Italian Veggie Stew

I was watching food network yesterday. Our heater was broken and I was waiting for the electrician, it was super cold in the house and I saw Rachael Ray making this stew. I was freezing and it looked awesome. This is technically my recipe, being added and subtracted ingredients to make it WLS friendly. I made this tonight, my "I'm not picky, as long as it's meat" husband ate 2 bowls. I consider it a success

• about 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cloves chopped garlic
• 2 onions, sliced
• 2 large parsnips OR carrots, peeled and chopped (the original recipe called for potatoes)
  
• 1 eggplant, chopped
• 1 zucchini, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 1 (28-ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes
• 1 cup stock, chicken or vegetable
• 1 teaspoon dried basil, rosemary, and parsley each

Heat a medium soup pot over medium heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil, bay, chopped garlic and onions and let them sweat out while you prepare the rest of the veggies. Drop in this order: parsnips/carrots, eggplant, zucchini, and bell pepper. Season with salt and pepper after you add each ingredient, cover and cook 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Uncover and add tomatoes and stock and herbs and cook 15 minutes more, to heat through. Add parm cheese on top. This is soooo good with so little calories and fill you up. Add as a side to your protein!

Eggplant Chili

Don't be afraid to add veggies into a traditional chili. We had a leftover eggplant from eggplant parm my mom made last night, and I didn't want it to go to waste. I used a basic chili recipe and adapted and tasted until I made a really good flavor. This looks like a lot of ingredients, but it's really not, just a bunch of spices at the end.

• 2lbs ground beef




• 1 medium onion




• 2 Tablespoons minced garlic




• 1 large eggplant peeled and cubed




• 1 can diced or stewed tomatoes




• 1 26 ounce jar pasta sauce




• 1/4 cup water (add to empty sauce jar and shake up then dump in)




• 1 can kidney beans, drained




• 1 Tablespoon all purpose flour




• 2 Tablespoons chili powder




• 2 Tablespoons cumin powder




• 1 teaspoon salt




• 1 teaspoon black pepper




• 1 teaspoon garlic powder




• 1 teaspoon splenda




• 1 teaspoon dried parsley and oregano
  

In a large pot on medium heat brown beef, onions and diced garlic. Cook until meat is fully cooked. Drain off any extra fat. Add in all of the additional ingredients. Stir. Set heat to low and cook for 2 and a half hours with the pot covered. Serve in a bowl with cheddar cheese and sour cream. I never made this before, it was really delicious and fresh tasting!

Ratatouille Casserole

Ratatouille sounds like something we never want to make, let alone eat. I have been trying to venture out of my poultry comfort zone. This recipe is very good, and different. I got a huge eggplant and zucchini at a farmers market, and wanted to do something different, thus this recipe.

• 1 eggplant, peeled and chopped in cubes


• 1 zucchini, also peeled and chopped in cubes


• boiling water and salt


• 1 large yellow onion, diced


• 2 Tablespoons chopped garlic


• 1 carton chopped mushrooms


• 4 tomatoes, chopped and skin and seeds removed


• 2 green peppers, chopped


• 1 small can tomato paste


• 1 block firm tofu, cubed


• 2 Tablespoons fresh Basil, chopped


• 2 Tablespoons fresh Oregeno, chopped


• 1/4 cup panko bread crumbs


• salt and pepper
  

Preheat oven to 275*. Peel and chop eggplant and zucchini, and boil for 10 minutes in salted water. Remove from water and set aside. In a large skillet spray with cooking spray and add in diced onions and peppers. Cook for about 10 minutes, add in mushrooms, tomatoes and tomato paste, cook for another 5 minutes and stir together well. At the very end of the cooking add in garlic and mix well. Put mixture into a casserole dish, and add in eggplant and zucchini, basil, oregeno, tofu and some more salt and pepper and mix. On top sprinkle on panko bread crumbs and some dried parsley if desired. Bake at 275 for 1 1/2 hours. This tastes so fresh and delicious, and a good recipe to try if you want to try tofu!