Michelle – Page 5

Florentine Lasagna ; a slightly healthier version

August 20, 2014 by Michelle

I’m back, and I’ve got a whole lot of rotisserie chicken to use up. I buy them 2 at a time at the warehouse club. An oversized chicken pre-cooked, under $5.00 – I can’t deny the frugality! Sure, I could freeze the meat like usual – but I’ve got blog posts to put up!

Now that I’ve stripped them of the meat and made stock out of the bones, let’s do up one of my favorites. Chicken Lasagna Florentine. Well, that’s how its listed in the Southern Living Cookbook. I re-named it because I simply cannot make their’s – overly salty, calorie laden, cheese smothered gut buster. And after all that they cover it with a ‘butter pecan topping’. Wait, isn’t that an ice cream? Not this one, but it may as well be, there’s nearly as many fat grams. Sorry, no can do.

So go and get some rotisserie chicken and follow along.

Florentine Lasagna – Michelle Style

Wait - what's that lemon doing in there ?! (photo bomb) — Wait – what’s that lemon doing in there ? Photo bomb!

Step 1

Gather up the ingredients: Preheat that oven – 350 deg please.

6 no-Boil Lasagna noodles (or regular, if you’re into extra steps)

1 Cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded

4 Slices Provolone Cheese

1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese, grated

1/2 a bag (5-6 cups) Spinach or leafy green mix (kale/shard/spinach)

1 can Cream of Chicken or Mushroom Soup (fat-free)

1 Cup Reduced Fat Sour Cream

1/3 Cup Mayonnaise (reduced fat is ok)

1 Tbl Soy Sauce

1/4 tsp Nutmeg

1 Tbl Corn Starch

1/4 tsp Black Pepper

1 Medium Onion, chopped fine

2 Cups Rotisserie Chicken, shredded

Step 2

Combine the nutmeg, and pepper with the corn starch and set aside. Also set aside the Mozzarella and Provolone cheeses, and noodles. Take everything else and get into a huge bowl and combine.

Why, no that’s NOT spinach. It’s a ‘Power Mix’ I got at the warehouse club – an awesome mix of kale, spinach and swiss chard. All super good for you and easy to cook with beyond a salad.

Step 3

In your lasagna dish, lay out the noodles with space for expansion. then top with 1/2 of the chicken mixture.

Step 4

Divide the cheese and sprinkle half over the mixture and lay on another set of noodles. Top them with the remaining chicken mixture and cheeses. Cover with foil tightly and get it in the hot box for about 55 minutes.

Then remove the foil and if you like, put it under the broiler for a minute or two to brown up the cheesy top. (Caramelized cheese is right up there with chocolate fondue on my faves list!) If you’re going to eat cheese make it worth it! A little bit of full fat Provy is so much better than 2 cups of garbage-fat-free-melted-plastic-type-substance.

Step 5

So good – oh, you can’t smell that – too bad. You’ll just have to make some yourself!

Finale:

So good ! And even you can have a piece. Add a salad and some refreshing water – you’re set. This isn’t one of those piled high lasagna dishes, but you could pump it up with the addition of a low fat cottage cheese and an extra layer of noodles. But that’s another blog.

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Frosty anyone? …in August!

August 13, 2014 by Michelle

Oh, yes, Frosty’s – sooo good when it’s sooo hot. And it’s really hot ! But even though the ubiquitous Frosty is a low fat wonder, it doesn’t exactly make the diet playlist. It’s still a machine made milkshake, a really thick one. Anybody with a Pinterest Login will tell you there are a million recipes for them,…well, here’s mine.

Step 1:

Gather together

3/4 Cup Almond Milk

1/2 Banana (frozen)

1/2 scoop Whey Protein Powder

2 Tbl Cocoa Powder

1 Tbl Agave

1 Cup Crushed Ice Cubes

Frozen bananas? Oh yes…take those bananas that are covered in what I call sugar freckles (to get the kids to eat them when they’re best). Slice them up and load a cookie sheet lined with plastic wrap. Cover with more wrap to keep out the ‘freezer funk’ taste. Pop them in the freezer. The next day put them into a container and keep in the freezer for all your smoothie and Frosty needs.

Step 2:

Get the goodies into you Magic Bullet and give it a whirl.

Step 3:

That’s no smoothie – it’s a Frosty !!! (why do I bother with ‘steps’)

Cool chocolatey goodness - and healthy! — Cool chocolatey goodness – and healthy!

Finale:

I think I’ve been a good Blogger girl – I deserve a treat. Oh, thank you – You might need one yourself…go and get that blender out ! Cool deliciousness awaits….

Cajun Soup ; not quite gumbo

August 6, 2014 by Michelle

I love me some gumbo ! Go ahead Grammar Police – do your worst. But, remember, this is The South. OK, moving on…

Good gumbo is hard to beat. It’s also hard to make. It takes forever and requires a special technique to making rue. That slow cooked oil and flour mixture that gives it that thick brown syrup that sticks to the white rice that it’s poured over. Yes, it’s yummy, and just think of the caloric count of oil+flour! I’m not going to spend hours cooking something too fattening to eat! Oh, no I haven’t got time for all that today (or most any day). What I have got are all the ingredients for a decent pot of that Southern classic, super quick style.

I’m not sure I should even bother with a recipe, this is just a ‘dump’ soup. But ok, here’s it goes…

Gumbo Soup:

2 Cups Chicken Stock (I like mine homemade and frozen in 2 cup packages)

2 Cups Water (to make shrimp stock out of)

3 or 4 links of Sausage – yes, leftovers from grill-night are perfect! (Chicken sausage from Aidells)

2 Cups Shrimp, thawed (ok, maybe a bit more)

1 bag Gumbo Veggies* (or a soup blend that includes okra)

1 tsp Cajun Seasoning (I like Tony Chachere’s, but it’s HOT)

1/2 tsp Emerils Essence seasoning

Step 2:

OK, this is the tricky part – Everybody into the pool ! I use my favorite ‘Wonder Pot’ (5 qt LeCreuset) but you could easily do this in a CrockPot and have this ready to go after work. BTW, yes, there were leftover grilled onions in the fridge so they went in too!

Step 3:

As it all melts, and becomes actual soup, peel the shrimp and get them back in the fridge. They go in last. Why? If you cook them all day they’ll be tough like shrimp flavored bubble-gum.

But, do take some water (2 cups or so) and put the peels/shells in and boil them up. They’ll turn pink just like the shrimp will later. Let them simmer a bit (10 – 15 min) to make a somewhat decent stock. Now, if you opted for the crock-pot version, wrap these shells up in a cheesecloth and let them float in the soup all day. Fish out the bag and discard later.

Step 4:

Strain that shrimp stock into the pot. This really does add to the flavor. The shrimp themselves will go in shortly before serving and won’t get a chance to add that much to the flavor party.

Finale:

Let it cook up for 45 min or and hour. Or leave it in the Crock-Pot on low for the day. Just before you turn off the heat, add the shrimp. I cut mine up into spoon-friendly size pieces. When they’re pink, they’re done.

No, it’s not gumbo. The thickness comes from the okra, a veggie, just imagine! Low fat gumbo?? Yes, please! I’ll hold the rice for mine, thank you. And I’ll save my calories for a second helping.

Enjoy, y’all.

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