I’m always looking for quick and easy recipes that are low in calories. I found Spinach Fettuccine with Cauliflower & Broccoli in Green’s Cookbook, and it filled the bill. Of course, I had to tweak it a bit, as you probably will, too.
I’m a bit of a compulsive DIY-er, so I make my own pasta. (I’ve included my recipe for spinach fettuccine at the end, for you brave souls.) You can shave off some time by purchasing the fettuccine. By the way, you don’t have to use fettuccine – choose a different pasta if your prefer (or don’t have any in the house).
FETTUCCINE WITH CAULIFLOWER & BROCCOLI – makes 2 large servings
- 4 T butter
- 3 shallots, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, pressed
- 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
- 2 T Dijon mustard
- 1 T sun dried tomatoes packed in oil, chopped
- 1 T salt
- 3 cups total broccoli and cauliflower, chopped in bite-sized pieces
- 1/2 pound fettuccine (or any pasta you prefer) Recipe for Spinach Fettuccine follows at end.
- 1 tsp lemon zest
Melt butter in 3 or 4 quart saucepan. Add shallots and sauté for 3 minutes over medium flame. Add in garlic and cook another 30 seconds.
Remove from heat and stir in vinegar, mustard, and dried tomatoes. 
In a Dutch oven, bring 2 quarts of water and 1 T salt to a boil. Remove 1/2 cup of this water and stir into shallot mixture. 
To the pot of boiling water add the broccoli and cauliflower. 
When the water resumes boiling, cook veggies 1 minute only, just to blanch them, then scoop them out and add to the shallot mixture (which is still off-heat).
Add the pasta and lemon zest to the boiling water, cooking until the pasta is done. 
Save a cup of the pasta water in case you need it, then drain pasta. Into the empty Dutch oven combine the shallot mixture and pasta.
Adjust seasoning, if needed. Add saved pasta water if you feel it needs to be looser.
SPINACH FETTUCCINE – makes 2 servings
- 1 cup fresh spinach leaves
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 cup + extra all-purpose flour
Note: For this recipe you’ll need a food processor and a pasta machine (I use the Atlas hand cranked brand)
Remove and discard stem ends from spinach leaves. 
Chop leaves with knife, then place in food processor and pulse until leaves are very finely chopped. 
Add egg and oil, and pulse a few times to blend. 
Pasta making is all about having the right ratio of liquid to dry ingredients. The spinach, egg, and oil are the wet, and the flour is the dry. You’ll have to go by feel since the water in the spinach and the size of the egg are variable. Don’t worry, there’s wiggle room!
Add in 1 cup of flour and run machine about 10 seconds, until mixture is blended. It will probably be too dry. Try to form a ball with some of the mixture. If it crumbles, you’ll need to add some water, 1 tsp at a time. If it feels like Playdough (i.e., it holds together and feels kind of tacky), it’s done. If it forms a ball but sticks to your fingers, it’s too wet – add more flour, a tablespoon at a time.
When dough reaches the proper consistency, form 2 balls and place them back in food processor with lid to rest for about 1/2 hour or so. 
Attach pasta machine to a table or countertop with plenty of room to lay out dough. You’ll also need something to hang the dry pasta over, such as a dowel. Pour about 1/4 cup of flour on the work surface. Work as quickly as you can so the dough doesn’t dry out.
Take one dough ball and smash it into the flour. Flip dough and smash other side into the flour.
Brush off extra flour the run dough through machine at the lowest number setting (this will be either ‘0’ or ‘1’). Fold dough like an envelope and run it through again. 
Lay dough flat and rub a little flour over both sides of dough. 
Fold in half and run it through machine at same setting. Repeat this last step 3 more times. You will have run the dough 6 times through the machine on the lowest setting. Repeat with second dough ball.
TIP: Each time you run the dough through the machine, say the number you’re on aloud so you don’t forget what number you’re on. It’s better to do too many than not enough – by the 6th run-through you’ll see a big difference in the dough consistency.
Turn the machine number up 1 digit and run each dough strip (without folding it) through 1 time only. Rub the dough (like before) with a little flour. Increase the number, run the strips through (again, without folding). You’ll notice the strips get longer with each number increase. It’s a personal preference as to how thin you want your pasta – I like to stop after number 5.
When you’re making your final pass with a strip, cut it to the length you want your pasta – I usually cut it in thirds. 
Run these pieces through the cutter before doing the other strip, so the cut edges don’t dry out.
Hang cut dough until ready to boil.
Mexican Rice is one of those foods that can be both a side dish and an ingredient in something else. For example, Monday night you might want a side dish with a bit of a kick to perk up a main course, and then on Tuesday it can become part of a burrito or taco. One preparation, two meals! Love it!!!
Empty into a large measuring cup and add enough stock or water (both work fine) to add up to 4 cups total. Set aside.
Put uncooked rice in a sieve and rinse well to remove excess starch. 
In a saucepan, heat oil. Add rinsed rice and sauté 6 minutes. 
Stir in the tomato purée, garlic, salt, jalapeños, and tomato paste. Pour into casserole dish. 
Cover and bake at 350º F 30-40 minutes, stirring halfway through, until rice is fully cooked. (Make sure rice is fully cooked – it won’t continue to soften off-heat.) 
Add in cilantro and lime juice to taste. If you want more kick, stir in another minced jalapeño.
Into the workbowl of your food processor (or a large mixing bowl if you’re going to do this by hand), put the flour, 1 T olive oil, yeast, sugar, and salt. Turn the machine on and slowly pour in the water through the pour tube. Once all the water is poured, let the machine run another 30 seconds or so. This is a very sticky, loose dough.
Empty the dough onto the olive oil in the jelly-roll pan. Dip your finger tips into the oil so the dough won’t stick to them, and flip the dough so it’s now completely covered in oil. 
Cover either with plastic film or a large pan (I use a rectangular roasting pan – it fits perfectly.) DON’T use a tea towel – it will just stick to the dough. (Been there, done that!) Let rise about 45 minutes.
Sprinkle on mozzarella, then drizzle on the marinara, followed by any other topping, and finally sprinkle on the Parmesan. 
Bake at 500º F in the lower third of oven for 13-15 minutes. Sprinkle on fresh basil. 
In a 12″ skillet over medium/high, heat oil. Add onions and sauté until translucent, but not browned – about 5 minutes. Turn off heat and add in garlic and basil, stirring to bloom by using residual heat from the hot skillet.
Turn heat to medium/high and add in cauliflower. Sauté for 5 minutes. 
Add in the tomatoes and continue to cook until cauliflower is tender – about 10 minutes. 
In a saucepot, bring 2 quarts of water to a boil. Add in 1 T salt and the pasta. Cook until slightly under-done. Drain. 
In the now-empty saucepot, combine the white sauce, cauliflower mixture, pasta, and lemon juice. 
Pour half into a casserole dish. Sprinkle on half of Mozzarella and half of Parmesan. 
Cover with the remaining pasta mixture and top with the remaining cheeses. 
Cover and bake at 375º Fahrenheit for 30 minutes. Remove lid and cook 10 minutes longer, if covering with crumb topping. Evenly sprinkle topping over top. Return to oven, uncovered, and bake another 5 minutes. 
If not covering with topping, bake uncovered for 15 minutes.
Let set 15 minutes before serving – it’s super hot! Pass around Seasoned Breadcrumbs, if desired.
Remove from heat and pour into a bowl. Stir in Parmesan when crumbs are cooled.
Some people become vegetarians because they don’t like meat and/or it upsets their body. Not me. I grew up eating some sort of animal everyday – sometimes three times a day and loved it. So when I decided, for humanitarian reasons, to become a vegetarian, it was quite an adjustment.
Put the butter, rye flour, sugar, salt, caraway seeds, mustard, and 1 cup of the AP flour into the workbowl of a food processor. 
When the yeast is proofed, turn on the machine and slowly pour in the yeast water. 
When it’s mixed, add in remaining flour a little at a time, until dough starts to pull away from the sides. You may or may not need all of the remaining cup of flour. 
Empty dough into greased bowl, flipping dough ball so entire ball is greased. Cover with tea towel or plate and let rise 1 hour.
Spread on the “ham”, cheese, then pickles down the center of the dough. Make 1½” cuts along both sides – cut the same number for both sides.
Fold in one end, then grab the first dough tabs and twist them together, pinching to make sure they stay. 
Keep doing this for all the tabs.
Slide the parchment onto a large, rimless cookie sheet. Cover loaf with the tea towel and let rise 30 minutes. At this time, preheat oven to 375º F. 
Remove to rack and let set about 15 minutes before serving.
I had given up on frittata making. They stuck to the skillet and were rubbery. Although they looked enticing in photos, mine never came out right. I was done! That is, until I discovered the joys of cooking with a cast iron skillet.
Cut potatoes in half lengthwise, then cut each of those halves in half lengthwise. Slice each quarter widthwise into 1/8″ thin pieces.
In a mixing bowl combine onions, potatoes, olive oil, 
Heat 10″ cast iron skillet over medium/high heat. Pour in potato/onion mixture and pat down with a spatula. Cover and cook for a total of 15 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. (Set a timer for the 15 minutes, and another for the 5 minutes!)
Into the now-empty mixing bowl (no need to clean it), beat the eggs with a whisk or fork. Beat in the sour cream, feta, cheddar, peas, and the remaining 
When potato/onions are cooked, pour into the egg mixture and stir together.
Then pour this immediately back into the skillet. Turn heat to medium/high and heat for 15 seconds, running a spatula around edges. 
Cover and cook undisturbed at medium/high heat for 5 minutes. Remove lid and place skillet, uncovered, in the 350º F preheated oven. Bake for 15 minutes. (Don’t overcook or it will yield a tough frittata.) Remove from oven and let set for 20 minutes before slicing.
Sadly, when we think Mac & Cheese, we often think of Kraft Mac & Cheese. While children seem to love it, one wonders what exactly is that suspicious orange “cheese” and multitude of ingredients that hearken one back to high school chemistry.
Add in pasta and bring to a simmer. 
Maintaining the simmer, cook uncovered until pasta is just past the al dente stage – about 6 minutes. 
While pot is still on low heat, stir in American cheese, Dijon and cayenne. Remove from heat and stir in Cheddar. Cover pot and let melt together. Taste for seasoning.
If you want to make the bread crumb topping, toast the panko, olive oil, salt, and pepper in a small skillet until browned. (Keep an eye on it – it only takes a couple of minutes.) Remove from heat and mix in the Parmesan.
Grits. Just the word has always made me want to rinse out my mouth. I could never understand why anyone would want to eat them…and like them! Until now.
Add in the 3¼ cups water, milk, hot sauce, pepper, and salt. Bring to boil.
Whisking continuously, very slowly pour in the polenta (or cornmeal). 
Decrease heat to maintain a simmer and cook, uncovered, until thickened – about 15 minutes. Stir often, taking care to get into the edges.
In a blender, pureé the corn with the remaining 1/4 cup water for about 5 seconds. 
Pour into the thickened grits, also adding the cheeses, stirring to blend. Cook another 5 minutes or so to thicken. 
Top servings with scallion green slices, more shredded cheese, and paprika, if desired.
Chicken & Dumplings is one of those classic, stick-to-your-ribs meals that’s considered a comfort food by many. Of course, being a vegetarian, chicken was not an option. That pretty much left a watery broth and a few carrots, onions, and celery.
Add in mushrooms and continue to cook another 4 minutes, scraping fond on bottom of pan (the browned bits). 
Add dill, tomato paste, garlic, and 2½ tsp of the salt – cook 3 more minutes. 
Pour in the Sherry and continue to cook until evaporated, scraping any fond formed. 
Add the water, tofu, soy sauce, red wine vinegar, and parsley. Bring almost to a simmer. In a small bowl, make a slurry by combining the arrowroot with 1/4 cup of the soup. Stir slurry into soup until it thickens a bit – should take a few minutes. Taste for seasoning – adjust, if needed. Keep heating the soup to bring to full boil.
As soup is heating up, make the dumplings. Heat the butter and let cool a bit. Then combine melted butter with the buttermilk – it will get clumpy. Whisk the egg white a little, then whisk it into the buttermilk mixture. 
In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and 
Form small dough lumps – 1″ or less. There will probably be about 62. (These will plump up with cooking.) Make sure you form all these balls before you begin dropping them in the soup so they cook at the same rate.
When soup has come to a full boil, one by one drop in the dough balls. Wrap a towel around the pot lid and cover. (MAKE SURE THE TOWEL DOESN’T DROP ANYWHERE NEAR THE BURNER! YOU DON’T WANT A FIRE!!!) The towel will absorb steam moisture so the dumplings don’t get soggy. 
Decrease flame to medium and cook 11 minutes. Remove lid and allow steam to escape a few minutes before serving.
Anyone’s who made manicotti knows the challenge of trying to stuff cooked tubular pasta without tearing it. If you fill uncooked tubes, then you face the problem of cooking them enough so they’re edible.
Add in the tomatoes and 
Place the uncooked noodles in a 8″ x 11″ (or there-abouts) casserole dish. Cover noodles with boiling water, separating them with a fork to make sure they don’t stick together. Let them soak for 5 minutes, moving them around now and then.
Place noodles on a tea towel to dry. Discard water and dry pan.
Divide the filling evenly amongst the noodles (about 1/4 cup each). Spread filling, leaving a 1/2″ border at one of the short ends. 
Roll up, starting at end where the filling went all the way to the end. (The border is to allow room for the filling to spread as you roll them up.)
Spread 3/4 cup of the marinara into the pan. 
Lay the manicotti, seam side down. 
Pour on remaining marinara, covering all exposed pasta with the sauce. 
Cover with lid or foil. Bake at 375º F for 40 minutes. Increase oven to 500º F. Sprinkle on remaining 
Bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Sprinkle on more basil, if desired.
Vegetarian Cooking For Carnivores BLOG 