Baked "Fried" Eggplant Chips

Last weekend Ann and I spent all afternoon cooking.  We were planning on taking all the pups on a little trip, but since it was pouring outside, we decided to have a stay-cation.  It ended up working well, because poor husband had an endless number of papers to grade to finish up the semester.

We decided to make a meaty lasagna and salad for dinner...mmmmm.  I'd bought an eggplant the day before in case we decided to go vegetarian with the lasagna.  Since we doubled up on the meat instead (ground beef and sausage) we decided some Baked "Fried" Eggplant would be yummy addition to dinner too.

Ingredients
Eggplant
2 Eggs
1/4 cup Balsamic Dressing
1 cup Panko Breadcrumbs
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese

Directions

Mix 2 eggs and 1/4 cup balsamic dressing in a small bowl.  Mix 1 cup breadcrumbs and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese in another small bowl.

Cut eggplant into 2-bite size pieces.

Dip eggplant piece into egg mixture, then into breadcrumbs, coating completely.  Place each on a greased baking sheet.

Bake at 425 for 6-8 minutes per side.

Serve with marinara sauce for dipping, and enjoy!  It's best to eat these when hot, so eat immediately.

Garlic and Herb Mashed Cauliflower

Husband has never been a fan of cauliflower.  Ok..."not been a fan of" is being generous.  He hates it.  Every time he walks into the kitchen when I'm cooking it he turns up his nose and makes a face like he's sucking on a lemon.  So...of course I took this as a challenge to see if I can get him to enjoy it!  :)

My friend Arielle told me she made some mashed cauliflower one night last week, so I decided to give it a try.  It was a hit!  It's similar to mashed potatoes, creamy, and full of flavor.  The best part is that it's low in calories and only uses 4 ingredients.

Ingredients

1 large head cauliflower
4 Laughing Cow Garlic & Herb Light Wedges
Chives
1/2 Tablespoon salt

Directions

Wash and boil cauliflower.  Once tender, drain and put into a food processor, pulsing until smooth.  My head of cauliflower made about 3 cups once 'mashed'.  Transfer mashed cauliflower into a medium bowl.

Stir in 4 Laughing Cow Garlic & Herb Light wedges and 1/2 Tablespoon salt.  Cut 6-8 pieces of fresh chives with scissors, and stir.  Then adjust accordingly to your taste!

A half cup serving is only 60 calories...so go ahead and have seconds.

Lemon Garlic Brussels Sprouts

Travis and I have been trying to learn to love Brussels sprouts for quite some time now.  Like....REALLY trying, but it just hasn't been happening.  Last week, before we headed down to NC for Christmas, I decided to give it another try.  Turns out, this was the recipe to make us both fall in love with them.

If you love Brussels sprouts - you must give this a try.  If you don't love Brussels sprouts - you need to give this a try before you write them off for good - it'll turn you into a believer!

Lemon Garlic Brussels Sprouts with Slivered Almonds
1 pound Brussels sprouts
Olive oil
1/2 lemon
2-3 cloves garlic (minced)
1/4 cup slivered almonds
Salt
Grated cheese (we used Gruyere)

Directions

First, prepare your Brussels sprouts (cut the stubby end off of each, remove the outside leaves, and cut them in half).  In a medium frying pan, cook sprouts on medium/low with salt and olive oil until lightly browned (a few minutes on each side).

Remove sprouts from heat and set aside.  Add 3 tablespoons olive oil, 2-3 cloves of garlic (minced) and the juice of 1/2 a lemon to the pan.  Turn pan on medium heat.

Add sprouts and 1/4 cup slivered almonds back to pan and cook on medium for 5-8 more minutes.  Brussels sprouts should be nicely browned and fork tender when they are done!

Once done, remove from heat and place in a bowl and grate cheese on top!  We had some Gruyere cheese leftover and used that, which was perfect, but Parmesan would be great too.

These were so good, they turned Travis and I from wary Brussels sprout eaters into raving lunatics that gobbled up the entire side in one night.  You'll love 'em!

Cinnamon Sugar Acorn Squash

If every vegetable I ate could be roasted, I'd be the happiest girl.  I love roasted veggies...like...LOVE them!  One veggie I'd hadn't tried my hand at was the acorn squash, so earlier this week, we gave it a shot.  Here's what we did.

Ingredients

1 acorn squash

1-2 Tablespoons butter, softened

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

Salt

Cinnamon

Directions

Wash and cut your acorn squash in half.  Remove seeds and the stringy insides, then score the insides with a knife.  (Be careful cutting and scoring your squash - they are really hard to get into!)

Soften (almost melt) 1-2 Tablespoons of butter and brush on the edges and across the inside of the squash.  Sprinkle with salt.

Put one tablespoon of brown sugar in the center of each half.  Using the back of your spoon, press the brown sugar so it coats the inside.  Sprinkle with cinnamon.

Fill a baking dish with 1/4 - 1/2 an inch of water, and place the squash halves in the dish, cut side up.

Bake 60 to 75 minutes or until fork tender.  Then scoop out the squashy deliciousness!