Quick Cheese Omelet

I have been wanting to cut back on meat while still maintaining a high level of protein in my diet. I've also gotten tired of spending so much time preparing lunch. I just found a solution to both of these problems. This is a pretty quick way to prepare a serving (or more, if you scale up the ingredients) of a big dose of delicious protein. I generally throw together a big salad and grab some pieces of fruit, so here's the protein (and some fat) to balance it out.

This omelet is remarkably good for how easy and healthy* it is.  You could add sauteed (onions, garlic, zucchini, etc etc) and it would no doubt be even more delicious, but then it would no longer be in the super-easy category. I was going for something with lots of protein that really just involves throwing a few things together, and throwing it in the oven.

* "healthy" certainly means different things to different people. I'm currently shooting for a zone/paleo diet, preferably with organic, free-range ingredients: minimize grains, sugars, and starchy foods; get an equal balance of fat, carbs, protein (or extra protein) at each meal. I have no problem with fat, unless it's trans fat.

Ingredients
2 lg free-range eggs
1 oz cheese, chopped into small pieces (1 oz = the size of a processed cheese slice) (I used fontina slices from TJ's- very creamy)
~ 2/3 c. fat-free cottage cheese
1-2 T crumbled goat cheese
a little butter, to grease the pan
seasoning: I've used a spice blend with mustard seed, onion, garlic, paprika, chili powder; a tbsp of grainy mustard was also good, as well as a coriander... there is definitely room for experimentation with spices here.


Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350. Grease a small oven-safe dish (I used a round, flat pyrex dish about 5" across)
Crack eggs into medium bowl. Whisk until blended.
Stir in cottage cheese and fontina (or other chopped cheese), as well as salt and pepper, and grainy mustard, if using.
Pour egg mix into dish. Sprinkle goat cheese on top, followed by spices (red spices look especially nice).
Bake for ~20 min or just until set. You can broil for the last min to get a nice golden brown top if desired. Let cool for a few min and serve; or let cool entirely, and pack for lunch!

Nutrition Info:
408 calories
22.5 g fat
5 g carbs
40 g protein

Paleo Hot Chocolate

this could also be called:
Banana-Mint Hot Chocolate

Arnie and I have been experimenting with cutting back on sugar and grains, and we came up with this incredible hot chocolate recipe one night.  It's thicker and creamier than regular hot chocolate, thanks to the coconut milk, almond milk, and the pureed banana.  Between the understated sweetness, the hint of cool mint, and the richness of the chocolate and the coconut milk, this is pretty darn good.


Ingredients (serves 4)

2 very ripe bananas- they should have brown spots.
      (using un-ripe bananas results in a weird, chunky texture and no sweetness!)
2 oz cocoa mass, cocoa powder, or unsweetened baking chocolate
1/2 can coconut milk
3 c unsweetened almond milk (I used Blue Diamond brand, comes in a carton)
~4 drops mint extract

Instructions:
Heat the almond milk over medium-low, stirring.
Add the bananas, cut into pieces, and the chocolate.
Blend with an immersion blender.
Add coconut milk.
Ready when heated; stir in the mint extract and serve.

I am a fan of the subtle banana texture, but if this bothers you, you could probably blend the bananas really well beforehand in a standard blender or something.

Mango Guacamole

What to do with all the ripe mangos and avocados suddenly flooding the grocery store?
Mango Guacamole, of course.

Ingredients
3 ripe avocados
2 very ripe and juicy mangos (it's not nearly as good with mangos that are less ripe)
2-3 T chopped cilantro
juice from 1 large lime
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed
2-3 T red onion, finely chopped
salt to taste (plenty)

Instructions 
Combine avocado and mango in a bowl; mash with a potato masher.
Mix in with the rest of the ingredients and enjoy with tortilla chips, plantain chips, etc.

P.S. Anna made this bowl and it is the colors of an avocado; I love it! I will try to feature a better picture of it in a future post.

Almond/Pistachio-Crusted Chicken

I adapted this from here. The almond butter marinade helps the chicken retain flavor and juiciness, and the nuts add great flavor and texture.

Ingredients:
1.5 lb chicken tenders
1 lb chicken thighs
1/2 cup creamy almond butter
2 T soy sauce
2 T honey
1 T grated lemon rind
1 T fresh lemon juice
1/2 c roasted unsalted almonds
1/4 c roasted unsalted pistachios
1/2 c almond meal (ground almonds) (original recipe called for breadcrumbs)
2-3 cloves garlic
1 t salt
1/4 t ground red pepper

Instructions:

• Combine almond butter and next 4 ingredients in a bowl. Microwave a little to mix. This will be used to coat the chicken, so if it seems too thick, add just enough water (on the order of 1 tsp) to thin it.
• Put chicken pieces in a large ziplock bag with the sauce; make sure each piece is coated. Refrigerate for 30 min.
• Combine the nuts and garlic in a food processor; process until the nuts are the desired size for coating the chicken (maybe 1/4 cm diameter). (Don't process too much as you'll lose the nutty texture, but don't leave the pieces so big that they'll fall off.) Mix in the rest of the ingredients.
• Preheat oven to 375.  Line baking pans with aluminum foil and place lightly greased wire racks on top. 
• Dip chicken pieces in nut mixture and place on the wire racks.
• Bake until cooked through; 25-30 min.

P.S. Some delicious substitutions I've tried: extra-firm tofu in place of chicken, and toasted pecans, or of course peanuts, for the almonds and pistachios.

Cilantro Lemon Shrimp

A simple and tasty dinner, excluding the peeling and deveining of the shrimp (thanks, Jym!)

INGREDIENTS:
1.5 pounds shrimp, peeled & deveined
2 tsp brown sugar
2 T lemon juice
3 T cilantro, chopped
1 T balsamic
2 T whiskey hot sauce

HERE'S WHAT YOU DO:
Heat oil over high heat. Cook shrimp in oil until done. Turn heat down to low.

Mix remaining ingredients, season with salt & pepper. Pour over shrimp, stir to coat.

Serve over rice.

Spinach Artichoke Dip

I made an artichoke dip around Christmas, that was super healthy. The recipe came from the 101 cookbooks blog, (which I highly recommend checking out, if you haven't already). She replaces the mayonnaise and sour cream with tofu and greek yogurt. I like that the recipe was so healthy, but I wanted to work in some cream cheese, and, in the 101 recipe you puree the artichokes, and I wanted some nice big pieces or artichoke heart. So last weekend when I came across a recipe for artichoke dip with spinach and cream cheese, I decided it was time to try a new recipe, by combining the two.

INGREDIENTS:
4 oz. tofu
5-oz. neufchatel cheese
2/3 C greek yogurt
1/3 C parmesan, shredded + some for top
1/3 C sharp cheddar, shredded
3 garlic cloves, minced
5 C spinach
3 shallots, minced
2 cans artichoke hearts, drained & chopped

HERE'S WHAT YOU DO:
Food process the tofu and cream cheese.

Saute the shallots, garlic over medium heat in a little oil. Stir in spinach, keep over heat until it wilts. Drain liquid from this mixture well. 

Combine tofu & cream cheese, spinach mix, artichokes, cheeses, and yogurt. Spoon into baking dish and top with parm. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes, then broil to brown.

Apple cheddar ham omelet

 

 This omelet was loosely inspired by a Spanish omelet, but I didn't have potatoes, so I used apples instead, and added some ham and cheese and fresh basil.  The sweetness of the apples with the saltiness of the ham and sharp cheddar are a delicious combo.

Ingredients

1 large onion, diced

~3 T olive oil

8 eggs

2 small apples, chopped or sliced thin (I used fuji; a little sweetness is good)

chopped fresh basil (3-4 T)

some chopped ham, as much as you want in there

1 c shredded sharp white cheddar

S + P to taste

Heat the oil in a large cast iron skillet (12") (you might want to scale down the ingredients if using a smaller one). saute the onions for ~3 minutes on medium heat. Add the apples, and saute both until lightly browned. 

Whisk the eggs in a large bowl, and mix in the cheese, ham, half the basil, S + P, apples and onions.

[Preheat oven to 350]

Make sure the skillet is heated to medium heat (with some oil or a little bacon grease if you have it), then pour the egg mixture in and immediately turn the heat to low; cook for five minutes. 

Move it to the oven and bake until set and lightly browned; ~10 min.

If it looks like it's set but not browned, broil to finish for a minute or two.

Garnish with basil and serve hot.