Food & Recipes

Spring Vegetable Recipes and Tips

Spring Vegetable Recipes continued...

Ingredients:

Canola or olive oil cooking spray

1 bunch long asparagus spears (about 16 spears about 8 inches long), trim the white ends off, rinsed and dried well

1 1/2 teaspoons flavored extra-virgin olive oil (lemon or orange or garlic flavors work well)

Salt and freshly ground pepper as desired (optional)

Preparation:

1. Start preheating oven broiler. Cover a cookie sheet with foil. Coat with olive oil or canola cooking spray. Spread asparagus spears across the prepared pan.
2. Using a silicon brush, lightly coat tops of asparagus spears with olive oil. Turn spears over and lightly coat other side with remaining olive oil.
3. Broil about 4 minutes, watching carefully. Turn asparagus spears over using a fork or prongs. Broil other side until desired doneness (about 3 minutes more), watching carefully. Add salt and pepper, if desired. Serve.

Yield: Makes about 4 side servings.

WebMD Weight Loss Clinic members: Journal as: 1/2 cup vegetables without added fat

Nutrition Information per serving: 37 calories, 2 g protein, 3 g carbohydrate, 2.4 g fat, 0.4 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol 2 g fiber, 2 mg sodium (without adding salt). Calories from fat: 58%.

Sauteed Chard With Goat Cheese Topping

This can be served as a side dish or used as a filling for an omelet.

Ingredients:

1 bunch of Swiss chard leaves (either red or green), stalks removed

1 cup water

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon minced or chopped garlic

Salt and freshly ground pepper as desired (optional)

1/8 cup crumbled goat cheese

1 tablespoon toasted pine nuts (toast by lightly browning in a nonstick frying pan over medium heat, stirring frequently)

Preparation:

1. Stack chard leaves, then cut into thin strips. Add to colander and rinse, draining well. Add to a large nonstick skillet with 1 cup of water. Cook on medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until leaves are tender (about 4 minutes). Drain in a colander.
2. Add olive oil to the same skillet over medium-high heat. Add a teaspoon of minced garlic and stir for about 30 seconds. Add the chard and saute until heated through, about 2 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste if desired.
3. Turn off heat, sprinkle goat cheese and toasted pine nuts over the top, cover skillet and let sit about 1 minute before serving. 

Yield: Makes about 4 side servings.

WebMD Weight Loss Clinic members: Journal as: 1/2 cup vegetables with 1 tsp fat maximum

Nutrition Information per serving: 75 calories, 3 g protein, 3 g carbohydrate, 5.5 g fat, 1.8 g saturated fat, 5 mg cholesterol 2 g fiber, 190 mg sodium (without adding salt). Calories from fat: 68%.

Recipes provided by Elaine Magee; © 2008 Elaine Magee