Swiss Mac & Cheese

You and your family will not believe how tasty this dish is! And what is even harder to believe if how low the calories are! This is a great way to get your cheese fix while not putting on extra pounds! It's a great side dish for the holidays, and it's also great by itself for a quick and easy dinner!

Ingredients:
Shell pasta
Laughing cow swiss cheese
Butter substitute or magarine
Spinach
Dried Italian herbs (any that you have on hand will work, nothing fancy!)
Parmisean cheese

Cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain. Turn the stove temperature to low. Add spinach and stir until wilted. Unwrap a few cheese triangles and stir in with the pasta. Also, add the butter substitute or margarine. Add the herbs and parmisean cheese last. Serve, and enjoy!



French Onion Soup

Unfortunately, a lot of restaraunts make this soup with beef stock, so I don't get to enjoy french onion very often. This is my vegetarian version that is guaranteed to taste just as good as the restaraunt version, if not BETTER! It's super tasty, easy, and cheap to make!

Ingredients:
Yellow onion (sliced)
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
Vegetable stock
Soy sauce
Garlic croutons
Mild white cheese (I used Meunster, but Swiss and Provalone are good choices too!)

Slice the onions and cook over medium heat in olive oil for about 3-4 minutes. Add desired amount of salt and pepepr and continue to sautee for another minute. Add the veggie stock and turn the tempurature to high. Bring to a boil. Add a couple tablespoons of soy sauce. It adds a lot of flavor to the soup! Continue to boil until the stock has reduced by a third. Turn your oven on broil and let it get nice and hot while you're waiting for the soup to reduce. Ladel soup into a ceramic bowl or cup. Top with desired amount of croutons. Then top the croutons with a slice of cheese. I like to tuck the conrners of the cheese in so the edges don't burn. Put the soup in the oven and watch closely. It usually takes only about 1 1/2 - 3 minutes before the cheese is nice and melted and slighly crispy. Remove VERY cafefully, it will be EXTREMELY hot!!! Let cool for about 5 minutes, then enjoy!!!



Rustic Style Pasta

This pasta is great, and you can make it all year round with these veggies! It's so healthy and not too filling. It's a great dinner to make when you've had a long day and don't feel like doing a lot of cooking! It practically cooks itself!

Ingredients:

Angel hair pasta

Chunky marinara

Zucchini (chopped)

Yellow squash (chopped)

Shitaki mushrooms (stemmed)

Olive oil

Parmisean cheese

Cook the pasta in a pot according to package directions. In a seperate pan, sautee all the veggies on medium heat in olive oil until desired tenderness/ sear. After draining the water from the pasta, add marinara and veggies and toss together. After serving, top pasta with desired amount of parmisean cheese, and enjoy!



Grilled Veggie Sandwich

One thing that annoys me about being a vegetarian is that people assume that the things you eat are very limited. Like, all you can have is tofu and veggie burgers... Which is why I created this blog! So people can understand how versitile this lifestyle is! Just because I don't eat meat, doesn't mean I can't enjoy one of the BEST sandwiches ever! This is so delicious and gives you an excuse to whip out the grill or BBQ (Yes, vegetarians can BBQ too!) This is a must-try sadwich!

Ingredients:

100% whole wheat bread

Mayo or light mayo

Zucchini (sliced)

Yellow squash (sliced)

mushrooms (I used shitaki, but portabellos work just as well!)

Bell Peppers (I used mixed colors- sliced)

Tomato (sliced)

Olive oil

Feta cheese (Fresh cheese block, NOT CRUMBLED!- Sliced)

Get your grill nice and hot while slicing the veggies and marinating the zucchini, squash, mushrooms, and bell peppers in olive oil. Grill bread to desired doneness. Set aside. Add the veggies to the grill. Grill to desired doneness. Add mayo, cheese, and cold tomato to the bread, then layer on the grilled veggies, and enjoy!



Raspberry and Goat Cheese Salad

I love goat cheese! And when it's paried with fruit, it's even better! Add some nuts in the mix, and you've got a party! I absolutely love this salad! You can use any fruit you like, I just happened to think the raspberries looked beautiful this time of year!

Ingredients for the salad:

Spinach

Raspberries

Crumbled goat cheese

Candied walnuts

Ingredients for the dressing:

Greek yogurt

Raspberry vinigar

Olive oil

To make the dressing: Combine 1 Tablespoon of yogurt with 1 teaspoon of vinigar and 1 Tablespoon of olive oil. Stir or whisk until combined. For the salad, just layer on the desired amount of spinach, cheese, walnuts, and raspebrries. Toss with dressing. Bon Appetite!



Raviolis with Pumpkin Butter

Canned pumpkin can do sooooo much more than just make pumpkin pie! Did you know it also has one of the HIGHEST levels of anti-oxidents than any other vegetable?! This dish is so simple, cheap, and easy to make! Semi-homemade at its best! The kids are sure to love it, and you will too!

Ingredients:
Frozen cheese raviolis
Pumpkin puree
Frozen peas
Butter or butter substitute
Olive oil
Black pepper
Parmisean cheese

Boil the raviolis according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a microwave safe bowl, heat a couple tablespoons of pumpkin puree with about 4 tablespoons of butter until butter is melted. Stir the mixture to combine. Add the peas to the boiling water. When the peas and raviolis are heated through, drain well. Coat with olive oil and black pepper, then toss with the pumpkin butter sauce. Top with parmisean cheese, and enjoy!

Spaghetti Tacos

Yes, you are reading this correctly! Spaghetti tacos are my all time favorite childhood recipe! They are kind of like my version of sloppy joe's... And yes, they are quite sloppy! But oh so tasty!!! Although I've enjoyed these silly tacos since I was a kid, they were actually made popular by the tween Nickelodeon show iCarly. Carly's older brother, "Spencer," makes these tacos in several episodes, so kids all over are asking for these more and more! Spencer describes them as "the not-so-famous by magically delicious... Spaghetti tacos!" And I couldn't have said it better myself! =]

Ingredients:

Angel hair pasta (Okay, so it's not actually spaghetti... But I think angel hair works best with this recipe!)

Your favorite brand of marinara

Parmisean cheese

Crunchy corn tacos shells

This is pretty self-explainitory... Just cook the pasta accoring to the package directions. Add the sauce after draining. Put the spaghetti in the taco shells. Sprinkle on parmisean cheese. And enjoy!!!

Hummus Wrap

This is a no fuss wrap that is perfect for a lunch on the go! Both of my kids love this, and I'm quite fond of it myself! It's balanced and tasty and keeps you full and your energy levels high!

Ingredients:

100% whole wheat tortilla

Lemon flavored hummus

Fresh spinach

Diced tomatoes

Diced cucumbers

Put the tortilla in the microwave for 30 seconds to soften. Spread hummus gerously over the whole tortilla. Add the spinach, tomatoes & cucumbers to one half of the tortilla. The side that has the filling will be where you start rolling into a wrap. Roll tightly until you have a wrap! The hummus will hold the whole wrap together.



Spinach and Apple Salad

I LOVE a good salad! This is a classic, and it has all the wonderful tastes of Fall in one bowl! So healthy, light, and satisfying! The combination of sweet and savory can't be beat!

Ingredients:

Fresh spinach

Crumbled bleu cheese

Candied walnuts

Dried cranberries

Diced apples

Black pepper

Red wine vinigar

Olive oil

Salad-

Put the spinach in a bowl and top with desired amount of goat cheese, walnuts, cranberries, and apples.

Dressing-

Combine 1 part vinigar to 2 parts olive oil. Season with black pepper. Whisk for 10 seconds, and pour desired amount over salad quickly (before the oil and vinigar seperate). Toss the dressing with the salad and enjoy!



Roasted Garlic and Eggplant Dip

This dip is so yummy and easy to make! And it's good for you! It has protein, anti-oxidants, vitamins, and more! I like to use this dip in place of ranch. I don't think a lot of people even know how bad ranch is for you.... This dip is great with veggies, crackers, bread and chips!

Ingredients:

Eggplant

Garlic

Cooking spray

Greek yogurt (plain)

Lemon juice

Canned artichoke hearts

Salt & pepper

Cut eggplant into 1 inch thick slices and place them on a pan sprayed with cooking spray. Drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper as desired. Wrap garlic cloves in foil with olive oil. Fold over all the edges to make a pocket. Put the garlic and eggplant in the over together for about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, in a blender, add yogurt, lemon juice, artichoke hearts, salt & pepper. When the eggplant and garlic is done, remove from the oven to let cool for at least 10 minutes. Remove the skin from the eggplant and add to the other ingredients in the blender. Then the garlic. Blend until dip is very smooth. Serve room temperature or chilled!



Peanutbutter and Jelly French Toast

This is for sure the breakfast of champions! It has lots of protein, and it will keep you full for a long time! It's really easy to make, and very kid-friendly!

Ingredients:

100% whole wheat bread

Egg or egg substitute

Cooking spray

Creamy peanut butter

Your favorite flavor jelly

Heat a pan on medium heat. In a bowl, beat an egg until combined. Soak both sides of the bread in the egg until fully coated. Spray the pan with cooking spray. Cook both sides of the bread until egg is cooked thouroughly and is browned. Remove from heat. Proceed to make the toast into a PB&J like you normally would by adding the desired amount of peanutbutter and jelly. Enjoy!



Vegetable black bean stew

I'm actually eating this stew right now as I'm writting this! It's delicious! And it has a lot less sodium than canned soup. It's loaded with essensial vitamins and ani-oxidents! It's hearty, healthy, and perfect on a cold day! It's great with a side of crusty bread for dipping too! =]

Ingredients:

1 can of black beans

1 clove of garlic

diced onions

diced carrots

diced tomatoes

salt & pepper

Water

It's best to prep all the veggies before getting started. Heat olive oil in a pot, and add the garlic, carrots and onions. Cook them for about 4 minutes, being very careful not to burn them. Add the tomatoes, salt and pepper and continue cooking for a couple more minutes (until tomatoes are soft). Add the black beans (but don't drain the liquid from the can!). Then add about 2 cups of water. Simmer until the liquid has thickened and it looks like a stew. Then, enjoy!!!



Sweet Potato Burrito

I can't even explain how tasty this burrito is! It's healthy and will keep you full, without leaving you with that overly-full feeling like other burritos do!

Ingredients:

Canned sweet potatoes in a light syrup

Black beans

yellow onion (sliced or diced)

100% whole wheat tortilla wrap

Salt & pepper

Heat olive oil in a pan on medium heat. Add the onions. Sautee for 2 minutes until soft. Add the sweet potatoes and salt & pepper to taste. Sautee until the veggies are slightly carmelized. Add the black beans until warm. Turn off the heat. Meanwhile, heat a tortilla wrap in the microwave for 30 seconds to soften. Fill the tortilla with the filling, and enjoy!!!



Pumpkin Pudding



I can't even begin to describe how yummy this dessert is! It's simple and great for parties or gatherings! It's like eating pumpkin pie with about a 1/3 of the calories!

Ingedients:

(pudding)

1 package of vanilla instant pudding

1 small can of pumpkin puree

2 cups of milk or soy milk (I LOVE it with soy milk!)

Cinnamon

Whipped cream

(Tortilla garnish)

Corn tortillas

Cooking spray

a pinch of sugar

cinnamon

(pudding)

In a large microwave safe bowl, add two cups of milk, cinnamon, and the can of pumpkin puree. Stir until smooth. Microwave for 4 minutes, or until hot. Add the pudding mix. Stir well! Let cool, then refrigerate for at least an hour.

(tortilla garnish)

If you don't have tortilla bakers to make taco shells, you can use cupcake pans. Or you could cut tortillas into strips or chips and garnish the top of the pudding. All you have to do is lightly spray the tortillas with cooking spray, sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar, and bake until crisp!

Thin-Crust Personal Pizza

Ahhh, pizza! One of my favorites!!! This is a healthy recipes to satisfy that pizza craving we all get from time to time (I have this craving often!). Everyone in the family will LOVE this one! My kids ask for this at least twice per week! =]

Ingredients:

100% whole wheat tortilla wrap

Your favorite brand of marinara or tomato sauce
Mozzerella cheese

parmisean cheese

tomatoes

fresh or dried basil

Preheat the oven to 400. Lay the tortilla on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper of foil. Add the sauce and spread evenly. Evenly sprinkle on desired amount of mozzerella cheese. Add the balsamic tomatoes. Sprinkle a little bit of parmisean on top of the tomatoes. Put the pizza in the oven (the bottom rack is best because it will cook the tortilla and not burn the cheese). Bake for about 10 minutes. Make sure the tortilla is crisp enough. Sometimes the edges will look done but the middle will be too soft to hold. When the pizza is finished baking, take it out, add the basil, and let it cool for 5 minutes. Use a pizza cutter to slice, and enjoy!

Kale Crisps

Kale was practically unheard of a few years ago, but it's slowly getting its name out there! I might actually have an addiction to this leafy green! You can do so much with it, it's cheap, it's healthy, and oh so tasty! This might actually be one of the easiest snacks to make, but be careful because it's easy to over-salt them too... They almost taste like popcorn, but you will have to try it to believe it! ;-]

Ingredients:

Kale (broken into bite size pieces)

Olive oil

Salt & pepper

Kale tends to carry dirt, so be sure to wash it well before eating. They must also be dryed before baking. Pre-heat the oven to 350. Line a pan with foil or parchment paper and lightly coat with cooking spray. Spread the pieces of kale across the pan and carefuly and lightly drizzle with olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bake for about 5 minutes. You can tell when they are done because the edges will be slightly browned. Let coool for 5 minutes and enjoy!



Protein-Packed Parfait

This recipe is simple, versitile, and familiar. It's just a parfait... But since becoming a vegetarian, I've learned ways to add protein to everything I eat. I use non-fat greek yogurt. It has over twice as much protein as regular yogurt, and it's natural. And I've replaced the high-calorie granola with flax flake cerial. You can add any fruit that you like, I usually just use what's in season. All together, this breakfast has over 20 grams of protein, and it will keep you full for hours! This is the perfect breakfast for someone with a busy day ahead of them, and it is also a perfect breakfast for athletes!



KaLe & BrOwN RiCe SoUp

This is my all time favorite soup! It's just perfect for the colder months, which is why I'm using this recipe as my first post! It's super easy to make and very tasty, even the kids will be happy to eat their vegetables!!! You can feel free to customize this soup with the vegetables, you can dice them, julienne them, or chop them rustic style!

Ingredients:

zucchini

yellow squash

red onion

yellow bell peppers

Carrots

Kale

Vegetable stock

pre-cooked brown rice

salt & pepper

Soy sauce

Start by heating olive oil in a medium to large pot. Add the veggies (Zuccini, squash, onion, bell peppers, & carrots). Sautee for about 4 minutes on medium heat. Add the kale. Don't be afraid to use a lot of kale because it will wilt down like spinach. Add salt and pepper. Stir in the pre-cooked brown rice. Add the vegetable stock and bring the soup to a simmer. The secret is to add a few splashes of soy sauce just before turning off the heat. It adds amazing flavor to the dish! If you don't have soy sauce or like it with less salt, feel free to skip the soy sauce. But in my opinion, it MAKES the dish! =]