Hot Gazpacho

I made this the other night for dinner. My husband and 2 out of 4 kids just loved it. We don't eat many vegetarian meals, but this was really good.

1 medium green pepper(s), seeded and chopped
1 small cucumber(s), peeled, seeded and sliced
1 medium onion(s), chopped
3 medium tomato(es), seeded and chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, packed leaves
3 cup mixed-vegetable juice, tangy
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp olive oil
1 medium garlic clove(s), minced
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp hot pepper sauce, or to taste
1 oz fresh sage

Directions:
In a food processor, finely chop pepper, cucumber and onion and transfer to a large nonstick saucepan. In a food processor, finely chop tomatoes and cilantro and add to pepper mixture. Stir vegetable juice, vinegar, oil and garlic into tomato mixture. Add ground pepper and stir. Heat soup to serving temperature then add hot pepper sauce.

***I served this with a loaf of fresh french bread from the market and a side salad

Healthy Cheese Enchiladas

This is great meal, and is vegetarian to boot! Who knew that enchiladas could be made healthier and still taste good!

10 oz. chopped frozen spinach, thawed and drained
15 oz. part-skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
1 TBS dried oregano
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 medium whole wheat tortillas, low fat
1/2 cup salsa (I use Rojo's Fire Roasted, it's divine!)
1 cup shredded reduced fat Mexican cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a 13x11 pan with cooking spray

Combine spinach, ricotta, mozzarella, onion, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper in a large bowl; mix well. Spoon 1/4 cup of spinach mixture onto center of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas, fold in ends and place side by side in prepared baking pan. Spoon salsa over tortillas and sprinkle with Mexican cheese.

Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for 10 minutes, or until cheese is golden.

Serves 8

White Bean & Ground Turkey Chili

I am not a fan of chili with beans, usually. Probably because I detest kidney beans. I made this for Super Bowl Sunday, so my family could graze all day. It was gone in a matter of minutes! I will be doubling this next time. We really enjoyed this healthier chili.

2 lb. ground turkey
1 lg. onion, finely chopped
3 medium cloves of garlic, minced
3 cans of vegetable broth (I used Swanson's)
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. dried oregano
30 oz. canned white beans, drained and rinsed
3 TBS fresh lime juice
1/4 cup cilantro, fresh, coarsely chopped

Directions:

Cook the turkey, onion, and garlic in a large skillet over medium heat, for about 10 minutes or until done. Drain off any fat

Add turkey and remaining ingredients to a large pot or slow cooker. If cooking on the stove, bring to a rolling boil; lower heat and simmer for 30 minutes. In a slow cooker, cook on low for 4 hours.

1 cup per serving.

BBQ Turkey Joes

I've always had sloppy joes from a canned mix...and didn't like it. Then I came across a homemade version, and discovered how good they could be. Except my new recipe wasn't compatible with my diet program (and if I'm going to splurge on points, it's going to be on chocolate!) So I came across this recipe, and I think it's a yummy alternative.

Servings: 4
Preparation Time: 10 min
Cooking Time: 15 min

-1 pound lean ground turkey
-1/2 medium bell pepper(s), chopped
-1/2 medium sweet red pepper(s), chopped
-1/2 medium onion(s), chopped
-1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
-1 cup barbecue sauce (BullsEye Sweet & Sticky is yummy)
-4 medium whole wheat hamburger roll(s), sliced in half

Instructions

Brown turkey in a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain off liquid. Add peppers and onion and cook until tender, about 3 minutes. Add barbecue sauce and cayenne pepper; heat thoroughly, stirring frequently, about 2 minutes. Top bottom half of buns with turkey mixture; cover with top half of bun and serve.

Hamburger Soup

I know, you're thinking "how is this healthy"? Not only is it healthy, it's delicious!

Cook: 1 1/4 hours

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients:

- 1.5 lbs lean ground beef

- 1 medium onion, chopped

- 1 can 28 oz. diced tomatoes, undrained

- 3 cans low sodium beef broth

- 1 cup water

- 4 celery ribs, thinly sliced

- 4 large carrots, thinly sliced

- 10 whole peppercorns

- 1 teaspoon dried thyme

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 1/2 cup quick-cooking barley***

- 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

Instructions:

In a large saucepan (a Dutch oven is great if you have one), cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the tomatoes, broth, and water. Add celery and carrots.

Place peppercorns on a double thickness of cheesecloth**; bring up corners of cloth and tie with kitchen string to form a bag. Add to beef mixture.

Stir in thyme and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 45 minutes or until vegetables are tender.Return to a boil. Stir in barley. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-12 minutes or until barley is tender. Remove from the heat; stir in parsley. Let stand for 5 minutes. Discard spice bag.

***I couldn't find quick cooking barley at my store. Instead, I soaked regular barley in the beef broth the night before. It cooked up perfect that way, and the regular barley is really inexpensive, an added bonus!

***I realized half way through making this that I was out of cheesecloth. I let the peppercorns float on the top, and pulled them out towards the end. This was more than a little time consuming. Next time, I'll put fresh cracked pepper in, and skip it.