French Toast

I love french toast so when I saw some raisin challah at the local grocery store I couldn't resist. I love using challah for french toast and one of the best things about it is that I can cut the slices just as thick or thin as I want. Using raisin challah just allows me to add a little extra flavor without any extra work.

Ingredients:

• 1 loaf of raisin challah cut to 2oz slices - use 4 slices - two per person
• 1/2 cup egg beaters
• 1/4 cup almond milk
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

1. Pre-heat skillet to medium heat.
2. Mix the egg, milk, and cinnamon in a shallow container. Dunk the break into the mixture coating all sides.
3. Spray the skillet with your favorite non-stick spray
4. Cook the dunked bread on the skillet for about 3-4 minutes on each side. Serve warm.

Calories per slice: 185

Annie's Enchiladas

Annie is always great for recipes and inspiration. I decided to make these enchiladas after seeing the amazing pictures and having a craving for Mexican food. As usual these were amazing. I made a few changes which I have reflected below but the majority of this recipe and write up are directly from Annie.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium onion, chopped fine
• 2 jalapenos, seeded and chopped fine - I omitted these
  
• 1 tsp. canola oil - no oil for me
  
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tbsp. chili powder
• 2 tsp. cumin - I love cumin and added a tablespoon
  
• 1 tbsp. sugar - I left out the sugar
  
• 1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
• 1 cup water
• 1 tomato, seeded and chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 cup shredded sharp white cheddar cheese, divided - 1-2 ounces
  
• 1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese, divided - 1-2 ounces
  
• ½ cup minced fresh cilantro
• 12 (6-inch) soft corn tortillas - I used four because that is what I had on hand
  
• Cooking spray
• ZUCCHINI - I added shredded zucchini to up the veggies
  

Directions:
Combine the onion, jalapeno and oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring often, until the onions and peppers have softened, 8-10 minutes. Stir in the garlic, chili powder, cumin and sugar, and cook just until fragrant, less than 30 seconds. Mix in the tomato sauce, water, and chopped tomato. Bring the sauce to a simmer, lower the heat and cook until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.

Nestle the chicken into the sauce. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the chicken is completely cooked through (160˚ F on an instant-read thermometer), about 12-20 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside to cool.

Strain the sauce through a large mesh strainer into a medium bowl, pressing down on the onions and tomatoes to extract as much liquid as possible. Transfer the reserved solids to a large bowl and set aside. Season the sauce with additional salt and pepper to taste.

Shred the chicken into bite size pieces and add to the bowl with the onion mixture. Add in ¼ cup of the enchilada sauce, ½ cup of each of the shredded cheeses, and the cilantro. Stir to combine.

Preheat the oven to 425˚ F. Oil a 9 x 13″ baking dish with cooking spray. Stack the tortillas on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and microwave for 40-60 seconds, until warm and pliable. Spoon 1/3 cup of the chicken mixture evenly down the center of a tortilla. Add shredded zucchini. Roll up the tortilla around the filling tightly, and place in the prepared baking dish, seam-side down. Repeat with the remaining filling and tortillas.

Lightly spray the tops of the enchiladas with cooking spray. Place in the oven, uncovered, for 7 minutes or until the tortillas start to brown slightly.

Reduce the oven temperature to 400˚ F. Remove the enchiladas from the oven and pour the sauce oven the top. Sprinkle with the remaining shredded cheese. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes.

Remove the foil and bake for 5 more minutes, until the cheese is browned. Remove from the oven and let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Lumpia

One of my students constantly teases me because I love Lumpia but can't for the life of me say it properly. She is from the Philippines and I keep begging for her to bring me some authentic lumpia but alas...I am stuck with my own version. These were really good even though I had to make them with phyllo dough instead of lumpia wrappers as the store was out.

Ingredients:Carrots

• Celery
• Ground beef
• Beef bullion
• Onions
• Garlic
• Cumin
• Salt
• Pepper
• Lumpia Wrappers (for phyllo dough)

Directions:

1. Saute the onions and garlic. Brown the meat and add it to the onions and garlic mixture. Add diced celery and diced carrots. Mix in beef bullion and water. Cook over medium heat for about 15 min.
2. Place about 2 tbsp meat mixture in the middle of the lumpia wrapper. Roll folding in the top and the bottom so the meat is sealed inside.
3. Bake for 15 min in an oven preheated to 350 degrees.

Gyros - the real way

UMMMM Greek food. Apparently Gryos were invented in NYC not in Greece but either way I love them. I didn't realize that in reality this yummy sandwich type things are not made with a lamb leg, flank, etc. Rather they are made with ground meat. So, off I went to find ground lamb, bison, and pork...the combination I wanted to use to make my gyros.

I followed Alton Brown's cooking method found here. I also took ideas from this website, Serious Eats.

Ingredients:

• 4 oz Bison
• 4 oz pork
• 8 oz lamb
• 1/2 onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1-2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper

Directions:

1. Blend all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Pat the meat pace into a loaf pan and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place the meat loaf into a water bath and into the oven. Cook for about an hour or until the internal temp reaches 160-165 degrees.
3. Remove meat from the oven. Place a brick wrapped in tin foil on top of the meat and let it sit for 15-20 min or until the internal temp reaches 175 degrees.
4. Slice your meat nice and thin. Place on a grill or skillet to brown the edges of the meat.
5. Toss on a pita with Tzataiki, onions and tomatoes.

Makes 4 servings of meat. Calories per serving - 250

Tiropita

My favorite thing to get in Greek restaurants is Tiropita. Unfortunately most Greek restaurants in NYC don't have this AMAZING appetizer. As I decided to make gyros tonight I thought I would try my hand at these little beauties as well. While they looked excellent they ended up not quite hitting the spot. I am used to the cheesy insides being a little cheesier. I guess I will have to try these again.

Ingredients:

• 4 oz fat free feta cheese
• 1 egg
• 5-6 sheets of phyllo dough
• Butter Pam spray

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Mix the cheese and the egg
3. Lay out phyllo dough. Cut in half length wise. Spray with Pam. Double the dough on top of itself so you now have two layers of dough. Place about 2 tbs of cheese mixture in the corner of the dough. Fold like you are folding a flag, tucking in edges as you go.
4. Repeat until you have used all the filling. Place all the Tiropita on a Silpat or baking sheet. Spray with Pam. Cook for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Makes 5-6 tiropita - calories per tiropita - 50

Meatballs

Knowing that I love to cook I decided to make Gyros. Of course, I ended up with way to much ground meat so I turned some of the leftovers into meatballs. These meatballs were so good and at only 40 calories a meatball they are pretty healthy as far as meatballs go.

I used Panko bread crumbs and had to add extra to absorb some of the liquid but I also blended some of the meat with the onions to make the meatballs hold together and prevent them from being mealy.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of ground meat (I used a combo of bison, pork, and lamb)
• 1 1/3 cups panko bread crumbs
• 2 eggs
  
• 1/2 small onion
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder

Directions:

1. Preheat onion to 325 degrees.
2. Blend 2/3 of the meat with the seasonings, eggs, and onion until a paste is made. Mix in the remaining ingredients and shape into balls. Place meatballs on a silpat or cookie sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes.
3. Serve with sauce or freeze for later use.
   

Makes about 30-35 meatballs (I made 33): calories per meatball - 40

Mexican Lasagna

SCHOOLS OUT FOR SUMMER!!!!

Students left at noon but the kitchen made enchiladas for lunch anyway. Apparently they are making lunch all of teacher week but last year this was not the case. As this was totally unexpected the teachers had already ordered pizza. Not to let food go to waste I swiped some of the enchiladas for dinner.

Now these enchiladas didn't hold up to well and in my opinion could be part of a better meal if taken apart. So I took out the filling and made this mexican lasagna for dinner instead.

Ingredients:

• 2 cans diced tomatoes
• 1/2 onion diced
• 1/2 bell pepper diced
• 2 oz cheese
• 3 tortilla (I use la tortilla factory)
• Spinach
• enchilada filling (I used beef from school)
• 1/2 cup corn

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Put down a layer of beef as thin as possible. Top with tomatoes. Then place a tortilla on top. Layer with tomatoes and spinach and corn.
3. Place another tortilla on top. Now add a layer of beef then onions and peppers. Top with another tortilla.
4. Sprinkle cheese on top of the last tortilla. Cook for 15-20 min or until hot and cheese is melted.

Serves 3: Calories per serving 420 when low calorie options are used.