Baked Ziti

Olive oil spray*

1 (14.5 oz.) box fiber-enriched ziti or penne rigate (I use Ronzoni Smart Taste)

1 (15 oz.) container fat-free ricotta cheese

2 large egg whites

8 oz (4 cups) finely shredded reduced-fat mozzarella cheese

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

Salt- to taste

Ground black pepper -to taste

Crushed red pepper flakes- to taste

3 1/2 c. Main Event Marinara Sauce (found on previous post)

or other low-sodium marinara

2 T. grated reduced-fat parmesan cheese

Pre-heat oven to 450. Lightly mist a 13x9x2" ceramic or glass baking dish with the olive oil spray.

Cook the pasta noodles according to the package directions until al dente. Drain.

In a large mixing bowl, mix the ricotta, egg whites, and all but 1 c. of the mozzarella until well combined. Add the garlic powder and season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Stir in the cooked pasta until well combine.

Spread 1 c. of the marinara sauce on the bottom of the prepared dish. Add half of the pasta in an even layer over the sauce. Top the pasta evenly with another 1 c. of sauce. Layer the remaining pasta over the sauce. Spoon the remaining 1 1/2 c. sauce evenly over the top of the pasta, then sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and the Parmesan over the top.

Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake 10 minutes longer, or until the mozzarella is melted. Let stand 5 minutes. Cut into 8 pieces or spoon in to bowls and serve. Makes 8 servings.

*The cookbook recommends not using the canned olive oil spray. I have a pump type sprayer that works great. You can find them at Pampered Chef, and other special cooking stores. You may be able to find one at Bed, Bath, and Beyond (though I have not found luck there).

**My family loved this recipe. It was so easy to make. I'm sure you could add ground turkey or chicken for some extra protein. If you don't like reduced-fat cheese, used the regular kind...it will just add more fat and calories to the dish.

This recipe is from the Biggest Loser Family Cookbook.

Main Event Marinara Sauce

Olive oil spray
1 c. minced yellow or white onion
2 T. minced garlic
28 oz. canned crushed tomatoes
1/4 c. water
2 T. no-salt-added tomato paste
2 tsp. honey
1 T. dried oregano
2 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
Salt- to taste (optional)

Spray a medium nonstick saucepan with the olive oil spray ad place over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until just becoming tender (they should not be brown), 4-6 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and with a wooden spoon stir in the tomatoes, water, tomato paste, honey, oregano, basil, and pepper flakes until well combined. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for at least 1 hour. Season with salt, if needed.

This recipe comes from the Biggest Loser Family Cookbook.

Cappuccino Crinkles

1/3 c. butter
1 c. packed brown sugar
2/3 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 T instant coffee granules
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 egg whites
1/3 c. low-fat vanilla yogurt
1 1/2 c. flour
1/4 c. granulated sugar

Directions:
In a large mixing bowl beat the butter with an electric mixer until softened. Add the brown sugar, cocoa powder, coffee granules, baking soda, and cinnamon. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl as needed. Beat in the egg whites and yogurt until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can. Stir in the remaining flour.

Place the granulated sugar in a small bowl. Drop dough by a teaspoon into sugar and roll into balls. Place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes until edges are firm. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool. Makes about 3 dozen cookies.

*This is a low-fat recipie. I found the batter to be rather difficult to work with. It was a bit sticky.

This recipe is from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book.

Toddler Lunch Organization

When I originally decided to write this blog I wanted to not only include easy recipies, but also some tips from my kitchen.



When my son Brayden started his new daycare/preschool after Thanksgiving I had to get used to providing him with breakfast and lunch every day (previously his in-home daycare took care of it). We leave the house by 6:45am and there really isn't time for breakfast at our house (most days I wake him up, get him dresses, and we leave). For breakfast I rotate between waffles, pancakes, and Kashi cereal bars. I make the waffles and pancakes on the weekends and then reheat them and put them in a thermos to take with us. Cereal bars are for days I'm running late, out of waffles or pancakes, of the thermos didn't get washed the night before.



For lunches I pack a veggie, a fruit, and a sandwich. All these things are cut up into bit-sized pieces. The veggies and fruit I must admit are usually from can. He likes the veggies (namely carrots and beans) from a can better than fresh or frozen, and the fruit I buy is in juice (not syrup). If I have fresh fruit that can be cut up and will not get yucky before lunch I'll sometimes pack that instead. However my desire to pack all the lunches (minus the sandwiches) on Sunday cause me to use canned fruit more times than not. Each day has it's own color container to help me remember which containers have which foods in them (so he doesn't eat the same fruit and veggies two days in a row).



I usually not only pack my son's lunches on Sunday, but I also prep my own. I've been on a daily salad kick for a couple years now (strangely enough I never want to eat it at home...it just never tastes as good). I also pack a sandwich and usually some fruit or fruit/yogurt mixture. I make the salad preparations on Sunday and maybe a couple days worth of fruit and yogurt. I don't have a picture of my lunches, but here's what our fridge looks like on Sunday with Brayden's lunches ready to go for the week.

Parmesan Chicken and Rice Casserole

1 c. chopped onion

2 garlic cloves minced

2- 3 1/2 oz bags boil-in-bag brown rice (cooked)

1/3 c. dry white wine

8 skinless boneless chicken thighs*

1 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme*

1/2 tsp. salt

2 c fat free, less sodium chicken broth

3 Tbsp. whipping cream*

1/3 c. shredded parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 450. Heat large skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion to pan; saute 2 minutes. Add garlic; saute 30 seconds. Remove rice from bags; add to pan. Stir in wine; cook 30 seconds or until liquid almost evaporates. Spoon rice mixture in an even layer into a 9x13 in. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange chicken in a single layer over rice mixture; sprinkle evenly with thyme and salt. Combine broth and cream, stirring well; pour over chicken and rice mixture. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake an additional 5 minutes or until chicken is done.

*When I made this: I used fresh rosemary since I grow it in my garden. I also used 3 chicken breasts instead of the thighs, and I used 2% milk instead of the cream (don't use cream much so didn't want to buy a whole thing for a couple Tbsp.)

This recipe was so easy. I will definitely make it again. I'd like to try it with the thyme sometime, but the rosemary tasted great!

Recipe comes from March 2008 issue of Cooking Light Magazine.

Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze

2 c. flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. sugar
1/4 c. butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 c. mashed bananas
1/4 c. plain yogurt
3 T dark rum
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 c. + 1 T flaked sweetened coconut

Glaze
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 1/2 T fresh lime juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with knife. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk. Place granulated sugar and butter into a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add banana, yogurt, rum, and vanilla; beat until blended. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until moist. Stir in 1/2 c. coconut. Spoon batter into 9 x 5 inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray; sprinkle with 1 tablespoon coconut. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pan. Combine powdered sugar and lime juice, stirring with whisk; drizzle over warm bread.

*The glaze adds a definite citrusy flavor in sharp contrast to the sweetness of the bread. You could easily leave out the lime juice and just mix the powdered sugar with 1 1/2 T water.
**When I made mine, I misread the directions and mixed in the 1 T. coconut with the glaze. That's why the glaze looks a bit "chunky" in the picture. It still tasted great though!

This recipe comes from the September 2007 issue of Cooking Light Magazine.

Rosemary Rolls

7 1/2 T olive oil

3-4 sprigs fresh rosemary

Heat these two ingredients together to a boil. Turn off heat. Cover and let sit for 15 minutes. Remove rosemary from the oil.

4 c. flour*
2 pkg dry yeast

2 T sugar

2 T chopped rosemary

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 1/4 c. warm water

Activate yeast in 1/2 c. warm water. Combine yeast mixture with flour, sugar, rosemary, and salt to make a dough. Add rest of water and oil. Form into a soft dough. Knead until smooth and elastic (at least 5 minutes). Pour into oiled bowl and cover loosely with oiled plastic. Leave in warm place for 1 hour.

Divide dough into 12 pieces and make balls. Place on 2 oiled baking sheets. Cover loosely and let double (15-30 minutes). If desired, glaze tops with beaten egg at this time. Bake 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees. Serve warm with butter.

*I added a bit more flour as I was kneading because I found the dough very sticky and hard to work with.

I do not know the exact source of this recipe. I grow rosemary in my garden, so I was looking for a rosemary bread recipe and this is one I found.