17 Day Diet Eggplant Parmesan

12:03 AM ByFiled Under17 day diet, Main Dishes, Mouthwatering Monday

Do y’all remember when I posted about Eggy?

About the 17 Day diet, our successes and my complete lack of inspiration for what to do with eggplant that fit into The 17 Day Diet parameters.

Little did I know… there’s a recipe for Eggplant Parmesan in the back of The 17 Day Diet book.

My brother started raving about it, another friend who has had amazing success with the diet, also raved about the recipes.. so I threw caution to the wind and decided that I had little to lose (if you’ll excuse the pun) by experimenting with this spongy-purpley-black veggie

I can’t be the only one who wants to put googly eyes and ears on them… they just remind me of little purple piglets.

This recipe called for 1 C low carb marinara sauce, I have yet to understand why anyone buys spaghetti/marinara/red sauce when it is so unbelievably simple to make

 

2 (1-lb) Cans of  Petite Diced Tomatoes – 1/2 a large onion, chopped – 7 garlic cloves, minced and 1 1/2 TBSP of your favorite garlic seasoning (I am partial to Zatarain’s Big and Zesty Garlic and Herb Seasoning – and I have been since LOOOONG before I started partnering with them)  sweat the onions, add the garlic and tomatoes and seasoning and simmer for 30 minutes to all day.  No matter what you pair this with – it will be devoured.

This was my secret weapon for this unknown dish – This 17 Day Diet Purple Spongy Veggie Thing – I knew that no matter what I put this sauce on – it would be edible.

Caution. Meet the wind, and prepare to be tossed.

The first time I made this, I completely made it according to the book – we ate it.

The second time, I adjusted it according to our preferences and we ate it and enjoyed it.

 

The book suggests pressing the 1/4″ eggplant slices into the fat free parm cheese to coat – in our opinion, this is too much.

I sliced the eggplant 1/4″ thick – dipped it into the frothy egg whites

and lightly pressed both sides into fat free parmesan cheese (yes, the shaker kind) that I had mixed with a bit of paprika and fresh ground pepper.

Spray a vented pan with baking spray and bake at 400 °F for 20 minutes, turn and bake for 10 minutes.

Top with your delicious tomato sauce and serve

 

 

 

Print
17 Day Diet Eggplant Parmesan

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour, 45 minutes

Approximate Time: 2 hours

Yield: 2 servings

17 Day Diet Eggplant Parmesan

Delicious and healthy eggplant parmesan

Ingredients

  • 1 Large Eggplant, peeled and sliced into 1/4" rounds
  • 4 egg whites
  • Fat Free Parmesan Cheese
  • 2 C favorite tomato sauce (please make your own, it's so easy and so much yummier)

Instructions

  1. Pre-heat oven to 400°F
  2. Mix Fat Free (shaker) Parmesan Cheese with a couple dashes, paprika and fresh ground parmesan cheese.
  3. Peel the eggplant and slice into 1/4" thick rounds
  4. Whisk the egg whites until frothy
  5. Dip the eggplant slices into the egg whites until coated - lightly dip each side into the parmesan cheese mixture and lay on a vented broiler sheet
  6. Put in 400°F oven for 20 minutes, flip and bake another 10 minutes
  7. Serve topped with your homemade tomato sauce

Rachel Says

You can buy a pre-made marinara sauce, but I don't know why you would when it is so easy and delicious and simple to make your own.

http://asouthernfairytale.com/2012/04/09/17daydieteggplantparmesan/

 

Happy Monday, y’all!  Hope it’s tonguegasmic!

Thanks for linking up your deliciousness – I love seeing what you’re feeding your friends and family.  Thank y’all for linking up every Monday.

Remember the Linky Etiquette and make sure y’all are being good linkers:

  • link up
  • link back
  • visit and comment at least 6 other participants
  • pin, stumble, tweet etc..



31 Comments

Broiled Grapefruit

12:59 AM ByFiled Under17 day diet, Breakfast

I love grapefruit.

Seriously, y’all.

 

 

Grapefruits, to me, are the perfect citrus – tangy, slightly bitter, somewhat sour with just a hint of sweet.  Just writing about them right now has my mouth watering.

NOM.

 

A few months ago, Maria (one of my favorite food bloggers) wrote a post about Broiled Grapefruit, I was intrigued.  I pinned it and forgot about it.

A few days ago, I was browsing my pinterest boards and came across that pin – I jumped off the couch, grabbed a knife, cut into a couple of grapefruits, used a grapefruit spoon to loosen the fruit from the skin and drizzled them with honey, brown sugar and cinnamon.

 

I turned my broiler on HI and put my dish with the grapefruit in the oven – in retrospect, I should have moved my oven rack up one level so the caramelization would have been more intense.

I left the grapefruit in the oven for about 7 minutes, plenty of time for the sugars to caramelize.

Y’all.

Y’ALL.

{swoon}

I’m loving this deliciousness – it’s warm and sweet, and tangy and just… YUM.

Seriously, y’all – even if you’re in the anti-grapefruit camp, I think y’all should give this a try.  It takes grapefruit to a whole new level of delicious.

So yummy!

Print
Broiled Grapefruit

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Approximate Time: 15 minutes

Yield: 4 grapefruit halves

Broiled Grapefruit

Ingredients

  • 2 Grapefruit
  • Honey for drizzling
  • Brown Sugar for sprinkling
  • Roasted Cinnamon for sprinkling

Instructions

  1. Turn your oven's broiler on HI
  2. Cut the grapefruit in half - try not to drool
  3. Use a grapefruit spoon, or paring knife, to gently loosen the fruit from the skin (don't completely remove it all the way down to the base, you don't want to lose all the juice) - this allows all the yummy flavors to seep all the way down into the grapefruit.
  4. Drizzle with honey, sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon.
  5. Place under the broiler and (depending on your oven) cook for 3 to 10 minutes, or until the sugars are caramelized and the fruit is swollen and ready to burst out of the skin.

Rachel Says

You can use agave nectar instead of honey, turbinado sugar instead of brown and even add a dash of cumino or sea salt for a flavor boost.

http://asouthernfairytale.com/2012/03/12/broiled-grapefruit/

 

Thank y’all so much for linking up every Monday and sharing the yummies that come from your kitchens!

Make sure y’all take the time to visit each other, pin some of your favorite recipes, link back here, comment and share the love!

Here are a few of my favorites from last week’s link up

 

 



22 Comments

Crispy Oven Roasted Chickpeas

12:01 AM ByFiled Under17 day diet, Extras

“What do you do with all those cans of Garbanzo beans?” – that’s what my mom asked me upon returning home from Blissdom. (she had apparently been scanning my pantry shelves)

My response – “I’m hoping to make Oven Roasted Chickpeas”

This past summer, my friend Crystal posted this delicious Baked Garbanzo Beans Recipe, and then I saw Jaden’s Roasted Chickpeas recipe, and Kalyn’s Moroccan Spiced Chickpeas recipe and it dawned on me that I seemed to be missing out on something.

This snack was purported to be crispy and flavorful with a wicked crunch like corn nuts, but without all the fat, and with the added awesomeness of having one of the highest protein levels of any plant.

Due to their high protein level and deliciousness, Garbanzo beans (aka Chickpeas) are a staple in Indian food and in vegetarian diets.

Nathan is a corn nut fanatic and I love all things crispy and spicy — I’m not sure why it’s taken me more than 6 months to jump on the Roasted Chickpeas bandwagon, but I am solidly on board now.

I admit — once the cans were emptied and the beans were rinsed – I was skeptical

I followed directions and dried the beans completely and then drizzled them with olive oil and tossed them to coat

Still not seeing the appeal, however being the accommodating, adventurous and somewhat bored person that I am …. I stuck them in the Pre-heated 400℉ oven and left them to their own devices for 30 minutes.

30 minutes later, they still weren’t golden-brown or crispy.

So I left them for 10 more minutes.

At 40 minutes, I pulled them out of the oven, spritzed them with a dash more olive oil – sprinkled them with sea salt and Garlic and Herb Seasoning.

 

I’ll admit it, I was more than a little bit skeptical.

I somewhat reluctantly plucked one off the baking sheet – blew on it and popped it in my mouth.

POP!

CRUNCH!

SIZZLE!

ZING!

Even the kids – my pickety, snickety, won’t eat cooked veggies kids jumped on these babies like white on rice.

Tiny, dirty, sweet little fingers snatched these healthy little treats out of the bowl like you wouldn’t believe.

Done.

Sold.

Sign me up.

Healthy.  Crispy.  Crunchy.  – - and under $1.50 a batch….. yes, please.

Print
Crispy Oven Roasted Chickpeas

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Approximate Time: 45 minutes

Crispy Oven Roasted Chickpeas

Ingredients

  • 2 (14.5 oz) cans Garbanzo Beans -aka Chickpeas
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • Sea Salt
  • Seasoning Blend

Instructions

  1. Pre-heat oven to 400 ℉
  2. Pour the garbanzo beans into a strainer and rinse for a minute or two, tossing them around to get all the starchy liquid rinsed off.
  3. Pour out onto a paper towel lined surface and then dry with another paper towel - allow to dry completely for about 5 minutes.
  4. Remove any shells/casings
  5. Pour the Chickpeas onto a baking sheet - smooth into a single layer and drizzle with olive oil. Using your hands, roll the beans around until they are coated in oil.
  6. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until golden brown and crispy - Don't burn
  7. Remove from the oven and spritz with olive oil or olive oil baking spray - sprinkle with sea salt and your favorite seasoning blend

Rachel Says

The flavors and possibilities for these snacks are endless: Cinnamon and Sugar Garlic and Cayenne Rosemary and Sea Salt with lemon The only limit is your imagination

http://asouthernfairytale.com/2012/03/05/crispy-oven-roasted-chickpeas/

 

Have you ever made something that surprised you? Good or bad?

A few favorites from last week’s linky:



48 Comments
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