Holiday Cranberry-Olive Tapenade

Dried cranberries and green olives combine to make the perfect sweet-salty balance in this festive holiday tapenade from my book 1,000 Diabetes Recipes (Wiley, 2011). Serve it on toasted baguette slices topped with crumbled goat cheese or feta cheese or just serve it in a pretty bowl with fresh vegetables and whole wheat crackers alongside. If you need a holiday hostess gift, make a double batch for a gift—it’s especially pretty in a clear glass jar tied with a sparkly ribbon.

Cranberry-Olive Tapenade

Makes 1 1/4 cups

1/2 cup cranberry juice

3/4 cup dried cranberries 

1/4 cup green olives, pitted (such as manzanilla or picholine)  

1/4 cup loosely packed fresh Italian parsley leaves 

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon capers, drained 

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon honey

1 small clove garlic, crushed through a press 

1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1. Place the cranberry juice in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from the heat and add the cranberries. Cover and let stand to cool to room temperature. Drain.  

2. Combine the cranberries and the remaining ingredients in a food processor and pulse until the mixture is coarsely chopped. The tapenade can be refrigerated, covered, for up to a week.

Each serving (1 tablespoon): 5 g carbohydrate, 35 calories, 2 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 0 g fiber, 0 g protein, 58 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 0; Exchanges: 1/2 fat

Photo: Veer

Simple & Delicious for Holiday Entertaining Tuna with Roasted Lemons

This busy time of year, a dead-simple recipe comes in handy, whether you want to make a special meal just for family, or you need to impress company without much fuss. This recipe, from my book 1,000 Diabetes Recipes (Wiley, 2011), is a healthy, quick, and flavorful meal that’s ready in about 40 minutes start to finish. The lemons take about half an hour to roast, so while those are in the oven, make some whole wheat couscous or steam some baby potatoes and toss a big green salad to serve alongside and dinner’s done.

If you want to have a secret ingredient on hand to enliven another holiday dish, make extra roasted lemon slices when you prepare this recipe. If you love the tart flavor of lemons, you may find these addictive. You can chop them up and add them to a salad dressing, a creamy dip, or even potato salad.

Tuna with Roasted Lemons

Makes 4 servings

2 medium lemons, cut into 1/4-inch slices, and seeded

4 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, divided

4 (5-ounce) tuna steaks

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Brush the lemon slices with 2 teaspoons of the oil and arrange in a single layer in the baking pan. Bake until lightly browned, 25 to 30 minutes.

2. Sprinkle the tuna with the salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil and tilt the pan to coat the bottom evenly. Add the tuna and cook, turning once, 2 minutes on each side for medium rare, or to the desired degree of doneness. Place the tuna on 4 plates. Divide the roasted lemons evenly among the plates and serve at once.

Each serving: 3 g carbohydrate, 197 calories, 6 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 62 mg cholesterol, 1 g fiber, 32 g protein, 193 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 0; Exchanges: 4 lean protein, 1 fat

Photo: Veer

Sweet and Salty Bulgur and Cauliflower Salad {Recipe Redux}

This month’s topic for Recipe Redux, a group of registered dietitians who write a blog post about a healthy recipe all on a single theme, is all about whole grains. Exotic grains were encouraged for the recipes, but instead, I chose a common pantry staple—bulgur wheat—and added some out of the ordinary flavors.

Bulgur is traditionally reserved for tabbouleh, the lemony parsley and grain salad recipe that everyone has memorized they’ve made it so often. I love the hearty flavor and chewy texture of bulgur, but wanted to do something completely different with it.

For crunch (and because it is so incredibly beautiful at the farmers’ market this time of year), I added finely chopped raw cauliflower (done in the food processor; quick and easy), for sweetness, I used golden raisins plumped in warm orange juice, and for a bit of salty tang, I threw in a handful of chopped green olives. It all came together to make a salad that has humble ingredients but fantastic flavor.  Scroll to the end of the recipe for links to more healthy grain recipes from my fellow Recipe Reduxers.

Sweet and Salty Bulgur and Cauliflower Salad

Serves 6

2/3 cup water

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 cup fine grind bulgur wheat

1/4 cup orange juice

1/4 cup golden raisins

1/2 of a small head of cauliflower (about 12 ounces for 1/2 a head), trimmed and cut into chunks

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

3/4 teaspoon ground cumin

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

6 large green olives, pitted and chopped

1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

Bring the water and salt to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove from the heat and stir in the bulgur. Cover and let stand 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring the orange juice to a simmer in another small saucepan. Remove from the heat and add the raisins. Cover and let stand until cool.

Place the cauliflower in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped (be careful not to over process, you don’t want it pureed).

Whisk together the oil, vinegar, honey, cumin, and pepper in a large bowl. Add the bulgur and the raisin mixture and stir to combine. Stir in the olives and parsley. You can serve the salad at once, or cover and refrigerate it for up to 3 days.

Each serving: 18 g carbohydrate, 123 calories, 5 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 3 g fiber, 2 g protein, 109 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 1; Exchanges: 1 starch, 1 fat

Pumpkin Flan - Perfect Make-Ahead Dessert

If you’re planning smart use of your carbs for the Thanksgiving meal, add this silky sweet Pumpkin Flan to your menu. From my book, 1,000 Diabetes Recipes (Wiley, 2011), It’s like the smoothest pumpkin pie filling you’ve ever had—without the crust. Whether you’re avoiding crust because of the carbs or because you want to take some shortcuts with a laborious holiday menu, you’ll love this dessert.

Another great selling point for this flan is that you HAVE to make it a day ahead so that it forms the addictive caramel syrup in the refrigerator overnight. When dessert is already baked, it frees up the oven for more important things—like the turkey. All you have to do to serve it is to invert it onto a plate—a rimmed plate—you don’t want any of that yummy syrup to go to waste. Happy Thanksgiving.  

Pumpkin Flan

Makes 12 servings

1 teaspoon canola oil

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons water

1 (12-ounce) can fat-free evaporated milk

1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

3 large eggs

2 large egg whites

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Brush the inside rim of a 9-inch metal round cake pan with the oil, leaving the bottom of the pan uncoated.

2. Stir together the granulated sugar and water in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, about 3 minutes, or until sugar dissolves. Continue cooking, without stirring, until the mixture turns golden, about 6 minutes longer. Carefully pour the sugar mixture into the prepared pan, tilting the pan to coat the bottom (the pan will be hot after pouring in the caramel).

3. Whisk together the evaporated milk, pumpkin, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, eggs, egg whites, and vanilla in a large bowl. Pour into the cake pan. Place the cake pan inside a large baking roasting pan and add hot water to the baking pan to a level half way up the sides  of the cake pan.

4. Bake until a knife inserted in the edge of the flan comes out clean and flan is still soft in the center, 1 hour and 20 minutes. Carefully remove the flan from the water bath and cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Refrigerate the flan, covered, overnight.

5. To serve, run a small spatula around the edge of the flan and invert onto a rimmed serving plate to avoid spilling the syrup.

Each serving: 24 g carbohydrate, 126 calories, 2 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 53 mg cholesterol, 1 g fiber, 4 g protein, 68 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 1 1/2; Exchanges: 1 1/2 carbohydrate

Lemon-Spice Lentil Soup

I love turning ordinary ingredients into a fantastically delicious meal—it’s like kitchen alchemy. This flavorful soup is one of my latest successes. I used whole spices and toasted them to bring out their best flavor, added fresh grated ginger for a pungent kick, and finished the soup off with a drizzle of tangy yogurt and a sprinkle of fresh cilantro. It takes the humble lentil to a new level.

If you don’t have whole spices, used ground spices (in equal measure) and cook them along with the leeks, so they will toast slightly. I used leeks because they were in the CSA box last week; an onion will suffice perfectly if you don’t have leeks on hand. The fresh ginger is a must, however, and since it keeps for weeks in the refrigerator, it’s a worthy staple for your pantry. This soup freezes well too. Just make sure when you reheat it that you don’t forget to garnish the soup with the yogurt and cilantro.

Lemon-Spice Lentil Soup

Makes 6 servings

2 teaspoons whole cumin seeds

2 teaspoons whole coriander seeds

1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 leeks, white part only, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium stalk celery, chopped

1 large carrot, peeled and chopped

3 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth

3 cups water

1 1/2 cups brown lentils

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon cayenne

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes

Grated zest of 1 large lemon

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/3 cup plain low-fat yogurt, thinned to drizzling consistency with 1-2 tablespoons milk

Chopped fresh cilantro

Place the cumin seeds, coriander seeds, and peppercorns in small dry skillet and set over medium heat. Toast, shaking the pan often, until the spices are fragrant, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate to cool. Crush the spices in a mortar and pestle or place in a small zip lock bag and crush with a meat mallet. Set aside.

Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the oil and tilt the pan to coat the bottom. Add the leeks and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly for about 1 minute. Add the broth, water, lentils, the spice mixture, ginger, salt, cayenne, and cinnamon.

Place the tomatoes in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped; add to the saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and cook until the lentils are tender, 30 to 35 minutes.  Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon zest and juice. Ladle the soup into 6 bowls; drizzle with the yogurt mixture and sprinkle with cilantro.

Each serving: 41 g carbohydrate, 252 calories, 4 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 3 mg cholesterol, 13 g fiber, 17 g protein, 386 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 3; Exchanges: 2 1/2 starch, 1 veg, 1 plant-based protein, 1/2 fat

Pumpkin and Roasted Red Pepper Soup

My cookbook, 1,000 Diabetes Recipes, came out a few weeks ago and I’d like to share one of my favorite recipes in the book to make this time of year. If you love to make butternut squash soup, but hate all the time it takes for peeling and chopping, you’ll love this recipe.

It uses canned pumpkin, so it takes no time at all to prep. If you have any red peppers left from the end of the season farmers’ market, by all means roast your own. But honestly, this is one recipe where it really doesn’t matter. The only way to possibly mess up this recipe is if you buy the wrong kind of pumpkin—you want “canned pumpkin” not “pumpkin pie filling.”

It’s great to have for lunch or an easy supper. And, if you want to dress it up a little and serve it at a holiday dinner, top each serving with a spoonful of plain low-fat yogurt or reduced-fat sour cream. Enjoy the ease of the season.

Pumpkin and Roasted Red Pepper Soup

Makes 6 servings

2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil

3 large carrots, peeled and chopped

1 large onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

5 to 5 1/2 cups low sodium vegetable or chicken broth

1 cup roasted red peppers from a jar, drained and chopped

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1. Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add the oil and tilt the pan to coat the bottom evenly. Add the carrots and onion and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables are softened, 5 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin, and coriander and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 30 seconds.

2. Add 5 cups of the stock, the bell pepper, salt, and ground pepper and bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer until the vegetables are very tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

3. Place the vegetable mixture in a food processor or blender in batches and process until smooth. Return the soup to the saucepan and stir in the pumpkin. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of broth a few tablespoons at a time, if needed, to reach the desired consistency. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until heated through. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon juice. Ladle into bowls and serve at once. The soup can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months.

Each serving: 16 g carbohydrate, 80 calories, 2 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 4 g fiber, 2 g protein, 324 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 1; Exchanges: 1/2 starch, 2 vegetable

Photo: Veer

Yellow Bell Pepper Romesco Sauce

I am by nature a plain (read: lazy) cook, which is what makes having sauces like this one so great. I made a big batch of this yesterday and will eat it for days on striped bass fillets (broiled with salt and pepper), roasted vegetables (cut up, tossed with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and roasted), roasted chicken (rubbed with olive oil, salt, and pepper and roasted), and with just plain sliced bread.

I used yellow bell peppers because they looked so pretty at the produce market, but you can use red or orange ones instead. To make this even faster, you can even use roasted red peppers from a jar. You’ll need about 1 mounded cup of drained peppers. And if you don’t have pine nuts, you can substitute almonds or walnuts.

Put this low-carb, low-cal sauce on almost anything—it’s good stuff to have around when you don’t feel like cooking.

Yellow Bell Pepper Romesco Sauce

Makes generous 1 cup

1/4 cup pine nuts

2 large yellow or red bell peppers, cut in half lengthwise, stems and seeds removed

2 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon sherry vinegar or white wine vinegar

1 garlic clove, crushed through a press

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the pine nuts in a small baking dish and bake, shaking the pan once or twice, until the nuts are lightly toasted, about 8 minutes. Transfer to a plate to cool (don’t keep them in the hot pan or they will continue to toast).

2. Preheat the broiler. Lightly oil a small rimmed baking pan and place the bell pepper halves skin side up on the pan. Broil the peppers, turning the pan as needed, until the skin of the peppers is blackened and blistered, about 10 minutes. Transfer the peppers to a bowl; set a plate over the bowl to hold in the heat. Let stand until the peppers are cool enough to handle, 15-20 minutes. Peel away and discard the skins of the peppers.

3. Combine the pine nuts, peppers, and the remaining ingredients in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. (If your peppers are really large, you might need a little more liquid to get to a “saucy” consistency; you can add a few teaspoons of cold water or chicken broth.) Serve at once, or cover and refrigerate up to 4 days.

Each serving (about 2 tablespoons): 4 g carbohydrate, 73 calories, 6 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 1 g fiber, 1 g protein, 71 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 0; Exchanges: 1 fat