Five Simple (Healthy) Recipes

With the pseudonym Martha S., I am obligated to post recipes on occasion. Well, this just happens to be that occasion. The hubs and I recently made a pact to be more proactive when it comes to our eating habits.

I'm working on decreasing my sugar intake. He's working on decreasing his intake of empty eats (IOW, food that lacks nutrition). However, we have to keep our budget in mind. I scan local grocery ads and try to use fruits and veggies that are in season to cut down on our cost. Here's what we've been chomping on:

1.) Zucchini Pizza Boats

Photo credit: Reservation for Two

I adapted this recipe after seeing it on Reservation for Two. However, we didn't have the bread crumbs it called for and only wanted it to be part of our dish so I modified it a bit.

You'll need:

1 zucchini
2/3 cup pizza sauce
2/3 cup cheese (We used mozzarella.)
salt or pepper if you desire
additional toppings if you'd like

Preheat the oven to 350. Slice the zucchini in half long ways (in order to form the 'boats'). Using a spoon, scoop out the inside of each half. Put 1/3 cup pizza sauce in each half followed by a little salt or pepper if you liked and then 1/3 cup cheese per half. If you're having trouble getting the halves to stay upright, you can slice a small strip off the bottom to alleviate the issue and prevent it from falling over in the oven. You can add any other toppings you'd like before it goes in the oven. Once the oven has preheated, pop them in for ~20 minutes or until the cheese is nice and brown. Bon apetit!

Only 188 calories per zucchini half based on the ingredients I used

2.) Protein Crepes

Photo credit: Men's Health

I had pinned this recipe on my Health Food board so long ago I couldn't remember it. I often make an effort to utilize all those recipes I've took the time to pin to find meal ideas when planning. This wasn't planned. I just happened upon it one more when I wanted something different for breakfast. It was so simple.

You'll need (This is an individualized recipe so you can increase the servings as necessary.):

2 eggs
3 tbls milk (I used almond.)
1 scoop protein powder
Filling of your choice

Beat the eggs and milk together. Add the protein powder. Continue to beat until the batter becomes smooth. It takes a little muscle power! Then, heat the skillet on med-hi heat. Once heated, spray a little nonstick spray, pour batter in to skillet and cook like a pancake. This means once it begins to bubble quite a bit, you should use your spatula to lift the edge of the crepe and see it its ready to be flipped. Once its cooked through, transfer to a plate and add your filling of choice immediately. I chose to add blueberry cream cheese to mine and it was scrumptious!

235 calories per crepe (excluding the filling which was an additional 35 calories)

3.) Turkey Cucumber Subs

Another so simple recipe adapted from Buff Dudes.

You'll need:

1 cucumber
Deli meat (I used one slice turkey and one slice ham.)
Cheese slice of you choice (We used pepper jack.)
1 tbls hummus (We used supremely spicy)

Slice the ends of the cucumber off. Then, slice it long ways. If you need it to sit still more easily, cut a small strip off the bottom to create a flatter base. Scoop out the inside with a spoon. Spread hummus along one half of the cucumber. Break the cheese slice in half and place on top of the hummus. On the other half, place meat of your choice. It may need to be folded in order to fit well. There you have it! A cucumber sub.

4.) Turkey Meatloaf

Photo credit: Busy But Healthy

This recipe comes from Busy But Healthy and is so delicious and hearty tasting. Because I made only one small change to the recipe, I'm not going to write it here. I'll just give you the link. Link. The change I made was substituting A1 sauce for Worcestshire sauce because we didn't have any here. I also accidentally used 85% lean turkey rather than 99% which I found to have quite a bit better texture and taste if you're no so worried about fat content.

5.) Stuffed Green Peppers

The Grand Finale -- I came up with this recipe on my own! I had searched for a stuffed green pepper recipe that sounded good, didn't use grains, and used ingredients that we already had. I had no luck and decided to get in the kitchen and figure it out myself. I knew it wasn't our lack of ingredients preventing me from finding a recipe. Here goes!

You'll need:

4-5 green peppers
6-8 oz boneless chicken breast (cut into chunks)
1 cup drained, canned beans (I used a tri-bean blend.)
1 cup frozen corn (could also be canned)
1/2 recipe of taco seasoning (This is the one I always use.)
1/2 cup salsa
1/4 cup cheese (I used Kroger brand Mexican style.)

Heat skillet to medium-high heat. Preheat oven to 350. Once skillet has heated, spray lightly with nonstick spray. Add chicken and cook. Once the chicken is cooked through, add the salsa and taco seasoning. Combine well. Add corn and beans. Turn eye to low/simmer. While it's simmering, prepare the green peppers. Wash them. Cut the tops off and be sure to get rid of all the seeds inside. Then, get a muffin pan to place them in so they'll sit up well in the oven. Start filling them. You'll need to pack the filling in a bit rather than just spooning it in if you want to use up all the filling you've made. Put a tbls or so of cheese on top of each pepper. Place in the over and bake for 20-25 minutes.

210 calories per stuffed pepper

I hope you all try some of these recipes and let me know what you think! I truly love cooking and finding tasty recipes to try. At the same time, I don't like spending a lot of time in the kitchen for every meal. I'm still finding the balance that works best for me.

Also, I'd love to hear recipe suggestions from you! Like I said, I lurve trying new foods.

Until next time,

A Spanish Omelette & This Week's "Groceries"

When we got home from our anniversary getaway this morning, I knew there weren't many quick meals in our current food supply. Thankfully, I remembered we had a few potatoes that had been hiding in the back of the pantry that needed to be fixed. Next, I thought about a recipe in my tapas cookbook, that a friend got for me after I studied in Barcelona last summer, for Spanish omelettes. I also knew we had 2 dozen eggs in the refrigerator. I looked up the recipe in hopes that we'd have everything to make it.

6 eggs - check

5 potatoes - check

1 cup olive oil - check

1 onion - eeeeck, I didn't have this but subbed with 1 tsp onion powder

salt and pepper to taste

By the way, this is a cheap recipe that would be perfect for a week that may be a little tight because the ingredients are so basic. Plus, it's simple too!

First, thoroughly wash and slice those potatoes. Shoot for one inch cubes. Then, starting heating up your olive oil. Although this recipe calls for 1 cup, I only used between 1/4 and 1/3. 1 cup just seemed like it would be too hard on my stomach even if it does get drained. Once the oil is hot, dump the potatoes, add onion powder (I didn't measure it but I put about 1 tsp), and stir frequently. 

Let those cook for about 15 minutes continuing to stir frequently. To know if they're getting close to done, I prod them with a fork. They'll be softer, like one you'd bite into, if they're ready.

While those are cooking, you can fluff the eggs and add the salt and pepper. Once the potatoes have finished, pour them into the egg mixture and let it soak for 10 minutes. Take the skillet off the eye and pour the excess oil into a bowl to be used later in the recipe.

Reheat 2 tbsp of oil. Add the potato/egg mixture being sure to spread the potatoes evenly in the skillet.

Here comes the exciting part! When the egg starts to brown and become firm, you have to flip it. Put a plate on top of the skillet. Please use oven mitts so you don't get burnt! Then, flip the omelette onto the plate and slide it back into the skillet. Do this 2-3 times per side to give the omelette a good shape and ensure that it cooks thoroughly. Here I am doing it in case you need a visual:

After you've done that, flip onto a clean plate and wah-la! You've made a Spanish omelette! Do you have any favorite Spanish dishes?

Because we're only going to be at home four days this week, I hadn't planned to do any grocery shopping. We have several things I can throw together and are anxiously awaiting some hefty health care bills (sigh) that will make our budget a little tighter. However, I found a few deals I just couldn't pass up.

So here's the breakdown price for each item:

• Dunkin Donuts Creamer Sale Price $3.69 - MFG Coupon 0.75 = $2.94
  Not a great deal, but something we use frequently
• Coffee Mate Creamer Part of Buy 5, Save $5 OP $5.49-$1= $4.49
  Again, not an amazing deal but something we use frequently
• 3 Boxes of Kashi Cereal Part of Buy 5, Save $5 OP $2.99-$1=$1.99 Plus, I had a coupon. Buy 2, Save $1.25 making the price per box of cereal $1.57 each
• Yuban Coffee (31 oz.) OP $10.99 Part of Buy 5, Save $5 SP $6.99-$1=$5.99
• 10 jars of Jif creamy peanut butter On sale at Save-A-Lot $1.79 each
  I don't normally buy in bulk because I refuse to buy stuff we won't use but the expiration date isn't until sometime in 2016 and the hubs frequently snacks on it. Initially, I wasn't even 100% this was really a good deal because we normally get Jif Natural in the larger jar but while I was at Kroger I did a price check. There, it was on sale for $2.99--nearly double the price. I knew we should stock up!

The last two items were bought because they were exciting treats and weren't a bad deal but I wouldn't call them a good deal either.

• PB & Co. White Chocolate Peanut Butter OP $4.59 - $1.25 digital coupon=$3.59
• Nutella OP $3.99 - $1 Man. Coupon=$2.99

What kind of good deals have you found lately? I'm always scanning ads scoping items that we frequently buy.

Last, later this week I plan to post about our trip to Red River Gorge. It was absolutely gorgeous and a nice getaway despite the few bug bites that have tirelessly irritated me today.

Until next time,