Ingredients (for two people)

One bunch of broccolini
Grated zest of a lemon, plus a squeeze of lemon juice
4 tablespoons of Kerrygold Irish butter
Shaved Parmesan cheese (to garnish)
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Wash the broccolini and remove parts of the stem. Cut into smaller pieces if desired.

2. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a medium skillet and add the lemon zest and broccolini. Add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and saute for about 10 minutes.

3. Season with salt and pepper, the remaining butter, and the shaved Parmesan. Serve warm and enjoy with warm, crusty bread with more butter!

Ingredients (for 2 – 3 people)

2 medium sized fennel bulbs
4 tablespoons of high quality balsamic vinegar
5 tablespoons of olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Wash and cut the fennel into small (less than an inch thick) slices / rings and add to a large bowl.

2. Toss the slices with the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper and bake on a large baking sheet for about 40 to 45 minutes on 400 degrees.

3. Serve warm and toss with grated Parmesan cheese, your favorite sauce, or enjoy the fennel just plain out of the oven, as a satisfying side dish.

Ingredients (for 2 – 4 people)

cooked Basmati or just plain white rice
a handful of golden raisins
1/4 teaspoon of saffron threads
2 teaspoons of cumin seeds, toasted
a handful of cilantro, finely chopped
a handful of chopped cashews, toasted
2 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil
salt to taste

Directions

1. Soak the saffron in a little bit of water for at least two hours. When shopping for saffron, look for bright red threads, which generally indicate a higher quality. Do keep in mind that the threads should be lighter orange or yellow at the ends, otherwise they might have been dyed red to look more expensive.

2. Cook the rice according to instructions, adding half the saffron to the rice before it cooks. Soak the raisins in water so they get nice and plump, and toast the cumin seeds in a little bit of heated oil, while toasting the cashews in a small frying pan without any oil.

3. Wash and chop the cilantro and add all ingredients, including the remaining half of the saffron, to the rice. Pan fry for a few minutes and your fragrant and tasty rice is done!

Ingredients (for 2 people)

1 to 1.5 cups of quinoa
1.5 of your favorite frozen mixed veggies
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons of curry powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Cook quinoa according to package directions. While the quinoa is cooking, heat the olive oil in a medium skillet and add the frozen veggies.

2. Saute the veggies for about 10 minutes and add the curry powder, salt, and pepper.

3. Mix in the quinoa when it’s done cooking and stir the entire mixture so all flavors can combine. Enjoy as a quick and easy lunch or as a side for dinner.

Ingredients (for 2 – 4 people)

4 cups of shredded cabbage / cabbage mix with carrots
1 cup of radishes, thinly sliced
1/4 cup of scallions, finely chopped
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon of mustard powder
1 teaspoon of lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon of sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Cut veggies and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together all ingredients and toss with veggies. Enjoy with a hot sandwich or burger and an ice cold beer!

Prep is easy – just pile grape tomatoes, whole-milk mozzarella balls, and fresh basil onto a skewer and insert into a flower bouquet base. You could even use a piece of cabbage, covered with aluminum foil, if your skewers are strong enough. Give it a try and let me know what other creative variations you come up with!

Take a loaf of French or Italian bread and cut it into small logs.  Brush half the loaf with good quality extra virgin olive oil and lightly rub with a clove of garlic. Take two medium tomatoes, remove the seeds and dice the tomatoes along with some fresh basil leaves and a splash of balsamic vinegar. Toast all the bread until the crust is crispy, but bread is still soft. Top half the loaf with the tomato mixture. Sprinkle with some finely grated Parmesan cheese.

Spread the other half of the loaf with Mascarpone cheese and sprinkle with some dried oregano, dried basil, and crushed red peppers. Be sure to spread the cheese right after taking the bread out of the toaster, so that it melts into the bread (yum!).  Serve warm with a glass of vino and enjoy!

1 pocket-less white or whole wheat pita
1/2 teaspoon of herbes de provence
1/4 teaspoon of dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 small tomato, thinly sliced and seeds removed
1 crimini mushroom, thinly sliced
a small handful of fat free or low-fat feta cheese
a sprinkle of good quality extra virgin olive oil

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

2. Slice the tomato and mushroom and brush the pita with olive oil. Sprinkle all herbs evenly all over the oiled pita.

3. Top the pita with the feta cheese and bake for about 10 – 15 minutes, until the crust is fairly crispy. Serve warm with a glass of your favorite vino!

Ingredients

1 bunch of asparagus, trimmed and washed
1/2 pound of sliced, low-fat deli-style turkey
4 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper
salt and pepper to taste
cooking spray

Directions (For 2-3 people)

1.  Wash and trim the asparagus. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

2.  Spread aluminum foil over a large cookie sheet and spray with cooking spray.

3.  Wrap each asparagus spear with 1/2 slice of turkey. You can also leave some asparagus spears unwrapped in order to eat them plain (this also works well if you’re serving vegetarians).

4.  Arrange asparagus on the cookie sheet and sprinkle with salt, pepper, Parmesan cheese, and crushed red pepper. Spray with cooking spray and bake for about 12 minutes on 450. Serve warm and enjoy!

In the picture above, you’ll see that I served the asparagus with some whole-wheat bread and Portobello Medallions au Poivre, a fantastic dish that I highly recommend as well!

Ingredients (for 2-3 people)

1 medium eggplant
1 medium zucchini
1 14.05 oz can diced tomatoes
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup of parsley, finely chopped
2 teaspoons oregano
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 cups low-fat mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese, grated
olive oil
flour
cooking spray
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Slice the eggplant and zucchini lengthwise. Sprinkle salt over the eggplant (to draw out some of the water) and set aside for at least 20 minutes.

2. Finely chop the onion, parsley, and garlic and set aside.

3. Add some flour, salt, and pepper to a plate. You will coat the slices of eggplant and zucchini with the flour mixture.

4. Coat a large skillet with olive oil (one turn of the pan) and put on medium-high heat. Once the oil is heated, carefully coat both sides of the eggplant and zucchini slices and fry until light brown, turning the slices over after a few minutes. You might have to do this in two or three batches. Allow the fried slices to drain on a plate covered with two paper kitchen towels.

5. Saute the onions, half the parsley, and garlic in about 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the diced tomatoes, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Saute for about 8 minutes. Preheat the oven to about 400 degrees.

6. Spray a 9×9 oven safe pan with cooking spray and add a layer of fried eggplant and zucchini slices, alternating these in the pan. Add a layer of the diced tomato mixture, then another layer of the fried eggplant and zucchini.

7. Bake on 400 degrees for about 25 minutes. Add the mozzarella and Parmesan and bake for another 5 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly. Sprinkle with the remaining parsley. Serve hot with your favorite bread and vino!