Roasted Broccoli Cheese Soup
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3 (ZReboot) recipe. I love a good broccoli cheese soup. Trouble is so many puree the whole pot of soup. I want my soup chunky. Trouble is so many of these soups include Velveeta cheese ‘food.’ I hardly call that food. If I were on a dessert island with no refrigeration, maybe I would. Otherwise I want my soup to have real cheese and no processed elements. Trouble is most broccoli soups call for frozen bits of broccoli. In the recipe you’ll roast fresh broccoli so it gets a deeper flavor. This is creamy, dreamy and a BIG YUM.
Servings: Serves 8 – 10 with 1-1/2 cups of soup.
Ingredients:
- 4 – 5 cups of broccoli florets and stems, chopped
- 2 Tbl of olive oil plus olive oil spray
- grated sea salt to taste
- 1 cup of diced shallots or onion
- 1 stick of butter
- 1 Tbl of flour
- 4 cups of whipping cream
- 3 pinches of pumpkin pie spice
- 3 – 4 cups of grated cheddar. I love the artisan combos with different types of cheddar but really you can use any grated cheese. A combo of grated Monterey jack and even a bit of blue cheese added in would be nice. Gruyere is always great. Don’t just think cheddar; although that’s the tradition.
- ground pepper to taste
- chicken broth or veggie broth (optional if you want your soup less thick)
Ingredients:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray an oven proof pan or two and spread your broccoli bits on the tray. Spray over the top with olive oil and grate on some sea salt. Roast the broccoli 15 minutes or until it just begins to get a tinge of brown on a few of the florets. The roasting brings out a deeper flavor in the broccoli.
While the broccoli is roasting you can make the soup base.
Put 2 Tbl of olive oil in your soup pot. Heat on medium and add the shallots or onions. Stir and cook on medium just until they begin to get a bit of brown. Add the flour and stir. You are making a roux (thickener for the soup). I devised this so just a bit of flour is necessary. Not much! The rest of the thickening will come because you are using cream. Add the butter and melt.
Now add the whipping cream and the pumpkin pie spice. Also grate on plenty of black pepper to your taste. Stir often and cook on medium just until the cream begins to bubble. Turn down to low. Or turn off if the broccoli isn’t ready yet.
Add the broccoli and bring to a simmer. Add the cheese(s). You just want to get the cheese to melt. Don’t boil the soup at this point.
You can now serve. OR…. what I did was take out three cups of the soup and pureed it. That way I got some pureed broccoli but still had plenty for the chunky factor. I pureed the soup in my blender. I am always careful when I puree something hot to vent it at the top and put a towel over the cover and hold down firmly. Start the blender on LOW. You won’t need to crank up the speed. Low will be fine. Add the puree to your soup pot. Stir and serve.
If the soup is thicker than you want just add veggie broth or chicken broth to thin it out.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Shiitakes in Vermouth
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3 (ZReboot) recipe. This one is for the gourmet cooks in the group. You can do this with any standard mushrooms and make it less exotic but the gourmet cooks will appreciate the earthy flavor of the shiitakes.
Servings: Serves 2 – 3. Can be doubled or tripled for a party, easily.
Ingredients:
- 8 ounces of shiitake mushrooms; groomed and stems cut. The stems are too tough to eat. Toss them. Cut the shiitake tops into strips.
- 2 Tbl of butter
- 1 – 2 Tbl of vermouth (use dry, white vermouth)
Instructions:
Melt butter in a sauté pan. Add the mushrooms and cook on medium high until they just begin to brown on the edges (I like my mushrooms cooked like this. If you like yours more rare you don’t need to cook as long). Pour in the vermouth. The result will steam. Stir. Let cook another minute. The alcohol will be cooked off and you’ll just be left with a wonderful French flavor.
Season with grated sea salt and pepper to your taste.
Serve warm. You can serve this with steak, chicken or even a piece of halibut.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Chicken Crepes with Mushrooms and Broccoli
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3 (ZReboot) recipe. These crepes are very low carb and EASY to make. You can even make them ahead and store them in the refrigerator or freeze them. I made them at the same time I was working on my chicken and sauce for the stuffed crepes but if you’re not that coordinated in the kitchen you can make the crepes first and just store them. These make great family or dinner party food. You can make more than one batch for a party.
Servings: Makes 8 crepes, serving 2 per person for 4 servings
For the Crepes:
- 6 eggs
- ½ cup of heavy cream
- 3 Tbl oil (I use peanut oil or olive oil)
Instructions:
Whisk ingredients together really well. You can even quickly whiz it with a mixer if you want, or mix it in a blender. Lightly spray butter spray in a small sauté pan over medium heat. Pour small amount of batter in heated pan and swirl around to spread out thinly. You don’t want to see through it; about 1/8” thick will do it.
Let cook about 2 minutes or until brown at the edges. Carefully flip with a spatula and cook just a few seconds on other side. Continue with the rest of the batter, spraying the pan each time.
Stack them on a plate as you get them done. They won’t stick together.
These are not sweet crepes. These are savory ones to be filled as a lunch or dinner entrée.
For the Filling:
- 1 Tbl of olive oil
- 2 Tbl of butter
- ½ cup of finely chopped onion or shallots
- 1-1/2 cups of chopped broccoli
- 4 ounces of sliced mushrooms, chopped (1 small package)
- 1 tsp of dried tarragon
You can switch up the veggies in this recipe to just about any you like. I would use things like bell peppers, asparagus, zucchini, bits of tomato, etc.
For the sauce:
- 1 Tbl of butter
- 3 Tbl of flour
- ¾ cup of heavy cream
- ¾ cup of chicken broth
- ¼ cup of dry white wine (or use water if you don’t cook with alcohol)
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 cups of cooked chicken tenders, diced. This is one package.
- grated sea salt and pepper to taste
- 1/3 cup of grated cheese (Fontina or Parmesan)
- a sprinkle of cayenne
To cook the chicken tenders I just put them in a sauté pan. Cover them with water and lightly boil for 8 minutes or until chicken shows no pink in the middle.
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Put oil and butter in large sauté pan and melt. Add the shallots and cook on medium to loosen. Add the mushrooms and cook until the edges of the mushrooms begin to brown. Add the broccoli. Cook a couple of minutes til crisp tender. Add the tarragon and stir. Then shut off heat and set aside.
Now you're going to make your sauce.
To a medium sauce pan, add the Tbl of butter and melt. Then, add the flour and stir. Slowly whisk in the cream and then add the chicken broth and wine (or water). Cook on medium, stirring often, until thickened. This takes about 4 minutes.
In a small bowl, add the egg yolks. Slowly (S-L-O-W-L-Y) take a few tablespoons of the cream mixture and whisk it it into the eggs. Take your time or you’ll scramble the eggs. When the cream is incorporated you can then transfer the entire egg mixture into the hot cream mixture and whisk. Cook for one minute. Season with salt, pepper, and a dusting of cayenne to give it a bit of zip.
Put your diced chicken in with the veggies. Add half of the cream sauce to the chicken mixture and stir so it’s all creamy-dreamy.
Set the rest of the sauce aside for a few minutes.
Now fill your crepes.
Take each crepe and lay it on a work surface. I use an ice cream scoop to scoop my chicken mixture into my crepes. Just plop it in the middle and spread it out side to side a bit. Then roll the crepe shut and place it seam side down in a buttered 9" x 13" oven proof dish. Do this with each crepe. Line them up in the pan. Drizzle your remaining sauce over the top. Bake in your oven for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle on the cheese and bake for five minutes more to melt the cheese.
Serve -- 2 crepes per plate.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Raspberry Yogurt Smoothie
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3 (ZReboot) recipe. As we endeavor to eat healthy but we are still on the run, I thought this quick and tasty smoothie might hit the spot. I often drink one of these at my desk at work.
Servings: Serves 1. Can be doubled in a full-sized blender,
Ingredients:
- ½ cup of frozen raspberries (you can do these with just about any frozen berry or frozen fruit chunks)
- ½ cup of full fat yogurt (unsweetened)
- 1 cup of coconut milk (unsweetened)
- 1 tsp of vanilla
- 1 tsp of Truvia
Instructions:
Put all of this in your blender and whiz it. You can adjust the amount of liquid to make it whatever consistency you like. YUM.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Chicken Marsala
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3 (ZReboot) recipe. This is one of those meals that is easy but makes me feel special. It’s nice enough to serve to company or even just on a Tuesday night. I made this the other night and just had green beans with it. Even though I was on ZReboot I still lost almost a pound. That’s always a bonus! The leftovers for this dish transport well and heat in a microwave in a jiffy.
Servings: Serves 4
Ingredients:
- 4 chicken breast halves, skinless
- grated sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
- 2 Tbl of flour
- 5 Tbl of olive oil (divided)
- 12 oz of sliced mushrooms. I used 8 oz of button and 4 oz of assorted fancy mushrooms like oyster, shiitake and cremini. The more exotic the mushroom the more earthy the taste.
- 5 Tbl of butter (divided)
- 2 Tbl of minced shallots (one medium)
- 1 clove of garlic, minced (1 tsp of jar garlic will substitute just fine)
- ½ cup of Marsala wine (this is cooking wine located in the vinegar/dressing section. This is a sweet, full-flavored wine. The alcohol will cook off)
- ¾ cup of chicken stock
Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
Pound your chicken breast pieces to a flatter stage. I do this by putting them in a large baggie and use a meat mallet to pound them to 1/3” thick. This way they cook faster and get more of the browned, yummy surface.
Season the chicken on one side with sea salt and pepper. Put the flour in another large baggie and toss around the chicken to lightly coat. Keep the leftover flour. You’ll use it for a thickener for the sauce.
Heat 3 Tbl of oil and 2 Tbl of butter in a large sauté pan. Put the chicken in smooth side down and sauté on medium high for three minutes until browned. Take the chicken out and put it in a 9" x 13" ovenproof pan smooth side up this time, and toss it in the oven for 15 – 20 minutes to finish roasting. Make sure it has no pink left. That tells you it’s done.
While that’s in the oven, make your sauce. In the same pan, add the rest of the olive oil and butter. Add the mushrooms and shallots. Sauté on medium until they give up liquid and just begin to brown around the edges. Add the balance of the flour and just stir it round to mix in. Add the Marsala and the chicken broth. Cook on a bubble at medium high until it begins to thicken up a bit. This shouldn't be more than 2 or 3 minutes.
Remove the chicken from the oven. Plate and serve with the mushrooms. Be sure to drizzle on the extra sauce too!
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Swiss Chard with Bacon
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3 (ZReboot) recipe. Everything goes better with bacon…as the saying goes. So this side dish will be a hit. Of all the greens, Swiss chard is my favorite. I don’t like a deep flavor to my greens. I like them lighter in flavor and this hits the spot. Make this when the rest of the dinner is just about ready to go on the table. You can even assign the making of this dish to a guest if you’re busy doing other things.
Servings: Serves 4. Can be doubled and tripled pretty easily.
Ingredients:
- 1 bunch of Swiss chard. Cut stems into thin strips if they are wide. Chop or slice the rest into strips/chunks. Or you can just discard the stems if you don’t want to eat them.
- 4 slices of bacon (You choose your flavor. Some like pepper bacon, others might to go hickory or even maple infused)
- 2 Tbl of the rendered bacon fat or coconut oil
- 1 cup of red onion, thinly sliced
- 4 scallions (green onions) sliced. White and light green parts only.
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced (jar garlic will work fine)
- 1 Tbl of vinegar. (You can choose your flavor. Red wine, apple cider or even champagne vinegar)
Instructions:
Take out a frying pan. Fry your bacon until crisp. Remove and then chop it into bits. Set aside. Don’t toss out all of the bacon fat. Keep 2 Tbl of it (or if you don’t want to use bacon fat and want a sweeter flavor to your greens, wipe out the bacon fat and put in 2 Tbl of coconut oil and melt that instead. Coconut oil doesn’t taste like sweet coconut but it does have a mild, slightly sweet flavor).
Then add the red onion and your Swiss chard stems. Cook until tender. Stir often. I just cook mine a couple of minutes to loosen it up. 4 minutes tops depending on how much you have in the pan. If you are doubling the recipe it might take a few more minutes to get it all cooked. Add the scallions and garlic. Cook 1 or 2 more minutes just to get the flavors melded. Then add the chard leaves. Mix thoroughly. They will only take a couple of minutes to cook. Stir in your vinegar. Season with grated sea salt and pepper. Transfer to your serving dish and top with the bacon bits.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Asparagus with Toasted nuts
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3 (ZReboot) (Z2 if you leave off the nuts) recipe. Interesting side dishes are always a challenge. Timing the side dishes to come out and be warm when served can also be a challenge. I am offering up this idea for an asparagus side dish because asparagus tastes good at any temperature. I will try to serve this warm but if it begins to cool off before dinner is actually ready it won’t be a big issue.
The red and green is festive. And the toasted nuts make this a rustic, winter dish.
Servings: Serves 8
Ingredients:
- 2 bunches of asparagus. I try to get younger asparagus if I can. If I get young I don’t do anything to peel it. if it’s older asparagus I peel off the pokey parts with a vegetable peeler. Just go against the grain with your peeler and they will come right off. With both kinds of asparagus I cut off the woody ends (maybe the last two inches) where the color changes and I dispose of those.
- 1 large red, bell pepper cut into dice. When you cut into the pepper be sure to cut off the white portions. Those are bitter.
- olive oil
- ½ cup of chopped nuts. You can make this walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts or even salted peanuts. May favorite is the walnuts or the peanuts in the summer.
- grated sea salt and pepper
- A dusting of cayenne (optional) I like a little zip in my veggie sides so I often dust them with just a scant bit of cayenne.
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Spray your 9" x 13" ovenproof pan with olive oil. Then put in your asparagus and the pepper bits. Spray again and coat it all with olive oil. This is the secret to the rustic depth of flavor. Your guests will comment that they’ve never tasted asparagus like this before.
Grate on sea salt, pepper and your optional cayenne.
Roast in the oven for 10 minutes. Now open the oven and sprinkle on the nuts. Cook 5 – 7 minutes more. You want your asparagus to be bright green and done but still just a little bit of bite left in it. The peppers will be roasted too. The nuts might get a bit of a tinge around the edges. I like them that way.
If this is on a buffet, don’t worry if it cools down. The olive oil on the asparagus gives it a ‘salad’ feel.
If you oven is not at 400 degrees because you are cooking something else too, you can cook it at a lower temperature and slower. It might not get the depth of flavor that comes with roasting at a higher temperature but that’s okay. It will still taste great!
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Cream Cheese Frosting
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3.5 (ZReboot 3.5) recipe.
This cream cheese frosting is LOVELY. I really enjoy it. I hope you do, too.
Ingredients:
- 16 ounces of cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup of butter, softened to room temperature
- ¾ cup of powdered sugar substitute (ZSweet or Swerve. You can order them online. Be sure to order the powdered version to make smooth frosting)
- 1/8 tsp of liquid Stevia. (If you want your frosting to be sweeter you can put in a bit more. I like the frosting to have a little tang left from the cream cheese flavor so mine is less sweet – but plenty sweet if you’ve been on Plan Z)
- 1 Tbl of vanilla
Instructions:
Put all ingredients in a bowl. Whip with your mixer until it’s light and fluffy. This will frost about 18 cupcakes. Try this frosting on my secret ingredient yellow cupcakes!
Caution: be careful with this frosting. It can be addictive. Just don’t overdo your dessert eating and keep an eye on your scale.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Pizza Lasagna
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3.5 (ZReboot 3.5) recipe. This “light on the carbs” lasagna can be made with your favorite pizza ingredients. I just made this one with my husband’s favorites. You can change up the veggies and meats. Just use this to follow quantities or make it just like this.
Servings: Serves 4 full portions or 6 with salad on the side
Ingredients:
- 4 uncooked lasagna noodles. But the ones that say “no cooking necessary.” They cook while the lasagna bakes
- 2 Italian sausages. Remove casings and chop up the meat. I used “Hot Italian.”
- 4 slices of large pepperoni, diced. Mine were 3” across. You can use any size of pepperoni or even put the 1” pieces whole
- 4 ounces of mushrooms. I used baby bella mushrooms, sliced
- ½ cup of diced onion
- ½ cup of diced yellow bell pepper
- 1 tsp of Italian seasoning
- ½ tsp of garlic
- 7 slices of provolone cheese
- 4 oz of shredded mozzarella
- 23 ounces of spaghetti sauce. Try to find one in the jar that does not have sugar or at least make sure the sugar is way down on the list.
- 2-1/2 ounces of shredded Parmesan
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large sauté pan, add a bit of olive oil spray. Then add the sausage and begin to cook it. Keep breaking it up into bits. When it’s about half done add the onion, the bell pepper and the mushrooms. Cook until all wilted. They don’t have to be completely cooked but make sure they are all hot and softened up. Add the pepperoni, the seasoning and the garlic. Stir to combine.
To Assemble:
Start by spreading 3 Tbl of the spaghetti sauce in the bottom of a 9" x 9" oven-proof pan. Put two of the noodles in there. They should almost cover the whole bottom of the pan with the sauce spread out below. This helps cook the noodles.
Now add half of the sausage mixture. Top that with five slices of the provolone. Add the second layer of the sausage and veggies. 2 more slices of provolone. Then add the other two noodles. Lay them the other direction.
It’s time to pour on the rest of the spaghetti sauce. Top that with the mozzarella and the Parmesan.
Bake uncovered for 30 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes before you cut and serve.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Sparkle Martini
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3 (ZReboot) recipe. If you are a vodka martini drinker or a Cosmopolitan drinker this might be your next new martini. This is a perfect winter drink made with clementines. It’s not for the faint of heart, though. This definitely has a kick.
Ingredients:
- 2 shots of vodka (Tito’s handmade is my favorite. Very smooth)
- 3 dashes of orange bitters (you can get flavored bitters at many liquor stores)
- juice of ½ of a clementine.* You can even do juice of a whole one if you want. Just keep in mind the carbs are in the fruit.
- a slice of clementine for garnish
*Clementines are a cross between a mandarin orange and a regular orange. The most popular brand is Cuties.
Instructions:
Mix together and serve.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Cheesy Turkey Noodle Casserole
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3.5 (ZReboot 3.5) recipe. This dish can be made with chicken or is a perfect way to use up leftover turkey from the holidays.
And yes, I did say noodle! A normal portion of noodles is 2 ounces. Most noodles, rice and pasta all come in around 40 grams of carbs for 2 ounces. That’s WAY too many carbs. In this recipe you’re going to use 3 ounces of pasta for SIX portions. So that’s more like 6.6 grams of carbs per person. That’s a reasonable amount to eat on occasion. Just keep an eye on the scale.
Ingredients:
- 3 ounces of noodles, (estimate 1.5 cups uncooked) cooked and drained. It depends on which noodles you choose. I used wide egg noodles.
- 4 – 5 cups of cooked meat chunks or shreds (turkey or chicken)
- 2 tsp of your favorite meat rub*
- 1 Tbl of olive oil
- 2 Tbl of butter
- 1 pound of fresh mushrooms (you choose your favorite)
- 1 onion thinly sliced into half-moon shaped rings
- ½ cup of cream
- ¼ cup of wine (if you don’t cook with alcohol just use chicken broth)
- 12 ounces of gruyere cheese, grated
- paprika for dusting
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Take out your 9" x 13" casserole dish. Spray with butter spray. Place your cooked noodles in the bottom. The noodles will just cover the bottom of the dish. In a bowl, put in the cooked meat. Toss it with your favorite rub. Spread the meat over the noodles.
In a large sauté pan add the oil and butter. Melt and then add the mushrooms and the onion. Cook on medium high until the mushrooms just begin to brown on the edges. You want some of the mushroom liquid to cook off. Add the wine and the cream. Cook for five more minutes on a bubbly medium high to thicken the sauce just a bit. This is a sloppy casserole.
Season with grated sea salt and pepper (optional). Pour the mushroom and onion mixture over the meat. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes to heat it all up. Take the casserole out and spread the Gruyere over the top. Bake for 20 more minutes. Take it out of the oven and sprinkle on paprika to give it a bit of color. It’s not a colorful casserole but it is warm and homey comfort food. I serve this in bowls. You can eat it while watching a movie just by holding the bowl in your hand and digging in with your fork.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
*You can make this casserole with any meat rub and change the flavorings. For example if you use a lemon pepper rub you’ll have a very Midwestern flavored casserole. But you can use a Mexican rub and make it a southwestern flavored casserole. You can use Italian seasoning and make an Italian casserole. You get the idea. Don’t be afraid to use a meat rub for beef or even fish in this dish. Just choose your favorite.
Creamy Pasta Bake with Leftover Turkey
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3.5 (ZReboot 3.5) recipe. This is a dreamy, smooth pasta dish that uses little pasta but is still big on taste. Perfect way to use leftover turkey or chicken. This dish can be easily doubled and baked in a 9" x 13" pan for a larger crowd.
Servings: Serves 4
Ingredients:
- 1 Tbl of olive oil
- 2 cups of bite-sized turkey bits or shreds
- 8 oz of assorted mushrooms. I used shiitake and cremini (baby bellas). Both of these mushrooms pack a big flavor punch but you can use any mushrooms you like
- 1/3 cup of diced onion (I used Vidalia)
- 1 tsp of Italian seasoning
- 2 tsp of minced garlic (Jar garlic will do)
- 1-1/2 cups of mascarpone cheese. Look for mascarpone in the fancy cheese section or near the cream cheese. It comes in white, plastic tubs at most places. You'll need one and a half of the 8 oz tubs
- 1/4 cup of half an half
- sea salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup of bread crumbs
- 1 Tbl of butter
- 1/3 cup of grated Parmesan
- Enough cooked pasta to cover the bottom of the casserole dish. This can be any kind of pasta you prefer. Rigatoni, penne, macaroni, or even spaghetti. About 1 cup of dry pasta (or less) will be enough when you cook it to cover the bottom of the casserole. This secret is how you keep down the amount of carbs in this dish.
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Cook your pasta in boiling water until done. Drain and set aside. Measure the amount of cooked pasta you will be using by spreading it in the bottom of the casserole dish. No more needed.
While the pasta is cooking you can make your other filling.
In a large saute pan add the olive oil and put in the onion and mushrooms. Saute on medium until the onion is cooked and the mushrooms just begin to brown. Add garlic and Italian seasoning and stir. Add the mascarpone and cream. Heat on low until the mascarpone melts. Stir often to speed up this process. Add the turkey and your pasta. Season with grated sea salt and pepper. Pour the mixture into your casserole.
In a small sauce pan add the breadcrumbs and butter. Stir and melt the butter so the crumbs are coated in butter. Take off heat and add the grated Parmesan.
Sprinkle this mixture over the top of the casserole dish.
Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes so it gets hot and the breadcrumb topping gets crunchy.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Quick Asian Stir Fry
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z2 (ZReduction) recipe.
Dinner in 20 minutes or less! Promise! This dish is so easy. Just be prepared in advance by having all of your veggies chopped and prepped. This comes together really fast. You can make it with beef, chicken or even shrimp. The picture is with chicken.
Servings: Serves 2 and can be doubled easily.
Ingredients:
- 10 green beans, trimmed and cut to bite size
- ½ of a red bell pepper cut into chunks
- ½ yellow bell pepper cut into chunks
- 10 pea pods cut to bite size
- 1 medium onion cut into chunks
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite size
- sea salt (optional)
For the sauce:
- 2 Tbl of Bragg’s Aminos
- 2 Tbl of water
- 2 tsp of corn starch
Instructions:
Spray a large sauté pan with olive oil spray. Put in the chicken and sauté on medium high until cooked through. Remove from stove and put it in a bowl over to the side.
Now get ready for this dish to come together fast.
Spray the pan again and start putting in your veggies. Start with the stiffer ones because they take longer to cook. Sauté on medium for 1 minute. Then add the other veggies. Cook 5 minutes tops. While they are all cooking, make your sauce. Stir the sauce in with the veggies and put the chicken back in. Stir maybe 5 more minutes to thicken the sauce and coat all of the veggies and chicken. Grate on a little sea salt if you like. The veggies will likely still have a teeny bit of crispness to them. A nice bite.
This is NOT a spicy dish. You can always sprinkle on a hot sauce to zip it up if you want spicy Asian.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Oven Roasted Pork Loin Chops with Barbecue Sauce
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z2 (ZReduction) recipe. Even a novice cook can handle this one. And it’s only two pans!
This will reheat well in the microwave at work. Some folks even like cold pork. Your choice.
Servings: Serves 4
Ingredients:
- 4 pork loin chops, 6 oz each
- ½ cup of diced onion
- olive oil spray
- 8 ounces of tomato sauce (Hunts makes one with no sugar)
- ¼ cup of apple cider vinegar
- 1 – 2 tsp of Truvia
- 2 Tbl of Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp of oregano
- 1 tsp of ground paprika
- ½ tsp of garlic powder
- ¼ tsp of grated sea salt
- ¼ tsp of dry mustard
- a grating of black pepper
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Spray chops on both sides with olive oil spray. Heat pan and sear them on both sides. I let them sear at medium high for 4 minutes per side. I want them to get a good, light brown crust. Then transfer them to an oven-proof pan and roast them until they reach 160 degrees on a meat thermometer. This should be 15 – 20 minutes depending on how your oven is calibrated.
While they are roasting you can make your sauce. Spray the pan with olive oil spray and add the onion. Sauté on medium just until the onion loosens up and becomes translucent. Then add everything else to the pan and stir. Simmer for 7 – 10 minutes to meld the flavors.
Serve the sauce with the pork chops. Your sauce serving is ¼ cup maximum. That will still allow you to have your veggie portion as still 1 cup.
You will have extra sauce. Save that for chicken tomorrow night!
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Vegetable Soup
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z2 (ZReduction) recipe. As the weather gets colder and the nights get longer this makes a wonderful soup. Or if you get a cold while on Plan Z this might be just the ticket! You can always add some cooked chicken to it too and have a healthy chicken soup to cure what ails you.
Servings: Serves 4
Each serving is 1-1/2 cups
Ingredients:
- olive oil spray
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 celery rib sliced to ¼” slices
- ½ cup of chopped red bell pepper
- 15 oz of diced tomatoes from a can, with the juice (Hunts is a no sugar option)
- 1 cup of green beans cut to 1” pieces
- 1-1/2 to 2 cups of broth. You can use beef, veggie or chicken broth. (In the picture you’ll see I used beef broth for this version because I had beef for my protein to go with it)
- ½ tsp of grated sea salt or to taste
- 1 pinch of cracked red pepper flakes for a bit of zip (optional)
- 2 handfuls of baby spinach (optional)
Instructions:
In a medium soup pan spray the olive oil. Add the onion, celery and the chopped red bell pepper. Cook on medium just until you loosen up the veggies and the onions begin to brown.
Then add the other ingredients (except the spinach). Cook on medium for 20 minutes to meld the flavors. Stir often.
I like my soup a little more smooth, so once it's done cooking, I put half of the soup in a blender and whiz it up. Then I add if back to the pot. It makes the texture nice and velvety, but you still get bits of vegetables.
Just before serving, stir in the spinach if you want it. Remember that spinach is an unlimited so you can put in as much as you want. Just more vitamins!
This is a yummy, thick soup.
Serving size is one and a half cups.
You can still have your full protein portion, your salad if you want one, and your breadstick/cracker/crunch.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Pizza Casserole
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z3 (ZReboot) recipe. This tastes a lot like pizza with no crust. Almost a cross between lasagna and pizza. It’s just a simple, comfort food dish to eat out of a bowl.
Servings: Serves 6 – 8
Ingredients:
- 1 Tbl of olive oil
- 4 Italian sausages (Hot or mild). Slit the casings and peel out the sausage meat and cut it into bits.
- 2 oz of pepperoni cut into matchstick-style pieces. Long and narrow.
- 1 Tbl of Italian seasoning
- 15 oz of ricotta cheese
- 2 tsp of minced garlic
- 2 handfuls of baby spinach
- 8 oz of shredded mozzarella cheese
- 14 oz jar of spaghetti sauce
- 4 – 6 oz of grated or shredded parmesan cheese
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a sauté pan add the olive oil and the Italian sausage. Brown the sausage on medium until it’s crispy on the outside. Keep breaking it up into bits like you’d see on the top of your pizza while it’s cooking.
While that’s happening you can take out your 9" x 13" baking pan and put the spinach on the bottom. It’s popular these days to put greens on top of your pizza so you’ll put them on the bottom for this dish. (If you look closely at the picture you’ll notice the one I made is half-sized. 9" x 9". I was making it for 2 people plus leftovers. If you want to do this just cut the ingredient amounts in half.)
The open the ricotta. Make a hole in the middle and put in the garlic and the Italian seasoning. Stir gently to mix it all up. (This just saves you a dirty dish. You can also do it this in a bowl if that will make it easier.)
When the sausage is cooked it’s time for assembly.
Take half of the ricotta mixture and put 1” blobs of it over the spinach. Don’t worry if this is messy. Just blob it around. Then put on half of the sausage and half of the pepperoni. Drizzle on half of the spaghetti sauce and then half of the mozzarella. Repeat. More blobs and all the rest.
Then top the whole thing with the Parmesan.
Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. The whole thing should be bubbly. Let rest for about 10 minutes to cool it off a bit before you dig in or you might burn the roof of your mouth.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Broiled Cod
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z2 (ZReduction) recipe. This is a simple dish that goes a long way for people that like their food straightforward and without a lot of spice.
Servings: Serves 2. Can easily be doubled.
Ingredients:
- 2, 6-8 oz portions of cod
- ½ lemon
Dusting of:
- garlic salt
- paprika
- onion powder
Instructions
Drizzle the fish pieces with squeezed lemon juice. Then dust with the spices.
Preheat broiler.
Set the fish pieces on a lightly oiled cookie sheet or in a Pyrex pan. Use the olive oil spray to oil it.
Set the pan on the rack 6” below the broiling element.
Fish should take about 7 – 10 minutes cook. Usually 7 minutes per inch of thickness is a good guide. The fish will flake easily and will start to separate. That’s how you definitely know it’s done.
Gently remove from the pan to your plate.
I served this with the green bean and red pepper medley. Simple food.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Roasted Chicken with Jalapeno-Tomatillo Sauce and Roasted Onions
Plan Z Phase: This is Z2 (ZReduction) recipe. My husband declared he wanted Mexican one night. That’s a challenge with Z2. This is not the prettiest dish I have ever made but it was quite tasty. And it satisfied his craving for Mexican. With some colorful peppers I bet this dish would be much more eye-appealing. You could roast those along with the onions. If you decide to add the bell peppers just keep in mind your portion is 6 ounces of chicken with one cup of veggies and few tablespoons of sauce for dipping.
Serving Size: Serves 4
Instructions:
- 24 ounces of roasted white chicken meat*
- 2 yellow onions sliced into ¼’ slices
For the sauce:
- 4 green jalapenos
- 1 pound tomatillos
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 yellow onions, peeled and sliced into ¼” thick slices.
*You can roast a whole chicken and just serve breast meat to yourself and save the other parts for your family or roast skinless chicken breasts. Most whole chickens will serve 2 – 3 with just the breast meat. If some members of the family are eating dark meat then the chicken will likely serve 4. Otherwise just roast 4 breast halves at 6oz each.
When I roasted my chicken I put in a large cut up onion. It helps keep the chicken moist.
Instructions:
Sauce preparation: Fill a medium saucepan halfway with water and boil the jalapenos over high heat for 15 minutes. Add the tomatillos and let them boil for another 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, drain and add cold water. Set aside to cool down for 15 minutes. Then drain and pour into a blender filled with 2 cups water. Add the garlic and salt and blend for about 3 minutes. Strain. The weird part is you are going to throw away the watery juice and keep the solids! That’s your sauce.
When you go to serve this, just put your chicken on the plate and serve the sauce on the side of the plate or in a ramekin. I liked the ramekin best. I dipped my chicken in the sauce and was much happier.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Pork Tenderloin Scallopini with Sundried Tomato Cream Sauce
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z2 (ZReduction) recipe. This is easy and very elegant. You can serve this to company and they’ll never know you’re on a diet.
Servings: Serves 2
Ingredients:
- 1 pork tenderloin, cut into ¼ - 1/3” slices. Cut crosswise across the tenderloin. Save ends for another use.
- ½ cup yellow onion, chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 3 leaves of fresh sage, chopped (you can use a ¼ tsp of dried too if you can’t get fresh)
- 3 Tbl of fresh Italian flat leaf parsley, chopped
- 1/4 cup of sun-dried tomatoes packed dry. Soak ahead of time in hot water for 15-30 minutes to hydrate. They will become soft. Pat dry and coarsely chop them up.
- extra-virgin olive oil spray (or regular will work)
- 1/2 cup of chicken broth (no sugar)
- 1/4 cup of heavy whipping cream
- sea salt and pepper ground to taste
Instructions:
In a large sauté pan sprayed with olive oil, cook the onion, garlic, sage and sun-dried tomatoes over medium heat for about 3 minutes. Don’t let the garlic brown or it gets bitter-tasting.
Take the veggies out of the pan and set them aside in a dish. Spray pan again and cook the pork.
Add the pork tenderloin slices and cook for about 10 minutes. Flip at the half way point.
Stir in the broth and the cream and season with salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes until sauce thickens. Cut open a piece of the pork to make sure there is little or no pink left. Add the veggies back into the sauce and just heat.
Serve the slices with 2 – 3 Tbl of sauce for each serving. There might be some sauce leftover.
A one pound pork tenderloin will offer up two servings with the end pieces as extra. This cream portion is half of your daily cream allowance.
Enjoy!
Cheers,
Savory Chinese Chicken Stir Fry
Plan Z Phase: This is a Z2 (ZReduction) recipe. This is NOT spicy. This is savory Chinese. Really good flavors with no zip. I find this a great way to clear out the refrigerator. A good thing for using up the good parts of asparagus that are not the tips. You can use any of the cleared veggies for this dish. Then just supplement with traditional Chinese veggies if you want. Things like pea pods or bok choy.
Chinese food always comes together really fast so have your items chopped and ready to go so it all stays fresh-crisp and hot when you go to eat it.
If you have people in the family who truly want this HOT you can put hot sauce on the table and they can add it to their taste level.
Servings: Serve 2 (can be doubled or tripled easily)
For the veggie portion:
- 2 cups of veggies. I used: Red bell pepper, green beans, bok choy bits, onion and cherry tomatoes (the peppers, green beans etc can fill the 2 cups and 8 cherry tomatoes can be extra. They take up a lot of room so don’t count them in your two cups)
- ½ cup of chicken broth
For the chicken portion:
- 2 skinless chicken breast halves sliced crosswise into ¼” thick slices
- 2 Tbl of corn starch
- 2 Tbl of apple cider vinegar
- 4 Tbl of Bragg's Aminos
- whisper of cayenne (optional)
- 1/3 cup of chicken broth (no sugar)
Instructions:
In a bowl, add the chicken, corn starch, vinegar and Bragg's. Stir thoroughly to mix up. Set aside for a few minutes to blend.
Spray a large sauté pan with olive oil spray. Put in all of the veggies except the cherry tomatoes. Cook on medium to loosen. Add the chicken broth and simmer on low 2 minutes. Turn off and add the cherry tomatoes.
In another sauté pan spray with olive oil and heat the pan up. Add the chicken mixture. Begin to cook on medium, stirring often. When the chicken starts to stick, add the chicken broth and loosen up all the bits that stuck. Stir them around and break them up where necessary. Saute chicken on medium until no pink is remaining. This won’t take more than a few minutes. If the pan dries out, add more chicken broth.
If you are going to add your whisper of cayenne this is the time to do it.
When the chicken is done, combine the two mixtures into one pan and stir. Everything should still be hot. The veggies should have a bit of crunch left to them but if not… don’t worry. They’ll still taste good.
Enjoy!
Cheers,