Wasabi Whitefish

100g whitefish

1 T spicy mustard

1/2-1 t wasabi powder (the more you add the spicier it will be)

1/2 t ginger

1. In small dish, combine spicy mustard and wasabi powder. Mix in ginger.
   
2. Add fish to dish and coat.
   
3. Let stand for 15-30 mins.
   
4. Grill 4-5 mins on the George Foreman until fish flakes. Or you can broil for 5-10 mins depending on thickness of fish.

French Onion Soup

1 onion, thinly sliced

2 c beef broth

3-4 cloves minced garlic

1/2 t granulated sugar substitute

1/4 t black pepper

1. Preheat non-stick saucepan over MED heat.
   
2. Place onions and garlic in pan and cook uncovered 5-10 mins.
   
3. Stir in granulated sugar substitute
   
4. Cook 10-15 mins until onions are carmelized.
   
5. Add beef broth & bring to boil.
   
6. Reduce heat to simmer, cover, and cook 20 mins.
   
7. Add black pepper.
   
8. Serve.

TIP: This dish makes quite a bit of soup so I'll usually split it into two servings. Then I will eat one with lunch, and another as a late-afternoon/evening snack.

Biz's Famous Creole Catfish

There have been a few menu items that I've seen Biz post on her blog that I wanted to find out how she made them. With her permission, I'll be posting a few of those over the weekend. I tried this one tonight and it was SO good. The fish just falls apart in your mouth. Enjoy!

• 100g catfish (or any whitefish)
  
• 1 chopped tomato
  
• 1/2 c water
  
• 1 t minced onion
  
• 1-2 t cajun seasoning

1. Preheat pan over MED-HI heat.
   
2. Cut fish into bite size pieces.
   
3. Place fish in ziplock bag. Add minced onion & cajun seasoning to coat.
   
4. Pan fry coated fish in pan with water.
   
5. Cook 3-4 mins. If all the water cooks off, add more as needed.
   
6. Add chopped tomato & stir fry for another 5-10 mins until tomatoes become tender and dish becomes more soupy.

Down. Set. Chili!

100g ground steak

1 tomato

1/2 c water or broth

3-4 cloves minced garlic

Seasonings (to taste):

1/2 t onion powder

1/2 t oregano

1/4 t cumin

1/4 t black pepper

1/4 t cayenne

1/4 t basil

1/4 t thyme

1. Preheat pan over MED heat.
   
2. Add minced garlic and 1 T of the water/broth to pan.
   
3. Saute 2-3 mins. Be sure not to burn the garlic. Add more water/broth as necessary.
   
4. Increase heat to MED-HI.
   
5. Add ground steak and saute until brown - about 5 mins.
   
6. Add all seasonings and cook an additional 3 mins. Continue to add more water/broth as necessary.
   
7. While that is cooking dice 1/2 of tomato and place other 1/2 in food processor or blender to puree.
   
8. Mix in tomatoes, puree, and rest of broth.
   
9. Turn heat down to MED-LO and simmer until it reaches desired consistency.

TIP: I usually mix all my spices together in a small bowl so I can add them all at once.

This can be prepared in advance and frozen. I'll make up batches of this and freeze into individual portions. Then I take it out the night before I'm ready to serve. The kids love taking this for school lunches as well.

Teriyaki Fish

100g whitefish

2 T Bragg Liquid Aminos

1 T rice vinegar (be sure to read the ingredients so that it includes NO sugar)

2 cloves minced garlic

1 t ginger

1. Mix Bragg Liquid Aminos, rice vinegar, garlic, and ginger in a ziplock bag or dish with lid.
   
2. Place whitefish in marinade and coat.
   
3. Seal and refrigerate for 30 mins - 1 hr, turning once.
   
4. Discard marinade and pat fish slightly dry with a papertowel.
   
5. Grill 3-4 mins on the George Foreman until fish flakes. Or you can broil for 5-10 mins depending on thickness of fish.

TIP: I usually marinate the fish in a ziplock bag. That way I can simply flip the bag over in the refrigerator one or two times while marinating. When it's finished marinating, I simply cut off one corner of the bag and drain out the marinade and then it's much easier to pull the fish out & pat it slightly dry.

Pumpkin Mocha

It's that time of year when I'm yearning to taste that pumpkiny goodness. Here's something that gets me through the day when I'm thinking about wanting to bake a fresh pumpkin pie.

coffee

1 T milk

1/2 t pumpkin pie spice (to taste)

dark chocolate or milk chocolate stevia (to taste)

1. Place all ingredients in blender and blend until frothy. Serve immediately.

TIP: You can also add ice to blender to make this a pumpkin mocha frappucino.

NOTE: This includes your daily allowance of milk.

Mmm Mmm Meatballs

100g steak (ground into hamburger)

1 grissini (ground into powder)

1 T milk

parsley

onion powder

basil

oregano

garlic

salt

pepper

1. Preheat oven to 425.
   
2. In bowl, combine all ingredients.
   
3. Form into 1" meatballs (makes about 6-7).
   
4. Place in baking dish or non-stick baking sheet and cook 10 minutes turning halfway through cooking time.

TIP: I usually use a glass baking dish to make these as they seem to want to stick less. Also, if you want to brown them more after cooking, you can broil them for 1-2 mins each side.

These also can be frozen in a freezer bag and then warmed up before serving. Makes a great quick meal!

Top with marinara sauce.



P.S. The kids named this one. Definitely a family pleaser!

Marinara Sauce

tomato

water

basil

parsley

onion powder

garlic (fresh minced)

salt

pepper

1. Fill small saucepan with a few cups of water & bring to boil.
   
2. Score skin of tomato in a few places with serrated knife.
   
3. Blanch tomato in the boiling water for 1-2 mins.
   
4. Immediately transfer tomato to ice water to cool and discard boiling water.
   
5. Remove skin of tomato and discard skin.
   
6. Preheat small non-stick saucepan over MED-HI heat.
   
7. If want chunky sauce, crush tomato with your hands in saucepan (discard stem). If you prefer smoother sauce, puree tomato in blender or food processor then add to pan.
   
8. Add garlic, onion powder, salt, pepper.
   
9. Bring to low boil, then immediately reduce heat to low, cover & simmer for 15 mins, stirring often to keep tomato from sticking.
   
10. Turn heat up to MED.
    
11. Add parsley, more garlic, and basil.
    
12. Cook 5-10 more minutes, stirring constantly. While cooking, start adding water 1T at a time until it reaches your desired consistency. I usually end up adding 3-4T of water.

NOTE: Add any spices that you prefer to this. I don't really measure them, I just toss in a bit of each.

Shrimp Fried "Rice"

100g shrimp

200g cabbage

4 T homemade broth

1/2 t onion powder

1/2 t garlic powder (or use fresh minced, if available)

1 1/2 t Bragg Liquid Aminos

black pepper (to taste)

red pepper flakes (optional)

1. Preheat pan over MED-HI heat.
   
2. Finely shred cabbage in food processor.
   
3. Add cabbage, 2 T broth, and 1/2 t Bragg Liquid Aminos to pan.
   
4. Stir fry for 2-3 minutes just until slightly tender.
   
5. Remove cabbage and place on serving dish. Sprinkle with fresh black pepper.
   
6. Turn heat down to MED.
   
7. Add shrimp, 2 T broth, onion powder, garlic, and 1 t Bragg Liquid Aminos.
   
8. Stir fry shrimp until they curl up & turn pink.
   
9. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes. (optional)
   
10. Serve immediately over cabbage.

TIP: You can alter the amount of broth and Bragg Liquid Aminos to your personal taste. You can also use water instead of broth. It's used mainly to keep the food from completely sticking while stir-frying. You may find you can do without the water/broth totally.

Don't expect the cabbage to taste like rice. But it has a great crunch and tenderness all at the same time, and goes really great with the shrimp. Really filling and tasty. Enjoy!

Krabby Patties (Crab Cakes)

100g crab meat

1 grissini (ground into powder)

1 t parsley

1/2 t tarragon

1/2 t paprika

1/2 t lemon juice

1/4 t cayenne

1/4 t white pepper

1/4 t dry mustard

1/4 t seafood seasoning (optional)

1. Grind grissini into powder and place into small dish.
   
2. In bowl, combine crab meat and remaining ingredients. Mix well & form into patties.
   
3. Coat each side of patty with grissini powder.
   
4. Brown in non-stick skillet over MED heat for 3 mins each side, or place on George Foreman for 4-5 mins.
   
5. Serve immediately.

TIP: I went through a few rounds of these having trouble keeping them from falling apart. Even though they were still very yummy, I wanted to get a result of them staying together. I found that it helps to squeeze out any excess moisture from crab before adding seasonings and keeping some of the crab in bigger chunks while breaking it apart. Also, you can add some of the grissini powder to the crab mixture before forming patties as this helps it stick together if your crab is still very moist. If I'm making these ahead of time, I will mix the patties and set them in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours or overnight as this helps the patties set.

My entire family now enjoys these quite often as they are light and flavorful. When making several for the entire family, I will simply place them on a non-stick baking sheet @ 350 for 10-15 mins. Then broil for 1-2 mins each side to brown.

These make a great salad topper as well.

Breaded Chicken Cutlets

100g chicken

1 grissini (ground into powder)

1/2 c homemade chicken broth

1/4 t garlic powder

1/4 t paprika

1/4 t poultry seasoning (optional)

1/4 t cayenne (use less if you want them less spicy)

salt/pepper to taste

1. Preheat pan over MED heat.
   
2. In small dish, combine grissini powder, garlic powder, paprika, poultry seasoning, cayenne, and salt/pepper. (You could also use ziplock bag.)
   
3. Add chicken to seasonings and fully coat.
   
4. Add half of broth and chicken to pan.
   
5. Cook for approx. 3-4 mins each side depending on thickness of chicken. Keep adding more broth as it cooks off.
   
6. Serve immediately.