Spaghetti Squash Puttanesca

This is such one of the healthiest, delicious and low-cal meals that I know of. And it is perfect for post-holiday dieting.  Spaghetti squash is approximately 40-45 calories per cup and full of a bunch of vitamins.  And you can use it the same way you would use actual spaghetti.  Plus, if your family is anything like mine and your husband and kids are not big fans of squash you can make them regular spaghetti puttanesca and sneak in a bunch of squash and they will be none the wiser but all the more healthier for it - mwa ha ha ha ;)

INGREDIENTS

1 Spaghetti Squash
1 can organic tomato sauce
kalamata olives chopped
1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 large vidalia onion, chopped
1 teaspoon anchovy paste (another ingredient I keep hidden from my family ;)
1/2 cup red wine (I suggest Cab or Zin)
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon oregano
Salt and pepper to taste
olive oil
capers (optional)
grated cheese for sprinkling

To prepare the squash preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  

Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds and other gunky stuff from the middle of each half.  

On a cookie sheet with high enough sides or in a large baking dish drizzle some olive oil on the bottom and fill about 1/2 inch with water or chicken broth or both.  Place squash halves face down on cookie sheet and bake for 30-40 minutes until the squash is tender when you stick a fork into the outside skin of it.

Let cool for a while and work on the sauce.

For the sauce: in a heated pan cook onions on lowest heat in olive oil for about 30 minutes.  Then add in garlic and chopped tomatoes.  Raise heat a little and cook for about 3 more minutes.

Add in can of tomato sauce, anchovy paste, red pepper, oregano and salt and pepper to taste.  Simmer for 20 minutes.

With a fork scoop the spaghetti squash out - it will come out super easy and in strands that look like spaghetti.

Mix the squash in with the sauce and continue to simmer for another 5 minutes.  

I add in the olives right before serving because cooking them changes the taste a little and I like them better uncooked.

Sprinkle with grated cheese and enjoy this VERY low-cal, healthy meal.  

And since it is so low-cal a nice glass of Pinot Noir would certainly be acceptable even if you are dieting.  A 5 oz glass of Pinot is only 120 calories and a 1 1/2 cup serving of the squash with the sauce and cheese is only about 130 calories!

Enjoy!!!

:)

Thumbprint Cookies

Thumbprint cookies are totally awesome and you can get creative with them by putting whatever you want into the thumbprint.  They are also the perfect cookie for kids to help with because kid-sized thumbs make the perfect sized indentation :)

Both my girls love to help me make them and we usually fill them with strawberry jelly and roll them in sweetened coconut flakes.  But they also can be filled with chocolate chips, m&m's, mini peanut butter cups, candied pecans and apricot jelly and any other sweet bit of deliciousness that is the size of a thumbprint.

Baking is really relaxing for me (especially when I have wine to go along with it) and it is great mother-daughter together time.  I love making cookies with my kids every Christmas!

INGREDIENTS

• 3 sticks of unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg white beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash
• Sweetened flaked coconut
• Strawberry jelly or jam
• Optional - powdered sugar for sprinkling over when they are finished

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

  
  

  With an electric beater cream together the butter and sugar until they are combined and then add vanilla. Sift together the flour and salt in a separate bowl. 

  
  

  Add dry ingredients to butter and sugar mixture a little at a time and mix until dough starts to come together. Form dough into a flat disc, wrap in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes.
• 
  
  Roll the dough into balls - about 1 1/2 tablespoons in size. Dip each ball into the egg wash and then roll it in coconut. Place the balls onto a lightly greased cookie sheet (you can grease it with a thin layer of butter or cooking spray) and with your thumb press a hole about 1/2 way down into the top of each ball.  Spoon jam into each indentation. Bake for about 20 minutes, until the coconut is a golden brown. Cool thoroughly before serving.

Enjoy with a glass of organic milk ;)

These are what we made today - thumbprint cookies, my awesome chocolate chip cookies Freaking Awesome Chocolate Chip Cookies and lemon-glazed ricotta cookies.  My girls and I had the best time making them and taste-testing them!

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!

Pancakes from Scratch

Pancakes are a family favorite and you can make them healthy or as a "special treat."  You do not need a mix to make them, they are much better from scratch and not difficult at all :)

Plus they are a great breakfast for Christmas morning along with hot chocolate or coffee with cream and cinnamon!

Ingredients

2 cups flour (whole wheat or regular or a cup of both)

1 3/4 cups milk 

2 tablespoons melted butter

2 teaspoons of baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 egg

Mix ingredients together (use all organic if possible).  You can add more milk if necessary.

Heat a pan and coat with butter.

Pour 1/2 cup measurements of pancake mix into pan.

Cook until lightly browned.

This is where you can make them healthy or not - you can top them with fresh berries, syrup and butter, marshmallows and chocolate chips, banana and peanut butter (Elvis style), apple slices that have been sauteed in butter and cinnamon...the list goes on forever.

You can also add ingredients to the mix to make them healthier or not or give them a different flavor such as flax seed, granola, vanilla extract, cocoa powder, canned pumpkin, cinnamon, chocolate chips, dried cranberries, coconut flakes...again the list goes on and on.  

Enjoy!!!

:)

Fondue

I love fondue and so do all of my kids - granted it is certainly not the healthiest thing in the world but sometimes you have to indulge and I make myself feel better by using mostly organic ingredients and then eating only 1,000 calories total the next day. ;)

I always experiment with different cheeses and meats and veggies to dip.  One of my favorites is the following recipe with thinly sliced london broil, roasted broccoli and of course fresh baguettes.

INGREDIENTS

4 oz fresh fontina cheese

4 oz gruyere

2 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoons California Chardonnay

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

The fondue part is easy - you just melt everything together in the fondue pot.

As for the other ingredients, that is up to you, I gave you my favorites but you can also use sausage, roast potatoes, grilled chicken, grilled asparagus (one of my faves) and basically any cut of meat or veg that will stand up to being dipped in hot cheese.

For this particular fondue recipe I like a really nice California Chardonnay - use the same one in the fondue and then the rest of the bottle is yours, minus the 2 tablespoons.  Enjoy bitches :)

Cannolis

Cannolis

Today I had planned on making my awesome chocolate chip cookies but after grocery shopping, cleaning, making chili and putting up our Christmas tree I was not up to it so my daughters and I decided to make cannolis.  Cannolis are really easy to make especially if you buy the shells ;) (Who has time to make them from scratch!?!?!).  The cream, however, can be made in a few short minutes.  I use mascarpone cheese in mine to make the filling lighter and fluffier.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup mascarpone cheese

1 cup ricotta

2/3 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon Baileys Irish Cream

1 cup chocolate chips

Cannoli shells

Extra powdered sugar and some cinnamon for topping.

Put all ingredients, except chocolate chips and cannoli shells, in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. 

Then stir in chocolate chips.

Chill in fridge for 3 hours.  

Put in pastry bag or plastic bag with corner cut off and squeeze into shells.  

Top with a sprinkle of powdered sugar and cinnamon.

Deelish :)

The filling can also be used as icing for a cake or cupcake or to dip fruit of angelfood cake in.