Spinach Pesto

2 cups packed spinach
1 cup loosely packed parsley
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
1/4 cup ground almonds

Process all in food processor.

Stuffed Swiss Chard

From Cooking with Bon Appétit Vegetables Cookbook

12 to 15 large Swiss chard leaves

5 tablespoons oil

1 small onion

2 garlic gloves,minced

1/3 cup minced parsley

1 cup finely shredded cabbage

1 cup chopped mushrooms

2 cups, cooked brown rice

1 egg, beaten

1 teaspoons dried oregano

salt and pepper

1 small onion, thinly sliced

1/4 cup minced parsley

1 32-ounce can tomato juice

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 1/2 cups feta cheese, crumbled (optional)

Place chard in steamer over medium heat and cook only until limp enough to be rolled; set aside.

Heat 3 tablespoons oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chopped onion, garlic, and parsley and saute until onion is softened. Stir in cabbage and mushrooms and saute 3 to 4 minutes more. Mix in rice, egg and oregano, salt and pepper to taste.

Place 3 to 4 tablespoons of rice mixture in center of each leaf and roll envelope style, tucking in ends; set aside.

Add remaining oil to 2- to 3-quart saucepan. Place over medium-high heat, add onion, parsley and saute until onion is softened. Stir in tomato juice and cinnamon. Carefully lay stuffed leaves seam side down in sauce. Cover and simmer 20 minutes. Transfer to serving bowl and sprinkle with feta.

Potato, Leek and Ham Soup

1 leek, thinly sliced

4 red potatoes, chopped but not peeled

1 cup diced ham

4 cups chicken broth

½ teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon tumeric

Combine all in slow cooker and cook for 8 hours or until potatoes are tender.

Curried Leek , Lentil and Kale Stew

5 ½ cups water

2 tablespoons chicken boulion

1 leek thinly sliced

4 leaves kale, sliced into ribbons, stems removed

2 carrots, peeled and sliced

2 cups brown lentils

2 cloves garlic minced

1 teaspoon curry powder

Combine all in a slow cooker. Cook on low for about 8 hours.

Thai Cucumber Salad with Roasted Peanuts

The complete Thai Cucumber Salad with Roasted Peanuts recipe from Epicurious.

My easy Thai Cucumber Salad with Roasted Peanuts:

1 large cucumber chopped

1 glove of garlic crushed

1 large sprig of flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Dressing:

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 ½ tablespoons lime juice

dash sugar

chopped peanuts

Combine salad ingredients in bowl. Combine dressing ingredients and toss with salad. Topped with chopped peanuts.

Broccoli, Zucchini, Pepper Lasagna

Creamy White Sauce:
4 cups skim milk
2 tablespoons cornstarch
¼ teaspoons nutmeg

Combine all and bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium and cook 7 – 10 minutes until thickened.

From Betty Crocker’s New Choices Cookbook

1 head of broccoli
1 large zucchini
1 bell pepper (I used a white one)
1 clove of garlic
2 cups non-fat ricotta
1 egg
1/2 cup mozzarella or more to taste
12 no boil lasagna noodles


Cook vegetables and garlic until tender. Meanwhile make white sauce and combine ricotta with egg.

I used a 9 x 13 pan.

Pour about ½ cup sauce on the bottom of pan. Layer 4 noodles crosswise and top with half vegetable mixture, half ricotta, and half cheese. Top with next layer of noodles, ½ cup of sauce, vegetables, and ricotta, but not cheese. Top with last 4 noodles, rest of sauce and cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes until hot and bubbly and noodles are done. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting. 6 servings.

Adapted from Betty Crocker's New Choices Cookbook

Moussaka

1 eggplant
20 ounces ground turkey
1 onion finely chopped
1 clove of garlic
1 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes, drained
1 tablespoon tomato sauce
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Dash of ground allspice


-Cut eggplant into 1-centimeter slices and place in colander over large bowl, sprinkled with generous amount of salt. Let sit for 20 minutes to draw out juices.
-Brown the garlic, onion and turkey until cooked through. Drain any liquid.
-Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, white wine, cinnamon, and allspice. Combine all and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Rinse the eggplant and pat dry. Fry in batches in a pan coated with non-fat cooking spray, a few minutes on each side until soft.
- Add meat mixture to pan and top with eggplant. Depending on size of eggplant, you may want to alternate layers of meat and eggplant, if the eggplant won’t all fit in single layer.

I froze at this point and added the following before I baked it in December:

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup flour

2 1/2 cups skim milk

pinch of ground nutmeg

1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

To make, melt the butter and blend with the flour. Gradually add the milk and whisk, stirring constantly over low heat until the milk starts to boil and thicken. The sauce should be very thick. Remove from the heat, stir in one tablespoon of the Parmesan. Pour over moussaka and top with remaining Parmesan. Bake for about an hour at 350 degrees, or until cheese is golden brown and the moussaka is heated through.

Adapted from moussaka recipes in The Essential Mediterranean Cookbook and a recipe I copied from something I think was called Tasty Low-Fat Recipes. It was a small booklet I bought from Border's.