Bell pepper for Unstuffed Pepper Bake goes in and not around the healthy insides

We’ve spent so many of our gardening years exulting in the arrival of our green Bell peppers so we can make stuffed peppers, I never thought of exulting in the lack of them.

Yet in this interim between the time we’ve run out of the chopped, frozen ones that we put away last fall and the time we’re waiting for the summer crop to arrive, I found a dandy recipe that capitalizes on the (made-healthy) stuffing and makes the green part nonessential.

Thanks to the periodic Kroger grocery circular for being the source for this delightful meal. After browning ground beef (we substitute ground turkey, of course) and onion, the recipe adds 1 1/2 cups diced yellow and red Bell peppers, so Bell peppers actually are stirred into the recipe rather than being the outside container for the stuffing.

Tomatoes, instant white or brown rice, seasonings, and cheddar cheese are added; the mixture is spread into a 13-inch-by-9-inch baking dish, to be topped with tomato sauce and the remaining cheese. Cooking time in the oven is only 20 minutes (compared to one hour with traditional stuffed peppers); the mixture stands 5 minutes before serving.

Instead of piling everything into the large 13-by-9 glass dish, I divided mine into a 11-inch-by-7-inch pan and then a small casserole, so I could save the small portion for a later dinner. The Kroger circular billed this dish as kid-friendly and a good way for parents to sneak bunches of healthy peppers past the unsuspecting. The grownup kid at my house (about to celebrate his 65, remember?) was pretty fond of it, too.

Unstuffed Pepper Bake

1 pound ground beef (or ground turkey)

1/3 cup chopped onions

1 1/2 cups diced red and yellow Bell peppers (about 1 1/2 peppers)

2 garlic cloves, minced, or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon salt (or salt substitute)

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes (no-salt-added), drained

1 1/2 cups instant white or brown rice

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1 (8-ounce) package shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided

1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added tomato sauce

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sauté ground turkey, onions, peppers, and garlic for 10 minutes or until beef is browned and vegetables are tender. Drain off excess fat and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the tomatoes, rice, Worcestershire sauce, and Italian seasoning. Remove from heat; stir in 1 cup cheese. Spread mixture evenly into prepared 13-inch-by-9-inch baking dish; top with tomato sauce and remaining cheese. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes until dish is heated through and cheese is melted and bubbly. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator. Serves 4-6.

Clever Brussels Sprout Salad akin to coleslaw but with crunchy nuts topping it

Next item on the Hubby Whirlwind Birthday “Season” of recipes: Brussels Sprout Salad. Earlier I mentioned that instead of tossing a giant party with a big cake and lots of eats, we were spreading out the joy for his milestone birthday, which actually is on the calendar this week. An earlier blog mentioned the Maple-Roasted Pineapple, which kicked off his season of birthday treats.

This next one I knew he’d like because it originated with the Chickasaw Nutrition Services—and he is a Chickasaw through and through (and a very proud one after The Dallas Morning News on Sunday ran a front-page story on the tribe’s development, particularly in the area of health services).

As usual, when I prepare recipes from this source, I couldn’t imagine exactly how things were going to turn out, although I had high hopes. I’m not sure I ever had eaten Brussels Sprouts in any other way except boiled and warm. This recipe called for the Brussels Sprouts (or “scared cabbage”, as my dad used to joke and call them) to be sliced thin and served uncooked.

Ultimately the outcome resembled something akin to coleslaw. The Brussels Sprouts tossed with fresh parsley and sunflower seeds was a delicious combination, especially with the oil/vinegar/honey dressing over it. I served this with another planned treat, Gouda Grits, which originated with a recipe from Southern Living magazine. Hubby said to fix again even after the birthday observance is history—a good sign it was a fitting choice.

Brussels Sprout Salad

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons white vinegar

2 garlic cloves, skinned and crushed

1 tablespoon honey

salt (or salt substitute) and pepper to taste

1 pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed and sliced

3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

1/3 cup shelled sunflower seeds

Put the oil, vinegar, garlic, and honey in a bowl; whisk mixture until smooth. Put the spouts and parsley in a large bowl; add the dressing and half of the sunflower seeds. Mix well. Sprinkle the remaining sunflower seeds over the top of the salad. Serve. Makes 4 servings

Graham-cracker topped pineapple rings a healthy treat for birthday “season”

We are in the midst of what I have termed Hubby’s birthday “season”. Instead of one giant, bombastic party or activity planned to help him celebrate his “Welcome to Medicare” birthday next week, he preferred a “season” of small events to help underscore this milestone day.

Already we’ve held the first one—a visit to see members of his family in Oklahoma and a joint lunch in which his sister’s grandkids and one-third of our grandkid contingent could get together for a viewing (some new babies in the midst). That was a fun time.

Now I’ve begun another part of the series—preparing certain foods and treats that would be special to him and help commemorate his eligibility for all the over-65 discounts that fall to one of his advanced age. Hubby hasn’t been at such an ideal weight or so physically fit since he was in college, so for him, turning 65 is just another day on the calendar, but I did want to plan some key surprises for this auspicious “season”.

One of those recipes is the dessert that’s pictured—Maple-Roasted Pineapple, borrowed from the March 2011 Prevention magazine that featured pineapple as its superfood, since pineapple is at peak availability from March through June. This made a dandy dessert, with slices of fresh pineapple dredged in low-fat graham cracker crumbs and drizzled with sugar-free maple syrup and then roasted in the oven for 15 minutes or until brown. Served with sugar-free ice cream (in Texas, that’s always Blue Bell) this is an absolutely fabulous way to pack in some vitamin C and manganese (a trace mineral that promotes bone health).

You can serve it either with the center ring cut out or left in. After roasting and then broiling briefly, as the recipe specifies, the center portion was tender in some pieces and still tough in others, so if you leave it in, it might need to be cut around as you eat. Instead of being stuck with a sicky-sweet birthday cake that lingers around for days (and lingers around the waistline a lot longer), Hubby felt a guilt-free festive after dining. Even better, he had some leftover (unroasted) pineapple rings to use for his smoothies.

Maple-Roasted Pineapple

8 thick slices of fresh pineapple

1/4 cup sugar-free maple syrup

1/4 cup low-fat graham cracker crumbs

1 pint sugar-free vanilla ice cream

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray. Put pineapple on pan, drizzle with syrup, sprinkle with crumbs, and coat with cooking spray. Roast 15 minutes or until brown and remove from oven. Turn on broiler, brush pineapple with any dripped-off syrup, and place under broiler about 5-inches from heat. Cook until charred in spots, about 2 to 5 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream. Serves 4.

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And now a brief clarification about yesterday’s featured recipe, Japanese Pasta Salad. A thoughtful reader helped raise my awareness that rice, the key element in the salad, doesn’t actually fall into the pasta category and is considered a grain. However, my original recipe from the Chickasaw Nutrition Services actually suggested macaroni instead of the rice, so the pasta title technically would be correct if the dish were made with macaroni (or bow-tie pasta, which also would be good). So let’s just say that if you choose the rice route, tell folks you’re serving Japanese Rice Salad; if you go with the macaroni, stick with my original title. I think the term Japanese is derived from the fact that oranges are called for; the original recipe also suggested using Mandarin oranges if you don’t have any fresh ones around. Any way you title it, you have a winner with this great dish.

Crazy-healthy pasta salad with amazing combo ingredients is all-time fave!

If Hubby can have his all-time faves, then I can, too! Hubby is always proclaiming that some new dish is the “best-yet!” He does that several times a week (and has ever since we’ve been married—42 years). So his affirmations don’t always signify the greatest discernment, although I’d a whole lot rather have them than constant naysaying as some husbands do.

But this week I prepared a recipe that honestly had my tastebuds dancing in amazement and exclaiming “best-yet!” also. (Need I say that the source was the ever-clever Chickasaw Nutrition Services?) Just look at this combo in Japanese Pasta Salad: cooked brown rice, green onions (proudly from my garden, I might add), fresh apples, cucumber, oranges, and ham, with a mayo/mustard dressing. Pure craziness (not sure why it’s called Japanese), but look at all that health in one dish!

To add to that, you can serve it over a bed of spinach, if you desire! Things just keep getting better!

This salad, which is a meal in itself, can be served the minute you’re finished preparing it or left to marinate for several hours overnight—good either way. It keeps beautifully and improves by the day. We must have stretched it out for lunches and dinners over three-days’ time and were sad to see the last morsel consumed.

Topping this one will be difficult, although I’d like to prepare it sometime with whole-wheat macaroni (also suggested in the recipe) and by adding a little celery (added crunch) or small bits of cut-up cheese.

Japanese Pasta Salad

2 cups cooked brown rice

5 green onions, chopped fine

2 Granny Smith or Golden Delicious apples, small, chopped fine (skin on)

2 fresh oranges, sectioned and chopped fine

1 cucumber, skinned, remove seeds and chopped fine

1 pound ham, cubed

3/4 cup mayonnaise, light or fat-free

1 tablespoon mustard

dash of cayenne pepper

Mix all ingredients together. Place in refrigerator overnight or eat immediately. Can serve on individual plates alone or over spinach. Make 12 1-cup servings.

This salad’s “color brigade” springs straight from the garden

A blog (that has nothing to do with food or gardening) that I enjoy following promotes the concept of “The Color Brigade”. A fashion-forward Dallas woman who, like me, is short in stature daily posts solutions to fashion challenges that we height-restricted individuals face. She demonstrates how we mini-people can tastefully wear numerous eye-popping colors at the same time (a real no-no for the short, who are advised to dress monochromatically).

Well, today’s featured recipe certainly wins in “The Color Brigade” of foods category. Ginger Asparagus Salad glows with a multitude of colors—and health.

Deep, green asparagus and baby spinach leaves form the base; atop go chopped red and yellow peppers and chopped chives. A ginger dressing of lemon juice, oil, and finely grated ginger ties it all together. Red and green peppers have killer price-tags on them in the grocery produce department; that’s why I’m eyeing our red and yellow pepper plants with great hope. I’d like to think we can harvest the yield of these and chop them and freeze them for use during the year, just as we have done for years with our profuse green-pepper plants.

I made a bowl of Ginger Asparagus Salad and left Hubby at home with it on Sunday night when I went to a ladies’ dinner. All that color—and those healthy ingredients—got his attention. He was so enraptured with the salad, I don’t think he even noticed I was away!

Ginger Asparagus Salad

1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and halved

1/2 cup chives, coarsely chopped

8 ounces (6 cups) baby spinach leaves

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 yellow bell pepper, chopped

Ginger Dressing:

2 tablespoons cooking oil

2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice

1 tablespoon honey

2 tablespoons finely grated ginger

In a small bowl mix ginger dressing. Spray with cooking spray a small, shallow skillet. Cook asparagus in skillet over medium heat until the asparagus is cooked through. Place asparagus, hives, peppers, and spinach in a large salad bowl. Pour ginger dressing over the top of the salad; toss gently to combine. Makes 4 servings.

Vegetable skillet supper a hearty comfort food

Nothing like a good ole hearty, healthy skillet supper; my wonderful, ready sources at the Chickasaw Nation Nutrition Services provided the recipe for one of the best.

Hubby and I recently went up across the Red River for one of his routine health exams, so I wasted no time in bouncing over to the adjacent nutrition center to see what was new in the recipe department.

The very next night I was needing a dinner idea, so I cooked one of those new infusions—Hearty Vegetable Skillet, made with ground beef (we always substitute ground turkey), whole-wheat noodles, and mixed fresh veggies (whatever was on hand. I had corn, okra, green beans, carrots, and green peas.) The recipe also suggests you can use frozen veggies or even one (15-ounce) can of low-sodium mixed vegetables, but I always try to utilize fresh wherever I can.

I like this recipe because it relies on ingredients I likely always would have around. Besides what I’ve already mentioned it calls for low-sodium cream-of-celery soup, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, and Cheddar cheese.

Here in Texas we’ve had a bit of a cold snap lately, with folks temporarily bringing out their hoodies and firing up their space heaters while we wait for springlike temps to return. A Hearty Vegetable Skillet dinner would be a great accompaniment to cooler evenings, which we need to cherish before summer heat blazes down.

Hearty Vegetable Skillet

1 pound ground turkey

1 (10 3/4-ounce can) low-sodium, fat-free cream-of-celery soup

1/2 cup water

2 tablespoons ketchup

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 1/2 cups mixed vegetables (fresh, frozen, or canned)

1 1/2 cups whole-wheat noodles, cooked (1 cup dry)

1/2 cup reduced fat shredded Cheddar cheese

If vegetables are fresh, steam them for a few minutes until they are tender. In a skillet over medium-high heat brown the ground turkey until it is well-browned. Drain meat. Leave in skillet. Stir in the soup, water, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, and vegetables. Heat to a simmer. Stir in the noodles and sprinkle with cheese. Makes 6 1-cup servings.

Good job, cantaloupe and bacon. You brighten up what otherwise would have been a most ordinary salad.

Something had to be done with the cantaloupe half that remained after I made melon balls for Ruby Fruit Salad and its dressing (earlier blog) that I had served at Easter.

A recent issue of Southern Living magazine had featured bacon as its “wonder” dish and demonstrated scads of ways to use this Southern food staple. But Cantaloupe-Bacon Relish? Whoever heard of pairing cantaloupe with bacon (as well as with cucumber and mint) as the magazine suggested?

Guess these cooks figured that if you ever had eaten fruit alongside bacon and eggs for breakfast, you would have ingested this type of mixture anyway. The magazine suggested that the relish be served over fresh salad greens topped by sliced grilled chicken. I had set aside some romaine lettuce from our garden and thought this would be a great way to use it. The recipe also suggests that you could try the relish as an appetizer and serve it atop grilled crostini with goat cheese.

The article from which I borrowed the recipe said pork-lovers playfully refer to bacon as “God’s bookmark” and notes that its sweet-salty-smoky flavor lends a heavenly touch to a variety of foods. Even turkey bacon, which we always use, still qualifies in the “bookmark” category.

Bottom line was, we adored the salad. The flavor combination was intriguing. To quote Hubby, “I’ve never had a salad like that before.”

Better yet, three of the 10 recipe items were plucked straight from our garden (make that six in a few more weeks when our cucumber and cantaloupe crops are ready for harvest). And all the rain we’ve received lately is making that happen sooner than later!

Cantaloupe-Bacon Relish with Grilled Chicken and Salad Greens

1 1/2 cups finely diced cantaloupe

1/2 cup seeded, diced cucumber

5 turkey bacon slices, cooked and crumbled

1 green onion, minced

1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 to 3 teaspoons red-wine vinegar

1/4 teaspoon pepper and pinch of salt

6 cups romaine lettuce, torn

1 1/2 pounds (about 3) boneless, skinless, chicken breasts, grilled and sliced into strips

In a small bowl combine first eight ingredients. In a salad bowl place torn romaine leaves and grilled chicken strips. Top this with relish. Toss and serve. Serves 4.