Month / February 2015

by susanb181

Green Beans with Garlic and Almonds

greenbeans

The delicious green bean combination.

I confess–I use frozen french green beans from Trader Joe’s for this dish. I’ve tried it with fresh Blue Lake green beans as well as other kinds of fresh and frozen green beans and have not found anything better than these. They are tender, tasty and easy to cook. Try them yourself and see what you think.

The ingredients are pretty basic, but as always, using really good olive oil, (such as the oil from the New Ben Lomond Olive Oil Company–cool bottle too), fresh garlic (not garlic powder or salt), and toasting the sliced almonds make the difference. My son-in-law Mike swears they’re the best green beans he’s ever had and requests them whenever we’re together for a home-cooked dinner.

These beans are a great complement to my grandmother’s meatloaf–coming soon!

Green Beans with Garlic and Sliced Almonds

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 bag frozen green beans (Trader Joe’s frozen french green beans)
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 3-4 Tbsp. Olive oil
  • 1/3–to 1/2 cup sliced almonds
  • 2-4 cloves garlic, chopped fine
  • lemon zest to taste
  • Optional: 1-2 slices chopped crisply fried bacon
  • Salt free seasoning/pepper to taste

TO DO:

1. Preheat large saute pan.

2. Add frozen green beans and water; bring to a boil.

3. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer until tender; approx. 8 minutes (eat a bean to test for doneness)

4. Remove beans from pan to a bowl. Heat 2 Tbsp. olive oil; add garlic and saute just until brown (don’t overcook or burn). Remove from pan and add to beans.

5. Heat remaining olive oil; add almonds and toast until light brown.

6. Add beans and garlic back into pan; toss and heat  Toss in bacon if you like.

(Of course, bacon is delicious, but makes this more a bacon-flavored dish.  I prefer it without.)

7. Add spices and seasonings to taste.

8. Enjoy!

tjsgreenbeans

Frozen french green beans from TJ’s

oliveoilgarlicalmalmonds

The good ingredients–olive oil, fresh garlic, sliced almonds

choppinggarlic

Chopping garlic–not my best skill. I hope to improve.

greenbeans

delicious green beans!

eatinggreenbean2

Testing for tenderness.

Eatinggreenbean1

Yes! They are delicious!

www.type2delicious.com

Advertisement
by Maggie

Steamed Veggies / Casserole (Double Duty)

image

A delicious dish Rick introduced me too is a compilation of vegetables, brown rice and cheese, which we first serve as fresh steamed veggies and rice and then bake leftovers into a casserole. As usual, amounts and choices are arbitrary – these are what we like. For the casserole we actually kind of throw in whatever we have left over; including once a few sweet potato fries.
Dish 1:
STEAMED VEGGIES, BROWN RICE and CHEESE
INGREDIENTS:
  • Cauliflower 1 whole, broken into flowerets
  • Broccoli (1-2 bunches), peeled stalk and broken into flowerets and 1/2 ” stalk pieces
  • Red or yellow pepper (1-2); I confess that I’m not a green pepper fan, but go ahead and add if you are.
  • Zucchini and yellow squash, (4-5) chopped into 1/2 ” pieces
  • Carrots (3-4) chopped 1/2″ pieces
  • Mushrooms (1/2 lb.) Cremini are our go-to for this. Sliced.
  • 1 yellow onion chopped
  • Brown rice (I like Lundberg wild and brown rice mix)
  • Soy Jack cheese and goat cheese for grating (would be good with other cheese such as cow’s milk cheddar or Gouda, but Rick doesn’t eat dairy). We like Dayna, a brand of soy cheese and the Midnight Moon, our favorite goat grating cheese from Cypress Grove Creamery.*

TO DO:

  1. Cook the rice according to package directions, approx. 45-50 minutes
  2. In a large pot first steam the peppers, carrots and broccoli for approx. 10 -12 minutes, til they are tender but still firm
  3. Remove the first batch of vegetables into a large bowl
  4. Add the cauliflower, mushrooms and onions to the steamer. Steam for 10 minutes
  5. Add the zucchini and yellow squash and steam an additional 10 minutes
  6. Add the first group of steamed veggies back to the mix
  7. Serve veggies over rice in large bowls
  8. Grate the cheeses on each serving
  9. Optional; serve with your favorite Thai peanut sauce, Siracha, soy or Tamari sauce

* www.cypressgrovechevre.com

Dish 2:
VEGGIE CASSEROLE
INGREDIENTS:
    • You guessed it- leftover veggies (plan to have them)
    • Leftover rice–(plan again)
    • 2 large eggs, beaten
    • Optional; add chopped chicken apple sausages
    • Herbs such as Herbs de Provence, Thyme or Marjoram; (I don’t recommend Rosemary or Basil, as their strong flavor will overwhelm this subtle tasting dish)
    • 1/2 lb soy Jack cheese, regular cheddar, Gouda, Swiss, etc.; (use your favorite or a mix for flavor variation) shredded
    • Cheese for grating

TO DO:

  1. Spray olive oil on a 9×13 casserole dish (I use Pyrex or Corning Ware)
  2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees
  3. Mix veggies and rice, in a large bowl
  4. Mix in the eggs
  5. Mix in the cheese
  6. Mix in optional sausages
  7. Spread evenly onto the casserole dish
  8. Grate cheese on top ( Parmesan, Midnight Moon, your choice)
  9. Bake for 40-45 minutes until hot and bubbly and brown on top

I serve both dishes with a green salad, usually with an olive oil/lemon vinaigrette; often including a small head of crushed garlic in the dressing; still subtle but tangy.

by Maggie

Baked Halibut

diabetes-friendly-baked-halibut

Baked Halibut

 

This recipe goes great with our sauteed spicy pumpkin and kale with bacon.

After our holidays with a surfeit of rich, heavy food; (ok–delicious, and still basically low carb), including a traditional roast turkey, leg of lamb, and of course lots of vegetable sides, plus oysters Rockefeller, as well as raw, we’re ready for some lighter fare, especially fish.

Fish is great for lots of reasons and halibut is one of my favorites; though not the fattiest of fish it’s still highly recommended for Omega-3 advantages, low calories/low cholesterol and overall deliciousness. (Wild, line caught halibut is recommended due to lower Mercury content.*)

Baked Halibut in a lemon/mustard/caper sauce combined with kale sautéed with bacon and onion and sautéed pre-baked sugar pie pumpkin makes a scrumptious low carb meal.

In this post I’ll give you the halibut recipe.

In subsequent posts I’ll share the other recipes we enjoyed for this dinner.

Please follow my blog to make sure you get them too!

Baked Halibut

INGREDIENTS

  • 3/4 lb. halibut, preferably wild, line caught *http://seafood.edf.org/halibut#bmb=1
  • 2-3 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 1/2 cup white wine (something dry like Sauvignon Blanc)
  • 2-3 Tbsp. Dijon-type mustard
  • Capers to taste (I love them so I use about 1/3-1/2 C)
  • Salt-free seasoning, pepper; or use salt if you can
  • 1-2 tsp. lemon juice plus grated rind (yellow only as the white is bitter)
  • Paprika to dust on top before serving

TO DO:

1. preheat oven to 400.

2. In a Pyrex glass or Corningware pan (I used Pyrex 9×13 size) lay halibut fillets or steaks on a single layer on a thin layer of olive oil ( approx. 1Tbsp.).

3. Mix/wisk together remaining olive oil, mustard, white wine, lemon/rind and seasonings.

4. Spread sauce over fish.

5. Sprinkle 1/2 of the capers on top.

6. Bake 10-15 minutes depending on thickness of fish;(we like our fish moist and just a tad underdone- cook yours how you like it).

7. Sprinkle remaing capers and dust with paprika.

Serve with sautéed kale, pumpkin, and, as we usually have, a crisp green salad with a tart, lemony vinaigrette.

 

baked-halibut-kale-pumpkin-low-carb

All together great meal!

Enjoy!

www.type2delicious.com

by susanb181

Vietnamese-Style Stir Fry

stirfry

 

This is a great way to combine a bounty of fresh in-season veggies, tofu for protein and lots of flavor. My version includes Vietnamese or Thai fish sauce which we love; (we visited Vietnam a few years ago and it remains a special place in my heart and mind).

Yes, there’s quite a bit of prep, but as I’ve mentioned in previous posts, it’s worth it. This stir fry is very tasty, healthy and filled with lots of interesting flavors and colors. And with most everything cooked in the wok–at least doing the dishes isn’t too bad! (Ok, there’s one more pan for browning the tofu – I use a non-stick AllClad so it’s easy to clean), and another pot if you cook brown rice as we do to serve with this–again, Rick limits his serving to approx. 1/2 cup.

Tasty Vietnamese-Style Stir Fry

INGREDIENTS

  • 2-3 zucchinis, sliced into 1″ inch pieces (add 1-2 yellow squash if you like)
  • 1 large head broccoli, chopped into flowerets
  • 3-4 carrots, sliced  into 1″ pieces
  • 2 red and/or yellow/orange peppers, sliced into 1″ pieces (add green if you like them–I don’t)
  • 1-2 large onions, chopped into med. size (not too finely chopped)
  • 1 cup mushrooms (we use Cremini), chopped into med. size pieces
  • 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped fine
  • 2-3 Tbsp. Safflower or other high heat oil
  • 1 large cube firm or extra firm tofu (slicing instructions in next section)
  • Optional: leftover cooked chicken, sliced into 1″ cubes
  • Sauce:
  • 1-2 Tbsp. fish sauce–Thai or Vietnamese
  • 1-2 Tbsp. reduced sodium soy sauce or Tamari
  • 2 Tbsp. mirin (Japanese rice wine) or use any crisp white wine
  • 2 Tbsp. water
  • 2-3 Tbsp. lime juice
  • Salt free seasoning/pepper to taste

TO DO: (note: one secret to successful stir frying is to have all pieces approx. the same size–so they cook evenly.)

1. Mix and reserve sauce ingredients in a small bowl.

2. Cut the tofu cube into three or four sections–I cut them crosswise–so that each piece is square. Marinate the tofu sections in approx. 1/2 of the sauce mixture for 10 minutes.

3. Add 1 Tbsp. of oil to a frying pan; on medium high heat, brown the tofu sections for 4 minutes on each side. Remove from pan; chop into 1″ pieces and reserve.

4. Heat the wok on high. When a drop of water sizzles, add remaining oil.

5. Add carrots, broccoli and peppers to the wok–stir fry (I use cooking chopsticks or a flat wooden spatula–sometimes both.) When somewhat tender–about 5-6 minutes–remove from the wok into a bowl.

6. Add onions, mushrooms, zucchinis to wok.  Stir fry these veggies for approx. 4 minutes.

7. Add tofu and garlic to mushrooms and zucchinis, (and cooked chicken if using). Stir fry, making sure not to burn the garlic (adjust the heat as needed).

8. Add back the carrots, peppers and broccoli; add sauce remaining in bowl as well as any used to marinate and saute the tofu. Stir fry 2-3 minutes on high ’til everything is well mixed and hot!

9. Serve with brown or wild mix rice; (we love Lundberg’s wild rice mixes*–there are several.)

*www.lundberg.com

Enjoy!

www.type2delicious.com