Lasagna-Stuffed Mushrooms

Lasagna-Stuffed Mushrooms (adapted from AllRecipes, Total Time: 50 min., Servings: 2)

Ingredients

·         ¼ lb. Morningstar Farms Mealstarters burger crumbles

·         ½ cup fat-free small curd cottage cheese (I used a ½ cup mixture of shredded 5 Cheese Italian and Italian Pizza cheese)

·         1 egg

·         2 Tbsp. chopped green pepper

·         1 Tbsp. finely chopped green onion

·         1 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

·         salt and black pepper to taste

·         ¼ cup prepared pasta sauce, divided

·         6 large fresh mushrooms, or more as needed, stems removed

Directions

1.     Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray an 8x8-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

2.     Cook and stir the crumbles in a skillet over medium heat, breaking apart as it cooks, about 10 minutes.

3.     Mix together the cheeses, egg, green pepper, green onion, parsley, and salt and pepper in a bowl until the mixture is well combined. Stir in the cooked crumbles.

4.     Place the mushrooms, hollow sides up, close together in the prepared baking dish. Spoon about 1 Tbsp. of the filling into the cavity of each mushroom, and allow remaining filling to overflow between mushrooms.

5.     Bake in the preheated oven until the filling is set, about 15 minutes.

6.     Remove dish from oven, and spread the pasta sauce evenly over the mushrooms. Return the dish to the oven, and cook about 5 more minutes.

7.     Let the mushrooms stand 5 minutes before serving.

Well, my mushrooms were kind of lasagna-stuffed.  The cottage cheese that we had in the refrigerator was not usable, so I used a mixture of 5 Cheese Italian and Italian Pizza Cheese.  Yummy!  I'm sure it would be tasty with cottage cheese as well.

I used portabella mushrooms and Tomato & Basil pasta sauce for this dish.  I thought that it tasted good and cheesy!  Next time, I will probably marinate the mushrooms in some balsamic vinaigrette, just to add to the overall tastiness.  Enjoy!

Mexican Black Bean Burger

Mexican Black Bean Burger – 15-16 servings (if flat burgers)

Adapted from Allrecipes.com

I think that these are pretty yummy and my husband liked them!  Double whammy! 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup instant brown rice
• 1/2 cup water
•  2 (16 oz.) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 green bell pepper, halved and seeded
• 1 onion, quartered
• 1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
• 6 cloves garlic, peeled
• 3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 2 eggs
• 1 T chili powder
• 1 T ground cumin
• 1 T garlic salt
• 1 tsp hot sauce
• 1 cup dry bread crumbs, or as needed

Directions

1. Cook rice according to package directions.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly oil a baking sheet and set aside.
3. Mash black beans in a large bowl with a fork (or mortar and pestle) until thick and pasty; set aside.
4. Place the bell pepper, onion, mushrooms, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor and chop finely. Stir the bell pepper mixture into the mashed black beans. Place the brown rice and mozzarella cheese in the food processor and process until combined. Stir into the black bean mixture.
5. Whisk together the eggs, chili powder, cumin, garlic salt, and hot sauce. Stir the egg mixture into the black bean mixture. Stir in the bread crumbs, adding additional bread crumbs as needed until the mixture is sticky and holds together. Form into patties.
6. Place patties onto the prepared baking sheet.  Bake 10-15 minutes per side.

The only change that I would make to the recipe that I used is to add a tad more hot sauce or maybe some cayenne pepper.  I would also grill these on either or outdoor gas grill or our indoor stovetop grill.  They didn’t hold together very well and flipping them was extremely difficult.  However, the end product was tasty with a slight spicy kick.  They are a really tasty homemade black bean burger, similar to what you could get a good restaurant.  I like that this recipe has a good amount of vegetables in it as well.  I might also roll these into balls and cook that way to make a nice appetizer meatball.  A lot of possibilities with this recipe.

Mexican Polenta Pie

Mexican Polenta Pie (8-10 servings, Total time: 1 hour, 10 minutes)

Adapted from BHG.com

I like using polenta, and, as you can tell from my other posts, I love Mexican.  This sounded like a great opportunity to combine these two items – and it certainly was.  My only changes are that I would add some Tabasco to increase the hotness factor and make my own polenta.  NOTE – if you want a top crust to this, you can use a second tube of polenta.

Ingredients

• 1  medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
• 1 medium green sweet pepper, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 package Morningstar Farms Burger Crumbles
• 3 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1 15 oz. can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 14 ½ oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 cup bottled salsa
• 16 oz. tube refrigerated cooked polenta
• 1 cup shredded Nacho or Mexican cheese
• 2/3 cup chopped fresh tomato

Directions

1.) Preheat oven to 375 degree F.

2.) In a 12-inch skillet cook onion, sweet pepper, and garlic in 1 tablespoon hot oil until tender. Add Burger Crumbles, chili powder, cumin, and cayenne. Cook until Burger Crumbles cooked through, stirring to break apart crumbles. Add beans, canned tomatoes, and salsa. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes.

3.) Meanwhile, spray a 3-quart rectangular baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. Cut 1 tube of polenta into 1/2-inch cubes and press evenly into prepared baking dish. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the cheese over polenta in dish. Top with meat mixture. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and fresh tomato. Bake, uncovered, for 35 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand 15 to 20 minutes before serving.

This is a tasty dish, like chili on top of polenta, instead of rice.  The tomatoes on the top of the casserole did not really dry out because the cheese and “meat” mixture kept them moist.  This dish has a good protein kick, is relatively low in fat, and has a lot of vegetables.  A great all-around meal that is also yummy.  My husband really enjoyed it; he is usually my measure of success with healthy dishes.

Cheeseburger Pizza

Cheeseburger Pizza
(adapted from KraftRecipes)

Ingredients

1 recipe pizza dough

1 package  frozen Morningstar Farms Burger Crumbles

1 cup pizza sauce

½ cup ketchup

1 small onion, thinly sliced

1  tomato, sliced

¾ cup shredded pizza cheese

Directions

1.)    Preheat oven to 425°F.

2.)    Spread pizza dough onto pizza stone sprayed with non-stick cooking spray (or brushed with oil).

3.)    Combine crumbles, sauce and ketchup; spread onto crust. Top with remaining ingredients.

4.)    Bake 20 min. or until crust is golden brown and crumbles are heated through.

This pizza is very filling.  The original recipe had half as much crumbles, sauce and ketchup, but I found that it only covered about half of my dough.  I think that I cooked it for about 23 minutes to ensure that the middle of the crust was cooked through.  It came out with a slightly browned crust, but not crispy!  I added a touch of garlic powder and chili flakes to enhance flavor profile.  The pizza was chewy and soft – the crispness of the crumbles and onions was baked out, but that’s not a bad thing!  The taste was very good, but my husband added more cheese.  I like this simple recipe because you add what you want to it.  Next time (or with leftovers), I may try adding some mustard or chopped pickles.  Yummy!

Mexican Pizza

Fantastic!  This dish has a great taste, good consistency, and it looks nice to boot.  


Mexican Pizza (1 deep dish pizza, 6 servings, 45 minutes total time)
(adapted from Allrecipes.com)


Ingredients
1 package Morningstar Farms Burger Crumbles
1 medium onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T chili powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
1 (16 oz.) can refried beans
2 10-inch flour tortillas
1/4 cup salsa
1 cup Taco shredded cheese
1 green onion chopped
1 plum tomato diced
1/8 cup finely chopped jalapeno pepper


Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat 1 pie plate with non-stick cooking spray.
2. Place Burger Crumbles, onion, and garlic in a skillet over medium heat. Cook until Crumbles are heated through. Season with chili powder, cumin, paprika, salt, and pepper.
3. Lay one tortilla in pie plate and cover with a layer of refried beans. Spread half of the Crumble mixture over the beans and then cover with the second tortilla. Bake for 10 minutes in the preheated oven.
4. Remove the plate from the oven and let cool slightly. Spread the salsa over the top of the tortilla. Cover pizza with half of the cheese. Place tomatoes, green onions, and jalapenos on top of cheese.
5. Return the pizza to the oven, and bake for 5 to 10 more minutes, until the cheese is melted. Remove from the oven, and let cool slightly before slicing into 6 pieces.

It is very filling!  The flavors come together very nicely and there is a good mixture of protein carbohydrates.  You can cut back on the cheese to lessen the fat.  As is, depending on the salsa you use, it's not spicy - I might kick it up a notch next time I make it, but my fiancé liked it the way it was.  The only "negative" I have to say is that it is a little difficult to eat with just a fork - you need a knife to get through the top layer without messing it up.

Butter Bean Burgers

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/butter-bean-burgers/detail.aspx
     
 Surprisingly delicious!  Mine weren’t quite as golden on the bottom because I omitted the vegetable oil – a non-stick pan works just fine, but the presentation was nice.  I used ½ of an onion and 4 saltine crackers (it’s what I had), but followed the rest of the recipe.  I didn’t chop the jalapenos as finely as I should have (first time using my new Food Chop), so there were sections of each burger that were a bit too spicy.  I couldn’t taste the garlic powder or cheese, but an overall good experience and quick to whip up!  They were slightly dry, so I may add a little more cheese next time I make them.  I served with an ear of corn to round out the meal.  

Firestone – Wilmington, DE (riverfront)

My husband and I ate at Firestone about a month ago, after dance lessons for our then upcoming wedding.  We actually ended up there because another restaurant was closed, but we had wanted to go because they have a really awesome patio.  We sat outside on the part of their patio where you can still order from the full menu.  I started out with the House Salad (minus the bacon and avocado dressing, plus the honey-lime vinaigrette).  The salad is mixed greens, hearts of palm, cornbread croutons, and chopped egg.  It was alright, slightly overdressed with the vinaigrette. 

I had a slight crisis moment when choosing my entrée – I have gotten sick from veggie burgers before, but it sounded so good.  Did I want to take the chance, or order a hand crafted pizza and play it safe?  I decided to give it a shot – the veggie burger sounded too good to pass up.  It’s made of brown rice, black beans, and oats, topped with BBQ sauce and a slice of cheddar cheese.  What sold me on it was the burger recipe and the BBQ sauce.  It came out on a large roll and was huge.  Probably 2-3 times the thickness of a normal veggie burger and 1.5 times the size in length/width.  It was so good!  I didn’t eat it as a burger, but rather with a fork – I think it would have been too messy otherwise.  The burger was very soft and chewy, easy to cut into (with just a fork), and the BBQ sauce and cheddar just added to the richness.  I ate the whole thing! And even some of the bottom roll that sopped up the BBQ sauce.  I believe that it is the best veggie burger I have had to date.

We ended up having dessert too – goodness that was a big meal for me.  We chose the Warm Double Chocolate Brownie a la Mode – this was a while ago, but I remember it being pretty good.  Not as good as some of the desserts I have had at Isaacs or the lava cake at Capers and Lemons, but still a good end to great meal!

Isaacs – various locations throughout Central PA

 I was introduced to Isaacs about 5 years ago and have been in love with it ever since.  There was a time a few months ago when I became very disappointed with them – they changed the recipe for their pretzel rolls so that they were no longer vegetarian – but about 1-2 months ago they changed the recipe back to vegan/vegetarian.  Now, they have a special place in my heart once again.  This is one of the only restaurants where I will actually order a vegetarian burger – I have never had any issues.

            At Isaacs, they start you out with a small dish of pickled cucumbers, carrots, and cauliflower.  Crunchy and dilly, very good!  My usual order at Isaacs is the Ruffled Salad with a black bean burger and Ancho Chili Ranch dressing on the side.  The salad is topped with tomatoes, red onions, cucumbers, shredded cheese, and croutons.  They definitely do not skimp on the fixins!  The black bean burger is pretty tasty on its own, but the ranch dressing kicks it up a notch!  Every salad is accompanied by a small pretzel roll.  These are delicious – soft, chewy, not buttery or salty, just yum!

            I don’t think that I’ve ever had a miss at Isaacs (other than the aforementioned pretzel recipe change).  I have had the Black-Eyed Susan (my usual salad on a cheddar wrap) and the Mexican Sunflower (my salad on a pretzel roll) – I see a theme here.  Good vegetables + safe vegetarian burger + pretzel rolls or cheddar wraps = one clear winner in my mind.

            Now, the desserts – fantastic!  This past time we ordered the Fudgie Wudgie – this thing is huge!  The fudge brownie is soft, warm, and delectable.  The ice cream topped with hot fudge, whipped cream, and chocolate chips just adds to the deliciousness.  We have also had the Chocolate Lovin’ Spoon Cake – only get if you love chocolate, the Toucan Brownie Nest – not a huge fan because I don’t like caramel or cheesecake, but my husband and stepfather love it, and the Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie – two of my favorite things in one!

            If you happen to be in central PA, check out Isaacs.  It definitely has my stamp of approval!

Cheesy Beef Stroganoff

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/velveeta-cheesy-beef-stroganoff-57514.aspx

    
 I don’t think that I would call this dish Beef Stroganoff – more of a Cheesy Beef Pasta.  This is a very creamy, cheesy meal (not a bad thing).  It has a good flavor and a little “bite” from the pepper (I used cracked black pepper).  A filling meal, but will add mushrooms next time to add some vegetables.

 I tried to make this a bit more healthy by using Morningstar Farms Burger Crumbles, 2% Velveeta, and Reduced Sodium Cream of Mushroom soup.  I needed to cook the pasta for about 10-12 minutes instead of the suggested 8 – remember to taste a noodle to feel its firmness before adding the additional ingredients.  This received an A+ from my husband, who is a big meat an potatoes guy – no wonder, since it’s cheese and pasta!

Sloppy Joe's

I really like this recipe for Sloppy Joe’s – the only thing I substitute is Morningstar Farms for the meat.  My fiancée doesn’t like all of the petite diced tomatoes – one can could suffice for those who are sensitive to that type of thing.  I probably put in about 2 tsp. of chili powder and joined with the BBQ sauce, it made for a very good flavor.  I served on a Martin’s 100% Whole Wheat Potato Roll.  A very nice combination.  I also had the Sloppy Joe with summer squash sautéed in a dash salt and pepper and (perhaps too much) Old Bay.  Tasty, but I had a few bites that were pretty strong.  Overall rating for me is an “A”!

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/community/recipe-exchange/userrecipedisplay.aspx?user_recipe_id=158088&group_id=1

Cheesy Mac Casserole

I wasn’t as much a fan of this as my fiancée was – but it is a good base for enhancements.  I used regular Kraft Mac & Cheese as the topper and Morningstar Farms burger crumbles instead of the other items.  The taste was a little bland overall, but adding Italian seasoning helped it along.  Next time I make it, I’ll use cumin, red pepper, diced tomatoes w/ green chiles, and Mexican cheese.  Also good to Mexi-it-up a little J 

http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/cheesy-mac-topped-casserole-75975.aspx

Carrot Burgers with Fries

I’ll tell you a secret – I’ve never made my own veggie burgers, even though I’ve been a vegetarian for 14 years!  I finally decided to try and this Carrot Burger recipe looked really interesting.  The only changes I made was using 2 cups unseasoned breadcrumbs instead of cornflakes and adding 1 egg.  I will definitely either use less breadcrumbs next time or another egg – they were a little dry.  Despite the dryness, though, they were tasty – not as carroty as you would expect.  Pretty low on protein, though, but once in awhile, that’s OK.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/carrot-burgers-2/detail.aspx

Of course, to go along with burgers, you need fries.  I wanted to do something a little healthy, so I just tossed Russet potato wedges with salt, pepper, and cooking spray.  I baked them for 12 minutes (each side) at 425 degrees – next time, I’ll bake them longer or at a higher temp, they were slightly underdone.  Still tasty with Heinz ketchup though!

The Windy City

My fiancee and I took a short trip to Chicago and had a wonderful time.  It was my first visit and I cannot wait to go back.  Not only is it a beautiful city with a fantastic skyline and lots of things to do, but it also has some awesome food.  Keeping in line with my blog ideals, I’ll stop talking abou the trip and start relaying my memories of the food J

Our first night, our hosts took us to Tuscany, an Italian restaurant on Taylor Street.  We had to eat in the back room because we did not have reservations, and it was kind of loud, but the food was very good.  The front of the restaurant had a nice atmosphere with the typical Italian style painting and decorations on the walls.  Our meal started out with a nice presentation of crushed garlic with olive oil.  Our waiter crushed the garlic at our table and added any spices to our liking.  This kind of attention indicated to me that this was going to be a good meal! 

I started off with the Barbe Rosse salad - roasted red beets, hazelnuts, citrus segments, goat cheese, frisee, butter lettuce, sherry vinaigrette.  The serving was enough for two people, so they brought it in a bowl and gave us extra plates.  It was tasty, not overly dressed with the vinaigrette.  I love goat cheese on a salad because it adds a great creamy texture.  I also enjoyed having the hazelnuts in the mix to add some crunch.  After my salad, I enjoyed the Ravioli Alla Pera – I had a really tough time deciding what to order because there are a few tasty-looking vegetarian options (or items that can easily be made vegetarian).  However, since I was running a half marathon the next morning, I chose something that wasn’t spicy or different than my normal eating.  The ravioli was filled with roasted pears and was covered in a sauce consisting of more pears, parmigiano, toasted nuts, sun-dried tomatoes, and mascarpone cream.  So yummy!  It reheated well the next day for lunch, too (since they gave such large portions).  We finished with a nice chocolate cake for dessert – not too big and not too rich – perfect way to end!

http://www.tuscanychicago.com/

After recovering from the half marathon, my fiancée and I headed to The Art Institute of Chicago.  It was a rainy and windy day, so we wanted to limit our time outside.  While there, my appetite kicked in and we stopped at Caffè Moderno.  I was surprised to find multiple veggie items there and had some of the vegan Tomato Basil soup with a wheat roll on the side.  The soup was very good and topped with some sesame seeds – it also had nice little kick to it.  The bread held up really well when dipped into the soup.  It was a very nice snack (unfortunately, not able to carry it around while looking at the art, but that’s okay.)  http://www.artic.edu/aic/visitor_info/restaurants.html

Connie's Pizza

One of my requests to our hosts was to indulge in some Chicago-style pizza.  My fiancée told me that true Chicago-style would mean I’d only be able to eat half a slice, so we opted for deep dish.  We ordered in from Connie’s.  I got the House Salad with a Garlic Ranch dressing, the Veggie Pizza, and the Cookie Monster to share.  The salad was your typical takeout salad – lettuce, tomatoes, onions – and the dressing was very garlicy (not a bad thing!).  The Veggie Pizza was topped with broccoli, onions, mushrooms & sliced tomatoes.  I am a huge fan of bread, cheese, and veggies, so this was a great combo!  I really liked the taste of it and it was quite filling.  We finished our dinner with the Cookie Monster – a much more massive dessert than we expected.  It consisted of four large chocolate chip cookies topped with four scoops of vanilla ice cream, a few dollops of whipped cream, and smothered in chocolate sauce.  Fantastic way to end this delicious meal!  http://www.conniespizza.com/

P.S. – the pizza tasted great cold two mornings later when we flew out – I saved two slices for lunch J

Our final culinary hurrah in Chicago was a trip to Harry Caray’s Tavern at Navy Pier.  When faced with the decision of whether or not to get a veggie burger at a restaurant, I usually opt not to because they are normally cooked on the same grill.  I made an exception this time because it had goat cheese!  The original burger comes with a Kalamata Olive Spread, but I asked for it without because I am no fan of olives.  It did come topped with goat cheese, arugula, tomato, and onion – all laid out on a whole wheat bun.  I had a side salad instead of fries, to try to keep it a little healthy.  The patty wasn’t that great, but the goat cheese made the meal.  I actually ate the whole thing.  One word of caution though, I got an upset stomach afterwards – possibly because of it being cooked on the same grill as meat.  I don’t have any proof, just sharing my concerns.  (FYI – there are other veggie options such as pasta and pizza)

http://www.harrycaraystavern.com/navy-pier/index.html

I love Chicago and the food is delicious – I cannot wait to go back to savor more of their delectable treats!

Salisbury SoySteak

When I was a kid, I used to eat a lot of TV dinners.  My absolute favorite was the Salisbury Steak with mashed potatoes and vegetables.  Even though the peas and carrots got into everything, I really enjoyed eating this food.  

About a year ago, I found a recipe for Salisbury Steak and thought that the Morningstar Farms burger crumbles might work.  The first time around the “steaks” did not stay together and I ended up scrapping the idea and mixing the crumble mixture and the sauce together.  Tasty, but I wanted to find the right consistency.  I tried this a second time the other night (I know, a long time to get around to it again!) and am getting closer to the right consistency.


Salisbury SoySteak (expected time 45 minutes, 6 servings)
(adapted from Allrecipes.com)

Ingredients
2 eggs
1/3 cup dry breadcrumbs
1 (10.75 oz) can reduced-fat, reduced-sodium condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 package Morningstar Farms Burger Crumbles
1/2 cup fat free milk
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups fresh, chopped mushrooms

Directions

1. In a bowl, combine the eggs, bread crumbs, 1/4 cup soup and onion. Add the Burger Crumbles and mix well. 
2. Shape into six patties. In a large nonstick skillet, brown the patties on both sides.
3. In a bowl, combine the milk, salt, and remaining soup; stir in mushrooms. Pour over patties. 
4. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

The patties still crumbled a little bit when I was flipping them in the pan, but much better than the first time around.  I’ll continue to make small changes to the recipe until it’s right.

Overall, a very tasty “steak” that is high in protein and low in fat.  The fresh mushrooms and soup give this a very strong taste, so if you don’t like mushrooms, probably best to skip it.  The onions are hidden in the patty, which is good because my fiancé is not a fan!  I served with mashed potatoes and mixed veg – luckily, it was my choice whether or not I wanted the vegetables to get mixed together with the other parts :-)