When you think of protecting your heart, what comes to mind? Seeing a cardiologist? Taking your medication as indicated? Both are good ways to help. But according to an article in Diabetic Connect, little things can also help your heart, too – and they might be things you're already doing. (I know - this isn't my diabetic recipes blog, but protecting one's heart is still important.) The article (“4 Things You're Already Doing to Help Your Heart”) suggests that simple things like watching comedies and hanging out with your pet can also help promote heart health. Click here to read the article and find out all four things, and why they help.
And now, for today's six recipes to help you through the day. Enjoy!
BOSTON BROWN BREAD
This comes from Jeff Gordinier in The New York Times Cooking newsletter. Jeff writes, “Bread that slides out of a can? It might strike many Americans as a dubious culinary eccentricity, but throughout New England it is a staple, often purchased at the supermarket and served at home with a generous pour of baked beans. 'I had this growing up,' said Meghan Thompson, the pastry chef at Townsman, in Boston, where the cylindrical brown tower comes to the table as something of a regional wink. Her version, commissioned by the chef Matt Jennings, dials down the cloying sweetness and amps up the flavor with a totally different manifestation of beans: doenjang, the funky Korean paste made from fermented soybeans.” Time: about 2 hours; makes 2 coffee-can-size loaves, or 1 standard loaf
To view this online, click here.
Ingredients
Nonstick cooking spray
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons white rye flour
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons stone-ground whole wheat flour
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons dark rye flour
1 cup fine-ground cornmeal
1 cup lightly packed dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon doenjang (Korean soybean paste)
2 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup egg whites (from 4 to 5 large eggs)
3/4 cup (scant) blackstrap molasses
Preparation
Heat oven to 350 degrees and generously coat the insides of 2 10-ounce coffee cans or a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Place the white rye flour in a large skillet over medium heat and toast, whisking constantly, for 7 minutes. The flour will darken slightly and smell nutty.
Whisk the flours, cornmeal, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the doenjang and buttermilk until combined; set aside. With an electric mixer, whip the egg whites with 1 tablespoon of the molasses until stiff, silky peaks form, about 5 minutes. Whisk the remaining molasses into the buttermilk mixture. Gradually stir the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients until combined. Fold in the whipped egg whites in 2 additions.
Pour batter into the prepared cans or loaf pan. Coat pieces of foil with cooking spray, then cover the tops of the cans or pan securely. Set the cans or pan in a baking dish and add enough hot water to come about 1/4 inch up the side. Transfer to oven and bake until the top springs back when lightly touched, about 1 hour 40 minutes for the cans, or 2 hours for the loaf pan. Let cool 20 minutes on a wire rack, then invert and remove the bread to a cutting board. Let cool completely before slicing.
BAKED BEANS
Of course, you can't have Boston Brown Bread without a helping of Baked Beans. This comes from Sam Sifton in The New York Times' Cooking newsletter. Sam writes, “Proper Boston baked beans would have salt pork instead of the bacon. James Beard cooked them with ribs. The key is to use the little white pea beans known as navy beans, and to allow time to do most of the work. (Or to cheat: Canned white beans make fantastic baked beans in about an hour. If you use them, you'll need four 15-ounce cans. Drain and then follow the directions from step 2 on to the end. Please understand that you’ll need much less water and much less time to get them where you want them to be.) The combination of molasses and dry mustard is a taste as old as America itself, and takes well to both ham and soft brown bread.” Makes 6 to 8 servings.
To view this online, click here.
Ingredients
2 cups navy beans
Salt
1/2 pound slab bacon, cut into cubes
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
1/3 cup molasses
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
Preparation
Soak beans in a large bowl of water for 6 hours or overnight. Drain beans and put them in a large oven-safe pot with a heavy bottom and a tightfitting lid. Add 1 teaspoon salt and enough cool water to cover 2 inches above the beans. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until the beans are just tender, approximately 30 to 40 minutes. Drain and remove beans.
Heat the oven to 250 degrees. Bring a kettle full of water to a boil on the stove. Return the heavy-bottomed pot to the stove and turn the heat to medium high. Cook the bacon in the bottom of the pot until it begins to brown, then turn off the heat and add the chopped onion and, on top of it, the beans. Mix together molasses, mustard and black pepper, and add the mixture to the pot. Pour in enough boiling water to cover beans, put the lid on and bake, occasionally adding more water to keep beans covered, until they are tender but not falling apart, 4 to 5 hours.
Remove beans from oven, uncover, stir and season with salt. With the lid off, return pot to oven and let beans finish cooking, uncovered and without additional water, until the sauce has thickened and the top is deeply crusty, about 45 minutes more.
NEW ENGLAND MINI CORN CAKES
Yield: 12 servings
Source: "200 Healthy Recipes in 30 minutes or Less!" by Robyn Webb
Info: http://diabeticgourmet.com/book_archive/details/74.shtml
Notes: Make silver dollar pancakes the easy way, with a muffin tin.
Ingredients
Nonstick cooking spray
1-1/3 cups yellow cornmeal
1-1/3 cups unbleached white flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup evaporated fat-free milk
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons low-calorie margarine
3 teaspoons maple extract
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Spray 24 muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray. Combine all ingredients and mix until blended.
Fill each muffin cup one-third full with batter. Bake for 13 minutes until browned. Each pancake should be 1/2 inch high.
Nutritional Information Per Serving (2 cakes): Calories: 163, Fat: 3 g, Cholesterol: 54 mg, Sodium: 177 mg, Carbohydrate: 29 g, Dietary Fiber: 1 g, Sugars: 5 g, Protein: 6 g; Diabetic Exchanges: 2 Starch
GRILLED CHICKEN WITH GLUTEN-FREE LEMON-TAHINI ZUCCHINI NOODLES
This comes from Stephanie Kirkos, About.com’s Gluten-Free Cooking> expert. Stephanie wrote, “A Spiralizer is my favorite kitchen tool to put a healthier spin on pasta classics - and in a naturally gluten-free way.
“This recipe features zucchini noodles tossed raw in a bright and savory dressing of lemon juice, garlic, and tahini. The dressing softens the zucchini noodles as it sits, so there is no need to cook the zucchini noodles for this meal.
“The pile of zucchini noodles is topped with grilled chicken, cherry tomatoes, Feta crumbles, and chopped fresh parsley.
“Dairy-free? Simply omit the Feta crumbles, or use a dairy-free cheese instead. Instead of grilled chicken, you can pair this recipe with grilled shrimp or salmon instead.
“Vegetarian? Replace the chicken with grilled tofu steaks or portobello mushrooms.” Prep Time: 20 minutes; Cook Time: 0 minutes; Total Time: 20 minutes; Yield: 2 servings
To view this online, click here.
Ingredients
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp fresh parsley leaves
1 1/2 tbsp water
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 large zucchini, spiralized into noodles
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, grilled and sliced
1 cup cherry tomatoes, rinsed and sliced in half
1/4 cup Feta crumbles (optional)
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley (optional)
Preparation
Prepare Tahini Lemon Dressing: In a food processor, pulse garlic cloves a few times until minced. Add the lemon juice, tahini, fresh parsley leaves, water, and olive oil. Pulse until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
Wash and trim off the tough ends from each zucchini. With a spiralizer kitchen tool, spiralize the zucchini one at a time into spaghetti sized-noodles. Don't have a spiralizer? Use a julienne peeler, vegetable peeler, or sharp knife instead.
Place zucchini noodles in a large bowl. Pour half the dressing and toss to coat. Add more dressing, if needed. Let sit for 10-15 minutes to soften the noodles.
Grill the boneless, skinless chicken breasts either on a gas grill, electric George Foreman-type grill, or use store-bought all natural gluten-free chicken breast strips (super quick and easy shortcut!)
Divide the dressed zucchini noodles and sliced cherry tomatoes into two bowls. Place slices of grilled chicken over top. Garnish with Feta crumbles, if desired, and additional Tahini Lemon dressing and chopped parsley.
Reminder: Always make sure your work surfaces, utensils, pans and tools are free of gluten. Always read product labels to confirm the product is gluten-free. Manufacturers can change product formulations without notice. When in doubt, do not buy or use a product before contacting the manufacturer for verification that the product is free of gluten.
BUSH’S® APPLE PUMPKIN CAKE
This comes from Bush’s® Beans. It starts off, “Full of classic fall flavors, this delicious cake can be topped with whipped cream or your favorite cream cheese icing. Pureed BUSH'S® Country Style Baked Beans add a surprising sweetness.” Prep Time: 15 minutes; Cook Time: 30 minutes; Total Time: 12.
To view this online, click here.
Ingredients
1 can (16 oz) BUSH’S® Country Style Baked Beans
1 pkg (16.25 oz) spice cake mix
3 large eggs
1/2 cup classic applesauce
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
Directions
Remove the bacon from the can of Country Style Baked Beans. Pour the can of beans and sauce into a blender and puree.
Combine the cake mix, use 3/4 cup of the pureed beans (discard small amount of remaining puree) and 3 eggs in a mixing bowl and mix well.
Add the applesauce and pumpkin and mix well till all ingredients are combined.
Spoon batter into a sprayed 9x13 cake pan at 350° F for 30-35 minutes or till a wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean.
Cool in pan.
Top with whip cream or Cream cheese frosting for fun! Yields 12 servings OR Use cupcake pans with paper liners. Fill 2/3 full.
Bake at 350° for 12- 15 minutes or till a wooden pick comes out clean.
Makes 2-3 dozen muffins or frost for a nutritious cupcake.
PENNE WITH SUN-DRIED TOMATO PESTO
This comes from Giade De Laurentiis, star of The Food Network’s Everyday Italian. Total Time: 25 min; Prep: 10 min; Cook: 15 min; Yield: 4 servings; Level: Easy
Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/penne-with-sun-dried-tomato-pesto-recipe.html?oc=linkback
Ingredients
12 ounces penne pasta
1 (8.5-ounce) jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil
2 garlic cloves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup (packed) fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Directions
Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid.
Meanwhile, blend the sun-dried tomatoes and their oil, garlic, salt and pepper, to taste, and basil in a food processor and blend until the tomatoes are finely chopped. Transfer the tomato mixture to a large bowl. Stir in the Parmesan.
Add the pasta to the pesto and toss to coat, adding enough reserved cooking liquid to moisten. Season the pasta, to taste, with salt and pepper and serve.
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