Category Archives: Vegetables

Lasagna with: Spinach, Mushrooms and Artichoke

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I sometimes prefer to have an all-Vegetarian meal, and that doesn’t mean that I have to give up on the things I love.  I actually made this recipe years back because my sister-in-law was vegetarian and I was making Lasagna but she couldn’t eat it, so I decided to go ahead and see what I could whip up for her and I looked in the fridge and these were the vegetables that I had and that is what I used, it turned out great and every now and then I like to make it again, even for myself.

It’s very nutritious and doesn’t leave you feeling too full or guilty. Lasagna is delicious done pretty much anyway as long as you put some love and good flavors in it. I think that these vegetables are very good for the lasagna because the Spinach and Mushrooms are very moist s it helps the lasagna to not turn out dry.

Please Enjoy!

 

Ingredients:

1 lb. Spinach*

½ lb. Mushrooms sliced

½ lb. Artichokes quartered*

1 Garlic clove

3 tbsp. olive oil

Salt to taste

For the Besciamella:

1/4 cup butter or margarine

1/2 cup white flour

1 cup of milk (I use non-fat)

1/2 cup of water

Salt and pepper to taste

Remaining ingredients:

1 lb. mozzarella shredded or diced

1/2 cup parmiggiano shredded

500 gr. spinach lasagna*

 

In a large pan heat up your olive oil, then add your chopped up garlic, allow getting golden; and then adding your mushrooms, spinach and artichokes. Once they have all sautéed add some salt to taste and turn off heat and start your besciamella.

In a 13 by 9-inch baking dish, spread some of the sautéed vegetables; arrange pasta sheets side by side until the bottom of the pan is fully covered. Evenly spread a layer of your besciamella sauce, and a layer of the mozzarella. Arrange another layer of pasta sheets and spread a layer of the sautéed vegetables. Arrange another layer of the pasta sheets and add another layer of besciamella sauce, and then a layer of the mozzarella. Arrange another layer of the pasta sheets and spread another layer of the sautéed vegetables, add all the rest of the beciamella and parmiggiano evenly over the sautéed vegetables. (You may add another layer depending on how deep your pan is, or you can leave it like this just remember the final layer has to be the vegetables, besciamella and Parmiggiano.)

Cover the lasagna with some aluminum and place in the middle rack of the oven and bake for about 30 minutes, until top is bubbling. Remove the aluminum and bake for another 15 minutes, you may now remove from oven and let sit for about 15 minutes. Then you may serve.

* Spinach: You may use fresh spinach or frozen, if frozen allow to drain and defrost.

* Artichokes: You may use canned (in water only) or frozen forllow same procedure as spinach of frozen.

* Lasagna sheets: I use spinach lasagna but you may use regular.

Grilled Chicken with Romaine

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This dish is one of my favorites. I especially love to make it in the summer and I do like to use Shrimp with it. I personally like to grill, I feel that it is a healthier and tastier way to cook, the flavor it gives the food is fantastic and it can be low-fat if you don’t use all those marinades, I use a little olive oil and then any type of spice or herb that goes along with the dish. You can literally grill anything you want, veggies, fish, poultry, meat, fruit, etc.

This dish is simple and fast. I hope you enjoy making this dish!

Ingredients:

Serves 2

2 heads of Romaine

2 skinless Chicken breasts

2 tbsp. Olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Pour 1 tbsp. of olive oil and some salt and pepper on the boneless skinless chicken breast, put on the grill and allow to cook for 10 min. before turning over. In the meantime cut your romaine lettuce in half longwise, pour the rest of the olive oil evenly over the romaine and put some salt and pepper. Put on the grill cut side down first and allow to cook about 5 minutes on each side (be careful because it can bun easily depending on how high the flame is).

Your chicken and romaine should be cooked. Put 2 halves of romaine on a plate and cut your chicken diagonally and lay on top and serve.

 

Delicious Orecchiette with Broccoli

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This dish is so simple and easy to make. I can remember this friend of the family would always like to come over to the house with her broccoli and pasta and whip up a pasta dish in no time at all, I became fond of this dish because it is simple but tastes great and is a wonderful way to eat healthy. This dish is also light so after the holiday food you might want something light that isn’t heavy or rich and this dish fits right in. This dish is good if you are vegetarian, follow a low calorie diet, and of course love broccoli. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

350 gr. of Orecchiette pasta*

1 medium head of broccoli

1 clove of garlic

1 tsp crushed red pepper

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

grated parmigiano reggiano

Salt to taste

Place a medium pot of salted water to boil. In the meantime cut your broccoli into small florets and set aside. Once water is boiling throw in your pasta follow cooking time on the box, stir and after 5 minutes throw in your broccoli as well, mixing occasionally.

At this point you can chop up your garlic very finely; put a small pan with the olive oil over medium flame and add your garlic and red pepper, once the garlic has started to sizzle you may turn off the flame and let rest. Your pasta and broccoli should be about ready now, so strain and return to pot, add your oil mixture and mix all ingredients well. Serve and add the Parmigiano. All done.

* you can substitute the orecchiette for whatever pasta you prefer.

 

Artichoke, Zucchini and Mushrooms with Shrimp

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I love artichokes, they are so delicious and nutritious, you can literally have them cooked anyway and they always compliment your dish.  Another one of my favorites is zucchini, growing up I can remember always having zucchini, as here in Italy they are very common and inexpensive. My favorite way is sautéed slightly with some olive oil and then some parmiggiano grated on top.

You already know that Shrimp is a must in my household, and the other night I had artichokes, zucchini, mushrooms and shrimp in the house and I decided that I would concoct something that incorporated all of these ingredients, I was going to leave on a trip and did not want to leave them in the fridge to go to waste. So, here is what I ended up making and it turned out to be a success, you can serve this recipe with pasta if you would like or on it’s own like I did.  Enjoy!!

 

Ingredients:

½ lb shrimp*

2 zucchini

¼ lb mushrooms

½ lb frozen quartered artichokes

3 tbsp. olive oil and some extra

2 tsp. powdered ginger or fresh grated

½ tsp. ground peppercorns

1 tsp. low sodium soy

Salt to taste

 

Peel and devein your shrimp. Put in a medium saucepan and cover with water add some salt and boil.

In the meantime clean your mushrooms, and slice in quarters. Slice your zucchini in ¼ inches. Place a big sauté pan over medium flame add 3 tbsp. of olive oil, allow to heat and add your zucchini, sauté for about 5 minutes and add your artichokes along with the ginger, peppercorns, soy and salt. Allow to cook over medium flame for another 5 minutes and add your mushrooms leave lid on and sauté for 5-8 minutes.

In the meantime your shrimp should be cooked so strain.

Once all your veggies are cooked you may start plating; put first our veggies and then add your shrimp on top, finish off with a drizzle of olive oil over your shrimp.

* you can also buy precooked shrimp