Tag Archives: low calorie

Healthy Cookie: Eggplant Rollantini

Eggplant Rollantini is one of my all-time favorite dishes. It’s basically all the goodness of Eggplant Parmigiana rolled up, and you know how I love my Eggplant Parm. You know what I don’t love though? All that fat and calories. It’s kind of frightening. In fact, I’m eternally grateful that most restaurant menus don’t reveal the caloric count, because I’m pretty sure I’d have a heart attack on the spot. Even though I know deep down the Eggplant Rollantini I ordered in all its breaded, cheese-covered glory is going to tower into the 700-800 calorie vicinity, I prefer to ignore that.

So what is there to do when I want some Eggplant Rollantini without a side of guilt? Make a lighter version, of course! We make a couple of quick switches: lighter cheese instead of full-fat, spinach to bulk up the dish with vitamins, a light marinara sauce, and nix the frying. The last step is doubly helpful because not only do you save fat/calories, but you also avoid pain-in-the-butt breading and frying. Therefore, this Eggplant Rollanti is much easier than the standard recipe.

Just because we’re skimping on calories doesn’t mean we’re skimping on any of the good stuff. Each roll is so stuffed with creamy ricotta and fresh spinach that they’re bursting at the seams. And there ain’t just cheese inside the rolls; they’re covered in a gooey layer of mozzarella too! On a side note: has anyone noticed that I tend to whip out the word “ain’t” when I get really excited?

Well, there’s a lot to be excited about here: tender eggplant stuffed with cheese then topped with more cheese and zesty sauce. It’s such a comforting, filling meal that it’s easy to forget that you can have two honkin’ rolls of eggplant for under 300 calories.

Yay for being full of food, not guilt!

A Few Tips Before You Get Cooking:

  1. You can use part-skim mozzarella instead, which will taste more indulgent. It’ll cost you a few more calories, but will still clock in under 300.
  2. The thinner you slice the eggplant, the easier it is to cut.
  3. This dish actually has a LOT of protein, which makes it a great vegetarian meal.
  4. USE FRESH BASIL. Dried = icky.

Light Eggplant Rollantini
Adapted from Hungry Girl

Yield: 4 Servings

Ingredients:

  • 1 large eggplant, ends removed, cut lengthwise into 8 slices
  • 1 10-oz. package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
  • 1 1/2 cups fat-free ricotta cheese
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
  • 1/4 cup fat-free liquid egg substitute (like Egg Beaters Original)
  • 2 tsp. chopped garlic
  • 1/4 tsp. black pepper
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • 2 cups low-fat marinara sauce (like Ragu)
  • 1 cup shredded fat-free, reduced fat, or part-skim mozzarella cheese (fat-free will be lowest in calories)

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 2 baking sheets and a 9″ X 13″ baking pan with nonstick spray.
  2. Lay eggplant slices on the baking sheets and bake for 5 minutes. Flip slices. Bake until soft, about 5 more minutes. Leave oven on.
  3. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, thoroughly mix spinach, ricotta cheese, basil, egg substitute, garlic, pepper, and salt.
  4. Lay eggplant slices in front of you with the short sides on the top and bottom. Distribute spinach-ricotta mixture among the bottoms of the eggplant slices. Roll up each slice around the mixture, and place them in a single layer in the baking dish, seam sides down. You may want to use toothpicks to secure the rolls, but make sure you remember to take them out before you eat!
  5. Cover rolls with marinara sauce. Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes.
  6. Remove foil and sprinkle rolls with mozzarella cheese. Bake, uncovered, until cheese has melted, 10 – 15 minutes. Serve it up!

Serving Size: 2 rolls (1/4th of recipe), Calories: 288, Fat: 7.5g, Sodium: 937mg, Carbs: 30g, Fiber: 8.5g , Sugars: 15.5g, Protein: 24.5g (Note: Nutrition stats are calculated using part-skim mozzarella. Fat-free will have less calories and fat).

Guilt-Free Pizza Party!

Sorry for the exclamation marks in the title. I kind of hate people who put exclamation marks at the end of EVERYTHING. I feel they should only be utilized when something is truly exciting or alarming. In defense of my exclamatory title, this is something worth getting excited about. It’s a pizza party! And better yet, it’s guilt-free.

A Guilt-Free Pizza Party may sound like an oxymoron, but it’s not. It’s a beautiful reality, my friends. We’re whipping up quick and easy personal pizzas loaded with customizable toppings, all of which clock in around 200 calories. The best part? They’re completely pizzalicious!

Mushrooms, peppers, & onions

Spinach, onions, & Feta

Tons of ooey gooey cheese? Check. Thin, crispy crust? Check. Zesty sauce? Check. Mounds of awesome toppings? Check. These pizzas have it all! And their personal size means you don’t have to share. Everyone can pick the toppings they want, making these pizzas even more fun, customizable, and crowd-pleasing. No other pizzas could be more party-ready than these. They are so unbelievably delicious, you’ll be convinced you’re doing something bad.

Throw your own Guilt-Free Pizza Party tonight, and you can have it all. You get tasty, cheesy pizza with toppings for everybody’s tastes, plus nutritious benefits and low-calorie goodness. I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to party!

Broccoli, onions, peppers, mushrooms

Spinach, onions, mushrooms, peppers

A Few Tips Before You Get Cooking:

  1. I find the 60-calorie pitas near the deli in my grocery store. I’ve also seen them at Walmart. If you absolutely can’t find  them, use a low-cal tortilla instead.
  2. This is a great family meal. It’s healthy, your kids will love eating pizza, and there’s no arguing over what toppings to get since everyone can pick their own!
  3. Just about anything goes for topping these pizzas.
  4. Easily cut down or double up the recipe to feed more or less people.

Guilt-Free Personal Pizzas
By The Smart Cookie Cook

Yield: 4 pizzas

Ingredients:

  • 4 60-calorie whole wheat pitas (like Joseph’s)
  • 1 cup light marinara sauce (like Ragu)
  • 2 tsp. garlic powder
  • 4 light mozzarella cheese sticks (like Sargento)
  • 1/2 cup grated or shredded parmesan cheese or feta cheese
  • Toppings of your choice: sliced onions, zucchini slices, mushrooms, light pepperoni, spinach, peppers, eggplant slices, kale, black olives, turkey sausage, broccoli

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line two baking sheets with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
  2. Lay pitas in one layer on baking sheets and bake for 5 minutes. Set aside but keep oven on.
  3. Meanwhile, steam any veggies you’re using in the microwave until tender. Drain and set aside. Pull the cheese sticks into strands, keeping them separated in four portions. Roughly chop until cheese is the size of shredded cheese. Set aside.
  4. Spread about 2 tablespoons of sauce onto each pita, using more or less based on your preference. Sprinkle evenly with garlic powder then top with one stick’s worth of mozzarella and 2 tablespoons of parmesan or feta cheese. Top with desired toppings and bake pizzas for 10 minutes, or until crust is golden and cheese is melted. Slice and enjoy!

Double Cheese Zucchini Pizzas

Let’s talk about cheese.

Melty, ooey-gooey cheese atop a crisp crust, paired with zesty marinara sauce, and crowned with fresh slices of zucchini.

Are you hungry yet?

These individual Double Cheese Zucchini Pizzas are going to change your life, no exaggeration. They are so good; I’m talking scarf-the-whole-thing-down-in-60-seconds good. But you know what?

They’re guilt-free. I’m talking low-calorie, low-fat, and packed with nutrients. Let me pause for a moment while we praise the pizza gods…

Since I’m so utterly obsessed with pizza, I am constantly trying new ways to get my pizza fix while still eating healthy. I’ve made everything from Light English Muffin Pizzas (AWESOME) to Pizza Burger Pitas (also delicious). It’s all been incredible, perfect for silencing the pesky voice pleading for pizza in my head. However, this zucchini pizza is the best guilt-free pizza recipe I’ve ever tried. Why? Because it tastes exactly like full-calorie, full-fat pizza!

Continue reading →

Heatlhy Cookie: Cheesy Spaghetti Squash Bake

Have you ever made spaghetti squash? How weird is it when you cut it open, start scooping out its innards, and find that the rumors are true; that it really looks like spaghetti?

Spaghetti Squash is one of the many wonders of food that has always baffled me. How does that little yellow guy naturally shape his squashy interior to resemble pasta? Why isn’t spaghetti squash just one big block o’ squash like other squashes are? Whatever the reason, you’ve got to admit, it’s pretty awesome. Mother nature has a few tricks up her sleeve, no doubt.

Spaghetti squash, like most other squashes, is a nutritious blank canvas just begging to be transformed into something extra special. Lately, on Pinterest, I’ve been seeing folks do just that: they take spaghetti squash and make it into decadent cheese-filled casseroles. We’re talking seriously drool-inducing recipes. The only problem is how fattening and calorie-cramming those dishes are. Isn’t there a way to make a tasty, cheese-tastic squash bake without all that bad-for-you stuff?

Continue reading →

Healthy Cookie: Sauteed Cannellini Beans and Kale

I know; I’ve been going kale crazy lately. But can you blame me? It’s so good!

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: kale is the king of greens. It is chock full of nutrients and plain old delicious. It’s the tastiest of all greens in my humble opinion. With all that good stuff in such a natural, untouched form, kale is truly a bundle of benefits given as a gracious gift from Nature itself. In today’s day and age (especially as Americans), we’ve been trained to love foods that are processed, chemically enhanced, and filled with preservatives. Because of this, foods like kale can be confounding. Kale is untouched, a product of Mother Nature only. And yet, it is so delicious and nutritious.

Okay, so nature is pretty awesome sometimes.

Now, there is but one flaw when it comes to kale: it doesn’t have a significant amount of protein. So how do you balance out the meal? With beans, of course!

I love me some beans. Protein-packed, hearty, and plain old delicious, beans are a super food (much like kale). Therefore, they’re the perfect addition to a kale dish. Put beans and kale together, and what to you get? Sauteed Cannellini Beans and Kale.

This dish hits all the right marks:

Delicious? Check.
Nutritious? Check.
Protein-packed? Check.
Flavorful? Double check!

Talk about well-rounded!

Fresh kale and tender, creamy cannellini beans get sauteed with veggie stock, garlic, onions, and of course some spicy red pepper flakes to create a sizzling dish with a myriad of textures and flavors. The whole thing is topped off with reduced-fat mozzarella cheese for that little touch of indulgence that even a nutritious meal needs.

The best part is that this delicious meal is crazy low-cal, so you can stuff your face without having to stuff your bulging belly into jeans that no longer fit tomorrow morning. That’s the best kind of meal!

A Few Tips Before You Get Cooking:

  1. Not a fan of cannellini beans? Garbanzo beans (chickpeas) would be a delicious substitute.
  2. Craving meat? Add some strips of white meat chicken to the mix.
  3. This meal is super fast, perfect for a weeknight dinner.
  4. This would be delicious with some whole wheat pasta!

Sauteed Cannellini Beans and Kale
By The Smart Cookie Cook

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 – 1/2 cup vegetable stock
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 1/4 cup chopped onion
  • 2 generous cups roughly chopped fresh kale
  • 1/2 cup cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
  • salt, to taste
  • red pepper flakes, to taste
  • 1 reduced-fat or light mozzarella string cheese stick (like Sargento)

Directions:

  1. Bring a medium skillet filled with 1/4 cup of veggie stock to medium heat. Add the garlic and onions. Saute until aromatic and translucent, about 2 minutes.
  2. Add the kale and cover. Let simmer for 5 minutes or until kale begins to wilt.
  3. Meanwhile, pull the cheese stick into strings then roughly chop. Set aside.
  4. Once the kale begins to wilt, add the beans, salt, and red pepper flakes and stir. Add up to another 1/4 cup of veggie stock if the kale is too dry for your like. Continue to cook uncovered until beans are hot.
  5. Turn off the heat, but keep the pan over the burner. Immediately sprinkle the cheese over the top then cover until cheese melts, about 1 minute. Grab yourself a bowl and enjoy!

110-Calorie Chocolate Marshmallow Cupcakes

Sometimes, Pinterest is a huge problem. I’ll be sitting and doing work like the diligent college student I am, then all of a sudden, I find myself scrolling through Pinterest. It can be hard to make myself get off. That site is just so crazy addicting, full of brilliant ideas, tantalizing food, and funny cats.

Sometimes though, Pinterest is the solution to a huge problem. Take for example the other day when I was craving something chocolatey for dessert. I was eating relatively healthy that day, and I had no desire to diverge from that in exchange for some thousand-calorie dessert. However, I was sick of my typical low-cal dessert options. In a fit of desperation, I called upon the powers of Pinterest to bestow me with a healthy but delicious treat.

Pinterest, being the gold mine that it is, came through. I discovered a 100-calorie cupcake recipe which was also vegan. Intriguing.

Continue reading →

Healthy Cookie: Kale and Bean Soup

Let’s be honest: we all get bored with our food sometimes. If we could eat whatever we wanted without gaining a single pound, seeing a spike in our cholesterol level, or having to actually make the food ourselves, then that would be a different story. But that’s not the case. We’re limited by time, money, and the number of notches in our belts.

Eating healthy can seem repetitive at times. Eating vegetarian and healthy can be even worse. I get into these periodic ruts where I eat the same three or four meals for a couple of weeks until, eventually, I cannot take anymore. It comes down to two options: think of something new and delicious to make, or die.

Alright, that’s a little extreme, but isn’t that what it feels like sometimes? Luckily, I was able to brush some dust off the ol’ idea light bulb and come up with something good: Kale and Bean Soup.

Continue reading →

80-Cal Raspberry Hot Cocoa & The 2nd Smart Cookie Chatter (Video)

Everybody has a hot drink of choice. I come from a family of coffee addicts, although I won’t touch the stuff. I typically drink tea to give myself a small caffeine boost in the morning, even though I hate tea too (don’t judge me). In all honesty, I’m not a coffee or tea person; my warm beverage of choice is hot chocolate.

Sure, hot chocolate doesn’t have caffeine, but it does taste approximately 1,000,000,000 times better than coffee or tea. And why is that? Because it’s chocolate; molten, liquid, creamy chocolate. If I could, I would down at least a mug or two every morning. That would be one sweet, sweet way to start the day.

There’s only one problem. Hot chocolate isn’t exactly low-calorie. In fact, the reason why I choke down a cup of tea every morning instead of bathing in drinking smooth hot chocolate is because tea has numerous health benefits and zero calories. Hot cocoa can’t really say either of those things.

Most of the time, when I need my hot cocoa kick, I turn to the 25-calorie packs of the instant stuff. They’re pretty good, but lacking in the usual richness provided by the real deal. So what’s a smart cookie to do? I’ll tell you: I whipped up a Raspberry Hot Cocoa for only 80 calories that tastes just as rich and indulgent as hot cocoa that will cost you triple the calories.

Smooth and creamy, this hot cocoa has tons of chocolate flavor, plus a sweet raspberry kiss. It’s warm and comforting, boosting that must-have frothy top. Suddenly, it’s okay to indulge in a mug of this warm chocolate stuff. Rejoice.

A Few Tips Before You Get Cooking:

  1. Don’t like raspberry? Leave it out and enjoy a classic hot cocoa. Or you can use a different extract flavor like mint.
  2. Note that if you don’t use the unsweetened variety of almond milk, you’ll be looking at much more calories and fat, plus the almond milk is a little thicker and creamier, which is ideal for hot chocolate. Unsweetened almond milk has 35 calories per cup, whereas regular 2% milk has 137 calories per cup and skim milk has 86 calories per cup.
  3. Looking for more low-cal hot cocoa? Try my Cinnamon Swirl Hot Chocolate for only 84 calories.

80-Calorie Raspberry Hot Cocoa

By The Smart Cookie Cook

Yield: 1 serving

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
  • 1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 tsp. sugar
  • 1 packet zero-calorie sweetener (like Splenda)
  • Pinch salt
  • ½ tsp. raspberry extract
  • Optional: marshmallows, for garnish (note: this will add a few extra calories, but marshmallows are relatively low in calorie as long as you stick to a small handful)

Directions:

  1. In a small pot over medium-low heat, whisk the cocoa powder into the almond milk until completely dissolved. Whisk in the sugar, zero-calorie sweetener, and salt.
  2. Continue to cook, whisking occasionally, until hot chocolate just begins to simmer. Remove from heat and whisk in the raspberry extract. Pour into a mug and top with marshmallows, if desired. Enjoy!

BUT WAIT.

There’s more.

I would like to present the second edition ofSmart Cookie Chatter. You guys gave me your questions on everything from my favorite pasta dish to making German pretzels. Check out my answers in the video below, and join in the chatter next week! Head over to the Smart Cookie Chatter Page and ask your question. Don’t be shy; I really love hearing from you. The topic this week is “kitchen conundrums.” I want to help you fix whatever troubles plague you in the kitchen! However, don’t limit your questions to this. You’re free to ask anything you want. Inquire about what color socks I wear, if you really want to.

Check out last week’s Smart Cookie Chatter here.

Recipes from this video:
3-Cheese Wagon Wheels with Spinach

Linguine with Brown Butter Sage Sauce

Healthy Cookie: Kickin’ Veggie Burger Wrap

For most people, the word “burger” equates to a patty of sorts sandwiched between two halves of a bun, and often topped with condiments, cheese, and/or sliced vegetables. Burgers used to only mean meat, specifically hamburger meat. Nowadays, however, the world has become much more vegetarian friendly, and you can find burgers that are meat-free. There are multiple ways to create meatless burgers. You can make them with beans, soy, grains, or go purely vegetable. But it’s not just what kind of burger you make that can be varied. There are more ways to serve a burger than just stuffing it into a bun; you’ve just got to get creative.

When you’re a vegetarian like myself, creativity is of the essence. I’m constantly trying to think of new ways to get protein. I eat a lot of veggie burgers, my favorite kind being Morningstar Farm’s Garden Veggie Burgers. They are absolutely delicious, nutritious, and protein-packed. They’re the best-tasting veggie burgers I’ve tried by far, and each one is only 110 calories. The only problem is I got sick of eating them the same way every time. I needed a new way to eat my burgers. So what did I do?

I made a wrap.

Continue reading →

Healthy Cookie: Cheesy Broccoli & Potato Scramble

Eggs are awesome. Know why?

  1. They’re so versatile. You can scramble ‘em, fry ‘em, bake ‘em into a quiche or frittata, slap ‘em on a breakfast sandwich, or even drink ‘em raw from a cup.
  2. The add-ins are endless: veggies, cheese, potatoes, meat, fresh herbs, and more!
  3. You can cook up an egg in mere minutes.
  4. They’re packed with protein and therefore great for meat-eaters and vegetarians alike.
  5. They’re good for you. They help your eyesight, they’ve got choline for your brain (which means they keeps you smart cookies smart!), and they’re low in calories and fat.
  6. You can eat them any time of day. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are all eggcellent opportunities!
  7. They’re delicious!

If that doesn’t make you want to chow down on some eggs, then I don’t know what will. Keep in mind, you don’t always have to have the same old scramble. Eating the same thing over and over again gets boring no matter what the food. So spiffy up your scramble with this cheesy, broccoli & potato twist!

Continue reading →