Ingredients:
1 cup water
1 pound fresh asparagus, trimmed
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1½ teaspoon sesame seeds
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
1 teaspoon grated onion
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
¼ cup crumbled blue cheese, optional
Directions:
In a large skillet, bring water to a boil. Add asparagus; cover and boil for 3 minutes. Drain and immediately place asparagus in ice water. Drain and pat dry; set aside
In a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine the sugar, oil, vinegar, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, onion, salt, paprika and Worcestershire sauce; shake well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
In a bowl, combine the asparagus and strawberries. Drizzle with dressing; and toss to coat. Sprinkle with blue cheese if desired.
Ingredients:
½ Cup sweetened shredded coconut
¾ cup plain low-fat yogurt
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
2 Tbsp mango chutney
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp turmeric
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
Course salt and ground pepper
4 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 mango, peeled, seeded and diced
10 oz baby spinach
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°. Spread coconut on a rimmed baking sheet; toast, tossing occasionally, until golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes; cool.
In a medium bowl, whisk yogurt, cilantro, lime juice, chutney, mustard, turmeric, and cayenne; season with salt and pepper. Add chicken and mango, toss. Serve on spinach, sprinkled with coconut.
Ingredients:
2 tsp chili powder
½ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp ground cumin
course salt and ground pepper
1 pound flank steak
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup prepared salsa (I used mild)
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
3 large bunches arugula (about 1/14 lb., thick stems discarded)
2 ounces soft goat cheese
Directions:
Combine chili powder, cumin, oregano and ½ tsp salt into a small bowl. Rub spice mixture evenly over flank steak to coat.
In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add steak; cook until browned on one side, 5-8 minutes. Turn; cook until browned on other side, 5-8 minutes for medium rare (reduce heat if browning too quickly). Remove steak from skillet; let rest at least 5 minutes before slicing.
To slice, use a sharp knife and slice thinly against the grain for the tenderest pieces.
In a medium bowl, whisk together salsa and vinegar; season with salt and pepper. Add arugula; toss to coat with dressing. Divide among four plates; serve with steak, and crumble goat cheese over the top.
Serve with Tomato Avocado Toasts
To make this dish even lighter, use the broiler. Coat the rack with nonstick cooking spray, and cook the steak, turning once, about nine minutes total for medium rare.
Rinse the arugula in cold water. This spicy green grows close to the ground and can be sandy. Pat dry or use a salad spinner to prevent a soggy salad.
Ingredients:
6 c Spring Greens
1 Red Bartlett pear, chopped, skin on
½ c Bleu Cheese
1 C Candied Walnuts
¼ – ½ C bottled Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
Directions:
Toss greens with pears, walnuts, cheese and dressing just before serving.
Arrange onto plates or into bowls.
Garnish with additional pears, cheese and walnuts.
Ingredients:
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1 in cubes
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
Pinch of Kosher salt, TT
½ tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp Allspice
1 tsp paprika
1 bay leaf
2 (15 oz) cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed *(can substitute Navy beans)
4 cups baby spinach, loosely packed
1 (14 oz) can diced tomato
4 cups vegetable broth
1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
Directions:
Add all ingredients, except spinach and olive oil to a slow cooker. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours, or until the vegetables are tender. Add spinach, stir and continue cooking until just wilted, approximately 5 minutes.
Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups pumpkin puree
2 shallots, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups veggie stock
1 cup light coconut milk
2 Tbsp maple syrup or honey
½ tsp each cinnamon and nutmeg
1 tsp salt and rubbed sage
Dash black pepper
GARLIC KALE SESAME TOPPING (optional)
1 cup roughly chopped kale
1 large garlic clove, minced
2 Tbsp sesame seeds
1 Tbsp olive oil
pinch salt
Directions:
To a large saucepan over medium heat add 1 Tbsp olive oil, shallot and garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes, or until slightly browned and translucent. Turn down heat if cooking too quickly.
Add remaining ingredients, including the pumpkin, and bring to a simmer.
Continue cooking over medium-low heat for 5-10 minutes and taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Serve as is or with Kale-Sesame topping.
For the Kale-Sesame topping: In a small skillet over medium heat, dry toast sesame seeds for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently until slightly golden brown. Be careful as they can burn quickly. Remove from pan and set aside.
To the still hot pan, add olive oil and garlic and sauté until golden brown – about 2 minutes. Add kale and toss, then add a pinch of salt and cover to steam. Cook for another few minutes until kale is wilted and then add sesame seeds back in. Toss to coat and set aside for topping soup.
Recipe serves 3-4. Leftovers keep in the fridge for up to a few days, and in the freezer for up to a month or more.
Ingredients:
3 Italian turkey sausage links (4 ounces each), casing removed
1 medium onion, chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 cans (14 ½ ounces each) reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 ¾ cups water
1 can (14-1/2 ounces each) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 package (9 ounces) refrigerated cheese tortellini
1 package (6 ounces) fresh baby spinach, coarsely chopped
2 ¼ teaspoons minced fresh basil or ¾ teaspoon dried basil
¼ teaspoon pepper
Dash crushed red pepper flakes
Shredded parmesan cheese, optional
Directions:
Crumble sausage into large skillet, add onion.
Cook and stir over medium heat until meat is no longer pink.
Add garlic, cook 1 minute longer. Stir in the broth, water and tomatoes. Bring to a boil.
Add tortellini, return to boil. Cook for 7-9 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally.
Reduce heat, add the spinach, basil, pepper and pepper flakes.
Cook 2-3 minutes longer or until spinach is wilted.
Serve with cheese if desired.
Yield:6 servings (2 quarts).
Ingredients:
1 lb shredded, cooked chicken
1 (15 oz) can whole peeled tomatoes, mashed
1 (10 oz) can enchilada sauce
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (4 oz) can chopped green chile peppers
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups water
1 (14.5 oz) can chicken broth
1 t cumin
1 t chile powder
1 t salt
¼ t black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 (10 oz) package frozen corn
1 T chopped cilantro
Directions:
Place chicken, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, onion, green chiles, and garlic into a slow cooker.
Pour in water, and chicken broth, season with cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, and bay leaf.
Stir in corn and cilantro.
Cover, and cook on low setting for 6 to 8 hours, or on high setting for 3 to 4 hours.
Serve with tortilla chips if desired.
Ingredients:
1 cup chopped onion
½ cup chopped green bell pepper
½ cup chopped yellow bell pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 pound ground turkey
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 cups pumpkin puree
2 cups chicken stock
1 ½ Tablespoons chili powder
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 dash salt
½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
½ cup sour cream
Directions:
Brown turkey in large skillet over medium heat.
Add the onion, green bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, and garlic. Cook 5 minutes.
Add tomatoes to onion-meat mixture. Add pumpkin and stock.
Season with chili powder, pepper, and salt.
Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 20 minutes.
Serve topped with cheddar cheese and sour cream.
Ingredients:
1 PKG. (9 OZ) Refrigerated cheese tortellini
2 cans (10 oz each) condensed tomato soup, undiluted
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups 2% milk
2 cups half and half cream
½ cup chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. dried basil
½ tsp. salt
½ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Directions:
Cook tortellini according to package directions
Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, combine soup, broth, milk, cream, tomatoes and seasonings.
Heat through, stirring frequently.
Drain tortellini; carefully add to soup.
Stir in cheese.
Sprinkle each serving with additional cheese if desired.
