Tomato-Basil Lasagna with Prosciutto

Like every picky, veggie-loathing child, I threw my fair share of table tantrums at the mere sight of anything green and leafy. But I do remember a few meals that caused my tiny heart to race. Those anticipated foods that somehow had the power to classify the entire night they graced. Taco night. Pizza night. Make-your-own-sundae-and-stay-up-past-your-bedtime-to-watch-a-movie-night.

But there was one night that beat all the others. The one that would make me abandon my half-built snowman without even being called. At least not by a human. No, it was the aroma of Garlic bread, tomato sauce and Italian sausage that literally wafted through the walls and into the chilly air to tell me exactly what night it was. Lasagna night.

And while my mother's recipe is just about perfect in every way, I haven't exactly had the urge to dig into a meaty, cheesy slice of wintry comfort now that spring has arrived. This sock-ditching, window-opening weather has me yearning for much lighter fare.

But alas, last week I came home to that oh-so-familiar aroma floating from under our neighbor's apartment door and that nasty little tease stirred up all those cravings inside of me. Luckily, a little digging led me to this lovely rendition.

Coming in at a measly 272 calories, this lightened up lasagna pairs the fresh flavors of basil and prosciutto with a light, creamy, spicy cheese sauce that is just as amazing if not more than its full fat counterpart. Layer all that savory goodness between saucy noodles, throw in a salad and a slice of buttery garlic bread, and it's a meal nothing short of comforting. Anytime of the year.

So with a  spring breeze blowing through my curtains, I got to work boiling noodles and making the cheese sauce, a delicious combo of Romano, cottage and cream cheeses, garlic, crushed red pepper, fresh basil and egg.

The original recipe called for dried basil, but I opted for fresh. In my opinion, nothing beats fresh basil, especially this time of year. I came across a comment on a forum for dried-to-fresh basil ratios and I think it sumed it up best: “The only useful purpose I can think of for dried basil would be mulch for fresh basil plants.” So. True.

Once the noodles were boiled and dry and the cheese was ready, everything else was a cinch. I simply layered the sauce, noodles, cheese and prosciutto, then repeated three times.

Note: You may want to have an extra jar of sauce on hand. I ended up using a little more than what was called for. (Close to half of the second jar.)

Another modification I made was to lay the thinly sliced prosciutto strips down whole instead of chopping, which saved tons of time and flavor. It worked great. Just make sure you get enough strips.

I topped it all with a final layer of sauce, a hefty helping of mozzarella and Romano, and into the oven it went.

An hour later, the entire house was filled with the aroma of garlic and basil and I was face to face with a bubbling, cheesy, melty masterpiece.

And boy was it delicious. Layer after layer of cheesy-prosciutto-basil goodness. The flavors were fresh and the red pepper gave it a nice kick. (We added a little extra heat, too.) I actually liked it better than those traditional 800 calorie-packing meaty-monsters you find at restaurants. Even my meat-obsessed husband gobbled up two slices before I could finish mine. (Granted, I was taking pictures.)

I'm so pleased that I officially made this my new go-to lasagna for every season. Maybe one day my own children will bolt through the door to devour it.

Tomato-Basil Lasagna with Prosciutto

Cooking Light, JULY 2000
Yield: 9 servings

If you want to freeze and make later: After assembling the lasagna, cover and freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw in refrigerator; bake as directed.

Ingredients:
5  garlic cloves
1  (16-ounce) carton 1% low-fat cottage cheese
1/2  cup  (4 ounces) block-style fat-free cream cheese
1/4  cup  (1 ounce) grated fresh Romano cheese, divided
2 1/2  teaspoons  dried basil (Or about 2.5-3 Tablespoons fresh...highly recommend!)
1/2  teaspoon  crushed red pepper
1  large egg
1  (26-ounce) bottle fat-free tomato-basil pasta sauce (Actually, you'll need about 1.5 jars)
Cooking spray
12  cooked lasagna noodles
1  cup  (4 ounces) chopped prosciutto or ham (I just layered the slices - works great)
1  cup  (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375°.

Drop garlic through food chute with food processor on, and process until minced. Add cottage cheese; process 2 minutes or until smooth. Add cream cheese, 2 tablespoons Romano, basil, pepper, and egg; process until well-blended.

Spread 1/2 cup pasta sauce in the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange 3 noodles over the pasta sauce; top with 1 cup cheese mixture, 1/3 cup prosciutto, and 3/4 cup pasta sauce. Repeat the layers two times, ending with noodles. Spread remaining pasta sauce over noodles. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons Romano and mozzarella.

Cover and bake at 375° for 45 minutes or until sauce is bubbly. Uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes. Let lasagna stand 5 minutes.

Nutritional Information: Calories: 272 (19% from fat), Fat: 5.6g (sat 2.8g,mono 1.8g,poly 0.6g), Protein: 20.8g, Carbohydrate: 33g, Fiber: 2.1g, Cholesterol: 47mg, Iron: 2.3mg, Sodium: 775mg, Calcium: 213mg.

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Grilled Goat Cheese Sandwiches with Fig, Honey & Basil

Something has happened. Something wonderful. Magical. Entirely overdue.

Mornings, those awful, horrible, dreadful things, have undergone a drastic transformation. Now that Mother Nature has finally shed her frosty outer layer, I no longer wake up to dreary, pitch-black skies and icy cold floors. Instead, streams of golden sunlight and vivid green tree buds have been bursting through my bedroom window each morning, springing me to life.

With this warmer, happier weather, I, myself, am warming up to the very idea of mornings. And what better way to start them than with a beautiful spring breakfast? 

This sweet little sandwich is perfect with the delicate flavors of goat cheese, honey, lemon, fig and basil. All that between two buttery grilled slices of cinnamon raisin bread? There's simply no better breakfast treat. (Ahem, if you uh, don't count Krispy Kreme donuts and bacon.)

And trust me, if this recipe is easy enough for even me to whip up on a busy barely-have-time-to-eat morning, you'll definitely have time. Simply mix goat cheese, lemon zest and honey, spread that on a slice of raisin bread, top with fig preserves, sliced basil and a second piece of bread and grill! They were done before the hubby could finish pouring a glass of milk. (Granted, I do mornings a bit better than him.)

Delicious. They reminded me of stuffed French toast, but with much more flavor and way less fat. We devoured them in seconds. And since the recipe yields eight and there are only two of us, I was lucky enough to make this breakfast a few days in a row.

Now, if you really want a really flavorful, rich sandwich, adding a little extra goat cheese mixture is the way to go. And while the recipe says to use a second pan to press the sandwiches while grilling, I have to say...I prefer mine unpressed. For some reason, pressing them seemed to hide the flavors. 

But however you decide to make them, I'm sure you'll love them. The sweet, creamy flavor and absolute simplicity make these sandwiches equally wonderful for a fancy brunch or a quick weekday dinner.

So now that icy windshields and snowy driveways are but a faint memory, take a seat on the patio, pour yourself a tall glass of OJ and bite into a sweet taste of spring.

Grilled Goat Cheese Sandwiches with Fig & Honey
David Bonom, Cooking Light, June 2004
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 sandwich)

Ingredients:
2  teaspoons  honey
1/4  teaspoon  grated lemon rind
1  (4-ounce) package goat cheese
8  (1-ounce) slices cinnamon-raisin bread
2  tablespoons  fig preserves
2  teaspoons  thinly sliced fresh basil
Cooking spray
1  teaspoon  powdered sugar

Preparation:
Combine first 3 ingredients, stirring until well blended. Spread 1 tablespoon goat cheese mixture on each of 4 bread slices; top each slice with 1 1/2 teaspoons preserves and 1/2 teaspoon basil. Top with remaining bread slices. Lightly coat outside of bread with cooking spray.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 2 sandwiches to pan. Place a cast-iron or heavy skillet on top of sandwiches; press gently to flatten. Cook 3 minutes on each side or until bread is lightly toasted (leave cast-iron skillet on sandwiches while they cook). Repeat with remaining sandwiches. Sprinkle with sugar.

Nutritional Information: Calories: 243 (31% from fat), Fat: 8.5g (sat 4.8g,mono 2.7g,poly 0.5g), Protein: 9.8g, Carbohydrate: 33.1g, Fiber: 2.5g, Cholesterol: 13mg, Iron: 2.2mg, Sodium: 326mg, Calcium: 78mg.

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Sausage & Spinach Soup

My husband has been begging me to make homemade soup for quite some time now. See, it’s tradition in his Polish heritage to have a giant bowl before each meal. Although, I’ve concluded that the only rational reason for those unnecessary, pig-intestine filled starters must be to help stretch out your stomach in preparation for the five pounds of pierogi you're about to ingest.

I, myself, have never been a huge fan of soup. It just always seems to be either ridiculously salty and unsatisfying or deliciously drowning in its own calories. Like the one soup I adore, Zuppa Toscana, from Olive Garden. Not exactly what you’d consider a dainty soup with all that heavy cream, full fat sausage and bacon.

So, the big soup question remains. Can a bowl of soup be less artery-clogging than a bowl of potato chips and at the same time, not leave you craving a cheeseburger?

Yes and yes! This uber-easy recipe is so light, yet delicious and filling, it seriously has me rethinking those cheeseburgers altogether. And the chips, too.

To start, I browned some sweet Italian turkey sausage, which, by the way, tastes just as wonderful as regular pork sausage. You'll never miss the fat. Then I added a little garlic and chopped onion and let those wonderful flavors meld together for a couple minutes.

Next I added the water, tomatoes, chicken broth and beans. I couldn't find cannellini (white kidney beans), so I used Great Northern instead.

After that boiled for a few minutes and thickened, I stirred in fresh baby spinach, oregano and basil. You can use dried herbs if that's all you have on hand, but fresh always seems to be the way to go for truly fresh, amazing flavor.

Voila! Delicious homemade soup. I ladled up a few bowls, sprinkled on fresh Romano cheese, and served alongside some toasted whole grain bread.

This soup is some seriously good stuff. With such a fast spoon-to-mouth speed, you'd think I was polishing off a pint of rocky road. And surprisingly, the spinach and slightly spicy sausage reminded me of my beloved fat-laden Zuppa Toscana. Not bad for a guiltless 261 calories!

The verdict from my soup-obsessed husband? He couldn't believe that he was eating such a delicious soup that contained sausage and wasn't made by his Polish mother. Sorry, Matka.

And what about the soup snob? I'll just put it this way: With every bite and every leftover bowl, I swooned over its deliciousness. Even days later, while stuffing my face with a luscious prosciutto-basil lasagna, I subconsciously blurted, "Mmm! Remember that amazing soup I made?”

Sausage & Spinach Soup
David Bonom, Cooking Light, March 2007
Yield: 4 servings

Cookbook Note: Fresh herbs are added after the soup cooks so they'll retain their bright color and flavor. You can substitute 1 teaspoon dried herbs for each tablespoon fresh, but add them with the tomatoes. Serve with a toasted baguette.

Ingredients:
10  ounce  sweet turkey Italian sausage
Cooking spray
1  cup  prechopped onion
2  teaspoons  bottled minced garlic
1/2  cup  water
1  (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1  (14.5-ounce) can organic stewed tomatoes, undrained (such as Muir Glen)
1  (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
2  cups  baby spinach
1  tablespoon  chopped fresh basil
2  teaspoons  chopped fresh oregano
2  tablespoons  grated fresh Romano cheese

Preparation:
Remove casings from sausage. Cook sausage in a large saucepan coated with cooking spray over high heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Add onion and 2 teaspoons garlic to pan; cook for 2 minutes. Stir in 1/2 cup water, beans, tomatoes, and broth. Cover and bring to a boil. Uncover and cook for 3 minutes or until slightly thick. Remove from heat, and stir in spinach, basil, and oregano. Ladle 1 1/2 cups soup into each of 4 bowls, and sprinkle each serving with 1 1/2 teaspoons cheese.

Nutritional Information: Calories: 261 (30% from fat), Fat: 8.6g (sat 2.8g,mono 2.7g,poly 2.5g), Protein: 20.9g, Carbohydrate: 23.1g, Fiber: 5.4g, Cholesterol: 62mg, Iron: 3.4mg, Sodium: 842mg, Calcium:105mg.

Wine note: This delicious soup needs a wine that's crisp and medium-bodied, such as a California pinot gris (aka pinot grigio). The wine's crispness balances the richness of the sausage and the density of the beans. At the same time, the wine's body is substantial enough to stand up to the weight of those ingredients. Try Morgan Pinot Gris "R & D Franscioni Vineyard" 2006 (Santa Lucia Highlands, California), $18. -Karen MacNeil.

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Ooey, Gooey Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownies

Oh. My. Brownies. 

I've definitely had my share of chocolate dream bars. Homemade. Boxed. Smothered with frosting. Covered in ice cream. Straight from the oven. Straight from the bowl. But never, ever, have I had anything like this.

You'd think it was the peanut butter. We've all fallen under the spell of chocolate and peanut butter's combined force. But in this recipe, peanut butter can't take all the glory. There's also an entire jar of marshmallow cream in there and lots of sweetened condensed milk. Mix all that together and what you have is the world's best brownie, my friends.

And they're super easy thanks to an evil little Devil's food mix shortcut. *Oh the shame!* I've bashed boxed cake mixes many a time and now I'm eating my words. Delicious, chocolate peanut butter-covered words.

But guess what I do far better than bake? Rationalize. And since I’d still be adding a few things here and there, I released myself from guilt, slapped on an apron and got to work making my dreamy semi-homemade treat.

First, I whipped up the batter, which has a thick, sticky, cookie dough consistency. Then with floured hands, I patted 2/3 of it into a pan and baked it for ten minutes.

While that was baking, I mixed the sweetened condensed milk, marshmallow cream and peanut butter chips together. When the brownies were done, I spread on the marshmallow mix and topped with dollops of the remaining brownie batter.

Back into the oven it went for 20 more minutes. The recipe actually calls for 30, but an incredible amount of online reviewers insisted that 30 minutes would produce brittle brownie bricks. Twenty minutes seemed to be the magic number for everyone else, so I followed suit.

They were right! Twenty minutes later, the marshmallow was perfectly toasted, and I had produced nothing less than perfect, peanut buttery, chocolaty, milky, marshmallowy brownie bliss. 

So, should we top them with frosting? Ha! Serve them with ice cream? Paaalease. Hands down, these are the BEST brownies I've ever eaten. Two ooey-gooey thumbs way up. So they don't need a thing, aside from maybe a cold glass of milk to prevent choking. Trust me, you will definitely be stuffing your face in an unsafe manner.

Ooey-Gooey Chocolate-Peanut Butter Brownies
Cooking Light, September 2000
Yield: 24 brownies (serving size: 1 brownie)

Ingredients:
3/4  cup  fat-free sweetened condensed milk, divided
1/4  cup  butter or stick margarine, melted and cooled
1/4  cup  fat-free milk
1  (18.25-ounce) package devil's food cake mix
1  large egg white, lightly beaten
Cooking spray
1  (7-ounce) jar marshmallow creme (about 1 3/4 cups)
1/2  cup  peanut butter morsels

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350°.

Combine 1/4 cup condensed milk, butter, and next 3 ingredients (butter through egg white) in a bowl (batter will be very stiff). Coat bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Press two-thirds of batter into prepared pan using floured hands; pat evenly (layer will be thin).

Bake at 350° for 10 minutes. Combine 1/2 cup condensed milk and marshmallow creme in a bowl; stir in morsels. Spread marshmallow mixture evenly over brownie layer. Carefully drop remaining batter by spoonfuls over marshmallow mixture. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes. (note: I strongly advise you to only bake them for about 20 minutes to keep them gooey) Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.

Nutritional Information: Calories: 176 (25% from fat), Fat: 5g (sat 2.1g,mono 1.6g,poly 1.1g), Protein: 2.6g, Carbohydrate: 29.9g, Fiber: 0.8g, Cholesterol: 6mg, Iron: 0.8mg, Sodium: 212mg, Calcium: 30mg.

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