I tasted my first stuffed mushroom at a wedding reception. It was so delicious I said to the water, "Give me the platter and I'll serve them for you." Well, by the time I got to the first guest, the mushrooms were gone! Now whenever I go to a wedding reception (or any reception) I ask, "Are you serving stuffed mushrooms? Oh you are! Well I'll be happy to pass the platter for you."
YOU-CAN-HAVE-ONLY-ONE STUFFED MUSHROOM Makes 12 Appetizer Servings Prep: 15 minutes Cook: 2 minutes Bake: 375* for 15 minutes
12 large whole white mushrooms Nonstick olive oil, cooking spray 1/4 cup each grated Parmesan cheese and low-fat ricotta-cheese 2 tablespoons each chopped fresh parsley and fresh bread crumbs 1 teaspoon each fresh lemon juice and minced garlic 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1. Preheat oven to 375*. Wipe mushrooms clean with damp paper towel. Twist and pull out stems, leaving cavity for stuffing. Set mushrooms aside, cavity side up. Trim ends from stems. Finely dice stems. Coat small nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Add diced mushroom stems. Cook, stirring, over medium-high heat for 2 minutes or until lightly browned.
2. In small bowl mix remaining ingredients. Add browned mushroom stems and stir to mix thoroughly.
3. Spoon stuffing mixture into upturned mushroom caps. Arrange in small baking pan.
4. Bake, uncovered, 15 minutes or until mushrooms are cooked and heated through.
NUTRIENT VALUE PER SERVING 26 calories 2 g protein 1 g fat (39% fat) 2 g carbohydrate 100 mg sodium 3 mg cholesterol
LOOKS LIKE A LOT OF FAT, BUT IT ISN'T. At first glance these look like a fat no-no. (Remember, you're only having one of these; okay, maybe two if no one is looking, but that's it!) The percentage of calories from fat is 39 percent -- that's high. But there's only 1 gram of fat per mushroom -- much less than most low-fat cookies or chips, or even vegetable side dishes tossed with a little sauce. The calories are very low, too: 25 per mushroom. Figure it out yet? Since the calories are low, the ration of grams of fat to calories is high, even though the mushroom itself is a fairly "healthy" morsel. The lesson here? Don't stop with just the percentage of calories from fat, also take a look at how many grams of fat and calories a particular food has.
Taken from Richard Simmons Farewell to Fat Cookbook (c) 1996.
Remember schmaltz? Your mom and grandmother probably used a lot of
it in their home cooking. Schmaltz, or chicken fat, has a great flavor
and richness; it has a deeper flavor than duck fat and can be used on
nearly everything. I also love poaching fish in it.
I like to slice vegetables such as a zucchini and eggplant lengthwise so that the pieces will be large. If I'm grilling the vegetables, this works especially well, since there's less chance of the pieces slipping through the grill rack. How embarrassing -- it's happened to me!
QUE SERA QUESADILLAS... WITH VEGETABLES Makes 12 appetizer servings
Non-stick vegetable oil cooking spray 2 cups sliced (1/4 inch thick) vegetables such as eggplant, bell peppers, zucchini, and yellow squash 6 fat free flour tortillas (about 8 inch) 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro 1 cup shredded part-skim mozzzarella cheese 1/2 cup bottled medium-hot salsa
1. Preheat broiler. Coat baking pan with cooking spray. Arrange vegetable slices in single layer in pan, placing peppers skin side up. Coat vegeables lightly with cooking spray.
2. Broil vegetables about 2 inches from heat for 10 minutes or until browned, turning all once, except peppers. Remove vegetables and let cool. Peel peppers.
3. Place 3 tortillas on flat surface. Divide vegetables over each. Top with cilantro, cheese, and salsa. Cover with remaining tortillas.
4. Coat nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Heat over medium high heat. Place quesadillas one at a time in skillet, and cook until lightly browned and cheese is melted, about 1 minute on eah side.
5. Cut each quesadilla into 4 wedges. Serve immediately.
NUTRIENT VALUE PER SERVING 89 calories 4 g protein 2 g fat (17% fat) 14 g carbohydrate 234 mg sodium 5 mg cholesterol
Taken from Richard Simmons Farewell to Fat Cookbook (c) 1996
Another Christmas cookie recipe for you. Why don't I make these all year? They are so good.
BEST EVER BUTTER COOKIES Makes 36 cookies
Prep time: 60 minutes Total time: 3 hours 10 minutes
Ingredients: 1 cup butter, softened 1 cup sugar 1 egg 2 tablespoons orange juice 1 tablespoon vanilla 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder
Directions: 1. Combine butter, sugar and egg in a bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy. Add orange juice and vanilla. Continue beating, scraping bowl often, until well combined. Add flour and baking powder and continue beating at low speed until well mixed.
2. Divide dough into thirds. Shape each third into a ball and then flatten slightly. Wrap each in plastic food wrap. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours until firm. 3. Heat oven to 400*. 4. Roll out one third at a time on lightly floured board to 1/8 - 1/4 inch thick. (Keep rest of dough refrigerated while you do this.) Cut with 3 inch cookie cutter and place on ungreased cookie sheet 1 inch apart. Sprinkle with colored sugar.
5. Bake 6-10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Let stand 1 minute on cookie sheet then remove to cooling rack. Cool completely.
NUTRITION FACTS: (1 cookie) Calories: 150 Cholesterol: 25 mg Carbohydrates: 21 g Protein: 1 g Fat: 7 g Sodium: 70 mg Dietary fiber: 0 g
My love of barbecue grew from a wonderful memory of a small BBQ chicken restaurant just outside of Dallas. I can still remember bowls of extra barbecue sauce on the table. When no one was looking, I stuck in my finger and snuck a quick taste -- I was hooked. So now you see why I couldn't pass up the chance to sneak some barbecue sauce into my chicken quesadilla. To me, a quesadilla makes the perfect lunch, or even snack -- it's a cross between a sandwich and a pizza. Whatever will be, will be.
QUE SERA QUESADILLAS... WITH BARBECUED CHICKEN Makes 12 appetizer servings
Prep: 10 minutes Broil: 4 minutes Cook: 6 minutes
6 ounces boneless, skinned chicken breasts 1/3 cup bottled barbecue sauce 6 fat-free flour tortillas (about 8 inch) 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion 1/4 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves 6 canned pitted black olives, sliced, or 1/4 avocado, pitted, peeled, and chopped 2/3 cup shredded reduced-fat Monterey Jack cheese Nonstick vegetable oil cooking spray
1. Preheat broiler. Place chicken on rack in broiler pan. Spread with some of the barbecue sauce.
2. Broil 1 to 2 inches from heat for 2 minutes. Turn chicken over. Spread with more barbecue sauce. Broil 1 to 2 minutes more or until meat is no longer pink in enter. Cut chicken into bite-size chunks.
3. Place tortillas on flat surface. Spread with remaining barbecue sauce. Scatter chicken chunks over half of each tortilla. Top with red onion, a few cilantro leaves, olive or avocado, and cheese. Fold over each tortilla in half to enclose filling.
4. Coat large nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Heat over medium-high heat. Place 2 quesadillas at a time in skillet. Cook until lightly browned and cheese is melted, about 1 minute each side. To serve, cut each quesadilla in half.
NUTRIENT VALUE PER SERVING 101 calories 7 g protein 2 g fat (20% fat) 14 g carbohydrate 212 mg sodium 13 mg cholesterol
Taken from Richard Simmons Farewell to Fat Cookbook (c) 1996.
Want to hear a real story about American ingenuity? Late one night at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York, Dominick Beltissimo asked his mom, Teressa, the cook and co-owner of this restaurant-bar, to cook up a midnight snack for him and his buddies. The only thing Teressa had on hand was a pile of chicken wings set aside for soup stock. But Mom loved her son Dominick, so she said what the heck. No soup! She cooked the wings in some hot oil, brushed them with a tangy barbecue sauce, and served them with a blue cheese dressing and celery sticks -- the rest is history. Thank you, Teressa!
FIRED UP BUFFALO WINGS Makes 4 appetizer servings
Prep: 5 minutes Marinate: 30 to 60 minutes Bake: 425* for 20 minutes
Ingredients: 1 pound chicken drumettes 1/4 cup hot pepper sauce 1 tablespoon Worcestrshire sauce 2 teaspoons paprika 1/8 teaspoon cayenne, or less for milder flavor 1 cup fat-free blue cheese flavored salad dressing 8 celery sticks
Directions: 1. In sealable plastic bag combine drumettes, hot pepper sauce, Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon paprika, and cayenne. Seal bag and shake to coat chicken. Refrigerate and marinate at least 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 425*. Remove drumettes from marinade and arrange in single layer in shallow baking pan. Sprinkle with half the remaining paprika.
3. Bake 10 minutes. Turn drumettes over. Sprinkle with remaining paprika. Bake another 10 minutes or until meat is no longer pink near bone.
4. Pour blue cheese dressing into small bowl. Arrange chicken and celery sticks on serving platter. Accompany with blue cheese dressing for dipping.
Nutrient Value Per Serving: 206 calories 18 g protein 6 g fat (29% fat) 17 g carbohydrate 755 mg salt 53 mg cholesterol
SACRED FAT What are Buffalo wings without the skin? I make the choice here to keep the Sacred Fat skin on, although you could remove it before marinating for an even skinnier version -- but they won't taste as good. Even with the skin on, the fat checks in at only 6 grams per serving. But promise you won't eat more than your portion -- one recipe is not one serving, it's four!
Recipe taken from Richard Simmons Farewell to Fat Cookbook (c) 1996.