Recipe: Healthy Eggplant Parmesan. Thanks, HungryGirl!!

This past weekend I was lucky enough to receive an absolutely gorgeous eggplant from my friend's garden. Blasted by the heat of the central valley it was ripe, purple, smooth and just waiting to be made into something delicious. What to do? Grilling it sounded boring. Baking and turning it into a baba ghanoush did not entice me. Eggplant parmesan came as a suggestion and so I headed to HungryGirl (aka Best Blog EVER) to see if she had any recipes to try.

Here it is - tried, tested, and absolutely delicious!!! Extremely flavorful, the eggplant comes out completely crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle. This "oven frying" method deserves a big thumbs up. You could make it even better by making your own tomato sauce. Super easy, too!

*****
1 large eggplant,

1/2 cup egg whites (about 4 large egg whites) - I used Egg Beaters

1 cup Fiber One bran cereal (original) - I used Flax Cereal from Trader Joe's, popped it into a blender with a little bit of salt, pepper and Italian seasonings and ground it up to a cornmeal-like consistency.

1 cup canned tomato sauce w/ Italian flavoring (such as Hunt's Tomatoes Sauce with Basil, Garlic & Oregano) - I used a jar of Trader Joe's Bruschetta Sauce that I had in the cupboard

1 cup shredded fat-free mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup reduced-fat grated parmesan-style topping - I just used some regular parmesan I had on hand. Slightly defeating the low-cal goal, but whatever

Directions: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Slice ends off of eggplant, and cut it lengthwise into 1/2-inch strips. Use a paper towel to blot eggplant slices on both sides (to remove excess moisture). Spray a large baking pan with nonstick spray (I skipped this step).

Coat eggplant slices on both sides -- first with egg whites, and then with cereal crumbs. Place slices flat on the baking pan, and cook in the oven for 30 minutes. Then, flip slices over and bake until browned on both sides (about 10 minutes longer). Remove pan from oven, but leave oven on. Spread 1/4 cup of sauce over the bottom of an 8" X 8" baking dish sprayed lightly with nonstick spray. Arrange half of the baked eggplant slices evenly over the sauce. Continue to layer ingredients evenly in this order: sauce (1/4 cup), mozzarella and parm topping (half of each), sauce (1/4 cup), eggplant (remaining slices), sauce (1/4 cup), and cheeses (remaining amounts). Cover dish with foil and return to the oven. Bake for 25 minutes, or until heated throughout. Allow to cool slightly, and then cut into quarters. NOTE: I had some regular tomatoes that I needed to use so I sliced these on top of the last layer of eggplant and sprinkled a little more seasoning on top before popping it in the oven.

MAKES 4 SERVINGS
Serving Size: 1 generous portion (1/4th of recipe) Calories: 170Fat: 2.5g Sodium: 872mg Carbs: 29g Fiber: 13g Sugars: 5g Protein: 15g

Kale Salad: Healthy and Filling

The vegetable aisle is full of all kinds of things that I'm not too sure how to eat or cook and one of these things shrouding itself in mystery is kale. Kale or borecole is a form of cabbage green or purple in color, in which the central leaves do not form a head. It is considered to be closer to wild cabbage than most domesticated forms. It is super healthy, very high in beta carotene, vitamins K and C, calcium and is considered to have potent anti-cancer properties. Thanks Wikipedia!!!



In anycase, it's super dark green and leafy and therefore is ridiculously good for you. But how to make it? Well, apart from the normal steaming, stir-frying, throwing it in some soups, this kale salad is scrumptious, perfect to take to lunch, is very filling, and also relatively low calorie (if you watch the cheese and nut additions). I cannot take credit for this recipe, as it was given to me by the lovely T., but I absolutely adore it. WARNING: Be prepared to chew a lot as the kale is very sturdy.

Kale Salad

1 bunch of kale chopped and removed from the ribs
Wilt it in a pan. I use a little veggie stock or water - about 1/4 cup - heat it up and throw the kale in there for about 3 minutes or so.

In a separate bowl add lots of ingredients:
feta cheese, dried cranberries, pine nuts, a whole shredded or chopped carrot, 1 whole cucumber chopped, avocado and/or tomato if you like. You could also add garbanzo beans, chopped chicken breast, broccoli - whatever you have around. I really love the cranberries and pine nuts though and think they add so much to the salad.

Add the wilted kale, squeeze 1/2 of a fresh lemon over it, season with salt and pepper and olive oil if you like. That's it. It holds up very well for lunch and is super filling as well. Here's to superfoods (that's for you, D!)

Kitchen Gear You Can't Live Without: Prep Bowls With Lids ($20/set of six)

I first came across these while helping my girlfriend out in her kitchen one day. Looking around for a plastic bag in which to deposit 1/2 of an onion for later use, I had one of these little bowls thrust into my hand and it's been love ever since. When I got home I ordered a set for myself and I use them every single day. Perfect for a variety of things, not the least of which is holding 1/2 an onion, you really will find that these things are indispensable. They hold about 1/2 a cup and are perfect for storing the little bits of things that are too small to put in a gigantic tupperware - like sauces and dressings and even a lunch sized serving of strawberries. They're glass, which is a huge plus, and the lids stay on fabulously. I often mix up just enough vinegar and oil salad dressing for one salad, pop the lid on, shake the dressing up, and then take it work with me for topping my lunch. In fact, it is small enough that you can often fit it into the bigger container with your salad for a perfect bagged lunch. At $20 for a set of six from Pampered Chef, you can't go wrong. In fact, you'll find them so useful, I really would recommend ordering two sets.

Gift Suggestion or For Yourself: The Best Cookbook Ever and a Dutch Oven

One thing that you will undoubtedly discover about me if you continue to read this blog is that I love theme gifts - you know, a few lovely items that just fit cozily together like puzzle pieces, all wrapped up and presented to the recipient in a self-contained little world of awesomeness. The gift that they can just open up and immediately cash in on the excitement by using it right away, rather than allowing it to gather dust while they search for the other components they may need. Well, that's what this is: a cookbook and a dutch oven. First, let's discuss the cookbook, Glorious One-Pot Meals by Elizabeth Yarnell ($12). This cookbook is unlike any cookbook that I have ever owned -- i.e., it is stained and tattered and actually frequently used. I could go on and on about this cookbook because it is so amazing, but in one sentence it allows you to cook a complete meal in 45 minutes, utilizing only one pot. You layer the ingredients (for example your starch, veggies, seasonings and proteins), sling it into the oven, and 45 minutes later you have a perfect meal which, get this, looks as if you have actually cooked the items separately. It really is that easy. My first foray into this was a five minute project of layering some cut up potatoes, frozen tilapia, some lovely dill seasoning mix I had laying in my cupboard and fresh asparagus. In anycase, 45 minutes later the pot emerged with perfectly cooked potatoes, a flaky, moist and deliciously seasoned piece of fish and a side of steamed asparagus. And may I once again mention that the fish was frozen?

Using the tenets that great food will result when utilizing the right pot and cooking at the right temperature for the correct amount of time, Yarnell developed this theory she calls "infusion- cooking", which produces, without fail, perfect meals with no fuss. Each recipe is a nutritionally complete meal so you don't need even a side salad - unless you want one, of course. You can rely upon the recipes in the book (which include a number of standard faves like pasta recipes, pot roast, or a one-pot Thanksgiving dinner, as well as lots of variations with ethnic twists such as greek chicken, tandoori salmon and kale, or Thai curry with tofu) OR you can venture out on your own utilizing the easy to understand method set forth in the beginning of the book. By using any ingredients you have on hand and layering them in a designated order you will have a perfect meal every single time. Forgot to take things out of the freezer - no problem! The meals come out just as perfectly utilizing rock-hard items just pulled from the freezer (you can also use dried and canned foods, as well as fresh, of course, or any combination thereof). And you can even layer the items in advance, throw the pot in the fridge, and then cook it when you get home. Awesomeness!

Besides the book, you'll also need a dutch oven. Yarnell discusses the virtues of various types of dutch ovens in her book, generally favoring enamel coated cast iron. You could go top of the line with a lovely Le Crueset (ranging anywhere from $120 to $250, depending on size) or you can go with a middle of the road and perfectly serviceable Lodge enameled cast iron (about $80). If you are being super budget conscious you could also get a plain pre-seasoned cast-iron dutch oven (about $30-50), which will last a lifetime and will work just as well (it will just require a bit of maintenance and will need to be re-seasoned and oiled once in awhile since it isn't enamel coated and will lean towards rusting). Get a 2 quart one for one person, a 3 or 4 quart one for two people, and a 5 or 6 quart one for a family.

Wrap it all up (or have it shipped to the recipient from an online merchant like Amazon.com) and you've got a perfect gift that will be used by everyone including singles, couples, moms, college students, newly marrieds, etc. Don't forget to have an extra one shipped to yourself!