Cioppino

You'll need to be an adventurous eater and a seafood lover to try this. I first tried Cioppino about 5 years ago. Tom and I were at a Machine Gun Shoot week-end and a man from New York who worked the fish docks brought a slew of fresh seafood and made a huge batch for everyone. He served it over rice to make it more filling and his had a thicker broth. This recipe is lighter and I've added some heat to it. Tweak it the way you want to depending on what seafoods you like best. I used crawfish because it's cheaper than lobster and it sold already cooked in Cajun spices to add a bit of kick to the dish. I've had a seafood soup in Mexico that had squid in it so the skies the limit. ( mussels and crab go in shell and all)

Ingredients:

3/4 cup "Move over Butter"
8 green onions , chopped
2 cloves of garlic , minced
1 bunch of Italian parsley , chopped
2 carrots , shredded
2 stalks celery , diced
28 oz. canned diced tomatoes
1 large tomato paste
4 cups chicken broth
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 tbsp. red pepper flakes
1 tsp oregano
1/2 cup clam juice
1/2 cup water
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 1/2 cups white wine
1 1/2 cups scallops
18 mussels
3 pounds crawfish
1 1/2 pounds dungeon crab legs
1 can clams
1 pound shrimp


Directions:
1. Over medium heat melt butter in a large pot. Add onion , garlic, parsley, celery and carrots. Cook until tender.

2. Add tomatoes to pot. Add chicken broth , spices , water , clam juice, lemon juice and wine. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

3. Stir in seafood and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer until mussels open. Ladle into bowls and serve with Italian crusty bread or sourdough.


(picture image was found online , used to give you an idea of what your finished product may look like)

Crab Cakes

A diet can be boring so I try to mix up the leftovers a bit. I recently splurged on crab legs and had a few left over. Those crab legs became crab cakes for dinner the next night. Fresh crab legs are hands down better than canned crab meat.

2 eggs , beaten 149 calories
9 fat free saltines , crushed
2 tbsp. mayo
1 tsp mustard
1 tbp. dried parsley
salt and pepper to taste
dash of paprika

Mix eggs , mayo , mustard , parsley, paprika. Stir in crackers. Salt and pepper to taste. Fold in crab meat. Refrigerate mixture for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 450. Spray cookie sheet with olive oil spray. Form crab cakes into small patties. Bake for 20 minutes.

Asparagus Cheese Casserole

Asparagus is one of those veggies you either like or hate. I was never real crazy about it but this recipe changed my mind. I loved it so much I ate the leftovers for breakfast the next morning.

1 cup fresh asparagus , cooked and cut into 1 inch pieces
3 tbsp. Smart Balance
3 tbsp. flour
1 cup milk
3 tbps. grated parmesan cheese (fresh not the stuff in the shaker bottle)
3 tbsp. grated swiss cheese
1/2 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp. dry mustard
5-6 egg whites *

Spray a glass baking dish and place cooked asparagus in the bootom. Over low heat melt butter. Stir in flour until it's smooth; add milk and whisk until sauce thickens.
Add cheese and spices; stir until cheese melts. Add egg whites and stir well. Pour over asparagus.
Place dish in 350 oven and bake for about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and use fork to fluff up. Serve hot.

* I found they have egg whites in a carton in the dairy section. Makes it easier than separating eggs and wasting yolks. Not too much more than buying eggs.

Back

I've been gone a week seeing Brendan off to Iraq. Traveling makes staying on a strict diet a bit tricky. You can find some places that offer low cal and low carb menu items such as Fridays. Subway is an obvious choice. Otherwise you just need to use your noggin. Getting to eat 6 times a day was out for me. The care ride home wasn't much better for me as my daughter-in-law drove straight through. Ever try to find healthy food at a gas station? Beef jerkey and pringles was the best I could do. So , although I didn't gain weight I didn't lose any either. But , I'm back on track again and will get some more recipes up as soon as I catch up on the mound of housework I came home to.