One of my favorite pastimes is cooking. Even though I work full time, I cook about 4 nights per week, with two days eating leftovers and on the remaining day my boyfriend & I go out to dinner.
Food Network is usually on my television 24/7, and one of my absolute favorite shows is Healthy Appetite with Ellie Krieger. Ellie cooks real food, that is full of flavor and nutrition. She is not about eating "low calorie" filler foods, but she makes sensible meals that are perfectly portioned and pack a major nutritional punch.
One of my old stand-by recipes is Fettucini with Creamy Red Pepper-Feta Sauce. It may have a long name, but it is easy to make, tastes absolutely fantastic and gives you that feeling of eating a creamy pasta dish without any of the guilt.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 to 3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 (16-ounce) jar roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken stock or vegetable stock
1 cup crumbled feta cheese or a 6-ounce block
1 pound whole-wheat fettuccine
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
Heat the oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onion and garlic until soft, about 10 minutes. Add roasted peppers and saute until heated through. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Place mixture in the bowl of a food processor with stock and all but 2 tablespoons of the feta. Process until combined and smooth, about 30 seconds. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup pasta water. Toss pasta with sauce, adding pasta water by the tablespoon, if needed. Sauce should cling nicely to pasta. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Divide among pasta bowls. Sprinkle with parsley and remaining feta cheese.
Nutrition Information
Yield: 6 (1 cup) servings
Calories 470
Carbohydrates 73 grams
Total fat 11 grams
Saturated fat 4.5 grams
Protein 18 grams
Fiber 10 grams
Sodium 1050 milligrams
Whenever I make this, I normally leave off the parsley (it makes it look nice if you are cooking for guests) and I have always used chicken broth instead of stock. Of course if you are a vegetarian, you can replace the chicken broth/stock with vegetable stock and have a hearty, healthy dish that is full of vitamins, fiber and protein!
The sodium is a bit high due to the feta cheese, so if you are watching your intake I'd suggest using a bit less cheese and replacing it with more red peppers, or a low sodium cheese of your choice.
If you try it, let me know your thoughts!
2 comments:
I absolutely adore the Food Network, but it's kind of funny; I used to joke with my husband about Elli Krieger's show being snoozeville due to her health conscious ingredients (this was about a year or 2 ago before I started counting calories and losing weight). Now I feel foolish for thinking such a thing. I'm a big fan and appreciate her recipes more than ever.
I guess it wasn't until I created lighter, healthier versions of my own foods that I realized that food doesn't have to be tasteless or boring to be healthy.
Can I blame my ignorance on being young and naive? (even at 25-26 years old) LOL
The sad part is, I was raised on very wholesome, real foods, but went astray through my teens and early 20's. So glad that I found my way back! I must have been under some kind of evil spell to snub such excellence for so long.
I love your blog, it's really nice. I look forward to reading more. :)
Jenn
Hey Jenn! I agree with you that creating lighter, healthier versions of the foods we love is definitely the way to go. I have some of my own recipes that I hope to share on this blog, but I do really love Ellie's ideas as well.
I'm glad you like the blog! I read yours often & definitely enjoy it, so hopefully now I can repay the favor!
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