Pizza Stuffed Zucchini Boats

In case you haven't read my blog before, you should know pizza is my jam.  I love pizza (in all forms, really ALL forms). So you shouldn't be surprised I'm sharing yet another pizza alternative.

What you need...

• 4 large zucchini
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 lb ground turkey
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp basil
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 1/2 cups marinara sauce
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

How to make it...

1. Preheat oven to 375.
2. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.
3. Cut zucchini in half horizontally and carefully scoop out the center of the zucchini using a spoon.
4. Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium high heat.
5. Add ground turkey, oregano, basil, salt, and pepper. Cook until browned and drain excess fat.
6. Add marinara to the saucepan and stir until evenly coated.
7. Add marinara mixture to each zucchini and evenly top with mozzarella.
8. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the zucchini is tender and the cheese has melted.

This dish was super filling and guilt free. Give it a try! K, byeeee.

Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Bell Peppers

My fiancé suggested this delicious concoction, and let me just say, HOLY CRAP IT WAS SO GOOD. You should probably make this immediately if not before.

What you need...

• 1/2 lb roast beef, thinly sliced
• 9 slices provolone cheese*
• 3 medium green bell peppers
• 1 medium sweet white onion, diced
• 8 oz baby bella mushrooms, sliced
• 2 tbsp butter**
• 2 tbps olive oil**
• 2 tbsp garlic, minced
• Pepper, to taste

*For a lighter dish, use six slices of cheese
**For a lighter dish, use 1 tbsp

How to make it...

1. Preheat oven to 400.
2. Slice the peppers in half lengthwise and remove the ribs and seeds.
3. Line the inside of each pepper with a half-slice of provolone cheese.
4. Sauté onions and mushrooms over medium heat with butter, olive oil, minced garlic, and pepper. Cook until onions and mushroom are caramelized (this took me about 20 minutes).
5. Cut or tear the roast beef into thin strips (I used kitchen scissors) and add it to the onion/mushroom mixture.  Allow this to cook for about 5 minutes.
6. Evenly fill each pepper with the meat mixture.
7. Top each pepper with another half-slice of provolone cheese. Use the remaining three slices to cover the peppers are you see fit...or just snack on the extra while the peppers cook ;)
8. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the cheese is golden brown.

Annnnnnd enjoy! K, bye!!

Pumpkin Dip.

This pumpkin dip is so easy and super yummy! I made a really large portion which I then split and served half and froze the other half to enjoy at a later date. If you don't want a ton, just split the recipe in half!

What you need...

• 16 oz Cool Whip
• 1 5oz package instant vanilla pudding mix
• 1 15oz can can pumpkin puree
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• Whatever you would like to serve the dip with - i.e. apple slices, vanilla wafers, gingersnap cookies, etc.

How to make it...

In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients together and stir until combined. Chill in the refrigerator until serving.  Easy enough, right? If you want to get really festive, you can carve a small pumpkin to use as the serving dish!  After carving, I lined the pumpkin with plastic wrap and filled it with the dip.



With or without the pumpkin bowl, the dip is great! K, byeee!

Salmon with Honey Mustard Pan Sauce

I'm about to get really fancy in this post, so be prepared. (I'm just kidding, this dish is really easy, but you do have to 'deglaze' the pan, and just saying that makes me feel like I'm on Chopped.) I actually got the inspiration for this recipe from a Trader Joe’s package. I severed mine over an arugula salad with a homemade vinaigrette. It was ahhhmazing!

Vinaigrette

What you need....

• 6 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp white wine or champagne vinegar
• 1 tbsp whole grain mustard
• 1 shallot*

*I used a full shallot and it resulted in a pretty strong onion flavor. If you don't love onions, I would suggest using half a shallot instead. 

How to make it...

1. Finley mince the shallot.
2. Whisk together the oil, vinegar, pepper, and mustard
3. Stir in the shallot.

OR

1. Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend.

Salmon 

What you need...

• 1 lb salmon (or two large fillets)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 tbsp whole grain dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp water
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp honey

How to make it...

1. Add olive oil and butter to a large skillet and cook over medium heat to melt butter.
2. Add the mustard to the pan and stir to combine. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
3. Add the salmon and cook for 3 minutes per side if the fish is defrosted or 6 minutes per side if it is frozen.
4. Add the water (I did this so the fish wouldn't dry out), cover with a lid to complete cooking, mine took approximately 3 more minutes.
5. Remove the fish and add lemon juice to deglaze the pan.
6. Add honey and cook until reduced, about 2-3 minutes.

Salad

What you need...

• 2 handfulls of baby arugula (about 2 cups)
• 4 tbsp dried cranberries, divied
• 4 tbsp crumbled goat cheese, divided
• unsalted sunflower seeds, to taste

How to make it...

1. Divide the arugula evenly and top each portion with cranberries, goat cheese, and sunflower seeds.
2. Pour dressing over salad - I used 2 tbsp on each salad (I had plenty of dressing leftover - if you don't want leftovers, cut the vinaigrette recipe in half).
3. Place the salmon on the salad and spoon the pan sauce over the salmon.

My boyfriend almost skipped out on this meal for a juice. While we were eating he said he was really glad he didn't skip this meal and that its a keeper - and I agree!! K, byeeee.

Lemon and Garlic Shrimp "Pasta"

Recently I realized that entirely too many of my calories were coming from carbs, so I've been trying to cut back! I love pasta dishes and I've been eating a lot of spaghetti squash recently, but I wanted to try something new! I had some zucchini in the fridge so I figured I'd give zucchini pasta a try. I always keep a bag of shrimp in the freezer for quick dinners, so I ended up with Lemon and Garlic Shrimp Pasta!

What you need...

• 1/2lb peeled and deveined shrimp, thawed if frozen
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 medium zucchini, sliced into thin strips for zucchini pasta

How to make it...

If your shrimp are frozen, put them in a bowl of cold water to thaw. While they are thawing you can make your zucchini pasta. By the time you get the pasta made and the sauce ingredients into the skillet, the shrimp should be thawed.

To make the zucchini pasta, use a vegetable peeler and make long thin strips of zucchini. Continue around the zucchini until you get to the seeds. If you have a spiral vegetable slicer, you can use that instead!

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and combine all ingredients except zucchini pasta. Sauté until the shrimp turns pink. If you want the "pasta" al dente, just add the zucchini into the pan, toss and serve. If you want the pasta a little softer, remove the shrimp from the pan and set them on a plate covered with foil to keep warm. Add the zucchini pasta and toss for a few mins until softened.



I've made this dish three times since I first created it, its definitely a keeper! K, byeeeee.

Lemon Garlic Vinaigrette

I've been making my own dressings for a few years now, but I've never really measured things out - I just throw a little bit of this and some of that together and call it whatever I want. I finally decided to make a batch of dressing big enough for more than one salad, which forced me to measure things out...sort of. In the end, I went back and added more of whatever ingredient until the dressing tasted good. So if you decide to make this, just use these measurements as a guideline, and add more or less of whatever you want!

What you need...

• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• Freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1-2 teaspoons dijon mustard (optional)
• pinch of sugar (optional)

How to make it...

Finely chop the garlic and add the sea salt. Use your knife to grind the clove and salt together against cutting board (thanks for the tip, Dobby Flay). Place in a bowl with the lemon juice, vinegar, olive oil, and mustard. Whisk together. Season with pepper and sugar. If the mixture it too tart, add water. Store covered in the refrigerator. The dressing might harden because of the olive oil, if this occurs just run warm water over the container. Shake and pour!



I love using this dressing on salads with chicken or fish. Last night I ate it on an arugula salad with chicken, sun flower seeds, and goat cheese...I kept pausing to say how delicious it was. K, byeeee!

Southwest Breakfast Casserole

My mom's breakfast casserole is one of the many things I've been missing a lot during the WLC (this is another post I wrote a few months ago and forgot to publish). I gave this southwest breakfast casserole a try and it was tasty enough, but not being able to have hashbrowns or cheese makes it really hard for me to love any breakfast dish. I'm probably not doing a very good job of convincing you to try it, but I have to be honest about my love for cheese.

What you need...

• 1tablespoon coconut oil
• half a yellow onion, finely diced
• 1 small jalapeno, seeds removed and minced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 sweet potato, peeled and grated
• 1 pound grass fed ground beef or sausage
• 1 tablespoons taco seasoning
• 1/2 cup salsa verde (I used Trader Joe’s Salsa Verde)
• 12 eggs
• Sea Salt to taste

How to make it....

Preheat oven to 350. In a large saute pan, saute the onions and minced jalapeno in the coconut oil over medium heat until the onions are translucent.



Add the ground beef and cook until it starts to brown and add the grated sweet potato and garlic. Cook until the beef is completely browned and the sweet potato is soft.




Add the chili powder, cumin, and salsa, stir and cook until heated through.  Add sea salt if desired.  Transfer the meat mixture to a baking dish and spread evenly over the bottom of the dish.



In a large mixing bowl, beat together the 12 eggs add pour over the meat mixture in the baking dish.  Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.



Uncover and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until the eggs are set in the middle when you jiggle the pan.



I tried the casserole topped with the salsa verde, hot sauce, and Maggie's Fresh Pico - all three options we equally tasty. What would you top it with? K, byeeee.