Dear Trader Joe’s: I Love You

Last week, I posted a blog called “Bypassing Convenience”, and while I always think making your food from scratch is the way to go, sometimes you need some “convenience foods” to help you out in a pinch. Trader Joe’s is my go-to for quick easy meals when I am in a crunch.

My Most Loved Trader Joe’s Products:

Taquitos

Garlic Hummus Dip with Pita Bread

Vegetable Burritos

Chips and Salsa

Spinach Tortellini with Marinara

Rigatoni alla Siciliana

Gnocchi al Gorgonzola

Asparagus Risotto

Frozen Fruits (blueberries are affordable)

Goat Yogurt

Once in a while, I will cook a couple taquitos and top them with pico de gallo, sour cream and cheddar. Delicious! The beef is our personal favorite.

I love Trader Joe’s salsa, pasta sauce and hummus because it is beyond affordable and very yummy!

As a snack for great digestion, I often mix goat yogurt, frozen blueberries and a bit of honey together.

Trader Joe’s pasta meals, while not always the healthiest of options, are portioned well for two people. They also take less than 10 minutes to prepare.

Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love from-scratch cooking! But sometimes even a domestic diva needs a little break!

What are your favorite Trader Joe’s Products? If you don’t have a Trader Joe’s in your area, what is your favorite market?

Pasta Amatriciana

Bacon + Pasta + Cheese + Jalapeños = A Very Happy Husband!

 Let me warn you up front, this is not the healthiest meal I have ever blogged!  Though, if you are looking for a full-flavored pasta dish with many less calories than your local pasta joint, this is your best bet. I have seen a hundred variations of this recipe, but I find the one I have put together to be the most simple and flavorful. It is also, by far, the most health conscious. No expensive, fancy ingredients. Just deliciousness. If your family unit is not in love with spicy foods like we are, use a pepper with a little less spice!

Ingredients

5 oz. whole wheat penne

4 slices bacon, chopped (I use less fat center cut bacon)

3 cloves fresh garlic, minced

¼ cup parmesan or asiago cheese, shredded

1 tbsp. olive oil

½ small yellow onion, chopped

1 small jalapeno pepper, chopped

1 can tomatoes, diced (I used fire roasted)

½ tsp. dried basil

½ tsp. dried oregano

½ tsp. red pepper flakes

Directions:

1)      Fry bacon in a skillet over low heat until almost crisp.

2)      Remove bacon from skillet and let cool on paper towels. Chop when cooled.

3)      Wipe most of the bacon grease out of the skillet, but leave the skillet greased. Add onion and garlic. Cook until soft.

4)      In a medium sauce pan, combine olive oil, bacon, onion, garlic, jalapeno and tomatoes. Cover and simmer for 3-5 minutes.

5)      While sauce is simmering, boil a medium pot of salted water and cook noodles until al dente. When draining pasta, save ¼ cup pasta water.

6)      Stir in basil, oregano and red pepper. Recover and continue simmering 2-3 minutes.

7)      Add half of the parmesan cheese into the sauce along with the pasta water. Stir constantly for about 1 minute.

8)      Recover sauce and simmer for an additional 2-3 minutes.

9)      Plate pasta, top with sauce and remaining cheese.

10)   Serve immediately.

 Serves 2

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 496, Fat: 18g, Carbs: 64g, Protein: 26g, Fiber: 6g

Bypassing Convenience

I have regretfully neglected polenta and plum for several days. My father underwent emergency triple bypass surgery this past weekend. He came through fine and is recovering well, but I was required to give all of my spare time to my family. Over the past few stressful days, all I wanted to do was run get a quick burger or buy something from a vending machine. I suddenly realized that eating in that way, during that time, would be, well, really dumb! My father had to have life-saving surgery because of his life-style. He is a potato chip, ice cream, soda loving kinda guy. This close call with my family made me realize just how important keeping up a healthy diet is. It isn’t about fitting into size 4 jeans or looking great in Facebook photos. It is about living healthily and happily. More yummy and healthy recipes to come this week!

 

Quick and Easy Cheesy-Broccoli-Chicken Quinoa

This is a super easy recipe. It takes about 20 minutes; cutting board to table. This recipe is also a great way to fit in veggies without even trying.

Ingredients

1 clove fresh garlic, minced

2 cups fresh broccoli, chopped

1 small carrot, chopped

¾ cup quinoa, dry, rinsed well

2 cups organic fat free chicken broth

½ cup + 2 tbsp. low fat cheddar cheese, shredded

2 oz. white meat chicken, no skin, shredded

1 tsp. sea salt

pepper to taste

Instructions:

1)      Be sure to rinse the quinoa well. If not, it can taste a little funny.

2)      Bring broth, salt, pepper, garlic, broccoli and carrots to a boil.

3)      Stir in quinoa and bring back to a boil. Cover and turn heat to medium-low.

4)      Simmer for about 15 minutes, or until most liquid has cooked out.

5)      Uncover and gently fold in cheese and chicken.

6)      Plate and top with remaining cheese.

7)      Serve immediately.

Serves 2

Nutritional Info Per Serving: Calories: 423, Fat: 11 g., Carbs: 51 g., Protein: 28g, Fiber: 7g.

You may easily substitute any vegetables you have on hand. I have also made a similar dish with parmesan and asparagus! The combinations for a quinoa stir-fry are endless!

Full of protein and relatively low in calories, this dish will keep your family full all night!

I paired this dish with a Chardonnay. Delish!

An Easy Rainy Day Meal: Roasted Chicken and Vegetables over Garlic-Parmesan Polenta

Polenta is one of my favorite meals, as you might have guessed! It is cheap, hearty and healthy. Best of all, it is incredibly easy to prepare.

Ingredients

½ cup (dry) polenta

     2 tbsp. grated parmesan cheese

1 tbsp. olive oil

3 cloves fresh garlic

1 ¾ cups organic chicken broth

¼ tsp. red pepper flakes

¼ tsp. dried thyme

4 oz. roasted white meat chicken, shredded*

½ small zucchini, chopped

¼ small yellow onion, chopped

2 large white mushrooms, chopped

1 tsp. balsamic vinegar

4 sun dried tomatoes, chopped

*Use whatever recipe you would like to cook your chicken or pick up a rotisserie chicken if you are in a hurry!

Instructions

1)      Grease a medium sized skillet. Brown garlic.

2)      Bring broth, sundried tomatoes, thyme, red pepper flakes and ½ tbsp. olive oil to a simmer.

3)      Stir in polenta and bring back to a simmer.

4)      Cover skillet and turn heat to low. Cook polenta for 8-10 minutes.

5)      While polenta is cooking, heat additional olive oil in a small skillet and sauté zucchini, onion and mushrooms until soft. Add pre-cooked, shredded chicken and warm for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat.

6)      Once all liquid is cooked out, remove cover from polenta and fold in 1 tbsp. parmesan cheese.

7)      Plate polenta and top with sautéed vegetables and chicken.

8)      Drizzle balsamic vinegar over dish. Top with remaining parmesan.

9)      Enjoy immediately.

Serves: 2

Nutritional Info Per Serving: Calories: 337, Fat: 9g, Carbs: 37g, Protein: 25g, Fiber: 4g

I like to pair this dish with a nice Pinto Grigio.

Fiesta Time: Easy and Healthy Tostadas!

Pinto Bean and Pepper Jack Cheese Tostadas with Roasted Corn and Fresh Pico De Gallo

Ingredients

2 White Corn Tortillas

1 Cup Re-fried Pinto Beans

2 oz. Pepper Jack Cheese, Shredded

½ Cup Frozen Corn

1 TBSP Olive Oil

1 ½ Cups Romaine Lettuce, Shredded

2 TBSP All Natural Sour Cream

 

For the Pico De Gallo

2 Roma Tomatoes, Chopped

½ Yellow Onion, Chopped

5 Springs Cilantro, Chopped

½ Jalapeno Pepper, Chopped

1 TBSP Lemon Juice

¼ TBSP Sea Salt

Instructions

1)      Preheat oven to 375.

2)      Brush tortillas very lightly with Olive Oil on both sides.

3)      Place tortillas directly on oven rack for 6-7 minutes.

4)      Take tortillas out of oven and place on a baking sheet.

5)      While tortillas are in oven, heat remaining olive oil in skillet and roast corn until slightly blackened.

6)      Top tortillas with beans and then cheese.

7)      Place tortillas, on pan, back into the oven for 3-4 minutes, until cheese is melted.

8)      While the tortillas finish up in the oven, mix together all ingredients for pico de gallo.

9)      Remove tostadas from oven and plate them.

10)   Top tostadas with roasted corn.

11)   Then top with romaine, pico de gallo and sour cream.

12)   Serve immediately.

Serves 2

Nutrition Info Per Serving: Calories: 470, Fat: 18g, Carbs: 56g, Protein: 22g, Fiber: 9g

If you have the time, making your own re-fried beans would be smart and a very healthy alternative. I used a can of all natural.

These would also be incredible with some homemade guacamole.

Whole Wheat Linguini with Zucchini in a White Wine-Mushroom Cream Sauce! Yum!

I am an absolute pasta lover! I swear, I may have the look of a Swede, but deep down I must have some serious Italian heritage. I could probably eat pasta for every meal, every day. Though pasta is one of my favorite foods, the dish can be a calorie ridden one if done incorrectly. This take on a classic white wine cream sauce over linguini is about as healthy as they come.

   =

Originally, I wanted this dish to contain asparagus. The asparagus at the market looked small and soft, so I decided upon zucchini instead. Sometimes we must improvise!

Ingredients:

8 oz. Whole Wheat Linguini Pasta

1 Small Zucchini, Sliced

1 oz. Parmesan Cheese, Shredded

15 Sun Dried Tomatoes

For The Sauce:

¼ Cup Pasta Water

6-8 White Mushrooms, Sliced

1 Cup Skim Milk

½ Cup Organic, Low Sodium, Chicken Broth

½ Cup Chardonnay

1 ½ TBSP Flour

6 Cloves Garlic, Minced

2 TBSP Olive Oil

½ TSP Dried Oregano

1 TSP Sea Salt

2 oz. Asiago Cheese, Shredded

Instructions:

1)      Boil linguini 10 minutes or until desired texture is reached. Save ¼ cup of the pasta water for sauce.

2)      While pasta is cooking, slice zucchini and mushrooms, and mince garlic.

3)      Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Let garlic brown for 2-3 minutes. Be careful to not burn garlic.

4)      Add sliced zucchini and mushrooms to skillet. Also add tomatoes. Let soften for 3-5 minutes.

5)      Add pasta water, chicken broth and chardonnay to skillet.  Let simmer for 5 minutes.

6)      Stir in skim milk.

7)      Stir in oregano and sea salt.

8)      Let sauce simmer, stirring constantly, cook sauce for 2-3 minutes.

9)      Slowly stir in Asiago cheese.

10)   Slowly stir in flour until desired consistency is reached.

11)   Coat linguini with sauce.

12)   Plate pasta and top with shredded Parmesan.

13)   Serve immediately.

Serves 4

Nutritional Info per Serving: Calories: 408, Fat: 13g, Carbs: 57g, Protein: 17g, Fiber: 8g

This pasta sauce is easy and delicious. The entire dish is incredibly filling!

This meal can be perfectly paired with a glass of white wine and a fresh Caesar salad. Delish!

If I made this dish again, I would add more Asiago cheese and several more sun-dried tomatoes!

A Healthier Take on Potato Salad

While it may not be back-yard BBQ season, that isn’t any reason not to enjoy a hardy serving of potato salad with your Saturday lunch time sandwich. This recipe for potato salad is creamy just like the classic, but a bit healthier.

Ingredients

1 Large Baking Potato (About One Pound) Cubed

1 Medium Pear (Any Variety), Chopped

1 Large Stalk of Celery, Chopped

1 Small Zucchini, Minced

1 Clove Garlic, Minced

1/3 Cup Plain Yogurt (I used Trader Joes Goat Yogurt)

2 Tablespoons All Natural Sour Cream

Juice from ½ Lemon

2 Strips of Bacon ( I use Hormel Natural Choice)

1 oz. Smoked Mozzarella, Shredded

½ Teaspoon Sea Salt

½ Teaspoon Thyme

Instructions:

1)      Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

2)      Cube your baking potato and put into the water. Boil for 10 minutes.

3)      While potato cubes are boiling, cook bacon and prepare celery, zucchini, pear and garlic.

4)      Drain potatoes and chop bacon.

5)      Put all ingredients into large mixing bowl and fold together VERY gently.

6)      Chill in refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

Makes 4 large size servings.

Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 192, Fat: 5g, Carbs: 31g, Protein: 7 g, Fiber: 4g

Something to Look Forward to: How I Meal Plan

In my opinion, meal planning is one of the most important aspects of healthy and budget friendly eating. By planning meals out (breakfast, lunch and dinner) one is able to shop more efficiently and use ingredients already in the fridge, before they go bad. Some people think meal planning is far too time-consuming, but I disagree. I think it is crucial to save time and money.

Each week when I sit down to make my meal plan, I physically look in my fridge, freezer, pantry and fruit basket. I write down the items which will go bad in the next week. I also look into the amount of meal “foundations” I have remaining, like brown rice, pasta, quinoa and beans. I plan my meals around these items first. This significantly cuts down on the amount of food our family buys and wastes.

My meal plan and shopping list for next week:

Breakfasts

Monday: Bacon, Egg and Cheese “McMuffins”.

Tuesday: Kashi Go Lean with Banana and Berries.

Wednesday: Oatmeal with Fruit and Almonds.

Thursday: Healthy Cheesy-Bacon Breakfast Muffins.

Friday: Healthy Cheesy-Bacon Breakfast Muffins.

Saturday: From Scratch Blueberry Pancakes with Chia.

Sunday: Bacon, Egg and Cheese “McMuffins”.

Lunches

Monday: Brown Bag Lunches with Turkey Sandwiches, Berries, Celery and Granola Bars.

Tuesday: Brown Bag Lunches with Salads, Ham and Cheese Sandwiches, Celery, Oranges and Healthy Brownies.

Wednesday: Brown Bag Lunches with Roast Beef Wraps, Celery, Berries and Rice Cakes.

Thursday: Brown Bag Lunches with Salads, Ham and Cheese Wraps, Grapefruit and Celery.

Friday: Brown Bag Lunches with Roast Beef Sandwiches, Celery, Oranges and Pretzels.

Saturday: Salads with left over produce.

Sunday: Left Over Pasta.

Dinners

Monday: White Wine Cream Sauce over Whole Wheat Linguini with Asparagus, Mushrooms & Sundried Tomatoes.

Tuesday: Pinto Bean, Pepper Jack & Roasted Corn Tostadas with Fresh Pico De Gallo.

Wednesday: Curry Chicken with Pineapple & Prunes over Brown Rice.

Thursday: Quinoa & Chia Stir Fry with Fresh Garlic, Asparagus, Green Peas, Asiago and Parmesan.

Friday: Dinner Out for Cassandra’s Birthday!

Saturday: Homemade Spicy Amatriciana Pasta Sauce over Whole Wheat Penne.

Sunday: Cheesy Black Bean Taquitos with Cilantro Cream Sauce.

My grocery list for next week: Cilantro, Tomato, Asparagus, Onion, Jalapeno, Mushrooms, Bell Pepper, Linguini, Celery, Berries, Bananas, Romaine, Milk and Eggs.

Yes, you counted right. That is fourteen items for a week’s worth of healthy meals (twenty meals for two people; eating one meal out). I can do this simply by keeping basics stocked and strategically meal planning. I predict my total grocery costs for this week will be approximately $35.00. I buy primarily organic. I also try to buy produce on special.

I am looking forward to preparing all of these delicious meals and posting them. Stay tuned!

Meatless Monday: Pineapple-Curry Fried Rice

Personally, oriental food is one of my great loves. I enjoy everything from Chinese takeout to upscale Thai. This is another great vegetarian recipe, but adding chicken or shrimp would be a delicious option! This fried rice recipe is a favorite of my husband and has fewer calories and fat than takeout. Not to mention, it is very affordable per serving. This dish is nice and spicy; very flavorful. I make this once every two weeks.

Serves 2, can easily be doubled or tripled.

Ingredients:

2 Cups Cooked Brown Rice

1 Medium Egg

2 tbsp. Olive Oil

1 tbsp. Low Sodium Soy Sauce

3 Cloves Garlic, Minced

½ tsp. Red Pepper Flakes

1 tsp. Fresh Cilantro, Chopped

1 tsp. Curry Seasoning

½ Cup Pineapple, Sliced

½ Medium Bell Pepper, Chopped

1/3 Cup Frozen Peas

1 Large Stalk Celery, Chopped

1 Large Carrot, Chopped

¼ Yellow Onion, Chopped

¼ Cup Green Onion, Sliced

Directions:

1)      Prepare rice and let sit for at least 4 hours in refrigerator. Trust me, this is important!

2)      Heat olive oil in skillet or wok.

3)      Sauté yellow onion and garlic, until onion is soft.

4)      Add bell pepper, carrot, celery and peas to skillet. Sauté about 5 minutes until carrots are soft.

5)      Move vegetables toward the outsides of the skillet, leaving a small hole in the middle.

6)      Crack egg in middle of skillet and quickly scramble into vegetables, until most liquid has cooked out.

7)      Fold in pineapple, red pepper flakes, cilantro and curry seasoning.

8)      Gently fold in rice and then soy sauce.

9)      Serve immediately topped with sliced green onion.

Nutritional Information per Serving:

Calories: 398, Fat: 17g, Protein: 10 g, Carbs: 55 g, Fiber 6g