Tag: baby spinach
Pasta with Mushrooms and Spinach
This is a super healthy, quick and delicious dish. Did I mention it is a one pot meal as well? Yes it is. It has cremini mushrooms sauteed with whole wheat penne. I add ready made or homemade pesto to boost the flavor and keep the cooking down to a minimum. I start off with prosciutto and shallots. I then add the mushrooms and pesto. All the flavors are very bold. There are a few ingredients in this pasta but all of them add a great punch of flavor- that is the key to a successful dish.
Once the pasta is cooked al dente, I add it to the mix including some of the pasta water. The starchy water creates a delicious sauce and thickens the pasta.
I then add loads of fresh baby spinach. I love using baby spinach in my salads and pastas. I always have it in the fridge. My daughter doesn’t like salad dressing- so when I make a salad for my husband and I, I give her a hand full of baby spinach as her ‘salad’. She eats it up and claims it to be her favorite vegetable.
The pasta is delicious and so healthy…. make it for the family through the week…
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Chilean Sea Bass with Sweet Pepper and Spinach Risotto
It is nice to start the New Year off in a healthy way. You can’t get any better than Chilean sea bass- can you? It is one of my husband’s favorite fish. My daughter and I like it too. I don’t end up making it too often- I think because I tend to forget it is there and also because it is kind of pricey- but it is still a lot cheaper than eating it in a restaurant.
I simply sauteed the fish with salt and pepper and a squirt of lemon juice. I wanted for the fish flavor to come through loud and clear. For the accompaniment- I decided on a risotto. I used a red pepper pesto I had in my fridge. I also added baby spinach at the end to make it a complete meal.
It was fabulous- healthy and delicious. If I could eat like this everyday, I would be really thin and really healthy…
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Mint and Ginger Burgers with Cilantro Mayonnaise
These burgers hold a special place in my heart- why you ask- well, because this was the first time my daughter started eating burgers! She does not like sandwiches- they only one she will eat is a jam sandwich. I don’t make it for her very often since it offers hardly any food value.
I made this for a barbecue and she had been outside playing all day and came in completely famished and ready to pounce on dinner. I had planned on giving her grilled sausages with corn since I knew she was not keen on the hamburgers- but surprise, surprise- she picked up a burger and started eating it.
I made these simply with ground turkey, ginger and some fresh mint and cilantro. I flavored them with salt and garam masala. I also whipped up a quick cilantro mayonnaise with lots of fresh cilantro, green onions and lemon juice. It is amazing how much different a few key ingredients can make a huge difference- the mayo was delicious.
My daughter had the burger with baby spinach but no mayo. She loved it and announced that she will be eating burgers from now on. I am thrilled- yet another food group had been added to her vast collection.
Try these burger this weekend- they are quick, easy and delicious…
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Spinach and Strawberry Salad
This salad epitomizes summer according to me. It looks bright and colorful with the baby spinach and strawberries. It is super healthy and includes walnuts- which, just like spinach is a super food.
We were having one of our Friday pizza parties and I was grilling pizzas outside. I wanted to make a light, easy salad that will be delicious with the dinner.
I had lots of strawberries and always keep baby spinach in the fridge. I paired them together and added the walnuts to the mix. I came up with a simple balsamic dressing. Since strawberries were the main ingredient, I added some strawberry jam to the dressing. It added a great delicious tang to the vinaigrette.
Overall the salad was delicious. It went perfectly well with the grilled pizzas, in fact I think it will go well with any entree. I served a chilled white wine and the meal was great.
Try this salad this summer, you will love it.
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Chicken Sausage and Cannellini Bean Stew served with Parmesan Garlic Bread
It was one of those rainy evenings we have had so many of and my initial plan was to go out for dinner but then as the day progressed and the rain lingered, I got more and more lazy. I changed into my pajamas and decided to open a bottle of wine and cook.
I had a chicken sausages in my fridge and I decided to pair them with cannellini beans to make a delicious stew. I used the usual suspects including shallots, garlic and of course some red wine. I also had rosemary in the fridge and as far as I am concerned, the white beans are made for rosemary.
To create a balanced meal, I added baby spinach at the very end and served the one pot meal with a parmesan garlic bread. I of course sprinkled some extra cheese on top of the stew.
The evening was relaxing and filled with good food and great wine. My daughter loved the stew but thought there was too much garlic on the garlic bread. She was right- I love garlic so much that I usually tend to go very heavy it. I loved it but both my husband and daughter thought it was too much- oh well, you can’t please everyone all the time.
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Broccoli Rabe and Spinach Rice
I made this rice with the fabulous shrimp saute with dill and cilantro. As I mentioned yesterday, my daughter’s friend stayed for dinner.
I love having her friends over for dinner and I thought, “what a meal to serve a little girl who is not used to eating Indian food very often”. Even after I showed her the colorful meal, she was adamant about staying. I was quite worried about her reaction to the rice. It was not only cooked in a broccoli rabe pesto, but baby spinach was also tossed in at the last minute. The green color was bright and unmistaken and we all know what most kids think about this color…
As we sat down for the meal, my daughter began eating and relishing her food. Her friend looked down on the rice and didn’t look so happy. My daughter quickly informed her that the rice tastes just like ‘regular’ rice and not like the kind with spinach (that was the best compliment I could get). Her friend tried it and agreed and continued eating the rest of the meal.
I couldn’t help but laugh as I watched them enjoy the food and each others company. They both were rewarded with a big ice cream sundae with a little bit of ice cream and a lot of fruit.
Try this delicious rice and experiment it with your kids and let me know what they think….
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Bowtie Pasta with Spinach and Chicken
My daughter was having one of her play dates again and two of her friends were coming over and staying for dinner. My daughter loves having her friends over for dinner- “it is so much fun”, she always says. I usually remind her that I have to make something healthy and usually from scratch so it is quite a lot of work me me- but honestly, I enjoy it too. Especially because I get to try out different kid-friendly dishes and see their reactions.
For this particular dinner I needed to make something in advance since I was not going to be home. Our sitter would be giving them their meal. I had two chicken breast on the bone which I decided to roast with the skin on. I shredded the meat once it was nice and juicy after taking the skin off. I bought bowtie pasta to make things a little interesting. I bought baby spinach since I needed the meal to be made in one pot and it also had to be well balanced.
I cooked the pasta and mixed the shredded chicken and baby spinach in the sauce pan. I added some homemade tomato sauce to give the pasta additional yummy flavor. I transferred the pasta into an oven proof dish and mixed in and topped with some shredded mozzarella cheese.
It was simple and quick. Once I got home I was curious to know their reactions. I was told they were all skeptical at first since everything was mixed in together but once they tried it- they liked it. My daughter who is more used to eating such meals thought it was delicious.
Next time you have a dinner play date for your kids- try the bowtie pasta with spinach and chicken.