Chicken Roulades

This has a white wine reduction that really comes through in the sauce. It is so yummy, we ladled some on the brown rice we served with it. We added some steamed broccoli with a squeeze of lemon juice and a touch of minced garlic to round out the plate.

12 pitted kalamata olives, divided
2 T. fresh bread crumbs
3 T. minced lemon zest
2 cloves garlic
3 T. minced oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1 tsp. dried oregano
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (6 oz. each) trimmed of fat
2 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 c. dry white wine
1 1/2 c. low-sodium chicken broth
1 T. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. cornstarch

Dice 6 olives; set aside. Process remaining 6 olives, bread crumbs, tomatoes, zest, garlic, and oregano in a food processor until minced.

Using a meat mallet or back of a heavy pan, pound chicken between plastic wrap to a thickness of 1/4 inch. Spread olive-tomato filling on chicken. Roll chicken; secure with toothpicks.

Saute roulades in oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until browned, about 4 minutes. Remove chicken chicken to a plate. Add onion to the skillet; saute 2 minutes. Add wine; cook until liquid is reduced by half, 1-2 minutes. Add broth. Bring to a boil; add diced olives and chicken rolls.

Cover skillet; reduce heat. Simmer chicken rolls 10 minutes; remove chicken to a plate. Whisk together lemon juice and cornstarch; stir into sauce in skillet. Simmer for 1 minute. Slice rolls; serve with sauce.
Makes 2 servings.
389 calories, 10 g fat, 102 mg. chol, 770 mg sodium, 19 g. carb, 2 g. fiber.

Chocolate Cherry Cookies

Cherries and chocolate seem like a perfect combination so to have a tasty recipe with only 80 calories a cookie is phenomenal. These really satisfy when only chocolate will do.

1 c. all-purpose flour (about 4 1/5 oz.)
1/3 c. unsweetened cocoa
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. sugar
1/3 c. butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 large egg
2/3 c. dried tart cherries
3 T. semisweet mini chocolate chips
Cooking spray or use a silpat on cookie sheet

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk.

Place sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until well blended. Add vanilla and egg; beat well.

With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture. Beat just until combined. Fold in cherries and chocolate.

Drop by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto baking sheets coated with cooking spray or a silpat. Press with bottom of spoon to flatten.
Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or just until set. Remove from oven; cool on pans 5 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely on wire racks.

L’Albatros Brassrie

Went to L’Albatros for dinner tonight. L’Albatros is a Neo-French style brasserie created by Zach Bruell. In spite of good intentions to not over indulge, I could not the resist the appetizer special. It was a hash of beef tongue, parsnips and carrots with a deep fried egg on top.

The beef tongue was nicely crisp and combined well with the carrots and parsnips. The deep fried egg on top was perfectly done.

When I broke the crispy shell open, the yolk was runny and combined well with the hash. Upscale cuisine meets comfort food. So good.
Peter ordered the charcuterie plate with small tastes of pork rillettes, chicken liver with fois gras mousseline, slices of pork and duck sausage, a sausage with lemon zest in it and a rabbit rillettes.

For entrees, I had the Pork two ways with braised pork belly and pork shank in a whole grain mustard sauce.

It was accompanied by cauliflower with a delightfully crunchy coating. It was the best fried cauliflower I have ever had and I so wish I could duplicate the recipe. Maybe when I have some spare time.
Peter had the cassoulet with braised with beans, duck confit, lamb and sausages.
It was so good and so much food that we couldn’t finish it all. This is one of my favorite spots to eat on a cold evening in Cleveland. The other plus was that we were seated in the small room with the large fireplace. We were right next to the fireplace so it was very toasty and cozy there. It was a lovely relaxing evening out.

Orange Spinach Salad

This was the salad for tonight’s dinner. The vinaigrette has a touch of lemon which plays nicely with the balsamic vinegar for a bit of sweetness. It really enhances the sweetness of the orange segments.

For the vinaigrette:
4 tsp. balsamic vinegar
2 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp. minced capers
1/2 tsp. minced lemon zest
1/8 tsp. kosher salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

For the salad:
2 c. packed fresh spinach leaves
1 orange, peeled and cut crosswise into 1/2 inch slices (I used a Clementine)
1/4 c. thinly sliced red onion
2 T. slivered almonds, toasted

Whisk together vinegar, oil, capers, and zest; add salt and pepper.
Divide spinach, orange slices and onion between two plates. Drizzle with vinaigrette; top with almonds.
Serves 2
Per serving: 136 calories, 8 g. toatl fat, 0 mg. chol, 216 mg. sodium, 16 g. carb, 4 g. fiber

Sofrito Chicken and Yellow Rice

Sofrito in Latin cuisine is a sauce made with tomatoes, onions, garlic and peppers which have been cut into very small pieces and cooked slowly in olive oil. I made this tonight and it is so incredible, I couldn’t wait to tell you about it. One taste and you are transported to a faraway Mediterranean land where spices marry to produce a sublime enhancement to any meat. No one would ever guess that it is so low in all the bad stuff.

Sofrito Chicken

2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of fat (3 oz. each) or boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 T. extra virgin olive, divided
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/4 c. diced onion
1 T. minced garlic
1/4 c. red bell pepper
2 T. canned roasted green chilies
1/4 c. diced green olives
1 T. minced capers
2 T. tomato paste
1 c. low-sodium chicken broth
2 T. minced fresh cilantro leaves

Slice the chicken pieces lengthwise into 1 inch wide strips.

Spray large frying pan with cooking spray and add 1 tsp. oil. Heat over high heat; reduce heat to medium-high. Add chicken; season with salt and pepper. Saute chicken until browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate; set aside.

Saute onion in remaining 2 tsp. oil in the skillet over medium heat until onion softens, 3 to 5 minutes. Add garlic; saute 1 minute.

Stir in peppers, olives and capers. Saute mixture for 1 minute, then sir in chicken, tomato paste, and broth. Simmer until liquid is reduced by half, about 5 minutes.
Serve chicken over Yellow Rice; garnish with cilantro.
Serves 2
Per serving: 235 calories, 12 g. total fat, 10 g. carb, 60 mg. chol.,18 g. protein, 663 mg. sodium.

Yellow Rice

1/4 c. diced onion
21 tsp. extra-verigin olive oil
1/2 c. dry long grain white rice
1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 c. low-sodium chicken broth

Saute onion in oil in a 1 qt. saucepan over medium heat until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in rice, turmeric, and salt; saute for 1 minute.

Add broth to rice mixture; bring to a boil over high heat and then reduce heat to low and cover pan. Simmer rice until liquid is completely absorbed, 15-20 minutes. Fluff rice with a fork
Serves 2:
195 calories; 5 g. total fat, 3 mg. chol. 563 mg. sodium

Lentil and Lamb Soup

This can be made with either boneless lamb cut into small pieces or ground lamb. Just be sure to use lean lamb since it sometimes tends to be fatty when bought ground from the grocery.

1 lb. lean lamb, boneless or ground
Nonstick spray coating
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 c.)
4 c. water
1 (14 1/2 oz.) can tomatoes, cut up
1 c. carrots, coarsely chopped
1 c. sliced celery
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 tsp. dried thyme, crushed
12 cloves garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
3/4 c. lentils

Trim any fat from boneless lamb if using and cut into 3/4 inch pieces.
Spray a Dutch oven with nontick spray coating. Heat it over a medium heat. If using ground lamb, skip this step.

Brown half of the lamb. Remove lamb from the Dutch oven and repeat with remaining lamb and all of the onions. Return first half of lamb to Dutch oven.

Add water, undrained tomatoes, carrots, celery, salt, thyme, pepper, garlic, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

Rinse lentils; add to lamb mixture. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes more or till lamb and lentils are tender. Remove bay leaf. Makes 6 servings.
Nutritional info: 197 calories, 21 g. protein, 21 g. carb, 4 g. fat,
44 mg. cholesterol, 527 mg, sodium.

Chicken Marsala

This dish is low fat and light on calories. It takes less than 15 minutes to make and you’ll never miss the fat.

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
Nonstick spray coating
1 1/2 c. sliced mushrooms
2 T. sliced green onion
2 T. water
1/4 tsp. slat
1/4 c. dry Marsala or dry sherry

Place 1 piece of chicken between 2 pieces of clear plastic wrap. Working from the enter to the edges, pound lightly with a meat mallet to 1/4 inch thickness. Or, if like me you don’t have a meat mallet then use the bottom of a heavy skillet. Remove the plastic wrap. Repeat with each chicken breast.

Spray a large skillet with nonstick spray coating. Preheat skillet over medium heat. Add 2 chicken breast halves and cook for 3 to a4 minutes or till tender and no pink remains. Transfer to a platter; keep warm. Repeat with the last two chicken breast halves.

Carefully add mushrooms, green onion, water and salt to skillet. Cook over medium heat till mushrooms are tiender and most of the liquid has evaporated (about 3 minutes). Add marsala or dry sherry to skillet and heat through. Spoon mixture and sauce over the chicken. Brown steamed rice goes well with this.
Serves 4
Calories 161, protein 27 g., carbs 2g., fat 3g., cholesterol 72 mg.

Rich Tomato Soup

This is a lovely soup with rich flavor and spice that is good served hot or cold. I made this a few nights ago when the thermometer was hovering around the 15 degrees mark. A cup makes a great first course and it is also great with a hearty sandwich.

1/2 c. chopped onion
3/4 c. chopped green or sweet red pepper
1 T. margarine
1 1/2 tsp. fresh basil or 1/2 tsp. dried basil, crushed
1/8 tsp. ground red pepper
2 c. tomato juice
1 c. buttermilk
Sriracha sauce to taste

In a small saucepan, cook onion and green or sweet red pepper. cook and stir for 2 minutes or until onion is translucent. Remove from heat.

In a blender, combine cooked vegetables, tomato juice and butter milk. Blend until smooth.

Return mixture to saucepan and heat through. Or, chill thoroughly.
4 servings

Nutritional information per serving:
86 calories, 3 g. protein, 11 g. carb., 4 g. fat, 2 mg. cholesterol

Linguine with Shrimp

It’s a new year. A fresh start. So, like so many others, I feel the need to improve. To resolve to reach a new goal. To try new but more healthy recipes. That’s not to say, I have thrown out the butter and Fleur de Sel. I am simply trying a more healthy approach to dishes I prepare. Eating more healthy does not mean curbing your taste buds and sacrificing flavor. I look at it as a way of trying new recipes and flavor combinations. The recipes I post are always tried and loved, so count on each recipe being not only tantalizing but will not destroy any resolutions you may have made to live a more healthy lifestyle.

This recipe can be cut in half if you only need a couple of servings with leftovers for lunch the next day but it is so good, you’ll want to serve it to dinner guests. No one will ever guess, it is “healthy”.

1 lb. fresh whole shrimp (don’t worry, they are a snap to clean)
12 oz. linguine ( I use Dreamfields for less digestible carbs)
1 tsp. margarine
1 tsp. olive oil
1 1/2 cups stock
3/4 c. dry vermouth or dry white wine
3 T. lemon juice
3/4 c. sliced green onions
3/4 c. snipped fresh parsley ( I always use flat leaf)
2 T. capers, drained
1 tsp. dried dillweed
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Clean the shrimp, keeping the heads and shells. To clean, pull off the head. Take a paring knife and run it up the back side of the shrimp under the shell, cutting through it to open slightly and remove the black vein. Rinse under cold water and save on a plate.

Toss the heads and shells into a quart sauce pot and add about two cups of water to cover them. Place on medium low heat and simmer about twenty minutes. Pour stock through a strainer to separate. Press on the shells to extract all the flavor and then throw them away. Rinse out the pot and return the stock to it and continue to simmer over a low heat until reduced to one and one half cups.

While the stock is reducing, Melt margarine and olive oil in a large pan. Add shrimp; cook and stir occasionally about 3 minutes or until they turn bright pink. Remove them with a slotted spoon, leaving the juices in the skillet.

Cook the linguine according to the package directions in a separate pot of salted boiling water.

Pour the broth, vermouth or wine, and lemon juice into the skillet. Bring it to a boil and boil for 10 minutes until reduced to about 1 cup. Stir in the onion, parsley, capers, dillweed, and pepper. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered, for 1 minute. Add the shrimp in and heat through, stirring gently. Pour over the cooked linguine; toss gently. Makes 6 servings

Nutritional info:
Per serving, 362 calories, 28 g. protein, 54 g. carb if using regular pasta but only 5 g of digestible carb if using Dreamfields, 4 g fat, 40 mg. cholesterol, 407 mg. sodium

French Bread

Peter has taken a few extra days off from work due to the holidays, so he decided it was a good time to make bread. There is just something so comforting about smelling fresh, yeasty bread as it bakes in the oven. This makes a pretty authentic French loaf, using only a regular home kitchen oven. The crust is very crunchy and the interior of the loaf has a fine crumb. It is important to place a pan of boiling water on the oven floor and sprinkle your baking pan with cornmeal after buttering them.

1 pkt. dry yeast
1 1/2 c. lukewarm water
4 cups unbleached bread flour
1 T. sugar
2 tsp. salt

Dissolve the yeast in the water. Sift the dry ingredients, stir them into the yeast mixture, and work the dough with your hands until it will absorb no more flour. Knead the dough on a slightly floured board until it is no longer sticky.

Place the dough in a buttered bowl, cover and let rise until doubled. Then punch it down and turn it out onto a floured board. Divide into 2 parts. Shape each piece into a long narrow loaf. Place the loaves on a greased cookie sheet that has been sprinkled with cornmeal, cover, and let rise again.

Brush tops with egg-white glaze and bake in a 400 degree oven for 35 to 40 minutes. If you like, you can sprinkle on sesame seeds. Makes 2 small loaves or one large one. You can check for doneness by tapping the loaves on the bottom. If they sound hollow, they are ready to come out of the oven.

If you like, you can also make rolls from this dough. The rolls were made by rolling three balls about one inch in diameter and placing them, sides touching in a jumbo muffin pan. These will take about 10 minutes less time to bake.

These were sprinkled with coarse pretzel salt and caraway seed. They looked and smelled so heavenly, we had to eat one warm from the oven with unsalted butter on it.