber: 2g

Protein: 22.2g

Pecan-Topped Pumpkin Bread

Let me start out by saying how much I LOVE pumpkin. It's probably one of my biggest temptations this time of year so don't be surprised if you see plenty of pumpkin recipes on here. That being said this pumpkin recipe certainly did not disappoint. I cut back on the nutmeg a bit since even just smelling nutmeg gives me heartburn and all we had in the way of all spice was Jamaican all spice. It smelled fine so we used it and didn't notice any strange flavors. The spices in this are full of flavor and you can almost taste every spice in every bite. It is super moist and yummy and the best part is the second loaf in the freezer! A great cheaper alternative to my usual protein bar for breakfast and roughly the same number of calories. 5 out of 5 stars and delicious.

Source: Cooking Light

Serves: 24

Ingredients

• 3 ¹⁄₃ cups all-purpose flour (about 15 ounces)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon ground allspice
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• ¹⁄₂ cup egg substitute
• ¹⁄₂ cup canola oil
• ¹⁄₂ cup low-fat buttermilk
• 2 large eggs
• ²⁄₃ cup water
• 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
• Cooking spray
• ¹⁄₃ cup chopped pecans

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 6 ingredients (through allspice) in a bowl.
3. Place sugar, egg substitute, oil, buttermilk, and eggs in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until well blended. Add 2/3 cup water and pumpkin, beating at low speed until blended. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture, beating at low speed just until combined. Spoon batter into 2 (9 x 5-inch) loaf pans coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle pecans evenly over batter. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans on a wire rack; remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack.
4. Note:
5. This recipe makes two loaves. Freeze the extra bread, tightly wrapped in plastic wrap, for up to one month. Omit the nuts or substitute chopped walnuts, if you prefer. Check the bread after 50 minutes of baking--you may need to cover the loaves with aluminum foil for the last 10 minutes to prevent overbrowning.

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 198

Fat: 6.6g

Cholesterol: 18mg

Sodium: 287mg

Fiber: 1.2g

Protein: 3.4g

Slow-Cooker Black Bean-Mushroom Chili

Since Husband has class one night a week we have to try to come up with meals that are quick when I get home from work. We've decided to revisit our crock pot with this meal and we were not disappointed!! There were so many good flavors in this dish that you do not even notice the lack of meat. I would say the strongest flavor is the adobo but this dish is very mild and full of great flavor. The best part... Lots of left overs! 5 out of 5 stars!

Source: Eating Well

Serves: 10

Ingredients

• 1 pound dried black beans (2 1/2 cups), rinsed
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• ¹⁄₄ cup mustard seeds
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 ¹⁄₂ teaspoons cumin seeds or ground cumin
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon cardamom seeds or ground cardamom
• 2 medium onions coarsely chopped
• 1 pound mushrooms sliced
• 8 ounces tomatillos (see Ingredient Note), husked, rinsed and coarsely chopped
• ¹⁄₄ cup water
• 5 ¹⁄₂ cups mushroom broth or vegetable broth
• 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
• 1-2 tablespoons minced canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (see Ingredient Note)
• 1 ¹⁄₄ cups grated Monterey Jack or pepper Jack cheese
• ¹⁄₂ cup reduced-fat sour cream
• ¹⁄₂ cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 limes cut into wedges

Directions

1. Soak beans overnight in 2 quarts water. (Alternatively, place beans and 2 quarts water in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for 1 hour.) Drain the beans, discarding soaking liquid.
2. Combine oil, mustard seeds, chili powder, cumin and cardamom in a 5- to 6-quart Dutch oven. Place over high heat and stir until the spices sizzle, about 30 seconds. Add onions, mushrooms, tomatillos and water. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are juicy, 5 to 7 minutes. Uncover and stir often until the juices evaporate and the vegetables are lightly browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Add broth, tomato paste and chipotles; mix well.
3. Place the beans in a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker. Pour the hot vegetable mixture over the beans. Turn heat to high. Put the lid on and cook until the beans are creamy, 5 to 8 hours.
4. Garnish each serving with cheese, a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of cilantro. Serve with lime wedges. Stovetop Variation: Total: 4 1/2 hours In Step 2, increase broth to 81/2 cups. Omit Step 3. Add the beans to the Dutch oven; cover and simmer the chili gently over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the beans are creamy to bite, about 3 hours.

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 306

Fat: 10 g

Cholesterol: 20 mg

Sodium: 415 mg

Carbohydrate: 40 g

Fiber: 13 g

Protein: 18 g

Baked Ziti and Summer Veggies

This was a surprisingly good, fresh recipe. The cheese and veggies were great together. We used a green heirloom tomato but I think it would have been prettier with a red one. Husband loves crushed red pepper so I think he may have heavy handed it a little for my taste which gave it an unexpected kick. Husband says 4 and I say 5 so 4.5 our of 5 stars.

Source: Cooking Light

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 4 ounces uncooked ziti
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 cups chopped yellow squash
• 1 cup chopped zucchini
• ¹⁄₂ cup chopped onion
• 2 cups chopped tomato
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese divided
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano
• ³⁄₄ teaspoon salt divided
• ¹⁄₈ teaspoon crushed red pepper
• ¹⁄₄ cup (2 ounces) part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1 large egg lightly beaten
• Cooking spray

Directions

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; drain. 2. Preheat oven to 400. 3. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan. Add squash, zucchini, and onion; sauté 5 minutes. Add tomato and garlic; sauté 3 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in pasta, 1/2 cup mozzarella, herbs, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper. 4. Combine ricotta, remaining salt, and egg. Stir into pasta mixture. Spoon into an 8-inch square glass or ceramic baking dish coated with cooking spray; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes or until bubbly and browned.

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 301

Fat: 12.1g

Cholesterol: 65mg

Sodium: 640mg

Carbohydrate: 32.8g

Fiber: 4.1g

Protein: 16.5g

Monkey Bread

This does not look or taste healthy but if you question it look at the comparison at the bottom of this post. I believe this was the first time I ever made dough from scratch and it wasn't too bad. I think I kneaded it a little too long in the kitchenaid and my sister in law suggested I try finishing the kneading by hand next time to make sure it doesn't get too dry. Agreed. That was really the only flaw to this. It was really fun to make rolling the little dough balls and then waiting for it to rise. I will definitely make this again but I will eat it right out of the oven because it was better when we popped it in the microwave for a bit. All in all a fantastic Sunday breakfast or Saturday night dessert! Somewhere between 4.5 and 5 stars (the half a star would only be because of the dry-ish dough so the recipe actually gets a 5 and my execution gets a 4.5.)

Source: Cooking Light

Serves: 16

Ingredients

• 13 ¹⁄₂ ounces all-purpose flour (about 3 cups)
• 4 ³⁄₄ ounces whole-wheat flour (about 1 cup)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 package quick-rise yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
• 1 cup very warm fat-free milk (120° to 130°)
• ¹⁄₄ cup very warm orange juice (120° to 130°)
• ¹⁄₄ cup honey
• 2 tablespoons butter melted
• Cooking spray
• ¹⁄₂ cup granulated sugar
• ¹⁄₂ cup packed brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 4 ¹⁄₂ tablespoons fat-free milk divided
• 2 tablespoons butter melted
• ¹⁄₂ cup powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Weigh or lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flours, salt, and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer with dough hook attached; mix until combined. With mixer on, slowly add 1 cup milk, juice, honey, and 2 tablespoons butter; mix dough at medium speed 7 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 1 hour or until doubled in size. (Gently press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, the dough has risen enough.)
2. Combine granulated sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a shallow dish. Combine 3 tablespoons milk and 2 tablespoons butter in a shallow dish, stirring with a whisk.
3. Punch dough down; divide into 8 equal portions. Working with one portion at a time (cover remaining dough to prevent drying), roll into an 8-inch rope. Cut each dough rope into 8 equal pieces, shaping each piece into a 1-inch ball. Dip each ball in milk mixture, turning to coat, and roll in sugar mixture. Layer balls in a 12-cup Bundt pan coated with cooking spray. Repeat procedure with remaining 7 dough ropes. Sprinkle any remaining sugar mixture over dough. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 1 hour or until almost doubled in size.
4. Preheat oven to 350°.
5. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until golden. Cool 5 minutes on a wire rack. Place a plate upside down on top of bread; invert onto plate. Combine powdered sugar, remaining milk, and remaining ingredients in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Microwave at HIGH 20 seconds or until warm. Drizzle over bread.

Amount Per Serving

Calories: 234

Fat: 3.4g

Cholesterol: 9mg

Sodium: 184mg

Fiber: 1.9g

Protein: 4.5g

Classic Monkey Bread                                         This Monkey Bread

556 calories per serving                                                    234 calories

960 mg sodium per serving                                              184 mg sodium

13 grams saturated fat                                                    2 grams saturated fat