Category: Light Cooking

Lemon Vegetable Linguini with Salmon

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Lemon Vegetable Linguini with Salmon

  • Servings: 6
  • Difficulty: Easy
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A meal that looks good is always a sure way to make mouths water. The prep in this one is what makes the difference. I chop everything ahead of time because once you start cooking all three things cook at the same time. Multitasking is an asset here.

Ingredients bowl 1

  • 1 large onion chopped

Ingredients bowl 2

  • 2 cups cherry tomatoes chopped
  • 1 tbsp fresh parsley chopped
  • 1 tbsp fresh basil chopped
  • 1 tsp of sugar
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients bowl 3

  • 4 cups spinach
  • 2 garlic cloves chopped
  • 2 green onions chopped
  • 1 green pepper coarsely chopped
  • 1 red pepper coarsely chopped
  • 5 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp of lemon zest

Ingredients

  • 1 lb of linguini pasta
  • 1 1/2 lbs of salmon filet
  • 1 tbsp of lemon juice
  • Parsley florets

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and place fish on baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Put one tablespoon of lemon juice with salt and pepper. Cook for 20 minutes. No longer.
  2. AT THE SAME TIME, bring a pot of salted water to boil and cook the pasta per package directions.
  3. AT THE SAME TIME, heat oil in 6qt stock pot over high heat. Put in onion and lower to medium high.
  4. Once onion is softened, add bowl 3, cover and reduce heat to medium. Over the next 10 minutes stir occasionally.
  5. When spinach has reduced and peppers are a little tender add bowl 2 mix until heated through.
  6. Place pasta on serving platter. Top with vegetables. Remove the skin from the salmon and cut into serving sizes. I use 4 ounces per person. Add a floret for parsley on each salmon filet.

Nutrition Per Serving, 1 biscuit

  • Calories 546
  • Fat 14 g
  • Sugar 6 g
  • Carbohydrates 64 g
  • Protein 36 g
  • Fibre 6.3 g

It can be quite intensive doing all three at once. If you choose to do something ahead of time the best one is pasta. If you choose to do so, once the pasta is cooked, spray some cooking spray throughout so the pasta does not stick together. Just reheat before putting on platter. This has a very nice presentation. It’s relatively quick to make if the chopping is all done ahead of time, thus giving you time with your guests. Change the pasta, you can add kale, more lemon, less lemon, you can add some cayenne if you want some heat. Have fun and make it your own.

Corn and Blueberry Muffins

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Corn and Blueberry Muffins

  • Servings: 12 muffins
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Who doesn’t like blueberry muffins? If you are diabetic, you are allowed between 10-25 grams of carbs per snack. Depending how well you have been doing all day. This is at the high end of 26. It can be treat on a day you have been doing well. For calorie conscious it is only 158 calories per muffin. If you calculate that a standard fast food muffin contains an average of 400 calories, this is a good alternative.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup buttermilk (low fat) see below if you can’t find any at grocery store
  • 1 1/2 cup of all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup of corn meal
  • 6 tbsp of sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp of baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp of salt
  • 1 1/2 cup of fresh or frozen blueberries
  • 3 tbsp of canola or vegetable oil
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tbsp of grated lemon zest (approx. 2 lemons)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line muffin tin with either paper liners or silicone liners
  2. Whisk flour, cornmeal, 5 of the tablespoons of sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Gently incorporate the blueberries.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk, buttermilk, oil, egg and lemon zest together.
  4. Add to the dry ingredients gently, just enough to mix and wet the dry ingredients. Do not over beat as you will release too much of the gluten and they muffins will become heavy.
  5. Using an ice-cream scoop (I love this trick) scoop into a lined muffin tin. Should fill just about to the top. Sprinkle remaining tablespoon of sugar over top of muffins
  6. Place in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, until cake tester comes out clean. Let stand for 15 minutes

Nutrition Per Serving, 1 muffin

  • Calories 158
  • Sugar 19 g
  • Carbohydrates 26 g
  • Protein 3 g
  • Fiber 1 g
  • Fat 4 g


If you can not find low fat buttermilk use 1 cup of skim milk and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar. This will make the milk sour but it is a good a replacement for buttermilk. I do this all the time.

You can serve them with butter, jam, or peanut butter. Personally I prefer them plain. But they are your muffins so remember to have fun and make it your own.

Spicy Baked Chicken with Tomato Salsa

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Spicy Baked Chicken with Tomato Salsa

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: Easy
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Summer time is here and we often look for something to bring on picnics that are not sandwiches. This is one of those things you can bring that makes for a nice change of pace.

Ingredients

  • 2 tsp of chilli powder
  • 1 tsp of ground cumin
  • 1 tsp of paprika
  • 1/4 tsp of turmeric
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp of pepper
  • 1/2 tsp of salt
  • 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper
  • 2-3 of minced garlic cloves
  • 2 tbsp of fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp of vegetable oil
  • 2 lbs of skinless chicken pieces, be it breasts and thighs

Salsa Ingredients

  • 2 tomatoes diced
  • 1/2 cup of fresh chopped coriander (cilantro)
  • salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  1. In a small nonstick skillet, toast chilli powder, cumin, paprika and turmeric over medium heat for about 20 seconds or until it begins to darken. Remove from heat. Stir in oregano, cayenne, salt and pepper, garlic, lemon juice and oil and brush over chicken.
  2. Arrange chicken on rimmed baking sheet. Bake in 375 degree oven, uncovered turns halfway through and basting twice with juices, for 30 to 40 minutes or until juices run clear when chicken is pierced.
  3. Tomato Salsa: Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together tomato, coriander and salt and pepper.
  4. Serve with chicken.

Nutrition Per Serving, 6-8 ounces of chicken

  • Calories 260
  • Fat 10 g
  • Carbohydrates 6 g
  • Protein 37 g
  • Fiber 1 g

As I mentioned this is good cold but hot is good too. Served with fresh bread or some rice with an extra vegetable makes a nice dinner. You can make this spicier if you want. The side dish is your choosing. Depending what you are looking for is where you can have fun and make it your own.

Oatmeal Carrot Muffins

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Oatmeal Carrot Muffins

  • Servings: 12
  • Difficulty: Easy
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I can not take credit for this recipe. This is a variation from John Ashlie, and Anne Lindsay made it her own and now I have adapted it slightly here.

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Ingredients

  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup grated carrots
  • 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup margarine melted
  • 1 egg slightly beaten
  • 1 tsp grated orange rind
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/4 granulated sugar
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 baking soda
  • 3/4 cup raisins
  • 1 tsp of cinnamon

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, pour buttermilk over oats, stir to mix. Cover and left stand for 2 hours or refrigerate overnight.
  2. Mix together carrots, brown sugar, margarine egg and orange rind: stir into oat mixture.
  3. Sift together flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, baking soda; stir in raisins. Stir until batter is moistened.
  4. Using an ice-cream scoop (I love this trick) scoop into a lined muffin tin. Should fill just about to the top.
  5. Place in preheated oven at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until cake tester comes out clean. Let stand for 2 minutes

Nutrition Per Serving

  • Calories 145
  • Sugar 13.8 g
  • Carbohydrates 30 g
  • Protein 3.3 g
  • Fiber 1.6 g
  • Fat 1.4 g

These muffins are moist, delicious, healthy and light. What more could we ask for. I like dark raisins but if you prefer the light those are good too. I added some time in the preparation due to the grating of the carrots. 1 large carrot should do it.
Play with the spices, and remember to have fun and make it your own.