Vegetarian Enchilada Pie

This is my riff on a Utah standby Chicken Enchilada Pie, that my dear friend Nicole taught me how to make back in Ohio in 1995. The Chicken version layered tortillas with sour cream, cream of chicken soup, sauteed onions, cheese, and cooked chicken. My new version, adapted to vegetarian tastes and my progress at Weight Watchers (25 pounds down, yay!) is a different kind of yummy, and it has that quality I love about a good casserole: leftovers that last in the fridge, handy for lunching or snacks for me and other adults in the house for the days that follow.

I hear Nicole's in China now. She's lived around the world since our days in Ohio. She's such an excellent cook (and seamstress and business manager) I wonder what great things she's done since our daughters were small.

1.5 to 2 TB oil
1 medium summer squash
1 medium-small zucchini
1 red bell pepper
red or other onion, half a large
8-10 oz mushrooms
half a pound frozen corn kernels
2 1/2 cups shredded cheese
5-7 corn tortillas, which tend to be small.
28-ounce can of enchilada sauce, I like the green kind.

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350F, because that's how to cook any casserole.

2. dice up small the vegetables, medium-high heat the oil in the pan, then add the vegetables and saute. Here you can see the proportions.

Oh, I forgot to add the mushrooms and corn. I buy the pre-sliced mushrooms, and then chop them further from there. The corn really ought to be microwave cooked first, but I just threw it in the pan, slowing down and reducing the quality of the vegetables cooking. Oh well.

Now it's all mixed together. I really love the colors--this is why one of my Christmas side dishes for years was zucchini-bell.pepper-corn.

Now that's cooked; it's time to layer. Cover the bottom of the pan with 1/4 of the sauce, layer two tortillas, half of the vegetables, and another dose of sauce, and some (1/3 of) cheese.

Let's peek ahead with this layers diagram for the finished casserole. The fraction is how much of that item to put in that layer.

cheese (1/3)

sauce (1/4)

tortillas (1/3)

cheese (1/3)

sauce (1/4)

vegetables (1/2)

tortillas (1/3)

cheese (1/3)

sauce (1/4)

vegetables (1/2)

tortillas (1/3)

sauce (1/4)

\________pan________/

Here I'm in process covering those first tortillas with my first layer of veggies.

Sauce on the second layer, and repeat as before.

Cheese going on just before another layer of tortilla. If I'm going to use cheese, I use real cheese, not reduced-fat stuff. It doesn't take much (relative to what I used to do, perhaps) to give it that cheese-in-mix taste. I would have loved a Jack cheese here, but was happy to use the sharp cheddar that was in the house. I think it really adds to the nourishing deliciousness of the meal to use what I have.

And on that front, I wasn't stopped by the fact I only had five corn tortillas in the house. I tore the last one into pieces and spread it around for the top layer thus.

Last layer of sauce and cheese.

Cover and bake the standard 350F for 30 minutes. This pretty dish (from IKEA years ago) didn't have a lid, so I used foil.

And it's done! I suppose you could remove the foil at the end, if you want the cheese browned as well as bubbly, but for me this is good. Too often I burn the cheese at the end trying to do that. Feel free to send me an acetylene torch.

Was delish, and delish as leftovers for a couple days. Loved and appreciated by everyone over the age of 16--probably could have won the heart of the younger teen if it didn't fall into the inaccurately-named category "Mexican Food." Apparently my love of all things bean, cheese, and tortilla more than met her quota five years ago.

But never mine.

Skillet gnocchi with Chard & White Beans

This has been the favorite recipe on the www.eatingwell.com site for weeks. We tried it this past week and gave it two thumbs up. My notes: be sure to use petite diced tomatoes (I used regular and added my own spices) and cut the chard into small pieces. This would easily be adapted to different flavors such as chickpeas, spinach, oregano and feta, or white beans with havarti and dill. I'm keeping the shelf-stable gnocchi stocked in my pantry from now on.

Skillet Gnocchi with Chard & White Beans
from Eating Well Magazine Jan/Feb 2009

Eating well suggests serving it with a mixed green salad with vinaigrette.

Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1 16-oz pkg shelf-stable gnocchi
1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup water
6 cups chopped chard leaves
1 15-oz can diced tomatoes with Italian seasonings
1 15-oz can white beans, rinsed
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/4 Cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese

Heat 1 Tablespoon oil in large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add gnocchi and cook, stirring often, until plumped and starting to brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer gnocchi to a bowl.

Add the remaining 1 teaspoon oil and onion to the pan and cook, stirring over medium heat for 2 minutes. Stir in garlic and water. Cover and cook, until onion is soft, 4 to 6 minutes. Add chard and cook, stirring, until starting to wilt 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, beans and peppers and bring to a simmer. Stir int he gnocchi and sprinkle with mozzarella and Parmesan. Cover and cook until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling, about three minutes.

325 Cal; 7 g fat; 2 g Sat; 3 g mono; 8 mg chol; 55 g Carb; 14 g Protein; 6 g Fiber; 616 mg Sodium; 360 mg Potassium

The Secret Ingredient to Mac'n'cheese

So, my usual method for making home-made mac'n'cheese is to not measure anything (just like my grandma taught me). After the noodles are cooked I just add in butter, flour, milk, cheese, and sometimes *gasp* green vegetables (tonight it was spinach, I totally did not go for anything vegetable wise in my mac'n'cheese until my sophomore year of college), and stir until all the cheese is melted. At any rate, it usually turns out pretty good.

My Handsome was making the mac'n'cheese tonight and wanted more exact measurements. So I got out the cookbook, but the two recipes were for baked mac'n'cheese (people make baked mac'n'cheese for stuff other than potlucks?). But, both recipes had nutmeg in them. So I ended up teaching Handsome how to make mac'n'cheese my way and just added a couple of dashes of nutmeg at the end. It was delicious! It added just a hint of sweetness to the cheese sauce, and made the flavor more interesting and complex. Definitely doing it again.

By the way, the type of cheese we used tonight was a colby and monterrey jack blend, although the recipes in the cookbook used cheddar and parmesan.

Eggplant and Zucchini Casserole

I got this recipe from a friend who says it's one of her favorites!

2 cups water
4 tablespoons butter
8 ounces bread crumbs
1 large eggplant, diced
2 large zucchini, diced
1 onion, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
2 cups shredded Colby cheese
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
________________________________________
In a microwavable bowl, mix water and butter (cut into pieces). Stir in bread crumbs and cover with a microwavable lid. Cook on HIGH for 8 to 10 minutes. Fluff with fork.

Place eggplant, zucchini, tomato, onion into a large skillet. Season with thyme, salt, and pepper. Cook and stir over medium low heat for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F ( 175 degrees C). Grease a 2 quart casserole dish.

Layer vegetables, cheese, and bread crumbs in the dish until all ingredients have been used, ending with cheese.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes.

Veggie Casserole

My zucchini haters will eat this and like the dish. It's a good mix of veggies.

Veggie Casserole

5 C Zucchini, leave skin on and grate
1/2 Diced onion
1 C shredded carrots
2 cans of cream soup (mushroom, chicken, broccoli, or celery)
1/2 C milk
2 C cooked rice
1 C shredded cheese

Cook zucchini, onion, and carrots in water until crisp tender (3-5 minutes). Combine soups, milk and stir in vegetables and rice. Put in casserole dish and top with cheese. Back at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.

French Pasta Salad

I originally posted this on my blog this past summer. I'm pulling it out again because it truly was great for packable lunches.

Adapted from Moosewood Daily Special cookbook
Serves: 10

My notes: Moosewood is notorious for big servings so I increased the overall servings(original cal/serving was 509) You still get a good size serving. Note that I used the high fiber pasta. The original recipe called for toasted hazelnuts which I omitted after deciding that it didn’t need it. (Don't get me wrong, they would taste great, but I was trying to lighten the recipe.) The red peppers are roasted in the original recipe but I like the crunch of the fresh. I also added the tomatoes and mushrooms. This would be a great “toss in the entire garden” recipe. Great reviews from family and my running trainer. Wonderful main dish for those nights it is too hot to cook too much. Leftovers pack well for lunch.

14 ounces Ronzoni Smart Taste Penne Rigate (1 box)
3 Cups green beans, stemmed and cut crosswise
2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon
1 Tablespoon minced fresh basil
1 large shallot, minced
1/4 Cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 Cup red wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
1 large red pepper, julienned
1/4 Cup italian parsley, chopped
8 ounces button mushroom, quartered
1 Cup cherry tomato, halved
1 Tablespoon capers, drained
1/2 Cup chevre cheese

Cook pasta according to directions. Add green beans during the last 3 minutes of cooking. Drain and rinse in cold water to cool immediately. Drain again.Whisk together oil, vinegar, tarragon, basil, shallot, Dijon, salt and pepper.Toss pasta and beans with dijon vinaigrette and the rest of the veggies. Serve at room temp or slightly chilled.Cal: 216; Fat: 8g; Fiber: 6g; Protein: 7g; Sodium: 270 mg; Calcium: 231 mg; Carb: 36 g

Garden Vegetable Calzones

Everyday I ask my girls what they want for dinner. This is their first request!

Garden Vegetable Calzones

8 fresh mushrooms, sliced (3/4 cup)
1 small zucchini, halved and thinly sliced (3/4 cup)
1/2 red or yellow bell pepper, coarsly chopped (1/2 cup)
1/4 cup sliced green onions
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp dried basil leaves
1 (10 oz) can Pillsbury refrigerated pizza crust (comes in a can like biscuits)
4 oz (1 cup) shredded mozzarella or provolone cheese
1 egg white, beaten

Heat oven to 425 and spray cookie sheet with nonstick spray.

In bowl, combine all the veggies and sprinkle with garlic and basil. Mix well.

Unroll the dough; placed on sprayed cookie sheet. Roll dough into 14-inch square and cut into 4 7 inch squares. (This is what the recipe says, but I just cut off some dough and roll it out and I make about 8 calzones with this (2 each because they want TWO)). Place 1/4 cup cheese on half of each square; spread to within 1/2 inch of edge. Top each with 1/4 vegetable mixture. (I don't measure all this out. A little of this-a little of that.

Fold dough in half over filling; press edges firmly with fork to seal. Brush each with beaten egg white (for browning-makes them prettier). Cut 2 or 3 slits in the top of each for steam to escape.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

We serve marinara or pizza sauce on the side for dipping.

Recipe for Cheese Soup

First a disclaimer that this soup is not necessarily super low in fat, but its good and warms me up when its cold in the winter.

Cheese Soup

1/2 cup finely chopped onion
4 Tbs butter or margarine
1/2 cup flour
4 cups milk
4 cups chicken broth or Vegetable broth
1/2 cup finely diced carrots
1/2 cup finely diced celery
Dash each salt and paprika
1 cup grated medium or sharp cheddar cheese

Cook onion in butter till tender. Blend in flour. Add remaining ingredients except cheese. cook and stir till thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat. Add cheese. Stir to melt. Simmer 15 minutes. Serves 8

When my sister gave me this recipe it called for American cheese, but I have never made it that way. I always just used cheddar, so that is the way I am sending it on to you. Also, I tend to put a little bit more of the veggies in this soup. Closer to 3/4 cup. It won't hurt anything and it will be better for you!