Recipe Time

Since Carole is going to start cooking *wink wink*, and Mother is trying to get a few easy recipes that are healthier, I'm going to list a few of my current favorite recipes. They come from either allrecipes or weight watchers, and I'm just going to use the stock photos if they have them since I haven't thought about taken a picture of the 'delicious foods' until they're already gone ;).

Spinach and Feta Pita Bake (found at allrecipes.com)
6 6-inch whole wheat pita bread
(whole wheat pita pockets work as well; you can use in lieu of the pita bread rounds or stuff them)
1 6-oz tub sun-dried tomato pesto
(I listed a recipe below for the pesto in case your store doesn't carry it or you'd rather make your own.)
2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 bunch baby spinach, rinsed and chopped
4 fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup reduced fat feta cheese
2 tbsp grated or shredded Parmesan cheese
3 tbsp olive oil
1 pinch freshly ground pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Spread tomato pesto onto one side of each pita, placing them pesto side up on a baking sheet. Top with tomatoes, spinach, mushrooms, cheeses; drizzle with olive oil and season with pepper.
3. Bake for 12 minutes or until bread is crisp. Cut into quarters and serve.

So seriously, the prepping and assembling takes about five minutes. Tack that onto the baking time, and you have a good meal of Mediterranean pizzas in less than 20 minutes. You could add other things, like substituting the tomato pesto for basil pesto, or adding things like onions, olives and bell peppers, whatever you like.

Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto (allrecipes)
4 oz. sun-dried tomatoes
2 tbsp. chopped fresh basil
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
(I have used 1 tsp. dried basil and parsley when we didn't have fresh, worked just as well)
1 tbsp. chopped garlic
1/4 cup chopped pine nuts
3 tbsp. chopped onion
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp. tomato paste
1/3 cup crushed tomatoes
(you can substitute diced if you can't find crushed)
1/4 cup red wine
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
salt to taste

1. Place sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl with warm water for five minutes, or until tender.
2. In a food processor or blender, combine sun-dried tomatoes, basil, parsley, garlic, pine nuts, and onion; process until well blended. Add vinegar, tomato paste, crushed tomatoes, and red wine; process. Stir in olive oil and Parmesan cheese. Season with salt to taste.

I've read that others substituted red wine vinegar, but I can't attest to how it changes the taste. This goes a long long way, freezes really well, and has about 40 servings. I've tossed about 1 - 1.5 tbsp. with enough whole wheat spaghetti or angel hair, yummy and fast. Since it does go such a long way, there are only 45 calories a serving :).

So if you've bought the whole wheat pita bread and have some left over and don't know what to do, never fear... Pita Chips are here!

Pita Chips (from allrecipes.com)
12 pita bread pockets
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. dried chervil
(aka 1/2 tsp. dried parsley and 1/2 tsp. tarragon)

1. Preheat oven to 400.
2. In a small bowl, mix the olive oil, black pepper, garlic salt, and chervil. Brush each side with mixture, or each piece after slicing.
3. Cut each pita pocket into 8 triangles or slices (I like crispier chips, so I sort of butterflied each pita pocket and made 8 slices from each side, essentially getting around 16 slices from one pita pocket. I would brush each side of the disassembled pita pocket with the mixture before I sliced them into the 16 pieces). Place triangles/slices on lined cookie sheet. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese if wanted.
4. Bake for about 7 minutes or until lightly browned and crispy. Watch closely as they tend to burn quickly.

Last but not least, a really good Weight Watchers dip. I mentioned the pita chips recipe primarily because the local markets don't carry pita chips, and I wanted to use them with my dip. So, of course, you can just buy pita chips.

Sour Cream and Roasted Red Bell Peppers Dip (weightwatchers.com)
2 tsp. cilantro
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
(or a teaspoon of minced garlic)
1/2 cup basil
16 oz. roasted red bell peppers, drained
1 cup reduced-fat sour cream

In a blender or food processor combine peppers, sour cream, basil, and garlic powder. Season to taste with salt and pepper, garnish with cilantro.
1/4 cup=serving