yogurt « eatingRD.com

June 9, 2009

yogurt battle

Filed under: Blog,Dinner — Tags: casserole, quinoa, yogurt — Kristen :) @ 1:07 am

I don’t know why, but I am liking Mondays for some reason lately. Even though I don’t like to see the weekend go, Mondays just fly by so fast for me. It’s like there’s a fresh set of tasks to accomplish and it gets me going. Even though I love Fridays, by the end of the week I tend to drag! What’s your favorite day of the week and why?

For dinner we had quinoa-stuffed bell peppers. I just can’t get tired of this recipe. I think I’ve made it at least 5 times now and it’s soo good! This time I added some chopped zucchini and had apple chicken sausage on hand. You should give it a try.

Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers

(adapted from everyday food)

Yield

4 servings as a filling main, or 6-8 as a lighter dish with a nice salad

4 red bell peppers
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 zucchini, chopped
2 chicken sausage links (any flavor and removed from casings)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp ground coriander or any blend like Mrs. Dash or Italian seasoning would work
salt and black pepper
1 cup quinoa, rinsed
1/3 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
1 cup grated Fontina cheese (great nutty flavor), or your favorite type

Preparation

Preheat oven to 450. Slice a very thin layer from the base of a pepper so it sits upright. Slice off top, just below stem, and remove ribs and seeds from the pepper, Repeat with remaining peppers. Discard stems; chop tops and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium. Add onion, zucchini, sausage (remove meat from casings), coriander, and chopped tops; season with salt and pepper. Cook until onion is soft and sausage is cooked through with browning.
Add quinoa and garlic, and cook until fragrant, 1 minute. Add 1 cup of water and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook until water has been absorbed and quinoa is tender, 11-13 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in walnuts, and 3/4 cup cheese; season with salt and pepper.

Divide evenly and stuff peppers with the quinoa mixture; place in a baking dish. Place 1 cup water in the dish, cover with foil and bake until peppers are tender, about 25-30 minutes. Uncover, and top with remaining cheese and bake until cheese melts and gets bubbly. Yummy and fillling!

I got some free yogurt coupons from the nice people at Stoneyfield Farms a little while ago. I had never had Oikos before, but as you all know I’m a huge greek yogurt fan. I practically put it on everything! So I decided to give it a try and compare it to my most beloved and cheaper TJ’s brand. I give you yogurt battle . . . Oikos vs. TJ’s in the ultimate showdown of thick and creamy goodness!

I decided to try a variety of flavors, even though I’m not big on the flavored yogurts. I tried plain, vanilla, strawberry and honey. I have to say they were quite the treat, very creamy and smooth; you could tell it was really great quality. I have to say though that the flavored ones were too sweet for me! I don’t like all that sugary stuff at the bottom. I would love for it to have much less. Out of the flavored ones, I like the vanilla best because it wasn’t too sweet. I’m so used to that slight tang from plain yogurt that flavored ones are a bit much for me now.

I also really enjoyed the shape of the container. It was just wide enough to fill it with some great toppings like fruit and granola. Like this . . . for a perfect snack.

Gotta love Gina’s granola . . . mmm nice and crunchy!

So what’s the verdict? I would have to say that I would love to purchase this yogurt in the future, but the only deterrent is the price. At $1.99 a pop at Whole Foods, I cannot justify buying this all the time, but it is a really great treat 🙂

What’s your favorite yogurt brand and the best way you like to enjoy it?

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April 27, 2009

a little bit of spice

Filed under: Blog,Dinner,Projects — Tags: chicken, quinoa, salad, yogurt — Kristen :) @ 5:12 am

We’ve made decisions on the paint colors finally, and our walls have little patches of color all over them from testing out the colors. But our painting adventure is coming along pretty well. I think we’re just exhausted from non-stop painting and lack of sleep! It’s amazing how different colors look on a little swatch compared to when you get them on the wall. We had a few ‘too bright’ surprises!

These next few weeks are going to be interesting, especially in the midst of painting, moving, finals and putting together a graduation/birthday party. I am going to try to make the easiest things possible without resorting to the conveniences of eating out (well, as much as I can!). That money can add up so quickly! I have to say that I haven’t had much desire to cook (gasp!) with getting over being sick and all the craziness of this house thing. It will be hard too when all the cooking utensils will be packed and we’ll be trying to get rid of all our food. Bear with me!

Sometimes I wish I could afford to be a not-do-it-yourselfer. We almost finished the downstairs and need to tackle a very high stair-case and most all of the upstairs.

Taping is more than 1/2 the battle and takes up most of the time, especially since I am so darn meticulous with having straight lines. But, they turned out pretty darn good!

I’m not sure what these colors will look like on your computer, but . . . This color is called greenfield pumpkin and is like a dark brownish, slightly orange-ish color. (gotta get a new chandelier)

Lots of cutting in and sore knees! This color is called olivesheen, almost like a rich sage-y green.

This was interesting! I still have to put the pumpkin in the alcove.

So far we have pretty much all the downstairs done (more than this photo), and need to start on the staircase and upstairs. We also want to start the crown molding.

You all know my love for spices because they impart such wonderful flavor without having to add extra calories. I decided to play on the flavors of chicken shawarma with a simple yogurt-marinated grilled chicken and quinoa pilaf. Super easy + good eats = extra yum!

Yogurt-Marinated Chicken

with a Quinoa Pilaf

For the marinade:

1 cup non-fat yogurt (I used greek)
2 tsp garam masala
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp cumin
salt and pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp olive oil
juice from one lemon
standard package of chicken tenders (1.25lbs)

Mix everything together in a zippy bag along with the chicken and marinate on the counter for 25 minutes. Cook chicken on grill pan for about 3 minutes per side until charred and slightly firm.

For the Quinoa:

1 tsp olive oil
1 bell pepper and 2 zucchini, chopped
1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
garam masala, curry powder, garlic powder and cumin
1/4 cup raisins
3 tbsp pine nuts

Sauté the bell pepper and zucchini in the oil until browned. Add the quinoa and spices and let them get toasty. Add the water along with the raisins, bring to a boil, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes. Stir in the pine nuts. Serve along side the chicken. Yum!

Do you like to be a do-it-yourselfer, or do you prefer to have the professionals do it?

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March 27, 2009

unexpected treat

Filed under: Blog,Dinner,Restaurants — Tags: wine, yogurt — Kristen :) @ 4:07 am

Today was a pretty uneventful day. I didn’t have class, or any other pressing obligations, so it was the usual work schedule for me. I was planning on going home and making some din din when Chris called me and told me that his dad and step mom wanted to take us out to dinner! Going out is such a treat for us, especially since we almost always eat in and make our own creations. They had planned on taking a flight today out to Colorado to visit their cabin being built, but because of the bad weather there, they spent a good part of the day in the airport trying to catch flights. So they finally decided to wait till tomorrow (fingers crossed), and decided to have a nice dinner.

We went to a place called Casa di Amore (House of Love if I had to guess?). It’s an American Italian eatery that has a neat ambiance . . . low lights, candles, and even a crooner named George Bugati that sings all kinds of lounge/jazz type songs. It’s a really great place to hang out, relax and enjoy some yummy food and music. It’s a bit on the pricey side for us, so it’s more of a special occasion type place.

I decided on the Chicken Caprese, complete with grilled chicken (I’m sure it had a light breading on it), buffalo mozzarella, thick tomatoes and a sprinkling of fragrant basil. It also came with a side of broccoli, roasted red peppers and pasta. Entirely too much of course! But, I took home about half to have for lunch tomorrow, leftovers yay! I also had a glass of chianti (pictured above). It was such a nice wine, and I believe pretty reasonable too. It was fruity, and although the body wasn’t too full, it had a very nice finish. I think this may be my go-to wine for awhile 🙂

Gotta love that candlelight setting . . .

Afterwards, we tried a place called Yofrutto near UNLV, where they pile any kind of toppings you like on top of plain frozen yogurt. I love the slight twang this stuff has! This wasn’t as good as Red Mango, and the kiwi weren’t quite ripe, but it was very refreshing and light. A perfect ending to an unexpected treat! Sooo glad it’s Friday tomorrow!

Do you like things to be unexpected or are you a more planning oriented person with your day mapped out by the minute?

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March 17, 2009

so good to be back!

Filed under: Blog,Dinner — Tags: chicken, Mexican, salad, yogurt — Kristen :) @ 1:31 am

I am so glad to finally have my computer back and running smoothly. I’ve really missed the blog world! The HP service was actually very timely and I got my laptop back within 4 days. Wow! Talk about quick customer service. I also got a laptop surge protector for added protection.

While I don’t have a brand new website (still in the works!), I have much to make up for my absence and several yummy recipes to post ASAP! Well, both of my midterms are finally over with and I’m glad to get started a new. The first one for my adv exercise physiology class was quite the challenge, but the human physiology one was not as bad as I had anticipated.

Rotisserie chicken can be a great asset to quick and delicious meals because it’s always tender, juicy and already all cooked! Sometimes it is even cheaper than the un-cooked bird. While it’s not the leanest choice, it’s nice to mix up the white with the dark meat sometimes. For this post, I feature rotisserie chicken in two really great recipes: Chicken Enchiladas Verde and Chinese Chicken Salad.

Chicken Enchiladas Verde

Ingredients

4 oz. low-fat cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup non-fat Greek yogurt
1/2 cup green salsa (I use Trader Joe’s brand)
1 large can (28 oz) Green Enchilada Sauce (I like the Macayos brand)
2 cups grated 2% Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 cup canned no-salt/no-sugar corn kernels
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
Salt and pepper
4 scallions, thinly sliced
handful of cilantro chopped plus more for topping
12 to 14 soft round 6 to 8-inch flour or corn tortillas

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a medium bowl cream together the cream cheese and the Greek yogurt. Stir in 1/2 cup of the salsa. Stir in 1 cup of the grated cheese. In a second bowl toss together the chicken, the corn, cumin, cayenne, salt, pepper, cilantro and 1/2 of the scallions. Add the chicken mixture to the cheese mixture and stir to combine.

In a large baking dish spread about a 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce over the bottom. Place the rest of the enchilada sauce in another wide, flat bowl. Dip a tortilla in the sauce to coat and shake off excess. Place about a 1/3 cup of the filling on a tortilla, tuck the sides in, roll up and transfer to the baking dish with the seam side down. Repeat process for remaining tortillas. Pour remaining enchilada sauce over enchiladas, spreading to coat all of them. Sprinkle remaining grated cheese over the top. Transfer to preheated oven and bake for about 30 minutes until hot and bubbly; increase oven to 400 for about 5-10 minutes until nice and golden. Sprinkle with remaining cilantro and serve with Greek yogurt (I like to add lime zest/juice) and non-fat refried beans!

These are delicious for leftovers too!

Chinese Chicken Salad

Ingredients

(I don’t have exact measurements, because I just threw things in!)

2 heads Napa Cabbage, finely sliced
bell pepper, diced – You could use all kinds of veggies
small can mandarin oranges
slivered almonds, toasted
corn (leftover from the enchiladas)
rotisserie chicken (leftover from the enchiladas – about 1 1/2-2 cups)

For the Dressing:

1/2 cup Non-fat Greek yogurt
couple splashes rice wine vinegar
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tbsp honey
small handful chopped cilantro
salt and pepper to taste

Simply mix everything together! This is really refreshing, especially with the warm weather approaching. Yea, for sunshine! If it ends up being a little more ‘wet’ than you would like, it’s great as a topping for salad greens like romaine too.

Do you miss it when you can’t blog, or if you aren’t by a computer to peruse your favorite blogs?

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January 17, 2009

yogurt + cereal = yum

Filed under: Blog,Breakfast — Tags: cereal, peanut butter, yogurt — Kristen :) @ 10:59 pm

I love yogurt and could have it for breakfast, lunch and dinner! It is rich, creamy and full of calcium, protein and probiotics. And because I don’t like soggy cereal, adding it to yogurt helps it keep that “crunch” a little bit longer and is a great way to add some whole grains and fruit to a healthy menu.

I usually have plain yogurt and really enjoy the Wallaby brand because it isn’t as “tangy” as most plain yogurts out there. Plain yogurt usually has much more calcium than flavored yogurts (40% or 400mg). Plus if you add fruit, you’re adding a bit of natural sweetness and your palate can adjust over time. Another yogurt that I love is Trader Joe’s thick non-fat greek yogurt. It is so rich and creamy, almost like having dessert! Greek style is much thicker and has a higher protein content than regular yogurt. I use non-fat greek yogurt in many different recipes in place of sour cream, mayonnaise and salad dressing to cut down on fat and add some calcium.

Today for lunch I decided to have a nice bowl of yogurt with cereal and fruit. I am a cereal addict! I usually have about 5 or 6 different types of cereal in my pantry, and like to mix them all up. I also like frozen wild blueberries in the winter because they are so darn expensive if you buy them fresh. Once they melt a little, their sweet blue juice flavors the yogurt. Feel free to add any kind of fruit you enjoy. I also had a 1/2 of a pear. Another great addition to yogurt which adds flavor without calories or fat is cinnamon. Cinnamon adds such a rich and warm flavor to the creamy, milky yogurt and is a natural combination. I also had a small peanut butter sandwich with pumpkin butter and a sprinkling of cinnamon. This is also a great combination, and I usually add banana slices, but didn’t have any on hand. You should try it!

Here are some of my cereals in my pantry now . . . It always changes