Lemon Roasted Broccoli

Hello and welcome!

This recipe is a take off of the classic Roasted Vegetables, adapted and matured for Lemon Christmas.

Lemon Christmas was a creation of my Aunt Connie and I for this year's Christmas dinner. What started as the story of Domathes being passed down through the generations of my neighborhood became a dinner of Domathes with Lemon Sauce, Lemon Chicken, Lemon Roasted Broccoli, Lemon Risotto, and Limoncello Cookies!

The Recipe: Lemon Roasted Broccoli

• Fresh cut Broccoli florets (as much as you would like to make, we had about 2 cups)
• about 3 tbsp Olive oil with Lemon (Trader Joe's)
• Salt and Black Pepper, to taste
• Lemon Zest, to taste (about 1 tbsp)

The Process: 

1. Set broiler to high, or bake to 350 degrees F (176.6 degrees C)
2. Spread broccoli out on a pan. 
3. Pour Olive Oil over broccoli. 
4. Sprinkle Salt and Pepper over broccoli. 
5. Use a spatula to "mix" broccoli, oil, salt, and pepper. 
6. Roast for about 5 minutes, or until browned. 
7. Enjoy!

The Calories:

Broccoli: 62 calories

Olive Oil: 357 calories

Salt/Pepper: 0 calories

Lemon Zest: 0 calories

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TOTAL: 419 calories

Never feel guilty for roasting vegetables. This is a large portion of broccoli meant to be shared as a side dish. It's not advisable to eat broccoli and only broccoli (especially this much) as a meal, as it can have some nasty stomach effects in large quantities). 

What went right: 

         Everything! These were quite delicious and a lovely complement to the rest of dinner. The Olive Oil with Lemon is fantastic and should be in every kitchen. It gave the broccoli a nice lemon taste without being overpowering. Love. 

What went wrong: 

         It's too good. If you have a child who doesn't like broccoli, make it like this and they'll love it! 

What I would do next time: 

         If I were trying to eat it by myself rather than with family as part of a separate meal, I would combine it with other vegetables as we've done in the past. 

Would I make this in college:

         5 minute prep time, 5 minute cook time? Of course! 

Overall, a lovely addition to Lemon Christmas :) 

Vegetarian Stuffed Pasta Shells (2)

Hello and welcome Italian Food lover!

Thanks for taking the time to visit my blog :) Apologies for the lack of posts since I've started college. There's plenty of time to cook but not enough time to write about cooking!

Today's recipe was inspired by my love of Italian food, and the success of prior Stuffed Pasta Shells. 

The Recipe: Vegetarian Stuffed Pasta Shells (2)

• Jumbo Pasta Shells
• 1 bunch Spinach 
• 1 cup Pasta Sauce
• 1 cup Broccoli
• 1/2 cup Peas
• 1 cup Italian Mix Shredded Cheese
• 1 cup Baby Bella Mushrooms, sliced
• 1 sweet Red Pepper, sliced and diced
• 1-2 pieces Garlic, sliced and diced
• 5 stalks of Green Onion, chopped
• 1/4 tsp butter (one small slice) 
• Salt and Pepper as desired

The Process:

• Boil water on the stove in a pot that will be large enough to hold all 20 pasta shells comfortably. 
• Once there are bubbles in the water, carefully add the pasta, be sure to not let any break. 
• Cook the pasta for 5-6 minutes. It should be al dente.
• Remove and strain the pasta. Allow it to cool. 
• Chop the Spinach into smaller pieces. 
• Using a Magic Bullet or other powerful blender, puree the Spinach. You will have to do this in smaller bunches, adding slight amounts of water. 
• Use paper towels to drain the Spinach. 
• Heat a pan on the stove. 
• Melt Butter on the pan. 
• Add Salt and Pepper to the pan. 
• Lower the heat to medium-low (depending on your stove).
• Add Garlic and Green Pepper to the pan.
• Add Broccoli to the pan. 
• Add Red Pepper to the pan. 
• Add Mushrooms to the pan. 
• Add Peas to the pan. 
• Cover the pan and continue to rotate the ingredients with a spatula until all are cooked. This should take 5-7 minutes. 
• Mix the sauteed vegetables, Spinach, and Cheese in a large bowl. 
• Pre-Heat the oven to bake at 350 degrees F.
• Pour a small amount of Sauce in an oven-safe dish. 
• Put a small amount of stuffing in each shell, and place it in the dish with the Sauce. 
• Once you have filled all shells, if you have any stuffing left over, put it on top of the pasta. 
• Coat the pasta with the remainder of the Sauce. 
• Cover the dish with an oven-safe top, or aluminum foil.
• Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the sauce begins to bubble. This time will depend on your oven, but the dish will also emit a powerful aroma, so you should be able to tell about when it is finished.
• Switch your oven to roast on High.
• Remove the aluminum foil or cover.
• Roast the oven safe dish on a rack close to the flame for 3-5 minutes.
• Carefully remove the dish from the oven.
• Allow to cool for 3-5 minutes before serving.
• Enjoy!

The Calories:

Pasta: 720 calories
Sauce: 190 calories
Spinach: 144 calories
Broccoli: 41 calories
Pepper: 31 calories
Mushrooms: 75 calories
Garlic: 5 calories
Green Onion: 15 calories
Peas: 59 calories
Cheese: 180 calories
Butter: 20 calories
Salt and Pepper: insignificant amounts
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TOTAL: 1480 calories for 20 shells

Keep in mind that this amount also yielded additional stuffing that did not necessarily need to be included in the dish; instead, it could be refrigerated or frozen for future use. Additionally, there will be some sauce left in the jar, bowl, and dish.

Also keep in mind that one person will not eat 20 shells. 1480 calories for 20 shells means 74 calories per shell.

What went right:
         The pasta shells were delicious and the stuffing came out very nicely. I kind of liked having some of the stuffing outside the shells.

What went wrong: 
         According to my dad, the stuffing does not have enough spice, but he eats Indian pickle, so I've learned to take comments like this with a grain of sugar. Additionally, the individual shells may have been overstuffed, or cooled too long, because they were reluctant to remain closed.

What would I do next time:
         Next time I would like to try adding meat, which will also mean cooking/marinating the meat separately. The meat would determine the remainder of the stuffing, so I may need to use Italian sausage in order to balance out the vegetables.

Would I make this in college?:
         I definitely have the capability to make this in college, but not the time at present. It might be something to try over fall break (hint hint wink wink nudge nudge).

The photo below is our family dinner the night I made this dish. The two plain pasta and sausage link plates belong to my little brother, and my "little brother", who are just about the pickiest eaters I've ever met. At least they make cooking easy!

Overall, I'm a little too addicted to stuffed pasta shells now, but I really don't see a problem with that considering how healthy they can be. Especially if gluten free pasta and low fat cheese were used. Definitely can't wait to make these again! 

Happy Eating!

When two sides make a meal: Green Teriyaki Chicken Salad and Roasted Broccoli/Honey Carrot Salad

Welcome/welcome back!

If you are a new visitor, I hope you enjoy my blog and my food! If you are a returning visitor, I hope you continue to enjoy my blog and my food! It is with your support that I am spurred to continue cooking...so thank you :)

When you hear "salad", most people think of a less-filling, low calorie substitute for a real meal. These salads definitely break that mold, and taste phenomenal together!

The Recipe: Roasted Broccoli and Honey Carrot Salad

• 1 cup broccoli
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1/2 tsp brown sugar
• 1 cup frozen baby carrots

The Process:

• Set the oven to broil on High
• Put the broccoli in a small, oven-safe pan
• Drizzle 1 tbsp olive oil on the broccoli
• Sprinkle Salt and Pepper onto the broccoli
• Using a spatula, mix the broccoli so that all pieces become coated in a light layer of the oil/salt/pepper mixture
• Broil for about 8 minutes, or until broccoli tips brown (depends on your oven)
• Put the carrots in a small, oven-safe pan
• Drizzle 1 tbsp olive oil on the carrots
• Sprinkle Salt and Pepper onto the carrots
• Using a spatula, mix the carrots so that all pieces become coated in a light layer of the oil/salt/pepper mixture
• Broil for about 4 minutes
• Remove the carrots from the oven
• Drizzle honey and sprinkle brown sugar on the carrots
• Mix the carrots into the honey and brown sugar
• Broil for another few minutes, or until carrots develop a small skin
• Mix the finished carrots and broccoli

The Calories:

Broccoli: 30 calories
Carrots: 60 calories
Olive Oil: 120 calories (technically 240, although much of the oil ends up still on the pan after cooking, so not consumed)
Honey: 64 calories
Brown Sugar: 6 calories
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TOTAL: 280 calories

Not bad! This salad alone is very filling and again, the oil content is still probably less than 120 calories after cooking.

What went right:
          Everything :) The carrots especially taste like candy. So delicious!

What went wrong:
         Nothing. I've done roasted vegetables many times, so I didn't expect any problems.

What would I do next time:
         I might try an olive oil substitute that contains less calories, but I don't really see that as a need. When you're having veggies for dinner, guilt is not on the menu.

Would I make this in college:
         Absolutely! I make this quite frequently, and am glad to have found a new partner salad to go with it.


The Recipe: Green Teriyaki Chicken Salad

• 2 cups chopped Romaine Lettuce
• 1/2 cup halved Cucumber slices
• 1/2 cup shredded Chicken breast (leftovers)
• 1 tbsp Teriyaki sauce
• 10 whole, dry Cashews

The Process:

• Preheat oven to 375
• Put your shredded chicken in a small, oven-safe pan
• Drizzle with teriyaki sauce and mix until all chicken is as saturated as possible
• Bake at 375 for about 5 minutes to heat the chicken and allow sauce to sink in
• If your lettuce comes from a bag, you will not need to chop it. If you buy whole heads of lettuce: Wash the leaves. Rip off about 4, depending on the size of the leaves. stack them on top of one another and compress the pile so that you can chop them all the way down the stem. The "leafier" part should be chopped larger than the part with more stem. Put these at the base of salad platter.
• Lay your cucumber slices around the edges of the lettuce. 
• Spread shredded chicken in the center of the cucumber ring. 
• Chop your cashews. 
• Bake at 375 for about 2 minutes. 
• Sprinkle across the entire salad. 

The Calories:

Lettuce: 12 calories

Cucumber: 8 calories

Chicken: 116 calories

Sauce: 15 calories

Cashews: 50 calories

_______________________________

TOTAL: 196 calories

Pretty awesome for a salad :) If you must add dressing, be wary of what you add...not only could you screw up the teriyaki flavor, but you also run a risk of nearly doubling your calorie and fat content! 

What went right: 

         Everything. I love this salad. I'm very glad I decided to roast the cashews and use teriyaki. They definitely make fridge dump salad taste like so much more. 

What went wrong:

         Nothing. 

What I would do next time: 

         If we had multiple types of greens such as kale or spinach I would add those too. 

Will I do this in college?:

         Yeah this is definitely the kind of leftovers dish I can see making in college :) It was fast, easy, healthy, and definitely delicious. 

Overall, these two dishes make an attractive, addictive, less calorie, more filling pair!

Easy Vegetable Medley

Happy Tuesday!

While I've been cooking almost daily for a while, I don't really count things like canned soup or ham and salami sandwiches, although I will for sure be making things of this nature in college. I'm now on vacation, which generally means a lot of eating out at whatever restaurant we can find...night one included +Applebees, which I was happy to discover now has a grilled chicken with mushrooms and mixed vegetables!

Last night, while shopping for food with my dad, I decided I wanted a veggie medley that I could make in about as much time as the pasta I was making for my brother. Rather than buying a head of cauliflower, a head of broccoli, raw carrots, and raw green beans and sweet peas, my dad suggested that I choose from the massive mixes of frozen vegetables that were already cut, steamed, and ready to roast. This sounded very college-practical, so I decided it was worth doing.

The Recipe: Easy Vegetable Medley

• One package of frozen cauliflower, broccoli, and carrot chunk medley
• 1/2 package of frozen green beans, yellow green beans, sweet peas, and baby carrot medley
• 1/3 package of frozen green peas
• About three teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil
• Salt
• Pepper

The Process: 

• Break apart frozen ingredients while they're in the bag and allow them to sit and thaw briefly
• Set the broiler on your oven to high
• Put the grate on a high shelf, depending on the depth of your pan, so the vegetables can be close to the flame
• Pour your ingredients into a bowl and mix 
• Pour the mix into a baking pan
• Drizzle olive oil over the vegetables in the baking pan
• Sprinkle salt and pepper to taste over the vegetables in the baking pan
• Use a spatula to mix the vegetables  around so they all become coated in the oil-salt-pepper mix
• Put the pan in the oven for 10-15 minutes, watching closely because all ovens differ 
• They are done when the broccoli and green beans develop brown edges, and the carrots appear to have a skin 
• Take out the vegetables and enjoy!

The Calories: 

The mix made about 4 cups of vegetables, which is 473 calories! I was full after about 2.5 cups. Health gets a score of 10/10. 

What went right:  

               The vegetables came out wonderfully. They are simple and filling with high fiber; very nutritious. 

What went wrong: 

               Nothing really...this is a relatively fool-proof method of making vegetables. I might leave them in for another minute or so to make them softer, but that is the difference between using freshly steamed and frozen vegetables I suppose. 

What I would try next time: 

               Other than cooking a little bit longer, I would like to try adding some teriyaki sauce or maybe some sesame seeds for a totally different taste. I would also like to try a honey glaze, or adding garlic or onion to the mix. 

Would I do this in college: 

               Oh yes. I will be doing this many, many times in college! I love the not having to steam or deal with whole heads of cauliflower and broccoli. 

Overall a very successful dinner!!