Southern

This turkey has a very mild cajun flavor so if you want it zippier add just a dusting of cayenne and stir. I do love the zip.

Celebrity Chef Jernard Wells knows soul food. While a lot of his food is quite decadent, he also loves greens, and shared his wonderful southern greens recipe in a local interview. What's great about it is it can easily be modified to fit ZReboot. His original recipe calls for sugar, but by replacing the sugar with your favorite sugar substitute, you can still enjoy this delicious recipe. 

I found a recipe very similar to this one about 15 years in an old Southern cookbook. I have made a few changes to “Zola-fy” it. This goes over BIG at any party, and it's so simple!

Two things I love about living mid-South: fried green tomatoes, and tomato pie.

This delicious recipe was submitted by dieter Nicole. She served it with pork chops and roasted tomatoes. Thanks, Nicole for the inspired dish!

This is a wonderfully moist meatloaf. It has a kick from the Cajun spices but not all that much and you can adjust according to taste. This transports well to work.

This dish is a combination of my recipe for Chicken Mamou and a casserole. Chicken Mamou is a traditional Cajun dish. “Mamou” is their word for Grandma, so this is true comfort food.

This comes together in a flash and tastes just as good as the recipes that cook for hours.

You can reheat this to serve or you can serve it room temp or cold. Just depends on the time of year you make it. In the summer it would be great cold.

Jambalaya is normally a rice-centric dish that is chock-full of carbs. I redesigned this dish so you can fit some rice into your life without blowing your diet.

The sauce will make you feel so gourmet and it’s very easy to make. You don’t have to spend a lot of time in the kitchen either.

My husband loves shrimp and grits. His mother was from Arkansas and they ate grits often. Trouble is grits are very high carb. Traditional grits are made from cornmeal. I took an inspiration recipe and came up with my own version of shrimp and grits. There is just enough corn in here to help you get the corn flavor without the cornmeal. And there’s enough cheese in here that even though you’ll be using almond meal (aka almond flour) for your grits base, you won’t taste the almond.

This is a colorful dish that’s also healthy. Fresh and fancy enough to serve to company. No one will miss rice. Easy for a weeknight too.

I call this “pie” because it tastes like the middle of a peach pie; just no crust. I call it Southern because the Southerners are known for putting cinnamon and nutmeg in their peach pie recipes.

One pot meal! The gravy is wonderful and the roasted veggies bring out a ton of flavor. Be sure to scrape up the bits on the bottom of the pan in the cooking process.

This recipe can be doubled and tripled for larger crowds. You can even make it ahead and just reheat on the big day. It actually tastes better on day two or three, after the flavors "ferment" a bit.

This recipe was contributed by Plan Z dieter Darlene. Great idea! Super easy.

If you are serving this dish with the salmon, place the salmon on the plate and then spread the tomatoes and zucchini around it for color.

Serve with the peach sauce piled on top. The peach sauce recipe makes quite a bit so you might end up with a bit of leftovers.

I recommend you use a Cajun rub on this salmon. If you don't want to buy a pre-made rub or don't have access to one, you can make your own.

See how you can be “gourmet” and still be on a diet. My mission is always to make diet food that tastes good.

To get really fancy serve with a bit of bourbon or port on the side. You’ll feel like you stepped out in New Orleans.

This is a dessert drink for a splurge. Many order a White Russian for an after dinner drink. This is a different treat I came up with recently. My new favorite.

This super easy comfort meal is a cinch to make. Even novice cooks can handle this one! And it’s so yummy.

This tastes amazingly like the real Southern dish. It’s zesty and the cabbage will give you crunch along with your pork.

When I made this Creole stew, I used some “aristocratic” ingredients (shrimp and lump crab meat) but you can certainly make it easier on your budget by making a “Cajun” version.

This is a nice, light fish dish. You can make it as spicy or mild as you choose by limiting the amount of seasoning you put on your fish.

I am recommend you use a Cajun rub on this salmon. If you don't want to buy a pre-made rub or don't have access to one, you can make your own.

This recipe is very similar to one that was in Bon Appetit in 1994.

Crab cakes are a fun way to splurge. These are healthy and a bit on the zippy side with the Cajun seasoning. You can make yours less spicy if you’d like.

You can make this dish with any fish. I just was in the mood for scallops.

One of my favorite Cajun meals is chicken mamou. Mamou in Creole is basically grandma. So this is “grandma('s) chicken.”

Want old-time, Southern fried chicken? Well you’re not going to get it on Z2 but this is as close as I can get. It will remind you of the batter-fried flavor without the carbohydrates and oil.

Two of my favorite Cajun dishes are etouffee and Marengo. Like lots of Cajun food they are basically stews. Simple, flavorful meals.

This tastes pretty darn authentic. Creole… or low country food. If you want it spicy you might consider adding a bit of cayenne (1/4 tsp) or the same amount of red pepper flakes. An final alternative would be to put a bottle of Tabasco on the table for people to add their own.

This almond pound cake is amazing on its own. Once you fry it up and cover it in whipped cream and fruit you have elevated it to a whole new level!