Happy Post Thanksgiving and Zoodles!

Hope everyone filled up on the good stuff over Thanksgiving!  I took the lazy  easy way out.  Ordered my entire meal from Whole Foods.  Since it is just my husband and I, we opted for a turkey breast this year vs a whole bird.  All I had to do was pop everything in oven for 30 minutes to heat through.  The turkey was dry and I did not particularly care for it (but I do not like turkey too much anyway).  The sides were da BOMB!  We had mac n cheese, cornbread dressing, cranberry orange sauce and mashed potatoes.  What what! NO green veggies or anything remotely healthy!  YES!  Also, we had a chocolate chip bourbon pecan pie.  Glutony!  

It was awesome but after a couple days of gorging, we had to get back on track.  So thankful that I ordered this small meal and did not have piles of leftovers nor did I have to spend all day cooking and cleaning up afterward. 

To get some actual veggies back into out system, I decided to make zucchini noodles or zoodles with turkey italian sausage meatballs and sauce.  Aldi actually sells a sauce that has no added sugar and all ingredients that I can prounouce so this was a quick, easy and satisfying meal.
 To make zoodles, you can use julianne peeler or food processor.



 INGREDIENTS

3 large zucchini
1lb ground turkey italian sausage, casing removed
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
portobella mushrooms, sliced
2 jars spaghetti sauce
1/2 cup + beef stock
coconut oil
parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS

Roll turkey into 1 inch balls.  Heat small amount of coconut oil in skillet and brown meatballs on both sides.  They do not have to be cooked all the way through because you will simmer in sauce.

In sauce pan, melt 1T coconut oil.  Saute onions, garlic, mushrooms until tender.
Add Spaghetti sauce and meatballs. Simmer about 20 minutes.
I added some stock just to thin the sauce out but this is optional 
Just before serving, microwave zucchini for about 2 minutes, just to heat. You do not want to overcook because zucchini will become soggy.  
Sprinkle with parmesan

As with any spaghetti sauce, you can add whatever veggies you have leftover to make it heartier.  You can also make the meatballs with whatever meat you choose.  If you pick a plain ground beef, chicken, turkey, add italian seasoning to it.

Anyone doing the St. Jude Full or Half Marathon this weekend?  I consider this race the "end" of my busy run season and after, I can "rest".   The icy and cold weather forecast has me just a tad freaked out!  Argggghhhh!  Good luck to all who are running!  
ENJOY! 



Lightened Up Eggplant Parmesan

I found this recipe on SkinnyTaste.com.  Eggplant Parmesan is probably my favorite Italian Meal. I've made it a million times with breaded and baked eggplant but this time I made it without any breading. It came out really good, but I admit, I was worried the eggplant may be soggy but nope. The key is to slice the eggplant kind of thick and brown it on each side. 

Ingredients

1 large eggplant (I used 2)

1T Olive oil

12oz ricotta (I used 15oz)

1/4 cup + 2T Romano (I used Parmesan)

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped (I used dry)

1 medium egg

2 cups mozzarella

3 cups homemade tomato sauce

Salt 

Sauce ingredients (courtesy Mario Batali)

2 (28oz) cans whole tomatoes, crushed (used 1)

1/4 cup extra Virgin Olive oil

1/2 carrot, grated

1 onion, diced 

4 cloves Garlic, crushed

3T Thyme (I used Italian seasoning)

I added bell pepper 

Start by making sauce.  Heat Olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, cook until soft and light brown. Add thyme and carrot, and cook 5 min more. Add tomatoes and bring to boil, stirring often. Lower heat and simmer 30 minutes. 

While sauce simmers, slice eggplant 1/4" thick. Lightly salt and place in colander to release moisture for about 1/2 hour. Lay on paper towels to soak up any excess. 

Preheat oven to 450. Brush eggplant lightly with Olive oil on both sides and place on cookie sheets. Bake 20-25 minutes, turning half way through.

In medium bowl, combine ricotta, egg, parsley, and 1/4 cup cheese.

In a 9x12 dish, put a little sauce a layer of eggplant, 1/3 ricotta mixture, mozzarella. Repeat til all ingredients used up. 

Top with sauce and mozzarella and remaining Parmesan. Cover with foil and Bake 400 about 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake additional 10min until golden. 

I served over spaghetti squash with side salad. To make squash you just cut on half and scoop out seeds. Brush with Olive oil and back skin side up til soft about 30 min. 

So, the recipe is a bit time consuming but so worth it for that comfort food feel. Honestly, this recipe is almost a dead ringer for my lasagna. Substitute sliced zucchini (or noodles) for eggplant and BAM!