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Tag: vegetables

Roasted Pumpkin Soup

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Ingredients

  • 2 Tablespoons canola oil, divided
  • One 4-pound sugar pie pumpkin
  • 1 large yellow onion
  • 4 large garlic cloves
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
  • ½ teaspoon cumin
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 4 cups (32 ounces) vegetable broth
  • ½ cup low-fat plain yogurt
  • Roasted pumpkin seeds or almonds (optional)

Directions

  1. Wash hands with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds.
  2. Preheat oven to 425°F.
  3. Carefully cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds.
  4. Slice each pumpkin halve in half to make quarters. Brush pieces with oil and place cut sides down onto the baking sheet.
  5. Roast for 35-45 minutes or until the orange flesh is easily pierced through with a fork. Set it aside to cool for a few minutes.
  6. Wash the onion and dice. Mince the garlic. Set aside.
  7. Once the pumpkin is cool enough to handle, peel off the skin. You may need to use a knife to slice the skin off. Throw away the skin.
  8. Roughly cut the pumpkin into smaller chunks.
  9. Heat the remaining oil in a large pot over medium heat. Once the oil hot, add onion, garlic, and salt to the skillet. Stir to combine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is clear, about 8-10 minutes.
  10. Add the pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, cayenne pepper, cumin, black pepper, and broth. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, to give the flavors time to blend.
  11. Remove the soup from heat and let it cool slightly. Working in batches, place the soup into a blender and blend until smooth. Do not fill your blender past the maximum fill line! Transfer the puréed soup to a large bowl and repeat with the remaining batches.
  12. Once all the soup is blended, place it back in the pot.
  13. Place about ½ a cup of the soup in a bowl. Add the yogurt and stir until smooth. Add back to the soup and cook 5-10 more minutes.
  14. Ladle the soup into individual bowls. Sprinkle with roasted pumpkin seeds or almonds, if desired.

Makes 4-6 servings

Herb Stuffed Mushrooms

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Ingredients

  • 4 large mushrooms (approximately 3″ in diameter) or 8 small mushrooms
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 3/4 cup white onion
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried sage
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1/3 cup canned chickpeas, drained, no-salt added (garbanzo beans)
  • 1/8 cup whole-wheat bread crumbs
  • 1/8 cup sun-dried tomatoes (finely chopped)
  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
  • Nonstick spray

Directions

  1. Wash hands with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds.
  2. Rinse mushrooms under cool running water. 
  3. Trim the stems and place in a bowl to include in the filling.
  4. Preheat oven to 375°F.
  5. Place mushroom caps on a baking sheet coated with nonstick spray. 
  6. While oven is warming, put mushroom caps (open side down) in oven for 10 minutes. This will prepare the caps for stuffing.
  7. Chop the garlic and onions. Sauté with 1 teaspoon of oil for 4 minutes.
  8.  Add the four herbs and cook for 1 more minute. 
  9. Remove mushrooms from the oven, flip open-side up, and set aside. 
  10. In a large bowl, mash mushroom stems and chickpeas. Add onion mixture, bread crumbs, tomatoes, and lemon juice. Mix well.
  11. Lightly spray a baking sheet and the mushroom caps with nonstick spray. 
  12. Stuff the mushrooms with the mixture and place on baking sheet.
  13. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the stuffing is golden brown.
  14. Remove from oven, sprinkle with an herb of your choice, and enjoy.

Makes 8 servings

Twisted Mac & Cheese 3 Ways

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Base Mac & Cheese

Ingredients

  • 1 box pre-packaged mac n cheese
  • ½ pack cheese packet
  • ¼ cup low-fat or fat-free milk
  • 2 Tablespoons tub margarine

Directions

  1. Wash hands with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds. 
  2. Cook noodles as directed on package.
  3. After draining noodles, return to heat, stir in milk, margarine, and cheese packet.
  4. Twist it up! 
Tuna and peas mac and cheese in a white bowl

Tuna & Peas Mac & Cheese

Ingredients

  • 1 recipe Base Mac & Cheese
  • 2/3 cup cooked peas
  • 1 5-ounce can tuna, drained

Directions

  1. Wash hands with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds. 
  2. Prepare Base Mac & Cheese. 
  3. Stir in peas and tuna.

Broccoli & Chicken Mac & Cheese

Ingredients

  • 1 recipe Base Mac & Cheese
  • 1 cup cooked broccoli
  • 1 cup cooked chicken or 1 can chicken, drained

Directions

  1. Wash hands with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds. 
  2. Prepare Base Mac & Cheese. 
  3. Stir in broccoli and chicken.
Broccoli and chicken mac and cheese in a white bowl
Taco mac and cheese in a white bowl

Taco Mac & Cheese

Ingredients

  • 1 recipe Base Mac & Cheese
  • ½ pound lean ground meat (turkey, lean beef, game meat)
  • ½ 10-ounce can tomatoes and green chilies
  • ½ 15-ounce can black beans
  • ½ Tablespoon taco seasoning or CNP Mexican Seasoning

Directions

  1. Wash hands with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds. 
  2. Brown meat. Add tomatoes and green chilies, beans, and seasoning. Simmer for 10 minutes.
  3. Add meat mixture to mac n cheese and stir well.

Leaf Finger Salad

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Ingredients

  • 1 large head iceberg lettuce 
  • 1 cucumber (sliced)
  • 1 beet (shredded)
  • 1 carrot, medium (shredded)
  • 6 teaspoons sunflower seeds
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

Directions

  1. Wash hands with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds.
  2. Carefully peel lettuce leaves off the head.
  3. Lay lettuce leaves on a flat surface. Top each leaf with: cucumbers, beets, carrots, and sunflower seeds. 
  4. Drizzle each leaf with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
  5. Slowly roll the leaf with all ingredients, tucking in the ends. 

Makes 6 servings

Green Bean & Rice Casserole

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Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup onion, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons of canola oil 
  • 1/2 cup brown rice, uncooked
  • 1 1/2- 2 cups broth
  • 1 can low-sodium green beans, drained (about 15 ounces)
  • 1 can low-sodium diced tomatoes (about 15 ounces)
  • 1/4 cup shredded cheese (optional)
  • Nonstick Spray

Directions

  1. Wash hands with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds.
  2. In a medium-sized pan, sauté onions in for 3-5 minutes or until they begin to brown.
  3. Add rice and broth.
  4. Cover and cook on medium high until rice is soft, about 20-30 minutes.
  5. Preheat oven to 375°F. 
  6. Spray a small baking dish with nonstick spray.
  7. Add green beans and tomatoes to cooked rice. Mix together.
  8. Spread rice mixture in the baking dish. Top with shredded cheese.
  9. Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted and beginning to brown.

Makes 6 servings

Sesame Snap Peas

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Ingredients

  • 2 cups sugar snap peas
  • 1/2 Tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce
  • 1/2 Tablespoon sesame oil, canola oil, or olive oil
  • 1/2 Tablespoon sesame seeds
  • Black pepper to taste

Directions

  1. Wash hands with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds.
  2. Wash peas. Trim snap peas and cut in half.
  3. Steam peas in a perforated basket over 1 inch of boiling water until crisp tender, about 4 minutes.
  4. Place in a medium-sized bowl. Add soy sauce, oil, sesame seeds, and black pepper. Toss to coat.
  5. Serve at room temperature. 

Makes 4 servings

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