Easy Sausage Strata

A staple in the "R" household when we visit Pittsburgh.  Healthy substitutions might include turkey sausage, a blend of egg whites with real eggs, and low-fat cheese of course.  I made it with skim milk too no problem.  Baked up just fine in a 13x9 dish too.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Easy-Sausage-Strata/Detail.aspx

SUBMITTED BY: LISAJANI  PHOTO BY: Tricia Jaeger 

"This strata is really easy to make. Put it together the day before, then just remove from the refrigerator and bake. Ham or bacon can be substituted for the sausage. Sometimes I add cooked chopped broccoli for a change of pace."

SERVINGS

  8

INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)

• 1 pound pork sausage
• 6 (1 ounce) slices bread, cubed
• 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
• 6 eggs
• 2 cups milk
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground dry mustard

DIRECTIONS

1. Place sausage in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Drain, and set aside.
2. Layer bread cubes, sausage, and Cheddar cheese in a lightly greased 7x11 inch baking dish. In a bowl, beat together the eggs, milk, salt, and mustard. Pour the egg mixture over the bread cube mixture. Cover, and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight.
3. Remove the casserole from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
4. Bake 50 to 60 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Chicken Thighs Braised in White Wine

http://www.marthastewart.com/chicken-thighs-braised-in-white-wine?autonomy_kw=chicken%20thighs&rsc=header_2

I didn't have any lemons on hand. I did have lemon juice and it worked really well. I also used boneless thighs no problem. Yum!

From:

Prep: 15 minutes
Total: 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 8 bone-in skinless chicken thighs (about 2 3/4 pounds)
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 lemon, cut into 8 thin slices, plus 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon cold butter, cut into pieces
• 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
• Cooked rice, for serving (optional)

Directions

1. In a 12-inch skillet with a tight-fitting lid, arrange thighs, bone side up; season with salt and pepper. Add garlic, wine, and thyme. Bring to a boil; reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook, 30 minutes.
2. Turn chicken over. Place a lemon slice on each piece; cover and continue simmering until tender, about 15 minutes. Leaving garlic and liquid in skillet, transfer chicken and lemon slices to a platter. Cover tightly with foil to keep warm.
3. Bring liquid in skillet to a boil; cook until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat. Add butter, parsley, and lemon juice; stir until butter has softened and sauce is smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Serve chicken with sauce and, if desired, rice.

Spaghetti Pie

I should preface this very first recipe with a bit on how I cook. Most everything I create are good, hardy meals that are not going to kill your waistline. However, I don't use a lot of fat free products mainly because they are usually full of sugar or salt and lack flavor. I should also forewarn our audience out there that I use A LOT of onions in most everything I cook. Onions are awesome, pack lots of flavor and compliment a variety of dishes. However, if you are an onion hater, of course feel free to omit or use something else.

I also cook a lot by sight and taste as opposed to formally measuring everything out so don't be surprised if I don't give specific measurements. All these recipes are SO easy that it is not difficult to figure out how much to use of what. Hope you enjoy these as much as I do!

Spaghetti Pie
Makes 10 large servings or 12-14 smaller servings

Ingredients:

2 packs 4% fat ground turkey
1 red onion
minced garlic
1 pack of mushrooms
1 jar spaghetti sauce (I usually try to find one that is organic and lower in sugar)
pack of brown rice spaghetti
1 large carton baby spinach
2 cartons low fat ricotta*
1 cup low fat shredded mozzarella
1/2-3/4 cup of egg substitute
1/2 cup REAL Parmesan (that stuff in the shaker is gross)
*if you don't care for ricotta, you can also use low fat cottage cheese

Directions:
Cook pasta. But be careful! Brown rice pasta goes from not cooked to al dente VERY quickly so keep a close eye on it. Drain pasta and rinse with cold water so it is easier to handle. Flip spaghetti in colander several times to get rid of as much excess water as possible. Once the noodles are dry, line them along the bottom of a large casserole dish which has been sprayed with Pam.

Meanwhile, saute chopped onion (I use a mini-food processor here as it makes life about 1.000 times EASIER. Plus they are only about $35!) and garlic in large pan. Add in turkey meat and brown...but just until it isn't pink. Dried out turkey is gross. Add in sauce and mushrooms and heat through.

In a small bowl, combine ricotta, mozzarella and egg substitute.

Spread all baby spinach on top of the spaghetti "crust". On top of the spinach, spread the cheese combination. Top with meat and sauce combination and finally, top with a light dusting of Parmesan. Cover with tin foil and bake in a 375 degree oven for 20-30 minutes. Once it is warm and bubbly, you are ready to chow down!

The First REAL Post :)

Welcome to our digital cookbook! Angel and I keep talking about doing this and it is finally happening. In this blog you will find a collection of moderately healthy recipes. Could they be healthier? Sure. But they promise to be chock full of flavor, mostly good for you and all easy to create. Most of the recipes can be modified how you see fit...whether that means going non-fat or full fat, adding in more veggies, taking away spices, etc. I've seen most of these recipes in a cookbook and modified them to fit my tastes and needs. The recipes I post will all be for 8 servings so feel free to half or double as you see fit. Please let us know your experiences with the recipes...we would love the feedback!