Not Your Average Rabbit-Food

   Welcome Back! Okay, I know, technically it was me that was missing but the world has been so busy lately.

       It's a new year, with new goals and exciting events so healthy living has become a priority. It's been difficult while working at a bakery, not just for me but for Mr. Pepper too. He finally had to tell me to "stop" because he didn't "need a treat every day". I didn't realize I was spoiling him, nor did I think he'd ever complain about being the recipient of brownies, cupcakes, and tarts. I digress, we are now on a healthy kick because have a few weddings to attend (including our own) where we must look our best. We are also competing in the Tough Mudder in May with a group of friends from University. Yes, I think we are a little crazy too, but what sounds like more fun than running 10 miles while completing 25 various military style obstacles with a group of nutty Brock Grads? So, to help us stay in tip-top shape and lose some of those pesky pounds and inches, we've instituted a meat-free day. Mr. Pepper thought it would be hard, but he agrees that the hardest part is finding new recipes to try (we don't want to feel like we're rabbits).

          Here is one of our favourite recipes, and by making a few alterations you could eat it every week and not recognize it's the same dish.

Veggie Medley

 12 mini red potatoes, unpeeled and quartered

3 cups medium-sized mushrooms

2 medium carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped

2 medium zucchini, cut into bite-size chunks

1 medium red onion, sliced

1 large red pepper, cut into bite-size chunks

1 large yellow pepper, cut into bite-size chunks

2 cups green beans, cut into bite-size chunks

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp fresh rosemary, or 1 tsp dried

1 tbsp fresh oregano, or 1 tsp dried

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1/4 tsp salt and ground black pepper

1/2 cup light feta cheese, crumbled

1. Lightly grease a large roasting pan or pyrex dish with butter, oil, or cooking spray.

2. Add vegetables, garlic, oil and herbs. Mix well.

3. Roast uncovered at 425°F for 30 minutes stirring once or twice during cooking time.

4. Turn on broiler and broil vegetables for about 5 minutes, until the edges start to brown.

5. Remove vegetables from oven and transfer to a serving bowl. Toss with vinegar, salt and pepper. Sprinkle crumbled feta over top. Serve warm

To change it up add some different vegetables. We've had it with green peppers and broccoli, and have taken out the mushrooms. I'm sure it would be good with sweet potatoes, eggplant, tomatoes, corn, asparagus, or any vegetable you want to add. I also purchased Goat Feta (much to Mr. Pepper's dismay) which has a much stronger flavour than regular Sheep Feta, so I've even made it without the Feta. Trying different vinegar would also change the flavour. I can't wait to try this recipe in the grill basket on the BBQ come summer.

Bon Appetite!

Mel

Lasagna Rolls

         Who wouldn't agree that food is more fun rolled up? Maybe a square.... but probably not.  Everyone loves burritos with all their meaty and cheesy goodness rolled into a tortilla. Kids love those sweet 'fruit' roll up snacks, although we all question how much 'fruit' is actually in them. Momma O and my aunts used to make jello roll ups, with, marshmallows and, you guessed it, jello! And, there are a tonne of different appetizers that are rolled up in tortillas or pastry dough. Rolling up your food just makes it scream, "I'm fun! Eat me!" What makes it even better is when it's healthy! Youpii!

       Today we'll be making Lasagna Roll. Now, just  a bit of a warning, these are meat-less, but I swear to you, no one will ever know. Mr. Pepper asked me multiple times if I was sure that there was no meat in them (really, I made them, I am positive!). These are good for all ages, and easily adaptable to your own likes-dislikes and dietary restrictions.

Here's what you need:

9 Lasagna noodles
10 oz (1 package) frozen chopped spinach
15 oz (1 tub) fat free ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg
salt and pepper to taste
32 oz tomato sauce
9 tbsp. partially skimmed mozzarella cheese, shredded


1. Preheat oven to 350°F.  Boil water in the kettle.


2. Layer your uncooked lasagna noodles on a baking sheet or in a 9" x 12" baking dish. Pour boiling water over top of the noodles, making sure all noodles are fully submerged. Set aside. (This is by far the easiest way to cook lasagna noodles, ever!)








3. Combine spinach (now, I only added half of the spinach as I misplaced the rest, only finding it once the entire dish was in the oven, and it still tasted great), Parmesan, egg, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.





4. Ladle about 1 cup of sauce (I had Ragu kicking around the fridge, so I used that) on the bottom of a 9" x 9" baking dish.

5. Remove your cooked lasagna noodles from hot water in the baking dish and pat dry.





6. Place a piece of wax paper on the counter and lay out all of the cooked lasagna noodles. Take about 1/3 cup of the ricotta-spinach mixture and spread evenly over each noodle, leave about 1cm at one end.





7. Once you are out of mixture, and all your noodles have some spread over it, roll them each up carefully towards the end where you left some space. Place them each seam side down into the baking dish.








8. Ladle the remaining sauce over the rolled noodles in the baking dish and top each roll with 1 tbsp. of mozzarella cheese.









9. Put foil over the baking dish and bake for 40 minutes. Remove foil and bake for an addition 10 minutes, or until melted cheese on top is bubbly. Let sit a few minutes before serving.






        Here's where it gets interesting! This recipe comes with nutritional information! I wish I could do this for all of my recipes, but alas, I don't know how.
6 WW+ points      224.9 Calories      5.1g fat      3.4g fibre      13.0g protein      31.5 carbohydrates

        You could make this recipe full fat by not using the partially skimmed and low fat cheeses, and you can even take out some of the carbs by using zucchini strips instead of noodles (make sure you salt the strips to draw out the moisture and then pat them dry before adding the ricotta-spinach mixture). You could even make it meat lover friendly by adding sausage, pepperoni, or ground beef/chicken/pork. Have fun with it!

                                                                                                       Enjoy!
                                                                                                            Mel