New and Improved Chicken Pot Pie! 01/20/2010
  Chicken Pot Pie, take two! I made Chicken Pot Pie before and blogged it, and honestly thought it was an awesome "diet" substitute. That was before I discovered I could make a real and savory crust, not a phyllo crust. After deciding to remake the crust, I also decided to revamp the filling a bit as well. I thought the first filling was still very good, but had some room for improvement. The new and improved Chicken Pot Pie is really, really amazing. The inside is creamy and chunky and the outside is crusty and delicious. Absolute perfection! I also decided to make individual pot pies this time, which I find are much prettier and are the perfect serving size. This will definitely fulfill the craving for pot pie if you are on a low fat diet. Promise! Even my mother loved it, who is not on my diet :). The recipe takes time to make (I would say at least 2 hours) but it's well worth the time and effort. I actually really enjoy taking time to make something complicated every once and a while. However, If you need to cut the time, you can prepare some ingredients the day before, which would significantly reduce the cooking time. For example, you can bake the chicken the day before and refrigerate it, and you can also use frozen vegetables as well. I do not recommend using a rotisserie chicken, since it is cooked with the skin, which adds a lot of fat. I also I do not recommend using a store-bought crust. The crusts are high in fat and have very unhealthy ingredients. Besides, the crust listed below is really quite easy to make. I hope you enjoy making and eating this recipe as much as I did! Ingredients for Filling:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the boneless skinless chicken breasts on a baking sheet, brush them with extra virgin olive oil on both sides, and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper all over. Bake the chicken for 35-40 minutes, or until cooked through. Let the chicken cool enough so that it can be handled. Then, shred the chicken with your hands, or if you prefer, cut the chicken into cubes. (This step can be done a day in advance in order to save time). To make the filling, begin by preparing your vegetables. Chop your carrots, onions, and mince the garlic. Cook the peas in the microwave and set aside. Heat three tablespoons of olive oil on a medium heat. Cook the onions, carrots, garlic and thyme for 8-10 minutes or until the onions are translucent and carrots are crisp-tender. Add the chicken stock and season with salt and pepper to taste. Then, add the 1/4 cup of flour to the vegetables and cook for one minute, stirring continuously. Add the half and half and buttermilk slowly, stirring continuously until the mixture is smooth. Let the mixture simmer on low and thicken, stirring occasionally. Directions for Crust: While the filling is simmering, it's time to make the crust. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt together with a wooden spoon. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, vegetable oil and egg. Pour the milk mixture over the flour mixture. Stir the mixture together with a spoon until most of the ingredients are gathered together. Then, using your hands, make a ball out of the dough and grab any leftover pieces of dough and put it together. On a floured surface, knead the ball of dough 10-12 times. Then, using a floured rolling pin, roll the dough out to 1/8 to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut the dough into four 7.5 to 8 inch circles, one for each bowl. You can use the bowls as a guide if necessary. Now, fill each bowl with filling to the top and then carefully place a dough circle on top of each bowl. Press the dough securely around the bowls and brush them egg wash. Cut three slits into the top of each pot pie and place them on a baking sheet. Bake the pot pies in the oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown. Let the pot pies cool for about 10-15 minutes and serve. Enjoy!! Bye, Bye Chicken Pot Pie? 01/17/2010
Mysteriously, Weebly deleted my Chicken Pot Pie recipe from my blog. Were they trying to tell me something? All that was left of the blog entry was the link to the printable recipe and the link to the inspiration recipe. That's okay though. I have been wanting to improve this recipe and make it with a proper crusty topping (not phyllo) for weeks now. Therefore, stay tuned for my next new and improved Chicken Pot Pie recipe that is coming this week. Mmmm I can't wait to eat it! I'm even going to purchase new soup bowls for the occasion. :) Puppy Chow! 01/14/2010
 I'll give you one guess as to why this delicious dessert and snack is called Puppy Chow. Did you figure it out? It looks like dog food! I think even if I had a good camera (not my iphone) this dish would still look pretty ugly. But, I don't care what it looks like, its sooo darn good. I mean how can chocolate, peanut butter, and powdered sugar mixed with cereal be bad? This is so yummy, and so easy to make too. The original recipe calls for melted chocolate, so this recipe uses a chocolate sauce as a substitute that is made from cocoa powder. You really do not notice the difference at all in the consistency of the dessert. Even though this dessert is low fat and Swank-friendly, it's definitely not healthy. There is tons of sugar in it, so be aware of that. But, we all have to indulge sometimes, right? I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do! Ingredients:
Using a large microwave safe bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder and canola oil. Whisk until smooth and the cocoa and oil are completely incorporated. Then, add 1/4 cup of the powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon of skim milk. Whisk until smooth. Continue adding the remaining powdered sugar and remaining milk the entire cup of powdered sugar and four tablespoons of skim milk are mixed in with the cocoa and canola oil. Next, add the creamy peanut butter to the mixture. Whisk more until the mixture is smooth again. Now, microwave the mixture for 30 seconds. Add the cereal to the chocolate mixture and stir together using a large spatula. Finally, transfer the cereal mixture to a sealable bag or container along with the remaining one and a half cups of powdered sugar. Shake the bag or container well several times. Make sure that powdered sugar is covering each piece of cereal. You don't want the cereal to clump together, so mix, mix, mix! After mixing, put the cereal in the freezer for 15 minutes and serve immediately. Store the remaining cereal in the refrigerator to enjoy later. :) Updating Past Recipes 01/13/2010
Hello everyone! I just wanted to let you know that from time to time I update or adapt a past recipe in order to make it better. I will be going back and changing these recipes and there will be a note on the top of the blog entry that says "updated on such and such date". I will also have this date updated on the printable version of the recipe. Sometimes these changes are minor, such as adding 1/4 cup of Greek yogurt to my potato soup recipe. This isn't a necessary change, but this is just something that I felt improved the creaminess and flavor of the soup. Other changes are actually mistakes made in measurements or ingredients. For example, I accidentally put "3 8 oz jars of tomato sauce" instead of "2 34 ounce jars of tomato sauce" for my tomato soup recipe. This was a typo that I somehow made and obviously makes a huge difference in the end result of recipe. I just wanted to give you a heads up to look out for the little "updated on" date to make sure the recipe you are referring to is the latest and greatest! Oh and as a New Years Blogging Resolution, I will be taking better pictures of my food! I have been using my iphone for far too long and it's about time I take some time in getting decent pictures of the delicious food featured on the blog. My camera is being sent to be fixed, I now own a tripod, and I will get some natural sunlight into our condo somehow! Be on the lookout for much better pictures of past and present dishes on the blog! Happy Eating! :) Taking Requests! 01/07/2010
Well, I'm finally home from the hospital - hooray! No more nasty hospital food, IVs, meds, blood tests, MRIs, or uncomfortable beds! I'm getting better each day too, which is awesome. Drugs definitely work! I am on bed rest until Monday though so I'm just taking it easy and sleeping a lot. I'm also watching Food Network all day which is making me want to cook up a storm! I can't wait until I have the go ahead to get back in the kitchen, it has been far too long. So, since I have all this free time on my hands, I figured it was a perfect time to take requests from readers. Is there any recipe that you would love to see featured on my blog? Perhaps something that isn't so healthy that you wish was so you could indulge in it? Whatever it is, if it's a main course, side dish, soup, appetizer, dessert, etc. just leave a comment here and let me know. I'll try my best to recreate or make the recipe and post is as soon as possible. Keep in mind some recipes take a few tries to get right, so I might not be posting your recipe for a little while. Can't wait to see the comments! :) Hospital Food. 01/04/2010
 Okay, as some of you probably already know, I'm currently in the hospital getting a treatment of steroids for my MS. Staying in the hospital is never fun for anybody, but I would say one of the worst reasons is the horrible food. I simply don't understand why it's so nasty. Is it because they have to cook for so many people?I understand that recipes can't be complicated to feed the masses, but there are so many simple recipes that are healthy and delicious that I just don't understand why the chef doesn't research and take care of it! I mean if you glance up at the limited menu above, it's so unappetizing and so unhealthy. More unhealthy and unappealing that it sounds even because of the lack of salt and hidden fattening ingredients. Italian Style Spaghetti and Meatballs? What other style is there? Seasoned Pork Loin? No thanks. Beef Tips? I'll pass on the heart attack. Ham and cheese? Really? Ham and cheese?! The worst part is, everything they consider "healthy" is all made with butter or margarine still and has zero salt or any other flavoring. Mmmm sign me up for a plate of green beans made in the microwave with no seasoning and some margarine please! Ugh. This is always one of the worst parts of being here for me. They can't accommodate my diet, and if they do it's so bland that it's inedible and I end up having to have people bring me real food so I don't starve. I'm hopefully going home tonight where I can have some delicious turkey chili to warm me to the core and make my tummy happy! Sorry for the ranting post, I just simply don't get it why it's so bad. I see a connection here with school cafeterias and hospital cafeterias. We really need an intervention to improve food in these places! Maybe Whole Foods can sign up? A girl can dream :) This made my New Years! 01/02/2010
I received a comment on my blog from another blogger who asked permission to blog about my site (Yes, I'm aware that I just used the word "blog" three times in one sentence). This was a first and completely made my day! I actually hope it's a first of many since I really want to share my blog with other people, especially other Swankers. I remember when I started the Swank diet and I felt sooo limited in what I could eat. I was so freaked out thinking that I would accidentally cheat, that I pretty much just ate grilled chicken and veggies for a couple of weeks . Yummy, right? I knew I couldn't continue long that way. Later on I found the message board on the Swank site were other Swankers share their recipes. I was so happy! I had tried a couple of recipes from the diet book that were not great, and these people had tried and true recipes that sounded amazing. These Swankers were so helpful to me and they are what inspired me to start blogging, especially since I don't know of any other people on our diet that do. Anyway, meet Rae, another blogger and person with MS. Her blog, In It For The Parking (Awesome name!), is about her life and her MS and I already love reading it. She has a great story and awesome attitude, something that I find most people that try Swank do. I think the group of us that are willing to cut out butter, chocolate, fatty cheese, and a bunch of other awesomeness out of our diet are pretty positive go-getters that are willing to do anything to gain control of our illness! :). Rae doesn't seem to let MS get the better of her, which I really love. She is trying out Swank for the first time and stumbled across my blog, which I hope she finds works for well for her and makes her feel better soon! Below is the link to her blog entry and nod to Tasty Treats by Michi. Thanks again for the blog love, Rae! The things you wrote about it were so awesome and completely made my New Years. You have given me a little boost to continue blogging regularly, and have made me want to blog even now from the hospital bed! :) Phyllo Eclairs 12/18/2009
 Okay, pre-diet, chocolate eclairs were my favorite dessert. I could not enter a bakery without buying one, it was that kind of obsession. Sometimes, I would actually buy two, which is pretty disturbing and gluttonous. :) Making any type of pastry into a diet friendly recipe is very very difficult. Pastry = butter and fat, which is off limits. Phyllo is pretty much the only way I have found to make these type of desserts. I came across a phyllo eclair recipe online, and although its time consuming and not as delicious as the original, it was quite tasty for being a "diet" version of an eclair. The filling exremely yummy and I used my own diet friendly chocolate frosting which is always a hit. The only downside is that since it's a phyllo shell, it falls apart pretty easily and is a little messy to eat! I may add more layers of phyllo next time, but that also adds fat so you have to watch out for that. Either way, I think it's worth the time if you are craving something with this flavoring and can't indulge in the real thing! Yum! Ingredients for Vanilla Cream Filling:
Ingredients for the Phyllo Shells:
Ingredients For the Chocolate Frosting (Makes large amount of frosting, you may want to half the recipe if you don't plan on using the frosting for something else):
First, make the vanilla cream. Begin by beating together the sugar, cornstarch, salt, egg yolks, and egg whites together in a small saucepan on low heat. Beat well until all the ingredients are incorporated. Then add the skim milk and half and half, beating constantly. Raise the heat and bring the mixture to a boil, continuing to beat. *Make sure you have a large egg beater for this!* Once the cream filling is boiling, beat for two more minutes and then reduce to a simmer, continuously beating for a few more minutes. The filling should be thick and creamy at this point. Set the mixture aside and add the vanilla extract and beat some more. Beating is the key to making the cream filling! Transfer the cream filling to a mixing bowl, cover it with saran wrap, and set it in the refrigerator to chill. Next, create the chocolate frosting. Begin by sifting the powdered sugar, salt and cocoa powder together, then set aside. After that, heat the vegetable oil on medium low heat in a large saucepan. Add the marshmallows and stir continuously until they are melted. After that, add the milk, powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and vanilla extract. Stir until the mixture turns into frosting consistency. Set aside (do not refrigerate, it will harden!). Finally, it's time to create the phyllo shells. First, create tinfoil molds that you will use to create the shells. Cut six pieces of tinfoil into 12 inch x 6 inch rectangles. Take each tin foil rectangle and roll it up, in a jelly roll fashion, leaving about a 1 inch opening in the middle. Spray each tin foil mold with canola oil and sprinkle them with a little sugar. Now, take two pieces of phyllo stacked on top of each other and cut them into thirds lengthwise. Spray the phyllo with the canola oil and sprinkle with sugar. Place a tinfoil roll on one stack of a phyllo strip and roll it up in a jelly roll fashion. Spray the phyllo roll with canola and sprinkle with sugar. Place the roll on a cookie sheet with wax paper or sprayed with canola oil. Repeat again until you get 6 rolls. This will require 4 sheets of phyllo. (refer to picture below if you need some guidance) Place the phyllo rolls in the oven and bake for 8-10 minutes, or until golden brown. Once they are cooked, transfer the rolls to a wire rack to cool completely. I found that placing a knife in the center of the roll is the easiest way to transfer the rolls to the cooling rack. Once the phyllo rolls have cooled, twist the ends of the tin foil until they are loosened from the phyllo itself and gently pull the tinfoil out from the phyllo roll. Be careful, the phyllo is delicate! Now you can finally assemble the eclairs. Transfer the cream filling to a piping bag or a zip-loc bag with a hole snipped off of the end. Pipe the filling inside the eclair. Do the same with the chocolate frosting. Transfer the frosting to a piping bag or zip-loc back with a hole snipped off of the end. Pipe some frosting on the top of the eclair. Dust with some powder sugar, and finally...ENJOY! Serve immediately, phyllo will wilt and become soft in the ref I know this seems like a lot of work, but if you are having a lazy Sunday like I was, it's worth it! :)  Creamy Potato Soup 12/13/2009
 *Updated on 01/14/10* My dad owned a restaurant pretty much my entire life and this restaurant had the best potato soup, by far. I almost never went there without ordering it. Of course, it was loaded with butter and cream so I haven't had it in years. Yesterday, I decided to attempt to remake the soup into a low fat version at home. I was really wary of how it would taste because of the fact that I was cutting out basically all of the important fats. I honestly thought that I might end up throwing away a couple of pounds of potatoes, along with a lot of onions and other ingredients. Amazingly, the outcome was creamy, rich, and delicious! The fat free half and half actually worked as a substitute, along with the low fat buttermilk. The toppings made all the difference too, the turkey bacon on top was the perfect flavoring to add that little extra "something" to every bite. I definitely recommend this recipe. It was so good that in two days, the huge pot is practically gone. I thought I would be freezing half of it, but there is barely any left! Ingredients for Soup:
Peel and chop the onions and set aside. Wash, peel, and chop the potatoes into large bite-sized cubes. This soup is not creamed at all, so the chunks cannot be too large to eat. Heat olive oil over medium low heat. Toss the onions in the olive oil and saute for a few minutes until soft and translucent. Add the flour to the onions, stir to coat the onions and then saute for 5 more minutes. After that, add the chicken stock, half and half, buttermilk and yogurt and stir continuously until smooth. Finally, add the spices, hot sauce, and potatoes. Stir some more and then cover the soup and simmer on low for 45 minutes to an hour, until the soup has thickened and the potatoes have cooked. Stir the soup occasionally and check the flavoring before serving. Add more salt or hot sauce if necessary. While the soup is simmering, cook the bacon. Chop the bacon and saute in a nonstick pan with some canola oil cooking spray until browned and cooked through and set aside. Chop a couple of green onions and set aside as well. Serve the soup hot with toppings. Enjoy this amazing and hearty soup! Eggplant Parmesan! 12/08/2009
 *I'm fully aware that this picture looks like a bunch of slop on the plate. I was too hungry to take decent pictures! :)* My husband loves eggplant, so he actually introduced me this dish. I have never really been into eating vegetarian meals for dinner, but this is absolutely amazing! Tonight was the first night I made this and we ate like pigs (as you can see from the humungous portion on the plate). This is actually a pretty easy recipe to make, and a great recipe to freeze. I had planned on making this last week but wasn't able to finish cooking it, so I froze the eggplant after breading it (before I even got a chance to fry it). Today I took it out of the freezer, fried, and baked it and it was perfect. This is definitely a great meal to prepare in advance and heat up later on when you are too tired to cook! Ingredients:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the eggplant into 1/2 inch circles and set aside. Prepare your breading assembly line by putting the 1/2 cup of flour into one bowl, the beaten egg whites into another bowl, and both breadcrumbs and rice parmesan into the last bowl. Make sure to mix the breadcrumbs and rice parmesan together well. Dip the eggplant rounds first in the flour, then in the egg, and finally in the breadcrumbs mixture. Make sure to let the excess egg drip off each piece before dipping into the breadcrumbs mixture. Pat the breadcrumbs onto the eggplant so that they adhere well. Set breaded eggplant pieces aside. Put half of 1 jar of tomato sauce into a large baking dish and set aside. Heat 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large frying pan on medium or medium low heat. Fry the eggplant for 2-3 minutes on each side, or until they are browned and crispy (not burned!). You may need to add a little more olive oil if the eggplant soaks it all up while frying. Do this in batches until all the eggplant is fried. Place the fried eggplant in a single layer in the baking dish with tomato sauce. Pour the remaining half of the jar of sauce over all the pieces. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over the top of the eggplant pieces and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and soft. While the eggplant is baking, cook the pasta according to the package directions. Make sure to salt the pasta well. Also, in a small saucepan, heat the second jar of tomato sauce on medium-low heat until warmed through. Serve the eggplant on a bed of spaghetti with tomato sauce. Bon Appetit! :) |  AuthorMy name is Michelle Bolooki and I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in June 2002. I have been on the Swank MS Diet since April of 2005. I have created this blog in order to share some delicious and healthy low fat recipes that I have come across the last few years. Enjoy! ArchivesNovember 2009 CategoriesAll |
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