Showing posts with label Baked Potatoes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Baked Potatoes. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Fast and Easy Potato Lentil Stew



We spent the weekend in Phoenix with J.R.'s sister and her family.  What does this mean?  Well I'll tell you what it means: An empty fridge upon our return.  So when I finally remembered that food is an essential part of functioning around 1 o'clock in the afternoon yesterday, the choices were slim.  And what do you do when choices are slim and you have just finished reading the "Hunger Games" books?  You make a stew.  So I scavenged through the cupboards and found lentils, potatoes, and vegetable stock.  Eureka!

Ingredients:
1 T. oil (I used grape seed oil this time)
1 yellow onion diced small
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 medium potatoes, peeled and medium diced (about 1 centimeter cubed)
4 c. low-sodium vegetable broth
2 cans of lentils, or 3 cups cooked lentils (drained and rinsed)
salt and pepper to taste

So this is really easy: You heat the oil over med-high heat in a pot.  Then add in the onion and potatoes.  Once the onion is softened and translucent, add in the garlic and cook until fragrant.  Pour in the vegetable stock making sure to scrape up any yummy brown bits and reduce heat to med-low.  Let the soup simmer until the potatoes are softened to about potato salad consistency.  Add the lentils in a couple minutes before the potatoes are done just to heat through.  That's it folks.  It is fast, filling, good, good for you, and a great way to stretch a buck.  I ate mine with some delicious toast we had left over from the previous week's whole wheat multigrain bread recipe.

Monday, November 28, 2011

Why I Love Yogurt of the Greek Variety

I love the versatility of greek yogurt; plain nonfat yogurt too.  I use them to replace sour cream and mayonnaise a lot.  And I also love to eat them as intended :)  Here are three recipes that show great ways to use yogurt to replace fattier ingredients.  These are staples in my diet and I know you'll love them.

Baked Potatoes:
Russet potato clean and poked with a fork
Plain nonfat yogurt
Your favorite salsa verde

Place the baked potato in a microwave safe glass bowl with a couple teaspoons of water.  PLace a plate over the bowl and cook on the baked potato setting or for about 5-6 mins.

Top the potato with a couple tablespoons of yogurt and salsa verde, salt and pepper to taste.

This was my favorite meal in college and a great quick goto for dinner or lunch.  Depending on the size of the potato, this meal clocks in around 240 calories.  I don't recommend trying this out with sweet potatoes.  Sweet potatoes and yogurt are not friends as far as I can tell.

Chicken Salad Melt Open-Faced Sandwiches:
1x can of chicken or 1 chicken breast chopped into small pieces or tuna if that's your thing
1 T. dijon mustard
1/4 c. greek yogurt
1 oz. grated cheddar cheese
1 stalk of celery (chopped into small pieces)
Pepper to taste
4 slices of whole wheat bread (plain or toasted)

Mix chicken, mustard, yogurt, cheese, celery, and pepper in a bowl until well combined.  Spoon over slices of bread.  If you have a toaster oven, you can toast these on the highest setting until they get all melty.  I like them cold.  This recipe makes four open-faced sandwiches.

I made this for lunch today, soooo good.  It is a great way to use those packages of canned chicken you buy from Costco for food storage and only costs about 200 calories per sandwich :)  Eat them with your favorite soup or a salad and you have yourself a very fulfilling and super nummy meal.

Yogurt with Granola and Sugar-Free Jam:
1/2 c. Greek Yogurt
1/3 c. granola
1 T. sugar free jam

Use your favorite granola and sugar free jam.  We really like the mango-passion granola from Trader Joe's and pear jam.

The protein in the yogurt makes a great breakfast that will sustain you all the way to lunch for only 189 calories :)

Other Uses:
Replace sour cream with greek/plain yogurt in tacos
Use greek yogurt in mashed potatoes instead of butter and milk