Barley Salad Vinaigrette

This being July 4th weekend, there are a lot of pot luck parties going on. I've found it very difficult to eat a balanced meal at this kind of party, with available dishes loaded with heavy fats and proteins, or an abundance of desserts. This barley salad tastes great and is loaded with fiber.

Barley Salad Vinaigrette
Serves 4

2 C cooked pearled barley, cooled
1/2 C seeded and diced cucumber
1/4 C each diced red pepper and scallion
2 T chopped radish
1 T each chopped parsley and dill
2 T red vinegar
4 tsp olive oil
1 T water
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
4 C shredded lettuce

In medium bowl, combine barley, cucumber, bell pepper, scallion, radish, parsley and dill. Set aside.

In small bowl, combine remaining ingredients except the lettuce. Stir well. Pour over barley mixture. Toss to coat. Serve over lettuce.

This is sure to be a big hit at your next potluck: not only tasty, but good for you and pretty to look at on the plate. Enjoy!

copyright 2009 What's Cooking?

Baked Oatmeal

Who doesn't love breakfast? And who wouldn't want it made ahead, freezable, and reheatable, too? That's what you'll get with this delicious and easy oatmeal recipe.

Baked Oatmeal
Serves 10
Preheat oven to 350 degrees

5 C rolled oats
4 eggs (or 1 C egg substitute to reduce calories)
1/2 C canola oil
1/2 C unsweetened applesauce
3/4 C sugar (or Splenda)
2 C skim milk
1 T baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salk
1 large apple, chopped with skins left on
1 C raisins

Put ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix well. Pour into sprayed 9 x 13 inch baking dish and bake for 40 minutes.

Great warm or cold, drizzled with milk (fat free half and half is even better!)


copyright 2009 What's Cooking?

Risotto With Saffron & Shrimp

While Marble Man’s away, I decided I didn’t want to do so much cooking. I’m concentrating on one-dish meals. This one is very hearty, full of flavor, and is very easy as well:

Risotto With Saffron And Shrimp
serves 4
prep time: 10 minutes
cooking time: approximately 30 minutes

3½ C low-sodium chicken broth
½ C warm water
Pinch saffron
1 tsp olive oil
½ C finely chopped shallots
7 oz Arborio or other short grain rice
1 C white wine
12 oz shrimp, peeled, deveined, and halved, cross-wise
4 tsp grated Parmesan cheese
freshly ground pepper to taste
Chopped fresh parsley for garnish (optional)

In medium saucepan bring broth to a boil. Reduce heat to low and let simmer until ready to use.

In small bowl, combine water and saffron and set aside.

In separate non-stick saucepan, heat oil and add shallots. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, about 1 minute. Add rice and stir to coat. Continue to stir and cook 1 additional minute. Add wine and 1 cup of the simmering broth. Cook, stirring frequently until most of the liquid is absorbed.

Stir in saffron and water mixture and ½ C of broth. Cook, stirring frequently until liquid is absorbed. Add all but ½ C of the broth, ½ C at a time stirring frequently after each addition until liquid has been absorbed.

Add the shrimp and the remaining ½ C of broth. Cook, stirring frequently, for 3 minutes until shrimp are pink and rice mixture is creamy. Remove from heat. Stir in cheese and pepper.

Nutritional info for each serving:
330 calories
5 g total fat
87 mgs cholesterol
218 mgs sodium
54 g carbohydrate
1 g dietary fiber
19 g protein
76 mg calcium
~~
*Note: You can play with the ingredients for this recipe.

If you don’t have shallots, you can use ½ C chopped onion and a couple of cloves of chopped garlic.

Asparagus would be very good in it, or use your imagination and let me know what you did!

Enjoy. :-)

copyright 2009 What's Cooking?

Quinoa

Now that the cookie orgy is over, I've been going through old recipes I've collected over my (many) years of weight loss efforts. I thought it would be fun to post a different recipe each week: this'll make sure I keep things fresh in my mind, as well as on our plates. Marble Man always says "I love when you go on a diet! We get great stuff to eat." I'll be concentrating on foods rich in whole grains and nutrition. I hope you'll find it interesting, and maybe even helpful.

Today's recipe:

Quinoa pilaf

Prep time: 40 minutes

1 C quinoa
1 T vegetable oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 T pine nuts
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 small sweet potato, peeled and cubed
2 T golden raisins
2 C vegetable broth
salt and pepper to taste

Rinse quinoa with cold water and drain well.

Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion, garlic, pine nuts and red pepper and cook over medium heat until lightly browned (about 5 minutes). Add sweet potato, raisins and quinoa and cook for 1 minute.

Stir in broth and black pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until liquid is absorbed and quinoa is tender, about 15-20 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve at once.

Serves 6 (recipe makes about 5.5 cups)

Note: this recipe is remarkably versatile:
*If you don't like sweet potato, try substituting acorn squash.
*If red peppers are too expensive, or you just don't have any, try chopped portobello mushrooms instead.
*Dark raisins work just as well as golden.

If you are unfamiliar with quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah), you can find more about it here.

I hope you try this wonderful recipe. It's delicious!

copyright 2009 What's Cooking?

The Incredible Lightness of Being (Bread)

I'm pleased to report The Great Sourdough Debacle is at an end. I went back to the directions that came with the starter, and found I'd been skipping an important step during the feeding process. I'd been giving the starter it's weekly rations of flour and water, then popping it right back into the fridge. I forgot the step of leaving it out for a couple of hours to get good and bubbly. After it has a good burp, then I'm supposed to park it back in the fridge. I fed it several times this week to build it back up again, and... Voila! A couple of gorgeous, light, well-risen loaves. They're baking as I type (Hurry up, hurry up, HURRY UP!). This weekend: sourdough pancakes. How many do you want?

As I made the bread today, I took the time to really enjoy the zen of the process. I made the sponge last night so it could do it's thing. When I woke up, I peeked under the towel and felt thrilled by how much it had grown, and the smell! God, the smell. Pure heaven. Now for the fun part: As I mix in the final ingredients, I watch my new KitchenAid mixer do all that muscle work I used to resent. Technology working for me. Yay! Then, I turn the dough out onto the floured counter and get down to kneading. I love the feel of the dough, silky and elastic, as I turn and press. I know it's alive under my hands - I can see bubbles coming to the surface with each turn. After it's risen and been divided, I pop it into the oven and the exquisite torture of smelling freshly baking bread sets in.

I don't take the time to enjoy getting from Point A to Point B very often. So many things in life are on autopilot these days. I need to remember to find roses on each of life's paths and take the time to smell them. Especially if they smell like bread.