Roasted Broccoli with Parmigiano-Reggiano

These are so yummy and so very good for you. Roast the florets in a 400-450 degree oven (mine works best at 425) for a crunchy, somewhat sweet, salty, and awesome veggie. The Parmigiano-Reggiano will look like a ton, but it only adds 27.5 calories for the ENTIRE batch (serves 4) and provides a ton of flavor!

 Snagged these 3 minutes into the baking process. Forgot to take the "before" picture.

Just after the roasting. The Parm. looks like a lot, but I used a very fine microplane grater which made the cheese super light and fluffy (please forgive the poor lighting, I will get better).

After the Parm melted and a little extra vinegar on top (I'm in love with balsamic vinegar!). You may think you see less broccoli and you'd be right. I can't resist this!!

Recipe

Ingredients

1 12 oz bag Broccoli Florets
1 Tbsp light EVOO (probably a lot less)
1T Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 OUNCE Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated on a fine microplane
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper.
2 tsp Emeril's Essence

*All seasonings should be done to taste.

Directions

Spray baking sheet with EVOO. Add Broccoli and top with Essence (salt), garlic powder , black pepper and balsamic vinegar. Bake in a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes. Turn over the broccoli and bake for another 10 minutes. Top immediately with Parmigiano-Reggiano. Serve hot or store and eat on it all week long. YUM!

Serves 4.

*Spices and vinegar are purely estimates. They are provided to give as close to accurate nutritional info as possible.

Nutritional Info:

• Fat: 4.3g
• Carbohydrates: 6.2g
• Calories: 68.6
• Protein: 3.4g

Baked Mini Chicken Meatballs

Here's a recipe that I came up with (combined about 3 different recipes to form my own). This is for Baked Mini Chicken Meatballs. Never have worked with ground chicken before, I didn't know what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised!

• 1 pound ground chicken (Perdue recommended)
• 1/4 cup Italian bread crumbs
• 2 large whole eggs
• 3 T ketchup
• 75 grams (3/4 cup) Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated (no green can stuff if you can help it)
• 1/2 onion, grated
• 3 cloves, garlic, grated
• 2T Mrs Dash Onion & Herb
• 1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
• Ground pepper, to taste
• Paprika

Directions:
Preheat over to 425

Mix all ingredients except the ground chicken and paprika. Mix well. Place ground chicken in bowl and mix well, but don't over work. Using a 2 teaspoon "cookie" scoop, scoop up mixture, leveling the excess off onto the side of the bowl. Place into hand a gently round out the meatball. Place onto a broiler pan or cookie sheet. If at all possible, refrigerate for a few hours. This step can be skipped if you need to. Sprinkle paprika over the surface of the meatball.

Place pan into oven and bake 10-15 minutes, or until done.

Number of Servings: 45 (1 meatball per serving, I'd say a true serving would be 4 meatballs)

Nutritional info: Calories 29.8, Fat 1.8 g, Cholesterol 20.5 mg, Sodium 42.7 mg, Carbs .8 g, Fiber 0, Protein 2.6 g

Last night I served them in a Pasta Fajolie soup. So yummy. I'll post the recipe for that next, but here's a picture....

I'm also going to try this using ground turkey breast and frozen spinach. I'll let you know how it goes :)

The *Best* Watter Bottle Ever!

 (Click on the picture for a bigger and more detailed view)

Thanks to my good Twitter, Facebook, and Blogger friend, "Too Many Hats", I have discovered the best water bottle ever. I'm sure you're thinking I'm exaggerating a bit, but I'm not. It's the ""Thermos Nissan Intak Hydration Bottle with Meter" . I know it seems a little crazy to get so excited over a water bottle, but I can't help it. It has absolutely everything you could want in a water bottle. It's spout is the perfect size for sipping or downing some water (like during/after a good hard workout), it seals very tightly, no leaking at all. I have thrown it in my purse, dropped it on a hardwood floor (like I did just after I took the above pictures), my cat has attacked it, etc... You name it, it's been through it. It is still in perfect condition. I think my single favorite feature is the meter. There is a line of numbers printed on the lid with a dial underneath it. Every time you fill your bottle up, move the dial to the next number. For those who need a little bit of encouragement to get all their water in each day or just to make it easier to track, this meter is perfect! The bottle holds 24oz of water and the dial goes up to the number 6. So you could drink and track 144 oz of water with little to no effort :). Let me know if you actually make it up that high because I sure haven't. I'm working on it.

The only word of caution that I have is about the silicone seal in the lid. It is what folds over the top of the spout when the lid is closed, keeping it spill free. I've read many reviews about these silicone seals getting misplaced or falling out. If this happens, it is no longer leak proof (still a great water bottle though). Even though the entire bottle is dishwasher safe, I strongly recommend handwashing the lid instead. At the very least, remove the seal before placing into the dishwasher and putting it in a safe place.

The bottles come in 4 different colors: Pink (pictured), Blue, Purple, and Green. At the time of this post, amazon.com is offering a buy 3 get 1 free deal too. They are also available at Target.

Salad Dressing: Gaelos Miso Dressings

"Welcome to Galeos World"

I can't say enough about these dressings! They are out of this world. It's hard to believe they are all natural (no funky stuff at all), low fat, low carb, gluten free, and actually good for you. There are 4 flavors, but so far I've only tried the two pictured above. The Miso Dijonnaise is the best honey mustard dressing I've ever had. The Miso Ginger & Wasabi reminds me of the ginger wasabi dipping sauce that went with the O'Charley's grilled Ahi Tuna (shame on you O'Charley's for taking that off your menu...I will never forgive you!) Both of these are excellent when used as something other than a salad dressing too. Try marinating a lean protein and either grilling or baking it. You can use them in place of high fat condiments too. I can't wait to play around with these more.

You can usually find them in a Whole Foods type of store or order off the internet.  Visit them at Galeos Miso Dressings for more information.

Depending on which flavor you use, 1 Tablespoon is less than 20 calories (the Sesame Seed is 22), 1-2 grams of fat, < 1 gram of carbs, < 1 gram of fiber, and < 1 gram of protein.

Happy Healthy Eating :)!!

On My Way Back

I promise, I have not quit. We've had sickness around here for the past couple of weeks and I just haven't had time to blog. I will be back soon (hopefully tonight) with some product recommendations and a recipe. Stay with me :).

What an Inspiration!!

Individual Chicken Pot Pies

I found this on the Pillsbury website and it looks really yummy. I haven't tried it yet, but will be sure to post when I do. You can significantly reduce the calories and fat by using low fat butter, skim-1% milk, and reduced fat biscuits (or pass on the biscuits all together). The formatting below is off so for the full recipe, click on one of the links above.

Individual Chicken Pot Pies
	Flaky biscuits top these veggie-packed pot pies. The individual servings are a nice change from passing hot pie pans or casserole dishes at the table. Prep Time: 25 Min Total Time: 45 Min Makes: 8 servings User Rating:
NGREDIENTS 1/4 cup margarine or butter 1/3 cup all-purpose flour Dash pepper 1 can (10 1/2 oz) condensed chicken broth 3/4 cup milk 2 cups cubed cooked chicken or turkey 1/3 cup chopped onion 1 can (4 oz) Green Giant® mushroom pieces and stems, drained 1 cup Green Giant® Valley Fresh Steamers™ frozen sweet peas 1 cup frozen sliced carrots 1 can (16.3 oz) Pillsbury® Grands!® Flaky Layers refrigerated original biscuits Additional milk, if desired Sesame seed, if desired DIRECTIONS 1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 8 (10-oz) ramekins, custard cups or large muffin cups. 2. In 10-inch skillet, melt butter; stir in flour and pepper. Cook about 1 minute, stirring constantly, until smooth and bubbly. Gradually stir in broth and 3/4 cup milk; cook until mixture boils and thickens, stirring constantly. Add chicken, onion, mushrooms, peas and carrots; cook until hot and bubbly. Spoon mixture evenly into ramekins. Separate dough into 8 biscuits. Press each to make 4 1/2-inch round. Place biscuit rounds on tops of filled ramekins. Cut slits in biscuit tops. Brush biscuit tops with additional milk. Sprinkle with sesame seed. 3. Bake 17 to 20 minutes or until biscuits are golden brown DIRECTIONS: 1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease 8 (10-oz) ramekins, custard cups or large muffin cups. 2. In 10-inch skillet, melt butter; stir in flour and pepper. Cook about 1 minute, stirring constantly, until smooth and bubbly. Gradually stir in broth and 3/4 cup milk; cook until mixture boils and thickens, stirring constantly. Add chicken, onion, mushrooms, peas and carrots; cook until hot and bubbly. Spoon mixture evenly into ramekins. Separate dough into 8 biscuits. Press each to make 4 1/2-inch round. Place biscuit rounds on tops of filled ramekins. Cut slits in biscuit tops. Brush biscuit tops with additional milk. Sprinkle with sesame seed. 3. Bake 17 to 20 minutes or until biscuits are golden brown. High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): No change. NUTRITION INFORMATION: 1 Serving: Calories 380 (Calories from Fat 170); Total Fat 18g (Saturated Fat 4 1/2g, Trans Fat 5g); Cholesterol 30mg; Sodium 980mg; Total Carbohydrate 35g (Dietary Fiber 2g, Sugars 9g); Protein 18g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 120%; Vitamin C 2%; Calcium 8%; Iron 15% Exchanges: 1 1/2 Starch; 1 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Vegetable; 2 Lean Meat; 2 Fat Carbohydrate Choices: 2 *Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Special Touch: For a nice flavor twist, add 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme or rosemary leaves to the chicken mixture. Then garnish each little pie with a sprig of fresh thyme or rosemary.