Blueberry Oat Pancakes with Maple Yogurt

Blueberry Oat Pancakes with Maple Yogurt

****Susan's Note: My husband and I really liked this. We had a bit of a tough time with the blender, we had to start and stop it, but it was really good. Don't omit the blueberries. It really needs that sweetness. We didn't make the yogurt, just used sugar free syrup.***


Blueberry oat pancakes with maple yogurt
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup blueberries
3/4 cup plain low-fat Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon maple syrup
Cooking spray

Combine oats, cottage cheese, eggs and vanilla in a blender or food processor; process until smooth. Gently stir in the blueberries. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Spoon about 2 tablespoons batter per pancake into pan. Cook 3 minutes or until tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked. Carefully turn pancakes over, and cook 3 more minutes or until golden.

Combine yogurt and maple syrup; serve alongside pancakes.

Proscuitto, Fresh Fig, and Manchego Cheese Sandwiches

Proscuitto, Fresh Fig, and Manchego Cheese Sandwiches

***Susan's Note: When I saw this recipe in Cooking Light, I thought, "This looks so yummy!" I had never bought prosciutto, fresh figs, fig jam, plain arugula or manchego cheese before. Wegmans to the rescue! Go to the deli counter and ask for slices of Wegman's prosciutto, find the fresh figs in Aug-Sept in plastic cartons in the fruit salad area of the produce section, the fig jam was by the gourmet cheeses, which is where I found the manchego cheese. The fresh arugula is by the baby spinach, etc., and it was my FAVORITE part of the sandwich. I never realized how yummy and peppery it is. We also used Wegmans 7 Grain Sourdough for the bread. I really liked this a lot, though the ingredients were expensive. The figs have a light flavor.***

Prosciutto and fresh figs are a classic Italian combination. Here, along with the cheese and jam, they create a sweet-savory sandwich that's simple yet memorable.

Total: 20 minutes
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 sandwich)
Ingredients
4 teaspoons Dijon mustard
8 (3/4-ounce) slices Italian bread, toasted
1 cup baby arugula
2 ounces very thin slices prosciutto
2 ounces Manchego cheese, shaved
8 fresh figs, cut into thin slices
2 tablespoons fig jam
Preparation
1. Spread 1 teaspoon mustard over 4 bread slices. Arrange 1/4 cup arugula over each bread slice. Divide prosciutto evenly over bread slices; top evenly with cheese and fig slices. Spread 1 1/2 teaspoons jam over remaining 4 bread slices. Top each serving with 1 bread slice, jam side down.

Kitchen Notes
Great ingredients make all the difference here, so look for a fine loaf of artisan bread and quality prosciutto. Use a sharp vegetable peeler to shave the Manchego, a Spanish cheese similar to pecorino Romano (which you can substitute).

Nutritional Information
Calories:
295
Fat:
5.3g (sat 2.6g,mono 2.1g,poly 0.6g)
Protein:
11.5g
Carbohydrate:
52.3g
Fiber:
4.2g
Cholesterol:
18mg
Iron:
1.8mg
Sodium:
805mg
Calcium:
114mg
Lorrie Corvin, Cooking Light, SEPTEMBER 2010

Basil and Tomato Pizza (from Health Magazine)

Basil and Tomato Pizza

***Susan's Note: I have only recently been converted to enjoying fresh tomatoes, but most especially around this time of year when you can get homegrown or heirloom tomatoes in the supermarket (like Wegmans). This is a great and healthy use of those tomatoes. I doubled this recipe and made two rectangular pies...I don't have a circular baking sheet or pizza stone. I bought a 28 oz ball of wheat dough in the freezer section at Wegmans, which worked great after it thawed. The recipes says to "halve" the tomatoes but I just cut them in thick slices (more like fourths) - halves would be too chunky for me. We all really enjoyed this pizza. Don't forget to have extra red pepper on hand for sprinkling afterward in case people want more heat.

NOTE: You will want to line the bottom of your oven with some aluminum foil before turning it on, just in case the pizza juices/cheese goes splattering due to the high heat.

Prep: 7 minutes; Cook: 8 minutes; Total time: 15 minutes.

Yield: Makes 4 servings (serving size: 2 slices)
Ingredients
1 (14-ounce) whole-wheat refrigerated pizza crust dough
All-purpose flour and cornmeal, as needed
2 large garlic cloves, sliced
1/2 cup preshredded part-skim mozzarella cheese (3 ounces)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 1/2 ounces prosciutto
3/4 pound assorted tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 550°. Place dough on a lightly floured surface; roll into a 13-inch round. Sprinkle a baking sheet with cornmeal, and place dough on top; top with remaining ingredients.

2. Bake on bottom rack until cheese is melted and crust is crisp (about 8 minutes). Slice into 8 pieces; serve.

Nutritional Information
Calories:
318
Fat:
8g (sat 3g,mono 1g,poly 1g)
Cholesterol:
20mg
Protein:
17g
Carbohydrate:
48g
Fiber:
6g
Iron:
3mg
Sodium:
575mg
Calcium:
195mg
Lori Powell, Health, SEPTEMBER 2010

Summer Trifle

***Susan's Note: I couldn't find this recipe online, so I retyped it below. It's from Weight Watchers Magazine, July/August 2010. I used Butterfly Bakery Sugar Free Angel Food Cake from Wegmans, which reduces the calories even more, but you couldn't tell! This was a delicious summer dessert. Take advantage of your summer fruit by making this trifle that my whole family enjoyed. We even had Cool Whip Lite for a topping, but it didn't need it! Yum.***

Serves 6
Prep 25 min

Ingredients
4 large ripe nectarines, pitted and diced
3 T sugar
3/4 c part skim ricotta cheese
Grated zest of 1/2 lemon
1 6 oz wedge angel food cake, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
3 T light honey (I used dark)
1 6 oz container fresh raspberries (I used more!)
1/2 c. fresh blueberries

1. Combine nectarines and sugar in medium bowl; toss to coat. Let stand until juice is released, about 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, mix ricotta and lemon zest in small bowl.

3. Place half of cake cubes in tall glass serving dish or clear bowl; top with half of nectarines and juice. Spoon 6 Tbsp ricotta mixture over nectarines, then drizzle with 1 Tbsp honey. Repeat with remaining cake, nectarines, and ricotta mixture. Drizzle top with 1 Tbsp honey. Sprinkle trifle with raspberries and blueberries; drizzle with remaining 1 Tbsp honey.

240 cal, 3 g fat, 4 g fiber, 7 g protein - 4 WW POINTS per serving.

You can cover and refrigerate up to 24 hours.

Seared Scallops with Farmers' Market Salad

Seared Scallops with Farmers' Market Salad



***Susan's Note: My husband really liked these, and I did too. They were a quick, filling and healthy meal. According to this recipe, it's about 5 Weight Watcher points per serving. BUT I would hesitate to make them again because the scallops were so darn expensive!! I bought 1.33 pounds of fresh scallops at Wegmans for about $20.00. Ugh. And I've heard not to use frozen scallops because once they thaw they are messed up somehow, so I didn't get frozen. I couldn't find "dry packed scallops either," don't really know where I could get those. I dried the scallops on a dish towel before cooking them in a cast iron skillet. I used one bag of "steam in bag" Wegmans frozen corn kernels.***


>>>Cooking Light September 2010

Look for dry-packed scallops, which will brown best.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: about 1 cup salad and about 3 scallops)
Ingredients
2 cups chopped tomato (about 1 pound)
1 cup chopped fresh basil
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 1/2 pounds sea scallops
2 cups fresh corn kernels (about 3 ears)
Preparation
Combine tomato, basil, 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper; toss gently. Heat a large cast-iron or heavy skillet over high heat. Add oil to pan, swirling to coat. Pat scallops dry with paper towels; sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Add scallops to pan; cook 2 minutes or until browned. Turn scallops; cook 2 minutes or until done. Remove scallops from pan; keep warm. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add corn to pan; sauté 2 minutes or until lightly browned. Add to tomato mixture; toss gently. Serve salad with scallops.