Grilled Fish Tacos!

Here's a delicious Mexican-inspired recipe, with thanks to Pamela Salzman - I've modified the recipe to keep the calories low but the taste factor high!


INGREDIENTS:

1 pound halibut fillets

8 6-inch corn tortillas, warmed either on grill or heated griddle pan until pliable

1 fresh lime, cut into wedges

White sauce:

• 3 Tablespoons low fat mayonnaise
• 7 Tablespoons plain light unsweetened greek yogurt
• 1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1 teaspoon hot sauce or ¼ teaspoon ground chipotle powder (optional) 
• pinch of sea salt

Dry Rub:

• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Veggie filling for tacos: as you wish-

• shredded napa cabbage
• coleslaw
• radishes
• red onion
• salsa

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Whisk together ingredients for white sauce, and refrigerate until ready to use.

2.  Mix dry rub spices together and sprinkle on both sides of the fish.

3.  Preheat grill to medium-hot.  Brush grate grill very lightly with oil, minimum necessary to prevent sticking. Grill fish until fish is just cooked through, about 3-5 minutes per side.

4.  Remove fish from grill and break into pieces.

Makes 8 soft shell tacos!

NUTRITIONAL INFO:    I have calculated the nutritional info here to include the fish, the soft shell taco, the dry rub, and the white sauce.  The number of calories, carbs etc in the veggies and salsa that you decide to include is going to depend on how much and what kinds you choose.  However, the calories in these veggies is almost negligible.  Salsa can vary, and I'd suggest going easy on salsa because it is very high in salt (ever wonder if you eat too much salt in a day - calculate your intake here).

It's also extremely difficult to estimate how much of the oil brushed on the grill absorbs into the fish - one of the limitations of using oil to create a non stick surface.  As it's almost impossible to estimate, I have not included the oil used to brush the grill in my calculations.  If you bake your fish in the oven instead, you can use a bit of non stick cooking spray on tin foil and avoid this problem.

Per taco: (approximate, including fish, dry rub, soft taco, and white sauce)

CALORIES: 163
CARBS:        13 g
PROTEIN:    17.5 g
FAT:             4.6 g

Enjoy!

Dr Sue Pedersen www.drsue.ca © 2013 

Follow me on Twitter for daily tips! @drsuepedersen

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Kale Adventures Continued... Maple Citrus Salad!

I'm really getting into the kale phenomenon - it's tasty!  Here's a super easy kale salad recipe - thanks to Pamela Salzman for the inspiration - I toned the recipe down in terms of calories by cutting out some oil.   Many salad recipes out there have way more oil than actually needs to be included.


INGREDIENTS:

• 6 cups of kale, cut into strips (see below) - about 2 bunches
• 1/2 cup red cabbage, shredded
• 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 Tablespoons fresh orange juice
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• A few twists of black pepper
• 2 teaspoons minced shallot
• 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

DIRECTIONS: 

Strip the leaves from the tough stem, and throw away the stem. Cut the kale into strips, and add the shredded cabbage.  

Mix remaining ingredients together, and pour over the vegggies.  Toss and serve!

Makes 6 servings. 

PER SERVING: (approximate)

CALORIES: 85

CARBS: 10g

PROTEIN: 2g
FAT: 4.5g

Dr Sue Pedersen www.drsue.ca © 2013 

Follow me on Twitter for daily tips! @drsuepedersen

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Baked Kale Chips!

I've been meaning to get into the world of kale for a while now.... is anyone else out there a little intimidated by this vegetable, for lack of knowing what the heck to do with it?  I definitely fall into this category.

Here is my first foray into cooking kale - I heard quite a while ago that you can make great tasting, crispy chips out of kale, to satisfy that crunch craving in place of less healthy choices like potato chips.

It's so easy - I should have tried it long ago!  At just 33 calories per cup of kale, it is a Free Veg - provided you go easy on the olive oil cooking spray.

INGREDIENTS:

1 bunch of kale
olive oil cooking spray
garlic powder
pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Preheat oven to 350F (175 C).

2.  Line a baking sheet with tin foil.

3.  Remove the kale leaves from the tough stem strip in the middle.  Throw away the stem strip.  Cut the leaves into bite sized pieces.

4.  Arrange the kale leaf pieces on the baking sheet, and spray lightly with olive oil spray.    Bake until the edges are slightly browned, about 10-15 minutes.


Note: I tried storing my leftovers in a Tupperware container.  Maybe this is obvious to everyone but me but - don't do this.  They get soggy!  This recipe is for enjoying right after it's cooked. :)


Dr Sue Pedersen www.drsue.ca © 2013 

Follow me on Twitter for daily tips! @drsuepedersen

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Quinoa Pizza Bites!

It's hard to sort out which of the latest and greatest 'it' foods are actually good for us - but quinoa is definitely one of them.   One of the benefits of quinoa is that it serves as the carbohydrate in your meal, but it also contains some protein.  Protein helps you to feel full, is important for building of muscle and all other protein containing tissues, and it requires about 20% more calories for your body to break it down (compared to carbs or fat eaten).  Quinoa also contains some fiber, which helps you to feel full; and, it has a low glycemic index. Quinoa is also gluten free, making it a great choice for people who have Celiac disease.

Here is a great way to enjoy quinoa - trick your tastebuds into thinking that you are eating pizza, at a fraction of the calories and with a much greater nutritional punch!  I have modified this recipe to use two egg whites instead of an egg, and I have replaced the fat free mozza cheese with low fat, as fat free can be hard to find.  I have recalculated the nutritional info (below) based on these changes.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup low fat shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tbsp dried basil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• pinch of salt
• pasta or pizza sauce for dipping

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Cook quinoa as per package directions (exact cooking instructions vary depending on the type or brand of quinoa).

2.  Preheat oven to 350F.  Combine all ingredients in a bowl, except for the pasta/pizza sauce.

3.  Lightly spray a mini muffin tin with cooking spray.  Scoop 1 heaping tablespoon of the mixture into each muffin tin.

4.  Bake for 15-20 minuts and let cool.

NUTRITIONAL INFO - note that this does NOT include the tomato/pizza sauce, as it totally depends which kind you choose.  I like Prego pasta sauce personally!

Makes 2 servings, with about 6 Pizza Bites per serving.

PER SERVING: approximately 290 cal, 32g carb, 19g protein, 9g fat


Thanks to my bestie Deb for pointing out this recipe!

Dr Sue Pedersen www.drsue.ca © 2013 

Follow me on Twitter for daily tips! @drsuepedersen

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Roasted Cabbage Wedges

Here's a great idea for a side veggie dish, right from the kitchens of Martha Stewart!  I have cut back the oil in this recipe -  Martha's 3 tablespoons isn't necessary.  In fact, many recipes out there call for much more oil than is actually needed to give flavor and texture.  Olive oil contains healthy fats, yes - but remember that one tablespoon of any kind of oil contains about 135 calories.  Thus, for a typical middle aged woman who doesn't exercise and is trying to lose weight, who needs to limit intake to about 1200 calories per day in order to lose about a pound a week, one tablespoon of oil is more than 10% of the day's calorie total - and you haven't eaten anything yet. (You can calculate your calorie requirements to maintain or lose weight in the right hand column here).


INGREDIENTS:

• 1 medium head of green cabbage, cut into 1 inch thick rounds
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste (minimum salt if you have high blood pressure)
• 1 tsp caraway or fennel seeds

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 400F.  Line a baking sheet with tin foil and spray with non stick spray.  Place cabbage round slices in a single layer on the sheet, and brush with 2 teaspoons of olive oil.  Season with caraway or fennel seeds and pepper/salt.  Roast until cabbage is tender and edges are golden, about 40-45 minutes. 

Makes 5 servings. 

PER SERVING:  about 65 calories, 10g carbohydrate, 2g protein, 2g fat

Dr Sue Pedersen www.drsue.ca © 2013 

Follow me on Twitter for daily tips! @drsuepedersen

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Healthy Holiday Dessert (or Salad!): Baked Pears with Walnuts and Cranberries!

Happy December!  'Tis the season for fun and festivities, hosting and being hosted at gatherings with wonderful family and friends.  Enjoying meals together is a natural part of these events, and you may be wondering how you can choose a dessert you've been asked to bring to next weekend's potluck without hampering you or your friends' dedication to the permanent lifestyle changes that have been made over the last year.

I see two options here:

1) Practice portion control (ie make whatever you want, but portion it into small servings - this should be the back up plan any time you are served food that may not be the healthiest; or

2) Choose to make a healthier dessert.

I polled my facebook friends for a new dessert idea, and the prize goes to my friend Carol, for finding this recipe on About.com on their Low Fat Cooking page (there's lots of great ideas here!).  I like that this recipe contains walnuts, which are rich in essential amino acids and omega 3 fatty acids (one of the healthier fats).  Cranberries have some putative health benefits including possible antioxidant capacity, and, well.... they just plain taste good!  Remember that walnuts and dried cranberries are both high in calories, so the key is moderation.

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 ripe but firm pears, peeled, cored and quartered
• 1/3 cup pomegranate juice OR cranberry juice OR apple cider
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Preheat oven to 350 F.
2.  Place quartered pears in a baking dish.  Drizzle juice or cider over the pears, and sprinkle the walnuts on top.
3.  Bake for 20 minutes, or until pears or tender.
4.  Serve in a smal bowl with the juices


Makes 4 servings.  PER SERVING:

• Calories: 170
• Fat: 5g
• Carbs: 34g
• Protein: 2g

To top this off, you could add 2 tbsp of Cool Whip lite to each serving, for an extra 20 calories (and 3g of carbs).


Here's the really cool thing about this recipe - it can double as a salad!  Throw the pears on top of a bed of arugula, and voila!

Enjoy!

Dr Sue Pedersen www.drsue.ca © 2012 

Follow me on Twitter for daily tips! @drsuepedersen

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Sweet Potato Lentil Stew!

In our neck of the wood, winter has come early!  Here's a recipe that will warm you up on a chilly night.  It needs no oil or added fats at all - the taste from this creative blend of spices is mouth watering all on its own!

Ingredients:

• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 small tomatoes, diced
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
• 1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne
• Pinch of fine sea salt (optional)
• 3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4” cubes
• 7 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1 cup brown or red lentils

Directions:

1.  Heat two tablespoons of the broth over medium heat in a large, deep pot. 

2.  Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, for two minutes or until the onion starts to soften. 

3.  Stir in the tomatoes and ginger and cook for three minutes. 

4.  Stir in the turmeric, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cayenne, and a small pinch of salt, if using. Cook and stir for two minutes, then taste for seasonings; try to use only enough salt to heighten the flavors.

5.  Add the sweet potatoes, broth, and lentils. Stir well, and bring to a boil over high heat. When the mixture comes to a boil, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 40 minutes or until the lentils and sweet potatoes are soft.

Makes 6 servings. 

Per serving: (approximate)

• calories: 190
• fat: 0.3g 
• protein: 10g
• carbohydrates: 36g

Recipe adapted from Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Diet  .  Thanks to my friend Susan for the inspiration!

Dr Sue Pedersen www.drsue.ca © 2012 drsuetalks@gmail.com

Follow me on Twitter for daily tips! @drsuepedersen

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